Daijiworld Media Network - Panaji

Panaji, Feb 9: A Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) court has discharged 10 activists and political figures in a 2021 case related to a protest outside Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant’s official residence at Altinho. The court ruled that there was no “prima facie” evidence to frame charges against the accused.

JMFC Manisha Parkar Narvekar noted in her order, “There is nothing to prove assault was committed by the accused persons against police. Considering the facts and circumstances and the absence of prima facie evidence, no useful purpose is likely to be served by allowing a criminal prosecution to continue.”

The case, filed by Goa police, involved Hrudaynath Shirodkar, GFP general secretary Durgadas Kamat, and former Youth Congress president Varad Mardolkar, among others. The incident occurred on December 29, 2021, when approximately 500 anganwadi workers marched to meet the Chief Minister. Police alleged that the protesters, led by the 10 accused, formed an unlawful assembly and used criminal force against officers within the high-security zone.

The court, however, found the investigation largely relied on repetitive statements from police personnel and highlighted that no statements were taken from senior officials reportedly present, including the executive magistrate and the social welfare director.

The prosecution’s claims of physical violence, including an allegation that a police officer was bitten by a protester, were dismissed due to lack of evidence. The court stated, “The complaint mentions the crowd turned violent and also assaulted a police personnel with a tooth bite by one anganwadi agitator/protester, and that the protesters used criminal force, deterred, and obstructed police from performing their duty, but there is no evidence of the same.”

With these observations, the court concluded that continuing the criminal prosecution against the 10 accused would serve no meaningful purpose.