News Analysis India

Tag: Shivraj Singh Chouhan

  • Teenage rape survivor’s death: MP CM Chouhan orders SIT probe, says no one will be spared

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the death of a 16-year-old rape survivor two days after an alleged overdose of sleeping pills at a government shelter home in Bhopal.

    The CM, meanwhile, is chairing a high-level meeting in Bhopal on Friday over recent cases of crimes against women including the death of the rape survivor.

    “We couldn’t save Bhopal’s daughter. It’s not an ordinary incident, but very unfortunate. An SIT will probe the entire incident, no one will be spared,” the CM said on Friday.

    A political controversy, meanwhile, has erupted over the police reportedly not allowing the teenager’s body to be taken home, but instead taking it to the crematorium directly for last rites by family members.

    Former Congress national president Rahul Gandhi tweeted over the issue, equating the incident with the horrific 2020 Hathras case in UP.

    “How many times will incidents like Hathras be repeated. Not only have BJP governments failed in women safety, but they are even unable to treat the families of exploited girls in a humane manner,” Gandhi tweeted on Friday.

    Senior Congress MLA and ex-MP law minister PC Sharma, meanwhile, demanded a CBI probe into the entire matter related to the girl’s death and cremation.

    The girl had died late on Wednesday night at Hamidia Hospital in Bhopal. But instead of allowing her kin to take the body to her home on Thursday, the police accompanied her father and uncle from hospital with the body to the crematorium.

    The other members of the girl’s family including her mother kept waiting for her body to be brought home before taking it for cremation.

    Later, another police team reportedly went to her home and brought other members of the family including women to the crematorium where her last rites were performed.

    According to additional SP (ASP Bhopal) Rajat Saklecha, the girl’s body was taken from the hospital to the crematorium with her family’s consent. The entire family performed the last rites amid police presence, he said.

    “The family wasn’t at all forced by police to take the body from the hospital to the crematorium,” Saklecha told The New Indian Express.

    The girl, who was among the five teenage survivors of a high-profile 2020 rape case, died at the state government’s Hamidia Hospital on Wednesday late night – two days after she had allegedly taken an overdose of sleeping pills at a government shelter home where she was housed along with the four other survivors in the same rape case.

    She died after battling for life on ventilator support for nearly two days at the government hospital.

    Two of the five teenage girls (all survivors of the high-profile rape case) had allegedly taken an overdose of sleeping pills on Monday afternoon. Both of them were first rushed to the JP Hospital on Monday, from where one of the girls stated to be critical was shifted to the Hamidia Hospital.

    The city police are now probing how sleeping pills reached the government shelter home, where the five girls have been housed following directions by the District Child Welfare Committee (CWC).

    The Bhopal district collector had already instituted a magisterial probe in the matter. The probe was being conducted by the additional district collector Maya Awasthi.

    The five girls were allegedly raped by 68-year-old Pyare Miyan in Bhopal. The high-profile rape and sex racket case was busted in July 2020. Pyare Miyan was arrested from a hideout in Srinagar.

  • MP govt procures record 37.26 lakh MT paddy on support price

    Express News Service
    BHOPAL: The BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh has now reported a record purchase of 37.26 lakh metric ton (MT) paddy on support price from farmers.

    Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, while reviewing paddy procurement work on support price, said that Rs 5,000 crores have already been paid to paddy farmers against the procurement of their produce on support price and 90% paddy has already been transported.

    He instructed the officials concerned to make the remaining payment of farmers and complete the transportation of the remaining paddy at the earliest. Further, he directed to complete the milling work of the purchased paddy as soon as possible.

    Chouhan said there was excess paddy purchase in all the districts on support price except Vidisha compared to last year. Districts with the maximum procurement compared to last year include Hoshangabad, Raisen, and Sehore with 217%, 310%, and 321% purchase respectively. A total of 25.85 lakh MT of paddy was purchased in the state in 2019-20 and 21.96 lakh MT in 2018-19.

    Further, a total of 2,24,919 lakh MT of jowar and millet have been purchased at support price this year. In all, 6,491 farmers have sold jowar and 35,926 farmers have sold millet at the support price. The total purchase amount is Rs 497 crore, against which a payment of Rs 496 crore has been made to the farmers.

    For the first time, the government has made a policy of milling during paddy procurement. During the procurement, 60,997 MT paddy was taken by the millers. A maximum of 37,800 MT was done was taken by millers in the Jabalpur district. Instructions have been given for milling of the entire paddy purchased before the rainy season.

    The CM further informed that the registration work for procurement on support price in Rabi season will be done from January 25 to February 20. For this, a total of 4529 registration centres have been set up in the state, compared to 2991 registration centres set up last year.

    The CM also informed that a new system is being put in place for the registration of sublets/ sharecroppers in Rabi season this year. Under this, registration will be made for purchase on support price for a contracted area up to five hectares.

  • MP vaccine drive: My turn will come in third phase, says Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    By PTI
    BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Saturday said he will receive the COVID-19 vaccine after corona warriors and frontline health staff “in the third phase as per the protocol set by the Centre”.

    He said the vaccine was completely safe and asked opposition parties not to mislead people on the coronavirus pandemic.

    “The priority of vaccination has been set. The vaccine is completely safe and I will receive it when my turn comes as per protocol. I don’t have any special right as CM,” he told reporters.

    “My turn will come in the third phase as per the protocol set by the Centre, after the vaccine is administered to corona warriors and frontline workers,” he added.

    Chouhan, who earlier spoke to vaccine beneficiaries at Hamidia Hospital here, asked opposition parties to not mislead people and to stay united “at least on this issue (COVID-19 fight)”.

    The drive, which began in 150 centres across the state, including 12 in capital Bhopal, will see 4.17 lakh health care workers getting vaccinated in the first phase, for which it had received 5,06,500 doses of Covishield vaccine so far, officials informed.

    Of them, 57,000 health workers will be vaccinated in the first week of the drive, and 55,000 in the second week, state health minister Prabhuram Choudhary had said earlier.

  • Covishield, Covaxin are safe, no need to panic over minor allergy after vaccination: MP CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: While maintaining that both the COVID-19 vaccines – Covishield and Covaxin – are totally safe, Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed on Thursday to make the massive vaccination campaign successful.

    “The vaccine no less than sanjivani booti for protection against novel Coronavirus has arrived. Citizens will get its benefits sequentially and Corona must be totally wiped out now. About 4.25 lakh health care workers, who have been working to save people’s lives will be vaccinated first in the first phase,” said Chouhan.

    Holding discussions with collectors and commissioners about the COVID-19 vaccination via video conferencing, after inaugurating the National Health Mission (NHM) building in Bhopal on Thursday, the CM maintained “Both Covishield and Covaxin are totally safe. This massive vaccination campaign should be made successful. There is no need to panic if someone has a minor allergy after the vaccine.”

    He appealed to the administrative officers, public representatives, media of the districts to not let any misleading information or rumours related to vaccinations flourish, but cooperate in making this vaccination campaign a success.

    Chouhan also informed that the first COVID-19 vaccine will be administered on January 16 to a sanitation worker. “This will also be an honour for the services that they have provided during the Corona crisis.”

    He further said that the protocol for vaccination has been fixed. The vaccine will be administered as per sequence. These include frontline workers such as police personnel, revenue staff as they also need to be safe first. Vaccines will be applied in the same order in which the registration for vaccination took place. No recommendation will be allowed in the mahabhiyan on who has to be vaccinated first.

    The CM further appealed to religious leaders, social workers to give information about the campaign to citizens on priority basis.

  • MP hooch tragedy: Morena Collector, SP removed as death toll rises to 21

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: Heads have started to roll amid the rising death toll from the spurious liquor tragedy in the Morena district of Madhya Pradesh as CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan ordered the removal of Morena District Collector Anurag Verma and SP Anurag Sujaniya. 

    A sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) was suspended over dereliction of duty. The Bagchini police station in-charge and the Morena district excise officer Javed Ahmad were also suspended.

    While the death toll rose to 21 till Wednesday afternoon, the CM chaired a high-level meeting over the incident in Bhopal on Wednesday morning. It was decided to constitute a high-level fact-finding committee to probe the incident and also identify the lapses which led to the tragedy. 

    The committee will comprise of additional chief secretary (ACS-Home) and two senior police officers from the state PHQ who will visit Morena district to conduct a detailed probe into the matter. 

    It was also decided to start a statewide drive against illicit liquor and conduct regular inspections of all distilleries. 

    Meanwhile, the death toll from the Morena hooch tragedy continued to rise. Seven more deaths were reported between Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon, taking the death toll to 21.

    Sixteen others, who consumed the same liquor, have been hospitalised in Morena and Gwalior. Two to three of them are stated to be critical. 

    Two key accused of the case identified as Pappu Pandit and Ramveer Rathore (Rathore is the prime accused) have been taken into custody. Interestingly, the duo was hospitalised after consuming the spurious liquor. The condition of Rathore is critical. 

    According to IG-Chambal Range Manoj Sharma, searches are being conducted to arrest the remaining five accused. All the seven accused have been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. 

    Angered over the hooch tragedy, locals blocked the road between Manpur and Chherna village demanding the immediate start of a police outpost in the area and removal of the licensed liquor vend in that locality. 

  • MP hooch tragedy: Morena Collector, SP removed as death toll rises to 21

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: Heads have started to roll amid the rising death toll from the spurious liquor tragedy in the Morena district of Madhya Pradesh as CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan ordered the removal of Morena District Collector Anurag Verma and SP Anurag Sujaniya. 

    A sub-divisional officer of police (SDOP) was suspended over dereliction of duty. The Bagchini police station in-charge and the Morena district excise officer Javed Ahmad were also suspended.

    While the death toll rose to 21 till Wednesday afternoon, the CM chaired a high-level meeting over the incident in Bhopal on Wednesday morning. It was decided to constitute a high-level fact-finding committee to probe the incident and also identify the lapses which led to the tragedy. 

    The committee will comprise of additional chief secretary (ACS-Home) and two senior police officers from the state PHQ who will visit Morena district to conduct a detailed probe into the matter. 

    It was also decided to start a statewide drive against illicit liquor and conduct regular inspections of all distilleries. 

    Meanwhile, the death toll from the Morena hooch tragedy continued to rise. Seven more deaths were reported between Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon, taking the death toll to 21.

    Sixteen others, who consumed the same liquor, have been hospitalised in Morena and Gwalior. Two to three of them are stated to be critical. 

    Two key accused of the case identified as Pappu Pandit and Ramveer Rathore (Rathore is the prime accused) have been taken into custody. Interestingly, the duo was hospitalised after consuming the spurious liquor. The condition of Rathore is critical. 

    According to IG-Chambal Range Manoj Sharma, searches are being conducted to arrest the remaining five accused. All the seven accused have been booked for culpable homicide not amounting to murder. 

    Angered over the hooch tragedy, locals blocked the road between Manpur and Chherna village demanding the immediate start of a police outpost in the area and removal of the licensed liquor vend in that locality. 

  • Anti-‘love jihad’ law comes into effect in MP

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: With the state government issuing a gazette notification on Saturday, the Madhya Pradesh Dharma Swatantreya Adhyadesh 2020 (MP Freedom of Religion Ordinance 2020) has come into effect in the state.

    The anti-‘love jihad’ ordinance came into force two weeks after the CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired cabinet approved it, and two days after Governor Anandiben Patel put her seal of approval.

    The law entails 10 years in cases of religious conversion through forced or fraudulent marriage by hiding one’s original religious identity.

    As per the gazette notification, “The ordinance provides freedom of religion by prohibiting conversion from one religion to another by misrepresentation, allurement, use of threat or force, undue influence, coercion, marriage or any fraudulent means and for the matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.”

    Under the new law, forced conversion of a minor, woman, or a person from SC/ST would lead to a punishment ranging between two and 10 years and a minimum penalty of Rs 50,000.

    Those found guilty of mass conversion will invite punishment ranging between five and 10 years and a minimum fine of Rs 1 Lakh.

    Under the new law, any marriage solemnised just with the intent of religious conversion will be considered null and void and the offence will be cognizable and non-bailable.

    However, the law also contains provision that those willing to convert to another religion on their own need to apply before the concerned district magistrate two months in advance.

    Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut, who is in Bhopal for the shooting of flick ‘Dhaakad’ welcomed the new law.  

  • Law against stone-pelters to have provision of life term: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan

    By PTI
    INDORE: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday reiterated that a stringent law with a provision of life imprisonment will be enacted to curb the incidents of stone pelting in the state.

    He said this during a public meeting here.

    “We are enacting a strong law against the stone-pelters. (Under the proposed law) They will be sentenced to life imprisonment. They will not be allowed to be released from jail before that,” he said.

    “Stone pelters throw stones everywhere. They try to spread terror in public,” the chief minister said.

    His statement comes in the wake of recent incidents of violence and stone pelting during right wing organisations recent rallies in western Madhya Pradesh to raise awareness about the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.

    Chouhan further said, “I will not tolerate ‘love jihad’ or any such work in Madhya Pradesh at any cost, in which our naive daughters are allured and their lives are spoilt. We have enacted strong laws to prevent such incidents.”

    “People who play with the lives of sisters and daughters should think that now (from the court) they will not get only a small punishment. They will be sentenced to life imprisonment,” he said.

    He was referring to the he Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Bill 2020, which provides for prison term of up to 10 years and fine of Rs 1 lakh for conversion through marriage or by any other fraudulent means.

    The bill got the state cabinet’s approval recently.

    The chief minister inaugurated and performed the ‘bhoomi pujan’ of 16 development works worth more than Rs 200 crore during his day-long visit to Indore.

  • Madhya Pradesh cabinet expanded, two Scindia loyalists return as ministers 

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: The wait of BJP old warhorses to get ministerial berths in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led government in Madhya Pradesh is getting longer. 

    The third cabinet expansion of the Chouhan government happened in Bhopal on Sunday, with the Governor Anandiben Patel administering oath of office and secrecy to just two new cabinet ministers, Tulsiram Silawat and Govind Singh Rajput — both Jyotiraditya Scindia loyalist former Congress legislators. 

    Ex minister Silawat (whom Scindia wanted as deputy CM in the Congress government in December 2018) and Rajput had retained their assembly seats Sanver (Indore) and Surkhi (Sagar) respectively by massive margins in the November 2020 assembly by-polls. 

    Importantly, the duo was among the four ministers who were inducted in the Shivraj Singh Chouhan cabinet in the first expansion in April 2020. But they had to resign from their posts in October as they failed to get re-elected as MLAs within six months of being made cabinet ministers. 

    The resignation by both of them as ministers in October and loss of three Scindia loyalists, Imarti Devi, Aidal Singh Kansana and Giriraj Dandotiya in the by-polls had created five vacancies in the council of ministers in addition to one existing vacant spot, meaning a total of six vacancies. 

    The defeat of the three Scindia loyalist ministers in the November 2020 assembly by-polls (in which BJP won 19 out of the 28 seats to reach comfortable majority of 126 seats), had raised hopes of several BJP veterans from Vindhya, Bundelkhand, Malwa-Nimar and Mahakoshal region to finally get a place in the council of ministers. 

    The multiple-time BJP MLAs who were eyeing the six vacant slots in the council of ministers, included Nagendra Singh-Nagod, Nagendra Singh-Gurh, Kedarnath Shukla, Rajendra Shukla, Girish Gautam and Ramlalu Vaishya (all from Vindhya region which was swept by BJP in 2018 assembly polls), Ajay Vishnoi (Mahakoshal region),  Pradeep Laria and Shailendra Jain (Bundelkhand), Sitasaran Sharma and Rampal Singh (Central MP), Yashpal Singh Sisodiya and Ramesh Mendola (Malwa-Nimar region). 

    These BJP old timers were also eyeing the posts of Vidhan Sabha speaker and deputy speaker, but the three-day State Assembly winter-session (December 28-30) was postponed on December 27 evening owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The election to the post of the speaker and deputy speaker was scheduled during that three day session only. 

  • Communal violence: Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan calls for stern punishment, law against stone-pelters

    By Express News Service
    BHOPAL: The Madhya Pradesh government is working on bringing a law that will not only render strong punishment to stone pelters but also pave the passage for recovering damages from those who damage public and private properties. 

    “Stone-pelting is not an ordinary crime. It not only leads to injuries and deaths but also creates an atmosphere of fear and lawlessness. Such elements won’t be spared as we are framing a law which will ensure stern punishment,” chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Sunday.

    Maintaining that everyone has the right to protest in a peaceful manner, Singh said that violent means of agitation such as vandalising, damaging public and private property is also an unpardonable crime. 

    MP to enact law to recover damages to public-private properties from those who inflict damages. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s announcement came in the wake of 3 recent incidents of communal violence during Ram Temple fund raiser processions in MP. @NewIndianXpress @TheMornStandard pic.twitter.com/o6BtnMz8bi
    — Anuraag Singh (@anuraag_niebpl) January 3, 2021

    “The law which is being framed will empower the state to even confiscate properties of such violent elements to recover the damages,” Chouhan said. 

    Once the law promised by Chouhan comes into force, Madhya Pradesh will become second state after neighbouring UP to have such a law. In August 2020, the UP Vidhan Sabha had passed the UP Recovery of Damages to Public and Private Properties Bill, 2020.

    There have three incidents of communal violence in recent times in the Malwa-Nimar region of Madhya Pradesh during the fund-raising procession for Ram Temple. This region is not just a stronghold of RSS but also the hotbed of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI).

    On December 26, a similar procession was reportedly pelted with stones by people of a certain community in Begum Bagh area of Ujjain. While the cops made over a dozen arrests, there were some who were booked under the contentious National Security Act (NSA). One of the houses from where the stones were pelted on the procession was demolished by the local administration under the ongoing anti-mafia drive. 

    The incident drew condemnation from the Opposition Congress. 

    Just three days later, a similar procession procession was attacked by members of a particular community in Chandan Khedi village of Indore district. The attack had subsequently triggered clashes between both sides. Over 26 persons have so far been arrested in the four cases lodged in the matter and parts of around 10 houses in the village from which stones were pelted in the procession have been demolished in the name of pending road widening exercise. 

    On the same day, another incident of widespread violence was reported during the Ram Temple fund raiser procession in the minority community dominated Dorana village of Mandsaur district. 

    Those forming part of the saffron outfits procession had stormed into houses of the minority community in the village and vandalised property there. 

    Violent elements forming part of the procession had also climbed into the houses and replaced the religious flags with their own saffron flags. Some men had also attempted to damage a place of worship belonging to the minority community and also vandalized vehicles of the same community, all in the presence of cops. 

    It subsequently led to clashes between both sides. 

    As many as six cases have been registered against 58 named accused, out of which only 5 have been arrested so far.