Evescape

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MATTER OF CONCERN ------------------------------------ Protectors turn Predators

The recent sexual assault of a minor girl inside the Crime Branch is not less than a catastrophic, systemic failure that highlights a deeply disturbing rot within the very institutions sworn to protect the vulnerable writes Rajeshree Nagarsekar The recent FIR against Crime Branch Police Inspector Vikas Deykar and his accomplice, Ranjini Palyekar, for the multi-occasion (from July to October) sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl inside the Ribandar office has shattered what little faith we as a society had left in institutional justice. The very department trusted to dismantle organized crime has instead housed it. What makes this betrayal more sinister is the systemic failure preceding it. The minor originally approached the state’s Child Helpline seeking protection, only for her grievance to be routed straight into the hands of her predators. What's more? The actions of the Crime Branch in this case completely bypassed the mandated child protection jurisprudence which...

Opinion & Analysis: Time for Goa's ST to turn the tide

Even as the Goa government remains steadfast in its assurance to the ST community regarding political reservation, the recent interim stay of the Bombay High Court on the notification estimating Goa’s Scheduled Tribe (ST) population has dealt a devastating, yet entirely predictable, blow to the tribal community’s long-standing battle for political reservation. For decades, the Gauda, Kunbi, and Velip communities have been offered grand promises of constitutional representation. Yet, as the court halted the process just weeks before the state government’s promised December implementation deadline, the structural betrayal of Goa’s original inhabitants has been laid bare once again. For years, major political parties have used the community as a predictable vote bank, particularly across South Goa which has close to one lakh ST voters. In my interaction with key grassroot women activists of the ST community across Goa and few prominent leaders while writing this piece, a common senti...

Nabin’s "win faith of women" strategy must deliver real tickets in Goa

When BJP National President Nitin Nabin unveiled his new national team, the political messaging was unambiguous: a massive push for gender and demographic inclusion, featuring 12 prominent women leaders in key structural roles. signaled that the high command wanted women at the decision-making table. However, as Nabin wrapped up his high-stakes, two-day organizational tour of Goa to review preparations for the 2027 Assembly elections, the narrative encountered a familiar bottleneck. Addressing the state unit, the leadership’s explicit "mantra" was to win the faith of the women electorate and leverage grassroots women workers as the ultimate game-changers. During his address at the State Executive Committee meeting in Chimbel, Nabin emphasized that the "beauty of the party lies in its ability to elevate grassroots workers to the highest positions." Nationally, his restructuring strategy proved this, allocating nearly one-third of the central organizational roles to ...

Goa needs a total political reboot

The state's political ecosystem is due for a comprehensive overhaul -- one that can only be successfully driven by elevating women and the youth to key leadership positions explains Rajeshree Nagarsekar At the heart of EVESCAPE is a vibrant community of women and youth leaders united in their mission to preserve Goa. In my recent deliberations with these two of Goa’s most vital demographics, I have sensed an overwhelming, common desire for a total political reboot. And mind you -- this is not just a passing phase of election-season enthusiasm. To my mind, it is rather a deeply felt, widespread demand for a fundamental transformation of our political landscape. For decades, we have frustratingly watched the game of musical chairs played by the same old (established, predominantly male) politicians switching allegiances almost at the drop of a hat, but together in blatantly destroying our fields, altering land use, cutting hills and chipping away our unique identity. Th...

PROMISES ACROSS THE AISLE

Goa’s political landscape features a staggering paradox. Despite women consistently turning out in large numbers as voter blocks (51.36%) and outperforming structural expectations across social sectors, the state's legislative assembly reflects a dismal record for gender diversity. In the political discourse, two high-profile proclamations from both sides of the aisle have prompted EVESCAPE to analyze whether these assertions are genuine milestones or merely tactical election rhetoric. 1. The Constituency Relinquishment Rhetoric: Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant made a highly publicized claim stating that he was personally ready to give up his own legislative constituency in favor of a woman candidate during the campaign for Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. 2. The 50% Intent from GPCC: Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) President Girish Chodankar publicly announced that his party is willing to give up to 50% tickets to women. Adding substance to this rhetoric, Ch...

Of Anti-incumbency, Fragmented opposition, FPTP, Defections, Satraps & Elections 2027

The anti-incumbency in Goa is real. But as long as the opposition remains divided, and defection pays more than democracy punishes, the BJP retains the tools required to engineer its way back to power writes Rajeshree Nagarsekar -------------------------------- A s Goa inches closer toward the 2027 Assembly elections, the air in political circles, newsroom debates, homes, markets, local taverns, whichever -- is thick with a fundamental question: can the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) survive 15 years of accumulated voter fatigue? For everyone it is obvious that the growing anxieties over unplanned infrastructure growth, rampant land conversions, serious environmental degradation and rising unemployment (to name a few) and the largely evident voter (or incumbency) fatigue, has triggered anti-incumbency across the state. Yet, in Goa's politics, as most political pundits conclude -- public resentment rarely translates into a straightforward electoral verdict. Arguably, g...