Ailing Parrikar may not make it to Amit Shah meeting

Panaji: Ailing Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, currently being treated for advanced pancreatic cancer in the US, may not make it to Goa in time for BJP President Amit Shah’s one-day visit to the state, Goa party President Vinay Tendulkar said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters, Tendulkar said Parrikar was “likely” to return to Goa in the third week of May, a few days after Shah’s proposed visit to the state on May 13, during which the latter is expected to address a meeting of party booth level workers at an indoor stadium near Panaji.

“The Chief Minister is scheduled to return to Goa in the third week of May. But if doctors permit, he may return earlier. We are, however, preparing for the national President’s meeting in full swing,” Tendulkar said.

Parrikar is currently undergoing treatment for advanced pancreatic cancer in a New York hospital. He has been hospitalised on three occasions in Mumbai’s Lilavati Hospital and the Goa Medical College here ever since he complained of stomach pain on February 15 and was subsequently diagnosed for pancreatic cancer.

Shah is expected to address a meeting of 10,000 booth level BJP workers on May 13, as part of the preparations for the 2019 general elections.

IANS