Maya takes exception to Guv remarks

LUCKNOW: In a letter sent to governor TV Rajeswar, chief minister Mayawati has said “I was surprised to read your comments in newspapers. You never made any such comment during the previous regime where mid-session transfers were the order of the day.”

She added that there could be a few incidents where under unavoidable circumstances, transfers were done.

In this context, the chief minister in letter further stated that during the present BSP rule, mid-session transfers were done only where it was necessary.

Here she said that since the IAS, PCS, IPS and PPS officers were directly linked to the works related to the masses and were responsible for maintaining law and order and development of the state, government had no option but to transfer, or in some cases initiate action against, those who were found wanting in discharge of their duties.

Stating that her government had adopted a transparent policy regarding transfer of officials, the chief minister said that her government had never crossed the upper limit of 10 per cent annual transfers and claimed that such an arrangement was only in Uttar Pradesh.

She said that: “it would have been appropriate if before making remarks about the functioning of the state government at the governors’ meet, you had known the exact situation from me.”

In the concluding paragraph of her letter, the chief minister requested the governor that in the event of any doubt, he should seek information from the state government which was always eager to reply to his queries.

She also requested the governor to extend his cooperation to the state government in discharging its constitutional duties to establish the rule of law.


Source : Times Of India

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Chiru to meet people displaced by projects

HYDERABAD: Enthused by the huge response he received from the weavers of Sircilla, Prajarajyam president Chiranjeevi is looking at 'project-affected persons' (PAP) as his next target audience.

"People affected by SEZ in Mahbubnagar district, tribals being uprooted by the bauxite mining in Vizag area and fishermen facing the threat of evacuation to make way for coastal corridors. Chiranjeevi wants to meet all these sections to know the dark side of the so-called development in the state, " sources told 'TOI' .

"Though the suicide of farmers and weavers is a serious matter, the plight of the project-affected persons is equally a serious one. Even though some NGOs are working to help them, political parties have not been able to visualise the true dimension of the PAP," the sources said. As of now there are nearly 10 lakh people facing the threat of evacuation due to various projects and "the compensation is meagre. Rehabilitation is either not taken up or is tardy, and above all the cultural shock they received due to uprooting is immense," the sources said.

Party spokesman P Prabhakar said PRP would not indulge in abusing other political parties but would instead go directly to the suffering masses. It would not only understand their problems but come out with alternative plans to improve their lives.

Among other issues, chronic fluoride problem in Nalgonda districts also finds place in the priority list of the star. Apart from these familiarisation trips to problematic regions in the state, "The star is particular about visiting the church in the Medak town and the famous Pedda Masjid in Kadapa," the sources added.



Source : Times Of India

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Modi set to be BJP's anti-terror mascot

NEW DELHI: As the government mulls whether to bring a special law to fight terror, its principal challenger BJP has already got into the act, taking up terrorism in a big way even before dates for the coming assembly polls are announced. It has also drafted Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in what promises to be a high decibel campaign.

The top BJP leadership including party chief Rajnath Singh, senior leaders L K Advani and Arun Jaitley, will be joined on stage by Modi, the party's star anti-terror campaigner, for a rally in Karol Bagh here on Friday.

The rally, which comes within a week of Saturday's serial blasts that rocked the capital, is a clear statement of the BJP's intent to highlight the Centre's ''failure'' on the internal security front.

Modi, after the Gujarat police's success in nabbing SIMI activists and others behind the Ahmedabad blasts a month back, has emerged as the opposition's key campaigner against terror.

The Gujarat CM, who emerged as one of the most important faces of the party at the BJP's national executive last weekend in Bangalore, is tipped to be the main attraction at Friday's rally.

Source : Times Of India

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Life term for Bihar JD(U) MLA, four others

PATNA: A suspended JD(U) MLA Sunil Pandey and four others were sentenced to life imprisonment by a local court here on Wednesday for kidnapping noted neuro surgeon Dr Ramesh Chandra. ( Watch )

Additional District and Sessions Judge Vijay Prakash Mishra also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on each of them.

The court also rejected the bail bonds of four other accused who failed to appear and issued fresh non-bailable warrants against them and showcause notices to those who had furnished their bail bonds.

Dr Chandra was kidnapped from near Panchmandir on Serpentine Road on May 17, 2003 by the suspended Piro MLA and his cohorts for ransom of Rs 50 lakh.

Chandra was later rescued by the police from Chiraura village under Naubatpur police station.

The accused were tried under sections 364 (A) (kidnapping), 34 (common intention) and 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.

Source : Times Of India

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Pressure on govt to act against Bajrang Dal

NEW DELHI: With attacks on Christians spreading across the country, the Centre is under intense pressure to act against the Sangh extreme outfit, Bajrang Dal.

Minority leaders are demanding that the Centre take law and order in its hands because the Karnataka government is allegedly soft on the Dal, but the UPA appeared keen to deflect responsibility of taking action on to the state government.

On Tuesday, PM Manmohan Singh despatched a fact-finding team, comprising members of the National Minorities Commission (NCM) and National Commission for Women (NCW) to Karnataka. Minorities Commission chairman S Y Qureshi, member Harcharan Singh Josh and NCW chairperson Girija Vyas were all in Mangalore, the epicentre of the violence.

Congress general secretary Magaret Alva and Veerappa Moily briefed Congress president Sonia Gandhi on the situation. Referring to the violence, Alva told TOI, "There are attacks on innocent people. The state has to provide security to religious places."

On the Centre's role in quelling violence, Alva said that only after NCM and NCW submit reports can any action be taken. "The PM has spoken to the Karnataka CM and governor," she added.

As the conversion fire refused to die down, labour minister Oscar Fernandes, who hails from Mangalore, discussed the situation with home minister Shivraj Patil on Tuesday.

Rejecting the Sangh Parivar claim that the attacks were provoked by conversions, he said, "They must tell where conversions have taken place." Terming the attacks on churches as an attempt to divide people, he said, "The law enforcing agencies should see if there has been any violation of law without allowing hoodlums to take the law into their own hands."

Accusing Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa of letting the Bajrang Dal go on a rampage, Fernandes said that such incidents could not have taken place without the connivance of the state government. "What more do you expect from a CM who says that Gujarat is his model?" he asked.

Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh, who is in charge of Orissa, held Bajrang Dal squarely responsible for the attack on Christians in the state. He said the state government was a mute witness to the violence. He said, "They (Bajrang Dal) can't take law in their hands. They have no right to vandalise institutions. The state governments are responsible for protecting minority institutions and must be held accountable."

Singh attacked the state's laxity when he pointed out that VHP leader Praveen Togadia was allowed to make inflammatory speeches even as the Union home minister was prevented from touring the affected area. He reiterated that there were constitutional provisions that the Centre could invoke in such cases.

Christian organisations have been critical of the state's inaction. United Christian Forum for Human Rights national convener John Dayal said it was painful to observe that neither the states nor the Centre had the political will or capability to act even as violence continued in Orissa, MP and Karnataka.


Source : Times Of India

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Chiru training thousands to guard him, handle crowds

HYDERABAD: With film actor Chiranjeevi's camp worried at the reported denial of the state police to allocate additional personnel to the Prajarajyam chief, his close aides are training thousands of young men across the state to get them accustomed to techniques of crowd controlling and policing during his proposed political tour across the state.

At present, the star's younger brother Pavan Kalyan is overseeing all security issues . Nearly 150 'commandos' sporting black uniforms are under his direct supervision for guarding the megastar and his family. Though the film actor has been allotted two personal gunmen for round-the-clock security by the state government , ex-cops in in the actor's camp feel that the actor needs more protection. Nagendra Babu's aides have also started recruiting well-built young men from existing private security agencies for imparting necessary training to upgrade them as personal bodyguards to the megastar.

Sources said that J S Rao, a ticket aspirant from Nalgonda and said to be close to Allu Aravind, is handling the task. Rao, a body builder by profession, has been instrumental in imparting training to these select young men at an apartment complex under his custody in Filmnagar.

At least 350 of them are undergoing a tough training regime from 5.30 am, learning judo and karate. They are also being trained in mob dispersion and rapid action skills to rescue the megastar to safety, in case die-hard fans go on a rampage. Incidentally, most of these young men from Rayalaseema.

Meanwhile, it is reliably learnt that another 3,000 non-Telugu speaking people are also being trained by individual agencies in the neighbouring state away from public glare and under the direct supervision of a member of the Chiranjeevi family.

Source : Times Of India

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Chiru turns down Cong's challenge for debate

HYDERABAD: Refusing to be drawn into a public debate on the issue of development in the state, Prajarajyam supremo Chiranjeevi said he could not afford to spare time for public debates at this juncture.

Talking to the media at the party office on Monday, he said he had more pressing work of the party than getting locked up in public debates on one issue or the other. The megastar was reacting to a challenge thrown by information minister Anam Ramnarayan Reddy to him for an open public debate on the welfare measures initiated by chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. On Monday, he presented several leaders from Krishna, Prakasam and Nalgonda districts to the media as having joined hands with him.

Referring to the debate challenge, he said he was busy with arrangements to be made for his Meet-the-People tour, discussions on various issues with people etc. "These types of debates are a waste of time. I am not free now to indulge in the luxury of engaging in discussions in public," he said.


Source : Times Of India

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Court stays custodial interrogation of Amarinder Singh

CHANDIGARH: In a major relief to former Punjab chief minister and senior Congress leader Amarinder Singh, the Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday stayed his custodial interrogation by the Punjab vigilance bureau in a multi-million-rupee land scam.
Admitting Amarinder Singh's petition challenging the Punjab assembly's decision to last week expel him for involvement in the land scam, the high court stayed his custodial interrogation.
Justices A K Goel and Ajay Tewari also issued a notice to the Punjab assembly to reply about the expulsion.

Amarinder Singh was last Wednesday expelled from the assembly for the remaining three and a half year term after a house committee recommended this action. He, along with other officials, was found "guilty" by the committee of favouring a private builder in a multi-million-rupee land deal in Amritsar.

The former chief minister went to London last week after being expelled from the assembly.

The Punjab vigilance bureau had registered a case under the Prevention of Corruption Act and various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including forgery, fraud and conspiracy, against Amarinder Singh, former local bodies minister Jagjit Singh and five others in connection with the loss to the state in the Amritsar land deal.

The vigilance bureau was told to register a case by the assembly.

There were speculations that the vigilance officials could arrest him to question him regarding the deal but the high court stay will put a stop to that.

The ruling Akali Dal in Punjab was demanding Amarinder Singh's arrest and this is likely to be a major setback for the party, particularly Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal.

Amarinder Singh, when he was Punjab chief minister (2002-07), had arrested present Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Badal in a corruption case.

Amarinder Singh had described his expulsion from the assembly, where he represented the Patiala assembly seat, as "undemocratic and unconstitutional".

He had vowed to fight the Akalis on this issue, especially in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Source : Times Of India

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UPA is only passing time in office: Modi

BANGALORE: At BJP's national executive, Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi has been at the centre of action, delivering a much-noticed speech to his colleagues and leading a sharp attack on the government's handling of internal security. TOI asked Modi about the media projecting him as a BJP mascot, a rung below L K Advani.

Q: Don't you feel your work in Gujarat is almost over and it is time you moved to the national scene?

A: As far as a chief minister is concerned, he is part of national politics, whether he is from Gujarat or elsewhere. As far as working for Gujarat's development is concerned, I feel sky is the limit. There can be no full stops to developmental work... innovation and initiatives are always required. You cannot fulfil people's needs in one lifetime.

Q: But as an individual you may want to do more at the national level. If you are asked to head the party, will you want to do it?

A: When Atal Bihari Vajpayee was PM, Venkaiah Naiduji was party president, when Advaniji is the prime ministerial candidate, Rajnath Singhji is looking after the party! As far as organisational work is concerned, when I reach the bridge, I will cross it.

Q: What is your opinion on BJP's prospects?

A: BJP is at the centrestage. It is ahead in terms of leadership. Probably, India does not have another leader like Advaniji who has visited 400 districts in the course of his long political career and that is why he understands real issues and problems. Organisationally, BJP is the biggest in the country now and in power in most important states except Uttar Pradesh. Alongwith its NDA partners, it shares power in important states. As opposed to this, the present government at the Centre is a faceless one, meaning it has no issues, achievements or individuals that it can be identified with. They (UPA) are only passing time. It cannot control inflation it is the first government whose decisions one after the other has been overruled by SC.

For the first time, we have a government that says something in Parliament and in the US, George Bush says something else. It protects terrorists. It repealed POTA, it has been denying legislations like GUJCOCA, national security is an issue today.

Q: You mentioned UP which is dominated by SP and BSP. Do you have a formula to improve things for your party in the state?

A: The Congress was dominant in UP which is why the state was always very closely connected to national politics. The people of UP want to be part of the national mainstream. I am hopeful of drastic changes in UP this time.

Q: Congress is setting out on Navnirman yatra in Gujarat?

A: Interestingly, Chimanbhai Patel was accused in the Navnirman scam, and today his son is heading a rathyatra in the state and calling it Navnirman yatra. What should I say after this. And, for the last 20 years, Congress hated raths and rathyatras, but now they are having to follow BJP's footsteps and set out on a rathyatra.

Q: Do you feel the need for a image makeover for acceptability at the national level?

A: Image makeover? If I serve other people, I can't be thinking of my image. I'm working for the image of Gujarat and branding of Gujarat. I don't have time to think about my own image.


Source : Times Of India

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UPA governemnt not cooperating with Karnataka: Yeddyurappa

BANGALORE: BJP ruled Karnataka has accused the Centre of "neglect and step motherly treatment" on all issues as Congress has turned panicky in the wake of the southern state slipping out of its fold.

At the same time the B S Yeddyurappa led government has offered an olive branch to its neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra and said it was ready to discuss outstanding inter-state disputes if the Centre took the lead.

"It is all out of frustration as they are panicky because they are loosing ground in a state which stood by them even during emergency days when the Congress had lost elsewhere across the country," Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa said.

Expressing displeasure on the non-cooperation from the Centre when the state approached it for supply of fertilizers to farmers during this Kharif sowing season and for immediate financial assistance for relief to flood and drought affected people, Yeddyurappa said "neglect and step motherly treatment is being meted out to my state".

"There is not even a single instance in which the Centre cooperated with Karnataka," said Yeddyurappa, whose government completed 100 days in office on September 9.

The chief minister says he has already asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take the lead to convene a meeting of concerned chief ministers to resolve inter-state issues.

Commenting on the non-cooperation of opposition Congress and JDS in the state, Yeddyurappa asked them to "join hands in development".

"From the day my government came to power, the opposition parties have been making attempts to destabilise it," he alleged.

Yeddyurappa, whose leadership helped the BJP come to power for the first time in the South, however shrugs off queries as to what advice he wanted to give for spreading the party's reach in the South.

"I am a humble worker. It is for the leadership to decide what has to be done. My job is limited to Karnataka and whatever directions the party leadership gives, I will follow," Yeddyurappa said.

The chief minister also sidesteps queries on whether Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi was his role model. "Our role model is Atal Behari Vajpayee," is his refrain. At the same time he is all praises for the development work done by Modi.

Yeddyurappa said he would change the face of Karnataka and particularly Bangalore city in the next five years and "if I fail to do so, I will quit politics".


Source : Times Of India

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