Goa Assembly

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday accused the BJP of deliberately stoking communal tensions in Goa and asserted that the ruling party's attempts will not go unchallenged as the people of the state and the whole of India "see through this divisive agenda". In a post on X, Gandhi said Goa's appeal lies in its natural beauty and the warmth and hospitality of its diverse and harmonious people. "Unfortunately, under BJP rule, this harmony is under attack. The BJP is deliberately stoking communal tensions, with a former RSS leader provoking Christians and Sangh organisations calling for an economic boycott of Muslims," the former Congress chief said. Across India, similar actions by the Sangh Parivar continue with impunity, backed by support from the highest levels, he alleged. "In Goa, the BJP's strategy is clear: divide the people while exploiting ecologically sensitive areas by illegally converting green land and bypassing environmental regulations - an assa

AAP Goa chief Amit Palekar on Tuesday rejected the claims that funds generated through Delhi's alleged excise policy-linked scam powered the party's campaign ahead of the 2022 assembly polls in the coastal state. Palekar, who was the chief ministerial face of the party for the polls, told PTI that there is no evidence to prove that any illicit money was sent to Goa, asserting that he and his party colleagues in the state are ready to face any inquiry by any agency. The Enforcement Director is fabricating the evidence against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). The agency has nothing to support its allegations, he claimed. As per ED, kickbacks received through the alleged Delhi excise scam were used by AAP in the 2022 Goa Assembly polls. It has arrested top AAP leaders, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in a money laundering case tied to the alleged scam. Kejriwal is in the custody of the agency till March 28. Palekar said that all AAP candidates spent from their pockets for th

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has said that efforts are on to form a delimitation commission before the upcoming Lok Sabha polls for reservation of some of the Goa assembly seats for the Scheduled Tribes (ST) community members. Talking to reporters in Porvorim near state capital Panaji on Monday evening, Sawant said he would make detailed statement on the issue in the House on Saturday during ongoing budget session. As of now, no seat in the 40-member Goa assembly is reserved for the ST community, one seat is reserved for the Scheduled Castes (SC) community. The ST community has been demanding that four out of the 40 seats in the Goa assembly be reserved for them during the 2027 state polls. The community members held a protest in Panaji on Monday after which the chief minister met a group of their leaders. "A delegation of the ST leaders met me. I have given them the assurance," Sawant said. He said the file on the issue of reservation of seats in the Goa assembly is pending

The party had drawn a blank in the 2017 Goa assembly polls, but won two seats in the 2022 elections

Newly-appointed AICC in-charge of Goa Manikrao Thakre on Wednesday said the Congress's recent electoral success in Telangana can be replicated in the coastal state currently ruled by the BJP. Thakre was in-charge of Telangana, where the Congress stormed to power last month after assembly polls, before he was given the responsibility of Goa and Dadra Nagar Haveli. Asked whether he can replicate Telangana's poll success in Goa for the Congress, the former Maharashtra minister contended there was no magic as sheer hard work and dedication by party workers and leaders led to the victory in the southern state. "Whatever experience I have got in Telangana that can be brought to Goa and put to use to help leaders here win elections," he said. Thakre said he worked in Telangana for 11 months, building the organisation which resulted in the assembly poll victory. Talking about Goa, where the Congress is out of power for more than a decade, Thakre said the party will have to unitedly fight

Earlier, the President was accorded a warm welcome at the assembly complex by Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai, Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant

All seven opposition members of the Goa legislative assembly were suspended for two days on Monday after they protested and created a ruckus on the floor of the House over Manipur violence. Speaking to reporters later, Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar called the behaviour of the opposition bench condemnable. The Monsson of the assembly which started on July 18 is scheduled to conclude on August 10. The suspended members are Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao, Congress MLAs Altone D'Costa and Carlos Ferreira, AAP's Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva, Goa Forward Party's Vijai Sardesai, and Viresh Borkar of Revolutionary Goans Party. After Question Hour, Alemao demanded a discussion on Manipur violence on the floor of the House, claiming that the private members' resolution moved last Friday by Cruz Silva on the issue was disallowed by Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar. All opposition members, dressed in black, started creating a ruckus on the House floor. The Speaker said that the entire country is sensitive

The BJP government in Goa is under attack from the opposition and has also invited the public's wrath for not fulfilling its poll promise of '3 free LPG cylinders'

Opposition members tried to disrupt Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai's address to the Goa Assembly on the first day of its winter session, demanding a statement from him on the Mahadayi river

Goa isn't new to defections. Political analysts say there have been at least 10 major episodes of defections since the state was liberated in the early 1960s

Former AICC secretary Girish Chodankar alleged that those who have joined BJP by betraying Congress and people of Goa are now reading out the "script" penned by BJP to tarnish the image of his party

Goa Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar on Thursday said he had accepted the merger of the state Congress Legislature Party (CLP) into the ruling BJP. He went through a letter submitted by Congress MLAs and found that they have required numbers, he told reporters. Eight out of 11 Congress MLAs on Wednesday passed a resolution to merge the legislature party into the BJP.

With the strength of Congress reduced to three, no opposition party in the Goa Legislative Assembly now has enough MLAs to stake claim to the post of Leader of Opposition. Assembly Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar told PTI in the evening that he has approved the defecting Congress MLAs' resolution to merge the Congress Legislative Party with the BJP. Eight out of eleven Congress MLAs joined the ruling BJP earlier on Wednesday. Current Leader of Opposition Michael Lobo was among those who crossed over. Tawadkar, who was in Delhi when these eight MLAs passed a resolution to merge the Congress Legislative Party with the BJP, rushed to his office upon return to Goa on Wednesday evening. As to who would be the Leader of Opposition now, he said he would examine technicalities and give some clarity on Thursday. For any political party to stake claim for the post of LoP, it should have minimum ten percent of MLAs in the House. In 40-member Goa Assembly, a party needs to have at least four MLAs.

After casting his vote in the state Assembly premises, Goa CM Pramod Sawant told reporters that he has requested all the MLAs to vote for the NDAs candidate Droupadi Murmu in the president

Opposition legislators on Friday stormed into the well of the Goa Assembly to protest against three projects which they claimed will turn the state into a coal import hub.

The Congress has accused the two MLAs of hobnobbing with the ruling BJP to bring about a split in the opposition party

As on Monday morning, five of the total 11 Congress MLAs, in the 40-member Goa Assembly, were with the party, while five others remained out of reach

The move comes amid speculation that some Congress MLAs in the 40-member House may cross over to the ruling BJP

Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said the state government is geared up to take over 88 leases, whose renewal was cancelled by the Supreme Court in 2018

The government will also take a Vote on Account for the next four months