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BJP wants govt to clarify on Army Chief’s charges
Anna differs with team; calls PM honest man
Cong, BJP enter war of words over Modi
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Remarks on eliminating rivals
Teachers recruitment scam
Soon, alcohol content in beverages to be regulated
Mining scam
Coal ‘Scam’
3 securitymen die in gunbattle with Maoists
12 killed in lightning
Jantar Mantar Assam appoints 26K teachers in one go Prestigious staff college course to go online Akhilesh’s wife to contest Kannauj Lok Sabha seat
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BJP wants govt to clarify on Army Chief’s charges
New Delhi, May 27 BJP’s chief spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said the General had raised certain critical issues about the functioning of the Ministry of Defense. “He has levelled serious allegations about supply and purchase in the armed forces," said Prasad, demanding a proper response from the government. “The Army is a very important institution of the country and the BJP would like a proper response from the government which owes a duty to the nation to explain and assure that the country's defence preparedness is safe and that no attempt is being made to save anyone,” Prasad said. The Army Chief in a series of interviews to TV channels over the past few days has alleged that there have been serious anomalies in supply and purchase in the armed forces. In response to the letter written by party MP Ram Jethmalani to party president Nitin Gadkari alleging that party leaders were "silent" against corruption in UPA-II government and were instead engaged in infighting, Prasad said that the party was not in agreement with these views. "Ram Jethmalani is a senior MP and we all have a lot of respect for him. But as chief spokesperson of the party, I would like to say that the party does not agree with his views about the functioning of the organisation. The BJP has been most forthright in exposing the corruption in the UPA government," Prasad said.
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Anna differs with team; calls PM honest man
The activist, who is touring Maharashtra to press for a strong Lokayukta, was questioned by reporters in the town of Solapur regarding the allegations levelled by Team Anna against the Prime Minister and several other ministers in his Cabinet. According to sources, Hazare, who apparently was not consulted by the members of his team, was taken by surprise when told that his associates had accused the Prime Minister, along with other members of his cabinet, of corruption. "I have to check with them. But, I have complete faith in them. All this will be discussed at the core committee meeting on June 3 and 4," Hazare said. The activist went on to criticise the PM. "The Prime Minister is personally an honest man. But he is under a remote control. He cannot control his corrupt ministers. The government cannot pass a strong the Lok Pal Bill because of 14 corrupt ministers in the government," Hazare said. On Saturday, Team Anna released a dossier on the PM and other members of his Cabinet and has demanded a special investigating team to probe their conduct.
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Cong, BJP enter war of words over Modi
Modi yesterday said he would have to register a case against the ruling government in the court of the masses. "There is a government in Delhi, which is just like the court of fraud godman Nirmal Baba, who claims that having a sweet would bless you. The government in Delhi also makes similar claims that 'vote us to power' and inflation would go away on its own, this is what they have said, right?" Modi said while addressing a party rally in Mumbai. Reacting to Modi's comments, the Congress said such remarks would not fulfil his desires to make it to national politics. "The Chief Minister of Gujarat has crossed all limits of dignity and mannerism. Such unparliamentary comments against the UPA do not befit the stature of any chief minister, no matter how much frustration he might have been facing," said Congress spokesperson Manish Tiwari. Modi should assess his popularity in his own outfit, the BJP, before training guns at the Central Government, Tiwari said. "Two senior leaders did not care to participate in the rally. Another senior leader, as published in the newspapers, left the stage while Gujarat Chief Minister was addressing the rally. And everybody knows how one politician had to resign to pave the way for Gujarat Chief Minister to attend the BJP's national executive meet and rally," he added. "So, forget about Delhi, it will be great relief if these people confine themselves to their respective states level," he added. Tewari had further commented that the soul of Hitler's propaganda chief Goebbels had entered Modi. Responding to Tiwari's outburst, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Congress' response to the comments made by the Gujarat Chief Minister showed the Emergency mindset of the ruling party. "It seems that the Congress and its spokesperson have crossed all limits of decency in political discourse of the country.... Comparing the comments of Narendra Modi, a senior national leader having a very distinguished record of governance as a popular chief minister, with Goebbels is not only malicious but deeply condemnable," Prasad said. Prasad said, "Calling it factually incorrect and comparing it to Goebbels, who was known for false propaganda, exposes the true colour of the Congress," Prasad said.
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Remarks on eliminating rivals
Thiruvananthapuram, May 27 CPM state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan said Mani's speech was a "deviation" from the party's political line and he had made a "mistake". The remarks by Mani, CPM's Idukki district secretary, at a public meeting at Thodupuzha, sparked a raging political row in the state with the Congress and BJP saying it exposed the Left party's "politics of violence". In Ahmedabad, Gujarat CM Narendra Modi lashed out at the CPM, saying it was using language similar to the one used by terrorists. "When leader of a political party says that we murder our political rivals, it is dangerous to our democracy. Where is the NHRC? We should raise our voice against such acts. Our workers keep giving their lives in Kerala," he said. Mani's remarks has come at a time when the CPI-M in the state is on the defensive after some of its activists were arrested in connection with the murder of party rebel and RMP leader T P Chandrasekharan. Ironically, Mani made the statement at a meeting called to explain to the public that CPI(M) had no role in the Chandrasekharan murder case. In his sarcasm-laced speech, Mani reminded his audience of how some of the rivals of the party in Idukki district had been eliminated in the past. As his remarks hit headlines in the local media, Mani clarified that he did not say physically eliminating opponents was the party's line but only meant it had sometimes to put up resistance to threats from opponents. — PTI
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Teachers recruitment scam
Chandigarh, May 27 The CBI has registered a case against ‘unknown’ civil servants and two ‘touts’ Hardev Singh and Jolly. The CBI has registered a case under Sections 420, 120- B of the IPC and Sections 8 and 9 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. It was alleged that during the period 2007-09, Hardev and Jolly allegedly in collusion with unknown public servants of the Department of Education sought bribe for appointment of teachers, the CBI said in a release. The CBI questioned Samwartak Singh, an HCS officer, for more than four hours at the CBI office in Sector 30 today. Samwartak, at present, is secretary in the Haryana Urban Development Authority. The CBI team also raided his office in Panchkula and seized some documents. The team conducted searches at four places, including the residence-cum-office of the then DPI(S), UT, Chandigarh, and the residential premises of Hardev and Jolly. The UT police had first registered the case on September 5, 2009, against the duo but had given a clean chit to Samwartak Singh who was the DPI at that time. However, the Punjab and Haryana High Court transferred the case to the Delhi team of the CBI for a fresh probe. The High Court had acted on a PIL claiming that the police let off high ups in the case. In 2009, Chandigarh Education Department had initiated the process of recruitment of 536 teachers. It was alleged that Hardev and Jolly approached one candidate assuring job on payment of Rs 4.5 lakh. The police registered a case and arrested the two. Further enquiries revealed that Jolly was regularly in touch with Samwartak and hundreds of calls had been exchanged between the two. However, investigating the matter, Chandigarh police let off Samartak and filed a charge sheet only against Hardev and Jolly. Later, Karamjit Singh, one of the candidates, filed a PIL in high court seeking CBI investigations into the role of DPI and others. Singh, through his counsel, expressed suspicion of involvement of higher-ups in the case. April 1 this year, a division bench of the Punjab and Haryana High Court transferred the investigation into the teachers recruitment scam to the Delhi branch of the CBI. Following the registration of case by the UT police in 2009, the Chandigarh Administration had repatriated the HCS officer to his parent cadre.
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Vajra Corps showcases might
Jalandhar, May 27 The hi-tech army exercise witnessed a swift mobilisation of units and offensive manoeuvres of the next level of battle technique. The offensive was backed by real-time intelligence inputs procured from unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), geostationary satellites and ground-based sensors. These inputs were sent across the network, which aided all the field commanders in quick decision-making and swift execution of operations. “The exercise is aimed at demonstrating integration of armoured, artillery, air defence, surveillance and specialised engineer equipment. The Vajra Corps is carrying out its training exercise ‘Ashwamedha’ in the rural hinterland of Punjab. The exercise will continue day and night for four days,” said Defence PRO Naresh Vig. The exercise ground comprises the banks of the Sutlej in Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Jagraon and Moga. The GoC, Lieut-Gen Sanjiv Madhok, witnessed different army manoeuvres during the exercise. Strengthening the soldier-farmer-ex-servicemen bond, various welfare events and interactions with the youth and civil administration were held prior to the commencement of the exercise. The population of Punjab is confident that their security rests in safe hands, with the Vajra Corps showcasing its might, said General
Madhok.
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Soon, alcohol content in beverages to be regulated
The draft standards will come up for final discussions at the forthcoming meeting of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, the apex food regulator, which plans to notify these by July 1. So far, there was no benchmarking in place for prescribing safe and permissible limits of alcohol in drinks. The new standards will apply to practically all branded alcoholic beverages that are permitted for sale in India as per the current licencing regulations. Sources in the FSSAI said the new draft food standards finalised for alcoholic drinks would prescribe standards for the content of alcohol, grains and water in drinks. "These standards have already been approved by the FSSAI scientific committee and are expected to be taken up at the Authority's forthcoming meeting before their final approval. After approvals, these will be put in the public domain and objections will be invited," FSSAI officers said. The move has a potential to impact sales of the alcohol industry, a major revenue earner for states, with the total annual sales pegged at over $ 10 billion in the country. The industry is stiffly resisting any move from the food regulator to set standards on alcohol content in branded drinks. The current levels in India allow a maximum of 45.5 per cent alcohol content in distilled spirits such as whisky, rum, gin or vodka, 12 per cent for wine and 8 per cent for beer. While the FSSAI says setting of standards for food products is part of its mandate by law, alcoholic beverage manufacturers say the Authority has no such power and the state governments alone had the legislative competence to govern the manufacture and sale of these products. Citing the existing state laws governing the manufacture and sale of liquor under the Excise Act, the manufacturers of alcoholic drinks have moved the Bombay HC challenging FSSAI's move. — PTI
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Mining scam Gowda reportedly assured them that their demand would be considered. T J Abraham of Karnataka Anti-Graft and Environmental Forum had appealed to the CEC to deal with the affairs of Krishna, Dharam Singh and Kumaraswamy by recommending a CBI probe. A minister told this reporter that the issue of the letter written by the state government to the CEC regarding the three former chief ministers did not figure in the Cabinet meeting. “However, after the Cabinet meeting, the Yeddyurappa loyalists met the chief minister and asked him to recall the letter and give another letter recommending CBI probe against the three former chief ministers”, the minister said. Yeddyurappa, who returned to Bangalore yesterday from Mumbai where he had gone to attend BJP’s national executive meeting, is said to be piqued that the Gowda government had not given any clear-cut directive to the CEC on whether to initiate a CBI probe against the three former chief ministers. The CBI has already begun probe into the links of Yeddyurappa, also a former chief minister, with mining companies following a CEC recommendation which was accepted by the Supreme Court. The state unit of the CPI, Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS), Janata Dal (United) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) had also urged Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda to hand over the cases related to alleged illegal activities by the three former chief ministers to the CBI.
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Coal ‘Scam’
New Delhi, May 27 "The process of allocation of blocks was equitable, fair and just which is borne out of the fact that there has never been any serious allegation against the working of the screening committee. The move to introduce competitive bidding is to make the selection process demonstrably more transparent," the Coal Ministry said. The clarification comes a day after Team Anna picked up portions of a draft CAG report to make charges against Singh.
— PTI
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3 securitymen die in gunbattle with Maoists
Malkangiri (Odisha), May 27 The exchange of fire occurred in Kanaguda forest in Kalimela area when jawans of elite anti-Naxal Special Operation Group (SOG) were returning after combing operations, Superintendent of Police Anirudh Singh said. The Maoist terrorists first exploded claymore mines when the jawans were returning on the way, some of them on motor-cycles, and then fired at them, he said.
— PTI
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12 killed in lightning
Burdwan (WB), May 27 In Burdwan, the deceased include one 15-year-old boy, a septuagenarian, a 22-year-old youth and seven people aged between 35 and 43, SP SMH Mirza said, adding that the six injured have been admitted to hospital.
— PTI
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Jantar Mantar
AICC general secretaries Janardhan Dwivedi and Mukul Wasnik were deputed by Congress president Sonia Gandhi to represent the party at the United Russia Party convention in Moscow last week. Taking a leaf from his hosts, who always speak in Russian at all international meetings, Dwivedi addressed the meet in Hindi which was subsequently translated into English by Wasnik. It was only appropriate that Dwivedi should have spoken in Hindi as he has a special interest in Hindi literature and has, for long, been the author of Sonia Gandhi’s Hindi speeches. Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee once created waves when he addressed the UN General Assembly in Hindi, perhaps the first by an Indian leader. Modi attended Mumbai meet after lot of coaxing
Shukla ducks bouncers on
IPL controversy
For the past several weeks, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajiv Shukla, who is also involved with cricket administration, had been boasting to mediapersons that for the first time since its inception, the IPL cricket tournament had not hit the headlines and had instead remained confined to the sports pages. As it happens, he was proved wrong as the IPL tournament was soon on page one and for all the wrong reasons. Bollywood superstar and team owner Shahrukh Khan got into an ugly spat with the officers of the Mumbai Cricket Association and security personnel at the Wankhede Stadium while RCB player Luke Pomersbach was charged with molestation and another two cricketers, Rahul Sharma and Wayne Parnell, were present at a rave party in Mumbai which was raided. Pushed on the defensive, Shukla, was quick to distance himself from all these controversies. “How am I responsible for what a player does in his hotel room or during his free time,” he maintained repeatedly, adding, for good measures, “I am the IPL commissioner, not a police commissioner.” Rahul and his media ways
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Assam appoints 26K teachers in one go Guwahati, May 27 Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi distributed appointment letters to some of the teachers at a function held here on Sunday. State Education Minister Dr Himanta Bishwa Sarma said that another such massive recruitment of teachers would be held in May 2015. He also said that the state would introduce a system to check the eligibility of teachers in government-funded schools after a certain period of time so that the teachers always try to excel in their job and avoid getting complacent. He also informed that the newly-appointed TET-qualified teachers would have to pass three aptitude tests to remain in the job. The aptitude tests will be held after completion of five, seven and 12 years of service. Those who fail in any of those aptitude tests will have to go on voluntary retirement. Meanwhile, the All-Assam Tribal Sangha has opposed the selection of 26,110 new teachers and demanded a review of the selection list on the ground that the authorities had unconstitutionally de-reserved a large number of posts reserved for various plains and hills tribes in order to appoint candidates from non-tribal communities.
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Prestigious staff college course to go online Shimla, May 27 Officers at the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) here said that the online course would be available only to those officers who have cleared the competitive entrance examination for the course and made it to the merit list, but could not be included in the regular course due the limited number of vacancies. The Staff College Course is a 45-week programme held at DSSC, Wellington that aims at imparting training in operational and staff functions in an inter-service as well as joint service environment. It is attended by officers of all three services as well as a few civilian officers and officers from foreign countries. Completing the course is now mandatory for selection-grade promotions above the rank of major/lieutenant colonel and equivalent. Termed as e-psc, (passed staff college), the online programme would be of two years duration, with two contact programmes as the DSCC to take up classified topics that cannot be placed on the service intranets. Though undergoing the same course, e-psc officers would be lower in precedence than regular staff college graduates. “With the e-psc more officers would be groomed to take up appointments at the division and corps level that were so far tenable only by regular staff college graduates. This would allow service headquarters greater choice in working out postings,” a senior officer said.
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Akhilesh’s wife to contest Kannauj Lok Sabha seat Lucknow, May 27 Briefing the media after the meeting of the Samajwadi party central parliamentary board, SP national general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Ramgopal Yadav said that the decision to field Dimple was taken after the pressure mounted by the party workers from Kannauj. “They have been coming in large numbers to meet the national president Mulayam Singh Yadav to request him to finalize Dimple’s name for the Kannauj seat. We could not ignore the demand of the workers as they can be ignored only at any cost of the party’s victory.
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Mumbai, May 27
New Delhi, May 27
New Delhi, May 27
Bangalore, May 27
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s arrival in Mumbai for the BJP’s national executive meeting last week was preceded by prolonged behind-the-scene efforts to persuade him to attend the party conclave. When senior party leaders like Arun Jaitley and BJP president Nitin Gadkari failed in their efforts, the help of intermediaries was sought. According to the Mumbai grapevine, London-based businessman Anshuman Mishra, who was recently in the news in connection with the Jharkhand Rajya Sabha elections, was asked to use his contacts to convince Modi. Mishra, it is learnt, got in touch with a Gujarat-based businessman known for his proximity to Modi, who worked on the CM to change his mind. Modi, however, extracted a price for his participation: the removal of his bete noire Sanjay Joshi from the national executive.
AICC general secretary and Nehru-Gandhi scion was never known to be media-friendly but he appears to have changed after the personal setback he got in the recent Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. It was an unusual sight to see him interacting with journalists at the dinner hosted last week by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to mark the UPA government’s third anniversary. He listened patiently to mediapersons who pointed to the crisis facing the Congress in several states. Rahul Gandhi, however, disagreed and instead posed a counter question: “What is the definition of a crisis ?how would you describe a crisis.”