NCP: BJP leaders involved in Serula comunidade scam (Herald)

December 14, 2013 PANJIM: The Nationalist Congress Party on Friday alleged involvement of BJP leaders and office bearers in the Serula comunidade land allotment scam which it opined could run over Rs 35,000crore. It also reiterated its demand for setting up of commission headed by retired High Court Judge to investigate land allotments by the Serula comunidade for the last 25 years. “I won’t be surprised if tomorrow investigation reveals the names of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s kith and kin,” NCP spokesman told media persons. NCP alleged that the commission needs to be set up especially to check the 'fraudulent' land allotment to state tourism minister Dilip Parulekar. “He (Parulekar) is not the only BJP leader involved in the scam. Several former and present BJP MLAs and office bearers have purchased land for residential purposes and converted the same for commercial use,” he alleged. NCP, last week had slammed the cabinet decision to appoint officers on special duty (OSD) to comunidades as an attempt by the government ‘to take over and saffronize’ the village communities. Meanwhile, NCP has condemned BJP’s nationwide ‘unity run’ held to create awareness and spread information on Sardar Vallabhai Patel's monument 'Statue of Unity' stating that ‘the move is basically to raise funds for the forthcoming Parliamentary elections’. The NCP spokesman questioned as to why Narendra Modi, who has been Gujarat Chief Minister for past 10 years, never thought of spreading awareness about Patel all these years, alleging that this move is nothing but an attempt to fool people of Goa and to raise funds for Lok sabha polls in the name of Sardar Patel. http://www.heraldgoa.in/News/Local%20News/NCP-BJP-leaders-involved-in-Serula-comunidade-scam/83163.html

OSDs for comunidades faces more opposition (Herald)

December 14, 2013 MARGAO: Saying that Communidades are private community bodies, which are not constituted under any government, the Goans for Goa has termed as “mala fide” the Cabinet decision to appoint Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to oversee and monitor the affairs of the Communidades. “The intention to appoint an OSD is not just an irregularity, but is done with malafide intention to interfere in the functioning of the sovereign bodies”, asserted FGF President Kennedy Afonso. He said there is absolutely no provision it the Code of Communidades for the appointment of an OSD. “In case of any irregularities, it is the administrator who has the authority to improvise and impose fines. Even the Collector has no authority to interfere in the workings of the Communidades”, he said, while urging the Communidades to be vigilant and has assured all support to the Communidades to put an united and joint effort, to bring the matter to its logical conclusion. Meanwhile, the GFG has urged the gram sabhas not to approve the Panchayat budget if the village development plan is not ready, as the constitution is very clear, that in the absence of a village plan, the budget cannot be approved. http://www.heraldgoa.in/News/Local%20News/OSDs-for-comunidades-faces-more-opposition/83189.html

Comunidades in crisis (Edit-Herald)

09/12/2013 The in-principle Cabinet approval for amending the Code of Comunidades for appointing an officer on special duty to oversee and monitor the affairs of the Comunidades under the excuse of fraudulent functioning of the Serula Comunidade, is completely in breach of the contract of guardianship under Art 5 of the Code of Comunidades and Part III of the Preamble. It is in fact an admission of government failure in fulfilling its guardianship and contractual obligations. The comunidades are clearly private communitarian bodies –and their lands are perfect property—which are not constituted under any government legislation such as panchayats or municipalities and hence are not subjects of the government. Therefore legal experts view the intention to appoint an OSD as a complete irregularity with malafide intentions to interfere in the functioning of the sovereign bodies of first peoples that pre-date the State. The comunidades are merely under the administrative tutelage of the State according to the rules contained in the code and the state has to act as a guardian and work according to the practices and usages of the comunidades and not introduce laws which are alien to it. Firstly, all appointment to comunidades are to be made by following the qualifications and in a manner prescribed by the code, by the Governor—not the government. However, various governments have made illegal appointments through the collector who has no authority to interfere in comunidade functioning, legal experts contend. In case of any irregularities –financial or otherwise, it is the administrator who has to impose fines, do recovery or evict illegal occupants of comunidades property under Art 19 of the Code. There is no provision in the Code of Comunidades for appointment of an OSD. The accounts of the comunidades are to be audited by the administrative tribunal annually. Under the contractual obligations the government has to appoint staff to the AT, to the administrator of comunidades for conducting audit and staff to assist the escrivao. No such audits in the comunidades have been carried out for nearly 35 years, because the government failed to appoint auditors. ­Most of the previous Revenue Ministers and some MLAs have pushed for regularisation of illegal settlements of migrants on comunidade land, and comunidade members themselves have appropriated lands through devious means, trumping selfish personal interests over the interest of the community which was responsible for cultivating these lands, managing the village agrarian economy and wellbeing of the Goan heritage. All the powers purported to be given to the OSD rest with the administrator and s/he is totally empowered to inquire and lodge complaints, and even take the help of the police. Under no circumstances can the OSD take over the powers of the managing committee and if the committee indulges in irregularities, the administrator can take whatever actions is needed. It is true that administrators too have been used by politicians to get comunidade land for themselves and their kin. Therefore the irregularities argument cannot be used to justify government violation of contractual obligations which will finish the comunidades. The much maligned Portuguese administration had in its Legislative Diploma no 2070 dated 15th April 1961, admitted the various modifications and alterations had given birth to chaos in the comunidades. It had also admitted that the solutions adopted, meant the application of new principles which were entirely different, if not contrary to the spirit of the Code of 1933. The question is will this government have the grace to restrict itself to guardianship and fulfill its contractual obligations or will it finish the sacred institutions that have been Goa’s proud heritage. http://heraldgoa.in/newscategory/Edit/15