Elvis Gomes, the Personal Assistant to Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva has served a legal notice on the Prescribed Authority in the Union Home Ministry for not initiating the process to declare Churchill, his wife and children, except Valanka as Portuguese citizens. He has urged the Prescribed Authority to take a call on his petition within 15 days or has threatened to take the matter to the High Court.
When contacted, Churchill, however, asserted that he has not registered his birth in Portugal nor has his wife and children acquired Portuguese passport.
In the legal notice, Gomes pointed out that the Prescribed Authority has not held a single hearing since he filed his petition around six months ago on February 3 this year.
“Injustice has been done to me by the Authority by not initiating the process against the former PWD minister and his wife. I will have no other option than to move the Delhi High Court seeking directions to the Presiding Authority to initiate the process”, Gomes told Herald after his return from Delhi.
Gomes has contended that Churchill has allegedly registered his marriage in Portugal, while wife Fatima, son Savio and daughters Sara, Wanda, Sharon and Aninha are now all Portuguese citizens after they got their births registered in Portugal in 2009.
Documents relied upon by Gomes stated that while Churchill’s son Savio and daughters Sara, Wanda, Aninha and Sharon had registered their births in Portugal on September 22, 2009, the former PWD minister’s wife had registered her birth on December 15, 2008. He further alleged that Churchill had registered his marriage in Portugal on February 18, 2009. “If the Prescribed Authority had last year declared Benaulim MLA Caitu Silva as a Portuguese citizen since 2010, I am surprised that the same Authority has not extended the same yardstick to Churchill, wife, son and daughters having allegedly registered births and marriage in Portugal”, Gomes said.
In December last, Gomes had filed a criminal petition with the Colva police with a petition to initiate action against Churchill and his family members under the provision of the Foreigners Act 1946, Registration of Foreigner Act 1939 and the Passport Act 1967. It has been his contention that under the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, it is mandatory for a foreigner entering, or being present in India to report his presence to a Prescribed Authority. But, he claimed that this was not complied and as such the seven persons have violated the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939.
