Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) Congress’ Punjab unit chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring on Thursday said with the state police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) confirming that gangster Lawrence Bishnoi’s infamous interview in 2023 was conducted within the state, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann must provide an explanation.

“The SIT of the Punjab Police has informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that the viral interview of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi in 2023 was indeed conducted within Punjab, as we have been asserting since the interview aired. However, both the Punjab Police and the AAP government repeatedly denied this, insisting the interview had not taken place within the state.”

“Not only was the interview conducted in Punjab, but it was also held within the confines of a Punjab jail. This exposes the influence that a criminal like Lawrence Bishnoi has over the administration and the government, enabling him to orchestrate such activities. It is profoundly shameful to witness such power in the hands of criminals.” Warring said in a statement.

“It’s disheartening that a respected officer like DGP Gaurav Yadav was swayed by the government to claim the interview did not occur in Punjab. I have raised this issue multiple times and will continue to do so. How could such an interview take place within a Punjab jail? I now demand an explanation from the Chief Minister, who previously dismissed our allegations and confidently asserted that such an interview from within a Punjab Police jail was impossible,” he added.

“How can justice be served for Sidhu Moosewala and his family when the Punjab government appears to be in collusion with a criminal like Lawrence Bishnoi? Bishnoi seems to enjoy immunity, receiving preferential treatment even within prison walls. This raises serious concerns about the administration’s integrity,” the state Congress chief added.

–IANS

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Chandigarh, July 11 (IANS) The Congress’ Haryana unit on Thursday released a ‘charge sheet’ against the state’s BJP government, posing 15 questions.

The party also launched the ‘Haryana Maange Hisaab’ campaign to take this charge sheet and the party’s announcements to the public.

Senior leaders, comprising Leader of Opposition and former CM Bhupinder Hooda, state party chief Chaudhary Udaibhan, senior leader Chaudhary Birendra Singh, MPs Deepender Hooda, Satpal Brahmachari and Varun Mullana, among others, jointly released the charge sheet and launched the campaign here.

Hooda said all programmes that the Congress has done so far, including Bharat Jodo Yatra, Vipaksh Aapke Samaksh, Ghar Ghar Congress, Hath Se Hath Jodo Abhiyan, Jan Milan Samaroh and Dhanyani Karyakarta Sammelan, have received tremendous support from the public.

“In this series, Haryana Mange Hisaab is a new beginning. Through this, we will not only convey the failures of the BJP government and the announcements of the party to the public but suggestions are also to be collected from the public for the party’s manifesto. When the party forms the government, the problems of the people can be solved effectively,” he said.

A meeting of the party has been called in Sonipat on July 14 to prepare a roadmap for implementing this campaign.

The ‘Haryana Mange Hisaab’ campaign will formally start on July 15.

Sharing details about the charge sheet with the media, Chaudhary Udaibhan said the Congress has asked 15 questions to the BJP on different issues.

“Along with these questions, the party has also added facts and figures on the basis of which these questions are being raised before this government,” he said.

The questions include: Why Haryana has the highest unemployment in the country? Why did the BJP central government call Haryana the most unsafe state of the country? How have intoxication and drugs reached every home in the state? Why Haryana has the highest inflation in the country? and Why have government portals and IDs become the cause of corruption and a headache for the public?

Choudhary Birendra Singh said the BJP could not understand Haryana politically and socially at all.

“It always carried out politics of fanaticism and casteism. That is why this government proved to be a failure on every front. The BJP, which carried out all kinds of corruption in 10 years, also carried out political corruption by forming an alliance with the JJP,” he said.

Deepender Hooda said the party’s votes increased by 20 per cent in the Lok Sabha elections and the votes increased in all 90 Assembly constituencies, while BJP’s votes decreased in every Lok Sabha and assembly constituency.

“These results have given a clear message that the people of Haryana want change in the state and the Congress is going to form the government. To ensure public participation in the coming government, as per the instructions of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, the Congress is taking suggestions directly from the public for its manifesto, so that it can prepare a people’s manifesto,” he added.

–IANS

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Hyderabad, July 11 (IANS) As many as 55 drunk drivers, caught in Hyderabad Police Commissionerate limits, were sent to jail during the last 10 days, police said on Thursday.

A total of 1,614 motorists who were driving the vehicles in a drunken state were booked from July 1 to July 10, Additional Commissioner of Police, Traffic, P. Viswa Prasad said.

The police filed 992 charge sheets (including previous cases) in various courts and the same were disposed of.

As many as 55 drunk drivers were sentenced to imprisonment from one to 15 days. Further, eight driving licenses were also suspended.

The Magistrates have imposed a fine of Rs 21.36 lakh on all the violators.

Of the overall cases, maximum cases were booked against two-wheelers (1346). During the last 10 days, 79 motorists with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) exceeding 200 mg/100 ml of blood were caught which is well beyond the permissible limit of less than 30 mg/100mL.

The violators, who committed the offence under section 185 of MV Act, were also counselled at the TTIs of Goshamahal and Begumpet.

The Additional Commissioner said the traffic police were continuing its drive against drunk drivers to ensure road safety.

“The motorists should remember that alcohol hampers vision due to dizziness and it also dampens fear and incite humans to take risks. All these factors while driving result in accidents and many times it proves fatal,” he said.

Drunk driving is an offence under section 185 of the MV Act. The punishment is a penalty of Rs 10,000 and/or 6 months imprisonment. The driving licenses will be suspended for three months and above or permanently.

–IANS

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Jaipur, July 11 (IANS) Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma on Thursday said that despite campaigns on birth control, one community remains unaffected.

“Campaigns are being run to control the population. Everyone should be with it, however, there is one community where there is no change,” the Chief Minister said while addressing a programme at the state level organised at Rajasthan International Center on the occasion of World Population Day.

He said that the increasing population is a matter of concern not only for India but for the entire world.

The Chief Minister said that it is a matter of concern that the population of Rajasthan increased by only 60 lakhs from 1901 to 1950. “After 1951, our state’s population will be over eight crore. Due to the increasing population, there is an imbalance in nature,” the Chief Minister said.

He said that climate change is also a part of this imbalance. “In the last few years, epidemics and natural disasters have been increasing rapidly. Increasing population also affects economic development, employment, income, poverty and social security,” the Chief Minister said.

He said that it is a matter of satisfaction that due to the efforts of the state government, the rate of population growth in the state is continuously decreasing.

–IANS

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Jammu, July 11 (IANS) An interstate security review meeting was held in J&K’s Kathua district on Thursday with senior BSF and police officials discussing the latest situation on the international border (IB) and the hinterland.

The meeting was held days after terrorists, who are believed to have infiltrated from across the IB, ambushed two army vehicles in Kathua on Monday, Five soldiers, including a JCO, were killed and 5 others injured when terrorists ambushed two army vehicles near Badnota village of Kathua district, 150 km from Kathua town.

The meeting was attended by J&K DGP, R.R.Swain, his Punjab counterpart Gaurav Yadav and BSF’s Special Director General, Western Command, Y.B. Khurania, among others to review the security grid along the International Border and plug any loopholes.

J&K’s ADGP, Law and Order, Vijay Kumar, his Punjab counterpart, Arpit Shukla and Inspector General rank BSF officers of Punjab and Jammu were also present at the meeting.

The officials believe that terrorists had successfully infiltrated through the IB and managed to reach the dense forests of Kathua, connected to Basantgarh in Udhampur and Bhaderwah in Doda district. The terrorists have also used the route in the past when militancy was at its peak in the area over two decades ago. The area was later cleared of terrorist presence, but the revival of terror activities in the same area has led to serious security concerns.

A massive search operation is going on for the third day on Thursday in the Kathua forest area where the terrorists are believed to have run into after two of them were probably injured, officials said.

A search operation is also going on in the Ghati Bhagwah forests of Doda to trace the terrorists who exchanged fire with the security forces on Tuesday.

A team of the NIA also visited the Kathua terror attack site to assist the local police. Around 50 people have been detained for questioning as intelligence reports suggest the terrorist ambush of two army vehicles in Badnota village was carried out by four terrorists accompanied by two locals.

–IANS

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