PANJIM: With the State Assembly elections inching closer, a team of the Election Commission of India (ECI) will visit Goa to review the poll preparations in the State from January 20-22.
Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi, along with two Election Commissioners Achal Kumar Jyoti and Om Prakash Rawat will arrive in the State on January 21. The team will hold a series of meetings with election officers, Chief Secretary, Finance Secretary and DGP taking stock of the situation.
An interaction with recognized political parties – BJP, Congress, NCP and MGP – will also be held during the visit. “They are coming down to review the preparations for the elections. They want to be fully satisfied with the arrangements,” sources said.
On Friday, another ECI team headed by Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha will arrive. The team will include Director Nikhil Sharma, Goa desk secretary Sumit Mukherjee and Director General of Expenditure monitoring committee Dilip Sharma.
Goa will be the first State to have 100 percent coverage under Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) at its 1649 polling stations. Over 11 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise. Aam Aadmi Party is the only outfit to field candidates in all 40 seats.
The ruling BJP has fielded 36 and the opposition Congress has 37candidates in the fray. BJP is expected to back two Independents, while Congress will back three candidates.
MGP and alliance partners Goa Suraksha Manch and the Shiv Sena, have together fielded 26 candidates. NCP has fielded candidates in 16 seats.
