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New Delhi, February 3 A day before the crucial meeting of Chief Electoral Officers of the states and Union Territories in the Capital, leaders of various Opposition parties met the Chief Election Commissioner and urged him to consider the ongoing revision of electoral rolls, and the school examination while finalising the poll schedule for the Lok Sabha poll.
Sonia faces tough task in
Orissa
Violence mars Bengal
bandh
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LS clears Railway Interim Budget
List Telgi cases to be probed, SC asks
CBI
Sinha asks SAARC countries to emulate
Bhutan
New Delhi, February 3 The Government today listed several initiatives taken in the past five years to generate employment but a dissatisfied Opposition staged a walk out in the Rajya Sabha. Turban ban
issue raised in Lok Sabha
Notices to TN,
Krishna on officers’ promotion
Conviction of 5 stayed
in Harshad Mehta case
Mumbai top cop Pasricha shifted
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Oppn parties meet EC on poll
schedule
New Delhi, February 3 After meeting the CEC Mr J.M. Lyngdoh, and the other two Election Commissioners Mr T.S. Krishnamurthy and Mr B.B. Tandon, they told reporters that the final publication of electoral rolls in UP was scheduled on March 23 and the board examinations in the state would end on April 16. "The issue is concerning students’ future and the Commission should announce the schedule only after taking all these factors," they said. The delegation included former Prime Minister and Janata Dal (Secular) leader H D Deve Gowda, RJD supremo Laloo Prasad Yadav, CPI (M) leader Harkishen Singh Surjeet, CPI leader A B Bardan. Meanwhile, in the day long meeting of Chief Electoral Officers (CEOs) of all states and Union Territories, the three-member election Panel led by Chief Election Commissioner J.M. Lyngdoh is expected to make an exhaustive review and discussion on the progress made by individual states in the revision of electoral rolls, issue of photo identity card, requirement of polling staff and electronic Voting machines (EVMs). Interestingly, the Chief Election Commissioner-designate T.S. Krishnamurthy is likely to do a lot of talking during the meeting as Mr Lyndoh is due to retire on February 7 and it will be in the former’s leadership the next general election would be conducted, sources said. Besides, Mr Lyngdoh and Mr Krishnamurthy, the Election Commissioner B B Tandon and other senior officials of the Commission would address the CEOs. Tomorrow’s meeting is expected to give the Election Commission a fair idea about the poll preparedness in various states and would thus help it to narrow down on the possible dates for conducting the general elections. The commission, armed with the inputs and requirements given by the CEOs of different states, would have a formal discussion with the Union Home Secretary on the requirements and deployment of central forces before deciding on the final dates for the crucial poll. |
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Sonia faces tough task in
Orissa
New Delhi, February 3 Given the Congress party’s plummeting graph in Uttar Pradesh, Ms Gandhi had undertaken a three-day tour through western UP by road last month. The idea was to showcase Ms Gandhi as a mass leader and enthuse the otherwise demotivated party cadres. A similar two-day exercise is now being planned for Orissa later this month. Orissa has been chosen primarily because the Congress is fighting an uphill battle against the formidable BJP-BJD combine which won 19 of 21 Lok Sabha seats in the last general election. The state Congress unit, which has been riven by dissensions, has failed to mount an effective campaign against the Navin Patnaik-led government despite the recent reappointment of party veteran J.B. Patnaik as the PCC president. It is now hoped the party’s prospects will improve with the recent decision of BJD rebels like Mr Dilip Ray, to join the Congress. However, the Congress has a tough task on hand. The Congress vote share here has declined steadily, reaching an all-time low of 30 per cent in the last election as compared to the 60 per cent vote share of the BJP-BJD combine. Bridging this huge gap is not going to be easy. Mr J.B. Patnaik, who has been the Congress party’s face in Orissa for the last two decades, still remains an unpopular figure in the state as the Anjana Mishra case continues to haunt him. As a result, the Navin Patnaik government’s performance has taken a backseat while the chief minister’s popularity ratings have soared. Political observers maintain that Mr J.B. Patnaik might have won the elections in 1980 and 1985 but the Congress party’s victory in 1995 was due to the presence of the large number of Janata Dal rebel candidates. It is being further argued that admitting the BJD’s rebel MPs and legislators into the Congress will further polarise the polity and a one-to-one battle would end up helping its opponents. Instead, it will be far more beneficial if the rebels were to contest separately as that would split the NDA vote. For instance, in the last Assembly elections, the Congress won 26 of the 147 seats. Of these, only five were won through direct contest while the others went the Congress way primarily because of a multi-cornered battle. The Congress leadership is under pressure that instead of having an alliance with other parties, the presence of such groups in the fray would actually help the party. In fact, it is being suggested that the Congress should actively promote rebel candidates from the BJP and BJD ranks to divide the anti-Congress vote. |
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Violence mars Bengal
bandh
Kolkata, February 3 The bandh was organised in protest against the state government's decision to impose taxes on the rural poor and their properties like cows and the cattle. The bandh was partial. Buses, trams and other public vehicles plied, though their number was less. The suburban and long distance trains left and reached Howrah and Sealdah stations on time barring a few incidents of obstruction. Airlines also operated as usual. Over 1500 persons had been arrested from different parts of the state in connection with the bandh. The police had to open fire in two incidents and use tear gas shells in three other incidents in and around Kolkata to stop clashes between Trinamool and the CPM supporters. There were several incidents of obstructions on the railway track at several stations. The bandh supporters held up government buses on several routes. In some areas, crackers were burst and stones were thrown at running buses, injuring several passengers and damaging the vehicles. Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee claimed that the bandh had little effect. He said buses, trams and trains ran as usual. State government offices and private establishments were open and functioned as usual though the attendance there was less. There was normal work in Kolkata and Haldia ports. Tea gardens in north Bengal functioned normally. All flights from Kolkata airport operated on time schedule, he added. But the Trinamool leader, Mr Pankaj Banerjee, thanked people for responding to the bandh call. He alleged that the CPM and the police jointly operated and attacked the bandh supporters to foil the bandh. He alleged that over 3,000 innocent Trinamool workers and supporters were tortured and arrested by the police for participating in the bandh. Calling the bandh as politically motivated, the Left Front chairman, Mr Biman Bose, said the people had rejected the Trinamool bandh. He claimed that the bandh was a total flop. |
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LS clears Railway Interim Budget
New Delhi, February 3 The House also cleared the supplementary demands for grants for the excess amount being spent during 2003-04. Winding up the discussion, Mr Kumar said finances and infrastructure of the Railway had progressed. Claiming that the rate of accident in the Indian Railways was lower than other parts of the world, he said that the per km train accident incidence would be brought down to 0.03 in three years from 1.5 at present. He said this reduction in the accident rate would be enabled by introduction of the Konkan railway-developed Anti-Collision Device (ACD) which would be fitted in the next five years on all trains running on BG lines. After this, there would not be any accident due to collision between trains. Mr Kumar said the government had done a lot in the railway sector but there were projects worth Rs 18,000 crore pending for implementation. —
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List Telgi cases to be probed, SC asks
CBI
New Delhi, February 3 A Bench of Chief Justice V.N. Khare and Mr Justice S.H. Kapadia directed the CBI to file an affidavit to this effect within five weeks, which should be based on the information to be supplied by the states as to how many cases they proposed to hand over to the agency. The states were asked to supply the information to the CBI within two weeks. The direction was issued by the court after the CBI in an affidavit said that due to limited resources it would be able to take up only those cases that would have inter-state and national security ramifications or related to the seizure of fake stamp papers in very large quantities or printing machines used by the accused. “The CBI be permitted to identify the cases before it takes them up for investigation,” Solicitor-General Kirit
Raval, appearing for the agency, told the court. The CBI also objected to the Karnataka Government's order of January 7, excluding the operation of Section 267 of the CrPC in the state regarding taking away an accused for interrogation outside its territorial jurisdiction. This would prevent the CBI from taking into custody prime accused Abdul Karim Telgi, lodged in a Karnataka jail, for interrogation, except in the cases registered in the state, the agency said. |
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Sinha asks SAARC countries to emulate
Bhutan
New Delhi, February 3 Mr Sinha said this while giving the Seventh Dinesh Singh Memorial Lecture here on “Twelfth SAARC Summit and Beyond”. “Mere denials will not suffice. Inspiration should be drawn from the courage and foresight with which Bhutan has moved against elements within its borders which were threatening its own sovereignty as well as the security of India,” Mr Sinha said. He added that already several such examples had been witnessed in the immediate vicinity and it would be wise for everyone to learn from these developments. The minister also sounded a warning that providing support and sanctuary to terrorist elements could prove
counter-productive. The minister said that encouraging non-state actors, terrorists and other elements by providing sanctuary and support not only violated the UN Security Council Resolution 1373 but could also “boomerang” on the countries which provide such support. |
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Oppn walks out over unemployment issue
New Delhi, February 3 Answering to short duration discussion on the unemployment problem, Labour Minister Sahib Singh Verma cited several steps taken by the government to boost employment. However, the Opposition staged a walkout saying the government had not given a direct answer to their repeated questions on how it planned to provide one crore jobs every year as promised by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. CPI(M) member Jibon Roy claimed there was loss of three crore jobs in the small-scale sector while one lakh people were becoming jobless in the organised sector annually. Mr S.V. Virumbi (DMK) said employment opportunities in agriculture were not rising as a result of which there was large-scale migration to urban areas. Opposition members expressed concern over exploitation of labourers who migrated to cities from rural areas in search of livelihood. |
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Turban ban
issue raised in Lok Sabha
New Delhi, February 3 Raising the issue during Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, Mr
B.K. Bansal said the ban by the French Government was an infringement on the fundamental right to follow one’s own religious faith. He said the report on the matter had created anxiety among the citizens of this country. “It is a matter of common concern for all Indians.’’ Mr Bansal wanted to know from the government if the matter had been taken up with France. |
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Notices to TN,
Krishna on officers’ promotion
New Delhi, February 3 A Bench comprising Mr Justice S.N. Variava and Mr Justice H.K. Sema issued the notices on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Abdul Latif and directed the Chief Minister and the state government to submit their replies. The PIL alleged that despite cases pending against such officials under the Prevention of Corruption Act for acquiring properties disproportionate to their known sources of income, they were being given preference by the government in promotion, it said. Against some of the officers, the cases had been registered more than 10 years ago, in which allegations had been made by the probe agencies that they had amassed properties worth hundreds of crore rupees, the PIL said. |
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Conviction of 5 stayed
in Harshad Mehta case
New Delhi, February 3 A Bench of Mr Justice R.C. Lahoti and Mr Justice B.P. Singh issued notice to the CBI asking it to file replies to the special leave petitions by the accused. The trial court had sentenced former UCO Bank’s General Managers Bargabandhu and R Venkatkrishnan to six months’ jail term for placing bank’s Rs 40 crore in the hands of Harshad Mehta for investment in securities in 1992. While National Housing Bank’s Assistant General Manager (AGM) C Ravi Kumar was sentenced to three years imprisonment, Suresh Babu, another officer of the same rank in the bank was given one-year jail term. UCO Bank’s AGM S.V. Ramanathan was awarded one-month sentence. Since Harshad Mehta had died during the pendency of the trial, the case against him was abated but one of his office assistant was given 15 days sentence. All five bank officials were also slapped a fine of Rs 1 lakh each by the trial court. |
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Mumbai top cop Pasricha shifted
Mumbai, February 3 There was little indication of the impending move as Pasricha continued to hold meetings with police officials till today afternoon. Maharashtra Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde took the decision to shunt out Pasricha and the decision was conveyed to him by the Chief Secretary. |
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After the problem state of Uttar Pradesh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi is planning a roadshow in the equally difficult state of Orissa.
Given the Congress party’s plummeting graph in Uttar Pradesh, Ms Gandhi had undertaken a three-day tour through western UP by road last month.
In video (
