Mining in Goa has been on a standstill since Supreme Court quashed 88 iron ore extraction leases. (File)
The Shiv Sena today demanded that the BJP should break its "silence and suspense" over the ban on iron ore mining and export in Goa.
Earlier in the day, Goa Forward Party president Vijai Sardesai had said his party will not support the BJP in the coming Lok Sabha elections if the current crisis is not ended.
Mining in Goa has come to a standstill since March 16 after the Supreme Court quashed 88 iron ore extraction leases.
"Shiv Sena feels it is high time the BJP broke its silence and suspense over the mining crisis affecting lakhs of people, especially after its own alliance partner Goa Forward Party has come out openly against the ruling party on this issue," the Sena's state spokesperson Rakhi Prabhudesai Naik said here.
"Sena was the first to ask the BJP to speak up. We expected the BJP to maintain silence and suspense on this issue as they are currently headless and direction-less. BJP has lost touch with the ground realities in the state," she said.
The BJP was solely responsible for the current state of affairs of the mining industry, Ms Naik alleged.
"The party might be waiting for elections to come and then do a stunt of approaching various agencies to resume the mining," she said. Ms Naik added that the GFP should pull out of the government if it means what it says.