The model code of conduct in the towns that are going to the polls has led to the adjournment of the Budget session of the State Legislative Assembly. The big question here is not which individual wins where, but whether these towns too will endorse the Bharatiya Janata Party, as the others have done.
The results of the civic polls held earlier this month proved that whether the elections are on party lines or not, political parties are quick to claim victory of the candidates who are aligned to them. So, with the Zilla Panchayat and the just-concluded polls in six municipalities and the Corporation of the City of Panaji going mostly in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party, the focus is now on this five towns, and how they vote on April 23.
Expect, therefore, a high-pitch campaign as the political interest levels in these five towns is now rising, especially after the legal saga that surrounded the earlier ward reservation and election notifications. For the next few weeks, the five towns of Margao, Mormugao, Mapusa, Quepem and Sanguem whose residents challenged the earlier notification of ward reservations in the High Court and then the Supreme Court of India and won the battle, which led to the postponement of the polls are going to be in the news. It is primarily because of this challenge that the elections have drawn tremendous interest, but local politics is also painting some very interesting pictures in the towns. These are elections not necessarily to gauge the popularity of the parties but are also a major show of strength of the local MLAs.
Based on the earlier equations – before the elections were postponed – Margao for instance is likely to see a united opposition of the Congress and the Goa Forward Party on one side as Digambar Kamat and Vijai Sardesai team up to take on the panel that will be supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party on the other. In its earlier list, the Bharatiya Janata Party had fielded a panel with a number of its more experienced leaders in the town in an attempt to take charge of the council. With the change in ward reservations, some amendments to the lists will have to be done by all panels.
This change in ward reservations will not affect only panels that had been constituted in Margao, but all the councils. The turf war in Mormugao is even more interesting as last month the local MLAs Carlos Almeida, Milind Naik and Mauvin Godinho, all of the Bharatiya Janata Party, had supported preferred candidates in their wards of influence, and the former two had even traded barbs publicly. Another area of interest is Quepem, where three candidates had been elected unopposed before the election process had been declared null and void. They have to enter the fray again where they could have to fight an election.
Political activity in the State is expected to rise along with the summer temperatures. If BJP will be looking to consolidate its position as the preeminent party in the State, Congress has the opportunity to make a comeback and the others like Goa Forward Party to retain their position in their limited area of influence. For that matter, Goa Forward Party first tasted victory in the 2015 polls of the Margao Municipal Council. Joining the fray would be the Aam Aadmi Party that is looking to break into the Goan political arena, its only success till now being the victory in the Benaulim Zilla Panchayat seat. For the political parties there is much at stake.
