Team Herald
Margao: In the end it has to be Salcette, which put the brakes on BJP’s relentless march in the ZP elections, defying all expectations.
The Congress managed to win 3 out of the 8 Zilla Parishad elections. The BJP won 2, incidentally the very two seats where the maximum protests against railway double-tracking were witnessed, and while AAP and NCP won one seat each. There is one Independent that won in the election today.
The Congress Party which made the agitation against Goa being turned into a coal movement hub and the South Western Railway’s double tracking has managed to win 3 out of 8 constituencies which they contested.
In Nuvem, Congress Candidate Assuciana Rodrigues won with a margin of just 151 votes closely followed by the Independent candidate Breezy Barretto who was supported by the local turncoat MLA Wilfred D'sa.
It was a cakewalk for the Congress Candidate of Curtorim Michelle Moreno Rebello who won with a thumping margin of 3598 votes against Independent candidate Andrea Reina Fernandes and AAP, a fair indication of the popularity and base of Congress MLA ALexio Reginaldo Lourenco.
In Velim, there was a contest between 6 candidates of which one was Congress, and all others were Independents. The Congress Candidate Juliao Fernandes won with a margin of 331 votes closely pursued by Antonio (Babush) Rodrigues who is said to have got support from the turncoat BJP Velim MLA and minister Filipe Nery Rodrigues.
The BJP won Guirdolim and Davorlim Constituencies. Sanjana Sanjay Velip in Guirdoilim won with a margin of 607 votes defeating Sonia Fernandes of the Congress.
The BJP candidate Ulhas Tuenkar won with a margin of 1593 votes against the Independent Candidate.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) has got one of the 4 candidates that they had fielded, elected. Vania Baptista of NCP won with a difference of 72 votes contesting against the Congress candidate Suzie Fernandes.
The Aam Aadmi Party by winning one ward of the Zilla Parishad election has opened its electoral record in Goa. AAP candidate Hanzel Fernandes won with a margin of 434 votes against veteran Congress candidate Royla Fernandes and NCP candidate Menino Fernandes.
Raia went to an Independent Dominic Gaonkar who is a former Zilla Parishad representative. Dominic won with a margin of 653 votes.