Uttar Pradesh - Articles - Zimbio

BSP for reservation to upper caste poor: Mayawati

Mon, 18 Nov 2008 13:07:00 GMT

posted by Joycebabu

Hoping to increase the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP)'s stake in Madhya Pradesh, party supremo and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati Tuesday denied that her party was against the upper castes and said she was in favour of reservation for the upper caste poor, but the central government was dithering on it.

"My government is committed to providing 10 percent reservation to the poor among upper castes. I have written to the prime minister about this but no action has been taken," she said, adding that the BSP was not against the upper castes as was being projected by some political parties.

"The BSP's policies have never been against any caste or community, the party is committed to the welfare of all sections and castes. But some parties are spreading rumours that the BSP is against the upper castes," she said, addressing an election meeting here.

"The BSP wants development of all the castes. In Uttar Pradesh, the party has taken care of backward Muslims and we promise that we will amend the Constitution to provide reservation to backward people from the upper castes when we come to power at the centre.

"Though the BSP stands for 'Sarvajan Hitay, Sarvajan Sukhay' (welfare of all people, happiness for all), the first priority is people from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes as they have been ignored by the Congress and BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) governments in the last 60 years," Mayawati said.

"These parties are run with capitalists' funds. They work for the interests of these capitalists when they come to power. But the BSP will work for the welfare of the people since it is run with the monetary cooperation of its followers and workers," she said.

"To establish an equal society and also to come to power, it is important that the BSP takes sarvajan samaj (all sections of society) with it," the BSP president claimed.

Mayawati, however, did not forget to reiterate her demand for job reservations in the private sector also. "All those companies which get government contracts will have to provide this reservation," she said, adding "Those companies which provide reservation will get support from the government."

Mayawati also spoke of various schemes and policy measures her government has taken to serve the poor, the small farmers, daily wagers and other marginalised sections of society and said that in order to get the same benefits in Madhya Pradesh, the people of the state should vote for the BSP.

Witnessing a sparse crowd at the venue, the BSP supreme also charged the district administration with not allowing her supporters to reach the venue and asked the party workers to distribute cassettes of her recorded speech among them.

The BSP has two legislators in the house of 230. The party is contesting all the seats this time on its own.

Last updated on Nov 18^th, 2008 at 18:07 pm IST--IANS

Five booked for killing spotted deer in Uttar Pradesh

Mon, 18 Nov 2008 09:01:06 GMT

posted by Joycebabu

Five people have been booked for killing a spotted deer in Uttar Pradesh's Ambedkar Nagar district, state forest officials said Tuesday.

"We recovered the carcass of the deer from a hideout in Naasirpur village in Ambedkar Nagar and raided the hideout Monday night. However, the five people managed to escape at the time of the raid," Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Bheemsen told IANS by telephone. Ambedkar Nagar is about 350 km from Lucknow.

He said the officials are yet to ascertain from where the spotted deer was caught as there is no forest area in Ambedkar Nagar district.

According to forest officials, a search operation has been launched jointly with the police.

Under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972, injuring or killing a spotted deer is an offence.

Spotted deer is the most common deer species in Indian forests. Its coat is reddish fawn, marked with white spots, and its underbelly is white.

Last updated on Nov 18^th, 2008 at 13:35 pm IST--IANS

Nine people lose eyesight after surgery in Uttar Pradesh

Mon, 18 Nov 2008 06:47:36 GMT

posted by Joycebabu

At least nine people lost their eyesight after undergoing cataract surgery at a government aided eye hospital in Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur district, some 90 km from Lucknow, officials said Tuesday.

Prosecute guilty policemen in Andhra: Human Rights Watch

Mon, 18 Nov 2008 10:24:26 GMT

posted by Joycebabu

The Andhra Pradesh government should prosecute police officials responsible for the torture of 21 Muslims after a series of bombings in Hyderabad in May and August 2007, Human Rights Watch has said.

After the blasts, the authorities detained approximately 100 Muslims for questioning. Of those later charged, 21 were released. On Nov 13, the Andhra Pradesh government admitted that these 21 had been tortured and announced financial compensation to all of them.

The government also promised additional financial assistance through government loans. But it has not initiated criminal proceedings against any police officers who ordered or carried out the torture.

"Acknowledging torture and providing compensation is a good first step," said Human Rights Watch Monday. "But the government has to prosecute those responsible so that those who use torture will not get away with it."

On May 18, 2007, at least nine people were killed when a bomb exploded outside Hyderabad's Mecca Masjid, where thousands had gathered for Friday prayers.

On Aug 25, 2007, nearly 50 people died and scores were injured in two separate blasts in Hyderabad. There were arrests after each bombing.

The Hyderabad police initially suspected Islamist extremists of carrying out the attacks. Of those detained for questioning, most were released after a few days or weeks in custody.

Last updated on Nov 18^th, 2008 at 15:35 pm IST--IANS

Amar Singh, Akhilesh Das and Mohammad Adeeb elected to RS

Thu, 14 Nov 2008 16:53:14 GMT

posted by bengani

Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh, former Union Minister Akhilesh Das and independent contestant Mohammad Adeeb were among 10 candidates who were on Friday declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh.

Of the 10 candidates elected to the Upper House, six were from the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party, two from the Samajwadi Party and one from the BJP, besides independent candidate Adeeb, who is backed both by the SP and the Congress.

All India Forward Bloc leader Barun Mukherjee was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from West Bengal on Friday.

Mukherjee was elected to fill the vacancy in the upper house caused by the resignation by AIFB General Secretary Debabrata Biswas, returning officer J L Chakraborty said in Kolkata on Friday.

Mukherjee was a member of Rajya Sabha for two years between 2006 to 08.

Veteran party leader Ashok Ghose said that AIFB General Secretary Debabrata Biswas earlier resigned his seat following the principle of one man one post.