tribuneindia...Spotlight

			Tuesday, November 24, 1998
weather today's calendar

Laloo fails to appear in court
PATNA, Nov 23 (PTI) — The RJD President, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, today failed to appear in the court of the Designated CBI Judge, Mr S.K. Lal, while former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra and 11 others were produced in a conspiracy angle case of fodder scam. Mr Yadav and five other accused, including former Bihar Minister C.P. Verma, RJD MLA R.K. Rana, former Regional Director of the State Animal Husbandry Department (Ranchi) S.B. Sinha and senior IAS officer Sajal Chakrovorty, were not produced in the court on account of illness. The Beur jail authorities informed the court that the RJD chief was suffering from backache and muscular pain and that he had been advised bed rest.
One shot dead
BATALA, Nov 23 (PTI) — Vijay Kumar, a resident of Sukker Pura, was shot dead opposite the bus stand here this afternoon. According to the police, he had come to purchase fish when some unidentified persons opened fire from a silencer-fitted weapon. He died on the way to hospital at Amritsar. The Senior Superintendent of Police, Mr Lok Nath Angra, said it was a case of personal enmity.

HC reserves order
ALLAHABAD, Nov 23 (PTI) — The Allahabad High Court today reserved its judgement on a writ petition seeking an inquiry by an independent agency to probe the alleged nexus between some Cabinet Ministers of Uttar Pradesh and dreaded criminal Sriprakash Shukla. The Division Bench comprising Mr Justice S.K. Phoujar and Mr Justice S.R. Alam reserved their judgement after hearing the parties.
Boycott threat
CHENNAI, Nov 23 (PTI) — The Tamil Nadu Government will "boycott" the railway function at Kanchipuram on November 25 if it is attended by the Shankaracharya of Kanchipuram, Sri Jayendra Saraswathi, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi said here today. Mr Karunanidhi told the Assembly that inviting religious leaders to government functions amounted to "wrecking secular foundation of the Indian Constitution".
Paswan escapes unhurt
MOTIHARI, Nov 23 (PTI) — Former Railway Minister Ram Bilas Paswan and other senior Janata Dal leaders escaped unhurt when the dias erected for them at an election meeting caved in at Badapur near here yesterday, officials said today. The wooden dias gave way as a large number of enthusiastic party supporters had perched themselves upon it.
Typhoon kills 76
HANOI, Nov 23 (AFP) — Seventy-six persons died and 31 others were reported missing after typhoon Dawn hit central Vietnam, according to the latest reports given by officials today. The search pressed ahead today for the missing, most of whom were fishermen caught offshore, officials from provincial committees for flood and storm control said.
Explosives seized
KAITHAL, Nov 23 — The city police seized 223 kg of explosives from the business premises of two kiryana merchants here yesterday. The raids were conducted following an explosion at a house in Chandana Gates locality here yesterday in which three persons of a family were injured. They were reportedly making crackers.
Groundnut trading
RAJKOT, Nov 23 (PTI) — Trading of groundnut was suspended in 54 marketing yards of the Saurashtra-Kutch region in Gujarat as per the call given by the Saurashtra Kutch Farmers Parishad today. The parishad's action was in protest against the restriction on export of groundnut and groundnut oil and the government's "rigid attitude" towards their demand, the parishad sources said here. The farmers demanded abolition of the export restriction.
87 killed in storm
HANOI, Nov 23 (Reuters) — A severe tropical storm that battered Central Vietnam late last week has killed 87 persons, the country's disaster management unit reported today. The unit, a joint project between the United Nations Development Fund and the Ministry of Agriculture, said four persons were still missing after tropical storm dawn smashed into a number of provinces. It said in a statement that 608 houses had been destroyed and more than 380,000 flooded.