New Delhi, March 10
At least 1,200 minority community members who arrived in Delhi in 50 buses from Uttar Pradesh today to protest over a land at the Karbala grounds in southeast Delhi, torched vehicles and blocked several roads in east Delhi, leading to massive traffic jams.

The police said that they came from places such as Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh. "Their plan was to protest outside Sonia Gandhi's residence and the All India Congress Committee office," said a senior police officer.

The protestors arrived at Ghazipur, a locality in east Delhi, at about 1.30 pm today. Police personnel who were deployed in large contingents prevented them from moving towards the New Delhi area, where they planned to hold their protests.

"When we stopped them, they torched a Tata 407 vehicle and a government vehicle," said the officer.

The demonstration also led to massive traffic jams in East Delhi and the areas surrounding it.

Although no one was hurt in the violence, the police claim that the protesters inflicted injuries on themselves. "We have video recordings of the protesters beating themselves," explained the officer.

The police have booked them in a rioting case that has been registered at the Ghazipur police station. "Some people have been detained. We have not arrested anyone as yet. They are still in Ghazipur. We will see what has to be done with them," said the officer.

On the other hand, sources said that a small group of local Shia Muslims are demonstrating at the Karbala grounds in southeast Delhi's Jor Bagh area. "They wanted to get more support. So they called people from Uttar Pradesh. There is a small population of Shias in Delhi," said the sources.

The dispute is over a nursery, Gulzar-e-Haidri, that was built at the Karbala grounds in Jor Bagh. The Karbala grounds are located on the northern side of the Dargah Shah-e-Mardan shrine. The shrine is a holy place for Shias across the country, as it has the footprints of Hazrat Ali, one of the four Caliphs and the son-in-law of Prophet Mohammad. The Anjuman-e-Haideri is the committee that manages the shrine.

The issue started in 1997-2000, when the then managing committee appointed Moid Khan and Wasim Khan as the gardener-cum-caretakers of the nursery.

The Anjuman-e-Haideri claims that Moid's lease expired in 2000, but he allegedly refused to leave and started expanding the nursery. The committee has also alleged that he started commercial activities through the Rajdhani Nursery, which is allegedly partnered by senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel.

In January, 2012, 17 security personnel and about 50 locals were reportedly injured in a clash in Jor Bagh, when thousands had gathered outside the Karbala mosque for Chehelom, a Shia religious event. The people gathered outside the mosque alleged that one of its gates was barricaded by the police that led to the agitation. Stone-pelting took place that caused injuries to security personnel and locals.

This year, there have been numerous protests, mostly outside Ahmed Patel's house, over the issue.

Sources explained that recently the Anjuman-e-Haideri claimed that there are graves within the nursery. The Delhi High Court on this January 22 had ordered that the people whose relatives have been buried in the graves, be allowed to visit them after writing their names on a register, which will be maintained by Moid. The committee claims that regardless of the court order, Moid has not allowed people to visit the graves.

"Recently, the court has appointed an arbitrator to settle the dispute between the two parties," said the sources.

New Delhi, March 10
To keep a check on the flow of illicit liquor ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the Delhi Election Commission (DEC) today directed the excise department to conduct monitoring of retail shops where daily sales figure has seen a sudden increase of 30 per cent or more in comparison to last month.

The commission also instructed the officials to take strict action against such shops including cancellation of their licences if found involved in wrongdoings.

In a meeting of officials of excise department today, Delhi Chief Electoral Officer Vijay Dev directed them to identify and conduct close monitoring of sensitive liquor shops located in slum area, away from the main road and in interior rural pockets.

"A special focus will also be on shops having more than 30 per cent increase in sale on a day between March 15 (date of notification) and April 10 (polling date) as compared to average daily sale of February, 2013," said Dev.

Shops having liquor stock more than 50 per cent on March 1 as compared to the corresponding date last year are also under scanner, he added.

Excise officials have also been asked to take action against the use of tokens or coupons for sale of liquor and ensure proper maintenance of brand-wise stock register in all the retail shops, especially in respect to cheap brands. Officials have been instructed to zero down on potential storage points for illegal liquor and conduct frequent police-patrolling and raids.

CCTV cameras surveillance has also been put in place while officials are instructed to maintain video footage for 60 days.

The Excise department has also been asked to submit a list on bonded warehouses as well as retail outlets in Delhi along with their locations to Delhi's Chief Electoral Office (CEO) as well as all Returning Officers (ROs) within 24 hours.

District Level Nodal Officers of Excise Department have been directed to submit reports to ROs every day.

"A 24x7 control room will be set up by the Excise department to conduct daily monitoring of receipt and sale of retail shops, besides keeping a watch on stock position of retail shops," said Dev.

"An intensive vigil will be kept over inter-state movement of vehicles, especially to Faridabad," said Dev, adding that the department will maintain co-ordination among their counterparts in the bordering states of Haryana and UP.

"Moreover, special enforcement will be deployed for checkpost duties round the clock," said Dev. The department has so far seized 2,400 bottles of illicit liquor from Vijar Vihar and 480 bottles from Mangalpuri area.

New Delhi, March 10
Attacking on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Dalit leader Dr. Udit Raj, who has recently joined the BJP, today said that Arvind Kejriwal is power hungry, non-performer and anarchist.

In 2008, Kejriwal had participated in a talk against reservation at JNU where he had spoken against the reservation policy of the government. Kejriwal was the acting leader of the Youth for Equality organisation that was floated to oppose reservation. Can he raise the anti- reservation issue during the election campaigning, asked Dr. Raj while addressing a conference.

Kejriwal is raising all those issues that may help him in coming to power that makes clear that he is a power hungry man, he added.

He said that Kejriwal should come out with his party's policy for reservation in jobs and admissions. Reservation is a lifeline of backward class people.

Dr. Raj said Kejriwal never did what he had said. In his election manifesto in the Delhi assembly election, Kejriwal had assured the Valmiki community to absorb the safai kramcharis who worked on daily wages and on contract basis. He had also assured for interest free loan for Valmikis so that they can do business to improve their economy. But during his 49 days government, he never raised the issues of Valmikis.

The broom is main instrument of their livelihood and the Valmikis were struck emotionally by the AAP election symbol.

When asked that the BJP was also against reservation, he said that it was the BJP government, when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, the reservation policy for the Dalits was implemented.

Kejriwal had also assured that he would issue 15,000 permits of auto-rickshaw for backward class people, but he did nothing, said Dr. Raj.

New Delhi, March 10
Unhappy with the functioning of the VAT Department of the Delhi government, traders in the national Capital today gave a call for an agitation against the department for its recent notifications which has led to gross resentment in the business community.

The trading community is being painted as tax evader which is not true, they said while seeking to know from the department that what action has been taken on about 80 officials who were caught red-handed by a private news channel in a sting operation a year ago.

It is prudent that the department instead of contemplating new schemes to increase the traders' paperwork, should focus itself to revamp its functioning, said representatives from the section at a meeting of Delhi traders attended by more than 150 trade associations held today at Town Hall, Chandni Chowk.

Leaders of the associations strongly condemned the attitude of the VAT Department towards traders and lamented that several pending issues of the traders remain unsolved till date and now traders have left with no alternative but to launch an agitation against the department.

In this regard, they will hold demonstration at Town Hall during which they would place keys of their shops as a mark of protest. The traders may also go for a "Delhi Bandh" and other democratic agitation tools, said city traders Ramesh Khanna and Suresh Bindal.

In a recent notification, the department has enforced Form T-2 w.e.f March 15 in Delhi according to which prior to entry of any goods in Delhi, the traders are liable to provide online information to the department otherwise the goods will not be allowed in the city. In a public notice issued by the department, kit has been made mandatory for the traders to keep account books of seven years at principle place of business failing which the traders will be subject to penalty and even imprisonment.

The traders at the meeting lamented that for the past many years the traders are cooperating with the department which has resulted into great enhancement of revenue .The traders are spending a lot of money in collection of taxes for the government, but instead of appreciating the gesture, the department is more eager to contemplate new policies and notices for victimising the traders. Issues like speedy refunds of the traders, information submitted by the traders online often are missing.

The traders said that earlier also the Form T-2 was enforced by the Delhi government, but stiff resistant from traders and practical difficulties prevailed upon the then Chief Minister, Sheila Dikshit, who then withdrew enforcement of the form. At a time when there is no elected government in Delhi, the enforcement of Form T-2 is illogical, arbitrary and cannot be justified.

New Delhi, March 10
Former Miss World Linor Abargil at a function today organised by FICCI Ladies Organisation (FLO) to celebrate International Women's Day urged victims of rape to speak out and seek justice.

Linor herself a rape victim recounted what she went through on that fateful day, how her family, especially the mother stood by her in her fight to bring the guilty to justice. Much of her honour is restored as the man who committed the brutal crime was sentenced to 16 years in prison.

It was 16 years ago when she was raped at knifepoint and the same 18-year-old Israeli girl found a voice as she was crowned Miss World at the international beauty pageant two months after the horrific incident.

"I was raped, but I did not remain silent," says Linor, adding that "This world is, unfortunately, very violent, but if we speak against it, such acts will happen less. Not speaking up is the worst thing. It is like a tumour, which will only grow bigger and bigger."

"All of us need to know that without a woman there is no life. I don't think a man can live without a woman, but a woman can live without a man," she said and sought to inspire the audience, stating that "You can make a change. Just believe in yourself and if something happens, talk about it. Use the media, write letters, but don't be quiet, for this is what they (rapists) want. "

The statistics for India are chilling: every 21 minutes a girl is raped in India! Every 14 minutes a woman is kidnapped! In 2012, there were 706 reported rapes in Delhi alone. These figures, however, camouflage the whole story. Most cases of rapes go unreported given the stigma attached to it and victims are left to fend for themselves.

However, the December 16 gang rape incident forced the policy makers to rethink about its anti-rape laws and the result: the new sexual assault legislation. There may be a slight change in the way the country is responding to such attacks and an increase in police reporting of such crimes nowadays at least in urban areas but this is not adequate with both women and men demanding the right to be protected in their homes, in schools and colleges and the workplace.

The audience heard an inspiring address by Alon Ushpiz, Israeli Ambassador to India, which was read out in absentia. The event was also addressed by Malvika Rai, president of FLO and Neeta Boochra, president-elect, FLO.

New Delhi, March 10
Four men have been arrested for allegedly hiring a taxi in Old Delhi and then robbing its driver and stealing the vehicle at knifepoint.

The police said that the accused had planned to use the taxi to commit a robbery at Khajoori Khas in northeast Delhi, but they were caught by the police.

The police are trying to ascertain if the accused are linked to another gang, consisting of about six men, who had allegedly hired taxis from the Old Delhi Railway Station for Sonepat in Haryana and then rob the drivers on the way.

The four men who were arrested on March 8 have been identified as Satbir Singh (27), Rakesh Jha (35), Narinder (24) and Rajinder (21). They are residents of Delhi. "Satbir is the mastermind of the gang. He has claimed that he is a reporter in a newspaper, 'Bharat Soorkhiya', which is based in Rohini," said Additional Commissioner of Police (Crime) Ravindra Yadav.

The other accused are school dropouts.