Panaji, Dec 3 (TOI): Ending all speculations, St Cruz MLA Atanasio Monserrate alias Babush on Friday announced that he will be contesting the 2017 assembly elections from the Panaji constituency.

"The 2017 polls I will contest from Panaji or not at all," he announced amidst much applause, at a meeting held with his present and former Corporation of the City of Panaji (CCP) councillors. Also present at the meeting were CCP mayor Surendra Furtado, former CCP mayor Tony Rodrigues - who was till recent with the BJP, and candidates who had contested the CCP elections and lost.

"This announcement should shut the mouths of all those spreading rumours that I will not contest from Panaji," Monserrate said while urging his councillors and supporters to unite for the big battle for the capital city .

"I always wanted to fight an election against Manohar Parrikar, and I wish the Delhi government would send him back to fight state elections so that I can stand against him. It has been my dream to defeat Parrikar, and I have always been confident about defeating him," he said, and added that the reason he knows he can defeat the defence minister is that while Parrikar will best him as far as qualifications are concerned, he will best Parrikar where development is concerned.

"Qualification is for yourself, but development is for the people," Monserrate said and added that Parrikar was in Panaji for the last 25 years, but nothing has changed in the city. "How a person from Mapusa or somewhere else have love for Panaji," the former education minister said.

Monserrate said once elected from the Panaji seat he would develop Azad Maidan and that he would keep it as an open space, like Rajghat in Delhi.

He also alleged that Panaji MLA Sidharth Kuncalienker was looking after all Goa state infrastructure development corporation (GSIDC) dealings, sidelining Sakhali MLA Pramod Sawant, who is the chairman of the corporation.