Hazare satisfied with Sonia's reply

Social activist Anna Hazare on Thursday said he was satisfied with Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s reply to his letter. “Sonia Gandhi has written to me. I was happy to read her letter. Sonia Gandhi has written in her letter that she never supported, nor will support those who are attacking Hazare,” he said.

New Delhi, April 21
RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal today said eminent lawyers Shanti Bhushan and his son Prashant Bhushan will not resign from the Lokpal Bill drafting committee, even as the day was rife with speculations about their fate in light of certain statements by veteran social activist Anna Hazare and Karnataka Lokayukta Santosh Hegde.

“There are rumours of our members resigning. We would like to clarify that none of us are resigning. We are ready for any inquiry. We are with Bhushans,” insisted Kejriwal, supported by former IPS officer Kiran Bedi and other social activists. He also charged that “vested interests” had launched a smear campaign against the Bhushans to derail the drafting of the Lokpal Bill.

Kejriwal said the Bhushans were ready for an impartial probe into the allegations that have been levelled against them, stating they have filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking such an enquiry. However, he insisted that the Bhushans will continue on the drafting committee, as their legal expertise is required to draft an effective Lokpal Bill. “These are difficult times, but we have to stay united,” he added.

The CD controversy involving eminent lawyer Shanti Bhushan took a new turn today with the Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory (CFSL) saying “there is continuity in the conversation”. “Recorded conversation is in continuity, no abrupt change in speech signal has been detected,” police sources said, quoting from the report.

Kejriwal, however, insisted that the Truth Labs in Hyderabad and an independent US audio forensic expert George Papcun had said the CD had been doctored.

Regarding reports from Bangalore that Santosh Hegde was thinking of resigning from the panel, Kejriwal said, “Civil society members will discuss what he had really meant when it comes to Delhi on Saturday.”

Meanwhile, Hazare has refused to comment on the CD controversy, stating that he would speak only on the Lokpal Bill. “I will speak only on the Lokpal Bill issue. I know nothing about the CD issue and will not speak on that,” said Hazare.

There have been demands that the Bhushans should recuse themselves from the drafting committee. Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh wondered how accused (Bhushans) could investigate their own case and give themselves a clean chit.

Lucknow, April 21
Congress leader Digvijay Singh today assured his party’s support if social activist Anna Hazare decides to launch a satyagraha to expose the reported corruption of the Mayawati Government.

“The Mayawati Government has established a milestone in corruption. If Anna Hazare decides to launch a satyagraha or hunger fast to draw attention towards this corruption of the CM and her ministers like he did in Maharashtra, then the Congress is ready to support him and provide all relevant documents,” said AICC General Secretary in charge of Uttar Pradesh here today.

Hazare is to address a rally in Lucknow on May Day after his trip to Varanasi on April 29. Addressing the mediapersons at the UPCC headquarters, Singh said the Congress was soon to file a PIL demanding a CBI probe into the unnatural deaths of three senior officials.

New Delhi, April 21
The CD controversy involving eminent lawyer Shanti Bhushan took a new turn today with a government forensic lab refuting his claims that it was doctored.

The Delhi Police today received "initial" reports from a forensic lab in Hyderabad suggesting that the CD allegedly containing conversations of Lokpal Bill co-chair Shanti Bhushan may not have been tampered with, sources said.

The analysis conducted by the Central Forensic Sciences Laboratory (CFSL) has said “there is continuity in the conversation”. “Recorded conversation is in continuity, no abrupt change in speech signal has been detected,” police sources said quoting from the report. They also said there was no change in background voice pattern.

The purported telephone conversation among Shanti Bhushan, Yadav and Singh suggested attempts being made at influencing a judge. However, SR Singh, director of Truth Labs, which conducted its tests on behalf of Bhushan, maintained that he would stand by the report he had given that it was doctored.

The conversation had “multiple gaps and signs of electronic editing at very very critical places,” Singh had said in his report.

The CD and its transcript were shown to complainant Shashi Bhushan, co-chairperson of the joint committee to draft the Lokpal Bill, and got it countersigned by Bhushan before it was given to the lab for testing, they said.

Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said the case has been transferred to the Special Cell for investigations.

Sources said they may call in Bhushan for questioning in connection with the case. They also said the genuineness of the CD can be conclusively proved if they can find the original CD and compare it with the audio files. — PTI

Haridwar, April 21
A “fatwa” by two nearby panchayats disallowing girls and women from working in the nearby industrial units and imposition of a fine of Rs 5,100 on the violators has evoked strong reactions from various sections of society.

The panchayats of Gadowali and Sarai villages, that fall in Haridwar district, have issued the prohibitory orders applicable with a fine of Rs 5,100 and public humiliation for violators.

More than 60 women and girls of these two villages work in the nearby industrial units. The prohibitory “fatwa” was prompted by a case of elopement of a girl from a village with her lover recently.

In view of the sensitivity of the matter, a high-level team comprising district and police officials will be meeting the members of both the panchayats. District Magistrate of Haridwar R Meenakashi Sundaram stated that the administration was keeping an eye on the whole development and no one would be allowed to violate the law of the land. Superintendent of City Police Kiran Lal Shaw said strict action would be taken against any one who tried to stop women from going to their work places, as this was an infringement of their fundamental rights.

Taking cognisance of the matter, Uttarakhand State Women Commission has also decided to visit the two villages, which have issued the fatwa banning the working of girls in industrial units and prohibiting their movement outside home alone.

Former pradhan of Gadowali village Talib Ansari said the decision of the panchayat had been taken in the interests of the community as since girls started going to these factories, a large number of incidents had happened.

Notably, the population of Sarai village is about 14,000 with more than 70 girls who work in various industrial units at SIDCUL, Roshanabad. Thirtyfive girls belong to the Muslim families and about 10 from the Hindu families.

Talking to The Tribune, Sushila Baluni, Chairperson of the state Women’s Commission, said a delegation of the commission would visit both the villages.

Nawanshahr, April 21
A Ropar-based woman from a high-profile family landed in trouble after she posted her pictures with a dead hare and guns on the facebook, said sources. The Punjab Wildlife Department swung into action after Sukhdeep Singh Bajwa, a former honorary wildlife warden of Hoshiarpur, informed the Conservator of Forest (Wildlife), V Rattan Kumar, about the matter this morning.

Taking serious note of “poaching” by Kiran Dhillon, he directed Balbir Singh, Divisional Forest Officer (Wildlife), Ropar, to hold an inquiry following which she was summoned by the DFO.

Kumar said: “We do not have the photos as the woman deleted these from the facebook when asked to appear before the DFO. If found guilty, she will not be spared.”

New Delhi, April 21
Sikkim High Court Chief Justice PD Dinakaran, facing impeachment proceedings in Parliament for his removal, has demanded that senior advocate PP Rao opt out of the three-member inquiry panel appointed by Rajya Sabha chairman Hamid Ansari to go into allegations of corruption and land grab.

Justice Dinakaran said Rao was a member of a 2009 delegation that had met the then Chief Justice of India, KG Balakrishnan, opposing his elevation to the Supreme Court. This showed Rao was biased against him, he said.

Dinakaran is due to retire on May 9, 2012 and any delay in his impeachment would enable him to demit office and render the Parliament proceedings for his removal meaningless.

Replying to the chargesheet framed against him, Justice Dinakaran also said the panel had levelled allegations that were irrelevant to the discharge of his judicial and administrative duties. The panel had thus exceeded its jurisdiction and was acting in an unconstitutional manner, he said.

The panel, comprising Justice Aftab Alam of the apex court, Karnataka High Court Chief Justice JS Khehar and Rao, had asked Justice Dinakaran to respond by April 20 to the 16 charges framed against him. The committee is slated to commence the hearing on April 25.

The Supreme Court Collegium had recommended Justice Dinakaran’s elevation to the SC in August 2009, but the move was dropped following allegations against him.

New Delhi, April 21
The strategically vital Leh-based 14 Corps yesterday conducted a specialised war game to assess possible military options to defend the Himalayan frontiers that face China and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). Army Chief Gen VK Singh witnessed the military exercise along the China border.

The war game assumes importance as the defence secretaries of India and Pakistan are slated to meet in Islamabad next month to discuss the possible de-militarization of the Siachen Glacier as part of the overall peace process. Sources said the Indian Army was not keen to vacate the glacier totally without proper earmarking of the border and exchange of maps between the two countries. Siachen has been held with great sacrifice and India troops occupy dominating positions on the glacier.

On the ground, there is no “delineation” of the 110-km Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) beyond the NJ-9842 reference point, where the Line of Control simply stopped in the 1972 Shimla Pact, up to the Karakoram Pass. Both India and Pakistan maintain a Brigade-level presence across the 6,300-metre Siachen Glacier where weather conditions and icy terrain claim more lives than bullets.

The Leh-based 14 Corps handles entire Ladakh that includes areas facing PoK, the contentious LAC with China besides Siachen Glacier. Keeping in mind the huge military infrastructure build-up by China, the area is expected to face the first onslaught of any Chinese adventure.

New Delhi, April 21
The Supreme Court today made it clear that a special investigation team (SIT) was absolutely necessary to probe the black money case from all angles: terror, drug peddling and illegal trade in arms, and produce quick results.

A Bench comprising Justices B Sudershan Reddy and SS Nijjar came out with the remark after observing that the investigations being conducted by the Enforcement Directorate and other government agencies for the past two years had resulted in the prosecution of only Pune-based stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan and a few of his associates.

Very little progress had been made even in terms of unearthing “suspect” foreign bank accounts, the Bench noted. According to the PIL petitioners, as much as $ 1.4 trillion has been illegally stashed in these accounts.

At one stage, the Bench asked Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium as to whether the government departments were “sleeping” over the issue. “Your whole focus has been on one individual. Do you mean to say that all the black money parked abroad belongs to only one person?”

The SG, however, pleaded that instead of constituting an SIT, the apex court should pass orders giving various aspects of the black money investigations to relevant departments like the CBI, Reserve Bank of India, Income Tax Department and others.

Justice Reddy remarked that this would result only in “friction” arising from endless exchange of communication between the departments. Since the Bench was not in a position to monitor the investigations on a day-to-day basis, it would be prudent to appoint a retired SC Judge or someone else as ahead of the proposed SIT which would consist of personnel drawn only from the CBI, intelligence agencies (internal and external), ED, IT and others, he said.

The Bench also pointed out that the government itself in its affidavits filed in the court had acknowledged that the case involved investigation by all these agencies.

As the SG persistently resisted the SIT proposal, the Bench asked him, “What could be the objection, in principle?” The SG said he was not objecting, only pleading. Nevertheless, he said he would have to consult the government before giving his response. The Bench then posted the matter for further hearing on April 25.

The Bench, meanwhile, passed an order, asking the trial court in Mumbai to decide any application filed by Hasan Ali on merits without getting influenced by the remarks in an SC order relating to cancellation of his bail.

The Bench also directed the Delhi Police to submit a status report on the investigations into a complaint made by a petitioner SK Dubey, Professor in IIT Delhi, against ED Deputy Director Prabhakant.