Jaya, allies turn down Cauvery accord

CHENNAI, Aug 8 (PTI) — A day after the Centre announced a breakthrough in the Cauvery dispute, hopes for an amicable settlement received a jolt, with AIADMK supremo Jayalalitha, the defiant partner in the BJP-led coalition, and three of her allies rejecting outright the agreement among the four states.

In a joint statement here, Jayalalitha, and leaders of the MDMK, the PMK and the Janata Party opposed the accord and instead demanded that a 1997 draft scheme prepared by the Gujral government be notified forthwith in the official gazette, and the Supreme Court apprised of it on August 12.

Striking a discordant note amidst all-round euphoria, the AIADMK front condemned Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi for accepting an uncertain mechanism for the implementation of the Cauvery tribunal’s interim award.

The signatories — Jayalalitha, MDMK general secretary Vaiko, PMK founder S. Ramadoss and JP president Subramanian Swamy — said the envisaged Cauvery river valley authority was only a political body with no clear-cut powers, while the monitoring committee would be a toothless panel.

They said their fears that Mr Karunanidhi’s participation in the Chief Ministers’ meeting in New Delhi on August 6 would jeopardise Tamil Nadu’s interests had come true, as he had now given the Centre an excuse to seek yet another adjournment in the apex court in the guise of taking more time to define the monitoring committee’s powers.

Ms Jayalalitha and others said the earlier draft scheme, envisaging a statutory authority to implement the tribunal’s interim award of 205 TMC ft of water to Tamil Nadu, was an ideal scheme, but it had been totally forgotten, and a new powerless authority was being sought to be created.

The AIADMK front condemned Mr Karunanidhi for ‘scuttling’ a solution to the dispute at an opportune time by settling for a far less satisfactory arrangement, which did not guarantee Karnataka’s acceptance and implementation of the final award.

Citing the differences between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on the monitoring panel’s powers, they wondered how the "broad agreement" could be adhered to when the parties did not even concur on the constitution of the committee.

On the authority’s composition, they said the five-member body did not have the power to decide matters on majority, and even one member’s dissent could stultify its functioning.

The leaders recalled that at the all-party meeting called by Mr Karunanidhi on August 3, the AIADMK and allies had opposed his attending the New Delhi meeting, as it was an obvious ruse to delay matters. He had gone to the capital ignoring their opinion, after claiming unanimity on his participation.

Even in New Delhi, he had taken "unilateral" decisions to accept a diluted scheme, while his Karnataka counterpart J.H. Patel had consulted his party members twice in New Delhi itself, they said.

President of the Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC), G.K. Moopanar, today expressed his appreciation for the breakthrough achieved in New Delhi yesterday on the thorny Cauvery waters dispute.

"We feel that both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have won a prize from mother India celebrating golden jubilee of her independence this year", he said in a statement here.

He described as an "important milestone" the agreement reached between the two main contending states on "some basic issues", despite their "political compulsions" in the past which prevented a solution to the vexed issue. The spirit of "give and take" adopted by both Karnataka and Tamil Nadu deserved all appreciation, he said adding that yesterday’s agreement was only a "beginning" in the attempts to find a permanent solution to the problem, keeping the interests of the farmers in mind.

In another statement, general secretary of the MGR Anna DMK S. Thirunavukkarasu, welcomed the agreement and urged the Chief Minister to convene an all-party meeting to explain the decisions taken at the Delhi’s conference.

President of the Tamil Nadu RJD, K. Jagaveerapandiyan, in his statement, condemned the agreement saying the Chief Minister had failed to protect the state’s interests at the expense of getting some "political gains".

UNI: The All-India Anna DMK (AIADMK)-led front today rejected outright the Cauvery accord reached at the meeting of Chief Ministers of four riparian states in New Delhi yesterday.

The three-hour meeting, held at the residence of AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalitha, and attended by PMK founder leader Dr S. Ramadoss, MDMK general secretary Vaiko, MP, Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy, Union Law Minister M. Thambidurai and AIADMK chairman V.R. Nedunchezhiyan, rejected the accord as "unacceptable" as it was against Tamil Nadu’s interests.

Tamizhaga Rajiv Congress president and Union Petroleum Minister Vazhapadi K. Ramamurthy, who was away in Salem, did not attend the meeting although an invitation was extended to him.

Emerging from the meeting, Dr Ramadoss, Mr Vaiko and Mr Thambidurai said the accord was against Tamil Nadu’s interests and was therefore rejected.

A detailed joint statement released after the meeting and signed by the front partners gave a point by point account as to why the accord was unacceptable to the front.

NEW DELHI: Meanwhile the final hurdle in the way of clinching an accord on the Cauvery issue was overcome today with the major parties to the dispute, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, reaching an agreement on the role and functions of the monitoring committee.

Thus, the decks have been cleared for the implementation of the seven-year-old interim award of the Cauvery water tribunal.

The Chief Ministers of the four riparian states — Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Pondicherry — had come to a broad agreement on all contentious issues barring the role and functions of the monitoring committee at a high level meeting convened by Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee yesterday.

Karnataka Irrigation Minister K.N. Nage Gowda told newspersons today that his state had accepted the formula suggested by the drafting committee. He expressed the hope that other states would follow suit since the accord was in the interest of farmers of all the riparian states.

Sources in Tamil Nadu government told UNI that they have also cleared the formula of the drafting committee.

According to the formula, the monitoring committee would render assistance to the authority to enable them to take decisions on issues under consideration.

The committee will assist in the collection of information and data and in monitoring the implementation of the decisions of the authority. In case any difficulty arose in implementation, the monitoring committee would report the position to the authority.

It will also assist the authority in setting up a well-designed hydro meteorological network in the Cauvery basin along with a modern communication system for transmission of data and a computer-based control room for data processing to determine the hydrological conditions of the basin.
Mr Nage Gowda said the agreement reached was a vindication of Karnataka’s stand that the dispute could be resolved only through negotiations.

Mr Nage Gowda said there would not be any problem with Tamil Nadu in a normal year and that the Prime Minister’s intervention may not be needed. All these elaborate arrangements are only meant for dealing with the situation during adverse natural conditions.

Meanwhile, an official committee headed by Cabinet Secretary Prabhat Kumar burnt midnight oil to finalise a scheme on the duties and functions of the monitoring committee on the implementation of the interim award.

Tamil Nadu and Karnataka are understood to have approved four proposals on the role of the monitoring committee which would only assist the authority and not have any independent executive or statutory powers.

The Chief Secretaries of four states, who approved the drafting committee’s proposals, decided that the committee would function under the authority.

A final decision on the monitoring committee’s role would be taken at the next meeting of the drafting committee on August 10 after which a notification on implementing the interim award would be published and the Supreme Court informed.

Mr Karunanidhi, who reached Chennai today, told reporters that the proposed authority would only implement the interim award of the Cauvery tribunal and not be a mechanism to enforce the final award.

His Karnataka counterpart J.H. Patel said in Bangalore that the monitoring committee would not have an statutory powers.

The four broad proposals of the draft on the role of the monitoring committee are:
1. The role of the monitoring committee will be to render assistance to the authority to enable them take decisions.
2. The committee shall assist the authority in collecting information and data.
3. The committee shall assist the authority in monitoring the implementation of the decisions of the authority and in case of any difficulty arising in implementation the committee shall report the position to the authority.
4. The monitoring committee shall assist the authority in setting up a well-designed hydro-meteorological network in the Cauvery basin along with a modern communication system for transmission of data and a computer-based control room for data processing to determine the hydrological condition.

Subtle moves to oust Sonia
From K.V. Prasad
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Aug 8 — Subtle moves have been initiated by the Central Government to re-alter the current structure and control of the prestigious Indira Gandhi National Centre for Arts (IGNCA) which could well result in removal of the Congress President, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, as its life-trustee.

Founded in 1987, the IGNCA is one of the wealthiest cultural trusts in the country with a corpus of over Rs 50 crore and vast land spreading over nearly 23 acres in New Delhi’s prime area — parallel to Rajpath.

Mrs Sonia Gandhi was made a life-trustee of the IGNCA, through an amendment carried out in the original trust deed in 1995 during the time of P V Narasimha Rao Government and five prominent people were appointed trustees for life.

They included former President, R. Venkataraman, Mr P.V. Narasimha Rao, former Information Adviser to the Prime Minister, H.Y. Sharda Prasad, Dr Kapila Vatsyayan and late Pupul Jayakar.

The move began with the current government referring the amendment to the original trust deed carried out by then Human Resource Development Minister, Mr Madhav Rao Scindia, to the Attorney General for his comments. As per the deed the President whose term was originally for 10 years, was made President for life.

The Union Minister for Human Resource Development is an ex-officio member of the Trust.

By questioning the validity of the amendment in the eyes of law, the government has opened a channel that could result in ending the tenure of the current trustees who have either been Congress members or have been known to be close to the Nehru-Gandhi family, sources said.

Political circles see the move as yet another attempt by the BJP-led government to reconstitute important institutions of learning, arts and culture, after having stirred a controversy over the recent reconstitution of the Indian Council for Historical Research.

Apart from a substantial corpus, which earns interest, the IGNCA has a grant of nearly Rs 150 crore as building fund which can be drawn as per progress, the source said.

However, official sources state that as per the original deed there were no life trustees. The first appointment of all the trustees was to be made by the government. The government had also a role in the appointment of new trustees against the vacancies arising from the retirement of trustees. The amendment converted the tenure of the founder trustees for life with the government having no role in their appointment.

They say the original deed provided that the President of India shall be the visitor of the IGNCA and may set up a committee to review the working of the Centre from time to time. The recommendations of the committee as accepted by the Government in consultation with the Trust will be binding on it. This provision was also said to be deleted in the amendment.

The amendments were said to be carried out by the then Minister through an order whereas the original deed is said to provide for amendments, alterations or modifications to come into effect only after prior approval of the Government of India. The amended trust deed, it was said, has no stipulation.

The sources also said that as per available records there is little to indicate that the Law Ministry was consulted prior to approval to the amendments.

12 Pak bunkers destroyed in shelling, toll 6
16 killed in Kashmir valley

SRINAGAR, Aug 8 (PTI) — At least six Pakistani soldiers were either killed or wounded and their 12 bunkers were destroyed in a night-long exchange of shelling and firing between Indian and Pakistani troops in the Kargil sector of Ladakh district, a Defence Ministry spokesman said today.

The Indian troops retaliated after Pakistani firing, which resulted injuries to two Indian soldiers, the spokesman said and added the Pakistan firing also razed five Indian bunkers.

He said, at least six Pakistani soldiers were either killed or wounded and 12 Pakistani bunkers destroyed in the retaliation.

Pakistani troops resort to firing and shelling on Indian positions during night, the spokesman said and added there had been, however, no firing from across the border in the Kargil sector since morning.

A petrol pump and a building were gutted in Pakistani shelling at the Harka Badhur bridge near Khurbatang in Kargil district last night, he said and added that no loss of life was reported.

However, about 400 barrels of HSD, belonging to the General Roads Engineering Force (GREF), were destroyed completely in the fire. An adjacent building to the pump was also gutted, he said.

Shelling by Pakistani troops also took place in the Bin-Batalak area of Kargil district but no damage was caused, he said.

However, there were no reports of Pakistan firing in Kupwara and Baramula districts for the second successive day, he added.

Ten militants and a security jawan were among 16 persons killed in Jammu and Kashmir where the security forces destroyed four ultra hideouts and apprehended two militants since last evening.

Five persons were wounded in militancy-related violence while ultras attacked two security pickets during the period, an official spokesman said.

Five militants were killed in a shootout with troops near Kishtwar ranges in Jammu region’s Doda district today.

Three AK 47 rifles, a pistol, six grenades and a large quantity of ammunition were seized from the slain militants.

Two foreign mercenaries were killed in a gunfight with the security forces in frontier region of Kupwara while two more were killed in a shootout at Banihal, spokesman said.

A teenaged girl was killed on the spot and her brother seriously injured when militants intruded into their house at Pathoo-Mohalla in Baramula district last night and opened fire on the inmates, the spokesman said.

An unidentified body was found in Dooru area of Anantnag district today.

The spokesman said militants kidnapped and later shot dead Ghulam Mohammed Wani, an employee of Jhelum Valley Medical College, in Badgam district of Central Kashmir.

Wani was kidnapped from his Shankerpora residence and his body recovered from Kanihama village today, the spokesman added.

The bullet-riddled body of an unidentified person was found in Gantmulla area in the border district of Baramula. Two suspected militants were arrested during search opertions at Nunar village and Ganderbal on the outskirts of Srinagar and 15 kg of explosive, four detonators, two remote-controlled devices and three hand grenades seized from a hideout at their instance.

The spokesman said suspected militants critically wounded a photographer, Ghulam Rasool, at Seer Hamdan in Anantnag district last night.

They hurled a grenade at a security picket at Veer-Chattabal in Srinagar and Higher Secondary School, Tral, in Pulwama district last night. No one was hurt in the incidents.

Security forces destroyed four militant hideouts, one each in Anantnag, Doda, Kupwara and Pulwama and seized two pistols, 10 kg of explosives, 10 hand grenades, seven rifle grenades, an anti-personnel mine, 36 detonators and a wireless set were recovered.

A BSF jawan was killed when militants opened fire on a patrol party at Ranglian village in Udhampur district. In another incident, one civilian was killed and four were wounded in an IED blast in Sangaldan village in Ramban area. The injured person was airlifted to Jammu.