The All Goa Comunidade Association has mounted a sharp challenge to the State government’s move to amend the Goa Legislative Diploma No 2070 dated April 15, 1961, warning that the legislation threatens the very survival of the centuries-old Comunidade system.
In a memorandum submitted to Governor Pusapati Ashok Gajapathi Raju on Thursday, the Association urged him to withhold assent to the Amendment Bill, 2025, passed by the Legislative Assembly on August 7, and to escalate the matter to President Droupadi Murmu for scrutiny.
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At the heart of the protest is a provision that seeks to regularise unauthorised houses constructed on Comunidade land. The Association argued that legitimising such encroachments would “set a dangerous precedent,” erode the sanctity of the land, and embolden further illegal occupations.
Describing Comunidade land as both a cultural inheritance and a public trust, the Association said the Governor must exercise his discretionary powers under the Constitution to prevent the Bill from becoming law.
Speaking to reporters outside Raj Bhavan in Dona Paula, Benaulim MLA and Carambolim Comunidade President Venzy Viegas confirmed that the delegation had pressed the Governor not to sign the Bill. “It is against the Constitution of India,” he alleged.
