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Political Notes

	October 24, 2005

Mau violence : Curfew continues



In Uttar Pradesh, curfew in Mau town continues even though there has been no fresh resurgence of communal violence there. The police have arrested about 125 people for inciting violence and indulging in arson. The trouble started when a Dussehra function was postponed ten days back after tension between the two communities. In the subsequent violence, several people were killed and over a score injured.



State Governor T.V. Rajeswar visited Mau on Saturday, Oct. 22, to take stock of the situation. Talking to mediapersons, the Governor said his efforts were aimed at establishing communal harmony.



Earlier last week, the police lodged FIRs against controversial Independent MLA Mukhtar Ansari and BJP member of legislative council, Ramji Singh, for inciting communal riots in the town. Director General of Police Yashpal Singh said raids are going on to arrest Ansari. The state Government has also ordered a probe into the circumstances that led to the riots. A three-member committee asked to hold the probe is headed by Neera Yadav, Chairperson of the State Revenue Board.





Andhra Pradesh : TRS splits



The crisis in the Telangana Rashtriya Samithi (TRS) deepened with its president and Union Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao and rebel MLA S. Santosh Reddy expelling each other. Santosh Reddy said he represents what he called the real TRS. Observers say that this marks virtual split of the party.



At a meeting convened to discus the suspension slapped on him by the party, Reddy displayed the support of several pro-Telangana activists who had been expelled from the party earlier or deserted it. They adopted a resolution demanding that the Government hand over possession of the land allotted to the TRS in Banjara Hills to a trust championing the cause of Telangana.



As soon as the meeting began, Reddy received news that he was expelled from TRS. His followers responded by adopting a resolution expelling Chandrasekhar Rao from the party.





Y.K. Sabharwal to be next Chief Justice of India



The Centre has announced that Justice Y.K. Sabharwal will take over as the Chief Justice of India when the present incumbent, Justice R.C. Lahoti, retires on October 31.



Justice Sabharwal is well-known for several important judgments on public interest matters such as cancellation of patrol pump licenses granted under the discretionary quota of Ministers and the JMM case. He headed the Constitution Bench which earlier this month struck down the Presidential proclamation dissolving the Bihar Assembly.



Hours after the announcement on October 18 that he is to take over as the next Chief Justice, Justice Sabharwal indicated that he would not tolerate interference with the Judiciary. He said the apex court’s in-house mechanism which handles all complaints and allegations against judges was doing fine. It comprises the five senior most judges of the court. Justice Sabharwal indicated that he would oppose another mechanism proposed by the government to deal with such cases.



The Manmohan Singh Government has been pushing for a Lok Pal bill covering the superior judiciary.



In a newspaper interview, Justice Sabharwal said that as long as the provision of death penalty exists in the laws, it will have to be honoured. But he said that in his personal opinion, the death penalty should be abolished.







President’s view on Death Penalty



In a related development, President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam is reported to have advised the government to consider a pardon for a majority of an estimated 50 individuals facing death sentences whose mercy petitions are pending before him. The President’s recommendation came after the Ministry of Home Affairs expressed the view that about 20 of the cases were not fit for Presidential pardon. The cases involved convicted conspirators in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case and members of the infamous sandalwood smuggler Veerappan’s gang.





Bofors case : Appeal against High Court verdict admitted



The Supreme Court has admitted a special leave petition challenging a Delhi High Court order quashing charges against the three Hinduja Brothers in the Rs. 64 crore Bofors pay off case. When the Central Bureau of Investigation did not file an appeal within the stipulated 90 days of the High Court verdict, an advocate Ajay K. Aggarwal preferred the appeal in the apex court in public interest. A Bench headed by Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti, admitting the appeal on Tuesday, Oct. 18, ordered issue of notices to the Hinduja Brothers and the Bofors company.





Bollywood actor Govinda linked to Dawood Ibrahim gang



The airing of clips of Bollywood actor and Congress MP Govinda, and mafia don Dawood Ibrahim together at the inauguration of a store in Dubai in 1991 has resulted in demands for the actor’s resignation from Parliament. Govinda, however, claimed that he is the victim of a political conspiracy. He said there were at least six other actors who were at the inauguration, but only his clips were shown.



The BJP has demanded Govinda’s resignation for his alleged links with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim. The Congress said the footage related to 1991 when the film actor was neither in the party nor in politics.