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On founder’s day, TMC leader showers money on dancers
Modi govt in damage-control mode
Congress snubs Tharoor for tweet over
PhD admissions: Caste row turns ugly; Osmania prof slapped
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EGoM meets today to discuss next round of Spectrum auction
AI cancels flight due to non-availability of pilot
Apex court seeks WB reply on bail plea of accused
No journalistic activities on tourist visa: MHA
Visual treat awaits sky gazers this year
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On founder’s day, TMC leader showers money on dancers
Kolkata/Bhangor, January 2 A red-faced Trinamool today suspended a TMC Zila Parishad member and other party functionaries who had organised the function last night in South 24 Parganas. TMC leader and 24-Parganas Zila Parishad member Mir Tahir Ali climbed onto the stage and was seen throwing wads of currency notes towards the dancing girls at the function held at a stone's throw from the Bhangor police station. The police stopped the show after midnight. Party MP Derek O'Brien said a disciplinary committee meeting was held and the partymen were suspended for his role in the function. Stating that the party had taken swift action, he told PTI, "Pending enquiry, the partymen have been suspended and their expulsion is also not ruled out." He said he had spoken to party chief Mamata Banerjee, "and she had two words — zero tolerance". He said, "Please do not portray this as something endorsed by Trinamool. For Trinamool, cultural sensibilities and gender sensibilities are absolutely paramount. Please be reassured it is not endorsed by anyone from Trinamool Congress .... we will find out who were the people indulging in the crass display of gender insensitivity." O' Brien said, "Thousands of events marked Trinamool's 16th birthday yesterday and one of these was an abhorrent incident involving ladies dancing, it was an isolated incident, the strictest action will be taken against any party worker involved." National Commission for Women chairperson Mamta Sharma said, "It is shameful that they are celebrating this way. We need a change of mindset among all political parties." — PTI
Police steps in
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Modi govt in damage-control mode
Ahmedabad, January 2 Modi convened a meeting of his Cabinet to discuss the Supreme Court order. Later, in a brief statement before the media, the Law and Judiciary Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasma said the state government would “soon implement” the apex court’s order. The Cabinet is learnt to have discussed the possibility of seeking legal opinion on whether the Supreme Court order means that the state government must issue the official order appointing Justice Mehta as the Lokayukta or that it could look for options to fill up the vacancy of the post of the Lokayukta. Chudasma’s comment was significant in this respect as he claimed that the apex court had upheld the state government’s point of view that the Lokayukta should be appointed “in consultation” with the state government. The Modi government had challenged Justice Mehta’s appointment by the Governor on the ground that the Modi government was not consulted before finalising his name. The post of Lokayukta has remained vacant for
the last nine years or so after the former Lokayukta, who was appointed by Modi’s predecessor Keshubhai Patel, resigned at the completion of his term to pave the way for the Modi government to fill the vacancy with a person of its own choice. However, as the Modi government continued
to delay the appointment of a new Lokayukta to look into the alleged complaints of irregularities by the state government, the Governor — after issuing several reminders - appointed
Justice Mehta, a retired judge of the Gujarat High Court, as the Lokayukta in August 2011. This was a day before the Modi government appointed a commission of inquiry constituted by Justice MB Shah, a retired Chief Justice of the high court, to go into the complaints of alleged irregularities by the Modi government. The Modi government had earlier rejected
the Governor’s recommendation to appoint Justice Mehta, who was also the choice of the then Leader of Opposition in
the state Assembly Shaktisinh Gohil. The state government held the view that Justice Mehta was “biased against” the Modi administration and would not be suitable to hold “impartial” inquiry into the complaints against the government. The Modi government immediately challenged Justice Mehta’s appointment in the high court which, with a fractured verdict of two to one, upheld the Governor’s decision which was further challenged by the government in the Supreme Court. As the high court was seized with the matter, the Modi government sent all the relevant papers regarding 14 of the 17 alleged charges of corruption levelled against his government by the Congress to the MB Shah commission for speedy investigation. And as expected, about
a month before the state Assembly elections, the Shah commission gave a “clean chit” to Modi in nine out of the 14 complaints while the remaining five were still under
its investigation. Among the complaints in which the Modi government had been cleared by the Shah commission were the alleged unusual favours shown to Tata Motors to shift its Nano car plant from West Bengal to Gujarat, the lakhs of acres given to the Adani group of industries at a throwaway price and huge chunk of lands in Kutch given to the family holding company of the veteran BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu. Some legal experts, however, said the Lokayukta could reopen the cases already “disposed” by the Shah commission. Reacting to the apex court judgment, Shaktisinh Gohil said his party would again take up the 17 charges of irregularities before the Lokayukta. He demanded that Modi or the BJP should, from their pocket, reimburse to the state exchequer the cost of legal expenses for fighting the case up to the Supreme Court knowing well that the Governor was right in appointing Justice Mehta as the Lokayukta. The Gujarat Parivartan Party of the former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel celebrated the apex court’s judgment by bursting crackers in different parts of the state.
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Congress snubs Tharoor for tweet over gangrape victim
New Delhi, January 2 The reprimand followed Tharoor’s tweet yesterday suggesting that the proposed anti-rape law be named after the Delhi gang-rape victim and that her identity be revealed. “Wonder what interest is served by continuing anonymity of the Delhi gang-rape victim. Why not name and honour her as a real person with own identity.” “Unless her parents object, she should be honoured and the revised anti-rape law be named after her. She was a human being with a name, not just a symbol,” the minister added. As in the past, Tharoor’s tweets did not go down well with the party. Reacting to his views, Congress spokesperson Rashid Alvi remarked, “It is his personal opinion. Since he is a part of the government, he should have given the suggestion to the government rather than making any such statement in public,” adding that the party forum is also available to Tharoor for giving his suggestions. Continuing in the same vein, Alvi added, “It would have been better if he had given this advice to the government, as the decision has to be taken at their level.” While the government today said there was no provision to name laws after individuals, the girl’s family was quoted as saying that it had no objection if the revised anti-rape law was named after the girl.
No HC relief in anthem case
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PhD admissions: Caste row turns ugly; Osmania prof slapped
Hyderabad, January 2 The simmering friction between a section of the students and the faculty, with caste overtones, took an ugly turn last week when a student slapped a senior Professor of the Journalism Department, Dr K Narendra, in the presence of top university authorities. At the heart of the mistrust was the perception in some quarters that the students belonging to weaker sections were being discriminated against in the selection of candidates for PhD courses. The trouble started when a group of Dalit students confronted the university authorities over the issue of PhD admissions. The situation soon went out of control when the Professor was manhandled even as his shocked colleagues looked on helplessly. Alleging discrimination and bias against scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and backward classes, some student organisations rejected the merit list for PhD admissions and demanded that a fresh list be prepared reflecting proper representation to the weaker sections. The attack on the Professor evoked anger among the faculty members. Over 100 lecturers and Professors took to the streets staging a protest rally, demanding stern action against the erring students and seeking an assurance from the university administration that such incidents would not recur. They also demanded that Vice-Chancellor Prof S Satyanarayana should not cancel the merit list under pressure from students. They also decided to stay away from the academic duties till the university authorities gave a firm assurance that such violent incidents would not recur. “We will not succumb to pressure tactics and threats of violence. We have done our job of screening the candidates fairly and the merit list contains the names of deserving candidates. We want this merit to be protected and urge the Vice-Chancellor not to cancel or change the list under pressure,” said Prof B Satyanarayana, president of Osmania University Teachers’ Association (OUTA). Though the police arrested the student, P Alexander, for slapping the Professor, there is no sign of tempers cooling down on the campus. “The problem of campus violence will not be solved by arresting one student. We want the Vice-Chancellor to take stern measures to ensure that such incidents do not happen again and the sanctity of the admission process is preserved,” Prof Satyanarayana said. On their part, Dalit Students’ Association has filed two police complaints under the SC/ST Atrocities Act against some lecturers. The association alleged that the reservation norms were not being followed during admissions. “Whenever we approach officials, they abuse and insult us. We will not take it anymore,” the association representatives said. Once considered a prestigious institution, Osmania University has, of late, become a battleground for Telangana protagonists. The campus has been periodically witnessing violence by pro-Telangana students. The faculty members, hailing from Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions, have been facing the wrath of the protesters.
Simmering mistrust
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EGoM meets today to discuss next round of Spectrum auction
New Delhi, January 2 Officials at the Ministry of Telecom said the EGoM would meet tomorrow to discuss the auction plan prepared by the Department of Telecom (DoT) after the Cabinet approved the sale of unsold GSM Spectrum in the 1,800-Mhz band and in the premium 900-Mhz band. The Union Cabinet had last month given approval for the sale of the unsold GSM Spectrum at a
new price that would be 30 per cent lower than the earlier price. The Cabinet at its meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh took into account the recommendation of the EGoM that the earlier base price was too high and needed to be brought down. The EGoM had recommended a 30 percent cut in base price for 2G Spectrum in four circles that remained unsold in the last auction-a suggestion that could
fetch Rs 6,200 crore to the exchequer. These included Delhi and Mumbai circles as well. With the revision in base price, the government reduced the pan-India reserve price to about Rs 12,000 crore, from the Rs 14,000 crore fixed for the November auction. Reports said the government was looking at raising around Rs 39,895 crore in the fresh round of auction of the airwaves. As per the proposal, the government may get around Rs 25,316 crore from the auction in the premium 900-Mhz band, and Rs 14,579 crore from auction of unsold Spectrum in the 1,800-Mhz band.
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AI cancels flight due to non-availability of pilot Tribune News Service
New Delhi, December 2 The reason why the regular aircraft pilot Capt RS Dhillon failed to turn up is a story in itself. He had been put under suspension just a day before (on December 31) on the charge of fudging simulator training records. Though the management, including General Manager (Operations) Capt HY Samant, was well aware of the development, no alternative arrangement was made to fill in the place of Dhillon. Eventually, the flight had to be cancelled. This put 220 passengers to inconvenience besides denting the image of the airline. The good part, however, is that the loss-making national carrier, which has started showing signs of some financial recovery, is now acting tough with the staff found neglecting duty. The Civil Aviation Ministry today made public the suspension of Capt Dhillon, General Manager (Operations), in charge (training), on grounds of fudging training record at the A-330 Jet Airways simulator. The investigation report revealed that records with regard to training imparted on simulator were prima facie fudged by Dhillon, the official statement said. Samant was also removed from his present assignment for failure to put in place the crew for flight A-330 from Mumbai to Singapore.
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North shivers; Delhi’s coldest day in 44 years
New Delhi, January 2 With mercury dropping below normal in many parts of western UP, 15 more persons lost their lives, taking the death toll of the season in the state to 107. The cold wave is also sweeping the hilly parts of the region with minimum temperatures in Himachal Pradesh dropping by few notches in some parts to hit the freezing point. Bone-chilling cold also left Delhi shivering with the maximum temperature plummeting to 9.8°C, the lowest in 44 years. The minimum was 4.8°C - two degrees below normal, but 0.8 degrees higher than yesterday's 4°C - the season's lowest. Today’s maximum of 9.8°C is a 11 degrees departure from normal levels and this is the lowest maximum temperature recorded since 1969, the weather office said. Flight operations were also disrupted at the IGI airport as there was a drop in runway visibility to less than 25m with the dense fog disrupting the schedule of over 30 flights. No respite is expected from icy winds till Thursday as the meteorological office has extended its forecast for cold wave conditions by another 24 hours. It has predicted very dense fog (visibility 50m or less) to remain in parts of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, west Uttar Pradesh, north Rajasthan and northwest Madhya Pradesh. Cold day conditions will prevail over many parts of Punjab, Haryana and Delhi and also some parts of west Uttar Pradesh and north Rajasthan during the next 48 hours. Currently, the minimum temperatures are ranging below normal by 4-6°C over many parts of west Uttar Pradesh and by 2-3°C over many parts of Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan and Gujarat. The lowest minimum temperature of 0.6°C has been recorded at Muzaffarnagar (Uttar Pradesh) in the plains of the country. Meteorologists are also warning of ground frost at some places in Punjab, Haryana and western UP - a situation which may pose difficulties for farmers in the thick of the rabi growing season. No significant change in minimum temperatures over the Indo-Gangetic plains is expected during next two to three days. A further fall in maximum temperatures by 2 to 3°C over east Uttar Pradesh and Bihar is expected during next 2-3 days. But the plains of the northwest may see some improvement in night temperatures with the advent of a Western Disturbance around tomorrow. Light rain or snow could occur at one or two places over Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh from tomorrow.
Chilling facts
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Park Street Gang Rape Tribune News Service & PTI
Kolkata/New Delhi, January 2
A bench of justices AK Patnaik and HL Gokhale had issued notice to the state government on November 26, 2012, and sought its reply within three weeks on a plea by Sumit Bajaj, one of the youths accused of gangraping an Anglo-Indian woman in a car on February 5 last year. The high court had rejected Bajaj’s bail plea along with that of another accused in the case on October 19, 2012. In the FIR lodged by the woman on February 9, 2012, she had alleged that she was gangraped by five youths in a car at gunpoint and was also threatened. Besides Bajaj, the other accused in the case are Nishad Khan alias Tusi, Nasir Ali, Kader Khan, alias Kadir Sheikh and Mohammad Ali. While Bajaj, Nishad and Nasir are behind bars, Kader and Ali are still absconding. The police, after conducting raids in several cities in the country, finally came to the conclusion that Kader Khan was now living at his aunt’s house at Chittagong. And since there is no extradition treaty between the two countries, Kader cannot be brought back to Kolkata for trial.
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No journalistic activities on tourist visa: MHA
New Delhi, January 2 The MHA said: “A tourist visa is issued to foreigners who do not have residence or occupation in India and whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends and relatives etc. No other activity is permissible.” The MHA advisory said it has been noticed that foreigners coming on tourist visa are involved in coverage of events and journalistic activities. “Tourist visa is not the appropriate
visa for such activities by the foreigners”, the statement issued by the MHA said tonight. Officials pointed out that in the past year and a half there have been cases of misuse of tourist visa and high-profile deportations. In September 2011, a United States national David Barsamian was deported on his arrival at the IGI airport in New Delhi. On previous visit in 2009-2010, he was on a tourist visa and had reported on events in Jammu and Kashmir. He allegedly had interactions with separatist
leaders and also reported on the situation in the Kashmir valley. In April 2012, nine French nationals were deported from Bihar was being allegedly involved in Maoist activities and were working with NGOs while being on a tourist visa. In May this year Roger Bilham, a US geophysicist who had authored a paper on seismic hazards at the Jaitapur nuclear plant site, Maharashtra, was deported from India because of visa violations.
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Visual treat awaits sky gazers this year
Bangalore, January 2 Comets are relatively common phenomena with several usually accessible to larger telescopes at any given time. A “Great Comet”, like Ison, however, is fairly rare, with such comets appearing perhaps only once a decade. Ison was discovered by Russian astronomers Vitali Nevski and Artyom Novichonok. According to Bhat, this could be the comet’s only trip to the solar system, as its trajectory might lead it to plunge into the sun and meet a fiery death. Ison is expected to blaze brilliantly in the skies during late November and December 2013. With a perihelion passage of less than two million kilometres from the Sun on November 28, 2013, current predictions are of an object that will be brighter than the full moon. “If the predictions hold true then Ison will be one of the greatest comets in human history, far outshining the Comet Hale-Bopp of 1997”, Bhat said. The other comet, Panstarrs, is likely to be visible in March 2013. It was discovered in June 2011. While Panstarrs was a very dim and distant object at the time of its discovery, it has brightened steadily since then. For the past several months it has been detectable with larger telescopes as it slowly tracks across the constellations of Scorpius and Libra. Bhat said by the beginning of March, Panstarrs would begin to swing northward and by the middle of March it would become visible from the northern hemisphere during twilight as a very bright object. By the latter part of May, it will be high in the northern sky near Polaris although by that time it will probably no longer be detectable with the unaided eye. Several meteor showers will be visible during the year. Quadrantis meteor shower, producing about 40 meteors per hour, can be visible anytime now. Lyrid meteor shower, producing about 20 meteors per hour, may be visible between April 16 and April 25. Eta Aquarid meteor shower, producing about 10 meteors per hour, will be visible in May. In July (28, 29), South Delta Aquarids, which can produce about 20 meteors per hour, is likely to be visible. Perseids, one of the best meteor showers that produce up to 60 meteors per hour, may be visible on August 12 and 13. Orionids, a medium intensity meteor shower, could be seen on October 21 and 22. A view will be there any morning from October 20 to 24. Orionids originates from Comet Halley. Leonids meteor showers, one of the best for observation, will be visible on November 17 and 18. Geminid meteor shower, also rated among the best, is likely to be visible on December 13 and 14. There will also be two lunar eclipses in 2013.
On view
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Army intelligence unit faces fresh charges
New Delhi, January 2 The Ministry of Defence is expected to seek details of an internal Army probe that has established that two of the such off-air phone interceptors were destroyed and dumped in a river in Jammu and Kashmir last year. Allegations had surfaced last year that the Technical Support Division (TSD), set up by the then Army Chief Gen VK Singh, had misused off-air phone interceptors meant for border surveillance to keep tabs on the conversation on important people in the national capital. It was alleged that the TSD had deployed interceptors to tap mobile phones of important officials. An internal Army probe has said that two of the interceptors were destroyed after the controversy erupted last year. The Army authorities today refrained from commenting on the matter. Indications are that Army internal probe talks about the illegal interceptions and the subsequent destruction and dumping of the instruments in the river. The inquiry is also looking into other activities of the military intelligence like the sudden escalation in the use of funds. The Defence Secretary refused to give approval to the military intelligence (MI) budget. The Tribune had first reported the matter on July 18, 2012.
the probe says
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The Narendra Modi government in Gujarat has launched an immediate damage control measure following the Supreme Court’s judgment upholding Governor Kamala Beniwal’s move to appoint Justice RA Mehta as the Lokayukta of the state.
