State Pulse: Goa: A "Rape City"?

The Centre has demanded the government prepare a report on police presence at different places and the progress of investigation in various cases- Insaf
Is Goa the "rape city" of the country, as described by its Tourism Minister Mickey Pachecho? The answer could turn out to be in the affirmative, if the ruling Congress-NCP Government doesn't get its act together. The recent case of a nine-year-old Russian girl raped on Arambol beach on Republic Day has made New Delhi sit up. The Congress high command has demanded a report from Chief Minister Digambar Kamat on the security steps being taken by his government and sought intelligence inputs on whether Russian tourists were being specifically targeted. Further, it has demanded the government prepare a report on police presence at different places and the progress of investigation in various cases. These include: a 14-year-old German girl allegedly raped by the son of a Goa minister in October 2008 and the body of a 19-year-old Russian girl found on rail tracks on May 2009. Recall, that Goa had hit the headlines after a British teen Scarlet Keeling was allegedly raped and found dead on a beach in February 2008.
Never-ending woes Of CM Chavan
Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan miseries are far from over. Other than handling the murky situation arising out of Shiv Sena's threats against Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Gandhi, Chidambaram et al, he is yet to be let off the hook by the Election Commission for alleged electoral malpractice. Last week, Chavan had replied to the EC's notice and denied paying money for news in local papers in his favour during the Assembly poll last year and undervaluing his poll expenses, as complained by the BJP. He also questioned the EC's authority to seek his "comments" on the charges, as his expense account was the subject matter of an election petition pending before the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court. However, the Commission is keeping the suspense going. It will wait for the complainant BJP's counter before taking further action on Chavan's reply.
Telangana Panel Set-Up
The contentious issue of the formation of a separate Telangana State has moved half a step forward. On Wednesday last, the Centre announced a five-member committee headed by former Supreme Court judge B N Srikrishna, "to hold wide-ranging consultations with all sections of the people and all political parties and groups in Andhra Pradesh". However, its terms of references are yet to be drafted and no time-frame has been mentioned. This apart, eyebrows have been raised over the wording of the official statement, which does not mention Telangana. This could be deliberate. Those supporting Telangana could infer the Centre had finally set the ball rolling on the formation of a new State. Those from Andhra/Rayalseema could interpret it as only "a continuation of the consultation process." While both the Telangana Rashtriya Samithi and the Joint Action Committee are non-committal and await the panel's terms of references, the BJP has rejected the committee, denouncing it as a "dilatory exercise." It added: If at all the committee was to be set up, it should have been charged with identifying "the nitty-gritty of bifurcation."
Nitish under attack
All is not well with Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his Janata Dal (United). On Monday last, close aide and MP Ranjan Singh Lallan put in his papers as the State party president accusing Nitish of "behaving like a dictator". He alleged that the CM was "ignoring and overlooking genuine party workers and treating the party as his pocket organization..." The rebel chief was closely associated with Nitish since long and had emerged as one of the most powerful men in Bihar politics, enjoying a great deal of say in bureaucratic reshuffle and decision-making. However, since the Lok Sabha election last May, the relationship sour as Nitish reportedly refused to allow him to interfere in the Government's functioning. While Nitish is confident that everything will be sorted out and the people will finally decide, party President Sharad Yadav said he had kept the resignation pending and would resolve the issue within a fortnight. Time is crucial as the State goes to the polls this October.    
-INFA