New Delhi, April 22
Accused of launching a smear campaign against civil society members on the Lokpal joint drafting committee, the UPA government went into damage control mode today with senior Congress leader and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee holding out an assurance that the working of the panel would not be affected by the recent spate of controversies.

Striking a placatory tone, Mukherjee, who chairs the joint drafting committee, said the government looked forward to working with social activist Anna Hazare and his supporters in drafting an effective Lokpal Bill.

Mukherjee’s statement was released to the press tonight after a special meeting of the Congress core group, headed by party president Sonia Gandhi, took note of the serious implications of the controversies involving the lawyer father-son duo, Shanti and Prashant Bhushan. Sources said the party top brass was particularly unhappy with AICC general secretary Digvijaya Singh’s statements against Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde, following which the latter threatened to quit the committee to protest the “vilification campaign" against the five activists on the Lokpal Bill panel.

While Digvijaya Singh was advised not to comment on this issue, Mukherjee cleared the air underlining that the government and the Congress were committed to a strong Lokpal Bill, and that the working of the committee would not be affected. At the same time, he tacitly acknowledged that some panel members had been embroiled in controversies.

Mukherjee said, “I would like to make it clear that in the view of the government and my party, the working of the committee will not be affected in any way by these controversies. The government members on the committee are looking forward to working with Anna Hazare and his colleagues on the committee and to draft a strong and sound Lokpal bill in order to fight corruption.”

Earlier, Digvijaya Singh also made it clear that he had, at no time, attacked Justice Hegde, but had only raised a question that if the best Lokayukta in Karnataka could not stop "rampant corruption" in the state, then a serious thought should be given to the system. Justice Hedge, however, was not mollified with the Congress leader’s explanation.

New Delhi, April 22
Bollywood filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt today took exception to social activist Anna Hazare’s praise for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

“How could he (Anna) praise Modi for prosperity of Gujarat and not talk about the need to root out the menace of communal corruption? Until and unless you address the problem of communalism, this anti-corruption movement will not succeed,” he said, while addressing a seminar in New Delhi on Friday.

The other main speakers at the conference - “Anti corruption campaign and Indian democracy: In search of an alternative” - were noted educationist Professor KR Panikkar and social activist Shabnam Hashmi.

Mahesh Bhatt said Hazare and a few members of the civil society could not be called the representatives of the people. “The elected heads represent people in Parliament, Assembly and other civic bodies,” he said.

Bhatt said comparing Hazare with Gandhiji is not correct as Gandhi had fought against a government based on terror. “He had fought for the society but Anna fought for himself. He has nothing to do with the society. He talks of corruption but he does not talk of prevention of corruption,” said the filmmaker

Professor Panikkar said the proposed Jan Lokpal Bill was "full of flaws" as it gives overriding powers of investigation and punishment to a group of people. The Bill mentions authority not democracy so it is not good enough to deal with the corruption issues. It also does not address the problem of prevention of corruption, said Panikkar.

If Lokapal Bill is passed without amendment, there will be an Emergency-like situation in the country, he added.

“The most glaring aspect of the Bill is that it comes to play only after the event. Its role is not to prevent corruption but to punish the corrupt. We need to find means to prevent corruption first,” said Pannikar.

Activist Shabnam Hashmi said Anna Hazare raised the issue of the Lokpal Bill but he never spoke against the “communal hatred being propagated by the RSS” in Gujarat”. “Leaflets that speak against the Muslim community are distributed among the people. But Anna never raised this issue. He should’ve talked to the Modi government to stop communalism in the state,” said Shabnam.

Guwahati, April 22
“The Government of India which buckled under the hunger-strike resorted to by Gandhian leader Anna Hazare against corruption, has adopted a grossly discriminatory attitude towards Manipur’s iron lady Irom Sharmila on fast since November 2, 2000, demanding scrapping of the draconian Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 that has been in force in the North East for about five decades,” states the North East Students’ Organisation (NESO) that has decided to launch another phase of region-wide solidarity movement in support of Sharmila’s relentless fast against the AFSPA from April 25.

The NESO, the banner organisation of all the influential students unions of different N-E states, today stated that the Centre’s lukewarm attitude towards fasting Sharmila ‘has been inhumane’ and speaks of its overall attitude of treating the people of North East as second class citizens of the country.

NESO chairman Dr Samujjal Bhattacharrya and secretary general Gunjum Haider said, “The New Delhi Government, national-level political leaders, bureaucrats at the Centre, the national media and prominent intellectuals of the country have failed to take proper notice of Sharmila’s unique non-violent struggle, as they believe that there is no Indian beyond Kolkata. We are not going to tolerate such discriminatory attitude.”

“Nowhere in the world a lady has been on fast for more than a decade for the cause of her fellow people and the Government of India is keeping her under judicial custody in a hospital in Imphal. It is outrageous,” said Dr Bhattacharrya.

Earlier, Irom Sharmila, who has been on a fast-unto-death since November 2, 2000, demanding repeal of the AFSPA, 1958, had charged the Government of India with adopting “double standards.” She pointed out that the Centre had yielded to the demands of social activist Anna Hazare on the Lokpal Bill after he had been on hunger strike for only five days, but had not bothered to respond to her demands even after 10 years of fast resorted to by her.

While being produced in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Imphal recently for further judicial remand, Sharmila recalled that a commission headed by Justice Jeevan Reddy had recommended the repeal of the Act.

Sharmila has been arrested repeatedly and detained under Section 309 of the IPC (attempt to commit suicide). She is being kept under custody in an Imphal hospital, where she is being kept alive under saline drip.

New Delhi, April 22
With trade between the two countries set to increase manifold in the coming years, India has indicated to China that it was keen to step up bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, especially in the field of green technology.

New Delhi believes that new and renewable energy sources are important areas in which the two countries could cooperate to their mutual benefit which could also help them overcome their differences in the political field.

Official sources said the issue was likely to figure during the first India-China joint economic dialogue, scheduled to held later this year. The announcement on the economic dialogue to coordinate macro-economic policies was made during Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao’s visit to India in December last year. Its proposed meeting had also figured during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao recently on the margins of the BRICS summit at the Chinese sea resort of Sanya.

China is India’s largest trading partner even though the trade has gone heavily in China’s favour. The PM had taken up this issue with the Chinese President at the Sanya meeting too and sought easier access for Indian companies in the Chinese markets in sectors like IT, pharmaceuticals and agro products. While appreciating India’s concern in the matter, Beijing had promised to take steps to correct the trade imbalance.

India’s 12th Five Year Plan (2012-2016) calls for generating more power through renewable sources such as wind and solar power. China’s 12th Five Year Plan (2011-2015), also focuses on a greener approach to economic growth.

Renewable energy is said to be largely helping China complete its economic transformation and achieve energy security.

Haridwar, April 22
Normalcy returned today in the twin villages of Gadowali and Sarai in Haridwar district where working girls were banned by a village panchayat citing it as a disgrace to the religion, society and families.

With the panchayat members taking a u-turn today on their original diktat, which had created shock in the region, the streets that bore silence for the past three days seemed to be returning to normalcy.

After a series of meetings with the administrative-police officials, the panchayat has rolled back its decision though taking a u-turn and terming the decision as only for minor girls under 18 years, though it was only a face saving one post mass condemnation of their diktat and strictness from administration.

The district police has assured families of the working girls of full police protection in case they are threatened by some segments of the society. Superintendent of City Police Dr KL Shaw informed that the Police Department would be providing necessary security cover and stringent legal action would be taken against those who try to impose restrictions.

“We have compiled a detailed list of all the working girls and even college-going girls so that we can keep a tab and hold fruitful talks with village representatives. Investigation into the matter is being done separately for both the villages,” informed Shah to The Tribune.

Hazi Tasleem village representative of Gadowali village informed that the issuance of the panchayat was misinterpreted as they had deemed ban working outside on girls below age 18 only and above that age bracket there was no ban, but just a warning to parents that they keep a close vigil on their girls.

While most of the villagers refute that they agreed to the panchayat diktat, yet many still believe that the decision if would have been kept in its originality is best for the dignity of the society, as morality in the younger generation is fast degrading due to the influence of western culture.

Voices of resentment within the village panchayat sect is also being seen now as former village pradhan Maksood Ali termed the panchayat decision as totally unconstitutional and one that sets wrong precedent for the future generation.

“This is not right that panchayats impose restrictions in the name of religion or family honour. Women are playing a pivotal role in today’s society, so such an act is totally uncalled for. We resent it as it is a decision of a few people, who are maligning the image of the whole community,” said local Samjawadi Party leader Munshi Shaqeel Ahmed.

New Delhi, April 22
Courts can grant divorce only if there is “complete agreement between husband and wife for the dissolution of the marriage”, the Supreme Court has ruled.

In other words, “unless the court is completely satisfied, it cannot grant a decree of ‘divorce by mutual consent’. Otherwise, in our view, the expression ‘divorce by mutual consent’ would be otiose (meaningless),” a Bench comprising DK Jain and HL Dattu held in a verdict this week.

In the judgment, the Bench explained the legal provision for divorce by mutual consent under Section 13B(2) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955. Under the Section, the “court is bound to pass a decree of divorce declaring the marriage of the parties before it to be dissolved with effect from the date of the decree,” subject to three conditions being met.

The three conditions are: a) A second motion of both the parties is made not before six months from the date of filing of the petition, as required under sub-section (1), and not later than 18 months; b) after hearing the parties and making such inquiry, as it thinks fit, the court is satisfied that the averments in the petition are true; and c) the petition is not withdrawn by either party at any time before passing the decree.

The Bench clarified this meant that “if the second motion is not made within 18 months, the court is not bound to pass a decree of divorce by mutual consent”.

Going by the language of the Section as well as the settled law, “it is clear that one of the parties may withdraw quick disposal of cases of divorce by mutual consent, and not to specify the time period for withdrawal of consent”. In the instant case, the Bench also rejected the husband’s plea for divorce on the ground that his marriage had irretrievably broken down. He cited an apex court verdict in support of his plea. The Bench, however, pointed out that in the cited case the wife had agreed to divorce.

New Delhi, April 22
A Delhi court has issued fresh non-bailable warrants against seven officials of the Uttarakhand Police accused in the infamous Ranbir fake encounter case. Special Judge VK Maheshwari also issued notices to 11 other accused in the case in which 22-year-old MBA student Ranbir was allegedly gunned down by the Uttarakhand Police on July 3, 2009.

The case was transferred from Dehradun to Delhi by the Supreme Court last month following a request by Ranbir's parents. The Apex Court had quashed the order of Nainital High Court and cancelled the bail of the seven police official - Inspector Santosh Kumar Jaiswal, constable Ajit Singh, Sub Inspector's Nitin Chauhan, Gopal Dutt Bhatt, Rajesh Bisht, Chander Mohan Singh Rawat and Niraj Yadav.

The CBI court here has now issued fresh non-bailable warrants against the accused police officials after agency's prosecutor Brajesh Shukla said that a Dehradun court had already issued warrants against them after the apex court had cancelled their bail last month.

"Senior public prosecutor submitted that court of Special Judge, Anti Corruption (CBI), Dehradun had issued non-bailable warrants against all these accused in view of cancellation of their bail by the Supreme Court.

"He had also requested that fresh non-bailable warrants against all these accused may be issued. Request allowed. Ahlmad (staff) of this court is directed to issue fresh non-bailable warrants against all these accused and notice to their sureties," the Special Judge said.

Inspector Praveen Dubey of CBI's Special Crime Branch, Lucknow also placed the unexecuted NBWs, issued against the seven accused officials by the Dehradun court, before the court here.

The court has also issued notices against 11 other accused namely Satbir Singh, Sunil Saini, Chander Pal, Saurabh Nautiyal, Nagender Rathi, Vikas Chandra Baluni, Sanjay Rawat, Mohan Singh Rana, Inder Bhan Singh, Jaspal Singh Gosain and Manoj Kumar.

The seven police personnel were arrested in this case after the prosecution had contended that Ranbir, an MBA student from Meerut, went to Dehradun in search of a job when the police personnel of Dalanwala police station on July 2, 2009, pumped 29 bullets into him from close range after branding him as a robber.

As the accused were local police personnel, the case was entrusted to CBI. The chargesheet in the case was filed in the court of Special Judicial Magistrate (CBI), Dehradun on December 22, 2009 against the 18 accused. — PTI

Mumbai, April 22
Local activists from the villages affected by the Jaitapur nuclear project have distanced themselves from the Shiv Sena, following the violent agitation led by the party workers and have embarked on the Gandhian modes of protest.

Groups like the Konkan Bachao Samiti and Konkan Vinashkari Prakalp Virodhi Samiti that have been spearheading the protests say they have been opposing the project using peaceful means even before the Shiv Sena entered the fray and unleashed violence in Ratnagiri district.

“We do not support the Shiv Sena’s methods of protests that only bring misery to the people. Our means of protest are totally non-violent,” said Vaishali Patil of the Konkan Bachao Samiti.

Activists belonging to the region are now taking stock of movement after the violent incidents caused by the Shiv Sena resulted in the administration bringing in more security forces in the region. Till the Shiv Sena entered the scene, activists and villagers opposed to the nuclear project have held more than 300 protests and courted arrests. A number of people, including farmers, retired judges and former officials, who have retired to their ancestral villages in the region have been arrested and for disrupting the peace.

The peaceful protesters say the violence and vandalism unleashed by the Sena has almost destroyed their cause. They, along with villagers from Jaitapur, were planning to go on an Anna Hazare-style indefinite hunger strike at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi and in Jaitapur in May, but now are uncertain about that course of action. In the last six months, around 300 peaceful protesters have been arrested from the four villages acquired by the government for the nuclear plant.

The activists who are opposed to the Shiv Sena’s methods of protests say they have scored a number of successes using peaceful means. Patil, who hit the headlines by successfully mobilising villagers against a Special Economic Zone mooted by industrialist Mukesh Ambani, is confident that the Gandhian methods of protest work. In the past, protesting villagers have prevented projects like the Dow Chemicals facility mooted in Pune.

But sources in the area admit that the entry of the Shiv Sena has also focused attention on the Jaitapur project, despite the violent ways of the party.

Lucknow, April 22
A fresh controversy has hit the Jan Lokpal Bill drafting committee. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati today demanded its reconstitution to include a representative of the Dalit community.

Hitting out at the Congress-led UPA government, the BSP chief once again accused it of being “anti-Dalit” and of hurting the dignity of the community by not including a single member representing it in the 10-member drafting committee.

“While they (the Congress) never miss any opportunity to show their so-called concern for the Scheduled Castes, they always conveniently overlook their interest whenever there is a significant matter,” alleged Mayawati while speaking to the media at her 5, Kalidas Marg, official residence this evening.

It was this neglect of the interests of the community in vital matters that had necessitated the formation of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), she said. She recalled how a visionary like Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar was entrusted the charge of the drafting committee of the Indian Constitution who, in that capacity, had taken great care to ensure justice for all.

She reminded Anna Hazare, himself a Maharashtrian, of the immense contribution of the towering leaders from the state who struggled for the social and economic rights of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. “Could he find no qualified representative from the community for his committee,” she asked.

Mumbai, April 22
Is the land acquisition process for the Jaitapur nuclear power project stuck because of the government’s penny-pinching ways? Going by the remarks made by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan recently, the answer seems to be in the affirmative.

Speaking to reporters here, Chavan said the Maharashtra Government had earmarked Rs 14.85 crore for acquiring 938 hectare land for the project. The sum was more than double the original amount initially offered to acquire farmland that produced three crops annually. The government had also offered a job to one member of every family whose land was acquired for the project.

Representatives of landowners protesting against the project had reportedly conveyed to the government interlocutors that the compensation be hiked to Rs 10 lakh per hectare to win over majority of farmers. This would entail an outgo of around Rs 94 crore for the land.

“Considering that the project cost is around $7 billion or Rs 42,000 crore, the payout for land is not too high,” a senior bureaucrat said.

The proposal was scuttled by Industries Minister Narayan Rane who felt the compensation was very high and would result in farmers across the state demanding similar payment for land acquired by the state.

However, with the protests gaining ground in the region, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan is fighting hard to save the project. He told reporters here that the government would consider higher compensation to save the project. Officials of the Nuclear Power Corporation are also keen on providing a higher compensation to land owners, sources say.

Apart from compensating the land owners, the government is also under pressure to compensate fishermen who will be evicted from coastal villages in and around the nuclear power complex.

New Delhi, April 22
The Prime Minister’s Science Advisory Council yesterday warned the Human Resource Development Ministry of the gaping deficiencies in country’s higher education system and urged it to prepare an action-oriented plan for 20 years, if India was to emerge as a global power.

It supported plan of the ministry of a single test for entry to all the streams of higher education, while slamming the recent MCI move to introduce a compulsory licensure exam for the MBBS graduates. “When will our students stop giving exams and do something worthwhile?” the council asked in its report, batting to end a slew of undergraduate exams, including Joint Entrance Exams for admission to IITs, which, the council said, were very tough and impacted mind of the students negatively.

“The IIT exams are very tough though purposeful. But young people suffer so much in order to succeed in these examinations that they lose the excitement for education itself. For entrance to higher education institutions, there should only be one national examination, which should be able to assess the eligibility of the candidates. Note that the US institutions take young people from India based on one GRE examination,” said the Council.

In a scathing analysis of the system, council chairman CNR Rao submitted a checklist for improvement of the higher education to the government today and lamented that not a single Indian institution equalled the best in the world. He questioned the manner in which the government was planning to set up new central universities.

“It will seem counter productive to allow uncontrolled increase in the number of government-supported colleges and universities without careful consideration of manpower requirements. Should we not differentiate curricula for general-purpose basic degrees from degrees with subject specialisation? How, where and for what purpose should the government set up the so-called central universities?” asked Rao.

New Delhi, April 22
A war of words has erupted between helicopter operator Pawan Hans Helicopters Limited (PHHL) and the Arunachal Pradesh government with both sides blaming each other for the Tawang helicopter crash that claimed 17 lives on Tuesday.

The Arunchal Pradesh Government today raised questions on the credibility of the PHHL choppers, asking the Civil Aviation Ministry to fix accountability on poor maintenance and mandatory inspections of the services as per the DGCA rules. The PSU claimed that all its choppers were properly maintained and had the necessary certification to fly and, instead, held the state government responsible for not providing adequate support, like fire tenders, at the tricky helipad.

So while the state government demanded an inquiry into the maintenance status of the PHHL helicopters and whether the guidelines of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) were being met by it, the PHHL said all its helicopters were properly and regularly maintained and serviced.

“All of them have valid airworthiness certification and our pilots are highly trained,” a PHHL official said, adding that both the pilots of the ill-fated Mi-172 chopper, Capt Varun Gupta and Capt A K Tiwari, were “highly experienced with over 5,000 hours of flying”

However, Congress MP from Arunachal (West) Takam Sanjoy wants the ministry to take up the matter seriously.

Sanjoy said that to stop any further accident in future and loss of lives, the Centre should immediately start the Greenfield Airport project at Itanagar and also construct a Green Airport in Twang, which was deferred in 2008. He said it was a matter of serious concern that despite repeated requests from the state government, Pawan Hans did not replace the two MI 172 helicopters.

While Pawan Hans officials have blamed the state government for not positioning fire tenders at the helipad, Sanjoy counters the allegation saying that it was the job of the PHHL officials to raise such technical issues with the government, which they never did.

Reports quote Arunachal Civil Aviation Commissioner Hage Khoda as saying that “despite repeated written complaint to the Pawan Hans Chairman-cum-CMD RK Tyagi and general manager (Marketing) and in-charge of North East Sanjoy Kumar to replace the 15-year-old choppers being pressed into service in the state since 1995, the authority remained unmoved.”

The state government quoted a recent incident on August 6, 2010, when cabin crew Dhananjoy Roy fell to his death while trying to shut the unfastened chopper door that had flung open midair when on its way from Namsai to Tezu, to prove its point.

Sanjoy said that Tawang was the most important tourist destination of the state and delay in airport project is resulting in loss of lives and blamed the defence ministry for not giving due importance to this Himalayan state despite its strategic location.

Tuesday's accident caused the death of 17 of the 23 people, but Capt Gupta and five others survived with serious burn injuries.

BRIEFLY

Binayak gets S Korean prize
NEW DELHI: Civil rights activist Binayak Sen, recently freed on bail by the Supreme Court in a sedition case, has been honoured with the 2011 Gwangju Prize for Human Rights, South Korea's most prestigious award for those working on peace, democracy and justice in Asia. The award, announced on Thursday, carries a sum of $50,000. — PTI

Hatchlings of sea turtles emerge
BERHAMPUR: The much-awaited hatchlings of endangered Olive Ridley sea turtles emerged near the Rushikulya river mouth off the Ganjam coast in Orissa on Friday. Setting aside speculation of the wildlife experts that the process might be delayed due to low temperature, thousands of baby turtles started their journey towards the sea. — PTI

Tribals' convention
MYSORE: More than 1000 tribals would take part in the first tribals' convention to be held in Karnataka here on April 25. The convention is focussing on legalising forest land, distribution of 'Anthyodaya' ration cards for the tribals,rights and self-respect of the tribals. The convention will be inaugurated by President of Tribals Rights' National Forum MP Bajuban Riyang. — PTI