Friday, July 2, 1999
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Karamat turned down
Kargil plan HP seeks Rs 300-cr economic
package |
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Sonia invited to public debate on
Kargil NEW DELHI, July 1— The Bharatiya Janata Party today invited Congress President Sonia Gandhi to a public debate on Kargil and said its leaders were willing to have an open discussion on the issue.
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Arjun not to contest LS
poll EC to meet PM today
Delhi police chief takes over 121 HC vacancies to be filled soon Train timings revised NHRC seeks report on
rehabilitation
School teacher crushed to death Palam airport ‘coffin
junction’ |
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Karamat turned down Kargil plan NEW DELHI, July 1 — Eight months after the controversial resignation of the former Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan Gen Jehagir Karamat, reports emerging from Pakistan point to a major difference of opinion between him and the Pakistan Prime Minister Mr Nawaz Sharif over aggression in the Kargil region of Jammu and Kashmir. Highly placed government sources disclosed that although General Karamat had been accused of floating the idea of creation of a National Security Council, which would institutionalise the decision making in the country and which led to his resignation, it had also come to light that he had vehemently opposed the idea of intrusion into Kargil, which made him lose favour with the government. In an event which sent shock waves in Pakistan, Mr Nawaz Sharif replaced General Karamat, after his resignation, with Lt.-Gen. Pervez Musharraf, Corps Commander of the 1st Corps at Mangla. General Musharraf superceded Lt-Gen Ali Quli Khan Khattak, the brother-in-law of Mr Gohar Ayub Khan and Lt-Gen Khalid Nawaz to become the Chief of Army Staff, which also forced the other two officers to resign from the force. Worried about the state of affairs in Pakistan, specially after the nuclear blasts, General Karamat had pointed to the possibility of a complete collapse of the economy and for the same purpose had opposed the ‘Kargil plan’, which had been prepared and formalised by the Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). The former Chief of Army Staff of Pakistan, apparently saw through the plan as one which would be detrimental to that country’s interests internationally and had put his foot down on making any such misadventure into India. Sources disclosed the plan for intrusion into Kargil had apparently been conceived by the ISI in the middle of last year. After putting the logistics of the plan in place, the former ISI chief, Lt-Gen. Nasim Rana, brought the plan to the notice of General Karamat. Known for his professional integrity and patriotism, General Karamat apparently refused to pass the plan. This opposition to the plan pitted him directly against the highly powerful ISI and Pakistan’s democratically elected government. Apparently, the Pakistan government, according to reports, was always in the know of the plan for intrusion into Kargil and had also supported it. Although at the time of his resignation or his ‘sacking’ General Karamat was accused of trying to again involve the Army into democratic decision making, sources disclosed his comments during the Naval War College speech in Lahore had only precipitated matters between him and Mr Sharif. The main difference of opinion emerged as a result of his opposition to the ‘Kargil plan’ and soon an uneasy relationship developed between the two. Sources said, General Karamat, who was at presently doing a fellowship in the USA, had seen through the finality of the ‘Kargil plan’ as one which would not only be an expensive proposition but one which could turn the world against Pakistan, as has happened now. He was instead in favour of strengthening the economy, specially in the face of the sanctions which had been imposed on Pakistan as a result of the Nuclear tests it carried out in retaliation to those carried by India in May last. According to reports, possibly his opposition to the Kargil intrusion plan had prompted him to take such a bold step of publicly criticising the policies of the democratically elected government and that too just about three months before his retirement. His comments were distributed by the Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR), an agency controlled by the army, which also meant that his utterances were deliberate. With the Sharif government already facing criticism for being unable to control the domestic fallout of the sanctions, the comments of General Karamat created further problems for Mr Sharif. Besides calling for the creation of the National Security Council, General Karamat also said unlike countries with an economic potential, Pakistan could not afford the destabilising effects of polarisation, vendetta and insecurity driven expedient policies. General Karamat had
pointed out that the need of the hour was total focus on
the economy, external linkages with China, Iran,
Afghanistan, India and the USA, the internal situation
specially Sindh, the sectarian aspect and finally the
fears of smaller provinces. General Karamat had earlier
also voiced similar concerns and had called for policies
aimed at moderating the extremism and bridging the
sectarian divide, which apparently did not fall in Mr
Sharif’s plans for making Pakistan an Islamic state. |
HP seeks Rs 300-cr economic
package NEW DELHI, July 1 — Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee will lay the foundation stone of 2051 MW hydro-electric project in Kulu district before July 15. The Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister, Mr Prem Kumar Dhumal, who met the Prime Minister said today that a firm date would be fixed shortly. He said that 8,500 million units would be generated annually on completion of the three-stage project out of which Himachal would get 12 per cent free power in addition to 15 per cent share at generation cost. The state was expected to earn an annual revenue of Rs 400 crore from free power alone, he said, adding that the project was one of the biggest in the continent. He also requested the Prime Minister to sanction a special economic package of Rs 300 crore to the state for development works and to permit the imposition of a generation tax on hydel power projects set up in the State. Legislation to this effect had already been passed by the state in 1995 and had been pending with the Centre since then. Mr Dhumal requested the Centre to intervene on the issue relating to the 7.19 per cent share in the BBMB power and 12 per cent free power to Himachal in hydel projects. The Chief Minister also
requested that a uniform policy of compensation be
adopted in the country for the families of soldiers who
were laying down their lives in the Kargil battlefront. |
Elections on time, says EC CHENNAI, July 1 (UNI) — The Kargil issue is of national concern, but elections will be held on time and the 13th Lok Sabha would be constituted before October 21 as required under the Constitution, Election Commissioner G.V.G. Krishnamurthy asserted today. Addressing a press conference here, he expressed confidence that the whole nation would rise to the occasion and demonstrate to the world its faith in the democratic system. Mr Krishnamurthy likened the Kargil situation to an incident of fire in the kitchen, which a marriage party could not overlook. The people’s faith in the democratic system could not be shaken by the Pakistani-backed intruders, he said. Mr Krishnamurthy said the dates for elections in Jammu and Kashmir would be fixed, considering the developments in Kargil. On the deployment of paramilitary forces in various states to ensure peaceful conduct of the poll, Mr Krishnamurthy said since the forces would be required in the border areas they might not be available in sufficient numbers for the election purposes. The commission was considering suggestions on the use of surplus police force from some states and deployment of the forces from neighbouring states and the National Cadet Corps to ensure free and fair elections, he said. Expressing concern over the withdrawal of cases relating to electoral offences against some people, even without being pursued, he said it was also unfortunate that some ruling parties in the past had withdrawn criminal cases pending against prospective candidates on the eve of elections. It was not a healthy trend, he said, appealing to the political parties, especially the ruling parties, to refrain from such acts. He said the commission had recently instructed all state governments to vigorously pursue the electoral offence cases and directed them not to withdraw the cases without prior permission from the commission. Referring to the expenditure on account of elections, Mr Krishnamurthy said the 1996 general election had cost the exchequer Rs 517.29 crore and the 1998 elections Rs 663.68 crore as against the estimated cost of Rs 850 crore. The fall in the expenditure against the estimated cost in the last elections was mainly because of the drastic reduction in the number of non-serious candidates entering the fray. While 13,952 candidates were in the fray in the 1996 elections, the number was only 4750 in 1998, he added. He said the commission had estimated the expenditure for the coming election to be Rs 900 crore. He expressed concern over the 9 per cent fall in the turnout of voters in Tamil Nadu in the last Lok Sabha poll. While the national average was up by 4 per cent, the voter’s apathy in a democracy was dangerous and it was a matter of concern for the Election Commission, he said, stressing the need for enhancing the facilities for the backward classes, rural population and women to take part in the poll freely. Mr Krishnamurthy, who
reviewed the poll preparedness of the state with Chief
Secretary A.P. Muthusamy, Director-General of Police F.C.
Sharma, Home Secretary R. Poornalingam and Chief
Electoral Officer Naresh Gupta, said the law and order
situation in the state was satisfactory. |
Arjun not to contest LS poll BHOPAL, July 1 (UNI) — CWC member Arjun Singh announced today that he would not contest the coming Lok Sabha elections. ‘‘I will devote all my time and energy to realise our overriding objective to lead the Congress to a resounding victory under the leadership of Mrs Sonia Gandhi,’’ he said at a press conference here. Stating that the
Congress was spearheading the struggle against the
communal and divisive forces, the senior Congress leader
said the decisive battle would be fought in the coming
elections. |
EC to meet PM today NEW DELHI, July 1 (PTI) — The three-member Election Commission will meet Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee tomorrow to seek the government's perception on the conduct of the Lok Sabha poll in the light of the Kargil conflict. "The commission has decided to call on the Prime Minister of India on July 2 at 10 a.m. to understand from him the Government of India's perception of the current prevailing situation", a commission press note said today. Commission sources said the meeting with the Prime Minister had been fixed at the initiative of the three-member body. Chief Election Commissioner M.S. Gill and the other two Commissioners, Mr G.V.G. Krishnamurthy and Mr J.M.Lyngdoh, have convened a meeting with the six national parties on July 3 for a final pre-election discussion. The six national parties are the BJP, the Congress, the CPI, the CPM, the Janata Dal and the BSP. The press note said in
the final run up to the election programme formulation
the commission had called the Chief Secretary, the Home
Secretary, the Director-General of Police and the Chief
Electoral Officer of Jammu and Kashmir for a meeting on
July 5. It would also be attended by senior officials of
the Union Home Ministry. |
Tamil film sold in Japan for $ 50,000 CHENNAI, July 1 — Japan is going ooh la la over none other than Tamil cinema star Rajnikanth, going by the popularity of his song-and-dance thrillers. The new Tamil movie ‘Padayappa’, with Rajnikanth in the lead, has been sold to distributors in Japan for $ 50,000, the highest any Indian film has fetched for commercial release. “Padayappa,” this year’s Tamil mega-hit, is still running to packed theatres in Tamil Nadu and has reportedly made profits of over Rs 200 million. ‘Padayappa’s Japanese rights have been bought out by GV Films. This is the 10th film that GV Films will be selling to Japanese distributors. GV was the first to enter the Japanese market as early as in 1996 with ‘Indira’, directed by Suhasini Maniratnam. But it was the roaring success of ‘Muthu’, another film starring Rajnikanth, which opened the floodgates for Tamil films in Japan. ‘Muthu’, which was released on June 12 last year, is still running in Japanese theatres and has grossed more than $ 1.75 million, reportedly one of the highest for any foreign language film. As ‘Muthu’ continues to enthral Japanese audiences, many more producers and distributors have lined up their films to be released in Japan. GV Films had exported films worth $ 100,000. These films include hits like “Nayakan’, Talapathi’, Maunaragam’, ‘Anjali’, ‘Arunachalam’, ‘Basha’ and ‘Yajamanan’, many of them starring Rajnikanth. “There are a number of film festivals in Japan like the Fantastic Film Festival in Tokyo and the Indian film festival organised by the Indian Embassy based on the feedback these films receive at these film festivals, Japanese distributors approach us. If it isn’t produced by us we acquire the rights from other producers and act as a merchant exporter,” said G. Venkateswaran, managing director of G.V. Films. Each of these films is then promoted by the Japanese distributors for over six months before commercial release. “We only sell the rights to them. All other costs, including the cost of subtitling, are borne by the distributors. So it is a safe bet for us,” said Venkateswaran. With the costs of producing Japanese films becoming prohibitively expensive, Japanese distributors who have been banking on films from Hollywood and Hong Kong so far are now looking at other markets like India as well. “After China’s accession of Hong Kong the volumes have dropped significantly,” Venkateswaran said. Tamil producers are
hoping that the euphoria will last for at least a couple
of more years before they could start looking at new
markets like South Korea, China and Hong Kong. —
India Abroad News Service. |
Delhi police chief takes over NEW DELHI, July 1 — Newly appointed Commissioner of the Delhi Police, Mr Ajay Raj Sharma, assured the citizens of the Capital that policing would be strengthened and crime rate would be controlled soon. After taking over the charge of the Delhi police, Mr Sharma directed the police for proper registration of the crime cases. “If it is not done strict action would be taken against the personnel on duty”, he said. Promising the safety and security of the citizen, he said crime would be curbed in the Capital but it would take some time. “It will not become a paradise within a night”, Mr Sharma said. He said “I have never worked with the Delhi Police. I have joined it the first time. I have to study the crime situation of the Capital and other problems of the city”. While addressing a press conference after taking over charge from Mr V.N. Singh, Mr Sharma said the police is lacked the attitude of policing in all states. But a change would be seen in the Delhi Police very soon, he promised. Mr Sharma said whenever an incident takes place, it will be duty of the officer concerned to rush to the spot and make preliminary investigation. The police will try its level best to work out the case, he said. He directed the police personnel deployed at police stations and police posts to do proper registration of crime cases, arrest the criminals and make proper prosecution. Mr Sharma said the Delhi police would soon introduce a post box system which would act as an information counter for intelligence inputs about anti-social elements. The people can mail their grievances as well as any information they have about criminals to the proposed box number. The mail box will be opened by a gazetted officer and the complaint will be promptly responded to, he said. In addition to the post
box, the commissioner himself will be available to one
and all during specific hours probably between 11.30 to
1.30 p.m. He said he would be visiting police stations
and meeting his men, studying patterns of crime in Delhi
in the coming days. |
121 HC vacancies to be
filled soon NEW DELHI, July 1 — The Centre yesterday stated that it would fill up all 121 vacancies in various high courts across the country shortly. The process for expeditiously filling these vacancies, of which 78 are for permanent judges and 43 for additional judges, have already been set in motion, the Ministry of Law and Justice, said in an official release. Out of the total strength of 588 sanctioned posts of judges, there are 492 permanent judges and 96 additional judges, in addition, the government has created 30 more posts, including four of permanent judges and 24 additional judges. More than 31 lakh cases are pending in the high courts and the filling of the existing posts will go a long way in expediting the disposal of the cases. As for the Supreme
Court, there is only one vacancy at present out of 26
sanctioned post of judges, the release added. |
Sonia invited to public debate
on Kargil NEW DELHI, July 1— The Bharatiya Janata Party today invited Congress President Sonia Gandhi to a public debate on Kargil and said its leaders were willing to have an open discussion on the issue. Briefing mediapersons here today party General Secretary Narendra Modi said Mrs Gandhi could choose a suitable platform and venue for the aforesaid debate. Reacting to her recent statement to the press, Mr Modi said: “The BJP has no intention to shut up anyone on any issue. We wish to dispel such notions, especially in the mind of the Congress President.” Mr Modi drew media’s attention to the fact that the Congress had not cared to categorically condemn Pakistani intrusion into the Indian territory. Mr Modi said political debates should be avoided at a time when the country was facing such a crisis. “At a time when soldiers are shedding their blood, it is not appropriate to raise issues to gain political scores,” he said. The BJP General Secretary said by reminding the people of the 1962 war, Mrs Gandhi and her party were reviving memories of a debacle best forgotten. “This can be demoralising for our force. We would like the Congress President and her advisers to apprise themselves of facts on the 1962 war before making comparisons”. Mr Modi said the present situation was a contrast to the one that prevailed during the 1962 war. “At that time, India was losing territory everyday whereas in the ongoing conflict, our soldiers are capturing posts everyday. This time we have succeeded in limiting the intrusion to Kargil. In 1962, the government of the day was confused in its response. On the other hand, the government today is clear in its thinking and has an action-oriented approach”. The party General Secretary pointed out that unlike then, international opinion had favoured India’s stand on the Kargil issue. He said the Congress allegation that a bilateral issue had been internationalised was illogical and did not carry any conviction. “It is Pakistan which tried to internationalise the issue but did not get any support from the international community.” Replying to a question
on the Pakistan visit of Mr Vivek Katju, Joint Secretary
In charge of Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan, he said,
“It is a part of his duty.” |
Train timings revised NEW DELHI, July 1 — The timings of 19 trains, including Chandigarh Shatabdi and Amritsar Swarna Shatabdi, have been revised by the Northern Railways. Chandigarh Shatabdi (2011) will leave New Delhi at 7.35 a.m. instead of 7.30 a.m. The train would arrive in Chandigarh at 10.45 a.m. instead of 10.35 a.m. New Delhi-Amritsar Swarna Shatabdi (2029, 2031) will leave New Delhi at 7.20 a.m. instead of 6.30 a.m. and reach Amritsar at 1 p.m. instead of 11.55 a.m. Shan-e-Punjab Express (2497) will leave New Delhi at 6 a.m. instead of 6.50 a.m. and reach Amritsar at 1.50 p.m. as against 2 p.m. Sangam Express (4164) will leave Meerut City at 6.45 p.m. instead of 7.10 p.m. Pooja Express (2404) will leave Jammu Tawi at 6.05 p.m. instead of 6.35 p.m. and reach Delhi at 4.20 a.m. instead of 4.35 a.m. Himalayan Queen (4095) will leave New Delhi at 6.10 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. and reach Kalka at 11.30 a.m. instead of 11.15 a.m. Unchahar Express (4517)
will leave New Delhi at 6.30 a.m. as against 6.10 a.m.
and reach Ambala at 10.40 a.m. instead of 10.35 a.m. |
Project Sea Bird NEW DELHI, July 1 — The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has directed the Chief Secretary, Karnataka, and the Union Defence Secretary to furnish a status report on the execution of the rehabilitation and resettlement schemes for people displaced due to Project Sea Bird of the Indian Navy. The matter was brought to the notice of the commission by a former Union Minister, Mrs Margaret Alva, who said that people ousted from their homes in various parts of North Karnataka coast had been denied basic rights to shelter and security. The commission requested its Director-General, Mr D.R. Karthikeyan, to visit the location for a thorough inspection of the rehabilitation schemes. In his report, Mr Karthikeyan pointed out that the state government’s rehabilitation plan for the people ousted from their lands was not implemented. With the result, these families were evacuated without proper rehabilitation and resettlement. A press note issued by the commission said that though two commissions appointed by the Karnataka High Court had visited the area, the Commission’s intervention had been sought. The commission has asked
the Karnataka Chief Secretary and the Union Defence
Secretary to immediately release the funds for
compensation. The commission has recommended that the
Revenue Commissioner, Karnataka, and the Additional
Secretary, In charge of project Sea Bird in the Ministry
of Defence visit the affected areas and ensure immediate
execution of all rehabilitation schemes. |
Former Union Minister dead LUCKNOW, July 1 (PTI) —Former Union Minister and senior Congress leader Kedar Nath Singh, died here late last night after protracted illness, family sources said. He was 70 and is survived by three sons, including Vinod Singh, who is a UPCC Secretary. He was a Minister of State in the Indira Gandhi’s Ministry. Singh, a former
all-India Congress Committee General Secretary, was
member of Parliament for two terms in 1971 and 1984. He
was also a member of the Rajya Sabha for one term from
1989. |
School teacher crushed to death NEW DELHI, July 1 (PTI) — In a bizzare incident, a 40-year-old woman school teacher was crushed to death and four persons injured when a man “pretending to be mentally disturbed” forcibly got into a truck and allegedly mowed down some bystanders in South Delhi early today, police sources said. The incident occurred around 6 a.m. when the man, Fazil, gave a political speech at the Batla Chowk in New Friends colony but when people ignored him, he allegedly beat people with iron rods and later got into a truck parked nearby after pushing out the driver, the sources said. Thereafter, he started the vehicle and drove it “like a mad man”, crushing Musarraf, a teacher with a municipal school, and injuring four others. He would have killed many more but the vehicle got stuck in a garbage dump. While the teacher died on the spot, the other injured were rushed to a nearby hospital where the condition of one of them is stated to be serious. “Fazil, who
sustained injuries in the process, was arrested and taken
to AIIMS where his condition is stated to be
stable”, a police official said, adding, “He
appears to be normal and was perhaps pretending to be
mad. But we are investigating”. |
Palam airport ‘coffin junction’ CALCUTTA, July 1 (UNI) — For an ordinary air traveller, the Palam airport at Delhi is a gateway to reach any part of the country. But in the Army parlance, Palam has become the cursed “coffin junction” where dead warriors arrive on their last journey back home. Ever since the Army was called in to fight insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir and in the north eastern states, Palam became the “coffin junction,” says General (retd) Shankar Roy Chowdhury, former Chief of the Army Staff. “We call Palam a coffin junction. The bodies of soldiers from the north eastern states and Jammu and Kashmir are sent via Palam and vice versa.” He said while participating in a “face to face with media” organised at the press club, Calcutta, yesterday. “Following the
Kargil operation, Palam had become more busy in
transporting the bodies of the jawans”, General Roy
Chowdhury added. |
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| Plug intelligence
loopholes: expert MUMBAI: India needs an urgent and active security programme to plug intelligence loopholes, according to Dr D.R. Singh, Head of the Department of Criminology and Correctional Administration at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) here. Introduction of a foolproof system to identify foreign mercenaries and foreign nationals living in the country without proper documents is an important step in this direction, he said here on Wednesday. — PTI Land records to be
computerised All women
insured in Bilaspur Probe ordered
into dolphins’ death Dress code for
college admission Arun Gawli,
aides acquitted Information
officer dead Railway station
set on fire |
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