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March 9, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Court order reins in Bajrang Dal
PMO has become power centre: Oppn India ‘raised’ N-issue with China |
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Infiltration has declined: George New Delhi, March 8 Defence Minister George Fernandes today claimed that there was a marked decline in attempts at infiltration from across the border in to Jammu and Kashmir after the declaration of the ceasefire and denied reports of any difference of opinion between the Army and the government on its extension.
Govt ‘dithers’ on judicial panel
President leaves for Mauritius today North
India in Parliament IT official’s premises raided Woman Rly driver, priestess honoured Skin-friendly, herbal colours for Holi 5 arrested in robbery case
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Court order reins in Bajrang Dal New Delhi, March 8 Bajrang Dal national convener Surendra Jain told UNI that the Dal had taken the decision in deference to the court order but the organisation would continue to oppose in future the films made with underworld money. He said the film producers getting their finances from the underworld must remember that judiciary would not come to their rescue every time. The Bajrang Dal had earlier warned the cinema owners of “dire consequences” if they went ahead with the scheduled release of the movie tomorrow. The Delhi High Court today asked the Delhi Police Commissioner and the state Home Secretary to take immediate steps to ensure that law and order is maintained during the release of the film tomorrow. The court directive came following a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by distributing company Ginni Arts, which sought adequate police force at cinema halls where the film is to be released. Some religious and fundamentalist groups have threatened to obstruct the screening of the film, said Ginni Arts counsel Rajiv Bansal and Prashant Kumar. Delhi Bajrang Dal chief Satyendra Mohan said dal activists visited all 14 cinema halls where the film was to be released and warned the managers to refrain from screening the film funded by the underworld. “If they go ahead with the release, they will be responsible for any untoward incidents,” He added. He said the police had started picking up Bajrang Dal activists from various places in the Capital which had only added to their anguish.
UNI PMO has become power centre: Oppn New Delhi, March 8 Participating in the resumed debate on the motion of thanks on the President’s Address in the Lok Sabha, former Premier Chandra Shekhar, Opposition leaders Somnath Chatterjee and Mulayam Singh Yadav sought an explanation from Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee on several issues, including alleged stranglehold of business houses over the PMO, which they said had become an “extra-constitutional authority”. In a hard-hitting speech, Chatterjee said the PMO had “subverted” the Cabinet system of governance with Ministers becoming mere executive agents for implementing “dubious decisions”. The power centre was shifting from ministries to the pmo, which has “no constitutional responsibility and working as an extra-constitutional authority”, he said. Yadav and Chatterjee questioned the government’s “silence” over a court order setting aside trial of three Union Ministers, including L.K. Advani in the Babri Masjid demolition case. They sought to know government’s stand on the
VHP’s threat to start temple construction in Ayodhya next year. Attacking the government’s economic policies, Chandra Shekhar said it would cause large-scale unemployment in the country and leave the farming community helpless. Members of important nda partners, like the Trinamool Congress and
TDP, Bikram Sarkar and Mvvs Murthy, sought serious steps towards employment generation, women’s reservation and land reforms.
PTI
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India ‘raised’ N-issue with China New Delhi, March 8 Replying to supplementaries during question hour, the minister said, “Yes, these things were raised specifically and directly during Mr Li Peng’s visit”. Mr Jaswant Singh quoted the Chinese leader as having said that the military assistance programme was routine and whatever assistance was provided to Pakistan by China was well within international norms and covered by international obligations. To a query regarding China’s stand on India’s demand for a permanent seat in the expanded UN Security Council, Mr Jaswant Singh said Beijing felt that the UN Security Council should include developing countries and that regional representation should increase. Mr Li Peng also spoke of Asian representation though he did not specifically name India, Mr Jaswant Singh said. The minister said though India and China differed on the issue of supply of nuclear and missile technology to Pakistan, they shared the view that disputes over boundary and the Line of Actual Control (LAC) came in the way of improving bilateral relations. Mr Jaswant Singh said China shared India’s concerns regarding international and cross-border terrorism and was keen on maintaining good neighbourly relations with New Delhi. Stating that Mr Li Peng’s visit strengthened bilateral ties, he said both countries agreed to enhance mutual understanding, expand common ground in their approach to international and regional security affairs and narrow differences. On the issue of the LAC, he said “a
very significant development” had been achieved in the middle sector of the LAC. “For the first time, we have exchanged maps of interpretation of the LAC by China and India on an agreed scale of maps. We are now attempting to move this entire progress even further forward,” he said. He said China considered India as an important nation and for the first time India entered into a security dialogue with that country. On the issue of trade, Mr Jaswant Singh said the volume of business had shown improvement though given the size of the two countries, it was not enough. On tourism, he said there were many factors contributing to the low level of tourism. Mr Jaswant Singh, however, said there was no discussion on Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Tibet during talks with Mr Li Peng. Infiltration has declined: George New Delhi, March 8 Responding to members, the minister said the Army had foiled two attempts made by militants to enter the valley this morning. Giving details of the morning attempts to enter the valley at two points, the minister said at one place three terrorists were killed while the Army also lost two jawans. At another point, the firing was going on, when he left his office for Parliament, the minister added. Mr Fernandes said terrorists made only 15 attempts since the announcement of ceasefire while around 54 attempts were made during three months before November 27. Mr Fernandes said according to an assessment, the number of terrorists in the state were between 2,000 and 2,500. Another 2,000 militants were waiting at the camps based in Pakistan to enter India. However, the vigilant Army would ensure that no militants enter the country, he asserted. The minister said terrorist attacks on the security forces had been an on-going feature of the proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir and the insurgency situation. “While there has been no significant increase in such attacks on the Army and other security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, there has been perceptible decline in the casualities suffered by the Army and the security forces during the past three months,” Mr Fernandes said. The number of civilians killed during the past three months was 185 while the number of Army personnel killed between December, 2000, and February, 2001, was 43 as against 100 between September-November, 2000, he added. He said during the period of non-initiation of combat operations (ceasefire period) in Kashmir, the security forces had been carrying out operations for ensuring security of their posts/ personnel, lines of communication, civilians and public/private properties. Mr Fernandes said terrorists disrupting law and order continue to be targeted by security forces and since the announcement of ceasfire in November, 191 terrorits had been eliminated by the security forces. He said all decisions taken by the Centre, including extension of the ceasefire, were finalised after consultations with the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister.
UNI |
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Govt ‘dithers’ on judicial panel New Delhi, March 8 Participating in the resumed discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the motion of thanks to the President’s Address, Mr Jethmalani said that every government department should be allowed to go for arbitration with the citizens so as to clear the backlog of cases in various courts. Maintaining that the President’s address should have touched the issue of judicial reforms, he said that after promising to set up a National Judicial Commission, the NDA had put the issue on the backburner. Mr Jethmalani demanded that age of high court judges be raised to 65 and salary differential between the judges of high court and Supreme Court should be brought to the minimum. He said that the NDA manifesto promised the construction of two million houses in a year but the target seemed far from achieved. He accused the government of putting information Bill dealing with the Official Secret Act on the backburner. |
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Netaji’s daughter gets nostalgic New Delhi, March 8 “I was only four weeks old when my father left us. My mother was a very private person but told me a lot about him when she was a young lady. She said different things at different levels. My grandmother also told me. Many men and women at the time (of the freedom struggle) went through a lot of agony and sacrifice. We are (comparatively) very lucky.’’ Anita, who is a professor of economics in Berlin, regrets that “my father has been charged of being a fascist. He was actually an emotional man and disturbed by the way the Jewish population was treated. Once on seeing a Jewish man, a gentleman, sweeping the street, he was moved to tears. Netaji was also a very religious person.’’ Referring to the extremities to which the British subjected Bose, his daughter says, “In a perverse way it was a sign of respect.’’ They considered him “number one”. When asked whether she subscribed to the air crash theory regarding Netaji’s death, Anita, who was interacting with mediapersons this morning, appears a trifle disturbed. “The most consistent story is that of the crash. We are all too concerned about his death. There is no evidence. We are told of a swami here or a swami there. “I’m convinced he is not alive. Those people who think otherwise are being irrational. He would have been a 100-odd years’ old today.’’ |
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President leaves for Mauritius today New Delhi, March 8 The uniqueness of bilateral ties is evident from the fact that Mr Narayanan is going to be the chief guest at the 33rd Independence Day
celebrations at the specific request of the Port Louis government which came into power in the last general election in September, 2000. While Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was the chief guest at the
Independence Day celebrations last year only, the new coalition government headed by Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth again approached New Delhi for having Mr Narayanan as the chief guest. Apart from attending the
Independence Day celebrations, Mr Narayanan has a busy schedule in Mauritius. |
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North
India in Parliament New Delhi, March 8 Minister of State for Textiles V. Dhananjaya Kumar told the Lok Sabha that the Union Government did not propose to conduct an inquiry into the swing mishap during the Surajkund Crafts Mela last month. He said the fair was organised by the Haryana Government and the government would not conduct an inquiry unless a request to that effect was received from the state government. Relying on information received from the Haryana Government, the minister said the state government was issuing instructions to companies organising fairs to ensure the safety of visitors. As per the report of the Haryana Government, four persons died and eleven were injured in the accident. He said Rs 9.50 lakh had been disbursed to the next of kin of the deceased and the injured as
ex-gratia assistance. The minister told the House that the Faridabad police had registered a case under various provisions of the IPC against the owner and contractor of the swing and three others. He said all suspects were arrested within 24 hours of the accident and the matter was being investigated. Defence Minister George Fernandes told the Lok Sabha that no separate funds were earmarked for renewal/development of forts in Jammu and Kashmir in the past three years. He said routine maintenance of the forts was being done. |
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IT official’s premises raided New Delhi, March 8 The premier investigating agency has registered a case of amassing wealth disproportionate to known source of income “through corrupt and illegal means” against I.S. Pawar, Additional Commissioner of Income Tax. The accused, who belongs to the 1976 batch of the Indian Revenue Service and hails from Ambala, had “abused” his official position as public servant during his posting in Mumbai between 1978 and 1986 and again from 1990 till date, a CBI press note claimed here today. Pawar in between had a four-year stint in the capital from 1986 to 1990. “The accused has abused his official position as public servant while working at these places and allegedly accumulated huge
assets in the name of his family members,” the CBI alleged. During the raid at his flat on the 7th floor in Bandra (Mumbai), the accused officer did not open the door for some time and threw down a polythene bag containing an amount of Rs 10.6 lakh (of one thousand notes). However, when the CBI sleuths forced their way into Pawar’s premises they found fixed deposits worth Rs 1.05 crore, information about residential property in Mohali, Chandigarh, Greater Kailash, New Delhi, four flats at Bandra, Mumbai, one flat at Juhu Tara Road, Mumbai, office premises of benami companies in Mittal Chambers, Nariman Point, Mumbai, one flat at Rizvi Heights, Mahi, Mumbai. The CBI officials also found information about three farm houses and agricultural land at Pune, Thane and Raigad districts, shops and commercial premises. |
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Woman Rly driver, priestess honoured New Delhi, March 8 Ten women from different parts of India credited with the distinction of treading on new pathways assembled at Vigyan Bhawan here. They shared their extraordinary experiences with participants from Bhopal, Bhuvaneshwar, Cochin, Meerut, Panipat, Ratlam and Tirupati. The awardees are Captain Archana Apoorva, first woman medical officer posted in the inhospitable
terrain near the Siachen glacier, Amrit Bose, a national and international woman umpire who has captained the Punjab and Delhi State hockey teams, Bageshwari Qamar, the first woman shehnai player, Manadkini Lele, first woman priestess and Captain Soudamini Deshmukh. Others who were honoured at the function were Professor Sudipta Sengupta, one of the first two women scientist to go to Antarctica, Shameem Pathan who earns a livelihood by driving about 700 km everyday, Surekha Shankar Yadav, first woman railway engine driver in Asia and the first woman Grand Master of India, Vijayalakshmi Subbarman and Sita Sinha whose work has inspired women to take up artificial inseminatopon of cattle. Captain Soudamini Deshmukh, Deputy General Manager (Operation), Western region, Mumbai told TNS that she joined the Indian Airlines in 1980. “I was the first Jet
captain of India and Asia, “ said Captain Deshmukh who has 11,650 flying hours to her credit. The Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha, Dr Najma Heptulla, today gave away watches and certificates to the women. |
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Skin-friendly, herbal colours for Holi Lucknow, March 8 They call it a natural drive against harmful synthetic colours, the use of which often leaves Holi revellers red -faced, blood-eyed and breathless. Indeed, it is NBRI’s holy mission to make Holi a joyous festivity in the right sense. The colours are available at the NBRI sale counter. For Rs 10, you can get a packet containing 100 gm of eco-gulal, which is enough to colour 20 to 25 faces with a guarantee that each face will turn out softer, claim NBRI sources. The NBRI director, Dr P. Pushpangadan says that the institute will soon write to the Union Ministry of Environment for subsidy to popularise the eco-friendly colours. He says the idea sprouted in NBRI soon after the Industry Toxicology Research Centre (ITRC) proved that synthetic colours posed a health risk as they use non-permitted agents like Rhodamine B, Methyl, Violet Malachite green Auramine, besides sand, starch and salts which cause eye irritation, skin allergies and respiratory problems. To popularise its concept, the NBRI had exhibited herbal gulal at Swadeshi Vigyan Mela held in Delhi last year. “Alas, Holi has become so much chemical that 99 per cent of colours used are synthetic. Herbal gulal uses vegetable dyes, has good cosmetic effect, can be removed with a soft mop, makes skin feel soft after a wash and is available in sandalwood, Jasmine, lemon, grass jave, rose, fragrance”, said the Director. The people too are happy to find herbal colours in the market which will save them from various skin allergies and eye irritations, a usual complaint on Holi. “Synthetic gulal always leads to various skin allergies and makes us fearful of colours. They add mica powder to colours which is a harmful element, but the new product is really interesting and I hope that it will be better than the synthetic colour,” said a hopeful buyer.
ANI |
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5 arrested in robbery case New Delhi, March 8 Govind, driver of the petrol station owner, his accomplices Kishan, alias Kalia, Manoj, Mohammad Anis and Devinder allegedly robbed Rs 4.50 lakh from Mr Vineet Oberoi, owner of Soami Service Centre at Soami Nagar in the Chitranjan Park area, on Tuesday night, the police said. The crime was allegedly committed in connivance with the driver of Mr Oberoi. The police recovered Rs 4.11 lakh, two pistols, two knives used in the crime from their possession. During interrogation the driver confessed that he along with his accomplices committed the robbery. He was the key conspirator, the police said. |
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Camel’s sacrifice results in clash Noida, March 8 According to the City Magistrate, Mr R.S. Pandey, nearly 40 Muslims today sacrificed the camel in a madarsa in Sector 9 here. When they were taking away the carcass of the camel, a Shiv Sena worker saw them and immediately informed his leaders. Within a few minutes, hundreds of people belonging to the two communities gathered and attacked one another. |
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Tihar inmates’ gesture to quake-hit New Delhi, March 8 The cheque was presented to the Home Minister for the earthquake victims in Gujarat.
Couple found dead in hotel New Delhi, March 8 The couple checked into the hotel, Karan Palace, at Paharganj on March 6 where they had to stay for four days, the police said. The police said the couple allegedly committed suicide by taking some poison. A suicide note was also recovered from the possession of Mr V.K. Aggarwal, which confirmed that the couple had committed suicide.
Sever links with Mecca: RSS chief Dehradun, March 8 “The time has come now when both Muslims and Christians who are living in India should Indianise their religions. They should sever their links with Mecca and the Pope and instead become swadeshi,” Mr Sudarshan said at a function in Hardwar, 50 km from here, last night.
PTI
Jaundice cases in
Hanumangarh dist Hanumangarh, March 8 According to sources, in a supply of 600 cu of water from Bhakra, 200 cu of contaminated water is being mixed due to which jaundice cases have been reported from certain villages. Residents of Dhaban village have requested the Irrigation Department to look into the matter. They alleged that contaminated water was being mixed from Sirhind feeder near Muktsar. At Lohgarh, the situation was the same. |
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