Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s Goa unit intensified its campaign for political reservation for Scheduled Tribes (STs) in the State Assembly by adopting a resolution calling for swift action from the Centre before the 2027 Assembly elections.
After the BJP core committee meeting, Goa BJP president Damu Naik told reporters that the party would continue engaging with the Union government and the central leadership to ensure reservation for the tribal community is implemented within the current electoral cycle.
According to Naik, the BJP is of the view that four Assembly constituencies in Goa should be reserved for Scheduled Tribes based on data from the 2011 Census. He cautioned that delaying the exercise until a fresh census is conducted could slow down the process and affect implementation before the next state elections.
He said the party remains determined to secure adequate political representation for the tribal population in Goa and would persist in pursuing the matter at the national level.
Although Parliament approved the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill in August 2025 and the legislation later received Presidential assent, the groundwork needed to enforce the reservation system has reportedly seen little progress over the past several months.
The demand for faster implementation gained visibility during the ‘Prerana Din’ gathering held at Ambaulim in Quepem on May 25, where multiple tribal leaders and public representatives voiced support for immediate political reservation for Scheduled Tribes.
Among those present at the event were Speaker Ganesh Gaonkar, Tribal Welfare Minister Ramesh Tawadkar, MLA Govind Gaude and former minister Prakash Velip. Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had also assured attendees that the government would make every effort to ensure ST reservation in the Goa Legislative Assembly is in place before the 2027 polls.
