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Centre’s ‘mild’ reaction on Saddam verdict irks Left
Cong on course correction
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Beleaguered CM looks up to God Bangalore, November 6 Beleaguered Karnataka Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy is now looking for divine intervention to ward off “evil forces”, if a three-day “maharudra homa”, which concluded at Sri Sharada Peetam at Sringeri last evening, is any indication.
Cooperation conference on Afghanistan
Deal with Maoists in sight
Protect Bihari workers in Assam: Lalu
ULFA bomber shot dead
SC says no to pleas on SEZs
Beijing delegation to arrive today
Musharraf ‘desperate’ for good ties with India Children’s commission soon
PIL on Manmohan’s
RS membership rejected
Life term for Dawood gang sharp shooter
IITian commits suicide
Indo-Saudi pact on education
Indira Goswami pens poems
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Centre’s ‘mild’ reaction on Saddam verdict irks Left
New Delhi, November 6 The government “has been very mild in its initial reaction. It must now come out with an outright rejection of the tribunal’s verdict and demand that the death sentence be cancelled,” said the CPI in a statement. CPM polit bureau in its stand on the issue said, “the UPA Government should categorically condemn this judicial travesty. It must actively intervene to get this sentence rescinded.” Asking its state units to organise protests against the sentence, it said the US "occupation army" set up the "so-called" tribunal, which awarded the death sentence after a "charade of a trial". Even independent observers like a former US Attorney General have called this exercise as "a farce of a trial", the CPI said, adding that the verdict amounted to "judicial assassination under the shadow of army occupation and a puppet government". The CPI said "it can only further divide and break up the Iraqi people and the nation and unleash a civil conflict with a fallout in the entire West Asia". CPM said the sentence was “nothing but a totally rigged verdict delivered after a farcical trial.” The defense lawyers representing Saddam Hussain were murdered and the Chief Judge was changed twice in the course of the trial. The British and US governments should realise that if executed, this sentence will be seen only as a ‘Judicial Assassination’ and they will be held responsible for the consequences, it added.
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Cong on course correction New Delhi, November 6 Although the Congress has always enjoyed close fraternal relations with Iraq’s Baath Party, it was careful not to outrightly condemn the verdict. At the same time, it questioned the credibility of the legal trial which ultimately culminated in the award of the death sentence to Saddam Hussein, but without openly criticising the US for manipulating the case. Treading a cautious path, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi today
said:” We have noted with satisfaction that that there is an automatic appeal/review procedure for death sentences. As far as the credibility of a due process is concerned, it will to some extent remain a question in the context of the origin and creation of these courts.” Congress leaders admitted that the party had opted for this “middle-of-the road line”. Having come under strong attack from its political opponents and allies for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s increasing pro-US tilt, the Congress was unable to overlook its domestic compulsions when it came out with its well-considered formulation on Saddam. The Congress has been in the firing line of the Muslims after it voted with the US against Iraq and Congress strategists felt it should go on a course correction by not taking an overtly “pro-US position”. Faced with four state Assembly
elections, including the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh, this came as a timely opportunity for the Congress to re-establish its credentials as a “pro-minorities” party. Mr Singhvi was quick to deny any suggestion that India and the Congress were towing the US line. On the contrary, he said, if there was any question of pressure, it would be belied “by the tone and tenor of what I have just said.”
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We should've crossed LoC, say former commanders
Girza Shankar Kaura
New Delhi, November 6 Lieut-Gen Mohinder Puri (retd), then General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 8th Mountain Division, and Air Marshal Narayan Menon (retd), then Air Officer Commanding of Jammu and Kashmir, have made claims in separate articles on the Kargil conflict in the forthcoming issue of Indian Defence Review, that the NDA government’s decision led to “strategic and tactical losses” besides operational problems for the Army and “considerable problems” for the IAF. “Tactically, by not crossing the LoC, we closed our options of conflict termination in an earlier time frame and perhaps lost the opportunity to take a large number of prisoners who would have got entrapped by our encirclement”, said General Puri. “Given that the known intruded area was about 140 km along the LoC with depths varying between 1 and 8 km, the constraint of not crossing the LoC posed considerable problems, the most severe being the restrictions on attack profiles of fighter aircraft”, he said in his article, the story about which was run by a TV news channel. The articles clearly point out that the NDA was under considerable US pressure to ensure the conflict did not escalate and with the disclosure now, would need to provide a convincing explanation as to why it was not in favour of allowing armed forces to cross the LoC in Kargil. General Malik and Air Chief Marshal Tipnis, who reportedly also have had widely publicised differences with respect to operational details, would have also been party to the decision and most importantly had a hand in
formulating an alternative strategy. Besides, the then Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes, would also have had a major say in taking the decision to not to allow the Armed Forces to cross the LoC. Incidentally, the new Kargil revelations have come after the controversial memoir written by Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf claiming that Pakistan won the Kargil conflict and that India suffered incalculable losses. The new Kargil revelations will only abet the cause of those who have a vested interest in potraying the conflict as a defeat for India. The new Kargil revelations also add credence to the widely catalogued fact that New Delhi’s so-called reluctance to embark on a hot pursuit policy was a direct outcome of the diplomatic pressure the US brought to bear upon it. After the NDA government took the decision, there was strong resentment particularly within the Army as it saw a major opportunity being missed to not only alter the LoC but also inflict major losses on the Pakistan Army. This, specially, as the Indian Army had suffered major losses initially while trying to reach the Kargil heights on which the Pakistanis were sitting comfortably keeping a close on the Indian forces movements. This resentment was also reportedly conveyed to the government but due to the immence US pressure it was ignored for “greater” Indian gains. The NDA’s decision against crossing the LoC was then also be seen as the acceptance of the ceasefire line as the de facto international border, a fact that is in conflict with the BJP’s stated position on the issue.
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Beleaguered CM looks up to God Bangalore, November 6 The Chief Minister already stands accused of taking Rs 150 crore as bribe from owners of mines in Bellary, besides purchasing property worth crores of rupees after taking over the reins of the state. His relatives have also been accused of indulging in irregularities while acquiring properties in and around Bangalore. Mr Kumaraswamy had to face embarrassment following the involvement of his college-going son Nikhil and his friends in vandalism at a restaurant. Nikhil was beaten up allegedly by the staff of the restaurant. The Chief Minister had travelled between Sringeri and Bangalore by helicopter during the past three days to conduct the “homa”, which is performed for the well-being of one’s family and to get rid of difficulties. Sources said the “homa” was organised after predictions by astrologers that there was a threat to the Chief Minister’s chair between November 4 and the first week of December. Mr Kumaraswamy was accompanied by his immediate family, including wife Anita and son Nikhil, besides his father H.D. Deve Gowda and mother Chennamma. The “homa” ended with a “purnaahuti” by 46 priests. Bangalore-based priest Subramanya Bhat said through the “homa” Lord Shiva is evoked to get rid of difficulties.
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Cooperation conference on Afghanistan New Delhi, November 6 India is hosting the conference. RECC was envisaged to bring together all important players in the post-war reconstruction of Afghanistan on to a single platform. The major players have been the G8 countries, neighbouring countries, and the other important donors to the Afghanistan Reconstruction Programme, as well as major international organisations. The first such conference was held in Kabul on December 4 and 5 last year. It was hosted then by the UK and Afghanistan. Eleven neighbouring countries and regional countries had participated in the conference besides representatives of the G8 countries and international organisations. At the end of the Kabul Conference a declaration was adopted to increase the stake of the regional countries in the prosperity of Afghanistan. That declaration incorporated ten areas that were identified as potential areas of cooperation, including the representatives of three technical working groups.
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New Delhi, November 6 A sense of the highly sensitive and politically very important negotiations between the Girija Prasad Koirala government and the Maoists is understood to have been given today by visiting Nepalese Deputy Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli to the Indian leadership. Mr Oli, who is also Foreign Minister, held delegation- level talks with External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and called on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. It is understand the Maoists have proposed to take the ongoing peace talks to the logical conclusion by November 9. This is because the Maoists want to finalise all issues before Chairman Prachanda addresses a public meeting in Kathmandu at the open air theatre on November 10. The CPN-UML general secretary, Mr Madhav Kumar Nepal, went on record to say at a party function in Kathmandu on November 4 that a major breakthrough in the ongoing peace talks between the ruling alliance and the CPN (Maoists) had come about. Mr Madhav Nepal was quoted by Channel Nepal TV yesterday as saying that the eight parties had struck an agreement regarding arms management, monarchy and election process. Monarchy and arms management were the stumbling blocks that led to indefinite postponement of the summit- level talks between the two sides last month. However, Mr Nepal expressed confidence that the next round of talks would be decisive. He said that since the other seven parties had already agreed to resolve the issue of monarchy through a referendum, the Nepali Congress should also join the bandwagon. Apart from discussing the peace talks, Mr Oli and Mr Mukherjee conducted a comprehensive review of bilateral relations during their hour-long talks. They reviewed, in particular, implementation of the economic package which was announced after Prime Minister Koirala’s visit in June this year. Necessary modalities will now be worked out on an expeditious basis to operationalise the credit lines of USD 100 million granted by India to Nepal. The two sides also expressed their commitment to continue the review process for a renewal of the trade treaty which is due in March, 2007. Discussions were also held on the construction of transmission lines and export of power from India to Nepal. Mr Oli extended an invitation to Mr Pranab Mukherjee to visit Nepal and also extended on behalf of Prime Minister Koirala a similar invitation to the Prime Minister of India.
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Protect Bihari workers in Assam: Lalu
Patna, November 6 ULFA allegedly triggered off two bombs simultaneously on Sunday in the busy commercial area of Fancy Bazaar located in the heart of the state capital and another on the outskirts of the city at Noonmati near the IOC refinery and Oil India Ltd installations. It killed 13 people and injured 50 others, including several children. There have been a series of attacks by suspected ULFA militants in different parts of Assam claiming over 20 lives and injuring many, ever since the peace talks between the Centre and the extremist outfit failed last month. Mr Yadav called up the Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi demanding protection for Biharis living in Assam. Over 1 lakh Biharis reportedly live in Guwahati alone. Mr Yadav said he would also take up this issue with the Union Home Minister to provide additional security forces for Assam to effectively handle the situation. Sources in the Assam Government said the security forces had already launched a massive man hunt to nab the culprits. It was also learnt that the Centre had held a high-level meeting in Delhi today to discuss the security situation in Assam. The Union Home Secretary Mr V.K. Duggal spoke to Assam Chief Secretary S. Kabilan and took stock of the situation. The unified command comprising the Army, para-military forces and the state police also held a meeting in Guwahati today in the wake of the blasts.
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ULFA bomber shot dead
Guwahati, November 6 A police spokesman said a four-member team of rebels belonging to the ULFA challenged a security team near Pathar Kuwari, one of the two locations of Sunday night's blast, on the outskirts of Guwahati. "There were four ULFA rebels taking shelter in a farmhouse and when we reached the spot they challenged us with grenades. We retaliated and the encounter lasted for more than 30 minutes," Rajen Singh, deputy police chief of Guwahati city, said. "One of the ULFA militants was killed while the other three managed to escape. We believe the dead rebel to be one of the bombers involved in Sunday night's explosions," he told IANS. The joint police and paramilitary team recovered 12 grenades and some explosives from the dead militant. Police in two separate raids arrested 12 ULFA supporters from Guwahati city on Monday. "We are interrogating these people," the police official said. Two powerful explosions rocked Guwahati one after the other on Sunday
night, one at the crowded Fancy Bazaar area and another at Pathar Kuwari on the outskirts of the city. Fourteen persons were killed and 38 wounded in the two blasts. The ULFA is yet to own up the attacks. The Unified Command structure, involving the Army, police, paramilitary and civil authorities, in a meeting in Guwahati on Monday decided to intensify its offensive against the ULFA.
— PTI
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SC says no to pleas on SEZs
New Delhi, November 6 A Bench of Mr Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Mr Justice D.K. Jain said if the policy of the government and Parliament’s legislative powers were challenged through PILs, the court would not like to intervene in it. The court, however, told Mr Ashutosh Shirivastava, who filed the PIL as petitioner-in-person, that if some affected farmer came to the court, his plea could be considered, depending upon the area where the SEZ was being created. Following this, the petitioner sought to withdraw the petition and the court declared it as “dismissed as withdrawn”. Mr Shirivastava sought intervention of the court on the grounds that farmers were being intimidated to part with their land to hand it over to business houses. The court said there was remedy under law available to the affected farmers if this was the case, but no PIL would be entertained on the issue.
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Beijing delegation to arrive today
New Delhi, November 6 The meeting assumes significance as the Manmohan Singh government had rejected the Chinese FDI in Vizhinjam Deep Water International Transhipment Terminal in Kerala and the construction of new container terminals in Chennai and Mumbai. CPM politburo member Sitaram Yechury, who recently visited Beijing, criticised the country-specific list of concern that clubbed China along with Pakistan, North Korea, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh. It called for screening all investments from these places, including those island countries that are tax haven, not only at the time of approval, but also “during the entire period of their operation.” Stung by criticism, the UPA government, in its effort to send a positive signal before the arrival of the Chinese President, is learnt to have decided to adopt sector-specific rather than country-specifc security concern. The members of the delegation from the International Department of Communist Party of China are coming at the invitation of the Communist Party of India. The delegation will have talks with the CPI leadership and also the CPM and Congress leadership. It will also interact with Delhi University teachers. It will also travel to Kerala and had talks with the state Chief Minister.
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Musharraf ‘desperate’ for good ties with India
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf is desperate to have good relations with India, not because he is genuinely interested in peace with its neighbour, but to preserve his own military regime, says a top legal expert of that country. "Musharraf is desperate to have good relations with India because he wants the stability of his regime and not because he is interested in peace. India and Pakistan are proceeding in a direction which can't be called friendly," Farooq Hassan, who was also an adviser to four former Pakistan prime ministers, told IANS in an interview. "India rightly feels aggrieved by actions and tragedies emanating from Pakistan. Pakistan, on the other hand, articulates the needs of the regime in power and doesn't contemplate a wider visionary goal of peace in the region," Hassan replied when asked what he thought of New Delhi's contention that Islamabad was behind terrorist incidents in India. A senior advocate at Pakistan's Supreme Court who has served as adviser to former prime ministers Nawaz Sharif, Benazir Bhutto, Moin Qureshi and Muhammad Khan Junejo, Hassan is an ardent advocate of democracy and has spoken out against the "military-mullah alliance" in his country. "Unless there is a genuine metamorphosis of the military rule towards civilian rule in Pakistan, I am not optimistic about durable peace in the region," he said, amplifying his pet theory that under a military dispensation in Islamabad, there can't be a fundamental rapprochement between the two countries.
— IANS
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Children’s commission soon New Delhi, November 6 The government is in the process of finalising the names of the chairperson and members of the proposed commission and according to the Minister of Women and Child Development, Ms Renuka Chowdhary, the commission is likely to be in place within a couple of months. The commission, which is to oversee proper enforcement of children’s rights and effective implementation of laws and government programmes relating to children, has been pending since long. The proposal was first considered by the Parliamentary Standing Committee attached to the Human Resource Development Ministry in 1998. The committee approved the proposal in principle, and based on its recommendations, a draft note was prepared and circulated to all state governments, the UT Administration, ministries and the departments concerned of the Central Government for comments and suggestions. After the government notified the Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act 2005 in January 2006, the setting up of the statutory body became concrete.
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PIL on Manmohan’s
RS membership rejected
New Delhi, November 6 The PIL that came up for hearing before a Bench of Chief Justice Y.K Sabharwal and Mr Justice C.K Thakker, was filed by former Uttar Pradesh MLC R.S Sanwal. He had raised a technical ground under Article 183(1) to question continuation of the membership of Dr Manmohan Singh and some other MPs and had also challenged his continuing to hold the office of Prime Minister in that eventuality. According to the PIL, Dr Manmohan Singh’s membership should have ended on April 2 under the rule framed under Article 183(1) to regulate biennial elections for one-third seats of the Upper House by clubbing together a particular numbers’ retirement to achieve that figure. Sanwal’s counsel R.D Upadhya sought a direction to the President, to enforce the rule framed under Article 183(1) of the Constitution.
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Life term for Dawood gang sharp shooter
Mumbai, November 6 Additional Session Judge S P Davare found Anil Ramchandra Parab (45) guilty in a shootout case inside the Andheri Metropolitan Magistrate court.The judge also imposed a fine of Rs 7,000 and in case of default, further nine months’ simple imprisonment. The prosecution case was that the accused had entered the Andheri Metropolitan Magistrate court on June 6, 1984, and opened fire on a key witness in a murder case, Hansraj Shah, who was standing in the witness box. Shah and two other police officials were injured in the firing.
— UNI
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IITian commits suicide
Kanpur, November 6 The body of Abhilash J.J. was found at the terrace of a hostel in the IIT campus this morning, the police said. Some cyanide and a suicide note, which said he was under depression, was recovered from his body, they said. Abhilash had recently visited Germany as part of his PhD programme and his viva voce was scheduled for November 9.
— PTI
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Indo-Saudi pact on education
New Delhi, November 6 A Memorandum of Scientific and Educational Cooperation Arrangement was inked by Human Resources Development Minister, Arjun Singh and Saudi Arabian Minister of Higher Education Khalid Bin Mohd Al-Angari. Mr Singh had visited Saudi Arabia in June this year and held wide-ranging discussions with leaders there on strengthening the cooperation in the field of education between the two countries as a part of the Delhi Declaration made during the visit of the King of Saudi Arabia to India.
— TNS
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Indira Goswami pens poems
New Delhi, November 6 "I'm not a poet. These poems were written in my leisure time," said Goswami at the release of "Pain And Flesh" here Sunday evening. The poems, which include one on Pakistan, "are a footnote to my fiction. But often the poems transcend this and form a poetic world in itself," she said after the book was released in the Capital by noted artist Jatin
Das. — IANS
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