New Delhi: Ahead of the July 18 presidential elections, the Congress party on Saturday shifted five out of its 11 MLAs in the state to Chennai. These MLAs include Sankalp Amonkar, Yuri Alemao, Altone D'Costa, Rudolf Fernandes and Carlose Alvares Ferreira. It is being said that these MLAs will now reach the Goa Assembly for the Presidential election, as reported by news agency PTI.
"All these MLAs flew to Chennai directly after the session got over on Friday," a senior Congress leader said, adding that they would return to Goa directly to participate in the presidential polls to be held on Monday.
However, six other MLAs of the opposition party - former chief minister Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, Delialah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Aleixo Sequeira and Rajesh Faldesai - are not part of the group that went to Chennai, sources said.
Just a few days ago, the Congress party, taking big action, removed the Leader of Opposition in the Goa Legislative Assembly Michael Lobo from the post. The party had accused him and former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat of conspiring against the party with the help of BJP. After this, Congress President Sonia Gandhi instructed Mukul Wasnik to go to Goa.
Michael Lobo said he had no clue about why the five other MLAs were taken to Chennai.
"I was not invited. I don't know why they were taken to Chennai," said Lobo, who claimed that he was in Mumbai on Friday evening as part of a business visit.
Polls to elect the next president will be held on July 18. The race for the Rashtrapati Bhavan is between National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) Droupadi Murmu and the joint resistance's competitor Yashwant Sinha.
(With PTI inputs)