The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Festival has good films, not crowds Amar Chandel New Delhi, October 10 The 34th International Film Festival of India got into the groove today with the first full day of screening of some much-awaited films. It's a pity that these are not attracting crowds to the expected level. The audiences seem to be more interested in tried and tested films. The mainstream section was inaugurated at PVR Anupam today with noted film-maker Ramesh Sippy being the chief guest. "Saathiya" directed by Shaad Ali evoked good response. The panorama section was inaugurated by Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Ravi Shankar Prasad with the screening of non-feature film "Narayan Gangaram Surve" directed by Arun Khopkar and "Anaahat" directed by Amol Palekar at Siri Fort-II. The response was less than encouraging. The "Pinjar" stars led by Manoj Bajpai shared with the Press the trials and tribulations involved in picturising this poignant film on Partition while trying to be faithful to Amrita Pritam's story. Urmila didn't attend the conference. She was also absent at last night's dinner. Also inaugurated by Mr Prasad was a film bazaar although many of the foreign participants and buyers have yet to come. It was given out that representatives from Australia, Malaysia, South Africa, Uzbekistan, England, Russia and some other countries have confirmed participation but the bazaar actually has only the Maldives and Uzbekistan. The film festival today screened some powerful films in Cinema of the World section, which have been in the limelight in the recent competitions. The most notable of them was "My Mother's Smile" from Italy which won the Critic's Prize at Festival du Film Italien De Villerupt (2002) and the best film award at Golden Globes (2002). It has been shown with similar distinction at the Buenos Aires International Festival of Independent Cinema, Turin, Hong Kong, Palm Springs, Singapore, Annecy Cinema Italien, Cannes, Chicago, EFA, Rio de Janeiro, New York and Toronto. Producer-director Marco Bellocchio stands true to his reputation of taking a true look at human relationships, even if it entails annoying the established order. Here he exposes the underbelly of the Vatican and the lies, untruths and intrigue involved in obtaining sainthood for ordinary persons. He remains inches away from attracting howls of blasphemy. Painter Ernesto Buotafuoco, an illustrator of fables for children, finds to his surprise that the rest of his extended family has begun the process for his mother to be made a saint by the Vatican. Conflicts come to the fore as the atheist son is advised to go along with the plan for the sake of his son. He is told to hide the dark secrets about mother while a clever campaign is launched to create a saint where there is none. The film is the culmination of Bellochhio's 40-year career as a film-maker during which he has followed a course which has been controversial to the extreme. He has been hitting the silver screen like a bomb right since his first film, "Fists in the Pocket" (1965). Like always, he searches for the deeper meaning of existence in order to be able to approach and understand the existence of others and the world. South Korean comedy South Korean film "The Romantic President" was proof enough the comedy does not have to be slapstick as it is believed in Bollywood. In fact, it evoked wry humour from dead-serious storyline which seemed to have drawn inspiration from the secret life of President Clinton. No, there are none of the escapades of the Monica kind. Just the travails of a love affair gone awry. The film owes its elan to a taut script penned by director Jeon Man-bae, who is Korea's well-known comedy writer. He has been helped in script writing by writer-director Kwak Jae-Dong, who had made biggest hit of 2001, "My Sassy Girl". Ahn Sung-ki plays the President who goes undercover as a homeless man and a cab driver. Choi Ji-woo is the teacher who disguises herself as a student in order to grasp the situation. She has been sacked from numerous schools due to her eccentricity and too strong dedication to teaching. Teacher Eun-soo meets her match in Yeong-hee, the classroom troublemaker who lives to rebel. Eun-soo calls her parents to the school and learns to her surprise that her brattish student is the adopted daughter of the popular President. Nevertheless, she summons the President to school, scolds him and even makes him copy down "Hwangjoga" 100 times. The clash develops into a strange love affair. The subtitled film is a wonderful window on Korean cinema. Real slapstic For real slapstick, one had to go to "Yes Nurse, No Nurse" directed by Pieter Kramer. This delirious, all-singing, all-dancing romantic comedy revolves around the eccentric denizens of an Amsterdam rest home and their killjoy neighbour, who wants the whole lot of them evicted. The film has also had a stage version earlier.
	DGP to submit report Relief to terror attack victims Tribune News Service New Delhi, October 10 The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has asked the Director-General of Police, Kashmir to report within three weeks whether any compensation has been paid to the next of kin of those killed in the terrorist attack at Vaishno Devi on July 20. The direction was passed recently when a full Bench of the commission met to consider an initial report received from the Director-General of Police, Jammu and Kashmir. Three days after the terrorist attack, the commission had taken suo motu cognisance of the media reports on the killing of seven Vaishno Devi pilgrims. In its proceedings of July 23, the commission had called for a report from the Director-General of Police, Jammu and Kashmir within three weeks on the terrorist attack and the alleged laxity in security. The commission took note of the reported statement of the Minister of State for Public Health and Engineering, Mr Jugal Kishore, about lax security in the area. The commission observed that it was a matter of serious concern that no steps were taken despite the fact that Mr Kishore had reportedly drawn the attention of the DGP, Jammu and Kashmir to the laxity in security.
	Courts can’t strike down laws delegated to executive: SC S.S. Negi Our Legal Correspondent New Delhi, October 10 The Supreme Court has ruled that courts cannot strike down a legislation delegated by Parliament to the executive as its validity has to be tested on the anvil of the law-making power of the legislature. The ruling was given by a Bench comprising Ms Justice Ruma Pal and Mr Justice B N Srikrishna while upholding the validity of the Centre’s notification restraining the Income Tax (IT) authorities from proceeding against Mauritius-based Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) for being protected under the Indo-Mauritius Double Taxation Avoidance Convention (IMDTAC). Besides upholding the vires of the April 2000 order of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to the IT authorities, the court in a more than 100 pages judgement elaborated in detail on the validity of the IMDATC because the Delhi High Court, which had struck down the notification, had refrained from giving any opinion on the treaty. Rejecting the arguments against the validity of the IMDTAC by those who had challenged the CBTD circular, the court said “it would not enable this court to strike down the delegated legislation as ultra vires. The validity and the vires of the legislation, primary, or delegated has to be tested on the anvil of the law-making power (of the legislature).” “If an authority lacks power, then the legislation is bad. On the contrary, if the authority is clothed with the requisite power, then irrespective of the fact whether the legislation fails in its object or not, its vires is not laiable to be questioned,” the court ruled. “We are, therefore, unable to accept the contention of the respondents (an NGO which had challenged the CBDT order) that the IMDTAC is ultra vires of the power of the Central Government under Section 90 (of the Income Tax Act) on account of its susceptibility to ‘treaty shopping’ on behalf of the residents of the third countries.” The circular said the production of a certificate by the Mauritius authorities by a company about its residential status of that country was sufficient proof for it to get tax benefits under the IMDTAC on investments made in India and the IT authorities would not initiate any probe against such a company for tax liability on capital gains. The NGO, Azadi Bachao Andolan (ABA), had alleged that various FIIs from around the globe had been indulging in “treaty shopping” under the IMDTAC by opening “post box” type offices in Mauritius to get residential status of that country and then get huge tax benefits on capital gains earned on investments made in the Indian share market. After the high court had struck down the circular, the Union Government had challenged the order in the Supreme Court, which had also impleaded a consortium of Mauritius-based FIIs as party in the case. During the arguments, the ABA had also questioned the validity of the IMDTAC apart from the CBDT notification and described “treaty shopping” by the FIIs as illegal, unethical and amounting to enacting a “fraud” on the treaty itself. But the judges did not agree with their contention and said “in our view, if it was intended that a national of a third state should be precluded from the benefits of the IMDTAC, then a suitable term of limitation to that effect should have been incorporated therein.” Referring to a similar treaty between India and the USA, which specifically provides the limitation clause, the court said “there are no disabling or disentitling conditions under the IMDTAC prohibiting the residents of a thrid country from deriving benefits thereunder... and there is marked contrast between the two treaties.” “Even if we accept the arguments of the respondent that the IMDTAC is delegated legislation, the test of its validity is to be determined, not by its efficacy, but by the fact that it is within the parameters of the legislative provision delegating the power (to executive),” the Bench ruled.
	6 more Bakery accused get bail Vadodara, October 10 Six more accused in the Vadodara Best Bakery case today surrendered before the city police and were granted bail, furnishing sureties of Rs 10,000 each before a local court as per the Gujarat High Court’s recent directives. Yesterday, 13 of the 21 accused, who were acquitted on June 27 by the fast-track court of Additional Sessions Judge H. U. Mahida, obtained the bail from the same court against the bailable warrants issued by the high court after the state government went on appeal seeking retrial of the case. Counsel, appearing for the accused, said the remaining two accused were now reportedly in Delhi to file affidavits in the Supreme Court in connection with the case and were expected to surrender before the police soon after they reached Vadodara. The high court had fixed December 1 for hearing the government’s appeal. — UNI
	Dara Singh moves HC against death row Cuttack, October 10 Dara Singh, sentenced to death by the trial court in Bhubaneswar in the sensational murder case of Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two minor sons, today moved the high court challenging the order. In a petition filed before the court, Dara Singh alleged that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had cooked up a story by getting witnesses of a particular community. He said the investigation conducted by the CBI was biased and perfunctory and the evidences of the prosecution witnesses were discrepant and contradictory. Khurda District and Sessions judge Mahendra Nath Pattnaik, trial judge in the Staines murder case, had sentenced Dara Singh to death and 12 other accused in the case to life imprisonment on September 22. Dara Singh initially had decided not to contest the judgement pronounced by the trial court but was later persuaded by his counsel to move the court against the judgement. His counsel also moved another petition before the high court seeking 15 days’ parole to attend the rites of his father who recently died in a road accident. — UNI
	HC tells UP not to allow congregation in disputed land Lucknow, October 10 Ahead of the VHP’s proposed Ayodhya march on October 17, the Allahabad High Court today asked Uttar Pradesh government to take all necessary steps to ensure that its order of status quo regarding the disputed site is maintained and no congregation is allowed in or around that place. Passing the order on an application seeking a ban on the VHP’s proposed Ayodhya march on October 17, the Special Lucknow Bench comprising Mr Justice S. R. Alam, Mr Justice Khem Karan and Mr Justice Bhanwar Singh said the court expected that the state government and district administration would pass the necessary orders to regulate the crowd and not allow any congregation on or around the disputed site and should not permit any religious activity of any kind. The court, which is hearing the Ayodhya title suits, however, said all precautions should be taken to ensure that usual ‘puja’ and ‘darshan’ were not disturbed.— PTI
	Rights violation in Bihar raised before SC Our Legal Correspondent New Delhi, October 10 A lawyer from Bihar has raised the issue of “gross” violation of human rights in Bihar before the Supreme Court alleging that “jungle raj” was prevailing in the state but the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was closing its eyes to the happenings there. The plea was raised by Supreme Court advocate Shambhu Singh before a three-judge Bench, headed by Mr Chief Justice V. N. Khare during the hearing of NHRC’s petition yesterday on the failure of the Best Bakery case in Gujarat. “There are more violations of human rights in Bihar where doctors, lawyers, teachers and others are kidnapped and murdered almost every day,” he said. He claimed a murder took place in the state after every three hours and kidnapping after every six hours. “Is NHRC only interested in Gujarat and why is it closing its eyes to the happenings in Bihar? ” he asked. He said it was not the question of the rights of any community or caste but every individual, guaranteed the right to life and free living under the Constitution. However, the court also having Mr Justice S. B. Sinha and Mr Justice A. R. Lakshmanan as other two judges, refrained from making any comment on his plea. When the petitioner had raised a similar plea during the last hearing, the court had advised him to make a representation to the NHRC.