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Political Notes |
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Media sting brings out police negligence in Noida murders
Noida Sr. Superintendent of Police R.K.S. Rathore has been removed from the post and shifted to Lucknow and Circle Officer Dinesh Yadav suspended following a sting operation by Tehlka magazine. The sting showed Yadav accepting favours from Moninder Singh Pandher, one of the prime accused in the Nithari killings of children and young women. The sting operation also showed that Dinesh Yadav had spoken to PWD Minister Shiv Pal Singh Yadav on telephone at least three times just a day before a special police team was to visit the scene of the crime where remains of several children were found. The sting operation showed the Circle Officer traveling to Lucknow for a court hearing at Pandher’s expense.
Special Economic Zones : Sonia to take a meeting
The contentious special economic zones issue is expected to be taken up at a meeting to be chaired by Congress president Sonia Gandhi before the start of the Budget session of Parliament. Besides Congress Ministers in the Group of Ministers (GoM) on special economic policy, Pranab Mukherjee and Kamal Nath, three other Congress leaders are expected to attend the meeting. The three - Ashok Gehlot, Digvijay Singh and Veerrappa Moily - have been interacting with the Ministers on SEZs on behalf of the party.
Sources said the meeting will take into account the process by which SEZs have been cleared and assess their impact on farmers and the others displaced.
The participants will also study the draft rehabilitation policy, pending which approvals to SEZs have been put on hold. The emerging view in the Congress is that of the pending SEZs, only the smaller ones should be cleared.
Meanwhile, violence erupted again at Singur in West Bengal on Jan. 28 when police and Trinamul Congress workers fought pitched battles at entry points to the site of Tata Motors plant on farmland acquired by the State government.
Gorakhpur tension continues
In Uttar Pradesh, curfew was relaxed for a few hours each in violence hit Gorakhpur town at the weekend following improvement in the situation. But the town and surrounding areas in eastern UP continue to be tense. Union Minister of State for Home Sri Prakash Jaiswal was not permitted to enter Gorakhpur town on Feb. 1. He had to return from the Air Force base, 15 km. from Gorakhpur. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi had sent him to Gorakhpur to assess the law and order situation.
The Samajwadi Party ruling in Uttar Pradesh condemned Jaiswal’s visit. Agriculture Minister Ashok Vajpayee alleged that the Congress is trying to politicise the Gorakhpur communal violence.
BJP leaders were arrested on their way to the violence hit town on Jan. 31.
BSP chief Mayawati has alleged that the ruling Samajwadi Party and the BJP are behind the communal clashes in Gorakhpur.
In the meantime, the State Government has transferred the Inspector General of Police and some other officials from the town.
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