Nonetheless, the Konkani experience did not stop Rajan from subsequently claiming that the paper under his steering had "demonstrated dramatically its influence by succeeding to get more than 75,000 people for the Konkani language". Of this, he tried to make a case for better terms -- service conditions, allowances and possibly commissions on advertisements "generated" for the paper. EVEN AS HE ANNOUNCED recently his decision to quit the Herald and launch his own weekend paper, Rajan is back to donning his role as a 'protector of the minorities'. But even as he stokes fears here, a genuine question could be whether this is anything more than a marketing strategy. His claims of being committed to secularism could be dismissed by critics as little more than a cynical strategy of stoking minority fears, to build a potent constituency, just as some politicians in Goa have done -- to convert into a permanent votebank of sorts a large segment of the Catholic electorate. In July 1987, Rajan told his staff, this writer then being one of them: "Our basic constituency are the Catholics, whether we like it or not. So much so, anything on the Pope or developments in Christianity should be interesting to our readers." Rajan was however quick to understand -- unlike most of the other editors brought into Goa to head papers here, who sometimes take years just to understand that this small state doesn't need a scaled-down version of a national newspaper -- that local news was of vital importance. To cite a Rajanism, in the form of a blunt directive to the news-desk: "The Rajya Sabha election in Goa is of much greater consequence to use than a peaceful Yath Ratra (sic) in Ahmedabad. In Punjab, for instance, I do not think we should take cognisance unless the death toll is above 10." (This was in times when the Punjab violence was as Kashmir today.) Rajan was quick to argue that a new paper in Goa should address those segments which are significant in size. One can question his obvious strategy of playing on minority fears and building up a minority psychosis. Even when viewed from a very narrow sense, this could be damaging to the interest of the minorities themselves. But Rajan's ability to convince the reader still holds. In September 2003, some Goan expats across cyberspace were carefully watching the unfolding drama as Rajan hurriedly launched his http://www.rajannarayan.com site. Making his an issue of freedom of expression, and indicting the man who weeks back graced Rajan's birthday -- Manoharbab Parrikar -- was bound to strike a chord. Afterall, haven't we in the Press in Goa been complaining about increasing pressures from the BJP government?