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| Friday,
February 21, 2003, Chandigarh, India
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CBI files charge sheet after 16 yrs Chandigarh, February 20 B.R Bajaj is presently Commissioner Consumer Affairs and Principal Secretary, (IT) of Punjab. He, along with a few others, had been named in the lottery scam of 1986. He was then, on deputation here as Finance Secretary. In the charge sheet filed in the court of the UT Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mr Balbir Singh, the CBI has charged Bajaj with cheating and corruption and the other accused with criminal conspiracy, cheating and corruption. Against B.R. Bajaj, the charges have been levelled under Sections 418 and, 420 of the IPC and Section 5(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The offence is punishable under Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The Judge said in the order that B.R. Bajaj had filed a revision petition in the High Court on September 7, 2002, regarding the framing of charges against him. Now the revision petition had been fixed for July 10, 2003, therefore, the request for adjournment had been declined, as no stay had been received from the High Court. “Let the accused be served the charge sheet,” the Judge said. |
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3 held for peddling drugs SAS Nagar, February 20 Giving details of the arrest, the SP, Mr Harcharan Singh Bhullar, said the accused had been supplying drugs to the youth in the township and Chandigarh and one of them, Navtej Singh, alias Bobby, had earlier been caught by the Chandigarh police on similar charges. While on bail, he involved Ratan Singh and Harinder Singh in these activities. “The three started operating from house number 2922 in Phase VII. They had two motor cycles to facilitate the selling of drugs. Two mobile phones have also been seized from their possession. The numbers on the mobile phones will also provide vital links in the case”, he said. The accused had reportedly confessed to have bought the smack from Roshan in Shahbad. In another raid, the police arrested Ravi and Vishal for gambling at a public place. |
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Jacob receives PM at airport Chandigarh, February 20 Others present at the airport to receive the Prime Minister included Mr Jagmohan Singh Kang, Minister of Animal Husbandry and Fisheries, Punjab, Mr Sampat Singh, Finance Minister of Haryana, Chief Secretaries and DGPs of both Punjab and Haryana. The president of the local unit of the BJP, Mr Yash Pal Mahajan, and former MP Satya Pal Jain also met the Prime Minister who was here for 10 minutes before boarding a special IAF helicopter to Mandi. |
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BSNL does an AirTel Chandigarh, February 20 Market experts say that the decision has been taken in time, as BSNL mobile-users were getting SMS messages from the competitor regarding the launching of free incoming calls. BSNL officials claimed that the decision would benefit about 1.5 million mobile-users across the country. Earlier, the airtime charges for incoming calls from other networks in case of post-paid subscribers was Rs 1.20 per minute and for pre-paid subscribers from BSNL as well as other network was Rs 1.20 per minute. Spice, which is the market leader with over 4.5 lakh connections out of about eight lakh cellular subscribers in the Chandigarh and Punjab circle, is also expected to join the bandwagon soon. Mr Mukul Khanna, Senior Manager (Marketing) of Spice said: “Being a market leader in the region, we are determined to provide the best price to our subscribers. In view of the announcements by BSNL and
AirTel, we would also take a decision in a couple of days.” Industry experts say that cellular operators have taken this decision after the success of Reliance Infocom Ltd. It has booked over 22 lakh connections across the country. RIL is offering the cheapest STD rates at its WLL phone in 673 places in the country and has affected the growth of cellular subscribers. Mr
A.K. Sanghi, General Manager, Marketing, BSNL (Punjab circle), said: “It is the BSNL’s Rs 325 monthly rental plan which has made a name in each household. We have already grabbed a 13 per cent share in Punjab and Chandigarh circle by booking over 1,20,000 connections.” |
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Mayawati charms Husain Chandigarh, February 20 Not everyone reigns the way Husain does. The beauty of Husain’s story is that he never consciously steered his talent in the direction of success. Things happened at their own pace. And today when Husain’s masterly strokes command crores, even more, he can laugh over the days gone by when managing a glance was also a challenge. With every honour now prefixed to his name, does Husain feel any different? “No, expect that my works have now travelled out of my room into mansions of big collectors and my canvas has transformed from a movie billboard or hoarding to another rich surface,” says the artist, who will paint for Aruna Asif Ali Trust at Punjab Kala Bhavan tomorrow. In the city for promoting the cause of charity, Husain spoke candidly about his concerns, beginning with a sharp criticism of non-artists who are harming Indian contemporary art. “Ninety percent are non-artists. They deliberately create mystery in art. They paint in private as if art was something to be perfected in solitude. The reason actually is that they lack concentration. If a musician can hold a concert for hours, why can’t a painter paint in the presence of people? I have always shared my art with students. In this age of technology there is nothing clandestine. Vision is the only thing.” The precision in art has converted Husain into a brand name. He admits, although painfully, “When I painted 30 years ago, people would not spare a glance. Today I am a famous man. People buy my works because I have been branded as a painter of excellence.” The legend, however, knows how to keep his balance. Always in the company of his brush, he declares that he can paint any number of canvases without having to think what to paint. Having said this, Husain proceeds to talk of his fixation for Tabu, his ongoing search for the ideal woman’s image and of Mayawati whom he finds “charming”. Following his wandering instinct, Husain is now working on another project with Tabu. This new film has roots in his reality. “Long back I fell in love with Maria, a Czech. I was not very comfortable with English but I would send her a letter everyday. It was for her that I wrote my first set of poetry, called ‘Poetry to be seen’. Tabu plays Maria in my film.” Back in the realm of art, Husain finds the Indian art scene promising. “Heartening work is being done. Indian contemporary art is devoid of Western influences. Actually the West is not so comfortably placed when it comes to culture.” |
Letter of intent sold twice SAS Nagar, February 20 Mr M.P. Singh, in a written complaint to PUDA, has alleged that he was ‘sold’ a letter of intent by an agreement holder through a property dealer after which another property dealer in connivance with the agreement holder sold the same letter of intent to another party who agreed to pay larger price. Mr M.P. Singh stated that he had already paid Rs 50,000 to the agreement holder, Mr Sohail Bhasin, resident of Sector 22, Chandigarh, for the letter of intent and the sale deed notifying this transfer had been submitted to PUDA. “But PUDA officials either did not check their previous documents or in connived with the property dealer as they have transferred the letter of intent to the person who has paid more to the agreement holder despite my agreement of sale being in their records..” said Mr
M.P. Singh. Mr M.P. Singh has also given a representation to the ACA
(Mohali), PUDA, Mr Yashvir Mahajan, who, when contacted, stated that PUDA was not responsible for any private exchange of letters of intent through property dealers or otherwise but in case the person concerned had informed PUDA that he had bought a particular letter of intent from the holder then of course it was a different matter altogether. Mr
M.P. Singh has alleged that the Bajaj property dealer, through which the “already sold” letter of intent was sold again, kept the party, who bought the letter of intent in dark about the fact that the property has already been sold. “But at least PUDA officials could have verified facts before they allowed the transfer to happens,” he points out. Mr
M.P. Singh has also complained the matter to Central police station in SAS Nagar. |
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Disabled return
disappointed Chandigarh, February 20 The youth were carrying letters to report to the Assistant Manager on floor II of the sadan. Upon reaching there the prospective candidates were told that the Employment Exchange had been informed about the postponement of the interview. The candidates alleged they had no intimation about the postponement. One of them, Mr Jaspal Singh Sandhu, alleged that a few weeks ago a similar thing had happened. He said this was insensitivity on the part of the authorities as firstly the youth were unemployed and moreover they were handicapped. He demanded that someone should look into the matter and sort out things. All this was becoming very routine as handicapped persons had to be invited for job interviews, but various wings of the government did not co-ordinate. |
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Abandoned by parents & nature both SAS Nagar, February 20 No one knows the name of the child who was left in that area, along with a bicycle, about six days ago. The child, aged about 10 years, is not able to speak clearly though he understands Punjabi. He is unable to tell his name or that of his parents. Neither can he convey anything through writing. It is reported that he was feeling depressed in the beginning, but now he has got friendly with the people of the area who are showing concern for him. He carries a polythene bag which contains an old shawl and has an old Hero Ranger bicycle. People are worried about his safety and the generous ones have provided him with a blanket and some clothes. A ‘dhaba’ owner in the area gives him food whenever he feels hungry. It is reported that efforts made to contact some organisations that can take the custody of the child have proved futile. Mr Devinder Singh, an employee of Mohali Cargoes, said he had spotted the child in that area on Saturday. The child kept playing during the day near the plot owned by Mohali Cargoes, but in the evening he moved towards the shops on the main road. On Sunday morning, people saw him sleeping in the cold in front of a scooter repair shop. The next day he was given a blanket and was asked to sleep inside. But he insisted on sleeping outside the shop. Dr Gurnam Singh Belongi, whose wife is the sarpanch of Balongi village, told Chandigarh Tribune that he had informed the police about the child. But instead of taking any action, the personnel on duty told us to go and leave the child in Chandigarh. How can we do that? The Chandigarh police might file a case against us for deserting the child”, he said. Dr Gurnam Singh said the owner of Mohali Cargoes, Mr Satinder Bir Singh, had tried to contact the Mother Teresa’s Centre being run in Chandigarh and the newly opened Child Protection Unit in Phase XI here so that the child could be handed over to them, but no response was received from both the organisations. |
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ULTA PULTA During the snowfall in Shimla, people are often seen throwing snowballs at one another to express their joy and welcome the snowfall. But these days it is the politicians who are seen throwing mud at one another as the Vidhan Sabha elections in Himachal draw close. As visitors seem to enjoy playing with the snow more than the locals, perhaps for the same reason the Chief Minister of the neighbouring state of Punjab, Capt Amarinder Singh, seems to be participating in the mud-slinging match with full zeal. To start with, Amarinder Singh gathered mud from Jalandhar to throw at Dhumal’s face. He alleged that the Himachal CM Prem Kumar Dhumal had accumulated property worth crores in Jalandhar. I think Captain Sahib should feel happy and relieved that instead of being deposited in Swiss Banks, Indian money has remained in India. While Amarinder Singh was busy shouting slogans of corruption against Dhumal, the BJP gathered mud from Gujarat and threw it on Amarinder’s face. The BJP has named two Punjab ministers Partap Singh Bajwa and Amarjit Singh Samra in a sex scandal alleging that they had availed the services of prostitutes during their Gujarat elections campaign. Amarinder Singh wiping the mud from his face declared; “We needn’t worry. It’s only political mud.” Issues like poverty, unemployment, health and education — concerning the common man of Himachal — should be forgotten and greater stress should be given to individual character assassination. The way the Congress and the BJP are releasing their ads in newspapers, it seems as if the standards of mudslinging have touched a new high. The Himachal Tourism Department should encash this publicity and officially declare it as “State Festival of Mud-slinging”, so that people from all parts of the country can come and enjoy this event. |
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Sidhu heads
press gallery panel Chandigarh, February 20 Meanwhile, Dr Kewal Krishan, Speaker of the Vidhan Sabha, held a meeting with the office-bearers and assured them that the Vidhan Sabha Library facilities would also be extended to those journalists, who covered or the assembly sessions. |
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Garbage disposal
scheme to be extended Chandigarh, February 20 For Sectors 19-A and 19-B, the proposed site is an open ground near the old All-India Radio station. For Sectors 19-C and 19-D, the site is near Government Model Senior Secondary School of Sector 19-C. For Sectors 21-A and 21-B, the proposed site is between the boundary wall of the government school and the electricity substation in Sector 21-A. For Sectors 21-C and 21-D, the place is near the old Labour Chowk. Persons of Ram Darbar Colony can dump garbage in the park behind houses 1735 and 1737 in Phase II of the colony. |
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Jhuggis demolished SAS Nagar, February 20 While 16 vacant jhuggis in an unauthorised colony built on the vacant land near the cremation ground here in Sector 56 were demolished, two store rooms built by a shopkeeper on the land were also brought down. The team then demolished seven jhuggis which had been rebuilt behind some HM houses in Phase I here. |
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Mr and Ms North declared Chandigarh, February 20 There were five rounds in the contest. Mr J.S. Cheema was the chief guest of the show. |
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Workshop on
English today Chandigarh, February 20 |
Man duped of Rs 3 lakh Chandigarh, February 20 Injured: An auto-rickshaw driver, Mr Bir Singh of Dadu Majra Colony, was injured after his vehicle was hit by a CTU bus near Lajpat Rai Bhavan in Sector 15 here yesterday. A case has been registered against the bus driver, who fled from the accident spot. Vehicle thefts: In the past hours, the police has registered at least four cases of vehicle theft in the city. Mr Inder Pal Singh, a man of Sector 16, reported that his Maruti car (CH-01-H-7481) had been stolen from Sector 9 yesterday. A Panchkula man, Mr Sat Pal, reported that his car (HR-03-C-5164) had been stolen from the Sector 22 market yesterday. A Yamaha motor cycle (HR-03-8349) of Mr Tsering Wang Chuk, a Sector 15 man, was stolen from his house. Mr Vivek Bhuchari, a man of Sector 40, reported that his Kinetic Honda scooter (CH-01-F-9852) had been stolen from his house on the night of February 7. |
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