VASCO
Vasco police late Friday evening booked Chicalim Parish Priest Fr Bolmax Pereira in connection with his remarks on Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj during a recent sermon in the Church.
Vasco police booked Fr Pereira under Sections 295, 504 IPC on charges of hurting religious sentiments of Hindu community and followers of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The FIR was registered after a large number of people including Shiv Premis, members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and other Hindu organisations assembled at the Vasco Police station on Friday evening
The group of people demanded that Fr Pereira be immediately arrested under relevant sections of law for his remarks which had hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community.
A large police force including police inspectors from various police stations and DySPs from different police divisions had assembled at the Vasco police station to prevent any law and order situation.
Even as the police tried to pacify the group, the people refused to move out till Fr Pereira was arrested and insisted that the law had to be uniform in nature and applicable to all people.
The crowd which had assembled began chanting slogans outside the police station while the police force ensured that no person was allowed inside the premises.
The people also assured the police that there would be no law and order situation and that their only demand was that Fr Bolmax Pereira be arrested and an example set that everyone, especially religious heads, should not indulge in disrespecting or insulting the faith of other religions, especially in a religious place.
The members of the groups said they were even willing to move to a different location far away from the police station in case Fr Pereira was brought to the police station so that there was no law and order situation.
Later in the evening, an FIR was registered at the Vasco police station and the police explained to the people that Fr Pereira had already been booked for his act under relevant sections.
However, the crowd refused to leave the site till Fr Pereira was arrested and demanded that they had no issues in case he was given bail later.
Later in the night, some affiliated to Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad left the police station staying that they were happy that their demand to register a FIR against a religious head for disrupting communal harmony had been met.
The group, however, warned that in case the police tried to hush the investigation or did not take legal proceedings in the case, they would come again to the police station with people from across Goa.
