May 12, 2017

Page 1

Nagaland Post www.nagalandpost.com

Vol XXVII No. 155

DIMAPUR, friday, may 12, 2017 Pages 16 ` 4.00

Oppn protesters are using ‘chemical weapons’, claims Venezuela official

Arsenal boost top-four hopes

Is triple talaq fundamental to Islam, Supreme Court asks

international, page 12

sports, Page 16

national Page 9

Political parties brace up for Presidential poll NEW DELHI, MAY 11 (AGENCIES): Who will be India’s next President? This is the question that has set the country’s political corridors buzzing ahead of the presidential polls in July 2017. The Opposition is trying its best to put up a united candidate while the BJP is still considering names. One thing is clear: It is highly unlikely that all involved political parties will field a consensus candidate for the highest constitutional office in India. The election is a matter of course. A group of six political parties-- AIADMK (Tamil Nadu), BJD (Odisha), TRS (Telangana), YSRCP (Andhra Pradesh), AAP (Delhi & Punjab) and INLD (Haryana)-- cumulatively holds a 13% vote-share in the Presidential Electoral College and has the potential to make the contest interesting. These parties maintain equidistance from BJP as well as Congress in their domestic state-level political considerations. Theoretically, the contest between the ruling establishment and the opposition could become evenly poised if the Congress-led opposition manages to secure the

UNLF claims responsibility for IED blast Correspondent

IMPHAL, MAY 11: Manipur based rebel group, United National Liberation Front (UNLF) Thursday claimed responsibility for May 8 IED blast that killed two soldiers of the Territorial Army. It was an attack performed by cadres of Manipur People’s Army (MPA), the armed wing of the outfit, said a statement of the UNLF signed by its publicity director M Sak-hen. In the blast at Lokchao along the Imphal-Moreh section of NH-102, two soldiers were killed and two others severely wounded besides damaging the vehicle in which personnel of 165 TA battalion, B-coy were travelling. The attack was a part of the arm campaign against “colonial India and its occupational forces” for regaining the sovereignty of Manipur, UNLF stated. While expressing regret for the fatalities caused to Manipuris, UNLF accused Government of India of deploying its brethrens from Manipur to the Indian Occupational Force (IOF) in the state “as part of its hidden policy to kill each other among the brethrens.”

This is it!

“These days education is expensive and so are lifestyles of the young. No wonder corruption is rampant.” K Y M C

By Sheer Weight of Numbers Parties Grand Total

BJP TDP SS SAD NOMINATED LJP PDP RLSP BPF NPF AGP SDF AD NPP AJSU SWP RPI SBSP MGP GFP HAM NDA TOTAL

MLAS 4114

MPS 784

338 22 21 7 8 6 3

Assembly Votes Parliament Votes Total Votes 549474 555072 1104546

6 5 0 0

3 1 2 0 2 2 1 0 1 1

202813 15540 11025 1740 0 537 2016 519 1392 414 1624 154 1872 106 880 0 0

4 3 3 1 1697

0 0 0 0 418

832 60 60 173 241757

1352 105 63 15 0 4 28 3 12 48 14 22 9

support of this flock of six parties. The opposition’s 35.47% votes combined with the 13.06% vote share of these six parties give them a total of 48.53% — just short of the NDA’s vote share of 48.64% in the presidential contest. However, the NDA needs the support of only one party — or two smaller ones from this unattached group — to cross the majority mark. With the BJP in the central government, the ruling establishment has better political heft to swing

239304 15576 14868 4956 5664 4248 2124 2124 708 1416 0 1416 1416 708 0 708 708 0 0 0 295944

442117 31116 25893 6696 5664 4767 4140 2643 2100 1830 1624 1570 3288 814 880 708 708 832 60 60 173 537683

%age Vote 100

40.03 2.82 2.34 0.61 0.51 0.43 0.37 0.24 0.19 0.16 0.15 0.14 0.29 0.07 0.08 0.06 0.06 0.07 0.005 0.005 0.001 48.64

one or two parties from this group to secure a desirable outcome, provided it ensures that its allies, especially the belligerent Shiv Sena, don’t play truant. There are numerous other small parties which are difficult to fit into these three broad groups — NDA, the Congress-spearheaded opposition and the unattached big parties — accounting for a little less than 3% of the vote share. Their votes could depend on electoral management of rival candidates,

INC TMC SP CPM BSP JDU RJD DMK NCP JDS JMM CPI IUML AUDF AIMIM JVM RLD RSP JKNC AIFB CPIML UPA TOTAL

841 218 47 140 19 73 80 90 53 43 17 23 19 13 9 2 1 4 15 2 1 1710

104 45 23 17 6 12 7 4 11 3 3 2 2 3 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 244

87846 31987 9776 15033 3952 12439 13840 15520 8069 5696 2992 3285 2912 1508 1386 352 208 628 1080 302 176 218987

but they are generally with the winning side. While BJP held a meeting of NDA constituents during the just concluded budget session of Parliament to send a signal of unity ahead of the presidential elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi also swung into action, meeting top opposition leaders to rally the broadest possible coalition for the presidential polls. Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, too, has demonstrated cleverness

NVCO appeals CM to set up Lokayukta D I M A P U R , M AY 1 1 (NPN): The Nagaland Voluntary Consumers’ Organisation (NVCO) on Thursday submitted a representation to the chief minister of Nagaland for setting up Lokayukta in Nagaland. According to Media Cell NVCO, the representation was submitted “considering the present scenario of corruption in the state”. In the representation, NVCO president, Kezhokhoto Savi, impressed upon the chief minister that establishing Lokayukta in Nagaland was ‘the need of the hour’. Through the representation NVCO had highlighted what corruption was, its prevalence in the state and why Lokayukta was required in the state. Corruption in the context of Nagaland(current corrupt practices in the state), according to the NVCO representation were:Abuse of power, nepotism, favoritism,

extortion, bribery, embezzlement, fraud and backdoor appointment. Nagaland Voluntary Consumers’ Organisation informed the chief minister that Lokayukta, anticorruption ombudsman, was urgently required to be established in Nagaland in order to eradicate corruption in the state. Therefore, NVCO urged upon the chief minister of Nagaland to take necessary action and set up Lokayukta in Nagaland at the earliest. It may be mentioned that the term of select committee on the Nagaland Lokayukta Bill, 2015, which was formed in July 2016, was extended during the 14th session of the 12th NLA held on November 22, 2016. The committee was directed to present the report within six months. The select committee is head by parliamentary secretary Er. Levi Rengma as

chairman. Other members of the committee include parliamentary secretary, R. Tohanba; parliamentary secretary, C. Apok Jamir; parliamentary secretary, Pukhayi and advisor Dr. T M Lotha. To check the rampart corruption in the state and to bring the politicians and government officials under the anti-corruption scanner, the monsoon session of the 12th Nagaland Legislative Assembly tabled Nagaland Lokayukta Bill 2015 on July 21, 2015. The Act comes under section 63 of the Lokpal and Lokayukta Act 2013 (Act no.1) of 2014 which makes provision for establishment of Lokayukta for the states to inquire into allegation of corruption against certain public functionaries and in exercise of the provision of section 63 of the Act of 2013 makes provision for passing of the Nagaland Lokayukta Act 2015.

73632 31860 16284 12036 4248 8496 4956 2832 7788 2124 2124 1416 2124 2124 708 0 0 0 708 0 0 173460

161478 63847 26060 27069 8200 20935 18796 18352 15857 7820 5116 4701 4328 3632 2094 352 208 628 1788 302 176 391739

14.62 5.78 2.36 2.45 0.74 1.89 1.7 1.66 1.44 0.71 0.46 0.43 0.39 0.33 0.19 0.03 0.02 0.06 0.16 0.03 0.02 35.47

and recently met BJD chief Naveen Patnaik. Presidential Electoral College comprises all Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs and the members of 31 legislative assemblies. There are 784 MPs and 4,114 MLAs. The vote values of the college differ based on a formula under the Presidential and VicePresidential Election Rules, 1974. While the value of each MP’s vote is 708, the value of each MLA’s vote differ according to the size

Gov’s award for HSLC, HSSLC 2017 toppers D I M A P U R , M AY 1 1 (NPN): A function for presentation of the Governor’s Award to the toppers and felicitation of rank holders of HSLC and HSSLC exams 2017 by the Nagaland governor, PB Acharya, would be held on May 26, 2017 at the Durbar Hall, Raj Bhavan, Kohima at 11am. According to an official bulletin, the top twenty ranked students 0of HSLC Examination 2017 and top ten ranked students of the three streams of HSSLC Examination 2017 and the respective heads of institutions from where they passed, along with one parent of the student have been invited to attend the function. Further, all rank holders have been informed to attend the function in their respective school uniforms. All invitees have been asked to reach the venue by 10:30am and be seated by 10:45am.

of the respective state assemblies and population. Hence, each UP MLA commands highest vote value of 208; each Sikkim MLA has the lowest vote value of 7. Meanwhile, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Congress leader and former Speaker Meira Kumar, senior JD (U) leader Sharad Yadav and former West Bengal Governor Gopal Gandhi are among the names being considered by the opposition parties as their joint candidate for the presidential election. A top opposition leader said these four names have emerged as the top picks for the likely alliance of the several nonNDA parties, including the Congress, the Left, RJD and the JD (U) among others. Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, JD(U) chief and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, CPI(M)’s Sitaram Yechury, CPI’s D Raja, Yadav as well as other opposition leaders have held talks to evolve a consensus for pitting a joint candidate against the NDA’s choice. Efforts are also on to widen the opposition alliance by roping in TMC, Naveen Patnaik-led BJD and several regional parties from the southern states.

available for heart failure, but they are far from ideal. Initial interventions aim to treat the condition’s underlying cause - high blood pressure, for instance. They also aim to reduce symptoms, prevent further damage, increase lifespan, and improve quality of life. Certain medical procedures are available if lifestyle changes and medications are not adequate. These include a pacemaker, which can help both sides of the heart to contract in unison, or an implantable cardioverter defibrillator, which corrects the heart’s rhythm if it starts to go off track. In some cases, a heart transplant is the only option, but the shortage of donors and the gravity of the operation makes this the last port of call. Using stem cells to repair the heart: Treatment options for heart failure are not ideal, and there is no good long-term solution. Even with the best care, heart failure can often be

fatal. Of course, regenerating the heart tissue itself would be an ideal option. Although far-fetched, this may one day be possible if the results of the current study are confirmed. Published this week in the Journal of the American Heart Association, the study investigates the use of muscle stem cells in repairing damaged hearts. The Japanese team had previously shown the technique’s potential benefits in a rat model, so now was the time to move into humans. In total, the team chose 27 patients with heart failure who had limited exercise capacity and were not responding to other treatments. Fifteen had ischemic cardiomyopathy, and 12 had dilated cardiomyopathy. This phase I trial involved making patches of cells from the patients’ own thigh muscles (the vastus medialis, specifically). These patches of so-called autologous somatic tissue-derived cells were then surgically glued

New Delhi, May 11 (Agencies): Hundreds of Aam Aadmi Par ty (AAP) supporters staged a protest outside the Election Commission of India office, demanding VVPATequipped electronic voting machines (EVMs) to be used in all future elections. According to The Hindu, crowds started arriving with placards and shouting slogans such as “Vote chori band karo [Stop stealing votes]” and “Loktantra ki hatya band karo [Stop the murder of democracy]”. Senior AAP leaders Gopal Rai and Somnath Bharti and MLAs Alka Lamba, Son Dutt, Sanjeev Jha and Bhawna Gaur were present. “Our primary demand is that all EVMs henceforth should be equipped with VVPATs. The people of this country deserve free and fair elections,” said Rai, party’s Delhi convenor. They have asked the Election Commission to announce the date of the hackathon at the all-party meeting that has been called on Friday.

Social media also picked up AAP’s protest against the EVM tampering. #SaveDemocracy was trending on Twitter on Thursday. Meanwhile, amid a raging debate over the reliability of EVMs, the Election Commission will meet representatives of 55 political parties tomorrow to put forth its stand on the issue. The Commission has convened the meeting of seven national and 48 state parties to discuss the reliability of EVMs after 16 parties urged it to revert to the ballot paper system claiming faith of people in the machines has eroded. The Commission is also likely to brief the parties about its planned EVM hacking challenge. EC had trashed AAP’s claim saying the ‘machine is a look-alike and not the ECI-EVM’. The date of the proposed challenge would be decided after the allparty meeting. Some parties have demanded they be allowed access to the machines used in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

1 house gutted; no fire services Chairmen in Mangkolemba, says MALT of DPDBs D I M A P U R , M AY 1 1 (NPN): Mangkolemba Ao Lanur Telongjem (MALT) on Thursday said that absence of Fire & Emergency services has posed danger to the citizens of Mangkolemba. According to MALT president Imjong Longkumer and general secretary Tinu Langu, the recent fire incident could have been averted had three been fire brigade in the area. On May 9, MALT said that one house was completely reduced to ashes after it caught fire at Mangko Ward in Mangkolemba. While no human life was lost, properties worth more than Rs. 25 lakh of rupees were gutted in the fire. They said that the incident could have been controlled and properties saved had three been fire brigade in the area. MALT said that

Treating heart failure with muscle stem cell patch LONDON, MAY 11 (AGENCIES): A new study tests a groundbreaking approach to treating heart failure. Using the patients’ own muscle stem cells, the researchers successfully patched up damaged hearts, yielding encouraging results. Stem cells may potentially offer a new treatment route for patients with heart failure. When the heart is no longer capable of pumping enough blood and oxygen to the body, it is referred to as heart failure. Around 5.7 million adults in the United States are experiencing heart failure, and 1 in 9 deaths in 2009 was caused by the condition. Heart failure can occur due to illnesses such as coronary heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure. It can also be brought on by certain behaviors, including smoking, eating a high-fat diet, not exercising enough, or being obese. Current treatments are

AAP takes EVM protest to Election Commission

onto the surface of the heart’s left ventricle. Stem cells are sometimes used to entirely replace the body’s failing tissues. However, stem cells can also help to regenerate tissue in a second way - using the paracrine effect. The implanted tissue secretes factors that encourage the old tissue to behave differently, which is what happened in the current study. The implant helped the existing tissue to perform better, rather than taking over from it. Following the operation, the patients experienced no significant complications and, a year after the procedure, there were measurable improvements in their exercise capacity and heart function. The authors conclude: Although larger trials are needed and, according to the authors, “the therapeutic effects are modest,” this study demonstrates the intervention’s safety and future potential.

there was no fire station at Mangkolemba, a sub divisional head quarter for three ranges under Mokokchung district. They also cited examples, where in the past many houses and properties have been destroyed in the absence of fire brigade. MALT also said that police department at Mangkolemba also faces utmost hardship in mobility as there was no vehicle in the department. For official duties, police officers and personnel had to hire private vehicles. For this reason, versatility and swiftness in delivering security services by the police at Mangkolemba remained crippled. In this regard, MALT appealed the departments to facilitate the necessary facilities at Mangkolemba town at the earliest and provide adequate services to the public in times of accidents and danger.

appointed

D I M A P U R , M AY 1 1 (NPN): In supersession of all earlier notification, the Governor of Nagaland has appointed 11 legislators as chairmen of the District Planning & Development Boards (DPDBs) with effect from May 5, 2017. As per the notification singed by Addl. CS & Development Commissioner, R. Benchilo Thong, the following MLAs have been appointed as the chairmen of the DPDBs (district-wise)- S.I Jamir (Dimapur), T.R. Zeliang (Peren), Khriehu Liezietsu (Kohima), Kuzholuzo Neinu (Phek), Merentoshi R. Jamir (Mokokchung), Hukavi Zhimomi (Zunheboto), Y. Patton (Wokha), Eshak Konyak (Mon), B.S. Nganlang (Longleng), Toyang Chang (Tuensang), C. Kipili Sangtam (Kiphire).

All ATM withdrawals not chargeable, clarifies SBI NEW DELHI, MAY 11 (IANS): Denying reports that all withdrawals from State Bank of India (SBI) ATMs will be chargeable from June 1, the largest public lender on Thursday clarified that the charge of Rs 25 is only for withdrawals from State Bank Buddy through ATMs. “Rs 25 per transaction charge is applicable only for mobile wallet app SBI Buddy using ATM. This is applicable only for State Bank Buddy customers,” the bank said in a statement. The clarification comes after the SBI in a notification indicated that all ATM withdrawals will be charged a fee of Rs 25, which was later replaced with the corrected notification. The bank said that the number of free withdrawals from ATMs remained unchanged. Jan-Dhan account holders with the SBI can avail of four free withdrawals in a month from ATMs. Normal savings bank accounts holders will continue to get eight free ATM transactions (five from SBI ATMs plus three from other bank ATMs) in metros and 10 free

transactions in non-metros (five from SBI ATMs plus five from other bank ATMs). Earlier in the day, Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issac told the media that the only reason he could see for this “mad” new rule was that the SBI was faced with mounting non-performing assets (NPAs) to the tune of Rs 1.67 lakh crore. “This is height of madness and irresponsibility. It would be interesting to find out the list of NPAs of the SBI… One wouldn’t be surprised if the majority (of defaulters) are found to be corporates.” “Just take a look at their (SBI) profits, it has dramatically come down. The charges have been levied to bring down their losses. This is something that even private sector banks would not dare think of doing,” said Issac. CPI-M’s Lok Sabha member M.B. Rajesh said, “This is outrageous and the central government is cheating the people. Ever since the demonetisation began, the Centre has been bullying people. This is going to be taken up, both within and out of Parliament very strongly.” K Y M C


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