The politics of a resignation drama

In the elections held to elect booth-level committees of the Goa Pradesh Youth Congress on Wednesday, chief minister Digambar Kamat-backed candidate Baburao Bandodkar emerged victorious by a wafer-thin margin of one vote over Pritesh Kavlekar from the rival camp.

Two other members, Hassan Mulla and Miraj Khan-both from Moti Dongor and learnt to have been backed by Kamat-could not poll the bare minimum of five votes and were thus left out of the block committee.

Analysts said this indicated that the chief minister's hold over the Youth Congress in his home constituency has largely weakened. Thus with the GPYC elections concluding on Wednesday, a straight fight is now on the cards between Pratima Coutinho and Xavier Fialho for the post of president.

Newspaper reports say senior politicians, including a couple of ministers, have now tacitly backed Fialho, in a bid to keep Pratima at bay. Fialho also enjoys the support of the Alemao-camp, it is learnt. Some of the Gen Next members of the Alemao family were also spotted outside one of the polling booths, newspaper reports said. Nevertheless, the Coutinho-camp sounded optimistic of an easy win for Pratima.

The Alemao brothers who had resigned from the State Cabinet, and after a meeting with the Congress High Command on Sunday, reportedly got a pat on the back and nothing else. With no other assurance being given, the two brothers returned back to withdraw their resignations and vouch loyalty to the party.

What news papers termed a damp squib of a resignation drama, is surely turning up to be something else. The resignation drama was a smoke screen; the real drama is now unfolding.

Mr. Churchill Alemao said the party leaders have asked them not to quit. “They (party leaders) have assured that Ms. Valanka would be given due importance for a party ticket during the forthcoming Goa legislative assembly elections,” he told reporters.

The question now in everybody’s mind is, if the Alemao brothers resigned because Valanka was disqualified from contesting the GPYCC elections, what did the Delhi trip achieve?

They have returned empty handed, with the high command not even assuring them to reverse the disqualification issue, nor has Valanka been promised anything. So what did the Alemao brothers gain, is what everybody is wondering.