Congress Candidate Evokes Nehru’s Speech to Claim Constitution Was ‘Forced’ on Goa Post-liberation

New Delhi: Adding to its long list of gaffes and recent misgivings as the Lok Sabha Elections 2024 got underway, the Congress party's South Goa candidate Viriato Fernandes on Monday claimed that the Indian Constitution was "forced" on Goa after its liberation from the Portuguese rule in 1961. Recalling that then-Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had said Goa (which became a state in 1987) will decide its own destiny, Fernandes lamented: "This did not happen".

Fernandes, who is known to be a vocal supporter of dual citizenship for the Goans who have opted for Portuguese passports, was speaking during an election meeting in South Goa.

Referring to his earlier conversation with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Fernandes said he had told him, “When Goa was liberated in the year 1961, the Indian Constitution was forced upon us.”

The Congress's South Goa candidate – at the time – was part of an NGO which was pressing for dual citizenship for Goans who have opted for Portuguese passports.

"We (during a meeting with Rahul Gandhi in a hotel near Panaji) raised 12 demands before Gandhi, and one of them was about (granting) dual citizenship. Rahul Gandhi had asked me whether the demand was constitutional. We said no," Fernandes reportedly told the gathering.

"I explained to him [Rahul Gandhi that the Indian Constitution came into force on January 26, 1950. When Goa was liberated from the Portuguese rule in 1961, you (referring to then central government) forced the Constitution upon us. We were not included in it," news agency PTI quoted Fernandes as recalling during an election meeting in South Goa.

Underlining that he recalled a speech of Rahul Gandhi's grandfather (Nehru) in which the former PM had said post-liberation Goa will decide its own destiny, Fernandes opined, "But our destiny was decided by someone else".  

Congress A Threat to Democracy, Pramod Sawant Says

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant took to social media platform 'X' to hit out at the Congress candidate and his party. Stressing that Fernandes's comments were “appalling”, the Goa CM called the Congress “a threat to democracy”.

"I am appalled by the comments from Congress's South Goa candidate claiming the Indian Constitution was forcefully imposed upon Goans. Our freedom fighters believed wholeheartedly that Goa is an inseparable part of India. Congress delayed Goa's liberation by 14 years. Now, their candidate dares to undermine the Indian Constitution?," the BJP leader said in a post.

Urging the Congress to stop with the politics of "breaking up" the country, Sawant further asserted, "Congress must stop this reckless Bharat Todo politics immediately. Congress is a threat to our democracy”.

Goa, which has two Lok Sabha seats, will vote on May 7 in the third phase of polling.