Goa Minister Vishwajit Rane said the Congress is not going to get majority.
Goa Minister Vishwajit Rane today brushed off exit poll predictions of a cliffhanger in the coastal state and said it will be the Congress which will lack numbers. The exit polls have predicted a close battle in Goa where neither BJP nor the Congress will gain majority on its own, leaving the state open once again to another round of crossovers and allegations of horse trading.
In 2017, the BJP had managed to form the government in the state with the help of local parties and Independents, despite the Congress getting the largest number of seats. Of the 40 seats, the Congress won 17, the BJP 13. By the end of two years, 15 of the Congress MLAs had switched to the BJP, led by the Congress's leader of opposition, Babu Kavlekar, who was made the Deputy Chief Minister.
Mr Rane insisted that the rapid change of camp by political leaders in Goa is a Congress phenomenon. "If the Congress leaders change party so easily, that is not the problem of the Bhartiya Janata Party," he said.
"Ultimately the Congress they have taken oaths, they are trying to keep people together, they are trying to get in touch with other people... because obviously the Congress is not going to get majority. They will run short of numbers," he added, pointing to reports of Congress preparations to avert a replay of the 2017 outcome.
Both Congress and Arvnid Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party have been guarding their flock ahead of tomorrow's counting -- a situation exacerbated by the exit poll predictions.
There have been reports of the Congress rushing its leaders to ring-fence its candidates and move them to a resort in north Goa.
The party has also rushed its top leaders to the state.
Insisting that the BJP does not need to resort to any "resort politics", Mr Rane said: "I don't think one has to speculate to such a level that one has to resort to holiday politics in a resort. I'm confident that the numbers BJP get will inch towards a majority and tomorrow by 3.30-4 pm we will be in position to form a strong BJP government in the state."
Despite projecting nonchalance towards the exit polls, both camps have started sending feelers about alliances. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram admitted that the state leaders "of our party are in touch with Goan leaders of other parties".
The regional Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party -- sought after by both the BJP and Congress -- has said it will decide on which party to support after discussions with its ally Trinamool Congress.