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| February , 1999 Volume 5, Number 2. HOME
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February 1999 Cover Stories:Cover Story: The Anjana Mishra Rape Incident With the Congress (I) dissidents baying for his blood and the Opposition demanding his resignation over the Anjana Mishra rape incident, the Orissa Chief Minister, Mr. J.B. Patnaik, faces an uncertain future, says N. Ramdas.
Not new to controversy, Mr. Patnaik has strongly refuted any role in the incident. The party dissidents have sharpened their swords over the Mishra episode but the high command has not been enthusiastic about their campaign. Ms. Mishra alleged that she was criminally and sexually assaulted on January 9 and charted the Chief Minister and the former Advocate-General, Mr. Indrajeet Ray, with a conspiracy in the incident. Mr. Patnaik who has weathered many a story ever since he became Chief Minister for the first time in 1980, appears cornered this time and he is finding it difficult to get out of the situation. Though he is not known for ordering inquiries, Mr. Patnaik has for the first time agreed to a judicial probe under the Commission of Enquiry Act at the behest of Mrs. Gandhi. Read the rest of this breaking cover story in our Feb 99 issue..Did
you like this story ? PEOPLE: MISSIONARIES SONS LAID TO REST
A National Shame
Read the rest of this article in our Feb 99 issue...Did you like
this story ? THE MALADY IS IN OUR APPROACH TO THE TASK
Read the rest in our Feb 99 Issue. Did you like this story ? |
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An Australian Evangelist Missionary, Graham Stewart Staines (58) and his
two young sons Philip (10) and Timothy (6) were set to fire when they were asleep in a
jeep. The gruesome killings happened on the mid-night on January 22 at Manoharpur village
of Orissa. Staines has been working in Orissa, as part of Evangelical Missionaries Society
which has its head-quarters in Mayurbhanj (Orissa) , among leprosy patients in the area
for the last 34 years. On January 22 he had gone to Manoharpur along with his two young
sons in a jeep to attend a jungle camp organized by the local church. It is alleged that a
gang led by Mahendra Kumar Pal, a Bajrang Dal volunteer was involved in the barbarous
killings. The gang , it is reported arrived at the Church premises in the midnight
chanting " Bajrang Dal Zindabad " and set fire to the jeep in which Staines and
his two young sons were sleeping and stood around it. The treacherous killings have become
not only national but also international issue because the innocent victims are foreigners
and the killers are alleged to have links with Bajrang Dal, a sister organization of the
BJP which is heading the coalition government at the Center. According to the police,
Staines and his young sons had no way of escaping death when a mob of 55 to 60 people
descended on the village under the cover of darkness, poured petrol on the station wagon
and set it on fire.
Fortunately the Bangkok Games did not evoke a disaster story, thanks to
the seven gold medals out of the 35 garnered by the Indian sportsmen. In fact it was a
refreshing change from the recent past and the best overall effort by India since the 1986
Games in Seoul. Athletics brought in a fairly rich harvest but lot more significant was
India regaining its supremacy in hockey after over three decades. There were surprises
too, the lion hearted Dingko Singh of Manipur for instance bringing a boxing gold against
all odds. Here was a talented man, who could have missed the Games all together if the
callous attitude of officials concerned had held sway. Dingko's success if anything only
proved the true nature of India's selection procedures in most disciplines. What pains one
is that he was not thought of initially as a Medal prospect when a jumbo list of 300 odd
sportspersons was drafted for the Games. A drama of selection prior to every Games is not
unusual. But what was curious was this placing of Medal prospect as the key criteria for
ensuring a berth in the Indian squad. And yet right from day one many in the contingent
appeared mere passengers who had not the slightest hope of doing India's honor any good,
let alone win medals.