Panaji, August 21 : BJP President Amit Shah’s statement on Saturday that the party’s government in Goa had delivered a “corruption-free government” is yet another “poll jumla”, the Congress said on Sunday.
The BJP-led coalition government in Goa had failed to deliver on several key promises mentioned in the party’s 2012 election manifesto, Congress spokesperson Trajano D’Mello told reporters here, a day after Shah’s visit to the state.
“Kicking off the election campaign, Amit Shah made a statement that only the BJP can give Goa a corruption-free government and, therefore, BJP should be elected again,” D’Mello said.
“This raises a question of either he is ignorant about what is going on in our state or he has been misguided by local leaders or he knows everything and is trying to fool the people of Goa as by his own admission he is a master of ‘jumla’.”
Shah was in Goa on Saturday, where he addressed a conclave of the party’s poll booth workers and also attended a closed-door meeting with the BJP’s state-level office-bearers and party legislators to chalk out a strategy for the 2017 assembly elections.
“Shah knew very well that the corruption in Goa is at its highest level and has exposed his corrupt vision for the nation by appealing to vote the same BJP corrupt government to make it a model for the entire nation for 2019 Lok Sabha elections,” D’Mello said.
He said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Goa had encouraged illegal land conversions to suit real estate lobbies.
Despite assurances to the contrary from BJP leaders, the casino industry and prostitution continued to flourish in the state, which is a well-known tourism hub, D’Mello said. “The BJP had also promised special status for Goa to conserve its unique cultural identity. It has not happened yet.”
