An overall voting percentage of 46.66 at the three Zilla Panchayat seats comes as a surprise given the penchant for politics in the State. At Sunday's election, Davorlim in Salcete recorded 50.52 per cent, Cortalim 45.07 per cent and Reis Magos 43.94 per cent. Traditionally by-elections do not carry the kind of euphoria and urgency witnessed at a regular election, but this Zilla by-poll not only lacked political excitement but also turned out to be lacklustre in every sense.
The lone incident of a flare-up in Cortalim saw a Congress candidate having an altercation with a chaplain and parishioner. In another incident, AAP workers were engaged in heated arguments with the police on duty. But, apart from these two incidents, the elections went off peacefully even as the hustle and bustle of an election were amiss.
There are two ways of looking at the Zilla by-polls: Firstly, these local bodies have no powers, and there are hardly any expectations that the electorate has from those elected. All pleas for devolution of powers have fallen on deaf ears, and Zilla Panchayats remain a non-functional layer between the legislature and panchayat bodies.
Secondly, the Zilla panchayat elections have come barely a month after the recent defection where eight Congress MLAs, who had sworn before Gods and Goddesses and have signed affidavits, chose to switch over to the BJP in pursuit of power. The poor turnout at the elections could be viewed through this prism and may reflect people's frustration with the political system where mandates are trampled upon at will.
All said and done; the focus is now on the results scheduled for October 18. It is to be seen how candidates supported by those who have vacated the seats fare and whether the negative publicity generated from the recent defection will have an impact. Ulhas Tuenkar will try and wrest his Davorlim bastion for the BJP candidate, and so will Anton Vas in Cortalim. However, Kedar Naik, who recently switched sides, will face an acid test at the hustings.
A low voter turnout is believed to be favourable to the incumbent, and in the case of the Zilla election, this could be just what the BJP wanted. While the BJP is confident about romping home with wins in all three constituencies, this election will be another test for parties like AAP and RGP, who have been banking on the defection plank.
The voters have clearly shown disenchantment, but who benefits from this negative sentiment is to be seen. The BJP has a point to prove, and a positive result will go a long way to strengthen the party's presence in grass-root bodies. This could be yet another beginning for Congress, but the question is whether they can make it. On the other hand, the AAP and RGP, who campaigned vociferously and launched scathing attacks on both BJP and Congress, will have to wait and see whether they find acceptability here.
