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PANAJI
The charge-sheet filed against Benaulim MLA Churchill Alemao by the Goa police's Crime Branch is a bulky 1000-page document and articulates procedural shortfalls in the tendering process of road contracts worth over Rs 300 crores pertaining to his tenure as PWD Minister in 2007-12.
PWD engineer PT Parker is clubbed as a co-accused in the case filed before the Special Court in Margao.
Around 100-odd witnesses are listed in the chargesheet.
The FIR was filed in 2011 against Alemao and others under section 403 (dishonest misappropriation of property), 409 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (Cheating) and 120 B (Criminal Conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code and also relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The issue pertains to tenders being floated for construction of roads without following procedure of advertising the tenders.
Alemao and Parker are accused of floating 13 short tender notices pertaining to 258 road works as "urgent works".
Eighty-nine of these projects (which cost over Rs 5 lakh) were not published in any newspaper, thereby removing the prospect of any competition between the prospective bidders, the chargesheet mentions. The lapse resulted in non-sale of tender forms, causing a loss to the exchequer, and also undue favour.
Current chief spokesperson of the Congress Sunil Kawthankar had initially filed the complaint against Alemao and Parkar at the Panaji police station and approached the court when police refused to register the FIR.
Citizens Working Centre, a Margao-based NGO had also filed a complaint against Parkar with the Vigilance Department for issuing 258 work orders without publishing tender notices as required under Section 16 of the CPWD manual. The work orders in question were issued in 2009 and 2010.
