In South, fortunes of Pallavi and Viriato hinge on bastion bounties

As Goa votes on May 7 in the third phase of the Lok Sabha polls, the high-stakes, highdecibel battle for the South Goa seat has given BJP the jitters, notwithstanding its belligerent assertion of winning the seat by 60,000 votes.
With Congress reduced to just two MLAs in South Goa following the defection of eight of its 11 MLAs, it has been a Herculean task for the party to measure up to BJP in terms of organisation or resources.Nevertheless, political commentators concur, Congress performed well, despite all its handicaps.
It is a fight between BJP’s first woman candidate Pallavi Dempo, and Congress’s Capt Viriato Fernandes, a Navy veteran.
Riding on the crest of confidence of its robust legislative strength, BJP hopes to create history by sending its first woman candidate from Goa to the Lok Sabha. The party has 15 of the 20 MLAs from South Goa under its sway. It also has on its side MGP, a right-wing regional party.
BJP’s aggression stems from the fact that all the political heavyweights who were in the enemy camp in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls were saffron-party campaigners for this . They include Digambar Kamat (Margao), Ravi Naik (Ponda), Aleixo Se queira (Nuvem), and Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar (Madkai).
Congress has framed the election as a battle between “money power versus people’s power”. Pallavi hails from one of the oldest business families of Goa, and is arguably the wealthiest candidate in the history of the state’s electoral politics. Viriato has been projected as a messiah who will save Goa from the “unbridled, destructive, and unsustainable” development agenda of BJP.
“It’s a closely fought contest,” said political commentator Cleofato Coutinho. “It isn’t a cakewalk for BJP but its strong organisation will work to its advantage.”
Coutinho feels that Viriato’s “impeccable” character endeared him to the voters, which has enabled Congress to pose a formidable challenge to BJP.
On the other hand, political observers said, it goes to BJP’s credit for having succeeded in containing the resentment among the rank and file for having to work for the candidate chosen from outside the cadre.
Nevertheless, BJP managers are concerned about the undercurrents of insecurity among its “imported” heavyweights. “The defections inflated the party’s strength superficially. Internally, it is a turf battle among its heavyweights that threatens to undermine its prospects for the South Goa Lok Sabha seat,” a political observer said.
What bothers BJP’s election managers is the fact that with Salcete having proved to be the party’s Achilles heel, its MLAs turning saffron may not necessarily translate into more votes for the party.
“In constituencies like Nuvem and Curtorim, though the MLAs may be on BJP’s side, it’s unlikely that the voter behaviour would favour the saffron party,” a poll watcher said.
Coutinho said, “The outcome of the polls will hinge on how much lead Congress manages to take in Nuvem, Curtorim, and Cortalim (where the independent MLA Antonio Vaz has extended support to BJP).” Coutinho predicted an absolute sweep for Congress in Velim and Benaulim, even as he emphasised that the leads obtained by it in Nuvem and Curtorim will be decisive.
While Congress’s reliance on the Christiandominated Salcete cannot be overstated, political observers said that BJP’s counter-strategy lay in maximising its gains in its stronghold areas of Ponda, Sanguem, Quepem, and Canacona, to offset any losses in the Congress bastions.
Pradip Maske, an associate professor of political science, said, “Fielding a woman candidate was a masterstroke. It will catalyse more participation of women in politics in the backdrop of the legislation mandating one-third reservation for women. Prime Minister Modi addressed well-attended public rallies in South Goa in a span of three months. As in other parts of the country, the Modi factor is likely to work in Goa as well.”
A victory for BJP in South Goa, political observers said, will therefore mean that the saffron party’s Hindutva brand of nationalism has worked in its favour. If on the other hand, Congress is able to pip BJP at the post, or even post a credible performance, at stake is the fortune of the turncoats when the state goes to polls in 2027.