CBI PROBE DEMANDED INTO LAND ALLOTMENT SCAM BY VIRODHI MANCH

PANJIM: SEZ Virodhi Manch has demanded CBI inquiry into the alleged land allotment scam in allotting the spaces to SEZ promoters in the State and also sought resignation of those Board of Directors of Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) and other officials involved in the scam.

Buoyed after the High Court judgment, the activists have said that either CBI inquiry or judicial probe should be constituted in the scam, which involved high profile politicians and bureaucrats into it.

“A judicial inquiry to unearth the whole land scam should be undertaken by the Chief Minister (Digambar Kamat) since the allotments for SEZs have been declared illegally and arbitrary by the High Court,” SVM Convener Charles Fernandes told a press conference today.

The manch demanded that those who are guilty including police officers should be brought to book. He recalled that the activists had lodged police complaint in the land scam but police had failed to register an FIR against the GIDC board members in 2007.

“The villagers had approached Verna police, CID and even Vigilance Department, furnishing documents to substantiate the illegalities and irregularities in the allotments but issue was pushed down the carpet,” said SVM member Franky Monteiro.

He pointed out that the information sought from the police under Right to Information (RTI) had said that there is no prima facie evidence against the board members. The State Vigilance Department had replied that they had referred the matter to ‘the government.’

The activists have also demanded resignation of all those officials who fraudulently allotted lands to the industrial enclaves. Another activist Arvind Bhatikar said that the corrupt deserves to be punished and dismissed.

“There should be an audit of the government,” activist Pravin Sabnis said, adding that this is probably the biggest scam by the government, which has come to light.  The activists reiterated that GIDC should revert back the land to the villagers and it will be for the land owners to decide on the nature of land use.

Council for Social Justice and Peace convener Fr Maverick said that GIDC should frame rules under Section 51 specifying the mode and method of allotment of lands as per the GIDC Act.  He further said that preference should be given to small and medium local entrepreneurs for setting up micro industries in the interest of self employment.

The court in its order had observed that the allotment of lands to the companies were made in undue haste and arbitrarily without proper scrutiny of their applications, besides the procedure adopted for the allotment was not fair and transparent and the allotment by the GIDC do not stand the test of reasonableness. GIDC and the seven petitioners are given status quo of four months.(HD)