North Goa constituency: BJP's Ramakant Khalap's Versus Congress' Shripad Naik After 25 years

North Goa, one of the two Lok Sabha constituencies in Goa, is a fortress of the BJP. The incumbent MP, Shripad Yesso Naik, is seeking his sixth consecutive term in the forthcoming polls. He is currently serving as the Minister of State for Tourism and Ports, Shipping, and Waterways.

Shripad Naik”s first victory in the constituency was in 1999 against Congress candidate Ramakant Khalap, who was then a new face. Cut-to 25 years later, the strong fight is ensued again between the same candidates: 71-year-old Union minister and five-time BJP MP Shripad Naik and 77-year-old former Union minister Ramakant Khalap on a congress ticket.

The constituency is considered a cakewalk for the BJP, and Tilak has already expressed his confidence. On the other hand, Congress expects a comeback following the hike in their vote percentage in the 2019 election and their alliance with other opposition parties, including the AAP.

Along with these seasoned candidates, Manoj Parab, the founder-president of Revolutionary Goans, the regional party that made an impact in the 2022 assembly polls by garnering 5% of the vote share in North Goa and even a seat, is also on the battlefield, hoping that it will be able to make an equal impact in the parliamentary elections.

North Goa is a general category parliamentary seat. It is a Hindu-dominant parliamentary seat, with 76.8% Hindu voters. Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) voters comprise 5.1% and 2.4%, respectively. Meanwhile, Muslims constitute 6.1% and Christians constitute 17.1% of the total electorate. Rural voters at the North Goa parliament seat are approximately 250,257, which is around 43.6%, and urban voters are approximately 323,726, which is around 56.4% as per the 2011 Census.

The polling is scheduled for May 7 (phase 3), and results will declare on June 4.

(This story is part of a Timeline. internship project.)