Shamlat land worth crores usurped
Panchayat lost case ‘deliberately to make illegal transfer permanent’
Chandigarh, January 15
An inquiry conducted at the behest of Minister for Rural Development and Panchayats Ranjit Singh Brahampura into an alleged land grab of shamlat land has come out with startling revelations.

Chandigarh, January 15
The PPCC has recruited a record number of 32 lakh members in its membership drive, which concludes today at midnight, but there is no surety that there will an election to the post of PPCC President.

Party Central Election Authority Chairman Oscar Fernandes, who held a short meeting to review the recruitment drive here, commended the PPCC President for the record membership drive, which could proportionately be the biggest such drive in the country.

The drive has established Kaypee’s organisational skills as the last time the PPCC conducted such a drive, it recruited only14.85 lakh members.

However, whether there will be an election for all posts and particularly for the post of the PPCC President is not certain. Party Returning Officer Usha Thakkar, when questioned on this, said “whatever the members want will happen”. When asked to explain, she said some districts could see unanimous election of their presidents in case of unanimity among block presidents.

When asked about the election of the PPCC President, she said “voh baat to baad me aayegi”. She, however, denied that anybody would be nominated to any post, including the PPCC President, as has been the past practice in the Congress, saying “unanimous” election could take place but that there would be no nomination. She also clarified that there would not be any change in the PPCC leadership till the completion of the organisational elections.

Congress leaders present on the occasion, however, said that there was a fine line between nomination and election. A senior Congress man who was present at the last PPCC “election” said all posts had been filled through unanimity.

Some Congress legislators were also cut up by Fernandes who spent less than 25 minutes at the PPCC office here and left before most of them could even arrive. Those who attended the meeting said Fernandes said the high command was in favour of a “sweet” election. “How can any election be sweet?” a legislator queried. However, most Congress men were unanimous in the opinion that there should not be any election to the PPCC President at this juncture. “We only have two years to go before the next election and organisational elections at this juncture will only divide the party further,” they added.

Meanwhile Kaypee said that the record recruitment in the organisational election had been done despite the fact that Congress workers had been targeted by the SAD-BJP combine. He claimed the recruitment process would rejuvenate the party and spell the death knell of the Akali-BJP combine in the next elections.

Chandigarh, January 15
The PPCC election schedule is still to be announced but the knives are already out. Senior party leaders today met party Central Election Authority Chairman Oscar Fernandes and claimed that former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh was the best person to lead the party in the state even as they complained of widespread irregularities in the party membership drive.

The Congress leaders, who were led by former MP Rana Gurjeet Singh, met Fernandes before he presided over a meeting held at the Pradesh Congress bhawan here to mark the end of the party membership drive.

Rana Gurjeet Singh told The Tribune that the delegation that included senior leaders like Choudhary Santokh Singh, Avtar Singh Brar, Amarjit Singh Samra, Sukhjinder Randhawa, Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa, Harpartap Singh Ajnala, Kanwaljit Singh Lalli, Raman Behl, Sukh Sarkaria and Brij Lal Goyal met Fernandes with the intention of conveying the sentiments of Congress workers to him.

“We told the central leader that though it was the prerogative of the high command to appoint anyone but the people of Punjab were anxiously awaiting Amarinder’s re-appointment as the PPCC President.” Rana Gurjeet said the delegation also told Fernandes that Amarinder was the only leader who could take on the SAD-BJP coalition in the next Assembly elections.

The former MP said the delegation also pointed out that proper procedure was not being followed in the recruitment drive. He said in many cases money had been deposited but forms had not been submitted. Demanding a scrutiny of all such cases, he said a committee should be formed for the same and supporters of senior leaders could be given due representation.

Party Returning Officer for the state Usha Thakkar and PPCC President Mohinder Singh Kaypee, when questioned on the issue, said the forms would be duly scrutinised. When questioned about the Gurdaspur Assembly segment where 42,000 votes had been cast recently in the parliamentary elections in favour of the Congress and 52,000 persons recruited in the party now, Thakkar said the party’s vote bank could go up.

The PPCC President also clarified that only those forms would be accepted which had a photograph of the new member pasted on them. He said photostat copies of photographs would not be entertained.

Meanwhile, the Mahila Congress also had a piece of advice for Fernandes as well as the Returning Officer. State Mahila Congress President Ratna, while demanding 33 per cent reservation for women at the block as well as district and state level, also demanded that instead of giving preference to wives, mothers and sisters of legislators, the party should give due representation to genuine women workers. The Returning Officer assured that 33 per cent reservation would be given to women.

Chandigarh, January 15
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh not to tinker with the existing administrative structure in the Union Territory of Chandigarh in connection with the Governor of Punjab being the Administrator and continue with the present system till Chandigarh is formally transferred to Punjab.

In a letter to the PM, Badal informed him about the move to change the administrative structure of Chandigarh by incorporating new recruitment rules for medical posts in place of the Chandigarh Administration Medical Posts (Group-A) Recruitment Rules 1983.

He pointed out that as per rules now being proposed for filling medical posts in the Union Territory of Chandigarh, 50 per cent posts of medical officer are to be filled by direct recruitment, 50 per cent of posts of senior medical officer by promotion, 10 per cent by direct recruitment and posts of Medical Superintendent and Principal Medical Officer are proposed to be filled by promotion.

He impressed upon the PM to instruct the Union Home Ministry and the Chandigarh Administration not to take any steps to amend the existing rules and medical posts in the UT and allow to continue to be filled from among Punjab and Haryana cadre doctors as before.

Detailing the background of the existing recruitment process established in the UT, Badal said as per decisions taken under The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, posts of various services in the UT are required to be filled by taking officers/officials on deputation from Punjab and Haryana in the ratio 60:40 as per the policy guidelines issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs.

Meanwhile, Badal has also sought the intervention of the PM to use his good offices with the Australian Government to ensure the protection and safety of religious places and the Punjabi community in Australia.

He drew his attention to the grave incident of torching of a under-construction gurdwara in Melbourne in Australia and conveyed his serious concern over racial discrimination against members of the community in Australia.

Amritsar, January 15
In an audacious attempt in the high-security district courts complex here, armed members of the Lekhari gang fired at Jatinder Singh, alias Raju Chikna (of Boxer gang), who was critically injured as the bullet hit his forehead.

Interestingly, the police, which had made an elaborate bandobast due to the arrival of VVIPs in connection with the visit of BJP national president Nitin Gadkari tomorrow, was caught unawares even as the gang war left the entire city dumbfounded especially the people in the courts complex.

According to eyewitnesses, Raju Chikna, who had come for a court hearing, was shot at a point-blank range by the Lekhari gang while the former was in the custody of two constables. However, Aman Motu, a member of the Lekhari Gang who was lodged in the Patti sub jail, had also came for court hearing accompanied by Jagjit Singh, head constable, who was also injured in the firing.

Giving details of the firing incident, SSP PK Rai said while Raju Chikna was talking to his gang leader Jagtar Singh Boxer, lodged at present in the Amritsar Central Jail, a grey-coloured Scorpio entered the court complex and someone started firing indiscriminately. Raju Chikna tried to jump the wall but was shot in his forehead by the assailants.

The police retaliated but the gang fled the scene, leaving two policemen injured along with Raju Chikna in a critical condition. All injured have been admitted to private hospitals while a case under the relevant sections has been registered at the Civil Line police station here against eight persons, including Ankur Lekhari and Sanji Baba, among others. The police has seized one empty .9mm pistol shell from the scene and a manhaunt has been launched to trace the culprits. The entire court complex was earlier cordoned off. 

Patiala, January 15
The two-day national seminar on sufism and sufi literature came to an end here on Friday. In his address on the concluding day, Editor-in-Chief of The Tribune Group of Publications, HK Dua, said sufism provides the most befitting answer to the theory of clash of civilization which is destroying the serene and placid matrix of a civilised and cultured society.

“Cultures don’t push the civilization into the clash mode. It’s the politicians, with their vested interests and greed, who have such immoralistic tendencies,” he said.

“We have to look ahead in terms of what type of world we want to leave for our future generations as the mafia of hatred is spreading its tentacles swiftly even as the religious bigots are not ready to tolerate a little dissent,” said Dua. Rating internal strifes as more dangerous than the outer aggressions, he opined that various existing denominations have no remedies but people do have. Dua appreciated the decision to establish Baba Farid Centre for Sufi Studies and congratulated the Vice-Chancellor, Dr Jaspal Singh, for taking a visionary step.

Dr Syed Sarwar Chishti, Gaddi Nashin, Dargah Sharif, Ajmer, said sufism is a panacea for all the issues related to violence and hatred and elixir for those who feel inclined to share and promote love, compassion and empathy among the humanity. “It is epitome of secularism and basic premise of a pluralistic society,” said Chisti. While talking of ‘Talibanisation of Islam’, he said that the crop of militants, which is bent upon destroying the pious fabric of Islam through their virulent and disruptive acts, was the outcome of false and idiotic indoctrination coupled with ignorance.

“We have to evolve a mightier school of sufi thought to terminate these unruly and boisterous forces,” he added. He assured the V-C of every kind of help for establishing the sufi centre. The valedictory function was held at the Senate Hall of the varsity.

V-C Dr Jaspal Singh, in his presidential remarks, reiterated the point that truthful living was the quintessence sufism. While denouncing the cult of violent behaviour and duplicitous practices, he said no religion teaches us to be fanatics and disrespect others’ religion. 

Patiala, January 15
The terror being unleashed by the Taliban in Pakistan may spill over to India if immediate steps are not initiated. The “bloodshed” being witnessed by Pakistan currently is nothing but a spill over of the Taliban from Afghanistan and the same may happen in India as well.

Expressing these views in an exclusive interview with The Tribune, the Gaddi Nasheen of Dargah Khwaja Gharib Nawaz Ajmer Sharif, Syed Sarwar Chisti, said, “It is not possible for anyone in the world to eliminate the Taliban with force.”

Syed Chisti, who was in Patiala today for participating in a national seminar on “Sufism and Sufi literature”, said the Taliban followed the Wahhabi school of thought ideology, which was fundamentalist in nature. Equating the Wahhabi ideology with the RSS and the VHP, he said, “The RSS and VHP propagate a wrong version of the real Hinduism. Likewise, the Wahhabi school of thought encourages hard line and radical ideology that is being followed by the Taliban.” He asserted that if there was any stopping the Taliban, it could only be through talks and propagation of the Sufi school of thought, which preaches love and brotherhood.

On the crucial issue of Jammu and Kashmir, Syed Chisti said, “If we say that Kashmir is an integral part of India, citizens of Kashmir will have to be treated like Indians.” The solution to the Kashmir problem could be possible only through peace talks. “Till today, the Liberahan Commission report has not been implemented. The accused in the 1984 riots have not been punished. Hence, if at all, we want to resolve the Kashmir issue, we have to heal the wounds of the Kashmiris and ensure that justice prevails,” he said.

Replying to a query regarding the demand of controlling all gurdwaras in Pakistan by the SGPC, Syed Chisti didn’t give any direct reply. He said, “What I feel is that until we address the problem of not having people-to-people contact between India and Pakistan, other issues can’t be resolved. Politicians of India face no problem in procuring a visa to visit Pakistan and vice- versa, whereas the general masses from Pakistan and India, who actually want love and peace, are denied visas.

Notably, some delegates from Pakistan, who were supposed to participate in the seminar at Punjabi University, Patiala, could not come because they were not given visas. Meanwhile, Syed Chisti has lauded the announcement of Punjabi University, Patiala, to set up a centre for Sufi studies. 

Talwandi Sabo, January 15
Renovation of the sarovar of the Likhensar Gurdwara in the Takht Damdama Sahib complex here has begun today through kar sewa.

Volunteers from surrounding villages were engaged in renovating the holy tank. The level of the existing tank is being raised to keep the water clean. Lower level of the tank was causing pollution of the water.

The plan is to complete the renovation and refill the sarovar with fresh water before Baisakhi, kar sewak Harpreet Singh said.

Thereafter, the Likhensar Gurdwara on the southeastern corner of the sarovar would also be rebuilt on a bigger space. The gurdwara is of historical and religious importance. Talwandi Sabo is also known as Kashi (seat of learning). The complex is being given a fresh look by building historic gurdwaras in a planned manner. Green patches would also be created within the complex.

Chandigarh, January 15
Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal today said he did not want to comment on the statement of Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal on problems being faced in finalising the budget, but said the state’s finances were looking up due to a record increase in VAT as well as excise collections.

Speaking to newsmen after the installation ceremonies of Ravikaran Singh Kahlon as Chairman of the Punjab State Tubewell Corporation and Bhai Manjit Singh as Chairman of the Punjab Energy Development Agency here, Badal said while the entire country had registered a negative growth, Punjab had witnessed a Rs 1,000 crore increase in VAT collections this year.

Badal said the PSEB would be reimbursed the relief extended to domestic and industrial consumers in the beginning of the next financial year. He said the previous government put the PSEB in dire straits by purchasing electricity at Rs 12 per unit and supplying it to consumers at Rs 3 per unit. 

Amritsar, January 15
Though the Border Security Force (BSF) has branded teenager Numan Arshad as a “Pakistani fidayeen”, the boy has been booked by the Amritsar police under the Indian Passport Act and the Foreigners Act. Meanwhile, a duty magistrate has remanded Numan to police custody till January 20.

The Amritsar police, however, justified its act by saying that it was yet to make the accused undergo an exhaustive interrogation and that the requisite amendments relating to Numan’s alleged indulgence in terrorist activities could be made in the FIR later on.

Numan was nabbed by the BSF from the Attari sector on Tuesday. Amidst hide and seek between the media and the police, Numan was presented before the duty magistrate by the police even as mediapersons kept waiting for the police party and the accused at the courts complex. Later, he was taken to the Joint Interrogation Centre (JIC) for a detailed investigation pertaining to his alleged involvement in disruptive activities and future plans.

Amritsar SSP Pawan Kumar Rai said that Numan was being subjected to interrogation and if he was detected to have been involved or planning any terrorist activities against India, more sections of law would be slapped against him. Officials of the BSF were, however, amazed to learn that the relevant sections were not imposed against Numan as he was a “suicide bomber” on a recce mission in India as has been revealed by the BSF interrogation.

Numan, it was learnt, has been booked under the Foreigners’ Act.