MARGAO
When the High Court passed an order on October 12, 2022, clearing decks for the construction of a burial ground at Sonsodo for the Muslim community, hopes were raised that the minority community would finally have a spacious burial ground where the dead could rest in peace.
The 30,000 square metres of land at Sonsodo, acquired by the Margao Municipal Council for the purpose of burial grounds for all the communities a little over a decade ago in 2011, just above the Christian cemetery, has been lying idle without any development.
Frustratingly, 16 months later, the situation remains unchanged. In fact, the High Court bench, consisting of Justices Bharat Deshpande and M S Sonak, labelled the lack of progress as "most unfortunate." It pointed out that the Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDDA) had been given a 12-month extension by the court on the assurance that work on the project would start from November 27, 2023.
This follows a civil application filed by the agency before the court, seeking an extension of time to comply with its directions dated October 12, 2022. “We are not at all satisfied with the reasons for not even commencing the work at the site,” the bench observed when the Advocate General pointed out to the court that consultants and other officials of GSUDA were hindered by the St Joaquim Chapel Committee.
The High Court had on October 12, 2022, directed the Public Works Department (PWD) and GSUDA to undertake and complete the works of providing a full-fledged kabrastan at the acquired lands in Sonsodo as expeditiously as possible, and in any case, within six months from the date.
While the court had told the Margao Municipal Council to render all possible cooperation to the PWD and GSUDA to execute the kabrastan project, it had, however, observed, “Suppose, for any reason, the MMC refuses to cooperate. Such non-cooperation should not deter the PWD and the GSUDA from proceeding with the work of construction and development of kabrastan and completing the same at the earliest.
The court added: “The Managing Director of GSUDA and the concerned Superintending Engineer, PWD having jurisdiction over the Sonsodo area where the acquired land is located, shall be held personally responsible if the works are not completed within the timeline now indicated. Therefore, they are given the liberty to apply in case of difficulties."
The court said the MMC's Chief Officer and its engineers should also render all possible assistance to ensure the completion of these works within the timeline stated. Even the MMC Chief Officer would be held personally responsible if the works are not completed within the timeline now indicated, the court stated.
“We urge all the authorities and stakeholders to consider that this work of kabrastan at Sonsodo has been pending since 2011. Already, expenditure has been incurred through the public funds to acquire property at Sonsodo. The Muslim community is in dire need of sufficient space for its kabrastan. None of the authorities had even once disputed the need for having a kabrastan or even the urgency with which such kabrastan is required to be provided.
"Therefore, based upon some red tape or other extraneous considerations, the construction and development of kabrastan cannot be delayed any further by any of the authorities responsible for undertaking and completing the same,” the court had observed on Oct 12, 2022.
