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Goa leader's pals: Russian mafia
Published on Tue, May 29, 2007 at 21:45, Updated on Sat, Jun 16, 2007 at 13:05 in 
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Panaji: With the Goa Assembly elections just four days away, every Goan wants to know if former town and country planning minister Atanasio Monserrate, popularly known as Babush, will retain his Taleigao Assembly seat.
Here's why: Land grabbing is one of the biggest issues dominating the Goa Assembly polls this time. And amid speculation about possible links between top Goan politicians and a foreign mafia, especially the Russian land and drug mafia, Monserrate's name is whispered both at the political and public domain.
On the basis of confessions by unscrupulous chartered accountants, lawyers and real estate dealers, a CNN-IBN Special Investigation bares this deep-rooted nexus .
Gajanan Korgaonkar, a real estate lawyer for foreigners, including the Russian land mafia, told the CNN-IBN Special Investigation team that he paid Rs 12 lakh bribe to Babush Monserrate for a land deal.
Korgaonkar: I have also given money. Rs 12 lakh I have given...
SIT: To the minister?
GK: I have given with my own hands...
SIT: To whom?
GK: Babush! The regional planning thing. He is there. So anybody who wants… there is a stiff dark fellow. He comes with a Rs 10 half-note. If it matches, we have to give the money to him.
Gajanan has links with the Russian mafia. He was witness in the formation of two shell companies, Cosmic Connections and Golden Spoon Resorts, owned by a Russian called Mamedov Alexander.
This was revealed by Prashant Karekar, a chartered accountant who has links with True Axiz Resorts, owned by Valiulin Rashid and Leonid Beyzer. "Till Babush was there, it was organising on the money only. Whoever was giving the money was getting the opportunity to go forward," Karekar claims.
Augustus Monteiro, who fixed a land deal for Leonid Beyzer's Artlibori Resorts, says politicians were bribed to convert the farmland into settlement land. "Lots of ministers were involved. Lots of money was involved in the conversions," Monteiro confesses.
When confronted, Babush Monserrate was defensive. "To make an allegation is very simple, to prove one is very difficult. So whoever makes such allegation, I just ask them to prove only one," Atanasio Monserrat alias Babush says.
Interestingly, the Congress-NCP alliance and the BJP admit to hearing of Monserrate's corruption. "No, we had heard. But we didn't know exactly on what basis or which places," Wilfred D'Souza, Goa's Deputy Chief Minister, admits.
"Three-four of them have taken money for conversion from land sharks and even from foreigners, particularly Russians," Manohar Parrikar, the Leader of the Opposition in Goa Assembly, alleges.
This was a fact admitted even by Yulia Yaskova, who manages Leonid Beyzer's dubious companies.
CNN-IBN Reporter:Foreigners don't have to pay to politicians?
Yaskova: No we have to pay.
CNN-IBN Reporter: What do you to prove what you are saying?
Yaskova: Yes, they come and say we want your support.
(With inputs from Rohit Khanna)
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Congratulation CNN-IBN. You need to expose not only politicians, but also government officials who are involved in corupt practices. If
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These Congressis will eventually sell the country.
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It's funny, but Goans appear not to remember that Babush has been corrupt from the word go; so these revelations
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well, russians were involved in same scandals in france and austria.in france ,russian billionare mr.prokofev was thrown out of the
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Good work IBN.. Go on with other corupted politicians. We are with you.
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