NESHWIN ALMEIDA
MARGAO: Digambar Kamat may well look up to his Lord Dambab and thank him for his protection. It’s another matter that the whole of Goa thinks that he should be thanking someone else. And while a judicial decision needs to be respected, the element of surprise, bordering on shock, as the granting of his anticipatory bail, was evident in some of the prominent reactions from Goan society and the political class.
But survival and moving out of tricky situations is an act he has almost mastered.
When Pratapsingh Rane’s government completed 4 years and 357 days in 1985, then Kamat was a Margao Municipal Councillor representing Malbhat and never did he think that from there twenty-seven years later he would be only Chief Minister since 1985 to complete 4 years and 275 days in office. Such has been the transition of the man of many seasons. Digambar Vasant Kamat was first elected in 1994 as a BJP MLA and stayed there till 2005 as the second in command to Manohar Parrikar and as a Power Minister.
But in 2005 he ditched Parrikar at the 11th hour and came to the Congress to make Pratapsingh Rane the chief minister only to become the Chief Minister of Goa post 2007 elections being the dark horse in fray and then to govern Goa till 2012. He no doubt won a record 4th term as MLA but the Congress under his leadership got mauled and decimated to 9 seats and felt like the downfall of Kamat will begin.
While the anticipatory bail is a temporary reprieve, it’s a relief all right. And divine fate may have played a part. The man is known for his visits to temples, Tirupati, sporting various bands and threads and said to be a great devotee of Dambab or Lord Damodar, which keeps his fate on the good side.
Acquitted from illegal mining, surviving toppling bids during his government from Vishwajit Rane, Alemao and Atanasio Monserrate and now getting anticipatory bail, Kamat seems to be the man of all seasons.
“Digambar worked in a way that under him all could loot from Joaquim to Churchill to contractors to government servants and Goans were disgusted. So obviously Digambar has survived on that method of ruling, as of now I rather not comment as the doings are evident to all,” exclaims Sanjay Dessai, a senior professor with the Goa University.
Similarly, his former colleague, Congress Dabolim MLA Mauvin Godinho asserted, “Nobody is above the law and Digambar will face the law if he has been corrupt or in the wrong. But here the law doesn’t seem to catch up with Digambar despite his corruption. it is the connections that need to be probed.”
Similarly, Margao-based activist and vocal about Digambar’s failure, Nelson Fernandes points out that the government and cops went on the offensive to keep Alemao in jail and on the defensive to ensure Kamat got anticipatory bail.
“Digambar has his feet in the Congress but roots in the BJP. It’s so obvious how everybody is in the soup except the former Chief Minister. The law needs to catch with this corrupt politician,” exclaimed Fernandes.
While legal expert and Kamat’s friend, Advocate Cleofato Coutinho points out that in this case or in the illegal mining case, there was no evidence to implicate the former CM and all this was political agenda to humiliate Kamat and hence the outcome is very positive in terms of anticipatory bail.
“Maybe it’s good fate and good management and study of situations but obviously, there is no space for humiliation and political vendetta and hence Digambar has been lucky,” asserted Coutinho who ensures that he is politically correct while being quoted in the Herald.
The talk around the juice kiosk at the Margao bus stand to Malbhat is that the man has been really lucky and his connections have seemed to work well for him. Only time will tell what’s next for this senior politico.
The last word goes to bête noire and former Margao Municipal Council chairperson Savio Coutinho who always criticizes Kamat. He said, “This does not seem to have anything to do with luck but explains a well-knit network of connections. Mickky serves a sentence for the simplest crime, Churchill gets jail on being accused in the same crime. I respect the judiciary but can we turn a deaf ear to a section of civil society, which feels that only minorities go to jail. I hope this feeling does not prevail
at all.”
