Minister video: Cops urged to follow procedures, not succumb to pressure

One of the persons summoned by Fatorda Police terms the issue as politically motivated; GFP chief asks complainant to withdraw complaint

Published on:

26 Jun 2018, 12:32 am

Team Herald

MARGAO: Raghuvir Shirodkar, one of the persons summoned by Fatorda Police in connection with the video of TCP Minister Vijai Sardesai, which went viral, has termed the issue as politically motivated. He has urged the police to follow the procedures and not succumb to political pressure.

In the letter addressed to Fatorda Police, Raghuvir asserted that he does not know the complainant Durgadas Kamat and further asked the police to check whether it is the same person, who had threatened him with dire consequences in the past only because he had criticised Sardesai.

He pointed out that the video will become unauthorised only if it was a private video or has a copyright. He asked whether this was the case with the video for which he was summoned to the police station.

He pointed out that if the video was defamatory, the affected person should file a complaint with the magistrate and not by a third party. Pointing out that a qualified expert will be required to verify if any voice over or special effects are introduced, he asked that the call to visit the police station be rescheduled and that the police keep all proofs that the video is manipulated. Asking the police not to succumb to political pressure, he said he will be available only after the requisite preliminary inquiry and forensic investigation is done.

Meanwhile, Goa Forward Party President Vijai Sardesai has asked the complainant in the doctored video case Durgadas Kamat to withdraw the complaint claiming that he doesn't want to go ahead hunting against anyone.

Meanwhile, the accused in the incident have questioned as "where’s the crime?"

Addressing the gathering during the inauguration of SGPDA retail market, Vijai asked his vice-president to withdraw his complaint. The minister said, "There shouldn’t be a negative mindset. I always said that there is a joint venture in Fatorda, which was found distributing CDs against me on the last day of campaign. All said and done, I ask him to withdraw the complaint as I don’t have any grudge".

"There is a limit to patience and I feel that we may lose it someday and something wrong may happen," Vijai said and added that several attempts were made to derail the SGPDA market renovation work but now it has been completed.

Meanwhile, Fatorda PI Navlesh Desai informed that no application was made to withdraw the case till late evening.

HERALD ASKS

+Has the police done preliminary investigation on determining who shot the video and how it reached the accused?

+ What is the definition of doctored video and how is this particular video doctored? Is cutting a clip, writing the dialogue spoken and identifying names of people in video defined as doctored?

+ Does the Fatorda police have a cyber cell? If not, was the video sent to the cyber cell?

+ Have statements of the people in the video been recorded to substantiate the video in which they appeared was "doctored"?

+ Who was the complainant? If he was a third party, how can he file a complaint against the accused?

+ Is doctoring a video a crime? Was the video a private video? Is there a copyright on that video?

+ If the case is defamation, shouldn't the affected party file the case before a magistrate? Are you acting on orders of a magistrate or a minister?

+ People say that Fatorda minister had set up the police state to cover justification of Fatorda only to harness citizens and curtail dissent against the minister. Given the way people are being summoned without cyber cell investigation, how do they deny these allegations?