PANAJI
After hours of brainstorming, the BJP Parliamentary Board has scheduled a second round of meeting on Thursday to finalise candidates for the Lok Sabha polls. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and BJP State President Sadanand Shet Tanavade, who attended the meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday, submitted report cards (political background) of each probable candidate to facilitate the Board to make its decision.
Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president J P Nadda held separate meetings with party leaders from several states including Goa.
“We gave a detailed report on the poll preparations in Goa. Our senior leaders discussed the poll strategy to ensure BJP’s massive victory this time too. We have also submitted the probable candidates’ political background to the Parliamentary Board to make its decision,” Tanavade said speaking to The Goan from Delhi.
He confirmed the Board will once again meet on Thursday to finalise the names for Goa’s two seats while the announcement is expected either on the same day or before the Model Code of Conduct. Sources said that the Election Commission of India is expected to announce the election code in the second week of March.
Speaker Ramesh Tawadkar, former CM Digambar Kamat, ex-minister Chandrakant Kavlekar, former South MP Narendra Sawaikar, and Damu Naik are the names for South Goa while Minister of State for Tourism, Ports and Waterways Shripad Naik; Dayanand Sopte, Dilip Parulekar and Dayanand Mandrekar are names proposed to the Parliamentary Committee for North Goa. Shripad Naik remains the frontrunner for North Goa.
“We took into consideration inputs shared by our karyakartas before deciding on names as probable candidates. It is for the Parliamentary Board to decide and announce the names,” Tanavade said, refusing to divulge further details.
