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Wednesday,
March 13, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Kar sevaks confident of entering Ayodhya Ayodhya comes alive on Shivratri
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SP seeks recall of UP Governor Cong-led alliance wins trust vote
in Manipur Janshakti to go it alone in Bihar, UP Anglo-Indians seek representation Curfew lifted totally in
Ahmedabad Soz urges allies to oppose BJP HC rejects plea against CJI Rejection of Pak offer wrong: Mann Nitish Katara cremated
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Kar sevaks confident of entering Ayodhya Lucknow, March 12 In the early nineties they organised protests that finally led to the demolition of the disputed structure. This time the big effort is for the ‘symbolic puja’ on March 15 at Ayodhya despite the “tightest-ever” security cover of the state administration to prevent them from entering Faizabad. Disclosing their strategy to make it into Ayodhya “by whatever way possible”, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal activists — who have decided to start for Ayodhya by this evening, said they would reach the spot in small groups without much fanfare. “This time, to avoid the attention of security personnel and even common people, the kar sevaks will not tie any head bands nor would they raise slogans like ‘Jai Shri Ram’ or do any other thing during their way to the temple city,” said one kar sevak heading for Ayodhya. Sources in the VHP and the Bajrang Dal today claimed that they had “made full arrangements to send at least 100 kar sevaks to Ayodhya from Lucknow, who are likely to reach there by the mid-night of March 14.” Refusing to elaborate further on how they would manage to enter Ayodhya, the sources claimed that during the regime of Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav in 1990, the security cover was more tighter but “we had still managed to sneak in.” “Similar were the arrangements in 1992, when the disputed structure was demolished, but we again entered,’’ they added. “This time the security is not such ‘harsh’ that we cannot enter Ayodhya,” the sources further claimed. They said kar sevaks from other parts of the country would also be coming to Lucknow and from here “we have made all arrangements to send them to the temple town.”
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25 kar sevaks arrested Gonda, March 12 While 24 ‘kar sevaks’ were residents of Deoria, one was from Chandauli, the police said adding that they were arrested at the Mankapur railway station.
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Maintain status quo in Ayodhya: VP New Delhi, March 12 Addressing newspersons after his visit to riot-affected areas in Gujarat, the former Prime Minister supported the Opposition’s demand to sack the state Chief Minister Narendra Modi and a probe by a sitting Supreme Court judge and said the Centre should maintain status quo in Ayodhya. While the court has punished novelist and social activist Arundhati Roy for contempt of court by taking suo motu cognizance of her averments, the highest court of the land should take a serious view of those VHP leaders who don’t tire repeating that a court verdict was not acceptable to them, Mr V.P. Singh clarified. He further said that the government should not be a party to transferring undisputed land either to the VHP or the Shriram Janmabhoomi Nyas and should rather wait for the court verdict. And if the government does decide to give land for the construction of a temple then it should also give a portion of land for the building of a mosque also, he said, and added that a similar formula should be applied to other religions also. Striking a note of caution, the former Prime Minister said that the government and the courts should be wary of written assurances of the VHP as they had gone back on their written assurances in the past. Criticising the government’s handling of the Gujarat situation, Mr V.P. Singh said the Narendra Modi government acted like a “catalyst” in the post-Godhra riots in the state. “In reaction to the Godhra incident, the Gujarat Government became a catalyst”, he alleged. “If one was keen to restore normalcy among the hearts of the Gujarat citizens, then the minimum is that the Chief Minister must go”, Mr V.P. Singh said. |
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VHP ‘not’ a party
in temple case Ayodhya, March 12 “The VHP is a not party in the title suit currently pending in the Allahabad High Court and as such it has no locus standi in the matter,” the sarpanch of the Panch Ramamnandi Nirmohi Akhara Mahant Bhaskar Das told PTI here. “The Centre should initiate a dialogue with us and the Sunni Central Waqf Board, the rival party in the case, to resolve the matter”, the Mahant said, adding that “no purpose will be served by negotiating with the VHP”.
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Ayodhya comes alive on Shivratri Ayodhya, March 12 Locals, who were virtually under house arrest with the administration prohibiting the movement of vehicles in Ayodhya, came out in large numbers and enjoyed themselves by dancing to the tunes of music and rhythm of drum beats in Shiv ki Barat, which took off late evening under tightest-ever security arrangements, with hundreds of para-military personnel maintaining a hawk’s eye. The VHP leaders and members, who maintained a low profile so far due to heavy security blanket thrown in the city to prevent entry of Ram sevaks into Ayodhya, participated in the procession in a big way. |
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Shastri meets PM on Ayodhya New Delhi, March 12 Shastri also met Home Minister L.K. Advani and apprised him of the situation in the temple town.
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PM house temporary abode, says Vajpayee New Delhi, March 12 Speaking to a delegation of people from the Arya Samaj at his residence, Mr Vajpayee said the elections results had exposed some shortcomings in the BJP necessitating introspection to measure up to people’s expectations. Mr Vajpayee said the Prime Minister’s house was only his temporary residence, adding: “Till it is there, it will be used for good purposes.” The Prime Minister had made similar remarks in the recent past also. He said the election results showed that people had punished the BJP in the wake of which the party would try to take corrective measures and come back to people more effectively. Mr Vajpayee called upon the country, its leaders, soldiers and Generals to ‘remain awake’ against conspiracies within and outside the nation, though at the same time he also asserted that the borders were protected. He added that despite economic problems, the country was moving ahead. Alluding to the recent incidents of communal violence, Mr Vajpayee said there was a feeling among people that there was instability and things were coming to an end. Urging people to live with communal harmony and peace, he said the country had faced such situations before and emerged out of it. He warned his political detractors against taking political mileage out of the Gujarat carnage. Pointing out that an inquiry had been ordered, he said the truth would come out. |
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SP seeks recall of UP Governor New Delhi, March 12 “The continuation of Mr Shastri as Governor is fraught with danger as a fair administration (under President’s rule) cannot be expected from him in such a highly surcharged atmosphere,” SP spokesman Amar Singh told reporters here. He said the imposition of President’s rule should be viewed in the backdrop of the VHP’s threat to carry out the symbolic “bhoomi puja” at Ayodhya given the Governor’s political background. Describing the Governor as a “committed RSS worker right since his childhood”, he said the state was, in fact, under BJP rule at present and criticised Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s assertion that President’s Rule was imposed in the state as there was no other option. On the Ayodhya issue, he maintained that matter could be resolved only through consensus or court verdict and said the proposed symbolic “bhoomi puja” would only arouse communal passions. |
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Cong-led alliance wins trust vote
in Manipur Imphal, March 12 All 36 members of ruling Front and 24 members of the opposition Democratic People’s Alliance were present during the voice vote whose result was announced by Speaker Telsing Ngamjang Haokip. Earlier, journalist-turned-politician Haokip of the Congress was elected Speaker defeating opposition nominee Okram Joy Singh of the Manipur People’s Party by 12 votes. Haokip secured 36 votes. Moving the trust motion, Chief Minister Ibobi Singh said a common minimum programme of the Front, envisaging proper maintenance of law and order, fiscal management and rooting out corruption, had been framed for the four-party ruling alliance ruling the state. Mr Ibobi Singh said he would also announce his personal assets. Opposing the motion, BJP member M. Bhorot Singh said the Congress did not get people’s mandate to form the government. He said “inefficiency and financial mismanagement” of Congress governments in the past were responsible for the present problems of the state.
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Janshakti to go it alone in Bihar, UP
New Delhi, March 12 Announcing this decision to mediapersons at his residence here on this afternoon, party President and Minister for Coal and Mines, Mr Ram Vilas Paswan said the party was confident of its strength in Bihar and would put it to test. “We do not want any confusion among party workers. We want to give them a clear signal,” he said. He also announced the party’s ambitious plan of strengthening its base and touching a membership of one crore. The decision has been sparked off by the party’s performance in Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections where it won from only two constituencies (Rari and Garwara). Of these, the Garwara seat was retained by the sitting MLA, Raja Ram Pandey. He said that the Lok Janshakti was fielding 81 candidates in the Delhi Municipal poll scheduled for March 24. Asked if the party had decided to dissociate itself from the BJP-led NDA government, Mr Paswan said, “We are with the NDA in the present government. We have written to the Uttar Pradesh Governor about our commitment to the NDA government. We have also stated that if Rajnath Singh forms a government, we will support it.” |
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Anglo-Indians seek representation Dehra Dun, March 12 A memorandum to this effect was submitted recently to Uttaranchal Governor Surjit Singh Barnala by a delegation of the All-India Anglo-Indian Association led by the president of the Dehra Dun branch. The memorandum said that the UP legislature had been always providing representation to the community under the statute. Similarly two Anglo-Indians were also nominated to the Parliament, it said. Members of the delegation informed the Governor that in its 125-year history, the association had established a network of 60 branches throughout the country, with objectives to protect, preserve and safeguard the civic, cultural and educational interests of the community in the country. The memorandum also mentioned the significant contributions made by the community, particularly the education sector. The association has suggested names of two members of the community, Mr R.V. Gardiner, Principal, St. Thomas College, and Mr David Hilton, Principal Hilton School for nomination to the state Assembly. |
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Curfew lifted totally in Ahmedabad Ahmedabad, March 12 The overall situation in the state where the official death toll has been pegged at 675 since the February 27 Godhra train carnage, is now near normal though tension still prevails, particularly in sensitive areas in view of VHP’s proposed land consecration programme at Ayodhya on March 15. Night curfew will be imposed only in sensitive areas as and when required, official sources said.
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Soz urges allies to oppose BJP New Delhi, March 12 In a statement, he said the BJP was bent upon using the “Hindu card” after its rout in the just-concluded Assembly elections in four States. He also criticised the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, saying that instead of going to Gujarat to help and share the agony of the riot victims, they agreed to talks without an agenda on the Ayodhya issue. Prof Soz urged the Prime Minister to immediately visit riot-affected Gujarat.
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HC rejects plea against CJI Jaipur, March 12 A Bench comprising Justice M. R. Calla and Justice D. N. Joshi said the courts were expected to act with desired restraint and self-imposed discipline while dealing with contempt cases. Describing the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) as “media-driven”, it held that the petitioner’s plea, based on newspaper reports published in December 2001, had no force.
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Rejection of Pak offer wrong: Mann New Delhi, March 12 Mr Mann, who is a member of the Consultative Committee attached to the Ministry of External Affairs, said such matters should be under the due process of law. Mr Mann also criticised the Vajpayee government’s request to Pakistan for extradition of Sikh terrorists from Pakistan. Terming the extradition treaty with Pakistan as very important, the Lok Sabha member from Sangrur said: “Someone who is a terrorist in one country is a hero in another. India is not justified in asking for repatriation of Sikhs from Pakistan.” |
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Nitish Katara cremated New Delhi, March 12 Amidst chanting of Vedic hymns, the pyre was lit by his brother Nitin at Nigambodh Ghat in the presence of Delhi Police Commissioner Ajay Raj Sharma and former Ambassador to the United States Naresh Chandra, besides a large number of relatives and friends. Nitish’s mother Neelam Katara, who maintained her composure, termed his death as an “act of butchery”.
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