NEW DELHI, AUG 11
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sought permission for prosecution of nine personnel of the Customs and Central Excise in a case of corruption registered in April 2008 and two others of Mormugao Port Trust and Customs in the case registered last December.
Minister of State in PMO, Prithviraj Chavan in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday in a reply to a question by Bhoopendra Singh said, the permission was sought in the first case in June last year and in the second case in June this year and the same is under consideration.
The government’s permission is mandatory for prosecution of the government servants under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The Customs and Central Excise officials whom the CBI has sought to prosecute are Atchut Alornekar, Sunil Pandurang Bharne, Mortoba Lakhba Sardessai, Raj Kumar Mathur Mukund Shinde, Manoj Kumar, Atmaram Ghadi, Virender Kumar and Ramesh Sitaram Sawant. Those sought to be prosecuted in the second case are Boddu Venkata Raman Murthy of Mormugao Port Trust and Herculano Rebello of Customs and Central Excise.
NAVY QUARTERS
In reply to another question by Shantaram Naik (Congress) in the Rajya Sabha, Defence Minister A K Antony disclosed that 323 new residential quarters are under construction for families of the Navy personnel posted in Goa under the Married Accommodation Project Phase-II.
This is in addition to 245 units of the residential quarters spread over 17.4 acres of land are already occupied by the families of the Navy personnel, he added.
HAJ PILGRIMS
In reply to Deepa Dasmunsi (Congress), External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said 104,000 Muslims will be travelling to Saudi Arabia for the Haj pilgrimage this year as per the quota of persons allowed from India. He said the selection of the pilgrims was completed in May by the Haj Committee of India through computerised draw of lots.
He said quota of each state is drawn up on the basis of the Muslim population in the 2001 census that put the total number of Muslims in India at 13.82 crores. A total of 341 persons from Goa were cleared for the Haj on the basis of the Muslims’ population in 2001 census fixed at 92,210. Only recently the Civil Aviation Ministry decided to allow a direct flight from Goa to Saudi Arabia for the Haj travel.
The Muslims can go on the Haj on their own by booking flights and paying full fare while those selected through the Haj Committee are provided subsidy by the Government of India, besides getting travel, accommodation and other logistic support, Krishna added.
