UK Home Secretary father’s complaint among land grab cases under SIT probe

On Saturday, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant said, “We will investigate every case that comes to the SIT. A proper investigation will be carried out.”

Stating that an FIR against unknown persons has been registered in the case, SP, Crime Branch, Nidhin Valsan, who heads the SIT, said on Saturday, “We had received the complaint in August. Investigation is going on.”

Fernandes had earlier written to Sawant that he had learnt about the SIT and had called it an “excellent initiative” to investigate and prosecute “fraudsters who have fraudulently usurped and/or sold property belonging to non-resident Goans like me”.

According to police, there have been similar cases in which land had allegedly been transferred to a company, and when police tracked it back to sale of the properties, some were found to be illegal or fraudulent.

In his complaint — filed to the CM, state DGP Jaspal Singh and Goa NRI Commissionerate through an email — Fernandes stated that some unidentified persons, through power of attorney, had filed inventory proceedings with respect to the properties with survey numbers 253/3 and 252/3 in Assagao village owned by him and his family members, PTI reported, quoting police sources. As per the complaint, the inventory proceedings were filed before July 27 and he learnt about it in August.

When contacted, NRI Commissioner Narendra Sawaikar told The Sunday Express that a copy of the complaint was received by his office. The NRI Commissioner does not have a role to play in the matter and the state government had taken the necessary action, he added.

The Chief Minister had announced the decision to appoint a one-man commission, under former Bombay High Court judge, Justice V K Jadhav, to probe cases of land-grabbing in Goa on August 30.