Jalandhar, November 13
Virtually throwing down the gauntlet in front of the Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh, senior SAD leader Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal has accused families of Captain Amarinder Singh and Union Minister Natwar Singh of “robbing” the country jointly and at the same time demanded that the recent Dubai trip of the Chief Minister should be brought into ambit of the probe into the ongoing food-for-oil scam by the commission headed by Justice R. S. Pathak.

The Junior Badal also linked Captain Amarinder Singh’s son Raninder Singh with Andy Sehgal, the prime figure alleged to be involved in the oil-for-food scam, and alleged that Raninder Singh, Natwar Singh’s son Jagat Singh and Andy Sehgal were “business partners”.

“Earlier they were denying such links, but now these links have got exposed. I have come to know that not only that the three were business partners, but Jagat Singh and Andy Sehgal used to travel to Jordan from Iraq by road. If scrutinized the passports of Jagat Singh, Andy Sehgal and Raninder can tell the entire tale about their visits to Iraq,” alleged Mr. Sukhbir Singh Badal.

He went on to see some “mystery” in the Dubai visit of Captain Amarinder Singh as he had gone there “without security and permission of the PMO.”

“Captain’s Dubai visit is a part of the international scam. Big money exchange could have taken place during this three-day short visit of the Chief Minister. What remained unanswered was the way Capain went to that country without security and sans any prior permission. So I can make out that some secret dealings could have been made during the trip. I also demand that the Dubai visit of the CM should be made part of the investigation, being conducted into the matter by the commission headed by Justice R.S. Pathak,” asserted a confident looking Sukhbir Singh Badal.

“It was not the first time that the Chief Minister has made such mystery- shrouded foreign trips, but he had headed for an undisclosed destination during his visit to the UK,” said Mr Sukhbir Singh Badal, who was accompanied by senior party leaders including Dr Daljit Singh Cheema and Charanjit Singh Channi.

Mr Badal also alleged that a part of the CM security had been accorded “unofficially” to Jagat Singh by Capt Amarinder Singh and termed it as a “high profile protection racket.”

Daring the Captain to hold a debate on any issue and at any place of choice of the CM, including his Moti Bagh Palace, Sukbhir questioned, “Why is he scared? I am ready to go to his Moti Bagh Palace, which has recently been white washed and fitted with top of the line music system. This debate can be inside or outside the Punjab assembly. Why he (the CM) does not face people and why he prefers to speak lies in the assembly? Can he recall names of all 117 assembly constituencies? I feel that first of all a debate should be conducted between Congress leader Bir Davinder Singh and the CM and we will be satisfied from an outcome. I also feel that during next one year Congress leaders would desert the CM,” observed Mr Badal.

Mr Badal alleged that Captain Amarinder Singh had visited his office at Chandigarh for just about a month during his four-year long term.

“He has never gone out to address grievances of industrialists or other people of Punjab,” Mr Badal said.

Accusing the Punjab assembly speaker of trying to “suppress” the views of the Opposition, Mr Badal said “the speaker is not being fair to his position and is becoming a spokesman of the Congress.”

Phagwara, November 13
The Food and Civil Supplies Department conducted raids at three local LPG agencies to check their records on Saturday night. The raids were conducted after reports of a shortage and a delay in the supply of cooking gas in the state.

The District Food Controller(DFC), Mr Gulbahar Singh led the raids.
The agencies whose records were scanned included Messer’s Gogna Gas Agency, Messer’s Sondhi Gas Agency and Messer’s Phagwara Gas Agency, in which the records of Messer’s Gogna Gas Agency were reportedly sealed. However, it could not be ascertained as to what irregularity the agency committed.

The department is believed to have conducted the raids on the orders of the Punjab Food and Civil Supply Minister, Mr Avtar Henry. The department conducted similar raids to check on cooking gas agencies in other districts also.

Jalandhar: The police claims to have solved the case of theft in Makkar Motors showroom situated near the bus stand.

Around Rs 2 lakh in cash were stolen from the showroom last night. The money had been taken out from the safe of the showroom.

Sukhjit, a new employee, was arrested by the police, according to the SP City (1), S K Kalia.

The head scarf of the accused and bus ticket dropped at the scene of the crime by the accused led to his detection in the case, he added.

During the investigations, it was found that the scarf was worn by employees only inside the showroom.

Sukhjit first said that he had gone to meet his relatives last night. But the relatives denied that he came to meet them.

Later, the accused confessed that he had committed the theft and another Nepali employee had helped him in the incident.

The accused has been booked under sections 457 and 380 of the IPC. The Nepali accomplice named by Sukhjit is yet to be arrested by the police. 

Jalandhar, November 13
When a group of youngsters from Bariana noticed that the village children going to government schools did not even know how to write their names in their mother tongue, they decided to find an alternative. They started evening classes for those children in the village temple.

The initiative was taken four years ago and, since then, has been giving hope to many deprived kids. The alternate school has children of migrant labourers too.

It started with 50 children, and has strength of 145 now. A sizeable number of the students who study here are already enrolled into government schools.

The teachers here are themselves students, of plus two and graduation, and earn their livelihood by working in factories or other commercial establishments.

Ramesh Bariana, a teacher at the night school, says that the children are judged according to their ability to read and write in Punjabi and English, and then clubbed into three groups. “They are showing better results and are learning much faster now. The children also learn how to keep themselves clean and maintain a proper behaviour.” The teacher says that when the kids go back to school, they feel more confident.

It is also becoming a full-fledged school. The group members have not restricted themselves to teaching. They also make the children sing patriotic and devotional songs at a special evening prayer session. After the classes end, the group also patiently hears the problems these children are facing and counsels the wards’ parents on the issues.

If parents are unable to pick up their children after the classes get over at 9 p.m., the group members drop them to their residences. Interestingly, majority of the students who come here are girls.

The effort has been bringing response from donors, some of whom have given notebooks to the children. “We do not accept any money,” says Gurdeep Lal, a group member.

The group has also succeeded in inviting Punjab’s folk artists like Hans Raj Hans, comedian Gurpreet Ghuggi to come and explain to the children the importance of education.

The group members comprise Vikas, Balihar, Pawan Kumar, Vicky, Feroze, Amit Kumar, Gurdeep and Ramesh.