Three Bills introduced by govt, discussions in Assembly on Thursday

Amendments to Cooperative Societies Act, Fisheries University Act in have been proposed

Published: 09th January 2020 05:32 AM 

Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami responding to questions of Assembly members on Wednesday | special arrangement

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The government on Wednesday introduced three bills – two are amendments and one for replacing an ordinance promulgated recently. The DMK opposed all at introductory stage itself. These will be taken up for discussion on Thursday.

The Bill to amend the Tamil Nadu Cooperative Societies Act, introduced by Minister for Cooperation Sellur K Raju, provides for placing under suspension, the president and or vice president of a registered cooperative society who is alleged to have committed misappropriation or breach of trust or gross mismanagement of the affairs of the society.

Similarly, Fisheries Minister D Jayakumar introduced a Bill to amend the Tamil Nadu Fisheries University Act which provides for giving power of inspection and inquiry to the State in the affairs of the university since it is a State-funded institution. Besides, the Bill also provides for including a government nominee in the panel for selection of persons for appointment as Vice-Chancellor.

Agriculture Minister R Doraikkanu then introduced a Bill to replace the Ordinance promulgated by the Governor, to extend tenure of the office of the special officers for a further period of six months beyond November 29, 2019, or till reconstitution of the agricultural produce marketing committees.

AIADMK will perform better in 9 dists

Chennai: Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Wednesday expressed the hope that the AIADMK will get more seats in the rural local body elections (RLB) in the remaining nine districts. His reply came after a doubt was raised by KR Ramasamy, Congress floor leader, who wanted to know who the winner in the recently-held RLB was, as both Dravidian majors claimed they were the winners. The chief minister said the people turned the DMK alliance down in the local body elections contrary to LS poll results.

How did Returning Officer assume court’s role, HC pulls up State govt The district collector submitted that the returning officer/Block Development Officer had issued Form 25 mistakenly, in a hurry, without preparing the result sheet.

Published: 09th January 2020 05:32 AM

Madras High Court (File Photo | EPS)

By Express News Service

MADURAI: Irked over the State’s explanation for cancelling the winning certificate (Form 25) given to a Sivaganga panchayat president candidate and issuance of the same to another candidate, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court pulled up the State asking, “Under what powers did the returning officer assume the role of district court?”

Hearing a petition filed by M Devi, an independent candidate whose Form 25 was cancelled by the returning officer of Sankarapuram village panchayat, a Division Bench of Justices M Duraiswamy and T Ravindran questioned, “Is there any provision to conduct counting or recounting of votes after issuance of Form 25?”

The judges rejected the Additional Advocate General (AAG) K Chellapandian’s contentions that the petitioner ought to approach the district court under Section 258 of the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994.

“If the returning officer had found that some of the votes had not been counted, they should have advised the aggrieved candidate to approach the district court to seek recounting,” they opined. They adjourned the case to January 13 for further hearing, adding that the stay against oath taking of other candidate Priyadharshini, would continue till then.

The district collector submitted that the returning officer/Block Development Officer had issued Form 25 mistakenly, in a hurry, without preparing the result sheet. The grounds raised by the petitioner citing rule 66 of Panchayat Election Rules that recounting cannot be done after declaration of results cannot be sustained, as the rule will not come into play till ‘all’ the votes (as per under rule 64) are counted, he claimed.

Top doctors perform live eye surgeries

The Live Surgery 360 Degree which covered the gamut of ophthalmology was useful for practising ophthalmologists and postgraduate students across the country, the release said.

Published: 09th January 2020 06:53 AM 

For representational purposes

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: Rajan Eye Care Hospital, a super specialty eye hospital and a postgraduate institute of ophthalmology, organised a one-day conference ‘Live Surgery 360 degree’ at Hotel Accord Metropolitan recently. Twenty-one top surgeons from across India performed live ophthalmic surgeries that were broadcast from the operation theatre at Rajan Eye Care Hospital using fibre optic cable to Hotel Accord Metropolitan, said a press release.

According to the release, live surgeries including Femto cataract, robotic cataract surgery, phacoemulsification with foldable intraocular lens implantation — multifocal, trifocal, extended range of vision lenses, corneal transplant surgery, squint surgery and anti-glaucoma surgery were performed. Another unique feature of the conference was the 3D live surgeries for cataract, which were performed. Over 350 delegates from across India attended the conference, which has been credited with 15 Continuing Medical Education (CME) credit points by the Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University.The Live Surgery 360 Degree which covered the gamut of ophthalmology was useful for practising ophthalmologists and postgraduate students across the country, the release said.

Naidu, others taken into custody 

Police detain former Andhra Pradesh CM as he tried to embark on a bus yatra 

09/01/2020 , Staff Reporter, VIJAYAWADA


 
Obstacle course: TDP chief N. Chandrababu Naidu, along with other leaders being taken in a bus after being detained by police in Vijayawada on Wednesday. SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, MLC Nara Lokesh and MLAs K. Atchannaidu and Nimmala Rama Naidu, CPI State secretary K. Ramakrishna and several activists of Amaravati Parirakshana Samiti (APS) were taken into custody by the police at Benz Circle here on Wednesday night as they tried to embark on a bus yatra to the districts to garner support for the agitation against the proposed development of three capital cities.

Trouble broke out when Mr. Naidu and others were prevented from staging a march to Auto Nagar, where the buses were parked to branch out to districts on a bus yatra for garnering support for the agitation against the proposed development of three capital cities.

Earlier, Mr. Naidu inaugurated the APS office at the busy junction in the presence of a huge gathering.

Heated arguments and a scuffle ensued between the police and protesters, and it led to Mr. Naidu and his party cadres and APS activists squatting on the road.

Vehicular traffic came to a standstill and the police made Mr. Naidu and others board a department vehicle, but it could not make a headway due to the blockade for sometime.

Tension prevailed as the protesters refused to yield and accused the police of high-handedness.

Amidst the chaos, the keys of the police vehicle were apparently lost and the driver tried to start the engine with alternative keys and finally succeeded.

Mr. Chandrababu Naidu said Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy pushed the State into uncertainty by proposing to shift the capital out of Amaravati on partisan grounds.

He demanded that the Chief Minister rethink and not treat the State, particularly the capital region, as his fiefdom.

Mr. Naidu expressed regret that some farmers who gave their lands for the capital had died, and the agony of thousands more was continuing as the government appeared determined to shift the capital.

Later, the police shifted Mr. Naidu to his residence along with other protesters.

‘University campuses have been turned into battlefields’ 

Delhi University students take out a march in solidarity with JNU

09/01/2020 , Shinjini Ghosh, Elisha Vermani, New Delhi 


 
Delhi University students during a march in North Campus on Wednesday. special arrangement

Thousands of Delhi University (DU) students took to the streets on Wednesday in solidarity with Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) students and faculty who were attacked by a mob that had barged into the university campus on January 5.

Braving incessant drizzle, the students raised slogans against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, National Register of Citizens (NRC), National Population Register (NPR), and the New Education Policy (NEP), while demanding that universities should be safe places for expression.

Students and faculty from various colleges affiliated to DU assembled at the Arts Faculty and took out a protest march in North Campus.

Several of the students were taking part in a protest for the first time. Rishika Rampal, a second-year student of Jesus and Mary College (JMC) said, “I decided to join the march to raise my voice against the atrocities that the current government is unleashing on people. Right from CAA to the recent violence in JNU... it has become too much now and cannot be tolerated any more.”

Anagha Pavitran, a student of Indraprastha College for Women, said: “The political scenario in this country is worsening by the day. Students are being attacked, the police is firing on unarmed citizens and we all know what is happening in Uttar Pradesh. As citizens of this country we can’t just keep watching all this unfold.”

‘Protecting Constitution’

Students shouted “Sarfaroshi ki Tamanna” and “Inquilab Zindabad” while carrying placards like “Ready to die but not ready to accept CAA” and “Stop crushing the anti-fee hike movement”.

Kanika Dasauni, a student of Miranda House, said she joined the protest to ensure equality and safeguard the Constitution.

Utkarsh Bharadwaj, a student of Amedkar University, said: “This fascist government has turned our campuses into battlefields by giving a free reign to the BJP affiliated Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and the police to curb any dissent.”

Students of several colleges, including St. Stephens College, Delhi School of Economics and JMC, conducted protests within their campuses earlier in the day.

The march culminated inside the Arts Faculty with several speakers, including film maker Rahul Roy, lawyer Gautam Bhatia and others addressing the gathering.

Students of St Stephen’s College also boycotted classes on Wednesday. They also assembled in the college lawns and read out the Preamble.

Re-register scholar in PhD, court tells JNU 

She alleged harassment by professors

09/01/2020 , Staff Reporter, New Delhi

The Delhi High Court has directed Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) to re-register in a PhD programme a research scholar who had made sexual harassment allegations against two professors.

Justice Pratibha M. Singh also directed the university to provide her with hostel facilities in the winter session commencing on January, 2020.

The judge said the manner in which the re-registration request of the scholar was being examined was “unsatisfactory” despite the Internal Complaints Committee’s (ICC) recommendations being in her favour. “Her continuation in the PhD. programme shall be as per the rules governing the said programme,” the High Court added.

On January 9, 2018, the research scholar had filed a complaint alleging sexual harassment, before the ICC of JNU.

After an enquiry that lasted nearly eight months, on August 2, 2018, the ICC submitted its report which recommended that her request for registration be considered.

The ICC had in August 2018 recommended that the scholar’s request for registration in the PhD programme be considered by the varsity and should not be rejected merely on ground of delay.

The ICC also recommended that one of the professors should be censured for creating uncertainty by not giving a No Objection Certificate to the complainant as well as directing her to de-register against her will. It recommended censuring the other professor for failing to place the application of the complainant for changing the supervisor before the faculty meeting that was a “lapse” on his part.

Plea in SC on minority institutions’ appointments 

 09/01/2020 , legal correspondent, NEW DELHI

Chief Justice of India S.A. Bobde on Wednesday agreed to examine next week a plea to stay a January 6 judgment by the Supreme Court , which declared that the State is well within its rights to regulate the appointment of teachers to minority-run institutions in the “national interest”.

The judgment, delivered by a Bench of Justices Arun Mishra and U.U. Lalit in S.K. Mohd Raffique versus Managing Committee, Contai Rehmania High Madrasah and Others, gave the State an absolute right to impose regulations on minority established and administered institutions in the appointment of teachers, saying the step was necessary to achieve excellence in education in these institutions.