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BJP
meet to focus on UPA's 'divisive politics'
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The
Bharatiya Janata Party's three-day
national executive committee starting
on Friday in Bhopal is expected to
focus on what the BJP calls "divisive
politics" of the United Progressive
Alliance. A senior party leader commented
on the party's plank for a mid-term
Lok Sabha election, if it were to
take place: "70 per cent Sachar, 30
per cent Sethu." That summed up the
BJP's "divisive politics" plank. Moves
to implement the Sachar Committee
recommendations, attempts made to
give reservation to Muslims in Andhra
Pradesh, refusal to bring back a terrorism-specific
law such as the repealed Prevention
of Terrorism Act, and, on the other
side, the perceived "insult" to Hindus
as in the now withdrawn government
affidavit on Ram Sethu issue submitted
to the Supreme Court, are to be projected
as two faces of the same coin: "minority
appeasement" by the UPA even as it
does not bother with "Hindu sentiments."
Party spokesperson Prakash Javadekar
said here on Thursday that this was
expected to form the core of the BJP's
political resolution to be adopted
at the Bhopal meeting. However, some
BJP leaders who are not sure how far
this will go as an electoral issue.
The BJP does not want to get caught
out, like it did with the Shining
India and Feel Good slogans in 2004.
To address issues directly affecting
people's lives the party is planning
to adopt two more resolutions: one
focussing on the problems of poverty
in rural areas and farmers' issues
and the other on internal security.
Besides, on the sidelines senior leaders
are bound to discuss the possibility
of a mid-term poll. For this the party
has already declared itself to be
in election mode. A review of its
ongoing programme to ensure the presence
of dedicated BJP workers at every
polling booth throughout the country
will take place at the executive meeting.
Reports from the States, especially
those approaching elections such as
Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh, will
be given special importance. On internal
security, the BJP is expected to reiterate
its line, statistics notwithstanding:
Its own NDA government came down heavily
on terrorism while the UPA is "soft"
on terrorists. On the rural poverty
issue, the BJP will focus on the continuing
suicides by farmers and the wheat
imports issue. It has been saying
that while the government paid Rs.
850 a quintal to Indian farmers it
paid double that rate for imported
wheat. The Bhopal executive may not
see the presence of the former Prime
Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, as
he has not been well since his recent
hospitalisation. "It will depend on
his doctor's advice," Mr. Javadekar
said when asked whether he would attend
the Bhopal meeting.
Courtesy:
www.hindu.com, September 20, 2007
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No
uniform after elections for Musharraf
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Pakistan's
presidential elections will be held
in the first week of October in which
General Pervez Mushrraf will stand
for re-election from a parliament
where he enjoys a comfortable majority,
ruling party members have said. What
is more significant is the fact that
General Musharraf will quit his position
as chief of the army staff once re-elected
as President. In the presidential
poll, which is conducted through parliament,
the President's wife, Sehba Musharraf,
could well be his cover candidate.
Secretary-General Pakistan Muslim
League (Q) Mushahid Hussain Syed confirmed
both the date of the proposed election
as well as the fact that the General
will take retirement from the army.
The President of the PML-Q, Chaudhry
Shujat Husain, has referred to the
possibility of Sehba Musharraf being
fielded as the cover candidate. The
ruling party has also welcomed the
decision of former prime minister
Benazir Bhutto to return to Pakistan
on October 18, well after the proposed
presidential elections. Mushahid Hussain
said her return "is timely, which
shows she doesn't want to sabotage
the presidential election". Hussain
also confirmed that dialogue with
Bhutto was underway and "there is
stronger possibility of its success".
Replying to a question, he said the
ruling Muslim League and allied parties
had the required majority in the existing
assemblies to re-elect President Musharraf.
Separately, Gen. Musharraf told a
visiting US Congressional delegation
on Saturday there were no safe havens
for terrorists on Pakistani soil,
an official statement said. He reiterated
Pakistan's "strong resolve to fight
extremism and terrorism" during a
meeting with a US delegation led by
House Republican Leader John Boehner
in Rawalpindi. "The president said
there was no safe haven for terrorists
and that Pakistan was determined not
to allow its territory to be used
by anyone for terrorist activity,"
the statement said. In recent weeks,
some US officials have alleged senior
Al-Qaeda leaders were continuing to
operate from "secure hideouts" in
Pakistan. Islamabad denies the charge.
Pakistan says it has arrested more
than 700 Al-Qaeda operatives since
the September 11, 2001 attacks on
the United States. It has also deployed
around 90,000 troops to hunt down
Al-Qaeda fugitives who crossed the
border after the ouster of the fundamentalist
Taliban in late 2001. Nearly 800 Pakistani
soldiers have died in clashes with
militants.
Courtesy:
www.hindustantimes.com, September
15, 2007
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Govt
decides to reframe Ram Setu affidavit
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An
embarrassed Government on Thursday
went into a quick damage control by
deciding to withdraw its submission
before the Supreme Court that there
was no historic and scientific evidence
to establish the existence of Lord
Ram that had provoked an angry reaction.
At a hurriedly-called press conference,
Law Minister H R Bhardwaj announced
that the offending paragraphs would
be withdrawn and a fresh affidavit
would be filed before the Apex Court
hearing the petitions against construction
of the Sethusamudram canal project
off Rameswaram. Sensing that the BJP
may have been presented an emotive
issue, Congress President Sonia Gandhi
directed the Government to immediately
take remedial steps to set right the
situation. Even this did not satisfy
the BJP that demanded that the Government
should withdraw the affidavit. Leader
of the Opposition L K Advani targetted
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
Sonia Gandhi, demanded their apology
and fixing of ministerial responsibility.
The affidavit, filed by a senior official
of the Archaeological Survey of India,
said it was a common affidavit being
filed on behalf of the Union of India.
"We
are filing a supplementary affidavit
on Friday in the Supreme Court," Bhardwaj
said. The affidavit came under immediate
attack from the Sangh Parivar, including
the BJP which called it "blasphemous".
Senior BJP leader L K Advani met Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh and also Bhardwaj
at a dinner meeting Wednesday night
and told them "the highly objectionable
affidavit be withdrawn." "Lord Rama
is an integral part of Indian culture
and ethos and cannot be a matter of
debate," Bhardwaj said. Asked what
clarification was the Government planning
to make, the minister said, "This
is in regard to our averment in the
affidavit that there is no evidence
that these characters of our scriptures
did exist." "This is a wrong impression,"
Bhardwaj said referring to the media
reports on the affidavit. Asked whether
the Government intended to fix responsibility
for the mistake in the affidavit,
Bhardwaj said he was not authorised
to take action. "The existence of
Rama cannot be doubted. As Himalaya
is Himalaya, Ganga is Ganga, Rama
is Rama. There is no requirement of
any proof to establish the existence,"
he said. The minister refused to comment
on the Sethusamudram project saying,
"I am no expert on Ram Setu, but I
believe in Rama. This was never the
intention in the affidavit that Rama
never existed or never appeared on
the earth." "I have been in touch
with the Additional Solicitor General
who drafted this affidavit as well
as Secretary, Culture. I feel such
a supplementary affidavit is required
particularly in relation to paragraphs
five, six and 20," Bhardwaj said.
Courtesy:
www.oheraldo.in, September 14, 2007
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Govt
decides to reframe Ram Setu affidavit
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An
embarrassed Government on Thursday
went into a quick damage control by
deciding to withdraw its submission
before the Supreme Court that there
was no historic and scientific evidence
to establish the existence of Lord
Ram that had provoked an angry reaction.
At a hurriedly-called press conference,
Law Minister H R Bhardwaj announced
that the offending paragraphs would
be withdrawn and a fresh affidavit
would be filed before the Apex Court
hearing the petitions against construction
of the Sethusamudram canal project
off Rameswaram. Sensing that the BJP
may have been presented an emotive
issue, Congress President Sonia Gandhi
directed the Government to immediately
take remedial steps to set right the
situation. Even this did not satisfy
the BJP that demanded that the Government
should withdraw the affidavit. Leader
of the Opposition L K Advani targetted
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and
Sonia Gandhi, demanded their apology
and fixing of ministerial responsibility.
The affidavit, filed by a senior official
of the Archaeological Survey of India,
said it was a common affidavit being
filed on behalf of the Union of India.
"We
are filing a supplementary affidavit
on Friday in the Supreme Court," Bhardwaj
said. The affidavit came under immediate
attack from the Sangh Parivar, including
the BJP which called it "blasphemous".
Senior BJP leader L K Advani met Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh and also Bhardwaj
at a dinner meeting Wednesday night
and told them "the highly objectionable
affidavit be withdrawn." "Lord Rama
is an integral part of Indian culture
and ethos and cannot be a matter of
debate," Bhardwaj said. Asked what
clarification was the Government planning
to make, the minister said, "This
is in regard to our averment in the
affidavit that there is no evidence
that these characters of our scriptures
did exist." "This is a wrong impression,"
Bhardwaj said referring to the media
reports on the affidavit. Asked whether
the Government intended to fix responsibility
for the mistake in the affidavit,
Bhardwaj said he was not authorised
to take action. "The existence of
Rama cannot be doubted. As Himalaya
is Himalaya, Ganga is Ganga, Rama
is Rama. There is no requirement of
any proof to establish the existence,"
he said. The minister refused to comment
on the Sethusamudram project saying,
"I am no expert on Ram Setu, but I
believe in Rama. This was never the
intention in the affidavit that Rama
never existed or never appeared on
the earth." "I have been in touch
with the Additional Solicitor General
who drafted this affidavit as well
as Secretary, Culture. I feel such
a supplementary affidavit is required
particularly in relation to paragraphs
five, six and 20," Bhardwaj said.
Courtesy:
http://oheraldo.in, September 14,
2007
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'Bangladeshi
infiltration a security threat ':
Hindu Munnani
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Hindu
Munnani leader Ramagopalan today cautioned
the Centre and the Tamil Nadu government
on the reported infiltration of 'Bangladeshis'
in Coimbatore district, which, he
said, would prove to be a major security
threat in the long run. Since the
RDX used to carry out the recent blasts
in Hyderabad was reportedly smuggled
in from Bangladesh, the presence of
over 25,000 Bangladesh nationals in
and around Coimbatore,can lead to
another serial blasts, as witnessed
in 1998, Ramagopalan,told reporters
at the Coimbatore Press Club. The
government should immediately find
out the route, through which the RDX
was taken to Hyderabad, he said. Alleging
that some of the Left parties were
helping these infiltrators to get
ration cards, thus making them on
par with Indian citizens, he claimed
that a few activists of the Naxalite
movement have also started operating
from Tamil Nadu, under different names
and organisations. Ramagopalan, also
working president of 'Rameswaram Rama
Sethu Protection Movement,' criticised
the reported move of the State government
to acquire temple land and distribute
it to the poor and landless. "If the
Government attempted to acquire temple
land, hundreds of Hindus are ready
to sacrificie their lives, to protect
the symbol of their tradition and
culture," he said.
Courtesy:
http://naxalwatch.blogspot.com, September
10, 2007
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Parliament
adjourns ahead of schedule
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The
sine die was announced after 4 pm
in the afternoon, when the debate
on the nuclear deal in Lok Sabha was
scheduled, which was not allowed by
a shouting opposition. The monsoon
session of Parliament was adjourned
sine die four days ahead of schedule
on Monday, as the opposition remained
relentless in disruption of proceedings,
demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee
(JPC) to go into the 123 Agreement
between India and the United States.
The opposition also protested against
the Congress-Left mechanism to address
apprehensions. While indications about
sine die adjournment of the monsoon
session had first come mid-last week,
both the government and opposition
on record had denied such a possibility.
However, on Friday itself, the indications
were loud and clear when the business
advisory committees of both the houses
had decided on the agenda for only
Monday. This was done even though
four more days remained for completion
of the session. The sine die was announced
after 4 pm in the afternoon, when
the debate on the nuclear deal in
Lok Sabha was scheduled, which was
not allowed by a shouting opposition.
Earlier on Friday, the opposition
had forced the Rajya Sabha to forego
the discussion. While Speaker Somnath
Chatterjee adjourned the Lok Sabha
sine die, Chairman Hamid Ansari did
the same in Rajya Sabha. "It is extremely
disturbing that the highest public
forum in this country has almost come
to a standstill. This has raised questions
about the utility of our system of
Parliamentary democracy and about
its future," Mr Chatterjee said while
adjourning Lok Sabha sine die. Monday
witnessed two identical adjournments
each in both houses, first till noon
and then till 4:00 pm. In Rajya Sabha,
slogan-raising BJP, AIADMK and Shiv
Sena members stormed the well, demanding
a JPC, even as an important but unlisted
bill aimed at providing social security
to the unorganised sector workers
was introduced by Labour Minister
Oscar Fernandes. The introduction
was strongly protested by the Left
and Samajwadi Party members. They
demanded that the agricultural and
non-agricultural workers be separated.
Two other important bills, The Cigarettes
and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition
of Advertisement and Regulation of
Trade, Supply and Distribution) Amendment
Bill and the Competition (Amendment)
Bill, were passed without discussion.
Courtesy:
www.deccanherald.com, September 11,
2007
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Sharif
packed off to Jeddah
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Notwithstanding
threats of contempt action, the government
justified his deportation as in the
supreme interest of the country...
A
defiant and emotional Nawaz Sharif
returned home on Monday after a seven-year
exile but his stay on the Pakistani
soil lasted no more than four hours
during which he was arrested and bundled
into a special plane that took him
to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and an uncertain
political future. Notwithstanding
threats of contempt action, the government
justified his deportation as in the
"supreme interest" of the country,
while Sharif's wife Khulsoom and his
brother Shahbaz, who stayed put in
London, vowed to carry forward the
struggle for restoration of democracy
in Pakistan. Braving threats from
the regime of Gen Pervez Musharraf
who overthrew him eight years ago,
Sharif returned here by a PIA flight
from London only to be met at the
heavily-guarded airport by commandos
and officials who slapped him with
fresh corruption cases. The 57-year-old
two-time prime minister, sporting
a thick crop of hair over the bald
pate that he had, got into a stand-off
with officials inside the aircraft
when he refused to hand over his passport
to them. The 90-minute confrontation
ended when he was escorted to the
airport lounge.
Pitched
battles
As
the security forces fought pitched
battles with his supporters miles
away from the cordoned off airport,
Sharif was given the option of being
arrested again or deportation. He
chose arrest. An official of the National
Accountability Bureau served an arrest
warrant and he was taken by a helicopter
to what was believed to be a jail
in Pakistan. However, the helicopter
took him to a nearby military base
where a plane was waiting to take
him to Saudi Arabia whose rulers had
brokered a deal between Sharif and
Musharraf seven years ago under which
he stayed in Jeddah before moving
to London about two years back. After
landing in Jeddah, Sharif was not
allowed to meet anybody and was taken
to his own house where he was kept
under tight security. During his earlier
stay in exile, Sharif and his family
were put up in a royal place. Sharif's
supporters made an unsuccessful last-ditch
attempt to secure the intervention
of the Supreme Court which had recently
declared that the former prime minister
and his brother Shahbaz were free
to return to Pakistan. Khwaja Muhammad
Asif, a senior leader of Sharif's
PML-N party, met the Chief Justice
of Pakistan Iftikar M Chaudhry, who
has fought his own battles with Musharraf
in recent months, in a bid to seek
the Supreme Court's intervention even
as the drama at the airport was unfolding.
His contention was that the apex court's
order to the government to allow the
Sharifs to return home had been violated
and that the government had committed
contempt of the court. There was,
however, no immediate judicial intervention
but the petition is expected to come
up in a day or so. The government
is likely to take the line that it
had not violated any court order because
it had allowed Sharif to return home.
The other developments were subsequent.
Musharraf's argument is that Sharif
had entered into a Saudi-brokered
deal which entailed a 10-year exile.
He had therefore to be sent to Jeddah
for three more years. It is not clear
what treatment Sharif will receive
in Saudi Arabia and whether he will
be allowed to travel from there or
make political statements.
Sharif
in tears
Sharif,
who was accompanied by a large media
contingent and some of his party leaders
during the flight from London, was
in tears as the PIA plane landed.
He confessed that he was unsure of
his fate. However, at the airport
lounged he minced no words in lashing
out at Musharraf, saying that it was
the General's "ego and stubbornness"
that "is standing in my way". The
United States described the deportation
as an "internal matter" of Pakistan
but said the upcoming polls should
be "free and fair". But the European
Union asked Pakistan to respect the
Supreme Court ruling and allow Sharif
to stay in the country. Officially
confirming Sharif's deportation, Interior
Minister Aftab Khan Sherpao said:
"It (deportation) is in the supreme
interest of the country." He also
said the action was in conformity
with the law of the land and the government
was ready to defend it before the
Supreme Court.
4
HOURS ON HOME SOIL
9:15
am: Sharif's flight lands in Islamabad.
Officials enter the aircraft, demand
his passport. He refuses to yield.
He is told to honour the Saudi-brokered
deal and go back.
10:45
am: He alights and boards a bus to
the airport's VIP lounge. A posse
of policemen approach Sharif and tell
him he should either go back or face
arrest. An arrest warrant is served
on him. He is shoved out of the lounge
and on to the tarmac and put on a
helicopter, believed to be on its
way to a jail in Mianwali, Punjab.
But the copter lands at a military
base near Islamabad.
1:15
pm: Put on a plane, Sharif is spirited
away to Jeddah. Sharif later landed
in Jeddah royal terminal, from where
he was whisked away by Saudi officials
to his house.
Courtesy:
wwwdeccanherald.com, September 11,
2007
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Nuke
deal: Political panel set to meet
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The
Left -UPA committee set up to study
the contentious aspects of the India-US
nuclear deal and the 123 agreement
would have its first meeting on Tuesday.
The committee will examine whether
the final 123 agreement addresses
all concerns that the Left parties
had raised in July last year. The
committee is also going to look at
the contradictions between the 123
agreement and the controversial Hyde
Act, the US legislation that made
the Indo-US nuclear deal possible.
The Left meanwhile knows that till
the panel is working, the operationalisation
of the deal will not begin. It may
thus propose two sub-committees- One
with technical experts and the other
comprising diplomats. They may get
two weeks for a report on the Left's
concerns. The Left wants to use the
panel to make the government change
its commitment to the present agreement.
''How can the government say this
is informal. It is a formal political
committee between the UPA and Left.
The findings shall be binding on the
government,'' said D Raja, CPI Leader.
For the government the panel is a
platform to dispel the Left's doubts
over the deal and not a mechanism
to amend its stand. ''We will try
to address all concerns of the Left
parties and we will like to get it
over with quickly,'' said Kapil Sibal,
Member, UPA-Left Panel. Ten days ago,
the government had agreed that the
committee's findings would be factored
in operationalisation, which is why
the opposition is in a combative mood.
The government might be rejecting
the opposition as a non-player in
this tussle but it hopes that the
panel may create a road map for a
patch up and not a break up.
Courtesy:
www.ndtv.com, September 11, 2007
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India
lacks capability to win terror war:
UN
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A
confidential United Nations report
has punched huge holes in India's
anti-terrorism preparedness, after
its first ever scrutiny of everything
from national laws to border checkposts
to judiciary to banks to policework
and passports. Terrorism in India,
according to some estimates, has claimed
70,000 lives over the years. The draft
report of the Counter Terrorism Committee
of the UN Security Council, seen by
HT, is a stinging indictment of how
the country's counter-terrorism structures
are in disarray. The report was given
to the Indian government in July.
Terrorism in India, according to some
estimates, has claimed 70,000 lives
over the years. Delegates found that
the country's laws on terrorist financing
did not fully comply with UN Resolution
1373 adopted after the September 11,
2001 attacks on the US. The resolution
lays down the benchmark for counter-terrorism
laws worldwide and is binding on all
member states. "Most terrorist financing
in India occurs through informal channels,
including hawala, the use of fake
Indian currency notes, and drug-trafficking,"
the report said. "It is a cause of
concern that Indian law enforcement
structures lack a national counter-terrorism
database which would enable them to
remain informed, on a real time basis,
of terrorist-related events that occur
from the country," the report said.
"Many of the problems faced by India's
current counter-terrorism regime could
be tackled if India were to adopt
comprehensive counter-terrorism legislation."
The
delegation also found "major gaps
between the work of the prosecution
agencies at the Union and at the State
level". Terrorism is traditionally
under the purview of the states, with
back up from New Delhi but only after
the state's consent. The report said
India does not criminalise the smuggling
of persons and free access to Nepalese
and Bhutanese citizens might be used
by terrorists to infiltrate the country;
existing information on stolen or
lost passports, and from checkpost
databases, has not been shared with
Interpol; and that India lacked legislation
to enable "special investigative techniques"-the
use of electronic or other forms of
surveillance and undercover operations.
It also said that Indian states did
not have specialised units to analyse
threats. There was no witness protection
programme either. It recommended that
India should consider allowing the
Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
to handle more counter-terrorism cases.
"Many of the problems faced by India's
current counter-terrorism regime could
be tackled if India were to adopt
comprehensive counter-terrorism legislation,"
the report said. Some of India's counter-terrorism
legislation dates back to independence,
and the primary terrorism-related
law-the Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Act-was passed in 1967 with successive
amendments. Two anti-terrorism laws,
known as TADA and POTA by their acronyms,
have been scrapped. More than 30 million
cases are estimated to be pending
before Indian courts, with 10.5 judges
per million compared with 107 per
million in the US. Under the Prevention
of Money Laundering Act, India set
up a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)
in March 2006. The FIU sifts through
hundreds of thousands of cash transaction
reports and receives details of suspicious
transaction. But the unit was not
fully staffed, and lacked adequate
support from other domestic law enforcement
agencies, the report said.
Donor
agencies also came under the committee's
scanner.
"There
are currently no comprehensive strategies
in place to prevent terrorist organizations
from posing as legitimate charities
or to prevent the diversion of funds…to
support the activities of terrorist
s," it said. In a country where terrorism
is often blamed on foreigners, geography
and securing the borders is the biggest
challenge. India has 15,100 kilometres
of land border and a coastline of
7,500 kilometres, including numerous
islands. Yet, "only 33 of total 76
border checkpoints are computerised,"
the report said. The Reserve Bank
of India has developed measures to
protect the financial system from
being used to fund terrorism, including
bringing authorised money changers
under a regulatory mechanism. "However,
RBI guidelines do not extend to institutions
beyond the scope of its mandate, and
these institutions are sometimes subject
to lower regulatory standards," the
report said. And when cases do go
to court, "counter-terrorism cases
are not usually dealt with by judges
who specialise in this field," the
United Nations said. More than 30
million cases are estimated to be
pending before Indian courts, with
10.5 judges per million compared with
107 per million in the US.
Courtesy:
www.hindustantimes.com, September
11, 2007
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Former
Punjab DGP held for misuse of official
power
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Former
Punjab DGP S S Virk, who was arrested
by the Punjab Vigilance Bureau at
Maharashtra Sadan in Delhi late on
Saturday, was brought to Phase 8 police
station in Mohali in a white Scorpio
on Sunday. He has been kept under
24-hour observation at the district
civil hospital, as he is suffering
from multiple ailments. Currently,
Virk has been booked under Sections
167, 168, 169, 120-B, 216 and 218
of the IPC for allegedly framing an
incorrect document (with an intent
to cause injury) in his capacity as
a public servant, unlawfully engaging
in trade, buying and bidding for property,
indulging in criminal conspiracy and
harbouring an offender, who has escaped
from custody. According to H S Sarang,
senior medical officer, Mohali Civil
Hospital, Virk has got hypertension
and is suffering with stone formation
in his gall bladder. He said, "We
will be keeping him under observation
for 24 hours." A team of three doctors
has been constituted for the purpose.
The police also raided the residence
of a former terrorist-turned-police
informer, Sukhwinder Singh Sukhi,
at Jalandhar after the arrest of Virk,
who had rehabilitated him. They have
confiscated a computer and a bullet-proof
jacket from his house. According to
government officials, Sukhi is said
to have changed his name into Harjit
Singh Kahlon at the instance of Virk,
and even got a passport in his new
name. While being brought to the police
station, Virk described the cases
as "false" and "fabricated". "All
the cases registered are false and
politically motivated. It is political
victimisation and vendetta," he said.
Former chief minister Capt Amarinder
Singh, who was considered to be close
to Virk, in a written communiqué sent
to the media, said, "If this is the
way senior IPS and IAS officers are
to be treated, then it is a matter
of time before the systems collapse."
He further asked whether permission
had been obtained from the home ministry
and the Maharashtra government before
arresting the officer of their cadre.
A 1970-batch Maharashtra cadre IPS
officer, Virk was on deputation and
had been serving in Punjab for over
18 years. During the last assembly
elections, the Central Election Commission
had removed Virk from the post of
Punjab DGP after the SAD-BJP combine
levelled allegations of corruption
against him and charged him with helping
the then ruling Congress on the directions
of Capt Singh. Virk, who was under
suspension, had ignored the orders
of the Punjab government, and on Thursday
joined in his parent cadre in Maharashtra.
The Punjab government recently started
disciplinary proceedings against Virk
in an alleged land scam in Kharar,
in which he was blamed for buying
a 'benami' land of a war widow and
not paying her the due amount. It
is learnt that the police are likely
to frame another charge against Virk
under Section 13 of the Prevention
of Corruption Act.
Courtesy:
www.economictimes.indiatimes.com,
September 10, 2007
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Voter
identity cards for Bangla nationals!
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There
could be around one lakh Bangladesh
nationals in Karnataka: this speculative
figure could well describe the authorities'
shoddy way of handling foreign visitors.
The exact number is not available
as almost all of them have voter identity
cards!
This
sloppy work is shocking especially
since terror links are being traced
to Bangladesh now. "It is a Herculean
task to pin an illegally staying foreigner,
who had come to the city through dubious
ways. Moreover, it's impossible if
they are from Bangladesh as they speak
Bengali. Even if we question anybody
on suspicion, they show us the voter's
ID," officials told the Times of India.
How did they get the ID? These migrants,
who came here around 25-30 years ago,
worked at construction sites and stayed
in slums in Laggere and a few other
places. During the elections, they
became the vote bank for political
parties. Simply put, their illegal
stay was not only protected, but was
legalised by furnishing them with
ID cards. Look at the statistics for
Bangalore. Only four Bangladeshis
are overstaying in the city, according
to the figures available with the
city intelligence department. They
had come here with legal visas but
have not gone back after their visa
expired. There are about 80 students
studying in colleges here as against
244 in 2003. But this year, lookout
circulars had been issued against
12 people, which included 11 students,
for overstaying. "Students usually
overstay because most of them wait
for results or to write supplementary
examination," DCP (Intelligence) T
G Krishna Bhat said. The state intelligence
which had released a list of 33 people
overstaying in the state in early
2007, also issued a lookout circular
against them. After a month, two of
them - Md Fahad and Md Ali Hussein,
held in Mysore - were members of Bangladesh-based
terrorist group al-Badr.
Courtesy:
www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com, September
06, 2007
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Certified
fake: Subba's last defence falls apart
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Moni
Kumar Subba, Congress MP from Tezpur
in Assam, flashes his birth certificate
when he is accused of being a foreigner
who has faked his identity. A CNN-IBN
investigation in March 2006 exposed
Subba for lying about his place of
birth and hiding his Nepalese identity.
The birth certificate is the only
document Subba has to prove his Indian
citizenship, but a CNN-IBN investigation
has again established that the certificate
is a fake and that he is a foreign
national. The certificate says Subba
was born on March 16, 1958 in Dabgram,
West Bengal. That is bizarre, as the
document was issued 40 years later
on October 28, 1998. Salil Sarkar,
the Registrar of Births and Deaths
in Dabgram, confirmed this to CNN-IBN.
Sarkar says Subba had no document
to prove his birth in Dabgram, but
yet the magistrate in Siliguri asked
him to issue a birth certificate to
the politician. "I remember Subba's
case clearly. There were many requests
for pre-1977 birth certificates but
I remember his clearly because the
magistrate ordered me to give him
a certificate," says Sarkar. At the
Registrar's office, CNN-IBN found
an affidavit submitted by Phanindra
Nath Sarkar in 1998. The affidavit
says: "Moni Kumar Subba was born at
my residence at No. 1 Dabgram, Holding
No. 32/512/411 under ward No 23, on
16th March 1958." The affidavit allowed
Subba to get the birth certificate,
but Phanindra Nath, 90, made a stunning
revelation. "I don't know any Subba,"
he said. Phanindra Nath denied giving
an affidavit stating that Subba was
born in his house in 1958. "I don't
know any Subba and I have never given
any affidavit," he said. Phanindra
Nath said that in 1958 he did not
live in Dabgram and he didn't own
the house where Subba claims he was
born or the plot. "I came to Dabgram
only in 1969," he said. The Central
Bureau of Investigation says it has
not found conclusive evidence that
Subba is a foreigner-it should be
visiting Dabgram to get proof.
Courtesy:
http://www.ibnlive.com, September
04, 2007
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Fencing
along Bangladesh border to be completed
by year-end
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The
barbed wire fencing of the Indo-Bangladesh
border in Assam will be completed
by December 31, Assam Accord Implementation
Minister Bhumidhar Barman has said.
The construction of roads and the
wire fence along the frontier will
be completed by the year-end, Barman
told reporters here on Monday night
after visiting border areas in Cachar
and Karimganj districts. Authorities
in Karimganj district, which has a
94-km border with Bangladesh, including
41 km that is riverine, told Barman
that they were facing problems in
completing a four-kilometre stretch
inside Karimganj town. The fence has
to be built 150 metres from the frontier
but that would not be possible in
the four-kilometre stretch unless
the district deputy commissioner's
office and some other important buildings
were pulled down, the authorities
told the minister. As the Bangladesh
Rifles (BDR) were objecting to the
construction of the fence there without
maintaining the norm of placing it
150 metres from the border, the Assam
government has referred the matter
to the Centre, Barman said. Of the
28.75-km border in Cachar district,
14 km had been fenced. Roads had been
constructed in 26 km. Referring to
objections raised by the BSF against
madrasas in the border areas, Barman
said the government had no specific
allegation but action would be taken
if any complaint was lodged.
Courtesy:
www.timesofindia.indiatimes.coms,
September 04, 2007
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Five
facts on Bangladesh's ex-leader Khaleda
Zia
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Bangladesh
arrested and refused bail for former
leader Begum Khaleda Zia on Monday,
witnesses and officials said, in the
latest twist in political turmoil
which has engulfed the country since
Khaleda stepped down last October.
Here
are five facts on the country's two-times
former leader:
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Born in northwestern Bangladesh
in 1945, Khaleda married General
Ziaur Rahman, one of the country's
liberation war heroes, in 1960.
Her husband became president in
1977, and founded the Bangladesh
Nationalist Party (BNP), but was
assassinated in an attempted coup
in 1981.
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Khaleda, described as a shy housewife
who was devoted to raising her
two sons, was elected chairperson
of the BNP in August 1984, two
years after army chief Hossain
Mohammad Ershad seized power in
1982.
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Joining other anti-Ershad groups
in a seven-party alliance, she
was detained several times during
his autocratic nine-year rule.
In December 1990, Ershad was forced
to resign after a popular uprising,
and Khaleda first won election
in February 1991.
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Ousted from power by her rival
Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League
party in June 1996 elections,
Khaleda returned to office in
2001. In October 2006 her five-year
term ended and she handed over
power to a caretaker administration
ahead of elections that were subsequently
delayed.
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Khaleda's rival Hasina, who has
been detained in jail since July
16 on extortion charges, has accused
Khaleda's BNP and its Islamic
allies of having links to outlawed
Islamist groups. Khaleda is generally
viewed as more pro-Pakistan, while
Hasina is thought to favour closer
ties with giant neighbour India.
Courtesy:
http://in.reuters.com, September 03,
2007
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