A person who came to throw garbage in the crematorium of the Mathagramastha Hindu Sabha at Margao, allegedly beat up the Davorlim-Dicarpal panch member as well as the caretaker of the crematorium for not allowing him to dump the garbage.
Surprisingly, the attack was carried out by deadly weapons and the police arrested seven people in the case. However, the case has now taken a different turn.
The person who was coming from another place to dump garbage at the crematorium everyday was caught red-handed on Sunday. If the accused had been handed over to the police at the same time, the next dispute would not have arisen. But the matter escalated when the accused was restrained from leaving the place after being questioned. The accused then called up his friends, which resulted in clashes and then turned into a police case. The assailants have been arrested.
The case has raised some questions about social behaviour of the citizens. Mainly, why was the person littering in the crematorium? While there is no straight answer to this and only the alleged accused can enlighten us, the one possible reason could be that he might not have found a place to dump garbage near his home and the crematorium might have been a convenient place for him to do so. Unfortunately, many people throw garbage in places that are convenient for them, often littering the spots and their acts often ends up in brawls and garbage keeps on piling up too.
Many people set up stalls selling tender coconut and watermelons along with some other foods and beverages by the roadside. The vendors have no place to throw their waste. Either a proper facility should be provided by the panchayat concerned or such shops should not be allowed. However, if anyone is setting up such shops, action should be taken against them immediately. Without doing so, it is a mistake to allow the shops to open and expect them not to litter.
So, once this issue is resolved, there will be no question of disputes over garbage.
However, in the crematorium issue, some political leaders took the front seat and rushed to the Fatorda police station demanding strict action against those involved. They even threatened that if action is not taken against those involved in this case, they will not remain silent. The question, however, is why should political leaders jump into a purely religious and social issue. According to the nature of the case, the police should take necessary action. However, the case has now turned political. This should not have happened. This creates a law and order problem.
A few days earlier, a controversy had erupted at Gudi-Paroda over the land of the crematorium. Villagers in the panchayat area had erected cement poles as fence around the crematorium. However, a person removed all those poles. People saw the person removing the poles, and marched to the police station. The truth will surface only after proper police investigation.
The South Goa district president of Revolutionary Goans Party (RGP) Rupert Pereira and member Antush Rebello were allegedly attacked by an unidentified mob at Benaulim. RGP MLA Viresh Borkar alleged that the attack was due to political animosity. These disputes have taken place over trivial reasons and have become public instead of being personal. That is why it’s a matter of great concern.
In this way, petty disputes have turned into law and order problems. It would be prudent enough to nib the issue in the bud rather than turning it into political controversies. Let better counsel prevail.
