New players have begun to reshape the opposition space in taluka
SIGNS OF FIGHTBACK: Despite the BJP retaining a majority of seats in Bardez, the Congress put up a spirited challenge by snatching victories in Aldona and Sirsaim. In the picture, Aldona ZP winner Mary Menezes celebrates her victory alongside Aldona ML
MAPUSA
The Zilla Panchayat elections in Bardez have delivered a nuanced political message: while the BJP has retained control of the taluka, its long-held bastion has clearly shown signs of strain, even as the Congress has staged a modest but politically significant recovery and new players have begun to reshape the opposition space.
The BJP won six of the nine ZP seats in Bardez – Calangute, Siolim, Anjuna, Socorro, Penha-de-Franca and Reis Magos.
However, this tally is lower than the eight seats it had secured in the previous term, and more importantly, the margins of victory in key constituencies have shrunk, raising questions about the party’s grip over the taluka.
While the saffron party registered comfortable wins in Socorro and Penha-de-Franca, and secured Reis Magos and Siolim with relatively healthy margins, the results in Calangute and Anjuna have emerged as warning signals.
In Calangute, the BJP candidate was trailing within Calangute village and managed to scrape through with a margin of just over 500 votes, largely due to a lead in Candolim. This is despite both the Calangute and Candolim panchayats backing the BJP candidate, a factor that should ideally have translated into a far smoother victory.
In Anjuna, the BJP’s margin narrowed further, with the seat being won by a slender 200-odd votes.
The BJP’s position could have been considerably weaker had the Congress–GFP–RGP alliance materialised in time. In at least Calangute and Anjuna, a consolidated opposition vote would likely have unseated BJP candidates, underlining how fragmentation helped the ruling party retain seats.
The Congress, on its part, has reason to take heart.
It snatched two seats – Aldona and Sirsaim – from the BJP, a notable turnaround considering the party failed to win a single seat in Bardez in the last ZP term. Though the margins of victory were narrow – around 200 votes in Aldona and 70 votes in Sirsaim – defeating a ruling party that enjoys organisational strength, government backing and access to resources is no small achievement.
The results suggest that the Congress vote base in Bardez, while still fragile, is no longer in complete retreat.
The Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) did not win a seat in Bardez, but its performance was far from insignificant.
The party put up a competitive show across constituencies, finishing runner-up in Siolim and polling respectable numbers elsewhere, crossing the three-figure mark in almost all seats except Aldona.
The RGP’s showing has clearly positioned it as a preferred regional alternative, ahead of the much-touted Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
For the AAP, the Bardez verdict was disastrous. Almost all its candidates finished last, with the party’s highest vote tally being 506 votes in Anjuna, a stark contrast to the expectations built around its early campaign and high-profile leadership.
The lone Independent victory in Bardez came from Colvale, where Kavita Kandolkar emerged victorious with the backing of the Congress, which chose not to field a candidate there – a strategic move that paid dividends.
Taken together, the Bardez ZP results point to a wobbling BJP bastion, a reviving Congress, an emerging RGP factor, and the virtual marginalisation of AAP.
With the Assembly elections just over a year away, the outcome is likely to force all parties to reassess alliances, ground strategies and voter engagement in what is increasingly shaping up to be a far more competitive Bardez than in recent years.
