Bengaluru: According to the sources, officials from Crime Investigation Department (CID) have arrested two persons in-connection with the murder case of renowned writer, thinker Prof MM Kalburgi. The officials had questioned several suspicious in connection with the murder of professor on October 15, 2015.

The sources said that, recently, the two suspected have acknowledged that they had murdered Prof Kalburgi for an immovable property dispute. The suspect added that they don’t have any information on the ideology, writings, books, philosophy and others of the professor instead they murdered him for property. The both accused were arrested from Kalburgi of Vijayapura district, home town of Prof Kaburgi. Meanwhile, there is no any official information on the matter either from CID or the state government.

(Agencies)

New Delhi: New Army chief General Bipin Rawat and Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa on Saturday took over as the chiefs of the two services, with outgoing General Dalbir Singh and Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha handing over charge.

(Agencies)

Lucknow: In an anti-climactic development for its political rivals, the Samajwadi Party on Saturday revoked the expulsion of Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav.

Only hours earlier, on Friday, both were ousted from the party for six years on charges of indiscipline and anti-party activities.

The decision to revoke the expulsions was taken soon after meetings to broker peace between SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and his son Akhilesh Yadav were held at the senior Yadav’s 5 Vikramaditya Marg residence here.

After a closed-door meeting between Mulayam, Akhilesh, minister Azam Khan and state unit chief Shivpal Singh Yadav, orders were issued to withdraw the expulsions with immediate effect.

The Samajwadi Party soon removed the expulsion letters of both Akhilesh and Ram Gopal from its website.

“As per the directions of Netaji (Mulayam Singh Yadav), the expulsion of Akhilesh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav has been revoked with immediate effect,” Samajwadi Party leader Shivpal Singh Yadav tweeted.

Shivpal Singh Yadav, who is Akhilesh’s uncle, said the SP will fight the 2017 assembly elections unitedly to defeat the communal forces.

He also said that a new list of party candidates would be discussed and released later on.

Shivpal, who was backing his brother Mulayam Singh in the party infighting, said all was now well within the party.

Earlier, a meeting of party MLAs was called by the Chief Minister where almost 200 legislators turned up, signalling that Akhilesh enjoyed the support of a majority of party legislators.

Following a poor turnout at its own meeting, the Mulayam camp cancelled it and Urban Development Minister Azam, who is one of the founding members of the party, began brokering peace between the warring father-son duo.

Azam Khan was sent to the Chief Minister’s camp with a message that he should show some flexibility. Soon, Azam Khan drove back to Mulayam’s residence along with the Chief Minister.

Akhilesh reportedly touched Mulayam’s feet and said he wanted to gift him an electoral victory in the state.

“The two got emotional and the stage was set for Akhilesh’s return to the Samajwadi Party fold,” a source told IANS.

Mulayam was reluctant to take back cousin Ram Gopal Yadav, but yielded after persuasion by his son.

Mulayam, however, stood his ground on senior party leader Amar Singh’s retention in the party. The SP supremo, a former Chief Minister and ex-Defence Minister, refused to throw Amar Singh out of the party, as demanded by Akhilesh.

Yadav senior reportedly wondered aloud what wrong had Singh done to the Chief Minister.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party, however, accused the SP’s first family of enacting a drama to take public attention away from the real issues.

(IANS)

Mumbai: As the 50-day deadline of the demonetisation exercise announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8 ended on Friday, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) partially eased the restriction on withdrawal of cash from ATMs by raising the daily withdrawal limit from Rs 2,500 to Rs 4,500 on each debit card.

However, with a cash crunch and only close to 40 per cent of 2.2 lakh ATMs dispensing cash, there is no change in the weekly withdrawal limit of Rs 24,000. Such disbursals should predominantly be in the denomination of Rs 500 notes, the RBI said in a late night notification.

Earlier in the day, the RBI sent out circulars to all banks asking them to report information on collection of scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 bank notes on Friday itself.

“With the closure of the facility of exchange of SBNs (specified bank notes) at the close of business on December 30, 2016, all banks should report information on collection of SBNs on December 30, 2016 itself by email. Banks should make arrangements to gather the information from all its branches accordingly,” the RBI said.

The RBI further directed all bank branches, which have accumulated demonetised notes till December 30, 2016, to deposit the notes in any Issue Office of the Reserve Bank or a currency chest on December 31 itself.

The RBI had set a daily withdrawal limit of Rs 2,500 from ATMs and Rs 24,000 from bank accounts per day. However, bankers said they are for retaining the restrictions on cash withdrawals till there is adequate supply of notes. “These restrictions will only go away when there’s sufficient amount of bank notes in the system. Until and unless that happens, they cannot take away the restrictions. The moment they take away the restrictions, everybody will want to go and draw out a lot. That becomes a problem,” SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya had told this paper recently.

As on November 8, there were 1,716.50 crore pieces of Rs 500 and 685.80 crore Rs 1,000 notes in circulation. The notes withdrawn from the system accounted for 86 per cent of the cash in circulation.

In order to prevent people from using others’ bank accounts to convert black money, the Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed amendments to the Income Tax Act, enabling the government to impose a higher penalty and tax rate on assessees of unexplained deposits, totalling up to 85 per cent.

On December 28, two days before the deadline for depositing old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes expired, the Cabinet approved promulgation of an Ordinance to make possession of a large number of scrapped bank notes a penal offence that will attract monetary fine. The Specified Bank Notes Cessation of Liabilities Ordinance makes holding of old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes after March 31 beyond a threshold amount a criminal offence that will attract a monetary fine of Rs 10,000 or five times the cash held, whichever is higher. Furnishing wrong information while depositing the old currency between January 1 and March 31 will attract a fine of Rs 5,000 or five times the amount.

However, it is not clear if the penal provisions will apply to those holding the junked currency after the 50-day window to deposit them at banks ends on December 30, or after March 31, till which time deposit of old currency notes at specified Reserve Bank branches is open.

(Agencies)

Chennai: Amid chants of ‘Chinnamma Vazhagai’ by thousands of supporters, V K Sasikala today took charge as AIADMK general secretary, the top party post.

“Amma is always in my heart,” an emotionally charged Sasikala said after assuming charge, adding she had been with Jayalalithaa for party meetings for over 33 years and that the AIADMK will continue to rule for many years.

The close aide of late Jayalalithaa first garlanded the statue of party founder M G Ramachandran at the AIADMK headquarters here after she arrived in the midst of tight security.

She then proceeded to pay floral tributes to the portrait of Jayalalithaa.

Sasikala formally assumed charge by signing papers after which she proceeded to address the gathering outside.

En route to the party office, she was given a rousing welcome by party leaders, functionaries and cadres who had gathered in large numbers.

Party activists had lined up on both sides of the road from the Poes Garden residence to the party headquarters at Royapettah to welcome her.

Sasikala, clad in a light green saree with a pink border, greeted them with folded hands.

Party flags, banners and festoons sporting bright images of Jayalalithaa and Sasikala were put up on roads, all along from Poes garden to Royapettah.

Banners and hoardings hailed Sasikala as Chinnamma everywhere.

AIADMK presidium chairman E Madusudanan, party treasurer and Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, veteran party leader and Lok Sabha deputy speaker M Thambidurai, received Sasikala and accompanied her to the party office.

Party leaders led her to the office of the general secretary where she held discussions with Panneerselvam, who is also party treasurer, Madusudanan, Thambidurai, and others.

The AIADMK headquarters at Royapettah was spruced up for the occasion. A platform was set up near the MGR statue to facilitate Sasikala to pay tributes to the party founder before taking charge. Ministers, party MPs, MLAs also participated.

On December 29, a meeting of AIADMK’s top decision making body, the general council, which was attended by all top leaders including Chief Minister O Panneerselvam, took the decision to appoint her as part general secretary by adopting a resolution unanimously.

(Agencies)

Bengaluru: Income tax (IT) department has sent notice to 1, 300 depositors those who have deposited more than Rs 1 crore without PAN details in cooperative banks in the state after demonetisation which came into force on November 08. In a bid to find unaccounted money and property, IT officials are also eyeing on the unaccounted transactions made by the cooperative banks in Karnataka.

Speaking at a press conference here in the state capital, IT Vigilance unit director Ravichandra said, after demonetisation, IT department in the state has flooded with the complaints on unaccounted transaction, money and property against individuals and organisations. IT department has served notice to 1,300 depositors for depositing Rs 2, 400 crore cash in the bank accounts without PAN details after their money deposited found unaccounted in the preliminary inquiry.

As many as 20 depositors who have alleged with unaccounted money out of 1, 300 depositors in the state have come forward to disclose their unaccounted money and pay fine and penalties for their act.

IT department has found Rs 7, 000 crore unaccounted transaction during the period between January 2016 – November 08, 2016 at various cooperative banks in Karnataka. As many as 285 cooperative banks functioning in the state and out of which more than 80% of the banks haven’t yet provided information on their transaction, IT vigilance director said. Around 59,573 cooperative bank customers haven’t yet provided information on their income and Rs 7,636 crore worth unaccounted transaction was carried out through cooperative banks this year.

(Agencies)

(Photo: PTI/File)

Chennai: Expressing doubts over the circumstances leading to death of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, a Madras High Court judge indicated that he may order exhumation of the body after a plea before the court sought a probe by an inquiry commission or a fact-finding committee.

Justice S Vaidyanathan, who was heading a two-judge vacation bench, said the public should know what has happened.

His observations came when the bench, also comprising Justice V Parthiban, was hearing the PIL filed by an AIADMK worker P A Joseph seeking an inquiry commission or a fact- finding committee to probe the circumstances leading to the death of Jayalalithaa.

“After the demise, everybody has a right to question. I personally have a doubt.
“One day it was told that she is walking, another day you said that she will come out and suddenly what happened. Even with regard to the health of late Chief Minister MGR, video was released,” Justice Vaidyanathan said.

When a special mention was made before the bench by senior counsel KM Vijayan who argued on the plea, Advocate General Muthukumaraswamy said there is no mystery in the death.

Justice Vaidyanathan asked the AG, “What is that you say. Right to live is a Fundamental Right. Public should know what has happened.”

“Even relations were not allowed to see and they are also not before the court now. I personally find in case if I have doubt I may order exhumation of the body of deceased and you have not told anything when she was alive,” the judge said.

Turning to counsel J Madanagopala Rao, who appeared on behalf of Union Government, the Judge said: “You went there. You have not reported anything. You know everything. But not reported anything for the reasons best known to you. You kept quiet.”

The bench said, “We also saw in newspapers that the chief minister was recovering, and that she was eating, signing papers and even conducting meetings. And then suddenly she was dead.”

The bench then recorded the acceptance of notice by counsel for Union Government on behalf of the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministries of Home, Law and Parliamentary Affairs and CBI and posted the matter for further hearing to January 9.
The PIL had sought a commission comprising retired Supreme Court judges to look into “questionable incidents”, including Jayalalithaa’s sudden hospitalisation, reported recovery and the cardiac arrest resulting in her death on December 5.

The PIL listed the sequence of events since Jayalalithaa’s admission to Apollo Hospitals here on September 22 and claimed that the “secrecy” preceding her death gave rise to “grave doubts” in the minds of the people.

(PTI)

Jaipur/Srinagar: Congress today demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi apologise to the nation for the “suffering” caused to the people by note-ban when he speaks on New Year’s eve and vowed to hold country-wide protests from January 6.

Attacking Modi, who is set to address the nation after end of the 50-day period he had sought from the people to ease their problems due to cash crunch, Congress’ chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that the Prime Minister is good at making announcements that are far from reality.
“Even after 50 days of demonetisation step, normalcy has not been restored.
“PM Modi’s demonetisation move has turned out to be ‘Deshbandi’ (lockdowbn of country). Development has come to a standstill. It is a scam and an uncalled move. It has resulted into economic instability in the country. Several people have died due to cash crunch across the country. It is a surgical strike on the country’s poor and has caused them immense suffering,” Surjewala said at a press conference in Jaipur.

He claimed that note ban has led to 115 deaths in last 50 days, RBI has changed its rules 126 times and it will take eight months to print the equivalent currency notes.
“Starting from January 6, we will continuously hold protests across the country against demonetisation. We demand compensation for aggrieved family members, income and sales tax rebate to traders and common man,” he said.

Congress leader Meem Afzal said the Prime Minister “has so far not had a word of sympathy for the victims, forget about an apology”.

“But we expect him to apologise when he speaks on the issue at the end of the 50 days he had sought,” he told reporters in Srinagar.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to create two crore new jobs every year but only 1.5 lakh jobs have been created in two and half years. After announcing demonetisation last month, at least 10 crore people have been rendered jobless,” he claimed.

Afzal claimed as many as 11 crore man-hours were spent every day in queues outside banks and ATMs as people struggled to withdraw their own money.

“Money was taken from people’s pockets and put in the banks. 130 crore people of the country were made to queue up for their money. The time people should have spent earning their livelihood was spent in the queues,” he said.

He said the Congress party demands an apology from the Prime Minister to the nation for these deaths and also compensation to the next of kin of the victims.

Afzal said the Congress party also demands that 18 per cent interest be paid to the people on the money they have deposited in the banks.

Alleging that some BJP leaders have been caught with stashes of new currency notes, Surjewala demanded a high-level inquiry.

“Ordinary people are standing in bank lines to withdraw money, but a parallel black market flourishes in converting black money into white by charging commission up to 30 per cent commission,” he alleged.

Surjewala also said that PM’s credibility is under cloud as his named has allegedly surfaced in Birla and Sahara dairies for receiving kickbacks when he was the Gujarat Chief Minister. BJP has rejected these charges, terming them as false, baseless and malafide.

(PTI)

Chennai: V K Sasikala, the close aide of late J Jayalalithaa, was today appointed as the AIADMK General Secretary, with the top decision-making body of the party passing a unanimous resolution to this effect.

A resolution to this effect was adopted unanimously in the general council meet held here today. The post fell vacant following the demise of party general secretary and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

Party treasurer and Chief Minister O Panneerselvam said, “In tune with party rules, honourable Chinnamma is appointed AIADMK General Secretary and a resolution to this effect has been adopted unanimously by the general council.”

Speaking to reporters flanked by senior leaders Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai and State Minister Edappadi Palanisamy, he said they were going to meet “Chinamma” to “apprise her of the party decision and to seek her concurrence,” for the party decision.

Significantly, the resolution that was adopted says “This general council adopts this resolution appointing Chinnamma VK Sasikala as the party general secretary till such time she is (formally) elected to that post in tune with party rule 20, clause 2.”

Hailing Sasikala’s contribution to the growth of the party, the resolution also says it “unanimously gives her all the powers bestowed on the position of general secretary (by the party rules) to administer the party.”

The resolution was moved by party presidium chairman E Madusudanan and Chief Minister O Panneersevlam and Edapadi Palanisamy.

The resolution makes it clear that Sasikala will be formally elected as party General Secretary at a later date in keeping with the stipulations of the party constitution.

Till such time she is elected, the party has appointed her to the post giving her all powers of that post.

In the general council meeting held in December last year, late J Jayalalithaa had participated wherein she was authorised to take poll related decisions for the 2016 Assembly polls.

In June this year, the executive committee meeting was the last party meet that Jayalalithaa had attended.

(Agencies)