Congressman joins BJP, takes parting shot at Churchill and Vishwajeet

After being with Goa Pradesh Congress Committee for 17 years, Vishnu Wagh, state general secretary and spokesperson has joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Goa as a primary member. Taking a parting shot at the Congress, he said that “The party has changed over the years and it is disheartening. It is sad to see people like Vishwajit Rane (health minister) and Churchill Alemao (PWD minister) who have no commitment to the party but only self interest in holding the party to ransom every now and then.”

Wagh said that leaving the Congress was very difficult for him but was having differences with the Congress leadership in Goa over the issue of medium of instruction. “I have been fighting with the Congress leadership over the MoI issue for some time. But when they stuck to their position, I had no option but to quit. I have come to the BJP without any conditions and like a simple soldier of the party,” Wagh said.

Incidentally, sources in GPCC say that it was the party decision to remove Wagh rather than him leave the party and the GPCC reached this decision on account of the stance that Wagh had taken on the MoI issue in supporting BJP demands.

After inducting Wagh into the party, BJP president Laximikant Parsekar told media that as of now, Wagh was just a primary member of the party and no additional responsibility or post had been entrusted to him. Parsekar said Wagh was already with the BJP for the last five or six months over different issues including the medium of instruction and illegal mining in Goa. “There were rumors in the media that Wagh was joining the BJP. Today, we have put those rumors to rest,” Parsekar said.

“Congress has become insensitive towards the feelings of the people,” Wagh said, adding that there are several other Congressmen, who will be joining the party in next two months.