The Tribune – Violence by upper caste community forces Dalits to flee Haryana village

Bhanu P. Lohumi, Tribune News Service

Pabnawa (Kaithal), April 16. Deserted chopal, bricks and stones scattered all around, broken gates and ransacked houses of Dalits narrate the horrid tale of brutal violence perpetrated on them by goons of upper caste at Pabnawa village of Kaithal district on the intervening night of April 13 and 14, forcing the Dalit womenfolk to flee the village.

The horrifying incident took place on the eve of 122nd birth anniversary of BR Ambedakar, known as messiah of Dalits, and about 80 houses were ransacked and 11 persons, including seven policemen, were seriously injured.

The Dalits paid for the “sin” of marrying an upper caste girl by a Dalit boy of the village and the brutal attack engineered after giving ultimatum to the Dalits to return the girl within two days, the victims lamented.

The upper caste community could not digest marriage of Surya Kant, a Dalit, and Meena belonging to Rod community, and their marriage spelled doom for the entire community, living under fear and terror.

Chairman of National Commission for Scheduled Castes PL Punia who arrived at the village to take stock of the situation was encountered by an 80-year old woman when he had barely walked 100 metres into snaking gullies who fell on his feet and asked “What is our fault. What have we done”.

The women identified as Raji, mother of “Miya” the kiryana shopowner at the chopal who was seriously injured and was admitted to PGI when more than 400 persons of Rod community, opposed to marriage of their girl with low caste boy, attacked their homes just sought justice.

With tears rolling down her cheeks, Raji pointed towards the gate of her broken home which was ransacked and said they came like a tornado, attacked my son, injured him, took away the canter, shop material and assets.

She was not the only one to tell her tale of woes and every broken gate had a story inside it. Another resident who was an eyewitness to the attack, Ramesh, said neither had we supported Surya Kant of our community who got married to Meena of Rod community nor we were instrumental in the marriage. Then why we have been victimised and forced to live under threat.

An old man Lakhmi Chand said we were fortunate that we sent our women and kids to our relatives’ place after the big wigs of Rod community served an ultimatum of two days on April 10 to get the girl back or face the consequences.

The worst hit were the people engaged in menial jobs who feel threatened to go out to earn their livelihood and were waiting for the survey to be completed so that they could get money to reconstruct their homes.

Kaithal SP Kuldeep Singh said the situation was under control on Monday and police personnel were deployed in the village. “The villagers from both the communities are making efforts to sort out the issue.

The administration is cooperating with them in this initiative,” he said.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130417/main5.htm#1

The Tribune – Vijender finally gives samples to NADA; Ram Singh arrested

Tribune News Service

New Delhi/Fatehgarh Sahib, April 3. In a double twist to the drug seizure case, India’s Olympic hero Vijender Singh today made himself available for an out-of-competition dope test by the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for heroin use while his sparring partner Ram Singh was arrested for his links to one of the key accused.

The dope tests were apparently conducted in Delhi this morning when Vijender made himself available to give his urine and blood samples. Sports Minister Jitender Singh confirmed the tests and is learnt to have told Vijender to go for rehabilitation, as the boxer allegedly consumed heroin not as a performance-enhancing drug but for “recreation”, though heroin is a prohibited item in the WADA (World Anti Doping Agency) list.

“NADA has taken Vijender’s samples in the morning. The blood and urine samples of Vijender and other boxers have been taken. I will wait for the results before deciding on any action. I don’t want to speculate. But even if Vijender has made a mistake, he should of course be punished or penalised, but after that his rehabilitation should start,” the minister said. “We need to see that our sportspersons are rehabilitated so that they could perform.”

Ram Singh on the other hand was arrested by the Fatehgarh Sahib police for his close links to his brother-in-law Ravicharan Singh, alias Ravi Deol, prime accused in the recent drug seizure case. Deol has already been declared a proclaimed offender in an assault case registered in Sangrur.

Addressing mediapersons late this evening, Fatehgarh Sahib SSP Hardial Singh Mann said after the recovery of drugs and “ice” worth Rs 115 crore from Deol’s parental house in Sangrur, Ram Singh was asked to join investigation again today.

During questioning, it was found that Ram Singh had deeper links with smugglers, which necessitated his custodial interrogation, he added.

Ram Singh is married to Deol’s sister. He had introduced Vijender to Deol, a former boxer, and the latter had given tips on boxing to Vijender. Vijender and Ram Singh had also visited Deol after former’s Beijing Olympics triumph.

Ram Singh has been booked under Sections 21, 61 and 85, NDPS Act, and Sections 25, 54, 59A, 420, 465, 468 and 471, IPC.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130404/main2.htm

The Tribune – Rs 484-Crore drug haul case; Police may issue lookout notice for Ram Singh’s relative

Sanjay Bumbroo, Tribune News Service

Fatehgarh Sahib, April 2. The district police will soon issue a lookout notice for boxer Ram Singh’s brother-in-law and proclaimed offender (PO) Ravicharn Singh alias Ravi Deol, whose name figured in the Rs 484-crore drug haul case. Sources said the police was yet to make any headway in arresting Deol and the other two accused, Satinder Singh alias Dhama, resident of Panchkula and Avtar Singh of Patiala.

The police had decided to issue a lookout notice against them too. The police had raided the residences of the three accused on Sunday and recovered 10 kg of Ice and 230 kg of Pseudophedrine from the vehicles parked on their premises.

Sources said international boxer Vijender Singh had come in contact with Anup Singh Kahlon through his sparring partner Ram Singh, who was married to Deol’s sister. Kahlon and Deol had come to know each other when the latter had moved to Mumbai after being declared as a PO five years ago for assaulting a policeman.

Deol had been booked under Sections 353 (Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 384 (Extortion) on August 25, 2008. Sources said the police would soon summon Vijender boxer and suspended boxer Ram Singh to join the investigation. Senior Superintendent of Police Hardial Singh Mann said raids were being conducted at all the possible hideouts of the three accused.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130403/punjab.htm#10

The Tribune – SGPC clears Rs 806-cr budget; Up 21% over last year; Gurdwara upkeep, spread of education thrust areas

Perneet Singh, Tribune News Service

Amritsar, March 15. The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee today passed its annual budget of Rs 806 crore for 2013-14, registering a 21.13 per cent increase over last year’s budget of Rs 665.46 crore. The SGPC executive passed the budget unanimously with primary focus on maintenance of gurdwaras, spread of education and propagation of Sikhism.

The budget could not be presented and approved in the SGPC general house for the second successive year, as the fate of the new House continues to hang in the balance over the Sehajdhari row.

SGPC chief Avtar Singh Makkar said the major chunk of the budget had gone into maintenance of gurdwaras for which Rs 510.78 crore had been set aside as compared to Rs 421.26 crore last fiscal. In a boost for the education sector, the Education Fund has been increased from Rs 18.40 crore to Rs 23.90 crore. Similarly, the allocation for SGPC-run educational institutions has been raised from Rs 109.29 crore to Rs 133.64 crore.

The allocation for the Dharam Parchar Committee, which primarily works for the propagation of Sikhism, has witnessed an increase of Rs 9 crore i.e. from Rs 43 crore to Rs 52 crore.

The General Board Fund has been increased from Rs 43.40 crore to Rs 48.40 crore, while the Trust Fund has gone up from Rs 23.61 crore to Rs 31.23 crore. Another Rs 6.09 crore has been allocated for the printing press.

Further, Rs 7 crore has been allocated for “kar sewa” of gurdwaras and Rs 1.46 crore for promotion of hockey and kabaddi in SGPC-run institutions. There is also a plan to make hockey compulsory in SGPC-run schools and colleges.

Makkar said the SGPC had already given a financial aid of Rs 3.27 crore to 1,605 cancer patients and the budget allocation for this had been increased further.

Over Rs 58 lakh had been spent on the education for poor, besides another Rs 25 lakh on higher education of children from the 1984 riot-hit families, he added.

It has also been decided to reserve seats for Sikh girls from strife-torn Kashmir valley in SGPC-run educational institutions. Besides, an aid of Rs 70 lakh has been extended for the education of children from the Shikligar community in Vijaywada. Displaced Sikh families from Afghanistan have also been given a financial aid of Rs 5 lakh.

Makkar said a number of “sarais” (inns) were being constructed to provide accommodation to devotees. “While three ‘sarais’ are coming up in Amritsar, one each is ready at Anandpur Sahib and Damdama Sahib.” He said a coaching centre for IAS/IPS examination would also come up in Mohali soon.

TV channel warned

The SGPC has warned a private TV channel against naming its soon-to-be-launched soap as “Gurbani”, contending that the move has hurt the religious sentiments of the Sikhs. The committee has written to the channel as well as the Union Information and Broadcasting Minister in this regard.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130316/punjab.htm#8

The Tribune – Boxers in the drug ring; Vijender joins probe; refuses to give blood, hair samples

Aman Sood, Tribune News Service

Panchkula/Patiala, March 11. Ace boxer Vijender Singh, who joined investigations in the Rs 130-crore drug haul case, today refused to give his blood and hair samples for medical examination to the Punjab Police.

He was not willing to give his samples to the Punjab Police team, which questioned him at Panchkula in the presence of Haryana police officers for more than three hours.

The refusal puts a question mark on the boxer’s stance of never taking drugs and remaining available for probe.

“He was asked to give his hair and blood samples in the presence of two government witnesses. But the boxer refused to do so,” said DIG (Ludhiana) MF Farooqui.

“He answered some questions asked in a questionnaire but refused to elaborate on his possible links with Anup Singh Kahlon, claiming he knew Kahlon only through Ram Singh,” the DIG said.

Farooqui said since Vijender’s name had figured during the course of the investigation, he would be asked to explain his position when the need arose. “Vijender is a responsible citizen and if we need to question him, he will be asked to join the investigations. But our priority now is to arrest the drug peddlers involved in the supply of contraband,” he said.

“He (Vijender) admitted to having talked with Anup occasionally but claimed that he never realised he was a drug dealer,” the police officer added.

Sources say the police team did not have a warrant against Vijender and the fact that he was questioned outside Punjab made it easier for the Haryana DSP to dodge difficult questions.

On 21 calls made from his cell phone to Kahlon over a period of one month, Vijender claimed he was not aware of who made such calls. When asked why he once went to Kahlon’s residence at midnight, he said he didn’t remember any such the visit.

The sources said the boxer’s answers indicated he had been briefed by his lawyer. He had sought one month’s time apparently to ensure that no trace of drug was left in his blood, they added.

The SSP said the police would proceed against Vijender under the CrPC but refused to comment on reasons behind questioning the boxer at a Haryana police officer’s office instead of summoning him to Punjab. (Inputs from Mohit Khanna & Surinder Bhardwaj)

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130312/main3.htm

The Tribune – Punjab to SC: Haryana has no right to benefit from Ravi and Beas

R Sedhuraman, Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, March 9. Punjab has rejected Haryana’s objection to its control over the Shahpur Kandi Dam, Modhopur Headworks and Thein Dam/Ranjit Sagar Project contending that the neighbouring state has no legal right to any benefit from these projects.

“Haryana has not been able to demonstrate the existence of its legal right, much less the violation of any alleged legal right,” Punjab said in a statement filed in the Supreme Court in response to the suit filed by the neighbouring state.

The Haryana had pleaded with the SC to restrain Punjab from going ahead with the execution of the Shahpur Kandi project, pending disposal of the case.

Haryana claims the construction of the Shahpur Kandi Dam, the third on the Ravi, would further reduce the flow of water downstream, affecting the lower riparian states. Punjab was going ahead with the work without the consent of Haryana and other states that would be affected, it said.

In the 155-page statement filed by KBS Sidhu, Principal Secretary, Irrigation Department of Punjab, maintained that Haryana had no right to intervene in the matter as it “is neither riparian nor basin to Ravi or Beas, nor a part of the larger Indus basin, as no part of Haryana drains into the said rivers and therefore it has no legal right to be the beneficiary of electricity”.

Haryana was producing hydro power through the Tajewala Hydel Project and Western Yamuna Canal (WYC) I and II “without giving any share in the power to any other riparian or basin states”, Punjab pointed out while rejecting its neighbour’s claim to a share in the electricity generated through the Thein Dam and Shahpur Kandi projects.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130310/main6.htm

The Tribune – Railway Budget : North smiles, after long

Chandigarh gets connectivity to Bangalore, Goa, Amritsar
Coach factory to come up at Sonepat
New line to Talwandi Sabo in Punjab
Multi-mode travel package for J&K

Vibha Sharma, Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 26. Railway Minister Pawan Bansal, an MP from Chandigarh, today gave his home town, as also other northern states, something or the other to cheer about.

The “Rai Bareli” Budget, as the Opposition chose to christen Bansal’s maiden effort, in fact carries a distinct North Indian touch, but to be fair to him, unlike his predecessors, he seems to be fairly equitable in treating various regions.

Perhaps, it is after a long gap that northern states have been looked after with announcement of new projects and trains. The poll-bound Haryana finds favour with a coach-manufacturing unit at Sonepat, while Chandigarh has been bestowed with a bonanza of new trains, increase in frequency and connectivity to Amritsar (the Amritsar Intercity Express (daily) via Mohali), Goa (extension of the Madgaon-Hazrat Nizamuddin train to Chandigarh) and Bangalore (extension of the Yeshvantpur-Hazrat Nizamuddin Sampark Kranti Express to Chandigarh, two days).

Bansal also promised a traffic survey for a new line between Patiala and Jakhal.

The minister has also tried to include the much-neglected Himachal Pradesh in his plan. The Bilaspur-Manali-Leh, identified by the Planning Commission as a strategically important link, found mention in his speech. Apart from announcing a new line between Dharamsala and Palampur, he promised to actively pursue the link.

But as far as new projects go, he has been the most generous towards Chandigarh that sends him to the Lok Sabha, obviously to keep his prospects intact ahead of the next General Election, and also Haryana. So while he announced a modern signalling equipment facility through the PPP route and a skill-development centre for the City Beautiful, Sonepat district in Haryana got a coach-manufacturing unit in collaboration with the state government. Haryana got three new rail lines out of the total 22 announced today. Rohtak MP Deepender Singh Hooda has thanked the Railway Minister for the factory and new lines.

For Jammu and Kashmir, he has mooted two important projects, which will take care of interests of Vaishno Devi pilgrims besides other tourists. For the benefit of Sikhs, the minister proposed to take up the construction of a new line from Rama Mandi to Maur Mandi via Talwandi Sabo. Among the five Sikh Takhts, only the Takht Damdama Sahib that was not connected by a rail link, he said.

For J&K, there is a multi-modal travel package with cooperation of the state government that would enable passengers to travel from Jammu through Udhampur, Qazigund to Srinagar and Baramulla on a common rail-bus ticket. Officials say the move intends to facilitate and provide hassle-free travel for tourists visiting the region.

Apart from commissioning of the railway line to Katra, which, Bansal said, would happen very soon, he also mooted a proposal for issuing “yatra parchis” to pilgrims travelling by rail at the time of booking of the ticket itself. This, he said, would be done with the help of the Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.

He promised to take up the Udampur-Srinagar-Baramulla national project and the projects of strategic importance on priority. Apart from pursuing the Bilaspur-Manali-Leh link and Jammu-Poonch via Akhnoor, he also announced a new line between Ferozepur and Patti for providing a direct rail link between border areas in Punjab-Ferozepur, Amritsar and Attari.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130227/main2.htm  

The Asian Age – CBI meets Italian judge, prosecutors

Pramod Kumar, Asian Age Correspondent

New Delhi, 21 February 2013. The CBI officials met the Italian judge and public prosecutors, who are part of probe into alleged kickbacks paid to clear the `3,600 crore AgustaWest-land helicopter deal, in Milan on Wednesday.

Sources in the agency said, “Meeting with the Italian judge was very useful. Officials had a separate meeting with the prosecutors who probed the `3,600cr VVIP helicopter deal also”. The agency officials requested the Italian judge to provide them certified copy of the probe-related documents, including report filed by public prosecutor Eugenio Fusco, sources added.

The CBI officials, a CBI DIG and a legal adviser are part of a joint Indian team along with a senior ministry of defence official that is currently in Italy to seek legal assistance in conducting the agency’s probe.

“If required, the agency officials will meet the Italian judge again on Thursday. The CBI has also engaged two legal firms in Italy for liaisoning with the authorities to get legal assistance in probing the role of Indians in connection with the alleged kickbacks in the `3,600 crore deal,” sources said.

Sources further said Chiomenti law firm and Grippo law firm have been engaged by the CBI to help in coordinating with the Italian authorities for getting documents and other relevant material pertaining to the deal for supplying 12 helicopters to India. Chiomenti law firm was established in 1948 and has 270 attorneys in six countries, including in London. Grippo law firm with 360 attorneys has a presence in five countries, including the UK.

The legal firms will represent India’s case with the Italian government and the local courts to find out the role of Indians in the alleged `3,600-crore VVIP helicopter deal scam in which Giuseppe Orsi, the chairman of Italian air defence group Finmeccanica, was arrested there.

In February 2010, India had inked the `3,600 crore deal to acquire the 12 three-engine AW-101 helicopters from AgustaWest-land for IAF’s elite Communication Squad-ron, which ferries the President, PM and other VVIPs.

http://www.asianage.com/india/cbi-meets-italian-judge-prosecutors-714

The Tribune – Sharjah Case, Tears, joy, resolve as 17 youths meet kin

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 12. It was an emotional reunion for 17 youths – who returned to India from the United Arab Emirates – with their families at the Golden Temple here on Tuesday.

A majority of them met their families, who were camping in Amritsar since Monday evening, after a gap of five to seven years. The youths, facing death sentence for the murder of a Pakistani, were released by UAE authorities after they paid Rs 5.3 crore as blood money to the victim’s family.

The youths — 16 from Punjab and one from Haryana — landed at New Delhi on Tuesday morning and reached Amritsar in the evening. Most of them are school dropouts who had gone to the Arab nation to augment their family’s income.

Dressed up in a bright yellow salwar kameez, Ranjit Kaur from Jhoke Tehal Singh Wala village in Ferozepur district, screamed with joy after seeing her husband Dharampal Singh. She was accompanied by her five-and-a-half -year-old son. “It’s for the first time that he (Dharampal) is meeting his son,” she said.

Dharampal says he will now till his five-acre land to earn a living. “I went in search of greener pastures and avoided this easily available option (farming),” he said. He moved to Dubai in September 2007 after paying Rs one lakh to a Jalandhar-based agent to work as a carpenter. “The initial few months were okay. I used to earn Rs 15,000 per month. But soon the private company, which had hired me, ran into some trouble and I was rendered jobless,” he said.

Tears rolled down the cheeks of Jaswinder Kaur of Kukrana village in Moga as she hugged her son Kuldeep Singh (28) after a gap of five years.

Holding her son’s hand firmly, she said she would never allow him to travel out of the country for a job. Kuldeep said his first priority would be to clear the debt lakh his family had taken to send him abroad.

Kuldeep, also a carpenter, said he was fleeced by the private company that had hired him. “They had promised to give me Rs 12,000 per month, but they paid only half the amount,” claimed Kuldeep.

Kashmir Singh of Rattu Ke Village in Tarn Taran says he wants to give his daughters a quality life. A skilled mason, he flew to Dubai with the help of a relative to increase his monthly income in 2007. His hopes, however, were dashed as the company where he was employed failed.

As many as 14 out of 17 youths were staying together in a villa when they were arrested on January 26, 2009. In total, 70 persons from different countries, including, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, were living together to curtail their expenses.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130213/main3.htm

The Tribune – Sukhbir accepts Hooda’s offer of talks on water disputes

Tribune News Service

Moga, February 9. The Punjab Government has welcomed the initiative by Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for exploring a political solution to the water disputes pending for decades between the two states.

Sukhbir said, “I welcome the initiative of the Haryana Government. We are ready to sit together and solve the issues pertaining to water disputes. However, he did not divulge any details.”

Hooda had expressed his desire to solve the water issues with Punjab at a function held in Gurgaon yesterday.

Disputes relating to the Hansi-Butana canal, Dashmesh canal, Sutlej-Yamuna link canal and channelisation of the Ghaggar have been pending between the two states for the past several decades.

The Congress government in Punjab headed by the then Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh had, in 2004, annulled all water agreements between the two states by bringing in the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act 2004.

It also resulted in termination of agreements related to the Ravi-Beas waters, which was signed by the chief ministers of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan in 1981. Haryana has long been maintaining that due to this, the state was not getting its share of 3.5 MAF of water due to non-completion of construction work on Sutlej-Yamuna link canal.

There is another dispute between the two states on the construction of Hansi-Butana canal by the Haryana Government. The apex court has stayed the linking of this canal with the Bhakra Management Line (BML) on a case filed by the Punjab Government.

Punjab went to the apex court because Haryana had gone to the Central Water Commission against the proposed Dashmesh canal, which was also to be linked with the BML and was meant to irrigate thousands of acres of land in Ropar, Fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala districts.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130210/punjab.htm#1