PANAJI
In what could be a major twist into the Assagao house demolition probe -- a high-profile case that prompted the transfer of former Director General of Goa Police Jaspal Singh and the suspension of three police officers including Police Inspector -- the chargesheet filed by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) has made no mention of “mastermind” Pooja Sharma.
The 304-page chargesheet, filed before the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Mapusa, lists 13 accused. The names of ‘owner of the plot and partially demolished structure’ Pooja Sharma and Pradeep Rana, the JCB operator who was the first person arrested in connection with the demolition, are nowhere mentioned.
The development comes despite the SIT's (Crime Branch) submission in the Court in July 2024 that Sharma is the mastermind behind the demolition. While opposing her anticipatory bail plea, the SIT had also accused her of executing a well-planned strategy to evict Pradeep Agarwadekar and his family, by hiring bouncers and an excavator to bring down the structure in broad daylight. The SIT had also raised concerns about the funds allegedly used to pay the bouncers involved.
In a nine-page submission to the Sessions Court then, the SIT had stated that the offense committed by Sharma was serious and the offense instilled fear in the local community as well as disrupted peace and tranquility.
Sharma was extensively interrogated by the SIT, and The Goan had reported on October 8, 2024, that her name was unlikely to appear in the final chargesheet.
Sources close to the investigation indicated that the SIT did not find enough evidence to charge Sharma, who is the wife of an intelligence officer posted in Southeast Asia. The probe also examined reports of a possible reconciliation between Sharma and the Agarwadekar family, along with disputed property documents.
The chargesheet names Arshad Khwaja, Shaheen Saudagar, Shalon Morekar, Ashfak Shaikh, Bismilla Gorgundagi, Azim Shaikh, Mohd Salmani, Rohit Bobate, Javed Shaikh, Zayed Mulla, Prachalesh Naik, Mohd Hanif Hajarat Sab Shaikh and Rubina Shaikh as the accused.
