Goa Congress slams BJP over failing to protect candidate

Panaji, May 17 (IANS) Following an attack on Sidharth Kuncalienkar, the BJP candidate for the Panaji Assembly bypolls, Goa Congress President Girish Chodankar on Friday slammed the BJP-led coalition government in the coastal state over its failure to protect its own candidate.

"Congress is not in power. If your (BJP) candidate is not safe, then how can you safeguard people? There should be at least 100 cops and five jeeps protecting Sidharth (Kuncalienkar) at all times... We strongly demand that he should not even be allowed to go to the toilet alone," Chodankar told the media here.

Chodankar's remark came after Kuncalienkar on Thursday night blamed the Opposition after unidentified assailants hurled a bottle at his car while he was inside the vehicle.

"It is a shame for the government and the Chief Minister," Chodankar said, adding that the police must arrest the culprit at the earliest.

A police complaint was registered at the Panaji police station on Friday morning.

According to the complaint, Kuncalienkar was travelling with a friend late on Thursday night in Panaji's Mala ward when the assailants riding in a two-wheeler flung a bottle at his car's windshield.

Kuncalienkar said the incident happened while they were passing through his constituency after a public meeting addressed by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari ended late on Thursday.

"My opponents must have been rattled after the success of the meeting, which is why they resorted to this act in desperation," Kuncalienkar said.

Kunclaienkar takes on Atanasio Monserrate of the Congress, Valmiki Naik of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Subhash Velingkar of the Goa Suraksha Manch in the May 19 bypolls.