Punjab Government refuses 5-star facility to HC judges in Amritsar

Chandigarh, November 20
The Punjab Government has refused to concede to the demand of the Punjab and Haryana High Court for the construction of an “exclusive five-star guest house” for judges in Amritsar.

The government has instead offered to reserve a separate floor in the proposed multi-storey guest house for judges.

A committee of High Court judges had asked the state government to construct an exclusive guest house for them on a piece of land near Kachehri chowk in Amritsar, where the old sessions court stood. The old sessions court building is now being demolished as the new judicial complex has become functional.

The guest house was required since the city was frequented by judges of the Punjab and Haryana High Court as well as other High Courts to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple, the committee had said. An exclusive guest house would have ensured minimum inconvenience to the judges in case other government guest houses, such as the Circuit House, were fully occupied, it had contended. But the land on which the old building of the sessions court stood is now worth hundreds of crores of rupees.

The state government proposes to set up a multi-storey guest house there in public-private partnership to be managed by a hotel chain. The government proposes to build this facility for all visiting dignitaries and not exclusively for any particular section of VIPs.

“We have now informed the High Court that instead of constructing an exclusive guest house for judges, a set of 10-12 rooms in the proposed multi-storey complex will be reserved exclusively for judges,” said a senior official in the Punjab government. The government has also reiterated that some rooms in the Circuit House in Amritsar will always be reserved for the judges.

Government offers an alternative A committee of HC judges had sought an exclusive guest house for them on a piece of land in Amristar where the old sessions court stood It contended that the facility was required as the city was frequented by judges to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple But the government proposes to set up a multi-storey guest house on the land as it is now worth hundreds of crores of rupees It has offered to reserve a separate floor in the proposed guest house for judges

Mistaken Identity Case: Punjab police deletes name of NRI from 'Non Hardcore Terrorists’ list'

Chandigarh, 14th November, 2013 (NLGC): The Punjab Police today informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court that they had deleted the name of US settled NRI Shingara Singh, a native of village Jassomajra in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district,  from the list of 'Non-Hardcore Terrorists'  from the list of ‘Non-Hardcore Terrorists’.

Shingara Singh had submitted that his name has been included in the list of ‘Non-hard-core Terrorists’ maintained at police station Behiram in district Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar.

He informed the court that as per the information received under the RTI Act, SHO, police station Behiram has informed that no criminal case is pending against him but his name figures in the list of ‘Non-hard-core Terrorists’.

The petitioner had submitted that on account of similarity of his name with another Shingara Singh of Kapurthala district, who is a proclaimed offender, having a number of criminal cases pending against him, he is interrogated and harassed by Punjab police whenever he visits Punjab.

Time Line of the Case:

On September 7,2013 in a reply to the Shingara Singh's petition, DSP, Banga (District S.B.S. Nagar) filed affidavit making startling revelation before Punjab and Haryana Highcourt that  “Whosoever went abroad during the period of terrorism  in Punjab, his name was mentioned in the list of Hard-core Terrorists”. During the resumed hearing on Thursday, of a Criminal Petition filed by one Shingara Singh of Village Jasso Mazara, District S.B.S. Nagar (now NRI residing in USA) seeking direction to the Punjab Police to delete his name from the list of “Non-hardcore terrorists” maintained in the Police records of Police Station, Behram (District S.B.S. Nagar), inter-alia, on the grounds that he was never involved in any criminal case during his entire life, Shri Bhagwant Singh, DSP, Banga filed an affidavit  in the HC, candidly admitting that “during the period of terrorism, the persons who went abroad, as per report of Crime Branch, CID Security and Secret information, their names were mentioned in the “list of Hardcore terrorists”. DSP, in his affidavit, however, admitted that there is no record available with the Police showing involvement of the petitioner in the terrorist activities. Police has no objection if  his name is ordered to be deleted from the list of non-hardcore terrorists.  Taking serious exception to the aforesaid contents of the affidavit of DSP, Banga, Hon’ble Justice Ram Chander Gutpa , orally expressed his shock and dismay over the aforesaid statement by DSP, Banga, and also the conduct of the Police in itself not deleting the name of the petitioner from the list of non-hardcore terrorists, and instead    leaving  it to the HC to  order deletion of his name from the said list.

ਪਹਿਲੀ ਪਤਨੀ ਨੂੰ ਤਲਾਕ ਦਿੱਤੇ ਬਗੈਰ ਕਰਵਾਇਆ ਦੂਜਾ ਵਿਆਹ, ਧੋਖਾਦੇਹੀ ਦਾ ਮਾਮਲਾ ਦਰਜ

ਮੋਗਾ - ਮੋਗਾ ਜ਼ਿਲੇ ਦੇ ਪਿੰਡ ਧੱਲੇਕੇ ਨਿਵਾਸੀ ਮਨਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਨੇ ਆਪਣੇ ਪਤੀ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਤੇ ਆਪਣੀ ਪਹਿਲੀ ਪਤਨੀ ਨੂੰ ਤਲਾਕ ਦਿੱਤੇ ਬਗੈਰ ਉਸਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਦੂਜਾ ਵਿਆਹ ਕਰਵਾ ਕੇ ਉਸਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਧੋਖਾਦੇਹੀ ਕੀਤੇ ਜਾਣ ਦਾ ਦੋਸ਼ ਲਗਾਇਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਸਬੰਧ ਵਿਚ ਥਾਣਾ ਸਦਰ ਮੋਗਾ ਵਲੋਂ ਜਾਂਚ ਦੇ ਬਾਅਦ ਮਨਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਪੁੱਤਰੀ ਬਲਦੇਵ ਸਿੰਘ ਨਿਵਾਸੀ ਧੱਲੇਕੇ ਦੀ ਸਿਕਾਇਤ ਤੇ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਪੁੱਤਰ ਭਰਪੂਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਨਿਵਾਸੀ ਪਿੰਡ ਲੂੰਡੇਵਾਲਾ (ਕੋਟ ਭਾਈ) ਮੁਕਤਸਰ ਦੇ ਵਿਰੁੱਧ ਧੋਖਾਦੇਹੀ ਦਾ ਮਾਮਲਾ ਦਰਜ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਮਾਮਲੇ ਦੀ ਜਾਂਚ ਸਹਾਇਕ ਥਾਣੇਦਾਰ ਅਮਰਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਵਲੋਂ ਕੀਤੀ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ। ਪੁਲਸ ਸੂਤਰਾਂ ਤੋਂ ਮਿਲੀ ਜਾਣਕਾਰੀ ਦੇ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ ਜ਼ਿਲਾ ਪੁਲਸ ਮੁਖੀ ਮੋਗਾ ਨੂੰ ਦਿੱਤੇ ਸ਼ਿਕਾਇਤ ਪੱਤਰ ਵਿਚ ਮਨਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਅਖ਼ਬਾਰ ਵਿਚ ਛਪੇ ਇਸ਼ਤਿਹਾਰ ਦੇ ਅਧਾਰ ਤੇ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਨਾਲ ਸੰਪਰਕ ਕੀਤਾ ਜਿਸ ਤੇ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਨੇ ਸਾਨੂੰ ਦੱਸਿਆ ਕਿ ਉਸਦੀ ਪਹਿਲੀ ਸ਼ਾਦੀ ਕੁਲਦੀਪ ਕੌਰ ਪੁੱਤਰੀ ਜਸਵੰਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਨਿਵਾਸੀ ਬਸਤੀ ਸੁਰਾਗਪੁਰੀ ਮੁਕਤਸਰ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਹੋਈ ਸੀ ਅਤੇ ਉਸਦਾ ਆਪਣੀ ਪਤਨੀ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਅਦਾਲਤ ਵਿਚ ਤਲਾਕ ਹੋ ਚੁੱਕਾ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਉਸਦਾ ਕੋਈ ਬੱਚਾ ਵੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ ਜਿਸ ਤੇ ਅਸੀਂ ਉਸਦੀ ਗੱਲਾਂ ਤੇ ਯਕੀਨ ਕਰ ਲਿਆ। ਮਨਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ ਕਿ ਉਸਦੀ ਸ਼ਾਦੀ 6 ਫਰਵਰੀ 2013 ਨੂੰ ਕਥਿਤ ਦੋਸ਼ੀ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਧਾਰਮਿਕ ਰੀਤੀਰਿਵਾਜਾਂ ਦੇ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ ਹੋਈ ਸੀ। ਹੁਣ ਸਾਨੂੰ ਪਤਾ ਲੱਗਾ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਮੇਰੇ ਪਤੀ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਦਾ ਆਪਣੀ ਪਤਨੀ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਅਦਾਲਤ ਵਿਚ ਕੋਈ ਤਲਾਕ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੋਇਆ ਅਤੇ ਉਸਦੇ ਬੱਚੇ ਵੀ ਹਨ। ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਉਸਨੇ ਸਾਨੂੰ ਧੋਖੇ ਵਿਚ ਰੱਖ ਕੇ ਮੇਰੇ ਨਾਲ ਵਿਆਹ ਕਰਵਾਇਆ ਅਤੇ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਦੇ ਬਾਰੇ ਵਿਚ ਵੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਦੱਸਿਆ। ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਉਸਨੇ ਸਾਡੇ ਨਾਲ ਧੋਖਾ ਕੀਤਾ ਹੈ। ਜ਼ਿਲਾ ਪੁਲਸ ਮੁਖੀ ਨੇ ਉਕਤ ਮਾਮਲੇ ਦੀ ਜਾਂਚ ਵੁਮੈਨ ਸੈੱਲ ਮੋਗਾ ਦੀ ਮੁਖੀ ਇੰਸਪੈਕਟਰ ਕਸ਼ਮੀਰ ਕੌਰ ਨੂੰ ਇਸ ਮਾਮਲੇ ਦੀ ਜਾਂਚ ਕਰਨ ਦਾ ਆਦੇਸ਼ ਦਿੱਤਾ। ਜਾਂਚ ਸਮੇਂ ਸ਼ਿਕਾਇਤ ਕਰਤਾ ਮਨਪ੍ਰੀਤ ਕੌਰ ਦੇ ਦੋਸ਼ ਸਹੀ ਪਾਏ ਜਾਣ ਦੇ ਬਾਅਦ ਜਾਂਚ ਅਧਿਕਾਰੀ ਵਲੋਂ ਜਾਂਚ ਰਿਪੋਰਟ ਜ਼ਿਲਾ ਪੁਲਸ ਮੁਖੀ ਮੋਗਾ ਨੂੰ ਸੌਂਪ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਜਿੰਨਾਂ ਦੇ ਆਦੇਸ਼ ਤੇ ਕਥਿਤ ਦੋਸ਼ੀ ਨਛੱਤਰ ਸਿੰਘ ਦੇ ਵਿਰੁੱਧ ਧੋਖਾਦੇਹੀ ਦਾ ਮਾਮਲਾ ਦਰਜ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ। ਇਸ ਮਾਮਲੇ ਦੀ ਜਾਂਚ ਸਹਾਇਕ ਥਾਣੇਦਾਰ ਅਮਰਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਵਲੋਂ ਕੀਤੀ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ। ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੱਸਿਆ ਕਿ ਕਥਿਤ ਦੋਸ਼ੀ ਦੀ ਗ੍ਰਿਫਤਾਰੀ ਬਾਕੀ ਹੈ।

Indian-origin former Canadian MP begins campaign in Punjab against fraud marriages

New Delhi:  Indian-origin former Canadian parliamentarian Ruby Dhalla has kick-started a campaign to help women victims of fraud marriages in Punjab.

The campaign is being spearheaded by 'Dreams for You', an NGO, which focuses on helping, supporting and empowering women who have been "victimised, impacted and affected with the growing phenomena of fraud marriages".

Dhalla has also brought out a fashion label "Ruby Red", comprising gowns, kurtas, dresses and kaftans, whose sale proceeds would be channeled towards the charity.

Dhalla, who is the first Sikh Parliamentarian in Canada, says she used to deal with a lot of cases from the Indian community there concerning fraud marriages and during a visit to India had met an "unexpectedly huge" number of people who turned up to meet her.

"I have been working on this issue for many years in Canada. I remember in 2004 a lot of women from ethnic communities and the Indian community began coming to me with such issues. When I came to Punjab in 2009, I asked them to organise a function to meet these women. I thought only about 15 to 20 women would show up and we would discuss the issue. To my shock I remember walking into the event with hundreds of women lined up outside and other thousands inside that little community centre. They were in tears and pleading with me to help them," Dhalla said during her recent visit in New Delhi.

The former member of the Canadian House of Commons said it was about that time when she decided to help the women.

"These women have so little. They are neither here nor there. They are not divorced, they are not married. They are just living in a sense of abandonment. And it is difficult for these women to live with their in-laws or even at their parents' home," Dhalla said.

Through her NGO, Dhalla says she wants to raise awareness about issues like registration of marriages, development of an NRI wing, imparting skill training and proving legal assistance to those affected.

"Besides raising awareness on the issue, one of the elements that I advocate for is the need to develop an NRI wing where issues like this would go to and where people can come forward and there is a sense of collectivity," she said.

What are Human Rights?

Chandigarh, (NRILG) - Originally, people had rights only because of their membership in a group, such as a family. Then, in 539 B.C., Cyrus the Great, after conquering the city of Babylon, did something totally unexpected he freed all slaves to return home. Moreover, he declared people should choose their own religion. The Cyrus Cylinder, a clay table containing his statements, is the first human rights declaration in history. The idea of human rights spread quickly to India, Greece and eventually Rome. In India - the Fundamental Rights are not Human Rights.

The most important advances in the development of Human Rights since then have included:

1215: The Magna Carta — gave people new rights and made the king subject to the law.

1628: The Petition of Right — set out the rights of the people.

1628: The Petition of Right — set out the rights of the people.

1776: The United States Declaration of Independence — proclaimed the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

1789: The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen — adocument of France, stating that all citizens are equal under the law.

1948: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights —the first document listing the 30 rights to which everyone is entitled.They are

We Are All Born Free and Equal
Don’t Discriminate
The Right to Life
No Slavery
No Torture
You Have Rights No Matter Where You Go
We’re All Equal before the Law
Your Human Rights Are Protected by Law
No Unfair Detainment
The Right to Trial
We’re Always Innocent Till Proven Guilty
The Right to Privacy
Freedom to Move
The Right to Seek a Safe Place to Live
Right to a Nationality
Marriage and Family
The Right to Your Own Things
Freedom of Thought
Freedom of Expression

HUMAN RIGHTS  VIOLATIONS

Human rights advocates agree that, sixty years after its issue, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is still more a dream than reality. Violations exist in every part of the world. For example, Amnesty International’s 2009 World Report and other sources show that individuals are:

• Tortured or abused in at least 81 countries
• Face unfair trials in at least 54 countries
• Restricted in their freedom of expression in at least 77 countries

Not only that, but women and children in particular are marginalized in numerous ways, the press is not free in many countries, and dissenters are silenced, too often permanently. While some gains have been made over the course of the last six decades, human rights violations still plague the world today.

To help inform you of the true situation throughout the world, this section provides examples of violations of six Articles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR):-

ARTICLE 3 — THE RIGHT TO LIVE FREE

“Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.”

An estimated 6,500 people were killed in 2007 in armed conflict in Afghanistan—nearly half being noncombatant civilian deaths at the hands of insurgents. Hundreds of civilians were also killed in suicide attacks by armed groups.

In Brazil in 2007, according to official figures, police killed at least 1,260 individuals—the highest total to date. All incidents were officially labeled “acts of resistance” and received little or no investigation.

In Uganda, 1,500 people die each week in the internally displaced person camps. According to the World Health Organization, 500,000 have died in these camps.

Vietnamese authorities forced at least 75,000 drug addicts and prostitutes into 71 overpopulated “rehab” camps, labeling the detainees at “high risk” of contracting HIV/AIDS but providing no treatment.

What are Human Rights in India?

Though UN had declared 30 Articles as Human Rights, due to the Supremacy of the Indian Constitution, the Indian Government had enacted the Protection of Human Rights Act in 1993. According to the aforesaid act the Human Rights in India is the Rights related to the life, liberty, equality and dignity guaranteed under the Indian Constitution + 30 articles of UN enforceable in the courts of India.Human Rights can be enforced only against the matters under the Schedule 7- List II and III of the Indian Constitution. Hence, the Fundamental Rights in India are different from Human Rights.

More than 1,500 Canadians detained abroad in foreign prisons

                                        John Greyson, right, and Tarek Loubani 

MONTREAL - For nearly two months all eyes were turned to John Greyson and Tarek Loubani, the Canadian activists held in an Egyptian prison before being allowed to return to Canada.

Two other detained Canadians, Greenpeace activists Alexandre Paul and Paul Ruzycki, have also been in the headlines as they remain held in a Russian prison and could face a lengthy prison sentence on piracy charges.

But there are other Canadians detained abroad who don't have such a network of supporters, and fail to capture similar public attention.

Overall, 1,590 Canadians are in prison outside the country, according to figures provided by Canada's Foreign Affairs department, accurate to Oct. 10.

The bulk of them — 1,097 — are behind bars in the United States. The rest are in prisons in more than 85 other countries.

Foreign Affairs wouldn't provide a breakdown on the circumstances or duration of detention, nor how many cases the government is actively contesting.

But human-rights groups continue to monitor a number of cases where they believe Canadians are being wrongly detained or have been the victim of human-rights violations.

Often, it can take years to bring a Canadian back home.

Earlier this month, Hamid Ghassemi-Shall was finally able to return to Canada after 64 months in an Iranian prison, including a year in solitary confinement.

Ghassemi-Shall emigrated to Toronto, where he working as a shoe salesman, following Iran’s 1979 revolution. He was arrested on espionage charges while visiting his ailing mother in 2008, and faced the death penalty.

International pressure, including a stream of letters from supporters to the Iranian government, may have been a factor in helping to keep him alive, according to Amnesty International Canada.

Each case "has a delicate strategy depending on the circumstances of the case," said John Tackaberry, a spokesman for the human rights group.

That can mean a public-relations blitz or, alternatively, working quietly behind the scenes.

Most cases don't get nearly as much attention as Greyson and Loubani did, Tackaberry said.

Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird took an active role in the weeks leading up to their release, saying at one point that "Canadians have got to know that their government at the highest levels is doing absolutely everything it can."

"They had a very well-orchestrated social media campaign and a petition with 150,000 signatures," Tackaberry said. Similar cases, meanwhile, can sometimes fail to resonate with the public, he said.

"It has been difficult, in terms of raising public awareness of the issue, getting some coverage of the issues, putting some pressure on behind the scenes, or encouraging the government to get involved."

Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Claude Rochon said the federal government tries, in every case, to ensure Canadians receive fair treatment under the local criminal-justice system.

But she stressed that the government cannot "seek preferential treatment for you or try to exempt you from the due process of local law."

Often, there's not much more the federal government can offer in terms of assistance, according to one former Canadian diplomat.

"All the Canadian government can do is ensure that the person in prison gets fair treatment under the laws of the country where they are," said Eric Morse, now with the Royal Canadian Military Institute.

"Anything else is strictly informal."

Many of the arrests involve drug-related charges, Morse said, and the arrested are often in shock at the situation they find themselves in.

In an effort to dissuade others, the federal government has a collection of wrenching testimonials on its travel-advisory website from Canadians caught trying to smuggle drugs overseas.

Horror stories abound.

One man, who was sentenced to 15 years in a Cuban jail for importing marijuana, says the water was "milky colour and it made me really ill."

A woman who spent a year in a Jamaican prison for trafficking heroin described living in cramped quarters without running water where, as a foreigner, "inmates were constantly trying to pick fights with me."

In cases where Canadians are thought to be unfairly detained, the situation can be made much more difficult when Canada no longer has a diplomatic presence in the country, as in the case of Iran.

Other times, detaining a foreign national can be used to make a broader point at home. Morse suspects that's the case in Russia, where the Greenpeace activists remain behind bars.

Canadians, Greenpeace activists Alexandre Paul and Paul Ruzycki, have also been in the headlines as they remain held in a Russian prison and could face a lengthy prison sentence on piracy charges.

In a letter released by Greenpeace this week, Paul described the loneliness of being held in a cold cell with another inmate who doesn't speak any English.

Several of the 30 people arrested, including the captain, have already been denied bail.

Alberta, Sask. to reap biggest increases in workers’ pay next year

EDMONTON – A report from the Conference Board of Canada suggests it’s better to be a rig pig on the Prairies than a health-care worker in Ontario from a labour perspective.

The board’s forecast released Tuesday says workers in Alberta and Saskatchewan will fare the best in wage increases next year largely due to a shortage of qualified employees in the energy sector.

“The divide between East and West persists. Frenzied resource development and near-bottom unemployment rates mean that Alberta and Saskatchewan are again expecting to offer the highest pay increases next year,” said Ian Cullwick, vice-president of leadership and human resources research.

The report projects average increases of 3.7 per cent in Alberta and Saskatchewan. The lowest average increases are expected in the Atlantic provinces at 2.5 per cent and Ontario at 2.6 per cent.

The Canadian average for non-unionized workers is anticipated at 2.9 per cent in 2014.

The information is based on the responses of 411 employers across the country to a survey conducted between June and August.

The key is the availability of qualified workers in each region, said Cullwick. The findings also reflect that the industry with the highest average increases is predicted to be the oil and gas sector at 4.1 per cent. The health sector is forecast to have the lowest average increases at 1.8 per cent.

“Oil and gas lead the pack,” said Cullwick. “On the flip side, just to put some contrast to this, health care … is a tough industry sector. There’s a lot of restructuring going on across the country and the economics are indeed challenged.

“The cost of health care has gone up. If you look at health care authorities, I would argue they’re putting the money into patient care, equipment and facilities and they just don’t have much left over (for salaries).”

Cullwick said overall Canada’s economy is in relatively good shape, but growth has been sluggish and organizations will be looking at ways of keeping costs down.

Glen Hodgson, chief economist at the conference board, blames a drop in economic growth in Canada this year on the fiscal debt crisis and government shutdown in Washington, D.C.

Canada is affected by what he calls the “fiscal follies” south of the border, but he does expect the economy to rebound to about 2.4 per cent growth in 2014.

Hodgson said once again Alberta and Saskatchewan should lead the way with a growth rate of three per cent.

“The unemployment rate in both provinces is at 4.7 per cent and that is below full employment. You’re getting really tight labour markets and that leads to the wage pressure,” he said.

“That’s going to be an ongoing trend and you’re going to see tight labour markets on an ongoing basis.”