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NEW BOOK: 'PATRIOTISM IN ACTION: Goans in Indias Defence Services'
With Foreword by Gen SF Rodrigues, PVSM, VSM, ADC (retd)
former Chief of Indian Army Staff
and Governor, Punjab & Administrator, Chandigarh UT
Copies now available at:
GOA: Literati (2277740), Other India (2263306), Broadway (6647038),
Mandovi (2427904), Noel DSilva & Associates (9823120454 / 9096781714),
Confidant / Golden Heart Emp (2732450), David & Co (2730326), Vardaan
(9527463684)
SERV / RETD Def Offrs in Goa: O/o Sainik Co-op Hse Bldg Sty, Def Col, Porvorim
(2417288)
MUMBAI: David & Co (22019010)
PUNE: Manneys (26131683), Popular (25678327)
BENGALURU: Narayan (22865800)
DELHI: Ritana (24617278)
ONLINE (worldwide delivery): http://www.ritanabooks.com,
http://goa1556.goa-india.org
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The official file pertaining to the formation of the Goa Law Commission
headed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap has gone missing. This has been revealed in
information furnished to me by the Law department under the Right to
Information Act.
The Law department has informed me that it came to the notice of the
department that the file was not traceable on the 20th October 2010, on the
day I had sought information under RTI about the Law Commission. The Law
department has also informed that all efforts to locate and trace the file
were futile. The Law department has now issued a circular to heads of all
departments to see whether the file had inadvertently been received by their
department with a request to return the same at the earliest. An enquiry
needs to be initiated to investigate how this file has gone missing from the
Secretariat despite there being a computerized File Management system in
place.
The very constitution of the Law Commission against all established norms
and practice and headed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap, with rank and status of a
cabinet minister is questionable. All Law Commissions in the country are
headed by retired Supreme Court or High Court Judges with senior legal
luminaries as members.
For the first time a Law Commission is headed by an active politician who is
also a spokesman of the Congress party as well as Chairman of the Mapusa
Urban Cooperative Bank of Goa while other members of the Commission are also
not Senior Advocates.
One wonders where this is the Goa Law Commission or the Congress Law
Commission. Being a former Law Minister is not a qualification or criteria
for heading the State Law Commission. It is also shocking that a total
expenditure of a whopping
Rs 42, 03, 029 was incurred by the Goa Government on the Law Commission
from April 2009 to Nov 2010.
The Law commission headed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap with Margao based advocates
Mr. Cleofato Coutinho and Mr. Mario Pinto Almeida was constituted by an
order dated 20th January 2009 for a period of one year. At the request of
Mr. Ramakant Khalap for an extension to complete the work, the term of the
Commission was extended for a further period of two years by a by an order
dated 5th April 2010.
How can a very active politician who is also Chairman of a bank ever find
time to do justice to the Law commission.
Aires Rodrigues
T1 - B30, Ribandar Retreat
Ribandar - Goa - 403006
Mobile: 9822684372
