By Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji
Panaji, May 17: Goan electorate preferred not to change their representatives in the Lok Sabha re-electing both the sitting MPs from North Goa (Panaji) and South Goa (Mormugoa) constituencies.
BJP candidate Sripad Naik scored hattrick in North Goa while in South Goa Congress Candidate Fransisco Sardinha roped in the victory.
Congress-NCP had fought Goa election by forming pre-poll alliance.
The third front candidates faired much poor although they increased their vote shares for this Lok Sabha polls. Similar was the fate of regional parties, who were trying to salvage their fortunes through this poll.
Both the winning candidates, however, faced the jinx of having their winning margin slandered by the rivals.
In south Goa, BJP candidate Narendra Sawaikar, who was a new face this time, sprung huge surprise by slashing the winning margin of its rival Sardinha.
The congress which used to get around 50,000 winning margin every election against its rival this time saw its margin being slashed to mere 12,000.
Sawaikar led during the initial counting rounds but later lost the ground when electronic voting machines of Salcette constituency were taken for counting.
Congress candidate Fransisco Sardinha polled 1,27,494 votes while Sawaikar could net 1,14,978 votes.
United Goans Democratic party’s Matanhy Saldanha who was considered as a dark horse managed to get mere 16,727 votes. CPI (M) candidate Raju Mangueshkar netted 4562 votes.
In North Goa, the BJP too faced similar fate. Even though its candidate Sripad Naik managed to rope in victory, it won by slender margin.
Sitting MP and former union civil aviation minister for state Sripad Naik polled 1,37,716 votes while his nearest rival NCP’s Jitendra Deshprabhu got 1,31,363 votes.
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) candidate Pandurang Raut, who had refused an alliance with BJP and contested on his own managed to get only 6,638 votes.
Third front candidate, Christopher Fonseca of CPI (M) polled only 8,646 votes. Shiv Sena candidate Upendra Gaonkar netted only 3186 votes in this constituency.