No lions but more live-wire acts

There are circus games for phones these days, but in Paschim Vihar you can catch the real thing

NEW DELHI: When was the last time you sat under a big top, spellbound, aching palms applauding the antics of clowns, acrobats, bears and lions? A long time ago, if lions were still leaping through fire rings. The circus today is a very different show from even a decade ago. After the ban on the use of rare animals in performances, the organizers have had to think up new ways to remain in business. The acts have become more complex, the props more interesting, and the artistes now come from all over the world. The Great Bombay Circus, now pitched at Bhera Enclave in Paschim Vihar, Outer Ring Road, already has Tanzanian gymnasts and Chinese candle balancers, and is expecting Russian acrobats next week.

For the circus, the added variety is essential for survival. "We have been fighting a hard and uneven battle competing with TV, internet and videogames," says Dilip Nair, co-owner of the GBC. Not so long ago, he says, the circus coming to town was the biggest entertainment all year. "In 1948, the circus ran for eight and a half months in the centre of Delhi, at the Ramlila Maidan. Today, the city barely lets us stay a month and we are put in some far out corner."

Costs, too, have shot up. The GBC claims to have paid DDA a rent of Rs 12 lakh for the Paschim Vihar ground, and it will move to Dwarka later this month.

To restore the classic circus charm and engage children, it constantly experiments with new acts, such as trampoline gymnastics, target shooting, bicycle performances, knife tricks and advanced acrobatics. At the same time, traditional circus acts such as juggling and eccentric jokers continue.

Animals also play a large, although controversial, role. While bears, tigers, lions, bulls and monkeys are banned, acts with elephants, camels, horses, dogs and exotic birds are part of the three-hour show. The crowd favourite is clearly the 'elephant cricket' act in which an elephant hits balls pitched by jokers with a bat held in its trunk.

"The animals are part of my livelihood. It's not in my interest to mistreat them," says Nair when asked about the demand from animal rights activists to ban all performances by animals. Does he see a future for circuses in India ? "There will always be an audience for live shows," says Nair, whose circus in now in its 93rd year. "I think the next 4-5 years will be the hardest, but if circuses can manage through that we will be okay."

GREAT BOMBAY CIRCUS IN DELHI

Established in 1920 Will perform in Paschim Vihar till Oct 27, then move to Dwarka Two-hour show includes 26-28 acts. Three shows a day, at 1pm, 4pm, 7pm Tickets priced Rs 50-300 Animal acts with elephants, horses, camels, dogs and exotic birds Indian artistes from Rajasthan, Bihar, Gujarat, W Bengal, Manipur and Kerala Foreign artistes from America, China, Nepal, Russia and Tanzania.

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Cane stolen from Jai Prakash statue

NEW DELHI: In a bizarre case, the cane held by the statue of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Narayan has gone missing from the Lok Nayak Udyan, near ITO.

The matter was reported by a group of BJP representatives who went to inspect the statue ahead of the birth anniversary of Jai Prakash Narayan. A case of theft has been registered.

Police believe the cane may have been stolen after being mistaken to be made of metal. "The thieves must have thrown it away after discovering it was made of stone as well," said a senior official.

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HC upholds man’s life term

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court has upheld the life sentence awarded by a lower court to a man accused of killing his wife for dowry, while observing that such cases are a "curse" on society, and should be dealt with a heavy hand.

Mahesh, a resident of Mayapuri, was convicted by a trial court on January 7, 2010.

While upholding Mahesh's punishment, the court rejected his argument that the victim's dying declaration was doubtful since she was not in a position to give a statement and had suffered 95-100% burn injuries.

According to the prosecution, Mahesh had married Geeta in 2004. He was unemployed and used to often harass Geeta for not bring sufficient dowry.

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Aarushi-Hemraj double murder case: Lawyers' strike impedes start of defence arguments

GHAZIABAD: The defence in the Aarushi- Hemraj double murder case could not initiate arguments on Friday in the special CBI court here as lawyers went on strike demanding a bench of Allahabad high court be set up in western Uttar Pradesh.

Court of additional sessions Judge Shyam Lal has now fixed October 21 for the start of defence arguments.

"Due to lawyers' strike in favour of setting up a bench of Allahabad high court in western Uttar Pradesh, defence could not start its arguments. Now, court has fixed October 21 for the start of defence arguments," Manoj Sisodia, counsel for Rajesh and Nupur Talwar, said.

The Talwars are standing trial for the murder of their daughter Aarushi and domestic help Hemraj, which had taken place on the intervening night of May 15-16 in 2008.

Prosecution yesterday concluded arguments, alleging that a chain of circumstantial evidence proved that it was Rajesh and Nupur Talwar who had killed Aarushi and Hemraj.

"By our arguments, charges of murder with common intention (Section 302/34) and destruction of evidence (Section 201/34) are proved on both accused," special CBI public prosecutor R K Saini had said yesterday during arguments.

"Besides, Section 203 of IPC is also proved on Rajesh Talwar for registering wrong FIR at police station," Saini had said, claiming that the dentist couple had "mislead" investigators during the course of probe on different occasions and were involved in destruction of evidence.

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Will win 50 seats in Delhi: Kejriwal

NEW DELHI: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will win between 45 and 50 seats in the national capital, party chief Arvind Kejriwal said on Friday, citing a party survey.

"We are set to get between 45 and 50 seats in Delhi. We are ahead in 33 constituencies," Kejriwal told mediapersons here.

According to party leader and social scientist Yogendra Yadav, the "real battle" for the party lies in 21 constituencies where AAP is "trailing marginally".

"We will improve in the next 50 days. It is only in 16 seats where we are trailing by a considerable margin," said Yadav.

Delhi has a total of 70 assembly seats.

The results were of the third phase of the survey conducted between Sep 5 and Oct 5 with a sample size of 34,425 in all the 70 constituencies. The first two phases were carried out in February and August.

According to Kejriwal, his party's vote share rose from 14 per cent (February) to 27 per cent (August) and 32 per cent (September) while the Congress's vote share declined from 35 per cent (February) to 26 per cent (August) and then marginally rose to 28 per cent in September.

Kejriwal added that the vote share of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has seen a constant decline over the same period.

He asserted: "We are no longer spoilers in Delhi. We are the top contenders now."

Agreeing with Kejriwal, Yadav said the Congress was their main opponent and not the BJP which is no longer popular among the masses.

According to ABP News-Nielsen opinion poll, AAP may win around 18 seats in Delhi while the BJP is likely to emerge as the single largest party with 28 seats. The Congress will capture 22 seats and others will get the remaining two seats.

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E-rickshaw menace grows, cops helpless

NEW DELHI: The growing number of e-rickshaws is becoming a traffic menace in the city but all cops can do is watch helplessly. That's because these rickshaws are registered as electric vehicles running on 250 watt motors and hence are non-motorized transport beyond the ambit of the Delhi Motor Vehicles Act.

On the sly, however, many vehicles get high-powered motors installed. They brazenly defy the government ban on vehicles powered by motors consuming 250 watts. These slow-moving rickshaws add to congestion, flout traffic rules and freely move on main road, putting commuters at risk.

Experts point out that there could be a place for these non-polluting vehicles in the city, but strict regulations should guide where and how many of these vehicles should ply. At the moment, they say, it's a free for all.

E-rickshaws add to traffic snarls in Paharganj, R K Ashram Marg, Parliament Street, Uttam Nagar, Kailash Colony and Delhi University. But there's little the traffic police can do. "Vehicles with motor power of less than 250W and speed less than 25kmph are non-motorized vehicles under Delhi Motor Vehicles Act. However, some of these rickshaws do have high-powered motors," said Additonal CP (traffic) Anil Shukla.

The traffic department has suggested to the Delhi government that the operators be issued licences and permits to run the rickshaws as passenger vehicles. "There is nothing wrong in having a higher-powered engine, but the vehicle should be registered with the transport authority for it to be prosecuted," said a senior traffic official.

Illegal use of higher-powered engines is common. A study has shown that e-rickshaws need a motor of more than 650W to ferry over five passengers. Dealers add that 850 horsepower engines are the standard now, and engines with lower power are simply not available. "They come in knocked down kits from China and you cannot choose between engines," said a dealer at RK Ashram Marg in central Delhi.

Asked about the quality of the vehicles, an operator-cum-driver said he earns up to Rs 600-700 a day, of which Rs 400 goes to the three-wheeler's owner. "Running cost is low. One night's charge lets the rickshaw run for at least 50km," said Asif, a rickshaw driver.

Pitched as last-mile connectors for commuters moving into colonies off main roads, the purpose of e-rickshaws seems to have been defeated. "The maximum we can do is ask the operators to park the rickshaws properly to avoid snarls, but that too is violated," said a traffic policeman.

A study on the structural reliability of the vehicles is on the cards after the rickshaw operators took the legal route against a ban by a Delhi court that asked for a reliability and durability test on the vehicles.

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Skinner’s haveli lost in hovels

The palatial estate of the man who built Delhi's oldest church, St James' at Kashmere Gate, is now lost in a cluster of old shops, a junkyard and massive unauthorized construction over the original facade.

City historians say the estate of Anglo-Indian military officer Colonel James Skinner covered almost five acres and had, besides the main building, several ancillary buildings and servant quarters. But now it is a warren of shops and godowns. Long civic neglect has weakened the old buildings, making them prone to the kind of structural collapse that left two dead on Tuesday.

After Skinner's death, the estate remained with his descendants for close to a century. Its commercialization started when they vacated it after Independence. "Like the hundreds of other old havelis, the original estate was divided and sub-divided. New constructions cropped up and now only traces of the original architecture can be seen. There is little in the haveli today to suggest that it is a nearly 200-year-old structure with such strong historical ties. Its original character has been completely destroyed,'' said an expert.

The premises have been graded 'B' in architectural value by conservation body Intach's Delhi chapter. "New additions, modifications and sub-divisions make it difficult to imagine the original character of the building,'' the listing states.

James Skinner settled at the northern edge of Shahjahanabad in the early 1800s, says Ratish Nanda, conservation architect and project director of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. "His estate was vast and structures from the municipal compound opposite St James' Church to others almost 500 metres away originally stood in it. It's a pity that lack of controls and incentives has led to largescale loss and destruction.''

A cusp-arched gateway is one of the haveli's few remnants. While its roof collapsed years ago, the original doors are intact. Beyond the gateway lies a large courtyard which once had a marble platform with a water chute below it. The marble courtyard has been destroyed and the open space holds a pile of junk including construction material, old bicycles, broken furniture etc.

On either side of the courtyard, shops dealing in automobile parts rise to three storeys. Towards the back of the estate, a narrow entrance leads to clusters of shops and rooms built over the years. The building that collapsed on Tuesday stood here.

The haveli's heritage value has not escaped the notice of the civic agencies. It is mentioned in the municipal heritage list and no alterations or new constructions are allowed without the civic agency's approval.

Locals say the status is confined to paper. "It's recognized as Skinner's house but how many know who Skinner was or what his contribution is to Delhi's history?'' said Vipin Malik, who lives nearby. Intach historian Swapna Liddle said James Skinner's estate is important because of his contribution to Delhi's history. "It is a listed heritage building and has to be protected. Buildings are listed for architectural or historical reasons and there has to be some mechanism in place to preserve them,'' she said.

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Cong & BJP say AAP just spoiler

NEW DELHI: Although the Congress in the Capital has dismissed Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as nothing more than a "spoiler", it does grudgingly admit that Arvind Kejriwal's party has a presence in public perception. However, on a day when a survey predicted a hung assembly in Delhi with 18 seats for AAP, Congress leaders said it was too early to predict losses while BJP state president Vijay Goel dismissed the survey, asserting that the contest was between them and the Congress only.

The confidence of the two major political parties flows from political arithmetic at the booth level. This vote-bank politics is what the two parties believe will push AAP to the fringes of the contest like the BSP in 2008. However, the Congress still sees Mayawati's BSP as having the potential to show up within the dedicated votebank of Jatavs among scheduled castes. The BSP, which had emerged as the "spoiler", ended second and third on many seats in the 2007 municipal polls and in the 2008 assembly polls too.

Senior Congress leaders insist only an anti-Congress wave can displace the party, irrespective of the opponent. They cite the compelling logic of the current assembly constituencies redefined by delimitation before the 2008 assembly polls. The party hopes it will yet again find support from its traditional vote-banks like Muslims and residents of unauthorized colonies and resettlement colonies. In the post-delimitation scenario, a significant number of seats have the Muslim community dispersed in a way that has the potential to affect the turnout. With BJP declaring Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate, the Congress is much more sure of getting the Muslim votes.

The Congress leaders, in fact, believe that AAP may prove to be a blessing as it will draw the anti-Congress votes which they assume would have gone to the BJP.

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Skinner’s haveli lost in hovels

The palatial estate of the man who built Delhi's oldest church, St James' at Kashmere Gate, is now lost in a cluster of old shops, a junkyard and massive unauthorized construction over the original facade.

City historians say the estate of Anglo-Indian military officer Colonel James Skinner covered almost five acres and had, besides the main building, several ancillary buildings and servant quarters. But now it is a warren of shops and godowns. Long civic neglect has weakened the old buildings, making them prone to the kind of structural collapse that left two dead on Tuesday.

After Skinner's death, the estate remained with his descendants for close to a century. Its commercialization started when they vacated it after Independence. "Like the hundreds of other old havelis, the original estate was divided and sub-divided. New constructions cropped up and now only traces of the original architecture can be seen. There is little in the haveli today to suggest that it is a nearly 200-year-old structure with such strong historical ties. Its original character has been completely destroyed,'' said an expert.

The premises have been graded 'B' in architectural value by conservation body Intach's Delhi chapter. "New additions, modifications and sub-divisions make it difficult to imagine the original character of the building,'' the listing states.

James Skinner settled at the northern edge of Shahjahanabad in the early 1800s, says Ratish Nanda, conservation architect and project director of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture. "His estate was vast and structures from the municipal compound opposite St James' Church to others almost 500 metres away originally stood in it. It's a pity that lack of controls and incentives has led to largescale loss and destruction.''

A cusp-arched gateway is one of the haveli's few remnants. While its roof collapsed years ago, the original doors are intact. Beyond the gateway lies a large courtyard which once had a marble platform with a water chute below it. The marble courtyard has been destroyed and the open space holds a pile of junk including construction material, old bicycles, broken furniture etc.

On either side of the courtyard, shops dealing in automobile parts rise to three storeys. Towards the back of the estate, a narrow entrance leads to clusters of shops and rooms built over the years. The building that collapsed on Tuesday stood here.

The haveli's heritage value has not escaped the notice of the civic agencies. It is mentioned in the municipal heritage list and no alterations or new constructions are allowed without the civic agency's approval.

Locals say the status is confined to paper. "It's recognized as Skinner's house but how many know who Skinner was or what his contribution is to Delhi's history?'' said Vipin Malik, who lives nearby. Intach historian Swapna Liddle said James Skinner's estate is important because of his contribution to Delhi's history. "It is a listed heritage building and has to be protected. Buildings are listed for architectural or historical reasons and there has to be some mechanism in place to preserve them,'' she said.

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Former DU employee death case: College principal booked

NEW DELHI: The principal of Bhim Rao Ambedkar College was on Thursday booked by Delhi Police for abetting the suicide of a former employee who had accused him of sexual harassment.

Police had earlier registered a case of suicide in the case.

"We have added Section 306 of the IPC - Abetment of suicide in this case and further investigations are on," said Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Alok Kumar.

The college principal GK Arora was suspended on October 11 by the Delhi University administration till the completion of a judicial probe in the case.

Delhi government on October 9 had ordered a judicial probe into case of 35-year-old Pavitra Bhardwaj who had set herself on fire outside the Delhi Secretariat on September 30.

Bhardwaj, who succumbed to injuries on October 7, alleged sexual and mental harassment by Arora and another staff member.

She was sacked from the college two years ago.

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