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Virbhadra: EC creates constitutional crisis
Infighting may prove costly for BJP
Cong leader joins BJP
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EC gears up for poll
Defacement of Walls
60-year-old marries 29-year-old youth
DC stays allotment of work under tenders
‘Impure’ salt passes purity test
Workshop on forestry statistics
Afghan national held
Machinery stolen
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CM vows to expose BJP
Shimla, November 6 While development would be the main poll plank, the Congress would take on the BJP on its “own agenda” from a position of strength and make the party pay for trying to raise such issues, conveniently forgetting the track record of the “corruption-friendly” Dhumal government, he told The Tribune today. The recent land scam “expose” in Solan district allegedly involving BJP legislator Rajiv Bindal was only the tip of the proverbial iceberg of large-scale corruption plaguing the party. It was a total negation of the “Antyodaya” programme started by the BJP for the uplift of the poorest of the poor. The rot had started from the top as evident from the petrol pump allotment scam in which the list of allottees virtually read like who’s who of the state BJP. Besides former Chief Minister P.K.Dhumal, who secured petrol pumps for his son and nephew and that too on false domicile certificate, 12 leaders close to him also figured in the list of wrongfully allotted petrol pumps and cooking gas agencies that were later cancelled by the Supreme Court. Referring to the statement of Dhumal that the BJP would cancel all appointments made by Congress government he said the former Chief Minister had no face to raise an accusing finger on the issue as the State Subordinate Services Selection Board set up by him at Hamirpur had become a den of corruption and nepotism. The board had committed such blatant irregularities that the scant record that was available had proved sufficient to get the then chairman of the board S.M.Katwal convicted in as many as three cases. It was a direct indictment of Dhumal at whose behest Katwal had committed gross irregularities. Even the BJP ministers and legislators from Kangra district had revolted against him alleging that only candidates from a particular area were being recruited for government jobs and that the biggest district of the state was being discriminated against. Worse, the BJP regime did not spare event the intuitions of higher learning and it was unparalleled in the history of the state that Vice-Chancellor of Himachal Pradesh University S.D.Sharma was arrested for his involvement in the question paper printing scam, he pointed out. With such a dismal track record and a thoroughly tainted leadership at the helm the BJP was on a weak turf. The Congress had the added advantage of the unprecedented development that had taken place in every nook and corner of the state. In contrast Dhumal had failed to provide even drinking water to the people of his Bamsen assembly constituency. It was his government which had implemented a Rs 67-crore water supply scheme covering 214 villages of the area. |
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Virbhadra: EC creates constitutional crisis
Kidi (Chamba), November 6 Addressing a public meeting in the Kidi belt of the Bharmour constituency in favour of Congress candidate Thakur Singh Bharmouri today, Virbhadra said it was for the first time in his political career that the Election Commission had hastily announced the assembly elections without following the constitutional procedure at a time when he was on an official tour to America. “I have not seen such things happening in my political career so far” Virbhadra further lamented. As per the procedure, the assembly was dissolved by the Governor of the state on the recommendations of the Cabinet and the decision was apprised to the Election Commission of India for holding fresh elections, Virbhadra pointed out. But neither the Assembly was dissolved nor my government was contacted and consulted for holding fresh Vidhan Sabha elections, he expressed his surprise. Virbhadra asserted that the Congress government had resolved not to seek any judicial remedy but preferred to go to the public for seeking mandate in the elections; adding that the masses would respond to this arbitrary decision of the Election Commission. Virbhadra, however, made it clear that his government would complete its full tenure, which would continue to function till March 5, 2008. Speaking about the BSP, Virbhadra said the BSP was a blend of opportunists, disgruntled and selfish leaders who had been habitual of changing political parties, as it was their old nature. He asserted that no one could purchase the character and moral fiber of the Congerss. He also announced the names of Kuldip Pathania for Bhattiyat, Asha Kumari for Banikhet and Surinder Bhardwaj for the Rajnagar (SC) assembly constituency as the Congress candidates for contesting current assembly elections. |
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CM refutes report
Chamba, November 6 Speaking to mediapersons at the local circuit house, Virbhadra Singh described the news item as “totally based on the correspondent’s own supposition and conjectures”. He said since the case was already sub judice, no one was supposed to comment on the CD issue at the moment. — OC |
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Advises Harsh to enter poll fray
Chamba, November 6 Answering queries about
Mahajan, who had recently declined to contest the Assembly elections owing to his health and family reasons, Virbhadra said Harsh Mahajan must contest the elections as he was undoubtedly loved by the masses. A lot of achievements had been made in Chamba by
Mahajan, Virbhadra said. |
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Cong looks up to Rahul to sway youth
New Delhi, November 6 The state PCC and the youth Congress have invited Rahul Gandhi to campaign in the state which has been a favourite destination for the members of the Nehru-Gandhi family. PCC chief Viplove Thakur, who has sent a request for Rahul Gandhi’s rallies, said the party was keen to have his public meetings in each of the four Lok Sabha constituencies of the state. While Congress president Sonia Gandhi will be the main campaigner for the party, the state Congress has also invited chief ministers and senior Congress leaders from neighbouring states. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is also likely to address a few rallies in the state. The Himachal Pradesh Youth Congress leaders said 70 per cent of the state’s population was less than 50-year-old and rallies by Rahul Gandhi will help galvanise the youth in favour of the party. “The youth have an attachment with Rahul Gandhi, who is an inspiration to the younger generation,” a senior youth Congress leader said. The Assembly poll in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh will also be an opportunity for Rahul Gandhi to test the political waters after his induction as the AICC general secretary. Though Congress is the ruling party in Himachal Pradesh, it has to battle the anti-incumbency factor. The PCC leaders said they were keen on grassroots campaign in the state which would be finely balanced with rallies. Among the leaders likely to address rallies include Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, former Punjab Chief Minister Rajinder Kaur Bhattal and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijay Singh. The party’s young faces invited for campaigning include Jyotridatiya Scindia and Sachin Pilot. Sources said former Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has so far not been invited to campaign in the state. He is now battling corruption cases, but had played a major role in the Congress campaign in the last Assembly poll by levelling allegations of corruption against then sitting Chief Minister and senior BJP leader Prem Kumar Dhumal. The Congress is also in the process of finalising its campaign committee. Sources said most of its members were likely to be senior leaders not contesting the Assembly poll. Apart from the Chief Minister and the PCC chief, the committee is likely to include minister of state for external affairs Anand Sharma, revenue minister Sat Mahajan, former union minister Sukh Ram and party MPs Pratibha Singh, Dhani Ram Shandil and Chander Kumar. |
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Infighting may prove costly for BJP
Solan, November 6 The BJP might take this highest ever number of applications as an indicator of its popularity, but political observers feel once the names were decided, it could lead to rebels either contesting as Independents or seeking ticket from parties like the BSP. The highest number of ticket-seekers (31) are from the Arki constituency, where contest is being noticed even among family members. There are three cases where family members have staked claim against each other. This includes brothers Amar Singh and Inder Singh, father-daughter N.C. Pal and Asha Parihar and father-son duo Het Ram Sharma and Mohan Sharma. In Kasauli, 17 ticket-seekers have come forward. IAS retiree Bharat Bhushan, BDC member Parvinder, former MLA Satpal Kamboj, former marketing board chairman Virender Kashyap, Rajiv Sehjal are among the more prominent names. In Solan, there are 13 ticket-seekers, including sitting MLA Rajiv Bindal, former minister M.N. Sofat. In Nalagarh, three contenders have come forward, including sitting MLA H.N. Saini. In Doon, 15 persons have applied for the party ticket. Though the party was hopeful of retaining its two seats in the district, the controversy raked up by a section of BJP men against their own MLA Rajiv Bindal regarding land deals had considerably damaged the party’s image. The fact that senior leaders like P.K. Dhumal and Shanta Kumar have not come out in his support indicated how the controversy has become a key issue in the party. Though state in charge Satpal Jain has termed it as a conspiracy and given Bindal a clean chit, the silence of Dhumal, who is considered close to Bindal, has not sent positive signals among party workers. Party president Jairam Thakur said though the stand presented by Bindal appeared to be just, the matter needed further probe. He said the party had received indications that a section of their own men were involved in raking up the controversy and that aspect was being examined. |
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Cong leader joins BJP
Dharamsala, November 6 Korla claimed that he had been a loyal Congressman from Nagrota Bagwan and had helped Bali to win the elections in the past. Bali, however, claimed that Korla was not even a primary member of the ruling party and would not affect his poll prospects in any way. |
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EC gears up for poll
Shimla, November 6 During the elections to the three tribal seats held in June, 2003, the poll percentage was 77.77 in Lahaul Spiti, 73.56 in Bharmour and 72.38 in Kinnaur. Notwithstanding the fact that the polling stations are very sparse due to scattered population at certain places, the polling is generally on the higher side in the tribal belt. Considering the fact that during the last Assembly elections, the average poll percentage of the entire state was 74.51, in the three tribal belts it was pretty high. However, the difference this time is that the polling will be held in mid-November when the winter has already set in. Chief election commissioner Manisha Nanda said multi-mode communication methods would be adopted during polling in the three tribal seats to be held on November 14. Not willing to take any chances the Election Commission even scrutinised the meteorological data which indicated that there would unlikely be any problem but still the emergency plan had been put in place to meet any eventuality. Wireless connectivity with police personnel would be a main link and all 298 polling stations would be linked with it. Besides, over 12 satellite phones would be provided at main stations like Bharmour, Keylong, Pangi, Udaipur and Kaza. While the highest polling station is located at Hikkam in Lahaul Spiti at a height of 15,000 feet, Kiri station in Bharmour is located at a height of merely 3,600 feet.
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Defacement of Walls
Bilaspur, November 6 A government press note issued here last evening said the district election officer had passed these orders of registering an FIR after some representatives of political parties complained about it in the meeting of political parties with the district election officer held yesterday. BSP state secretary and former director of health services Dr Sukhram Chauhan said the district election officer should have first known their version of the story before passing such an order. He told mediapersons that the election officer (SDM) had told on phone to BSP state general secretary Krishan Kumar Kaushal to remove these wall writings of their party before October 31 and he himself (Chauhan) had personally inspected washing off of all these writings on the walls on October 30. Sukhram said he did not know as to why and how any representative of any of their election rival party raised this issue in yesterday’s meeting when there were no wall writings at all. He said the order of the district election officer regarding the FIR did not seem to be fair and it seemed that the orders were given in haste, and also without confirming the facts in the field. Chauhan also said the writing on the wall was done by some persons, who had come here from outside Himachal for publicity at the district-level BSP rally which was held at Jukhala on July 26 and it was much before the election code of conduct was enforced. |
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60-year-old marries 29-year-old youth
Dharamsala, November 6 Later, the couple went to the office of sub-divisional magistrate D.C. Rana and applied for the registration of the marriage. The SDM while accepting the application had issued a notice to the family members of the woman through the US High Commission for objections if any and fixed January 15, 2008, as the date for the registration of the marriage. A medical professional, Williams met Lungtok a couple of weeks back here at
McLeodganj. Lungtok was a good company and Williams did not feel the age difference between them. The decision to get married seemed to be natural for the couple. They married in a simple ceremony held with Buddhist rituals. Although, the woman had not mentioned anything in the application applied for registration of the marriage, but like all other such ‘unusual’ marriages taking place here in the Tibetan refugee town, Williams was expected to take Lungtok along with her to the USA. In most of the cases, the couple consisting Tibetan groom and foreigner bride eventually migrate to their bride’s country after spending some time here. More than 1,000 such marriages had been registered in the local SDM office in the past one decade. Most of the Tibetan men come from humble backgrounds, working as daily wagers on petty jobs or doing small businesses at McLeodganj and in order to improve their financial status and lifestyle they desperately look for someone to fly them to greener pastures. Lack of job opportunities here could be another reason why most Tibetan youngsters marry foreigners, as it is the only way move out to foreign countries for a better life. |
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DC stays allotment of work under tenders
Hamirpur, November 6 Acting on a complaint alleging violation of the election code of conduct, she has asked the IPH Department, Hamirpur, not to proceed further in awarding works under two tenders issued on October 24 worth Rs 92 lakh and Rs 52 lakh, respectively. In another notice to the Nagar Parishad, Hamirpur, she has asked the executive officer to file a reply to the complaint about putting up a picture of former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal in the Nagar Parishad office. In both these cases, the complainants had alleged violation of the election code of conduct. Nandita Gupta said: “Acting on both these complaints we have sought a clarification from the state election commission and would proceed further accordingly. Meanwhile, I have stayed the operation of tenders issued by the IPH Department.” Meanwhile, Nandita Gupta has finalised the dates of rehearsal for polling officers. She said the first rehearsal would be held from November 19 to 22 and the second from 4 to 8. The third rehearsal would be held on December 16 and polling parties would be dispatched on December 17. The work of photography for photo identity cards would be undertaken in the Hamirpur constituency from November 14 to 22, from November 23 to December 1 in the Bamsan constituency and from December 2 to December 10 in the Mewa constituency. |
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‘Impure’ salt passes purity test
Solan, November 6 The fact that the salt supplied by the State Civil Supplies Corporation has been found containing sand particles, whose samples were lifted by a food inspector on September 28. The authorities swung into action after a section of media brought this matter to the notice of the concerned authorities. The salt supplied by a Gujarat-based firm, Chirai Salt India Limited, was found sand ridden. A physical analysis of the salt revealed that dark-colored sand granules were left behind while the soluble salt dissolved in water. So high was the content of sand that its granules were clearly visible even with naked eyes. CTL’s food analyst D. K. Sharma while confirming the clean chit granted to the salt sample said since the impurity was found less than 1 per cent, it was well within the permissible limit of the Prevention of Food Adulteration norms. Experts, however, opined that since the sand granules were visible during the physical examination, it’s content was much higher than one per cent, and this had cast a question mark over the authenticity of the laboratory tests. What was worrisome was the fact that this salt was supplied through the HP State Civil Supplies Corporation at a subsidised cost of Rs 4 throughout the state. Though the salt label bearing the ISI standardisation certificate also claimed that it was triple refined and had 15 PPM iodine content, the high sand content had brought the role of even the ISI under a scanner. It’s batch number SG 108 which was available in all ration depots of the Civil Supplies Corporation. A retired health official, who had retained some packets of this batch, said he would get the samples checked at some other laboratories to expose the government agencies. |
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Workshop on forestry statistics
Shimla, November 6 Deputy director general (Extension), ICFRE, Dr Rabindra Kumar stressed the need for prompt data reporting from the states to facilitate policy makers. Director, HFRI, Mohinder Pal said systematic data collection and reporting in Forestry Sector would help in planning and better management of forestry resources. He said ICFRE could help in capacity building and infrastructure needs of the states for efficient collection of date related to forestry. The workshop was basically aimed at fine-tuning of the process of forestry statistics collection, validation and dissemination in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. |
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7 shops gutted, 1 burnt alive
Shimla, November 6 The labourer, identified as Padam Singh Nepali, was sleeping inside the shop when the fire broke out. He was burnt to death when the fire engulfed the shops. Though the cause for the outbreak of the fire is still not known, but foul play is being suspected as Padam, a worker at the liquor vend, had an altercation with somebody, last night. The fire is estimated to have caused a loss of about Rs 45 lakh. However, the timely intervention prevented the fire from spreading to the adjoining shops. |
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2 killed, 31 hurt as bus falls into khad
Shimla, November 6 The mishap took place at around 8.30 am today when the bus driver lost control over the vehicle. Two persons, including driver Desh Chand and Chet Ram (57) of Pervez village were killed. The five seriously injured persons have been admitted to the Indira Gandhi Medical College (IGMC) here, while the remaining were referred to the Matiana Hospital. |
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Afghan national held
Solan, November 6 Confirming the arrest, SP, Solan, Diljeet Thakur, said the Afghanistan police wanted him in some criminal cases, and a communication regarding his whereabouts had been received from the ministry of home affairs. Sources said Aga had been residing in Chambaghat from the past 6 months. This arrest assumes significance in the light of ensuing Assembly election in the state and the festival season around. |
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Machinery stolen
Sundernagar, November 6 As per information received, the thieves took away three 90 HP pumps and two 100 HP about 100 kg of scrap, after breaking the locks of main gates of the workshop, which is situated by the side of BBMB Canal on the Bagggi-Sundernagar road despite three chowkidars were stated to be on duty during night hours. As per a source, earlier, the officials were of the opinion that the machinery was worth Rs 4-5 lakh, however, some engineers stated the estimate to be on a higher side. Interestingly, now the officials had changed their version and had said the theft was of just few thousands. It was further told that till now no action was taken against the chowkidars, who were on night duty. The police has registered a case, but so far, no arrest was made. In another incident, two vehicles were also been reportedly stolen. A Wagon-R was stolen today night from chowk, and a Scorpio was stolen few days back from Nagchalla village. |
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