Chandigarh, August 23
Complete pandemonium and four adjournments later, 31 INLD-SAD members, including Leader of the Opposition Om Prakash Chautala, were suspended for the remaining session for “disorderly conduct, gross misbehaviour and flouting the order of the Chair”. The session is slated to conclude tomorrow.

BJP legislature Party leader Anil Vij, named for raising anti-corruption slogans in the House and demanding a discussion on the Anna Hazare movement, was called back at the instance of the INLD and recommendation of Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.

The INLD, on its part, was demanding that the House pass the Jan Lokpal Bill and send its recommendation to the Centre as also a discussion on corruption. However, Speaker Kuldeep Sharma conceded the request for a discussion on corruption while maintaining that the Parliament Bill could not be discussed in the House.

Dissatisfied with the reply and despite repeated assurances for a discussion and repeated warnings, INLD members, raising slogans in the well of the House, refused to go back to their seats. Ultimately, they had to be marshalled out of the House.

After their departure, Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, said that the INLD was not serious about a debate on corruption was evident from the fact that they paid no heed to the Speaker’s assurances.

“They were simply trying to stall the proceedings on account of a calling-attention motion against them. They did not want the House to deliberate upon the charges framed by the CBI in the JBT scam and the disproportionate assets case,” he said.

The proceedings took off on a wrong note in the House today, with the BJP setting the tone for the day by raising a demand that Anna hazare’s crusade against corruption should be taken up first.

The four BJP MLAs led by Anil Vij trooped into the well of the House, disrupting question hour and demanding a discussion on corruption. Raising slogans of “Vande Mataram and Bharat Mata ki jai”, the BJP MLAs maintained they would not allow the proceedings to continue till their demand was met.

Even as Parliamentary affairs Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala said question hour should not be disrupted, Sharma said he would not allow the BJP MLA to “hold the House to ransom”. After 40 minutes of disruption, the Speaker finally named Vij while the other three BJP MLAs staged a walkout .

Departing from convention, the Speaker permitted the continuation of question hour for over an hour, marred on account of disruptions. Vij was called back after the members urged the Speaker to do so.

Immediately after question hour, the Opposition Benches erupted once again with the INLD members seeking to know why the government had convened the session in such “urgency”, adding that they did not have enough time to send in their questions.

As they trooped into the well, demanding that the House pass the Lokpal Bill which was rejected by the Speaker. This led to chaos.

When adjournment after adjournment failed to settle the matter, Surjewala brought in a motion seeking the suspension of 30 INLD and one SAD member, which was accepted by the House. 

Chandigarh, August 23
Nearly a fortnight after a petition was filed in “public interest” before the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the allotment of land to the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT), it was today dismissed as withdrawn.

The withdrawal came after a Division Bench of Justice Jasbir Singh and Justice Augustine George Masih questioned the petitioners about the “public interest” involved in the petition.

Taking up the petition, filed by villagers of Ullawas in Gurgaon district, the Bench had, on the previous date of hearing, asked them to furnish an affidavit in support of their claim that the petition was filed in public interest.

In their petition, a group of 15 villagers has primarily thrown a challenge to the State of Haryana’s decision to allot 5 acres to the Trust run by UPA Chairman Sonia Gandhi, her son Rahul Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Gandhi. It also challenges the allotment of 9 kanals to another Trust — Church Gate Medical Society.

The petitioners contended that the State allotted land to RGCT with the sole purpose of pleasing the Trust. They had also sought directions to quash the December 6, 2010, orders vide which the land of Ullawas village was directed to be released from acquisition process, despite issuance of notification under sections 4 and 6 of the Land Acquisition Act to facilitate the Trust to set up an eye hospital and research centre.

The petitioners also alleged that the decision to allot the land to the Trust was completely in contravention of Haryana's own policy issued on October 26, 2007.

Jind, August 23
Representatives and members of various khaps will reach Delhi on August 25 to express their solidarity with the agitation launched by Anna Hazare in support of a strong Lokpal Bill to curb corruption in the country.

The khaps will not only join the stir but will also be taking part in the Jail Bharo agitation after August 30, in case the government failed to accept the demand by then. This was stated by a spokesperson of the Joint Action Committee of various khaps that held a meeting at Narnaund village of the district last evening. He said representatives of around 85 khaps took part in the meeting.

As many as 102 khaps in Haryana had communicated their support on the issue. The spokesman said the Lok Pal Bill presented by the Union Government was bogus and aimed at shielding the corrupt instead of providing any relief to the masses.

ROHTAK: While the workers and activists of the district unit of the CPM staged a dharna and held protest demonstrations demanding an effective Lokpal legislation, the INLD leaders have asked all political parties in the state and the Centre to clarify their stand on the Jan Lokpal Bill.

Hisar: Supporters of Anna Hazare continued their protests in the city . A group of protesters sat in dharna outside the residence oif local Congress MLA Savitri Jindal and her son, Navin Jindal, Congress MP from Kurukshetra. Neither of the Jindals was present inside the mansion. Nevertheless the protesters staged their sit in outside the main gate.

Jhajjar: All main markets remained closed on Tuesday in support of Anna Hazare’s crusade against corruption. Members of the Jhajjar Bar Association also suspended work in favour of Anna’s campaign and demanded passing of the Jan Lokpal Bill at the earliest.

Ambala: Around 100 villagers sat on fast at Polytechnic Chowk in Ambala City. Farmers took out procession in Mulana, Narangareh and Naggal in Anna’s support. The Sarafa Bazaar Union staged a dharna . All shops remained closed for two hours. HJC and INLD workers and several social organisations staged a dharna in front of the residence of union minister Kumari Selja.

Sonepat, August 23
The Congress MP from Sonepat, Jitender Singh Malik, today openly came out in support of the Jan Lokpal and called for a strong legislation against corruption.

The MP, who was made to wear a Gandhian cap with the inscription “Main Anna Hoon” (I am Anna) by the protesters, walked among the masses sitting on a dharna outside his house and announced that fighting corruption had become the need of the hour and he was with the movement.

Groups of protesters under the banners of the Swatantarta Sainani Sangthan, Bharastachar Virodhi Sangharsh Samiti and INSO had been demonstrating outside his house at railway road for the last couple of days.

In the move which is being believed to have political ramifications, the MP openly admitted that corruption was rampant from top to bottom in the country.

Meanwhile, a number of residents of Mukimpur village who reached here in a tractor-trailer also demonstrated outside the house of the MP and at the Subhash chowk in support of the Hazare. Hundreds of the students of different educational institutes, activists led by the INLD’s state general secretary, Surender Singh Dahiya, and vice- chairman of the zila parishad, Kushal Singh, held a protest march in the town in support of Hazare’s agitation against corruption.

Chandigarh, August 23
Rathore case is definitely creating history of sorts. Another Division Bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court today recused itself from hearing Haryana’s former top cop SPS Rathore’s matter. So far, at least five Benches have refused to hear the matter.

As the case came up for hearing, the Bench of Justice SK Mittal and Justice Arvind Kumar today referred the matter to some other Bench, after obtaining orders from the high court Chief Justice. The petition will now come up before a Bench in which Justice Mittal is not a part.

On July 28, the matter was placed before the Bench of Justice Mittal and Justice AN Jindal. But it was referred to some other Bench, after Justice Jindal recused himself.

Prior to that, on July 7, the Bench of Justice MM Kumar and Justice Gurdev Singh had issued similar orders. Prior to this, on May 13, the Division Bench of Justice Hemant Gupta and Justice AN Jindal had also recused itself. Even before that, the Bench of Chief Justice and Justice Surya Kant had refused to hear the matter.

The case is virtually at the stage of final arguments. In fact, the Bench headed by the Chief Justice had earlier made it clear that the case would come up for final arguments on the issue of granting promotions to Rathore.

The Bench had also made it clear that it was for the trial court to deal with the issue of closure reports submitted by the CBI in two cases against Rathore.

Karnal, August 23
A pall of gloom hung over Mougal Majara village where five workers were killed and 15 injured, nine of them seriously, in a devastating fire in a cracker factory last night.

Haryana Labour Minister Shiv Charan Lal Sharma met the victims and promised them adequate compensation and stern action against the factory owners.

The deceased were identified as Shankar Paswan, Romesh, Arvind, Gauri and Shakuntala.

Investigation made by The Tribune revealed that the factory had been running without a "no- objection certificate” (NOC). The roof of the sheds did not have the prescribed height, fire- fighting arrangements were inadequate and equipment non-functional. Moreover, children were engaged there in violation of laws.

The police has registered a case under sections 304 and 34, IPC, and the Explosives Act against Pankaj, Deepak, Yogesh and Dinesh, all sons of Harichand, owner of the factory on the complaint of Kedar Paswan from Mirzapur in Bihar, who has been working in the factory for the past five years.

Paswan alleged the fire was caused due to friction among dried crackers.

Neelam Pradeep Kasani, DC, has ordered a high-level inquiry into the incident

The Labour Minister said all those found guilty of allowing the factory to run without valid documents and safety arrangements would face stern action.

The minister, who enquired about the licence from Sunil Khurana, deputy director, industrial safely, was furious when told that the owner had deposited the licence fee and as per rules, the licence was deemed to be sanctioned if no objection was raised within 90 days.

The minister announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to next of kin of the deceased and Rs 2 lakh each to injured persons. The administration clarified that the factory owner would be made to pay the compensation. 

Rohtak, August 23
The Haryana CPM has objected to the promulgation of an ordinance to amend the Haryana Ceiling on Land Holdings Act, 1972, "The surreptitious promulgation of the ordinance on August 8 seeks to make amendments to the land ceiling Act that will have serious implications on the legal status and use of land purchased or acquired since 1975," the party claimed.

In a statement the party said the state government was bound to make it public as to what were the compulsions in getting an ordinance issued merely 10 days before the commencement of the Assembly session. In fact, a Bill should have been brought only in the Assembly session if it was necessary at all, said state unit secretary Inderjit Singh.

He said the CPM apprehended that the ordinance would provide legal sanction to retrospective change of land use of land purchased or acquired scale since 1975. The party had urged all legislators to seriously ponder over the implications of the fresh amendments to the land ceiling Act.

Kurukshetra, August 23
The Haryana Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee headed by Jagdish Singh Jhinda today received a major setback with president of its youth wing Kawaljeet Singh Ajrana resigning from his post and accusing Jhinda of mortgaging the interests of Haryana Sikhs.

Talking to the mediapersons here, he made a scathing attack on Jhinda, saying that he had exploited the Sikh Sangat leading the agitation for a separate gurdwara committee for Haryana for his own ends.

Accusing Jhinda of fielding weak candidates in the SGPC elections under a pact with the Chief Minister to dilute the movement, he said the defeat of HSGPC candidates would mean defeat of Haryana Sikhs, demanding a separate SGPC for the state.

Alleging that Jhinda was only after the chairmanship of a board or corporation, Ajrana said he had done incalculable harm to Sikhs of Haryana. — TNS

Sirsa, August 23
Angry residents of the Begu Road area today blocked vehicular traffic at Shah Satnam Chowk against choked sewers, poor sanitation and supply of contaminated drinking water in their areas.

The residents, who included several women, also gheraoed an SDO of the Public Health Department, when he went there to listen to their grievances.

Sanjay Kumar, a resident, alleged that the condition of sewers was so bad that their streets were filled with stinking water and the filthy sewer water was entering their houses, too.

He alleged that the drinking water being supplied in their area was mixed with sewage contents and it was highly contaminated.

The residents alleged that due to poor sanitation, people in almost all households were suffering from ailments like fever, vomiting and diarrhoea.

Jagdish Jangra, Executive Engineer of the Public Health Department, said the area was low-lying and hence the authorities were facing a problem of proper draining during the monsoon.