|
|
|
|
|
EC shifts 6 Rae Bareli, Amethi officers
Priyanka Gandhi plays down Khurshid row
Crime graph up in state, says Sibal
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Telangana issue rocks Andhra Assembly
Full faith in Army Chief: Antony
SC to govt: Tell us status of complaint against
ex-CJI
Delhi Police detains 3 ATS men
Valentine's
Day today
Development Gogoi’s way to tackle Maoists
Cracks in Farakka barrage gates
Hyderabad to get DNA Training Academy
Court martial of ex-Maj Gen starts today
Court directs police to probe porngate
|
|
EC shifts 6 Rae Bareli, Amethi officers
No official reason for the transfer of so many officials from the twin VIP constituencies has been given. But for the last few days, the Congress has been complaining against several officers harassing the party cadres and obstructing campaigning at the instance of BSP state president Swami Prasad Maurya who belongs to Rae Bareli. The Congress had, in fact, lodged a formal complaint with the Election Commission on February 11, saying the minister should be barred from entering the district till the elections. Maurya's son is the BSP candidate from Unchhar in Rae Bareli. District Magistrate Rae Bareli Amrita Soni has been transferred to Sitapur while the Sitapur DM Ajay Kumar Shukla has been posted in Rae Bareli in the same capacity. The Congress delegation that met the Election Commission on Saturday had also complained regarding the district administration delaying permission for Congress meetings, particularly those to be addressed by Congress star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. The transfer of these half a dozen officers comes a few days after another IAS officer Pawan Sen, working as poll observer, was transferred out of Rae Bareli for reportedly stopping a mobike rally led by Robert Vadra. However, the EC had to put Sen's transfer on hold following a controversy over the decision. The other officers transferred by the EC include Deputy Inspector General of Police Meerut Prem Prakash, two officers of Bhadohi and a police officer each from Gautam Buddha Nagar and
Jaunpur.
|
|
Priyanka Gandhi plays down Khurshid row
Rae Bareli, February 13 Priyanka, who is currently campaigning in the twin constituencies represented by her mother and brother in Parliament, Rae Bareli and Amethi respectively, said that "these are the things which do happen in elections". Questioned on the issue in an informal chat at Hallaur here on the issue, she replied, “People are free to air opinions on the issue.” She hoped that the matter would be sorted out by the two institutions. The Congress campaigner is scheduled to address about 15 meetings in Bachchrawan area throughout the day and hold roadshows. Khurshid had landed himself in deep trouble with the Election Commission over his comments on quota for minorities. — PTI
|
||
|
Crime graph up in state, says Sibal
Lucknow, February 13 Talking of percentages, UP accounts for 34 per cent of the total crime statistics in the country, Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal told mediapersons quoting National Crime Research Bureau Report 2011 today. Sibal said while there has been an increase in crime in the state, the most disturbing was the rise in crime against Scheduled Castes. The state reported the highest incidence of crime against SCs in the country. The figure stood at 19.2 per cent of the total crime registered against SCs. Murders of Dalits in the state account for 40.2 per cent of all such murders in the country. Similarly, as for kidnapping and abduction of Dalits, 48.5 per cent of such cases in the country are linked to UP. Rapes of Dalit women are taking place with macabre regularity in UP and MP. In the field of education too, UP under CM Mayawati had not shown much progress, charged Sibal. Despite claims of central funds not being provided, the education component of the Annual Plan approved by the Planning Commission for the state had risen from Rs 2242.56 crores in 2009-10 to Rs 3794.15 crores in 2010-12 which was an increase of 59 per cent, said Sibal. Still, about 10 per cent of schools do not have mats and furniture while 3 per cent are without blackboard, Sibal further said.
|
||
|
Telangana issue rocks Andhra Assembly
Hyderabad, February 13 The Governor, however, skipped the contentious Telangana issue and focused on the development agenda, reaffirming the government’s resolve for speedier and balanced economic development of the state. As soon as the Governor rose to address the joint session of the Assembly and Legislative Council, the angry members of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) raised full-throated slogans demanding a separate Telangana state and tried to storm the podium. The TRS legislators tore the copies of Governor's address and flung them into the air. They shouted ‘Governor go back’ slogan. The security personnel, who had thrown a protective cordon around Narasimhan, had a tough time holding back the agitated legislators. Sensing the mood of the House, the Governor rushed through his address. The Telangana legislators displayed placards demanding introduction of a bill for separate state before staging a noisy walkout. Later, the members belonging to the main opposition Telugu Desam Party also joined the walkout to protest against the Congress government’s failure to solve the problems of farmers. After about 15 minutes of slogan-shouting, the entire opposition including the TDP, the TRS, the BJP and the CPI staged a walkout alleging that there was no mention of the pressing public in the Governor's address.
|
||
|
Full faith in Army Chief: Antony
"The government has confidence in the present chief and that was conveyed in the Supreme Court also. Everything is clear and we have confidence in him," Antony told reporters when asked if Gen Singh has offered to resign after the apex court verdict. Antony was speaking on the sidelines of a function organised by IDSA - a defence and strategic think-tank - here. The Defence Minister’s remarks came on the day Gen Singh began a visit to Britain, the first by an Indian Army Chief since 2008. The Supreme Court held on February 10 that government's decision on Singh's date of birth as May 10, 1950, will apply to his service matters, forcing him to withdraw his plea contending that he was born a year later. "I am very happy this controversy is over. It is my request to all my colleagues and all of you (the media) to please close this chapter and work together to strengthen national security," Antony said. After the Army Chief withdrew his petition, there has been intense media speculation that he would quit. But now the remarks by the Defence Minister indicate that Gen Singh is unlikely to step down.
|
||
|
SC to govt: Tell us status of complaint against
ex-CJI
New Delhi, February 13 A Bench headed by Chief Justice SH Kapadia asked Attorney General GE Vahanvati to find out within a month whether any action had been taken or was being contemplated on the allegation that the former CJI had amassed wealth to the extent of Rs 40 crore in the names of his relatives between 2004 and 2009. The Bench was hearing two PILs - one by an NGO, Common Cause, represented by advocate Prashant Bhushan, and another by a lawyer - seeking steps for the removal of Justice Balakrishnan as NHRC chief on the charge of corruption. The petitions have mainly relied on media reports. Vahanvati assured the court that he would go through the petitions and collect the necessary information from government authorities. Bhushan contended that the government had failed to take any action on the complaint that the former CJI was guilty of several acts of grave misbehaviour. Elevated as a Supreme Court judge in June 2000, Justice Balakrishnan had become the CJI on January 14, 2007 and retired on May 12, 2010.
|
||
|
Delhi Police detains 3 ATS men
New Delhi, February 13 When ATS sleuths reached Taquee house, the latter's family called a PCR van. The three ATS men were whisked away to the Okhla Police station where they were detained for three hours. Taquee's brother Naquee was arrested by the ATS for being allegedly involved in the 13/7 bombings, a charge contested by the family. —
PTI
|
||
|
Thanks to civic polls, lovers to breathe easy
Shiv Kumar Tribune News Service
The Shiv Sena, which is fighting to retain the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, is going easy on couples expressing their affection in public. "We were never opposed to young people falling in love. We simply don't want any obscene behaviour in public," says Shiv Sena spokesperson Neelam Gorhe. Unlike in earlier years, activists of the Sena are not threatening restaurants and greeting card shop owners who are openly advertising Valentine's Day offers in Mumbai. "There is no trouble this time and sales are good," says Jayant Maru, who sells women's garments at Borivli in suburban Mumbai. The hot item this year is the short, strappy red party dress. These are flying off the shelves in large numbers. "This year guys are gifting these dresses to their girlfriends," says Maru. Many restaurants have already announced special Valentine's Eve dinners from tonight itself. "Since many Hindus do not drink or have non-vegetarian food on Tuesdays, we are having a Valentine's Eve dinner this year," says Frederick Nunes, a restaurant owner in suburban Mumbai. Retail outlets across Mumbai have put up bright red buntings and over-sized hearts of bright red colour after a gap of many years. According to police officials, there is no special security ahead of Valentine's Day. "There is extra bandobust already because of the elections and police and state reserve police are on alert," says a police spokesman. Last year, the government had deployed additional forces in Mumbai ahead of Valentine's Day as a precautionary measure. Some of the biggest hotels in the city have also gotten into the act this time. The Taj Mahal Hotel has a 14-course meal for two priced at Rs 3.5 lakh. Other hotels have elaborate lunch offers since Valentine's Day falls on a weekday this year.
|
||
|
Development Gogoi’s way to tackle Maoists
Bijay Sankar Bora/TNS Speaking at a seminar on “Sustaining Peace in North-East India: Changing Dimensions”, Gogoi said, “There must be reasons that have bred insurgency and Naxalism in the country. Lack of development and unemployment are some key factors behind it. Maoists are thriving in Andhra Pradesh where farmers are starving and committing suicide. We have to usher in all encompassing development to tackle the Maoist threat.” “We have to promote economic growth, provide political and social rights, treat every community with dignity and honour to neutralise Maoists and other insurgent groups. The Maoists are now trying to join hands with insurgents here because there feel they are weak and need help. The menace cannot be wiped out overnight through use of force. We have to give top priority to economic development with focus on rural India,” Gogoi said. He cited the example of Assam where insurgents have been relegated to the background due to loss of support from the people. “The state government has given autonomy to most of the principal ethnic communities in the state in the form of autonomous council and it has paid rich dividends as every community has now become part of the development process,” Gogoi said. Former Union Home Secretary GK Pillai who had vast experience of dealing with the insurgency problem in the North-Eeast said, “The Maoist strategy is to fish in troubled waters and exploit any grievances or even perceived grievances. This has to be tackled politically at the grassroots level. It has to be nipped in the bud with the help of people.”
|
||
|
|
||
|
Cracks in Farakka barrage gates
Kolkata, February 13 Sinha said for the last two days since the cracks have been noticed, they themselves have tried to repair the gates and plug the holes, but they have failed in their efforts. Engineers of the defence department and the barrage authorities are engaged in repair work on a war footing. He admitted due to extra discharge of water from the barrage to Bangladesh, most of the feeder canals storing water for the Kolkata port and the power plants in West Bengal and Bihar were now gradually drying up, which would affect navigation at the port and power generation at the NTPC plants. Oddly enough, the sluice gates broke down on Wednesday, but neither Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee nor the state minister for irrigation and water supply Dr Manash Bhuiya had any information about it. Neither the barrage authorities nor the district administration sent any report to the state government in this regard. This morning, the barrage authorities, as a matter of routine, told the state government about it with a copy of the SOS sent to the Union Water Resources Ministry. The general manager admitted that all the six sluice gates controlling and regulating the water supply from the barrage have been in a deplorable condition during the past few years and need replacement. But it’s only now that they have got financial sanction for replacement of these sluice gates. He expressed the hope that within a few weeks, the damaged gates would be replaced and the sluice gates 13 and 16 regulating water supply to Bangladesh would also be repaired and made operational. As per the 1996 Indo-Bangladesh pact, India has been supplying 40,000 cusecs of water every 10 days from the Farakka barrage to Bangladesh. During the lean months (between January and June) too, Bangladesh will get at least 30,000 cusecs of water.
|
||
|
Hyderabad to get DNA Training Academy
Hyderabad, February 13 The DNA profiling and analysis plays a key role in cracking criminal cases and bringing the culprits to book. The Hyderabad-based CDFD, an autonomous scientific institute funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), has proposed establishment of a national academy to encourage widespread application of DNA fingerprinting methods in solving the criminal cases. The proposed academy, in consultation with the Union Home Ministry and the DBT, would train the postgraduate science students in DNA profiling and analysis as there is a huge requirement for DNA analysis in the country, CDFD Director J Gowrishankar said. The academy will offer short-term capsules for a six-week period and a one-year diploma course in DNA analysis. It will also offer a two-year postgraduation programme in DNA technology. There are also plans to get a deemed university status for the academy. Though the CDFD had submitted the proposal to the Centre long back, there has been a procedural delay in setting up the academy. The main reason is the dilemma over whether the cadre of the proposed academy should be placed under the Home Ministry or the Ministry of Science and Technology. However, the need for improving the efficiency in forensic investigations and adoption of new technologies has been recognised by the authorities. The CDFD officials hope that the academy would take final shape soon. According to the official figures of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the total number of violent crimes in the country in 2010, including murders, rapes and kidnaps, were 2,41,986, of which, only 27 per cent of the guilty were convicted. In this scenario, the DNA profiling provides a fool-proof scientific method in crime detection. Its results are beyond any doubt, when compared to other forensic tools like ballistic, chemical analysis and toxicology. This technique now needs to be scaled up for widespread use and the required manpower needs to be created. There is a requirement for at least 1,000 DNA examiners in the country while, at present, there are only 25 examiners, each of them handling about 100 cases annually. Using modern tools of forensic science while dealing with violent crimes would help substantially improve the conviction rates and also speed up the process of justice delivery system.
|
||
|
Court martial of ex-Maj Gen starts today
Jalandhar, February 13 Sources at Headquarters 11 Corps said the GCM was earlier scheduled to begin on February 7, but was adjourned till February 14. The GCM headed by presiding officer, Chief of Staff, Headquarters 11 Corps, Maj Gen SK Aggarwal, would begin Tuesday morning, confirmed sources. The case pertains to the time when Gen Sarup was serving as the Additional Director General Ordnance Services and had purchased inflated items for the troops, thereby allegedly leading to losses to the exchequer. While a Court of Inquiry (CoI) had concluded on November 18, 2008, Gen Sarup had challenged findings in the case in the Delhi High Court.
|
||
|
Court directs police to probe porngate
Bangalore, February 13 A Bangalore court today ordered the police to probe the action of the three ministers on charges of transmitting and viewing porn film. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Kiran Kheny directed the police to complete the probe against Laxman Savadi, CC Patil and Krishna Palemar by February 27. Kheny’s order came on a complaint by Bangalore advocate Dharampal Gowda that Savadi, Patil and Palemar had violated laws prohibiting transmission and viewing of obscene films. Gowda told reporters that he had filed the complaint under Sections 292 and 294 of the IPC. Section 292 prohibits production/printing, sale, hire, distribution and public exhibition of obscene material. Section 294 deals with obscene acts or singing/uttering obscene songs/words. — TNS
|
||
|
Poll Snippets
An incident at Ladpur village under Didarganj Assembly constituency in Azamgarh district was a significant event in the history of Indian democracy. After a long illness, Shobhnath died in the village late on Friday. Next morning, his three sons - all working in Delhi - prepared to take their father on his last journey for his cremation on the banks of river Gomti in neighbouring
Jaunpur. A little ahead of their house, they stopped the tractor-trolley carrying the body. Amid wailing of relatives and
neighbours, the brothers, one by one, went to booth number 127 to cast their vote. They also made their grieving mother fulfil her responsibility as a citizen. Other relatives and neighbours were also urged to do their duty before joining the cavalcade which took their father on his final journey.
Not just pomp and show
The 16th Assembly election in Uttar Pradesh is bereft of posters, banners, stickers and the usual blaring of music one associates with an Indian election. The only visible sign of an election are the innovative endeavours to raise voters' awareness, which are visibly reaping handsome benefits in the form of higher polling percentages. As part of this ongoing exercise, around 1,800 students of Lucknow's St Paul's College on Sunday participated in a voter awareness campaign by pinning badges saying "Do Vote" on the arms of their parents. They also staged street plays and read out inspirational messages urging their parents to step out and vote when the city goes to polls on February 19. This was followed on Monday by hundreds of senior citizens and representatives of civil society forming a several kilometres long human chain on the embankment of river Gomti once again to draw attention to the importance of voting next Sunday in the city.
Relations versus politics
Uma Bharti proclaims former BJP leader Kalyan Singh as his political mentor who is more like a father figure to her. Reacting to this, Kalyan Singh said on Sunday that if she really considered herself a daughter, she would not have worked to strengthen the hands of BJP, which aims to politically 'kill' the father. "What kind of 'beti' is this who is politically killing the father?" he said at an election rally. Cautioning the daughter, Singh said whether she wins or loses the Charkhari assembly seat in Mahoba in Bundelkhand, she would be bundled back to Madhya Pradesh by her party.
Heavyweight presence
Congress MP and former cricketer Mohammad Azharuddin as well as Qaimganj Congress candidate Louis Khurshid, wife of Law Minister Salman Khurshid, had a miraculous escape when the makeshift stage at the Shamsabad election meeting at Kaimganj in Farukhabad, suddenly collapsed while they were addressing a meeting. A large number of workers climbed the dais in order to have a closer look at one of the Congress's star campaigner Azharuddin bringing down the stage along with others.
Feeling the pinch
Those who have weddings planned for this season are in for trouble as their budgets have gone haywire due to the auspicious wedding dates clashing with the election dates. The heavy demand for tents, hired bed rolls, caterers, vehicles, hotel rooms and even flowers required by both the wedding and campaigning candidates has sent the rates soaring and is making middle-class families feel the pinch. As all government schools and halls are not available on polling days, families have been forced to make alternative arrangements by booking expensive hotel banquet halls. (Compiled by Shahira
Naim)
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Congress star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi today sought to play down the raging controversy over senior party leader and Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid's comments, saying such "things do happen in elections".
The Telangana issue rocked Andhra Pradesh Assembly on the opening day of its budget session today with the Governor ESL
Narasimhan’s customary address being disrupted by the statehood supporters leading to chaos in the House.
The Governor, however, skipped the contentious Telangana issue and focused on the development agenda, reaffirming the government’s resolve for speedier and balanced economic development of the state.
Lucknow, February 13
Five other officials - Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Dalmau BL Saroj, Inspector Rae Bareli Sadar Sudhakar Singh, Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Amethi ML Pandey, Station Officer Mohanganj Amethi Anil Kumar Shahi and Inspector Amethi Kotwari Anand Bajpai have also been shifted to non-election duties.
New Delhi, February 13
Mumbai, February 13