the hindu imp. news feb. 5th 2012

8/3/2019 The Hindu Imp. News Feb. 5th 2012

1/5

A goal is a dream with a deadline.

https://www.facebook.com/dochak Page 1

THE HINDU

Imp. News

Feb.5th

2012

Page-1

No Chidambaram role in 2G plot: court:

A special court here on Saturday dismissed Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy's prayer

for summoning Union Minister P. Chidambaram as an accused for allegedly conspiring with the

then Telecom Minister, A. Raja, in the 2G spectrum issue. Special Judge O.P. Saini said: In the

end, Mr. Chidambaram was party to only two decisions that is, keeping the spectrum prices

at [the] 2001 level and dilution of equity by the two companies. These two acts are not per se

criminal. In the absence of any other incriminating act on his part, it cannot be said that he was

prima facie party to the criminal conspiracy. There is no evidence on record that he was actingin pursuit of the criminal conspiracy, while being party to the two decisions. Accordingly, I do

not find any sufficient ground for proceeding against Mr. Chidambaram. The plea is without any

merit, and the same is dismissed. The court ruled that Mr. Chidambaram agreeing with Mr.

Raja not to revisit the entry fee or spectrum charge fixed in 2001 or his act of allowing dilution

of equity by Swan Telecom and Unitech Wireless were not per se illegal, nor was it prohibited

at the relevant time. The court will continue further hearing on Dr. Swamy's complaint on

March 17.

Truth has triumphed, says Government:

Terming the special court's dismissal of a plea against Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram in

the 2G case a good judgment, the Centre on Saturday said the verdict vindicated its stand

that the then Finance Minister had no role in the matter and all allegations against him were

politically motivated. We always knew that our colleague [Mr. Chidambaram] in Parliament

and in the government is absolutely not culpable for anything against him that were put

forward by [petitioner] Subramanian Swamy. I know the evidencethere is absolutely no

responsibility that can be foisted on my colleague, Communications Minister Kapil Sibal told

journalists here. The judgment also came as a huge relief for the government just two days

after the Supreme Court ordered cancellation of all 122 2G licences issued in 2008 by A. Raja as

Telecom Minister in UPA-I. The apex court indicted Mr. Raja for wrongful implementation of the

telecom policy, besides declaring the allocation of 2G spectrum as illegal and an example of

the arbitrary exercise of power. Notably, the media, particularly the news channels, took the

flak from the government for the coverage on the matter. I think the system has gone wrong.

The way the TV channels host debates one day before the hearing as if they will tend to

influence the hearing and direct in which [way] the judiciary should go. This is something that

has to be deprecated. Therefore, all those institutions which are responsible for disseminating


2/5



information should also reflect on the role they should play in the context of very serious cases

before the court, Mr. Sibal said.

TUs gear for all-India strike:

Senior Communist Party of India leader and All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) generalsecretary Gurudas Dasgupta has termed the joint strike call by the trade unions on February 28

as the biggest show of unity by the working class and the poor. All the leading trade unions,

including the INTUC (Indian National Trade Union Congress), affiliated to the Congress, and the

Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh of the Bharatiya Janata Party, besides the Left unions the CITU

(Centre for Indian Trade Unions) and the All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) will

participate in the strike. This is perhaps for the first time the leaders of major trade unions are

travelling together all over the country in the run-up to the strike, Mr. Dasgupta noted. We

have kept the strike outside the purview of politics for the sake of trade union unity.

Page 2

Showcasing extraordinary paintings of distinct patterns and expressions:

Three women artists with a different outlook on the vast and specialised field of art are now

collaborating by jointly showcasing their four dozen paintings at a weeklong exhibition at the

All-India Fine Arts and Crafts Society (AIFACS) gallery here in the Capital beginning February 18.

Colombo-based Ujjwala, a self-taught artist, is excited about her first show in India. She will

present four new works from three ongoing series Running with the Bulls that has been

inspired by the traditional sport of Jallikattu, a bull-taming sport, held as part of the Pongal

harvest festival. Rajika, who was living in Washington D.C. till last year, has gone into the realm

of abstract for this exhibition.

I have always been fascinated by Indian patterns and motifs. So I decided to replicate them in

my paintings. I have used vivid colours in my works. Since I am a yoga acharya, I have been

creating paintings of people specialising in this unique and interesting field. But in this

exhibition I will be showcasing abstract works, she explains.

New era of medicine in the offing, says scientist:

Renowned Japanese scientist Shinya Yamanaka, who achieved a major breakthrough in the

emerging new area of stem cell research by creating a possible alternative to embryonic stem

cells in 2007, has expressed confidence that drugs will be available soon for diseases for which

therapies are yet to be found. Embryonic stem cell therapy is considered important as it offers

immense possibilities for treatment of a wide range of diseases and conditions since the cells

proliferaterapidly and are pluripotent or possess the capability to differentiate into any type of

cell, said Prof. Yamanaka. But it suffers from a major ethical issue as it involves use of live

human embryos, Prof. Yamanaka pointed out. He said if there was a post-transplant rejection,

they cannot be used from the patient's own cell.


3/5



JNU elections on February 23:

After almost five years of uncertainty, the long-awaited elections to the Jawaharlal Nehru

University Students' Union here in the Capital will be held on February 23.

We still have to meet the administration and might even have to change the election scheduleif the administration insists, said Pramodaran, chairman of the Election Commission which is

made up wholly of students unlike other universities where faculty members are usually

instated to oversee elections.

Additionally, other students' organisations like the All-India Students' Federation, the National

Students' Union of India, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and smaller organisations like

Bahujan Students' Front, Chhatr Lok Janshakti, Progressive Students' Union, Democratic

Students' Union, Students' Voice and the newly formed All-India Backward Students Forum are

also active on the campus.

INTERNATIONAL

Syrian regime assault kills 200':

Syrian forces unleashed a barrage of mortars and artillery on the battered city of Homs for

hours before dawn on Saturday, sending terrified residents fleeing into basements and killing

more than 200 people in what appeared to be the bloodiest episode in the nearly 11-month-old

uprising, said activists. The government denied the assault. It said the reports were part of a

hysterical campaign of incitement by armed groups against Syria, meant to be exploited at

the U.N. Security Council as it prepares to vote on a draft resolution backing an Arab call for

President Bashar al-Assad to give up power.

Tunisia decided to expel Syria's Ambassador in response to the bloody massacre in Homs and

no longer recognises the Assad regime, said an official in the President's office. Angry Syrians

stormed their embassies in Berlin, London, Athens, Cairo and Kuwait city, clashing with guards

and police and in Cairo setting fire to part of the embassy.

Online video by activists showed chaotic scenes in a makeshift clinic set up in what appeared to

be a Khaldiyeh mosque, the room filled with wounded men with gashes and broken limbs being

bandaged. Several dead bodies were shown. In another video, fire ravaged a house that had

been shelled, as people desperately poured water on the blaze.

Pro and anti-Putin rallies held in Moscow:

Tens of thousands of Russians braved biting frost on Saturday to stage duelling rallies in

Moscow for and against Vladimir Putin's return as President in next month's elections. The pro-

Putin rally at Poklonnaya Gora World War II memorial was held under the slogans No to


4/5



Orange Revolution and Putin Is Our President, while the main slogan at the opposition rally

was Not a Single Vote for Putin.

Indian traders in China to begin legal battle to clear their names:

The two Indian traders who were held hostage in the city of Yiwu for two weeks in Decemberand now stand accused of owing 10 million RMB ($1.58 million) will on Monday begin a legal

battle to clear their names and bring to book Chinese businessmen alleged to be behind their

kidnapping.

BUSINESS

Micron CEO Steve Appleton dies in plane crash:

Micron Technology Chairman and Chief Executive Steve Appleton died in a small-plane crash,

the company said. Appleton, 51, head of the mid-sized chipmaker, was the only person in the

plane when it crashed in Boise, Idaho.

Two directors in Infosys switch roles:

Infosys announced on Friday that two directors of the company, B. G. Srinivas, Global Head of

the Manufacturing and Engineering Business, and Ashok Vemuri, Global Head of Financial

Services and Insurance Business, will be switching roles with effect from April 1, 2012. S.

Gopalakrishnan, Executive Co-chairman, said, The rationale for the change is in keeping with

the Infosys 3.0 strategy.

Page 16

Lost 18th century Sanskrit grammar manuscript by Jesuit missionary found in Italy:

A Sanskrit grammar manuscript of grammarian, lexicographer and philologist Arnos Padre,

which had been lost for over two centuries, was found in an Italian monastery recently. The

manuscript, Grammatica Grandonica , written by the Jesuit missionary Fr. Johann Ernst

Hanxleden, popularly known as Arnos Padre, three centuries ago, is considered as one of the

earliest missionary grammars in Sanskrit.

Pranab unveils special edition of Tagore's diary:

The edition, with an index to the translation from Bengali sources, is the first draft manuscript

of the original work, which has been preserved in the Houghton Library of Harvard University,

U.S. It is indeed sentimental to have a look and feel of the diary in which Tagore made his

English translations with his own hands, said Mr. Mukherjee while unveiling the edition at

Asiatic Society. The original work was a part of the Rothenstein Collection. Mr. Mukherjee said


5/5



it was inscribed by Sir William Rothenstein as Original manuscript, which the poet brought me

from India on his visit to us at Oak Hill Park.

Another book, Nameless Recognition: The Impact of Rabindranath Tagore on Other Indian

Literatures, released by the Minister at the event, is a compilation of papers presented at a

national conference on The Impact of Rabindranath Tagore and other Indian Languages' inJanuary, 2011.

the hindu imp. news feb. 5th 2012

Documents