MARGAO: A shocking case exposing the extent of corruption in various government departments came to light on Tuesday. A non-Goan woman, a tenant in the house of an elderly couple in Benaulim has legally made the elderly couple her parents and using this has got a driving licence and has registered her marriage and applied for Portuguese Citizenship.
The elderly couple, Agostinho and Maria Fernandes, live in Benaulim and had rented the house to Renuka Shivaji Tashildar, a native of Badami-Karnataka, for the past 3 years. She had been staying with a youth named Arogya and it is only recently that the landlords discovered that the couple had registered their marriage, Renuka giving her name as Rita Agostinho Fernandes and Arogya as Arogya Fernandes.
When the elderly couple dug deeper they realised that by using their names, Renuka has got a birth certificate, driving licence and registered the marriage under the name of Rita Agostinho Fernandes.
The couple said both their children are in the Gulf and have got Portuguese citizenship. “I and my wife Maria had signed the documents of marriage of Renuka at the Sub Registrar’s office as witnesses and we were shocked to see our names in the place of parents’ names on the marriage certificate,” said Agostinho.
“Renuka and her husband wanted to acquire Portuguese citizenship and have done irregularities. I filed a complaint with the police, panchayat, CID, MMC and others,” Maria said. According to the paperwork produced by the elderly couple, Renuka has two birth registrations at MMC and got a driving licence using the address of Agostinho and Maria’s house.
“It is 15 days since we filed a complaint at Margao Police Station and a complaint at the RTA. Other than our signatures as witnesses, we have not signed on any of their documents. We have not given consent to use our name and address for any paperwork. This illegality has been done by bribing govt officials,” Maria said.
In the T Form that Renuka submitted to Colva Police she mentioned her name as Rita Fernandes and her residential address as Rawanfond. Her driving licence has her name as Rita and the address is that of Agostinho and Maria’s house.
On the marriage registration certificate, Renuka and Arogya received on Dec 29, 2015 Rita is mentioned as daughter of Agostinho and Maria. It is signed by Salcete Civil Registrar Chandrakant Pissurlenkar and has the address of Agostinho written as Aquem, Margao.
The birth certificate Renuka got from MMC in Jan 2016 has her name mentioned as Renuka Shivaji Tashildar, mother’s name Lalita and father’s name Shivaji Tashildar. Her birth date on that certificate is 9/12/1988 and was registered in 2009. The birth certificate in the name of Rita Fernandes was registered in March 2016, three months later, and mentions her mother’s name as Maria and father’s name as Agostinho. The residential address has changed and become Aquem-Margao and the date of registration is 2/12/2015.
“Both certificates show different information of the same person and this has to be inquired into thoroughly and govt employees who helped them do this have to be taken to task,” Agostinho and Maria demanded. The couple met MMC CO Deepali Naik, who has ordered a department preliminary inquiry.
