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Jharkhand CM’s swearing-in today
Sonia Gandhi gives pep-talk
to party workers
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CBI raids
houses of Mau MLA, kin
CPI national executive meeting today
Sabha seeks HP control over Shanan project
Nothing wrong in sacking temporary worker: HC
CBI seeks closure of 14-year-old graft case for third time
Online market for publishers soon
RTI panel refused information on Netaji
Karat questions EC’s
role
NCP for uniting
like-minded parties
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Jharkhand CM’s swearing-in today
Ranchi, September 17 Mr Koda will be the fifth Chief Minister of Jharkhand in the past six years since the state was bifurcated from Bihar. He has been invited to form the next government by the Governor against the letter of support by 42 MLAs, after the Arjun Munda-led NDA government lost majority on the floors of the House on Thursday. The 42 MLAs of the UPA, the minimum mark to form the next government in the 82-member House, is one less in number than the 43 MLAs of the previous NDA government before four independent MLAs withdrew support on September 5, reducing it to a minority. The JMM chief, Mr Shibu Soren, said besides Mr Koda, three independent MLAs would take oath tomorrow. They comprise Mr Enosh Ekka, Mr Kamalesh Singh and Mr Suryanaryan Rai. All these four MLAs, including Chief Minister-designate Koda, were instrumental in pulling down two governments in the past one year. In March 2005, the four had shifted allegiance from the UPA to the NDA to help Mr Munda to oust then 10 days old Soren-led UPA government. The same four had made a volte-face on September 5 to bring back the UPA to power by deserting the NDA. Going by all available indications, cracks are already visible even before Mr Koda is officially sworn in with reported differences surfaced among the supporting UPA partners to share the rest 11 portfolios, excluding Chief Minister, and also on the issue of deputy chief minister as claimed by the JMM. After three-hour long meeting of the UPA partners yesterday, the leaders were thus reportedly forced to keep on hold the distribution of portfolios and selection of rest ministerial aspirants till the floor test by the UPA to prove its majority. The uneasiness on part of the UPA to satisfy all ministerial aspirants became all the more evident when it decided to advance the floor test to September 20. The government has set the deadline for the floor test on or before September 25. Earlier, the UPA had decided to go for the floor test on September 23. With CPI (ML)’s lone MLA Binod Singh deciding to maintain equal distance from both UPA and the NDA, the projected support of 43 MLAs to the Koda-led UPA came down to 42 on Friday. In what appeared to be another indication of testing times ahead for the UPA only adding to its woes, Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (D) president Babulal Marandi today said his party would not participate in the government and support Mr Koda from outside. General secretary of the JVM (D) Stephen Marandi is the lone MLA of the party. The two other supporting partners, the Congress and the Forward Bloc, are also unlikely to participate in the government. Meanwhile, as advised by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, a steering committee and a coordination committee have been formed headed by Mr Soren to monitor the performance of the new government. The UPA in Jharkhand was also expected to work out a common minimum programme (CMP) for governance in the lines of the UPA at the Centre.
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Sonia Gandhi gives pep-talk
to party workers
Rae Bareli, September 17 She held a series of meetings with local party functionaries, youth wing leaders, party workers and the general public to take stock of the developmental needs in her constituency. She also met several delegations who had come to her with various local problems. Ms Gandhi apprised herself of the pace of development works in her constutuency besides gauging the state of preparedness among the party cadre in view of the coming assembly polls. She flew back to Delhi after her hectic tour during which she evaded direct interaction with the waiting media outside NTPC guest house at Unchahar and other venues. The Congress leader today made a halt at Muhammad Kucharia and Nawabganj villages and reviewed the progress of central- sponsored scheme of National Rural Employment Gaurantee (NREG). She interacted with the villagers and listened patiently to their problems. The two-day visit of Ms Gandhi was focussed at the preparations of the Assembly poll, the Congress leaders accompanying her said. Yesterday, she had expressed dissatisfaction over the pace of developmental work in her Rae Bareli parliamentary constituency. Attending a meeting of ‘satarkta samiti’ (monitoring and review committee) here, Ms Gandhi sounded unhappy at the quality and pace of developmental work being carried out by various government agencies.
— UNI
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CBI raids houses of Mau MLA, kin Ghazipur, September 17 Mukhtar Ansari, MLA from Mau, and his brother, along with many others, are accused in the sensational Krishnanand murder that took place in November last year. The CBI is probing the matter. The raids, which had started in the morning in Yusufpur of the district, were conducted to nab two hardened criminals — Ata-ur-Rahman and Munna Bajrangi — also wanted in the sensational MLA murder case, highly placed sources told UNI. The premises raided included residences of the Ansari brothers, their relatives and close aides. The CBI has already announced a reward of Rs 5 lakh each on the head of Rahman and Munna Bajrangi. The sources said the raids were conducted on a definite tip-off and continued till late afternoon. The search for the criminals in connection with the mysterious death of a couple of witnesses in the Krishnanand case was another reason for the raids, the sources confirmed. Incidentally, the raids took place two days after the controversial Independent MLA was acquitted in the Mau communal riots case due to lack of evidence. He was acquitted by a Mau sessions court after most of the victims turned hostile. Sessions Judge Dinesh Gupta said the accused were being acquitted for want of evidence. Ansari was accused in the murder of Ram Pratap Yadav during the October, 2005, Mau riots, which had continued for over 13 days leaving scores of people dead. — UNI
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CPI national executive meeting today
New Delhi, September 17 In Punjab, the party is unlikely to go with the Congress, as it is not happy with the performance of the Amarinder Singh government and the economic policies the being persued by him. As it cannot align with the SAD-BJP alliance, the party will explore its options during the meeting by ascertaining the views of the state units. The CPI had contested the last elections in Punjab in alliance with the Congress and won two seats. As UP is also slated to go to the polls, the CPI has joined the Jan Morcha backed by former Prime Minister V P Singh which has unleashed a campaign against the ruling Samajwadi Party that has an alliance with the CPM. But, the decision of the CPI in these assembly elections could reflect the rift within the cohesive Left parties as the four parties, which support the UPA government from outside had decided to explore the possibility of contesting the poll on a joint platform. The party will discuss the government’s performance over the past two years vis-a-vis the implementation of “pro- people” commitments made in the common minimum programme, including steps taken to stem price rise and the crisis in the agricultural sector. The Left has asked the government to carry forward the composite dialogue and peace process with Pakistan, and the CPI will deliberate the outcome of the parleys Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had with President Pervez Musharraf in Havana.
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Sabha seeks HP control over Shanan project
New Delhi, September 17 The Zila Mandi Jan Kalyan Sabha unanimously passed a resolution here yesterday in the presence of Himachal Pradesh Irrigation and Public Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur and Tourism and Transport Minister G.S. Bali demanding that the project be handed over to Himachal Pradesh “without delay”. The resolution, moved on behalf of the people of state during a function to mark the Sair festival, said the project was located in Shanan village, near Joginder Nagar in Mandi district, and had been constructed before Independence. Pointing out that the river on which it was set up flowed in Himachal Pradesh, the resolution said the project’s control by Punjab was “wrong”. “The Himachal Pradesh Government should seek help from the Centre and talk to Punjab Government to take over the project”, it said. Mr Kaul Singh said later that the state Assembly had passed a resolution recently to secure the state’s due share under the Punjab State Reorganisation Act and 12 per cent free power in various inter-state projects. He said the state had a claim to 7.19 per cent share in BBMB projects and had moved the court in this connection. The minister said according to the Act, the Shanan project should have come under the control of Himachal Pradesh on a “as is where is” basis. Pointing out that fiscal concessions provided by the Centre for setting up industry in the state had led to investment of Rs 24,000 crore in various projects, Mr Kaul Singh said the government would be able to remove unemployment from the state in about four years.
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Nothing wrong in sacking temporary worker: HC
New Delhi, September 17 Setting aside an order of the Labour Court which ordered reinstatement of a conductor of the Delhi Transport Corporation who was appointed on a temporary basis, Justice Shiv Narayan Dhingra felt the regularisation of such employees would only open a “big backdoor” for entry into public employment. Suraj Bhan was employed by the DTC as a “retainer crew conductor” between December 24, 1985 and June 29, 1988, and was terminated from the service with 30 others after being given a month’s salary and retrenchment compensation. In its order on April 7, 1998, the Labour Court had ordered Bhan’s reinstatement on the ground that his termination was illegal as no charge sheet was served on him. The Labour Court held that “the continuation of the workman in employment for such a long period was an evidence in itself that the employer had a job requirement of a permanent nature”. However, Justice Dhingra noted that no fault can be found in terminating the service of a temporary employee who has been engaged as a stop-gap arrangement.
— PTI
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CBI seeks closure of 14-year-old graft case for third time
New Delhi, September 17 The case was registered in June, 1992, against Satbir Singh — a narcotics officer with Kamla Market police station — after a complaint by Sajjan Ali, whom Singh had arrested while he allegedly had a kg of opium and 100 gm of heroin with him. According to Ali’s complaint, Singh had approached him barely a month after the arrest and offered to facilitate his release on bail for a “fee” of Rs 20,000. Subsequently, Singh and his co-accused Surender, a head constable with the same cell, were caught red-handed by the CBI on July 23, 1992, while receiving Rs 6,000 from Ali, who was by then out on bail. Ali had further complained to the CBI that Singh falsely implicated him in the case owing to previous enmity. The agency has now filed a report before Special Judge G.P. Mittal, saying the suspect was a “known” drug peddler. It informed the court that Ali had died in 2001. The CBI said Singh had left for Uttar Pradesh on another case shortly after Ali’s arrest, casting doubts on the veracity of the latter’s allegations. “The accused (Singh) did not have an opportunity to approach and demand illegal gratification from the complainant (Ali) as alleged,” the CBI said in its recent closure report. Two previous closure reports of the agency in 1993 and 1999 were successively dismissed by the court, which had ordered a fresh probe into the case. The judge has now posted the case for hearing on September 23.
— PTI
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Online market for publishers soon
New Delhi, September 17 The 12th edition of the fair, which will be on till September 24, has the participation of over 300 publishers from India and abroad. Organised jointly by the Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP) and India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), the fair has foreign buyers from four countries — Britain, Mauritius, Malaysia and Uganda — participating for the first time. However, much attraction is on the new novelty concept brought in by these online booksellers, who are participating for the first time and many visitors are trying to understand the brave new world of digital publishing. “I want to provide an online market for publishers in India. I am excited about the growing hunger for books in India,” Shinu Gupta, chairman and CEO of a1books, told The Tribune. He has tied up with several publishers and distributor to list their collection. Gupta, whose company has a database of over 2 million US titles, said his primary focus was on getting the regional and vernacular publishers and distributors get their collections listed online. Apart from helping publishers and distributors, who do not have the technology and expertise to get their collection listed, Gupta, whose a1books.com has served 3.5 million customers so far, also offer them an opportunity to showcase their collection to the US and European audience. He said the company was the largest seller of books on Amazon.com and had come here to bring revolution in the Indian book industry and change the way people sell and buy books. The company, which recorded $ 20 million in revenue in 2005, plans to capture 5 per cent of the 100 million Internet users in the country by 2007 end. “If that 5 per cent spend just Rs 1,000 per year, we will have the sales volume of Rs 500 crore, which is an achievable target,” he said. Asked how the reader would benefit, he said the publishers and distributors would be doing away with the several incidental cost of wholesalers and retailers, which could be passed on to customers and they would quote attractive prices as customers could see competitive prices at the site itself. He said the site would also provide an opportunity to the customers to read the book review, some portions of the book and feed back section, before making the choice.
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RTI panel refused information on Netaji
New Delhi, September 17 This was reported by a research group, Mission Netaji, which appealed to the CIC, the apex body under the year-old Right to Information Act, to get the ministry to share records produced before the 1956 Shah Nawaz Committee and G.D. Khosla Inquiry Commission of 1974, which were set up to shed light on the legendary freedom fighter’s fate. Both inquiries had arrived at the conclusion that Bose died in an air crash in Taipei on August 18, 1945 — a theory still disputed by many. The appeal came after the Central Government rejected the findings of the Justice Mukherjee Inquiry Commission in May. The Commission’s findings were diametrically opposed to the conclusions made by the 1956 and 1974 inquiry panels. Mission Netaji had asked the ministry for the records on June 23 this year, but this was summarily declined. The group then appealed to the CIC.
— PTI
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Karat questions EC’s
role
New Delhi, September 17 “Howsoever much (BJP leader) Arun Jaitley and the critics of the CPM may dismiss this vital issue, the public debate for reform of the EC cannot be avoided,” Karat said. Asserting that the EC “has to be made accountable”, Karat quoted from B.R. Ambedkar’s observations in the Constituent Assembly in 1949 while proposing that an “Instrument of Instructions” be enacted to provide a machinery for appointing election commissioners as well as the panel’s chief. In an article in the latest issue of the party organ People’s Democracy, Karat questioned the EC’s role on several aspects like whether the state police could be completely excluded from the poll process, the role of EC observers, their assumption of executive powers “riding roughshod” over state governments, banning of wall-writing as a means of campaigning and treating one state differently from another. He said the party had suggested a constitutional mechanism to “monitor and check if the EC acts with political bias, usurps the powers of governments or does anything with mala fide intention”. Karat said the Supreme Court too had advocated a mechanism to resolve differences between the poll body and the central and state governments.
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NCP for uniting
like-minded parties
Dehra Dun, September 17 “Our national president Sharad Pawar has taken the initiative towards bringing together the various secular and like-minded parties,” the party noted in its political resolution adopted at the convention here, adding that the response to the initiative was demonstrated by the presence of many political parties and leaders in the convention of the NCP held at Surat on June 10 last year. The resolution called upon the secular and progressive forces to join hands to stop the communal reactionary forces from gaining ground and to fulfil the aspirations of the people.
— UNI
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