Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal hailed his party's maiden win in Goa Zilla Panchayat elections, which marked the first electoral history of the party in the coastal state.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Goa has made big gains in the Zilla Panchayat elections, winning 32 out of 49 seats on offer, while the opposition Congress performed poorly, bagging just four.
The AAP opened its account in Hanzel Fernandes who won Benaulim seat in South Goa.
With no political connections, the 26-year-old managed to win his first-ever election in the seaside state that is key to the party's national dreams. Though it is a local body election, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal said it is "just the beginning".
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After 2017, AAP is now planning to contest the next state polls in 2022.
The son of a carpenter, Hanzel followed in his father's footsteps and joined his trade. But his mother, an environment activist, is more invested in his political career.
"It was tough fight. It was fight between big parties that already have a name and this is just a budding party coming up in the state. Youth with no political background has won the faith of the voters and that is an immense success. I am very proud as a mother. I am happy they voted for him without any money or bribe being offered," Geraldine Fernandes told NDTV.
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Hanzel considers this as a much-needed change for Goa. He said, “This is a change that was needed and it is good people have decided to make a change. We have not made any fake promises. Our promises will be fulfilled. Just give us time and we will do it.”
"This is just the stepping stone where we have won just one seat. But now we are going to rise. And we are going to win all the seats and with that, we will do a lot of good work, not by destroying our beautiful state but by ensuring the best benefit from development in Goa," he added.
Goa has recently seen protests over coal mining and other infrastructure projects that environmentalists say are damaging the state beyond repair.
AAP also announced that it will contest elections in Uttar Pradesh.
Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi, said, "The people of Delhi gave AAP just once chance and today they love the party so much that they have forgotten all other parties. You also give the Aam Aadmi Party one chance."
