A senior BJP leader said a reshuffle was likely in the next few days as the party would need to accommodate at least a couple of Congress MLAs who have crossed over,
Bharatiya Janata Party Vice-President Uma Bharti will not attend the National Executive meet in Goa this weekend.
Former Goa Congress MLA Vishwajit Rane, who had defied the party whip to vote against the trust motion of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar last month, on Thursday formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.
It is a record that the saffron party has created, where the majority of its legislators belonged to the minority community.
'The Kerala BJP leadership is doing the job of clerical staff. What the boss orders, they just follow them.'
Fazal was governor during November 1999 to October 2002 in Goa and later in Maharashtra between October 2002 and December 2004.
The BJP is certain that the TMC will divide the Opposition votes, leaving it free to cruise through the polls.
After the assembly polls in 2017, the GFP, which had won three seats, had extended support for the formation of the then BJP-led state government under the leadership of Manohar Parrikar.
Desai's comments came amidst speculation doing the rounds in the political circles that Sawant will again be the chief minister of Goa.
"In Pahalgam, terrorists not only shed the blood of Indians, but also attacked our culture. They tried to divide our society and the biggest thing is that the terrorists have challenged the women power of India," Modi said.
If pandemic (mis)management threatened to dominate Goa's electoral discourse, the BJP is up against a deeper structural issue in its organisation, created by the fact that a majority of the legislature party and the ministerial council is made up of Congress defectors, disparagingly referred to by the Opposition as "imports". Radhika Ramaseshan reports.
BJP leader and caretaker chief minister Pramod Sawant is the clear favourite for the post of the CM but faces some opposition.
With just over a month to go for assembly elections in Goa, political observers feel the Congress may upset the Bharatiya Janata Party's plans for retaining power in the coastal state, but appear less enthused about the Trinamool Congress, whose entry has added colour to the poll campaign.
The BJP has nominated sitting MLA Dayanand Sopte from Mandrem assembly segment, which Parsekar had represented between 2002 and 2017.
The vote share of the Congress, which won 11 assembly seats in Goa this time, plunged by nearly five per cent as compared to what it was in the previous election, while the BJP, which retained power in the coastal state, saw a marginal rise in it, the data shared by the Election Commission shows.
In a similar move in July 2019, 10 Congress MLAs had switched over to the BJP.
"The TMC wants to defeat BJP and will do whatever necessary. We want to ensure that BJP does not win or form a government through the backdoor," Moitra said when asked about a possible pre-poll alliance with the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Congress.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal 'directly used' part of the alleged Rs 100 crore generated from the 'kickbacks' of the Delhi excise policy 'scam' by staying in a luxury hotel in Goa, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has claimed in its charge sheet filed against the Aam Aadmi Party supremo.
The recent move by a group of eight Congress MLAs in Goa to merge with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party was as per constitutional norms, state assembly speaker Ramesh Tawadkar said.
A day after the exit polls predicted a hung assembly in Goa, hectic political activities have begun in the state with the Congress focusing on keeping its flock together and plans to shift all its candidates to a resort, a senior party leader said on Tuesday.
The Goa government's decision has not gone down well with Opposition parties and industry bodies.
"The central leaders of BJP are in touch with Utpal and have offered two seats to contest elections in Goa. I am sure that this issue will be resolved and he will consider the offer," the Goa CM said.
With the entry of the Aam Aadmi Party and the Trinamool Congress in the poll arena, the election is expected to be a multi-cornered one this time.
'A daily dose of diversion & disinformation is handed out to undermine the Yatra. We remain undeterred. We will overcome these dirty tricks of the BJP'
Debutant legislator Rekha Gupta was sworn in as Delhi chief minister along with six ministers on Thursday in a grand show of strength full of colour and spectacle to mark the Bharatiya Janata Party's return to power in the city after more than 26 years.
There was heavy police presence in Sao Jose De Areal village near Margao town on Sunday after some people installed a statue of the Maratha king, while another group took objection.
Bharatiya Janata Party MP Tejasvi Surya on Sunday, became the first public representative to complete the Ironman 70.3 Challenge in Goa, which included 2 km of swimming, 90 km of cycling, and 21 km of running, the leader's office stated in a release.
Attacking the BJP, he said that the saffron party has remained a complete failure in the areas of COVID-19 management, livelihood, tourism.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has managed to contain dissent in most areas in the run-up to the Goa assembly polls scheduled for February 14, but four seats, including the prestigious Panaji constituency, continue to be a cause for worry.
BJP leader from Haryana and actor Sonali Phogat died of a heart attack in Goa, police said on Tuesday.
As the 240-seater prime minister attempts to moderate his image of hardline hero, he has made room for others to elbow in and that is what is happening. And that it what will continue to happen from inside the BJP, notes Aakar Patel.
The cabinet of the new government led by Rekha Gupta balances representation of all major communities that propelled the Bharatiya Janata Party to power in Delhi with a massive majority after over 26 years.
Deviya Rane said it is historic that no legislator (in Goa) has won consecutively so many times from the same seat.
The death of the former defence minister, who represented the Panaji assembly seat, will also necessitate a fourth bypoll in Goa.
'The BJP has proved that it is a threat to all its allies'
With the BJP's strength in the 40-member Goa assembly increasing to 27 with two-thirds of Congress legislators joining it, the Sawant government does not need allies' support any longer.
A US plane carrying 119 illegal Indian immigrants is expected to land at Amritsar airport on February 15, the second such batch of Indians deported by the Trump administration as part of a crackdown on illegal immigration. The plane is expected to land around 10 pm on Saturday. The 119 deportees include 67 from Punjab, 33 from Haryana, eight from Gujarat, three from Uttar Pradesh, two each from Goa, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and one each from Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. Another US plane carrying deportees is also expected to land on February 16. This development comes days after a US military aircraft carrying 104 illegal Indian immigrants landed at the Amritsar airport last week. Most of the deportees hailing from Punjab said they wanted to migrate to the US for a better life for their families. However, their dreams were shattered when they were caught at the US border and brought back in shackles. The Trump administration has launched a crackdown against illegal immigrants since taking office, leading to the deportation of many people who entered the US through illegal means. Several political leaders in Punjab have questioned the landing of US aircraft in Amritsar, with Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema alleging that the BJP-led Central government wants to defame Punjab. The Punjab government has formed a special investigation team to probe the issue of illegal human trafficking following the deportation of Indian citizens domiciled in Punjab from the US. The SIT has so far registered 10 FIRs against fraudulent immigration consultants based on statements from deportees.
The intrinsic inclusivity of Goa is the key to its great attraction, observes Rahul Singh.
We want to make a non-BJP political front in this country, Raut said.
Utpal Parrikar, son of former Goa chief minister the late Manohar Parrikar, on Friday quit the Bharatiya Janata Party.
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