log on to thegoan.net @thegoanonline SUNDAY DECEMBER 22, 2024 MOVIES »PAGE 16 90s NOSTALGIA RETURNS Elli AvrRam opens up about her Marathi debut, upcoming song KRITI EXPRESSES GRATITUDE YET TO GET YOUR COPY? BUY IT ON Facebook.com/thegoan The Goan E-Paper (Playstore) 16 pages PRICE ` 10 PANAJI MARGAO GOA VOLUME IX, NO. 185 Instagram.com/thegoanonline RNI: GOAENG/2015/65729 PLAY & PAUSE »PAGE 13 LIVE SMART »PAGE 14 The legendary Mrs Funnybones! Let go! NISHA’S MUMBAI: EVENING WITH LEGENDS SPORTS »PAGE 8 India eves aim to continue dominance against Windies in ODIs JUGAAD: Pest-free home hacks Seven habits to let go to lead a happy life as you grow older Twinkle Khanna talks about her journey as a writer and more Man City hits new low as Rogers inspires Villa to win LAND GRABBING: PROBE REPORT POINTED TO A CRIMINAL NEXUS HAD EXPRESSED WORRY OVER DEPARTMENTAL NEGLIGENCE THE GOAN I NETWORK SCAN QR CODE TO ORDER >> SEE PG 2 SOUND OF CONFLICT: GOA’S NOISE DILEMMA MAGAZINE MAGAZ 9 Can’t see Relics or hear prayers, but fervour to Goencho Saib just as strong Kisan Diwas: Honouring the backbone of our nation Discover the perfect blend of taste and tunes ‘Down The Road’ 11 Limiting p’yat powers: A legal framework under Goa Panchayat Raj Act IN SHORT >> Poll rules tweaked, limit public access to video records NEW DELHI: The government has tweaked an election rule to prevent public inspection of certain electronic documents such as CCTV camera and webcasting footage as well as video recordings of candidates.  >> See pg 6 Railway demarcation exercise completed VASCO: The Dept of Survey & Land Records has completed demarcation process at Pale village in Velsao. >> See pg 5 PANAJI As pressure builds to re-arrest fugitive Suleman Siddique Khan, whose role as the mastermind behind multiple land-grabbing operations has been established in a high-level Commission of Inquiry, the findings exposed a complex web of criminal activities including connivance of certain government officials and the forging of Portuguese calligraphy. The one-man inquiry led by Justice V K Jadhav (retd) painted a concerning picture of departmental negligence that allowed accused persons including Suleman to manipulate the system. The 622-page report, accepted by the Cabinet in January 2024 and a copy of which is in possession of The Goan, examined how forged documents were used to dispossess original owners and commit THE ART OF DECEPTION „„Commission observed that accused systematically targeted ‘innocent’ buyers, sold properties for crores of rupees „„Forged documents to dispossess original owners „„Accused targeted properties that were abandoned by original owners „„Directorate of Settlement & Land Records flagged disturbing trend of illegal mutations „„Accused operated in collusion with govt personnel and some staff from Archives and other depts „„Forged deeds included preparing Portuguese calligraphy documents, complete with fake notarial deeds of sale registered during Portuguese era fraud amounting to crores. Mohammad Suhail, also identified as a major player in the illegal land dealings, along with his accomplices prepared fraudulent documents for over 93 properties. According to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) (Land Grab) findings submitted to the Commission, these accused targeted properties that were nearly abandoned by the original owners; and sold at least 15 properties to unsuspecting buyers using forged documents. “…accused Mohammad Suhail disclosed that he along with other accomplices prepared fraudulent documents of above 93 properties which were not looked after by the original owners. They have sold about 15 properties to different buyers by making Old Goa paradox: Big fair, small revenue P’YAT EARNS JUST `39L MEAGRE ONE-TIME FEE OF `6,000 CHARGED FOR 2 SQ MTR STALL FOR 45 DAYS MANUEL VAZ THE GOAN I OLD GOA With hundreds of stalls operating at the 45-day fair during the ongoing Exposition in Old Goa, one would have imagined the Old Goa panchayat raking in a huge revenue from stall fees. But believe it or not, the Se Old Goa panchayat will earn a paltry revenue of just over Rs 39 lakh as fees for 642 stalls. Information available with The Goan revealed that 632 stalls have been permitted by the panchayat on government property, for which it has received Rs 37,32,000. For these stalls on government property, a one-time fee of Rs 6,000 has been charged for stalls admeasuring 2 sq mts, while for a stall admeasuring 4 sq metres, Rs 12,000 has been charged. In other words, a vendor has been paying only Rs 133 a day for a small stall and Rs 266 for a large stall for the entire duration of the 45 days. Some of the stalls at Old Goa fair.  PLACE STALLS Panaji Asthami Fair 400 Vasco Saptah Fair 1,000 Old Goa Fair 642 Besides, the panchayat has also given permission for the installation of 10 stalls in private properties, for which it has received a fee of Rs 1,78,000. In the private properties, the fee ranges between Rs 3,000 and Rs 50,000, depending on the size. The total amount received Manuel Vaz DAYS FEES COLLECTED 14 ` 1.05 CRORE 7 ` 1.03 CRORE 45 ` 39 LAKH from the 642 stalls comes to Rs 39.1 lakh. When The Goan questioned Old Goa Sarpanch Medha Parvatkar about the paltry fee being collected from the stalls when the event is spread over 45 days, she replied that it was >Continued on P6 From stars to saints: ‘Star Man’ dazzles with life-size sculpture of St Xavier CLINTON D’SOUZA THE GOAN I PANAJI I n the scenic village of Agassaim, a man has become synonymous with festive lights and stars. Anthony Rodrigues, popularly known as the ‘Star Man of Goa,’ has been creating an awe-inspiring spectacle for over two decades. But this year, apart from the stars, he has something new and unique -- a life-size sculpture of St Francis Xavier in a boat, surrounded by a scene from his life. In conversation with The Goan, Rodrigues shares his journey, which started in his childhood. “When I was a kid, I used to A one-of-a-kind life-size sculpture of St Francis Xavier in a boat surrounded by scenes from his life displayed at Agassaim on Saturday. buy stars from the market and hang them outside my house for the festive season. But over the years, I started making them myself using bamboo,” he said. Initially, his friends encouraged him to stop buying and start making his own, which sparked his passion for star-making. This year, Rodrigues has outdone himself, with more than 900 stars adorning his home and property, the star display has grown bigger. The exact number of stars, however, remains a mystery. "We have a special challenge this year," he explained. “Whoever can guess the number of stars will win a cash prize of Rs 60,000, sponsored by a well-wisher.” Rodrigues began his work in June, creating and assembling the stars. “Last year, I had over 800 stars, and this year, it’s more than 900. But I can’t give an exact number yet,” he >Continued on P6 fraudulent and false documents…” the communication to the Commission stated. At present, Suleman faces charges in seven cases in Goa, with two cases being A-final. The Commission’s findings also implicated a network of persons including Rajkumar Maithi, Sandric Domnic Fernandes, Noore alias Nure Faizal alias Faizal Bhatkar, Sandeep Vazarkar, Suleman, and the absconding Danver D’Souza, in the commission of various land frauds. The Directorate of Settlement & Land Records flagged a disturbing trend of illegal mutations in Assagao. A key witness deposed to the Commission that upon reviewing the new survey data, the officials were alarmed to discover a steady increase in such mutations, all based on fake and forged deeds of sale. The witness’ personal investigation also revealed that the accused persons operated in collusion with government personnel and some staff from the Directorate of Archives and Archaeology, the Civil Registrar-cum-Registrar, the Notary Ex-Officio and the Mamlatdar office in Bardez. The forged deeds included preparing Portuguese calligraphy documents, complete with fake notarial deeds of sale registered during the Portuguese era and surreptitiously inserted into the records of the Department of Archives & Archaeology with the alleged help of complicit officials. The Commission corroborated this modus operandi observing the accused systematically targeted ‘innocent’ buyers, selling properties for huge consideration and earning crores of rupees illegally out of it. “The aforesaid accused persons have hatched the conspiracy to commit the crime in >Continued on P6 CM SKIPS DELHI STOPOVER, RETURNS FROM RAJASTHAN AFTER MEET WITH FM >> See pg 5 Four injured in clash over beef supply in Margao MARGAO: Peace was shattered in the commercial capital early Saturday morning when Gau Raksha members and meat traders clashed over beef/meat supply to the SGPDA market, leaving a couple of persons injured from both sides. After the fight wherein both sides reportedly used deadly weapons such as iron rods, the meat traders and members of Gau Raksha group rushed to the Fatorda police station to lodge their complaints and counter complaints. The incident occurred early Saturday when a couple of vans arrived at the SGPDA market with meat supply. Around the same time, a group of Gau Raksha members descended at the market to check whether beef was brought from Karnataka. >> See pg 3