MARGAO
The meeting chaired by South Goa MP Capt Viriato Fernandes at the South district Collectorate to save the houses from the double-tracking project at Velsao has kicked up a row of sorts.
While questions have been raised on social media seeking to know whether the MP has watered down his opposition to the track doubling project, Viriato on Thursday asserted that his stance is very clear: he is opposed to the track doubling project and plans to make Goa a coal hub.
Bureaucrat-turned-politician and Congress leader Elvis Gomes also joined the bandwagon, questioning whether the demand against double tracking has been dropped now. Gomes also demanded to know what authority the MP had to chair the meeting with the District Collector in the Collectorate on Wednesday.
“From what I have heard, the original demand was against double tracking. The MP’s meeting to save the houses from the project has made people wonder whether this demand has been watered down. It appears that the MP wants the double-tracking project by not touching the houses of the people,” Gomes said.
He added: “Betrayal is going on in society. The MLAs have been betraying the people by leaving their parties. In this situation, we wonder whether the demand against the double tracking project has been dropped,” he added.
The South Goa MP, however, asserted that his stance is clear when he interacted with the media during his weekly visit to the South Collectorate on Thursday. “First of all, my stance is very clear: I am against double tracking and coal. After my election, I had raised the issue in Parliament. Let me tell you, I am facing trial in court along with other activists for participating in the historic Chandor agitation. The trial is set to begin later this month,” he said.
Rubbishing reports on social media that he has backed out of the agitation, Viriato said he, along with others, had rushed to Velsao after the Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd (RVNL) tried to bulldoze its way with the laying of the double track on land owned by private individuals. “I had asked for a meeting with the Collector since the RVNL cannot bulldoze their way on private land. It was the Collector who requested me to chair the meeting, where people had come with their property documents to prove their ownership. It is in this context that the Collector was requested to hold a survey by the Goa Survey Department,” the MP said.
Accusing the government of fully backing the railways to bulldoze through with the double tracking project, he reiterated that the double track is meant for the movement of coal and not for passenger traffic.
“I had raised the issue in Parliament, and my stance is very clear. This battle against coal will continue. We will continue to oppose the track doubling project. This has been my stance, the stance of the activists, and the stance of the Congress party. We will together fight against plans to make Goa a coal hub,” he said, adding, “Whoever is making allegations and casting aspersions should come on the ground to save the people and their houses. I doubt who is behind circulating the videos.”
