A Division Bench of Bombay High Court at Goa comprising of Justice Mahesh Sonak and Justice Mrs. Mukulika Jawalkar today ordered the Director of Panchayats to initiate proceedings against the Chimbel Panchayat Sarpanch under Section 50 (4) of the Panchayat Raj Act to remove the Sarpanch for his failure to deal with the garbage menace in its jurisdiction.
The direction came after Adv. Aires Rodrigues submitted photographs to the Court showing that despite various directions having been issued by the High Court, that garbage and construction debris continues to be strewn all over along the roads within the jurisdiction of the Chimbel and Merces Panchayat. The Court also directed the Merces Panchayat to immediately clear all the garbage lying along the roads.
Adjourning the matter to March 23rd, the Court directed the Tiswadi Deputy Collector to file an affidavit with photographs on the action taken after Adv. Rodrigues also pointed out to the Court that construction and other debris was being rampantly dumped in low laying fields along the roads of Merces and Chimbel in rank and blatant violation of law.
Adv. Aires Rodrigues in 2017 filed a contempt petition which is pending before the High Court over the inaction of the authorities to the continued dumping of debris and garbage along the roads.
Adv. Rodrigues in the contempt petition also stated that the Government on 26th June 2008 had undertaken to within three months identify and designate separate places for safe disposal of building debris without harming the environment besides also having undertaken to within three months identify and place at proper convenient locations public receptacles, depots or places for temporary deposit or collection of non-biodegradable garbage.
Adv. Rodrigues further stated that it was very anguishing that it was almost a decade and over the years the Goa Government had done nothing to comply with the solemn undertaking given to the High Court on 26th June 2008 and that the malafied conduct of the authorities amounts to rank disobedience to the orders of the Court.
Pointing out that in rank contempt of Court debris and garbage has continued to be dumped unabated along the roads with the situation getting bad to worse by the day having now reached a point of crisis, Adv. Rodrigues submitted that it was very appalling that the authorities have been turning a Nelson’s eye to this gross violation of law and acting contrary to the solemn undertaking given to the Court which amounted to showing scant respect to the Majesty of the highest Court of the State.
