LEGAL NEWS 21.11.2009

Now, Maharashtra CM wants more jobs for locals
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Now-Maharashtra-CM-wants-more-jobs-for-locals/articleshow/5255626.cms
TIMES NEWS NETWORK & AGENCIES 21 November 2009, 08:12pm IST
MUMBAI: In a surprise move, Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan on Saturday called for "more importance to be given to locals" in job opportunities, thus joining in the likes of MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray. "Locals must be given importance. Whoever is a domicile of Maharashtra must first get an employment opportunity," Chavan said at a function today. Chavan, however, said his government does not support agitations based on language and region. "It is not our policy." He said, "Irrespective of the language people of Maharashtra speak or the belief they follow, we are concerned about their employment and request Mamata Banerjee to pay heed to this matter." Following the request by chief minister Ashok Chavan on Saturday and against the backdrop of MNS attacking candidates from North India appearing in railway exams in Maharashtra, railway minister Mamata Banerjee today said the tests will be conducted in regional languages simultaneously. "The railway exams will be conducted in regional languages simultaneously apart from English and Hindi. In Maharashtra, the exams will be held in Marathi and in other states, these will be held in local languages," she told reporters here. Concerned over growing congestion in the existing trains, chief minister Ashok Chavan made a request that there was a need for more train services in the state. "The population is increasing day-by-day and so there seems to be a need for more train services for Mumbai and Maharashtra," Chavan said. "As we need to make Mumbai like Shanghai we need to take several steps towards its development which would in turn create employment opportunities for our people," he said.






Madhu Koda says he will report to ED only after Jharkhand polls
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Madhu-Koda-says-he-will-report-to-ED-only-after-Jharkhand-polls/articleshow/5254952.cms
PTI 21 November 2009, 02:38pm IST
JAMSHEDPUR: Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, who has failed to appear before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the money laundering case against him, today said he would be available for questioning only after the Assembly polls. "The summons by the ED were delivered at my Ranchi residence only on November 18, a day before the appearance when I was busy campaigning (for assembly polls) in Chaibasa," Koda said here when asked by reporters why he failed to appear before the agency on November 19. Koda said he would be available only after the conclusion of Jharkhand state Assembly polls on December 18. The former Jharkhand Chief Minister has put up six candidates, including his wife Gita on behalf on Jharkhand Navanirman Morcha for the polls. "Moreover, the ED wanted certain documents like passport, which I don't have as they must be with either the income tax authorities or vigilance department (both the agencies had raided Koda's residence). Unless I get them how can I show them," he said. He refused to comment on his 'aides' Sanjay Choudhary and Binod Sinha, who are facing arrest warrants following the raid by Income Tax authorities on about 70 premises, including Koda's residences, and unearthed documents that allegedly pointed to hawala transactions and illegal investment to the tune of over Rs 2000 crore.






State, Sourav Ganguly asked to file affidavits
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/State-Sourav-Ganguly-asked-to-file-affidavits/articleshow/5253051.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:43am IST
KOLKATA: Calcutta high court on Friday directed the government and cricketer Sourav Ganguly to file affidavits-in-opposition within three weeks on a PIL moved by some residents of Salt Lake, challenging the state's decision to allot land to the former Team India skipper to set up a school on a 62-cottah plot in CA block. Meanwhile, any construction on the land has to abide by the outcome of the writ petition, the division bench of acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice Prasenjit Mondal ruled. One of the petitioners, CA Block Citizens' Association, alleged that flouting the legal procedure for distribution of state-owned property, the government "illegally favoured" Sourav by allotting plot no CA-222. Five similar petitions were filed against the land allotment to Sourav. Those petitioners are by Humanity, Arunanshu Chakraborty, Susmita Chakraborty, Salt Lake Citizens' Welfare Society and Bidhannagar House Owners' Association. The petitions stated that Sourav was earlier allotted about 50 cottahs in Sector-I to set up an integrated school. A long-term lease deed dated October 29, 2006, was also executed between him and the state. Petitions pointed out that after completion of the allotment proceedings, Sourav made a "secret" request to the urban development department "taking advantage of his easy access to the corridors of power" for allotment of plot CA-222, measuring about 62 cottahs, in Sector-I. The urban development department then made a subsequent allotment in Sourav's favour without publishing any advertisement, which was illegal and arbitrary, the PILs alleged. The petitions questioned how Sourav could be allotted a plot when one had already been given on the basis of an advertisement in TOI (dated November 5, 2006). How could the plot be given on the basis of the same advertisement, they asked. Pleading that the allotment process be quashed, the PILs said the allotment was in violation of the law governing ceiling on granting urban land in favour of an individual.







Ram Jethmalani's comments anger Saudi ambassador
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Ram-Jethmalanis-comments-anger-Saudi-ambassador/articleshow/5255126.cms
PTI 21 November 2009, 03:46pm IST
NEW DELHI: Senior lawyer and former Union minister Ram Jethmalani's charge that Wahabi sect was responsible for terrorism provoked a walkout by Saudi Arabia's Ambassador to India Faisal-al-Trad from an international conference of jurists on global terror here. Jethmalani alleged that "Wahabi terrorism" indoctrinated "rubbish" in the minds of young people to carry out terrorist attacks. The senior lawyer lamented that India had friendly relations with a country that supported Wahabi terrorism. Following Jethmalani's speech, Saudi Arabia's ambassador Faisal-al-Trad was seen walking out of the conference, apparently taking offence at the remarks. Organiser of the event Adesh Aggarwala said the Ambassador had walked out but returned after law minister M Veerappa Moily's statement that the views expressed by Jethmalani were not that of the government. Moily, in his address, said that terrorism cannot be attributed to any particular religion. It was unfortunate that the entire Islam as a religion was being blamed for terrorism, Jethmalani said, adding that "there are also Hindu terrorists and Buddhist terrorists." Terming Non-Aligned Movement and Panchsheel as evil, the former Union Minister said India should align with forces of good to combat the forces of evil. "India and its foreign ministers must learn to reassess the doctrines of past." He said India's foreign policy establishment should be courageous to shun country's relationships with its "enemies". Referring to Jethmalani's comments, Justice Awn S Al-Khasawneh, a judge of the International Court of Justice, asked him not "to make sweeping statements."






PM 'assures' Mahesh Bhatt of justice in son Rahul's case
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/PM-assures-Mahesh-Bhatt-of-justice-in-son-Rahuls-case/articleshow/5255431.cms
Anil Singh, TNN 21 November 2009, 06:01pm IST
MUMBAI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has replied to filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt's letter appealing to him for justice and assured him that the points he had raised would be considered. Bhatt had written to the PM on November 15, saying that the agencies investigating the David Headley case had been grossly unfair to his family and him. On Friday, he received a letter dated November 16 from Jaideep Sarkar, private secretary to Manmohan Singh, saying, ``The PM has told me to acknowledge your letter and inform you that the Home Minister has been told to look into the matter.'' ``The PM's prompt response is heartwarming and it gives me hope, now that a conscientious man is aware of my plight,'' said a relieved Bhatt. TOI was the first to carry an interview with Bhatt and his daughter Pooja on November 15 where they spoke about feeling let down by the security establishment in the manner in which Bhatt's son Rahul and his friend Vilas Varak were being portrayed as suspects rather than as a dutiful citizens who had volunteered to provide information on a terrorist. ``God help us if our sense of fair play is not the strongest of our feelings. An injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. I with great anguish, urgently bring to your notice that the security agencies of our nation, who were completely on the wrong track as far as the Headley investigation was concerned, and were clueless to the identity of `Rahul' in the case, have been grossly unfair to my family and myself,'' Bhatt wrote to the PM. Bhatt had let out steam in the missive to the PM asking him, “Is this how India rewards its civil society when it risks everything to stand up for the country's honour and security?'' Reminding the PM that the war against terror cannot be won without the whole-hearted participation of civil society, Bhatt said the unprofessional actions of investigative agencies would deter citizens from functioning as the first line of defence against terrorism. ``Any investigation which is not built on justice and on the recognition of the rights and contribution of the people would be doomed from the start,'' he wrote. Although relieved as far as his personal case was concerned, Bhatt said the entire episode, which started with his son being tainted and his own film, `Tum Mile', being targeted, was a symptom of a deep malice. ``Fairplay has evaporated in society. The edifice that we have built brick by brick over the years is being eroded while the government is looking the other way.'' Taking a dig at the electronic media, he said, ``Today, one man's suffering is your entertainment.'' Asked about his cancelled trip to the Vatican, where he had been invited by the Pope as one of the 500 artistes to speak on global peace, Bhatt said, ``I cannot mouth platitudes when the ground under my own feet is burning.'' Bhatt said Vilas was so traumatized by the subtle intimidation of the investigative agencies that he could not sleep for several days and had to be counselled and put on sedatives. "As we head towards the first anniversary of 26/11, we must remind ourselves that the freedom we have won will be in peril if we trample on civil liberties in the name of fighting terror,'' the filmmaker said.






A ration card in the name of Mahatma Gandhi
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/A-ration-card-in-the-name-of-Mahatma-Gandhi/articleshow/5255110.cms
IANS 21 November 2009, 03:35pm IST
HYDERABAD: Believe it or not - the authorities in Andhra Pradesh have issued a ration card in the name of Mahatma Gandhi along with his picture! What is more shocking is that the card named Nathuram Godse, the killer of Mahatma Gandhi, as his father. Godse, however, has been misspelt as Godsay. Chittoor district collector V. Seshadari has ordered a probe after the ration card, carrying a fictitious address, which was detected during a verification drive in the district to wee out bogus cards. The card was issued in Chuttagunta village of Ramachandrapuram mandal in Chittoor district. It carried the picture of Gandhi with the name of M K Gandhi Thatha (Thatha in Telugu means grandfather), age 65, father's name Godsay, address 15-46541, Gandhi Street, Gandhi Road. The address was that of a fair price shop owner. Seshadari has constituted a three-member committee to probe the matter and take action against the officers responsible. Action is likely to be taken against those who were entrusted with the task of taking photographs of the person on whose name the card is issued and affix it on the card. The revenue officials also failed to check the name and address. This is not the first incident of its kind. In the past, bogus cards in the name of politicians, film stars, sportspersons and even Hindu Gods were detected. However, this time the officials have taken a serious note of the incident as it involved the name and picture of the father of nation. In June, a ration card issued to one Laxmi of Vizianagaram district with a photograph of tennis star Sania Mirza was detected. The latest incident once again exposed the collusion between the officials and fair price shop dealers. The authorities have intensified verification as several dealers have managed to get dozens of ration cards in fictitious names. The white ration card issued to below poverty line families make them eligible to get rice at Rs 2 per kg and social security benefits like health insurance and housing. The authorities had launched door-to-door verification campaign early this year when it was found that the number of ration cards issued in some districts exceeded the population. The number of bogus cards in the state is estimated to be 3.5 million.







Indian husbands want protection from nagging wives
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life/relationships/man-woman/Indian-husbands-want-protection-from-nagging-wives/articleshow/5251241.cms
REUTERS20 November 2009, 03:58pm IST
Shrews, beware: a group of Indian husbands tired of being harassed by their wives are demanding the local government create a male protection society to address their grievances. The men, who said they had enough of their "nagging" wives, dressed up in clothes traditionally worn by grooms and paraded through the northern city of Lucknow this week to ask for a National Commission for Men. "We are asking for equal rights. We want somebody to listen to the grievances of men," said Subhash Dube, a medical doctor who described himself as a victimised husband. The president of the All India Welfare Committee for Husbands, Indu Pandey, said statistics showed abuse of a section of the penal code meant to protect women against their husbands. "Demands to amend this law have been put forward a lot of times. Therefore, we oppose this law," Pandey said. Most of the misuse of the law has been related to dowry issues, with women and their family members registering false claims that they have been harassed by their husbands or their families about not paying enough, Pandey said. In India, dowries of money, jewellery or other assets are given by the parents or the family of the bride to the groom. This tradition was banned by law in 1961 but, even today, dowries are common, and if the groom or his family is unhappy with them, they often physically and emotionally abuse the wife. Indian police receive hundreds of complaints of harassment related to dowry every day from women, and are required to investigate deaths of women within a few years of marriage as possible dowry deaths.






20 years later, police lose murder case documents
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/20-years-later-police-lose-murder-case-documents/articleshow/5253659.cms
MUMBAI: At 20 years and 146 hearing dates, it must be one of the longest running criminal trials in the country. The Bombay high court on Friday stepped up the heat on the ‘eternally’ pending case after it came to light that the police investigating a murder could not find the related papers. Even the complainant has gone missing and there has been little progress in the trial with just three witnesses examined so far and around 146 adjournments sought. Hearing a petition filed by three Haryana-based accused seeking an end to the trial, a division bench of Justice J N Patel and Justice Amjad Sayed have ordered the superintendent of police, Thane (rural), to trace the missing documents and file a report in court in two weeks’ time. The 147th hearing is slated for December 5. "It is a mockery," said senior advocate S R Chitnis, counsel for the petitioner, Sunil Kaushik, who, along with two others, was arrested in March, 1989. The case goes back to twenty years ago, when the three had a fight with one Mohan at Shahpur. Subsequently, Mohan died of his injuries, following which Kaushik and the others were arrested for murder. The accused were released on bail the same year but the case continued - the hearings were held first at the Thane sessions court and in 1996, it was committed to the Kalyan sessions court, where it has been running for the past 13 years. According to the petitioners, they have attended every hearing, often shuttling between their hometown Haryana and Kalyan. The court, during the last hearing, summoned the police officer concerned, who had claimed that the papers could not be found at the police station, said additional public prosecutor Ajay Gadkari. "The entire procedure is contrary to the concept of a speedy trial," said the petition, claiming that their fundamental right to a fair trial guaranteed under the Constitution had been violated. "No efforts have been made by the prosecution to bring the witnesses to court or complete the trial," said the petition, blaming the delay on the "lethargy of the police". Alleging that the trial now spells torture and harassment for them, the petitioners have urged the court to quash the proceedings. shibu.thomas1@timesgroup.com








Bullets did not pierce Karkare's bullet-proof vest: Post mortem report
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Bullets-did-not-pierce-Karkares-bullet-proof-vest-Post-mortem-report/articleshow/5255216.cms
PTI 21 November 2009, 04:32pm IST
MUMBAI: Setting at rest the controversy that slain Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare died because of defective bullet-proof jacket, post mortem report have revealed that he received five bullets in and around his neck. All the five bullets pierced his body in the region which was not covered by the bullet-proof vest, the post mortem report said. He received "total five firearms wounds of entry on shoulder blade, top region between neck and right shoulder, four entry wounds in one line," the report said. A Public interest litigation (PIL) in the Bombay High Court had alleged that Karkare died because bullets had pierced his bullet-proof jacket. However, the post mortem reports negate this claim made by the PIL. The PIL also pointed out that in accordance with specifications laid down for bullet-proof vests, the portion of the body from the neck till waist should be covered. In the present case, the bullet-proof jacket worn by Karkare had only his chest covered while the neck portion was open.






26/11: Taj, Oberoi paid Rs 167 cr as terror claims by GIC
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/26/11-Taj-Oberoi-paid-Rs-167-cr-as-terror-claims-by-GIC/articleshow/5255535.cms
PTI 21 November 2009, 07:28pm IST
MUMBAI: General Insurance Corporation (GIC), the designated administrator of the terror insurance pool, has released Rs 167 crore to Taj and Oberoi hotels in connection with the 26/11 terror attacks, a top GIC Re official said. "We have released Rs 167 crore to both hotels (Taj and Oberoi) till now. The renovation work is on...and we are waiting for the final report (to settle the final claim)," GIC Re's Chairman and Managing Director, Yogesh Lohiya, told reporters here on Saturday. General Insurance or non life insurance companies had formed a terror insurance pool in 2001 to pay the claims arising out of terrorist activities. Of the Rs 167 crore given to the two hotels, GIC Re had released the first insurance instalment of Rs 25 crore to each of the two hotels in December last year. The insurer will release the final claim amount to both the hotels only after the renovation works at the Taj and the Oberoi gets over, Lohiya said. "The final claim figure will be arrived at only after the hotels finish their renovation work," Lohiya said.






CM: Titling body will reduce property feuds
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/CM-Titling-body-will-reduce-property-feuds/articleshow/5252928.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 05:24am IST
NEW DELHI: The second day of the consultative meeting between various stakeholders for the draft bill on Delhi Survey Registration and Recordal of Title of Immovable Properties in Urban Areas ended with a discussion between RWAs, real estate promoters as well as government officials, including chief minister Sheila Dikshit. Talking about the need for such a bill, Dikshit said, "The purpose of the new legislation is to create a single, secure, electronic and efficient system for mandatory registration and record of title for which a Delhi Urban Property Registration and Titling Authority will be formed.'' The CM said that the government will be able to create a digital register of titles and reflect actual state of titles. "It will put an end to risk of fraudulent transactions, reduce illegal and unlawful transfer of properties apart from providing a facility to determine state of title of properties. Hence, it will remove complexities related to transfer of immovable properties and put an end to ever-increasing number of litigation cases,'' added Dikshit. According to officials, the system will help financing companies to use the property titles to create healthy mortgages which would speed up economic development in cities through banking finance by strengthening the legal framework. The new system would prove beneficial to the owners of properties in multi-storeyed buildings, including cooperative group housing society flats and DDA flats. It will also provide an electronic database to ascertain actual ownership of immovable properties. Added Delhi chief secretary Rakesh Mehta, "Property titling system for an urban area is very essential for better efficiency of the urban management system. This is one of the key mandatory reforms under the JNNURM and all states are committed to implement reforms in property titling system.'' A final draft bill will be submitted to Union ministry of urban development for concurrence after which the Bill will be presented in the Legislative Assembly. Incidentally, the draft bill has been prepared by Amarchand and Mangaldas and Shroff Solicitors. A presentation on the draft bill was given by Jatin Aneja, a partner in Amarchand and Mangaldas. According to government sources, the new system will be implemented in phases. It will be implemented first in NDMC and DDA properties. The new system will also pave the way for creation of data in electronic form as per the provisions of Information Technology Act.







HC lets Lotika clean up house
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/HC-lets-Lotika-clean-up-house/articleshow/5252937.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 05:10am IST
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Friday allowed former Delhi University law faculty professor Lotika Sarkar to clean up her house, which has in an ownership dispute with an IPS officer for almost a year and is sealed till the matter was resolved. The court also allowed her to carry the articles from the house which belonged to her. The court directed the police to maintain the status quo after the exercise is completed. The directions came on an application filed by Sarkar. Prashant Mendiratta, counsel for Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Nirmal Dhoundial, said that he had given a no objection in case Sarkar wanted to clean the premises and take her belongings from the house. He said that Sarkar had moved an application that the property be desealed by the police and she should be allowed to live there. Meanwhile, the court has also asked Dhoundial to file a reply to Sarkar's appeal by Monday. The court will take up the application on November 26 for arguments after filing of the reply. Last month, Justice S N Dhingra, hearing an urgent application by Preeti Dhoundial, wife of Nirmal Dhoundial, against the tribunal's decision, had ordered for the desealing of the house till the final disposal of the appeal. A tribunal, set up under the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007, had earlier ordered 87-year-old Sarkar to stay in her house and directed the deputy commissioner of police (south district) to immediately evict the Dhoundials, who claimed she had gifted them the property. Dhoundial's counsel questioned the tribunal's order, contending the house was given to the Dhoundials under the Gifts Deed Act in 2007 and the tribunal's order was a violation.







Delhi speeds up parole for select few: HC
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Delhi-speeds-up-parole-for-select-few-HC/articleshow/5253646.cms
Smriti Singh, TNN 21 November 2009, 05:28am IST
NEW DELHI: Demolishing Delhi government’s claim that it went by the rule book in granting parole to Manu Sharma, Delhi high court on Friday said there was ‘‘no doubt’’ that the administration had been ‘‘selectively...giving priority’’ to the requests made by some convicts ‘‘maybe because of their high connections and influence’’. In fact, Justice Kailash Gambhir cited Sharma’s example to establish the preferential treatment given to ‘‘resourceful’’ convicts as the latter had been granted parole in barely 20 days while applications from others had been pending for over six months. The judge contrasted the speedy disposal of Sharma’s plea with the inaction displayed in seven specific cases. Agreeing that the government was required to adopt a cautious approach while dealing with convicts of heinous crimes and that stringent conditions would have to be imposed at the time of their release on parole, Justice Gambhir said, ‘‘certainly the government cannot sit over the applications of the convicts for undue and an unusually long time. It can also not be seen favouring some or disfavouring others as every convict should be treated alike and decisions should be as per the jail manual and the decisions of the apex court and high court.’’ Referring to the government’s lists of parole applications filed this year and those still under consideration, the court said they ‘‘depict a dismal picture of apathy of the government in not giving due priority to the parole applications moved by convicts.’’ The lists were appended to an affidavit filed by the government, saying that out of 372 parole applications filed this year, 72 have been allowed, 202 have been rejected and 98 are under consideration. Significantly, the government added that despite its cautious approach, 14 convicts had jumped parole this year and were still absconding.






Haryana govt pushes ahead with Aravali mining plan
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Haryana-govt-pushes-ahead-with-Aravali-mining-plan/articleshow/5252927.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 05:18am IST
NEW DELHI: It seems Haryana government does not want to lose more time wating for green signal from the Supreme Court to resume mining of building material. That is visible the way the state is finalizing its plans, putting in place the guidelines and procedures for auctions and setting up Aravali rehabilitation fund. Sources said financial commissioner and principal secretary of industries Y S Mallik, who was in the Delhi on Thursday, had a meeting with the SC-appointed Central Empowered Committee (CEC) and discussed the matter. "We have already appointed one consultant for carrying out the mitigation study and come out with solutions for reclamation and rehabilitation of already mined areas. We will finalize another consultant soon for this massive task,'' Mallik said. He added the guidelines for auctioning have already been finalized. "We can't share them with anyone except the CEC. We are in the process of setting up the rehabilitation fund as per the SC guideline. We will complete all this within the given time-frame since without completing them we can't even touch the 600 hectares, which CEC has agreed to open for mining,'' Mallik said. Sources said in the absence of supply of building material from the Aravali, the demand of stones from Rajasthan has increased. "Even the state PWD is procuring huge quantity of stones from those areas for carrying our development works,'' said a senior official. In its October order, the SC had granted conditional permission for resumption of mining of minor minerals in the Aravali region of Faridabad and Palwal after the state government gave an undertaking for termination of all existing mining leases. The court had said in its order that it would consider allowing mining in 1,500 hectares in Gurgaon and Mewat, depending on how situation unfolds in Faridabad and Palwal. Haryana had submitted that it would take three months for notifying the auction guidelines, setting up an Aravali rehabilitation fund and a monitoring committee and six months for preparing and initiating a reclamation and rehabilitation plan.







Lawyers stage demonstration
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Lawyers-stage-demonstration/articleshow/5252929.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 05:13am IST
NEW DELHI: A day after sugarcane farmers from western UP lay central Delhi to siege, it was the turn of lawyers from the same region who blocked Parliament Street on Friday demanding a separate high court bench in western UP. Hundreds of lawyers held demonstration at Jantar Mantar demanding the Central and state governments to stop passing the buck and take concrete steps to give respite to lakhs of people. Protesters said people have to travel 800km to reach Allahabad and the poor, in particular, cannot afford to pursue cases for a longer period. Minister of state for labour and employment Oscar Fernandes met the agitators and said the Centre would consider their demand. But, he added, it will happen only when the state government puts the demand on table.







Notice to Ashoka, MLA over transfers
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Notice-to-Ashoka-MLA-over-transfers/articleshow/5252888.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:49am IST
BANGALORE: The high court has strongly disapproved of the tendency of transferring officials at the behest of ministers and MLAs. The court on Friday ordered issuance of notices to transport minister R Ashoka and Chikmagalur MLA C T Ravi, as well as the KSRTC management in this regard. "It is very strange that ministers and MLAs interfere in cases where there is unblemished record of service. It is nothing but a serious lapse. If transfers are to be made at the behest of ministers and MLAs, the morale of the organization goes down. Let them come and explain," Justice Ram Mohan Reddy observed. Flossy Philomena D'souza, an accounts supervisor with KSRTC, filed the petition challenging her transfer from Chikmagalur to Kolar on August 19. She claimed that though it was mentioned `in public interest' in the transfer order, it later turned out that the local MLA had sent a letter to the minister seeking her transfer, as evident from copies made available under RTI. Relief to Mylarappa The high court has stayed for eight weeks the summons issued by a trial court against B C Mylarappa, former director of distance education in Bangalore University, over a private complaint. Muniswamy, who alleged that Mylarappa had threatened him over property matters, registered the case based on a complaint. But Mylarappa said he'd paid Rs 5 lakh towards sale consideration for the property, and there was delay in filing the complaint.







State doesn't figure in child surveys: Experts
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/State-doesnt-figure-in-child-surveys-Experts/articleshow/5252898.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:39am IST
BANGALORE: The Karnataka Child Rights Observatory (KCRO), at a two-day convention on the state's initiatives for child rights and develoment, has expressed concern that the it does not figure in many central surveys on the subject. On Friday, KCRO commemorated the twenty years of Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) adopted by the UN. Members of KCRO, CRC, Child Rights Trust (CRT), and various NGOs and doctors attended and discussed issues regarding child protection, health and nutrition, child development, participation and action plans for NGOs. Dr Rupa N Devadasan, Institute of Public Health, said: "A child's health is a dialogue and cannot be summed up in the minutes of discussion... Doctors should stick to one area and continue researching it to bring forth comparatively better health solutions." While Dr Vasavi, NIAS, discussed the unattended issues in child development, Renny D'Souza, Padi, elaborated on child participation and how important it is to his or her personal development. "The state has promised many state-of-art plans for child development and child rights, but is yet to reach the target. It doesn't figure in many surveys conducted by the Centre like studies on sexual assault and corporal punishment among children,'' she said. According to her, the percentage of juveniles apprehended under IPC during 2007 in the state shows depressing results, and the state also ranks last in the percentage of children who can do subtraction or more. The gathering's unanimous view was that parents should be the first ones to promote child development at the primary level. Issues like child custodianship and guardianship should necessarily involve child participation, added Renny. On Saturday, Unicef will release the world children report. NGOs' action plan Wide publicity about the conventions and the programmes. Educating possible stakeholders like parents, teachers, governments and police about the Unicef and CRC conventions, and how to implement them. Press for implementation of all policies for children at every level of society. Equal opportunities for the disabled, under-privileged and semi-privileged children. Special opportunities for the girl child. NGOs to be watch dogs of these programmes at the panchayat and state levels.







A history of complaints
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/A-history-of-complaints/articleshow/5252905.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:34am IST
BANGALORE: The charges of encroachment and altering the state's boundary against tourism minister and MD of Obulapuram Mining Company G Janardhan Reddy are nothing new. Janardhan Reddy, who entered into the mining business in 2002, owns two mining leases on the Karnataka-Andhra Pradesh border -- 68.50 hectares at Malapanagudi and 39.15 hectares at Obulapuram. Mine owner Tapaal Narayana Reddy had lodged a complaint against Janardhan Reddy and three others at the Torangal police station in Bellary on August 31, 2006. He accused them of unauthorisedly entering his mining area at Thumati, destroying the survey poles erected by the Karnataka government and annexing it to their mining area, which falls under Andhra Pradesh jurisdiction. T N Reddy also lodged a complaint with the state authorities against Janardhan Reddy over the Obulapuram mines. On May 22, 2007, Karnataka State Forest Guards and Watchers Association, Bellary, petitioned the Bellary deputy commissioner against the Obulapuram company staff and accused them of threatening and abusing them. Janardhan Reddy has been accused of destroying a temple, Sunkalamma, which acted as a boundary between Karnataka and AP. The cases registered against him over this are: * On September 3, 2006, a case (CR Number 338/06) was registered at the Bellary rural police station under Sec 295, 436 of IPC and 3 and 4 of the Explosives Act 1908 by Mangyu Nayak, a Lambani priest and resident of Honnali thanda, Bellary, for the demolition of Sunkalamma temple * On September 4, 2006, an officer of the Bellary range forest registered a case (FOC No 11/2006-07) under Column 24 (GG) and 73(D) K F Act 1963 * On September 5, 2006, an officer of the Bellary range forests registered a complaint (FOC 12/06-07) under Column 24 (GG) and 73(D) KF Act 1963 for demolishing Sunkalamma temple toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com







Have clear policy, guv tells govt
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Have-clear-policy-guv-tells-govt/articleshow/5253235.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 04:07am IST
BANGALORE: Governor H R Bhardwaj has written to the government expressing concern over the recent controversy related to appointment of two registrars in Bangalore University. Sources in the secretariat on Friday said Bhardwaj has sought a clear-cut policy on such issues. Bhardwaj, who is chancellor of universities in Karnataka, wants the government to ensure that “appointment of registrars doesn’t become a bone of contention or reason for obstruction to the university’s normal work,” sources said. The reason for the altercation: BU V-C N Prabhu Dev’s refusal to allow newly appointed registrars M G Krishnan and M S Talwar to take charge on November 16 and the duo saying they were armed with government order (GO) from the higher education department. Sources said the letter also wanted the government to take V-Cs into confidence while making such appointments. “You will agree with me that vice-chancellors have an important role in shaping universities. Hence, it goes without saying that they should have a smooth administrative system in order to enable them to work with efficiency, integrity and promptness,” said sources, quoting the letter.







Single girlchild can get reservation in PG: HC
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Single-girlchild-can-get-reservation-in-PG-HC/articleshow/5252886.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:51am IST
BANGALORE: If you are single girlchild in your family and opting for post-graduate studies, don't look back. The high court on Friday directed the government to consider and make special provision for ensuring reservation to single girlchild families in higher education, taking into account the essence of a central scheme in 2005. Justice A S Bopanna gave this direction while disposing of a petition filed by M S Supreetha seeking reservation in PG course in medicine. The petitioner completed her MBBS and internship in Devaraja Urs Medical College, Kolar, and claimed that Andhra Pradesh and Punjab governments have already implemented the said scheme. Even though several representations were made to the authorities, they were yet to take action, the petitioner said. She wants to appear for the February 7, 2010, PG entrance examination. WHAT'S THE SCHEME ABOUT? UGC introduced the post-graduate Indira Gandhi Scholarship for single girlchild, with an aim to compensate direct cost of girls' education to all levels, specially for those who happen to be the only girlchild in their families. Any girl, who's the only child of her parents, is eligible. The scheme is applicable to such a girl who has taken admission in first-year master's degree programmes in any recognized university or post-graduate college; duration of the scholarship is 2 years (for 10 months in a year).








CM-led panel fixes BMIC timeline
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/CM-led-panel-fixes-BMIC-timeline/articleshow/5252904.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:36am IST
BANGALORE: Fearing strictures from the Supreme Court, a high-level committee headed by chief minister B S Yeddyurappa has fixed a timeline for implementation of the Bangalore Mysore Infrastructure Corridor (BMIC) project. On November 3, Justices Tarun Chatterjee, Lodha and Deepak Verma of the apex court set November 22 as deadline to set up the high-level committee, and report to it with the time schedule on implementation of BMIC. Accordingly, the committee was constituted on November 10 and held its first meeting on Thursday. Going by the timeline, which will be submitted to the SC, the required land transfer to Nandi Infrastructure Corridor Enterprises (NICE), promoters of BMIC, and tax concessions will be done in the next one year. Of the 20,193 acres, which the state government agreed to give NICE in 1997, the developers received 7,000 acres so far. With the Yeddyurappa-led committee clearing all hurdles, rest of the 14,000 acres is expected to be transferred in a year's time.







Forest officer's show-cause notice
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Forest-officers-show-cause-notice/articleshow/5252907.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:33am IST
BANGALORE: A show-cause notice was served to Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC) by Kallol Biswas, divisional forest officer, Anantapur on October 28.

THE NOTICE The OMC has uprooted/ destroyed the village boundary pillars designated as survey station number 4 and lease boundary pillar number 6 of 25.98 hectres of OMC so fixed during the survey conducted by me from May 9 2009 to May 13 2009. The survey was conducted to fix the village boundary between H Siddapuram and Obulapuram village relayed by state high level committee appointed by Andhra Pradesh government. You have not only destroyed the above two permanent survey stations constructed with cement concrete but you have also destroyed all the flagged iron rods pegged at regular intervals along the village boundary. During my inspection it was noticed that fresh mining operations was undertaken in high grade ore located in Bellary Iron Ore Private Ltd's (BIOPL) mining lease area upto 50 mts in width inside from the village boundary and 100 mts in length. The forest range officer, Kalyandurg in his report stated that you have carried out illegal encroachment in Bellary Iron Ore Ltd and carried out illegal mining operations day and night from September 25 2009 to October 8 2009. The concerned beat staff have also informed that they have witnessed blasting operation carried out at midnight in BIOPL mining area. This illegal act of undertaking blasting operation in the night by you followed by immediate excavation of iron ore is in violation of Mines Act. These are all violations of mining lease condition imposed by ministry of environment and forests, AP state government divisional forest officer, the provision of MMRD Act, Mines Act, provision of Indian Forest Act 1927 and Forest (Conservation) Rule 1980. toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com






Personal info can be sought under RTI, says HC
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Personal-info-can-be-sought-under-RTI-says-HC/articleshow/5252969.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 04:29am IST
CHENNAI: Can personal information such as an address of an employee or a pensioner be demanded under the provisions of the Right To Information (RTI) Act? Yes, says the Madras high court. Justice K Chandru, pointing out that the writ petitioner M Kaliaperumal of Chennai wanted the personal details only to execute a court decree, said: "A pensioner does not cease to become totally out of control from the government. On the contrary, his conduct and character are continuously monitored by the central government. In that context, the whereabouts of such pensioner is also very much relevant and it cannot be a private information. The authorities are bound to help in the execution of court orders." Kaliaperumal approached the postal department authorities at Gudur in Andhra Pradesh, seeking information about a man named K Ramachandra Rao, against whom a court order had been passed in a forgery case. Unable to find him at his residence, Kaliaperumal filed an RTI application demanding to know the postal address of Rao as the latter had been receiving his pension from the Gudur post office. However, the RTI plea was rejected on the ground that this was a personal information and had no public interest. His appeal too met with the similar fate. Pointing out that the address was sought only to execute a court order, Justice Chandru said Kaliaperumal was not able to take further civil and criminal action against Rao as the latter's address was not known. Directing the authorities to furnish the correct address of Rao within 30 days, the judge said the plea did have a public interest as the pensioner's exact whereabouts would clear doubts as to whether such a pensioner really existed on the date of receipt of his pension or whether a fraudulent claim had been made on his behalf. "Such information cannot be denied," he said.







Madras HC discloses assets of judges, third court to do so
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Madras-HC-discloses-assets-of-judges-third-court-to-do-so/articleshow/5253282.cms
A Subramani, TNN 21 November 2009, 04:50am IST
CHENNAI: In a step towards greater transparency and accountability, the Madras High Court on Friday disclosed the assets and liabilities of all its 54 judges on its website, becoming the second HC in the country to do so. The Kerala HC was the first to declare the assets of its judges on September 30, followed by the Supreme Court that placed details in the public domain on November 2. Though the High Courts of Delhi, Bombay and Punjab & Haryana have already announced that they too would make public their assets, they have not yet implemented the decision. Starting from Chief Justice HL Gokhale, all the judges of the Madras HC have made exhaustive declarations about their properties, agricultural land holdings, investments and bank holdings. Neither the format nor details of the declaration is uniform though. Shares, fixed deposits and gold jewellery seem to be the most preferred investment modes for the judges, most of whom do not have any agricultural lands or income. Justice Gokhale does not have a house or agricultural lands in his name, but he has revealed that he inherited shares in 15 companies from his father. His spouse has a flat in Mumbai, besides bank deposits and jewellery.






HC asks collector to monitor sand mining on Cheyyar river bed
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/HC-asks-collector-to-monitor-sand-mining-on-Cheyyar-river-bed/articleshow/5252967.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 04:30am IST
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has directed the Kancheepuram district collector to monitor sand quarries on the Cheyyar river, to ensure that no quarrying was done beyond the permissible limit of 0.9 metres. The first bench comprising the chief justice HL Gokhale and justice N Paul Vasanthakumar, passing orders on a public interest writ petition of J Jayakumar of Naiyadupakkam village in Uthiramerur taluk, however, declined to stay quarrying of sand on the river. The petitioner contended that men engaged by private parties were quarrying sand beyond the permitted limits on 21.67 hectares of river bed. Claiming that several mandatory requirements were being violated by the operators, he said heavy equipment were being employed to dig beyond 0.9 metres at the site. He said the village panchayat passed a resolution in connivance with local politicians, and then the district collector granted quarry permit. Though the government pleader denied that quarries were more than 0.9 metres deep, the judges pointed to the photographs submitted by the petitioner and said, "perhaps excavation could be more than what is permitted." They then said: "We are of the view that the collector ought to cause a direct monitoring of the removal of sand. The government pleader has stated that removal of sand is being done only by the public works department and not by any private parties. Even so, it is necessary from the point of view of the environment that this particular ocndition ought to be observed strictly. We expect the collector to take necessary steps in this regard." An official document available with TOI reveals that the mining of sand has reduced the storage of water in all the 17 river basins in Tamil Nadu from which lakhs of cubic metres of sand was being mined everyday. While the G.O. 735 of Industries department prohibited by 500 metres on either side of the drinking water headworks but illegal sand mining could not be avoided in the riverbed inspite of the order, the document states. Indiscriminate mining has also affected the infiltration wells functioning in the river bed and has affected a number of drinking water supply headworks in the major rivers. The top brass of municipal administration has also suggested two strategies, fully implement GO 735 and sever punishment for vilators, to curb illegal sand mining. The government is yet to act on the suggestions, officials said.







More awareness needed for RTI
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/More-awareness-needed-for-RTI/articleshow/5252742.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 01:25am IST
AHMEDABAD: The awareness level among common people about the Right to Information Act is not satisfactory. This was stated by chief information commissioner RN Das at a seminar on Your Rights under Right to Information Act' at the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Friday. Das said several studies have revealed that the RTI awareness level in the entire state is not satisfactory, with a huge contrast seen in rural areas where some parts were actively using it and some were completely ignorant. According to Das, many people still do not know how to file an application for seeking information. Das further said that the provision of pro-active disclosure should vary from area to area. Citing example of Panchmahal, he said that the authorities have gone in for pro-active disclosure but the information sought by the applicants was slightly different. Hence a study at the grass root level needs to be carried out and authorities should disclose information looking at the need of that area, he said. Das further added that one has to ensure that the justice was done to the poor and downtrodden, who are living within limitation of the law. He cited two examples in which how he ensured justice to the victims living within the parameters of the law. He said a widow had sought information about the labour insurance after her husband death. The labour department informed that the application was sent to Oriental Insurance. Though the insurance company was not in the purview of the state, he wrote to the insurance company and during the hearing the widow got the cheque. Speaking at the event, former city civil and session judge BN Jani said that one cannot civilise the society with bunch of laws. He also objected to the use of the word request in the RTI.







Hearing on Hawara's appeal against sentence adjourned
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chandigarh/Hearing-on-Hawaras-appeal-against-sentence-adjourned/articleshow/5252913.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 02:44am IST
CHANDIGARH: As the proceedings against accused Paramjit Singh Bheura in the Beant Singh assassination case were yet to be concluded by the special CBI court, Chandigarh, which is held in Burail jail here, the division bench of justice Mehtab Singh Gill and Ram Chander Gupta on Friday adjourned till December 24 the hearing on the appeal filed by Jagtar Singh Hawara and others against their conviction and sentence. The trial court had awarded death sentence to two accused, Hawara and Balwant Singh, while others were awarded different prison terms, including life imprisonment. While Hawara and others have appealed against their conviction and sentence, Balwant Singh has moved the court to direct the jail authorities concerned to implement the death sentence awarded to him. These matters are to be heard simultaneously as also that of Bheura, hence the adjournment of hearing. The then Punjab chief minister, Beant Singh, and 16 others were done to death in a bomb blast outside the Civil Secretariat, here, on August 31, 1995. One of the key accused, Jagtar Singh Tara, who along with Hawara and Bheura had escaped from the jail by making a tunnel, continues to be at large, while the other two were apprehended.






TGTSOA to fight in SC for shacks by draw of lots
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/TGTSOA-to-fight-in-SC-for-shacks-by-draw-of-lots/articleshow/5253712.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 05:59am IST
PANAJI: The Goan Traditional Shack Owners Association (TGTSOA) passed a resolution on Friday that it would continue its fight and battle it out in the Supreme Court to ensure that shack allotments are done through draw of lots and not by preference to seniority. TGTSOA members convened a meet in Panaji on Friday morning where an unanimous resolution was passed to this effect. "We had filed a caveat in the Supreme Court that if the SOWS approached it to appeal the High Court's order, its petition should be rejected. However, now that the Supreme Court has issued a status quo on the matter, we have decided that we will fight it out at the Supreme Court too," TGTSOA president Manuel Cardoz said. It maybe pointed out here that Shack Owners Welfare Society (SOWS) and the tourism department, on November 9, lost a court case after Clause 16 in the Beach Shack Policy 2009-10 was challenged by rivals TGTSOA. Clause 16 specifies the all-important method applied to choose who gets to put up a shack on the beach, and stated that preference would be given to seniority. On November 18, SOWS challenged the High Court's decision in the Supreme Court.








Acting CJ walks out over imperfect national emblem
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Acting-CJ-walks-out-over-imperfect-national-emblem/articleshow/5253077.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:53am IST
KOLKATA: Acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya walked out of a courtroom when a petitioner's lawyers pointed out that the chair he was sitting on had an incorrect representation of the national emblem. The petition he had been hearing at that time, incidentally, was about faulty national emblems engraved in several offices of the state and the Centre. On Friday, acting Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice Prasenjit Mondal were hearing a PIL filed by Kamal Dey, editor and publisher of a Bengali periodical. Dey had submitted that the Ashok Chakra was being used without the writing Satyameva Jayate, which is integral to the emblem. In fact, a division Bench of the high court had earlier held that the national emblem should have the writing below under the Prevention of Insults of National Honours Act. Dey produced photographs before the court to show how the nation emblem was disregarded.
Lawyers pointed out that the authorities concerned were not paying heed despite the court order to rectify the error and submit a compliance report within three weeks. It was at this stage that the petitioner's lawyers, Tapas Bhanja and Sujay Bandyopadhyay, pointed out that even the chief justice's chair, on which Bhattacharya was sitting, did not have the Satyameva Jayate inscription. The acting chief justice stood up immediately and turned around to have a look at the emblem. He then summoned the registrar-general. As soon as he came, Bhattacharya asked him to rectify the mistake and left the room. The fault, however, could not be rectified in a short time. The registrar-general then asked to replace the CJ's chair with an ordinary one. Justice Bhattacharya sat on that chair and resumed court proceedings after the recess.







Black Friday for state judiciary
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/jaipur/Black-Friday-for-state-judiciary/articleshow/5253871.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 07:05am IST
JAIPUR: Friday turned into a black day for the state's judiciary when a token strike called by Rajasthan High Court Bar Association took an ugly turn with more than 500 agitating lawyers of the high court turning violent after Chief Justice Jagdish Bhalla and Justice M N Bhandari started hearing cases despite the strike call. The association had called a day's strike to protest the suicide by a Bhilwara-based advocate Amit Yadav who blamed police atrocities in his suicide note. A mob of violent advocates gathered outside the gate of the court of Chief Justice and prevented lawyers and clients form entering. However, the division bench headed by the Chief Justice started hearing the matters listed on board at 10.30 am and made it clear that no one from the association, including the president, had taken him into confidence before going on strike, nor had it been bought to his notice. Present in the court were Supreme Court lawyer Arunerswar Gupta, who had just started arguing the matter relating to reservation of seats for women in the lottery drawn for Jaipur Municipal Council, and Abhinav Sharma, who was waiting for the scheduled Justice N N Mathur Commission case to be taken up by the bench. With the protesting lawyers getting abusive and violent, the Chief Justice was forced to call the police and advocate Aruneshwar Gupta, who was arguing the matter at that time, was immediately escorted out through the back door by cops. The lawyers than abused Sharma for his presence in the courtroom and forcefully dragged him out. In the meanwhile, bar association president Madhav Mitra and secretary Manish Kumawat approached the Chief Justice in the chaotic atmosphere with advocates hurling abuses at the judges and the two advocates. Annoyed by the due and deliberate interference by the lawyers in justice delivery system, Chief Justice Bhalla specifically told the Bar president: "You were required to have informed us but that was not done nor any request was made at 10.30 am. If the lawyers have a head-on collision with the bench they will be at the receiving end. This in not the way to agitate, taking the judicial system to ransom." The furious lawyers forcefully entered the Chief Justice's court and started abusing the bench. The lawyers then went to the chamber of advocate Abhinav Sharma and ransacked his office and threw out the furniture. An emergency general house meeting of the Bar Association was also called wherein all the member advocates of the Bar Association decided to expel advocate Abhinav Sharma and Aruneshwar Gupta from the membership of the Rajasthan HC Bar Association. The proposal to boycott the court of Chief Justice was also mooted, but no unanimous decision was taken. CM Ashok Gehlot has also ordered a probe into the incident and asked the ADG (crime) to look into it.







Amend child rights Act: NGO
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Amend-child-rights-Act-NGO/articleshow/5253043.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:27am IST
KOLKATA: Parliament had passed the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Bill that emphasis free education for children aged between 6 and 14 years, but what will be the provisions for children below six years of age and those between 14 and 18? Social organisation Child Rights and You (CRY) now wants the law amended. It will forward a charter of demands to the Centre on December 11 the day when India ratified the UN's child rights convention. The charter demands that children not covered by the law be included in it. It also calls for ensuring that a school proper facilities be set up within one kilometre of any habitation. The CRY charter demands that 10% of India's GDP be allocated for education of children who constitute 40% of the country's population. "We have launched a nation-wide campaign for signing the charter. We are expecting at least half-a-billion people to sign the charter," said Cry's GM for Volunteer Action, Soha Moitra. Interested citizens have three options to sign the charter of demands. They can simply walk down to CRY office at Kalikapur, send an SMS on 58558 or log on to www.cry.org. "The Sabko Shiksha, Samaan Shiksha campaign was launched on November 14," said CRY's Director Dipankar Mazumder.








School occupation in Lalgarh: HC seeks details
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/School-occupation-in-Lalgarh-HC-seeks-details/articleshow/5253049.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:40am IST
KOLKATA/JHARGRAM: Calcutta high court on Friday called for details of the steps taken by the government on the removal of joint forces from schools in the Lalgarh area, which have been occupied by jawans since the anti-Maoist operations began earlier this year. The order came on a PIL praying that all schools in four blocks of West Midnapore be immediately vacated as they are not functioning due to such occupation. A division bench fixed the matter for hearing on Tuesday. Advocate-general Balai Ray submitted that some steps had been taken to vacate the schools. Already, two of the 16 schools had been vacated, Ray added. Meanwhile, PCPA supporters, students and guardians blocked a road near State Highway 9 for three hours to protest against the alleged harassment of six students by jawans near Banstala jungle in Jhargram (West Midnapore) on Friday. The jawans allegedly detained the six students, who were on their way to school for exams, and made them strip. The Madhyamik Test examinees then refused to sit for the exams. Debashis Chakraborty, IC of Jhargram PS, promised to look into the matter.








Manu Sharma got parole because of high connections, influence: High Court
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/manu-sharma-got-parole-because-of-high-connections-influence-high-court/544415/0
Express news service
Posted: Saturday , Nov 21, 2009 at 0313 hrs New Delhi:
The Delhi High Court on Friday accused the state government of “selectively” granting parole to the son of senior Haryana politician Venod Sharma, Siddharth Vashisht alias Manu Sharma, who is serving a life term for the murder of model Jessica Lal.
Earlier this month, Manu, 32, who was out of Tihar Jail on a two-month parole to attend to his “ageing mother” based in Chandigarh, was spotted pub-hopping in the National Capital, triggering questions as to whether he had violated parole norms.
“This court has no doubt that the department (Home) has been giving parole to some convicts because of the high connections and influence. No doubt one such case is that of Manu Sharma,” Justice Kailash Gambhir wrote in his order.
The court was hearing a complaint from convict Sumedh Singh about how his parole application has been pending for over three months.
At the start of the hearing today, Justice Gambhir specifically asked police counsel Meera Bhatia to point out the name of Manu Sharma from a list of 372 convicts who had applied for parole till date. When shown that Manu’s application was numbered 245, Justice Gambhir remarked that “this application has been disposed off a lot quicker than the rest”.
Later, in his written order too, he noted that Manu’s application was disposed off with “utmost promptitude” while others have to wait for at least three to four months.
In his affidavit, B M Jain, Deputy Secretary (Home), Delhi Government, said 72 convicts have been granted parole from January 1, 2009 to November 18. He said his department rejected 202 parole applications, while 98 others are under consideration and 14 prisoners have “jumped parole” and are still absconding.
“The list portrays a dismal picture of apathy, least priority is given to parole applications,” the court observed.
Jain explained in his affidavit that extreme caution is taken to check if the convict would pose a threat or commit crimes if he is let out on parole, and so the delay in submitting police verification reports. A draft of revised guidelines on parole conditions in Delhi has been approved by the government and will be placed before the High Court on November 25, he said.
The Bench gave the police 10 days to dispose off parole applications in which police verification reports are ready.
For convicts who are from other states or whose verification reports are yet to arrive, the court ordered the Home department to immediately inform the Commissioner of Police, who will get in touch with his counterparts in the respective states. All this has to be done within 10 days.
“It is directed that all pending parole applications are to be finally decided by the government within 15 days to one month from this order today,” the Bench ordered.







Parole isn't only for rich and powerful: HC to Govt
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/parole-isnt-only-for-rich-and-powerful-hc-to-govt/105652-3.html?from=tn
Parikshit Luthra / CNN-IBN
Published on Fri, Nov 20, 2009 at 22:39, Updated on Sat, Nov 21, 2009 at 11:58
New Delhi: The High Court has slammed the Delhi Government for giving parole to Jessica Lal’s killer Manu Sharma on a platter while other convicts had to go through a long wait for parole.
Parole isn't only for the rich and the powerful -- that is what the Delhi High Court has told the Delhi Government.
“No doubt the Government has been giving priority to some convicts because of their influence and no doubt one of such cases is that of Manu Sharma, “ the court said.
The high court was hearing a petitioner whose parole application was pending with the Government for long.
Meanwhile, the Government in its reply said:
· 372 parole applications were received in 2009.
· Out of which only 72 were granted.
· 202 rejected outright.
The court said the figures clearly showed apathy towards the applicants.
The state Government will now submit a draft of revised guidelines before the Chief Justice of India on November 25 which says: All parole applications will be disposed of within a month or at the most 2 months and that attempts will be made to complete police verification of applications within a week.
The courts said that no doubt the Government should exercise caution while granting parole. It cannot favour some and disfavour others.
While the new guidelines for granting parole are yet to be formalised, the court provided some much needed reprieve for some prisoners by asking the Delhi government to dispose of all pending applications within a stipulated time period.






Explain shortage of fertilisers: HC to state
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/Explain-shortage-of-fertilisers-HC-to-state/articleshow/5253117.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:13am IST
LUCKNOW: The high court on Friday sought reply of the state government on a PIL seeking timely availability of fertilisers to farmers in the state.


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The court fixed November 26 for next hearing of the case. The order came on the PIL filed by five farmers from Lucknow, Pilibhit, Sitapur and Lakhimpur. Their counsel, Jayant Singh Tomar submitted that there was acute shortage of DAP, urea and other manures in the state. The Central government has provided adequate DAP to the state but due to faulty distribution by the state agencies, the rabi crop is suffering, argued the counsel. The bench of Justice Pradeep Kant and Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi directed additional chief standing counsel, Mukund Tiwari to obtain instructions from the state government regarding the shortage of fertilisers in the state. The court also asked the state government as to why the petitioners were not being provided fertilisers as required. When the PIL was being argued, senior advocate, Raghvendra Singh assisted the court saying that since most of the primary cooperative societies were unstable and facing dispute within, the distribution of fertilisers to the farmers was not proper and thus they faced scarcity in peak season of rabi crop. Another senior advocate, Anil Tiwari added that there was shortage of availability to the government as well as the distribution system was also not up to mark. Therefore, the entire state is in grip of fertiliser shortage. The petitioners submitted that from adjoining border districts, the fertilisers were smuggled to Nepal and China. The state government was not taking strict action against black marketeers. The bench refuted state government's objection that the PIL was politically motivated and remarked that it contained public cause relating to lakhs of farmers.






Madras HC directs overhauling legal education
http://www.indiaedunews.net/Law/Madras_HC_directs_overhauling_legal_education_9575/
November 20, 2009
Chennai: Justice N. Kirubakaran at the Madras High Court recently took an initiative to dive in to the existing scenario of the legal profession in the country and suggested to restore its past glory by introducing reforms in imparting the law education at the admission stage itself. “In order to attract talented students to law courses, the curriculum should be in pace with the globalization to suit the present day situation,” he said.The judge further observed that reviewing the curriculum would prevent the decline in standard of legal education as well as check the recurrence of November 2008 violent incidents in the Madras Law College while he dismissed a writ petition from an aspirant to three-year BL degree course, who crossed the age limit.“It is not good for the largest democracy of the world to suffer on the parameters of legal education. If no remedial measures are undertaken to improve the situation then the country would suffer irreparably,” said the judge while giving directives to the government and the Bar Council of India (BCI).Running exactly on the lines of the National Law School, classes in the law colleges are ought to be taken seriously by the students like that of a regular college where short attendance is an issue.In order to make the students more responsible in the matter of their education, the college hours have to be increased to 5 or six hours per day and classes should be held in the morning and afternoon sessions.The cut off percentage for admission into law colleges should be not less than 60. The antecedents of students might be verified before admission.“Appointment of proficient full time professors/lecturers was to be made. Three-year law courses had to be scrapped in a phased manner and a five-year integrated course was to be introduced. The students had to be involved in field study,” the judge said.






HC directs SSP to monitor eviction drive
TNN 21 November 2009, 03:30am IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/HC-asks-CS-to-ensure-payment-of-salary-to-employee/articleshow/5253055.cms
PATNA: Patna High Court on Friday directed the Patna senior superintendent of police to produce a report on the removal of encroachments and cowsheds in the city through a specially deployed nodal officer every month. A division Bench, comprising acting Chief Justice Shiva Kirti Singh and Justice Shyam Kishore Sharma, issued the directive while hearing a PIL of one Barun Kumar Sharma, who sought the removal of encroachments and khatals from Bashishth Narain Path in the Kadamkuan locality. On Friday, the Bench directed the Patna district magistrate and the Patna Municipal Corporation commissioner to coordinate with police to make Patna town free of all encroachments. The HC will monitor the progress of work regarding the removal of encroachments every three months so that there is no break and no new encroachments come up.





Explain shortage of fertilisers: HC to state
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/Explain-shortage-of-fertilisers-HC-to-state/articleshow/5253117.cms
TNN 21 November 2009, 06:13am IST
LUCKNOW: The high court on Friday sought reply of the state government on a PIL seeking timely availability of fertilisers to farmers in the state. The court fixed November 26 for next hearing of the case. The order came on the PIL filed by five farmers from Lucknow, Pilibhit, Sitapur and Lakhimpur. Their counsel, Jayant Singh Tomar submitted that there was acute shortage of DAP, urea and other manures in the state. The Central government has provided adequate DAP to the state but due to faulty distribution by the state agencies, the rabi crop is suffering, argued the counsel. The bench of Justice Pradeep Kant and Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi directed additional chief standing counsel, Mukund Tiwari to obtain instructions from the state government regarding the shortage of fertilisers in the state. The court also asked the state government as to why the petitioners were not being provided fertilisers as required. When the PIL was being argued, senior advocate, Raghvendra Singh assisted the court saying that since most of the primary cooperative societies were unstable and facing dispute within, the distribution of fertilisers to the farmers was not proper and thus they faced scarcity in peak season of rabi crop. Another senior advocate, Anil Tiwari added that there was shortage of availability to the government as well as the distribution system was also not up to mark. Therefore, the entire state is in grip of fertiliser shortage. The petitioners submitted that from adjoining border districts, the fertilisers were smuggled to Nepal and China. The state government was not taking strict action against black marketeers. The bench refuted state government's objection that the PIL was politically motivated and remarked that it contained public cause relating to lakhs of farmers.







Allahabad HC needs 27 yrs to clear pending cases in UP
Pervez Iqbal Siddiqui, TNN 21 November 2009, 06:15am IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/lucknow/Allahabad-HC-needs-27-yrs-to-clear-pending-cases-in-UP/articleshow/5253787.cms
LUCKNOW: The Allahabad High Court will have to spare a little over 27 years, comprising 365 working days of eight hours each, to clear the 9,49,437 cases pending before it. This, when no fresh cases are taken up during this period. The calculation is based on the last annual report of the Delhi High Court, which heard 3,32,141 cases in 2007-2008, with around five minutes - four minutes 55 seconds to be precise - being devoted to each case. Of the total of over 40 lakh cases pending before high courts across India, the Allahabad High Court shares 23.62 per cent of the burden. At the district and subordinate court level, UP has 19.53 per cent of the total backlog of over 2.7 crore cases nationwide. With fresh cases being filed at a steady pace and vacancies being carried forward almost every year, the backlog appears set to stay here for quite some time. Most of the judicial officers (JOs) and the lawyers in Uttar Pradesh believe that the issue must be addressed urgently in the interest of justice. "Justice delayed, is justice denied - this is an age-old belief. With such heavy backlog, one can easily gauge the extent of justice being done with petitioners across the country in general and Uttar Pradesh in particular," said senior high court lawyer I B Singh. "Though the law ministry announces schemes and mechanisms to deal with the crisis from time to time, nothing much has been done,” he said citing the 'Justice at your doorstep' concept that was announced in the past.






Lawyer gets Rs 1 lakh in defamation case
Diwakar Phatak21 November 2009, 04:34am IST
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/nagpur/Lawyer-gets-Rs-1-lakh-in-defamation-case/articleshow/5253257.cms
GONDIA: Lawyer and notary Jayantilal Parmar was not only acquitted but he also got a compensation of Rs 1 lakh in a misappropriation and defamation case against the gurjar kshatriya samaj. Parmar was the chief of Gurjar Kshtriya Samaj in the early 80s. The then treasurer of the society Prof Chunnilal Chouhan had alleged that Parmar had misappropriated Rs 13,086 between 1983 and 1986. Through a civil suit filed in 2003, Chouhan demanded that the money and the interest amounting to Rs 22,219 be recovered from him. Parmar refuted the allegations and lodged a counter case claiming Rs 1 lakh for defamation. On November 17, civil judge (senior division) B S Mahajan acquitted Parmar and ruled that the president of the samaj, Dr Liladhar Parmar and secretary Prafulla Chawada should pay Parmar Rs 5,000 each. In the defamation case, the court on November 18 upheld Parmar's Rs 1 lakh claim. The court further ruled that the amendment (25-12-1994) made by the then executive committee and the election of Parmar (July 1, 2001) and other office bearers of the society was null and void. The officials have also been directed to submit accounts of income and expenditure till date.




SC refuses to stop idol immersion
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1091121/jsp/nation/story_11768109.jsp
OUR LEGAL CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi, Nov. 20: The Supreme Court today refused to stop immersion of idols in natural water bodies saying it would not interfere with religious customs of any denomination.
“You are speaking of Article 21, right to life and liberty of individuals, what about Article 25 (which guarantees right to every citizen to practise the religion of his choice)? We can’t waste a minute on such petitions,” Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan said, dismissing a public interest plea seeking such curbs.
Delhi trader Salek Chand Jain had filed the plea saying immersed idols were choking natural water bodies. “We cannot give any directions on this,” the CJI said.
The Supreme Court was asked to intervene just as it had done to curb the use of loudspeakers and amplifiers to check noise pollution.
The idols, made of harmful chemicals and non-biodegradable items and immersed after Durga Puja, Ganesh Puja or Saraswati Puja, choked rivers and ponds, the petition said.
Idols should instead be sunk in specially created ponds and pits constructed near natural water bodies, the petition suggested.
The petition had drawn the court’s attention to the recent post-Puja immersions in Delhi that, it said, affected potable water supply in several parts of the capital.
Although everyone has the right to practise, profess and propagate any religion, it does not give anybody untrammelled rights to pollute rivers, the petition said.








Govt officials to file counter-affidavit on agri-society poll
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/Govt-officials-to-file-counter-affidavit-on-agri-society-poll/articleshow/5248871.cms
TNN 20 November 2009, 02:05am IST
PATNA: Patna High Court on Thursday asked senior state government officials to file a counter-affidavit to a writ petitioned by a member of the Alauli primary agriculture cooperative society, challenging the rejection of his nomination papers for the election to the post of PACS chairman. The officials in question are the state election authority, which conducted the election to the PACS, East Champaran additional district magistrate and BDO-cum-returning officer for the PACS polls, Raxaul. A single Bench of Justice Navniti Prasad Singh issued the directive while hearing the writ filed by Ram Babu Prasad, who had filed a nomination to contest for the post of Alauli PACS chairman. Petitioner's counsel Yogesh Chandra Verma submitted that the BDO-cum-returning officer had made a serious mistake in rejecting the nomination on the grounds that he had become member of the Alauli PACS by depositing only Re 1 instead of Rs 11. Verma added that if there was any mistake in the PACS register in not entering the correct amount for his membership, the returning officer ought to have looked into it. But he should not have rejected his nomination.