United Goans Democratic Party (UGDP)

The United Goans Democratic Party (UGDP) was a regional political party, as approved by the Election Commission of India. It had its mass base primarily in the state of Goa, which is a Christian-dominated state. The UGDP found most prominent support from the Christian residents of Goa.

The UGDP was distinctly different from the United Goans Party, which was one of the oldest parties in the history of Goa. The UGP came into existence after liberation from Portuguese colonization of Goa in 1961. Also, the UGDP had no role to play in the famous plebiscite for the creation of a separate state of Goa. The UGDP, a fairly new political outfit founded by Churchill Alemao, who is now in the Congress, consistently performed poorly in the state assembly elections. In the 2007 Goa Assembly elections, though in alliance with the BJP, the UGDP won only one out of the 40 assembly seats; in the 2012 Assembly elections, the party could not win a single seat and its only MLA Mathany Saldanha shifted to the BJP. Since the United Democratic Goans Party could not make its presence felt in the last elections, the Election Commission de-recognized it as a regional political party.

Election Symbol of UGDP

As approved by the Election Commission, the Election Symbol of the United Goans Democratic Party was “Two Leaves”. This symbol represented the true ideals of the party. Firstly, the two leaves indicated double significance of the United Goans Democratic Party (UGDP) and its founder Churchill Alemao. Secondly, leaves are symbolic of the essence of Mother Nature, of the own soil of a state. They depict natural beauty in the simplest terms. The working ideology of the party, of fighting for the poorer sections of the society, was brought out well by its election symbol.

National Executive of the UGDP

The lone national executive of the United Goans Democratic Party, when existent, was Mathany Saldanha. Saldanha won in the 2007 assembly elections in Goa, but could not win in 2012. He was openly accepted into the BJP Goa unit, and rewarded for quitting the UGDP. Contesting on a BJP ticket in Goa, he won. Though he died an untimely death, Saldanha’s wife has carried forward his role in the BJP.

Contact details

While the party existed, its head office was in Panaji, Goa.