Round The States

9 August 2012

Illegal Immigrants

Assam Sitting On A Volcano

By Insaf

Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi has stirred a hornet nest. “Assam is sitting on a volcano, you don’t know what happens where”, was his reaction as fresh deaths were reported from violence-hit Kokrajhar district. His statement reverberated in the first day of Parliament’s Monsoon session with the BJP’s adjournment motion on the Assam situation being admitted. During the four hour debate, speaker after speaker squarely put the onus for the violence on illegal Bangladeshi migrants who had crossed over to the State in connivance with leaders of every party to enhance their vote banks. Resulting in violence between the locals and the infiltrators as witnessed over the last two months. Tragically, however, even as all parties promise to act against illegal migrants but when push comes to shove, mum is the word. The Centre on its part is contemplating a CBI probe in to the violence and the Intelligence Bureau has put 14 organisations operating in the troubled areas under the scanner. What next?

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Two Ex-Haryana Ministers Earned Notoriety

Two senior Haryana leaders, former State Home Minister Gopal Kanda and ex-Deputy Chief Minister Chander Mohan have earned notoriety for the death of two young women. While former Air Hostess Geetika Sharma has blamed Kanda in her suicide note, Chander Mohan’s ex-wife Haryana’s former Advocate General Anuradha Bali aka Fiza’s decomposed, blotted and maggot-infested body was found at her Mohali residence. Recall, Sharma till last year was employed in Kanda’s MDLR Group and was reportedly close to the former Minister. Anuradha Bali, on the other hand, eloped with Chander Mohan, both converted to Islam and got married three years ago. But Chander Mohan, dumped Bali within three months of their marriage after Mohan’s father, late Bhajan Lal disowned him as his son. Today, both cases have taken an intriguing turn. Geetika’s Delhi-based family has squarely blamed Kanda for her death who is absconding to resist arrest.  Meanwhile, the Haryana police too have not ruled out the possibility of foul play behind Bali’s death. Undoubtedly, both cases are a lesson for our leaders that politics and the affairs of the heart are a ‘dead’ly combination!

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Two Gujarat BJP Stalwarts Quit

Barely four months before Assembly polls in Gujarat former BJP Chief Minister Keshu Bhai Patel and ex-Union Minister Kashi Ram Rana quit the party to form their own outfit. Both espoused the same reason: Chief Minister Narender Modi’s style of functioning and terming his tenure as mini-emergency. Pertinently, Patel who has been the Saffron Sangh’s face in Gujarat for the last 60 years, was the driving force for the party to rule the State in 1995. The regional outfit has been called the Gujarat Parivartan Party which will put up candidates in the coming State polls. Interestingly, the duo have been joined by another ex-Minister Gordhan Zadafia who quit the BJP in 2007 and and has now merged his Maha-Gujarat Janta Party with the GPP. Predictably, the State Congress is rejoicing as it would lead to a three-cornered contest, Modi remain nonchalant even as the State Unit promises to gear up for a tough fight at the hustings.

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Scam-Tainted Maharashtra

Maharashtra and scams seem to go hand-in-hand. In the thick of various land scams and following the sacking of NCP’s Minister of State for Transport, Gulabrao Deokar for his involvement in the Rs.32 crore Jalgaon Housing scam, the State government is now grappling with the latest, an irrigation scam, running over a whopping Rs 20,000 crore! Congress Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan has sought a white paper on it, but partner NCP is unwilling to oblige so far. The scam apparently puts the Water Resources Minister Sunil Tatkare, in the dock. Allegations are that irrigation projects’ costs were escalated, companies floated by family members to procure unsecure loans for agricultural projects and to acquire acres of prime land. Worse, the drought-prone Vidarbha region was too not spared. The costs of 38 irrigation projects are alleged to have been escalated four times over--from Rs 6,672 crore to Rs 26,722 crores by the Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation. The matter, which has come to light through a PIL, will be long and winding but one should not lose hope. The guilty like in the Adarsh land scam, must be brought to book.  

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Nagaland MLAs Offer To Quit

In a gesture smacking of noblese 60 Nagaland MLAs cutting across party lines have volunteered to resign form their seat to pave the way for an early solution to the seven decades old Naga imbroglio. Led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio under the banner of Forum for Naga Reconciliation, they endeavour to bring all NSCN factions on a common platform once an agreement is reached between the Central Government and the NSCN-IM. Towards that end it has requested the Centre to postpone the next Assembly elections in March 2013. Meanwhile, mudding waters, the Khole-Kitovi faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland has expressed strong opposition to any "secret pact" with the NSCN-Isak Muivah faction without taking them into confidence." Recall, the Naga talks, have witnessed three interlocutors since 1997, and talks have taken place across the globe in Paris, Geneva, Zurich, Amsterdam, New Delhi, Bangkok, London, Japan, Malaysia and the Hague. It is a moot point whether this would help usher a permanent solution to the vexatious Naga political problem.

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Himachal’s Anguish 

Himachal Pradesh may find itself wishing a tearful goodbye. Its famous Rail Motor Car, which traversed a memorable route in the hills for the past 85 years, has come to a grinding halt. Unfortunately, its wheels have given way. The rail car, since 1927, was popular not only with the Indians but foreigners too who would savour the four-and-a-half-hour journey on the UNESCO World Heritage Kalka-Shimla rail track. Able to accommodate only 14-18 passengers it was very popular with chartered bookings as also with film directors for shooting. Sadly, the rail car is the last of the four built by the British. A concerned Railways has tried to salvage the situation by introducing cast wheels but ran out of luck as it couldn’t find a producer. Fortunately, it has decided not to give up and has floated a tender to find a manufacturer who could help revive the car — replace wheels along with some other parts. It is keeping its fingers crossed and so should we.---INFA

(Copyright, India News and Feature Alliance)