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Thursday,
April 25, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Panel to probe if Godhra was pre-planned
Gujarat: Mann writes to Jaswant Singh VHP knocks at NCM doors for Jammu Hindus |
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MEA pulled up on fund utilisation
India renews support to Lanka peace efforts Cong Secys for Punjab, Haryana Envoy explains status
of Kuwaiti gurdwara NORTH INDIA IN PARLIAMENT Tehelka.com, Zee TV sued for damages Customs & Central Excise site hacked
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Panel to probe if Godhra was pre-planned New Delhi, April 24 The commission, appointed by the Gujarat Government, comprises a retired Judge of the state high court, Justice K.G. Shah. It will submit its report to the state government by June this year, the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Mr I.D. Swami said in a written reply. “It will ascertain as to whether the incident of Godhra was pre-planned and whether information was available with the agencies which could have been used to prevent the incident,” he said while listing the terms of reference of this commission. Among the other terms of reference is to inquire the adequacy of administrative measures taken to prevent and deal with the disturbances in Godhra and subsequent disturbances in Gujarat. Also, the commission has been asked to recommend “suitable” measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents in future. Replying to another question, Mr Swami said the Centre had not received any complaint or any list from the Rajasthan Government or “any other reference from any other agency” regarding madarsas receiving money through hawala transactions. “The Centre has not received any such complaint against the citizenship of teachers teaching at Madarsas,” he said. Meanwhile, a Muslim body today alleged that the Godhra carnage was pre-planned by the Sangh Parivar and criticised the Ministry of External Affairs for asking all foreign countries not to comment on Gujarat violence. The Qaumi Foundation of India (QFI) said in a note here that by terming the developments in Gujarat as “internal affairs” of the country, the government is trying to “kill a debate on the issue”. Demanding the dismissal of the Narendra Modi government in Gujarat, it alleged that the Godhra carnage was a pre-planned act of the Sangh Parivar and demanded a thorough inquiry into the incident. |
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Gujarat: Mann writes to Jaswant Singh New Delhi, April 24 In a letter to External
Affairs Minister, Jaswant Singh, the senior Akali leader has taken serious note of the MEA’s message to the world that it does not appreciate interference in its internal affairs. “Genocide is an offence in the UN Charter and the Rome Statute calls for setting up of an international criminal court to try the crime of genocide. Does India want to put a lid on all comments on this abominable crime,” the letter reads. Mr Mann has stated that nothing can be solved by chiding foreign nations for their truthful and thoughtful exposure of the painful acts of the state’s flagrant violation of the rule of law and the genocide of the biggest minority in India. “Foreign nations are only filling a vacuum created by the inaction of the Government of India”, he said. A member of the parliamentary Consultative Committee of the MEA, Mr Mann has drawn attention to India’s interference in the internal affairs of other countries. “Did India keep quiet on the subject of apartheid in South Africa, racial discrimination in the USA and genocide in Burundi, Rwanda, Cambodia and Bosnia? Has India not constantly raised the issue of military dictatorships in Pakistan and Myanmar? Has India not sought the release of Nobel Prize winner Aang Sang Sui Ki in Myanmar,” Mr Mann has asked. He has also cited precedents where Indian governments have lapped up praised by countries and organisations. “Recently, when the US government passed favourable comments on the passage of the draconian and inhuman Prevention of Terrorism Bill in the joint session of the two houses of Parliament, your government coyly accepted the praise. Was this not interference in the internal affairs of India,” Mr Mann asks. |
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VHP knocks at NCM doors for Jammu Hindus New Delhi, April 24 VHP’s international senior vice-president Acharya Giriraj Kishore and Bajrang Dal convener Surendra Jain were given a 95-minute hearing by the NCM. The meeting was held at the request of the VHP and the Bajrang Dal, NCM Vice-Chairman Tarlochan Singh told The Tribune. Interestingly, the contention of Acharya Kishore and Mr Jain was that the Jammu and Kashmir Government (which incidentally is headed by NDA ally National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah) was that after the Kashmir valley the state government was now planning to oust Hindus from Jammu. They argued that the state government wanted Jammu to be a non-Hindu majority. Their charge was that over and above the terrorist acts, the government rules were such which encouraged Hindus quitting the Jammu region. Mr Tarlochan Singh said Acharya Kishore and Mr Jain pointed out that new rules had been framed regarding registration of Hindus and examination of
certificates and identity cards of Hindus which aimed at terrorising them. The saffron brigade leaders also argued that the new legislation enacted by the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly regarding rehabilitation of oustees who went to Pakistan was also an “anti-Hindu measure”. As per this legislation, those who went to Pakistan can come back to Jammu and Kashmir, become citizens there and claim property. This legislation has been stayed by the Supreme Court. The VHP and the Bajrang Dal wanted that the NCM should intervene and treat Hindus as a minority as per the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. The commission, Mr Tarlochan Singh said, told them that as per the 1992 Act the NCM had no jurisdiction over Jammu and Kashmir. “The commission welcomes the assurance of Acharya Kishore and Mr Jain that they are willing to sit with the commission and talk and that they favour that all irritants with the other community should be removed by talks,” Mr Tarlochan Singh said. |
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MEA pulled up on fund utilisation New Delhi, April 24 The Standing Committee on External Affairs in its report on the Demands for Grants presented to the Lok Sabha yesterday also expressed concern over Budget Estimate (BE) of foreign travel expenses under the head “Secretariat” that has risen from Rs 14.25 crore in 1998-99 to Rs 22.50 crore in 2002-03. The BE has also gone up from Rs 59.13 crore to Rs 83.21 crore towards embassies and missions during the same period, showing a 44 per cent increase. “The growing trend of expenditure under these heads belies the Ministry’s claims that austerity measures were enforced in these areas,” the committee, headed by Mr Krishna Bose, said in its report. It asked the MEA to devise a suitable policy under which foreign travels are resorted to only in unavoidable cases. Referring to the American lobbying firm hired by the government to project India’s viewpoint, the committee said while it did not completely disagree that efforts were made by the firm and some positive results achieved, it felt “The government has somehow not been able to garner the desired level of support either financially or politically”. It asked the ministry to look into the reasons and devise a suitable strategy to counter the anti-India propaganda abroad on one side and projection of India’s potential strength on the other side. The committee said the MEA should regularly and closely monitor the performance of the lobbying firm and ensure that lobbying efforts are utilised to the fullest satisfaction in projecting India’s foreign policy objectives in the right perspective. It said an overall examination by the committee of the Demands of Grants revealed that there were instances of large scale variations in expenditure. “What disturbs the committee more is the fact that the MEA has been making inaccurate assumptions under different heads even at the stage of Revised Estimates (RE) without ensuring proper and full utilisation of funds,” the report said. It noted that while additional funds were being obtained at the RE stage, the actual utilisation has always been less than even the BE. As against the BE of Rs 2625.72 crore and RE of Rs 2720.71 crore, the actual expenditure incurred was Rs 2488.83 crore. The report said the under utilisation of funds which was Rs 71.50 crore in 1996-97 has risen to a high level of Rs 231.84 crore in 2000-01. “Undoubtedly, this is an alarming trend clearly indicating a serious flaw in the budgetary process of the ministry which needs to be remedied immediately,” it said.
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India renews support to Lanka peace efforts New Delhi, April 24 The Prime Minister reaffirmed India’s support for a peaceful, negotiated settlement of the ethnic issue in a manner that meets the aspirations of all its citizens. Mr Vajpayee also reiterated New Delhi’s commitment to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Sri Lanka, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Nirupama Rao said. The parleys were held at a restricted meeting attended by External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh and Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra. Ms Kumaratunga was assisted by former Sri Lankan foreign minister Lakshman Kadirgamar. This was followed by a lunch hosted by the Prime Minister for the Sri Lankan President where Mr Singh, Home Minister L. K. Advani Mr Mishra, Foreign Secretary Chokila Iyer and India’s High Commissioner to Sri Lanka G K Gandhi were present. Ms Kumaratung called on President K R Narayanan besides holding talks with Home Minister L K Advani and Leader of the Opposition Sonia
Gandhi. |
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Cong Secys for Punjab, Haryana New Delhi, April 24 Mr Subodh Kant Sahay and Mr Parvez Hashmi would work with AICC treasurer Motilal Vora, who is in charge of UP and Uttaranchal. Mr B.K. Hariprasad and Mr Daljit Singh would assist Ms Ambika Soni in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala and Rajasthan, which are under her charge. They will also assist her in the work of the Congress President’s office. Mr T. Subbirami Reddy would look after the media department as secretary attached to Ms Soni. Mr V. Hanumantha Rao and Mr Satyajit Gaekwad would work with Ms Mohsina Kidwai who is looking after Chandigarh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Assam. Mr Chandan Baghchi and Ms Shelja would assist Mr Kamal Nath who is in charge of Delhi, Orissa, West bengal and Gujarat. Mr Shiv Lal Balmiki and Mr Iqbal Singh would assist Mr Oscar Fernandes in the work of AICC sessions and meetings, CWC and organisational election work. Mr Vyalar Ravi, who is looking after Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, would be assisted by Mr Mirza Irshad Baig and Maj Ved Prakash. Ms Sushila Tiria has been attached to Mr Mukul Wasnik to take care of the frontal orgainsations. Mr Satyajit Gaekwad would also be attached to the Congress President’s office to look after Jammu and Kashmir. Mr Anil Shastri, Mr Satpal Maharaj and Ms Krishna Tirath, all secretaries, have not been attached to any general secretary. Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, who is secretary with independent charge, would be assisted by Mr Imran Kidwai. Mr Aiyar is in charge of Sikkim, north-eastern states except Assam and the party’s training department. Mr Ramesh Cheninthala, who is also a secretary with independent charge, would be assisted by Mr K.K. Sharma. Mr Cheninthala is looking after Goa, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Daman and Diu, Lakshadweep, Dadar, Nagar Haveli and Andaman and Nicobar island. Mr Janardhan Dwivedi, secretary, who holds independent charge of the Congress Seva Dal, would also be attached to the CPO. Ms Ambika Soni and Mr Ahmed Patel, political secretaries to Congress President Sonia Gandhi, would not be assisted by secretaries. The Congress has also set up manifesto implementation committee for the 15 states in which it is in power. The General Secretaries in charge are conveners of these committees which have the state Chief Minister, PCC chiefs and a senior party leader as members. In Punjab, the committee is headed by Ms Mohsina Kidwai and has Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh and Dr Manmohan Singh as members. |
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Envoy explains status
of Kuwaiti gurdwara New Delhi, April 24 The gurdwara is located in a house in a residential colony in Kuwait under lease. The problem arose when residents of the area, disturbed because of cars being parked outside the gurdwara whenever a religious ceremony took place, moved court. The court gave its verdict in January this year, directing the tenancy to be vacated. But an out-of-court settlement soon followed and the owner agreed to renew the lease by another year. The owner also agreed that he would give one month’s notice before asking the tenants to vacate the premises. It appears that efforts to displace or shut down the gurdwara and demonstrations here in protest against such reported attempts have not been taken kindly by the Kuwaiti authorities. It has since been decided that an arrangement would be worked out to shift the gurdwara to another place. The Kuwait Government has not found any objection to this request. Of the 3-lakh-strong community of Indian expatriates in Kuwait, there are about 13,000 Sikhs. The Kuwait Government does not allow any land for building any non-Islamic religious places. |
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NORTH INDIA IN PARLIAMENT New Delhi, April 24 The Haryana State Electricity Board/HVPN incurred losses amounting to Rs 1242.11 crore during the year. The corresponding losses of the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board and the Jammu and Kashmir Electricity Board stood at Rs 83.62 crore and Rs 1094.92 crore, respectively. The government was aware of reports that the Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Hafiz Mohd Saeed, before his release from detention in Pakistan, had sent a message to all terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, exhorting them to step up terrorist attacks in the valley, the Minister of State for Home, Ch Vidyasagar Rao, told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply. The minister said the government remained committed in its resolve to wipe out militancy from Jammu and Kashmir and to usher in peace and normalcy in the state, the minister told the House. In addition to continued diplomatic initiatives at various levels, redeployment of troops at the border and on the LoC and intensive pressure on terrorists in the hinterland, the government, jointly with the state government, had adopted a multi-pronged approach to contain cross-border terrorism perpetrated by pro-Pak terrorist outfits and Pakistan’s ISI in Jammu and Kashmir. This included strengthening border management to check infiltration; pro-active action against terrorists within Jammu and Kashmir, gearing up intelligence machinery, and greater functional integration through an institutional framework of operation groups and intelligence groups of the UHQ at all levels, the House was told. The strategies, tactics and dynamic deployment to counter the terrorists were being constantly reviewed, refined and monitored in the Unified Headquarters in the state and in operation groups at all levels, the minister said in his reply. On March 8, five terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces near Gobian Nullah at Gobian Palkhandi village about 21 km from Katra, the minister said in a reply to another question. Two police constables also sustained injuries in the encounter. The area being hilly, the precipice separating the hill on which the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine was located and Gobian was very steep, making it virtually impossible for the shrine to be accessed from that side, the minister said. The state government had informed that important religious places elsewhere in the state were being guarded by static guards, which had been provided in addition to the area security. Following the Gobian incident, the Director-General of Police, Jammu and Kashmir, had held a special review meeting and immediate steps to strengthen the security arrangements had been initiated accordingly, the minister said. The Mata Vaishno Devi shrine, including the route from Katra, was being guarded by CRPF conjointly with the state police and a number of security rings were in place around the shrine, the minister told the House. |
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Tehelka.com, Zee TV sued for damages
New Delhi, April 24 Mr Justice D. K. Jain, who had earlier issued notices to tehelka.com, its managing editor Tarun Tejpal, Zee TV and its chief Subhash Chandra and others, today fixed the case for completion of pre-argument pleadings before the Joint Registrar of the high court on July 18 and August 14. The court had also issued notices to Tehelka reporters Anirudh Bahal and Mathew Samuel and Zee TV chief executive Sandeep Goyal, seeking their replies to the suit. In the suit filed through counsel Lavkesh Sawhney and Kanchan Singh, Major-General Ahluwalia has sought damages and compensation of Rs 2 crore from all these defendants alleging that baseless charges were levelled against him in the so-called expose by the news portal in the tapes prepared by it which were telecast by Zee TV. “I am not involved in process of cases of import of equipment which is handled by Additional Director-General (Weapons and Equipment) and has never held any post which is involved in selection and import of new equipment,” he said. Even Tehelka reporter Mathew Samuel, who is the “author” of the “story”, during his deposition before the Army Court of Inquiry, had denied having paid him Rs 50,000 and about the demand of Rs 10 lakh and blue-label whisky by Major-General Ahluwalia, the plaint claimed.
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Customs & Central Excise site hacked New Delhi, April 24 The case was registered by the Cyber Crime Investigation Cell of the CBI on the basis of a written complaint received from the Customs and Central Excise Department, a CBI press note said here today. According to the case (no. RC CY1 2002 E 0003) U/s 66 of Information Technology Act, 2000, the site was hacked on April 1, but the hacker group was able to change only the home page of the web site and the hack was detected immediately. The CBI note said during 2002 this hacker group had hacked into more than 120 Indian sites and out of which more than 30 sites had been hacked in April, 2002 itself. The important sites claimed to be hacked by this group are of the VSNL, the CMC, All India Radio, South Central Railways, Shimla Telephones, the Indian Institute of Petroleum, IDBI, Mid Day, Jawahar Lal Nehru University, the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, the University of Roorkee, the AIIMS and many other sites hosted by the NIC, the VSNL and the Ernet, it said. |
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SC lawyer held for graft Shillong, April 24 CBI sources said the lawyer wanted some original documents which had been cited as evidence against her in a cheating case, for which she was facing trial. She was also accused in a cheating case registered by the CBI in 1996.
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Chadha made JNU Vice-Chancellor New Delhi, April 24 A distinguished economist with a long teaching and research experience, Professor Chadha is presently working as Chairman, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices. He has been associated with several organisations including the ICSSR, the Planning Commission and the International Labour Organisation. |
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