Goa: In Congress camp, old horse Sardinha still the strongest, can win hands down

MARGAO: While there are several versions and views on the capacity and capabilities of incumbent South Goa MP Francisco Sardinha, the fact remains that the old horse of Curtorim is still the strongest candidate in the Congress camp.

While several leaders in the INDIA alliance camp, including Goa Forward Party (GFP) chief and Fatorda strongman Vijai Sardesai have openly made their displeasure known and are against Sardinha getting one more chance, the former Goa CM can win the polls for the Congress with his extensive network of “friends” in the inner parts of the South Goa constituency.

“We have seen Sardinha work during the last polls of 2019. He has at least 10 to 15 personal contacts or “friends” in each and every village and waddo in South Goa. He has a huge fan base and a strong set of “silent voters”. He knows the people by name and its a matter of a few hours for him to rouse up big crowds for campaigning. His MO is very simple – he gets on the phone and starts dialling his old contacts – some of whom he knows for the last 30 to 40 years. And they obey and harken his call. The motorcycle pilots of South Goa, the taxi drivers and the street cart owners selling ros omelette in South Goa will vouch for Sardinha popularity and reach.

While it is also true that due to his advancing years and old age, Sardinha has not done as much as he should have in the years following the Covid pandemic, he is still a strong force to reckon with, a force which the well-oiled and well funded BJP election machine will find tough to defeat.

On several social media posts, it’s being said that the ruling party in Goa is lobbying against Sardinha, using age as the excuse. In reality, Sardinha is a very tough nut to crack and has several tricks up his sleeves. For him, getting the allies like AAP MLAs Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva around to do his bidding is child’s play and all he needs to do is make a few calls to Delhi – to Atishi and other senior AAP leaders.