Alemao sought to know why the then CM Digambar Kamat has not been summoned till date
Khot declined to shed light on the nature of questions asked to him by the commission
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@heraldgoa.com
MARGAO: The V K Jha Commission probing into the Ruby Residency building collapse case on Monday quizzed former Urban Development Minister Joaquim Alemao and former Canacona legislator Vijai Pai Khot in connection with the ongoing inquiry.
Alemao is believed to have sought to know from the commission as to why the then Town and Country Planning minister has not been summoned till date if the panel thought it fit to interrogate a former urban development minister. Former Chief Minister, Digambar Kamat was the town and country planning minister when the Ruby Residency project was issued the development permissions, sources said.
While Alemao was closeted with the commission for well around half an
Jha panel quizzes Joaquim, Khot
hour, Khot was quizzed on various aspects of the case for quite some time.
Both the former urban development minister and the then Canaonca MLA were summoned by the Jha Commission since the construction licenses for the huge project were issued during their tenure.
Alemao, however, is believed to have told the commission that an urban development minister has nothing to do with the issue of issuing construction licenses. He has told the commission that a municipality is governed under the Goa Municipalities Act, 1968 which envisages no role for the urban development minister in the matter of issuing construction licenses.
On the contrary, he said the construction file goes to the Town and Country Planning Department for approval and the file does not come to the urban development minister for issuance of the construction license.
After coming out of the commission chamber, Alemao expressed surprise that he was summoned by the commission to testify before the panel and wondered whether it was politically motivated or not. He said he was summoned by the commission since he was the urban development minister when the Canacona municipality had give approval for the construction license. ‘A municipality is a local self-governing body and a minister has no role in the issuance of construction licenses”, he asserted, adding that an urban development minister has no role in civic bodies other than sanctioning grants for development.
Khot, on the other hand, declined to shed light on the nature of questions asked to him by the commission. “It is not fair to go to the media on the issue”, he said, while admitting that he was quizzed by the commission since he was the MLA of Canacona when the local body had issued the construction licenses to the project.
