CM Parrikar to contest Goa bypoll from Panaji
Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar will be contesting a bypoll from his former constituency of Panaji. Th election date has not been announced yet. Goa BJP president Vinay Tendulkar announced that sitting BJP MLA from Panaji Siddharth Kuncalienkar will resign to make way for Parrikar's election. Kuncalienkar had won the bypoll in Panaji when Parrikar resigned in 2014 to become the Defence Minister.
Even though Manohar Parrikar has been appointed the Chief Minister of Goa, he is not a part of the Goa assembly. To ensure his CM appointment is not invalidated, he has to contest bypolls within 6 months of being elected (March'17).
BJP sources said the Panaji bypoll may be held from Vapoli, where former Congress legislator Vishwajit Rane will contest from a BJP ticket. Rane had resigned from the Congress after the party failed to stake claim to form the government in Goa. The Congress will contest both the bypolls to thwart a victory by either Rane or Parrikar.
BJP sources said "The Congress will make it a prestige fight and it won't be a cakewalk for us. The timing of the bypoll will be important. In June, Goa will have Panchayat polls which will give us clues to what people are thinking."
