Archive | May 2012
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Six terrorists killed in Kashmir gunfight
Srinagar: The death toll in Thursday’s encounter on Jammu and Kashmir’s border has risen to six, and Indian troops are searching the area for more bodies. The incident occurred at Uri in Baramulla district along the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan. Soldiers on the border […]
Seven Yeddyurappa loyalists offer to quit from Karnataka cabinet
Bangalore: A day after the Supreme Court ordered a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against former Karnataka chief minister BS Yeddyurappa for nepotism, illegal land acquisition and favouring top mining companies, seven ministers, loyal to him, have offered to quit from the Karnataka cabinet. The ministers – Shobha Kharandlaje, V Sommana, MP Renukacharya, […]
EU central bankers ponder Greece euro exit
Europe central bankers have been openly expressing views on the possibility of Greece leaving the eurozone as its leaders struggles to form a government. Germany’s top banker said it was up to the Greeks to decide, but if they did not keep to their bailout commitments, they would receive no new aid. His counterpart in […]
Norway warns India of ‘political implications’ if Telenor fails
NEW DELHI: Telenor’s $3 billion investment in India will have political implications. “Telenor is not just any company. 54% of the shares are owned by Norwegian people through state and thus, it has even further political implications that such a company will be harmed. If this investment fails, it will be probably the biggest loss […]
More trouble ahead? Agitating Air India pilots now want ‘clear-cut’ HR policy
Indicating more trouble ahead for Air India, Indian Pilots Guild president and NCP leader Jitendra Awhad on Saturday demanded immediate formulation of a clear-cut HR policy to pave the way for a smooth workforce integration, which is the bone of contention. The strike called by IPG, which entered the fifth day on Saturday, has crippled […]
Ambedkar cartoon row: Office of ex-NCERT adviser attacked
A group of persons on Saturday ransacked the office of Prof Suhas Palshikar, who resigned as NCERT adviser in the wake of the row over a cartoon of BR Ambedkar in school text books. Police said Palshikar was unharmed in the attack and three persons have been detained. Sachin related stories […]
Facebook IPO: Is Zuckerberg’s Hoodie a Sign of Immaturity?
Of all the things discussed and analyzed surrounding Facebook’s upcoming initial public offering, perhaps the most surprising — or just plain funniest — is co-founder Mark Zuckerberg’s hoodie. acebook launched a pre-IPO roadshow this week, meeting with investors in New York, Boston and other cities to pitch the company’s stock to potential investors. Zuckerberg […]
Obama’s support for gay marriage splits US
Barack Obama has been praised and criticised a day after he became the first sitting US president to publicly support gay marriage. Social conservatives and religious leaders condemned his remarks. The Obama campaign meanwhile attacked Republican Mitt Romney, who restated his opposition to same-sex marriage, as out of touch on the issue. Late on Wednesday, […]
Chidambaram under fire in Lok Sabha; says charge wild, reckless
The controversy over the Aircel-Maxis deal on Thursday erupted in Parliament with the Opposition dubbing it as a big scam and demanding P Chidambaram’s resignation but the home minister dismissed charges saying that neither he nor any member of his family was involved. The Lok Sabha saw a
surcharged atmosphere with BJP leader Yashwant Sinha training his guns on Chidambaram during Zero Hour and finance minister Pranab Mukherjee getting angry at the Opposition. The ensuing turmoil led to two adjournments and a regret later by Mukherjee for losing his cool.
Amid vociferous chants against him by the Opposition, including AIADMK, which was demanding his resignation, Chidambaram read out a statement issued by his son, Karthi in Chennai saying “I wish to read that statement as part of my statement.”
“I have learnt that Yashwant Sinha, made a statement today in the Lok Sabha to the effect that I have acquired and hold 5% of equity in a telecom company by name Aircel. I categorically state that neither I nor any member of my family have acquired or hold any share in any telecom company.
“In particular, I categorically state that neither I nor any member of my family have acquired or hold any share in either Aircel or Maxis,” the home minister said.
In an obvious reference to Subramanian Swamy, he said the statement was first made by a “person who is known to indulge in making wild and reckless allegations”.
It was for the second time this week that the issue was raised in Parliament.
Sinha said, “Prima facie, what has happened is a big scam and government should not hush it up” as the Rs. 4,000 crore
deal has raised several serious questions and has led to a major controversy.
He wanted a statement from Mukherjee, who is the Leader of the House as also the finance minister.
Objecting to the manner in which the issue was raised by Sinha without giving any notice, Chidambaram invoked Jesus Christ saying, “God, forgive them for they know not what they do. I pray that God will forgive the sins of these people.”
Without naming Chidambaram, who was the finance minister in 2006 when the deal took place, Sinha earlier alleged that
the minister had not recused himself when the matter came up before the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) of which he was the head.
Amid cries of ‘shame, shame’, Sinha said there was a conflict of interest as Chidambaram’s son had allegedly bought
5% shares.
He wondered as to how Maxis could buy 99.3% of the shares of Aircel when the rules permit that a foreign equity cannot exceed 74%.
Chidambaram said it was unfortunate that “the same allegation should be repeated in Parliament by an MP…it is deeply regretted that the privileged forum of Parliament is misused to make wild and reckless allegations against a private citizen.”
While he spoke, BJP as also AIADMK members stormed the Well and raised slogans.
Sinha was seen asking under what rule Chidambaram was making the statement in the House. The home minister said he was making the statement as a member had levelled allegations “against me and a member of my family”.
The turmoil over the issue is likely to continue with BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain saying that it would demand
clarification from the Finance Minister on the government stand over the issue as the statement made by Chidambaram was a “personal” one.
Sinha lamented that it was strange that he was not allowed to raise the matter in Parliament but the Finance Ministry
issued a press statement denying some reports on it.
At the AICC briefing, Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari questioned the motive of BJP in raising the issue in Parliament when Sinha is already a member of the JPC examining the entire gamut of the 2G issue.
“If they had any concrete evidence, they could have brought before the JPC instead of trying to create sensation in Parliament…BJP will not be happy with any clarification because they want to do politics.”
“They should really reflect on the propriety of raising the issue in Parliament, when the issue is before the JPC…
Government and Home Minister have given a detailed rebuttal. They have rebutted every allegation,” he said in response to a volley of questions on the issue.
Tewari gave a terse response to BJP spokesperson Hussain’s remark, “we would like to know Chidambaram’s definition of a family. We wish to know if Karthi is his son or not”.
He said that if the BJP wanted to know the definition of the words, they should consult dictionaries.
Air India moves Supreme Court against on-strike pilots
New Delhi: The Air India management has filed a contempt of court application in the Supreme Court against its on-strike pilots. The Delhi High Court had yesterday said the Air India strike is illegal. But despite this, the pilots remained defiant. Around 250 pilots from Air India continued the strike, forcing the cancellation of 48 […]
