TEAM HERALD
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MARGAO: Asserting that Goa is not an exception to rampant violation of human rights across the country, Goa Legislative Assembly Speaker Rajendra Arlekar on Saturday called upon human rights organization for coordinated efforts to eradicate human right violations from the State.
Speaking at the inauguration of the Goa unit of International Human Rights Association (IHRA) at the Black Box, Ravindra Bhavan here this evening, Arlekar said that human rights violations may not be restricted to Karnataka and Bihar, but Goa may be ahead of even Bihar in human rights violations.
“Goa might have achieved progress during the last 50 years, but the State has also witnessed a rise in corruption and human right violations during the same period. We see serious cases of human rights violations in the State almost everyday. Is our bureaucracy not ahead of other States in human right violations”, he questioned.
Reminding the bureaucracy that governance is a continuous process, he said that justice ought to be delivered to the common man by the bureaucracy instead of passing the buck.
Saying there may be undertrials in Goa awaiting trial, the Speaker demanded to know as to who would protect their rights and bring the Constitutional provisions to their doorsteps.
Referring to the Right to Information Act, Arlekar said the RTI should be used for the betterment of the society.
President of Human Rights Protection Foundation Dr Ravindra Shanbhag and Secretary, IHRA Adv Anjeet Raj also spoke.
The Goa unit of the IHRA is headed by social activist Navnath Khandeparkar.
