Invite us to form government, Congress tells Goa Governor

Panaji, May 17 (IANS) The Congress in Goa on Thursday demanded that Governor Mridula Sinha follow in the footsteps of her Karnataka couterpart Vajubhai Vala and invite the Congress, which emerged as the single largest party in the Assembly after the 2017 Assembly elections, to form the government in the coastal state.

"If the Karnataka Governor can invite the Bharatiya Janata Party, the single largest party to form the government, why can’t the Goa Governor invite the Congress, the single largest party in Goa, to form the government here? Why two critieria for two states? Why double standards?

"We request Her Excellency to follow big brother Karnataka Governor and invite the Congress to form the Goa government to recitfy a wrong," Congress state President Girish Chodankar told reporters.

The BJP won 13 seats in the 2017 Assembly elections, compared with 17 of the Congress.

However, after swift political manoeuvering, the BJP staked claim to power with two regional parties and independent MLAs and formed a coalition government after getting the nod from Sinha.

In Karnataka, BJP’s B.S. Yeddyurappa was sworn in as Chief MInister by Governor Vala, despite protests from the Congress and Janata Dal-Secular, which formed the post-poll coalition to bid for power.