Shimla, April 3
A total of 13 persons, including Anita Verma, a former minister, and Anita Rana, wife of Rajinder Rana, Congress candidate from the Hamirpur Lok Sabha seat, have applied for the party ticket for the Sujanpur Assembly bypoll to be held with the Lok Sabha elections on May 7.

Today was the last date for applying for the ticket to the District Congress Committee, Hamirpur. A total of 13 persons have applied for the ticket, along with a sum of Rs 10,000 as the application fee. Other prominent contenders include former MLAs Kuldip Pathania and Ranjit Singh Verma, Col Bidhi Chand and Hamirpur District Congress Committee president Naresh Thakur.

The three-member ministerial committee headed by Irrigation and Public Health Minister Vidya Stokes will be meeting here tomorrow to take a final view on the candidate to be fielded by the party. The other two members of the committee constituted by state Congress president Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu are Health Minister Kaul Singh Thakur and Transport Minister GS Bali. The final decision will, however, rest with Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and Sukhu once they meet by the end of this week.

The fact that Anita Rana, wife of Rana who had resigned as an Independent legislator from Sujanpur, has applied for the ticket makes it amply clear that she will get blessings of the Virbhadra camp.

The Chief Minister has already said Rana's claim for the Assembly ticket in case of defeat in the LS poll was very legitimate. As such it appears that the fight for the ticket will finally narrow down between Anita Verma and Anita Rana.

Sukhu is likely to oppose Rana's wife on the ground that in case she is fielded a very strong signal will go across that the Congress has already conceded defeat in the Lok Sabha elections against sitting MP Anurag Thakur.

Naresh Thakur, DCC chief of Hamirpur, is a Sukhu loyalist and could be backed by the party chief.

Anita Verma, a former minister who lost the last Assembly election against Rana on the Congress ticket from Sujanpur by about 14,000 votes, will also plead her case before the high command, considering her connections in Delhi. She is also close to the Chief Minister and has remained the all-India president of the Sewa Dal. The fact that she has lost two consecutive elections can go against her, but she is certainly the front-runner for the ticket as of now.

Though former MLAs Kuldip Pathania (Bamsan) and Ranjit Singh Verma have applied, they are unlikely to find favour. Similarly, Col Bidhi Chand has contested the 2007 Assembly election against former Chief Minister PK Dhumal from Bamsan unsuccessfully.

With Rana's calculation of making it to the Assembly on the Congress ticket from Sujanpur in case of defeat in Lok Sabha poll being dashed due to holding of simultaneous elections, he will seek ticket for his wife. "With Sukhu opposing Rana's candidature till the last moment, it is unlikely that he would approve giving ticket to his wife," said a senior party leader.

Dharamsala, April 3
The Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) has questioned the role of Governor Urmila Singh in granting permission for the prosecution of former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal.

While addressing a press conference at the International Cricket Stadium, Dharamsala, today, HPCA spokesperson Sanjay Sharma said the Governor had shown undue haste in granting permission for the prosecution of the former CM. Interestingly, the Governor did not take even 24 hours to grant permission for the prosecution, despite the fact that there were various illegalities in the chargesheet prepared by a section of Vigilance officers loyal to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh.

He said the Governor till date had not taken any action on the chargesheet submitted by BJP against the present government. However, the prosecution sanction has been given within hours just for political gains.

The Governor was not acting fairly and the chargesheet was processed in haste just to project the HPCA president and BJP candidate from Hamirpur, Anurag Thakur, in a bad light.

He alleged the chargesheet was being processed by a single Vigilance officer who has been with the Chief Minister for past some time. He also remained attached to Virbhadra Singh during his stint as the Union Minister for Steel. Sharma said though two IAS officers, RS Gupta and Deepak Shanan, had been named as accused in the Vigilance chargesheet, the other retired IAS officers, who played a crucial role when the land for stadium was given on lease to the HPCA by the Himachal Government and were now serving in the CM's office, had been left out.

He alleged when the land for the cricket stadium was given on lease to the HPCA in 2002, Subhash Ahluwalia, now the principal-cum-private secretary to the CM, and TG Negi, OSD to the CM, were director and secretary in the Department of Youth Services and Sports. They had a crucial role in giving the land on lease to the HPCA.

Sharma also attacked the state Election Commissioner for taking action on the complaint of the HPCA seeking removal of personal staff in the form of retired IAS officers in the CM's office. It was an open fact that these officers were abusing their office to help the Congress in the forthcoming elections. We would now be sending our complaint to the Chief Election Commissioner for removal of the said officers from CM’s office till the elections were over, he alleged.

He said the present government was specifically targeting the HPCA land lease whereas no action was taken on similar land leases given in other parts of the state. The HPCA has done nothing wrong and was ready to face any fair inquiry by investigating agencies. Earlier, when the previous Congress government had tried to take over the cricket stadium from the HPCA, the case of the cricket body was upheld in the court of law, he said.

BJP spokesman Ganesh Dutt addresses mediapersons in Shimla on Thursday. Photo: Amit Kanwar

Shimla, April 3
The BJP is up in arms against Governor Urmila Singh in granting permission for the prosecution of former Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal in a case relating to land leased to the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) for the construction of a cricket stadium at Dharamsala.

Party leaders alleged that the prosecution sanction had been made in haste and the decision would be challenged in the court.

“April 2 will go down as the Black Day in the history of Himachal when the Governor, who is the constitutional head of the state, granted permission for the persecution of the former Chief Minister,” said Ganesh Dutt, party spokeperson, at a press conference here today.

“We will challenge the decision in the court as the action appears to be politically motivated,” he said, adding that the sole aim of the government was to malign BJP leaders and tarnish their image for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Alleging that the permission was granted within few hours after the Chief Secretary submitted the file without discussing the case and analysing the repercussions, he questioned the Governor whether she would act with same promptness in other cases also.

“It is a panicky and vindictive action on the part of the government and an attempt to divert the attention of the people from the CBI probe initiated against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh as the Delhi High Court had yesterday asked the CBI to expedite the investigations and file the status report by April 30,” Dutt said.

Maintaining that the decision to grant land lease was a collective decision of the Cabinet, Dutt said the former Chief Minister had been singled out for prosecution.

“The sinister move of the government would not have any impact on the electorate as they are aware of the vilification campaign launched by the government after it returned to power in December, 2012, and the party would pay the price in the upcoming poll,” Dutt claimed.

Referring to Sagar Katha case during the previous Congress government regime, Dutt said the then Chief Minister, Virbhadra Singh, made the allotment to benefit an individual, but in the HPCA case, no individual was benefitted and the sanction was given to the the HPCA which is the state cricket body.

Resentment is brewing in the Indian Administrative Services (IAS) cadre also as the government had been selectively targeting the officers, he alleged.

The BJP spokesman alleged the retirement benefits of some officers who held key posts during the BJP regime were being withheld and there was great demoralisation among senior bureaucrats who are wary of taking decisions.

Shimla, April 3
The Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau is likely to put up a chargesheet in the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) case before court next week as it has decided against seeking sanction to prosecute Anurag Thakur, Hamirpur MP from the Parliament Speaker.

Equipped with the sanction from the Governor to prosecute former Chief Minister PK Dhumal, who has been named in the chargesheet, the Bureau is likely to put up the chargesheet in the court. The officials are of the opinion that since the alleged offence in the HPCA affairs was committed by Anurag in his capacity as HPCA president and not as the MP, there was no need to seek sanction from the Parliament Speaker.

A total of 18 persons, including eight serving and retired bureaucrats and office-bearers of the HPCA, have been named in the FIR. Though the papers for seeking permission to prosecute Deepak Sanan, Additional Chief Secretary and Ajay Sharma, Deputy Commissioner, Bilaspur, have been sent to the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) in the Centre, the chargesheet will be put up in court without waiting for the permission to arrive from the Centre.

"Since permission in case of only two officers is awaited, the court could allow for the trial to begin and the permission from the DoPT can come later," said a police official. The Bureau in its chargesheet has named 18 persons of whom five, including Dhumal, Anurag, Sanan, Sharma and an Himachal Administrative Service (HAS) officer, Gopal Chand, have been made the main accused. The others include three retired IAS officers, HAS officers and office-bearers of the HPCA.

The Bureau had registered a case against the HPCA on August 1, 2012. The issue had figured prominently in the Congress chargesheet against the BJP regime which had been submitted to the Governor and the President of India.

Solan, April 3
Former Chief Minister PK Dhumal today said they would not be cowed down by FIRs, inquiries and false cases slapped against them by the ruling Congress and fight it out in the field by seeking mandate of the people.

Addressing party workers at Kasauli and Solan, Dhumal said people would give a befitting reply to the Congress in the Lok Sabha poll. He said the BJP had not done any crime by constructing stadiums as this brought Rishi Dhawan and Sushma Verma in the national cricket teams.

Refuting charges of factionalism in the BJP regarding ticket for the Sujanpur seat, he said there was no dispute and the issue would be decided by the party's parliamentary board.

Launching a scathing attack on Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, Dhumal said instead of being accountable for issues of public concern such as price rise and corruption, he was trying to divert the attention of the common man by indulging in mudslinging on BJP leaders. He said it would not be surprising if more cases were slapped against BJP leaders in the near future.

He said the apex court's direction to speed up probe against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh in a case pertaining to corruption while he was the Union Minister was an indication of his corrupt deeds and by merely claiming that he was honest would not be acceptable to the people who were aware of how crores had been deposited in his account by enhancing the proceeds of his apple sale.

He said the Congress government at the Centre had indulged in corruption worth 12 lakh crore through scams and this had crippled the country's economy.

Attacking the Congress for raking up the issue of 2002 Gujarat riots, he said as many as 5,000 riots took place in the Congress ruled states since Independence and no justice had been given to 1984 Sikh riots victims by the Congress while perpetrators of Gujarat riots had been punished by the court.

He said it was appalling to note that the Congress had compromised with the country's security and it had failed to give befitting reply to China and Pakistan which were indulging in misadventure at the borders.

Dhumal said the USA dictated country's economic policies and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh gave a nod to foreign direct investment in retail at their behest, affecting domestic traders.

Dhumal urged party workers to educate the masses about the failure of the state government and muster support for Virender Kashyap, party's nominee for the Shimla seat.

Others present on the occasion included Virender Kashyap and party's general secretary Dr Rajiv Bindal.

Shimla, April 3
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) upped the ante against Congress and BJP legislators as their parties have supported them on the issue of hefty tour bill, worth Rs 1.26 crore, footed by the Vidhan Sabha for the period from January 2013 to December 2013. The information was revealed through an RTI.

APP leaders alleged that the Congress and BJP legislators owed an explanation to the people of the state beacuse of the high tour bills. "The successive governments under Virbhadra Singh and PK Dhumal always cried foul over the poor state of finances, but spent lakhs on tours of the legislators," said AAP leader Amit Sharma, who has obtained the information under the RTI Act.

AAP has decided to make this an election issue and will stage protest against it. "Even former Cabinet Minister and BJP legislators Ravinder Ravi from Dehra has spent Rs 3.13 lakh on tours, while Ajay Mahajan, Congress legislator from Nurpur, has spent Rs 3.38 lakh on tours and availed free travel concession of Rs 92,512 in 2013, said AAP leaders Amit and Sukrit Sagar.

"AAP candidates submit affidavits to the party when they become members of the party and pledge that they will not use official vehicles, get TA/DA and avail free travel facility provided by the Vidhan Sabha or the government," claimed Amit Sharma. The BJP and the Congress should come clean on the issue, he said.

Contesting the claims of AAP, Seraj legislator and former BJP state president Jai Ram Thakur said, "AAP got information about the period from January to December and they were paid TA/DA and free concession from March 31 to March 31, which include two financial years. No limit was surpassed," he claimed.

Defending the legislators, Congress vice-president Harsh Mahajan said legislators were entitled to TA/DA and Rs 75,000 one-time travel facility provided by the Vidhan Sabha every year. The Vidhan Sabha does the audit and there is nothing wrong in availing the facility," he said.

Vidhan sabha secretary SS Verma said each legislator was entitled to Rs 75,000 grant from the Vidhan sabha in a year. "But TA/DA is paid separately according to the bills submitted by a legislator," he added.

Una, April 3
Kamal Kanta Batra, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate from the Hamirpur parliamentary seat, today held a road show in the Una sadar Assembly segment, seeking vote and support of the people for the General Election.

She travelled in an open jeep passing through Rakkar, Jalgran, Behdala, Mehatpur, Raipur, Santoshgarh, Chattarpur, Nangran, Sunera and Rampur villages.

Earlier, Kamal held a workers' meeting at the party office. She said corruption, inflation and LPG would be her main poll issues. She said both the BJP and the Congress had cheated people of the country for more than six-and-a-half decade.

The AAP candidate questioned the UPA government for maintaining silence over the one-rank, one-pension issue for ex-servicemen during the 10 years of its rule and hurriedly allowing it partially just before the General Election to woo the cadre. She appealed to the people to vote for AAP to give a clean and transparent governance. "There is no place for corruption within AAP," she said.

AAP coordinator for the Una Assembly segment Raghubir Chand and campaign manager Anil Joshi were also present, besides other prominent party workers.

Chamba, April 3
Himachal Pradesh Youth Congress president Vikramaditya Singh today asked the frontal organisations of the Congress to combat the negative propaganda of the BJP.

The state Youth Congress chief was in Chamba today. He said he had appealed to the public in general and the youth in particular not to be misled by the negative propaganda of the BJP.

“The Youth Congress believes in issue-based politics and is concentrating particularly on employment generation, while none of the leaders in the Opposition have their agenda based on such issues,” Vikramaditya said.

“To address the problem of unemployment, the Congress government has launched an innovative scheme called the Skill Development Allowance Scheme with a provision of Rs 1,000 allowance per month to the educated unemployed youth. Those between the age group of 16 and 35 years are eligible. They should have passed Class VIII. The Congress government has also decided to relax educational qualification of candidates interested in pursuing training in vocations such as masonry, carpentry, plumber etc,” Vikramaditya said.

Sundernagar, April 3
Leaders of the Congress and the BJP are keeping themselves away from making any statement on the controversial cement plant near here.

The cement plant is a major issue during the polls despite the fact that local residents have been opposing it.

The issue of cement plant near Sundernagar first came to light during early nineties, when the BJP was in power and the Congress had been opposing it. When the Congress came to power, it took a U-turn and sigend an MoU for the plant at Nalni in 1995. The site was changed by the BJP government from Nalni to Chambi, but it could not set up the plant.

The Congress again tried its best to set up the plant and it appointed Land Acquisition Officer. The BJP started acquiring land.

Since 1889, the cement plant has remained a main issue during assembly or Lok Sabha elections.

Shimla, April 3
The HP High Court today granted an interim bail to former BJP MLA Baldev Sharma from the Badsar constituency in Hamirpur district in a case of alleged sexual harassment.

While granting conditional pre-arrest bail, Justice Sanjay Karol directed the petitioner to join the investigation as and when required by the investigating officer and fully cooperate. The court also summoned the record of the case on April 16.

The court said in the event of the arrest of the petitioner in connection with the FIR registered under Section 354 and 377 of the IPC on April 1, 2014, he should be enlarged on bail, subject to furnish a personal bond of Rs 50,000 with one surety in the like amount to the satisfaction of the arresting officer.

A case of sexual assault was registered against the MLA on April 1 with the Shimla (West) police station after recording the statement of the victim, who belongs to his constituency.

The victim in her complaint made on March 5, 2014, had alleged that she had approached the MLA for her husband's transfer. He called her and sexually assaulted her at his residence in the Vidhan Sabha complex in Shimla on March 25, 2012.

However, in his bail application, Baldev Sharma contended before the court that he had been falsely implicated in the case and was innocent.

New Delhi, April 3
In an unusual plea, Himachal Pradesh wants the Supreme Court (SC) to quash the state’s June 2013 notification clamping a ban on the sale of food articles packaged in non-biodegradable material.

The state had found the notification, issued “under the directives” of the state High Court (HC), “impractical” to implement in view of the free flow of tourists, the government said in an affidavit filed through standing counsel Pragati Neekhra.

The state said it wanted to review the “entire situation in a holistic manner and come out with all plausible solutions whereby the ill-effects of the notification could be negated and the management of non-biodegradable waste could be undertaken without coming into conflict either with the social environment or the state’s endeavour for protection of natural environment.”

Further, putting a complete ban/curb on such products was not possible and a “balancing act” was required, taking into account the practicalities and the interests of manufacturers, consumers and environmental protection, it said.

Environment conservation should be balanced with the state’s development pursuits, it explained.

The state had issued the ban order on June 23, 2013, on the HC directives passed on March 15, 2013, after rejecting all the practical problems cited by the government, the affidavit said. The state had contended before the HC that ban on the use of polythene for packaging would create an uncompetitive business scenario for the local industry, besides creating a non-level playing field and posing inter-state trade, tourism, transport and livelihood problems.

The SC is hearing a batch of appeals filed by the industry and traders, challenging the HC verdict. When the matter came up for hearing on March 31, Additional Solicitor General Mohan Jain sought time for the Environment Ministry to file its response to the petitions. A Bench, headed by Justice RM Lodha, granted two weeks’ time for the purpose and posted the next hearing after four weeks.

The SC, which had stayed the HC order on January 20, said the stay would continue till the next hearing. The ban covered the sale of 25 food articles packed in polythene sheets.

The petitioners have challenged the HC order, contending that the disposal of plastic waste was a national problem and not restricted to Himachal alone warranting such a ban only in the hilly state.

Some of the food items could be packed only in non-porous material like polythene sheets to preserve quality, they pleaded.

Shimla, April 3
A comprehensive general patient safety and oral health safety programme will soon be implemented at the Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Dr Rajendra Prasad Government Medical College, Tanda, and HP Government Dental College, Shimla.

Dr Ajay Mahajan, Assistant Professor at HP Dental College, Shimla, said: “As general patient and oral-health safety remains non-existent in most hospitals in the country, including Himachal, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has recommended to the government to put in place the Medical Quality Control Commission (MQCC) that ensures patient safety right from the time he/she lands at the hospital and goes back after treatment.”

Dr Mahajan has been awarded with a prestigious fellowship after the successful completion of his clinical training at the world-famous King’s College in London. He was a staff member at the International Centre for Child Oral Health and the Department of Dentistry at King’s College in London and came back here recently with the recommendation.

Dr Mahajan said: “A majority of the government hospitals and medical colleges in the country except AIIMS in New Delhi, do not run the general patient and oral health safety programme and do not have a database on patients’ negligence.”

“WHO has recommended to the developing countries to start the patient-safety programme and put in place the MQCC at government hospitals,” he said. The moment a patient lands at the emergency ward, he suffers a host of hospital-acquired infections or errors on the part of doctors or the staff during treatment and hospitalisation.

“But the major problem is that no medical college has a database on the patients’ safety,” Dr Mahajan said. “We plan to make a start and train interns and registrars to take care of patients’ safety,” he added. Citing WHO data, Dr Mahajan said: “In developed countries, one in 10 patients is harmed while receiving hospital care, whereas in developing countries like India, the probability of patients being harmed at hospitals is higher,” he added. The MQCC is higher than the Medical Council of India and the Dental Council of India and oversees the patient-safety programme, he said.

“We have recommended it. Building a database is the need of the hour to take stock of medical negligence at hospitals,” he added. Awareness about dental diseases is the need of the hour so that good quality dental care with improvement in patient-safety standards could be provided, he added.

Dr Mahajan was selected through a rigorous selection process. Candidates from 53 Commonwealth countries were in the fray for this oral safety programme at King’s College. Dr Mahajan has given a lecture on Dental Public Health in India and one at the British Association of Physicians of Indian origin annual conference held at Cardiff, Wales, in England and at the World Federation of Public Health Dentistry,Geneva. It was also published by their secretariat. Dr Mahajan has been recognised by the Indian Society of Periodontology (ISP) for his research.

Shimla, April 3
The Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam’s (SJVNs) 1,500-MW Nathpa Jhakri power station has set another record of power generation by producing 7,193 million units of electricity during 2013-14.

A press statement said the power generation achieved is 579 million units more than the design energy of the power station which is 6,612 million units.

Chief Managing Director RP Singh and other directors commended all employees at the power station saying that the generation of 7,193 million units has been achieved, despite the high inflow of over 16 lakh tonnes of silt in the Satluj. This was possible due to efficient water and machine management by engineers, he added.

The power station continues to achieve higher levels of power generation every year. During 2013-14, the power station has achieved a plant availability factor of 105.74 per cent. The power station commenced generation in 2004-05 and has generated 65,000 million units of electricity so far. 

Mandi, April 3
The All-India Insurance Employees’ Association (AIIEA) has demanded its recognition from the management of the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India.

In a press statement, joint secretary of North Zone Insurance Employees Association Manohar Chandel said the issue was pending for long and the LIC management should not delay it further.

He said the AIIEA is a representative body of Class III and IV employees of the LIC and 80 per cent employees working at the LIC were its members.

The association accused the LIC management for violating the concept of industrial democracy and convention 87 and 98 of the International Labour Organisation.

Chamba, April 3
Officials who have shown outstanding performance while carrying out their duties in their departments will be honoured at a district-level function to be held on the occasion of Himachal Day on April 15 at the district headquarters town of Chamba.

This decision was taken by district officers at a meeting held to discuss preparations for the Himachal Day function. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Chamba DC Kadam Sandeep Vasant here on Monday.

The DC, directing officers of different departments at the meeting, said lists of officials to be honoured should reach his office by April 12. Accordingly, suitable seating arrangements for such officials should be made, the DC directed the officers.

The officers concerned should take necessary steps for the grand function, the DC further stated. 

Nurpur, April 3
Workers of the Himachal Pradesh Public Works Department (HPPWD) from Fatehpur, Dhameta, Badukhar and Indora subdivisions held a protest demonstration outside the office of the PWD Executive Engineer at Fatehpur in the Jawali area here yesterday.

The workers, led by Bhartiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) acting president Madan Rana, raised slogans in support of their demands.

Madan Rana alleged that HPPWD workers were being harassed and their problems could not be solved even after convening meetings with department officials.

The workers were not being paid TAs and DAs and they had to travel 40 to 45 km for their duties.

No safety equipment was provided to those workers engaged in laying bitumen on roads, he lamented.

Shimla, April 3
Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), to allow aspirants willing to apply for admission to fill their application forms online, today launched its online application service for all courses.

Vice-Chancellor ADN Bajpai said this here. It was also deliberated upon that private institutes and colleges, affiliated to the university, would be covered for the online admission process. —TNS

Shimla, April 3
Rajinder Kumar Sharma, honorary secretary of the Himachal Pradesh Badminton Association (HPBA), has been appointed manager of the Indian Junior Badminton team, which is going to participate in the World Junior Badminton Championship. It will be held from April 7 to 18 in Alor Setar, Malaysia. The Indian players will participate in individual events as well as mixed team competitions.

Aditi Joshi, who was recently ranked world No.1, will also be part of a 17-member squad comprising Ritu Parna Dass, Ruthviba, Shivani, Kuhugarg, Meera Mahadevan, Reshma, Reshma, Shruti, Vanshvi, Chirag Sen, Talar, Chirag Shetty, MR Arjun, B Sanbirt, Harshel, Rohan and Sourbh, a HPBA spokesperson said.

Kangra, April 3
A 21-year-old boy of Galyian village was arrested from Ludhiana in Punjab for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl of Thakurdwara village on March 29, the police said here today.

SHO, Kangra, Mohinder Singh Manhas said the accused, Raman Kumar, called the girl out late in the evening on March 29 and when she came out of her house, she was forced into a waiting taxi (HP 40 0474). She was then taken to an isolated house at Galyian village belonging to Preetam Singh and was raped by Raman Kumar there, he added. The accused, after committing the crime left her at the Ranital railway station the next morning, Manhas said.

He said the victim reached her house and narrated the incident to her parents. The Kangra police was informed. A case under Section 376 of the IPC was registered. The girl’s medical examination was conducted, which confirmed rape.

The SHO said the accused fled, but the taxi driver,identified as Parveen Kumar, was arrested under Sections 363 and 366 of the IPC for hatching a conspiracy and kidnapping.

He was produced before the ADJM, Kangra, today and remanded in police custody till April 5.

Manhas said different police parties were sent out of the state after which the accused was arrested from Ludhiana.

Hamirpur, April 3
The Hamirpur police today arrested four students of a private polytechnic college for allegedly murdering Vishal, who was found dead two days ago.

Avnish Singh and Neelam Kumar, both of Sarkaghat, Aditya Sharma of Rehan (Kangra), and Santosh Kumar were detained by the police based on the mobile call details of the victim.

The accused, all teenagers, were sharing a rented room at Bajuri and had not gone to attend their classes after the incident. Vishal was found dead near Mattan Sidh and his mobile phone and motor cycle were missing.

SP, Hamirpur, Bina Bharti said: “The four accused have been arrested under Sections 302, 201 and 34, IPC, and the police have also recovered mobile phone and motor cycle of the victim from them.”