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With Shandil in Congress, BJP feels cheated
Stokes
against taking back deserters CM lays
stone for substation Cong
harassing BJP leader, says Shanta |
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Marriage
grant for poor girls raised Former
Army man held for cheating 25 kg hashish
seized in Kulu Centre
seeks report on lathicharge IIAS
gets opportunity of hearing Begin
work on shopping complex, urge residents 
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With Shandil in Congress, BJP
feels cheated Shimla, February 12 A new entrant to politics Dr Shandil contested the elections on HVC ticket but he had established a rapport with BJP leadership and the workers during his five-year term. The party was almost certain that he would agree to contest the poll on its ticket. However, Dr Shandil had other ideas. He deserted the HVC and joined the Congress a day before the Lok Sabha was dissolved, leaving the BJP high and dry. Dr Shandil was convinced that the “feel good” factor was of little consequence and he had better chances of retaining the seat as a Congress candidate. The Shimla constituency has been a Congress bastion and the BJP has never won it. The party now is looking for a candidate who could pose a serious challenge to Dr Shandil, an ex-Army officer who conducted well despite being a political novice. The party feels that a retired or a victimised officer would be able to take on Dr Shandil effectively. It is in touch with Mr
H.N. Kashyap, a state administrative services officer, who has been a victim of political vendetta in the past 11 months, and Mr
L.R. Gazta, who recently retired as the director of local Doordarshan Centre. Mr Kashyap is an officer in the rank of additional secretary but has been posted as Land Acquisition Officer, Kangra, a post of the level of under secretary. The party is persuading him to resign from service and contest the election as its candidate. Mr Kashyap is a son in law of Mr Balak Ram who won the Shimla seat as a Janata Party candidate in 1977.Mr Gazta hails from the Chopal area and keen to join electoral politics following his retirement. While fielding an officer will be the top priority of the party, the name of Mr R.D. Kashyap, a former minister, is also under consideration. Mr Virender Kashyap, who lost the seat, is not in the reckoning anymore. The party has, in principle, decided to re-nominate Mr Shanta
Kumar, Mr Maheshwar Singh and Mr Suresh Chandel, the sitting MPs from the remaining three seats, even though Mr P.K. Dhumal, a former Chief Minister, is keen on contesting from Hamirpur. The process to select the candidates will formally get under way at the newly constituted state executive of the party is meeting at Jwalamukhi on February 20 during which the state election committee and the disciplinary committee will be constituted. A panel of candidates will be drawn up by the state election committee and put up before the central parliamentary board of the party, which will finalise the candidates for the four seats. The Lok Sabha poll has come at a time when the party is going through a change in the organisation. The new team headed by Mr Suresh Bhardwaj has just taken over and in the process of setting up various important committees and changes in organisations and party cells is still on. |
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Stokes against taking back deserters Shimla, February 12 Talking to mediapersons, here, she said that she all through maintained that those who betrayed the party and contested Assembly election against the official candidates should not be taken back. Their case was different as they were expelled for creating indiscipline. The re-entry of such leaders would discourage the disciplined cadres who strived hard to bring the party back to power. When asked specifically that Mr Virbhadra Singh, Chief Minister, had accused her of “double speak” on the issue, she said she could not react to newspaper reports as facts were not put in the right perspective at times. In the meanwhile, Dr
D. R. Shandil, a former HVC MP, formally joined the Congress today. He walked into the Congress bhavan and filled the membership form in the presence of Mrs Stokes. He said he did not see any ideological contradiction in his action the HVC was an offshoot of the Congress and pursued the same policies and programmes. He said he did not inform Mr Sukh Ram, HVC chief, about his decision but said he would be happy if he also followed suit. Dr Shandil described Mr
A. B. Vajpayee, a far-sighted leader who gave liberal financial assistance for the state. He said he strongly felt that regional parties did not have much role in national policies and eventually a two-party system would emerge. |
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CM lays stone for substation Mandi, February 12 He said, “The day when the BJP gets an absolute majority will be the darkest day for democracy in India, and the process of disintegration would set in”. Mr Virbhadra Singh, who was addressing a public meeting at Nagwain, 51 km from here, after laying the foundation stones for a Rs 3.20-crore irrigation scheme and a Rs 1.5-crore 33 KV substation, said the tenure of the NDA government, lead by Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had been blighted by a series of scams, involving top leaders of the ruling group. He expressed concern over the deteriorating values in politics. The Chief Minister announced the opening of a sub-employment exchange at Aut, besides the opening or upgrading of a number of schools in the area. Earlier, Thakur Kaul Singh, IPH Minister, said a sum of Rs 523 crore would be spent on drinking water and irrigation schemes in the state during the current financial year. A number of Congress leaders, who addressed the meeting, demanded that Mrs Pratibha Singh should be fielded from the Mandi parliamentary constituency. |
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Cong harassing BJP leader, says Shanta Dalhousie, February 12 Addressing BJP workers at Salooni, Mr Shanta Kumar alleged that the Congress was harassing Mrs Chadha. He said certain dissident leaders of the BJP like Group Capt Bhupindra Chauhan of Bhattiyat, had joined the election campaign of the BJP. Mr Krishan Kapoor, a former state minister, also accompanied Mr Shanta Kumar during the campaign in Chamba district. |
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Marriage grant for poor girls raised Shimla, February 12 The Chief Minister expressed concern over the manner in which the revenue settlement was being carried, leading to inordinate delay in the completion of the operations. He said the settlement operations should be planned and selected areas in a district be taken up. The exercise should be completed expeditiously and only then other areas should be covered. This was essential to ensure tangible results. The meeting was also attended by the Secretaries, head of departments and other senior officers. He directed the Deputy Commissioners to ensure that various committees set up for the monitoring of schemes met regularly so that progress of development activities could be reviewed. He also stressed the need for frequent inspection of the on-going projects for speedy completion and ensuring quality control. Reiterating his government’s resolve to provide a responsive and efficient administration Mr Virbhadra Singh said that the working of the revenue administration needed to be strengthened and improved. He said that all revenue records should be computerized in a time-bound manner and the process for issuing driving licence be computerised. The Chief Minister said the patwaris should stay in the earmarked accommodation provided to them so that people did not face any inconvenience due to their absence from the patwarkhana and said that those who failed to do so would be dealt with strictly. Speaking on public grievances he said that the Deputy Commissioners and other District Officers should hear the grievances every first Wednesday of the month and in case of first Wednesday being holiday, public grievances should be heard on next working day. Mr Virbhadra Singh said that the performance of the Deputy Commissioners and Superintendents of Police, divisional forest officers and district officers would be judged from the overall satisfaction provided to the people by the departments under their control. He said that accountability and responsibility needed to be ensured by all. |
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Former Army man held for cheating Kumarhatti, February 12 Kishen Thapa had asked for Rs 60,000 for the job. Next day , Deep Ram along with an another person reached the place told by Thapa with the money. Thapa had taken them to a place where he had introduced them to a fake Army Colonel, a colleague of Thapa. After getting the money Thapa had asked Deep Ram to leave him outside MES office in his vehicle and instructed to come after half an hour to get the papers of contract. Deep Ram and his friend returned to the office to know that they had been robbed. Inquiries revealed that Kishen Thapa during his job in 14 GTC was court-martialed four times. He was involved in many fraud cases. A retired JCO of regiment of Kishen Thapa revealed that Kishen Thapa used to fleece youths in the name of helping them get jobs in Army during recruitment rally at 14 GTC. A compliant was also lodged with 14 GTC on the activities of Kishen Thapa but no action was taken, sources said. Meanwhile, a senior official of 14 GTC said that the centre had no link with Kishen
Thapa. |
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25 kg hashish
seized in Kulu Chandigarh, February 12 The NCB team sent from here also impounded the car carrying the consignment in two packets. While Navin Sood of Sultanpur was nabbed, Mahender Singh Thakur, Alam and his nephew Ravinder fled. The NCB team was interrogating the person arrested to get information as to where the contraband was being sent. |
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Centre seeks report on lathicharge Dharamsala, February 12 The 80-strong contingent of freedom peace marchers, including monks, and TYC activists, was stopped by the police and lathi-charged. Transport Minister G. S. Bali defused the situation. However, in a joint press briefing, the Prime Minister of the Tibetan Government in Exile, Prof Samdhong Rinpoche, and Mr Bali claimed that no lathi-charge had taken place. Intelligence Bureau officials stationed here have sent a report which is contrary to the claims made by Prof Rinpoche and Mr Bali Tibet support groups working in Mcleodganj have also sent similar reports to various foreign governments and also to MPs. The issue has embarrassed the Indian Government as officials on duty claimed that the march was stopped on directions received from the Centre. Later, the protesters were allowed to proceed . |
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IIAS gets opportunity
of hearing Shimla, February 12 The apex court asked the institute to explain its position after Mr Rajiv Mankotia, who had filed a public interest litigation to save the heritage complex from being converted into a hotel, informed the court that he had never prayed for shifting the institute out of the premises. He said in his original petition he had pleaded that the historical monument should be handed over to the Archaeological Survey of India for maintenance. He said he still held the same view and had no objection to the continuation of the institute in the premises. He was also concerned about the employees of the institute and did not want their dislocation. The court granted four months time to the institute to put forward its point of view. |
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Begin work on shopping complex, urge residents Chamba, February 12 In a press note issued here today, Mr Gurmukh Singh, secretary of the council, also demanded that traffic congested parts of the town should be regulated. The council demanded that medical fair-price shops should remain open 24 hours a day so that people did not face difficulty in purchasing medicines at odd hours. The council hailed the sanctioning of a petrol station at Sultanpur. |
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User charges revised Chamba, February 12 At a meeting of the governing body of the society held here recently under the chairmanship of the Deputy Commissioner, it was decided to charge Rs 100 per day for a special ward and Rs 150 per ultrasound. |
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