Palampur, February 1
Member of Parliament and senior BJP leader Shanta Kumar today asked the Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) to merge with the BJP instead of joining hands with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Addressing the media at his residence here, the BJP leader said he hoped Maheshwar Singh, who heads the HLP, would consider his appeal keeping in view the national interest and present political scenario in the country.

He said he had requested Maheshwar Singh in this regard, but had not received any response from him so far.

He said: “The non-Congress parties must realise that the major challenge before them is to keep the Congress out of power after the 2014 general elections at the Centre. Therefore, they should make efforts to avoid division of votes.”

He said the HLP, which was a splinter group of the BJP, should join hands with the BJP to defeat the Congress in the general elections in Himachal.

In reply to a question, Shanta said the party high command could think on fielding Maheshwar from the Mandi parliamentary constituency as a BJP candidate, if he joined the party.

Shanta said the BJP high command had directed the state unit for the homecoming of those leaders who were expelled during the last Assembly elections.

He said those willing to come back would be admitted to the party in a phased manner.

Earlier, at a function held here, ex-MLAs Rakesh Pathania and Des Raj and another BJP leader Sanjay Guleria were admitted to the party.

These leaders assured Shanta Kumar that they would work sincerely in the coming Lok Sabha elections.

Referring to the Aam Aadmi Party, Shanta said its intentions were good and it wanted to bring radical changes in the political system of the country, but would not succeed because of the lack of political experience. 

Shimla, February 1
Corruption is expected to be the main poll plank even during the Lok Sabha elections. As the Congress and the BJP gear up to take on each other, the 14-day Assembly Budget session commencing on February 3 is likely to hotten up the state's political scene.

The Budget session this time has not only been advanced, but also it will be relatively shorter in view of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The session is expected to be fiery as the two political rivals will try to outscore each other in the run-up to the elections.

The Budget will be presented on February 7 and passed on February 19. The proposed Bill for making amendments to the HP Sports Act could also generate a lot of political heat.

With an eye on the parliamentary elections, the Opposition BJP is expected to adopt a very aggressive posture as it will try to pin down the Congress government on of corruption and poor governance. With Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and his family facing charges levelled by senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley and Leader of Opposition PK Dhumal, the BJP will try to keep the issue alive.

Registration of cases by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau against some leaders will also find echo in the Assembly. These include the cases registered against Anurag Thakur, MP and president of the HP Cricket Association, and the phone-tapping case. The BJP will be expected to take on the government on the issue of poor ration supply under the Public Distribution System and the inflated electricity bills that consumers are getting.

The Congress, on the other hand, will try to turn the tables on the BJP by justifying the Vigilance probe and accusing the BJP leadership of allegedly having indulged in corruption. It looks like they will rake up the issue pertaining to alleged phone-tapping during the BJP government, accusing the previous regime of invading the privacy of individuals.

“One-year rule of the Congress has provided succour to all sections of society. Several issues pending with the Centre like relief for industry have been taken care of,” said Mukesh Agnihotri, Industry and Parliamentary Affairs Minister. He says the BJP is crying hoarse about political victimisation as it wants to divert the people's attention from core issues.

“There is no doubt that corruption has been rampant in the state ever since the Congress assumed power and we will raise it in the House vociferously,” said state BJP president Satpal Singh Satti. He says as far as the issue of governance is concerned, the performance of the present government is dismal.

“All development works have come to a standstill as nobody is bothered about the welfare of the common man. Congress leaders are basking in the glory of power,” he says.

He says the rains and flashfloods left a trail of destruction in Kinnaur and other parts of the state, but the state is yet to receive money under the calamity relief fund from the Centre.

Shimla, February 1
The Himachal Assembly has, for the first time in its history, decided to make use of earphones, but has decided not to introduce zero hour, at least for the time being.

Talking to mediapersons here today, Assembly Speaker Brij Bihari Lal Butail said his endeavour would be to ensure that the business of the House was conducted smoothly. He said for the first time in the Himachal Assembly, earphones had been provided on a trial basis on the request of Himachal Lokhit Party (HLP) legislator Maheshwar Singh.

“It has been done on a trial basis as some of the members felt that when the House is disrupted, the business being taken up is not audible in the din,” he said. He said another suggestion of holding an all-party meeting had also been accepted. It would be held on February 3 before the session commenced.

He said another suggestion regarding the introduction of zero hour would have to wait. “I personally feel that since the members are given time to raise any issue, there is not much need for it. The final decision for the future will be taken after holding consultations with everyone, including the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition,” he stated.

He said so far, a total of 395 starred questions and 59 unstarred questions had been received from the legislators.

“These questions mainly pertain to damages and relief in the wake of natural calamity, vacancy position in various departments, ration supply and delay in obtaining forest clearances for development projects,” he said.

“This year, the budget is relatively limited as compared to the previous years, so I will urge all members to cooperate in the smooth conduct of the House,” he said. He came up with the assurance that all members would be given enough time to raise any other issue after the listed business for the day is over.

Kangra, February 1
The future of 150 first semester under-graduate students of Pandit Anant Ram Sanatan Dharam College at Baroh in this subdivision hangs in balance. The uncertainty comes in the wake of a notice from the Himachal Pradesh University 
(HPU) Registrar to the college management to shift these students admitted in the 2013-14 session to the nearest degree colleges for the completion of their degrees.

The controversy had cropped up following the issuance of a no-objection certificate by the government for the closure of the college on the request of the management, before CM Virbhadra Singh announced the college takeover by the government.

The process of takeover of this college by the government was in progress and awaiting Cabinet approval, sources in the Higher Education Department said today.

Meanwhile, Ved Sharma, president of the management committee, in a letter to the college principal, said the management committee and Changer Shiksha Samaj Kalayan Parishad, Baroh, had already sent many letters to him, repeatedly requesting him not to admit any student in the first semester of the UG course last year for 2013-14 and public notices were published through local newspapers to this effect.

He suggested the principal to call the students and their parents and apprise them of the development and the needful for their migration to the nearest colleges.

Students and the parents were confused over the situation in which on the one hand, the state government was planning to take over the college after an announcement by the Chief Minister and on the other, the HPU Registrar, under a notification, passed directions for shifting of first semester under-graduate students admitted in 2013-14 session to the nearest degree colleges for completion of their degrees.

College patron BR Sharma was in favour of the takeover of the college by the government, while the management was for the closure of the college in a phased manner.

Himachal Pradesh University Registrar Prof Mohan Jharta was not available for comment.

Kullu, February 1
The Kullu unit of the BJP has completed its drive to collect iron and soil for the “Statue of Unity", BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's dream project of building a 182-m statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in the middle of the Narmada in Gujarat.

State BJP vice-president and member of the state Loh Sangrahan Samiti Ram Singh said the job for the collection of iron and soil started with the "Run for Unity" on December 15. He thanked the BJP members for participating in the campaign.

Kullu BJP president and Manali MLA Govind Singh Thakur said iron and soil from the entire district had been collected and would be sent to Gujarat.

Ram Singh also appealed to the BJP members to make the "Ek Note, Kamal Ko Vote" programme, in which a note of Rs 10 to Rs 1,000 would be taken from the masses to promote party activities, a success.

Bharat Swabhimaan, Vidya Bharti, Vidyarthi Parishad, Mahila Mandal and Yuvak Mandal were present on the occasion. 

Solan, February 1
A case of a Delhi resident involved in benami transaction of 24 bighas of land in the Kandaghat area has come to light. He had bought land in the name of a local resident Vishal Bhatia.

Superintendent of Police Ramesh Chajta, addressing mediapersons here today, said the case was unearthed by the Special Investigating Team (SIT), which found that crores were incurred on buying this land by GK Garg, who hails from Delhi.

The sale was executed through four sale deeds the copies of which have been procured from tehsildar Kandaghat’s office and details of bank accounts of Vishal Bhatia have also been procured to establish the irregularity in this case.

Bhatia, who was being trained by GK Garg as a chartered accountant in Chandigarh, had a bank account in Sector 8-based Oriental Bank of Commerce.

Garg asked Bhatia to procure an agriculture certificate for himself as that he could buy land in his name.

Bhatia, who hails from Banet village in Kasauli tehsil, likewise procured an agricultural certificate and this formed the basis of this land purchase wherein Garg had made an investment to procure this land in the Kandaghat area.

The police, after investigating the case, has referred the matter to the Solan Deputy Commissioner for wresting this land bought illegally by Garg with the state government.

One factor why Solan has reported such benami land transactions is its proximity to the plains. A total of Rs 2.23 crore was spent on buying 24 bigha land and Garg had deposited this money in the bank account of Vishal, who then made payments for the entire land purchase.

Chamba, February 1
The 15-day-long Jukaru festival started in the snow-bound Pangi tribal valley of Chamba district yesterday.

During the festival, residents of the valley will worship local gods and goddesses and greet one another in their traditional costumes.

Conveying his greetings to the valley people, Forest Minister Thakur Singh Bharmouri said these festivals were a manifestation of their cultural heritage and hoped that the festival would bring happiness and prosperity to the residents of the valley.

Meanwhile, residents of an interior village, Shour, in Pangi had been waiting for their winter ration quota as the valley remained snow-covered during winters for about six-seven months.

As per unofficial reports, there were about 36 families residing at Shour. The issue of ration quota had been brought to the notice of the officials concerned, the reports said.

Dharamsala, February 1
Aditya Sharma, elected president of the Students Council of Government College, Dharamsala, was expelled by the management today. The reason cited for this is that his graduation degree is not recognised by Himachal Pradesh University (HPU).

Aditya being an Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader, his supporters today staged a protest in the college. Alleging victimisation, they burnt the effigies of Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and the college principal.

Aditya had taken admission in MA English at the college this year. He was later elected president of the Students Council of the institute on ABVP ticket.

Talking to The Tribune, Aditya said he had been expelled from the college as the ABVP-led council had decided to invite BJP MP from Hamirpur, Anurag Thakur, for their convention in the college. Aditya said he would move the court against
his ouster.

College Principal RP Chopra said he got a complaint in September this year that the BA degree on the basis of which Aditya had taken admission in MA English was not valid.

Some people also sought information under the RTI as to whether the BA degree acquired by Aditya Sharma from CMG University, Meghalaya, was valid.

“I did write to CMG University. The university authorities did not give a satisfactory reply. I then wrote to the HPU seeking clarification regarding the status of the Meghalaya university. The HPU has written that they consider the BA degree from CMG University, Meghalaya, invalid. Since the admission given to Aditya Sharma was provisional, it has now been cancelled,” said the principal.

When asked about the allegation that Aditya was ousted from the college because the Students Council had invited Anurag Thakur as the chief guest for their function, the principal denied it. He said the council function had been planned now, whereas the inquiry into the complaint against Aditya's degree had been on since September.

He said, “To avoid any political overtones to the Students Council's functioning, we have decided that no political leader should be invited.”

Kangra, February 1
One person was killed and four others were injured in three different road accidents in the district today.

Stating this here, Kangra District Additional Police chief Mohit Chawala said Amar Singh (67) of Sarrah village alighted from a private bus (HP-68 1913), going from Dharamsala to Kangra, and came under it. He was seriously injured and died while being taken to the DRPGMC at Tanda.

Doctors declared him brought dead. The bus driver had been arrested.

In another road mishap, three persons were injured when a truck rolled down into a gorge near Junga Devi last evening. Truck driver Onkar Singh of Dadol was among the three injured. The injured were admitted to the Sujjanpur hospital.

In a third accident at the Shahpur market, Durga Dutt of Chhatri who was driving a Scooty (HP-39-B-9680) was hit by another Scooty (HP-40-T-2777) being driven by Hatli resident Himanshu. Durga was injured and admitted to the Tanda hospital.

The police have arrested Himanshu.

Una, February 1
Industry Minister Mukesh Agnihotri today said the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) had agreed to lay a power line from its 200-kW sub-station at Jamalpur in Ludhiana district of Punjab to the Tahliwal industrial area in Haroli segment.

Addressing a gathering at Haroli village, he said this would ensure uninterrupted power supply to the industrial units here.

Earlier, the minister presided over a youth conference organised by the Block Youth Congress at Haroli, where he announced that a job fest would soon be organised in Haroli so that local youth could get employment in industrial units located in Tahliwal, Bathu and Bathari industrial areas.

He announced that a new ITI, in addition to the existing one at Pubowal village, would be opened in Haroli segment so that local youth could get better employment opportunities in the various industries.

The minister said the Chief Minister would visit Haroli this month to lay the foundation stones of the Indian Institute of Information Technology at Saloh, food park at Singan and a new industrial area at Pandoga.