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Tribune Special
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818 unmanned points in state
Passengers rob victims of ornaments
Riots Case Against Tytler
Officials did sell drugs to prisoners, HC told
Illegal buildings face MC axe
An illegal structure being demolished at Tripri in Patiala. A Tribune photograph
Leprosy cases on the rise: Doctors
‘Shashi Kant has sent out wrong signals’
3 Pak prisoners freed
Released Indian prisoners cross over to India at the Attari-Wagah border on Thursday. Photo: Vishal Kumar
Inquiry against Mustafa comes to a halt
Students to study historic gurdwaras
Women protest against ‘vulgar’ songs
Activists of the Istri Jagriti Manch burn effigies of Punjabi singers in Patiala on Thursday. A Tribune photograph
DSGMC poll: Delhi Govt files appeal in High Court
6 held for trying to sell PDS wheat
Woman with pistol held at Attari
Snatching cases surge in Abohar
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Tribune Special
Three schoolchildren were killed in September last at Mouwal village. Another two persons were done to death in a collision between a tractor trailer and Ahmedabad-bound Jammu Tawi train at an unmanned crossing near Khojewal village the same month. While most of the deaths were reported due to the alleged negligence of the drivers of vehicles trying to cross the unmanned points, some victims were crushed while they were crossing the track on foot. One such incident was reported from Tahli Sahib locality when Mohinder Pal was crushed while trying to cross the Jalandhar-Amritsar track between Surnussi and Kartarpur. He was on his way to fetch milk. As many as 231 of the 346 crossings under the jurisdiction of Jalandhar GRP (Government Railway Police) police station are unmanned. A majority of such crossings are located on the Jalandhar-Ferozepur, Nakodar-Lohian, Jalandhar-Nakodar, Phagwara-Dhilwan, Jalandhar-Hoshiarpur, Jalandhar-Pathankot, Phagwara-Nawanshahr links. Meanwhile, social activist Arun Sharma Pappu has demanded immediate manning of all such crossings in the state. “A majority of the mishaps on these tracks have been those of school vans or buses. Drivers talking over mobile phones and failing to notice approaching trains has been the common cause. Thus, the use of mobile phones by drivers of school buses and vans should be strictly banned,” he said. GRP additional SHO Balbir Singh said, “We have sent a recommendation through the ADGP to the Union Government for manning these railway crossings. Besides, GRP personnel have been spreading awareness among students of educational institutions located near unmanned crossings to take utmost care while crossing such tracks.” A Northern Railway spokesperson said, “There is already a proposal to man all unmanned railway crossings but it will be done in a phased manner due to paucity of funds.”
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818 unmanned points in state
Patiala, February 16 Seven persons, including five of a family, were done to death at one such unmanned railway crossing near Dhuri yesterday. ADGP (Railways) Rohit Chaudhary said they had already taken cognisance of the presence of such a high number of unmanned spots. He said the matter was being pursued at regular intervals with the higher authorities in the Railways and the state Transport Department. “Both the departments need to work in tandem to redress the issue. Over the past few years, a large number of unmanned railway crossings had been turned into manned spots to bring down the number of mishaps,” he said. Chaudhary said as the number of such crossings in the state was large, it would take time to convert all of them into manned locations. “Since the number of unmanned railway crossings is large, it will take time to get all the railway crossings manned,” said a senior GRP official in
Patiala.
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Passengers rob victims of ornaments
The family members of the victims were inconsolable.The newly wed couple was in a state of shock. Hundreds of people of nearby villages, including political leaders, attended the last rites of the deceased. The two other victims belonged to Jhandeana village near Moga. Among the deceased were groom Surjit Singh’s mother Shinder Kaur (55), sister Manpreet Kaur (19), cousin brother Sadhu Singh (35), cousin sisters Gurpreet Kaur (10) and Rupinder Kaur (19) and two other relatives Amanpreet Kaur and Harwinder Kaur. The entire village of Dhura is worried about the fate of 23-year-old Kulwinder Kaur who got married on Wednesday. Seven members of her in-laws’ family were crushed to death by a train at an unmanned railway crossing on the village outskirts. The villagers fear her in-laws might refuse to accept her, considering her unlucky. As the train shrieked to a halt, some passengers allegedly robbed the victims of the gold ornaments they were wearing. “The passengers, instead of helping the victims, stole the ornaments worn by the victims,” said a relative of the groom. "Only last month, the village had signed a document to be submitted to the Railway Ministry that the railway crossing be manned," he added. The villagers allege that despite numerous representations, no one had come to their rescue with politicians and Railway officials remaining unapproachable. “There is a school near the crossing and hundreds of children remain vulnerable, but our requests for a permanent Railway employee at the crossing have gone unheeded,” said septuagenarian Balwinder Singh. Government Railway Police investigating officer Gurcharan Singh, who was at the accident site to get the ill-fated car removed, said there had been numerous such incidents in the past.
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Riots Case Against Tytler
New Delhi, February 16 Tytler has said he had no role in the riots that left three persons, including petitioner’s husband Badal Singh, dead on November 1, 1984,. He said at the time of the riots, he was at Teen Murti Bhavan, close to the body of slain former PM Indira Gandhi. The CBI, for its closure report, relied on CDs which Tytler supplied to prove his presence at Teen Murti House. However, the CDs neither mention the time nor the date. Yet, the CBI did not cross-check Tytler’s claims with actor Amitabh Bachchan and Congress leader RK Dhawan who were present at Teen Murti House and were seen in the CDs. “The CD showed the accused present at the gate of Teen Murti House very briefly. RK Dhawan and Additional Commissioner of Police Gautam Kaul were standing next to Tytler. Amitabh Bachchan was also present close to where the accused was standing. These people were natural witnesses to prove the reliability of the undated and untimed CDs but the CBI did not examine them,” Lakhwinder Kaur said. In another argument, the petitioner challenged the CBI for not probing the conspiracy angle. “That day, Tytler went to the office of the Police Commissioner and yet the angle of conspiracy under Section 120-B, IPC, has not been investigated to ascertain the role of the accused in getting the release orders of persons arrested for killing, rioting and arson,” the petitioner said. Further, although the CBI maintained that one US-based Resham Singh, the only surviving eyewitness to the Pulbangash riots, was not available for deposition when its teams went to the US, counsel for the witness GS Pannu today said on oath that he had approached the CBI repeatedly and that Resham Singh wanted to depose. The case will come up for hearing on March 19.
Riot victims hold 'justice rally'
Amritsar, February 16 They were protesting against the attempt to commute the life term of Kishori Lal who was convicted for killing Sikhs in November 1984. The protesters also demanded prosecution of senior Congress leader Jagdish Tytler. AISSF president Karnail Singh Peermohammad, in a statement, alleged that the CBI was harassing the witnesses of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots by making them run from pillar to post for justice. Citing the name of late Giani Surinder Singh, a prime witness against Tytler, and GS Rishi, a witness against Sajjan Kumar, the AISSF president alleged that the perpetrators were being rewarded by the Congress.
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Officials did sell drugs to prisoners, HC told
Chandigarh, February 16 The State told the High Court that two officers - jail superintendent Tejinder Singh Sodhi and deputy jail superintendent Perminder Singh -have been indicted. In his reply placed before the Division Bench of Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justice Mahesh Grover, Deputy Secretary in the Punjab Department of Home Affairs and Justice Om Parkash contended that the inquiry officer, appointed vide memorandum dated October 4, 2011, had submitted the inquiry report to the government through a letter dated February 8. “All the allegations levelled against the delinquent officers have been established by the inquiry officer,” he said. The assertion came on a petition filed by Tarlochan Singh. A Mohali resident, he was lodged at Ropar district jail at the time of filing the petition. The inmate is seeking an inquiry not only into the sale of intoxicants in the Ropar Jail “in connivance with the jail officials”, but also their highhandedness towards prisoners reporting against illegal activities. Going into details, the Deputy Secretary said the services of the two “delinquent officers” were placed under suspension by the State Director-General of Police (Prisons) on October 12, 2010. Both the officers were charge-sheeted on May 12, last year. Their replies to the allegations were found to be “unsatisfactory”. He added that the latest report by the inquiry officer had been forwarded to both the “delinquent officers” for seeking their reply. They have been granted a month’s time for the purpose. “As soon as the replies of both the officers are submitted to the government, sufficient action would be taken by the competent authority,” the Deputy Secretary added in his reply.
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Illegal buildings face MC axe
Patiala, February 16 Though many violators have submitted their building plans and paid the required fee, there are numerous buildings, both commercial and residential, for which no building plan has been submitted. Patiala Mayor Ajit Pal Singh Kohli said those who had either violated the building bylaws or had deviated from the building plan sanctioned by the municipal body would face action. The Tribune recently highlighted the issue of buildings and commercial establishments coming up illegally. Sources in the Patiala MC said the senior authorities had convened a meeting of officers of the building and town planning branch. The officials were instructed to issue notices to the violators and undertake a survey to identify the buildings that did not conform to the prescribed norms. "Following this, as many as six shops on the Jhill Road were demolished on account of gross irregularities committed during the construction of these. Some illegal structures in the densely populated Tripri have also been razed. Now, the civic body will launch a demolition drive on the Rajpura Road," Kohli said, adding that once the survey was complete, rest of the illegal buildings would also be demolished.
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Leprosy cases on the rise: Doctors
Ludhiana, February 16 Dr Balbeer Singh, State Leprosy Officer, said, “There are 690 leprosy patients in the state, out of which 109 are Punjabis while the rest are mainly migrant labourers. Till last year, the number of indigenous cases was 177, which stands at 109 this year till January. However, the final figure will be compiled after March”. He said, “Earlier, the disease was mostly prevalent among migrants only, but for the past few years it has been observed in Punjabis as well. We are making people aware under the National Leprosy Eradication Programme (NLEP). Due to this, the number of new patients keeps adding up while the older ones are getting cured”. In Ludhiana district, the number of leprosy patients has increased as compared to last year. Dr Sangita Singh, District Leprosy Officer, said, “The number of leprosy patients till April 2011 was 166 in Ludhiana district. However, till January this year, 226 patients have been identified. Out of these, 20 are Punjabis”. She said, “We create awareness regarding the disease through lectures and demonstrations and this is the reason that people suffering from this disease are now coming forward for treatment”. Meanwhile, a leprosy awareness campaign is going on all over the state since January 30.
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‘Shashi Kant has sent out wrong signals’
Chandigarh, February 16 The DGP has partially retracted his statement. Now he says he is capable of dealing with any threat to his person. The statement came after Jails Minister HS Gabria took exception to Shashi Kant’s utterances and asked him to come clean on the threat perception. Senior officers at the police headquarters here have taken serious note of the DGP’s utterances with most saying such statements were not becoming of a senior officer. One officer said the DGP had made a mockery of the force by giving an impression that even a senior police officer was not safe in Punjab. The officers said the DGP had sent out signals that he was powerless to control the supply of drugs to jails. Instead of making such a statement, Shashi Kant could have strengthened the standard operating procedure.
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3 Pak prisoners freed
Amritsar, February 16 Another prisoner, Hari Chand, who hails from Maharashtra, said he had boarded the train to Lahore without any valid documents and was arrested on arrival. Jai Chand was lodged in the Karachi Jail after he entered the Pakistan waters inadvertently. He said that there were 422 more fishermen in the jail. He said he would request the governments to take steps for the release of these fishermen as soon as possible. Among the three Pakistani prisoners was Dr Tehbir Zamil, who said he had crossed over to India from Kot Hindumal near Ganganagar (Rajasthan). He was caught and lodged in the Ganganagar jail in July 2008 . Another Pak prisoner Tarif said he had inadvertently crossed the Jammu border into India where he was caught by BSF personnel He was now returning home a free man after three months in jail.
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Inquiry against Mustafa comes to a halt
Chandigarh, February 16 The Election Commission (EC) had asked the state government to take action against Mustafa after matching his voice with the audio-recording in which he was alleged to have canvassed for his wife and Congress candidate from Malerkotla Razia Sultana. The EC had asked the government to get the voice of the police official matched and then take action against him as per the police rules. Home Secretary Dhanvir Singh Bains said the Mohali-based FSL had expressed its inability to go ahead with voice matching. “We had forwarded the CD to them. They have got back to us saying they do not have the required machine,” he said. Bains said the government would now send the audio clip to another laboratory equipped to handle such cases. “We will then act accordingly.” Following the EC orders, Chief Secretary SC Agrawal had asked the Department of Home to get the audio clip examined immediately. It was then sent to the CFL. The EC had acted on a complaint by the Shiromani Akali Dal that had produced an audio clip in which Mustafa was alleged to be making political and religious statements. The complaint was forwarded to the EC before elections. Akalis had been vehemently complaining against Mustafa for allegedly misusing his official power to help his wife in elections. He had proceeded on 91 days medical leave and the EC had ordered a medical check up of the official. He was kept under e-surveillance at his house in Amargarh near
Malerkotla.
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Students to study historic gurdwaras
Muktsar, February 16 "So far, there is only one book about the architecture of Gurdwaras that was published in 1980s by noted artist PS Arshi. After that, there is no fresh documentation of any historic Gurdwara except the Golden Temple, either with the SGPC or any other institute. So, we told our students to go and compile the drawings, photos, sketches and concept of the architecture of the concerned buildings," informed Karamjit Singh Chahal, head of the department of architecture, GNDU, while talking over the phone. "Each team comprises four students, which will submit its report within a month. After verifying the facts, we will publish a booklet which will prove beneficial for those having faith in Sikh religion and interested in architecture. The final report will also be submitted to the SGPC,” he added. Giving further details, he said that the teams had gone to prepare the drawings of all historic Gurdwaras in Muktsar, Amritsar, Talwandi Sabo, Anandpur Sahib, Goindwal, Khadur Sahib and Tarn
Taran.
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Women protest against ‘vulgar’ songs
Patiala, February 16 Addressing a gathering, manch leader Amandeep Kaur said they had earlier staged a dharna outside the residence of Diljit Dosanjh, but nobody seemed to have learnt any lesson. “The singers continue to degrade women by making obscene videos and the worst is that even people don't object to it,” she added. “Instead of apologising, the singers are making excuses like videos are approved by the censor board before release. Whatever they are doing to entertain the people is a threat to our culture,” said manch leaders Amardeep Kaur and Pardeep Kaur. They said even the censor board seemed to be “non-existent and had failed to serve its purpose”. Talking about the future plan of the manch, they said they would continue to organise protest demonstrations till the singers took a pledge that they would make decent songs.
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DSGMC poll: Delhi Govt files appeal in High Court
Amritsar, February 16 Talking to The Tribune, DSGMC chief Paramjit Singh Sarna said the government had filed an appeal in the Delhi High Court yesterday, seeking that the stay be vacated. He said it had been pleaded that since the election process had already started, it would not be right to postpone the same. “Also the preparation of voters’ list as per the court order and subsequently the delimitation process would take place over a year. This will further delay the elections. The current House completed its term last year,” he said. Seeking a stay on the DSGMC poll was a deliberate attempt to hamper the poll process, he alleged. The Delhi High Court had on February 7 granted a stay on the DSGMC elections following a petition filed by Harmohan Singh. The case will now come up for hearing on March 22. The elections to the DSGMC, that has 46 seats, were held last in 2007. The SAD (Delhi) had won 27 seats and the SAD 12.
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6 held for trying to sell PDS wheat
Malout, February 16 The police said that the accused were caught red-handed and Rs 1.20 lakh was recovered from their possession at Malwala village when they were on their way to transport the wheat to a private floor mill in Gidderbaha in two tractor-trailers. Sub-Inspector Paramjit Singh said that acting on a tip-off, the accused were intercepted and during the inspection, the wheat was found belonging to the Markfed godown, located in the old sugar mill here. He said local Markfed in-charge Sukhraj Singh and floor mill owner Lovely Kumar of Gidderbaha were arrested from the spot along with drivers Kala Singh and Bubby Singh, two labourers Babbar Singh and Surinder Singh. However, Jagtar Singh, field officer, Markfed, managed to flee from the spot, the police said. "Apart from arresting the accused, we have also seized a few empty wheat bags from the Markfed godown, as the accused had removed the bags before siphoning it off," said Paramjit Singh. A case under sections 420, 406 and 409 of the IPC has been registered against the accused at Sadar police station. It was the second incident of its kind in the last one week in Muktsar district when the alleged involvement of Markfed officials has come to light in siphoning off the PDS wheat. Earlier, on February 11, a Markfed official in Muktsar was booked for his alleged involvement in an attempt to sell 250 wheat bags to a private dealer.
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Woman with pistol held at Attari
Amritsar, February 16 Sources said Hasina Bano (60), who hails from Amroha in Uttar Pradesh, went to Pakistan through Samjhauta Express on January 30. She returned today and was caught by the Customs and Immigration authorities during checking. The weapon was found in her purse. The woman, Hasina Bano, was interrogated by various agencies at the Attari railway station. VK Khosla, Assistant Commissioner, Customs, said Border Security Force officials had been called to examine the weapon.
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Snatching cases surge in Abohar
Abohar, February 16 Scooter-borne miscreants targeted eminent social activist and government schoolteacher Suman Sachdeva as she was returning home in Sunder Nagari using a rickshaw last evening along with her 14-year-old daughter Anima. The miscreants tried to snatch her purse and dragged her down as she resisted. Intriguingly, it happened a stone’s throw distance from the office-cum-residence of the Superintendent of Police on the road that connects the Sadar Thana road with the state highway. Suman sustained injuries in the fracas and has been admitted to the Civil Hospital. The miscreants fled after the unsuccessful bid.
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Jalandhar, February 16
Patiala, February 16
Amritsar, February 16
Patiala, February 16
Jalandhar, February 16
Sangrur/Jagraon, February 16
In the written arguments filed to support her petition challenging the CBI’s closure report against Tytler, Lakhwinder Kaur asked the CBI why it didn’t investigate the conspiracy angle against Tytler and why it didn’t question actor Amitabh Bachchan and Congress leader RK Dhawan to ascertain if Tytler was speaking the truth.