Cong-NCP 4, BJP 1
05 June 2005 18:42 IST The Congress-led alliance swept the crucial by-elections in Goa, paving way to lift the President’s rule and form a popular government.
Goa has been under the spell of President’s rule since March, with the 40-member Assembly being kept under suspended animation.
The Congress-led alliance won four out of five seats, losing only one seat to the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress candidate Isidore Fernandes (Poinguinim), who was facing election for the third time during the ongoing tenure of the 10th Assembly, lost to the BJP candidate Ramesh Tavadkar.
Digambar Kamat (Margao), Babush Monserette (Taleigao) and Pandurang Madkaikar (Cumbarjua), all former ministers in the erstwhile BJP-led government, won the by-polls on Congress ticket.
Nationalist Congress Party candidate Micky Pacheco, who had also quit the BJP, won from Benaulim.
The new trend of defections by quitting the party and coming back through by-polls was started by the BJP. Fernandes had quit the Congress in November last year, to get re-elected on BJP ticket. He however quit once again within three months, along with four others.
This had resulted into the collapse of the four and half years’ tenure of Manohar Parrikar in February. However, in spite of installing the Congress-led alternate government, Pratapsing Rane had failed to prove his majority on 4 March.
Governor S C Jamir was ruling Goa since then.
