& V I C I N I T Y
Saturday, December 19, 1998
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C H A N D I G A R H & V I C I N I T Y |
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Saturday, December 19, 1998 |
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New orders give more powers to SSPs CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — The UT Administration has ordered major administrative changes in the Police department. The orders, issued yesterday, endeavour to restore some powers of the SSP which he enjoyed until a few years ago. Household
industry may include software units |
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Sahi's
assurance to pensioners Trains
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New orders give more powers to
SSPs CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — The UT Administration has ordered major administrative changes in the Police department. The orders, issued yesterday, endeavour to restore some powers of the SSP which he enjoyed until a few years ago. According to sources in the Administration, the new administrative orders aim to streamline the functioning of the department besides making the two SSPs responsible for the independent units they head. At present, all administrative powers, including those of transferring and posting personnel from the rank of constable to Deputy Superintendent of Police, are centralised and vested in the Inspector-General of Police. The new instructions, however, tend to give the two SSPs in the city a better administrative control over their subordinate staff besides delegating to them powers to transfer and post employees from the rank of constable to Inspector working under them. For inter-unit transfers, the approval of the IGP has been made mandatory. The Administration has also decided that both the SPs would work under direct control and supervision of the SSPs. The SP (Traffic and Security) until some years ago used to be under the administrative control of the SSP. But powers were gradually withdrawn from the SSP and given to the IGP. Similarly, the other SP, looking after law and order and operations, would now report to the SSP. Like the SP (Traffic and Security), he had been working under direct control of the IGP until now. Similarly, the SSP (Headquarters) will continue to exercise full control over intelligence and other wings under his command. Both SSPs would report to the IGP, who would be the overall supervisory officer for the entire police force in the Union Territory. Two important wings of normal policing — Economic Offences and Crime against Women wings — which had been taken out of the purview of the SSP and put under control of the SP (Law and Order and Operations) are now back with the SSP following revision in hierarchy. The new orders come in the wake of the meeting held last fortnight where the UT Administrator had expressed "unhappiness" over the increased incidence of robberies and gangrapes in the Union Territory. During the past couple of
weeks, a number of changes have been brought in the
functioning of the police. The SSP (Headquarters) has
also been given the additional charge of Vigilance. |
Household industry may include
software units CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — With a view to easing pressure on commercial and industrial land, the Chandigarh Administration is planning to declare the software industry as a household industry. A proposal to this effect has already been sent by the Industry Department to the Finance Department to include software units in the list of 27 units declared as household industry by the administration. The proposal is in line with the recommendations of the Information Technology Action Plan of the task force constituted by the Government of India, sources told TNS today. Under the proposal, owners of the residential buildings will be able to utilise 25 per cent of their covered area for setting up software exporting units. The sources said on account of space constraints, the department was planning a major expansion of high-tech units which did not require much space and were non-polluting in nature. The Administration, in collaboration with the Department of Electronics, Government of India, had recently set up a high-speed data communication (HSDC) facility in the city for the development of software and its export. A node, which is an extension of the Software Technology Park (STP) being developed by the Software Technology Parks of India, an autonomous body under the Department of Electronics and the Punjab Government, at SAS Nagar, near here, has been located in the local Punjab Engineering College (PEC). All that one has to do is connect a "mast' on the building to the node, which is controlled by satellite. From this node, the software exporters of the city and the surrounding areas would be able to take connections on lease for software exports. The facility, besides boosting software exports, will help stop brain drain by providing employment to highly skilled professionals graduating from engineering colleges and other institutions of the region. The tariff of the leased connection has been kept lower than the tariff being charged by the STP, Noida, to make the setting up of software export units viable. The Director-cum-General Manager of the District Industries Centre, Mr Arun Sekhri, while confirming that the proposal had been sent to the Finance Department, informed that about 10,000 sq feet of space had also been made available on the PEC campus for renting out at fixed rates to desirous entrepreneurs. The HSDC facility, which is fully operational, is now in a position to provide services like point-to-point leased lines of 64 kbps to 2 mbps, shared Internet connection comprising of services like world wide web(WWW), remote login, file transfer and e-mail. Besides the infrastructure in the city, the Government of India provides a number of specific facilities to software exporting units. Among the major facilities to this industry are: 100 per cent foreign equity; and duty-free imports for STP units. The STP units are also
exempted from corporate income tax for five years in the
first eight years of operation. |
Unannounced power cuts hit Panchkula
trade PANCHKULA, Dec 18— Local residents are unhappy with the Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam ( HVPN) for imposing unscheduled power cuts in different parts of the township for the past six days. Not only are the residential areas are affected by the power cuts, commercial and industrial activity has also been hit. Businessmen complain of losing their business. Officials of the HVPN maintain that the power cuts were due to a major exercise being undertaken by the department to replace cables of distribution transformers in phases in the township.The exercise was launched as part of the restructuring programme of distribution network funded by the World Bank. Mr Subash Batta, an entrepreneur having an ancillary unit in the industrial estate here, says the production of his unit had been severely hit due to the unannounced power cuts for the past 10 days. Mr Batta, who is President of the Panchkula Chamber of Commerce and Industry, says due to the unscheduled power cuts the industrialists had to arrange generators to make up for the loss. Another industrialist complained that no was attending the telephone complaint centre. The harassed consumers contradict the claim of the officials. They say as the Chief Minister, Bansi Lal, is to visit the township to inaugurate a new housing complex at the 66 KV sub-station in Industrial Area, Phase-II — which feeds a major part of the township — here on December 22, the HVPN to escape the ire of the CM is giving a facelift to the infrastructure at the sub-station and along the route to be taken by him. The bill collection centre at the sub-station which had been lying neglected for the past several years is being spruced up. A potholed parking area in front of the office had been recarpeted. To top it all the completion of one lane of the dual carriageway leading to the sub-station — on which HUDA been dragging its feet for last several months — is being repaired. Mr Subash Papneja, a
resident of Sector 16, lamented that barring December 16
when the HVPN notified an eight-hour power cut no prior
information had been given. He questions the planning of
the HVPN which has been putting the consumers to a lot of
trouble. |
NDA motor rally halts in city CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — When will the National Defence Academy (NDA) start admitting girls? This was the single-most frequent query posed to cadets of the academy, who along with other officers, are going a round the country in a motor rally on the eve of the NDA's golden jubilee. The rally, which will cover 12,000 km and pass through 14 states and four union territories, reached this city on Wednesday. Cadets Multan Singh and S K Punia of the 1996 and 1997 batches, while recounting their experiences along the route, told TNS that wherever they went girls asked questions about the life and career prospects in the Army. Accompanying the group is Cadet P P S Mann, son of Lieut-Gen H R S Mann, Chief of Staff, Western Command. On the contrary, the cadets found that boys were not too eager to ask questions, but for the sake of it, they put forward one or two queries pertaining to pay scales or service conditions. The youngsters in Gujarat, for instance, were more "business minded" and talked about starting their own business. In Gujarat too, the girls were more forthcoming and receptive during the student-cadet interaction held in various schools. The cadets said more than 60 per cent of the students opting for the defence services hailed from Punjab, Haryana, western Uttar Pradesh, western Rajasthan, Delhi and parts of Himachal Pradesh. That was the reason the rally halted for more than two days in the city and interacted with a maximum number of students from various schools. All these cadets opted to forego their half-yearly vacation of 28 days to be part of the historic rally. Among the officers accompanying the team was Lt Kulbushan Jadhav from the Indian Navy. The total strength of the academy is about 1800 and the cadets are divided into 15 squadrons. Commenting on ragging , the cadets said there had to face no such thing and whatever their seniors asked them to do was in the nature of "constructive exercises". The cadets also attend the second-year camp — Camp Rovers — where the cadets learn the basics of warfare and experience living off the land. The cadets informed that a sum of Rs 20,000 per month was incurred on grooming every cadet. The facilities provided to cadets included separate rooms and ratio of people providing services to each cadet was 1:8. The Prime Minister is
visiting the academy to attend the closing ceremony of
the festivities planned between February 19 and 23. The
rally will reach the academy at Khadakwasla (Pune) on
December 31. |
Kids brave cold to present
musical CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — As another chilly night set in with fog all around, the students of Vivek High School, Sector 38, emerged clear winners with a gutsy and performance, which enthralled the audience who also sat through it all in spite of the biting cold. Under the guidance of Mr Roshan Abbas, the students recreated Andrew Lloyd Webber's great musical on skates on a special stage erected by his team, 'Encompass'. Aged between seven and 17, the students gave expression to the 'Starlight Express' lying dormant in each one of them. It was all about finding hope within oneself and reaching the top. The 'race night' saw a competition among the crumbling steam engine, Rusty, the rumbling diesel engine, Greaseball, and the modern electric engine, Electra. Rusty was the winner at the end of it all, for it was he who finally discovered hope and confidence in himself. The audience sat spellbound as the 'Starlight Express' and seven other national trains zoomed around on the 'rail track'. The theme of the musical, "Slow and Steady Wins the Race", may be age-old and time-worn but the presentation was awe-inspiring. Mr Abbas, director of the musical extravaganza, said, "This is the most spirited lot I have ever put my hands on. Their enthusiasm was overwhelming and that is why I got involved.'' This is the first time 'Starlight Express' has been staged in the city and the 'second time' in the history of Indian theatre. It was first presented in Delhi seven years ago. Winter school: "Headstart", a winter school aimed to tap children's creativity, enthusiasm and quest for learning, will be organised by the Go-Getters Club of Hansraj Public School in Sector 6 here from December 24. The Principal of the school, Mrs Rajani Thareja, said here on Friday that the winter school, which would be open to students of all schools, would comprise six workshops. Children would be sensitised about colour, texture and form in the art and craft workshop, "The Complete Picture". The theatre workshop, "Class Act", would hone the verbal and non-verbal skills of the children. "The Winning Edge" would be an endeavour to develop the personality of the children by introducing them to public speaking, planning and organisational skills, etiquette training, art appreciation, mental agility and adventure. The children would be trained in creative writing in "Word Shop". In the "Big Byte", the students would be introduced to Windows-95 and MS '97. "The Art of Living Workshop" would help the children develop high self-esteem and understanding vis-a vis themselves, their environment and peer group. The children would bring
out a newsletter, "Disha", at the end of the
winter school, which would open with an orientation
Christmas party. Enrolment would start at the school from
December 21. |
Sahi's assurance to pensioners CHANDIGARH, Dec 18—The Punjab Government College Teachers Association observed Pensioners Day at the Sector 11 Government College for Men here today. While addressing the gathering, Mr G.P.S Sahi, Principal Secretary, Department of Higher Education and Languages, Punjab, who was the chief guest assured the pensioners that their problems would be solved at the earliest. He emphasised the need to spread education as illiteracy was the root cause of all problems. On this occasion, the
association organised a talk on "education as tool
for social change and moral development." The talk
was delivered by Dr R.L.Singal, former head, Department
of English, Sector 11 government college. He said the
education had failed in raising the moral standards of
the people. |
Trains still running late CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — Despite the claims of the railways of trains on the Delhi-Ambala section, reverting to normal speed, all trains were running late by several hours. The Shatabdi's between Delhi-- Chandigarh and Delhi-Amritsar were late by anything between 2 hours and 3 hours. The Swarn Shatabadi between Delhi-Amritsar was running late by and-hour-and-a-half. Long distance Pooja Express and Barauni Express were late by seven hours and eight hours respectively. Dadar express was late by around 5 hours while Himalayan Queen was late by 2 hour. Today was the first day
after two weeks that all trains between the section had
been restored. The dense fog over the region did not help
the Railways much. |
Dense fog hits traffic CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 —
There was no let up in the cold wave conditions
prevailing in this part of the country. Dense fog
engulfed the city this evening as the mercury plummeted
by several degrees and driving on the roads became almost
impossible with visibility was reduced to a few metres. |
RVC celebrates raising day CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — The Remount Veterinary Corps (RVC) celebrated its 219 raising day at Chandi Mandir today. The corps was raised in 1779 and is presently using modern technology in artificial breeding of horses and military farm animals, besides carrying out advanced research in biotechnology and diagnosis of animal diseases with modern facilities. Army dogs and their handlers have shown outstanding performance in counter-insurgency areas by detecting and recovering improvised explosive devices(IEDs), explosives and mines. The RVC has carried out excellent veterinary extension work with the Indian contingents of the UN peacekeeping forces in Somalia, Angola and other places. Col AK Sinha, Director,
RVC, Western Command, greeted officers, JCOs, other ranks
and civilians and their families on the occasion. Major-
Gen Mehar Singh (retd) was the chief guest at a
get-together organised in the officers' mess in the
evening. |
Clinton's effigy burnt CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — Members of the local unit of the Trade Union Council burnt an effigy of Bill Clinton in Sector 17 here today. Mr Raghir Singh Sandhu, President of the council, condemned the military aggression by the USA against Iraq, saying that it was a ploy to detract world attention from the impeachment of Mr Clinton. The rally held on the
occasion passed a resolution expressing sympathy with the
people of Iraq and appreciated the stand taken by various
countries, including India. |
Bhatti honours 3 blackmarketeers CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — Three blackmarketeers of cinema tickets were honoured by Jaspal Bhatti during the premiere of his first comedy film, "Mahaul Theek Hai" here this afternoon. The blackmarketeers were presented with garlands and shawls by Bhatti as he felt these were the people "who can make a film successful." During the intermission of the film, the Director-General of Police, Punjab, Mr Puran Chand Dogra, felicitated the cast of the film, including Jaspal Bhatti, Savita Bhatti, Vivek Shauq, Rana Jung Bahadur, Smeep Kang, Chandni Toor, Aarti Puri, B.N. Sharma, H.M. Singh and Brijesh Ahuja. The Director-General of
Haryana Police, Mr S.K. Sethi, presented awards to CA
Rosario, Satwant Singh and Jasbir Singh, winners of
first, second and third prizes, respectively, in a police
cartoon contest on "Mahaul Theek Hai". Mr Sethi
also felicitated the producers and financiers of the
film. |
Lawyers hold rally PANCHKULA, Dec 18 — Members of the the District Bar Association staged a rally at the local courts to protest against the failure of the district administration in providing chambers to the lawyers at the judicial complex, coming up in Sector 1 here. Later the lawyers took out
a silent protest march from the local courts to the
mini-secretariat in Sector 1. They raised slogans against
the administration for not listening to their demand. |
CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — A group of Senators led by Rajinder Deepa-Deepak Manmohan Singh swept the Panjab University Syndicate poll by securing 10 out of 13 seats which witnessed a close contest here today. Of the total 15 seats of the Syndicate two independents secured their entry to the Syndicate body through the medical faculty following an agreement among the members of the medical fraternity not to have a contest on the two seats of the faculty. With this, the Rajinder-Deepak group has considerably improved its position in the house from eight seats in the previous Syndicate to 10. The rival group led by Gopal Krisahan Chatrath-Ramparkash could manage only three seats as compared to seven in the last Syndicate poll. The latter, however, wrested both seats in the law faculty as Mr GK Chatrath and Mr Anmol Rattan won unopposed. No candidate had been put up by the rival faction in the law faculty. While a large number of Senators started thronging the campus in the morning, the polling process for the arts faculty started as scheduled at 9 a.m. Interestingly, most of the ex-officio members of the Senate including the Punjab Chief Minister, Mr Parkash Singh Badal, two MLAs and the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court did not participate in the voting. On the other hand, ex-officio members who exercised their franchise include the DPIs of Punjab, Haryana and the UT and Mr Nafe Singh, a Haryana MLA. After the polling, Mr Deepak Manmohan Singh who secured a maximum of 30 votes, was declared elected. Mr Rajinder Bhandari, another member of the Deepa-Deepak group cornered victory by securing 29 votes. The third seat of the faculty, however, fell into the hands of Chatrath-Ramparkash group as its candidate Prof VK Bansal, who secured 29 votes was declared elected. The science faculty poll, too, saw a clean sweep by the Deepa-Deepak group which emerged winner in all three seats. While Mr Rajinder Deepa managed to get 23 votes, the other two members of the group Mr IM Govil and Dr Rabinder Nath Sharma cornered 21 votes each. In the absence of any candidate of the Chatrath-Ramparkash group in the language faculty, it was a cake- walk for Mr Ashok Goyal and Mr SS Gill, both of the rival camp who were declared elected unopposed. It is learnt that in a bid to strengthen the law faculty, from where Mr Chatrath himself was candidate, most of his loyalists were shifted from the language faculty to the law faculty on December 11, the last date for changing faculties. Under an understanding, the rival group had shifted nine of its members from the law faculty to other faculties. Unlike the strategy adopted by the rival group to concentrate on a particular faculty, the tactical step of the Deepa-Deepak group to scatter its members in other faculties is said to have tilted the balance in its favour. The combined faculties saw an interesting contest. The only seat for the non-teachers was claimed by Mr Randip Singh Surjewala who polled 38 votes as against 35 polled to his rival, the former congress MP, Mrs Santosh Chaudhary. Mrs Chaudhary belonged to the Chatrath-Ramparkash group. The other two winners, Principal AS Bedi and Mr SS Hundal, also belonged to the Deepa-Deepak group. The declaration of result of one seat was withheld for sometime following an objection by Principal Nirmal Kaur who secured 34 votes, the same as her rival, Mr SS Hundal. She pleaded that the election should be postponed. The medical faculty virtually saw no contest as no candidates were put up against Dr KS Chugh and Dr Krishna Yadav. Both were elected unopposed. Dr Abraham Thomas was elected Dean, Medical Faculties. According to sources, Mr
Chatrath and Prof Veer Singh were elected Dean and
Secretary, respectively, of the law faculty. Mr Kehar
Singh and Mr Emmunel Nahar were elected Dean and
Secretary, respectively, of the faculty of dairying,
animal husbandry and agriculture. The election to the
posts of Dean of other faculties will be held tomorrow. |
CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — Three more partners of the controversial JVG investments that had allegedly decamped with crores of rupees of investors, were booked by the police today. Vijay Sharma, Veena Sharma and Col Tripath Singh, who are in custody of the Delhi Police, were booked under Section 420 of the IPC. The three were partners in the firm. Arrested: Dhan Prasad of Labour Colony (Sector 31) has been arrested for carrying eight bottles of liquor. Truck missing: A truck (CH-01-U-5236) belonging to Mr Prem Kumar has been missing for the past several days. The truck was taken by the driver, Kulwant Singh, to Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. A case has been registered in the Sector 31 police station. PANCHKULA Hospitalised: At least three students of St Soldier School were hospitalised after they allegedly consumed lollipops from a canteen located within the premises of the school here on Friday. Anu Saran (10), Swati (9) and Nancy (10) were admitted to the General Hospital in Sector 6 after they became semi-conscious after consuming the sweets. The lollipops have been sent for chemical examination. The Chief Medical Officer said the canteen had been sealed by the police. The Principal, Wg Cdr S.S. Gyani, when contacted, said he had called the contractor to know the facts about the case. Forgery: The Pinjore police has arrested Raju for allegedly forging the serial number of 12 lottery tickets and duping a lottery ticket seller at Pinjore. According to information, the accused forged the lottery tickets by pasting fake serial numbers on them and claimed a prize money of Rs 1,200 from the ticket seller. A case under Section 420 of the IPC has been registered. Meters recovered:
The police has recovered stolen electricity meters valued
at Rs 2,000 with the arrest of Sanjeev Kumar, of Kakrali. |
CHANDIGARH: "A very serious comedy". This is how Jaspal Bhatti describes his Punjabi film, "Mahaul Theek Hai", produced under the banner of Jaspal Bhatti Films Pvt Ltd. Whether it has been through his television serials like "Ulta Pulta" and "Flop-Show", or the recent spoofs on the rising prices of onions, Bhatti has never failed to tickle our sides and make us roar with laughter. And the presence of Bhatti, the quintessential wit, as the booze-guzzling and a "murga"-loving corrupt police officer, on the silver screen has not failed to evoke giggles and guffaws. The very act of Bhatti opening his mouth to deliver wisecracks is a cause for amusement. And Bhatti's fans will sure enjoy his act of going weak in the knees every time he meets his lady love! An apparent "bright spot" in the aesthetically and financially stricken Punjabi film industry, Bhatti's film, does not at any point give the feeling that a "tilla-gotta-lassi" kind of a Punjabi film is being viewed. Technically well-produced, "Mahaul....", like several present-day "clean" Hindi films, has the usual plot of love between a poor girl and a rich boy, and uses the theme of corruption in the Police Department as its backdrop. Ironically, it is Bhatti's clever comedy which goes to his disadvantage in the film. With the other actors, besides Vivek Shauq, Savita Bhatti and B.N. Sharma, not matching his sense of timing, "Mahaul ..." turns out to be something of a patchy presentation. And surprisingly, as expected, it does not always succeed in making us roll on the floor. The song-and-dance sequences featuring a bevy of dancers, the presence of villains, and the consequent "dishum-dishum" action scenes, do add masala to the film, but do not produce Bhatti's characteristic tang. The first half of the film, with several storylines running parallel, appears somewhat confusing at places. If comedy is a serious business, then that is where Bhatti's forte lies. No doubts the backdrop storyline of corrupt cops — who organise "police welfare shows"; "fight" with each other to claim a dead corpse, to highlight the importance of their respective "thanas"; and even search a cyclist's bag while carrying out inspections of all "gaddis" and goods — is rib-tickling all the way! Then there are stereotypes in the form of Smeep Kang as the superman-hero, Chandini Toor as the love-lorn heroine, and a "poor" grief-stricken "baap", played by Kulbhushan Kharbanda. On the whole, the film remains a curious mix of spoofs and the "real". It is in the second half that the characters seem to suddenly come together and provide a rip-roaring experience to remember. The team of Jaspal Bhatti — the unscrupulous top-cop, and his real-life wife, Savita Bhatti, who delightfully plays the stern school principal trying to thwart Jaspal's amorous advances, definitely provide the comic relief. Vivek Shauq, as the 'yes man' of Bhatti, is expectedly amusing. So what if he has bombed as a hero in the Hindi film industry, his buoyant sense of comedy may make him the Govinda of Punjabi films! B.N. Sharma as the villain, also puts in an amusing performance. But Bhatti has not stuck merely to spoofs in the film. So, along with caricatures of cops, there is also the story of a poverty-stricken household, the tale of business rivalry, and a subsequent murder, and other tear-evoking events. However, for the fans of Jaspal Bhatti's brand of comedy, such sob scenes could prove to be quite a surprise. Bollywood actor Raj Babbar, as the business magnate involved in his rival's murder, has been definitely overshadowed by Bhatti. And Kharbanda seems to have been wasted as the suffering father of an ailing son and ready-to-be-married daughter. The musical score of "Mahaul...", by H.M. Singh, is not much to write about. The well-picturised title song bears the typical Bhatti stamp. The lyrics, of the five songs in the film, have been penned by Dev Kohli, Inderjit Hasanpuri, H. M. Singh and Jaspal Bhatti himself.
Paintings reflect spontaneity CHANDIGARH: "A painting can be judged at two levels. One is what the viewer sees in a picture i.e. on a superficial level, and the other is the deeper meaning it contains. But if people cannot make out the deeper sense then also it is okay with me," says Tito, an artist from the USA. Though originally she is from this city, after completing her schooling, she migrated to New Zealand and from there to the USA. Tito keeps coming to her native country every now and then, but it is for the first time that she is holding a solo show in the city. This show has been possible due to the efforts of Lalit Kala Academy. In this exhibition, 'Looking Through,' the influence of the places where she has spent some years, — like Chandigarh, Shimla, New Zealand and New York — are quite evident. She has been painting since childhood when her mother became her main guide. Working with water colours, she was always encouraged to be original. Most of her paintings are spontaneous. Having studied at the Parson's School of Design, New York, with a Major in illustrations, she likes to base her exhibition work on a concept. Within the concept, the frames are varied but related to the central idea. For her, the element of joy is essential in a painting. There are enough reasons to be disappointed in life, why not share a moment of happiness, she says. For this sow, the artist has worked with oil and acrylic paints mixed media on paper and some three dimensional works — acrylic on wood. Her sequence begins with a three-dimensional view of a window made out of wood, giving a view of outside. The second work is a human eye with a hole, titled 'Windows of the Soul'. The exhibition will be
open at Government Museum and Art Gallery till December
23 (except Monday) — Priti Verma |
CHANDIGARH, Dec 18 — Mr Justice R. L. Anand, a Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, today stayed the arrest of Mr Mukesh Gambhir, Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Faridabad, till January 8. Mr Gambhir was booked by the Haryana Police under the Prevention of Corruption Act on November 26. An FIR was registered against him at the Faridabad Central police station. Counsel for the petitioner told the court that Mr Gambhir wanted to place on record certain documents to satisfy that his mother was a lady of means and had the capacity to will away gold ornaments mentioned in the FIR. He told the court that Mr Gambhir had been falsely implicated in the case as he raised voice against the killing of a subordinate, Mr Laxman Mann, Excise and Taxation Officer on November 1 in broad daylight at the Sales Tax Office. Counsel alleged that Brij Gopal was a habitual tax evader and had a hand in the ETO's killing. Notice to Punjab on ashram looting The High Court issued notice of motion to the Punjab Government for January 18 on a writ petition preferred by Mr Harbans Singh Jalal, a former MLA of Bathinda, seeking registration of a case against seven persons for allegedly looting and destroying property of the Roohani Mission Sri Jalal Ashram, a religious institution. Mr Justice VK Bali and Mr Justice Iqbal Singh constituted the Bench. The petitioner also sought an independent probe by the CBI into the episode, alleging that seven persons came to the ashram in Harbans Nagar (Bathinda) on August 26, detained the sewadar and granthi for 15 hours and took away valuables as well as 20,000 books, which included scriptures. Some of them were feared to have been set afire. The petitioner further alleged that the looting was at the instance of Mr Bhunder, an MP who wanted to grab the valuable land of the petitioner valued at crores of rupees. The petitioner stated that when he approached the Bathinda SSP for the registration of a case, he only ordered the lodging of a DDR, which was never converted into an FIR. Give rest-house buyers' names Our Legal Correspondent adds: Smelling a rat in the auction of rest-houses in Punjab, a Division Bench comprising Mr Justice JL Gupta and Mr Justice KS Kumaran directed the state of Punjab to furnish the names of all auction purchasers of each rest house which had been auctioned. The Bench was of the view that a very low reserve price had been fixed for such buildings and land attached to it so as to benefit certain persons. In all 32 rest-houses were auctioned by the Punjab Government. In one of the cases where the land attached to the rest-houses was two acres, the reserve price was fixed at just Rs 53000 which was too low in the court's view. The issue arose out of a writ petition filed by one Hardial Singh, an auction purchaser of Canal Rest House Kasampati District Faridkot, but the sale in his favour was cancelled after an offer by other persons to purchase the rest-house by paying more money. The case has been adjourned till Tuesday. Plea to amend poll order stayed A Division Bench comprising Mr Justice HS Brar and Mr Justice KS Kumaran stayed the operation of the order of the Additional Deputy Commissioner, Ferozepore, asking the Block Development and Panchayat Officer Abohar, to issue a corrigendum of notification and declaring Ms Guddi elected as panch in place of the petitioner, MS Reshma, to the Dhaban Kokrian gram panchayat. The Bench also issued notice to motion for March 1, 1999. Ms Guddi Devi, who filed the petition, submitted that she got 55 votes as a reserved category candidate in the Scheduled Caste category, but Ms Reshma, who got 48 votes in the general category, was declared elected. The presiding officer initially declared the result with regard to the female (general category) candidate. It was contended that
after the notification had been issued no change in the
result could be carried out. |
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