As BJP leaves out Manohar Parrikar's son, Kejriwal says he's welcome to join AAP
Categories: Election 2022
On Thursday (January 20), BJP announced the list of 34 candidates for Goa and the name of Utpal Parrikar - former CM and popular BJP leader late Manohar Parrikar's son - was not on the list. Kejriwal said,I have always respected Manohar Parrikar ji. Utpal ji is welcome to join and fight elections on AAP ticket. Manohar Parrikar has been the former chief minister of Goa and passed away because of pancreatic cancer while being in office as Chief Minister. BJP has fielded Babush Monserrate from Panjim, which happened to be Manohar Parrikar's constituency for nearly 25 years. Sources close to the Parrikar family, aware of the developments, told ANI that for Utpal Parrikar it has become more of a sentimental and emotional issue to contest from the seat where his late father was an MLA. Even if some members from the family convince Utpal to go ahead and contest from some other constituency that BJP is offering him, it is pretty certain that Utpal will not budge. "We have spoken to Utpal and told him that we will put his political career alive and that he should contest from the seat that we are offering where he would be in a position to win and just in case if nothing works party will not dump him." While so far Utpal has not come out in the public about his decision to contest independently, the wait is still on, as BJP has kept candidature pending on six seats out of which one has been the one that the party had offered to junior Parrikar. And now with Kejriwal's comments, the matter might have just gotten more interesting.Goa will go to the assembly polls on February 14. The counting of votes will take place on March 10.