Panaji, Sept 22 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Manikrao Thakare on Tuesday claimed that the MLAs in Goa, who defected from his party to the ruling BJP few years back, now want to return to the party.
He, however, made it clear that the Congress has decided not to accept them back into the party fold.
The next assembly elections in the coastal state are scheduled to be held by February 2027 to elect all 40 members of the House. The BJP has been continuously ruling in Goa since March 2012.
The Congress faced two major mass defections in the state within a span of around three years, with 10 MLAs switching to the BJP in 2019 followed by eight more joining the ruling side in 2022. All the MLAs were elected on the Congress’ ticket.
Talking to PTI, Thakare, who is Congress’ Goa desk in-charge said that the MLAs who were elected on the Congress ticket and later shifted to the BJP for their personal gains, are now showing interest in coming back.
However, the Congress has taken a stand that it will never accept them, he said.
“The Congress has taken a firm decision that all those who quit the party will never be taken back into its fold. The biggest punishment for them is that they want to come back but the party has shut the doors on their face,” he said.
The Mallikarjun Kharge-led party is now gearing up for next year’s assembly polls.
Thakare said that Congress is open for alliance with “like-minded” parties, and has already begun talks with Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP), a local political outfit.
He said that they are ready for alliance talks with Goa Forward Party (GFP), another political outfit led by former deputy chief minister Vijai Sardesai.
(PTI News)
