For the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has picked Pallavi Dempo to contest from Goa’s South Goa parliamentary constituency. Her name featured on the party’s fifth list, which was released on Sunday and declared candidates for 111 seats.
“I am deeply grateful to the BJP for this nomination and accept it in all humility. We will try our level best to win this seat. I have always believed in (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi’s vision of leadership, a vision that according to me, empowers everybody irrespective of caste creed or religion and equal opportunities to every section of society,” Dempo said upon her nomination.
The South Goa seat is currently held by the Congress’ Francisco Sardinha, and the grand old party has bagged it 10 times. The BJP, on the other hand, has won twice: 1999 and 2014.
Who is Pallavi Dempo?
(1.) She is the first woman to be fielded by the BJP in the coastal state, which has two parliamentary constituencies. She has never contested an election or been in politics before.
(2.) Pallavi’s spouse is industrialist Shrinivas Dempo, chairman of the Goa-based Dempo Group of Companies. Previously, Vaikunthrao Sinai Demo, the great grand-uncle of Shrinivas, contested an election, doing so on a Congress ticket in the 1963 assembly polls.
(3.) Pallavi Demp serves as the Executive Director of Dempo Industries Limited, and is a trustee at Dempo Charities Trust. She also oversees the media and real estate arms of the group’s businesses.
(4.) She is a Chemistry graduate from Parvatibai Chowgule College, Goa, and holds a post graduate degree in business management (MBA) from MIT-WPU, Pune.
(5.) The recently released electoral bonds data showed that Shrinivas Dempo purchased electoral bonds worth ₹1.25 crore in his personal capacity, while four of the company’s subsidiaries also donated via electoral bonds.