PANJIM: One of TMCs firebrand young leaders Advocate Antonio Clovis Da Costa has questioned the “lip service” of asking for the demolition of the illegal old Goa structure when these orders can easily be challenged and the structure protected.
Costa who had filed a PIL on the issue of oxygen shortage and deaths during the peak of COVID in Goa said, “I have not seen the village Panchayat revocation order. Even the TCP has passed an order revoking the TCP clearance. This is a bad order and can be easily set aside, since for anybody to be condemned unheard, is violation of the principle of natural justice. Before revocation, a show cause had to be issued to the party. This I believe is total eyewash to fool the people of Goa. For the asking, any court will grant them a stay on the revocation order.”
“If the panchayat has issued the show cause notice and there are no defects in the show cause notice then I have nothing to say. But the TCP, I believe, has not issued any show cause notice.
The basic issue over here is one of fraud. They have manipulated the documents. They have shown the existing plinth of 397 sqm. They have made documents from the government depts., now that is a fraud. If the fraud is not corrected, then the panchayat would have no option but to grant the licenses. If the documents show that the structure is legal, the panchayat has no options.
“We have to target the fraud committed by these people. All the officers involved in this fraud have to be booked. An FIR has to be lodged against these people” said Costa.
When questioned that the panchayat had admitted that they did not check the documents properly, Costa said, “Then legal and criminal action will have to be taken against the then Secretary and Sarpanch.
A criminal offence has to be booked against every dept through which the file has gone. You have to conduct an inspection before doing that.”
“Old Goa is a heritage site, if this is allowed, then several structures will come around this area. For so many years, this has been protected as a heritage site, once this is destroyed, even the heritage status of this place may go.
This issue has been informed to me by Glen Cabral that in the Regional Plan, the heritage site has not been shown. That heritage site should be marked in red, so that anytime when anybody goes for permission, they will be aware that this comes under protected site or regulated site. The reason for all this is that the Regional Plan is a defective Regional Plan and the heritage area has not been demarcated. The demand made by the Save Old Goa Action Committee is a welcome demand, and government should definitely do it, if they are interested in protecting the heritage of Goa they have to do it immediately,” he said.
