MARGAO
On the evening of February 6, 2012, the St Xavier’s Church, Velim was raided by an election flying squad when campaigning for the Velim assembly seat had just begun.
The raid had acted as a trigger for the violent incident that followed at the Velim church fourteen days later around February 20, when three Goa Police CID personnel were beaten up by an irate mob, as news spread to the village that the squad has come to conduct another raid on the church.
Exactly a decade down the lane, mystery still shrouds the raid, the agency that conducted the raid and the motive behind the raid. That’s not all. Curtains are yet to come down on the trial in the sensational Velim church attack case. The trial is dragging on in the court against a group of Velim villagers, including the then Parish Priest Fr Romano Gonsalves, then Parish Priest of Assolna church Fr Lucio Dias and 20 others.
In fact, several questions remain unanswered to date over the raid conducted by the flying squad and the nature of the complaint the flying squad had come to inquire with the church authorities.
While it was initially reported that the raid was conducted at the behest of the Income Tax Department, IT officials had later feigned ignorance over any such raid conducted at the Velim church.
The then Parish Priest Fr Romano had pointed out that the raiding party had conducted a search of the church premises for two long hours. Fr Romano was subjected to interrogations and the raiders had conducted a search of the cupboards and suitcases in his room.
Fr Romano had then claimed that the raiding party even inquired into the money he has in his possession and the church income, and how it is being utilized.
While the raid had triggered protests amongst the parishioners, the search operation came as a trigger for the violent incident that was reported at the Velim church days later.
A three-member team of CID personnel, headed by Police Sub-Inspector Kapil Nayak were drafted by then Superintendent of Police South Arvind Gawas to find out from the church authorities whether the villagers will boycott the assembly polls out of protest over the flying squad raid on the church.
As the authorities could not come out with a genuine explanation over the February 6 raid on the church, villagers gave vent to their angry sentiments at the CID personnel after news spread in the village that the church is being raided again by the flying squad.
The three CID personnel had to bear the brunt of the angry mob as hundreds of villagers poured at the church square from the village as news spread like wildfire that the church has come under a raid again.
Sadly, the trial in the case is still dragging on, nearly seven years after the Cuncolim police had filed a charge-sheet against Fr Romano Gonsalves, Fr Lucio Dias and 20 villagers. While the police had booked the 22 accused over an attempt to murder, the Judicial Magistrate First Class had dropped the attempt to murder charge against the accused.
Says city-based Lawyer, Adv Pritam Moraes: “One of the accused has died during the pendency of the trial. There are many prosecution witnesses who are yet to be examined. The court has only examined the main prosecution witness, PI Kapil Nayak. His cross-examination could not take place because of the Covid pandemic restrictions on court hearings.”
In his deposition, PI Kapil Nayak has alleged that Savio D’Silva, the two priests and a number of committee members had led the assault on him.
Case foisted on me, says Velim Congress candidate
MARGAO
The infamous Velim church attack case might have taken place exactly a decade ago, but its echo is being heard on the election battlefield in the ongoing election campaign for the Velim seat.
Velim Sarpanch Savio D’Silva, who is the Congress candidate for the Velim seat, does not stop reminding the people of the constituency how the police had booked him and the two priests in the false case of an alleged assault against the three CID personnel.
“The case has been foisted on me, the priests and villagers as part of a game plan. I along with the villagers had rushed to the Velim church that night after we were informed that the church has come under attack. The villagers and I did nothing wrong when we had all rushed to the church to save our priests and the church”, Savio explains to the people at his election meetings.
He continues: “The police had slapped a false case against me and the priests, but I am confident that we will all come clean in the case. The case has affected the career of our seafaring youth, who could not go abroad to work due to the pending case.”
