In talks with Congress and TMC for Goa alliance: Sharad Pawar

Mumbai, Jan 11: Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said the Nationalist Congress Party is in talks with Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress and the Congress to fight the Goa assembly elections together.

"Trinamool, NCP and Congress are holding discussions. We have given our choice of seats to them. A decision will be made soon," Pawar said.

Two major pre-poll alliances took shape in Goa. Congress has tied up with GFP, a regional outfit that was a part of the Manohar Parrikar government in 2017, while TMC has found a regional partner in the form of MGP, which fought the 2017 polls in alliance with the Shiv Sena but later joined the Parrikar-led government.

AAP entered Goa's political scene during the 2017 Assembly elections and tried to build a base in the coastal state.

In the 2017 Goa Assembly polls, BJP won only 13 seats while Congress won in 17 constituencies. However, BJP staked claim to form the government with the support of 3 MGP MLAs, 3 GFP MLAs, two Independents and an NCP MLA under the leadership of Parrikar who resigned as defence minister to return to the coastal state.

After Parrikar's death in March 2019, then Assembly Speaker Pramod Sawant became the CM. Sawant's administration has come in for praise from PM Modi for his handling of the coronavirus pandemic and vaccination drive.

Goa will vote on February 14.