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Thursday,
July 31, 2003, Chandigarh, India  
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SC order to create 151 vacancies
Bhajan fails to check dissidence Withdrawal
of sugarcane package flayed Probe sought into school-leaving certificate scandal Supreme Court decision on
2-child norm surprises Marxists |
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HIGH COURT Another case against
HUDA officer
Guard’s
brake van to have better facilities
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SC order to create 151 vacancies Chandigarh, July 30 The controversial section bars any person with more than two living children from contesting elections to the panchayati raj institutions. It also disqualifies any member of the panchayati raj institutions who gets the third child after being elected. A large number of petitions had been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the validity of the section. The court had stayed the disqualification of the petitioners. Today’s judgement will create a large number of vacancies for which the Haryana State Election Commission will have to hold byelections soon. According to the State Election Commissioner, Mr T.D. Jogpal, 25 panches, 108 sarpanches, 15 members of the panchayat samitis and a member each of three Zila Parishads will be affected by the judgement. Earlier, 623 panches, 66 sarppanches, 27 members of the samitis and four members of the Zila Parishads were disqualified under this section. The posts were filled through byelections. About 200 cases of disqualification are believed to be still pending for decisions with various Deputy Commissioners. A number of appeals against the disqualification orders are also pending with the Financial Commissioner, Development and Panchayat. The case for disqualification of the Chairman of the Hisar Municipal Council is pending for a decision with Mr Jogpal. He had also obtained a stay order from the Supreme Court. The Act had laid down April 22, 1995, as the cut-off date. Any person having more than three children before this date was exempted from disqualification.
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Bhajan fails to check dissidence Chandigarh, July 30 When Mr Bhajan Lal took over as President of the party last year, hopes of the anti-Chautala lobby in the state soared. It was banking on the manipulative skills for which Mr Bhajan Lal was once known. However, soon the hopes were dashed when the former Chief Minister could not win over any MLA from neither the Chautala camp nor the Hooda camp within the Congress. Mr Bhajan Lal galvanised grass-root workers, particularly in the
non-Jat areas of the state by organising rallies all over the State. But the party could not pose a threat to the ruling Indian National Lok Dal. Given the state of infighting, the party also could not launch a creditable and sustained agitation, despite repeated announcements. Under the leadership of Mr Bhajan Lal, the party contested one Assemby byelection at Fatehabad, in which its defeat would be considered “respectable” as compared to the two byelections contested by the party under the flag of Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda. Mr Bhajan Lal’s supporters claim that due to his leadership, INLD leaders are jittery. In a statement issued here today, Mr Krishan Murti Hooda, an associate of Mr Bhajan Lal, said Mr Om Prakash Chautala had been compelled by Mr Bhajan Lal’s popularity to visit each village of the state so as to put a check on the erosion of his party’s base. |
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Withdrawal
of sugarcane package flayed Yamunanagar, July 30 He said the Centre had announced the package for the sugarcane growers of the three states and within three days of the announcement the package was withdrawn on the pretext that the money could not be provided from the Sugar Development Fund. He said the government had announced that a financial Bill would be introduced for the approval of the package in the Lok Sabha, but it did not issued any such ordinance. He said thousands of crores of rupees of sugarcane growers were due from sugar mills in the country and mills in Haryana owed Rs 200 crore to farmers in the state. He said that on the direction of Ms Sonia Gandhi, a ‘jyoti kranti yatra’ would be taken out in the state from August 9 to 15. |
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Probe sought into school-leaving certificate scandal Hisar, July 30 The matter came to light after an over enthusiastic student complained to the Deputy Commissioner that Education Department officials were refusing to counter sign his certificate issued by a school in Agroha about 20 km from here. But the officials said they had deliberately delayed countersigning the certificates since they suspected foul play in view of a large number of such certificates issued by this school. Following the complaint the Deputy Commissioner then ordered a probe into the matter by the District Education Officer. During the preliminary probe it was found that the school had admitted several students in plus one class in the regular category even though they had not cleared their compartments in the class X examinations. Normally, such students were admitted provisionally and their admissions were regularised after they cleared their compartment examinations. It was also found that many such students had even been issued pass certificates for the plus one class so as to enable them to secure admissions to the plus two class on the basis of these certificates. This enabled these students to appear in the plus two examination without having to clear the compartment. |
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Supreme
Court decision on 2-child norm Rohtak, July 30 Reacting to the
judgment delivered today with regard to hundreds of writ petitions of unseated elected representatives, the party has said the Supreme Court has surprisingly overlooked the fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution which virtually stands denied by the Act of the Haryana Assembly incorporating the two-child norm, debarring qualifying men and women to get elected. The party had raised objections when the disputed clause was arbitrarily added while ratifying the 73rd and 74th constitutional amendments by the Haryana Assembly along with certain other states. |
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HIGH COURT Chandigarh, July 30 Issuing the directions, the Bench, comprising Chief Justice Mr Justice B.K. Roy and Mr Justice N.K. Sud, added that the houses of the District and Sessions Judges should also be completed during the same period. The Judges also directed that site plans should be submitted to the building committee for approval. Earlier during the proceedings, the court was informed that judicial complexes had already been erected at Rewari and Panchkula, besides certain other districts. It was added the work for constructing complexes were underway at
Fatehabad and Jhajjar. In its petition, the association had asserted that orders regarding the construction of a judicial complex were passed way back on March 27, 1996, but till date nothing concrete had emerged. Girl set free:
In her petition, Avedna Sharma had earlier claimed that she had married Mohammad Zakir Hussain, after falling in love with him, on June 4 at Jama Masjid in Pinjore. Unhappy with the match, the parents got her married to one Amitabh Thakur. But on July 15, she managed to slip and joined Zakir Hussain and was living happily with him. After recording her statement, Mr Justice K.C. Gupta of the high court ruled: "Since she is a major and has made a statement voluntarily, she is set at liberty. At the request of the girl's consent, she, along with her husband, be sent to Gurgaon district under police escort to avoid any untoward incident. The Station House Officer of Panchkula's Sector 5 Police Station is directed to provide necessary police escort". |
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Another
case against HUDA officer Sirsa, July 30 According to the district police chief here today, investigations in the case has led to the arrest of eight persons under Sections 409/420 /467/468 and 120-B of the IPC, and 13 (I) D of the Anti-Corruption Act. Those who were arrested yesterday include Harichand, Resham Singh, Vijay, Kulbhushan, Naurang, Mohan Lal, an employee of HUDA, Narnaul, Krishan Kumar, a SDE in Horticulture Department, Hisar and Balu Ram, a clerk in HUDA, Rewari. The police said that Mr Om Parkash Chaba, a resident of Sirsa, had lodged a complaint against the former estate officer, who was already in judicial custody. On the basis of this complaint,
D.D. Gaur has been booked in another fraud case. |
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Making
mockery of war trophy Ambala, July 30 A war trophy epitomises how bravely our soldiers fought to defend our nation’s territorial integrity. The Deputy Commissioner, Mr
D.D. Gautam, confirmed that the tank was likely to be shifted soon. “We have identified a place at Bal Bhavan in Ambala city where the tank can be displayed,” he said. Other prominent sites, including the Sainik Rest House in the cantonment and the War Heroes Memorial Stadium, were also being considered. “We want to prominently display the trophy,” he said. About three years ago, the tank was shifted from a nondescript place near the bus stand to a prominent HUDA park. The tank, which was used by the Pakistani army, was captured during a battle in the Khemkaran sector. This sector is considered to be the graveyard of the Patton tank. After the war was over, war trophies were distributed to various places and given to the civil administration so that those could be displayed at prominent places to motivate the younger generation. In 2000, the tank was shifted to the HUDA park by the Army authorities. A team headed by Major Iyer of 6014 Armoured Brigade workshop had worked throughout the day to shift the tank and had used two cranes for the purpose. It is relevant to mention that the tank draws its name from an outstanding American General, General Patton, who won several battles in Europe in Operation Overlord during 1944-45. During the 1965 war, the Patton tank was the latest acquisition of the Pakistani army and was considered to be a state-of-the-art tank. It had a formidable reputation at a time when the Indian Army had Sherman and Centurion tanks. However, the Indian Army captured the tanks in large numbers, particularly in the Khemkaran sector. |
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Guard’s brake van to have better facilities Ambala, July 30 The Additional Divisional Railway Manager of Ambala division, Mr Dayal Dogra, told The Tribune that the modifications carried out by them had got them the first prize in an all-India competition. “Our modifications will not only enhance safety, it will also add to the comfort of the guard. The brake van modified by us is likely to be studied by RDSO experts. These features may be incorporated in the brake vans of all goods trains,” he said. Mr Ashok Sharma, Senior DME, who led the team which carried out the modifications, said: “Our motto is to provide high-quality comfort to the guard, coupled with services like toilet, fans, temperature-cum-time display, comfortable revolving chairs, tables and lights”. At presently there is no lighting facility in the brake van and the guard has to face a lot of hardship while performing his duties. “An alternator of 5KW output has been mounted below the cab, which is belt driven and can generate 5 KW of electricity. Provision of an inverter of 500 W capacity and a battery is also provided which can last for 200 hours thus ensuring uninterrupted power supply to the brake van,” the official said. Another feature is the automatic sound of pneumatic horn in case the guard drops brake pressure. “If the guard drops the pressure to stop the train, the horn will sound, attracting the attention of the driver and the station staff,” Mr Sharma said. A small electronic switch has been provided in front of the guard table, which can be operated for exchanging signal with the cabin staff or station staff. The LED display light will be visible from a distance and this will be convenient for the guard to exchange signal in the night and during rough weather. An interesting innovation is a cycle which can run on the train track by the guard during an emergency. “A specially designed light weight, folding, portable cycle has been kept in the brake van, which can be used by the guard for expeditious placement of detonators for line protection. The cycle can run on the track and can be assembled within two to three minutes,” he said. To add to the comfort of the guard, the brake van has been insulated with 50 mm thick thermocol to keep the temperature within comfortable range during peak winter and summer seasons. The modified brake van, has provision for a hygienic toilet. Besides, the new-look brake van also has a wash basin, a looking mirror, coat hooks, soap shelf and a small exhaust fan. Besides using tiles which are convenient to clean, there is provision for wide windows on both sides for a clear view. Also, the hand brake wheel has been relocated near the guard’s chair so that it can be operated effectively. A safety feature is that the emergency valve has been relocated just near the guard table at a convenient location so that while writing, the guard can apply emergency brakes on noticing any emergency. Earlier, the guard had to move from his seat to apply emergency brakes. In addition, the quick coupling has also been relocated near the guard’s table so that the guard can easily fit the pressure gauge in it and the pressure can be observed. |
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Remand
extended Ambala, July 30 The judge extended the judicial custody of the officers till August 13. |
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Suicide
by teenaged boy Fatehabad, July 30 According to reports, Ashok Kumar committed suicide by throwing himself before the Haryana Express coming from Delhi. His body was seen by Railway staff in the morning. The victim could not be identified. |
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