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Thursday,
December 27, 2001, Chandigarh, India  
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Another spy with ISI links held
India’s missile system in position: George “Downsizing missions one
of the options” Vice-Chiefs of IAF, Navy appointed 1,000-cr scam in Bihar Prasar Bharati officials booked for fraud |
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‘Joint session’ if POTO defeated in RS Temple demolition was ‘setback’ to BJP’s cause BBC Commando from Jan
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Another spy with ISI links held New Delhi, December 26 The alleged spy, Samiuddin, is said to have passed on secret information relating to military movement to an agent of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Samiuddin (41), who hails from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, was arrested last evening when he made an ISD call to Lahore. Some classified documents pertaining to the Army were recovered from him and Samiuddin was booked under the Official Secrets Act, sources said. After the terrorist attack on Parliament House, this is the second arrest within four days. The sources said Samiuddin was spotted by the intelligence sleuths when he was talking to the ISI agent on telephone that he was sending classified documents through a passenger who was going to Pakistan by Samjhauta Express. Samiuddin, who had been acting as a “savaari (carrier), was living in the Capital for the past three months in a rented accommodation and was involved in smuggling as well as a fake visa racket. However, the police suspects that the military-related information was passed on to him by Shaukat, a resident of Western UP. The police said some more arrests were on the cards. However, according to an agency report, the accused had planned to leave by the last Samjhauta train today for Pakistan following the government decision to snap the rail link between the two countries from January 1, the sources said, adding that the accused had travelled to Pakistan 11 times on earlier occasions. Samiuddin has revealed that he was in touch with a person, Iqbal Malik, in Lahore, who was a “savaari” operator for ISI. After preliminary interrogation, Samiuddin was produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sangeeta Dhingra Sehgal, who remanded him in seven day police custody. |
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India’s missile system in position: George New Delhi, December 26 “At the moment, we are concentrating on Agni-II ballistic missile (with a range of nearly 2500 km). We do not have any plans now for a longer-range missile,” he told PTI in an interview. Asked if there was a possibility of a change in the schedule for exercises in view of the Pakistani military build-up, Mr Fernandes said: “There has been no talk of change of schedule. There will be routine exercises”. To a question on missile deployment, the minister declined to go into details and only said: “Missile systems are in position”. Pakistan media reports have stated that missiles directed against India have been put on alert. Pakistan is reportedly in possession of Chinese-made M-11 and M-9 missiles with strike ranges varying from 600 to 750 km, ‘Ghauri I and II’ (1150-1500 km) and ‘Shaheen-II’ (2500 km). India has 150-km range ‘Prithvi-I’ which is being managed by 333 Missile Group based in Secunderabad, besides Agni-II. Both these missiles can be fired from mobile launchers. While certain other missiles are in developmental stages, India also possesses medium-range missiles of Russian origin. Replying to a question, Mr Fernandes said Agni-II had not been deployed.
PTI |
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“Downsizing missions one
of the options” New Delhi, December 26 “Diplomatic options are still open to deal with the situation arising out of Indo-Pakistan stand off. All
avenues have not been exhausted,” he said in an interview with a television channel. Asked about the possibility of war, he said, “We have not reached that stage as there are many options left to us”. Reacting to the government’s decision to recall him from Pakistan, Mr Nambiar said it was a fairly strong measure and should “elicit serious response” from Pakistan.
UNI |
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Vice-Chiefs of IAF, Navy appointed New Delhi, December 26 Air Marshal Inamdar, at present AOC-in-C, Eastern Air Command, will assume charge on January 7, 2002. Vice-Admiral De Silva is expected to take charge of his new appointment in early January, an official announcement said. In other appointments, Rear Adm S.C.S. Bangara has been made Deputy Chief, Integrated Defence Staff (Operations), on promotion to acting rank of Vice-Admiral. He is Assistant Chief of Naval Staff at Naval Headquarters. He will assume charge of his new post on January 1, 2002. Air Commodore J.S. Gujral, Air Commodore M. Dixit and Air Commodore S.L. Sud have also been posted to Integrated Defence Staff on promotion to the rank of Air Vice-Marshal.
UNI |
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1,000-cr scam in Bihar Patna, December 26 The latest in the string of scams in the state was detected by the state Legislative Council’s committee on financial management. Committee’s Chairman Yashodanand Singh said today that the House panel had unearthed alleged bungling in payment of subsidy by the Union Agriculture Ministry and state Agriculture Department to 23 fertiliser-manufacturing firms without even selling any decontrolled fertilisers. The committee in the course of investigation found that although farmers in Bihar had not received any subsidised fertiliser between 1994 and 1998, a staggering amount of around Rs 1,000 crore was paid by Bihar towards subsidy to the fertiliser-manufacturing firms, he added.
PTI |
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Prasar Bharati officials booked for fraud New Delhi, December 26 An FIR was lodged against unnamed officials and a cooperative society yesterday following a complaint by Prasar Bharati Joint Controller Dhananjay Malviya after an internal inquiry detected irregularities in the sale of broadcasting rights, purchase of photocopy and other materials, police sources said. The complainant has alleged that the officials in collusion with “certain individuals” had caused loss to Prasar Bharati Corporation through irregularities in sale of broadcasting rights for some films between December 1999 and April 2000. The FIR also alleged that officials of a bank in Delhi helped the accused in embezzling the money by making “fraud entries”, they said. Some officials of Prasar Bharati had formed a society which bought broadcasting rights for Prime Time films and other programmes between December 1999 and April 2000. Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court has dismissed a petition by former Chief Executive of Prasar Bharati S.S. Gill challenging his dismissal from the post. Mr Gill was dismissed by virtue of the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Amendment Ordinance 1998 and the 1999 Ordinance which reproduced the earlier one in its entirety.
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‘Joint session’ if POTO defeated in RS New Delhi, December 26 The government proposed to pass the Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO) in the Budget session of Parliament beginning February next year, Mr Mahajan told Aaj Tak. “If the government fails in the Rajya Sabha (to get it passed), a joint session of Parliament will be convened to approve the measure,” a press note issued by the TV channel quoted Mr Mahajan.
PTI |
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Temple demolition was ‘setback’ to BJP’s cause
New Delhi, December 26 “I could visualise that the demolition would be a big set back for the cause that the BJP was seeking to promote because party’s commitment was not only to support the VHP’s movement for the construction of Ram temple at the place supposed to be the birthplace of Lord Ram but we were also committed to the rule of law,” he said. Deposing as a witness before the commission probing the demolition of the disputed structure at Ayodhya, Mr Advani said the BJP was committed to the democracy, rule of law and to honour the verdict of the court and the entire movement was aimed at converting the “de facto temple into a “de jure” temple under the process of law or by a mutual agreement between disputing parties. “The movement and slogans (by kar sevaks) have to be seen in the background of the whole controversy which emphasises that the de facto temple needs to be converted into a de jure temple by the procees of law, which can be achieved either by mutual agreement, court order or by legislation but nothing has to be done by force or any illegal manner,” Mr Advani said. He said the attack on journalists and cameramen by some “kar sevaks” during the demolition of disputed structure at Ayodhya on December 6, 1992 was perhaps prompted by their sense of guilt, which they wanted to hide. Meanwhile, the All-India Babri Masjid Rebuilding Committee (AIBMRC) today threatened to launch a nationwide movement if the VHP went ahead with its reported plan to construct the Ram temple at Ayodhya in March next
year. PTI, UNI |
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BBC Commando from Jan New Delhi, December 26 “The fly on the wall” camera is going to bring on the small screen real-life emotions of success and failure as ‘Commando’, a 13-part documentary to be telecast on BBC World from January 1, 2002, covers the six-week commando training course at the Commando Training School in Belgaum, Karnataka, that is considered to be one of the toughest in the world. “Commando” will be much more real than programmes like “Survivor” and “Temptation Island”, which are more like game shows where a bunch of people are placed in a certain peculiar situation,” says Narendhra Morar, Commissioning Editor, regions, BBC World. Morar describes “Commando” as an “observatory series” where one can see Junior Officers trying their best to clear the gruelling course so as to gain the coveted title of “commando”. Morar also claims that the commando-training programme, spanning from September 11 to October 20, 2001, has been captured by the camera without any interference into the training. “The camera remained a `fly on the wall’ to give us this unique access into the Indian Army,” claims Morar. The documentary follows the experiences of two pairs of officers — Capt Sanjay Singh Routela with his ‘buddy’ Rajith Unni and Lieut Dilip Jha with his buddy Lieut Vivek Maudgil, who were among the 60 Army officers who undertook the course. Of the two protagonists, 24-year-old Capt Routela hails from a family of Army officers; he is a fourth-generation Army officer and has the distinction of having fought in the Kargil conflict in 1999. Twenty-three-year-old Lieut Jha on the other hand is posted at a forward base on the Indo-Pak border. “While the programme would go to show how professionally the Indian Army works, the human angle would be provided by the manner in which these four officers would react to situations. They are all very different from one another, and hence deal differently with success and failure,” says Morar.
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Blair’s visit New Delhi, December 26 Mr Blair would be here in the first half of January, an External Affairs
Ministry spokesperson said. PTI |
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