The BJP in Goa is undergoing a period of significant leadership changes and internal dynamics as it gears up for the 2027 assembly elections. With the appointment of Damu Naik as the State president, the party is striving to balance grassroots loyalty, caste considerations, and the challenges posed by intra-party rivalries. 'The Goan' delves into these developments and what they mean for the party’s future
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant (C) showers flower petals on BJP’s new State president Damu Naik (L) as outgoing party president Sadanand Tanavade looks on.
Photo Credits: Dr Pramod Sawant/X
PANAJI
It may have deferred the process at the national level a few times, but the party's organisational setup and its formation (election) down to the assembly constituency (mandal) level continues to be 'sacrosanct' for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in all the States.
Goa has been no exception and with the anointing of Damodar alias 'Damu' Naik -- two-term former Fatorda MLA, outgoing vice-president and among the foremost 'young turks' of the party here -- as the State president, the BJP has once again asserted its cardinal principal of rewarding leaders who have risen from the bottom (grassroots level).
Damu, who has been the State BJP's 'Yuva Mandal' president in the past, is now finally sailing in the senior party president's boat, having lost out at the eleventh hour on two previous occasions -- 2014 and 2019.
Stood out among contenders
One among seven contenders until a week ago, 'Damu' stood out among the other competitors -- Dayanand Mandrekar, Dilip Parulekar, Dayanand Sopte, Chandrakant (Babu) Kavlekar and Govind Parvatkar -- for his youth, unstinted loyalty and his uninterrupted engagement with party initiatives for the years he has been out of the Goa Assembly since 2012.
It couldn't have been summed up better than how the BJP's former State vice-president Prof Subhash Salkar did. In a social media post as soon as it was known that the choice of Damu was unanimous, he wrote: "Congratulations...ground level karyakarta is unanimously elected as the State President of the party...this is BJP... "
Caste factor
The caste factor is said to have been a major reason for the party leadership to actively work on a consensus around Damu for the top post in the State. Although the OBC Bhandari caste is seen as the largest natural support base of the party, the party has not had a president from that community since Shripad Naik in 2007. There were more Bhandari leaders among the contenders for the top post but Damu found favour with the leadership due to his track record in shouldering organisational work and loyalty.
Tough balancing act
Strongly entrenched in power in the State at least in numbers and the added cushion of stability of a party government at the centre, the BJP with Damu at the helm has a tough balancing act to do in Goa lest the boat he is skippering may tilt and eventually capsize with the weight of several heavyweight politicians who have gained entry into the party over the last decade.
A senior party leader, who did not wish to be identified, admitted that although dominant, the party is currently facing the "problem of plenty."
"In a way, we are encountering the same problems faced by the Congress in the 1990s when almost anyone and everyone from the State's political leadership joined the grand old party," the senior leader said, adding that Damu will have to deal with these problems and rein in all these top leaders to tow the party discipline line in tandem with Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.
Be it the Sawant-Rane chasm in the Sattari-Bicholim belt, or the unrest at the constituency level where turf battles simmer between the old-timer karyakatas and supporters of recently joined leaders in Saligao, Siolim, St Cruz, Cumbharjua and Mormugao, the new president will have his cup full, the leader said.
Another party insider pointed out a number of intra-party rivalries that Damu will have to deal with. The tussle between the Kavlekars in Quepem and Sanguem with Social Welfare Minister Subash Phal Dessai or the simmering differences between Michael Lobo and Tourism Minister Rohan Khaunte were a couple among several Damu will have to keep a close watch on and ensure the line is not crossed by these leaders, the party insider said.
How successful Damu is in taking everyone along despite the inherent differences and personality clashes within to keep the saffron party in good stead will be known only when the next assembly elections arrive in 2027.
