PANAJI: The state government is likely to extend the
ban on Sri Ram Sena, and an order in this regard is likely to be issued next week, following a recommendation by the North and South Goa
superintendents of police (SPs). The state government had directed the SPs of both districts to assess the situation and submit a report to the home department on the issue of deciding whether the ban on
Sri Ram Sena in Goa should be extended.
North Goa SP
Priyanka Kashyap and South Goa SP
Shekhar Prabhudesai, submitted a report to the state government stating that there is every possibility of a law-and-order problem if Sri Ram Sena members are allowed to enter the state.
“On the recommendation of the police department, the home department has now moved a file to the chief minister’s office to extend the ban, and the order is likely to be issued on Monday,” a home department official said.
On October 18, the state government had extended the ban on Sri Ram Sena for 60 days under Section 144 (4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973. On August 20, the Goa government banned the Hindu right wing organization from entering the state.
In September, the Sena had called for a ban on the tiatr, Akantwadi Goent Naka, and arrest of its director Tousif Shaikh, alleging that Sri Ram Sena chief Pramod Muthalik was portrayed as a terrorist in the tiatr.
In June, Muthalik had announced his plan to set up a branch of the organization in the state in September. Muthalik had earlier expressed his desire to curb Goa’s “western culture of clubs and pubs”. This had led to the tourism industry, women’s organizations, literary personalities and performing artistes demanding that the BJP government ban the Sena from entering Goa.