Thursday, October 7, 2010

Goa Blog

Goa Blog

12 dissident Karnataka BJP legislators in Mumbai, may go to Goa

Posted: 07 Oct 2010 01:15 AM PDT

A group of 12 dissident legislators from Karnataka’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), including four ministers, arrived here from Kerala early Thursday and are holed up at Mumbai Airport, party sources said.

The dozen strong group of BJP legislators had planned to travel to Shirdi in Maharashtra Thursday morning, but owing to security considerations abandoned the proposal. Temporarily housed in the airport, they are likely to catch a flight to Goa later in the day and stay there for the next three days or so, the sources said.

The 29-month-old BJP government in Karnataka was Wednesday reduced to a minority in the 225-member assembly after 19 lawmakers, including 14 from the ruling party, submitted a joint letter to the governor withdrawing support and expressing lack of confidence in chief minister BS Yeddyurappa.

A senior Maharashtra BJP leader, Vinod Tawde, received the 12 legislators around 1.30 am at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport and made arrangements to make them comfortable while in transit. They arrived from Kochi.

Tawde also conveyed a personal message from senior party leader LK Advani to the group. He, however, declined to name the legislators who have come to Mumbai or the contents of Advani’s message to them.

A party spokesperson told IANS that “we have made the arrangements” as required for the group of legislators. “Beyond that, we are not involved in the issue in any manner,” he asserted.

Karnataka Governor HR Bhardwaj has directed Yeddurappa to prove that he enjoyed the confidence of the house by 5 pm on Oct 12. However, Yeddyurappa said he would do it a day earlier.

“I have requested Governor HR Bhardwaj to convene the assembly session Monday (Oct 11) at 10 am. I am confident of proving majority on the floor of the house,” an unfazed Yeddyurappa told reporters outside Raj Bhavan Wednesday.

Courtesy:TOI

CBI submits ‘confidential’ documents to JMFC, Goa

Posted: 06 Oct 2010 08:34 PM PDT

The central bureau of investigation (CBI) on Wednesday submitted confidential documents to a judicial magistrate first class (JMFC) court in Margao while opposing the application of former tourism minister Francisco “Mickky” Pacheco. Pacheco is seeking the return of his laptops and cellphones seized in the alleged immigration forgery case.

The CBI had confiscated Pacheco’s five laptops and three mobile sets last month after raiding his office and house at Betalbatim. Subsequently, Pacheco had approached the JMFC court to get the same back.

During the hearing of the case, CBI’s lawyer Joseph Vaz handed over documents to the court and urged it to keep the material “confidential”.

With regard to the confiscated property, Vaz pointed out that the items - which he claimed are an important piece of evidence - were sent to the forensic laboratory for analysis. “Hence, they cannot be released at his stage,” Joseph Vaz said.

On the other hand, Pacheco’s lawyer Srikant Naik alleged that the property was seized by the CBI to harass his client.

“In the Nadia Torrado death case, the same mobile phones and laptops were attached by the crime branch and later released as they (CID) could not find anything incriminating against Pacheco. The seizure of the same property by the CBI in this case indicates that it is done with an intent to harass Pacheco. Therefore, the same should be released” Naik said.

The court has posted the next hearing on October 8. The CBI has alleged that Pacheco entered into a criminal conspiracy and had obtained crew members’ visas from the US consulate in Mumbai, in the name of two persons and other unknown persons on the basis of forged documents.

Courtesy:TOI
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