Team Herald
PANJIM: The trial of Panchayat Minister Mauvin Godinho and the six others accused in the 2001 power scam case will commence before the North Goa Principal Sessions Court on Thursday.
On January 17 this year, while disposing Godinho’s petition that had been pending before the Supreme Court for over a decade, a bench comprising Justice N V Ramana and Justice S Abdul Nazeer upheld the High Court order directing framing of charges and declined to give any relief to the former Power Minister in the Special Leave Petition he had filed in 2007.
Godinho had challenged the order passed by the High Court of Bombay at Goa directing framing of charges against him in the multi-crore power scam case. By an order dated October 26, 2007, Justice Nelson Britto had directed framing of charges against Godinho under Section 13(1) (d) (i) and (iii) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 read with Section 120B of the Indian Penal Code.
Britto in his order had also noted that the charges against Godinho came to be investigated and charge sheet filed based on a complaint filed by Manohar Parrikar and that it appeared that the case took different turns depending upon which government was in power in Goa.
Meanwhile, advocate Aires Rodrigues has demanded that in public interest the government appoint a special public prosecutor for the trial.
