Congress senior observer for Goa says focus is on strengthening party

Panaji: AICC senior observer for Goa Manikrao Thakare said that BJP’s faulty policies created an opportunity for Congress to strengthen its presence at the grassroots level. Thakare said that he visited each constituency to try and identify strong candidates who can take on BJP during the zilla parishad and assembly elections.
He said that the ongoing drive to strengthen the party does not mean that those who left the party would be allowed to return.
“If there are any former MLAs who want to contest, we will assess them. Many were defeated. Only those who can win the elections will be projected as candidates, but defectors will not be taken back,” said Thakare.
He initiated a discussion with party workers from those constituencies where the Congress MLAs quit and joined BJP. Similar block-level and booth-level meetings will be held in the remaining constituencies too.
“The main work that we have before us is to strengthen the party. One thing is certain, this is a good opportunity for us to strengthen our blocks for the zilla parishad elections and the assembly elections. We started assigning responsibilities and tasks in each block to our workers,” Thakare said after meeting the Calangute block members.
When asked about the party’s stance on pre-poll alliances, he said that the focus is on strengthening Congress in all 40 constituencies. “If we have a strong candidate in a constituency, we will project that candidate, but if we don’t have a strong candidate, then we will look towards the party high command for a way forward,” said Thakare.