June 8 2002
A total of 17,507 candidates from different parts of the country would appear for the two-and-a-half-hour entrance test for selection of 46 students to the first MBBS course in JIPMER here tomorrow.
A communication from JIPMER director R Sambasiva Rao said today the test would be held in six centres simultaneously in Pondicherry, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Karagpur and Thiruvananathapuram.
In Pondicherry state alone, 3,560 candidates would take the test in six centres. The valuation would be done immediately and the results finalised in a week’s time.
Auto drivers protest fuel price hike in Pondy state
Pondicherry
June 6 2002
Auto drivers today took out a procession with their vehicles through the important thoroughfares here to protest against the hike in prices of petrol and to urge the insurance companies to revoke their proposed rise in the premium amount levied on autos and other vehicles.
T. Murugan, Pondicherry CPM secretary, said the procession organised by the party ended in a meeting and a detailed memorandum was also presented to the Chief Minister to ensure that the difficulty now faced by the auto drivers in remitting the insurance premium amount be addressed.
Jaya to meet Wickremesinghe
Chennai
June 9 2002 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has delayed her visit to New Delhi by a day to enable her to call on Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe here on June 11 on his return from Delhi.
Since the visiting Sri Lankan Prime Minister had expressed his desire to meet Jayalalithaa in Chennai, the Chief Minister had decided to stay back on June 11 evening to hold discussions with him at Raj Bhavan here, an official press release said here today.
Jayalalithaa would attend the banquet being given in honour of the visiting Prime Minister by Governor P S Ramamohan Rao that night.
Two days ago, Jayalalithaa had told newspersons that she would not be able to meet the Sri Lankan Prime Minister in Chennai as she would be away in Delhi on June 11.
The Chief Minister would now fly to Delhi on June 12 morning and would have meetings with Prime Minister A B Vajpayee, Home Minister L K Advani
Jayalalithaa is likely to press the Centre for a special package of Rs 3,000 crore to overcome the financial crisis facing the state.
Karunanidhi must retire...Tamil nadu Minister Panneerselvam
Chennai
June 8 2002
Former Tamil Nadu chief minister and now Public Works Minister, O Panneerselvam, today suggested DMK president M Karunanidhi "retire” from politics instead of trying to pick holes in everything and criticising the Election Commission (EC) of being partisan.
Instead of accusing the Election Commission, the DMK, now a constituent of the Central government, should come out of it.
"Why not he direct all DMK ministers in the Central Cabinet to resign,” he asked in a statement here tonight.
Condemning Karunanidhi’s remarks yesterday that the EC had not acted responsibly to check the spread of "Musharraf-style democracy” to other states, Panneerselvam said the EC did everything to "please” Karunaidhi just because the DMK was part of the Central govt.
"It actually bent backwards to please Karunanidhi,” the AIADMK leader said.
The Minister lamented that the 79-year-old Karunanidhi did not have the mental make-up to treat victory and defeat equally. "He should stop murmuring at least now,” Panneerselvam added.
ED closes probe against Jayalalithaa
New delhi
June 8 2002
The Enforcement Directorate which conducted a preliminary investigation into the receipt of $ 3 lakhs as gift by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, in 1991 has closed the probe for want of evidence that the amount was routed through `hawala' transaction.
The CBI case in a Chennai special court against Ms. Jayalalithaa and her close associate, Sasikalaa under the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act for alleged violation of foreign exchange is still pending.
The ED investigation of whether the gifts received by them availing themselves of the Centre's immunity scheme pertained to any `hawala' transaction or routed as a gift to escape the FERA provisions.
Govt sources said the probe has been closed for want of evidence. Moreover, after May 31, FERA is no longer in the statute book as the law has been replaced by the Foreign Exchange Maintenance Act.
Though FERA was replaced by FEMA in 2000, two years was given to complete the existing cases by May 31.
It was also found that both Ms. Jayalalithaa and Ms. Sasikalaa had shown the amounts received as gifts in their income-tax returns and had paid tax. Hence, investigation was closed stating that no case of alleged foreign exchange violation existed against them.
However, CBI sources told that the response to the Letter Rogatory sent by the court to Channel Island, from where the amount was received as gift, was awaited.
It is reported to be of the view that the chances of securing a satisfactory reply to the Letter Rogatory are rather remote.
The CBI also said that even if the charges relating to foreign exchange violation was dropped, investigation into other aspects of the case relating to the receipt of the gifts would continue and a report would be filed in the special court.
Radha Ravi wins by 11, 925 votes in SAIDAPET
Chennai
June 7 2002
The AIADMK wrested the Saidapet Assembly seat from the DMK, making a clean sweep of the three constituencies where byelections were held on May 31. The cine actor, Radha Ravi, won the seat by a margin of 11,925 votes. He polled 65,868 votes, while M.Subramanian, local DMK ward chairman, polled 53,943.
``The results prove that there was no bogus voting on our part in the elections. This was only M.Karunanidhi's imagination,'' Mr.Ravi claimed even as he was headed for victory. The BJP-MDMK combine came a cropper, with the MDMK candidate, P.Subramani, polling 2235 votes. In comparison, the CPI (M)'s T.Nandagopal fared much better, polling 4154 votes. The DMK hopes were raised initially but as counting advanced, the AIADMK forged ahead.
Lt. Governor of Pondy state condoles Jatti
Pondicherry
June 7 2002
The Lieutenant Governor, Rajani Rai, today expressed grief over the death of the former Vice-president, B. D. Jatti, who had also served as second Lieutenant Governor here for four years from 1968.
In a condolence message, she said Mr. Jatti held high positions and played a crucial role in upholding national causes in various capacities. In his death the nation had lost a senior and seasoned leader who embodied the unique features of the cultural and spiritual heritage of the country.
She said Pondicherry people would remember the services of Mr. Jatti for long. She conveyed her condolences to the members of the bereaved family.
The Chief Minsiter, N. Rangasamy, recalled the contributions made by Mr. Jatti for the development of the nation. He also referred to the services of Mr. Jatti in the socio-economic progress of people of Pondicherry during his tenure as Lt. Governor.
There will be no official entertainment in the Union Territory for three days from tomorrow. Flags would fly half-mast, a communication from the Home Dept said.
Kin of political leader murdered
Chidambaram
June 9 2002
In a daring operation, a gang attacked the brother of a local political functionary this morning with lethal weapons, killing him on the spot at MK Thottam here. Tension prevailed in the area for some time and additional police forces were summoned to bring the situation under control.
According to police, the victim, Ramesh (27), the younger brother of Vinobha, State secretary of Indian Human Rights Party, had a running feud with four persons - Jayaseelan (30), Sivakumar (28), Logu (28) and Lakshmanan (28) due to their rivalry in the local body elections held last year. This morning, when Ramesh was standing near his house, the gang members armed with lethal weapons attacked Ramesh, killing him on the spot.
DSP Balusamy, who rushed to the spot after receiving information about the murder, along with senior police officials, removed the body.
Two of the gangsters behind the murderous assault, Sivakumar and Jayaseelan, have been arrested. Cuddalore DSP Davidson is camping in the town to monitor the investigations.
