GFP stitches alliance with Congress for 2022 Goa Assembly polls

Congress and Goa Forward Party (GFP) has formed an alliance for the 2022 Goa assembly polls. "Under the banner of Team Goa, Goa Forward Party and Congress will fight together and defeat BJP," said GFP president Vijay Sardesai.

New Delhi:Goa Forward Party president Vijay Sardesai on Wednesday announced that his party will fight the upcoming Goa Assembly polls in alliance with the Congress party to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The Goa Forward Party was earlier the partner of the BJP-led government in Goa till now. "Under the banner of Team Goa, Goa Forward Party and Congress will fight together and defeat BJP," said Sardesai.

Explaining the reasons behind leaving the BJP, Sardesai said, "BJP has betrayed me. The current Chief Minister is not like the former CM Manohar Parrikar. Parrikar was running a government with alliance partners, he had the experience of running a government, whereas, the current CM has no experience and is corrupted. To save the culture and economy of goa, so we have to with congress and defeat BJP."

The announcement of the alliance came after Sardesai met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi on Tuesday. "I met Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday and my meeting with him was very good... We want to come together on the basis of the ideas we share. Seat sharing will also be decided soon," he added.

On the question of forming an alliance with Trinamool Congress (TMC), Sardesai said, "It is for the Congress party to decide. In the meeting with Rahul Gandhi, I also discussed the possibility of an alliance with TMC, Rahul Gandhi said that whichever party or leader is determined to defeat the BJP, can come in alliance with us. However, this decision has to be taken by Congress only."

Read: AAP, TMC will be 'marginal players' in Goa assembly polls: P Chidambaram

"However, I met Mamata Banerjee last months but there is some problem due to which the alliance does not seem possible. Mamata Banerjee is doing politics in Goa on the basis of money. She is buying leaders of other parties. She has done the same with the leaders of the Forward Party and I think she has come to Goa only and only to benefit the BJP," he said.

"Although I am not ruling out the possibility of an alliance with Trinamool in future, we can come together before or even after the elections but that decision is to be taken by Congress only," he added.

Slamming the Aam Aadmi Party and Arvind Kejriwal, Sardesai said, "All the candidates of AAP will lose their deposits. This has happened with Aam Aadmi Party in the past also...Kejriwal came to Goa only to help BJP."

Assembly polls in Goa are due in early 2022. Goa Assembly has a strength of 40 members out of which BJP currently has 17 legislators and enjoys the support of legislators from Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Vijay Sardesai of the Goa Forward Party (GFP), and three independents. GFP and MGP each have three MLAs. Congress, on the other hand, has 15 MLAs in the house.

ANI