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BJP divided over OBC quota issue
Jan Morcha gives call for end of Mulayam rule
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Punjab farmers’ suicide
Atal cautions party on internal problems
Nitish to implement Bengal model for land reforms
Shia board moots model nikahnama
BJP jittery as Sharad toils to unite Janata parivar
Rahul in no hurry to accept party post
Airport employees threaten stir
Pathak panel grills Jagat on 2001 Iraq visit
Police questions key witness in Jessica case
Heavy rains in Goa; 5 trawlers capsize
Hrithik backs Aamir, flays Modi
Free TVs for poor, courtesy Karunanidhi
Two die in
RCF plant
explosion
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BJP divided over OBC quota issue
New Delhi, May 30 Some senior party leaders, including former Union Minister Bandaru Dattatreya and BJP Legislature Party Leader in Maharashtra Gopinath Munde are understood to have asserted during the meeting here that the party’s stand was “confusing” and “sending wrong signals”. Mr Dattatreya, senior leader from Andhra Pradesh, is understood to have said that the stand can harm the party’s interests in South India where OBCs have a substantial population. Some leaders are also understood to have demanded action against some Central leaders, including V K Malhotra and Sushma Swaraj, for visiting the agitating medicos and taking sides with the anti-reservationists. According to sources, journalist-turned-party leader Arun Shourie has opposed reservation in toto. However, party spokesperson Arun Jaitley maintained that there was no confusion on the party’s stand on the quota issue. “Party president Rajnath Singh had in his address yesterday made the party’s stand very clear and today the national executive has once again made the party’s stand clear in its resolution...So, there is no room for confusion,” he said. Trying to tread a middle path on the controversial issue, the resolution adopted unanimously charged the UPA government with creating social tensions on the reservation issue and asked it to ensure that merit was not squeezed while implementing the quota regime. “The BJP had supported the Constitutional amendment to provide reservations in higher educational institutions. However, while doing so, any attempt at divisiveness must be avoided. Social fabric of the society must not be damaged,” it said. “The government must ensure that while implementing reservations, the space for merit is not queezed and excellence of institutions is not compromised. Secondly, efforts must be taken to ensure that the benefits of reservation must reach the most deprived amongst the socially deprived sections. Thirdly, the government must ensure that the economically weaker sections of the upper caste are included in the benefits of the reservation,” the BJP resolution said. It also demanded that a committee of experts must be set up to examine that these three obligations were subserved. The resolution also made it clear that the BJP would oppose the exclusion of minority institutions from the obligation of reservation and any attempt to provide reservation on religious basis. “The BJP notes with concern that the committee appointed by the NDA government to examine the feasibility of providing reservation to the economically weaker sections has been abolished by the Central Government,” it added.
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Jan Morcha gives call for end of Mulayam rule
Lucknow, May 30 Visibly pleased at the emerging contours of a broad secular formation against the Samjawadi Party, under the banner of his Jan Morcha, former Prime Minister V.P. Singh declared that their goal should not be to change a government or a Chief Minister, but a change in the conditions of the farmer, the weaver and the poor. He reminded the vast numbers in front of him that many people had gained power by their show of extending support to them, He on the other hand had lost his government for reaching out to them. Braving the extreme humidity and heat, a sea of humanity appeared at the Laxman Mela Maidan to cheer their leaders and express solidarity with their expressed mission to dislodge the present government. Colourful flags and banners of the 15-odd political parties participating in the rally lent a festive look to the venue. Yellow and green headgears were presented to the leaders gracing the dias — representing parties from the Left from the CPI-ML and the CPI to the Right like the Rashtriya Kranti Party represented by Sakshi Maharaj. A sharp tirade against both the Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party and Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party was launched by all parties. Calling Mulayam Singh Yadav a “banyan tree” under which no plant survives, Lalu Yadav gave an assurance to spend considerable time in Uttar Pradesh to ensure the “bidaai” of Mulayam Singh Yadav along with Amar Singh with the “ceremonial rice” given on the occasion. He said the Jan Morcha’s role should not be of a “vote katwa”, but of presenting a viable alternative to the present dispensation. Udit Raj of the Indian Justice Party said the BSP was clearly nervous at the realigning of forces under the Jan Morcha banner making it give a call for a rally on June 30. “The morcha is proving to be a challenge to the BSP as till now its chief was projecting her party as the only authentic voice of the Dalits”, he pointed out. The parties across the spectrum lent their support for OBC reservation for higher education. V.P. Singh said his Kisan Morcha would fight to give representation to the backward castes and Muslims under the Mandal Commission. Referring to a recent
statement of Mulayam Singh Yadav, V.P. Singh said, “Some people wanted to send Arjun Singh to jail. In that case I should be put on the cross”. CPI General Secretary A.B. Bardhan expressed surprise at the manner in which the media was projecting that merit was the exclusive prerogative of the upper castes.”Given the opportunity, children of our weavers and farmers can compete with the very best brains”. Lalu Yadav warned the people to organise against the forces who were blocking the roads to deprive a vast section of the people of their constitutional rights. “If we lose this chance, we will be defeated for ever”.
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Punjab farmers’ suicide
New Delhi, May 30 BJP leader R P Singh, co-incharge of party affairs in Punjab, said here that the party would urge Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take immediate stock of the mounting complaints regarding farm-related issues in Punjab. “Debt-ridden farmers in Punjab are committing suicide. The Congress Government in the state is not addressing their woes. It’s high time the Centre stepped into redress farmers’ grievances in Punjab,” Mr R P Singh said on the sidelines of BJP National Executive Meeting, which concluded here today. “The BJP has already launched a campaign in the state to raise the problems facing the farmers like poor irrigation facilities, inadequate power supply and inadequate minimum support price for foodgrains,” he said. Meanwhile, the party has started gearing up for the Assembly polls in Punjab next year. BJP general secretary and in charge of Punjab affairs Arun Jaitley is scheduled to pay a three-day visit to the state beginning June 2. During his visit he will interact with party leaders and workers at Chandigarh, Jalandhar and Amritsar, sources said.
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Atal cautions party on internal problems
New Delhi, May 30 “We do not face external threat from anyone ever. But if someone from home creates crisis then there is some lacunae somewhere,” he said at the two-day BJP National Executive which concluded here today. His comments assume great significance as there is a raging feud within the Karnataka unit of the BJP, Tribal leader from Jharkhand Babulal Marandi raising banner of revolt and earlier Uma Bharti and Madan Lal Khurana quitting the party. Mr Vajpayee also stressed the need for better coordination with allies in states being ruled by BJP so that the party grows there. Stating that the BJP is ruling in these states in a responsible manner, he said that efforts should be made to improve performance to such a level so that the party was elected again. Mr Vajpayee also paid homage to former party general secretary Pramod Mahajan. Mr Vajpayee was also appreciative of BJP president Rajnath Singh for taking everyone along.
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Nitish to implement Bengal model for land reforms
Patna, May 30 The land reforms were promised in the common minimum programme (CMP) of the NDA before the October-November polls. Sources disclosed that Mr Kumar had already consulted a number of experts on this issue. A Cabinet meeting, held last week, had also approved the CMP of the NDA, which underscored the need for land reforms to foster socio-economic development at the grassroots. The sources said, “The land-related disputes were a major issue used by the Maoists to engineer social tension on caste lines”. It was learnt that Mr Kumar was personally in favour of broadly following the West Bengal model of land reforms, which, besides some other factors, had helped the Left Front to continue in power by arresting the anti-incumbency factor to a great extent for the past 29 years since 1977. During an interaction with the bureaucrats, Mr Kumar reportedly favoured a step forward than the Left-ruled West Bengal by linking land reforms to multi-cropping and agro-based industries to generate employment at the rural level. This was yet to be achieved by the Left Front in Bengal even after the enactment of land reforms in as early as late 1970s. The sources disclosed that last week land reforms expert D.Bandopadhyay met Mr Kumar to apprise him about the West Bengal model and also suggested the changes required now to upgrade the said concept. Mr
Bandopadhyay, a retired bureaucrat, had played a key role in facilitating
land reforms in Bengal under the then Chief Minister Jyoti Basu. A senior official pointed out that notwithstanding the alleged misrule of the previous RJD government, Bihar had ceased to be a happening state much before Mr Lalu Prasad came to power in 1990. “On key economic parameters, it became the second worst among the country’s major states in 1961 and the worst by 1971,” he said quoting official statistics. Incidentally, except a brief spell of
governance by the Janata Party between 1977 and 1979, for the entire phase since Independence, till the continuous spell of the successive non-Congress governments that took over the reins of the state in 1990, the Congress-ruled Bihar. At a time when Mr Kumar was carefully working out strategies for the land reform-related measures by taking into consideration the complex caste problem of the state, the ruling NDA was optimistic to blur the perennial caste divide to a great extent once land reforms was in place, besides isolating the Maoists from the people. Meanwhile, much to the delight of Mr Kumar, the CEO of Bharti Limited, Mr Sunil Mittal, has expressed his intention to venture into the agro-based industries in the state. The Bharti group will soon send a team to Bihar to study the cropping pattern and consult land experts before submitting the plan to Mr Kumar.
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Shia board moots model nikahnama
Lucknow, May 30 This initiative comes exactly a year after the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board introduced a model nikahnama at its Bhopal conference in May 2005, which left a vast section of Muslim women angry for falling far short of their expectations. Addressing the media AISPLB president Mirza Mohammad Athar expressed the hope that a new more comprehensive nikahnama would be presented at the board’s annual conference in Mumbai on November 26. Admitting that the condition of the Shia women was much better than the Sunni women who always had the sword of “triple talaq” hanging over their head, the Maulana said that still with the changing times there was definitely scope for improvement in the existing nikahnama for the Shia women as well. He said that now with the joint family system under threat nuclear families were emerging which required a more responsive nikahnama so that couples did not rush to the courts. For instance, he said the present nikahnama being used by the Shias only documented that nikah had taken place, the meher amount, place and date and the name of the persons who had conducted the ceremony. The improved version on which they were working would address a host of problems being faced by women after marriage. It would make an effort to resolve disputes to help the couples with the help of arbitration so that the chances of couples rushing to courts get minimised. Assuring that the new nikahnama being drafted by the board would be following the Jafri school of jurisprudence adhered to by the Shias, the Maulana said that once it was ready it would sent to the eminent cleric Ayatoullah Sistani in Iraq for approval. Once it got the nod from this religious authority of the Shias, it would be shown to legal experts of the country to ensure that it did not violate any constitutional provision, informed the president of AISPLB.
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BJP jittery as Sharad toils to unite Janata parivar
Patna, May 30 Incidentally, a majority of the states that topped Mr Yadav’ list were known strongholds of the JD(U)’s coalition partner — the BJP. An apparently cautious national general-secretary of the BJP, Mr Arun Jaitley, who had played a key role in cementing JD(U)-BJP relationship in Bihar to finally ground Mr Lalu Prasad Yadav in October-November polls, had then sought to prevaricate the issue stating that the JD(U) was an independent party which was free to decide its own course of action. But unlike the former president of the JD(U), Mr George Fernandes, who was known for his soft corner for the BJP, Mr Sharad Yadav never made bones of the fact that he had no extra love for the saffron brigade. Against this backdrop, a recent meeting between Mr Sharad Yadav and the former Prime Minister, Mr Deve Gowda, which reportedly took place in Delhi on May 23,perhaps assumed a special
significance. Both Mr Yadav and Mr Gowda now head two separate splinter groups of the erstwhile undivided Janata Dal, the JD(U) and JD(S), respectively. Mr Yadav’s seriousness to unite the divided Janata parivar was reflected by his goodwill gesture when the JD(U) had withdrawn its candidate in favour of the JD(S) in the polls held for a legislative council seat in Karnataka recently. Besides, Mr Yadav was also learnt to have interacted with senior Janata leaders, like Mr S.R. Bommai and Mr J.H.Patel during his visit to Bangalore in the recent past. Sources in the JD(U) disclosed that the signs of bonhomie between the JD(U) and the JD(S) gathered momentum after Mr Deve Gowda’s son Mr Kumarswamy recently joined hands with the BJP to form the coalition government in Karnataka dislodging the Congress. Sources
said, “Since the JD(U) was a part of the BJP-led NDA, the JD(S) was not comfortable with it till few months ago.
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Rahul in no hurry to accept party post
New Delhi, May 30 Although there is intense pressure from the party rank and file that young Gandhi be inducted into the AICC as a general secretary, Congress insiders maintain that the MP from Amethi is still undecided about taking up a formal office. “He wants to define his own role in the party and in politics,” explained a senior Congress functionary. AICC insiders say that Rahul Gandhi has his own style of functioning , adding that he prefers to keep a low-profile and is happy pursuing his interests without attracting too much attention. While concentrating on his constitutency
Amethi, Rahul Gandhi has been travelling extensively in the country and interacting with students, academics and social activists. He does not like to be pushed around, it was stated. The demand for his induction into the party has come up periodically over the past two years. It was raised at the AICC plenary session in January in response to which Rahul Gandhi had said that he needed more time as he was still learning the ropes. However, fresh pressure has been building up after Rahul Gandhi successfully managed Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s recent Rae Bareli
election. Soon after her spectacular win, Mrs. Gandhi also indicated that Rahul could be given a formal position in the party organisation. However, it appears that young Gandhi is still far from ready to take on such a responsibility and that he is content doing party work without being given any party post. Rahul Gandhi’s future plans have become a subject of hot debate in Congress circles. There is a section which believes this is the right time for him to assume greater
responsibilities in the party, especially since he has recently proved his organisational capabilities in the Rae Bareli
bypoll. “Besides, how long can we keep this debate going,” remarked a senior Congress functionary, adding that timing is very critical in politics. It is argued that general interest will wane if this suspense continues for too long as party cadres will eventually tire out. On the flip side, there is a section in the party which believes that Rahul Gandhi should be left to chart his own course and work at his own pace. Several senior AICC functionaries also point out there is no compulsion to project Rahul Gandhi at this juncture as the party already has a popular leader in Sonia Gandhi. “He is our trump card, why should the party expose him till it is absolutely necessary for it do so,” remarked another Congress leader.
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Airport employees threaten stir
New Delhi, May 30 The umbrella body of the four Airports Authority of India Unions, AAI Employees Joint Forum, has written a letter to Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, seeking his intervention in getting the AAI management implement the demands. In the letter the forum has warned that “before our patience goes out, we will request you to kindly take necessary corrective actions or else we may be driven to the brink of another industrial unrest for which the responsibility shall not rest on us alone.” Leaders of the forum, which had struck work for four days in February, also alleged that there was no transparency in the privatisation process for Delhi and Mumbai airports. Opposing the transfer of staff in Delhi and Mumbai airports to the joint venture firms led by GMR and GVK groups in accordance with the OMDA, the forum leaders asserted that the employees would not work in any company other than the AAI. In their letter, the leaders also pointed out that deliberations of the Tripartite Committee on modernisation of airports had not gathered pace as representatives of the AAI and the ministry were hesitant to reply to the employees queries and were “avoiding opening up their minds”. “The OMDA (Operation, Maintenance and Development Agreement), which was executed with the private parties, was kept a closely guarded secret and was not even shared with the joint forum,” the letter said. They urged the Civil Aviation Minister to act as “an independent judge” and get the demands met and implemented or face another bout of industrial action.
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Pathak panel grills Jagat on 2001 Iraq visit
New Delhi, May 30 Jagat said he had supplied whatever information he had to the one-man authority, which is examining Jagat's role in the alleged scam in which Natwar Singh and Congress party have been named as non-contractual beneficiaries. He said the examination was based on documentary evidence gathered over several months by government's Special Envoy Virendra Dayal and several other investigative agencies probing allegations into the Indian angle in Iraq's oil-for-food programme scam. Asked whether he was in support of further extension of the tenure of the authority, Jagat said he wished that the truth behind these allegations would be uncovered as soon as possible. “Only those who are guilty would want a delay in this matter. My father and I have nothing to hide and we definitely hope that the probe will end soon,” he said. When asked to compare this examination with that conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) some time ago, Jagat said this (the Pathak inquiry) covered all the points, and was a very thorough examination. Though Andaleeb Sehgal and Aditya Khanna, in the hearings before the authority, had admitted that Jagat and his father were non-contractual beneficiaries in the alleged scam, Jagat had denied any involvement in the issue.
— PTI
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Police questions key witness in Jessica case
New Delhi, May 30 Bhojwani, a close friend of Jessica and the first witness of the prosecution to testify against the main accused Manu Sharma, was interrogated by the Special Investigation Team of the Delhi Police yesterday, the police said today. Bhojwani had seen Manu Sharma, who allegedly shot at Jessica on the night of April 29, 1999, and Vikas Yadav, running out of the Tamparind Court bar where the model was shot, the police said. Bhojwani, one of the few witnesses who did not turn hostile during the trial, has been often stating that he was willing to cooperate with the Delhi Police. In fact, Bhojwani was the first person to record his statement saying he saw Manu Sharma running out of the Tamarind Court restaurant after allegedly killing Jessica. However, the trial court of Additional Sessions Judge S.L. Bhayana, which acquitted all nine accused in the Jessica case in February this year, had declared Bhojwani as a “false witness” as his name was not on the invitation list for the party hosted by socialite Bina Ramani on that fateful day. The Delhi Police, in March, filed a revision petition in the Delhi High Court against the order of the Additional Sessions Judge.
— UNI
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Heavy rains in Goa; 5 trawlers capsize
Panaji, May 30 Goa received 26 cm of rain during the past two days while Margoa in south Goa registered 32 cm, said K V Singh, Director of the Meteorological Depart-ment. “Gusty winds and heavy rains will continue for the next 24 hours and we have sent a warning to fishermen asking them not to venture out to sea,” Singh said. Coastal towns were the worst hit as gusty winds caused by upper air cyclonic circulation off the Karwar coast created havoc. There was damage to property, but no one was killed, officials said. “The Kerala-based trawler ‘Selyamatha’ capsized off the Goa coast. Of its nine crew members, eight swam across to shore while one is missing. The trawler was towed to nearby Vasco harbour by another trawler,” said Commandant RM Sharma, Deputy Inspector General of the Coast Guard.
— PTI
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Hrithik backs Aamir, flays Modi
Mumbai, May 30 In an open letter circulated to the media here, Hrithik hit out at the Narendra Modi government in Gujarat for not doing enough to facilitate the screening of “Fanaa”. Using strong words, he said he was “ashamed to live in a country where one political party can use the power given to them by the people to try and punish a person and rob him of his democratic rights. And that’s only because the person believes in a righteous cause that goes against the party’s interests”. Hrithik felt that the BJP was sending a message to the film industry to prevent them from taking a stand on issues of public interest in future. “What is ridiculous is that they have not even understood what he is standing for. Aamir is not against the dam, but for the rehabilitation of the people concerned. It’s preposterous, I mean what kind of IQ do these gentlemen have? They are behaving like bullies! They are still in school and need to grow up. I am with Aamir,” he added. According to Hrithik, he decided to come out in support of Aamir now as he was busy with shooting for Dhoom 2.
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Free TVs for poor, courtesy Karunanidhi
Chennai, May 30 Replying to the debate on the motion of thanks to the Governor for his address, he said the government would constitute a committee comprising representatives of leaders of legislature parties to implement the scheme in a transparent manner. The committee would also oversee the procurement and disbursement of the televisions to the poor. Global tenders would be invited for this purpose, he said and added that the scheme would be launched on the birth anniversaries of former Chief Minister
C.N. Annadurai and rationalist leader Periyar E V Ramaswamy on September 15 and 17, respectively. It would be implemented in a phased manner, he
added. — UNI
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Two die in
RCF plant
explosion
Mumbai, May 30 The mishap occurred at around 4 am when gas build-up in the pipeline was suspected to have caused an explosion. The resulting fire killed operators Kiran Sawant (46) and Nitin Adhikari (41). Confirming the incident a company spokesperson said the mishap occurred in the melt pipeline of ammonium nitrate phosphate plant. Fire Brigade personnel took more than two hours to put out the fire. The RCF said in a statement that a “thorough internal inquiry” had been ordered into the incident.
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