The Goa Crime Branch on Tuesday said that it has found no material evidence to support the sensational allegations made by Pooja Naik, who had accused senior govern ment officials and a minis ter of involve ment in the Rs 17.68-crore cash-for-jobs scam. Address ing the me dia at Police Headquarters, SP (Crime Branch) Rahul Gupta announced that the enquiry into Naik’s allegations had officially concluded. “If the need be, a narco test will be done,” he said. Gupta said Pooja herself is an accused in five criminal cases, in cluding cheating and abetment to suicide, registered across Bicholim, Mardol, Porvorim and Panjim po lice stations. The case registered at Mardol Police Station under Section 318(4) of the BNS has now been transferred to the Crime Branch for detailed investigation. According to Gupta, Pooja had claimed that she worked at the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP) office in St Inez in 2012 and was introduced to government of ficials by Minister Sudin Dhavlikar. The enquiry found no record of her employment there. Staff and offi cials from that period denied any association with her and no salary records or documentation support ing her claim were found.
Pooja also alleged she maintained a diary listing 613 job aspirants and the money collected from them, which she said she had handed to a friend named Tanvi Naik. Howev er, she failed to identify any address linked to this person. Investigators found no evidence that such a diary or person existed. Under questioning, Naik reportedly admitted that she did not personally know anyone by that name. Naik alleged that cash transactions took place inside a Porvorim flat converted into a private office. Investiga tions revealed that the property had been rented only to students of IHM Porvorim. The landlord confirmed that it was never used as an office nor rented to any government official. She further claimed she possessed video evidence stored in a mobile phone that was supposedly with the police. However, electronic tracking traced the device to Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Investigators found that Naik’s husband, Purushottam Naik, had sold the phone in August 2025 after formatting it. The device exchanged hands twice before being recovered from a man named Sumit Kumar and handed over to Mardol Police Station. Gupta said Call Detail Records (CDRs) from 2023 to 2025 showed no communication between Naik and the officials she accused. No WhatsApp chats supporting her claims were provided. The SP said financial scrutiny of the bank accounts of Naik, her husband, and their daughters revealed Rs 8.06 crore worth of transactions between 2019 and 2024. These included purchases of luxury vehicles, jewellery and real estate. Naik reportedly told investigators that the income came from ‘commissions’ collected from candidates and her husband’s fish-selling business. No evidence of money transfers to any named officials was found. Investigators documented the purchase of six high-end cars, three JCB earthmovers and multiple other vehicles worth over Rs 3 crore. The family also spent over Rs 1.05 crore on residential construction and temple courtyard work, along with over Rs 1 crore worth of jewellery trans actions. Some of the vehicles have been seized. Gupta added that Pooja is named in five criminal cases, in addition to multiple cheque-bounce complaints. Her hus band faces two similar cases. From May to October 2025, Naik reportedly called the po lice several times seeking help as job aspirants approached her for refunds. She stayed at a star hotel at Kadamba Pla teau for several months to avoid them, paying nearly Rs 4 lakh, with another Rs 2.03 lakh pending. Pooja had two phones — one seized by the police and an other returned for her daughters’ online classes, which she later sold after formatting. Call records showed no contact with the officials she accused. The seized phone contained WhatsApp chats with job aspirants, but Gupta said he did not have the exact number of people she was in touch with. When asked about viral pictures of Naik with politicians, Gupta said she had not named any of them in her state ment. He also clarified that the officials she accused were not interrogated as there was no evidence to justify seek ing permission to question them. “We did not find any evi dence,” he reiterated. Gupta said the Crime Branch is exploring legal avenues to recover money allegedly taken from job seekers, and the investigation into the Mardol case is ongoing. He urged vic tims to approach the Crime Branch for further legal action. AAP Goa president Amit Palekar strongly contested the Crime Branch’s conclusions, alleging that the enquiry was neither thorough nor impartial. “Were the officers and politicians called for investigation? What happened to the phones and the IMEI numbers she shared? What about the CDRs and tower locations of the numbers used by her and the officers? And what about the people who secured jobs through her?” he asked. Palekar said the probe “lacked neutrality” because the agencies investigating Naik were linked to some of those she had accused. “If the government claims no one is in volved, why not appoint a judicial commission? What is there to hide?” he said, adding that closing the enquiry without filing an FIR “shows that the police are under pres sure.” He also questioned the transfer of the North Goa SP, call ing it an indication that “someone is being protected.” Social activist Tanoj Adwalpalkar echoed the concerns, saying the investigation raised several unanswered ques tions. “Was every angle thoroughly examined? Were all statements recorded? And were all financial transactions properly scrutinised?” he asked. He warned that public confidence would be shaken if the case appeared to shield influential individuals. “The fear is that someone powerful may be involved and the case may quietly end. This cannot become another instance where the powerful walk free and the truth gets buried,” he said, demanding an independent, higher-level probe to ensure transparency. Another activist, Sanjay Barde, said the public’s trust in policing had eroded. He said that recent cases of theft and robbery had only deepened doubts. “We don’t know whether those arrested are the right persons. The question is — whom do we trust?” Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant dismissed Naik’s claims outright, saying there was “no substance” in her allegations. He said the Crime Branch had conducted a detailed inquiry into all locations and names mentioned by her. “I have gone through the report. There is no substance in what Pooja is saying. Even some people she named do not exist,” Sawant said. “The case remains under investigation and whatever re mains will be done by the SP Crime Branch,” he added.
