Portuguese also destroyed churches: BJP

Panaji: BJP Goa spokesperson Savio Rodrigues on Saturday said that apart from temples, there are churches and convents too in Goa which were destroyed during the Portuguese colonial rule and these too need to be identified and restored.
Later in the day, reacting to the statement, minister for archaeology Subhash Phal Desai said that he is not aware of such cases of churches being destroyed by the Portuguese, but if such instances are found the churches will be restored too.
“While there is no doubt that many temples were destroyed during the Portuguese rule in Goa, there were also churches and convents run by the Dominicans, Augustinians, Carmelites and native Goan churches that were also confiscated by the Portuguese rule and left to ruin. Therefore, we must commission a study and then set up a fund to restore these historic churches,” said BJP Goa spokesperson.