News

BJP not to reopen Ayodhya wounds

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New Delhi, September 26: The Congress Saturday expressed hope that veteran leader L.K. Advani or his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would not re-start the Ayodhya movement that created a communal divide in the country.

Calling Advani as the ‘Bhishma Pitamah’ of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Congress spokesman Manish Tewari said the saffron leader’s controversial rath yatra from Gujarat’s Somnath to Ayodhya 20 years ago had impacted the country’s secularism.

Delhi Metro to reserve coach for women from Oct 2

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New Delhi, September 26: One coach in all Delhi Metro trains will be reserved for women from Oct 2 in order to decongest the bogies.

The reserved ladies’ coach will be the first after the driver’s cab in every train. Children up to 12 years, accompanied by women passengers, will also be allowed to travel in the reserved coach, said a Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) statement.

JAC threatens to gherao CM

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Visakhapatnam, September 26: The Samykhya Andhra (United Andhra) Joint Action Committee (JAC) threatened to gherao Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah today during his visit to Bheeminipatnam Municipality for its 150th year celebrations.

The JAC members were demanding issuance of notifications for several government examinations and burnt the CM’s effigy in Andhra University compus at VS Krishna Library.

8 points to solve Kashmir crisis

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New Delhi, September 26: Eager not to fritter away gains made by the All Party delegation, the Centre on Saturday announced an eight point package to bring back normalcy in a crisis-ridden Kashmir. The package includes forming a group of interlocutors to have “sustained dialogue” with all sections of the people, including youth.

Rushdie terms British monarchy ”stupid, archaic”

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London, September 26: In comments that can rake up yet another controversy, Indian-origin author Salman Rushdie has termed the British monarchy and its traditions as “stupid” and “archaic”.

The brilliant author, winner of the ‘Booker of the Bookers’, who has a penchant for controversy said in an interview to The Sunday Times: “The monarchy and its traditions are archaic.. stupid… a British oddity”.

Jama Masjid Firing: Rickshawpuller felicitated

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New Delhi, September 26: To act in the face of terror is by no means a simple task, but it did not take a moment for rickshawpuller Salim Ahmed to give the perpetrators behind the Jama Masjid firing the chase. His efforts have not gone in vain.

The Anti-Terrorist Front led by M S Bitta felicitated Salim here today for displaying courage during the firing incident near Jama Masjid on September 19. He was also rewarded a cash prize of Rs 25,000.

“I want to coach Indian team”: Ganguly

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New Delhi, September 26: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly has said on Saturday that he would like to be the coach of the Indian team, if such an opportunity comes his way. “Though it’s not my immediate goal, I will like to coach the national team. It will be a great honour,” Ganguly said on Saturday while addressing the India Today Youth Summit in Delhi.

CWG has become a ‘joke’ : Sharad Pawar

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New Delhi, September 26: With criticisms pouring in from all quarters over the shambolic build-up to the Commonwealth Games, ICC president Sharad Pawar took a swipe at Suresh Kalmadi and called the October 3-14 event a ‘joke’.

Pawar, also the Union Agriculture Minister, came in to offer such scathing criticism over the Games following reports of leakages and collapses, which added to the concerns of the touring athletes having already cited reservations over the security and health issues.

World Urdu conference from Dec 27

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Bangalore September 26: The Karnataka Urdu Academy will oganise a three-day world Urdu conference here from December 27. Professor S Mohammed R Haq, Registrar of the Academy told reporters today the organisers of the conference will also conduct an All India Urdu Mela and crafts exhibition.

In the world Urdu conference, it is proposed to invite speakers from US, UK, Russia, Japan, Holland, Germany, France, Pakistan and Bangladesh, he said.

During the meet an all India painting, ghazal and literary competitions will also be held, he said.

Modi gives poll tickets to Muslims

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Ahmedabad, September 26: CM Narendra Modi apparently wants to get rid of his ‘Hindu Hriday Samrat’ title. For that, he has started a new experiment in his political laboratory of Gujarat.

He has given BJP tickets to nine Muslims candidates for the Ahmedabad, Surat, Jamnagar and Rajkot Municipal Corporation elections, schedule for October 10.

Of the candidates, two will contest from Ahmedabad, four from Jamnagar, one from Rajkot and two from Surat.

Political analysts say Modi’s move aims to soften his hardline Hindu leader image so that he can get national acceptance.

Bomb explodes near Thai PM’s residence

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Bangkok, September 26: A bomb exploded outside a horse stable near the Thai prime minister’s residence here early Sunday, but no one was injured, local press reports said.

The blast, which followed two earlier explosions Friday that injured three people, raised political tension and prompted police to beef up security in the capital and surrounding areas.

Former Piler MLA resigns from TDP

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Chittoor, September 26: Former Piler assembly legislator in Chittoor district G V Srinadh Reddy has resigned from Telugu Desam party.

Mr Reddy, who was elected from Piler Assembly constituency on TDP ticket in 1994 against the present Forest Minister P Ramachandra Reddy, was defeated in 1999 and 2004 General Elections by the present Forest Minister.

His resignation letter was faxed to its party Chief Mr N Chandrababu Naidu yesterday, according to party sources. After his resignation, Mr Reddy told reporters that he resigned from the party due to personal problems.
–UNI

Advani surprised at deferment of Ayodhya verdict

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Somnath, September 26: BJP leader L K Advani today said he failed to understand why the Supreme Court has deferred pronouncement of the verdict on the Ayodhya title suit when the nation has been waiting for a decision on the dispute since decades.

Advani also appealed to the Apex Court to give a go ahead to Allahabad High Court during its next hearing of the case on September 28 so that the latter can give the verdict.

Lalu supporter Akhilesh attacks RJD chief

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New Delhi, September 26: Akhilesh Singh, a one-time die-hard supporter of RJD chief Lalu Prasad who recently quit the party, today heaped scorn on him, claiming that he had become stubborn and was “demolishing” the party.

Singh, who has served as a Union Minister of State in the UPA-I government, said loyalists like him were being forced to leave RJD by Prasad as the latter had become “intolerant”.

Balmer Lawrie plans four multi-modal logistics hub

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Kolkata, September 26: State-owned diversified conglomerate Balmer Lawrie is planning to set up four multi-modal logistics hub in the country in four zones — east, west, north and south, a top official said here.

“We are planning to set up a multi-modal logistics hub in Vizag (Vishakhapatnam) and eventually in other parts of the country. We have signed a memorandum of understanding with Vizag Port Trust for this,” company’s managing director S.K. Mukherjee said Saturday.

He said each hub would cost around Rs.250 crore, depending on the value of the land.

9/11 remark meant to ‘assist’ Americans: Ahmadinejad

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Tehran, September 26: Shrugging of the volley of criticism against him for listing conspiracy theories behind 9/11 attacks at the United Nations, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad underlined that his remarks were meant to help Americans.

“We are trying to defend the rights of the American people so that their money is not used for killing people in Iraq and Afghanistan, so that their children do not end up in locations where they do not understand and must not go to in the first place to die,” Ahmadinejad said.

‘Israel to use all means in next Gaza war’

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Jerusalem, September 26: “We have less performance constraints there than in other areas, and we will not hesitate to use the many tools in our possession,” the commander of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Gaza Division, Brigadier General Eyal Eisenberg, said about possible Israeli offensives on the coastal sliver.

The next war would be a “more painful, complex, and powerful round,” he was quoted as saying by Israeli website Ynetnews on Friday.

Seemandhra lawyers have accepted bifurcation: Jeevan Reddy

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Hyderabad, September 26: Senior Telangana Congress leader T Jeevan Reddy on Saturday said that lawyers from Seemandhra have inadvertently given in to demands for a separate Telangana state by demandin the establishment of High Court Bench at Guntur.

Terming the demand as nothing but the first step to the formation of separate Telangana, Mr Jeevan Reddy told media persons at the Assembly premises on Saturday that lawyers were known as torch-bearers of the society.

The Congress leader also demanded lifting of cases against the students from Telangana.

——-INN

Botsa given clean chit surprising, disappointing: TDP

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Hyderabad, September, 26: Senior TDP leaders S Venugopalachari and Ramana on Saturday expressed disappointment at the clean chit given to Minister Botsa Sathyanarayana in the Volkswagen case and said that the CBI has turned into the Congress Bureau of Investigations.

The TDP leaders also demanded that the allegations of corruption raised against Government Advisor KVP Ramachandra Rao be probed.

Israel must choose between peace and settlements: Abbas

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New York, September 26: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas Saturday told the United Nations General Assembly Saturday that Israel “must choose between peace and the continuation of settlements”.

“We affirm our complete readiness to cooperate with the American efforts for the success of the political process to reach a comprehensive, just and lasting peace,” Abbas said.

Abbas spoke as the clock ticked down on a Sunday deadline in Israel that could lift building restrictions on Jewish settlers in Palestinian territory.

Mamata raises the pitch for taking ‘Tata land’ in Singur

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Lucknow, September 26: Two years after the Tatas pulled out and on the third anniversary of her agitation here, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday said “I will make Singur the showpiece of Bengal”, sounding desperate to take land for setting up industry.

Her statement was a virtual repeat of what Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee had said when he initaited the process of handing over nearly 1,000 acres to the Tatas three years ago.

Can’t understand why SC deferred Ayodhya verdict, says Advani

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New Delhi, September 26: Standing at the temple from where he began the Rath Yatra that galvanised the Ram Mandir movement 20 years ago, L K Advani said Saturday that he could not understand the Supreme Court’s order to defer the verdict on the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title suits.

“I have every respect for our judiciary. But I fail to understand the Supreme Court order that has delayed the Ayodhya verdict,” Advani said at Prabhas Patan after offering prayers at the Somnath temple.

Congress asks Advani not to re-open old wounds

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New Delhi, September 25: The Congress Saturday expressed hope that veteran leader L.K. Advani or his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would not re-start the Ayodhya movement that created a communal divide in the country.

Calling Advani as the ‘Bhishma Pitamah’ of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), Congress spokesman Manish Tewari said the saffron leader’s controversial rath yatra from Gujarat’s Somnath to Ayodhya 20 years ago had impacted the country’s secularism.

Cold-blooded murderer plays the jilted lover

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Hyderabad, September 25: Days after Divya, an engineering student, was battered to death, the Cyberabad Police finally apprehended her killer, A Venkata Sekhar, here on Friday. The 24-year-old, clad in a simple dress, appeared detached and unrepentant as he narrated the circumstances that prompted him to bludgeon the girl with a baseball bat.