Saturday, March 20, 1999
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Bhagwat denies allegation NEW DELHI, March 19 — Former Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat categorically denied today that he had tampered with the annual confidential report of an officer when he was CNS. In a statement here, Admiral Bhagwat said naval headquarters checked all dossiers and to date there had not been a single case of tampering with the ACR of any naval officer. BJP conference begins today |
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CVC ordinance set to lapse NEW DELHI, March 19 — The Central Vigilance Commission ordinance which gave statutory status to the body is set to lapse next month and cannot be re-issued as Parliament, which went into three-week recess, remains in session.
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HC notices to DD, AIR on
staff’s plea NEW DELHI, March 19 — The Delhi High Court has issued notices to the Centre, the Prasar Bharati Corporation and others on a petition by seven of PBC employees seeking to appoint corporation’s chairman and full-time chief executive officer among several things. Fair trial in peril, says
Jaya India,
B’desh ban insurgents’ entry Gallantry
awards’ allowance raised |
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Bhagwat denies allegation NEW DELHI, March 19 (UNI) — Former Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat categorically denied today that he had tampered with the annual confidential report (ACR) of an officer when he was CNS. In a statement here, Admiral Bhagwat said naval headquarters checked all dossiers and to date there had not been a single case of tampering with the ACR of any naval officer. The Admiral was apparently reacting to reports based on Defence Minister George Fernandes’ answer to a written question in the Lok Sabha yesterday that the government was examining the issue of reported tampering of the ACR of an officer allegedly by the then CNS, Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat. Admiral Bhagwat said: "The Defence Minister had deliberately misled Parliament yesterday by saying that the government was examining the issue of the reported tampering of the ACR of an officer". The Admiral said when he was FOC in-C of Western Naval Command he had found the officer concerned above average but when the same officer was at sea he was found of average calibre. He said he had differed with the view of the then Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral V.S. Shekhawat, about the ACR of the said officer. There was a difference of opinion between me and Admiral Shekhawat but it was only for internal reference", he said. Admiral Bhagwat did not give the name of the officer concerned on the ground that it would not be good for his morale. The Defence Minister, he said, had no substantive reason to pursue his allegation. In reply to a written question of Mr Jang Bahadur Patel yesterday the Defence Minsiter had said: "It has been brought to the notice of the government that ex-CNS (Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat) had tampered with the ACR of an officer by crossing out the report of a previous CNS (Admiral V.S. Shekhawat) and superimposing his own adverse remarks. It is unprecedented for a CNS to alter an assessment report by a previous CNS." "The matter is being
examined", the Defence Minister told the Lok Sabha. |
BJP conference begins today TIRUCHIRAPALLI, March 19 (PTI) — “Let Tamil Nadu be brought back to the national mainstream. Let us relieve the state of the rule by Dravidian parties”, is the main plank for the two-day state conference of the BJP beginning here tomorrow. The conference is the first in Tamil Nadu after the BJP-led coalition assumed office at the Centre exactly a year ago and the first state conference of the party after it succeeded in getting representation in the Lok Sabha from the state. It was during the 1998 Parliament elections that the BJP in alliance with the AIADMK bagged three out of five seats it contested in the state. It was also for the first time that Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee is addressing a party meeting in the state after he became the Prime Minister, though he had visited the state thrice after assuming office. State BJP General Secretary L. Ganesan told newsmen that the conference would be a “launching pad” for the party to gear itself up to capture power in the state. He said the main thrust at the conference would be on highlighting the one-year’s achievements of the BJP-led coalition government at the Centre. Tamil Nadu police has made tight security arrangements for the Prime Minister’s visit. Director General of Police
F. C. Sharma, who is personally supervising the
arrangements, told reporters that over 8,000 policemen,
including some from the CRPF, would be deployed to
provide security during the conference. |
Vajpayee govt's birthday bash NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) — A ‘jugalbandi’ of Indian and Pakistani pop musicians on the theme of ‘dosti’ (friendship) and a trip down the nation’s 5,000-year-old history with the bus that took Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee to Lahore in tow marked the grand finale of the coalition government’s first birthday bash at Hauz Khas here tonight. The underlying theme of ‘rashtra dharma’ permeated the episodes from mythology and history including, Lord Krishna’s invigorating sermon to a soul-searching Yudhistira, Buddha’s message of non-violence and Chanakya’s political mantra to Chandragupta Maurya staged in the backdrop of the early 14th century monument, built by Alauddin Khilji. Mr Vajpayee along with his Cabinet colleagues sat through the 90-minute cultural extravaganza ‘Satyameva Jayate’ at the lush green Hauz Khas complex which had generated a lot of controversy with environmentalists and local residents protesting against it. In his welcome address, Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan, said the nuclear tests at Pokhran and the bus trip to Lahore, which appeared contradictory on the surface were actually different routes to reach the same destination. However, the Pokhran blast did not feature in the show, which concluded with a rhythmic number ‘yaaron yehi dosti hai’ (friends, this is friendship) sung together by artistes of the popular Pakistani pop group ‘Junoon’ and their Indian counterparts ‘The Silk Route’ — an item in which the audience joined spontaneously. The only slip in the otherwise well-executed show directed by theatre personality Aamir Raza Hussain was when the wooden stage which recreated the Wagah border gave away as the "Sada-e-Sarhad" (call of the border) bus was being brought onto it. However, popular film artist Javed Jaffrey handled the embarrassing situation in his inimitable style saying that it had to give in what with heavyweights sitting in the bus. Salman, lead singer of ‘Junoon’ said he has brought from Wagah the message of "peace and friendship" to the people of India. The Indian singers too reciprocated the sentiment. Opposition leaders did not
attend the show. |
CVC ordinance set to lapse NEW DELHI, March 19 — The Central Vigilance Commission ordinance which gave statutory status to the body is set to lapse next month and cannot be re-issued as Parliament, which went into three-week recess, remains in session. Charging that disruptions of the proceedings by the Opposition in both Houses of Parliament resulted in the situation, the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr P.R. Kumaramangalam, blamed the Congress for its “dual policy” in the conduct of the first half of the Budget session of Parliament. Holding the Opposition responsible for the situation, Mr P.R. Kumaramangalam, said the situation could benefit certain persons against whom cases were under supervision by the CVC. The immediate effect of the lapse would be that the CVC would turn into an administrative body. Mr Kumaramangalam said he had personally appealed to Parliament yesterday to help pass the legislation which was not appreciated in a section of the Press. An ordinance lapses automatically if it is not replaced by a legislation within six weeks of the commencement of the Parliament session immediately after it is promulgated. The Budget session of Parliament began on February 22. While the Lok Sabha went into recess yesterday, the Rajya Sabha took recess from today. Both Houses are scheduled to resemble on April 12. The three-week period will be utilised for discussion of demands for grants of various ministries. Taking on the Congress, Mr Kumaramangalam said the party members appeared to be eager to clear the business before the Lok Sabha but did not do so in the Rajya Sabha. Referring to the imposition of President’s rule in Bihar, he said, while Congress members opposed the statutory resolution in the Lok Sabha, they abstained when the Rabri Devi government sought a vote of confidence in the Bihar Legislative Assembly. He said apart from this a lot of time was lost mainly in the Rajya Sabha on two counts, one the dismissal of naval chief Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat and the imposition of President’s rule in Bihar. Mr Kumaramangalam also raised the issue of “bogus voting” in the Lok Sabha after discussion on statutory resolution on Bihar. He said the Minister of
State for Parliamentary Affairs, Mr Ram Naik had
complained to the Speaker and an inquiry was on. The MP
whose vote was suspected to have been cast by some one
else was Mr A.B. Ghani Khan Choudhury of the Congress.
The BJP said the Congress MP was not present when voting
took place while the Congress maintained that he had
stepped out and was seated in the lobby. |
HC notices to DD, AIR on staff’s plea NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) — The Delhi High Court has issued notices to the Centre, the Prasar Bharati Corporation (PBC) and others on a petition by seven of PBC employees seeking to appoint corporation’s chairman and full-time chief executive officer (CEO) among several things. Mr Justice K. Ramamoorthy yesterday issued the notices to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, PBC Directors-General of Doordarshan (DD) and All India Radio (AIR) and the Ministry of Finance asking them to file replies to the petition. The seven employees — Ajay Julka, Shri Krishan, Rakesh Sinha, N. Chandrashekhar, S.C. Sharma and Narain Singh — also have sought appointment of PBC’s member finance and personnel, framing of regulation to PBC employees’ service conditions, pay scales and constitution of a recruitment board. They also sought direction to the I and B Ministry and Directors-General DD and Air to upgrade the pay scales of all employees uniformly as had been done in case of a certain category of employees through an order issued by the government on February 25. The petitioners stated that due to uncertain situation caused by “conflicting” stand of the government on the status of the PBC. “The employees future is sailing between DD and newly constituted Prasar Bharati”. “As a result they
like thousands of on others have neither been completely
removed from the employment of DD nor have been placed in
the new organisation and their fate is hanging between
the two bodies,” the petition said. |
Fair trial in peril, says Jaya CHENNAI, March 19 (PTI) — Former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha today said her right to a fair trial in a pending corruption case against her “was in peril” as the presiding judge had made some “controversial” observations about her. She said in a statement here the observations of Judge S. Sambandham, in an order on March 9, while dismissing a petition for an adjournment filed by a co-accused had “exceeded all normally accepted judicial constraints” and that he had “unnecessarily dragged” in her name. Ms Jayalalitha said the judge, while commenting on his own integrity, had observed that he was once appreciated by late AIADMK founder M.G. Ramachandran and that he had never sought any favour from anyone. “This has put me in an unfortunate light and his statement has the potential of a prejudicial nature against me in the pending case,” she said. Ms Jayalalitha said “He (the judge) has begun a controversy. If he persists with it, I will reveal more,” adding that it was enough at present to deny the observations. Mr Justice Sambandham, trying Ms Jayalalitha and three associates for allegedly amassing assets valued at Rs 66.65 crore, had declared in his order on March 9 that he was not one to be tempted by “inducements of money or office”. He was apparently referring to charges that he was biased in favour of the prosecution. “Whether or not the present rulers know this, former rulers know that I will not yield to inducements of money or office,” the judge had said. Recalling that on one occasion, MGR had praised him in the Assembly, he had said: “Even Ms Jayalalitha, I am sure, will remember this.” Mr Justice Sambandham is
one of the three judges appointed to try 46 cases of
corruption pertaining to Ms Jayalalitha, her erstwhile
Cabinet colleagues and bureaucrats in respect of offences
that took place between 1991 and 1996. |
India, B’desh ban insurgents’ entry NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) — India and Bangladesh today agreed not to give shelter to any insurgent group from the other side, demarcate 6.5 km of unmarked border at the earliest and curb smuggling and other trans-border crimes by exchanging information. The decision emerged at the five-day meeting between Border Security Force (BSF) Director-General E.N. Rammohan and his Bangladesh Rifles counterpart Major-Gen Mahammed Azizur Rahman here. The meeting ended today with the signing of joint record of discussion between the two sides. Both sides agreed to ensure the earliest demarcation of 6.5 km of border stretching along parts of West Bengal and North Eastern states, they told reporters, adding, however, no time frame had been fixed for it. “The problems of
illegal entrants from Bangladesh to India were discussed
at length. Both sides agreed to implement the guidelines
on the subject in letter and spirit as worked out in the
meeting of the joint working group of both
countries,” a BSF statement said. |
Gallantry awards’ allowance raised NEW DELHI, March 19 (PTI) — The government has substantially increased the monetary allowance for gallantry awards and decided to give monetary allowance to medal awardees of the forces. The revised awards will be effective from February 1 last, an official release here today said. Under the revised rate of monthly allowance, Ashok Chakra will carry Rs 1400, Mahavir Chakra Rs 1200, Kirti Chakra Rs 1050, Vir Chakra Rs 850 and Shaurya Chakra Rs 750. Each bar to the decoration will carry the same amount of monetary allowance as admissible to the original award. The increase is much more than the recommendations of the Fifth Central Pay Commission, it said adding the revision had been effected to maintain the relativity of the amount of monetary allowance attached to various gallantry awards with allowance for Param Vir Chakra being Rs 1500 per month. The government has also
decided to grant monthly allowance of Rs 250 per month to
medal awardees for gallantry who are given these awards
on Republic Day or thereafter, it said. |
French retired General gets Gandhi medal NMarch 19 (PTI) —Retired French General Bernard Norlain has EW DELHI, been honoured with the Mahatma Gandhi gold medal by UNESCO in recognition of his leading role in conflict prevention and promotion of a culture of peace. Gen Norlain, who was chief military assistant to French Prime Ministers Jacques Chirac and Michel Rocard, was presented with the medal by UNESCO Director-General Federico Mayor in Paris yesterday, a UNESCO release here today said. Presenting the medal,
Mayor said it should be viewed as a sixth star to be
added to the General’s five. |
Jatin-Lalit let off on bail MUMBAI, March 19 (PTI) — Well-known music director duo Jatin and Lalit Pandit, confined to prison in an assault case since March 10, were today released on bail by the Mumbai High Court. The Judge directed the duo to furnish personal bonds of Rs 1000 each and submit an undertaking that they would attend the trial court in future hearings unless exemption was sought. Mr P.R. Vakil and Mr C.R.
Hirani, counsel for Jatin and Lalit, argued that their
clients had abstained from the trial court earlier due to
some misunderstanding, but assured that they had great
respect for the judiciary. |
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| NLFT rebels kill CPM
activists AGARTALA: The banned National Liberation Front of Tripura (NLFT) guerillas shot dead a CPM activist and kidnapped three others from south Tripura on Thursday. The police said here on Friday that the rebels kidnapped the CPM activist from his house at Ompi and shot him dead in a nearby jungle. The guerillas also kidnapped three persons, including a state government official, from Amarpur and Udairpur subdivisions. — UNI PWG
ultra killed in encounter Undertrials escape Elephant census 4 killed in road
mishap Gangster shot dead AMU students call
off stir 10 officials
suspended |
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