Deepender Hooda addresses farmers at a toll plaza in Jind.
Tribune News Service
Hisar, March 21
Condemning the alleged disgraceful comments by certain BJP leaders about the protesting farmers, the Rajya Sabha MP and Congress leader Deepender Singh Hooda said the “arrogant behaviour of the BJP leaders would result in their political fall at the Centre and in Haryana”.
Addressing the farmers at the Khatkar toll plaza in Jind today, the MP said the tone and tenor of certain BJP leaders had been disgraceful vis-à-vis the agitating farmers. He said it was the unsavoury language of the ruling party leaders that seemed to have invited the wrath of the farmers.
Deepender visited the families of the two farmers who died at the Tikri border recently. Farmers Man Singh of Dindholi village and Karambir of Singhwal village had died of cardiac arrest. The MP handed over cheques for Rs 2 lakh to each of the families of the deceased and promised government job to one member of these families each.
The Congress leader said though nearly 300 farmers had died during the ongoing agitation, the farmers had not lost their patience and were keeping the stir afloat. The farmer leaders also appreciated the MP for raising the voice of the farmers in Parliament and on other platforms.
‘Lay seige to Bengaluru with tractors to protest farm laws’: Tikait
Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at the Delhi border points
Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson Rakesh Tikait at Ghazipur border during the ongoing farmers agitation against Centres farm reform laws in New Delhi. — PTI
Shivamogga, March 21
Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait has exhorted farmers of Karnataka to lay siege to Bengaluru with their tractors in protest against the three contentious farm laws passed by the Centre and convert the city to the focal point of agitation, like in Delhi.
“….you have to turn Bengaluru into Delhi. You will have to lay siege to the city from all directions,” he told a farmers’ mahapanchayat here late on Saturday.
Only tractors should be used, like in Delhi, where over 25,000 have blocked entry points to the city, he said.
Thousands of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been camping at the Delhi border points —Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur—for over three months, demanding the repeal of farm laws and a legal guarantee on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for their crops.
Tikait claimed that lakhs of farmers and their families have laid siege to Delhi by agitating at the border points and said the stir would continue until the three laws are repealed.
“Unless the three laws are repealed, unless there is a law related to the MSP, you need to continue this agitation in Karnataka as well,” Tikait said.
He said though the stir was to repeal the three farm bills, there were other ‘controversial’ bills in the pipeline, aimed at grabbing farmers’ lands, forcing them to work as daily wagers in factories
“Besides these three laws, other bills pertaining to milk, electricity, seed and pesticides will also be introduced,” he said.
Tikait alleged that privatisation of banks would result in farmers who have availed of loans through Kisan Credit Cards, with land as collateral, being asked to surrender them.
“If the farmers do not have money to repay the loans, then they will take away your land,” he alleged.
The government’s target is to ensure that in the next 20 years, all the land goes to the banks and companies and the farmers become labourers, he charged.
The farmer leader, son of illustrious farmer leader Mahendra Singh Tikait, has taken the mantle of farmers’ agitation along with his brother Naresh Tikait around Delhi and has been conducting public meetings in various parts of the country against the farm bills. — PTI
Martyrs’ ideas ‘relevant’ to farm stir: Nodeep Kaur
Labour rights activist Nodeep Kaur, while speaking to students at Punjabi University, Patiala, said various organisations would come together and hold a conference in Delhi to discuss the ideas of freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and their associates, to apply them in relation to protests against the farm laws.
The event was organised by the Democratic Students’ Organisation to commemorate the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh and his associates. Accompanied by activist Shiv Kumar, she said people associated with various organisations should come together to fight the ‘fascist’ government.
She said a conference would be organised at an all-India level on March 30. “We are also meeting trade unions and are in touch with farmer unions,” she said. — TNS
Farmer unions condemn parliamentary panel’s demand for implementation of ECAA
Essential Commodities Amendment Act is one of the three laws against which farmers have been protesting at Delhi’s borders
Farmers at Ghazipur border during their ongoing protest against farm laws in New Delhi. Tribune file photo
New Delhi, March 21
Farmer unions on Sunday condemned the demand for immediate implementation of the Essential Commodities Amendment Act (ECAA) by a parliamentary committee.
The ECAA is one of the three laws against which farmers have been protesting at Delhi’s borders.
The parliamentary panel, which also has members from opposition parties, including the Congress, TMC and the AAP, asked the government to implement in “letter and spirit” the ECAA.
These parties have been demanding repeal of all three farm laws enacted by the Centre recently.
“It is insensitive to the food security of poor people and the demand to increase the procurement of farmers’ crops,” the Samyukta Kisan Morcha, a joint front of the protesting farmer unions, said in a statement.
“We appeal to farmers, labourers and common citizens to intensify their struggle for the repeal of the three laws and legal right of minimum support price,” the SKM said.
The Morcha said it is clear from the overwhelming support from “Kisan Mahapanchayats” against the agricultural laws that the proposed “Bharat Bandh” on March 26 will be successful.
It said all services, other than emergency services, will remain suspended from 6 am to 6 pm on that day. PTI
65-year-old woman protester from Punjab dies at Tikri border
A 65-year-old woman protester from Punjab reportedly died of cardiac arrest at the Tikri border on Monday night.
Balbir Kaur, of Mandi Kalan village (Bhatinda), had been actively participating in the farmers’ agitation.
Dr Sanjay Dahiya, Civil Surgeon, Jhajjar, said she was brought dead to Civil Hospital in Bahadurgarh town late on Monday night. The exact cause of death would be ascertained after the postmortem, he added.
Balbir Kaur is the first woman protester to lose her life at Tikri during the agitation.
WALK THE TALK’, CAPT AMARINDER TELLS GEN BAJWA, SAYS PAK NEEDS TO BACK RHETORIC ON PEACE WITH ACTIONS
Chandigarh, March 19 Terming Islamabad-sponsored terrorism as the biggest hurdle to normalizing relations between the two nations, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday said Pakistan Chief of Army Staff, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, should back his rhetoric on peace with India with solid action.
Bajwa should first control his ISI, and then talk about stability in Indo-Pak relations, said the Chief Minister, adding that India cannot afford to go soft with Pakistan till they walk the talk and prove their sincerity with concrete actions.
“Infiltration into India from across the border is still happening, Indian soldiers are being killed at the borders every day. They (Pakistan) are dropping arms and heroin into Punjab via drones every other day. Efforts to create trouble in my state continue to take place. All this should stop first, only then we can talk peace,” said Captain Amarinder.
For India to trust Pakistan, the latter will have to do much more than offer an olive branch, said the Chief Minister, citing his own experience of 1964 as ADC to GOC-in-C, Western Command. “We used to receive daily reports then of firing and trouble from the western border, as we continue to do now,” he said
It is important for not just Bajwa but the entire Pakistan military apparatus to be on board with the idea of burying the past and paving the way for peace with India, said Captain Amarinder, adding that it is not New Delhi but Islamabad which has obstructed the path of peace between the two countries.
“Are they all of the same view as shared by General Bajwa? Are they withdrawing all support to terror groups immediately? Have they asked ISI to back off and leave India alone?” These, said the Chief Ministers, are questions that need to be answered before India can start believing in, and responding to, Pakistan’s overtures of peace. “India is all for peace, all Indians stand for peace, but India cannot compromise on its security and integrity,” he stressed, adding that peace cannot be conditional.
Given the way the situation has evolved over the past few months, Pakistan’s increasing collusion with China, which has been causing a whole lot of trouble for India on the other border, is a matter of concern, the Chief Minister said. “If Islamabad seriously wants peace with New Delhi, they should send out the message to Beijing, loud and clear, that Pakistan is not with them in the dangerous escapades at the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
Back your rhetoric with solid action — Punjab CM on General Bajwa’s India-Pakistan remark
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh (left) and Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa (right) | Twitter and FlickrText Size: A- A+
Chandigarh: Reacting to Pakistan Army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s remarks that it was time for India and Pakistan to “bury the past and move forward”, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Friday said he should back his rhetoric on peace with solid action.
Bajwa’s statement had come on Thursday, a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan made similar overtures following an unexpected ceasefire announcement by the militaries of the two countries weeks ago.
Addressing a session of the first-ever Islamabad Security Dialogue, General Bajwa had said the potential for regional peace and development always remained hostage to the issues between Pakistan and India–the two “nuclear-armed neighbours”.
Terming the Islamabad-sponsored terrorism as “the biggest hurdle to normalising relations between the two nations”, Amarinder Singh said Bajwa should first control his ISI and then talk about stability in the India-Pakistan relations.
General Bajwa should back his rhetoric on peace with solid action , the CM said in a statement, adding that India cannot afford to go soft with Pakistan till they walk the talk and prove their sincerity with concrete actions .
Infiltration into India from across the border is still happening, Indian soldiers are being killed at the borders every day. They (Pakistan) are dropping arms and heroin into Punjab via drones every other day.
Efforts to create trouble in my state continue to take place. All this should stop first, only then we can talk peace,” the Punjab CM said.
“For India to trust Pakistan, the latter will have to do much more than offer an olive branch,” said the chief minister, citing his own experience of 1964 as ADC to the General Officer Commanding-in-C, Western Command.
“We used to receive daily reports of firing and trouble from the western border as we continue to do now,” said Amarinder Singh.
It is important for not just Bajwa but the entire Pakistan military apparatus to be on board with the idea of burying the past and paving the way for peace with India, said Amarinder Singh on Friday, adding that it is not New Delhi but Islamabad which has obstructed the path of peace between the two countries.
Are they all of the same view as shared by General Bajwa? Are they withdrawing all support to terror groups immediately? Have they asked the ISI to back off and leave India alone, asked the chief minister.
India is all for peace, all Indians stand for peace, but India cannot compromise on its security and integrity, he stressed, adding that peace cannot be conditional.
Given the way the situation has evolved over the past few months, Pakistan’s increasing collusion with China, which has been causing a whole lot of trouble for India on the other border, is a matter of concern, the chief minister said.
If Islamabad seriously wants peace with New Delhi, they should send out the message to Beijing, loud and clear, that Pakistan is not with them in the dangerous escapades at the Line of Actual Control (LAC), he said.
Punjab CM says Bajwa should first control his ISI and then talk about stability in India-Pakistan relations
Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh and Pakistan Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa.
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 19
Reacting to Pakistan Army Chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa’s remarks that it was time for India and Pakistan to “bury the past and move forward”, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh on Friday said he should back his rhetoric on peace with solid action.
Bajwa’s statement had come on Thursday, a day after Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan made similar overtures following an unexpected ceasefire announcement by the militaries of the two countries weeks ago.
Addressing a session of the first-ever Islamabad Security Dialogue, General Bajwa had said the potential for regional peace and development always remained hostage to the issues between Pakistan and India—the two “nuclear-armed neighbours”.
Terming the Islamabad-sponsored terrorism as “the biggest hurdle to normalising relations between the two nations”, Amarinder said Bajwa should first control his ISI and then talk about stability in the India-Pakistan relations.
General Bajwa “should back his rhetoric on peace with solid action”, the CM said in a statement, adding that India cannot afford to go soft with Pakistan “till they walk the talk and prove their sincerity with concrete actions”.
“Infiltration into India from across the border is still happening, Indian soldiers are being killed at the borders every day. They (Pakistan) are dropping arms and heroin into Punjab via drones every other day.
“Efforts to create trouble in my state continue to take place. All this should stop first, only then we can talk peace,” the Punjab CM said.
“For India to trust Pakistan, the latter will have to do much more than offer an olive branch,” said the Chief Minister, citing his own experience of 1964 as ADC to the General Officer Commanding-in-C, Western Command.
“We used to receive daily reports of firing and trouble from the western border as we continue to do now,” said Amarinder Singh.
It is important for not just Bajwa but the entire Pakistan military apparatus to be on board with the idea of burying the past and paving the way for peace with India, said Amarinder on Friday, adding that it is not New Delhi but Islamabad which has obstructed the path of peace between the two countries.
“Are they all of the same view as shared by General Bajwa? Are they withdrawing all support to terror groups immediately? Have they asked the ISI to back off and leave India alone,” asked the Chief Minister.
“India is all for peace, all Indians stand for peace, but India cannot compromise on its security and integrity,” he stressed, adding that peace cannot be conditional.
Given the way the situation has evolved over the past few months, Pakistan’s increasing collusion with China, which has been causing a whole lot of trouble for India on the other border, is a matter of concern, the Chief Minister said.
“If Islamabad seriously wants peace with New Delhi, they should send out the message to Beijing, loud and clear, that Pakistan is not with them in the dangerous escapades at the Line of Actual Control (LAC)”, he said.
Brig Prahalad Singh ,Chairman Sanjha Morcha and GOG Distt Head Pathankot : coduct meeting of ESM and Veer Naris
Meeting was held at vill Taragarh on 19 Mar 21 with ESM and Veer Naree,s to listen and resolve their problems.Latest welfare measures initiated by Govt Departments were also shared.Brig Prahlad Singh ,Col SS Pathania,Col RK Salaria,Capt Sham,SM Kulwant, SM Ashok and GoG Team Taragarh
Armed Forces Tribunal has 19,000 pending cases, but here’s why this is least of its problems
With a sanction of 17 benches in 11 locations across India, the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) currently operates with just 4 benches in 3 locations.
epresentational image | Army personnel during the Army Day parade | Photo: Suraj Singh Bisht | ThePrint File PhotoText Size: A- A+
New Delhi: The Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) — a special judicial forum to address legal grievances of armed forces personnel — was set up in 2010. It was supposed to have 17 benches in 11 locations across India.
Cut to 2021, the tribunal is functioning with just four benches in three locations — two in Delhi, and one each in Chandigarh and Lucknow — with almost 19,000 cases awaiting final adjudication. Some of the undecided cases include petitions that were filed when the tribunal was set up 11 years ago.https://a0710a56e5d2817cb7f0dc0515229614.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-37/html/container.html
The government too has admitted to a shortage of members in AFT benches. Against the sanctioned strength of 34 members, only 11 — four judicial members and seven expert members — are occupied, the Parliament was informed earlier this week.
The functioning of the AFT is governed by the Armed Forces Act. An AFT bench comprises one judicial and one administrative or expert member, and functions only when the quorum of two members is complete.
While a judicial member is either a retired Supreme Court or high court judge, an administrative member is either a retired defence personnel or civil servant.
Sources in the AFT told ThePrint that out of the four judicial members, two have been on extension since October 2019. They further said that vacancies are aplenty in AFT since 2016 and the Centre has made little effort to fill them up within a reasonable period of time, leading to a decrease in the strength.
In 2016, there were six serving judicial members and 11 administrative members. Five years later, however, this figure has come down to four and seven, respectively. Resultantly, 13 benches of AFT are non-functional where no hearing takes place.
Dispute over new service rules for tribunal members is the primary reason for delay in the appointments, according to experts and AFT officials.
In November 2020, the Supreme Court had given its verdict on the validity of service rules for members serving in various tribunals — brought in by the government that February — and directed the Centre to set up a body to oversee appointments to all tribunals.
Instead of complying with this directive, the government in January this year filed an application, seeking clarification on a few directions related to the service rules.
Experts, meanwhile, said the creation of AFT didn’t really help much in disposing of grievances of armed forces personnel, who are being treated as “second rate citizens”. They also said it is entirely up to the government whether it wants the tribunals to function effectively.
ThePrint reached the defence ministry spokesperson through email for a comment on the matter, but there was no response till the time of publishing this report.
Three of 7 administrative members without much work
Given that there are only four judicial members, three out of seven serving administrative members do not have much work to do. Unlike in other tribunals, a bench in AFT cannot hear cases with just one member, AFT sources said.
It was only during the Covid-19 pandemic that the present chairman of AFT began holding virtual hearings for the three benches, generating some work for the administrative members posted there.
“Although these hearings are occasional — once a week for each bench — at least there is some semblance of normalcy,” said an official from the AFT.
Govt yet to finalise recommendations sent in Oct 2020
The bar association of AFT’s principal bench in Delhi moved the Supreme Court in 2016, raising concern over high number of vacancies in the tribunal, following which six judicial members were appointed.
However, no fresh appointments took place when four out of the six retired, after their three-year term ended in 2019.
Two of them got extension in October 2019 on the directions of the top court, which was hearing a set of petitions against new rules that is seen as an attempt by the government to impede the independent functioning of the tribunals.
The modified rules make the post of members less attractive for retired judges as well as senior officers of the armed forces, according to petitions challenging the service rules, which have been accessed by ThePrint.
The last appointment in both the judicial and administrative side was made in December 2020 — one judicial and five administrative members.
Sources in the AFT said the selection committee — headed by a sitting Supreme Court judge — has already finalised some names for judicial members that were sent to the government in October 2020.
“This selection was made pursuant to an advertisement that was issued for eight vacancies in June 2020. However, the government is yet to take a final call on these recommendations,” sources added.
Rajiv Manglik, secretary of AFT Bar Association, told ThePrint that the inordinate delay by the government to make new appointments is the reason why the AFT benches continue to work without having a complete strength.
“The government must begin the process of appointment at least six months before a vacancy arises,” Manglik said.
‘Govt treating armed forces personnel as second rate citizens’
According to Manglik, the government has failed to make sure its armed forces get speedy justice.
When cases from high courts were transferred to AFT, the oldest pending case had been filed 13 years before. The situation hasn’t improved with AFT’s establishment where the oldest case pending dates back to 2010, Manglik said, adding that it takes five years for pension matters to get adjudicated.
“Government is treating armed forces personnel as second rate citizens. Members of the forces are not permitted to make unions and associations, therefore, for them AFT is the only platform to raise their voice. However, their right for redressal of grievances through the judiciary is also not being met,” he added.
A top military lawyer, who didn’t want to be named, told ThePrint, “Around the time AFTs were being set up, there were about 9,000 pending cases in civil courts and now there are about 19,000 pending cases after the creation of AFTs. Hence, the pendency has rather increased on creation of AFT.”
‘Up to govt if it wants tribunals to function effectively’
Major Navdeep Singh (retired), advocate, Punjab & Haryana High Court told ThePrint, “The shortage of members affects all tribunals, not only AFT.”
“The rules for tribunals promulgated by the government compromising their independence were declared unconstitutional by the SC and still certain applications for clarification are pending in the court, thereby leading to delay in appointments,” he said.
Lt. Gen. H.S. Panag (retired), who had been a member of AFT, Chandigarh bench, told ThePrint that it is entirely up to the government whether it wants the tribunals to function effectively.
“I have seen in the past too that even after the selection process, the final approval from the government was inordinately delayed. Moreover, after the initial years, the litigation started going up, not only because the bureaucracy sat on the implementation of AFT judgments, but challenged several of them in the Supreme Court,” he added.
