NT NETWORK
Panaji
Taking the lid off Pramod Sawant-led Goa government, Governor of Meghalaya Satya Pal Malik on Monday alleged that “even though the Chief Minister of Goa is corrupt, he was retained and I was removed.”
Malik, who was appointed as the Governor of Goa in 2019, had developed sharp differences with Sawant, and within months was shifted to Meghalaya. Malik served as the Governor of Goa for merely nine months, from November 3, 2019 to August 8, 2020.
Launching a direct attack on the Chief Minister, Malik said that he stands by every statement he has made about the mishandling of COVID-19 situation in Goa by the Sawant-led Bharatiya Janata Party government.
In an interview to ‘India Today’, Malik said, “There was rampant corruption in anything and everything the Goa government did.”
“Its plan on door-to-door distribution of ration during COVID-19 was impossible,” he observed, pointing out, “It was done on the insistence of a company that paid money…. I was asked by people, including those in opposition, to investigate the matter.”
The Governor of Meghalaya further stated, “I probed the matter and informed the Prime Minister… The Prime Minister asked the same people who were behind the plan about the allegation… It’s obvious those involved will not accept what they did…” “In the end, I was removed and the Chief Minister was retained,” he noted.
On being asked about his souring relationship with Sawant, Malik clarified, “I did not create a ruckus in Goa; I counselled the Chief Minister, and even supported him.”
“There is an area near the Goa airport through which the trucks attached to mining activities were passing,” he stated, pointing out, “I asked the government to stop them, as the virus could spread; the government didn’t, and then COVID-19 spread.”
Malik also charged that the Sawant government planned to demolish
the existing Raj Bhavan to build a new building, which was also a part of the corruption racket.
“I did complain to the Prime Minister about the large scale corruption happening in Goa,” he informed, further lamenting, “However, the Prime Minister was misguided by the same people, who were involved in this corruption.”