GL responds:Electionsand societal changes suggest a transformation in Goa which involved elimination ofboth the Hindu/Brahmin domination and the Catholic colonial influence inpost-colonial Goa; and resulted in the emergence of a mercantile bourgeoisie(both Hindu and Christian & Goan and non-Goan) rooted in myriad aspects oftourism and commerce.
Are Goan intelligentsia still stuck on the pre-colonial landscape? Feedback welcomeRegards, GL -------------- Nandini Sardesai AGREE ________________________________ Devika Sequeira Earlier this month, Pramod Sawant met with the recently appointed bishop, Fr Sebastiao Mascarenhas, at Pilar tofelicitate him. Goa had been honoured by the Catholic priest's elevation, the chief minister said. (Mascarenhas is the second cleric in his family to become bishop.) Just a year ago, the Goa BJP had notched victory in the February 2022 election deploying a polarising campaign for the majority Hindu vote. Sawant had made it plainly clear engaging with Salcette (which still has a concentration of Catholic voters in some constituencies) wasn't on his agenda. That tune has changed in the chase for the single Lok Sabha seat of South Goa. The election is still a long way off in 2024. But for a party that has honed itself into a ruthless election fighting machine, as the BJP's media friends love to crow about, every seat counts.
