33-year wait

Calcutta, June 7: After 33 years of wait and 13 years of legal tussle Sambhu Charan Das is yet to obtain his freedom fighter’s pension from the Centre.

The high court today ordered Delhi to pay 91-year-old Das his pension with arrears within two weeks. Thirteen years ago, the high court had directed the Union government to disburse Das’s pension in six weeks. But a home ministry under secretary informed him that there were not enough documents to prove that he was a political prisoner during British rule. Das’s lawyer Dipankar Dutta told the court that Jalpaiguri police arrested him on June 11, 1942, for disobeying the Defence of India Rule. After the Centre decided to pay pension to freedom fighters in 1972, Das applied for it with documents from the Jalpaiguri jail and the state’s approval but the Centre did not respond, the lawyer said. For Das, fighting the British must have been easier than battling red-tape.

Punjab lawyer

Jalpaiguri: The additional advocate-general of Punjab, Bhagabati Prasad Singla, was killed in a crash here on Tuesday on his way to Bagdogra airport. Haryana businessman Hemant Kumar Sood, who was travelling with him in a Maruti car, was also killed when a bus hit them near Fulbari.

Tantrik permit

Behrampore: A tantrik has sought a trade permit. Jaduram Ghosh, the pradhan of Bahadurpur panchayat in Lalgola, 250 km from Calcutta, was taken aback when Nasir Khan asked him for a licence. Khan produced a “certificate” that he claimed was issued in 2001 by a judicial magistrate in Uttar Pradesh. Ghosh referred him to BDO Kirtwibas Nayak, who has ordered a probe.

Bus heist

Murshidabad: Passengers on a government bus were looted near Kandi on Tuesday. A gang of five boarded the bus on the Durgapur-Behrampore route at Kandi, 220 km from Calcutta, and took away cash and jewellery worth Rs 30,000.

Visva-Bharati

Santiniketan: Five newly-recruited private security guards of Visva-Bharati were assaulted on Monday night. About 100 guards were recruited last week amid protests by the non-teaching employees’ union, Karmisabha. Police said youths armed with bamboo sticks attacked the guards. The union denied any role in the attack.