from Sanjay Borkar
for Daijiworld Media Network – Margao (SM)

Margao, Oct 15: Mathany Saldanha, former minister of tourism and general secretary of UGDP has requested the election commissioner to make the parliamentary elections fair, by making sure that all police officers in the Mormugao parliamentary constituency are transferred out of the constituency.

Saldanha further said that this is mainly because in most of the cases, the police officers are appointed not on the bases of their capacity to do their duty but to fulfill the whims and fancies of the ruling party MLAs or their agents.

Saldanha further alleged that during previous assembly elections in Cortalim constituency, the police were following the commands of the candidate belonging to the ruling party to the extent of arresting the election agent of the rival candidate.

He also said that no actions were taken against complaints of distribution of goodies during the entire campaign and even on the election day. To make the issue worse, on the night before the election day, not a single policeman was seen on the roads or anywhere in the constituency, thus allowing distribution of money and liquor to lure voters.

Similarly Saldanha said that EPIC cards were also issued without verification of identity and domicile and without even the ration cards. To obtain the EPIC cards the migrant labourers were brought by the agent of the ruling party in connivance with the officers. All were issued cards without thorough verification and necessary documents, he added.

Many complaints were also registered with the chief electoral officer at Altinho, Panjim, Goa and at the election commissioner’s office at Delhi for the deletion of names of genuine residents and voters. But very conveniently, the names of non-residents were included in the electoral rolls, he informed.

“To avoid these unfair, unjust and illegal practices in the current parliamentary by-election in the Mormugao parliamentary constituency, I call upon the election commissioner to transfer the police officers out of Mormugao parliamentary constituency at least during the period of election,” he said.