tribuneindia...Spotlight

			Wednesday, August 12, 1998
weather today's calendar

4 die in Bihar police firing
SITAMARHI (Bihar), Aug 11 (PTI) — Veteran Socialist leader Ramcharitra Rai and three other Janata Dal activists were killed when the police fired today on violent protesters demanding adequate relief for flood-hit survivors even as overflowing rivers continued to buffet several parts of North-Bihar. District Magistrate R.N. Prasad said a mob of over 300 Dal supporters, led by Nawal Kishore Rai, JD MLA from Pupri, clashed with the policemen while trying to force their way into the collectorate to protest the "apathy" in providing relief. He claimed the police opened fire as attempts to control the mob by lathi charge failed and enraged villagers stormed the collectorate, damaging over a dozen government vehicles and ransacking the collectorate premises.

ULFA chief’s kin shot
GUWAHATI, Aug 11 (PTI) — Suspected ULFA activists shot dead a brother of the ULFA chairman in upper Assam’s Dibrugarh district tonight, official sources said. Dimpo Rajkhowa, brother of ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa and an Assam State Transport Corporation employee, was shot in the chest and neck by motorcycle-borne assailants when he was sitting in a shop in front of the Dibrugarh Transport Office here at around 8.00 p.m. The killing was in retaliation to yesterday’s fatal shooting of surrendered ULFA activist Tapan Dutta here by the ULFA, the sources said.

Explosives seized in TN
SALEM, Aug 11 (PTI) — A large quantity of explosives, including 63 kg of gelatine sticks and 375 detonators, was seized and seven persons arrested today in Salem district in Tamil Nadu, the police said. District Superintendent of Police J. Rajendran told PTI here that the explosives were seized when the Thalaivasal police conducted a checking of vehicles in their limits this morning.

18 soldiers killed
KINSHASA, Aug 11 (Reuters) — Troops loyal to President Laurent Kabila clashed with Rwandan soldiers at a village outside the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, killing 18 of them, state radio reported today. The clash at Kasangulu, 40 km west of Kinshasa, took place yesterday as an estimated 100 Rwandan soldiers were fleeing after failing to incite Congolese soldiers in the capital to join a Tutsi-led revolt, the radio said.

Iranian satellites
WASHINGTON, Aug 11 (PTI) — Iran will "acquire technology" to manufacture multipurpose satellites under a cooperative arrangement with China, Pakistan and three other countries, according to Defence News. Representatives of China, Pakistan, South Korea, Thailand and Mongolia met in Teheran on August 3 to discuss technical and other terms for the project, including financial contribution of each country, the weekly said, quoting Iran's Deputy Minister for Telecommunications Mohammed Tabeshian as telling Teheran Radio.

LS prorogued
NEW DELHI, Aug 11 (UNI) — President K.R. Narayanan has prorogued the Lok Sabha. The Budget session of the Lok Sabha had started on May 27 and ended on August 6. According to a Lok Sabha note, the President prorogued the House yesterday.

Strike threat
Tribune News Service
NEW DELHI, Aug 11 — The All-India Motor Transport Congress today threatened to go on an indefinite strike from August 22, if the government did not accept their long-standing demands. The AIMTC is protesting against "irrational and unprincipled" hike in the rates of motor insurance premium.

Gen Malik on proxy war
NEW DELHI, Aug 11 (PTI) — Political as well as military actions is required to effectively combat the proxy war and wipe out militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, the Chief of the Army Staff, Gen V.P. Malik, said here today. "We have to wipe out militancy for which political as well as military actions must be undertaken hand in hand," he told reporters at the Palam Air Force technical area here after placing wreaths on the bodies of two army officers killed in operations in Kashmir. General Malik said militants were moving to "soft" areas in the Jammu region and Himachal Pradesh where the presence of security forces was not adequate.

Extremist hanged
ISLAMABAD, Aug 11 (PTI) — A Shia extremist, involved in the Lahore session court bomb blast, was hanged today at the Faisalabad district jail, reports reaching here said. Mahram Ali was sentenced to death on 23 counts and a fine of Rs 1.1 million imposed for the blast at the sessions court on January 17, 1997, which claimed at least 12 persons, including central leader of the Sunni extremist group "Sipah-e-Suhaba" Maulana Zia-ur-Rehman Farooqi. His appeals against this conviction were rejected by higher courts while the President of Pakistan also turned down his mercy petition.