India News Online » News Analysis » Indian Politics » 

Political Notes

	November 05, 2007

Two panels to be set up on land reforms



Faced with criticism from various quarters including the Left on the agrarian crisis, the Government has decided to set up two committees to look into the problems faced by farmers. One of the committees to be known as the National Land Reforms Coun¬cil will be headed by the Prime Minister and look into land related issues in different states. The other committee headed by Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh will recom¬mend steps to deal with distribution of excess land to the home¬less in rural areas.



The decision was announced at a Janadesh Rally organised by Ekta Parishad, a group consisting of various NGOs in New Delhi. The participants of the rally running into several thousands came from Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh on foot in 27 days. Their march started on Oct. 2, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi.



The decision to set up the two committees was taken at meeting attended by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh.



During his discussions with visiting US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, the Prime Minister referred to India’s position at the WTO on protecting its small farmers and on climate change. He said that India will not allow the interests of small farmers to be adversely affected during the WTO negotiations.





Lalu holds rally in Patna to warn Chief Minister Nitish Kumar



Railways Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav’s Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) organised a chetawani (warning) rally in Patna on Oct. 28 in a move to gather support from different segments of the popu¬lation. Lalu Prasad Yadav utilised the rally to ask Chief Min¬ister Nitish Kumar, heading the JDU-BJP coalition in Bihar to fulfil the promises he had made and utilise the development money that the UPA government at the Centre was pumping into the state. He said the Nitish Kumar Government has failed to come up to the expectations of the people and its own promises.



Questioning Nitish Kumar’s secularism, Lalu Prasad Yadav said the RSS is being allowed to prosper in the state. He said Nitish Kumar is continuing as Chief Minister with the support of the BJP which, he alleged, stood exposed for its hand in the Gujarat riots.



While Lalu Prasad Yadav claimed that the rally was a big success, Nitish Kumar described it as a flop show. The Chief Minister alleged that the government machinery, in this case, the Railways had been misused for the rally.







Eleven convicted in Gujarat riots case



A court in Godhra has convicted 11 people on charges of killing seven Muslims in Eral village of Panchmahals district in the Gujarat riots of 2002. Among the 11 convicted, eight have been awarded life imprisonment and the remaining three sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment.



With this judgement, half-a-dozen verdicts on the post-Gadhra massacre cases have been pronounced. The convictions in the Eral massacre case are considered significant as the prime eyewitness Madina Biwi was under threat and allurement to turn hostile in the case. But unlike Zahira Sheikh in the infamous Best Bakery case, Madina stood her ground for nearly five years despite the threats and temptations.





Babri Panel given another extension



The Centre has given yet another extension to the Liberhan Commission inquiring into the Babri Masjid demolition. This is the 42nd extension given to the commission which has not been able to submit its report so far. A Home Minister statement said the Commission’s term has now been extended by another two months,till Dec. 31.



According to sources, one of the reasons why the report was not submitted was that Justice Liberhan is out of India. The Centre appears reluctant to take up the matter as it has to submit the report in Parliament immediately after its submission.



The Commission, headed by Justice M.S. Liberhan, was consti¬tuted by the then Prime Minister, late P.V. Narasimha Rao within a fortnight of the demolition of the Babri Masjid on Dec. 6, 1992. It was to probe the circumstances leading to the demoli¬tion, establish the sequence of events and pinpoint all those who were responsible.



Once the report is finally submitted, it is likely to create a political turmoil as it will in all probability point at the failure of the BJP government in UP as well as the apathetic attitude of the Congress government at the Centre.





Congress retains Mormugao Lok Sabha seat



In Goa, the ruling Congress has retained the Mormugao Lok Sabha seat, winning with a margin of about 40,000 votes. Congress candidate Francisco Sardinha, who is also Pradesh Congress Com¬mittee president, defeated Wilfred Mesquita of the Bharatiya Janata Party.



The byelection result was declared at Margao in south Goa on Saturday, Nov. 3. The poor voter turnout of (around 36 per cent) had generated considerable interest about the result.



“The result has proved that the people have confidence in the Congress-led Government,” said Chief Minister Digambar Kamat.