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Joshi elected Speaker by voice vote New Delhi, May 10 (ANI): Manohar Joshi of Shiv Sena was on Friday elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha by voice vote. The speaker's post fell vacant in March this year after the death of Ganti Balayogi in a helicopter crash. Balayogi was a lawmaker from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), the largest partner of the federal coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party. Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajapyee along with Congress president and leader of the opposition Sonia Gandhi and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pramod Mahajan escorted Joshi to the coveted chair. Welcoming the new speaker, Vajpayee said: "We have to further strengthen parliamentary democracy. We have to lay down new traditions with rules and to ensure that they are followed effectively. This is very essential." "A great responsibility devolves upon you for maintaining highest traditions of Parliament. You have seen public life at various levels. With your experience I am sure that you will not find it difficult to do justice to all public issues and to all sections of the house," Sonia Gandhi said in her felicitation address. Talking to reporters after his election, Joshi sought cooperation from all political parties in discharging his duties. "There are many problems in the country, the people are elected to Parliament to resolve the problems of people. And therefore more serious work is necessary in parliament. This work can be achieved through the speaker and with the cooperation of all the leaders of different groups," said Joshi. Joshi, who belongs to the hardline Shiv Sena, was heavy industries minister in Vajpayee's cabinet. Shiv Sena is one of the 19 members of the BJP-led coalition. Joshi began his political voyage winning the municipal elections in Mumbai in 1968. He went on to become the Mayor of Mumbai in 1976. He was first elected to the Maharashtra assembly in 1990. In 1995, he became chief minister of Maharashtra.(ANI) After being elected as the 13th Lok Sabha Speaker, Manohar Joshi addresses mediapersons in New Delhi.
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to top He further added, "The different legislatures in the country look upon Parliament as a supreme body and therefoe it is absolutely necessary that the Parliament seta an example before all the state legislatures and also the smaller electorate bodies. I have decided to work with law and affection." Joshi was today elected Speaker of the Lok Sabha by voice vote. He succeeds G M C Balayogi who died in a helicopter crash in March. Though the election was unanimous, the opposition did not vote for Joshi.(ANI)
No let-up in Gujarat violence: Two killed Go to top Ahmedabad, May 10 (ANI): Fresh violence broke out on Friday in riot-scarred Ahmedabad, killing two people and injuring 23 others. One person was stabbed, another burnt to death in the mainly Muslim old quarter of Ahmedabad and 23 were injured as Hindus and Muslims hurled stones and acid-filled light bulbs at each other. The mob had earlier set some houses on fire. The fire brigade rushed to the spot despite being on strike for the past few days. "You can see that we are using our water canons to douse the fire. We are taking all steps to restore normalcy. As there are no firetenders in the city so we are using our water canons for dousing fire because this is a residential area and if fire was not controlled at the earliest then it could spread to other houses also," said Keshav Kumar, a fire officer. "When we got a call of the fire in this area, as this is our duty, we came here to douse fire but when we came here we saw that fire was already being doused," F.M. Dastur, another fire officer, said. Nearly 950 people, mostly Muslims, have died since the religious violence broke out in February. Troops patrol the streets to try to stop the incidents of stabbing, hacking, stoning and other violence. The federal government has agreed to send about 1,000 extra paramilitary troops to quell the violence. The wave of revenge killings and clashes erupted in late February when a Muslim mob torched a train carrying Hindu devotees, killing 59 people. The violence has plunged the ruling federal coalition led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, which also governs Gujarat, into a crisis with some allies and the opposition accusing it of failing to act decisively to end the bloodshed.(ANI)
It's 46 deg C in overcrowded Ahmedabad camps
Go to top Ahmedabad, May 10 (ANI): Thousands of Muslims who moved into cramped relief camps to avoid rioting Hindu mobs face another daily battle -- against diseases and scorching summer heat. More than 70,000 people in Ahmedabad are crammed into camps with little more than large cloth sheets for shelter following the worst religious bloodshed in a decade. With temperatures soaring to a scorching 46 degrees Celsius (115 degrees Fahrenheit) on some days, the city burns like a furnace in the midday sun. Camp workers report cases of typhoid, dehydration, diarrhoea and jaundice. Dariyakhan Ghummat camp, which has more than 4,500 people, is among the worst affected by disease and heat, with up to five cases of jaundice and diarrhoea reported daily. This camp houses 12 newborn babies and 32 pregnant women. The summer is most vulnerable for babies below six months old. "It is so hot that he can catch any infection. There are no facilities here, no fans or coolers. How can a new born live under such conditions?" asked Nazmi Nisha, mother of a new born baby. Nearly 950 people, mostly Muslims, have died since the religious violence broke out in February. Troops patrol the streets to try to stop the incidents of stabbing, hacking, stoning and other violence. On Friday, one person was stabbed to death, another was burnt alive in the mainly Muslim old quarter of Ahmedabad and 23 were injured as Hindus and Muslims hurled stones and acid-filled light bulbs at each other. While the city is tense, life in relief camps is also difficult. Akhtar Jamal, another resident of the camp, weakly waves away flies swarming on his face as an elderly man suffering from dizziness and low blood pressure due to the heat is brought in. "The severe heat wave conditions prevailing in the city makes the occupants of these uncrowded camps prone to various infections and disesases, such as diarrohea, skin infections, etc. For the last ten days or so, the people have been living in temperatures soaring over 46 degrees Celsius," said Jamal. Many sick Muslims, still living in their homes, seek medical treatment in camps run by their community rather than attend hospitals for fear of being attacked on the way. That fear has heightened after incidents where Hindu groups prevented some ambulances belonging to Muslims from going to hospitals. The authorities at the camp, already battling with food shortages and overcrowding, have been crippled in their relief efforts by the extreme heat. "We are facing a lot of difficulties due to this heat. We can't sit or stay here properly. In the mornings, it is the strong sun. And at night it is the blazing ground," said Hussain Habibi, another inmate of the relief camp.(ANI)
Facing submersion this monsoon due to the Tehri dam project, people in Tehri protest against the poor pace of rehabilitation work.
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After the closure of T3 and T4 tunnels, the rising level of the Bhagirathi river is posing a threat to the residents. The only bridge connecting Tehri to the mainland has also partially submerged in water. The locals now blame the situation on the government. The administration has set June 15 as deadline for vacating the city. Work at the dam-site is going on at full pace. Locals say they would move on to safer places but would not leave the city till their demands are met. A local agitator Savita Saklani says, "We are not happy with whatever rehabilitaion work the government has done. Because they have not done a fair job. They did not consider each adult as a family. They have given less compensation for our land and houses. Now we have reached at a point where we can not oppose the construction of the dam. Now the main question is of resettlement and we are fighting for it. We will not leave this place untill the poorest of the poor and the last person of the city is compensated adequately and fairly and rehabilitated." Kamal Pandey, another city resident complains, "When the present chief minister, N.D. Tiwari took over, everybody said that he is quite experienced person. However, the same experienced person has left us nowhere. We have lost our hopes. During the previous government's time, we were still in touch with Mr Koshyari, the first chief minister of Uttarachal. He at least assured us and invited us for talks. We are not in touch with the present government. They, however, formed a committe of 20-25 members to look into this matter. Whenever our represenataives go for a meeting there are just 1-2 people from the committe of 25 members. And when the commitee issues any notification , it talks about how to vacate this place not how to rehabilitate these people. " Nearly 10,000 residents of this 200-year-old town face a very real possibility of losing their homes.
Four Hizb militants killed in fierce gunbattle
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top Srinagar, May 10 (ANI): At least four militants belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen were killed in a fierce gunbattle with security forces at Budgam, 30 kilometres from Srinagar, on Friday. The operation was jointly carried out by Rashtriya Rifles and Border Security Force. "When we cordoned off the village, some militants tried to escape from the area. They were confronted by the personnel of the BSF and the Rashtriya Rifles who immediately launched an attack and killed four militants," said S.R.Dhillon, Deputy Inspector General of the Border Security Force. A large cache of arms and ammunition including four AK-47 rifles, pistols and grenades were recovered from the slain militants. Nearly a dozen militant groups are fighting New Delhi's rule in the country's only Muslim-majority state, where authorities say about 33,000 people have died in the rebellion. Separatists put the toll closer to 80,000. India blames neighbouring Pakistan for fomenting violence in the region by arming militants and sending them across the border. Islamabad denies the charge. The two countries have massed nearly a million men and weapons along their borders since late last year when India blamed Pakistan-based militants for an attack on parliament. The neighbours have fought two of their three wars over the Himalayan region since independence from Britain in 1947. India controls 45 percent of Kashmir, Pakistan just over a third and China the remainder. (ANI)
Three militants booked under POTA
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to top New Delhi, May 10 (ANI): Three militants arrested by police here have been booked under the new anti-terrorism law, Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), on Friday. The three were accomplices of the two Pakistan-based Lashkar-e- Taiba militants who were killed in a shoot-out on Thursday. The three accomplices were picked up from a railway station in the heart of the city on Thursday as they were taking guns and explosives for the militants who were killed later in the shootout. Police has said the killed militants had planned to assassinate top political figures and attack industrial targets in the capital. Police said there were intelligence reports suggesting that the Lashkar, which has staged suicide attacks in Kashmir, planned to set up a base in the city.(ANI)
40,000 Afghan refugees to go back home
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to top Islamabad, May 10 (ANI): Some 40,000 Afghan refugees stranded in no-man's land at the Chaman border have decided to voluntarily return to their homes. The stunning move resulted after Afghan Consul-General Habibullah Allahyar delivered an emotional address to 80 tribal elders at the no-man's land. United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Melita Sunjic said the refugee elders have agreed "to return either to their villages of origin or to a camp for internally displaced persons if they do not feel ready to return home." The meeting was organised by a task force comprising a representative of UNHCR, Pakistani Commissioner for Afghan refugees and Afghan authorities. In his speech at Killi Faizo, Habibullah told the elders that Pakistan was not in a position to accept them and suggested they return to their home country. According to UNHCR spokesperson, the speech and discussions were interrupted several times because speakers were overwhelmed by feelings and started weeping. Some 40,000 refugees began massing just across the Pak-Afghan border at Killi Faizo at the end of February.(ANI)
Pak police in hot pursuit of three men in bombing probe
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to top Karachi, May 10 (ANI): Pakistan police are in hot pursuit of three men who allegedly bought the car used in this week's suicide bombing which killed 11 French nationals and three Pakistanis. Police said on Friday the men purchased the car from the dealer in a central district of Karachi on Tuesday, a day before the blast outside the Sheraton Hotel. "We have prepared sketches of three people, one of them having a beard, with the help of a car dealer who sold the Toyota Corolla model 1976 on Tuesday," a senior police investigator said. "These three people could be the possible suspects, but it is premature to say that one of them could also be the suicide bomber."(ANI)
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