Amritsar, November 10
The first group of a 39-member delegation of musicians and artistes crossed over to Pakistan yesterday for the Amritsar-Lahore Festival, Saanjh, to be held on November 15.

The delegation includes musicians, dancers, puppeteers and students of Spring Dale Senior School.

Kathakali would be presented by Sadanam Balakrishnan and his team. The other groups include Rang Manch and Sambhav, another theatre group.

The festival is being held in collaboration with Punarjyot, Amritsar, and Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop, Lahore.

Farmers kick off protest in jail
Tribune News Service

Bathinda, November 10
The farmers, who were lodged in Bathinda Central Jail following their arrest in the wake of the farmer bodies’ joint agitation, have kicked off their protest inside the jail, claimed Mr Jagjeet Singh Joga of the Punjab Kisan Sabha and the Punjab Kisan Union Convener, Mr Ruldu Singh Mansa, here today.

They claimed that farmers had also started a relay fast in the jail so as to intensify their agitation. As per a release issued here, both the leaders led the farmers in the strike.

Chandigarh, November 10
A concert was organised by the Army Wives Welfare Association at Patiala yesterday, in which Ms Neeharika Naidu, wife of Army War College Commandant, Lieut-Gen M.L. Naidu gave a live performance.

Around 2,000 officers and personnel from Patiala, Nabha and Sangrur military stations attended the concert.

Starting off with “Itni Shakti Hame Dena”, she belted out other popular compositions.

She was joined by women and children on the stage, who sang and danced with her.

COURTS

Compassion and all that
HC verdict casts shadow on other cases
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 10
Yesterday's decision of Mr Justice Mahesh Grover of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, allowing a bunch of petitions challenging the appointment of seven Punjab Civil Service (PCS) officers on compassionate grounds, has cast a shadow on all such appointments made in the state in the past. The appointees includes widows or kin of Army officers, who died fighting terrorism in Kashmir, Assam or during the Kargil war.

Sources in the government said though a copy of the judgement is not available, the matter is being taken seriously as it will have wide ramifications and far-reaching consequences on the future of hundreds of officers and employees of the government. Other than seven PCS officers whose appointments have been challenged about 25 such appointments have been made to class-I posts in the past. These include PCS officers tehsildaars, Assistant Registrars and Excise and Taxation Officers. Appointments as teachers and to other class three appointments may run in hundreds.

Four petitioners, Ms Harjeet Kaur, Dr Harish Malhotra, Mr Naresh Dubey and Mr Harjinder Pal Singh, all of them on the waiting list of the PCS released by the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) in 1992, had stated that compassionate appointments could not have been made by the government in violation of rules. The High Court allowed their petition yesterday. They pointed out that even as there was no policy in place at the time of appointment of these officers to the PCS, a subsequent policy, too did not allow for appointment of kin of officers killed by terrorists as Class I officers.

Ropar, November 10
Six persons were today sentenced to life imprisonment for killing an SPO, Paramjit Singh, in February 2004 by the Additional District and Sessions Judge, Mr M.S. Randhawa. The six accused Amar Singh, Balbir Singh, Jaspinder Singh, Manjit Kaur, Sampuran Singh and Krishana Kumar were also fined Rs 5,000 each in case of default of payment of fine they would have to undergo three months of more imprisonment.

As per the prosecution the accused killed the SPO suspecting him of having an illicit relationship with the wife of one of the accused. The case against the six was registered on the complaint of Jora Singh, father of the deceased on February 24, 2004, in Morinda police Station. A resident of Fatehgarh Sahib, Jora Singh, reported to the police that his son Paramjit had left for Dhumchheri village to meet Avtar Singh on February 23, 2004. Paramjit Singh had informed his mother that he would be staying at the residence of Avtar Singh during night.

When Jora Singh came home, he became suspicious about Avtar Singh as he was not known to Paramjit. Thereafter he along with his elder son left for Avtar Singh’s village. As they reached Avtar Singh’s residence they found Paramjit Singh crying with multiple injuries inflicted by the accused with sharp-edge weapon. Later he died while the accused managed to run away. The accused had killed Paramjit claiming that he had illicit relationship with Manjit Kaur wife of Avtar Singh.

EDUCATION

Rajinder Mehta removed as patron of SSF
Our Correspondent

Amritsar, November 10
Even as Gurcharan Singh Grewal, president, Sikh Students Federation (Mehta), today removed Rajinder Singh Mehta as patron of the federation, the rival group today convened a meeting with Mehta at Bhai Gurdas Hall here and authorised him to find a solution of the dispute.

With this, the dispute among federation leaders took a turn as senior leaders, who resigned from their posts, refused to accept Grewal as their president.

It is pertinent to mention here that a large number of senior leaders of the SSF had resigned from their positions while alleging that Grewal was using the federation for his personal interests.

Meanwhile, Grewal said the federation had decided to omit the word “Mehta” from the federation’s name. He alleged that Mehta was prejudice in his approach and favouring the other group who were suspended from the federation for their alleged anti-federation activities.