Team Herald
BICHOLIM: The Harvalem panchayat, which has a long checked political history, will go to polls on August 4.
The elections are significant as this is the second time, the voters will get toelect their representatives.
The five-ward-panchayat was in the news a couple of years ago, as the last time the panchayat had elections in the year 2014, it was after a gap of 13 years.
Having been classified as a panchayat since Liberation, Sanquelim was upgraded to a municipality in 1999. However, stiff public opposition forced the government to reverse its decision and return Sanquelim to its panchayat status in December 2000.
Panchayat elections were declared in April 2001 and the panchayat completed its five year term. Elections were declared in April 2006, but barely two days before the polls, the govtt elevated the status of Sanquelim to a municipality. Elections to the 10-member Sanquelim municipal council were held in 2008.
What followed in the years ahead, was a lot of to and fro where finally on February 25, 2013, notified Harvalem panchayat as the 190th panchayat in the State. In this process, the Sanquelim Municipality lost 2 wards to the newly created five ward Harvalem panchayat, which only went to polls onJuly 13, 2014.
