PANAJI
Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said there has been no political involvement that has come to light till date in the ongoing police investigations into the various frauds of a financial nature which have come to light in Goa.
Sawant who was interacting with journalists after chairing Thursday's cabinet meeting said, as per information from the police so far, there is no political involvement in any of the cases, be it the fraud cases pertaining to cash taken for government jobs, the bank frauds or the land sale frauds.
The Chief Minister also said that the investigations into all these cases are being conducted by the police in a very "transparent manner" and they (the police) have been given a free hand. “All jobs-for-cash scams and bank fraud inquiries have been conducted in a transparent manner. No one will be spared,” said the chief minister.
The Sawant-led government has come under severe criticism from the Opposition and civil society over the jobs-for-cash scandal with several arrests made including some said to be involved with the ruling BJP. Opposition politicians are claiming that the scale of the frauds is such that it is unlikely that there was no political or governmental patronage.
Sawant however said that in all the cases, the investigations are being carried out "thoroughly" and with complete transparency.
"No one, if involved, will be let off the hook after the investigations are complete, whoever they may be," Sawant said, adding that the police investigations are moving in the right direction.
Sawant also said that due to the investigations and police action, more people have been emboldened and have come forward to file complaints.
