Team Goemkarponn
FATORDA: Legal action intensified three months after large-scale protests broke out against former RSS Goa chief Subhash Velingkar for making disparaging statements about St. Francis Xavier.
Four First Information Reports (FIRs) have been chargesheeted against 154 demonstrators for the mayhem that broke out at Fatorda’s Old Market after the Subhash Velingkar’s provocative comments sparked unrest throughout the entire state.
154 protesters are facing significant accusations, including former tourism minister Francisco Pacheco, who is accused of criminal intimidation, as well as a number of activists and locals. The investigative teams will submit more chargesheets against others, who have not yet been identified.
Savio and Pratima Coutinho are among the 19 protestors named in the first formal complaint against 519. The chargesheet claims that on October 5, 2024, protesters obstructed NH 66 from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m., severely disrupting traffic and causing inconvenience to the general public.
According to the State’s suo-motu case, the demonstrators reportedly used force against police officers while they were carrying out their legal duties and assaulted Niyaz Ahmed, a motorcycle.
Clive Cardozo, 28, and Nevile Fernandes, 60, were arrested in this case and later released on bail. According to reports, the other accused are being identified and included to the additional chargesheet, even though the chargesheet filed on January 2 only names 141 of them.
Francisco Pacheco and others are charged in the fourth FIR with threatening to kill Velingkar and impeding traffic. An incident with SDPO Quepem Nilesh Rane is depicted in a widely shared video that was filed to the court. The chargesheet so far names three defendants.
According to the source, “the accused are charged under various sections of the National Highway Act of India, the Goa Children’s Act, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.”
