Disgruntled NCP to rethink over extending support to Congress

Panaji, Aug 11 (UNI) The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) may rethink about the future course of action if Congress, the main coalition partner in the Digambar Kamat government, continues to ignore the demands of the party executive in Goa.

The three-member NCP legislature party, while reviewing the political situation in the state in view of the monsoon session of the state legislative assembly, beginning August 18, made these observation here today.

Speaking to mediapersons, Party leader and revenue minister Jose Philip D'Souza said the meeting unanimously felt that it should immediately convey the feelings of the members that the coalition partner was ignoring the demands of the NCP for long, resulting in frustration of the executive members, who were denied positions in the government including corporations, he said.

The Party also regretted that the chief minister Digambar Kamat had failed to convene the coordination committee meeting of the coalition partners so far so that the grievances could be discussed threadbare.

It might be recalled that the NCP legislators in collaboration with two Maharashtra Gomantak Party and one Independent member had threatened to withdraw support to the coalition government twice when the House was in session but later arrived at a compromise formula.

With the assembly session due from August 18, the government had inducted unattached legislator Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate into the cabinet on August 6, averting a possible threat to the government, fulfilling the promise it made to Babush for supporting the then minority government of Mr Kamat in July last year.

The meeting also discussed strategy to be adopted to face the short budget session. The other NCP legislators present during the meeting included tourism minister Mickey Pascheco and parliamentary secretary Neelkant Halarankar.

NCP had forged pre-election coalition with the Congress and won three seats out of six alloted to the party. All the three were occupying government positions.

Besides, the party president and former deputy chief minister Dr Wilfred D'Souza was also occupying the government position as deputy chairman of the state planning commission, though he lost election in his native Saligao constituency on June 2 last year.

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