PANJIM: The High Court of Bombay at Goa on Monday directed the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB) to seal the business establishments prima facie belonging to Anjuna-Caisua Sarpanch Laxmidas Chimulkar and Panch Sheetal Naik for not obtaining consent to operate.
While hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) suo motu in the matter of illegal construction, the GSPCB filed a compliance report stating that during the inspection they found four establishments/hotels prima facie belonging to the sarpanch and one of the panchayat members operating without obtaining consent to operate from the Board. The Board also found that some of the structures were non-operational at the time of inspection and some of the structures had been dismantled and that they have been issued closure orders.
Adv Abhijit Gosavi, who has been appointed as amicus curiae had brought to the notice of the court that he had received an anonymous letter alleging that the Anjua-Caisua sarpanch and one of the panchayat members had also built some illegal structures within the No Development Zone (NDZ). But since the letter was unsigned, the Court did not act upon it and directed the Goa Coastal Zone Management Authority (GCZMA) and the panchayat secretary to verify the position and inform the Court about the veracity or otherwise of the allegations in the anonymous letter.
The Court has asked the village panchayat to produce the minutes of the meeting during the next hearing fixed on Wednesday.
