With exit polls predicting that Goa poll results would end in a dead heat, political parties are preparing for post-poll scenarios.
Political analysts speculate that if a situation of a hung assembly arises, then Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) could have a key role in the formation of the government in the coastal state.
BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis said that it is “natural” for the (MGP) and the BJP to come together. “The BJP will form govt. We will take several people along with us despite the majority mark. Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) is an independent party. I think ideologically it’s natural for MGP and BJP to come together,” Fadnavis was quoted as saying by ANI.
All 40 Vidhan Sabha seats of Goa went to polls on 14 February in a single-phase election and the results in the state will be declared on Thursday.
Goa Congress Moves Candidates to Resort
Meanwhile, the Congress election candidates and party leaders have convened at a hotel in North Goa's Bambolim to guard against possible defections, ahead of the results. The Congress high command on Tuesday deputed Karnataka Congress chief D K Sivakumar as the special observer for poll management in Goa.
For the Congress, the memory of 2017 is too fresh in Goa. The Congress had won 17 of the 40 seats, just four short of the majority mark. The BJP had won 13 seats but managed to steal 17 Congress MLAs to form the government.
Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Girish Chodankar clarified that they had gathered for the birthday celebration of senior leader Digambar Kamat.
Taking a dig at the Congress, he said, “I’m absolutely sure that BJP will get good results, people are ready to come with us and with them, we’ll get a thumping majority. How can Congress form the government if it doesn’t trust its own MLAs & locks them up?"
State's BJP president Sadanand S Tanavade took a jibe at Congress and said, "Congress doesn't trust its candidates and thus, took them to temple, mosque, and church to take an oath of not joining any other party. All their candidates have been kept at a location now, there's no trust."
BJP Goa desk in-charge CT Ravi also mocked the Congress for their lack of trust in their contestants.
"They (Congress) don't trust the public or their candidates and hence are accusing in the name of EVMs; can they be hacked? EVM doesn't have an internet connection. If they had trusted, there wouldn't have been any need for securing (the EVMs)," Ravi told ANI.
'Sure BJP Will Get a Thumping Majority:’ Fadnavis
Fadnavis said that he is “absolutely sure" that the BJP will get a “thumping majority".
The MGP is currently in alliance with Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress but media reports suggest that the Congress have reached out to them.
The BJP leader Atanasio 'Babush' Monserrate contesting from Panjim told reporters on Wednesday, "We are confident that we will form a government on our own and we will prove exit poll wrong tomorrow... I am confident that if required, MGP will support BJP. We have a relationship with them".
‘Confident That the BJP Will Get a Full Majority:’ Sawant
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Tuesday that he felt confident the BJP will form the next government in the state. Sawant is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi on Tuesday afternoon.
“We are fully confident that the BJP will get a full majority and form the government. If we fall short of a seat or two, there are Independents who can win and support us,” he told reporters.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi on Tuesday.
BJP called on candidates on Wednesday ahead of the poll results. The party has called for a meeting at 4pm at the party headquarters.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)