NEWS IN BRIEF – OCT 19, 2011
1. Pawar pushes for sugar and onion export, Thomas differs :
New Delhi : Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar has made a fresh move for easing restrictions on sugar and onion export, even as Union food minister KV Thomas appears reluctant, fearing an adverse impact on domestic prices in the festive season. [HT p11]
2. India, Brazil, SA push for reforms in UNSC, IMF :
Pretoria: The 5th India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) summit, which started on Tuesday, made a strong pitch for global governance reforms in multilateral international bodies including the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and International Monetary Fund (IMF). [HT p13]
3. Prepare credible recovery plan, IBSA tells Europe :
Pretoria :The Fifth Summit of the India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) grouping came up with its most comprehensive declaration so far, spelling out its stand on major issues troubling the world and asking the West to meet its commitments towards the world.[The Hindu p1]
4. Govt’s next CAG headache: Mega losses in power deal :
New Delhi : The Comptroller and Auditor General has alleged that the union power ministry gave “undue benefit” of Rs 1.20 lakh crore — calculated over the next 25 years — to Reliance Power Ltd (RPL) in the ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) at Sasan in Madhya Pradesh and Tilaiya in Jharkhand.[IE p1]
5. UPA 2 weak… that’s why judiciary, other forces to fore : Pawar
Mumbai : Nationalist Congress Party chief and union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said here today that a series of scandals had weakened the authority of the UPA 2 government and this had led to other forces such as the judiciary asserting themselves.[IE p1]
6. PM, Prez pics point to Nagpur airport loos :
Nagpur: A Maharashtra MLA has registered a complaint against the use of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pratibha Patil’s pictures to indicate men and women’s washrooms near the VIP lounge of Nagpur’s Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport. [TOI p16]
7. Grievance bill gets delayed :
NEW DELHI: Even though Gandhian Anna Hazare has issued a threat to kick start a political campaign against the Congress, a key showcase legislation, the Grievance Redressal Bill, which was drafted with no loss of time, appears to have been caught in inter-ministerial “wrangle”. [AA p2]
8. UPA for a strong Lokpal Bill: Digvijaya :
Guwahati :The UPA government is committed to a strong Lokpal Bill and is determined to fight corruption at all levels, Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh said on Tuesday. “The Congress and the UPA is for a strong Lokpal Bill for which a drafting team has been formed,” he said.[IE p5]
9. Centre trying to shift blame on state, says Jaya :
Chennai : As protesters against the nuclear power plant at the coastal Koodankulam have risen up in arms yet again, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Tuesday alleged that the Centre was trying to put the blame on the state government instead of allaying the fear of the local public.[IE p6]
10. RS Polls : President tells EC to probe charge against BJD MPs :
Bhubaneswar : The political storm over alleged horse-trading during last year’s Rajya Sabha election has gathered further momentum with President Pratibha Patil asking the Election Commission to inquire into Independent MLA George Tirkey’s petition seeking disqualification of three Rajya Sabha MPs of the ruling Biju Janata Dal.[IE p6]
11. Kejriwal shoed in Lucknow, 1 held:
Lucknow : A slipper was hurled at Anna Hazare aide Arvind Kejriwal at a function in Lucknow on Tuesday — exactly a week after Prashant Bhushan, another Team Anna member, had been thrashed in his chamber in the Supreme Court for seeking a plebiscite in Kashmir.[HT p1]
12. Crisis deepens, 2 quit Team Anna :
New Delhi : The internal problems in social activist Anna Hazare’s team deepened on Tuesday with two core committee members, Rajendra Singh and PV Rajagopal, resigning in protest against the anti-corruption movement taking a “political turn”.[HT p1]
13. No Rahul handshake for Hazare aides :
New Delhi : Disappointed over not getting an audience with Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi for the last two days, a team from Anna Hazare’s village retuned home on Tuesday. However, Gandhi’s office maintained that it had received no request for an appointment. “There is no direct communication with us… They have not sought any appointment so far. We came to know about the meeting only through the media,” a Gandhi aide said.[HT p10]
14. Right to reject more practical : Khurshid : New Delhi : Taking the
debate on electoral reforms a step further, law minister Salman Khurshid
said on Tuesday that the right to reject all the candidates in a constituency
appeared to be more practical than the right to recall elected
representatives. [HT p1]
15. ‘Right to reject easier than right to recall’ : New Delhi: Law Minister
Salman Khurshid said on Tuesday that the ‘right to reject’ candidates
during election was a “more manageable idea” than the ‘right to recall’ an
elected lawmaker which was a “difficult” proposition. [TOI p17]
16. Team Anna’s use of social media caught us unawares, says
Khurshid : New Delhi : Team Anna’s use of the ‘social media’ to
generate public awareness on the Jan Lokpal movement has taught the
government a lesson or two, admitted Law Minister Salman Khurshid on
Tuesday. With this the government too is now looking at how it could use
the medium in future.[IE p5]
17. CVC objects to delays by govt : NEW DELHI: The Central Vigilance
Commission, concerned at attempts by the government to dilute its
mandate to check corruption in the higher bureaucracy, has asked the
Centre to ensure its recommendations on penal action against officials be
implemented without delay. It says action should be taken and the matter
not be referred to yet another panel of top officials.[AA p1]
18. To travel light, Advani decides to dump Yeddyurappa baggage :
Nagpur : With former Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa’s arrest
for his alleged involvement in land scams embarrassing LK Advani’s anticorruption
yatra, the senior BJP leader virtually dumped the party’s
Karnataka strongman on Tuesday.[HT p1]
19. Yatra a flop show, running on deflated wheels : Cong leader :
Guwahati : Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh said Anna
Hazare’s anti-graft crusade did not impact the Hisar by-poll outcome while
ridiculing senior BJP leader LK Advani for taking out a rath yatra on
deflated tyres.[HT p11]
20. BSY shifted to another hospital, dodges jail again : Bangalore:
Arrested former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Tuesday
prolonged his stay outside jail by moving from a state-run heart speciality
centre to a general hospital, hours after the Karnataka high court deferred
the hearing on his interim bail plea in the land scam case to October 20.
[TOI p17]
21. ‘BJP not taking corruption lightly’ : Nagpur : The Bharatiya Janata
Party was not taking instances of corruption lightly and even in the case of
Karnataka, the former Chief Minister was cautioned and asked to quit after
the Lokayukta report was out, veteran party leader L.K. Advani said at a
press conference here on Tuesday.[HT p11]
22. Advani to BSY : Must keep our house in order : Nagpur : Pressed on
the matter, L K Advani today admitted that former Karnataka chief minister
B S Yeddyurappa’s arrest in an alleged land scam had caused
embarrassment to the party.[IE p3]
23. Cong should see writing on the wall : Advani : Mumbai : Advising the
ruling Congress to see the writing on the wall in the wake of its rout in the
bypolls in three major States, veteran BJP leader LK Advani said on
Tuesday that the countdown for the “demise” of the UPA-II had
begun.[Pioneer Daily p5]
24. Advani demands Telangana Bill in winter session : Adilabad :
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani on Tuesday urged the
United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government to table a Bill for creation
of a Telangana State in the winter session of Parliament and said that any
further delay would be unjustified.[The Hindu p11]
25. Strong proof against Amar : Police : New Delhi :In a setback to Rajya
Sabha MP Amar Singh accused in the cash-for-vote scam, the Delhi
police have told the Delhi high court that there was “strong circumstantial
evidence” that it was Amar, who had sent the money to three BJP MPs, to
influence the 2008 trust vote. [HT p10]
26. Court says Rewati Singh was part of plot : New Delhi : Samajwadi
Party leader and Lok Sabha member Rewati Raman Singh has been
made an accused in the cash-for-vote scam case by a special court here.
There is sufficient material on record to form an opinion that he was part of
the alleged conspiracy despite the Delhi Police claims to the contrary,
special judge Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said on Tuesday.[The Hindu p15]
27. Lost in his vision, Buddha turns his back on politburo : Kolkata :
When the CPM politburo met in Delhi to finalise the draft politicalideological
resolution for the next party congress, one key absence was
that of Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. The former West Bengal chief minister
preferred to remain at Alimuddin Street, the party’s headquarters in
Kolkata, ignoring the clamour from within over his continued absence from
engagements as important as this.[IE p7]
28. Cong feels it’s best to ignore Hazare : NEW DELHI: The current mood
in the Congress is to expose Team Anna by ignoring it after realising that
it has been playing tricks to remain in the limelight and the media glare. Its
real intention is not to fight against corruption, but to target the Centre with
the help of the Sangh Parivar, the party feels.[AA p2]
29. Hazare hits back at Thackeray : incoherent’ does nothing on ground :
Mumbai :Attacked by Bal Thackeray in the Shiv Sena mouthpiece, social
activist Anna Hazare hit back on his blog on Tuesday. Hazare had
criticised the attack on his team-mate Prashant Bhushan, and Thackeray
had slammed him.[IE p5]
30. PM Hisar defeat no reflection on Govt : PM: PRETORIA : Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh, in South Africa for the fifth IBSA summit, sent
a strong message to the Opposition and Team Anna from foreign soil on
Tuesday that the “result of one byelection cannot be seen as a reflection
on the government’s performance”.[AA p1]
31. Hisar defeat only ‘technical’: Chautala : Chandigarh : Former Haryana
Chief Minister and Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) chief Om Prakash
Chautala on Tuesday demanded resignation of Chief Minister Bhupinder
Singh Hooda on “moral grounds” as the ruling Congress candidate Jai
Prakash forfeited his security deposit in the Lok Sabha by-election from
Hisar.[The Hindu p5]
32. Bring democracy in parties: expelled MP to poll panel, PM : New
Delhi :An MP expelled from the BSP has petitioned the Election
Commission seeking its intervention, besides urging the Prime Minister to
include “internal democracy in political parties” as part of the government’s
proposed electoral reforms.[IE p4]
33. CBI feels nurse likely killed : Jaipur: The probe in Bhanwari Devi case
on Tuesday gained momentum with a senior CBI official arriving in Jaipur
to probe the alleged role of sacked Rajasthan minister Mahipal Maderna
even as the agency suspected that the auxiliary nurse, who went missing
from Jodhpur about one-and-a half months ago, could have been
killed.[AA p5]
34. Cong’ RLD nearing poll pact, Ajit to get central ministry : Allahabad :
A seat-sharing agreement between the Congress and Ajit Singh’s
Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) for the coming Assembly elections in Uttar
Pradesh has almost taken a final shape. The two parties will contest the
elections together, with the RLD contesting around 50 seats and Ajit Singh
getting a cabinet berth at the Centre. A formal announcement is likely to
be made soon, it is learnt.[IE p1]
35. Maya will seek UP trifurcation : LUCKNOW: In a master stroke, UP
chief minister Mayawati is now preparing to convene a brief special
session of the state legislature early next month to pass a resolution
seeking trifurcation of Uttar Pradesh.[AA p3]
36. UP govt is of statues, mafia, accused: BJP : LUCKNOW: Terming it as
a government of “moorti” (statue), mafia and “mulzim” (accused), the BJP
said on Tuesday that the countdown had begun for the Mayawati
government in Uttar Pradesh.[AA p3]
37. BJP candidates likely to be named by Dec : Haldwani : The ruling
party in Uttarakhand, BJP, is likely to declare list of its candidates for the
Assembly elections 2012 by December. The State party has decided to
conduct a kind of internal survey between October 18 and 24, seeking
public view to weigh winning prospects of the ticket seekers. However, the
final decision on this issue has to be taken by the Central Parliament
board, said Suresh Joshi, General Secretary of the State BJP, while
talking to The Pioneer.[Pioneer Daily p4]
38. Ahead of polls, govt nod for 11,600 petrol pumps : New Delhi: States
headed for polls will be flooded with petrol pumps as the oil ministry has
set aside its own orders against new outlets and is forcing staterun oil
companies to appoint 11,600 fresh dealers. The move will put an
additional burden of over Rs 5,000 crore on the firms. [TOI p1]
39. Assembly polls across five States may be clubbed : New Delhi : As
the Election Commission prepares for the mammoth task of holding the
Legislative Assembly polls in five States in the first half of next year,
deliberations are on to see whether the polls can be clubbed together and
held at one go.[The Hindu p1]
40. BJP claims Congress-Mayawati ‘deal’ : Lucknow : Bharatiya Janata
Party vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Tuesday charged that a
“deal” had been struck between the Congress and BSP president and
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati to withdraw the disproportionate
assets case against her in return for support to the United Progressive
Alliance government at the centre.[The Hindu p5]
41. Acid test for Hooda in Adampur, Ratia bypoll : Chandigarh : After the
Hisar Lok Sabha byelection debacle, another acid test awaits Haryana
Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda when the Ratia and Adampur
Assembly seats go to the polls in the next few months.[The Tribune p1]
42. Why entertainment tax exemption for F1, asks SC : New Delhi: The
Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Mayawati government why it
granted entertainment tax exemption worth crores of rupees to the Jaypee
group, which is organizing India’s first Formula 1 motor race at the Buddh
International Circuit in Greater Noida on October 30. [TOI p1]
43. BJP to protest revision of circle rates : New Delhi : The opposition
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is gearing up to launch a protest, as the
Delhi government is contemplating revising circle rates in Delhi. The rate
determines the minimum amount that a buyer needs to pay to the treasury
towards registration of a sale deed.[HT p9]
44. Janak Setu to be open for Diwali : New Delhi : After promising to fix
streetlights before Diwali, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is
likely to add another gift to residents’ kitty. The civic body has decided to
open a carriageway of the Janak Setu, which has been closed since June.
The bridge connects West Delhi with Delhi Cantt and its closure has lead
to rampant jams on the adjacent roads. [HT p7]
LEGAL/CRIME NEWS
45. SC slams Haj policy, calls it a bad religious practice: New Delhi : The
Supreme Court on Tuesday assailed the Centre’s policy of “politicizing”
the annual Haj pilgrimage that gives discretionary power to the
government to nominate pilgrims under its own quota.[HT p11]
46. Retired judge’s daughter held for graft gets bail : Mumbai: A special
court on Tuesday granted bail to Madhaveshwari Mhase–Thube, daughter
of retired Bombay high court judge S B Mhase, in a Rs 30 lakh bribery
case. However, there may be fresh trouble in store for Mhase–Thube.
[TOI p11]
47. Take action against all hotels flouting rules: HC : Mumbai: Observing
that action must be uniform for all, the Bombay high court on Tuesday
directed the police to take action against all hotels which have not erected
a partition to demarcate their permit rooms from restaurant areas. [TOI
p11]
EDITORIAL/OPINION
48. Telangana, a case of missed opportunities: Vinod Sharma : The
Congress’s rout in an assembly by-poll in Telangana is reason enough to
recall a piece of history. But first the contemporary account: Banswada is
the TDP’s loss. It didn’t contest the seat its sitting MLA retained upon
defecting to the Telangana Rashtra Samithi. The Congress got the loser’s
tag as it dared to enter the fight. [HT p13]
49. After bypolls, Cong needs to introspect : The recent byelection results
-for the Lok Sabha seat at Hisar in Haryana, and the Assembly
constituencies of Daraunda in Bihar, Banswada in Andhra Pradesh and
Khadakwasla in Maharashtra -can hardly be a gauge of the country’s
political mood.[AA p6]
BUSINESS NEWS
50. Sahara Must Refund . 24k cr to Investors : MUMBAI : The Securities
Appellate Tribunal (SAT) has upheld a regulatory order directing the
Sahara group to refund . 24,000 crore — equivalent to the country’s
second-biggest lender ICICI Bank’s deposit growth last fiscal — for
violating securities laws. [ET p1]
