Hanzel Fernandes’ phone has not stopped ringing since his victory
Highlight
- Hanzel Fernandes is a carpenter by profession like his father
- He works from his carpentry workshop in Benaulim, where he won the polls
- He was inspired by activists fighting for the disappearance of the vegetation of Goa.
Panaji:
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) plans for Goa have just received help from a quiet 26-year-old with no political connections. Hanzel Fernandes won AAP its first election in the coastal state which is key to the party’s national dreams. Although it is a choice by a local body, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal said it is “only the beginning.”
After its complete failure in its debut election in 2017, AAP plans to contest the next state election in 2022.
Hanzel Fernandes’ phone has not stopped ringing since his victory. “This is a change that was needed and it is good that people have decided to make a change. We have not made false promises. Our promises will be kept. Just give us time and we will,” he told reporters this afternoon. .
“This is just the springboard where we have won a single seat. But now we are going to move up. And we are going to win all the seats and with that we will do a good job, not destroying our beautiful state but ensuring the best benefit of development in Goa. “, said.
The son of a carpenter, Fernandes followed in his father’s footsteps and joined his trade. But her mother, an environmental activist, is more committed to her political career.
“It was a tough fight. It was a fight between big parties that already have a name and this is just a fledgling party in the state. A youth with no political background has earned the faith of the voters and that is a huge success. I am very proud as a mother. I am happy that they voted for him without being offered money or bribes, “Geraldine Fernandes told NDTV.
Ms. Fernandes says her son’s focus will be on providing clean government to Goa through AAP. “We can have a clean government and we can protect everything that is left, especially our environment, the bodies of water, the fields, which are so important to each and every person in Goa.”
Goa has recently witnessed protests over coal mining and other infrastructure projects that environmentalists say are hopelessly damaging the state.
Hanzel Fernandes works from his carpentry workshop in Benaulim, where he won the district body polls. He never planned to join politics.
He was inspired by environmental activists fighting for the disappearance of Goa’s vegetation. When AAP began campaigning in the state, it was supportive. When the party needed a capable candidate from the OBC, he became the natural choice despite his political inexperience. Everything changed when some AAP leaders walked into his workshop one day, met him and his mother, and offered to make him a candidate.
Goa’s ruling BJP has made great strides in the Zila Panchayat or district body elections, winning 32 out of 49 seats, while the opposition Congress has only won four. Hanzel Fernandes won AAP its only seat at Benaulim in South Goa.
With Congress faltering in the state, AAP sees an opportunity and has more than a year to prepare.
Its leaders in Delhi say the young Fernandes has energized the party’s ranks and given them hope of repeating their success in Delhi.
AAP also announced today that it will participate in elections in Uttar Pradesh. While UP, India’s most politically vital state, has a lot at stake, Goa appears to be a more realistic target for the party.
Arvind Kejriwal, Delhi’s chief minister, said: “The people of Delhi gave AAP only one chance and today they love the party so much that they have forgotten all the others. You also give the Aam Aadmi party a chance.”
Hanzel Fernandes says: “People voted for me because they saw a young man enter the political arena and offer an alternative politics beyond what the state has seen so far in the BJP and Congress.”
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