RANCHI, Apr 21:
The CBI today raided the premises of three MLAs and an industrialist, an independent candidate in the cancelled March 30 Rajya Sabha poll, and said it wanted to examine the ballot papers used in the poll to know the voters’ choice of candidates following allegations of corruption and horse-trading.
There is a mechanism in Rajya Sabha election by which the choice of a particular MLA can be known.
CBI teams swooped down on the premises of MLAs K N Tripathi (Congress) at Palamau, Suresh Paswan (RJD) at Deogarh and Vishnu Bhaiyya (BJP) at Jamtara, besides their houses here, a senior CBI official said here.
The sleuths also conducted raids at the residences of industrialist R K Agarwal, president of the Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce, and his son-in-law Soumitra Saha in Jamshedpur and another of his relative R K Saha in Chaibasa, the official told.
The March 30 election was countermanded following allegations that certain candidates were trying to reach the Upper House through horse-trading.
The CBI on Thursday lodged an FIR after obtaining the original FIR registered with the Namkum police station following the recovery of Rs 2.15 crore from a vehicle before start of polling on March 30.
The cash was seized from the vehicle registered in the name of Agarwal’s brother, Suresh, according to the FIR.
CBI sources said a case has been registered under section 171F and 188 of the Indian Penal Code.
Section 171F deals with “undue influence or personation” at an election with a maximum punishment of one year or fine or both while Sec 188 deals with punishment of six months imprisonment, or fine of 1,000 rupees, or both for disobeying orders of an authority.
Meanwhile, the CBI would also seek to examine the ballot papers used on that day.
“We will seek permission from the Election Commission to allow us take the sealed ballot box to know the MLAs’ choice of candidates. Otherwise, it would be difficult to nail any accused,” the CBI official said.
According to Assembly secretariat sources, though the name of an MLA is not mentioned in the ballot paper during RS polls, it has a hidden number which can be matched with its counterfoil number given in the name of an MLA before voting.
When the number of an used ballot paper is revealed by scratching a layer hiding it, and it is matched with that of the counterfoil, an MLA’s choice of candidate becomes known.
The CBI yesterday collected the list of candidates who had contested the March 30 elections and their proposers.
The sealed ballot box is now kept in the strong room at the assembly secretariat. (PTI)

VARANASI, Apr 21:
The world’s tallest Hindu temple, on the lines of the famed Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, is all set to come up in Bihar.
“The Ram temple, to be constructed by Bihar-based religious group Mahavir Sthan Nyas Samiti with an estimated cost of Rs 150-200 crore, will be 270-feet-high and spread over an area of over one lakh sq ft,” Bihar Dharamik Nyas Board head Acharya Kishore Kunal said.
The five-storey temple will come up at a place near Ismailpur village on Hajipur-Bidupur road in Bihar’s Vashali district, he said.
It would be similar to the world famous Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia and would be named Virat Angkor Wat Ram Mandir, Kunal said.
The main Ram complex will be at a height of 72 feet. The temple will have escalators for the old and infirm. The project is expected to be completed in 10 years time, he said. (PTI)

KOLKATA, Apr 21:
Opening a new front with the Centre, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today issued a 15-day ultimatum to the UPA Government to accept her demand for a 3-year moratorium on the huge interest burden of the State on loans.
“I have made repeated appeals, my patience is running out. It will have to be done. We are unable to pay. I have waited for one year and I will wait for another 15 days and then”, Chief Minister told a convention of WBCS officers but did not specify her course of action to press the demand.
She said if any effort was made to deprive the State would not be tolerated and would become ‘a big issue’.
Banerjee pointed out that she had had taken up the demand of the state, which had inherited a debt burden for over Rs 2,00,000 crore loans taken by the previous Left Front government, in the past with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Union Finance Minister.
Asked by reporters about the course of action she contemplated after the 15-day deadline for the grant of the moratorium, the Chief Minister did not reply.
“How can I carry out development work, pay salaries and allow people of Bengal to live if the income is Rs 21,000 crore and interest payout is Rs 22,000 crore”, Banerjee said.
Mamata said she could not work to meet the basic needs of the people and the Centre had also stopped CST compensation of Rs 1,500 crore.
Mamata has already been at loggerheads with the Centre on range of issues including FDI in retail, setting up of National Counter Terrorism Centre, giving policing powers to BSF and Teesta river water-sharing issue with Bangladesh.
About the Centre’s claim of giving funds to the State, Banerjee said the central funds received were for backward area development, including junglemahal, which were also received by other states. (PTI)

*Experts engaged to prepare road-map
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Apr 21: More than 16 months after the submission of report, the recommendations of the Dr Mahmooda Rahman headed State Finance Commission have finally received the required focus of the State Government, which has engaged a team of experts to prepare road-map for the implementation of the same.
The State Finance Commission was constituted in 2007 to look into regional imbalance or discrimination in the allotment of funds with any region or sub-region of the State and suggest corrective measures for equitable development. Though the Commission had to submit its report to the Government within a period of one year yet it took more than three years to accomplish the task assigned to it.
The report was finally submitted to the Government in November 2010 and since then there was no action on the recommendations of the Commission. Now, after over 16 months, the recommendations of the Commission have received the required attention of the Government, which has engaged two experts to work out the road-map for implementation of the report.
These experts are S Mahajan, former Secretary Planning and Development Department and G A Qureshi, former Director General, Economics and Statistics.
It is pertinent to mention here that these experts have recently accomplished the task of preparing draft of the 12th Five Year Plan of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Since the recommendations of the State Finance Commission are based on the data of 2008-09, the experts will have to carry out additional exercise vis-à-vis updating basic parameters keeping in view the figures of 2011 census”, sources said.
Besides road map for implementation of recommendations, they will prepare report on district development profile and identify critical gaps in infrastructure in respective districts and suggest measures to address the developmental backwardness of districts, sources further said, adding the experts have been asked to workout the percentage for resources allocation among the three tiers of Panchayati Raj Institution vis-à-vis Panchayat, Block Development Council and District Planning and Development Board, within the allocation earmarked for the districts.
These experts will suggest the broader frame work for distribution of resources amongst various sectors out of the allocation earmarked for the CD blocks. “They will clearly spell out the percentage allocation of resources to each block from within the District Plan”, sources said while disclosing that report will be submitted within a maximum period of six months.
It is worthwhile to mention here that Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah, while replying to the discussion on the grants of the Departments under his charge in the Legislative Assembly, had made reference that recommendations of the State Finance Commission were being examined.
In order to ensure that the task assigned to the experts don’t get stretched beyond the prescribed time-frame, the Planning and Development Department has directed all the District Development Commissioners to facilitate the field visits of the experts if any and the Chief Planning Officers and District Statistics and Evaluation Officers asked to furnish latest relevant data to them.
According to the sources, the State Finance Commission has made admission, in its report, about the inter-district variation in the level of development and mentioned that developmental graph in some districts was very poor.
“Though the Commission has suggested a methodology for devolution of funds to the districts yet the same may have to be re-worked to bring blocks and local bodies under the ambit of that formula”, they said while disclosing that experts will be writing a note to the Government in this regard.
They said that State Planning Board, the blue-print of which has been prepared by the Planning and Development Department, is also one of the recommendations of the State Finance Commission.

NEW DELHI, Apr 21:
A Delhi court today reserved for April 26 its order on summoning Army Chief Gen V K Singh and four others named as accused in a criminal defamation case filed by former Lt Gen Tejinder Singh who had denied having made Rs 14 crore bribe offer to him to strike a defence deal.
Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) Jasjeet Kaur reserved the order on the criminal complaint after Tejinder Singh’s counsel said that his client had already recorded his statement and pre-summoning evidence in support of his complaint.
Metropolitan Magistrate Sudesh Kumar, who had on April 10 reserved the order on Tejinder Singh’s complaint, did not hold proceedings today as he was attending a training session and the matter was listed for hearing by MM Kaur.
Tejinder Singh, a former director general of Defence Intelligence Agency, had filed defamation complaint against the Army Chief and four other Army officials trashing the allegations that he had offered the bribe for clearing a deal for 600 “sub-standard” vehicles.
Besides the Army Chief, he has named Vice Chief of Army Staff S K Singh, Lt Gen B S Thakur (DG MI), Major General S L Narshiman (Additional Director General of Public Information) and Lt Col Hitten Sawhney posted in the media cell, accusing them of misusing their official positions, power and authority to level false charges against him.
Tejinder Singh had contended that all the five formed a direct chain of command with the Army Chief being the final arbiter.
During the last hearing, he had said the allegation against him of having offered bribe on behalf of Tatra and Vectra Ltd, which supplies vehicles to BEML was absolutely “false, ill-founded and concocted.”
Tejinder Singh had told the court that between March 3 and 5 this year, a number of media reports alluded to the Army Chief having allegedly ordered “unlawful monitoring” of mobiles, particularly in the South Block area here.
In order to divert the public attention from this news, which pointed fingers at senior functionaries in the Army Headquarters, including Gen V K Singh, the media cell of the Army Headquarters issued a press release on March 5, he had said, adding he was named in the press release without any proper legal sanction.
The Army Chief had in response to the legal notice by Tejinder Singh told him that he was ready to substantiate the allegations in the court.
Tejinder Singh had said the press release, taking his name, laid four allegations against him which were “false”.
He had said the allegation that he was questioned earlier on the purchase of off-the-air monitoring system without sanction by the competent authority was also false.
Regarding the allegation that he was an allottee in the Mumbai’s Adarsh housing society, Tejinder Singh had said that he was a “bonafide allottee” and no case exists against him.
The court had also recorded the statements of former Army Major R S Sahrawat, Bhupender Chaudhary, cousin of Tejinder Singh, and one Suman Chaudhary, who said he knew the former Lt Gen for the last 40 years.
The Army Chief had claimed in media interviews that a lobbyist, who had “just” retired, offered him a bribe of Rs 14 crore for clearing a file relating to purchase of a tranche of 600 “sub-standard” vehicles of a particular make and he had immediately informed Defence Minister A K Antony about it.
The Army Chief, however, did not want to pursue the matter for unknown reasons, the minister had said. (PTI)

Gopal Sharma
RAJOURI, Apr 21: Former Union Minister and PCC president Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz today advised his party ministers to increase frequency of their visits to the remote and backward areas of the State and give special attention towards development of such areas.
Addressing a public rally at Kotranka (Budhal) in district Rajouri today, Prof Soz said that backward areas should be identified which have lagged behind in various spheres of developmental and other activities of life. Such areas should be given more attention by the Government. He advised his party ministers to pay more visits to such areas and listen to the grievances of people and address their problems. He said Kotranka and Budhal areas should get special attention from the Government.
Referring to the strengthening and empowerment of the basic democratic institutions, Prof Soz said Panchayati Raj was necessary for the equitable development of all parts of the State. He claimed that Congress party was committed for full empowerment of Panchayati Raj system in the true spirit of 73rd and 74th amendment of the Constitution in order to make them fully vibrant institutions of democracy for the service of people so that the elected representatives have the adequate powers with regard to development and other needs to streamline the system of governance for effective delivery of welfare schemes meant for the people.
While stressing the need for better Indo-Pak relations, the PCC chief said that improved relations between the two neighbouring nations was better for the people of this State who have suffered a lot in view of militancy. India and Pakistan have to live together in the atmosphere of peace, friendship and cooperation. That nation has also realized after suffering a great loss because of sheltering terrorist activities on its soil. He said militancy in this part has left many tearful memories but could not disturb the religious brotherhood of worst affected areas. “Dialogue is the only solution to all sorts of problems in democratic set up and futility of gun has been realized by one and all after lot of destruction and loss of precious lives”, Prof Soz maintained.
PCC chief further said that the civil society in Pakistan wanted friendly relations with India and strengthening of confidence building measures to further normalize relations and peace in the region. He said during his recent visit to Pakistan as leader of a goodwill delegation, the civil society in Pakistan was overwhelmingly in favour of more CBMs between two countries.
The rally was also addressed by Congress ministers R S Chib, Raman Bhalla, Sham Lal, Shabir Ahmed Khan (MoS), MP Madan Lal Sharma, MLC Ravinder Sharma. Local leaders Th Puran Singh and Iqbal Malik highlighted the problems of the people. They demanded creation of new tehsil, compensation for land under various projects, special recruitment drive for youth of the area, degree college at Kotranka and promotion of tourism.
Minister for Technical Education Mr Chib said that one ITI will be opened at Kotranka and a stadium at the cost of Rs 10 lakh will be constructed in the area. He said proposals for the same have been sent to the Centre. Health Minister Sham Lal assured to fill up vacant posts of doctors in the area and Ramban Bhalla said that land compensation cases would be expedited.
MP Madan Lal cautioned the people against the forces which create wedge between the people of various communities on the name of religion and region. He also promised to provide Rs 10 lakh from his MP LAD funds for construction of stadium there.

Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Apr 21: Inspector General of Police (IGP) Jammu range, Dilbagh Singh today ordered transfer and postings of 15 Inspectors including six Station House Officers (SHOs).
DIG Jammu-Kathua range Farooq Khan has further ordered transfer and adjustment of range of six Inspectors.
Inspectors Sagar Singh, Vijay Choudhary, Satvinder Singh, Pardeep Kumar, who had been allotted Jammu zone by the Police Headquarters, have been allotted Jammu-Kathua range by the IGP Jammu. Inspector Saroop Singh has been given Rajouri-Poonch range.
Inspector Arjun Singh Chib, SHO Arnia has been transferred from Jammu-Kathua range and posted in Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range while SHO Jhajjar Kotli Inspector Yashpal Singh has been shifted from Jammu-Kathua to Rajouri-Poonch range.
SHO Khour police station Inspector Ajit Singh has been shifted from Jammu-Kathua range and posted in Udhampur-Reasi range.
SHO Kud Inspector Vinod Kundal was shifted from Udhampur-Reasi range to Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range while SHO Ramnagar Inspector Arvind Samyal was transferred from Udhampur-Reasi range to Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range.
SHO Doda Inspector Devinder Singh has been transferred from Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range to Jammu-Kathua range.
Inspector Nazir Ahmed, presently posted in District Police Lines (DPL) Jammu, has been transferred from Jammu-Kathua range to Rajouri-Poonch range. Inspector Naresh Kumar has been transferred from Jammu-Kathua range to Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range but attached to Kathua district for 6 months.
Inspector Rajesh Sharma was shifted from Police Control Room (PCR) to Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range.
Meanwhile, DIG Doda-Samba-Kathua range has allotted Jammu district to Inspectors Sagar Singh, Satinder Singh and Vijay Choudhary.
Inspectors Devinder Singh has been allotted Samba district and Inspector Pardeep Kumar Kathua district.
Inspector Neeraj Bhagat has been allotted Jammu district.

NEW DELHI, Apr 21:
A suspected Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militant arrested for allegedly planning to excute bomb blasts here was today acquitted by a Delhi court.
Mukhtar Ahmed Khan, arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in June, 2007, with 1.5 kg explosives was acquitted by Additional Sessions Judge S S Rathi as the prosecution failed to prove its case.
Mukhtar was arrested on June 12, 2007, from Azadpur Sabzi Mandi in north Delhi with 1.5 kilograms of RDX, a timer and two detonators.
The prosecution case was that he had come to Delhi at the behest of LeT commander Abu Alqama based in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) and Abu Musab alias Tahir and Abu Hamza, the district commanders of LeT in Srinagar.
The prosecution had also alleged the explosives seized from him were meant to cause bomb blasts in Delhi at the behest of LeT commander Abu Alqama and that Mukhtar was supposed to hand over the explosives to another LeT operative in Delhi before taking the bus to Lahore.
Mukhtar’s counsel M S Khan had pointed to various loopholes in the prosecution’s theory that Mukhtar had come to Delhi in May, 2007, and stayed in a lodge near Jama Masjid till June 7, 2007, where he was being watched by the Special Cell before he disappered on the morning of June 8, 2007.
He had argued there was no coherence in the version of the police that Mukhtar disappeared all of a sudden on June 8, 2007, after which police got the information that he is arriving in Delhi with the contraband on June 12, 2007, when he was arrested.
Advocate Khan also pointed out that there was no evidence to suggest the existence of Abu Alqama, Abu Musab alias Tahir and Abu Hamza.
He also said the 1.5 kg contraband seized by the police was in different packets, out of which only 10 gm was sent for forensic opinion, which casts a shadow on the recovery alleged to have been effected from Mukhtar. (PTI)

Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, Apr 21: In a major breakthrough police last night arrested Divisional Commander of Hizbul Mujahideen south Kashmir who was involved in large number of militant activities in south Kashmir and was mastermind behind last month’s IED blast in Bijbehara, Anantnag.
Police identified him as Latif Ahmed Dar alias Massod Saini and arrested him from Litter area of district Pulwama and recovered arms and ammunition from his possession.
Superintendent of Police (SP) Pulwama, Amit Kumar, said that an AK-47 rifle, 3 AK magazines, one pistol, one grenade, more than 100 kilogrammes of RDX, over 1100 PCBs, circuit wires, chargers and triggers were recovered from his possession.
The SP said that the militant commander was mastermind behind the attacks in south Kashmir. He said that the commander was supplying IED material to the militants for making IEDs.
Inspector General of Police (IGP), S M Sahai, described his arrest as a major breakthrough against militancy in south Kashmir where he was operating for past over 4 years.
While giving details the IGP said that on specific information about movement of militants in Litter area in district Pulwama was received by Police Component Litter last night.
The IGP said that at 8 p.m., a naka was established on Main Road at Ladermad, Pulwama, soon after the information was received. “At about 8:30 p.m. one Alto Car bearing registration No. JK03A/3804 which was coming from village Kulpora, Pulwama, was intercepted by the police Party and the passengers inside the vehicle were asked to come down”, he added.
The IGP said that the driver of the vehicle, Sajad Ahmed Bhat son of Abdul Rashid resident of Ladermad came down while as the other one made an attempt to escape from the scene.
He said that the police party made a courageous effort and nabbed him on the main road. He identified the militant as Latif Ahmed Dar alias Massod Saini as divisional commander of Hizbul Mujahideen son of Ghulam Hassan Dar of Panjgam Pulwama.
The IGP Kashmir said that the divisional commander was active in the south Kashmir since 2008 and was involved in many militancy related incidents especially in recent IED blast which took place at Bijbehara last month. A case in this blast is registered (FIR No. 79/2012 U/S 420, 120 B, 307, 305 RPC, 3 PSS Act) in Police Station Bijbehara.
The IGP said that the militant was also involved in the killing of one released militant Showkat Ahmed Rather son of Mohammad Abdullah resident of Gravgund as well as threatening to Panchs and Sarpanchs of the area.
“During questioning, the militant commander confessed about plans of IED blasts also. On his instance, more than 100 Kgs of RDX and detonators were recovered at village Gulzarpora Awantipora”, the IGP added.
The Hizbul Mujahideen is the second largest militant outfit operating in south Kashmir after Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT). According to reports there are around 15 active militants of HM operating in the area. However, HM and LeT are operating jointly in south Kashmir.

Council confirms the legislations are dead
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Apr 21: In a significant development, the Legislative Council has formally confirmed that three major bills—one pertaining to setting up of three Universities in the State and two for charging Property Tax and establishment of a Property Board have lapsed in the Upper House but two of them have come back again from the Assembly and were sent to the Joint Select Committee.
Top official sources confirmed that a significant bill, which had triggered massive protests in the Assembly from both ruling National Conference and opposition, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), which sought to establish three Universities in the State, has lapsed.
“The bill has lapsed. It is dead. It is no more alive. It’s gone now’’, sources said, adding if the Government or the private members of the Assembly wanted to pass the bill, they would have to come up again with the legislation from the Lower House.
The bill, which has lapsed, proposed to set up three Universities in the State including Trans World Muslim University sponsored by Jamiat-e-Alia Hadees, Sheikh ul Alam University, sponsored by another sect of Muslims and Guru Nanak Dev Khalsa University.
The Legislative Assembly had passed the bill in its autumn session in Srinagar on October 9, 2010. National Conference MLA from Kupwara, Saifullah Mir was mover of the bills.
The Legislative Council had taken up the bills on October 12, 2010. The majority in the Upper House including Congress members, who were coalition partner in National Conference headed Government, didn’t endorse the bill and wanted them to be referred to the Joint Select Committee.
The House had by a majority view agreed to send the bills to the JSC.
According to sources, the then Presiding Officer of the Legislative Council (former Deputy Chairman Arvinder Singh Micky), had written to Legislative Assembly Speaker Mohammad Akbar Lone seeking names of MLAs for induction in the JSC. The Speaker had given two names.
However, the Joint Select Committee was not constituted on the bill.
Sources said new Legislative Council Chairman, Amrit Malhotra like Arvinder Singh Micky had refused to nominate the JSC. Under rules, the bills get lapsed if the Legislative Council didn’t pass it within a specified time frame after the approval of Lower House.
“The time period has lapsed and so was the fate of bills, which had generated a lot of heat in the Legislative Assembly during budget session especially on April 3 when ruling National Conference and opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) had unanimously created massive uproar over the bill’’, sources said.
Though the Speaker had on April 3 maintained that the bill was alive, the very next day he said he would take up the issue with the Legislative Council Chairman.
Highly placed sources in the Legislative Council Secretariat confirmed that the bill was dead and not alive. They said the Legislative Assembly had to pass the bill once again if the issue of the Universities was to be revived. However, the problem was that the Congress, the main coalition partner in the Government, was now opposed to the bill though it had supported it in October 2010.
Congress sources admitted that their Legislative Assembly members had passed the bill in 2010 as “out of sight’’. But it was in the Legislative Council that one of the MLC objected to it and got it blocked by proposing that the bill should be referred to the JSC. It was then allowed to die with the help of the Presiding Officers of the Upper House, who refused to nominate members to the JSC.
According to sources, two bills proposing levy of property tax on the people and setting up of Property Tax Board, which were part of reforms in Housing and Urban Development sector to secure Central grants under Jawahar Lal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), which were approved by the Assembly during 2011 budget session, have also lapsed.
These bills also lapsed as the Presiding Officers didn’t set up the JSC fearing that imposition of property tax on the people would mar electoral prospectus of the Congress in future.
However, as the grants under JNNURM were not being released by the Centre, the Housing and Urban Development Department realized that the bills passed by the Assembly have lapsed and they got it approved again from the Lower House on last day of budget session on April 4.
But the Upper House again stalled the bills the very same day when they came up in the Council for approval. The House had approved that the bills should be sent to the JSC.
This time, however, the Legislative Council has timely constituted the JSC making Deputy Chief Minister, Tara Chand, Incharge Housing and Urban Development Department to whose Ministry the bills pertained, as chairman of the JSC.
Worthwhile to mention here that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had said on floor of the Lower House just few days before the property tax and Property Board bills were passed for the second time that there was no other option but to pass these bills and take up other reforms in lieu of JNNURM grants running in to about Rs 700 crores, which have been stalled by the Centre in the absence of requisite reforms.