BBC News – Bridge collapse in western India ‘kills 40′

BBC News, 26 December 2009

The collapse of a bridge being built in western India is feared to have left some 40 people dead, local police say.

Dozens of labourers working on the bridge are thought to have fallen into the river Chambal when it collapsed late on Thursday.

Rescuers have recovered 12 bodies but there is little hope of finding anyone else alive, a senior officer said.

The accident happened near the town of Kota, some 170 miles (270 km) west of Jaipur in Rajasthan.

Police Inspector General Rajeev Dasot said an inquiry had begun into the circumstances leading to the collapse of the bridge, which is being jointly built by South Korea’s Hyundai Engineering and Gammon India.

Mr Dasot said it could take another three days to clear all the debris, AP news agency reported.

The government has ordered an investigation and police have arrested two project managers.

Correspondents say construction site accidents are relatively common in India, where health and safety rules are often overlooked.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8430703.stm

BBC News – Faith Diary: Whose God is Allah? II

In a Christian Majority Country

By Robert Pigott, Religious Affairs correspondent, Thursday, 5 November 2009

When the treatment of Christian minorities in Muslim-majority countries becomes an issue, Christian-majority countries are apt to compare it unfavourably with the equality they give to Muslims.

But strict equality – at least in the architectural arena – is up for debate in one Christian-majority country: Switzerland.

Later this month the Swiss will vote in a referendum on whether to ban the construction of minarets in the country.

The proposal came from right-of-centre groups and is backed by Switzerland’s biggest political party, the far-right Swiss People’s Party.

There are about 100 mosques serving some 300,000 Swiss Muslims and small minarets are not unknown – although they’re not used for calls to prayer.

Muslims have found allies among Switzerland’s Jewish population, who have claimed that the plan would threaten religious harmony and hold up the integration of Muslims.

As in Malaysia, the constitution is being invoked by opponents of the proposal.

The two largest Jewish groups said the referendum infringed religious freedom, a concept enshrined in the Swiss constitution.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8345705.stm

The proposal to ban the building of minarets has been accepted by the people of Switzerland

BBC News – Faith Diary: Whose God is Allah? I

In a Muslim Majority Country

By Robert Pigott, Religious Affairs correspondent, Thursday, 5 November 2009

 

Religion can be a tense affair in Malaysia.

 

Roughly two thirds of the population is Muslim, and religious minorities have repeatedly accused the government of undermining their rights.

The interception by Malaysian authorities of thousands of Bibles bound for Christians in the country has produced the latest flashpoint.

The reason – the Bibles use the word Allah to describe God, and that’s been banned by the government.

It says the risk of causing upset to Muslims is too great.

Muslim groups claim that Christian use of a word so closely associated with Islam in Bibles and children’s books could be aimed at winning converts.

Religion is closely associated with ethnicity in Malaysia, with ethnic Malays obliged to be Muslim.

Ethnic Indians and Chinese who practise Hinduism and Buddhism are welcome to convert to Islam, but Muslims are not allowed to adopt another faith.

The Malaysian government confiscated 5,000 Bibles earlier this year as they were imported from Indonesia, and it has now intercepted another 10,000.

But Christian leaders – representing a little under 10% of the population – say Malays have been using the word Allah to refer generally to God for hundreds of years.

Christians are now fighting back.

An Evangelical church launched a legal action in an attempt to win the right to refer to God as Allah in children’s books.

The Roman Catholic Church has also gone to court after its newspaper in Malaysia was threatened with the loss of its licence if it continued to use the word.

Christians are turning the issue into one about how minorities are treated in Malaysia.

The Christian Federation of Malaysia says the country’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion, and it’s asking whether that can still be meaningful if Christians are denied Bibles which use their own language.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8345705.stm

BBC News – Has sleaze ruling left Pakistan more polarised?

M Ilyas Khan, BBC News, Islamabad, 22 December 2009

The Pakistani Supreme Court’s decision last week to strike down an amnesty law for politicians has created more questions than it has answered.

The decision has led to the reopening of corruption cases against hundreds of people, including the country’s President, Asif Zardari, and some top federal and provincial ministers.

President Zardari is covered by constitutional immunity and cannot be proceeded against as long as he is president, but cases against the ministers can be reopened immediately.

Many in Pakistan have hailed the decision as a major step towards strengthening the rule of law in the country.

But many more read in it a familiar pattern by which the country’s security establishment has repeatedly undermined civilian governments, especially those led by the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), which is now in power.

Defiant stance

The government has avoided an open confrontation with the court, but has adopted a defiant stance.

President Zardari has refused to step down, and no member of the cabinet has been asked to resign, though they say they will abide by the court’s ruling and face charges brought against them.

The main opposition leader, Nawaz Sharif, has so far resisted the temptation to start a full-blown movement against the government, presumably because he fears that this will benefit the military, not his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) party.

But while the government may survive this latest setback, it has been sufficiently weakened to focus on the two core issues the country faces; war against militants and an ailing economy.

For the Western powers, such uncertainty does not bode well.

These powers decided to back a democratic government in Pakistan when the former military regime of General Pervez Musharraf failed to counter the expanding influence of Taliban militants.

Analysts say powers such as the US, the UK and Saudi Arabia underwrote a public amnesty which would enable popular politicians such as Benazir Bhutto to return to the country and counter the Taliban.

The result was the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO), a law which Ms Bhutto negotiated with former military ruler General Musharraf in 2007 to write off cases against her and members of her party which she said were “politically motivated”.

But when the legal team of the former president drafted the law, they expanded its scope to bring several Musharraf allies into its orbit.

Recently, more than 8,000 people – among them politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen – were found to have benefitted from the law.

But the entire debate in the week-long hearings at the Supreme Court revolved around the PPP leaders, notably President Zardari, and they are the ones who appear to be the most directly affected.

Ganging up?

This has led many analysts to question the validity of the original cases of corruption against the PPP leaders in the first place.

They point out that all these cases were instituted to justify the premature ousting of Bhutto’s second government in 1997.

The cases were lodged by the government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who had then replaced Bhutto.

None of the accused leaders were ever convicted in those cases, although President Zardari spent eight years in jail and Bhutto herself lived in self-exile in Dubai.

Many ask what difference will the courts or the investigating agencies make now if the cases are reopened.

There are also questions over the timing and the overall context of the decision.

Many in Sindh province, the stronghold of PPP, believe it is yet another example of the military and the top judiciary ganging up to oust Sindhi politicians from power.

They suspect that the December 2007 assassination of Ms Bhutto at an election rally was the work of some rogue elements within the security establishment to deprive the PPP of effective leadership.

The party still won the February 2008 election, and during the first year of its rule it created the conditions for a successful military operation against the militants in Swat region.

But President Zardari’s offer of a no-first-use of nuclear weapons pact with India, his assertion that India posed no threat to Pakistan, and his attempts to bring the military’s ISI intelligence service under civilian control were initiatives that many believe crossed the red line into a sphere which the military considers to be its exclusive domain.

Secessionists

The military was also perturbed over the recent American aid package to Pakistan which stressed the supremacy of civilian rule over the military as one of its core conditions.

It publicly opposed the package.

The Supreme Court’s verdict against the NRO, and its PPP-centric connotations have led many to point out why the court continues to defer other, more fundamental cases of institutional corruption.

These include a case in which the ISI allegedly distributed funds to raise a political front against the PPP in 1988. The case has been pending at the Supreme Court since 1999.

There have also been cases of major loan write-offs in favour of political allies of the former military rulers, such as General Musharraf and General Ziaul Haq.

In addition to these questions over the impartiality of the top judiciary, there is also a growing perception that the weakening of the PPP government may strengthen secessionist forces in Sindh province.

Many say the Supreme Court verdict has left the country more polarised than before.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8425045.stm

RT.COM – Sikhs strive for recognition in new Afghanistan

08 December, 2009. Decades of fighting has almost wiped out the Sikh and Hindu communities in Afghanistan. Most of them fled the country, and those who are left are struggling to find a place in Afghan society.

Sikhs and Hindus have been in Afghanistan for generations, but whereas once they thrived as a community, three decades of fighting has seen their numbers and influence diminish.

Many of them were killed during the civil war of the 1990s, when their houses, shops and properties were seized by powerful warlords.

Later, under the Taliban, they were forced to wear patches, turbans, or yellow veils to identify themselves. Now, President Karzai’s promises to them are also delivering precious little.

For Sikh children, who cannot attend schools because of the prejudice of their peers, spend their time on the streets of Kabul, where there are plenty of children, and their future looks bleak.

“Every day when I was walking home from school, the children would start hitting me and ask why I put a potato on my head and how much I was selling it for,” says Sikh Kolwinder Singh. “I want to go to school, I want to study, but I cannot. There is too much bullying. It is impossible for me to attend class.”

Kolwinder’s parents took him and his cousins out of school more than a decade ago. They now teach them at home, but it is not easy and most of the children are illiterate.

“For fifteen years our children have not gone to school. We do not have money to send them to private schools and we cannot afford to pay teachers,” says Sikh Dahrmanider Singh. “After the Soviet Union collapsed we had lots of difficulties. We are not rich and we cannot leave the country, otherwise we would have done so a long time ago.”

Today, one hundred Sikh families live in Kabul, whereas before the civil war there were some 3,000 families. Most left for India, Canada, Belgium, the United Kingdom and even Russia, but aside from problems in education, there are problems with religion.

Community life revolves around the Dharamsal temple, but the authorities insist they hold cremation ceremonies for their dead beyond the city gates.

Awtar Singh, who represents Sikhs and Hindus in government, is frustrated with the lack of support they are given. For instance, the Afghan national anthem mentions all the country’s ethnic groups – except Sikhs.

“The government announced many times it would give us a place to burn our bodies, but so far, nothing,” complains representative of religious minorities Awtar Singh. “Sometimes we have to drive six, seven hours to get to a place where we can do it. We have also been asking for the past six, seven years for land where we can build houses for the homeless in our community.”

Deputy Mayor of Kabul Abdul Ahad insists the authorities are doing their best given the circumstances.

“To the best of our abilities we have responded to this,” says Abdul Ahad, adding “We have assigned an area as per the master plan and the development plan of this part of Kabul city for Hindus to do the burning of their dead and all that. But, when they wanted to use the area, it was blocked, I should say, by other sects.”

President Karzai has delayed meeting with the community leaders, but now, with the world’s attention on him and on his efforts to rebuild Afghanistan, they are hoping their voice will finally be heard.

http://rt.com/Top_News/2009-12-08/sikh-afghanistan-kabul-recognition.html

BBC News – Taliban gunmen storm Afghan city of Gardez

[I am pretty sure that there used to be a Sikh community in Gardez, whether there are any left is another matter !]

Monday, 21 December 2009. Security forces in eastern Afghanistan have killed two Taliban militants who seized a building near a police station in the city of Gardez, officials say.

A spokesman for the governor of Paktia province said a number of police and civilians were injured. Fighting began early on Monday and went on for hours.

He told the BBC a search for three other militants was taking place.

The attackers were reportedly heavily armed and some were wearing suicide vests, the spokesman said.

Eastern Afghanistan has seen some of the worst violence in the Taliban-led insurgency.

Correspondents say co-ordinated gun and suicide attacks, usually targeting government officials and security installations, have become increasingly common in Afghanistan.

Grenades

Monday’s attack in Gardez, the capital of Paktia province, began at about 9am (0430GMT) and fighting went on until after midday.

At least five militants seized a building near police headquarters in Gardez and began firing at security forces as they surrounded the building, reports quoting officials said.

Rohullah Samoon, a spokesman for the governor of Paktia, said the militants had been cornered in a market.

The Taliban said they had carried out the assault.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid told the Associated Press that the five attackers had been targeting the police station.

He said all were wearing suicide vests and were armed with rocket-propelled grenades.

In July, gunmen and suicide bombers targeted four sites in Gardez, among them the governor’s compound.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/8423896.stm

The Tribune – DSGMC chief is the talking point in state politics

Prabhjot Singh, Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 21. If anyone is single-handedly gobbling up all attention or has been at the centre of all political controversies in Punjab since the beginning of this month it is none other than Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee chief Paramjit Singh Sarna.

For the Shiromani Akali Dal-led Punjab Government and the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, he has been the bete noire for his action in ordering an inquiry by a retired High Court Judge into incidents of violence in Ludhiana early this month. Besides, he has been trying to polarise all anti-Badal forces into a group to fight the coming elections to the SGPC.

And in Congress circles, though he is known to be a confidant of former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, his alleged recent comments about Beant Singh have put him in the thick of controversy within the higher echelons of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee. One of the former MLAs, Raj Kumar Verka, has gone to the extent of demanding a ban on his entry in Punjab.

Sarna, who, after breaking away from the Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) more than a decade ago, has now established supremacy over managing the affairs of historic gurdwaras in the Union Capital, and is known for his political leanings towards the Congress in general and Capt Amarinder Singh in particular. His strong point has been the support from the urban or non-Jat Sikhs. And he had played a role in getting Sukhdev Singh Libra to vote for the UPA government in the last vote of confidence in the Lok Sabha.

He has also extended tacit support to the revival of the Shiromani Akali Dal (Longowal) currently headed by the wife of Governor of Tamil Nadu Surjit Singh Barnala. Even if one looks back, both the SGPC and the DSGMC have been at daggers drawn over religious issues, including the definition of Sikh, besides being engaged in long unending legal battles.

But comments reportedly made by Capt Amarinder Singh at Tarn Taran recently that he would support anyone to dislodge the Badals from the SGPC had a section of the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee dissociating itself from anything to do with the religious affairs of the Sikhs. PPCC chief Mohinder Singh Kaypee and Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha Rajinder Kaur Bhattal went public saying that they had nothing to do with Paramjit Singh Sarna or the supporting of any group openly in the coming SGPC poll.

This confrontation within the Congress intensified when Sarna reportedly commented that the soul of former Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh had entered Parkash Singh Badal with an indirect reference to the growing threat of revival of terrorism in Punjab.

This has provoked the Beant Singh lobby within the PPCC to react strongly and demand a ban on his entry in Punjab. Others in Congress, too, have reacted adversely to his reported statement.

Only yesterday a strong section of the SAD had made a similar demand after a two-member inquiry committee headed by T.S. Doabia, a retired High Court Judge, went to Ludhiana to start probing the incidents of violence that rocked the industrial city early this month.

It also provoked Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal to tell Sarna to stay away from Punjab and concentrate more on fighting a battle for the victims of the 1984 massacre of Sikhs in the Union Capital.

Harvinder Singh Sarna, brother of Paramjit Singh Sarna, reacted to the statement of Harsimrat Badal, saying that she should look into the deeds of her in-laws’ family that had used the Panth for its “own propagation without ever bothering about the interests of the Sikh community.”

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20091222/punjab.htm#3

SCSH – Guru Nanak Gurpurabh Celebration in Heathrow’s Terminal 5 7th Post

Sixth Posting on the Kirtan Darbar remembering the birthday of Guru Nanak in 1469
All pictures will gradually be added to the Flickr set on Guru Nanak Gurpurabh ‘09 Southall & Heathrow
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12445197@N05/sets/72157622701631084/

Bhai Nirmal Singh Batala & Hong Kong Wala telling us about Guru Nanak

 Bhai Gursharan Singh & Bhai Nirmal Singh

Charanvir Singh Videomagic, our official photographer, and to his right Bhainji Jaswinder Kaur who always makes a big contribution to these events

Gursharan Singh ending with Anand Sahib

That’s All Folks !
Harjinder Singh
Man in Blue

The Tribune – Scourge of Drugs I

Govt fails to check menace of intoxicants, Ravi Dhaliwal

Muktsar/Bathinda, December 19. Once a vivacious southwest Punjab, it has been plagued by the twin scourge of drugs and waterlogging.

Though the efforts of the government are on to check waterlogging, it has “failed” to eradicate the evil of drugs. The problem, if one goes by an affidavit submitted by the Social Security Department to the Punjab and Haryana High Court which claims that 65 per cent of the youth are on a cocktail of drugs, has acquired alarming proportions.

The case of Ranjeet Singh, son of a farmer, is perhaps symptomatic of the entire region, says Dr S Krishnan, in charge of the Drug De-addiction Centre of Adesh Hospital and Research Centre, Muktsar, “Ranjeet comes on the pretext of donating blood. However, the fact is that he comes here to sell his blood to pay for his drugs. I have caught him so many times. His skinny built, yellow eyes are sure give aways. He confided to me that he started off from table spoons of poppy husk and later graduated to dreaded heroin”.

The Muktsar police doles out statistics of recoveries of drugs and cases slapped under the NDPS Act on smugglers. However, sources claim that all these statistics are just tips of the iceberg. Muktsar SSP Gurpreet Singh Gill said: “We admit that we have a big fight on our hands. Having said that, we are doing our best to curb inter-state smuggling of drugs like poppy husk and opium.”

In Muktsar, the hub of southwest Punjab, the problem is magnified because of the 8-km border it shares with Rajasthan where the government has opened poppy husk vends. The porous border ensures that poppy husk and opium are quietly smuggled into the district.

Admits AS Sukhija, chief administrative officer of Adesh Hospital, Muktsar, which has a de-addiction centre where hordes of rural youth get admitted every day, “Whatever the police is doing is fine. But the fact remains that each of the 230 villages of the district is affected by the menace. Once they are treated, 75 per cent of them become re-lapse cases, where they again resort to drugs”.

A drug addict, under treatment at Adesh hospital, revealed, “I got trapped into the world of drugs through poppy husk. Later came in opium and then I tasted psychotropic substances like Phansydril, Corex (cough syrups), Proxyvon (pain killer) and Alfrix-20 (sedative). I was caught in a vicious trap”.

“First of all action should be taken against chemists selling psychotropic substances without proper prescriptions. Each of the 230 villages have chemist shops selling drugs. A nexus exists between the Rajasthan-based drug mafia and the local police,” said Savita Sachdeva, a sociologist.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20091220/punjab.htm#7

The Tribune – Shiv Sainiks clash with police

Tribune News Service, Patiala, December 20. Hundreds of activists of Shiv Sena (Bal Thackrey) today entered into physical confrontation with the police, after latter prevented the Shiv Sanik’s from staging a demonstration outside Moti Bagh Palace, residence of Minister of State for External Affairs Preneet Kaur.

Under the leadership of Shiv Sena (Bal Thackrey) state president Yograj Sharma and vice-president Harish Singla, activists were marching towards Preneet’s residence to lodge their protest . The protestors were raising slogans against the Congress and announced to gherao the Moti Bagh Palace. Thus, the police near Modi College stopped all protestors and the situation was brought under control. Sharma accused the Congress of “overlooking” the interests of the Hindu community.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2009/20091221/punjab.htm#5