Bihar Congress dumps Lalu, ready to ally with Nitish

PATNA: Bihar Congress on Wednesday held a review meeting after the Lok Sabha election debacle with party leaders regretting the tie-up with RJD and proposing an alliance with JD(U) in state assembly polls next year.

The meeting adopted a unanimous resolution reposing faith in the leadership of party president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi to guide it to strength, state party vice-president and media in charge Prem Chand Mishra told PTI.

The day-long review meeting, presided over by PCC chief Ashok Choudhary, was attended by candidates, who contested the general election, and office-bearers of the party.

Sources said many speakers complained that the alliance with Lalu Prasad proved a "liability" as RJD could not transfer its votes to Congress nominees.

Many of them complained that while RJD gained from alliance with Congress, "we could not benefit anything from it," the sources said.

"Some of them even highlighted betrayal by workers of their alliance party," they said.

Many leaders expressed pro-JD(U) views in the review meeting and proposed that Congress should go in the assembly elections in Bihar next year either with Nitish Kumar or alone, the sources said.

Mishra said the meeting came to the conclusion that assembly election next year would provide "space and scope" for Congress in Bihar.

Former Union minister Akhilesh Prasad Singh, Purnamasi Ram and Bhojpuri actor Kunal Singh, who had contested from Muzaffarpur, Valmikinagar and Patna Sahib respectively, attended the meeting.

Congress secretaries Paresh Dhanani and K L Sharma, who are in charge of Bihar, were also present.

Congress, which had fielded its nominees in 13 seats as part of seat-sharing arrangement with RJD, could win only two seats — Kisanganj and Supual. RJD managed to win four seats.

Many of Congress' veteran leaders, including former Speaker Meira Kumar, ex-Kerala governor Nikhil Kumar and Akhilesh Prasad Singh lost in the poll.

Participants emphasized on the party establishing closer links with the common man.

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Gadkari to be given charge of Munde's ministries

NEW DELHI: Road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari will hold additional charge as minister of rural development, panchayti raj, and drinking water and sanitation, a Rashtrapati Bhavan statement on Wednesday said.

"The president of India, as advised by the prime minister, has directed that Nitin Jairam Gadkari shall be given additional charge of the ministries of rural development, panchayati raj and drinking water and sanitation," the statement said.

The ministries were held by Gopinath Munde, who died in a car accident Tuesday.

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Sri Lankan court orders release of 29 fishermen

RAMESWARAM: A court in Sri Lanka on Wednesday ordered the release of 29 fishermen from this coastal town, arrested by Sri Lankan Navy personnel on May 31 near Katchteevu islet, officials here said.

The magistrate of the court in Mannar, Aanandhi Kanagarathinam, ordered their release today after the fishermen were produced in court, they said.

However, the magistrate said their six boats had been seized as they had used banned nets for fishing.

The fishermen were part of a group who set out in 727 boats from here on May 31 and were arrested while fishing near Katchatheevu, ceded to Sri Lanka by India in 1974. They were later taken to Thalaimannar.

The 29 fishermen, along with four others, who strayed into Sri Lankan waters on June 1 after their boat developed a technical snag were expected to be be handed over to Indian Coast Guard at International Maritime Boundary Line tomorrow, U Arulanandam, President of Pamban fishermen's Association, said.

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Punish militants who killed woman for resisting rape, Centre asks Meghalaya govt

NEW DELHI: Taking strong exception to the killing of a woman who resisted attempt to rape by militants in Meghalaya, the Centre on Wednesday sought a report from the state government and asked it to punish those involved in the crime.

"I have spoken to the chief minister and have asked to identify the culprits and ensure that strict punishment is given to them," Union minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju told reporters here.

He said PA Sangma-led National People's Party has submitted a memorandum to him alleging that the law and order machinery in Meghalaya has completely failed and the central government should intervene.

"We are looking into it," he said. The home ministry has also sought a report from the state government about the incident in which the woman was killed by militants of the Garo National Liberation Army (GNLA).

The 35-year-old tribal Garo woman's head was blown to pieces when she resisted an alleged molestation and rape attempt in South Garo Hills district.

She was at home with her husband and five children when four to five armed militants of GNLA entered their house around 6pm on Tuesday.

They locked up her husband and five children inside the house and pulled out the woman, police said.

She was first assaulted and molested. When she resisted, they shot her with automatic assault rifles from point blank range blowing her head in almost two pieces.

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Home minister Rajnath Singh to visit India-China border

NEW DELHI: Paramilitary forces are preparing for a visit of home minister Rajnath Singh to border areas. Singh has told force chiefs that he wants to visit all border areas to assess the ground situation. He has specifically expressed desire to visit the China-Indian border in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh where the government is stressing on improving the road connectivity and other infrastructure.

Sources, however, say that the trip to Arunachal could be difficult as many posts are so remote that it takes 10 days of walking to reach them even as some are not even maintained aerially (i.e. accessed by an aircraft).

"The home minister can be flown to Ladakh and Leh but several parts of Arunachal Pradesh would be inaccessible even aerially. Also, rain is round the corner and navigating in such weather to the Arunachal is a difficult task," said an ITBP officer explaining how a normal long range patrol to the border in Arunachal Pradesh takes as long as 21 days with the perils of negotiating dense jungles and treacherous terrain.

"But it's good that the minister wants to visit. If he does, he will now how underdeveloped the area is and in what condition the forces guard the borders. Perhaps that will help push infrastructure projects in the region," the officer added.

The focus on the Indian-China border is in line with PM Narendra Modi's emphasis on the importance of northeast states as the bulwark against an aggressive China. Arunachal Pradesh is the most crucial in this scheme because of abysmal road networks owing to a post-1962 strategic thinking that a road network to the border would facilitate Chinese ingression in times of war.

The other crucial border on visit list is the eastern border with Bangladesh. BJP has projected a tough stance on illegal Bangladeshi immigration and the home minister is likely to study the phenomena on the ground. BSF, which guards the border, hopes the trip will also help government articulate a clearer stand on the land boundary agreement with Bangladesh and iron out some minor differences on the border fencing issue.

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Gopinath Munde died of multiple internal injuries: AIIMS

NEW DELHI: Union rural development minister Gopinath Munde on Tuesday died of multiple internal injuries and cardiac arrest suffered following a road accident in central Delhi early in the morning.

64-year-old Munde, who made his entry into the Union Cabinet for the first time last week, was on his way to the airport when his Maruti Suzuki SX4 car was hit by a Tata Indica car at Prithviraj Road-Tughlak Road intersection in the heart of the capital.

READ ALSO: 10 facts about Gopinath Munde's death

Delhi Police said the Intelligence Bureau and the special cell were investigating whether there was any conspiracy angle behind the accident.

Munde was taken to AIIMS trauma centre at 6.30am by his personal assistant and driver and was declared dead at 7.20am.

"The minister has died of multiple internal injuries. No external wound was found on his body. When he was brought to trauma centre, his pulse and heart beat were not working," AIIMS spokesperson Dr Amit Gupta said after a team of doctors conducted a postmortem on his body.

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan said Munde suffered cervical fractures and supply of oxygen to his brain and lungs may have been cut off following the injuries.

READ ALSO: 'Number 3 is fatal for Mahajan, Munde families'

Vardhan said Munde's liver had tear at 2-3 places and there was one-and-half litres of blood in his abdomen because of the injury.

"The major thing that cost him very heavily was a fracture of the cervical spines C1 and C2. When you have fracture at C1 and C2, the blood supply at the brain gets cut off because the vertebral artery gets damaged immediately," he said.

READ ALSO: Munde asked for water before falling unconscious

A source at AIIMS said the rural development minister died of the sudden shock as he suffered a cardiac arrest.

Police said Gurvinder Singh, driver of the Indica car which allegedly hit Munde's car after jumping red light has been booked for rash driving and causing death by negligence after investigations.

"An FIR has been registered against Singh under section 279 and 304(A) at Tughlak Road Police Station and he was arrested after prima facie he was found at fault of jumping the red light and over speeding," said additional commissioner of police (New Delhi) SBS Tyagi.

32-year-old Singh, however was given bail by a local court.

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Multiple internal injuries, cardiac arrest led to Gopinath Munde's death: AIIMS

NEW DELHI: Union rural development minister Gopinath Munde on Tuesday died of multiple internal injuries and cardiac arrest suffered following a road accident in central Delhi early in the morning.

64-year-old Munde, who made his entry into the Union Cabinet for the first time last week, was on his way to the airport when his Maruti Suzuki SX4 car was hit by a Tata Indica car at Prithviraj Road-Tughlak Road intersection in the heart of the capital.

READ ALSO: 10 facts about Gopinath Munde's death

Delhi Police said the Intelligence Bureau and the special cell were investigating whether there was any conspiracy angle behind the accident.

Munde was taken to AIIMS trauma centre at 6.30am by his personal assistant and driver and was declared dead at 7.20am.

"The minister has died of multiple internal injuries. No external wound was found on his body. When he was brought to trauma centre, his pulse and heart beat were not working," AIIMS spokesperson Dr Amit Gupta said after a team of doctors conducted a postmortem on his body.

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan said Munde suffered cervical fractures and supply of oxygen to his brain and lungs may have been cut off following the injuries.

READ ALSO: 'Number 3 is fatal for Mahajan, Munde families'

Vardhan said Munde's liver had tear at 2-3 places and there was one-and-half litres of blood in his abdomen because of the injury.

"The major thing that cost him very heavily was a fracture of the cervical spines C1 and C2. When you have fracture at C1 and C2, the blood supply at the brain gets cut off because the vertebral artery gets damaged immediately," he said.

READ ALSO: Munde asked for water before falling unconscious

A source at AIIMS said the rural development minister died of the sudden shock as he suffered a cardiac arrest.

Police said Gurvinder Singh, driver of the Indica car which allegedly hit Munde's car after jumping red light has been booked for rash driving and causing death by negligence after investigations.

"An FIR has been registered against Singh under section 279 and 304(A) at Tughlak Road Police Station and he was arrested after prima facie he was found at fault of jumping the red light and over speeding," said additional commissioner of police (New Delhi) SBS Tyagi.

32-year-old Singh, however was given bail by a local court.

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Union Cabinet mourns Munde, says he was a visionary

NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Tuesday condoled the death of rural development minister Gopinath Munde and said that in his demise the country has lost a visionary leader who was held in high esteem across the political spectrum.

A special Cabinet meeting convened this evening to mourn Munde passed a resolution to place on record its appreciation of his services to the nation in different capacities both at the state and national levels.

"A grassroot politician with a mass base and an ardent advocate of democracy ... the Cabinet places on record its appreciation of Gopinath Munde's services to the nation in different capacities both at the state and national level," the resolution said.

The Cabinet also expressed its "deep sense of loss and grief" over his death.

"In his untimely demise, the nation has lost an experienced and visionary leader who was held in high esteem across the political spectrum. On behalf of the entire nation, the Cabinet extends its heartfelt condolences to the bereaved family," it said.

Munde, also a popular backward class leader from Maharashtra, died after his liver ruptured and he suffered a cardiac arrest following a road accident here on Tuesday morning.

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Jayalalithaa takes firm stand on Sri Lankan Tamil issue

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa has taken a firm stand on the Sri Lankan Tamil issue despite conciliatory gestures by the Island nation in recent times, including release of Indian fishermen from the jails in that country.

In a memorandum submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Tuesday, the chief minister reiterated her stand. She demanded the Centre sponsor a resolution in the UN condemning the genocide in Sri Lanka and to hold all those responsible for it accountable. She said the resolution should demand a referendum among the Tamils in Sri Lanka for the formation of a separate Tamil Eelam.

Jayalalithaa said there were very strong sentiments among people in Tamil Nadu on a range of issues relating to India's relations with the present regime in Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the final stages of the civil war in that country. The final stages of the war witnessed an 'ethnic pogrom' and 'genocide' perpetrated on the Tamil minority in Sri Lanka.

She recalled the four resolutions passed in the Tamil Nadu assembly condemning the 'continuous discrimination' against the Tamil minorities in Sri Lanka and "violation of their human rights."

Similarly, she demanded retrieval of Katchatheevu and restoration of traditional fishing rights of fishermen in Tamil Nadu. During her press briefing after the meeting, Jayalalithaa said she had discussed fishermen issues with Modi.

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) appreciated Jayalalithaa's concern for the welfare of the minority Tamils in the island nation. "We welcome her firm stand for the welfare of Sri Lankan Tamils," TNA spokesperson Suresh Premachandran said.

A day before the meeting between Modi and Jayalalithaa, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa had ordered the release of 29 Indian fishermen arrested last week for allegedly fishing in the Sri Lankan waters. The fishermen issue figured during the bilateral talks in New Delhi last week when President Rajapaksa visited Delhi to attend Modi's swearing-in as the Prime Minister. Prior to the swearing-in ceremony, Rajapaksa had ordered the release of a batch of Indian fishermen.

Jayalalithaa said she had written 41 times in the last three years to the then Prime Minister on the 76 incidents of apprehension and 67 incidents of attacks on or harassment of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lankan navy. 'These incidents have caused unrest among the fishermen community in Tamil Nadu. Such incidents are a national issue as any attack on an innocent Indian is an attack on India," she said in the memorandum.

She requested Modi to protect the traditional fishing rights of Indian fishermen in the Palk Bay area. The chief minister reiterated her demand that Katchatheevu be retrieved from Sri Lanka and the traditional fishing rights of Tamil Nadu fishermen be restored.

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Sonia writes to Munde's wife, Rahul visits BJP headquarters

NEW DELHI: Political differences blurred as Congress president Sonia Gandhi wrote a personal letter to Union minister Gopinath Munde's family condoling his death and Rahul Gandhi visited the BJP office to pay respects to the departed leader.

"There are some events in life on which one has no control and one has to bear with them," said Sonia in a letter to Pradanya, wife of the senior BJP leader from Maharashtra.

Gandhi had lost her husband Rajiv Gandhi in a terrorist attack some 23 years back and her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi was assassinated in 1984.

Paying tributes to Munde, she said that the backward class leader tried to discharge the responsibilities given to him in his political and social life with full dedication.

"Hailing from a humble background, Munde made a mark in social and political life by the dint of his hard work, polite behaviour and commitment towards the backward classes, which is a source of inspiration for all," she said.

Noting that the tragedy has brought unbearable pain to the family, Gandhi said that she is with them in this hour of grief.

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi visited the 11 Ashoka Road office of BJP to pay respect to the departed leader. This is perhaps for the first time in last many years that any Gandhi family member visited the BJP office.

Rahul Gandhi was accompanied by Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat.

Congress and BJP had fought a bitter political battle in this Lok Sabha polls, which was marked by personal attacks from both sides.

JD(U) president Sharad Yadav also visited the BJP office in the afternoon to pay tributes to Munde.

Yadav, whose party had last year walked out of NDA snapping its 17-year-old ties with BJP, also wrote a letter to Munde's wife and conveyed his heartfelt condolences to her and the bereaved family.

Munde, Union rural development minister and a popular backward class leader from Maharashtra, died on Tuesday after his liver ruptured and he suffered a cardiac arrest following a road accident this morning.

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