Fearing another attempt of arrest, Digambar seeks interim bail
GOANEWS DESK, PANAJI | 24 April 2017 20:18 IST
Goa’s former chief minister Digambar Kamat has once again started running away from a probable arrest. But this time in a multi-crore illegal mining case, not in the multi-crore Louis Berger bribery case.
After skipping one summons issued by the Special Investigative Team of Goa police, Digambar today appeared before the SIT; but only after seeking ‘interim’ anticipatory bail.
The Panaji sessions court granted him bail, ex-parte, without hearing the Goa police.
Crime Branch SP Priyanka Kashyap said they would probably now get a notice from the court to present their ‘say’ on the matter.
The next hearing is fixed for 2nd May.
But police have still not disclosed their intention to arrest Kamat.
Kamat’s counsel Adv Parag Rao however admits that the anticipatory bail was applied for, fearing arrest.
He wonders why the police suddenly reactivated the 2013 case, in which his client and former CM was once interrogated in 2014.
Along with Kamat, the SIT has also interrogated two former mines directors – Arvind Lolayekar and J B Bhingui.
The BJP-led government had once tried to arrest Kamat in the Louis Berger bribery case, but could not succeed even after arguing the case before high court and the Supreme Court, after the sessions court had granted him anticipatory bail.
Churchill Alemao, the co-accused and now the NCP MLA, was however arrested by the police.
Both of them also faced action from the Enforcement Directorate, who attached their properties in the Louis Berger bribery case, recently.
Churchill was a PWD minister in the Congress government led by Digambar Kamat when the crime of bribery had taken place in the Louis Berger case.
Kamat has been consistently insisting that he is not involved in these cases but this is purely a political vendetta by the BJP, the party which he quit in 2005 to join the Congress.
2017 Goa Assembly Election Result was announced without counting VVPAT. BJP will fall if VVPAT is counted. There can be re-election. This is possible if all honest Goans wake up and demand VVPAT counting. This right has been given by the Supreme Court to the Voters. EVM counting should be done along with VVPAT counting and then result should be announced.