Howrah News Service - Latest news and headlines on Howrah and West Bengal

Price rise key to national polls schedule: Advani

Sat, 03 May 2008 07:03:00 -0400

Bangalore: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L K Advani has said the price rise would be the key to the scheduling of the national polls.

Addressing a public meeting in Bangalore on Friday, Advani said that inflation, hovering at a three year high of over seven per cent, would be a prime factor when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would want his Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) to face the electorate. "There is talk in Congress circles in New Delhi that if this is the rate at which inflation is moving upwards, by the time the Lok Sabha elections come, the electorate will be very angry with the present UPA Government. Therefore, it may be wise to hold the Lok Sabha elections in October, November itself along with the other assembly elections," he said.

Speaking on the Karnataka Assembly elections, Advani said that these elections were important also from this angle because I know that if you give the BJP a clear majority in Karnataka, elect Yedurappa as Chief Minister with a thumping majority, they will not dare to hold Lok Sabha elections now. They will put off the Lok Sabha elections to April-May 2009. "I am appealing to you to give stable government in Karnataka. I also want this government in New Delhi to continue for sometime," he added.

The state has been in a political wilderness since November last year when the B S Yeddyurappa-led coalition was ousted from the Assembly in less than a fortnight of being sworn in. As many as 89 Assembly constituencies spread over 11 districts of Tumkur, Chikkaballapur, Kolar, Bangalore Urban, Bangalore Rural, Ramanagar, Mandya, Hassan, Kodagu, Mysore and Chamarajnagar will go to polls in the first phase on May 10.

The second phase of polling will take place on May 16, when a total of 66 Assembly constituencies in 10 districts of Raichur, Koppal, Uttara Kannada, Bellary, Chitradurga, Davanagere, Shimoga, Udupi, Chikmagalur and Dakshina Kannada will face the ballot. A total of 69 Assembly constituencies in eight districts of North Karnataka, Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, Bidar, Gulbaga, Bijapur, Bagalakot and Belgaum will face the ballot in the third phase. The counting of votes in all the 224 constituencies will take place on May 25.

LF partners hold CPI (M) responsible for pre-poll terror

Sat, 03 May 2008 06:31:00 -0400

Kolkata: Major Left Front partners like the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) and the Forward Bloc (FB) have charged 'Big Brother' Communist Party of India -Marxist (CPI-M) with resorting to large-scale violence to defeat their nominees for the rural polls scheduled to be held in the second week of this month.

Despite an electoral understanding with the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Marxists have failed to reach an accord on seat-sharing with the RSP and the Forward Bloc in extensive areas of Bengal. Already a number of pre-poll clashes have taken place between the CPI(M) workers on the one hand and the RSP and Forward Bloc supporters on the other in districts like South 24 Parganas, Hooghly and Howrah. Neither of the concerned left parties has ruled out escalation of violence as the dates for the panchayat elections draw near.

The most serious accusation against the ruling Marxists has come from senior RSP leader and PWD minister Kshiti Goswami who has described the CPI(M) as a 'fascist party. According to him, the CPI(M) workers are not only launching frequent attacks on RSP supporters at Basanti and Canning areas in South 24 Parganas and some places in Hooghly, but have also forced many RSP candidates to withdraw their nomination papers at gunpoint.

The Public Works Development minister has gone to the extent of urging his party workers to 'physically resist the CPI (M)'s terror tactic in the manner resorted to by the people of Nandigram.” Goswami considers the Marxists the main rival in the RSP's strongholds. “This is an open secret. We have to protect our support bases if our party has to enjoy respect in the Left Front,” he observed.

A similar anti-CPI (M) tirade could be discerned from the contention of state Forward Bloc secretary Ashok Ghosh who admitted on Wednesday having fielded dummy candidates against CPI (M) nominees in many areas following breakdown of talks on seat adjustments. He pointed out that Forward Bloc candidates have been forced to withdraw their nomination papers at Goghat in Hooghly district in the wake of open threats from the district CPI(M) leadership. “This shameful even is the first of its kind in the three decades of Left Front rule in Bengal,” he alleged.

The state CPI (M) is quite aware of the serious political ramifications of lack of unity among the Left Front partners. Talking about the rising political tension in rural areas in the absence of left unity, housing minister Gautam Deb told a public rally at Jamalpur in Burdwan district on Wednesday that his party was somewhat uncertain about the outcome of panchayat elections this time. According to a modest estimate, the three Left Front partners have fielded candidates against one another in over five thousand seats.

The Centre, in the meanwhile, has decided to keep a close watch on the law and order situation in rural Bengal in the wake of inter-party clashes and growing political tension. Nandigram, in particular, has been engaging the Centre's attention after Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi expressed concern over the recent violent incidents at a public rally in Malda. Bengal governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi has also submitted a detailed report on the prevailing situation in the state to union home minister Shivraj Patil.

Opposition parties like Trinamul Congress, Congress and the BJP have already submitted memorandums to the governor, complaining about the 'CPI(M)'s terror and high-handedness' and seeking his intervention to ensure a free and fair panchayat election. The state administration has decided to deploy homeguards to maintain peace and order during the election. But the opposition parties rightly feel that the election will be reduced to a farce in the absence of armed policemen and central forces at the polling booths.

Pakistanis mourn Nirmala Deshpande's death

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:55:00 -0400

Islamabad, May 3 (IANS) Pakistanis have mourned the death of peace activist and Gandhian Nirmala Deshpande for her contribution to the peace process between Pakistan and India.

Deshpande had travelled many times to Pakistan, always promoting the Gandhian ideal of peaceful co-existence. She was known as 'Didi' among her large number of fans here, particularly from the civil society.

Pakistan sent a delegation led by Information Minister Sherry Rehman to attend her last rites in New Delhi Friday and to convey condolences from the government and the people of Pakistan. Deshpande was widely respected in Pakistan.

"We have lost a real sister, (who) was beacon (of light) in the present world," Farzana Sheikh, a rights and peace activist, told IANS. She said that Deshpande would be remembered for years to come for her effort to promote peace between the two countries.

"President Pervez Musharraf called her secretary to condole the death," said an official. He said that she had spoken to the president last month over the death sentence awarded to Indian prisoner Sarabjit Singh.

"Deshpande campaigned tirelessly for peace between Pakistan and India. Her unflinching optimism, even at the worst of times, offered hope and a sense of direction on many occasions," The News said in its editorial Saturday.

The paper said that it was this spirit which played a key role in establishing the vibrant peace movement that today exists on both sides of the border.

"Nirmala Didi departed at a time when there is still a great deal to be done in terms of building ties between Pakistan and India," said the paper.

In his condolence message to the family of the deceased, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani praised her noble role for the peace movement for over 25 years.

"She was recognised and respected for her contribution to the cause of peace in the region and her services would long be remembered by the peace loving people on both sides of the border," said Mazhar Arif, another peace activist in Pakistan.

Deshpande organised the Indo-Pakistan amity meet in 1996 that was attended by academics, artists, social activists and journalists from both countries. She led the Indian delegation to Karachi in 1997 for a similar meet.

In 1999, she again led the Indian delegation to the Pakistan Peace Conference, organised by the Pakistan Peace Coalition.

In March 2000, she led a women's Bus of Peace from Delhi to Lahore, comprising women from different walks of life. The same year, as founder chairperson of Women's Initiative for Peace in South Asia, she hosted two Buses of Peace from Pakistan to Delhi.

She also helped retired services officers to form the Indo-Pak Soldiers' Initiative for Peace in India and its counterpart in Pakistan. She led a delegation of the India chapter of this organisation to Pakistan in 2001.

"Such persons never die and her lifelong noble struggle for love, affection and peace among various cultures, faiths and especially across the border, would always remind the generations to talk about these accomplishments," said J. Salik, a former parliamentarian.

Left Front manipulated EVMs to win Tripura polls: Congress

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:42:00 -0400

Agartala, May 3 (IANS) The opposition Congress party in Tripura has accused the Left Front of winning the February assembly elections in the state by manipulating the electronic voting machines (EVMs).

"Due to the manipulated EVMs, the result of the election was not the true reflection of the peoples' mandate," Samir Ranjan Burman, president of the Tripura Pradesh Congress, said Friday.

"The state's chief electoral officer, G.S.G. Ayyangar, was the chief architect of the manipulation and the Election Commission failed to ensure a free and fair election," Burman told journalists.

The Congress has demanded an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Burman hinted that the party may file a petition in the Supreme Court.

"Soon after the polls, the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president had constituted a three-member technical committee to check whether the EVMs could be manipulated and confirmed that these electronic machines could be manipulated," Congress legislator Sudip Roy Barman said.

Reacting to the Congress allegations, CPI-M spokesman Gautam Das said: "The Congress failed to win seats in the polls even after taking help from outlawed militants and giving money to the voters. Now they are lying."

Said Ayyangar: "In elections the Election Commission had made special arrangements in the modified version of the EVMs to record every event and action to prevent intimidation and other malpractices. These records will remain for the next five years."

Morcha protesters caught in mob furyin Siliguri

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:35:00 -0400

Siliguri wore a tense look for most part of Friday following a mob violence and rampage by supporters of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. Around 10 people were injured in separate incidents of violence after Gorkha Janmukti Morcha supporters raised anti-CPM slogans, sparking violence in different parts of the town. The marauders alleged they were provoked into violence after they were attacked and assaulted by some CPI (M) men.

Near Hospital More, a crowd, which included some CPM supporters, beat up four Morcha members, two of them women. Policemen, who came to the rescue, shepherded them to a public toilet and later whisked them away. Three women were beaten up near the PWD bungalow.

A Morcha supporter was dragged to the ground and punched near the booking office of the Northeast Frontier Railway. Back at Hospital More, another man was beaten up, 10 minutes after the incident of the first assault. A couple were rescued by the police near Venus More and kept inside the traffic signal kiosk but only after they had been slapped around. They were later taken away in a police jeep.

The administration has denied incidents of assault. “No complaint has been lodged,” said Paritosh Roy, the additional district magistrate of Siliguri. Trouble had erupted around 11.30 in the morning. More than 60 Morcha supporters tried to enter the Siliguri Court campus for the indefinite hunger strike in front of the subdivisional office while shouting “CPM murdabad” and “Asok Bhattacharya murdabad”. Bhattacharya is the CPM MLA from Siliguri and the Bengal minister of hills affairs.

Although the court campus was cordoned off, the slogans acted as the trigger. A crowd of about 1,000 people came down onto the streets. Traffic was diverted from Airview More to Sevoke Road through Church Road, as the crowd swelled. Some youths tried to set fire to a motorcycle on Hill cart Road, but were stopped by others.

The tension eased after the police started marching the 2km stretch from the court campus to Airview More.

Nearly 120 Morcha supporters were arrested from the court campus today. Yesterday the number was 274. The party is spearheading the movement for Gorkhaland in the hills.

The Morcha choice of Darjeeling More as venue for its hunger strike tomorrow has been shot down by the administration. “We will go ahead with the programme,” said Roshan Giri, the Morcha general secretary. He said the Morcha would lodge complaint against two CPM leaders, Mukul Sengupta and Shankar Ghosh, for spearheading assaults on its supporters.

In Darjeeling, Morcha president Bimal Gurung appealed to he people to show restraint.

CPM keeps Darjeeling issue on back burner for time being

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:34:00 -0400

The West Bengal CPM’s growing anxiety over the ongoing agitation in Darjeeling by the newly formed Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) was reflected in the party’s state secretariat meeting on Friday. For the moment, the CPM leadership has decided to address it after the May panchayat elections.

The GJM, a breakaway faction of Subhas Ghising’s Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), has launched renewed agitation in the three hill sub-divisions of Kalimpong, Kurseong and Darjeeling demanding separate statehood for the Gorkhas. For the past few weeks, GJM activists were not allowing any state organisations in the hills to function.

The CPM’s worry over the GJM agitation has deepened after the Gorkhas attempted to make inroads in the planes of Siliguri sub-division by holding rallies and running campaigns in favour of their demand for separate statehood.

Siliguri is basically a CPM stronghold with Ashok Bhattacharjee, state urban development minister, representing the assembly constituency. But over the past few weeks, the GJM activists have tried to hold rallies in Siliguri town.

In the first week of April, they had organised a rally near ‘Darjeeling More’ and forced the police to resort to lathicharge the activists. The CPM-led Left Front government was forced to set up a judicial commission to probe the incident of lathicharge on the GJM activists.

Veteran Marxist and CPM leader Jyoti Basu also warned after the meeting that the “situation in the Darjeeling hills isn’t good and that tourists should refrain from going there for the time being.” Mr Basu also added that West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was closely tracking developments in Darjeeling.

Mr Basu also said many people had died in the Hills when the GNLF had organised continuous agitation during his tenure as the chief minister. It is also learnt that the CPM state leadership as well as the state administration has taken strong exception to the GJM’s plans to gherao the state administrative buildings at Writers’ Buildings on May 9.

Jyoti Basu says situation in Darjeeling grim; advises against visiting

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:33:00 -0400

The situation in the Darjeeling Hills of West Bengal is grim in view of the ongoing agitation there by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), veteran Marxist leader Jyoti Basu said in Kolkata on Friday.

The agitation that the GJM leadership was now trying to bring to the foothills in Siliguri had made it “impossible for tourists to visit the region,” he said on emerging from a meeting of the State Secretariat of the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

The Darjeeling Hills is a popular tourist destination, particularly during summer. The GJM leadership is demanding Gorkhaland, comprising the hills and certain areas contiguous to it.

“How will those wanting to visit Darjeeling go there?” Mr. Basu said. The manner in which the movement for statehood was being carried out was reminiscent of “earlier times when nearly 100 people died [in the 1986-88 Gorkhaland movement] though that is not the case now.”

“They [the GJM] have called for a hunger strike and there are reports that they are changing the number plates of cars,” Mr. Basu said. The Chief Minister was looking into the developments in Darjeeling.

The GJM leadership, which has called for boycott of payment of electricity and telephone bills as part of its agitation, recently announced that the letters “WB [West Bengal]” on number plates of vehicles will be replaced from July 7 with “GL [Gorkhaland].”

Earlier this week, Urban Development Minister Ashok Bhattacharya, who is from the district, advised tourists planning to go to the Darjeeling Hills to consider other destinations as a visit to the region now could “be risky” in the view of the GJM’s agitation.

North Korea prepared to blow up nuclear reactor: report

Sat, 03 May 2008 04:25:00 -0400

Washington, May 3 (DPA) North Korea is prepared to blow up the cooling tower of its nuclear reactor in Yongbyon within a day after the US removes the country from its list of state sponsors of terrorism, the Washington Post reported.

The story Friday citing diplomatic sources in Washington said the assurance was made by North Korea officials during recent talks and confirmed an earlier informal pledge by North Korea to destroy the tower as part of the disablement of Yongbyon.

The US has said it will remove North Korea from the terrorism list and ease sanctions in return for receiving a full documentation of its nuclear activity from North Korea.

North Korea has missed the December deadline set for it to provide the documentation of its production records at the Yongbyon facility and other nuclear activity. Of particular concern is North Korea's plutonium production which can produce weapons-grade material.

The December deadline was set after the breakthrough February 2007 agreement with North Korea to dismantle its programme. The deal followed years of efforts by the international community - represented by China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the US - to get North Korea to dismantle its nuclear programme.

Last week, the US government revealed evidence it claimed showed that North Korea assisted Syria in the construction of the nuclear reactor destroyed by the Israeli military in September 2007.

The revelation appeared aimed at putting more pressure on North Korea to come forth with the information. US President George W. Bush said earlier this week that he disclosed the details of the Syria-North Korea cooperation to send a clear "message" to North Korea and Iran that they cannot hide their nuclear activity.

Funny Vinay Pathak and company are at it again!

Sat, 03 May 2008 03:54:00 -0400

Mumbai, May 3 (IANS) Known for his brand of intelligent comedy, actor-producer Vinay Pathak is set to churn out another laughathon, "Dasvidaniya", with his regular gang - Ranbir Shorey and Rajat Kapoor.

Vinay told IANS that the film written by Arshah Sayed would reveal the funnier side of everyday existence.

"It is about an ordinary man called Amar Kaul, who has high objectives in life. But as he cannot put the objectives in proper perspective, like most of us in real life, he falters at every step.

"The movie would take the audience on a roller-coaster comic ride with Amar," he said.

One More Thought Entertainment, promoted by former aviation entrepreneur Parvez Damania and producer Azam Khan, is producing the film in association with Lemontea Productions floated by Vinay and Shashant Shah, who will direct it.

Besides Vinay, Rajat and Ranbir, the comedy will star Neha Dhupia, Saurabh Shukla, Gaurav Gera, Suchitra Pillai, Sarita Joshi and Suresh Menon.

Vinay and Ranbir have regularly been seen in movies and TV shows together and the two along with Rajat starred in the caustic but funny "Bheja Fry".

Immediately after announcing "Dasvidaniya", the unit left for Bangkok for its first shooting schedule.

"We are producing 'Dasvidaniya' in association with Lemontea Productions because we have full faith in the brand of intelligent comedy that Vinay is known for," said Khan, the CEO of One More Thought Entertainment.

Damaniya said the movie is a bitter-sweet situational comedy, "brilliantly conceived by Vinay and Shashant".

"The six movies we have launched so far are all content-driven. Our company's objective is to create a basket of assorted genres of movies meant to appeal to diverse sections of society," he revealed.

Nepal PM scrapes through crucial poll

Sat, 03 May 2008 03:46:00 -0400

Kathmandu, May 3 (IANS) Although the octogenarian politician's hope of perpetuating a dynasty was rudely shattered by the defeat of his debutante daughter Sujata and the humbling of his cousin Sushil Koirala, the clan managed to keep a toehold in power politics. Koirala himself made it to the 601-member constituent assembly, thanks to the mixed election system.

Koirala's Nepali Congress (NC) party faced a mortifying rout in the direct fights for 240 seats, winning only 37 seats. However, the proportional representation (PR) system gave it an additional 73 seats.

Although Koirala did not take part in the direct fights and stayed away from active campaigning due to failing health, he was nominated by the party along with 72 others.

On Friday evening, the Election Commission announced the names of the 335 representatives nominated by their parties under the PR system.

The NC list has triggered a severe heartburn among party members, who are holding its top leaders responsible for the defeat.

About 60 percent of the 73 new entrants are from the Koirala camp despite allegations of nepotism and failed leadership against the premier.

The remaining are from the faction loyal to Koirala's former protégé, deposed prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

Koirala and Deuba fell out in 2002 when the latter was expelled from the party by his former mentor. In retaliation, Deuba split the party and formed his Nepali Congress (Democratic) party.

Although the two factions united before the election and became the largest party in parliament, it failed to capitalise on it in the electoral battle.

Although Koirala's men floundered in the April 10 election, Deuba's followers fared better. Deuba won convincingly from both the constituencies he contested from.

The public verdict went against aging leaders and non-performers.

Bowing to that, the other ruling party that flopped, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (UML), quit the government and began to look for a new leader after its chief Madhav Kumar Nepal resigned, owing responsibility for the poll debacle.

The UML, which won only 33 seats in the direct frays, learnt a lesson. While submitting the names of the winners for the 70 seats it acquired under the PR system, it axed its top leaders.

The acting chief of the party, Amrit Kumar Bohra, and foreign affairs minister Sahana Pradhan were dropped, the focus shifting to younger leaders.

Non-political and unusual players made it to the assembly, for the first time in Nepal's history.

Deuba's wife, social activist Arjoo Deuba, was nominated by the NC while the UML chose legal activist Sapana Malla Pradhan, known for her campaign against laws discriminating against women and children.

The Maoists chose a Buddhist monk, Bhikshu Anand, while the Communist Party of Nepal-United, created ripples by giving Nepal its first gay lawmaker, activist Sunil Babu Pant, and also nominating a person with hearing disability as well as the first woman barber of Nepal.

The PR system also saw the entry of Nepal's business community into politics. At least five captains of the industry made it to the assembly under the aegis of the NC, UML and Terai party Madhesi Janadhikar Forum.

Although the first two phases of elections are over, two more still remain.

With some of the leaders contesting from two places - like Deuba and Maoist chief Prachanda - and winning in both, they have to vacate one constituency where a fresh process would start to choose a new winner.

While the elections were for 575 seats, the parties now have to nominate 26 representatives more.

Initially, it was regarded as the prerogative of the prime minister.

However, with the public mandate going against him, the Maoists are likely to claim a dominant role in the nominations.