‘United’ Oppn legislators are armed with crucial issues to confront govt
PANAJI
A dramatic showdown this monsoon session of the Goa Legislative Assembly is likely as Opposition legislators are ready with a long list of issues to challenge the government.
Right from the prolonged delay in notifying a Tiger Reserve to demanding full investigation details of land grab cases and the controversial Assagao house demolition, etc; the Opposition will leave no stone unturned.
Sources said the united Opposition will seek answers on various pressing issues with joint questions sent to the Legislative Assembly for the government to answer.
One of the foremost issues on the agenda is the delay in declaring the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary and its surrounding areas as a Tiger Reserve. Close to a year ago, on July 24, the Bombay High Court at Goa directed the Goa government to notify the sanctuary within three months. The State challenged this order before the Supreme Court, which, on September 25, 2023 refused to grant any interim stay but issued notices to the Union Ministry for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), and the petitioner Goa Foundation. The government has been dragging its feet since then.
The Mhadei water dispute is another issue as sources said the Opposition is unhappy with the government’s response to a recent inspection carried out by PRAWAH. “How could the Goa government send just three representatives when Karnataka had 25-30 officials during the crucial PRAWAH meeting? We are surprised that Goa government is taking this issue lightly although Karnataka is hell-bent on diverting Mhadei from Goa. Legislators might demand lengthy discussions and concrete assurances from the government to give justice to the State,” said the source.
The alleged initial cover-up of the Assagao house demolition, political interference, and the involvement of high-ranking police officers will also be tabled during the 18-day-long Assembly session. “Full investigation details might be sought,” sources said, adding that updates on the progress of the land grab investigations including chargesheet and trial could also be sought.
“Several other issues on the landslides, waterlogging, Smart City, airports are likely to be tabled,” the source revealed.
As the session is set to commence on July 15, the Legislative Secretary has already received 648 starred and 1,940 unstarred questions. The last day for submissions is on Thursday.
