TEAM HERALD
PONDA: Footpath vendors in Ponda, along with their supporters, staged a dharna against the alleged harassment meted out to them by market-shed vendors.
According to footpath vendor Pooja Naik, around fifty market-shed vendors illegally assembled at 10 am and poured black oil on her as she sold vegetables. The other footpath vendors were pelted with eggs, manhandled, and verbally abused. Their fruits and vegetables worth Rs 10,000 were also damaged.
The Ponda police inspector registered an offence against 10 market-shed vendors.
This is the second reported incident of footpath-vendors being manhandled. Last week, the police registered a similar offence against 10 market vendors for manhandling the footpath vendors. The footpath vendors stated that it was actually the fourth time they were attacked, and feared that the next time it would be with acid.
The market-shed vendors rushed to defend themselves. They claimed that they were suffering losses as the footpath vendors were doing business illegally. The footpath vendors denied it; they claimed to be doing business on the private property of one Ema Rodrigues, and they also paid Sopo tax to the PMC.
Social worker Tara Kerkar demanded that the police to take action against the culprits, and said it was up to the Ponda Municipal Council to resolve the dispute between both parties.
