Cong names 9 more candidates in 3rd list for Goa polls; ex-BJP minister gets ticket

Panaji: The Congress on Tuesday released its third list of nine more party candidates for the February 14 Goa assembly elections and fielded leaders who were earlier in the BJP and the Trinamool Congress (TMC).

Former BJP minister Michael Lobo, who recently quit the saffron party to join the Congress, figures in the list along with Lavu Mamlekar, who was earlier with the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC.

While Lobo will contest from Calangute, Mamlekar is the Congress candidate from the Marcaim Assembly constituency.

The list, signed by All India Congress Committee General Secretary Mukul Wasnik, also includes former Independent MLA Prasad Gaonkar, who had resigned from the House recently to join the Congress. He would be contesting from his traditional Assembly seat Sanguem.

Meghashyam Raut is the Congress candidate from Bicholim, while Aman Lotlikar has been fielded from Tivim, Vikash Prabhudesai from Porvorim, Anthony Fernandes from St Andre and Janardhan Bhandari from Canacona.

Senior Congress leader Dharmesh Saglani will be contesting from the Sankhalim Assembly constituency, currently represented by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant.

The main opposition party has so far announced party tickets for 24 candidates for the single-phase polls to the 40-member Goa Assembly.

The Sonia Gandhi-led party has already announced a pre-poll alliance with the Goa Forward Party, a regional outfit.

The Congress had won 17 seats in the 2017 Assembly polls in the tiny coastal state to emerge as the single largest party. However, the BJP, which was then No. 2 in terms of seats, quickly stitched an alliance with smaller parties and Independent MLAs to form its government in Goa.