SC Stays Gauhati HC Order on Mizoram PMGSY 'Scam'

New Delhi, Mar 22 : The Supreme Court has stayed Gauhati High Court order directing a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities committed in the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) road projects in Mizoram.

A Supreme Court bench of justices - D K Jain and H L Dattu - on January 24 stayed the HC order dated July 20, 2010, after the Mizoram government filed an appeal, official sources said today.

The high court issued the order, acting on a PIL submitted by Mizoram-based civic organisation SOSA (Society for Social Action) in 2007.

SOSA president and retired IAS officer S L Sailova today said his organisation was not aware of the appeal filed by the Mizoram government until he received the Supreme Court's stay order a few days back.

Senior advocate K K Venugopal and five advocates, Rupesh Gupta, Siddharta Lodha, Ankur Talwar, P V Yogeswaran and Pragyan Pradip Sharma represented in the apex court.

Sailo said the organisation filed the PIL in 2007 demanding a probe into the PMGSY projects from 2001 to 2005 as there appeared a 'mismanagement' of funds during this period.

The High Court had instructed that an interim report be submitted to the state chief secretary who will further take necessary actions.

The SOSA had stated in the PIL that 'works under the PMGSY in Mizoram were sub-standard and did not meet the norms.' In some cases, old roads were reported as newly-constructed under the PMGSY.

Mizoram Sets Up Anti-Human Trafficking Wing

Aizawl, Mar 22 : Mizoram governor Lt Gen (Retd) M M Lakhera today said the Mizoram  government has set up Anti-Human Trafficking Unit under the police department.

In his address in the state legislature on the first day of the budget session, Lakhera said maintaining peace and tranquility and securing the safety of the citizens has always remained a top priority of the government.

"The government has set up the economic offence wing and the anti-human trafficking unit to meet the emerging challenges," he said, adding that the crime and criminal tracking and network system was being undertaken to empower the state police with information technology to detect and fight crimes nationwide on a real time basis.

He expressed confidence that under peaceful atmosphere, New Land Use Policy (NLUP), officially launched on January 14 would bring about revolutionary changes towards economic self-sufficiency and poverty alleviation.

Outlining the developmental projects taken up by the government during the current fiscal, the governor said construction of 100 km of double-lane highway between south Mizoram's Lawngtlai town and Myanmar border under Kaladan Multi-modal Transit Transport Project has begun.

"The recently installed Instrumental Landing System Cat-I at the lone Lengpui Airport is expected to be commissioned shortly," governor said.

Under MGNREGS, 116.45 lakh man days have been generated he said, adding that 1,448 rural households living below poverty line have been provided assistance under Indira Awaas Yojana for construction and upgradation of houses.

The Indian Army Must Speak!

By R S N Singh

The Indian Army is a cohesive, secular and dedicated organization. In fact, it is dedicated to the fault. Most army personnel are innocent and sensitive. It is these personnel who were in the forefront in Kargil, and it is these personnel who have saved Kashmir and the northeast for India. It is these personnel that the nation relies on for any eventuality or mess created by other organizations.

More than managers, the officers who lead these men are leaders. They are effective because they lead by example. For the men they command, they are like Gods.

A great nation must have a great army not only in terms of fighting prowess but for its institutional credibility and aggregate character. The character of any army is the aggregate character of its personnel who constitute it. On this score, the Indian Army is at the highest end of the scale. It is for this reason that the Indian Army is still revered and loved institution.
No army can function without the love of its people.

The same very respect and love of Indians for the Indian Army is now being, advertently and inadvertently, subverted by the media. It is not difficult to distinguish between the advertent and inadvertent reporting in this regard.

Does praising a chief minister at a military function for certain qualities constitute a blasphemy?

Is not the chief minister of a state a constitutional authority? Are Army Officers expected to weigh or limit their apolitical comments based on the preferences of a particular political segment or a section of the media?

The media by questioning the comments of the General has made an entirely innocuous and courteous gesture a political controversy. It is no coincidence that most of the English newspapers in the country have carried this insignificant piece of news in almost similar tenor.

On another occasion, a television journalist while interviewing the Army Chief, mischievously and completely out of context, dropped the name of Lt Col Purohit and his culpability in the Samjhauta blasts. The Army Chief in his innocence and on the spur of the moment said that Purohit was an 'aberration'. The sense of triumph on the interviewer could then be easily discerned. Probably, the agenda of the journalist was to establish the imaginary inroads that the phenomenon of so-called 'Hindu Terror' had made into the Army.

The fact of the matter is that Lt Col Purohit's involvement in any terror activity is far from proved and the matter is still subjudice. Intriguingly, there are three sets of confessional statements with regard to Samjhauta blasts and the name of Lt Col Purohit figures in only one. The journalist also knows very well that if Purohit is found guilty on any account, the Army and its legal system will come down heavily, much more heavily than any Civil Court in the country.

The journalist, thus, in keeping with the agenda of vested interests cleverly sought to question the very secular credentials of the Indian Army. It is the same vested interests who are publishing leaks of investigations including those from the Military Intelligence on a daily basis and that too on their front pages.

It is a well-known fact that the legal procedures and provisions in the army are such that the rank and the standing of the officer is hardly any insulation. It was evident in the first major sting operation in this country. Allegedly, the sting operation was done at the behest of vested players to bring down the then government. The Army Officers became a tool in that process. It was an abominable to see the lecherous way in which the journalists tried to lure the officers. The government stayed. It was only the Army Officers who were punished. All the other culprits prospered and some of them continue to do so. The journalists too have prospered. One Army Officer in the finest tradition of the armed forces owned up his guilt, though the degree was ridiculous by today's standards prevailing in the country. The media did not have the character to appreciate this act.

The Sukhna scam to begin with was projected as 'unauthorized sale of defence land' for ulterior motives. It took some days for the media to understand the case and later halfhearted clarifications were made that the issue under question was granting of NOC for a project involving a civil piece of land. There was no trail or proof or even direct allegation of exchange of money. The damage by then had been done.

The media did not find it suitable to compliment the Army about being intolerant and sensitive about the act of impropriety. The whole case was drummed for at least for two weeks. The guilty have been punished after most swift dispensation of justice.

Compare the media enthusiasm about the crores of Rupees appropriated by the IAS couple. Has the media accepted the growing level of corruption in the bureaucracy and politics, as fate accompli? Do they feel that unless there is a scam of the magnitude of 2G Spectrum, there is no news value? Do they fear of legal and financial reprisal in exposing corrupt deeds of some very powerful people? Do they therefore find the Army as the most convenient prey?

This constant badgering of the Army by the media has begun to take its toll. Seeds of suspicion have been sowed in the public mind about corruption being growing phenomenon in the Army. Most of them is through exaggerated stories. Some are fabricated at the behest of inimical and anti-national elements thriving in India.

The only way the army can tackle them is by being transparent, bold and more interactive with the media. The senior army officers must defend the honour and reputation of their subordinates in prompt and cogent manner, if they are being unfairly tarnished. Leaders in the army cannot and should not continue with an image that has been sullied.

In an organization of the size of Indian Army, there will be shortcomings and unsavory incidents. The Indian Army therefore must continue to be introspective, but as an institution, it has nothing to be apologetic about.

RSN Singh is a former military intelligence officer who later served in the Research and Analysis Wing, or R&AW. The author of two books: Asian Strategic and Military Perspective and Military Factor in Pakistan, he is also Associate Editor, Indian Defence Review.

Manipur CM is Corrupt: WikiLeaks

By Sanjib Kr Baruah

New Delhi, Mar 22 : In a September 2006 confidential cable released by WikiLeaks, Henry Jardine, principal officer, US consulate general in Kolkata, underscored the corrupt state of affairs in Manipur. The US official, reporting that rampant corruption was complicating the effort to control rising violence in the state, also mentioned that chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh was known as “Mr. Ten Percent”, for the amount of money that he takes from contracts and government projects.

The report said that officials and private individuals agreed that many key government officers and politicians receive kick-backs and skim-off money from government funds. Even the protocol officer facilitating Jardine's trip had said that the government was incapable of handling the situation as all the officials were more interested in their own enrichment.

He said that just getting a government job required payments equivalent to several thousand dollars. On being asked by the US official as to who received the payments, the protocol officer said it was the state government ministers.

The US confidential cable said that in December 2005, chief of Army Staff J.J. Singh reportedly told the media that chief minister Singh had contributed Rs 15 million to insurgent groups in the state.

Manipur State Youth Congress leader L. Tilottama was also quoted speaking in “hypothetical” terms about politicians’ motivations to protect insurgents, “If I take Rs 1 crore from a businessman building a flyover, and the insurgents get a share, I want to keep quiet about it.”

Jardine was in Manipur to probe a grenade attack on an ISKCON temple, where two American citizens were injured. He traveled in a convoy with about 20 paramilitary soldiers and a dedicated ambulance with full medical staff.

In addition, at sites visited by him, upto 100 soldiers were deployed around the area and along the access roads. At an event with an NGO to promote baseball in Manipur, soldiers used landmine detectors to sweep the grass around the baseball field.

In the US officials' many interactions, even with some government officials, a reoccurring comment was that Manipur was less a state and more a colony of India.

The general use of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) meant that Manipuris did not have the same rights compared to other Indian citizens and restrictions on travel to the state added to the sense of isolation and separation from the rest of India.

The overwhelming presence of military, paramilitary and police officers contributed to the impression that Imphal was under military occupation.

Jardine also reported that the Indian civil servants were also clearly frustrated with their inability to stem the growing violence and anarchy in the state, feeling their efforts to effectively control the insurgencies was hamstrung by local politicians either in league with or at least through corruption, helping to finance the insurgents.

Tarun Gogoi The Politician Hurts Gogoi, The Actor

Election Commission stops premiere of Assam Chief Minister’s movie before assembly election

By Ratnadip Choudhury

Guwahati, Mar 22 : Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, known for his straight talk, might have been pinning his hopes on his silver screen debut but he now has to wait till the assembly election in Assam gets over.

Gogoi is ending a second term as chief minister and the Election Commission thought he might influence voters through his film. Thus, they stopped the premiere of Pole Pole Ure Mon, an Assamese movie saying it violated the model code of conduct.

The Election Commission asked the producer of the film not to release the movie till the election process is over. The Commission's move was triggered by a complaint from the BJP while the film was being premiered at a multiplex here.

But Gogoi is unfazed. “I played a minor role of a Chief Minister. I am happy that the movie has been stopped. This shows how scared the BJP is. I am not even playing the hero's role. The BJP is just scared that I will influence the people," Gogoi laughed while speaking to Tehelka.

Star Campaigners Lined Up For Assam Assembly Poll

Made in India EVMs in demand abroad

Guwahati, Mar 22 : The campaigning for the two-phase Assam Assembly election, set for April 4 and April 11, is yet to pick up momentum, though most major parties have lined up a long list of star campaigners to woo the voters.

The ruling Congress, bidding for return to power for the third consecutive term, has a long list of prominent persons, including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, to campaign for the party.

There are others like Youth Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Union ministers Pranab Mukherjee, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Ambika Soni, Sachin Pilot and Subodh Kant Sahai, party spokesman Bichitra Choduhury said.

The party has also lined up several leaders from the Northeast including Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Dorjee Khandu, Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalthanhawla, former chief ministers Mukut Mithi of Arunachal Pradesh and S C Jamir of Nagaland.

Assam's Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi went on record recently saying the party would not bring any Bollywood star to campaign for his party, but will solely depend upon its leaders and grassroot workers.

The BJP, not to be left behind, has already launched an aggressive campaign in the state though its national leaders are yet to make their presence felt.

The party has also lined big leaders like former deputy prime minister L K Advani, party president Nitin Gadkari, former presidents Rajnath Singh and M Venkaiah Naidu, Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Varun Gandhi, Ravi Shankar Prasad, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Vasundhara Raje Scindia and Ananth Kumar. 

Snubbed Assam Leaders Rush To Mamata, Badruddin Folds

Guwahati, Mar 22 : With parties in Assam having announced their candidates, a number of rejected aspirants have switched allegiance.

Some prominent leaders of the Congress and the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) have gone to Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress or the Assam United Democratic Front (AUDF) led by Mumbai-based international perfume merchant Badruddin Ajmal. Some others have kept their doors open and are fighting as Independents.

Congress leader and former Industry Minister Bizit Saikia has filed his nomination for Tezpur on a Trinamool Congress ticket.

Syeda Anowara Taimur, former Assam Chief Minister and an ex-MP in the Rajya Sabha, has quit the Congress and joined the AUDF.

So has another veteran Congress leader, former minister Abdul Muktadir Choudhury, who has filed his papers for Hailakandi (North) as an AUDF candidate. Both Saikia and Choudhury were ministers in the Congress government headed by Hiteswar Saikia during 1991-96.

Taimur, who had headed a Congress government from December 1980 to June 1981, had sought a Congress nomination from Dalgaon LAC in Darrang district, which she had represented several times in the 1970s and 1980s. Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said her resignation would not affect the Congress’s prospects.

The AUDF has not fielded Taimur as a candidate. Instead, she will campaign for the party “to focus on the corruption and misrule” of the Congress government headed by Gogoi, an AUDF spokesman said.

Not everybody in the AUDF is happy, though. Hafiz Rashid Ahmed Choudhury, working president, has quit the party’s selection panel after complaining of the “undemocratic” behaviour of Ajmal in selection of candidates. The list finalised by the selection committee was changed by Ajmal in an “undemocratic” manner, Choudhury complained.

From the AGP, senior leader Israel Nanda has joined Mamata’s party after the AGP denied him a ticket for Tinsukia. Like Taimur, Nanda, who had headed the AGP’s labour wing Shram Parishad, is not contesting. “I will be primarily campaigning for the party which is arranging two helicopters for the Assam elections,” Nanda said.

“A number of senior Congress leaders are making a beeline to our party and we have accommodated at least 20 of them so far. The most important among them obviously is Bizit Saikia in Tezpur,” said Debeswar Bora, state unit president of Trinamool Congress. Bora, who had first won as an AGP candidate in 1985, was with the Congress for nearly 15 years before switching over to Trinamool.

At least two senior AGP leaders who failed to make it to the party list are fighting as Independents. They include two-time minister Zoiinath Sharma and former education minister Jatin Mali. While Sharma, elected thrice from Sipajhar since 1985 but who had lost in 2006 is fighting as independent, Mali is trying to float a new party to contest from Palashbari constituency.

“We considered two basic points, winnability and young blood. And it is not necessary that the same person will have to be given a ticket every five years,” said AGP president Chandra Mohan Patowari.

At least one senior BJP functionary has quit the party to contest as an Independent. Ashokananda Singhal, who was an aspirant for a party ticket in the 2004 and 2009 Lok Sabha elections too, resigned after he was denied a ticket for Guwahati (West).

Muivah Hopes For Solution Soon

Thuingaleng Muivah

Kohima, Mar 22 : The National Socialist Council of Nagalim (I-M) today said solution to the decades-old Naga political problem was not far away, as the Centre had recognised the uniqueness of the Naga people’s history.

Addressing a mammoth gathering at the council’s headquarters — Camp Hebron — some 30km from Dimapur on the occasion of republic day of the Government of the People’s Republic of Nagalim today, general secretary and chief negotiator of the NSCN (I-M), Thuingaleng Muivah, said New Delhi has already recognised the uniqueness of the Naga people’s history and therefore, solution to the over 60-year-old Naga problem was not far.

“The NSCN respects India and, therefore, the government of India should also respect Naga people,” Muivah said. He urged the people not to always think against the government of India but sometimes even appreciate them.

Muivah slammed the Khaplang group for backtracking from the agreement (Covenant of Reconciliation) signed in 2009. He accused the group of misleading the people even after NSCN (I-M) chairman Isak Chishi Swu and he had come to Nagaland to attend the high-level meeting initiated by the Forum for Naga Reconciliation and supported by dozens of Naga and foreign organisations.

Accusing the rival group of being a stumbling block in the reconciliation process, Swu said the Naga nation could not be destroyed by anyone and asserted that the NSCN (I-M) would never betray the people and would continue to uphold their rights and aspirations.

Without pointing fingers at anyone, Swu said the Naga nation could not be divided to please the enemies of Naga solidarity.

Both the NSCN (I-M) leaders have been accusing rival groups of working against the wishes of the Naga people.

He said the reconciliation process could not disintegrate Nagalim (Nagaland) further. “We should never forget that Nagalim was artificially divided and sub-divided into smaller pieces by our adversaries,” he said.

He also called for preservation of Naga culture and traditions, which have kept Nagas together for ages. He also called upon the people to look forward to a new Nagalim with one mind and one voice.

Several Naga leaders from different organisations, tribal hohos and churches, attended the programme.

Various Naga tribes and organisations presented a cultural show on the occasion, which also included a drill by the “Naga army”.