ELECTION 99
US EDITION
COLUMNISTS
DIARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ELECTIONS
ARCHIVES

Search Rediff

Instability continues to haunt Goa

Sandesh Prabhudesai in Panaji

Instability haunts the 20-day-old coalition government in Goa. In fact the partners in the Francisco Sardinha-led government are leaving no stone unturned to keep it stable. Sharad Pawar, president of the Nationalist Congress Party, has gone to the extent of appealing to his old friends in the Congress (now in the opposition here) not to destabilise the Bharatiya Janata Party-supported coalition government.

The BJP, on the other hand, has filed a petition in the high court pleading withdrawal of the multi-million rupee power rebate case against Mauvin Godinho, who is now a minister in the new coalition government. These developments have taken place amidst rumours doing the rounds in political circles that Ravi Naik, the newly elected Congress Legislature Party leader, is trying to topple the coalition government by trying to woo back his former colleagues, who had recently split the Congress to topple the Luizinho Faleiro government.

About the appeal made by Pawar, Dr Wilfred de Souza, the local NCP leader, says Goa requires stability to reverse the detrimental image the tourist state has gained. Pawar was in Goa for the last two days and even celebrated his birthday here at Cidade de Goa. After having a meeting with his local party colleagues, he left today morning.

Wilfred de Souza, the sole NCP legislator, supports the coalition government from outside. Though he expresses ignorance over attempts being made to destabilise the government, he feels that the disproportionate attention politicians pay to protect their flanks, so to speak, hampers developmental work.

BJP leader Manohar Parrikar, who has not accepted any cabinet berth, has admitted that he has sought to withdraw the power rebate case in order to keep the coalition government stable. Having exposed the major power rebate scandal that cost the public exchequer millions of rupees when Godinho was the power minister, Parrikar had succeeded in damaging the Congress image significantly.

"I have applied to withdraw it since my plea related to the issue of rebate has already been accepted by the high court while the Supreme Court is also seized of the entire controversy," he says. He has however requested the court for the right to challenge the basic issue of rebate once again if the Supreme Court reverses the earlier order.

Calling this government a less corrupt one than the erstwhile Faleiro government, Parrikar justifies his action as a sacrifice made to maintain the stability of the government. "Corrupt politicians are ultimately punished in the people's court," he says.

Tell us what you think of this report