Goa Minister Michael Lobo, MLA Quit BJP; CM Says 'Few Defections' Won't Affect Party

Goa Election 2022: The Goa BJP unit said such actions would have no bearing on the party's chances in the state Assembly elections on February 14.

Goa minister Michael Lobo submitted his resignation to the CMO and the Goa Assembly Speaker on Monday (Twitter/@MichaelLobo76)

New Delhi: Weeks ahead of polls, Goa minister Michael Lobo and BJP MLA Pravin Zantye resigned from both the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Legislative Assembly on Monday.

The Goa BJP unit said such actions would have no bearing on the party's chances in the state Assembly elections on February 14.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said on Twitter that "a few defections" would not impede the BJP's agenda of good governance, and expressed confidence that the people of Goa would elect his party to another term in office.

Lobo Expected To Join Congress

Michael Lobo represented the Calangute Assembly constituency and held charge of the state port and waste management departments in the Goa Cabinet. PTI reported that Lobo is expected to join the Congress.

"I have resigned from both the posts. I will see what steps are to be taken next. I have also resigned from the BJP," Lobo was quoted by PTI in its report. 

When asked if he planed to join the Congress, Lobo stated that he was in discussions with other political parties. In the coastal state, he asserted, people were dissatisfied with the ruling BJP.

"The voters told me that the BJP is no more a party of the common people. The grass-root level workers are feeling ignored by the party," PTI quoted Lobo as saying.

BJP MLA Pravin Zantye Resigns From Party

Pravin Zantye, who represented the Mayem Assembly constituency, also resigned from the BJP and the state Assembly a few hours later on Monday.

Zantye told reporters that he joined the BJP at the request of former chief minister Manohar Parrikar, and that he was left out of the party after Parrikar's death.

He also stated that his district was plagued by unemployment, which he said the state government had "failed" to address.

'A Few Defections, To Fulfil Agenda Of Greed...': Goa CM Hits Out At Defectors 

In a tweet, Goa CM Pramod Sawant said, “Bharatiya Janata Party is a big family that continues to serve the motherland with full devotion! A few defections, to fulfil the agenda of greed and personal interests cannot deter our agenda of Good Governance.”

“Goan people have seen BJP’s governance and development model for a decade and I am sure that they will give us another term in their service. Jai Hind, Jai Goa,” he further said. 

Goa Assembly Elections 2022

On Saturday, the Election Commission of India announced that elections for all 40 Assembly constituencies in Goa would take place on February 14.

The main political parties in the race are the BJP, Congress, Goa Forward Party (GFP), Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress Party (TMC), and NCP.

Goa Assembly Elections 2017

The Congress emerged as the single largest party in the 2017 Goa Assembly elections, but it was unable to form a government. The BJP then formed an alliance with some regional parties and independents in order to gain control of the coastal state. 

Currently, the Congress has only two MLAs in the state.

(With PTI Inputs)