MAPUSA
The Agarwadekar family has exonerated Pooja Sharma, the main accused in the demolition of their house, attributing the incident to an outsourced job and criticising the police investigation for not heading in the right direction.
The Agarwadekar family on Friday asserted that the demolition of their home, where they had resided for the past 30 years, was not directly orchestrated by Sharma. According to Prasad Desai, the family's advocate, the original owner who sold the property to Sharma was aware of the family's long-term residence.
Desai questioned whether the police had thoroughly investigated the previous owner. “The original owner who sold the property to Pooja Sharma knew that the Agarwadekar family had been staying in the house for the last 30 years. Has he been inquired? Have police gone to him?” asked Desai, while addressing the media along with Prinsha Pradeep Agarwadekar.
Desai accused the Anjuna Police of facing undue pressure, which hindered the progress of the investigation. He revealed that for the past six months, he had encountered numerous obstacles while attempting to file complaints at the police station. “Anjuna PI Prashal Desai was sympathetic to us and wanted to help us, but his hands were tied. We could sense he was under pressure,” the advocate claimed.
According to Desai, the local police have been made scapegoats, while those actually involved in the crime remain untouched. He argued that Pooja Sharma, the accused in the house demolition case, was innocent, as she was not properly briefed about the situation. “Sharma wanted to buy the property and she was informed that she would get the place with a clear title,” he said.
Desai explained that the demolition was carried out by a broker hired by the original owner, thus absolving Sharma of direct involvement. “The demolition was an outsourced job. The owner hired a broker to demolish the house. Therefore, Pooja Sharma is not involved. She is innocent,” he asserted.
Furthermore, Desai highlighted irregularities in the property mutation process. He informed that the mutation was executed without giving notice to the Agarwadekar family, who were living on the property. He criticised the local talathi for not notifying the family about the mutation process and the presence of a house on the property. Remarkably, the mutation of the property was completed within 24 hours, raising further suspicions about the procedure's legitimacy.
