BJP leader Rajiv Pratap Rudy to be in charge of Goa elections

Panaji, Mar 10 (UNI) BJP's national spokesperson and former Union Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy has been asked by the party's central leadership to take charge of Assembly elections in Goa, highly placed party sources said here today.

Official announcement of this is yet to be made by the party high command in New Delhi, sources said.

Mr Rudy, who will visit Goa soon, would acquaint himself with the rank and file of the party and assess the situation besides evolving strategies for ensuring success of the party in the hustings scheduled to be held in May this year.

Meanwhile, the party is gearing up to face the elections even as it decided to contest from all the 40 Assembly segments on its own.

National vice-president M Venkaiah Naidu had formally launched the pre-election campaign last month from Mapusa, followed by door-to-door simultaneous mass contact programme by the workers in all constituencies.

The party was sure of winning the confidence of the minority Catholic community also this time even as several leaders started joining the party, sources claimed.

All the political parties in Goa are now in an election mood with the last session of the State Legislative Assembly for the current term ending on May 30, concluding yesterday.

In the 5-day Budget session, Chief Minister Pratapsingh Rane had presented an 'all-pleasing' pre-election Budget offering sops and incentives to farmers, women and school children without imposing new taxes for the year 2007-08.

The Opposition Leader Manohar Parrikar, however, termed it as ''colourless, odourless and directionless'' Budget.

He also blamed the Congress party for the unrest among government employees which led to invoking the Essential Services Maintenance Act banning strikes by the government servants, since yesterday.

UNI