PANAJI : The Congress party on Thursday announced its first list of 27 candidates for the state assembly elections scheduled for February 4. All-India Congress committee general secretary Madhusudhan Mistry announced the list through a press release on the party’s website. The party has nominated four former chief ministers in its first list of candidates.
Poriem MLA and Opposition leader Pratapsingh Rane will re-contest from his home turf, while Margao MLA and former chief minister Digambar Kamat has retained his candidature for the commercial town. Ravi Naik has been once again given candidature from Ponda constituency. Goa pradesh Congress committee president and former chief minister Luizinho Faleiro will contest the elections from the Navelim constituency as he makes a reentry into the Goan electoral politics after 10 years.
The Congress has announced the candidature of all its sitting MLAs which include Jennifer Monserrate from Taleigao, Vishwajeet Rane (Valpoi), Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco (Curtorim) and Chandrakant (Babu) Kavlekar from Quepem.
The list also includes former GPCC president Shubhash Shirodkar, who will once again contest from Shiroda, and former water resources minister Filip Nery Rodrigues has been announced as the candidate for the Velim constituency.
Former MLAs Dayanand Sopte, Isidore Fernandes and Francisco Silveira have been nominated for Mandrem, Canacona and St. Andre constituencies respectively.
The Congress has nominated former tourism minister Nilkanth Halarnkar, who joined the Congress in 2016, to contest from the Tivim constituency.
After the exit of Mauvin Godinho, Congress has nominated Francisco Jose Nunes to contest from the Dabolim constituency while it is yet to announce a candidate for Cumbharjua assembly segment.
The other candidates include Vikesh Hasotikar (Pernem), Manohar Shirodkar (Bicholim), Amarnath Panajikar (Aldona), Dharmesh Saglani (Sanquelim), Urmila Naik (Marcaim), Sankalp Amonkar (Mormugao), Gilbert Mariano Rodrigues (Cortalim), Wilfred (Babashan) D‘Sa (Nuvem), Clafacio Dias (Cuncolim), Rosario Fernandes (Curchorem), Shankar Kirlapalkar (Sanvordem) and Savitri Kawlekar for Sanguem constituency.
