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Economic Highlights
Justice Through Conciliation:Towards Fast Track Rural Courts, by Radhakrishna Rao |
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Events And Issues
New Delhi, 22 January 2007
Justice Through
Conciliation
Towards
Fast Track Rural Courts
By Radhakrishna Rao
The draft Bill on Nyaya Panchayat aimed at setting up fast
track, people-oriented, easily accessible
and highly affordable rural courts is under scanner, as a prelude to its
introduction in Parliament.
Describing the activities of Caste Panchayats and communal
justice dispensation system as “illegal and unconstitutional”, the Union
Panchayati Raj Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar, has stated that Nyaya Panchayat
which would bring justice to the rural populace through “conciliation and
compromise” rather than through “arguments and adjudication.” It would go down
well with the psyche of the Indian rural community because it is not imposed
from “outside and above”.
Indeed, the acceptance of Nyaya Panchayat by the rural
community is based on the fact that they existed from time immemorial and
formed an integral part of the India’s
ageless cultural ethos. As pointed
out by Avadesh Kaushal, Chairperson of the Dehra Dun-based Rural Litigation and
Entitlement Kendra (RLEK), Nyaya Panchayat which embodies the rich heritage and
tradition of moral values running into thousands of years is ideally suited to
meet the aspirations or rural India.
Indeed, Kaushal drives homes the point that dispensation of
justice by local self-government functionaries is not new to the Indian
genius. For there is a long and old
tradition in India
of the encouragement of dispute resolution outside the formal legal system.
Disputes are quite obviously settled by the intervention of elders or assemblies of learned men and other such bodies.
Nyaya Panchayats at the grass root
level were there even before the advent of British administration, observes
Kaushal.
Kaushal, who has made original and significant contribution
to the draft Bill on Nyaya Panchayat is clear in his perception that Nyaya
Panchayat alone could provide speedy, transparent and cost effective justice to
the rural communities in India.
Indeed, way back in 1970s, the well-documented Bhagwati Committee report had
made a strong pitch for invigorating Nyaya Panchayat. But the lack of political commitment implied
poor support for the recommendations of Bhagwati Committee.
Prior to that, in 1954, a report on Village Panchayat had
this to say on Nyaya Panchayat: “Sitting on the Panchayat, the elders of the
villages used to solve disputes, arising between the members of the village
community. These elders used to live in the villages themselves and by virtue
of their residence well-acquainted with local conditions and knew the habits,
customs and practices of the people.
Almost all individuals of the villages were known. In view of all these factors, they easily
came to know reasons behind the dispute that arose.”
On his part, Kaushal points out that down the centuries, the
system of Nyaya Panchayat has been nourishing the legal administration at the
grassroot level in a highly
democratic fashion by involving the community at all stages of decision making.
Says Kaushal: “With the prevailing system of judicial
administration becoming cumbersome, costly and complex, a large section of our
population has started shunning the courts of law for seeking legal redressal to their grievances. As such, Nyaya Panchayat
which can easily be accessed by an
ordinary rural citizen in a highly affordable manner, has become the crying
need of the hour”.
The current system of administration of justice has failed
to achieve its objectives. Indeed, a common perception amongst the rural masses is that access
to justice is both complex and difficult and as a result they avoid seeking
redress to their grievances through
courts.
The reason for this attitude appears to be physical inaccessibility, inordinate delay in dispensing justice,
expenditure involved, technicalities and rigid rules of procedures of the
present legal system. The biggest crisis facing the conventional judicial
system is the burden of a massive
backlog, which, in recent years, has assumed
insurmountable proportions, making access
to justice to the people at large far delayed and long drawn out process.
More than 30 million cases are known to be pending before
various courts spread across the
country. During one of his moments of soul searching, the former Prime Minister
Rajiv Gandhi had expressed his
concern over the functioning of the judicial system with the statement that “if
the justice is delayed, we cannot really claim that is justice is being
delivered. We have to look ahead and see
how we can clean up these roadblocks, how we can expedite justice without
diluting justice, without reducing it in its value. We have to see how our people can get
justice. It is not a question of time.
It is also a question of affording it. We have taken steps and we have shown
that it can be done cheaply. It is also
a question of physical access”.
Obviously, over the years the legal ambit in its entirety
has widened to encompass innovations
in the legal process, for instance,
cyber crimes, intellectual property rights violations and bio-terrorism
etc..The instance of legal remedy sought by a grand father being passed on to his grandson are aplenty. In distinct
contrast to the conventional judicial delivery system, a rural court will be less formal, simple and well equipped to deliver
speedy and inexpensive justice to the rural masses
of the country.
Further, these rural courts, guided as they are by local
tradition, culture and behavioural pattern of the village community have the
potential to instill confidence in the people towards the administration of
justice. A envisaged, the make up and composition
of the rural courts would be quite simple. It would staffed by a professional judge and supported by two other judges who
would be selected/nominated by a panel of district and sessions
judges. It will hold sessions in the full view of the local community and
try to resolves disputes through persuasion and conciliation.
It is not for nothing that not long ago, the Indian Law
Commission had observed inter alia,
that the rural courts could lead to a transparency in the justice delivery
system, with a stress on promoting
justice on the basis of equal opportunity and without any type of
discrimination.---INFA
(Copyright, India News and Feature
Alliance)
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India-US N-Deal:UPA GOVERNMENT’S TRUST-US APPEAL, by T.D. Jagadesan, 8 January 2007 |
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Events And Issues
New Delhi, 8 January 2007
India-US N-Deal
UPA GOVERNMENT’S
TRUST-US APPEAL
By T.D. Jagadesan
The new norm for governance? If there is no threat to our
survival, it doesn’t matter what the people think about our Government. It was
nowhere more apparent than in the two Houses of Parliament during the recent
winter session, where member after
member got up to voice his or her serious reservations about the India-US
civilian nuclear deal. But instead of answering the specific issues, the Government merely turned around and said
that it was going ahead with the deal, that Parliament should now wait to judge
it over the bilateral 123 Agreement as and when it was ready after the
negotiations that officially have still to begin, but unofficially are in an
advanced stage.
It was clear to the Government even before the debate that
the CPI (M) was not going to press
the issue, and was quite willing to
give the Government as much time as it required to complete the bilateral
negotiations, even though the Hyde Act had violated every single assurance given by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to
Parliament. The fact that there was no threat of an anti-vote in Parliament,
brought out the belligerence in the Government that could barely defend the US legislation but, sought to buy approval by
underlining its concerns for India.
A section of the media that always supports money spinning
policy decisions and opposes pro-people measures like reservations, came out in
full support, carrying editorials trashing the nuclear scientists, their new
bogemen and defending the deal that carries a cash reward of US$100 billion
from India. To give effect to cause, Prime Minister Singh has now had a happy
conversation with the US
President ostensibly to convey Indian concerns about the nuclear deal, but in
reality to shake hands over the telephone and congratulate each other for a job
well done.
New Delhi and Washington started to tango under the NDA
Government, but have perfected the steps under the Government watched over by
the Left parties. For, everyone in Washington knows, as
does Prime Minister Singh, that the nuclear deal is more than a contract for
nuclear civilian energy. The agreement of July 18 that every one here is happy
about, and even the Left has decided to accept for some strange reasons,
carries the details.
It is part of a larger strategic goal that the conferences
of the US Congress have pointed
towards in their accompanying note to the Hyde Act. It is not just a deal but a strategic deal
that redefines US-India relations, with New
Delhi clearly the junior partner in a larger policy
initiative that makes a mockery of non-alignment.
What happened in Parliament? The Government said: Trust us,
we are good guys, we will not let India down. Most of the others,
even milder members like Jaya Bachchan and Rahul Bajaj, voiced apprehensions
about the deal, and by the end of two days it was clear for those who were
honest enough to see and hear, that the majority of members in Parliament were
apprehensive about the deal and did not want the Government to proceed. But
that they were not in a position to stop it, and for reasons best known to
them, were not willing to force a vote at this state.
Everybody bought the “trust us” appeal, and now India will wait
for the 123 Agreement that will be sold to the country as a “done deal.” Everyone in Washington
knows that everyone in Delhi appears to be
denying the wording of the bilateral agreement is going to be mild and
definitely not offensive, but the US part of the deal will be
governed by the intrusive Hyde Act. A CPM MP pointed this out in Parliament but
then went on to say that he was prepared to wait for the 123 Agreement. One
really could not understand why.
There are moments in history when action is required to save
the country from harm. One such moment has passed
with the Opposition to the nuclear deal, with all its strategic implications
for India,
now only destined to get weaker and less
effective. Prime Minister Singh and the US are working
together to get this agreement through, with the opposition and the media being
handled with amazing expertise.
The carrot is the preferred option, although at time the
whip too has paid some dividends. The only ones to withstand the tremendous pressure from this highly formidable establishment are
the nuclear scientists, good men with a level of integrity that makes them
impervious to both the carrot and the whip, with the result that they are being
targeted by the unscrupulous supporters of the deal.
First they were dismissed
as insignificant, when this did not work then attempts were made by the men at
the top to win them over, and now the attack has started again when the
scientists refused to compromise and insisted on having their honest say. The
other day, a former diplomat attacked them on a television channel asking
whether policy was now expected to be made by nuclear scientists. Who else then
should influence policy dealing with India’s nuclear programme retired
diplomats and compromised journalists?
This is for two reasons. One, Government today is highly
insecure and avoids transparency. Two, in this case the nuclear agreement is a
‘done deal’ insofar as the two signatories are concerned, and the process now can be roughly described as “going through the
motions” and managing the opposition.
The only real challenge remains at the level of the Nuclear Suppliers
Group where there can be a level of unpredictability at the end of the day despite
the US and Indian efforts to control all the members with assurances.
The rest is taken care of, and just has to be unfolded in a
manner where Parliament restricts its intervention to nothing more than a
debate and the Left continues to be persuaded that the Government is secular
and democratic. If it is true, as all
the recent actions taken by the Government and its policy initiatives indicate,
that there is a decided shift towards the United States, then is it not time
that the Ministry of External Affairs and the Prime Minister’s office comes out
with a declaration against India’s new foreign policy?.
Instead of allowing senior officials in Government to inform
select journalists that non-alignments as a concept is dead, will it not be
more honest for this Government to come out and say that it does not believe in
an independent foreign policy? And that
it actually believes, as its officials keep saying off the record that
alignment with the US
is the preferred and only acceptable option now?
Let the Government, if it believes so avidly in the line it
is pursing, stop the pathetic personal attacks and the media propaganda, but
place a policy paper on the table justifying its stand. Put it to debate in bold print, and then let
the better argument win. This mean, snide manner of functioning where
journalists are being manipulated with carrots and incomplete information.
In fact, it erodes and corrodes the foundation of democracy
that had been built so painstakingly on political integrity, transparency and
accountability. Prime Minister Singh and President Bush with their handful of
advisers might have succeeded in pushing through a terrible legislation that
had addressed to the US interests, but in the process India
has lost as held by a school of thought.---INFA
(Copyright,
India News and Feature Alliance)
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Modi’s Solemn Promise:GOOD GOVERNANCE & DEVELOPMENT, by Insaf, 27 December 2007 |
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Round The States
New Delhi, 27 December 2007
Modi’s Solemn
Promise
GOOD GOVERNANCE
& DEVELOPMENT
By Insaf
All eyes continue to be on Narendra Modi and his Gujarat. True, he singlehandedly took on the Congress, its supremo, Sonia Gandhi and all the rebels and
critics --- and created history by winning hands down with a final tally of 117
seats in a 182-member Assembly. The
Congress had to be content with barely
62 seats even though 11 up from its 51 in 2002. But that was yesterday. Today,
Modi is being watched closely as he begins his third term as the Chief Minister.
And Modi has not disappointed so far. He has made all the right gestures and
the correct noises. Displaying magnanimity, he has reached out to all his detractors,
including Keshubhai Patel, within the BJP and the Congress.
More importantly, he has declared that development and giving Gujarat
good governance are paramount. As he put it: “The people have not just given us
power. They have also handed over a responsibility”.
Modi’s message
for his third term is loud and clear. He has promised a sustained growth of 12.5
per cent and vowed to turn former President Kalam’s 2020 vision of India into
reality much before that. Importantly, he has challenged all those who continue
to accuse him of having pursued his communal agenda during the poll campaign.
He has offered to step down if his critics can show him even one instance of
having made a communal pitch. Even as Modi embarks on his Gujarati dream, it
remains to be seen whether the Congress
will carry out a truly Gandhian introspection and learn its Gujarat
lesson. It has to face facts. Neither
Sonia Gandhi nor Rahul carried any great conviction with the voters. True, they
attracted big crowds. But as the late Congress
President, Kamraj, once stated, most people come for tamasha. Every public meeting by a top leader is a mela for them. Ultimately, the people vote on the basis of
their own judgment and fancy!
* * * *
Rajasthan Cabinet
Expands
Emboldened by her Party’s historic triumph in Gujarat, Rajasthan’s Chief Minister, Vasundhara Raje,
sprung a surprise on her Party earlier this week by expanding her Cabinet. She
inducted four new Cabinet Ministers and one Minister of State while dropping
two Ministers and accepting the resignation of another. Even as Raje asserted that her expansion was to ‘bring efficiency’
to her Administration, the induction of new Meena and a Gujjar faces is
perceived as an attempt to mollify the agitated Gujjar community, which has
threatened to launch a major agitation after being denied Scheduled Tribe
status in the State. Moreover, coming on the heels of Modi’s landslide victory
in Gujarat, the ministerial induction is a
sharp rap on the knuckles of the RSS-backed dissidents
in the State. With Assembly
elections slated for December 2008 the message
to the dissidents is clear: Fall in
line or quit.
* *
* *
Nagaland Government
To Stay
The controversy over the Nagaland Government’s longevity has
blown over. The Centre has wisely decided against dismissing
the NPF-led Democratic Alliance of Nagaland, as the State is slated to go to
the polls within the next three months. Notwithstanding, the persistent demand
raised by the Congress MLAs that they
had won the no-confidence motion against the Neiphiu Rio Government by 31-23
votes and had the requisite majority to form the Government. In doing so, New Delhi has overlooked
a “constitutional impropriety” committed by the Speaker in ruling that the
NPF-led Government had survived the no-confidence motion last week. Astonishingly,
the Speaker barred three Independent MLAs from voting on the ground that they
had earlier supported the NPF Government. Moreover, he declared the vote of
nine dissident MLAs against the
Government invalid for having defied the Party whip. Raising a moot point: the
Government may have survived, but was the Speaker’s unprecedented ruling
justified?
* *
* *
Mayawati Breaks
Fresh Ground
Queen Bee of social engineering, Mayawati has unveiled a
nouvelle Economic Policy. At its core is the Public-Private Partnership (PPP)
model wherein the quota system would be introduced, albeit voluntarily, in the
areas and projects to be developed under this model. The reservation policy
would be similar to the on-going policy in the Government service and envisages
10 per cent reservation for the Scheduled Castes, 10 per cent for the OBCs and
religious minorities and another 10 per cent for the economically poor among
the Upper Castes. Unfolding her Middle Path holistic policy, the UP Chief
Minister vowed that the benefits would
accrue to the deprived and downtrodden sections of the poor. Conveniently,
brushing under the carpet the ugly reality of rising unemployment, increasing
crime graph and pathetic infrastructure. All cannot be waved off merely with
her “sarv samaj” wand! Development is
a hard task master.
* * *
*
Delhi’s Scandalous Record!
Delhi now has the dubious distinction of
having shortest Assembly sessions. Shockingly, the Assembly
met only for 18 sittings this year. The established norm is around 60 sittings,
as decided at a meeting of the Speakers of all Assemblies
convened by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee recently. Pertinently, the
three-day winter session from 26 to
29 December has a litany of over 224 questions admitted for reply, besides five
bills and three private members resolutions. Ironically, a BJP MLA’s resolution
demands that the Assembly should
have a minimum of 50 sittings in a year and each session
should be at least of two weeks. No matter that the Delhi Assembly Speaker, Prem Singh, summarily dismissed the issue
earlier this week by asserting that
it was the Delhi Government’s prerogative to decide on the sittings.
Questionably, is this fair to the system and the tax payer?
* * *
*
Power For Arunachal
Villages
Arunachal Pradesh has reason to feel ‘alight’. Gone before
very long will be days when sunset was synonymous with darkness for hundreds of villages in the border areas of
the State and the twinkling Chinese lights from across
the border cast an envious glow. Happily, the State Government has decided to
end the India-China “divide” by preparing the “Border Villages Illumination
Programme” to develop infrastructure in 842 villages. The 61-crore project
envisages setting up of plants of a capacity ranging from 10 KV to 200 KV to
bring minimum domestic lighting facility to these villages. Even the remote 170
villages which are not connected by motorable roads will be aglow with
independent hydel power! However, a lot more will still remain to be done. Almost
45 per cent of the villages in the State, home to over 31,000 households, would
continue to grope in darkness, thanks
to funds constraint. Time for the Centre to be generous!
* * *
*
Bird Watching MP’s
Latest Fad
Madhya Pradesh has earned a ‘bird’ feather for its cap. Bird
watching has become the flavour of the winter season in the State with more and
more people, including children, joining various bird camps in Bhopal. The movement for birds and nature
started in the State two years ago in 2005 and has come a long way. It has not
only led to the creation of an NGO, “Bhopal Birds,” devoted to the cause of
nature conservation but the State Forest Department, the Academy of
Administration, the State Tourism Development Corporation and the World
Wildlife Fund for Nature have joined hands to conduct various bird camps in
Bhopal, specially in the Upper Lake, home to many bird species from Europe and
Central Asia. Happily, resulting in the formation of a “Green Brigade”
(Environmentally Aware Citizens) in support of environmental conservation. This
should indeed, be music to India’s
bird watchers led by legendry Salim Ali. ---- INFA
(Copyright India News & Feature Alliance)
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All Eyes On Gujarat:SATTA GIVES MODI THUMBS UP, by Insaf,19 December 2007 |
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Round The States
New Delhi, 19 December 2007
All Eyes On Gujarat
SATTA GIVES MODI THUMBS
UP
By Insaf
All eyes are riveted on the poll outcome in Gujarat tomorrow. Specially, after the bitterly-fought
high decibel campaign for the 182 Assembly
seats in the State. The elections in Gujarat
are no ordinary routine State elections. The outcome will have a domino effect
on the national polity. The result will decide the timing of the next general
election as also the fate of the controversial Indo-US nuclear deal. In the
event, the Congress emerges
victorious then Sonia Gandhi is likely to announce general elections by
mid-April next year and initial the nuclear deal. But if the obverse holds true
and Modi emerges third-time victorious, the nuclear deal will be dumped and
Congress-Left ties will be back to bhai-bhai once again.
While the exit polls are hedging their bets over Modi’s
victory, from scraping through to a simple majority, the Gujaratis are reposing
their faith in the satta market.
Unlike the psephologists, who appear confounded by the abnormally high percentage
(17) of those surveyed belonging to the ‘can’t say category’, the satta bazaar has given Modi a majority
of 102 out of 182 seats. That the Hindu icon is a bookies favourite is evident
from the lowest returns of 70 paisa on the BJP winning. In other words, if one
bets Rs.1 on the Saffron Party getting 102 seats and are proved right then one
takes home Rs.1.70. Already, the satta amount
has surpassed Rs.800 crore and is
slated to rise to Rs.1000-1500 crore. Interestingly, Gujarati NRIs too have jumped
in with their mega dollars, pounds and euros.
* * * *
Daring Jailbreak In
Chhattisgarh
The Naxalites have once again cocked a snook at the Government.
This time round in Chhattisgarh. In a daring jailbreak, 299 inmates out of 377,
including 110 Naxal activists, escaped from the Dantewada jail in the State.
Described as a “pre-meditated conspiracy,” by the State police, the undeniable
fact is that the jailbreak was a major security lapse. The reason doled out for
this lax is the low priority given to security in this district prison which
housed only the low-level Naxalite functionaries and was highly understaffed.
Shockingly, only five out of the 16-strength staff were present. Recall,
following the infamous Jehanabad jailbreak in 2005 in Bihar,
senior and important Naxalite leaders facing trial, were shifted from small
district-level prisons to Central jails.
Significantly, the jailbreak has exposed the State-Centre
disconnect on the jail security issue
vis-à-vis strategy and its
implementation on the ground. More so as the Dantewada incident comes a day
after the Special Task Force on Naxalism discussed
measures to beef up security in Naxal-hit States in Bhubaneswar. For over two years the Home
Ministry has been asking the States to beef up security and surveillance as
also upgrade the jail housing. But to no avail. The States have limited the
upgrade to central jails and the bigger state-level prison on the facetious
plea of lack of funds. The Centre has again asked the States to pull up their bootstraps
and hopes they will act this time. Better late than sorry.
* * * *
BJP Suffers Twin Blows
In MP
The BJP’s ‘victory’ march in Gujarat
has been dampened by the twin blows it has suffered in the by-polls in Madhya
Pradesh. It has had to bite dust in the Sanwar Assembly
segment and the Khargaon Parliamentary constituency. In both the saffron
bastions, the Congress wrested the seats
from the BJP with massive margins. Interestingly,
both parties viewed these by-polls as an acid test and had put their best foot
forward. Buoyed by the results, the Congress
has demanded the resignation of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on the ground
that the polls have exposed the peoples’ loss
of confidence in the State Administration. Significantly, the BJP has lost five
out of the ten by-elections held in the State in the past two years. Clearly,
this holds out ominous portends for the BJP, which needs to get its act
together prior to the Assembly
elections ten months away.
*
* * *
Sheila Completes
Nine Years
Sheila Dikshit, Delhi’s
popular Chief Minister, has much to rejoice. Setting a record, she has not only
completed nine “extremely exciting” years as the CM, but also put her many
political rivals on the back-foot. Her USP? Converting every challenge into an
opportunity and meeting the same with truthfulness
and veracity, as she puts it. Standing testimony to this is the fact that her
duly acclaimed Bhagidari scheme has
truly empowered the people. Moreover, her Government has been in the forefront
of bringing the eco-friendly CNG, Metro and low-floor buses to its people.
Besides, the construction of 28 flyovers has not only changed the city’s
skyline but also the transport scenario. Not willing to rest her past laurels, Sheila
has set the agenda for her ‘10th and most challenging’ year ---
demolitions, sealings, Blueline buses and population pressure.
And is rearing to go.
* *
*
*
Ending Corruption
Khanduri-Style
The Uttarakhand Chief Minister, BC Khanduri, seems to have
achieved an impossible feat. He has
reportedly succeeded in ridding the State of corruption in Government jobs. His
formula? Banning all interviews in recruitment for Government posts. Only those
who score above the cut-off mark in the objective questions exam would be
selected. So far, about 6,000 people
have been recruited this way. Asserts
Khanduri proudly: “Even my sifarish
can't get anybody a job in the State now." Khanduri has also threatened to
cancel the appointments of teachers and doctors who do not report for duty. Moreover,
the CM has withdrawn 250 cars with beacon lights and 350 policemen from VIP
duty. Khanduri has cut his own entourage of cars from 8 to 3. All officers now
travel to Delhi from Dehra Dun by train. True, all this may be a
small consolation in his nine-month-long fight against bureaucratic corruption
and lethargy in the hill State. But well begun is half done!
*
*
*
*
Karunanidhi Anoints
Successor
The DMK supremo Karunanidhi has virtually anointed his Crown
Prince. After his daughter Kanimozhi’s rise to a Rajya Sabha MP, it is now the
turn of son, Stalin, to take a bow. At a massive
first-ever gathering of his Party’s youth wing on Sunday last, Karunanidhi took
the first step towards the continuation of his own dynasty when he described
his two sons, Stalin and Azhagiri as “two hands of a clock”. Asserting that Stalin, who is presently the Local
Administration Minister had done him proud, Karunanidhi recited a couplet which
inferred that Stalin would succeed him as DMK’s Chief and possibly the next Chief Minister. Even as other
speakers hailed the junior Karunanidhi as Ilaya (young) Kalaignar, the elder
Karunanidhi nodded his approval. Stalin on his part described the rally as a
turning point in the DMK’s history --- and, indeed, that of the DMK’s first
family! ---- INFA
(Copyright India News & Feature Alliance)
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Chinese Claims On Arunachal:NEW DELHI NEEDS TO ACT FAST, by Insaf,6 November 2007 |
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Round The States
New Delhi, 6 November 2007
Chinese Claims On
Arunachal
NEW DELHI NEEDS TO ACT FAST
By Insaf
Sadly, India’s
sensitive and strategic North-East is still not receiving due attention of the
Central Government. More so, against the
backdrop of China’s
repeated incursions and loud declarations that Arunachal Pradesh is its
territory. Bringing things to such a pass
that the people of this vital frontier region are worried over New Delhi’s poor response. In fact, Arunachal’s
Chief Minister, Dorjee Khandu has now publicly demanded that the Government of
India should firmly make it clear to Beijing
that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India and that it should stop
making territorial claims on it. This, he added, was necessary
“to dispel all doubts and apprehensions in the minds of the Arunachalis.” Recall,
only last week, the Congress MP from
the State, Nabam Rebia, created a stir in the Rajya Sabha when he disclosed
that the Chinese army had demolished last month a Buddha statue in the
picturesque Tawang district, bordering China’s
Tibet
region. Notwithstanding, New Delhi’s
denial.
Clearly, New Delhi
can no longer wish the Arunachal problem away. Specially, as the Chinese have
entrenched themselves firmly across
the Sino-Indian border by building a vast network of roads, townships and various
facilities. Making the Union Defence Minister A.K. Antony, on a visit to Sikkim, Nathula
Pass
and the Sino-Indian border to openly confess
that all-round development in the region by Beijing was an “eye opener”. Needless to say, India would have to work doubly
hard to dramatically improve its road network in the border areas if it has to
keep pace with its neighbour’s “superior” infrastructure. However, it is to
Antony’s credit that he is the first Defence Minister to visit the Line of
Actual Control (LAC) since trade through the Nathu La Pass
resumed in July last year, after 44 years. There is no gainsaying that New Delhi has to get its act together --- and fast if it
is to keep enjoying the confidence of the Arunachalis, who generally speak
Hindi and feel one with the rest of India.
*
*
* *
Nandigram: People
Still Scared
Fear continues to stalk Nandigram. The deep scars left by
the barbaric police firing on March 14 last and all the mayhem that followed will
take a long time to heal. This was the sum and substance of the impression gathered by the West Bengal Governor, Gopal
Krishna Gandhi, from his welcome visit to the strife-torn district since a
modicum of peace has been restored there. It is now for the local administration
to erase the scare among the people and ensure a fearless
environment. Importantly, the Governor did not spare the Left cadres and told
them candidly that “fear has no colour…but it is harmful”. He wants those
responsible for the violence to be shown the door. The Governor’s visit was all
the more significant against the backdrop of his severe indictment of the
State’s CPM Government’s “recapture” of Nandigram as “unlawful and
unacceptable”. Happily, he visited both sides of the divide. This has helped to
put at rest earlier talk of a rift between him and the Left Government.
* *
*
*
Bhajan Lal Floats
New Party
Old Congress
warhorse and former Haryana Chief Minister Bhajan Lal has parted ways with the
Congress to form his own party,
Haryana Janhit Congress. The split,
however, was no surprise. The Haryana strongman has been hurting for over three
years for having been denied Chief Ministership of the State following the
Congress victory in the Assembly polls. Moreover, his younger son Kuldeep, an
MP from the family stronghold of Bhiwani, was suspended from the Congress by its High Command a few months ago for raising
the ante against Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda. No matter, that Bhajan Lal’s
elder son Chander Mohan remains firmly ensconced as Deputy Chief Minister.
However, Hooda is not unduly perturbed. In a chat with Insaf, he asserted that the rally was around only 70,000 strong and not in lakhs, as claimed. It comprised
mainly of Bhajan Lal’s Bishnoi community, brought across
from neighbouring Rajasthan.
* * *
*
Karunakaran-Son Split In Kerala
Down South, in Kerala too another former old Congress warhorse K Karunakaran fell out with his son
Muraleedharan last week. The raison de
atre? The father’s plans to return to the Congress
after having formed his own regional Party, DIC (K) three years ago. Calling it
an “act of betrayal,” a livid Muraleedharan lambasted Karunakaran publicly for
“ditching” his “supporters in the mid-sea”. Thus, signaling a parting of ways.
Recall, the veteran Congressman had floated
his regional outfit after cutting the umblical cord with the Congress. Only to merge his Party with Sharad Pawar’s
National Congress Party (NCP)
recently. Karunakaran’s reaction is still awaited to Muraleedharan’s assertion that he would not be a part of his father’s
“political games” and would remain firmly with the NCP.” Interestingly,
Muraleedharan confirmed that Karunakaran had not been invited by anyone to join
the Congress, adding: “I have no
faith in the central leadership of the Congress,
that ditched those who stood loyally by it.”
* * *
*
Gujarat Campaign Gets Bitter
Poll campaigning in Gujarat
is getting vitiated by the day with both the Congress
and the BJP indulging in a vicious no-holds-barred slanging match against each
other. The ball was set rolling by Congress
President Sonia Gandhi at her huge public rally of tribals at Jasdan, Rajkot wherein she denounced the BJP Chief Minister Narender
Modi as a maut ke saudagar and promised
to "throw the cheats and liars out of Gujarat."
Only to earn bitter expletives from Modi, who retaliated sharply, asserting: “Italian mud will not stick on me. It is
they who are hand in glove' with maut ke
saudagar and the terrorists. Why is the Congress
Government trying to save Afzal Guru, who masterminded the attack on Parliament
in 2001”. But there is no answer. Only deafening silence. Nevertheless, the Congress
seems to have improved its prospects in the past week and more. Even senior BJP
MPs are now putting the odds at fifty-fifty!
* * * *
Empty Coffers &
Promises
Prakash Singh Badal’s Government in Punjab
has run into a major insurmountable hurdle. It came to power on a slew of
populist promises. But its grandiose plans have been hit hard by the
“near-empty coffers” inherited by the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP Government. It
bemoans that it does not have enough funds to even pay salaries, let alone carry out much-needed development work. (The
Government owes over Rs.2,700 crores to the Punjab Electricity Board alone).
Expectedly, the Congress leadership
has denied the charge. Former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh asserts that while he had inherited empty coffers he
had ensured that his successor does
not face the same problem. No one yet knows the truth about the rival claims.
One thing alone is clear. The aam aadmi will
not get all the exciting goodies he was solemnly promised!
* * * *
Gogoi Bashes Budha
Assam and its Chief Minister, Tarun
Gogoi, have every reason to be livid with West Bengal
and its Chief Minister, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee --- and even to go for him. The
reason? Buddhadeb’s tongue-in-check statement last week that “he would not
allow an Assam-like situation to
prevail in West Bengal.’ Appropriately, Gogoi
called a Press conference and
justifiably asserted that there was
no comparison at all between what happened at Nandigram for months together and
the incident last week at Dispur in Guwahati (involving the adivasis) that was
brought under control within a few hours.” The CPI(M’s) conduct in Nandigram, he
added, was in utter disregard of democracy and all it stood for. Even the media
was barred from entering Nandigram. In sharp contrast, Assam
did not hide anything about the incident. In fact, it is eager to get at the
whole truth through a CBI probe. ---INFA
(Copyright,
India News and Feature Alliance)
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