New Delhi, January 14
The Supreme Court today said it would not tolerate the “Republic killing its own children” and sought explanations from the Centre and the Andhra Pradesh on two PILs on an alleged fake encounter in which top Maoist leader Azad and journalist Hemchandra Pandey were shot dead in Adilabad district on July 2, 2010.

According to the petitioners, both were killed by the state police in blatant violation of their right to life guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.

The PILs have been filed by Pandey’s 30-year-old widow (Babita) and social activist Swami Agnivesh, seeking a judicial probe into the killings.

Pointing out that the government had to reply to all the questions raised in the petitions, the Bench expressed the hope that the replies would be convincing. According to the petitions, Azad, 58, who carried a reward of Rs 12 lakh and Pandey, 32, were shot from a very close range and this was evident from the post-mortem reports.

New Delhi, January 14
Janata Party President Subramanian Swamy has filed a fresh petition in the Supreme Court, objecting to Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal trashing the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on the 2G scam as this would affect the SC-monitored CBI probe.

“It is apprehended that this intemperate and uncalled for public attack on the CAG methodology” for arriving at the notional loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore in the allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008 at 2001 prices “may prejudice the CBI investigations and cause an obstruction to justice,” Dr Swamy said in his petition. Dr Swamy is one of the petitioners in the case pending with a Bench comprising Justices GS Singhvi and AK Ganguly.

There was an “urgency” to ensure that the CBI inquiry was carried out without interference, he said, taking exception also to Sibal’s announcement that a new National Telecom Policy would be put in place within 100 days.

The apex court should restrain the government, its agencies and other respondents, which included the telecom companies that benefited from the spectrum allocation, from doing any thing without the approval of the apex court, he pleaded.

New Delhi, January 14
Jammu and Kashmir Governor NN Vohra today called for clearly defining the Central and state governments’ roles in facing internal security challenges and said if it meant taking the “harder way” of constitutional amendment then that should be done.

Delivering a lecture on “governance” at the India International Centre on the birth anniversary of CD Deshmukh, a distinguished civil servant who was also the first Indian to be appointed the Reserve Bank of India governor, Vohra said the eminent makers of the Constitution might not have envisaged the kind of internal threats the country would face. The term “internal security” was nowhere mentioned in the Constitution, he said, maintaining that they would not have thought of the big and grave dimension it would come to acquire. The Centre and states needed to come to terms with their responsibilities, he said.

Vohra said state governments always resented any Central intervention in internal security issues, and it often resulted in delayed action even as they always asked for the Centre’s help when things went out of their control.

He gave the example of the 2008 communal riots in Orissa, when the state administration refused any Central help even as violence flared up, and added that the “memories of the Babri Masjid demolition were still fresh” and “did not need retelling’. Radical groups had torn down the mosque in 1992 with the alleged connivance of the UP government.

To deal with terror groups, Maoist guerrillas and insurgents in the Northeast, the states needed to cooperate with each other and the Centre but that was not happening, he rued.

Vohra said if the states worked with the Centre in unison, it would help them reach an understanding of their roles in matters related to internal security. The states, he lamented, were not responsive to the Centre’s initiatives and were shying away from police reforms, as directed by the Supreme Court.

Vohra told the audience, which included former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee and former J&K Governor Jagmohan, that the states and UTs were spending only 4.3 per cent of their budgets on their police and 80 per cent of it was going towards the payment of salaries and pensions, leaving little for fortifying their resources for internal security.

He warmed that Pakistan was increasingly trying to “Indianise” the jihadi threat to India while also attempting to revive Sikh militancy. 

New Delhi, January 14
Indian Army Chief General VK Singh, today unveiled two separate strategies -- one for future battles and threats while the second for the much-needed discipline in the wake of a series of land scams involving the force.

The Army will be reorganised and restructured into a “lethal, agile and networked” unit. Secondly, a ‘vigilance mechanism’ will be put in place to prevent scams that have caused embarrassment to the force.

General Singh, while talking to reporters at the annual press conference ahead of the 62nd Army Day celebrations, candidly said the transformation included “enhancing operational capability through reorganisation, restructuring, force development and relocation”. In lay terms, this means the forces will be rejigged to have the ability to deliver a lethal strike in a shorter period of time.

The top-heavy structure of the Army headquarters is to be “flattened” to bring in faster decision-making. A group is studying if strategic capability --- namely the missile attack formations -- should be placed under one command of the Army.

“A strike capability in the mountains will be covered in the transformation,” the General said in an oblique reference to the preparation to tackle the growing Chinese threat. He clarified that this does not mean setting up of a ‘Mountain Strike corps’. At present all three strike corps are located and operational in the plains at Ambala, Mathura and Bhopal -- largely facing Pakistan.

One of the key points in modernisation will be induction of the much delayed artillery guns to replace the now ageing Bofors -- acquired in 1986. “Trials are on to check out a few guns, I can assure you that the first lot of inductions will take place within this year only,” the General said even as he declined to share details about the supplier.

About the issue of discipline, the Chief said: “One of the things we could have done better was to create some sort of a vigilance mechanism within the Army. At the moment we do not have this. We are looking at it very seriously.” The General said such a mechanism would assist the Army in carrying out “internal audits at the right time”. 

New Delhi, January 14
Don’t yet put away your heavy woollens and jackets as the cold wave will be back in the plains of the northwest from tomorrow onwards, though this time it not expected to be as severe as the one you experienced around the end of December and beginning of the New Year.

The IMD says the maximum temperature may have substantially gone up in the past couple of days, but the maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to fall by 2-3°C over northwest India from January 16 onwards.

As per IMD Director SC Bhan, the western disturbance, which was the reason for temperatures rising in the past couple of days, is expected to move eastward tomorrow.

“This will lead to cold northerly winds from the north and fall in temperatures. The good news, however, is that this cold wave will not be as severe as the last one when maximum temperatures dropped between 8 and 12°C. This time they will remain to a more comfortable 15 or 16°C,” he said.

New Delhi, January 14
Don’t yet put away your heavy woollens and jackets as the cold wave will be back in the plains of the northwest from tomorrow onwards, though this time it not expected to be as severe as the one you experienced around the end of December and beginning of the New Year.

The IMD says the maximum temperature may have substantially gone up in the past couple of days, but the maximum and minimum temperatures are expected to fall by 2-3°C over northwest India from January 16 onwards.

As per IMD Director SC Bhan, the western disturbance, which was the reason for temperatures rising in the past couple of days, is expected to move eastward tomorrow.

“This will lead to cold northerly winds from the north and fall in temperatures. The good news, however, is that this cold wave will not be as severe as the last one when maximum temperatures dropped between 8 and 12°C. This time they will remain to a more comfortable 15 or 16°C,” he said.

Normal temperature for this time of the year is around 21°C.

Another good news is that the forthcoming spell will not be too long as a feeble western disturbance is expected around January 19 that will cause light rain and snow in the hills and arrest the fall of temperatures in the plains.

Last year, which was the hottest year in the decade, also saw severe cold wave conditions, the IMD says

Severe cold wave conditions prevailed over northern plains in January and during first fortnight of February. The maximum temperature over a number of stations over the northern plains was 5 to 10°C below normal on many occasions during January.

Cold wave conditions claimed more than 600 lives in 2010, the weather office adds.

The last western disturbance is expected in the first week of February after which the temperatures are likely to steadily move up in the region.

Meanwhile, scattered light rain and snowfall has occurred over Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Scattered light rainfall has also occurred over Punjab and Haryana. Isolated heavy rain and snow would occur over Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh during the next 24 hours.

Chandigarh, January 14
A new extradition treaty between India and Australia will be in place by November, said Australian High Commissioner to India Peter N. Varghese, revealing that extradition requests of some more Indians wanted by his country’s law enforcement agencies may follow in the coming months. As of now, the London Convention governs extradition of individuals wanted by law enforcement agencies of member nations of the Commonwealth. Only last month, Australia had sought extradition of a Moga-based Punjabi taxi driver wanted in a case of sexual assault of a woman passenger.

Currently, very few persons are extradited from India but the possibility of this number going up cannot be ruled out since some cases of violence reported from Australia during the past couple of years were traced to rivalry within groups of Indian students. Varghese, who was here for inauguration of the Australian Trade Centre, told The Tribune in an exclusive interview that “things in Australia were much calmer and quieter than what they were 12 months ago”. He said that all cases of violence against Indian students in Australia were at different stages of investigation and prosecution.

“Though there were some cases of racial or hate violence, many cases, including murder, were traced to Indian students themselves. In most cases, offenders have been convicted and given strong sentences. In one case of an Indian doctor who was brutally assaulted, the group of boys involved was sentenced to 15 years of rigorous imprisonment. The same group had assaulted four other Indians in one week,” said the Australian High Commissioner.

About the 80 per cent drop in the number of Indian students going to Australia for vocational education and training, Varghese said it was “important” to see reasons behind the decrease. “People are not deterred by incidents of violence. It (the decrease) has been more because of changes we have made in our migration policy that was necessitated by the global review. We have moved to a demand-driven migration policy that emphasises a lot more on skill and labour market requirements,” explained Varghese.

He said that a large number of students were going to Australia on the pretext of studying there but with a clear objective of using this route to settle down there. “But with the new migration policy, the two things have been clearly separated and students will not be able to follow course like hair dressing and cooking to get permanent residency in Australia.” He, however, clarified that the new immigration policy will not be a disadvantage to Indians as they are generally English speaking, have good skills and are quite adaptable in other cultures.

During the last year, ever since the Australian Government cracked the whip on “non-professional” institutions, only genuine students have been applying for visas, said Varghese. Of the estimated 4.5 lakh Indian population in Australia, 1.5 lakh are students.

On bilateral relations, Varghese said that these had improved considerably. “The bilateral trade that has been witnessing an annual 25 per cent growth was estimated at about A$22 billion. Balance of trade was tilted in favour of Australia,” said the Australian High Commissioner.

Chandigarh, January 14
India and Australia are expected to begin negotiations on signing a Free Trade Agreement during External Affairs Minister SM Krishna’s visit to Australia next week. The FTA will seek to remove barriers in goods, services and investment sector. A joint study group, set up to conduct feasibility study for such an agreement, had prepared a report favouring the pact.

Peter Varghese, Australian High Commissioner to India, said that the report had shown that India and Australia would be able to get trade worth $35 billion each, once a comprehensive economic pact is signed between the two countries.

“Australia as a trade partner is a reasonably open market and other than in automobiles, footwear and textiles, tariffs on goods are lower than 5 per cent. With the signing of an FTA between the two countries, the trade volumes will shoot up and the balance in trade, which is so far in favour of Australia, will also be restored,” he said.

Varghese said the trade between the two countries is expected to reach $22 billion this year. “The trade is growing at the rate of 25 per cent each year. Though it is trade in goods (coal, copper and gold) that is contributing mainly to bilateral commerce, but now Australian financial services sector too is looking at expanding in India,” he said. Four of the top lenders in Australia - Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), National Australia Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac have forayed into India. They are into niche banking and trade financing, but not into retail banking.

He said Australian companies are looking at business opportunities in India in the infrastructure and design sector, and in providing clean energy solutions. Indian companies were investing in Australia, especially in the mining, hospitality and IT sector. 

Lucknow, January 14
The city is bathed in blue but the mood is far from blue on the eve of Chief Minister Mayawati’s birthday tomorrow. Every major intersection in the city is illuminated with thousands of tiny blue bulbs. Fountains are spurting blue colour water and decorators are working at a feverish pace to do up dozens of memorials of social reformers with the choicest of blue-purple orchids and marigolds.

As Maya Memsahib turns 55, she has a slew of gifts lined up for the people of the state: a spruced-up Hazratganj, a modern 3,000-seat auditorium and Asia’s largest sewer treatment plant. The main function has been shifted from its fixed venue -- the Chief Minister’s official residence at 5 Kalidas Marg -- to the newly-built Dr Bhim Rao Ambedkar Auditorium on the Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University campus near the airport here. Mayawati would dedicate this auditorium to the nation along with 186 more development projects across the state costing a total of Rs 4,000 crore.

After one-hour-and-twenty-minutes hours at the main function, Mayawati will travel by chopper to Bharwar near Chinhat on the outskirts of the city to inaugurate the sewage treatment plant. Built at a cost of Rs 169 crore, the plant has a capacity to treat 345 million litres of sewage every day. 

BRIEFLY

Hand-chopping case
kochi: The police on Friday filed a chargesheet against 27 activists of the radical outfit Popular Front of India accusing them of attempt to murder and other offences in the brutal attack on a private college lecture. The PFI actvists had chopped off the right hand of the lecturer for setting a question paper with alleged derogatory references to Prophet Mohammed. - PTI

Rift in SIT
Ahemdabad: The rift within the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the 2004 encounter of Ishrat Jahan has been exposed, with one of the members objecting to the demand to appoint amicus curie before Gujarat High Court. SIT member Satish Verma, who yesterday filed an affidavit before the division bench of Justices Jayant Patel and Abhilasha Kumari, has also complained about the `attitude' of the SIT chairman Karnal Singh. - PTI

MLA slaps staffer
MUMBAI: A member of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on Friday allegedly assaulted a government employee at the state secretariat here, leading to a flash-protest by the staff. Bacchu Kadu, an independent from Achalpur constituency in Vidarbha, slapped the employee who works in the health department. - PTI

Amar gets notice
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today sought a response from former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh and the central government on a petition seeking to vacate the stay on the publication and broadcast of his taped telephonic conversations. - PTI

Lalgarh violence
Kolkata: Displeased with the state government’s handling of the recent killings in Lalgarh and Purulia’s Bagmundi, West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan will visit the disturbed areas on January 19 for an on-the-spot inquiry into the incidents. Maoists had allegedly killed eight TMC workers on January 7 at Netai village in Lalgarh. - TNS