Saturday, October 16, 1999
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Mulayam snaps ties with
RJD |
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Check Badal: SHSAD pleads
to Centre One can argue case in Hindi 3-yr-old booked, cops in trouble SC raps Medha Patkar, Roy Consumer interests to be
‘protected’ Hurriyat denied permission |
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Mulayam snaps ties with RJD PATNA, Oct 15 (PTI) — The Samajwadi Party President, Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, today formally snapped ties with the Laloo Prasad Yadav-led RJD saying their coalition — the Rashtriya Loktantrik Morcha (RLM) — was "irrelevant". After its impressive show in the Lok Sabha elections up, SP's priority now is to build a strong base in Bihar for the assembly poll due in March, he said. He claimed that people of Bihar, particularly the minorities, were now looking towards the SP which alone, he said, was "strong enough" to be an alternative to the BJP in the state. The Samajwadi Party Chief accused the Congress of being responsible for the reinstallation of Vajpayee government at the Centre and pledged to expose former's nexus with the BJP. "Congress virtually connived with the BJP to enable the latter to form its ministry. I hold the Congress alone responsible for it", Mr Yadav told reporters. Stating that the RLM had become "irrelevant" after the RJD decided to align with the Congress, Mr Yadav said the SP was firm on maintaining "equi-distance" from both the BJP and the Congress. He described the two parties as "two faces of the same coin." Meanwhile the RJD President, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav, said if Mulayam Singh Yadav thought the RLM was "defunct and irrelevant" he had nothing to comment on that as "Sanker Singh Vaghela's Rashtriya Janata Party, which was also a constituent of the RLM, had already merged with the Congress". Referring to Mr Mulayam
Singh Yadav flaying the RJD for aligning with the
Congress, Mr Laloo Prasad Yadav told newsmen that his
party had "only an electoral understanding with the
Congress." |
Rajiv case: 4 to be hanged on November 5 CHENNAI, Oct 15 (UNI) — The designated court trying TADA cases, today fixed November 5 for hanging the four condemned prisoners, in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, including Nalini and her husband at the Central Prison in Vellore. Designated Court Judge S.S.P. Darwesh fixed the date, while communicating to the prison authorities, the confirmation of the death sentence, by the Supreme Court on October 8 in respect of the four accused. Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) militant Santhan and local Tamil Youth Perarivalan are the other condemned prisoners. Confirming the fixing of date by the designated court here, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Prisons) Vijaya Narayanan told UNI that the four accused, however, would not be hanged on November 5, as the fixing of the date was only a part of the routine procedure. As the condemned prisoners are filing clemency petitions to the President of India, pleading to set aside the black warrant, the authorities of the Vellore Central Prison, where the four accused were lodged, would await the outcome of the petitions before fixing a fresh date, he said. The designated
court’s order fixing the date, would automatically
be stayed by the prison authorities for seven days and
later it would be stayed by a government order.
"Until the mercy petitions were disposed of, the
accused would not be hanged", he added. |
Check Badal: SHSAD pleads to
Centre NEW DELHI, Oct 15 — The Sarb Hind Shiromani Akali Dal (SHSAD) today said the Centre should check Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal from expanding his council of ministers as the state was facing financial crisis. The SHSAD also urged the Centre to bail the state out of the present financial problem by giving soft loans and thus helping revive the economy. The general secretary of the party, Mr Prem Singh Chandumajra, said here today at a time when the State government was facing "severe financial crisis" and there was no money to pay even salaries to government employees "where was the need to expand the Council of Ministers which will mean additional expenditure". "The Centre should stop Mr Badal from expanding his Cabinet on this account’’ he said, adding that such was the fiscal crunch that apart from non-payment of salaries and pensions contractors bills were piling up. He said if the State government has to seek the expert advice of economists like Dr Manmohan Singh and Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, "why does Punjab need Ministers". Mr Chandumajra charged that financial crisis was on account of inept handling and poor collection of taxes by the state agencies. Criticising the State government, he charged that while there was large-scale evasion of sales tax by big industries/ establishments taxes were being increased putting the weaker and poorer sections under pressure. He said the SAD government, which is an ally of the ruling National Democratic Alliance instead of putting pressure on the Centre to roll back the 35 per cent hike in prices of diesel had itself doubled sales tax on the product. There were reports, he said, that the State government was going to impose additional taxes to raise resources including toll tax. "It seems Mr Badal and his government are levying taxes with vengeance on the people for the verdict against his government," Mr Chandumajra said. He said the SHSAD would
hold a meeting at Ludhiana on October 23 under the
chairmanship of its president, Mr Gurcharan Singh Tohra,
and draw up an action plan to democratically protest
against the hikes in taxes in the state. |
Keep off Services, Nehru
tells politicians NEW DELHI, Oct 15 — Former Governor and distinguished civil servant, Mr B.K. Nehru today expressed the apprehension that political meddling in the armed forces could lead to the weakening of the service rendering it incapable of defending the nation. Delivering a lecture on "Transition in Civil Services" at India International Centre here today Mr Nehru said in the past two years one had been hearing disturbing rumours of interference in the functioning of the defence services. He said the civil services had been weakened enough in the country and by interfering in the defence services, the elected representatives might get a few votes but ultimately the armed forces would lose the authority to "defend us and the sovereignty of the country". Mr Nehru, said during the tenure of the Defence Minister Krishna Menon, there were some attempts (to interfere) and the country had to face its consequences, including a defeat, an apparent reference to the reverse against China in the 1962 war. Another fear he expressed was that in future criminals might get elected to law-making institutions and brush aside the verdict of the judiciary on the grounds that an elected representative had more powers than those donning black gowns. "The chaos will be complete", he said. In the 30-minute lecture, a part of a on-going series organised by the centre as a look back on the millennium, Mr Nehru traced the origin of civil services in India, its contribution since the British Raj and in the post-Independence days. He summed up the reason behind the gradual deterioration of the Indian Administration Services over the years and its proximity to politicians and criminals. Mr Nehru observed that at present a large number of civil servants were corrupt and said once people take leave of conscience and join politicians in their corrupt ways the rot sets in. Interspersing his lecture with anecdotes and events to drive home his point, Mr Nehru said the system of governance was such that democratically elected people were interested only in themselves and did not like civil servants whom they viewed as someone to check them and their powers. He likened the current day political masters as former rulers and traced it to the country’s "raja-praja" (king and his subjects) tradition that has been in operation. The country, he said, might have abolished the days of maharajas but the system had now created many more kings (the modern day political masters). Mr Nehru said although the Constitution envisaged liberty, equality and justice to all, the country could had yet to come to terms with it. He said as per the tradition the king was never questioned and he was expected to levy taxes and use part of it personally. Comparing the civil servants of the pre-Independence days to those now, he said, character-building which was part of the training was missing now. Citing a personal instance, he said, as a young civil servant he was expected to stay with the Deputy Commissioner with whom he was attached and in return pay for it. The senior officer used to take him along both at work and leisure. Narrating an anecdote, he said, as per a minister there were three categories of civil servants. One who obeyed orders of his political masters with ifs any buts, second was one who raised objections but eventually agreed and third who stuck to the rules and refused to alter them. He said political masters used the weapon of transfers to change the civil servants. On the spread of corruption, he said, changes in economic structure and the licence, quota permit raj during which ministers started selling them, corruption descended to civil servants from the top. He said political will was required to change all this but lamented that it did not exist. As a case in point he said there had been at least three reports. The report of the Administrative Reforms Committee headed by Morarji Desai, the report of the Sarkaria Commission on Centre-state relations and the devolution of powers and the Dharamvira Committee report on police which had been gathering dust. In addition there were a number of proposals from the Supreme Court and the Election Commission to prevent the entry of criminals into politics and the Law Commission which had not been acted upon. The latest, he said, was the announcement by previous government regarding the setting up of a committee to amend the Constitution but said nothing had happened. He said the message was
that the corrupt and criminal caucus would not tolerate
any change and could block any effort to do so. |
One can argue case in Hindi ALLAHABAD, Oct 15 (UNI) — In a significant ruling Justice O.P. Garg of the Allahabad High Court today ruled that law does not empower a judge of the high court, while hearing a case, to prohibit the litigant or his counsel from making arguments in Hindi, if he so chooses. The court held that it is open to a judge of the high court hearing a case to pass judgement decree and order in Hindi, if he so chooses, though he cannot be compelled. The court gave this verdict on a writ petition of Mr Balram Misra, an employee of the Allahabad High Court. The petitioner had appeared in the examination of the high court conducted for promotion to the post of Bench secretaries. On the question whether the employees of the high court can be debarred from writing their answers in Hindi in departmental promotional examination, the court held that writing the answers in Hindi in the departmental examination to the promotional posts of Bench secretaries grade ii had allegedly been prohibited. The Bench disposed off
the writ petition accordingly. |
3-yr-old booked, cops in trouble SHIVPURI, (MADHYA PRADESH), Oct 15 (UNI) — Can a three-year-old child be booked on apprehension of "disturbing peace and tranquillity?" The police here did so and landed themselves in trouble. Acting on a complaint of one Kakua Jatav, the police at the Bhatnawar outpost under Pohri police station had registered cases against two children a three-year-old and an eight-year-old-and issued summons to them to appear before the court of Tehsildar on October 8. Jatav had alleged that his son Sunderlal had sustained injuries as some children had beaten him up while playing at Bhatnawar village about a month ago. When the "accused" appeared before the court, Tehsildar R.C. Tenger, expressed surprise over registration of such a case against Santosh (3) and Kunwar (8) and quashed the proceedings. Taking serious note of the incident, the Tehsildar also indicated that he would be writing to senior police officials for initiating action against the in charge of the police outpost. Meanwhile, Pohri Subdivisional Office (police) said the matter was being investigated. Besides taking appropriate action against those found guilty, proceedings will also be initiated against the complainant for lodging a false report. The summons received by
the children stated that they had ‘ganged up’
against the 50-year-old Kakua and were bent upon picking
a quarrel with him, which disturb peace and lead to an
untoward incident. |
SC raps Medha Patkar, Roy NEW DELHI, Oct 15 (PTI) — The Supreme Court today expressed deep anguish over the way Booker prize winner Arundhati Roy and Narmada Bachao Andolon (NBA) leader Medha Patkar misinformed the public about the court’s order on the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP) but preferred not to initiate contempt proceedings against them. The court gave a severe tongue lashing to both Patkar and Roy for "misinforming the public and projecting a totally incorrect picture" of the court’s orders but said it was not inclined to initiate contempt proceedings against them "keeping in view the importance of the issue of resettlement and rehabilitation of dam oustees". A three-Judge Bench comprising Chief Justice A.S. Anand, Mr Justice S.P. Bharucha and Mr Justice B.N. Kirpal unanimously decided not to initiate contempt proceedings against them. Mr Justice Bharucha, in a brief but terse order, recorded his disapproval of the statements made by NBA leaders and Roy and said "I am not inclined to take action in contempt against Medha Patkar, Sripad Dharmadhikari and Arundhati Roy because the court’s shoulders are broad enough to shrug off their comments and because the focus should not shift from resettlement and rehabilitation of the oustees." However, Mr Justice Anand, who wrote the majority of the judgement, said, "We are unhappy at the way the leaders of the NBA and Roy have attempted to undermine the dignity of the court. We expected better behaviour from them." Patkar and Roy, in her
book "The Greater Common Good", had criticised
the court order allowing raising of the dam height. |
Consumer interests to be
‘protected’ NEW DELHI, Oct 15 — Union Minister of Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, Shanta Kumar, today said his priority would be to protect interest of the consumers in every field and he would initiate action in this regard in the coming days. He said with the growing pressure of population, there was a tendency for pushing spurious and fake products in the market. Mr Shanta Kumar, who is the only Cabinet Minister from Himachal Pradesh, said he would review the entire situation and take action that would bring relief to the consumer. In this regard he said special attention should be given to packaging and pricing of commodities so that the consumer could be assured that he was getting his money’s worth. Referring to the import of several food commodities like sugar and apple, Mr Kumar admitted that it would be difficult to ban import but it was always possible to discourage house by levying additional duty. In this regard he said he would review the import of food articles and their impact on the Indian farmer. He said there was a need to have a balanced approach as the farmer too was a consumer in his own right. Mr Kumar said he would stress on strict adherence to quality control and take steps to get rid of adulteration in food commodities. Regarding the public distribution system, he said ensuring off-take by the poor was his main concern. There were 32 crore people below the poverty line and steps would have to be taken to ensure that the PDS commodities reach them. He was of the opinion that the goods which left Delhi did not reach its destination and it was not percolating to the grassroots. Mr Kumar is leaving for
Himachal Pradesh today and he would be in the state for
the next couple of days. He said he would get down to
serious business only on his return. |
Hurriyat denied permission NEW DELHI, Oct 15 (PTI) — A two-member Hurriyat team comprising Deputy Director of Institute of Kashmir Studies G.M. Bhat and Senior Advocate Mohammed Tufail was not allowed to meet 15 Hurriyat leaders lodged in Jodhpur jail, a Hurriyat spokesman alleged here today. The spokesman claimed that the team members who visited the jail premises on October 13 were not allowed to meet the Hurriyat leaders despite the fact that Mohammed Tufail is the legal counsel of the detainees and had asked permission of meeting in the said capacity. At least 15 Hurriyat
leaders, including its chairman Syed Ali Shah Geelani,
have been lodged in Jodhpur jail of Rajasthan following
their arrest under the Public Safety Act. |
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| 5-day book fair in
Shillong NEW DELHI: The National Book Trust is organising a five-day book fair in Shillong from October 30 with the participation of about 50 publishers and booksellers. The fair will feature books on diverse subjects and themes and the participants include the Ramakrishna Mission, Anthropological Survey of India, Publishers and Booksellers Association of West Bengal, Sahitya Akademi, Oxford University Press, Orient Longman and the NBT. — UNI Non-invasive laser
surgery 5 cops suspended
for custodial death Garhwal Mahotsav
from Oct 17 |
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