Panaji: Attributing BJP’s victory in the 2012 Goa Assembly elections to its workers’ efforts, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar today said he was just the “face of the party” in the state.
“Statements are being made that in 2012, votes polled by BJP were for me. It is true that I went on a tour of the constituencies before the elections, but the real credit goes to the workers who worked to make the tour successful,” he told a booth-level BJP workers’ convention near here.
BJP president Amit Shah, who today kicked off the party’s campaign for Goa Assembly polls next year, was also present at the programme.
“The real strength of the party is the workers. Parrikar is just a face of the party,” the former Goa Chief Minister said.
Stressing that he would be always available for Goans, Parrikar said, “I have my family here, I have my workers here, I have my people of Goa here.”
Parrikar said, when he took over as the Goa Chief Minister in 2012, the state was facing a financial crisis.
“Due to closure of mining, 30 per cent revenue had dropped. Despite this, BJP fulfilled all the assurances it had given during the election,” he claimed.
“Also, payments of Rs 1,500 crore by the government, inherited from the previous (Congress-led) regime, was also due then,” Parrikar said.