The Goa Police initiated a probe after a prime accused in the alleged multi-crore cash-for-jobs scam claimed that a Cabinet minister, an IAS officer and another government official were involved in the scam.
Hundreds of people were allegedly lured to pay vast sums after being promised jobs in various government departments as part of the scam. The scam first surfaced in October 2024 during a police investigation into a case in which a complainant had allegedly paid lakhs of rupees to an accused. Subsequently, similar cases started piling up in different parts of the state, and as of December last year, police lodged at least 33 FIRs and made several arrests.
During the probe, police had ruled out any political connections or an “organised nexus”, claiming that the accused may have simply used names of politicians to show proximity to them and dupe the victims.
Earlier this week, one of the main accused, Pooja Naik, who was arrested last year and is currently out on bail, told a regional news channel that she collected money from many victims at the behest of a Cabinet minister, a senior IAS officer and an engineer employed in a government department. She did not name them.
Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has assured a thorough investigation into her claims and said that another FIR would be registered to probe the allegations.
The Crime Branch on Tuesday questioned Naik for over three hours. On Monday, Bicholim police also summoned her for questioning. Police said her statement is being recorded and the allegations are being verified.
A police officer, requesting anonymity, said, “During questioning, she mentioned some names. The police will write to the Vigilance department to initiate an inquiry against the government officials named in the disclosure, and after sanction is received, legal action will be taken accordingly.”
Opposition parties demanded a judicial inquiry into the allegations.
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Congress leader Yuri Alemao, the Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, said, “We cannot trust the police… since a Cabinet minister and people in power are alleged to be involved in the scam itself. There has to be a judicial inquiry to ensure that there is neutrality, and so the youth of Goa get justice.”
Vijai Sardesai, president of the Goa Forward Party, said, “It is clear now that the probe into the scam by the Goa Police is an eye-wash. The accused revealed names a year ago, yet they are missing from the chargesheet. The BJP government is selling jobs and destroying our youth’s future.”
