All 30 members file nomination papers
Panaji: All 30 candidates backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party and Panaji MLA and Minister Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate filed their nomination papers on Friday for the upcoming general election to the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) scheduled on March 11.
The panel, which consists of a mix of new and old candidates, has fielded seven new faces. Three former mayors have been included in the list of candidates namely Carolina Po, Shubham Chodankar and Uday Madkaikar. Current mayor Rohit Monserrate is contesting from ward No IV.
The panel also includes two co-opted members of the present Corporation – namely former deputy mayor Kabir Pinto Makhija and Kishore Sastry.
The 30 candidates filed their nomination papers before the Deputy Collector of Tiswadi after seeking blessings at the Mahalaxmi Temple in Panaji.
Former mayor and senior councillor Surendra Furtado is the only candidate from the Aami Ponjekar panel who filed the nomination on Friday. With 31 nominations filed on Friday, the tally has reached 32 in the first four days. Furtado filed his nomination papers from general ward number IX.
Candidates from the Monserrate panel include Yutika Zambaulikar (Ward No I – ST women), Carolina Po (Ward No II – OBC women), Margarida Fernandes (Ward No III – OBC women) Rohit Monserrate (Ward No IV – general), Kishore Sastry (Ward No V – general), Bento Lorena (Ward No VI – OBC), Sanjiv Desai (Ward No VII – general), Kareena Shirodkar (Ward No VII – OBC women), Kabir Pinto Makhija (Ward No IX – general), Prasad Amonkar (Ward No X – general), Tukaram Chinanawar (Ward No XI – general), Varsha Shetye (Ward No XII – general), Uday Madkaikar (Ward No XIII – general), Prajyot Vaigankar (Ward No XIV – OBC), Shayani Chopdekar (Ward No XV – OBC), Asmita Kerkar (Ward No XVI – women), Dennis Jorge (Ward No XVII – general), Krishna Shirodkar (Ward No XVIII – general), Nikita Naik (Ward No XIV – women), Shubham Chodankar (Ward No XX – general), Manisha Manerkar (Ward No XXI – OBC), Diksha Mainkar (Ward No XXII – women), Vidya Gadkar (Ward No XXIII – women), Karan Parekh (Ward No XXIV – general), Kirti Sakhalkar (Ward No XXV – women), Vasant Agshikar (Ward No XXVI – general), Vithal Chopdekar (Ward No 27 – OBC), Rupesh Halankar (Ward No XXVIII – general), Sandra Da Cunha (Ward No XXIX – women) and Silvestre Fernandes (Ward No XXX – general).
Addressing the media after filing nomination, Mayor Rohit Monserrate expressed confidence that all the candidates from their panel will secure victory at the CCP polls.
Responding to a question about the Ami Ponjekar panel, Monserrate said, “I wish them well.”
