Section 144 withdrawn in North Goa as state gears up for carnival

Last week, Section 144 was imposed in the district following intelligence inputs about possible terror threat along the western coast.

Tourists at a beach in Goa (Representational Image) | Commons

Panaji: Ahead of the carnival festivities, the North Goa district administration has withdrawn Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) which was imposed last week after intelligence inputs about possible terror threat along the western coast.

North Goa Collector Gopal Parsekar issued a notification on Monday to withdraw CrPC Section 144, which bans unlawful assembly of people.

The world famous Goa carnival begins on February 22.

The opposition parties earlier questioned imposition of Section 144 of CrPC in the coastal state, saying such a move would adversely affect the tourism industry.

The North Goa district administration imposed CrPC Section 144 last week, following intelligence inputs about possible terror threats along the western coast of India and the possibility of anti-social elements committing crime in the state or elsewhere.

However, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Saturday said the circular was “general in nature” and the government would review it.

+