Suspended Goa police officer politically victimised.

========================================================================
Goa's phone numbers change from Nov 10, 2002. Prefix old number with a 2. New 
numbers will be seven-digit 2XXXXXX (where XXXXXX is the old number).
========================================================================

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Documented by Goa Desc Documentation Service
& circulated by Goa Civic & Consumer Action Network
(GOA CAN)<goadesc-0VrrOzQoB60xpvK4C0GaPQ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Ph:2252660
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------
Suspended Goa police officer politically victimised.
-----------------------------------------------

A senior police official, who has been suspended by the
Goa government on charges of misconduct, appears to
have become the scapegoat in a cover-up to shield a
politically connected businessman here.

Deputy superintendent of police, Shirish Thorat, was on
Monday suspended after a state home department inquiry
concluded that he had slapped a hotel owner in the course
of an investigation.

Intriguingly, no complaint has been registered with the police
against the DySP for his alleged misconduct . The inquiry
against Mr Thorat has been conducted purely on a verbal
complaint made to Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.
The complainant, according to the inquiry report,
is Mr Gaurish Lawande. Mr Lawande, who runs Hotel La Capitol,
located in the heart of Panjim, is related to the wife
of State Power Minister, Digamber Kamat (BJP).

According to police sources, Mr Thorat is being grossly victimised
by the BJP-RSS political lobby in Goa for attempting to register
a case against Mr Lawande for illegally confining a 17-year-old
from Calcutta to a room in his hotel for over a month.
Mr Thorat chanced upon the girl while conducting a search
for a murder accused suspected to have been hiding
in the hotel with a dance girl.

The deputy superintendent told the hearing that after
the hotel owner was brought to the police headquarters,
he received a phone call from the Power Minister warning him
against registering a case against Mr Lawande.

Police sources say pressure was also brought upon Mr Thorat
by higher-ups in the police department to lay off the case
because of its political implications. A frustrated Mr Thorat
is believed to have given Mr Lawande a dressing down.

So while Mr Thorat becomes possibly the first DySP
in this country to be suspended for slapping someone,
justice has eluded the 17-year-old, whose complaint
the government has conveniently trashed.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
from Devika Sequeira
Deccan Herald News Service PANAJI, 19/11/02
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

=======================================
GOA DESC RESOURCE CENTRE
Documentation + Education + Solidarity
11 Liberty Apts., Feira Alta, Mapusa, Goa 403 507
Tel: 2252660 mailto:goadesc-0VrrOzQoB60xpvK4C0GaPQ@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
                      website: www.goadesc.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Working On Issues Of Development & Democracy
=======================================

----------------------------------------------------------
What's On In Goa (WOIG): 
Nov 06 Children's book exhibn opens, Walkabout, Anjuna... (all weekdays)
Nov 06 ArtHouse, Calangute: Chaitali's acrylics on canvas till 19.11
Nov 07 Revision of electoral rolls (till Nov 30) See schedule.
Dec 01 Two day conference, Goa Agenda. IT For Society. (Ends 2.12) 
Every Sunday: Music therapy sessions at Moira, 5 pm. 278, N.Portugal

----------------------------------------------------------