Team Goemkarponn
MORJIM: A 63-year-old man, identified as Umakant Khot from Varcha Wada, Morjim, was allegedly beaten to death on Wednesday afternoon, in what relatives claim is a fallout of a land dispute linked to ongoing construction activity.
According to police, Khot had gone to inspect his tenanted property around 1:30 pm when the incident occurred. He was later found grievously injured and rushed to Tuem Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Family members have alleged that Khot was attacked by persons involved in the land-filling and construction work on his tenanted property. They claimed that Khot had earlier lodged complaints with the authorities regarding illegal activity on the site but no action was taken.
Following the incident, Mandrem Police registered a case and detained 14 construction workers for questioning. North Goa SP Rahul Gupta, DySP Salim Sheikh, and PI Virendra Naik visited the site to oversee the investigation.
Khot’s family has refused to accept his body until those responsible are arrested, maintaining that he was deliberately assaulted to silence his opposition to the construction activity.
The incident has sparked anger and shock among Morjim residents, who described it as an unprecedented killing in the coastal village. Police said the exact cause of death will be confirmed after the post-mortem examination, while investigations are ongoing to identify all those involved.
