M A I N   N E W S

Disaster body vice-chief, 5 members exit
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 19
The vice-chairman of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) along with five of its members today quit following instructions from the BJP-led government.

Among those who resigned are K Salim Ali, a former Special Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation, who probed the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case. Ishrat was killed in an encounter in Gujarat. Human rights bodies have alleged it was a fake encounter while the Gujarat Police maintain they had specific inputs from the Intelligence Bureau on Jahan's activities.

NDMA vice-vhairman M Shashidhar Reddy and five of its members resigned after the new government asked them to quit their posts. Three other members were not in station, including one who is abroad.

Apart from Reddy, the members who have resigned are former Director General of CISF KM Singh, former Civil Aviation Secretary KN Shrivastava, Major General JK Bansal (retd), former Director of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre B Bhattacharjee and former Special Director of CBI K Salim Ali.

"I have sent my resignation on Tuesday to pave the way for the Prime Minister to reconstitute the NDMA. Probably the Prime Minister has a view on it. I am hopeful that the reconstitution process will be completed soon," Reddy said.

The resignations came after calls were made by Union Home Secretary Anil Goswami in the wake of change of government. They were all appointed by previous UPA government. The NDMA is headed by the Prime Minister and the Vice-Chairman enjoys the rank of a Cabinet Minister while eight other members enjoy the rank of a Union Minister of State.

More to follow suit?

• Reports say the government has also asked the chairpersons and members of various commissions like the NCW, SCs and STs and the head of Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) to resign
• The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is headed by PM
• The vice chairman enjoys the rank of a Cabinet minister, while eight other members enjoy the rank of an MoS
• The resignations came after calls by Union Home Secy