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Dhumal kickstarts poll campaign
Projecting Dhumal as CM to benefit Cong: Virbhadra
17 more file nominations
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Cong riding high on ‘development wave’
Regionalism issue may lose steam
Kangra District
EC issues do’s and don’ts
BJP faces revolt in Kangra
Road show held
Over 10,000 attend Chauhan’s rally at Shillai
‘Support our demands to get our votes’
CPI to support Jasrotia
Curbs on rallies
Firing in Paonta factory
One held for forgery
1 killed in car mishap
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Dhumal kickstarts poll campaign
Una, November 27 Talking to newsmen, Dhumal said none of the candidates who had got the party ticket would be given any chairmanship if the BJP was voted to power. The key positions in the party and the government would be given to those who worked for the success of the party in the elections. Directing his attack on the Congress, he said the party was trying to get through with the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) for some of the power projects even after the implementation of code of conduct for elections. “We have written to the election commission to stop the Congress from doing so,” he said. The BJP, if voted to power, would order review of all such MoUs, he said. The Congress government had failed to fulfil its election promise of giving job to at least one family member of each resident of the state, alleged. The BJP would order the review of the posts filled by the government wherever there were reports of nepotism or ignoring merit. He claimed he had no differences with Shanta Kumar who was a revered senior leader of the party. He said five senior leaders of the party would address rallies in various parts of the state on December 5. L.K. Advani would address a rally at Kullu, Rajnath Singh at Solan, Sushma Swaraj at Dharamsala and Venkaiah Naidu at Hamirpur and Murli Manohar Joshi at Chopal. HAMIRPUR: Prem Kumar Dhumal was given rousing welcome at many places on his way back home from New Delhi today. Party activists gathered at the entry point to Himachal Pradesh at Mehatpur and at Una, Bangana, Lathiani, Saloni, Badsar, Mehre, Bhota etc to welcome him. A large number of local people and party activists had assembled at his ancestral village Hamirpur to receive him. In an informal talk with the mediapersons, Dhumal said, “There is no scope for change in the names of party candidates for the forthcoming elections at this stage.” |
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Projecting Dhumal as CM to benefit Cong: Virbhadra
Shimla, November 27 Addressing a press conference here today he said the charges of corruption against Dhumal were levelled by four BJP ministers and three legislators from Kangra who revolted in protest against discrimination against their area and even boycotted the Vidhan Sabha for 21 days. The Dhumal government remained in minority during that period. He said the conviction of a former chairman and an ex-member of the Subordinate Services Selection Board in three cases pertaining to irregularities in recruitment was a direct indictment of Dhumal on whose behest they had been acting. He should have quit politics owning moral responsibility. He said he would at an appropriate time come out with computer hard disk data pertaining to recommendations made by Dhumal for appointment of favoured candidates to various agencies. Interestingly, there were also cases where the recommendation was “not to be selected”. There were cases involving MLAs close to Dhumal like Rajiv Bindal, who had even acquired land allotted to poor landless families, and Baldev Sharma against whom an inquiry was on for amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Dhumal had taken the level of politics in the peaceful hill state to the lowest ebb by getting a doctored audio CD against him released through Vijay Mankotia as he was desperate to win the Hamirpur parliamentary by-election. The people of Himachal believed in sobriety and decency in political debate and they were totally against “politics of character assassination” Dhumal had been following. He also challenged Mankotia to release if any more CDs or other material he had against him. He could pay them back in the same coin but he would not stoop to that level. He said there was a “world of difference” between Dhumal and Shanta Kumar, who had been sidelined, and the Congress stood to gain from the situation. The Congress would now have a very “smooth sailing” in the BJP stronghold of Kangra and many other areas. Regarding the presence of the BSP on the electoral scene he said its impact would vary from seat to seat. As the party was mostly banking on the rebels from the Congress and the BJP, the party whose candidate contests on the BSP ticket
would be hurt. Overall it would cut a sorry figure as evident from the fact that its top leader, Vijay Singh Mankotia, himself was looking for a safe constituency. He had been changing parties like clothes. |
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17 more file nominations
Shimla, November 27 Those who filed nominations today are Shimla-Liyakat Ali (Ind), Arki - Dharam Pal Thakur (Ind), Rainka(SC) - Prithvi Singh (BSP), Nahan -Kush Parmar (INC), Gagret (SC)-Ashok Kumar(Ind), Kutlehar - Ravinder Kumar Garg (LJP), Thural - Vijay Kumar(Ind), Baijnath -Vyas Dev (Ind) , Ashok Kumar (Ind), Dharamshala - Bimal (Adrash Political Party), Kangra -Surinder Kumar Kaku (INC), Bhatiyat -Bhupinder Singh Chauhan (BJP), Rajnagar (SC)- Karam Singh(Ind), Gopalpur - Balbir Singh (Bharatiya Chetanya Party), Sanjeev Kumar (Ind), Dharampur -Des Raj (Ind) and Mandi -Hem Singh (Ind). Kangra: Five contestants, one each from the Congress and the Adarsh Political Party, on Tuesday filed their nomination papers in Kangra district. Surender Kumar Kaku (Congress) filed his nomination papers from Kangra, B.Vimal( Adarsh Political Party) ers from Dharamshala and Ashok Kumar, Vias Dev and Vijay Kumar from Sulah, Baijnath and Thurul, respectively. No nominations were filed from Dehra, Jawali and Nurpur, official sources said. Hamirpur: No candidate filed his nomination on the second day of nominations in any of the five assembly constituencies of the district on Tuesday. Chamba: Group Capt B. S. Chauhan (BJP) on Tuesday filed his nomination papers from the Bhattiyat assembly constituency in Chamba district. No candidate has so far filed the nomination papers from Banikhet, Rajnagar (SC) and Chamba assembly constituencies so far, official sources said. SOLAN: Meanwhile, the disgruntled faction of Congress men held a meeting at Solan and passed a resolution to demand change of candidature from the Solan constituency. The meeting was attended by members of the Block Congress Committee and office-bearers of the District Congress Committee falling under Solan block. It was decided to approach the AICC with a request to change official nominee Kailash Parashar and consider a name that was acceptable to all. Those attending the meeting made it clear that they would pledge their support to whosoever else was chosen by the party. |
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Dy speaker files papers
Solan, November 27 Flanked by supporters, he filed his nomination at the office of the Arki SDM this afternoon. He vowed to fight the “injustice” meted out to him by being refused the ticket despite having won on three consecutive occasions. |
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Cong riding high on ‘development wave’
Mandi, November 27 The proponent of main campaigner of the Congress “development wave”, the main election plank, countering BJP’s poll slogan, “Halat Badlo Sarkar Badlo, Beimano ka Raj badal do” (change the government and unseat the corrupt rule) in the region is the irrigation and public health minister Kaul Singh Thakur, who is seeking his re-election from the Drang segment, who asserted here today at a press conference, “The Congress is set to win a minimum of eight seats in the district. The BJP will repeat its “history of defeats involving its presidents - Jai Kishan Sharma, Suresh Bhardwaj and now Jai Ram Thakur from Chachiot”. Exuding confidence Kaul Singh said the BJP had no issue and the voters had realized that only the Congress could deliver “development” as it had done in the state for the past nearly five years. By projecting Dhumal as the BJP Chief Minister nominee, the BJP had lost battle of the ballot in the state as Dhumal regime was neck-deep in corruption, alleged Kaul Singh. “Even four ministers of Dhumal cabinet had levelled corruption charges against him and the chargesheet is still pending in the Vidhan Sabha”, he claimed adding the BJP will lose in Kangra, where the Congress will win 12 seats this time as Shanta Kumar has been ignored by the party. Kaul Singh counted out “development works” as its main poll plank - 2 ITIs in Thalot and Paddar, 21 senior secondary schools, 18 high schools, 40 middle schools and SDM office at Paddar opened in 2003-2007 in Drang segment alone. “The BJP in contrast opened one senior secondary school, 2 high schools, 5 middle schools opened by the BJP in 1998-2003. In the Snor valley - BJP candidate Jawahar Thakur belongs to this valley - Rs 15-crore irrigation project is on and work on schemes worth Rs 14 crore in 18 panchayats has been on war-footing”, he said. He added that a government medical college in Mandi, IIT the first of its kind in the northern states is being set up in Mandi, engineering college at Sundernagar and three degree colleges at near Thunag, Bassa and Dharampur. The BJP shut down offices of divisional commissioner, Mandi, and deputy director public relations and the Congress reopened them and started the HP administrative tribunal Bench in Mandi, he said. Countering BJP’s Garjna rally and the BJP’s series of big rallies to be addressed by national leaders like L.K. Advani and Rajnath Singh starting on December 5 in Kullu, Kotkhai, Solan, Hamirpur and Dharamshala, Kaul Singh said the Congress had planned bigger rallies in the second week of December, which would be addressed by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other national leaders. |
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Regionalism issue may lose steam
Shimla, November 27 Over the years, the state has been politically divided into two regions with the Shimla areas identifying with upper hills and the Kangra areas identifying with the lower hills. The BJP had been using the issue of discrimination against the lower hills as a plea to consolidate its support base in the Kangra region. However, with Shanta Kumar no longer in the fray, it will not have the same impact in the district with the highest number of 16 seats. The Congress could breathe easy on this count. It will also try to exploit
the Kangra versus Hamirpur rivalry that cropped up after Dhumal became the Chief Minister with BJP ministers and legislators accusing their own party government of discriminating against Kangra. Projecting Dhumal as the leader will, of course, help the BJP in Hamripur and Una districts. Maintaining that the leadership issue was an internal matter of the BJP, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh said his party was confident of a victory irrespective of the fact whether Dhumal or Shanta Kumar led the party. However, he hastened to add that the Congress stood to gain in certain areas as the acts of omission and commission of the Shanta regime had faded into oblivion, but those of the Dhumal regime were still fresh in the minds of the people. The Congress would make corruption an issue to make the best of the
situation. The absence of Shanta Kumar form the electoral arena will also provided the much-needed boost to the prospects of the BSP. More so because the party has already projected Vijay Singh Mankotia as its chief ministerial candidate. He has been attacking Virbhadra Singh using discrimination against Kangra as a weapon and as such he will be in the best position to exploit the issue of regionalism. |
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Kangra District
Palampur, November 27 Other backward classes have not been exactly pleased with the indifferent attitude of the successive governments towards their demands for 27 per cent reservation in government jobs. Vidya Sagar, a fromer minister in the BJP-HVC coalition government, who is contesting as the BJP candidate from Kangra this time, had resigned in protest against the failure of the Dhumal government in 2002, to increase the quota. He maintained that the BJP had promised that the OBC quota would be enhanced as and when the Jat community was granted the OBC status. However, this did not happen. Last time on this issue he had left the party and contested the election as an independent candidate and secured over 11,000 votes. Sagar has strong influence in the community. Keeping in view his stronghold in the community, the BJP had again fielded him this time from the Kangra constituency. Other backward classes, which constitute about 20 per cent of the states population, are mostly concentrated in merged areas, comprising Kangra, Una and parts of Hamirpur district. They can tilt the electoral scales in 18 constituencies, where they account for 20 per cent to 70 per cent of the electorate. The highest percentage of the OBCs is in Kangra and Nagrota Bagwan (about 70 per cent), followed by Shahpur, Guler, Paonta-Doon, Nadaun, Jwalamukhi, Chintpurani, Gagret and Santokhgarh. The other constituencies where the backward classes have a sizeable presence include Jaswan, Nurpur, Jwali, Una, Dharamsala, Sulah and Palampur. The OBCs became a significant political force following ‘mandalisation’ of the political scene during the V.P. Singh regime. The impact was more severe in Himachal Pradesh, which saw a prolonged anti-Mandal agitation. The BJP, which was in power at that time, lost the support of OBCs, as a result of which it was routed in the 1993 Assembly elections. The Congress, which came to power subsequently made all effort to please this community, initially reserved 10 per cent jobs for the OBCs and set up a commission to decide their exact quota on the basis of population. It raised the quota from 12 per cent to 15 per cent and finally 18 per cent on the recommendation of the commission. However, despite all this, it was not able to keep its OBC vote bank intact and a sizeable chunk of backward cases swayed back to the BJP in the last elections. The raw deal given to Ramesh Dhwala and Vidya Sagar, the two OBC ministers in the Dhumal Government, has also been a cause of resentment in the community against the BJP. Along with this, the sidelining of Shanta Kumar by the BJP high command in the state, the OBC vote bank of the BJP has also been adversely affected in the merged areas particularly in Kangra district. A section of OBC in Kangra district is in fix either to vote for the BJP or the Congress. It was OBC factor which had led to the defeat of Shanta Kumar in the last parliamentary election from Kangra-Chamba constituency against Congress candidate Chaudhry Chander Kumar. The OBCs are also not happy with the Congress as Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh did not induct any OBC minister to his cabinet from the merged areas after the downsizing of his cabinet. Their only leader Chander Kumar was made an MP thereafter there was none in the state cabinet to represent such a large community of the state. It is evident from the facts on the record that the OBCs, particularly in Kangra will play significant role in the assembly elections. |
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EC issues do’s and don’ts
Shimla, November 27 Chief electoral officer Manisha Nanda said here today if local laws permit or provide for writing of slogans, displaying posters or erecting cut-outs, hoardings, banners, political advertisement in any public place specifically identified for such purposes, on payment or otherwise, it would be allowed strictly in accordance with the relevant provisions subject to any court orders. It would be ensured that any such place was not dominated and monopolised by any particular party or candidate. All parties and candidates should be provided equal opportunity in this regard, she added. She said that the political parties, candidates, their agents, workers and supporters could hoist one party flag showing their election symbol on their own property, provided they do so on their own voluntarily and without any pressure from any party, organisation or person. The expenditure incurred on these wall writings would be added to the election expenditure made by the candidate. So far as vehicles were concerned, no poster, flag or any other kind of campaign material would be displayed on vehicles except in the case of vehicles used in election campaigning and for which permit had been granted to the candidates and the permit in original is displayed on the windshield of the vehicle. The expenditure on the vehicles coming along with the candidate at the time of the filling of nominations would be taken into account for calculating his expenditure if he remains in the
fray. |
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BJP faces revolt in Kangra
Kangra, November 27 Addressing a joint press conference, the ticket aspirants alleged the party high command had allotted the ticket to Vidaya Sagar, a former minister, despite the fact that he had allegedly worked against the party during 2003 elections as an Independent candidate. Rattan Jagat Amba, former zila parishad chief and one of the ticket aspirants, who lost the election in 2003 as a BJP candidate, said the workers and the mandal were unhappy over the issue and wanted a review of the
decision. |
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Road show held
Bilaspur, November 27 He began his journey from Malokhar and ended it at Swahan, traversing a distance of some 90 km. BJP district president Daulat Ram Thakur said the road show passed through Thach, Lada ghat, Sai Kharsi, Rani Kotla, Jukhala, Brahampukhar, Namhole, Kothipura, Charol and Suharghat villages before ending at Swahan. A large number of BJP activists and villagers have welcomed the nomination of Randhir Sharma as the BJP candidate from this constituency. During the road show, a large number of people had gathered at Jukhala, Kotla and Gasaud where Sharma held public meetings.
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Over 10,000 attend Chauhan’s rally at Shillai
Nahan, November 27 Addressing a crowed over 10,000, Chauhan announced that he would file his nomination of November 29. He disclosed that he had met BJP national president Rajnath Singh and other senior national and state party leaders at New Delhi yesterday to press hard for the change of candidature for BJP ticket from Shillai. He said that party president has assured them to look into the matter keeping in view the scenario of Shillai where maximum party men had revolted against the allotment of party ticket to Balde Tomar. He announced that if the candidature was not changed he would fight as an independent candidate to honour the sentiments of the people of the area. |
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‘Support our demands to get our votes’
Sundernagar, November 27 Their demands include facilities of canteen, medical reimbursement, 15 per cent reservation to retired personnel in government jobs, rehabilitation schemes for their widows and wards and reservation to their wards in educational institutions. A decision to this effect was taken at a recent meeting of the Mandi unit of the Ex-servicemen Central Paramilitary Forces Welfare Association. According to spokesman of the association Deputy Commandant ITBP Jai Singh
(retd), the number of ex-servicemen, who retired from the ITBP, the SSB, the
CRPF, the CISF, the Assam Rifles and the BSF, is around 32,000. The figure is around 11,000 in Mandi district alone. The association had been raising its demands over the past so many years, but to no avail, he said. |
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CPI to support Jasrotia
Kangra, November 27 Secretary of state CPI Himal Chand said in a statement here today that the CPI had pinned hopes on Jasrotia as he had relentlessly been fighting for the cause of common people, including farmers, labourers, artisans, youths, women and deprived masses. |
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Curbs on rallies
Shimla, November 27 DC Tarun Kapoor said rallies and demonstrations had been prohibited on The Mall from Chotta Shimla to Kennedy House and The Ridge, within 150 mts on the approach from the Rendezvous restaurant to Rivoli cinema, Scandal Point to the Kali Bari temple, Chotta Shimla Chowk to Raj Bhawan to Oak Over and from AG office to Cart
Road. |
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School building collapses
Una, November 27 The building housing the science laboratories of Government Middle School at the said location collapsed yesterday due to foundation dug by some private persons along side the school. The sources available at the spot said the school building began to crumble due to about 8-feet deep foundations dug along side it. The attentive teachers immediately shifted the students outside the building. Within minutes the building of the school collapsed. The sources available here said the foundations were being dug illegally. The executive officer of Una municipal council Raj Kumar Sharma said the plan of the building was approved by them. The plan was submitted to them on November 12. “We had forwarded the same to the town planning authorities. The construction activity being carried out was illegal,” he said When asked what action was being taken, the executive officer said since no construction was carried out as yet, no action could be taken. Meanwhile principal of the government school has lodged a police complaint. Una SP Atul Fulzele said a case under Section 3 of the damage of public property Act and 427 of the IPC has been registered against the persons who were carrying out the illegal construction. He said no arrests had been made as yet in a case as the police was verifying the facts. Illegal constructions, filling of rivulets and raising down hillocks has become a norm in Una district due to complacent attitude of the authorities concerned. The action on the part of authorities is carried generally in cases of accidents. In other cases, they limit themselves to just paper work of issuing notices that just add up in their files. The authorities here fail to take preventive steps due to alleged political interference on almost every administrative matter. |
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Annul BOT agreement, says INTUC
Nurpur, November 27 In a joint statement issued by general secretaries of the state
INTUC, Rajneesh Sharma and Sita Ram Saini, they alleged that all conditions of the BOT agreement were one-sided and
anti-HRTC and INTUC were against the same. They also criticised the collection of entry fees of Rs 50 from each HRTC bus entering the bus stand at
Kangra, which was being constructed under the BOT system. The INTUC leaders urged the management of the HRTC to review the agreement in the larger interest of the corporation. They warned the management to launch an agitation on the issue of collection of entry fees at the bus stand. |
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Firing in Paonta factory
Nahan, November 27 Baldev Singh, president, karamchari sangharsh samiti alleged that gunman Nain Singh fired on the instruction of the proprietor of the factory, when the workers who were on strike for the past four months were trying to sit on a dharna in front of the factory. The workers were demanding re-engagement of retrenched workers. B.D. Bhatia, SHO, Paonta, said Nain Singh had been arrested and a case under Section 336 of the IPC and the Arms Act had been registered. He said that the gun had been ceased and was being sent for forensic examination. |
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One held for forgery
Nurpur, November 27 According to the police which had registered an FIR under Section 420 of the IPC, the complainant Roshni devi, the wife of the deceased, had married to his elder brother, Dyal Singh, in 1990. She delivered a baby in 1992 and her husband suddenly died in 1993. After the death of her husband, she was living with her parents. She alleged that a few days back when she happened to visit the local patwari for a revenue-related certificate, she was startled to know that Purn Singh had manipulated a succession mutation in which he had asserted that his elder brother had died without solemnizing a marriage and got transferred the whole share of his landed property in his mother’s name. She alleged that she had been deprived of her and her daughter’s succession rights. The accused was produced before the judicial magistrate. |
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1 killed
in car mishap
Solan, November 27 The accident occurred at Khaida, about 60 km from here, in the Baddi industrial area after the car driver was blinded by the headlights of a vehicle coming from the opposite direction. The deceased had been identified as Nitu, a resident of Bihar The injured have been admitted to the block hospital at Nalagarh. A case has been registered.
— UNI |
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