PANAJI
Goa Governor, Bhagat Singh Koshiyari will deliver his maiden address to the Goa legislative assembly on Monday kicking off a five-day winter session in which the confrontation between the Pramod Sawant-led government and the Opposition is expected to heat up over the controversial amendments to the Lokayukta institution.
The Opposition has slammed the government and accused it of "diluting" the anti-corruption law after the cabinet had earlier last week approved several changes in it.
One such amendment cleared by the cabinet includes one making it mandatory for the Lokayukta to seek 'prior sanction' to launch corruption investigations against a public authority where the law ordinarily mandates such sanction.
Meanwhile Ten bills, including five more sponsored by the government are expected to be tabled in the course of the four working days of the winter session.
Interestingly the government has already backtracked on another controversial legislation the it had proposed to enact in this session -- The Goa Municipalities Amendment Act -- which it notified via the Ordinance route.
Earlier on Friday last, a fresh Ordinance was issued withdrawing the December 21 Ordinance promulgated to amend the Goa Municipalities Act after pressure from merchants doing business in civic properties across Goa's cities and towns.
Meanwhile, legislature department sources said five private resolutions will also be brought before the House as will 751 questions to be dealt with during Question hour. Of these, 195 are starred and 556 unstarred.
Among the private member's resolutions is one Benaulim MLA Churchill Alemao proposes to move to bring in a moratorium of sorts on the quantum of ore handled at MPT and transported through the State to north Karnataka.
Alemao's move hopes to blunt the impact of a swelling sentiment against politicos fuelled by a prolonged agitation against Coal transportation and suspicion that Central projects in protected forests are aimed at facilitating a coal corridor.
As Goa enters an election year, proceedings of this 5-day session will be closely watched for fresh political alignments even as a depleted and splintered Opposition struggles to forge unity.
Alemao, who belongs to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) but has hitherto publicly supported the Sawant-led BJP government, has said all 40 MLAs should break ranks and unanimously pass the resolution to put a stop to increase in future coal handling capacity in Goa.
"Once the resolution is passed, we can bring it to the attention of the Central government that Goa is united against the menace of coal," Alemao had said while making it public that he would move the resolution in the Assembly.
The Covid-19 pandemic truncated the usually longer monsoon session last year even as some legislators, including Chief Minister Pramod Sawant contracted the dreaded virus.
The Opposition led by Digambar Kamat, however had censured the government for using the pandemic as a bogey to run away from accountability through the legislature.
