Chandigarh, September 17
Certain exporters are purchasing paddy without paying the mandatory 4 per cent purchase tax in the region.

The modus operandi is simple. They issue “D-2” form to arhtiyas (commission agents) and avoid paying the purchase tax to the government.

The government has given this concession to the exporters to boost rice export from the country. If the concession is available under the law, then what is the illegality?

“D-2” form is being issued by the rice exporters for those varieties of paddy the rice of which cannot be exported from the country. The government has allowed the export of only basmati and not of any other variety to protect the interests of the poor in the country.

The law says that if a person has export orders in his hand, he can buy basmati paddy without paying the purchase tax, but he has to give proof to the government that he had exported the rice made out of the paddy purchased by him without paying the purchase tax. However, he has to pay tax on paddy husk (chhilka), bran and broken rice, which remain in the country.

Sources in the trade say these days no basmati paddy comes to the mandis of the region. Only non-exportable paddy varieties are available in the market, which cannot be purchased on “D-2” form. They say if the Excise and Taxation departments of Haryana and Punjab check the record of the arhtiyas in the rice belt of the region, it can be easily verified which rice exporter has bought paddy on “D-2” form, evading the purchase tax.

The sources say the purchase of non-exportable varieties of paddy now gives birth to many possibilities. Either the exporters have inside information that the government will allow the export of non-basmati in the near future or they will mix fine variety rice with basmati to be exported out of the country, which will be a fraud with foreign buyers.

It is highly unlikely that the government will allow the export of non-basmati this year because the production is already low because of the drought and the export of these varieties would lead to price rise of the staple diet in many parts of the country.

If the unscrupulous exporters, these sources say, do not want to mix non-basmati varieties with basmati meant for export, then, it means, that these exporters, many of whom have rice mills also, will sell the rice made out of the paddy purchased without paying the tax, in the domestic market and earn a huge profit by short-charging the state exchequer.

Former president of the All-India Rice Exporters Association Vijay Setia agreed that the purchase of paddy on “D-2” forms at this time of the season was unjustified.

He said the market committees and the taxation authorities should keep a strict watch on the activities of the unscrupulous elements.

He said the mixing of non-basmati with basmati for export was not possible because of strict checking at Indian ports as well as by foreign buyers.

He said recently one single order of 40 lakh tonnes of basmati was cancelled by an Iranian buyer allegedly for lack of quality.

Sirsa, September 17
In an appalling case of custodial torture, an accused was allegedly kept in illegal custody by the local police in the CIA police station here for about two weeks and given “inhuman torture” whereby he was severely beaten up and petrol pushed into his anal route. Three cops have been booked on the directions of a local court for subjecting the accused to inhuman treatment

Balwinder Singh (25), a resident of Ahlupur village under the Sardulgarh police station in Punjab, broke down in the court of judicial magistrate SK Sharma where he was produced by the police to seek his police remand in a case of theft.

Weeping profusely, Balwinder told the judge that he had been kept in the CIA police station here illegally for the past 12-13 days and was being subjected to third-degree torture. “The police has been beating me up mercilessly and putting petrol in my private parts,” Balwinder alleged before the court and started putting off his clothes to show the injuries to the court.

The judge was aghast to see injury marks on the upper part of Balwinder’s body and stopped the accused when he started opening his trousers in the court. The cops were armed with a medical report from the local general hospital, which said there were no injuries to the accused. Interestingly, the FIR number 133, dated July 14, 2009, under Sections 457 and 380 (housebreaking and theft) of the IPC, which the police produced before the court, was registered at the Rania police station and the accused was allegedly being kept in the CIA police station in Sirsa. Citing Supreme Court guidelines in cases pertaining to custodial torture, the judge observed that the fact that the accused had been tortured during custody was sufficient to deny police remand of the accused and sent Balwinder to judicial custody for 14 days.

The judge further observed that the facts of the case were sufficient to make out a criminal case under Section 330 and 506 against the three cops who were responsible for subjecting Balwinder to inhuman treatment during his custody and directed the HUDA police post to register a case. A case under Sections 330 and 506 of the IPC had been registered against SIs Randhir Singh and Ramesh Kumar, ASI Ram Singh and CIA sub inspector.

Karnal, September 17
The Karnal police today arrested two minors in connection with the stoning of the New Delhi-Ludhiana Swarn Shatabdi Express nearthe Anaj Mandi, Gharaunda, on September 15 night. The incident had sent security agencies in a tizzy as AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi was on board the train.

It was suspected that three teenagers were involved in the incident but investigations revealed only two boys aged below 16 had indulged in the wanton act.

The police rounded up a third person,20-year-old Parveen, who was later let off. The IG of Rohtak range, V.Kamraj, said Amit and Sahil, residents of Zail Singh Colony, had been arrested and booked under Section 152 of the Railway Act. The SP of Karnal,K.K. Rao said during interrogation, both had confessed to pelting stones on trains ‘for fun.’ The boys had no criminal record and no intention to cause harm to Rahul Gandhi. It was sheer mischief.

The boys were detained on the basis of information provided by the train guard. The railway guard had registered a case with the Panipat railway police station which has now been transferred to Karnal.

Initially it was told that the incident took place near Babarpur, which falls in Panipat district.Mother of Amit, a widow, pleaded with the police to release him as he was the sole bread-earner.

Chandigarh, September 17
A formal notification to hold the Assembly elections will be issued tomorrow and the prospective candidates will be able to file their nomination papers up to September 25.

There will be no filing of nominations on September 20 and 21, said Chief Electoral Officer Sajjan Singh.

However, papers could be presented to the returning officers on September 19 and 23 as these are not public holidays. He said all ROs and AROs would remain in office between 11 am and 3 pm from September 18 to 25.

The scrutiny of papers will take place on September 26, withdrawals up to September 29, except September 27 and 28. Polling would be held on October 13 between 7 am and 5 pm and the votes would be counted on October 22, Sajjan Singh added.

The election process will conclude on October 25. Most parties are yet to declare their nominees for the elections, Congress being one of them.

Sirsa, September 17
Does the celebration of the birth anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh on the university campus by students amount to a violation of the model code of conduct?

At least in the case of Chaudhary Devi Lal University it is a violation.

Students of the university owing allegiance to the All-India Students Federation (AISF) have decided to celebrate Shaheed Bhagat Singh’s birth anniversary on September 24.

Though the anniversary falls on September 28, the students decided to hold a function on September 24 due to the Dussehra festival and invited Vice- Chancellor KC Bhardwaj as the chief guest for their programme, named “Ek Sham, Bhagat Singh ke Naam”.

The AISF activists also sought permission to organise the programme on the university campus.

The Lok Kala Manch, a group from Punjab, was to perform a play on the life of the martyr on the occasion.

However, Bhardwaj referred the file to the Registrar with a remark to examine the request and have the opinion of the DSW or any other authorities he may deem fit.

The Registrar referred the file to the DSW, who sent it to the Director, Youth Welfare, who in turn sent it to the Assistant Director, Youth Welfare (ADYW), for remarks.

“Discussed with the Registrar, such type of programme may not be conducted on the university campus due to the code of conduct,” said the noting written by ADYW Surinder Kundu on the request sent by the students.

Finally, the Registrar gave a noting on the request, “Please inform the students that academic work has already been delayed.”

Roshan Suchan, state convener of the AISF, maintained that they would anyway go ahead with their programme on the university campus.

“It is ridiculous. How is the election code violated if the students celebrate the birth anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and how is the academic work hampered by a programme that is to begin at 6 pm, well after the closure of the teaching work?” asked Suchan.

The Vice-Chancellor said the university authorities had asked students to delay the celebrations till the elections were over.

Sirsa, September 17
Tension prevailed in Ellenabad town here today after members of the Shaheed Radhey Sham Bhakar Yaadgar Samiti, an organisation named after a Kargil martyr, installed his statue on the disputed Panchmukhi Chowk.

A clash took place between the police and the samiti activists after the police removed the statue and used a mild force to disperse the samiti members, who in turn pelted cops with stones.

Three samiti activists, including its president Sukhdev Bhadu, sustained injuries in the incident.

Panchmukhi Chowk of the town has become a bone of contention between the Aggarwal Community, who wants to install a statue of Maharaja Agarsen, and Shaheed Radhey Sham Bhakar Yaadgar Samiti, who wants to install a statue of the Kargil martyr. No case has been registered so far.

Kurukshetra, September 17
The Haryana Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (HSGPC) president and other members summoned by Akal Takht in connection with the forcible takeover of Chhewin Patshahi Gurdwara in Kurukshetra will honour the directions and appear before the Takht on September 19.

“We respect Akal Takht as the supreme authority of the Sikhs and will appear before it to explain that the “maryada” of the gurdwara has not been violated”, he told The Tribune.

Dismissing charges of forcibly taking over the gurdwara and breaking open the “gullak” as baseless, Jhinda said the police was present on the scene and “maryada” was maintained during the eight-hour period when the HSGPC had taken over the “sewa”.

He said it was a token protest and a warning to the authorities and the SGPC to respond to the popular wishes of Haryana Sikhs and facilitate the creation of a separate SGPC for the state.

“There is no legal hurdle in creating a separate committee for the state, but the SGPC does not want to give up its control and is resorting to threats and pressure tactics,” he alleged.

He said, “We are honouring the directions of the Takht, but the Jathedar of the Takht should ensure our security and safety in Punjab.”

Yamunanagar, September 17
A preliminary report prepared by the district administration has stated that the overflow of the Yamuna river has destroyed crops spread over 11,000 acres and damaged 118 houses in 62 villages of five tehsils of the district.

The report comprising details of damages suffered by the farmers from September 10 to 14 was today sent to the government by DC Amit Kumar Agarwal.

Out of the five tehsils, crops in 8,632 acres was affected in 23 villages of Radaur tehsil, 480 acres in seven villages of Jagadhri, 170 acres in eight villages of Chhachhroli, 977 acres in 14 villages of Bilaspur and 800 acres in 10 villages of Sadhaura. Besides, 79 houses were damaged in Bilaspur, 25 in Jagadhri, nine Chhachhroli and five in Sadhaura.

Chandigarh, September 17
Trying to deal with the problem of plenty, the Haryana unit of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has started shifting wheat from its godowns to make space for the new paddy crop.

Officials in the FCI, Haryana, told TNS that this year they were expecting to procure 13.44 lakh metric tonnes of paddy. This would include 2 lakh metric tonnes of levy rice and 11.44 lakh metric tonnes of custom-milled rice. With the present movement of wheat from its covered storage, the FCI will have five lakh metric tonnes of storage capacity for the new arrivals, which begin in October.

Officials said the FCI had a storage capacity of 23.18 lakh metric tonnes across the state, which included its covered as well as plinth storage (3.20 lakh metric tonnes). However, the FCI already had an inventory of 14.82 lakh metric tonnes of wheat and 4.18 lakh tonnes of rice from the previous years. Since most of the wheat and rice had been stored in the godowns, and the rice milled by the state agencies and millers could not be stored in the open, the FCI here was trying to move out as much wheat as possible from its godowns.

The fact that the total rice production in the state is also down as compared to last year has also come as a relief for the FCI and state procurement agencies that are grappling for storing the foodgrains. This year, the area under paddy as well as basmati varieties is down by almost 1.20 lakh hectares. The area under paddy, too, has come down this year. As compared to 15.26 lakh metric tonnes of coarse rice (which is procured by state agencies) produced last year, the coarse rice production this year is just 15.21 lakh metric tonnes. As a result, the paddy arrivals expected in various mandis of the state are 13.44 lakh metric tonnes as compared to 14.24 lakh metric tonnes last year. Officials said the maximum receipt of milled rice was expected between November and January.

Gurgaon, September 17
The Gurgaon police yesterday challaned 30 retailers for allegedly providing mobiles connections on fake IDs.

The police raided several showrooms providing mobile connections to investigate the nexus between dealers selling connections on fake IDs and miscreants purchasing the connections. Several mobile dealers were arrested for not maintaining the records of the sold connections.

The police had directed the owners of all establishments providing mobile connections to collect proper ID and address proof and maintain the record of every connection sold, said Joint Commissioner of Police Alok Mittal.

Rohtak: An official of a private construction company hailing from Bahadurgarh town of Jhajjar district was allegedly robbed of Rs 3.90 lakh and then shot at by two motorcycle-borne miscreants near Sunarian village here on Wednesday.

The miscreants escaped with the booty leaving the official injured.

A case has been registered, but no arrest has been made so far.

The incident took place when the victim identified as Shiv Nath Bhagat, manager with a construction company, was on the way to a place in the district in a jeep along with his driver.