BJP team to reach Goa to forge political roadmap
Panaji, Sep 16 : With Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi, a team of central BJP leaders is expected to arrive in Goa on Sunday to assess and recommend to the Centre a political roadmap for the BJP-led coalition government.
Speaking to reporters, state BJP president Vinay Tendulkar said the team led by BJP General Secretary Ram Lal was expected to arrive on Sunday afternoon.
"He will arrive in the afternoon after he will meet senior party leaders and coalition partners to decide on the future course of action," Tendulkar said.
While a section of senior BJP leaders feel that dissolution of the state Assembly and a mid-term poll is the way ahead, instead of thrusting senior leaders at the helm of government, some legislators believe that the government should continue at any cost.
A proposal mooted in the presence of Parrikar on Friday to make coalition ally and Public Works Department Minister Sudin Dhavalikar of the Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party a Deputy Chief Minister and an officiating CM has been shot down by another key ally Vijai Sardesai, the Town and Country Planning Minister and Goa Forward President.
Ram Lal will meet officials from the BJP, allies as well as supporting Independent MLAs in a bid to forge a political strategy and finalise options for the post of Chief Minister, before recommending the same to BJP President Amit Shah on Monday.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
‘Pay worker before sweat dries’: Madras HC invokes prophet’s teaching to settle lawyer’s dues
Madurai: Invoking the teachings of Prophet Muhammad to emphasise principles of fairness in labour jurisprudence, the Madras High Court has directed the Madurai City Municipal Corporation to settle the unpaid legal fees of a former standing counsel. Justice G.R. Swaminathan, in an order passed on Saturday, referred to the prophetic principle, “pay the worker before his sweat dries”, observing that this tenet is a facet of fairness eminently applicable to service and labour law.
The court was hearing a plea filed by P. Thirumalai, who served as the standing counsel for the Madurai City Municipal Corporation for over 14 years, from 1992 to 2006. Thirumalai contended that the civic body had failed to pay outstanding dues amounting to Rs 13.05 lakh for his representation in approximately 818 cases before the Madurai District Courts. The current petition was filed after the Corporation rejected a substantial part of his claim following a previous court direction to consider his representation.
Addressing the practical difficulties faced by the petitioner, who stated he could not afford to engage a clerk to obtain certified copies of the 818 judgments to substantiate his work, Justice Swaminathan devised a pragmatic solution. The court permitted the former counsel to approach the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) with a list of cases. The DLSA has been directed to procure the certified copies within two months, with the costs to be borne by the corporation and later deducted from the petitioner’s final settlement.
While the court acknowledged the Corporation's stance that fee bills must be in order, it ordered the civic body to settle the dues within two months of receiving the records from the DLSA.
However, citing the petitioner’s 18-year delay in challenging the non-payment, the court ruled that the settlement would be made without interest.
Beyond the specific relief granted to the petitioner, the single-judge bench made strong observations regarding the administration of legal fees and public funds. Justice Swaminathan termed the petitioner’s claim a "pittance" compared to the number of his appearances and expressed concern over the disparity in payments within the legal field. He noted that while "scandalously high amounts" are often paid to certain senior counsels and law officers by government and quasi-government bodies, others struggle to receive basic dues. The court observed that good governance requires public funds to be drawn on a measured basis and not distributed capriciously to a favoured few.
The Judge also flagged the "embarrassment" caused by the high number of Additional Advocate Generals (AAGs) in the state, noting that the appointment of nearly a dozen officers leads to work being allotted unnecessarily. He criticized the frequent practice of government counsel seeking adjournments on the pretext that an engaged AAG is appearing elsewhere. Justice Swaminathan expressed hope that such practices would cease in the Madurai Bench and that the Additional Advocate Generals would "turn a new leaf" from 2026.
