MARGAO: While controversy has raged over the invocation of the National Security Act (NSA) by the government, data obtained from official sources has revealed that proceedings under the act are under way in 10 cases in the court of the district magistrate since 2018.
Fifty-nine cases pertaining to proposals sent by South Goa police recommending externment of criminals are pending before the district collector since 2018.
These include 28 in 2018, 8 in 2019, 17 in 2020 and 6 in 2021 so far.
Sources said that frequent transfers of district collectors over the last three years has largely contributed to the delay in culmination of the proceedings.
South Goa SP Pankaj Kumar Singh said that the latest order only revalidates the earlier one empowering the district magistrate to proceed with the cases already booked under the act earlier and in which proceedings have been already initiated.
NSA is a preventive detention law which provides for detainment of a person to keep him/her from committing future crimes and/or from escaping future prosecution.
NSA was first invoked in the state in December 2012.
Raju alias Tiger Talwar, 27, a resident of Khareband, Margao, was the first to be booked by South Goa police under NSA on February 5, 2013.
Soon, on May 9, 2013, chief judicial magistrate (CJM), Margao, P M Shinde, had issued a ‘notice of proclamation’ under provisions contained in the NSA, declaring Basheer Shaikh and his brother Jalil Shaikh, both residents of Moti Dongor, Margao, as proclaimed offenders.
Jalil was arrested by the Margao police on June 11, 2013, after he was nabbed at Khareband.
His detention was later upheld by the national security advisory board.
The home department’s order issued on June 8, was notified in the official gazette on June 17, saying that “in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 3(3) of the National Security Act, 1980, the Goa government, having regard to the circumstances prevailing in South Goa district, is satisfied that it is necessary so to do, hereby directs that during a period of three months from the date of commencement of this order, the South Goa magistrate may also exercise the powers conferred by sub-section (2) of said Section 3, within the local limits of his jurisdiction, if he is satisfied as provided in said sub-section (2)”.
SP Singh, however, said, that the order does not pertain to emergence of any new circumstances in the district.