Four candidates are contesting the by-poll to the Reis Magos Zilla Panchayat on October 16.
While Sandeep Bandodkar is the candidate for the BJP, AAP has extended its support to Rajesh Dabholkar and Pragati Pednekar is the Congress candidate. Sainath Korgankar is contesting as the candidate of Revolutionary Goans Party.
The Reis Magos ZP seat became vacant following the resignation of former ZP member Rupesh Naik to contest the assembly polls from Saligao constituency.
After his defeat in the polls, Naik later contested and won the ward elections in Pilerne-Marra panchayat.
There are 18,467 voters in the Reis Magos ZP constituency, which comprises the four panchayats of Nerul, Sangolda, Pilerne-Marra and Reis Magos.
Sandeep Bandodkar is a four-term panch member of Pilerne-Marra Panchayat and he is also a former sarpanch.
Rajesh Dabholkar is a businessman by profession and social worker. He has been distributing free exercise books and uniforms to needy students of Saligao since the last few years. He had contested assembly election unsuccessfully on the Shiv Sena ticket in 2017.
Congress candidate Pragati Pednekar and RG candidate Sainath Korgaonkar will also try to secure substantial votes though they are contesting the election for the first time.
Meanwhile, Bandodkar has started his election campaign from Sangolda on Friday in the presence of Saligao MLA Kedar Naik.
Kedar Naik mentioned that during last ZP election, the candidate supported by the BJP was elected with a substantial margin.
“In this election too, BJP karyakartas will leave no stone unturned to get Bandodkar elected,” said Naik.
