Month: April 2010

I am being maligned – Bipasha

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Mumbai, April 05: The Bengali bombshell Bipasha Basu has never looked or felt in better physical shape than she is now. For her it’s all about loving her body.

Her nine-year romance with Bollywood and equally-long relationship with John Abraham is in full bloom. Post her fitness videos, her film career has picked up steam.

She has Priyadarshan’s Aakrosh (earlier titled Garam Hawa), a film meant to give her ‘artistic side’ a boost. Then there is Rohan Sippy’s Dum Maro Dum.

165 held in 152 cases; more arrests likely

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Hyderabad, April 05: With the normalcy returning to communal riots-hit twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad, the Hyderabad City Police has started its focus on investigations.

So far, police have booked 152 cases in five zones and arrested 165 people. About 100 more people have been picked up questioning. As many as 91 cases have been booked in South Zone (Old City); 23 in East Zone; 18 in West Zone; 13 in Central Zone and seven cases have been booked in North Zone.

No consensus on women’s quota bill

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New Delhi, April 05: A meeting of leaders of political parties in the Lok Sabha failed to reach a consensus on the women’s reservation bill with most opponents of the legislation sticking to their stated positions.

Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Prasad, a strong opponent of the bill in its present form, said the legislation should provide reservation for Dalits, minorities and the backward castes.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, also the leader of the house in the Lok Sabha, convened the meeting at the parliament complex.

Indian media at war to cover Shoaib-Sania marriage controversy

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Hyderabad, April 05: The marriage of a celebrity is always the first headline and when a celebrity couple decides to tie the knot, the news becomes much bigger. But the marriage of Indian Tennis star Sania Mirza with Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Mallik is giving an overdose of news-peg to the entire media, especially the national news channels.

Ruchika case: HC adjourns hearing on Rathore’s plea

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Chandigarh, April 05: The Punjab and Haryana High Court Monday adjourned till July 19 the hearing on two FIRs filed against former DGP SPS Rathore in the Ruchika molestation case after the CBI sought more time to conduct the probe.

Justice Sabina adjourned the case after the CBI counsel told the court that the agency needed four weeks time to file the status report.

3 Killed, 40 injured in mini bus accident in Rajouri

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Srinagar, April 05: Three persons were today killed and 40 injured when a mini bus in which they were travelling in, skidded off the road and plunged into a deep gorge in mountainous Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, police here said.

”Three passengers died and 40 injured when the mini bus which was on way to Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University accidentally skidded off near Dhanadhari and fell into a gorge this morning at around 1115 hrs,” police sources told UNI.

On receiving information, police party, army and locals rushed to the spot and shifted the injured to the hospital.

Lakhs of flags, tons of trash cleared

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Hyderabad, April 05: The staff of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) have removed a whopping 8.02 lakh flags and 5,035 banners from the Old City.

The job is unfinished as yet and 16 special teams with additional vehicles have been deployed to complete it as early as possible.

The civic staff also cleared about 1,521 tonnes of garbage on Sunday from various parts of the Old City. Garbage piled up for the past week as it could not be cleared on time due curfew.

Now one more trouble for Sania

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Muzaffarnagar, April 05: A local court today fixed April 28 as the date of hearing into the National Anthem disgrace case against Ace Indian Tennis player Sania Mirza. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Vinod Kumar could not hear the case today, owing to the District Bar Council election.

Altogether four cases were registered against Sania in relation to this issue in November 2008. The local court had fixed separate hearing dates for the cases.

Nikaah over phone, Net valid: Muslim board

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Hyderabad, April 05: The All India Muslim Personal Law Board says any Nikah over telephone or Internet is valid, adding they feel sad for Sania who has been forced into a controversy.

Kamal Farooqi of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board told CNN-IBN: “Shoiab’s Nikah over telephone to Ayesha Siddiqui is valid as per Muslim law. But I want to know why the Siddiquis didn’t approach police until now.”

Something to keep Katrina warm

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Mumbai, April 05: Katrina Kaif received a warm welcome at a media meet to promote her upcoming “Raajneeti” here Saturday evening, but the cold blast from the air conditioner had her shivering, until co-actor Arjun Rampal gallantly took off his coat and offered it to her.

Dressed in a short, sleeveless, pink dress, Katrina found it too cold at the venue.

“It’s way too cold here. It’s so cold!” Katrina was seen whispering to Ranbir Kapoor and Arjun Rampal on the stage.

Thank you God for giving us Ranbir and Katrina

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Mumbai, April 05: Filmmaker Prakash Jha, who has a penchant for realistic cinema, says his upcoming dark political drama “Raajneeti” on which he has been working since the past four years, is his most complete film ever.

“Rajneeti has been a long journey. It is a film about politics and tries to cover most aspects involved in politics – personal, family, social, state, national.

Basically, the film tries to showcase what happens in politics. And I would say this is my most complete film, ” Jha told reporters at a press conference here Saturday.

What is keeping Sonam Kapoor so busy

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Mumbai, April 05: Sonam Kapoor has just done two movies since her debut in 2007, but this year, the actress has her hands full with the release of two projects and shooting schedules of three movies.

The 24-year-old, who was first seen opposite Ranbir Kapoor in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s “Saawariya” and later in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s “Delhi-6”, is awaiting the release of “Aisha” and “I Hate Luv Storys” in 2010.

Rahul wakes up early to bring me tea: Dimpy Mahajan

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Mumbai, April 05: Rahul and Soumasri “Dimpy” Mahajan celebrated their much talked about wedding reception at a city five star hotel on Friday night with friends and family.

After winning NDTV Imagine’s reality show Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega which was based on the lines of American game show The Bachelor, Dimpy, the 21-year-old model-actor was asked her hand in marriage by Rahul. The couple got married on March 7 in true Bengali style on the show itself.

Riteish Deshmukh refuses to kiss Jacqueline Fernandes

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Mumbai, April 05: While most people will do any thing to kiss a hottie like Jacqueline Fernandes, Riteish Deshmukh flatly refused to do so when they were shooting for Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai.

We hear that it’s due to Shah Rukh Khan’s influence, the gifted actor has also adopted a no-kissing policy.

Though director Milap Zaveri tried hard to convince him about the crucial scene but Riteish didn’t budge.

Shah Rukh to play the lead in Vidhu’s ‘Ferrari Ki Sawaari’

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Mumbai, April 05: After waiting endlessly and churning some of the biggest hits in filmdom, filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra has finally got Shah Rukh Khan onboard for one of his esteemed project.

The director, who has been chasing King Khan for years now, had offered the actor roles in films like `Kareeb`, `1942-A Love Story`, `Munnabhai MBBS` and even `3 Idiots`, has got his wish granted as SRK will be seen playing the lead in his next film.

I love Arjun so much that I’m jealous of Mehr: Ranbir

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Mumbai, April 05: After working with model-turned-National Award winner Arjun Rampal in “Raajneeti”, Ranbir Kapoor considers him a “brother for life” and says he loves him so much that he feels extremely jealous of Arjun’s wife.

“I have had a wonderful time working with Arjun in ‘Raajneeti’. He is my brother for life. I love him a lot. In fact I love him so much, so much that I am jealous that Mehr is his wife, ” Ranbir said while addressing a press conference at the Galaxy Hotel here Saturday.

Akki proves that he is the real Khatron Ka Khiladi

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Mumbai, April 05: Keeping true to his signature Akshay Kumar Bollywood’s box office king performed yet another death-defying stunt for his forthcoming film Sajid Nadiadwala’s and Eros International’s Housefull.

We come to hear that a particular scene required Akshay to jump from one balcony to another and since one small step in the wrong direction would have him plunging to the ground the production advised Akshay to use cable wires to perform the stunt.

But Akshay Kumar refused to do so in spite of the challenge it posed.

Afghan woman lawmaker badly wounded in shooting

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Kabul, April 05: Gunmen seriously wounded an Afghan provincial councilwoman in a drive-by shooting early Monday in the country’s increasingly violent north.

Nida Khyani was struck by two bullets, including one that left a potentially life-threatening abdominal wound, said Salim Rasouli, head of the provincial health department.

Sania rises in WTA rankings

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New Delhi, April 05: Out of action owing to a wrist injury, tennis ace Sania Mirza has risen a couple of rungs to 90th in the latest WTA singles rankings issued on Monday.

Sania, who is currently busy gearing up for her marriage with Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik on April 15, has 740 points in the list.

Sania, however, slipped in the doubles chart and was down to 44th from last week’s 36th with 1875 points.

Strong quake kills 2 in Mexico, rattles US states

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Mexico, April 05:A powerful earthquake swayed buildings from Los Angeles to Tijuana, killing two people in Mexico, blacking out cities and forcing the evacuation of hospitals and nursing homes. One California city closed off its downtown due to unstable buildings.

The 7.2-magnitude quake centered just south of the U.S. border near Mexicali was one of the strongest earthquakes to hit region in decades.

“It sounds like it’s felt by at least 20 million people,” USGS seismologist Lucy Jones said. “Most of Southern California felt this earthquake.”

Serial blasts rock Peshawar, US consulate targeted

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Peshawar, April 05: Five massive bomb blasts – three in the vicinity of American consulate – rocked Pakistan’s frontier town Peshawar on Monday, killing at least 10 people.

As per initial reports, heavily-armed gunmen have also launched a ground attack on the fortified consulate in Peshawar, said police officer Aziz Khan.

Gun shots are being continuously heard from the Sadar area of the city which, apart from the US consulate, houses many other important government offices.

3 accused in Pune gangrape case confess

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Pune, April 05: The investigation into the alleged rape of a 25-year-old woman in Pune got a boost on Sunday with the three accused confessing to the crime. Police said the three – Subhash Bhosale (30), Ganesh Kamble (26) and Ranjeet Gade (25) – confessed and provided them an account of the incident.

“The accused have told the police that they threatened the victim with a knife. Since the accused were holding her hands, the victim could not resist,” said Inspector Nandkishore Bhosale.

Aide of Orissa gangster killed

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Kendrapara (Orissa), April 05: The aide of slain gangster Suleiman was shot dead today by rival gang members at Kacheriapada on the outskirts of Kendrapara town. Bivash Mohanty (30) was shot from close range by rival gang members early in the morning when he was returning home at Pakhat after watching a village opera show, police said.

“Mohanty died on the spot when the attackers fired six shots. We believe it was a murder related to gang rivalry,” Inspector-in-charge of Kendrapara Sadar police station Ranjan Kumar Dey said.

Aamir perfect to play Guru Dutt onscreen

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New Delhi, April 05: Dada Saheb Phalke winner cinematographer V K Murthy, famous for his camera work in Guru Dutt”s classics like ”Pyaasa” and ”Sahib, Bibi Aur Ghulam”, believes that only Aamir Khan can play Guru Dutt onscreen. Murthy, a close friend of the legendary actor-director believes that only a perfectionist like Aamir can do justice to the role.

“I don”t get impressed by actors easily but Aamir is in a different league. ”Lagaan” and ”Taare Zameen Par” are classics of Indian cinema.

Sajjan Kumar seeks documents relating to 1984 anti-Sikh riots

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New Delhi, April 05: Congress leader Sajjan Kumar today filed an application before a Delhi court seeking certain documents relating to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots cases allegedly involving him and others.

Delhi court transfers two anti-Sikh riots cases involving Sajjan Kumar

Additional sessions judge Sunita Gupta asked the CBI to file its reply on the application on April 7.

Kumar, in his plea, sought records relating to the two cases pertaining to the riots that took place following the assassination of the then prime minister Indira Gandhi.