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| Thursday,
January 9, 2003, Chandigarh, India |
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Woman who shot her father-in-law Candid confession
Ludhiana, January 8 Naib Singh was shot by the woman in their house. It was one of those rare cases where the police produced a video cassette as evidence in the court. In the video, the woman had confessed to having committed the murder, unaware that her statement was being video-recorded. Several witnesses had turned hostile in this case, earlier. The prosecution said the woman had killed her father-in-law because he had been torturing and harassing her. She was the wife of the late elder son of Naib Singh, who, after the death of her husband, had married Gurjit Singh, her younger brother-in-law. Gurjit was a complainant in the case. The day Naib was found dead, the family had thought that he had committed suicide. After a few days of it, they started suspecting Baldev Kaur. Gurjit convened a panchayat in the house of his sister, where the video was made. In his judgment, the Judge said: “Wisdom in man and patience in wife are essential aspects of a married life. The convict has not cared to follow these principles, knowing well that Gurjit had given her shelter. With old age, people develop irritable temper, but, if they are to meet such a fate, humanity cannot survive.” He, then, declined the plea of leniency. The case against the woman had been registered under Sections 302 and 201 of the IPC at the Sidhwan Bet police station on April 17, 2001, on the statement of her husband, Junior Engineer in a telephone exchange. According to his statement, when he learnt that his father had died of a firearm injury, he thought his father had committed suicide, so, he cremated him. A day before the ‘bhog’ ceremony, his nephew (elder son of Baldev Kaur and Gurjit’s late brother) told him that his mother had shot Naib Singh. Initially, the woman did not admit that she had done it. The suspicion was raised at the conclusion of the ‘bhog ceremony’, when she left the house with her parents, without telling anyone. The confession came at a panchayat in the house of Gurjit’s sister at Shakarpura village. The motive was that the old man used to address her in foul tongue and he had beaten her up with a stick just before she shot him. The complainant turned hostile in court and denied having taped any statement or having handed it over to the police. His cross-examination resulted in the production of the tape. However, one can hardly make out what the woman is saying in the video. Gurinderjit Singh, son of the woman and one of the eyewitnesses, also turned hostile and said he had seen no murder. The other witnesses also turned hostile. The woman said the complainant had falsely implicated her in the case. However, the Judge admitted the tape as evidence on the basis of the testimonies of two men — Surjit Singh and Daljit Singh — who had been present at its taping and who, he held, had no relation whatsoever with Naib Singh or the woman. The verdict said, even if the video was ignored, the testimony of Surjit Singh, regarding the extra-judicial confession of the woman, was enough to convict her.
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Curtained
vision curtails life Ludhiana, January 8 Achal Sharma (45), a resident of this colony, near South City, was returning home after a party at a local five-star hotel at around 11 p.m. yesterday, when his car fell into the canal after he could not see the road due to fog and went off the track. He was working as development officer with Life Insurance Corporation. He is survived by his wife, Anjum, mother Nirmala and two young children — daughter Vidhu and son Nakul. As fate would have it, his family members passed through the same spot numerous times throughout the night where his car had fallen, but could not see it due to dense fog. His body was recovered from his car, which was lying upside down on the canal bed, having around 5 feet deep water. His car was spotted by his colleagues some 2 km away from Ferozepore Road. Achal was attending a party last night. Visibility on the roads, especially bordering the Sidhwan Canal, was very poor. Police sources
When he did not reach home till late, his family started looking for him. They passed through the same point again and again, but could not see his car. Two tyres were visible in the canal. At around 7:30 a.m. today, some of his colleagues, who were going on a morning walk, spotted two tyres of the car and contacted the PCR cops. The PCR cops pulled the car out with a rope. They found the body entangled in the car. It was taken out by breaking the window panes and sent for postmortem examination at the local Civil Hospital. Sources close to the family said he was the only bread-earner winner in the family and had lost his father last year and a brother two months ago due to cancer. His another brother was also dependent on him as he was also not keeping good mental health. A pall of gloom descended over their house as his mother and wife were crying inconsolably. His mother was heard saying that who would look after the family for whom Achal was the most important member. She was saying,
‘‘The death would have taken me instead of my son. Who will look after these children and his brother now?’’ The residents of the area said they had written to the district administration a number to times to put neon signs, warning signs, night reflectors and lights on the roads bordering the canal. They said their requests were falling on the deaf ears of the authorities. The roads bordering the canal become killer roads at nights, especially fog. The absence of lights on the road makes it all the more dangerous. With new colonies mushrooming up after South City, the roads remain busy. But there have been no arrangements for commuters to use the road safely at night. |
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Employees
block traffic, commuters suffer Ludhiana, January 8 Activists of various unions, including the Indian National Trade Union Congress, the All India Trade Union Congress, the Joint Action Committee, the Northern Railways Men’s Union, the Milk Plant Employees Union, the PAU Employees Union and the Punjab Bank Employees Union braved the cold by staging a dharna at Ferozepore Road in front of Gate 1, Punjab Agricultural University, and blocked traffic from 12 noon to 2 p.m. Various speakers said they would oppose the privatisation move of the
government, which was anti-employee. They opposed the changes made by the government in the Industrial Disputes Act. Stating that the government was accepting the policies, the speakers said the employees would not take it lying down. They said they would intensify their protest if the government did not roll back its proposal on privatisation. As traffic was blocked for more than two hours, it was diverted through Sarabha Nagar. Heavy police force was deployed by the administration. The SDM was also present. The members of the Punjab Subordinate Services Federation also sat on dharna and blocked traffic on the fly-over near the bus stand to protest against the privatisation policy. The leaders of the federation warned the government of dire consequences if the ‘‘anti-employee’’ proposal was adopted. Buses were stopped by the protesters and traffic had to be diverted. The police force was deployed at the spot. Members of other employees’ organisations were also present. They Employees of the Punjab State Electricity Board sat on dharna on the GT road here from 12 noon to 2 pm on the call given by the PSEB Struggle Committee against the government proposal of privatisation, they also spoke against the economic and industrial policies of the government. Ahmedgarh: Mr Haridatt, Mr Parmeshwar Singh, Mr Sukhcharan Singh, Mr Sukhdev Singh Lehal, Mr Madan Singh, Mr Baldev Singh, Mr Baljit Singh, Mr Nirbhai Singh, Mr Ashok Kr., Mr Ranjit Singh, Mr Kuldip Singh and Mr Naurang Singh of the PSEB Employees Federation and TSU spoke on the occasion. Khanna:
Hundreds of employees of the Punjab State Electricity Board from Khanna Circle blocked traffic for two hours on the GT Road in front of the PSEB office today. The employees were protesting against the state government’s move to privatise the PSEB. A police party led by the SP (H), Mr Ajmer Singh Romana was present at the site during the two-hour jam. The traffic was diverted towards Badinpur and Ratanheri villages. After staging the dharna, the employees marched towards the bus stand. Speakers said that on January 21 a dharna would be held in Ludhiana and on February 4 token strike will be held. |
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‘Counselling
can help you quit smoking’ Ludhiana, January 8 The project is aimed at encouraging everyone to adopt a healthier lifestyle. “Smoking is turning out to be a chief cause of heart disease,” said a spokesperson of the institute. Under this project, a special clinic is held every alternate Saturday in the OPD of the institute, where a team of experts gives advice to seekers. Persons seeking consultation can get themselves registered on telephone, by
dialling the hospital numbers. Besides the cardiologists of the institute, chest experts and psychiatrists of Dayanand Medical College and Hospital also give advice on the treatment and counselling of persons wanting to quit smoking. Experts of the department of Social and Preventive Medicine educate villagers visiting its Rural Health Centre at Pohir about the cons of smoking. While treating the patients,
counselling is the first priority and treatment through drugs comes later. Research has shown that counselling can be helpful in 60 per cent of the cases and drugs in 40 per cent of the cases. The hospital officials said a new oral drug had been introduced in the market and it was free of nicotine. Smoking also triggers breathing problems and many other diseases, which leads to gangrene and limb amputation. Studies show that 70 per cent of smokers want to quit and 28 per cent try to quit, but only 2 per cent quit smoking each year. |
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SYL ISSUE Ludhiana, January 7 Commenting on the latest but harmful government stance vis- a -vis the farmers, who will face drought-like conditions within the next decade, he said, “If this is the stand of the Punjab CM, then the entire case has been considerably weakened and there is no fun of going to the Supreme Court for restoration of constitutional and riparian rights of Punjab over its rivers.” “What is there to discuss at the proposed all-party meeting convened by the CM on January 8, after he (the CM), in his letter to PM, has sung the old tune of the Rajiv-Longowal accord, which was a betrayal of Punjab and its people,” he questioned. In view of the sensitive situation, he has appealed to the entire Opposition to take a strong notice of the CM’s letter to the PM and fight for the state’s rights, especially on the river waters. It may be recalled that the opposition parties in the state had discussed the issue at length at an all-party meet convened by the IHRO here in September and had recommended that all anti-riparian records, inked during the past 25 years, were not only null and void but had bartered away the rights of the people and should be repealed. Judging the sensitivity of the case, the CM had called a deputation of the IHRO, who had met him in Chandigarh and appraised him of the above proceedings and also put their viewpoint in writing with special reference to filing a suit/petition in the Supreme Court, even as the apex court had already given its verdict against Punjab on the suit filed by Haryana, requiring the Punjab government to complete the construction of the SYL canal by January 15, 2003. The CM then was quite enthusiastic about resolving the matter once and for all. “ It is intriguing that why is Capt Amarender Singh oscillating on the issue and has sought refuge in the Rajiv-Longowal accord, and linking the Chandigarh issue with the river waters, Mr Gill observed. “If the people of Punjab are to get any justice then we will have to be explicit that Punjab has an absolute riparian right over its three rivers and the neighbouring states of Haryana and Rajasthan, being non-riparian, have no legal right whatsoever over these rivers. Therefore, Punjab has nothing to do with sharing of waters with these neighbours, as the sharing can be possible only with co-riparian state/s,” he stressed. The IHRO feels : “If the recommendations of the all-party meeting are not accepted by the government, we will take up the matter separately in the SC and will also put the matter before the public by organising state-wide awareness campaigns to highlight the issue,” he added. |
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Tap water in city localities safe: MC Ludhiana, January 7 The MC Commissioner, Mr S.K. Sharma, said in a press release that a special team under the supervision of the Executive Engineer (O and M) had collected water samples from the main waterworks in Dugri and four private houses in the LIG and MIG colony in the area. On analysis, all the samples were found to be duly chlorinated and safe. Further, a team of officials had carried out extensive inspection of water and sewerage lines laid in the Urban Estate area and no leakage of any kind was noticed. According to the Commissioner, the MC had installed “chlorine injecting dossiers” at all the municipal tubewells to ensure that the water was chlorinated before being released in water mains and the process of chlorination continued throughout the year. Moreover, the zonal officers were directed to maintain a strict vigil on all the water supply and sewerage networks in their respective areas. Mr Sharma assured the city residents that all possible preventive measures were being taken to avoid contamination of water and there was no need to panic about apprehended break out of any water-borne disease. For any kind of assistance and complaints relating to water supply and sewerage, the people can contact at the following telephone numbers: Sub-zone A1: 2421180, Sub-zone A2: 22730236, Sub-zone A3: 2749614, Sub-zone B1: 2662229, Sub-zone B2: 22672511, Sub-zone B3: 5004390, Sub-zone C1: 2530522, Sub-zone C2: 2539282, Sub-zone C3: 2539282, Sub-zone D1: 2421180, Sub-zone D2: 2493303 and Sub-zone D3: 2451959. |
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Complaints
of dirty water Ludhiana, January 8 According to Ms Harinder Pal Kaur of Mansa Ram street, entire area was getting yellow-coloured water from the municipal taps for the last seven days. The residents had even complained to the municipal authorities but to no avail. She said the water was smelling foul and was muddy in the appearance. With the cases of jaundice being reported from the Urban Estate area, the residents were scared of drinking this water and were using bottled water by shelling out money, she added.
TNS
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Menace on
the road Ludhiana, January 8 According to a recent survey, more than 30,000 stray animals roam on the streets of the city. People find these strays a big menace. First of all, many accidents occur as the cattle suddenly dart on to the streets, and in order to save them, the drivers either injure themselves or bang into other persons or vehicles. Secondly, some dogs are rabid, and do cause rabies. Thirdly, the pigs travelling in large numbers break fences and ruin gardens and trample the flower beds. Fourthly, they spread infection as pigs are known to be filthy. According to the Society of People for Animal, the strays cattle range from 25,000 to 30,000. But they put the onus of sterilising the stray cattle on the Municipal Corporation. According to Dr Sandeep Jain, doctors of the Municipal Corporation were to follow the ABC programme 2001 (animal birth control) to sterilise the dogs and hence curtail the populace of mongrels. It was also decided to pick the rabid dogs and keep them in isolation in special pounds to safeguard the population but nothing has materialised. According to this plan, the owners were to register their pet animals for a fee and funds thus collected would be utilised to curb the menace of stray dogs and cattle. But since nothing has been done in this direction, the stray animals roam freely in the city. Shikha and her family living in Civil Lines say,” We cannot get any sleep. The number of dogs and the sound of their wailing pups, fierce fights between different dogs and their loud barkings create so much disturbance that we can hardly sleep. The dogs are making our lives miserable.” Many people are sick of stray animals as they cannot even go for a walk as fear stalks them. Mr Jain of the PFA says that the Municipal Corporation gets funds for catching
dogs, and it is its responsibility to sterilise dogs. The corporation does not even have a pound for cows. |
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Dawer assures help to shopkeepers Ludhiana, January 8 Mr Dawer, accompanied by the senior vice-president of the Pradesh Youth Congress, Mr Amarjit Singh Tikka, today visited the shopkeepers at the site. The Congress MLA promised the shopkeepers that he would always stand by them. He cautioned the shopkeepers against the crocodile tears being shed by the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal. He pointed out that it was these leaders who had allotted the land to the builder . He alleged that all the top political leaders owing allegiance to the BJP and the Akali Dal were having share in the agreement. |
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READERS WRITE In Ludhiana an upbeat market with big convenience stores have come up over the years on both sides of The Mall Road. People in large numbers visit these shopping complexes for their daily needs. Quite a sizeable number of persons have been noticed crossing the road divider to reach the shopping plaza on the either side. Such pedestrians are vulnerable to accidents and traffic hazards in the area. There is a need to have a subway at The Mall Road, which would be highly useful for the safety of the public and will also reduce traffic congestion in the area. The stairway on each side of the subway is likely to comprise some 10 steps as compared to more than 24 steps in foot over bridges which are also not aesthetically appeasing structures. Therefore, the subway would be quite convenient not only to the residents but would keep the beauty of the area intact. A similar subway is also required on the Ferozepore Road near Aarti cinema hall to reduce the rush of vehicles and to minimise traffic hazards at this point. The Municipal Corporation, Ludhiana, which has an surplus of more than Rs 10 crore, should go in for the construction of such subways for the welfare of the citizens of Ludhiana and for smooth flow of traffic in the city. Dr Guriqbal Singh MC sets wrong precedent Ludhiana Municipal Cor-poration (MC) has created a wrong precedent by allowing illegal structures to be constructed all over the city. It is painful to notice that the building by laws have been violated in connivance with politicians and MC officials. The MC seems to have turned a blind eye in taking action to demolish these constructions, which are illegal and had have to be disallowed in the future. As a result, there have been rampant building bylaw violations in BRS Nagar, which can be verified by corporation officials. The khula durbars by the MC do not seem to serve any purpose. Such darbars being held now are apparently of no use when the executives as public servants have to perform their lawful duties in the field to give justice and relief to the aggrieved public. Will the district authorities, the Deputy Commissioner, the Municipal Commissioner and the Administrator, Improvement Trust, together pay heed in taking immediate action in demolishing such illegal constructions. Dr R.S. Gill
Police patrolling and crime The PCR cops are often seen seeking the help of common people in getting their motor cycles started. At times, they are faced with shortage of petrol. If the desired aim of launching the programme is to be fulfilled, patrolling offices/officials may be equipped with all the requirements and no fund crunch or any other problem should come in the way of the campaign, as it will help in checking the crime and nabbing the anti-social elements. Narinder Singh
Bad roads and accidents It has been admitted time and again that one of the major causes of road accidents, at times fatal, is on account of a bad road. It is also common knowledge that most of the victims of cervical disorders, sometimes serious, are due to their compulsion (though avoidable if Ludhiana Municipal Corporation desires otherwise) to negotiate miserably potholed roads on cycles, rickshaws or three-wheelers and to some extent in their cars as well. The municipal authorities can risk a ride on the roads in Simla Puri, Janta Nagar, Preet Nagar and Dugri Urban Estate, Phase I and II (a so-called posh locality), not to speak of the non-negotiable roads in the industrial areas of the city. I can assure the municipal authorities can never understand and feel the plight of the silently suffering humanity in the town. Sir, I request you to have mercy on the poor and not so rich populace of Ludhiana, who have paid through their noses to the surplus of Rs 11 crore, which you are claiming to have been saved by way of indirect and direct taxes, and get the roads mentioned above and all those which are not mentioned here due to shortage of space, repaired and resurfaced and earn their gratitude. Major SS Khosla
Cleanliness should come first Ludhiana Municipal Corporation may be concentrating on development works, repairing roads, water problem, saplings planted, etc but it needs to be a sustained effort over a period of time. Therefore, it is a matter of concern that no follow-up to developmental works like Mini Rose Garden has been done. The garden’s toilets smell, fountains are seldom functional and footlights are off in the evenings. Similar is the condition of the lavatory built on CMC crossings. The deplorable condition of roads of the bus-stand stand testimony to the above mentioned points. The MC should know maintaining a certain level of development is crucial for the prosperity and outlook of the city. Rahul Trehan |
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Man succumbs to burns Ludhiana, January 8 According to information, Deepak had got up in the middle of the night to heat some milk for his son. But the kerosene stove burst and he was engulfed in flames. His body was handed over to the next of kin by the police after an autopsy at the Civil Hospital. Youth injured: Mr Gurpreet Singh, (22), a resident of Model House area, was injured in an attack at Baba Thaan Singh chowk near the CMCH yesterday. According to the injured youth, who has been admitted to the
Civil he had gone to the CMC Hospital to pay a visit to his maternal uncle admitted in the hospital. But he was sighted by some of his old enemies who run a juice shop at the chowk. They attacked him with iron rods. The Division No. 3 police has registered a case while the accused are said to be absconding. Car recovered: On a tip-off, the Model Town police laid a naka yesterday and recovered a stolen car from Balwinder Singh, who lives near the Damoria bridge. According to the police, Mr Yadwinder Singh, a resident of CRPF Colony, Dugri, had complained to the police that his Indica car had been stolen from outside his house on December 29. Fraud
alleged: The Salem Tabri police has registered a case of alleged fraud under Section 420 of the IPC on the joint statement of Mr Ashwini Kumar, Mr Parveen, Ms Surinder Kaur and Mr. Gurnam Singh, all residents of Sarup Nagar, against Paramjit Bhalla and his wife Parveen Bhalla, residents of Salem Tabri. the complainants had alleged that the husband-wife duo , who had been running a ‘committee’ business , had duped them of Rs. 25,000. Beaten up: The Division No 7 police has registered a case under Sections 452,354, 506, 148 and 149 of the IPC on the statement of Ms Sarojini, against Kewal Krishan and Mukesh, both brothers, Sonu, son of Kewal Krishan, Ashwini Kumar, Gurjant Singh and others. The woman had alleged that the accused, who arrived at her house to get it forcibly vacated, beat her up and also threatened her. The Basti Jodhewal police has registered a case of alleged beating on the statement of Mr Anil Kumar, a resident of Vasant Vihar on the Nooranwala road, against Abhishek alias Kalu, his brother and two other unidentified persons accompanying them. The complainant had alleged that the accused intercepted him on the road and beat him up. The Sadar police has registered a case of alleged beating on the statement of Mr Gurdeep Singh, a resident of Lalton Kalan village, against Harwinder Singh and Tinda, residents of Thakkarwal village and more than 10 accomplices. The complainant had alleged that the accused, due to some old enmity, had stopped him on the road and beat him up as a result of which he was injured. The Civil Lines police, on the statement of Mr Amritpal Singh, a resident of Jalandhar, has registered a case of beating against Kamal Kishore Mata, who lives near the Preet Palace cinema. The complainant had alleged that the accused beat him up and also threatened him. One held: The Shimla Puri police has arrested Sukhwinder Singh, a resident of Sangera village in Sangrur district, and recovered a stolen scooter from his possession. the accused has been booked under Section 411 of the IPC. Theft: The Shimla Puri police has registered a case of theft on the statement of Mr Balwant Singh, a resident of New Azad Nagar on the Bahadurke road, against unknown thieves who allegedly stole away his three-wheeler on Monday. |
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Court employee held for graft Ludhiana, January 8 The Vigilance Bureau had received a complaint against him from
Hardial Singh, who needed a copy of the proceeding of a case he had
recently lost. The examiner demanded an amount of Rs 200 for obliging
him. He complained to the Vigilance Bureau, who laid a trap to nab
him. He was arrested by the vigilance team on the spot. A case under
the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against Jora
Singh. |
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7 injured in
mishap Jagraon, January 8 |
‘Abolish anti-dumping duty on HR coils’ Ludhiana, January 8 Addressing a press conference here today, the president of the CICU, Mr Inderjeet Singh Pradhan, the general secretary, Mr Avtar Singh and other members, disclosed that the prices of HR coils had gone up to Rs 20,000 per metric tonne from Rs 13,000 last year. Similarly, the prices of CR strips had gone up to Rs 26,000 from Rs 20,000 pmt in the last year, while the prices of MS rounds (mild steel) had risen to Rs 16,000 pmt from Rs 13,500 pmt. The industry leaders said the prices of other allied iron steel products like steel ingots had also shown an upward trend compared to the last year. This has made the products of engineering industry like auto parts and bicycle industry “uncompetitive” in the national as well as in the international market. They feared that in case the trend continued and the prices of these materials were not controlled, it would give serious setback to the industries and many of them might even get closed. This will lead to the hampering of exports for uncompetitive prices. Indications to this effect were already there and the exports had already shown a downward trend. The leaders blamed the Essar, Jindal and Nipon groups, Ispat Industry of India and TISCO for monopolising the steel and iron policies of the government. They said this group of industrial houses was manipulating the prices of steel and charging the maximum prices. They demanded that a price regulatory committee be set to examine the manufacturing cost and the profitability of the said monopolists to restrain arbitrary pricing and hikes. They said the import of HR coils should be allowed to the users and customs duty should be at par with the local excise duty of 16 per cent. The CICU leaders said the dumping duty imposed on the import of these items at 35 per cent was too exorbitant and it should at no cost be more than the excise duty levied within the country on such products. |
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Radiation
safety course Ludhiana, January 8 Radiation therapy technologists from various cancer institutes in the country, eminent scientists from AERB/BARC and faculty in the field from the region will teach the various aspects for radiation safety. This course will include radiant physics, various effects of radiation on mankind, handling of equipment used for treatment of cancer, role of radiation protection, survey and importance of quality assurance of equipment used, management of radiation accidents, legislation and regulatory aspects, etc. This is for the first time that this special course for radiation therapy technologies has been organised in this part of the country. Successful candidates will be awarded certificates by
AEBR/BARC. |
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