Bundelkhand’s separation;
2^{nd state reorganisation comm demanded}

^{JHANSI, Jan 17: To make Bundelkhand a separate state, the Congress Coordination Committee today passed a resolution demanding the Centre to set up the Second State Reorganisation Commission.}

^{UPCC president Rita Bahuguna Joshi addressed mediapersons here after the conclusion of the second Congress Coordination Committee that comprises 32 members.}

^{The first party Coordination Committee was held on November 12, 2007.}

^{Besides, the Congress demanded the Uttar Pradesh Government to pass a resolution which was brought up by the Congress MLA private members during the last assembly session with regard to Bundelkhand being made a separate state.}

^{The committee noted that, " Drinking water management and migration check would be the main priorities in the Bundelkhand package.}

^{" The package demanded for the region by the Mayawati Government was not clear...Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked the Planning Commission to oversee the matter," the Committee added.}

^{The meeting took serious note of the misuse of centrally- sponsored funds, observing that only 5 to 10 per cent of development schemes were implementated in the Bundelkhand region.}

^{A ‘Hisaab Mango Abhiyan’ would be initiated by the Congress at the block level in which all the records regarding the funds received from the Centre would be kept.}

^{Besides, the State Government would be made answerable.}

^{AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi would adopt one block in Amethi, while the party’s state unit in charge Digvijay Singh would adopt the most backward block in Sonebhadra.}

^{Regarding the pending dues of cane farmers, the Congress would take out a rally in east, west and Mid UP. (UNI)}

Congress opposes amendment in section
10 of Panchayati Raj Act

JALANDHAR, Jan 17: Punjab unit of Congress today opposed the proposed amendment in Section 10 of Panchayati Raj Act 1994, saying that by introducing indirect election to the office of sarpanch, the SAD-BJP Government was wilfully bent upon corrupting the electoral system at the grass root level.

"It is common knowledge that all indirect elections are a root cause of horse trading and switching loyalties. Many State Governments in India were victims of horse trading by political parties due to indirect election and Haryana was one classic example, where the culture of ‘aya ram and gaya ram’ became famous," party MLA Sukhpal Khaira stated here today.

The Congress strongly opposes this move and demands that a special session be convened at the earliest to debate this highly sensitive issue which relates to democracy and that too at the grass root level, he said.

The Punjab Government wanted to control the panchayat raj system through this proposal as it would be very easy to influence a panch through administrative machinery to their advantage after the amendment was done, Khaira alleged. (PTI)

CPI to chalk out strategy for coming Assembly, LS polls

NEW DELHI, Jan 17: The top leadership of the Communist Party of India (CPI), which began its three-day deliberations in Chennai today, will chalk out the party’s electoral strategy for the coming Assembly polls this year and the Lok Sabha polls early next year.

The 125-member party national council will also decide how the party would deal with the UPA and other secular and democratic political groupings.

Talking to UNI from Chennai, CPI leaders A B Bardhan and Shamim Faizi said the party National Congress would also finalise the Political Resolution for the 20^{th Party Congress in Hyderabad beginning on March 23.}

^{Mr Gurudas Dasgupta, Mr S Sudhakar Reddy, Mr D Raja, Mr C K Chidarappan and Ms Amarjeet Kaur are among the other prominent leaders attending the national council which would also work out ways and means to build a third alternative based on people’s issue and mass struggle.}

^{Mr Bardhan, the veteran communist and the party general secretary, said the council will also discuss how grapple with the threat posed by communal forces, which he said forced the Left parties to support the UPA Governmwent at the Centre. "But it is unfortunate that the Congress is continuously losing its political space which can be seen from the party’s recent electoral defeat in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh," he said, adding that the Left had to work out a better combination which could play an effective role in the given political scenario.}

^{Mr Faizi, the party national secretary, said the leadership would also discuss forging alliances or seat adjustments with other secular and democratic forces for the coming state Assembly polls. "The national council will give final shape to this electoral strategy," he added. (UNI)}

People to decide Maya or Sonia a bigger leader: Dasmunsi

NEW DELHI, Jan 17: Taking pot shot at BSP supremo Mayawati for indicating that she was a far bigger leader than Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, party leader and Information and Broadcasting Minister P R Dasmunsi today said it was for the people to decide.

"I would not like to comment on this. It is democracy and everyone has a right to say whatever they feel. But the final decision is in the hands of the people of the country," Dasmunsi told reporters here.

He was replying to questions on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister’s virtual suggestion that she was a far bigger leader than Sonia Gandhi and would like to become the first Prime Minister from the oppressed class.

In an autobiographical book, Mayawati did not take Gandhi’s name but said "inheriting a political legacy" was a different thing and leading a "social change" was a unique "revolutionary mission". (PTI)

Our Govt will continue in Goa: Dasmunsi

NEW DELHI, Jan 17: The Congress today exuded confidence that the Digambar Kamat-led Government in Goa would continue and said there was no chance of the opposition BJP to come to power in the state.

"It is very clear that in Goa, our government will continue. There is no chance of (Leader of Opposition in Goa assembly) Manohar Parrikar becoming the Chief Minister," senior Congress leader and Information and Broadcasting Minister P R Dasmunsi told reporters here.

He, however, refused to comment further, saying senior NCP leader and Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had air-dashed to Panaji to take stock of the political situation there.

Dasmunsi also replied in the negative when asked whether the issue came up for discussion before the Union Cabinet. (PTI)

Gujarat polls brought moolah for TV channels: Report

NEW DELHI, Jan 17: If the recently concluded Gujarat assembly elections resulted in spectacular political fortunes for Chief Minister Narendra Modi, these also brought a windfall for a plethora of TV channels in the form of ad revenues-Rs 20.6 billion, to be precise, reveals a study.

The study, based on the campaigning period of October 16-November 16, 2007 of the Gujarat polls on television, points out that TV channels scrambled with each other by showing as many as 6063 clips having a total duration of 18,03,783 seconds (20 full days).

The total ad value was pegged at Rs. 2,06,19,09,600 (Rs. 20.6 billion), says the study conducted by Esha Broadcast Monitoring Private Limited.

Leading the channels was NDTV India which showed clips having a duration of 2,18,673 seconds and earning Rs 393,611,400 in the process.

NDTV was followed by Sahara Samay (2,15,342 seconds and Rs 269,177,500), ETV Gujarati (1,90,411 seconds and Rs 190,411,000) and Live India (130749 seconds and Rs 65,374,500).

Esha Broadcast said it compiled the Television Monitoring Intelligence Report (TMIR) on the Gujarat elections after 24x7 tracking and monitoring of the poll coverage on 110 channels.

The monitoring focused on the distribution of airtime for candidates and analysis of airtime taken up for broadcasting political messages.

It also conducted the reach of the two prominent political parties in the Gujarat elections - BJP and Congress-by monitoring television channels.

The research included parameters such as the campaign by the leaders and the prominent issues that were raised.

The report took into account broad issues like the Gujarat polls, share of voice of the BJP and the Congress, coverage of personalities like Narendra Modi, L K Advani, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her MP-son Rahul Gandhi and Dinshaw Patel, the Congress candidate who was pitted against Mr Modi.

The issue of Mohammad Afzal, the death row convict in the Parliament attack case, was among the hot topics that came up for discussions on TV channels.

The parameters used for monitoring were prime time vs. Non-prime time coverage on 110 television channels and date-wise reporting of coverage.

Prime time for business channels is from 1000 hrs to 1600 hrs and from 1900 hrs to 2300 hrs while for other channels, it is from 1900 hrs to 2300 hrs.

As per the report, NDTV India (Hindi) channel showcased the highest duration of 2,18,673 seconds and the highest ad value returns of Rs 108,203,400 respectively during the prime time slot.

Even in case of no-prime time slot, this channel topped the list by airing clips having the highest duration of 1,11,090 seconds and earning the highest ad money of Rs 199,962,000.

Esha Broadcast, among India’s leading news monitoring agencies, tracks more than 90 channels beamed into the country. Over the years, it has increased its range of services to include FM Radio and regional Indian languages like Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Gujarati, Bengali, Hindi and Marathi, besides English. (UNI)

‘Too premature to talk about an alliance’, says Jaya

CHENNAI, Jan 17: Seeking to play down her recent luncheon meeting with Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, which fuelled speculation that AIADMK and BJP were firming up an electoral tie-up, AIADMK General Secretary Jayalalithaa today said it was too premature to talk about an alliance.

"It is too premature," she told reporters when asked whether the lunch hosted for Modi was a step towards forging an alliance.

Jayalalithaa hosted a ‘45-course’ regal feast for Modi and BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad at her Poes Garden residence on January 14.

While describing it as a "friendly meeting and extraordinary lunch," Prasad had said a wide range of issues were discussed in the meeting, but declined to elaborate. (PTI)

Pak Govt not to claim Jinnah House in Mumbai

ISLAMABAD, Jan 17: Pakistan Government has "abandoned" the idea of claiming the Jinnah House in Mumbai to open a consulate in India’s financial hub as it feels the building is a "personal" property.

Though Pakistan had previously expressed an interest in claiming the Jinnah House, Foreign Office spokesman Mohammad Sadiq told ‘The News’ daily that the "Government has abandoned the idea".

He avoided further comment on the issue as it is a matter of "emotional attachment for Pakistanis and Indian Muslims".

Sources in Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the Government also has no plans to back the country’s founder Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s daughter Dina Wadia’s efforts to gain possession of the building.

Wadia, the only child of Jinnah, and her industrialist son Nusli Wadia recently filed a petition under the Right to Information Act with India’s Central Information Commission to obtain all documents pertaining to the Jinnah House.

The sources said "keeping aside the sentimental value of Muslims of the subcontinent, it is clear that the Jinnah House was personal property of Quaid-i-Azam (Jinnah) and not of the Pakistan Government".

They said Pakistan government also has no plans to "move the international court of justice or litigate in Indian courts".

Pakistan’s Director of the Department of Archeology and Museums, Qasim Ali Qasim, said the issue of preserving the Jinnah House can be settled only through bilateral arrangements with India.

"We, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, can forward recommendations to the Foreign Office to take up the matter with Indian Government," he said.

Qasim said the Culture Ministry could ask the Foreign Office to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with India to preserve the Jinnah House.

"As far as my information is concerned, there is no such move but it may be possible in future subject to the willingness of the Foreign Office," he added.

He also said there is no international law under which Pakistan can take possession of the Jinnah House. "We cannot challenge India to get possession of Jinnah House because it is within their territory."

The sources in Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry also said the Government could not become party to the dispute over the Jinnah House because "India had told us that since there is no heir of the property under the local laws, it was declared as evacuee property" or property left behind by those who went to Pakistan after the partition in 1947.

The sources claimed India did not want to hand over possession of the Jinnah House for use as a Pakistani consulate "either on rent or on ownership basis".

The Jinnah House, which stands on a 2.5-acre property in the posh Malabar Hills area of Mumbai and was built in 1936, holds deep sentimental value for the people of Pakistan. In 1948, it was leased to the British Deputy High Commission, which occupied it till 1982.

Dina Wadia and her son have told the Indian Government that they consider Pakistan’s claim on the house as "inappropriate". Nusli Wadia said the house has "absolutely nothing to do with Pakistan" and was his "grandfather’s personal residence".

Before the partition of the subcontinent, the Jinnah House had been the venue of several historic meetings between Jinnah and Mahatma Gandhi. (PTI)