GOANS KILLED BY INDIAN TROOPS 1961-62 By Franco Fernandes

Vasco Vieira Garin, Portuguese Representative to the United Nations, 18^th December 1961 “What is important and most pressing is a cease-fire and withdrawal of Indian troops from Portuguese Territory, because people are being killed in Goa by the Indian Invaders”.

The Background : Manuel Santana Rodrigues runs a Restaurant at the seashore resort of Bogmalo , near the town of Vasco-da-Gama. He had Seven Children. On January 15^th 1962, 10pm two Indian Union Army men came to his Restaurant and demanded packets of Cigarettes. Manuel said he has no Packets of Cigarettes. They had an Argument.

The Crime : Manuel Santana Rodrigues returned to his House that day. On January 16^th around 1 AM those two Indian Union Army men who had argument with Manuel Santana Rodrigues came to his House and threw a Hand-Grenade inside his Window Severely Injuring his wife Milagrina Rodrigues and Killing his 12 year old Daughter Luisa Rodrigues on the spot.

The Aftermath : On 17^th January 1962 over 5000 black-clothed Goans coming from all over Goa attended the funeral service of the ill-fated Luisa Rodrigues, to mark their protest. There were Anti Indian demonstrations in most part of Goa.

The Bandit Indian Union soldiers who, by the code of any other civilized country would have had to submit themselves to trial and punishment by court-martial, were permitted to escape into the Indian Union.

Indian Union Response : The Indian Union Media did not report on his incident till February.

D.F Karaka from The Current Weekly of Bombay, “Is this your Peaceful Liberation, Mr. Menon ?”.

Jawaharlal Nehru “Just a few inevitable casualties necessary in a great war of Liberation.

Indian Military General KP Candeth, called the Murder a “Regrettable Incident”.

Similar Atrocities : A 12 year Old Goan boy was riddled with bullets by Indian Union Troops at Cansaulim, while returning home from a shopping errand on which his mother had send him.

Germano de Sousa, a school teacher from Calangute and father of three infants, was killed by Indian Union troops, while returning from church, merely because he did not understand what Indian Union troops ask him in Hindi.

Yet all these Victims were according to Nehru “ Just a few inevitable casualties necessary in a great war of Liberation”.