Watch These 3 Seats in Goa Today: Son-Rise in Panaji, Rumble of Ranes in Poriem, and Clash of CMs in Margao 

Goa elections 2022 are underway, with 301 candidates competing for 40 Assembly seats. Aside from the incumbent BJP and the Congress, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Trinamool Congress (TMC) are also vying for votes to expand their reach beyond their traditional strongholds of Delhi and West Bengal, respectively. 

Former chief ministers Churchill Alemao (TMC), Ravi Naik (BJP), and Laxmikant Parsekar (Independent), as well as former deputy chief ministers Churchill Alemao (TMC), Ravi Naik (BJP), and Laxmikant Parsekar (Independent)chief ministers Vijai Sardesai (GFP) and Sudin Dhavalikar (MGP), late CM Manohar Parrikar’s son Utpal Parrikar, and AAP’s CM face Amit Paleker are among the prominent candidates in the Goa elections. 

Here’s a rundown of the high-stakes races in three of Goa’s most-watched constituencies ahead of the February election. 

Panaji: 

Utpal Parrikar, son of the late Manohar Parrikar, is the most talked-about candidate in the Panaji Assembly seat. He is running as an Independent after the BJP denied him a ticket in the constituency where his father formerly served. This time, the BJP has gone all out to claim Parrikar’s legacy, with some party leaders even claiming that he never wanted his son to run for office. 

He runs against Atanasio ‘Babush’ Monserrate, a BJP candidate and sitting MLA. Monserrate, a seasoned politician, has only lost once in his career in 2017 to Parrikar’s protégé Siddharth Kuncalienkar. After Parrikar died in 2019, he joined the BJP and won the Panaji by poll. In 2019, Monserrate played a crucial role in the defection of Congress members to the BJP. 

According to BJP sources, Monserrate will significantly impact three seats where he has previously run, notably Santa Cruz, Taleigao, and Panaji. He is also thought to have a sizable following among Catholic voters. 

Meanwhile, Utpal Parrikar has played the compassion game, accusing the BJP of unfairly mistreating him and insulting his father’s hard work for the party. 

Poriem: 

The Congress had had a stronghold in Goa’s Poriem Assembly constituency since 1972 when Pratapsingh Rane was elected. Rane has withdrawn from the race since his daughter-in-law Deviya Rane is running on a BJP ticket. Vishwajit Rane, Deviya’s spouse, and Pratapsingh Rane’s son are running for the Valpoi constituency and are thought to have clout in Poriem. 

The Congress had fielded Ranjeet Singh Rane, whose father, Jaysinghrao Rane, was an MLA in Goa when it was still a Union Territory. 

Vishwajit Krishnarao Rane, who was a runner-up in past elections when running on a BJP ticket, has been fielded by the AAP. 

Margao: 

Digambar Kamat, the former chief minister and current Congress leader, runs for the eighth time in Margao. The BJP has nominated Deputy Chief Minister Manohar Babu Ajgaonkar, who previously won the Pernem seat. According to BJP insiders, Ajgaonkar was transferred to Margao to combat anti-incumbency in Pernem.  

The seat is located in the Catholic-dominated Salcete belt and is deemed difficult for the BJP to win. If Congress wins power, Kamat is expected to be one of the frontrunners for the position of the chief minister. 

Edited By : Tejesvi MG

Published By : K. Bindhiya Prarthana