Portuguese citizenship issue is Congress cooked-conspiracy: Goa CM

PANAJI: The activity of the Congress in Goa to settle personal scores by exposing Portuguese citizenships of rivals has opened a Pandora’s Box for about one lakh Goans who now risk losing their Indian citizenship, Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar said in Friday. Parrikar however said that his government will fight for these Goans.
The “personal scores” that Parrikar is talking about refers to attempts by former Congress PWD minister Churchill Alemao to expose Benaulim MLA Caetano Silva as a Portuguese national.Alemao, whose daughter Valanka lost the Benaulim assembly seat to Silva, allegedly lobbied with central Congress leaders to influence the decision of the union ministry of home affairs, which ruled that Silva was indeed a Portuguese citizen.
The decision was based on a finding that Silva had allegedly registered his birth in Lisbon in July 2010, much before he contested assembly elections in March 2012.
If the MHA decision is correct, it could result in “one lakh” Goans losing their Indian citizenship, because these people have also registered their births in Lisbon. This gives them easy access to European countries and high-paying jobs especially in the UK.
Parrikar said the decision is wrong and that he will write to union home minister Sushil Kumar Shinde about the “political chicanery” of the Congressmen in Goa. Parrikar also said he will urge his BJP MPs like Shripad Naik and Rudy Pratap Singh to agitate the issue in Parliament. The Goa chief minister also said the Goa government will place its viewpoint on the matter before the Delhi High court, where Silva has obtained a stay on the MHA order.