VASCO
Goencho Avaaz Party (GAP) on Tuesday accused the Land Acquisition Officer of disposing off objections by land owners against the forcible acquisition of their properties for the double tracking of the South Western Railways.
"This SWR double tracking, meant to transport coal from Mormugao Port Trust to coal-based companies in Karnataka and Maharashtra, is nothing short of backstabbing the people of Goa. The litigants who are property owners were not even given a fair chance of a hearing,” said GAP State Convenor Capt Viriato Fernandes.
He claimed that the entire conspiracy was exposed with the emergence of a letter dated February 16, 2018, when the Ministry of Railways had written to the State government refusing its request to classify the project as a Special Railway Project.
"Notwithstanding the same, the government came out with a notification dated March 3, 2020 to commence land acquisition and to complete the process within 12 months.”
“Despite failing to complete the process within the stipulated duration, the government refused to cancel the process despite failing to adhere to terms and conditions stipulated in the notification.”
Capt Fernandes alleged that the State government went a step ahead to complete the acquisition process by not giving a fair chance to the litigants to present their case and get a hearing.
"When the entire Goa was already in curfew and then reeling under destruction by Cyclone Tauktae on May 16 2021, causing power and water supply failure for days together and roads being unmotorable due to uprooting of trees, the litigants got a rude shock when some of them received a WhatsApp message on May 18 to appear before the Land Acquisition Officer on May 19 at 11.45 am for final disposal of the case."
"We have now learnt that the government through officers like the Mormugao Land Acquisition Officer has played a cruel joke on property owners by forcibly acquiring their properties.”
“Goencho Avaaz will not take this lying down and will explore all options to safeguard our land and the interests of our people with all the resources available in a democratic setup," warned Capt. Fernandes.
