Implementation of laws to prohibit and punish land grabbing, appointment of special courts for speedy trials, digitization of entire records of records department, and use of blockchain technology – these are some of the recommendations made by the commission of inquiry set up by the Goa government. Investigation of land encroachment cases.
In its report, a commission of inquiry headed by former Bombay High Court judge VK Jadhav (retd.) recommended legislation to prohibit and punish land grabbing in Goa, similar to those implemented by states like Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Gujarat.
“There is a need to ensure speedy resolution of effective laws including the formation of special courts to prohibit land grabbing activities that adversely affect public order,” he said.
The commission submitted its report to the government on November 1, 2023 and it was accepted by the cabinet last January. Significantly, last month, the Department of Law and Judiciary wrote to the Registrar General of the Bombay High Court that the Goa government has approved a proposal to set up a special court to try cases investigated by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on land grabbing. . In the letter, the government requested that “the proposal to appoint a special court to try the cases investigated by the SIT be placed before the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court for his concurrence, enabling the State Government to issue the necessary notification”.
In the report, the commission said that a comprehensive investigation is needed into the applicability of the doctrine of unclaimed property and the doctrine of escheat in Goa.
“During the enquiry, the Commission has come to know that the accused persons/offenders/conspirators initially identified vacant and unclaimed properties. Therefore, by applying the above principle, the said abandoned property can be taken care of to prevent fraud and forgery. Using the principle of escheat to acquire the intestate property by the Govt. Applying both the above principles, the property can be returned to the original owner subject to the prescribed limitation period,” it said.
In August, the government passed the Goa Escheats, Extortion and Bona Vacantia Bill 2024, which provides for taking over the property of people who die without legal heirs or intestate estates. Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant had said that the bill was introduced based on the recommendations of the commission’s report.
The commission said that digitization of all the records of the records department should be given priority to reduce the interaction of the people with the employees and to reduce corruption.
“There is a need to hire qualified staff in the Archives Department who have or know the Portuguese language on a priority basis. The records department must maintain a records handler register that includes the name of the personnel handling the records and a description of the date, time and purpose of the handling.
Meanwhile, citing the commission’s observations of how some people “worked cleverly behind the scenes using others as pawns” in the alleged land-grabbing scam, Goa Forward Party chief Vijay Sardesai said the government was shielding and shielding the real criminals.
“This scam is not just about land theft. It’s about stealing Goa from Goa itself,” he said The Indian Express. Sardesai said that it is the duty of the government to protect the rights and property of Goans and demanded immediate action to identify the names and persons involved in the findings of the commission.
Goa State Congress Committee president Amit Patkar called the SIT an “eyewash”.
He said, “The fact that Raja-Pin succeeded in selling the title deeds and property with the connivance of the records department staff and Mamlatdar shows the extent of corruption,” he said.
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