Team Herald
VELIM: With 12 candidates in the fray, Velim constituency is all set to witness hectic politicking in the days to come as the candidates gird up their loins to make a determined bid to be the next MLA from this constituency that while being a Congress stronghold, has also voted against it in the past.
The sitting MLA, the candidate of the new entrant and the candidates of major parties – Congress nominee Filipe Neri Rodrigues, Aam Aadmi Party’s Cruz Silva, Goa Forward Party’s Anthony Rodrigues and Independent Benjamin Silva – are presently concentrating on door to door campaign to personally connect with the voters.
All four claim to have covered most parts of the constituency and plan to have their public meetings only after January 26. Most of them have planned two public meetings – one in San Jose de Areal and the other in Chinchinim or Assolna.
Former friends turned rivals Benjamin and Cruz have practically the same approach of having a corner meeting at the end of their door to door campaign while Filipe Neri is concentrating on personal contact with the voters.
Benjamin who was elected in 2012 is hell bent on setting a record of being the first candidate to get elected twice as an independent candidate from Velim. Although his association with the BJP for the last five years had made the minority community look at him with suspicion, the presence of Vinay Tari as the BJP candidate has diminished the ‘BJP’ tag substantially.
Congress nominee Filipe Neri Rodrigues who had represented the constituency for three terms till his humiliating defeat in 2012 where he lost by nearly 5,000 votes is determined to win this time around. He blames the anti-Congress wave in 2012 for his defeat and points out that the anti-incumbency faced by the present government should benefit him.
Cruz on the other hand is depending on his party’s campaign plan of personally connecting with the people. Besides meeting the voters personally, his volunteers have also collected data of persons from each household eligible for the various schemes promised by AAP in its manifesto.
Goa Forward Party’s Anthony Rodrigues is depending upon his boy next door helpful image in the constituency Rodrigues, better known as Babush has completed one round of his door-to-door campaign in the entire constituency.
He has covered visits to all households in all the panchayats, namely Velim, Ambelim, Chinchinim-Deussa, Assolna, Sarzora, Dramapur ,St. Jose de Areal and part of Davorlim. The victory of his sister-in-law at the Zilla Panchayat elections defeating the candidate put up by Filipe Neri gives him the confidence of upsetting not only Benjamin but also Filipe’s plans.
However, with 12 candidates in the fray, it could be anybody’s game.
