Panaji: The three-day monsoon session of the Goa Legislative Assembly, which begins today is expected to be stormy. The House is set to take up 883 questions, including 163 starred and 720 unstarred questions.
A total of 15 bills are likely to be tabled, including the Goa Prohibition of Unlawful Conversions of Religion Bill, 2026. The government is also set to withdraw six bills, which were introduced earlier.
Demanding official language status for Marathi language, the Marathi Rajbhasha Nirdhar Samiti has urged the government to introduce a resolution on Marathi. The organisation is set to march to the Goa assembly on Monday with around 5,000 supporters over their demand. It has warned of intensified agitation if the government fails to introduce the resolution.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena has extended its support to the August 31 march of Marathi Rajbhasha Nirdhar Samiti to the Goa assembly.
The party has urged the Goa government to take appropriate legal action and bring a bill on the issue.
The Goa government is likely to introduce the Goa Prison Bill during the monsoon session, proposing stricter action against inmates found illegally possessing mobile phones inside jails.
The proposed legislation seeks to amend the existing Goa Prison Rules and make illegal possession of mobile phones in prisons a cognisable offence. If enacted, the change would allow police to register an FIR and launch a formal investigation whenever an inmate is caught with a mobile phone.
The move comes against the backdrop of repeated mobile phone seizures at the Colvale jail. Under the current rules, although mobile phones are prohibited inside prisons, their illegal possession is treated as a non-cognisable offence. As a result, police cannot independently register an FIR or investigate such cases.
At present, jail authorities are required to submit a report to the concerned magistrate after a mobile phone is recovered from an inmate. The magistrate may then initiate proceedings, with the existing provisions providing for a maximum punishment of six months’ imprisonment or a fine.
The proposed law will significantly expand the scope of police investigation. Following an FIR, investigators will be able to examine the seized device, conduct technical analysis, scrutinise call records and collect other electronic evidences to determine how the phone was being used and whether other persons were involved.
If the proposed provisions are approved and an inmate is subsequently convicted, the offence could carry a maximum punishment of three years’ imprisonment.
