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Panchayat Poll
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Election violence: Seven FIRs in Patiala dist
Cong to move HC against ‘rigging’
HC refuses to intervene in Honey Singh’s case
State gets 229 million tonne coal block
Undertrial wins sarpanch poll by five votes
Repolling in 50 panchayats
The Tribune catches up with a few young guns elected as sarpanch in the July 3 gram panchayat elections and tries to find out about the works they plan to take up in their villages
Sarpanch of CM’s village, her target is fighting drug abuse
She is keen to raise funds by plantation on common land
State govt will save
Rs 120 cr annually on atta-dal scheme
CM: Don’t renew sops to neighbouring states
Lt Gen Buttar to take oath as PPSC chief on July 8
British girl’s organs yet to be handed to parents
Cong MLA Soni leads trade delegation to PM
Assault on IAS officer Pannu
JE was competent to carry out search: HC
Cheating cases: Panchayati Raj Act does not bar police probe, rules SC
Killers of Hoshiarpur boy get SC reprieve
Bail for AIG Mand ‘attackers’
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Panchayat Poll
Faridkot, July 4 The incident took place at 11.15 pm yesterday after Parminder Singh was declared elected as
sarpanch. Protesting against the results, supporters of Inderjit Singh, the losing candidate, engaged in heated arguments with poll officials and members of the rival group. They later laid siege to the counting centre and clashed with the other group. To control the situation, Inspector Gurcharan Singh allegedly opened fire and killed 21-year-old Pavitar Singh. Following this, the Inspector along with his team fled the spot. Supporters of the defeated candidate then allegedly attacked the polling staff and police personnel. The injured PO and policemen were admitted to Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital,
Faridkot. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Faridkot, GS Randhwan said the police had registered two cases. While Parminder Singh and Inspector Gurcharan Singh had been booked on the charges of murder, Inderjit Singh and some unidentified persons had been booked for attacking PO Parveen Kumar, Home Guard jawan Mehal Singh and constable Surinder Kumar, he said, adding the inspector had been suspended. The condition of Mehal Singh, who suffered head injuries, is reported to be critical. No arrest has been so far. Meanwhile, the deceased’s father Lakhwinder Singh alleged that the accused inspector was drunk at the time of the incident. He had opened fire to terrorise the protesting villagers at the behest of Parminder Singh, he added. Aftereffects The accused inspector was drunk at the time of the incident. He opened fire to terrorise the protesting villagers at the behest of (winning candidate) Parminder Singh
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Election violence: Seven FIRs in Patiala dist
Patiala, July 4 While in some cases votes were tampered with, in others losing candidates and their supporters fled with ballot papers. The police has registered a case against Jasbir Singh who allegedly entered a polling station in Balberha to cast a bogus vote. As polling officials became suspicious, they reported the matter to the policemen, who arrested him. In Mauliwala village, a polling official was allegedly attacked by a losing candidate along with his supporters. “The accused fled with 193 votes and also attacked a constable and tore his uniform. The accused included Balwant Singh, Bhupinder Singh, Sultan Singh and Harinder Singh,” an official said. In another incident, police and polling teams were allegedly attacked by a losing candidate from Balverha, Karamjeet Singh, who along with his supporters tried to snatch ballot papers. In Samana village, a polling agent tore several polled votes after the result was declared against the accused’s candidate. A similar case was reported in Ichheywal village in Bakshiwal. Over 12 persons were booked in Jhulka for allegedly swallowing several ballot papers after stealing these from a polling station. Villagers at many places held protests against the alleged biased attitude of the administration and improper counting of votes. Complaints in Ferozepur The Ferozepur district administration remained flooded with complaints of booth capturing, rigging, use of corrupt practices and bogus voting on Thursday. Deputy Commissioner Manjit Singh Narang said he had received over 25 representations from various villages. “Most complaints are from villages where the victory margin has been that of less than 10 votes.” Additional Deputy Commissioner Sonali Giri said, “We have told all the complainants to submit their applications, which will then be
scrutinised.”
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Cong to move HC against ‘rigging’
Lehragaga (Sangrur), July 4 PPCC president Partap Singh Bajwa said nothing could be done at this stage as the panchayats had already been elected. However, if the CBI proved rigging and malpractices in the poll process, action could be initiated against the elected panchayats, he added. Bajwa was here today to attend the bhog ceremony of Harcharan Kaur, the mother-in-law of Lehragaga MLA Rajinder Kaur Bhattal. He said the 73rd and 74th amendments to the Constitution were made to strengthen democracy at the grassroots level, but the SAD regime was “doing the opposite”. Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Santosh Chaudhary said the Centre had demanded proposals from the states to launch the National Urban Health Mission. She said there was no dearth of funds for this purpose. On stoppage of funds for plying 108 emergency mobile vans if the state government fails to remove photographs of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal from ambulances, she said the rules were applicable to all states. On the occasion, the Bhattal family announced to donate Rs 5 lakh towards the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund for Uttarakhand flood victims.
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HC refuses to intervene in Honey Singh’s case
Chandigarh, July 4 As the petition filed in public interest by NGO "HELP" came up for resumed hearing, Honey Singh's counsel Anmol Rattan Singh and Kanwalvir Singh Kang referred to the singer's written statement to say he has "fallen a victim to his own celebrity status". They contended controversial song "Main Hun Balatkari" was not sung by him, and apparently some other "Honey Singh" or another person impersonating him, had sung that song. Sidhu argued that the police registered an FIR against Honey Singh on May 16 under the High Court directions. As such, the High Court should intervene in the matter. The Bench, however, expressed its intention for not interfering with the FIR. The Bench observed that Honey Singh might resort to appropriate remedy available to him in law for redressal of his grievance by taking such defence. Petitioner's counsel HC Arora submitted that the film censor board had played a useful role in checking vulgarity and obscenity in films; and a similar mechanism should be set up for non-movie songs. The High Court then disposed of the PIL by observing that it was for the state government to decide whether it wanted to set up a mechanism or authority for screening vulgar or obscene songs, and for stopping misuse of information and technology by uploading such songs on the internet. It was also for the state government to decide what should be "checks and balances" to be incorporated in such a mechanism.
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State gets 229 million tonne coal block
Chandigarh, July 4 The grant of the coal block in Deocha-Pachami, which was approved yesterday along with 14 other coal blocks to various states and public sector undertakings, is a generous gesture by the UPA Government given the fact that states larger than Punjab have been allocated lesser coal. Haryana has been allocated a 51 million tonne block in Jharkhand. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is said to have pursued this case relentlessly for more than a year, visiting Delhi every month for the purpose. Principal Secretary, Power, Anirudh Tewari, when questioned, said the allocation of the coal block would ensure coal linkages for future projects of the state power utility. Besides the 1,320 MW project proposed for Hoshiarpur, which already had the state approval, the government had also given in-principle approval to a 4,800 MW thermal plant at Ropar. The latter would replace the existing 1,260 MW thermal plant there. The present Ropar thermal plant would be rendered ineffective within the next five years, Tewari said. “This means that even as we complete the construction of the Mukerian thermal plant in the next five years, we will be able to start construction of the new super critical thermal plant at Ropar immediately afterwards”, Tewari said. He maintained that the fact that Punjab was according the highest priority to the power sector had influenced the coal ministry to allot it a block larger than its commensurate population size. The commissioning of the block would take about five years. The new allocation does not help the present three power stations out of which the 1,980 MW Talwandi Sabo thermal project is running behind schedule because of problems on coal linkages. Official sources said all three new thermal plants coming up in Punjab, including the 540 MW project at Goindwal Sahib and the 1,400 MW project at Rajpura, already had coal linkages. He said there were some problems at Talwandi Sabo because the original coal linkage was approved for 1,800 MW but the company had increased the project capacity to 1,980 MW. The official said the coal ratio for Talwandi Sabo was 80:20 (80 percent domestic coal and 20 percent imported coal). He said with the increase in capacity, the ratio had become 70:30. The company was finding it difficult to import coal. Also, boilers had to be redesigned for imported coal. The allocation of the new block will give the state power utility the option to offer coal at reduced prices to its plants. This could lead to a reduction in the power tariff. Similarly, with the setting up of a power trading corporation, the availability of cheap and quality coal will allow the board to trade power at competitive rates. UPA Govt’s generous gesture
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Undertrial wins sarpanch poll by five votes
Muktsar, July 4 He had filed his nomination papers on June 22 at Malout while he was on the run and the National SC/ST Commission had directed the police to arrest him. Sources said Sukhpal, an Akali leader, was not even allowed to cast his vote. But, he managed to win the election by five votes. Of the total 2,000 votes in the village, Sukhpal got 700 while his opponent Jatinderpal Singh “Jyoti”, also an Akali leader, got 695 votes. A resident of Danewala village said the family members of Sukhpal had campaigned on his behalf while he was lodged in sub-jail, Muktsar. The victim, Gurlal Singh said: “We will request the state Election Commission to declare the election null and void because Sukhpal had filed his nomination when he was evading his arrest.” Gurlal alleged on May 15, he was forcibly taken to the City Malout police station where he was tortured and kept in illegal confinement.
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Repolling in 50 panchayats
Chandigarh, July 4 A spokesperson said the final figure of the panchayat wards where the repolling would be held were still being worked out. He said complete repolling had been announced in three panchayats. While Pindian and Sarhali Khurd panchayats in Tarn Taran district will go to polls tomorrow, the exercise in Basti Kishen Singh village in Ferozepur district will be conducted on July 9. Polling to elect sarpanch in Bahadur Jandian village in Bathinda district will also be held tomorrow. In Kothe Kanrtarpur village in Pathankot district, the re-election will be conducted on July 12. Similarly, polling for panches in Raipur Kalan village in Bathinda and Jalalabad (East) in Moga will be held tomorrow while Mirzapur village in Pathankot would witness the re-election on July 12.
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The Tribune catches up with a few young guns elected as sarpanch in the July 3 gram panchayat elections and tries to find out about the works they plan to take up in their villages
Muktsar, July 4 An MBA from the US, he defeated his nearest rival by a margin of 297 votes. “The people of my village have shown faith in me and elected me with a comfortable margin. Now, getting a complete sanitation project for the village will be my priority…. I will also ensure the MGNREGA funds are utilised for the projects they are meant for,” he says. Karanbir says earlier his great-grandfather Balwant Singh, father Kanwarjit Singh ‘Sunny’ Brar and elder brother Tegbir Brar have held the post of sarpanch. “Apart from Sarainaga, the Congress-supported candidates have become sarpanch in a number of villages, including Udekaran, Warring, Haraj, Lambi Dhabh and Badhai, in Muktsar block. In our village, seven of the total nine panchayat members are from our party,” says an elated Karanbir. In Fakkarsar village of the district, SGPC (Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee) member Gurpal Singh Gora’s nephew Devinder Singh, in fray for the sarpanch’s post, lost by 194 votes to Sukhjit Singh, who enjoyed the support of Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal’s adviser Charanjit Singh Brar.
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Sarpanch of CM’s village, her target is fighting drug abuse
Badal (Muktsar), July 4 A Class VII dropout, Sukhpal Kaur has become the first woman sarpanch of the village. It is for the first time that the post was reserved for a woman nominee. Married to a labourer two years ago, Sukhpal now aims to launch a fight against drugs and unemployment. “It (drugs) is killing our youth. My target is to curb the menace…. I may not be that educated, but I am well aware of the local issues and will ensure they are addressed.” Last year, the village was mired in a controversy over drug abuse when People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) chief Manpreet Badal, also a resident, had claimed that a large percentage of the people here were drug addicts. His statement had come following a claim last year by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi that most of the Punjabi youth had fallen into the trap of drugs. Sukhpal defeated Sarbjeet Kaur, the Congress-PPP candidate, by a margin of 727 votes. Her father-in-law Gugga Singh has also remained a member of the village panchayat in two consecutive terms earlier.
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She is keen to raise funds by plantation on common land
Gurdaspur, July 4 A first-time sarpanch and an educated woman, she intends to grow trees on the vacant panchayat land in her village. She says the trees will later be sold to generate revenue, which would be used for various development works. That she is innovative and different from her counterparts can be gauged from the fact that she intends to plant trees not only to generate funds but also to ensure the environment remains clean. “During paddy transplantation, water becomes stagnant, which means dangerous gases like methane enter the environment. By planting saplings and trees, the methane effect will be neutralised. This will ensure a better future for our children…. The funds generated from selling wood can be used to provide safe drinking water to BPL (Below Poverty Line) families.” Sukhraj says next on her priority list will be getting old age pensions released on time. Situated near the border, Chakhraja village “requires special attention from the government”. “Unemployment is another major factor. As the youth cannot get suitable jobs, they slip into depression and then take to drugs. I will take up the issue with the BSF as well as the government and also try to rein in the erring chemists who sell psychotropic substances,” she avers.
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State govt will save
Rs 120 cr annually on atta-dal scheme
Chandigarh, July 4 Officials in the Food and Supplies Department told The Tribune that under the Rs 1,25,000 crore food security programme, 5 kg of wheat would be provided to a beneficiary at Rs 2 per kg. The state government would now provide just dal (pulses) to marginalised sections at Rs 20 per kg under its own atta-dal scheme. As of now, the state government gives 5 kg of wheat per person (up to a maximum of 25 kg per family) and 500 gm of pulses per person (a maximum of 2.5 kg per family) to 15.40 lakh poor families with an income less than Rs 30,000 per annum. Wheat is given to these families at Rs 4 per kg and pulses at Rs 20 per kg. “We expect that 1.82 crore persons will be covered under the food security programme. Except for the creamy layer, all others will get wheat at highly subsidised rates.Thus, we can stop providing wheat to poor families under the atta-dal scheme,” said a senior officer. The other scheme, under which 35 kg of wheat was given to the poorest of the poor every month, would continue, he said. Punjab spends Rs 20 crore per month on the atta-dal scheme on an average. It distributes 27,000 tonnes of wheat and 3,100 tones of pulses among the poor each month. With the food security programme of the Centre now supplying wheat, the total expenditure incurred on the atta- dal scheme will come down to Rs 120 crore. Punjab had demanded that since the food security programme required that the 17,500 ration depots in the state be strengthened for distribution of grain, the expenditure on salary (Rs 10,000 per month) paid to every depot holder be also borne by the Centre. Though this request has not been accepted, the government has now allowed depot holders to also retail other unsubsidised items from their depots to make these economically viable. The Cente has accepted Punjab's suggestion that the allocation of foodgrain be unit-based rather than family-based. National food security programme We expect that 1.82 crore persons will be covered under the food security programme. Except for the creamy layer, all others will get wheat at highly subsidised rates.Thus, we can stop providing wheat to poor families under the atta-dal scheme Fresh survey ordered Chandigarh: Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal on Thursday ordered a fresh survey of blue-card holders (beneficiaries of atta-dal scheme). At a meeting to review welfare schemes, he asked SK Sandhu, Principal Secretary to CM, to issue directions to all DCs to launch a fresh door-to-door survey. — TNS
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CM: Don’t renew sops
to neighbouring states
Chandigarh July 4 He sought the intervention of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the matter to “save the state from further ruin." In a letter to the Prime Minister, Badal said the concessions given to these states had played havoc with Punjab's economy and “a repetition of the ruinous decision and the consequent disillusionment it will set off in the state youth can have serious political and law and order implications.” He said Punjabis, who had braved several daunting odds, would find it “ impossible to battle the discrimination against them.” He referred to the “long years of militancy, which had halted the state's progress and caused immense damage to its economy. “The flight of capital from Punjab during the militancy years has no parallels in national history.” The Chief Minister said: "Just as Punjabis were engaged in rebuilding the state and its economy, we were dealt a deadly blow by the denial of industrial concessions granted to our neighboring states, making business and industry here extremely non-competitive.” He said Punjab was not against giving incentives to any state, “so long as it was not discriminated against." The CM said the only reason for extending concessions to the hill states was that they were strategically disadvantaged in terms of location. He said this argument applied far more forcefully to Punjab. “There are disadvantages which Punjab has had to bear for being a land-locked state, with a long border with a hostile neighbour, and practically no access to global markets." The argument
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Lt Gen Buttar to take oath as PPSC chief on July 8
Chandigarh, July 4 Lt Gen Buttar was selected PPSC Chairman on the recommendations of a search committee headed by the Chief Secretary, Rakesh Singh. The vacancy was created after the retirement of Lt Gen RS Sujlana (retd). General Bhuttar served as Chief of Staff, Western Command, Chandimandir, some years ago. — TNS
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British girl’s organs yet to be handed to parents
Patiala, July 4 These have once again been sent back to the Department of Pathology, Rajindra Hospital, Patiala, after they were handed over to the office of the Director of Research and Medical Education, Punjab, sometime ago. Though
a councillor from the UK has emailed to the authorities at Rajindra
Hospital, asking for the child’s body parts, nothing has been done
so far. The hospital authorities say they have not received any
written orders from the Central government or the Punjab government in
this regard. Principal of Government Rajindra Hospital Dr KD Singh
said, “We are supposed to hand the organs over to the police since
it is a legal matter.” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP)
Khanna S Bhupati, when contacted, said since the matter involved two
countries, it was being taken up at the central level.
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Cong MLA Soni leads trade delegation to PM
New Delhi, July 4 The delegation, consisting of heads of various trade organisations, during an hour-long meeting with the Prime Minister, brought to light the problems being faced by the Punjab industry, mainly because of the sops offered to the neighbouring hill states. Soni stressed on the need for a fiscal package for Punjab to ensure normal industrial development in the state. Pointing out that over the past few years over 400 industrial units had shifted out from Punjab, the delegation sought a tax holiday. It highlighted the fact that the border districts of Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Ferozepur were facing an exodus and that there was an immediate need to stem it. Urging central assistance, the delegation, in a memorandum to the PM, pointed out that the per capita income in Punjab had slipped from the sixth spot to the 12th place in the past six years. The revenue deficit had increased from 1.8% of the GDP in 2010-2011 to 2.75% in 2011-2012. In the past few years investment worth Rs 3,675 crore had moved out of Punjab because of the tax sops given to the hill states. These had proved detrimental to Punjab, particularly the three border districts.
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Assault on IAS officer Pannu Mohali, July 4 Sources said Kanakwal, a resident of Bathinda and Sonu of Jattiwal village, Patiala, were arrested by the police from Uttarakhand and were today being brought to the Punjab State Cyber Crime Police Station at Phase 4, here. Kanakwal is said to be the main accused in uploading the video of the June 21 incident of Pannu’s thrashing at Gobind Ghat in Uttarkhand on a popular social video-sharing site. On the role of Sonu in the incident, sources said he was also part of the group involved in the crime. The police is also investigating links of the accused with radicals living in other countries, said sources. Meanwhile, Gurwinder Singh alias Baba Panesar, who was arrested by the police five days ago, has been sent to remand under judicial custody by the local court. Baba Panesar was produced in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate Mohan Garg today after the culmination of his four-day remand. Sources said Baba Panesar had two different accounts on social networking site Facebook and several radicals, who are settled in other countries, were found on his friends’ list. “He is definitely a mischievous person,” said a senior police official, on the condition of anonymity. A case under Sections 295 A, 298, 500 and 120 B of IPC and 66 A of IT Act has been registered against these persons at the state cyber police station here.
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JE was competent to carry out search: HC
Chandigarh, July 4 In his petition, Paramjit Singh had narrated a “long story” of “political rivalry” between his wife and “the leaders of the ruling party”. He had claimed that his wife was a contestant for the Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections notified by the State of Punjab for Ghawaddi village in Ludhiana district as a candidate of the opposition party. The petitioner alleged he was accused of unauthorised use of electricity in his agricultural fields after the local MLA directed the Junior Engineer with the Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd to implicate him. The engineer allegedly raided the premises to “make out a case of theft of energy”. Since he could not implicate the petitioner in a case of electricity theft, a false case was “prepared that the petitioner indulged in unauthorised use of electricity”. An FIR was also registered against the petitioner. His counsel argued that only the assessing officer named in notification dated December 27, 2004, could carry out the inspection. The assessing officer could only be an Assistant Engineer, Assistant Executive Engineer, or a Executive Engineers of operation wing. Taking up the matter, Justice Rajiv Narain Raina observed the controversy for determination of the court was whether the provisions of Section 126 of the Electricity Act, read with notification dated December 27, 2004, authorises a Junior Engineer to carry out an inspection. Justice Raina said the assessing officer defined under the Act meant “an officer of the state government or board or licensee, as the case may be, designated by the state government. He is not personally required to make spot inspection. “An inspection could well be done by a Junior Engineer…. I do not find any merit in the contention of the counsel that the provisional notice of assessment deserves to be quashed only for the reason that the Junior Engineer made the inspection,” he added.
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Cheating cases: Panchayati Raj Act does not bar police probe, rules SC
New Delhi, July 4 “There is no bar for investigating any offence by the police, including the offences mentioned in the Schedule two of the Act,” a Bench comprising Justices P Sathasivam and MY Eqbal held. The police probe would include the power to arrest and the ordinary procedure under the 1973 CrPC (Code of Criminal Procedure), the court clarified. The gram panchayats would have “no jurisdiction at all” in criminal cases until the completion of the police probe. After the police had filed the case with the magistrate, the court “shall transfer the case for trial to Gram Panchayat or to any other subordinate court to him”. Further, “unless a case is transferred to gram panchayat under Section 45 of the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act 1994, the gram panchayat does not get any jurisdiction” except when the offence was covered under Section 47(3) of the Act, the apex court said. However, it was open to any person to directly approach the gram panchayat by submitting a written complaint. In that case also, if it was a cognisable offence; there was no bar on the police to probe the matter, the apex court clarified. The court delivered the verdict after going into the powers of ‘panchayats’ in Punjab to hold trial in cheating cases, eliminating the role of regular courts set up under the CrPC. Counsel RK Kapoor had contended that the Punjab Police had no power to arrest or prosecute his clients, two residents of Mann village in Amritsar district, for their alleged role in a cheating case involving Rs 30
lakh.
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Killers of Hoshiarpur boy get SC reprieve
New Delhi, July 4 A Bench comprising Justices TS Thakur and SJ Mukhopadhaya has referred their appeal to a larger Bench for going into the Constitutional validity of Section 364-A of the IPC providing death penalty for the crime of kidnapping for ransom. The convicts contended that the death penalty provided under the Section was violative of the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution, besides being contrary to the principle of “rarest of rare cases” laid down by the SC in the Bachan singh case. On January 25, 2010, Supreme Court Bench had confirmed the death sentence awarded to the two convicts. They then went back to the Punjab and Haryana Court and filed a writ petition seeking relief, questioning Section 364-A and citing the Bachan Singh case., But the HC dismissed their plea on October 3, 2012, forcing them to approach the SC again. The SC noted that the two had been sentenced to death under Sections 364-A and 302 (murder) and as such getting relief under Section 364-A would not be of much help to them. However, their counsel said deciding the vires of the law on kidnap for ransom would help mitigate the gravity of their offence. “Death sentence for kidnapping for ransom is so harsh as to make Section 364-A unreasonable and unfair, hence violative of Article 21,” their counsel contended.
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Bail for AIG Mand ‘attackers’
Chandigarh, July 4 Acting on the petition filed through senior counsel RS Cheema, Justice RC Gupta granted bail to Maninder Pal Singh alias Sunny Johar and Amandeep Singh. — TNS
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Chandigarh, July 4
