2G scam: Supreme Court questions PM's inaction

New Delhi:  The Supreme Court (SC) has questioned the Prime Minister's alleged inaction in 2G scam. The apex court made the observation on Janata Party Subramaniam Swami's complaints against A Raja.
The Janata Party leader had sought the court's intervention on grounds that his application before the PM seeking his sanction to prosecute A Raja for corruption is pending for the last two years.
The petitioner told the court that there is no need for the PM's nod since Raja has resigned as a minister. There was another plea by petitioner Prashant Bhushan on the CAG report on licences issued to ineligible companies at 2001 prices.
During the last hearing on October 29, the Supreme Court had slammed the CBI for its "slipshod" investigations into the 2G Spectrum allocation issue and even wondered how Raja was continuing in office.

       
The Telecom Ministry had claimed that new licences and 2G Spectrum was distributed as per the existing policy which were followed by all the predecessors of Raja.

CAG report proves charge against Raja, SC told

NEW DELHI: The final report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has proved the allegations that Mr A Raja, who quit on Sunday night as telecom minister, granted 2G spectrum licences arbitrarily to favour certain companies were true, senior counsel Prashant Bhushan told the Supreme Court on Monday. 

Mr Bhushan told a bench comprising Justice G S Singhvi and Justice A K Ganguly that Mr Raja advanced the cut-off date retrospectively and illegally to award 2G spectrum only to 122 out of 575 applicants. He said most of those who were awarded licences and 2G spectrum were ineligible. 

Appearing for the petitioner Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL), Mr Bhushan said that the licences were allegedly granted on first-come-first-served (FCFS) basis instead of transparent public auction. 

The court was told that “even the FCFS method was not properly applied as priority was fixed from the date of compliance with the letter of intent (LOI) conditions rather than the date of receipt of applications”. 

Referring to the central government’s affidavit filed last Thursday, the senior counsel told the court all the arguments that have been advanced in the affidavit were advanced by the department of telecommunications (DoT) before the CAG and the same were rejected by the audit authority. 

He said that the director general audit (post and telegraph) too found fault over the manner in which 2G spectrum licences were issued. The senior counsel said that the CAG has annexed the director general audit’s report in its final report. 

Bhushan told the court that 2G spectrum licences in 2008 were granted at the rates of 2001, when the telecom market was in a nascent stage. He told the court that by 2008 the telecom market had become buoyant, there was a huge demand and the prices had increased 10 fold. 

The affidavit filed by the CPIL said that the DoT in its affidavit has not addressed the issue of Raja’s conversations with corporate lobbyists Nira Radia and the role played by her in the award of licences and spectrum. 

The details of the conversations were given by the directorate of income tax (Investigations) to the Central Bureau of Investigation more than a year back, the affidavit said. 

“The entire 2G spectrum scam is a multi-stage, well thought out, deliberate act where a criminal conspiracy was hatched between private companies/persons and officials of DoT in order to circumvent an open, transparent auction process to favour a chosen few,” the petitioner said.

BJP slams SG's bid to organize strategy session on 2G case

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Monday criticised solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam's attempts to get officials of CBI and ED to attend a strategy session with the counsel for A Raja even as they were investigating the former telecom minister's role in the 2G spectrum scam. 

Reacting to TOI reports, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley told reporters, "If such a meeting has indeed been held, it establishes that an effort was made for a cover-up. Department of telecommunication (DoT) was the department being investigated, Raja, the minister being investigated and CBI was the investigating agency. How can the investigative agency and the accused have a common strategy session?" 

The 2G spectrum case is pending before the Supreme Court, where the court is hearing a PIL petition accusing government agencies like the CBI and ED of inaction in probing the corruption charges against Raja. 

On Saturday, TOI reported that the solicitor general did not see anything wrong in trying to get CBI and ED officials to have a joint strategy meeting with Raja's counsel.
 

2G Spectrum Scam: 85 companies got licenses by suppressing facts, says CAG

New Delhi:  The report that pushed A Raja through the exit door of the Telecom Ministry has been tabled in the Lok Sabha. Prepared by the government's auditor, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), the document holds Raja responsible on many fronts for violating guidelines, indulging in favouritism and costing the government Rs. 1.76  lakh crores by mishandling the allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008.

"85 licenses were issued to companies which suppressed facts, disclosed incomplete information and submitted fictitious documents to DoT and thus used fraudulent means of getting licenses and thereby access to spectrum," sad the CAG report. 

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said CAG reports are taken very seriously and that places greater responsibility on the auditor to ensure that the reports are balanced and fair.
 
The CAG, Manmohan Singh said, was an important watchdog and its reports were taken seriously by the media, the Parliament and the government.  He also said he was "aware of concerns regarding the inadequate and delayed response to the reports of the CAG," and added that the Finance Ministry had taken a number of steps to improve matters.

There were loud and angry scenes in Parliament once again today, courtesy the Opposition - the Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Thursday, since tomorrow is a national holiday for Eid.
 
The government is trying its best to get Opposition parties to stop stalling proceedings over the 2G scam. But a lunch meeting with Opposition leaders called by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to try and end the deadlock, has ended without a breakthrough.  

Mukherjee, who also met senior BJP leader LK Advani at the latter's Parliament office earlier, emerged from the lunch meeting to say, "We are for discussion. No solution has been found yet. They want a JPC."

Raja was forced to resign on Sunday night under considerable pressure from the Congress, which has been attacked in Parliament by a united Opposition for corruption within its ranks.  

The resignation was described as a welcome step by the Opposition but it continues to demand a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the 2G scam.  The government has said there is no question of agreeing to this. 

Parliament has not functioned at all this winter session - the Opposition says it won't let the House get to work till a JPC is announced.

What the CAG Report says about Raja

"The Honourable Minister of Communication & IT, for no apparent logical or valid reasons, ignored the advice of Ministry of Law and Ministry of Finance, avoided the deliberations of the Telecom Commission to allocate 2G spectrum, a scarce finite national asset at less than its true value on flexible criteria and procedures adopted to benefit a few operators." The report also says Raja ignored PM's advice. 

Details are also emerging on how Raja bent the rules for a few corporates who walked away in 2008 with 2G licenses at what experts describe as throwaway prices based, inexplicably, on 2001 rates.

Several of the companies should have been declared ineligible, says the CAG report.

Swan Telecom and others favoured 

Swan Telecom was among those that won a 2G license in 2008.  The charges in the CAG report are that Swan should not have been considered for a license because Reliance Communications held 10.7% stake in Swan - and according to the rules, a telecom operator cannot own more than 10% stake in another telecom company operating in the same service area.

The application should have been rejected by the Department of Telecom (DoT).

The CAG report says, "It was evident at the time of applying for license that the substantial equity of M/s Reliance Telecom in M/s Swan was 10.7%. Since M/s Reliance Telecom was operating in all the service area for which M/s Swan Telecom had applied for the license, their application was not in conformity with Clause 8 of the guidelines".

The report also says that Reliance Telecommunications and Tata Teleservices were among those who got undue benefits, and that Reliance was allotted spectrum ahead of the others.  According to CAG, Idea and Spice were wrongly denied spectrum on the grounds of a proposed merger.

2G spectrum scam: Some highlights of CAG report

New Delhi:  The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report on the allotment of 2G Spectrum licences, tabled in the Lok Sabha today, has held former Telecom Minister A Raja responsible on many fronts for violating guidelines, indulging in favouritism and costing the government Rs. 1.76 lakh crores by mishandling the allocation of the 2G spectrum in 2008. 

The report, bits of which had become known in the days before it was tabled, has the Opposition parties up in arms and demanding a joint parliamentary committee inquiry. Parliament has not functioned for a single day in the Winter session with the Opposition forcing adjournments.

The CAG report makes several damning conclusions about what Raja did incorrectly. On Tuesday afternoon, the auditor addressed a press conference to explain its report and to answer questions on it. Using power point presentation slides, CAG officials recounted the entire audit process and how it had reached its conclusions.   

Here are some highlights:

·         Raja ignored advice of PM, Law Ministry, Finance Ministry

·         Spectrum was rare national asset, should have been auctioned

·         Allocated 2G spectrum to new players at throwaway prices

·         Allocation of 2G spectrum led to loss of  Rs. 1.76 lakh crore

·         Calculation of loss based on 3G auction earlier this year

·         Cut-off date for license letters advanced arbitrarily by a week

·         This went against time-tested procedures of government functioning

·         Entire process lacked transparency

·         Undertaken in arbitrary and inequitable manner

·         Rules circumvented to benefit Swan:  CAG 

·         Reliance given spectrum ahead of others: CAG

·         Tata Teleservices among those who got undue benefits: CAG

·         Idea and Spice not given spectrum on grounds of proposed merger- this was against the rules

CAG on Prime Minister

'The PM had stressed on the need for a fair and transparent allocation of spectrum..... Brushing aside the advice, the Department of Telecom (DoT) in 2008 proceeded to issue licences for 2G spectrum at 2001 prices, flouting all rules and procedures'

'85 licenses were issued to companies which suppressed facts, disclosed incomplete information and submitted fictitious documents to DoT and thus used fraudulent means of getting licenses and thereby access to spectrum."

CAG must ensure reports are fair: PM

New Delhi:  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) reports are taken very seriously and that places greater responsibility on the auditor to ensure that the reports are balanced and fair. 

The PM said this at a CAG conference and only a little after the CAG report on the 2G scam and former Telecom Minister A Raja's role was tabled in Parliament. 

The government auditor, the Prime Minister said, needed to distinguish between bonafide errors and deliberate mistakes and ensure that its reports are "accurate, balanced and fair."

Very often, he said, "there is a very thin line between fair criticism and fault finding, between hazarding a guess and making a reasonable estimate, between a bonafide error and a deliberate mistake.

"As an important watchdog in our democracy, it falls upon this institution to sift the wheat from chaff, to distinguish between wrong-doing and genuine efforts, to appreciate the context and circumstances of decisions", he added.

The CAG, Manmohan Singh said, was an important watchdog and its reports were taken seriously by the media, the Parliament and the government.  He also said he was "aware of concerns regarding the inadequate and delayed response to the reports of the CAG," and added that the Finance Ministry had taken a number of steps to improve matters.

Importance of credible accountability

The CAG report tabled today holds Raja responsible on many fronts for violating guidelines, indulging in favouritism and costing the government Rs. 1.76 lakh crore by mishandling the allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008.

The Prime Minister asked the CAG not to invest too much time into minute and individual transactions but focus on "big ticket items on which large sums of money are expended."

While the benefits of detailed, propriety audit cannot be under-estimated, Singh said, "perhaps, there is a case for allocating limited time and resources in a manner that big and systemic issues get due attention and we get much greater value for money."

The CAG should also suggest methods of doing things better and differently, he said.

The Prime Minister said the institution should become "an exchange house of good practices" so that states can also benefit from its expertise and improve implementation of welfare programmes.

Singh said that the global financial crisis,the worst since the Great Depression of 1930s, has brought to fore the importance of such institutions.

Pointing out that the importance of credible and effective accountability and oversight institutions cannot be overemphasised, Singh said, "the global economic crisis that erupted in 2008 has served as a reminder to all of us of the need for such institutions".

The CAG, he added, could play a significant role in revamping "systems and procedures in government to meet the needs of the 21st century."

The Prime Minister said merely expanding the outreach of programmes for employment generation, education and health is not enough.

"We must do better than the past in implementing our schemes if we are to make a dent in the problems of persistent poverty, hunger and disease that still afflict millions of our countrymen...The emphasis in outcome needs to be pervasive in our system", Singh said.

Opposition demands JPC probe

Raja was forced to resign on Sunday night under considerable pressure from the Congress, which has been attacked in Parliament by a united Opposition for corruption within its ranks.

The Opposition is on the offensive, demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry into the 2G scam. There were angry scenes in Parliament once again today and the Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Thursday, since tomorrow is a national holiday for Eid.

Parliament has not functioned at all this Winter Session - the Opposition says it won't let the House get to work till a JPC is announced.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is meeting senior BJP leader LK Advani in the latter's office to discuss a possible end to the stand-off in Parliament. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal is at the meeting too. 

2G scam: Supreme Court to hear plea against Raja today

New Delhi:  The Supreme Court is expected to decide today whether the Prime Minister's nod is needed to prosecute former Telecom Minister A Raja who resigned from the post late on Sunday evening.

The top court will hear two petitions against Raja on the 2G spectrum scam.

Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy sought the court's intervention on grounds that his application before the PM seeking his sanction to prosecute A Raja for corruption is pending for the last two years.

The petitioner told the court that there is no need for the PM's nod since Raja has resigned as a minister. The other plea is by petitioner Prashant Bhushan on the CAG report on licences issued to ineligible companies at 2001 prices.

During the last hearing on October 29, the Supreme Court had slammed the CBI for its "slipshod" investigations into the 2G Spectrum allocation issue and even wondered how Raja was continuing in office.
       
The Telecom ministry had claimed that new licenses and 2G Spectrum was distributed as per the existing policy which were followed by all the predecessors of Raja.

Karunanidhi: CAG should evaluate not only process, but outcome

New Delhi:  It was the Comptroller and Auditor General's report (CAG) that led to his minister, A Raja, exiting the government.  And on the day when that report on the 2G spectrum scam was tabled in parliament, DMK chief, M Karunanidhi, shared his message for CAG.

At a function in Chennai to mark 150 years of the CAG, Karunanidhi sent a statement that was read out by his son, MK Stalin.

Karunanidhi declared, "You have the valuable gift of power to criticize and such unfettered power comes with responsibility. It's your bounden duty that this task is carried out in the best possible manner and in public interest alone." 

The DMK is standing by Raja, insisting that his resignation does not mean that the party has accepted his guilt. After stepping down on Sunday evening, Raja said he should be credited with leading a telecom revolution in the country. He said his decision to award licenses at cheap rates in 2008 led to a massive increase in tele-density, allowing millions of Indians to benefit.  

Echoing that line, Karunanidhi said today, "CAG audit will be useful if they could evaluate not only inputs and process but also outputs and outcome. "

2G spectrum scam: Raja ignored PM's advice, says CAG report

New Delhi:  The report that pushed A Raja through the exit door of the Telecom Ministry has been tabled in the Lok Sabha. Prepared by the government's auditor, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), the document holds Raja responsible on many fronts for violating guidelines, indulging in favouritism and costing the government Rs. 1.76  lakh crores by mishandling the allocation of 2G spectrum in 2008.

There were loud and angry scenes in Parliament once again today, courtesy the Opposition - the Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Thursday, since tomorrow is a national holiday for Eid.
 
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is meeting senior BJP leader LK Advani in the latter's office to discuss a possible end to the stand-off in Parliament. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal is at the meeting too.

Raja was forced to resign on Sunday night under considerable pressure from the Congress, which has been attacked in Parliament by a united Opposition for corruption within its ranks.  

The resignation was described as a welcome step by the Opposition but it continues to demand a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to investigate the 2G scam.  The government has said there is no question of agreeing to this. 

Parliament has not functioned at all this winter session - the Opposition says it won't let the House get to work till a JPC is announced.

What the CAG Report says about Raja

"The Honourable Minister of Communication & IT, for no apparent logical or valid reasons, ignored the advice of Ministry of Law and Ministry of Finance, avoided the deliberations of the Telecom Commission to allocate 2G spectrum, a scarce finite national asset at less than its true value on flexible criteria and procedures adopted to benefit a few operators."

Details are also emerging on how Raja bent the rules for a few corporates who walked away in 2008 with 2G licenses at what experts describe as throwaway prices based, inexplicably, on 2001 rates.

Several of the companies should have been declared ineligible, says the CAG report.

Swan Telecom and others favoured 

Swan Telecom was among those that won a 2G license in 2008.  The charges in the CAG report are that Swan should not have been considered for a license because Reliance Communications held 10.7% stake in Swan - and according to the rules, a telecom operator cannot own more than 10% stake in another telecom company operating in the same service area.

The application should have been rejected by the Department of Telecom (DoT).

The CAG report says, "It was evident at the time of applying for license that the substantial equity of M/s Reliance Telecom in M/s Swan was 10.7%. Since M/s Reliance Telecom was operating in all the service area for which M/s Swan Telecom had applied for the license, their application was not in conformity with Clause 8 of the guidelines". 

Delhi building collapse: 64 dead, 80 injured, many feared trapped

New Delhi:  Sixty-four people died and at least 80 others were injured as a five-storey residential building collapsed in Lalita Park in east Delhi's Laxmi Nagar area on Monday evening. More than 30 people are believed to be still trapped under the rubble.

According to eyewitnesses, at least 400-500 people were staying in the building which collapsed at 8 pm on Monday.

The injured have been admitted to Lok Nayak Jai Prakash, Lalbahadur Shastri and Hedgewar hospitals.   A special team of doctors has been assigned to treat the injured at all the three hospitals. According to Delhi Health Minister Kiran Walia, at least 20 ambulances have been pressed into action to carry the injured to various hospitals. Walia visited the building collapse site to assess the situation.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and Lt Governor Tejinder Khanna inspected the site on Tuesday morning.  "I regret the loss of life. In this area, there has been a lot of unauthorized construction. Builders don't pay attention to safety. This is the Yamuna bed, foundations have to be strong," Khanna said. The CM has promised "exemplary punishment for the guilty." 

Speaking to NDTV earlier, Dikshit had said, "30 to 40 people are yet to be rescued. I think this disaster happened because of the carelessness of the builder. I will order an inquiry into the incident. The builder is untraced. He has been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder.

Dikshit also added that mobile phones have been heard ringing under the debris.

The Delhi government has said the foundation of the old building could have weakened due to the heavy monsoon rain this year when the water of river Yamuna flooded the area. Locals said some water was still there in the basement of the building. 

"The cause of the collapse, as far as I know, is the high water level of Yamuna in this area," said a resident of the area.

Locals also claimed that construction of an extra floor was going on when the incident took place. 

"There was a lot of water-logging. It was carelessness on the government's part. Five floors of the building were already complete. Another storey was under construction. It would have never collapsed if the work to build that extra storey wouldn't have started," said another resident. 

A magisterial inquiry has been ordered into the incident. Police said an adjoining building also faced risk of collapse and hence people have been evacuated from it. 
  
Rescue operation continued throughout the night. So far 150 people have been rescued. Huge mounds of concrete slabs and rubble were seen all around as rescuers, helped by the local residents, faced a tough task extricating people from the debris. Eyewitnesses said they heard shouts for help from under the debris. Locals complained that power cut and absence of cranes hampered the rescue efforts initially. A 250-member disaster management team was helping in rescue efforts.

Helpline numbers at hospitals: 011-22786828 , 22393151, 22597262

DMK's land-for-poor scheme runs into scam

In probably one of the biggest land scams exposed in Tamil Nadu, a Headlines Today investigation has found that under an ambitious scheme of the DMK government the plots meant for poor people were grabbed by greedy land sharks of the state.

The scheme was meant to help landless farmers of the state, but it turned into a Rs 200 crore scam. Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi had in 2006 announced the scheme under which over 2 lakh acre land was to be distributed equally among agricultural labourers of the state.

However, four years later, Headlines Today exposes how the promises made by the DMK government turned out to be a farce. The land earmarked for the poor has now been in the possession of the rich and the mighty.

Headlines Today travelled to Theni district of the state to unearth how deep the scam runs. The owner of one of such plots to be allotted to landless farmers came out to be a woman who ran an NGO and her husband has been a government school teacher. Kanmani, the beneficiary, claimed the produce from this land goes to her house. Excerpts:

Our Team: How did you get the land?
Kanmani: I got it under the 2 acre land scheme by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.

Our Team: It is given to poor landless farmers. What do you do?
Kanmani: Yeah, but I run an NGO.

Our Team: What does your husband do?
Kanmani: He is a government school teacher.

Our Team: But this is meant for poor labourers both of you are working and earning money.
Kanmani: (Laughs... doesn't answer for a while.) But I was poor.

Headlines Today is in possession of documents that show Kanmani's name in the list of beneficiaries. This despite the fact that rules clearly state that beneficiary can only be a landless agricultural labourer.

Kanmani does not have the answer to the question on how she became the beneficiary of the scheme meant for the poor labourers. Kanmani is just not the only one. There are many such land sharks who have benefited from the DMK government's ambitious scheme supposed to help poor farmers of Tamil Nadu.

Krishna rubbishes Yeddyruappa's claims on land deals

Bangalore, Nov 16 : External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna late Monday denied he had denotified lands acquired by the Karnataka government to favour some people when
he was the chief minister of the sate during 1999-2004.

He was reacting to Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa's statement earlier Monday that not only he but several of his predecessors had denotified (freed from government control) the lands.

In a statement here Krishna said that between October 1999 and June 2004, over 2,000 acres of state's land was denotified to be utilised by various government departments.

The land so freed was for projects like the construction of outer ring road in Bangalore and for utilisation by Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) and others, Krishna said.

Yeddyurappa had said during Krishna's rule 633 acres of land was denotified.

Yeddyurappa gave details of land denotified in the last ten years and also residential sites allotted by chief ministers under their discretionary quota to contend that he has not favoured his children in land deals.

Yeddyurppa chose to come out with the details following allegations that an auto component manufacturing firm, in which his two sons are directors, was favoured in allotment of prime industrial plot of two acres at Jigani industrial estate in the outskirts of Bangalore in 2007 when he was deputy chief minister.

The firm got the allotment within 15 days of applying for the land.

Yeddyurappa denied any wrong doing or violation of law in the allotment.

Ex-civil aviation minister wants Tata to name who sought bribe

Bangalore, Nov 16 : C.M. Ibrahim, who was union civil aviation minister in 1996-97, late Monday demanded that Tata Group head Ratan Tata name the minister who sought Rs.15 crore bribe to allow the group to run an airlinesservice as alleged by him.

"The law at the time did not allow any foreign airline stake in running domestic airline service. I made this clear to Ratan Tata," Ibrahim, civil aviation minister under then prime minister H.D. Deve Gowda, told reporters here.

He was reacting to a startling statement of Ratan Tata earlier Monday at Dehradun that an industrialist had told him 'You people are stupid. You know the minister wants Rs.15 crore. So why don't you pay it?."

The Tata Group wanted to start an airline service in association with Singapore airlines in 1990s. It also bid to build a new international airport at Bangalore which too it did not get to do.

"They wanted to build, operate and own the airport. I told them it should be handed over to the government after 30 years. I wanted it to be on BOT (build-operate-transfer) basis. They did not agree," Ibrahim, how in Congress, said.

He said he was ready for any probe and in fact would be writing to the prime minister to initiate a probe.

32 killed, 90 injured in Delhi house collapse

New Delhi, Nov 16 : At least 32 people were killed and around 90 injured when a five-storeyed house collapsed in east Delhi's Laxmi Nagar Monday night. Scores of people are believed to be trapped under the rubble, officials said.

Delhi police commissioner B.K. Gupta said late in the night that 32 people had been killed in the house collapse in Lalita Park colony on the Yamuna embankment. He said 89 people were injured.

According to a resident of the building, it was inhabited by around 250 people, mainly migrants from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

"I was told on the phone that our building has collapsed and I came here to see that the structure had turned into rubble. My mother and two brothers were inside. The recent overflowing of the Yamuna river had caused waterlogging in the basement of the building and it had not been pumped out," the woman resident said.

The building had single rooms with around 250 people, she added.

Earlier, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, on allegations that the rescue personnel had reached the spot late, said: "There are very narrow lanes. The crane did take some time, but the fire people were there immediately, the DC(deputy commissioner) was there, disaster (teams) was there.

"It was a 'pucca' building, but it could be an illegal building. I believe that there was water in the basement for days, which was something which the owner should have noticed."

Delhi Fire Service chief fire officer R.C. Sharma said that at least 40 people have been rescued and sent to the hospital. Their condition is said to be critical. He said rescue work is expected to go till the morning.

The state government has also called in the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) to help in rescue efforts.

"The National Disaster Response Force was summoned about 10-10.15 p.m. and we moved from Greater Noida at 10.20 p.m.," said NDRF Inspector General Mukul Goel, adding that two teams were prepared for the rescue operations.

Eyewitnesses said there were shouts coming from the people trapped under the rubble.

Emergency services and heavy equipment to remove the rubble were delayed in reaching the spot due to the narrow streets of the colony. The darkness and dirzzle also hampered the rescue effort, though local people were removing the concrete pieces by hand.

"There are no (gas) cutters here to remove the rubble. We are removing the debris with the help of rods and sticks as a result I've injured my hand. There are absolutely no arrangements in place here for us," said a local helping in the rescue work.

The injured and dead were taken to the Lok Nayak Jaiprakash Narayan hospital and Lal Bahadur Shastri hospital.

There are several versions for the building collapse. "It seems that the basement of the building was filled with water, which could have caused the collapse," Finance Minister A.K. Walia, who reached the spot, told reporters.

But, according to the Municipal Corporation of Delhi official, the main reason could have been illegal construction. "Just three days ago, we prevented another five storey building in Mahavir Enclave from collapsing, by demolishing the illegal structures," he said.

RI For Frivolous Complaint In Judges Standards Bill : Moily

New Delhi, Nov 15 : A Bill proposed to ensure ''greater accountability and transparency'' in India's higher judiciary provides for ''rigorous imprisonment and fine for frivolous or vexatious complaints,'' Parliament was told today.

Law and Justice Minister M Veerappa Moily said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha that the government ''proposes to bring in The Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010,'' but did not say when it would do so.

He was answering Janta Dal (United) member from Bihar Anil Kumar Sahani who wanted to know the salient objectives of the proposed Bill and steps to ''check misuse of the legislation.'' The Bill will lay down judicial standards to be followed by the Judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, a mechanism for enquiring into complaints against Judges and provide for declaration of their assets and liabilities, Moily said.

The Minister said it would also punish misuse. ''The Bill provides for rigorous imprisonment and fine for frivolous or vexatious complaints.'' Moily told another member that the government was collecting information on the number Supreme Court judgements which are more than two years old and yet to be implemented.

He was answering Indian National Congress member from Andhra Pradesh Nandi Yellaiah who wanted to know the number of such judgements and the steps taken for their implementation, especially in his State.

Answering Bharatiya Janata Party's Jai Prakash Narayan Singh from Jharkhand, Moily said that a proposal to give the Law Commission ''statutory status ''is under consideration of the government.''

My sons are innocent: Yeddyurappa on land scam

Bangalore:  Defending allotment of land to a firm, in which his two sons are partners, Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa today denied committing acts of "nepotism or favouritism" and ruled out stepping down.

Under attack from the opposition, Yeddyurappa said he was ready to order a judicial probe by a retired Supreme Court judge into denotification and allotment of lands and sites, in the last ten years if the opposition agreed.

Admitting that he allotted land to his sons and also a residential plot in Bangalore to his MP son B Y Raghavendra, Yeddyurappa said they were done in accordance with rules and procedures.

Speaking to reporters here, he slammed the opposition for its "malicious propaganda" to damage the image of his family by "levelling baseless and trivial charges" and sought to turn the tables on them by "exposing" some cases involving the opposition.

To a pointed query whether he would step down following the footsteps of former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, who was eased out by Congress, Yeddyurappa shot back: "there is no comparison of my actions to the Adarsh Housing Society scam".

Justifying the denotification of land favouring his family members and allotment of two acres to a firm of which his two sons are partners, he said, "these have been done under the special provisions which has been in practice for several years and similar decisions were made by earlier governments."

Seeking to expose what he called "misdeeds" of some of his predecessors, including his earlier coalition government partner H D Kumaraswamy of JDS, he alleged, "Kumaraswamy allotted six acres of land to his brother H D Balakrishna near Whitefield when he was the chief minister."

"Under pressure from the opposition Congress leader Siddaramaiah, I ordered for denotification of six acres of land this March to Dr Mallikarjunaswamy at Kengeri on the city outskirts," he said.

"I will invite opposition for consultations in two or three days. If they do not agree, I will take my own decision. A special session will also be convened to discuss scams. Let the opposition produce documents," he said.

Claiming that the "expose" made today was "only a tip of the iceberg," he said "I have more to bare them all". Agitated over the opposition's repeated demand for his resignation, he said, "I will complete the remaining two-and-a half years of tenure as Chief Minister. I will ensure that opposition parties remain in the opposition ranks for another twenty years".

Ratan Tata: Refused to pay a bribe to set up an airline

Dehra Dun:  After his remarks sparked a massive controversy, Ratan Tata has clarified that he has not suggested that a minister demanded a 15-crore bribe from him when he wanted to launch a domestic airline.

In the late 1990s, Tata, who heads the Tata Group currently, tried to launch an airline in partnership with Singapore Airlines but said, "We went through three governments, three Prime Ministers and each time there was a particular individual who thwarted our efforts to form another airline."

Tata was delivering a lecture in Dehdradun today. He mentioned that during this time, he happened to be on a plane and "another industrialist who was sitting next to me said 'I don't understand... you people are very stupid... you know the minister wants 15 crores... why don't you pay it?' And I just said 'You can't understand it... I just want to go to bed at night... knowing that I haven't got the airline by paying for it.' And I can tell you I would have been feeling tremendously shameful had we got the airline and we had paid for it."

Tata's remarks led to reports - including on NDTV - that a minister had asked the Tata group for a bribe. 

Later this evening, the Tata Group issued this statement. "No minister ever asked Mr Tata for a bribe. The fellow industrialist expressed his personal view point that some minister was asking for a bribe. Mr Tata in no way was in agreement to the fact that he was asked for bribe by any minister."

Addressing the issue of his stepping down as Chairman of the Tata Group, he said that he has not changed his mind about retiring in 2012. 

"I don't want to change my deadline I set for my retirement. There are lots of sacrifices, one has to make in terms of personal life. I wanted my life back. I want to enjoy the things that I wanted to do," Tata said.

"I ferociously want to ensure that my successor has total commitment for ethics and values," he emphasised.