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Sunday, November 11, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Curtailing of Assembly session
criticised Bill on
MLAs’ perks held back Protector
becomes exploiter Sonepat
jail to have legal aid cell WTO rules can benefit dairy farmers:
Swami Sale, storage of crackers regulated |
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Lawyers seek SDM’s transfer Communal
harmony week from Nov 19 Licences of 125 dealers cancelled Desi ghee
to cost less 78 lok
adalats organised
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Curtailing of Assembly session
criticised Chandigarh, November 10 Addressing a press conference here today, Mr Bhajan Lal, Leader of the Opposition, said that the Assembly was originally scheduled to meet for four days. However, subsequently the meeting of the Assembly was reduced to two days. The former Congress Chief Minister said that the session was cut short as otherwise the Congress sponsored notice seeking removal of the Speaker could not have been turned down on the ground that it was not submitted in time. Notice for the removal motion, submitted by the Congress at 3.55 p.m. on October 25, was not admitted by the Speaker, saying that it should have been given 14 days before the day of taking it up in the House. According to the procedures, anything submitted after 3 p.m. was considered submitted the next day, argued Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr Sampat Singh. And since October 26, 27 and 28 were holidays, the notice would be considered submitted on October 29 only, he added. The notice had failed to satisfy the two week time period specified by the procedures, stated the Speaker while rejecting the notice on Friday. However, the CLP leader today alleged that all these technicalities were raked up by the Treasury Benches to avoid discussion on the notice. The CLP leader also alleged that the Budget session of the Assembly too was similarly reduced to two days to deny the members any opportunity to speak out against the government. “Mr Karan Singh Dalal (RPI) and Mr Jagjit Singh Sangwan (NCP) were never allowed to speak. The lone representative of the BSP also could not utter a word”, he said. The Congress leader also alleged the government of making incorrect statements on the floor of the House. “In reply to Capt Ajay Singh Yadav’s question, the written reply of the Chief Minister was that the HVPN was not replacing domestic and industrial electric meters with electronic meters. On the dig made by the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, yesterday at the rivalry between Mr Bhajan Lal and Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, chief of the HPCC, the CLP leader said that he had been a member of the Assembly since 1968. Only Bansi Lal, HVP chief, is senior to him among the present members of the Assembly, Mr Bhajan Lal said. He added that he was also a member of the CWC. “Ms Sonia Gandhi is the leader of the Congress, the INLD is a one state party and it should not compare itself with the Congress”, he said. Mr Bhajan Lal said that Mr Bansi Lal had put the government in trouble yesterday when he asked whether the government was doing anything to expedite the Supreme Court order on the SYL issue. Alleging that Mr Om Prakash Chautala did not want the SC to pronounce the order before the Punjab Assembly elections, Mr Bhajan Lal said that he would explore possibilities for intervening in the case to get the court to deliver its findings without delay. |
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Bill on MLAs’ perks held
back Chandigarh, November 10 As the opposition legislators came back to the Assembly after staging a brief walkout, the Chief Minister, Mr Om Prakash Chautala, even had a dig at them as he told them that he knew what was keeping the opposition legislators to their seats. However, in the end there was disappointment galore for the MLAs as the Bill, which was ready, was not placed before the House. The Bill, according to a minister, if passed, would have substantially increased the pay packet of legislators and ministers. A legislator now gets Rs 19,500 every month apart from travelling and daily allowances. The ministers get about Rs 8,000 more than the MLAs. While the ministers get Rs 11,000 as monthly salary, the legislators do not get any salary but they get Rs 5,000 as compensatory allowance. The ministers also get Rs 3,000 as refreshment allowance which is Rs 1,000 in the case of the MLAs. Other benefits such as constituency allowance( Rs 6,000 monthly), telephone charges at the constituency (Rs 5,000), free travelling allowance (Rs 70,000 annually) are the same for the ministers and legislators. The new Bill, according to a minister, would have enhanced constituency allowance to Rs 8,000, telephone charges entitlement to Rs 10,000 and free annual travelling allowance to Rs 1.25 lakh. The legislators now are entitled to get Rs 5 per 1 km as transport allowance for coming to the Assembly from their constituencies for any meeting. It would have shot up to Rs 8 per 1 km if the Bill was passed. In the monsoon session of the Assembly the MLAs made a representation to the Chief Minister for enhancing their allowances. The CM agreed but the bill could not be prepared because of lack of time. On Thursday some MLAs, including some of the firebrand legislators who are opposed to the government, again informally requested the Chief Minister to increase their allowances. Official sources said that one of the reasons the Bill was not placed in the Assembly was that it could have sent wrong signal to the masses who were reeling under a bad crop of cotton. The members are nevertheless upset and more than one MLA, contacted by this reporter, expressed their dissatisfaction at the government’s decision to hold the Bill. The state government, however, nevertheless gave some compensation to the legislators by notifying Haryana Legislative Assembly (Facilities to Members) Amendment Rules, 2001. While the house building loan entitlement of the MLAs was enhanced from Rs 4 lakh to Rs 8 lakh in the last session, the rules notified yesterday had reduced the recovery of the loan from 2 per cent monthly instalments to 1 per cent. Consequently, a member will be able to repay his loan in 100 monthly instalments instead of 50 which was the practice with a house building loan earlier. |
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Protector becomes
exploiter Panipat, November 10 According to sources, 23-year-old Yashvir of Jagsi village in Sonepat, ended his life in the Tehsil Camp area here on October 6. A former criminal, Yashvir, who was facing trial in the local courts here for his involvement in two dacoities at Babarpur and Bapoli villages of the district, was reportedly leading a normal life and had set up a small shop in the Tehsil Camp area. Throwing norms to the winds, he was often picked up at odd hours for interrogation by the police whenever there was any crime in the area. In the police custody he was allegedly beaten up and locked up for days together. Even written representation by the Jagsi Sarpanch to the police that Yashvir was a reformed man fell on deaf ears. Mental tension on account of police harassment took its toll with the result that Yashvir developed fear psychosis. On October 2 Yashvir was picked up by the CIA and his belongings loaded into a truck and taken away. This seemed to be the last straw and Yashvir could take it no more and committed suicide. The only action taken in the Yashvir suicide episode is the suspension of ASI Ranjit Rana of the CIA. The story of Lehna Singh of Jondhan Kalan village in the district is no different. Lehna Singh was picked up by the police several times for interrogation and harassed and asked to arrange Rs 15,000 for the police if he wanted to lead a peaceful life. Several deadlines were set for him to get the money arranged but he was unable to pay despite his best efforts. As the police pressure mounted, Lehna Singh committed suicide on November 2. Though no inquiry was conducted, a constable was suspended to ward off public outcry. The next victim of the police high-handedness was Phulla, a tea stall owner of Kalwa village in Jind district. He was picked up by the police on the charges of selling narcotics and beaten up for several days. Unable to face repeated humiliation and police brutality, he consumed insecticide to end his life. No action has been taken in this case also, sources added. Meanwhile, Dr Narinder Kumar, convener of the National Manav Ekta Manch, while urging strict action against the guilty, has demanded an inquiry by the National Human Rights Commission into the suicides by these three persons. |
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Sonepat
jail to have legal aid
cell Chandigarh, November 10 The setting up of a legal cell in a prison is not only a constitutional obligation under Article 39(A) of the Constitution but has also become a legal imperative in terms of the decision of the apex court of the country rendered in a criminal writ petition recently. The main function of this cell will be to provide free legal services to every accused person in jail, who is unable to defend himself because of poverty. The denial of legal service to such an accused may render the trial itself running the risk of being vitiated contravening Article 21 of the Constitution. The Sonepat District Jail will perhaps be the first jail in the state to have such a cell. It would attend to various legal matters so as to provide effective legal assistance to the prisoners who may otherwise feel handicapped, to secure their release on bail, or in pursuing their appeals in the higher court on their conviction. The District Legal Services Authority of Sonepat, has also decided to launch another scheme for industrial workmen so as to provide them free legal services for filing or defending their cases before the labour courts. Since the facility of an advocate for filing or defending the cases of the workmen is not available before the labour court in view of the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, the District Legal Services Authority has decided to prepare a list of workmen representatives for assisting the workmen to provide them free legal services henceforth. This step would be quite in tune with the object of the authority to ensure that the workmen, who had already suffered the agony of unemployment and forced litigation before the labour court, may not undergo any further agony in the event of challenging the award of the labour court by the management. The authority has shortlisted 30 NGO groups to disseminate the various provisions of the legal services Act and to make the villagers aware of the various schemes launched by the authority. The
BDOs, panchayat officers, village sarpanches and panches have already been associated to create awareness among the rural folk and also in the slums and other backward areas. The district Sessions Judge of Sonepat, Mr
S.K. Sardana, and the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Sonepat, Ms Ritu
Tagore, said the counselling and conciliation centres at the district level can assist the permanent and occasional Lok Adalats by motivating the parties to arrive at negotiated settlement and can also help the NGO groups in finding out as to whether the person asking for legal aid has or not a prima-facie case in his
favour. The counselling and conciliation centre was inaugurated yesterday in the District Courts complex where, in doctors and house-wives would be associated as conciliators to resolve the disputes amicably. |
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WTO rules can benefit dairy farmers:
Swami Karnal, November 10 This was stated here yesterday by the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, Mr I.D. Swami, in his inaugural address to the All-India Animal Nutrition Conference at the NDRI. Mr Swami’s address was read in absentia by Dr N. Balakrishnan, Joint Director, Research, who could not come because of pressing engagements in Delhi. Mr Swami maintained that competitiveness at the global level in milk products had become the key world. The dairy industry and farmers had to prepare for it. The minister said that Indian livestock was mostly fed on low-grade crop residues. That was one reason that the cost of milk production was low. On the other hand, feed shortage was a formidable challenge to Indian livestock production. There were glaring regional and seasonal imbalances regarding availability of feed resources. This needed to be examined to exploit the animal production potential optimally, the minister felt. Dr K. Pardhan, Secretary, National Academy for Agricultural Sciences, stressed on the need for more efforts to increase milk production. Dr Kiran Singh, DDG (Animal Sciences) ICAR, said for further boosting milk production, there was a need for a critical appraisal with regard to the use of strategic feed supplements like micro nutrients, probiotics and other feed additives, which could go a long way in increasing reproductive efficiency as well as productivity of animals. Earlier, welcoming the delegates, Dr B.N. Mathur, Director, NDRI, Karnal, highlighted the role that the Institute had played in the growth of the dairy sector in the country through research conducted on different aspects of dairy production, dairy processing and also through manpower development and transfer of technologies. Dr Pradhan gave away awards. Three eminent animal nutritionists — Dr Kiran Singh, DDG (Animal Sciences), Dr V.D. Mudgal, former Director, CIRB, Hisar, and Dr Venkat Krishanan, former Director of Research, Madras Veterinary College — were presented with lifetime achievement awards consisting of a shawl, a memento, a citation and a certificate. |
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Sale, storage of crackers regulated Yamunanagar, November 10 The order also instructed that a booth shall be made of non inflammable material and fire tender shall be kept in readiness at the place of sale of crackers, and moreover fire crackers shall be sold from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. and no fire works of fire crackers shall be used between 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The order comes in force with immediate effect and expires on November 16, 2001. |
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Lawyers seek SDM’s transfer Kaithal, November 10 The advocates have been boycotting the SDM’s court since September 25. They sat outside the mini secretariat for about two hours. The ADC, Mr Pardeep Kashni, was sent by the Deputy Commissioner to receive the memorandum on his behalf from the lawyers. |
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Communal
harmony week from Nov 19 Chandigarh, November 10 Stating this here today, an official spokesman said all Deputy Commissioners had been asked to organise cultural programmes, seminars, workshops and other activities to promote communal harmony and national integration during this week. They had been also asked to assist children affected by communal violence and terrorist activities, he added. |
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Licences of 125 dealers cancelled Chandigarh, November 10 A spokesman for the department said here that during the period, security of 956 dealers worth over Rs 5 lakh had been forfeited. Twentyeight cases had been registered with the police against the dealers for indulging in malpractices, he added. |
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Desi ghee to cost less Chandigarh, November 10 This was stated by Ms Shakuntala Jakhu, Managing Director of the federation, here today. |
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78 lok adalats organised Jind, November 10 |
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