On Goa, Goans, this and that By Rajan Parrikar

I have quickly skimmed through the whine of the outsider and the resulting comments. I have a few quick remarks of my own.

First of all, the vitals: Nobody living in Goa should be intimidated in their pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness. We should not tolerate violation of the basic rights accorded all Indian citizens. The reality is that Goa is (unfortunately, in my view) part of India and everything that goes with it, and this reality cannot be wished away. India usurped Goa in 1961 and we Goans were foolish enough to not demand ANY protection for the inevitable swamping of our land, our identity, and our way of life.

At the same time that I will stand up to defend your right to live here without fear of any kind, I will not cede my right to have opinions on the malign influence of India and Indians on Goa. I shall not let you or any other outsider intimidate and shame me by assigning labels such as “xenophobe” or “racist” for the fact that I stand up for the land of my forefathers. The Indian sewer is now in Goa and this is not even an opinion. It is a fact. Indians have degraded Goa, destroyed Goa. To be sure, some Goans have been collaborators in this scheme.

You want to be called “Goan”? Why? I have lived for over 30 years out of Goa and I have never demanded such a thing from the host populations. I have been an OUTSIDER and I’m totally fine with that. I can’t live in Copenhagen and expect the Danes to regard me as their own. You are an OUTSIDER in Goa. Accept it. You aren’t a Goan, never will be. There is nothing bad or demeaning about being an OUTSIDER. It is a choice YOU made when you WILLINGLY moved your ass someplace else. The Bengalis or the Tamils will never regard me as a Bengali (or Tamil) even if I lived my whole life there. [The Goan virtue-signaling nincompoops who claim X is a Goan if X loves Goa need to get their head examined and then go back to kindergarten.]

Backing up, why do you want to be called X when you are Y? I don’t see anyone from outside Bihar clamouring to be called a Bihari. You Indians have overpowered us Goans demographically and now you want to usurp even the final thread that gives us a sense of ourselves?

The Goan anger is perfectly understandable. Nowhere in India would such a situation come to pass without strife. Can anyone imagine Tamils ceding their land to the Telugus? Or Kannadigas playing dead while their land is taken over by some other sub-group? Why is it that only Goans are expected to be oh-so-generous in giving the entire farm away?

So, enjoy your “rights” in Goa. (Indians always speak of “rights” wherever they land up, never about responsibilities.)