Propriety & Impropriety: A nation on the decline

- The Last Word - CNN IBN - 30 Oct 2012
An interesting debate last evening on CNN IBN, a distinguished panel to include an ex-Army Chief, an ex-Naval Chief and also an ex-Cabinet Secretary....of course, with the most popular anchor, Karan Thapar, hosting the show
The topic was " Ex-Army Chief Gen VK Singh demanding that Parliament be dissolved". Earlier it was reported in the newspapers that Anna Hazare and the ex-Army Chief had asked for Lok Sabha to be dissolved since the UPA government had crossed all limits of corruption. VK Singh had also said, "A new set of parliamentarians is needed. Let elections be held so that people can decide if they are satisfied".
While no one was asked on the credibility of the content and the intent of the statement, the issue basically revolved around the 'Propriety' of this demand by an ex-Army Chief, a man in uniform and on the Chief's chair till about a few months back. How could he question the very government he was serving and also enjoys the perk of retaining a government accommodation for a period of six months post-retirement. I shall not delve on the issue of this perk as the government has done no favour as he is entitled to such a perk like his predeccessors/successors and the government is only a custodian of such property and by no chance can claim ownership of such public property.
My comments shall be restricted to 'Propriety'....some definitions are 'The quality of being proper; appropriateness, Conformity to prevailing customs and usages, The usages and customs of polite society'. It is evident, therefore, that no one is questioning the legality or the technicality of such a statement...and the fingers are being pointed at an ex-Army man, a soldier in uniform!!
We need a level playing field...the Army cannot be judged on a template different from others....we are a part of the same society. Let us start from the top in the government, restricting my observations to 'propriety' only.
1. Why should the President of India not be questioned for impropriety for offering his consultancy services to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on the cabinet reshuffle? Also, was it proper for him to stand for President when his role as Finance Minister is under cloud for going slow on economic offences relating to hawala/money laundering/Swiss-foreign bank accounts
2. Does not propriety demand that the Vice President had no business to arbitrarily close the debate on Lokpal Bill at 12.00 midnight at the behest of Pawan Bansal, when the rules and advisory note by his Secretary General clarified that the session could continue
3. Propriety demands that the Prime Minister should have resigned long time ago, initially on the CVC judgement, which the PM took as 'error of judgement', his involvement in 2G scam, particularly so after the statement of ex-Cabinet Secretary Chandrashekhar, as Coal Minister in the Coalgate scam and other omissions/ discretions... the biggest damage the PM has done is that he has nullified the basic foundation of governance by his misinterpretation of 'responsibility and accountability' giving a leverage to every minister/ bureaucrat in politico-executive and executive to shun these and play safe with no compulsion to govern
4. In case propriety has to be made applicable to the Judiciary, should not ex-CJI Balakrishnan resign as Chairman Human Rights Commission for disproportionate assets accumulated by his kith & kin and offer himself for a thorough investigation
5. Propriety demands that all Governors to include Narayanan and Gen JJ Singh, appointed immediately after retiring from government appointments be asked to quit...all bureaucrats on post-retirement appointments be sent home and hereafter the government must function on its authorised establishment with total moratorium committees/commissions/advisors/consultants
6. Propriety demands that Sonia Gandhi should clarify on her state of health and source of funds/expense on her medical treatment and other visits abroad 7. Propriety also demands that all privileges of Robert Vadra and Priyanka Gandhi be withdrawn immediately as they are private persons and have no business to be allotted government accommodation, SPG cover and exempted from security checks/toll taxes ...all cases against Robert Vadra be investigated by SIT on fast track basis
8. Nitin Gadkari should resign as President BJP as Propriety does not allow him to continue in this post
9. Propriety demands that Laloo Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati and Sharad Pawar resign from the party posts and offer themselves for investigation into several disproprtionate assets cases
10. After witnessing the conduct of the Parliamentarians during the last session, does not propriety demand that the Lok sabha should have been dissolved immediately and their privileges withdrawn....all perks need to be reviewed
11. Propriety demands that the concept of VVIP/VIPs be done away with, NSG and other security cover withdrawn and those in governance start living normal lives in conformity with the dictates of a polite and cultured society
Let us not attack the messengers of change...concentrate on the issue being raised...there is no governance...the justice system has failed....the 'unelected' and the 'unelectable' are only crying that order be restored in society and the future of the nation be safeguarded... it does not matter whether the voice is raised by Anna Hazare or Arvind Kejriwal or ex-CJI JS Verma or ex-Army Chief Gen VK Singh....what matters is the "ISSUE", the issue of good governance and effective measures to arrest corruption....an aam aadmi needs such people to project their grievances and sentiments...the media does not listen to ordinary people as that does not earn them TRPs
No nation can survive by neglecting its Army....the government has not only shown scant respect for the Defence Services, it has gone out of its way to deny its entitlements and humiliated its own Army on several occasions...In the 'Rank Pay' case, it repeatedly lodged review petitions in the Supreme Court to deny the rights....What can one say of a government which cheats its own Army
Propriety demands dis-solution of the Lok Sabha, fresh elections and responsible voting by the aam aadmi, the actual custodian of this great country called India
with best regards
ajb

Italian middlemen prove Indian CBI Officials are morons

Indian officials are ‘morons’, will take years to track links, middlemen said
Manu Pubby : New Delhi, Tue Oct 30 2012, 01:52 hrs
The alleged middlemen in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter deal bragged that even if Indian investigators probed their role, they would find no money trail as the payments were made in cash, and that they would not be able to identify Sanjeev Kumar Tyagi as the person behind the affair, taped conversations that are part of an Italian judicial report reveal.
In a conversation between business partners Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa, the name of Tyagi — a Delhi-based businessman who is also known as Julie — comes up as the duo talk about payments being made in cash for the 2010 deal to procure 12 VVIP helicopters, and brag that Indian prosecutors would never be able to prove the corruption.
A part of the 568-page report records Gerosa as saying that “the only one who is safe from judicial consequence is Julie as they (Indian investigators) are morons and that there is no link”.
Tyagi, who claims to be a former Air Force officer but was not actually commissioned into the Force, is a Delhi-based consultant with an office in the city’s upmarket Ferozeshah Road area. He is believed to be active in the government sector, particularly power.
The following conversation that was recorded on March 1 between Haschke and Gerosa:
Haschke: The important (thing) is that my name does not leak.
Gerosa: Eh mine too. You are the first ring.
H: Understood.
G: If the first rings breaks I also come into the picture.
H: Let’s try to avoid that the first rings breaks, first of all!
G: We all agree.
H: And in the meantime we go on with the job.
G: The only one who has no risks is Julie, because we are those in the front.
G: There is really no link there because, I mean... cash.
H: Exactly, so they (the judges) will never be able to prove that corruption was there. They can say that engineering was expensive, though it is not even that expensive, but they can never say corruption was there. This is the essence.
Italian investigators conclude from the long-winding conversation that Gerosa was afraid that Indian investigators could get some clues that corruption took place for the Rs 3,546-crore deal.
“Haschke says they can claim that the engineering was expensive and nobody can ever say corruption took place. Gerosa disagrees and says there are some clues, Haschke says with clues you can be remanded but you cannot be sentenced. Gerosa says it just needs the judge to be convinced that corruption took place, it is not important if you have the proof of how much was paid and to whom,” the report says.
The two Italian consultants, who were extensively trailed, tracked and bugged by investigators, also brag about the fact that the commission paid has been routed through Mauritius and that it would take Indian sleuths years to track it down as they did not know about the Mauritius link. The duo express fear that their lawyer, Gautam Khaitan, may also get arrested if money laundering was probed.
Here is another conversation that also took place on March 1:
Gerosa: It’s clear that if money is no longer there, it must have gone somewhere, don’t we want to say where? In this thing even Gautam will go inside (behind bars) because (incomprehensible) Mauritius. You know when the letter of request will reach Mauritius? (incomprehensible) If they wanted... (incomprehensible)... with the letter to Mauritius (incomprehensible)....
Haschke: Before they send the letter to Mauritius, they have to understand it went there (the money). And to understand it went to Mauritius they first have to send a letter of request to Italy, then to Tunisia and then, maybe, in 10 years....
Italian investigators have also stumbled upon several Indians involved in the deal but have somehow not named them in the preliminary report. In one instance, the investigators summarised they learnt from shadowing Haschke and Gerosa as well as the conversations that were tapped THAT ....
“Following press articles regarding the corruption over the 12-helicopter deal (in The Indian Express), they talk, revealing some minute particulars regarding the sale and some people including Orsi, Spagnolini, Haschke, Gerosa and other Indian individuals involved in the case,” the police report says.
The Italian investigators have also concluded that the middlemen were receiving the “due payments” through moneylaundering operations in Tunisia and Mauritius.
“It is understood that they are receiving ‘the due’, that is the 20 million euros (rest went to Christian Michel) through fictitious operations in Tunisia. Afterwards, the money goes to Mauritius. It is also revealed that Orsi, Spagnolini and other top managers have full responsibility and complicity in the operation,” the report says, adding that the duo talk about other Italian and Indian individuals involved in the dealing.
Italian helicopter manufacturer AgustaWestland has denied that it used agents or intermediaries for the India contract even as it admitted that it was aware of the preliminary investigation in the case.
Indian officials are ‘morons’, will take years to track links, middlemen said
India Operations
Haschke and Carlo jointly run Aeromatrix, the Chandigarh-based services company specializing in aerospace and a host of other sectors. The former, known for his connections in Indian military sector has been on the board of Emaar MGF in the past. With a series of corruption charges levelled against Finmeccanica, Italian prosecutors tapped the phone of Guido Haschke, the alleged middleman, while probing into the deal. They have informed the judiciary about the outstanding evidence procured by them. A part of the commission that was paid was routed through Mauritius and Tunisia, along with details of the tapped conversation.
Denial
A day after The Indian Express reported an Italian investigation report into corruption allegations in the VVIP helicopter deal, lawyer Gautam Khaitan, who has been named as one of the persons being investigated, has said that he has no role in any defence deal and his contact with alleged middleman Guido Haschke was limited to being a legal counsel.
“I strongly deny all such allegations and insinuation of my having any direct/indirect involvement in any defence deals along with the alleged deal of VVIP helicopters. There is no question of any wrongdoing. I and my firm are acting as the lawyers for Aeromatrix for the limited purpose of helping the company with its statutory compliances in India and some other petty day-to-day matters,” Khaitan said.
Meanwhile, the Indian Air Force has said that it has no records that Sanjeev Kumar Tyagi, who has been identified as a former air force officer in the Italian police report, has ever served with it.
The Italian report, however, does name Tyagi as one of the three Indians whose names figure in the chargesheet and has records of his conversations and meetings with Haschke. The report names him as a former IAF pilot who is now a Delhi-based businessman.
Sources, however, indicate that Tyagi did join the air force academy and train to be a pilot but may not have been actually commissioned into the air force. He is believed to be very close to several senior air force officers. Click here for the original post

OROP: Rajeev Chandrasekhar writes to PM

Honour the Commitment and Implement One Rank, One Pension for Armed Forces Veterans, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar - October 08, 2012

Letter to PM

PM Response
Rajeev Chandrasekhar Speech in Special Parliament Session
Speech by Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP, during special session of Parliament on 60th anniversary of Indian Parliament. On the occasion, Rajeev Chandrasekhar urged for introspection and credible action to regain the faith of people in Indian Parliament as an institution.

Tatra Scam: Will Tejinder Singh sing?

Tatra scam: CBI carries out raids, registers case against Tejinder Singh Oct 20, 2012
New Delhi: CBI today carried out raids at five places here after registering a case against Lt Gen (retd) Tejinder Singh on Ex-Army chief VK Singh’s complaint that he was offered bribe to clear a tranche of “substandard” vehicles.
CBI sources said the agency has registered a case against Tejinder Singh and unknown persons after it gathered prima-facie evidence to register a formal case on the complaint of Gen Singh.
Soon after registering the FIR under relevant sections of Prevention of Corruption Act, the agency carried out searches at five locations here including the premises of Tejinder Singh, they said.
After getting a formal complaint from Gen Singh, the agency had initiated a preliminary enquiry in April this year.
The then Army chief had alleged that Tejinder Singh offered him a bribe of Rs 14 crore, a matter he had reported to Defence Minister AK Antony, to clear purchase of nearly 600 all-terrain Tatra BEML trucks in September 2010.
Tejinder Singh has refuted the allegations and also slapped a defamation case against Gen Singh.
As part of the Preliminary Enquiry, CBI has looked into the alleged relationship Tejinder Singh enjoyed with the Vectra group which purportedly prompted him to make the offer to the then Army Chief, the sources said.
During the course of the preliminary enquiry, the agency has questioned Tejinder Singh with regards to allegations levelled by Gen Singh and his alleged relations with arms dealers including Vectra Chairman Ravinder Rishi.
Tatra scam: CBI carries out raids, registers case against Tejinder Singh

1962 war: Governance of the Mughal style caused the defeat

‘Few lessons learnt from 1962 war’
by F wire Oct 13, 2012
New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) India was engaged in a bruising war with China in 1962 because the apparatus of the state was at fault but no lessons seem to have been learnt from this, diplomatic, military and media veterans of the “humiliation” that the country suffered 50 years ago lamented.
“The 1962 conflict occurred because the apparatus of the state was at fault but we still don’t take structured decisions,” former top diplomat K.Shankar Bajpai said at the second round table discussion on “50 Years After 1962: India-China Relations” organised by the India International Centre, the Subbu Forum and the Society for Policy Studies (SPS) Friday evening.
“The 1962 conflict was a total example of what a government should not do. It was governance of the Mughal style,” Bajpai, a former ambassador to China, US and Pakistan who was also the convenor of the National Security Advisory Board contended and then posed a question: “Have we learnt from it?”
He left the answer hanging but the implication was quite clear: that 50 years down the line, no lessons had been drawn from the conflict.
Another security expert, Brig (retd) Arun Sehgal, echoed Bajpai.
“Their is talk of jointmanship but there is no thinking on integrated joint operations. Because of this, there is no common operating picture,” he said.
Sehgal also rued that the Indian establishment continues to think that China will follow “the attritional policy of 1962″, while in reality it was “enhancing its capabilities for asymmetrical attacks”.
Lamenting the “casual decisions taken in Delhi”, Mohan Guruswamy. a China expert of the Observer Research Foundation, said: “In 1962, there was no coordination, there was casual decision-making. Are we condemned to repeat it?”
Inder Malhotra, veteran journalist who covered the war, said it was a result of a “total misreading of the situation” by prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru who never thought the Chinese would make an all-out assault but only resort to “small skirmishes” to settle their territorial claims.
“Indian forces at the time were hopelessly unprepared, Malhotra said. He said if the Indian Air Force was used to give air cover to the Indian Army – a flawed decision that has been rued by military experts since then – the results of the war would have been totally different.
However, Arvinder Singh Lamba, former vice-chief of army who retired recently, dismissed such fears saying “there was no scope for any surprises (from China) in future.
“We have come a long way,” he said, in terms of enhancing border surveillance and intelligence and fortifying border infrastructure.
C Uday Bhaskar, former director of the Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), added that the much expected ‘Asian Century’ of the 21st century would be determined by the texture of the Sino-Indian relationship over the next two decades. Enhancing comprehensive national power is imperative , he added, but bemoaned the fact that the Indian political establishment has little time or comprehension of complex national security issues.
‘Few lessons learnt from 1962 war’
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OROP: The viral mutates to a damp squib

80th Raising Day of IMA and OROP
MONDAY, 01 OCTOBER 2012 00:17 BRIGADIER (RETD) CS THAPA
The news regarding one-rank-one-pension first emerged on the ticker around 7.30 and by 8.30 pm it went viral, thanks to mobiles.
There is a trust deficit between the veterans and the Government and none was keen to pour out the bubbly even though a neutral press was saying so, every one wanted to see the fine print. The veterans are further divided into the haves and the have-nots, or the ‘we’ and ‘they’ between those that retired before or after the sixth pay commission. The pre-veterans refused to believe it and sure enough they were proved right the moment the fine print was out. The fiasco regarding the one-rank-one pension clearly shows the misleading tendencies both of the Government and a Press which does not verify before broadcasting -- all this shows the establishment in a poor light. This is at best a gap removal exercise -- the OROP is miles away. A jawan has got a paltry increase of four hundred rupees, is that what costs the exchequer Rs 2,300 crores? The farmers got Rs 42,000 crores from UPA-I as loan waiver and the State Government electricity boards got a waiver from UPA-I for transmission losses (means stealing electricity) and the soldier for all his sacrifices gets peanuts. All this clearly shows that the veterans have a long way to go -- as long as there is babudom, we all need to read the fine print. The Tehri area has a large number of ex-servicemen one has not heard the issue of OROP being thumped on the table by any of the Tehri Parliamentary bye poll candidates- wonder if it matters to them.
Closer home, the Indian Military Academy gets ready to celebrate its 80th Raising Day, and it’s been a long journey for the Academy. The Academy has seen a passage that has been eventful and is getting ready to be dressed for the occasion. The event is likely to be a two-day event, needless to say most of us are looking forward to a good round of golf and the celebrations the next day on October 1. Such occasions normally start with a solemn ceremony wreath laying at the war memorial in honour of those who sacrificed their today for our tomorrow, and other events such as the sound and light display in front of the Chetwode building followed by dinner. One has learnt that the CM is attending the sound and light display -- wonder how he finds the time in the middle of electioneering?
The last time one attended the sound and light display it was when my friend Raj Sujlana was the Commandant. Raj is busy now recruiting people in Punjab but the sound and light legacy that he left behind is going to be seen all over again.
Forty years ago when one passed out of the Academy it was producing officers for a victorious army. The mood was different and the Academy was the connoisseur as far as officers’ training was concerned. The Americans were licking their wounds of Vietnam andPakistan was a dismembered state. The seventies and early eighties were iconic years as far as operational thought and plains warfare in the army was concerned
Then came the rebound, by Pakistan burning the Kashmir flame and starting the strategy of death by a thousand cuts, the academy had to modify its curriculum. Counter Insurgency (CI) operations and small unit operations took center stage due to a proactive media, during that stage one was a battalion commander at IMA. The academy responded well with a CI operation capsule and other changes. Suddenly Kargil dawned and the blood and guts story of the academy was highlighted. Its tough physical training had stood the test of high altitude and high endurance, some of the bravest of the brave were just out of the academy our cadets of yesterday are national heroes of today, and the academy had delivered again.
Today in its 80th year the academy again stands at crossroads. The road ahead is difficult and full of challenges. The current requirement is of a soldier scholar whom the academy is trying to nurture and bridge the intellectual gap. There are many challenges that the academy faces, needless to say it can be a separate topic of discussion but the nature of warfare is changing and the academy has done well to take measures to address this change. It becomes difficult to make changes in established mindsets and set norms therefore; one does not grudge the commandant, but he is up to doing the needful.
There is an air of expectancy as a lot of changes have been carried out to the curriculum. The bulk of the Academy has shifted to South Campus and Gentleman Cadets go scurrying about their training. The academy still attracts good material because the academy is over subscribed and there is a marked difference in the body language of a third term GC about to pass out to that of a first termer, but language skills are definitely on the decline.
The challenges for the academy not withstanding most intend to line up our stomach with butter as we wait to see the sound and light display. I know for a fact that all events done on the drill square ground in front of the Chetwode are always nostalgic and memorable; it’s the ambience of the surrounding. No wonder how many passing out parades one may witness, the last one is always the best so also will be the sound and light display. As my wife and I walk down for dinner to the new South campus mess we always miss the old mess, it was so cramped that we met one another out of sheer lack of space.
80th Raising Day of IMA and OROP

India hit by Corruption Bombs

October 10, 2012, 9:45 a.m. ET
India Plans Changes in Anti-Corruption Law By ROMIT GUHA
NEW DELHI--India's government is planning to amend the country's anti-corruption law to plug its loopholes as well as to add provisions to book corporates that fail to prevent bribery and protect honest officials, the prime minister said Wednesday.
The reforms initiated in the early 1990s did reduce many corrupt practices, but the subsequent, faster economic growth led to newer opportunities for corruption, Dr. Manmohan Singh said in a speech to the federal agencies that investigate corruption cases.
While the corrupt should be "relentlessly pursued," the innocent shouldn't be harassed, he said.
Dr. Singh's speech comes in the backdrop of a slew of corruption allegations faced by the Congress party-led coalition government on issues ranging from allocation of radio bandwidth to the grant of coal blocks and the organization of the Commonwealth Games in 2010. The most recent issue involves allegations of corruption against the relative of a top ruling-party leader.
The government has denied any wrongdoing in all these cases. These allegations have left the government scrambling to contain the damage to its image rather than work on its legislative agenda. Many say officials were wary of taking decisions fearing they may come under the scanner at a later date or get pulled up by courts.
The government has promised not to protect those involved in wrongdoing. Several senior government officials and lawmakers, including a former telecoms minister in Dr. Singh's Cabinet, are facing criminal charges of conspiracy. They have all denied the charges.
"Experience has also shown that big-ticket corruption is mostly related to operations by large commercial entities," Dr. Singh said. "It is therefore also proposed to include corporate failure to prevent bribery as a new offence."
He said the amendment will seek to tackle a loophole in the existing law which doesn't have any provisions to prosecute the bribe provider.
New Delhi is working on a system to transfer benefits under social-sector programs directly to the bank accounts of people, instead of distributing them through government agencies, he said. It also plans to pay cash to consumers instead of some subsidies it currently gives to companies for selling their products at state-set prices. While reiterating the importance of fighting corruption, Dr. Singh said the "mindless atmosphere of negativity and pessimism" that is created over corruption can only damage the country's image and hit at the morale of the government.
India Plans Changes in Anti-Corruption Law

OROP: Koshyari Committee negated and fudged by Cabinet Committee

M 35 Palika Bhawan, RK Puram, Sector 13, New Delhi 110066. Dear Friends,
We had the pleasure of meeting the Hon'ble Raksha Mantri on 29 Sep, 2012 with regard to the latest announcement on OROP.
Brig Bhagwan Singh, Air Cmde Sushil Soni, Col Raj Singla, Lt Nar Singh Dass and Capt Mangal Singh were part of my Delegation.
The exchange of pleasantries were followed by the submissions we had gone to make. Before we however got down to talk about the problems, we presented the RM with a Memento commemorating the 30th Anniversary of our Association.
To begin with we presented him with a paper about the recent award prepared by our team led by Lt Nar Singh Dass, our Gen Secy on Pensionary Matters. This dealt with what we got as a result of this announcement in real terms. (Paper follows). This was prepared with whatever little information we had. We welcome comments from all of you on what we have stated so that the entire paper can be corrected to give as true a picture as possible.
We apprised him that what has been given is no where near OROP and it all tantamount to bureaucracy cheating us the Veterans and misleading the leadership.
He agreed that what has been given is not OROP but assured that they have given this much for now. More will follow.
We then submitted that the recent Koshyari Committee had worked out the expenditure of Rs 1300.00 crores for grant of full OROP. The Cabinet Secy's Committee has not even given 25 % of what OROP signifies and has announced the sanction of Rs 2300.00 crores, almost twice the amount required for meeting this one single most important demand of OROP for the last 31 years.
With this one stroke, not only they achieved their aim of denying us our rightful dues but also conveying to the leadership how generous they are, as against our demand of Rs 1300.00, they have sanctioned 2300.00 crores. Indirectly also conveying to the leadership how ungrateful and greedy we the veterans are that an amount of Rs 2300.00 crores also does not make us feel grateful to the Gov't and satisfied.
We also submitted what we feel, may have been done to bloat this figure-
Bureaucracy has been misleading the leadership for over 15 years on Rank Pay which the Fourth CPC had granted and very proudly denied to the Veterans by the bureaucracy. Recently the Govt lost that case. The Hon''ble Supreme Court has directed the Govt to pay the dues amounting to Rs 1600.00 crores within three months with interest. This being the Supreme Courts final order has to be carried out.
We submitted that obviously, the bureaucracy has clubbed this amount of Rs 1600.00 crores with another Rs 700,00 crores of the total amount of Rs 1300.00 crores required for OROP and made it Rs 2300.00 crores.
We then appealed to him to please have the matter investigated. Any body found guilty of misleading the leadership should be punished. We further appealed that the Gov't should also take appropriate action to find out the persons who were responsible for the sufferings of the veterans in Rank Pay case. Once they are identified they should not only be proceeded against but also made to pay the interest amount to the affected veterans.
I am glad to say that The Raksha Mantri gave us a very patient hearing and we expect that the more to follow comes up fast.
Lt Col Inderjit Singh
Chairman

LETTER TO RM ABOUT OUR ASSESSMENT OF THE OROP AWARD - 29 SEP, 2012
In July this year, after assessing the situation arising as a result of ongoing unrest in the Armed Forces, you were very truthful when you warned the Prime Minister about the possibility of things turning bad.
The entire Veterans community admired you for that as that was the strongest representation of our cause by any Raksha Mantri I had seen in the past thirty one years. Our hopes and aspirations rocketed sky high as it was the first time any body had ever put across the true picture about our legitimate demands. These were however short lived.
The first knock we got when the Prime Minister appointed a Secretaries Committee under the Cabinet Secretary to attend to our most legitimate and some very longstanding problems. The most important of these being OROP. When all this happened I wrote a letter to the Prime Minister and also sent you a copy. I enclose a copy for your kind information. I never expected it to reach his desk and I have been proved right.
The disastrous trends started showing up when there was no representation of the Armed Forces or Veterans in the Committee. The turning down of the appeal of even the three Chiefs on this issue was an ominous sign of impending disaster. Which did finally happen.
I wish to most emphatically state that over the past thirty one years, what ever we got, it was through the Congress Gov'ts. Other parties firstly did not understand our problems, when we did explain to them they flattered to deceive.
Since the Congress genuinely wanted to solve our problems they had developed a culture of forming committees with our representation on these, so that correct decisions based on facts are taken for solving our problems. Thus earning the sobriquet of being the most friendly party of the Armed Forces. This reputation is at stake with all the latest developments.
The High Level Empowered Committee, 1990 was the last one in which we were represented when we ensured that the bureaucracy did not get away with their lies. Many problems including OROP as a result got solved.
That is what the bureaucracy could not tolerate and set about creating a new culture of forming inter ministerial committees, Cabinet secretary's committees or a GOM in which we were left out to enable them to play havoc with every demand of ours. All such committees are set up to get rejection certificates of our demands by lying to the leadership. The more powerful the Chairman the more powerful the rejection certificate. In 2009 they got a certificate which they have been throwing at us. Now they have got another one which they will utilize to bury OROP for ever.
What they must be doing in the proceedings of the Committee is evident from the Rs 2300.00 crores expenditure on our demands they have sanctioned.
Recently Koshiary Committee had worked out the expenditure on grant of full OROP as Rs 1300.00 crores. They have not given us even a fraction of OROP but want us to believe that the expenditure on what trash they have worked for us is Rs 2300.0 crores. Can the leadership ask them to explain how this figure has been worked out.
I cant say for sure till I inspect the files, but what I can make out is that they fudged the figures to brow beat the leadership into accepting their views of rejecting OROP.
As you are aware, the Govt has finally lost the case with regard to Rank Pay after a prolonged litigation. The expenditure for that is Rs 1600.00 crores with which the bureaucrats can no more fool around as it has to be paid within three months Add to that Rs 1300.00 crores for OROP, the total works out to Rs 2900.00 crores. To my mind they have clubbed the Rank Pay amount with Rs 700.00 crores of the Rs 1300.00 crores of OROP and made it Rs 2300 .00 crores. Rs 1000.00 crores more than what Koshiary Committee recommended. How clever and a half. They killed two birds with one stone. First, they have achieved their aim of denying OROP and more than that they have impressed the leadership of their generosity in giving more than their dues. In fact what they have given is a matter of disgust.
By denying the Veterans OROP the bureaucrats have not only shattered the hopes and aspirations of the veterans, but have also added salt to their injured feelings.
I therefore appeal to you to kindly scrap the recommendations of the Cabinet Secretary and grant us all that is our legitimate due before it is too late. You perhaps would recollect that your promise of 21 Feb 2010, to give us full parity with Sixth CPC rates, is yet to be fulfilled.
Further start an inquiry for making an example of the bureaucrats responsible for lying to the leadership about OROP and delaying the dispensation of justice to the officers in Rank Pay case for more than 15 years.
That is the least we expect from our Messiah who took up our cause strongly earlier.
The Hon'ble Sh AK Antony The Raksha Mantri Govt of India New Delhi 110001
Letter to Our Prime Minister- OROP of 17, July 2012

Adarsh Scam: Judicial Commission being bombed by lies!

Had no idea of kin having flats in Adarsh: Chavan
Thursday, October, 04 2012 - 17:35
MUMBAI:Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, whose three relatives got flats in Adarsh, today claimed before the judicial commission probing the scam he came to know of their membership in the housing society only after the news of alleged irregularities was broken by the media.
"It was at the end of October 2010 that I came to know that some of my relatives had applied for membership in Adarsh society and the same was granted to them," he told the two-member inquiry commission led by Justice (retd) J A Patil set up by the Maharashtra government to probe the Adarsh scam.
Chavan's mother-in-law Bhagvati Sharma, his father-in- law's brother Madanlal Sharma and his sister-in-law Seema Sharma had flats in the building.
Chavan, who had to step down as chief minister after it emerged that his relatives had flats in the scam-tainted housing society, appeared before the commission today for the second time.
He had earlier deposed before the commission in June to answer allegations against him of bestowing undue favours while granting permission for construction of 31-storey Adarsh building in high-end Colaba in south Mumbai.
Replying to questions put forth by commission's counsel Dipan Merchant, Chavan said he was not aware that his relatives had applied for membership in the Adarsh society.
In his brief appearance that lasted barely 10 minutes, Chavan said he was also not aware if Seema Sharma's application for membership of the society was rejected in 2004 but approved in 2008 when he was the chief minister.
He said soon after he came to know of the membership of his relatives "at the end of October 2010", they relinquished it on October 29 the same year.
Had no idea of kin having flats in Adarsh: Chavan

Remembering Father of our Nation Mahatma Gandhi

Throughout his life, Mahatma Gandhi inspired countless Indians to lead a simple and principled life free of vices and desires. His message of non-violence that he practiced against the British rule in India has inspired many important world personalities. On Gandhi’s birth anniversary, Guylife presents a few important people who have been inspired by the Mahatma.

Aung San Suu Kyi
Prominent Burmese freedom fighter Aung San Suu Kyi has been heavily influenced by Gandhi’s life and teachings apart from Buddhist philosophy. Suu Kyi has been credited with ushering in reforms in Burma (now Myanmar) that is helping the country reach out to the world by removing sanctions placed against the country that is ruled by military junta. Suu Kyi has said she read works by Gandhi to keep herself disciplined when she was placed under house arrest by her country's military dictators.
Last week, addressing a packed hall of students at Columbia University where she got a standing ovation, the 67-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner said she has been very inspired by Gandhi's writings and strongly urged the students to read his works. "Gandhi is somebody really phenomenal. I think you must all read his works, the more you read Gandhi, the more impressed you are by who he was and what he was. You must remember that change through non-violent means was not ever thought of before Gandhi. He was the one who started it, he was the one who decided that it is possible to bring about revolutionary change without violence," Suu Kyi said.
Leaders Inspired By Mahatma Gandhi by Priyanko Sarkar|Posted on Oct 1st 2012|
Comment: So sad to see our MP's living a lavishous life style at the expense of the tax payer. Their performance can be seen on daily basis through the Parliament session...

Mystery: BEML, Tatra Sipox and Venus Projects payments routed to tax haven

BEML payments to UK Tatra Sipox for deal routed to Rishi's Hong Kong firm
Josy Joseph, TNN Aug 11, 2012, 02.48AM IST
NEW DELHI: Investigators are bewildered by the strange financial relations between Tatra Sipox UK, the British company that had been supplying Tatra trucks to BEML, and another company in Hong Kong controlled by the controversial NRI businessman Ravi Rishi.
The CBI is investigating irregularities in the purchase of all-terrain Tatra trucks by defence public sector unit BEML for the Indian military. Allegations of irregularities in the deal were sent to CBI for investigation by defence minister A K Antony earlier this year, but it hit headlines after former Army chief General V K Singh claimed that he was offered a bribe of Rs 14 crore to approve purchase of a new batch of Tatra trucks.
Rishi, who controls Tatra Sipox UK and is the prime accused in the CBI FIR into the Tatra scandal, recently moved the Supreme Court seeking permission to travel abroad. CBI has opposed the demand.
What brings a mysterious twist to the Tatra scandal is the relation between Tatra Sipox UK and Venus Projects Ltd of Hong Kong. Venus is controlled from the secretive tax haven of Liechtenstein.
Investigators have been given details by banks and others concerned to establish that every time Tatra Sipox received a payment from BEML, the entire amount was immediately transferred to the account of Venus. In return, Venus gave Tatra Sipox just a 1% commission. "Tatra Sipox was just a transaction handling agency with no powers at all," a source said.
To make the entire transaction easy, both Tatra Sipox and Venus had their bank accounts with Canara Bank in London, and operated them in euro currency. In fact, on February 6, 2007, BEML agreed, for strange reasons, to change the procurement currency from dollar to euro, which led to significant loses to BEML over the next few years. Once BEML issued payments in euro, there was no currency conversion costs on either Tatra Sipox UK or Venus Projects.
With the fresh revelations that Tatra Sipox did not even have the right to decide on the payments received from BEML, the attention should shift to Hong Kong-based Venus Projects. According to documents of Venus Projects until 2011, all the shares of the company were held by Deswa Holding Establishment based in Liechtenstein.
By January 2012, Tatra Sipox was fully owned by Vectra Ltd, which in turn was also run by a trust in Liechtenstein.
BEML had signed a contract with Tatra Sipox in 1997 for a 10-year period for the supply of the all-terrain trucks and its parts. In 2003, four years before the contract expired, the PSU renewed its contract with Tatra Sipox to extend the "scope of working relationship", according to the CBI FIR into the case.
BEML is believed to have told the defence ministry that it was entering into a contract with a fully-owned subsidiary of Tatra AS, the Czech manufacturer of the all-terrain trucks. However, CBI is now convinced that Tatra Sipox UK had nothing to do with the original equipment manufacturers.
And with the latest revelations of Venus Projects being the real 'controlling authority', the Tatra contract has assumed more complex hues. Tatra Sipox emerged on the scene after the collapse of Czechoslovakia into Czech Republic and Slovakia. The company was incorporated in UK in 1994.
BEML payments to UK Tatra Sipox for deal routed to Rishi's Hong Kong firm
Related Reading

Black money case: Centre declines to make names public

Tracking Tatra: How are Chidambaram and Vayalar connected?

OROP: Ministers blow Rs 680 crore hole in the austerity plan

No money for "One Rank One Pension" for the Military- Critical Finances: Click here
Twelve-fold blow to UPA government's austerity plan as globe trotting ministers blow Rs 678 crore of taxpayers' money
By MAIL TODAY REPORTER
PUBLISHED: 21:19 GMT, 26 September 2012 | UPDATED: 22:23 GMT, 26 September 2012
The testing economic situation may be the time for austerity but try telling that to the UPA government's globe trotting ministers.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his ministers have blown Rs 678 crore of taxpayers' money on their travel in 2011-12 - which is more than 12 times spent during 2010-11, when it was Rs 56.1 crore, an RTI application filed by Delhi-based activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal has revealed.
The PM himself has been criss-crossing the globe in the past two years. Multi-lateral and bilateral visits have taken him from Moscow, the Maldives, and Afghanistan to New York, Bali and Cannes.
His South Block cabinet colleague - external affairs minister S.M. Krishna - also clocked up the air miles with 28 foreign trips - From New York, Islamabad, Beijing, Bali, Singapore and Australia to Israel and Palestine.
'The tours are for official purposes. At the age of 80, it should be appreciated that senior ministers can travel so much. These are not pleasure trips,' a South Block official said.
The reason for the quantum jump in expenditure is also because the ministers flew in chartered aircraft many times - for instance the Indian Air Force Embraer or the Air India airbus hired by the external affairs ministry for Krishna's visit to Pakistan.
Commerce minister Anand Sharma has logged eight visits to Switzerland, South Africa, Pakistan and France.
His senior colleague, defence minister A.K. Antony, logged six foreign tours during the last two years.
While former finance minister Pranab Mukherjee also travelled to six overseas destinations (including the US, Nepal, Vietnam and France), tourism minister Subodh Kant Sahai travelled to five destinations. The UPA allies are breathing fire. 'The ministers take family members and hangers-on at the taxpayers' expene. The government must give an account of this in Parliament,' Rajendra Chaudhary, SP spokesperson, said.
The Opposition, too, has rapped the government. While some of these trips can be justified because of official reasons, the government must introspect on the rising cost of these official tours.
Read more:
Twelve-fold blow to UPA government's austerity plan as globe trotting ministers blow Rs 678 crore of taxpayers' money

OROP: Misleading Headlines- Media and ESM taken for a Ride?

References- Economic Times:

Cabinet clears Rs 2,300-crore package for one-rank-one-pension for armed forces

One Rank One Pension: Ex-servicemen unhappy with govt's announcement of pension hike

Amarinder Singh hails one-rank-one-pension for ex-servicemen
Dear Editor of Economic Times,
I would like to bring to your notice of a misleading Headlines in ET dated 25 Sep 2012.Click Here. The Government Press Note, of Course, has mislead thousands of Ex-servicemen on granting of OROP.
6th Pay Commission had recommended a Pension Formula for Pre-2006 Defence Retirees. Further, the Commission had recommended that Pre 2006 retirees should at least get a minimum pension that is half of lowest end of the revised Pay scale/fitment scale granted to serving personnel of equivalent rank. But the Bureaucrats in implementing this recommendation wrongly interpreted that the Retirees would get half of the minimum of PAY Band where their rank along with other ranks figured. This simple anomaly was pointed out by pre-2006 retirees to the Government but the Bureaucrats did not take any corrective action. This forced the Ex-servicemen of rank Major to approach Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) for directions to Govt. AFT accepted their plea as genuine and asked Government to take immediate remedial action.
Meanwhile a group of Civilian officers also approached Civilian Administrative Tribunal (CAT) for corrective action in lines of AFT Judgement. This was upheld by CAT and necessary directions were issued.
The Secretaries Committee ordered by PM used this opportunity to show that they were making efforts to "bridge" the gap between pensions of Post 2006 pensioners and Pre-2006 pensioners holding same rank and years of service. If the first step in a 100 meters sprint is considered as a major step to bridge the distance between start to the final destination, then Govt can take credit. But Govt cannot surely take any credit for the bogus claim "One Rank One Pension Okayed" as prominently published by your Political Bureau in the second page of ET. I am afraid that your correspondent has been taken for a "ride" just like thousands of Ex-servicemen taken for a "ride" yesterday based on the announcement of PM on Aug 15 on OROP.
A Major lesson from this episode is obvious. Why Bureaucrats oppose inclusion of Serving Defence Personnel or even Ex-servicemen in high power study teams on their demands is because the members from the Services would have prevented the Bureaucrats taking them as well general public (including Media) on "ride" like they did every time a Study team submitted its recommendations that were then approved by Political Bosses without even consulting the affected personnel. S.Murugan.
Air Cmde (Retd)

More Comments...
Ashok Ganguly (New Delhi)
25 Sep, 2012 11:50 PM
If what is stated is correct, I wonder why this Government can’t keep a simple issue simple and display Honest intent. To a normal layman (not an intelligent crook) an OROP is like a Havildar with say 24 years of service, who retired in 1947 or 1997 or 2007, should get the same pension drawn by a Havildar with 24 years of service retired on 31 Aug 2012. This is what is called “Removing the Disparity”. Anything else amounts to simple cheating and an attempt to fool ex servicemen. Why can’t the Government make an honest attempt and erase the mistrust? Do they think that fooling people is the only way to win votes? How can they forget the services and sacrifices rendered by the servicemen? Why must they get entangled in a beaurocratic mess every time and in every thing?
VK Khurana (New Delhi)
25 Sep, 2012 10:13 PM
The very least expected of this Government, governed by the unfair bureaucrats, is that it should not misinform the nation that what they have given is OROP, which is clearly not the case.A small increase in the crumbs -yes, but nothing more. But then , we may be living in a fool's paradise if we still think this Government has any graceful side to it. The fight for true OROP should be continued with all our might. Jai Hind An ex-service man.
Tailpiece- Military and Police made Dummies

Concert of Chiefs~I- Making A Public Issue Of Demands

Pay Commission Award DESERVING BEFORE DESIRING By Ashok Kapur, IAS (Retd)
Comment: Any student of psychology will tell you that a very thin line divides a genius from a lunatic and many geniuses cross this line sometimes but certainly at later age.
Veteran Ram Gulrajani

IAS Officer wants the military command and control chain to be tinkered constantly by bureaucrats

Ref: Making A Public Issue Of Demands by Ashok Kapur IAS
Ashok Kapur, IAS (Retd): Who was he?
A former bureaucrat, he served as Director, Central Vigilance & Jt Secretary, Govt of India, Chairman, Drafting Committee of UN Disarmament Conference on Biological Weapons, Geneva, among other postings. Following retirement as Principal Secretary, Govt of West Bengal, he did MICA and FICA. Currently he is Secretary General, Institute of Directors (an NGO) and Arbitrator, Member, Board of Governors, International Academy of Law, headed by former CJI, Justice Bhagwati. A post-graduate from Delhi Univ, he joined the IPS and stood first in all-India, 1966 and joined the IAS in 1967. He is an LLB from Delhi Univ and has a Ph.D in Urban Planning from NIUA, Delhi & appointed as Associate Prof (Urban & Environmental Planning).
Ashok Kapur favours corruption as against Lokpal Bill- Under the guise of a basic postulate of the rule of law is that all laws placed on the statute book must conform to the Constitution
Please don’t pass the Lokpal Bill
Comment: Bureaucrats have turned India into a den of thieves- It is now a safe haven for thugs and culprits. Thanks to IAS! Ashok Kapur should, after retirement, confine his expertise in Urban planning in all Metros which is now barely livable.

The article by Mr Ashok Kapur, a former IAS officer- Click Here
It needs a rebuttal. Matter of fact. Unemotional. Contesting the vast number of irrelevant, misinformed points raised by him.
It is fortunate that we now know how the Bureaucratic mind works. Transparent in this spiteful article, the contents reflect the sort of conversation that obviously takes place behind closed doors and minute sheets in MOD and other closely confined decision making bodies.
Few observations I have on this are:

Inadequate research, ie statements unsubstantiated by facts.

A desperate bid to counter the COS appointment being currently talked about,

Mistaking Civil Control as control by Bureaucracy- that, as he says, needs strengthening,

Need for Parity in Pay and Pensions with civilians- he forgets that the parity in pay and even status has been tinkered by civil services even after Pay Commissions gave an award,

He forgets that we don't have representation on Pay commissions and so an 'unscrambling of the omelette' has to take place when there are anomalies introduced surreptitiously even after the finalization of the CPC report.

The bottom line seems the aim to stop COS as a concept, and to introduce methods to strengthen the Civil Services. I am working on and would be responding. Other Veterans may do the same. As they say, One good deed deserves another. Please don't restrict your response to Veteran circles.
With Warm Regards,
Veteran Col RP Chaturvedi

Illegally acquired surveillance equipment to monitor Indians

DNA exclusive: PMO knew you were being snooped upon
Published: Monday, Sep 17, 2012, 10:00 IST
By Saikat Datta & Pradip R Sagar | Place: New Delhi | Agency: DNA
The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the national security advisor (NSA) allowed an agency, not permitted under the law, to acquire surveillance equipment and monitor Indians between 2010 and 2011.
An investigation by DNA shows the NSA, Shiv Shankar Menon, knew that the defence intelligence agency (DIA), a tri-service organisation drawing personnel from the army, the navy and the air force, was keen to purchase off-the-air cell phone monitoring equipment.
Not only was the DIA not authorised to tap phones of Indians, but it also did not have the approval of the technical coordination group (TCG), chaired by the NSA. Despite these legal and procedural lapses, documents accessed by DNA show that the DIA went ahead and procured the equipment while the NSA, the PMO and the defence ministry looked the other way.
In the absence of any independent monitoring of intelligence agencies in India, no one knows how these machines have been used.
They could have been used illegally to tap phones and gather political intelligence or even monitor people.
The TCG was created after the Kargil war to ensure coordinated intelligence gathering. As per its charter, all purchases of technical intelligence equipment above Rs20 crore must be cleared by the TCG. The NSA is the chairman of the TCG and the technical intelligence agency’s, NTRO, chairman is its member secretary.
In the 9th meeting of the TCG, LtGen DS Chauhan, who was then the director general of DIA, had put up a note on August 10, 2011, seeking the TCG’s approval for the purchase of 26 off-the-air GSM monitoring machines, six off-the-air CDMA monitoring equipment, and five GSM jammers.
But on August 12, the TCG pointed out in the DIA’s inventory that one CDMA and four GSM-cell phone monitoring equipment had already been bought.
How did the DIA buy these without the TCG’s approval or even the legal framework to buy such machines?
These cell phone monitoring machines have a limited range depending on the terrain and the weather. So, why was the DIA allowed to buy such machines since it is mandated to gather technical intelligence with limited human intelligence in insurgency-prone areas? In either case it is not a “notified law enforcement agency”, which is mandatory for phone tapping.
This was brought to the notice of the NSA as well as cabinet secretary Ajit Seth, defence secretary Sashi Kant Sharma, and joint secretary in the PMO Pankaj Saran.
No one objected and the DIA continued to illegally monitor people using unauthorised equipment.
The PMO did not respond to a written questionnaire from DNA. LtGen (Retd) Tejinder Singh, who as the director general of DIA before LtGen Chauhan, told DNA that the procedure to purchase these equipment started much before him.
“In either case, the purchase was sanctioned at every level — from financial advisors to the director general (acquisitions), who is currently the defence secretary,” the retired lieutenant general told DNA.
“Anyway, the signals directorate, which purchased the equipment, comes under the DIA for operational purposes. All their procurements must be approved by the defence ministry and not the director general of DIA because he does not have the financial powers to do so.”
Despite the fact the government hasn’t notified DIA as an “authorised” agency for phone tapping, the official spokesman of the defence ministry, Sitanshu Kar, said no “illegality” had taken place. “We find your statement calumnious. The defence secretary, as DG (acquisitions) had not sanctioned, at any stage, any illegal purchase of any equipment,” Kar said.
Phone tapping in India is governed by the December 18, 1996, judgment of the Supreme Court and section 5 of the Indian Telegraph Act that says phone tapping is legal only if it is authorised by the Union home secretary.
Only nine agencies are legally authorised to put in requests for tapping phones. Which means any government or private agency besides these nine agencies are not authorised to keep tabs on any form of communication in the country, let alone put in a request to the Union home secretary.
The IB, the R&AW, the income tax department, the enforcement directorate, the narcotics control bureau and the state police forces are among the nine authorised agencies.
DNA exclusive: PMO knew you were being snooped upon

HC raps police over 'arbitrary' arrest of cartoonist Trivedi

HC raps police over 'arbitrary' arrest of cartoonist Trivedi
Press Trust of India / Mumbai September 14, 2012, 16:55
Dubbing the arrest of cartoonist Aseem Trivedi on the charge of sedition as "arbitrary" and on "frivolous" grounds, the Bombay High Court today said it breached his freedom of speech and expression.
The court also said it intended to lay down guidelines for application of the pre-Independence law to ensure that liberties guaranteed to citizens in a civil society are not encroached.
"How can you (police) arrest people on frivolous grounds? You arrest a cartoonist and breach his liberty of freedom of speech and expression," a division bench of justices D Y Chandrachud and Amjad Sayyed said, voicing strong displeasure over the arrest of Kanpur-based cartoonist whom it had granted bail two days back.
The Kanpur-based cartoonist, arrested last Saturday, was released on Monday after the high court granted him bail amid mounting public outcry.>br> Observing that Trivedi's arrest was prima facie "arbitrary", the court said, "We have one Aseem Trivedi who was courageous enough to raise his voice and stand against this, but what about several others whose voices are shut by police."
The court was hearing a PIL filed by a lawyer Sanskar Marathe against Trivedi's arrest, which he described as "illegal, bad in law, and unjustified".
Noting that the law governing sedition was a pre- Independence provision in the statute book when government wanted protection from citizens, the bench said it intended to lay "parameters" for its application to check misuse.
"If there are no parameters there will be serious encroachment of a person's liberties guaranteed to him in a civil society," the bench said.
HC raps police over 'arbitrary' arrest of cartoonist Trivedi

Indian Politicians become intolerant to Jokes and Cartoons

An Indian cartoonist has been jailed for his drawings highlighting government corrruption. Aseem Trivedi has been charged with sedition for his cartoons that mock the Indian government. His supporters say the decision is evidence of political leaders' growing intolerance of criticism and the freedom of expression. Gerald Tan has more.
Scamsters and money launderers are free in India but a cartoonist who drew funny pictures is in Jail... This is height of Jokes in India.
He's a cartoonist. A political cartoonists job is to mock the corrupt and powerful. I was wondering what cartoons could be so horrible that they might get him in trouble and I was shocked that the cartoons are actually utterly innocuous. He used "national symbols" because he believes, rightly apparently, that the corrupt are raping the nation itself. His arrest proves that he wasn't exaggerating. It proves his innocence and the government's guilt. He has won.

CBI under duress to close bribe case: Weapons Lobby's Links

CBI to seek legal opinion in ex-Army chief bribery case
Press Trust of India / New Delhi September 11, 2012, 20:05
CBI will seek legal opinion to decide the future course of action on its preliminary probe carried out into former Army Chief Gen V K Singh's allegation that he was offered Rs 14 crore in bribe for clearing a deal of "sub-standard" vehicles.
"Our preliminary investigation is complete. We will seek a legal opinion in the matter. A decision on whether to convert PE into FIR or close the investigation is likely to be taken by this month-end," a senior CBI official said.
The official, however, declined to give details on the investigation in the case.
The probe agency had on April 11 registered a preliminary inquiry (PE) after receiving a complaint from Gen V K Singh against unknown retired army officers and private persons.
The then Army chief had claimed that an equipment lobbyist had offered him a bribe of Rs 14 crore, a matter he had reported to Defence Minister A K Antony.
The Ministry had then recommended a CBI probe into the allegation made by the then Army Chief.
In a communication to the CBI, Gen V K Singh had said that there was a bribe offer from Lt Gen (retd) Tejinder Singh following which the CBI had asked him to submit detailed description of the incident, list of possible witnesses and supporting documents on the issue.
Gen V K Singh had given to the CBI detailed description of the incident during which he was allegedly offered bribe.
Lt Gen Tejinder Singh has refuted the allegations levelled against him and also filed a defamation case against the ex-Army Chief and other officers.
CBI and its antics
Related Reading
Gen Bikram Singh undoing decisions of his predecessor Gen VK Singh
Height of Honesty: Criminals Plead with Sonia Gandhi
Adarsh members want Sonia Gandhi to initiate probe against ex-army chief: HT

Bureaucrats spin and spiral the corruption curve of India

Bureaucrats hired by companies which they helped get coal fields allotted to?
New Delhi: The investigation into the coal scam has the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) looking at whether bureaucrats colluded with private companies to get coal blocks despite being ineligible.
What is clear already is that several senior bureaucrats who could have helped inference the allocation process were employed by private companies after leaving the government.
R V Shahi was India's longest serving power secretary - he held the position between 2002 and 2007. During this time, Jindal Steel and Power Limited, owned by Congress MP Navin Jindal, was allocated two coal blocks. Mr Shahi is now an Independent Director of the same company, whose businesses include steel, power and mining.
Like other companies, Jindal Steel and Power was chosen by a screening committee that included representatives of different ministries and stakeholders. Mr Shahi says that the coal blocks given to Mr Jindal's firm were for sponge iron plants and not for power, therefore, he says, officials from his ministry would not have played a role in the selection process.
But during Mr Shahi's tenure as power secretary, two other Jindal Group companies were assigned coal blocks for power plants. These companies are headed by Navin Jindal's brothers and he is a director in one of them.
Both Shahi and Navin Jindal dismissed any allegations of wrongdoing or favouritism.
In Jharkhand, P P Sharma was the Chief Secretary between December 2004 to January 2006, and then again from August 2007 to March 2008. Now, he is a full-time director with the Abhijeet Group, which has power and mining projects spread across Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal.
During Mr Sharma's tenure as Chief Secretary, the same Abhijeet Group got five coal blocks. Though the allocations are done by the Coal Ministry, the state government's views are critical in the selection process and senior officials from the state where the coal field is located are on the screening committee that decides on applications.
Mr N C Jha is the CEO of the mining business of Monnet Energy and Ispat Limited - the second largest coal-based sponge-iron manufacturer in India.
Mr Jha was the Technical Director of government-owned Coal India from 2007 and Chairman of Coal India Limited in 2011. The Technical Director of Coal India is a member of the Screening Committee.
Between 2008 to 2010, the group was allocated three coal blocks for power and sponge iron by the coal ministry.
Bureaucrats hired by companies which they helped get coal fields allotted
Comment: Politicians, Businessmen and Bureaucrats cemented in milking the nation of its vital assets and transferring them to Swiss like Secret Accounts. Will the CBI book these corrupt Bureaucrats?

Manmohan Singh is a Fragile or a Tragic Figure

India can’t take thy barbs, oh mighty Gora Sahib
Thursday, September 06, 2012, 17:33 by Ajith Vijay Kumar
The Washington Post feels that India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is a tragic failure, someone who after riding back to power in 2009 now leads a deeply corrupt government.
"Image of the scrupulously honourable, humble and intellectual technocrat has slowly given way to a completely different one: a dithering, ineffectual bureaucrat presiding over a deeply corrupt government".
WASHINGTON POST BEING DEROGATORY ABOUT OUT OUR PM, OMG!! We can’t allow them to get away with this, was the common refrain that seeped out of the corridors of power in the aftermath of the terrible ‘tragedy’.
Phones were worked on right and left of Raisina Hill and in ministries on both sides of the Rajpath. Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni hurriedly asked for an apology from the paper for lowering the dignity of the office of the Prime Minister, others in government condemned it.
"How can a US daily take the matter so lightly and publish something about the Prime Minister of another country? I will speak to the Ministry of External Affairs and the government will seek an apology from the daily," she said.
By day fall, the Firefighting Express had chugged across the town, TV studios, the web, high tea get-togethers and the cocktail circuit.
A Gora Sahib had done it again and that’s news… like it was when Time magazine dubbed the PM as an underachiever.
Post’s India bureau chief Simon Denyer rubbed the government the wrong way at its most sensitive spot - India and the PM’s image in the West. Manmohan Singh is an economist of repute and commands high regard in the global circuit, any wrong press coverage is a strict no no, and if coming from the Washington Post it patently alludes to bad news.
The merits of Denyer’s frontal attack on the Prime Minister may be debatable but what has predictably come out of the entire episode is the jittery reaction of the establishment to any bad news coverage from the West, especially from Uncle Sam.
While the PMO claims Denyer had apologized, The Washington Post correspondent has refuted all such claims and continues to stand by his report, further angering the mandarins in the South Block.
The latest episode has once again exposed the morbid fear of the Gora Sahib that runs deep within the Indian consciousness.
The Prime Minister’s Office will not take notice – in this magnitude – to the criticism from the Indian press, like it does with the foreign press.
Why is that we can’t take their criticism face on or even better just ignore it? How much value does a Washington Post report on Manmohan Singh’s weak spots hold for the aam janta of this country and more importantly do we need a certificate from the US of A for everything we do?
Instead of crying hoarse over what the Washington Post feels about the PM, the government would do itself good by focusing on clearing the haze that seems to have engulfed its functioning.
Indeed the government has developed the image of being a den of corruption. But, certainly, the PMO doesn’t need the Washington Post to show them the mirror.
Rather than hyperventilating on a foreigner putting a value to the PM’s worth, it is time the government starts looking inwards.
And, it is also time to stop worrying about the Gora Sahibs, the people who will vote you back to power are all brown.
India can’t take thy barbs, oh mighty Gora Sahib