Ex-cop claims ATS killed missing accused

MUMBAI, Jan 1, 2017, DHNS:

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) will investigate and verify the claims of suspended police officer Mahiboob Mujawar that the two main absconding accused in the Malegaon blast case of 2008, Ramji alias Ramchandra Kalsangra and Sandeep Dange, were killed by the police.

Mujawar had claimed that three senior officials of the Maharashtra Police — two retired DGs and one high-ranking IPS official — tried to suppress information about the killings.

According to Mujawar, Dange and Kalsangra were picked up around the time when Sadhvi was arrested.

“On the night of the 26/11 attack, Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) officers shot Kalsangra and Dange at Kalchowkie unit and later took their bodies to the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. They were shown as victims of 26/11,” he had claimed, and added that he would reveal the truth before the court.

The Maharashtra government, too, has promised to look into the matter. “We will look into the claims,” Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said. “We will look into the entire episode. We will have to check why no inquiry was conducted if the officer in 2009 had written to the DGP,” he added.

The blast on September 29, 2008, at Bhikku Chowk in the Muslim-dominated town of Malegaon in Nashik district—on the eve of Navratri—claimed six lives and injured 101 others.
The case was transferred from the Nashik Rural Police to the ATS and subsequently the NIA took over the probe.

The case was investigated by the then special inspector general of police Hemant Karkare, who laid down his life during the 26/11 terror attacks.

Lalu plays peacemaker

PATNA, Jan 1, 2016, DHNS:

More than 12 hours after Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav was shown the door by his father and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav, RJD supremo Lalu Prasad voluntarily played the role of a peacemaker to broker a truce in the warring Yadav clan.

At 8 am on Saturday, he reportedly made a call to Mulayam arguing that the acrimonious developments which took place on Friday evening in Lucknow were neither in the interest of the Yadav family nor the Samajwadi Party. Lalu’s soft corner for Mulayam and his party is quite understandable as the RJD chief’s youngest daughter Raj Laxmi is married to Mulayam’s grand nephew Tej Pratap Singh Yadav, a Lok Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh.

Lalu told Mulayam that such bickerings within the faction-ridden Samajwadi Party, ahead of Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh, would help the BJP sweep the polls. Mulayam reportedly told Lalu that he was helpless as his son was not prepared to listen to him and had “raised a bogey of revolt.”

Akhilesh stands exposed after SP feud: BJP

New Delhi, Jan 1, 2016, DHNS

The BJP believes that the patch-up in the Yadav clan has only “exposed” Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav ahead of the Assembly polls due early in 2017. 

The uneasy truce in the Samajwadi Party (SP) may have allowed Akhilesh’s return to the party 24 hours after his expulsion, but he would have a difficult time getting the second term since the feud has only added to the government’s failures, the BJP said.

BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said people have made up their mind to bring back his party to power after 15 years to ensure all-round development.

“This is only a comeback of the chief minister to his party, but not to power as his government’s report card is full of failures,” Sharma said. “People have decided to get rid of him and the SP. His government only encouraged corruption and crime and did nothing for the common man.”

BJP state unit president Keshav Maurya said, “The drama is over, but the cycle (SP’s symbol) is punctured and the people have understood their theatrics.”

Differences continue to persist in SP

Lucknow, Jan 1, 2017, DHNS:

Shivpal unhappy over Mulayam's decision

Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Mulayam Singh may have avoided a split in the party by revoking the expulsions of Akhilesh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav, but differences continue to simmer.

All eyes are now on the emergency national convention that SP general secretary Ram Gopal has convened on Sunday to discuss the existing situation.

Sources said SP’s Uttar Pradesh president Shivpal Yadav is unhappy over the way his elder brother reversed the expulsions. “What is left now, my reputation has taken a severe hit,” Shivpal is said to have commented when asked to attend the top-level meeting at Mulayam’s residence where Akhilesh was present. Ironically, Shivpal was sent to the media to break the news on Akhilesh’s and Ram Gopal’s reinstatement. The national convention called by Ram Gopal, one of the reasons for the
expulsions, will be held as scheduled.

On Friday, Mulayam had questioned Ram Gopal’s authority to convene the meeting and made it clear that it did not have his approval. He said the convention was not recognised and warned that he would take disciplinary action against those attending the meeting.

“The convention will be held as per schedule...the decision to hold the convention was taken before the expulsion....the delegates will discuss the state of affairs of the party and take appropriate decisions,” Ram Gopal said on Saturday.

Akhilesh, who is likely to attend the convention, has also asked SP legislators, ministers and office-bearers to be present.

Cong hums 'go it alone' tune in UP

New Delhi: Jan 1, 2017, DHNS

The Congress on Saturday was humming the ‘go it alone’ tune in Uttar Pradesh. The Congress was eyeing for an alliance with the Akhilesh faction had the young chief minister decided to chart his own path after parting ways with the Samajwadi Party (SP).

“We have been saying we are ready to contest all seats in the Uttar Pradesh elections. The Congress is capable of contesting all seats on its own,” Randeep Singh Surjewala, in-charge of the AICC Communications Department, said here.

Surjewala underlined that the Congress had crafted its campaign in Uttar Pradesh on the theme ‘27 Saal, UP Behaal’ indicating that it included the “misrule” of the Samajwadi Party government .

The Congress made it clear that it was not ready to uproot the green shoots of development that were a result of Rahul Gandhi’s meticulous efforts through Kisan Yatra to reach out to the common man in the state.

“Congress leaders are in the field and we are hopeful of setting aside the politics of caste and religion, espouse the path of politics of development and make a new beginning,” Surjewala said.

A section in the Congress strongly favours an alliance with the Akhilesh Yadav-led faction of the SP, hoping to cash in on the clean image of the young chief minister and his good equation with Rahul Gandhi.
DH News Service

Modi announces sops for poor

Annapurna Singh, New Delhi: Jan 1, 2017, DHNS

Admitting that people have suffered a great deal due to demonetisation in the past 50 days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday announced a slew of relief for poor, senior citizens and women and promised to bear all interest on loans to farmers for 60 days.

In his New Year’s Eve address, the prime minister also handed out tax concessions to small traders who have suffered more due to cash crunch induced by the scrapping of 86% of India’s total currency on November 8 last year.

Modi also sent a terse warning to those who had tried to hide their incomes despite the government giving them ample opportunity to declare their assets.“The law will take its own course, with its full force,” Modi said adding that only 24 lakh people have admitted that they earn more than Rs10 lakh a year.

In announcements that almost sounded like a mini-Budget, he offered interest subsidy on home loans for rural and urban poor. Now, home loans for poor and middle class up to Rs 9 lakh will get a 4% exemption on interest and up to Rs 12 lakh will get 3% exemption in urban areas. Another 3% interest waiver will be offered on loans up to Rs 2 lakh for construction of houses in rural India under Prime Minister Awas Yojana.

For senior citizens, he handed out an assured return on their fixed deposits, irrespective of the banks cutting the deposit rates. “We have decided that up to Rs 7.5 lakh in fixed deposits for 10 years will get them an interest of 8%,” Modi said in his televised address to the nation, the second in a space of two months.

With an eye on elections in Uttar Pradesh and four other states, he said the government will bear the interest for 60 days on crop loans taken by farmers from district cooperative banks and primary societies for sowing operations this rabi season.

In the same vein, he also announced that three crore Kisan Credit Cards will be converted into RuPay Card within three months to help farmers purchase various inputs anywhere. Nabard will be given an additional Rs 20,000 crore to finance district cooperative banks and societies. This will be over and above Rs 21,000 crore announced earlier.

Women who undergo institutional delivery will get an assistance of Rs 6,000, he said adding that the move will check maternal mortality rate.

Announcing doubling of credit guarantee to Rs two crore to small-scale and medium enterprises, which play a significant role in increasing job opportunities, he asked the banks to be sensitive towards the needs of the poor and the middle class and restore normalcy as soon as possible.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the prime minister’s announcements will enhance economic activity.

DH News Service

Mulayam blinks, revokes Akhilesh expulsion

Sanjay Pandey, Lucknow, Jan 1, 2017, dhns:

Does a U-turn after son's show of strength

In a dramatic turn of events, Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav was on Saturday virtually forced to revoke the expulsion of his son and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav after a majority of the party legislators and ministers rallied behind the junior Yadav. Mulayam also reinstated his brother and party general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav.

“On the direction of Netaji (Mulayam), the expulsion of Akhilesh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav is revoked with immediate effect...we will all collectively fight the communal forces and form a majority government in the state again,” SP’s state unit president Shivpal Singh Yadav tweeted.

The patch-up was announced following a meeting Mulayam had with Shivpal and Akhilesh at noon on Saturday. Sources said Akhilesh had sought the expulsion of SP Rajya Sabha MP Amar Singh from the party; removal of Shivpal as the state unit president and nomination of his supporters as candidates for the Assembly elections.

Sources said Mulayam had agreed to consider the list of probables sent to him by Akhilesh. “A new list of candidates will be released after consultations...we are all united...there is no misunderstanding now,” said Shivpal.

While the SP legislators and ministers made a beeline before the official residence of the chief minister on a foggy Saturday morning to attend the meeting convened by him and pledged their support, barely a handful of loyalists turned up at the meeting called by Mulayam at the party office.

According to sources, 212 MLAs and MLCs, including 195 of the SP, attended Akhilesh’s meeting. In contrast, only 20 legislators were present at Mulayam’s meeting.

As Mulayam and Shivpal found themselves outnumbered, senior party leader Azam Khan, an Akhilesh supporter, intervened and brokered a truce among the warring members of the Mulayam family.

Sources said Mulayam did not want a showdown, especially when it was clear that Akhilesh enjoyed the support of the majority of the party legislators.
DH News Service