Monthly Archives: August 2018

The Supreme Court’s ruling on criminal defamation comes as a disappointment. The state uses criminal defamation to intimidate media, political opponents, whistleblowers and NGOs, coerces them to adopt self-censorship and dissuades them from exposing wrongdoing. Justices Dipak Misra and PC Pant have observed that “criminal defamation doesn’t have any chilling effect on freedom of speech”. The fact that they chose to caution the judges handling defamation cases to be “extremely careful while issuing summons” shows they recognise the harassment caused in the pursuit of the case itself. Editors and journalists are frequently put to inconvenience as defamation suits are filed on flimsy grounds, sometimes deliberately in remote areas. Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s government alone has initiated 100-odd defamation cases against media and politicians.Defamation is treated as a civil offence in countries across the world. The Human Rights Committee of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights has called upon nations to abolish criminal defamation. In India criminal defamation invites a jail of two years; in a civil suit only damages are paid on conviction. Truth is a complete defence in a civil case but not so in criminal defamation where the court has to be satisfied that it is uttered in public interest. The government’s arguments were: (1) In India citizens may not have money to pay damages for civil defamation (2) civil cases can take up to 20 years to settle (3) a criminal offence alone can effectively counter defamation in social media and (4) the law is part of the state’s “compelling interest” to protect the dignity and reputation of citizens.The petitioners — Subramanian Swamy, Rahul Gandhi, Arvind Kejriwal, who all face defamation cases — had rightly pleaded that criminal defamation was used as a weapon to kill free speech. It is a tool not only in the hands of the government to stifle criticism but also powerful politicians and crooked businessmen who use the threat of criminal defamation to intimidate critics. Civil defamation is a sufficient deterrent to misuse of the constitutional right to free speech. There is merit in the argument that the case should have been decided by a Constitution Bench since the constitutionality of Sections 499 and 500 of the IPC was challenged.

Legal Correspondent

New Delhi, May 12

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Kerala police chief to constitute a special investigation team (SIT) headed by an officer not below the rank of Deputy Inspector General to probe wife-swapping and sexual abuse allegations of a woman against her husband and five other naval officers.A Bench headed by Chief Justice TS Thakur, however, rejected the alleged victim’s plea for a CBI probe, observing that this could be done only if there was any real apprehension that the state police would not do its job.Married in March 2012 to a naval officer posted in Kochi, Sujatha Ravi Kiran lodged a complaint against her husband, parents-in-law and sister-in-law alleging physical and mental cruelty, besides levelling sexual abuse charge against the five naval officers and the wife of one of them.Sujatha also pleaded with the SC to transfer the accused naval officers’ petitions for quashing the complaint against them from the Kerala High Court to the Delhi HC. The apex court Bench, which included Justices R Banumathi and UU Lalit, also rejected this plea, but asked the Kerala State Legal Services Authority to nominate a senior counsel to represent her in the HC.The SC noted that the Kerala police had filed an affidavit that there was no laxity in the investigations being conducted by a Deputy Commissioner of Police. As many as 71 witnesses, including her friends and doctors, had already been examined. Also, the probe was being monitored by the HC.“The facts and circumstances in which the offence is alleged to have been committed can be better investigated by the state police,” the Bench held.The apex court directed the SIT to complete the probe within three months and clarified that the HC could go into the officers’ plea for quashing the FIR against them in the light of the outcome of the investigations.

Youth throw stones at security personnel during a protest in Srinagar. Tribune file Photo

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, May 10

Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has urged the security agencies to conduct operations keeping in view the safety of the people so that an environment of peace and tranquillity is maintained to enable the government to implement its agenda of good governance and development.Mehbooba, chairing her first meeting of the Unified Headquarters here today, took stock of the security-related matters and peace on borders in the state. Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh was also present.The Chief Minister was briefed by top officers of the Army, police and the civil administration about the overall security scenario as well as the steps taken to maintain peace in the state.In her opening remarks, Mehbooba emphasised a humane approach while dealing with the law and order situation on the ground. She insisted that the standard operating procedures should be maintained at all costs. “Any incident of civilian killing reverses all gains that have been achieved so far,” she observed.While asking the security agencies to maintain restraint at all costs so as to avoid any civilian casualties and collateral damage, the Chief Minister said it would be in the fitness of things to give an option of homecoming to the local youth who have picked up guns.The Chief Minister also underlined the importance of United Headquarters as an apex platform to synchronise the endeavours of the civil administration, security forces and the J&K Police for evolving a cogent response to tackle the internal and external challenges to peace in the state. For a sense of normalcy, visibility of the security forces and bunkers should be minimised in the civilian areas, she added.Mehbooba stressed reducing the footprint of security forces at various tourist places and airports to cause less inconvenience to visitors and welcome them with a sense of normalcy.Referring to the importance of peace and tranquility along borders, the Chief Minister insisted upon taking forward the initiative of border tourism started by former Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed at Suchetgarh in Jammu. She also asked the security agencies to showcase the Baba Chamliyal area as a symbol of great reverence.On the smooth conduct of the Amarnath yatra, the CM stressed the involvement of the locals to facilitate the visiting pilgrims. “Kashmiris have for long been an epitome of hospitality which they have proved time and again during the yatra. Our young boys should be made part of this activity,” she said, adding that this would go a long way in generating a positive perception about the youth who are otherwise being demonised.The Deputy Chief Minister, while speaking on the occasion, appreciated the coordination between various wings of the security forces and maintained that it was due to their coordinated efforts that peace had been restored and sustained across the state and “now the onus lies on us to ensure that it remains constant”.He said necessary arrangements should be made for the smooth conduct of the Amarnath yatra.Chief Secretary BR Sharma, GOC-in-C, Northern Command, Lt Gen DS Hooda, Director General of Police K. Rajendra Kumar, GOC of 15 Corps Lt Gen SK Dua, GOC of 9 Corps Lt Gen Ashok Ambre, GOC of 14 Corps Lt Gen SK Patyal and other senior police, security and civil administration officials attended the meeting.

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, May 1

The Ministry of Finance has issued orders that pending cases concerning revision of pension consequent to the government removing the requirement of having 33 years service to earn full pension should be processed by May 31. The revision would increase the pension of the central employees concerned.The provision of having 33-year service for earning full pension was done away with in 2006 on the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission, but this benefit was not extended to pre-2006 pensioners and the pension in such cases was being calculated with the proportionate reduction. In April, orders were issued to bring them on par with post-2006 pensioners.Orders issued by the Central Pension Accounting Office on April 27 have directed all principal chief controllers of accounts, chief controllers of accounts, controllers of accounts, accountant generals and UT administrators to revise such cases by using e-revision applications available on official networks.Over 93,000 cases from 54 Central ministries and departments are pending for revision consequent to the April 6 order. The highest number (58,629) is from the Ministry of Home Affairs.

In a demonstration of India’s ‘Act East’ policy and Indian Navy’s increasing footprint and operational reach, Indian Naval Ships Sahyadri and Shakti have arrived at Subic Bay on a three day visit, as part of deployment of the Eastern Fleet to the South China Sea and Western Pacific.

During the visit, the IN ships will have professional interaction with the Philippine Navy towards further enhancing co-operation between the two forces. In addition, calls on senior Government and military authorities, sporting and cultural interactions and sharing of best practices, aimed at strengthening ties and mutual understanding between the two Navies, are also planned. The visiting IN ships are also likely to conduct exercises with the Philippine Navy, aimed at enhancing interoperability in communication as well as Search and Rescue procedures, post departure from Subic Bay. INS Sahyadri is commanded by Captain K S Rajkumar and INS Shakti is commanded by Captain Gagan Kaushal.

    Bilateral relations between India and Philippines are characterised by strong bonds of friendship based on cultural and economic ties dating back to 7th Century AD. Indian cultural influence reached the Philippines indirectly via the two great Indo-Malayan empires, the Sri Vijaya Empire based at Sumatra and Majapahit Empire of Java, which traded with Philippines. Bilateral relations between the countries received a fresh impetus since the initiation of ASEAN-India Summit level partnership and establishment of East Asia Summit, of which India is a founding member. These annual summits have provided an excellent platform for regular meetings between leaders of both countries, the most recent being in November 2015, at Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar where Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had a bilateral meeting with the Philippine President. Bilateral trade between the nations stands at US $ 1.6 billion and India has substantial investments in Philippines in the fields of textiles, garments, IT, BPO, steel, Airport and pharmaceuticals.

    The Navies of both countries have been interacting with each other regularly through port visits. The last visit by an IN ship to Philippines was in October 2015, when Sahyadri berthed at Manila. The Philippines-India Joint Defence Cooperation Committee has been set up to enhance defence cooperation between the countries and has widened the scope of defence cooperation to include non-traditional threats as well.

    The current visit seeks to enhance maritime cooperation between the Indian Navy and the Philippine Navy. It will further bolster the strong bonds of friendship between India and Philippines  and  contribute   to  security  and  stability in this vital part of the world.

Admiral Sunil Lanba at South Block before taking over as the new Indian Navy chief, in New Delhi on Tuesday. PTI

New Delhi, May 31

Admiral Sunil Lanba takes charge as the new Chief of the Naval Staff

He replaces Admiral RK Dhowan, who retired on Tuesday.

Vice-Admiral Lanba was commissioned in 1978 into the Executive Branch of the Navy. He served as Vice-Chief, headed the Southern Naval command and the National Defence College. He has commanded minesweeper INS Kakinada, frigate INS Himgiri and has been the Executive Officer of INS Viraat. — Agencies/ TNS

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 31

In a major tragedy, 16 people, including two Army officers, were killed when a massive fire broke out at the Central Ammunition Depot in Pulgaon (Wardha), near Nagpur, in Maharashtra around 1.30 am on Tuesday. The fire was followed by multiple explosions.

Later, an inquiry was ordered into the incident.

The fire started in one of the explosives stores. A Defence spokesperson said there were 16 fatalities, including two officers, Lt Col RS Pawar and Maj K Manoj. The other dead were an Army jawan and 13 civilian firefighters.

As many as 25 people have been admitted to a hospital ICU.

The fire has been brought under control, but not before extensive damage. However, secondary explosions are still feared and precautionary measures are being taken.

The depot stores artillery ammunition, which is deadly. Small arms and mortars are also stored there.

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Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag have dashed off to Pulgaon to make a spot assessment of the damage caused by the explosions.

“According to my information, the fire is now under control,” Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday. “It is an unfortunate incident. We have suffered a huge loss of lives and property. I have directed district officials to help whatever help they can. We are providing whatever assistance and resources—primarily medical assistance—required.”

“I pray that those who are injured recover quickly. I have asked Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to visit the spot and take stock of the situation,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said.

Later, Director General of Military Operations, Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, said the fire started in a shed that held “highly sensitive ammunition” and was restricted to that shed only.

Lt Gen Singh said the cause of the fire had not been ascertained yet. They were trying to assess the damage and an inquiry had been ordered, he added.

He said that among the dead were an Army jawan and 13 civilian firefighters, and not the DSC jawans as reported earlier.

The injured have been admitted to the multispecialty hospital at Wardha and a team of Army doctors has been sent from Pune. He refused to answer a question on the monetary loss caused by the fire. (With inputs from agencies)

Big find: The WW-II machine

London, May 29

A World War II-era machine used to send personal messages between Hitler and his generals by encrypting plain German text into secret code has been found on eBay for 9.50 pounds!Volunteers from the UK’s National Museum of Computing at Bletchley Park used eBay to track down the historic teleprinter for the Lorenz cipher machine languishing in a shed in Essex.It was advertised as a telegram machine and was for sale for 9.50 pounds. “My colleague was scanning eBay and he saw a photograph of what seemed to be the teleprinter,” said John Wetter, a volunteer at the museum in Buckinghamshire.He then went to Southend to investigate further where he found the keyboard being kept, in its original case, on the floor of a shed “with rubbish all over it”.“We said ‘Thank you very much, how much was it again?’ She said ‘£9.50’, so we said ‘Here’s a £10 note – keep the change!’” the BBC reported today, quoting Wetter.The teleprinter, which resembles a typewriter, would have been used to enter plain messages in German. These were then encrypted by a linked cipher machine, using 12 individual wheels with multiple settings on each, to make up the code.The museum has just received one on loan from Norway’s Armed Forces Museum, and has a video of how top secret transmissions might have sounded. When volunteers took the teleprinter back from Essex to the museum, they found it was stamped with the official wartime number from the German army that matches the one on the machine from Norway.Andy Clark, chairman of the trustees at The National Museum of Computing, said the Lorenz was stationed in secure locations as “it was far bigger than the famous portable Enigma machine”.“Everybody knows about Enigma, but the Lorenz machine was used for strategic communications,” said Clark. “It is so much more complicated than the Enigma machine and, after the war, machines of the same style remained in use.” Volunteers are hoping to recreate the whole process on June 3, from typing a message in German to cracking the code using wartime equipment.“This gives us the chance to show the breaking of the Lorenz cipher code from start to finish,” said Clark.  — PTI

New Delhi, May 26Border guarding forces of India and Pakistan are expected to hold their bi-annual DG-level talks on issues related to ceasefire violations, infiltration and digging of illegal tunnels along the International Border in July in Lahore.The last such meeting between the Border Security Force and Pakistan Rangers was held in the national capital in September last year.While the forces have mutually agreed to hold the talks between July 21 and 24 at the Rangers’ headquarters in Lahore sources said, a final call on travel will only be taken by the governments of the two countries.The proposed visit of an NIA team to Pakistan to probe the Pathankot terror attack is awaiting Islamabad’s approval.A Joint Investigation Team (JIT) from Pakistan had visited Pathankot early this year.Sources indicated a positive movement on NIA’s proposed visit could pave the way for the BSF-Rangers meeting.Officials said though the IB has been “relatively less volatile” in nearly eight months since the last meeting between the two forces compared to the frequent ceasefire violations in Jammu and Kashmir in the early 2015, infiltration and drugs smuggling continue to be a matter of concern.They said the bi-annual meeting between the two border guarding forces has been already delayed due to a number of bilateral issues.The Indian side will also raise issues related to smuggling of arms, contraband items and detection of illegal tunnels running across the IB.”The agenda for the proposed talks is in the making,” they said.The last time the two sides had met in Delhi it was decided not to fire heavy artillery like mortar shells and ensure that civilians living along the IB were not harmed.The two forces had also decided that their officials, right up to the level of Directors General, will exchange mobile numbers, email ids and fax numbers for swift communication to resolve disputes on the IB running through Indian states of Jammu and Kashmit, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat.The DG-level talks between the two sides are a bi-annual affair but many a time these meetings have not taken place due to strain in relations.The last time BSF travelled to Pakistan for these talks was in December 2013. — PTI