In a dramatic twist just 24 hours after the Crime Branch claimed she had not named any minister, cash-for-jobs accused Pooja Naik on Friday went before the media and directly accused Power Minister Sudin Dhavalikar, IAS officer Nikhil Desai and PWD Chief Engineer Uttam Parsekar of being key beneficiaries in the multi-crore recruitment scam.
The revelation came a day after Crime Branch SP Rahul Gupta told reporters that Pooja had not named any minister in her statement. On Friday, however, Pooja publicly contradicted the police version, saying she had already named all three last year and again during the ongoing investigation.
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Speaking to reporters in Panjim, Pooja said the irregularities took place during her association with the MGP and alleged that she acted under instructions.
Pooja Naik also identifies IAS officer Nikhil Desai and PWD Chief Engineer Uttam Parsekar as senior officials who allegedly received money in public tell-all; says she was part of minister’s 9-member team soliciting cash for jobs
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday hit out at the BJP-led Goa government over fresh revelations in the alleged cash-for-jobs scam, calling it further proof of deep-rooted corruption and exploitation of Goan youth.
AAP Goa President Adv Amit Palekar said the scandal exposed how job seekers were driven to desperate measures. “People paid money for government jobs because the public knew this BJP government doesn’t give jobs on merit,” he said.
“When the mega recruitment was announced, Sudin Dhavalikar asked me to coordinate with the officers for recruitment into government jobs. It was the minister who asked me to give the money I collected from the job aspirants to the officers,” she claimed.
She said she was part of a nine-member team and that she alone collected Rs 17.68 crore from 613 applicants, while the others collected even more.
“But from 2019 to 2022, none of the job seekers got any job and they are now asking for their money back. My request is that the amount which was paid be refunded to them,” she said.
Pooja alleged that most of the cash collections — primarily in Rs 2,000 notes — took place between 2019 and 2022 at the Secretariat and two locations in Porvorim. The last payoff, she said, was made in 2022 in a flat in Porvorim. “All the money was given directly to the officers and they used to accept the money openly,” she alleged.
When asked about evidence, she claimed two mobile phones containing crucial video clips, call records and chats were taken by Bicholim and Mardol police and have not been returned. She insisted she had already given these names to investigators in 2023 when she was arrested and questioned why they had not yet been formally added to the case.
She maintained that Chief Minister Pramod Sawant was not involved in the scam.
Reacting to the allegations, Power Minister Sudin Dhavalikar dismissed the claims outright. “Everyone knows what Sudin Dhavalikar is. No one can defame me,” he said, adding that he would respond further only after the Crime Branch concludes its inquiry. He said the police could easily verify who worked in his office through Finance Department records and that he would speak “after police come out with the results of the investigation within 14 days.”
MGP president Deepak Dhavlikar also rejected Naik’s claims, insisting she was never employed at the party office. “We never had anyone with this name in our office,” he said, though confirming that one former MGP staffer had been taken for questioning. “Let the Crime Branch investigation become complete. Truth will come out,” he added, describing Naik as someone who “looks disturbed” and is “saying what she is being told to say.”
He also questioned why the MGP was being targeted, pointing out that the party was not part of the government between 2019 and 2022.
