Mandal divides parties  

Lakhtar (Surendranagar dt): The emergence of a new political force, wedded to the implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations is on the cards in the country. This was evident from the one-day convention of pro-reservationists organized here by the Anamat Samwrthan Samiti (pro-reservation committee), headed by the veteran Gujarat Congress leader, Jinabhai Darji. The convention, inaugurated by the former planning minister, P. Shivshankar, called upon the backward castes to stand by only those parties which were committed to the Mandal commission. Karamsi Makwana, the excise and prohitbion minister in the Chimanbhai patel ministry, who is also vice-president of the samiti, even threatened to resign from the ministry once he realized that the Mandal recommendations were not to be implemented in Gujarat. Haroobhai Mehta, former Congress MP, described the convention as a forerunner to the realignment of political forces in the days to come. (Times of India, Jan.22) Innocent Sikhs presecuted in Punjab Amritsar: All the 40 accused, including six women, in the “Operation Black Thunder” case were on Jan. 23 ordered to be released by a special court there. Besides sedition, murder and attempt to murder, the accused were charged for “waging war against India.” The case was registered soon after “Operation Black Thunder” in May, 1988. The designated court judge, S.S. Grewal, discharged the case accepting the pleas of the defense counsel that prosecution failed to make out any case against the accused. The judge said that “there is no sufficient ground for the prosecution against the accused and they stand discharged.” Among those who were facing trial were the Panthic committee spokesman, Bhai Nirver Singh, two militants, Milikiat Singh Ajnala and Bhai Chanchal Singh, who surrendered to the security forces. The women included the wives of some militants, including Bhai Surjit Singh Painta and Bhai Milikiat Singh (Times of India, Jan.24).