New Delhi: Ending all speculations, Utpal Parrikar, son of late former chief minister Manohar Parrikar, announced on Friday that he will be contesting the Goa Assembly Elections as an Independent candidate from Panaji constituency.
Utpal's decision to contest Goa polls as an Independent candidate comes hours after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) denied him ticket from the seat that his father had represented since 1994.
After making the announcement, Utpal said, " I am not fighting for power or any position, I am fighting for values of my father, old workers of BJP are with me."
The development comes after days of discussions and debate over the Panaji seat that Utpal has been eyeing on, but in the end, BJP rejected his demands and offered him Bicholim seat in North Goa.
However, after Utpal's rejection, the Bicholim seat was given to Goa's Assembly Speaker Rajesh Patnekar.
Meanwhile, several political parties including Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Shiv Sena and others made overtures to Utpal to join their party.
Additionally, Goa Public Works Department Minister Deepak Prabhu Pauska has also put down his papers and will contest the upcoming elections as an Independent candidate.
Pauska resigned as an MLA, as a Minister and from the BJP's primary membership, a day after he was denied a ticket to contest from the Sanvordem assembly constituency.
The BJP, which announced a list of 34 candidates on Thursday, allotted the Sanvordem assembly ticket to ex MLA Ganesh Gaonkar.
The 40-seat Goa Assembly will go to polls on February 14, while the counting of votes will be taken up on March 10.