Tuesday, December 1, 1998
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Sonia has rejuvenated Cong: Ashwani Kumar NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Mr Ashwani Kumar, a member of the All-India Congress Committee, says a rejuvenated Congress under the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi will play its rightful role in shaping the country’s future consistent with the aspirations of all segments of the society. CBI gives clean chit to Kesri NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — The CBI today gave a clean chit to former Congress President Sitaram Kesri in a disproportionate assets case even as the Delhi High Court reserved its order on a petition seeking a thorough probe into the case. BJP itself to blame for debacle JAIPUR, Nov 30 — Results of the election to the Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha have been baffling in many respects, the Congress has already captured three fourths of the total seats of the House while poll is still to be held in three constituencies. |
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'Maharashtra to be safe for
investors' NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi today expressed confidence that law and order situation in the state will improve in the near future and the state will be a safe investment destination. Processions
create traffic chaos Docs
gear up for indefinite strike Vajpayee
need not quit: Karunanidhi HC
waives condition in copter case RS
condoles death of ex-members Award for Indian environmentalist |
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Sonia has rejuvenated Cong:
Ashwani Kumar NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Mr Ashwani Kumar, a member of the All-India Congress Committee, says a rejuvenated Congress under the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi will play its rightful role in shaping the country’s future consistent with the aspirations of all segments of the society. In a statement issued here today, Mr Ashwani Kumar said that the decisive victory of the Congress in the recent assembly elections heralded the beginning of a process of political realignments in the country. “The election results represent the consolidation of the electoral preferences around mainstream political parties with a marked popular preference for the Congress as a premium political party. The “Congress resurgence is a certificate for the party’s ability to subverse the interests of the nation as a whole, beyond the narrow communal and casteist outlook of its opponents. The popular verdict is an affirmation of carefully articulated ideological and policy preferences of the Congress and of the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi, who has established her credentials to lead by her mature political judgement,” Mr Kumar said. He maintained that Mrs Sonia Gandhi had maintained humility and modesty in triumph which was a tribute to her sagacity that despite immense pressure she had chosen not to rush into political decisions without testing options on the anvil of national interest. He said by selecting young
party leaders to spearhead party’s campaign in the
states and by giving nomination to new faces with a clean
image, she had initiated a process of freeing the party
from the clutches of power brokers. |
CBI gives clean chit to Kesri NEW DELHI, Nov 30 (PTI) — The CBI today gave a clean chit to former Congress President Sitaram Kesri in a disproportionate assets case even as the Delhi High Court reserved its order on a petition seeking a thorough probe into the case. A Division Bench comprising Justice Arun Kumar and Justice Manmohan Sarin reserved its order after perusing a "status report" submitted by the CBI. The CBI in its report said, "no material could be found to reflect that any offence under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act or any other penal provisions has been committed (by Kesri)." "Further, no evidence to link the funds of Sitaram Kesri with any of the assets belonging to (his son) Amarnath Kesri or his family members could be found," the report stated. The CBI, after investigation, found no strength in the allegation that Mr Kesri had received money from business tycoons like Rahul Bajaj and Dhirubhai Ambani. The investigating agency also rejected the allegation that Mr Kesri had paid bribes to MLAs in Bihar for his election to the Rajya Sabha in 1988 and 1994. A Patna-based freelance journalist Madhuresh in his review petition had alleged that Mr Kesri had amassed assets disproportionate to his income and held ‘benami’ properties in the names of his family members. The CBI refused to register a case on the basis of allegation levelled by Madhuresh in his petition that some MLAs had said they were offered money by Mr Kesri in return of his election to the Rajya Sabha. "No evidence, oral or documentary is available to substantiate the allegation and hence it would not be worthwhile to register a case," the investigating agency said. On the allegation that Mr Kesri had contributed Rs 50 lakh to Rajiv Gandhi Foundation (RGF), the CBI said, "the enquiries made with the RGF have revealed that no contribution has been made by Mr Kesri to them in his personal capacity. However, the foundation has received certain donations from the AICC through its the then treasurer, Mr Kesri, paid through cheques." The CBI informed the court that the household expenses, including salaries Mr Kesri’s servants and persons fending his cattle were borne by the AICC which were duly reflected in the income tax returns filed by the party and ruled out any irregularity in that regard. However, the CBI said in
its report that whatever material it received regarding
disproportionate income of Amarnath Kesri had been
forwarded to the Central Board of Direct Taxes, which has
been looking into the matter. |
BJP itself to blame for
debacle JAIPUR, Nov 30 — Results of the election to the Rajasthan Vidhan Sabha have been baffling in many respects, the Congress has already captured three fourths of the total seats of the House while poll is still to be held in three constituencies. The Congress had 76 members in the outgoing Vidhan Sabha. It has now almost double its strength to 150. The ruling BJP has been reduced to 33 while it had won 95 seats in 1993. Janata Dal’s strength has also got reduced by half to three from six. For the first time the BSP and the RJD too have registered their presence in the House with two and one member, respectively. The electorate has displayed amazing maturity in electing legislators this time. The BJP has had ruled the state even without getting majority on its own only on the strength of support of Congress rebels elected as Independents. This time there were at least 60 Congress rebels in the fray. Mr Buta Singh too had launched a regional party namely the Rajasthan Vikas Party and had fielded 90 candidates. The rebels and the RVP both were expected to affect results in a significant manner but that was not to be. The RVP could not win a single seat nor could make any impact on the fortunes of other candidates. Even Mr Buta Singh’s son Arvinder Singh got defeated in Barmer district. The rebels also got a severe beating. Though there were 605 Independents in the fray only seven of them could win. What was the reason for such a severe defeat to the ruling party? Chief Minister Bhairon Singh Shekhawat calls it an unfortunate situation where caste factor dominated the poll scene more than anything else. He said that in such a situation development made no sense and casteism ruled high. The results amply prove it. But PCC Chief Ashok Gehlot says that people were fed up with BJP’s misrule. He said that anti-BJP feelings were well channelised by the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi. Her taking charge of the party has enthused Congress workers immensely. A confidence was infused that the party would regain its lost glory under her leadership. Same were the feelings amongst the common people. This all has materialised in votes for the Congress party. Party stalwart Pt Nawal Kishore Sharma who fought his first ever Vidhan Sabha election and emerged successful says that more than the state government the verdict is against the Central Government’s performance. “It was claimed that the BJP will give good government under the leadership of its able leader Atal Behari Vajpayee. But the government at the Centre proved to be the worst. By rejecting the BJP in all states people have given vent to their anger against the Union Government,” he says. In fact the BJP in
Rajasthan was faced with double anti-incumbency factor.
To add to its woes party leaders refused to see the
writings on the walls. Lok Sabha results had loudly
warned the ruling party that people were getting
disenchanted with it. The party had won 95 Vidhan Sabha
seats in 1993. In the Lok Sabha elections of 1998 it
could establish its lead in only 56 constituencies.
Instead of taking a cue and improving their performance
they continued to fight for power further eroding their
base. If the BJP in Rajasthan has received such a
humiliation, more than any one else the BJP itself is to
blame for it. |
'Maharashtra to be safe for investors' NEW DELHI, Nov 30 (PTI) — Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi today expressed confidence that law and order situation in the state will improve in the near future and the state will be a safe investment destination. Admitting that law and order situation had deteriorated, Mr Joshi said the government had taken a series of measures to improve security environment and deal sternly with instances of extortion and attacks on industrialists. Some of the measures taken by the government, include improved intelligence systems to forewarn about activities of criminals and provide a conducive atmosphere for industries to thrive. Mr Joshi, who was answering questions from delegates at the World Economic Forum (WEF) meet here, also referred to sound infrastructural facilities available in the state for investors to put up projects in various sectors. The Chief Minister said the state offered uninterrupted supply of power at very competitive rates. "There is no shortage of power but there is a need to improve its quality," he said. He said the state had a capacity of 12,000 MW and an additional capacity of 6,000 MW would be added in the near future. The first phase of Dabhol Power Project promoted by US based multinational Enron would be supplying 700 MW of power soon and power purchase agreements with Reliance and Ispat were underway. Mr Joshi rejected the argument that his state was losing primacy as the favourite investment destination to other states like Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. A total of 465 projects were approved for the state between October 1997 and 1998 compared to 296 for Tamil Nadu, 279 for Gujarat and 273 for Karnataka, he said. The state is also
emphasising on hi-tech, non-polluting industries like
software and electronics, Mr Joshi said. |
Processions create traffic chaos NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Close on the heels of the traffic chaos caused by the recently concluded India International Trade Fair at Pragati Maidan, there were traffic jams in several parts of Delhi due to a series of processions and demonstrations today. The areas affected by the traffic jams included Bhikaji Cama Place, Connaught Place, Jantar Mantar, ITO, ISBT and Railway Station. The vehicular traffic was jammed at different traffic points for a long time due to these processions. At Jantar Mantar the roads were closed completely throughout the day. The commuters were stranded at the bus stands as buses were not available for hours. Some of them had to go back home on foot. The processions were taken out by the Victims of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Union, the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh, the Akhil Bhartiya Railway Coolie Union, the Vidyapati Sangh and Bhartiya Karamchari Sangh, Haryana. The activists of the Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh reached Rajghat this morning from different states and took out a procession at 9 a.m. which converged at Jantar Mantar where they demonstrated against the privatisation policy of the government and submitted their memorandum. The Deputy Commissioner of
Police (Traffic), Mr MS Upadhyaya, said processions and
demonstrations were always taken out by the unions before
the Parliament sessions and expressed helplessness in
controlling the traffic in such a situation. |
Docs gear up for indefinite
strike NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — About 9,000 resident doctors who deferred their strike on November 22 are gearing up for an indefinite strike again. The doctors who stayed away from work for a day to press for uniform implementation of the Residency Scheme are aggrieved over the Centre’s failure to keep its promise. The spokesman of the Federation of Resident Doctors Associations (FORDA), Delhi, Dr Ajay Kumar said the FORDA had suspended its strike following an appeal from the Union government that since model code of conduct was binding on important policy matters, agreements and announcements could not be made before elections. The spokesman said that the government had failed to keep its promise of taking a decision on correcting the distortions regarding the emoluments of resident doctors by November end. He said that the Residency Scheme covered the strength, selection criterion, emoluments and allowances, leave, duty hours and responsibilities of the resident doctors. Dr Kumar said if the
government failed to provide concrete solutions, the
resident doctors would be left with no choice but to go
on an indefinite strike. |
Vajpayee need not quit: Karunanidhi CHENNAI, Nov 30 (PTI) — The DMK today said Prime Minister AB Vajpayee need not resign for the BJP’s reverses in the assembly elections in four states, even though it was a vote against the Centre’s policies. Party President and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi told newsmen here that the BJP-led coalition should rectify its mistakes, drawing lessons from the election outcome. He pointed out that even senior BJP leaders like LK Advani had stated that the results had taught the BJP a lesson and stressed the need for taking corrective steps. Asked whether the DMK would support a no-confidence motion against the Vajpayee government in the Lok Sabha if the Opposition moved one, Mr Karunanidhi said the DMK Parliamentary Party leader Murosoli Maran, in consultation with the party high command, would take a decision on this. He said the bickerings among the coalition partners, the Centre’s inaction in controlling price rise and its attempts to pursue a “communal agenda” were the reasons for the BJP’s rout in the assembly poll. However, the government need not resign because of the reverses as elections to the Lok Sabha and the state assemblies were held in different circumstances. Mr Karunanidhi said Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s entry into active politics had enthused the Congress cadre, which was one of the reasons for the party’s spectacular performance in the elections. He said the people did not
accept the “communal agenda” of the BJP. |
HC waives condition in copter
case NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — The Delhi High Court today waived the condition of depositing Rs 2.5 lakh per month for one year as security for the release of the Mumbai-based businessman, Mr H Suresh Rao’s helicopter, which was allegedly grabbed by Romesh Sharma. Justice J B Goel passed an order to this effect after Mr Rao submitted before the court that his financial position was not sound and he could not deposit the amount of Rs 2.5 lakh per month. The trial court on November 27 imposed the condition on the Mumbai-based businessman while asking the CBI and the Income Tax authorities to restore the helicopter to him. However, the High Court upheld other conditions, imposed by Delhi Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM), Mr R K Gauba, which included the furnishing of a Rs 60 lakh bond and a surety of Rs 30 lakh by Mr Rao. The CMM had directed Mr Rao to arrange an insurance cover from General Insurance Company for the copter. According to Mr Rao’s complaint with the police, Romesh Sharma, who had hired the helicopter during the 1996 Lok Sabha polls refused to return it after "forcibly grabbing" it. The CBI counsel, Mr A K Dutt, submitted to the High Court that the agency had no objection if the condition was waived. The helicopter was
impounded by the Income Tax authorities after Mr Rao
lodged a complaint last month. |
RS condoles death of
ex-members NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Rajya Sabha today condoled the death of three of its former members G C Bhattacharya, Banamali Babu and Ramnath Anandilal Podar. Members stood in silence for a minute as a mark of respect to them and to those killed in the recent train accident in Punjab. Making obituary references in the House on the opening day of the three-week Winter Session, the Chairman, Mr Krishan Kant, said Bhattacharaya, a noted trade union leader, steadfastly worked for the welfare of the down-trodden. Banamali Babu, a noted
social worker, was associated with various social welfare
organisations and educational institutions. Podar, an
industrialist and businessman, was associated with a
number of social, medical, educational and other public
institutions, he said. |
Award for Indian
environmentalist NEW DELHI, Nov 30 — Eminent environmentalist, Dr Ranjit Bhargava, has been honoured with the prestigious Order of Golden Ark by the Netherlands Government for his contribution to the conservation of nature and preservation of environment and wild life in India. Dr Bhargava, who was
honoured by Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands at a
ceremony there on November 28, joins the ranks of former
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, the architect of
India’s green revolution, Dr M.S. Swaminathan,
renowned ornithologist Salim Ali and wild life enthusiast
Billy Arjun Singh, who have been recipients of this
award. |
4 crore registered job seekers NEW DELHI, Nov 30 (PTI) — More than four crore youths are at present registered with employment exchanges across the country, the Rajya Sabha was informed today. The largest number of 5.88 lakh youth were registered with the employment exchange in West Bengal alone, Labour Minister S.N. Jatiya said in a written reply. While there were 3.6 lakh
such persons in Kerala, the number stood at 1.1 lakh in
the capital, he said. |
Daler Mehndi, Jayaprada honoured NEW DELHI, Nov 30 (PTI) — Cinestar Jayaprada, Punjabi pop sensation Daler Mehndi and noted homoeopath Dr Parimal Banerjee were among those who received the Shiromani and Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Awards by former President Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma at a function here today. Dr Banerjee, related to social reformer Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, was presented with the Shiromani Award, while Jayaprada, Daler Mehndi, columnist Sadia Dehlvi, educationist Shyama Chona and danseuse Aditi Mangaldas received Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Awards. The annual awards,
instituted by the All India National Unity Conference and
comprising a trophy and a citation, were also presented
to several others for their contributions in various
walks of life. |
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| Fears on ‘terminator
gene’ allayed GULBARGA: Field trials of Bollgard cotton varieties by the USA-based seed giant Monsanto at four places in Karnataka were not related to the “terminator gene”, University of Agriculture Science (UAS) Vice-Chancellor M Mahadevappa has said. The much-feared “terminator gene” prevents the use of second generation seeds for sowing. Talking to newspersons here on Sunday, he said that Monsanto was conducting the trials of genetically developed Bollgard cotton variety seeds under special conditions in the country. The seed was developed by injunction of a ‘gene’ taken from the soil bacterium, bacillius thuringiensis (BT). The BT gene was capable of killing certain insects, including the commonly found pest ‘heliothis’ (caterpillar). This pest is not vulnerable to pesticides available in the market at present. However, the Bollgard had reportedly proved to kill caterpillars, soon after they feast on the plant. — UNI 47 p.c. to 68 p.c. teachers
“untrained” Ricky Martin to
regale Delhiites Dacoits loot rail
passengers WB aid for medical
project 21 hurt in house
collapse Russian diplomat
dies in mishap Hooch kills three,
2 held |
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