PANAJI
Roughly a fourth of the constituencies across the length and breadth of Goa are gearing up for a clash of titans on
March 11.
Some of these ten constituencies will witness sitting ministers, including the chief minister, spar with formidable political rivals, while in other constituencies prominent leaders of political parties will flex their muscles either to retain or to win a seat in the legislative assembly.
At the helm of this list, undoubtedly, are the constituencies of Mandrem and Panaji.
The capital city of the State could very well be the epicenter of an electoral earthquake and a lot will depend on whether or not the Bharatiya Janata Party, and more importantly Manohar Parrikar, can retain the constituency which the party has held for five terms. Attempting to wrest Panaji away from BJP’s grip is Taleigao strongman Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate. While most believe that Monserrate has taken a blind leap of faith in finally carrying out the threat of contesting from Panaji, those close to him insist that it was a well-calculated gamble. On the other hand, the BJP is confident that sitting MLA Sidharth Kuncalienkar will succeed in warding off this siege. That said, the constituency stands to either make or break the political fate of Kuncalienkar and Monserrate.
Mandrem, the constituency presently represented by Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, will also be in limelight owing to his allegedly shaky footing on his home turf and the socio-political prominence enjoyed by his rival Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte. In the run up to the elections, the CM’s constituency appeared to be swaying wildly between Congress and the BJP, and on March 11, this constituency will have either voted out a CM or it will have stood by him despite strong political alternatives thereby deepening the faith in him.
The situation of Pernem is not too different except for the fact that this is one of the few constituencies where the two former alliance partners will spar in a close fight. Senior BJP leader and a cabinet minister, Rajendra Arlekar and MGP’s Manohar Ajgaonkar are old political sparring partners. Interestingly, Ajgaonkar exited Congress to join MGP at the very last minute, adding a proverbial cherry to the cake for political analysts.
Moving south, Ponda and Shiroda are expecting to witness a close match, with Congressmen Ravi Naik and Subhash Shirodkar attempting to return to the Assembly. Talk of the town in Ponda is that the former CM Ravi Naik stands a good chance of upsetting MGP’s Lavoo Mamledar. But whether talk converts into votes will only be evident on the day of counting. Shiroda, on the other hand, will be the battleground for former minister Shirodkar and present industries minister Mahadev Naik.
Eyes will also be on two other Congress bigwigs, including former CM Digambar Kamat in Margao and Congress president Luizinho Faleiro in Navelim. While in Margao, the BJP has an uphill task in its attempt to dethrone Kamat, the constituency of Navelim has been in the news for several other reasons. Firstly, as the talks of an alliance fell through, Goa Forward Party announced support to Edwin ‘Cipru’ Cardozo against Faleiro and the BJP once again backed its fisheries minister and independent candidate Avertano Furtado. Secondly, the inclusion of around 700-odd service voters to the electoral rolls in the constituency has thrown several political calculations off balance.
Leaders from regional parties are also up for close arm-wrestling matches. Cortalim, for instance, has Congress’ Wilfred ‘Babashan’ D’Sa giving a tough fight to Goa Suraj Party’s Francisco ‘Mickky’ Pacheco. Similarly, in Fatorda, GFP supremo Vijai Sardessai has a strong opposition in BJP’s Damodar Naik and Congress’ Joseph Silva. Last but not the least, with Churchill Alemao looking to overthrow Goa Vikas Party’s Caetano Silva to return to active politics on the Nationalist Congress Party ticket, the constituency of Benaulim will be among the most interesting to watch on March 11.
