Team Goemkarponn
PANAJI: Women leaders of the Goa Forward Party (GFP) on Monday launched a sharp attack on the State Government over what they described as a “total collapse” of law and order in Goa, alleging a rise in crimes against women and children and demanding urgent measures to restore public safety.
Addressing a press conference in Margao, GFP Women Forward leader Adv. Ashma Bi, party leader Dr. Renuka Dennis Da Silva and Margao Municipal Council (MMC) Councillor Pooja Naik expressed serious concern over recurring incidents of violence against women and minors. They referred to the recent alleged sexual assault of a four-year-old child, earlier brutal assault cases in Benaulim and incidents involving alleged misconduct by law enforcement personnel.
Adv. Ashma Bi said that the sense of safety once enjoyed by women in Goa had significantly deteriorated. She observed that women who earlier moved around freely even during late-night hours were now increasingly concerned about their safety, while parents feared allowing young children to venture even short distances from home.
Questioning the effectiveness of preventive policing, she highlighted inadequate street lighting and the absence of regular night patrolling in public spaces and market areas. She also expressed concern over alleged procedural lapses in investigations, stating that incidents involving personnel entrusted with protecting citizens further eroded public confidence in the administration and the rule of law.
Dr. Renuka Dennis Da Silva referred to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics, claiming that crime rates against women and children in Goa remained significantly high, while the conviction rate was below 10 per cent. She argued that a low conviction rate weakened the deterrent effect of the law and demanded accountability from the Home Department, along with structural reforms to improve the criminal justice system.
GFP leader and MMC Councillor Pooja Naik highlighted alleged operational shortcomings in police response, claiming that in a recent emergency, police personnel took more than 20 minutes to reach a location barely five minutes away from the police station.
She also criticised the functioning of the state’s Pink Force, alleging that designated patrol vehicles were often found parked under trees instead of actively monitoring vulnerable locations such as bus stops, markets and other public spaces.
Naik further questioned the response of statutory bodies, including the Goa State Commission for Women and the Goa State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, stating that their interventions had been inadequate.
Demanding strict accountability, she called for the immediate termination of government servants and police personnel found involved in heinous crimes, instead of merely placing them under suspension. She maintained that political connections should not protect anyone from criminal accountability.
The GFP women leaders put forward a series of demands, including the establishment of dedicated and fully functional Women’s Police Stations in every taluka of Goa, mandatory safety and streetlight audits across all municipal and panchayat areas, and strict, fast-tracked prosecution in cases involving crimes against women and children.
They urged the State Government to move beyond assurances and take concrete steps to ensure the safety and security of women and children across Goa.
