MARGAO
As the Congress goes about unveiling the names of party candidates for the 2022 Assembly polls from its stronghold Salcete, the leadership appears treading a cautious path, least any decision in haste may cause resentment and discontentment in the party ranks ahead of the ensuing election.
The Congress mid-last week cleared the first list of candidates for the three Assembly constituencies of Margao, Curtorim and Cuncolim, where the party re-nominated sitting MLAs Digambar Kamat and Reginaldo Lourenco respectively and settled for Yuri Alemao in Cuncolim.
With the Congress conceding the Fatorda seat to the Goa Forward after stitching an alliance, the party has now a task cut out “ how to go about zeroing in on the candidates in the remaining four Assembly constituencies in party strongholds of Velim and Nuvem, besides Benaulim and Navelim. It is a sheer coincidence that in these four constituencies, more than one candidate is vying and lobbying for the ticket, only making the leadership’s task difficult.
Benaulim
Nationalist Congress Party NCP’s lone MLA Churchill Alemao’s decision to merge the party Legislative wing in the Trinamool Congress has paved the way for the Congress to contest the polls from Benaulim in 2022 without bothering on the issue of alliance. As many as five aspirants are in the fray for the ticket, including former Minister Mickky Pacheco, former Benaulim Sarpanch Royla Fernandes, activist Gina Pereira, social worker Trevor Fernandes and former Benaulim Block Congress president Edwin Barretto, who incidentally was the Congress candidate against Churchill in the 2017 Assembly election.
Like in Velim and Nuvem, the Congress leadership is treading a cautious path in Benaulim as well, fearing that any hasty decision may trigger rebellion on the eve of the election. While flamboyant Mickky Pacheco has embraced the party on the plea his ticket is confirmed by the Congress high command, he is facing a challenge of sorts from the remaining aspirants such as Royla and Gina, besides Trevor for the ticket.
Velim
This minority stronghold may give sleepless nights for the Congress managers while taking a call on the party candidate. For, as many as four candidates, former MLA Benjamin D’Silva, district president Joe Dias, Velim Sarpanch Savio D’Silva and former Sarzora Sarpanch Sabita Mascarenhas are in the fray for the ticket.
In this constituency, the Aam Aadmi party has already kicked off its campaign in support of candidate Cruz Silva. So is the Trinamool Congress, with city-based lawyer, Adv Antonio Clovis Da Costa, moving door to door in the constituency.
Sources say the Congress leadership may not be unduly worried by the presence of AAP and TMC in the fray. Party leaders, however, sources say may take a call on the candidate taking into account how certain any decision will have a bearing on the ground, more so when Cong-turned-BJP Minister Filipe Neri Rodrigues is apparently waiting for the Congress to unveil party candidate for Velim before charting out his political course. The party is also expected to take a firm call taking into account the social engineering in Velim which plays host to a large ST population and the fishermen community. It is a sheer coincidence the key aspirants for the Congress ticket, Benjamin D’Silva and Savio D’Silva hail from the Velim-Ambelim belt, while Joe Dias and Sabita Mascarenhas come from the Chinchinim-Sarzora belt, where Minister Filipe Neri too has his own areas of influence.
Nuvem
Even before the Congress announced party candidate for the Nuvem seat, aspirant Jose Raju Cabral preferred to quit the party to embrace the Trinamool Congress. And, with activist Zarinha Da Cunha saying she is not a member of the Congress, the party will have to decide the candidate amongst the remaining four aspirants, former Minister Aleixo Sequeira, PCC general secretary Everson Vales, Francisco D’Costa and Dolwin Braganza.
Even as political observers say former Minister Aleixo Sequeira may be a front runner for Nuvem, PCC leader Everson has also kicked off his door to door campaign in the constituency.
What has come as a big surprise for the ticket aspirants and party leaders is that the name of a politician, who is not even a member of the party, has started doing the rounds in Nuvem political circles.
How far reports of this politician vying for the Nuvem ticket remains unclear, but sources in the know say this politician had in the past called on senior party leaders hailing from other states.
Navelim
Congress veteran Luizinho Faleiro’s exit from the party paved the way for the return of former Minister Avertano Furtado back in the Congress fold. Many had expected the Congress to clear Avertano’s candidature in the first list. The party, however, seems to have decided to adopt a cautious approach. Reason: Avertano’s challenger for the party ticket, Rehan Muzzawar has not lost hopes of getting the Congress nomination for Navelim. At every party programme, Rehan had been mobilizing his supporters apparently as a show of strength, leaving party leadership to tread a cautious approach, least any decision lead to discontentment in the Rehan camp, which may spoil the party in the coming polls.
