PolitiClone

Non-Cong parties will form next govt: MPP leader

2012-01-31T18:35:00.000-08:00

IMPHAL: Former Union minister and leader of Manipur People's Party (MPP) Thounoujam Chaoba has stated that the next government would be formed by non-Congress parties.

On Saturday, Manipur went to the polls to elect 60 legislators - 40 in the valley and 20 in the hills.

"The ruling Congress will bite the dust in the just concluded polls. According to our assessment, Congress would hardly win 10 seats in the valley areas. This means that the remaining 30 seats would be grabbed by non-Congress parties," Chaoba said at a media conference here on Tuesday evening.

"The like-minded non-Congress parties, which would come out victorious from the hills, would definitely join the opposition front to form the next government," he added. The MPP is one of the key member of the People's Democratic Front ( PDF), the grand pre-poll opposition alliance set up to take on and defeat the ruling Congress. Other members of the front are NCP, CPI (M), JD(U) and RJD. The front fielded its common candidates in 43 constituencies.

Though BJP is not a member of the front, the party and MPP shared seats in some constituencies, including Thoubal, the home constituency of chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh. Chaoba, who contested from Nambol constituency in Bishnupur district, alleged that some Congress workers and the brother-in-law of his arch rival candidate, N Loken Singh, who is also a minister, threatening his workers.

"On false charges of having nexus with underground organizations hurled by these men, our workers and even my election agent were pulled up by the police but after proper verification they were released later. We urge the DGP to hold a probe into the reign of terror unleashed by them and take necessary legal action," said Chaoba.

On Monday, BJP national general secretary Tapir Gao ,while expressing strong confidence of winning 45 seats by the opposition parties, urged non-Congress parties to unite for taking on the ruling Congress.

Mamata's AFSPA promise a sham: Activists

2012-01-31T18:33:00.001-08:00

KOLKATA: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee has come under friendly fire for her promise to repeal the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in Manipur if Trinamool Congress is voted to power in that state.

After party MP Kabir Suman accused her of shedding crocodile tears for Irom Sharmila, rights activists - who were once government-appointed mediators with Maoists - slammed her on Tuesday for making empty promises.

Mamata's pledge to do away with AFSPA is little more than an electoral promise with no practical value, civil rights activists in Kolkata say.

"Mamata Banerjee has tried to woo Manipur voters with these statements but they have no practical value. When she has not succeeded in withdrawing the joint forces from Jangalmahal, how can she even think of repealing AFSPA even if she does win the mandate in Manipur?" said rights activist Sujato Bhadra.

The AFSPA is very difficult to do away with, Bhadra remarked. "The Jeevan Reddy Committee, set up to review the Act after Manorama Devi's death in Manipur, recommended repeal of AFSPA but nothing happened. Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah has been fighting to repeal the act for several years but has not succeeded. The lobby in favour of AFSPA is simply too strong. How can Mamata even consider changing the situation at her level," Bhadra asked.

Chhoton Das, who was a mediator between the government and the Maoists till Kishanji's death, remarked that politicians seldom keep their promises. "Many of the statements made by politicians before elections seem to be very positive. At the end of the day, none of the commitments are kept. There is no exception to this. This has become a rule in this country. Politicians have a consistent record so far as breaking of promises is concerned," he said.

Bhadra pointed out that Mamata had done nothing to release those detained under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Act in Bengal. "During a meeting with us, the chief minister said that she would not be able to withdraw the joint forces from Jangalmahal but she promised to release the UAPA detainees. Though the crackdown under this Act has stopped, none of the detainees have been releases yet. In December, we sent a fresh list of people falsely implicated under this Act but the government didn't take any action," he said.

On Republic Day, Kabir Suman had criticized Mamata for drawing a parallel between her 26-day fast during the Singur agitation and Irom Sharmila's epic 10-year fast against AFSPA in Manipur. "The fact is the state government neither forced her (Mamata) to break her strike nor arrested her. On the other hand, Irom Sharmila was arrested by the Army in the beginning and then she was forced to eat by using tubes," Suman wrote in his blog.

The singer-composer pointed out that Sharmila's name never once came up during Mamata's fast at Esplanade. Kabir Suman goes on to criticize Mamata's failure in withdrawing joint forces from Jangalmahal. In fact, most of his blogs in the last few months have gone against Mamata. He has written not only against the police firing at Mograhat that killed two persons but also composed a song for the farmers who have committed suicide due to debt.

I want Manipur to smile: Mamata

2012-01-25T17:14:00.001-08:00

IMPHAL: West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday met Manipur's 'Iron lady' Irom Sharmila Chanu and promised her that if Trinamool Congress (TMC) comes to power in the state, the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) will be withdrawn.

After landing at Imphal airport at 1.50 pm, Mamata drove straight to J N Hospital, where Sharmila is being forcibly fed through the nose for the past 11 years. "We recognize your struggle and your plight. I want Manipur to smile. If TMC comes to power, we will remove AFSPA," Mamata told Sharmila. The Iron Lady has been on a fast demanding the repeal of AFSPA from the state for over a decade now. Sharmila told Mamata that AFSPA is a draconian law and she will continue her fast till it is withdrawn from Manipur.

Later, addressing TMC's election rally at Langjing Achouba ground in Imphal West, Mamata became the first prominent leader who seriously sought votes on the AFSPA issue. "If Trinamool forms the next government, we will not allow any Army rule in Manipur. I love Army, but I am against policies making wrong use of the Army. Army rule cannot continue for so long. We need peace and for that a concrete political policy is needed," she said, amid applause by 10,000 Trinamool supporters.

By raising the point of lifting the act, which gives absolute powers to armed forces personnel, Mamata has joined the anti-AFSPA campaign despite UPA-II government's non-committal stand on the act. TMC is a key ally in the UPA-II government. The Centre has been unable to lift or amend the act due to stiff opposition by the defence ministry, though the home ministry has trying to find a consensus in bringing some amendment to the act.

Launching an attack against the ruling Congress-CPI government, Mamata said, "If the ruling parties cannot perform, it's time now to throw them out and give a chance to another party."

She said she had last visited Manipur 10 years ago and said the state is now in a horrible condition. "I don't understand why the government has failed to deliver. Manipur has got 90 per cent subsidy from the Centre," she said. In a people-connect bid, Mamata began her speech with a few lines in Manipuri, "Nungshijara-ba praja, echil-enao, Trinamool Congress ta vote pibiyu, vote at Lei and Napi (My beloved people, brothers and sisters, please vote for Trinamool Congress on the flower and grass symbol)."

Highlighting her achievements in West Bengal during the last eight months, she said her government has released many prisoners from jail including KLO militants. "We have allocated a development package for Jungle Mahal," Mamata said, clearly indicating her seriousness to tackle the insurgency problem in Manipur. Trying to woo militants and their families, she said, "We will also release all political prisoners in Manipur, if elected to power. If Darjeeling can smile now, Manipur should also smile," she said.

Trinamool is fielding 47 candidates in this assembly election and is considered a dark horse. Mamata's rally is all set to boost the morale of the party, which at present does not have any prominent political figure in the state. Many Manipur TMC members are young and include former student leaders. "I want a green Manipur. Green depicts peace, development and progress," she said.

She highlighted Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's Imphal campaign and reminded that Netaji's INA hoisted the national Tricolour for the first time on Indian soil at Moirang in Manipur.

Yashwant Sinha demands president's rule in Manipur

2011-11-09T19:55:00.001-08:00

IMPHAL: Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha today demanded immediate impositon of central rule in Manipur because of indefinite economic blockade by some organisations on two national highways which are considered lifelines of the state.

Representatives of all political parties in the country should come and see the problems as thay did in Jammu and Kashmir and then only they would understand the gravity of the situation, Sinha told a party function here.

If the matter was not looked into, BJP would raise the issue in Parliament, the former union finance minister said.

United Naga Council has launched indefinite economic blockade on Manipur portions of two national highways since August 21 to oppose the demand of the Sadar Hills District Demand Committee to upgrade Sadar Hills area in Senapati district into a district.

Official sources said more than 80 trucks including oil tankers arrived today with security escort and people had started getting petrol and its products.

"Our Patience is running out and we may take stern action," Chief Minister Ibobi Singh had said at a funtion yestersday.

BJP warns against removal of AFSPA

2011-10-28T23:02:00.001-07:00

NEW DELHI: With the government struggling to craft its stance on the contentious question of withdrawal of Armed Forces ( Special Powers) Act from some parts of J&K, the BJP joined the debate by warning the Centre against diluting the law.

As the defence ministry insists that the views of the Army and the Unified Command need to be heeded on whether to withdraw AFSPA from certain areas in J&K, BJP weighed in to oppose withdrawal of the law which security forces consider a buffer against harassment in the name of protection of human rights.

Sources in the government confirmed that the Centre was unhappy with J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah's public announcement regarding partial rollback of the law currently in force across J&K. They said the Army has questioned the state government's decision on the ground of improved law and order situation in the state.

"AFSPA has been in force in swathes of Assam even when violence in the state never reached the level J&K has witnessed for decades," a senior defence ministry source said. In the deliberations, defence ministry also pointed out that Imphal, which is not under AFSPA unlike the rest of Manipur, has suffered more from extremist attacks.

Besides their appreciation for Army's viewpoint, many in the government and Congress advice caution on the sensitive matter also because of political considerations. They pointed out that withdrawal of AFSPA could encourage the BJP to repeat its charge of security being compromised because of political expediency; in this case to placate the J&K chief minister. They also said a rushed decision may create the same sort of complications that the party is faced with in Telangana.

The warning proved correct when leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley came out strongly to oppose the demand to scale AFSPA back. In a detailed note, the BJP leader argued that armed forces needed the protection of AFSPA in order to discharge their duties effectively.

Pointing out that AFSPA protected the security forces, including paramilitary troops, from prosecution or legal proceedings except those sanctioned by the Centre, Jaitley said withdrawal of the cover would leave the security forces hobbled. "When I visited the state last year, I was informed by the officers of paramilitary forces that more than 2,500 applications for prosecuting personnel of armed forces were pending with the central government," Jaitley said.

"If this protection (AFSPA) is withdrawn, it would empower various vested interests to prosecute officials of the armed forces and other paramilitary forces indiscriminately. Obviously, this would dis-incentivise personnel of these forces from taking adequate steps against separatist groups," he further argued.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is BJP’s Plan C: Digvijay

2011-10-27T04:06:00.001-07:00

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New Delhi: Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh, Thursday, claimed that after Baba Ramdev and Anna Hazare, ‘Art of Living’ founder Sri Sri Ravi Shankar would start a ‘campaign’ soon.

Digvijay tweeted: “Plan A - Baba Ramdev. Crashed. Plan B- Anna. ? Plan C - Sri Sri Ravi Shankar soon to start his campaign.”

Later talking to reporters Digvijay said that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) was trying to bring in Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in their campaign against the government, while urging the spiritual guru not to get involved in this.

Singh said that the RSS had earlier brought in yoga guru Baba Ramdev and social activist Anna Hazare in the campaign.

"First they brought Baba Ramdev, and when he was exposed they came with Anna. We have heard now they are trying to bring Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji," he said.

“I have always been saying from day one that all these are over all plans of the RSS, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) combine. They want to divert the attention of the people of the country. From the issue of involvement of Sangh activists in terror act in Malegaon, Ajmer dargah, Hyderabad, Samjhauta express, so it’s overall plan to divert attention from corruption done by BJP members,” he added.

He further said that UPA government has taken all positive steps against issues of corruption under the leadership of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to check corruption.

“Right to Information Act was brought by us, Money Laundering Act was done by us…have taken action against corrupt people,” he added.
Further criticising the BJP, Singh asked: “Why BJP did not register the case against Bangaru Laxman under the prevention of corruption act when he was caught taking money on tape.”

“Why BJP MP was not sent to jail when caught on TV or camera taking bribe. Why case was not registered against Jaya Jaitley when she was caught on tape striking a deal with arms dealer in Defence Minister’s house. BJP record on charges of corruption has been pathetic,” he added.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar has responded to Digvijay’s ‘plan’ tweet by saying that his comment is not worth responding too and that he doesn’t fear any one and will continue to raise his voice against the malice of corruption.

The Bangalore-based spiritual guru also advised Digvijay to enroll for the ‘Art of Living’ course.

The BJP also responded to Digvijay’s comment. Party spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said that the BJP must thank Digvijay for working to ensure the downfall of the Congress.

BJP delegation meets president on Manipur

2011-10-21T21:46:00.001-07:00

New Delhi, Oct 22 : A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) delegation led by party president Nitin Gadkari met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here Friday on the continuing economic blockade in Manipur.

The delgation, which also included Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, along with BJP leaders from Manipur, demanded imposing president's rule in the northeastern state.

"Prices of essential commodities have sky-rocketed, petrol and diesel are being sold at arbitrary prices, potatoes and vegetable prices are so high that even the rich cannot afford them," Swaraj said.

"So we have demanded that first of all, dismiss the government there and impose president's rule in the state," she said.

The party also demanded compensation be given to affected families in Manipur and essential supplies be sent to the state through an "alternate route".

The main opposition party also wanted an all-party delegation to be sent to the state.

"The prime minister said he is aware of the situation and will think about sending an all-party delegation. He will talk to the home ministry and then inform us. He liked our suggestion. He also said he is in constant touch with Manipur but no solution is in sight at the moment. He was receptive to our suggestions and the talks were cordial," Swaraj added.

Friday was the 89th day of the blockade.

The Sadar Hills District Demand Committee (SHDDC) began an indefinite road blockade on the two crucial national highways that link the northeastern state with the rest of the country.

They are demanding that the Sadar Hills sub-division in the Naga-dominated Senapati district in northern Manipur be upgraded as a full-fledged district.

The United Naga Council (UNC), the apex forum of Nagas in Manipur, has also been organising a counter-road blockade in all Naga-inhabited areas in northern Manipur, demanding that these areas should not be carved out without their consent.

DA case: Jayalalithaa appears in Bangalore court

2011-10-20T01:29:00.000-07:00

Bangalore: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa appeared before a Special Court here in connection with the disproportionate assets case on Thursday.
The AIADMK chief was forced to make a personal appearance in the court after the Supreme Court, yesterday, declined her plea and directed her to appear before the trial court to record her statement in the corruption case.

The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister is facing charges of accumulating assets worth over Rs 66 crore by her between 1991 and 1996 when she was Chief Minister for the first time. Jayalalithaa is accused No. 1 in the case.

The case was shifted to Bangalore by the Supreme Court.

Jayalalithaa flew in from Chennai today morning and directly proceeded to the court amid tight security. She is being accompanied by her close confidante and co-accused Sasikala.

Sasikala's nephew V Sudhakaran and her sister-in-law Ilavarasi have also been named in the case.

The Bangalore court will today record Jayalalithaa's final statements. The assets named in the case include farm houses and bungalows in Chennai and its suburbs, vast tracts of agricultural land in many parts the state, farm house in Hyderabad, tea estate in Nilgiris, jewellery, industrial sheds, cash in bank accounts and investments.
In view of the concerns regarding the security of Jayalalithaa, the Karnataka Police has left nothing to chance and has deployed around 1,000 police personnel, headed by a joint commissioner of police, at the court complex where the court is holding its special sitting.

The proceedings were shifted to a court hall located close to the Parappana Agrahara central jail premises on the city outskirts from the City Civil Court complex in the heart of the city in view of security cover needed for her.

Karnataka's Chief Secretary and its Director General of Police both filed affidavits in the Supreme Courts assuring the court of foolproof security measures in tune with her Z plus category status and elite National Security Guards (NSG) cover.

Arrest warrant issued against former Karnataka CM Yeddyurappa

2011-10-15T00:43:00.001-07:00

NEW DELHI: The bail plea of former Karnataka chief minister's BS Yeddyruppa was rejected on Saturdday in a land denotification case. The Lokayukta court issued an arrest warrant against Yeddyurappa.

In the complaint filed by city-based advocate Sirajin Basha, Yeddyurappa and five others including his sons and son-in-law were accused of irregularities in denotifying government land in Rachenahalli in Bangalore South taluk which caused an estimated loss of about Rs 40 crore to the state exchequer.

Will Arvind Kejriwal turn out to be his own enemy?

2011-10-14T22:32:00.001-07:00

"It's my movement, I will take it the way I want," Kejriwal has been asserting this, rather brazenly and without spelling that out in words. AFP Photo
Arvind Kejriwal could well be the civil society’s version of Narendra Modi. He evokes extreme reactions, both negative and positive. You either like him or don’t; there cannot be halfway positions. He is also a go-getter — abrasive, at points seriously annoying, but still a go-getter. That the anti-corruption movement of Anna Hazare has stirred and shaken the establishment and stayed strong so far is a tribute to the man.
Combative, in your face, articulate, determined and good at rabble-rousing, he has been the brain and muscle behind the movement, while Anna has been its face. But that precisely are the qualities that could prove to be his undoing and take the movement down.
“It’s my movement, I will take it the way I want,” he has been asserting this, rather brazenly and without spelling that out in words, through his actions all through. That it is causing discomfiture among other civil society members is evident. He has manged to alienate mentors like Aruna Roy and Harsh Mandar through his aggressive positioning on the Lokpal issue already; now the core members of Team Anna are getting upset.
His decision to use the momentum in favour of the anti-corruption movement against the Congress in Hisar was more impulsive than rational. It has not gone down well among some members of Team Anna, though only Santosh Hegde has been vocal about it.

Kejriwal's mentors, of course, were not pleased to see the way their initiative was hijacked and the way things shaped up to be a mass movement. AFP Photo
“We jumped the gun in Hisar,” said Hegde in an interview to the Outlookmagazine. “I believe the (anti-corruption) movement is and should be apolitical. Even before Parliament could debate the Lokpal Bill, they went to Hisar and campaigned against the Congress. I don’t think it was the right thing to do,” he added.
He said if the need to intervene in the election was so compelling then members of Team Anna should have asked the people to choose the best candidate since corrupt people are not just in the Congress but in other parties as well. Hisar is the native place of Kejriwal.
In a hint that his disapproval was at a level deeper than that, Hegde, commenting on Kejriwal’s comment that Anna was above Parliament, told Outlook that such things happen when somebody talks “too much”. Clearly, things are deteriorating on the personal front. Signs of stress in the team does not augur well for the movement.
But Kejriwal, moving with the wave now, is not likely to stop. He has become bigger than the movement in some ways and the final arbiter of what direction it takes. The only force that can put the brakes is Anna himself. He is not inclined to do that at this stage.
His moves and rapid rise to this stature has surprised many of his comrades in the civil society and mentors. Under the shadow of Aruna Roy, Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan (MKSS) leader, former civil servant and activist Harsh Mandar, his associate Shekhar Singh and Magsaysay winner Sandip Pandey for long, Kejriwal broke ranks with them over the Lokpal Bill. It was the former who had initiated the idea of the Lokpal Bill and made some progress till Kejriwal came up with a much more radical version of it.
He formed his own core team — including Prashant Bhushan, Shanti Bhushan, Kiran Bedi and Santosh Hegde — and moved on to enlist the support of Gandhian Anna Hazare for his cause after former president Abdul Kalam declined to take the lead role. The movement just got bigger and bigger with the media coming into the picture and the rest, as they say, is history.
His mentors, of course, were not pleased to see the way their initiative was hijacked and the way things shaped up to be a mass movement. Mandar criticised the developments unfolding over the Jan Lokpal Bill severely. “This is a right-leaning, fascist campaign to push for an extremely regressive legislation. It is painful to watch colleagues and friends take such unreasonable positions. The Lokpal Bill needs wider debate, consultations and reasonable debate,” he said in an interview with India Today.
But by then Kejriwal was unstoppable. The anti-corruption crusade had moved far beyond any civil society movement earlier. Anna was the symbol of the movement but he was the real driving force behind it. His personality traits, his combativeness, his understanding of the mass mood and his ability to use the media were working to making him larger-than-life.
However, indications now are that he is moving too fast and without a clear direction. There’’ a hint of recklessness too.
Will Kejriwal turn out to be his own enemy? Let’s wait and watch.

Cash-for-coverage scandal hits Advani’s yatra

2011-10-14T22:29:00.001-07:00

Bhopal: Senior BJP leader LK Advani's anti-graft road show, the Jan Chetna Yatra, has run smack into charges of cash inducements after reaching Madhya Pradesh on Thursday.

Reports said state BJP leaders tried to “bribe” journalists in order to do favourable coverage of the yatra, which is mainly targeting corruption and black money.

It was reported that envelopes containing money worth Rs 500-1,000 were given to journalists at a press conference called by local BJP MP Ganesh Singh at the district party office in Satna on Wednesday. That press conference was held a day before Advani’s press meet there.

State PWD Minister Nagendra Singh was also present at that controversial press conference.
One of the journalists present at the press meet returned the envelope given to him and carried a story in his paper ‘Nai Duniya’, thereby exposing the matter.
The opposition Congress in the state has also accused the ruling BJP of giving cash to journalists ahead of the yatra, at the Satna briefing.
"The party which is making hue and cry over black money is itself using black money for Advani's yatra," state Congress president Kantilal Bhuria said.
Both Ganesh Singh and Nagendra Singh denied that cash was distributed to newsmen by the party.
"Neither has it been a policy of the party nor was (cash) distributed by us," Ganesh Singh said. "But we will sure inquire."
Advani told reporters that the president of his party unit in Madhya Pradesh, Prabhat Jha, will investigate whether bribes were offered in exchange for coverage in Satna.
Advani's yatra reached Madhya Pradesh late Thursday evening and will remain in the state till Sunday. During these four days, his yatra will cover 45 Assembly constituencies and travel approximately 1,100 km.

Digvijay to reveal proof of Anna-RSS link

2011-10-12T00:22:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh has announced that he will go public on Wednesday with the “proof” of RSS’ link with Anna Hazare’s movement.

Singh has for sometime been at loggerheads with Anna. Yesterday, he had written an open letter to the Gandhian in which he had warned Anna against the anti-Congress motive of some members of his team.

Later, speaking to a new channel Singh claimed to have documents to prove that RSS workers had actively participated in the Ramlila Maidan fast of Anna Hazare.

"I have got a letter from the RSS written to Mr Anna Hazare that they are extending full support to his campaign. I also have a copy of a letter written to all their workers asking them to support Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev's campaign. Ram Madhav came on dais supporting Anna Hazare,” Digvijay was quoted as saying.

“Govind Acharya ji gave a statement that most of the workers were from the RSS. Total management at Ramlila Grounds was done either by BJP or RSS cadre. Mr Mohan Bhagwat himself categorically made a statement that they are supporting Anna Hazare," he further said.

However, Anna Hazare has rejected any suggestion that he has links with the RSS.

The anti-corruption crusader’s war of words with the Congress intensified last week after he announced that he will campaign against the Congress if it doesn’t move ahead with passing of the Jan Lokpal Bill during the Winter Session of Parliament.

Team Anna gets political

2011-10-08T21:47:00.001-07:00

TEAM ANNA IS AN RSS..PROPAGANDA MACHINE

Team Anna’s politics: Campaign against Congress

New Delhi: Team Anna on Saturday launched a blistering attack on the Congress ahead of the October 13 Lok Sabha bypoll here, asking voters to inflict a "historic" defeat on the party for not bringing the Jan Lokpal Bill.

Addressing a gathering at Narnaund town of Hisar Lok Sabha constituency, Kejriwal sought support from the people of Hisar to vote against the Congress and others who indulged in corruption.

Kejriwal said Hazare twice sat on a fast for the Jan Lokpal Bill but the Congress-led UPA government was yet to bring it in Parliament.
"You will have to inflict a historic defeat on the Congress. If you defeat the party (in the bypoll), this will be Anna's victory," he told the gathering.

"The Congress party does not want to send corrupt people to jail. It does not want to take any action against them either. That is why they are opposed to the Jan Lokpal bill," he told a well-attended public gathering.
People in the gathering shouted slogans of support for Kejriwal and Team Anna as he listed various issues against corruption before them.
Kejriwal, who was accompanied by Hazare’s associate Manish Sisodia, said: “The Congress is afraid that if the Jan Lokpal bill comes, half of its ministers will go to jail (for corruption). That is why the Congress is trying to portray that the Jan Lokpal bill as against the country.”
Alleging that the Congress and corruption were synonymous, Kejriwal asked people to defeat the corrupt forces.
He said if the bill is not passed soon, team Anna would intensify its campaign against the Congress in poll-bound states.
Referring to RSS chief's remarks that Sangh volunteers took part in Hazare's movement, Kejriwal hit back saying those trying to seek credit should take credit for Gujarat riots and corruption that rocked the Karnataka Government under the BJP Chief Minister.
Earlier in Rohtak town, Kejriwal told reporters that Anna Hazare’s campaign against corruption was his own and not associated with any party or organisation.
He said that the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS) could not take credit for Anna’s anti-corruption campaign in recent months.
Armed with a recorded message of the social activist, members of Team Anna Saturday began their anti-corruption and anti-Congress campaign from here ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha bypoll.
The by-election to the Hisar seat, to be held Oct 13, was necessitated after former chief minister and sitting MP Bhajan Lal's death in June.
Hazare himself is not scheduled to come here for the campaign though his recorded message will be played for the people in the next 2-3 days, activists of the anti-corruption forum here said.
In his video message, Hazare has called upon voters not to vote for the Congress as the party was opposed to bringing about an effective Lokpal bill.
Former police officer Kiran Bedi and lawyer Prashant Bhushan are likely to visit here in the next couple of days.
The ruling Congress in Haryana said it was not perturbed by Team Anna Hazare's campaign for the Hisar Lok Sabha bypoll.
"We are not perturbed by the campaign launched by Anna Hazare. RSS chief's admission that Sangh volunteers took part in recent movements against corruption has exposed his (Hazare's) lie and claims that he is non-partisan," Haryana Congress President Phool Chand Mullana said.
The contest for this seat is tough for the three main players -- Kuldeep Bishnoi of the Haryana Janhit Congress (HJC) who is son of the late Bhajan Lal, Indian National Lok Dal's (INLD) Ajay Chautala who is son of former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala, and three-time former MP Jai Prakash of the Congress.
Stakes are high for all three parties and their candidates. Hisar was the only seat the Congress could not win out of the state's 10 Lok Sabha seats in the 2009 general elections.

President's Rule may be imposed in Andhra: Sources

2011-10-08T01:03:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: The ongoing agitation for a separate state of Telangana in Andhra Pradesh may force the Central Government to impose President's Rule in the Congress-ruled state. Sources have told CNN-IBN that the Central Government is looking into the option of imposing President's Rule in Andhra Pradesh to tide over the crisis.
However, sources also added that the imposition of President's Rule in a state has to be ratified by Parliament and the Opposition may shoot it down with its combined numbers. There is tremendous pressure on the Congress to commit to the formation of Telangana state by dividing Andhra Pradesh from both within the party as well as from the Opposition.
But the party feels that creation of a separate state of Telangana may be difficult at the moment so the option of President's Rule is being considered.

The final call on the issue will be taken by the Congress Core Committee chaired by party President Sonia Gandhi.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, Governor ESL Narasimhan are in New Delhi to discuss the issue with the Centre and the Congress High Command.
Narasimhan met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday morning and discussed the law and order situation in Telangana, where the agitation seeking statehood for the region entered its 26th day on Saturday. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was also present during the Narasimhan-Singh meeting.
Pradesh Congress Committee president Botsa Satyanarayana, too, has been called to New Delhi for a discussion with the party top leadership on the contentious statehood issue. All the Andhra ministers have also been called to New Delhi and will meet Mukharjee individually.
Mukherjee had met the Prime Minister, Sonia Gandhi and Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is in-charge of Andhra Pradesh, on how best to handle the agitation on Friday
Normal life in the region has been crippled following the agitation for a separate state of Telangana. The agitation has left all 10 districts of the Telengana region, including state capital Hyderabad, paralysed.

Anna announces future plans, targets Congress

2011-10-03T23:43:00.001-07:00

Social crusader Anna Hazare Tuesday said he would resume his agitation for an effective Lokpal (ombudsman) bill with the Oct 13 Hisar Lok Sabha by-election in Haryana.

"Depending on my schedules, I shall go to Hisar and hold a couple of public meetings in Hisar. If not, I shall send a video message to the people of Hisar explaining how the Congress has blocked the Jan Lokpal bill and urge them not to vote for it," Hazare declared in his village in Ralegan Siddhi in Ahmednagar district.
To force the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to live up to its promise of a strong Jan Lokpal bill, Team Anna's version of the Lokpal bill, this will be followed by taking the movement to Uttar Pradesh where assembly elections are due.

"If, as the UPA has assured, the bill is not passed during the ensuing winter session of parliament, we shall name the Congress and urge the people not to vote for it," Hazare asserted.
Three days before the actual polling in Uttar Pradesh, Hazare said he would sit on a three-day hunger strike in Lucknow to create awareness on the bill and the attempts by the Congress to scuttle it.
However, Hazare added that there would be no point in agitating against the Congress if the Jan Lokpal bill is passed.
Instead, they would appeal to the people to check the antecedents of the candidates and vote for the good ones only.

Cash-for-votes: BJP MP Ashok Argal booked

2011-10-03T09:05:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: The Delhi Police on Monday filed its second supplementary chargesheet in the 2008 cash-for-vote case in a court here naming BJP MP Ashok Argal as an accused.
Argal's name was included in the fresh chargesheet after Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar granted sanction for his prosecution to the Delhi Police.
In the earlier two chargesheets, prosecution had not named Argal as an accused and had informed the court that it was awaiting the required sanction for his prosecution. Six persons, including Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh and BJP leader LK Advani's former aide Sudheendra Kulkarni, have been arrested in the case.
Argal was among the then three BJP MPs who had waved wads of currency notes in Lok Sabha ahead of trust motion in 2008, claiming that they had been offered bribe to save the UPA-1 government.
The chargesheet against the Argal was filed before Special Judge Sangita Dhingra Sehgal.

Pranab dismisses as ‘bunkum’ reports of his resignation offer

2011-10-03T04:13:00.001-07:00

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has dismissed as “bunkum” reports that he had offered to resign following controversy over a note of his Ministry on the 2G issue.

He also declined to comment on BJP leader Arun Jaitley's observation dubbing the "truce" between him and Home Minister P. Chidambaram after the controversy as "uneasy".
"These are all bunkum. If you do not have any serious question, then I am sorry," he said yesterday when asked whether he had offered to resign following the controversy over the note which suggested that Mr. Chidambaram could have prevented the 2G scam by insisting on auctioning of spectrum.
On Mr. Jaitley's remarks, Mr. Mukherjee said, "I am not commenting on anybody, any individual. If you have a general issue then ask me."

Cracks appear in Indian govt

2011-10-02T23:00:00.001-07:00

By: Kuldip Nayar

For the first time, the ruling Congress party is having dirty linen washed in public. The differences in the cabinet are not new.
They have been smouldering for a long time. But it had never come to a stage where one minister would leak out a note or a memorandum on the internal assessment against the ministry of other. India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has known all along who in his cabinet is trying to gun whom down.
Yet he has kept quiet because wrangling among ministers has strengthened his position and covered his casual attitude. You cannot be taking things lightly when you are the one who has to take the decision. The result is that people doubt his way of functioning, conceding that he is personally honest.
The two senior-most cabinet members, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P. Chidambaram, whatever their posture of solidarity, are distant from each other. Chidambaram fears Mukherjee's political acumen and Mukherjee sharp intellect of Chidambaram.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi has advised both to make peace. But her word may not work because Pranab has damaged Chidambaram's stock. The finance ministry's note or the assessment was prepared after Chidambaram had quit the finance ministry and said that he could have saved the exchequer an estimated loss of Rs10.06 trillion if he had insisted on the auction of the 2G spectrum. Former Telecom minister A. Raja sold them in 2008 at the 2001 price. The note leaves no ambiguity and says that Mukherjee had seen it.
IMMENSE HARM
In fact, both ministers have been exposed - Mukherjee while trying to entangle Chidambaram and the latter coming to know of the trap that had been laid long after he had quit the finance ministry. Ironically, the note which has caused the furore has been obtained by a BJP activist under the Right to Information Act petition. Interestingly, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) gave the activist a ream of material that included the note.
The government's spokesman says in defence that it was signed by a junior officer. Does it matter whether it has the signature of the finance minister when it is a communication from the finance ministry? The harm that the note has done is immense. So much so that Chidambaram even offered to resign although Mukherjee probably shed crocodile tears saying that Chidambaram was "his valued colleague and a pillar of the government." The rift, however, has given ammunition to the opposition, ranging from the BJP on the right to the communist parties on the left. The media has been equally harsh to pounce upon it.
All this does not mean that the government is about to fall as is the rumour spread mostly by the BJP. True, the exterior of the government structure has been chipped but not in any way weakened. Ultimately, it is a question of numbers in the Lok Sabha, India's lower house. The BJP and its allies do not have a total of 273, the magic figure which gives a majority in the Lok Sabha of 545.
The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) that represents the government has remained intact. The UPA's own strength is 263 but has 27 members supporting from outside. Therefore the total comes to 290. The apprehension is that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) may falter in the south because Kanimozhi, daughter of the party leader, K.Karunanidhi, and his loyal follower A. Raja, are in jail. But the DMK's strength of 18 members is expendable. The loss of 18 does not bring the govt down.
Similarly, Mamata Banerjee of Trinamul Congress from West Bengal cannot oust the government by herself. She has 19 members in the Lok Sabha. Still the Manmohan Singh government is very solicitous towards her.
Problems of the Singh government may begin when Uttar Pradesh goes to polls early next year. Both Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Mulayam Singh's Samajwadi Party are on the side of the Congress, with the strength of 21 and 22, respectively. The two may find it odd when the Congress pitches its own tent against theirs for the assembly election and criticises them to make a dent into their support.
In fact, all the three parties have the same electoral base, that of Muslims, who have 15 per cent votes in UP. Again, the BSP and the Samajwadi Party do not by themselves pose a threat. They have to combine with the other Congress allies to oust the government. At present it faces criticism, not any challenge. However, the communists are trying their best to revive the third front. Even if it were to take place, it could be only after the polls in UP, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Goa, and Manipur next year.
Rising prices, the tumbling rupee, negligible growth of employment and the falling growth rate have essentially hurt the government. Yet the kicking point against the government has been the 2G spectrum scandal. The cracks in the government, particularly between Mukherjee and Chidambaram, have only become more visible.

BJP wants Bangladesh land deal details in parliament

2011-10-02T07:20:00.001-07:00

New Delhi, Oct 2 : Expressing its concern over India-Bangladesh Land Transfer Agreement reached during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Dhaka last month, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Saturday called upon the government to place complete details of the land transfer protocols with relevant survey maps before parliament.

In a resolution passed at its national executive meeting, the BJP said the land transfer agreement had "ignored the feelings and sentiments of the people of the border states of Assam and West Bengal".

"In the name of rationalisation of adversely possessed lands and exchanging enclaves of Bangladesh in India and vice versa, the rights and interests of the local population have been severely compromised, leading to unrest throughout Assam and in many parts of north Bengal," the resolution said.

It said the BJP had warned the government during the monosoon session of parliament not to reach land transfer agreement without appropriate consultation with the affected people.

It said the party had constituted a committee under S.S Ahluwalia, deputy leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha, to visit the affected border districts in the two states.

"The team found widespread confusion and anxiety prevailing among the people because they had not been taken into confidence in this matter. The people are agitated because they rightly feel that the government of India has legitimised encroachment of Indian territories by Bangladesh, which amounts to formally transferring land illegally occupied by erstwhile East Pakistan and later Bangladesh over the years. Apart from Assam and West Bengal, there are anxieties in Tripura and Mizoram," the resolution said.

It said nearly 1,500 survey maps were exchanged between Indian and Bangladeshi officials before re-demarcation of the border but they were not in the public domain and security forces stationed on the border were also in the dark about the precise redrawing of the border.

"The BJP demands the government place the complete details of the land transfer protocols with all relevant survey maps before parliament. The party wants a comprehensive discussion in the winter session of parliament before the government takes any steps to part with Indian territories," the party said.

The resolution said while the party was in favour of improving ties with Bangladesh, it "cannot be at the cost of the livelihood and properties of Indian citizens living in the affected border regions".

The party said "demographic invasion of India by illegal Bangladeshi migrants has already severely affected the identity, culture and social cohesion of many parts of Assam and West Bengal" and "no further compromise with the country's national interests can be permitted".

Anna for President?

2011-09-28T06:54:00.001-07:00

Rumours rife as activist receives string of politicians in just a week

By: Vvivek Sabnis
Date: 2011-09-28
Place: Pune

Aides of anti-graft crusader rubbish speculation, say rumours may be political gimmick on part of government
In the backdrop of many politicians visiting noted anti-corruption crusader Anna Hazare in his village Ralegansiddhi in the last eight days, rumours are rife that the activist has been offered the post of the country's president by the UPA government as the term of the incumbent is set to end next year.

No politics, please: Activist Anna Hazare, who his aides say has stated
many times he does not intend to join politics. File Pic
Referring to a meeting of Congress leaders in Delhi, at least one major local vernacular newspaper stated the party might be able to tame Hazare by offering him the country's highest post. The meeting referred to took place after the thumping response Hazare got during his fast last month at Ramleela Ground in Delhi for a Jan Lokpal bill. Reportedly, a veteran Congress leader also objected to the idea of making the offer to Hazare, saying the activist would not accept it.
Sanjay Pathade, a teacher from Ralegansiddhi who is close to Hazare, said there was no truth in the rumours. "It's all rubbish. Anna won't accept such offers," Pathade said. "The president's post shall not be used as a bribe by any party."
Ralegansiddhi Sarpanch Jaysingh Mapari, who was with Hazare during both the indefinite hunger strikes in Delhi, said he was confident Hazare would not "fall prey" to any offer of the kind. "Hazare knows the ministers very well after his two big stirs. I don't think any Union minister shall dare make such an offer," he said.
Among the politicians who visited Hazare recently were Revenue Minister Balasaheb Thorat, former PWD minister Vijaysinh Mohite-Patil, MP Bhausaheb Waghchaure from Ahmadnagar, MLA M D Bhegde from Maval and Bacchu Kadu from Sangamner. They discussed several issues with him.
There were also non-politicians lining up to meet Hazare. Raj Gopal Deora, the secretary from the State Cooperative Department, visited him and discussed the new law on the Cooperation Rules approved by the state government. Pune region information officer Vijay Kuvlekar and former divisional commissioner Prabhakar Deshmukh also met Hazare.
Medical check-up
w A TEAM of ENT doctors from Nashik visited Hazare to conduct a medical check-up on him. Ganesh Bhosale, a villager who was there during the check-up, said: "Anna has some hearing problem. The team did a thorough check-up and went. A report will be sent soon."

Murky sex scandals of politicians

2011-09-27T02:36:00.001-07:00

Reports show that many politicians have over the years twisted rules to exploit women to quench their thirst for sex.

Rajasthan water resources minister Mahipal Maderna faces the heat over the disappearance a midwife.

New Delhi: As Rajasthan's water resources minister Mahipal Maderna faces the heat over the disappearance Bhanwari Devi, a midwife, we look at sexcapades of other politicians across the country who have twisted all rules in the book to exploit women, some ambitious, some helpless.
Health worker Bhanwari Devi who is missing may have been bumped off by Mahipal, alleges her husband.
On September 1, 2011, an auxiliary nurse and midwife (ANM), Bhanwari Devi, left her home in the Burunda village of Jodhpur for Bilara, about 40 kilometres away to collect the payment for a car she had sold to Sohan Lal Vishnoi, a contractor in the public health engineering department (PHED). She has been missing since then. Soon after her disappearance a local TV channel reported that the ANM was said to be in possession of a CD showing her in a compromising position with Rajasthan's PHED and water resources minister Mahipal Maderna. Bhanwari's husband Amar Chand alleged that the minister and Vishnoi were responsible for his wife's disappearance and the police was aware of the entire background.

According to Amar Chand, Bhanwari, 36, was in touch with the minister for her transfer. Maderna, he alleged, had once called her to his office where he raped her. Amar Chand also alleged that the minister subsequently started forcing her to go to other persons and filmed Bhanwari in the act. When she threatened to go public with the minister's misdeeds he had her abducted and killed, claimed Amar Chand.

Over three weeks after her disappearance, there is still no trace of Bhanwari and anger's mounting in Jodhpur against Maderna.

A case of rape, murder and criminal conspiracy was registered against the minister at Bilara on Saturday after a local court ordered the police on Friday to make the minister an accused in the FIR lodged by Amar Chand in Bhanwari's disappearance case. The police were initially reluctant to name the minister and were lightly treating the case as one of missing person'.
The Rajasthan High Court had also chided the police for not investigating the case with the seriousness it deserved. Asking the Jodhpur range IG Umesh Mishra to be personally present in the court at the next hearing on Monday, the court observed that some of the persons whose role needed to be probed were not being touched by the police.

It is said that apprehending threat to her life the nurse had virtually confined herself to her house about a week before her disappearance. She was allegedly lured by Vishnoi to reach Bilara on the pretext of payment for her car. Vishnoi is in police custody. He is the cousin of Congress MLA Malkhan Singh and considered close to Maderna.

The speculation is that from Bilara, Bhanwari was taken to Khejarli village, 26 km south-east of Jodhpur city, from where she was abducted by a motor mechanic Shahabuddin of Pipar City of Jodhpur district and some other men. They are said to have taken her away in a Bolero car. It is feared that she was then handed over to a gang of contract killers. On Friday, Shahabuddin was declared absconder. He is a dreaded criminal facing over half a dozen criminal cases, including those of murder.

While another person - Sahi Ram Vishnoi, former deputy zila pramukh of Jodhpur - has been declared absconder, the police was also looking for Baldev, a petty criminal. Sahi Ram belongs to the Congress.

According to the IG, Umesh Mishra, the police had picked up one Ashok Mali from Sikar's Ramgarh Shekhawat who had confessed to having taken 'supari '(contract) along with two others to kill Bhanwari.

As Ashok hails from Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, the police took him there to locate the nurse. The police team also tried to locate her body at Ashok's instance but returned empty-handed on Friday. It is now learnt that Ashok has retracted his earlier statement.

The Opposition and Dalit groups were meanwhile mounting pressure on the chief minister, Ashok Gehlot, demanding Maderna's resignation.

- Sudhanshu Mishra

Extra-marital liaisons
Nurse-entrepreneur Jayalakshmi has gone public about her relationship with former minister M.P. Renukacharya.
It is an open secret in Karnataka political circles. Former chief minister H. D. Kumaraswamy is rumoured to be in relationship with Kannada film actress Radhika. The actress has not hesitated to declare that Kumaraswamy is her husband. She has even named her daughter as Shamika K Swamy.

Kumaraswamy and his family, including his father, the former prime minister H. D. Deve Gowda, have maintained silence on the issue. But the damage was done early this year when the actress released pictures of her with Kumaraswamy and a baby girl.

Four years ago, when Kumaraswamy was the CM, he shocked everybody by travelling with Radhika on a foreign holiday. After the child was born, he reportedly took part in the birthday celebrations of which photographs were released by Radhika. But these days, the two are not seeing each other, say to sources close to Kumaraswamy.

Besides Kumaraswamy, there are other Karnataka politicians who have muddied their hands in sexual flings.

One of them is excise minister M. P. Renukacharya, who is also the trouble- shooter for former CM, B. S. Yeddyurappa. In early 2010, Renukacharya faced several legal cases after L. A. Jayalakshmi ( nurse- turnedentrepreneur) accused him of issuing her death threats after she splashed intimate pictures of the two.
A married man with two children, Renukacharya had met the nurse while working in Bapuji Ayurvedic Medical College in Shimoga more than a decade ago. They had an affair but fell apart later over business issues of the nursing college they had started jointly.

Another key aide of former CM Yeddyurappa, Hartalu Halappa, who is the former food and civil supplies minister is facing rape charges by the wife of a friend, whom he is alleged to have raped in November 2009. He was arrested four days after the victim filed a complaint five months after the incident and resigned from the Cabinet.

- Aravind Gowda

The powerful tainted by prostitution racket
An investigation into sexual exploitation case in Kashmir, which led to the arrest of politicians, senior police and security force officials and bureaucrats across Jammu and Kashmir in 2006, commenced on a simple complaint.

On March 14, 2006 a group of elders approached the Shaheedgunj police station in downtown Srinagar with two porn CDs. These CDs reportedly contained nude scenes of a minor girl from Habakadal locality. The girl was summoned along with her parents for investigation. The girl, who was a Class VIII student, told the police that she had to leave her studies after she was forced into prostitution.
The police immediately filed a case. The girl made startling revelations exposing a racket in which 43 young girls were coerced into prostitution and supplied to several J& K politicians, police and security force officers, surrendered militants and businessmen.

The girl reportedly gave 48 names to the investigators, naming Sabeena as the kingpin of the prostitution racket, who was arrested.

Realising the severity of the case, the then chief minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on May 2, 2006 handed it over to the CBI.
Subsequently massive protests broke out in the Valley with people demanding action against culprits.
In early June 2006, the high court ordered the CBI to start the exercise of identification parade of the accused before the victims. In June, the DSP of Jammu and Kashmir Police and the DIG BSF K. C. Padhi were arrested. Soon, the CBI also arrested Congress MLA G. A. Mir. The same day in Srinagar, the agency picked up former industries minister Raman Mattoo. An IAS officer was arrested on June 30.

On September 5, 2006, the Supreme Court ordered that the trial of 14 accused be shifted from Srinagar to Chandigarh.

At present the case is going on before the special judge, CBI, in Chandigarh, where it was last heard on September 6, 2011.

The next hearing of the case is due on October 17 and 18.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former deputy chief minister Muzaffer Hussain Baig talked about the sex scandal in the state Assembly on July 28, 2009. He claimed that the CBI had submitted a list of over 100 people before the high court. Handing over the list to the speaker Muhammad Akbar Lone, Baig said: "I have to say with regret, that Omar Abdullah's name is also in the list. He has lost the moral authority to rule the state. He must resign."
The allegation stunned the House and shocked Omar. For a few moments there was complete silence in the House. Although the Congress and NC MLAs urged him not to respond, Omar said, "I know the allegation is mere allegation and it is false. And the law is that a man is not guilty until proven. This maxim might be true about the cases of murder and robbery but in the allegation levelled against me the reverse is true. Here I am guilty until not proven. The allegation is a blot on my character. I want to resign till I am cleared of this false allegation. I cannot work till I am proved innocent."
He resigned immediately but the then Union home minister subsequently issued a statement saying that the chief minister's name was not in the CBI's list.

- Naseer Ganai

A scandal that refuses to die

The nearly two decades old ice cream parlour sex scandal is still an active political volcano in Kerala.

Whenever it has erupted in the past, the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) lost in the Assembly election while the state CPM's official faction, which is alleged to have backed the UDF move to hush up the case, cut a sorry figure. Like in the palmolien import graft case, the veteran CPM leader, V. S. Achuthanandan, periodically adds ammo to the case by taking it from court to court.

It happened in early nineties. P. K. Kunhalikutty, industries minister in the present government and a senior-most leader of Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a major partner of the UDF, allegedly sexually harassed young girls when he held the same portfolio in the Karnunakaran ministry. Sreedevi, a middle- aged woman who ran an ice cream parlour at Kozhikode beach, lured young girls to the sex racket and provided them to Kunhalikutty. Three of them committed suicide.

In the next election in 1996 the CPM government came to power and a few of the victims approached former Naxal leader and women activist K. Ajitha. She helped them file complaints. The E. K. Nayanar government controlled by the CPM official faction headed by party state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan sat on the petition and gave enough time to Kunhalikutty to destroy evidences. Kunhalikutty demolished the buildings where he allegedly abused the girls. The victims were rained with cash and kinds, and many were smuggled to the Gulf. The CPM official faction shielded the tainted Kunhalikutty as it was in a tacit alliance with the IUML, a formidable force in the Malabar region. Besides, a few CPM leaders had invested in businesses owned by League leaders in the Gulf.

The UDF won the election in 2001. A government under A. K. Antony came to the power and the industries portfolio again went to Kunhalikutty. Things went smooth for him in the first four years. The issue was revived towards the fag end of the government. Oommen Chandy had then taken over as the chief minister after Antony had resigned following the Congress's defeat in the Lok Sabha poll.

Regeena, a victim, told India Vision, a Malayalam TV channel owned by IUML leader Muneer, a political rival of Kunhalikutty, that she had repeatedly been abused by Kunhalikutty. The disclosure unleashed a surge of protests across the state.

The UDF was wiped out in the 2006 election. Many IUML leaders, including Kunhalikutty and Muneer, were trounced in the poll. Achuthanandan became the chief minister with a landslide victory for the LDF. But he could do nothing in the case as the Supreme Court exonerated Kunhalikutty of all charges.

On the eve of the recent Assembly election, Rauf, a close relative and a confidant of Kunhalikutty in hushing up the case, came out with the allegation that at the behest of Kunhalikutty, he had bribed two high court judges and silenced the victims, including Regeena, by paying them heavily.

Rauf's disclosure prompted chief minister Achuthanandan to order a fresh probe into the case. With the the UDF government taking over, the reinvestigation was dumped. Achathanandan has moved the high court seeking a CBI probe into the case. The court is expected to pronounce the verdict in a couple of weeks.

- Jayaprakash K

Elimination of sex slaves is the way out

The disproportionate assets case may not be bothering Mayawati as much as the sex scandals of her ministers and MLAs which have caused her immense political damage. Not that the other political parties can flaunt a holierthan- thou image, but BSP tops the list of sex scandals.

Take the case of Kavita Chaudhary, a lecturer of Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCSU), Meerut. Ambition brought her close to some powerful people who allegedly exploited and then eliminated her in October, 2006. On not getting what she wanted quickly, Kavita had dared to do a sting operation on her own sexual liaison with those in power. The scandal broke when Mulayam Singh Yadav was the chief minister.

But one of the most widely discussed sex scandals of Uttar Pradesh is that involving Amar Mani Tripathi, who is serving life term for killing his pregnant girlfriend Madhumita Shukla in May, 2003. Tripathi was the minister for stamps and registration in the then Mayawati- led BSP- BJP coalition government. Madhumita's ambition was to become a minister and she had thought that Tripathi would help her. That proved to be her undoing.

Tripathi was a favourite of all the political parties. Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav had even downplayed Tripathi's act and called it "an immature person's over-enthusiasm."

The state was later rocked by the sex scandals involving Anand Sen Yadav, former minister and BSP's MLA from Milkipur, and Purushottam Naresh Dwivedi, the BSP MLA from Banda. Barely five months after Mayawati took over as chief minister and appointed Anand Sen Yadav as minister of state for food processing, he sexually exploited Shashi Prasad (24), a poor Dalit student of law and daughter of a small- time BSP worker. He had her killed in October, 2007, after she became pregnant and demanded the status of a wife.

Dwivedi committed a more horrendous crime when he kept 17-year-old Sheila Nishad (name changed) hostage in his house in Banda for five days, between December 8 and 12, 2010 and gang-raped her along with his accomplices. The CBI is probing the case. Both Anand and Purushottam are in jail.

But it is Bhagwan Sharma alias Guddu Pandit, MLA from Dibai who is believed to have an expertise in sexual crimes. Elected on BSP ticket, he was arrested in June, 2008, in one such case of abducting and raping a 28-year-old college girl. But there are many such cases against him. He is out on bail. However, Mulayam didn't mind inducting Pandit in the SP when Maya removed him from the BSP last month.

More embarrassment is in store for the Mayawati government with the coming to light of another case of sexual exploitation by her party legislator. Yogendra Sagar, the BSP MLA from Bilsi, is accused of keeping an 18-year-old Badaun girl - Reoti Sharma (name changed) in illegal confinement in Lucknow and Delhi for 24 days to satisfy his lust. Investigation in the case is in the final stage.

- Piyush Srivastava
Source: www.indiatoday.in

BJP, Congress in nexus over illegal mining: Goa activists

2011-09-23T06:04:00.001-07:00

Citing the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) inability to take on the Congress-led ruling coalition on the issue of illegal mining in Goa, anti-mining activists say both parties are part of a nexus of silence.

Veteran civil society activists who last week deposed before the Justice M.B. Shah Commission - a Supreme Court appointed authority to probe illegal mining in India - say the state BJP leadership's silence is proof of its complicity with the Digambar Kamat government, which has been accused of overseeing a Rs.10,000 crore mining scam.
"Of course, when it comes to mining, every political party is together. This was the best chance for the BJP to make a political point against Congress and Kamat, who is responsible for illegal mining for nearly a decade now. The opposition is quiet because they are in cahoots with the government on the issue of illegal mining," Floriano Lobo, a prominent civil society activist and anti-mining campaigner, told IANS Thursday.
Lobo alleged the powerful mining lobby, which has often defined government policy in the past, sponsored both the political parties and hence had commanded the conspiracy of silence and inaction when it came to fixing responsibility for the scam.
According to Ramesh Gauns, a veteran activist who has been protesting illegal mining for nearly two decades now, the reason for the state BJP's silence against Kamat and the illegal mining scam, was the latter's proximity to former Karnataka chief minister and senior BJP leader B.S. Yeddyurappa, who has been indicted by a Lokayukta report on illegal mining.

"One cannot deny complicity between the BJP and Kamat. He (Kamat) has been a mines minister. Kamat is a pet of the RSS cadre and he was very close to Yeddyurappa," Gauns said.
Of the 12 years for which Kamat was minister of mines, presiding over a mining scam worth nearly Rs.10,000 crore (according to a ruling Congress legislator), Kamat held the mines portfolio for three years as a BJP minister in a Manohar Parrikar-led coalition government, in the early 2000s. He later quit the BJP and joined the Congress in 2005.
When asked to react on the party's silence on the illegal mining scam in Goa, BJP's Lok Sabha MP from North Goa Shripad Naik merely said: "Thank you for your advice."
Leader of opposition Parrikar was more forthcoming. "I am away from Goa. I will be raising the issue thoroughly when I am back Monday. I have always maintained that while Yeddyurappa is waist deep in illegal mining, Kamat is up to his neck in the mining scam."
Source: IANS

2G scam: Opposition wants Chidambaram out, Congress backs him

2011-09-22T21:54:00.001-07:00

With Prime Minister Manmohan Singh away in New York, the phone airwaves case rocked the government again Thursday, this time over a six-month-old note of the finance ministry that fell just short of indicting Home Minister P. Chidambaram, sparking a war of words between the Congress and the opposition that demanded his ouster.

Even as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) seized the opportunity and sought the immediate resignation of Chidambaram, Manmohan Singh reassured his home minister of his trust and spoke with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, also in the US.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi in the meanwhile was also briefed on the matter and was expected to take it up when the prime minister returns to the capital Monday, after attending the UN General Assembly, Congress sources said.
In a fresh twist to the second generation (2G) spectrum case, a note to the Prime Minister's Office from the finance ministry in March said the airwaves could have been auctioned in 2008 if Chidambaram, then the finance minister, had "stuck to his stand".
In the note, the finance ministry says Chidambaram, one of the government's most high-profile ministers, could have prevented spectrum from being given away at throwaway prices by insisting on its auction -- implying that presumptive losses worth thousands of crores could have thus been avoided.
The note, which was apparently shown to Mukherjee and accessed by an application under the Right to Information Act, was prepared by a deputy secretary in the finance ministry and sent to the Prime Minister's Office March 25.
"This clearly proves the role of P. Chidambaram in the 2G scam. He is responsible," BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said. "He should resign himself or he should be dismissed. I demand it strongly."

He sought a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa echoed the demand and said in Chennai that the prime minister should axe Chidambaram if he did not resign on his own.
"The CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) should act against Chidambaram like it did against Raja," the AIADMK chief told a news channel.
The CPI-M agreed and pressed for a CBI probe.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who are away in the US, called up Chidambaram over the controversy Wednesday night. The home minister assured both that he will not speak on the issue till their return.
"Friends from the media have asked me why I remain silent. The prime minister called me last night from Frankfurt and spoke to me. The finance minister called me from Washington and spoke to me," Chidambaram said in a statement here Thursday.
"I have assured the prime minister that I shall not make any public statement on the subject until he returns to India," he added.
Government sources, meanwhile, said that during the phone call Wednesday, the prime minister informed Chidambaram that he had not seen the finance ministry note mentioning his role in the 2G spectrum allocation.

During the call that lasted for 20 minutes, the prime minister conveyed his complete faith on Chidambaram's integrity and asked him to remain patient till his return to India, sources said.
Even the DMK -- a key ally of the ruling coalition at the centre -- joined the chorus to say Chidambaram's role in the 2G case was never in doubt.
But the Congress defended Chidambaram and said the opposition's demand for his resignation was a "mischievous attempt" to create a rift in the party.
"The party does not doubt his integrity," spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, adding that since Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy had presented the documents in the Supreme Court, the matter was sub judice.
"Without waiting for the proceedings to be completed, it is highly objectionable and inappropriate for Swamy or anyone else to pass premature judgment on the very same issue on which he is seeking relief."
Mukherjee, in New York, avoided direct comment on the note from his ministry but acknowledged such a letter was, indeed, dispatched to the Prime Minister's Office.
"Today a sensational news item has come and it is through the exercise of the right to information. A note was sent by the ministry of finance to the prime minister. Somebody demanded through the use of right to information to have a copy of that note," he said.
"And that is being used -- whether legally it can be used or not is a different story -- but the fact of the matter is, somebody has produced that as a piece of evidence in a particular case," he added.
"The matter is sub judice. The court is looking into it."
BJP leader Arun Jaitley Thursday said the latest twist in the 2G scam showed that the UPA government was at war with itself. He praised Pranab Mukherjee as the "wisest man in the government" and hoped he would make a full and frank disclosure on the controversy.

Are Indian MPs 'anpadh'? Not at all show parliament records

2011-09-13T05:15:00.001-07:00

Are most Indian MPs "anpadh" (uneducated) and "ganwar" (illiterate) as Om Puri alleged at the Ramlila Maidan? While the actor faces a privilege motion in the Rajya Sabha for his remark, an insight into the background of Indian parliamentarians reveals that he is completely off the mark.
Over 80 percent of Indian MPs are graduates, and some have studied further, according to parliament records.

Anna Hazare's aide Kiran Bedi also faces a privilege motion in the Rajya Sabha along with Om Puri for her remarks taunting MPs. The motion would be taken up for discussion Monday.
Om Puri launched a blistering attack last week on politicians from the stage at Ramlila Maidan where Anna Hazare was sitting on hunger strike. He told the thousands gathered that he feels "ashamed when an IAS or IPS officer salutes a ganwar (illiterate) who is a neta (political leader).

"Yeh anpadh hain, inka kya background hai? Aadhe se zyaada MP ganwaar hain...," Puri, otherwise known for his character roles, told the cheering crowd.

According to parliament records, of the 545 Lok Sabha MPs, 260 are graduates and 142 are post-graduates. Twenty-four, including two women MPs, have doctorate degrees.

Of those rest, 20 MPs are under matric (high school), 32 are matric and 47 have completed their inter or higher secondary classes.

Eight parliamentarians have done diploma courses and nine are undergraduates.

As far as the legislative experience of the 545 is concerned, there are 254 MPs who have been elected to either house of parliament more than once. There are 291 parliamentarians who are first time elected members, according to the parliament data.

Ram Jethmalani denies accusing BJP of cash-for-vote scam link, blames media

2011-09-12T23:59:00.001-07:00

Mumbai: Senior advocate and BJP MP Ram Jethmalani today denied he had accused BJP of having played a role in arranging the money in the cash-for-vote scam of 2008 and accused the media of misreporting.

"I have not done anything of that kind. You people are spreading (wrong reports) all the time," he said.
"I merely said that there was no evidence that Amar Singh gave this money...read the charge sheet...it doesn't say that Amar Singh has given this money. Amar Singh has not arranged the sting operation either," he added.

Talking to reporters outside the court, Jethmalani reportedly said, "There are no allegations in the charge sheet that he (Amar Singh) has given the money.... Advani has said that he arranged for the sting operation. So, obviously somebody from BJP must have arranged for the money who wanted the sting operation to take place."
The BJP, however, sought to make light of the embarrassment saying Jethmalani was acting in his capacity as a lawyer and it would not like to comment as the matter is sub-judice.
Source: PTI

Send your private jet, will get you best British footwear: Julian Assange to Mayawati

2011-09-06T09:49:00.000-07:00

WikiLeaks owner Julian Assange has rejected UP chief minister Mayawati's allegations and asked her to apologise.

NEW DELHI: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has rejected UP chief minister Mayawati's allegations and asked her to admit her errors and apologise.

He said "Mayawati has betrayed rational thought. The question is, has she also betrayed the Dalit? There is no question that the documents are official papers from the US embassy.

These papers have been proven the world over, including by the aggressive persecution of our people by Washington.

The allegations within them are made by US diplomats in their private communications back to Hillary Clinton.

If chief minister Mayawati has a problem with the contents of these communications she need to take it up with Hillary. I ask that Mayawati to admit her error and apologise."

Assange added that asylum in India is welcome for him, "Should she fail to do so, she is welcome to send her private jet to England to collect me, where I have been detained against my will, under house arrest, for the last 272 days. I would be happy to accept asylum, political asylum, in India--a nation I love. In return, I will bring Mayawati a range of the finest British footwear."

Earlier, the UP CM said she wanted the WikiLeaks founder to be put in a "mental asylum" because she is upset over leaked US diplomatic cables that painted her as an "egomaniac."

The leaked US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks last week described how the BSP supremo once allegedly dispatched her empty private jet to fetch her favourite sandals from Mumbai. Mayawati had food tasters to sample her meals and a "security entourage to rival a head of state", it claimed.

The cables quoting an aide of the Uttar Pradesh chief minister also said she was a person with a "penchant for personal corruption" and "a strong authoritarian streak".

"I would request the government of his country to send him (Assange) to a mental asylum and if they have no place for him in his country we can put him in our Agra mental hospital", Mayawati told reporters on Tuesday.

Cash-for-votes case: Amar Singh in judicial custody

2011-09-06T03:38:00.001-07:00

The entire political class was hit beyond belief when a session court on Tuesday awarded fourteen days judicial custody to former Samajwadi party leader Amar Singh in connection with the cash-for-votes scam.

Singh tried to avoid the appearance on Tuesday, citing medical grounds but a determined court asked for medical papers to justify his absence.Pushed to corner,Amar Singh did come to court.

The court rejected Rajya Sabha member's anticipatory bail and sent him to jail. Two former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs Fagan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora were also sent to jail. The third accused Sudheendra Kulkarni, a former associate of BJP leader L.K. Advani is abroad and did not appear in the court thereby escaping the fate of other accused.

On July 22, 2008, three BJP MPs waved wads of currency notes in the Lok Sabha ahead of a trust vote , alleging they were given the money to vote in favour of the Manmohan Singh government.

The judge had on August 25 issued summons to Amar Singh, former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs Fagan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora, and Sudheendra Kulkarni, a former associate of BJP leader L.K. Advani.

Earlier, former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh cited health reasons for not appearing in a Delhi court .Later when Judge asked his lawyer to present medical certificate before the court,Amar Singh did come.

In response, Special Judge Sangita Dhingra Sehgal asked his counsel to submit the medical report of his health, mentioning the specific date on which his kidney was transplanted and on how many occasions he had visited the doctor.

"Submit your specific medical report mentioning all the dates by 12.30 p.m. today (Tuesday)," Sehgal said.

Singh came to the court after that.

Amar Singh and three others were to appear before a trial court here Tuesday after the Delhi Police filed a charge sheet in the corruption scam.

"The charge sheet is based on weak circumstantial evidence," Amar Singh's lawyer said.
Amar Singh's former aide Sanjeev Saxena and middleman Suhail Hindustani both are in judicial custody and appeared before the court.

On the other hand, counsel defending Kulkarni submitted before the court that his client was unable to appear because he was in the US.

"My client (Kulkarni) left for the US before the Delhi Police filed the charge sheet in the case. Therefore, I need two weeks' time on behalf of my client to call him before the court," his counsel said.

The charge sheet alleged that during investigation "sufficient evidence" came on record that on the morning of July 22, 2008, Amar Singh "hatched a criminal conspiracy with his secretary Sanjeev Saxena to deliver cash of Rs.1 crore as money for illegal gratification".

No Teesta deal with Bangladesh without Mamata: Govt

2011-09-05T22:54:00.001-07:00

Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai on Monday said that nothing would be done on Teesta water sharing issue without consulting the West Bengal government.

He also announced that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee would not be part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's delegation, which will visit Bangladesh tomorrow.
Banerjee today refused to say anything on her opting out of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's trip to Bangladesh.
"I have nothing to say," an official told reporters on behalf of the chief minister.
Earlier, having kept the Centre on tenterhooks in the run-up to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's two-day trip to Bangladesh from September 6, Banerjee threw a fresh spanner in the works just 48 hours before he leaves. Sources close to her declared that she would not be going with the PM, though in an indication that it may be little more than pressure tactic from the mercurial Mamata, there was no official word from the Chief Minister's Office till late Sunday evening.

Insiders said she was unhappy with the final draft of the Teesta river water agreement, and that her decision not to go had been conveyed to the PMO through "proper channels". Mamata would have been among the CMs of four states -- the others being Assam, Tripura, Mizoram -- bordering Bangladesh accompanying the PM on the trip.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has expressed disappointment over the last-minute decision by the West Bengal CM to drop out of Singh's upcoming visit to the country.
"We will be disappointed if she does not come as she is a great friend of Bangladesh and she has a great following in this country and is a close friend of our Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina," Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's foreign affairs adviser Gawher Rizvi said.
But he said Bangladesh was sure that she would visit the country very soon and a very warm welcome awaits her.

The issue that has prompted her to scrap her planned visit is an internal matter of India, he said.
"But we know that even if she is unable to come tomorrow, she will visit Bangladesh very soon and a very warm welcome awaits when she arrives," Rizvi said.
Mamata miffed: Cong says teething troubles will be resolved
Congress today hoped that "teething issues if at all" will be resolved though mutual discussion after Mamata Banerjee opted out of Prime Minister's visit to Dhaka, apparently upset with a proposed accord to be signed with Bangaldesh on Teesta water sharing.
Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari, however, refused to go into the reasons for Banerjee's decision saying, "I am not privy to the consultations and discussions that have taken place in this particular manner."

He said that since the Foreign Secretary has already reacted to it, he does not think there is any need for the party to react and amplify what the government has said.
"If at all there are some teething issues, I am sure they will be resolved though mutual dialogue or discussion," he said, adding that he believes that an appropriate structure does exist for consultations in a federal structure over such issues.
"The right people to react to it are those in government who are dealing with the issue... Off the cuff reaction will be inappropriate," he said.
During the visit that begins from tommorrow, the two sides are expected to sign important treaties related to sharing of Teesta water and exchange of enclaves occupied by people located on their borders.
A senior party leader speaking on the condition of anonymity admitted that there are concerns on some issues expressed by different sections and these need to be addressed.
Source: PTI

UPA carrying out witch hunt on Team Anna: BJP

2011-09-04T23:54:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: BJP President Nitin Gadakri wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday complaining about the 'witch hunt' carried out against Team Anna and Baba Ramdev.
He accused the ruling UPA of using government machinery to target members of Anna Hazare's team - Arvind Kejriwal, Prashant Bhushan and Kiran Bedi.
Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi and Prashant Bhushan were served with privilege motions. They have been accused of using derogatory language against the government and MPs during their speeches.

He said it was worrisome that the 'strong arm tactics' and 'high handed actions' of the government were vitiating the political atmosphere in the country which was dangerous for a healthy democracy.
Gadkari said the 'cheap tactics' of the government were adding to the 'misperceptions' about the entire political class, thereby causing a 'great damage to the popular trust in democratic polity'.
He said the attitude of the government reminded him of the days of the Emergency when central agencies were used against those voicing dissent against the establishment.
Gadkari sought Singh's personal intervention to rein in all agencies under his control and 'put an end to the politics of vendetta'.
Gadkari also accused the central government of targetting political rivals like Narendra Modi and Amit Shah.

Karnataka: CBI arrests Bellary Reddys

2011-09-04T23:52:00.001-07:00

Bellary: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested former Karnataka tourism minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy after conducting raids at his Bellary residence. Janardhana Reddy has been arrested on charges of criminal conspiracy and cheating. Srinivas Reddy - the managing director of Obulapuram Mining Corporation (OMC) which is owned by the former minister - has also been arrested.
The CBI recovered 30 kg gold and Rs 1.5 crore cash from Janardhana Reddy's residence and Rs 3 crore cash from Srinivas Reddy after raids were conducted at their residences on Monday.
The arrests have been made under a 2009 FIR under sections of criminal conspiracy and cheating and also prevention of corruption act. An FIR was registered in 2009 after the Supreme Court appointed Central Empowered Committee wrote a letter against the Obulapuram Mining Company.
Both of them have now been taken to Hyderabad and will be produced in a CBI court.
The are allegations of irregularities in the mining activities of OMC which is owned by the brothers - G Karunakara Reddy, G Janardhana Reddy, G Somashekara Reddy.
The CBI team from Hyderabad led by its DIG, PV Lakshminarayana entered Janardhana Reddy's house late on Sunday night and escorted him to an undisclosed location for questioning, sources said.
The team also questioned Srinivas Reddy.
The probe agency action comes a day after Reddy's associate and former Karnataka minister B Sriramulu resigned from his Assembly seat, protesting against the BJP's denial to give him ministerial berth and also keeping Bellary Reddy brothers out of the ministry.
"There is no political vendetta. I am happy that ultimately the CBI has reached the Reddy brothers. Not only the Reddy brothers, all those involved in illegal mining should be punished," said JDS leader Nanaiah.
The Reddy brothers have been indicted in the Lokayukta report on illegal mining in Karnataka.
There is enough evidence in former Karnataka Lokayukta Santosh Hegde's report to probe the Reddy brothers on charges of money laundering, according to legal experts.
The Lokayukta report accused them of far more serious crimes than just accepting a bribe. The report says they have actually smuggled out iron ore from Karnataka and the Rs 215 crore money trail has led to accounts in the British Virgin Islands and the Isle of Man(n).
Justice Hegde had asked the RBI and the Central government to act against the Reddy brothers for money laundering.

Analysis: Why Narendra Modi is on the defensive

2011-09-04T22:14:00.001-07:00

Sheela Bhattin New Delhi

Modi has a real challenge if the allegations of corruption pick up momentum. Modi was struggling to improve his image with the minorities but now he will have to convince the majority that his deals were clean and he is above board, says Sheela Bhatt.

Two days back, L K Advani led the protest in the parliament complex against the appointment of former judge R A Mehta as the Gujarat lokayukta by Governor Kamla Beniwal.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has deployed the Bharatiya Janata Party's top leadership in New Delhi to argue his case in the political arena but he is doing few things in Gandhinagar that exposes his vulnerability.

He has written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh requesting him to recall the Governor. In a sensational act, Modi in his letter has made many serious charges against Judge Mehta. If any court approves Mehta's appointment then Modi will have egg on his face.

The BJP's contention is that for the first time, a Governor has acted arbitrarily while appointing the lokayukta without consulting the government. The BJP is calling it a murder of democracy. But now the Congress party is claiming that on August 18, Modi was all set to 'murder' democracy by bringing an ordinance that would have hurt the ethos behind the office of the lokayukta.

As per the Congress allegations, Modi wanted Governor Beniwal to sign the ordinance that would have changed the composition of the panel that appoints the lokyaukta in the state. According to Arjun Modhawadia, president of the state Congress, "Modi wanted to bring 'sarkari panel' to appoint the lokayukta. The double standard of the BJP is shocking."

State Law Minister Dilip Sanghani was not available for comment. In the Rajya Sabha BJP leader Arun Jaitely gave a spirited speech against the Manmohan Singh government's attempt to bring a weak Lokpal bill in which the government will have a majority say in the panel that would appoint the Lokpal.

The United Progressive Alliance government is facing the people's ire for trying to control the appointment of the Lokpal under the proposed act, but now, allegedly, Modi wants to do exactly same thing.

Modi claims that Governor Beniwal should have acted on the advice of the government before appointing the lokayukta. Shaktisinh Gohil, leader of the Opposition in Gujarat, says, "We have no doubt that the Governor is right in her action. The last three appointments of the lokayukta were done without the advice of the government. Why is Modi questioning it this time?"

"Modi, wants to do exactly the opposite of what Jaitley recommends Dr Singh to do in New Delhi," says the Congress leader.

Modhawadia says, "Modi is against Judge Mehta, who is an independent judge. He wants to appoint a judge who can be influenced by him."

But the Modi government, allegedly, wants to drop the chief justice's role in the process and have a role for the chief minister. The Modi government has neither denied nor confirmed the allegation.

Here, the significant issue is regarding following procedures set for the appointment of the lokayukta where Modi may have a valid point that can be sorted out by the courts. But why is Modi protesting so much against the violations of procedures only?

"The people of Gujarat are waiting for the lokayukta to be appointed by the constitutional functionary in accordance with the law," says lawyer Anand Yagnik. He says, "People don't want any further delay on account of the political war between Modi and the Governor."

Currently in Gujarat, the Congress party has become active and aggressive while Modi is on the defensive. His supporters are unable to answer why Modi is overreacting for violations of procedures?

What else is discomforting Modi?

Many of his critics say that thanks to the Right to Information Act, Modi and his government are facing many uncomfortable questions for allotting land to industry in Gujarat. One glance at local newspapers gives an idea that 'corruption cases' of the Modi government are in news, which was not the case since the last nine years.

At such a sensitive time, with assembly elections are just a year away, when the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team report on the involvement, if any, of Modi and his government in the communal riots of 2002 is with the court, when anti-incumbency has started setting in certain areas of the state and when Modi is doing everything to improve his image amongst the Muslims, he is determined to ensure that his political position remains strong to combat freshly-emerging charges of favours done to his favourite industrial houses.

His government's only defence against these charges so far is that the Modi government largesse is much less compared to what late Chimanbhai Patel-led government gave. Patel had formed government with the support of the Congress and later he joined the party.

Modi's critics say the Congress had also showered favours to attract investments. Then, the 'state favours' given to attract industrialists in late 1980s and early 1990s had crossed all limits. That time the allegation was that sum of Rs 50,000 crore was given as hidden favours in form of tax holidays to a handful of industrialists. The charges were discussed in the assembly too.

Now the Congress leaders are claiming that, "In the BJP rule, Gautam Adani, Sudhir Mehta of Torrent and Ratan Tata have benefited the most."

It's not that only the Congress leaders that are criticising Modi these days. Bhola Bhai Patel, president of the Gujarat Sahitya Parishad, also blasted Modi recently.

In an interview to a Surat-based daily, he said, "The rulers have become kings." Patel, a highly respected writer, says that in Modi's rule corruption is rampant (Anhi ketlu badhu khavay che). He has accused Modi of behaving like the dictator Napoleon. Patel has accused Modi of suffering from narcissism.

The irony is that the Modi government wants to blunt the attack on him, for favouring Adani and Tata, by taking shelter behind Chimanbhai Patel's policy, against whose corruption people had launched the Navnirman Andolan.

Pressure is slowly building up on the Modi government to give a convincing reply to the charges of making policy that favoured industrialists outright.

Gujarat Congress leaders have submitted a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil on issue of 'corruption by the government of Gujarat and more particularly, chief minister of Gujarat' amounting to staggering Rs 1 lakh crore.

Modhwadia and Gohil have alleged that Modi and his government are indulging in rampant corruption that includes favouring industrialists by allotting them government properties at a huge loss to the exchequer, giving favourable business deals to industrialists and giving valuable land at cheap rates to builders and industrialists.

Modi has been accused of misuse of power and corruption running into hundreds of crores of rupees. The details were procured using the Right to Information Act.

Jainarayan Vyas, spokesman and a senior minister in the Modi cabinet, refused to comment on the issue saying that, "he doesn't have a brief on it."

Jagdish Thakkar, Modi's public relations officer, also said he is unaware of the subject and he speaks only when he is given a brief.

Modhwadia thinks Modi is, "liable for criminal acts and deserves to be prosecuted. The state machinery will not be able to investigate Modi and his offices. It should be investigated by Central Bureau of Investigation."

Modhwadia regrets that Gujarat, like Karnataka, didn't have a lokayukta for seven years.

He says, "Even the lokayukta will not be able to function independently because the position of the lokayukta in Gujarat is by nature of an advisory body which has no power except that of an inquiry commission."

Modhwadia alleges that some bureaucrats are, "acting as the personal employees of the state ministry."

The list of allegations against Modi submitted to President Patil runs into many pages. Some of the highlights deserve the Modi government's official response.

In the charge-sheet against Modi, the most prominent allegations are about cheap land allotment, a nationwide epidemic for various governments.

To avoid giving any official response to the people and to the newly-appointed lokayukta, Modi voluntarily announced a commission to inquire into the charges against him. It will be headed by Judge M B Shah. The only problem with the commission is that it has no powers as the state lokayukta has.

It's a political move by Mr Clean to save himself from being tainted. But it's a defensive move by the leader who is perceived as the strongest leader of the BJP.

The political strategies available to Modi to combat serious charges of corruption may not be many. It's more or less accepted that Modi is unlikely to resort to Hindutva again to counter his political adversaries. In the last two years, Modi has sent many positive signals to the minorities in Gujarat. In fact, Hindu groups are complaining that Modi is protecting cow-slaughters -- a highly sensitive issue in the state.

Modi is ambitiously going ahead to get minority support and his charisma has not waned, yet. The secular lobby could not dent his image in spite of providing robust legal challenges.

But the charges of corruption can truly hit him where it hurts. The Gujarati people inspired even Jaiprakash Narayan to launch the movement for Sampoorna Kranti in Bihar. Gujaratis have a history of reacting violently to corruption in governance. Ask the Congressmen in Gandhinagar. The taint of corruption has been so deep on them that they have been kept out of power since 1995.

Modi Stuck With Rs.5,00,000 Crore Scams, 10+ Murder Cases

2011-09-04T08:17:00.001-07:00

Just like Vultures start circling over dieing animal – Scores of Scams and Murder cases are Circling over Narendra Modi. Modi has become BJP & Gujarat’s biggest liability. Yeddurappa was a big embarrassment – Modi is Calamity. He may not get convicted due corruption and weak process but cases are too strong to die down.

While the following story mainly concern Lokayukta Appointment – Modi is really stuck with Rs.5,00,000 crores Scams and scores of Riot, Murders and Fake Encounter Cases and is living against the tide.

Following list doesn’t include SSNNL failure CAG reported 6% Use Factor – This @ Rs.10,000 crores annual economic loss over 20 years delay is Rs.200,000 crores loss.

In case GSPC gas reserves were discovered in Deendyal Field – Ambani bribed Modi to let him Loot Offshore blocks without competition.

2001 Block ought to have been developed by 2005 but strangely first well was dug in 2005 and Significant Oil & Gas discovered. There was little investment since then.

This too is Rs.200,000 crore Scam.

http://im.rediff.com/money/2011/sep/02pres.pdf

BJP in huddle mode to protect Narendra Modi

2011-09-03T22:57:00.001-07:00

Fears the Gujarat CM may be drawn into a controversy before 2014 elections

At a time the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership wants the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to decide the probable prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 general elections, the party has come together to protect Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, fearing the UPA government and the Congress might try to frame him.
Senior RSS and BJP leaders believe Modi should be extra cautious till the 2012 Gujarat assembly elections, as he might be subjected to repeated political attacks and attempts to get him framed to scuttle his movement to New Delhi.
"The upcoming Gujarat elections would be very crucial. Even as we want to believe it will be a cakewalk for Modi given his popularity in the state, we don't want him to get involved in any case," said a senior BJP leader known to be close to the RSS. The BJP leadership believes that because of Modi's prior commitment to Gujarat, the chief minister had not given his consent when offered the BJP presidency before the appointment of Nitin Gadkari.
"For Modi, it is best to concentrate on Gujarat elections for now, after which he could get a more prominent role at the national level. He had rejected the post of party president only to concentrate on Gujarat," added the BJP leader.

A prominent section within the RSS believes Modi to be the most acceptable person within the party, thanks to his popularity not only in Delhi, but all over the country.
Senior BJP leaders allege the only way to dent Modi's popularity is by naming him in a case related to the Gujarat riots or corruption. The state Opposition has alleged the involvement of the Modi government in large-scale corruption, which is why the appointment of an independent Lok Ayukta was being blocked by the Gujarat government.
Senior BJP and NDA leaders have openly come out against the recent appointment of R A Mehta as Lok Ayukta by Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal. They have alleged the appointment is not only unconstitutional, but also undemocratic.
On the other hand, the Modi government has alleged Mehta should not have been appointed as the Lok Ayukta, as he was not politically detached and had been a critic of Modi's government.
Source: Business Standard

Opposition obstructing Parliament's work, says government

2011-09-02T23:54:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: The government on Friday accused the opposition of adopting an "obstructionist" attitude in Parliament and said a slew of important legislations slated to be passed in monsoon session have not be taken up due to repeated stalling of proceedings of the two houses.

Addressing media persons here, Law Minister Salman Khurshid said very significant pieces of legislation were pending, noting a bill to set up commercial divisions of high courts was to be taken up in Parliament Friday. He said the bill is a major step towards bringing greater effectiveness in settling commercial disputes and will address complaints about some of legal processes being slow.
Khurshid said the government also plans to introduce land acquisition bill in the monsoon session. He said he was 'distressed and disappointed' at not being able to deliver legislations to which the government is committed and for which concerned ministries have done all the preparatory work.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said that 24 bills were intended to be approved in the monsoon session, but only seven had been passed.
He said several significant legislations had not been taken up because of 'wastage of parliament time' and 'obstructionist attitude of opposition."
The minister said government will try to push through as many legislation in the remaining days of the session which ends September 8. "The most important piece of work for Parliament is being relegated to background," Bansal said.
He said that duration of the present monsoon session was six weeks though it is four weeks normally.

Jaswant Singh ready for probe in 2G scam case

2011-09-02T23:53:00.001-07:00

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh on Friday said that he was ready to cooperate in the ongoing Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the telecom allocations undertaken during his term as the Finance Minister.

Earlier in the day, certain media reports had pointed at the possibility of Singh being 'grilled' by the CBI as part of the investigation into the multi-billion dollar telecom scam case, sparking an intense outcry from the BJP.
On Thursday, the BJP had openly challenged the Central government to probe all telecom allocations undertaken by the National Democratic Alliance regime since 1998, while slamming the CBI move as an example of its 'rank double standards'.
However, a confident Singh told mediapersons in New Delhi that he was ready to cooperate with the CBI probe to the best of his ability.
"I have read some newspaper accounts, which picturesquely describes the matter saying that I am going to be grilled by the CBI. Now, I do not know whether I will be roasted or grilled or toasted, but irrespective of what that is, I am very glad that the CBI is performing its duty. I will cooperate with them fully," Singh said.
"To the extent that my recollection of the events as also my ability and competence permits me, I will cooperate with them fully," he added.
He further maintained that he had not received any communication from the Central government or the CBI, informing him of the possible interrogation.
"I will cooperate with them fully. But as far as writing to me or letting me know that they intend doing such thing, neither the government nor the Central Bureau of Investigation has informed me at all about this matter. When they do, I will react," Singh said.
Source: ANI

Jaswant falls in 2G net; clean chit to Maran?

2011-09-01T06:16:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation, which on Thursday filed its interim report in the 2G spectrum allocation case in the Supreme Court, is expected to question BJP leader Jaswant Singh for his role in the spectrum allotment made during the NDA regime.
As per reports, the CBI is expected to quiz the BJP leader on the terms on which Universal Service Agreement Licence (USAL) were granted during the BJP -led National Democratic Alliance government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
In its report the CBI also mentioned that licences granted during the tenure of former telecom minister Arun Shourie and late Pramod Mahajan also needs to be examined.
The investigating agency told the two-judge bench of justices GS Singhvi and AK Ganguly that Loop Telecom is a front company for Essar and both companies are guilty of cheating.
In another important development in the high-profile case, the probe agency said that prima facie there was no element of coercion found in licences issued between 2001 and 2007, thus giving a virtual clean chit to Dayanidhi Maran .
During the hearing on August 24, the CBI had informed the court that it has filed chargesheets has against 17 persons including former telecom minister A Raja and DMK MP Kanimozi. It had said that a third chargesheet would be filed by September 15.
Besides Raja and Kanimozhi, other accused in the case include Unitech Wireless Managing Director Sanjay Chandra, Swan Telecom's Director Vinod Goenka, former telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura, Raja's former personal secretary R K Chandolia, DMK-run Kalaignar TV's MD Sharad Kumar, Bollywood filmmaker Karim Morani and Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani group's executives Hari Nair, Gautam Doshi and Surrendra Pipara.
The other accused persons included Swan Telecom promoter Shahid Usman Balwa, his cousin Asif Balwa and their colleague Rajeev Agarwal. The accused also included three telecom firms Reliance Telecom Ltd, Swan Telecom and Unitech (Tamil Nadu) Wireless Ltd.
All the accused have pleaded that they have not done anything wrong and refuted the charge of drawing illegal benefits in the 2G spectrum allocation.
Meanwhile, the CBI status report has drawn sharp criticism from the main opposition BJP, which has attacked the central probe agency for its double standards in 2G investigations.
BJP said that the CBI is highly discriminatory in its probe in high-profile cases.
Addressing a press briefing, BJP spokesperson Jaswant Singh said that his party is always ready for a through probe in the 2G spectrum licences allocated given during the NDA regime.
Alleging a cover-up on part of the CBI, Prasad said, “It is highly unfortunate that the central probe agency could not collect concrete evidence against Maran, this shows that there is an attempt to save him.”
Prasad, while maintaining that BJP has nothing to hide, warned, “The BJP shall expose the double standards of the CBI in its ongoing probe into the spectrum case.” He stated that his party is proud of the expansion of the telecommunication sector and mobile telephony during the NDA regime.
He also asked why is the CBI shying from probing the role of then finance minister P Chidambaram and the Prime Minister’s office in connection with the case.
However, the BJP leader concluded by saying that his party is ready to cooperate with the CBI in its probe into the spectrum licenses granted during the NDA rule.”

BJP demands removal of Gujarat governor over Lokayukta appointment in state

2011-08-30T05:45:00.000-07:00

Senior BJP leader LK Advani

NEW DELHI: Senior leader LK Advani on Tuesday led party MPs from Gujarat protesting outside Parliament House against the appointment of Lokayukta in the state by the governor without consulting the Narendra Modi government and demanded her removal for "bypassing" established norms.

Advani, Haren Pathak and around 15 other BJP MPs from Gujarat protested at the Gandhi statue in Parliament complex against the appointment of RA Mehta as the Lokayukta by governor Kamla Beniwal.

"We are going to meet the President on September 1 or 2 when she returns to the capital. All norms were ignored by the governor like consultation with the chief minister before the appointment or taking the advice of his Cabinet on the issue. The Lokayukta was appointed by the governor bypassing all established norms," Advani told reporters.

The MPs shouted slogans against the governor demanding her recall. Some of them held placards saying, "Dual policy on Gujarat will not be tolerated", "Recall Gujarat governor", "murder of democracy" and "Rajyapal Bhawan has become Congress Bhawan (governor's House has become Congress Bhawan).

Asked if the BJP would demand Beniwal's removal as governor, Advani said, "Yes. We are going to meet the President over this."

In reply to another question, the senior BJP leader said, "It is a very serious matter and we condemn it. It is an attack on the federal structure of the country. It has never happened before."

Earlier, BJP gave notices in both Houses of Parliament for suspension of Question Hour to discuss the issue which it claims is violation of Article 163 of the Constitution that states the governor should act according to the advice of the council of ministers.

Swami to make P Chidambaram an accused in 2G case

2011-08-26T00:26:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Janata Party chief Subramanian Swamy Friday allowed by a Delhi court to conduct his private complaint in the 2G scam.
The court also gave him time for filing an application which seeks to make then Finance Minister P Chidambaram an accused in the case as the matter is pending in the Supreme Court.
"Since my application seeking CBI inquiry into the role of Chidambaram in 2G scam is pending before the Supreme Court, it would be in the interest of justice to wait for the apex court's order and then come here (to this court) with the plea to make him (Chidambaram) an accused in the case," Swamy told Special CBI Judge O P Saini.
The Janata Party chief informed the judge that the apex court order on his petition is likely to be delivered on September 1 and than then he would file by September 15 the application seeking to make Chidambaram an accused in the case.
The court fixed the matter for further hearing on September 15.
Swamy, during the last hearing, had complained before the court that the charge sheets field by the CBI did not cover the role of the Chidambaram, who "jointly took important decisions" on allocation of radio waves.
He had also urged the court that he be appointed Special Public Prosecutor to conduct his case himself.
Swamy had told the court that his private complaint dated December 15, 2010, has a wider ambit including national security which the CBI has not investigated.
Swamy had alleged that the CBI's charge sheet puts the entire blame on Raja while there were joint decisions taken by the then telecom minister and Chidambaram.
He had also complained that the CBI was "not willing to club his private complaint with its case" and sought his plea be heard separately as it would give him more independence.
"I would like my private complaint to be heard separately. I have wider issues (in the complaint) touching national security aspect, which the CBI is not investigating," Swamy contended.
While seeking his appointment as public prosecutor in the 2G case, Swamy had said that he has every right to be appointed a prosecutor.
The CBI had opposed Swamy's plea seeking his appointment as prosecutor in the case, saying his complaint was "not tenable in law" and not "worth accepting".
The agency had told the court that Swamy's submission regarding clubbing of his private complaint with the CBI's case was not in the interest of justice and his complaint may be dealt with separately.

Nine parties unite against Lokpal Bill

2011-08-20T00:13:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Nine political parties, including the Left, on Friday said the Lokpal Bill tabled in Parliament was unacceptable. They said they may demand withdrawal of the Bill, if necessary.

The nine parties have decided to start a nationwide protest against the government's version of the Lokpal Bill from August 23. The parties are demanding more effective legislation to end corruption in high places.
"We may demand withdrawal of the government's Lokpal Bill, if necessary," said AB Bardhan, the CPI general secretary. Soon after a meeting attended by these parties, it was decided they would express their views before the standing committee on personal and public grievances, law and justice discussing the Bill.
Interestingly, under the original plan, the BJP-led NDA was to take part in the protest as well. The NDA was in favour of calling for a bandh, not a mere protest. "We were discussing it with the Left parties. We wanted to make a call for a bandh but there were differences within the Left parties on the issue, so we decided to stay away. We might come together for protests in future," said a senior NDA leader. The BJP has already started nationwide protests against corruption.

Friday's high-profile meeting was attended by Prakash Karat, CPI(M) general secretary, N Chandrababu Naidu of TDP, H D Deve Gowda of JD(S), Ajit Singh of RLD, Debabrata Biswas of Forward Bloc, Abani Roy of RSP, M Thambidurai of AIADMK and Bhratruhari Mahtab of BJD.
Karat told reporters after the meeting the protest was issue-based and didn't indicate the Third Front was forming an alliance. He said the nine parties would meet after August 23 to decide the next course of action.
The protests will have an impact in Tripura, where the Left Front is in power. There is a BJD government in Orissa and AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. None of the other political parties are in power in any state.

Source: Business Standard

States of surprise

2011-08-19T23:06:00.001-07:00

Assembly elections are due in six states in 2012: Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Gujarat, Goa and Manipur. The biggest of them all, Uttar Pradesh, was supposed to have been a face-off between Mayawati and Rahul Gandhi. But there's another player in the arena. The BJP's move to introduce Uma Bharati and put Hindutva hardliner Rajnath Singh in charge of the state seems to have met with some measure of success.

In UP, 38 per cent say Uma's return has helped the BJP. In Punjab, Parkash Singh Badal's Akali Dal has a slim edge in the general elections, but within the state, Congress candidate Amarinder Singh is ahead. Andhra seems to be slipping out of the Congress grasp even though no elections are slated in the near future. The threat is not from the TDP but the breakaway Congress faction led by Jaganmohan Reddy. Both the Congress and Jagan have polled 37 per cent each in the state.After he swept the recent by-elections in the state,two Congress general secretaries, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Digvijaya Singh, tried to woo Jagan back to the party. His polite 'no'will have an electoral resonance during the next polls.

CBI hot on trail, Jagan’s cup of woes is brimming over

2011-08-18T00:11:00.001-07:00

YSR Congress party chief YS Jaganmohan Reddy is neck-deep in trouble. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday carried out searches in five cities in connection with disproportionate assets case against him and other alleged irregularities. The raids were conducted simultaneously in Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai.
A team of 11 CBI officers started searching at the palatial residence of Jagan at Lotus Pond at Banjara Hills on Thursday. Separate teams were formed to conduct the searches after the central agency on Wednesday approached the CBI Special Court to seek search warrants for over 90 locations owned by as many as 32 corporates and some individuals who have invested in the firms owned by Jagan.

Jaganmohan is one of India's wealthiest politicians. PTI

The action came a day after CBI registered a First Information Report in both the cases on the direction of Andhra Pradesh High Court. Jaganmohan is one of India’s wealthiest politicians. In April this year, he declared his assets worth Rs 365 crore.
The high court, based on separate petitions filed by Textile Minister P Shankar Rao and TDP leader Yerran Naidu, had recently ordered the CBI to probe the alleged illegal assets that the Kadapa MP had amassed during his father’s regime as Chief Minister.
Firstpost had earlier carried a series of reports centering around his reported wealth. Reddy, who launched his own party—the YSR Congress—earlier this year, sees “witch-hunting” at work on the part of the Congress. His disenchantment with the Congress was triggered by the party refusing to name him as the new chief minister after his father’s death.
The investigation into Reddy’s wealth was sanctioned by the Andhra High Court. Reddy moved the Supreme Court on Wednesday against the 10 August order of the High Court, saying it was not a reasoned decision.
In another development, CBI searched the premises of AP Principal Secretary (Home) B P Acharya and also registered a case against Dubai-based Emaar properties and searched the premises of real estate developer Emaar-MGF in Hyderabad and Delhi.
It is a case of conspiracy between Andhra Pradesh government officials and Emaar in the development of villas and apartments, the agency said.

After Hazare, Jagan too accuses Cong of witch-hunt

2011-08-15T07:29:00.001-07:00

Hyderabad: YSR Congress chief Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy on Monday accused the Congress of a witch-hunt because he had left the party and of maligning his late father, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy.

The MP from Kadapa also announced that he would challenge in the Supreme Court the Andhra Pradesh High Court order of a probe by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into his alleged illegal assets.
Addressing a section of the television media, Jagan, as he is known, hit out at the Congress for targeting him for leaving the party and denied allegations that he misused power to amass huge wealth when his father was the chief minister.
The young leader also rubbished the allegations that the investments into his companies were made as a quid pro quo arrangement in return for favours that his father had shown to the investors.
Jagan alleged that the Congress had unleashed income tax and other agencies against him after he quit the party in November last year and later through a minister who filed a case against him in the court.
"It is all because they don't want a man who has left the Congress party to come back to power in the state," he said.
"This is the first time in the country that a dead man is being attacked," Jagan remarked while referring to allegations against his father YSR, who died in a helicopter crash in 2009.
Defending YSR, Jagan said the decisions to allot land or provide other benefits were taken by the entire cabinet.
Denying that he ever influenced any decision of the government, Jagan said he never visited the chief minister's camp office or the secretariat. "In fact, you should ask the likes of Ahmed Patel (political secretary of Congress president Sonia Gandhi) as to how many times they called up the chief minister to influence the decisions."
Claiming that it was because of his father that the Congress came to power in 2004 and retained it in 2009 both in the state and at the centre, Jagan said a man who did so much for the party was being targeted and maligned two years after his death.
"Just because my dad is no longer alive and because I have left Congress party, they are using the power to target a helpless and a young man, who has no backing of anybody," said Jagan.

Now, hawala scam may haunt Yeddy

2011-08-15T00:23:00.001-07:00

Enforcement Directorate is reportedly building a case against former CM and his 'good friend' Shobha Karandlaje. This is first time she has been named in a scam linked to B S Yeddyurappa
More trouble seems to be hounding the already beleaguered former Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, and he is now believed to be involved in a major international hawala racket.

Friend indeed: Shobha Karandlaje has been named for the very first
time in a scam linked to Yeddyurappa. Pic/Satish Badiger
Yeddyurappa, who is accused in several corruption cases, is said to be under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is reportedly building a strong case against him. The significance of the case is that close associate Shobha Karandlaje, who was immune to corruption charges involving the former CM so far, is linked and her name is surfacing for the first time.
Shobha is a minister in CM Sadananda Gowda's cabinet and has retained the same miniseries she held while in the erstwhile Yeddyurappa cabinet- food and civil supply and power. According to available information, Yeddyurappa has multiple bank accounts in Dubai and Hong Kong, and has invested in various businesses including real estate and hospitality. The ED is believed to have traced illegal money transfers from a city branch of a nationalised bank to these accounts.
A source in the ED informed that Yeddyurappa's sons -- B Y Raghavendra and B Y Vijendra -- were also mentioned in the case. Evidences points to involvement of his family members in companies based in Dubai, Hong Kong and Dubai and give enough ground to prove that they are the front companies of the family.
The ED and I-T departments have reportedly gathered details of investments made in several five star hotels in the countries mentioned.
"The cases surfacing so far pertain to irregularities at local level, but the case being built by the ED is fraud at an international level. It's huge in terms of money transfers and illegal transactions," said the source.
While declining to divulge intricate details, the source hinted that the Income Tax (I-T) department is also conducting an investigation even as the ED has gathered vital information to book him under Prevention of Money Laundering Act and Foreign Exchange Maintenance Act.
It is to be noted that Yeddyurappa and Shobha used to make quick trips to Dubai and Hong Kong, while H D Kumaraswamy, former CM and state president of JD(S), accused them of running front companies in foreign countries.
While Yeddyurappa and Shobha were not available for comment, R P Jagadish, spokesperson to the former CM said, "We don't have any details on the issue and have not received any notice from either the ED or I-T department. So, it is a hypothetical situation that requires no reaction."

Gujarat govt chargesheets IPS officer Rahul Sharma

2011-08-13T01:03:00.001-07:00

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat government on Saturday chargesheeted IPS officer Rahul Sharma for alleged misconduct in not submitting the original CDs containing mobile phone call records related to the 2002 communal riots.
"Rahul Sharma has been served the copy of chargesheet today," Gujarat government spokesperson Jaynarayan Vyas told media persons here.
Sharma confirmed that he has received the copy of the chargesheet. He was charge sheeted today after his notice period ended yesterday. Sharma was served the first notice on January 27. He was served the final notice on July 28 and was asked to file reply to the notice within 15 days.
The officer has been accused of gross misconduct under Sec 3(1) of All India Service Rules 1969.
He has been accused of not submitting the CDs containing phone call records during the riots to respective investigating officers of Naroda Gam, Naroda Patia and Gulburg Society case.
The chargesheet came a day after Home Minister P Chidambaram said the Centre is willing to intervene in the matter.
Chidambaram said there are rules which allow the Centre to intervene. "Rules do provide for central government to take certain decisions but this depends on officer concerned. If officer concerned raises it we can," said Chidambaram.
According to the state government, Sharma's conduct had become unbecoming of an IPS officer as he did not submit the CDs to his superiors when he was transferred from the post of DCP control, Ahmedabad.
Yesterday, the High Court had rejected Sharma's petition seeking details of the grounds on which he was served a show cause notice by the state government early this year over providing phone call records pertaining to 2002 riots.

BJP accuses UPA of "monumental fraud"

2011-08-09T21:51:00.001-07:00

Arun Jaitley seeks accountability for appointment of Suresh Kalmadi as CWG OC chief

New Delhi: Accusing the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government of "monumental fraud" in appointing Suresh Kalmadi as Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chief, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday said that political heads in the government had allowed creation "of a private fiefdom" and did not have the right to continue in their posts.
Initiating a short duration discussion in the Rajya Sabha on the statement of Sports Minister Ajay Maken on the CWG 2010, BJP leader Arun Jaitley said all the documents relating to appointment of Kalmadi as chief of organising committee should be placed on the table of the house.
"It will reveal the truth, which the government does not want," Jaitley said. Jaitley said Kalmadi had floated a private society and the country was entitled to know the truth. "Was he a chairman in private capacity? If he was a government nominee, why was he allowed as a private society...the government lends shoulder to him," he said. Jaitley said every contract awarded by the private body was overpriced.
"It is not only procedural improprieties. Compare it with facts. We were disgraced by reports that everything was overpriced," he said, adding that the Central Bureau of Investigation was probing some cases.

Demanding political accountability for the lapses, Jaitley said "agencies will be accountable to whoever under law, but the political heads of government of Delhi and the government of India are responsbile to both houses of parliament".
He said the government has not taken the house into confidence fully and has not been candid. "The real truth is they saw a political ally and handed over the Games to him," the BJP leader said. He said that political heads of the government who were responsible for the "monumental fraud" do not have a right to continue in their posts.
Jaitley, who continued his speech in the post-lunch session following adjournments, said earlier that Maken's statement had concealed more than it revealed. Calling it a hurried statement, prompted by leaks to the media of parts of the Comptroller and Auditor General's (CAG) report on the CWG, Jaitley said an international sporting event was made into a massive scandal by the Congress-led government.
"The Commonwealth Games were supposed to be a major sporting event...but it transformed into a major scam," Jaitley said. "How much of the money was squandered away still remains a major national concern," he added.

Maken in his suo moto statement said that the then BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government had the onus for appointment of Kalmadi as chief of organising committee. Kalmadi is currently in jail for alleged involvement in financial irregularities in CWG projects.
Jaitley said while the bid for the Games was accepted in November 2003, an updated bid document appeared in the file of the Games in September 2004. "When the bid document was accepted in November 2003, how could IOA (Indian Olympics Association) revise the bid unilaterally?" Jaitley asked. Kalmadi was and continues to be the IOA president. Jaitley said the party took up the issue with then sports minister Vikram Verma, who said he did not remember any revision in the bid document in December 2003.
"How the revised bid appeared in the file in September 2004, he (Kalmadi) used a private route to take control," Jaitley said, adding when a "friendly government" came in 2004, he first wrote to the prime minister to "associate him" with the Games.
Jaitley also said while in a meeting it was decided that then sports minister Sunil Dutt was to head the OC, the decision was later changed, and the minutes of the meeting were also changed. "The entire ministry of sports and bureaucracy in the prime minister's office says this can't be done and it is overruled," he said referring to the appointment of Kalmadi as the OC chief.

Delete Hindu names from 'D' voters list: BJP

2011-08-07T21:23:00.001-07:00

Guwahati: The Assam unit of the BJP on Sunday demanded that names of Hindus who were Indians should be deleted from "D" (doubtful) voters list, saying they are harassed by the authority in the name of compilation.
"Genuine Hindu Indian voters are being harassed by the authority in the name of compilation of "D" voters list and we demand that their names should not be in such list," party's state unit President Ranjit Dutta told.
Stating there was no division among the party after its recent assembly poll debacle, Dutta said national president Nitin Gadkari during his visit on Saturday had urged the partymen to stay united and fight against corruption.

The BJP president on Saturday urged the partymen to stay united and fight against corruption.

On the recurring flood problem, Dutta said "We urge the Centre to recognise flood as a national problem and tackle it effectively."

Why are BJP and RSS Scoundrels? 2 Yrs Robust Economic Performance

2011-08-04T18:23:00.001-07:00

Friends in Bihar will be shocked to discover Bihar is so Pathetically Backward that for 10% population it gets not even 1% of Bank Credit. When gross credit in India is Rs. 3785506 crores Credit to Bihar is Rs. 29853 crores – or 0.78% of India .

Patna born Yashwant Sinha, 74yrs takes pride in creating Mischief in the Lok Sabha when any destabilization is damaging severely India internally and externally – poor suffer the most. Even when they appear to be silent their agents Ramdev and Anna team is active – not in any BJP state but in UPA ruled Delhi .

Here in the following you can see the real evidence of robust economic performance of Indian economy – credit growth under first two years of present term of UPA was 43.4%.

Price rise is due to Stagnant Food production in BJP ruled states including Bihar in ten years even as population has increased by 20% roughly and in just two years Bank Credit growth is 43.4% and income of people doubled.

It is the failure of BJP ruled states, giving priority to non food production that has increased food prices and food inflation, in particular Gujarat, Bihar , Jharkhand, MP, to benefit from the opportunities.

2 Yrs Robust Economic Performance 43.4% Growth Bank Credit

Statement 1: Deployment of Gross Bank Credit by Major Sectors

http://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/content/DOCs/PR290711AI.xls

Amount in Rs. Crores.

Sr.No	Sector	Jun 19, 2009	Jun 17, 2011
I	Gross Bank Credit (II + III)	2639595	3785506
II	Food Credit	59506	76579
III	Non-food Credit (1 to 4)	2580088	3708927
1	Agriculture & Allied Activities	330513	453812
2	Industry (Micro & Small, Medium and Large )	1058085	1667577
2.1	Micro & Small	178884	233383
2.2	Medium	126934	187105
2.3	Large	752267	1247090
3	Services	635097	892281
3.1	Transport Operators	38554	58254
3.2	Computer Software	9656	14897
3.3	Tourism, Hotels & Restaurants	13669	29316
3.4	Shipping	9914	9619
3.5	Professional Services	44425	58244
3.6	Trade	142888	185142
3.6.1	Wholesale Trade (ex. food procurement)	68363	101837
3.6.2	Retail Trade	74525	83304
3.7	Commercial Real Estate	96380	113376
3.8	NBFCs	93739	169321
3.11	Other Services	185872	254114
4	Personal Loans	556393	695257
4.1	Consumer Durables	7783	10182
4.2	Housing (Including Priority Sector Housing)	279591	358828
4.3	Advances against FDs	46703	61113
4.4	Adv. Individuals against share, bonds, etc.	2317	3473
4.5	Credit Card Outstanding	26383	18134
4.6	Education	29452	44489
4.7	Vehicle Loans	60370	82330
4.8	Other Personal Loans	103794	116708
5	Priority Sector	918835	1247741
5.1	Agriculture & Allied Activities	330513	453812
5.2	Micro & Small Enterprises	317995	457547
5.2(a)	Manufacturing	178884	233383
5.2(b)	Services	139111	224165
5.3	Housing	199212	238400
5.4	Micro-Credit	16942	27137
5.5	Education Loans	29075	43600
5.6	State-Sponsored Orgs. for SC/ST	2409	1644
5.7	Weaker Sections	136921	203336
5.8	Export Credit	20736	33442

Statement 2: Industry-wise Deployment of Gross Bank Credit

http://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/content/DOCs/PR290711AII.xls

Sr.No	Industry	Jun 19, 2009	Jun 17, 2011
2.1	Mining & Quarrying (incl. Coal)	14321	26890
2.2	Food Processing	54686	86482
2.2.1	Sugar	16696	26713
2.2.2	Edible Oils & Vanaspati	7652	13547
2.2.3	Tea	2112	2189
2.2.4	Others	28226	44033
2.3	Beverage & Tobacco	9215	12194
2.4	Textiles	103600	146145
2.4.1	Cotton Textiles	51748	75416
2.4.2	Jute Textiles	1442	1735
2.4.3	Man-Made Textiles	7678	7894
2.4.4	Other Textiles	42732	61101
2.5	Leather & Leather Products	5989	7306
2.6	Wood & Wood Products	4158	5781
2.7	Paper & Paper Products	15744	21508
2.8	Petroleum, Coal Products & Nuclear Fuels	57614	64202
2.9	Chemicals & Chemical Products	70506	92287
2.9.1	Fertiliser	13427	8085
2.9.2	Drugs & Pharmaceuticals	28401	40951
2.9.3	Petro Chemicals	7658	13269
2.9.4	Others	21020	29982
2.10	Rubber, Plastic & their Products	13458	22686
2.11	Glass & Glassware	4172	5512
2.12	Cement & Cement Products	20462	30802
2.13	Basic Metal & Metal Product	132749	214921
2.13.1	Iron & Steel	102976	165358
2.13.2	Other Metal & Metal Product	29773	49563
2.14	All Engineering	66304	95824
2.14.1	Electronics	18581	27147
2.14.2	Others	47723	68677
2.15	Vehicles, Vehicle Parts & Transport Equipment	32988	46420
2.16	Gems & Jewellery	28639	41559
2.17	Construction	37544	50668
2.18	Infrastructure	283173	552682
2.18.1	Power	136863	292342
2.18.2	Telecommunications	46980	94319
2.18.3	Roads	52756	99038
2.18.4	Other Infrastructure	46574	66983
2.19	Other Industries	102763	143706
2	Industries	1058085	1667575

BIHAR JUST 1% of ALL INDIA BANK CREDITS

http://www.rbi.org.in/scripts/PublicationsView.aspx?id=13451

I.	AGRICULTURE	10272.72
	1. Direct Finance	8648.48
	2. Indirect Finance	1624.24
II.	INDUSTRY	3390.14
	1. Mining & Quarrying	59.00
	2. Food Manufacturing & Processing	717.97
	(a) Rice Mills. Flour & Dal Mills	349.18
	(b) Sugar	137.99
	(c) Edible Oils & Vanaspati	54.01
	(d) Tea Processing	3.27
	(e) Processing of Fruits & Vegetables	16.88
	(f) Others	156.63
	3. Beverage & Tobacco	61.00
	4. Textiles	102.09
	(a) Cotton Textiles	33.91
	(b) Jute & Other Natural Fibre Textiles	4.10
	(c) Handloom Textiles & Khadi	28.02
	(d) Other Textiles & Textile Products	36.06
	5. Paper. Paper Products & Printing	65.50
	6. Woods and Wood Products	17.93
	7. Leather & Leather Products	14.61
	8. Gems and Jewellery	10.01
	9. Rubber & Plastic Products	53.51
	10. Chemicals & Chemical Products	93.52
	(a) Heavy Industrial Chemicals	16.72
	(b) Fertilisers	1.53
	(c) Drugs & Pharmaceuticals	10.89
	(d) Non-Edible Oils	3.04
	(e) Other Chemicals & Chemical Products	61.33
	11. Petroleum. Coal Products & Nuclear Fuels	85.21
	12. Manufacture of Cement & Cement Products	38.00
	13. Basic Metals & Metal Products	392.66
	(a) Iron & Steel	329.63
	(b) Non-Ferrous Metals	5.51
	(c) Metal Products	57.53
	14. Engineering	135.34
	(a) Heavy Engineering	19.62
	(b) Light Engineering	88.13
	(c) Electrical Machinery & Goods	21.32
	(d) Electronic Machinery & Goods	6.27
	15. Vehicles. Vehicle Parts & Transport Equipments	69.77
	16. Other Industries	242.36
	17. Electricity. Gas & Water	138.52
	(a) Electricity Generation & Transmission	128.96
	(b) Non-Conventional Energy	1.97
	(c) Gas. Steam & Water Supply	7.59
	18. Construction	1093.14
	(a) Other than Infrastructure	158.03
	(b) Infrastructure Construction	935.11
III.	TRANSPORT OPERATORS	437.18
IV.	PROFESSIONAL AND OTHER SERVICES	1375.56
	1. Professional Services	334.50
	2. Tourism. Hotel & Restaurants	67.79
	3. Recreation services	22.04
	4. IT and Telecommunications	30.84
	5. Others	920.39
V.	PERSONAL LOANS	8374.31
	1. Housing	2494.68
	2. Consumer Durables	95.54
	3. Vehicles	641.67
	4. Education	940.97
	5. Personal Credit Cards	101.11
	6. Others	4100.35
VI.	TRADE	5015.12
	1. Wholesale Trade	1277.12
	2. Retail Trade	3738.00
VII.	FINANCE	67.43
VIII.	ALL OTHERS	920.50
	TOTAL BANK CREDIT	29852.96

Sadananda Gowda will be new Karnataka CM

2011-08-03T05:15:00.000-07:00

Sadananda Gowda after attending a meeting at the BJP office in Bangalore.

Bangalore, Aug 3 : Lok Sabha member D. V. Sadananda Gowda will be the new Chief Minister of Karnataka,with his election on Wednesday as leader of the BJP legislature party in secret ballot, in a victory to the B. S. Yeddyurappa camp.

The exact number of votes polled by the rival candidates was not immediately available.

58-year-old Gowda beat Jagadish Shettar who was propped up by the rival camp led by BJP National General Secretary H. N. Ananth Kumar in a straight contest after the party central leaders failed to evolve a consensus on the successor issue.

The election brought out the sharp division in BJP’s State unit with Mr. Yeddyurappa aggressively pushing for Mr. Gowda’s candidature after being asked to step down as Chief Minister following his indictment in the Lokayukta report on illegal mining.

An affable and non-controversial figure, Mr. Gowda, a former State unit chief, is a Lok Sabha member from Udupi-Chikmagalur.

He has also served as Deputy Opposition leader in the Assembly.

After Mr. Yeddyurappa’s exit, party’s Central observers Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh had tried to build a consensus on his successor but the rival factions stuck to their guns forcing a showdown.

Yeddyurappa factor
The election of Mr. Gowda, who is not a member of either House of the Legislature, has clearly demonstrated the hold Mr. Yeddyurappa has over legislators and his command over the party in the State.

Mr. Yeddyurappa’s opponents in the party led by National General Secretary H. N. Ananth Kumar and State unit party president K. S. Eswarappa had opposed Mr. Gowda’s nomination on the ground that Mr. Yeddyurappa was trying to rule by proxy.

The anti-Yeddyurappa camp proposed the name of Jagadish Shettar, who has been a contender for the Chief Minister’s post for a long time.

Leaders of both factions, leaving nothing to chance, indulged in the numbers game and ferried their loyalist MLAs to separate star hotels in an attempt to guard them from being poached.

Minutes before the Legislature party meeting, Yeddyurappa and Ananth Kumar supporters brought their group of MLAs to the meeting venue in buses, an action which also brought to the fore the groupism in the State unit.

Anna calls PM liar, Sibal mad

2011-08-02T02:22:00.000-07:00

Gandhian loses his cool, says his fight is against govt, not Parliament

New Delhi: Veteran Gandhian Anna Hazare on Monday lashed out at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for defending the government's decision to keep the PM out of the Lokpal's ambit.
A charged-up Hazare said it was unfortunate that an honest man like Singh had started telling lies. "Till now, the people and I felt we have an honest and non-corrupt prime minister," he said.
"Our fight is not against Parliament, it is against the government. Even after my letter to him (Singh), if he says this it is unfortunate. The prime minister was a good person. What will happen if he too starts telling lies?"
On Sunday, Singh said it would not be advisable to keep the PM within the Lokpal's ambit. "The government took the decision after considering all factors," he said. Singh had earlier said he supported the decision to have the PM under the Lokpal.

The civil society members in the joint drafting committee were made to believe the government would put its versions of the draft and that of the civil society's before the cabinet. But that did not happen, Hazare said. He questioned the Centre's intentions and said he was ready to go to jail if he was not allowed to demand a strong anti-corruption law.
Rubbishing suggestions that he was trying to blackmail the government, Hazare said, "I am not very happy to go on a fast. The government is forcing me to do so. Why doesn't the government bring a strong Lokpal Bill?" Had the government listened to the voice of its people, scams like the 2G spectrum allocation would not have happened, he said.
He made it clear he has no preference for Jantar Mantar to carry out his fast. "Jantar Mantar is not the issue, the Lokpal is," he said.

'Need effective framework to protect environment'

2011-08-02T02:15:00.001-07:00

Excerpts from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s speech at the Valedictory Session of International Seminar on Global Environment and Disaster Management

In the public mind, there has always been a trade-off between economic growth and environmental sustainability. But, this view is changing slowly as more and more people are reviewing their notions of what constitutes growth. In fact, the very definition of growth has been enlarged to accommodate environmental and related concerns. There is now general agreement that environment cannot be protected by perpetuating the poverty of developing countries.
Their basic concern is with development and this is as it should be. But it is also no longer acceptable to take as given that a certain degree of environmental degradation and over-exploitation of natural resources in the cause of promoting growth is inevitable. It is no longer possible to treat the environment with passive disregard. And it is no longer tenable to pretend that these are concerns only for the other or wealthier nations.

In the last four years our government has formulated a national agenda for environmental protection to meet the challenges of disaster management and climate change. We have a target for greening 10 million hectares of forest land to increase incomes of the poor through a national Green India Mission. Action for generating over 20,000 Mw of solar energy by the year 2020 is underway.

Greenpeace activists hang a banner from a bridge in Mumbai, urging the PM to put India's climate policy on track

Our mission for enhanced energy efficiency will reduce substantially need for capacity addition. Our mission for sustainable habitat will develop standards for green buildings which we intend to make integral to our municipal laws. Our missions on sustainable agriculture and water conservation will increase productivity of dry land agriculture as well as increase efficiency of water use.
All these steps will cumulatively lead us to a low carbon growth path. These are steps that we have decided to take on our own as responsible global citizens. We are not waiting for an international consensus to evolve through ongoing negotiations on global climate change.
In recent years we have also accelerated efforts to enhance our capability to manage disasters. The enactment of the Disaster Management Act in 2005 enabled the setting up of institutional mechanisms for disaster preparedness and mitigation. We have also tried to share our expertise and experience with the other countries of the world.
As a signatory to the International Charter on Space and Major Charters, India extends its space capabilities to acquire data of the location of disasters anywhere on the globe and share the same with the affected country or countries on a priority basis. We also provide training in disaster management to personnel of other countries, especially those in our neighbourhood.

We believe the cause of environment cannot be furthered merely by exhortation. It also needs the strength and conviction demonstrated by concrete national legislation. We, in recognition of our commitment to this cause, have enacted a comprehensive law establishing and empowering a specialised tribunal for the settlement of a broad spectrum of environmental cases of civil nature. We have joined a handful of forward looking countries to have such a dedicated mechanism. This tribunal has started functioning and I expect it will help to reduce the workload of our courts.

We also hope to establish an independent regulator - the National Environment Appraisal and Monitoring Authority soon. This authority could lead to a complete change in the process of granting environmental clearances. Staffed by dedicated professionals, it will work on a full time basis to evolve better and more objective standards of scrutiny. I must also mention that but for the enduring wisdom of our judiciary, we would not have the bulk of what we proudly call 'environmental jurisprudence'.
The nineties witnessed remarkable changes in India. Rapid growth and industrialisation were underway as a result of the newly liberalised economy. At times like this, many nations might have chosen to bear silently the depletion of the nation's natural resources as the cost of doing business but we did not compromise on these concerns. Our judiciary enforced laws passed by a farsighted legislature to ensure that these concerns were neither diluted nor dismissed. Our safeguards are now far more stringent and well defined than they were two decades ago. But for these to be effective they need continuous support from a strong executive and the oversight of a wise judiciary. Over all, a major challenge ahead is to put in place a legal and regulatory framework which is effective in protecting the environment but without bringing back the hated license permit raj of the pre-1991 period.

Source: Business Standard

LS adjourned till tomorrow; upraor in RS

2011-08-01T02:01:00.001-07:00

The Lok Sabha was on Monday adjourned for the day after paying tributes to former Haryana Chief Minister and sitting member Bhajan Lal, who died during the inter-session period. According to TV reports, uproarious scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha over the government’s handling of the corruption issue.

As soon as the House met on the first day of the monsoon session of Parliament, Speaker Meira Kumar made obituary reference to Lal, a member from Hissar, who died on June 3. She described him as an able administrator and champion of the causes of the masses and worked for the uplift of the weaker sections throughout his political career spanning over four decades.
The House also made obituary references to former members Dharmabhiksham, Sribatcha Digal, Sripal Singh Yadav, LS Tur and Chaturanan Mishra.
The House also mourned the loss of lives in twin attacks in Norway, the terrorist attack in Mumbai on July 13, train accidents at Thanagaon on July 7 and at Fatehpur, both in Uttar Pradesh, on July 10.
"I am sure the House would join me in expressing grief over these terrorist attacks and tragic accidents," Kumar said. The members observed silence for a while before the House was adjourned for the day.

Main opposition BJP and other parties on Monday forced a brief adjournment of the Rajya Sabha by creating uproar over several issues including the 2G spectrum scam. Immediately after Chairman Hamid Ansari read out obituary references, BJP members were up on their feet raising the issue of statements made by former Telecom Minister A Raja in the court.
They were supported by members of AIADMK who displayed copies of a Tamil newspaper. BSP members raised the issue of farmers plight and were seen moving into the aisles.
Dr Ansari said he could not hear anyone as members were speaking simultaneously.Minutes into the din, he adjourned the house for 15 minutes till 12 noon.
Source: PTI

BSY to wait for New Moon to resign

2011-07-28T23:43:00.001-07:00

Bangalore: Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa late Thursday announced he would resign July 31 and work for the party, over 12 hours after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) directed him to quit immediately over illegal mining scam in the state.

In a statement, the 68-year-old first BJP chief minister in south India said: "I am a disciplined worker of Bharatiya Janata Party. I have decided to tender my resignation to the post of chief minister as per the direction of the party.
"The month of Ashada (according to Hindu calendar) will be over on 30th July 2011 on the New Moon day or Amavasya. I will be tendering my resignation as chief minister on the forenoon of 31st July 2011."
"I have consistently toiled for 40 years to build the party from the scratch and have got the satisfaction of bringing the party to this level. It is my committed desire to work for the development of the party in the future also," Yeddyurappa said.
The announcement smoothens the way to elect his successor Friday for which the ruling BJP is holding a meeting here in the presence of senior leader Rajnath Singh and Arun Jaitley as central observers.

Yedddyurappa's announcement came after a day of hectic activity in the BJP camp with groups of legislators meeting him separately and speculation that he had imposed several conditions to quit.
Among the conditions talked about in BJP circles was that he will name the successor, will have a major say in ministry formation and should be made state unit president.
There was no indication from either him or his loyalists or from BJP central leadership whether the party has agreed to any of these conditions.
The BJP parliamentary board Thursday morning directed Yeddyurappa to quit immediately, a day after Lokayukta N. Santosh Hegde sought his trail for graft in the illegal mining scam that has caused a loss of over Rs.16,000
crores to the state.
Source: IANS

Karnataka CM Yeddyurappa sends resignation to BJP chief

2011-07-28T07:10:00.001-07:00

Karnataka CM BS Yeddyurappa resigns

BANGALORE: Tainted Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa tendered his resignation on Thursday, following his indictment by the Lokayukta over illegal mining in the state.

The chief minister, however, has sent his resignation letter to the BJP national president Nitin Gadkari instead of the governor. According to sources close to him, Yeddyurappa would officially resign on July 31.

A strong believer of astrology, Yeddyurappa has been advised by a known astrologer to resign on July 31 as it could "bring him bright chances to return to power some time later."

Earlier, briefing mediapersons, BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said that the party decided that it was time for a change in the Karnataka BJP leadership. He also said that Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh will go to Bangalore on Friday to choose an alternative leader.

The BJP top leadership LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Rajnath Singh and Venkaiah Naidu who met in New Delhi rushed its troubleshooter and party's general secretary Dharmendra Pradhan to convince Yeddyurappa to step down gracefully.

His intervention succeeded, however, the chief minister is expected to put forth his demands before the party observers Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh when they arrive here on Friday.

Though the news of CM's resignation spread like wild fire, excise minister M P Renukacharya, a close aide of Yeddyurappa, maintained that the CM had not resigned and would not do so. Since he returned from Delhi this morning, Yeddyurappa was busy meeting his close associates and garnering support. He had also announced he would go ahead with scheduled plans of his cabinet meeting.

Therefore, submitting his resignation to Gadkari is seen as his ploy to buy some more time before tendering it to the governor.

The party still has not finalized an alternative name to succeed Yeddyurappa. State BJP president KS Eshwarappa, rural development and panchayat raj (RDPR) minister Jagadish Shettar and party's national general secretary Ananth Kumar are the front-runners for the post. Former president D V Sadananada Gowda, Yeddyurappa's favourite, is seen as a dark horse.

If Yeddyurappa goes, who will step in?

2011-07-28T01:08:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: The names of Karnataka minister Jagdish Shettar, state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief KS Eshwarappa and MP Ananth Kumar are doing the rounds as the replacement for Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa, who was on Thursday asked to quit by the party.

Speculation is rife about his successor, with the BJP deciding to remove Yeddyurappa after he was indicted by the Lokayukta for the illegal mining in the state. Shettar, the rural development minister, is a Lingayat leader like Yeddyurappa. One of the reasons for not asking Yeddyurappa to resign during the last crisis when he was indicted in a land scam was the huge Lingayat vote bank backing him.
Eshwarappa, who belongs to the backward caste, is another option for the party, while former state president Sadananda Gowda's name has also been taken. All three are not so well-known nationally.

BJP Lok Sabha MP Ananth Kumar, who has been a competitor of Yeddyurappa, is another contender, according to party sources.
Former home minister and Yeddyurappa loyalist VS Acharya, Law Minister Suresh Acharya and Shobha Karandlaje, who is known for her proximity to the chief minister, are the other names being floated, the sources say.
Yeddyurappa was on Thursday asked to step down immediately by the BJP after the Lokayukta indicted him for the illegal mining in the state.

BJP says Yeddyurappa must resign

2011-07-28T01:06:00.001-07:00

12:40 pm: The rise and fall of Yeddyurappa Sixty eight-year-old Bookanakere Sidalingappa Yeddyurappa has been the face of the BJP in Karnataka. As a Lingayat leader, he helped bring a significant vote bank to the saffron party - something that helped to guarantee his survival in the seat of power for so long.

12:30 pm: Will Reddy brothers be fired too?

12:15 pm: Yeddyurappa defiant even after BJP asks him to resign The BJP parliamentary board on Thursday asked tainted Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa to tender his resignation immediately, following the indictment by the Lokayukta over illegal mining in the state.
Briefing mediapersons, BJP spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said that the party has decided that it was time for a change in the Karnataka BJP leadership. He also said that Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh will go to Bangalore on Friday to choose an alternative leader.
11: 45 am: Yeddyurappa's possible successors NDTV compiled a list of politicians who could succeed Yeddyurappa as Karnataka CM.
11: 30 am: Too late, says Congress on Yeddyurappa ouster Reacting to the BJP's decision to let Yeddyurappa go, the Congress party said the decision has come 'too late'.

10: 58 am: Yeddyurappa holds emergency meeting Even as the BJP high command has come to a decision, Yeddyurappa himself is huddled in a meeting with some close aides at his residence. Yesterday, Yeddyurappa had said there was no question of him resigning.

10: 42 am: BJP cracks the whip on Yeddyurappa Ravishankar Prasad said BJP parliamentary committee met since 9:30 am and came to a unanimous decision that there has to be a change in leadership in Karnataka and asked the chief minister to tender in his resignation.
10: 36 am: Yeddyurappa must go: Ravishankar Prasad The BJP parliamentary board has taken a decision on the Karnataka political crisis. Addressing the media outside party president Nitin Gadkari's residence, spokesperson Ravishankar Prasad said Yeddyurappa must step down as the CM. Senior party leaders Arun Jaitley and Rajnath Singh will head to Bangalore to select a new leader.

10: 15 am: Reddy brothers to address media later today Reddy brothers, accused of running a parallel government in Bellary district, will address the media this afternoon, Kannada channels report.
9: 50 am: Karnataka BJP split on Yeddyurappa The BJP in Karnataka seems to have split vertically. Most ministers may give the meeting Yeddyurappa has called at 10.30 am a miss. (He is also talking of a 3.30 pm meeting). MLA CT Ravi is reportedly telling his party colleagues not to attend any meeting called by Yeddyurappa. The legislator told TV9 that reporters should not dig into a party's internal affairs.
9: 30 am: Yeddyurappa certain to go Yeddyurappa is certain to go, and the BJP is only struggling to zero in on a successor, reports ET. Front runners, Jagdish Shettar, KS Eshwarappa and Ananth Kumar, are engaged in marshalling support for their respective bids, according to the business paper. More on Economic Times

9: 00 am: BJP likely to decide Yeddyurappa's fate today
On Wednesday, Karnataka Lokayukta submitted its report on illegal mining in the state and indicted Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa. The BJP parliamentary committee will meet today to take a decision on his continuation as the CM.
Yeddyurappa, who reached New Delhi Wednesday evening went to the residence of party president Nitin Gadkari to attend the meeting, convened in the wake of report by Karnataka Lokayukta N Santosh Hegde which levelled charges against him.
The meeting, which lasted over three hours, was attended by senior BJP leaders Arun Jaitley, who is BJP party in-charge of Karnataka and former president Rajnath Singh.

BJP hunts for Yeddyurappa's successor

2011-07-26T05:36:00.000-07:00

With BSY set to go, BJP hunts for successor

New Delhi: The days in power appear to be numbered for BJP’s only chief minister in the South, BS Yeddyurappa in Karnataka.

With him being indicted in the report of Karnataka Lokayukta on illegal mining, though so far unofficially, Yeddyurappa is believed to have made up his mind to go down without fighting this time if the party asks him to step down.

The party’s central leadership is also said to have made it clear that it would be untenable for Yeddyurappa to continue as the Chief Minister any longer if the probe report, which Lokayukta Santosh Hegde will officially submit at 12 noon tomorrow, officially names him in the scam.

At a press conference with his Cabinet colleagues yesterday, Yeddyurappa had said that he would quit if found guilty of involvement in the scam.
He however today hit back at the Opposition saying it is Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram who should first quit on the 2G scam issue.

"Perhaps it's the Prime Minister and Home Minister who should quit first after what (A) Raja (former telecom minister) directly disclosed," the embattled chief minister told reporters. "They don't have moral right to continue in office".

He also charged the Congress with harping on the "Karnataka issue" to cover up "Central government scams".

Yeddyurappa, meanwhile, is also believed to have suggested to the central leadership to dissolve the state Assembly and go in for mid-term polls. However, the party is said to be having a different view on that.

Yeddyurappa had returned to Bangalore only yesterday from a vacation to Mauritius. It was during his holiday that the Lokayukta's report on the mining scam got leaked and indicted him.
Hegde had later acknowledged that Yeddyurappa was named in the report.

The BJP central leadership is also believed to have started the hunt for a successor. Among the names doing the rounds as possible replacements of Yeddyurappa include Rural Development Minister Jagdish Shettar, state minister Suresh Kumar and Higher Education Minister VS Acharya, party general secretary Ananth Kumar and state BJP chief KS Eshwarappa.

Sources said Yeddyurappa’s views will most likely be taken into account before picking a successor.

While Shettar is a Lingayat leader, he might lose out on the race as he is seen to have played an important role in the oust-Yeddy campaign. Ananth Kumar too has been pitching for Yeddy’s head and also has no backing of state MLAs.

Suresh Kumar, on the other hand, is close to the RSS and might stand a chance. Eshwarappa also has his foot in the door as he belongs to the backward Kuruba caste.

VS Acharya, a Brahmin, known as close confidant of Yeddyurappa is also a hot contender.

Mani Shankar Aiyar says join the Congress as 'circus', to achieve something

2011-07-26T05:34:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar has said to be a part of this party, one has to be a part of the circus that goes on at the Congress committee office

Talking to media persons here on Sunday, Aiyar said: "We all are there and a kind of fair is held at the 24, Akbar road and if you want to be a part of the Congress, then you will have to join that circus, then only you can be a part of it. Sometime you achieve success and sometime you may fail but you always keep faith that one or the other day, you will definitely achieve something."
Aiyar said unlike other parties, which are based on caste, position, state, language or society, Congress has people who hold different viewpoints and live harmoniously with faith in variety.

"This is a party where people of different opinion can live harmoniously but from that, there is one base point on which they always stand and it is that we have faith in variety and we celebrate variety. We feel very happy if we have various varieties of people between us and this is a truth about our party other parties are formed based either on caste, position, state, language or society. But Congress is one party, which is the mirror of the country," said Aiyar.
Talking about the new economic policies, Aiyar said the pattern of economic policies adopted by the government has resulted in 8 percent growth of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 0.8 percent growth of poverty.

"The Congress party has wrestled with the question of the new economic policy in such a manner that those who have serious reservations about it, people like me, are marginalized. The party as a whole is behind Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. I don't know what the question you are asking is? The fact of the matter is that what were concerns of the Congress party from the days of Mahatma Gandhi onwards continue to be for 80 percent of our people, the concerns today. This pattern of economic growth that we have adopted has resulted in 8 percent growth of GDP and 0.8 percent growth of poverty," said Aiyar.
Aiyar said the economic growth pattern has resulted in country's position to remain at 134 from the last 17 years in United Nations Human Development Index.
"This economic growth pattern has resulted in India's position on the UN Human Development Index which was 134 in 1994, 17 years later, being in 2011, exactly there 134," he added.
Source: ANI

Raja blames media after flip-flop

2011-07-26T05:31:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: A day after he dragged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram into the 2G spectrum scam, former communications minister A Raja on Tuesday clarified that he did not intend to frame anyone and the media had misrepresented his statements.

"Main kisi ko phasana nahi chahta tha (I had no intention of framing anyone)," Raja's lawyer said on his behalf when the names of Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram were taken in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special court presided over by Judge OP Saini.
He also said Raja's statement was misrepresented by the media. The counsel added that Chidambaram should come to the court as a witness. "The home minister should come in the court from either of the side and be a witness in the case. When all the decisions were known to the home minister, then he should appear as a witness in the case," he said.
Raja's lawyer Sushil Kumar had on Monday said the 2G spectrum transactions were approved by Chidambaram, who was then finance minister, in the presence of the prime minister. The comment was criticised by the Congress, which said it cannot rely on the comments of an accused. Raja's DMK party had also distanced itself from this comment.