ALLIANCE OF CONGRESS-NCP ON ROCKS – HUNGRY FOR POWER, POLITICIANS

PANJIM: The statement made by senior party leaders in New Delhi about keeping out Mr Francisco Xavier Pacheco of the Nationalist Congress Party from the cabinet headed by Mr Digambar Kamat, has made many state Congress leaders feel that this could rock the alliance between the two alliance partners with the NCP leadership also maintaining adamant postures.

The senior Congress leaders feel that keeping out Mr Pacheco from the cabinet could be seen as a move by the central party to ensure that the “harmony” that was prevailing in the cabinet continued as the government enters the election year a few months from now. The Congress party seems to be veering around for bracing up for breakup if the NCP insisted on inclusion of Mr Pacheco, they added.

The Congress leaders also feel that given the temperament of Mr Pacheco and the taint attached to him it would be better for the central leaders of both the parties to ensure that the Benaulim MLA was not inducted in the government.

“Inclusion of the tainted former minister would give the opposition to derive electoral benefit,” they added.

“The central leaders feel that the entry of Mr Pacheco could create frictions in the cabinet, which they want to avoid under all circumstances,” said a senior Congress leader from South Goa adding that this move also could lead to alienation between the two parties and could also end the alliance.

The Congress leaders feel that as a principle the party could have accepted the directives of the NCP high command on inclusion of Mr Pacheco had it not been for his temperament and his frequent squabbles with his cabinet colleagues. His inclusion would vitiate the atmosphere in the cabinet, they added.

NCP sources said that their central leadership was adamant on dropping of their “errant” representatives in the cabinet, Mr Jose Philip D’Souza (revenue) and Mr Nilkanth Halarnkar (tourism) for their alleged “disobedience”. They said that they were waiting for directions from their central leaders on the future course of action. (NT)