New Delhi, May 05: In a major blow to investigating agencies, the Supreme Court today declared as “illegal” use of narco-analysis, brain-mapping and polygraph tests on suspects.
“We are of the considered opinion that no individual can be forced and subjected to such techniques involuntarily, and by doing so it amounts to unwarranted intrusion of personal liberty,” a bench headed by chief justice KG Balakrishnan said.
New Delhi, May 05: The Centeral Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is in a bid to salvage its tarnished image, is finding its main obstacle in the government. The CBI had recently courted controversy for failing to take some Hindi heartland politicians to task.
A parliamentary committee has flayed the Centre for its reluctance to consider a separate legislation for the CBI. The new legislation is expected to lead to a more effective functioning of the investigating agency.
Washington, May 05: President Barack Obama could announce his second nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court as soon as this week, administration officials said, although they declined on Tuesday to say how many names were left on his short list of candidates.
Obama has been expected to decide quickly on who he would like to fill the seat being vacated by retiring Justice John Paul Stevens, with critical congressional elections looming in November.
New Delhi, May 05: An Indian woman who worked with a foreign mission has landed in a spot for alleged fraud.
The Australian High Commission in New Delhi has filed a police complaint against Hemlata Sharma for fabricating documents and processing fraudulent transactions to the tune of over Rs 32 lakh.
The Delhi Police registered a criminal case against her after Brett Farmer, the administrative counsellor at the high commission, lodged a complaint on April 30.
United Nations, May 05: Egypt and the United States sought Tuesday to work out a compromise at the United Nations on starting talks on a Middle East nuclear weapons-free zone, diplomats said.
Egyptian Ambassador Hisham Badr on Tuesday called on a UN conference on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to support “concrete and practical steps” for “the establishment of a Middle Eastern zone free of nuclear weapons, as well as other weapons of mass destruction.”
Beijing, May 05: North Korea’s reclusive leader Kim Jong Il was making his way Tuesday to China’s capital on a rare overseas trip meant to be so secret that Beijing refused to confirm it — despite videos shot by foreign media showing him leaving a Chinese hotel.
Kim is expected to meet with President Hu Jintao and other top Chinese leaders just as South Korea inches closer to blaming the North for the recent sinking of a navy ship that killed 46 sailors.
Jakarta, May 05: An auction of treasures including gold, rubies and porcelain found in a 10th-century shipwreck off Indonesia will go ahead Wednesday although no bidders have paid the 16-million-dollar deposit, officials said.
The Indonesian government is hoping to sell the haul of rare riches salvaged in 2004 from an unidentified wreck off Cirebon, West Java, in one lot for a minimum of 80 million dollars.
New Delhi, May 05: Fearing that the landmark Women’s Reservation Bill has been put on the backburner, an alliance of 35 women’s organisations met in the Capital on Tuesday, demanding it be placed in the Lok Sabha.
The Bill gives 33 per cent reservation to women in Parliament. The Bill, in the pipeline for 16 long years, cleared the first hurdle when it was passed by the Rajya Sabha in March this year. Thereafter, there have been no indications of it being placed in the Lok Sabha.
Bangkok, May 05: Protest leaders said they agreed in principle Tuesday with a government-proposed compromise to end Thailand’s deadly political crisis, but refused to leave their camp in Bangkok’s streets until details can be worked out.
Pressure on both sides to end the 8-week-old stalemate has grown in recent days, with the government fending off calls for a crackdown on the paralyzing protest and the anti-government “Red Shirts” attempting to recover from a public relations debacle caused by their raid of a hospital.
Beijing, May 05: North Korea’s reclusive leader Kim Jong Il was making his way Wednesday to China’s capital on a rare trip abroad meant to be so secret that Beijing refused to confirm it — despite videos shot by foreign media showing him leaving a Chinese hotel.
Kim was expected to meet with President Hu Jintao and other top Chinese leaders just as South Korea inches closer to blaming the North for the recent sinking of a navy ship that killed 46 sailors.
Kabul, May 05: Twenty-two Kabul schoolgirls and three teachers fell suddenly ill and were hospitalised on Tuesday in what Afghan authorities described as the fourth suspected poison gas attack on a girls’ school in weeks.
The incident was the first in the comparatively secure capital after three suspected poison attacks on girls’ schools in the northern city of Kunduz over the past few weeks, and several at provincial schools last year.
New Delhi, May 05: Attorney General of India G. E. Vahanvati on Tuesday appeared before the Supreme Court at the request of the Uttar Pradesh government.
The surprise move came just days after Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party ( BSP) supported the UPA government during the cut motion.
Vahanvati argued for the Lucknow Development Authority ( LDA), which had approached the apex court against an Allahabad High Court order.
The HC had directed the LDA to demolish a wall around a green belt to provide access to a road, which had become out of bounds for the residents of a colony.
Washington, May 05: US President Barack Obama on Tuesday praised Indonesia for “responsible leadership” after it announced at the United Nations that it would soon ratify the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).
“This is another signal that nations are joining a renewed effort to reinforce global non-proliferation, which advances the vision I outlined in Prague in 2009,” Obama said in a written statement.
Britain, May 05: Britain and Ireland were closing parts of their airspace on Wednesday after a fresh cloud of ash arrived from the Icelandic volcano that caused air travel chaos in Europe last month.
British regulators ordered an airspace shutdown over parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland from 7:00 am (0600 GMT) for 12 hours for most affected airports, warning that high ash levels could damage plane engines.
Washington, May 05: The thwarted car bomb plot in New York could lead to a broader US view of Pakistani extremists, with fears growing that an array of overlapping groups are determined to attack the United States.
Prosecutors said Tuesday that Pakistani-American attack suspect Faisal Shahzad admitted training in bomb-making in Waziristan, the mountainous region seen as a leading hotbed for Al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.
Dubai, May 05: Ministry of Interior’s decision to make the ID card mandatory for processing driving and vehicle licensing transactions is not for Abu Dhabi alone but for all emirates.
Emirates Identity Authority (EIDA) has said that the authority has decided to set up a large fully equipped and serviced tent at the headquarters of the Drivers and Vehicle Licensing Directorate in Abu Dhabi to process ID card applications of clients whose licensing formalities will not be completed without the card.
New Delhi, May 05: Her striking looks recall her famous aunt, slain Pakistani politician Benazir Bhutto, but Fatima Bhutto, who has penned a memoir of her family’s blood-soaked history, says the resemblance ends there.
Fatima is a fierce critic of her charismatic aunt, who twice served as prime minister, claiming she was power hungry and “morally responsible” for the murder of her own brother — the writer’s father — in 1996.
New Delhi, May 05: Mamata finalised municipalelection candidates at herhome while Railway motormen’s strike brought Mumbai to a halt
RAILWAYminister Mamata Banerjee built on her reputation for actually being minister for Kolkata, as Mumbai was crippled by a strike by railway motormen whose demands her ministry ignored for over six months.
Kathmandu, May 05: Nepal’s Maoist opposition blocked streets leading to key government offices Wednesday on the fourth day of their general strike to demand the prime minister’s resignation, while the government vowed not to bow to protesters’ pressure.
Protesters hoped to disrupt the government by blocking streets leading to the Singhadurbar complex which houses key offices and ministries, but many government ministers already had entered the complex under police protection before sunrise.
Colombo, May 05: Sri Lanka plans to set up a reconciliation commission to foster ethnic unity as the island emerges from nearly four decades of bloody conflict, a state-run newspaper said Wednesday.
Prime Minister D. M. Jayaratne said the government hoped the panel would ensure that majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils did not return to warfare.
“The commission is expected to prevent the communities falling into an unfortunate situation again,” the Daily News quoted the prime minister as saying.
Seoul, May 05: North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-Il was reportedly visiting a key Chinese port on Wednesday ahead of summit talks in Beijing, on his first trip abroad in years to secure much-needed economic aid.
The 68-year-old Kim, who arrived in China on Monday, is expected to offer Beijing reassurances that it will return to nuclear disarmament talks it abandoned more than a year ago, in exchange for economic aid and investment.
New York, May 05: A Pakistani-origin US national has been arrested while trying to board a flight to flee the country after a failed terror plot to explode a car bomb in the heart of New York’s busy Times Square, US Attorney General Eric Holder said.
The 30-year-old man identified as Pakistan-American Shahzad Faisal, who is a naturalised US citizen and a resident of Connecticut, was arrested on Monday night.
Warsaw, May 05: Polish pop singer Doda was charged Tuesday with offending religious sensibilities over a statement she made that the Bible was written by drunk and drugged people.
Doda said in an interview last year that “it’s hard to believe in something written down by someone drunk on wine and smoking some kind of herbs.” The singer also called the Bible “unbelievable tales” and said it was easier to believe in dinosaurs.
Prosecutors in Warsaw charged the singer April 30, on the basis of opinions from a linguist and two Bible scholars.
Beijing, May 05: ” Flashing police cars guarded Beijing schools on Tuesday and officers in another city were told they could shoot to kill to stop assaults on students, as Chinese authorities tried to assert control after three attacks last week left dozens of children injured. The government also banned further media coverage of the attacks, a watchdog group said.
Washington, May 05: The US State Department has expressed hope that the efforts of Turkey and Brazil to find a peaceful solution to the dispute over Iran’s nuclear program will be successful.
“We do recognize the value and importance of a variety of countries engaging Iran,” AFP quoted US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley as saying on Tuesday.