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Three die in police firing in Hyderabad
6 injured in TN nuclear plant mishap
Modi poll blitzkrieg: 500 rallies as against Rahul, Sonia’s 165
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New PM should restore primacy of office: Gujral
Left seeks repoll on 3,200 booths in West Bengal
Rohinton, Subramanium set to become SC judges
Badrinath yatra resumes
Meerut tense after youth’s death
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Three die in police firing in Hyderabad
Hyderabad, May 14 Curfew was imposed in Rajendranagar police station limits after riots broke out between rival communities over the alleged burning of a religious flag at Kishanbagh area. Nearly 20 persons were injured in the clashes and the subsequent police firing. The trouble broke out near Sikh Chawni after some miscreants set fire to a religious flag. Tension gripped the area as members of a community attacked two youths belonging to another community, blaming them for the flag-burning incident. This led to violent clashes between the rival groups who started pelting stones at each other. “With both groups armed with swords and other objects going on the rampage, and policemen finding themselves outnumbered, the police resorted to firing,” a police official said. Seven policemen were injured in the stone pelting. City police commissioner CV Anand and top officials rushed to the spot and reviewed the situation. The Rapid Action Force and Central Reserve Police Force were deployed to maintain peace and to ensure that the trouble does not spread to other parts of the city. The flag post was immediately replaced and both the communities were asked to exercise restraint. When the central forces arrived, there was heavy stone pelting by the mobs. After baton-charge and tear gas shells failed to bring the situation under control, the police opened fire leading to the death of three persons. “The situation is under total control. We have alerted all the staff and patrolling has been intensified. Besides, we have also imposed Section 144 of the CrPC to prevent gathering of crowds,” the police commissioner said.
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6 injured in TN nuclear plant mishap
Chennai, May 14 “Six workers were on some maintenance job when hot water spilled on them while working on a pipeline. They have been admitted to hospital. There is nothing to worry about their safety,”
said RS. Sundar, KNPP site director. He denied reports about any boiler having burst in the first unit of the KNPP and added that the reactor was functioning properly and there was no worry on that count. The injured workers were admitted to the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd
(NPCIL) hospital in Kudankulam town, Sundar said. M Pushparayan, an activist of the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy
(PMANE), told IANS over phone from Tuticorin: “We are not sure where the injured workers have been admitted. People have seen six ambulances going beyond the township.” — IANS
Hot water spill
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Modi poll blitzkrieg: 500 rallies as against Rahul, Sonia’s 165
New Delhi, May 14 On the eve of the crucial meeting Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has called with party spokespersons to discuss the post-result communication strategy, it has become evident that even in terms of national presence, Modi outdid the Congress’ top leadership during the 45-day canvassing. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and Congress vice-president Rahul together did not address as many rallies as Modi addressed in the given period. While the BJP leader held around 500 rallies, Rahul Gandhi, Congress’ campaign leader, held 115 and Sonia 50. Simply put, Modi addressed 2.8 times more rallies than Rahul and Sonia put together, though Rahul separately conducted 20 road shows and 20 open manifesto meetings during the campaign. The Congress did appear short of star campaigners in many places, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh taking a back seat and addressing select rallies in Assam and Andhra Pradesh. He had been in the forefront of the Congress campaign in 2009 when the party won 206 Lok Sabha seats. News also is that many top industrialists and actors who campaigned for Congress in 2009 did not come forward this time. Sources in the Congress admit the party’s campaign didn’t appear as jazzy as Modi’s, but blame it on lack of funds. Party’s key election strategist Jairam Ramesh reiterated today that the Congress was “out-funded by the BJP” in the election. Though final data on poll-spending by both parties will be known later, available estimates suggest while the Congress spent around Rs 500 crore on its communication campaign (print, TV and public space), the BJP spent around Rs 7,000 crore. As per Congress claims, Modi’s campaign – including communication – was estimated at Rs 10,000 crore. The Congress’ total expenditure is not known. “The BJP had booked 70 per cent public spaces, including placards and hoarding spaces, across India well in advance,” said a Congress leader. That explains why party general secretary and Vadodra candidate Madhusudan Mistry was seen tearing down Modi’s posters in the area last month. Congress leaders, however, say the rallies conducted by Rahul and Sonia were based on strategic interests of the party in given segments and would reap benefits. Ramesh held that Rahul ran an indefatigable campaign, not resting for a day. For lack of aggression in the campaign, Jairam blamed BJP’s “obscene spending” for which he urged the Election Commission to audit its expenditure. While Modi’s office says he touched base with 230 million people (one in four voters) through rallies and holographic 3D events, Congress strategists have no such data for the Gandhis’ campaign. “The 115 rally figure of Rahul and 50-rally figure of Congress President doesn’t include the events Priyanka Gandhi addressed in Amethi and Rae Bareli,” they add.
Campaign cost: Cong (Rs 500 cr) vs BJP (Rs 7,000 cr)
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New PM should restore primacy of office: Gujral
New Delhi, May 14 Four areas have been identified for course-correction, by Naresh Gujral, a Rajya Sabha MP and member of the Shiromani Akali Dal. “One, the Prime Minister should be the last word in finalising his team and allocating portfolios. Two, allies should not be allowed to dictate choice of portfolios or fix quota in the Council of Ministers as per strength of MPs. Three, avoid setting up a steering committee or a similar set-up outside the existing arrangement like the NDA coordination committee. And finally, to restore the steel frame of Indian governance, the choice of the secretary in the ministry should not be left to be decided by the ministers,” he said. Naresh Gujral, son of former Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral, told The Tribune here today that, as a member of the coalition, he has already conveyed the idea to the BJP leadership with the hope that these are communicated to Narendra Modi, the coalition’s prime ministerial candidate. Referring to the experience of his father, Naresh said the steering committee formed to look at
policy used to either delay decisions or exercise a veto that diminished
the authority of the Prime Minister. Citing the UPA example, he said, the National Advisory Council headed by Congress president Sonia Gandhi became a parallel centre of power and the new government could learn from this too.
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BJP’s Giriraj courts controversy again
Patna/New Delhi, May 14 Giriraj said: “Since terrorism is a matter relating to the country and not to a community, why secular leaders remain silent when all persons arrested in terrorism cases belong to a particular community.” “Are there only a few to define religious non-discrimination? Is it not true that all terrorists caught belong to one community? I am not saying that all the people in that community are terrorists, but whoever is caught belongs to the same community,” he added. Giriraj said this mindset was ‘posing a danger’ to the country. During the recent poll campaign, the Jharkhand and Bihar police had lodged three FIRs against Singh for saying that those opposed to Narendra Modi had no place in India and they should go to Pakistan. — PTI
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Gadkari firm fined for polluting river
Mumbai, May 14 The MPCB has encashed a bank guarantee of Rs 7 lakh submitted by the company and has also asked it to submit fresh guarantees to the tune of Rs 14 lakh. MPCB officials said the company was found guilty of polluting the Wadgaon reservoir on the Vena river. MPCB’s action comes after several months of protests by affected villagers who were backed by the Aam Aadmi Party. With support from AAP’s activists, residents collected water samples and also dead fish from the reservoirs and sent them for testing to MPCB’s laboratories. Later complaints were filed based on the evidence collected. “We have found three units of the company guilty of polluting water resources,” a senior MPCB official said here today. According to officials, the company had failed to set up facilities to treat effluents which were released into reservoirs in a raw state. Apart from the sugar factory, Purti has also set up 540 MW coal-based power plant near the reservoir. Environmental activists have alleged that the plant would pollute the reservoir and damage the Muniya forest on the other side of the reservoir.
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Left seeks repoll on 3,200 booths in West Bengal
New Delhi, May 14 Party supporters held a rally at Jantar Mantar here in support of their demand. Counting of votes is slated on May 16. Prakash Karat, Sitaram Yechury and Brinda Karat (all CPM)), A B Bardhan, Sudhakar Reddy and D Raja (CPI), Debabrata Biswas (AIFB) and leaders of the RSP participated in the protest. In a petition to the EC today, the Left parties listed the booths in each constituency where rigging took place. “There has been large-scale rigging and violence in the elections. People’s faith in the democratic electoral process can only be restored if a re-poll is conducted at least in the 3,200 booths”, the petition said. The re-poll should be conducted in the presence of Central paramilitary forces so that people can vote freely and fairly, the Left parties demanded. Addressing the rally, Karat said: “In the 3rd, 4th and 5th phases of elections, around 3,200 polling booths were rigged by TMC workers. Voters were threatened and assaulted”.
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Rohinton, Subramanium set to become SC judges
New Delhi, May 14 Their names have been recommended by the apex court’s five-member collegium of senior judges headed by Chief Justice RM Lodha. The collegium has also suggested the elevation of Chief Justices Adarsh Goel of the Orissa High Court and Arun Mishra of the Calcutta High Court as judges of the Supreme Court, official sources said. Subramanium (56) and Nariman (58) would be only fifth and sixth SC judges to be directly appointed from the Bar. Earlier, justices SM Sikri in 1964 (who retired as the CJI in 1973), RC Roy in 1971(who died in four months), Kuldip Singh (1988-96) and Santosh Hegde (1999-2005) were appointed from the Bar. While Subramanium resigned as Solicitor General following his replacement by Nariman as government’s lead counsel in the 2G Spectrum case, Nariman, who succeeded him as the Solicitor General, quit about 18 months later over differences with the then Law Minister Ashwani Kumar. Subsequently, Kumar also quit as the Law Minister following the SC’s remarks against his perusing the CBI’s status report on the 2G investigations. Both Subramanium and Nariman had been designated as senior advocates in December 1993 by the then CJI MN Venkatachaliah. Subramanium has also been the Additional Solicitor General between 2005 and 2009, prior to his elevation as the Solicitor General (2009-11). He was also the chairman of the Bar Council of India. He was a member of the Justice JS Verma Committee that recommended amendments to criminal laws for the safety of women following the national outrage over the gangrape of a 23-year-old trainee physiotherapist in a moving bus in Delhi on December 16, 2012. Son of eminent jurist Fali S Nariman, Rohinton Nariman got his BCom degree from the Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University, and did his LLB from the DU’s Faculty of Law and LLM from Harvard Law School. An expert in comparative constitutional law and civil law, he is also a trained priest.
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Badrinath yatra resumes
Dehradun, May 14 Around 300 pilgrims who had paid obeisance at the shrine commenced their downward trek. “Traffic was restored around 11.30 am and the movement of pilgrims had resumed,” said CS Napalchayal, Commissioner Garhwal. The route leading to the Gangotri shrine witnessed a landslide early this morning, forcing the local administration to halt the yatra for a few hours. The Kedarnath yatra has been stalled till May 16 following heavy snowfall.
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Meerut tense after youth’s death
Lucknow, May 14 Shubham Rastogi yesterday succumbed to his injuries at the Meerut Medical College. He was the only person who had suffered serious head injuries in the communal clashes. Police are on alert and have increased their presence in certain areas of the city to prevent any untoward incident. Amid the heavy police deployment, Rastogi’s last rites took place at Surajkund. Meerut, still under the grip of communal tension from last year’s violence which shook several districts of western UP, once again came to a standstill with a virtual self-imposed curfew-like situation since yesterday. The shops in old city areas remained closed after the tension mounted.
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Three persons were killed in police firing following communal clashes in the sensitive old city area today.
