Goa turmoil: Cong's Chidambaram asks people to teach defectors lesson by not electing them again

With Congress in Goa facing turmoil after some of its legislators went “incommunicado”, senior party leader P Chidambaram on Monday urged the people of the state to teach defectors a lesson by not electing them ever again.

He said Goans should “take charge of democracy” and eliminate this ugly stain of defections once and for all.

Chidambaram said in the last assembly elections in Goa, the people voted for the BJP to form a government and voted the Congress to sit in the Opposition.

"The Congress accepted the verdict of the people. Why is the BJP unable to accept the people’s mandate," he asked in a series of tweets.

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"It is because it is in the nature of BJP to arrogate to itself all powers. Because it is in the nature of BJP to trample on democratic norms," he alleged.

The senior Congress leader said Goa is not the first instance and unless the people wake up to the danger, it will not be the last instance.

"The malaise that has gripped Goa in the last 30 years can be eradicated only if the people of Goa vow to eliminate this ugly stain once and for all," the former Union minister said.

"Goans must resolve to punish a defector and resolve to never elect him or her again. Never elect a defector again," he said.

Chidambaram said Goans cannot leave democracy to the good sense of the political parties. "Goans must take charge of democracy in Goa".

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He said his impression was that Goans made that resolve in May 2022.

"When the time comes, I am sure the people of Goa will express themselves loud and clear," he said.

Chidambaram was a senior observer for the 2022 Goa assembly polls, and ahead of elections, he got all those given Congress tickets to take a pledge that they would not defect to any other party if they are elected.

The Congress is now facing a split in the Goa unit with some of its MLAs going incommunicado.

The grand old party appears to have averted a possible split in its legislative wing in Goa for the time being as it claimed the support of seven of the 11 party MLAs in the BJP-ruled state which saw assembly polls just four months ago.

A day after five out of the 11 MLAs went incommunicado, Goa Congress chief Amit Patkar said the number of MLAs with the party has risen to seven -- two more than Sunday's count -- and the party has also sought disqualification of a couple of legislators.

These 'out of reach' MLAs attended the monsoon session of the state assembly which began on Monday and claimed there was "nothing wrong" in the opposition party.