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Dear Editor,
It is not enough that the power conferred on the Town and Country Planning
Department by the recent Ordinance amending the Act is kept in abeyance until
the next session of the Legislative Assembly. (See report of the Press
Conference held by the Minister for Town and Country Planning, in the edition
of November 12th.)
The problem created by the promulgation of the Ordinance is more
fundamental and more destructive. If the Minister can now, under public
pressure, wait until the Legislative Assembly debates the Ordinance, why, in
the first place, was an Ordinance rushed through in a devious and very
irregular manner? The Minister should have tabled the amendments to the
Town and Country Planning Act at a normal session of the Assembly. His
excuse that the Secretary, TCP was absent, is a hollow excuse. Are we to
believe that the Government of Goa grinds to a halt just because one or the
other Secretary goes on leave?
The more fundamental problem is the growing tendency on the part of
governments to legislate by Ordinances. This is an undesirable and very
dangerous practice which needs to be stopped forthwith. The issue of
Ordinances is, in effect, an intrusion by the Executive into the
Constitutional prerogative of the Legislature. The Constitution provides for
the promulgation of Ordinances only in very exceptional circumstances. The
absence of the Secretary, TCP, cannot, even in the wildest imagination of the
Governor, constitute an "exceptional circumstance."
Moreover, the Ordinance was issued to amend some sections of the Town and
Country Planning Act, 1974. The need to amend Acts, cannot be considered to
be so urgent as to justify the promulgation of an Ordinance. Why was the
Minister for Town and Country Planning in such a tearing hurry to acquire
unfettered powers to make changes in land use patterns in Goa? What are the
hidden pressures to which he succumbed? Who are the 'powerful' lobbies behind
his unconstitutional actions? The citizens of Goa demand to know from him.
Another matter of grave concern to the citizens of Goa is the manner in
which the text of the Ordinance was processed - by circulation among the
members of the Cabinet - and their signatures obtained to mislead the Governor
into believing that it had the "informed" consent of all the members of the
Cabinet. The Law Minister himself is on public record that he did not know
anything about the content of the Ordinance. Now the Deputy Chief Minister
has come out into the open expressing his unhappiness over the fact that
signatures to the Ordinance were obtained by circulation instead of the
Ordinance being discussed in a formal meeting of the Cabinet. Such devious
and insidious methods used by the TCP Minister to push through his own
personal interests is a grievous assault on the democratic functioning of the
Cabinet and of the Government.
It is not enough that the Minister now agrees to have the Ordinance
discussed by the Legislative Assembly at its next session. His actions have
proved to be erosive of the democratic process. He should be called upon to
resign from the Cabinet; and if he fails to do so, he should be summarily
dismissed by the Chief Minister - whatever the consequences. Will Chief
Minister Rane have the courage to prove to the citizens of Goa that he is
willing to take strong action, even against one of his Ministers, when the
integrity of the Government is in peril?
Yours faithfully,
Averthanus L. D'Souza,
D-13, La Marvel Colony,
Dona Paula, Goa 403 004.
Tel: 2451085.
