NCP announces alliance plans at Churchill’s induction function

COLVA: Former PWD minister Churchill Alemao on Monday joined the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) at a function held at Benaulim where the party’s national spokesperson Nawab Malik said that an alliance with Congress would come through.
Saying that alliance talks are on, with NCP chief Sharad Pawar having already spoken to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Goa desk in-charge Digvijay Singh, Malik added they are also open to alliance with like-minded regional parties with the sole aim to defeat the BJP.
“We have asked the Congress party to allot only seven seats to us in case of an alliance, otherwise we will contest 35 seats in the state,” Malik said and added that the seven seats need not be the ones they had contested during the 2012 polls.
Welcoming Alemao into the party fold , Malik said stalwarts Alemao and NCP state party president Jose Philip D’Souza will take the party ahead in the 2017 polls.
Alemao said he had given the Congress enough time to decide about his candidature. He added that he refused presidentship of the NCP Goa as he is more interested in development and will work for the party whether it contests 35 or 7 seats.
D’Souza said NCP is growing and many more will join the party in the days to come. Welcoming Alemao into the party fold he said Alemao has the capability to reach out to masses.
When asked to name the seven constituencies NCP wants to contest from, D’Souza said the party has a sizeable support in Cortalim, Nuvem and Navelim besides Benaulim and Vasco.
NCP Goa spokesperson advocate Avinash Bhonsle, chairman of the minority cell Nazir Khan and NCP vice-president Rajendra Sadelkar were also present. After opening the office, a public meeting was held, officially kicking off Alemao’s campaign.