Panaji: Goa Excise Commissioner Narayan M. Gad will on Friday 29th July at 11 am at the Goa Raj Kar Bhavan at Althinho behind the office of the Chief Electoral Officer start hearing the complaint filed by Adv. Aires Rodrigues over the illegally obtained liquor licence by an upmarket ‘Silly Souls Café and Barat Bhouta Vaddo in Assagao Village.
Congress party and Rodrigues had claimed that the restaurant was being run by Union Minister Smriti Irani’s daughter.
The Excise Commissioner on 21st July issued a show cause notice on a complaint filed by Adv. Rodrigues.
Adv. Rodrigues in his complaint pointed out that though the Excise rules in Goa allow a Bar licence to be issued only to an existing restaurant, that the Excise department on 18th February 2021 in rank violation of law issued a licence for retail sale of Foreign liquor for consumption on the premises along with another licence for retail sale of Indian Made Foreign liquor and Country liquor to the outlet without the required Restaurant licence being in place.
Adv. Rodrigues also pointed out that the licence issued in the name of Anthony Dgama was issued despite the Aadhaar card submitted by him showing that he was a resident of Mumbai and that the Aadhaar card was issued only on 30th December 2020 days before the Excise licence application was filed.
Adv. Rodrigues in his complaint further submitted that the Excise licence was issued for this sprawling 1200 sq. mts plush premises.
Adv. Rodrigues in his complaint also drew the attention of the Excise Commissioner that last month on 29th June the local Excise office at Mapusa in clear contravention of law renewed that Excise licence in the name of Anthony Dgama despite him having passed away last year on 17th May 2021 as per the death certificate issued by the Municipal Corporation of Mumbai which was obtained by Adv. Aires Rodrigues.
In a connected development Adv. Rodrigues yesterday pointed out to the Director of Panchayats that the construction of that Restaurant was also illegal and has sought directions to the Mapusa Block Development Officer to investigate the matter.
Meanwhile, Adv. Aires Rodrigues today met the Chief Town Planner Rajesh Naik and submitted a complaint seeking his immediate intervention of the Town & Country Planning department (TCP) into the illegal change of land use and filling of low lying tenanted field in rank contravention of law to erect the now controversial restaurant.
