On the surface, the serene villages of Korgao, Paliem, and Keri in North Goa's Pernem taluka showed little sign of the ongoing Zilla Panchayat (ZP) elections. Daily life continued uninterrupted, with the promised election fever feeling as distant as the smooth roads pledged for Diwali. However, this tranquility masks a fierce and consequential political contest simmering beneath.
The Real Stakes: A Proxy War for 2027
The immediate battle is for four ZP seats in Arambol, Morjim, Dhargalim, and Torxem. Yet, for local political players and voters, the results are a crucial litmus test for a much bigger prize: the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket for the 2027 Goa Legislative Assembly elections. Despite a facade of unity among the taluka's BJP leaders, a closely fought battle is underway to establish supremacy.
Voters are acutely aware that the current Mandrem MLA, Jit Arolkar, who was elected on a Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) ticket in 2022, is keen to switch to the BJP. This potential move is sure to create friction with former MLAs Dayanand Sopte and Laxmikant Parsekar. As locals point out, the ZP election results will effectively demonstrate which leader commands genuine public support.
The internal discord is already visible. Former deputy chief minister Manohar Ajgaonkar, despite being part of the BJP, has openly backed an independent candidate in Torxem. This act of rebellion has not been well-received by the current Pernem BJP MLA, Pravin Arlekar. A booth president of a major political party revealed, "The unity between Jit Arolkar, Dayanand Sopte, and Pravin Arlekar is for show. This election will decide the fate of Sopte and Jit for 2027."
Complex Alliances and Overlapping Turfs
The political geography forces strange bedfellows. Arlekar and Arolkar are compelled to work together as their political turfs significantly overlap. For instance, on the ZP map, the villages of Parcem and Tuem, which fall under Arolkar's Mandrem assembly constituency, are part of the Dhargalim ZP constituency within Arlekar's Pernem assembly segment. Similarly, Korgao village in Pernem is part of the Arambol ZP constituency but lies within the Mandrem assembly area.
Commenting on the public mood, former MLA Laxmikant Parsekar told reporters that while he noticed public anger against the government during his visits, the ruling party might still have an advantage. "People are talking but the government has an advantage here also since there are many candidates who are fighting to take advantage of this anger. There are three-cornered and four-cornered fights and thus the final winner will be the government's candidate," Parsekar said.
Key Constituencies and Potential Upsets
In Morjim, voters indicated that the Goa Forward Party (GFP) could stage a major upset. Many are reportedly disgruntled by the "family raj" politics of the MGP candidate, Tara Hadfadkar. Conversely, a victory for Hadfadkar would strengthen Jit Arolkar's position within the alliance dynamics.
In the Arambol constituency, BJP's Manisha Korkhankar is locked in a direct contest with independent candidate Radhika Palyekar, while candidates from the Congress and the Revolutionary Goans (RG) party are struggling to gain traction. Parsekar predicted a dip in the BJP's vote share, stating, "The opposition vote is getting split. But based on the overall reactions of the people, it looks like BJP vote share will decrease."
A common sentiment of disillusionment was echoed by a woman after casting her vote, who said, "Some people said that they don't vote because they get no benefit. Once the candidate is elected, they never show their face again." This voter apathy, amidst the intense behind-the-scenes maneuvering, paints a complex picture of democracy at the grassroots level, where today's local results are a direct rehearsal for the state-level political drama of 2027.
