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Cong lambasts Sushma for targeting Sonia
Cong braces to face Oppn onslaught on Law
Ashwani Kumar |
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SC rejects PIL against retail FDI
Why CISF security for Ambani, SC asks govt
Mukesh Ambani
Salman Khurshid
Marriages Amendment Bill goes to GoM
BJP to ‘expose UPA misdeeds’
on May 4, 5
Give fitting reply to China, says Rajnath
Rajnath Singh Varun Gandhi
Give anomaly arrears to pensioners from 2006: HC
Jalandhar NRI among seven killed in Afghan plane crash
Mumbai Metro trial run successful
SFI leader’s father seeks CBI probe
Jayaprada set to join Congress?
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Cong lambasts Sushma for targeting Sonia
New Delhi, May 1 While rejecting as “completely baseless” the charge by Sushma that her speech in the Lok Sabha yesterday was disrupted at Sonia’s insistence, both Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari said visual proceedings of the House did not substantiate the “unjustified and virulent personal attack by the Opposition leader”. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi said during an election rally in Karnataka that the Leader of the Opposition did not talk of corruption in the state but she did in the Lok Sabha. In an apparent reference to her close equations with the Reddy brothers - facing charges in the mining scam - of Bellary, Rahul said while the BJP leader stood up and talked about corruption in Parliament yesterday, she refrained from saying the same about her “friends” in Karnataka. “BJP people are not able to see corruption in Karnataka,” Rahul said at Mandya. In Delhi, senior leader Kapil Sibal said the Congress did not expect an apology from Sushma since the BJP did not believe in parliamentary democracy and suggested that by seeking to speak on the issue outside the Finance Bill amounted to a breach of trust. Yesterday, the BJP leader had announced that the party would not participate in any meeting convened either by Speaker Meira Kumar or Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath since the latter had disrupted her speech in the House. She was upset that the Speaker did not intervene to protect her right as a member. Chidambaram said he still hoped that the BJP would have a rethink on its decision of not attending the meetings so that pending legislative business could be completed before the Budget session ended on May 10. The Finance Minister said he was present in the House along with his colleagues and the entire broadcast was telecast by television channels. The visuals did not reflect that the Congress president had interrupted Sushma or done anything to prevent her from speaking, he said. “The allegations are completely baseless and we reject these. I do not think the Congress did anything.... Such a virulent attack is unjustified. I am sorry she (Swaraj) made the allegations,” he said. Meanwhile, the Congress continued its internal parleys on the controversy over Law Minister Ashwani Kumar. A day after the core group announced “no decision” yet, the mood among the leadership was that it would not be politically prudent to buckle under the pressure of the Opposition and remove the minister. Party’s core communicators, too, went into a huddle in the “war room”, where the Law Minister was also present.
The Retaliation
Rahul says Sushma is unwilling to talk of graft in Karnataka but ready to do so in Lok Sabha Kapil Sibal feels expecting an apology from Sushma is futile as the BJP does not believe in parliamentary democracy Chidambaram claims the Congress has not done anything in the Lok Sabha to draw such a 'virulent attack' from Sushma
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Cong braces to face Oppn onslaught on Law Minister
New Delhi, May 1 After Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's assertion ruling out resignation of the Law Minister and the renewed Opposition attack on Ashwani Kumar after the apex court's recent observations, the Congress today held a meeting of its core members who were briefed by the Law Minister. The minister apprised the group about the sequence of events leading to the controversy amid a mood that it was a battle of perception on the issue making defence on it difficult. A member privy to the discussions told The Tribune while it was a case of "mishandling" of the episode, the fact that the coal blocks allocation case was referred to the CBI by the government itself was lost in the dust as is that the key prosecution officer belongs to the Law Ministry. Today's exercise appears a rear-guard action by the party to prepare its spokespersons as the Opposition promises to continue stalling Parliament proceedings. Some members were of the view that the Law Minister should go public with his version, while another section suggested that any statement should be made only after May 6 when the matter comes up before the Supreme Court. The briefing was attended by Union ministers Jairam Ramesh, Pawan Kumar Bansal, Jayanthi Natarajan, Rajiv Shukla, Manish Tewari and party leaders Janardan Dwivedi, Mohan Prakash, Raj Babbar, Girija Vyas and party spokespersons Sandip Dikshit, Rashid Alvi and Renuka
Chowdhary.
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SC rejects PIL against retail FDI
New Delhi, May 1 Accepting the statistics and study reports provided by the government, a three-member Bench headed by Justice RM Lodha noted that the farmers would get 60 per cent higher returns if they sold their produce directly to organised retailers instead of at mandis. At present, the farmer was getting just 12-15 per cent of the price the consumer paid at the retail outlet. The experience of developing economies like that of China, Brazil, Argentina, Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand which allowed 100 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail long ago showed that “local retailers co-exist along with organised retail,” the Centre had argued. The Bench also noted that studies had shown that the operation of major retail chains did not affect small traders who somehow managed to co-exist and continue to thrive.
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Why CISF security for Ambani, SC asks govt
New Delhi, May 1 “There is no question of government providing security to private individuals,” a Bench comprising Justices GS Singhvi and Kurian Joseph remarked while hearing a PIL against security protection being enjoyed by VIPs at the cost of the common man. Without naming Ambani, the Bench said it had noted media reports about the government decision to provide CISF security to a businessman. This practice was there in Punjab and “it has gone to Mumbai now”. Senior counsel Harish Salve, who is assisting the court in the PIL case as amicus curiae, said Ambani had only asked for guns for his private security personnel, but the government said it could provide security cover, but not weapons. Officials have already clarified that Ambani would have to meet the expenses incurred on the CISF personnel providing personal security to him. Nevertheless, the Bench asked Additional Solicitor General Indira Jaisingh to clarify at the next hearing on July 9 the government policy on providing security to private individuals. The SC also questioned the need for government providing security cover to VIPs facing serious criminal charges.
The court said…
Clarify at the next hearing on July 9 the government policy on providing security to private individuals What is the need to provide security cover to VIPs facing serious criminal charges such as murder and rape?
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Khurshid to visit
Iran, gas pipeline on agenda
New Delhi, May 1 Khurshid will co-chair a meeting of the India-Iran economic commission along with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi during his May 3-5 visit to the Islamic republic. Sources said the extension of the pipeline to bring cheap gas to India from Iran was still being discussed by the two sides, notwithstanding reports that New Delhi had expressed its unwillingness to join the project apparently under American pressure. “The extension of the pipeline to India is still very much a possibility. India, being an energy-deficient country, needs energy from every possible source to sustain its high growth rate and ensure energy security,” they said. Iran and Pakistan, meanwhile, are going ahead with the pipeline project. Iran has already constructed 900 km of the 1,600 km pipeline on its soil. The construction of the remaining part of the pipeline is being jointly undertaken by Iran and Pakistan. Being the neighbours of Afghanistan, the two sides are also likely to explore the possibility of undertaking joint projects in the war-ravaged nation once NATA troops withdraw from there in 2014. Both India and Iran are concerned over the evolving situation in Afghanistan and are vehemently opposed to the re-emergence of the Taliban as the pre-dominant force in the embattled nation. The construction of the strategic Chabahar Port in Iran by India will also be high on the agenda when the two foreign ministers meet. The port, once constructed, will provide India a vital link to transport its goods to Afghanistan and through it to Central Asia. Iran is also keen on India undertaking the project as quickly as possible as that will help the Islamic republic, currently battling crippling US sanctions in view of its controversial nuclear programme, bolster its sea capability. India is also considering setting up a urea-based plant in Chabahar region as a joint venture with Iran. The petroleum and fertilisers ministries are said to be conducting a feasibility study on the project. The idea was to give a concrete shape to the possible as early as possible, sources said. The two countries are also discussing some MoUs in different economic sectors which could be signed during Khurshid’s visit.
Trip starts May 3
Khurshid will co-chair a meeting of the India-Iran economic commission with his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi during his May 3-5 visit to the Islamic republic Sources said the extension of the pipeline to bring cheap gas to India from Iran was still being discussed by the two sides Reports had suggested that New Delhi expressed its unwillingness to join the project, apparently under US pressure
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Marriages Amendment Bill goes to GoM
New Delhi, May 1 The Bill, which came up for final discussion in the Cabinet today, was referred to the Group of Ministers after consensus eluded the provision guaranteeing equal share to a divorced woman and her children in husband’s properties, notwithstanding whether these properties are self-acquired, inherited or inheritable. Sources said Law Minister Ashwani Kumar flagged the concerns around technical feasibility of implementing such a provision in matters where a there are many claimants to the inherited family property. “What will happen if a family has three brothers? Will they get equal share in inherited property if one of them gets divorced? Giving 50 per cent right in this property to the wife in such a case would mean injustice to the rest of the claimant brothers,” Law Minister is said to have told the Cabinet with Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal, Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tiwari and Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad agreeing to the need for further discussion on the clause. In May 2012, the Cabinet had approved the said provisions in the Marriages Law Amendment Bill-2010 which seeks to amend the Hindu Marriage Act-1955 and the Special Marriage Act-1956 to make grant of divorces easier by including “irretrievable breakdown of marriage” as a new ground for divorce. The Cabinet had then improved the Bill further and deleted an existing clause in marriage laws that said “in the event of a divorce, women would have an equal share in marital property acquired during the subsistence of marriage”. The Cabinet had also approved another clause that said a divorced woman should have a right in the husband’s movable property and courts should determine the quantum of share depending on the “living standards of the divorced woman”. Before the Cabinet could clear the Amendment Bill for reintroduction in the Rajya Sabha (the Bill was originally introduced in the Upper House in 2010 and referred to a parliamentary standing committee) in the current Budget Session, senior ministers agreed that the provisions regarding 50 per cent share for a divorced woman in inherited or inheritable immovable property and some quantum of share in movable properties of a man needed further deliberations. The Cabinet had earlier been hailed because it was the first time that a definite - 50 per cent - share was fixed for a divorced woman in all properties of a husband whether inherited or self-made during marriage or before marriage.
The Bill
2010: Amendment Bill introduced in the RS to change Hindu Marriage Law and Special Marriage Law to make grant of divorces easier. Parliamentary Committee vets Bill, allows irretrievable breakdown of marriage as a new ground for divorce May 2012: Cabinet approves the Amendment Bill with provision allowing 50% share to a divorced woman in husband's self-made or inherited properties acquired before or during marriage May 1, 2013: Top Cabinet ministers object to 50% right to divorced women in husband's inherited or inheritable properties; ask how will such settlements happen where claimants to inherited properties are many and where properties are held in family trusts
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BJP to ‘expose UPA misdeeds’
on May 4, 5
New Delhi, May 1 The party will hold demonstrations in different parts of the country, including Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh, on May 4 and 5 to "expose" scams and corruption during the UPA rule. These protests would unmask the "misuse of constitutional institutions to cover up scams, corruption and sins of the Congress," BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. He was accompanied by party general secretary JP Nadda. The programmes in Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh have been scheduled on Saturday and will be led by Thawarchand Gehlot, Uma Bharti and Prakash Javdekar, respectively. Himachal Pradesh is being taken care of by Balbir Punj, J&K by Capt Abhimanyu and Uttarakhand by Shyam
Jaju.
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Give fitting reply to China, says Rajnath
Lucknow, May 1 Addressing a well-attended ‘Swabhiman Rally’ at Bareilly, 250 km from here, Rajnath stated that the time had come for the Indian government to give a fitting reply to China for daring to intrude into India adding that the BJP would extend its support to the union government if it decided to act. Expressing surprise at what he described as the people of UP “repeatedly making wrong choices by electing Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party” the party chief charged these two regional parties with pushing the state to backwardness. He compared the SP and the BSP rule to the BJP regime when Rajnath claimed that “development had picked up momentum”. The rally attempted to consolidate national general secretary and Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi’s stature as a youth leader of national standing as he was the only other national leader on the dais besides Rajnath. Refraining from indulging in a fiery speech, which had landed the now 33-year old first time MP in deep trouble during the previous Lok Sabha campaign in 2009, Gandhi focused mostly on developmental issues and praising the national president in whom he reportedly saw an Atal Behari Vajpayee in the making. Questioning the SP government’s populist schemes like free ambulances and laptops, Gandhi said these would fail to make a dent in the poverty level of the people of the state. Charging both the SP and the BSP rule with institutionalising corruption, Gandhi alleged that huge sums of money that had had been siphoned off by both these allegedly corrupt governments could have been used to bring jobs for million of youth. “Instead of doling out freebies there is a need to develop skills of the people so that they can find employment”, declared Gandhi. Substantiating his point on how measures meant to help the poor too became another way to make money he quoted the CAG report which states that the Centre’s loan waiver scheme has turned into a route for corruption. “CAG report has proved that only 20 per cent of the target beneficiaries have actually benefited from the scheme and the rest of the money has been wasted on corruption”, he pointed out. Urging the voters of the state not to “waste their vote by voting for the BSP or the SP” he pointed out that the main battle was not between them but between the Congress and the
BJP.
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Give anomaly arrears to pensioners from 2006: HC
Chandigarh, May 1 The Sixth Pay Commission had introduced broad pay bands, replacing individual scales, and had provided that pension of employees who retired prior to 2006 shall not be less than 50 per cent of the minimum pay in the pay band plus grade pay corresponding to the scale held by them at the time of retirement as introduced with effect from January 1, 2006. The said recommendation was accepted and implemented. However, the government later stated that the “minimum pay” would imply the minimum pay of the pay band itself and not the minimum pay within the pay band corresponding to the fitment of the scale held prior to the 2006. The pay commission categorised employees into four pay bands and each pay band contained different pay scales for different ranks. The government move resulted in minuscule difference in pension of various ranks since all ranks in a pay band were brought down to the minimum of the pay band rather than the minimum of the relevant rank pay scale. The pension of civilian grades of junior time scale, senior time scale and junior administrative grade and of military ranks of Lieutenant, Captain and Major were released on the same minimum of Rs 15,600, leading to discontent among pensioners. The Full Bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), however, came to the conclusion that pensions were to be based on the minimum of the pay scale within the pay band separately calculated for each rank and not the minimum of the pay band itself. Accordingly, it quashed the clarification issued by the government and granted relief from January 2006. The CAT’s decision, however, was challenged by the government before the Delhi High Court. The government also acceded to the formula as was being demanded by pensioners and interpreted by CAT and issued implementation instructions to the effect in January 2013. However, rather than granting arrears from January 2006, it granted arrears from September 24, 2012. The Delhi High Court has, however, upheld the CAT decision and held once the mistake was admitted by the government, it could not be applied prospectively. Chandigarh-based lawyer Navdeep Singh says the judgment is in line with well established principles that once an anomaly is sought to be rectified, it needs to be corrected from the date of its inception and not any future artificially created date.
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Jalandhar NRI among seven killed in Afghan plane crash
Jalandhar, May 1 The 32-year-old, the First Officer aboard the cargo carrier that crashed shortly after take off from the Bagram Air Base had dreamt of flying since childhood. Born and brought up in Jalandhar, he moved abroad with his parents after his father, Husan Lal, got Canadian citizenship when he was 12 years old. As members of Rinku’s family battled with the reality of having lost their feisty son, relatives and neighbours gathered at their Sikanderpur home to offer condolences. His body is yet to be found. Rinku’s cousin Anil Suman remembered: “Be it here, or after shifting base to Canada, whenever someone asked him what he wanted to be, he always said ‘a pilot’. While we thought those were childhood dreams, he chose flying as his profession. Seeing his passion, his father let him go ahead with it.” Rinku flew for a domestic airline in Canada and moved to the US after his father’s death in 2002. He again secured a job as a pilot for a domestic airline in the US. In 2007, Rinku married Rajnit, who is also a pilot. Rinku, a resident of Canton, Michigan, is survived by his wife Rajnit Suman and two-and-a-half-year-old son Adarsh Suman. His family and in-laws are also in the US. The Boeing 747-400 was en route to Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Other victims, all US citizens, were identified as pilots Brad Hasler, 34, and Jeremy Lipka, 37; navigator Jamie Brokaw, 33; loadmaster Michael Sheets, 36; and maintenance crewman Timothy Garrett, 51. "This was a purely cargo flight and no passengers were aboard," a company statement said, quoted by CNN. "Cargo consisted of vehicles and routine general cargo." The cause of the crash has not been determined.
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Mumbai Metro trial run successful
Mumbai, May 1 The first phase of the Metro on the Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar stretch in the city's Western suburbs will run on an elevated corridor. The 11.4-km elevated line will have 12 stations on this route and will cover the distance in 21 minutes. At present, it takes more than an hour to cover this stretch through narrow and congested roads. "It is very easy to build a railway or a Metro in open areas, but in congested areas such as Mumbai, building an over ground Metro is a huge challenge," Chavan told reporters before boarding the flower-bedecked train on its inaugural run. He said the process of obtaining all mandatory safety certifications are underway, adding that the service will be functional once these certifications are received. He also said that the work on Navi Mumbai Metro project has also begun, adding that the project worth Rs 5,500 crore will be thrown open (inaugurated) this year and that would be a big relief for the people of the city. Officials of Mumbai Metro One Private Ltd (MMOPL), which is constructing the line under a public-private-partnership (PPP) scheme, say six lakh commuters are expected to use the service with one train running every 3.5 minutes. To begin with, the fare on this route is pegged between Rs 10 and Rs 15. The Mumbai Metro transit system under construction is designed to reduce traffic congestion in the city. The project has seen huge delays. Work began in 2008 and was originally due to be completed on December 2010. However, the presence of unmapped utility lines underground since the British days ensured that these were relocated before work on the railway could continue.
Rs 2,356-crore project
The Mumbai Metro's first phase connecting Versova-Ghatkopar is being constructed at a cost of around Rs 2,356 crore The section is part of the 11.4 km Versova-Ghatkopar corridor which will provide a vital east-west link and drastically reduce travel time from around 90 minutes now to barely 20 minutes This sector is an elevated corridor supported by columns at the road median and will enable connectivity of eastern-western suburbs to the Western Railway and Central Railway
Country’s first monorail later this year
The country's first monorail service is also slated for roll out later this year, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said. "We are also happy to announce that the first monorail service in the country will also be rolled out (in Mumbai) later this year," he said.
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SFI leader’s father seeks CBI probe
Kolkata, May 1 The petition by Pranab Gupta also appealed that the investigation into the death of Sudipta be monitored by the court, his counsels Bikash Bhattacharya and Rabishankar Chattopadhyay said. The matter is likely to come up for hearing before the court next week.
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Jayaprada set to join Congress?
Hyderabad, May 1 The speculation has been triggered following her meeting with Congress chief Sonia Gandhi last week. “I am returning to AP politics and I will soon announce which party I will join,” Jayaprada has been saying in recent days. She has also expressed her desire to contest the next Lok Sabha election from her hometown Rajahmundry. Sitting Congress MP from Rajahmundry Vundavalli, Arun Kumar announced the other day that he would be too glad to make way for Jayaprada. “As a loyal Congress solider, I will honour the party decision and work for the victory of its nominee,” the two-time MP said. After films, Jayaprada began her political career in the mid-1990s in the Telugu Desam Party. She was elected to Rajya Sabha in 1996 on behalf of the party from AP. She, however, quit the TDP and joined the Samajwadi Party ahead of the 2004 elections and shifted base to UP. She was elected to Lok Sabha twice from Rampur but subsequently walked out of the SP along with Amar Singh. — PTI
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Congress leaders today lambasted Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj for her attack on party president Sonia Gandhi with Union ministers and party vice-president springing up in her
defence.
New Delhi, May 1
Lucknow, May 1
Of the seven Americans aboard the Boeing 747 on a brief but fateful flight from Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan, Rinku Suman was the youngest.
The trial run of Mumbai's Metro railway was successfully completed today, with Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan flagging off the first train on Wednesday morning. Passenger service on part of the Metro line is to begin in September with the entire stretch becoming operational by year-end.
