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Exiled Tibetans gear up for 14th parliamentary polls

     McLeodganj (Dharamshala): With just two days left to elect members of the 14th Tibetan Parliament in exile, Tibetans are gearing themselves up for the landmark event. The elections this year have adopted the provincial and sectarian electoral system to elect the members for the Assembly of Tibetan People's Deputies (ATPD). "People are very enthusiastic. We already have registered 79,427 voters for the 14th Assembly Elections and 67,533 voters for the second direct election for the Executive Head of the Community. It is a great thing that people are taking so much interest in the elections", said Tashi Phuntsok, Tibetan Election Commissioner in Exile. For the 43 seats of ATPD, ten members from each of the three provinces, two members each of the five religious sect, three members from Europe and one member from America would be elected. Exiled Tibetans, however want to see youth take on the mantle of leadership. "Every election is equally important. People are however expecting to see young people in Parliament. They can easily bring changes as they have new ideas. Thus structural transformation could be achieved", says Kalsang Phuntsok, the President of Tibetan Youth Congress. Out of 46 seats of ATPD 43 are elected directly by the people and three are nominated by Tibetan Spiritual leader Dalai Lama. Tibetans elect directly the members of ATPD every five years and the Tibetan Prime Minister in Exile is also directly elected by Tibetan voters in exile.

     This year, elections for ATPD and the second directly elected executive head of the Tibetans in exile will have a preliminary round and a final round. Tibetans do not have party system. Individuals stand for elections and voters write the name of their choice of candidate on blank ballot paper. To qualify preliminary round of elections candidates require at least 33 percent of votes. Tibetans in exile are to vote for 43 seats of ATPD on September 11, 2005 and on December 22, 2005 they will vote directly for the Prime Minister in exile. The final round of elections is scheduled for March 18, 2006 for ATPD members and Prime Minister.

Gaya DM removed for lack of poll preparedness (Go To Top)

     Gaya: Gaya District Magistrate Chaitanya Prasad has been removed following Chief Election Commissioner B B Tandon expressing his displeasure over poll-preparedness in the district. The Chief Election Commissioner was on two-day visit (September 7 and 8) to Bihar to take stock of poll-preparedness, and according to the report, poll- preparedness in Gaya failed to convince him, resulting in the transfer of Prasad. Prasad has been replaced by Begusarai District Magistrate Sandeep Poundrik. As per the notification issued by the Personnel department, Prasad would now take charge as Director 'Chakbandi' (Consolidation of Land Holding). In another reshuffle, Vice-Chairman of Patna Regional Development Authority, Mihir Kumar Singh, has been made Begusarai DM, while Deputy Development Commissioner of Patna Shridhar Cheri Volu, will take charge as the new DM of Nalanda district, said the Personnel and Administrative Reforms department.

Four Bangladeshis hacked to death in Tripura  (Go To Top)
by Nazrul Islam

     Dhaka: Four Bangladeshi nationals were allegedly hacked to death by criminals in eastern Brahmanbaria near the border with Tripura on Friday. Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) officials said they were informed that a group of Indian criminals had abducted the four Bangladeshis and killed them. The bodies were found on a road in Gangail area of Agartala, informed sources said. The killing of Bangladeshi nationals took place at a time when the border guards of the two countries agreed at a border conference in Siliguri to maintain peace on the borders dividing the two countries. The four-day deputy-director level conference concluded on Friday agreeing to reduce tension on the 4000 kilometre Indo-Bangla border and assist each other to bring down criminal activities across the border. Major Mahmud, the acting commander of the BDR battalion in Brahmanbaria confirmed that four Bangladeshi people were killed across the border. They were identified as Mozammel Haq Bhuiyan, 35, and Abdur Razzak, 32, of Kuripaika village in Akhaura upazila, and Alam, 32, of Abdullahpur village of same Upazila. The identity of the fourth person was yet to be confirmed. The bodies are yet to hand over to the BDR. According to locals, tension has gripped the area and the BDR has been placed on a state of high alert.

Indian envoy hands over 5 mln dollars for Katrina victims  (Go To Top)
by Simon Marks

     Washington: India's Ambasador to the United States, Ronen Sen, handed over a donation of five million dollars to the American Red Cross on Thursday to help rehabilitate victims of Hurricane Katrina. With up to a million people displaced by Hurricane Katrina, Ambassador Sen delivered the money personally at the headquarters of the Red Cross in Washington D.C. The relief organization is overseeing the response to Hurricane Katrina from its Disaster Operations Center. Now, officially considered America's worst natural disaster, the Red Cross is trying to get relief supplies and assistance to the one million people displaced by the storm. Authorities are warning of the spread of disease ' at least three deaths are already being attributed to bacteria breeding in the fetid floodwaters. Ambassador Sen has called on Indians living in the United States to contribute generously to the Red Cross disaster relief fund. Ambassador Sen says even ten days after the Hurricane, the scale of the disaster is still difficult to comprehend.

Sania unfazed by Muslim clergy's dress code demand  (Go To Top)
by Narendra

     Hyderabad: Indian teen tennis sensation Sania Mirza has said that she would not like to comment on a Muslim religious scholar's demand for her to change her dress code when playing tennis tournaments around the world. Reacting to the cleric's view that Islam does not permit a woman to show her body, Sania told reporters here: ""The talk is about my t-shirt. I don't know...But whatever the controversy is...I have never faced anyone say that you are brown or you are from India. I guess I am lucky." Mirza, who became the first Indian woman tennis player to enter the fourth round of a Grand Slam, in this case the U.S.Open, where she eventually lost to top seed Maria Sharapova in straight sets, said that she was religious, but unfazed by the comments made by Syed Yousaf Bin, the chief patron of the Ulema Board, in Hyderabad. "You can wear an outfit where you body is not shown. Tennis is played by hands, its not necessary to show you body. You are making India proud, but bringing shame to Islam," Bin said. After her performance in the U.S.Open, Sania is currently ranked 35 at the WTA rankings, the highest by an Indian woman tennis player. She began 2005 ranked 169, climbed to number 42 and became the first Indian woman to win a WTA Tour event when she triumphed before her home crowd in Hyderabad. Commenting about her experience with Sharapova, Sania said: "She (Maria Sharapova) has a big serve. She is the world number one. I think more than learning, I loved the experience of being out there and playing in front of 35,000 people, I had fun. Even though I lost, every second I was there I had fun and I hope there will be a lot more encounters with Sharapova in the coming days." Mirza said her achievement had been more than she had targeted for the year. "I said top 50 by the end of this year and I am top 50 and I still have a few months left for the year to end. So I am going to take time. Whatever comes is a bonus now and probably by December I set a target for the next year." Sania, who will play next in Bali and Kolkata, has said she wants to improve her fitness and her serve.

Indians celebrate Mahesh Bhupathi's Grand Slam win (Go To Top)

     Hyderabad: Indians on Friday celebrated Mahesh Bhupathi's mixed doubles victory at the U.S.Open. Bhupathi partnering Daniela Hantuchova beat Katarina Srebotnik and Nenad Zimonjic 6-4 6-2 in the finals. Krishna Bhupathi, Mahesh's father, expressed jubilation over his son's performance said Mahesh has put his target at 10 grand slam wins. "It's a very happy occasion and it's a very happy thing, we have worked -- the whole family. His mother, sister and I all of us have worked very along with him and of course he is a real athlete. And he is one who has put in all the hardwork, by the support system, teaching and everything has gone into it. We are thrilled we have a boy who has lived upto the expectations we have and he Mahesh has put the target as 10 and I as 12. Let's see what happens," Krishna said. Bhupathi became the first Indian to win a grand slam in 1997 in the French Open mixed doubles with Japan's Rika Hiraki. He has won four men's doubles titles, three of them with compatriot Leander Paes.