OLD GOA
The Siridao panchayat politics was in turmoil as one of the panchas of the Antonio Afonso group switched sides and helped move a no-confidence motion against Deputy Sarpanch Melanie D’Souza.
The sarpanch Jagdish Gauns has already been ousted and if the deputy sarpanch is also voted out of office, the Siridao panchayat could be left without a sarpanch or deputy.
The no-confidence motion was moved on Wednesday with the panch Vasudev Kunkolienkar signing the motion along with the recently ousted sarpanch Jagdish Gauns and panchas Kush Palkar and Nutan Shirodkar.
The latest developments have taken everyone by surprise as on July 30, chaos prevailed outside the Siridao panchayat with the Agassaim police not allowing entry inside the panchayat to take up the no-trust against then sarpanch Jagdish Gauns, claiming that a police complaint was received regarding attempted robbery in the panchayat.
The no-confidence motion then was held outside the panchayat in which all four panchas present, including Kunkolienkar, voted in favour, thereby ousting Gauns by 4-0 votes.
But sarpanch Gauns along with two panchas Nutan Shirodkar and Kush Palkar filed a petition with the additional director of panchayats Umakant Korkankar challenging the proceedings of the no-confidence motion, following which Korkankar suspended the resolution adopted by granting an ex-parte stay, before sending the file to the secretary (panchayats) for further action in the matter. The aggrieved panchas led by Antonio Afonso then approached the High Court which granted them relief by granting interim stay on the order of the Addional DoP.
Upholding that the no-confidence motion against Gauns was validly passed on July 30 itself, the High Court held that Gauns could not continue as sarpanch and is deemed to have vacated office. The deputy sarpanch was ordered to hold the post of sarpanch until a sarpanch was duly elected.
However, even before the election to the post of sarpanch was announced, a no-confidence motion against the deputy sarpanch has thrown the Siridao panchayat politics in turmoil.
Sources informed that the motion is likely to be taken up on October 5.
Wagh upset over latest development
OLD GOA: When attempts were being made to scuttle the no-confidence motion against Jagdish Gauns who was eventually ousted as sarpanch, several politicians had come together to ensure that the motion was taken up come what may.
And one among them was Ramrao Wagh, who had stood behind the Antonio Afonso group.
But the latest developments have put people like Wagh in a spot of bother as he expressed disappointment over panchayat politics turning murky. “I don’t really know under what circumstances panch Vasu Kunkolienkar took the decision. But overall, panchayat politics is turning murky. I suspect that there are some big projects coming up in Siridao in which some politicians are trying to make money of it. And for that, such attempts are being made to take control of the panchayat,” Wagh opined.
