PANJIM: Goa celebrates the 58th Anniversary of the Historic Opinion Poll on 16th January 2025. After Goa attained Liberation the MGP and other related organisations declared Marathi was the official language of Goa and wanted to Merge Goa with Maharashtra. The United Goans Party led by Jack de Sequeira and right thinking Goans wanted Goa to be a separate State. So the issue was decided by an Opinion poll on 16th January 1967. Thanks to the Opinion Poll we can today cherish Goa as our motherland, we have our own culture, language and identity.
It was on this day that 81.70 percent people came out to vote. 54.20 percentage of the population voted for keeping Goa as a separate Union territory, while 43.50 per cent voted to merge Goa with Maharashtra. The Opinion Poll victory decided the destiny of Goa and in a way protected the territory, culture, heritage and language of Goa. Otherwise Goa would have been a district of Maharashtra.
The majority of the population of the constituencies which voted for Merger of Goa with Maharashtra were Pernem, Marcaim, Mandrem, Ponda, Bicholim, Pale, Sattari, Sanguem, Shiroda, Tivim, Calangute, St Estevam and Canacona.
The majority of the population of the constituencies which voted for against Merger of Goa with Maharashtra were: Curchorem, Mapusa, Siolim, Aldona, Panjim, Aldona, Santa Cruz, Sant Andre, Cortalim, Margao, Benaulim, Navelim, Curtorim, Mormugao, Cuncolim and Quepem.
Thanks to the visionary leaders like Jack de Sequeira, the United Goans Party, Chandrakant Keni, other leaders and organization and the voters who voted against Merger, today we can call Goa our homeland. We would not have our own state, no government and no council of ministers. Yet Opinion Poll is not officially celebrated by the Goa Government.