Saturday, June 18 2005 11:20 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Panaji: The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) today (Jun 18, 2005) said there was no efforts on its parts to topple the Pratapsinh Rane Government in Goa and it would not "encourage" any such attempts.

"The Rane Government has the people's mandate and we respect that. We are not interested in forming a Government at this stage and nor will we support any attempt with outside support. We are very categorical about this," former BJP Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told reporters in Panaji.

Speculation has been rife in the local media over efforts to form an alternative Government by the NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) after one of its MLA's was denied a ministry berth by Chief Minister Rane during the cabinet expansion on June 10.

Reports have suggested that the NCP had approached the BJP and non-Congress allies to topple the Congress Government and provide an alternative.

Parrikar, however, denied that his party was involved in any such activity, saying, "We had said immediately after the elections that the BJP would play the role of a constructive Opposition. We will neither support any other Government from outside and nor will we encourage any such attempts." "The Congress and their allies have 21 MLA's, which is an absolute majority in the House. We respect that, and we will wait till the next general election. Let the people make a comparison between our Government and theirs and then decide. We are willing to wait till then," Parrikar added.