Goa election results 2017 live: Hung assembly, BJP’s Laxmikant Parsekar resigns

New Delhi: The counting of votes for the 40 seats in Goa assembly elections 2017 show a close contest between the Congress and BJP, while other smaller parties such as the Goa Forward Party and MGP also making inroads.

Goa chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar suffered a crushing loss in Mandrem constituency of North Goa by around 3,500 votes from Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte. The party has not projected Parsekar as its chief ministerial face.

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The assembly polls in five states are being seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s popularity and his reforms agenda, particularly demonetisation. BJP senior leaders have hinted at the return of defence minister and former chief minister Manohar Parrikar to state politics.

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The election results will be available on the Election Commission website www.eci.nic.in/.

Here are the latest updates on election results and trends from counting of votes in the Goa assembly elections 2017:

■ 7.10pm: Both the Congress and the BJP have failed to secure a majority in Goa. The Congress is the single largest party, with 17 seats, and the BJP has won 13 seats, down from 21 in the 2012 state election.

■ 5.45pm: Goa chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar resigns.

■ 5.15pm: Party position in Goa at 5pm. (PTI)

Total Assembly constituencies: 40

Results declared: 38

Congress—15

BJP—13

GFP—03

NCP—1

MGP—3

Independents—3

■ 5pm: Congress has called a meeting of its elected candidates in the evening which would be chaired by All India Congress Committee general secretary Digvijay Singh. (PTI)

■ 4.45pm: Goa Forward Party (GFP), floated just a year ago, has emerged a force to reckon with, winning three seats – Fatorda, Siolim and Saligao. GFP candidates defeated two BJP ministers Dayanand Mandrekar (Siolim) and Dilip Parulekar (Saligao).

MGP won in three constituencies, but lost two sitting seats Ponda - represented by Lavoo Mamlatdar - and Priol from where party President Dipak Dhavalikar was elected last time. The regional party, however, retained Madkai, where its leader Sudin Dhavalikar won with a margin of more than 10,000 votes.

MGP won two new constituencies – Pernem where its candidate Manohar Asgaonkar defeated BJP Minister Rajendra Arlekar and Sanvordem where its nominee Dipak Pawaskar trounced BJP’s sitting MLA Ganesh Gaonkar.

Former state minister Churchill Alemao made a comeback in the assembly winning from Benaulim on a NCP ticket. Two Independent candidates – Govind Gawade (Priol) and Prasad Gaonkar (Sanguem) - also made it to the Assembly. (PTI)

■ 4.30pm: Most of the ministers in the BJP-led government headed by Laxmikant Parsekar in Goa were defeated today apart from chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar who lost his sitting seat Mandrem in the Assembly polls.

Six of the eight ministers who were in the fray lost the polls to their rivals, adding to the poor performance of the BJP, which in 2012 emerged victorious in the coastal state securing a simple majority on its own.

Parsekar lost to Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte in Mandrem by over 7000 votes. The party was jolted as its senior leader and forest minister Rajendra Arlekar lost to MGP’s Manohar Asgaonkar in Pernem constituency.

The newly-formed Goa Forward Party dealt a double blow to the BJP as its candidates unseated two senior ministers in the outgoing cabinet.

While in Siolim, water resources minister Dayanand Mandrekar was defeated by GFP’s candidate Vinod Palyekar in Saligao constituency, tourism minister Dilip Parulekar lost to Jayesh Salgaoncar, also from the regional outfit.

State industries minister Mahadev Naik was defeated by Congress’s Subhash Shirodkar in Shiroda constituency.

Another prominent loser was MGP’s Dipak Dhavalikar, who was sacked from the cabinet before the polls after his party severed its ties with the BJP, just ahead of the elections. Dhavalikar lost to Independent candidate Govind Gawade who was backed by BJP in Priol constituency.

■ 3.45pm: Results for 35 seats declared. BJP has won 12 seats, while Congress has won 14 seats. NCP—1, MGP—3, Goa Forward Party—3, and 2 seats to Independents. (EC)

■ 3.30pm: Former Goa chief minister and veteran Congressman Digambar Kamat, who won from Margao constituency, credited his party workers for the victory.

“I attribute my victory to all my party workers who stood by me and reposed their faith in me,” Kamat told reporters outside the counting centre here in South Goa.

Kamat romped home after defeating BJP candidate Sharmad Pai Raiturcar by 4,900 votes.

Talking to media after his win, Kamat claimed, “the BJP-led government tried to harass me. They filed fake cases against me. They tried to jail me. Only God protected me.”

The 63-year-old leader was at helm of affairs in Goa from 2007-12. (PTI)

■ 3pm: Results for 31 seats declared. Both BJP and Congress win 11 seats each. NCP wins 1, MGP wins 3, Goa Forward Party wins 3, and 2 seats to Independents. (EC)

■ 2.15pm: Party position in Goa at 2pm. (PTI)

Total Assembly constituencies: 40, Results declared: 19

Congress—8

BJP—6

Goa Forward— 2

NCP—1

MGP—1

Independent—1

■ 1.45pm: Dead heat in Goa between BJP and Congress. Each leads on 12 seats.

■ 1.30pm: We accept people’s mandate. All volunteers worked hard. Our struggle will continue: Arvind Kejriwal on AAP’s performance.

■ 1.15pm: Of the 15 results declared so far, BJP bagged 6, Congress 4, Goa Forward 2, MGP, independent and NCP one each. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which made a serious bid in the electoral politics of the coastal state, is trailing the two main contestants in all the seats.

Deputy Chief Minister Fransic D’Souza of BJP won from Mapusa constituency defeating MGP candidate Vinod Phadke by a margin of 6,806 votes.

Goa Forward candidate Vinod Palyekar defeated BJP candidate and State Minister Dayanand Mandrekar in Siolim.

Two other BJP nominees - Pravin Zantye and Michael Lobo - emerged victorious from Mayem and Calangute constituencies respectively. While Zantye defeated Congress rival Santosh Sawant by 4,974 votes, Lobo won by 4,460 votes against Congress candidate Joseph Sequeira.

Congress candidate Francis Silveira bagged the St Andre constituency defeating BJP’s Ramrao Wagh by a margin of 5,070 votes.

MGP’s Dipak Pawaskar defeated Ganesh Gaonkar of BJP by 1,169 votes in Sanvordem.

■ 1pm: Former Goa Chief Minister Digambar Kamat (Congress) wins from Margao constituency, defeating BJP candidate Sharmad Pai Raiturcar by 4,900 votes. (PTI)

“It was easy defeating the CM,” says Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte after his win, Firstpost reported.

■ 12.30pm: Senior BJP leader and Goa deputy chief minister Francis Dsouza has won by 6,828 votes from Mapusa constituency.

Dsouza, who had expressed desire to be made the chief minister in November 2014 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi moved then Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar to the centre, may again make that claim in the event of BJP going close to the majority mark of 21.

At the last count according to the Election Commission website, both BJP and Congress had won or were leading on 8 seats each.

■ 12pm: MGP president Deepak Dhavalikar loses from Priol in Goa.

■ 11.45am: The Congress was leading in eight seats in Goa and the ruling BJP in five of the 40 constituencies in the state after the first three hours of counting of votes.

Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar lost by over 3,500 votes to Congress’s Dayanand Sopte in Mandrem constituency.

The first result went in favour of the MGP, whose contestant Dipak Pawaskar defeated Ganesh Gaonkar of the BJP in Sanvordem.

Leader of Opposition Pratapsinh Rane (Congress) is ahead of BJP’s Vishwajit Krishnarao Rane in Poriem seat.

Other Congress contestants who established early leads include Jeniffer Monserratte in Taleigao, Chandrakant Kavlekar in Quepem and Francis Silveira in St Andre seat.

While Goa Forward Party has gained lead in two seats, NCP leads in one.

Also read | Goa election results 2017: Will Manohar Parrikar realize his CM dream again?

The MGP is ahead in Bicholim seat as well, with its candidate Naresh Sawal mantaining lead over BJP’s Rajesh Patnekar.

Pravin Zantye of the BJP is leading in Mayem against Congress candidate Santosh Sawant. (PTI)

■ 11.30am: Goa shocker for AAP, trends show AAP leading on none of the 26 seats for which trends are available.

■ 11.00am: In a huge embarrassment for the BJP in Goa, its chief minister in the outgoing government Laxmikant Parsekar suffered a crushing loss in Mandrem constituency of North Goa by around 3,500 votes from Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte.

Read more | Goa Election Results: Big setback for BJP as Laxmikant Parsekar loses

BJP’s Francis Dsouza leads in Mapusa. BJP leads Maem, neck and neck fight between BJP and Goa Forward in Siolem.

AAP’s CM nominee Elvis Gomes trails in Cuncolim.

■ 10.30am: Goa could be a surprise story for Congress, trends suggest. Congress leading in 8 seats, BJP in 6, MGP in 2, NCP in 1, Goa Forward ahead in 2 seats. Others and Independents in 1.

■ 10am: Election trends on CNN-News18 for 17 assembly seats in Goa shows Congress is leading in eight, BJP is leading in five seats, other parties and independents are ahead in four seats.

MGP’s Dipak Pawaskar defeats Ganesh Gaonkar of BJP by 1,169 votes in Sanvordem constituency. (PTI)

■ 9.45am: Chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar (BJP) trails Congress candidate Dayanand Sopte by 1,700 votes in Mandrem constituency. (PTI)

■ 9.30am: Congress leads on three seats, BJP on one, MGP-one and Goa Forward Party on two, as per early trends. (PTI)

Goa CM Laxmikant Parsekar is trailing in Mandrem constituency by nearly 1,000 votes.

■ 9.15am: Election trends for four seats in Goa on CNN-News18 shows that the Congress is leading in two seats, while the BJP is leading in one seat. Independent and others lead in one seat.

■ 8.15am: The focus is on whether the BJP will be able to retain power and if it gets a fresh mandate, will defence minister Manohar Parrikar return to his home state as chief minister. The fate of Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, whose Mandrem constituency will be taken up for counting during the first round, will be decided within the first hour of the counting.

■ 8.00am: The counting of votes for all 40 constituencies of the Goa Assembly began at 8am on Friday at two centres in Panaji and Margao. The postal ballots and votes polled by service voters will be taken up first before calculating the numbers on Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).

Tight security arrangements have been made with over 1,000 policemen deployed. Election officials said the counting will be completed by 2.30pm.

The votes for 19 constituencies will be counted at Panaji in North Goa, while the tally for the remaining 21 will be carried out in Margao in South Goa.

The elections held on February 4 witnessed an enthusiastic response of voters, with polling clocking in at 83%. (PTI)