NEWS: Reginaldo's poll agent under Congress scanner TEAM HERALD teamher...@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: South Goa district Congress president Subhash Faldesai, who was Congress candidate Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco's election agent, is under the scanner of the Congress leadership. For, the Congress poll managers have maintained that the Congress party had to go without polling agents in many a polling booth after Faldessai's signature on the polling agent forms failed to tally with his specimen signature with the presiding officers. In fact, the most hit polling booths were Independent MLA Vijay Sardessai's Fatorda Assembly segment and Sanguem where Congress' polling agents were denied entry in the polling booths. Sources in the know said the Congress had to literally depend on the polling agents of Independent candidate, Govind Gawde to man the booths in Fatorda assembly segment. The Congress had to contend with a worse scenario in Sanguem where the party appointed polling agents could not take charge of the booths for a better part of the day. Sources said the Congress poll managers have drawn the attention of the party leadership to the episode. "Faldesai's signature on the polling agent forms does not resemble a signature. It does not even resemble an initial," remarked a Congress leader manning Lourenco's campaign. Party candidate Reginaldo Lourenco is expected to formally bring the matter to the notice of the high command for necessary action. When contacted, Faldesai, however, said that some of the presiding officers denied entry to the party polling agents on flimsy grounds. "The presiding officers took the alibi that my signature did not tally on the forms to deny our agents entry into the booths," he said. Faldesai admitted that his signature in many a form must have varied because the polling agent forms were given to him by the office of the Returning Officer only at around 3.30 pm. "I had to sign as many as 1600 polling agents forms. My signature must have varied, but that was no reason for the presiding officer to deny entry to our polling agents," he added. ### Herald April 14, 2014. http://www.heraldgoa.in Page 2 (print edition)