Team Goemkarponn
FATORDA: In a sharp rebuke to the state government, Goa Forward Party (GFP) President and Fatorda MLA Vijai Sardesai on Friday said Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant’s recent admission of irregularities in the Kala Academy renovation project vindicates his long-standing claims of corruption and procedural lapses.
Sardesai, who was the first to publicly raise alarm over the controversial project, said the CM’s statement confirmed that the renovation was marred by serious violations. “I was the first to expose the Kala Academy scam,” Sardesai said. “Back then, the concerned minister tried to justify it by claiming even the Taj Mahal was built without a tender. I had debunked what I called the minister’s ‘Shah Jahan Model’ — highlighting illegalities both in the Assembly and on public platforms.”
With the Chief Minister now announcing that the contractor will be terminated, blacklisted, and made to redo the originally tendered work at no additional cost, Sardesai said the issue goes beyond a single contractor. He questioned the selection process for such a specialised cultural restoration and demanded to know which officers approved and supervised the work.
“There is no word called ‘accountability’ in this government’s dictionary,” he charged. “Crores of rupees in taxpayers’ money have been wasted. Who will be held responsible? What action will be taken against the officers who enabled this scam?”
According to the CM, any extra work done without a valid tender will now undergo a fresh bidding process. However, Sardesai remained skeptical, questioning the credibility of the corrective measures and asking what guarantees were in place to prevent similar failures in future projects.
“This is not just about fixing the work,” he said. “It’s about fixing a broken system. The public deserves transparency, accountability, and a full explanation. The CM must respond to these questions urgently.”
The GFP has called for a thorough investigation into the Kala Academy project, demanding that those responsible be held accountable and that safeguards be put in place to prevent future misuse of public funds.
