Nearly 100 members of the civil society, NGOs and Opposition parties marched to the residence of Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar at Dona Paula near here and served him a 48-hour ultimatum to “resign from his post to restore the paralysed governance in the State”.
The morcha, which included Congress MLAs, Pradesh Congress president Girish Chodankar, former Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Shiv Sena, Goa leaders, social activists,women activists was stopped by police personnel nearly 300 meters from Mr. Parrikar’s private residence.
They demanded that Mr. Parrikar make way for a full-time Chief Minister.
“We are now convinced beyond doubt that you are physically incapacitated, and, therefore, we demand that you resign as Chief Minister within 48 hours which will be graceful...” said a representation addressed to the Chief Minister, which was submitted to a Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Shashank Tripathi, who was overseeing the law and order situation outside Mr. Parrikar’s private residence.
When asked by press persons covering the morcha if Chief Minister Mr. Parrikar was aware that people have come to meet him, Mr. Tripathi said, “CM’s Office is aware that you (people in the morcha) have come to meet him.”
When asked by activists, why the Chief Minister was not coming to meet the people, Mr. Tripathi declined to comment. He only said that he had come to accept the representation.
When asked if Mr. Parrikar was incapacitated, Mr. Tripathi quipped, “I am not a doctor, so I cannot tell you".
When asked if the protesters could send in a doctor to check on him, Mr. Tripathi ignored and went away assuring to convey their representation to the District Magistrate.
“The people of Goa have been unable to meet you for the last many months and the secrecy around your sickness is unwarranted and uncalled for, more so because the State exchequer is paying for your unprecedented medical care which has by now mounted to crore of rupees,” the letter stated.
Speaking to press persons on behalf of the organisers of the rally, Advocate Aires Rodrigues said that there has been an administrative breakdown in the State for the last nine months, ever since Mr. Parrikar was detected with advanced pancreatic cancer.
“We see a general deterioration of law and order as you the Chief Minister/Home Minister is sick and there is complete paralysis and indecision in the administration in Goa,” Rodrigues said.
