Bhiwandi, July 6
Curfew was clamped in Bhiwandi, 60 km from Mumbai, after fresh incidents of violence were reported in the textile town.

Angry residents protesting the arrest of several people for yesterday's violence here attacked the Shanti Nagar police station and torched several vehicles, including police vans.

The area has been tense for the past several days after local residents protested the construction of a police station on a plot of land used by them as a burial ground. The situation worsened after a crowd of more than 1000 rioted on Wednesday morning.

The police was then forced to open fire, resulting in the death of two persons. The mob subsequently went berserk and lynched two constables.

Subsequently, tempers flared up again after the police attempted to arrest the youths suspected in the lynching incident. After the fresh round of violence, curfew was clamped in Bhiwandi.

Maharashtra's Deputy Chief Minister R.R. Patil assured the community that plans to construct the police station would be scrapped.

The violence has resulted in at least 30 policemen suffering severe injuries.

Members of the local Muslim community say the plot of land was being used a cemetery for several decades. Adjacent to the Qadra Gate

Masjid, the authorities were planning to build the police station with offices for senior officials in the area.

Thane Police Commissioner D. Sivanandan, under whose jurisdiction Bhiwandi falls, said the plot was alloted to the Police Department way back in 1920. Subsequently permission was granted to construct a police housing colony here in 1965, though the police decided to build a police station here, Sivanandan said.

Opposition to the construction of the police station has been sparked off by local politicians and religious leaders.

Matters came to a head when the Public Works Department began construction and laid the foundation for the police station on the plot. Yesterday, the mob armed with pickaxes and other tools smashed the structure before turning on the policemen.

The policemen who were on duty yesterday insist that it was a planned attack by miscreants bent on creating communal trouble. "The crowd systematically surrounded us and attacked us from all sides," said a police officer.

Bhiwandi, a textile town in decline, has been experiencing communal riots since the 1960s. However ,since the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, incidents of policemen being targeted by local youths have increased.

New Delhi, July 6
Already under attack from his own party on the issue of price rise, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is faced with further erosion of his authority having been forced to succumb to DMK’s pressure and place all disinvestment plans on hold today.

Describing this move as an “act of frustration”, UPA insiders said Dr Singh had opted for the path of least resistance as he was not getting the requisite political backing

He needs to implement key economic and administrative policies. Although used to fighting the Left parties, the Prime Minister’s problems have been further compounded now with the DMK also jumping on to the “anti-reforms” bandwagon.

“Ultimately, these are all political decisions... if the PM does not get the necessary backing, he has no option but to pull back,” remarked a senior UPA minister, stating that a series of recent developments had sent out the message that the Prime Minister was not in control.

The OBC quota controversy, followed by the price hike issue and now the DMK-PMK’s double whammy in the form of its strong opposition to the disinvestment of government stake in the Tamil Nadu-based PSU Neyveli Lignite and the sacking of AIIMS director Dr P.Venugopal have all added to the PM’s list of woes. UPA insiders said the Prime Minister was faced with the galling situation where a junior minister like Mr Dayanidhi Maran told him off on the disinvestment issue and PMK’s Health Minister Ambumani Ramadoss warning him that he would pull out if Dr Venugopal’s resignation was not accepted.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi, also appears to have backed off, thus giving the impression that she is not completely enamoured with the direction and pace of the government’s reforms agenda. She had indicated as much a couple of months ago when she wrote to Dr Singh, expressing her reservations about the government’s move to enter into free trade agreements with China and other South Asian countries. In fact, party insiders maintain that it was at her behest that AICC general secretary V.Narayanswamy made a strong demand for not going ahead with the disinvesment of government stake in NALCO at the recent CWC meeting.

More than the pace of reforms, Mrs Gandhi is said to be unhappy at the slow implementation of the UPA government’s pro-poor policies, which are close to her heart. She has been taking personal interest in the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee programme and was distressed when the party’s “aam admi” plank took a severe beating following the recent spurt in prices of essential commodities.

New Delhi, July 6
Emergency services at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, a major referral centre of northern India, remained paralysed today due to the strike call given by its Resident Doctors Association and Faculty Association.

As many as 1200 senior and junior residents and 480 faculty members did not attend to patients either in emergency or Out Patient Departments in support of their victimised yet much celebrated Director and heart Surgeon, Dr P. Venugopal.

Computerised print-outs of anti Ramadoss slogans were pasted on the doors in front of the Jawaharlal Auditorium. The slogans clearly rejected the leadership of the Health Minister and President of the Institute, Dr Ramadoss. They read, “Ramadoss is not our boss. Reinstate Dr Venugopal”, “Autonomy of AIIMS is our lifeline. We will die to save it, “Ramadoss Bharat Chodo” and “AIIMS going down the drain.”

Although nurses reported for work, they are being persuaded to join the strike.

More than 50 stretchers that are otherwise hard to find lay unsued in front of the emergency. The door leading to the emergency was locked. A hand written note stamped on the door read, “Emergency closed. OPD closed.”

The note further explained the circumstances leading to the closure of the emergency. Referring to the Director’s removal, it said that the matter is in Court.

Leaders of four democratic institutions on the campus including the Faculty Association, the Resident Doctors Association, the Students Union and Society for Young Scientists started a fast-unto-death in front of the Jawahalal Auditorium. FAIMS Acting President, Dr Binod Khaitan held a placard that read, “Dr Venugopal is not an individual. He is the symbol of the dignity of the entire medical fraternity of the country.”

AIIMS RDA President, Dr Binod Patro who is also sitting on a hunger strike since Thursday noon said that he met the Director on Wednesday evening.

Dr Patro said that they have received messages expressing solidarity from various institutes across the country. He said that the President of PGI Resident Doctors Association has indicated that they would also join the strike to protest against Dr Venugopal’s removal.

Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health today has criticised the AIIMS Institute Body’s decision to sack Dr Venugopal and asked the government to review its decision.

Meanwhile, the Politburo of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has urged the government to intervene to settle the issue in an amicable manner. In a statement issued here, the party Politbioro has said, “The developments concerning the AIIMS are a matter of concern as it is a premier institution for medical services and research in the country.

New Delhi, July 6
The Supreme Court today took cognizance of an application seeking immediate removal of such legislators who had been convicted in criminal cases by courts though their appeals were pending before higher courts.

A Bench of Chief Justice Y K Sabharwal and Mr Justice C K Thakker, however, posted hearing on the application of NGO Lok Prahari with its main public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the provision of Section 8(1), (2) and (3) of the Represention of People Act, providing protection to MPs and MLAs against immediate disqualification on their being convicted by trial courts if the sentence was less than two years.

But the NGO sought removal of all such MPs and MLAs from the House in view of last year’s apex court judgement holding that the sentences awarded for less than two years for different offences in a criminal case against a legislator which otherwise had to be undergone concurrently would be taken as accumulated total sentence for the purpose of Section 8 of the RPA.

NGO counsel S N Shukla said if this principle was applied to the convicted legislators who got concurrent sentence less then two years for more than one offence in a case and the accumulated punishment was over two years, he was liable to be sacked from the House.

NGO’s counsel sought a direction to the Election Commission to furnish data as to how many MPs and MLAs were continuing to sit in the House, despite their being convicted in criminal cases. Besides, it sought a direction to the High Courts to dispose of their appeals expeditiously.

Chennai, July 6
With the workers of Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) going on an indefinite strike, power supply in the South has been severly affected .

The 21,000 staffers and 12,000 contract workers went on an indefinite strike on Tuesday night protesting against disinvestment of 10 per cent of equity in the public sector undertaking which is a profit making organization.

Barring the Congress all parties in Tamil Nadu have expressed solidarity with the striking workers. The Labour Progressive Front (LPF), which is affiliated to the ruling DMK, a constituent of the UPA at the Centre, is leading the strike.

The Centre’s proposal that the equity stake would be offered to the NLC workers is not acceptable to the DMK and is also impractical because 100 shares of the profit making NLC amounts to Rs 8 lakh and no worker could afford it.

New Delhi, July 6
Within weeks of Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash returning from Russia after overlooking the progress being made on the purchase front of the three more stealth warships, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) today gave its clearance for their purchase along with 28 submarine-fired cruise missiles.

The three Russian Krivak-class frigates would be acquired at a cost of Rs 5,114 crore. The first one would be delivered five years after the signing of the contract and the subsequent two within 12 months of the delivery of the first warship, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee told mediapersons after the meeting of the CCS chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Mr Mukherjee said the purchase of the three Russian frigates was a follow-up order to the purchase of three of the same type of warships in the late 1990s.

The Indian Navy has already inducted three Krivak-class warships that were re-christened Talwar-class.

Admiral Arun Prakash was in Moscow last month to take a look at the progress made on the negotiations being made for the purchase.

This was important as India wants to install the nuclear warhead capable supersonic Brahmos missiles on these frigates.

Having purchased the three frigates earlier, India had the option open for purchasing three more warships.

Mr Mukherjee said the CCS had also approved earmarking of another Rs 400 crore for “certain other equipment” for these stealth warships.

This money would be used to fit the frigates with Brahmos missiles.

India had purchased the initial three Russian frigates at a cost of over Rs 3,000 crore but now it would shell out Rs 5,114 crore for the new warships.

The CCS also approved the purchase of 28 submarine-launched KLUB land attack cruise missiles to arm its Russian acquired Kilo-class submarines.

In a deal worth over Rs 844.5 crore, these missiles would be fitted in six upgraded submarines already bought by India, Mr Mukherjee said.

He also said the CCS had approved an additional sum of Rs 20 crore for meeting security-related expenses of Jammu and Kashmir and North-East.

Chennai, July 6
The three-day-old strike at the Neyveli Lignite Corporation was tonight called off following Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s decision to put on hold disinvestment of public sector enterprises.

The workers would report for duty from 2200 hours, trade union sources said.

The decision to withdraw the strike was taken at a meeting of the Joint Action Council of the trade unions, which had issued the strike call.

The 21,000 staffers and 12,000 contract workers went on an indefinite strike on Tuesday night protesting against disinvestment of 10 per cent of equity in the public sector undertaking which is a profit making organization.

Barring the Congress all parties in Tamil Nadu had expressed solidarity with the striking workers. The Labour Progressive Front (LPF), which is affiliated to the ruling DMK, a constituent of the UPA at the Centre, was leading the strike.

The Centre’s proposal that the equity stake would be offered to the NLC workers was not acceptable to the DMK.