The untouchable New Conquests

Abstract

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant likes to talk about how the Portuguese committed atrocities against Goans during their rule. Recently he made the same point while speaking about how they did not rule the whole of Goa for 451 years, but only the Old Conquests (Tiswadi, Bardez, Salcette, Mormugao); with the New Conquests region (Ponda, Bicholim, Pernem, Sattari, Quepem, Canacona, Sanguem) coming under Portuguese rule only much later. This, according to him, was thanks to the Maratha king Shivaji. As a result of this delay, again according to Sawant, the New Conquests were saved from the atrocities perpetuated by the Portuguese, including religious conversion.