PANAJI
The Goa Pradesh Congress Committee has filed a complaint against Food and Drugs Administration Director Jyoti Sardessai at the Agassaim Police Station which has jurisdiction over FDA, Shankar Phadte from the GPCC legal cell informed media persons on Saturday.
The complaint primarily says that Sardessai has made misleading statements knowing that these were false. It also states that by making such statements, Sardessai knew she would be protecting the offenders. She also knew that the imported formalin-laced fish would cause injury to the public, it added.
The complaint states that Sardessai has committed offences under Sections 166, 166A, 201, 217, 218 of the Indian Penal Code. Phadte said, “Sardessai has tampered with the evidence, and did not act as per the procedures laid down by the Food Safety and Security Act.” The Agassaim police need to probe the false statements made by Sardessai, he added and reiterated that it didn’t require an expert to know that Sardessai’s constant statement that formalin found in fish was ‘within permissible limits’ was false.
The GPCC also slammed the FDA for not destroying the fish found unfit for consumption after conducting a raid at the Margao fish market last week. Ex-Congress MLA Agnelo Fernandes said on Saturday, “When the FDA raids small shops and finds food not suitable for consumption, such food is destroyed. Should it not have destroyed the fish in those 17 trucks?”
Fernandes also said that if no arrests were made by the government, the GPCC would approach the Bombay High Court at Goa. “We’re going to the HC as the government is not serious. Arrests have to be made,” he said.
