BY ANNAND MADGAVKAR

At a time when it was necessary to reinforce the faith of the public in the judiciary; at a time when it was necessary to show everyone that the law is the same for every citizen, company or institute… exactly the opposite was done.

THE SUPREME Court of India, after 9-10 long years, passed a judgement after considering all the facts of the concerned case as defended by the best lawyers money can buy and came to the conclusion that Cidade de Goa was guilty of building illegal structures - as per the law - and passed a judgement that the same illegal structures had to be demolished within a certain period after passing the order.

And there it should have rested. The verdict had been declared by the highest court of our country as per laws laid down by concerned authorities. All that needed to be done was to ensure that the actions recommended were carried out. There was absolutely no reason or justification for the elected government representatives to go into overdrive to somehow prevent the Supreme Court from being carried out.
But precisely this has happened. The question on everyone’s lips is - why? Demolitions of illegal structures have been carried out before. In these cases, several poor families have been literally cast on the roads at the mercy of elements without a roof over their heads. Women and infants have been left wailing on the streets to fend for themselves, with no one to care for them, except well-meaning NGOs and kind citizens.

PREFERENTIAL TREATMENT

WHY has the multi-million rupee five star hotel been singled out for special treatment? The excuse that some employees will be rendered jobless is not good enough - the hotel is responsible for its employees, all the more because it built these illegal structures, employed people to service them to make huge profits for the hotel all these long years while the litigation was going on, knowing fully well that the courts could order the premises to be demolished - as was indeed done by the High Court in the year 2000. The profits could have been used by the hotel to compensate the employers in their hour of need - as the structures were demolished - till they got permanent employment. Instead, it looks like the employees were used to pressurise the government so this lame excuse could be used to prevent the demolition.

Nothing can change the fact that hotel management broke the law while building the structures that were slated for demolition; they used every ploy possible within the law to use the constructions to make profits for approximately 15 long years; they denied access to locals till the law forced them to make the same available and, in fact, used every trick and strategy within their command to avoid justice catching up with their illegality.

HOTEL ATTITUDE

ONE has to only use the path provided for locals to the beach from Vainguinim Valley - patrolled by intimidating security personnel and monitored by closed circuit TV - to understand the attitude of the hotel authorities towards locals that want to walk onto the beach through this path, compulsorily made available to everyone by a court order.

Soon maybe the government will also pass a law preventing locals from visiting the beach to suit the hotel. Justice did catch up with hotel owners at long last through the Supreme Court judgement. It was agonisingly long in coming, but come through it did. It restored the common man’s faith in the law, which showed that it is the same for everyone - the rich or the poor, the powerful and the meek - or is it? We all know what followed.

After releasing a statement that they would obey the law and break down the illegal structures, someone worked overtime to subvert the law. And this is what is despicable, disgusting and shameful. Ordinances were passed at super speed to help this hotel try and disobey the Supreme Court of India’s directives to demolish the illegal structures within a fast-approaching time limit. I hope the judiciary takes up this contemptuous step taken by the government and somehow restores the order passed or every state all over India will start passing ordinances in retrospect after Supreme Court judgements are passed, defeating the very purpose for which the judiciary authorities have been set up - to dispense justice equally to all.

Whose interests were the government serving? Is there any doubt whatsoever it was this hotel’s? Not in my mind or the mind of every right-thinking aam aadmi/aurat in Goa or anywhere.

At a time when it was necessary to reinforce the faith of the public in the judiciary; at a time when it was necessary to show everyone that the law is the same for very citizen, company or institute; at a time when it was necessary to show that no one is above the law; at a time when it was necessary to ensure that the law is obeyed and show that the law is respected and it serves as an example to everyone so that they do not break the law and are afraid of doing so, exactly the opposite was done.

With this step of the government, the greatest harm done is not just in protecting the few structures of one hotel - that’s the least of it - it is the message that has been passed to the whole of Goa and India: ‘Don’t’ worry if you break the law - if you have enough money you can avoid the law catching up with you for 10-15 years, and, when it does, don’t worry. Again - provided you have enough money, influence and clout - the law can be changed in retrospect to help you disobey even the Supreme Court of India after it has held you guilty and passed its sentence. And, with this clear message, another new, disgusting chapter has opened in the deterioration of our already spoilt society - lawlessness.

And that is why it is necessary to demolish illegal structures and show that the law is the same for everyone. That was the crucial purpose behind the Supreme Court verdict and it is necessary for the law to be seen to be followed.