Team Goemkarponn
Canacona: Tejal Pagui has been elected unopposed as the new Sarpanch of Village Panchayat Khola, becoming the fifth person to hold the post during the current panchayat term.
Pagui, who had earlier contested the Zilla Panchayat elections as a BJP candidate from the Khola constituency, assumes office following the resignation of outgoing Sarpanch Pradnya Gautam Kamat. Kamat stepped down after completing her agreed tenure as part of an internal rotation arrangement among the eight-member ruling group in the nine-member panchayat.
With her election, Tejal Pagui becomes the second member of the Pagui family to serve as Sarpanch. Her husband, Ajay Pagui, had earlier occupied the post at the beginning of the term when the rotation system was first implemented after the last panchayat elections.
During the present term, the Sarpanch post has been successively held by Ajay Pagui, former ZP member Krishna Velip, Priyanka Pavitra Velip and Pradnya Kamat before Tejal Pagui took charge.
Speaking on the occasion, former Deputy Chief Minister and Chairman of Kala Academy Chandrakant Kavlekar said that although the posts of Sarpanch and Deputy Sarpanch are rotated within the ruling group, development works in the village are being undertaken with the support of the BJP-led government. He stated that with the panchayat backing the party, all members are working collectively for the overall development of the village.
Deputy Sarpanch Priyanka Pavitra Velip, panchas Pandhari Prabhudesai, Krishna Velip and Ajay Pagui, along with outgoing Sarpanch Pradnya Kamat, were present during the election process. Kavlekar, accompanied by BJP Quepem Mandal president Krupesh Velip, congratulated Tejal Pagui on her election.
It may be recalled that in the recent Zilla Panchayat polls, the BJP had fielded Tejal Pagui from the Khola ZP constituency, which includes VP Khola, Betul-Naqueri, Agonda and Shristhal. She narrowly lost the contest to Congress candidate Sumitra Pagi.
