8 municipal councils 'allow' their Heads unopposed, 3 councils 'elect'
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 05 November 2015 18:34 IST
Margao councillors took oath at Lohia Maidan
Eight among total 11 municipalities today elected its new chairpersons and vice-chairpersons unopposed while Margao set a new trend by taking oath at the historic Lohia Maidan for the first time.
Elections for the new civic leaders were held only in three municipalities – Canacona, Cuncolim and Mormugao, all in South Goa.
The crucial among them was however only Canacona, where non-BJP leaders were elected to power by lots after it became a tie of 5-5.
Nitu Desai for chairperson and Dayanand Pagi for vice-chairperson, both belonging to sports minister Ramesh Tawadkar’s BJP-supported panel, were defeated.
BJP faced another setback in Cuncolim, where former Congress minister Joaquim Alemao managed to hold his councillors together and won elections with 7 against 4.
Kiran Naik and Virendra Desai, both belonging to Cuncolim BJP MLA Rajan Naik’s panel, were defeated.
Mormugao, though clear, became interesting with Sarika Palkar, one BJP-supported councillor, abstained from voting as well as oath taking.
Besides BJP’s 14 and one councillor of Congress MLA Mauvin Godinho, three independents also supported the ruling panel, making it 17 against 7 votes.
The opposing panel led by industrialist Nana Bandekar and former NCP MLA Jose Philip D’Souza had fielded Bhavan Nanoskar and Murari Bandekar for the posts of chairperson and vice-chairperson.
LOHIA MAIDAN OATH
Also a major highlight of the civic election was the oath taking ceremony at historic Lohia Maidan by Margao councillors, making it a real public event.
All the 25 councillors took oath, administered by returning officer Laura Britto, in the presence of Margao municipal chief officer Yeshwant B Tawade as well as all three MLAs – Digambar Kamat, Vijai Sardesai and Aleixo Reginald Lourenco.
Councillors of all other 10 councils took oath in respective municipal council buildings.
Following are the elected chairpersons and vice-chairpersons with the party affiliations of the elected councillors at the time of getting elected:
PERNEM
CP : Smita Kudtarkar
VCP : Upendra Deshprabhu
Total : 10
BJP : 8
Cong : 1
Ind : 1
BICHOLIM
CP : Rajaram Gaonkar
VCP : Ajit Birje
Total : 12
BJP : 10
Ind : 2
VALPOI
CP : Ramdas Shirodkar
VCP : Shaizin Shaikh
Total : 10
Cong : 8
Ind : 2
MAPUSA
CP : Sandip Falari
VCP : Marlene D’Souza
Total : 20
BJP : 16
Ind : 4
MORMUGAO
CP : Dipak Naik
VCP : Shashikant Parab
Total : 25
BJP : 14
Cong : 1
Nana : 7
Ind : 3
MARGAO
CP : Babita Angle Prabhudesai
VCP : Doris Taxeira
Total : 25
Vijai-Cong: 17
BJP : 4
Ind : 4
CUNCOLIM
CP : Lavita Mascarenhas
VCP : Mario Moraes
Total : 11
Cong : 7
BJP : 4
QUEPEM
CP : Filu D’Costa
VCP : Paulo Fernandes
Total : 11
Cong : 9
Ind : 2
CURCHOREM
CP : Vishwas Sawant
VCP : Pradnya Naik
Total : 14
BJP : 12
Ind : 2
SANGUEM
CP : Queiroz Cruz
VCP : Amita Mapari
Total : 10
BJP : 8
Ind : 2
CANACONA
CP : Prarthana Gaonkar
VCP : Samita Dhuri
Total : 10
Khot : 5
BJP : 4
Ind : 1
