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Poor rains leave farmers high and dry
Water channel breach floods paddy, vegetable crops in Moga
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R’sthan farmers to protest cut in canal water supply
Balri Rakshak Yojna fails to take off in Muktsar
Abducted Punjabis ‘carry’ arms for Iraqi militia
Soon, panel to thrash out issues between allies
Patiala byelection: Escorted by Deputy CM, Juneja files papers
Cong readies for aggressive campaign
Youths torture elderly man for 10 days, SHO suspended
State to be drug-free in 18 months: Jyani
ETT teachers gherao Jyani’s Fazilka house
controversy
over kirpan
Govt to rename Giani Zail Singh university
Centre working on HSGMC tangle, CM told
Ghana ready to allocate land to Punjabi farmers
Save Rajoana, Dal Khalsa to Takht
Jakhar: Reward sportspersons handsomely
J&K High Court CJ bereaved
Illegal
detention
Admission
to medical courses
PIL roster restored to CJ’s Bench
3 Bhaniarawala attackers get 10-year jail
Chaura gets 2-yr jail in arms case
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Poor rains leave farmers high and dry
Amritsar, July 31 A visit to the border villages in Amritsar and Tarn Taran districts revealed that the farmers are stressed due to the ongoing dry spell and are hopeful of good rainfall in August. Gurmeet Singh, a farmer from Dag village, said they are having a tough time in sustaining their crop as they get power supply for merely four and a half hours. Consequently, they have to rely on generator to irrigate their land. “We end up spending anywhere between Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,500 daily on generator.” He said many farmers did not even have tube-well connections despite the fact that they had applied for it in 2007. Ranjeet Singh, a farmer from Tur village, said while they were already reeling under dry spell, the restrictions imposed by the BSF had only added to their woes. “We get power supply in our fields across the border fence at night, and not during the day time when we are allowed to work there. Due to security restrictions, we are not even allowed to grow other crops that need less water,” he said. Arjan Singh of Hoshiarnagar said it had not rained in their village this monsoon season. He opined that even if it rained in August, it would be of great help. He said their input cost had shot up considerably as they had to irrigate their paddy field that was spread over 40 acres of land with the help of generator. Sham Singh of Dhanoe Kalan village said if the dry spell continued, the paddy yield would come down by 50 per cent. The scenario is no different in neighbouring Tarn Taran district. Kuldeep Singh, a farmer who has 1.5 acres of land at Rasoolpur village, has lost his entire crop on which he had spent Rs 15,000. "The well-to-do farmers may still think of mobilising resources, but small farmers like me can't do anything to save our crop," he said. Pargat Singh of Chamba village in Tarn Taran said they were spending 150 per cent more on their crop as compared to last year. He said the canal water system had collapsed completely as otherwise they could have banked upon it. He feared that if the current situation persisted, it would become difficult for them to save their crop. Amritsar Chief Agriculture Officer Paramjeet Singh Sandhu admitted that the rainfall was much less than last year. He said the farmers must ensure judicious use of water. Farmer leader Rattan Singh Randhawa has sought a compensation of Rs 25,000 per acre for the farmers who had completely lost their crop and Rs 15,000 per acre for those suffering partial loss due to the “drought-like conditions”. He said the government must strengthen its canal water supply network as it would not only benefit the farmers but also aid in ground water recharge.
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Water channel breach floods paddy, vegetable crops in Moga
Moga, July 31 The exact losses to paddy, fodder and vegetable crops could not be known immediately. The Revenue Department was yet to assess the losses. Villagers alleged the Irrigation Department had not de-silted or cleared vegetation from the water channel for the past many years. This resulted in narrowing of the creek, which led to a breach, they said. Darshan Singh, Baljit Singh and other affected farmers of the village said the water had been overflowing and leaking at some points due to silt and vegetation for the past couple of days, which finally led to the breach. Over the past 10 years, they had to suffer losses due to repeated inundation of their fields, but the authorities did not pay any heed to their grievances. "Despite our repeated requests, the Irrigation Department has not strengthened the banks and cleaned the water channel," alleged Malkit Singh, another farmer. The Irrigation Department had reportedly released water beyond the capacity of this water channel. That could also have been the reason behind the breach. The banks of the water channel had weakened over the past few years and these could not withstand the increased water pressure. The government should repair and strengthen the banks, villagers demanded. Sarbjit Singh, a Junior Engineer of the Irrigation Department, said he would plug the breach by the evening and restore the water supply by tomorrow. "There is a need to repair the banks of the channel," he said.
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R’sthan farmers to protest cut in canal water supply
Abohar, July 31 Punjab Irrigation officials said it was unsafe to release more water in Ferozepur/Rajasthan feeder as it had not been renovated since its inception in 1957. Two weeks ago, Sriganganagar District Collector (DC) had pacified the protesting farmers, claiming that the Principal Secretary Irrigation, Jaipur, had promised to transfer Rs 50 lakh to Punjab Government within two days so the canals could be repaired. “The Punjab Irrigation Officials still allege the Rajasthan Government has not paid the amount to remove hyacinth from the canals originating from Harike Headworks,” said KSS spokesman Subhash Sehgal. Angrej Singh, KSS spokesman, said they found out that the Punjab Government had quoted an estimate of the expenditure on canal repair to Rajasthan officials, but no funds had been released so far. The state estimated Rs 3 to be the cost for the relining of a canal near the Mallanwala Headworks. Yesterday, over 200 farmers inspected Gang (Bikaner) canal in Fazilka and Ferozepur districts and Ferozepur/Rajasthan feeder to ascertain how much portion needed to be repaired. “We found 250 damaged points and took pictures of these so we could take up our case with the state governments and the Centre,” Sehgal said. Srikaranpur Panchayat Samiti chairman Tejdeep Singh Sandhu, Beopar Mandal former president Sukhdev Singh, “H” canal consumer body former president Ram Kumar Saharan, farmer leader Avtar Singh Rahdewala and Harinder Singh Kaka inspected the canals. The inspection finished today. They later sat on a dharna at canal complex in Harike. The farmers asked the officials why the pathway along the Ferozepur feeder had been reduced from 25 to 10 ft on certain stretches. “They had no explanation to offer when asked why the Gang (Bikaner) canal was not being run to capacity after the lining work had been executed at a cost of Rs 466 crore. Moreover, the officials in Punjab have not taken steps to check theft of water in Fazilka and Ferozepur districts,” Sukhdeep Singh of Chak 22RB village said. The farmers said the water received at Khakha Headworks in Sriganganagar near the interstate border increased from 1,650 to 2,150 cusecs today afternoon, facilitating the release of water in the RB canal and “F” distributary. They said though recent rains had brought some relief to desert areas, they needed more water to irrigate cotton and other crops.
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Balri Rakshak Yojna fails to take off in Muktsar
Muktsar, July 31 Since March 2011, no financial incentives have been paid to any couple enrolled on the scheme. The scheme was introduced in 2005 and only 14 couples in the district have been enrolled. As per the scheme, the state government has to deposit Rs 500/1,000 per month into the account of a beneficiary couple, which opted for sterilisation. The couple has to have only one/two daughters with the younger one being below five years of age. This amount has to be paid till the time the younger daughter is 18 or until her parents become tax payers. Even the ASHA workers had to be paid an additional allowance of Rs 500 per case to motivate them to work on the scheme. Perusal of the documents revealed that only three couples were enrolled on the scheme in year 2005, none in 2006, one in 2007, one in 2008, three in 2009, four in 2010, one in 2011, none in 2012 and one in 2013. This year, so far, not even a single couple has enrolled on the scheme. The Health Department officials said that they had been repeatedly demanding for more funds to continue the scheme, but to no avail. “We have sought nearly Rs 5.5 lakh for beneficiaries, but it has not been released since April 2011,” said local officials of the Health Department. There are some beneficiaries who have not even received financial incentives for the first month. “Though the procedure to become a beneficiary is tedious, it has not yielded any results due to lack of funds,” said an official. Dr Narinder Singh, Civil Surgeon, Muktsar, said, “I will investigate the matter thoroughly and ensure that all beneficiaries are paid the incentives within a short period.”
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Abducted Punjabis ‘carry’ arms for Iraqi militia
Hoshiarpur, July 31 Parminder Singh, brother of one of the abducted boys Kamaljit from Chhawni Kalan in Hoshiarpur, told this to The Tribune on the phone. Parminder said he was in Delhi for a week coordinating with the Union Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the release of Indians abducted in Iraq. Minister of Foreign Affairs Sushma Swaraj had assured them that the abducted Indians would be got released soon. Parminder said, "I was told that the abducted Indians were safe and they were in an area that could not be reached yet." He said he was trying to contact the abducted men with the help of Iraq Embassy and through his own contacts. "I have some contacts in Mosul and elsewhere in Iraq and I have been in regular contact with them. They have told me that the people abducted by the terrorists were being used as coolies by the terrorists and they were made to carry arms and ammunition, besides other supplies for them. It is not possible to reach them yet. They could be evacuated only after the battle stops," he said. Parminder returned from Iraq in September last year. He worked with the same company in Mosul for two years from where the terrorists had abducted 40 Punjabis, including his brother and two brothers-in-law. Parminder said he was in regular contact with some local people there and that they were also trying to help in the release of abducted Punjabis.
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Soon, panel to thrash out issues between allies
Chandigarh, July 31 Highly placed sources said Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and state BJP president Kamal Sharma met here last night and discussed all contentious issues.They decided to form a four-member coordination committee. The committee will discuss all proposals on policy-making before these are approved by the Cabinet. Many in the Akali Dal feel that the BJP is getting more assertive after its massive success in the Lok Sabha elections. In private, senior Akali leaders admit that they need to keep BJP leaders in good humour in order to get additional grants from the Centre. Akali leaders say they are “amused” at the outbursts of BJP minister Anil Joshi. They view it as an attempt by the minister to save his berth. While Joshi, at one time considered close to the Akalis, is hardening his stand against them, former minister Manoranjan Kalia is warming up to the Akalis. Kalia may be re-inducted in the Cabinet. Sources in the BJP said they were hoping that the coordination committee would review all issues that had antagonised urban voters. The Balramji Das Tandon Committee had submitted its report to the BJP high command on the reasons for the party’s poor performance, especially in urban pockets. It had pointed out that the government’s decision to give input tax credit on actual stocks and impose property tax were among the reasons for the urban voters rejecting the BJP. Requesting anonymity, the BJP leaders say that the next issue that they will take up with the government is rationalising the property tax. The existing collector rate will cease to be the benchmark for collecting property tax, they say. Vacant plots and flats measuring less than 800 square feet will be exempted from the tax. “The issue has already been discussed at Cabinet meetings. We will modify the policy after the two byelections,” said a senior BJP leader. The party is also looking at changing the policy on mining minor minerals (sand and gravel).The state government may itself begin mining operations and put an end to the “mining cartel”.
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Patiala byelection: Escorted by Deputy CM, Juneja files papers
Patiala, July 31 Senior BJP leaders such as Patiala election in charge Jagtar Saini, Patiala BJP president Anil Bajaj and former chief parliamentary secretary Raj Khurana were ignored. This angered the local BJP cadre. Addressing a rally, Sukhbir said the alliance had selected a candidate from among the masses. The Congress candidate, on the other hand, belonged to a royal family and was accessible to the people only during elections, he alleged. Taking a dig at Capt Amarinder Singh, Sukhbir claimed that the people of Amritsar were already repenting their decision to elect “Maharaja Sahib who has visited the city only once since his victory." Denying any rift with the BJP, Sukhbir said that all Cabinet decisions were taken collectively.
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Cong readies for aggressive campaign
Chandigarh, July 31 The BJP has deputed Cabinet Minister Madan Mohan Mittal for the Talwandi Sabo campaign. Party general secretary Tarun Chugh, a BJP leader from Amritsar, will accompany him. Talwandi Sabo has two urban segments — Talwandi Sabo and Rama Mandi. The Congress is preparing a data on cancer patients in Talwandi Sabo and the effect of the pollution caused by the Bathinda refinery on nearby villages. Congress president Partap Singh Bajwa, who will be in Talwandi Sabo soon for campaigning, said the state government had not hiked pension for the elderly and shagun scheme funds despite promising to do so in its manifesto. He said almost all promises in the manifesto were yet to be honoured. The Congress has selected MLAs for spearheading the poll campaign in Patiala and Talwandi Sabo.
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A suicide that turned out be a gruesome murder
Faridkot, July 31 The second post-mortem examination on the mutilated body showed that the youth was inflicted with many grievous injuries before his body was dumped into a canal. The police today booked four persons, including a woman, in connection with the case. The 'haste' in which Faridkot and Abohar police declared it a suicide case and started the process to cremate the body, tagging it as "unidentified", led to a protest in Sadiq town of Faridkot. The town observed a complete bandh today to lodge protest against the police. On Wednesday evening, minutes before the Abohar and Faridkot police were going to cremate the body of the youth, at Faridkot cremation ground, a family, whose 19-year-old son had been missing since July 22, stopped the police. The family demanded clothes that were found on the body when it was found and identified the dead as their missing member, Lovepreet. Many social activists also reached the cremation ground and objected to the police move of cremating the body. It was highly objectionable. The police did not even bother to intimate some families in the area whose members had gone missing in the recent time, said Gurdit Singh Sekhon, a member of joint action committee that has been holding protests against the alleged lackadaisical attitude of the police in tracing 29 persons missing from Faridkot over the last 19 months. Lovepreet's father Jagdeep Singh, a resident of Sadiq, said his son went missing on July 22 evening. A complaint was lodged with the police. Police sources said the body of Lovepreet was found from the Gang canal, near Abohar, on July 26. After waiting for a claimant of the body for three days, the Abohar police brought it to Faridkot for a post-mortem examination at Guru Gobind Singh Medical College on July 30. After the post-mortem examination, the mutilated body was declared "unidentified" and the Abohar and Faridkot police started the process to cremate it. Lovepreet's family members came to know that the police were going to cremate an "unidentified" body. They rushed to the cremation ground and identified the deceased as their missing son. A panel of three doctors conducted another autopsy on the body at Faridkot Medical College and found multiple injuries on it. One arm of the deceased was found amputated. On the complaint of the father of the deceased, the police have registered a murder case against four persons, including a woman. "The police are investigating the case and necessary action will be taken if any employee was found guilty of dereliction of duty," said SS
Kahlon, SSP, Faridkot.
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Youths torture elderly man for 10 days, SHO suspended
Amritsar, July 31 Jaspal Singh, Station House Officer of the Khemkaran police station, has been suspended. Besides, the police authorities have called for an explanation from Harpal Singh, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Bhikhiwind. Though the incident took place on July 17, it came to light a couple of days ago after a video clip of the incident was uploaded on the internet. The victim, Mangal Singh (65), had been missing since July 17. He had gone to a fair at a shrine. The accused allegedly kept Mangal Singh in illegal confinement for 10 days. The video clip revealed that the youths severely damaged the elderly man’s private parts. He was recovered by the police after a complaint was lodged by the victim’s nephew, Harpal Singh. The latter said his uncle had lost his mental balance and had not been talking to anyone or eating properly. The police have registered a case against Daler Singh, Shamsher Singh, Sukhraj Singh and Jagga Singh and a few unidentified persons. Harpal said his uncle was a habitual drinker and the accused alleged that they had punished him for entering the shrine in an inebriated condition. The victim’s family today met Raj Kumar Verka, vice-chairman, National SC Commission. They alleged the accused had not been arrested and were threatening them of dire consequences. Verka summoned the DGP and the Home Secretary to appear before the commission on August 4 with a report of action taken in the case so far. He also directed Bakhtawar Singh, ADC, to constitute a medical board and submit a report on Mangal Singh’s medical condition. He also asked him to release compensation as per the Prevention of Atrocities Act, besides providing treatment to the victim free of cost. Harvinder Singh, Superintendent of Police, said they had arrested two persons. He said the remaining accused had gone to Sri Hazur Sahib and would be arrested on their return.
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State to be drug-free in 18 months: Jyani
Mohali, July 31 "Apart from the Punjab Police, social organisations and the public are also fully cooperating in our campaign against the drug menace. I assure you that the state will be drug-free within one-and-a-half-year," Jyani said on the sidelines of the function. Jyani also added that the government had planned to establish drug de-addiction and rehabilitation centres, with a capacity of 50 beds each, in all 22 districts. Earlier, Jyani inaugurated Modern Drug Warehouse, constructed at a cost of around Rs 1.25 crore, and laid the foundation stone of the Chemical, Food and Drug Testing Laboratory at Kharar. The deadline to complete the construction of the laboratory complex is February, 2016. The minister said the availability of enough and requisite medicines would be ensured at all civil hospitals and other health service organisations in the state. "To meet the shortage of doctors, we will appoint 250 MBBS doctors very soon. To provide better medical facilities, we have already constructed drug warehouses at Bathinda and Attari (Amritsar). In these warehouses, 234 different kinds of medicines can be stored which are provided free of cost by the state government," he added.
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ETT teachers gherao Jyani’s Fazilka house
Fazilka, July 31 Working under zila parishads, the protesters have been demanding that their services be brough under the Education Department. The union had planned to hold protests and hunger strike outside the residences of all Cabinet ministers today from 9 am to 5 pm. A heavy police posse was deployed on the roads leading to Katehra. In view of today’s protest, the district police had reportedly started rounding up union leaders from yesterday night. However, a large number of protesters still managed to reach Jyani’s residence. They also blocked the Fazilka-Abohar highway. Jaswinder Singh Aliana, union’s district president, said, “Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had promised the merger of our schools with the Education Department. But, the government has now backtracked.” Rajiv Kukreja, Fazilka ETT Teachers Union press secretary, claimed the police had rounded up about 150 teachers, though they were let off around 5 pm. Kukreja said the state president of their union, Jaswinder Singh Sidhu, who had been on fast-unto-death for the last 12 days, was forcibly picked up by the police from Mohali. Now, Fazilka-based union leader Vipin Lota had replaced Jaswinder, he said.
Fast near Dhindsa’s house
Sangrur: Forty-one ETT teachers from Sangrur and Barnala districts observed a fast near the residence of Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa here today. They were demanding that the schools working under zila parishads and municipal councils be brought under the Education Department. Later, they took out a protest march from Dhindsa’s kothi to the traffic light chowk near the main bus stand.
AAP team meets Maluka
Chandigarh: A delegation of AAP leaders today met Sikander Singh Maluka, Panchayats Minister, and raised the demand of the ETT teachers. AAP leader Prof Manjit Singh said Maluka told the delegation that he had no objection if the ETT teachers were absorbed in the Education Department. He said the delegation members should also talk to Education Minister Daljit Singh Cheema on the issue.
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controversy
over kirpan
Amritsar, July 31 In his letter to the institution’s head, SGPC president Avtar Singh Makkar said it is highly unfortunate incident that amounts to infringement of the constitutional and fundamental right to freedom of religion. “It has hurt the religious sentiments of the child.” He asked the institution’s principal to tender an unconditional apology to the family of the student concerned and also facilitate the conduct of entrance exam for him within seven days of the receipt of the letter, failing which the SGPC will move the court against it. The SGPC has also sent a separate representation to the District Magistrate in Kota. The Akal Takht has taken a serious note of the incident. As per a release issued here today, Akal Takht Jathedar Giani Gurbachan Singh said it was a matter of grave concern for the Sikh community.
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Patiala officer is Central Air Command chief
Chandigarh, July 31 Hailing from Patiala, Air Marshal Gill was commissioned into the Flying Branch in December 1977 and has 7,000 hours of accident and incident-free flying to his credit. He has had the rare distinction of commanding four stations at different stages of his career, including an operational flying unit in east, a radar station in the northern sector and two flying stations in Jammu and Kashmir, including the world’s highest air base at Leh. While commanding Air Force Station Leh, he was instrumental in initiating and activating many forward air bases and Advanced Landing Grounds (ALG). He was the first contingent commander of the UN Mission to Congo where he was decorated with the Yudh Seva Medal. An outstanding sportsman, he has been the member of the 7th and 8th Antarctica Expeditions for which he was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry). Air Marshal Gill is married to Ranjeet Gill and they have two daughters and a son, who is undergoing flying training at Air Force Academy.
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CM honours martyr’s kin
Sunam, July 31 Badal presented a shawl each to relatives of the martyr, including Khushi Nand, Jeet Singh, Rani Kaur and Malkit Singh. The Chief Minister said the state government had written to the Centre for a Rs 2,300 crore relief to tackle the drought-like situation in Punjab. On SAD and BJP airing their grievances publicly, he said he had asked the leaders of both parties to sort out their differences at the appropriate fora. He said all decisions were being taken jointly. Badal lashed out at the Congress for “interfering” in Sikh affairs. He said the Congress had ruined the state’s agriculture and this had resulted in suicide by farmers. The Chief Minister claimed that Punjab would be a drug-free state within 18 months. As Badal rose to speak, a few members of the Artificial Insemination Worker Union (Animal Husbandry) started raising slogans, demanding regular jobs. They were overpowered by the police and whisked away in a police vehicle. Among others who spoke on the occasion were Finance Minister Parminder Singh Dhindsa, MLA Iqbal Singh Jhundan, Chief Parliamentary Secretaries Parkash Chand Garg and Balbir Singh Ghunas, former ministers Gobind Singh Kanjhla and Gobind Singh Longowal, state BJP secretary Jatinder Kalra, member of the Punjab State Subordinate Services Selection Board KK Maudgil and SAD general secretary Rajinder Singh Kanjhla. Fatehgarh Sahib: Arun Sekhri, Deputy Commissioner, paid tributes to Saheed Udham Singh at his memorial at Rauza Sharif, Fatehgarh Sahib, today. He said that citizens should pledge to wage a war on social evils like drug abuse, female foeticide, dowry, corruption and adulteration. This would be a true tribute to the martyrs. Dalip Singh Pandhi, former Minister, Gurpreet Singh advocate and Gurwinder Sohi, president, JAGO, also paid tributes. They urged the youths to work selflessly for the good of society and the country. Pooja Sayal, SDM, and Harinder Bhambhri, DCC president, also spoke on the occasion.
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Govt to rename Giani Zail Singh university
Chandigarh, July 31 Highly placed sources said that the Chief Minister’s approval was a mere formality. Giani Zail Singh was the first Sikh President of India. He was a staunch Congress man. The university campus was renamed Giani Zail Singh College of Engineering and Technology, Bathinda, in 1992 when the Beant Singh government was in power. In 2011, it was made a constituent college of Punjab Technical University. Dr Joginder Kaur, daughter of the late President, expressed dismay at the move. She had joined the SAD in April this year. She said she would take up the matter with the Chief Minister, “My father was President. He ceased to belong to any party when he attained that post. No one should play politics on such matters,” she said. The Ramgarhia Vishvakarma Front, Punjab, has opposed the move to rename the university. Principal Mata Ram Dhiman, president of the front, said they would lodge protests if the government changed the name of the university.
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Centre working on HSGMC tangle, CM told
New Delhi, July 31 The Chief Minister made it known to the BJP leaders that he had called off his agitation only when assured by the Centre that the issue would be resolved after the Haryana Governor was changed. However, nothing had happened so far. Shanta Kumar conveyed the feelings of the Akali leader to Rajnath Singh on the phone.
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Ghana ready to allocate land to Punjabi farmers
Chandigarh, July 31 He said a delegation from Punjab would visit the African country soon to lay the groundwork for this scheme. The visiting minister, who called on the Deputy CM at his residence last night, said Ghanaian President John Dramani Mahama wanted to promote agriculture as a tool of progress and that Ghana would welcome Punjabi expertise in this regard. He said the Government of Ghana was ready to allocate fertile agriculture land on long lease to Punjabi farmers. Badal said the state government would send a delegation of officers and an expert from PAU, Ludhiana, to study the process whereby land could be leased out to Punjabi farmers as well as the suitability of the project. He said the state government could initially facilitate farmers to settle down in Ghana to cultivate 20,000 to 25,000 acres. The Ghana minister, who visited a number of businesses in Ludhiana and Jalandhar during his three- day tour, said his country would shortly appoint a business counsellor at Ludhiana to initiate a meaningful business relationship with Punjab. Leading Sikh businessman from Ghana Amardeep Singh Hari, who accompanied the delegation, said Ghana would welcome help from Punjab to establish educational institutions and mini hydel dams in Ghana.
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Save Rajoana, Dal Khalsa to Takht
Party chief HS Dhami pointed out that reports indicated that Home Minister Rajnath Singh would take the final call on Rajoana as the state government had refused to make any recommendation on the case file. — TNS
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Jakhar: Reward sportspersons handsomely
Abohar, July 31 Rewarding the players would inspire the youth to take up sports. He said the state government shouldn’t just promote kabaddi, but also focus on other sports. “The sports infrastructure in the state is not up to international standards and there is a dearth of quality coaches. Once these issues are addressed, we can expect our sportspersons to shine on the international stage,” he added.
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J&K High Court CJ bereaved
Chandigarh, July 31 The cremation will take place at Malerkotla at 10 am. Justice Kumar was a Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court before his elevation as the Chief Justice of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. One of his brothers, Pawan Kumar, is a designated senior advocate in the High Court here.
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Illegal detention
Chandigarh, July 31 Gursewak Singh was allegedly picked up by the police in Bathinda district from Sangat Darshan and “harassed” during his illegal detention for being “near the security zone of Punjab Chief Minister”. He was allegedly “called to inquire about his presence on the stage on a senior officer’s asking”. Justice Rajan Gupta had, on the previous date of hearing, asked for the antecedents of the “detainee” and the identity of the officer concerned. Justice Gupta has also asked the state of Punjab to file an affidavit in this connection by an officer not below the rank of Additional Director-General of Police. As the case came up for resumed hearing before Justice Gupta this morning, the counsel appearing for the state of Punjab at the very onset sought additional time for filing the affidavit. Taking a note of the request, Justice Gupta fixed August 14 as the next date of hearing. Justice Gupta had earlier observed: “Certain issues require clarification. It has been submitted that Gursewak Singh was found roaming around in suspicious circumstances near the security zone of the Chief Minister. He was, thus, called to the police station for questioning on the asking of a senior officer. “In the report, neither the designation of the officer nor antecedents of Gursewak Singh have been disclosed…. Let affidavit of an officer not below the rank of Additional DGP be filed.” The orders came on a petition filed by Baldev Singh through counsel Sarvesh Kumar Gupta, after the warrant officer appointed by the High Court submitted his report. The alleged detainee, on the other hand, said the police was harassing him unnecessarily and he had been detained in the police station since June 5.
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Admission
to medical courses
Chandigarh, July 31 Calculations suggest the university may end up paying Rs 16.80 lakh as the order affects 84 students. The petition by the university came after the Punjab Government on June 16 decided to bar the university from conducting independent counselling for its 250 medical seats for the 2014-15 session on June 17 and 18. The state, through Additional Advocate-General Deepak Balyan, had contended that the university did not have UGC recognition; and an earlier order passed by the high court nowhere suggested that the university had been granted right to counselling. The high court had earlier allowed provisional counselling after taking note of the fact that the first round of counselling was to be over by June 25, as per the schedule given by the Supreme Court in the case of Lipika Gupta and another versus the Union of India. Justice Sandhawalia, on the previous date of hearing, had made clear that the Baba Farid University of Health Sciences “shall conduct the counselling on the basis of the notification dated March 7, issued by the State Government”. Justice Sandhawalia had added: “It will be open to the students who had taken admission with the petitioner-university to apply for counselling in the second round of counselling, which is to be conducted by the Baba Farid University”.
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PIL roster restored to CJ’s Bench
Chandigarh, July 31 Former Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, just before his departure from Chandigarh for Chennai, declared on July 22 that cases heard by his Bench, including petitions filed in public interest, would go to the fifth Division Bench till July 25. The development was significant as the cases heard by the first Division Bench are usually heard by the second Division Bench headed by the first Puisne Judge, after the Chief Justice demits the office. Justice Mohunta continued with the arrangement after taking over as the Acting Chief Justice on July 26. But the new roster, made public today, makes it clear that cases conventionally heard by the first Division Bench would again be heard by it. Just for records, the first DB has been hearing PILs, among other cases, ever since former Chief Justice Arun B Saharya retired in September 2002. During his tenure, the "Green Bench" was with the second Division Bench headed by the first Puisne Judge. The new roster, prepared in view of Justice Jasbir Singh's retirement, will come into force from Friday. The Acting Chief Justice has made another vital change in it. In an attempt to clear the backlog of cases before the High Court, former Chief Justice Kaul had directed that Wednesdays and Thursdays would be dedicated to hear regular or long-pending cases. Fresh cases would not be fixed for hearing on these two days. In a clear-cut departure from the practice of hearing such matters on two days, Justice Mohunta has made it clear that the cases would now be heard only on Wednesdays. The roster says: "All Division Benches will break on Wednesdays and Judges sitting in Division Benches will sit singly for taking up regular criminal appeals/regular second appeals/first appeal against orders and Motor Accident Claims Tribunal, complete/incomplete, cases". The roster adds: "No case may be fixed in motion hearing on Wednesdays. However, cases already fixed in ordinary motion hearing on this day will be taken up as usual." Justice Mohunta has, however, continued with the trend of having criminal cases heard by more than a dozen Single Benches, as such matters involve life and liberty of the accused and the convicts. Justice Mohunta also specified that the cases of crime against women, pending before it, were being put on the priority list. He also made it clear that priority was being accorded to corruption matters and cases where proceedings before the lower Courts had been stayed.
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3 Bhaniarawala attackers get 10-year jail
Ropar, July 31 The convicts, Harvinder Singh, Gurvinder Singh and Dharminder Singh, have also been slapped a fine of Rs 10,000. On October 27, 2011, the trio attacked the spiritual leader with sharpened plastic pipes while he was delivering sermon at Dhamana village near Nupur Bedi. The assailants were overpowered by the devotees and handed over to the police. — TNS
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Chaura gets 2-yr jail in arms case
Chandigarh, July 31 "In view of the facts of the case as well as nature of offence committed by the accused, this court is of the view that the imprisonment already undergone by the accused for around two years is sufficient punishment. As such the accused is sentenced to undergo sentence for period already undergone by him in custody that is from February 8, 2004 to April 29, 2005 and then from November 8, 2013 to July 31, 2014," said the court order.
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