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CM seeks support for Malik
No case of hate speech in state
HJC workers unhappy over Dhanak’s nomination
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Quit Cong, Batra asks Chaudhary
17 more file papers
LPG tanker catches fire
Scribes boycott Tanwar’s meeting
Cong’s days numbered: Abhey
Harvesting shifts campaign focus to urban areas
Panel to redress study centres’ grievances
I’ll fulfil my father’s dreams, says Shruti
Cong has failed on all fronts: Chautala
Solid Waste Management
Woman gives poison to daughters, ends her life
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CM seeks support for Malik
Sonepat, April 13 Canvassing for party candidate Jitender Malik, Hooda said it was almost certain the Congress would sweep all parliamentary seats in the state, but the issue now was to make sure that all its candidates won with record margins. Addressing an election rally at Subhash Staduim, Hooda recalled his close association with Sonepat. He said the blessings of the people of this constituency had always been with him since 1996 and hoped that they would continue to support him and the Congress in the times to come. He promised an all-round development of the region. Having a dig at the BJP-INLD alliance, Hooda said it was clear to everyone that the two parties had joined hands to meet their own vested interests and had nothing to do with the welfare of the masses. Seeking votes in the name development works carried out by the state government, the Chief Minister listed the setting up of power plants and irrigation canals, waiving of loans and electricity bills, besides allotting plots free of cost to the poor. Speaking on the occasion, Haryana Education Minister Mange Ram Gupta said Jatinder Malik had the backing of the Chief Minister and once voted to power, he would unleash a new era of development for the region. Local MLA and Parliamentary Secretary Anil Thakkar said the state government had given due representation to the Punjabi community by inducting two Cabinet ministers, three parliamentary secretaries and chairmen of the various boards who were from Punjabi background. HPCC President Phool Chand Mullana said opposition parties in the state had no issues. Deepender Singh Hooda said rival parties were trying to mislead the masses, but it was for the voters to see what was right for them. Working President of the party Kuldip Sharma accused the BJP of having adopted double standards. Jitender Malik, Chief Parliamentary Secretary Ramesh Kaushik and MLAs Jagbir Singh Malik, Bachan Singh Arya and Sher Singh were also present during the rally. On the occasion some local leaders of the NCP, the BSP and the HJC joined the Congress along with their supporters. Earlier, Jitender Singh Malik was accompanied by the Chief Minister to the office of the returning officer for the filing of nomination papers. |
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No case of hate speech in state
Chandigarh, April 13 In a letter sent to all recognised parties, Tapas Kumar, Principal Secretary of the commission, expressed concern that many important leaders had been making highly provocative and inflammatory statements that could have incited communal hatred, disharmony or ill-will, and aggravated the differences between different classes of citizens on grounds of religion, caste and community. Coming down heavily on the “open” distribution of money, “justified in the name of local customs”, he said it was “deplorable” and it not only violated the model code of conduct but also amounted to the electoral offence of bribery as well as a corrupt practice under the Representation of the People’s Act, 1951. He regretted that these violations of the code and law of the land was “turning into something of a trend, which, if unchecked, was bound to seriously damage the election process and set a deplorable precedent for future elections.” The official reminded the parties of the advise given by the Supreme Court in 1994 that the “duty at the top echelons of leadership of all parties is to set the trend for giving the needed information to the electorate by adopting desirable standards so that it percolates to the lower levels and provides a congenial atmosphere for a free and fair poll. “A contrary trend of speeches by the top leaders tends to degenerate the election campaign as it descends to the lower levels and at times promotes even violence leading to criminalisation of politics. The growth of this unhealthy trend is a cause of concern for the proper functioning of the democracy and it is the duty of the top leaders of all parties to reverse this trend.” |
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HJC workers unhappy over Dhanak’s nomination
Sirsa, April 13 Mani Ram Keharwala, a former MLA, who had been aspiring to contest on the party ticket this time, has expressed displeasure over the party’s decision and said he would take a decision on his future course of action after consulting his supporters. Some of his supporters also resigned from the party yesterday. Those who resigned from the party were presidents of various block units of the HJC till recently before the party dissolved all organisational units in Haryana just before the start of the poll process. “I am unhappy over the decision of the high command to field an outsider from Sirsa and will reveal my future course of action soon,” he said. |
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Quit Cong, Batra asks Chaudhary
Faridabad, April 13 In a significant statement, Batra said he was ready to resign from all posts of the HJC (BL) if AC Chaudhary resigned from the primary membership of the Congress to show solidarity with the Punjabis of Haryana whose number in the state has been ignored by the Congress while distributing party tickets. Batra, who is also the spokesperson for the HJC (BL) and a well-known leader among the Punjabis, alleged that Chaudhary was resorting to “populist” stance and misleading the community by tendering his resignation from the state Cabinet to the office of Congress president Sonia Gandh in protest against his party denying ticket to a member from the Punjab community. “Chaudhary did not actively espouse the cause of the Punjabis when there was lobbying and counter lobbying in the Congress for the ticket. Rather, he was angling a ticket for himself and remained self-centred during the critical period,” he added. He said the HJC (BL) was the only political party which had genuine concern for the Punjabis in the state. The party gave tickets to Punjabis from three out of the 10 parliamentary constituencies in the state. |
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17 more file papers
Chandigarh, April 13 While five candidates filed their papers from
Sonepat, four did so from Rohtak, three from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, two each from Gurgaon and
Faridabad, and one from the Hisar Lok Sabha constituency. None filed papers from
Ambala, Kurukshetra, Sirsa and Karnal. Shruti declared the worth of her assets as about Rs 14.33
crore. She had a loan of Rs 1.70 crore. Her assets included Rs 80.53 lakh as cash, shares worth about Rs 1.33
crore, saving certificates worth Rs 33 lakh, jewellery of Rs 2 crore and other assets worth Rs 1.77
crore. Shruti owned agriculture land valued at Rs 1.60 crore, non-agriculture land valued at Rs 1.42 crore and flats and houses worth Rs 5.07
crore. Her joint bank account with her father had Rs 29.33 lakh and she inherited agriculture land worth about Rs 1.88
crore. BSP nominee from Sonepat Diwan and his wife declared assets worth about Rs 16
crore. While Diwan owned land worth about Rs 10 crore, the value of the land owned by his wife is estimated to be about Rs 4.60
crore. From the Sonepat Lok Sabha constituency, Sunita filed her papers as the Janchetna Party candidate, Bimla as the BSP candidate and Om Prakash Mehta as the Bharatiya Congress (M) candidate. Jitender Malik filed another set of nomination papers as the Congress candidate. From
Rohtak, while Satyawan, Risal Singh and Karan Singh filed their papers as Independent candidates, Asha Nand did so as the Upeshit Samaj Party
(USP) candidate. Among others who filed their papers from Bhiwani-Mahendragarh were Shiv Kumar (Cong) and Puran Mal
(Independent). Kurusheshwar Bhagat filed his nomination papers as an Independent from the Gurgaon Lok Sabha constituency. Rekha Singh as the Samast Bharatiya Party
(SBP) candidate filed her papers from the Faridabad constituency. Mehta Anoop Kumar filed his nomination papers as an Independent from the Hisar parliamentary constituency. |
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LPG tanker catches fire
Ambala, April 13 All trains leaving and entering Ambala had to be halted, delaying rail traffic for over two hours. The highway, meanwhile, was closed to vehicular traffic for over three hours and diversions created at Kurukshetra, Shahbad and Baldev Nagar. It took the joint efforts of the Railways, the Army and the civil administration to control the flames after the gas tanker burst into flames at about 4.30 am. The flames rose more than 100 metres high and engulfed eucalyptus trees bordering the area. The fire, which could be seen from far off, created a panic-like situation in the city. As many as 22 fire engines were pressed into service from Shahabad, Patiala, Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Ambala and from the Army. The Army, led by Col VC Katoch, OC, 40 Arty Div, Provost Unit, and Lt-Col Bhatt, GI Int of 40 Arty Div, was among the first ones to reach the area. Forty other Army personnel were involved in the operation along with the civil administration. The injured has been identified as railway gangman Karamchand. He was immediately rushed to the railway hospital and later referred to the PGI. He has suffered 70 per cent burns. He was sleeping near the depot when the blast took place. Talking to The Tribune, HK Jaggi, DRM, Ambala Division, said the godown contained wooden scrap from old wooden sleepers, which was now completely burnt along with the trees. He estimated the loss at around Rs 5 lakh. The authorities witnessed a few tense moments when it was discovered that a fully loaded Army special train and a rake of 25 bogies of LPG gas bound for Lalru were parked only a few metres away from the fire, which was spreading. Since the electricity had been cut by the Railways, precious moments were lost in getting in a locomotive to push the two out of the danger way. Meanwhile, the authorities have applauded the efforts of the driver of the tanker, Gurmail Singh, who is, however, at large. According to Deputy Commissioner Sameer Pal Srow, the incident occurred when the gas tanker and a car collided, dislodging the gas valve. The driver, showing presence of mind, first disembarked his helpers, who helped stop the traffic, and then drove for 2 km and abandoned the tanker near the railway depot. “A major tragedy would have occurred had the gas started leaking before the overbridge near the railway station. The driver ensured he got the tanker away from the populated area.” The tanker was on its way from Loni near Ghaziabad to Jammu. Garcharan Singh, owner of the tanker, also reached the spot later. According to him, his driver had called him early in the morning and informed him of the incident. He has, however, snubbed him and maybe that is why he is at large.
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Scribes boycott Tanwar’s meeting
Fatehabad, April 13 Three local journalists fell on the ground when they were pushed aside by Congress workers and one of them even received minor injuries. The mediapersons tried to draw the attention of district Congress chief Randhir Singh towards the inconvenience faced by them due to the rowdy behaviour of a section of the workers, but to no avail. The journalists, finally, decided to boycott the event. Sunil Sachdeva, state secretary of the Haryana Patrakar Sangh, has condemned the attitude of the Congress workers. |
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Cong’s days numbered: Abhey
Sirsa, April 13 Speaking to mediapersons here today, Chautala said the manner in which senior Congress leaders had been publicly fighting in Haryana had made it evident that the party’s days in Haryana, too, were numbered now. “With a certain defeat staring them on the face, Congress leaders, including the Chief Minister, have been flouting the poll code almost daily in an effort to make up some of the lost ground,” he alleged. Abhey Singh, who started his campaign for the Sirsa seat from today, claimed that all other candidates, including Congress candidate Ashok Tanwar, would lose their security deposit from Sirsa this time. Describing the Congress candidate as an outsider, Abhey Singh said local people were very angry with the ruling party to have fielded a candidate, who had a 1984 Delhi anti-Sikh riot connection - Tanwar is a son-in-law of former MP Lalit Maken. He said though the shoe incident involving Congress candidate from Kurukshetra Naveen Jindal was condemnable, it also reflected the deep-rooted anger in the people against the “misrule” of the Congress government. INLD leaders Padam Jain, Amir Chawla, Krishna Fogat and BJP leaders Renu Sharma and Jagdish Chopra were present. Earlier, Abhey Singh addressed a workers’ meeting in INLD Bhawan on the Dabwali road.
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Harvesting shifts campaign focus to urban areas
Sirsa, April 13 “I plan to cover the whole constituency before April 17, the date finalised for filing of the nomination papers,” Sita Ram told The Tribune. Besides Sita Ram, senior INLD leader Abhey Singh Chautala also addressed workers at Sirsa and Ellenabad town today. Bahujan Samaj Party candidate Rajesh Vaid, too, concentrated in the urban areas of Ellenabad town today. “I meet farmers and labourers in grain markets of various towns in the daytime and campaign in villages after 7 pm, when farmers start coming back to their homes,” said Vaid. He will file his nomination papers on April 15. Haryana Janhit Congress (BL) candidate Rajinder Dhanak started his campaign from today, when he addressed a meeting of labourers in the Fatehabad grain market. After that he left for Ratia, Tohana and Narwana towns. He was felicitated in the grain market by his Dhanak community. Dhanak is still to finalise his date for filing of nomination papers. Inderjit Singh, state secretary of the CPM, and Jai Chand Saharani, district secretary of the CPI, today reviewed the election campaign of CPM nominee Ram Kumar Bahbalpuria in the party office in Sirsa. They also campaigned in the neighbouring Bajekan and Bhawdin in the evening. Bahbalpuria will file his nominations on April 16. Congress nominee Ashok Tanwar also concentrated on his campaign in Sirsa town today. He addressed workers in Congress Bhawan here and then took round of the markets to seek votes of shopkeepers. “The party has decided that I will file my nomination papers on April 16. A rally will also be organised on that day, which will be addressed by Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, in charge of Haryana affairs in the AICC Prithvi Raj Chauhan and HPCC president Phool Chand Mulana,” Tanwar said.
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Panel to redress study centres’ grievances
Jhajjar, April 13 Taking initiative to find an amicable way out of the problems, the university authorities have constituted a 10-member committee under the chairmanship of dean, academic affairs, with a view to rationalising the functioning of the DDE. Perhaps this is the first time in the university when such sort of committee has been formed to resolve the problems being faced by the study centres for a long time. The first meeting of the committee is scheduled to be held on April 15, in which all complaints of the study centres would likely to be resolved after pondering over the issues that constantly causing inconvenience in proper running of the centres. Payment of share of the study centre and creation of the examination centres in the same city, where study centre runs, would be the most important ones to be discussed at the meeting. Unnecessary delay in payment of the study centres’ fees has become a major cause to worry for its owners. The study centres have to deposit entire fees of all distance courses at the time of the submission of the students’ registration forms, but their share is often dispatched after seven to eight months owing to lethargic functioning of the authorities. Likewise, students of various study centres have to face problems while appearing in examinations due to long distance of the examination centres. The university has established more than 600 study centres across the country but a significant number of study centres don’t have strength of 100 students.
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I’ll fulfil my father’s dreams, says Shruti
Bhiwani, April 13 Earlier, addressing a public meeting at Neki Ram Park, Shruti said her grandfather late Bansi Lal had created history by doing record-breaking developmental works, in his tenure of the Chief Minister. “The inspiration of development of the area, which I had inherited from my family, would continue with the blessings of the people of this area,” said Shruti, adding that the Congress was not of a single caste but it is of all 36 castes and it believed in overall development. She seemed to follow language of her late grandfather and reiterated his sentences, “Yours and mine fates are connected with each other and I’ll left no chance to raise your voice”. “I’ll struggle till my last drop of blood and shall never take my legs back”, said Shruti, adding that she would fulfil the dreams of her father and grandfather. Shruti said every effort would be done to bring back the pride and “Choudhar” of the Bhiwani-Mahendergarh area. She said the HJC and INLD leaders shined their politics at the cost of votes of southern Haryana but sold the interests of the people of this area for their political benefit.
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Cong has failed on all fronts: Chautala
Faridabad, April 13 He said his government had left the charge of governance in the state with Rs 1,700 crore as surplus to the state exchequer. But, the present government presented a deficit Budget during last budgetary proposal. National vice-president of the BJP and in charge of party affairs in the state Shanta Kumar said the UPA government stood in poor comparison to the Atal Behari Vajpayee-led NDA government at the Centre. He said if the NDA came to power at the Centre it would get details of the money of the Indian nationals who have stashed money in Swiss banks. |
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Solid Waste Management
Chandigarh, April 13 Acting on a public interest litigation, the Bench of Chief Justice Tirath Singh Thakur and Justice Hemant Gupta has asserted: So long as the statute does not provide for a lifespan for a landfill site, no such span can be stipulated by a process of judicial interpretation The ruling came on a bunch of two petitions filed by Sat Priya Mehamia Memorial Education Trust and another petitioner. In its petition against the State of Haryana and other respondents, the petitioners had brought under the high court scanner the problem arising out of waste dumping and need for its disposal by Rohtak Municipal Council. The petitioners had, among other things, contended landfill site had been used for over 25 years and should, therefore, be closed. The Bench ruled: Whether or not a site can be used any further, would depend upon the size of the site and the quantity of solid waste being dumped on the same and the methods for its eventual disposal whether by process of decomposition or otherwise. Referring to the case in hand, the Bench asserted: “According to the respondents, the solid waste treatment plant, being set up on the site in question, will eventually use the solid waste after proper segregation to generate manure which would then be used by the farmers in their fields. “What is important is that the waste, if dumped at the site, would be converted into useful material for use by the farmers. If that is so, as it appears to be, the site may never saturate for the purposes of dumping as the process of dumping, also the process of removal of the waste after conversion into manure, would be a continuous cycle. Attaching utmost importance to the issue of waste management, the Bench added: “Disposal of municipal solid waste generated by cities big and small is a formidable challenge for the municipal authorities in this country. “Growing awareness among the citizens and the importance of hygiene and preservation of environment, raises expectations of the people further and adds urgency to the need for remedial steps”. Dismissing the petitions, the Bench imposed costs “assessed as Rs 10, 000 in each case”, to be deposited with the Punjab and Haryana High Court legal services committee.
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Woman gives poison to daughters, ends her life
Fatehabad, April 13 According to reports, Krishna’s husband Raju, a local resident, worked in agriculture fields as a farm labourer. He was ill for the past 10 days and Krishna had been going to the fields with her two daughters to work there. Meenu went running to a nearby “dhani” and told a woman sitting there that her mother had consumed pesticide after giving pesticide-laced milk to her and her younger sister. Meenu fainted after narrating the incident. When the neighbourers reached the fields, they found that Krishna had already died. They rushed the two girls to a local hospital, where the condition of Meenu is critical while Sonu, who took lesser milk, is stable. Though the exact cause of the extreme step taken by the woman is not known, penury and ill-health of the husband are stated to have prompted Krishna to take recourse to this step.
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Striking a chord with the electorate of the Sonepat constituency, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda today urged the voters to marginalise contestants of other parties in this parliamentary segment
