M A I N   N E W S

Dalwinder gets judicial remand
Tribune News Service

PATIALA, Oct 19 — The Special Magistrate, Central Bureau of Investigations, Mr Jaspinder Singh Heyer, today remanded Dalwinder Kaur, an accused in the Harpreet death case, to judicial custody till October 24.

With Dalwinder also being remanded to judicial custody today, all accused arrested by the CBI which is investigating the mysterious circumstances which led to the death of Harpreet Kaur, daughter of SGPC chief Jagir Kaur, have been given judicial remand. The remands of the others are also till October 24.

Mrs Dalwinder Kaur was produced in the Special CBI court here by the investigating agency after she had been given a transit remand for October 18-19 by a Delhi court. Her counsel had argued in Delhi that her case should be transferred to Patiala as the other accused in the case were also being produced in the special court here.

Mrs Dalwinder Kaur’s counsel today urged that judicial remand be given to her as she had already been kept in police custody for 15 days. Counsel also argued that Mrs Dalwinder Kaur had cooperated with the investigating agency and that further extension of her remand was not needed. She was subsequently given judicial remand by the judge. She will be kept in the Central Jail during this period.

The accused had earlier been picked up from a Delhi hotel by the CBI when she had gone there to see off her husband abroad. She had been given police remand till October 9, but was admitted to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital during this period. She was discharged from there on October 10, following which her police remand was extended to October 18.

Prof P. D. Shastri is no more
By Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service

CHANDIGARH, Oct 19 — Lives of great men all remind us, that we should make our lives sublime...

And parting leave behind us footprints on the sands of time.....

From Prabhu Dutta to Prabhu Dutta Shastri, he led a life full of unswerving commitment to truth and dharma. A mighty scholar who lived a life of serenity in his small house in the local Sector 21 breathes no more, but there is a lot about him which will keep his being alive for many years to come. A reputed scholar of Sanskrit and English, Professor Shastri’s association with the columns of this paper spans over 35 years, and even today just before he collapsed, he was writing the review of Satya Agarwal’s religious text “The Gita and Tulasi-Ramayan: Their Common Call for The Good of All” for The Tribune.

While his last creative attempt remained incomplete, one major satisfaction which his entire family has is that his death wish was granted. Shocked at the untimely demise of her beloved father, Mrs Sharda Sharma told The Tribune here today that her father was obsessed with creativity. “All he wanted was to die in Chandigarh and die working,” she said.

That was perhaps why he kept refusing his son’s proposal of coming to Mumbai for about two-three months now. “He perhaps had an apprehension of the tragedy. So he kept delaying the Mumbai visit. Otherwise he always goes to his son during this part of the season,” said Mrs Sharda who kept remembering the celebration of his 90th birthday this year on July 12.

Born in Amritsar in 1910, Prof Shastri went on to retire as the Head of the English Department, Government College, Sector 11, Chandigarh in 1968. He was indeed an eminent scholar of repute who could, even at 90 years of age, recite the shlokas from the Gita and the Durgapath fluently and could even enact characters from the play of Shakespeare.

Apart from writing various book reviews and articles in a number of national and regional newspapers, Prof Shastri also had about 18 books published, two of which were released by the then President and the Vice-President of India in 1987.

Being a specialist in Upnishadic and Vedic lore, he was given the title of Brahmrishi by Shankaracharya at an international conference at Kurukshetra in 1992. The man was equally recognised by the SGPC with a Samman Patra at Khalsa College, Amritsar, in 1982. Prof Shastri was long considered an authority in the Vedic laws and had also been writing columns for The Speaking Tree in The Times of India.

As far as the academic achievement is concerned, Prof Shastri was more than just bright. After retiring from the Sector 11 Government College, he joined in the capacity of head of English Department at Sri Guru Gobind Singh College, Chandigarh where he worked for seven years. After his retirement he was invited by DAV College, Chandigarh to deliver some discourses on dharam shiksha to young students.

The life of this great scholar was however very simple. Despite having three relatives, he chose to live alone in the city. He would fend for himself and would love leading a healthy life. Recalls his daughter: “He used to go for morning walks and was very fond of his small group of friends. He was also keen on keeping his knowledge updated.”

The inspiration of a simple life perhaps came from his father who was himself a Sanskrit teacher in an Amritsar school. The intelligence, however, was inborn. The only blow which shook the composed man was the loss of his wife about four years back. “After my mother’s demise, he felt the pinch of solitude for the first time. He used to say that partners should never part in old age. It is killing,” said his daughter. He has now departed to join his companion.

Prof Shastri’s funeral procession will start tomorrow from his house number 3120, Sector 21-D at 3 pm.