PANAJI/VASCO
Executive Engineer (Electricity) Kashinath Shetye on Saturday filed a complaint against four persons for allegedly trespassing into the department’s property at Bogda-Vasco.
The complaint, lodged at Panaji police station, named Omkar Durbhatkar, Yash Phadte, Sudhir Tari and Yogesh Patil as the accused.
The complainant alleged that the four persons not only trespassed but also intimidated him and other officials while they were carrying out their duty at the site on Friday.
In his social media post, Shetye posted the photo of an unknown man who allegedly threatened to kill the EE and tried to disrupt the officials’ work. Shetye sought the public’s help to identify the man.
The Panaji police said they are inquiring into the matter before taking appropriate action.
Responding to the police complaint filed by electricity department Executive Engineer Kashinath Shetye, Mormugao MLA Sankalp Amonkar and a large number of locals lodged a counter police complaint against him on Saturday evening.
Amonkar and the locals filed a police complaint against Shetye at the Mormugao police station.
They have accused Shetye of misconduct, wrongful restraint, and unauthorised actions at a project site, sparking outrage among the local community.
Speaking to the media outside the police station, MLA Amonkar accused Shetye of using a ‘rent-a-car’ vehicle for official duty and beginning work at the site well before government-mandated timings.
“Shetye arrived at 8.15 am and began work by 8.30 am, even though official government working hours start at 9.30 am. This proves that he was not on duty at the time of the incident,” Amonkar stated.
He further alleged that Shetye proceeded with the work without informing the local MLA, junior engineer, or assistant engineer, violating proper protocols.
“Instead of using an official government vehicle or department-provided taxi, he used a rent-a-car with a camera installed,” Amonkar said, questioning the legality of his actions.
The MLA claimed that despite several official correspondences requesting a joint inspection, Shetye ignored government directives and attempted to block a traditional pathway used by locals for over 50 years.
“Shetye resorted to high-handedness, behaving rudely with locals, especially women, and even pushing them aside when they requested him to wait for the MLA. He claimed that the area belonged to the electricity department, when in fact, it is a traditional public passage,” Amonkar asserted.
Amonkar also questioned why Shetye had brought a private JCB to the site when he was supposed to construct a compound wall.
“If he wanted to remove cables, he should have used a truck-mounted crane from the department. Why did he bring a JCB? What was his real intention?” he asked.
Responding to Shetye’s claims that goons were sent to disrupt the work and that locals were engaged in drinking and mischief. Amonkar dismissed these allegations as baseless.
“No complaint had been filed at the police station regarding such activities. The people who opposed Shetye were innocent locals simply requesting him to wait for the MLA. He has falsely accused them,” Amonkar added.
“We will ensure legal action is taken. Shetye has trespassed, wrongfully restrained people, and abused his authority. His behaviour, including his rude treatment of an elected representative, is unacceptable. We demand strict action against him,” Amonkar declared.
