Faridabad, December 5
The Suraj Kund police in the district has registered an FIR against Congress MP from Faridabad Avtar Singh Bhadana and 17 others following court orders here in a trespass case.

The complainant, Syam Singh Bhadana, a resident of Anangpur village, had moved court in a case pertaining to land after the “police did not pay heed” to his case. The MP also hails from Anangpur, where the land in question falls.

The accused have been slapped with several criminal charges, which are of non-bailable nature, including alleged trespass on land of the complainant and issuing of threats to him.

They have been booked under sections 425, 427, 447, 448, 329, 506, 120 and 34 of the IPC.

Syam Singh’s had alleged that the MP and his men illegally took possession of 27 bighas on Novemeber 21 which was officially allotted to him in the village. They forcibly started construction on it.

Only Bhadana and two others have been named in the FIR. All accused are residents of Anangpur.

On the other hand, an aide of the MP at his residence said the complaint against the leader was politically motivated.

Faridabad, December 5
An NSG commando, Subedar Trechand Singh, a resident of Jasana village in the district, is still nursing his injuries sustained during an anti-terrorist operation in Mumabi’s Taj Hotel on the morning of November 27.

He was hit by a bullet on his left ankle by two terrorists, who were “spraying bullets and lobbying grenades indiscriminately” at the NSG commandos engaged in the operation against them.

He is undergoing treatment at the Army’s Base Hospital in Delhi. Talking to The Tribune on the telephone, he said he was recovering fast and indications were that the “effect of the injuries will not be of a permanent nature”.

He said he was touched by the “sentiments of the countrymen for their support” to security personnel engaged in anti-terrorist operations in Mumbai.

Recounting the incidents, he said at that point of time, all his colleagues in the operation engaged the terrorists and “did not allow them to escape”.

Commandos from Manesar base in Gurgaon district were flown in the wee hours of November 26, after terrorists had entered Taj Hotel, Oberoi Trident and Nariman House. The commandos launched their operations at 7 am in Taj. They landed by air on the rooftop of the hotel.

According to him, the terrorists were in a vantage point and used to flee through several openings and corridors in the hotel complex after firing on the commandos.

Subedar Singh said the commandos had one aim - to kill the terrorists as soon as possible.

He said he and his colleague, who was also injured, were taken to the ground floor from where they were admitted in a hospital owned by the Tata group. He received medication till November 30 there after which he was flown to the Army’s Base Hospital in Delhi.

The Subedar belongs the Para Special Force of the Infantry Division. He is with the NSG for the past one and a half years.

Chandigarh, December 5
Congress MLA from Palwal and chairman of the Haryana Administrative Reforms Commission has sought the disqualification of INLD president and former Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala from the membership of the state assembly on the ground that he had allegedly filed a false affidavit along with his nomination papers in the 2005 elections.

In a representation sent to the Election Commission of India, Dalal said in his affidavit filed before the returning officer of the Rori assembly constituency, Chautala had stated that he had never been convicted of any offence.

Citing a report of the Estimates Committee of the Lok Sabha, Dalal said it was a matter of record that a penalty was imposed on Chautala after the customs authorities seized certain goods, including watches and fountain pens, from the baggage of the INLD leader when he arrived at Delhi airport on October 22, 1978, by Japan Airlines flight no. JL-461.

Dalal said the assistant collector imposed a penalty of Rs 2,000 on Chautala on September 1, 1980. The penalty was reduced to Rs 1,000 on an appeal filed by Chautala.

Dalal claimed that from a bare perusal of sections 111(d) and 12 of the Customs Act, 1962, it was clear that a penalty was imposed on Chautala for illegally importing various goods. He said the apex court had held that the voters had a right to know about their candidates.

He said in view of the intentional suppression of material facts from the public by Chautala, the commission should exercise its powers under Article 324 of the Constitution and disqualify Chautala from the membership of the assembly.

Dalal, who released copies of his representation to the commission to newsmen here today, also alleged that Chautala had violated the land ceiling laws as the land held by him and his wife (as admitted in the details of property attached with the nomination papers) exceeded the permissible limit of land which could be owned by a person along with the spouse.

He said he would write to the state government to take action against Chautala and declare his land surplus so that it could be distributed among needy members of the Scheduled Castes. 

Chandigarh, December 5
The seven-year-long wait of Haryana Civil Service (HCS) officers for their nomination to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) has ended.

The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has convened a meeting on December 11 to consider the names of those officers who are eligible for nomination to the IAS.

The last HCS officer to be nominated to the IAS was Neelam Kasni, who made it in 2001. Yudhvir Singh Khyalia, who was under suspension at that time, too was provisionally promoted to the IAS the same year but the post was not ultimately filled.

Since then, no HCS officer could be promoted to the IAS because of several legal cases filed by members of their own fraternity. Khyalia had gone to the court claiming that since he had been exonerated of all charges by the state government, he should be given the post against which he was promoted in 2001. The case is still pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The seniority of Khyalia in the IAS will be fixed as per the decision on his petition.

In all these years, while the HCS officers had been waiting for their promotion, a number of IAS posts meant for the state services went to non-HCS officers, particularly of the Excise and Taxation Department. A number of HCS officers retired from the service in the wait for their promotion. Sources say some of them, if otherwise found eligible, would be given notional promotion. In that case, they will be entitled to better post-retirement benefits. However, Lajvir Singh, who retired a few months ago at the age of 58, would be able to serve in the IAS as the retirement age of these officers is 60. Still 12 posts in the IAS, which arose in various years, are lying vacant for the HCS officers.

Under the rules, the state government recommends the names of officers three times the number of posts to the UPSC.

Among those whose names are being recommended by the state government are Risal Singh Khera, Khyalia, Pradeep Kasni, M.K. Mahajan, Balbir Singh, Lajvir Singh, Ramesh Kishan, Surjeet Singh, Pravin Kumar, B.B. Kaushik and Abhey Singh Yadav.

Another meeting will be held on December 12 for considering the names of those non-HCS officers who will also be promoted to the IAS. 

Chandigarh, December 5
The appointment of Dr Narveer Singh as Haryana director-general, health, has come under the Punjab and Haryana High Court scanner.

Dr Veena Chug of Panchkula has thrown a challenge to his selection. Among the grounds the additional director-general has chosen are supersession and lack of jurisdiction. She has also claimed, “Person junior to her has been made the director-general.”

In her petition against Haryana and Dr Narveer Singh, she has asserted that order dated November 26, issued by the state, ought to be quashed as she had been superseded through it. She has added the order was, moreover, in contravention of the rules and the laid down law. It was issued without any reason and jurisdiction.

In the petition placed before the Bench of Justice Mehtab Singh Gill and Justice K. Kannan, Dr Chug has also sought directions to the state to promote her to the post of the director-general.

The petitioner has contended that she was eligible to be promoted to the post. Dr Chug asserted she was, in fact, the senior-most against the cadre post as per the rules. Elaborating, the petitioner said her sole grievance was that she was additional director-general, health. As such, she was the “senior-most contender” and was liable to be promoted after the post fell vacant with the retirement of Dr Avinash Sharma on November 30.

Going into the background of the matter, the counsel for the petitioner contended that Dr Chug’s case for promotion was put up before the principal secretary on November 26. It was then forwarded to the minister-in-charge for consideration. From there, the case went to the Chief Minister’s office. It was in the Chief Minister’s office that Dr Narveer Singh was ordered to be appointed as the director-general, health.

After going through the documents and preliminary hearing in the case, the Bench issued notice of motion to the respondents. The case will now come up for further hearing on January 12.

Chandigarh, December 5
Justice Mehtab Singh Gill and Justice K.Kannan today issued notice of motion for December 12 on a petition to appoint or associate a sitting judge of the high court as expert for the selection of civil judge (junior division) in Haryana.

In the petition, Surinder Singh of Rohtak through counsel Col. N.R. Dahia said the same was the mandate of law as laid down in the case of State of Uttar Pradesh vs. Rafiquadin and others.

The petitioner also sought directions for quashing the action of Haryana and other respondents in not considering the claim of the dependants of ex-servicemen and eliminating their roll number from the result of preliminary examination.

Directions were also sought to the respondents to declare the result of the petitioners and other such dependants of ex-servicemen, who had secured marks more than the last candidate qualifying in the ex-servicemen category. 

Chandigarh, December 5
The Haryana Election Commission has decided to hold the general elections to the municipal committees of Mandi Dabwali and Pinjore and byelections in the municipal committees of Kalka and Assandh and the municipal councils of Bhiwani, Palwal and Rewari on December 30.

Chander Singh, State Election Commissioner, said here today that nomination papers could be filed from December 12 to 17.These papers would be scrutinised on December 18. Candidates could withdraw their names between 11 am and 3 pm on December 19. Polling, if any, would be held between 8 am and 4 pm on December 30 and the counting of votes would begin immediately after the polling was closed.

The results would be declared the same day. He said the commission had decided to use electronic voting machines in these elections.

Sirsa, December 5
Traders today halted 2 RF Rewari-Fazilka passenger train at the local railway station against the alleged manhandling of a trader by a cop posted in the GRP police station.

They staged a dharna in front of the train for more than half an hour and the train was allowed to move only after the local police and the GRP authorities assured of justice to the aggrieved trader.

They alleged that the trader, Durga Dass, was not only roughed up by the cop, but was also kept under illegal custody in the police station for more than two hours.

The agitated traders led by Hira Lal Sharma, president of the district unit of the Vyapar Mandal, alleged that a cop with the local GRP manhandled the trader when he had gone there to purchase a railway ticket.

When the trader argued with the cop, he made him sit in his confinement for two hours. After getting information, the infuriated traders reached the railway station and sat on dharna in front of the train. The traders demanded suspension of the guilty cop. The train was, however, allowed to move after SHOs of the GRP and the city police station assured the traders that the matter would be resolved.

Sirsa, December 5
Accusing the local police of conniving with the rapists of her minor daughter, a widow has sought immediate arrest of the accused.

The woman, a resident of Jan Kalyan Colony here, today sent identical telegrams to the Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Haryana Chief Minister, director-general of police, Haryana, and some other senior functionaries of the government seeking justice for her daughter. She alleged that the police had been shielding the accused due to ulterior motives.

SHO Ajay Sharma said a woman, Amarjit Kaur, and her son Raju had already been arrested. The woman was in jail in connection with the murder of her husband when her minor daughter was allegedly raped by those claiming to be her well wishers and ostensibly facilitating her bail.

A woman friend of her, whom she relied the most, allegedly helped others rape the girl. The woman was released on bail on October 31 and when she came back to her home, she came to know that her minor daughter had been raped by Raju, Palvinder and three others. Amarjit Kaur allegedly helped the five accused in the crime.

The woman alleged that while Amarjit and her son Raju had been arrested, the police had colluded with others to save them. Denying the allegations, Sharma said two persons had already been arrested and the role of others was being investigated.

Yamunanagar, December 5
Family members of Akhtar of Naharpur, who was brutally beaten up by a group of villagers six days ago following an old dispute, today blamed the police for not taking any action against the culprits. Akhtar, who was admitted to a private hospital here, succumbed to his injuries this morning. A postmortem was conducted in the local Civil Hospital.

Akhtar’s brother Liyakat Ali had complained that a group of villagers trespassed into their house on November 29 and started beating him up following an old dispute. They also beat up Akhtar with sharp-edged weapons when he came for his rescue.

The police had registered a case under Section 307 of the IPC against 12 persons, including Rafakat. However, since then the police had not arrested any accused in the case. DSP Laxman Sharma said after Akhtar’s death they registered a case of murder against 12 accused, including Rafakat, in the case. All accused had been absconding and the police had been raiding different places to arrest the accused, he added.

Sonepat, December 5
Two persons - Mukesh and Ram Dhari of Ahulana village in Gohana subdivision of the district - died on the spot while five others - Arun, Dilbag, Kaptan and Sabla of Kathura village and Devender of Ahulana - were injured seriously when the maxi-cab they were travelling in overturned near a filling station on the Meham road late last evening.

The accident victims were going to their villages in the maxi-cab from Gohana. After reaching near the Laxmi filling station on the Meham road, the vehicle hit some stones dumped near the road and overturned on the roadside.

In protest against the dumping of stones on the roadside by a contractor, hundred of residents of Ahulana village reached the accident site this morning and blocked the road. They alleged that after digging roads in Gohana town for laying sewer lines, the contractor had dumped broken slabs of RCC on the roadside which resulted in the fatal accident.