'People did not just take the money but literally feasted on it in the run up for the poll,' said Santosh Haldankar, BJP's candidate, who lost to Congress's Vishwajit Rane in the bypolls that were held on October 18.
After facing a humiliating defeat in Valpoi bypoll, Goa's opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has said that people feasted on money which led to their defeat.
"People did not just take the money but literally feasted on it in the run up for the poll," said Santosh Haldankar, BJP's candidate, who lost to Congress's Vishwajit Rane in the bypolls that were held on October 18.
Rushing out of the counting hall, Haldankar, who could get only 3,237 votes as against Rane's 11,642, said that people got carried away to money.
"He spent so much...It was all money power," he said.
Goa chief minister Digamber Kamat ridiculed BJP's claim that Congress wooed voters with money.
"This is an insult. The mandate is clearly favouring development. BJP leaders should realise that they have lost by huge margin and have lost their hold over the constituency," Kamat said.
Rane, health minister in the state cabinet, said that people voted against BJP "because they have had miserable experience during BJP's regime in the state."
"BJP chief minister Manohar Parrikar did nothing for these people. He left them to fend for themselves. People have seen hope in the form of congress," he said.
Rane, who in past led two rebellions against the chief minister, said, "I am with Kamat as he is the person who has understood the pulse of the state."
BJP's Goa unit president Laxmikant Parsekar said that people voted keeping in mind their personal benefits rather than ideology.
"People of Valpoi constituency are poor. For them, getting a job or earning few bucks is a priority over ideology," he said explaining his party's poor performance in the constituency.
Valpoi was a BJP stronghold before Rane got elected as an Independent candidate here and later joined Congress in June, this year, necessitating by-poll.
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