Liberated for choosing truth over power: Govind Gaude

Margao:
Former art and culture minister Govind Gaude issued a defiant statement following his ouster from chief minister
Pramod Sawant
's cabinet on Wednesday. Gaude said he would always choose 'truth over power' and termed his removal as a 'liberation' to voice the struggles of the oppressed.
In his statement on social media platforms, Gaude said: 'There can be no greater honour than to be recognised on Goa Revolution Day for standing with the weak and oppressed. I am grateful to govt and the party for liberating me to give voice to the struggle — the very cause for which govt has taken this stance. When faced with the choice between power and truth, I will always choose truth.'
Gaude's removal from the cabinet stemmed directly from his attack on the tribal welfare department during a Prerna Din function on May 25, where he launched a scathing criticism of the department's administrative efficiency and transparency, and veiled allegations of corruption. The department is under CM Sawant.
Political observers said by terming his dismissal as 'liberation', Gaude has signalled his intention to continue to champion the cause of the tribals despite losing his ministerial position.

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What minister Gaude's sacking says about the Goa BJP

Almost a month after he alleged corruption in the tribal welfare department helmed by chief minister Dr Pramod Sawant, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dropped minister Govind Gaude from the Goa cabinet. In the evening of June 18, Goa Governor P.S. Sreedharan Pillai accepted Sawant's recommendation to remove Gaude, a two-term MLA from Priol belonging to the Hindu Gauda scheduled tribe (ST) community, from the council of at a 'Prerana Din' event at Ponda on May 25, Gaude, who held charge of the art and culture department, lashed out at the Sawant-led tribal welfare department that had organised the event along with the United Tribal Association Alliance. Gaude alleged contractors were asked to pay slush money, and that tax-payers' money was not being utilised efficiently. The statement came as a major embarrassment to Sawant and his government. The visibly upset CM promised 'appropriate action' against Gaude. 'Responsible ministers must make responsible statements,' Sawant his part, Gaude has dug his heels in and indicated he is prepared for the long haul. 'I have been rewarded this fate on the Goa Revolution Day for standing up for the downtrodden communities. Gratitude to my Government and Party for liberating me to continue the struggle that I voiced for,' he tweeted on micro-blogging site X (formerly Twitter).On June 19, Sawant told reporters it was his decision to drop Gaude from the cabinet. Damodar 'Damu' Naik, the state BJP president, said it was the CM's prerogative to decide on inducting or dropping ministers. The opposition claims Gaude was scapegoated for speaking out against corruption in the government. Leader of opposition and Congress leader Yuri Alemao says the BJP was 'intolerant of those who expose corruption'. Multiple ministers are facing charges of malfeasance but action was taken against Gaude instead. The people of Goa will send these people packing in the 2027 assembly election, Alemao In March, former minister and senior BJP leader Pandurang Madkaikar had claimed ministers were 'busy counting money' and 'looting' Goa. Shockingly, Madkaikar said he had paid Rs 15-20 lakh to a minister to get his work done. Following the statement, a north Goa court earlier this month ordered an FIR to be registered. Madkaikar, a former four-term MLA from Cumbarjua, also belongs to Gaude's Hindu Gauda ST Gaude, too, came under fire for technical glitches and allegations of corruption in the renovation of the Kala Academy, Goa, which was established in 1970 as an apex body to develop music, dance, drama and fine arts. He also found himself in the eye of a controversy after he was heard allegedly abusing and threatening a government officer in a purported audio clip of him that made the rounds last 2017, Gaude won as an independent after defeating Pandurang 'Deepak' Dhavalikar of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP). He joined the BJP and retained his seat in 2022. Deepak's elder brother, Ramakrishna 'Sudin' Dhavalikar, is power minister in the Sawant cabinet, and Gaude has a bristling relationship with the Dhavalikar is the second minister to be dropped from Sawant's cabinet. In November 2023, public works department (PWD) minister Nilesh Cabral had resigned to facilitate the induction of Aleixo Sequeira as minister for environment. Gaude's axing has led to speculation about a larger reshuffle in the ranks. Straws in the wind indicate former CM Digambar Kamat may make a comeback. The name of Calangute MLA Michael Lobo is also doing the rounds as a possible inductee after Sawant showered lavish praise on him in public. However, the CM has indicated a reshuffle is not on the cards in the immediate likely names from the tribal community who may replace Gaude are speaker Ramesh Tawadkar and Sanvordem MLA Ganesh Gaonkar, who defeated former minister Deepak Prabhu Pauskar. Tawadkar and Gaude are said to be at odds over emerging as tribal leaders in the state. Tawadkar had organised a rally named after Birsa Munda, and Gaude had questioned the utility of this campaign in his speech, which eventually led to him getting the marching orders. While Tawadkar is said to be close to Sawant, Gaude is reported to be close to his challenger Vishwajit Rane, the health minister. The son of former CM and Congress veteran Pratapsingh Raoji Rane, Vishwajit quit the Congress and joined the BJP in 2017 and was re-elected from his Valpoi constituency in north Ranes come from a prominent Kshatriya Maratha feudal family with its base in Sattari, and Rane senior has been the longest-serving CM of Goa. He was also the speaker of the Goa assembly. Vishwajit is said to be eager to occupy the chair his father once sat 2022, the BJP managed to retain power in Goa with 20 of 40 seats, largely due to the anti-incumbency vote being fractured by newer players like the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC). The Congress could win just 11 seats, and just months later, Kamat, then leader of opposition Lobo and six other MLAs defected to join the an internal churn in the BJP and the Congress retaining the South Goa Lok Sabha seat has indicated that all is not well in the ruling to India Today MagazineMust Watch

Scroll.in

3 days ago

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Goa minister removed from Cabinet weeks after alleging corruption in CM's department

Goa minister Govind Gaude was on Wednesday removed from the state Cabinet, three weeks after he made allegations of corruption in the Department of Tribal Welfare, The Indian Express reported. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant holds the tribal welfare portfolio in the state's Bharatiya Janata Party government. The decision to drop Gaude, the art and culture minister, from the Cabinet was taken unanimously, Goa BJP chief Damu Naik told The Indian Express. 'It was taken after consultations by the government, the party and the party's central leadership,' he was quoted as saying. 'Party discipline is a must.' A gazette notification said that Governor PS Sreedharan Pillai had accepted the chief minister's recommendation to remove Gaude from the Council of Ministers, the newspaper reported. In a social media post, Gaude said that he had been 'rewarded this fate' for standing with the marginalised sections of society on the occasion of Goa Liberation Day, which is celebrated on June 18. चिड्डल्या माडल्या लोकांचो पक्ष घेतलो हाची पावती गोंयच्या क्रांती दिसाक मेळप हाच्या परस व्हडले भाग्य आसपाक शकना. जे गजालीक लागून ह्या सरकारान ही भूमीका घेतल्या त्या संघर्शाक आवाज दिवपाक मेकळो केल्या खातीर म्हज्या सरकाराचें आनी पक्षाचें उपकार आटयता. सत्ता आनी सत्य भीतर निवड करपाची… — Govind Gaude (@Govind_Gaude) June 18, 2025 At a state-level function on May 26, Gaude had alleged that the state tribal welfare department was inefficient, and had claimed that its officials were taking bribes in exchange for signing files, PTI reported. Gaude, an Adivasi leader, had also questioned why the construction of a 'Tribal Bhavan' in the state had been stalled, and said that many Adivasis had given up their land for the project, according to The Indian Express. 'The foundation stone was laid when I was the tribal welfare minister,' Gaude had said. 'The project has been stalled. Why is there no progress in the project?' The BJP leader had claimed that he had been misquoted in the media. However, Sawant had said that action would be taken against him for his 'irresponsible statements', according to The Indian Express. In response to Gaude's allegations, the Congress had urged the governor to dissolve the state government citing 'rampant corruption', PTI reported. Opposition leader Vijai Sardesai said that Gaude had not been removed when there were allegations of corruption against him earlier. 'But, now when he raised allegations of corruption in the tribal department, the government acted against him,' added the Goa Forward Party chief.

News18

4 days ago

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Ministers removal from Goa cabinet: Oppn hits out at govt over corruption

Agency: PTI Panaji, Jun 19 (PTI) The opposition parties in Goa have targeted the Pramod Sawant government over alleged corruption after the removal of Art and Culture minister Govind Gaude from the state cabinet. Gaude was on Wednesday dropped from the state cabinet, almost a month after he alleged corruption in the tribal welfare department headed by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant. The notification issued by state Under Secretary (General Administration) Shreyas DSilva did not mention the official reason for his sacking. Speaking to reporters late Wednesday evening, Goa Congress chief Amit Patkar claimed several ministers in Sawant-led cabinet were involved in corruption and needed to be removed. AAP Goa president Amit Palekar in a post on his X handle welcomed Gaude's removal and claimed his party, with the help of people of the state, will bring down the Sawant government. Goa Forward Party head Vijai Sardesai said the minister was never removed in the past when there were allegations of corruption against him. 'But, now when he raised allegations of corruption in the tribal department, the government acted against him," Sardesai said. First Published: June 19, 2025, 09:15 IST