Hung verdict in Manipur, Goa: Both BJP, Congress hope to form govt; regional parties hold card
Both the BJP and the Congress are claiming that they would form the government in Manipur with the support of like-minded regional parties.
With a hung assembly in Manipur and Goa, both the BJP and the Congress are claiming that they would form the government with the support of like-minded regional parties.
Manipur
The north eastern state has thrown up a hung assembly with the ruling Congress bagging 28 of the 60 seats and the BJP making giant strides to muster 21.
Besides the two prominent players, the Naga Peoples Front, which has an alliance with the BJP in Nagaland, too bagged four seats.
Lok Janshakti Party too won a seat and its leader and Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan has already announced the support of the lone MLA to the BJP.
Trinamool Congress and an Independent candidate won one seat each.
National Peoples Party (NPP) has won four seats and could be key to forming government in the state.
Support from regional parties is essential and both the Congress and the BJP claimed that they would form the government.
Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) General Secretary Ram Madhav today said the party will muster support to have the numbers required to form the government in Manipur.
"The BJP has already got some support and hopes for cooperation of others as well to get the numbers required to form the government in Manipur," he said here.
He said the election results were a clear mandate against the Congress and the Ibobi Singh government.
He hoped that all elected representatives will come together and support the BJP to help it form the government in the northeastern state.
The Congress is also confident that it will be able to draw support from smaller players.
“We are confident that we will form the next government in Manipur. We are already in talks with like-minded secular and regional parties,” Manipur Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) chief Haokip was quoted as saying by PTI yesterday.
Asked if the Congress was open to an alliance with the NPF, Haokip replied in the negative.
"The Congress will never go for an alliance with the NPF and the BJP. We are open for alliance with any other party," the Congress leader said.
State BJP president K Bhabananda Singh also exuded confidence of forming the government in the state. "We are confident of forming the next government in Manipur," he said.
Goa
With Goa polls throwing up a fractured verdict, both the BJP and the Congress legislature parties are meeting today to decide their respective leaders and work out strategies to form government in the state.
"The BJP legislature party will meet in the afternoon. We will explore the possibility of forming the next government," party's state general secretary Sadanand Tanawade told PTI today.
Senior BJP leader and Defence minister Manohar Parrikar is expected to attend the meeting, sources said.
The Congress Legislature Party will also meet today.
Following the meeting, the party is expected to stake claim to form government as it has the won the maximum 17 seats in the state Assembly elections, All India Congress Committee Secretary Girish Chodankar said.
In the 40-member House, the BJP bagged 13 seats. The Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), the Goa Forward Party (GFP) and the independents won three seats each, while the NCP bagged one.
The stand of regional parties the Goa Forward Party and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party is likely to play a decisive role in the formation of the next government.
The MGP had snapped ties with the BJP ahead of the polls, held in February.
The GFP, which has not revealed its strategy so far, will also be meeting today to discuss the situation, its spokesman Durgadas Kamat said.
Both the Congress and the BJP are expected to woo the regional forces to get the required numbers to form government in the tourist state where the majority mark is 21.
Independent candidate Rohan Khaunte, backed by the Congress, won in Porvorim seat taking the partys tally to 18.
The party is now short of three legislators to stake claim to rule the state.
The BJPs tally stands at 14 as Independent candidate Govind Gawade, supported by the party, won in Priol seat.
The party needs support of seven more MLAs to retain power in the coastal state.
The NCPs lone legislator Churchill Alemao is expected to go with the Congress, party sources said.