|
|
|
|
|
Contract killer arrested in Yudhbir murder case
Bhatt, Teerath demand CBI probe into role of Harak Rawat
|
|
|
Knew Sudha only as a party worker, says Cabinet minister
 Dehradun, August 13Cabinet minister Harak Singh Rawat, who is at the centre of a controversy after a woman arrested for the murder of his former personal secretary told the police about her proximity to the Congress leader, today clarified that he knew the woman only as a party worker. Harak Singh Rawat
Special rituals performed on birth anniversary of Tulsi Das
Nurses defer agitation
Heavy downpour in Mussoorie results in landslides
Kanwar mela police officers felicitated
Two of a family killed in house collapse
Cop accused of exploiting woman surrenders
Shaheed Sthal foundation stone on August 18
students’ Poll
Khukri Football Club win match
|
|
Contract killer arrested in Yudhbir murder case
Dehradun, August 13 The police nabbed Hari Om Vashisht, resident of Shastri Nagar, Meerut, along with the car which was allegedly used in the murder on Monday from Bulandshahr after four days of hide and seek, claims Kewal Khuranna, SSP, Dehradun. The police said Sudha Patwal, who was arrested on Sunday evening, knew Hari Om and she had taken Rs 8 lakh in July from him to strike a land deal worth Rs 40 lakh in Dehradun. However, Hari Om found that the papers were forged and he was pressurising Sudha to return his money. Sudha Patwal reportedly called Hari Om to Dehradun to take his money on August 6. The SSP said, “Hari Om reached Dehradun along with his associates Umesh Chaudhary and Sanjeev to take back his money. On the other hand, Sudha Patwal called Yudhbir Singh Rawat on August 8 to meet her at Vaibhav Sweets in Indra Nagar so that she could return his Rs 14 lakh which she had taken from him for admission in an MBBS course that she had failed to get done.” Meanwhile, Sudha Patwal told Hari Om, Sanjeev and Umesh that Yudhbir had been harassing her and if they killed him, she would return their money along with Rs 5 lakh extra, claims the SSP. Sudha allegedly took Yudhbir to Mussoorie Road where Hari Om, Sanjeev and Umesh were waiting for them in a car. As soon as Yudhbir and Sudha entered the car, Umesh and Sanjeev allegedly strangulated Yudhbir with a rope that resulted in his death, claims the police. “Our teams are carrying out raids in and outside Uttarakhand to nab Sanjeev and Umesh, who also have a criminal history and cases have been registered against them in Meerut, Shamli, Haridwar and Ghaziabad,” said Kewal Khuranna. Umesh Chaudhary belongs to Shamli and Sanjeev is a resident of Kankhal, Haridwar. The police had arrested the alleged conspirator Sudha Patwal on Sunday from Dehradun and she is at present in judicial custody. She was arrested for the alleged murder of Yudhbir Singh Rawat, former aide of Uttarkhand Cabinet minister Harak Singh Rawat. Yudhbir was found mysteriously dead on Friday morning at Rajpur Road.
|
|
Bhatt, Teerath demand CBI probe into role of Harak Rawat
Dehradun, August 13 “The house of a Cabinet minister has become a refuge of a murderer who was known to the minister and by her own admission was arrested from his residence by the police,” said Ajay Bhatt at a joint press conference today. He said the CBI inquiry would be able to expose the plot behind the murder of the minister’s aide and the admission racket in which MBBS seats were up for sale. “As Harak Rawat holds the portfolio of the Minister for Medical Education, a racket of this kind cannot operate without his knowledge. It seems that the government is keen to limit the case to the arrest of Sudha Patwal. On the other hand we believe that there are several big players involved,” said Bhatt. He said that the BJP would raise the issue in the coming Assembly session. Reiterating the demand for a CBI probe into the incident, Teerath Singh Rawat said the BJP would burn the effigy of the Bahuguna government in the entire state as a mark of protest, and in case the government failed to concede to their demand for a CBI inquiry, the party would be forced to launch a statewide agitation. Rawat said after the incident, the reputation of the state had nose-dived and the Chief Minister should immediately sack the minister. “After the arrest of Sudha Patwal, who acknowledged her presence at the house of the minister, there is no doubt that admission racket was running under the protection of the minister,” alleged Rawat. However, CM Bahuguna, while talking to medipersons, today rejected the demand for a CBI probe. Meanwhile, both the factions of the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal, led by Trivender Singh Panwar and Kashi Singh Aeri, today demanded a CBI inquiry into case. Addressing the media today, Panwar said Sudha Singh Patwal who allegedly hired contractual killers to eliminate Yudhbir Singh Rawat was in the town for several days and was arrested from Harak Singh Rawat's house. Despite these facts, the police took three days to make the arrest. He said that it showed that the police was acting under pressure from the state government. He said in this high-profile case, where the matter was indirectly connected to a state Cabinet minister, the probe must be conducted by the CBI. Raising fingers at the irregularities being committed in educational institutions related to engineering, medical and management courses, he said:''Money is playing a big role in facilitating admissions in the allocation of seats in engineering , medical and management courses in the education institutions in the state. This way the children of poor people of hills can never think of a bright career in future.'' Meanwhile, the city president of Aeri faction, Virender Singh Bisht, too, demanded CBI enquiry into the Yudhbir Singh Rawat's murder.
|
|
Knew Sudha only as a party worker, says Cabinet minister
Dehradun, August 13 The minister's public relations officer Vijay Chauhan said Sudha Patwal, who was arrested yesterday in connection with the killing of Harak Rawat's former personal secretary Yudhbir Singh, visited the minister's office as other party workers did and the minister knew her only as an ordinary Congress member. Chauhan refuted the woman's claim that she had been arrested from the minister's residence. "Sudha was not a regular visitor to the minister's residence as she came there only once in five or six months," he said. The statement given to the police by Sudha that she knew the minister very well and was arrested from his residence created a flutter in political circles here. Meanwhile, Dehradun SSP Kewal Khurana also refuted Sudha's claim, saying she was arrested from the city's posh Vasant Vihar locality. Not new to controversies, Rawat had to quit his ministerial post in 2003 when an unmarried mother levelled allegations against him. Rawat was the state Revenue Minister at that time in the ND Tiwari's government. Subsequently, Rawat had got a clean chit from the CBI in the case. When the Congress came to power in Uttarakhand last year, Rawat was one of the strong contenders for the post of Chief Minister. — PTI
|
|
Special rituals performed on birth anniversary of Tulsi Das
Haridwar, August 13 A special shobha yatra was carried out in the city by saints to mark the anniversary of the revered saint Tulsi Das,who was born in the year 1532. Special worship and rituals were carried out at Tulsi Chowk at Mayapur, where, at the statue of Tulsi Das, devotees offered flowers. Notably, most of the works of Tulsi Das are about Lord Sri Ram, with two exceptions being Krishna-Gitavali and Parvati-Mangal dedicated to Lord Krishna and marriage of Lord Shiva with deity Parvati. Meanwhile, tributes were also paid to revered saint Brahamleen Maha Mandaleshwar Swami Shuk Dev Muni Maharaj on his 26th death anniversary here today. Speaking on the occasion, revered saint Swami Kapil Muniji Maharaj of Hare Ram Ashram said that Swami Shuk Dev Muniji Maharaj worked for religious as well as social causes, leading a noble life. The saint said that Swami Shuk Dev Muni was one such saint who worked for religion and society, and whose contribution as saint and social community was still remembered today. Founder of Hare Ram Ashram Swami Shuk Dev was paid tributes by a large number of saints at the ashram, which was founded by him on Ganga ghat. Literati Acharya Vishnu Dutt Rakesh pointed out that Shuk Dev Muniji was well versed in Vedic literature, who propagated Vedic knowledge and Sanskrit language. Head of the Hare Ram Ashram Swami Kapil Muniji Maharaj also lauded the guru-shishya (teacher-pupil) tradition, being followed by disciples of Shuk Dev Muni and imparting it to the next generation. Among noted saints who paid tributes were Mahant Mahendra Singh, Darshan Singh, Shuk Dev Muniji , Sadwanand, Acharya Hari Haranand, Ravi Das Shastri, Swami Rupendra Prakash, Mahant Shyam Prakash, Ravi Muni, Gurmukh Das, Deveshwaranand, Swami Ganeshand, Swami Bharat Muni and office bearers of the Hare Ram Ashram trust. A special narration of Sri Ram Charit Manas katha, penned by Tulsi Das, is being done at Chetan Jyoti Ashram ,Bhoopatwala. Baba Hatyogi, national spokesperson of All India Akhada Council, said that Lord Rama essayed the role of a perfect human being , able king, son and brother, whose depiction by Tulsi Das in Sri Ram Charit Manas was done in such a way that the common man could also understand the revered epic. Swami Rishiswaranand Maharaj said that sermon of Shri Ram katha at the holy Ganga ghat and in the city of Haridwar , which is door to Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva, was a blessing in itself. Murari Bapu said that Lord Hanuman, ardent follower of Lord Rama, was a symbol of love ,affection, intelligence and physical power.
|
|
Nurses defer agitation
Dehradun, August 13 “We have decided to postpone our agitation till further notice as the government has given us a written assurance that our eight-point charter of demands will be taken up by it soon,” said Laxmi Punetha, PRO, Uttarakhand Nurses'
Association. The decision of the nurses has given a huge relief to the authorities of the three government hospitals.
|
|
Heavy downpour in Mussoorie results in landslides
Mussoorie, August 13 However, much to the relief of the local administration, no loss of life was reported from the area. The Met Department had warned of moderate to heavy rainfall. The weather gods kept their word literally. A slight drizzle that began yesterday evening soon turned into a furious downpour accompanied by thunder and lightning. The road from Jharipani to Chuna Khala was blocked at several places due to the mud slip, causing inconvenience to the commuters. The sidewalls of a private hotel also caved in near Camel's Back Road, resulting in blocking of vehicular traffic for a few hours. The Municipal Council had to deploy additional workforce to clear the roads to make them conducive for vehicular movement. Two trees were uprooted due to the heavy overnight rains near Mussoorie Girls' Inter College and near Rogia Kothi in Company Garden. The caretaker of the house at Rogia Kothi informed that he had a miraculous escape as the uprooted Devdaar tree triggered by overnight rain fell just beside their outhouse, and not on the house, otherwise it could have resulted in injuries. When contacted the DFO, Mussoorie, Dheeraj Pandey, said that due to heavy rains the soil gets loosened and the trees have to bear the brunt of the rain fury. He further said that it was impossible to identify which tree could be uprooted but he had given clear directions to subordinates to identify the areas which could be affected due to rains in the near future, and if any remedial measure was possible, it would be taken without any further delay. Meanwhile, the Municipal Council is assessing the damage and had begun the exercise to repair the roads under its jurisdiction on a priority basis. The incessant rains have also revealed the shoddy patch work done by the PWD prior to the start of summer season as the patch work done had come out at several places on Mall Road much to the ire of tourists and residents alike. The work of patching Mall Road was done by PWD a few months back amounting to several lakhs but all the work had been undone due to the shoddy construction carried out by contractors. The social and political activist, Megh Singh Kandari, blamed lack of quality and system of commission and omission in the PWD as the main reason for the bad condition of the roads. The roads have also begun caving in at several places on Mall Road revealing the non-chalant attitude of the PWD, added Megh Singh Kandari. Assistant Engineer, PWD, DC Nauityal, when contacted said that they did not get ample amount of time to complete the work due to the peak season that was knocking on the doors of the town, but despite that the officials have done the work maintaining the prescribed quality standard but the rains had played spoil sport this season. However, the sun shined brightly for a few hours after noon on the town much to relief of the people who had been waiting in anticipation for the bright sunny day from the past couple of months. Housewives were seen soaking their clothes dry under the rare warm sunny day and many hotels opened their rooms for the warm air to remove the monsoon stench. The Met Department is not ruling out more rains in the coming days in the town.
|
|
Kanwar mela police officers felicitated
Haridwar, August 13 SSP, Kanwar mela force, Rajeev Swaroop, SP Jagdeesh Singh Bhandari, circle officers Jodh Ram Joshi, Rajesh Bhatt and Chandra Mohan Negi were felicitated by saints today. The Bada Akhada and the Udasin Panchayati Akhada organised a felicitation function here today in which Mahant Ravindra Puri Maharaj and Mahant Ramanandapuri Maharaj honoured the police officers for their pivotal role in ensuring the smooth conduct of the Kanwar fair that concluded on August 5. The Mahants said, “The Haridwar police plays a major role in the peaceful and successful completion of Mahakumbh, Ardhkumbh, Kanwar Mela and religious baths. They added despite limited resources at its disposal the Kanwar mela force worked round the clock for a fortnight and managed millions of Kanwariyas. The SSP thanked the saints for recognising the efforts of the mela police. He said such felicitation functions motivated the police force to work harder on next assignment. He referred to the challenges faced during the Kanwar fair and said 1.25 crore Kanwariyas thronged Uttarakhand, with a majority of them entering from the Haridwar side. “The mela force personnel were given the mantra of playing the role of friend and a guide first rather than of police. It was not an easy task for a few thousand police personnel to manage more than one crore Kanwariyas,” he said. Circler Officers JR Joshi, Rajesh Bhatt and Chandra Mohan Negi narrated various instances when the mela police personnel averted violent situations during the Kanwar fair by observing patience, skill and calmness. Also, the mela police force was extra cautious as the Kanwar fair was going on during the Muslim holy month of Ramazan and the route of Kanwariyas passed through many Muslim-dominated areas.
|
|
|
Two of a family killed in house collapse
Dehradun, August 13 The incident happened at Ghanshali in Tehri district of the state. According to Sub-Divisional Magistrate Jagdish Lal, the incessant rains led to collapse of a house on Monday night at Kot village in Ghanshali region of Tehri resulting in the death of an aged lady and her granddaughter. According to meteorological department sources, the rains are expected to continue at number of places in Uttarakhand in the next 24 hours. Meanwhile, water level rose in Alaknanda, Bhagirathi, Mandakini and Pindar rivers. The Rishikesh-Badrinath road was also blocked at number of places due to debris and intermittent rains for the past few days.
|
|
|
Cop accused of exploiting woman surrenders
Dehradun, August 13 Sandeep had allegedly been physically exploiting a widow for the past two years on the pretext of marrying her. But he started avoiding her when she confronted him for solemnising marriage with her. He also made an obscene video of her. Earlier, a case was registered against Sandeep under Section 493 of the IPC and Section 66 (A) of the Information Technology Act on the order of SSP, Dehradun, Kewal Khurana. Sandeep has been averting arrest for the past one week. Meanwhile, the woman helpline is counselling the victim, who has undergone mental trauma. “Sandeep has been pressuring the widow not to speak the truth about their relationship publicly. He was also threatening her of dire consequences as he was in the police,” Sanju Sharma, advocate for the woman, told The Tribune.
|
|
|
Shaheed Sthal foundation stone on August 18
Mussoorie, August 13 MDDA officials along with Municipal Council president Manmohan Singh Mall and the chief architect visited the site to decide on laying the foundation stone for August 18. The MC president Manmohan Singh Mall said that the concerned departments discussed the design and the roadmap to carry forward the work in accordance with the popular sentiments of the people here. He also said that a museum showcasing traditional musical instruments of the hill state would also be showcased here. He further informed the media that the foundation stone would be laid on August 18 by Urban Development Minister Preetam Panwar and it would take around one year for completion. — TNS
|
|
|
NSUI declares candidates
Tribune News Service
Dehradun, August 13 State NSUI president Sumit Bhalla said Bhupendra Negi would be their candidate for the post of president in DAV PG College, while Ajay Prasad Sundriyal and Mahadev Raturi would contest on the posts in DBS College and SGRR College, respectively. It is to be noted that the NSUI is not fielding any candidate for the post of secretary general in DAV PG College.
|
|
|
Khukri Football Club win match
Dehradun, August 13 Gorkha Ranger opened the goal tally as Praveen scored the goal in the initial minutes of the game against Khukri. But Khukri came back in the game after Krishna scored the goal in the 50th minute. Mainsh’s goal in the 56th minute for Khukri proved to be the winning goal for his team in the end. In the second match played in the league, the game between Cantt Blue Club and Chandramani Club ended in a draw, with both teams scoring one goal each. Mohit from Chandramani Football Club opened the score for his team by scoring the goal in the 23rd minute, but Shobhit of Cantt Blue made it equal after scoring the goal in the 41st minute. Notably, 40 teams are participating in the district football league, which is being played at the Youth Development Football Ground in Tapovan.
|
|
|
| HOME PAGE | |
Punjab | Haryana | Jammu & Kashmir |
Himachal Pradesh | Regional Briefs |
Nation | Opinions | | Business | Sports | World | Letters | Chandigarh | Ludhiana | Delhi | | Calendar | Weather | Archive | Subscribe | E-mail | |
Dehradun, August 13
Leader of the Opposition in the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly Ajay Bhatt and president of the state BJP Teerath Singh Rawat today demanded a CBI probe into the role of Cabinet minister Harak Singh Rawat.
Heavy rains accompanied with a thunderstorm lashed the hill town of Mussoorie last night, leaving behind mudslides and uprooted trees.
However, much to the relief of the local administration, no loss of life was reported from the area.
Various social, political and religious organisations are holding functions to felicitate Kanwar Mela police personnel for the peaceful completion of the fair.
SSP, Kanwar mela force, Rajeev Swaroop, SP Jagdeesh Singh Bhandari, circle officers Jodh Ram Joshi, Rajesh Bhatt and Chandra Mohan Negi were felicitated by saints today.
