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Apex court wants EC report on namesake candidates
J&K Assembly polls appear on course
Maharashtra Votes 2014
Uddhav-Raj ‘alliance talks’ puzzle workers
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Punjabi candidates make their presence felt
RR Patil triggers row with rape remark, apologises
Develop 3 villages by 2019: PM to MPs
Justice NK Sodhi is Chairman of FAST task force
Gujarat-born Nadir Patel is Canada’s envoy to India
Gujarat HC scraps ‘snoopgate’ panel
UP IAS officer Durga’s husband suspended
Cop dead as gunmen attack police van in UP
Khushwant Singh literary festival
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Apex court wants EC report on namesake candidates
New Delhi, October 11 A Bench comprising Vikramajit Sen and Kurian Joseph was hearing a PIL yesterday for inclusion of the photographs of contesting candidates in the electronic voting machines (EVMs) to remove the confusion being created by namesakes. EC’s standing counsel acknowledged the seriousness of the issue and pleaded that the court seek the response of the Centre also as the government would have to make necessary amendments for including the candidates’ photographs in the EVMs. The court had earlier issued notice to both the EC and the Centre, but it had not been served so far on the government. The Bench passed an order for serving notice on the Centre. According to the petitioner, Akash Gahlot, persons with names similar to serious contestants were deliberately entering the poll fray, mostly at the instance of political rivals, to create confusion in the minds of voters and damage the prospects of those with chances of winning the election. This trend struck at the very root of democracy by coming in the way of holding free and fair elections to enable people to choose their lawmakers, the petitioner pleaded. Agreeing with the petitioner’s contentions, the Bench asked the EC to assess the impact of such candidates on the poll results in recent elections. This would help in the adjudication of the PIL, it said.
Study their impact, panel told
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J&K Assembly polls appear on course
Jammu, October 11 A shadow has been cast over elections on time due recent floods in the state. The state is yet to recover from the after-effects of floods that have displaced thousands of people and damaged infrastructure. CM Omar Abdullah’s National Conference is opposed to elections at this stage. The CM said he would take a call after the Election Commission’s announcement. The National Conference has made its opposition clear to elections at this time. Kashmir observers, however, feel the party would have no option but to take part in elections as it was a votary of the strong democracy in the state. The CM said the state government’s point about the preparedness for the elections was made clear by Chief Secretary Iqbal Khanday to visiting Deputy Election Commissioner Vinod Zutshi by dwelling on two issues. Khanday told the Election Commission team that there were two questions: Whether we can hold the elections or we should hold the elections under these circumstances. If you ask us can we hold elections, the answer is yes we can.” “But, whether it is appropriate time to hold elections at this stage, that’s open to question,” the Chief Secretary had told Zutshi. The state election office will publish final electoral rolls on October 15, Chief Electoral Officer Umang Narula told The Tribune on Saturday. That will set into motion the poll process in the state, which is scheduled to be completed by January 19, 2015, when the six-year term of the Assembly expires. “As for as our role and material is concerned, we are ready. The state will have 10,005 polling stations. Some which have been damaged would be repaired and others can be changed,” Narula said. But the final call would be taken by the Election Commission. A three-member team is likely to visit the state after Assembly elections in Haryana and
Maharashtra.
Waiting for EC go-ahead
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Poll panel unhappy over Gadkari’s bribe remarks
New Delhi, October 11 In its order, which also carried excerpts of Gadkari’s response to the Commission’s show-cause notice, the EC said: “Irrespective of whatever intentions you might have had, such statements clearly bring disrepute to the purity of our elections as well as the integrity of the democratic process.” Expressing “displeasure”, the EC said it expects Gadkari to be “more circumspect in your public utterances in future.” Responding to the show-cause notice, Gadkari told the EC that “the entire tenor of my speech was to denigrate any attempt to allure/induce voters through any unlawful means. This was done by me through humour and sarcasm. At this point, I would also like to underscore the absence to humour in our present public life. I would urge you to consider carefully the humorous tone in which I spoke...” Gadkari pleaded that the EC should not interpret his “observations as exhortations to the atmosphere of bribing for vote-seeking.” “On the contrary, in my own humble way, I was trying to appeal to the electorate not to succumb by fulfilling the purpose for which such alleged inducements might be offered in any form by any quarters,” said Gadkari. He said he has the highest regard for the model code of conduct and he has “never uttered a word” that could be construed as a violation of the model code. But the poll panel rejected his submission saying it “cannot accept” his stand that he intended to address the problem of unethical inducements to voters in a humorous and sarcastic manner by telling the electorate not to get perturbed by the unholy attempts by political parties. In its show-cause notice issued earlier this week, the EC said that Gadkari, while addressing a public meeting in Nilenga Assembly constituency on October 5, had allegedly made “statements to the effect of inducing the voters to take bribe if offered by someone and then decide how to vote”. — PTI
What Gadkari had said
In these days of inflation, keep one thing in mind, eat what you wish and drink what you desire. Keep whatever you get. This is the time when illegally earned money can go to the poor. Therefore, do not say no to Laxmi. But think while you vote. Your vote should be for the development of Maharashtra."
Election Commission's take
Irrespective of whatever intentions you might have had, such statements clearly bring disrepute to the purity of our elections as well as the integrity of the democratic process
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Uddhav-Raj ‘alliance talks’ puzzle workers
Mumbai, October 11 “We are hearing about both parties coming together after the elections, but we have not been told anything,” says a MNS leader from the Dahisar who is campaigning for Mumbai’s former mayor Shuba Raul. Just days before filing her nominations as a MNS candidate, Raul was in the race for the Shiv Sena ticket which ultimately went to sitting MLA Vinod
Ghosalkar. With the saffron vote likelyto split three ways, the morale is low in both the Shiv Sena and the MNS camps even though BJP candidates are active in only a few pockets here. The story remains the same across Mumbai, Thane,
Kalyan-Dombivli, Nashik and the Konkan region where the MNS has fielded candidates. “Both brothers should have tied up before the elections instead of creating confusion now,” says a Shiv Sena leader from suburban Mumbai. Earlier, Raj Thackeray said he had a telephonic conversation with Uddhav days before the last date for filing of nominations. However, nothing came out of the discussions and the MNS announced candidates for 147 seats. On the ground however, there is little to distinguish between the Shiv Sena and the MNS candidates in some constituencies. In the Versova segment, the entire Shiv Sena cadre is working for MNS candidate Manish Dhuri after the nomination of the former’s candidate, Rajul Patel, was rejected on technical grounds.
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Punjabi candidates make their presence felt
Mumbai, October 11 Joining the ranks of south and north Indians are a handful of Punjabis who have contested and won elections from the city. Prominent among them is veteran BJP leader Sardar Tara Singh who cut his teeth in municipal politics before making it to the Maharashtra legislative Assembly from the distant suburb of Mulund. Known to take up issues pertaining to his constituency, Singh faces some anxious moments after the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance snapped. Especially, since the Congress fielded its sitting Member of the Legislative Council (Upper House) Charan Singh Sapra against him. With the sizeable Sikh vote in the constituency looking to split between the two Punjabis, the BJP leader has taken to circulating his photographs with late Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray. “The Modi wave is still intact and the Congress will surely be defeated all across Maharashtra,” Tara Singh said. On the other hand, Sapra is banking on his links with the transporters in the area. A transporter himself, the Congress candidate has taken up issues like parking for trucks and facilities for outstation truck drivers. “The Congress will benefit here as it is a five-cornered contest here,” he said. In Borivali, the NCP has fielded Inderpal Singh, a Bombay High Court advocate and NCP Seval Dal president. Inderpal enjoys the support of residents in several housing colonies. According to his CV, he had taken up the cleaning of the Gorai dumping ground, which was a source of nuisance to local residents. He is now promising local infrastructure like government hospitals in his constituency. However, Inderpal faces a tough task of defeating senior BJP leader Vinod Tawde from this constituency. Yet another candidate with origins in Punjab is sitting Congress MLA from suburban Versova, Baldev Khosa. He is facing a direct contest from BJP’s Bharati Lavekar after the Sena’s candidate's nomination papers were rejected on a technicality. Outside Mumbai, Ameeta Chavan, wife of former CM Ashok Chavan, is another candidate with Punjabi origin. Contesting from Bhokar in Nanded, Ameeta faces a tough battle from her husband’s friend-turned-foe Madhav Kinhalkar, who filed the paid news case against Chavan. Adding to her troubles is Chavan’s brother-in-law Bhaskarrao Khatgaokar who is working for the BJP candidate.
In the fray
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RR Patil triggers row with rape remark, apologises
Mumbai, October 11 “The MNS has fielded a candidate. Today MNS activists met me and said they would back me (in the elections). When I asked them why, they said their candidate is in jail. “I asked as to what good act he has done? They told me that a rape case has been registered against him. If he wanted to contest and become an MLA, he should have committed rape after the polls,” Patil said addressing supporters at Sangli yesterday. — PTI
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Develop 3 villages by 2019: PM to MPs New Delhi, October 11 Hoping that states too will be enthused to encourage the legislators to adopt a similar pattern by developing five to six villages within the time frame, Modi said: “If even one village per block is developed, it has a cascading effect on other villages.” Having announced the intent during his speech on Independence Day, the Prime Minister set the ground rules that while MPs would be free to select a village of choice, it cannot be the one to which either the MP or his/her in-laws belong. “We are nearly 800 MPs. If before 2019 we develop three villages each, we reach nearly 2,500 villages. If the states also create a similar scheme for MLAs, then 6,000-7,000 more villages can be added to the plan,” Modi said. The scheme, he said, would open the door for good politics and invite all MPs to select a village to develop it on a demand-driven, rather than a supply-driven model, with public participation. He said the scheme would have three features --- demand driven, inspired by society and based on people’s participation. The PM said while democracy and politics were inseparable, damage was often caused by bad politics. This scheme would inspire a movement towards good politics, with MPs acting as facilitators and catalytic agents, he said. Addressing the gathering after releasing the guidelines for the scheme, he said from Independence till now, all governments have worked for rural development. These attempts should be progressively modified with time, in tune with changes happening around the world. He said though government schemes were working across the country, in each state there were a few villages that the state could be proud of. This shows that there was something extra that the leadership and people in those villages had done, beyond government schemes. The PM said this “something extra” is the spirit behind the scheme. Seeking inspiration from Loknayak Jayaprakash Narain on his anniversary, he said people’s participation in development was essential in building an adarsh gram (ideal village). He also paid tributes to Nanaji Deshmukh, who had worked towards the concept of village self-sufficiency. Modi said various government schemes often worked in isolation and this scheme would help MPs point out the bottlenecks in these schemes, leading to an outcome oriented approach. The PM hoped that the “adarsh grams” would become pilgrimage places for people interested in learning about rural development.
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Stagnancy hitting wildlife scientists hard Dehradun, October 11 There are a total of 44 scientific group -A posts in the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun. Out of these, 30 posts are of Direct Recruitment Group-A scientists and 14 are of deputation. The deputation posts are filled up from the Indian Forest Service. Presently, the career progression of Direct Recruit Group-A Scientists is governed by the flexible complementing scheme (FCS) of the Union Government. Under this scheme, situ promotions (essentially means a higher rank and pay while working in the same post) are available only up to grade pay of Rs 10,000 in pay band 4 on the completion of residency period in a particular grade. On attaining this grade, the Group-A scientists are left with 10 to 15 years of their service career with no promotional prospects. “As the Wildlife Institute of India is a small organisation, it has one post beyond the flexible complementing scheme. This is the directors’ post and filled through an open advertisement and not reserved for promotion of the scientists of the institute. Therefore, there are no real avenues for the scientists of the institute to progress beyond the FCS and there is need to address this stagnation of the scientific cadre,” the WII scientists said in a memorandum submitted to the 7th Central Pay Commission that recently visited the WII. The scientists have sought a modified assured career progression scheme.
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Justice NK Sodhi is Chairman of FAST task force
Chandigarh, October 11 FAST will serve as the appellate court for matters in the financial system and work as a modern court with a well-designed registry following international best practices in the court management. Besides Justice Sodhi, who is former judge of the Punjab and Haryana HC, Darius Khambata, AG, Maharashtra, has been appointed Vice-Chairman of the task force. The other members include Somasekhar Sundaresan, Ashok Pal Singh, Satish Kishanchandani. — TNS
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Gujarat-born Nadir Patel is Canada’s envoy to India
Toronto, October 11 44-year-old Patel’s appointment was announced by Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and International Trade Minister Ed Fast yesterday. “We are pleased to announce the appointment of Nadir Patel as Canada’s new high commissioner in the Republic of India,” they said in a joint statement issued by the Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development department of Canada. “Patel brings a wealth of experience and will strengthen even further the Canada-India relationship, including on bilateral trade and international security,” they said. Patel, who had served as Canada’s consul-general in Shanghai from 2009 to 2011, succeeds Stewart Beck. High-level engagement is a key priority for Canada in the country’s partnership with India, the statement said. “In this spirit, both ministers Baird and Fast will be travelling with a Canadian delegation to India on October 13 and 14 for bilateral meetings in New Delhi,” it said. Patel will join the ministers on this visit. The statement said Fast will continue by leading a trade mission from October 12 to 17 covering Mumbai, Delhi and Chandigarh, and will support Canada’s ambitious pro-trade plan to help Canadian businesses explore new export opportunities. Patel, who was born in Gujarat, migrated with his parents to Canada when he was young. He went to Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo (Ontario) where he finished his undergraduation. Patel did his MBA from New York University and London School of Economics. Until recently he served as assistant deputy minister for corporate planning, finance and information technology, and as chief financial officer at Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development in Canada. — PTI
London School of Economics alumnus
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Gujarat HC scraps ‘snoopgate’ panel
Ahmedabad, October 11 The Sugnya Bhatt commission was probing the alleged spying on a woman by the Gujarat Police. Upholding the petition filed by the woman’s father, Justice Paresh Upadhyaya accepted the contentions of the petitioner that the probe would infringe his and his daughter’s privacy and was not of any public interest. Asserting that he and his daughter were not aggrieved by the alleged surveillance, the petitioner said the state government had no right to constitute the inquiry commission violating his daughter’s “right to privacy.” — TNS
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UP IAS officer Durga’s husband suspended
Lucknow/ Mathura, October 11 Singh, who was posted as the SDM in Mahawan area of Mathura, treated a 55-year-old Dalit teacher in an alleged inhuman manner, an official spokesman said in Lucknow. The spokesman said taking a serious note of the matter, CM Akhilesh Yadav has suspended Singh with immediate effect. However, Singh has denied the charges. — PTI
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Cop dead as gunmen attack police van in UP
Lucknow, October 11 The deceased has been identified as constable Narenda Singh. The injured are constable Gajendra Singh, inspector Udham Singh and undertrial Robin Tyagi, who according to police sources is a henchman of notorious gangster Anil Dujana. The gangster is currently odged in Banda jail under NSA among various other charges. — TNS
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Khushwant Singh literary festival Roopinder Singh Tribune News Service
Kasauli, October 11 India’s connection with the World War-I, authors and their creative processes and Khushwant Singh’s connection with thousands of people he touched through his writing on both sides of the border, all were on the table. A discussion on “Indian Voices from the Great War” among Congress leader Capt Amarinder Singh, Squadron Leader Rana Chinna and Brian McCall of the British High Commission brought out the largely unsung contribution of the Indian soldiers, 74,000 of whom were killed in World War-I. The ill-equipped soldiers never complained, only fought with valour, and it is because the centenary of the war is being marked all over the world that people in India today are also becoming aware of their sacrifice. “I think that the Indian soldiers should be honoured for the sacrifices they made for their regiments,” said Capt Amarinder Singh, whose book on the subject is due to be published soon. Veteran Congress leaders Salman Khurshid and Mani Shankar Aiyar, who have an active interest in books, contributed much to various sessions. Shobhaa De’s collection of short stories “Small Betrayals” was released today, followed by a discussion on “The Art of writing a short story: Can it be taught?” De, Radhika Jha, Gita Hariharan and Samhita Arni spoke about their creative processes, one bringing the metaphor of weaving a quilt and another of building a mansion. Details of Capt Amarinder Singh’s school reports and his role in secret negotiations before Operation Bluestar came out as he and the “young” Khushwant Singh, who is writing his biography, spoke with a little nudge from Ashok Chopra, the publisher. Dr AK Banerjee’s loss of his son brought out the horror of drug addiction in Punjab, while former DGP Sashi Kant gave the grim statistics of 60-62 per cent schoolchildren being affected by drugs. Dr Manjit Pental shared ways in which addicts can be helped. Manju Kapur’s “Shaping the World” was also released, Arshia Sattar spoke on her lifelong project of translating the Ramayana. Vivek Menon, Raghav Chandra and Bob Rupani spoke about wildlife preservation; Jaishree Mishra, Salman Khurshid, Prem Shankar Jha and Suhel Seth discussed ‘State Terrorism in Literature’; Dr Alka Pande, Dr Harish Dhillon talked about the Kissa of Heer Ranja — the day was packed with sessions and authors such as Daman Singh, Aakar Patel, Manju Kak, Kalpana Sahni, Vinita Dawar, Dr Suchita Malik, Vijai Vardhan, Robin Gupta, all adding to the unique literary event that this festival has become. Fakir Aijazuddin, author of “The Resourceful Fakirs”, who had a special bond with Khushwant Singh, spoke of his generosity in sharing his research material and in how he had taken the late author’s ashes back on a train to Pakistan. It is the enduring connections forged through literature that were the focus of the festival, at which everyone is greeted by Rahul Singh and Nilofer Bilimoria as a personal friend. Schoolchildren interacting with participants, Kasauli and Chandigarh residents in large numbers, and many who had travelled long distances, made the day special, which was topped with a musical evening.
About soldiers, new books
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Chennai
Hyderabad
New Delhi
Mumbai Kannur/New Delhi jabalpur
Thiruvananthapuram Suri (West Bengal)
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New Delhi, October 11
Enduring connections were recollected on the second day of the third Khushwant Singh Literary Festival here today.
India’s connection with the World War-I, authors and their creative processes and Khushwant Singh’s connection with thousands of people he touched through his writing on both sides of the border, all were on the table.
The Supreme Court has asked the Election Commission to study the extent of damage being caused by namesake candidates in the poll fray to the prospects of serious contenders.
