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Cash-for-Vote Scam
Probe panel’s take on...
Privilege proceedings against 3 BJP MPs
Truth hasn’t come to fore: BJP MP
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Finally, Mumbai cops to get hi-tech weapons
Homage paid to martyrs of Mumbai attacks
Sena warns lawyers against defending Kasab
‘Revamp intelligence set-up to prevent terror’
Special aircraft for coastline security
SC modifies order on trial of Pak prisoners
BJP jittery after assembly poll results
Karuna faces crucial test at son’s bastion
WB govt approves formation of ATS
Live-in partners
protected under Domestic Violence Act: Govt
Portal
Pangs
Navy at sea over what to do with nabbed pirates
Security to be upgraded at Tirumala
Assam: Bird flu under control
Special care for differently-abled kids
Sonia: Let none take India for granted
NCERT to unravel link between exams & suicides
Obama has no proposal to appoint envoy on Kashmir: Kerry
3-fold salary hike for President
Notices to TV shows featuring children
Gehlot orders probe against Raje
Dense fog hits flights
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Clean chit to Amar Singh,
Patel
Aditi Tandon Tribune News Service
New Delhi, December 15 The panel has, however, recommended further investigation into the roles of Sudheendra Kulkarni, a close L.K. Advani aide, BJP activist Suhail Hindustani and Sanjeev Saxena in the matter. While Kulkarni admitted before the panel to having masterminded the whistle-blowing operation, Hindustani assisted him; Saxena delivered the bribe money. Panel chairperson V. Kishore Chandra Deo today said the source of alleged bribe money flashed in the House on July 22 needed to be probed. The panel earlier wrote to the Finance Ministry to determine the source but the ministry said the banks had no system of recording the serial number of currency notes issued to the customer. The committee has recommended that the matter be investigated by revenue intelligence and other authorities concerned. As for the main accused -- after five months of deliberations, the panel found no clinching evidence against them of bribing BJP MPs Ashok Argal, Faggan Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora. The three had, on July 25, alleged in a letter to the Speaker, that they had been bribed for supporting the government’s trust vote on July 22. The 466-page panel report, however, gives a clean chit to the accused, and states: “There is not an iota of evidence to prove Ahmad Patel’s involvement in the alleged offer of money; no direct evidence against Amar Singh, and nothing on record to prove that Reoti Raman Singh was at Argal’s residence as Amar Singh’s emissary for the purpose of securing Argal’s support to the motion of confidence.” The report was tabled today in the Lok Sabha with three dissenting notes - from BJP’s V.K. Malhotra, CPM’s Mohd Salim and SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav each. While the first two opposition MPs dissented, distancing themselves from the report, Yadav sought the panel to give Saxena benefit of the doubt. Interestingly, Malhotra sought the case be referred to the Rajya Sabha as it involved two Rajya Sabha MPs Ahmad Patel and Amar Singh. The committee declined the suggestion saying there was no prima facie evidence against the said members to refer the case any further. Moreover, existing procedures for such referral do not guarantee that the member concerned deposes before the RS. Bound by the problems of summoning members of the other House, the Deo panel today recommended that the procedure for requiring appearance of member of one House before the other House committee must be reviewed to bring it on par with the prevailing position in the UK, where such rules are more streamlined. Salim, for his part, wanted the panel to summon Hasmat Ali, driver of the Zen car in which Suhail Hindustani accompanied Argal and others to Amar Singh’s residence. “Calling Ali was unnecessary as we would not have got anything extra from him than what we already had from Hindustani. Ali was Suhail’s contact,” Deo said. On the contrary, the complainant BJP MPs might end up facing the heat in the matter, considering they are public servants, as described by the Supreme Court in the JMM bribery case. Deo admitted, “The SC described MPs as public servants, covered by the Prevention of Corruption Act.” Moreover these MPs, unlike those who took bribe in the JMM case, do not have the immunity under Article 105 (2) of the Constitution, which holds that no MP should be liable for any court proceeding in respect of anything said or any vote given by him in Parliament. But in the instant case, the three BJP MPs were (by their own admission) volunteers in the whistle blowing operation. “The money accepted by them although as volunteers of a whistle-blowing operation has no nexus to the vote cast by them. Consequently, they do not enjoy immunity under Article 105 (2). Also, the transaction at hand and the acceptance of money took place outside the House, at the residence of Argal, not in the Parliament,” Deo said.
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Ahmad Patel: No one has claimed talking face-to-face with Patel. His complicity is based on surmises. Amar Singh: No direct evidence against Amar Singh. We are inclined to ignore the video clip of a car entering and coming out of Singh’s residence as the clip shows no faces (claimed to be Argal’s and Kulaste’s) sitting in the rear seat. Rear windows have tinted glasses. Reoti Raman Singh: His going to Argal’s residence on the intervening night of July 21 and 22 is uncontroverted. But there is no proof of what Argal and Singh spoke about - whether about Argal’s joining the SP as claimed by Singh or a talk to persuade Argal to abstain from voting, as claimed by Argal. Sanjeev Saxena (who carried the money bag to Argal’s house): There are many loopholes in his testimony. But he was a bribe giver wittingly or unwittingly. He has no immunity under Article 105 (2) of the Constitution. Suhail Hindustani (the man who fixed the bribe deal): He admitted being a volunteer in the whistle-blowing operation. He does not appear to be above board vis-à-vis his own maneuvering in the impugned whistle blowing operation. His role needs further investigation. Sudheendra Kulkarni: Admitted he masterminded the whistle-blowing operation but failed to justify why. He also admitted to being an active votary of placing the money on the table of the House. He facilitated in the giving of bribes to MPs. His role needs more probe.
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Privilege proceedings against 3 BJP MPs
New Delhi, December 15 Notices of privilege for this Act are pending against BJP MPs Ashok Argal, Faggan Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora, who flashed currency notes in the House on July 22. The notices were served by Congress MP Madhusudan Mistry and SP’s Mohan Singh. Today, the Committee of Privileges recorded the statements of BJP MPs facing privilege notices. The statements of Mohan Singh and Mistry have already been recorded.
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Truth hasn’t come to fore: BJP MP
New Delhi, December 15 “Justice was not done to me. Amar Singh, the main accused was not quizzed by the committee. Action should have been taken against Singh, which did not happen,” Argal said on being asked whether the issue was not properly investigated. “The truth did not come to the fore. UPA leaders had demanded narco-test of the BJP MPs. I was ready for it. Narco-test of Sanjeev Saxena (said to be an aide of Singh) should have been done,” he said.
— PTI
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Finally, Mumbai cops to get hi-tech weapons
Mumbai, December 15 Chief Minister Ashok Chavan said several pending proposals from the Mumbai police have been cleared on a priority basis. Chavan made the announcement in Nagpur, where the winter session of the Maharashtra assembly is in progress. Among other things, the police had requested for effective weaponry and training facilities for personnel. Police constables deployed in Mumbai have been faulted for their poor training and lack of adequate exposure to firing weapons. Policemen, who have been issued guns, fire 20 rounds as part of their practice every few years. Police officials say the new measures will result in more firing ranges and better weapons for the police force. Incidentally, one senior police officer has attracted criticism for his suggestion that weapons for the force be purchased from the grey market in order to save costs. According to sources, among the priority items in the department’s list include bulletproof vests of high quality. The present set of bulletproof vests was purchased in the 1980s when criminals fired countrymade weapons. These vests cannot withstand volleys from automatic assault rifles like the AK-47. Senior police officers Hemant
Karkare, Vijay Salaskar and Ashok Kamte were killed by the terrorists despite the bulletproof vests and helmets worn by them. Chavan told reporters in Nagpur that the police department would recruit software engineers specialising in cyber security directly by paying market salaries. The appointments would be made on contract and would not be made via the Maharashtra Public Service Commission. Earlier, attempts by the state government to recruit software engineers in the cybercrime cell failed to take off as no candidate was available to work at government pay scales. The funds provided by the state government would also be used to set up coastal police stations, Chavan said. Speedboats and dinghies would be ordered to patrol the coastlines of the city, according to the Chief Minister. Last week itself, the state government procured several speedboats on an emergency basis to equip the police stations across Maharashtra’s coastline. Incidentally, funds received from the centre to modernise police stations have been left unutilised. New home minister Jayant Patil said an inquiry has been ordered to find who has been responsible for non-utilisation of funds earmarked for the police department.
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Homage paid to martyrs of Mumbai attacks
New Delhi, December 15 Families of 18 victims, all members of the armed forces, were given Rs 6,00,000 each, along with a citation by the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust led by yoga guru Ramdev, his disciples and several political heavyweights. While Patanjali Yogpeeth donated Rs 5,00,000 as ex gratia to the victims’ kin, Suresh Goel, chairman of Zee 24 Ghante of Chhattisgarh, gave Rs 1,00,000 from his personal account. The ceremony reflected the spirit of nationalism that has been sweeping through the country post 26/11. The invitees, a mix of senior Congress politicians, workers and businessmen from across the country, carried national flags and the stadium was decked up with billboards proclaiming “We salute the martyrs of the nation”. Slogans against terrorism rent the air. It began with Vedic funeral rites as family members of the victims lit ceremonial fires and priests chanted Vedic scriptures to pray for the souls of the martyrs and peace. Later, as the families of the martyrs were invited to share their loss with the people, most of them broke down. “I can’t speak fluent Hindi, but I will try,” said K. Unnikrishnan, his voice breaking midway as he struggled for words. A tired Unnikrishnan, accompanied by wife C. Dhanalakshmi, lost their son Sandeep Unnikrishnan, a National Security Guards Major, to terrorist bullets. “I feel Sandeep is just back from an operation and he is sitting here with us,” Unnikrishnan said. Young Divya Salaskar and mother Smita Salaskar lost the family’s bastion of strength, encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar, who was killed Nov 27 outside the Metro cinema theatre. An officer of the 1983 batch, Salaskar had eliminated many underworld dons and had unearthed several crime rings. “The day is still etched in my memory. My dad came home early from work, ate his dinner and hurried out saying he was on duty. After sometime, the news of his death flashed on television. It is great personal loss for me and my mother,” Divya said as tears trickled down on her cheeks. Indian Police Service officer Hemant Karkare was shot three times in the chest as he led his men at the Taj Mahal Hotel to free it of terrorists. For wife Kavita, the blow is irreparable. She has retreated into a shell of silence; daughter Juhi speaks on her behalf. “I cannot speak in Hindi properly, so allow me to speak in English,” the quiet teenager clad in a blue salwar-kameez said. “We must all have the strength to fight terrorism so that souls of the martyrs can rest in peace. My loss cannot be expressed in words, but I thank the country for the support,” Juhi Karkare said. The beneficiaries of the ex-gratia included the families of Ashok Kamte, Arun Chitte, Ambadas Pawar, Balasaheb Bhosale, Bapusaheb Durugade, Jaywant Patil, M. Choudhary, Mukesh B. Jadhav, Prakash P. More, Rahul S. Shinde, Shashank Shinde, Tukaram Gopal Ambole, Vijay Khandekar abd Yogesh Patil.
— IANS
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Sena warns lawyers against defending Kasab
Mumbai, December 15 On Sunday, a large number of Sena activists, led by local leader Vinod
Ghosalkar, descended on the residence of criminal lawyer Ashok Saraogi after TV channels flashed news that he was planning to defend
Kasab. Timely intervention by the police ensured that Saraogi, who was also the defence lawyer of gangster Abu Salem, was saved from the wrath of Sena activists. Later, the criminal lawyer released a statement stating that he would not defend Kasab bowing to “strong public sentiments”. Saraogi also admitted that senior officials approached him to defend
Kasab. So far Kasab hasn't been able to get a lawyer to take up his case. Experts say, the legal process against the bomber would not proceed unless defence is arranged for him. Another lawyer Dinesh Mota, who was asked by the Maharashtra legal aid cell to represent
Kasab, has declined to fight the case, even risking cancellation of his license to practice
law. Sena’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut on Monday also said the party would not spare anyone who tries to represent
Kasab. Meanwhile, according to PTI, Maharashtra former additional advocate general P. Janardhan has said he is willing to represent the arrested terrorist if the Pakistan High Commission approaches him. “You (the state) have to give him a fair trial. If he is not represented, it will be a violation of human rights,” Janardan said. “The state has to see that his human rights are not violated that is why I have come forward to defend him. But first the Pakistan High Commission will have to approach me,” he
said. Janardan also said there cannot be much of a defence for Kasab as he was caught red-handed shooting the people but according to the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) every accused must have a lawyer. Earlier, the Bombay Metropolitan Magistrate Court’s Bar Association had passed a resolution not to represent Ajmal who is currently in the police custody. Notably, Kasab has also written to the Pakistan government seeking their services in finding a lawyer to defend him in court. But it is not clear if the Pakistan government will make any move to support him.
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‘Revamp intelligence set-up to prevent terror’
Guwahati, December 15 The Left party also underlined revamping of the intelligence set-up to prevent terror strikes in the country. Prakash Karat, general secretary of the CPM, said here today that his party had already conveyed its stand to the UPA government that proposed federal investigating agency must not bypass state governments and state agencies, otherwise it would be of no use. “We will reiterate our stand in Parliament when the bill on the proposed federal investigating agency would be tabled,” he said, adding that there was need for a national-level agency to deal with terrorism that had roots beyond frontiers. The CPM leader also underlined the need for revamping and strengthening the intelligence apparatus throughout the country to prevent terror strikes. Karat expressed concern over delay in sealing of India-Bangladesh border though the fencing work had been started two decades back, and said the border must be sealed immediately to prevent infiltration and incapacitate extremist outfits of Northeast which took advantage of the porous border for carrying out their activities in the region. He said the Central government should mount diplomatic pressure on Bangladesh to ensure that its territory was not allowed to be used for shelter by insurgent groups from the Northeast. Regarding the global meltdown, Karat demanded the UPA government to do away with the self-imposed Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act and expand the fiscal deficit to ensure massive spending by the government at the Centre and the states to tackle possible slowdown of the Indian economy. He said the financial sector in the country should not be opened up further to foreign capital in view of the global economic recession. “What is required is a much higher public expenditure programme aimed at generating employment and enhancing incomes of the working people through increased public investment in agriculture, expansion of the NREGA, higher allocations for health and education, infrastructure like rural roads, housing for middle and lower income groups and universalisation of the public distribution system,” he said.
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Special aircraft for coastline security
New Delhi, December 15 Defence minister A.K Antony while replying to suggestions of the standing committee on Defence today told the Lok Sabha that three types of aircraft were being acquired. In his reply he also gave details about how 56 airfields across the country were being upgraded and modernised. The Indian Air Force will also be expanding in a big way with addition of Sukhoi -30 MKI fighters, Indigenously developed light-combat aircraft and development of the fifth-generation fighter aircraft with Russia. The standing committee had questioned the shortage and wanted that the projects should not suffer from cost-over-run. Antony has assured that there is progress and the medium range ones will be inducted within this plan, ending 2012.
Antony admitted that there was a delay in acquiring the stealth frigates and there was lag of nearly 9 months in the delivery of the first ship. The issue of weapon systems for these ships has been resolved. Separately another delay has been encountered to deliver destroyers for the Navy as the “shafting” and the propeller system has been delayed.
Antony said a total of 56 airfields were being upgraded. A total of 30 have been taken up in the first phase. A sum of Rs 1,216 crore was being spent. This sum will also include a very high frequency distance --measuring equipment for the Navy. The committee suggested that the IAF should take over some of the airfields that were owned by state governments but were in a state of a
dis-repair for want of funds. The minister said the IAF was opening up military enclaves at some of the civil aerodromes that were under the command of the Airports Authority of India. The taking over of airfields will be discussed as per the need.
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SC modifies order on trial of Pak prisoners
New Delhi, December 15 After the authorities pointed out the practical difficulties in implementing the November 10 order of the apex court, the Bench comprising Justices B.N. Agarwal and G.S. Singhvi admitted that they had issued it without “proper application of the
mind.”
The problem had arisen as some of the Pakistani nationals, arrested under the Jammu and Kashmir Public Safety Act (PSA), as far back in 1997, had been booked under the same FIR but were lodged in different states. It was, therefore, not possible to hold the same trial in various states. Issuing a series of modification orders, the Bench asked the police and jail officials to shift within one month the prisoners, covered under the same FIRs, to suitable jails to facilitate their trial together. Earlier, the Bench had asked the authorities to complete within one year the trial of all prisoners held under PSA. Panthers’ Party chief Bhim Singh, who also heads the State Legal Aid Committee, had challenged the detention of more than 100 people, contending that no person, irrespective of his nationality, could be kept in jail under PSA for more than two years. According to the petition, the detainees have not been subjected to trial for more than 10 years in violation of Article 21 of the Constitution. Notice to TN govt The Chief Justice’s court issued notices to the Tamil Nadu government, the Governor and the inspector general of prisons on a petition by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy. Dr Swamy had sought the transfer to the Supreme Court the case pertaining to the premature release of about 1,400 life convicts in violation of law.
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BJP jittery after assembly poll results
New Delhi, December 15 But sadly, the party was actually confident of winning four of these five states including Delhi and Rajasthan and somehow the BJP has not been able to recover from the shock of losing Rajasthan and not winning Delhi. The results for these polls were announced on December 8. That was the last day, media savvy BJP faced the press through its master spin doctor and party general secretary Arun Jaitley. But he was rather reticent that day. The party holds a daily briefing, more so when Parliament is in session. Even on Saturdays when most parties normally close shop, one or the other BJP spokesmen is available at party headquarters 11, Ashoka Road to “informally” brief the media. But Parliament session commenced on December 10 and since then the BJP has been assiduously avoiding any formal or informal briefings. On record its spokesman Rajiv Pratap Rudy had no real explanation for this except saying, “I will see that one of us is there from tomorrow.” Privately, BJP sources claimed there are several loose ends to be tied up in the party before it is ready to put its best foot forward. For instance there is uncertainty about the fate of BJP deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Vijay Kumar Malhotra, also alternating as the parliamentary party spokesman who in the normal course briefs media during the session. Malhotra failed to become the chief minister but won the Delhi assembly seat and now the BJP has to decide whether he has to go to Delhi assembly as the Leader of Opposition there or resign the Assembly seat and continue to remain in Parliament. There are other unresolved issues too like the issue of leadership in Rajasthan, which the party lost in this election. There have been a series of meetings at the residence of Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani, party president Rajnath Singh and former BJP president M Venkaiah Naidu to work out a truce between former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhra Raje and BJP state president Om Prakash Mathur both of whom privately hold the other responsible for unparalleled number of rebels contesting this time, which the BJP believes was responsible for its defeat in Rajasthan. Yet so far the party has not been able to resolve this issue and decide who will lead the party in the state assembly now. That is also because since the BJP announced Advani their candidate for the next prime minister of India, he has been resisting any change in the state leaderships, be it Rajasthan, Bihar or Uttarakhand But the Mumbai terror attack and the Congress and UPA government’s aggressive pro-active reaction to it, raising the general pitch against Pakistan has forced the BJP more than anything else into a tight corner.
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Karuna faces crucial test at son’s bastion
Chennai, December 15 The results of the bypoll at Thirumangalam constituency in Madurai, where Azhagiri controls the DMK, will be crucial as it comes just a few months before the Lok Sabha elections. The bypoll is seen as a sample survey in the state, after the Left parties quit the DMK front and joined hands with the AIADMK. Since, the result will have a bearing on the outcome of the General Election later, MDMK leader Vaiko has accepted her ally Jayalalithaa request to leave the seat for her party, even though the seat fell vacant after the demise of an MDMK MLA. The AIADMK is expected to match the ruling party’s money and muscle power and pose a tough challenge to the DMK, whose fieldwork will be spearheaded by Azhagiri, who is certain to go all out to prove his strength, especially when Jayalalithaa’s decision has raised the stakes. The fact that bypoll results always favour the ruling party in the state, will put more pressure on the DMK, since the expectations are high. Winning alone will not be enough for the ruling party and it is expected to win by a good margin. On the other hand, a victory for the opposition will generate the required momentum for the Lok Sabha elections and boost the morale of their cadres. The AIADMK will be supported by the cadre-based MDMK, which has polled more than 16 per cent votes in the 1996 assembly elections, when it formed an alliance with CPM and contested the seat. In this constituency, where the election is to be held on January 9, the Left parties too are considered to be stronger than the Congress, which is the only ally for the DMK. However, the ruling party will be banking on the entry of actor Vijaykanth’s DMDK, which is expected to split the AIADMK votes. Vijaykanth’s party had polled about 20,000 votes in the last assembly elections. It was for a speech supporting the LTTE at Thirumangalam, Vaiko was detained under POTA by the Jayalalithaa government five years ago. Much water has flown in the nearby Vaigai river after that. Now, in the same place, they will be sharing the same dais to defeat a common enemy, the DMK.
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WB govt approves formation of ATS
Kolkata, December 15 Accordingly, the budget would be increased for upgrading and modernising the police force. He said additional para-military forces were already deployed in Lalgraph-Belpahari-Jhargram areas in west Midnapore. Special CRPF pickets were also posted in all other vulnerable areas. Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee alleged in the state assembly that the Maoists had now infiltrated in the Adivasi areas in Midnapore, Purulia and Bankura after their successful missions in Singur and Nandigram where they were jointly operating with Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee. He said the Centre had agreed to dispatch additional force for its deployment in the Maoists-infiltrated areas. Mamata, however, denied that the Trinamool Congress was operating jointly with the Maoists in attacking the police and the cadres. She, on the contrary, accused the Chief Minister of misuing the police and the administration against the innocent farmers and the tribals in Midnapore. She reiterated that they would fight against the cadres for protecting the lives of the poor people. Mamata demanded that the CM should ban the Maoists if he considered them anti-nationals and found them involved in terrorists activities in the border areas. Meanwhile, the WBPCC(l) formally submitted their demand to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for intervening in the state’s law and order problems vis-à-vis the government’s misuing of power for the political interests. Congress(l) leader in the state assembly Dr Manash Bhuia said they had also apprised AICC(l) chairperson Sonia Gandhi how the police and the officials were being misued by the Chief Minister against their political foes. He said both Sonia and Manmohan Singh advised them to launch a massive campaign against the CPM and other communal forces.
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Live-in partners
protected under Domestic Violence Act: Govt
New Delhi, December 15 Replying to a query pertaining to live-in relationships during the Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Bhardwaj said every Indian woman, regardless of the nature of relationship she is in, was protected under the Domestic Violence Act. The
response came following a question raised by BJP’s Prabhat Jha on
whether some states had passed laws relating to live-in relationship and
whether the government would consider rejecting such laws, keeping in
view the Indian culture and ethos. While Bharadwaj denied having
received any such proposal from any state, the issue evoked active
response from several members, forcing the law minister to quip on “curiosity
of members with regards to live -in relationships”. In serious tone, he said laws were made keeping in view societal trends and that so far Domestic Violence Act was the law that governed these types of relationships. Replying to a supplementary, the minister specifically pointed that the rights of women in live-in relationships were protected under the Domestic Violence Act that Parliament had passed about a year ago. He said laws were made on the demands of society and as and when society was prepared to accept live-in relationships, the Domestic Violence Law could be expanded or another one made. However,
for present Bhardwaj maintained that it was hypothetical to ask a
question whether the government was contemplating a law to govern
live-in relationships . “I am one of the crusaders for the liberty of
women. I want to enforce the law (Domestic Violence Act) vigorously,”
he added. The main question whether some states had passed laws governing live-in relationships and whether the central government would reject these as the concept went against Indian customs and traditions evoked diametrically opposite responses from women members. “This
is a matter of adult consensual relationship....Why is this question
being allowed to ask” an indignant Brinda Karat of the CPM questioned. However,
Prabha Thakur of the Congress maintained that live-in relationships were
against Indian traditions. “ There should not be any legal validity
for such relationships. Not even one per cent of people will support it.
There is lot of apprehension whether the government is considering
providing legality to such relationships. If a law is enacted, it will
only be misused,” she asserted.
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‘Incorrect’ pension data on MoD website riles veterans
Vijay Mohan Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, December 15 Army Headquarters is learnt to have taken up the issue of incorrect tables with the MoD. In fact, the tables now available on the ministry’s website are the same as those floated by the PCDA to banks. The tables were released as annexure to the pension letter issued by the defence ministry on November 11. Copies of the said letter were sent to, among others, the President’s and Vice-President’s Secretariats, Prime Minister’s Office, Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha and cabinet secretariats, PCDA and scheduled banks. There are several discrepancies in the annexure originally issued by the MoD and those floated by the PCDA and on the MoD website. Pension fixed for some ranks in the latter is lower than that of their juniors. This, ex-servicemen have pointed out violates existing provisions as well as orders of the Supreme Court in the case of Union of India vs S.P.S. Vains, that pay or pension of an individual cannot be lower than that of his junior. Tables floated by the PCDA do not reflect stepping-up of pension in cases where the pension fixed for a particular rank by the Sixth Pay Commission worked out to be lower than that of subordinate rank. Implementation of successive pay panel recommendations has led to wide disparity in the pension of armed forces personnel retiring in the same rank but at different times. Ex-servicemen were strongly demanding “one rank-one pension”, but defence minister A.K. Antony stated in Parliament that it was not acceptable to the government. The Indian Ex-servicemen Movement (IEM) has reacted by saying that the defence minister had not only failed to give any reason for not accepting the demand, but also violated constitutional provisions and Supreme Court orders, for which it was answerable to the nation. The IEM has also flayed Antony’s statement in Rajya Sabha that ex-servicemen had not rejected the SPC, stating that the minister seemed to have misled the House. Service chiefs had twice represented to the government about pay anomalies. Maj-Gen Satbir Singh (retd), vice chairman IEM, said after paying homage to martyrs on Vijay Diwas ex-servicemen would organise a protest rally and a relay fast against the “injustice” done to them and to garner support for their demands.
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Navy at sea over what to do with nabbed pirates
New Delhi, December 15 “Since Saturday afternoon, the 12 Somali and 11 Yemeni pirates have been kept in custody on board INS Mysore and they are being fed with the rations meant for sailors,” Navy officials said here today. “We have not received any instructions yet from the Defence Ministry or the external affairs ministry on what needs to be done with the pirates,” they said The piquant situation that INS Mysore finds itself has been compounded as the Rules of Engagement issued to the warship before it set sail to the Gulf of Aden on anti-piracy patrol duties is unclear on the course of action if it did seize a pirate vessel and sea brigands, officials said. However, officials claimed that frantic efforts were in progress in both ministries to get a foreign port to accept the bandits for trial in their courts and were optimistic of finding a solution by tomorrow. The only other option available to INS Mysore is to abandon its anti-piracy patrols and return to an Indian port to hand over the pirates to local authorities for trying them. But that appears to be unacceptable to the Navy authorities as their action against the sea bandits was just gaining momentum. Officials said under the United Nations Convention on Laws of the Seas (UNCLOS), International Maritime Organisation resolutions and the Navy Act and Regulations, the warships were authorised to seize and apprehend the pirates. —
PTI
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Security to be upgraded at Tirumala
Hyderabad, December 15 Two battalions of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) will be deployed immediately for security purposes at the temple precincts, Andhra Pradesh home minister K. Jana Reddy said. A specialised training is being given to 1,600 Special Protection Force (SPF) personnel for manning security at Tirumala, the abode of Lord Venkateswara. The SPF men would be given training in combat warfare, crisis management and crowd control. The decision to step up security at the temple was taken at a meeting held by the home minister to review the security setup in the wake of terror alerts. As part of efforts to make the security fool-proof, the government is planning to provide sweeping powers to the vigilance staff of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), an autonomous body that manages the temple affairs. “It is proposed to vest the TTD vigilance staff with powers to arrest and investigate criminal cases in Tirumala,” the TTD chief vigilance and security officer B.V. Ramana Kumar said. “Our main objective is to create conducive atmosphere for the pilgrims to feel safe in the temple,” the official said. There is also a proposal to rope in ex-servicemen for security duties in and around the temple.
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Assam: Bird flu under control
Guwahati, December 15 State veterinary and animal husbandry director Ashwini Kataky said so far about 3.5 lakh poultry birds, including 17,000 ducks, had been culled in the state and the culling operation was on in and around the nine epicentres of bird flu in six districts of the state. He claimed that there was no report of fresh outbreak of the avian influenza from any new areas of the state and the situation was brought somewhat under control. He said that test reports of the samples collected in North Lakhimpur and Sibsagar districts, sent to laboratories in Bhopal and Pune, were yet to arrive though the authorities resorted to preventive culling in those two districts. A senior official of the Assam Health department said the Central government had dispatched five teams of medical experts to the state to visit bird- flu affected areas to detect any human infection, if any. However, the teams have so far failed to detect any such case. Meanwhile, the Assam government has effected a two-fold revision in the rate of compensation to be paid to poultry farmers whose birds have been culled in the wake of outbreak of bird flu.
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Special care for differently-abled kids
New Delhi, December 15 She was replying to a supplementary from Jaya Bachchan (Samajwadi Party) on the additional measures being taken for differently abled children since “they are aware that they are not up to the mark and this causes psychological problems”. “All those who have seen “Tare Zameen Par” will understand the need for such special care,” Bachchan added. Purandeswari noted that under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), teachers were being sensitised “not to segregate such children”, even as she “pleaded” with the parents of such children to provide adequate support at home. SSA is an effort to universalise elementary education by community-ownership of the school system. It is a response to the demand for quality basic education all over the country. The SSA programme is also an attempt to provide an opportunity for improving human capabilities to all children, through provision of community-owned quality education in a mission mode. Replying to the main question on the steps being taken to de-stress school students, particularly those in Classes 10 and 12, Purandeswari pointed out that web-based counselling that had been begun just three months ago had already attracted 1,862 questions from students and 840 from parents, mainly on improving percentages and the options available after school. “A wide range of issues are being addressed,” she said. Students were also being allowed a 15-minute grace period before they started writing an examination to enable them settle down and thoroughly understand the question paper, while the compartment system had been introduced at the classes 10 and 12 levels to ensure students who failed didn't lose a year. “Class 10 students can clear two papers in a compartment exam in June-July while class 12 students can clear one paper in this way. This will ensure that the students don't have to lose a year,” Purandeswari said.
— IANS
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Sonia: Let none take India for granted
Kochi, December 15 “The Mumbai terror strikes were an attack on the very idea of India where people of different race, religions and beliefs live harmoniously,” she said addressing a gathering of Congress workers here this evening. India came under assault during the attack by terrorists causing so much destruction to the democratic and secular way of life, she said. But “let nobody take us for granted, let nobody underestimate our resolve for peace,” Sonia said. Paying homage to the security personnel killed in the attack, particularly NSG officer from Kerala Maj Sandeep Unnikrishnan, she said he was a valiant son of the state and India and would be remembered by a grateful nation for generations to come. Just before the barbaric attacks by terrorists, India had shown its capabilities in space technology by successfully launching the Chandrayaan-I moon mission, she said.
— PTI
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NCERT to unravel link between exams & suicides
New Delhi, December 15 Replying to the supplementary during Question Hour, Minister of State for Human Resource Development D Purandeshwari said NCERT has not yet made its recommendations based on the study on adverse effects of examination pressure on the students under the present education system. "We do realise children are under stress and strain (but) exams are not the lone cause of suicides," she said when asked about the 16,000 reported suicides by students between 2004 and 2006. NCERT has also taken up the subject of examination reforms with state education boards while University Grants Commission (UGC) has advised all the universities to undertake academic reforms. She maintained that suicides were a result of various other factors also. "Socio-economic factors, stress and anxiety of the parents at times passes on to the child," she said. Counselling and helpline for parents and students have been initiated and since September this year, web- based counselling has also been started, she said.
— PTI
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Obama has no proposal to appoint envoy on Kashmir: Kerry
New Delhi, December 15 Kerry, who will be the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in the new administration, said an envoy would, however, be appointed on counter-terrorism. “Obama does not intend to create a special envoy for Kashmir but for counter-terrorism,” Kerry said in response to a question. In the midst of his election campaign, Obama had reportedly stated that he might appoint former President Bill Clinton as a special envoy on Kashmir. The statement had not gone down well with New Delhi, which maintains that Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan and can only be resolved by the two countries bilaterally.
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3-fold salary hike for President
New Delhi, December 15 While the President will get Rs 1.50 lakh per month, it will be Rs 1.25 lakh for the Vice-President and Rs 1.10 lakh for the Governors. The four Bills have already been approved by the Lok Sabha. The President and Vice-President will also be entitled to a pension of 50 per cent of their salaries. The revision in salary and pension will come into effect from January 1, 2006. At present, the President gets a monthly salary of Rs 50,000, the Vice-President Rs 40,000 and Governors Rs 36,000. In addition, former Presidents will also be entitled to a mobile phone, Internet and broadband connection and an additional private secretary and peon. The office maintenance expenses will be raised from Rs 12,000 to Rs 60,000 per annum. The spouses of deceased Presidents will also be entitled to furnished residence, secretarial staff, car, telephone and travel facilities. In case of former Vice-Presidents, the Bills seek to provide additional staff and office maintenance expense of Rs 60,000 per annum, up from existing Rs 12,000. The spouse of the deceased Vice-President too will be entitled to a furnished accommodation. — PTI
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Notices to TV shows featuring children
Mumbai, December 15 “The Labour Commissioner has issued the notices under the Child Labour Act 1996, asking the producers to explain if the work environment for the children was conducive and that there was no violation of any law,” labour minister Nawab Malik said. If any one is found violating provisions of the Act, action as per provisions of the law would be taken, the minister said. There have been reports that children working in television shows are made to work for 12 to 14 hours at a stretch, Malik said. “We would like to ensure that work environment does not in any way hamper their education and cause undue mental stress,” he said. Meanwhile, sources in the labour department said notices had been served to producers of various shows featuring children, including the popular ‘Ballika Vadhu’, ‘Uttran’ and ‘Chhote Ustad’ on Colors channel, ‘Chhota Package Bada Dhamaka’ on Zee TV and ‘Chak De Bacche’ on 9X channel.
— PTI
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Gehlot orders probe against Raje
New Delhi, December 15 “The process of inquiry has already been initiated. I have asked my officials to look into the various allegations against her and her government,” Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot told reporters today after meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Gehlot, however, insisted that his government would not be vindictive while pursuing these cases. During the elections, the Congress leader had alleged that land scams and other financial irregularities took place under Raje’s rule. He also accused her of not delivering on promises and “the various MoUs” signed during her tenure. Gehlot claimed that BJP leaders too were accusing Raje of irregularities. “Her own party members have levelled more allegations than the Congress. Even though her MLAs levelled charges against her, the government continued to function,” he said.
— PTI
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Dense fog hits flights
Kolkata, December 15 Airport sources said with visibility reduced to a minimum due to dense fog Air India, Jet Airways, Kingfisher, Lufthansa, British Airways and other airlines changed their flight
schedules by two hours on an average. Flights belonging to different airlines bound for Delhi (5), Mumbai (5), Bangalore (3) and Chennai (2) were affected as the fog still persisted when reports last came in around 9.30 am, the sources said. —
PTI |
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B’deshi family sent back Critic KP Appan dead 5 marine stations for Orissa
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