Congress ready to align with any party willing to defeat BJP in Goa: Chidambaram - Hindustan Times
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Congress ready to align with any party willing to defeat BJP in Goa: Chidambaram

Jan 08, 2022 08:18 PM IST

In the 2017 Assembly elections, the Congress had emerged as the single-largest party in Goa as it won 17 seats in the 40-member House.

The Congress is ready to accept the support of any party that is keen to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Goa in the upcoming assembly elections, senior leader P Chidambaram said on Saturday, according to a news agency PTI. The Union territory is set to hold the voting for its 40-member assembly on February 14 this year. The term of the current assembly elected in 2017 will expire in March.

Former Union minister P Chidambaram.
Former Union minister P Chidambaram.

The statement by the senior Congress leader comes as Trinamool Congress Party's Goa in-charge Mahua Moitra suggested that the Mamata Banerjee-led party was open to a pre-poll alliance with the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and Congress. "I have read the TMC's statement on alliance in the newspaper today. Let's wait for the official word," the former Union minister said.

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"The Congress is capable of defeating the BJP on its own, but if any party wants to support the Congress to defeat the BJP, why should I say no?" Chidambaram said.

In the 2017 Assembly elections, the Congress had emerged as the single-largest party in Goa as it won 17 seats in the 40-member House. However, it failed to form the government after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which bagged 13, allied with some independents and regional parties to form the government under Manohar Parrikar who passed away in 2019. BJP's Pramod Sawant is the incumbent chief minister.

The number of Congress MLAs in Goa has now reduced to two as the bulk of its leaders have switched to other parties with at least two moving to TMC.

The Congress has already announced its pre-poll alliance with the GFP, while the TMC has a tie-up with the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP).

(With agency inputs)

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