PANAJI
Goa Pradesh Congress Committee General Secretary and Spokesperson Agnelo Fernandes on Saturday alleged that Calangute BJP MLA Michael Lobo is “out to save Banjaras at the cost of Goans”.
Fernandes accused Lobo of facilitating illegal filling of land on a 4,000 square metres plot adjoining his own residence for the benefit of a person belonging to the Banjara community.
Speaking at Congress House, Fernandes said, “There is a 4,000 square metres of land being filled behind Lobo’s house for a person from the Banjara community. Lobo will be demolishing a house belonging to a Goan for this purpose. He is out to save the Banajaras here at the cost of Goans.”
The former Calangute MLA also charged that Deputy Speaker Lobo is bulldozing his way with the Calangute-Candolim Outline Development Plan and the Planning and Development Authority so as to ensure that illegally converted land worth around Rs 500 crore is registered in the name of his family memebrs.
“I have charged that it is a big scam and now it has come to my knowledge, that the scam is much bigger. We were checking the illegal conversions. Based on that, his family has acquired plots right from Mapusa, Arpora, Baga, Candolim. This is a big scam. If you calculate, it is around Rs 500 to 600 crore. He wants the PDA because otherwise, he will have to return all these plots,” Fernades alleged.
Meanwhile, the GPCC General Secretary denied the charges levelled against him by Lobo. Lobo has previously said that Fernandes was the first to apply for change of zone when the ODP was opened.
“In 2015, government notified the rules giving 20 per cent extra FAR to all hotels. I applied under this notification. He was not doing me a favour. My application was as per the law, not because of the Calangute-Candolim PDA,” he said, adding that Lobo is attempting to dent the ongoing protest by villagers against his plans for development in NDZ slopes of Saipem and Orda, construction in tenanted paddy fields and destruction of sand dunes and CRZ areas.
