Everyone welcome to Goa, says Parrikar after Min’s ‘scum’ remark

In a bid to end to the controversy triggered last week by a Goa Minister's comment slamming domestic tourists and 'North Indians' last week, Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Wednesday critiqued Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardesai's choice of words, but also said that tourists from across the world and the country are welcome to Goa, provided they do not urinate on roads and do not litter.

Parrikar, who broke his silence for the first time, ever since the controversy snowballed forcing Haryana Chief Minister Manoharlal Khattar to slam Sardesai's comments, also accused the media of twisting his statement last week about beer drinking propensities among girls.

"He (Vijai Sardesai) should not have used very harsh words. I spoke to him, he did not intend to, but it is not that his logic was wrong. But it was interpreted in a wrong way, or rather he may have also been able to express in the right way. He corrected it the next day," Parrikar told reporters. "Everyone is welcome, subject to condition, that he should not urinate on the road or he should not be part of garbage. Everyone. I am not mentioning whether Indian, foreign, even a local person, should not urinate on the road. Not only tourists, local persons also should not do it," he said.

Last week, Sardesai while speaking at the Goa Biz Fest near Panaji had run down the nearly seven million domestic tourists visiting the beach-state, calling them "scum of the earth". 

Reacting to the statement, the Haryana Chief Minister took objection to Sardesai's comments and raised a complaint with Goa CM.

About his statement during an interaction with students on drinking. CM said he did not deter anyone from drinking and his intention was to express concern and not fear.