Next meeting of PM-led panel to pick new CBI chief on Friday: Mallikarjun Kharge
New Delhi, Jan 30: The next meeting of the selection committee, headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to pick the new CBI director will take place on Friday, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who is also a member of the panel, said on Wednesday.
The last meeting of the panel took place on January 24 but it remained "inconclusive". It was held at the prime minister's official residence and was attended by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Kharge, who's the Congress's leader in the Lok Sabha.
"The next meeting of the panel on selection of the CBI chief will take place on February 1 at around 6 PM," Kharge told reporters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi heads the three-member panel with Kharge and Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi as its members.
At the last meeting, Kharge had sought dossiers of all the eligible officers for the post.
The post of the CBI chief has been lying vacant since January 10 after the unceremonious exit of Alok Verma, who was engaged in a bitter fight with Gujarat-cadre IPS officer Rakesh Asthana over corruption charges.
Both Verma and Asthana have accused each other of impropriety.
Verma, after being removed from the post of CBI director, was named as the Director General of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards a less significant portfolio.
Verma did not accept the offer and wrote to the government, saying he should be considered as deemed superannuated as he had completed 60 year age of superannuation.
He had taken over as the CBI chief on February 1, 2017 for a fixed two-year tenure.
M Nageswara Rao has been working as the interim CBI chief after Verma's ouster.
Verma's resignation letter had led to a political slugfest with the opposition parties, mainly the Congress, accusing the central government of alleged interference in public institutions.
Kharge had recently written to the prime minister terming Rao's appointment as the CBI's interim chief "illegal". He had asked the government to immediately convene the meeting of the panel to decide on the new CBI chief.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
