Panaji, March 14 The Aam Aadmi Party accused the BJP-led government of blocking the introduction of key private member's bills in the legislative assembly in Goa to prevent discussion on issues related to land protection, environment, and livelihoods.
Addressing a press conference, AAP leaders alleged that the democratic process in the assembly was being deliberately undermined to stop debate on matters affecting the people of the state.
The opposition had protested inside the House on Friday during the ongoing budget session after Speaker Ganesh Gaonkar refused to table the private member's bills submitted by them.
A private member's bill is a legislative proposal initiated by a member who is not a minister. These bills enable legislators to draw attention to issues they consider to be of public importance.
AAP said its MLAs Venzy Viegas and Cruz Silva had consistently raised in the assembly issues concerning Goa's identity, environment, and traditional livelihoods. The party has two lawmakers in the 40-member Goa assembly.
The party's Goa senior vice president Sandesh Teleikar-Dessai said the developments in the assembly reflected the government's "true intentions".
"These bills were meant to safeguard Goa's agricultural fields, ecology, and traditional livelihoods, but the government chose to silence the discussion itself," he said.
Teleikar-Dessai also alleged that unchecked land conversions, expansion of casino gambling, and commercial control over rivers and coastlines were benefiting a "powerful nexus that funds the BJP's political machinery".
AAP organisation secretary Prashant Naik said the proposed Goa Protection of Agricultural Lands Bill, 2026, was brought forward jointly by opposition MLAs in response to public sentiment against large-scale land conversions and protests against Section 39A.
The section of the Goa Town and Country Planning Act empowers the authorities to reclassify land zoning, allowing conversion of green or no-development zones into settlement zones.
The bill sought to ensure protection of agricultural lands and eco-sensitive zones, he said, adding that the government blocked its introduction to avoid public scrutiny.
"Private Members' Day was hijacked to stop discussion on issues that expose the BJP government's anti-people policies," Naik alleged.
AAP leader Roque Mascarenhas said Viegas had also sought to introduce the Goa Public Gambling (Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Goa, Daman and Diu Irrigation (Amendment) Bill, 2026, and the Goa Maritime Board Act Bill, 2026, which addressed concerns over the expansion of casino gambling, pollution in creeks, and the expansion of port jurisdiction affecting traditional fishing communities.
Party leader Neash Coutinho alleged that rivers and streams in Goa were increasingly getting polluted due to industrial and medical waste, accusing the government of not allowing the irrigation amendment bill meant to protect them to be presented in the House.
The AAP leaders further claimed that the government was prioritising political funding and financial interests over the welfare of the people by allowing continued land conversions, casino expansion, and commercial control over natural resources.
The party reiterated that it would continue to raise issues concerning protection of Goa's land, rivers, environment, and identity, and expose policies that it claims threaten the future of the state.