Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir State Accountability Commission (SAC) has ordered a regular enquiry into the alleged role of Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand in the illegal appointments in urban local bodies. A Division bench of the Commission, comprising chairman Justice (retd) YP Nargotra and Justice (retd) Hakim Imtiyaz Hussain, on Monday directed for a regular enquiry into the allegations of misuse of official position by Chand in the illegal recruitments carried out during his tenure as the Urban Development Minister.
Since the commission does not have any investigating officials at present, the Bench requested Advocate General of the state MI Qadri to assist the SAC in the enquiry. The commission also issued a notice to the deputy chief minister with the direction to respond to allegations within six weeks.
The case has been listed for hearing on July 8. Thousands of illegal appointments in urban local bodies across the state came to the fore in 2012. The appointment letters were issued by executive officers or presidents of the municipal committees of various areas in the state in violation of the rules.
A complaint was filed before the SAC by one Saaqib Mushtaq who alleged that Chand had "misused his official position and by means of corruption, favouritism and nepotism and appointed scores of people in public employment." The Bench, in its order, observed that Chand had not denied the charges in statement but had claimed to have taken cognisance of the illegal appointments and ordered two inquiries....
12:58 PM, May 14, 2013
Aizawl: The death toll in Saturday's landslide in Mizoram's capital Aizawl rose to 17 on Monday, as Mizoram Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla announced setting up of an inquiry commission to probe the circumstances leading to the disaster. Aizawl SP (Traffic) Lallianmawia said four bodies were recovered since Sunday night, while two more bodies were trapped under concrete slabs in such a way that it was difficult retrieve them. "Some parts...
07:59 AM, May 14, 2013
Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Monday took oath as the new Chief Minister of Karnataka. The 64 year old backward class leader from Mysore took oath at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore on Monday morning, attended by a crowd of about 50,000. ...
05:23 PM, May 13, 2013
Bangalore: A 50 year-old Congress supporter died after attending the swearing-in ceremony of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at the jam packed Kanteerava stadium in Bangalore on Monday, police said. The deceased was identified as Manjappa, a city resident, who collapsed near gate number seven while coming out after the function attended by nearly 50,000 Congress supporters from across the state. He was given water to drink, after which he complained of...
02:30 PM, May 13, 2013
Bangalore: Congress leader Siddaramaiah on Monday took oath as the 22nd Chief Minister of Karnataka. The 64-year-old backward class leader from Mysore was sworn in at the Kanteerava Stadium in Bangalore. About 50,000 people gathered at the stadium to witness the event. With a comfortable majority of 121 seats in the 225-member assembly, including one nominated member, the Congress returned to power on its own after a gap of nine...
11:53 AM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi accused the UPA government of bonding with the enemies and attacked the Centre's foreign policy, while addressing the Indian diaspora in the US via video conferencing on Monday. "Our army personnel get decapitated and we send chicken biryani to the prime minister of the country responsible for it. I can't understand why the Indian government is asking its own troops to withdraw from...
10:51 AM, May 13, 2013
Bangalore: K Siddaramaiah, who joined Congress just seven years back, will take oath as the chief minister of Karnataka on Monday - the first "outsider" to do. It is a dream come true for this shepherd from the backward Kuruba caste who spent his childhood grazing his father's cattle at a remote village near Mysore. "In a democracy, not every politician can dream about the chief minister's post. But I...
08:47 AM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday addressed the Indian diaspora in the US via video conferencing. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader's address comes on the occasion of 53rd Gujarat Day. Taking a swipe at the UPA and the recent scams, Modi lashed out saying that the misgovernance of some individuals at the top have broken trust of 120 crore Indians and that it was time to...
08:13 AM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday addressed the Indian diaspora in the US via video conferencing. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader's address comes on the occasion of 53rd Gujarat Day. Reaching out to the diaspora community, Modi lauded the Gujaratis for being cultural ambassadors of India abroad. Highlighting the all-round progress made by his state, he said that the world is looking at India very minutely....
07:37 AM, May 13, 2013
New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday congratulated Siddaramaiah on his election as Chief Minister of Karnataka. The Prime Minister also wished him "well for the future". Siddaramaiah was on Friday elected as the leader of the Congress Legislative Party in the state. "Prime Minister Manmohan Singh talked to Siddaramaiah to congratulate him on his election as the Chief Minister of Karnataka and to wish him well for the...
12:41 PM, May 11, 2013
Bangalore: The Congress gets one step closer to deciding the Karnataka Chief minister after party leaders met a legislative meeting on Friday. Sources say that most of the MLAs in the state have backed Siddaramaiah to be the next Chief Minister. Siddaramaiah was always the frontrunner but there were other claimants as well such as Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge. Congress leader D Sivkumar said, "Siddaramaiah has moved a resolution that...
03:24 PM, May 10, 2013
Bangalore: Karnataka may get the name of its new Chief Minister on Friday and the Congress legislature party is meeting on to decide who will lead the government. An AICC observer team led by AK Antony is in Bangalore for the meeting. The Congress leaders are consulting MLAs even as several aspirants throw their hat in the ring. While frontrunner Siddarmaiah has sought an appointment with UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi,...
11:57 AM, May 10, 2013
Bangalore: The battle of Karnataka Chief Minister probables isn't over yet. Many leaders have put their hats in the ring now - including frontrunner Siddaramaiah. A final name is expected after the state Congress legislature party meet later on Friday. A day after Karnataka's definitive mandate for the Congress, the bouquets and tributes still kept flowing in at Siddaraiamaih's house on Thursday. But the question of whether he will be...
07:33 AM, May 10, 2013
Bangalore: Accepting his party's defeat in Karnataka elections, Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jagadish Shettar on Wednesday said he will resign at 6.30 pm. "We accept people's mandate, will resign this evening," he said. The Congress returned to power in Karnataka after seven years, defeating the BJP by a huge margin. Securing a clear majority on its own in a triangular fight, the party is now set...
05:21 PM, May 08, 2013
Jalna: Attacking Maharashtra Government for allegedly not providing relief to people in drought-hit areas, MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Saturday said Prithviraj Chavan is an incompetent Chief Minister. "The chief minister is incompetent and has been imposed by the Congress high command," said Thackeray, after visiting a fodder camp, opened by his party at Kharpudi road. Coming down heavily on the state government, Thackeray said various organisations are opening fodder...
01:51 AM, May 05, 2013
Ahmedabad: Emphasising the need to inculcate values in youth to control social evils, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi said traditional Indian value-based systems have been painted in "secular" and "non-secular" garb. Inaugurating a youth training centre of Brahma Kumaris in Ahmedabad on Sunday, Modi spoke on recent crimes against women. "To save society from such evils, we should inculcate Indian values and culture in our youth," Modi said. "If our...
10:40 PM, Apr 21, 2013
Cuttack: After running from one hospital to another, parents of an 11-year-old girl with burn injuries staged a dharna in front of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's residence in Cuttack. The incident took place on Friday when the parents of the child were unable to admit their daughter to a hospital. The child was later admitted to the SCB Medical College and Hospital here with over 50 per cent burn injuries...
10:50 PM, Apr 20, 2013
New Delhi: Academic Madhu Kishwar on Wednesday tweeted about a threat to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's life. Kishwar later deleted the controversial tweet, but not before it was picked up by hundreds of users who debated both the authenticity of the information and the need to delete it. "Yesterday met some senior govt officers who said Modi's assassination real possibility if Teesta Congress fail to get fraud FIR against...
11:56 AM, Apr 18, 2013
Vadodara: A high-powered delegation from the Government of Argentina will meet Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in Gandhinagar on Monday to discuss issues of collaboration and investment opportunities in various fields. Governor of Mendoza province in Argentina, Dr Fransisco Perez, who is leading the delegation, said, "During the meeting, we will apprise the Chief Minister about the possibility of tie-up between Gujarat and Argentina in various fields like higher education,...
10:49 PM, Apr 14, 2013
Panaji: Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar Tuesday promised action against Saif Ali Khan-starrer film "Go Goa Gone" after a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator said it promoted smoking and showed Goa in bad light. "You give me all the detail and I will take action," Parrikar told BJP MLA Pramod Sawant, after he said that the film's publicity showed Goa negatively, apart from promoting smoking. "The poster shows Saif smoking...
05:34 PM, Apr 10, 2013
