Of late there has been a different kind of spike. Decisions that appear to be portrayed as pro-people are being taken by the government. However, many of these decisions need to be looked at very closely and with more than a pinch of suspicion, simply because the same government in some cases has resisted taking decisions that will benefit the people and paper to be taking them now only because elections are around the corner.
Take the decision to finally register the Siddhi Naik case as a murder investigation. The suspicious death of the 19-year-old girl from Nachinola near Aldona was speedily dismissed as a case of suicide by the police without even insisting on preserving the viscera of the victim. For almost six months, the parents of the victim, especially her father have been fighting a lone battle, supported only by one veteran doctor in the establishment and of course Herald which always believed that the father was right and would get justice.
There was an orchestrated and planned attempt by police officers in critical decision-making positions- in this case, who ensured that the Calangute police did not deviate from the motivated premeditated decision to simply pass this off as a suicide case. At the same time, Herald exposed the shoddy attempt by the police to seek “clarifications” on the circumstances in which the viscera a victim is preserved, after not seeking for the viscera preservation from the GMC forensics team in the first place.
It was the refusal of the father to accept defeat and the Herald’s reporting, despite usual skepticism by armchair pundits that forced the setting up of a three-member medical committee to re-look at the investigation. This committee made a very important observation that the manner of her death must be probed. Despite this, it appeared that the Goa police were about to close the case as a suicide.
Was the intent real or political? Will the police still investigate the case properly after the elections?
The sudden decision, therefore, to finally register the case came as a pleasant surprise but we need to ask questions as to whether this was the real intent or just a temporary political intent. The Siddhi Naik case has political overtimes. The case is linked to caste, politics, the issue of women’s safety, and the political equations in the Aldona constituency. It is fair to ask if the registering of this murder case is only to keep the opposition parties in check till the end of February and March and then let the investigation lie in cold storage after the elections? People of Goa want fairness and honesty. The parents of a young girl have just lost their child in brutal circumstances. The least they can expect is closure.
But this is not the only area where the state expects fairness. Take for instance the decision of the state to restart mining by announcing a dump policy.
Is the new iron ore dump mining policy honest and pro-people?
One needs to understand if this policy is transparent or not. While the state has said that the decision to suction dumps will bring the state revenue of Rs 1000 crore, the Goa Foundation has significantly pointed out that if the iron ore dumps are from leases that have been declared illegal, with no legal challenges pending, how can the state permit ore from these dumps to be auctioned? Claude Alvares of the Goa Foundation has asked who will be given the permit to transport the ore in the mining dump since there are no ease holders anymore. And the Supreme Court is yet to decide how the existing dumps will be disposed of.
Will the money from iron ore auctioning come to the people? That is the question
Mineral ore is a state resource. Which means it is a people’s resource. Any money from auctioning dumps should come to the people and not to the mining giants. And a real estimate of the money to be earned needs to be put on the table.
According to ballpark estimates 1 million tonnes or 10 lakh tonnes at a sale price of a minimum of Rs 2000 per tonne gives you Rs 200 crore for 1 million tonnes. For twenty million tonnes the expected income of Rs 4000 crore is a rough estimate. The question is will the people of Goa get this amount through Mineral Development Corporation. Will the resources be managed for the benefit of the mining-affected and the development of mining areas?
Finally, let us look that demolition of the Illegal structure in the heritage area of Old Goa. Will the palatial house be pulled down?
The massive people’s agitation against the private construction of a bungalow adjoining the protected St Cajetan Church has evoked the anger of the whole of Goa. More than politicians, it is the people of Goa cross faiths who have served an ultimatum to the government to demolish the structure. The decision of the TCP and the local panchayat to first withdraw the TCP clearance and then revoke the construction license appears to be in the right direction. Now the most important question to be asked here is, will this be enough? Until orders to demolish the villa that has been constructed by politically powerful people, what’s the use of revoking the construction license when the villa is already constructed?
The common thread that runs through each of the three cases- and there are others- is that the state government is appearing to make decisions that will buy them time and keep people’s anger and distrust at bay till the crucial Assembly elections. Is the ruling party and government wanting to “manage” the issues so that people don’t vote against them?
People friendly decisions are meaningless unless taken honestly for the service of the people
If decisions are taken to prevent negative votes and not taken to really do justice to people and the state, they have no meaning. And they lead to permanent distrust of the system.
