Group of MLAs decide to corner Goa govt during budget session

Accusing the BJP government in Goa of indulging in irregularities and not taking up people's issues, a group of Opposition MLAs today vowed to corner the government in the Budget session of the Assembly that begins from Monday.
The legislators, including Congress's Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco, Vishwajit Rane, expelled Congress MLA Atanasio Monserratte and Independents Vijai Sardessai, Rohan Khaunte and Naresh Sawal, said they have decided to adopt a joint strategy to expose the Laxmikant Parsekar-led government.
The legislators, addressing a press conference, said they would corner the government on issues like beach cleaning scam, power failure, scam in organisation of International Film Festival of India (IFFI) and other issues.

"The budget that would be presented in the Assembly on March 16 would be just a hype and publicity-oriented. People's aspirations will be missing from that," Sardessai told reporters in presence of all the other legislators.
He accused the BJP-led government of giving unwarranted attention to useless issues while keeping the problems of the people on the backburner.
The legislators also criticised the government for giving less importance to the widespread monkey fever disease in the state, which has claimed seven lives.

"This government has totally failed in its duty to control the disease. People from my constituency are dying and the government has not taken any action on it," Congress legislator Vishwajit Rane representing Valpoi constituency said.

Several people are hospitalised and seven have already lost their lives due to the monkey fever.
Another independent legislator Rohan Khaunte alleged that the government has been "completely backing" illegalities in the beach cleanliness scam.
"If law is equal for everyone, the beach cleaning scam, which runs into crores of rupees, should be probed. The government is turning blind eye to it," he said.
Khaunte had raised the issue in the last Assembly session.
Congress's expelled legislator Atanasio Monserratte said the government indulged in fraud by giving a consultancy fee of Rs 200 crore to construct road between Miramar and Donapaula near here. "With that kind of money, a bridge across Zuari river could have been constructed. These frauds needs to be investigated by independent agencies and responsibilities should be fixed," he said.