Goa bid a final farewell to a legendary figure, noted lawyer, former Additional Solicitor General of India and former Advocate General of Goa Manohar Usgaonkar, as he was cremated at St Inez crematorium after his demise on Friday.
Usgaonkar leaves behind a legacy that the State will be proud of. The noted lawyer will be long remembered for having dedicated himself towards the translation of the Portuguese Civil Code, 1867, for the benefit of all dealing with the law who were handicapped for want of translation of the Portuguese text into English. Subsequently, the translations became reference material for many senior lawyers and judges.
The translation of the Portuguese Civil Code by Usgaonkar has been one of the pioneering works of the era, which recognises the differences in the Family laws of Goa, Daman and Diu being different from the rest of the country. And unlike the Law of Succession contained in the Indian Succession Act, 1925 and the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, the civil code prevalent in the territories of Goa, Daman and Diu was unique in the fact that they covered almost all fields of substantive law in the Civil side having a total of 2,538 articles.
Born in Usgao, Usgaonkar took his primary education in Portuguese in his native village and pursued further studies till the fifth year of Lyceum at Institute Abade Faria at Margao. Joining the profession of Advocacy as a full-fledged advocate in the then-town of Mapusa in 1957, he was well aware of the prevailing Indo-Portuguese laws well before the liberation of Goa. He authored two books — Family Laws of Goa, Daman And Diu Volume I and II.
However, Usgaonkar’s views about India gaining independence in 1947 remained grounded in the practice of Portuguese Law until the Liberation of Goa. After that, since the Liberation of Goa, Usgaonkar demonstrated his true legal acumen in mastering the Indian laws, which also necessitated enlarging his hold on the English language.
Usgaonkar’s absence will be felt more as the country moves towards a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), with a bill likely to be tabled in the forthcoming monsoon session. It may be noted that currently Goa is the only State in India that follows a UCC. The code is seen as progressive in nature, with uniformity in laws regardless of religion, gender and caste and has become a model for others to follow.
While we unwind on the late advocate and his contribution to the English version of the UCC, the paradox between Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push for the UCC and Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s call for wiping of Portuguese footprints from Goa stands exposed.
While the Portuguese laws will remain embedded into the Goan system and the colonial vibe firmly rooted, Adv Manohar Usgaocar’s name will be inscribed in the history of Goa for the stellar role he played in the adaptation of the laws and for being the beacon of our judicial system.
