Goemkarponn Desk
CANACONA: Blaming Canacona police for arbitrary harassment of non-Goan vehicles entering Goa via Polem border, Karwar MLA Satish Sail has asked Goa Chief Minister to take appropriate action, on purposeful harassment of out-station and mostly Karnataka/Karwar vehicles entering Goa via Polem by stopping the vehicles at Shelli, 800 metres inside the Polem border Check Post by Goa Police.
Sail informed that it is not a right practice, to stop the vehicles again at Shellim, (where a non-functional Toll-booth which earlier operated to collect Entry Tax of outstation vehicles) by Police on the pretext of checking documents, when these vehicles while entering Goa goes through checking and documents verifications at Goa’s border Polem Checkpost, located just about 800 metres away. ‘This is certainly an unhealthy practice by Canacona Police which amounts to harassment of Karnataka and particularly Karwar vehicles plying to Goa. The vehicles coming to Goa through Karnataka go through Karnataka’s Majali Checkpost and are stopped and documents/ papers checked and verified at Goa’s Polem check post by Goa Police, Excise and RTO. What is the significance of stopping and checking these same vehicles for documents verifications at Shellim?’, asks Sail.
Sail further stated that if this trend is not stopped and Canacona police continue to harass Karnataka vehicles at Shellim, then will it be right if Karnataka police stops every Goa vehicles are checked again at Karwar?.
‘Karwar and Goa, particularly Goa’s Canacona Taluka share a very close relationship and I wish this will be allowed to continue peacefully. I hope better sense will prevail, and Goa Police and Goa Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant will initiate appropriate action and decision in this matter in stopping this arbitrary practice of Canacona Police.
‘The harassment by Canacona Police of outstation vehicles entering via Canacona into Goa should stop. This blatant and arbitrary harassment of motorists will not be tolerated’. Karwar MLA Satish Sail warned.
Interestingly, at the southernmost taluka of Canaocna, Goa has a check post at Polem and Karnataka have their checkpost at Majali and both are manned by respective State’s sleuths from Police, Excise and Transport departments, like elsewhere in the entry and exit points(checkposts of Goa). According to sources, Canacona Police is particular places a police team including women personnel at the old and abandoned Toll Booth at Shellim situated about 800 metres away from Polem Checkpost, who stops every crossing outstation vehicle including private Cars and others. The drivers alleges undue harassments by this police team, who reportedly levy fines on the pretext of not following one or the other motor vehicles rules and regulations, the sources alleged.
The drivers are reportedly alleging that Vehicles from Karnataka and particularly Karwar are deliberately targeted for this harrassment.
