Announcing an award of Rs 1 lakh to anyone who gives information about the people who were systematically desecrating places of worship in the state, particularly in South Goa, the Chief Minister, Mr Digambar Kamat declared that a special investigation team headed by Superintendent of Police (Crime), Mr Mangaldas Dessai, has been formed to investigate the cases and book those responsible for the same.
The Chief Minister made this announcement while addressing a press conference here on Saturday evening in presence of the Home Minister, Mr Ravi Naik, the Chief Secretary, Mr J P Singh, the Director General of Police, Mr B S Brar, and Inspector General of Police, Mr Kishen Kumar. He said that the information could be passed on directly to the SP (Crime), the DGP or the IGP and that the name of the informant would be kept secret.
The SIT would probe all the cases related to attacks on places of worship especially in South Goa, including those that took place in the past, informed the Chief Minister. He went on to add that the state police would take help of other agencies (including central agencies) to go to the depth of the attacks and bring those responsible for attacks to book.
Mr Kamat said the attacks were being carried out on temples, especially those located at isolated places (as was the case of temples in Quepem taluka and other places), to hurt the sentiments of Hindus and with an aim of creating communal disharmony and defaming the government and to prove that it was anti-Hindu. He said that there were over 500 temples in South Goa (most of which were located at isolated places) and that the police protection could not be given to all of them.
He said that systematic attempts were being made by vested interests to create rift among different communities so as to gain mileage out of these incidents. He called upon people not to fall prey to the evil designs of rumourmongers and communal elements. He said that the police have cracked the case relating to desecration of temple in Cuncolim with the arrest of a man from Gulbarga, who has confessed to the crime.
Referring to the bandh call on Monday given by some Hindu associations to protest desecration of temples, the Chief Minister said that the call was against the Supreme Court judgement and that government would provide full security to those traders and transport operators who want to carry out their daily activity, even as the government has directed the police to examine the apex court judgement and take steps to enforce the rule of law. The Chief Minister also said that the government would initiate cases against those who made inflammatory statements (declaring that Hindus should boycott the shops that remain open on the bandh day).
Ruling out differences within the government as regards to cases against the son of the Education Minister, Mr Atanasio Monserrate, the Chief Minister said that the government was moving in the right direction and that the law would take its own course. The Home Minister, while replying to a question that the police were being pressurised to go slow on the cases against the Education Ministers son, said that there was no pressure whatsoever on the police and said that the police were doing their job.
-Navhind Times
