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Haryana ignored Centre’s
advisory
’84 Riots Case
The probe agency says Delhi cops shielded Congress leader and former MP Sajjan Kumar, a key accused, in the case. It also accused Sajjan Kumar of dragging the trial on one pretext or the other. |
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‘Saffron’ Terror
Won’t sever defence ties with China: Antony
CWG works to miss Aug 31 deadline
30 hurt after fire scare on Jet flight in Mumbai
We want good relations with neighbours: PM
Azad killed from point-blank range?
Agni-V ready for testing
The crashed chopper at Bangalore. — PTI
Parliament nod to amend 37-yr-old CrPC
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Haryana ignored Centre’s
advisory
New Delhi, August 27 On April 1, 20 days before members of a dominant upper caste in Mirchpur torched 18 Dalit houses, killing two persons (a septuagenarian and his 17-year-old disabled daughter), the Home Ministry had issued an advisory to states, warning them of persisting atrocities against marginalised communities and asking them to step up vigil to protect them. This was the ministry’s 11th advisory since 1997, the earlier ones came in October 1997, November 1998, September 2001, June 2002, June 2004, February 2005, April, 2006, October 2006, February 2007 (issued to nine highest crime states) and April 2007. “Despite steps, the picture remains very grim. Complaints are being received on non-registration of FIRs and unsympathetic attitude of some police personnel towards crimes against SCs and STs. The National SC/ST Commission has pointed out laxity on the part of certain police officials and said non filing of FIRs even in heinous cases of crimes continues to be a problem,” the April 1 advisory to chief secretaries of states and UTs, stated. Within days, Mirchpur in Hisar was boiling, with Haryana law enforcers caught napping on the Central input. A copy of the advisory (which The Tribune has accessed) and which the Parliamentary Panel on SCs and STs consulted for its report on Mirchpur, reflects the government’s concerns. “Urgent action must be taken to improve the situation and vigorous and conscientious enforcement of existing laws on crimes against SCs/STs, including the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, and the SCs, STs (Prevention of Atrocities Act), 1980, must take place,” it states. The parliamentary panel, which claims evidence of police and Jat collusion in the Mirchpur atrocity, will submit its report on Monday. “Haryana sent a reply, showing seven more arrests and said it was setting up a human rights commission. We are sticking to our point,” panel chief Gobinda Naskar told TNS, saying the state’s response in the area was lacking. The April 1 advisory, on its part, even directed states to instruct enforcement agencies against downplaying the urgency to protect the rights of weaker sections for fear of further disturbances and retribution. “Adequate preparation must be made to face any eventuality. The police must play a more proactive role in investigating crimes and ensure there is no under-reporting. They must apply appropriate sections as per the statements of victims and no dilution should be tolerated to help the perpetrators of crimes against vulnerable sections,” the MHA said, asking states for separate magisterial reviews of pending cases filed by SCs/STs. Importantly, the government even asked states to identify atrocity-prone areas and take special measures to save lives and property of Dalits there. “Adequate police personnel equipped with policing infrastructure must be posted in police stations of vulnerable areas and forces must have adequate SCs and STs,” it said. Crimes against STs and STs have surged with 40,000 cases registered in 2008.
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Delhi police probe a sham: CBI to SC
New Delhi, August 27 In an affidavit, the agency has urged the apex court to vacate the August 13 stay granted by it and pleaded it “seriously prejudiced” the prosecution against the Congress leader. A bench of Justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan while taking on record the affidavit posted to September 7 the final hearing of the agency's plea to prosecute Kumar for the riots under Delhi Cantonment police station in which 60 people were killed. “Mr Dave nobody is insensitive," the bench said when senior counsel Dushayant Dave appearing for one of the victims asked the court to vacate the stay on the ground that it involved the emotions of thousands of people. The CBI, in its affidavit, said, “It will also be adjudged during trial as to whether the petitioner (Kumar) has played a role in causing delay. It cannot also be lost sight of the fact that 24 complaints were investigated in one FIR about scores of deaths and because of sham investigation and farce prosecutions, there has been failure of justice for which victims are aggrieved.” The agency questioned the intention of the anti-riot cell of Delhi police in filing status reports on July 31, 2008, in the trial court when the investigation was already being conducted by the CBI. “There was no occasion for the Delhi Police to deal with the case once the entire material was supplied to the CBI by the Government of India from the custody of Delhi Police (on October 10, 2005),” the agency said. The CBI also accused the Delhi police of filing another status report in the trial court on July 31, 2008, and pointed out that the trial judge and the Delhi High Court have happily termed it as “clandestine attempt to hush up the matter”. The CBI accused Kumar of attempting to drag the trial on one pretext or the other and said his plea for staying the trial was another such attempt. — PTI
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Congress rejects PC’s remark
Anita Katyal Our Political Correspondent
New Delhi, August 27 In what was being seen in Congress circles as a clear disapproval of the Home Minister’s remarks, Janardhan Dwivedi, chairman of the party’s media department, publicly declared that “terror has no colour.” “The agenda is not saffron, it is terrorism and terrorism has no colour. It cannot be associated with any colour be it saffron, red, green or white,” he told mediapersons outside Parliament House, adding that “terror has only one colour and it is black.” Saffron, according to Dwivedi, has a special place in “our religious and ancient texts”, adding that it is also associated with the country’s independence movement. “Terrorism is terrorism and it should be unequivocally condemned,” he underlined. Addressing a conference recently, Chidamabram had said, “There is no let-up in the attempts to radicalise men and women in India. There has been a recent uncovered phenomenon of saffron terrorism that has been implicated in many bomb blasts in the recent past.” Although he did not spell it out, the Home Minister was referring to the ongoing investigations which have uncovered links between Hindu extremist outfits and several bomb blasts in the country, including those at Hyderabad’s old city, Ajmer, Malegoan, Goa and at Modasa in Gujarat. Since he is not known to make off-the-cuff remarks unlike some of his party colleagues, Dwivedi’s public statement pointed to the deep divisions in the party on this sensitive issue which could have serious political ramifications. The Congress spokesperson’s deliberate remarks are not only meant as a rebuff to Chidambaram but are also a veiled attack on fellow AICC general secretary Digivijay Singh, who has been relentlessly pursuing the issue of “Hindu or saffron terror groups”. There is a section in the Congress which fears that the BJP’s sister organisations like the Vishwa Hindu Parisahd and Bajrang Dal could seize upon the use of “saffron terror” to polarise society which could invite a Hindu backlash. It is for this reason that these Congress leaders have never favoured a strident position on such issues and instead advocated a “middle of the path” or a “please all” approach. On the flip side, there is a section which believes that Congress should pursue a bold and unequivocal line on “secularism” while taking up cudgels for the minorities.
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Won’t sever defence ties with China: Antony
Antony was asked about reports in a section of the media suggesting that New Delhi could snap defence ties with Beijing in the wake of denial of visa to Lt Gen BS Jaswal, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, on the ground that he controlled operations in “sensitive” Jammu and Kashmir. China maintains Jammu and Kashmir is a “disputed” area. Lt Gen Jaswal was nominated by the government to visit China as part of regular high-level exchanges between defence establishments of the two countries. “Short-term problems would not affect India’s overall approach towards China,” Antony said. Earlier, an External Affairs Ministry spokesman reacted guardedly to the issue of visa denial. “While we value our exchanges with China, there must be sensitivity to each others’ concerns. Our dialogue with China on these issues is ongoing,” the spokesman said. Of late, China has been issuing visas to applicants from Jammu Kashmir on “loose sheets of paper” that are stapled to their passports. India has raised objections over the practice. Asked if foreign direct investment cap in the defence production sector would be enhanced to 49 per cent, Antony said, “We have now allowed 26 per cent FDI in our defence production”. He noted that India’s defence production was improving but there was still scope for improvement. “Our main target is to develop India into a strong base for defence industrial production. We are not restricting this area only to the public sector and we will be supporting the private sector as well. But we must also encourage the public sector,” the Defence Minister said.
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CWG works to miss Aug 31 deadline
Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy, who heads the group of ministers supervising the CWG works, today blamed rains for the yet-another delay and said they would take a couple of more days to complete the projects. All the Games’ venues are still undergoing work and Games Village, which would house close to 8,000 visiting athletes and officials, has most work left to be done. Officials said electrical wiring is yet to be laid in most rooms and even construction is on at some places. Finishing touches are still being given to Yamuna Sports Complex and Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, who had earlier boasted that she would accompany mediapersons after August 31 — the final deadline according to her — to show them how clean Delhi was, today said everything would be ready before the Games, which begin on October 3. Rain gods are probably unhappy with them, she said, blaming incessant August rains for the delay. She had earlier set August 10 as the deadline to clean the city, which is dug out at many places and Connaught Place, its most attractive location, looks like a bombed out place with pits and mounds of earth everywhere. Officials said rains have harmed the beautification works like landscaping, streetscaping and laying
of grass, especially at Games venues.
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30 hurt after fire scare on Jet flight in Mumbai
Mumbai, August 27 As there was a sudden surge of passengers when they were being evacuated using chutes, 30 of them received injuries and bruises with three of them suffering fractures, a Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) spokesperson said here. There were some reports that a few passengers jumped from the aircraft and sustained injuries while there was a chaos when passengers rushed to slide down the chutes. Fifteen persons were taken to Nanavati hospital in ambulances for further treatment after receiving first aid at the airport. Some of them were reported to have suffered multiple fractures. A full emergency was declared at the Mumbai Airport and fire tenders were rushed immediately to the spot. A Jet statement said the airplane commander proceeded to declare a precautionary emergency although there were no visible traces of fire. "The commander onboard Jet Airways flight 9W 2302 Mumbai-Chennai was informed of an indication of an LH engine fire. Although there was no visible trace of a fire, the commander proceeded to declare a precautionary emergency," the statement said. All passengers were deplaned safely and a thorough inspection of the engine was carried out, it added. The captain deployed chutes for emergency evacuation, a Jet spokesperson said, adding all passengers have been evacuated. An airline official said that nine passengers had been admitted in the city's Nanavati hospital. "Nine patients are admitted here for minor bruises," Gaurang Shetty, vice-president (marketing), Jet Airways, told reporters after visiting the hospital.
— PTI
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We want good relations with neighbours: PM
New Delhi, August 27 India’s foreign policy should also be oriented towards East and South-East Asia, which were poised for a sustained growth rate in the 21st century, he said addressing 119 Indian Heads of Mission
(HoMs) at their three-day conference here. He remarked that India, by and large had good relations with all its neighbours. “We are engaging them without looking at reciprocity, in our own enlightened interest.” Reflecting on the international environment, the PM said: “We are living today in an increasingly inter-dependent world.” India needed an open trading system and wanted to emerge as a major trading nation in the world. G-20 had become a key forum for discussing and shaping international economic and financial policies. Foreign policy had also to pay more attention to functioning of G-20. The PM remarked that India was among the fastest growing economies in the world, which despite the global melt down in 2008-09, had returned to a growth path of 8.5 per cent. Energy availability was critical to attaining a 9-10 per cent growth rate. Outlining his vision of India, he said that the foremost national goal was to remove poverty and accelerate the pace of economic development. “We are building modern infrastructure which would stand up to the challenge of a fast moving economy. The nation is also focusing on human resource development, as it is the quality of human resources that determines the standing of a country in the comity of nations.”
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Azad killed from point-blank range?
Hyderabad, August 27 The post-mortem was conducted at a government hospital in Mancheryal town in Adilabad district. The report said that the bullet, which killed Azad, left a one-centimeter oval-shaped wound with “darkening burnt edges” between the two ribs. It pierced the ribs and exited from the spine. It is generally believed that the dark edges at the entry point are due to burns caused by a bullet fired from point-blank range. “This contradicts the police version of the encounter. In their FIR, the police said that Azad and his accomplices fired at the police party from the top of a hill and the police retaliated, killing them on the spot. If the police fired from the ground, the bullets should have gone through the body from the spine and pierced the upper portion,’’ the Maoist ideologue and writer Varavara Rao said. He said the post-mortem report concurred with the fact-finding report of a group of 24 civil society organisations, which conducted an independent inquiry into the killing and concluded that it was a fake encounter.
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Agni-V ready for testing
Hyderabad, August 27 Agni-V is an inter-continental ballistic missile capable of carrying a 1.5-tonne nuclear warhead payload. The three-stage sold fuelled missile will have a range of 5,000 to 6,000 km and will be the first road-mobile missile in the country’s arsenal. “We have developed this missile following denial of technology to India. The denial has only given us an opportunity to develop the 5,000-km range missile,” Antony said. He was speaking after laying foundation stone for an expansion project at Mishra Dhatu Nigam Limited, a defence public sector company. India has already test-fired the 3,500 km Agni-III. Though it is capable of reaching strategic targets deep inside China, it falls short of being an ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile), which must have a range of over 5,000 km. Antony complimented Indian scientists working in critical areas and said they had proved that India could overcome sanctions and denials.
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Chopper crashes, 2 pilots injured
Bangalore, August 27 Air Commodore Roj Assey (retd) of the HAL’s Rotary Wing Academy was imparting flying lessons to Captain Virender Singh of the Army when the accident took place. The aircraft was about to take off when it impacted the ground and was substantially damaged. Both pilots suffered minor injuries, a press release issued by HAL said. The cause of the mishap, which occurred around 9 am, was being ascertained, HAL Chairman Ashok Naik said. The usual procedure followed by HAL is to go in for a post-impact analysis report following a crash. The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has ordered an inquiry into the incident and its report is awaited, Naik added. HAL Rotary Wing Academy was established in February 2000 for helicopter flying training of civil pilot trainees.
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Parliament nod to amend 37-yr-old CrPC
New Delhi, August 27 The Rajya Sabha later passed the Bill, which has already been approved by the Lok Sabha. It would make mandatory for a police officer to record the reason for which a person has been arrested, or not arrested, in cases punishable for less than seven years or up to seven years.
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The CBI today told the Supreme Court that the special anti-riots cell of the Delhi Police had conducted “sham investigations and farce prosecutions” in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots to apparently shield senior Congress leader and former MP Sajjan Kumar, a key accused.
Hyderabad, August 27
New Delhi, August 27