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| Thursday,
July 25, 2002, Chandigarh, India   
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Govt not pressing EC for early poll: Advani
EC reviews poll preparedness Motion
against MP Govt rejected Defence
journals may be published in Hindi NORTH INDIA IN
PARLIAMENT Oppn
stages walkout over cable TV issue |
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Oppn
continues to boycott George LS
adjourned over Congress MP’s death Oppn
questions Jaswant’s absence from Rajya Sabha Raman
Singh is new Chhattisgarh BJP chief Bihar
floods: 14 dead Priyadarshani
award for Yash Chopra Govt
move on J&K futile exercise: CPM Congress
against inclusion of RSS in J&K talks George
assures Ramoowalia on relief to truckers
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Govt not pressing EC for early poll: Advani New Delhi, July 24 He stated that the Centre, on its part, would ensure free and fair elections in Gujarat. He disputed the Opposition’s contention that the atmosphere in the state was not conducive for elections. He said the Centre would urge the Election Commission to ensure that those still living in relief camps in the state were able to exercise their franchise. Even if they did not have identity cards or ration cards, some other arrangement could be made to enable them to vote. Replying to the short-duration discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the Gujarat issue, Mr Advani admitted that Governor Sunder Singh Bhandari did not consult the Centre before accepting the state government’s recommendation to dissolve the Assembly. “There was absolutely no need for the Governor to consult the Centre. It was his discretion under the Sarkaria Commission recommendations which he exercised. Even if he had accepted the state government’s recommendation after consulting the Centre, the Opposition would have accused the Governor of acting at the Centre’s behest,” Mr Advani added. Dissatisfied with the Deputy Prime Minister’s reply, the entire Opposition, led by Leader of the Opposition Dr Manmohan Singh walked out of the House. Mr Advani’s reply, though brief, lasted almost two hours because of frequent exchange of charges between the ruling and opposition benches. At one stage, Vice-Chairman Rama Shankar Kaushik had to adjourn the House for 10 minutes for discussion with leaders of all parties for smooth functioning of the House. Mr Advani denied having told an English daily earlier this month that he did not agree with the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) report on the Godhra incident. “I deny it now. I have not said that. All I said was that I am examining the report,” he said. “Anybody who visits the burnt railway compartment of the Sabarmati Express, will be able to say that the fire was started from inside, he added. Justifying the state government’s decision to go in for fresh elections, he said the situation was not conducive two to three months earlier. Therefore, at the BJP’s executive session in Goa, when Chief Minister Narendra Modi offered to resign to hold fresh elections, the party decided that there was no question of holding elections unless peace returned to the state. Citing an example he said Punjab was recovering from terrorist violence in the early nineties when elections were held in the state. This had led to an overall improvement in the law and order situation in that state. Replying to a member’s query on whether Mr K.P.S. Gill, who was until recently the Security Adviser to the Chief Minister, would have any role during the elections, Mr Advani lauded his role in restoring normalcy in the state. Reading out from the Sarkaria Commission report, Mr Advani said under Article 355 of the Constitution, the Centre had a responsibility to take measures for restoring normalcy in a state under certain circumstances. However, Mr Kapil Sibal (Congress) wanted to know why the Centre did not act (under Para 6.3.11 of Article 356) and intervene in the state earlier. There were loud protests from the Opposition when Mr Advani commended the way the Gujarat Chief Minister had handled the situation in the state. Reiterating that the situation in the state was conducive for holding elections, the Deputy Prime Minister said out of the 182 Assembly constituencies in the state, 103 constituencies had not been affected by the violence. By March 31, peace had been restored in 52 more constituencies and by April 30, there were only 13 or 14 places where some incidents took place. However, Leader of the Opposition Dr Manmohan Singh was not satisfied and queried about the current state of affairs in the state. He also questioned allocation and actual disbursement of relief money. |
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EC reviews poll preparedness New Delhi, July 24 A three-member panel, comprising Chief Election Commissioner J.M. Lyngdoh and Election Commissioners T.S. Krishnamurthy and B.B. Tandon, reviewed the status of preparations of photo identity cards, revision of electoral rolls and availability of electronic voting machines, commission sources said. Besides Gujarat, the other states which would go to the polls are Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland. The Election Commission has also issued necessary instructions to the Electoral Officers of these states to take necessary steps for the speedy issuance of photo identity cards to the electorate, revision of electoral rolls, etc, sources said. |
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Motion against MP
Govt rejected Bhopal, July 24 Mr Digvijay Singh’s “evasiveness” was highlighted by the Leader of the Opposition, Dr Gauri Shankar Shejwar (BJP), who reiterated some of the charges in his concluding remarks. Dr Shejwar had initiated the discussion on the motion on July 22. This was the third no-confidence motion against the Digvijay Singh government since the Congress government took charge in December, 1993. The Opposition’s major charge related to the financial mismanagement during the two terms of Mr Digvijay Singh. The state government’s debt liability during this period increased from around Rs 5,000 crore to Rs 27,000 crore but the Chief Minister did not say what the government had done with this amount, Dr Shejwar said. Nor did the Chief Minister explain, as demanded by Mr Babulal Gour yesterday, as to what public interest was involved in the government’s attempt at withdrawing the case against Transport Inspector Shahida Sultan, who was nabbed by the Lokayukta police with a suitcase containing over Rs 6 lakh, allegedly meant for a minister. The government’s application was, however, rejected by the court following the Lokayukta’s assertion that the government had no authority to withdraw the case. Denying the allegation of massive corruption in the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the Chief Minister, however, admitted that the department had to revise certain rules and there was some delay in starting the work, which had now been undertaken. The charge sheet alleged that the incidents of atrocities on Dalits were on the rise: between 1998 and 2001, 466 Dalits were murdered, 173 kidnapped and 2,286 Dalit women were raped. The Chief Minister said the Dalit Agenda, adopted at a state-sponsored Dalit conference in Bhopal earlier this year, had been appreciated even by ministers of the Union Government. |
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Defence
journals may
be published in Hindi New Delhi, July 24 Replying to questions in the Rajya Sabha during question hour, Defence Minister George Fernandes said the Defence Ministry was considering as to how Hindi should be given priority. The reported induction of Sukhoi 30 MKI jets into the Indian Air Force met with a furore from the Opposition benches. Mr Prem Chand Gupta (RJD) said keeping in view the sentiments, he did not want to ask the question from the Defence Minister. Chairman Krishan Kant was forced to move to the next question. Mr Rajiv Shukla (Akhil Bharatiya Loktantrik Congress) asked how many people had been given cash awards to encourage Hindi publications of defence-related matters. The Defence Minister said there was a biannual cash award scheme ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 15,000 as well as an annual cash award scheme for ‘in-house’ Hindi publications. The minister also said in Defence and strategic studies, magazines, journals and articles were being published from time to time but the frequency of these publications would largely depend on the perceived demand of the targeted Hindi reader. Mr Raj Nath Singh Surya (BJP) said no decision had been taken till date for giving general information on Defence to the commonman. Ms Savita Sharda (BJP) said libraries in the ministry must have information in Hindi. |
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NORTH INDIA IN PARLIAMENT New Delhi, July 24 In a written reply, the Minister of State for Home, Ch Vidyasagar Rao, said of these, 238 migrant families were living in 14 camps in Delhi and 4,778 families in 12 camps in Jammu. Others were living under their own arrangements. As reported by the state government, the condition in the migrant camps was satisfactory. All facilities, including water, electricity, health, school education and sanitation, were being provided to the migrants putting up in the camps. In addition, relief as per norms approved by the state government or the union territory was also being provided, the minister said in his reply. He said the government had not received any report to indicate that migrants were falling prey to diseases and that their death rate had increased and birth rate had declined. No reports of alarming deaths had been received, the House was told. In reply to another question, the minister said though it was difficult to assess the exact figures of infiltration, assessment of available trends indicated that there had been a decline in the level of infiltration this year as compared to last year. In addition to diplomatic initiatives at various levels and redeployment of troops, the government, conjointly with the state government, had adopted a multi-pronged approach to contain cross-border terrorism, perpetrated by Pakistan’s ISI in Jammu and Kashmir, which included, inter alia, strengthening border management to check infiltration, pro-active action against terrorists within J&K, gearing up of intelligence machinery, greater functional integration through an institutional framework of operation groups and intelligence groups and UHQs at all levels, improved technology, weapons and equipment for security forces and action as per law against overground supporters of the terrorists, the minister said. As per information available from the state government, between July 1, 2001, and June 30, 2002, 4,280 terrorists attacks had taken place in the state. Some places of attack in the last one year had been in Pahalgam, Kishtwar, Doda, Jammu, Udhampur, Poonch, Anantnag and Rajouri. During this period, 309 Army personnel had been killed and 873 Army personnel had been injured, while 1,001 civilians had been killed and 1,680 civilians had been injured, the Minister told the House. |
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Oppn stages walkout
over cable TV issue New Delhi, July 24 After Mr Suresh Pachauri of the Congress raised the issue, which he said was a privilege issue as Rajya Sabha members had been threatened, other opposition members, including those from the Left parties, said they had not been treated properly and staged a walkout. Raising the issue during zero hour, Mr Pachauri cited reports in the electronic media and some newspapers, in which cable operators had made irresponsible statements against MPs who opposed the Bill. Describing it as a matter of grave concern, Mr Pachauri demanded that it be taken to the Privileges Committee and that protection be given to MPs in this regard. The Left parties, led by Mr Dipankar Mukherjee and Ms Sarla Maheshwari, accused the government of “sponsoring” cable operators. Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani refuted the allegations, adding that if an attempt was made to defame Parliament, it would be referred to the Privileges Committee. Dissatisfied with Mr Advani’s reply, the entire Opposition led by Mr Kapil Sibal walked out of the House. |
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Oppn continues to boycott George New Delhi, July 24 When RJD member Prem Chand Gupta was called by Chairman Krishan Kant to ask a query during question hour, he said: “George Fernandes is still the Defence Minister. I do not want to put any question to him as there was a deal at his residence. There was a defence loot.” When Mr Gupta tried to suggest that the general mood in the House was that members did not want to ask questions to Mr Fernandes, the Treasury Benches strongly reacted and said the member could not represent everybody. Mr Fernandes, however, answered a volley of questions put by NDA constituents, AIADMK and a nominated member. |
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LS adjourned over Congress MP’s death New Delhi, July 24 Atmaram Maganbhai Patel, who was the oldest member of the House representing Mehsana, was a close aide of newly-appointed Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee President Shankarsinh Vaghela having left the BJP in 1996. Paying tributes to the Congress member, Speaker Manohar Joshi said he had been active in the cooperative movement and was conferred the IFFCO award for this in 1985. Atmaram Maganbhai Patel, who had joined the Congress after his humiliation at a public meeting of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, was one of the founding members of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh. |
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Oppn questions Jaswant’s absence from Rajya Sabha New Delhi, July 24 The issue was raised by senior Congress leader Arjun Singh, who demanded to know the reason behind Mr Jaswant Singh’s absence from the House. He also wanted to know whether Mr Jaswant Singh had been removed as Leader of the House by Deputy Prime Minister
L.K. Advani. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs O. Rajgopal assured the House that Mr Jaswant Singh would come to the House whenever the need arose. |
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Raman Singh is new Chhattisgarh BJP chief New Delhi, July 24 Addressing newspersons, BJP spokesman Sunil Shastri said that party President M. Venkaiah Naidu has accepted Mr Rajnath Singh’s resignation. Mr Rajnath Singh’s resignation is in keeping with the BJP policy of one-man-one-post. He is the party General Secretary and in charge of Uttar Pradesh. Mr Raman Singh would be resigning from the Union Council of Ministers shortly, Mr Shastri said. He has been appointed in place of Mr Lakhiram Aggarwal who has been made Prabhari for the state. Mr Rajnath Singh’s successor would be elected on July 28 in Lucknow with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan being deputed as an observer by party President M. Venkaiah Naidu for the meeting. Meanwhile, Mr Naidu today met Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi for discussing the situation in the state in the light of the ongoing agitation on the domicile issue. Mr Marandi, who had been summoned by Mr Naidu, was told by the party high command to take immediate steps for diffusing the crisis by convening an all party meeting. |
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Bihar floods: 14 dead Patna, July 24 The Chief Minister, Ms Rabri
Devi, after assessing the situation, asked the Defence Ministry to provide Army motorboats and helicopters for relief work. The state government also sounded a red alert in seven districts under flood threat. Six persons were killed when a bridge on the Sitamarhi-Sheohar highway collapsed. Three persons were drowned in Darbhanga villages. Two persons were killed when the embankment on which they were standing was breached, washing them away. |
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Priyadarshani award
for Yash Chopra Mumbai, July 24 Announcing the awards, Academy Chairperson Nanik Rupani and Awards Committee Chairperson Ram Tarneja informed that the Deputy Prime Minister
L. K. Advani would present the award for the betterment of world environment to Mr Prescott. The award comprises of a trophy and citation. Yash Chopra will be awarded for his contribution to films, while Dr Mashelkar, Director-General of Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, will be awarded for his contribution to the development of science and research in India. Ms Hassi, Minister for Environment of Finland, will also be given an award for her contribution to the environment in the international category. Corporate Adviser of Sony, Japan, Jiro Hiko will be conferred upon the Harish Mahindra Memorial Award for corporate responsibility. The other awardees include Steven Puthuff, Chairman and CEO of Sybersay Communication Corp of the USA (for contribution towards mass communication), Prof Gilbert Etienne of Switzerland (for social economic studies), S. Chandradas, Chairman of NTUC Fairprice Corp, Singapore (for cooperative movement) and Satpal Khattar of Khattar Wong and Partners, Singapore (best overseas Indian award).
UNI |
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Govt move on J&K futile exercise : CPM New Delhi, July 24 “This is a meaningless step as the BJP-led government adamantly refuses to discuss the provision of autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir within the ambit of the Article 370. There can be no genuine political solution to the Kashmir problem unless the autonomy issue is taken up seriously,” the CPM Politburo said in a statement. |
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Congress
against inclusion of RSS in J&K talks New Delhi, July 24 Congress Spokesman Anand Sharma said, “Inclusion of the RSS in the mandate of the interlocutor will be counter-productive, provocative and unacceptable to the large majority in Jammu and Kashmir.” He said the RSS had “no relevance or any role when it comes to discussing issues of devolution of power in Jammu and Kashmir.” Mr Sharma said the Congress was for discussion on devolution within the parameters of the 1975 Indira-Sheikh accord. |
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George
assures Ramoowalia on
relief to truckers New Delhi, July 24 This assurance was given by Mr Fernandes to Mr
B. S. Ramoowalia, MP and President of the Lok Bhalai Party, when he called on the former today. Mr Ramoowalia had written a letter to the Defence Minister sometime back, demanding compensation for 16 affected truck owners of Bathinda and other parts of Punjab. |
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