Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar, whose social engineering
formula of wooing Catholics to BJP through 'good governance' and
his personal charisma is facing formidable challenge barely two
years from successful State Assembly elections of 2012, thanks
to Church's apprehension over BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate
Narendra Modi's secular credentials, spoke to The Hindu in
Panaji ahead of Saturday Lok Sabha polls in Goa.  Mr. Parrikar
justified the BJP's decision not to put a minority candidate in
Catholic-dominated south Goa Lok Sabha constituency saying, "to
give ticket to a minority candidate artificially just to try and
give a signal was not correct."  Responding to the allegation
that by persisting with Mr. Narendra Sawaikar, a candidate from
RSS cadre in south Goa, BJP lost an opportunity to give ticket
to a Catholic, Mr. Parrikar said, "If a good minority candidate
was there, we would have definitely given ticket. If there is a
fit candidate, we do not care about religion, caste and creed.
Mr. Sawaika