The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Intra-gotra marriages
Demand for ban acquires political centre stage
Hisar, June 3
The demand for ban on intra-gotra marriages is going beyond the realm of khap panchayats. It is now an important issue in the forthcoming panchayat poll in Haryana.

Support pours in
Sirsa, June 3
Finally, some saner voices are being heard on khap panchayats’ demand of amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act in the Haryana hinterland, known for the activities of these organisations that have of late started functioning as kangaroo courts on marital issues.

ZP poll: Campaigning in full swing
Ambala, June 3
Campaigning for Ambala Zila Parishad elections has heated up the political scenario of the rural area of Ambala district.

Police’s faux pas delays marriage
Fatehabad, June 3
Owing to a faux pas by the local police and the prohibition officer under the Child Marriage Act, the marriage of a fatherless girl was delayed for several hours here recently. The bride, the bridegroom as well as those accompanying the marriage party had to face several embarrassing moments for hours due to the action of the authorities.

The police quizzes a bride after receiving a complaint regarding child marriage at Fatehabad. Tribune photo

Plan to modernise police okayed
Chandigarh, June 3
In view of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in October , the modernisation plan of the Haryana police has been put on a fast track. The police of the state, which surrounds Delhi from three sides, will be under tremendous pressure to ensure security in the national capital region (NCR).

Hope has eluded these brothers thus far
Ambala, June 3
Two brothers of Ambala Cantt, Amit (20) and Gaurav (18), have been suffering from an incurable disease since birth. Their bones have deformed in such a way that they could not even move on bed. They have been lying on bed for years. They are aware of their fate but their ever-smiling faces speak a story of human tolerance and nature's injustice.

‘1.8 lakh posts vacant in Railways’
Kalka, June 3
Thousands of employees of the Railways paid homage to five “martyrs” of the railways who were shot dead by the police in 1956. The employees in the form of a procession reached railway station where the main programme was organised.

Ellenabad village elects panchayat unanimously
Sirsa, June 3
Harni Khurd village, coming under the Ellenabad subdivision of Sirsa district, has for the first time unanimously elected the entire panchayat of the village. The election to the sarpanch or some members of the panchayats have been done by reaching unanimity in the past too, but it is for the first time that the whole panchayat has been elected in this manner.

Letter
Why no national law school in Haryana?
Although the Hooda government has established the state's first women's university at Khanpur Kalan, Sonepat, followed by the upgradation of State Engineering College and Medical College at Murthal and Rohtak to full-fledged state varsities for science and technology and health sciences, respectively, the state is yet to set up its National Law University like dozen-odd other states.

Stink in Karnal to stay
Completion of solid waste plant delayed
Bhanu P. Lohumi
Tribune News Service

The delay was caused as the work had to be stopped following a notification by the PWD, banning all constructions within a distance of 140 m from highways

Karnal, June 3
The tardy progress of work at solid waste management plant being set up at Shekhpura village on the Meerut road has resulted in time and cost overruns, leading to deterioration in sanitary conditions in Karnal, which generates about 85 tonnes of solid waste daily.

The plant would cater to the needs of Karnal and Indri. It is being constructed at a cost of Rs 16.58 crore and was scheduled to be commissioned by the end of 2009, but despite the extension of deadline twice, it is not likely to be completed before September this year.

Spread over an area of 16 acres, the plant would convert solid waste into compost and the company executing the project would run it for 30 years on a turnkey basis. The plant with the capacity of 150 tonnes per day would segregate biodegradable and non-biodegradable waste and treat solid waste.

The project is a component of the Yamuna Action Plan-II under which seven Haryana cities along the Yamuna were covered and accorded environment clearance in 2008. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had laid its foundation stone in August 2008, but the work did not pick up pace.

Rajiv Girdhar, project engineer at the plant, says there are some unavoidable reasons for the delay.

Bhagwati Prasad, project manager of NBCC, claims that delay was caused as the work had to be stopped following a notification issued by the PWD banning all constructions within 140 m distance from highways and the entire site plan and building plan had to prepared afresh for starting construction. Moreover, the government had released only Rs 7.16 crore, he added.

JS Alhawat, deputy commissioner, said the company had asked for more time till September. A meeting would be called within a week to resolve the issues, he said, adding that there was no paucity of funds and money would be made available whenever required.

Intra-gotra marriages
Demand for ban acquires political centre stage
Raman Mohan
Tribune News Service

Hisar, June 3
The demand for ban on intra-gotra marriages is going beyond the realm of khap panchayats. It is now an important issue in the forthcoming panchayat poll in Haryana. While many villages have publicly asked the candidates to indicate their support or opposition to intra- gotra marriages, others are asking pointed questions in this context to the candidates. However, in both cases they want the candidates to support this demand.

According to reports, at least three villages - Karora and Singhwala in Kaithal district and Kasandi in Sonipat district - have asked the candidates for the panchayat poll to clarify whether they would support the demand for amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act to ban intra-gotra marriages. Reports indicate that all the candidates promised to lend their support to the villagers' demand.

The shift from khaps to elected panchayats marks a paradigm shift in the controversy making things difficult for the ruling Congress whose central leadership has taken an unflinching stand on the issue. No less than Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily had ruled out any amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act to ban intra-gotra marriages.

Since the opposition parties, notably the Indian National Lok Dal and the BJP, have supported the demand, their supporters contesting the panchayat poll are vehemently opposing intra-gotra marriages. They are asking their voters to ask rival candidates to clarify their stand. In this way they have successfully made it an important issue in the poll even ahead of the development plank.

However, this is not to say that the opposition alone is making this an issue in the poll. While these parties can be credited with politicising the issue, the fact remains that an overwhelming majority of villagers irrespective of caste are opposed to such marriages.

The transition of the demand from khaps to panchayat poll has also helped further legitimise this issue. With the shift to the democratic process, the demand for a ban has been rid of the stigma attached to the khap panchayats. Politicians, especially Congressmen, no longer have the excuse of ducking the issue by labelling it as a crusade by the illegal khap panchayats.

The Congressmen are now taking recourse to the move made in this direction sometime ago by Rajya Sabha member Shadi Lal Batra and Dr Ram Parkash, both confidants of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Batra had sought to introduce a private members' bill on this issue.

Whether this will help the Congress overcome the huge disadvantage it has on this issue remains to be seen.

Support pours in
Tribune News Service

Sirsa, June 3
Finally, some saner voices are being heard on khap panchayats’ demand of amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act in the Haryana hinterland, known for the activities of these organisations that have of late started functioning as kangaroo courts on marital issues.

The display of one-upmanship between the ruling Congress and the main opposition INLD in expressing support to the demand of these “self-styled” panchayats has only ended up affording legitimacy to the actions of khaps.

The INLD leadership, including former Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala, has come out directly in support of the khap demand of a ban on same gotra marriage while Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has chosen to do this through his confidant and Rajya Sabha member Shadi Lal Batra. The stand taken by young and educated MP Naveen Jindal on this issue came as a surprise to many.

The BJP too justified ban on same gotra marriages and the party’s leader Captain Abhimanyu came forward with the BJP’s stand on lines with that of the INLD. The CPM was the first political party to have opposed the demand and the party’s state secretary Inderjit Singh has gone to the extent of questioning the legitimacy of these organisations, which, he alleged, were neither khaps nor panchayats.

Kuldeep Bishnoi, supremo of the Haryana Janhit Congress, was the next to oppose the demand of the khap panchayats and appreciated the stand taken by the CPM.

Now, Shamsher Singh Surjewala, a senior leader of the state Congress, has asked khap panchayats to establish their credentials and command respect by taking effective steps to rid society of evils like female foeticide, dowry deaths, child marriages and other crimes.

“The khaps should become a role model for the youth by dispensing justice to people in cases pertaining to murder, rape and land dispute, and inspire them so that it becomes easy to persuade them not to marry in the same gotra”, he said.

Partap Singh Chautala, a younger brother of former Chief Minister Om Parkash Chautala dismissed the demand as a political ploy by the Congress and the INLD to woo Jat voters.

“Amendment to the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, to ban same gotra (sub-caste) and same village marriages is impractical and unrealistic on various accounts. It is not easy to get the local social customs and traditions universalised in a vast country like India marked by geographical, social and cultural diversities,” says Dr Mahabir Jaglan, associate professor, KU.

ZP poll: Campaigning in full swing
Our Correspondent

Ambala, June 3
Campaigning for Ambala Zila Parishad elections has heated up the political scenario of the rural area of Ambala district.

Around 4 lakh voters of various villages will elect 14 members for Zila Parishad. Later, the elected members will elect the chairman of the parishad. This time, chairmanship of the Ambala parishad is reserved for SC woman candidate.

Except the BSP, none of the political party has been contesting this election on its party symbol. The INLD has declared its independent candidates for all 14 wards. The Congress could not make any consensus about its candidates and that is why in most of the wards, Congress candidates are more than one. The BJP is not taking keen interest in this election. Finally, there will be contest between the INLD and the Congress for the post of chairman.

This time, most of the new faces are contesting the elections. Women are also taking keen interest in the elections. As many as 5 wards are reserved for women candidates, but in other wards too women candidates have filed their nominations.

As many as 10 candidates have filed their nominations from ward No 1, while there are six candidates contesting from ward No 2. Nine candidates are in the fray from ward No 3, whereas seven candidates are contesting from ward No 4. There would be a multi-corner contest in ward No 5 among nine candidates.

There is a crucial fight among nine women candidates in ward No 7, whereas five candidates will try their luck from ward No 8. In ward No 9, eight candidates are in fray, while there will be a battle among 15 candidates in ward No 10.

As many as nine candidates are contesting from ward No 11 and in ward No 12, seven candidates are left in the fray. There would be a prestigious contest in ward No 13 among five candidates, while in ward No 14, the decision would be finalised among 11 candidates.

District election officer-cum-deputy commissioner Samir Pal Saro told that all arrangements had been made for Panchayat, Block Samiti and Zila Parishad elections. The elections would be conducted in two phases on June 6 and June 12.

	Police’s faux pas delays marriage Sushil Manav Tribune News Service Fatehabad, June 3 Owing to a faux pas by the local police and the prohibition officer under the Child Marriage Act, the marriage of a fatherless girl was delayed for several hours here recently. The bride, the bridegroom as well as those accompanying the marriage party had to face several embarrassing moments for hours due to the action of the authorities. The incident happened at the Hanuman temple situated on the road leading to Matu Ram Colony, when a police party intervened as the bridegroom was about to cut ribbon to enter the place, where his marriage ceremonies were to be held. The police told the bridegroom to wait till they verified the age of his bride. People, who had gathered in the pandal, informed the police that the girl was 19, but she had no age proof as she was illiterate. They informed the police that the bride’s father had died sometime back and her mother had married some other person following that. The locals had made contribution for the marriage of the poor girl. However, the police did not allow the marriage to be solemnised before they were satisfied about the age of the bride, who sat ready for the ceremonies as the police and child development project officer Usha Grover quizzed her about her age proof. Finally, the issue was resolved, when some prominent members of the locality, including a former municipal councillor, vouched for the adult status of the bride. However, the police action delayed the marriage ceremonies by over three hours and caused a lot of embarrassment to the family members of both the bride and the bridegroom. Arjun Dev, SHO of the city police station, said some unknown person had called on telephone number 100 and informed them that a minor girl aged 15 was being married off.
	Plan to modernise police okayed Tribune News Service Chandigarh, June 3 In view of the forthcoming Commonwealth Games in October , the modernisation plan of the Haryana police has been put on a fast track. The police of the state, which surrounds Delhi from three sides, will be under tremendous pressure to ensure security in the national capital region (NCR). The Haryana state-level empowered committee met under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Urvashi Gulati here to clear the Rs 42-crore modernismation plan for the police out of which the Centre would provide Rs 23 crore. Emphasis would be on reinforcing the surveillance systems in and around the NCR. The state has made a number of suggestions to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs for modernisation of the police. These included giving mega city status to Gurgaon and Faridabad, Rs 100 crore for modernisation of the force, providing technical assistance to the state for procurement of equipment and to release the central share for modernisation in May every year so that it could be utilised during the same year. Under the plan approved yesterday, five trucks, 55 motor cycles, 10 buses, one prison van, mobile forensic vehicles, one for each range headquarters and two for the forensic lab, and 50 light motor vehicles would be purchased to increase the mobility of the forces. It was also decided to purchase 50 bullet-proof jackets, bullet-proof helmets and assault rifles (SG-551-1-SWAT). Under the plan certain buildings would also be constructed. These included a crime office at Hisar, teaching block at Commando Police Complex, Newal; extension of security lines at Chandigarh, Other ranks mess at Panchkula, two police stations, 48 houses for other ranks, barracks for other ranks at Bhondsi, extension of CTI building at Panchkula and 96 triple-storey houses. The police would also purchase 10 portable hut-cum-observer towers and five naka checking management systems. The forces would also be equipped with law and order and investigation equipment like alco sensor with wireless printer and pepper ball launcher with 100 pepper balls each. The document, NDPS, DNA and toxicology divisions of the Forensic Laboratory would also be strengthened. Four police control rooms would also be modernized.
	Hope has eluded these brothers thus far Suman Bhatnagar Ambala, June 3 Two brothers of Ambala Cantt, Amit (20) and Gaurav (18), have been suffering from an incurable disease since birth. Their bones have deformed in such a way that they could not even move on bed. They have been lying on bed for years. They are aware of their fate but their ever-smiling faces speak a story of human tolerance and nature's injustice. At first glance, nobody could judge that they are so vulnerable. They give smile when a person visits them but they are unable to express their feelings. Their parents Raman and Raitesh said their two daughters were normal but Amit and Gaurav were born disabled. "We were happy when God blessed us with two sons around two decades ago but now, we are very worried about their future." Raman said they were not financially sound, still they took their sons to Chandigarh, Delhi and other places for treatment. "We have consulted bone specialists abroad too, now we have lost hope and left the matter with the Almighty", he added. Their mother feels their soreness in a better way. She said sometimes they underwent unbearable pain in their bones and became restless. She said none else but only a mother could feel the pain of her children. Raitesh and Raman care a lot for their children. They dress them like normal boys everyday and never miss to purchase new clothes for them on every occasion. They also celebrate their birthday. Raman said now, they had compromised with the circumstances and "are ready to face every situation". An orthopaedic, Ashok Sarwal, said such complications occured due to genetic disorder. In such cases, multiple operations could heal patients to some extent, but it was very difficult to cure them completely.
	‘1.8 lakh posts vacant in Railways’ Our Correspondent Kalka, June 3 Thousands of employees of the Railways paid homage to five “martyrs” of the railways who were shot dead by the police in 1956. The employees in the form of a procession reached railway station where the main programme was organised. On May 29, 1956, five employees - Joginder Singh, Om parkash, Harbans Lal, Brij Bhushan and Jagjeet Singh of Kalka - were shot dead by the police at the local railway station when they were to submit a demand charter to G Pandey, the then chairman of the Railway Board. Since then, employees hold a function every year to pay homage to them. Subhash Chand Sharma, branch secretary, Dhoolkot-Kalka-Shimla branch, said Harbhajan, national president of the Northern Railway Men’s Union; Ashok Yadav, divisional secretary, workshop branch; CS Bajwa, secretary of Amabala division; were among others present. Criticising the Railway authorities, they said around 1.80 lakh posts were lying vacant in the department out of which more than 90,000 posts were of the safety department. Various union leaders, including Pushpinder Sharma, Surinder Johny, Sanjeev Kohli and Shiv Kumar, condemned the alleged anti-employee policies of the Railways. They also urged the employees to be united to face wrong decisions of the government like privatisation and abolishing posts.
	Ellenabad village elects panchayat unanimously Sirsa, June 3 Harni Khurd village, coming under the Ellenabad subdivision of Sirsa district, has for the first time unanimously elected the entire panchayat of the village. The election to the sarpanch or some members of the panchayats have been done by reaching unanimity in the past too, but it is for the first time that the whole panchayat has been elected in this manner. Villagers have entrusted the job of sarpanch to Sampooran Singh and have elected Jagjit Kaur, Ram Lal, Gurjeet Singh, Karamvir Singh, Manjit Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Bimla Rani and Surjo Devi from the eight wards of the village.