Two disgruntled MGP ministers dropped from Goa cabinet

In a late development, which could have an impact on the upcoming state assembly polls, Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar dropped two ministers from the MGP from his cabinet.

The dropping of Sudin Dhavalikar (PWD) and Deepak Dhavalikar (Weights and Measures) follows several days of bitter acrimony between the alliance partners, the Maharasthtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party, over the choice of Parsekar as Chief Minister.

“Though it is my prerogative. I took my own time and I also consulted my party. But they are nobody to decide our party affairs,”

Parsekar also wrote to Governor Mridula Sinha informing her that the two ministers, both brothers, had been dropped from his cabinet.

“The portfolios allotted to both the respective ministers shall be retained by the undersigned till further arrangements,” Parsekar said in a letter to Sinha, which IANS had access to.

Political wrangling between alliance partners, the MGP and the BJP has increased, especially with elections to the 40-member assembly likely to be held early next year.

While the BJP has a simple majority of 21 seats in the assembly, the MGP has three MLAs, two of whom were ministers. MGP was also a member of the ruling Congress-led alliance from 2007-2012.

The MGP had been demanded dropping of Parsekar as Chief Minister and said that the sacking was a pre-requisite to the extension of the current alliance for the polls.

On Monday morning, Parsekar had in fact ruled out his stepping-down, asking both the Dhavalikars to resign instead.