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cabinet
meet India
Gate scuffle
No justice in 45 custodial rape cases in past 8 years
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RSS man’s murder: NIA gets fresh leads
In Mumbai, organisers told to video-tape New Year parties
Tribune
Exclusive
Germany offers vast vocational training opportunities: Envoy
5 NCC cadets from Delhi drown in Periyar river
Tea estate owner, wife burnt alive by workers
M’rashtra farmers oppose cash transfer under Aadhaar
Woman gang raped in TN, 10 arrested
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cabinet
meet Anita Katyal/TNS
New Delhi, December 26 Raising the matter during the Cabinet meeting today, NCP chief Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar pointed out that the government had failed to take its allies into confidence on this matter. Although known to be mild-mannered and amiable, Pawar ticked off the UPA’s crisis managers for ignoring its partners when the entire country was exercised over the specific case of the brutal gang rape of a 23-year-old paramedical student in a moving bus in the national capital and the general lack of safety measures for women in public spaces. UPA sources said the NCP leader pointed out that Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde did not inform the allies about the incident or the measures initiated by the government to deal with the snowballing public resentment to tackle the situation. This issue came up after the Cabinet had disposed off its official business. Pawar’s mild rebuke led to a general discussion on this issue with several ministers expressing their concern over this incident. Almost all members who spoke were also worried about the rape survivor’s health condition. Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad briefed his Cabinet colleagues about the measures which had been taken to ensure the best treatment to the young girl who, he said, is still in a critical condition. Azad also assured the Cabinet that if necessary, the government would take the young girl abroad for treatment.
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India
Gate scuffle Tribune News Service
New Delhi, December 26 The two men, identified as Kailash Joshi and Amit Joshi, have pleaded that the CCTV footage of Rajiv Chowk and Rithala metro stations be preserved. “I have a request. Two of the accused (Kailash and Amit) were travelling in the metro train when the protest happened. The (Rithala and Rajiv Chowk metro stations) footage has to be preserved as it is an important piece of evidence,” said Somnath Bharti, the counsel for the two accused. Metropolitan Magistrate Navita Kumari has sought replies from the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and the Delhi Police on the plea of the two brothers. The police and the DMRC have been told to file their replies by tomorrow. Amit told reporters outside the court, “Kailash and I were at the M2K mall in the afternoon of December 23. In the evening, we boarded a metro from Rithala to Rajiv Chowk. At 5.30 pm (the time of the police crackdown), we were still travelling in the metro.”
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No justice in 45 custodial rape cases in past 8 years
New Delhi, December 26 Prosecution in such matters is falling through due to the protective umbrella of Section 197 CrPC available to public servants, including the police and government officials and the personnel of armed forces and paramilitary. The Section requires prior sanction of the government to prosecute the accused if they belong to these categories and if they have been accused of a crime in the course of duty. At least 45 reported cases of custodial rape - recorded with the National Human Rights Commission - have not ended in justice simply for want of prior sanction to prosecute the police officers accused. Speaking to The Tribune today, Suhas Chakma of the Asian Centre for Human Rights (part of the civil society that reviewed the human rights situation in India for the 2012 UN Human Rights Review) admitted, “These cases are the tip of the iceberg. Law enforcement personnel enjoy virtual immunity as prior sanction is required for their prosecution even in cases of rape as per Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code and Section 6 of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act of 1958. Who is going to revisit these provisions in the law?” The centre said the Justice JS Verma Committee set up by the Centre to review the matter of speedy trial of rape cases must look into the current provisions of the CrPC and IPC which sit at the root of delay in justice. Importantly, the Supreme Court has said in one of its orders that public servants can face prosecution without prior sanction of the appropriate authorities because all their acts in the purported discharge of official duties cannot essentially be brought under the protective umbrella of Section 197 of the CrPC. There can be cases where a public servant had misused and abused his power - something that can never be part of his official duties. “All acts by a public servant in the purported discharge of his official duties cannot, as a matter of course, be brought under the protective umbrella of Section 197 CrPC. “There can be cases of misuse and/or abuse of powers vested in a public servant which can never be said to be a part of the official duties required to be performed by him,” a Bench comprising Justice Altamas Kabir and Justice Markandey Katju ruled. Whether other courts take a cue from the apex court and allow prosecution of public servants and police officers accused of grave crimes remains to be seen. NHRC records confirm that between 2002 and 2010, 45 cases of reported custodial rape were reported officially. The commission itself recorded two during 2009 and 2010, four during 2008 and 2009, 18 during 2007 and 2008, 10 during 2006-2007, five during 2005 and 2006, four during 2004 and 05 and two cases during 2002 and 2003. An estimated 5 per cent of custodial rapes get reported.
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RSS man’s murder: NIA gets fresh leads New Delhi, December 26 Sources in the NIA said that Samunder Das, alias Rajendra Chaudhary, an accused in the Samjhauta blasts case, Dhan Singh and Tej Ram — the latter two accused in two separate blasts — have indicated that Joshi was killed as he was slowly withdrawing from their ideology. Joshi’s name figured in the Ajmer dargah blast case. He was murdered in Dewas, MP, in December 2007. The group carried out a series of retaliatory blasts in Ajmer, Malegoan, Samjhauta express, Jammu, among other places. The Madhya Pradesh police had earlier arrested three more persons for the killing of Joshi. The NIA is slowly finding out the group had carried out other blasts and murders also. The group is also being blamed for the attempt to kill Delhi University teacher Prof SAR Geelani in 2005.
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In Mumbai, organisers told to video-tape New Year parties
Mumbai, December 26 At a meeting with police officers, representatives of hotel owners were told that they would have to record proceedings and provide footage to the local police station on demand. "The police told us that the footage would help in investigating crimes like eve-teasing and theft of mobile phones on hotel premises," Sudhakar Shetty, president, Association of Hotel Owners (AHAR) said. He added that the footage would also help the police crack down on overcrowding at establishments like night clubs. In the past, the police have raided night clubs and discos on complaints of overcrowding and staying open beyond the 1.30 am deadline. The opposition to the police order, however, is building up. "People who want to let their hair down at parties will hesitate if they know we are recording them," an event manager in suburban Mumbai said. The police say installation of CCTVs is becoming common in public places and even in hotel lobbies, so people are fast becoming used to it. The police have also clarified that CCTVs should not be installed at washrooms and changing rooms. The police say they receive regular complaints of eve-teasing and violence during parties where liquor flows freely. Footage from CCTVs would enable them to nab the culprits faster, says the police. Incidentally, the entertainment tax department of the Maharashtra Government has also backed installation of CCTVs at party venues. Event organisers have been asked to submit footage so that the department officials can verify claims of entertainment tax deposited by them, sources said.
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Tribune
Exclusive Asks Bihar Govt to amend law that keeps a Buddhist from becoming chief Aditi Tandon/TNS
New Delhi, December 26 The commission has intervened in the matter after receiving hundreds of representations from Buddhists across the world. They are stepping up their agitation over denial of rights to the community to manage their single most important place of worship. The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya complex in Bihar is being administered under the archaic state-enacted law - The Bodh Gaya Temple Act, 1949 - which provides for a nine-member committee headed by a Secretary to run the affairs of the shrine. The legislation queerly says the District Magistrate of Gaya will be the Secretary of the temple management committee, provided he is a Hindu. If he is a non-Hindu, a Hindu will be appointed from outside to head the committee. “This is discriminatory and we have asked the Bihar Government to amend the law to remove the clause that hurts the sentiments of the Buddhists. The community has been feeling aggrieved for years. We have also written to the Centre to see if they can intervene,” chairperson of NCM Wajahat Habibullah told The Tribune today. The management committee comprises eight Hindu members, four Buddhists and a Secretary who has to be a Hindu under the law, thus tilting the temple management in favour of the Hindus. “We have asked the community to consider moving the state High Court against the law. They have a strong case,” Habibullah said. Of late, Hindus have started performing rituals (such as ‘pind daan’) at the Bodh Gaya Complex, which primarily houses the Mahabodhi Temple and a small Shaivite temple where a “Shiva lingam” stands. “The control of the temple is slipping out of our hands and that’s unfortunate. We have a strong case to wrest the management back, considering people from Gaya are now routinely performing Hindu rituals in the Mahabodhi Temple complex,” says Shantam Seth, an eminent Buddhist. The community is also concerned over the findings of the Archaeological Survey of India, which has said the tree under which Lord Buddha attained enlightenment is showing signs of decay. The temple complex was declared a World Heritage Site in 2002 and attracts generous donations from across the world, which the Buddhists say is the root of the problem. Followers are contemplating moving courts for the control of the shrine. Recently, a Buddhist organisation petitioned the Supreme Court in the matter and more organisations are planning to come forward now. The last major organised protest to bring Mahabodhi Temple’s control back to the Buddhists was led in the 1990s by Shuryu Sasai, a Buddhist monk of Japanese origin settled in India for years. Representing Ambedkar Buddhists who constitute 80 per cent of the eight million Buddhists in India, Sasai later became a member of the Minority Commission. He could not accomplish his mission though. The Buddhists say the control of their temple rests with the Hindus by virtue of a favourable law as also the fact that most Buddhist members of the Temple Management Committee are outsiders, unlike Hindu members who are locals and may thus exert more power.
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Germany offers vast vocational training opportunities: Envoy
Chandigarh, December 26 After having remained a virtually closed society since the 60s, Germany had realised that there is need to bring in students, workforce and specialists as it needs skilled workers, the ambassador said during a visit to The Tribune today. He was accompanied by his wife Eliese. Highlighting the advantages of studying in Germany, Steiner said the country had good universities that provided education free of cost with good job opportunities and offered courses in English with the prospect of learning German which could further empower students. He also pointed out that here was a dual training system in Germany, where an apprentice worked in a company on a stipend for three days a week, got valuable practical training and went for theoretical classes for two days a week. Terming India to be an anchor of stability in South Asia, he said the potential of bilateral trade was enormous. German corporate honchos had a tradition for making strategic investments with a long-term perspective and Germany was trying to get Indian investments, which he said, was the safest way for German economy to develop. He said while India offered several advantages, some issues like infrastructure and procedures were challenging areas. German companies, he added, were making more money from China in the short term. Steiner, a former national security adviser to the German government and an expert on Af-Pak issues, also spoke about the post-9/11 role of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan, the reasons behind western countries sending in troops to that country and how their experiences led to change and evolution of strategy to meet their goal. He also discussed the post-2014 scenario, when international forces are stated to withdraw from Afghanistan and how Pakistan could play a meaningful role in post-2014 developments.
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Gen VK Singh, military deals were in sharp focus
New Delhi, December 26 It was an eventful first half when several unprecedented events cast a shadow on civil-military relations and also the Indian Army got divided on ethnic lines like never before. Moreover, Gen VK Singh’s actions also exposed the under-belly of murky defence deals. In January, Gen VK Singh did the unprecedented by becoming the first serving Army Chief to move the Supreme Court against the government seeking a correction to his date of birth (DoB). The apex court was not in favour of entertaining the petition asking that his DoB may be treated as May 10, 1951, instead of May 10, 1950. Gen VK Singh withdrew his petition. In March, he levelled allegations against Lt Gen Tejinder Singh (retd) saying he offered him a Rs 14-crore bribe for okaying the purchase of Tatra heavy-duty trucks. As a result, the truck purchase was halted, the CBI registered a case on the allegations while VRS Natrajan, Chief of Bharat Earth Movers Limited, the India collaborator for the Tatra Trucks, was suspended. In all this, Defence Minister AK Antony told Parliament that he had asked Gen VK Singh to take action (on the bribe offer) but he did not want to pursue the matter for unknown reasons. Antony said
he himself did not act on the allegations, as he had not received any written complaint from the Army Chief. After a few more twists and turns, new Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh took over on June 1. He would not have made it to the top had Gen VK Singh’s plea on his DoB been accepted. As Gen VK Singh retired, Antony set the tone with curt message to the officialdom and the Army saying “carry no baggage of the past and the bitter developments” should not be carried forward. In the middle of this, in April, a few retired Defence and civilian personnel moved the Supreme Court and tried to give a communal angle to the elevation of Gen Bikram Singh, saying Sikh groups had lobbied for him. The Supreme Court struck it down and refused to entertain the plea. On international front, India conducted the first ever Joint Committee on Defence Cooperation with Saudi Arabia. On the security front, India in April entered the exclusive club of countries having long-range ballistic missile capability when it fired the Agni-V to reach a point 5,000 km away in the Indian Ocean with remarkable accuracy. In November, the DRDO displayed its progress on the Ballistic Missile Defence (BMD) capability against missiles. The air interceptor missile was demonstrated to hit an incoming missile at an altitude of 15 km. Antony did his bit for ex-servicemen by allowing dual pension for ex-servicemen who have also worked on the civilian side of the government. The ministry also enhanced pensions for those who retired before January 1, 2006.
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5 NCC cadets from Delhi drown in Periyar river
Malayatoor (Kerala), Dec 26 As part of the camp, the cadets were taken for trekking through different routes daily and today they went to the Mahagony Forest Plantation at Moolamkuzhi near the river, a senior NCC official said. The boys went into the river to click photographs and were caught in the whirlpool moments after which they drowned, Lt Col Madhusoodanan, Administrative Officer, NCC, who was in the camp, said. "There are standing orders in all NCC camps not to go to the water bodies. The boys were also told not to get into the water. But they said they are just going to click some photographs", he said. The deceased were identified as Hemant (15), a school student, Mohammed Dishan (19), Sabeesh Baqri (19), Dilshad Alam (18) and Gulvez Ahamed (18), college students. An inquiry has been ordered into the incident, a Defence press release said. A pall of gloom descended on the camp following the incident. Over 1,000 NCC cadets from across the country have congregated at Malayattoor for the 8-day national level trekking camp which began on December 23. The camp was being organised by the Ernakulam NCC Group of Kerala NCC Directorate. The Ministry of Defence has ordered a probe into the incident. — PTI
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Tea estate owner, wife burnt alive by workers
Guwahati, December 26 The police recovered the bodies of Bhattacharrya and his wife Rita from the bungalow in the tea estate under the Bordumsa police station in Tinsukia district. Tinsukia Deputy Commissioner SS Meenakshi Sundaram said the incident occurred at around 4.30 pm today when over 700 irate tea plantation labourers gheraoed the bungalow of Bhattacharrya and set it aflame. “While four persons have been reported missing, two bodies burnt beyond recognition are suspected to be that of Bhattacharrya and his wife. The manager of the tea garden and his wife are the other two persons who were in the bungalow when the mob set fire to it, but their whereabouts are not immediately known,” the official said.
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M’rashtra farmers oppose cash transfer under Aadhaar
Mumbai, December 26 Opponents of direct cash transfer say the government has not yet updated lists containing people below the poverty line and the data used by the authorities are more than five-year old. The Vidarbha Jan Andolan Samiti alleged that more than 50 lakh people have been left out of lists that tabulated below poverty line families in the region. Villagers in Amravati district where the first phase of the programme is to be rolled out next month have roped in Nationalist Congress Party leader Sharad Pawar to back their cause. At a rally in the area on Monday, Pawar openly opposed the move to transfer cash to people on the basis of Aadhar cards. According to reports, Pawar said direct cash transfers in lieu of subsidies must be scrapped since the poor do not want it. However, district administration officials told this reporter that concerns in the district were mainly about whether the funds would actually reach the people. “People are worried that money to be transferred under the cash transfer scheme will not reach them. We are trying to make them understand that the money will go directly to their bank accounts,” a senior state government official said. The government has, however, chosen to disburse only subsidies for cooking gas cylinders under the Aadhaar-based scheme from next month.
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Woman gang raped in TN, 10 arrested
Virudhachalam (TN), Dec 26 Ten person were arrested in connection with the incident yesterday, police said. The woman, hailing from Gurumangalam village near here in Cuddalore district, was speaking to her relative on the banks of the river when the gang members pounced on them. The gang attacked the women's relative when he tried to protect her and later raped her, police said. Based on the women's complaint, police registered a case and admitted her to Mundiampakkam Medical College hospital. — PTI
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Chandigarh, December 26
