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Monday,
August 26, 2002, Chandigarh, India  
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Violence
in Gujarat sad: Sonia
Hearing on
Gujarat reference today |
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Controversy
with Lyngdoh over, claims Modi CEC gets
legal notice for his ‘remarks’ Pak faces
civil war threat: book Petrol
station issue: SC hearing today Govt
servants to serve in Territorial Army
2-day CBI
conference begins today Residents of ‘sati’
village fear action Lack of
rain dries up cultivators’ hopes CCD to meet on disinvestment Tough steps must to protect earth:
PM Govt to
exempt war widows, freedom fighters Minister
unhurt in brawl UP seeks
Rs 1,000 cr for drought relief
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Violence in Gujarat sad: Sonia Gandhinagar, August 25 “If the leaders take to incitement and walk the path of destruction, what inspiration the new generation will draw from the depressive environment that surrounds them”, Mrs Gandhi said, indirectly referring to the recent violence in the state in which close to 1,000 persons lost their lives. “Dil mein kuch aur mooh mein kuch aur (what is in the heart is different from what is expressed in words). It does not give you anything for emulation. And what does the young generation has to follow a principled life?”, she said at a public meeting at Koba near here where the Jain Muni Acharya Mahapragyaji, who led an Ahimsa yatra from Churu in Rajasthan to Ahmedabad, is staying for ‘Chaturmas’. “Though the world has made significant strides with regard to material progress, it is waging a constant war with itself. Violence has become a bane for the entire humanity and it poses a serious problem for India which has many other problems like corruption, communalism etc that need to be tackled”, the Congress President said. Some people, to further their vested interests, are deliberately creating a wedge between different communities, she said. No religion preaches hatred against people of different faith yet the differences between man and man persist today, Mrs Gandhi said, exuding hope that differences can yet be removed. Stressing on the unity of thought safeguard the interests of the people and the country, Mrs Gandhi said “we have to be one and united” and quoting Gandhiji drove home the point that even the Father of the Nation was for an unbreakable friendship between the people and political groups irrespective of any distinction. “Gandhiji advocated ‘aisi dosti jo todi nahi jaye’”, she said and mentioned Lord Mahaveer, Gautam Buddha and Mahatma Gandhi “as persons who faced lots of hardship and sacrificed a great deal so they can show the people the right path. This is our cultural heritage, a heritage that streches to thousands of years and preaches non-violence, love and peace. We have to defend it.” “It is the selfishness within the people that leads them to think narrowly and creates differences. Everyone lives for himself. But history remembers only those who sacrifice their lives for others; this is the teaching of the Jain dharma, path of Gandhiji,” Mrs Gandhi said. During the fight for independence from British rule, people rose above all pettiness, the Congress President said, adding that “for the nation’s progress we have to adopt such an approach again”. She lauded the Ahimsa yatra of Acharya Mahapragyaji from Rajasthan to Ahmedabad that began on
December 6, 2001, and concluded after six months in Ahmedabad, traversing a distance of about 600 km. The Rajasthan Chief Minister, Mr Ashok Gehlot, Mr Ahmed Patel, political adviser to Mrs Gandhi, Gujarat Pradesh Congress president Shankarsinh Vaghela and senior Congress leader Amarsinh Chaudhary were also present at the public meeting.
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Hearing
on Gujarat reference today New Delhi, August 25 The matter is listed before a Bench comprising Chief Justice Kirpal, Mr Justice
V.N. Khare, Mr Justice K G Balakrishnan, Justice Ashok Bhan and Mr Justice Arijit
Pasayat. The Registry has already issued notices to Attorney-General Soli J. Sorabjee and Solicitor-General Harish Salve. The Law Ministry had specifically mentioned to the Registrar-General that Mr Salve would represent the Union Government in the reference matter. The three questions on which President
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam sought the opinion of the Supreme Court were:- (i) Is Article 174 subject to the decision of the Election Commission under Article 324 as to the schedule of elections to the Assembly? (ii) Can the Election Commission frame a schedule for the elections to an Assembly on the premise that any infraction of the mandate of Article 174 would be remedied by resort to Article 356 by the President? (iii) Is the Election Commission under a duty to carry out the mandate of Article 174 of the Constitution, by drawing upon all requisite resources of the Union and the state to ensure free-and-fair elections? The Supreme Court had on August 20 received the three-point reference seeking its opinion on the legality of the Election Commission’s recommendation. Article 143 envisages that “If at any time, it appears to the President that a question of law or fact has arisen or is likely to arise, which is of such a nature and such public importance that it is expedient to obtain the opinion of the apex court on it, he may refer the question to the court for consideration and the court may after such hearing, as it thinks fit, report to the President its opinion thereon.” The government feels that as the last sitting of the Gujarat Assembly was in April, the next sitting should be held by October 6 as per the mandate of Article 174. The main objection of the Central Government to the Election Commission’s August 16 order, which ruled out an early poll in Gujarat,
centered around the observations made by the commission in Paragraph 11. Paragraph 11 said: “The non-observance of the provisions of Article 174(1) in the aforesaid eventuality would mean that the government of the state cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution within the meaning of Article 356(1) of the Constitution and the President would then step in.” The government is understood to have taken a strong exception to the commission’s interpretation that Article 174 would yield to Article 324. |
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Controversy with Lyngdoh over, claims Modi Ahmedabad, August 25 “Following Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee’s guidelines on the issue, the controversy with the Chief Election Commissioner has come to an end”, Mr Modi said in a statement here. However, Mr Modi said his stand on the Assembly elections was very clear — that five crore people of Gujarat should be given the opportunity to elect a popular government as early as possible. In a virtual disapproval of Mr Modi’s attack on Mr Lyngdoh, the Prime Minister had yesterday said no one should use “improper language or make indecorous insinuations” in expressing views on the EC’s decision on Gujarat. In a balancing act, Mr Vajpayee had also asked democratic institutions to work within their constitutional limits and appealed to “all for an immediate end to this unseemly controversy.” New Delhi:
Veteran Marxist leader Jyoti Basu on Sunday alleged that the BJP wanted to convert the entire country into Gujarat, even as he dismissed as “posturing” Mr Vajpayee’s virtual disapproval of Mr Modi’s attack on the CEC. “The BJP wants to convert the whole of India into Gujarat. Whatever they have been doing in Gujarat is barbaric and uncivilised. I have been saying this all along,” Mr Basu said on the sidelines of the CPM’s politburo meeting here. Asked about Mr Vajpayee’s remarks that no one should use improper language or make indecorous insinuations while expressing views on the EC’s decision on Gujarat, Mr Basu said: “That is absolutely nothing but posturing”.
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CEC gets legal notice for his
‘remarks’ Vadodara, August 25 Issuing the notice, Mr Abdul Ganibhai Qureshi gave the CEC seven days to explain why civil and criminal proceedings should not be initiated against him for his alleged utterances. Taking exception to the reported remarks of Mr Lyngdoh calling him “a government agent’’ and also directing him to get out of the riot-hit spot being visited by the commission in the presence of his community people and the media, Mr Qureshi alleged that the gesture and action of the CEC had “lowered his prestige and reputation.
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Pak faces civil war threat: book New Delhi, August 25 “It is not in the interest of Pakistan to solve the Kashmir problem as the fundamentalist forces will then become issueless,” the book, “Pakistan: From Jinnah to Jehad”, said. “With the military regime compromising with religious extremist elements which could further the ‘Talibanisation’ of Pakistan, all prevailing indicators show that the country is facing the possibility of a civil war”, it said. “The pulls and pressures of religious elements, the serious political problems over water-sharing between different provinces, the Shia-Sunni rift, the conflict between tribesmen in areas bordering Afghanistan and the government machinery, besides the economic crisis and an adverse investment climate, are factors which may lead the Pakistani state to collapse”, the book, co-authored by former CBI Director S.K. Dutta and journalist Rajeev Sharma, said. It quotes US Ambassador to India Robert Blackwill as saying that “Pakistan is on the edge of fulfilling the classic definition of a failed state and its survival is in question.” “If the state structure gives way, the nuclear-weapon proliferation and export of Islamic terrorism would remain a distinct possibility. There could be a leak of nuclear-weapon technology and fissile materials to other Muslim nations or even to non-state actors,” Mr Blackwill is quoted as saying. Stating that Pakistani Generals were “buying peace” with fundamentalist groups, the book said de-weaponisation of militants and religious extremist outfits had failed. On the sectarian issue, it said: “Muslims continue to kill Muslims in Pakistan in sectarian clashes. Hindus, Ahmedias, Christians and Shias are treated as untouchables in Sunni Pakistan. In this situation, Shia-dominated Iran is likely to come close to India.” “While all Pakistani rulers have attempted to change the system like Musharraf, it is next to impossible to introduce any reforms in Pakistan under the current circumstances,” it said. On the nuclear front, it says that the possibility of nuclear weapons “falling into the hands of the fundamentalist Generals can never be ruled out”. The authors suggest that India should allow the internal dynamics of Pakistan to “have full play” adding that “in another five years, the shape of history of Pakistan will be different”. “The Indian policy should be to neutralise the Pakistan army. This is attainable if the cost of maintaining the war machinery is made prohibitive for Pakistan. Indian defence expenditure needs to be raised by 1 per cent more,” they said.
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Petrol station issue: SC hearing today New Delhi, August 25 The apex court is also likely to hear the Union Government’s petition challenging the Allahabad High Court decision to stay the cancellation of all allotments in Uttar Pradesh. Terming the government order as “knee-jerk” reaction to the allotment controversy, the high court had observed that Centre should have first investigated whether the dealerships were granted on extraneous considerations. The government had also decided that all annulled petrol station and dealerships “may be auctioned on the basis of competitive bidding.” However, several petitions were filed in the high courts of Rajasthan, Delhi, Punjab and Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Allahabad, Madras, Calcutta, Gujarat and Karnataka and few of them stayed the operation of the Centre’s directive. The Union Government, in its petition, said “with a view to avoiding inconsistent decisions of the different high courts and district courts, it would be in the interest of justice that the Supreme Court may transfer the said cases to itself and dispose them or in the alternative transfer all such cases to one High Court.” Meanwhile, the Ministry of Petroleum is considering amending the Prime Minister’s August 5 order cancelling petrol station and gas agencies after senior Cabinet Ministers, including Defence Minister and NDA Convener George Fernandes, expressed reservations on the special categories of allotments. The proposal to amend the order was mooted by Mr George Fernandes, Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Satyanarayan Jatiya, and Sports Minster Uma Bharati and supported by several other ministers at yesterday’s Cabinet meeting.  |
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Govt servants to serve in Territorial Army New Delhi, August 25 According to reports, the proposal mooted by some MPs has been forwarded to the Chief of the Army Staff, Gen S. Padmanabhan. Besides ensuring wider participation the move will also ensure that the citizens get training in the use of weapons to make themselves fit to fight terrorists and criminals. Forwarding the proposal, the Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes, said compulsory inclusion of government employees in the Territorial Army would help counter terrorist threats to strategic enterprises. The proposal was made by the K.P. Singh Deo Committee which has also recommended to raise the strength of the Territorial Army to almost 1,00,000 by the year 2007. The present authorised strength of the Territorial Army is 40,085. The Territorial Army, commonly known as Citizens Army, is composed of 31 infantry battalions and 19 departmental TA units such as the Railways, Engineers, Oil Sector, Ecological, Signals and General Hospital units. The force currently carries out operational tasks, internal security duties and aid to civil authorities besides in support of the Army. Supporting the proposals of two month stint of military training for civil services entrants, the Defence Minister said this would make TA a visible platform for disciplined and trained citizens from all walks of life to support the regular Army. The government has also accepted the provision of 20 per cent reservation of TA officers to remove the deficiency of company commanders in infantry battalions. |
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2-day CBI conference begins today New Delhi, August 25 The conference, organised by the CBI, will be attended by 63 delegates from the anti-corruption bureaux of various states and union territories. About 130 officials from the CBI will also be participating in the conference to evolve an effective mechanism to fight the menace. The Prime Minister will also present the President’s Police Medals to the CBI officers who were awarded on the Republic Day and Independence Day this year. The conference will discuss strategies to promote and strengthen cooperation and coordination between the CBI and state anti-corruption agencies. Participants in the conference will also discuss the means to share information and expertise among various enforcement agencies. In four sessions, the delegates will discuss an effective mechanism for co-ordination between the CBI and state anti-corruption bureaux, measures for tackling organised crime and financial frauds and legal issues in corruption cases. Besides the Prime Minister, the delegates will also be addressed by the Central Vigilance Commissioner Mr N. Vittal, the Solicitor General, Mr Harish Salve, the CBI Director, Mr P.C. Sharma, and other senior Central and state government officials. |
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Residents of ‘sati’
village fear action Patna Tamoli (MP), August 25 However, Collector Ravindra Pistor said the apprehensions of the villagers were unjustified as only those associated with the “sati” could be summoned for interrogation by the district administration. The administration also claimed that no action was taken against any innocent. Initiating the proceedings of collective fine against the entire village, the state government has decided not to provide any aid to the village during the next two years. The Digvijay Singh government has also decided to take disciplinary action against government employees posted in the village. Mr Pistor said strict vigil around the spot where the crime was committed was due to the administration's commitment to ensure that no temple or structure was built to glorify the social evil of “sati”. But the villagers complained that they could not even celebrate Raksha Bandhan because of the strict attitude of the administration and the police.
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Lack of rain dries up
cultivators’ hopes Hanumangarh, August 25 Famine in Rajasthan is common. In the past 15 years the state has experienced many droughts, including the one in 1987, which is regarded as the worst famine in history. It was followed by a severe drought that hit the state about four years ago. This year the famine is extended to nearly half the states in the country and Rajasthan figures on the list. According to the reports the monsoon is deficient by 30 per cent though it is 24 per cent more than that of 1987. Northern states such at Punjab and Haryana have been seriously affected by famine and this area of Rajasthan has been severely affected as agriculture is the main occupation here. Conditions are not good in the district by any means as the prices of vegetables have skyrocketed and those of green fodder have also risen subsequently. In the rice belt of the Ghaggar, water level has gone down by 20 feet and no water is left for irrigation in the canals. Due to poor rain the whole region is in grip of famine. The cultivators are unable to comprehend how they would feed their families. The moneylenders are also worried for they know it is not possible that they will get their loans back this year. A cultivator in a nearby village of the district kept mum when asked to comment on the condition of crops, and just raised his hands as if showing submission to the will of God. Besides, social relations are on the verge of breaking up as the cultivators are not in a condition to pay back the loans. Though they are waiting for similar relief measures which have been announced by neighbouring Haryana for the farmers. |
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CCD to meet on disinvestment New Delhi, August 25 With the controversy raging over the issue after some public sector undertakings were prevented from bidding for the firms being disinvested, the CCD is likely to ask the Disinvestment Ministry to prepare a comprehensive policy on the issue. If the CCD endorses the views of Finance Minister Jaswant Singh to block public sector firms from bidding, companies like the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation may not be able to bid for the Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited and the Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited. The CCD is also likely to thrash out the contentious issue of BPCL and HPCL disinvestment. While the Disinvestment Ministry is pressing for a strategic sale along with the transfer of management, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry wants only an initial public offer for the selloff. With the return of Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani from the UK, the CCD meeting is expected to take place this week, sources said. |
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Tough steps must to protect earth: PM New Delhi, August 25 In an interview to an environment magazine, “sanctuary”, on the eve of the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development, Mr Vajpayee said India had to evolve a long-term perspective on sustainable development. “Protecting the environment does not mean putting a stop to developing or halting the progress. We must evolve a pragmatic solution to the problems posed by the developmental projects,” the Prime Minister added.
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Govt to exempt war widows, freedom fighters New Delhi, August 25 “There is a view in the government that allotments made to dependants of ex-servicemen and
paramilitary forces killed in action, the physically handicapped, freedom fighters and very distinguished sportspersons cannot be made on extraneous consideration and so they should be exempted from the blanket termination order,” sources said. The Petroleum Ministry, which had yesterday moved a proposal for issuance of an ordinance to terminate about 3,600 dealerships, would incorporate the exemption soon, sources said.
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Minister unhurt in brawl Dehra Dun, August 25 The incident occurred when the minister along with forest officials and a team of electronic media went to Har Ki Pauri following a tip-off that shopkeepers of the area were allegedly selling some animal organs. As soon as the minister began searches in the area, angry shopkeepers entered into a scuffle with the forest officials.
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UP seeks Rs 1,000 cr for drought relief Lucknow, August 25 The state government’s demand was put forward to the Union Agriculture Minister, Mr Ajit Singh during his meeting with the state Revenue Minister, Mr Ravi Gautam, here on Friday. The state government had already sought Rs 7,500 crore as central assistance to fight the drought situation in the state, but the Centre was yet to send a team to assess the situation. Mr Gautam said here today that as an immediate help, he had urged Mr Ajit Singh to release Rs 1,000 crore to the state until the central team submits its report.
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