BJP’s Pramod Sawant is set to be the new Chief Minister of Goa, oath tonight: sources

PANAJI:  The BJP’s Pramod Sawant is set to be the new Chief Minister of Goa with an unprecedented two deputies – one from each alliance partner – signaling a resolution after tough negotiations alongside national mourning for Manohar Parrikar, who died on Sunday. The swearing-in may take place later tonight, just hours after Manohar Parrikar’s funeral. The BJP persuaded its partners to accept Pramod Sawant, the Goa Speaker, after talks that started soon after the chief minister’s death and continued overnight. Allies Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and Goa Forward Party (GFP) relented after snagging two deputy Chief Minister posts in the tiny state which has a cabinet of 12.

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Sudhin Dhavalikar of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and Vijay Sardesai of the Goa Forward Party will be deputy Chief Ministers as part of the understanding between the BJP and its allies.

Both had initially demanded the chief minister’s post, saying that they had supported Manohar Parrikar but after him, all bets were off.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, who arrived in Goa soon after Manohar Parrikar’s death on Sunday evening, held meetings with allies till 5.30 am this morning but without any solution.

The back-and-forth between the BJP and its allies carried on even as thousands mourned Manohar Parrikar’s death and several leaders paid tribute to him before his cremation with full state honours.

As the allies refused to budge, BJP president Amit Shah, who attended the funeral, reportedly stepped in.

The BJP has 12 lawmakers in the 40-member assembly and has a narrow majority of 21 with nine more lawmakers – three each of the Goa Forward Party, MGP and independents.

The Congress has 15, four short of the majority mark. Four seats are vacant after the death of two BJP members (including Manohar Parrikar) and the resignation of two Congress lawmakers.

In the 2017 Goa polls, when the Congress emerged as the largest party in a hung verdict, it was Nitin Gadkari who had negotiated alliances to establish a BJP-led coalition with Manohar Parrikar – then Union Defence Minister — as chief minister.

Manohar Parrikar, the BJP’s tallest leader in Goa, was the party’s most acceptable face for allies like the MGP and Goa Forward Party. The popular Goan leader kept the fractious coalition running, even making public appearances with a nasal tube and supported by aides at the peak of his battle with pancreatic cancer.

For now, the BJP has once again stymied the opposition Congress, which had written twice to the governor in two days for a chance to form government. The party has staked claim to power several times over the past year.