tribuneindia...Spotlight

			Saturday, February 6, 1999
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Gujarat report presented to PM
NEW DELHI, Feb 5 (UNI) — Chairman of the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Tahir Mahmood met Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee and presented him the final and comprehensive report on Gujarat events, besides its findings on recent incidents in Orissa and Karnataka. He also presented the annual report of the commission to the Prime Minister. The two also discussed the issue of religious conversions and the working of the commission.

11 rebels killed
COLOMBO, Feb 5 (PTI) — At least 11 LTTE militants were killed and five others, including two soldiers, wounded in clashes with security forces in Sri Lanka's northern Vanni regions yesterday, a defence statement said there today. The militants were killed near northern Mankulam town, Karampaddamuippu and Nedunkerni areas, and Mankulam.

Statue missing
VIJAYAWADA, Feb 5 (UNI) — A statue of "Gunadala Mary Matha", kept in a glass case on the ground floor of the busy Vijayawada railway station here, has been found missing. The statue was installed 10 years ago. Bishop of Vijayawada diocese rev Maramapudi Joji has written to President K.R. Narayanan, Prime Minister A.B. Vajpayee and Home Minister L.K. Advani seeking their intervention in this regard. He said the removal of the statue had hurt the sentiments of the Christian community.

Muslim separatists
BEIJING, Feb 5 (Reuters) — China has executed two Muslim separatists for masterminding a spate of killings and riots that rocked the restive border province of Xinjiang in 1997, local officials said today. Yibulayin Simayi and Abudureyimu Aisha were executed on January 28 after a public sentencing by the Yili prefecture intermediate people's court. Both were members of the ethnic Uighur minority and had a history of violent struggle against the authorities in north-western Xinjiang.

Cong poll
NEW DELHI, Feb 5 (PTI) — The Congress today announced that organisational elections, including for the post of party President, will be completed by this August end. Party spokesman Ajit Jogi told reporters here that the deadline for enrolment of new members was May 31. A detailed poll schedule is being chalked out by the chairman of the party's Central Election Authority Ram Niwas Mirdha and will be announced later.

Leader shot
MULTAN, Feb 5 (AFP) — Gunmen shot dead a leader of the Sunni Muslim extremist Siaph-i-Sahaba Pakistan (SSP) party and seriously injured another religious activist in two separate attacks, the police said today. Hafiz Zulfikar Ali, SSP president in Khanewal, was ambushed late yesterday while hours later another Sunni religious figure was shot and critically wounded in Shujabad. The police said the shootings in the two Punjab towns were linked to sectarian unrest.

PMO denial
NEW DELHI, Feb 5 (PTI) — The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) today denied reports that Atal Behari Vajpayee's special aircraft was delayed for three hours on Wednesday when he went to Lucknow to launch the inaugural flight between that city and Sharjah. A PMO statement said "there is absolutely no truth" in the reports in a section of the press that the VIP flight "took off after a three-hour delay caused by the go-slow strike called by air traffic controllers".

Judges appointed
NEW DELHI, Feb 5 (PTI) — The President, Mr K.R Narayanan, today appointed four judges to the Punjab and Haryana Court. The four judges are Mr Jagdish Singh Khehar, Mr Anand Swarup, Mr Vigyan Mohan Jain and Mr Amar Dutt.