Chandigarh, March 2
The Budget session of the Haryana Assembly, which opens on March 4, is likely to be a stormy affair.

The first day will be devoted to constitutional formalities like the Governor’s Address, followed by the election of the new Speaker. The previous speaker, HS Chatha, had resigned following his induction into the Cabinet. After a break of two days, the assembly will meet again on March 7 when the Opposition, particularly the INLD, will try to make things difficult for the Treasury Benches.

The Opposition is likely to raise issues like corruption, law and order, the alleged defrauding of farmers by the government by acquiring their land for private developers and builders.

Whether there will be any fruitful discussion will depend on how the new Speaker conducts the proceedings. Finance Minister Ajay Singh Yadav is likely to present his second Budget on March 9. Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda has not yet given his mind on the issue of the Speaker. Things may become clear after his return from Delhi tomorrow. He may like to take the high command in confidence on the issue.

Indications are that the new Speaker will be from among the MLAs. A minister is not likely to be shifted to the post though Parliamentary Affairs Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala is believed to be not averse to the idea. However, since Surjewala is a forceful speaker, who can argue well and counter the Opposition allegations in a convincing manner, Hooda may like to use his services as a minister.

The issue of Speaker is also linked with the presidentship of the Haryana Congress. The Speaker is not likely to be from the caste to which the new party chief will belong.

The legislative business, the details of which are not yet known, will be taken up towards the end of the session, apart from Appropriation Bills.

So far the session is likely to continue till March 15. However, since the Chief Minister is scheduled to fly to Israel on the night of March 14, the government may like to end the session before his departure. Going by the past record, for the people of the state, the session will just be a constitutional formality.

Chhillar report submitted

The Commissioner, Gurgaon, TK Sharma, on Wednesday submitted his inquiry report on the Hondh-Chhillar massacre of Sikhs in 1984 to the Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister. Sources say this report essentially is facts, based on eyewitness accounts and some documents, sewn together. The issue is expected to be raked up by the Opposition parties in a big way in the forthcoming Budget session of the Haryana Assembly. The matter was taken up by Parliament on Tuesday. — TNS

Sirsa, March 2
Minister Gopal Kanda yesterday announced development projects worth Rs 250 crore for Sirsa town from the Murli Dhar Charitable Trust, managed by his family.

Kanda, who was here in connection with the annual Mahashivratri function of Tara Baba Kutiya, a religious-cum-charitable trust run by his family, added that together with projects worth Rs 495 crore approved by the government, an amount of Rs 745 crore would be spent in Sirsa to make it a model town of Haryana.

Listing the projects to be taken up by his family’s trust, the minister, who owns the MDLR group, which deals in real estate and airlines, said an amusement park would be set up on 12 acres on the Rania road. “Entry for kids under the age of 11 will be free of cost in the amusement park,” Kanda said.

The trust had also planned to set up a multi-speciality hospital on four acres and a school and a college on 20 acres in the town, he said.

Kanda said the spadework for all these projects had already been completed and added that Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda would soon visit Sirsa to lay the foundation stones of these projects.

Kanda said the government had ordered the allotment of 2,600 yards each for the construction of dharmshalas for the Agarwal and Arora communities.

He announced that he would bear the cost of the land allotted to the two communities. He said the government had approved a sum of Rs 300 crore for the improvement of drinking water supply and the sewer system in Sirsa town.

The minister, his younger brother Gobind Kanda facilitated the marriage of 35 poor girls at Tara Baba Kutiya.

Chandigarh, March 2
With the Budget session of the Haryana assembly slated to begin on March 4, all eyes are on the election of the Speaker. The seat fell vacant following the resignation of Harmohinder Singh Chatha, who was inducted into the Haryana Cabinet as a minister earlier this month.

In a House with a strong Opposition presence, the Congress is being particularly cautious about choosing a Speaker, who the government has confidence in, is well-versed in law and can speak his mind.

The party is learnt to be keen on choosing a Brahmin for the position, maintaining that the community has “inadequate” representation in the Cabinet.

Sources said among the Congress MLAs from the community, Kuldeep Sharma, working president of the Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC), who comes from a political family, is a contender for the position. The fact that he is a first-time MLA could be to his disadvantage though he fulfils the other criteria.

Sharma is related to Ambala MLA Venod Sharma, a confidant of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. A senior Jat leader and former Finance Minister Sampat Singh, a six-time MLA, too, is in the race for the post.

While the only thing going against him is that he left the INLD and joined the Congress just before the Assembly elections in 2009, he is adept in the art of floor management. Having held the parliamentary affairs portfolio during the INLD regime, he is in the know-how of parliamentary practices as well.

Former Speaker and MLA from Beri Raghuvir Singh Kadiyan is also learnt to be camping in Delhi in the hope of being chosen again. Initially, the name of PWD Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala was also doing the rounds for the post. Known to be articulate and also for his thorough knowledge of law, parliamentary practices and effective handling in the House, he was being seen as the party’s “ideal candidate”.

However, the state leadership is no longer keen to make him Speaker since that would “restrict” his scope of work, according to sources.

While managing the House is a tough call for the Speaker given the aggressive attitude adopted by the INLD since it has 31 seats in the House, the position of Speaker is very crucial since the hearing of the five Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) MLAs is also on before him.

Though there was a possibility of a dissident being given the post of the Speaker, the Congress is learnt to have decided against it given the cases of the MLAs. Now, the INLD has also sought the disqualification of the Independent MLAs supporting the Congress, making the position all the more critical.

The election of the Speaker will be held after the Governor’s Address and obituary references when the House meets on March 4. Deputy Speaker Akram Khan will conduct the proceedings in the House till a new Speaker is elected. 

Ambala, March 2
There was high drama near the Panjokhra gurdwara on the Ambala-Naraingarh road when HSGPC (ad hoc) chief Jagdish Singh Jhinda arrived there in the afternoon to perform path for a separate gurdwara committee in Haryana.

A strong police contingent prevented him from doing so. Jhinda, along with 50 supporters, was on his way to Panjokhra Sahib when he was taken into custody.

Meanwhile, Gurdip Singh Bhanokheri, member of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (Haryana Circle), talking to The Tribune, alleged that Jhinda had been resorting to gimmickry to hog the limelight.

He accused Jhinda of having violating the Sikh “maryada” at Gurdwara Chhevin Patshahi in Kurukshetra sometime back. The police arrested Jhinda even as he raised slogans against the Haryana Government and alleged that the Hooda government, which was hand in glove with the Punjab Chief Minister, was scuttling his attempts to highlight the cause of the Haryana Sikhs for a separate gurdwara panel.

Jhinda has constituted a five-member panel to mobilise public opinion in favour of a separate gurdwara committee for Haryana. The committee is scheduled to tour 15 states. The five committee members are: Jagdish Singh Jhinda, Joga Singh, (Yamunanagar), Jasbir Singh Khalsa (Dosarka), Joginder Chawla (Panipat) and Avtar Singh Chakku. 

Hisar, March 2
Former minister and Congress legislator Sampat Singh today demanded that the Centre must take steps to track down and recover black money within the country.

Addressing public meetings in villages of the Barwala assembly segment of the district, he welcomed the five-point plan prepared by the Centre to track down black money lying in foreign banks.

However, he said, his suspicion was that the black money within the country was much more than the black money lying outside. There were hundreds of trusts in the country funded entirely by black money. These trusts were being used to launder money as well as to multiply the ill-gotten wealth.

He said these trusts did not furnish any details of where the funds came from. Fake receipts were issued in fake names to show black money as donations. Most of these trusts spent only a fraction of the funds on social causes to technically remain charitable trusts.

The Centre should probe the sources of funding of these trusts and make it mandatory that the identities of all the donors was revealed.

He also demanded that big scams involving politicians, bureaucrats and industrialists be probed by a special judge as envisaged in the CrPC. The investigation of such cases should be given to senior police officers, he said. — TNS

Gurgaon, March 2
The Gurgaon Deputy Commissioner, PC Meena, has directed revenue officers of the district not to register property sale deeds pertaining to unauthorised colonies.

According to official sources, the Deputy Commissioner has issued directions in this regard to all revenue officers working as sub-registrars for registering sale deeds of immoveable property.

Meena asserted that all sub-registrars would now have to give a certificate to the effect that they have not registered any sale deed in any unauthorised colony on a fortnightly basis.

He asked the SDMs to check the records of the tehsil offices located in the area under their jurisdiction and also get these checked from the DTP concerned who would certify that the sale deeds of the immoveable property registered were not in unauthorised colonies.

Meena said he would also check the sale deeds registered in the district at random. He maintained that if any officer violated these instructions, he would not hesitate in writing to the government against him/her, besides withdrawing his/her powers as sub-registrar.

The Deputy Commissioner happens to be the Registrar for the registration of sale deeds of immovable property in a district and he/she delegates the power of sub-registrar to tehsildars.

Fatehabad, March 2
There is heavy police deployment at Chandpura village in view of the parallel functions organised by the Sikhs and Dera Sacha Sauda followers.

While the three-day annual “Gurumat Sammelan” organised by the Sikhs in the village gurdwara has been in progress since yesterday, the Dera followers organised “Naam Charcha” today on the marriage of a follower. The “Gurumat Samelan”, being addressed by Sant Baljit Singh Dadu of Dadu Sahib Gurdwara, will conclude tomorrow.

Chandpura had witnessed Dera-Sikh tension when some dera followers allegedly stoned the village gurdwara on June 14, 2007. The tension resurfaced on November 1, 2007, when six dera followers were arrested by the police for allegedly beating up a Sikh youth for playing a religious cassette on a tape-recorder attached to his tractor.

Over six battalions of the reserve police have been deployed on the outskirts of the village. Security has also been beefed up in Ratia, Tohana and Fatehabad. The SP, Vivek Sharma, said so far there had been no tension in the village. 

Jind, March 2
The state government has finalised a plan to revamp the tourism sector with an amount of Rs 200 crore. The plan will help in expansion of the tourism infrastructure and renovation of the existing facilities in the state. This was stated by Tourism Minister Om Prakash Jain at a function here yesterday.

Jain said several tourism hubs in the state required repairs and facelift so that they could attract more tourists. He said efforts were on to provide five and seven star facilities at various spots in the state. The works on renovation and improvement had already been started at some of the tourist centres and it was likely to be completed soon.

Some new tourist centres would also be developed, he added. Jain who is also the Transport Minister, claimed that besides strengthening the public transport system in the state, the government had been encouraging private players with a view to improving the transport facilities in all parts of the state. He announced that as many as 2,700 permits would soon be released for the operation of private buses and transport services within a month. He said while 700 new buses were added to the Roadways Department recently, the production capacity of the buses at the HREC in Gurgaon had been increased to over 70 buses a day.

He said the production capacity of the centre would soon be increased to 100 buses a day.

Regarding the issuance of permits to private operators, he said despite reports of failure of such transport services, the government wanted to provide an equal opportunity to the private sector to compete with the government in order to provide better services to the consumer.

He, however, warned of taking stern action against those private operators who would violate the rules and ply on routes not allotted to them. 

Hisar, March 2
The Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) today started sending information about electricity bills to its consumers through SMS after successfully integrating the facility with its billing database.

Mohammed Shayin, Managing Director, DHBVN, said here that this information would include the amount and the due date of payment. The consumers would also continue to get the hard copy of the bill.

The consumers would get three SMSes. The first would convey the amount and the due date of payment of the bill. The second would remind the consumer to pay the bill 48 hours before the due date of payment. The third SMS would confirm the payment of the bill. Initially, the third SMS would be sent to consumers in the 13 computerised subdivisions only.

He said the DHBVN had already received mobile numbers of over 2 lakh consumers who have started getting information related to bills. He urged the consumers to give their mobile numbers to the sub-divisional officers concerned or register for the facility directly on DHBVN’s website www.dhbvn.com.

He said besides, a plan was afoot to provide bills through email also. 

Rohtak, March 2
With the family of Ravinder Singh, a Merchant Navy officer with a Egypt-based shipping company, in deep agony for the past seven months and the life of the sailor in danger after a fresh ultimatum by Somalian pirates, the kin have approached the office of the Prime Minister for help. Ravinder is among six Indians who are in the captivity of the pirates after their cargo vessel was hijacked on August 1 last.

One of Ravinder’s realtives said they were scheduled to the Prime Minister in this regard. The family had staged a dharna outside the Chief Minister’s residence here a few days ago in this connection.

“The family is very upset as we have no information about the safety of Ravinder, especially after the fresh ultimatum served by the pirates,” said the sailor’s father, Rajender Singh, adding that they had heard reports about torture of the victims.

He said the family was under extreme stress since the time it came to know about the hijacking of the ship and had taken up the matter at various levels, but to no avail.

However, he said there was now a ray of hope after the PMO invited them for a meeting in this regard. He said the family was hopeful of an early end to this crisis.

Ravinder is employed as Third Officer with the cargo ship, belonging to the Red Sea Navigation Company, based in Egypt. He had left the country on May 18 last.

Ravinder (30) is married and his wife and two-year-old son stay with his parents at the Srinagar Colony here.

Meanwhile, according to reports, the Union Government is making all efforts to seek the release of six Indian hostages on board the Egyptian cargo ship, which was hijacked by the Somalian pirates in the Gulf of Aden.

The ship’s crew members include four Pakistanis, four Sri Lankans ,11 Egyptians and six Indians.

The pirates have reportedly demanded $4 million for the release of the sailors and have given a week’s deadline for meeting their demand. 

Panipat, March 2
A team of the district police investigating a case of theft in the refinery township landed itself in trouble with two Dalit women accusing the police of using unlawful means to get information from them during questioning.

The women alleged that they were subjected to inhuman treatment and no woman constable was present during their detention, which was against the law.

A large number of Dalits from adjoining areas reached the refinery township yesterday and blocked the main road, demanding action against the erring policemen. The DSP, Traffic, reached the site and convinced the protesters to lift the blockade.

Police officials had visited the refinery township a few days back to investigate a theft in the house of official BL Salan while he, along with his family, was away to Pune.

After registering a case under Sections 457 and 380 of the IPC against unidentified persons, the Baholi police rounded up the women safai karamcharis, who alleged that they were tortured while in detention.

District Police chief Pankaj Nain, when contacted, refused to comment on the issue.

The protesters and their relatives warned that they would launch an agitation against police “highhandedness” if appropriate action was not taken against the “guilty” policemen.

Meanwhile, two persons have been arrested for the theft. The IG , V Kamaraj, said he had asked the Panipat SP to look into the matter and initiate action against any policeman found guilty.

Rohtak, March 2
A Sub-Divisional Officer(Engineer) of the Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam(UHBVN) was caught red-handed while allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 20,000 from an entrepreneur here today.He has been arrested and a case registered against him.

V Kamaraja, IG, said a raid was conducted on the complaint of Deepak Jain, owner of Jain Industries on the Hisar road here, who alleged that the SDO had demanded a bribe of Rs 20,000 from him for increasing the power supply load to his factory.

He said a team led by DSP (Headquarter) Sumit Kumar laid a trap at the office of the SDO near the local bus stand and nabbed him while receiving the bribe money.

The UHBVN drive against power theft has come under a cloud with reports of false cases slapped on consumers. Also, there have been instances when the authorities have chosen to trun a blind eye to power thefts. 

Kurukshetra, March 2
The Haryana College Teachers Association, which has been demanding the arrest of the Principal of DAV College, Pundri, for his alleged involvement in the “murderous attack” on Prof SK Dubey, Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce, today extended the deadline for indefinite strike in colleges in Kurukshetra, Kaithal and Ambala districts up to March 7.

A delegation of the HCTA led by its president Rajbir Singh met the Kurukshetra SSP to apprise him of the resentment among teachers due to delay in the arrest of the Principal. The delegation alleged that the accused principal had also committed financial irregularities. The decision to defer the strike by four days was taken on the assurance given by the SSP that prompt action would be taken against the accused, Parashar said.