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| Gujarat provides
hope for BJP in new year NEW DELHI, Dec 29: A landslide victory in Gujarat turned the tide for the BJP as 2002 comes to an ....more Air of expectation among GUWAHATI, Dec 29: The festive atmosphere, singing and merry-making on christmas night, almost.....more Human rights remained NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Human rights remained the most pressing issue and yet often neglected in the ......more Pro-active environmental NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Contrary to its image as a "spoilsport" of development, the environment and ...more |
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Gujarat provides
hope for BJP in new year NEW DELHI, Dec 29: A landslide victory in Gujarat turned the tide for the BJP as 2002 comes to an ....more Standing committee NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Backing efforts to make funding of elections transparent, a Parliamentary ....more Goa: A success story NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Although article 44 of the directive principles of State policy enshrined in the ...more Army to equip NEW DELHI, Dec 29: In a major deal, the Indian army is all set to move into the new year with the ....more |
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Man gets justice after a 24-year-long delay.... Discomforting year for K’taka CM... BJP trying to play Hindutva card: Mohsina Kidwai ....
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NEW DELHI, Dec 29: A landslide victory in Gujarat turned the tide for the BJP as 2002 comes to an end, giving hopes to the saffron party to face the Congress challenge and talk of "replicating the Gujarat experience" in polls to Assemblies in several states next year and to the Lok Sabha in 2004. The controversial Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who pulled off a spectacular victory riding the Hindutva chariot in Gujarat following the Godhra train massacre in February and its aftermath, was virtually "man of the year" for the party converting the gloom in the saffron camp into jubiliation. Gujarat offered the only silver lining for the BJP in the year as Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his party BJP were rattled due to many a poll debacle—BJP lost key States of Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal while its ally Akali Dal was humbled in Punjab. It appeared that nothing was going right for the party while the main opposition Congress and its leader Sonia Gandhi appeared to be on an upswing bagging as many as 15 States including Jammu and Kashmir while the BJP could bag only one State - Goa. Its ally National Conference was thrown out of power in Jammu and Kashmir. Despite Vajpayee emerging as the longest serving non-Congress Prime Minister during the year, it also saw the elevation of Home Minister L K Advani as Deputy Prime Minister and emerging as a bridge between the party and the Government. The elevation of Advani as also the replacement of party president K Jana Krishnamurthy by M Venkaiah Naidu came after a series of electoral setbacks early in the year. The BJP’s cup of woes overflowed earlier in the year as it came under severe pressure from several of its key allies including TDP and Trinamool Congress which demanded removal of Modi in the wake of post-Godhra violence in Gujarat. As if this was not enough, its troubles worsened with RSS as also its outfits like Swadeshi Jagran Manch and Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh taking potshots at the Government over its economic policies, especially disinvestment. Despite the Prime Minister and Government top brass holding talks with the top RSS leadership to sort out problems, a truce between the two sides was shortlived. The budget for 2002-2003 presented by Yashwant Sinha as Finance Minister came under fire from a dominant section of the party which felt that it would go against the interests of the BJP which has been a known champion of the middle-class. The resentment led to a change of guard in the Finance Ministry with Sinha swapping places with External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh, who was under attack from a section of the party as also the Sangh Parivar for his "pro-US tilt." The year saw the party again extending olive branch to BSP leader Mayawati in Uttar Pradesh where assembly elections had thrown up a hung verdict with the BJP coming a poor third and the Samajwadi Party led by Mulayam Singh Yadav emerging as the single largest party. In what was seen as a "marriage of convenience" by a section of the party. Mayawati headed the coalition BSP-BJP Government in the State. Later in October, the Mayawati Government appeared to be "tottering" as a section of the BJP MLAs, agitated over exclusion from the ministry, raised a banner of revolt tempting Mulayam Singh Yadav to fish in troubled waters but the tide has been stemmed and after Gujarat, BJP dissidents are said to be having second thoughts. The party came out with a "Delhi pledge" at a special meeting of its national council called to celebrate its 50th birthday where the Prime Minister spoke of a communication gap between the BJP and the Government. Soon after this, under a Kamaraj-type plan, Naidu was brought in at the helm of affairs of the organisation replacing a reluctant Krishnamurthy, who was accomodated in the Union Cabinet. Naidu’s advent saw a new and younger team taking control of the party sidelining veteran leaders like former president Kushabhau Thakre, Pyarelal Khandelwal and Kailashpati Mishra. The new team included Arun Jaitley, who came to the organisation giving up law ministry. Others included former UP Chief Minister Rajnath Singh and elevation of Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi as general secretaries as also Anita Arya, Delhi MP belonging to Scheduled Caste. Soon after assuming charge of the party, Naidu found himself for a brief while in the eye of a storm as he was accused of grabbing land in his native Andhra Pradesh. The new party president sought to extricate himself out of the controversy by returning the land to the State Government which he said was given to him when he was a minor. The national executive meeting in Goa in April saw the party rejecting the offer of resignation of Modi in the face of growing demand for it from the allies. But the Prime Minister made it clear to the allies that they cannot "interfere" in BJP’s affairs and dictate to the party who its Chief Minister should be in a state ruled by it on its own. The year saw Vajpayee making a flip-flop on developments in Gujarat where he asked Modi to follow "Raj Dharma", and soon after in Goa made a strong defence of the Chief Minister as also Hindutva. Later, the Prime Minister indicated that he was not that happy with Modi’s attack on constitutional authorities like the Chief Election Commissioner and had even said that he would go to Gujarat for campaigning "if invited." Subsequently, Vajpayee campaigned in Gujarat and made a strong defence of Modi. Soon after the poll verdict, Vajpayee said Muslims did not adequately condemn Godhra and blamed the opposition for making it an election issue in Gujarat. After the party swept to power in Gujarat, Vajpayee told the party’s national executive in the capital that Hindutva was a way of life. With a view to preparing the party for the Assembly polls next year, Naidu brought in many changes in the State units by appointing Vasundhare Raje in Rajasthan, M L Khurana in Delhi and Raman Singh in Chhattisgarh. Though former Chief Minister Kailash Joshi was made president of Madhya Pradesh unit, party sources said firebrand leader and union minister Uma Bharati may become Chief Minister if the party defeats Congress led by Chief Minister Digvijay Singh. Buoyed by the Gujarat verdict, the BJP leadership is working overtime to take the wind out of Congress sails in Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi which go to polls next year alongwith some other states in the North East. While the party has high hopes about Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, it has started setting its house in order in faction ridden Himachal Pradesh to retain power. The coming year is expected to witness a tight rope walk by BJP at the Centre as some of its key allies including TDP, DMK and Janata Dal (U) have become wary of the Hindutva rhetoric. A redeeming feature for it is that AIADMK led by Jayalalithaa appears to be coming closer to the saffron party. 2003 will be a litmus test for BJP and the way it would fare in the Assembly polls riding on the Hindutva card could set the trend for the 2004 Lok Sabha polls. (PTI) |
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Air of expectation among Naga
cadre about GUWAHATI, Dec 29: The festive atmosphere, singing and merry-making on christmas night, almost made one believe that one had wandered into a youth camp instead of the militant NSCN (IM)’s "GHQ". For the first time in decades of their existence, the NSCN had allowed a journalist, a UNI correspondent, to not only visit but also stay in their "GHQ" somewhere between Dimapur and Kohima near Medziphema which houses 400 highly trained and armed militants guarding their commander-in-chief H Ramsan. With their political leadership scheduled to touch down in New Delhi sometime after next week for talks with the Centre, the camp is agog with expectations. NDCN (IM) leaders Isak Chisi Swu and Thuingaleng Muivah would be returning to India from exile abroad for the first time in the past 30 years for negotiations to resolve the decades old Naga insurgency problem. Deputy Prime Minister L K Advani will also attend the crucial meeting between Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and the Naga leaders. The Government had allowed the ban on the militant outfit to lapse beyond November 26 and was withdrawing cases against Muivah for an alleged plot to assassinate Nagaland Chief Minister S C Jamir. Since the 1997 ceasefire accord between the Centre and the NSCN (IM), Isak Swu and T Muivah have been holding peace negotiations with Centre’s interlocutor K Padmanabhaiah in third countries like the Netherlands and Thailand. The NSCN (IM) cadre is keeping a close tab on the peace process as well as the arrival of the political leadership from abroad through wireless communication. They are being kept abreast of the developments on a minute-to-minute basis from the nscn post at Dipuphar near Dimapur. Ramsan, almost a father figure for NSCN cadres, spoke to UNI in a mixture of Tangkhul and Nagamese, the languages of the Nagas, which was then translated to english by interpreters. "Since the coming talks are at the invitation of the Prime Minister, we do hope that something good will come out of it. We do believe in our political leadership," he said. Perched on a cliff about 1500 meters above sea level and 20-odd km from the nearest inhabitation, the "GHQ" was shifted here last year "because it is safe". It houses more than 60 women cadres. The place can be reached only with a powerful four-wheel drive vehicle and if the vehicle has a break-down, as it happened with this correspondent, the only recourse is an arduous hike through increasingly steep terrain. Down there in a small valley, lies the NSCN training camp. According to "captain" Temjen Jamir, 600 of the new cadres were going through intensive training even at night. This correspondent, witnessing the christmas celebrations, was told that it was billed as the last christmas "in a disturbed Nagaland." The entire camp involved itself with a series of services, festivals, singing contests and shooting competitions. Ramsan, who has spent the last 20 christmases in thick jungles, said, "we had difficult christmas in the past and we do admit that christmas is different this time." Ramsan will not be going to Delhi. It was considered too risky for him to venture out of the highly fortified camp. However, he and his other men dropped enough hints that ten of them would be in Delhi to receive the political leadership and guard them. Asked whether both Mr Muviah and Mr Swu would come to the "GHQ", Ramsan said that it was not yet fixed. "They may come or may not come and we are not sure," he said. Among the junior cadres, an air of expectation and palpable tension were running through. Most of them have never seen their political leadership. But everyone realises that the peace process has reached a critical point. (UNII) |
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Human rights remained most
pressing but NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Human rights remained the most pressing issue and yet often neglected in the year going by. While on one hand, the country witnessed Godhra tragedy in Gujarat followed by one of the worst communal riots and enactment of controversial prevention of terrorism law, POTA, it also saw effective directives by National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) which voiced its concern whenever and wherever law and order failed to take its normal course. Though 2002 could be described as "an year of transition" in the area of human rights with more and more people becoming aware of their rights and that of others, it also had its "black spots" for which India’s image took a beating, both nationally and internationally. The year started on one such "black spot" when in Godhra tragedy, more than 40 travellers were burnt alive in a train coach followed by days of communal violence in Gujarat. Taking a strong exception to the State Government’s "failure" to prevent the communal violence in Gujarat, NHRC, which made a visit to the State immediately after the "unfortunate happenings" asked the State and Central Governments to take appropriate steps for the relief and rehabilitation of the affected people. The commission continued to monitor the situation in Gujarat for many months after the Godhra tragedy and time and again issued directions to the State Government to ensure normalcy in the State. The country also could not come out of the tremors of September 11, 2001, terrorist attack on World Trade Center in the United States and as a result enacted the controversial prevention of terrorism law, POTA, the implementation of which was scuttled successfully in 2000 by NHRC and various other human rights activists, who described the act as very "stringent". Opposing the enactment of POTA, NHRC had said "in the frenzy of combating terrorism, one should not violate human rights of its citizens which might prove counterproductive." Working within the democratic space provided to it, NHRC issued many effective directions and touched the lives of many - from those affected by riots or custodial torture to caste and gender discrimination victims. Held as one of the apex bodies to protect human rights of citizens, the thrust areas for the commission remained jail reforms which included end to custodial torture and overcrowding of jails in the country, redressal of cases of police atrocities, which form more than 40 per cent complaints received by NHRC and rehabilitation of people affected by violence. While it compiled a report on the overcrowding of jails, both by undertrials and others, the commission also wrote to all the State Governments asking for a report on the jail conditions in their respective States. Taking note of various incidents of "fake encounters and mistaken identity killings", NHRC pulled up police organisations of various states and directed them to pay compensation to victims and punishment for the erring police personnel. There was also a paradigm shift in the functioning of NHRC, which besides talking about the fundamental and civil rights of citizens made the society aware of social, cultural and economical rights of a human being. It concentrated on issues which affected the masses at large such as public health and quality of education and took measures jointly with Governmental agencies and NGOs to tackle the problems in these areas. However, NHRC failed to get the Government make amendment in its act, under which it was constituted, in 2002 also. Its demands included more autonomy, both operational and functional, bringing the armed forces under the preview of nhrc and amending the act to make it an umbrella commission which will encompass all the state commissions. NHRC, also had its share of criticism from many quarters for its intervention in some cases including Ansal Plaza shoot-out case. Many criticised the commission saying "NHRC was more bothered about the rights of a militant than the rights of a victim". The criticism was taken in its stride by the protect the rights of both victim and accused, as it believed that the accused was also entitled to his or her rights under the law of the land. (PTI) |
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Goa: A success story in uniform civil code NEW DELHI, Dec 29: Although article 44 of the directive principles of State policy enshrined in the Indian constitution lays down that the "State shall endeavour to secure for citizens a uniform civil code throughout the territory of India," Government after Government at the Centre has shied away from passing a legislation to this effect. Not many people in India know, however, that a uniform civil code exists in Goa which is accepted by all communities— Hindus, hers. The Goa civil code, collectively called family laws, was framed and enforced by the portuguese colonial rulers through various legislations in the 19th and 20th centuries. After the liberation of Goa in 1961, the Indian State scrapped all the colonial laws and extended the Central laws to the territory but made the exception of retaining the family laws because all the Goan communities wanted it. Former Chief Justice of India Y V Chandrachud commented that "the dream of a uniform civil code in the country finds its realisation" in Goa, expressing hope that it would one day "awaken the rest of bigoted India and inspire it to emulate Goa." "Although a common civil code has functioned for more than four decades in Goa, in the rest of the country every religious community is governed by its specific civil code," observes Arun Sinha, in a recently published book : "Goa India: a critical potrait of post colonial Goa". "But in Goa religion is neutral to the Common Civil Code." Goa’s civil code is a guarantee against ill-treatment of the wife by the husband, since she has an equal claim to all the properties held by him and can make him suffer by forcing dissolution of the marriage. The philosophy behind the Portuguese civil code was to strengthen the family as the backbone of society by inculcating a spirit of tolerance between husband and wife and providing for inbuilt safeguards against injustice by one spouse against the other, says Sinha. The most woman-friendly attribute of the civil code is this: all the properties brought by either of the spouses by gift, succession or a previous exclusive right from before the marriage as well as all the properties acquired or earned by either of them during the subsistence of the marriage were to be held as common property by the two spouses till the dissolution of their marriage by death, divorce or separation. In the rest of the country, the personal laws of the communities give unequal rights to women, making them vulnerable to the whims of the husbands and the manipulation of loopholes in the legislations by them. The Muslim personal law is loaded against wives, who are often reduced to beggary and destitution. But the personal laws of other communities in the rest of the country too do not favour women. A divorced Hindu woman, for instance, might not get any mainteannce or be allowed by law just a ridiculous sum of twenty or fifty rupees a month as alimony. In contrast, the Goa code gives equal rights to men and women in affairs of divorce, separation, share of couple’s property, succession, guardianship of children, gifts and adoption, say legal experts. However, there are certain inequities embedded in the Goa’s family laws, says Sinha in his book. For instance, he says one law sanctions a second marriage for the Hindu husband if the first wife has not delivered an issue till the age of 25 or (even worse) if she has not delivered a male issue till the age of 30. "This is an absurd and outdated provision, considering that neither the constitution nor the liberal society sanctions gender inequality," the book notes. The orthodox Islamic clergy in India made several attempts in the past to get Goa’s civil code scrapped and the Muslim personal law extended to the State. In the early 1980s, they began an agitation in the State on the issue, taking support from a Muslim minister in the then Government. However, a strong counter movement erupted, led by a young Muslim woman called Rashida Muzawar, who was a first year student of law whose fiery speeches against the obscurantist Mullahs began to draw huge crowds. For almost a year, street demonstrations and mosque congregations for and against the extension of the Shariat law to Goa continued. Ultimately, the liberal Muslims were found in an overwhelming majority in Goa who insisted on the continuation of the Common Civil Code. Justice Chandrachud had remarked "... A uniform civil code (in the country) remains today a distant goal. In my view it would be retrogate step if Goa too were to give up uniformity in its personal laws which it now possseses." (PTI) |
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Army to equip counter-insurgency
units NEW DELHI, Dec 29: In a major deal, the Indian army is all set to move into the new year with the most modern and lethal Israeli Tavor multipurpose assault rifles and Galil super sniper rifles to give its counter-insurgency forces in Jammu and Kashmir greater fire power as top army officials hinted at "decisive action" against the militants in the coming months. The decision to arm counter-insurgency forces with advanced weapons comes at the end of the longest-ever troop mobilisation lasting almost the entire 2002, which may not have completely checked Pakistan-supported cross-border terrorism despite assurances to the contrary from Islamabad. India has started the process of acquiring high quality weapons worth 20 million US dollar. That include Tavor-21 5.56 mm assault rifles, Galil 7.62 mm super sniper rifles, 5.56 mm ammunition, night vision sights, laser range finders and other targeting equipment. Army sources said that while the special forces had already been equipped with American and Israeli weaponry, New Delhi is considering purchase of several thousand more tavors to equip the entire counter-insurgency forces operating in Jammu and Kashmir, who are currently armed with AK-47 rifles imported earlier from Romania. With country’s top leaders asserting that India may have to go it alone in its fight to uproot Islamabad-inspired terrorism, army officials exuded confidence that with greater fire power and sixty per cent of special gadgets like ground sensors, UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) and hand thermals in place, it would be too hot for militants to operate in Jammu and Kashmir, analysts said. The year-long troop mobilisation saw India coming close to war with Pakistan with reports coming to light recently that the Indian forces had considered several times the option to strike at terrorist camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Defence Minister George Fernandes confirmed in Parliament that Air Force fighters had been used to evict Pakistani intrusion along the Line of Control in Machil sector. Top army officials have indicated that special forces have been training with Air Force’s multipurpose Mirage 2000 fighters for carrying out joint missions, specially in mountainous terrains. Air chief S Krishnaswamy has said that IAF now had the capability to carry out precision strikes from stand-off distances as far as 100-150 km and this could be used if need arose along the LoC to stall intrusions. The troop mobilisation dominated 2002 even as the year saw Indo-US military-to-military ties reaching an unprecedented level and the armed forces attaining a new high with the induction of a most modern fighter aircraft Su30 MKI. An almost eyeball-to-eyeball confrontation between the Indian and Pakistani forces created ripples worldwide as major powers appeared worried whether a conflict between the nuclear armed neighbours could lead to a nuclear catastrophy. Major diplomatic moves were launched to defuse the situation. Though the Defence Minister described the almost year-long mobilisation as a success as it had achieved goals like publicising worldwide Pakistan as a terrorism supporting nation and ensuring a free and fair election in Jammu and Kashmir, eyebrows were raised by military experts. They said that while the intention of the mobilisation was a proactive army role along LoC, the top army brass had held back and on the contrary, it was the Pakistani forces which had succeeded in attempts at intrusions along the LoC. With missiles likely to play a major role in any future conflict in the region, India carried out further tests of its medium and short range surface-to-surface ballistic missiles Agni as well as first ever joint Indo-rRssian cruise missile Brahmos. As the curtains fall on the year, the Defence Ministry has indicated that further tests of Brahmos 280 km ship, submarine, air and land launch as well as other surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles could be conducted. After successful trials, the army has begun to induct the much needed smerch long-range multi-barrel rocket system and firmed up on a fast track basis contract to acquire US Antpq-37 weapon locating radar, both of which were sourly missed during 1999 Kargil conflict. While Indian and American forces were on the verge of graduating to carrying out joint helicopter borne operations, it was announced that India and France will go ahead with a first of its kind joint fighter aircraft exercises. With the armed forces fully stretched in deployment along the International Border and LoC, the army for the first time had to revoke earlier moves to enforce manpower pruning undertaken in 1997. The changed geo-political situation in the region spurred major arms purchases with Government speeding up delivery schedules of major items like the T-90 tanks and Smerch rockets, but failed to take a final decision on other major purchases like the multi-billion sterling deal on Advanced Jet Trainers (AJTs) and the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier. Though the deal to manufacture french scorpene submarines under technology transfer was cleared, the final decision by the Cabinet Committee on Security was still pending. The indian Iavy, which played a major role in tensions with Pakistan by undertaking forward patrolling in the north Arabian sea during operation ‘Parakrama’ received a setback as Russians failed to keep to their delivery dates for the navy’s most lethal induction of the Stealth Krivak class warships. The Air Force in the absence of the AJTs had their cup of woes full with recurring crashes of its ageing mainstay MiG-21 fleet. As many as 18 of these aircraft were involved in mishaps in 2002. The crash toll, to IAF’s dismay, included one of the upgraded MiG-21s christened MiG-Bison. The IAF inducted the first squadron of these Bisons. The force plans to upgrade 125 MiG-21s in a joint venture with Russia and Israel at a cost of Rs 1200 crores. (PTI) Man gets justice after a 24-year-long delay NEW DELHI, Dec 29: ‘There is light at the end of every dark tunnel.’ The proverb has come true for Nirmal Kumar Jain who got justice after a 24-year-long painful struggle. However, the justice came at a cost. It not only claimed his dignity, livelihood, property, and home but also the lives of his two children. Jain, who had approached all, right from the President, Prime Minister, Ministers and even the Parliament, finally got justice from the Madhya Pradesh Human Rights Commission (MPHRC). Significantly, even the National Human Rights Commission failed to get him justice despite his repeated efforts. Jain was victimised by the managment of the Coooperative Bank, Damoh for protesting against the emergency in 1975. The then manager falsely implicated him in an embezzlement case involving Rs 4816.40 and he was dismissed in August 1978. Though the court found him not guilty in 1993, the bank refused to reinstate him even after that. All assurances and recommendatory letters by the higher authorities to the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and administration did not bear any results. He even attempted to jump from the visitor’s gallery of the Lok Sabha to attract the attention of lawmakers, forcing Parliamentarians to raise the issue in the House. But even that could not convince the bank managment to reinstate him. However, Madhya Pradesh Governor Bhai Mahavir alongwith the MPHRC came to his rescue. The MPHRC headed by Justice Gulab Gupta heard his plight and ordered the bank not only to reinstate Jain but also give him the back wages. It said that the money could be recovered from the bank manager responsible for falsely implicating Jain in the embezzlement case, and the management. The complainant was removed from the job on August 3, 1978 without any adequate reason till the year 2002 and during this period he got no source of livelihood, which was a violation of his human rights, the State Human Rights Commission said in its order on September 13 last. The MPHRC also threatened the bank managment with legal action if its order was not implemented within three months time. Ultimately after 24 years of long wait, Jain received the order to join the job as a bank manager. "I am happy that ultimately my struggle bore fruit, but justice has come after such a long time that it has lost much of its meaning. If only I had got my job earlier, by daughter and son would have been alive," Jain told UNI. Unable to bear the humiliation and poverty, Jain’s elder daughter who was of a marriageable age and his educated but unemployed son had committed suicide. This had happened while the NHRC was considering his case. The NHRC, which had once closed the case, again reopened the matter and sent notices to the State Government which replied that Jain was involved in embezzlement. Jain’s insistence that the commission ask for proof of his embezzlement, peeved the present NHRC Chairperson Justice J S Verma and again the matter was put in the cold storage. The MPHRC said in its order that dismissal from service without any adequate reason was a violation of human rights of the complainant and even nine years after his acquittal, he was not taken back by the bank. In such a situation, he was entitled to ‘livelihood allowance’ of half salary between August 3, 1978 and January 25, 1993 when he was acquitted by the court. "Since the bank delayed taking a decision, so the victim should be given half the salary as compensation amount for the duration of January 1993 till the time he was reinstated," the four member bench of the commission decided. After a long wait which proved costly, Jain takes solace from the fact that at least now he has been proved correct. "At least I will not be socially ostracised and my dignity has been restored. Now I can look after my old mother, heart-broken wife and get my surviving daughter married," he hoped. (UNI) Discomforting year for K’taka CM BANGALORE, Dec 29: It has been a discomforting 2002 for Chief Minister S M Krishna, who has been riding on the high tech and it wave ever since he took over the mantle of Karnataka on October eleven, 1999. It was drought first. Then came the kidnapping of former Janata Dal (U) Minister H Nagappa who was subsequently killed in the captivity of forest brigand Veerappan and the never ending vexed Cauvery water dispute with Tamil Nadu. The smooth riding S M Krishna with little or no dissident activity within the party and a meek opposition from both the BJP and Janata Dal opposition was badly shaken with the cauvery and the Nagappa episodes thereby tarnishing the image heavily. Mr Krishna was frank enough to admit that his image had nosedived during the latter part of the year when he had to face crisis after crisis both on the cauvery issue in which he attrracted the wrath of the Supreme Court also and the Nagappa kidnap episode which ended up in Nagappa’s death under mysterious circumstances after 106 days of captivity in the clutches of the brigand. After a sedate start the year ended pretty badly for Mr Krishna with the opposition parties demanding his scalp on the Nagappa issue. The mystery behind Nagappa’s killing, whose body was recovered on December nine from Chengadi forests in Ramapura range after he was kidnapped on August 25 from his residence in Kamagere, is yet to be resolved. Whether it was the brigand himself or personnel belonging to the Tamil Nadu or Karnataka Special Task Force. All the three have denied with the brigand stating that Nagappa fell a victim during a cross fire in an encounter, which the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu denied vehemently. If the Nagappa episode was a deeprooted thorn in the paw of Mr Krishna, the Cauvery dispute saw Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha taking him head on for not releasing water to the parched Cauvery Delta region. The issue took a serious turn this year as none of the Cauvery basin reservoirs received adequate rainfall leading to a serious drought condition both in the basin and catchment area. The situation was very grave and for the first time after the Cauvery Water Dispute Tribunal gave its interim order, the state could not maintain the ordered release of 205 tmc ft. The issue took a serious turn when the Supreme Court ordered the release of 12,ooo cusecs of water to Tamil Nadu and Mr Krishna was put in a catch 22 situation as the farmers in the basin region in Mandya and Mysore districts launched a pitched agitation against the release. They even prevented water from being released from the Kabini reservoir. It took a violent turn when one of the farmers jumped into the river downstream Kabini leading to a serious law and order situation. Even the north west monsoon did not bring in adequate rainfall as the state witnessed one of the serious droughts of the decade. Tamil Nadu launched two contempt petitions against Karnataka in the Supreme Court for not obeying its orders regarding the release of water and the issue is still to be decided as the Cauvery River Authority had been asked to look into the issue by the apex court. The year saw former Prime Minister H D Devegowda plunging into national politics again when he reentered the Parliament with an emphatic win in the Kanakapura Lok Sabha byelections held on February 21. For the first time after the split of Janata Dal in 1999, the parties put up an united fight and gave hopes of a possible merger of the two factions, JD (United) of former Chief Minster Ramakrishna Hegde and JD (Secular) headed by Mr Devegowda. Sincere efforts were made by both factions, but irritants continue to remain with both Mr Hegde and Mr Devegowda expressing reservations against such a move. The state leaders of both the units had realised that only a merger could enable them to bounce back into state politics and emerge a powerful alternative to the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party with the later witnessing a decline in its populairty. Former Chief Minister S R Bommai was appointed to workout the modalities for a merger. Ultimately he came out with a formula of forging a national party called the All India Janata Dal in which some Janata Dal (S) members, inclding the leader of the party in the Legislative Council joining it. Mr Bommai himself was the unanimous choice to head the new party. However it did not find the favour of the State Janata Dal (S) with its president Siddaramaiah accusing Mr Bommai of not taking Janata Dal (S) leaders into confidence and the party has decided to maintain its identity. Another major development during the year was liquor baron Vijay Malya entering the Rajya Sabha as an independent candidate during the biennial elections from Karnataka Assembly. He joined the Janata Dal (U) on August 10 and was immediately made the senior vice president at the national level by party president and Union Minister Sharad Yadav. (UNI) BJP trying to play Hindutva card: Mohsina Kidwai KANGRA (HP), Dec 29: AICC general secretary and incharge of party affairs in Himachal Pradesh Mohsina Kidwai today charged the state BJP with diverting the attention of the people from the dismal performance of its Government in the state by trying to play the Hindutva card on the pattern of Gujarat. Addressing a news conference in the local PWD rest house here, Mrs Kidwai said it was unfortunate that the BJP was dividing country on the communal lines and damaging the communal fabric of the country. She said the BJP had no faith in secularism and democracy and was ignoring the people’s problems. She also alleged that the BJP was raising emotional and sentimental slogans during polls to grab power. She said India has a unique beauty viewed with christians living in majority in North East, Muslims in Kashmir, Sikhs in Punjab and Hindus in the rest of the country, and this was the strength of the country. She described the trend of adopting communal posture by the BJP as "dangerous" for the country. She said the congress was trying to strengthen peace and brotherhood in the country to fulfil the dream of the father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi. She said the people of the country wanted peace and that was why they voted the congress to power in 15 states of the country and this would be repeated in Himachal too. She said Chief Minister Prof Dhumal had lost faith of the people of the state and that was why he was taking out ‘Vishwas Yatra’ in an attempt to regain the same. In reply to a question as to who would be the next Chief Minister of the state if the Congress was voted to power, she said it would the prerogative of the elected MLAs with the consultation of the Congress high command. When asked whether HPCC president Vidya Stokes would contest the coming polls, Ms Vidya Stokes, who was present at the news conference, said, "my first priority is to put the party through in the polls and defeat the BJP, and for this if I have to work harder I may not contest." The Congress was united and Virbhadra Singh and Vidya Stokes were together to fight the BJP out, said Ms Kidwai. She said the candidates for the Assembly polls would be selected on merit. She said those party leader who had already lost elections a few times may not be given the party tickets this time around. (UNI)
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