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Thursday,
July 24, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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ISI bid to
erode morale of armed forces Oppn walks
out as Advani backs Biswas Youth
Cong gheraoes CBI headquarters North India in
Parliament SC ruling
irks SP, Muslim League |
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BJP may go
it alone in Haryana Books on
Devi Lal presented to Kalam Maya
‘approved’ Taj project
Noor
Fatima shifted to ward Rajiv
Gandhi award for Subba Rao India
files plea for Monica’s extradition
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ISI bid to erode morale of armed forces New Delhi, July 23 Sources maintain that the authorities are aware of ISI’s game plan and it is precisely for this reason that the top brass of the Army has always promptly rushed to the spots to bolster the morale and instill a sense of confidence among the rank and file. This is the assessment of a large number of security and intelligence agencies which have been in a continuing huddle after the Tanda attack in the valley yesterday. These agencies also see clear signature of the ISI in the attacks even though little known terrorist outfits have been persuaded to take the responsibility for the attacks. Highly placed sources in these agencies claim that the attacks, Tanda being the third one after last May’s raid on the Kalu Chak camp, have corroborated bits and pieces of information that has been trickling in from across the border that the terrorist outfits had been asked to change their tactics and choose hard targets for dramatic results. The move is also seen as an attempt by the mentors to rejuvenate the waning terrorist movement in the Valley after the September 2000 incident which unleashed international pressure on Pakistan to reign in the fundamentalists. The crackdown in Pakistan had forced several such outfits, apparently spawned by the ISI, to lie low or go into hiding. The recent peace initiatives and thawing of relations between the two countries is also being seen as an attempt to sideline the fundamentalists to pave way for a negotiated settlement of the contentious issues plaguing the valley. According to intelligence analysts the ISI sees all these moves as an attempt to curtail its hitherto unlimited powers and influence. It is imperative to launch sensational operations that will make the authorities back home stand up and take notice of the efficacy and the reach of the ISI in carrying out operations across the border. Intelligence analysts believe that these operations were planned after the Kargil fiasco when the Indian forces effectively managed to wrest control of the strategic area from Pakistan. It was then decided that such attacks on Indian army bases and installations should be unleashed repeatedly to put them on the defensive and thus partially curtail their operational efficiency. The analysts also believe that the Pakistan army and particularly the ISI, have never been able to reconcile with the continuing drubbings that they have received in situations of armed conflict over the last few decades and hence the pernicious plan. |
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Oppn walks out as Advani backs Biswas New Delhi, July 23 Members belonging to the Congress, the Left parties, the RJD and the Samajwadi Party strongly objected to the “benefit of doubt” being given to Mr Biswas. Mr Advani cited an information received from the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) that there was no evidence of connivance and that Mr Biswas had been shown as a prosecution witness. He said the house owner would have been arrested if he was also liable under the law. “But, I was told he was not liable,” Mr Advani added triggering protests from Opposition benches. Senior Congress member and former Law Minister H.R. Bhardwaj said there was a provision in the law that the onus would be on the house owner if narcotic drugs were seized from his premises. |
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Youth Cong gheraoes CBI headquarters New Delhi, July 23 Addressing the workers, IYC chief Randeep Singh Surjewala said the BJP-led government had trampled on the independence of the CBI and was using it as a “political tool.” The CBI was acting as a “puppet of the government,” he alleged. Maintaining that the nation had been ``stunned’’ by the latest CBI stance in the Babri Masjid demolition case, Mr Surjewala asked the government to tell the people about the charge sheet filed by the investigating agency on October 4, 1993 under Section 120 (B) naming a total of 49 accused. He said that the Special Court, Lucknow, trying the Babri Masjid demolition case had upheld the joint charge sheet against all 49 accused persons, including Mr Advani and Mr Joshi. Mr Surjewala said the
Allahabad High Court, in its order of February 12, 2001, had merely asked the state government to cure the technical defects arising out of the
FIRs. He demanded that the ministers and others should be chargesheeted for criminal conspiracy in the demolition case. |
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North India in Parliament New Delhi, July 23 In a written reply, Minister of State for Home Affairs Harin Pathak said in order to coordinate anti-terrorism efforts in Jammu and Kashmir, two United Headquarters at Srinagar and Jammu had been
constituted.
Pashmina wool An estimated 42 metric tonnes of Pashmina wool is produced in the Ladakh region. It is estimated that only a nominal amount of about five per cent is processed in the region, Minister of State for Textiles Basanagouda R. Patil told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply. He said Ladakh generated about Rs 6.28 crore at the rate of 150 per kg by sale of Pashmina wool. There were two programmes run by the ministry for value addition to Pashmina wool in the region, he added.
Road projects Project proposals to the tune of Rs 132.36 crore had been cleared for Himachal Pradesh under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna in 2001-2002, Minister of State for Rural Development Annasaheb
M.K. Patil told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply. The minister said no roads had been cleared during 2002-03 and work on roads cleared during 2001-02 were being executed during 2002-03. |
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SC ruling irks SP, Muslim League New Delhi, July 23 Welcoming the observations, BJP spokesman Vijay Kumar Malhotra told mediapersons here, “We hope that all political parties, especially the Opposition and our partners in the NDA, will support such a legislation. A meeting of the NDA will be held soon to discuss this matter.” The Congress however, gave a guarded reaction, saying, “the context in which it is said and how it is understood by political parties need to be studied.” The Supreme Court observation drew criticism from the Muslim League and the Samajwadi Party, which said the court should refrain from interfering in religious matters.
— PTI |
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Jethmalani
to visit Pakistan New Delhi, July 23 Boosted by the ‘positive’ response evoked by the informal meeting of Hurriyat leaders Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, former Hurriyat chief and head of the Awami Action Committee and Sajjad Ghani Lone of Peoples Conference yesterday the Kashmir Committee chief decided to visit Pakistan next month. The committee is scheduled to hold a formal meeting with the All-Party Hurriyat Conference in the first week of August. Sources said the two Hurriyat leaders gave enough indication that they were willing to discuss different solutions to resolve the Kashmir issue and not stick to the stand of ‘no compromise on azadi.’ The flexibility shown by the Hurriyat leaders gave encouraging signals to the Kashmir Committee members that there could be ‘forward movement’ in the talks scheduled in August, the sources added. Interestingly, the Hurriyat leaders had indicated their desire to meet the Kashmir Committee members after the hardliner Pakistani Jamait Ulema Islam chief Maulana Fazal-ur-Rahman met the committee members. The Hurriyat members met the Pakistani leader on Monday evening, prior to his departure to Islamabad. Mr Rahman reportedly asked the Hurriyat leadership to give a proper hearing to all sides before taking any decision on the Kashmir issue. He also requested Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to give the Hurriyat leaders a proper hearing as dialogue was the essence of democracy. Mr Rahman, during his meeting with the committee members, had called for the resolution of the Kashmir issue under the guiding principles of the Simla Agreement. Those present at the meeting included the Hurriyat leaders and the Union Ministers Mr Ashok Bhan, Mr V.K. Grover, Mr Shanti Bhushan and Mr Javed
Laiq. |
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BJP may go it alone in Haryana New Delhi, July 23 “Our local BJP unit is not happy with the treatment being meted out to it by the INLD in the state and is preparing to face the electorate on its own,” BJP vice-president and in charge, Haryana state unit, Dr Harsha Vardhan, told The Tribune. Asked whether the Central leadership was aware of the discontentment in the state unit and any decision had been taken on severing ties with the INLD, he said a decision would be taken at an appropriate stage. “Our emphasis at this moment is strengthening the organisation, so that the party is not caught off guard. The people of the state have tried out all other parties and they have failed to live up to their expectations. Probably, the BJP is the only alternative,” he said. Recently an INLD MLA, Mr Abhay Chautala, without naming any BJP leaders, who were minister in Bansi Lal cabinet, said inquiries had been ordered against three former ministers and if found guilty action would be taken against them. Asked about the provocative statement by the INLD leader, the senior BJP leader said “We do not need to get any character certificate from these Chautalas. We know that these ministers are the most honest members of the party.” Perturbed by the INLD leader’s statement, Leader of the BJP in the House, Mr Krishan Pal Gujjar, had urged the Central leadership of the party to severe ties with the INLD. He had even alleged that the state Chief Minister had been indulging in corrupt practices and had even bought properties abroad. |
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Books on Devi Lal
presented to Kalam New Delhi, July 23 These books are “Jana Nayak”, Punjabi translation of a collection of tributes paid to the departed leader at his demise, and “Choudhary Devi Lal: A political biography” by K.C. Yadav, a press note said. Presenting the books to the President, he said the books provided an insight into a man who held sway over the masses for a long time. Mr Chautala also invited Dr Kalam to visit the state.
— TNS |
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Maya ‘approved’ Taj project Lucknow, July 23 She has admitted that she had prior knowledge of the Taj Heritage Corridor project and that she had written a letter to Union Environment Minister T.R Balu requesting him to accord sanction to the project. Highly placed sources, however, said today that the project file carried her approval. Ms Mayawati had admitted in a press note here last evening that she had requested Mr Balu to accord sanction to the decisions taken by the Mission Management Board.
— PTI |
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Noor Fatima shifted to ward Bangalore, July 23 “Since she did not need any oxygen, she has been shifted to the ward. Her progress is fine”, Dr Tellis, in charge of the paediatric Intensive Thoracic Unit at Narayana Hrudayalaya, said. Two-and-a-half-year old Noor was in the ‘step down’ unit before she was shifted to the ward. The girl was on a normal diet since July 21, he said, adding now she was on oral medication.
— PTI |
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Rajiv Gandhi award for Subba Rao
New Delhi, July 23 The advisory committee of the award, headed by former Chief Justice A.M.
Ahmadi, met here on July 14 and selected Mr Rao for the award, instituted by the Congress in the golden jubilee year of the “Quit India Movement”, Mr Rameshwar Thakur, member secretary of the committee, said in a statement.
— PTI |
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India files plea for Monica’s extradition New Delhi, July 23 The appeal was filed through the Prosecutor-General of Portugal on behalf of the Indian government, an official spokesman said here.
— PTI |
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New Delhi, July 23
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