Panaji: After chief minister Pramod Sawant asked Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) to mend its ways, senior MGP functionary and power minister Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar on Saturday hit back, reminding Sawant of his past electoral defeats when MGP contested in Pale constituency.Despite friction, Dhavalikar said the MGP-BJP alliance was not formed at the state level but was shaped by Union home minister Amit Shah and Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. “I don’t have to speak on alliance with the party representatives at the local level. Till MGP is part of govt, we will not speak. The chief minister can comment on anything, but we will not speak,” Dhavalikar said.“At one point of time, when the MGP candidate contested in Pale constituency, which is now the Sanquelim constituency, Sawant had to face defeat. This fact is known to common man,” Dhavalikar said.Dhavalikar said that in every constituency, MGP has around 3,000 votes. “If the cadre activates the MGP voter base, then no other political party will withstand the pressure in Goa,” Dhavalikar said.He said that till date, people of Goa remember the 17-year stint of MGP. Those testimony to it are in the age group of 50 and above. “When the history of MGP will reach Gen Z, then they will realise what we did for the state,” Dhavalikar said. “If the alliance is formed, then we will win more than 23 seats,“ he said.On a possible coalition with MGP, Sawant said MGP should “know its limit” and refrain from conducting a survey in his Sanquelim constituency. Sawant had earlier said that MGP always got more seats when they were in alliance with BJP.In the 2022 assembly election, MGP joined hands with TMC and contested the election and was able to secure two seats, including Dhavalikar’s. MGP formed a post-poll alliance with BJP and became part of coalition govt.In the last couple of days, both parties have been exploring the option of continuing the alliance. Dhavalikar had already started a campaign in Ponda constituency, which was represented by BJP MLA Ravi Naik. The seat has been vacant for nearly a year following the death of Naik.
