"I was looked upon as a rebel," Parsekar told PTI. A postgraduate in science, Parsekar, initially took up a teaching job and started out as an RSS volunteer in Pernem taluka.
He began working for BJP in late 1980s and was instrumental in building the party's support base along with veterans like Parrikar, Rajendra Arlekar, now Goa Assembly Speaker, and Sripad Naik, Union Minister for Tourism.
"I lost miserably from Mandrem in 1988. My entire family rooted for MGP. Even one of the trucks used by the MGP candidate for campaigning was owned by my father," said Parsekar, who was Health Minister in the Parrikar Government.
