Dilip Kumar exempted
in criminal case

NASIK, Aug 10: Thespian and Rajya Sabha MP Dilip Kumar booked in a criminal case of alleged land grabbing with three others has been exempted from personal appearance .....more

Jharkhand NDA
coordination committee
within a week

RANCHI, Aug 10: Bowing to pressure from non-BJP allies, especially Samata Party, Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi has set.....more

Prakashchand furnishes
Rs 15 crore bond,
allowed to go abroad

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Swiss national Prakashchand, one of the three Hinduja brothers accused in the Bofors payoff case, today furnished a bond .....more

CPI(M) flays
Subramanyam

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Strongly reacting to former UTI Chairman P S Subramanyam reportedly giving a clean chit to an official in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), CPI(M) today alleged that it was being orchestrated to keep PMO out of the UTI controversy. .......more

No threat to
Rajnath Singh Govt

LUCKNOW, Aug 10: Uttar Pradesh Governor Vishnu Kant Shastri today said there was no threat to the Rajnath Singh Government as it enjoyed the majority support in the 403-member Vidhan Sabha...........more

Govt yet to give nod to
genetically modified food

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Government today said approval had not yet been given for commercial release of genetically engineered food in the country. ......more

Recording of evidence
against Thackeray
adjourned to Oct 11

MUMBAI, Aug 10: A local court has adjourned till October 11 recording of evidence against Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and two others in a defamation case filed against them by Samajwadi Party’s city unit president ......more

Shiv Sena will not
break off with BJP

MUMBAI, Aug 10: Shiv Sena today said it had no differences with BJP and would not break off the 15-year-old alliance on its own even as party ....more
 

Dilip Kumar exempted in criminal case

NASIK, Aug 10: Thespian and Rajya Sabha MP Dilip Kumar booked in a criminal case of alleged land grabbing with three others has been exempted from personal appearance by a local court which adjourned the matter to September 15.

Chief Judicial Magistrate yesterday allowed an application moved by Dilip Kumar’s lawyer M Y Kale urging exemption for the actor on health grounds.

The court, however, turned down the plea of the complainant, Meerabai, for a non-bailable warrant against the actor for not remaining present. An application moved by her lawyer Dharmendra Chavan was rejected by the magistrate.

According to the complainant, the thespian allegedly "grabbed" 19 acres of land belonging to her in Dudgaon village near Trimbakeshwar after making a provisional agreement by paying Rs 3000. Meerabai is the widow of freedom fighter Shivram Khanderao Borate. ((PTI)

Jharkhand NDA coordination committee within a week

RANCHI, Aug 10: Bowing to pressure from non-BJP allies, especially Samata Party, Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi has set up a three-member committee to determine the structure of the Pradesh Coordination Committee of the ruling NDA in the state.

The committee was set up after a marathon five-hour meeting of the Council of Ministers chaired by the Chief Minister at his residence here last night.

The three-member committee, comprising State Samata Party Chief and Excise Minister Ramesh Singh Munda, Energy Minister Lalchand Mahato of the JD(U) and Mines and Geology Minister Ravindra Rai of the BJP, was given a week’s time to submit its report on the proposed panel to the Chief Minister.

The Council of Ministers unanimously reposed full faith in the leadership of Marandi and decided to set up a coordination committee of the ruling alliance along the lines of the one at the centre, the committee members told PTI.

They said that after they submit the report, the Chief Minister would formally announce the constitution of the NDA’s state coordination committee and its convenor. (PTI)

Prakashchand furnishes Rs 15 crore bond, allowed to go abroad

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Swiss national Prakashchand, one of the three Hinduja brothers accused in the Bofors payoff case, today furnished a bond of Rs 15 crore before the trial court as per the direction of the Supreme Court and was allowed to go out of the country till October one.

Special Judge S L Khanna accepted the bond accompanied by a bank guarantee of Rs 15 crore from State Bank of India and allowed Prakashchand, who was granted bail on January 19 but refused permission to go abroad alongwith his two brothers Srichand and Gopichand, to go out of the country. He was asked by the court to return back to India by October one.

However, on May 12 Srichand and Gopichand were allowed to go abroad till August 20. On August 8, the Supreme Court while allowing Prakashchand to go out of India, asked the other two brothers to decide as to who among them should stay back.

Khanna, while allowing the counsel for the accused to examine the documents supplied to them by CBI, fixed September three for arguments on charge.

CBI, in two chargesheets filed in 1999 and 2000, had arraigned the Hindujas, Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi, former Defence Secretary S K Bhatnagar, former Bofors agent Win Chadha, former Bofors chief Martin Ardbo and the Bofors company as accused in the Rs 64 crore payoffs case.

The trial court had separated the trial of Quattrocchi and Martin from the rest of the accused as they had not been brought before the court to face trial. One of the accused S K Bhatnagar died recently. (PTI)

CPI(M) flays Subramanyam

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Strongly reacting to former UTI Chairman P S Subramanyam reportedly giving a clean chit to an official in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), CPI(M) today alleged that it was being orchestrated to keep PMO out of the UTI controversy.

"The matter is before a Joint Parliamentary Committe (JPC) and CBI investigation is also going on. Now he (Subramanyam) exonerates the PMO. These are being orchestrated to keep PMO out of this controversy," CPI(M) leader Somnath Chatterjee told reporters here.

He strongly condemned the move outside JPC to give a clean chit to PMO.

On the proposed GIC bill, he said, the move went against the report of the Commitee on Public Undertakings (COPU) and the legislation would make GIC totally ineffective. (PTI)

No threat to Rajnath Singh Govt

LUCKNOW, Aug 10: Uttar Pradesh Governor Vishnu Kant Shastri today said there was no threat to the Rajnath Singh Government as it enjoyed the majority support in the 403-member Vidhan Sabha.

Speaking to newsmen here, he confirmed that he had received a letter from the Loktantrik Congress Party (LCP) president Naresh Agarwal withdrawing party’s support to the Rajnath Singh Government but this needed to be examined as to how many LCP members were actually with him.

"A number of LCP ministers either telephonically or through fax messages have informed me that they did not approve of Agarwal’s decision of withdrawing support to the Government," Shastri said.

Shastri said he had received the letter of withdrawal of support from Agarwal, sent by fax, at 1230 hrs in Raj Bhawan.

Without naming the LCP Ministers, the Governor said some of them had informed him that they did not support Agarwal’s decision.

"I have to wait and see and examine as to how many LCP Ministers supported Agarwal’s decision to withdraw support," Shastri said.

"According to my estimate, the BJP enjoyed majority support in the 403 member Vidhan Sabha," the Governor said but refused to go into the numbers.

The 13-member Lok Jan Shakti legislature group led by Dr. Ram Asrey Kushwaha and party’s other senior Ministers met the Governor and expressed their support to the Chief Minister.

The eight-member group of independents led by Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya also expressed their confidence in the leadership of the Chief Minister.

"Where is the problem of Mr Rajanth Singh Government", the Governor said referring to the telephonic conversation with LCP Ministers and to the presence of supporting party leaders adding "everything seems to be clear."

Raja Bhaiya later claimed that hardly two to three LCP Ministers were with Agarwal and the remaining MLAs would show their strength and extend support to Chief Minister later in the day today.

The state BJP president Kalraj Mishra and party’s incharge of UP affairs, Kushabhau Thakre also met the Governor and claimed that the Rajnath Singh Government enjoyed majority support.

The Governor also said no party had so far demanded convening of the the Vidhan Sabha session for proving the majority of the Rajnath Singh Government. (PTI)

Govt yet to give nod to genetically modified food

NEW DELHI, Aug 10: Government today said approval had not yet been given for commercial release of genetically engineered food in the country.

This was stated in the Rajya Sabha by Minister of State for Food Processing Chaoba Singh who said even in developed countries including in western Europe authorities were insisting on labelling genetically modified food for giving informed choice to the countries.

The minister said in New Delhi’s neighbourhood Colombo, the products were so far banned. On genetically engineered rice, Singh said though the Department of Biotechnology was undertaking a joint research project on golden rice with Switzerland, there was no no proposal to introduce the rice in the market.

His ministerial colleague shripad Y Naik said, over the past three years there had been fall in production of onion, garlic and ginger and that centre had taken up integrated programmes on boosting production of these items.

He said there was no on-going agitation anywhere in the country against aquaculture, though from time to time notices had been received both for and against shrimp farming.

Naik ruled out any Government plan to give direct subsidies to exporters of agricultural commodities. (PTI)

Recording of evidence against Thackeray adjourned to Oct 11

MUMBAI, Aug 10: A local court has adjourned till October 11 recording of evidence against Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray and two others in a defamation case filed against them by Samajwadi Party’s city unit president Abu Asim Azmi.

The adjournment was sought by Azmi’s lawyers Majeed Memon and Anand Jhondale yesterday on the ground that the complainant was not available before the court as he had courted arrested along with his supporters since August two in keeping with his party’s agitational programme.

The court had issued summons against Thackeray, Sanjay Raut and Subhash Desai, Editor, Executive Editor and Publisher respectively of party’s mouthpiece ‘Saamna’ on August 14, 1998, in response to the complaint filed by Azmi.

Azmi’s complaint referred to an editorial in the paper which alleged that his (Azmi’s) hands were tainted with blood of victims of 1993 serial blasts and that he should be publicly hanged for his alleged involvement in the crime.

The article, published on July one, 1998, had also alleged that Azmi had got bail from Supreme Court on the strength of money power.

The accused, including Thackeray, were not present as they had secured permanent exemption from appearance before the court.

The complaint is being heard by Additional Metropolitan Magistrate N M Gosavi. (PTI)

Shiv Sena will not break off with BJP

MUMBAI, Aug 10: Shiv Sena today said it had no differences with BJP and would not break off the 15-year-old alliance on its own even as party supremo Bal Thackeray gave "necessary instructions" to Sena MP Sanjay Nirupam to maintain decorum.

Briefing reporters after a meeting of Sena MPs, Anant Gite, Parliamentary Party leader of Sena said "as far as we are concerned there are no differences left with BJP."

Emerging from the meeting held at ‘Matoshreee’, Thackeray’s Suburban Bandra residence, Gite said the official stand on the status of the Sena-BJP alliance would be declared by Thackeray and leaders of the BJP at a ‘proper time’.

To a question whether the relations between the two parties in the wake of Nirupam’s attack on PMO for the UTI scam were still under strain, Manohar Joshi, Union Heavy Industries Minister said ‘I do not want to make any comments’.

On the proposed code of conduct being worked out for NDA constituents, Joshi said ‘we will formulate our view on it when it is made available’.

Gite, the party’s parliamentary leader, however, said the Sena MPs will now be breaking their silence in Parliament from Monday and continue to air their views on the issues concerning ‘small investors, Hindutva and farmers’.

The Sena leaders said party MP Nirupam, who has been at the Centre of the controversy surrounding Sena’s tirade against PMO in the UTI affair, was given ‘necessary instructions’ by Thackeray to ‘observe decorum’.

Joshi and Gite said the deliberations at the meeting attended by all party MPs and ministers were ‘satisfactory’. Shiv Sena sources said the outcome of today’s meeting of its MPs was consistent with the line taken by Bal Thackeray who has maintained that BJP was free to break off, if it wanted following its displeasure with Nirupam’s behaviour in Parliament and attack on PMO.

In a characteristically blunt manner, the Sena supremo had said on August 7 that it was BJP who had approached the sena for a tie-up and he had never gone to them for any pact.

While reiterating that the Sena did not want the Vajpayee government to fall, Thackeray had warned BJP ‘not to cross its limits’ in attacking the Sena after Nirupam forwarded his apology to the Prime Minister for his utterances in Parliament.

According to sources in the party, many Sena MPs at today’s meeting reprimanded Nirupam for his objectionable bearing, as well as the tone and tenor of his speech in Parliment in which he accused the PMO of its involvement in the UTI scam. (PTI)

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