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Pak backs India’s anti-terror move
BlackBerry likely to stay |
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Surveillance stepped up for Games n Jokes, witty one-liners do the rounds
Divorce cannot be bought, rules apex court
Jethmalani cocks a snook at Jaitley, BJP
Freedom fighter passes away
Abu Salem’s aide attacked in jail
Gogoi raises hopes for peace talks with ULFA
Ex-Vice Chief of Army challenges disparities
Uma’s returning to
BJP? PFI, radical outfit, ‘spreading tentacles’ in Andhra Pradesh Fishermen to protest against Lanka Cop, Naxal killed in J’khand encounter
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Pak backs India’s anti-terror move
New Delhi, September 25 Official sources here said the convention would come up for discussion at the UN in the second week of October when the Chairman of the ad hoc group on CCIT could propose a fresh text that could bridge the gap between concerns of some countries and the text tabled by India. Pakistan, along with some other Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) countries, had led the campaign against the proposed convention on various grounds. It had argued that self-determination should be outside the purview of the convention. It had also insisted that international humanitarian laws should be taken into account while finalising the text of the convention. Both these objections were seen as aimed at embarrassing India on Jammu and Kashmir since Islamabad has been demanding the right to self-determination for Kashmiris and seeking international intervention on the issue. Although the recent unrest in the valley has again provided Pakistan an opportunity to fish in troubled waters, the sources said Islamabad’s latest salvos on the Kashmir issue would not affect the pace of negotiations on CCIT, which were moving along satisfactorily. The CCIT was opposed by the OIC as some of its member countries were worried at its impact on the just struggle by the Palestinians for a separate homeland. The opposition to the convention had also come from the US and Israel with the latter insisting that acting against terrorists indulging in killing innocent people be brought under its purview. The global treaty seeks to criminalise all forms of international terrorism and deny terrorists, their financers and supporters access of funds, arms and safe havens. Negotiations on the CCIT were hitherto deadlocked because of differences over the definition of terrorism. The key sticking points in the draft treaty revolved around several controversial yet basic issues, including the definition of ‘terrorism’. For example, what distinguishes a ‘terrorist organisation’ from a ‘liberation movement’? And do you exclude the activities of national armed forces from its purview, even if they are perceived to commit acts of terrorism? If not, how much of this constitutes state terrorism? The situation has considerably changed with just a handful of countries still not convinced why they should back it. “Most countries are now in favour of the early adoption of the convention but there is a small number of holdouts, may be 10 to 15…efforts are on to convince them also to support it so that a strong message goes out to all terrorist organisations that the international community is united and determined to jointly fight the menace of terrorism,” the sources added.
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BlackBerry likely to stay New Delhi, September 25
The technical group consisting of officials of the Department of Telecommunications and security agencies has been satisfied with the manual interception being worked out by RIM to allow legal interception of its core services to Indian security agencies, reports said. The technical group is likely to meet next week to discuss certain issues and after that the messenger service may be allowed to continue. “The messenger service is working fine, so far. We are getting manual reports and are satisfied. Some technical glitches have come up on enterprise mail but efforts are underway to solve these,” an official source said. Sources, however, said that it could take three or four months before a final solution emerges on allowing Indian security agencies legal and direct access to both the BlackBerry Messenger and Enterprise Service. The technical group is in the process of analysing the technical solution being offered on the Enterprise Service and no final view has been taken on it so far. India, which along with several other countries has expressed concerns that BlackBerry services could be used to stir political or social instability, had asked its Canadian manufacturer to provide a technical solution to intercept the encrypted data being transferred through the phone or face a ban. It has been given a final deadline of October 31 to provide the security forces with a satisfactory solution.
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Surveillance stepped up for Games New Delhi, September 25 After a high-level security review meeting convened by Home Minister P Chidambaram two days ago, stadiums have been taken over by security agencies. As part of the security arrangements, choppers and unmanned aerial vehicles fitted with infrared scanners will hover above stadiums while about 150 personnel of the Delhi Police's Special Weapons and Tactics Team have been trained by the IAF and the NSG to shoot down any suspicious manned or unmanned “flying object”. The Delhi police had informed the Home Minister that once the venues were handed over to it, fool-proof security would be provided. Security personnel were facing difficulties while guarding the Commonwealth Games village and other venues due to frequent movement of labourers who were engaged in different unfinished tasks. More than one lakh security personnel will be seen in action during the Games, including about 175 companies (17,500 personnel) of paramilitary forces, 3,000 commandos, 100 anti-sabotage teams, 200 dogs and 15 bomb disposal squads.
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Divorce cannot be bought, rules apex court
New Delhi, September 25 “The law does not permit the purchase of a decree of divorce for consideration, with or without the consent of the other side,” a Bench comprising Justices Aftab Alam and RM Lodha said in a verdict. The apex court made the clarification while setting aside a Calcutta High Court verdict granting divorce after the husband offered to pay Rs 10 lakh for the lifelong maintenance of his wife and of their daughter till her marriage and for the wedding expenses. Pointing out that the marriage had been solemnised in accordance with the Hindu religious rites, the Bench said such a marriage can be dissolved only on any of the grounds “plainly and clearly enumerated” under Section 13 of the Hindu Marriage Act. The SC Bench rejected the husband’s contention that he had lived with his wife barely for four months - from April 29, 1994, when the marriage took place to August 24 of that year - and that they were living separately since then. The Bench ruled: “We are not prepared to accept the submission for a moment. First, there is nothing to indicate that the (HC) order was passed with the consent” of the wife. “Secondly, and more importantly, the consent of the parties is of no relevance in the matter. No court can assume jurisdiction to dissolve a Hindu marriage simply on the basis of the consent of the parties de hors (disregarding) the grounds enumerated under Section 13 of the Act, unless of course the consenting parties proceed under Section 13 B of the Act,” the Bench added. Reasons allowed under Section 13 for divorce include adultery, religious conversion, unsound mind, incurable disease, renouncement of world, missing for seven years, rape, sodomy or bestiality. The Bench imposed a cost of Rs 15,000 on the husband and remitted the matter back to the HC for dealing with it expedi-tiously “in accordance with law.”
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Jethmalani cocks a snook at Jaitley, BJP
New Delhi, September 25
Jethmalani and Jaitley, both seasoned, leading legal practitioners at the Supreme Court, have also been sort of political rivals for long going back to the days of the NDA government when Jethmalani was replaced by Jaitley as Law Minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s dispensation. Though Ram Jethmalani was one of the founder vice-presidents of the BJP in the 1980s, as Jaitley’s stock rose in the BJP, Jethmalani’s fell. In 2004, Jethmalani contested as a UPA candidate against Vajpayee from Lucknow. Later, he touched the BJP’s raw nerve by appearing for Afzal Guru in the Supreme Court. Slowly Jethmalani had totally distanced himself from all in the BJP except his old friend and comrade L K Advani. He had also announced sometime back his disinclination to take up law suits, except in exceptional cases. But as soon as Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi sensed the CBI breathing down the neck of his Home Minister Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, he saw in Jethmalani a saviour and forced the party to reinduct him and also bring him into the Rajya Sabha from Rajasthan. Since both Jaitley and his mentor Advani are dependent on Modi’s political clout to enter Parliament from Gujarat, Jaitley did not make any attempt to oppose Jethmalani and in fact had commended Jethmalani’s legal prowess then. But now Jethmalani is questioning Jaitley’s integrity as the DDCA president -- something which left many in the BJP red-faced. Party insiders anticipate bigger headache for Jaitley from Jethmalani’s end in the Upper House of Parliament and are not in the least surprised by Jethmalani since he is considered a bit of a maverick. But questions are being raised whether Modi had also foreseen all this and was sending a subtle message to Jaitley by pressing for Jethmalani’s induction and Rajya Sabha membership. This development has also poured cold water on Sadhvi Uma Bharti’s plans to return to the BJP. Though she has been meeting Advani and persuading BJP president Nitin Gadkari to take her back, this development is likely to strengthen the case of her opponents, hinted party sources. They say that Jethmalani’s case merely proves that old rivalries never die and therefore Uma’s return may unnecessarily destabilise the smoothly running Madhya Pradesh government. Uma Bharti had accompanied Advani to Somnath today, but even he refused to give her a commitment regarding her return.
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Freedom fighter passes away
Sriganganagar, September 25 He was 101 and is survived by four sons. Quoting different citations, his son Surjit Singh stated that Malhi was born in Saheke village of Moga district in Punjab. He joined the INA at a young age and was deployed by Neta Ji Subhash Chander Bose in Japan and Singapore to carry the struggle for the Independence. “Later, Jawahar Lal Nehru persuaded him to return to India in 1945 to continue the mission. He had been sentenced thrice during the struggle,” he said. Surjit added that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had honoured him with Tamra Patra during the Independence Day function. He was cremated with full state honours today afternoon. Police contingents reversed the arms and fired twice in the air to pay homage to the freedom fighter. Earlier, his body covered with the National Flag, was taken to the cremation ground by hundreds of people. Surjit said Malhi felt disillusioned over the corruption that had virtually crept into the society.
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Abu Salem’s aide attacked in jail
Mumbai, September 25 Mohammad Hassan ‘Mehndi’, a driver and bodyguard of Abu Salem, suffered injuries on his face and hand in the attack with a sharp-edged weapon by four other inmates of the same jail following an altercation, the police said. He was undergoing treatment in the jail hospital, it added. The attackers have been identified as members of the Pandav Putra gang, who are said to be affiliated to the Dawood Ibrahim gang. Hassan, an accused in the 1995 murder of builder Pradeep Jain, has been lodged in the jail for the past five years. He was picked up around the same time that Abu Salem was extradited from Portugal. The war between Abu Salem and the Dawood Ibrahim gang came out into the open earlier this July when the former was attacked by gangster Mohammad Dossa and his henchmen in the same jail. Since then Salem was moved to the Taloja Jail in Navi Mumbai while Dossa was shifted to the Thane Central Prison. However, members of both gangs, who were still lodged in the Arthur Road Central jail, had been at loggerheads and had exchanged words and abuses, the police added.
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Gogoi raises hopes for peace talks with ULFA
Guwahati, September 25 Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi today raised hopes of starting a dialogue with the outfit soon while terming the “desertion” of ranks by the ULFA men a “good sign” for the efforts to restore peace in the state. Talking to the media here for the first time since his return from Mumbai after a major heart operation, Gogoi said, “We can just tell you that they (ULFA men) have left their camps in Bangladesh. They have not been handed over to us by the Border Security Force (BSF) yet. It is a good sign. We are trying to start the peace talks with the ULFA soon.” He said the safe passage might be granted to this batch of ULFA men as they had deserted the outfit on their own provided there was no legal hurdle in doing so. This is significant given that some of these ULFA leaders were known to be staunch loyalists to ULFA’s self-styled and fugitive “commander in chief” Paresh Barua who has been the main hurdle in the peace process. In a statement issued to the media last evening the fugitive Paresh Barua stated that some of his close aides, including “captains” Bhaiti Barua, Biju Deka, Pradyut Gohain and central publicity cell member Anu Buragohain had deserted the outfit’s shelters to take shelter in enemy’s (Indian security forces’) camp. He termed the “surrender” a part of the “drama of peace talks” that was being enacted by “colonial Indian government” with the ULFA chairman Arabinda Rajkhowa and other senior leaders now in jail. Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had earlier said there wouldn’t be an inordinate wait for Paresh Barua to come forward for talks. The government was just waiting for some more senior leaders of the outfit including battalion commanders to show interests in a dialogue process.
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Ex-Vice Chief of Army challenges disparities
Chandigarh, September 25 The Tribunal’s Chandigarh Bench comprising Justice Ghanshyam Prashad and Lt Gen A S Bahia has issued notices to the Union of India on the petition filed by Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi (Retd). The petition has contended that by fixing an arbitrary and artificial cut-off date, the government has denied to pre-2006 military retirees the revision formula of disability and war injury of pension as implemented after the Sixth Pay Commission. This has not only resulted in discrimination between those who have retired before and after 2006 but also between civil and military disability pensioners. While all benefits of revision of disability awards recommended by the Sixth Pay Commission have been extended to pre-2006 civilian retirees, parallel benefits under the same master policy have been denied to pre-2006 defence pensioners. In 2001, a new system, fixing disability element of pension at 30 per cent of the basic salary was introduced for pre-1996 civilian disabled employees and all civilian retirees irrespective of the date of retirement were hence placed on the same formula. The rates for operational disabilities (war-injury element) were even higher and pre-96 civilian employees were also brought into its ambit. Defence pensioners, however, remained on the slab system, which was to their disadvantage. For example, a major general suffering disability was entitled to Rs 5, 880 per month, while his civilian counterpart was entitled Rs 15,187. Services Headquarters took up the issue with the government for grant of disability element on percentage of basic pay basis for defence personnel also and it was finally implemented through the Sixth Pay Commission. The percentage system, however, was implemented for only those armed forces personnel who retired after January 2006. This also created a huge disparity in the disability pension of those who have retired before and after 2006. At the level of a lieutenant, the difference is Rs 2,220, while at the level of a general the difference is a whooping Rs 21,120.
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Somnath/New Delhi, September 25 Advani, along with his wife Kamla, daughter Pratibha, Uma and state BJP in charge Balbir Punj offered prayers at the famous Shiva temple from where he had started his Rath Yatra to Ayodhya in 1990. Since then, the former BJP president pays a visit to the temple on September 25 every year. Advani, however, sidestepped questions on the possible return of Uma, who was expelled from the BJP in December 2005 on disciplinary grounds soon after she spoke openly against him in his presence at a party function. “She (Uma) had expressed the desire to come with me to Somnath and that is the reason she is here,” Advani said refusing to entertain any questions on whether the firebrand leader was set to rejoin the
BJP. — PTI
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PFI, radical outfit, ‘spreading tentacles’ in Andhra Pradesh Hyderabad, September 25 The radical outfit has established a foothold in Kurnool district and started building a network across Rayalaseema and south coastal Andhra regions, the state intelligence sources said. “We are keeping a close watch on their activities, particularly in Kurnool district. We have already alerted the administration about the danger from such organisations,” a top official told The Tribune. The PFI has been facing allegations of spreading Islamic terrorism in the garb of social service activities aimed at uplifting the oppressed sections. The members of the outfit were recently seen collecting funds for flood victims in Kurnool region and also engaged in relief works. The police also found that the outfit was basically trying to attract Muslim youth in large numbers with the promise of showing them the right path to serve the poor and needy. “However, some of the leaflets being circulated in the name of the PFI are provocative in nature,” the sources said. The Kerala-based organisation had created a scare with the chopping of the hand of Prof. TJ Joseph in Kerala in July this year accusing him of blasphemy. It was alleged that a question paper set by Prof Joseph had hurt the sentiments of Muslims. In AP, the PFI activities came into focus when its volunteers participated in relief activities in Kurnool district which faced worst-ever floods in October 2009. During the flood relief operations, the organisation is believed to have got in touch with some local Muslim organisations in Kurnool.
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Fishermen to protest against Lanka Chennai, September 25 In a joint resolution, passed by all major fishermen associations in Tamil Nadu, they alleged that seven fishermen were recently attacked by the Sri Lankan Navy, despite assurances by the Union Government, that such attacks would not continue. The resolution charged both the Central and state governments of not taking action to protect their fishing rights near Katchatheevu, an island acceded to Lanka by the Centre in 1974. Even according to the Katchatheevu agreement between the Indian and Lankan governmments, Tamil Nadu fishermen had the right to fish around the island, they claimed and charged the Lankan Navy with attacking fishermen and damaging their boats, nets, etc.
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Cop, Naxal killed in J’khand encounter Jamshedpur, September 25 “One police constable was killed and two others, a CRPF personnel and a Jharkhand policeman, were injured in the encounter while the Maoists have also suffered casualties,” Inspector General of Police (Operation), RK Malik, told PTI. DIG (Kolhan range) Navin Kumar Singh said the body of a Maoist had been found from the encounter site. “However, we have reports of three to four Maoists being killed in the encounter that occurred when a group of Naxalites attacked the security personnel comprising personnel from CRPF and state police in the area,” he said. The deceased policeman Rajiv Ranjan's body was taken for postmortem to Ispat General Hospital at Rourkela in Orissa, which was barely 30 km from the encounter site, a Rourkela report said. Navin Kumar Singh, who was leading the operation, said the security personnel also busted a Maoist training camp near Thalkobad under Manoharpur police station. Meanwhile, train services between Tatanagar and Rourkela under South Eastern Railway's Chakradharpur division has been disrupted due to the encounter. While Howrah-Mumbai Geetanjali express was detained at Chakradharpur, Tata-Bilaspur special passenger was cancelled, Railway sources said. The decision in this regard was taken following Intelligence inputs, the sources said.
— PTI
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Reports suggest that there were some technical glitches while accessing corporate email but access to the messenger services has been found to be satisfactory by security agencies monitoring the services. Apparently, RIM is providing security agencies with “manual interception” of its core messenger service.
Lalit Modi is asking the apex court to dismiss the three-member panel of the BCCI which includes Jaitley and instead appoint a judicial panel to probe charges of misappropriation and corruption against him.