SC glare on Raja Bhaiyya reprieve

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has issued notices to cabinet minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiyya and the Uttar Pradesh government, asking them to explain why the Prevention of Terrorism Act should be withdrawn against him, reports our legal correspondent.

Acting on a petition filed by S.K. Shukla, a division bench of Justices B.N. Agrawal and P.K. Balasubramanyan also issued notices to Raja Bhaiyya?s father Uday Pratap Singh and cousin Akshay Pratap Singh.

The Mayavati government had begun prosecution under the anti-terror act against Raja Bhaiyya, his father and cousin for unleashing terror in the state.

But the charges were withdrawn soon after Mulayam Singh Yadav became chief minister. He even made Raja Bhaiyya a cabinet-rank minister.

Shukla contended that the state had no right to withdraw the charges without consulting the Centre as the act had been passed by the Union government in Parliament.

Kalyan before Babri panel

New Delhi (PTI): Former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan Singh has said he would make a statement before the Liberhan Commission, which is probing the demolition of the Babri Masjid 12 years ago.

?It is definite I will appear before the commission and give (a) statement on December 2,? the BJP leader, during whose rule the mosque was razed, told reporters after appearing before the commission on Wednesday.

?I will leave all my work and go through the records as statements have been made on different occasions relating to (the) demolition in the past 12 years.?

The commission, headed by Justice M.S. Liberhan, had directed Singh to appear before it after Delhi High Court dismissed his writ petition that he should not be forced to give a statement.

The commission adjourned the hearing to December 2 and 3 after Singh?s counsel made a request that he was not well for the last few days and needed some more days to go through the records of the incident, particularly those that concerned the former chief minister.

Bandit spy in suicide bid

Chennai (PTI): A woman who is said to have played an important role in helping the Tamil Nadu special task force collect information about Veerappan reportedly attempted suicide at her residence.

Police sources said Shanmughapriya had consumed poison and was rushed to a private hospital. She is out of danger. The woman is believed to have befriended Veerappan?s wife and gathered information about his movements.

Bribery arrest

Moga (PTI): The Punjab Vigilance Bureau on Wednesday arrested Tirlochan Singh, the food and supplies inspector at Kishanpura Kaln village in this district, while he was allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 500. A person had lodged a complaint, saying Singh had demanded Rs 1,000 to issue a fresh ration card.

Mystery virus

Ghaziabad (PTI): Thirty-seven 37 children have succumbed to a ?mysterious? viral disease in the last two days in western Uttar Pradesh, taking the toll to 177. Tests have failed to establish any concrete conclusion on its nature.

Abattoir shift

New Delhi (PTI): The Centre and the Delhi government have told the Supreme Court that moving an abattoir from Idgah to Ghazipur in east Delhi would not pose a security threat to the nearby airbase. The governments and the air force had earlier opposed the shift, earning the ire of the apex court judges.

Stick for ADC

Hyderabad (PTI): The Maharashtra government has recommended suspension of Deepak Pandey, the ADC to the governor, for ?harassing? a traffic constable. An inquiry has found him guilty, deputy chief minister R.R. Patil said. Pandey, in the thick of a controversy for allegedly harassing his IAS officer wife Nidhi for dowry demands, is on leave.

ITC Sammelan

Calcutta: The 12th ITC Sangeet Sammelan begins on Friday, November 19, not from November 17 as reported in the World This Week in Monday?s edition. The error is regretted.

A job fair for the disabled will be held in Chennai on Friday. Around 50 corporate firms and 5,000 disabled people from across Tamil Nadu are expected to take part in the fair.