Arvind Kejriwal hopes to win 35 of Goa’s 40 seats

Taking a break from his gruelling schedule, Dominic Pereira soaks in the moist sea breeze as he rests on a bench opposite the Colva beach. Pereira, a local auto-driver is one of the many Goans, who had whole-heartedly voted for a change in the last Goa assembly elections of 2012, making the BJP win 21 seats of the 40-seat assembly. 

However, as five years draw to a close, Pereira seems clearly disappointed with the way politics have panned out in Goa.
“There was no development in Goa in the years of Congress rule. Fed up of them, we Goans decided to give BJP a chance. But they have not done anything for the poor like us,” Pereira, 51, says, while he waits for a commuter.

“Nothing has improved after they came into power. What they have done is put up tens of traffic police at our village, who keep fining us on petty excuses,” says Sailesh Madgoankar, a 35-year-old fellow auto driver.

As Goa gears up for assembly elections next year, it is this gap left by the ruling BJP that gives an edge to other political parties – both the new entrant Aam Aadmi Party as well as the traditional Congress.

While the AAP, with its national ambitions, will contest elections in Goa, Punjab and Gujarat next year, the Congress, struggling to retain its presence across the states, will use the void to make a comeback to the state. 

However, most locals dna spoke to in the Margao, Betalbatim, Benaulim and Majorda areas of south Goa, said while Congress still has a loyal base in Goa, it is the AAP which is emerging as the strongest contender in the state, its pro-poor image striking a massive chord with the locals. 

“Looks like they (AAP) are doing a lot of good work for the poor people of Delhi. We read about them in the newspapers. Goans can give them a chance in the elections,” said Dinesh Faleiro, a local fisherman. “However, the final call on which political party to vote will be taken by our village head, depending on their (political parties') campaigns as the dates approach,” Faleiro asserted.

During a two-day visit to Goa, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday expressed confidence in performing a repeat of his party's stellar performance in Goa. “We are sure of winning 35 out of 40 seats in Goa. Our first priority is to curb corruption, he said.  The Aam Aadmi Party chief met members of the fishermen community and will meet local youths during his trip.

Pankaj Gupta, general secretary of AAP, who is spearheading the party’s campign in Goa, said the problem with Goa is that it has lost its unique identity in the last few years.
“Issues like corruption, garbage problem, drug abuse are rampant in Goa. It is where we want to chip in to make a change,” Gupta told dna. 

Gupta said the AAP’s Goa campaign will primarily focus on its anti-corruption plank, something that had paid the party richly during the Delhi assembly elections.
“CM Laxmikant Parsekar had reinstated his tainted brother-in-law. He had also given away an entire village land in his constituency for commercial purposes. People of Goa are very upset with the BJP’s corrupt practices,” Gupta alleged.

AAP spokesperson Ashutosh said locals' response to the party's campaigns have been great so far. "People there clearly want a change again. Even during the last rally of the CM (Kejriwal), the response has been tremendous," he said. 

However, a few locals dna spoke to also want to bring back the Congress to Goa. 

"They did not do much for us when in power. But at least they did not trouble us. They didn't alienate the poor like the BJP did," Dominic, another taxi driver with a private hotel, said.