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Vadra pocketed large premium
on colony licence, says Khemka
Top GJM leaders arrested, Mamata declares Darjeeling bandh illegal
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AP bifurcation: Jagan quits as MP, mother exits Assembly
10 killed in Odisha coal mine mishap
Bus rams into Mamata’s security post, 7 cops hurt
India sends NSA, Foreign Secretary to Bhutan to repair ties
judges’ appointment
Shivaji memorial construction set to kick off
Central panel finds illegal mining rampant in Gautam Budh Nagar
Lioness Laxmi gives birth to 5 cubs in Gir
Assembly poll LoC attack: Another Bihar minister gives Pak clean chit
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Vadra pocketed large premium
on colony licence, says Khemka
Now, Khemka has alleged that Sonia’s businessman son-in-law Robert Vadra "falsified documents" for a 3.53-acre Gurgaon deal to "pocket" a large premium on a commercial colony licence. In his 100-page reply submitted to Haryana Government's three-member enquiry committee set up in October last to look into the Vadra-DLF deal, Khemka reportedly alleged that Vadra executed a series of "sham transactions" for 3.53 acres in Shikohpur (Gurgaon). Vadra “pocketed” a huge premium on a commercial licence through money that he could account for, Khemka alleged. The IAS officer alleged that Haryana's Department of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) "ignored rules and regulations to allow crony capitalists operating as middlemen to flourish and appropriate market premium of a licence. The DTCP aided Vadra in making these sham transactions." Khemka, who submitted his reply on May 21, alleged that both the sale deed of February 12, 2008, through which Vadra's company Skylight Hospitality bought land from Onkareshwar Properties and the letter of intent for granting commercial licence to his company issued by DTCP in March 2008 were "sham transactions" made to enable Vadra to collect market premium. “If there was no payment as alleged in the registered deed, can it be said that the registered deed conferred ownership title over the said land upon Skylight Hospitality by virtue of the sham sale,” he questions. Khemka, who had cancelled a land mutation between Vadra and DLF last October, claimed that “there was no promise to pay in the future in the registered deed." No price was paid as claimed in the registered deed, he alleged. The sale registered in the said deed cannot, therefore, be called a “sale” in the true sense of the term — legal or moral. It cannot be said that Skylight Hospitality became owner of the land in question by virtue of the sale registered in the deed. While Khemka refused to talk on the issue, Hooda, speaking to reporters in Rohtak, claimed that his government had not lent support to any individual or company on illegal grounds. Chief Secretary PK Chaudhery said, "We are examining the reply (by Khemka)". Last year, Khemka had alleged irregularities in the land dealings of Robert Vadra and DLF in the state and asked the state government to give him a copy of the inquiry reports conducted by it. Khemka was transferred from the post of Director General Consolidation of Land Holdings and Land Records-cum-Inspector General of Registration shortly after he initiated a probe into land dealings between Vadra and DLF in October last year. Meanwhile, senior INLD leader Abhay Chautala today demanded an inquiry by a sitting judge of the high court into the Robert Vadra land deals in Haryana and sought immediate registration of FIRs against all those guilty of “aiding” the land transfers. In October last, the Haryana Government had constituted a three-member committee of senior officers under Additional Chief Secretary Krishna Mohan to examine Ashok Khemka’s orders of cancellation of the mutation of Vadra’s land. Stating that Khemka’s reply to the government’s report clearly brought out that a lot had gone on behind the “shady land deals” which benefited Vadra, Chautala added, “This proves Hooda is only acting to please his political bosses in Delhi. A sitting judge should go into these allegations,” he said. Spokesman of the Haryana BJP Vir Kumar Yadav demanded the registration of a criminal case against Robert Vadra and the cancellation of the registration of three companies — Skylight Hospitality, Onkareshwar Properties and DLF — for allegedly indulging in malpractice.
AAP offers party ticket
New Delhi: After Uttar Pradesh’s suspended IAS officer Durga Nagpal, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has offered party ticket to Haryana whistleblower Ashok Khemka to contest elections. However, Khemka said, “I am good as a civil servant and am doing my duty. I have submitted the report and now, it for the government to act.” — TNS Haryana’s Department of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) ignored rules and regulations to allow crony capitalists operating as middlemen to flourish and appropriate market premium of a licence. The DTCP aided Vadra in making these sham
transactions.
Our government has not lent support to any individual or company on illegal
grounds.
This (land deal) proves that Hooda is only acting to please his political bosses in Delhi. A sitting judge should go into these
allegations.
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Top GJM leaders arrested, Mamata declares Darjeeling bandh illegal Darjeeling/Kolkata, Aug 10 Two top GJM leaders were arrested taking the total number of those booked to 150. The police said Mahendra Pradhan, a council member of the Gorkha Territorial Administration, and Narayan Pradhan, president of the GJM Darjeeling Town Committee, were arrested in connection with old cases. "I have some constitutional obligations. There is a high court order and also a Supreme Court order on bandhs," the Chief Minister told a press conference in Kolkata. The Chief Minister said that in the light of the recent Calcutta High Court order which has asked the state to ensure normalcy in the hills, she was declaring the bandh, which entered the eighth day, as illegal and unconstitutional. “Enough is enough. I have tolerated for eight days. I am very rough and tough. I am giving 72 hours to withdraw the bandh. Do not force me to take strong action," Banerjee said. Ruling out division of Bengal, she said, "Darjeeling is part and parcel of West Bengal. Darjeeling is my heart. There can be no division of the state based on race." Apparently targeting GJM chief Bimal Gurung, she said, "I have to act as per government obligations. However big a leader with a long tail which he has tied elsewhere, his tail will be cut." Asked whether her government would hold talks with the GJM, she said, "There is no difficulty in holding talks if they withdraw the bandh. They can approach the Chief Secretary and The GJM chief took a defiant stand and said that the Chief Minister has to withdraw her statement or else a janta curfew (supporters policing the streets) would be called. "If she feels that by issuing the ultimatum and letting loose her authoritarian rule she can bend us, then she is wrong. We are ready for it," Gurung said in Darjeeling. — PTI
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AP bifurcation: Jagan quits as MP, mother exits Assembly
Hyderabad, August 10 Jagan, who is facing the CBI probe into his alleged illegal assets, represents Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency in Rayalaseema region while his mother, who is the party’s honorary president, represents Pulivendula Assembly seat in Kadapa district. The fledgling party has two MPs and 17 MLAs. The party MP M Rajamohan Reddy and 16 other legislators had already quit their posts. With today’s resignations, the party has sent across a clear message of solidarity with the people of Rayalaseema and coastal Andhra regions who have been protesting against the formation of a separate Telangana state. The two-year-old party, which has no representation in the Telangana region, appears keen on positioning itself as the sole crusader of the cause of united AP and reaping rich dividends in the Seemandhra region in the next elections. Jagan, who is lodged in Chanchalguda central prison here ever since his arrest in May last year, faxed his resignation letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar while Vijayamma sent her letter to the Assembly Speaker Nadendla Manohar. While announcing the decision of its top leaders to quit their respective posts, the YSR Congress Party said the UPA leadership had pushed the state into turmoil with its “unilateral and hasty” decision on bifurcation. “We are not opposed to the creation of Telangana state per se but the way in which it is being done smacks of devious politics. The concerns of the people of the other two regions have been totally ignored,” the party MP Rajamohan Reddy said. Earlier in the day, Vijayamma chaired a meeting of the senior leaders of the party and discussed the Telangana issue, during which the decision to quit was taken. The YSR Congress Party leaders claimed that the party’s strategy to position itself as the saviour of the interests of the people of Seemandhra would prove beneficial, particularly at a time when all other mainstream political parties are forced to adopt ambivalent stand on Telangana statehood issue.
Message of solidarity
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10 killed in Odisha coal mine mishap
Bhubaneswar/Rourkela, Aug 10 "Ten bodies have so far been recovered and five persons rescued from the site at the Kulda open cast Basundhara-Garjanbahal coal mine area," a MCL spokesman said. Sundargarh Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Arora, who was at the spot during the rescue operation, did not rule out increase in the number of casualties as some more people were suspected to be trapped under the debris. The injured were admitted to hospital, he said. The search and rescue operation would resume tomorrow morning in the presence of villagers, MCL sources said. The incident took place when some people from nearby villages were collecting coal from the overburdened dump yard located near the mining area, an MCL spokesman said. Some of them were buried when a portion of the coal dump suddenly collapsed, probably due to heavy rains that lashed the area yesterday, he said, adding search and rescue operation was immediately launched at the site. CM Naveen Patnaik ordered a probe by the local Revenue Divisional Commissioner. The MCL and the Odisha government separately announced ex-gratia of Rs 3 lakh and Rs 2 lakh respectively to the next of kin of the dead. — PTI
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Bus rams into Mamata’s security post, 7 cops hurt
Kolkata, August 10 Seven police personnel on duty were badly injured. They were admitted to hospitals here. The driver fled the spot but was later arrested. Immediately after the incident, a row erupted over the security arrangement of the Chief Minister who has been facing threats from Maoists and other terrorist outfits. Recently, she was provided Z-category security by the Union Home Ministry. The state government then told city police chief S Kar Purkaystha to personally inquire how a public bus could enter into the protective zone of the Chief Minister’s residence. According to police investigation, the driver, along with the conductors, was taking the empty bus from Howrah station to a garage near the Chief Minister’s residence for repair at the time of the incident. He lost control over the bus due to brake failure and it dashed against the police camp.
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India sends NSA, Foreign Secretary to Bhutan to repair ties
New Delhi, August 10 National Security Advisor Shiv Shankar Menon and Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh held wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay yesterday and reassured him of New Delhi’s commitment to promote ties between the two nations. Officials said New Delhi conveyed to Thimphu that India would provide all necessary assistance to Bhutan for its 11th Five-Year Plan and that the two countries should put behind them the controversy over the withdrawal of subsidies. “We will do everything we can to support and provide assistance to Bhutan. We really look forward to working together and achieving positive outcomes,” Menon is learnt to have told the Bhutanese PM. The withdrawal of subsidies, which were withdrawn on the eve of elections in Bhutan in July, had resulted in minor tension between the two nations. The speculation was that India had deliberately withdrawn subsidies in view of Bhutan’s friendly gestures towards China. However, New Delhi claimed that the subsidies were withdrawn due to some technical issues. The subsidies on both oil and gas have been restored on August
1. Tobgay also accepted an invitation from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit India as his first port of call after assuming office. He is expected to visit New Delhi next week. Menon and Sujatha Singh also called on Bhutanese King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck to discuss bilateral relations. Shortly after taking charge as Foreign Secretary on August 1, Sujatha Singh had stated that she would accord priority to India’s relations with its neighbours and that she would pay her first visit to Bhutan as the country’s top diplomat.
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Sibal, lawyers’ bodies don’t concur on change in system
R Sedhuraman Legal Correspondent
New Delhi, August 10 They are not at all in favour of the related Bill in its present form and wanted inclusion of representatives of the Bar Council of India, Bar Associations and State Bar Councils in the JAC comprising, among others, the Chief Justice of India (CJI), the Union Law Minister and two SC Judges, Bar Council of India Chairman MK Mishra and spokesperson S Prabakaran said in a joint statement. The advocates and the minister did not even agree on the issues that required to be discussed. While the advocates wanted to take up matters relating to their institutions and welfare, Sibal was focused on JAC. “When the law minister insisted on eliciting their view on JAC, all the participants expressed their unanimous view that it was not acceptable to them and made it clear that without the involvement of Bar Councils and the Bar Associations, the lawyers and the people of the country cannot accept the replacement of the existing collegium system,” said the statement. Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam has gone on record stating that the present system of appointment was by and large working well and as such, there was no need for any drastic change.
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Shivaji memorial construction set to kick off
Mumbai, August 10 Modelled on the Statue of Liberty, the memorial will come up on a rock off the Mumbai coast. It is about a kilometre off Raj Bhavan and is around 18 acres in area. Union Environment Minister Jayanti Natarajan, who gave the clearance for the project last June, had said the rock stands three to four metres above sea level even during high tide. Briefing reporters on Thursday, Maharashtra’s Rural Development Minister Jayant Patil said the government will soon invite international architects to bid for the project. Patil said advertisements will be issued by the state government in the coming weeks. Construction of the statue will take a long time as the environment survey of the site is still in progress. According to Patil, the National Institute of Oceanography is conducting a survey of the site and the report would be available sometime next year.
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Central panel finds illegal mining rampant in Gautam Budh Nagar
New Delhi, August 10 The committee comprising Dr Saroj, GC Meena and KK Garg has provided photographic evidence in support of its observations on adverse environmental impact of illegal sand mining in the district. The team was constituted following reports highlighting the illegal sand mining in the region and the National Green Tribunal order restraining sand mining without licence or environmental clearance from river beds. Assisted by mining officials from the Mine and Geology Department and the DFO of the state, the central team visited various sites on Yamuna and Hindon rivers and found sand mining activity at most places. “This is in violation of the environmental regulations, the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, and the directions given by the Supreme Court, the High Court of Allahabad and the National Green Tribunal,” it adds. The panel has recommended regular monitoring of the mining activity to ensure effective compliance of stipulated environmental conditions and abiding to the Minor Mineral Concession Rules of the state government. Highlighting the need for putting in place the February 2012 directions of the Supreme Court, asking all states to frame Minor Mineral Concession Rules within a period of six months and submit their compliance report, it has also recommended appropriate disaster management safeguards in view of the high seismicity of the area. Its other recommendations include a study for cumulative impact due to sand mining and adopting cluster approach for collection of baseline data to adequately cover every single lease area under consideration before seeking environmental clearance No sand mining from any mining lease area can take place without obtaining prior environment clearance. The ministry deals with the cases of environment clearance of projects of mining of minor minerals with lease area equal to or above 50 hectare.
The recommendations
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Lioness Laxmi gives birth to 5 cubs in Gir
Ahmedabad, August 10 The state forest department had deliberately delayed the announcement of the arrival of the five cubs because of uncertainty of the survival rates at a young age. Laxmi’s five cubs, however, have completed four months and are healthy and doing well, allaying any apprehension about their survival, the forest department officials said. For Laxmi, it was a record among the Asiatic Lions, considering that she is only three years old and never has earlier a three-year-old lioness given birth to five healthy cubs at a time.
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Congress decentralises ticket distribution
Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service
New Delhi, August 10 The move will be tried for the first time in the forthcoming Assembly elections of the states of Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Mizoram and Rajasthan. Sources in the Congress said the decision was announced by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi at a recent meeting of the newly set up Central Election Coordination Committee which he himself heads. The idea is to prevent parachuting of candidates at the behest of state leaders who wield clout in the party, and give the party organisation down to the block level a say in the election process. “Every block president would be free to send a panel of probable candidates for the Assembly elections to the Congress high command and he would be given a receipt for the same. The sealed envelope containing names would be preserved at AICC and later opened by the Central Election Committee when discussion on the candidates’ names starts. Similarly, district chiefs and the state Congress chiefs will send their respective sealed envelopes with a list of candidates they consider fit for polls,” said a senior Congress leader. Rahul has nominated Congress general secretary in charge for UP Madhusudan Mistry as the nodal authority for the new experiment. All block, district and state chiefs would be required to send the list of candidates to the office of Mistry in the All India Congress Committee; his office will issue receipts.
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LoC attack: Another Bihar minister gives Pak clean chit
Jamui (bihar), August 10 "I don't believe that Pakistan is responsible for the incident (killing of five Indian soldiers by Pakistani army on the LoC in Poonch district) on Tuesday," Agriculture minister Narendra Singh today said, in remarks which come as a further embarrassment for the Nitish Kumar led JD(U) government. "Pakistan is our younger brother and a neighbour," he commented when asked about the firing incident in which jawans of 21st Bihar Regiment were killed when they were patrolling along LoC on Tuesday last. Four of the five army men killed were from Bihar. On Thursday, Rural Works and Panchayati Raj Minister Bhim Singh had said that policemen and soldiers are recruited to make sacrifices for the nation, for which he later apologised after his comments created a furore. — PTI
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BASIRHAT (WEST BENGAL)
chennai khunti (Jharkhand) Nagapattinam (TN) Cuttack
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Bhubaneswar/Rourkela, Aug 10
New Delhi, August 10
Chandigarh, August 10
