Former Goa Chief Minister and AICC General Secretary Luizinho Faleiro on Friday reiterated party’s accusation that the BJP had stolen the people’s mandate in the 2017 Goa State Assembly election.

He was addressing a joint press conference at the Congress headquarters in Panaji with two other Congress former Chief Ministers, Ravi Naik and Pratapsingh Rane. Mr. Faleiro, who was president of Pradesh Congress during that election, quoted one of the Ten Commandments ‘Thou shalt not steal’ to accuse the BJP of stealing the people’s mandate in the 2017 Goa State Assembly election.

He said, “Thou shalt not steal...However, the BJP stole the people’s mandate in the last election. What has been robbed and stolen, we will take it back in this byelection.”

He exuded confidence that the Congress will win all the bypolls.

He said that when the results of the four Assembly bypolls would be declared on May 23, the Congress would be in a position to reclaim the mandate and install its government in Goa.

Mr. Faleiro was referring to the “controversial” manner in which the BJP, with alliance partners, formed an alliance post Assembly elections to form the government despite the Congress emerging as the single largest party with 17 Seats in the 40-member State Legislative Assembly.

While the bypolls to three Assembly constituencies of Shiroda, Mandrem and Mapusa have been held along with the elections to two Lok Sabha constituencies on April 23, bypolls to Panaji Assembly constituency will be held on May 19.