The Tribune – Preneet Kaur, Raninder Singh make up for Captain’s absence in Patiala

Aman Sood, Tribune News Service

Patiala, May 17. With local MLA Captain Amarinder Singh opting to stay away from campaigning, his wife and MP Preneet Kaur and son Raninder Singh have been working hard to fill the void. The mother-son duo went on a whirlwind tour of Samana constituency and addressed a series of rallies in support of Congress candidates.

Winning the elections on her home turf would be crucial for the Union Minister (Preneet) as these would set the tone for next year’s parliamentary elections.

Raninder appeared leaving no stone unturned while trying to infuse confidence in the party cadre. He had lost the assembly elections from Samana to Rural Development and Panchayats Minister Surjit Singh Rakhra.

“The National Rifle Association of India working kept me busy in Delhi, but I was in constant touch with the local leaders in the constituency,” he said.

Lashing out at the Akalis, he said: “You voted for them (SAD-BJP) but what did you get in return? Theirs is a government of liars. So, get ready to teach them a lesson on May 19 (polling day).”

The next to target the ruling coalition was Preneet Kaur: “We will take the Akalis head-on and make sure they are not able to succeed in their evil designs to win the elections by rigging.”

At some distance from the Congress rally, Rakhra quipped that voters in his constituency would not even recognise the Congress leaders “who only turn up on poll eve”. “I have been working round the clock and despite my engagements as a Cabinet Minister, I make it a point to attend each and every person from Samana on a priority.”

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130518/punjab.htm#5

The Tribune – Pre-poll violence unabated; 2 killed in Amritsar village clash

P K Jaiswar, Tribune News Service

Amritsar, May 17. A day after the killing of a Peoples Party of Punjab (PPP) leader in Bathinda, two persons were shot dead in an exchange of fire between two groups at Chak Mishri Khan village in Lopoke near here this morning, pushing the toll in the run-up to the May 19 local body elections in Punjab to four.

The deceased are Congress worker Gurjinder Singh of the Master Manjit Singh group and SAD worker Balkar Singh, an associate of Chak Mishri Khan village Sarpanch Jagir Singh. The injured has been identified as Major Singh, also an associate of Jagir Singh. He is admitted to the Guru Nanak Dev Hospital here.

Tension was brewing between two groups of Chak Mishri Khan village over a consensus to elect the village panchayat, without polls. Both groups were preparing for Panchayat elections though members of the Zila Parishad and Block Samiti were elected unanimously after the Congress decided not to contest. The SAD leader wanted unanimous election to the village Panchayat, but Manjit Singh was opposing the move, it is learnt.

Today, Jagir Singh and his armed companions, who were camping in the house of his associate Shinder Singh in the village, moved towards Manjit Singh’s house with an intention of attack. On the way, Congress worker Gurjinder Singh tried to stop them and asked them to settle the dispute with “mutual understanding”. Jagir and his group were in no mood to relent and reportedly opened fire, killing Gurjinder.

Jagir Singh and his men then reached Manjit Singh’s house, where they were allegedly fired upon. Major Singh said Manjit and 20 others attacked them. Balkar Singh suffered a gunshot injury in the firing and died on the spot.

However, Border Range IG Ishwar Chander Sharma and DIG Paramraj Singh Umranangal, in a hurriedly convened press conference, said the incident was the outcome of personal enmity between two groups.

“There was a controversy between two groups in the village over possession of land measuring over two kanals between two groups headed by Jagir Singh and Manjit Singh. This was the reason behind today’s firing and subsequent killing of two persons” said Ishwar Chander.

On the statement of Gurjinder’s son, the police have booked 14 persons, of which three persons — including Jagir Singh, Mangat Singh and Major Singh — have been arrested. Narinder Singh, Gurpreet Singh and Nirmal Singh besides others are at large and a manhunt has been launched to arrest the remaining accused, he said.

As many as 15 police parties headed by SHOs from Batala and Amritsar Rural police have been conducting raids at various places to nab the accused. Senior police officials including SSP Amritsar rural police district have been stationed at Lopoke to supervise the operation.

The firing incident has raised a question mark, as the police administration had already launched a drive to deposit licenced arms. The arms used in the crime belonged to Narinder Singh, a former sarpanch of the village. He is affiliated to Jagir Singh, present Akali Sarpanch from Chak Mishri Khan village.

DIG Border Range Paramraj Singh Umranangal said till today morning, 85 per cent licenced arms had been deposited with respective police stations in police districts falling under the Border Range. He said the remaining weapons would be in police custody by the evening.

District Rural Congress president Harpartap Singh Ajnala condemned the incident and said it had nothing to do with the ongoing Zila Parishad polls and was the result of tension between two groups regarding forthcoming Panchayat elections.

Killing fields

May 16: One person killed in a shootout at a PPP-Congress rally in Adampur in Jalandhar; Congress worker Rajwinder Singh injured
May 15: Nine persons belonging to two groups of the ruling SAD injured in a fierce hour-long clash at Mianwala village in Tarn Taran
May 8: Youth Congress leader Sukhraj Singh shot dead in Tarn Taran
May 7: Personal assistant of Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi , Guruharsahai legislator, attacked

Both killed by same weapon

The death of SAD worker Balkar Singh has become a mystery for the police. Investigations pointed out that the same weapon was used to kill both Gurjinder and Balkar, which raises a question mark on the theory of Balkar being killed in crossfire. DIG Border Range Paramraj Singh Umranangal confirmed doubts over whether crossfiring had taken place, adding that the firearm used in the crime has been recovered.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130518/main2.htm

The Asian Age – PM ‘power centre’ in government: Digvijay Singh

Asian Age Correspondent

New Delhi, 18 May, 2013. Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Friday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is the “power centre in governance” and “for political matters it is, of course, Mrs Sonia Gandhi”.

Mr Singh, a former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, is an AICC general secretary. His remarks on the controversy over “power centres” come as the UPA-2 government completes four years on May 22.

“There has to be one power centre and here the power centre is Dr Manmohan Singh in governance. And for political matters it is, of course, Mrs Sonia Gandhi,” Mr Singh told NDTV.

“Both are working separately in their own domain, Dr Manmohan Singh takes all decisions in the government of India, and Mrs Sonia Gandhi takes all decisions in the organisation,” he added.

Seeking to explain the context of his earlier remarks, which had triggered a controversy, Mr Singh said because of the media hype and Opposition’s allegations there is a general perception among the bureaucracy and in other forms of government that there are dual power centres.

“This is a perception created by the media — that there are dual power centres, a perception created by the Opposition. Frankly the Congress president has never interfered in the functioning of the government, not once,” he said.

http://www.asianage.com/india/pm-power-centre-govt-diggy-895

The Tribune – Pakistan appoints judge to probe Sarabjit’s murder

Lahore, May 17. A serving judge has been named by a Pakistani court to probe the murder of Indian death row prisoner Sarabjit Singh, who died earlier this month after being assaulted within the Kot Lakhpat Jail here.

Lahore High Court Chief Justice Umar Ata Bandial appointed Justice Syed Mazhar Ali Akbar Naqvi to investigate the matter and submit a report to the court.

However, no deadline has been given to Naqvi to complete the probe. Earlier, caretaker Punjab Chief Minister Najam Sethi had written a letter to the Chief Justice, asking him to appoint a judge to conduct the probe.

Five to six prisoners had brutally assaulted Sarabjit in a well-coordinated attack on April 26. After being comatose for nearly a week, Singh died at Jinnah Hospital in Lahore on May 2. Police registered a murder case against two death row prisoners Amer Aftab and Mudassar for allegedly assaulting Sarabjit.

Both men told police that they wanted to kill Sarabjit as he was involved in killing innocent Pakistanis in bomb blasts. (PTI)

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130518/main5.htm

Dawn – Judges detention case: Complaint withdrawn against Musharraf

Islamabad, 18 May 2013. In a surprising development, the lawyer who had filed a petition in the judges’ detention case has withdrawn his complaint against former president retired General Pervez Musharraf.

The decision by Advocate Chaudhry Mohammad Aslam Ghumman came a day before the hearing of the case on Saturday by the Islamabad Anti-Terrorism Court at General Musharraf’s Chak Shahzad farmhouse which has been declared a sub-jail.

The judges’ detention case was registered by the Secretariat Police Station on Aug 11, 2009, on the complaint of Advocate Ghumman who had sought legal proceedings against the former military ruler for confining 60 judges of the superior courts for over five months at their homes and restraining them from administering justice.

Talking to Dawn on Friday, Advocate Ghumman said he had withdrawn the complaint in the larger national interest. “I think that the trial of General Musharraf in such a state of affairs is not in the national interest and, therefore, I have decided to withdraw my complaint,” he said.

“Before taking the decision to withdraw the petition I also consulted my friends and it was taken after due deliberation.”

Advocate Ghumman said he would neither appear before the court nor press for the prosecution of General Musharraf, adding that it was up to the court to decide the fate of the case against him.

It may be mentioned that over the past couple of weeks at least three lawyers, including special prosecutor of Islamabad police Syed Mohammad Tayyab, have dissociated themselves from the case. The other two — Raja Rizwan Abbasi and Qamar Afzal — are reported to have received threats from unknown people.

But Advocate Ghumman rejected reports that he had withdrawn the complaint under any pressure or fear and said he had never been threatened by any quarter.

Advocate Ashraf Gujjar, the counsel for Mr Ghumman, told Dawn that he was not aware of the decision taken by his client. He said Mr Ghumman had not consulted him on the issue although he had been appearing in the court on his behalf.

Advocate Gujjar was of the opinion that Mr Ghumman could not withdraw the complaint because the FIR also included sections of Anti-Terrorism Act, 1997. Only the state could withdraw the case. According to legal expert Barrister Zafarullah Khan, an individual can dissociate himself from prosecution but cannot withdraw a case. “After the happening of a crime, a complainant informs the state machinery about it and the responsibility to prosecute the criminal is put on the shoulder of police or other law-enforcement agencies,” he told Dawn.

“Since the crime is considered an illegal act against the society and the state, only the federal or provincial government through the district magistrate (deputy commissioner) can withdraw the case against a criminal,” he said.

The complaint against Gen Musharraf was registered under section 344 of the Pakistan Panel Code. The offence is a bailable and entails a maximum imprisonment of three years.

Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui of the Islamabad High Court had dismissed the pre-arrest bail plea of General Musharraf on April 18 and observed that the act of detaining the judges of superior courts and forcefully restraining them from performing their lawful duty was an act of terrorism. He ordered police to book the former military ruler under section 7 of the Anti-Terrorism Act.

General Musharraf may get life imprisonment if he is convicted by the court under this section.

http://dawn.com/2013/05/18/judges-detention-case-complaint-withdrawn-against-musharraf/

530. The Man in Blue – Panj Ab = Five Waters

I wrote this article after hearing a lecture at the KU (Catholic University) of Leuven, Belgium, by Christophe Masson, India Desk Officer at the European Commission. He mentioned a water related project in Rajastan, which made me think of the Indira Gandhi Canal, and from there of the ever lower groundwater level in Panjab. Man in Blue

The historical Panjab, from the river Indus in the west to the river Yamuna in the east, was called the Panj-Áb, the five waters after the five rivers that flow from the Himalayas to the Indus.

Panjab is not as dry as Rajasthan, but without the five rivers most of its territory would be a dry steppe, fit for grazing but no good for arable land.

Since the green revolution the standard crop pattern in the Indian Panjab and in Haryana is wheat – rice. Wheat is the early crop and after its harvest most of the arable land is converted to paddy fields. Panjab became the rice provider of India.

Due to the paddy fields the farmers were using more water than the rivers could supply and they started to pump-up ground water to irrigate their fields. This costs money, as hand pumps are not adequate for the job. The Panjab state government decided to supply the farmers with free electricity for their tube-wells.

As the state government has the habit of either not paying or late paying the state electricity provider, one semi-state company has already given up the ghost, and its successor is struggling. Somebody has to foot the bill !

But the most alarming result of this scheme is that the groundwater table is going down fast, the tubes are getting longer and with that the energy use goes up too.

At Harike, in the south-west of the Indian Panjab starts the Indira Gandhi canal, which takes vast amounts of river water to Rajasthan. This water is obviously no longer available for either the Pakistan or the Indian Panjab. How much of this water evaporates before it gets to the Jaisalmer area I do not know.

Whether it is useful to infiltrate this water in a desert area I do not know either. I have heard reports of salinization of the irrigated fields, which does not surprise me at all.

But my main issue is with the madness of having paddy fields in a dry area like Panjab. After independence it made some sense as the rice eating states were not able to grow enough rice for their needs. Now these states have become self-sufficient and it is high time for a new green revolution in the Panjab.

The farmers are reluctant to change, but if the Panjab is to survive as at least the main provider of wheat, the paddy fields have to go. Alternative crops, dairy farming, market gardening (growing of vegetables) are the answer.

On the rich clay soils of Panjab many crops will thrive. With temperatures ranging from a minimum of near 0 degrees in December/January to a maximum of 50 degrees in May/June both crops that we know in Western Europe and subtropical to tropical ones can be grown.

In view of the above and the diminishing flow of water from the Himalayan glaciers, continuing with the present practice just is not an option.

The Tribune – One killed, three injured in firing at Congress-PPP rally; Prohibited US carbine used Jakhar, Manpreet blame SAD; Police says it was out of old rivalry

Jupinderjit Singh, Tribune News Service

Adampur (Bathinda), May 16. One person was killed while three others sustained injuries when armed assailants, allegedly owing allegiance to the ruling SAD, opened fire at a joint Congress-People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) rally here today.

The deceased, Jaspreet Singh Jassa, was an aide of Lakhbir Singh alias Lakha Sidhana, a PPP leader who was among those injured. Over 60 rounds were reportedly fired from various weapons, including a .30 US carbine (a prohibited weapon), a .30 pistol and a .12 bore gun. Sources said the target was Lakha as the firing took place just minutes before he was to get into his car.

Lakha had addressed the rally in favour of Congress candidate Malkiat Singh, who is contesting the zila parishad election from Bhai Rupa zone. Malkiat’s son Rajwinder Singh alias Raju was also wounded.

The Congress and the Sanjha Morcha have been contesting the zila parishad elections on a seat-adjustment basis.

Lakha suffered four gunshot wounds in his abdomen, shoulder and ankle. He was operated upon at a Bhucho Mandi hospital where his condition was stated to be serious. The third injured, Balbir Singh, was also Lakha’s associate.

Bathinda Senior Superintendent of Police Ravcharan Brar, however, denied the attack was out of political rivalry. He said Balbir had identified one of the assailants as Jagseer Singh alias Seera. He said Lakha and Seera were old rivals. “The assailants chose an election rally for the attack to avoid suspicion. But, we have identified them and they will be arrested soon,” the police officer said. He said Lakha himself was booked in 11 cases, including attempt to murder.

An eyewitness said, “When the assailants opened fire, Lakha managed to get out of his car and hid behind a cement platform. But, Jaspreet could not run to safety… Lakha and his supporters were armless.”

District Magistrate K K Yadav said the security of candidates would be upgraded. Punjab Chief Electoral Officer S S Brar said he had sought a report from the police.

Wake up Mr Badal, says Manpreet

PPP chief Manpreet Badal termed the incident as “murder of democracy”. He appealed to Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal “to learn from Nawaz Sharif’s experiences in Pakistan who returned to power despite being hounded by Pervez Musharraf for years”. He said Badal should leave his ‘Dhritrashtra’ stance and take tough decisions for the safety of the state people. He said today’s attack proved that Badal, his son
and other SAD leaders “could go to any extent to remain in power”.

Reeks of political terrorism: Jakhar

Congress Legislature Party leader Sunil Jakhar has alleged that the attack was scripted by Akali goons. He, however, claimed Congress leader Gurpreet Kanger was the target. Demanding a judicial probe into all incidents of attacks on Congress leaders, Jakhar alleged that political terrorism was prevailing in the state at the behest of the SAD-BJP leadership. Jakhar appealed to the Election Commission to intervene and send
outside observers to ensure free and fair elections.

Was PPP leader Lakha the target

Eyewitnesses said Lakhbir Singh alias Lakha Sidhana, a People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) leader was the target. Lakha was booked about a week ago for illegally possessing a .315 bore gun. PPP district president Jagtar Singh, however, claimed the case was false as the weapon was owned by Lakha’s mother. Once considered close to Akali leader and Education Minister Sikander Singh Maluka, Lakha had unsuccessfully
contested the assembly election against Maluka from Rampura Phul constituency. Jakhar, though, claimed Gurpeet Kanger was the target.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130517/punjab.htm#1

The Tribune – Gruesome attack in Ferozepur village; Family of six set on fire, 3 succumb to injuries

Jupinderjit Singh, Tribune News Service

Bathinda, May 16. Lakhwinder Singh, his father and brother allegedly poured petrol on six members of a family of Jattawali village near Malahwali in Ferozepur while they were asleep last night and set them on fire.

The accused entered Balwant Singh’s house by scaling the outer wall. Balwant Singh’s mother Bachan Kaur (70) and daughters Jasbir Kaur (17) and Tasveer Kaur (15) died in the gruesome attack.

Balwant Singh, who suffered 70 per cent burns, his wife Veerpal Kaur and their son Satveer Singh (10) are undergoing treatment in a Ferozepur hospital.

Lakhwinder Singh was Balwant Singh’s neighbour till he shifted to Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala a few months ago after distrust grew between them. Balwant Singh was booked in a liquor smuggling case and he blamed Lakhwinder Singh for the same.

Speaking from his hospital bed, Balwant Singh said his wife’s relative had finalised a matrimonial alliance with Lakhwinder Singh’s kin. “Lakhwinder Singh called us up several times, threatening to kill us if the marriage was not called off.” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Ferozepur, Varinder Pal Singh, said all the three accused had been booked for triple murder and attempt to murder. Raids were on to nab them.

Deputy Commissiner Manjeet Singh Narang said he had ordered the District Red Cross to pay for the medical expenses of the injured.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130517/punjab.htm#11

The Hindu – Awais Sheikh, the Pakistani lawyer of slain Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh, has told police that the armed men who abducted him and his son were “Pashto-speaking”.

According to the FIR registered by police, Mr. Sheikh and his son Shahrukh were intercepted by four to five men travelling in a red pick-up truck and a motorcycle yesterday morning.

The armed men then bundled them into the pick-up.

Mr. Sheikh said the kidnappers did not talk to him or his son while they were in captivity.

The men, who were armed with sophisticated weapons, assaulted Mr. Sheikh and dumped him on Sheikhupura Road, 40 km from Lahore.

The abductors did not harm Shahrukh and dumped him several kilometres from the point where his father was thrown out of the pick-up.

Mr. Sheikh told police that the kidnappers were wearing ’shalwar-kameez’ and were fluent in Pashto. They also spoke Urdu.

“They didn’t talk to me and my son,” Mr. Sheikh said.

He further said police that he did not suspect any intelligence agency or anyone else was involved in the kidnapping.

Mr.Sheikh needed six stitches for a wound on his head.

Police registered a case against unidentified men under Section 365 of the Pakistan Penal Code, which relates to kidnapping a person with intent to secretly and wrongfully confine him.

Mr.Sheikh and his son were abducted when they went to a village near Burki Hudaira area to buy land for a farmhouse.

Mr.Sheikh was the lawyer for Sarabjit, who died on May 2 after being comatose for nearly a week following a brutal assault by other prisoners in Lahore’s Kot Lakhpat Jail.

The lawyer recently said that he had been receiving threats for defending Sarabjit, who was sentenced to death for alleged involvement in a string of bomb attacks in Pakistan’s Punjab province in 1990.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/sarabjits-lawyer-says-his-kidnappers-were-pashtospeaking/article4723811.ece

The Tribune – India’s shame: 3,000 child soldiers involved in armed conflicts; Report finds 500 child soldiers in N-E, J&K; 2,500 in Naxal-hit states

Bijay Sankar Bora, Tribune News Service

Guwahati, May 16. At least 3,000 children, 500 in Northeast and Jammu and Kashmir and about 2,500 in Naxal-affected states of the country, are working for armed militant/rebel groups. It has been disclosed by the Asian Centre for Human Rights (ACHR) in its just released report titled ‘India’s Child Soldiers’.

“The recruitment of child soldiers by the armed groups, including the Naxalites, is rampant and at least 3,000 children currently remain involved in armed conflicts. This estimate of child soldiers is conservative considering that the Maoists follow the policy of forcibly recruiting at least one cadre from each Adivasi family,” stated Suhas Chakma, Director of Asian Centre for Human Rights.

This report which is the first ever comprehensive study on the subject in India, accused the Government of India of defending the records of the armed opposition groups, officially designated as terrorist groups, on the recruitment of child soldiers before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

“India in its first report on the implementation of the optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict to the UN Committee in 2011 stated that there is no recruitment of child soldiers, including by the armed groups in India,” the ACHR report states.

The ACHR, besides citing 11 cases of forcible recruitment of child soldiers by the armed groups, presented a number of photographs of child soldiers surrendering with their arms before then Home Minister P Chidambaram and Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi in 2011 and 2012.

The ACHR report mentions: “Article 4 of the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict states that armed opposition groups should not, under any circumstance, recruit or use in hostilities persons under the age of 18 years and the government shall take all feasible measures to prevent such recruitment and use, including the adoption of legal measures necessary to prohibit and criminalise such practices.

The Asian Centre for Human Rights urged the Government of India to inquire as to why the recruitment of child soldiers by the officially designated terror groups was concealed from the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child and take appropriate actions against the officials who are effectively ended up whitewashing the records of the armed groups on the recruitment of child soldiers.

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2013/20130517/main6.htm