Friday, May 21, 1999
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N A T I O N |
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spotlight today's calendar |
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Nationality may figure in
NDA manifesto No minister ‘involved’
in Shivani's murder |
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2 roughed up by Sonia
supporters
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Cong heading for split:
BJP Panel to seek Badal Govt’s
clarification Judges’ salary taxable: SC |
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Nationality may figure in NDA manifesto CHURULIA (WB), May 20 (PTI) — Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee today said the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was considering the inclusion in its election manifesto the suggestion to bar foreign-born Indian citizens from occupying the country’s highest posts, including that of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister told newsmen after visiting poet Kazi Nazrul Islam’s birthplace here on the occasion of his birth centenary, that various suggestions had been made by different circles on the issue. Asked whether he was still in favour of a national debate on the issue as was demanded by him at a meeting at Rajamundhry in Andhra Pradesh, he said, "the debate is already on countrywide." Denying any difference with his party on focussing on Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin issue, the Prime Minister said, "I am only following my party’s guideline". The Prime Minister said the Centre would celebrate the birth centenary of the rebel poet in a befitting manner throughout the country. An all-India committee would be formed soon to organise the celebrations round the year. HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday said that high public offices, including those of the Prime Minister, President and Vice-President should be occupied only by naturalised Indians and sought an amendment in laws to bar people of foreign origin from occupying such posts. Asked if his party feared Sonia Gandhi’s coming to power, Mr Naidu said: "There is no need for such fears as the people are solidly behind the TDP. We will go to the polls based on our performance and developmental programmes". Mr Naidu was speaking informally to a group of reporters during a tea-break at the day-long senior police officers' conference here. He said: "We are
for an amendment to bar people of foreign antecedents
from occupying the country’s highest posts". |
No minister ‘involved’ in Shivani's murder NEW DELHI, May 20 (PTI) — The Delhi Police today categorically denied that any Union Minister was involved in the murder of journalist Shivani Bhatnagar in the capital early this year. During investigations into the case "the police has not come across any evidence even remotely suggesting involvement of any central ministers", Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) P.K. Srivastava said in a statement here. "Also there is no evidence that Shivani spoke to any Central Minister on the day of her murder," he said. He said a number of persons had been interrogated in the case and there was no evidence suggesting the involvement of any Central Ministers. The DCP also claimed that B.K. Gupta and Karnail Singh, the then Additional Commissioner (Crime) and DCP (Crime) respectively, had been transferred in the normal administrative course even before the murder had taken place. "There is no link between their transfers and investigation of Shivani’s case," he said. The Congress had yesterday accused a senior Union Cabinet Minister of hampering probe into the case. Party spokesman Ajit
Jogi also alleged that the minister was in frequent touch
with Shivani and even on the day she was murdered he had
a 45-minute telephonic talk with her. |
2 roughed up by Sonia
supporters NEW DELHI, May 20 — Two persons were beaten up by Congress workers for distributing pamphlets which they considered were against Mrs Sonia Gandhi even as hundreds of Congress supporters continued to camp outside the 10 Janpath residence of the party president for the fourth day today. The incident took place when the two persons began to distribute the pamphlets near the 24 Akbar Road Congress headquarter. An agitated crowd soon gathered around the two persons when someone suggested that the pamphlets were against Mrs Sonia Gandhi. The posse of policemen posted on Akbar Road prevented the Congress workers from roughing them up. The duo was then escorted away by the police. In the evening, a Congress worker from Jalesar threatened to commit suicide after he climbed up a tree near the Congress headquarters. The Congress worker, Prem Pal Singh Samrat, threatened that he would jump off the tree if Mrs Sonia Gandhi did not withdraw her resignation. Only after much persuasion from the police and the onlookers did Prem Pal Singh Samrat come down. In the morning, a group of enterprising Congress workers brought along with them three huge effigies depicting Mr Sharad Pawar, Mr Purno Agitok Sangma and Mr Tariq Anwar. The Congress workers
began to hit at the effigies with shoes. The large
effigies proved to be a "hit" especially after
they were made to bow facing the 10 Janpath. |
Cong for fool-proof security
to Ranganath NEW DELHI, May 20 — The Congress today urged the Centre to provide fool-proof security for Ranganath, a discharged accused in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, who has claimed that he was capable of exposing those behind the conspiracy. A Congress delegation, led by senior party leader Arjun Singh, met Union Home Minister, L.K. Advani here and conveyed the party’s apprehension that some people might be interested in eliminating Ranganath to destroy all available evidence in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. Making the demand on the eve of the eighth death anniversary of the former Prime Minister, the delegation told the Home Minister that the Congress was not satisfied with the government’s assurance that the Governments of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had been advised to provide adequate security to Ranganath and the CBI asked to examine him without delay. Mr Ranganath, in whose house near Bangalore the main conspirators of the conspiracy — Sivarasan, Subha and three others — had stayed after the assassination, had said soon after his release from the Chennai central prison on May 12, that he would give all details pertaining to the case to the multi-disciplinary monitory agency, formed in the wake of the Jain Commission report on the conspiracy aspect of the assassination. On May 15, the CWC had passed a resolution noting that Ranganath had categorically stated that he was capable of disclosing the names of personalities involved in the dastardly crime. It stated that the government must immediately provide full security to Ranganath to enable him to depose fearlessly. The BJP too has publicly demanded that the allegations made by Ranganath should be thoroughly probed and taken to their logical conclusion. Mr Arjun Singh also gave a letter to Mr Advani reiterating the party’s demand. The letter said that the government should bear in mind that in the light of all the “weird happenings” in the case, a suspicion arose even in the minds of the Verma and Jain Commissions that a cover-up was being attempted. Mr Arjun Singh demanded a public assurance from the Home Minister to provide fool-proof security to Ranganath. Mr Arjun Singh recalled
how a prime suspect in this case Shanmugham, was arrested
and his body was found hanging from a tree outside a
jail. If this could happen to a crucial witness who has
testified by the special investigation team, anybody
could guess what would happen to a person who has emerged
as a threat to many important and powerful people, he
said. |
Cong heading for split: BJP NEW DELHI, May 20 — The Bharatiya Janata Party today said the process of disintegration of the Congress had begun. Talking to mediapersons, the party General Secretary, Mr K.N. Govindacharya, said: “The happenings in the past few days show that the Congress is fast crumbling and heading for a split”. “There is still more to come”, he said adding that the Congress was shorn of all values of the freedom movement . Comparing today’s happenings in the Congress with the pre-emergency days of 1975, Mr Govindacharya said the Congress had then expelled Mr Chandra Shekhar, Mr Krishan Kant and Mr Mohan Dharia for protesting against the treatment meted out to J.P. Narayan. “Today, the Congress is giving a similar treatment to Mr Sharad Pawar, Mr P. Sangma and Mr Tariq Anwar, he said adding that “another spate of revolt cannot be ruled out”. Lashing out at the CPM, the General Secretary said “the Marxists have come up with an ingenuous argument to justify their shameless support for Ms Sonia Gandhi”. Meanwhile, the BJP high command has summoned the Utter Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Kalyan Singh, to the capital for discussing with him a solution to the ongoing political crisis in the state. The state unit President of the BJP, Mr Rajnath Singh and a senior minister, Mr Kalraj Mishra are also being consulted. The resignation of Ms Kusum Rai, Mr Kalyan Singh’s controversial associate and Chairperson of State Social Welfare Board, has already paved the way for finding an amicable solution to the problems which had led to the present crisis. Mr Govindacharya, who
was in Lucknow to study the nature and extent of the
crisis, has already briefed the party President, Mr
Kushabhau Thakre and the Union Home Minister, Mr L.K.
Advani. |
Atrocities on SCs, STs NEW DELHI, May 20 — Alarmed at finding that not a single case had been registered in Punjab under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities Act) over the past three years, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has decided to seek a clarification from the Parkash Singh Badal government. The non-registration of cases, the commission feels does not mean that there have been no atrocities against the SCs in Punjab: Simply put, FIRs have not been registered under the provisions of the Act enacted by Parliament in 1989. This disclosure has been made in a report sent by the Additional Director General (Police) Crime, Punjab to the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes here. Mr Harinder Singh Khalsa, member of the commission and former Lok Sabha MP from Bathinda said the commission would seek details whether an FIR was registered and if so under which Act and Section. "We would also ask the government to tell us whether the accused were arrested, whether a compromise was reached and the rate of convictions and acquittals in such cases. In case of acquittals, we will like to know what action was taken against the Prosecuting Officer?" he said. He added that the Commission would bring the matter to the notice of the Chief Secretary, the Home Secretary and the Director General, Police, Punjab. Mr Khalsa told TNS that the "sketchy and absolutely absurd two-line reply sent by the State government in response to our clarification speaks volumes of the mindset of those in power. All it mentions is the nature of crime and the figures under various heads." Mr Khalsa drew attention to the fact that a person chargesheeted under the provisions of the Act could not get bail. "Punishment under the provisions of the Act is more severe,"he said. Mr Khalsa said it was
very painful that people had no sympathy for the
Scheduled Castes. "The Scheduled Castes constitute
over 29 per cent of the total population of Punjab. It is
a matter of shame that in the so-called progressive state
of Punjab, not a single case has been registered for
atrocities reported against the Scheduled Castes." |
Judges’ salary taxable: SC NEW DELHI, May 20 (PTI) — The Supreme Court has ruled that the salary received by the judges of the apex court and the high courts should be categorised as income like that of any other citizen and was taxable under the Income Tax Act. A five-Judge Constitution Bench headed by Mr Justice S.P. Bharucha, while dismissing a petition by a former Allahabad High Court Judge, said, “It is not possible to hold that what judges receive are not salaries or that such salaries are not taxable as income.” The Bench rejected the contention of the former judge, Justice Deoki Nandan Agarwala, that a judge of a high court and the Supreme Court has no employer and therefore, what he received was not salary; accordingly, what he received as remuneration was not taxable under the head of salary under the Income Tax Act. Mr Justice Bharucha on behalf of the Constitution Bench said: “It is true that high court and supreme court judges have no employer, but that does not mean that they do not receive salaries.” Justice Agarwala had filed his income tax return for the assessment year 1978-79 on the basis that the salary that he received as a judge was not liable to tax under the Income Tax Act. When the Income Tax Officer rejected the stand taken by Justice Agarwala, the latter had approached the Supreme Court. The fundamental question raised by the appellant was that whether prior to April 1, 1986, when the articles 125 and 221 were amended making the salaries of the judges taxable, the salaries of the judges could come under the Income Tax Act. The appellant also contended that as Parliament could not have legislated prior to the amendment on the subject of salaries of the high court and Supreme Court judges, their salaries were not liable to taxation. The Constitution Bench, dealing with these arguments said “there can be no doubt that prior to the said amendment Parliament could not have legislated on judges salaries, but it is a far cry to conclude therefrom that the salary of a judge is not taxable under Income Tax Act.” “The salary of a judge of a high court and Supreme Court is income and is taxable by an act of Parliament in just the same manner as is the income of any other citizen,” the Bench said. The Bench said the judges of the high court and Supreme Court were constitutional functionaries but articles 125 and 221 expressly stated that what the judges receive were ‘salaries’. “It is not possible
to hold, therefore, that what judges receive are not
salaries or that such salaries are not taxable as income
under the head of salary,” the Bench ruled. |
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| Kidnapped boy rescued NEW DELHI: The city police has rescued the kidnapped three-year-old son of a shopkeeper, from the custody of his “maternal uncle” in Aligarh district of Uttar Pradesh. Himanshu was kidnapped on May 8 when he was playing outside his house in the Gokul Puri area. His family members received a note demanding a ransom of Rs 6 lakh on may 11. — PTI Hindu trust to open in
Muslim college Gallantry medals
presented German sealant
for cracked sewers PM releases
biography Vasant Sathe
bereaved Postman locked
in by landlord |
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