Goa CM features in BJP’s first shortlist of poll candidates

Panaji, Jan 6 (IANS) Goa Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar figures among the key potential candidates for the assembly polls cleared by the Bharatiya Janata Party's state election management committee on Friday.

The party on Thursday announced its first short list of 21 candidates for the state assembly elections. BJP spokesperson Narendra Savaikar said the names has been sent to the parliamentary board for final vetting.

Deputy Chief Minister Francis D'Souza and current cabinet ministers Dayanand Mandrekar (Siolim), Dilip Parulekar (Saligao), Mahadev Naik (Shiroda), Milind Naik (Mormugao) and Alina Saldanha (Cortalim) have also been included in the list.

Former Congress legislator Mauvin Godinho, who joined the BJP last month, has been shortlisted from the Dabolim assembly constituency, Savaikar told the media here.

"The names have been shortlisted by the state election management committee of the party and forwarded to the BJP parliamentary board, which is the highest decision-making body of our party."

The rest of the names will be cleared within a week, he said.

According to the BJP, the party will contest 37 out of the 40 assembly seats in Goa, and will lend support to other suitable candidates in the remaining three constituencies.

The shortlist cleared by the state election committee headed by Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, also includes seven sitting legislators.

The assembly elections in Goa will be held on February 4.