MARGAO
Congressmen from South Goa are keeping their fingers crossed over the party candidate for the Lok Sabha seat after the Party Screening panel is believed to have shortlisted names of three candidates, sitting MP Francisco Sardinha, ex-GPCC Chief Girish Chodankar and Capt Viriato Fernandes.
Sources said that sitting MP Francisco Sardinha has emerged as a strong contender for the ticket, but is facing a strong challenge from bête noire, ex-GPCC Chief Girish Chodankar. A member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party’s highest decision making body, sources said Girish, who is presently holed up in Delhi, has emerged as a strong challenger for the four-time sitting MP and is leaving no stone unturned in support of his candidature.
On the other hand, sources said another group is rooting for Capt Viriato as the party candidate in the event Sardinha’s candidature does not find favour with the party High Command on the issue of age, and if the party do not want to disturb the communal balance by fielding a candidate from the minority community for the South Goa seat.
The Congress Central Election Committee (CEC) is expected to take a final call on the candidate for the South Goa seat during the weekend.
The three member screening panel met in the national capital on Tuesday evening, which was attended by GPCC Chief Amit Patkar, Leader of Opposition Yuri Alemao, besides Goa Congress desk in-charge, Manikrao Thakre.
Sources in the know that the name of bureaucrat-turned-politician Elvis Gomes did not figure in the list of names that came up for discussions before the screening panel.
Both Amit Patkar and Yuri Alemao are believed to have presented their views before the Screening panel on the choice of candidate for South Goa, taking into consideration not just the ensuing Lok Sabha polls, but the future of the party, especially in South Goa, which has been the party’s bastion over the years.
The Congress had been following the time tested norm of fielding a candidate from the minority in South Goa and a candidate from the majority community in the North. Ex-GPCC Chief Girish Chodankar, however, has staked claim for the ticket considering the changing circumstances including the changing demography in South Goa. He, however, is believed to have stated in his application for the ticket that he would have no issue if the party wants to nominate a candidate from the minority community.
