TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: it’s now seven days since district magistrate’s notification to crack a whip against landlords renting out premises to tenants has come into force in South Goa, but the district administration and the men-in-uniform are faced with the same old question – who will file the FIR against the erring landlords.
In fact, the district Magistrate’s order issued on Monday is facing an acid test with the Maina Curtorim police already dispatching a complaint to the Magistrate’s office for necessary action against a landlord. The same police station is also bracing up to send as many as 12 more complaints to the Magistrate for action against the landlords on Monday. In the past, the district magistrate’s office had refused to file the FIR against landlords violating his order issued under section 144 of the Cr P C on grounds that filing FIR against the violators falls within the domain of the police.
And, the police had retaliated by maintaining that law only mandates the authority issuing orders under section 144 of the Cr P C to file FIRs against the violators.
Herald understands that district Magistrate N D Agrawal and the district police chief Shekhar Prabhudesai had a lengthy chat on the issue in a bid to break the impasse before the Magistrate’s order came into force on Monday.
Sources said the district magistrate had finally agreed that if not his office, his subordinates, including the sub-divisional Magistrates or the Mamlatdars, will file the FIR against the violators upon a police complaint.
Surprisingly, however, Agrawal’s order does not find a mention that the SDMs or the Mamlatdars would file the FIRs against the landlords renting their premises to tenants without intimating the same to the police station.
In fact, the order issued by the district Magistrate has categorically authorised the district Superintendent of Police, South, the Sub-divisional police officers of Margao, Quepem and Mormugao and the police inspector of the respective police stations to file FIR on behalf of the state in the court if any persons found contravening the order, punishable under section 188 of the C r PC.
When contacted, the district police chief said it was agreed at the meeting with Agrawal that the either the district magistrate or his subordinates will file the FIR against the erring landlords. While saying he would discuss the matter with the district Magistrate again, Prabhudessai reiterated that the police cannot accept any directions to file FIR against violators of orders under section 144 of the Cr P C. “The police can only complain or inform the district magistrate that so and so person has violated his order. It is then for the district Magistrate to take further action,” the district police said.
Agrawal, when contacted, admitted that he and SP Prabhudessai had agreed that his subordinates, including the SDMs or the Mamlatdars would file the FIR against any erring landlord.
He, however, was evasive when it was pointed out to him that his order has only authorised the district police chief and other police officers to file the FIR and does not mention anything about SDMs and Mamlatdars being authorised for the job. Incidentally, Agrawal claimed that SDMs or Mamlatdars have been briefed about the outcome of his meeting with the district police chief, but questions still remains unanswered in the corridors of the district Collectorate as well as the district police headquarters, South as to why the district magistrate’s order is silent in authorising his SDMs or Mamlatdars to crack a whip against the erring landlords.
Agrawal, when contacted, admitted that he and SP Prabhudessai had agreed that his subordinates, including the SDMs or the Mamlatdars would file the FIR against any erring landlord. He, however, was evasive when it was pointed out to him that his order has only authorised the district police chief and other police officers to file the FIR and does not mention anything about SDMs and Mamlatdars being authorised for the job
