Court extends interim anticipatory bail to Arpora Nagoa panchayat officials till Dec 23

Panaji: A Mapusa court has extended the interim anticipatory bail given to Arpora Nagoa panchayat’s sarpanch Roshan Redkar and suspended secretary Raghuvir Bhagkar till Dec 23, the date of the next hearing.Advocate Nitin Sardesai, representing Redkar, argued before the court that there's no connection between the granting of a trade licence and the sections of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.Speaking to TOI after the hearing, he said, “I argued that the trade licence was granted in 2023, and I never imagined that there was going to be a Russian dance with someone lighting fireworks and the ceiling catching fire.

The licence was not granted with that intention,” Sardesai said. He pointed out before the court that the sarpanch was well within his rights to grant licences for running businesses within the panchayat’s jurisdiction.“Giving a licence to run a business doesn't necessarily mean our licence or the Panchayat Raj Act has an overriding effect on all other laws. It only means the panchayat doesn't have an objection if you run your business, but to run your business, you have to apply to the power dept if you require power, and PWD if you require a water connection.

Granting this licence doesn't mean everyone will automatically grant these licences.

I don't mind you doing business from my area because you are paying me a licence fee,” Sardesai stated.“We also told the court that granting a licence doesn’t automatically mean we have committed an offence of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. It was a collective decision. My permission is from 2023, and what about the police? Despite all their sleuths and intelligence, they don’t know there's a club functioning illegally. They could have stopped it... they’re not supposed to play music after 10 pm. What were the police doing? Why is the sarpanch being made a sacrificial goat?” he said.