Dharamsala, January 9
Brij Bihari Butail, Palampur MLA and member of the rival camp to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, was today unanimously elected Speaker of the 12th Vidhan Sabha.

His name was proposed by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Minister for Agriculture Sujjan Singh Pathania and Leader of Opposition PK Dhumal.

The appointment of Butail as Speaker elated the rival camp as they saw it as their triumph after being given raw treatment in the allotment of portfolios and posts of chairpersons of various important boards and corporations in the state.

While speaking in the Assembly on the appointment of Butail as Speaker, Kaul Singh Thakur, Minister for Health and Family Welfare, thanked the party high command for the appointment. He also thanked the Chief Minister for the unanimous election of Butail to the post of Speaker.

During his address, the Chief Minister said Butail was a seasoned politician and had enough experience as a legislator.

While speaking on the occasion, Leader of Opposition PK Dhumal expressed hope that the newly appointed Speaker would protect the interests of all the members of the House.

Maheshwar Singh, lone MLA of the Himachal Lokhit Party, said, “I have faith that independent candidates and the HLP will also be allowed to raise their voice in the House”.

The Chief Minister and the Leader of Opposition accompanied the Speaker to the chair after the election as per the tradition of the House.

Later, after the Assembly session, the rival camp of Virbhadra held parleys and finalised their future strategy by holding a meeting in the Assembly complex and later in Dharamsala.

Political observers here are also giving importance to the presence of Union Minister for Culture Chandresh Kumari at Dharamsala these days. Virbhadra Singh managed a party ticket for his loyalist Sudhir Sharma from Dharamsala and he won.

The sources here said Chandresh Kumari and Asha Kumari were also holding parlays at Dharamsala.

Dharamsala, January 9
Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has rejected the idea put forward by Leader of Opposition Prem Kumar Dhumal that the post of Deputy Speaker should be left for the Opposition.

Dhumal had yesterday proposed that the Congress could start a tradition of leaving the post of Deputy Speaker for the Opposition.

The Chief Minister, reacting to the proposal, said, “You shall reap whatever you have sown”.

He said in 1998, when Dhumal was elected as the Chief Minister for the first time, the Congress had a strength of 31 MLAs in the House. It was reduced to 30 when Baijnath MLA Sant Ram passed away. However, the BJP even denied the post of Leader of Opposition to the Congress.

About reconstituting the administrative tribunal, the Chief Minister said a decision would be taken only in consultation with government employees.

The administrative tribunal, which was authorised to decide cases regarding service matters of government employees, mostly transfers, was abolished by the previous BJP government. The Congress during its election campaign had promised to re-constitute the tribunal.

About two campuses of Central University of Himachal Pradesh at Dharamsala and Dehra as proposed by the previous government, the Chief Minister said the idea to set up an institute in Kangra district was mooted by the Congress in 2007.

The previous government decided to set up a major portion of the university in Dehra just because the area fell under the Hamirpur parliamentary constituency represented by the son of the former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh alleged.

However, Minister for Urban Development Sudhir Sharma had said he would shift the entire Central university campus to Dharamsala.

When asked if the party would take disciplinary action against Doon MLA Ram Kumar Chaudhary, who was yesterday arrested in the Jyoti murder case, the Chief Minister said if found guilty, proper action would be taken against him.

The Chief Minister attended a thanksgiving rally of PTA teachers near the HP Assembly Complex.

Dharamsala, January 9
Maintenance of efficiency and discipline in bureaucracy would be the prime concern of the newly elected Congress government.

This was stated by Governor Urmila Singh while addressing the 12th Assembly of the state during the second day of winter session here today.

Outlining the policy statement of the new government, the Governor said corruption would not be tolerated in any form and all cases of corruption would be inquired into independently.

She said employees were the very backbone of any government. “Victimisation of elected representatives and of certain sections of society through government machinery in the past five years will be stopped and the present government will discourage politicisation of employees,” she added.

The government would control the fast-growing problem of unemployment and complete ongoing projects, she said.

The government would undertake all measures to protect the interests of small farmers. The present government would give high priority to promote the horticulture sector, the Governor said.

Farm diversification, timely and adequate supply of inputs and organisation of appropriate marketing and processing schemes would be the central themes of farm policy of the present government, she said.

Shimla, January 9
Tussle among top Congress leaders of the state has forced the party high command to appoint a middle-rung leader from Hamirpur district, Sukhvinder Singh, as the officiating president of the Pradesh Congress Committee.

He has been a “compromise candidate” and not a “choice” of either Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh or the rival camp headed by Kaul Singh. It is obvious that after losing out the key post of Speaker to BB Butail of the rival camp, the Virbhadra Singh camp has to settle for a “compromise candidate” for the coveted post of the state party chief.

The high command has not taken kindly to the decision of Virbhadra Singh to reward his own loyalists, mostly defeated candidates, with plum posts of chairpersons of various boards and corporation without taking it into confidence. The rival camp has used the issue to the hilt to put the Chief Minister on the back foot and managed to have its way in the appointment of Speaker.

There were several names for the PCC chief from both the camps, including senior leaders like GR Musafir, Viplove Thakur, Rangila Ram Rao and Chander Kumar, but the Congress high command finally considered only three names. Besides Sukhvinder Singh, the names of Asha Kumari and Harsh Wardhan were also shortlisted.

According to party sources, Congress president Sonia Gandhi opted for Sukhvinder keeping in view his wider acceptability. As he was picked up ahead of several senior leaders, the party decided to appoint an “officiating president” instead of a regular incumbent to the top post.

Sukhvinder has been a long-time loyalist of veteran Congress leader Vidya Stokes, who is now backing Virbhadra Singh, and also has a good rapport with Union Minister Anand Sharma, whose “word matters” with the high command. AICC general secretary Birender Chaudhary, who is the in charge of party affairs in the state, was also in his favour. When factional war in the party was at its peak, Sukhvinder, along with a group of young legislators, had taken the initiative to bridge differences, He even succeeded in bringing Virbhadra Singh and Vidya Stokes closer. This also helped him as the high command took notice of his efforts to unite warring leaders.

He has risen from the party ranks and remained president of the state NSUI for six years. He also has a distinction of heading the State Youth Congress for the longest term of over nine years. He entered the electoral politics by successfully contesting the Shimla Municipal Corporation poll and, thereafter, went on to win the Nadaun Assembly seats in 2003 and 2007, but lost in the recent election.

Hamirpur, January 9
The appointment of Sukhvinder Singh as the officiating president of the Himachal Pradesh Congress Committee (HPCC) has come as a big morale booster for him after his defeat in the last Assembly election in the Nadaun constituency.

Sukhvinder, who was aspiring to get a Cabinet berth in the present Congress government, was quite dejected after his defeat to make it to the present Assembly this time.

He was denied a post of Chief Parliamentary Secretary in the last Virbhadra Singh government due to factional acrimony between him and the Chief Minister at that time.

However, factors this time seemed more in his favour as he was sure to become a minister after burying hatchet with his mentor Vidya Stokes and Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh during the last Assembly election.

His appointment has also come as a great relief for Congressmen in Hamirpur district as after the defeat of Anita Thakur and Sukhvinder, they were finding themselves at a loss and would now have some solace that their leader has been made the HPCC president.

Sukhvinder’s supporters are jubilant over his appointment and burst crackers and distributed sweets in Hamirpur and Nadaun.

Raj Dhiman, his staunch supporter and leader of Mahila Congress, said, “It is an honour for Sukhvinder to become the HPCC chief and he will definitely strengthen the party in the state in general and Hamirpur in particular”.

Panchkula, January 9
In a major revelation in the Jyoti murder case, it has come to light that Doon MLA Ram Kumar Chaudhary, who surrendered yesterday, was wearing the look of a ‘sardar’ with turban and beard during the entire period of his hiding in Punjab to avoid identification.

According to the police, during his hiding, a high-profile political leader from Punjab had given shelter to Chaudhary, near Kharar, in his house.

“Chaudhary, who always maintains clean-shaven look, had worn the look of a ‘sardar’ and for that purpose had kept a long beard too. He also wore a turban so that the police may mistake him for someone else,” said a senior Panchkula police official.

He added, “To avoid identification near the Panchkula court also, the MLA was wearing the look of a sardar”.

Chaudhary’s surrender had kept many guessing about his surrender as to whether it was a forced or a voluntary one.

Police sources said it was his brother Harbhajan’s mistake, who was granted bail recently, which landed Chaudhary in trouble when the police followed his car and got the information about Chaudhary’s whereabouts near Kharar.

It was yesterday morning when newly elected Doon MLA Ram Kumar Chaudhary, wanted in the Jyoti murder case, surrendered before the Panchkula court. Chaudhary surrendered on the day he had to take oath at the oath taking ceremony for elected legislatures at Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh.

Jyoti (24) was found murdered on November 22, near Sector 21, Panchkula. The deceased, who hailed from Hoshiarpur, was reportedly in touch with the MLA.

Meanwhile, the police is searching for his accomplices at the same political leader’s house, who had given shelter to Chaudhary.

The Panchkula police is looking for Gurmeet, Dharampal and Paramjeet, who are still absconding. It is suspected that the same leader has given shelter to them as well.

Shimla, January 9
The Himachal Pradesh High Court today directed the state government to amend its transfer policy and categorise all the stations in the state under different categories by February 28. The court passed the order on petitions filed by government servants challenging their transfer orders.

The court directed that no transfer should be ordered at the behest of a party worker or any other person who has no connection with the legislature and executive. These persons have no right to recommend that an employee should be posted at a particular place. The court further cautioned that any violation of these directions shall be treated to be contempt of the orders of this court.

While passing the order, the Bench comprising Justice Deepak Gupta and Justice Rajiv Sharma observed: “This court is flooded with litigation filed by employees aggrieved by their transfer and sometimes even by their non-transfer when they are not shifted out of tribal areas. The time has come when we must lay down the law with regard to the powers of the legislators to influence transfers. Should political pressure and political influence be necessary to run the administration? Should transfers be ordered on the asking of the legislators, members of a particular ruling party, persons belonging to certain groups without even making a reference to the administrative department concerned? Is the policy of transfer always binding upon the government and its employees or can the government flout with impunity the policy framed by it? No doubt, the employer is the master and can decide which employee is to be posted at which particular place, but we must remember that we are governed by the Constitution of India.”

It further observed: “Does not each and every employee have a right to claim that he should be treated fairly? Why is it that favoured employees, who are either well-connected or can exercise political or bureaucratic clout, are never transferred out of the main cities and those employees, who do not enjoy such political or bureaucratic patronage, have to stay in remote/tribal areas for years on end. Another disturbing feature which we have found is that in Himachal Pradesh after the period earmarked for normal transfers is over, the transfers have to be ordered only after approval of the competent authority which normally is the Chief Minister.”

Mandi, January 9
Rash, reckless and drunken driving has turned out to be a major cause of road fatalities in the Mandi region registering almost 4 per cent increase in deaths due to accidents in 2012 as compared to 2011.

As many as 147 persons were killed and 794 injured in 378 accidents that took place in Mandi district in 2012-13.

According to an official police data, last year, 114 persons were killed and 766 injured in 766 road accidents. The police had installed 20 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras in the town and a mobile police patrol to check drunken and rash driving. It produced good results and yielded Rs 1.5 crore as fine from traffic violators.

The police challaned 49,000 traffic offenders under the Motor Vehicle Act in 2012 and recovered Rs 1 crore as challan fee from them this year, the data said.

The Mandi police started the management of traffic and beat policing to provide safety and security to the residents.

Beat constables were made accountable for patrolling and monitoring of crime, said Mandi Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhishek Dular.

“The idea is to give a better traffic management system and safety to the public,” he said.

As many as 532 persons were challaned for drunken driving, 2,020 for rash driving in 2012 and 297 persons for using pressure horns and 638 commuters for using cellphone while driving, the data said.

The police challaned 10,242 offenders for unauthorised parking and 11 “fake VIPs” for using red/blue lights atop their vehicles without any authority.

It also launched a special campaign to control rash bikers on the national highway, it added.

Solan, January 9
The National Regulatory Authority (NRA) has finally given its nod to the Kasauli-based Central Research Institute (CRI) to begin production of diphtheria pertussis and tetanus (DPT) vaccines from the new laboratory which has been found confirming to the World Health Organisation’s Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) norms in a recent inspection.

The CRI, thus, becomes the first public sector institute in India to have set up the latest manufacturing facility confirming to GMP norms. It was among two other institutes whose licence had been suspended in January 2008. These included the Pasteur Institute of India, Coonoor and Bacillus Calmette-Guerin Vaccine Laboratory, Guindy, as their manufacturing facilities were not confirming to the GMP norms.

The institute was now gearing up to manufacture trial batches of DPT vaccines after receipt of an official communication from the NRA. The foremost challenge for the institute would be to manufacture trial batches whose consistency would be successfully proved by the Central Drug Laboratory. This would pave way for undertaking commercial production of the vaccines for sale. Since the process could take six to nine months, the institute had a challenging task in initiating production right from step one.

The new facility, established at a cost of Rs 54 crore, has an installed capacity to manufacture 1,000 lakh doses of DPT vaccines per annum. Since the manufacturing process is in a nascent stage, the institute had declined to accept any targets for the next financial year and it had fallen short of fulfilling its targets for the current year from the old manufacturing facility whose licence is due to expire in February.

The suspension of production had led the government to purchase costly vaccines from the private sector.