Friday 16 May 2014

Remembering May 16, 2010 in Vanxim: Politicians, Activists as agents of Bamon Raj

1. On 16th May 2010 local MLA Pandurang Madkaikar along with Mahendra Gaunekar and Rudresh Chodankar came to Vanxim. They came precisely to get the support of the Vanxim people to Golf project in Vanxim for those born rich people with plenty of money to flush around. They came to convince the villagers to part with their island measuring 180 acres of land in the middle of saline Mandovi waters in Tiswadi, Goa. They were not welcomed in the village by mass of Vanxim people.
2. During the heated interactions then member of Panchayat Manuel Furtado flanged file in his hand on Maggie Silveira for expressing dissenting voice to the golf project and Starred hotel project in Vanxim. Democracy was not acceptable to the local MLA Madkaikar, and all his cronies and violence was pressed in service with Maggie as target.
3. This happened in presence of then local Sarpanch and current panch Tulsidas Kundaikar, then panch member Rama Bhomkar and all Vanxim villagers.
4.Complaints were filed before Women's cell, Bailancho saad (Sabina Martins), Goa State Commission for Women, SP North, SPDO Panjim, and Old Goa police station. No authority acted in Maggie's defense till date. Police mentioned that they are under political pressure. Sabina Martins promised decisive action against culprit Manuel Furtado but betrayed her own words through her inaction for the reasons she is yet to state publicly. Her inaction then turned "Bailancho Saad (Women's voice) as Bailancho ghat (Women's betrayal)" as Maggie Silveira puts it. She went on with this kind of behavior on two more occasions later. On 27th September 2011 when 5 buses full consisting of 300 people came to the Town and Country Planning Department. On 27/09/2011 whereby some people from Diwar, Malar, narva including migrant labourers and a handful of people from Vanxim - most of them were given Rs.1000/- each by Pandurang Madkaikar's agents. Maggie called Sabina Martins at TCP office, Panjim to confront the crowd. Sabina after making Maggie wait there for two and half hours promising to come later said she cannot face the crowds and did not turn out. Then on 12th November 2011 when
Through deceit Goa Police attached to Old Goa police station on 12th November 2011 arrested 4 women associated with Bharat Mukti Morcha and Ilha de Vanxim Association. The arrested women includes Maggie Silveira, Swati Tari, Anuradha Volvoikar and Deepika Tari. Maggie Silveira phoned Sabina Martins from police custody for support. Sabina Martins replied that it was wrong on part of Vanxim women to confront the corporate and confiscate the tripod and hence they have to stay under police custody for three days! However after TV channels started flashing news of arrests on TV that Sabina Martins called Maggie Silveira and offered to send her lawyer. Maggie politely refused the offer and had her own lawyer do the bail application process.
5. No action was taken on 16th may 2010 file throwing incident complaint because of pressure from local MLA Pandurang Madkaikar whose CM was bamon Digambar Kamat. That means police and Sabina Martins stood on the same side; inaction in the face of attack on women. They had no guts to challenge the MLA who is servant of Bamon Raj. And all of them transformed into servants of Bamon Raj in the process!
6.On the same day - 16th May 2010 Vanxim people came to Panjim after this incident and gave all the detail information to Kenzil Rodrigues of Goa 365 TV channel. Free Press is a third pillar of democracy. Kenzil promised them to telecast this story after taking bite from Old Goa police station. It was very encouraging listening to him. But alas, this was not to be so. Press was not to be free any longer. Kenzil's wings cut off, story could not go on air. At mid-night at 12 O'clock Kenzil Rodrigues called up Maggie and informed that MLA Pandurang Madkaikar has phoned him to instruct that this story of panch Manuel Furtado hitting Maggie on her head must not go for telecast. The servant of Bamon Raj MLA Madkaikar has been ordering jounalist Kenzil to censor and he obliged! It is not sure if his recent trip to Austria along with the group of ministers was reward he received for this censorship.
7. So we have the situation here; Police, women's organisation Bailancho Saad/Goa State Women's commission - Sabina Martins, Press - TV Channel Goa 365 - Kenzil Rodrigues all were compromised with Bamon Raj. What a pity! Everyone of these above characters betrayed Vanxim file attack by Manuel Furtado on Maggie Silveira. Bharat Mukti Morcha will never forget this betrayal and will continue to raise it at various public platforms .
8. Sabina Martins by no means is the only activist of Goa to betray Vanxim people. There are other well known activists as well. Two of them came to Vanxim and spoke publicly in defense of Vanxim people. Prajal Sakhadande, a history lecturer at Dempe college, Panjim is one of them. After supporting Vanxim publicly in a public meeting he called Maggie Silveira from Dabolim Airport saying that he is flying to Egypt to see ancient pyramids and now Maggie can sit across the table and compromise with Mahendra Gaunekar. It is not sure as to whether Prajal himself sat across the table and compromised with Gaunekar and got sponsorship of trip to Egypt on history tour.The date of his call will be stamped on his passport the day he flew from India to Egypt. Other wise his sudden silence on Vanxim has no explanation. The second one is Adv.Yatish Naik of Pilerne Citizens Forum. He along with Prajal came to Vanxim and spoke with elegance of a lawyer in Court room opposing Gaunekar's Golf project in Vanxim. However within fortnight he called Maggie Silveira at his Panjim office and asked for the complete file of the document and told her to sit across the table and put up her demands for a compromise before Mahendra Gaunekar. Maggie walked out of his office in protest. The above mentioned people are exposed here for they need to be held publicly accountable.

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