N A T I O N

Brigadier in dock over sodomy allegations
Chandigarh, August 23
A Brigadier commanding a sensitive infantry brigade on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir is in the dock over allegations of sodomy. The Army has initiated action against him, it is learnt. Sources said the Udhampur-based Headquarters Northern Command convened a court of inquiry (CoI) to investigate the allegations after several soldiers complained of misconduct by the Brigadier.

CM jeering fallout: BJP, JMM workers clash in Jharkhand
Ranchi/Jamshedpur, August 23
Ruling JMM activists showed black flags twice to Union Steel and Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar during his visit to Jharkhand today, two days after Chief Minister Hemant Soren was jeered by BJP men in the presence of the Prime Minister at a function in Ranchi.

BJP and JMM workers clash in Ranchi on Saturday. PTI

INS Kamorta inducted: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley (L) and Navy Chief Admiral RK Dhowan at the commissioning of India’s first indigenously built stealth anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta in Visakhapatnam on Saturday. ‘Kamorta’ is a frontline war vessel equipped with anti-air and anti-surface weapons. PTI

BJP mulls new body to accommodate veterans
New Delhi, August 23
The “new, young and rejuvenated” BJP appears to have no room for veterans. After ensuring an average age of 50 years in his team, it now seems party president Amit Shah is mulling a new body — apparently christened “Margdarshak Mandal” — comprising veterans who have crossed a certain age limit.

Oppn leader’s post
My decision based on rules: Speaker
Indore, August 23
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Saturday said her decision to deny the Leader of Opposition’s post to the Congress was based on rules and tradition, adding the Supreme Court had made no observation against her.

Max comedy is in Parliament: Mann Chandigarh, August 23 Trust a comedian to add a dash of colour to the proceedings of Parliament and nobody does it better than Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP from Sangrur, Bhagwant Mann, both inside and outside the House. Bhagwant Mann at a summit in Chandigarh on Saturday. Tribune photo: S.Chandan

Maharashtra Governor transferred to Mizoram
New Delhi, August 23
In a late night development, government transferred Maharahstra Governor K Sankaranarayanan to Mizoram for his remaining tenure, which ends in 2017.

Brigadier in dock over sodomy allegations
Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 23
A Brigadier commanding a sensitive infantry brigade on the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir is in the dock over allegations of sodomy. The Army has initiated action against him, it is learnt.

Sources said the Udhampur-based Headquarters Northern Command convened a court of inquiry (CoI) to investigate the allegations after several soldiers complained of misconduct by the Brigadier.

They added that Brigadier had been attached with headquarters of 25 Infantry Division at Rajouri for the conduct of the CoI. A Major General from Command Headquarters has been detailed as the CoI’s presiding officer with two other Brigadiers as members.

The CoI has already begun its proceedings. The Brigadier, who is said to be highly decorated, has reportedly proceeded on a long leave, sources added. He had taken over the command of his brigade in a volatile region that has witnessed cross-border skirmishes and firing in the recent past, a few months ago.

There have been several cases in the past where officers as well as JCOs have faced allegations of sodomy. Such incidents are viewed seriously by the Army. While disciplinary action was initiated against some of them, others had to put in their papers. The most infamous case was that of a Lieutenant General commanding a corps, who was sent home a few years ago after similar allegations were levelled against him.

Faces court of inquiry

• Udhampur-based Headquarters Northern Command has convened a court of inquiry (CoI) to investigate the allegations after several soldiers complained of misconduct by the Brigadier
• The Brigadier, commanding a sensitive infantry brigade on the LoC, has been attached with headquarters of the 25 Infantry Division at Rajouri
• The Brigadier, who is said to be highly decorated, has reportedly proceeded on a long leave

CM jeering fallout: BJP, JMM workers clash in Jharkhand

Ranchi/Jamshedpur, August 23
Ruling JMM activists showed black flags twice to Union Steel and Mines Minister Narendra Singh Tomar during his visit to Jharkhand today, two days after Chief Minister Hemant Soren was jeered by BJP men in the presence of the Prime Minister at a function in Ranchi.

Tomar was first shown black flags when his convoy was passing through Hinoo Chowk near the Ranchi airport and then outside the Sonari Aerodrum in Jamshedpur, the police said.

Activists of the BJP and JMM also clashed at Hinoo Chowk during the incident leaving some of them with minor injuries, the police said. There was tension at Sonari as a number of JMM and BJP workers had assembled there to protest and to welcome the minister respectively. The East Singhbhum district administration made an elaborate security arrangement.

However, many JMM activists had left the place before the arrival of Tomar — who was about an hour behind schedule — defusing the tension to a great extent.

The incident came against the background of BJP activists being among those who hooted CM Hemant Soren when he was speaking in the presence of PM Narendra Modi at a function in Ranchi’s Dhurwa area on Thursday.

JMM had issued a statement later that day that its activists would protest visits of any central minister to Jharkhand if a public apology was not tendered by the PM following the “unseemly” act by BJP activists during the CM’s speech. — PTI

BJP mulls new body to accommodate veterans
Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 23
The “new, young and rejuvenated” BJP appears to have no room for veterans. After ensuring an average age of 50 years in his team, it now seems party president Amit Shah is mulling a new body — apparently christened “Margdarshak Mandal” — comprising veterans who have crossed a certain age limit.

Sources say the reason the announcement regarding the parliamentary board — the BJP’s highest decision-making body — has been delayed is because both PM Narendra Modi and Shah want to introduce major changes in its set-up.

Though the new forces in the BJP are mulling to ease out veterans LK Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi, who are members of the existing board, they want to do it with dignity to their stature and without causing much heartburn. “Dropping Joshi would not be so difficult, but Advani and former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee are the party’s founder members,” a source said.

“Margdarshak Mandal” would guide the party on important decisions and issues. Its members may include all former party presidents — Vajpayee, Advani, Joshi, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari and Venkaiah Naidu.

Other senior leaders in the age bracket of 75-80 years — Shanta Kumar, Kalyan Singh and Yashwant Sinha — could also be accommodated in the panel. “It will be an important panel. It is not the question of a particular person. Eventually, everyone will grow old,” a senior leader said.

Headed by former party president Rajnath Singh, the board currently comprises Vajpayee, Advani, Modi, Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Gadkari, Naidu, Thawar Chandra Gehlot, Joshi, Ananth Kumar and Ram Lal.

Sources say while Shah could have been easily accommodated by removing Ananth Kumar or Gehlot, both ministers in the Modi Cabinet, the board, whose job includes strategic planning of the party and crucial appointments such as those of chief ministers, should have members who are active in politics and in sync with changing times.

May comprise former party chiefs

• Parliamentary board to comprise leaders who are active in politics and in sync with changing times
• Leaders above a certain age limit will be members of the new panel - "Margdarshak Mandal"
• The new body may consist of all former party presidents who will guide the party on important issues

Oppn leader’s post
My decision based on rules: Speaker

Indore, August 23
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan on Saturday said her decision to deny the Leader of Opposition’s post to the Congress was based on rules and tradition, adding the Supreme Court had made no observation against her.

“The SC has questioned the Centre on the issue of Lokpal’s appointment in the absence of the Leader of Opposition. The Attorney General will inform the court about the government’s stand. It has made no observation against the Speaker,” Mahajan said. “I have taken the decision after studying the rules and traditions and taking experts’ opinion. No opposition party has more than 55 seats.

To date, the rule that a party should have a minimum of 10 per cent seats in the House (for being accorded the status of LoP) has not changed,” she said. — PTI

Max comedy is in Parliament: Mann
Geetanjali Gayatri
Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 23
Trust a comedian to add a dash of colour to the proceedings of Parliament and nobody does it better than Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP from Sangrur, Bhagwant Mann, both inside and outside the House.

Asked on the sidelines of a conclave how he, a successful stand-up comedian, had ventured into politics, Mann said: “Maximum comedy is in Parliament only. It has a Speaker who can’t speak. I thought I could bring a little seriousness to it since comedy is a serious business. You need skills to make people laugh.”

Reciting his poem “Acchay din kab aanay walay hain”, Mann said it would be just like an “Ekta Kapoor serial, and he would continue to add lines to it as the term of the Narendra Modi government progresses.

“We are only four AAP MPs and get only two minutes to raise a point. Poetry is the best medium to squeeze in all the issues in the limited time. For the next session of Parliament, I have written a poem on the “100 days of the government”. I intend asking the PM that the promised good days have not come but neither has the black money the BJP had promised to get back after coming to power,” he quipped.

Sharing his experiences of the first Parliament session, Mann said: “I have a lot of MP friends from south India. Most of them speak Tamil and I don’t understand what they say. What I have picked up is that they say ‘amma after every few words. I couldn’t help joking about their frequent use of Amma and told them, while they call it ‘amma’ in the south, we call it ‘comma’ in the north.”

On AAP’s decision against fighting the Assembly elections in Haryana, Mann said, “We have decided to focus on the states where we have got returns.”

Maharashtra Governor transferred to Mizoram

New Delhi, August 23
In a late night development, government transferred Maharahstra Governor K Sankaranarayanan to Mizoram for his remaining tenure, which ends in 2017.

A late night Rashtrapati Bhawan communique issued past midnight says that the 82-year-old K Sankaranarayanan has been shifted to Mizoram and Gujarat Governor OP Kohli has been asked to discharge his duties.

Sankaranarayanan takes over the post after it fell vacant following the sacking of Kamla Beniwal, who had a long-standing dispute with Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was the Gujarat Chief Minister. — PTI