Summary:
"The current situation has justified the decision of the Congress party not to have alliance with GFP in the 2017 assembly polls. PANAJI: In a scathing attack on Goa Forward Party and its chief Vijai Sardesai, Congress on Sunday said GFP and Sardesai had exposed themselves in the formalin in fish issue and they wouldn't want to have any understanding with the regional party in the future. "Congress' stand is clear: We don't want to compromise on issues that will destory the state and worse, health of the people," state Congress president Girish Chodankar said.He also said chief minister Manohar Parrikar had become a puppet in the hands of Sardesai and Congress would never want to be in such a situation. Our stand is vindicated," Chodankar told reporters here.Although Goa Forward Party and Congress were trying for a pre poll alliance for the 2017 assembly elections, a few Congress leaders took a cautious decision not to have one, he said.Chodankar also said that the government was compromising the health of the people of Goa to protect the fish mafia, adding that Parrikar had given the fish mafia a free handChodankar alleged that Parrikar has surrended to the cabinet ministers especially Sardesai only to save his chair.He added that the chief minister has "completely lost control over his cabinet" and cannot control the infighting, explaining that cabinet minisers Vishwajit Rane and Vijai Sardesai, Govind Gaude and Sudin Dhavalikar and Michael Lobo and Francis D'Souza are at loggerheads. Nobody is listening to the chief minister, he said.Chodankar said even before the report of the food and drugs administration (FDA) was released in the evening,the Goa Forward Party came out to defend it and protect the fish mafia.An investigation should be carried out to find out who pressurised the FDA into changing their reports, Chodankar said, adding that the call records of the FDA director should also be checked to find out who put pressure on her to change the report.Chodankar also rubbished Sardesai's suggestion of shifting the fish market from Fatorda and said it won't make the fish mafia disappear as he claimed.The state Congress chief also questioned Sardesai, who is also the agriculture minister, on steps that his department took to ensure formalin wasn't present in fruits and vegetables, since the GFP chief had said formalin was also present in fruits and he lost his sister to cancer.Agreeing with Rane's suggestion that fish production in the state is adequate for consumption, Chodankar said there's no need to import fish.He also said the government had failed to bring a solution to the problems of mining, offshore casinos and the draft CRZ notification.He blamed the BJP party and speaker of the legislative assembly for not allowing the Congress to raise the issue of formalin on the floor of the House..