Panaji, Mar 21 : Alleging that auctioning of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) land is another scam by BJP government, after it gave ‘interest’ to SEZ developers by borrowing loan, Goa Congress President Girish Chodankar on Sunday demanded Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) enquiry into whole ‘scam episode’ by saffron leaders.
Addressing a press conference at Congress state headquarters in the city, he alleged that the SEZ developers after losing in the High Court had approached the Supreme Court and while the Apex court was about to pass order, Parrikar Government manipulated and done setting to pay, Rs. 256.56 Cr including interest of 133 Cr illegally to SEZ promoters.
“I challenge the government to show any court order to show direction to the government to pay interest,” he said.
He alleged that the manipulation before the Supreme Court order by the then BJP Government headed by Manohar Parrikar along with ‘legal experts’ of illegally paying a whopping Rs 133 crore to the SEZ promoters was a clear case of corruption and malpractice.
”Now this corrupt legacy of Parrikar is carried forward by Dr. Pramod Sawant Government with a decision to auction the same land. The BJP Government is now trying to auction SEZ land to promote its agenda to Sell Goa to Crony Capitalist friends of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Mr Chodankar alleged.
He said Industries minister Vishwajit Rane should come clean on the issue and explain within seven days about his sources of income of assets he acquired after this deal was struck, failing which FIR should be registered against him.
The Congress leader also demanded that the FIR should be lodged against Chairman of Goa Industries Development Council (GIDC) Glenn Souza Ticlo and then Managing Director for the scams.
Stating that the Congress Government had scrapped the three SEZ’s bowing before People’s Voice,” he said, “Our then Government headed by Digambar Kamat took a bold decision to Save the Land for posterity. We had warned the earlier Government headed by Late Manohar Parrikar and also the present government headed by Dr Pramod Sawant over this issue. We had also written to CAG on this scam. Now they are indulging Scam within a scam.”
He claimed that the cabinet and GIDC Board resolution to pay around 256.56 crore, including Rs 133 crore of interest to the SEZ promoters, was illegal as GSIDC rules does not permit to pay interest. ”We had objected on 18th June 2018 to this decision, however the corrupt BJP government sidelined it to loot people of Goa and taxpayers Putting further burden on state’s finance,” Mr Chodankar said.
”GIDC is paying monthly installments of around Rs 4 crore to repay the Rs 200 crore short-term loan taken from the Oriental Bank to pay SEZ developers. Interest on this loan is calculated around Rs 1.1 crore per month. This is an additional burden on our exchequer pushed by BJP,” the Congress leader said.
“GIDC has decided to auction around five lakh square meter of industrial land at Verna through e-auction to clear loans and to do this they want to appoint consultants. This is corruption within a corruption. Instead of auctioning this land, the Government must make small plots and provide it to Goan young entrepreneurs to set up their business. This will also generate employment, which the government has failed to provide. The BJP Government will not do this to push their Mission Commission,” Mr Chodankar claimed.(UNI)