Over 16,000 voters to decide fate of 45 candidates on April 27
TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: A less vicious month-long campaigning for the Taleigao village panchayat polls ended on Friday evening, with total 45 candidates in the fray for the 11 seats (wards). Over 16,000 voters would decide the fate of these candidates, when the panchayat goes to the polls on April 27.
The Atanasio Monserrate panel has been ruling the village panchayat for the last decade and has done a lot of work from road widening to illumination, from setting up garbage plant to constructing joggers’ park besides other things.
The Congressman has fielded candidates for all 11 seats, against rival BJP-backed candidates who are contesting all 11 wards. There is another panel led by former Panjim city mayor Ashok Naik and former CCP corporator Agnelo Silveira, who have put up seven candidates.
29 candidates have been fielded by the 3 panels — ‘Taleigao Progressive Development Front’ Monserrate led, ‘Together for Taleigao’ backed by BJP and ‘United Taleigao Front’ backed by Naik. Sixteen independent candidates are in the fray.
The Monserrate camp appears to be upbeat sensing advantage due to possibility of split in BJP votes.
The Taleigao VP has been dominated by Monserrate who supposedly went into hibernation after the lackluster small margin victory of his wife, Jennifer in the March 2012 assembly elections against BJP’ Dattaprasad Naik, who heads the BJP-backed panel for panchayat election.
Total 16,055 voters ~8056 female voters and 7999 male voters~ are likely to exercise their franchise at 26 polling stations. The counting of votes will take place on April 28.
While Monserrate was seen campaigning personally for the polls, meeting people and asking them to cast votes in favour of his panel, from BJP side not a single senior leader was seen ground campaigning. Most of their leaders are busy campaigning for Lok Sabha polls. The BJP panel members and supporters had organized a road show through the village.
BJP’s ‘Together for Taleigao’ panel has promised Taleigaokars more jobs in the proposed Dona Paula IT Park and a fully functional primary health centre cum mini-hospital while Monserrate has assured to retain the greenery of the village.
