Sena to fight BJP in Goa

Feeling ignored by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Shiv Sena has decided to put up candidates against the BJP, its alliance partner in Maharashtra, in the Goa (north) and Goa (south) parliamentary constituencies.

The party is also set to announce its candidates for the Silvasa (Dadra and Nagar Haveli) and Belgaum (Karnataka) parliamentary constituencies.

Confirming the move, Sena member of the Rajya Sabha Eknath Thakur told Business Standard, "The Sena and the BJP have a pre-poll alliance only in Maharashtra. Samir Bandodkar and Vishnu Prabhu will be contesting Goa Lok Sabha seats on the Sena ticket."

Thakur said while the Sena supported the BJP's Hindutva ideology, the feeling "unfortunately" had not been reciprocated by the BJP.

For instance, the Sena candidate was the runner-up in the last Lok Sabha elections from Silvasa and yet the BJP had fielded its candidate there, he added.

Similarly, the Sena had sought Belgaum seat. But that was not accepted by the BJP. So the Sena would contest this seat as well, the Sena leader said.

The Goa parliamentary elections are likely to be a close affair, in the wake of an alliance between the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) combine and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and the entry of the Sena in the contest.

During the last state elections, the BJP led by Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar had won 18 of the 40 Assembly seats. Parrikar formed the government with the help of three independents. The Congress had won 17 seats. At that time the NCP and the Congress were bitter rivals.

In case of an united fight, the Congress-NCP combine could have won four more Assembly seats and would have formed the government.

The situation has different now. While the NCP and the Congress have entered into a pre-poll alliance, the Sena has decided to contest. It will certainly make a dent on the BJP vote bank and benefit the NCP-Congress alliance.

However, Thakur is confident that the Sena candidates will romp home. "In earlier elections, the Sena only had a notional presence in Goa, which was aimed at making the party's symbol known to the electorate. Now we are sure that our candidates will win."