Notices to 3 PIs in case against health minister
HERALD REPORTER
PANJIM, AUG 18
In an interesting development, State Police Complaints Authority on Wednesday issued notices to three police inspectors who handled the complaint against the health minister in the threat to kill case.
The notice, directing the present Old Goa inspector Francisco Corte and then Old Goa inspectors Vishwesh Karpe and Gurudas Gawade to file written replies by August 30, follows a complaint against them by Adv Aires Rodrigues.
The advocate in his complaint to SPCA alleged that the trio officers did not comply with directions to properly investigate the case and hence committed gross misconduct, abused their authorities and acted malafidely to protect the minister.
Rodrigues, filed a complaint at the Old Goa Police Station against the minister in July 31, 2007 alleging he received a threat to kill call from the minister. Details ever since the case was filed have been mentioned in the complaint at SPCA.
Recalling, he said, PI Karpe registered a case First Information Report (FIR) 22 days later the case was fled and refused to investigate. PI Gawade after taking over the police station charge on August 23, 2008 had given an undertaking to the Bombay High Court at Goa that a chargesheet would be filed soon.
But, the PI later filed a report before Judicial Magistrate First Class at Panjim to try and close the case against the minister. Interestingly, he again made a statement to High Court on May 6, 2009 that a chargesheet will be filed within 48 hours but in a U-turn the PI later sought six weeks time to carry out the probe.
However, after the Court pulled him up, Gawade filed a chargesheet within an hour, Rodrigues mentioned in his press release.
The advocate also raised apprehensions with PI Corte’s move who registered a non-cognisable case against the minister after the High Court’s directions on July 21, 2010.
He said that instead of seeking orders from the Magistrate, the PI asked Rodrigues to approach the Court.
