MAPUSA
What was once sold as Goa’s hospitality mantra – Atithi Devo Bhava – is today being openly mocked by shack owners, who say the slogan has been twisted into a dangerous reality where Goans are expected to silently absorb abuse while violent tourists are treated like untouchable VIPs.
The anger comes after Calangute police reportedly registered only a non-cognizable complaint against three intoxicated tourists accused of vandalism and assault at a shack in Baga.
According to shack operators, despite allegations that the tourists broke beer bottles and beat up a staff member, they were merely detained and later released, while the shack owner was advised to “follow up in court”.
For shack owners, the message was loud and clear: tourists can do virtually anything in Goa – abuse staff, assault locals, destroy property – and still escape serious consequences.
“This Atithi Devo Bhava concept has become a joke. The real villains are treated like gods, while Goans are expected to take the beating quietly,” said one furious shack operator.
Hafta raj makes
a comeback?
The controversy has now snowballed into a direct attack on Goa Police, with multiple shack operators alleging that the system itself has become compromised.
“The police are absolutely of no help to us. They take these tourists away, make money from them quietly and release them,” alleged John Lobo, General Secretary of the Shack Owners Welfare Society, whose staff member was allegedly assaulted in Saturday night’s incident.
The allegations are explosive because they strike at the heart of a growing perception among tourism stakeholders – that law enforcement has become more concerned about protecting tourist inflow than protecting Goans.
Several shack operators claimed that instead of taking strict action, police frequently dilute complaints, encourage settlements or even allegedly help tourists file counter-complaints to neutralise cases.
“When we complain, police tell the tourists to file a complaint against us too. This is how the system works,” alleged Goan Traditional Shack Owners Association president Manuel Cardozo.
According to Cardozo, what happened in Baga is not an isolated incident but part of a much larger and largely unreported pattern unfolding across Goa’s coastal belt.
“John Lobo complained because he had the courage. But such incidents happen regularly. Most owners don’t complain because they have no faith left in the police system,” he said.
From hospitality
to helplessness
The growing resentment among shack operators also stems from what they describe as institutional humiliation of locals after they report crimes.
One shack owner recalled how he and his injured staff member were allegedly forced to remain at a police station till dawn after reporting an assault.
“My worker was bleeding. We thought police would help us. Instead, we were stuck there till 4 am and reached home at 6 in the morning. Who is actually being punished here?” he asked.
Behind the outrage lies a deeper fear now spreading across Goa’s tourism sector – that the balance between hospitality and law enforcement has collapsed completely.
For decades, Goa’s tourism model thrived on the idea that visitors should feel welcome.
But shack owners say that philosophy is now being weaponised against locals themselves, where any resistance to unruly behaviour is instantly projected as “anti-tourism”.
“What are we supposed to do? Stand smiling while our staff gets beaten up? If a Goan went to Bengaluru or Mumbai, demanded Konkani music, broke bottles and assaulted staff, would police there release him so easily,” another shack owner asked.
Kuch bhi chalta
hai in Goa
Tourism stakeholders say the issue no longer concerns isolated drunken brawls but the dangerous precedent being set when violent behaviour goes unpunished.
“The message going out is disastrous. Tourists feel they can do anything in Goa because nothing serious will happen to them,” said Cruz Cardozo, President of the Shack Owners Welfare Society.
Cardozo warned that frustration among locals is reaching a tipping point.
“Our boys are told to stay calm, stay polite and tolerate abuse because tourists are ‘guests’. But guests do not assault people and destroy businesses. If police continue protecting such elements, there will be anger on the ground,” he said.
Has Goa’s tourism-dependent economy created a system where locals are expendable and violent tourists are too valuable to touch? For many shack owners, the answer is becoming painfully obvious.
