CHEATING CASE AGAINST RAMAKANT KHALAP: ARGUMENTS ON 5TH FEB

PANJIM: Judicial Magistrate First Class Ms Shaikh Shabnam will on 5th February at 2.30 pm hear the arguments on the complaint filed by Adv. Aires Rodrigues against Panjim Police Inspector Sandesh Chodankar for not registering an F.I.R of cheating and misrepresentation against the former Union Law Minister and current Goa Law Commission Chairman Mr. Ramakant Khalap.

As directed by the JMFC, Police Inspector Sandesh Chodankar today remained present in court.

The notice to the Police Inspector has been issued on a petition filed by Adv. Rodrigues before the JMFC seeking directions to the Panjim Police Inspector to register the F.I.R against Mr. Ramakant Khalap and to expeditiously investigate the case.

Stating that the police had not registered the F.I.R in view of the political clout enjoyed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap, Adv. Rodrigues has sought that the Court monitor the investigation of the case.

Adv. Rodrigues on January 17th had filed a complaint at the Panjim Police Station against Mr. Ramakant Khalap for having falsely stated that the International Arbitration Centre was being set up in collaboration with the Goa Government.

In his complaint to the Panjim Police Adv. Aires Rodrigues has also named as accused Adv. Cleofato Coutinho, Adv. Mario Pinto Almeida and Mr. V.K.Agarwal who are the other trustees of a private trust “Goa Organization of Law Finance and Education” formed by them along with Mr. Ramakant Khalap.

After Mr. Ramakant Khalap announced that the International Arbitration Centre was being set up by his private trust in collaboration with the Government of Goa, Adv. Rodrigues sought information under RTI from the Law Department whether the Government was infact aware that the said International Arbitration Centre was being set up in collaboration with the Government of Goa.

The Law Department while informing Adv. Rodrigues that it had noinformation on the setting up of the International Arbitration centre has also informed him that no action has yet been initiated against the trust headed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap for illegally and unauthorizedly using the name of the Government as a collaborator in the setting up of the trust.

The International Arbitration Centre is being set up by a private trust set up by Goa Law Commission Chairman Ramakant Khalap along with commission members Adv. Cleofato Coutinho and Adv. Mario Pinto Almeida. The fourth member of the trust is one Mr. V.K.Agarwal from Delhi.