MAPUSA
The trial in the 2008 Panaji police station attack case against Panaji MLA Atanasio (Babush) Monserrate, his wife Jennifer and other accused has been adjourned to February 3 after the judge and the staff of the Additional Sessions court was reportedly infected with Covid.
The Monserrate couple “ Babush and Jennifer “ who have been declared as the BJP candidates from Panaji and Taleigao respectively are the main accused in the case which had been pending in the High Court for the last seven years.
The chargesheet against the Monserrates and 35 others was filed by the CBI in 2014.
Last month, Justice Manish Pitale of the Bombay High Court at Goa had dismissed the applications seeking quashing of the proceedings and directed that the trial should commence and be expedited as there was prima facie evidence against the accused.
In February 2008, Babush Monserrate, then MLA of Taleigao had led a morcha before the Panaji police station demanding release of his supporters, who had allegedly been roughed up by the cops inside the lockup, had turned violent.
Adv Aires Rodrigues, who is the intervener in the case, in a letter petition had brought to the attention of the High Court that the case against the politicians in the State was dragging for very long time.
