Panaji, September 18: Irked with the deed of eight defectors, who according to them defied and betrayed God by merging into the BJP, some hardcore devotees of Lord Bodgeshwar at Mapusa on Sunday offered nine bananas along with areca nut and betel leaves praying that God should 'teach them a lesson'.

These devotees, gathered at Lord Bodgeshwar Temple at Mapusa in North Goa, said that eight bananas are in the name of defectors and ninth banana is in the name of those who have welcomed them in the party. Goa: Eight Congress MLAs Join BJP in Presence of CM Pramod Sawant.

On September 14, former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Michael Lobo, Delilah Lobo, Kedar Naik, Sankalp Amonkar, Rajesh Faldesai, Aleixo Sequeira and Rudolf Fernandes merged the Congress party into the BJP. Kamat had justified his decision saying it was under God's guidance that he decided to quit the Congress and join BJP.

What has hurt these devotees of Lord Bodgeshwar, that these defectors though had taken oath before Gods at Church, Dargah and Temple that they will not defect, have not only betrayed voters but also God.

"God told me 'you take the decision, I am with you'. Hence I decided to join the BJP," Kamat had said. Justifying his deed by saying that 'God has told him to join the BJP, has largely caught the attention of many people across the country.

"I went back to the temple and I asked God and Goddess what I should do. We have a system of taking 'Prasad'. God said go ahead, don't worry," Kamat further said. 'Prasad' is traditionally practiced in Goa from ancient times, asking Gods and Goddess about different problems and their solutions through Priest. This is practiced in many temples of Goa. Devotees take this 'prasad' before doing any good work and also seek solutions to their problems.

"The people of Goa are hurt because these defectors have lied to God. We have prayed to God that within the next 15 days He should teach them a lesson," a devotee said. These devotees targeted Digambar Kamat, Sankalp Amonkar, Michael Lobo and his wife Delilah Lobo for switching the parties.

"It is strange to see Digambar Kamat saying God spoke to him. Does it suit him to speak like this at this age?," he questioned. These devotees said all the eight defectors will suffer major loss in the future for betraying God. "If these MLAs had guts then they should have resigned and contested on the BJP ticket," the devotee said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 18, 2022 04:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).