Shivraj Singh Chouhan slams Congress after party stakes claim to form Goa govt within hours of Parrikar’s demise
Former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan today slammed the Congress party for staking claim to form the government in Goa even before the last rites of Manohar Parrikar could be completed.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan called out the Congress for its greediness and insensitivity. He said the day has been marked to accord a state funeral to Manohar Parrikar and pay last respects to the leader.
On Saturday, just a few hours after Manohar Parrikar passed away, Goa Congress leader Girish Chodankar and Chandrakant Kavlekar wrote to Goa Governor Mridula Sinha for forming the government in Goa.
Many Twitter users also lashed out at Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his party for writing a letter to the governor to form the government in Goa within two hours of Manohar Parrikar’s death.
#VampireCongress was trending on Twitter as people slammed the “power-hungry party” for not paying any respect to Parrikar.
Meanwhile, a decision on next CM of Goa is likely to be taken by 2 pm today, news agency Press Trust of India quoted Goa BJP chief as saying.
Union minister and senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari held talks with party leaders and alliance partner Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) to select a new Goa chief at a hotel near Panaji in the morning.
BJP MLA Vishwajit Rane, MGP leader Sudin Dhavalikar, who are aspirants for the chief minister’s post, attended the meeting. A third contender, Pramod Sawant, who is currently the speaker, was not present.
Manohar Parrikar was heading a coalition government comprising the BJP, the Goa Forward Party (GFP), the MGP and Independents.
Parrikar died on Sunday, March 17, at the age of 63 after a prolonged battle with pancreatic cancer. He was working until his last breath. Parrikar served as the chief minister of Goa four times and as the defence minister for three years in the Narendra Modi government. He was the first IIT graduate to assume charge as the chief minister of an Indian state.
With the demise of Parrikar, the strength of 40-member Goa Legislative Assembly has been reduced to 36. BJP MLA Francis D’Souza died last month, while two Congress members had resigned last year.
The Congress is the single largest party in the state with 14 MLAs. The BJP has 12 legislators in the 40-member Goa assembly. The GFP, MGP and Independents have three MLAs each while the NCP has one legislator.
