Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Wednesday said the incident involving “Hindutva Murdabad” slogans during a protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in the state is being investigated. He said instructions had been issued for a thorough inquiry and action would be taken only after the investigation is completed.Sawant said his government would not tolerate attempts by people from outside the state to disturb communal harmony. He alleged there was a “deliberate attempt” to use public platforms to create discord. However, he declined to comment on whether Sunday’s protest by civil society groups and citizens had received funding from outside the state.Rajya Sabha MP Sadanand Shet Tanawade dismissed allegations of “vote theft”, saying the opposition’s criticism of SIR reflected political frustration. He claimed some participants had joined the protest to settle scores.Tanawade also said protesters lacked clarity about their demands, alleging that this had led to some participants raising slogans such as “Hindutva Murdabad”, while others attended with their faces covered.“Several times, we have held protests while in the opposition but we never went to the protest site, with our face covered. Not even when the protesters were fewer. Protest is the democratic right of the people,” he said.Tanawade accused opposition parties of being selective in their allegations of “vote chori”, questioning their criticism of the electoral process. He maintained that protests were a democratic right but said the circumstances surrounding Sunday’s demonstration warranted scrutiny.
