THURSDAY, APRIL 25, 2024
SUJAY GUPTA
Each law or plan or project that has been passed or proposed in Goa is taking us further and further away from an established law (and not just a code). Yet past governments and especially the current dispensation violates the Codigo das Comunidades
Not one party or MLA or anyone in the cabinet in Goa has raised, much less argued and even less fought against how every tangible legislation against Goans is connected to land rights getting affected or usurped. From the Coastal Zone Management Plans to acquisitions for double-tracking and other linear projects to the absolutely draconian Major Ports Bill. Each of these, have and will strike a body blow to the rights of Goans over their land. And yet we have-not a heard a whimper from those elected about this age-old security blanket we have for our land in the form of the Comunidades.
There could be only two reasons. Those who rule feel that facts should not come in the way of greed and a free hand should be given to allow new rules, regulations and acts to work in favour of individuals or parties and not for people is not given, or the Code of Comunidades is treated like an old grandfather at home whose presence is noted but his ideas beliefs and principles are given scant respect.
In this case, it is even more serious because the power of Comunidades is mandated by law
GOANS HAVE HAD A CODIFIED HISTORY OF SELF RULE
Goans a multi-millennial history of self-rule of Village Communities or Ganvkaris. April 15 1961, was the day when Goans were declared owners of their community lands, through the Legislative Diploma No. 2070 by which the Codigo das Comunidades (Code of Comunidades), was solemnly promulgated as the law of Goa’s lands.
Every year the Ganvkars celebrate this day in Panjim. The irony is that if not for COVID restrictions they would have done so three months ago this year too, in the same year when rights of Goans over their lands was getting brutally snatched away through the Major Ports Bill, double tracking, an unfair and ill-conceived draft Coastal Plan and through manipulating Comunidades and brushing aside their rights with impunity tm surrender to building lobby interests
Land rights are age-old and documented
Dr Simon D’Souza an ex professor of NIO has written that the khazan lands in Goa date back beyond 3000 years.
Fr. Visitacao B. Monteiro, who has written books and done extensive research on the institutions has written “With regard to Ganvkaris the historians date them back to their existent organisations, based on the Code of Manu, who lived in the 5th century BC, when there was no ruler in this land. Goans were ruling themselves through their Ganvkaris. Their rule continued even when a ruler appeared on the scene in the 3rd century BC. From that time, up to December 1961, when the Portuguese rule came to an end in Goa, so many rulers ruled over Goa, sometimes dynasties extending through centuries”
He and several other historians agree that rulers have accepted that the land in Goa does not belong to the ruler, but it was owned by the Village Communities or Ganvkaris. The real rulers of Goan Villages were the Ganvkars – that is the reason why locals did not revolt against any of these rulers, including the Portuguese.
But modern Goa has crushed the Comunidades, if not totally in letter but absolutely in spirit. The imposition of the Agricultural Tenancy Act 1965 and attempt to attract Land Revenue Code 1968 to Comunidade villages are clear cases in point.
The power of Comunidades needs to be put on record again and again
Let’s take a leaf out of Freddy Dias’ piece in Herald in 2016. Dias wrote “The Comunidades, therefore, have the power not only to grant land by means of lease or long-term lease, but also by other modes available to an owner of his own private property, the only rider being that the alienation of comunidade property is subject to the administrative tutelage of the State government”
He then added significantly, “Administrative tutelage’ is not to be construed as the subjugation of the Comunidades to the dictates of the government, but merely the power inherent in the government to ensure that the components, especially those in minority and those who are absent from Goa, are not deprived of their rights, either by mismanagement or illegal decisions, detrimental to the interest of the comunidade and such components”.
Dias states that the Code of Comunidades underlines that the State is under a contractual obligation to provide "administrative tutelage" and act in the capacity of a guardian to the Comunidades by virtue of a provision adopted under Article 5 and other provisions of the Code, so as to prevent any sort of prejudice.
Therefore, the modern-day rulers of Goa should have been guardians extending “Administrative tutelage” to protect the Comunidades from any attack. But they have done just the opposite by being party to the manipulation and subjugation of the Comunidade institution and the powers of “gaonkars”. Modern-day rulers have violated their contractual obligations diminished the powers of comunidades.
The State government amended the Code of Comunidades in October 1986, wherein the original provisions in Article 371 and 372 of the Code enabling the Comunidades to file suits against encroachers and trespassers before the civil courts were deleted, and petitions for removal of such illegal structures are directed to the director of civil administration (Collector) who in turn delegated the power to the administration of Comunidades. In effect the rights of villagers and the community against encroachers and violators was taken away and this weakness has been exposed as Comunidade land all over Goa has been completely taken over. The word that is more apt is “looted”
Shockingly our elected representatives and the government has simply stepped back as “national interests” have ridden roughshod over age-old codified rights of Goan Gaonkars. Take one of the draconian sections of the Major Ports bill which was passed in Parliament recently without a murmur of protest from any Goan MP nor the state government.
Section 25 of the Major Ports Bill which will give complete sway of the MPT over Goan land in their port limits states.
“Subject to the rules made under this Act, the Board of each Major Port shall be entitled to create a specific master plan in respect of any development or infrastructure established or proposed to be established within the port limits and the land appurtenant thereto and such master plan shall be independent of any local or State Government regulations of any authority whatsoever: Provided that in case of any conflict between the master plan created by the Board and any local authority, the master plan created by the Board shall prevail."
Notice the absolute subversion of any rights of Comunidades in villages that come under Port limits. Isn’t it shocking that no one in the ruling party or opposition has spoken a word on this.
And don’t be surprised if this is never ever raised or included in a single party manifesto, even as an age-old institution that land belongs to the community by direct domain and is organised in “perfect propriety” under the direct domain is being snatched with such ruthlessness by the very State which is ordained to protect such land for the people by law and not as a favour.
