'Golden Goa or Gandhi Parivaar ka Goa': Amit Shah asks Goans to choose

New Delhi, Jan 30: Goans need to choose between BJP's 'Golden Goa' and Congress's 'Gandhi parivar ka Goa', said Union Home Minister and BJP leader Amit Shah.

Speaking at a public meeting in Goa's Ponda, BJP leader Amit Shah said, "for BJP Goa means 'Golden Goa'. But for Congress, it means 'Gandhi Parivaar ka Goa'. They just need a vacation spot."

"BJP brought development to Goa. For Gandhi family, Goa is just a vacation spot. We raised state's budget from 432 Cr (2013-14) to 2,567 Cr (Yr 2021). Ex-CM Digambar Kamat did nothing on infrastructure development. We did what we promised," he said.

Hitting out at the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) for contesting the next month's Goa elections, Shah said these parties have entered the fray just to expand their base or get national recognition.

"These parties cannot form a government here. It is only the BJP that can do so. Unless there is political stability, there can be no development," he asserted.

Slamming the Congress and the party's former Goa chief minister Digambar kamat, Shah said during Kamat's tenure, Goa was notorious for corruption, instability and chaos.

He also targeted senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, saying that he suffered from "Modi-phobia".

The Election Commission of India had last week extended its ban on physical rallies and roadshows till January 31 in five poll-bound states, but allowed public meetings with a maximum of 500 people in the constituencies where elections will be held in the first phase.

It had, however, granted a relaxation for political parties to hold indoor meetings of maximum 300 people or 50 per cent of the capacity of the hall.