In Candolim there is one small Vaddo touching the Hill which if you cross on foot you can easily reach to Saligao Seminary. In this Vaddo till a few years back there were hardly 30 houses and as such it was thinly populated. Major portion of the land in Araddy was deserted. Since the shooting up of land prices in Candolim as elsewhere in Goa due to the heavy influx of non-Goans, one deserted and isolated area touching the hill in Araddy was sold in pieces by the local landlords to the Migrants who are named as “Ghanttis and Lamanis”. With the blessing of the local Congress led Panchayat under the control of the local Congress leader, the new settlers were allowed to construct their houses there even without licenses or official authorization thus making these migrants to remain at the mercy of the local Congress leader. This Congress leader including local Panchayat body even allotted these migrants Election Cards without even verifying the fact that they have defranchised themselves in their States from where they came. The number of these migrants is swelled now making them a force to reckon with in physical as well as financial might. Though this place is commonly called by the locals as Ghanttianchi Araddy yet it is named as New Araddy.
A week back during the Holi Festival, there was a physical clash between a few local boys and these Ghanttis for reason still unknown properly though the local boys are blamed by some for this physical clash in which the local boys were not only outnumbered numerically but heavily assaulted by the Ghanttis. According to one source even the bones of one local boy were broken sending him to the hospital.
Immediately, the matter as informed, reached to the local Congress High Command in Candolim and the local Congress leader along with some Panch Members including the Sarpanch came to the scene to discuss this matter and as some said, to support the Ghanttis. During the course of discussion and meeting with the Ghanttis, the local Congress leader as per the available information, told the Ghanttis there that “Next time if such incident repeats, take the law into your own hands and break the bones of the locals”. And as per another version, the local Sarpanch made a statement saying “Since these Ghanttis are my voters, I have to support them”.
Is it right on the part of the local Congress leader to encourage the Ghanttis to take the law into their hands even though the local boys may be wrong? There is law enforcing authority to decide but it is wrong on the part of local Congress leader to make such a brute statement to tell the Ghanttis to break the bones of the locals. I hope Luizin Faleiro and other Goan Congress leaders and also other leaders of Goa fighting for justice will take note of this cruel statement of local Congress leader and also of the local Sarpanch.
Zilla Parishad election is very close now and people in the locality are deeply hurt by this harsh statement of the local Congress leader who is supporting one candidate in this election. Overwhelming majority of locals are annoyed at this statement and they want to defeat this candidate in the coming election. I think this will be a right course of action for the locals. The local Congress leader is relying too much on the votes of Ghanttis to destroy Goans. For this reason not only locals from Candolim but also from other villages volunteered to join hands to defeat the candidate backed by the local Congress leader who is also known as Godfather general of Ghanttis in Candolim. This election in Candolim will be fought on the basis of locals and Ghanttis led by the local Congress leader.
According to the latest information, the situation in Araddy is very fluid and these Ghanttis like “Khapris” during Portugues rule are ready to do anything to please their Godfather general. In view of this, if any untoward incident takes place for any local who is opposing the dadagiri of Ghanttis then the only person should be held responsible for this will be none other than the Godfather general of the Ghanttis who advised the Ghanttis to break the bones and limbs of the locals.
Social activists and Church leaders must not keep their silence on this topic, they must raise their voices in unison to stop the language of brutes and of Goondas.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Candolim, Goa.
Tel: 7507394349.