Ahead of the 2022 Goa Assembly elections, Goa Forward Party President Vijai Sardesai on Tuesday, 30 November, announced that his party will join hands with the Congress to fight against the "incompetent and undemocratic reign" of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government.
The announcement came after Sardesai met with veteran Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday.
"Met Shri Rahul Gandhi along with my colleagues Prasad Gaonkar and Vinod Palyekar. We agreed to fight resolutely, wholeheartedly and unitedly on behalf of the people of #Goa to end the utterly corrupt, incompetent and undemocratic reign of the BJP," the Forward Party president said in a tweet.
Gaonkar, who is an independent MLA from Sanguem, had previously pledged his support to the Trinamool Congress Party, the latest entrant in the state's politics. He had announced in October that he would join the TMC officially once his office term came to an end.
'Curse of Communal, Anti-Goan Pramod Sawant-Govt Will Be Blown Away': Vijai Sardesai
Calling the incument Goan Chief Minister Pramod Sawant "communal" and anti-Goan, Vijay Sardesai, after his meeting with Rahul Gandhi, tweeted:
"Continuance of Goa under @BJP4Goa rule is an impossibility! Met with Shri @RahulGandhi. Proud to be working for the 2nd liberation of #Goa with the great grandson of the person who enabled the 1st! The curse of the communal and anti-Goan @DrPramodPSawant govt will be blown away!"
Dinesh Gundu Rao, Congress in-charge for Goa, also tweeted about the meeting.
"Shri Vijay Sardesi & Shri Vinod Palyekar of Goa Forward Party and independent MLA Shri Prasad Gaonkar met with Shri Rahul Gandhi and expressed their complete support to take on the Corrupt and Inept BJP Goa Govt in the ensuing Assembly elections," he stated.
Forty seats of Goa are slated to go to polls in February next year.
(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.)