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| Wednesday, January 5, 2000, Chandigarh, India  
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Cold wave claims 33 lives in Bihar Azhar vetoed release of 6 foreign tourists |
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Glimpses of Indian politics SC rejects plea on gurdwara land Cong questions PM’s remark on Pak India to design ABMs on US lines Respect human rights: NHRC RJD opposes bifurcation of Bihar Balayogi to attend Speakers’ meeting Railways adopts safety measures Maneka promises quota for disabled
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Cold wave claims 33 lives in Bihar PATNA, Jan 4 (PTI) — A severe cold wave sweeping Bihar for the past few days is reported to have taken a toll of 33 lives and all government and private schools have been closed in view of the weather. The government has issued orders for the closure of schools till January 14. A Biharsharif report quoting hospital sources said 19 persons died in Nalanda district during the past five days. Several have been admitted to government and private hospitals in the district which is in the grip of intense cold. A report from Hajipur said at least seven persons died in different areas of Vaishali district while six died in Saran district and one at Barauni railway station in Begusarai district since yesterday. The weather condition in the state is likely to deteriorate further with the meteorological department predicting that the mercury might dip to six degree celsius in several cities, including Patna. The district administration has made arrangements for bonfire at 26 places in the state capital to help the homeless keep warm. Rail and air traffic have been affected by the dense fog. Many Howrah-bound trains from New Delhi are running several hours behind schedule. Gaya recorded the lowest temperature in the state at seven degree celsius followed by Ranchi with 7.6 celsius. |
Azhar vetoed release of 6 foreign tourists NEW DELHI: The six foreign tourists who were kidnapped in July 1995 from the tourists resort of Pahalgam would have been alive if Masood Azhar had not vetoed an agreement for their release. The agreement had been reached between a team of negotiators and top Harkat-ul-Ansar militants led by Qari Zarar. The negotiating team included senior Jammu and Kashmir police officers. The kidnapping of six foreign tourists was carried out by a militant group styling itself as Al Faran, a subsidiary group of the Harkat. According to an authoritative report, Zarar had personally supervised the operation-kidnap on behalf of the Pakistan-based Al Faran, and deputed a group of Pakistani Nationals which also included Hamid Turki, a Turkish national, to Pahalgam to carry out the abduction of the foreign tourists, whose release was sought by their governments, including the Governments of the USA and Britain. At the intervention of the intelligence agencies of these governments, kidnappers were advised by their mentors in Pakistan to release the hostages. But Hamid Turki acting on his own killed one of the hostages, namely, Hans Christian Ostero, a Norwegian. When Zarar questioned Turki about this heinous act, the latter ascribed it to nimaz-e-Ishtekhara message from God after Nimaz. Zarar who was acting as the chief commander of the Harkat-ul-Ansar, resigned from the force in protest and was replaced by Javed Ahmed alias Sikander who in turn referred the agreement for the release of the foreign tourists to Masood Azhar for his opinion. But he vetoed it, following which the agreement fell through. One of the top Harkat-ul-Ansar militants, Nazir Ahmed Sodozey, who was arrested by the security forces disclosed during interrogation that the foreign tourists were executed on the orders of Javed Ahmed alias Sikander after Masood Azhar had vetoed the agreement for their release. On December 10, 1995, a Harkat-ul-Ansar militant, Nadeem Zuber, in a statement issued in the name of Al Faran, alleged that four of the foreign tourists were rescued by the Army but the Army denied this. Javed Ahmed along with three other Harkat activists, namely Abu Hamid, Abu Hamza and Ali Mohammad Wani, were killed in an explosion in Anantnag on February 17, 1996. Incidentally, the embassies of the countries representing the hostages had formed a committee to oversee the campaign for their release and were in constant touch with the agencies mediating the agreement. Masood Azhar had been deputed by the ISI to Kashmir to resolve the differences between the feuding militant factions, who had fallen out on the sharing of a Rs 2-crore fund meant for escalating violence and subversion in Kashmir. His assignment was to form a United Jehad Council which could coordinate, train and arm the militants besides organising trans-border operations and financing publicity. But he was arrested in February 1994 from Bijbehara township in Anantnag district of South Kashmir along with Sajjad Khan Afghani, another top militant. — (IPA) |
Glimpses of Indian politics NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, resisting lathi blows of policemen during a demonstration in Connaught Place in early eighties. This situation can be seen in black and white at the ongoing photo exhibition at the AIFACS hall on Rafi Marg here. The exhibition by a Delhi-based photo-journalist, Praveen Jain, titled ‘Indian Politics’, captures some rare and unguarded moments and moods in the lives of seven Prime Ministers, political leaders and senior officers. A former Prime Minister, Mr V.P. Singh, who inaugurated the week-long exhibition here on Saturday has admitted in his message that he has "always been scared of his candid camera." On display at the show are 71 black and white and 30 coloured pictures. Although Jain intended to have only a hundred frames, he added another at the suggestion of a friend. The 101st picture is a sad commentary on poverty and helplessness. It shows a man carrying his injured wife on his shoulder from Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital to the Nizamuddin railway station. "It was his dignity that prompted me to capture the poignant moment with a camera. His wife’s leg was plastered and I offered him money but he refused saying he was not a beggar,"he recalls. Each photograph tells a story and it is interesting to know more about the situation from Jain. For instance, a photograph of Mr M.S. Gill working on his field at his farmhouse in Shivpuri in Madhya Pradesh has an interesting background. Jain recalls that Mr Gill had announced that he was proceeding to his farmhouse in Shivpuri following differences with the then Chief Election Commissioner, Mr T.N. Seshan. "I wanted to see whether he would actually do so." Jain’s pictures dare to displease the powerful Indian politician. He is unsparing and pictures of the former Prime Ministers, Mr P.V. Narasimha Rao and Mr H.D. Deve Gowda, yawning and sleeping at important public functions provide ample proof of this. Another picture taken at Bangalore shows the then Deputy Prime Minister and former Chief Minister of Haryana, Mr Devi Lal standing on the weighing machine. "This was taken when Mr Devi Lal was taking a course in naturopathy at Bangalore." Other memorable pictures are of Mr V.P. Singh taking a walk with his dog, an unescorted Mr I.K. Gujral during a morning walk in front of his house in Maharani Bagh and Ms Usha Narayanan shopping at a saree shop. Yet another fascinating pictures is of Indira Gandhi standing on her toes for 45 minutes at an AICC convention in Calcutta to reach the dais. Jain’s career in photography spanning 18 years began with his irresistible passion for the hobby. Due to financial constraints, he had to discontinue his studies after class X. A student of Jain school, Rohtak, Jain collected money to buy an Isoly II camera and learnt the basics from a Rohtak-based photographer, late L.R. Grover. |
SC rejects plea on gurdwara land NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeals of Mehar Singh and others, rejecting their claim to the land belonging to Langar Ji Saheb and holding that since langar was part of the Gurdwara Sahib Padshahi Chhevin (61xth), therefore the land belonged to the gurdwara. The court dismissed the appeals with costs quantified at Rs 10,000 which would go to the SGPC. Mr Justice M. Jagannadha Rao delivering the judgement of the Bench, which included Mr Justice A.P. Mishra, observed that the judgement and the order of the Sikh Gurdwara Tribunal, set up under the Sikh Gurdwara Act, 1925, that the agricultural land which stood in the name of Bhai Arjun Singh and other shareholders in the revenue records at the time of the notification, belonged to them. This part of the order was final, since the gurdwara did not prefer an appeal. The court mainly dealt with the contention of the appellants, who challenged the judgement, and order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court which had confirmed the award of the tribunal, that the property which was shown in the "jamabandi" in the name of Langar Ji must also be declared as not belonging to the gurdwara. These appeals had arisen out of a petition filed under Section 5 (1) of the Act pursuant to a notification of 20.7.1959 of the Punjab Government which declared the said gurdwara as a Sikh gurdwara and a subsequent notification in 1962 listing the rights, titles and interests in agricultural land and properties as belonging to the legal heirs of Bhai Rup Chand, who had settled in the new village, Rupa, and organised langar and run a dharamshala as per the directions of the sixth Guru. The tribunal had partly allowed the claim of Bhai Arjan Singh, who had filed the petition but during its pendency the appellants were brought on record and dismissed the claim of langar and gurdwara land. The apex court in its judgement appreciated the entire evidence on record and agreed with the tribunal. The high court had concluded that the petition/appellant’s ancestors had no connection with the gurdwara. |
Cong questions PM’s remark on Pak NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Congress today said it hoped that the Prime Minister’s statement that Pakistan should be declared a terrorist state was not "rhetoric and an attempt to divert the attention of the nation". The party said whenever the Prime Minister makes a statement he does not express an opinion but has to be sure that it is backed by some concrete preparation, the Congress spokesman, Mr Ajit Jogi, said. "We would like to know what preparations are being made by the government in this regard" the party said, adding that since the USA would be a key player it also wanted to know the response of the USA. Taking a dig at the claim of the government on the Prime Minister’s trip to Lahore, Mr Jogi said: "Not long back our honourable Prime Minister was talking of the Lahore spirit. We are now happy to note he realises that the real intention of Pakistan is out" he said. The Congress also reminded that the party had always maintained that Pakistan had been aiding and abetting terrorism and there was enough proof in this regard. |
India to design ABMs on US lines PUNE, Dec 4 (UNI) —India is trying to design a state-of-the-art anti-ballistic missile (ABM) system on the lines of the-US star war system, according to Dr A.P.J Abdul Kalam, the architect of the Indian missile programme. While the country’s first light combat aircraft (LCA) would be tested before this month-end, efforts were on to operationalise within two or three years all missile systems, besides Agni and Prithvi, which had already been operationalised, Dr Kalam said. "The country can pursue inter-continental ballistic missile programme if adequate funds are made available for the project," he told the plenary session of the 87th Indian Space Congress here last evening. Dr Kalam, who recently assumed charge as the Chief Scientific Adviser to the government, was sharing the platform with the ISRO Chairman, Mr K Kasturirangan, and the Atomic Energy Commission Chairman, Mr R. Chidambaram, unfolding "the Indian strategies of science and technology in the 21st century." Dr Kalam said the unmanned supersonic aircraft being developed by ISRO would go a long way in defence application and help save the lives of pilots. Dr Kalam said the future war scenario in the world would be characterised by economic and cyber warfare involving global dynamics such as the WTO patent regime and technology regime. The Prime Minister’s vision of India becoming a developed nation within two decades would be possible only if the country became technologically advanced. India, Dr Kalam said, was forced to explode nuclear devices second time to tell the neighbours, including China and Pakistan, that it did not lag behind in technology. Mr Chidambaram said the nuclear option was the only way for meeting the indigenous power needs. All 10 nuclear power plants now operational in the country were working with 78 per cent average capacity and had not been affected by the Y2K bug. Mr Kasturirangan talked of the futuristic space programme which, he said, included development of mass transport systems carrying several tonnes of payloads, space tourism, space exploration, and national information infrastructure combining the gamut of satellite systems. |
Respect human rights: NHRC NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has drawn the attention of the Chief Justices and the Chief Ministers of all States towards the need to improve human rights’ record. In a recent communication to the Chief Justices and Chief Ministers, the Chairperson of the Commission, Mr Justice J S Verma, has said the acknowledged index of civilisation in the international community is the track record of respect for human rights in the country. Mr Justice Verma has also written to chairpersons of all 11 state commissions to rededicate themselves for developing a human rights culture in every sphere of life and instrument of governance. The Chairperson has asked the Chief Justices to direct District and Sessions Judges to resolve the problem of overcrowding in prisons and pendency of cases. He has said since prisoners are in judicial custody, it is incumbent upon the Sessions Judges to monitor their living conditions and ensure that humane conditions prevail within the prison. In his letter to the Chief Ministers, Mr Justice Verma has observed that despite the existence of human rights cells at various police headquarters, there has not been any significant decline in genuine complaints of human rights violations by the police. "Members of the commission and its officers have visited prisons in various parts of the country and have been appalled by the spectacle of overcrowding, insanitary conditions and mismanagement of the prison administration", NHRC Chairman said in separate letters to the chief justices. |
RJD opposes bifurcation of Bihar RANCHI, Jan 4 (UNI) — The Rashtriya Janata Dal has opposed the creation of Vananchal comprising 18 districts of south Bihar even as the BJP preferred silence on the issue during separate functions organised yesterday in Hazaribagh and Maithan. The RJD during its Jharkhand regional workers conference in Hazaribagh made it clear that it would not allow only Bihar to be bifurcated for creation of the proposed state. The party, supporting the demand of a greater Jharkhand state comprising 26 districts of Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh, asked for an administrative arrangement for the proposed state with tribal people in majority. However, senior BJP leaders including Home Minister L.K. Advani and Minister of State for Mines and Geology Rita Varma, while attending a function at Maithan in neighbouring Dhanbad district, chose to remain silent on the issue. They spoke on the problems the country and the people’s role in nation’s rebuilding instead. The ruling RJD in a way launched its electioneering yesterday in south Bihar where it has planned to contest all the 81 seats if it goes alone in the state poll scheduled early this year. |
Balayogi to attend Speakers’ meeting NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Lok Sabha Speaker, Mr G.M.C. Balayogi and the Deputy Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, Dr Najma Heptulla, would attend the 15th Conference of Commonwealth Speakers and Presiding Officers to held in Canberra, Australia, from tomorrow. Speakers and Presiding Officers of 54 Parliaments of all independent sovereign states of the Commonwealth nations were attending the six-day conference, a press note said. Mr Balayogi would present two papers "Anti-defection laws — role of Presiding Officers" and "Need of ethics committees in the legislatures" in the conference. |
Railways adopts safety measures NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Railways has implemented a number of recommendations made by the Commission for Railway Safety (CRS) on technical and system improvement. The Chief Commissioner, Railway Safety, Dr M. Mani, told newspersons here today that the improvements included change in rail quality and ultrasonic testing of tracks to prevent rail fractures. Other key changes pertained to better communication between the driving crew and the station master. He said walkie-talkie sets had been provided to guards and drivers of passenger trains. Emergency exit doors had been introduced in air conditioned coaches. He said the commission also made suggestions for improving the operations of the trains. Dr V.S. Dutta, Commissioner, Railway Safety, Northern Circle, said the measures comprised improved design of tail lamps for better visibility, movement of trains under restricted speed in fog, provision of complete track circuiting in station yards. |
Maneka promises quota for disabled NEW DELHI, Jan 4 — The Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Mrs Maneka Gandhi, has promised efforts to ensure that persons with disabilities get 3 per cent reservation in jobs. Expressing concern over the non-implementation of the provision for 3 per cent reservation for the disabled even in the public sector, Mrs Gandhi said the government would take steps to ensure adherence to the provision. The Minister made the announcement while addressing the 191st birth anniversary celebrations of Louis Braille, organised by the All-India Confederation of Blind here today. She said that her ministry had enhanced aid and cooperation to voluntary organisations. She said institutes and organisations working in the disability sector had been directed to increase their interaction with the masses. Mrs Gandhi also gave away prizes to the winners of the All-India Braille Reading Competition. |
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