PANAJI: The government on Saturday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the May 12 incident of lathi charge on the fishermen, who were protesting against the use of LED lights by some fishermen for fishing, especially in the deep sea.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar came out with this announcement following intense criticism from almost all the major opposition parties as well as various quarters of the civil society. Parsekar met a delegation of the fishermen Saturday afternoon before making this announcement.
The inquiry will further probe the role of Superintendent of Police (Crime Branch) Karthik Kashyap – who is also holding the additional charge for North Goa – into this incident. The inquiry report will be submitted to the Chief Minister, who also holds the Home portfolio, in a month’s time.
The Chief Minister said that a notification banning LED fishing in the state as issued by the department of fisheries, will not be implemented in retrospective effect, and hence no action would be taken on owners of fishing trawlers, which had already gone for fishing in deep sea before the issuance of the notification, if they are found to carry LED lights.
“However, henceforth the government will control LED fishing in Goa,” he maintained, observing that the other states also need to ban such fishing.
It may be recalled that the Chief Minister, citing a preliminary police report, had earlier maintained that the police had not resorted to the lathi charge on the protesting fishermen, but had undertaken ‘crowd dispersal exercise.’ He had also stated that the canoes of the fishermen blocking the channel of Mandovi river along the capital city, which were confiscated by the police, would be released.
Parsekar had further pointed out, “It is clear that such things (allegations of lathi charge) are deliberately cooked up, may be due to the political ambitions of a leader, who takes his team for granted.”
It may also be recalled that Agnelo Rodrigues, the president of Goenchea Ramponkarancho Ekvott, had stated that the acting North Goa SP had ordered lathi charge without receiving any order from the district magistrate.
