The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) today announced new entrant and lawyer-turned-politician Amit Palekar as its chief ministerial face for the Goa Assembly Elections 2022. AAP had made its debut in Goa during the 2017 polls while Palekar had joined the party in October last year. Palekar’s name has surprised many as the AAP has chosen him over party leaders who have been associated with it since 2017.
The AAP has fielded Palekar from the St Cruz Assembly constituency, currently represented by the ruling BJP. Announcing his name for the CM candidature, AAP convener and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal said that Goa wants change which is why the party has given tickets to fresh faces across the state. The AAP had earlier announced that its CM pick will be a face from the Bhandari community. Palekar, 46, belongs to the Bhandari community.
An advocate by profession, Palekar has been involved with various social causes and has been vocal against corruption in the state. He was also very active during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and even donated 135 beds to a hospital. According to reports, his mother was a Sarpanch for ten years.
Palekar shot into limelight recently when he sat on an indefinite hunger strike against the construction of an illegal building inside the Old Goa Heritage premises. The BJP government was later forced to act against the disputed structure.
The AAP has announced that it will contest all the 40 seats of the Goa assembly alone. Goa will vote for the assembly polls on February 17 while the results will be declared on March 10.
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