Dears, The report below is on a Peace Meeting held at Sirsat Mini Hall on 11 March, 2006. It was chaired by Adv. Norma Alvares and had the opening remarks made by Vishwas Gupte. The proceedings were summed up by Adv.Albertina Almeida.
I had made one more point: No religion claims that its god is deaf. In any case, worhip of god pre-dated the advent of sound amplification devices. So where is the need to fit loudspeakers OUTSIDE the place of worship. Those who wish to pray need to enter the place of worship. A good place to begin the LEGAL demolitions of the ILLEGAL by the Goa Administration is the illegal shrine of Our Lady of Valainkani over the Municipal Storm water drain and part of the Asilo Hospital facing the Casaualty and OPD, Mhapsa. All the property on which the said shrine stands belongs to the Goa Government and it has full right to recover its property as per law. The shrine , though illegal has been blessed by Fr. Roque Barreto, the then Parish Priest of St. Jerome Church Mapusa, and has the BJP MLA of Mapusa constituency, Francis D'Souza, as one of its patrons. It regularly uses the prohibited 'funnel' loudspeakers to amplify the prayers and disturb the already traumatized victims of accidents as well as the in-patients of the Asilo Hospital, to say nothing of the in-mates of the Old Age home next door. Recently, one employee of a bank is learnt to have put up an illegal grotto by trespassing into private property adjoining an existing chapel in Aldona. The Parish Priest has correctly refused to 'bless' it. Will the Village Panchayat demolish it, since it would have been erected without a construction licence? Illegality cannot be permitted in the name of God. The Bible is clear, "Render unto Caesar what is Caesar's." or give the Government its due. We also need to demolish the mini temples and shrines at the entrance of the Municipal market, opposite Ashok Hotel and opposite Ticlo's Petrol Pump. Our Hindu bretheren have the Maruti temple , the Laxmi-Narayan Temple and a host of local shrines from Bodgueshwar to Rashtroli dedicated to the "Rakhondar" of pre-Hindu believers. The Catholics have the Church and a number of Chapels all over Mhapsa. So there is absolutely no need for new structures, specailly ILLEGAL ones. ....and no god is deaf. Scream your heart out, but keep the amplifier and sound system within the four walls of the prayer house. You are infringing on the rights of others to a better quality of life. Viva Goa Miguel ----- Original Message ----- From: "Vidyadhar Gadgil" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Herald, 12/03/06 HERALD CORRESPONDENT MAPUSA, MARCH 11 - In a bid to maintain communal harmony in the State following the recent communal clashes in Curchorem and Sanvordem, a group of social activists have recommended the constitution of an all- party committee to identify all illegal religious structures in the State. The speakers, who met in the city on Saturday evening, also suggested an action plan to have these structures demolished within the ambit of law by authorities.