PANAJI
The BJP on Thursday formally released its first list of 34 candidates for the upcoming state assembly polls, even as the ruling party derided opposition parties in Goa, describing the TMC as anti-Hindu, the Aam Aadmi Party as a party of liars and the Congress as a sinking ship and positioned the BJP as a party which will deliver good governance in Goa.
Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary Arun Singh and the party's Goa election in-charge Devendra Fadnavis released the list of 34 candidates in which the party appears to have used winnability as a criteria while finalising most of the candidatures.
Arun Singh said that in the ticket distribution exercise, the BJP had tried to incorporate candidates from all sections of society, with a stress on Dalit and backward sections.
"The world's biggest party, BJP, has worked for the rights of the Dalits and backward classes. In three general seats, ST candidates have been fielded, in one general seat BJP has fielded SC candidate, there are 11 OBC candidates and nine minority candidates who are Christians," Singh told a press conference at the party's national headquarters.
The tickets were finalised at a meeting of the BJP parliamentary board, the highest authority within the BJP for allocation of election tickets.
Among the key losers in the first round of assembly tickets are former Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar who has been denied a ticket from Mandrem, former Chief Minister late Manohar Parrikar's son Utpal, who has lost the opportunity to contest from Panaji on a BJP ticket.
Devendra Fadnavis said that the BJP was still in talks with Parrikar's son and had offered him an opportunity to contest from Bicholim, which Utpal now claims he has rejected.
Savitri Kavlekar, the wife of deputy Chief Minister Chandrakant Kavlekar who had been seeking a ticket from the Sanguem assembly constituency has also been dropped in favour of former BJP MLA Subhash Phaldesai.
Public Works Department Minister Deepak Prabhu Pauskar has also been dropped from the party's candidate list for the Sanvordem constituency, where former party MLA Ganesh Gaonkar will be contesting.
WRD Minister Filipe Nery was also denied a ticket and instead the party nominated Savio Rodrigues in Velim.
Controversial Mormugao MLA Milind Naik who had been at the centre of an alleged sex scandal has however been allotted a ticket this time round too.
Sitting MLA Isidore Fernandes has also been dropped in favour of former Sports Minister Ramesh Tawadkar.
Sitting MLA from Pernem and Sports Minister Manohar Ajgaonkar has been shunted from Pernem to Margao, where he will be taking on former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat of the Congress.
The BJP has also fielded several fresh faces which includes Pravin Arlekar (Pernem), former Speaker late Ananth Shet's brother Premender Shet (Mayem), Health Minister Vishwajit Rane's wife Divya (Poriem), Sudesh Bhindi (Marcaim), Krishna Salkar (Vasco), Damodar Bandodkar (Benaulim), Ulhas Tuenkar (Navelim) and Savio Rodrigues (Velim).
Among former MLAs who are trying to make a comeback are Dayanand Mandrekar (Siolim), Damodar Naik (Fatorda), Ganesh Gaonkar (Sanvordem), Subhash Phaldesai (Sanguem) and Ramesh Tawadkar (Canacona).
