 |
H A R Y A N A |  |
 Thursday, September 2, 1999 |
|
Congress leader joins BJP ROHTAK, Sept 1 — The Congress suffered a severe setback when one of its prominent leaders, Mr Jagmohan Mittal resigned from the party and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party here today along with his supporters. Principal anguished by PM’s ‘visit’ FATEHABAD, Sept 1 — Noted educationist and principal of Dayanand College, Hisar, Mr Subhash Sharma has written to the Chief Election Commissioner seeking a complete ban on the use of educational campuses for election-related political meetings. |
 |
|
|
Notices
served on Cong, BJP nominees
Persuasive David dares Goliaths From cotton, to paddy and dust Nagra's
statement creates confusion Ved Pal heads NCP Haryana unit Criminal
complaint against DC filed |
|||||||||
 |
|||
Congress leader joins BJP ROHTAK, Sept 1 — The Congress suffered a severe setback when one of its prominent leaders, Mr Jagmohan Mittal resigned from the party and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party here today along with his supporters. Mr Mittal had been general secretary and treasurer of the Pradesh Congress Committee for many years and had been associated with it for nearly 40 years. He is currently President of the Vaish Education Society, Rohtak and Haryana Pradesh Vaish Maha Sammelan. Prominent among others who joined the BJP were Mr Narain Parsad Goyal and Mr Rajinder Bansal, president and general secretary respectively of Haryana Foodgrain Dealers Association, Mr Mahesh Chawla, industrialist, Mr Lalit Sharma, a leader of the Haryana Government Teachers Association, Mr Kaptan Singh Rathi, ex-general secretary, DCC (rural) and Mr Yogesh Kumar Gupta. Addressing newsmen, Mr Mittal said that he was feeling suffocated ever since Mrs Sonia Gandhi humiliated her predecessor Sita Ram Kesari, an elected President of the INC and virtually hijacked the Congress. Mrs Gandhi, he alleged, was surrounded by a coterie of Christian Congressmen proving that she has no faith in other communities. The Congress suffered another setback in the Meham assembly segment when office-bearers of Bainsi panchayat, a Punjabi dominated village decided to back the INLD. Prominent among those
who joined the INLD were Mr Balla Ram, a sarpanch for
over 30 years, Mr Krishan Lal Puniani, Nambardar, S.
Pritam Singh, Nambardar, S Bishan Singh Thekadar, Mr Amar
Nath Chhabra, etc. |
Principal anguished by PM’s
‘visit’ FATEHABAD, Sept 1 — Noted educationist and principal of Dayanand College, Hisar, Mr Subhash Sharma has written to the Chief Election Commissioner seeking a complete ban on the use of educational campuses for election-related political meetings. Mr Sharma, who was earlier principal of the local Manohar Memorial College, angered by the felling of trees in the college campus for the August 20 visit of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee, has written to the CEC, Mr M.S. Gill to intervene. In his letter, Mr Sharma said that while the visit of the Prime Minister to Fatehabad was a historic incident, the college itself was as if struck by a natural disaster. Extensive damage was done to its landscaped exterior including the destruction of its plantations of sheasham neem and safeda trees. He said that the college had nourished these plants and took a special pride in its lush surroundings. Most of the trees felled had been planted 11 years ago as part of the "Green Campus: Clean Campus" drive. Some were over 25 years old. A dream construed with the sweat and toil of hundreds of volunteers of the NSS and other social organisations over years was decimated for a meeting that lasted less than an hour. He said during the 1998
Lok Sabha elections too a helicopter carrying Mr Devi Lal
landed in the college grounds, but not a single leaf was
harmed. The principal asked the CEC to consider the gross
‘vandalisation’ of the plantation of Fatehabad
College as national affair as other college grounds faced
a similar fate. |
Notices served on Cong, BJP
nominees FARIDABAD, Sept 1 — The Returning Officer of the Faridabad Lok Sabha constituency has served notices on Congress and BJP candidates for allegedly violating the model code of conduct. Mr B K Panigrahi, Deputy Commissioner-cum-Returning Officer, told reporters here that the notices had been served after complaints that one of the candidates had gifted fax machines and brief cases to journalists in order to woo them. He said that in case the allegation was found correct after the enquiry which had already been ordered, the journalists would be directed to return the fax machines and brief cases. The district administration had earlier asked the Congress to explain the lunch served to journalists on August 22. Certain journalists of Delhi and Faridabad were again treated to a lunch by the Congress on August 28, the day Mrs Sonia Gandhi, the party President, addressed an election rally in Faridabad. Mr Mohammed Aquil,
Superintendent of Police, who was present at the press
conference, said a company each of the Central Industrial
Security Force and the Government Railway Police, 1500
Home Guards and 80 NCC cadets had been requisitioned to
strengthen the police to maintain law and order on the
polling day. |
Haryana Cong leader cautions
voters ROHTAK, Sept 1 — The vice-president of the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) and a former minister, Mr Rajesh Sharma , has asked voters to beware of "false" promises and "tricks" of the BJP and its allies. Speaking at public meetings at Kakrani, Bhali Anandpur, Garnavathi, Sundana, Balamba Kahnor and Anwal villages in support of the Congress nominee for the Lok Sabha seat Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Mr Sharma alleged that the Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) and the BJP had joined hands only to defeat democratic forces. Claiming that the parties had no issues and had not been promising speedy development of backward districts like Rohtak. He said they had been trying to capture power by raising emotional slogans. He alleged that Mr Om Prakash Chautala had come to power through improper means. Mr Kuldeep Sharma, a son of Pandit Chiranji Lal Sharma, and a former Deputy Speaker of the state Assembly, Dr Vasudev Sharma, said that it was only Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda who was capable of starting various development works in the region. They alleged that all chief ministers and state governments had so far ignored the region. Former minister Anand
Singh Dangi, Ms Kartar Devi, MLA, and a former NSUI
(Haryana) chief, Mr Sandeep Singh, also appealed to
voters to support Mr Hooda. |
Persuasive David dares Goliaths NARNAUL (Mahendergarh), Sept 1 — The BSP nominee from Mahendergarh parliamentary constituency, Mr Raghu Yadav, today kicked off his election campaign in earnest from the Narnaul segment village Meghot Hala. His style of campaigning was frugal — four vehicles, including his white Maruti. He prefers to drive his own car throughout the campaign and this down-to-earth manner goes down well with the party’s vote bank, the Scheduled Castes and other backward castes (OBCs). The BSP nominee constant refrain in village after village is that while the sitting Congress nominee from Mahendergarh, Rao Inderjit Singh did not highlight the problems of the area, in parliament when in office the BJP-INDL nominee, Mrs Sudha Yadav, lacked articulation. Therefore, south Haryana especially the Ahirwal belt falling in this constituency, would continue to suffer if the BJP-INDL nominee was elected. Incidentally, Mr Raghu Yadav had earlier contested thrice, once on his Panchayat Party ticket and twice as BSP nominee. He lost in all the three elections. However, the BSP camp draws succour from the fact that the number of votes in his favour continued to increase in successive elections. The BSP is banking heavily on the about four lakh SC and OBC votes. In about a dozen villages, including Meghot Binja, Bighopur, Dholera, Kanina, Khatoli (Ahir and Jat), Hasanpur, Koryawas and Godbalaha, Mr Raghu Yadav took on his opposition by pointing out that the Congress nominee has a royal lineage and the BJP-INDL nominee is the wife of a war hero, while he is a self-made man who made his identity in politics by fighting for south Haryana issues. Mr Raghu Yadav, an engineer by profession before joining politics, is widely known as "Jal Yudh Nayak" and "Jinda Sahib" for his agitation for equitable distribution of water to south Haryana and police firing at his public meeting on the issue in August, 1993. It is the memory of the agitations that he is trying to revive in his village meetings. He tells the public that by dint of his relentless campaign, he brought the issue of equitable distribution of water to southern area centrestage. If elected he will get the water to the parched fields of farmers of the area. To counter the BJP-INLD campaign, the BSP nominee alleged that it was due to the criminal negligence of the Atal Behari Vajpayee-led government that Pakistani soldiers infiltrated in the Kargil sector. "Now the BJP was trying to emerge as patriot by fielding a war widow in Mahendergarh", he said. Prominent leaders of the Haryana Vikas Party are leaving no stone unturned for the success of its nominee in Mahendergarh. Prominent HVP leaders, including the party president of Mahendergarh district, Mr Om Prakash, and Mr Risal Singh accompanied the BSP nominee in all the village meetings in Narnaul segment. The BSP has high hopes
in Mahendergarh parliamentary constituency. Mr Raghu
Yadav is a member of the national executive of the party.
The party’s supremo, Mr Kanshi Ram, has made several
visits to this constituency in the past six months. |
CM to ‘encash’
employee vote bank MANDI ADAMPUR (Hisar), Sept 1 — Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala has announced that he will quit the Chief Ministership and politics if his son and Indian National Lok Dal candidate Ajay Chautala did not win from the Mandi Adampur assembly segment. Addressing a well attended election rally here Mr Chautala claimed, the INLD candidate will improve his performance this time over the previous elections. In 1998 elections, Mr Ajay Chautala had polled over fiftyfour thousand votes here. Considered a traditional stronghold of Mr Bhajan Lal, Mandi Adampur, with about 1.2 lakh voters, holds the key to the Bhiwani parliamentary constituency. Mr Bhajan Lal and his family has retained this seat for the past three decades. The Congress candidate during the 1998 elections came a poor third from Mandi Adampur apparently after Mr Bhajan Lal and Mr Chautala reached a tacit understanding. Mr Bhajan Lal has not denied this allegation. However, the situation is entirely different this time. The Congress candidate, Mr Dharamvir, is a close ally of Mr Bhajan Lal and he and his sons have campaigned in Mandi Adampur for several days. Despite this Mr Ajay Chautala and Mr Om Prakash Chautala assert that Mandi Adampur is bound to throw up another surprise. Their confidence comes from the massive response Mr Ajay Chautala has been getting at his public meetings. Almost admitting to a shift in support in Mandi Adampur, a senior HVP leader Hari Singh attributed this to pressure being exerted by the INLD government. He pointed out that there were about 30,000 government employee registered as voters in Mandi Adampur. Most of them are apprehensive of reprisals should they not obey their political master. With the result that are trying to come closer still to the ruling party and even holding tea parties for its candidates. This time Mr Chautala has been vituperative in his criticism. Mr Bhajan Lal terming him as "the most corrupt politician who looted Haryana". He has been actively campaigning in Karnal against Mr Bhajan Lal. To rub salt into Mr
Bhajan Lal’s wounds today’s public meeting was
held in front of a shop owned by Mr Bhajan Lal’s
family. Overwhelmed by the massive response, Mr Chautala
spoke for about 45 minutes, stressing that the Congress
must be wiped out as "it is as dangerous as the
Congress grass". |
From cotton, to paddy and
dust FATEHABAD, Sept 1 — Failure of the monsoon, coupled with an acute shortage of canal water has badly hit paddy production. The situation has reached such a stage that some farmers have been forced to plough in their standing paddy crop as they are unable to meet its requirement for water. According to a survey conducted by The Tribune in Salemkhera, Bighar, Dhawd, Bhodiakhera, Dangapur and Gillan Khera villages many traditionally cotton producing farmers had opted for the paddy this year due to successive failures of the cotton crop over the past few years. Cotton crops were devastated by American bollworm and leaf curler attacks despite the use of pesticides. Farmers of Rattia, Tohana, Jakhal and Sotar areas of Fatehabad had been sowing paddy in the past too as they had tubewell irrigation. By contrast farmers of Salemkhera, Bighar, Gillankhera, Bhodiakhera etc in the Bagar belt, where tubewells are a relative rarity, were dependent on canal waters and rain for their crop of paddy. Indebted farmers who had replaced cotton with paddy this season in the hope of repaying their debts find to their chagrin that the crop has failed yet again moving them still deeper into debt. Following the failure of the monsoon, farmers were banking upon canal water for their irrigation needs. But the volume of canal water is plainly insufficient to cater to their parched fields given the absence of rain. Desperate farmers even resorted to theft of canal waters and cut canal embankments to get it. As a fallout officials of the canal department have been working overtime to keep their canals intact. The gravity of the situation can be gauged from the fact that the district magistrate has banned the movement of private persons along canal banks, under Section 144 of Cr P.C. Farmers say that if
there is no rain in the next one week the paddy crop in
this part of the district will be completely ruined. Then
many more farmers may be forced to plough it under. |
Nagra's statement creates
confusion AMBALA, Sept 1 — A statement by Mr Aman Kumar Nagra, the BSP candidate from Ambala and state President of the Haryana unit of the BSP, has created confusion in the political circles here. Mr Nagra, in his statement released to the press here today, said the Congress had agreed to support him in Ambala in return for the BSP support to the Congress candidates in four parliamentary constituencies in the state. He said according to an agreement with the state Congress President, the BSP would support the Congress in Rohtak, Hisar, Kurukshetra and Sirsa, and the Congress would support the BSP in Ambala. The Congress candidate from Ambala, Mr Phool Chand Mulana, he added, would only be a dummy candidate. Meanwhile, Mr Mulana has termed Mr Nagra's statement as "malicious". In a faxed statement, Dr Ram Parkash, General Secretary of the HPCC, said Mr Nagra's statement was "totally false" and "baseless" and was aimed at creating confusion. He said Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, President, HPCC, had conveyed that the Congress was contesting all the 10 Lok Sabha seats in the state and there was no question of withdrawing him (Mr Mulana) from the poll. Mr Balwant Gupta,
President of the district Congress Committee, said the
party would file a complaint with the Election Commission
against Mr Nagra for creating confusion and damaging Mr
Mulana's position. |
Ved Pal heads NCP Haryana
unit CHANDIGARH, Sept 1 — A former general-secretary of the Haryana Vikas Party, Mr Ved Pal, who quit the party recently in protest against the attitude of the former Chief Minister, Mr Bansi Lal, has been nominated President of the Haryana unit of the Nationalist Congress Party, an outfit floated by Mr Sharad Pawar. Mr Ved Pal, who remained Chairman of the Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board enjoying the Cabinet rank for three years of Bansi Lal rule, said he would constitute district unit soon. The party would contest a majority of seats in the next Assembly elections. The NCP has fielded
three candidates for the Lok Sabha elections — Mr
Kanwal Singh Chauhan (Sonepat), Mr Raj Kumar (Sirsa) and
Mr Yadav in Mahendragarh. |
Criminal complaint against DC
filed ROHTAK, Sept 1 — The District Bar Association today filed a criminal complaint against the Deputy Commissioner, Mr Arun Kumar, and others under Sections 143, 144, 149, 166, 190, 427/456, 500 and 120-B of the IPC in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Mr R.K. Sharma. The association has alleged that the Deputy Commissioner demolished the lawyers’ chambers on June 30, 1998, without serving any notice, either on the association or the advocates concerned. Others named as accused
in the complaint are Mr R.K. Chauhan, SDM, Rohtak, Mr
A.K. Jain and Mr B.S. Chhilar, executive officer and
secretary of the Municipal Committee, respectively, and
Mr Ram Kumar, SHO, Civil Lines. |
Indora accused of code
violation FATEHABAD, Sept 1 — The CPM has accused the INLD-BJP candidate from the Sirsa parliamentary constituency, Mr Sushil Indora, of violating the model code of conduct for elections. In a press note issued here today, a member of the district secretariat of the CPM, Mr Ram Kumar Bahbalpuria, alleged that Mr Indora had been addressing election meetings at religious places even after 10 p.m. The party also condemned
felling of trees in the local M.M. College during Prime
Minister's visit. Mr Bahbalpuria the NDA was distancing
itself from the common people and its leaders were
indulging in mudslinging on the leaders of other parties.
He called upon the people to strengthen secular forces by
defeating the INLD-BJP candidates in Haryana. |
Criminal escapes PANIPAT, Sept 1 — Jagbeer, a hard-core criminal, allegedly involved in the murder of Ranbeer of Atta village on December 12, 1998, has escaped from police custody from the Civil Hospital, Karnal. A case has been registered against the four police personnel on surveillance duty at the hospital. Jagbeer was lodged at Karnal jail. On August 19, he complained that he was suffering from dysentery and he was shifted to the Civil Hospital, Karnal, for treatment. He escaped from the hospital on August 24. The police has launched
a manhunt to arrest the criminal. |
2 held in spurious cassettes
case FARIDABAD, Sept 1 — The police has arrested two persons, Bhupindra and Suresh of Sector 18, on the charge of dealing in spurious T-Series audio cassettes. Rajiv, their accomplice, is at large. A police spokesman said here today that a large number of stickers of T-Series, a punching machine and other equipment was also seized from their godown. He claimed the arrested admitted that they used to supply spurious stickers and cassettes throughout the country.
|
Former Dy A-G joins Congress CHANDIGARH, Sept 1 — A former Deputy Advocate-General of Haryana, Mrs Kiran Bala Jain, has joined the Congress. Mrs Jain and her
husband, Mr S.K. Jain, also a former Deputy
Advocate-General of Haryana, had been close associates of
former Chief Minister Bansi Lal. |
Matric exam schedule BHIWANI, Sept 1 — The schedule for Matric Supplementary Examination, 1999, of the Board of School Education, Haryana, to be held in September has been announced. Releasing the schedule,
the board Secretary told mediapersons here today that the
examinations would commence on September 15 and conclude
on September 22. The timings would be from 1.30 p.m.
onwards. |
 |
||
 |
| Nation
| Punjab | Himachal Pradesh | Jammu & Kashmir | Chandigarh | | Editorial | Business | Sport | | Mailbag | Spotlight | World | 50 years of Independence | Weather | | Search | Subscribe | Archive | Suggestion | Home | E-mail | |
