Margao, Jan 12 (TOI): Former power minister and veteran Congress leader Aleixo Sequeira has decided to retire from active politics. He announced his decision at a hurriedly-convened press conference on Wednesday.
Sequeira attributed his decision to "the stand taken by the Church (in Goa) to oppose his candidature" for the 2017 assembly election.
"The Church is objecting (to my candidature) tooth and nail. This was disclosed to me by senior leaders of the All India Congress Committee (AICC) and my well-wishers. It's shocking and surprising," Sequeira said.
"In the last election, the people rejected me; this time party leadership denied me a ticket. So I decided this was the time for me to quit active politics," he said, adding that he would extend his support to Wilfred D'Sa, who is likely to be the candidate of the Congress-led alliance in the Nuvem constituency.