Goa Police have registered two separate cases after LED signboards in Calangute and Anjuna displayed the slogan ‘Paki stan Zindabad’. In the first incident, Calangute Police booked four persons for alleged ly flashing the slogan on the LED display board of New Revive Unisex Salon at Sauntawado, Calan gute, around 10.18 pm on November 4. The accused were iden tified as Mohd Farman (25) of Moradabad, Nou shad (35) of North East Delhi, Mohd Shavez (21) of Bijnour, and Rakesh Das (49) of Calangute. In the second incident, Anjuna Police booked five others for alleged ly displaying the same slogan on the LED sign board of a wine store, Whiskey Pedia, late on Tuesday night.
Those arrested were identified as Ranchit Bhatia and Vi pinPahuja from Haryana, Vinay Chandra Rao and Krishna Lamani from Karnataka, and Manoj Kumar from Bihar. They face charges identical to those in the Calangute case. According to police, the group “hatched a criminal conspiracy and purposely, knowingly and intentionally displayed the slogan ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ on their inter net-connected LED signboard. The act, police said, was “visible to the public and aimed at promoting enmity, alienation and outrage against the sovereignty and integrity of India.” The accused have been booked under Section 152 read with Section 61(2) of the BharatiyaNyaySanhita (BNS), 2023, and Sections 66(C) and 66(F) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Police described the act as an at tempt to “wage psychological and propaganda warfare” against the nation. Police said both displays were quickly noticed by locals, following which teams from Calangute and Anjuna police stations rushed to the sites and disconnected the LED boards. The investigation, led by PSI NavneetGoltekar of Anjuna Police Station, is underway to determine whether the systems were hacked or deliberately programmed. Meanwhile, Calangute MLA Michael Lobo told the media the incident appeared to be a ‘case of LED board hacking’ intended to disturb communal harmony. “Nobody has the guts to say ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ here. It seems someone tried to create division between communi ties. The youth should not get misguided,” he said. Goa Forward Party president and Fatorda MLA VijaiS ardesai called the incident a ‘diversionary tactic’, alleging it could be a ploy ‘by someone in government to divert atten tion from major land illegalities in Goa’. Curtorim MLA AleixoReginaldo Lourenco said the act was unacceptable and warranted stern punishment. “I have seen the video and also seen the attitude of the shop keeper. You cannot be in India and say Pakistan Zindabad. It is not to be tolerated. What they have done is wrong and they should be penalised so that others do not dare to do it.” “Law and order has to be maintained, and it begins right here. I was watching how the police responded — this needs to be set right. I’ve said before in the Assembly that the police must work to improve their image. It’s not the politicians but the police who carry the primary responsi bility. If there’s a lapse in law and order, the onus lies en tirely on them. The enforcement agency must do its job,” the MLA said. “Such incidents are bound to occur, but if the police act swiftly and correctly, they won’t be repeated. If something happens again tomorrow, the police will have to take full responsibility,” he added. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant confirmed that the government has already taken strict action. “Such acts will not be tolerated. The moment the incident came to light, immediate steps were taken. Those responsible will be dealt with as per law,” Sawant said
