Wednesday 22 June 2011

Goa: land, Demography and Politics



1.     Brahmin Invitation to Portuguese to conquer Goa in 1510
To understand contemporary Goa’s concerns it is necessary to take brief detour in Goa’s history. Goa has been ruled by various kings and sections through out the centuries. There rulers mostly invaded Goa and ruled over it for many years sometimes even centuries till 1510 when Adil shah was ruling Goa. In order to overthrow Adil Shah Brahmin from Goa went to Calicut, Kerala where Portuguese were stationed for the trade purpose and invited them to Goa. Portuguese came to Goa on 25 November 1510 at the invitation of Brahmins and fought with Adil Shah and laid foothold of rule in Goa to last for next 451 years till 19 December 1961. This was the first step of brahminical hold over Goa.

2.     Conversion/Codification of Ganvkaris into Communidades
After inviting Portuguese to Goa Brahmin provided logistical support for Portuguese to rule. Within the first 15 years Portuguese codified Ganvkaris - land institutions of tribal people – under Portuguese colonial laws and renamed them as Communidades. With this legal yet colonial intervention Brahmins and other colonial allies were included as managers/administrators of communidades replacing original tribal people – Gawdas, Velip, Kunbis. This was a second step of brahminical hold over Goa.

3.     Conversions and take over of temple lands for churches
Colonial period of Portuguese witnessed tremendous efforts at converting local people into new faith of Catholicism. This was done with State protection where the local temples were violently razed down and churches were built in its place. Colonial church in Goa is also dominated by Brahmins with collaboration from Portuguese. The temples lands now came under the brahminical church.

4.     Parceling of community lands to Brahmins
Brahminical loyalty to Portuguese colonial rule put themselves in private possession of land. Sometimes Portuguese auctioned land that belonged to local people and Brahmins brought it. Sidney Pinto Rozario’s land who are now constructing luxury bungalows; for rich of the world to buy in Porvorim is the case in focus. Sometimes Portuguese gave large tracks of land to Brahmins for the various favors granted. Very often the list of favors would include supply of beautiful woman from the house of Brahmins to top level Portuguese colonial officers for their satisfaction of sexual needs. This led to granting of land ownership titles to private Brahmin individuals. These sexually used females of from the Brahmin households often committed suicides. It has been the pattern of Brahmin household to lend their for sexual satisfaction of Portuguese and in return win land ownership titles. The females include daughters, sisters and wives.
The Brahmin landlords who sold land to luxury hotel conglomerate – Aldeia de Goa-  also got hold of land during Portuguese rule in Bambolim and Nauxi villages of Tiswadi taluka. The actual local owners of the land were reduced to caretakers of land with no records in Portuguese documents.

5.     Granting of mining leases to Brahmins, Baniyas
Portuguese granted mining leases in perpetuity those who were their mainstay of support of colonialism. These include Goa’s Brahmins and Gujarati baniyas. Few others were also amongst to win mining leases. In perpetuity means that the rights of the lease to exploit ore rests with the family to whom it was awarded. 891 mining leases were awarded across the state of Goa covering nearly 68,000 hectares of land. This group of people were mainly responsible for retaining of colonial rule in Goa even though British had left India in 1947 after transferring power to brahamins. Brahminical and colonial self interest merged to determine the prolonging of Portuguese rule in Goa so that mining industry remains in private hands. In independent India mining was nationalized.

6.     Liberation of Goa
1961 liberation of Goa was an outcome of tacit understanding between Indian Brahmin Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Goa’s brahminical colonial formation that ensured that there are no structural alterations in case of Goa after liberation. If Nehru had not to accede to their demand then Portuguese would have gone ahead with implementing their threat of NATO strikes on Goa.

7.     Opinion Poll
Goa’s opinion poll in January 1967 was fought to decide whether to merge Goa into Maharastra or to retain it as a separate state. Goa’s Bhahujan Samaj was in favour of merger with Maharastra. Brahmin colluded with Roman Catholic Church to vote for retaining Goa as a separate identity. Simultaneously Brahmins worked had through Shenoy Goenbab to provide Goa with separate konkni linguistic identity. Merger aspirants were narrowly defeated in the opinion poll mainly because of Church and priest campaigning against merger that led to catholics voting en mass against merger. 

8.     1972 land survey
1972 land survey in Goa installed Brahmins as landlords in ‘liberated’ Goa. Tenancy Acts and Mundkar Acts of MGP government played spoiled sport for few decades for Brahmins in Goa. MGP government was infiltrated by Brahmin legislators – Apa Kamat and Auchut Usgaonkar. The records generated during this survey of 1972 empowered Brahmins to sell land.

9.     Konkni agitation of 1986
Konkni agitation of 1986 was fought again with the bhahujan samaj demanding Marathi and Brahmins wanting Konkni. Since Brahmins were and still are - a tiny minority in Goa they again got Roman catholic church as its fighting force and won the konkni battle successfully. Neither Florian Vaz nor anyone else of remaining 12 shot dead during konkni agitations were Brahmins. Konkni that catholic speak Roman lipi never got official recognition in 1986. So here brahminical policy successfully done away with Marathi – the language of Bhahujans and also Roman Konkani – the language that church and catholics used and continue to use till date. Roman Catholic and bhahujan samaj has been historically fighting with each other but neither of them ever won in genuine sense. Victory always has been of Brahmins through cunning means. In this case it is a Devnagri konkni that got the status as official language of Goa.

10.                         Statehood to Goa in 1987
Granting of Statehood on 30th May 1987 by the grandson of Prime Minister Pandit Nehru – Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi - has been full-fledged stamp of authority on the rule of brahminical hold over Goa. Prior to this Goa was Union Territory from 1961 till 1987. The first cabinet decision on very next day of statehood was declaration of master plan for Goa that declared populating of Goa’s coast with five star hotels. Due to public protests particularly from students that time that this plan was forced to be scrapped. This was re-invented via Regional plan 2011only to be rejected yet again. Brahminical State devised its tourism plan in collusion with World tourism organization based in Madrid, Spain. It has no iota of concerns for the local people of Goa – the Mulnivasis. In fact it has tried its level best to do away with these communities. It is only through the protests that Mulnivasi people of Goa have survived.

11.                          Brahamanical hold over history and education
There is a complete brahmanical hold over history and education in India. This is the reason history is always bias and even manufactured myth i.e. Parshuram arrow and reclamation of Goa from Arabian Sea. History is written to glorify Brahmins and even faked when Brahmins lacked courage to pass through test of fire i.e. narration on Jhanshi ki Rani Laxmibai Joshi. In Goa it is Brahmin (Bhaskar Nayak) who is a director of higher education. Currently brahmanical system has ensured that most unfit person be put in charge of education ministry (Babush Monsorrate) so that he could be maneuvered successfully to implement brahaminical and capitalist policies.

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