BJP Lok Sabha MP and the party's Yuva Morcha national president Tejasvi Surya on Saturday said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee were visiting Goa ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls as part of "political tourism". He further taunted that Gandhi was visiting Goa as Thailand, also a tourism hub, was closed for the past one-and-half years due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Addressing a press conference, Surya said despite the entry of TMC and Aam Aadmi Party into the state, the people knew the ruling BJP was a "tried and tested model of politics". "Mamata Banerjee and Rahul Gandhi are both in Goa on political tourism. I can understand Rahul Gandhi's difficulty as due to Covid-19, during the last one-and-half years, Thailand is not allowing visitors. Similarly, AAP is also here for political tourism," he said, adding that he wished the Congress leader a "happy vacation".
“People have reposed their trust in the BJP twice (2012 and 2017). I can assure you none of these political tourists will be able to dent the BJP's popularity in Goa. Our party will to come to power for a third term (in 2022) here," Surya claimed. He said the Congress has no vision or leaders or cadre at the national and state levels, while only the BJP can find an "organic leader" like (chief minister) Pramod Sawant who was not handed anything on a platter.
He said the AAP was a "non-starter" in Goa as the Arvind Kejriwal-led party had no hold outside Delhi. As for the TMC, he said Banerjee claims her party stood for "temple, mosque and church", whereas it actually stood for "terrorism, mafia and corruption".
"The TMC is only found in hoardings in Goa. It does not have cadre or organisation or policy here. What can Banerjee, known for misrule in West Bengal, offer Goa, which is being ruled well by CM Sawant," he said. Attacking the TMC further, Surya said the culture of Goa was about harmony and no one got killed here for their political ideology. "There is a culture of political respect.
The TMC will bring its terror driven, violence-driven political model. Every Goan should ensure such a culture doesn't land in Goa. Tourism cannot survive where there is terrorism,” Surya asserted.
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