CCP polls: With commanding majority comes demanding responsibility

It was a low-key campaign for a high-stakes election to the Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) that when the votes were counted, it clearly indicated why the capital city plays such a major role in Goa’s elections. In a contest where there were just two panels, the result could go either way and that’s one, but not the only reason, why the expectations were running high, and though the mainstream media didn’t cover the campaign adequately, social media saw much debate before and after the polls. 

Local body elections in Goa are not held on party lines, but Panaji is the capital of Goa and so every political party desires to have its grip on the city corporation. The stakes, therefore, were high for local MLAs—the Monserrate couple comprising Atanasio and Jennifer who represent Panaji and Taleigao constituencies in the State Legislative Assembly and whose son Rohit is the outgoing mayor of Panaji.

On the other side, was Utpal Parrikar, son of Goa’s former chief minister Manohar Parrikar, supported by the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Recent protests to the casinos in the River Mandovi, especially the replacement casino that is expected to come later this year, appear to have made little impact on the way people voted. The grumbling and fault-finding that had been heard during the time the Smart City works were being undertaken in Panaji also appear to have played no role when people went out to vote.

For when the results came in, it was the Monserrates and the BJP that were smiling, and the opposition alliance that had frowns on their faces. The tally at the end of the morning was 27 seats for the BJP-backed panel, and just 03 for the opposition. In the final analysis, the people of the state capital preferred a status quo, going for the tried and tested, rather than experimenting with the unproven.

By early morning, in the first round of counting itself, it was clear that the BJP-backed panel led by Panaji MLA Atanasio Monserrate and having outgoing mayor Rohit Monserrate in it, was not just leading, but sweeping.

At the end of the second round it was established that the Ami Panjekar panel of Utpal, son of former Panaji MLA Manohar Parrikar, had bitten the dust, and by 10.30 am, the BJP-backed panel had touched the halfway mark of 15, losing just one seat. There could be no possibility of a comeback for the Ami Panjekar panel from this point. All it could do was perhaps add a couple more wards to its kitty, which is all it did.

If this was an experiment in opposition unity on which would be built the alliance for the State Legislative Assembly polls due in less than a year’s time, then it clearly indicated just how unprepared the parties are to challenge the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In light of these results and those of Zilla Panchayat a few months ago, the opposition has a high mountain to climb if it seeks to make a comeback in 2027.

On the other hand, if Utpal was making another attempt to gauge his popularity that would lead to staking claim to the seat that elected his father for two decades, this is a setback. In his earlier attempts, Utpal had not succeeded, another failed challenge is possibly the end of a political career that never took off. Had his panel won or even come close to the halfway mark, it could change how Panaji votes in the next Assembly elections. But it didn’t, and a strong challenge coming from him now appears dim.

Interestingly, of the three candidates of the Ami Panjekar panel that won, at least two owe allegiance to Congress and AAP.

It’s now back to work. The winning panel has its task cut out and for it, there is no time to waste. This was not merely a sweep, it was a wave, where the BJP-backed panel has won 90 percent of the seats. It now has to deliver and validate the trust the people of Panaji have reposed in them.