The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

	Ruby Dhalla gives her mother’s alma mater Rs. 10 lakh Deepkamal Kaur Tribune News Service Jalandhar, January 15 Ruby Dhalla, member of Parliament (MP) from Brampton Springdale, Canada, was today touched by the conditions in which the students of Government Girls School, Basti Sheikh, have been studying. “It’s the same school which my mother attended about five decades back. Rainwater seeps into the classrooms, which need immediate renovation. The toilets are in a bad shape. There is no library for the students,” observed the Canadian MP who gave a grant of Rs 10 lakh she had got from Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal for all these development works. She was accompanied by her mother Tawinder Dhalla, brother Neil Dhalla, local maternal relatives and a dozen odd Punjabi members from her constituency. She said ever since she had returned from the sammelan in New Delhi, she had been visiting various schools in Phillaur, Moga and Jalandhar and interacting with students and teachers. The third-time Canadian MP said she had also been discussing the issue of cultural exchange, whereby Canadian students of Punjabi origin could come over here, spend some time, and learn their parents’ culture and language. “Students from schools here can in return spend some time in Canadian schools and learn about the culture there.” she explained. She began her day paying obeisance at Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi, Basti Sheikh. “That’s the place where I cannot forget to visit during my trip to India,” she said as she came along with her relatives residing in the same colony. Dhalla addressed a gathering of medicos at a private hospital, her second venue. She said, “All those doctors treating foreign patients, especially infertile couples, should tell them to pay back to India in the form of donation for developing infrastructure in schools here.” She went on saying that she emphasised on her role in creating a foreign credential secretariat there. “During my election campaign in 2004, I met many doctors who revealed that they had come to Canada hoping to practice medicine here but ended up doing petty jobs. Through this secretariat, we are trying to provide opportunity to all those who deserve it,” she said claiming that Canada was trying to attract the best and the brightest of all. During interaction with mediapersons, she expressed her concern on fraud marriages. She said she was pressing both the Indian and Canadian governments not to just register marriages, but also separations and divorces so that this could come as a ready reckoner during any matrimonial alliances. She said a list of fraudulent people marrying for the fourth or fifth time should also be prepared and exchanged on regular basis. During lunch at a hotel, she met her friend and Punjabi TV anchor Satinder Satti.
	3 patwaris dismissed Tribune News Service Amritsar, January 15 In order to bring in more transparency in the working of the Revenue Department, the district administration today dismissed three patwaris, who were found guilty of corrupt practices during various probes. Till now about a dozen patwaris have been dismissed, while stern action has been initiated against a dozen others, informed Deputy Commissioner Kahan Singh Pannu. While giving details, Pannu said Ashok Kumar was under suspension for tempering with the government record. A case was registered against him by the Tehsildar, Baba Bakala, and was under judicial custody. He said the accused had tempered with 56 land records of Khanpur village, 13 land records of Jalalpur Sheron village and one of Kartarpur. These were investigated by Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Paramjit Singh, who found him guilty in all these cases. Similarly, Shatjinder Singh, patwari, who was earlier posted in Rajasansi circle, was found guilty of tempering with government land records and conniving with other people for sanctioning of bank loans. Sandeep Rishi, SDM (Amritsar-I), carried out a probe against him and recommended a strong action against him. Rupinder Singh, who was posted at Ajnala sub-urban circle, was booked by the Vigilance Bureau for demanding bribe. He was convicted by a local court and sent to one and half years of imprisonment. Pannu said as per the government rules, he was dismissed from his services.
	Chandigarh resident found dead in hotel Tribune News Service Jalandhar, January 15 A resident of Sector 32-A, Chandigarh, Ajay Sood, was found dead in a hotel here this morning. The police said Ajay was in the city for some work and staying in Royal Guest House and Hotel in Central Town last night. His friends asked the hotel staff to check his room when he did not respond to their phone calls in the morning. The police said the hotel staff opened the lock of the room with a duplicate key and found Ajay dead. The police found a bottle of liquor and eatables in the room. He had vomited in the room, the police said. After informing his family members, the police today got postmortem conducted on the body at the Civil Hospital and handed over the body to the family. The city police has initiated inquest proceeding in this regard.
	BSP celebrates Mayawati’s birthday Tribune Reporters Jalandhar, January 15 The state unit of the Bahujan Samaj Party celebrated the 55th birth anniversary of party supremo and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Kumari Mayawati with much fanfare here today. Narinder Kashyap, in charge of party’s affairs in Punjab and member of the Rajya Sabha, while presiding over a function, asked the party leaders and workers to pledge to strengthen the part at the grass-roots level. Coming down heavily on the ruling alliance, he asked the party workers to work hard to defeat the SAD-BJP combine in the ensuing Assembly elections. He alleged that over 1,700 false cases were registered against Dalits in Punjab in the last over four years of the SAD-BJP regime. “Since the government has failed to prevent atrocities on Dalits, so the party has decided to launch a state-level protest against the SAD-BJP government on January 31 in Chandigarh, which will also be a show of strength,” he added. Kashyap was accompanied by BSP leaders and workers from Kartarpur, Nakodar, Adampur and Phillaur Assembly constituencies and the aspirants for the party ticket for the 2012 elections. Nawanshahr: Activists of the Bahujan Samaj Party organised a function at Ambedkar Chowk here today to mark the birth anniversary of BSP national president and Chief Minister of Uttar Pardesh Mayawati. State BSP president Avtar Singh Karimpuri presided over the function. Birthday cake, weighing 55 kg to commemorate the 55th birth anniversary of Mayawati, was cut and poor and needy persons were given blankets, cycles and monetary help. While greeting party workers on the birth anniversary of Mayawati, Karimpuri exhorted the party workers to come forward to emulate the missionary zeal of Mayawati in strengthening the party at the grass-roots level so that the BSP could form a government in Punjab next year. “The people have been fed up with the mis-governance of the Congress and SAD-BJP combine in the state and are looking for the third alternative,” said Karimpuri, adding that the BSP could provide a better government meant for the welfare of all sections of the society in Punjab on the pattern of UP. Dr S.K. Sukhi, state general secretary, Nachhattar Pal, state secretary, Parveen Banga and Mohinder Singh Gujjarpur also addressed the gathering.
	Girl raped by stepfather Tribune Reporters Amritsar, January 15 A 14-year-old girl was allegedly raped by her stepfather. According to the police, Gian Singh had been raping the minor girl for the last six months. However, the girl did not disclose this to her family due to alleged threats from him. He has been absconding since the registration of the case under Sections 376 ands 506 of the IPC at C-Division police station. In the complaint lodged with the police, the girl alleged that last night Gian Singh again raped her. When she raised an alarm, he fled from the scene. Police officials said this was the second marriage of the victim’s mother, who used to work as a domestic help. She had two daughters from her first marriage. The victim is the younger one. From the second marriage she had two more children. Suba Singh, SHO, said raids were being conducted to nab the culprit who was at large after the registration of the case. Alert chowkidar prevents robbery Phagwara: An alert chowkidar, Gian Bahadur, prevented a robbery in a godown of a gas agency near Bhularai late last night. Four robbers came in a Tata-470 for looting gas cylinders and one of the robber entered the godown and tied the chowkidar with a rope to a tap and returned to his accomplices waiting for him outside the godown. Meanwhile, the chowkidar succeeded in freeing himself and informed gas agency owners, who along with a police party reached there. But the robbers managed to escape leaving the vehicle behind. The police impounded the vehicle and rounded up a few persons in this connection today. Brother, nephew booked for fraud Phagwara: The police has booked Sewa Singh of Bhunnar village and his nephew Pyara Singh on the charges of duping his sister Jay Kaur of Rs 1.5 lakh on the pretext of giving bribe to the local police and fees to some local lawyers for registering a case against some of her rivals after a violent clash occurred in 2009. Jay Kaur, in her complaint sent to the SSP, Kapurthala, against her brother and nephew, had alleged that after giving the amount to Sewa Singh and Pyara Singh, who handed over the first information report (FIR) to her, she came to know that the police registered the case without taking any bribe. The SSP had ordered an investigation into the incident and the allegations were found to be correct. Class VI student raped Hoshiarpur: A girl student of Class VI of Bhambotar was raped by a youth of the same village. The Talwara police has booked Subhash Chander of Bhambotar village under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). According to police sources, the girl alleged that she went to the fields in the village to throw cow dung there. Subhash Chander, who was already there, alleged gagged her and took her to a nearby room and raped her there on the evening of January 13. 2 held with smack Hoshiarpur: The Bulhowal police has arrested Kulwinder Kumar of Shamchaurasi and Manjit Singh of Bulhowal and seized 10 gm and 13 gm smack, respectively, from them last evening. Cases under Sections 21, 61 and 85 of the NDPS Act have been registered against them.
	Old feud claims one life Our Correspondent Batala, January 15An old feud resulted in the death of a person and injuries to many at nearby Chaudhriwal village here today. Gurpinder Singh, alias Lalli, resident of Chaudhriwal village, was celebrating Lohri at his friend’s house when 25-30 assailants entered the premises and started firing indiscriminately. In the crossfire one assailant, Harpal Singh, alias Palla, resident of Bhujianwal village, was shot dead. However, Gurpinder Singh, who was seriously injured, fled from the scene. The owner of the house caught another assailant with a revolver. Gurpinder Singh was on bail in a murder case. The police has registered a case against Gurdeep Singh, resident of Bujianwal, Sammi, resident of Sunder Nagar, Daljit Singh, resident of Kotli Surat Malli, Boora, resident of Sagarpura, and Jagdee Singh, resident of Bhagwanpur, under Sections 307, 452, 506, 148 and 149 of the IPC and Arms Act.