MAPUSA
A gang of five persons brutally assaulted a 53-year-old businessman of Verla and two of his associates in Bardez allegedly for exposing a hill-cutting incident.
Anjuna police have lodged an FIR against the main accused Rohan Harmalkar and four others for assault and threatening.
The Verla-based businessman Roy Fernandes was hit on his head while his employee Agni Ahmed suffered serious injuries to his nose and one of his eyes. Both are admitted to a private hospital in Mapusa.
The third person Emmanuel D’Souza who works as manager with Fernandes suffered injuries on one of his legs and has been admitted to the Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim.
The incident took place at around 5 pm on Saturday.
According to the complainant Roy Fernandes, the main accused Rohan Harmalkar along with four attacked his employee Agni Ahmed who worked in his property in Anjuna.
“I got a call from Ahmed stating that there was a problem in Anjuna and my presence was required there,” he said.
The complainant said that soon after the call he and his manager Emmanuel D’Souza started their car to move towards Anjuna.
“As we moved to the main road at Verla-Canca, a car blocked our vehicle. Rohan Harmalkar stepped out of the car and began to question me as to why I was interfering in the hill-cutting matter and also why I was trying to extract information through RTI,” Fernandes said in his complaint.
He said on Harmalkar’s instruction the other men hit him with a wooden danda on his leg and metal pipe on his head.
Fernandes also said that his manager Emmanuel D’Souza was also beaten up and suffered serious injuries to his leg.
He further said that his employee Agni Ahmed was hit with a knuckle duster in Anjuna and from there he was abducted in the car and brought to Verla.
The Verla-based businessman, Roy Fernandes had recently complained and stopped illegal hill cutting activity that was going on Verla communidade land.
“I have been taking up public issues on various forums. I have also exposed Harmalkar on his connection with some Haryana builders along with his involvement in forgeries. Since I was exposing him, he has carried this attack against me,” Fernandes told The Goan from his hospital bed.
Anjuna Police have registered an offence against Rohan Harmalkar and four others under section 326 (assault), 341 (wrongful restraint), 365 (kidnapping), 506 (ii) (criminal intimidation) r/w 34 IPC.
Police sources informed that all the five accused are on the run even as police are on the lookout for them.
