‘Three FIRs filed against agitators won’t be pursued, demand on scrapping the controversial provision to be discussed in Assembly’
Panaji: RGP MLA Viresh Borkar on Thursday withdrew his indefinite hunger strike after the government moved to suspend proposals for land conversions under Section 39A of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act in St Andre Assembly constituency and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant reportedly assured that the three FIRs registered against agitators would not be pursued.
The Chief Minister also assured that discussions on scrapping Section 39A will be held in the upcoming Assembly session, Borkar said.
However, Borkar warned that if Section 39A is not scrapped, then the agitation will resume and turn into mega protests.
He put government’s offers before the people for their opinion. To this, the people gathered at Azad Maidan in one voice urged the MLA to end his fast.
“The fight is on, and this is the time we must stay united. The Chief Minister has assured that the matter will be discussed in the Assembly. I appeal to all MLAs—we need to unite against Section 39A of the TCP Act. If it is not scrapped during the forthcoming Assembly session, then the protest will become a mega movement,” Borkar warned after ending his hunger strike.
Environmental lawyer Norma Alvares offered him juice and ‘prasad’ to break the fast, which had entered its sixth day on Thursday.
Borkar also announced that the North Goa collector visited him on Thursday evening at Azad Maidan and submitted a letter from the Chief Town Planner stating that proposals under Section 39A in St Andre constituency are being suspended.
“At first, the government did not agree to our demands. Then we decided to go to the TCP office last Friday. Our demand was clear: withdraw the land conversion permissions granted in St Andre constituency. We need to protect the hills, environment, and waterbodies,” he said.
He thanked the people who supported him in his fight, including members of the Opposition, NGOs, social workers, and citizens.
Borkar expressed displeasure over the three FIRs registered in connection with the protests against Section 39A.
“I felt bad. We told the district collector that these are false cases and they will badly affect poor people who participate in the protest in the interest of Goa. I asked the collector to send a message to the government to withdraw these cases, or else we would not move from here,” he said.
“The Chief Minister assured that the cases will not be pursued and will subsequently be closed,” Borkar added.
He further stated that Speaker of the Goa Legislative Assembly Ganesh Gaonkar had assured him that a special discussion on Section 39A of the TCP Act would be allowed.
Norma Alvares said the agitation for scrapping Section 39A has gone beyond St Andre constituency and now concerns the entire state of Goa.
Referring to the move to suspend proposals under Section 39A in St Andre, she remarked, “Suspension is an acknowledgement that something is wrong.”
She added, “When the Chief Minister gives assurance that he will discuss the matter in the Assembly, he is opening the door for withdrawal of Section 39A of the TCP Act. I urge all MLAs to think like Goans and forget party lines.”
Appreciating Borkar’s efforts, Dr Oscar Rebello urged all 40 MLAs, including Vishwajit Rane, to scrap Section 39A of the TCP Act.
RGP MLA, others booked for theft of TCP office files
Panaji: The Panaji police registered three separate FIRs in connection with the ongoing protest led by St Andre MLA Viresh Borkar, who is demanding the scrapping of the controversial Section 39A of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act—a provision that allows changes in land-use zones and land conversions.
One case pertained to the alleged theft of 10 internal files containing the Regional Plan for Goa 2021 (reference files) of various talukas.
The police have named 16 accused, including Borkar, along with 20 unidentified persons.
Another FIR related to the protest at the TCP office led by the St Andre legislator, while the third FIR has been registered against agitators who held a sit-protest outside the residence of TCP Minister Vishwajit Rane.
According to the police, the theft complaint was filed by Vinod Kumar Chandra, Town Planner at the TCP Department in Panaji. During the protest against Section 39A on the intervening night of February 20 and 21, the accused allegedly stole 10 internal files containing the Regional Plan for Goa 2021, covering talukas such as Pernem, Bardez, Bicholim, Sattari, Sanguem, Dharbandora, Tiswadi, Mormugao, Salcete, Canacona, Ponda, and Quepem.
The police stated that the accused, acting with common intent, criminally trespassed into the TCP office premises on February 20 under the pretext of submitting a representation regarding zone changes carried out under Section 39A in Siridao village of St Andre constituency.
They then allegedly committed theft of the files.
After submitting the representation, villagers forcibly sat outside the Chief Town Planner’s cabin, declaring that they would not leave until action was taken.
The Chief Town Planner forwarded the representation to the government the same day and informed the MLA about the same. Despite requests to vacate the premises, the protestors refused to leave and remained inside the office overnight.
“Further, I came to know from staff that during the night more people entered the office premises, including Swapnesh Sherlekar, Manoj alias Tukaram Parab, and other supporters,” the complaint stated.
It added that agitators moved through various sections of the office, removed standing fans, and used them without consent.
As the protestors continued to occupy the office, the Chief Town Planner repeatedly requested assistance from the Panaji police inspector and the mamlatdar to evict them. Staff members were allegedly restrained and obstructed from performing their duties.
On February 21, the police evicted all agitators from the premises, after which the office was locked. When staff resumed duty on February 23 at 9 am, it was discovered that 10 files were missing.
The complaint alleged that the agitators had committed theft of official TCP files and requested registration of an FIR.
