Jaspal Rana to join Congress, but his father to stay in BJP

Mussoorie, January 5
The fallout of the distribution of ticket debacle in the Bhartiya Janata Party camp has left the family of ace shooter Jaspal Rana a divided lot. Jaspal Rana after exhausting his energy in seeking the BJP ticket for his father from Dhanolti has finally decided to quit the party and join the Congress.

Narayan Singh Rana, senior BJP leader and also close relative of national president Rajnath Singh, after failing in his effort to convince the high command to re-distribute the ticket in his favour, has also acknowledged that Jaspal Rana is leaving the BJP and joining the Congress.

Narayan Singh Rana making a complete U-turn on his earlier statement said, “Jaspal Rana has been influenced by Rahul Gandhi and his commitment towards the youth of the country and, therefore, had been contemplating joining the Congress since several months and recent events will have also forced him to finally quit the BJP”.

Narayan Singh Rana also said he had no say in his son’s decision but as far as he was concerned, he would remain a loyal soldier of the BJP.

This election has finally divided the father and son duo in two opposite camps thus proving that “politics is an art of possible”.

The Congress by this move is trying to make dent in the vote share of the BJP among the youth. How far they will succeed only time will tell?

Meanwhile, the state Congress leaders are mum over the issue of Jaspal joining the Congress and insiders believe that announcement can come within a day or two. 

11 Punjabis detained in Kuwait return home

Kapurthala, January 5
Eleven of the 30 Punjabi youths detained by a maintenance company in Kuwait have returned to India. Thanks to the India Embassy in Kuwait which facilitated their return after the matter was taken up by the Punjab State Commission for Scheduled Castes (PSCSC) with the External Affairs Ministry.

Two of the returned youths, Kulwinder Kumar of Lamma in Jalandhar and Gurmail Singh of Phagwara, said they along with 28 Punjabis had been detained by a company, Arab Centres, for the past nine months. The company forced them to stay in Kuwait even after the expiry of their visa. They could not move out due to the fear of getting arrested, they added. “Ailing Punjabis were even refused medicines. A society of Kerala highlighted our plight on YouTube," they said. Kulwinder also informed about their condition to his sister on the phone.

"My sister contacted chairman of the PSCSC Rajesh Bagha, who took up the matter with the Union External Affairs Ministry,” he said.

‘Immigrate through legitimate means’

Chandigarh, January 5
Dwelling on the agenda of youth empowerment through quality education, skills development and employment, most of overseas participants expressed serious concerns over deterioration in the standard of senior secondary education and post-matriculation dropout rate in Punjab at the Punjabi Parvasi Divas conference here today.

Canada as a partner country in this years' conference was well represented, both among speakers and the audience.

Though Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, NRI Affairs Minister Balbir Singh Bath, Chief Secretary SC Aggarwal and NRI Commissioner Vijay Partap were conspicuous by their absence, overseas Punjabis from Canada, including Ontario Minister Harinder Takhar, Alberta MLA Peter Sandhu and former MP Gurbax Malhi, talked about how Punjabis have scripted a success story in their present country of abode.

The participants endorsed the suggestion made by the secretary-general of the International Punjabi Chamber for Service Industry Gulshan Sharma that immigration overseas should be only through legitimate, decent and dignified means.

Satinder Dhiman, a management professor in North America, through video conferencing, expressed deep concern that the dropout rate of students for post-matriculatiuon education in Punjab had shot up to more than 90 per cent. Without education, he said, no state could come up economically.

Canada's Consul-General in Chandigarh Scot Slessor said what Canada needed most was young skilled people who were comfortable in speaking English.

More than 50 per cent of the total Indian immigrants in Canada come from Punjab and its surrounding areas. Scot Slessor said list of skills in demand in Canada were all prominently displayed on the government websites. Advanced countries did not need many people with higher educational qualifications, including PhDs, but they needed plumbers, drivers, mechanics or people trained in other trades in demand. Other basic requirement was that they should be conversant with English.

Ontario Minister for Government Services said Punjabis made up for their deficiencies in education with "jugads". With their hard work and unprecedented ability to adapt themselves to the new work and living environs, they had made major strides in every area.

Peter Sandhu from Alberta said when he left India more than three decades ago, the standard of high school education was pretty good. But unfortunately, it had deteriorated rapidly. The government needed to focus on reviving education network, besides imparting training in trades that were in demand overseas.

Pic of the Day

Snow in Shimla on 5th January,2012

Inmates can contest poll but remain barred from voting

Kapurthala, January 5
Thousands of inmates languishing in various jails of the state would not be able to cast their franchise on January 30 even though those convicted under particular sections can contest the forthcoming assembly poll.

Such are the provisions of Section 62 (5) Representatives of the Public Act (RPA), 1951, that mention that no imprisoned person can vote. However, Section 8 of the RPA Act states that convicted persons with sentence less than two years can contest.

Additional Chief Electoral Officer Raj Kamal Chaudhary said the Punjab election office received instructions from the Election Commission of India a few days ago that no inmate be allowed to vote. However, he stated, if a person was convicted for some particular offences that entail less than two years of imprisonment, then he could contest the elections.

The offence includes crime under FERA, Corruption Act, Protection of Civil Rights Act, Sections 153 A of the IPC and various Sections of the IPC related with electoral malpractices, Customs Act, NDPS and TADA.

AIG (Jails) DK Sidhu said there were over 10,000 undertrials lodged in 23 jails of the state who would not be allowed to votes. These undertrials are lodges in eight central jails located at Kapurthala, Faridkot, Ferozepur, Patiala, Bathinda, Ludhiana, Amritsar and Gurdaspur (with capacity from 700 to 2800), six district jails at Ropar, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Nabha, Sangrur and Mansa (with capacity below 500), eight sub jails at Dasuya, Pathankot, Phagwara, Patti, Malerkotla, Moga, Fazilka and Muktsar (with capacity from 25 to 250), Borstal jail at Ludhiana (capacity 500 prisoners from 18 to 21 years of age) and women jail at Ludhiana.

Taking strong exception to these provisions of the RPA Act, a human rights activist, advocate Rajinder Bhatia, has urged the Union Government to amend Section 62 (5) of the Act that prohibits the undertrials from voting.

PUNJAB ASSEMBLY POLLS 2012: CONG’S LIST OF 114 IS OUT

Pathankot Raman Bhalla, Gurdaspur Raman Behl, Dinanagar (SC) Aruna Chaudhary, Qadian Charanjit Kaur, Batala Ashwani Sekhri, Sri Hargobindpur (SC) Balvinder Singh Laddi, Fatehgarh Churian Tript Rajinder Bajwa, Dera Baba Nanak Sukhjinder Randhawa, Ajnala Harpratap Singh Ajnala, Raja Sansi Sukhbinder Sarkaria, Majitha Shailender Jit Shelly, Jandiala (SC) Sardul Singh, Amritsar North Ashwani Kumar Pappu, Amritsar West (SC) Raj Kumar Verka, Amritsar Central OP Soni, Amritsar East Simpreet Kaur Bhatia, Amritsar South Jasbir Singh Dimpa, Attari (SC) Tarsem Singh, Tarn Taran Dr Dharamveer Agnihotri, Khem Karan Gurchet Bhullar, Patti Harminder Singh Gill, Khadoor Sahib Ramanjit Singh Sikki, Baba Bakala (SC) Ranjit Chhajalwadi, Bholath Sukhpal Khaira, Kapurthala Rana Gurjit Singh, Sultanpur Lodhi Navtej Singh Cheema, Phagwara (SC) Balbir Raja Sodhi, Phillaur (SC) Chaudhary Santokh Singh, Nakodar Amarjit Singh Samra, Shahkot Col CD Kamboj, Kartarpur (SC) Ch Jagjit Singh, Jalandhar West (SC) Suman Kaypee, Jalandhar Central Raj Kumar Gupta, Jalandhar North Avtar Henry, Jalandhar Cantt Jagbir Brar, Adampur (SC) Satnam Singh Kainth, Mukerian Ajit Kumar Narang, Dasuya Ramesh Chander Dogra, Urmar Sangat Singh Gilzian, Sham Chaurasi (SC) Ram Lubhaya, Hoshiarpur Sunder Sham Arora, Chabbewal (SC) Dr Raj Kumar, Garhshankar Lov Kumar Goldy, Banga (SC) Tarlochan Singh Soondh, Nawanshahr Guriqbal Kaur, Balachaur Rajwinder Singh Lucky, Anandpur Sahib Rana KP, Rupnagar Romesh Dutt Sharma, Chamkaur Sahib (SC) Charanjit Channi, Kharar Jagmohan Kang, SAS Nagar Balbir Sidhu, Bassi Pathana (SC) Harbans Kuar Dullo, Fatehgarh Sahib Kuljit Nagra, Amloh Randeep Singh Nabha, Khanna Gurkit Singh Kotli, Samrala Amrik Singh, Sahnewal Vikram Bajwa, Ludhiana East Gurmail Singh Pahelwan, Ludhiana South Ashok Parashar Puppy, Atam Nagar Malkiat Singh Birmi , Ludhiana Central Surender Dabar, Ludhiana West Bharat Bhushan Ashu, Ludhiana North Rakesh Pandey, Gill (SC) Malkiat Dhaka, Payal (SC) Lakhbir Singh Lakha, Dakha Jassi Khangura, Raikot (SC) GS Boparai, Jagraon (SC) Ishar Singh Meharban, Nihal Singh Wala (SC) Ajit Singh Shant, Bagha Purana Darshan Brar, Moga Joginder Pal Jain, Dharamkot Kaka Surjit Singh Lohgarh, Zira Naresh Kataria, Ferozepur Urban Parminder Singh Pinky, Ferozepur Rural (SC) Satkar Kaur, Guruharsahai Rana Gurmit Sodhi, Jalalabad Malkait Singh, Fazilka Dr Mohinder Rinwa, Abohar Sunil Jakhar, Balluana (SC) Giriraj Rajoura, Lambi Maheshinder Singh Badal, Gidderbaha Amarinder Singh Raja Wiring, Malout (SC) Nathuram, Muktsar Karan Brar, Faridkot Avtar Brar, Kotkapura Ripjit Brar, Jaito (SC) Joginder Singh Punjgrain, Rampura Phul Gurpreet Singh Kangar, Bhucho Mandi (SC) Ajaib Singh Bhatti, Bathinda Urban Harminder Jassi, Bathinda Rural (SC) Makhan Singh, Talwandi Sabo Jeet Mohinder Singh Sidhu, Maur Mangat Rai Bansal, Sardulgarh Ajit Inder Singh Mofar, Budhlada (SC) Satpal Singh Mulewalla, Lehra Rajinder Kaur Bhattal, Dirbha (SC) Ajaib Singh Rataul, Sunam Aman Arora, Bhadaur (SC) Mohd Sadiq, Barnala Kewal Dhillon, Mehal Kalan (SC) Harchand Kaur, Malerkotla Razia Sultan, Amargarh (SC) Surjit Singh Dhiman, Dhuri Arvind Khanna, Sangrur SPS Sibia, Nabha (SC) Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, Patiala Rural Brahm Mohindra, Rajpura Hardayal Kamboj, Dera Bassi Jasjit Singh Randhawa, Ghanour Madan Lal Jalajpur, Sanour Lal Singh, Patiala Amarinder Singh, Samana Raninder Singh and Shutrana (SC) Nirmal Singh.

On Army Chief’s age, we had to go by rules: Khurshid

New Delhi, January 5
Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid has said that the Government had decided to reject the statutory complaint made by Army Chief VK Singh to correct his age because “there are rules by which we had to go by”.

In an exclusive interview, Khurshid went on to explain, “Nobody in government thinks of Gen VK Singh as anything but the most outstanding Chief of Staff. I think he is held in very high esteem. I don’t think anyone believed that he has misrepresented the facts and he is not telling the truth as far as the facts are concerned. There are some facts, that are established and again these can be argued. Not all these facts relate to the actual rules that apply. Hard cases make bad law. There are rules by which we have to go by.”

The Army Chief, in his complaint, had stated that his correct date of birth was May 10, 1951 and not 1950 as per Army records and had wanted it to be corrected.

As to the reason why his Ministry advised the Defence Ministry to reject the Chief”s complaint, Khurshid said, “Not all rules are malleable or flexible to the extent of accommodating facts that are unanticipated. The thing about the rules is that you cannot keep changing them simply because in a particular case those rules give you an outcome that is not entirely to your satisfaction or entirely to the comfort of people involved. It is rules that have been interpreted in a manner which does not allow us to take a decision other than the decision that has been taken. I don’t want to comment any further.”

In the wide-ranging interview, Khurshid admitted that it was a mistake to rush through the Lokpal Bill. He agreed that the Government acted under pressure of public expectations and public demonstrations and that it was a ‘bad idea’ to follow a tight timeline. “If you ask me now, that was a mistake. People were questioning our bonafides. Therefore, we went through with the tight timeline and I think it was a bad idea. We should not have tried to cut our losses: a more flexible timeline would have allowed us to do a much better job on all fronts,” said the Law Minister, adding that the ambiguities in the Bill will be taken care of before the next session of Parliament.

Glossing over differences with ally Trinamool Congress, Khurshid said that Mamata Banerjee could not be expected to go along with the Bill without looking at all the implications. The Government would factor in her concerns, he added.

“It may have been inconvenient to the Parliamentary Affairs Minister but that is not the end of the world,” said the Minister. Asked if he also thought the ‘minority quota’ in the Lokpal Bill to be a bad idea, he responded by saying, “Diversity is an idea, whose time has come; whether you like it or not, it is a part of the maturing of Indian democracy and the demands for diversity are growing”. The country needs to have an Equal Opportunity Commission, he felt.

He pointed out, “Even the BJP, which may not have said yes, has not said no either.” Asked to comment on the prevailing view that the quota could be struck down by the courts, Khurshid said that though he was aware that ‘reservation’ for OBCs did not extend to institutions like the Supreme Court, the High Court and the Lokpal, the courts are increasingly taking into account the changing and growing aspirations for diversity and he would rather have the apex court carry out a judicial review.

Asked how corruption in the judiciary could be weeded out, Khurshid replied that the Judicial Accountability Bill would set standards and mechanisms to ensure that a ‘judge is thrown out long before he gets corrupt’. The Government did not want judges to appear before ‘a constable of the police’, he said.

On the controversial issue of withdrawing the Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) from certain areas in Jammu & Kashmir, Khurshid declared that the Law Ministry’s considered view was that the Governor ‘is the final authority’ in this matter and can act on his own discretion. “It is a very special case” and there are provisions under which the J & K Governor is to accept the aid and assistance of the council of ministers and others, under which he can act on his own.

The Law Minister clarified that his Ministry had already cleared the Punjab legislation on Anand Marriage Act. “In the normal course, it would apply only to Punjab but what we want to do is to make provisions so that Anand Marriage can take place anywhere in India or even abroad,” he explained. The draft is now with the Union Home Ministry.

WHAT THE LAW MINISTER SAYS ON LOKPAL BILL

If you ask me now, that (rushing the Lokpal Bill) was a mistake... We should not have tried to cut our losses: a more flexible timeline would have allowed us to do a much better job on all fronts

ON LIFTING AFSPA IN J&K

It is clear that the state Governor is the final authority on this matter. After collating and harmonising different views, we have come to the conclusion that the Governor must be left to decide

ON ANAND MARRIAGE ACT

In the normal course, it would apply only to Punjab but what we want to do is to make provisions so that Anand Marriage can take place anywhere in India or even abroad.

ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਦੇ ਦਾਖਲੇ ਵਾਲੇ ਦੋ ਹੋਰ ਕਾਲਜ ਬੰਦ

5 ਜਨਵਰੀ - ਪੱਛਮੀ ਈਲਿੰਗ ਦੇ ਦੋ ਹੋਰ ਕਾਲਜ ਬੰਦ ਹੋਣ ਦੀਆਂ ਖ਼ਬਰਾਂ ਮਿਲੀਆਂ ਹਨ, ਲੀਲੈਂਡ ਰੋਡ ਈਲਿੰਗ ਦਾ ਬੂਸਟਨ ਕਾਲਜ ਆਫ ਲੰਡਨ ਤੇ ਈਲਿੰਗ ਬਰਾਡਵੇਅ ਸਥਿਤ ਵੈਸਟ ਲੰਡਨ ਸਕੂਲ ਆਫ ਮੈਨੇਜਮੈਂਟ ਐਂਡ ਟੈਕਨਾਲੋਜੀ ਦਾ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਪੜ੍ਹਾਉਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਲਾਇਸੰਸ ਰੱਦ ਹੋ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸੇ ਖੇਤਰ 'ਚ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਵੀ ਇੱਕ ਕਾਲਜ ਸਤੰਬਰ 2011 'ਚ ਬੰਦ ਹੋ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ।

ਐਰਿਕ ਲੀਚ ਆਫ ਵਿਸਟ ਈਲਿੰਗ ਨੇਬਰਸ ਦਾ ਕਹਿਣਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਕਾਲਜਾਂ ਦਾ ਬੰਦ ਹੋਣਾ ਜਿੱਥੇ ਕੰਮ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੇ ਸਟਾਫ ਲਈ ਬਰਬਾਦੀ ਦਾ ਕਾਰਨ ਬਣੇਗਾ, ਉੱਥੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਦਾ ਭਵਿੱਖ ਵੀ ਖਤਰੇ 'ਚ ਪੈ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ ਤੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਹੁਣ ਡਿਪੋਰਟ ਕੀਤੇ ਜਾਣ ਦਾ ਖਦਸ਼ਾ ਹੈ। ਯੂ ਕੇ ਬਾਰਡਰ ਏਜੰਸੀ ਦਾ ਕਹਿਣਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਵੈਸਟ ਲੰਡਨ ਸਕੂਲ ਆਫ ਮੈਨੇਜਮੈਂਟ ਦਾ ਲਾਇਸੰਸ ਨਵੰਬਰ 'ਚ ਰੱਦ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਸੀ ਤੇ ਬੂਸਟਨ ਕਾਲਜ ਨੇ ਅਗਸਤ 'ਚ ਸਵੈ ਇੱਛਕ ਤੌਰ 'ਤੇ ਵਾਪਸ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਸੀ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਵੀਜ਼ੇ ਦੀ ਦੁਰਵਰਤੋਂ ਰੋਕਣ ਲਈ ਹੀ ਵੀਜ਼ਾ ਨਿਯਮਾਂ 'ਚ ਤਬਦੀਲੀਆਂ ਕੀਤੀਆਂ ਜਾਂਦੀਆਂ ਹਨ, ਸਿਰਫ ਅੱਵਲ ਦਰਜੇ ਦੀ ਪੜ੍ਹਾਈ ਦੇਣ ਵਾਲਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਹੀ ਅੰਤਰਰਾਸ਼ਟਰੀ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਸਪਾਂਸਰ ਕਰਨ ਦਾ ਲਾਇਸੰਸ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ।