1993 Mumbai blasts: After Sanjay Dutt, other convicts get four more weeks to surrender

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has allowed three convicts in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case four weeks of freedom before returning to jail.

Yesterday, the court had given Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt a month to finish filming projects before he starts a three-and-a-half-year sentence. His lawyers had asked the court to give him six months to complete projects which are worth nearly Rs. 270 crore for movie producers.

The convicts who were given four more weeks to surrender today include Abdul Razak Memon, who had been sentenced to life in priso, Altaf Ali Sayed who was given 10 years in jail and Yusuf Mohsin Nulwalla, who was given a five-year sentence for their role in the serial bombings in Mumbai in which more than 250 people were killed and nearly 700 injured.
Later today, the court will decide whether to allow Zaibunissa Kazi, who is 70, and three others more time before they return to prison. Zaibunissa has argued that she is unwell and too old and sick to handle a jail sentence.

She had also said that the court should not send her to jail till the President of the country decides on her clemency petition, but that appeal was rejected earlier this week.

Mr Dutt, who is 53, was convicted of illegally possessing arms that were supplied to him by men who executed the terror strike in Mumbai. He has denied all knowledge of the attack, and said that he acquired the AK-56 and a pistol to protect his family which was receiving death threats at the time.

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Election results: Family matters - Yadavs take clear lead in UP; Badals may keep Punjab

New Delhi/Lucknow:  Mulayam Singh Yadav, 72, not Akhilesh Yadav, 39, will be the new Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister. The Samajwadi Party is home in UP, leading in 195 seats, within striking distance of a simple majority at noon. In Punjab, another father-son duo is making history - the Badals of the Shiromani Akali Dal seem set to get a majority, the first ever to keep power in the state. (Assembly Elections 2012: Live Trends)
 
The Congress and the BJP both admit some introspection is called for. The two national parties are slugging it out for top honours in Uttarakhand, but in neighbouring UP they are fighting for the number three and number four slot. The day's biggest loser, Mayawati, is a poor second in UP, with her BSP crawling up and stretching to touch 100 seats. In 2007, the BSP had 206 and became the first party since 1991 to get a majority on its own in UP. Mayawati will meet the Governor at 3.30 pm and is expected to resign. (Bad day for Congress, worse for the BJP?)

In Lucknow, Akhilesh Yadav, who attempted a successful image makeover for the SP, is the man of the moment. Underplaying his role, he said the entire SP had won the day together. He thanked the people for "believing in the SP...people across caste and community voted for the SP," he said.

Importantly, Akhilesh Yadav is not ruling out an alliance with anyone, including the Congress, yet to make up the numbers it could stop short of. "We will decide once we know our numbers," said the SP's UP president.  For his father, this will be a fourth term as Chief Minister. The dancing crowds and sea of red Gandhi caps outside the SP office in Lucknow tell that story; the deserted BSP office is a striking contrast. (For Akhilesh Yadav, mission accomplished)
 
The Congress' fortunes have swung wildly through the morning, but the report card so far reads - fighting for number three with the BJP in UP, down in Punjab, down in Goa, neck and neck with the BJP in Uttarakhand. And it is keeping Manipur. In UP the party has doubled its tally from the 22 it had in 2007.

In early trends, the BJP had seemed the surprise package of UP but is now settling down to a better-than-before-but-not-quite-there performance. Party leader Sudheendra Kulkarni described it as a "wasted opportunity." The Congress has doubled its tally of 22 in 2007, but is it of any consequence? Party spokesman Rashid Alvi said "whatever verdict has been given by the people, we have accepted....It was against our expectations and we will find out where we have gone wrong".

Rahul Gandhi's lieutenants in UP all prefaced counting day with the assertion that if Congress did well in UP,  it was the Rahul magic working. But if it failed, it was all their fault. UP Congress chief Rita Bahugana said that this morning. But these elections were a public test for Rahul's political equity and seven years of focusing on UP. Analysts say that the mandalisation of the Congress, which aggressively played the Muslim quota card, might have gifted it. (Will Congress admit Rahul Gandhi under-performed in UP?)

Punjab has a long tradition of voting out whoever is in power. The Shiromani Akali Dal looks poised to change that statistic now, but by the slimmest of margins. Akali ally the BJP has lost significantly in the state. But Captain Amarinder Singh, who said yesterday that he was cooking the Akali goose, may have to eat his words.

Goa saw a huge turnout - over 82 per cent. Poll pundits say that there could be a BJP comeback after five years of Congress-NCP rule. Very early trends from the two Goa centres are in keeping with that projection.

In Uttarakhand, the efforts and clean image of BJP Chief Minister BC Khanduri have been universally appreciated and though analysts across said the party might have brought him in too late to keep the state, the BJP and the Congress are neck and neck. Mr Khanduri was brought in by the BJP only in September last to try and obliterate the taints of corruption that the party needed to obliterate and the Congress has smelt a comeback chance in the hill state.

The Congress will keep Manipur. 

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/assembly-polls/election-results-family-matters-yadavs-set-to-win-up-badals-may-keep-punjab-183132&cp

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Kingfisher Airlines CEO summoned tomorrow to explain cancellations

Kingfisher Airlines scrapped 16 flights this morning, extending a hellish weekend for its passengers. 12 flights out of Mumbai and four from Delhi were cancelled early today. The Chief Executive Officer of the airline, whose financial troubles are well-known, has been asked to meet the regulator for aviation, the DGCA, tomorrow morning.


Over the weekend, the airline cancelled nearly 50% of its flights, according to some estimates.  A statement from Kingfisher blamed bird-hits for grounding many of its aircraft, an explanation that nobody’s buying.


Passengers in Delhi said information from the airline had been slow in coming; many said they landed up at the airport to learn that their flights had been cancelled. But in Mumbai, things were less chaotic than they were yesterday. There were fewer angry passengers at the airport, many having rescheduled their travel or just switched carriers.
Kingfisher has stopped its operations in Kolkata and cut down flight operations in the North-East. There are no flights listed today for Agartala, Silchar and Lilabari.   From Mumbai, three flights to Hyderabad, two flights each to Ahmedabad and Delhi and one each to Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi and Lucknow have been cancelled today. From Delhi two flights to Chennai and one each to Kolkata and Bangalore have been cancelled.


This is the second time in four months that Kingfisher has cancelled a large number of flights without informing either the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) or the passengers.  The cancellations come amidst reports that the airline continues to be in deep financial trouble and that one of its bank accounts has been seized by income tax authorities.


"We have received reports about large-scale cancellations. They are bound to inform us when they cut their schedule. But they have not done so," DGCA chief E K Bharat Bhushan said, adding, "We are gathering information from all the centres. Once we get this, we will decide what to do." 

Aviation rules require operators to have prior approval of the DGCA to curtail their flight schedules. Mr Bhushan said the DGCA had sent messages to all other airlines to accommodate passengers stranded due to the Kingfisher cancellations. "They have to do this without enhancing the fares," he said.


The disruptions are expected to continue for the next two or three days as the airline desperately seeks equity infusion. A group of 18 banks, led by the State of Bank of India, that have lent to Kingfisher met on Friday to discuss the carrier's financial state and sources said Kingfisher hoped the banks would provide it with some working capital soon. There is no official word from either the lending banks or the airline on this yet.

The Kingfisher management says that the cancellations are planned and that the airline will not shut down any existing operations.

Financial mess:

Kingfisher Airlines began cancelling its flights barely two days after posting a Rs 444 crore loss for the third quarter.

The debt laden carrier is simultaneously holding talks with bankers to finalise a deal for funds. However, lenders of Kingfisher failed to finalise a deal for providing additional funds to the company.

The 18 banker's consortium -- including SBI, Bank of Baroda and Corporation Bank -- are likely to meet again to decide on additional funding to the debt-laden airline.

Kingfisher owes an estimated Rs 1,500 crore to State Bank of India, about Rs 400 crore each to Corporation Bank and Bank of Baroda and Rs 380 crore to Federal Bank, among other lenders.

SBI had last month said it would be difficult for lenders to provide more funds, unless Kingfisher pays Rs 100 crore to restore a bank guarantee invoked after the carrier failed to repay its loans or makes good the default.

On Friday, auditors of Kingfisher Airlines had raised concern over its ability to stay afloat and said it would need to inject more money to remain a "going concern".

'Going concern' means that the firm in question would not go broke or be liquidated and remain operationally afloat in the foreseeable future.

In a quarterly report, owner Vijay Mallya said that the latest financial statement had been based on the premise that "the company is a going concern", but conceded that "the company has incurred substantial losses and its net worth has been eroded".

Kingfisher has suffered a loss of Rs 1,027 crore in 2010-11 and has a debt of Rs 7,057.08 crore, latest figures show.

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Clean chit to Modi in Zakiya Jafri case: sources; petitioners file fresh plea

Ahmedabad:  The Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up by the Supreme Court to investigate the 2002 Gujarat riots cases, has submitted its final report on a complaint against Chief Minister Narendra Modi filed by riot victim Zakiya Jafri. Sources say the report gives Mr Modi a clean chit.

The SIT, sources say, has found no "prosecutable evidence" against Mr Modi and 62 other senior politicians and cops accused by Ms Jafri of ensuring that assistance was not provided to her husband, former Congress MP Ehsaan Jafri, and 68 others who were attacked and killed by a rioting mob at Ahmedabad's Gulbarg Housing Society, where the Jafris lived, in February 2002. Mr Jafri was allegedly burnt alive by rioters when he stepped out to plead for the lives of women and children to be spared. Ms Jafri says her husband had made desperate calls to the police and Mr Modi's office for help, but to no avail. She has been fighting a legal battle for many years now.

The SIT submitted its report in a sealed cover yesterday to a Gujarat magistrate's court, as ordered by the Supreme Court. Zakiya Jafri has asked for a copy of the SIT report and filed a fresh application this morning asking if the report is "comprehensive, final, conclusive and in compliance with Supreme Court guidelines." The trial court will hear Ms Jafri's plea at 3 pm on Monday, February 13.

The court will now decide whether to accept the SIT report after it goes through the several thousand pages and evaluates it. It will then conclude whether further investigations are needed in the case.

There is a long legal process ahead, but Mr Modi's party, the BJP would like to score political points right now. Party president Nitin Gadkari said today, "Delhi is conspiring against Gujarat. The CBI is misused and regular attempts are made to tarnish the image of the Gujarat government. This is done with politics in mind; the centre should now stop the mischief against the state government." A more circumspect Arun Jaitley said if mediia reports on the SIT findings were true then three investigations had now found no merit in the allegations against Mr Modi and so these should now be dropped.

Sources say the latest SIT report also notes that no substantial evidence has been found to support suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt's allegation that Chief Minister Modi had, at a meeting on February 28, 2002, ordered that rioters be given a free hand. The SIT, say sources, states in its report that seven officials present at that meeting had denied that Mr Bhatt was even there. The meeting was called to discuss law and order after the Godhra train burning incident that sparked the Gujarat riots.

Last year, the Supreme Court had refused to take a position on the merits of Zakiya Jafri's case and had, instead, directed the SIT to submit a final report to a Gujarat trial court after studying the charges against Mr Modi and the evidence in the case. The Supreme Court's order was immediately hailed by the Chief Minister, as also by the BJP, as a vindication of sorts. Mr Modi, in fact, had tweeted "God is Great" soon after the order.

Zakiya Jafri's family, however, chose to interpret the Supreme Court order quite differently and now says that the reported SIT clean chit for the Chief Minister is not conclusive. Ms Jafri's son, Tanvir Jafri, said today, "The Supreme Court's directive that they will conduct an enquiry in itself is a big victory... if that wasn't there we wouldn't have reached this stage today... a closure report is given by an investigation officer, not the court... It's the investigation officer who is of the opinion that there shouldn't be any case on Chief Minister or his colleague... if the investigation officer himself was a judge then why would we need to go to a judge or magistrate."

Ms Jafri had in 2006 written to the Gujarat Director General of Police, A.K Bhargava, asking that a case be registered against Chief Minister Modi, alleging that he was behind a larger conspiracy that led to the post-Godhra riots. When she did not get a reply, she approached the Gujarat High Court, which rejected her plea. This was in 2007. In 2008, she moved the Supreme Court, which set up the SIT in 2009 and directed it to look into Ms Jafri's complaint. The SIT had also questioned Mr Modi twice and had submitted a report in 2010 stating that it found no "prosecutable evidence" against Mr Modi.

The Supreme Court had then directed an amicus curiae, Raju Ramchandran, to file a separate report in the Jafri case. Mr Ramchandran reportedly differed on various points with the SIT's findings. The Supreme Court then referred the Zakiya Jafri petition to the Gujarat trial court in September 2011. 

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/clean-chit-to-modi-in-zakiya-jafri-case-sources-petitioners-file-fresh-plea-174738&cp

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I am victimised for raising issues like black money and corruption: Ramdev

New Delhi:  There was ruckus at a press conference organised by Baba Ramdev in New Delhi today after a man threw black ink at the yoga guru. The attack reportedly left his left eye blackened.


The attacker has been identified as Kamran Siddiqui, a resident of Delhi who is said to be running an NGO named 'Real Cause'. Following his attempt, the attacker was beaten up by Baba Ramdev's supporters. His aides claim he had gained entry into the hall posing as a security personnel.

Siddiqui has been placed under arrest and a case of criminal assault and promoting enmity among communities lodged against him, police said.

"A case under sections 153 (promoting enmity among communities) and 355 (criminal assault) of Indian Penal Code has been registered against him," a senior police official said. If convicted, he may be imprisonment for upto two years.

At the press conference, the yoga guru was talking to reporters about his plans to campaign against black money holders in the upcoming Assembly elections. The presser was being held at the Constitutional Club in New Delhi, where he was seated along with Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy.

Trying to put up a brave front, the yoga guru said he was not deterred by such attacks and would continue his campaign against corruption with full force, "I spoke about bringing back black money to the country and giving it to the nation. I spoke about eradicating corruption. I spoke about turning a 'loot-tantra' to a real lok-tantra (democracy). And in return, as a prize this is what I have got. I don't mind receiving black ink. I was also shown black flags. I did not care even then. By throwing ink on someone, one cannot malign his character," he said.

Before the incident, Siddiqui had reportedly sought Baba Ramdev's opinion on the 2008 Batla House encounter in which suspects of the Delhi serial blasts were killed. The yoga guru had ignored the question and soon after the attack took place. Siddiqui is a petitioner in the Batla House encounter case.

Baba Ramdev's supporters had reportedly initially blamed the Congress for the attack. Reacting to the incident, Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh said he condemned it, but added that to him, it "seems like a conspiracy to create sympathy for Baba Ramdev."

"We are very disappointed at the initial remark. I don't think he seems to have benefited from his yoga teachings at all. How are we concerned? I feel bad that something like that happened to him. In a democracy, it's unfortunate...but it is worse that he blames us because we have no connection with any of this behaviour. If this is what he preaches, then it is very unfortunate," added Congress spokesperson Renuka Chowdhary.


Condemning the incident, the BJP said the attacker must be punished. "The BJP strongly condemns the attack on Baba Ramdev. He is a big social and religious leader and is respected in society. He has been carrying out a drive against black money and corruption in the entire country. Those who oppose him can discuss and criticise but our party strongly condemns such an attack. We want strict action against whoever is responsible," said senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley.

Anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare also strongly condemned the attack, and said his support was with the yoga guru. "This is not only an act of throwing ink on Baba Ramdev's face but on the democracy of the country. Such acts will not stop our movements but will enhance it...Baba Ramdev, move ahead, we shall support you," said Anna in a statement.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/ruckus-at-baba-ramdev-meet-as-protester-throws-ink-at-him-166848&cp

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Full text of WikiLeaks cable on trust vote controversy

New Delhi:  A  WikiLeaks cable from a US diplomat in India dated 2008 suggests that ahead of a vote of confidence for Dr Manmohan Singh over the nuclear deal with the US, his party had bought the votes of Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal.

The cable says that US diplomats were told by an aide of Congress leader Satish Sharma  that four MPs from Ajit Singh's party were paid 10 crores each by the Congress.

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Libya unrest: India begins evacuation

New Delhi:  The evacuation of Indians from violence-torn Libya began today with two Air India flights leaving for Tripoli early this morning from New Delhi and Mumbai.

India has been allowed by Libya to fly in special planes to collect Indian citizens. Currently 18,000 Indians are in Libya - if they want to leave the country, the government will assist them with special ships and planes.

From today till March 7, India can land two planes a day in Tripoli for its evacuation operations. Today, two Air India flights will fly out people from Tripoli.

India is also moving three Navy ships to Benghazi, which is where the revolt against Mr Gaddafi began. From Benghazi, ships will transport Indians to Alexandria in Egypt. Special Air India flights will then bring them home.
The government has clarified that citizens do not have to pay for their evacuation. A statement from the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday said, "It has come to notice that some unscrupulous elements are asking for payments/handling charges/facilitation fee etc., for arranging evacuation of Indian nationals, through the Embassy of India in Libya. These activities are completely illegal and individuals engaged in them should be immediately reported to the law enforcement authorities."

Meanwhile, a group of Indians employed in Libya have fled across the border into Tunisia saying basic needs cannot be met in the Libyan town of Zawiyah, where there has been heavy fighting between forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and his opponents who want to end his 41-year rule.

There is an acute scarcity of food and water in Zawiyah as the situation in Libya worsens.

"The situation is very bad. Everything we need is not available. Water is not available and food is not available in Zawiyah," said one of the Indian workers.

Libyan forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi attacked anti-regime protesters with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades at a mosque leaving nearly 100 people dead.

"Clear violations of human rights have taken place. It is time for Security Council to take action against Libyan government," United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon said.

The United States closed its embassy in Tripoli on Friday and imposed unilateral sanctions against Libya, including the freezing of billions in government assets. The United Kingdom and France are also pushing for a war crimes probe by the International Criminal Court at The Hague. So will India back such a call and support the slapping of sanctions? India's response still seems to be evolving, perhaps complicated by the fact that the evacuations of Indians has just begun. In response to a question from NDTV, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao said in a tweet, "Deplore violence against civilian population. Engaged on the issue in UN. India is not in the International Criminal Court."

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Chidambaram didn't object to steps for Collector's release: Naveen Patnaik

Bhubaneshwar:  Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today claimed that Union Home Minister P Chidambaram did not object to the steps taken by the state government for the release of two officials from Maoist captivity.

"After abduction of the collector and the junior engineer, Union Home Minister P Chidambaram spoke to me and he certainly did not object to any steps we are taking," Patnaik told reporters amid media reports that Chidambaram had asked the chief minister not to give in to the Maoists' demands.

"After taking all aspects into consideration, we took the appropriate steps for their release," the chief minister said.

Patnaik said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also spoke to him once after the abduction of Malkangiri Collector R Vineel Krishna and junior engineer Pabitra Kumar Majhi on February 16.
"The prime minister had expressed concern over the safety of the two officials," Patnaik said.

His reaction came in the wake of reports that the Centre was not in favour of Orissa government striking a deal with Maoists for the release of its two officials, especially ensuring freedom of some top jailed Maoist leaders.

Meanwhile, terming the abduction of the two government officials as "unfortunate", visiting Congress MP Naveen Jindal told reporters that Orissa had its own reasons to take steps for their safe release.

 

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NALCO chief AK Srivastava sent to CBI custody

New Delhi:  AK Srivastava, the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of National Aluminium Company Ltd (NALCO) - a Public Sector Undertaking - who was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for a bribery case yesterday, was produced in court today along with three other accused. All four have been sent to police custody till March 3.

According to CBI, the agency had a tip-off that Srivastava was expecting a favour. The CMD had got his wife Chandni to accept an illegal gratification of three gold bricks, each weighing one kg. His wife had accepted this illegal gratification from the wife of a middleman who was brokering a deal between the CMD and Madhya Pradesh-based private group of companies.

At the time of CBI raid, the CMD's wife had just deposited the three gold bricks in a bank locker in Bank of Maharashtra, New Delhi.

The locker, which is in the name of wife of the middleman, was being operated by Chandni as benami.
A search of this locker resulted in a further recovery of seven more gold bricks of 1 kg each, golden ornaments weighing 188 grams and Rs. 9.5 lakh.

Personal search of the CMD's wife also led to a recovery of Rs. 5 lakh from her handbag and key to another locker. Further search of this second locker led to recovery of Rs. 15 lakh in cash.

The total recovery, including the gold at current prices, value at around Rs. 2.43 crore.

All the four accused - Chairman and Managing Director of NALCO, his wife, a middleman and his wife - were arrested. The agency is carrying out searches across the country.

Mr Srivastava was to chair a meeting of the NALCO Board of Directors today. 

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Sunil Joshi murder case: Sadhvi Pragya arrested

 
Mumbai:  Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, a key accused in 2008 Malegaon blast case, has been placed under arrest by Madhya Pradesh Police in connection with the murder of Sunil Joshi, a suspect in the Samjhauta Express blast case who was killed at Dewas in December 2007.

"The Madhya Pradesh police moved an application in the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court in Mumbai, and after taking the court's permission they placed Sadhvi under arrest in the Sunil Joshi murder case," Rohini Salian, Special Public Prosecutor, told PTI.

Pragya Singh, main accused in 2008 Malegaon blast case in Maharashtra, has been undergoing treatment in J J hospital in Mumbai. The team of Madhya Pradesh police went there yesterday and arrested her, sources said.

"It is just a formal arrest. She would be taken to Madhya Pradesh after they make transportation arrangements," Pragya's lawyer advocate Ganesh Sovani told PTI.
Joshi, a suspect in the Samjhauta Express blast case, was shot dead in Dewas in Madhya Pradesh on December 29, 2007.

Sixty-eight people were killed when bombs went off in two coaches of Samjhauta Express, running between Delhi and Lahore, around midnight on February 18, 2007 at Diwana near Panipat, 80 kilometres north of Delhi.

Pragya, an alleged member of right-wing Hindu group Abhinav Bharat, has already moved the Supreme Court challenging her prosecution under MCOCA in the Malegaon blast case.

The Bombay High Court had earlier reversed special court's order quashing application of MCOCA against her in the blast case, following which she filed appeal in the apex court.

Six people were killed and many were wounded in the bomb blast in the communally sensitive town of Malegaon, in Nashik district, on September 29, 2008.

Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad has so far arrested 12 persons in Malegaon case. 

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Catch: Love Marriage made him a YouTube star

Disclaimer: I am not easy fan to net.But this is certified Gold. I am laughing uncontrollably as I write this, so excuse the typos.

Move over Justin (discovered on YouTube) Beiber. Meet Wilbur Sargunaraj. His YouTube channel claims he is India's first YouTube star and just that he aspires to be that makes him a worthy Catch. Of course it doesn't hurt that his "hit" single Love Marriage - variously called Arranged Marriage - has over 700,000 views and growing. 

In an interview to a Canadian TV station last year, Wilbur said he was already a cult in India and has been tweeted about virally, so I have discovered him late, I reckon. That does not diminish my enthusiasm in the least. My first encounter with Wilbur was when my boss sent me a link to Love Marriage on YouTube. The contents of the mail shall remain secret, suffice to say that she was visibly...well...moved.

As I was as soon as the song started to play.
Wilbur, nattily dressed in white shirt and tie and shades, hails an autorickshaw which thereafter plays a significant role in the video. And then, Wilbur launches into song, nay chant, nay song...and explains to his "Mummy-Daddy" that he does not want an arranged marriage. The refrain "I want a lou marriage," is straight from the heart and is indeed described on this "official video" from his "debut album" as "the cry of Wilbur's heart."

Catch him here. The red heart refuses to fade:

I have never wished I knew Tamil as hard as I did today to catch the rest of his lyrics. If someone shall translate for me, I shall be grateful.

Love Marriage/Arranged Marriage had me begging for more and so I duly landed on Wilbur's YouTube channel page. Awesome attitude. Check out his logo - a seal of quality with the legend (he calls it his vision statement) alongside - "Making the common extraordinary".

That he certainly does. The women on that video are clearly not professionals and Wilbur is proud that they are part of his effort rather than "pretty men and pretty women" that sing songs in Bollywood. Wilbur says in that interview that the smiling woman in the video earns a living milking cows. 

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Technical institutes to reserve 5% seats: Sibal

New Delhi:  From now, technical institutes approved by AICTE have to reserve up to five per cent of their seats for students from economically backward sections of the society.

"Till now, tuition fee waiver scheme operated by AICTE allowed providing up to 10 per cent supernumerary seats that are given to students of economically backward category. It was the discretion on the part of the institution to apply for such a scheme. Now these seats are made mandatory for every institute up to five per cent," HRD Minister Kapil Sibal said.

Unveiling the revised AICTE norms, he said the technical institutes can from now on increase the intake capacity per programme from 40 to 60 seats.

Opening up the doors to the corporate sector, he said companies can also set up technical institutes provided they set up entities registered as a non-profit entity under section 25 of the Company's Act to run such institutes.
No joint venture will, however, apply to this, he said, adding the scheme would only be allowed in 241 districts where at present no AICTE approved institute exist.

"If corporate sector wants to offer AICTE programmes, they can do so after setting up a section 25 company without a joint venture, and thereafter seek approval from AICTE for the programmes," he said.

At present, only trusts and cooperative societies are allowed to run technical institutes.

Further, corporates can set up campuses through PPP or through build-operate-transfer mode under agreement with public sector.

Further relaxing norms, he said in rural sector, only 10 acre will be required to set up an engineering institute while in urban sector only 2.5 acre.

He said the measures are aimed at easing the pressure on the education sector and providing relief to the students in matters of admission.

"These are all incentives given for expansion of the education sector because the demand is huge and supply is less and the problems of fees etc. So when the sector expands and meets demands, the pressure on the system will be much less. It will be easier for students," he said.

Significantly, Sibal also said that as per the new AICTE norms, stand alone PG programme can be offered by institutes as against the existing norm where PG courses are allowed in campuses where under graduate programme exist.

He said B.Sc students can seek lateral entry to a second year degree programme provided they have passed Mathematics at XII or at B.Sc level besides engineering graphics and engineering mechanics along with second year subjects.
 

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IAF helicopter crashes in Jammu, all safe

Jammu:  An Indian Air Force (IAF) helicopter crashed in Jammu on Tuesday morning. The crew and eight people on board are, however, said to be safe.

The Mi-26 crashed at the Jammu Air Force Station just above the runway after it had attained a height of 100 meters. The helicopter was on Indian Railways duty carrying material for track building.

More details are awaited.

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Varanasi blast: At least 7 injured at Sheetla Ghaat

Varanasi:  At least 7 people have been injured in a blast on the ghats of Varanasi. Police say at least 4 people - including a foreigner - suffered serious injuries. The police has not confirmed reports of people dying in the incident.

The explosion took place at Sheetla Ghaat where the daily aarti or prayers are offered. The explosion  reportedly took place just as the aarti finished.

Eyewitness reports suggest the blast took place around 6:25 pm. There were at least 5000 people at the ghats to watch the aarti, which begins at 5:40 pm everyday.

Initial reports suggest a blast radius of 150 metres, and a major tragedy was averted because the blast occurred some distance away from  where the aarti was taking place.

A railing broke during the stampede that followed injuring another 15-20 people.

The police has been put on high-alert in all towns and cities of Uttar Pradesh. Top police officials met in the state capital, Lucknow.

Briefing the media, Additional Director General of Police Brij Lal said the top police officials and the bomb disposal squad are at the spot. The police say its too early to confirm who or what caused the blast. Prima facie evidence suggests that the explosives were kept on the steps of the ghaat.
 

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2G spectrum scam: Ratan Tata to move Supreme Court on Radia tapes

New Delhi:  Ratan Tata, the Chairman of the Tata Group of companies, will move the Supreme Court on Monday against the publication of intercepts of his conversations with Public Relations (PR) representative Nira Radia, who handles the corporate communication for the Tata Group.

The phone transcripts are part of the evidence in the 2G spectrum scam and have been made public. The scam is believed to be India's largest-ever swindle worth Rs. 1.76 lakh crore, according to the government's auditor.

Tata's petition in the Supreme Court is likely to state the following:

Phone transcripts of conversations between Radia and her public relations clients including the Tatas should be used only for investigations.
Phones can be tapped but information should not be made public.

The publication of these transcripts has affected his right to privacy.

Speaking to Shekhar Gupta on NDTV's Walk the Talk programme, Ratan Tata had recently said that the government agencies have special powers to invade people's privacy, but with that special power, come special responsibilities.

He also asserted that the Tata Group never subverted any policy through Radia. "Never once have we done something to exploit a policy issue, never once we used her (Radia) to make payments or to seek favours," he said, adding that the government should take over the tapes and restrain the media from indulging in character assassination.

Speaking on the show, Tata also said that the leaked tapes that have Radia and others discussing 2G spectrum are taking away attention - he describes them as "a smokescreen" from the real issue. Tata was one of Radia's clients. She is now part of the investigation into the 2G controversy.

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Kashmir interlocutors to submit initial assessment report to Chidambaram today

New Delhi:  After completing their first visit to Jammu and Kashmir, the interlocutors appointed by the Centre will meet Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Tuesday morning and give him an initial assessment report.

As part of their brief to listen to different shades of opinion, the interlocutors met different groups including jailed stone throwers and militants.

Meanwhile, ahead of his meeting with the interlocutors, Chidambaram on Monday asked them to refrain from giving a "ball-by-ball commentary" about the progress made in their dialogue.

"I think...interlocutors should not give a ball-by-ball commentary about their dialogue. This is interlocution. This is not a cricket match," he told reporters when asked about interlocutor Dileep Padgaonkar claiming that a terrorist had promised to present to him a peace plan for the Valley.
The interlocutors on Kashmir have come under criticism for making controversial statements.

Dileep Padgaonkar and another interlocutor Radha Kumar had recently stirred a controversy by stating that Pakistan should be involved in finding a lasting solution to the Kashmir issue.

On criticism from BJP about remarks made by the interlocutors, he said if the party wants the dialogue process to succeed, it "should show restraint and not make these completely baseless allegations. They should give the dialogue process a chance to succeed."

The Home Minister said the interlocutors have, to some extent, changed the discourse in the state. "I sincerely hope that the people in the state will give peace a chance and give dialogue a chance," he added.

Noting that the situation in the Valley was gradually getting back to normal, Chidambaram however added that it is "too early" to say that everything is normal there."

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Stay out of Gujarat: Supreme Court to Amit Shah

Ahmedabad:  The Supreme Court has directed Amit Shah to stay away from the state from Sunday morning till further orders.

When Amit Shah's lawyer opposed the court's direction for him to stay away from Gujarat the court said, "It is in your interest if you stay away from Gujarat".

The apex court issued notices to Amit Shah and Gujarat government on why his bail should not be cancelled. This order came after the CBI filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking cancellation of the bail granted by the Gujarat High Court to Amit Shah and sought an urgent hearing. 

The apex investigating agency argued that Amit Shah may tamper with evidence while on bail.

"I want to say only this much that the CBI had filed a petition because of its strong apprehensions that the accused, Amit Shah, can wield lot of influence and can tamper with evidence. So we filed the petition last night, although all the documents were not available. They had yet to arrive from Ahmedabad," senior lawyer KTS Tulsi, who appeared for CBI in the High Court, accompanied CBI officials when the petition was filed, said.

The petition was filed in the Deputy Registrar's office around 10.30 pm on Friday night after the top brass of the premier investigating agency decided to move the Supreme court for cancelling the bail.

"The petition was filed at the residence of the Registrar of the Supreme Court and the Registrar was requested to obtain necessary orders for constitution of the Bench. The Bench was eventually constituted today and the hearing took place at 5 pm. In the course of hearing, the judges enquired as to whether Mr. Amit Shah is still in custody or has he been released. We informed the court that according to our information Mr. Amit Shah was released from jail around 10.15-10.30 pm last night, which is clearly contrary to the Prison Manual and the Prison Rules. We also expressed our strong apprehension that the lives of various witnesses may be put at risk," Tulsi added.

The Court will be on a brief Diwali recess from Monday. The Deputy Registrar is the court's Vacation officer.

It is likely that the petition may come up before the Vacation bench of the Supreme Court on Saturday.

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CWG broadcast scam: SIS Live denies charges

New Delhi:  The broadcast rights deal for the Commonwealth Games, worth Rs. 246 crore, is being thoroughly investigated. After allegations of favouritism and wrongdoing were leveled against SIS Live, a UK-based company that won the broadcasting rights, the company has denied all charges.

SIS Live said it never earned excessive profits or paid sub-contractors anything less than the market rates.

In an official statement the company said:

SIS Live has paid all service tax due in accordance with the regulations; the last payment being made in October, the next payment is due in January 2011.

SIS Live has kept proper accounts and copies of bills. These are administered by our central service centre in the UK, and operated online from India. Since the I-T Department visit to our project office in Delhi on October 5, we have provided all the documents requested - over 2,500 - within the agreed timescale.

At no time were any SIS Live offices 'raided' or any of its bank accounts 'frozen'.

Currently, much more than 20 per cent of the contract value is outstanding, as was expected at this stage under the contract terms.

David Meynell, the Managing Director of SIS Live said "SIS Live was part of the team which worked tirelessly during the run up to the Games, under incredibly difficult conditions and circumstances, to ensure all the venues were broadcast-ready in time."

"Any suggestion that SIS Live has earned excessive profits and/or paid any sub-contractors anything less than market rates is entirely erroneous. Indeed, the enormous challenges presented and overcome by SIS Live in delivering world class coverage of the XIX CWG in Delhi 2010 have contributed to ensuring that any profit made from this event is extremely modest," Meynell added.

He also said that "We are very proud of the coverage which we have produced and have been delighted by the feedback received from broadcasters around the world. To now see these reports of unqualified accusations is deeply upsetting, particularly for all the staff who worked so hard to cover the event. All are completely groundless and some, frankly, outrageous."

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/cwg-broadcast-scam-sis-live-denies-charges-61758?cp

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/cwg-broadcast-scam-sis-live-denies-charges-61758?cp

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Passengers can use cellphones right after plane lands

New Delhi:  Flight pursers will no longer bother you if you want to make a call from your cellphone soon after your plane lands, thanks to a new procedure to be adopted by airlines across the country from Friday.
  
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has amended the Aircraft Rules to provide for the use of cellular phones by passengers even before the aircraft comes to a halt.
   
Under the amended Aircraft Rules, passengers would be allowed to use mobile phones shortly after an aircraft lands, leaves the active runway, enters the taxiway and if there are no other runways or intersections for it to cross.
   
However, this procedure would not be allowed in cases of low visibility conditions, like fog, at the airport, an official spokesperson said.

Instead of barring people from using their mobiles till the aircraft has come to a halt and its doors are opened, the air hostess would now make the following announcement after getting clearance from the pilot-in-command: "Passengers are advised that the use of mobile phones after landing is now allowed. Aircraft has left the active runway and has slowed down. Passengers may use their mobile phones now."
   
The pilot-in-command would give clearance for such an announcement to be made on the plane's intercom when visual or clear flight conditions exist and "when the Pilot-in-Command is comfortable," as per the fresh procedure.
   
The airlines have been asked to adopt the new procedure latest by October 22.
   
So far, the use of mobiles was allowed only after the aircraft has come to a complete halt and boarding gates opened. This was done to ensure that mobile signals do not disturb the communication between the cockpit and the air traffic control.
   
Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel had last month said that the Aircraft Rules were being amended for this purpose.

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/passengers-can-use-cellphones-right-after-plane-lands-60613?cp

Read more at: http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/passengers-can-use-cellphones-right-after-plane-lands-60613?cp

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Priyadarshini Mattoo case: A timeline

New Delhi:  Following is the chronology of the events in the case of rape and murder of 23-year-old law student Priyadarshini Mattoo.

January 23, 1996: 23-year-old Priyadarshini Mattoo, a law student, allegedly raped and killed by Santosh Singh. At the time, both were law students. Delhi Police registers FIR.

January 25, 1996: Case handed over to the CBI. Agency registers case. 

April 11, 1996: CBI files chargesheet in the case against Santosh Singh.

August 11, 1997: Trial starts in the court of Additional Solicitor General S C Mittal.

January 3, 1998: Prosecution evidence closes. Fifty witnesses examined by the court. No Defence witness.

April 18, 1998: Arguments closed in the case but was marred by a controversy of allegations of money changing hands ahead of judgement. Case transferred to trial court.

December 3, 1999: Trial court delivers judgement, Santosh Singh acquitted.

February 29, 2000: CBI appeals in Delhi High Court.

October 17, 2006: High Court convicts Santosh Singh for raping and killing Priyadarshini Mattoo. The court accepts the evidence against Santosh that he was stalking Priyadarshini. He was seen outside her house on the day of murder, that is, January 23, 1996.

October 30, 2006: Santosh Singh given the death sentence by Delhi High Court. Santosh later filed a plea in the Supreme Court challenging the death sentence awarded to him.

October 6, 2010: Supreme Court commutes Santosh Singh's death penalty to life term.

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