Jhajjar, July 27
A week after their “exile” from their native village Dharana here following a diktat of the Kadyan Barha khap panchayat in the ongoing gotra controversy over a “forbidden” marriage, the Gehlout family today returned to the village under a heavy security cover, ignoring the verdict of the khap panchayat.

Rishal Singh, his wife and their three sons - Rohtas, Naseeb Singh and Ved Prakash - along with their families, who had been staying with their relatives in Dujana village here after bowing to the khap verdict expelling them from the village, arrived in Dharana village in a jeep escorted by a police vehicle in the evening.

As the news of the family’s arrival in the village spread, the Kadyan Barha khap convened an emergency meeting and after a long deliberation unanimously decided to take further stringent steps to enforce its verdict “at any cost”. It condemned the family for setting aside the “judgement” of the khap panchayat.

Speaking to The Tribune, Raj Singh, acting president of the khap panchayat, said, “The Gehlout family’s act of coming back to the village is intolerable and it will have to face dire consequences for it.”

Meanwhile, Naseeb Singh, uncle of the groom Ravinder, said the family had no apprehension of any untoward incident and they were feeling comfortable in their native village.

“Now, we will not leave Dharana village at any cost as it is our fundamental right to live in our native place and no one can snatch our right from us,” said Naseeb Singh, adding that a meeting to resolve the deadlock was held with representatives of the Kadyan Barha khap panchayat on Sunday evening. The meeting was also attended by presidents of Khap Palam 360, Ahlawat Khap and Kadyan Khap.

“At the meeting, the khap had offered relaxation to me and my brother Ved Prakash to return to the village with our families on the condition of withdrawing all cases filed against members of the khap panchayat and the petition filed in the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Since the panchayat did not allow the family of Ravinder’s father Rohtash to come back to the village, we categorically rejected the offer,” he added.

Naseeb said they did not want to confront the khap panchayat and were making all-out efforts to find an amicable solution to the row. However, it was not possible for any of the three families to leave the village permanently and khap representatives should understand this.

Earlier, the Gehlout family met Jhajjar SSP Sourabh Singh and expressed its wish to return to Dharana village. The SSP beefed up security arrangements in the village to ensure the safety of all members of the family going to the village.

The khap panchayat had ordered the Gehlout family either to annual the marriage or desert the village for alleged “violation of social norms” by marrying Ravinder Gehlout with a girl of the Kadyan gotra.

Narwana (Jind), July 27
The police has arrested two more persons in connection with the lynching of Matour resident Ved Pal Mor in Singhwala village where he had gone to bring back his wife Sonia on July 22. Sonia had been staying with her parents after her marriage was “annulled” by a khap panchayat.

With the arrest the two persons last night, the total number of those arrested in the case has gone up to six. A 50-strong mob is believed to have been involved in the attack on Ved Pal.

The two accused arrested last night have been identified as Dharam Pal and Raja, both residents of Singhwala village.

Earlier, four persons - Dhanraj, Mewa Singh, Shamsher and Mahender - had been arrested on July 25. All of them have been remanded in two-day police custody by a local court.

Though the police claims that the arrests were made after raids on the village and some more arrest may follow soon, it is reported that all persons arrested so far have been “virtually handed over” to the police by the panchayat itself.

The manner and the time being taken by the police in making the arrests in the case has raised many an eyebrow. The state unit of the CPM and the Akhil Bharatiya Janwadi Mahila Samiti have expressed concern over the way the police is going about the arrests and have alleged that the police and the administration are working under pressure.

A spokesperson for the CPM said the police was trying to shield the accused.

The Janwadi Mahila Samiti has sought a high-level independent inquiry into the matter. Jagmati Sangwan, an officer-bearer of the samiti, said the government should hand over the probe to some agency like the CBI and claimed that Sonia (victim’s wife) could have given the statement under pressure.

Chandigarh, July 27
Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Jagannath Pahadia was sworn in as the 15th Governor of Haryana here today.

The 77-year-old Pahadia was administered the oath of office and secrecy by Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court T. S. Thakur at a function held at Haryana Raj Bhavan.

Pahadia took the oath in Hindi in the name of God in the presence of several dignitaries, including the Governor of Punjab and Administrator of the Union Territory of Chandigarh, Gen S.F. Rodrigues (retd), Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his wife Asha, his Cabinet colleagues and judges of the High Court.

Later he was given a guard of honour by a contingent of the state police.

A well-known Gandhian and senior Congress leader, Pahadia was born in Bhusawar village in Bharatpur district. He remained the Chief Minister of Rajasthan from June 6, 1980, to July 14, 1981. He remained a member of the Lok Sabha as well as the Rajya Sabha on several occasions. He also remained a member of the Union Cabinet. He also held a number of positions in the organisational set-up of the Congress besides being the Governor of Bihar.

Nearly 700 admirers of Pahadia had come to attend the ceremony from Rohtak. A large number of air-conditioned buses of Haryana Roadways were requisitioned to ferry them to Raj Bhavan from the places of their stay in the city.

The audience was aghast when the authorities failed to play the National Anthem after the formal ceremony ended.

Earlier, A. R. Kidwai, who served as the state's Governor from 2004 to 2009, was accorded a warm send-off.

Hisar, July 27
Former Deputy Chief Minister Chander Mohan, alias Chand Mohammed, did a volte-face again today and declared that he would rejoin the Bishnoi sect and start life afresh with wife Seema and their kids. In the same breath he said he had nothing to do with Fiza Mohammed anymore.

Chander Mohan, who was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit of a local private nursing home last night, was addressing mediapersons here. He was brought here from Apollo Hospital, Delhi, where he had been admitted a few days ago following a hip fracture.

His mother Jasma Devi, who had accompanied him from Delhi, was at his bedside in the ICU.

He said he had applied to the Bishnoi Sabha for readmission to the sect and if his request was accepted, he would ask his wife Seema Bishnoi for a pardon. If she agreed, he would start his life afresh with her and their kids.

Chander Mohan said he had nothing to do with Fiza anymore. “She has not even enquired about my health ever since I was hospitalised. I had also asked her to pardon me but she had not responded,” he added.

He said he would like to contest the state Assembly elections from the Panchkula constituency itself if the Congress agreed to nominate him. “However, if the Congress does not nominate me, I would contest as an Independent,” he added.

In response to a question, he said, if he was elected, he would support any party which came to power.

Chander Mohan, who is the elder son of former Chief Minister Bhajan Lal, had fractured his hip when he fell from a staircase in his family home in Sector 15 here. He was rushed to a local hospital from where he was referred to Apollo Hospital, Delhi.

However, he developed an infection there following which his mother brought him here last night. Doctors at the nursing home said he would have to be hospitalised for six weeks.

Mohali, July 27
Anuradha Bali alias Fiza, estranged wife of Chander Mohan alias Chand Mohammed, today lashed out at Bhajan Lal and his family for repeatedly changing their stand on the issue of disowning their son.

Reacting to a reported statement of Chand that he wanted to return to the Bishnoi sect and did not want to continue the relation with her, Fiza said Chand urgently needed medical treatment as he had gone insane.

She further said earlier the former Chief Minister, Bhajan Lal, and his wife had stated that their son had been disowned and would never be taken back in the community. But now they were trying to bring him back in the community. “The entire Bishnoi family needs medical treatment,” she added.

On being asked whether she would again pardon Chand if the latter again knocked at her door, she said she was tired of his behaviour and would not allow him to enter her house.

Faridabad, July 27
Residents of Gochi village pelted the Sector 23 police chowki with stones in Sanjay Colony here late last night, injuring at least 12 police personnel.

The police has registered a case against 90 persons of the village for allegedly indulging in violence.

About half a dozen vehicles, including those of the police, were damaged in the incident. The injured police personnel, however, were discharged from the hospital after first aid.

The incident started when a member of a Balmiki sub-caste (Scheduled Caste), who had come to his in-laws in the village to attend the last rites of a relative, was allegedly thrashed by a group of upper caste members.

The assailants beat up the man, a resident of Noida, when he reportedly asked them the way to his in-laws’ place. The assailants were reportedly playing cards and the enquiry by the visitor led to a verbal exchange between them, following which they beat up the visitor till the time till he lost his consciousness.

Later, members of the Balmiki Community went to the police chowki to get a case registered against the alleged assailants. They alleged that the personnel on duty took out his service revolver and threatened them to get out of the police chowki. They further alleged that they were manhandled by the police personnel in the chowki.

Refuting the allegations, the police said a case under the SC/ST Atrocities Act was registered and two persons - Sandip Singh and Dinest Singh - of the village were booked on the basis of the complaint.

Sources said the members of the aggrieved party had threatened near the police chowki that they would avenge the beating up of their guest even before the police took action in the case.

Earlier, over 300 persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes blocked the Sohna-Gochi road for more than two hours. The police, however, dispersed the crowd and got the blockade lifted. Later, the protesters reportedly pelted the police chowki with stones, following which the police resorted to lathicharge. A photographer of a Hindi daily got injured in the lathicharge.

DSP Raj Kumar said all those who had been booked in connection with yesterday’s incident would soon be arrested. Forty out of 90 persons had been named in the FIR.

Meanwhile, Secretary-General of the BSP Mansingh Manhera while addressing a gathering at the village alleged that the present government was anti-Dalits. He said the BSP would launch a statewide agitation soon against the atrocities on the members of the Scheduled Castes.

Chandigarh, July 27
Nearly two years after the then Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court directed the taking up of letter by judicial officer MM Dhonchak against Haryana IPS officer Manjit Singh Ahlawat, Justice Jasbir Singh today issued notice of motion on the petition.

In the letter, Dhonchak had sought a CBI probe into the allegations of forgery and fraud against Ahlawat during his tenure as SP, Rewari, along with other police officials.

Dhonchak was then posted as additional CJM at Rewari and is now posted in the high court as additional district and sessions judge.

Issuing the directions, the then Chief Justice had said the application be treated as a civil writ petition.

Going into the background of the matter, Dhonchak’s letter had mentioned that during his tenure in Rewari he had launched prosecution in the cases against Ahlawat. In a bid to browbeat the complainant, Ahlawat got the investigations reopened into an FIR allegedly involving Dhanchok’s brother, against whom a case under the Essential Commodities Act was registered in May 1998. It was ordered to be cancelled by the then Gurgaon DIG.

The letter added that Ahlawat got bogus official records prepared by fabricating “zimnies”. Later, in collusion with the then SHO, Rewari, and another, he projected that Dhonchak launched prosecution against Ahlawat as a counter blast to the reopening of investigation against his brother.

Kurukshetra, July 27
In an overwhelming response to a call given by the Haryana Federation of University and College Teachers Organisations (HFUCTO), Kurukshetra University teachers today revived the agitation for the implementation of the revised UGC scales in toto and wore black badges as a mark of protest.

The teachers assembled in front of the office of the Vice-Chancellor at 11.00 am and submitted a memorandum to the Chief Minister through the Registrar of the university seeking the immediate implementation of the UGC scales.

The secretary of the Kurukshetra University Teachers Association, Dr Parmesh Kumar, alleged that officials of the Education Department were misinterpreting Clause 10 of the HRD Ministry notification and delaying the implementation of the revised scales on the pretext that the UGC norms/regulations were yet to be received.

He claimed that the UGC had already released the fitment table for the revised pay structures in June but the state government had not taken any steps for the implementation of the revised pay scales.

Warning the government of intensifying the agitation, he pointed out that Punjab, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal had already notified the revised pay scales.

Dr Bhagwan Singh, member, Executive Council, Kurukshetra University, said university and college teachers in the entire state would continue to wear black badges till July 30 and stage a token dharna in front of the office of Commissioner, Higher Education, in Panchkula on July 31.

Sirsa/Fatehabad, July 27
Krishan Pal Gurjar, president of the Haryana unit of the BJP, today said he was on a campaign to ascertain the sentiments of party workers throughout the state on the issue of ties with the INLD and would convey those to the party high command.

Gurjar addressed party workers in Fatehabad and Sirsa today.

Talking to mediapersons in Fatehabad today, Gurjar said though the final decision would be taken by the party high command and the state unit would abide by whatever directions were given to them, he would definitely convey the sentiments of the workers to the central leaders of the party.

He, however, refused to divulge what the workers really wanted.

Levelling a plethora of allegations against Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Gurjar said Hooda had become egoist after the Congress’s victory in the parliamentary elections and had been insulting leaders of other political parties.

Gurjar said those who had been joining the Congress after leaving their respective parties should know that Hooda did not believe in giving.

He cited the example of Shikrishan Hooda, who vacated his seat to accommodate Hooda, has not been adjusted anywhere so far.

Former minister Ganeshi Lal and senior party leaders - Mahavir Prashad and Subhash Barala - were present on the occasion.

Fatehabad, July 27
Chaudhary Surinder Singh Memorial Herbal Park, set up by the Forest Department in Gillankhera village of this district, was dedicated to the public by Haryana Minister for Forests, Environment, Tourism, Sports and Youth Affairs Kiran Chaudhary today.

The park has been set up on over 14 acres. It was earlier named Mulethi Park. Later it was named after the former Minister the late Surinder Singh on the request of the village panchayat.

The park has several medicinal plants like mulethi, roses, ashwagandha, sanoy, aak , mehandi, kapoor, Arjun, guggul, reetha, amla and many more with information regarding these displayed for the public.

Talking to mediapersons, Kiran Chaudhary said after taking charge of the Ministry, she had decided to set up two herbal parks in each district of Haryana.

“Besides serving as parks for villagers, these will help disseminate information among them regarding the production of our traditional medicinal herbal plants and enable them to earn more through these plants,” the Minister said.

She said the Forest Department had spent Rs 40 lakh on the development of the park.The government had so far developed 28 such parks in the state.

Expressing concern over the deterioration in environmental conditions, Kiran Chaudhary said growing more trees was the only answer to meet the challenge. She said the state government had developed two forest zones and 10 wildlife sanctuaries and over 40,000 hectares in Haryana had been developed as an eco zone.