The Tribune...Chandigarh

C H A N D I G A R H

Wednesday, July 8, 1998

weather n spotlight
today's calendar

Security around court
complex beefed up
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The police today urged the district administration to impose Section 144, Cr P.C., banning carrying of arms within a radius of 100 metres of the judicial complex in Sector 17, taking a serious view of the shootout incident in the district courts
yesterday...

Lok Adalats settle
68.86 lakh cases
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — About 68.86 lakh cases were settled through 17,633 Lok Adalats held in different parts of the country...

Campus Beat

Vacant seats in PEC: No solution in sight
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The problem of seats falling vacant in various streams of Punjab Engineering College is likely to persist even in the coming session as no practical solution has emerged...

Crime File

Vacant seats in PEC: No solution in sight
Tribune News Service
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The problem of seats falling vacant in various streams of Punjab Engineering College is likely to persist even in the coming session as no practical solution has emerged.
Nearly 10 per cent seats have been falling vacant during mid-session for the past several years. As many as 39 seats had fallen vacant in the previous batch.
As counselling of various state institutes are held after the PEC admission, students placed below on the merit list join better courses in other institutions. As there is no provision for entry after the first semester, the seats remain vacant during the completion of the entire course.
The matter gains importance as thousands of candidates appear every year and scores on the waiting list are thereby denied a chance.
Sources in the engineering college pointed out that at meeting of the faculty of engineering and technology it was suggested that the first year course in chemical engineering and various streams of engineering should be made common. The engineering college has already introduced this scheme. This could allow students of chemical engineering college to join engineering courses in case vacancies arise.
Dr D.K. Vohra, from the Department of Chemical Engineering, said it was difficult to have a common course in first year. In chemical engineering students start specialised courses from the first semester itself, he added.
Another suggestion was to admit 10 per cent extra students at the very beginning of the session. This had come up during a discussion with the Home Secretary. However, the problem could be in deciding the faculty to which they could be attached, sources said.
The first counselling for the coming session will begin on July 20.

Lok Adalats settle 68.86 lakh cases
Tribune News Service
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — About 68.86 lakh cases were settled through 17,633 Lok Adalats held in different parts of the country. Compensation amounting to Rs 1160.07 crore was awarded in about 3,49,710 motor vehicle accident claim cases. According to the Annual Report of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Company Affairs for 1997-98, "appropriate measures are being taken to ensure that a large number of cases pending in the courts are settled through Lok Adalats by conciliatory means."

The report says about 23.88 lakh persons were benefited through court-oriented legal aid programmes provided by the State Legal Aid and Advice Boards as well as State Legal Services Authorities. Of them 3.73 lakh persons belonged to the Scheduled Castes and 2.14 lakh to the Scheduled Tribes. Among the beneficiaries 2,40,485 were women and 8,578 children — up to end of last year.
The 14th Law Commission, during the period under report, submitted the 155th Report on "Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance Act, 1985 (Act No 61 of 1985); and the 156th Report on Indian Penal Code. The 15th Law Commission which was constituted on September 1,1997, has issued (i) "Working Paper on amendments to the All India Council for Technical Education Act, 1987 (Act No 52 of 1987)", and (ii) "Questionnaire on the proposed amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908" with a view to eliciting views and suggestions of various persons and organisations concerned, including government agencies on these subjects. The commission also submitted its 157th Report on "Section 52: Transfer of Property Act and its amendments."
On electoral reforms, the annual report says strengthening of the provisions of the electoral laws so as to purify and strengthen the electoral process

continued to be a priority area for the government. With a view to making more comprehensive reforms, the government discussed with political parties a set of 24 additional proposals on electoral reforms. Further, to check criminalisation of politics, certain proposals for strenghtening Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 were also formulated.
During the period, January 1, 1997 to March 31, 1998, 52 fresh appointments of Judges/Additional Judges were made, and in addition 38 Additional Judges were appointed as permanent Judges. As against the authorised strength of 26 Judges in the Supreme Court (including the Chief Justice), 22 Judges were in position as on March 31, 1998.
The report says the first National Judicial Pay Commission set up under the chairmanship of Mr Justice K.J. Shetty, a retired Judge of the Supreme Court, is in the midst of its work. Its terms of reference include examination and recommendations in respect of salary, allowance and other conditions of service of the members of subordinate judiciary of the entire country. It will submit its report to the state governments as the judicial officers are employees of the respective state governments.

Security around court complex beefed up
Tribune News Service
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The police today urged the district administration to impose Section 144, Cr P.C., banning carrying of arms within a radius of 100 metres of the judicial complex in Sector 17, taking a serious view of the shootout incident in the district courts yesterday.
Meanwhile, the security has been beefed up. To prevent the recurrence of such an incident, a letter has been written by the Superintendent of Police to the District Magistrate, urging him to impose prohibitory orders.
When contacted Mr Baldev Singh, Superintendent of Police, said that the process of issuance of prohibitory orders might take a day or two.
Meanwhile, special arrangements are being made by the police to ensure that no breach of the peace takes place in or around the courts on July 8 when one of the accused in the Manjit Singh murder case will be produced in the court on the expiry of his remand.
According to a plan, six 'nakas' will be laid on all the roads leading to the judicial complex where all vehicles proceeding towards the complex will be searched. Similarly, all entrants to the court complex will be frisked at the entry points where metal detectors will be placed.
Mr Baldev Singh said such an exercise would be a routine practice

whenever any accused in a sensitive case were to be produced in court.
The Inspector-General of Police, Mr R.P. Singh, expressing satisfaction over the present security set-up, said that though the situation was being reviewed, the police was not contemplating any special security bandobust in or around the judicial complex. He denied he had ever received a request from any judicial officer for making special security arrangements in the complex.
Describing the shootout as a "routine one", he said such incidents involving security men could not be prevented as "one never knows when someone will go berserk and start acting in an irresponsible manner as has been done by Punjab Police personnel".
Meanwhile, the local unit of the Samajwadi Janata Party has said that

Punjab Police personnel were responsible for yesterday's incident. "Whenever any such major incident takes place in Chandigarh, Punjab Policmen are always found involved," Mr Devinder Singh Babla, president of the party unit, said in a statement.
The Chandigarh Parents' Association also condemned the involvement of Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) and Punjab Police personnel in the incident.
The local unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party also criticised the role of the Chandigarh Police in the incident. Local policemen and commandos remained a silent spectator to the whole episode, Mr Mahavir Prasad, spokesman of the party, said in a statement.
He demanded a thorough enquiry into the incident besides urging the Administration to extend full security cover to the judicial officers.

Crime File: Three held for eve-teasing
Tribune News Service
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The police today arrested three persons — Bhushan Kumar, Ramu and Ramesh — on the charge of eve-teasing.
According to the police, the arrest followed a complaint by Ms Raj Kumari, a resident of Pipliwala town, that the trio had teased her.

Moped stolen: Ms Pushpa, a resident of Kishangarh village, in a complaint lodged with the police, alleged that her Luna (CH-01-P-816) had been stolen from her house. A case has been registered.

Campus Diary: Badal to attend
ABVP celebrations
Tribune News Service
CHANDIGARH, July 7 — The inaugural function of the golden jubilee celebrations of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) will be held at Panjab University on July 9.
This was said by Mr Arun Sood, state vice-president of the Punjab and Chandigarh unit of the ABVP, while addressing a press conference here today.
The state-level function at English auditorium will be attended among others by Mr Parkash Singh Badal, Chief Minister of Punjab, and Mr Govindacharya, All-India general secretary of the BJP and former zonal organising secretary of the ABVP, Mr Sood said. The national level function in Delhi will be presided over by the Prime Minister.
The inaugural function will be preceded by three bicycle rallies — from Ferozepore, Amritsar and Patiala and will converge at Chandigarh on July 8. A 44-member committee has been formed to coordinate year-long activities. The members of the committee include Justice Jatinder Veer Gupta, Mr Joginder Singh, a former Director of the CBI, and Milkha Singh, a former Olympian.
The ABVP will launch its website on Thursday. The organisation has undertaken to plant 5000 trees in Punjab in the coming year. There are also plans for planting at least 500 saplings in colleges and on the university campus in the city.
There are also plans to take out four rallies from different parts of the country, highlighting the power of students.

In North India, the rally will commence from Ladakh on November 19. All rallies will converge at the annual national conference in Mumbai on December 25.
The organisation has also proposals for 12 blood donation camps in the city during January 1999, besides conference of SAARC students in July 1999 in Delhi.
Play: A team of 24 students from the Department of Indian Theatre, Panjab University, is performing "King Oedipus" at Lal Bahadur Shastri Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, sources said.
The play is being staged as part of the week-long training programme on Indian Arts from July 1.
Appointed: The following have been appointed office-bearers of the Chandigarh unit of the NSUI: Convener of UT state girls — Jaspreet Kharbanda; vice president — Parminder Singh Toor; joint secretaries — Harvinder Pal Singh ‘Harry’ and Vipin Kaushal.