MARGAO
The Lotus is all set to bloom in the Margao Municipal Council on Wednesday after 17-long years as the much-awaited election for the Margao civic chairperson on October 12 has now turned out a mere formality.
For, the Presiding Officer has received the lone nomination papers from BJP-backed candidate Damu Shirodkar on the last date of filing of nomination papers for the vacant post. As announced earlier, the Goa Forward-backed group has abstained from the election after the government promulgated the Ordinance to decide election for the post of Municipal chairperson and vice-chairperson by show of hands in a bid to check cross-voting.
Around a month ago on September 16, two-time councillor Damu Shirodkar had suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Goa Forward-backed Ganashyam Shirodkar after five BJP councillors cross voted against him.
That the BJP leadership and Congress-turned-BJP Margao MLA Digambar Kamat has nominated Damu again for the coveted post is a clear message to the party-backed councillors, who had cross voted against Damu Shirodkar in the September 16 election, that the party means business. Damu’s re-nomination for the post is also being viewed as a message sent out to the Goa Forward leadership that the ruling party is ready to take the regional outfit head on in the civic body.
After filing his nomination papers, Damu exuded confidence to make it to the coveted post this time. “I am 100 per cent confident of winning the contest this time,” he told the media.
When asked how different is the September 16 election for the Margao civic chief and the election scheduled on October 12, Damu shot back, “This time, the election for the post will take place in true democratic spirit. The election held last time was not as per the democratic norms.”
To a question whether he is in support of the government’s Ordinance mandating election for Municipal chairpersons by show of hands, Damu replied in the positive, saying “I believe that elections should be held by show of hands”.
Damu filed three sets of nomination papers for the vacant post, proposed by councillors Damodar Varak, Dr Ronita Ajgaonkar and Camilo Barretto.
He along with a group of councillors, including the proposers, came to the Municipal building directly from a starred resort at Betalbatim, where the BJP-backed councillors have been housed since Monday evening. Another group of councillors stayed put in the resort, while Damu filed his papers. They later headed back to the starred resort in smiles after realising the BJP-backed candidate is heading for election as the new Margao civic chief unopposed.
Election for the MMC chairperson has been necessitated after the ex-Chairperson Ganashyam Shirodkar was voted out of office by the BJP-backed group by 15-10 votes in a no-trust motion last month.
...Or is it going to be still a show of hands?
MARGAO: Wednesday’s election for the Margao civic chief was being anxiously awaited by all and sundry, for a different reason “ election for Chairperson’s post by show of hands.
After the government promulgated the Ordinance doing away with secret ballot in a hurry last week ahead of the MMC chairperson’s election scheduled on October 12, all eyes are now centered on the Margao Municipality whether the ensuing election in Margao would be the first election conducted via show of hands post-Ordinance.
Questions, however, did the rounds in the corridors of the civic body and outside on Tuesday after Chief Officer Manuel Barretto received the lone
nomination from Damu Shirodkar, whether the Presiding Officer, Additional Secretary, Finance, Vikas Gaunekar will resort to election when BJP-backed candidate’s election is now a mere formality.
Sources said it’s still unclear whether the Presiding Officer will ask the councillors to show their hands in support of Damu Shirodkar when there isn’t going to be a contest in Wednesday’s election, adding, ‘We will have to wait and watch whether the Presiding Officer will implement the Ordinance, beginning from Margao by asking the councillors to show their hands’.
