PM credits Sardar Patel with India’s unity post partition; saving J&K from aggressors

By

-

October 28, 2018

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday credited Sardar Valabhbhai Patel with uniting India after partition and said it was his timely intervention which helped save Jammu and Kashmir from “aggression”.

In his monthly ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio address, he also urged the youth to participate in large numbers in the ‘run for unity’ being organised on October 31 to mark the birth anniversary of Patel.

Modi said, “If we are able to see a united India now, it was entirely on account of the sagacity and strategic wisdom of Sardar Patel.”

He said this year, October 31 will be special as the statue of unity will be dedicated to the nation as a “true tribute” to Sardar Patel.

Erected on the banks of the River Narmada in Gujarat, the structure is twice the height of the Statue of Liberty in the US.

“This is the world’s tallest statue. Every Indian will now be proud to see the world’s tallest statue here on Indian soil. Sardar Patel, a true son of the soil will adorn our skies too,” he said.

Modi will be dedicating the statue on coming Wednesday.

He hoped that the statue will become a new tourist destination.

In his address, the Prime Minister also paid tributes to late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi on her death anniversary, which is also on October 31.

“October 31 also is the death anniversary of our former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Our respectful tributes to Indira ji too,” he said.

The Prime Minister pointed out that Infantry Day is observed every year on October 27 as the first Indian soldiers had set their foot in Jammu and Kashmir to take on intruders from Pakistan.

Quoting late Field Marshal S H F J Manekshaw, he said Patel was “irked” at the delay in initiating military action to evict the aggressors.

He said, in an interview Manekshaw had recalled that as a colonel then he was part of a meeting where Patel was irked on the delay in sending troops to Kashmir.

“During the proceedings, Sardar Patel gave him (Manekshaw) a characteristic glance and reiterated that there should be no delay in our Army operation and that a solution should be sought swiftly. And immediately after that, our troops flew to Kashmir.we’ve seen how our Army was successful,” Modi said.

He recalled that in January, 1947 the Time magazine had profiled Patel and described him as a person who possessed the capability to unite the country and “heal wounds”.

Mahatma Gandhi, the PM said, considered Patel as the only one capable of finding a lasting solution to the vexed issue of the states and asked him to act.

“Sardar Patel formulated solutions one by one, weaving the warp and weft of unity on the axis of a single thread. He ensured the merger of all princely states with the Dominion of India. Whether Junagadh, Hyderabad, Travancore, or for that matter the princely states of Rajasthan, if we are able to see a united India now, it was entirely on account of the sagacity and strategic wisdom of Sardar Patel,” Modi said.

You can smell hypocrisy from a mile away in industry today: Sanjay Khan

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 28, 2018

Veteran actor Sanjay Khan says he has enjoyed several long-lasting friendships in Bollywood but believes the equation among the current crop of actors is so superficial that they are ready to “backbite” anytime.

Khan says these things existed in the industry in his heyday but there was elegance and class.

“The value of friendships among the current reigning lot pains me. It is superficial. It’s just to show courtesy. The extra hugs and the taps on the back, you can smell hypocrisy from one mile away, that they don’t have anything in common,” Khan told agencies in an interview.

“The moment they turn around, they backbite. This is a downside of the film industry. In those days we could say it was like this too but it had elegance, some class, respect. Now there is naked aggression,” he adds.

Khan says the reason for the downfall of quality relationships between people in the industry could be “material gain.”

“In those days, the parity of money was more or less the same. Today with changing times and too much of money and politics in films, (there is a) dog-eat-dog mentality.”

Some of Khan’s closest friendships and other important events of his life find a mention in his autobiography “The Best Mistakes of my Life”, published by Penguin Random House India.

The “Dosti” actor’s life changed after a major fire accident which took place in 1989 on the sets of his TV show “The Sword of Tipu Sultan”, in which he played the title role, alongside directing and producing. Fifty two people died in the fire.

Khan, 78, recalls how Dharmendra came to visit him in the hospital and was “crying like a boy.”

“Two months after I came back from coma, I saw a stream of VIPs from Delhi and Dharmendra. Those people were watching me with pathetic looks, I was telling them I’ll meet them soon but they must’ve thought I am a goner and were expressing sympathies with me.

“But Dharmendra was crying like a boy. He kept on saying, ‘My friend, I’m with you.’ That was the friendship I shared with him. I shared an extremely long and close friendship with Raj Kapoor and Sanjeev Kumar among others.”

Khan still remembers the day of the mishap.

“The whole set was consumed by fire. Smoke and flames had engulfed me. I was hit on a head with something like a canon ball, which later I was told was a tin of paint I fell and was taken to hospital.

“I had 65 per cent third degree burns, 52 of my crew lost their lives. I’ve carried this pain for a long time. Only seven months after the accident, I was informed about it.”

The actor says he was told by the doctors that he could never work again but his will kept him going.

“My survival itself was rare – trauma with third degree burns, 73 surgeries, I was called ‘The Miracle Man’. But I knew I must work, otherwise I would die.

BJP Kisan Morcha chief urges PM to make law for Ram temple construction

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 28, 2018

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Kisan Morcha national president Virendra Singh Mast has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to initiate the process of enacting a law that will pave the way for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.

“The BJP is committed towards building the Ram temple. A majority of people in the country want a grand Ram temple to be built in Ayodhya.

“The Modi government should take the initiative for making a law for the construction of the Ram temple. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had also echoed the same sentiments earlier,” he told reporters on Saturday night.

Reacting to Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s attack on the Centre over the Rafale fighter jet deal, Mast called him a “khandani chor” and referred to a number of scams reported during the Congress regimes.

CBI vs CBI: The game of Corruption – Part III

By

Vaidehi Taman

-

October 26, 2018

While the CBI was dragging its feet in investigating this case, VGN filed a petition to quash the FIR in this regard. Surprisingly, the CBI, in its counter to the plea, took a strange stand. “The main allegation was criminal misconduct of the officials of the State Bank of India for its undue waiver of interest to the extent of Rs 53.50 crores in connivance with the other accused M/s Hindustan Teleprinters Limited and M/s VGN Developers (P) Limited when the sale proceeds of the subject land was appropriated towards loan account which caused wrongful loss of Rs 53.50 crores to the State Bank of India. While preparing the FIR, it was inadvertently mentioned that the loss to the Government of India was Rs 115 crores being the difference between the sale price (Rs 272 crores) and guideline value (Rs 387 crores). The loss was to the State Bank of India due to an undue waiver of interest to the extent of Rs 53.50 crores. The investigation is in progress.”

According to highly placed sources in the CBI, Nageshwar Rao was the one who took the decision not to conduct any searches. Enquiries in the CBI and in Odisha revealed that Nageshwar Rao was a highly corrupt officer, who was mired in allegations in his parent cadre Odisha. Without any verification/vetting, Rao was inducted into the CBI with an active recommendation by the former Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu, say sources. Rao, being a native of Warangal, was close with many Telugu speaking officers in TN, and former CS Rama Mohana Rao was a close buddy. It was Nageshwar Rao and Rama Mohana Rao, who decided to give a silent burial to the case against VGN, revealed sources. As a follow up to this understanding, the CBI took a stand before the Madras HC, that the loss in VGN case is only a meagre Rs 53.50 crores.

However, the Madras High Court saw through this design and dismissed the petition by observing that “the property originally belonged to the State Government assigned to HTL, to set up an industry. The SIDCO, through which the Government has assigned the land to HTL has given NOC to sell the property subject to discharge of HTL.”

At this stage, the Enforcement Directorate registered a separate case and attached the Guindy property of VGN to the extent of Rs 115 crores. VGN came out with a public notice, trying to clear the air. In the public notice, VGN said that “CBI which is the prime investigation agency itself, has informed the court that the loss to the government was only Rs 53.50 crores because the SBI has given interest waiver to HTL”. This claim of VGN is far from the truth.

If at all the CBI bothered to conduct any proper investigation, the enormity of the scam and the overwhelming evidence available could have been unearthed. The documents, which are in the possession of savukku, were never collected by the agency and instead the agency was very keen to give a clean chit to VGN and other officials. At this juncture, a detailed complaint was sent to the Director of CBI, against Nageshwar Rao.

Nageshwar Rao failed to issue any clear instructions with regards to the investigation of this case or monitor the progress of this investigation. However, he had ensured that he is always kept in the loop with regard to any developments. Though the allegation as per the FIR is that the land in dispute, which was purchased by VGN developers, was purchased below market price, there are widespread allegations of the involvement of two senior IAS officers of TN cadre who facilitated the issuance of NOC for the sale. Sources also claim that one Rama Mohana Rao, who was a former Chief Secretary of the TN government, had also received sizeable money from the VGN promoters.

However, no investigation whatsoever has been conducted in this regard. Further, as per sources, the VGN Developers sent part of the bribe amount of Rs 2 crores intended for the SBI officials through one Ganesh Raj, retired Assistant General Manager of SBI. The VGN Developers sent Rs 80 lakhs of the bribe amount to HTL account. From the HTL account, the above-mentioned Ganesh Raj transferred the amount to his account, later encashed the same and handed over the bribe amounts in cash to A.1 Leon Therattil and A.2 Ramadoss. A simple verification of the bank accounts of Ganesh Raj and HTL would have revealed evidence of bribery. But, Nageshwar Rao, chose not to touch any crucial area of investigation.

(This is the third part of the Editorial and the last part will continue tomorrow.)

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Alok Verma’s Exit: SC verdict a slap on govt interference?

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

The Supreme Court’s verdict on Friday ordering a speedy CVC inquiry on allegations of bribery against CBI Director Alok Verma and restricting government appointee interim CBI chief M Nageswar Rao from taking any major policy decisions until the SC next hears the matter on November 12 is perceived as a strict yet obliquely apex court rule to forewarn the government for its interference in the independence of the agency. The CVC’s probe will be overseen by retired Supreme Court judge AK Patnaik.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala wrote on Twitter, “Truth prevails in Supreme Court. Modi Government’s sinister attempt to capture CBI through lackeys falls flat. A slap in face of tyrants who wanted to pin the last nail in CBI’s independence. CVC can’t act as Modi Government’s pawn but would be supervised by a SC judge to act fairly.”

In the aftermath of the infighting between CBI Chief Alok Verma and CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana, the Narendra Modi-led central government took the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved decision to send both the officials on leave late on Tuesday night. At the instant, the decision was not taken unquestionably by the netizens. Questions were raised upon if Verma is illegally and unconstitutionally removed from his post! Lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan wrote on Twitter, “PM has no authority to send CBI director on leave as his tenure is protected. It is not CBI vs CBI. It is CBI versus a corrupt officer planted in the CBI by the PMO.”

The discord within CBI is at its highest point now and the hashtags like #ModiseCBIBachao started massively trending on social media since Friday morning with Congress taking the lead to accusing the government of suspending Verma only to stop the investigation on Rafale deal scam. The party also staged their protest outside Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) offices across India demanding the reinstatement of the premier investigative agency’s director Alok Verma. Following that, Congress President Rahul Gandhi and other leaders were arrested.

Former Mumbai Congress chief Janardhan Chandurkar asserted, “If the government had allowed the CBI to function smoothly, then why would Congress have held protests? The CBI is working under the pressure of the PM and wrong decisions are bound to be taken in such scenario. The protests held by us were very effective. There should not be any political interference in the functioning of CBI.”

The ruling government welcomed the Friday’s SC decision as “extremely positive development”. Now, to know how it is justified to say that the Modi government has undermined the reputation of the institutions like CBI and CVC, we have to go back to 1997. The tenure of the CBI director was not fixed and they could be removed by the government in any manner before 1997. Later, in Vineet Narain judgment, the SC fixed the tenure of the CBI Director to a minimum of two years for allowing the officer to work with independence.

Keeping this in consideration and especially at a time when the Chief himself is alleging the government for its interference in a ‘completely independent and autonomous’ institution and challenging its removal in the SC, how will the government now give grounds for its decision to remove CBI Chief Verma from his post? Verma also challenged the decision of the government by which joint director M Nageswar Rao, a 1986-batch Odisha cadre IPS officer, has been appointed as interim chief of the agency. As per a report published in Afternoon Voice dated October 24, 2018, Rao getting new designation in the CBI is too tainted with controversy as many have called him another black sheep in the CBI backed by BJP Telangana. Moreover, as per sources, even after being tarnished with corruption charges in his parent cadre Odisha, Rao’s closeness to native Telugu speaking officers helped him to be inducted into the CBI with an active recommendation by former union minister Venkaiah Naidu.

BJP MLA Atul Save said, “The Modi government is doing a good job. If somebody is indulging in corruption, action must be taken against him.” When asked about the Supreme Court directing CBI’s interim director M Nageshwar Rao to not take any major policy decisions, he replied, “This issue is concerned with the central government. Since the matter is sub judice, I won’t make any comments about it.”

The entire feud in CBI shot up last week after Alok Verma filed an FIR against Asthana alleging him to have demanded a Rs 5 crore bribe from a Hyderabad-based businessman through middlemen in order to help him be out of trouble in controversial meat exporter Moin Qureshi case, in which Asthana was heading the Special Investigation Team. Asthana too accused Verma of attempts to thwart investigations in important cases while the CBI has already issued a statement defending Verma.

Congress alleges scam in Jalyukt Shivar, seeks probe

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

The Congress alleged on Friday that there was a scam in the Maharashtra government’s `Jalyukt Shivar’ water conservation scheme as it did not seem to have made much difference, and demanded a probe.

The opposition party also said that the names of the 16,000 villages in the state, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi claimed to have become drought-free, should be disclosed.

Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant said that Modi, speaking in the temple town of Shirdi on October 19, said that 16,000 villages in Maharashtra have become drought-free thanks to the Jalyukt Shivar scheme.

Five days later, the BJP-led state government declared 180 tehsils as having drought-like conditions, and most of these `drought-free’ villages fall in these tehsils, Sawant claimed.

According to the government, Rs 7,789 crore were spent on the scheme, but groundwater levels have fallen in 31,015 villages in the state, which indicates that the scheme had not worked and there was a scam, Sawant said.

There should be a judicial probe, he demanded.

The Congress spokesperson claimed that as per the Groundwater Survey and Development Authority (GSDA), rainfall in 2014 (70.2 per cent of average) and 2015 (59.4 per cent) was less than this year (74.3 per cent).

However, the number of villages where groundwater levels went down by more than one meter was less in 2014 (5,976 villages) and 2015 (13,571) than in 2018 (13,984), he said.

There was no Jalyukt Shivar scheme in 2014 and 2015, he pointed out.

On Tuesday, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had countered the criticism of the Jalyukt Shivar scheme, saying that Congress was insulting the farmers and villagers who have toiled hard to make it a success.

“The scheme’s objective is there should be conservation of water if there is scanty rain. It does not mean there will be water if there are no rains,” he said.

Court rejects Alok Nath’s wife injuction plea against Vinta Nanda

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

A local court Friday rejected an application filed by actor Alok Nath’s wife seeking an injunction order against writer Vinta Nanda who had accused him of rape.

In the application, Nath’s wife had sought that Nanda be directed to refrain from speaking to the media or making statements against the actor.

According to Nath’s lawyer, Ashok Saraogi, the court said it could not pass an injunction order against Nanda at this stage in the proceedings.

“The interim injunction, which sought to restrain Nanda from speaking to the media, or post anything further on the issue on social media, was rejected by Dindoshi court. The injunction was sought in the defamation suit filed by Nath and his wife. The suit will be heard later by the court,” he told agencies.

Earlier this month, Nath had filed a civil defamation suit against Nanda after she accused him of rape.

The actor had sought a written apology, along with a compensation of Re 1, and a restraining order against the writer.

In a social media post in October, Nanda had alleged the actor had raped her 19 years ago. She then filed a police complaint against Nath who denied the allegations.

HC dismisses petitions challenging Aarey metro car shed construction

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

The Bombay High Court on Friday dismissed a bunch of petitions challenging the proposed construction of a car shed for the Mumbai metro rail project.

A bench of Justices SC Dharamadhikari and PD Naik held that it had found no illegality in the state’s decision to approve the construction of the car shed across a 165-hectare plot in Aarey Milk Colony in the city.

It held that the petitioners in the case, some environmental activists and NGOs, had failed to prove that the proposed site for the construction work was part of forest land or an eco-sensitive zone.

It, however, directed the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) to follow all conditions imposed by the state and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on the construction work.

It also directed the state and the BMC to ensure that the MMRC complied with the restrictions on felling trees, carrying out compensatory re-plantation, and other environmental and statutory norms.

“After going through the documents (from the state and the BMC’s record), we have found nothing from which to conclude that the 165 hectares area is forest land,” the bench said.

It noted that though 1,287 hectares of the Aarey Milk Colony adjoining the Sanjay Gandhi National Park had been notified as an economic sensitive zone in 2016, the said 165 hectare plot was not part of the eco-sensitive zone.

The bench had reserved its verdict on the above petitions earlier this year.

In the pleas, the petitioners had argued that the Maharashtra government had illegally modified the draft Development Plan 2034 for Mumbai to show what was previously a green zone as that reserved for a car shed for the metro rail project.

The bench, however, noted that the state’s land records and development plans did not show the authorities had carried out any illegal modifications.

It said the state had approved the construction work in consonance with all statutory and environmental rules.

“We have no hesitation in rejecting the petitioners’ arguments that the state permitted use of forest land. However, merely because we are rejecting the pleas doesn’t mean that the MMRC will not comply with statutory and environmental norms,” the bench said.

“We are mindful of the environmental concerns raised. But the concerns are not being ignored by the authorities as is apparent by the conditions imposed by the authorities on MMRC. The permission for construction is not unconditional, a host of prior sanctions, approvals, and monitoring and supervisory mechanisms are already in place,” the bench said.

It added that the BMC and the state were free to revoke the permission for the construction of the car shed in case the MMRC violated any norms or conditions.

Court order on Mallya plea against ED proceedings likely on Oct 30

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

A city court is likely to pass its orders on October 30 on a plea filed by businessman Vijay Mallya, seeking a stay on the proceedings initiated by the ED to declare him a Fugitive Economic Offender (FEO).

The special court heard extensive arguments on Friday from Mallya’s lawyer as well as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) counsel before reserving its order for October 30.

The ED has sought that Mallya, who is currently in the UK, be declared an FEO and his properties be confiscated and brought under the control of the Union government as per provisions of the new FEO Act.

Mallya’s counsel Amit Desai, however, urged the court, set up under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), to refrain from hearing the ED’s plea at least till November 26.

Desai told the court that earlier this month, the appellate tribunal against money laundering had directed the ED to maintain status quo with regard to properties of the beleaguered businessman till November 26, the next date of hearing before the tribunal.

“Passing any orders declaring Mallya an FEO under the new central legislation will automatically bring his properties under the Centre’s control,” Desai said.

“Irrespective of whether or not, this court then orders for the attachment of such properties, merely declaring Mallya as an FEO will mean that this court’s order will be in conflict with that of the tribunal’s,” he added.

He also argued that attaching Mallya’s properties under the new Act would deprive his creditors of any chance to ensure that his assets are sold and their proceeds used to recover the money they had lost.

Desai said Mallya was keen on ensuring that the creditors were paid off and that his former employees, too, received their pending salaries and dues.

The ED, represented by advocate D P Singh, however, told the court that Desai’s arguments were aimed only at ensuring that Mallya did not have to face any proceedings before any court in India.

“He has no intention of repaying anyone, or, of ever coming back to India. He is using the pending extradition proceedings and his bail conditions imposed by an English court as mere excuses to avoid coming back to India,” Singh said.

“Declaring him an FEO is the only way to bring him back,” he said.

The ED counsel argued the court could first declare Mallya an FEO and then wait for the tribunal’s proceedings before acting upon the agency’s plea for confiscation of the embattled liquor tycoon’s properties and assets.

Mallya, accused of defaulting on loan repayments and money laundering, left India in March 2016.

The 62-year-old former Kingfisher Airline boss is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering.

Jet Airways issues pink slips to 20 employees

By

Afternoon Voice

-

October 26, 2018

Naresh Goyal-promoted Jet Airways has given pink slips to 20 employees, including some senior-level executives, who were working in the airline’s crucial in-flight services department, to curtail costs amid the severe cash crunch, an airline source said on Friday.

The employees received their job termination notices this month, the source said.

It can be noted that the airline reportedly had recently asked 15 managerial level employees from various departments including engineering, security and sales, to leave the company.

The full service carrier, which is partially-owned by Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways, has delayed payment of salaries to its senior management, pilots and engineers due to its deteriorating financial health.

“Jet Airways has been reducing staff since it announced the second consecutive quarterly loss in August. Job cuts stopped in September for a while, but have come back again this month.

The source alleged that the airline is asking people to leave but in small batches to escape attention.

“Around 20 employees from the in-flight services department including assistant managers, managers, senior manager, among others, have been sacked this month alone. And most of these people are from Mumbai,” the source said.

Significantly, a decade back, Jet Airways had announced sacking of 1,900 employees, including 800 unconfirmed and under-probation employees, across all operations. This led to an uproar and chairman Goyal was not only forced to take back all the sacked employees over night, but also had to apologise.

When contacted, a Jet Airways spokesperson evaded a direct response to the queries on the issue but said, “Given the challenging macroeconomic conditions, Jet Airways continues to evaluate all initiatives including payroll optimisation, to achieve greater business efficiencies.”

“At the same time, the organisation respects the personal decisions of a few of its executives to pursue opportunities outside the organisation,” the spokesperson added.

The airline also said that as part of routine course of business, it has a well-defined succession plan in place and is committed to create a competitive cost structure that ensures a sustainable future for itself and its stakeholders.

Jet Airways group posted a net loss of Rs 1,326 crore in the three months ended June, compared with a net profit of Rs 58 crore in the year-ago period.

Along with the June quarter results, the airline’s board, during its meeting on August 27, had also considered various cost-cutting measures, debt reduction and funding options.