1, Amit Shah Tells Gujarat Cadre Not to Worry About Gathbandhan
Setting the tone for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, BJP president Amit Shah on Tuesday, 12 February told party cadres in Ahmedabad not to worry about the Opposition’s mahagathbandhan.
“Remove fear of Gath Bandhan from your hearts. Many workers across the nation are concerned what will happen, but friends nothing bad will happen. If Deve Gaudaji comes here for speech, does it make a difference? If Mamata goes to Maharashtra and Akhileshji goes to Kerala and give speech, does it make any difference? They are leaders of their own states and you have defeated them in 2014 polls.”
Taking a jibe at Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Shah said that if Gandhi could identify between rabi and khariff crops, he would believe that the Congress leader had some knowledge about agriculture.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
2. Haren Pandya Murder: Supreme Court Reserves Verdict on Plea for Further Inquiry
The Supreme Court on Tuesday, 12 February reserved its verdict on a petition seeking further inquiry into the murder of former Gujarat home minister Haren Pandya.
Pandya was found murdered in Ahmedabad in 2003. The CBI had investigated the murder, after which the trial court had convicted the 12 accused. Their conviction was, however, reversed by the Gujarat High Court, and all 12 were acquitted.
On Tuesday, a bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Vineet Sharan asked the petitioner, NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigations (CPIL), what was the need for a fresh petition when a criminal appeal against acquittal of the accused by the Gujarat High Court was already pending before it.
Appearing for the NGO, senior advocate Shanti Bhushan and advocate Prashant Bhushan said the fresh petition was necessitated as there were new developments in the matter including the statement by a witness, Azam Khan, in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case before a Mumbai court.
(Source: Indian Express)
3. Gujarat High Court Lambasts State Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama
State education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama was in for a rude shock on Tuesday, 12 February after the Gujarat High Court took him to task for trying to question the credibility and impartiality of the court occupied with the trial of an election petition filed by rival Congress candidate Ashwin Rathod challenging his Assembly poll win.
After the court was informed about the submissions made by the minister before the Supreme Court alleging that they are not getting a fair trial in the election petition, Justice Paresh Upadhyay, who is occupied with the trial, said he does not require a certificate from anybody to prove his credibility and impartiality.
The judge said he was pained to hear such allegations and told the minister to make an application to the Acting Chief Justice for transfer of the case to another bench.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
4. 1985 Anti-Quota Riots: Ahmedabad Court Acquits BJP Corporator, Five Others in Cop Murder Case
Five persons, including a sitting BJP corporator, accused of murdering a police constable during the 1985 anti-reservation riots, were acquitted by a local court on Tuesday, 12 February.
Additional Sessions Judge AR Patel acquitted BJP corporator Mayur Dave, Vijay Shah, Kiran Shah, Dhruv Vyas and Madhukar Vyas for the lack of evidence.
They were accused of killing constable Lakshman Desai in the city's Khadia locality after a stir against reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) in government jobs and education turned violent.
There were 11 accused in the case out of which two BJP leaders -- former Gujarat minister Ashok Bhatt and former Union minister Harin Pathak -- were acquitted in 2006.
Their acquittal was challenged by the widow of the deceased constable. Later the Supreme Court upheld their acquittal. Four other accused died during the trial.
(Source: PTI)
5. Swine Flu: Gujarat High Court Tears into Govt's World Class Health Infra Claim
The Gujarat High Court on Tuesday, 12 February, lambasted the state government for its failure to develop the required infrastructure in district hospitals to tackle the menace of swine flu.
The division bench of Acting Chief Justice AS Dave and Justice Biren Vaishnav remarked that the cases of swine flu are reported every year and it is going to continue in the years to come.
However, the state has failed to develop the basic infrastructure resulting in difficulties for patients as they have to rush to hospitals in major cities for treatment. Interestingly, only nine district hospitals in the state have the required laboratory facility to detect swine flu cases.
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
6. Jayanti Bhanushali Murder: Warrant Issued Against Bjp Ex-MLA Chhabil Patel
Bhachau court on Tuesday, 12 February issued an arrest warrant against, Chhabil Patel, the former BJP MLA, in connection with the Jayanti Bhanushali murder case, which happened on a moving train in January. The railway police investigating the case moved a plea in this regard.
The court has issued the warrant under Section 70 of criminal procedure code against Patel and considered the Railway Police argument that Patel has not been cooperating with the probe.
Ashish Bhatia, DGP of CID and Railways said, "The court has issued a warrant against Chhabil Patel, while the further investigation in the case is on. Even after this if he doesn't shows up, we will start seizing his assets."
(Source: DNA Ahmedabad)
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)