Just for the record, Churchill wasn't chief minister when the case happened in 1991, as the film is introduced on the made-viral forward
Today, Costao Fernandes is in the news. At some times, the film featuring his real life role is claimed to be fictional, with the "any resemblance with reality is only coincidental" disclaimer. On the Wikipedia, it has been called a biographical crime drama film. In a nationalism-filled online post of a screening of the film, the claims go even further.
The film is introduced thus: "It's a real life story. If you think it's a Singham story, I won't blame you because those smugglers were actually the brothers of the chief minister of Goa at that time." More on this later.
(The Singham story, the remake of a Tamil film, is fiction, produced for Reliance Entertainment. There, the honest and valiant policeman, Bajirao Singham, fights against injustice. However, when he encounters a corrupt politician, Jaikant Shikre, he decides to teach him a lesson.)
Nothing works better than Bollywood -- or, today, an over-the-top streaming service. So what if we get a few facts wrong in the need to spice up a story to draw in eyeballs?
Draw in the eyeballs the film indeed did. In Goa, at least. Elsewhere, the film, we are told is getting "mixed reviews".
When this unusual case came up, in May 1991, this columnist was a young journalist, still short of 30 years old. One fine day, quite unexpectedly, the news reached Panaji. Remember, those were times when mobiles weren't even dreamt of, and even in the towns, landline telephones were few.
It was sometime after lunch. We were wondering what to do next, when our blunt, outspoken and pushy senior colleague, Mario Cabral e Sa, came along. Seeing us sitting helplessly around, and gave us a choice word or two of abuse. Sufficiently goaded, we jointly hired a taxi, and made it by late evening to Fatrade beach.
We got a glimpse of the Contessa car at the crime scene. In its booth, by that time, there were some cheap sports items -- including badminton rackets.
Later, we drove down to the old Hospicio Hospital. Forensic specialist Dr Silvano Sapeco took us in and opened one of the mortuary drawers. We got a glimpse at the dead Alemao brother, looking placid, with a hint of none of the action that had happened earlier that day.
Over the next few days, we followed the case from Panaji itself -- as reporters are wont to do. It went through many twists and turns, with one arm of the government pulling down Costao, the Customs Officer, and the other pushing hard for his case.
This May 2025 film, which WhatsApp forwards are not letting you forget, has the smugglers identified as the Dmello family. But the officer is Costao Fernandes. So, there are no doubts over the case.
Just for the record, Churchil Alemao wasn't chief minister when the case happened in 1991, as the film is introduced on the made-viral forward. He had already played a crucial part in disrupting the then Congress government of Goa (in 1990), coming to power in a coalition with the MGP (the then main Opposition party).
Alemao was at the helm of the PDF coalition government for a little over a fortnight; and, a few months later, that coalition government had been ousted by his own PDF/MGP allies, before the Costao-Alvernaz case happened. So, there was a political angle to it too.
To put it briefly, as Churchill said sometimes later: "When I am in Congress, I'm a good man. When I'm in the Opposition, I become a smuggler." More than an element of truth there, though it doesn't clear him of the latter charge necessarily.
By the way, in its time, the BJP also made political use of him, with sports administrators hinting that the Parrikar government created a scheme which benefitted just one sports club, at a time when it was politically expedient to do so. So did the MGP, during the PDF (Pulling Down Fellow-politicians) experiment.
This story of course fits in well with Bollywood's or Hindi films general depiction of Goa. A place of crime, sleaze and what not. In a sense, it still continues playing a political role. Some new "facts" seem to emerge here though.
For instance, the website GQIndia.com writes that "Costa (sic) Fernandes was born on April 26, 1942, in Cabinda, Angola. After completing his education at the University of Fribourg, he forayed into the world of politics and served as Angola's ambassador to Egypt, India, and the United Kingdom, before joining the Goa Customs as a Preventive Officer in 1979" [https://tinyurl.com/ypanfdhp]
Whoa! This is the first time one is hearing of this. So far, we were told that Costao had entered the Customs on the sports quota, which makes more sense. A former ambassador becoming a Customs officer in India?
The last piece of the incomplete jigsaw was of course the role played by a senior Customs officer who came to Goa with a reputation. Daya Shankar was lionised by the Press then. He would welcome the media into his office, and share off-the-record details.
Sadly, Daya Shankar left the Customs before his tenure came to an end. There were whispers that he was disillusioned by corruption. He moved to Australia, shifted untypically to academia, and died while in his early 60s.
I too was one of the young journalists who was impressed by his track record and bluntness then. Later it struck me that, yes, officers are and can be honest; but it's the politician who decides which officer will serve where....
Only reminds us that stories and truth surface in various ways and multiple disguises. Sometimes possibly clothed with political interests as well.
