Thursday night, the people of Goa delivered a message so powerful that even the might of the ruling establishment was forced to pause.
A rising tide of public anger surged through St. Andre and beyond, compelling the BJP government led by Chief Minister Pramod Sawant to suspend approvals in St. Andre constituency granted under Section 39A of the Town and Country Planning Act. What was projected as “development” was increasingly seen as a calculated assault on Goa’s fragile topography, its skyline, its villages — and its identity.
This confrontation did not erupt overnight.
For two years, resentment simmered after TCP Minister Vishwajit Rane bulldozed through an amendment empowering sweeping alterations to land use and terrain. Hills could be flattened. Low-lying fields could be filled. The natural character of Goa could be reshaped — all with bureaucratic ease. The builder lobby smiled. Ordinary Goans did not.
Then came the flashpoint.
At the TCP office in Panaji, St. Andre MLA Viresh Borkar stood shoulder to shoulder with his constituents from Palem-Siridao, demanding accountability. What followed shocked the state. Borkar was dragged down the steps in full public view — an act many saw as an attempt to humiliate not just an MLA, but the very people he represented.
Instead of breaking him, it ignited him.
Borkar announced an indefinite fast-unto-death. Soon, he was joined in spirit and resolve by villager Tushar Gawas, the quiet face of grassroots resistance. What the government perhaps dismissed as political theatre transformed into a moral challenge. As the days passed, the protest swelled. Strong-arm tactics only deepened public solidarity and resolve. The more the establishment flexed its muscle, the more Goans rallied.
Six days later, the government blinked.
An intent letter to suspend Section 39A was issued. It was not repeal — but it was retreat. It was the first crack in the façade of invincibility.
Borkar and Tushar ended the fast only after seeking legal clarity, but not without a clear warning: if the amendment is not repealed in the upcoming Assembly session, the fast will return — and perhaps this time, even stronger.
What happened in St. Andre was not an isolated protest. It was a symptom of something larger.
Across Goa, discontent is erupting. In Mirabag, villagers agitate over bandaras. In the coastal belt of Cansaulim and Velsao, resistance continues over double-tracking. Casinos in Panaji remain a festering issue. Demonstrations have surfaced in Tivim, Bicholim, Mormugao, Maina-Curtorim and elsewhere. From hinterland to coastline, the message is consistent: governance without consent will be resisted.
The BJP government may have been elected “by the people,” but increasingly it is perceived as functioning for powerful interests beyond Goa — particularly the builder lobby. Critics argue that under the banner of economic growth and infrastructure, policies have appeared aligned with corporate giants such as Gautam Adani, while the ecological and cultural fabric of the state pays the price.
The flattening of hills. The filling of fields. The silent disappearance of low-lying khazans. Development, many feel, has become a euphemism for irreversible damage.
What unsettled the government most was not merely a hunger strike. It was unity.
At Azad Maidan, respected voices — advocate Norma Alvares, environmentalist Claude Alvares, Dr. Oscar Rebello, architect Dean D'Cruz and journalist Sandesh Prabhudessai — stood in solidarity. Their presence signalled that this was no fringe uprising. It was civil society drawing a red line.
Chief Minister Sawant’s repeated remark to the media — “I do not know who is advising Viresh” — betrayed more than irritation. It hinted at anxiety. Because the realization was dawning: this was not about one adviser, one MLA, or one village. It was about a populace that had found its voice.
With elections approaching in 2027, the stakes are political as much as moral. No ruling party wants a united electorate demanding accountability. The suspension of Section 39A may have bought time — but it has not extinguished the fire.
If anything, it has shown that sustained pressure works.
Borkar and Tushar have delivered a telling blow. One engine of the much-touted “double engine” has stalled. Now the question is whether this momentum will dissipate — or whether Goa will continue to hold its government to account, issue by issue, policy by policy.
The pot has been boiling for two years. Last week, it boiled over.
And unless the people’s aspirations are respected — not managed, not delayed, not diluted — the heat is only going to rise.
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