Goans must protest ecological and collapse of state, says former judge

Panaji: Hundreds of Goans poured into Panaji for a public meeting in response to a call for a ‘people’s movement’ by retired Allahabad HC chief justice Ferdino Rebello, who called for a statewide people’s movement to halt hill-cutting, forest diversion, and what he called “the moral and ecological collapse of the state”.Rebello, also a former judge of the Bombay HC, said govt must stop treating citizens with contempt and begin listening to them with empathy. “Have Goans ever built on our hills? Hills are not to be developed,” he said, and warned that unregulated construction, coupled with poor planning, is destroying subsoil and underground water, while basic infrastructure like sewerage, water supply and roads remain neglected.“We are not against development, but we need a tourism policy that creates dignified jobs for our youth, not one that destroys villages and identity,” he added. He also called for amendments to land laws to prevent the sale of property to non-Goans.Rebello, a former MLA of Cuncolim, rejected any political ambition, and said the movement would remain non-partisan. “This is not the movement of any political party. I do not aspire to contest any election,” he said, invoking the chief minister’s own phrase, ‘bhivpachi garaz na’, adding, “Similarly, I ask people not to worry”.

The crowd at the meeting was staggering in its diversity and scale. Senior citizens stood shoulder to shoulder with teenagers; housewives listened intently beside working professionals; nuns, activists, artists, and retirees packed the Institute Menezes Braganza in Panaji. When the hall overflowed, organisers installed an LED screen at Azad Maidan, where around 300 more people gathered to watch the proceedings live.The retired judge announced a 10-point charter aimed at systemic reform, stressing that it was “not for any govt, but for Goans”. To implement it, he called for the formation of a broad-based organisation comprising activists, NGOs, and non-office bearers of political parties. “These 10 points are non-negotiable,” he said.Among his demands were the removal of Sections 17(2) and 39(a) of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act.

“Cut off the money source and you cut corruption,” he said. “Land that cannot be converted is of no use to them.”Rebello urged Goans to rise peacefully but firmly. “It is time to rise not by pelting stones or rioting, but through satyagraha, which is a powerful weapon against oppression and injustice. Go to the root cause and remove the problem,” he said. “Women are 50% of the population. You have a right to be heard. Wake up,” he added, and urged religious leaders to speak out on morality in public life.

He also called on Goa’s intellectual class to break its silence.

“The intellectuals of Goa must not keep their mouths shut,” he said.President of the Catholic Association of Goa, Cyril Fernandes, called for special status to prevent outsiders from buying land. Activist Abhijit Prabhudesai demanded a total halt to hotels, protection of plateaus from mining and industries, and land rights for indigenous communities.