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FIR filed over video that blamed Pramod Sawant for decline in Goa’s forest cover
The FIR was registered based on a complaint lodged by deputy conservator of forests in the state forest department Aditya Madanpotra
Panaji: The Goa Police on Tuesday registered a first information report (FIR) against activist Gaurav Bakshi for a video that held Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant responsible for the decline in the state’s forest cover.
The FIR was registered based on a complaint lodged by deputy conservator of forests in the state forest department Aditya Madanpotra. He complained that “the allegations made in the post are baseless and misleading, as orders of the Supreme Court and other courts are scrupulously followed and complied with by the State government.”
“The issue regarding finalisation of private forests in Goa is dealt with strictly as per the norms/guidelines fixed by the State government and the directions of the various judicial forums in this regard,” Madanpotra added.
In the video uploaded on Instagram and Facebook, Bakshi spoke about how areas that had been provisionally and finally marked as private forests were “denotified by the state government during the time the Forest portfolio was held by the chief minister.”
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The police have registered a case against Bakshi under sections 196(1) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 352(1) (inciting public mischief) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Bakshi, who was previously arrested for allegedly blocking a vehicle of Goa’s fisheries minister Nilkanth Halarnkar—which was subsequently quashed by the court—said, “This is not the first time Sawant has done so in his capacity as home minister. In the past, his vindictive and malicious actions against me were demolished by the courts and, as per the High Court, would even amount to an abuse of the process of the court. I have approached the magistrate for an anticipatory bail.”
