NT Reporter Panaji
As campaigning for the zilla panchayat (ZP) elections comes to an end on Thursday evening, all political parties and their leaders, including ministers and MLAs, have intensified door-to-door campaigning in an effort to convince voters in rural Goa.
Sitting MLAs are making all-out efforts to secure their political bastions in view of the Goa Legislative Assembly elections scheduled for 2027. Although both zilla panchayats with 50 seats are two-and-a-half decades old, they have not been devolved adequate powers by successive state governments. Nevertheless, political parties are treating the December 20 elections as a semi-final ahead of the 2027 Assembly polls. A total of 226 candidates are in the fray for the zilla panchayat elections, with 111 candidates contesting in North Goa and 115 in South Goa. As many as 8.26 lakh voters are eligible to cast their votes in the polls.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) are contesting the polls in alliance, while the Congress and the Goa Forward Party (GFP) have also forged an alliance.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Revolutionary Goan Party (RGP) are contesting independently.
In addition, several Independent candidates are in the fray and have posed serious challenges to candidates of established political parties.
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has taken responsibility for leading the BJP’s campaign, with the support of ruling MLAs, state president of the party Damodar ‘Damu’ Naik, and other senior leaders.
On the other hand, Congress leaders, including Opposition leader Yuri Alemao, Quepem legislator Altone D’Costa, Aldona MLA Carlos Ferreira, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee president Amit Patkar, and other leaders, along with GFP chief Vijai Sardesai, have been pulling out all the stops to campaign for their candidates.
RGP leader Tukaram alias Manoj Parab and party MLA Viresh Borkar have been reaching out to voters in support of their candidates. AAP leaders, including national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, former Delhi chief minister Atishi Marlena, and local MLAs Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva, have also campaigned extensively.
MGP leader and cabinet minister Ramakrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar has campaigned for his party’s three candidates in their respective seats.
While the ruling alliance has sought to woo voters by highlighting development works and government initiatives, Opposition parties and Independent candidates have accused the government of failures on various fronts, including law and order.
