Wednesday, 17 October 2018

Cong 'raider, 24-hr political drama & 'switch-over' race for Goa top post

Vishwajit Rane

Early local lore tells of the Ranes as feared Maratha raiders, who would ride into erstwhile Goa and plunder wealth from the region's wealthy folks.

In contemporary times, the Congress over the last two days, must have felt the heat of yet another raid -- to be more specific by a descendant of one of the several Rane clans -- Health Minister Vishwajit Rane, who has claimed credit for the switch-over of two Congress MLAs into the BJP's pocket.

Now-former MLAs, Subhash Shirodkar and Dayanand Sopte on Tuesday, joined the BJP at a formal ceremony in the national capital, putting not just the Congress in a tight spot, but also BJP's allies Goa Forward and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party.

The switch-over has left the Congress and the BJP tied at 14 legislators each, with the Congress no longer in a position to claim the single largest party (in the state assembly) status and exercise their privilege before the Governor to stake claim to form a government.

It also leaves the ruling allies Goa Forward and Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party, some of whose members were flirting with the Congress with a toppling game in mind, with very little room to manouvre, especially now after the BJP's central and state leadership have threatened them with the dissolution of the state assembly.

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