Goa Forward Party says CM Pramod Sawant lied about free LPG cylinders

PANAJI: Chief minister Pramod Sawant and the BJP lied about providing three free gas cylinders to families in Goa said the Goa Forward Party on Monday. The party said that government documents obtained through RTI indicate that the scheme has been scrapped.
In the manifesto released in February 2022, the BJP promised to free LPG cylinders to every household in Goa. This, said GFP, was aimed at women voters during the assembly polls.
“Women are soft targets and the BJP wanted to use this promise to target women and take their votes. We want to ask CM to clarify whether he intends to implement this scheme and give free cylinders to the women in Goa,” said GFP vice president advocate Ashma.
RTI documents show that the proposal to provide three free LPG cylinders was submitted by the RDA on June 2022 but the finance department appeared to have raised concerns about the scheme.
MMC councilor Nimisha Faleiro questioned the BJP Mahila wing’s silence. “Where are the Mahila BJP who had come on the streets aggressively during the 2019 Panaji elections? Are they quiet because the women of the Mahila Mandal of the BJP get these cylinders under a special scheme?” said Faleiro.
Ashma said that the government file notings suggest that the BJP never wanted to implement the free gas cylinder proposal.