The Election Com mission of India has sound ed the poll bugle for the Ponda Assembly by-elec tion, scheduled for April 9, with the counting of votes set for May 4. The by-poll was necessitated by the passing of MLA Ravi Naik last October. According to the schedule released by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer Goa, the gazette notification for the by-poll will be issued on March 16. The last date for filing nominations has been fixed as March 23, while the scru tiny of nominations will take place on March 24. Candidates will be allowed to withdraw their nomina tions until March 26, 2026.
The election process is scheduled to be completed by May 6. The by-poll is already witnessing a political churn as major parties scramble to finalise their candidates for what is expected to be a high-stakes battle. Though the parties have not announced their candi dates for the byelection, former Maharashtrawadi Goman tak Party (MGP) leader Dr Ketan Bhatikar recently joined the Congress in Ponda. Meanwhile, BJP Goa unit President Damu Naik said the party’s state election committee has finalised two names and sent them to the high command for a decision. “Now the party high command will consider those names and guide us. Maybe in a day or two we will have to visit Delhi. The issue of the candidate’s name will be resolved soon. The senior leaders in Delhi will make the call on the candidature. We are confident of our victory in the Ponda by-poll,” he said. Other parties like Aam Aadmi Party or Congress have also not announced candidates yet. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said the an nouncement of the Ponda by-poll is unlikely to affect the ongoing Assembly session; however, advice will be sought from the Election Commission. Speaking to reporters, he said, “The Chief Secretary will talk to the Election Commission but according to me, the session will not be affected.” Meanwhile, the Election Commission of India has en forced the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) in the Ponda As sembly constituency following the by-election announce ment. The MCC will remain in place until the completion of the election process i.e. May 6.
