Team Herald
PANJIM: Following mounting accusations from the locals, the Archdiocese of Goa has clarified its position on the land deal executed by it over the island of Vanxim, and alleged that “malicious elements are trying to defame the Church and the Institutions by spreading misinformation” on the land issue.
In a statement issued by the Diocesan Centre for Social Communications Media (DCSCM), the Archdiocese recalled that the greater part of the island of Vanxim was the property of Santa Monica Fund, which is utilised for the ever-growing maintenance needs of the centuries-old building of the Santa Monica Convent, which today is a National Institute of Theological Formation in Old Goa.
“It is regrettable that even after so many years have passed since the alienation of the land at Vanxim, following all Civil as well as Canonical norms, there are still some mischievous and malicious elements who are hell-bent on twisting the facts and spreading misinformation to defame the Church and her persons and institutions,” the church body alleged.
DCSCM said that Santa Monica Fund owned a property at Vanxim of Sao Mathias Panchayat, measuring 5,83,592 sq mts. It consisted of encumbered, unencumbered and residential areas. The encumbered area measured 3,00,275 sq mts, which was an agricultural property (paddy fields before 1970) not been cultivated for decades due to inundations. The unencumbered area was 1,85,125 sq mts while the residential area measured 98,192 sq mts is presently in the possession of local residents. An area of around 1,43,050 sq mts in the same island belongs to other private owners.
In 1996, some tenants of this encumbered area, taking the benefit of the Tenancy Act, after the order of the mamlatdar, deposited the purchase price for their respective areas (36 paise per sq mt). “It was also found that the tenants had been simultaneously in negotiation with a real estate developer over the same land,” it said.
The statement further claimed that in 1992, the Archdiocese had begun receiving requests from various persons to buy the properties at Vanxim.
The Archdiocese entered into an Agreement of Sale with Mahendra Gaunekar in April 1999 and, after fulfilling the conditions of the agreement, on February 11, 2006, the unencumbered (non-tenanted) area was sold to Gaunekar through a Deed of Sale for Rs 37,02,500, the DSCSM stated. “On the same day, that is, on 11-02-2006, the encumbered (tenanted) area was also transferred to Gaunekar, through a “Deed of Transfer of Ownership and Assignments of Rights,” for Rs 18,01,650 only. It is to be noted that, through this particular deed, the tenant’s right to use the land as well as to purchase the land was not transferred.”
“It is being alleged that the property was sold at a very low price. It is to be noted that Gaunekar’s offer, at that time, was higher than the ones received earlier and it corresponded with the valuers’ rates,” the statement added.
As reported by HERALD, Gaunekar then sold the said land to Ozone Group, who has now proposed a five star resort and villa at the site.
