Jaipur, August 19
The war within the Rajasthan BJP is getting uglier with each passing day. While some unidentified men ransacked the BJP office after suspension of two key Raje aides late last night, 52 BJP MLAs have urged Vasundhara Raje Scindia to intervene and get their suspension revoked.

While the BJP high command acted tough against Raje loyalists to send a strong message that indiscipline would not be tolerated, the action seems to have reignited the fire in the Raje camp. Almost three dozen BJP MLAs gathered at Raje’s Civil Lines residence here and held an impromptu meeting with their leader last night, though her aides put the number of MLAs at over 50.

“All the MLAs have submitted a signed memorandum to Raje, authorising her to take up the revocation of suspension of Rajendra Rathod and Gyandev Ahuja,” said one of the MLAs, pleading anonymity. The memorandum also stated that all the MLAs, who are signatory to it, are with her in any decision she takes. The mood in the Raje camp can be gauged from the statement of one of her loyalist MLAs, Rohitashva Kumar, who said, “The legislature party leader is not named in party offices, whatever is being done is undemocratic. The more Raje’s detractors would attack her the stronger she will emerge.”

In another incident, 10 masked men reached the state BJP headquarters on a four-wheeler and a couple of two-wheelers and smashed signboards and glowsigns at the parthy office late last night. They were reportedly shouting slogans against the state BJP president. The incident is being linked to the suspension of two Raje aides from the party, though Rathod denied any role in it. The BJP today lodged a formal complaint with the police in this connection.

Meanwhile, a section of BJP leaders feel that Raje's detractors have resorted to the move (suspension of her aides) so as to force her to shun her conciliatory approach and switch over to confrontation mode. This, they said, would subsequently foil her plan to move out of the state with dignity as the party may then force her to leave.

On the other hand, Rathod and Ahuja, who were spearheading a campaign against the high command's decision asking Raje to quit as Leader of Opposition, today rejected the charge of resorting to any anti-party activity. “We have not indulged in any indiscipline. We have not done anything against the party. Neither have we spoken against the central leaders, nor (have we done so) against the state leaders or the parliamentary board,” said Ahuja.

Similarly, Rathod said, “We have not committed any crime. We stick to our decision. We have not done anything which can be termed as indiscipline. Even after that, if they want to suspend us it's their choice.”

Jaipur, August 19
In a new twist to the battle of inheritance of Rajmata Gayatri Devi’s Rs 1,000-crore property, her grandchildren Devraj and Lalitya Kumari today claimed that she had left “all her properties and rights” to them.

In a statement released here today, the brother-sister duo said, “In order to put an end to all speculations, we would like to announce that our grandmother Gayatri Deviji left behind her last will in our favour, giving us all properties and rights.” However, no copy of her will was either shown or handed over to the media.

“We are also the only natural legal heirs entitled to succeed her estate,” said Devraj and Lalitya, who are believed to be locked in a dispute with Prithvi Singh and Jai Singh, stepsons of Gayatri Devi, who was the third wife of erstwhile Jaipur ruler Sawai Man Singh II.

Ever since her demise on July 29, there has been suspense over who would inherit Gayatri Devi’s properties, believed to be in the range of around Rs 1,000 crore though no official valuation has been done, with the family remaining tightlipped on the contents of her will till now.

The duo claimed that Gayatri Devi’s “last will” was in their favour, which was left by her with former Maharaja of Jaipur and eldest son of Sawai Man Singh II, Bhawani Singh. It “has since been handed over to us, and the same is in the knowledge of all family members,” they claimed in the statement released at Lily pool, the residence of the charismatic Rajmata.

“We sincerely hope to receive full support of all family members namely Sawai Bhawani Singh, Jai Singh and Prathvi Raj,” they said.

Apparently referring to the media reports over the royal property disputes, they said certain “unconfirmed reports circulated in the media have disturbed the family members”.

Devraj and Lalitya are the children of Gayatri Devi’s only biological son Jagat Singh, who had died in 1997.

The property of Gayatri Devi includes LilyPool, a bungalow complete with pools and lily gardens, Takhteshahi Palace at the majestic Moti Dungri Fort, Jai Mahal Palace, Ram Bagh Palace, properties at Isarda village, a bungalow in England and Maharani Gayatri Devi School to name a few. She had been a share holder in nearly a dozen royal properties in Jaipur and six others outside the city.

New Delhi, August 19
The Supreme Court has ruled that courts should not reject evidences of witnesses with criminal background.

“There can be no dispute that the witness has a criminal past, but that by itself, may not be sufficient to throw his evidence, as has been done by the Appellate Court (Rajasthan High Court),” a Bench comprising Justices VS Sirpurkar and Cyriac Joseph said in a verdict yesterday.

“In fact, the criminal background, in our opinion, would not be of much consequence, though while appreciating their evidence, that fact has to be borne in mind," the apex court clarified.

In the instant case, the Judges pointed out that prosecution witness (PW1) had lost his brother. "He could not be expected to let off the persons, who were, in fact, guilty of" killing his brother.

Also acknowledging that the statement of the witness was recorded later, the Bench made it clear that "even then, if that caution is kept in mind while appreciating the evidence and if his evidence inspires upon confidence, it is not incorrect to accept such evidence."

"Applying all these tests, we do not think that his evidence was liable to be thrown only on the ground that he had a criminal past and his statement was recorded late.

Therefore, we are of the opinion that, applying all these tests, his evidence as against two appellants, is acceptable."

The Bench expressed these views while disposing of criminal appeal No. 1011 (2005) filed by Murli and another, challenging the HC order that had upheld their conviction under Section 302 (murder).

New Delhi, August 19
NCP chief Sharad Pawar has ruled out the possibility of his party’s merger with the Congress. Terming as “cheap publicity” the statements made by some Congress leaders in this regard, he told a TV channel, “I can’t understand why these days they are raising these questions, why they are not appealing to other parties to merge? Should I say that the Congress should merge with my party,” he questioned.

Reacting to statements by AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh, in charge of Maharashtra, and Union Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh that the NCP should consider merging with their party, Pawar said: “These are all cheap public statements.....They should not say like that”.

The NCP was formed in 1999, after Pawar, along with P Sangma and Tariq Anwar, broke away from the Congress protesting against Sonia Gandhi’s foreign origin and formed their own party. Digvijay recently said since the foreign origin issue of the Congress president was no longer relevant, the NCP should consider merging with the Congress. He, however, called this as his personal opinion.

The Congress is yet to make official the future of its Maharashtra alliance with the NCP. Sonia had called a meeting of Congress functionaries from Maharashtra on August 17 to discuss prospects of party’s alliance with NCP.

There are two points of view in the Congress as far as the alliance with the NCP in Maharashtra is concerned. A section of workers believes that considering the party’s good performance in recent LS polls, the Congress should venture alone in Assembly elections.

The other view point is that with the shadow of price rise and drought looming large, sticking with the NCP makes more sense as parting ways may end up giving advantage to the Shiv Sena-BJP combine.

In all it appears that the party will not risk losing its ally at this stage but will definitely try to drive a hard bargain for more seats from the NCP, considering that the Congress’ performance was much better compared to the NCP in the LS polls.

When asked if during Maharashtra elections the seat sharing was going to be a tough bargain Pawar replied, “Well right now since the state is facing drought its better we concentrate there... and it is better if we work together. But see 10 years back we had fought election without Congress and yes we can do it too again. It was ultimately Congress who had come to us to form a government”.

New Delhi, August 19
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is understood to have extended India’s full support to the peace process in Nepal and also discussed the broad contours of a proposed revised trade treaty between the two countries when he met his Nepalese counterpart Madhav Kumar Nepal this evening.

The two leaders had a one-on-one meeting lasting about an hour during which they discussed the entire gamut of bilateral relations as well as international issues. Later, they were joined by their respective delegations. The Indian delegation included the ministers for External Affairs, Home, Finance and Commerce and National Security Adviser MK Narayanan.

Official sources said intensifying economic partnership between the two countries remained at the centre of the discussions with the focus on investment in hydro power sector. The issue of the misuse of Nepal's territory by anti-Indian forces is also believed to have come up during the talks.

Earlier in the day, Nepal, who is on a five-day visit to India, addressed captains of the Indian industry, inviting them to invest liberally in the Himalayan Nation in various sectors. He assured them of conducive atmosphere for industrial growth. The visiting dignitary identified hydro power, roads, bridges, infrastructure construction, tourism, agro-processing and financial services as potential areas of investment. “Let me stress here that general political and overall environment in Nepal is improving with concomitant progress in the peace process,” Nepal said. "I believe we can sustain peace and stability in the country only with rapid and inclusive development. We will do our best to ensure security and peaceful environment in the country."

Political events in Nepal since May this year had shaken the confidence of Indian entrepreneurs after attacks by militant trade unions on a few firms, including a well-known fast moving consumer goods firm. With India-Nepal trade expected to touch Rs 15,000 crore ($3 billion) this fiscal, the commerce ministers of the two countries, meanwhile, discussed the proposed revised treaty to widen the scope of bilateral trade.

Jagdishpur (Amethi), August 19
Once again crossing swords with the Mayawati government in the state, Congress general secretary and Amethi MP Rahul Gandhi yesterday charged her regime in Uttar Pradesh of creating hurdles in the Union government's developmental projects.

Speaking at the inauguration of a stamping unit in the Jagdishpur plant of Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited, Gandhi quoted the example of the Centre’s proposed Hindustan Paper Mill. He said the Rs 3,000-crore project, meant to generate direct and indirect employment for nearly 25,000 persons, was being stalled by the state government by refusing to give land and by returning the money deposited for it.

Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Vilasrao Deshmukh, who was also present, assured that if the state government allotted land for the paper mill, he would ensure the foundation stone laying in a week.

Expressing his confidence in the people of Amethi, Gandhi said they would happily provide land for this project. In turn, he said, the Centre would provide adequate compensation and jobs for each family.

Highlighting the UPA’s government’s determination to work for the development of the state, the Amethi MP said the Centre had opened a lot of schools, factories and professional education institutions in the region and would continue to work for the welfare of the people.

“We need to fight together for our region to generate employment for the people of the region and the entire state,” he told the audience in this area, about 100 km from state capital Lucknow.

Deshmukh noted the enthusiasm and expectation that the youth of the region had from the young MP. “Their enthusiasm reflects how much they love their leader and the works done by him. We are committed to give them employment and wish to assure that many such industries will be set up in the region.”

"People across India see these constituencies as a role model of development. The Union government will extend all possible help for the development of this region,” Deshmukh said.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi went to the Indira Gandhi Eye Hospital here and inaugurated the pediatric department. He also attended a closed-door meeting of women in Gauriganj and visited Dairy Development Centre in Fursatganj. 

Mumbai, August 19
The Shiv Sena and the Bharatiya Janata Party have broken ties with Sharad Pawar’s Nationalist Congress Party in the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) ahead of assembly polls in Maharashtra. According to sources here, it was an amicable parting of ways with leaders of all three parties taking a decision on the issue earlier this week.

However, Shiv Sena executive president Uddhav Thackeray said the saffron combine was leaving the alliance because NCP was showing signs of merging with the Congress. “We had formed the alliance only to keep the Congress out of the Pune Municipal Corporation,” Thackeray told reporters here.

NCP leaders, however, insisted that the decision was taken to avoid confusion in the minds of the people during the forthcoming assembly elections. During the Lok Sabha polls, Suresh Kalmadi, Congress MP from Pune, consistently attacked the NCP for taking the help of the Sena-BJP to keep out the Congress from the PMC. Kalmadi’s tirade is said to have hurt the NCP in its former strongholds of Pune and parts of Western Maharashtra.

Incidentally, the Congress is not sure of the NCP’s intentions in Pune. Congress leaders felt that the NCP might again reunite with the saffron parties after the elections. “We have not decided to extend support to the NCP as yet,” a senior Congress said here. However, the party may extend issue-based support to the NCP.

Some leaders are of the opinion that the Pune civic body be dissolved and fresh elections held.

The NCP was in control of the PMC for the past 29 months. Of the 144 corporators in the house, it had 48 while the Congress, Shiv Sena and the BJP had 42, 21 and 25 corporators, respectively.

Mumbai, August 19
The CBI has completed investigations regarding the murder of Congress leader Pawanraje Nimbalkar, which resulted in the arrest of Padamsinh Patil, Nationalist Congress Party MP and a relative of Sharad Pawar.

Officials of the agency said here today that the chargesheet in the case may be filed in a day or two at the Panvel metropolitan magistrate's court where the case is being heard. Apart from Patil, the agency has arrested six others.

Chhaygaon (Assam), August 19
Growth in India’s textiles industry has been stagnant at 7-8 per cent while exports have slumped by 14 per cent as a fallout of the global economic downturn. However, according to Textiles Minister Dayanidhi Maran, the industry may survive the onslaught of recession due to strong domestic consumption.

He was speaking after inaugurating the country’s third Eri spun silk mill at the industrial centre here, about 70 km from Guwahati, which has been set up as a private-public partnership.

“The next few months will be crucial for the country’s textiles industry that has managed to escape the reverses of global recession due to strong domestic consumption. The US market is looking up again and we are looking forward to it. We also aspire to counter China’s supremacy in the silk market by increasing domestic silk production”, said Maran.

He said the government only wanted to play the role of facilitator while allowing the private sector to assume the key role in developing the ‘Brand India’ in textiles.

“The textiles industry is being decentralised and the government wants private entrepreneurs to come up with innovations in designing and fabric making in tune with the demand as well as market forces. We want to create a 'Brand India’ in a big way involving textiles, handlooms and handicrafts”, the minister said.

On China’s supremacy in the global silk market, he said the only way to prevent that country from “dumping” Tassar silk in the country was to produce more silk within the country

“India is the only country in the world to produce all four commercially exploited varieties of silk - mulberry, Tassar, Eri and Muga (‘golden’) silks - and this is our real strength. It may take considerable time to give China a run for its money in mulberry silks, but we can - and must - immediately exploit our premier position in the production of the Tassar, Eri and Muga varieties,” Maran stated.

Guwahati, August 19
The Assam Government has raised concern over growing activities of Bangladesh-based fundamentalist elements on its soil as well as attempts by Maoists to make inroads into Nepalese-dominated areas in the state located near the India-Bhutan border.

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has alerted New Delhi that the presence of militants in neighbouring Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar posed a threat to the internal security of the state.

Addressing the chief ministers’ conference on internal security in New Delhi on Monday, Gogoi said, “Bangladesh has emerged as a hub of fundamentalist elements facilitating cross-border terrorism and I am afraid that the government in Bangladesh has not taken action as per our expectations regarding extradition of wanted terrorists and destruction of terrorist camps on its soil. Assam continues to be not only a hunting ground for fundamentalist elements from Bangladesh, but has also become veritable gateway to the country for groups such as Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HUJI) to carry out terror attacks.”

“The unholy nexus between ULFA, the NDFB and these fundamentalist elements is adding a new dimension to the internal security scenario of the state. These groups have reportedly developed operational understanding for launching violence on a bigger scale in the state in the coming days,” he said. In order to curb the challenge posed by Bangladesh, Gogoi asked for comprehensive fencing of the entire Indo-Bangladesh border, optimum deployment of the BSF, diplomatic pressure on the Bangladesh for action against the insurgent groups, close monitoring of the flow of foreign funds for educational and religious institutions along the international border.

“The international border with Myanmar is another major concern for the internal security of the state as the border is used by ULFA and DHD (J) militants to transship arms and ammunition into the state. There are instances, where arms consignment were brought through Cox’s Bazar of Bangladesh and subsequently dispatched to Assam through Mizoram-Myanmar, Manipur-Myanmar borders,” Gogoi said.

“Left wing extremist organisations have been trying to influence the sizeable “adivasi” population through militant organisations, the Adivasi Cobra Militant and Birsa Commando Force, which have been demanding ST status for “adivasis” in Assam. Reports of Maoist trying to make inroads into the Nepalese-dominated areas along the Indo-Bhutan border have been received and steps are being taken to foil the design. However, we need to keep a close watch on the activities of Maoist elements,” he said.

The Assam Govt fears that visa-free regime between India and Nepal has been exploited by anti-national elements to import Maoist ideology.

Guwahati, August 19
A full grown highly endangered Royal Bengal Tiger that was found in a very sick and weak condition by forest official inside Rajiv Gandhi National Park at Orang in Darang district of Assam yesterday, died this morning at the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre (WRRC) near Kaziranga National Park.

Ranger of Rajiv Gandhi National Park, Jayanta Deka said the adult male tiger of about eight years of age was found lying at Mislamari area in the north-east corner of 79 sq km wildlife habitat yesterday morning.

Dr Prasanta Boro of the WRRC said: “The tiger was brought to the Centre in a very precarious condition and it was so weak that the staff of the centre injected medicine with hand which is unthinkable in case of a considerable healthy male tiger.”

The actual cause of the death could be ascertained only after postmortem is carried out in presence of the designated panel from the Wildlife Crime and Investigation Bureau.

Hyderabad, August 19
When Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi, adored by millions of fans, took the political plunge, he was instantly projected as a harbinger of change who could storm to power with his star appeal.

After exactly a year and several desertions later, questions are now being raised whether the actor’s Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) will be able to survive till the next Assembly elections, due in 2014.

Chiranjeevi’s political show has turned to be a flop with PRP coming a cropper in the recent elections. It drew blank in the Lok Sabha while managing to win just 18 seats in the 294-member Assembly, accounting for 17 per cent vote share.

Despite hugely successful road shows, Chiranjeevi failed to convert his star appeal into votes.

The 53-year-old matinee idol of Telugu cinema had announced his entry into politics at the temple town of Tirupati on August 17 last year, raising hopes of repeating the NTR magic.

However, the megastar suffered a series of jolts since then, leading to the electoral drubbing. Several key leaders have deserted the party in the wake of allegations of ‘family fiefdom’ by a small coterie of the actor’s relatives and money changing hands in distribution of party tickets.

Lack of proper organisational structure, political direction and clarity on several public issues, absence of communication channel between the top leadership and the cadre and mistakes in the selection of candidates are cited as major factors for the party’s rout.

Several important leaders, including the party ideologue and founder member Dr P Mithra and spokesman P Prabhakar, have quit the party, dealing a major blow to its image.

Then followed the exodus of senior politicians like T Devender Goud and T Sitaram who had joined the party on the eve of elections after quitting the main opposition Telugu Desam Party. They have since gone back to their parent party.

“We could not meet people’s expectations because of some mistakes and immaturity. We could not match the designs of the ruling Congress and main opposition TDP. But, we will emerge stronger to become a formidable force,? the PRP spokesperson V Padma said.

The actor’s brother-in-law and noted film producer Allu Aravind is the main target of attack by the detractors who allege that his dictatorial style of functioning was the root cause of the problems.

“Instead of building a strong cadre base and giving it a political direction, the PRP leaders took comfort in the perception that his fans will fetch him votes and catapult him to power. This assessment was grossly exaggerated,” a political analyst C V L Narasimha Rao said.

Chiranjeevi’s presence in the poll fray has actually helped the ruling Congress retain power as PRP caused a split in the anti-incumbency votes across the state.

Chennai, August 19
Reviving the pro-Tiger sentiments in Tamil Nadu with a conference which concluded with a mammoth rally here last night, Thol Thirumavalavan, an ally of the ruling DMK, has demanded "lifting the ban on LTTE, a mass movement fighting for the liberation of Sri Lankan Tamils from the fascist Sinhala rulers".

"Tiger chief Velupillai Prabhakaran is alive. He will come back to lead the liberation struggle again. Reports on the elimination of the LTTE and end of the Tamils' liberation struggle are canards spread by the Indian intelligence agencies", he alleged, while the huge gathering of youths, carrying portraits of Prabhakaran and wearing shirts and caps with his image, applauded and cheered whenever the Tiger chief's name was mentioned.

"If the Sri Lankan government is convinced that the Tiger chief is dead, why is it not providing his death certificate which was asked by the Indian government. Why the Sri Lankan government is refraining from announcing the Tiger chief's death in the island nation's Parliament.

The struggle for a separate homeland for Tamils had not been defeated and the demand would rise again, as that was the only solution to ensure the safety and human rights of Tamils, he said.

Referring to the act of state police who removed more than 2,000 hoardings and posters portraying the Tiger supremo, displayed in several parts of the State, Thirumavalavan said “You cannot remove the Tiger leader from our hearts. You cannot stop the uprising of Tamil Nadu people in support of their brethren suffering under the fascist Sinhala regime, which is converting Tamil areas into Sinhala colonies, while detaining about three lakh Tamils in camps and torturing them endlessly without providing food and medicine".

Reacting angrily to the removal of Prabhakaran's image from posters, even while numerous posters of the Tiger leader were seen in the venue of the rally, Thirumavalavan said the Central agencies were behind the act. "I do not see anything wrong in the title of the conference (Eelam will rise again). Can anyone say it is against the unity and integrity of India?", he asked.

He said Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi led by him was very careful not to cause any obstacle to the DMK government in the state. However, he could not compromise his stand on a separate homeland for Tamils. "Even in Parliament, I openly accused the Centre of betraying Tamils and demanded a white paper on all kinds of assistance provided by the Union government to the Sinhalese government", he said.

Claiming that the Congress-DMK alliance won in the Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu due to his support, Thirumavalavan said no party could win in the state without the support of Dalits, who had come under the banner of his party.

A resolution urging the international community to put pressure on Sri Lankan government to rehabilitate the detained Tamils in their own villages and prevent the settlement of Sinhalese in Tamil areas were adopted in the conference.

Chennai, August 19
The high voter turnout in the Tamil Nadu assembly byelections to five constituencies held yesterday indicated the electorate has rejected AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa's call to boycott the polls, besides triggering speculation on which party gained at the cost of the AIADMK.

This time the turnout at polling booths counted more than the results since the principal opposition party and its allies had stayed away, expressing apprehensions over the newly introduced electronic voting machines. Three constituencies witnessed higher polling than that recorded in the previous assembly elections with polling in the other two seats lower by only one or two per cent.

The AIADMK’s vote share in the April-May general elections, in which polling was reported at over 70 per cent, was about 40 per cent. The Left Front parties, whose combined vote share was 5 per cent, fielded their candidates despite the AIADMK's boycott call.

If AIADMK supporters boycotted the elections the polling percentage is expected to fall by at least 25 per cent in the byelections. The high turnout, however, means the AIADMK's decision had virtually no impact on even the party's loyal voters.

Moreover, the ruling DMK alliance scored a major victory by bringing voters to the booths despite the boycott call. Deputy Chief Minister MK Stalin, who campaigned in the five constituencies for ten days, can easily claim his popularity is increasing among the people.

During the campaign, all the parties in the fray - the DMDK led by actor Vijaykanth, the Left Front parties and the BJP - had left no stone unturned to woo AIADMK voters. Whether AIADMK supporters threw their weight behind any single party, or if their votes were split between the Left Front, BJP and DMDK will be known only after the election results on August 21.

If Vijaykanth managed to secure a major share of votes his chances to establish himself as the credible alternative to both the DMK and AIADMK will brighten further. He can also hope to persuade the Congress party to snap ties with the DMK and form an alliance with his DMDK in the next assembly elections in the state.

As for the Left Front parties and the BJP, an increased vote share will better their bargaining power with the major parties in the next elections.

Among the five constituencies that went to polls, Bargur recorded a polling percentage of 71.02 while the other constituency in western Tamil Nadu - Thondamuthur - recorded 58.16. The polling percentage in the three constituencies in the southern districts of Cumbum, Ilayangudi, Srivaikuntam was 76.2, 67.14 and 72.46, respectively. The average voter turnout in the byelections was 67 per cent.

The DMK is contesting three seats and its ally, the Congress, has fielded candidates in the other two constituencies. The DMDK is contesting all the five seats while the BJP and Left Front parties are testing their strength in four seats each.

Bangalore, August 19
The case of Indian Captain Glen Aroza of the ship MT TOSA, owned by a company in Panama, will come up before a court in Taiwan tomorrow.

Aroza, a native of Mangalore, has been detained in Hualien, Taiwan, since April 17, after his ship was forcefully diverted from the high sea. The second officer from Bangladesh, who was on navigation watch, and a Filipino seaman, who was on lookout duty, have also been detained.

It was first alleged that the TOSA had collided with a Taiwanese fishing trawler in international waters killing two fishermen. But inspections of hulls of the trawler and TOSA revealed no physical contact between them. It was then alleged that the 21.6 m-long and 100-tonne trawler capsized due to the wave created by TOSA.

“Any one with even a nodding acquaintance with ships and seas, knows that it is impossible for a trawler of that size to capsize in the wake or waves created by a ship unless the trawler was inherently unstable and un-seaworthy”, Preetha Aroza, wife of the detained captain, told the TNS.

“It is not the first time that Taiwan has detained an Indian seafarer in violation of the international law. The innocent Captain Raj Goel was detained in Taiwan for three-and-a-half years between 1996-1999”, she said.

Bangalore, August 19
The city of Mangalore, headquarters of Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka, is once again in the news for the wrong reasons. While the city earlier made headlines following attacks on women customers in a pub by hoodlums posing as Hindu fanatics, it has once again drawn the attention of the media owing to an incident that has a communal tinge.

Ayesha Ashmin, a 19-year-old B.Com-I student at Sri Venkatraman Swamy College who hails from a Muslim family, has alleged that the president of the college students’ union, Bharath, a final year B.Com student, had warned her not to wear the scarf inside the college. “Otherwise, other students would come to the college wrapping themselves in saffron shawls”, she quoted Bharath as saying.

Instigated by the union president, some students even started taunting her for wearing a headscarf, Ayesha alleged. Finally, she went to her principal to complain against Bharath. But the principal refused her protection. Instead, Ayesha was told to leave the college when she insisted on wearing the headscarf.

She has now brought her plight to the notice of Mangalore University Vice-Chancellor KM Kaveriappa.

Justifying his decision, principal Seetharam Mayya said wearing a headscarf was “against rules and regulations”. However, the college prospectus does not mention any stipulated dress code. 

Thiruvananthapuram, August 19
In a major pro-women policy initiative, the CPI (M)-led LDF government in Kerala today decided to set apart 50 per cent of elected seats in panchayats and all other local bodies for women.

Announcing this after a cabinet meeting, Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan said a special session of the state Assembly would be convened from September 8 to 17 to bring in legislation in this regard.

The liaison committee of the coalition government had last week evolved a consensus among the ruling front partners to formulate such policy.

Presently, 33 per cent of seats in civic bodies are constitutionally guaranteed for women. If necessary, states have powers to bring in amendments to their respective laws to enhance women's representation up to 50 per cent. States like Chattisgarh, Bihar and Maharashtra have already taken initiative in this direction.

The amendment would also help increase women's representation on administrative panels of civic bodies like standing committees, giving them a decisive say on important matters like Budget allocations for welfare schemes. LDF circles hailed this as a crucial aspect since many of the welfare schemes concerning women and children were now being implemented through local bodies. — PTI