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Suicide pact snuffs out three lives
Suicide or murder?
Though the police is working on the suicide angle, certain questions remain unanswered.
Chandigarh, November 16 One of the sons shot himself in the mouth, while the other two ended their lives by consuming poison. Their bodies were found in different rooms this morning. The three have been identified as 55-year-old widow Madhur Bala and her sons Peyush(29) and Anupam(27). The latter was a mechanical engineer and had passed out from Punjab Engineering College. The reason behind the extreme step is yet to be ascertained. Police sources said the family was extremely superstitious. Quotes from scriptures were scribbled all over the house. There could be a religious angle to the entire episode. The incident has left the police baffled. Even after conducting preliminary inquiry, it found itself unable to explain why two of them consumed poison while the third shot himself with a countrymade weapon. Though working on the suicide theory, the police has not ruled out the possibility of a family feud behind the incident. A senior officer said Anupam could have poisoned the two before killing himself because of some differences. He added that the position of the bodies had aroused suspicion. "One would have expected all bodies to be in a single room in case of a suicide pact but in this case, the mother's body was in a different room. One of the sons was lying on a mattress placed along the bed as if he wanted to die in comfort. He had stuffed cotton in his nostrils. Intriguingly, the bottle had "poison" written on it in a "filmi" style. Two suicide notes were found by the police from one of the rooms. The first note simply said no one was responsible for this extreme step and no action should be taken against anyone. Addressed to a relative, the second note said instalments for a Maruti car purchased on loan had been paid till November and he should take care of the rest. The telephone number of another relative was also mentioned. Both notes were written by one person - in all probability Anupam. A third note, torn into bits, was found in a bathroom mug. In a state of shock, their grandfather and other relatives staying on the ground floor said the bodies were noticed by a rickshaw-puller who had come to take Madhur Bala to her office at about 10 am. She had been working as a senior assistant in the office of the Punjab State Industrial Development Corporation ever since her husband's death in 1993. The relatives said the family seldom interacted with them and mostly remained indoors. They had even kept pigeons in the house. Mr Bal Krishan, the grandfather and former Head of Panjab University's Publication Bureau, said he had no theories to offer as the family had severed all ties after his son's death. As senior police officers descended on the spot, they found Anupam's body lying in a pool of blood on a bed. A countrymade pistol was lying near his feet. The police said the death must have been instant as the bullet had pierced the back of his head. A shell was also recovered from the spot. A visit to the house revealed that theirs was apparently not a happy family. Household goods were covered with dust and webs. The house was stuffed with useless goods, hardly leaving space for anyone to move about in the rooms. There were piles of medicines on tables, refrigerator and shelves. An air gun and toys were also scattered all over the place. A senior officer said they would carry out the investigations in a scientific manner. Neighbours would also be asked to cooperate in the probe. A case under the arms Act has been registered and inquest proceedings have been initiated under Section 174 of the CrPC.
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Vocational staff panel members canecharged
Chandigarh, November 16 The members of the association got impatient when no official from the Punjab Government came to listen to their grievances for a long time. Irritated, they tried to march towards the Punjab Secretariat following which the protestors were canecharged. The president of the association, Mr Rashpal Singh Burjwala, said the main demand of the association was filling of vacant posts of principal after holding the Departmental Promotion Committee (DPC) meeting. It alleged that the government had failed to honour the ruling of various courts.
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New face of computer education in UT schools
Chandigarh, November 16 The pilot project will be launched by Gen J.F. Rodrigues (retd), Governor of Punjab and the UT Administrator, at Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16, on November 29. Confirming the development, Mr D.S. Mangat, the DPI (Schools) said, in the first phase, the project would cover schools in Sectors 8, 10, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 32, 33, 37, 40 and in Mani Majra. Mr Mangat said it had been planned that students will take annual examination for majority of classes in GMSSS, Sector 16, for the next academic session (2006-2007) on computers instead of answer-sheets. “We don’t have sufficient number of computers at the moment, however, the task is not impossible. I have urged the schools to utilise the school funds and also contributions from the Parent Teacher Association for purchasing computers. Besides working on possibility in government schemes, a number of PTAs, including those in Sectors 19 and 46, have already donated four computers each to the school.” In order to give a wider perspective to classroom teaching, all schools will be connected to broadband Internet. The department is working out details of allowing computer facilities to students even after school hours. Efforts are being made to induct part time faculty to assist students. The staff could be students of M.Sc (IT) from different colleges. In the first phase, a training programme is being conducted for school teachers. Mr Mangat said, “Certain teachers, particularly, senior teachers, were averse to teaching through computers and had put forth the view that nothing could replace the good old books. That they were also averse to taking training in computers at the fag end of their careers. But a change has been noticed in their attitude after about a week of their classes on the new electronic gadget which simplifies as well as diversifies the teaching as well learning skills”. Special care has been taken in designing the computer-based syllabus on the basis of interactive sessions. “During the preliminary exercise of preparing the lessons we discovered that existing lessons, in a majority of cases, were mere texts and diagrams which was hardly different from the text in the books. We are developing lessons employing interactive sessions which aim at sustaining and developing computer intelligence of students. At least 150 teachers will be trained in the pilot project,” a senior principal said. A select group of 10 teachers is being identified for preparing lessons on CDs for the school classroom teaching. “It is not practically possible for each school to design independent classroom material. As a result a common pool is being prepared which will leave ample scope for improvement,” he added. In Chandigarh, the main thrust for computer education in schools was started in 2000-2001 when a private agency from Jaipur was hired for the purpose. The scheme witnessed moderate success in model schools and was an absolute failure in non-modern institutions. The scheme was re-introduced in a newer version in 2003-04, however, it is felt that the content referred to the computer application only.
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Rs 10 crore allocated for PU pension fund
Chandigarh, November 16 According to sources many issues on the agenda were not cleared by the board today. The board, however, did not clear the proposal made by the Joint Consultative Machinery to give 20 per cent fee concession on fees other than the tuition fees to the wards of university employees. The issue of giving 50 per cent fee concession on tuition fee to the wards of PU employees studying in the University Institute of Engineering and Technology was also not cleared. The board has also not cleared the proposal to establish the post of clerk in the working women’s hostel, and to create a post of Law Officer for the university. The board has cleared the proposal to increase the budget for conducting PU examinations from Rs 37 lakh to Rs 50 lakh for the session 2006-2007.
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Youths snatch gold chain from jeweller
Panchkula, November 16
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1 killed in accident
Mohali, November 16
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Constable’s death: probe stuck for want of report
Chandigarh, November 16 Though senior officers are unwilling to comment on the issue, the sources in the police headquarters said the CFSL, in turn, had been waiting to examine Gurnam Singh, the husband of the deceased constable, before finalising the report. The sources added that the CFSL experts finally subjected Gurnam Singh to a lie-detector test on Monday after a delay of over a month. They elaborated that an attempt to subject Gurnam Singh to a lie-detector test was made in September also, but the experts had termed him unfit for the same then, due to his disturbed state of mind. As such the test remained inconclusive, said the sources in the police department. The psychologists, working with the CFSL experts, had then stated that he was in a state of “shock”. They had even asked his attendants to console him, said the sources in the police. “Things were so bad that it was almost impossible to even take him to the lie- detector machine,” the sources said. Talking to the Chandigarh Tribune after the test, Gurnam Singh lamented that destiny had treated him cruelly. “I would have been carrying a child in my lap had the tragedy not occurred. As if it was not enough, I was termed a killer by a section of the media (not The Tribune). To make the matters worse, I am subjected to a lie-detector test to prove my innocence, despite the fact that my in-laws had not levelled any allegations against me,” he said. He added, “A day after the tragedy, I was facing queries by the police as well as media instead of performing last rites of my departed wife and unborn child. I still have not been able to come to terms with the cruel reality”. Recalling the sequence of event of that fateful day, Gurnam Singh said they were on their way home after paying obeisance at a temple at Sector 20. “Jaswinder complained of uneasiness at which I stopped my scooter near Sector 30, CSIO. She went to ease herself, but slipped into a manhole after losing balance while getting up. As soon as I realised that she had fallen into the manhole, I tried to climb down, but only found her chunni and a shoe. As a large number of people had gathered at the spot by that time, I could not even retrieve the chunni,” he said. It was later that the investigating officers began questioning him about the chunni. “When I, along with another person, went to the spot later, we found the chunni buried under earth,” he added. It may be recalled that Jaswinder Kaur had died after allegedly falling in the sewerage line through an open manhole in Sector 30 on August 16. The local police has registered a case of death due to negligence against ‘unknown person’ in this regard. The death of Jaswinder Kaur was shrouded with mystery after some Municipal Corporation employees tried to prove the point that the victim had not fallen in Sector 30, but was dumped elsewhere. They demonstrated their claims by dumping the sand bag into the sewerage line and the bag did not move beyond a few meters in the line, whereas the body of the constable was recovered from water treatment plant, Phase XI, Mohali, after about five hours of the incident.
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Peace at border due to CBMs, say Pak Rangers
Chandigarh, November 16 General Zia is heading a Pakistan Rangers' delegation to India for their biannual conference with the Border security Force. Major-Gen Hussain Mehdi, Director-General Pakistan Rangers (Punjab), is also accompanying him. The two generals had also visited Chandigarh last year for the same purpose. Speaking to mediapersons on the delegation's arrival here, General Zia said the confidence-building measures would also have a direct impact on the talks between the BSF and the Rangers, scheduled to be held here over the next three days. "We have held three such sessions earlier, which have been fruitful. We hope that this session would be as good," he said. The delegation had crossed over to India from Wagah in the morning and had spent some time in Amritsar, where they visited the Golden Temple as well as local markets. They were flown to Chandigarh in a special BSF aircraft in the evening. Besides officers from the Rangers, representatives of Pakistan's Narcotics Control Bureau and Central Public Works Department would be taking part in the conference. The BSF delegation is being headed by the Additional Director-General (West), Mr NPS Aulakh. Four Inspectors-General (IG) heading the Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan and Gujarat frontiers as well as the IG at the Force Headquarters in Delhi responsible for BSF deployment along the western border will be among those attending the conference. Border management and trans-border crime with particular reference to smuggling of narcotics are among issues that will be discussed. The two sides would exchange a list of known narcotic smugglers active on either side of the border. Inadvertent border crossings by civilians, straying of fishermen into each other's territorial waters, constructions along the international border and repair and maintenance of border pillars, particularly in riverine belt of the Ravi and Sutlej rivers are other issues to be discussed.
He said the Pakistani delegation will also be taken for a day-long excursion to Shimla. Some of the officers are accompanied by their wives.
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Meat scam in Army
Chandigarh, November 16 The court of inquiry (CoI), being held in Chandigarh, is being presided over by the Chief of Staff, Western Command, Lieut-Gen P.K. Grover. Other members include the General Officer commanding a corps in the Western Sector and a Lieutenant-General from Army Headquarters. Both officers were major generals at the time of the alleged acts of omission and commission. Though Army officials are tight-lipped about the issue, sources indicate that the role of a Major-General is also being investigated. This, however, could not be confirmed. Besides corruption, the issue has also indicated instances of personal vendatta. In fact, one of the Generals concerned, sources revealed, had earlier filed a civil suit in a local Panchkula court, seeking a stay on the court of inquiry. Sources reveal that a contract for the supply of frozen meat meant for troops posted in Ladakh was concluded in 2003 by the then Major General Army Service Corps (MG ASC), Northern Command. The contract, applicable for the period 2003-06, was approved by the Quarter Master General at Army Headquarters and was worth several crore rupees. Due to various reasons, the contract could not be executed smoothly and the matter was taken up by the then Additional Director-General Supply and Transport at Army Headquarters (ADG ST). An inquiry was initiated into the matter. When the said MG ASC got promoted to Lieutenant-General and assumed a key appointment at Army Headquarters earlier this year, he reportedly wrote a DO letter (69011/Q/ST-5 (i) to the GOC-in-C, Northern Command, seeking an inquiry into irregularities in the supply of the frozen meat. Sources add that later the Army also received a letter from a senior civilian officer against the said ADG ST. Acting upon the contents of the letter, Army Headquarters issued directions to the Northern Command to convene a court of inquiry for investigating the alleged irregularities in the conclusion and execution of the frozen meat contract.
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Now a glut of rare coins!
Mohali, November 16 "The coin is not so rare after all," said Mr Abnash Luthra, one of City's well-known coin collectors. With a collection that runs into hundreds, Mr Luthra said he just had one such coin. "This coin is actually not a coin but a temple-token. It is said these coins were given out by the pandas in Hardwar to devotees to ensure that there is prosperity in the house," he explained, adding that the token coin is not of much value since it is neither too old, nor made of any precious metal. Mr Jasmer Singh, a government school teacher from Gobindgarh, also had a similar coin. "This coin is part of my collection of rare coins. I have some coins which were used as currency during Guru Nanak's time," he said, adding that he got this particular coin from his grandfather. While most of these coins were in brass with the numbers 517 and 40 written on one side, some of these coins had different numbers on them. Rajesh, a Chandigarh-based businessman has the same coin with the number 550 and 10 written at the place where the other coins carry the number 517 and 40. Similarly Mr S.R. Sharma, a retired school teacher from Kharar, had a coin with the numbers 550 and 40 inscribed on it. Mr Vinay Saini, The Tribune's advertisement manager, too has a similar coin minted in white metal. "I got this as a gift from my father in law when I got engaged. I have it with me since 1974," he said, adding he never bothered about its value till he saw the news today. Mrs Harinder Kaur, a housewife of Sector-8, Chandigarh, owns a similar coin in silver. While the figures inscribed on one side match with the rest of the coins, there are no numbers on the other side but a figure of Lord Hanuman carrying the sumeru parbat. "I got it from my father," she said adding that it has to be kept at the place where one keeps one's money at home. "This is supposed to bring prosperity," she said. Mrs Balbir Kaur, another housewife from Sector-38 West, Chandigarh, had the same coin as Harinder's. "I got it from my father when I was a child. He wanted to encourage me to collect coins," she said, showing a whole range of old coins she had collected over the years. Ms Parminder Kaur, a resident of Mani Majra complex, too claimed that she owned a similar coin.
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MC office building awaits inauguration
Mohali, November 16 All efforts are being made to get the building inaugurated before the term expires as the office building is the biggest contribution that the present elected body has made to the town. For more than 20 years the civic body office had been functioning from rented accommodation wasting lakhs of rupees on rent. Now a part of the seven-storeyed office building of the council, built on a 1.10 acre piece of land allotted by PUDA in Sector 68 here, was nearing completion. There was a plan to get the building inaugurated on November 10 but nothing happened. It was then suggested that the inauguration could be done on November 14 but the function had to be put off to November 17 and then to November 18. Now there is a plan to get the building inaugurated on November 21. The civic body wanted that the inauguration should be done by the Punjab Chief Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh. Since the present elected body has a limited number of days left, the council kept the second option open and even thought of getting the building inaugurated by the Minister for Local Government, Mr Jagjit Singh, in case the Chief Minister was not able to spare time. Now it has been learnt that in case Mr Jagjit Singh was also not able take out time for the inauguration, the ceremony would then by performed by the council president, Mr Kulwant Singh.
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Raids in Colony No 5
Chandigarh, November 16 Giving details, DSP (South) KIP Singh told Chandigarh Tribune said as many as 300 cops from the south division has been deployed in this search operation. He added that the entire colony was cordoned off and 25 teams of police officers under the supervision of their senior officers conducted the house to house search. The four hour drive was launched at 6 pm. He said the aim of the raids was to trace suspicious persons and those who came to the city a few days ago. The police quizzed unemployed persons having motorcycles and other things disproportionate to their financial status. The raids were conducted after the recent incidents of snatching committed by cyclists.
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Torture of Pak kids in jail recorded
Chandigarh, November 16 Utsav Bains,
who showed video clips containing interviews of inmates of the Juvenile
Detention Centre at a press conference today, disclosed that he would
submit the tape to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. "What I came
across inside the Juvenile Detention Centre was shocking. Boys in the
age-group of 11-17 told me that they were regularly beaten up and
harassed. In many cases, their families don't know about their
whereabouts," he claimed. Utsav also said many of the inmates had
torture marks on their person and told him that they had been subjected
to even third-degree torture. He disclosed that he had already written
to the Deputy Commissioner of Faridkot about the plight of the children.
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CBI probe demanded into affairs of ESPL
Mohali, November 16
The work of preparing voter I-cards and voter lists, which was earlier being done by the ESPL was now being given to a Haryana-based organisation. The officials concerned had not only taken away the jobs of the ESPL employees by looking the factory, but had also affected the state exchequer by allotting the work to a neighbouring state. He said ESPL was earning profit for the past seven years even when no financial help was being given by the government. The lockout was declared in May even as an appeal was pending before AAIFR. He said employees of the factory were sitting on dharna since June 1 in protest against the lockout and retrenchment of employees. He said the ESPL employees would be participating in a protest rally being organised outside the office of Mrs Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on November 26. A notice in this regard was sent to Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Mr Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister, Capt Amarinder Singh, Chief Minister, Punjab, and other ministers by the federation, he said.
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Accident victim needs help
Chandigarh, November 16 While the surgery needs to be performed immediately, Ravi who lost his job after the accident with his limited means cannot afford to arrange Rs 2 lakh required for the surgery. The only son of a retired father with four sisters, Ravi happens to be the only earning member in the family. If you are willing to help Ravi and his family, contact PGI PRO at 0172-2756003.
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HC lawyer Anand Swaroop dead
Chandigarh, November 16 A leading lawyer, Mr Swaroop had also participated in the freedom struggle, even giving up his licence to practice law on a call by Mahatma Gandhi. He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter. His son, Mr RS Mittal, is also a designated senior advocate. The cremation will
take place tomorrow at 1.30 pm. Meanwhile, Mr Atul Lakhanpal, president, and Mr Lokesh Sinhal, secretary, of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association, have condoled the death of Mr Swaroop.
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Youth succumbs to injuries
Mohali, November 16 Mr Sood said that his nephew was immediately taken to the PGI, Chandigarh, but was allegedly refused treatment there. He alleged that even doctors at the Fortis Hospital here refused to attend to him. He was then taken to Silver Oaks where he was kept on a ventilator for two days.
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Devotees throng Peer Sarvar’s urs
Chandigarh, November 16 Chief maulvi of the mausoleum Habibullah Sabri said the mausoleum was 30-year-old and hundreds of people visited the mausoleum every Thursday.
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Novice robbers pull it off
Chandigarh, November 16 Talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Mr Pankaj said he came to city, along with his wife, from Delhi the same morning. It was around 3.45 am when they disembarked from a bus at the Kisan Bhavan Chowk and boarded a rickshaw for Sector 37. Giving details of the incident, he said, “No sooner we reached Sector 37 Public Health Centre at around 4.10 am, four persons riding two bicycles intercepted us. One of them overpowered the rickshaw-puller, while the other three pulled me off the rickshaw. One of the trio pulled out his knife and asked me hand over the bag. In process, one of them snatched a gold chain of my wife, besides taking away my mobile phone, Rs 500 and a bag containing documents and some other articles. He added the robbers were acting in a hasty manner and their voice revealed that they were also trembling with fear. Using her presence of mind, his wife covered his gold bangles under the sleeves of her jackets and managed to keep them away from their eyes, otherwise the loss would have been much more. After 15 minutes, the matter was reported to the police and cops began the investigations. While praising the police, the father of the newly-wed woman said the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Sector 39 police station was in constant touch with them and had shown them photographs of some persons having criminal background. So far the police has failed to make any headway in this regard, sources said the incident revealed that the robbers were novice. On the other hand, the police termed the incident as snatching not robbery. When contacted, the SHO of Sector 39 police station, Mr Nanha Ram Kadiyan, said that it was a snatching case. He said the police was looking into various aspects of the incident in order to nab the accused. The police has registered a case of snatching.
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Man commits suicide
Chandigarh, November 16 According to the police Jile Singh was found hanging in the first floor of his house. A chair was also found lying on the floor. Quoting his sons, the police said the victim was not working. He had been an alcoholic but had quit drinking recently. His wife had died long ago and both his sons were married.
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Car stolen from Mohali
Mohali, November 16
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