Team Goemkarponn
ANJUNA: A petition has been filed before the High Court of Bombay at Goa contesting the State government’s recent decision to reserve the Anjuna Zilla Panchayat (ZP) constituency in North Goa for candidates belonging to the Other Backward Classes (OBC).
The plea questions the State’s notification issued on November 6, arguing that the Anjuna seat had been reserved for women during the 2020 ZP elections and that the fresh reservation lacks proper reasoning or justification. The High Court is expected to take up the matter for hearing on Saturday.
According to the same notification, a total of 20 Zilla Panchayat constituencies across Goa have been reserved for candidates from the OBC, Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Scheduled Castes (SC) categories, while 18 constituencies have been earmarked for women in the upcoming December 13 polls.
Goa’s ZP elections will be held on party lines for 50 seats — 25 each in North and South Goa. The State Election Commission is expected to announce the poll schedule later this week, following which the Model Code of Conduct will come into effect.
Of the total seats, 13 have been reserved for OBCs, including OBC women — seven in North Goa and six in South Goa. Six constituencies are designated for STs (five in North, one in South), and one seat at Querim in North Goa has been earmarked for the SC category. Additionally, 18 wards — nine each in both districts — are reserved for women, including those belonging to OBC and ST categories.
