PANJIM: In some good news for the electorate, the total number of MLAs with a criminal background has dropped from 12 in the last term to nine in the new Assembly.
As per analysis by Goa Election Watch and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), the Goa Legislative Assembly of 40, 23 percent members have criminal background, which is seven percent less than those elected in 2012.
However, 15 percent of the total elected for the current term face serious criminal charges, twice more than recorded in the last Assembly election. Interestingly, no candidate in the 2007 elections was investigated for serious criminal offences.
The analysis, drawn from the 2017 affidavits of the elected MLAs reveals that out of nine facing criminal cases, six have serious charges against them including murder and attempted murder. In comparison with the 2012 affidavits, 12 MLAs had criminal First Information Reports (FIRs) registered against them of whom three had declared serious criminal offences.
Going by party wise elected MLAs with criminal cases, the highest, four, are from the Congress – Jennifer Monserrate, Digambar Kamat, Clafasio Dias and Vishwajit Rane (who has now quit the party and as an MLA). There are two from the BJP – Michael Lobo and Mauvin Godinho – while there are 1 each from GFP – Vinod Palienkar – and NCP – Churchill Alemao – besides an Independent Govind Gaude who are being investigated for different criminal charges. Rane, who resigned from the Congress and as Valpoi MLA on Thursday, is also on the list.
Two-time Calangute MLA Lobo has been indicted in an eight-year-old case of forgery of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) no objection certificate (NOC), for a hotel project in Calangute in 2006. He, along with three others, has been booked for destroying the original forged letter that speaks about giving a clean chit to the project ‘as it is situated beyond 500 mtrs of the high tide line’. The MLA, who cooperated with the probe, has denied the allegations.
Alemao and Kamat are accused in a multi-crore international Louis Berger scam that even saw the former’s arrest in 2015. Kamat has managed to escape arrest despite Crime Branch naming him as prime accused in the case. Similarly, Monserrate is facing several charges of rioting in the infamous Panjim police station attack of 2008.
