Monday, September 28, 1998
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Missionaries coping with fear NEW DELHI, Sept 27 — A spate of violent attacks on Christians in several parts of India seems to have not only created a fear psychosis in the minds of the minority with a 20 million-strong population but also put a question mark on their role in the uplift of the backward. HC
notice to govt on defaulting VIPs |
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Bill on computer crime NEW DELHI, Sept 27 — The government will introduce the much-awaited information technology Bill aimed at checking computer crimes and legalising electronic transactions in the winter session of Parliament.
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President’s rule in Tripura
sought AGARTALA, Sept 27 — The Tripura unit of the BJP today demanded the dismissal of the Left Front government and imposition of President’s rule in the state. |
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Missionaries coping with fear NEW DELHI, Sept 27 (PTI) — A spate of violent attacks on Christians in several parts of India seems to have not only created a fear psychosis in the minds of the country’s second largest minority with a 20 million-strong population but also put a question mark on their role in the uplift of the backward. Even as some political leaders charge Christians missionaries with converting people of other religion to their faith, community leaders assert that the aim of missionaries has always been the spread of education and bringing health care to the poor and the underprivileged. A Christian priest is murdered while another is paraded naked in Bihar, a church is vandalised and the Crucifix is desecrated — these are only but a few in a series of recent attacks on the Christian community and their institutions. “Yes, we feel threatened under the present situation, being a peace-loving community. We have made no organised effort so far to protect ourselves. “We will look to God for protection rather than trust our physical strength to do that,” says a church leader of Orissa — admittedly afraid of disclosing his identity. Christians and their institutions have been attacked in recent times in Bihar, Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Manipur, Haryana, Maharashtra, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. Christians are unevenly distributed across India — in Kerala, they constitute about 22 per cent of the population while in Orissa, they are about 2.5 to 3.5 per cent and in Arunachal Pradesh, they constitute about 15 per cent of the 10 lakh total population. “The nation must realise that we cannot act in isolation. Whatever happens to Christians in India will certainly have its effect outside also as there are at least 75 Christian dominated countries,” says Dr Tahir Mahmood, Chairman of the National Minorities Commission (NMC). “The situation is of great concern to us. Religious intolerance has grown in recent times and the atmosphere has been vitiated. There is a sense of insecurity and fear in the minds of the minorities,” he says. He agrees that the attacks in recent times have mostly been targeted against the Christians “because of a wrong impression being created by certain elements regarding conversion”. In Kerala, with Christians constituting about 20 to 22 per cent of the three-crore population, health care and education have been the main activities of the Christian missionaries. There are about 1500 schools and around 125 colleges being run by the missionaries in the state. The first printing press in Kerala was established by Christian missionaries. The first Malayalam dictionary was written by a German missionary, Herman Gundert who also started the first Malayalam newspaper “Rajya Samacharam”. In Arunachal Pradesh, the local leaders, including Chief Minister Gegong Apang, suggest that conversions by the Christians is creating tension in the society as “they are alienating the people from their own culture and faith”. In Manipur, Father Jose Nedumattathil, Principal of Don Boscoe School, was murdered in November last year. The VHP and Bajrang Dal
activists also allegedly burnt the New Testament at the
I.P. Mission School, Rajkot, in protest against the
alleged move of the school to convert students to
Christianity. |
Another attack INDORE, Sept 27 (PTI)
— Another missionary centre at Jamali in Jhabua was
attacked by unidentified persons last night, even before
the outcry against the gangrape of four nuns in the
tribal district of Madhya Pradesh could subside.The
culprits tried to break open the centre’s door and
residence of father Edward, failing which they pelted
stones on the premises, district Collector Wasim Jawed
said on the telephone today. |
Bill on computer crime NEW DELHI, Sept 27 (PTI) — The government will introduce the much-awaited information technology Bill aimed at checking computer crimes and legalising electronic transactions in the winter session of Parliament. The final draft of the cyber Bill which seeks to amend various information acts formulated by the cyber law committee is now with the Law Ministry for green signal, the Department of Electronics (DOE) Secretary, Mr Ravindra Gupta said. “The draft is now with the Law Ministry. Once it is returned after translation and vetting, we intend to take it to the Cabinet for its approval before introducing it in the winter session of Parliament,” he said. Once passed, the Information Technology Act (ITA) 1998, would be the first step towards information technology (IT) security in the country and will strive to improve the concept of electronic governance and E-commerce. The proposal, in 15 parts with 79 sections, defines computer crimes and data protection to check computer piracies and related offences as recommended by the national I.T. task force. The legislation will ensure security and easy access of electronic data to facilitate better electronic communication to promote E-commerce thereby recognising electronically transacted documents valid. The cyber law committee has recommended stiff penalties for computer crimes which range from Rs 2 lakh penalty to seven years’ imprisonment. The territorial scope of
offences will also be made clear to underline that all
crimes will be considered as committed in India whatever
may be his nationality and where the crime took place.
@The Bill further states that cyber crimes can be tried
by a District Magistrate, Additional District Magistrate
or Executive Magistrate. |
HC notice to govt on defaulting VIPs NEW DELHI, Sept 27 (PTI) — The Delhi High Court has issued notices to the Centre, Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) and two other government agencies on a petition seeking legal action against various VIPs for allegedly defaulting in the payment of dues worth several crores of rupees. The notices returnable by January 25, were also issued to the Delhi Vidyut Board (DVB) and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) by a Division Bench of Justice R.C. Lahoti and Justice C.K. Mahajan directing them to file replies before the next date. The petition filed by a non-governmental organisation Krishak Bharat was mainly based on an article published recently in a weekly accusing several politicians of defaulting in paying dues to various government agencies. According to the published article annexed with the petition the defaulters include former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar, Defence Minister George Fernandes, Congress leaders Madhavrao Scindia, Rajesh Pilot, Gani Khan Chaudhary and Ghulam Nabi Azad. The others whose names had been mentioned in the article include independent MPs, Kalpnath Rai and Suresh Kalmadi, BJP leader Vijayaraje Scindia, JMM leader Shibu Soren, former minister K.P. Unnikrishnan, Delhi Chief Minister Sahib Singh Verma, former minister Sanjay Singh and MP Raj Babbar. Besides, the Congress
Mahasamiti and the Indian Youth Congress and several
other people, including government officials were also
accused of non-payment of dues, the petitioner counsel
Singh told the court. |
Cong bid to make niche in Bihar NEW DELHI, Sept 27 — The government decision not to send back its recommendation for the imposition of Central rule in Bihar to the President last evening took an interesting turn today with the former state Chief Minister, Dr Jagannath Mishra, stressing that the Union Cabinet’s decision had destroyed the supremacy of the Cabinet system in the country. “If a withered state like Bihar was not found fit for imposition of President’s rule, what would and should be the constitutional yardstick for overseeing the affairs of the state under Article 356 of the Constitution”, he asked. Stating that the President and the Union Cabinet should review their decision on the dismissal of the Bihar Government, the former Chief Minister and a senior Congress leader said the President should have assessed the situation in the state through independent channels. If necessary, the President should have visited Bihar, Dr Mishra said adding that the secrecy of the Cabinet decision was lost when the former started the process of consultations with political parties and others on the Cabinet decision. He said the President, the Union Cabinet and various political parties should think over the Bihar situation. Political sources said Dr Mishra’s stand on the issue was part of the Congress strategy to distance itself from the Rabri Devi government and Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav in a subtle way. The Congress strategists know full well that without moving away from the Rashtriya Janata Dal,it has little chance of reviving its political fortunes in Bihar. Dr Mishra is one of the few Congress leaders in the state who has the stature and the political acumen to bring back upper castes and Bhumihars back to the party fold. Dr Mishra’s observations received support from the most unexpected quarters as the All-India National Lok Dal leader, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, threw his weight behind Article 356 to prevent “balkanisation” of the country. Meanwhile, leaders of the
Bharatiya Janata Party as well is its ally in Bihar
(Samata Party) are trying to evolve a strategy to counter
opposition attacks on the coalition government for its
decision not to insist on the imposition of Central rule
in Bihar. |
Mulayam ready for tie-up with Cong NEW DELHI, Sept 27 (PTI) — The Samajwadi Party president, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, today said that his party was willing to form an alliance with the Congress and was ready for talks in this regard. “Opposition unity against the BJP-led government at the Centre will come on some aspect,” he told reporters after release of the book “Mulayam Singh — A Political Biography”. He said President K.R. Narayanan’s decision to return the Union Cabinet’s recommendation to sack the Rabri Devi government in Bihar was a victory for the Opposition. “The President’s decision is a victory for us,” he said. Earlier, releasing the
book, former President Shankar Dayal Sharma said:
“Today’s situation is different but objectives
are the same.” |
President’s rule in Tripura sought AGARTALA, Sept 27 (PTI) — The Tripura unit of the BJP today demanded the dismissal of the Left Front government and imposition of President’s rule in the state. Stating that the situation in Tripura has gone from “bad to worse”, state BJP president Dr H. S. Roy Choudhury also demanded the recall of state Governor Prof Siddheswar Prasad for his alleged indifference and inaction in this regard. He told reporters here that the Governor had failed to apprise the Centre of the situation and never visited any of the insurgency affected areas to get first-hand information. The BJP state chief said he, in a fax message to Union Home Minister L. K. Advani and BJP president Kushabhau Thakre, had requested them to visit Tripura and take stock of the situation. He alleged that the government had “totally failed” to protect the people of the state. Even Durga Puja was not being celebrated in many places out of fear for insurgents. The state executive committee of the BJP, which met here yesterday, described the situation as very alarming and observed that if the Centre did not intervene the situation could further worsen. The BJP demanded that the
whole state should be declared disturbed and the Army
should be given a free hand to tackle militancy. |
Wives ‘forced’ to donate organs HYDERABAD, Sept 27 (PTI) — A group of eminent doctors, lawyers, human rights activists and social workers from South India has asked the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) to delete the word “spouse” from the list of possible donors in the Organ Transplant Act (OTA), as women were being “forced” to donate organs to ailing husbands or relatives. The consensus followed a
public debate held here last week to discuss the draft on
ethical guidelines in biomedical research involving human
subjects. |
Human chain marks Tourism Day NEW DELHI, Sept 27 — The World Tourism Day was inaugurated by the Minister of State for Tourism, Mr Omak Apang, in the Capital today. A parade and a human chain around India Gate were highlights of the celebrations to mark the day. Mr Apang landed at India Gate lawns in a hot-air balloon, a press note issued by the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) said. Representatives of tourist
transporters, hotel federations, guide associations and
students from catering institutes were present. |
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| Policy for elderly on cards KOCHI: A national policy for the elderly is on the anvil, according to Mr D.K. Manavalan, Secretary to the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The government is also planning to amend the recently enacted disability Act to include Alzheimer’s disease as a disability, Mr Manavalan, who was here to participate in the inaugural function of the 14th international conference on Alzheimer’s disease, said. There are at present 18 million persons worldwide suffering from the disease. — PTI Chittala gets Karanth award Fairy Queen’s
journey 2 brothers
electrocuted Granny killed over
tea quarrel Four killed in
mishap UP plans
educational tours |
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