Ladwa (Kurukshetra), April 21
Unprecedented wheat arrivals, especially from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, and labour shortage for loading of wheat, has led to a deluge of wheat in mandis across Haryana.

Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of wheat is lying in mandis, even as state government officials express their inability to keep pace with the unusually fast arrivals. In this mandi alone, almost one lakh bags of wheat have not been lifted for the past 10 days. The same is true in mandis of Chhachrauli, Gumtala, Deeg and Barwala (Panchkula), where labour shortage has hampered the lifting of produce.

This rabi season onwards, the state government has handed over the work of loading of foodgrains to commission agents, which is then transported to godowns by government contractors. However, commission agents claim that they are facing a labour shortage and even after paying almost double the rate fixed by the government for loading of wheat, they are unable to get labourers for this job. “The government has fixed the labour rate of 42 paisa per bag, but we are paying 90 paisa to Re 1 per bag and still we cannot find labourers,” said Raj Kumar Saini, a commission agent here.

Officials say that as compared to 23.85 lakh metric tonnes of wheat that arrived in the state till date last year, the total wheat arrival till date this year is 50.73 lakh metric tonnes. Not only are farmers of Haryana in a hurry to harvest their produce and get into electioneering, but farmers from neighbouring Uttar Pradesh as well as commission agents are bringing their produce to Haryana for sale.

Sources informed TNS that wheat in Uttar Pradesh is being sold at Rs 980-Rs 1,020 per quintal- much lower than the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,080 per quintal. This is mainly because of the inability of the state government to set up proper mandis in UP by fixing the rate of commission to be paid to commission agents. As a result, farmers are resorting to distress sale of wheat there. A number of commission agents from Haryana are allegedly buying their wheat from UP and then selling it in Haryana by showing it as local produce.

A senior official in the Food and Civil Supplies Department informed TNS that the arrivals from UP had put all their arrangements to a naught. “This year, we have already lifted 57 per cent of the total wheat arrival, with Hafed and the Food and Civil Supplies Department having lifted the maximum produce (18.5 lakh metric tonnes and 11.16 lakh metric tonnes). Now, we have banned all entry of wheat from Uttar Pradesh, so that wheat produced here can be smoothly purchased and lifted by the state government agencies and the FCI,” said the officer.

Sirsa, April 21
The Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket that started in South Africa from April 18 has become a cause of concern for politicians toiling it out in the Indian Political League (read parliamentary elections) here.

Candidates of various parties contesting the parliamentary poll as well as senior leaders of their parties find a few people turning out to listen to their speeches after the IPL matches begin at 4 pm every evening.

Gatherings at meetings held in the daytime in rural areas were already thin due to the harvesting season and now the IPL has come as a new bottleneck for them as they find no takers in the evenings too.

The youth is particularly wary of going to listen to the speeches of politicians when the IPL matches are on.

“The speeches of leaders during the election campaigning do catch our fancy, particularly the way some leaders take jibes at their opponents, but these are no substitute for the excitement and entertainment associated with Twenty-20 matches,” says Neeraj, a student, who will cast his vote for the first time in these elections.

Kavita, a housewife, says she felt irritated when over a dozen women came asking for votes for their candidate while the family was watching an exiting Twenty-20 match on Monday.

Leaders too admit they have been facing this problem during the evening hours when IPL matches are telecast.

“We prefer going door to door in the morning and organise street meetings only late in the evenings,” says Bhupesh Mehta, block president of the Congress, who has been looking after the campaign of party nominee Ashok Tanwar in Sirsa town.

Indian National Lok Dal leaders also admit that IPL matches are affecting the attendance during meetings in villages during evening time when the matches start.

However, the party has also been trying to exploit the sentiments of cricket lovers by blaming the UPA government for its failure to organise IPL matches in India.

“If the government cannot provide security to 22 players, how can it ensure the security of over 100 crore people of India,” says Abhey Singh Chautala, star campaigner of the INLD nominee Sita Ram, during his speeches.

Meanwhile, people here have been receiving an SMS on their mobile.

The message, purportedly sent by the NDA supporters goes as “Suraksha ke chalte IPL South Africa me khela ja raha hai. Paanch saal baad swatantarta divas par ugarwad ke dar se Tiranga London me lahraya jayega” (The IPL is being played in the South Africa due to security reasons. Five years from now, the Tricolour will be unfurled in London on Independence Day for fear of terrorists).

Sirsa, April 21
Former MLA Mani Ram Keharwala, who recently quit the Haryana Janhit Congress (BL) to join the Congress following the denial of the party ticket to him, today accused Kuldeep Bishnoi of breach of trust.

He alleged that Bishnoi played with the career of his son, who left his job on the HJC supremo’s promise.

Talking to mediapersons here today, Keharwala said he never asked for the parliamentary ticket but Bishnoi himself asked him to prepare for contesting the polls.

Blaming the HJC supremo of ruining the career of his son Yash Pal, Keharwala said his son was in the HR department of a leading company in Delhi and was drawing a handsome package, when Bishnoi asked him to proceed on long leave to help “me in my election” a month ago.

He said taken in by his words, his son came home after leaving an application of long leave.

Now, his company had refused to allow him joining duties and he was worried about his career.

Keharwala maintained that earlier, he stopped his other son Sagar to join a college teacher’s job as he was looking forward to the parliamentary elections.

Terming the Haryana Janhit Congress as a private limited company, he said he repented his decision to work for the party during its struggle period.

He said he would now work wholeheartedly for the victory of Congress nominee Ashok Tanwar.

Chandigarh, April 21
The Election Commission has decided to take help of technology to keep a strict watch on persons indulging in corrupt practices during the Lok Sabha elections.

The Haryana Election Department has directed all DCs to have at least 100 video cameras in operation in their respective districts, to track down and record corrupt practices or electoral offences in general, and to keep a strict vigil on the activities of dummy candidates in particular.

Stating this here today, state Chief Electoral Officer Sajjan Singh said the commission had issued strict directions to curb the growing tendency of putting up dummy candidates and to check the activities of such candidates by keeping a strict vigil on them.

If the campaign material of some other candidate is found in the vehicle of a candidate, it should be deemed to be a clear indication that the candidate is working as a dummy of other candidate. In case it is established on the basis of material evidence that one candidate is a dummy candidate of another, his vehicles should be impounded and immediate action should be initiated against him under Section 171H of the IPC.

He said political parties were busy drawing the attention of the people by various means with a view to highlight their policies and programmes and this process would continue up to 5 pm on May 5.

Sirsa, April 21
Rajya Sabha MP and former chairman of the National Commission for Minorities Tarlochan Singh today advised Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh to stop meddling in politics and concentrate on religious activities only if he wanted to avoid fresh trouble for himself in the future.

Tarlochan Singh was reacting to a recent statement of the dera chief on the issue of collective voting by the dera devotees and activities of the political affairs wing of the dera.

Talking to The Tribune, Tarlochan Singh said there were many other deras operating in Punjab, Haryana and other parts of the country and having even larger following than Dera Sacha Sauda but they had confined themselves to religious activities only and had never interfered in politics.

He said directing the devotees to vote for a particular political party of a particular political leader was like issuing a fatwa, which was not only unbecoming of a religious head but also against the spirit of the Constitution of India as it amounted to using religion for seeking votes.

Tarlochan Singh said the conflict of Sikhs with Dera Sacha Sauda over the dress controversy and the manner of its resolution was one issue and every right-thinking person would like the issue to be resolved amicably but no one would condone the act of asking followers to cast votes in a particular manner.

The Rajya Sabha MP warned the dera chief that many of the troubles he had been facing today were due to the dera’s role in the last Assembly elections in Punjab and if he committed the mistake of meddling with politics in the forthcoming parliamentary elections, the dera itself would be responsible for the fresh trouble that might arise for it in future.

Dera Sacha Sauda, however, has reacted sharply to Tarlochan Singh’s statement.

Aditya Insan, spokesman for the dera, said the statement of Tarlochan Singh amounted to acceptance of “the role of his political masters in terrorising Dera Sacha Sauda followers in the past.”

KURUKSHETRA: “Terrorism, unemployment, the nuclear deal and the deteriorating economic condition of our country are the main issues in the coming Lok Sabha elections and every voter should vote keeping in view these factors,” Tarlochan Singh while addressing a press conference here on Tuesday.

Tarlochan Singh, who is touring the Kurukshetra Lok Sabha constituency and addressing election meetings in support of NDA nominee Ashok Arora, held the Congress responsible for the increasing “terrorism and unemployment”, price rise and the rising crime graph in the country.

Kurukshetra, April 21
Supporting the demands of the Kurukshetra University Teachers’ Association (KUTA), NDA candidate and INLD state president as well as former Transport Minister Ashok Arora said by not implementing the Sixth Pay Commission Recommendations, the state government had given them a stepmotherly treatment.

Arora promised that the university and college teachers would be given full benefit of the revised pay panel if the INLD comes to power.

Arora further said it was pity that the teaching community comprising intellectuals was compelled to launch agitation to get its demands fulfilled.

Meanwhile, the Kurukshetra University administration is trying to ensure an expeditious implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations for the university and colleges teachers.

Stating this to mediapersons here today, Registrar Raghuvender Tanwar said he had discussed the matter with Rajan Gupta, Financial Commissioner and principal secretary, Education Department, today.

Tanwar said the state government had assured that it stands committed to an early implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission and would seek approval of the Election Commission at the earliest.

Chandigarh, April 21
The state Congress has filed a fresh complaint before the Election Commission against the INLD accusing it of trying to spread hatred among various sections of society.

Earlier, the Congress had accused INLD leader Om Prakash Chautala of levelling false allegations against its leaders.

In the new complaint, filed by press secretary of the Congress Surender Singh Hooda, the party alleged that Chautala had been continuously violating the model code of conduct. It said Chautala was indulging in activities which would create hatred among different sections of society.

Hooda said the INLD planned to circulate a CD, which contained objectionable material, which was a clear violation of sub clauses 1 and 2 of the code. He said these clauses clearly stated that political parties should stick their campaign to policy matters and refrain from maligning their adversaries by releasing objectionable audio visual material.

Chandigarh, April 21
Haryana’s apparent attempt to use the election process as an instrument to buy time in acquired land release “fraud” has failed to find favours with the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

A Division Bench has expressed astonishment at the state’s attempts to correlate poll process and court hearing, and has asked the state Chief Secretary to ensure production of record.

As the matter came up for hearing before the Bench of Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel and Justice Jitendra Chauhan, state counsel suggested long adjournment, making elections the ground for gaining additional time.

Turning down the submission, the Bench observed: “Having regard to the fact that we have already heard the matter for 12 working days, we are of the view that it will not be proper to grant long adjournment, as suggested. We have not been able to understand any relevance of the election process with the hearing of these petitions.”

Giving a short date, the Bench asserted: “We, therefore, defer the hearing to April 29. We expect that the submissions on the behalf of the state of Haryana will be positively concluded on the next date of hearing and no further adjournment will be sought”.

Taking serious view of non-compliance of court orders, the Bench ruled: “In spite of the order on last date, record has not been made available.

“We direct that a photocopy of the record relating to decision for acquisition, and other further decision for exclusion or exemption or release from the acquisition, be filed or made available before the hearing and the original record be kept ready in the court”.

Referring to an earlier order on “lapses”, the Bench directed: “The copy of this order be sent to the Chief Secretary, Haryana, so that he may ensure making of the record available to the court”.

The Bench also declined to vacate or modify the earlier interim orders. The high court has all along been asserting it is, prima facie, of the view the builders enter into deals with the farmers after the initiation of the acquisition process because the land prices shoot up. They then manage to get valuable land released from the process.

The high court has also been asserting the release of land from the acquisition process in Haryana to builders or their allies is “gross abuse of power”.

Yamunanagar, April 21
The police arrested Poonam (24), wife of suspected local Maoist leader Sanjay, yesterday for her alleged involvement in pasting posters and painting walls of the several villages in the Chhachhroli area and asking the villagers to boycott the Lok Sabha elections. She was produced in a local court and remanded in two days police custody.

The police has registered a case under Sections 124-A, 153-B, 34 of the IPC, 125 RP Act year 1951, on April 19 after suspected Maoists pasted posters on walls of the houses in villages, including Sahajahanpur, Bhilpura, Dadupur bridge and Jaidhri, asking villagers to boycott the Lok Sabha elections. The suspected Maoists had also alleged to be written anti-national slogans.

The police sources revealed, during the interrogation Poonam revealed the involvement of her husband Sanjay, who hail from Panipat, and others Rinu and Samrat for pasting posters and painting of walls.

However, Poonam denied that she and other members of group were not Maoists. Although confessed that she, along with her members of group, were raising voice against the failure of the system and incapability of the politician to do justice with people. She also expressed anguish against the MPs, who, according to them, miserably failed adhere the problems of the common man.

Sanjay, who is considered to be mastermind behind the activity, has been declared pro-claimed offender in similar nature of case registered against him in 2007, said the police sources.

SP Vikas Arora said Poonam had revealed vital information about the other members of group. The four teams of police personnel constituted headed by DSP Mukesh Kumar, were raiding several places and other members of group will be arrested soon.