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Justice Kuldip tribunal reveals ‘forgery’ in Abhipur records
Voices for impartial probe getting louder
Cong wants ‘real’ culprits caught, to meet Shinde
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Notification on industrial policy delayed
A Clarification
Bajwa: Sangat Darshan a farce
Pensioners in 17 districts not paid since June
Moga hospital ‘shoos away’
HIV-positive pregnant woman
Amritsar airport gets hi-tech ground station
Key administrative posts lying vacant in Gurdaspur
Mysterious death of bovines baffles police
Kin of farmers killed during stirs to get jobs
Religious bias: Firm to pay $50,000 to Sikh job seeker in US
Kirpan case: Partial victory for petitioner
Gender sensitisation panel sought
Morinda SHO suspended in sexual assault case
6-yr-old raped, killed;
body found in rivulet
Forest Department frees 76 acres from encroachers
CBI special court directed to proceed in panchayat secys’ recruitment case
2 get 5-year jail in NDPS case
Two acquitted in rape case
Four booked for terrorist activities
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Justice Kuldip tribunal reveals ‘forgery’ in Abhipur records
Chandigarh, November 20 In another village of Majri, the Tribunal also pointed out that about 90 kanals of land with Punjab Tractors Ltd, of which Punjab Government was a major shareholder till 2007, was not acquired legally. The Special Tribunal stated, “The Jamabandi for the year 1962-63 shows in the column of ownership (Malkiat) , the following picture: Jumla Malkan Wa Digar, Haqdaran Araji Hasab, Rasad Rakba Khewat (911 Kanal 17 Marla), and Panchayat Deh (595 Kanal 2 Marla). “The above position of the ownership of the land continued till the year 1996. Vide Mutation No.870 dated 26.8.1996, 809 Kanal 17 Marla of Jumla area was divided into shares and were allocated to various right holders. The fact regarding Mutation No.870 was mentioned in the Jamabandi of 1996-97. The Mutation Register shows that the mutation related to the determination of shares (Hissa Kaimi) in favour of the right holders. “The sanctioning authority A.C-2nd Grade (Sh. Gurpartap Singh) has mentioned in his order “that the shares have been determined under the orders of Additional Director Consolidation, dated 23.5.1996 (Photo-copy of the relevant page of the Mutation Register has been kept). Photo-copy has been obtained from the record in the office of Tehsildar, Kharar. The Patwari has not been able to produce the copy of the order of the Addl. Director, Consolidation. “Sh. Sohan Singh, Patwari states that he enquired from the office Kanungo in the Tehsil office, who stated there is no such order. It seems that some forged document purporting to be the order of the Additional Director Consolidation, was produced before the A.C-2nd Grade who registered the mutation. It is also possible that the Revenue officers in connivance with the right holders, may have given imagineary date and designation of Additional Director to lend authenticity to the report. The order seems to be non-existent. The second copy of the Mutation Register (Parat Patwar) shows only one line order of A.C-2nd Grade, stating that mutation No.870 has been accepted (Manzoor Hai). The said mutation has been reflected in the jamabandi for the year 1996-97. "The Sarpanch and the Secretary on careful scrutiny of the record have pointed out that some outsiders have been included in the list of those who have been assigned shares in the Jumla Mustraka Malkan land. The names of the 13 persons have been, by way of illustration, pointed out by the Sarpanch and the Secretary. “According to the Sarpanch, the above mentioned names are shown in the Jamabandi of 2006-07 as the right holders of the village to whom the shares have been assigned. The Sarpanch has stated that none of them is the right holders of the village. They have been illegally interposed in the list and have been assigned shares for obvious reasons to benefit the land grab mafia. “Out of the Panchayat deh land (measuring 595 Kanal 24 Marla), 534 Kanal 15 Marla was converted to Shamlat Hasab Rasad Rakba Khewat vide Mutation No.549 sanctioned on 28.8.1964. The Jamabandi for the year 1966-67 reflects this position. After examining the record of the Gram Panchayat with the help of Sh. Onkar Singh, it has transpired that the totality of the Shamlat land has been illegally occupied by Captain Bikramjit Singh S/o Sh. Bhupinder Singh (222 Kanal 13 Marla), Piara Singh and 153 others. “On the application of Gram Panchayat, Abhipur, Sh. Kulwant Singh, DDPO, SAS Nagar exercising the powers of Collector, ordered the eviction of Piara Singh and others vide order dated 16.9.2009. Copy of the order is on the record. On the basis of the said order, the warrant of possession No.1807 dated 1.10.2009 was issued from the office of BDPO, Majri. Warrant could not be executed because the illegal occupants obtained an interim order regarding status quo from the Civil Court. “Captain Bikaramjit Singh S/o Bhupinder Singh, R/o 95, Sector 8-A, Chandigarh filed an application before the A.C-2nd Grade for the correction of girdawari. By order dated 31.3.2006 (in Misl No.21), the A.C-2nd Grade allowed the application and ordered that Cap. Bikaramjit Singh S/o Bhupinder Singh be shown in possession of Khasra No. 40 (Min) & 44 (Min) and as such further ordered that girdawari be entered in his name. “Capt. Bikaramjit Singh filed a civil suit in the Court of Sub Judge, Kharar for permanent injunction restraining the Gram Panchayat from forcibly dispossessing him except through due process of law. The Sub Judge ordered the parties to maintain status quo regarding possession over the suit property except in due course of law. Copy of the Civil Court order has been placed on the record. The BDPO, Majri wrote letter No.141 dated 20.1.2011 to the Sarpanch Gram Panchayat, Block Majri, asking the Sarpanch to move an application before the Civil Court to have the stay order vacated. Copy of the letter is placed on the record. “According to the Sarpanch, the above possession in respect of the Jumla Mustaraka Malkan land as well as Shamlat Deh land continues on the spot. There is no effort on the part of any authority to dispossess the unauthorized occupants who are holding on their illegal possession with the help of the Revenue authorities. The matter needs urgent consideration by the High Court. According to the Tribunal, illegal occupants who are occupying large chunks of Shamlat area include Captain Bikramjit Singh, son of Bhupinder Singh (222 Kanal 13 marla). (Concluded)
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Voices for impartial probe getting louder
Addressing a press conference here, Ravi Inder alleged that the drug mafia had spread its net far and wide as was evident from the recovery of huge quantities of synthetic drug from a pharmaceutical unit in Himachal Pradesh. He alleged that the Punjab Police was functioning under pressure and, therefore, an impartial probe into the Bhola drug ring could not be expected. He demanded that investigations into the scandal be handed over to a central agency so that those involved in the drug trade were exposed. On influential persons grabbing shamlat land on Chandigarh’s periphery, Ravi Inder said legal action should be initiated against those involved in looting prime property while alleging that top politicians and bureaucrats in the state had usurped land. He flayed the state government for causing harassment to farmers by not procuring paddy in time and also burdening those residing in urban areas with taxes.
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Cong wants ‘real’ culprits caught, to meet Shinde
Chandigarh, November 20 Leader of the Opposition Sunil Jakhar said the Congress wanted that “real culprits do not escape the police net.” He said the government had refused to address the issue when raised by All-India Congress Committee vice-president Rahul Gandhi during his Punjab tour. Jakhar said the racket had exposed the involvement of politicians, powerful businessmen and the state machinery. “You cannot just blame porous borders for the rise in smuggling,” he added. But Daljit Singh Cheema, SAD secretary, dubbed the Congress move as a mere gimmick “aimed at lowering the prestige of the duly elected state government.” He said this amounted to inviting Central Government’s direct interference in state matters.” The SAD spokesman said said it was indeed ironical that instead of praising the state police and thanking Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who held the Home portfolio, for busted the international drug racke, the Congress was resorting to cheap politics on an issue affecting the youth. Cheema said even though units manufacturing synthetic drugs were uncovered in the neighbouring Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh, the PPCC was trying to tarnish the Punjab Government’s image.
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Notification on industrial policy delayed
Chandigarh, November 20 The state government was to notify the new policy today. Sources in the Industry Department told The Tribune that the Excise and Taxation Department could not notify the tax concessions promised in the new policy in time. Before the policy comes into force, three major notifications are required — on exemption from electricity duty (by PSPCL), on stamp duty (by Local Bodies) and VAT and CST concessions (by Excise and Taxation). Owing to some legal hurdles, the Excise Department had not been able to notify the tax concessions, sources said. A senior official said the notification would be issued within a few days, well before the Investment Summit in December.
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Killer bridges to be identified
Amritsar, November 20 There are a number of bridges on canals and drains which don’t have railings and are accident prone, particularly in foggy conditions. Dr Satnam Singh Ajnala said border villagers were dotted with narrow bridges without railings. These bridges reflected poor workmanship with several design faults. He claimed that residents had time and again raised the issue with the administration, but to no avail. “We’ve submitted a number of representations. But all our pleas have fallen on deaf ears. It seems the government just doesn’t care,” he said. Dr Ajnala pointed out that the public transport system too had collapsed in the border villages with neither government nor private buses plying on roads. Makhan Singh from Rajataal village, said: “The bridges need to be repaired without further delay to prevent more accidents in the winter fog,” he said. Gurnam Singh of Daoke said the bridge in his village was too narrow for big vehicles like JCBs and combines. Deputy Commissioner Ravi Bhagat said he had issued orders to the departments concerned to submit a report on all bridges without railings. “We will not only carry out repairs but also put up railings on the bridges in the border belt,” he said. Orders had been issued prohibiting people from demolishing concrete pillars raised on either side of the bridges.
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Bajwa: Sangat Darshan a farce
Chandigarh, November 20 In a press statement issued here, Bajwa alleged that the programme was a farce and a political gimmick to befool the common people. He said during the Congress rule, grants were distributed by panchayat secretaries or block development officers. Bajwa alleged Badal was disbursing grants through Sangat Darshan, which was "an insult to the people of Punjab who are being made to beg". He said: "If a village needs Rs 10 lakh for some job, the CM will give Rs 2 lakh and promise to send the balance amount soon”.
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Pensioners in 17 districts not paid since June
Chandigarh, November 20 The various categories of pensioners are old age, widow and destitute women, dependent children and differently abled. Beneficiaries in Bathinda, Muktsar, Mansa and Faridkot districts have been paid till July while those in Ferozepur have received pension till September. Official sources said no money had been given to beneficiaries in other districts since June. The schemes handled by the Department of Social Security, Women and Child Development are old age pension, financial assistance to widows and destitute women, dependent children and disabled persons. Beneficiaries under all these categories get Rs 250 per month each. Confirming the delay in payment, Gurkirat Kirpal Singh, Director of the department, said: "An amount of Rs 76 crore was sanctioned yesterday. The beneficiaries will get their payments soon. Those left out will be paid in due course". Out of the total 20 lakh beneficiaries, 14.46 lakh beneficiaries are of old-age pension, 2.97 lakh widows and destitute women, 1.23 lakh dependent children and 1.47 lakh disabled. The department gets Rs 647 crore per annum for disbursing pension. Meanwhile, the department is conducting a check to identify bogus beneficiaries. The government had informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court in September that at least 71,426 fake beneficiaries of old-age pension had been identified. At the same time, the government has recently relaxed certain conditions. Earlier, only those senior citizens having less than one acre of land and whose sons were unemployed were eligible for old-age pension. Now, senior citizens with two acres of fertile land or four acres of barren land and whose sons are working are also eligible. Beneficiaries have been raising the issue of meagre pension since long. While MLAs have managed to get a huge hike in their salaries, information procured under the RTI revealed that the old-age pension was last raised from Rs 200 per month to Rs 250 per month in 2006.
The
Scheme 2.97 lakh widows and
destitute women 1.23 lakh dependent children 1.47 lakh disabled
persons Rs 250 per month is what each of these beneficiaries
receive Rs 647 crore per annum is sanctioned for the purpose Officialspeak
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Moga hospital ‘shoos away’
HIV-positive pregnant woman
Moga, November 20 Raj Rani (name changed) of Samadh Bhai village had come to the Gynecology Department in the district hospital along with an asha worker of the area. Her husband and the worker were asked to prepare the patient file. When nurses and other staff members in the department learnt that the patient was HIV-positive, they not only misbehaved with them but also refused to admit the woman. Dr Amarjit Kaur, Chief Medical Officer, expressed shock over the incident. “I will summon the gynecologist who was on duty that day and look into the matter,” she said. She said since there was a potential danger of transmitting the disease through blood transfusion, the doctors and the paramedical staff should have taken safety measures instead of refusing to treat the woman as was being claimed. The medical staff at the Gynecology Department refused to answer media queries on the matter maintaining that they did not have standard kits to handle such cases. The victim's husband Balwinder Singh, who is not suffering from the disease, said the delivery of her wife was later conducted in the village by an untrained mid-wife.
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waterlogging
Muktsar, November 20 Talking to mediapersons during his Sangat Darshan in the Lambi assembly segment, Badal said a six-member delegation of the World Bank had met him yesterday at Patiala and apprised him of the progress of ongoing projects on potable water and sanitation in the state. The Chief Minister said: "I have asked the World Bank officials to help the state in suggesting a time-tested technology to bail out the people of this belt who had suffered extensive damage to their crops, houses and other property due to heavy rains earlier this year." He said for land which was not fit for cultivation due to waterlogging, the government would offer 30 per cent subsidy to encourage fish farming. Likewise, the Forest Department would bear the cost of nurturing poplar and eucalyptus plants for one year
to encourage the farmers to opt for agro forestry, he added. He slammed former Chief Minister and Congress leader Rajinder Kaur Bhattal for her statement on the poor financial condition of the state.
SAD factions hold separate functions
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Hoarding by jailed sarpanch raises eyebrows
Abohar, November 20 These carry a picture of the sarpanch with a congratulatory note on the honour bestowed on businessmen by Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal for being the highest tax-payers in the state. Pictures of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, the Deputy Chief Minister, BJP state president Kamal Sharma, former legislator PS Bhatti and the awarded businessmen appear on the hoarding along with that of the sarpanch. The hoarding has been put at the city bypass
terminal. Daleep Kumar Bishnoi of Bishanpura village was elected sarpanch twice, once backed by the Congress and once as a SAD worker. He was among a group of Congress workers who joined the SAD along with former MLA Bhatti. A narcotics cell team led by Sub-Inspectors Pratap Singh and Makhan Singh had reportedly intercepted Bishnoi near the Dutaranwali drain on April 27, 2008, and arrested him after recovering 1 kg opium from his bag. He was booked under the NDPS Act by Sadar police here. The court of Additional District and Session Judge sentenced him to 42 months' imprisonment and fined him Rs 35,000.
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Amritsar airport gets hi-tech ground station
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has deployed the new generation avionics system ADS-B ground stations across India at 14 airports in Jaipur, Varanasi, Ahmedabad, Nagpur, Calicut, Lucknow, Cochin, Coimbatore, Mangalore, Port Blair, Trivandrum, Agartala, Guwahati, and Amritsar. The ADS-B ground station would become operational after approval from the Director General Civil Aviation, said Suneel Dutt, Amritsar Airport Director. After its commissioning, the ATC could control airspace of about 200 km radius around Amritsar, which at present is restricted to 50 km. The ground station, which costs over Rs 25 lakh, would replace airport surveillance radar and mono pulse secondary surveillance radar which cost about Rs 10 crore. At present, the authorities are engaged in getting construction of a building to house these two radars. However, the role of ADS-B is currently limited as most aircraft do not have the corresponding technology to provide feedback of their location at the ADS-B ground station. Hence, radars continue to remain a primary force while the advanced ADS-B would act as back-up. However, the roles would be reversed in due course and radars would be an obsolete technology. ADS-B is far superior from radars. Costly radars help the staff at the ATC to learn the movement of aircraft from 128.748 km and of approaching aircraft in the sky with a mono pulse. On the other hand, ADS-B has a range of about 250 nautical miles (500 km). Dutt said testing of ADS-B had been satisfactorily completed by the AAI and Amritsar was the first airport to have submitted all necessary documents to the DGCA for regulatory approval. "Once ADS-B is commissioned at Amritsar, airlines operating to and fro Amritsar and in the airspace adjoining Amritsar will be hugely benefited as aircraft will be given direct routings by the ATC. For example, the flight to/from Mumbai will get direct routing to Amritsar airport after getting airborne from Mumbai itself with coordination between ATC centres at Amritsar, Delhi and Mumbai," he said.
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Key administrative posts lying vacant in Gurdaspur
Gurdaspur, November 20 Recently, officials found the going tough when Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal addressed two Sangat Darshans in Qadian and Fatehgarh Churian. Now with three important Kabaddi World Cup matches slated to be held here on December 4, the administration seems to be in a state of flux because there are not many officers to handle key jobs that are likely to surface just ahead of the tournament. An Akali minister admitted that officers were wary of being posted in Gurdaspur because the district, in “official parlance”, is considered to be a backward one and is not a “happening city.” “Once officers are posted here, they pull strings politically to ensure that they stay put at their places of postings. Being transferred here is considered to be a punishment posting and it is only after we adopt the carrot and stick policy that they finally decide to come here,” he admitted. The post of the Additional Deputy Commissioner (General) has been lying vacant for the past one month ever since Sukhwinder Pal Singh Marar was posted as Commissioner, Municipal Committee, Hoshiarpur. Major Amit Kumar (retd) who was posted as Assistant Commissioner (General) stayed for just a month before he was transferred as Estate Officer, Bathinda Development Authority. The most curious case pertains to JS Grewal who, apart from being the SDM (Batala), also doubles up as the Gurdaspur DTO. Not only this, he also holds the charge of Administrator of the Municipal Committees of Batala, Qadian and Fatehgarh Churian. The government is yet to post a regular SDM in the sensitive block of Dera Baba Nanak and the charge is currently being held by Gurdaspur SDM Tejinder Pal Singh Sandhu. In addition, Sandhu has also been handed over the charge of Administrator of the Gurdaspur, Dera Baba Nanak, Dinanagar and Dhariwal Municipal Committees. The district is without a regular District Revenue Officer (DRO) for the past 18 months while the post of Executive Magistrate (EM) is lying vacant for the last several years. What takes the cake is the fact that for the last 18 years, the post of ADC (General), Batala, has been lying vacant. The last incumbent posted there was NS Kalsi in 1996 and since then nobody has filled up the vacancy. Deputy Commissioner Dr Abhinav Trikha admitted that whatever officers he was left with were “stressed out”. However, at the same time, he said he had written to the state government to fill up the vacant posts to ensure that work does not suffer.
Overburdened with work
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Mysterious death of bovines baffles police
Pathankot, November 20 Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Rakesh Kumar Kaushal said the police had zeroed in on some suspects and a breakthrough would be made within next 24 hours. The SSP has formed a Special Investigation Team to investigate the deaths. Tempers ran high last week when some carcasses were found at different places in the city with many organisations suggesting that the cows could have been poisoned. Things were brought under control when the SSP held meetings with local leaders, including Pathankot MLA Ashwani Sharma. The animal nuisance has been compounded by the fact that the dairy owners in the inner parts of the town are unwilling to shift their businesses to the outskirts of the city. The MC has drafted many proposals to reallocate these dairies but the owners take political refuge to stonewall the MC’s plans. “We have asked these owners to shift their businesses outside and on many occasions, we have drawn up elaborate plans for reallocation. However, politics comes in the way as leaders know that each dairy owner has 15-20 votes and shifting them will not be politically viable for them,” said an MC official. Residents of the nearby Lamini and Manwal villages, by abandoning mules and aged horses on the roads, are also playing havoc in their own way. “Mules and horses, abandoned by irresponsible residents of these villages, have joined cows and calves to create mayhem on the streets,” said Shiv Kumar, a local resident. Anil Vij, former president of the Pathankot Municipal Committee, said the MC had constructed a shed near the circular road, covering nearly 10 kanals, to house stray bulls. However, a majority of the residents said what the MC had done was not enough. “The construction of just one shed is not enough. Moreover, there are not many Gaushalas in the town,” said a resident. Deputy Commissioner Siben C said he had meetings with NGOs to construct Nandshalas, where stray bulls could be housed. “I am aware of the gravity of the problem. The administration is hard pressed to solve the issue because in such cases there are no government funds available. We are willing to provide land but the NGOs seem to be disinterested probably due to lack of funds on their part.”
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Kin of farmers killed during stirs to get jobs
Tarn Taran, November 20 Sources said the RRDM Department had issued instructions to the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) concerned in this regard. Ranjit Singh, son of Kashmir Singh, and Harjinder Singh, brother of Balwinder Singh, residents of Khanna Chamara, Gurdaspur, would be given jobs in the group ‘D’ category. During the Khanna Chamara agitation, Balwinder Singh and Kashmir Singh were shot dead. They were taking part in the agitation launched by farmer organisations against the SGPC which was taking possession of its land being cultivated by farmers since long. Dheer Singh, a farmer from Gaggo Mahal village, Amritsar, was shot dead and now his son Gurdev Singh would be given a job on the compassionate grounds. The other beneficiaries include Baljinder Singh, son of Darshan Singh of Poola village of Bathinda, Rajwinder Kaur, daughter-in-law of Ajit Singh of Gandiwind, Malkiat Singh, son of Jagtar Singh and Gurpreet Singh, son of Sadhu Singh of Gehla village of Barnala, would be given jobs in the Group ‘D’ category, while Harmit Kaur daughter-in-law of Surjit Singh would be given a job in the Group ‘C’ category. The DCs had been ordered to adjust the said candidates against vacant posts in their respective offices. Ajit Singh, Jagtar Singh, Surjit Singh, Sadhu Singh and Darshan Singh were killed during agitations. Satnam Singh Pannu, state president, Kisan Sangarash Committee, called it the victory of farmers’ agitation.
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Sikh taxi driver awarded for honesty in Australia
Sydney, November 20 Lakhwinder Singh Dhillon found the money after dropping off a group of people at Crown Casino in Melbourne last month. Lord Mayor Robert Doyle presented Lakhwinder with a certificate of commendation, the Herald Sun reported today. Lakhwinder said the seven men and two women, whom he had picked up from Chinatown in his maxi cab, seemed very drunk. “When I saw all the money, I thought it is something amazing, what should I do,” he said. After finding the cash, he drove to a police station but he soon received a call from the owners to return the money at the casino where he dropped them. “They gave me 500 Australian dollars as reward. One of them said: ‘You are very honest, you are a very good man, you have helped us a lot’,” he said. “He is truly an inspirational Melbournian. It was the act of an honest man of integrity,” Mayor Doyle said. —
IANS
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Religious bias: Firm to pay $50,000 to Sikh job seeker in US
New Jersey, November 20 Gurpreet Kherha had filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and a lawsuit in 2009 against Tri-County Lexus, where he had applied for a position as a sales associate and was qualified for the job. EEOC said after the car dealership requested Kherha to shave his beard, he refused to comply due to his religious beliefs. The dealership denied him the job, the agency charged. According to the lawsuit, Tri-County Lexus had a ”no-beard” policy for sales and administrative personnel and it strictly enforced its dress code policy without granting reasonable religious accommodations. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Kherha by rights group Sikh Coalition and the EEOC. Under the settlement reached in the case, the car dealership would pay USD 50,000 to Kherha and has been urged to not discriminate on the basis of religion in future. Tri-County has also entered into a two-year consent decree with the federal government under which it is required to undertake a series of “remedial” measures, including revising its written policies prohibiting employment discrimination.
— PTI
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Kirpan case: Partial victory for petitioner
Chandigarh, November 20 In other words, the panel has decided to send the RFRA claim back to the lower (district) court for further development of evidence concerning the government’s compelling interest in enforcing the statutory ban on kirpans with blades exceeding 2.5 inches. The panel concluded that the current submitted evidences did not support the government’s position of banning the kirpan. This decision seems to be a partial victory for kirpan rights. The government will now have to prove that in order for it to comply with the law, banning of the kirpan altogether was the less drastic means available to it. The government will have to prove why alternative policies would be unfeasible, or why these would be less effective in maintaining institutional security. In April 2005, Kanwaljeet Kaur, a CPA by profession, was stopped at security at the IRS. She had joined IRS in 2004. As a Sikh, she wears her five articles of faith, among them a kirpan. When she refused to take off her kirpan, the IRS fired her. Since then she has been fighting a long legal battle with the US Government to allow her to wear her kirpan and serve her country.
Fight for
rights
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Gender sensitisation panel sought
Chandigarh, November 20 The advocates said the committee was required to tackle issues of sexual harassment and to ensure a safe working environment for women on the precincts of the High Court and subordinate courts of Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana. The lawyers said the Supreme Court in its judgment in Binu Tamta versus High Court of Delhi, vide order dated July 17, 2013, had already ordered the formation of Gender Sensitisation & Internal Complaints Committees at the Supreme Court. It had also asked High Courts and subordinate courts to form such committees to look into complaints of sexual harassment by any aggrieved woman. Copies of the judgment were sent to the different High Courts so that they too could formulate their own regulations in the same manner, in order to contain harassment of women on court premises. The representation said as per the GSICC at the Supreme Court, prevention, prohibition and redressal regulations, 2013, an aggrieved woman was defined as “any female, of any age, whether employed or not, who claims to have been subjected to any act of sexual harassment by any person in the Supreme Court precincts".
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Morinda SHO suspended in sexual assault case
Ropar, November 20 Ropar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ravcharan Singh Brar said the duo was suspended following a preliminary inquiry. Brar said the SHO first registered the case under Section 354 (assault on woman with intent to outrage her modesty) instead of under Section 376/511, 506 of IPC
and Protection of Child Rights Act. Thereafter, the SHO sent head constable Rajwant to pressure the victim to reach a compromise, he said. Yesterday, the accused, Lakhan of Morinda town had entered his neighbour’s house and attempted to rape the 11-year-old victim when she was alone at home. However, when the victim started crying, a neigbour came to her rescue forcing the accused to flee from the spot. The family then reported the matter to police but the accused police officials asked them to reach a compromise with Lakhan. After the victim family complained on the helpline, HS Mann, Superintendent of Police (SP), Detective, was asked to conduct an inquiry into the matter. It was then found that Rajwant visited the home of victim today afternoon to pressure the family. Following this the two police officials were suspended, said the
SSP.
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6-yr-old raped, killed;
body found in rivulet
Kapurthala, November 20 The accused dumped the victim's body in the Bein. The police recovered the body this morning with the help of local divers. The girl's father, a daily wager, had yesterday lodged a complaint with the police alleging his daughter, a student of Class I, had gone to Government Elementary School, but did not return. The breakthrough came after a former panchayat member of the village, Joginder Kaur, informed the police that she had spotted accused Ghukkar, a labourer, accompanying the victim. The youth was rounded up. He confessed to having sexually assaulted the girl and murdering her before throwing her body into the rivulet. Superintendent of Police Diljinder Singh Dhillon said: "The body was taken out after a search operation was launched using motor boats. The body bore strangulation marks”.
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Forest Department frees 76 acres from encroachers
Ropar, November 20 The Department had filed a case against the encroachers under the Public Premises Act before the sub-divisional magistrate who settled the
case in favour of the department.
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CBI special court directed to proceed in panchayat secys’ recruitment case
Chandigarh, November 20 The decade-old FIR in the matter is against a former minister. None of the candidates are accused in the case. The development is significant as the case is also of immense political interest. The recruitment process was carried out in October, 2001. As many as 909 panchayat secretaries were recruited by the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats. There was change in the government in February, 2002. The government apparently carried out review of the selection process. By an order dated December 10, 2002, the appointments were declared null and void; and were cancelled with immediate effect. The decision was assailed by affected parties; and the petitions are still pending. Meanwhile, the State Government requested the CBI to look into the selection on March 4, 2003; and FIR No. 8 of 2003 for criminal conspiracy, cheating and other offences, along with the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered by the CBI on June 26, 2003, naming the former Minister for Rural Development and Panchayats and other departmental officers. None of the selected candidates named in the FIR. There was some rethinking by the State Government and taking into consideration the heavy work load, 909 panchayat secretaries were engaged on contractual basis for six months. However, only 787 of them had joined and their contractual employment was continued from time to time. In March 2009, the Council of Ministers took a decision that termination order of 787 panchayat secretaries be withdrawn, and they stood reinstated in service subject to certain terms and conditions. It was made clear that the reinstatement was subject to final outcome of the decision to be rendered in criminal case. The directions to the trial court came after the Bench of Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Augustine George Masih was informed that the proceedings in the case had come to a virtual standstill, as the issue of granting sanction order against an accused was pending before the High Court. Taking up the matter, the Bench asserted: “We are informed at this stage that qua proceedings before the CBI Court at Patiala, the matter is stated to be not progressing on account of the fact that the issue regarding grant for sanction of prosecution qua one of the accused is subject matter of a petition filed before this court and there is stay of the trial court proceedings qua that accused. “We see no reason why the trial cannot proceed qua other accused and the trial court be informed by the counsel for the State Government accordingly. The civil writ petition, in which stay is operating, be placed before the roster Bench in motion matters for directions/disposal to expedite the process before the trial court in case FIR No. 8 registered on June 26, 2003, pending before the Special Judge, CBI Court,
Patiala”.
The case
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2 get 5-year jail in NDPS case
Moga, November 20 The accused, Amanpreet Singh of Muktsar and his brother-in-law Gurlal Singh of Moga, were arrested on October 13, 2008 after the local police seized 2 kg of opium from their possession. A case under the NDPS Act was registered against them.
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Two acquitted in rape case
Ropar, November 20 In her complaint to the police, the victim had stated that Avinash, who had been stalking her for months, abducted her and forcibly married her. On July 1, he had abandoned her at the Kiratpur Sahib bus stand, she said.
The court acquitted both the accused.
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Four booked for terrorist activities
Jalandhar, November 20 Sources said Jaswant Singh, Kashmir Singh and Balwant Singh, who were out on bail from Kapurthala Jail, were arrested on November 17, while Harpreet Singh Hera was brought by the police today on production warrant from Ludhiana jail. All four persons are in police remand till November 23. An FIR has been lodged against them at the the Bhogpur police station. Sources said the four were being interrogated to get more details about their designs and to make more recoveries of weapons. Senior Superintendent of Police (Rural) Jaspreet Singh Sidhu said a police team was investigating the matter and developing leads to a big crime. “We will disclose the details about the entire operation to the media soon," he added.
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Amritsar, November 20
Chandigarh, November 20
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Amritsar, November 20
Amritsar, November 20