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Radical Left slams WTO meet
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13/12: House pays homage
New Delhi, December 13 Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and Rajya Sabha Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat today paid homage to the security personnel who laid down their lives in repulsing terrorist attack on the Parliament four years ago.
Govt recovers Rs 1 cr in NFL scam
Mizoram Cong Party wins 2 seats
Apte to head BJP probe panel
RS passes Bill on criminal law
Forest Bill tabled in LS
RAW officer's son shot dead
Man refuses to be crorepati
Cong takes swipe at BJP
Salem’s men get police remand
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EPF : nationwide protest on Dec 20
New Delhi, December 13 Trade unions, barring the Congress-backed INTUC, said they would hold demonstrations all over the country to protest the government's decision to reduce the EPF rate to 8.5 per cent from 9.5 per cent. In a joint statement, AICCTU, AITUC, BMS, CITU, HMS, TUCC, UTUC and UTUC-LS, said they would observe December 20 as "All India Protest Day" against the Centre's policies. Though the Prime Minister "vaguely" assured to look into the issue, the "stand of the Finance Minister subsequently endorsed by the PM, that it is for the EPF organisation to find resources for paying the interest, is nothing but a bald rejection of the demand to restore the 9.5 per cent interest rate," they said. "The resources of EPFO have been depleted by the arbirary reduction of the administered rate of interest and lowering of interest rate on Central Government securities," they said in a statement here. "Hence, the Finance Ministry should accede to the unanimous recommendations by the CBT, to enhance the rate of interest on the Special Deposit Schemes (SDS), where over 80 per cent of EPF corpus stand invested, enabling the EPFO to maintain the interest rate at 9.5 per cent," they said. —PTI
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New Delhi, December 13 The protesters, under the banner of SUCI, the CPI (ML), New Proletarian and the All India Nepali Leftist Youth Front, raised slogans demanding withdrawal of Indian delegates from the meeting. “The government must withdraw from the WTO ministerial meeting and revoke the new Patent Act,” said Pratap Samal, secretary of SUCI’s Delhi unit. Holding placards and banners opposing the WTO meeting, the protesters marched from Jantar Mantar to Parliament but were stopped by the police at Parliament Street. Gulbarga: Members of the Swadeshi Jagran Manch, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the Bharatiya Kisan Sabha Azadi Bachao Andolan and the Rashtriya Sanskriti Sanrakshan Vikas Sanstha on Tuesday burnt a symbolic effigy of the WTO in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office here, as part of their nationwide agitation against the global body. The agitators, who took out a procession in the city, later submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh through the Deputy Commissioner. — UNI
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13/12: House pays homage
New Delhi, December 13 Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister Shivraj Patil were among those who paid floral tributes at the portraits of five Delhi Police personnel, a woman constable of the Central Police Reserve police and two security assistants of the Parliament Watch and Ward. Mr Chatterjee said the solemn occasion called for renewed efforts to combat this global terrorism. |
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Govt recovers Rs 1 cr in NFL scam
New Delhi, December 13 “An amount of Rs 246.47 crore was recoverable from Karsan Limited, Turkey, on account of termination of contract by NFL due to non-performance and breach of trust by the company in the supply of two lakh tonnes of urea. However, only Rs 1.02 core could be recovered so far from the company,” the government has informed the Standing Committee on Chemicals and Fertilisers. The committee, that inquired into the matter, submitted its report to the Lok Sabha, noting that “only known assets in the name of company amounting $ 2,25940 in Geneva has been recovered. The total identified assets in the name of individuals, including executives of Karsan, their relatives and associates in different countries is about Rs 108 crore.” Even if all this amount is recovered, the government would incur a loss of Rs 138 crore. The CBI had charge sheeted the accused in December 1997 and the case is before the Delhi High Court. The investigating agency alleged that Ramakrishnan, Kanwar and other officials of the NFL at New Delhi and at other places during 1995-96 had entered into a criminal conspiracy with Sambasiva Rao, Indian agent of Karsan Limited; Alankus, Karanci and others to misappropriate the funds of the NFL. They signed an agreement on November 9, 1995, for import of 2,00,000 metric tonnes of urea against 100 per cent cash payment in advance. The NFL had paid the total amount of Rs 133 crore to Karsan Limited in advance for the supply of urea but the firm did not send even a single grain of it, and in conspiracy with the accused persons, had misappropriated the same.
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Mizoram Cong Party wins 2 seats
Aizawl, December 13 This is the seventh time that Saikapthianga won from Kawrthah, while Liansuama won from Phuldungei constituency for the eighth time. Saikapthianga defeated Lalrinmawla Ralte of Congress by a margin of 1,240 votes in a straight fight. While Saikapthianga secured 4,480 votes, Ralte got 3,240 votes. In Phuldungsei seat, Liansuama defeated his nearest Congress rival Lalrobiaka by a margin of 1,948 votes. Liansuama bagged 6,052 votes and Lalrobiala secured 4,104 votes. All three Independent candidates — Lalhermawia, C Allungmuana and K Thangzuala who secured 532 votes, 174 votes and 147 votes respectively — lost their deposits. The MCP candidates were supported by the ruling Mizo National Front (MNF). Both the winners, who were former ministers in the Congress regime under Lal Thanhawala during 1989 to 1998, had resigned from the state assembly on August 16 to float MCP on August 17. The MCP, led by former Finance minister and veteran Congress leader John Lalsangzuala, was supported not only by the MNF but also by the Mizoram People’s Conference (MPC) in the by-polls.
— PTI |
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Apte to head BJP probe panel
New Delhi, December 13 Announcing the party decision, BJP spokesperson Sushma Swaraj said the three-member committee would have former Labour Minister Satya Narayan Jatiya and former Surface Transport Minister Brig Bhuvan Chandra Khanduri as members. The committee would submit its report at the earliest, Mrs Swaraj said, adding that it could be before the end of the Parliament session on December 23. BJP president L.K. Advani had announced the suspension of all six MPs, including two Union Ministers Annasaheb M.K. Patil and Chhatrapal Singh from the parliamentary party and announced an internal probe into the matter. Wherever necessary, the party would refer the matter to the Privileges Committee of the Lok Sabha, he had said. Mrs Swaraj, who is a member of the Ethics Committee of the Rajya Sabha, said the panel, which had recommended the suspension of party MP Chhatrapal Singh from the House, was likely to submit its report before the conclusion of the session. |
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RS passes Bill on criminal law
New Delhi, December 13 The Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill, 2003, also provides that statement of the witness recorded before Magistrate under oath, in the discretion of court, be treated as evidence. Winding up the discussion on the Bill, Home Minister Shivraj Patil said the legislation sought to amend the Indian Penal Code to provide punishment for threatening or inducing any person to give false evidence. The plea-bargaining clause provided for pre-trial negotiations between the defence and the prosecution during which an accused might plead guilty in exchange for certain concessions by the prosecution. |
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Forest Bill tabled in LS
New Delhi, December 13 Introducing the Bill, the minister said the Bill addressed the long-standing and genuine-felt need for granting a secure and inalienable right to those communities whose right to life depended on the right to forests and thereby strengthening the entire conservation regime by giving a permanent stake to the ST dwelling in the forests for generations in symbolic relationship with the ecosystem. Though these tribals had been residing in forests for generations, their rights could not be recorded and the Bill provided for a framework to record the forest rights so vested and the nature of evidence required for such recognition and vesting of forest land. The Bill laid down a simple procedure for recognition and vesting of forest rights for the forest-dwelling Scheduled Tribes so that the rights became legally enforceable through corrective measures in the formal recording system of the executive machinery. |
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RAW officer's son shot dead
Ghaziabad, December 12 Manoj, son of RAW officer Nandan Singh Negi, was shot dead allegedly by his three friends Umesh, Ashok and Parvinder after a scuffle broke out among them. No arrest has been made so far and the body has been sent for post mortem. Manoj's father was not in the house when the incident
occurred. —PTI |
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Khatima (Uttaranchal), December 13 Kanhaiy A. Sahani (18), a farmer in Sisaiya village near here with a saving account in the local SBI branch, discovered that even after repeated withdrawals of close to Rs 90,000, he still had a handsome balance left in it. Amazed, he called up his uncle Brijlal Sahani in Mumbai, who regularly deposited money in his account and got to know that the money was not sent by him. Kanhaiy, immediately approached the branch Manager K.R. Tripathi and informed him of the incident yesterday
following which the bank today blocked his account and started a probe, a
bank official said
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Cong takes swipe at BJP New Delhi, December 13 The BJP’s meeting yesterday was attended by five CMs while 15 CMs participated in the Congress conclave, party spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said here today. Describing it as a tale of two CMs’ concalves, Mr Ramesh said the discussions at the two meetings also revealed the contrast in the priorities of the two national parties. He said while the Congress meeting focussed on implementation of its manifesto promises, employment guarantee Bill and other programmes for weaker sections, all that the BJP conclave did was to revive its call for a legislation against cow slaughter. “This shows the direction in which the Congress states are moving and the direction in the BJP-ruled states wish to move,” Mr Ramesh remarked, adding that the Congress priority is development while the BJP is harping on age-old issues like ban on cow slaughter.
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Mumbai, December 13 Naeem Siddiqui, who allegedly operated from Dubai for many years, was arrested by the anti-terrorist squad (ATS) of the Mumbai police soon after he arrived from Dubai last evening. Riyaz, a native of Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, on the other hand was summoned for questioning yesterday and later placed under arrest. The duo was produced in the court of Special TADA Judge, P V Bavkar this afternoon where Special Public Prosector Ujjwal Nikam said Riyaz was the person who is alleged to have executed the murder of Pradeep Jain. As regards Naeem, the prosecution said he was Salem’s accomplice and allegedly managed finances for Jain’s killers before and after the murder. — PTI
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