Moga, October 6
The additional district and sessions judge of Moga SK Aggarwal on Wednesday acquitted Akshit Jain, son of local Congress MLA Joginder Pal Jain, from the charges of ‘culpable homicide not amounting to murder’ in an accident case.

A criminal case under sections 304, 304 A and 279 of the IPC was registered by the local police against Akshit on October 10, 2007.

A person, Jarnail Singh, a resident of the nearby Saleena village, who was driving a scooter, succumbed to injuries sustained during a collision with Akshit's car.

The accident occurred on the Moga-Ferozepur road at Duneke village.

It may be mentioned that the sessions court framed charges against him under sections 304 and 304A deleting section 279 of the IPC in January, last year.

Today, the court of SK Aggarwal acquitted Akshit Jain on the ground that none of the two witnesses produced by the prosecution side could identify him in the court.

Meanwhile, MLA Joginder Pal Jain said the case was registered against his son under the pressure of the local politicians of the ruling parties in the state.

He alleged that after knowing the truth, the police was reluctant to register a criminal against his son but when a few activists of the local truck union, owing allegiance to the ruling SAD, staged a protest in front of the office of the district magistrate to build pressure, the police finally registered the case.

While welcoming the decision of the court, he said the case against his son was politically motivated because his son was not in the town on the day of the accident. His car was being driven by their driver, he said.

The MLA further disclosed that the case was also settled by the Lok Adalat between his driver and the family members of Jarnail Singh, who died in the accident, by paying adequate compensation.

Joginder Pal Jain also added, “My son was in Delhi on that day and was not feeling well and he got medical treatment at a reputed hospital in the Rohini area.”

Sriganganagar, October 6
Some of the endangered species have surprisingly found the climate of Bangar region of Rajasthan friendlier. painted stork and white eye bees have been spotted in Doongarpur district, eminent environmentalist Kamlesh Sharma informed today.

Notably, painted stork is a tropical species, belonging to the stork family of Ciconiidae.

The bird is found in Asia, covering the area from India and Sri Lanka to southeast Asia. Broad-winged soaring birds, the painted storks of India fly with their neck outstretched.

They are resident birds and are found in Indian lowland wetlands with trees. Kamlesh Sharma said more than 100 painted storks were in the breeding stage at Gamreshwar pond in Sangwara segment while more than 50 nests of white eye bees have been found on two trees located on the Simalwara road.

Nests can also be spotted in Shastri colony, Bichhiwada, Karauli, Mewara, Dhanbola, Galiakot, Bhiluda, Sangwara, Bodigama and Khanan villages besides small ponds near the Som Kamla Anba dam, he said.

Quoting Virender Singh Bedsa, an expert on environment, he said painted storks and white eye bees had been listed as endangered species by the Central government under the Wild Life Protection Act, 1972.

The environment lovers are buoyed over the presence of painted storks and white eye bees, he observed. Nests on the date palm and babul trees give a pleasant look to the visitors, he added.

Fazilka, October 6
Beopar Mandal (Fazilka) has decided to observe a complete strike on October 10 to participate in the proposed massive dharna that would be organised by the Sanjha Morch Fazilka on the same day at Malout Chowk in favour of their demand to get district headquarter status for Fazilka.

It was decided at a special meeting organised by the Beopar Mandal on Tuesday. The meeting was presided over by its president Ashok Gulbadhar.

Gulbadhar said the issue of district headquarters status for Fazilka is now in crucial stage. He warned that if their demand was not fulfilled, they could consider observing 72 hours long strike in future in Fazilka.

I-T advisory committee member nominated: Former president of Municipal Council Ashok Aneja has been nominated as the member of Income Tax Advisory Committee of Bathinda Zone by Raj Kumar, commissioner, Income Tax. Aneja has been designated a member of the advisory committee for the third consecutive time.

Besides Aneja, 20 more members have been selected. IT commissioner Raj Kumar has mentioned in the appointment letter that the members of the Bathinda Zone Committee comprising five districts, are supposed to act as bridge between the assesses and Income Tax officials.

Moga, October 6
The Moga district administration has taken a lead in the Punjabi speaking state by launching its official district website in Punjabi along with the earlier version in English language.

So far, no other district of the Punjab has launched its official website in Punjabi- the official language of this state. Interestingly, in the neighbouring state of Rajasthan, the district administration of Sriganganagar a few months back launched its official district website in Punjabi also along with English and Hindi versions.

The official spokesman of the Moga district administration Nath Singh Buttar while talking to The Tribune said the local district magistrate Dr Vijay N Zade has launched this website today on the guidelines of the state government to adopt Punjabi in all official works. From today onwards, one can now log on to http://moga.nic.in where the option in Punjabi language is also available for perusal and downloading of documents.

The website has been developed in Unicode Punjabi by the district unit of the NIC. The operators need not to install any font of Punjabi in their computer. — TNS

Bathinda, October 6
Lieutenant General Sanjiv Chachra, AVSM, VSM, assumed the command of Chetak Corps on October 4. He was commissioned in June 1974. An alumni of the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, the General Officer has varied combat, staff and instructional experience. A graduate of the Defence Service Staff College, Wellington, he qualified in the higher command course. Mhow and the National Defence College, New Delhi.

The General Officer has served in high altitude in the north and north-east and has taken part in counter-insurgency operations. He commanded a brigade in the west and a mountain division in the east. — TNS

Abohar, October 6
The Technical Services Union (TSU) is up in arms over the death of an assistant lineman, who had been working with the Punjab State Power Corporation.

Hundreds of workers staged dharna and raised slogans under the banner of the TSU at the sub-divisional complex number 3 to express anguish over the attitude of the authorities.

The protesters said assistant lineman Pala Ram suffered electric shock during the duty hours at Dharangwala rural feeder. He was rushed to the Nehru Memorial Civil Hospital here but had to be shifted to Sriganganagar due to his critical condition. He died during treatment on September 29.

Alleging that the worker suffered shock due to dual supply that a consumer had availed of illegally through different lines, the protesters alleged that a senior official was trying to shield the guilty consumer. The union further alleged that the contractors were not abiding by the rules while pursuing works under the outsourcing plan of the corporation.

No efforts had been made to check such mishaps. While demanding that the kin of the deceased worker should be suitably compensated, the TSU workers warned that state-wide agitation might be launched over this issue.

Abohar, October 6
The sub-divisional town is preparing again to make Dussehra a spectacular show. Notably, Abohar leads the district in celebrating the festival in a unique way in the presence of more than 20,000 people for the past decade.

Dussehra Committee president Mohinder Bathla informed after the preparatory meeting that BSF DIG Vimal Satyarthi would be the chief guest on the occasion. Deputy Commissioner Kamal Kishore Yadav and SSP Kaustabh Sharma have consented to preside over the function on October 17 at the Government Senior Secondary School here. The effigies of 42 feet tall Rawana would be torched using remote control system this time, he said. Meanwhile, hundreds of people thronged the Tarksheel Mela that was organised by the Shaheed Bhagat Singh Sports and Welfare Club at village Burjmuhar near here on Tuesday, president Amandeep Singh Dhaliwal informed.

Moga, October 6
A local court has sent three cops, who were picked up by the Moga police from the premises of the Faridkot district courts, to a two-day police remand for further investigation into a criminal case registered against them under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and section 409 of the IPC on August 7, 2010.

The arrested cops Gurdial Singh, Jaswinder Singh and Ranjit Singh, all constables, were produced before the court of Rakesh Gupta today.

Ramesh Grover, counsel for the cops, opposed the police remand contending that the case was registered against them under a ‘bigger conspiracy’ to strengthen the charges of murder against Canadian citizen Jagdev Singh Gill, who has been alleged of murdering Nachattar Singh Gill, father of PS Gill, the DGP of Punjab.

Grover argued that the local police had failed to link any direct evidence of embezzling lakhs of rupees received from the NRIs as foreign registration fee in the present case as no NRI had so far complained against them.

“The police have picked up some relatives and family members of the NRIs settled abroad and taken written statements against his clients to lodge an FIR for the sole purpose to harass and exert pressure on them to give statements against Jagdev Gill so that he cannot return to Canada,” he alleged.

Abohar, October 6
A young boy, a daily wage earner, was run over by train here on Tuesday while the body of a missing boy has been found in the canal here. As per the information, Jatinder (22), a migrant from Uttar Pradesh, had moved out of his sister's house in Nai Abadi locality after dinner last night but did not return. On Wednesday, the GRP spotted the body on the railway track in the morning. Postmortem was conducted at the civil hospital.

The body of Rahul Chhabra was found floating in the Malukpura canal near the bypass. The police initiated inquest proceedings after the postmortem at the civil hospital here.

Bathinda, October 6
Balianwali police booked a 28-year-old youth for raping on a minor Dalit girl of village Kotda Kodianwali in this district.

It is learnt that the girl, a student of class IX, was on her way to the school, located in the village, when the accused accosted her.

In her police statement, the girl alleged that she was going on foot to her school on Monday morning.

The accused, Harbans Singh intercepted her midway and forcibly dragged her to his house, located nearby.

“I shouted for help but nobody reacted. Taking benefit of the situation, the accused raped me,” the girl alleged.

Meanwhile, the girl’s mother reached the spot and tried to nab the accused but overpowering her, he managed to flee, police sources said.

Receiving the information, villagers rushed to the spot and took the girl to the Civil Hospital, Rampura Phul, where the doctors conducted a medical examination and confirmed the sexual violence.

Acting upon the basis of the statement of the girl and her mother¸ police booked the accused Harbans Singh under section 376 of the IPC on Tuesday.

Confirming the facts, SHO Balianwali, Gursewak Singh said the police was conducting raids to nab the accused. However, till the filing of the news, he was at large.

Bathinda, October 6
One Rajinder Kumar of the Thermal colony here accused one of his neighbours of stealing and assaulting him with a sharp-edged weapon at his house in the wee hours today.

The complainant alleged that he heard unusual noise at about 1 am. He got up and saw that his neighbour Bharat Kumar was stealing some goods from his house. “When I tried to nab him, he assaulted me with a sharp object and fled with two mobiles and some ornaments,” he alleged.

Meanwhile, police sources said it was not a matter of theft but there was a rivalry between the two, which resulted in the injury.

The Thermal police was probing the matter.