All 120 MLAs with me, says Karnataka CM aspirant Siddaramaiah

BANGALORE: Pitching himself as the next chief minister of Karnataka, Congress leader Siddaramaiah said on Thursday that all 120 of the party's newly elected legislators were with him. The Congress, he added, was sending observers from Delhi to ascertain from them their choice for chief minister,

"The observers will brief the party high command (on legislators' choice) which will take the decision," Siddaramaiah, who was leader of the opposition in the outgoing assembly, told reporters at his residence here.

On the support he has among the legislators to become the chief minister, he said: "All 120 MLAs (members of the legislative assembly) are with me."

He did not give details of who would be coming as observers and when the decision on chief minister was likely to be announced.

The Congress won 121 seats in the 225-member assembly on Wednesday when votes polled Sunday were counted.

"I am a strong contender," Siddaramaiah had said on Wednesday even as vote count was on and trends showed that the Congress was heading for a clear majority in the house.

Another top state Congress leader who has shown keenness to lead the party's government in the state after seven years is central labour and employment minister Mallikarjun Kharge.

He had said on Wednesday that if the high command thinks he was fit for the post, it was for it to take the decision. However, he had said he did not want to be considered because he is a Dalit.

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Cobrapost sting: Action against banks involved in wrongdoing soon, RBI says

The author has posted comments on this articlePTI | May 9, 2013, 03.23PM IST

SRINAGAR: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday said it has completed investigations against banks following the Cobrapost expose and will take action if they are found guilty of violating prudential banking norms.

"We have done investigations, we have prepared an internal report. There are processes to be followed to take investigations to its logical closure...

"The first is action against individual institutions who are involved in practises which are not consistent with the banking regulation and prudential banking", he said while addressing a press conference after the RBI's central board meeting here. Web portal Cobrapost in its expose has alleged money laundering and other wrongdoing by several public and sector financial institutions ranging from the country's largest bank SBI to the youngest lender Yes Bank.

The central bank, Subbarao further said, has already taken systemic action to deal with the problem and many of them were announced in the annual policy document unveiled last week.

As far as individual banks are concerned, he said, "we got to follow procedure" before deciding on imposing penalty on them for violating the prudential banking norms.

On when the action was likely to be taken against erring banks, the RBI governor said, "not possible to indicate time frame as there are processes involved."

Subbarao further said, "if you go through policy documents that came out last Friday, there were initiatives which are by way of systemic action to address some of the deficiencies that have come to notice as a result of investigations."

Some of the public sector banks and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) have already taken action against 31 employees including suspension of 15 staff members. The investigations were still on. Certain private sector banks too have taken action against their employees.

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Bangladesh building collapse toll hits 931, hundreds of bodies still feared trapped

SAVAR, Bangladesh: The death toll in Bangladesh's worst industrial disaster on Thursday rose to 931 as rescuers overnight pulled out 97 more decomposed bodies from sandwiched floors of the ill-fated eight-storey building that collapsed last month.

"Ninety seven more bodies were retrieved since last night ... the figure now stands at 931," an official of the makeshift army control room told as the military-led salvage operation entered the 16th day on Thursday.

He said 2,443 people were rescued alive so far but 13 of them succumbed to their wounds as they were being treated at different hospitals.

Hundreds of bodies are still trapped under the debris of the illegally constructed Rana Plaza building as many have remained missing, local media reported.

The building in Savar near the capital Dhaka that housed five garment factories collapsed on April 24. It is still unclear how many people were there on that fateful day.

Police have charged the building owner Sohel Rana and five factory owners with causing deaths due to negligence and violating construction laws, charges punishable by a maximum seven years in jail.

According to police, the building owner illegally added three floors and allowed the factories to install generators.

Some of the survivors of the collapse alleged that the factory owners had forced them to work despite appearance of a huge crack on the building the day before it collapsed.

On Wednesday, Bangladesh closed down 18 garment factories temporarily as part of its efforts to allay fears of international buyers and rights groups over safety and labour standards in the country's beleaguered apparel sector.

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Former union health minister Anbumani Ramadoss released from prison in Chennai

CHENNAI: Former Union health minister and PMK youth wing president AnbumaniRamadoss was released from the Puzhal Central prison here on Thursday.

A local court in Villupuram district granted conditional bail to Anbumani in a case registered against him by police in Brahmadesam area for his alleged inflammatory remarks while addressing media persons in Chennai on May1. As part of the bail conditions, he has to report to the police station at T Nagar in chennai.

He was booked under Sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot-if rioting be committed-if not committed) and 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) of the Indian penal code.

Earlier, Anbumani was arrested by Kancheepuram police on May 3 in connection with a case filed by the Mamallapuram police under sections 143, 147 and 188 of IPC read with section 7 (1) (a) of Criminal Law Amendment Act subsequent to the Vanniyar youth conference organized by the PMK and Vanniyar Sangam in Mamallapuram on May 5, 2012.

Another case was filed on April 25 this year for violating police norms during the Vanniyar Youth conference held in Mamallapuram this year. Anbumani was granted bails in both cases filed by Mamallapuram police.

PMK founder S Ramadoss and other senior leaders have been lodged in various prisons in the state following caste clashes.

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Complaint by an NGO to NHRC on Pakistan's prisoner Sanaullah's death

NEW DELHI: A NGO has complained to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) against the custodial death of Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah Ranjay demanding a judicial inquiry in the death and Rs 25 lakh as compensation for the kin.

The custodial death of Sanaullah is a shameful incident for India which had failed to ensure safety and security of Pakistani prisoners in India despite credible apprehension about the attacks on Pakistani prisons following the murderous assault on Sarabjit Singh. This incident has proven that there is no difference in the conduct of the prison officials in India and Pakistan,'' Asian Centre for Human Rights said.

ACHR demanded a judicial inquiry and make the report public within one month, register cases under the Indian Penal Code against the prison staff and prisoners who attacked Sanaullah. The NGO has also sought Rs 25 lakh as compensation to Sanaullah's next of kin.

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Andhra Pradesh CM thanks people of Karnataka for voting Congress to power

HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh CM N Kiran Kumar Reddy thanked the people of Karnataka today for voting the Congress to power in the state.

"I thank the people of Karnataka for reposing confidence in the leadership of Soniaji and Rahul Gandhi. I congratulate all Congress leaders and workers of Karnataka for the landslide victory," he said in a statement.

He also thanked Telugu-speaking people living in Karnataka for voting for the Congress.

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Arunachal Congress MLA Jomin Tayeng dies

ITANAGAR: Sitting Congress MLA Jomin Tayeng died in a hospital at Guwahati in Assam following prolonged illness last night.

Tayeng, who represented Dambuk Assembly constituency in Arunachal Pradesh, is survived by his wife, three sons and a daughter, family sources said.

Chief minister Nabam Tuki expressed shock and grief over the death of Tayeng.

"Jomin Tayeng has left a void that would be difficult to fill in near future. He was not only an able administrator all through his life as a top bureaucrat but also a perfect people's representative after his retirement," Tuki said in a message.

The state government has declared three days state mourning from today. The national flag would fly at half-mast during the period, an official communique said.

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Kharge, Siddaramaiah in race for Karnataka chief minister's post

BANGALORE: As the Congress secured a comfortable majority in Karnataka, all eyes are now on who will become the chief minister with the race now seen as having narrowed down to veteran M Mallikarjuna Kharge and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah.

Third contender and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president G Parameshwara defeat in Koratagere considerably weakened his claim for the top post, party sources said.

While others have also thrown their hat in the ring, Kharge, the Union labour and employment minister, and Siddaramaiah are seen as front-runners.

"I don't want the post because of my caste (Dalit). I am not interested because of long-standing service to the party. If they think that I am fit for the post, then it is up to them to take a decision. I will abide by any decision the high command takes," Kharge said.

He was answering questions on whether he is in the race for the chief minister's post.

Siddaramaiah was more forthright. "I am one of the strong contenders," he told reporters here.

A backward class leader who joined the Congress six years ago, Siddaramaiah said the decision on chief ministership was, however, left to the Congress high command and the legislature party.

On the electoral outcome, he said the people had given mandate to the Congress as they wanted a "stable and clean" government and were not in favour of a coalition.

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Govt proposes written exam for state services officers to get into elite IAS and IPS

NEW DELHI: Impressive annual confidential reports (ACRs) of the state civil\police services officers will not be enough for them to get inducted into the elite All India Services like IAS, IPS and Indian Forest Service.

They will now have to appear in a competitive written examination which is to be conducted annually by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

After deciding the change in the scheme of the selection process for appointment by promotion\selection to various cadres of All India Service, the Centre on Tuesday wrote to all states asking them to give their opinion on the proposed changes on or before May 31.

Ministry of personnel, however, appears determined to allow the UPSC to conduct the competition examination for this purpose from this year onward as its 'note' to chief secretaries of states says that if the states fail to give their comments, ""it will be presumed that they don't have any comment to offer in this regard and further necessary action will be taken accordingly"".

The proposed competitive examination will be open for those state civil\police services officers who complete minimum eight years in their respective services.

The examination will test the aptitude test, general awareness and state\service specific knowledge of officers before preparing a merit list for their promotion and induction into elite central services.

The examination, carrying 1000 marks, will have weight-age of 25% in terms of their service records.

At present, induction of state civil\police service officers into the IAS\IPS\IFoS is made on the basis of review of their ACRs by the departmental promotion committee.

"Government may in future also go for the same method of promotions within the central services," said an official.

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Parliamentary panel seeks lowering of juvenile age at 16 years

NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has recommended reduction in the age of male juvenile from 18 to 16 years observing that there had been a 10.5% increase in crimes against women committed by juveniles in a year alone. It has also asked the government to draw up a unified strategy on the creating a national database for offenders and strengthening the criminal justice system including establishment of fast track courts, augmenting helplines, improving rehabilitation processes for women of sexual violence, abandoned and vulnerable women.

Describing the increasing number of juveniles involved in various crimes against women as a dangerous trend'' the Committee on the empowerment of women on the issue of victims of sexual abuse and trafficking and their rehabilitation'' said that the Juvenile Justice act was amended in 2000 to bring the age of men and women at par to 18 years but that had not produced the desired result.''

The number of crimes in violation of the Indian Penal Code committed by juveniles in 2010 was 22,740 that had registered a 10.5% increase with the total crimes registered in 2011 going up to 25,125. The crimes against women committed by juveniles have also increased the, panel found. For instance in 2010, juveniles were involved in 858 cases of rape, 391 cases of kidnapping and abduction of women and 536 cases of molestation which rose to 1149 cases of rape, 600 of kidnapping and abduction and 573 cases of molestation in 2011. Most of these crimes had been committed by male juveniles in the age group of 16-18 years.

The reasons for juveniles getting in to various forms of crime vary from impulsive disorder, peer pressure, disturbed environment to broken families, aggression, lavish lifestyle and uncontrolled freedom from parents. The Committee would like to caution on the dangerous trend of increased involvement of juveniles in various crimes against women,'' the report said. Citing the recent cases of the December 16 gang rape and the rape of 5 year old minor, the panel said that the government must take stringent measures.

The panel acknowledged vociferous demand from various social organizations, women's groups, academicians and large body of experts seeking lowering of age for male juvenile to 16 years.

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