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HC summons officials for encroachments at monuments
Water, power crises hit Faridabad hard
Illegal structures under MCD scanner
Beating Retreat ceremony to feature new martial tunes
Man fined Rs 8 lakh in cheque bounce case
R-Day security: Cyber cafes under watch
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School sites auctioned for Rs 103 cr by Huda
Kidnapped boy found in Faridabad
Engineers robbed, villagers catch two robbers
Controversy marks elections for DLF RWA
Panchayat gives ruling for hiding caste
Gang of hitch-hiker auto thieves busted
High alert in UP border districts for R-Day
Ghaziabad police plans FIRs via internet
Two elderly women found murdered
Government bungalows: 273 illegal occupants removed
Man gets 5-year RI for attempt to rape infant
No respite from cold wave conditions
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HC summons officials for encroachments at monuments
New Delhi, January 24 A Division Bench of Justice Vijender Jain and Justice Rekha Sharma asked the senior officials to be present in the court on February 15 for not removing illegal constructions and occupants from the monuments despite receiving a complaint from the ASI. “There is no tangible result despite our order to restore the pristine glory of these monuments after evicting the illegal occupants,” observed the Judges. Senior counsel Sanjay Jain said out of 172 monuments, 14 had been occupied forcibly after making unauthorised constructions such as living rooms, bath rooms and ‘wujukhana’. Some people claiming to be ‘maulvis’ have occupied Lal Gumbad in Chirag Delhi, Nili Masjid in Hauz Khas, Tomb of Razia Bagum in Mohalla Bulbuli Khana at Shahjanabad, Palam Mosque, Qudasia Garden Mosque and Sunehri Mosque near Red Fort. The other monuments which had been occupied are Kashmiri Gate, Purana Qila, Tughlaqabad, Begampuri Masjid, Sarai Shahji near Malviya Nagar, Rajpur Cemetery in North Delhi, D’Eremao Cemetery in Kishanganj and Lothian Road Cemetery in Kashmiri Gate. Even a ‘dharmshala’ had been constructed by the Agrawal community in the vicinity of monument Hauz-e-Sans in Mehrauli after the cut-off date of July 4, 1992 and wedding ceremonies were being organised there flouting the rules, alleged Mr Jain. The court directed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC) and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to evict the illegal occupants and remove the unauthorised structures from these monuments. Mr Jain said the ASI had already issued more than 500 notices to the illegal occupants and informed the civic authorities. However, the civic authorities did not initiate any action against them, said Mr Jain. He said the ASI was constrained to maintain these 172 centrally protected monuments due to paucity of funds. Counsel Sidharth Mridul appearing for the Centre said that the government was making provision to sanction more funds to the ASI in the coming budget. The Court also issued notice to Waqf Board to file a report by the next date of hearing for allegedly taking over some ancient monuments as Waqf property. The MCD, DDA and NDMC were asked to file status reports on these monuments in their respective areas by the next date of hearing.
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Water, power crises hit Faridabad hard
Faridabad, January 24 Elected members of the Municipal Corporation Faridabad (MCF) have appealed to the authorities to take immediate steps to end the crisis. “Long queues of people could be seen at private handpumps or private water tankers in many parts of the NIT area as the supply by the civic body has fallen during the past about four weeks,” claimed Rajesh Kumar, a resident of Jawahar Colony here, which is one of the largest colonies in the state. He said while there had been no arrangements on the part of the authorities, the residents were forced to buy even drinking water from the private suppliers. He said those who could not afford water from private tankers were rushing to the handpumps. Admitting that there had been a crisis regarding the power supply these days, he said this had resulted in acute shortage of water supply also. He said while the problem was not much in the HUDA sectors due to the ‘Rainneywell’ supply network, it had assumed serious proportions in non-HUDA colonies in the city. A large number of complaints had come to his office in the past few days and the people were forced to seek temporary means of supply from private sources, he said and added that he had asked the MCF officials to make arrangements to overcome the crisis. Claiming that the problem in many areas might have been due to the short supply of power at present, he said the government agencies would have to chalk out a strategy to tide over the water shortage. He said he would take up the demand of extending the ‘Rainneywell’ scheme to the remaining parts of the town in the next meeting of the civic body. Another elected member of the MCF also admitted that the problem of water and power supply, apart from broken roads, was still the main issue. He said the civic body required huge funds and quick decisions to start many development works, which include the water supply and sewerage network. The total population of the city is reported to be around 14 lakhs, of which around half of the population is residing in colonies suffering from the shortage of civic amenities, claimed a local social activist here.
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Illegal structures under MCD scanner
New Delhi, January 24 “We are looking into the legality of constructions belonging to about 30 politicians whose names have appeared in the media,” MCD spokesman Deep Mathur told reporters. He said this list could go up to 50, but refused to disclose the names of the politicians whose properties were under scrutiny. A large number of politicos have figured in news for allegedly owning illegal constructions, including Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, DPCC chief Rambabu Sharma, Urban Development Minister A K Walia as well as opposition BJP leaders Jagdish Mukhi and Jai Bhagwan Aggarwal. On the question of putting up the list of over 18,000 illegal structures on the civic body’s website, which has also been ordered by the Delhi High Court, Mathur said work on preparing the list to be given online was almost done and it would soon be made public. He added that work was on to prepare the Action Taken Report (ATR) on the demolition drive would be submitted to the Delhi High Court on January 31.
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Beating Retreat ceremony to feature new martial tunes
New Delhi, January 24 14 military bands, 12 pipes and drum bands and 68 buglers from various regiments of the army, besides a band of the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force, will portray the rich heritage of military customs and traditions at the occasion. What is unique about this year’s Beating Retreat, symbolising the convergence of military music, smart and agile movements and the traditional attire worn by the military bandsmen, is that it will have three new melodies – ‘Indian Soldiers’ (Quick March), ‘Bombay Sappers’ (Quick March) and ‘Suman Sarit’ (Slow March). While two of the tunes, ‘Indian Soldiers’ and ‘Suman Sarit’, have been composed by Maj R K Gurung, ‘Bombay Sappers’ is the creative output of Subedar Roop Singh. President A P J Abdul Kalam will be the chief guest at the ceremony, to be held at Vijay Chowk on January 29 at 5.00 p.m. The Beating Retreat ceremony is part of an age old war tradition that emerged from the need to call in the soldiers at sunset, honour the dead by clearing their bodies during the lull and giving them an appropriate burial in the battlefield. The ceremony commemorates the customary recalling of the soldiers to the camps at sunset by sounding the retreat. As the fighting ceased for the day, the arms were cased and flags lowered. Adopted by Major Roberts of the Indian Army in the early 1950s, the Beating Retreat has, over the years, emerged as an event of national pride when colours and standards are paraded and honoured and has been receiving overwhelming acclaim at the National and International level.
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Man fined Rs 8 lakh in cheque bounce case
New Delhi, January 24 Refusing to give benefit of probation to one Manohar lal, Metropolitan Magistrate Amit Kumar asked him to cough up double the amount of the bounced cheques before February 16 and suspended the six month jail term awarded to him till then. “Since the cases of dishonour of cases are on the rise in the society and to make the cheques more acceptable, lenient view will not serve a deterrent effect to others,” the court observed. According to complainant Amarjeet Singh Juneja, a friendly loan of Rs 4.05 lakh was advanced to the convict, a resident of Dilshad Garden in east Delhi. The convict had issued five cheques of different amounts. To the utmost shock to Juneja, all the cheques got bounced on presentation. The court held Lal guilty under section 138 (dishonour of cheques) of the Negotiable Instruments Act. Meanwhile, in another case, a Delhi court has issued non-bailable warrant against liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya for not being present at the time of hearing in a case of dishonoured cheques by a finance company, which he claimed he had quit much before the incident. Metropolitan Magistrate Vikas Dhull issued the non-bailable warrant for August 10, against Mallya, Chairman of UB Group, in connection with two cheques for Rs 493 and Rs 379 issued by Krest Finlease Ltd way back in 1998. However, the UB Group, in a statement maintained that Mallya had resigned from the Board of the company, which was earlier known as McDowell Krest Finance Ltd as early as March 20, 1997 in the midst of the divestment of UB group. The company was subsequently taken over by one Rayudu Group consequent to the disinvestment, the statement said. “The UB Group has no knowledge about the case in question much less the possibility of Dr Vijay Mallya having signed a cheque warranting an action leading to the present development. Dr Mallya in fact left the company’s Board in March 1997, a year before the issue of the cheque in question,” the UB statement said. The court had earlier on January 12 summoned Mallya for January 23 in his capacity as the Chairman of the Mc Dowell Krest Finance Ltd, the Chennai-based company, which has been named as an accused along with Manager Piyush Srivastav. The action came on a complaint filed by one Mahadevi who claimed she had made a fixed deposit of Rs 30,000 with the company in 1997 allegedly induced by a promise of higher interest rates.
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R-Day security: Cyber cafes under watch
New Delhi, January 24 Special checks have been launched at cyber cafes to keep a tab on terrorists accessing the internet, Joint Commissioner (Special Cell) Karnal Singh told reporters here. The special vigil at cyber cafes comes in the wake of bomb scare at Parliament last month. Parliament officials and the American embassy had received an e-mail sent from an obscure village in Tamil Nadu sending security apparatus in a tizzy leading to the evacuation of Parliament House on December 16. District police team along with Special Cell officials have been carrying out checks at guest houses and hotels, and tenant verification drive has also been stepped up to search for terror suspects. Sale of mobile phone SIM cards is also being monitored closely to ensure that they are not sold without proper verification, Karnal Singh said. Joint checks in border areas and sensitive parts of the Capital are being carried out to ensure that terrorists do not succeed in their plans, he said.
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School sites auctioned for Rs 103 cr by Huda
Gurgaon, January 24 It may be recalled that a five-acre plot for a five-star hotel in Sector 29 was auctioned for Rs 28 crore in 2003. “Today a school site of the same size was sold Rs 40 crore which clearly proves that the business community has established its faith in the present bureaucracy and government,” claimed Mr Gupta. To give a transparent picture of the auction, we have executed the video recording of all the exercise since the beginning till the fall of the hammer of each auction, added the officer. The administrator further revealed that Huda had auctioned 10 school sites in 2002 for a price of Rs 19 crore against the reserve price of Rs 17 crore. “But today’s auction of fetching Rs 103 crore for 16 school sites against the reserve price of Rs 29 crore is a clear indication of price rise in Gurgaon like other important metros of the country,” added the officer. He elaborated that four nursery school plots of 0.2 acre in Sector 9 and 9A was auctioned for Rs 1.15 crore, Rs 1.16 crore, Rs 1.12 crore and Rs 1.21 crore each against the reserve price of Rs 41 lakh. Likewise, in Sector 46, four sites of 0.217 acre, 0.207 acre, 0.178 and 1 acre were auctioned for Rs
2.62 crore, Rs 2.65 crore, Rs 3.61 and Rs 7.21 crore against the reserve price of Rs 47 lakh, Rs 45 lakh, Rs 44 lakh and Rs 2.7 crore respectively, added the office. In sector 47, two plots of 0.25 acre and 1 acre were auctioned for Rs 4 crore and Rs 10 crore against
the reserve price of Rs 53 lakh and Rs 2.52 crore respectively, informed the Huda administrator. He added that in Sector 38, three plots of 0.2 acre, 1.12 acre and 1 acre were sold at the price of Rs 2.27 crore, Rs 7.53 crore and Rs 5.61 crore against the reserve price of Rs 40 lac, Rs 2.25 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively. Two more plots in Sector 9 and 9A of size of 1.5 acre and 1 acre were sold at price of Rs 7.2 crore and Rs 6 crore against the reserve price of Rs 3.1 crore and Rs 2 crore respectively. An auctioneer of a leading school who has taken a plot told ‘The Tribune’ that the prices have skyrocketed here as Gurgaon is fast immerging a leading modern city not only in India but in the world as the best-known ITs and MNCs are coming up here to set up their offices and units.
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Kidnapped boy found in Faridabad
Faridabad, January 24 According to information available, the victim, identified as Monty, son of one Ashok Kumar, a businessman residing in the Nabi Karim area of Paharganj in Delhi, was abducted by one Rahees, a person known to the family, on Sunday last from a spot near his house. While four other persons, identified as Mukim, Mukhtiar, Sharif and Imtiaz, joined the main accused, they kept the boy in the national Capital till yesterday and came to a friend’ house on NH-2 here this morning. While the house owner here, identified as Jamshed was kept in dark about the matter and the boy accompanying them, the latter got suspicious and followed Rahees when he went to a nearby STD PCO for making a call to the parents of the boy. Jamshed then informed the local police about the matter and this led to the arrest of the main accused. The locals, who had assembled at the spot, also beat him up before handing him over to the police. However, his four accomplices were able to escape before the police reached the house. The police informed the parents of the kid. Meanwhile, in another incident, a self-styled tantrik was reported to have fled along with a teenaged boy residing in Sector 10 here. The tantrik, who had been operating from a place here, managed to get around 100 gm gold and Rs 5000 in cash, which was brought by the boy, aged around 17 years, from his house. The boy had contacted the tantrik in connection with some problem regarding his studies and had agreed to pay him the valuables and cash as demanded.
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Engineers robbed, villagers catch two robbers
Greater Noida, January 24 On finding themselves encircled, the bandits opened fire on the villagers. When they had run out of cartridges, the villagers caught hold of two robbers and thrashed them thoroughly. The other two were able to flee on the bike. The police have rushed the criminals to hospital. The bandits are from Bulandshahr who carry rewards on their heads. One of them is reported to be a village pradhan. A road is under construction in Chi Fi sector under Kasna police station. Greater Noida authority’s senior manager P.K. Kaushal and two engineers Karan Singh and Ramveer Singh were inspecting the work when four bandits riding two bikes came there at 1 pm. They whipped out revolvers and snatched Rs 12,000, two wristwatches, a cell phone and a gold chain from them. When manager Kaushal tried to resist the criminals, they trained their guns on him. While leaving, they drove Karan Singh’s Maruti car also. The police were immediately informed, who put up the barricades, but the robbers had fled through Ramgarh Road. On being caught, the criminals identified themselves as Birinder, alias Situ, son of Mahavir of Aurangabad; and Krishen, son of Dharamveer Singh of Bulandshahr. While two criminals are Krishenpal and Badal, Birender is a village chief. Krishen had been awarded a life sentence for murder. They carry a reward of Rs 2,500 each on their heads. Their gang is very active in western UP and wanted for 17 cases of murders, loots, dacoity, etc. The gang had looted Rs 10 lakh from a bank in Anup Shahr in 2005, police said.
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Controversy marks elections for DLF RWA
Gurgaon, January 24 Mr Pawan Gupta was elected treasurer with 630 votes and his rival Harish Kapoor got 270 votes. For the post of assistant treasurer, R. K. Kohi with 630 votes and his rival V. K. Sharma got 270 votes. However, the defeated candidate, Mr D. B. Anand, alleged there was bogus voting in the election and that was why they had complained to the Returning Officer, Mr J. S. Daweja, to cancel the election in the afternoon itself. The persons belonging to the Rathi group even misbehaved with the ladies who came to vote. He alleged that Ms Uma Wig and Ms Nimi Khanna who were contesting for executive committee members for their phase were treated badly. The police were also called in and they were unable to control the bogus voting, alleged Mr Anand. Mr Anand was the general secretary in the previous body where Mr Rathi was the president. However he decided to contest against Mr Rathi. Mr Anand asserted to ‘The Tribune’ that the resident welfare association had to be in agreement with the developer if it intended to provide better infrastructure and facilities for the residents. “We cannot and should not fight with the developer,” added Mr Anand. Mr Rathi said allegations of bogus voting were baseless as the margin between the winner and loser was very high. Mr Rathi further alleged the promoter of the colony, DLF Universal Limited, had promoted Mr D. B. Anand and the developer wanted him to win. “But the residents of DLF city do not want to elect the representatives of DLF Qutab Enclave Resident Welfare Association who are in the favour of the developer and that was why they voted in favour of us who have become bete noire of the developer,” he asserted. There were around 2600 members in the association, out of which around 40 per cent exercised their votes today. The office-bearers were elected for two years. “There is another resident association in the DLF City, DLF City Resident Welfare Association, which was promoted by the developer around four years back, which was formed at the time of the inception of the colony, since we did not toe their line,” added Mr R. S. Rathi.
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Panchayat gives ruling for hiding caste
Bulandshahr, January 24 Confusion and commotion reigned for some time. The panchayat was summoned which declared the father of the brides was to be slapped five times across the face while the father of the grooms would have to pay a fine of Rs 25,000. The incident has shocked the whole area. Jaspal and Vijaypal (not real names) of Bibi Nagar had arranged the marriages of their three daughters with the sons of Thakur Durjan Singh (not the real name) of Bhansrili village under the Agota police station. The marriage parties of the three grooms reached the house of the girls’ parents on Sunday where they were welcomed in the traditional way. Two marriages were solemnised but when the third couple was to sit on the marriage platform the groom refused, alleging that parents of the brides had concealed the fact that they belonged to a lower caste. This resulted in a furore. The village panchayat was summoned. The panchayat ruled that the girls’ fathers should be slapped five times across the face while the father of the groom should pay a fine of Rs 25,000 to the girls’ side. Even the two grooms, who had completed the marriage ceremonies, were to return without brides. The middleman, who had arranged the marriages, had misled both the parties by concealing their real castes. Seeing the situation getting out of hand, he slipped away quietly.
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Gang of hitch-hiker auto thieves busted
Noida, January 24 The police have arrested the gang leader and three other members of the gang. A mini-truck, a Maruti car and an electroplating machine have been recovered from the arrested criminals. According to SSP Mordia, the police had been getting reports of vehicles being taken away in this fashion since many days. Surveillance was intensified on suspicious characters. The SOG and the Sector 49 police arrested four criminals at the Sector 50 crossing in Noida on the basis of a tip-off. They were identified as Amit of Secunderabad, Neeraj of Dadri, Rajit from Dankore and Riku. The police recovered a Delhi mini-truck 407, a Maruti car taken away by criminals from Atta Pir under the Sector 20 police station here and a computer and electroplating machine stolen from Secunderabad. Amit is the gang leader. The modus operandi of the gang members was that they would request for a lift and get into the vehicles. After befriending the drivers on the way, they would offer him liquor or drug-laced eatables. They would drop him by the roadside and flee with the vehicle. The police are trying to nab other members of the gang. The Sector 24 police arrested four more auto thieves, Manjoj Mukar, Amit, Sarkar and Veermar Sarkar, at the Reliance crossing. Two stolen motorcycles were recovered from them. A .315 revolver and a knife were also seized from these criminals.
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High alert in UP border districts for R-Day
Noida-Ghaziabad, January 24 The police have already stepped up vigilance on borders with Delhi. Buses, taxis, three-wheelers and private vehicles going to Delhi or coming from Delhi are being checked. Police teams along with the Seemapuri police are checking the slum clusters. Special vigilance has been mounted on public places like bus stand, railway stations, malls, multiplex cinema houses, markets, hospitals, etc. Sensitive locations, mohallas and religious places are also under the scanner. Suspicious-looking persons are being questioned or even frisked. Even the drivers of cars and two-wheelers are also being checked. In the process, some minors driving vehicles have been apprehended. In Ghaziabad across Hindon and border areas are especially being checked by security agencies in connection with the Republic Day. All the slums along the roadside from Seemapuri to Anand Vihar were searched on Sunday, the police said. A number of criminals, bad characters, suspected terrorists and Bangladeshi suspects were rounded up or kept under close scrutiny. Vehicle check and high alert will continue till the Republic Day evening, the police said.
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Ghaziabad police plans FIRs via internet
Ghaziabad, January 24 All police stations in the district would be computerised soon and the ones at Sahibabad and Indirapuram would be linked with a modernised control room via computers on a priority basis, Senior
Superintendent of Police J N Singh said here today. He said it would then be possible for citizens to file FIRs sitting at home or at cybercafes instead of trudging along to a police station. “With the computerisation of police stations, it will not be mandatory for the complainant to come to police station. The public can visit the website of Ghaziabad police at www.ghaziabadpolice.org for the requisite details,” he said.
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Two elderly women found murdered
New Delhi, January 24 Their hands and feet were tied and there were marks on their neck. Last night, three men along with a girl had visited them and reportedly had drinks before leaving, sources added. Both had recently shifted to Mandawali from Dilshad Garden. Nisha, who would call Premlata her ‘mausi’ (aunt), has a 25-year-old son. Her husband had died some ten years back.
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Government bungalows: 273 illegal occupants removed
New Delhi, January 24 The Supreme Court bench comprising Mr Justice B N Agarwal and Mr Justice A K Mathur directed the Centre to file counter reply in two months to the petitions filed by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and an intervention application moved by one Mr S D Bandi.
— TNS
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Man gets 5-year RI for attempt to rape infant
New Delhi, January 24 The girl’s mother, on March 2, 2003, found Saleem, their next door neighbour, trying to force himself on her daughter who was alone at home at the time of the incident. She raised an alarm and Saleem took to his heels. He was arrested two days later by Model Town police.
— TNS
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No respite from cold wave conditions
New Delhi, January 24 The North Westerly winds, blowing since yesterday, brought the minimum temperature to 6.4 degrees Celsius, which was two degrees below normal, the Weather Office said. A thin layer of smog enveloped parts of the Capital, which had experienced balmy weather for most of the last week when maximum temperatures touched 27 degrees Celsius.
— TNS
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