Staff Reporter

Panaji

The village of Taleigao is all set for panchayat election on Sunday, April 28, when voters of seven out of the 11 wards will head to the polling booths to elect their representatives.

Approximately 12,000 voters will determine the fate of the candidates vying for the crucial local government positions. Voting on postal ballots will commence at 8 am and continue till 5 pm at 16 polling stations. Counting of votes will take place at Bal Bhavan on Monday, April 29, at 8.30 am.

For the first time, the Taleigao panchayat election is seeing a surge in candidates getting elected unopposed, with four contenders in wards 1, 6, 10 and 11 having secured victory without a single vote being cast.

They are riding on the coattails of the panel of MLA Atanasio Monserrate and his wife. The four candidates elected unopposed include Siddhi Kerkar, a first-time contender, Estella D’Souza, Sydney Barreto and Sagar Bandekar.

Mayur Uskaikar (ward 1), Pratima Shirodkar (wards 3 and 6) and Candido Dias (ward 11) have withdrawn their nomination papers.

The seven wards are set to witness a fierce battle as candidates with various political affiliations and also independent contenders are vying for the positions.

The campaigning was intense with door-to-door canvassing and also on social media, and an array of promises made to convince the electorate.

Candidates in the fray include Agnelo Da Cunha and Domingos Da Cunha (ward 2), Emie Rodrigues and Helena Pereira (ward 3), Madvi Kankonkar and Ratika Gawas (ward 4), Disha Murgaonkar and Ushant Kankonkar (ward 5), Janu Rosario and Viju Diukar (ward 7), Emman Dias and Maria Fernandes (ward 8), and Sanjana Diukar and Vanita Veluskar (ward 9).