HC TO HEAR ARGUMENTS ON SUNITA SAWANT ‘S PETITION AGAINST AIRES ON 6TH DEC

PANJIM: Bombay High Court at Goa Justice N.A. Britto will on December 6th hear arguments on the petition filed by Police Inspector Sunita Sawant challenging the acquittal of Adv. Aires Rodrigues in the 2004 Ribandar Church case.

At the last hearing Adv. Aires Rodrigues drew the attention of Justice Britto that the two Special Public Prosecutors Mahesh Amonkar and Milena Pinto had not been officially appointed to appear in the revision petition filed by Inspector Sunita Sawant against him and that they were appearing illegally. Adv. Aires Rodrigues has also accused Special Public Prosecutor Mahesh Amonkar of lying and misleading the High Court.

Every hearing of the petition filed against Adv. Rodrigues is costing the State Rs 7000 by way of fees being paid to the two Special Public Prosecutors handling the case against Adv. Rodrigues.

Adv. Rodrigues has also submitted before Justice Britto that Inspector Sunita Sawant could not have filed the revision petition as it had to be filed by the State through its Public Prosecutor. Adv. Rodrigues’s also submitted that the law does not permit a second revision in the same case.

The first revision filed by the Government against Adv. Rodrigues was dismissed by the Sessions Judge Mrs. Vijaya Pol on 4th June this year while upholding Panaji Chief Judicial Magistrate Mr.P.M.Shinde’s order discharging Adv. Rodrigues from the 2004 Ribandar Church case.

Along with Adv. Aires Rodrigues, 14 other Ribandar residents have been charge sheeted in the case. The charge sheet was filed in connection with an incident that allegedly took place in 2004 at the Ribandar Church premises when Adv. Aires Rodrigues was leading an agitation demanding action against the then Ribandar Parish priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues for having allegedly molested a 13 year old girl from Ribandar. Fr. Newton Rodrigues who was later relieved from the Archdiocese of Goa is now Pastor of St. Bernadette Church at Calgary in Canada.

If Inspector Sunita Sawant succeeds in her petition against the acquittal of Adv. Aires Rodrigues in the Ribandar Church case, Fr. Newton Rodrigues will have to return to Goa from Canada to depose in the case.