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Wednesday,
November 7, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Resist WTO’s colonisation move, say Oppn parties POTO: Govt allays Oppn’s fears Judge to probe Malegaon riots
‘Ram yatra’ from Nov 10 Discontent in SP over Amar Singh’s clout |
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President dedicates Assembly building Mamata gets house demolition notice
Cabinet decides to amend RPA CBI denies Congress charge
BEST staff call
off strike
Propagate Sanskrit worldwide:
scholar Uttaranchal defers Panchayat poll E-book era begins in India
2 outfits banned Chargesheeted
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Resist WTO’s colonisation move, say Oppn parties New Delhi, November 6 Addressing a rally near Bhairon mandir here on Tuesday, former Prime Minister V.P. Singh said the elected representatives had the right to pull the government’s ears and overthrow it. He alleged that the Vajpayee government had not voiced its opposition to the Draft Ministerial Declaration (DMD) and the revised DMD. “It is clear that the government has shown its weakness and connivance with the WTO.” CPM Politburo member Sitaram Yechury said, “We have gathered here to warn the government to put an end to the business of selling our country.” Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav said the WTO was a conspiracy by rich nations to destroy India’s agricultural produce. “No country of the world can compete with us in agricultural production. If our farmers are provided proper facilities, our agricultural produce can increase threefold.” CPI General Secretary A.B. Bardhan said coconut, pulses, tea, milk and a host of other products were being imported. “The economic policies of the BJP government has led to economic slowdown. The BJP government has also brought in repressive measures as the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO), besides aiding and abetting communal outfits like the VHP, Shiv Sena and RSS.” Mr Bardhan said the mazdoor and trade unions would launch a similar movement from Jantar Mantar on Friday when the Doha talks would begin. Magsaysay Award winner and leader of the Mazdoor Kisan Sangharsh Samiti Aruna Roy stressed the need to broadbase people’s struggle to make the government “more transparent and accountable.” The rally adopted a declaration which resolved to mount a coordinated challenge to the onslaught of the process of globalisation, marketisation and re-colonisation spearheaded by the WTO. Prominent among others who addressed the rally were Medha Patkar and Vandana Shiva, Founder Chairperson of the Research Foundation for Science, Technology and Ecology, former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda, former Finance Minister, Madhu Dandavate, CPM General Secretary Harkishan Singh Surjeet and CPI leader Atul Kumar Anjan. Mr Yogendra Yadav, political analyst, told The Tribune that the rally was significant as this was the first time that an anti-WTO alliance comprising political parties and the people’s movement had been forged in the country. “This will put enormous pressure on the Indian Government.”
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POTO: Govt allays Oppn’s fears New Delhi, November 6 The two-and-a-half hour meeting was attended among others by Law Minister Arun Jaitley, Agriculture Minister Nitish Kumar, Minister of State for External Affairs Omar Abdullah and Minister of State for Paliamentary Affairs O Rajagopal. During the meeting an elaborate presentation on POTO was made by Mr Advani and top Home Ministry officials even as the Law Minister chipped in with his strong viewpoints. According to sources, both Mr Advani and Mr Jaitley strongly defended POTO and termed the apprehensions expressed by the media and some political parties as “misplaced” and “factually incorrect”. The Law Minister explained that there was no provision in POTO like disclosure of source by journalists and he also said: “It is factually incorrect that the onus of proof has been shifted to the accused and journalists will have to declare their source.” “There is no such provisions. It is all a hallucination,” Mr Jaitley asserted, the sources said. Emerging out of the meeting, Mr Nitish Kumar told reporters that the meeting was very useful as it helped in better understanding of the various provisions of POTO. “The meeting helped in dispelling many misconceptions,” he said. In another development Mr J.P. Mathur, a senior BJP leader said Home Minister L.K. Advani had never said at the BJP National Executive meeting in Amritsar that the parties opposing the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) were in a manner appeasing the terrorists. CHENNAI: The Vajpayee government, under fire from almost the entire Opposition for promulgating POTO, on Tuesday received support from unexpected quarters when AIADMK supremo Jayalalitha said stringent legislation was “not only essential but also inevitable. But, she said the government should evolve a consensus on the ordinance before going ahead with its enactment to get a “wider acceptability.” |
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Judge to probe Malegaon riots Mumbai, November 6 A retired judge of the Mumbai High Court would conduct an inquiry and submit his report within a period of six months, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and Deputy Chief Minister Chhagan Bhujbal jointly told a post-Cabinet meeting news conference here. The inquiry would look into the incidents that led to the riots, whether any person, group or organisation was directly or indirectly behind the incidents and whether the police effectively handled the situation, Mr Bhujbal said. The judicial panel would also probe whether the efforts by the authorities to quell incidents in other parts of Nasik district were sufficient, he said. The panel would suggest measures to be adopted for preventing recurrence of similar incidents in the sensitive areas like Malegaon, Mr Bhujbal said. Mr Deshmukh said the high-level Congress delegation that visited the strife-torn Malegaon had expressed satisfaction over the handling of the riots by the administation.
NEW DELHI: The high-level Congress delegation, which went to Malegaon to inquire into the incidents of communal violence, has suggested to the Maharashtra Government to further speed up relief work in the areas hit by communal violence. The team, comprising Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes and Ahmed Patel, is likely to submit its report to the Congress President on Wednesday. The team met Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh before coming to Delhi. Mr Deshmukh is going to Malegaon on November 8 along with bank officials to sanction immediate relief to the afected people. The assessment being made by the state government of loss suffered by people would be completed by November 8. Mr Vora said that the Maharshtra PCC chief Govindrao Adik had told him that PCC members would also go to the affected areas. Blaming the communal incidents on “communal forces,” Mr Vora, however, did not say if the team had found any slackness on the part of state government. “We will say everything in our report to the Congress President,” Mr Vora said. PTI, TNS |
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Discontent in SP over Amar Singh’s clout New Delhi, November 6 An angry SP MP and former Union Minister Balram Singh
Yadava, in a letter to party president Mr Mulayam Singh Yadav, warned that the party would be in “ruins” if immediate steps were not taken to get rid of “opportunist and shady characters” like Amar Singh. Mr Yadava’s critical remarks directed against Mr Amar Singh come ahead of the crucial Assembly elections due in UP. “In the interest of the party, I would like to say that the party should immediately get rid of opportunists and shady characters like Amar Singh, otherwise nobody can stop you and your party from being ruined,” he said. Mr
Yadava, who was expelled from the post of party general secretary some time ago on charges of indulging in anti-party activities, said there was discontent within the party to such an extent that everybody was bent upon revolt. “There is no freedom to express one’s ideas on any forum of the party,” he said. Alleging that the SP chief had handed over the reins of the party to a person like Amar Singh, he said it had sent a message to the people that Samajwadi Party was not functioning on the ideals and principles of Dr Ram Manohar Lohia “but is being run by capitalists and their brokers”. Ms Yadava said senior leaders like him were feeling insulted and, as well wishers of the party, they wanted it to get rid of such elements.
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‘Ram yatra’ from Nov 10 New Delhi, November 6 The 'yatra', under the banner of the parivar-backed ‘dharmayatra mahasangh’, will commence from Ayodhya and pass through UP, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Chattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, before culminating at Rameshwaram, Mahasangh spokesman Hitendra Sanghal said.
PTI |
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President dedicates Assembly building Jaipur, November 6 “This building stands more beautiful than Parliament,” he said, pointing out that the British rulers had built the Viceroy’s House (Rashtrapati
Bhawan) in New Delhi in such fashion that it looks more imposing than Parliament close by. Mr Narayanan said the building truly represented democracy in that it represented the struggle of ordinary people. “This building represents the ordinary people of Rajasthan and is something they can be proud of,” he said. Built over seven years at an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore, the pink sandstone building combines the different architectural styles of Rajasthan. Sixty extra seats have been provided in the 200-member House, keeping in view future requirements. Unlike earlier occasions when sittings were held in the Swai Man Singh Town Hall, the budget session of the Assembly had been held in the
eight-storeyed building this year. UNI |
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Mamata gets house demolition notice Kolkata, November 6 On Sunday several cracks were noticed at many places in the building when Ms Banerjee along with her ailing mother, got trapped inside for some time. But, the security staff and a few party workers who were found, somehow rescued them and shifted them to an adjoining building. Both were, however, unhurt. Ms Banerjee’s three brothers and other members, who live there, were out on a holiday trip. Soon after the incident, the police, fire brigade and building department officials of the corporation rushed to the place. They advised Ms Banerjee to shift to some other safe place till the building was rebuilt. The Mayor, Mr Subrata Mukherjee said the building had been unsafe for a long time for human habitation and he himself advised Ms Banerjee to repair or rebuild at the earliest. Now we would want her immediately shift elsewhere to allow the corporation to demolish it. |
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‘Hijacking’ report submitted New Delhi, November 6 The findings and recommendations of the report were not immediately known but it is largely understood that the blame for the embarrassing incident lay with the crew who over-reacted to the situation, minsitry sources said. The report, which will be put up before Civil Aviation Minister Shahnawaz Hussain, has recommended a system for passenger identification and psychological training for pilots and crew, it is learnt.
UNI Crew blamed for hijack drama New Delhi, November 6 The committee, headed by Mr S.B. Mohapatra, Special Secretary in the Home Ministry, has also suggested proper call identification systems at airports and airline offices, official sources said tonight. The 40-page report, submitted by Mr Mohapatra to Civil Aviation Secretary A.H. Jung yesterday, has said that the Alliance Air pilot, capt A. Bahal, and the crew "could not correctly assess the situation" and that "there was lack of communication between the pilot, the crew and Air Traffic Control" (ATC). Apparently the pilot asking the ATC for air route maps of Lahore and Karachi "misled" the Crisis Management Group led by Home Minister L.K. Advani and even kept Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee awake in the night, the sources said.
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Cabinet decides to amend RPA New Delhi, November 6 The four allies the Janata Dal United, the Biju Janata Dal, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the National Conference had opposed tooth and nail any move to remove the existing restriction that candidates contesting the Rajya Sabha elections should be at least ordinary resident of the state. At a meeting held by the Election Commission in April last year, these parties have made it clear that any person seeking election to the council of states (Rajya Sabha) should belong to that state and should be ordinarily resident in that state in keeping with the federal structure of the Constitution and the composition of the Rajya Sabha as envisaged in the Constitution. The Cabinet last week decided to do away with the restriction on the candidates contesting for upper House that they should be ordinary resident of the state. Instead, the government has decided to move an amendment to the RP Act that the candidates could be a voter in any part of the country to be able to contest for Rajya Sabha. The Cabinet’s decision came in the wake of the Election Commission facing problems in implementing the provision of ordinary citizen in case of several leaders, including former Finance Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. Several political leaders who could not get elected to the Lok Sabha took to the route of contesting from Rajya Sabha though they did not belong to that state.
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CBI denies Congress charge New Delhi, November 6 “The CBI is conducting investigation under the Official Secrets Act into the alleged leakage of sensitive and classified documents from the Home Ministry which is not related to the Tehelka tapes episode,” CBI spokesman S.M. Khan said here. Terming as “totally incorrect” the Congress charge, Mr Khan said “it is reiterated that the CBI is not conducting any investigation in the Tehelka tapes episode. The CBI is conducting an open inquiry into the alleged leakage of sensitive documents from the Home Ministry.” He said Sub-Inspector G.M. Rathi had gone to the residence of Mr Vadakkan to verify certain facts that had come to light during the investigations into the case under the Official Secrets Act registered against a Section Officer of Home Ministry, Mr Neeraj Kumar.
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BEST staff call off strike Mumbai, November 6 The announcement came after a high-level meeting attended by Mumbai Mayor H. Patil, the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) General Manager Rahul Asthana, Municipal Commissioner K. Srivastav and trade union leaders, including Mr Sharad Rao. PTI |
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Propagate Sanskrit worldwide:
scholar New Delhi, November 6 Dr Hari Dutt Sharma, a senior Reader in the Department of Sanskrit, University of Allahabad, who describes himself as an “ambassador of Sanskrit”, asserts that Sanskrit is the key to vedic philosophy which in turn is the essence of all wisdom that the world has ever had. Dr Sharma, who recently completed his three-year tenure as a visiting professor in Bangkok, feels that though the Government of India was trying its best to promote the world’s awareness about Sanskrit, the government endeavour alone was like a drop in the ocean. He says industrial houses and cash-rich public sector undertakings should supplement the government efforts in this direction. Talking to this correspondent, Dr Sharma, said he had done his bit in promoting Sanskrit and the Indian culture during his more than three-year long tenure in the Department of Oriental Languages, Silpakorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. |
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Uttaranchal defers Panchayat poll Dehra Dun, November 6 Soon after the meeting, Mr Bhagat Singh Koshiyari, Chief Minister, told TNS that all Opposition parties were taken into confidence before taking the decision. He said all parties were against holding the Panchayat poll prior to the Assembly elections which were due early next year. Earlier, Mr Madhukar Gupta, Chief Secretary, told mediapersons that the state government had decided to seek legal opinion on the controversy regarding the term of the Panchayats in Hardwar district. |
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E-book era begins in India New Delhi, November 6 Till, of course, the computers and the Internet arrived. Now, the digital age has brought with it the e-book, the closest approximation to a paper book. Will the printed book survive the digital challenge? May be, e-authors say. Mr Rohit Gupta, who was recently honoured as India’s first author of an ‘e-book’ by oxford bookstore com, does not find much merit in the debate. “A reader is only interested in reading; whether it is a book or a computer screen is immaterial to him,” says the young writer whose novel ‘The Oyster Club’ has been adjudged the best electronic book by a panel of eminent literary personalities like Shobha De, Vikram A. Chandra, Samik Bondopadhyay and Krishna Sen.
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2 outfits banned Chennai, November 6 A decision to this effect was taken at a Cabinet meeting here, Chief Minister O. Paneerselvam told reporters, adding the state government would urge the Centre to impose a similar ban on these two outfits at the national level.
PTI Panaji, November 6 Deputy Superintendent of CID, O.P. Kudtadkar said they had been charged for entering into a criminal conspiracy, causing losses to the exchequer amounting to Rs 16.50 crore.
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