PANJIM: Former Mapusa councilor Tarak Arolkar has filed a petition in the High Court seeking to cancel an order by the Director of Urban Development. Arolkar’s petition challenges the May 29, 2023 order by the Director of Urban Development. He also appealed to the Goa State Election Commission not to fill the vacant position as per the Goa Municipalities Act, Section 50.
Separately, Arolkar disputed the decision of the Caste Scrutiny Committee regarding his unverified Other Backward Classes (OBC) caste certificate. The committee ordered the cancellation of his OBC certificate by the Mapusa Deputy Collector and Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO). Justice M S Karnik of the Single Bench acknowledged the misassignment of the petitions to the Single Judge and referred both to the Division Bench for review. Arolkar received the OBC caste certificate on March 18, 2021, and won the March 2021 Mapusa council election from reserved ward number 7 for OBC candidates.
