Opp demand magisterial probe, but CM denies there was lathicharge
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 13 May 2016 23:05 ISTChief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar has dared the Goan media and even the audio-visual telecast, claiming that no lathicharge took place yesterday to crush the agitation of Goa’s traditional fishermen.
On the other hand, almost all the major opposition parties have demanded magisterial inquiry into the lathicharge.
“Where was the lathicharge? The protestors gheraoed the fisheries director and the police dispersed the crowd”, Parsekar told the media persons today morning.
Ramponkar, who were released late night, marched from Velsao to Margao to the residence of Fisheries Minister Avertano Furtado.
The minister was quick enough to take them to the CM in Panaji, seeking magisterial inquiry into the incident of lathicharge on men and women.
“The CM has told us he would enquire into it”, Furtado said.
It was not clear whether it was enquiry or inquiry; forget the magisterial probe.
It was however clearly visible on the local TV channels how police took orders from North Goa SP Kartik Kashyap and set out on the road charging their lathis and shouting a war cry: “Lathichassssrge.”
As some of the protesters ran away, the police pulled them out even from shops and pushed them in police buses.
The policemen were also seen jumping on the canoes and beating up the fishermen with lathis.
“The SP ordered lathicharge without taking any order from the Collector. I was standing next to the Collector and he was telling the police not to resort to such action”, Agnelo Rodrigues, president of Goenchea Ramponkarancho Ekvott told goanews.com.
Following the incident, almost all the opposition parties condemned the incident and demanded magisterial inquiry.
It included the Congress, Goa Forward, Nationalist Congress Part and the Aam Aadmi Part.
AAP in fact dedicated today’s two-wheeler rally led by film star Gul Panag to the Ramponkar.