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| Monday,
April 23, 2001, Chandigarh, India
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Edict brings Harpreet case into focus Amritsar, April 22 Hailing the directive issued by the Jathedar Akal Takht, Mr Sukhjinder Singh, called it a right step coming at an appropriate time and in the right direction to check female foeticide. It also states that those indulging in the practice should be dealt with according to the Sikh ‘rehat maryada’. He sought to the draw the attention to the case of Bibi Jagir Kaur’s alleged hand in the death of her daughter Harpreet Kaur who was forced to undergo abortion before her death. However, the message reads: “To convey to Sikh masses that you are serious in your reported concern for female foeticide the need of the hour is to summon Bibi Jagir Kaur at Akal Takht and award her suitable punishment for her involvement in the murder of her daughter’ it further reads “an edict must be issued to the entire Sikh Panth to sever links with her according to Sikh “rehat maryada”. The message cautions that failure to take cognisance of the violation of Sikh ethos will prove futile to tackle growing female foeticides and “an impression will gain weightage that the Jathedar, Akal Takht, is hesitant to take action against politically powerful” it added. However, sources in the SGPC argue that the message by Sukhjinder Singh will have little relevance as the case of Bibi Jagir Kaur is sub judice and under investigation. Hence, Akal Takht will prefer to wait for the outcome of the court case before taking a stand. |
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Assembly elections Ludhiana, April 22 The schedule of the Chief Minister was hectic. He stated his day at 7 a.m. Besides Mr Gosain, he was accompanied by senior BJP leader and RS member Lala Lajpat Rai and other local BJP and Akali Dal leaders and also officers of the local administration, including Deputy Commissioner S.K. Sandhu and Senior Superintendent of Police Kuldeep Singh. The Chief Minister visited the constituency for the first time. It was given a facelift. The entire route was adorned with BJP and Akali Dal flags. Every BJP flag was supplemented with an Akali flag. All roads, the Chief Minister was scheduled to pass through had been laid afresh. “Whether the Chief Minister fulfils his commitments or not, half the works have already been done”, remarked a jubilant shopkeeper of an interior area, pointing towards some developmental works carried on the eve of the CM’s visit. For the people of the area it was a pleasant surprise that the Chief Minister with many leaders, ministers and senior officers was at their doorstep bearing about their problems and offering instant solutions. “It hardly matters to us, whether the CM was on a political mission or just for solving our problems. What is important is that he has announced a grant for the construction of a concrete lane in our area”, a group of people told reporters who were covering the “sangat darshan”. In the interior of the city, near the Gyan Sthal Mandir, a group of Congress workers broke some pitchers to lodge protest with the Chief Minister, alleging that in the four years he had never cared to visit the area and now he was doing it with an eye on the elections. They also tried to shout slogans against the government, but were dispersed by the police before the situation could take some untoward turn. The Chief Minister visited most of the wards falling in the Assembly segment. Wherever he could not go, people were given special time at other places. However, the Congress Councillors boycotted the “sangat darshan” alleging that they did not have prior information. “We were neither intimated nor invited by anyone”, protested a Congress councillor. On the other hand BJP and Akali leaders were vying with each other to be seen close (physically) to the Chief Minister. And the most interesting thing to note was Mr Amarjeet struggling for one-upmanship in Ludhiana to remain by the side of the Chief Minister. |
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Court notice to Mukhmailpur Patiala, April 22 The court in its order has observed that there was prima facie evidence against Mr Ajaib Singh Mukhmailpur and Mrs Parkash Kaur, owner of a local daily which carried the alleged defamatory news, Mr M.S. Gurcharan Singh, Editor, and Mr Tejinder
Dhanoa, reporter of the newspaper. All four accused have been summoned to face trial under Sections 500, 501 and 502 of the Indian Penal Code. Mr Mukhmailpur is the ruling party MLA from the Ghanaur Assembly segment of the Patiala parliamentary constituency. The complainant, Ms Jal Kaur, had alleged that the minister had purchased land, in the name of his brother, Faujinder Singh, and three others from her husband’s first wife Bachan Kaur. |
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Govt agencies to procure wheat on Sundays: Mittal Moga, April 22 Mr Mittal made this announcement while addressing the meetings of officials of procurement agencies at Moga, Faridkot and Muktsar districts yesterday. He reviewed the procurement arrangements and progress of these districts. Deputy Director Food and Supplies Karnesh Sharma was also present at the meetings. Mr Mittal also directed the procurement agencies for an early procurement and lifting of the produce so that farmers did not face difficulties in unloading the wheat in mandis. Later, Education Minister Tota Singh along with Mr Mittal also visited the mandis. Mr Mittal also visited mandis at Baghapurana, Kotkapura and Muktsar late last evening.
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SC hands over abduction case to
CBI Amritsar, April 22 The court in its order dated April 16 has stated that “despite various orders passed by the High Court as well as the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Amritsar, directing proper investigation into the case, investigating officers are not in a position to get any clue with regard to the forcible abduction of the petitioner’s minor son for more than four years”. “The CBI is directed to investigate into the FIR lodged by the petitioner. A copy of this order be handed over to the learned Solicitor-General so that prompt action can be taken by the CBI.” The ordeal for Dr Hardeep Singh and his wife continues pray for the return of their son. Dr Hardeep Singh Senior Resident at G.N. Hospital, says: “The Guru has kept my son alive and I have faith in the CBI”, as his wife tries to comfort him. Giandeep was abducted while he was on a rickshaw by four persons in a white Maruti van. He was coming back from school with other tiny-tots. The rickshaw-puller is the only major eyewitness to the incident. An FIR was registered on the day of the incident a writ petition was filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court three months later on December 16, 1996 praying that the investigation be handed over to an independent agency. The SP Amritsar, was asked to personally look into the case. A second writ petition in the High Court directed the SSP, Amritsar, on January 27, 1998, to hasten the investigation and report the findings in three months. A report was submitted on May 27 the same year, declaring that the police had tried its best but there seemed no clue to the abduction. The CJM, Amritsar, referred the matter back to the SSP. The police finally submitted a report to the CJM, declaring Giandeep as “untraceable” on March 6, 2000. Finally, the apex court, in its order gave six weeks to the police to comply with the CJM’s directions and finally decided to hand over the case to the CBI. SDO held for
cheating Gurdaspur, April 22 Mr Varinder Kumar, SSP, said yesterday that Mr Piara Singh, on April 11, complained to the police that he had a locker with the said branch since May 23, 1991, and had placed the said quantity of gold in it. The SSP said on April 10 this year, when Mr Piara Singh went to operate the locker, he could not open the locker. On April 12, he requested the Branch Manager to help him operate the locker. The locker was opened and Mr Piara Singh found his gold missing. The SSP said SHO city here was deputed to hold an inquiry into the matter. During inquiry, it was found that the suspect had also applied for a locker in the said bank on November 15, 1990. The suspect was allotted locker no. 177/4 and key no. 167 — the same was later allotted to Mr Piara Singh. The suspect refused to take the said locker as it was located in front of the gate of the strong room. The dealing clerk did not hand over the keys to the suspect, but forgot to cancel the locker in bank records. The bank authorities kept on deducting the annual rent of the locker from the savings account of the suspect. He noted the locker number and key number from the ledger of the bank. The suspect on December 30 last year, visited the bank and told the Manager that he had lost the key of his locker. He told the Manager that he would visit the bank on January 6. As scheduled, he visited the bank and transferred to the bank Rs 700 balance rent of the locker and Rs 1,110 as charges of opening the locker from his savings account. The locker was broken and replaced with a new lock, the keys of which were handed over to the suspect. This locker had been allotted to Mr Piara Singh, who had placed his gold in it. Meanwhile, the suspect took away the gold. The police registered a case under Sections 420/380 and 120-B of the IPC on April 20 and arrested Lakhbir Singh, who confessed having stolen the said gold. The gold has also been recovered.
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Problems galore for train
commuters Bathinda, April 22 It came as a shock to Mr T.P. Singh. According to the ticket-checker, the ticket (No. 55764073) which the passenger had shown to him was issued to Mr Shukla. Mr T.P. Singh told the official that he had bought the ticket from the reservation window at the Bathinda railway station the same day at around 10 a.m. But the ticket checker showed him the records which indicated that the ticket had been issued in the name of Mr Shukla. Mr T.P. Singh had to pay a fine. He completed his
journey and after returning to the city, he lodged a complaint in this regard with the Station Superintendent, Bathinda railway station. In his complaint, he said the ticket which was given to him might have been issued to some other person earlier. The person might have got it cancelled and it was reissued to him. He said that although the Railway authorities had reissued the ticket, they
had failed to carry out the changes in the records. In a similar incident in which a passenger had to suffer due to the alleged carelessness of the Railway authorities, Mr Gurinderjeet Singh (name changed) was asked to pay a fine as his ticket was bogus while he was travelling from Rampura to Nabha. He had also purchased the ticket from the booking window. When on his request the Railway authorities enquired about the incident, they found that the ticket was genuine and promised to return the amount charged as fine. However, so far nothing has happened. Commuters of the city and the surrounding areas are facing inconvenience at the hands of Railway employees. Jyoti Singla, a student of Punjabi University, Patiala, and a resident of the city, said the authorities frequently changed the counters for issuing tickets for various destinations. She said that last week she had missed the train to Patiala as she was not able to purchase the ticket because the counter had been changed. Sometimes, the officials allegedly interchange counters two or three times a day, creating confusion among passengers. Often, one window is abruptly closed and the passengers are asked to buy the tickets from other counters. The booking agency situated in the middle of the city is allegedly not functioning satisfactorily. The local Railway authorities, when contacted, said no complaint had been received in this regard. If any such complaint was received, action would be taken immediately, said a senior official. |
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Dalits returning to Cong:
ex-minister Phillaur, April 22 Addressing the meeting here today, the former minister alleged that nothing had been done by the Akali-BJP combine for Dalits and the BSP leadership too had exploited Dalit issues. He said Akalis and the BJP always tried to ignore problems of Dalits and the BSP tried to communalise their issues. Mr Santokh Singh said Dalits and backward classes had started their return journey to the Congress which always worked to help them get equal status. He said even Dalit ministers did nothing for Dalits. He claimed that majority of Dalits were waiting to come into the fold of the Congress which was the only secular party in the country. |
No action taken against
quacks Chauke (Bathinda), April 22 More than 10 unregistered medical practitioners who have been running clinics in this village having a population of about 7,000 have caused huge damage to the health of the residents by using used syringes to inject medicines. The authorities concerned which swung into action only after news items regarding the spreading of hepatitis-B appeared in the media could not apprehend any unregistered medical practitioners in the past week. Official sources said so far 23 patients suffering from hepatitis-B had been detected and two deaths due to the same disease had taken place in the past few months in this village. The rapid response team (RBT) which had been deployed in this village by the district health authorities to carry out an intensive survey of the village to find out more patients of hepatitis-B and to take subsequent preventive steps had been finding one or two cases daily. Mr Bawa Ram Gupta, Civil Surgeon, Bathinda, when contacted said a list of unregistered medical practitioners had been supplied to the police authorities for registering criminal cases against them as per the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. He added the district health authorities did not have powers to prosecute the unregistered medical practitioners. He added that the district health authorities had been holding health education camps to motivate the people not to get themselves treated from so-called doctors. However, the villagers and so-called doctors use injections to get “quick” results. Unregistered medical practitioners had been using the used disposable syringes, sources said. Official sources said all unregistered medical practitioners, who had been playing with the lives of innocent villagers, had fled from here after the premises of three of them were raided by the drug inspector of April 18. The drug inspector who raided the premises of unregistered medical practitioners seized drugs also for testing. Dr Gupta said the close contacts of those who had been found suffering from hepatitis-B would also be tested and would be treated accordingly. He added that villages would be surveyed through various teams. Apart from it, the water sources of the village were being chlorinated and sanitation of residential areas was also being carried out by the authorities concerned. |
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Illegal construction poses
threat Bathinda, April 22 There are three main gates to enter Madhokpura locality. Last year a resident had started constructing a second floor on the main entrance gate of Madhokpura in front of railway station. But due to strong protest of residents the construction of the building was stopped by the order of Principal Secretary, Local Bodies, Punjab. But the authorities concerned did not pay any attention to the threat being posed by the construction. Moreover, the construction of a second floor over the gate has increased the danger of a building as the pillars of the gate are not strong enough to bear the weight of second floor. A few days back, window panes of an army vehicle broke due to hanging wooden poles. The bricks, which were placed temporarily to fix the windows of the building had been falling time and again. It has led to damage to many vehicles. A cow had died a few days ago when a wooden pole fell on its head. Residents of Madhokpura alleged that they had met the municipal authorities regarding this and had send many applications for removal of the shuttering material but in vain. They also demanded that the gate should reinstall. |
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Electric poles of
discord Bathinda, April 22 According to information the power supply line was set up on the left side of the street about five years ago. But recently the authorities, recently put up poles on the other side of the street. The new supply line has started working but the poles which were part of the old line have not been removed. At present there are poles on both sides of the 20 feet wide street creating problems for the smooth flow of traffic. Ironically telephone lines run along the power lines. The residents alleged that the shifting of the supply line had caused a loss of lakhs of rupees to the department although there was no need to do the same. Mr Joginder Pal (name changed) a resident of the colony, said there was no need to eract new poles when the old ones were capable of carrying the electricity wires. He alleged that it was done to harass some of the residents of the locality. The residents have written a complaint to the Chairman, PSEB, to look into the matter and hold an inquiry into the incident. Despite repeated efforts no official of the PSEB could be contacted to get PSEB’s version. |
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Government offices sans
staff Ropar, April 22 During the tercentenary celebrations, a building for the Anandpur Sahib Civil Hospital was constructed. It was aimed at increasing the existing 30-bed facility in the hospital to 100-bed. Though the government had provided most of the infrastructure for the upgradation of the hospital, it has not been able to post staff which has rendered the facilities meaningless. Sources said the Finance Department had not sanctioned the posts for the 100-bed hospital. The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said despite attempts by the government to station certain officers at the hospital, none stayed here. A pathologist was posted at the hospital last year. She, however, got herself transferred on deputation to SAS Nagar within a week. When the higher authorities cancelled her deputation, she proceeded on leave and returned on duty only after she had got herself transferred to Ludhiana, the sources said. Due to shortage of staff, many facilities at the hospital, such as the blood bank and laboratory, are not functioning. Despite these facilities the authorities have to depend on the Ropar hospital for the same. The public relation office here was also upgraded and shifted to a new premises during the celebrations. However, against the sanctioned eight posts at the office, there is just one PRO there at present. All his staff, including the driver, clerks and other assistants, have got themselves transferred. There is also acute shortage of staff in the tehsil complex and other subdivisional offices. In the panchayati Raj division work in rural areas has been hit due to the absence of BDO. At present junior officers of the technical wing are looking after the administration in the said office at the cost of their own work. |
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Villagers seek shifting of liquor vend Bathinda, April 22 The liquor vend is situated at a place, which is near a government high school and the bus stop in the village. The students, including girls of three villages, Bambina and Bajak, come to school. The villagers had requested the contractor, who held the possession of the vend, to run his business from some other place but he did not agree. He even threatened the villagers with dire consequences if they tried to go to the authorities in this connection. The villagers then submitted an application to the Deputy Commissioner on April 12, 2000. They also got the application recommended by the member of Parliament, Mr Bhan Singh Bhaura, who asked the Deputy Commissioner to look into the matter and take necessary action. But in vain. The villagers on May 16, 2000 wrote application to the Chief Minister, Punjab. The Chief Minister’s office asked the Deputy Commissioner, Bathinda, to take action. The recommendation was given by Mr Hardeep Singh, Officer on Special Duty (OSD). The Deputy Commissioner in turn recommended the application for necessary action to the officials of the Excise Department. Still no action was taken for many months. Award for
women Patiala, April 22 Mr Gobind Singh
Kanjla, Social Welfare, Women and Child Development Minister, Punjab, said women should be in the forefront for the development of
society. A sangat darshan, which was presided by Mr Kanjla, was also
organised to address the grievances of the people. |
Govt to fill 51
posts of ADA Ludhiana, April 22 Mr Garg was here to attend a meeting of all delegates of the all-India Aggarwal Sammelan. He said the recruitment for the 51 Assistant District Attorney posts would be completed within two months. Eight sub-judges would also be appointed, he said. Mr Garg said the government would avail services of the retired District and Sessions Judges to speed up disposal of pending cases. The minister also announced a grant of Rs 50,000 to Aggarwal Sammelan from his discretionary fund for welfare activities. The Aggarwal Sammelan has elected Mr Garg as the eighth member of the eleven-member advisory board of the organisation. About 400 delegates of the organisation from all over India came to attend the meeting. Among others present on the occasion were Ms Ponam Goyal, MLA from Rajasthan, Mr Nand Kishore Garg, member of the BJP Legislative Party (Delhi), Mr Pardeep Mittal, president of the All-India Aggarwal Sammelan.
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Badal’s solution
to urban grievances Ludhiana, April 22 Giving details at a press conference here today the Chief Minister said the purpose of these committees was to provide “single-window” solutions to the problems of people, particularly those belonging to the urban areas. On the first of every month, all senior officers of the district, including the Deputy Commissioner, the police chief, local MLAs and MPs and other officers of the administration would sit in the Bachat Bhavan of each of these places and listen to the problems of the people and also order instant solutions. Mr Badal was here to attend a special sangat darshan launched for urban Assembly segments. |
Minister’s son creates
ruckus Amritsar, April 22 It is learnt that the minister’s son was in a drunken state when he entered the hostel with his friends and started abusing inmates. He resorted to “ragging” and created nuisance. He is reportedly an MBBS student in the institute. |
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Tension over land dispute, three arrested Moga, April 22 A large number of people gathered at the dera and the police was immediately informed about the incident. All senior officers, including the district police chief, Dr Shard Satya Chohan, SP, Shiv Kumar and others, rushed to the spot apprehending that the crime might have been committed by anti-social elements to flare up communal tension. It is alleged that a copy of Quran was burnt by some Muslims residing inside the dera, who are said to be involved in a property dispute over the dera land. According to the FIR lodged by the Mutwali of the dera, Mr Sadiq Shah, five persons namely Umardin of Takhanvadh, Nachhattar of Killi Chahlan, Mukhtiar of Takhanvadh Nila, and Pappi of Miniawala were responsible for committing the alleged crime. The police has registered a case under Sections 295/452/427/323/148/ 149 of the IPC against the accused. Meanwhile, the police claims to have arrested Umardin, Mukhtiar and Pappi. Mr Chohan said he along with the SP visited the site and found the holy book burnt. The preliminary investigation by the police revealed that there was a dispute over the possession of land attached to the dera. The case was said to be pending in the court. The incident did not have any communal background as the accused Umardin was himself a Muslim and the motive behind the crime was also not communal as it related to the possession of some portion of the dera complex, Mr Chohan added. However, people living in the area said the present head of the
dera, the complainant himself, had committed the crime by involving Umardin and others in a false case as he wanted to take possession of the entire property attached to the
dera.
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Petrol dealers seek payment of bills Fazilka, April 22 It has been stated in the memorandum that the costs of the petroleum products has risen steeply after 1996, whereas their commission remains the same. Earlier, the petroleum dealers brought the matter to notice of senior police officers, but to no avail. Now even as the Chief Minister has declared that there is no financial crisis in the state the SSP, Ferozepore, in his office letter dated March 21 addressed to the Petroleum Dealers Association has stated that the payments are not being made due to shortage of funds and shall be released on the availability of the funds. The dealers have alleged that now the police authorities force them to fill their vehicles with fuel. |
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Generator-making units bane of
residents Bathinda, April 22 A majority of these units are in the business of manufacturing power generator sets, assembling of coolers and batteries. The district boasts of two thermal plants and the managements of both plants claims to have won national productivity award last year, but the number of power cuts imposed on the city ensure that the sale of generator sets goes on increasing. And to cash in on the need of the residents many generator manufacturing and assembling units have come up in various parts of the city, including residential areas. One such generator assembling unit is operational in Namdev Nagar and the residents have been running from pillar to post to get the unit shifted to the industrial area. Mr Rajesh Kumar (name changed) of Namdev Nagar, and many other residents of the area had moved an application with the Punjab Pollution Control Board to take necessary action against the person running the unit without valid pollution control devices. The board had asked the owner of the unit, Mr Mohinder Singh, to close down the unit immediately and apply for a permission under the Air Pollution Control Act (1981), on January 18, but the unit has been running without a permission till date, Mr Rajesh alleged. Residents of the area further pointed out that the generator sets assembled in the unit were kept running for hours together to check their efficiency, which caused a lot of sound pollution and the smoke emitted by the generator sets led to various respiratory problems. Students, who were to appear in exams were also facing problem, they alleged. The District Magistrate had imposed a ban on the use of unauthorised loudspeakers, orchestra etc, under Section 144 IPC, but to no effect. The residents added that now they had moved an application with the district police authorities to take necessary action. Mr Mohinder Singh, when contacted said all assembling was done at the unit and the testing was done at another building situated faraway from the residential area. Even painting of the generator sets was not done at the unit, he claimed. |
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