MARGAO
In an interesting development in the Ticketgate, special Public Prosecutor Adv Pritam Moraes, who was appointed by the Home department to assist Special Public Prosecutor Adv Vinay Borkar in the case, has decided to withdraw his appearance from the criminal matter.
In another development, the infamous case will now be tried before Judicial Magistrate First Class Judge Carlos Da Silva in view of the High Court order appointing him as a Special Judge to try criminal cases against both present and former MLAs and MPs.
When the case came up for hearing on Thursday, Special Public Prosecutor Adv Moraes placed on the court record his decision to withdraw from the case and his letter to the Home department to relieve him from appearing in the case.
Meanwhile, Adv Pritam Moraes, who had been representing the prosecution in the Ticketgate for the last seven years assisting Adv Vinay Borkar since 2014 has requested the Under Secretary (Home) to relieve him from appearing in the case.
In his letter, Adv Moraes expressed his inability to continue in the matter, citing personal reasons and other commitments. In fact, Adv Moraes was conspicuous by his absence in the Court on Thursday when the Ticketgate case came up for hearing since he had already communicated his decision to withdraw from the matter scheduled for Thursday.
The Under Secretary, Home had on March 19, 2014 appointed Adv Moraes to assist Adv Borkar in the criminal case against Dayanand Narvekar and others before Judicial Magistrate First Class, Margao.
The Ticketgate is one criminal case, wherein the regular Assistant Public Prosecutors are not conducting the case, but was being handled by the special public prosecutors Adv Borkar and Adv Moraes, apparently because of the fact that Narvekar was a former MLA and Minister.
Besides Narvekar, eight other persons, including the former office bearers of Goa Cricket Association have been named as accused in the 2001 case that took place on the day of the ODI match between India and Australia at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium, Fatorda.
Meanwhile, the Ticketgate case will be heard before designated Judge Carlos Silva given that former Minister Dayanand Narvekar is an accused in the case. Judge Carlos Silva has been notified as a designated Judge for trial of criminal cases involving present and former MLAs. The case had come up for hearing before the designated Court on Thursday, but has since been adjourned.
