Month: July 2010

Remove Kanna: Rayapati

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Guntur, July 25: Senior Congress MP Rayapati Sambasiva Rao today demanded the removal of major industries minister Kanna Lakshminarayana, who filed a defamation suit against him, from the state cabinet. Talking to newsmen here, he also demanded a probe into the illegal wealth amassed by the minister. He threatened to quit the party if the Congress high command failed to take action against Kanna. The political rift between Rayapati and Kanna had started widening since the latter shifted to Guntur West constituency in last elections from Pedakurapadu from where he was elected thrice.

GST to replace multiple taxation system

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Hyderabad, July 25: Endowments minister G Venkata Reddy said that the goods and services tax (GST) system might come into force from the

next financial year and the Centre is working on it.
Speaking to newsmen here today, he said that he had attended the empowerment committee meeting on the implementation of GST this month. The earlier meet was attended by chief minister K Rosaiah when he was the finance minister.

Sea of opportunities for lawyers, says SC judge

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Hyderabad, July 25: Supreme Court Judge justice Altamas Kabir today called upon young graduates to restore faith and credibility among public in legal system.

Delivering his convocation address at the eighth convocation of the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) University of Law here, he told graduates to prove that advocates don’t just work for money but help people as well.

Maid’s rape comes to light

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Hyderabad, July 25: Yet another case of sexual exploitation came to light today when a 17-year-old girl complained that three persons raped her while she was working as a maid servant in the house of a businessman.

A few weeks ago the victim delivered a baby girl in a city hospital.

HC remarks upset Kerala temple officials

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Thiruvantapuram, July 25: Officials of the famed Attukal Bhagavathy temple here have expressed concern over a reference made by the Kerala High Court last week during a hearing on the government’s plea against curbs on roadside public meetings.

During the course of the hearing, a division bench of the court made a passing reference to the Attukal Pongala festival of the temple which is held on the roads in the capital city.

As Telangana sentiment reigns, TRS appears set to retain seats

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Hyderabad, July 25: Telangana Rashtra Samiti appears to be in a strong position to retain all 10 of the 12 seats in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh where bypolls will be held on Tuesday.

The ‘Telangana sentiment’ continues to give an edge to TRS while the Congress’ development mantra, coupled with the claim that it alone could ultimately deliver statehood for the region appears to have not cut any ice with the electorate.

Indians most confident globally about job prospects: Nielsen

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New Delhi, July 25: Indians are the most optimistic about job prospects and personal finances globally, according to a survey by consultancy firm Nielsen.

According to the Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence report, 92 percent of Indians were optimistic about their job prospects in the next 12 months.

Indians were also the most optimistic about the state of their personal finances in the next 12 months. Nearly 14 percent of Indians think it is an ‘excellent’ time to buy the things that they want and need and 71 percent think it is a ‘good’ time to make purchases.

Met dept warns of heavy rains in AP

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Hyderabad, July 25: The Meteorological Department today issued warning of heavy rains at many places in coastal Andhra and Telangana regions during the next two days.

The Met Department has forecast moderate to rather heavy rains accompanied with thundershowers at many places over Telangana and coastal Andhra Pradesh, while light to moderate rain/ thundershowers at some places over Rayalaseema region during the next two days.

Hyderabad would witness spells of rain/thundershowers until the morning of July 27, it said.

200 women branded witches, killed every year

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Dehra Dun, July 25: Nearly 150 to 200 women are killed every year in India after being tagged as ‘witches’, a Dehra Dun based NGO has said citing National Crime Bureau statistics.

Jharkhand tops the list with 50-60 witchcraft-related murders every year followed by Andhra Pradesh where the number is around 30, Haryana 25-30 and Orissa 24-28, Rural Litigation and Entitlement Kendra (RLEK) chairman Avdhash Kaushal claimed.

Congress rejects BJP’s charges, says CBI is not foolish

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New Delhi, July 25: Rejecting BJP’s allegation that CBI had fabricated charges against former Gujarat minister Amit Shah, Congress today said that the probe agency was not foolish or idiotic to face the wrath of the Supreme Court by filing a false case.

“Do you think CBI is full of bunch of fools who will risk their entire career by making false allegations, non-existing allegations which are going to be examined by the Supreme Court?” Congress spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters here countering the BJP’s charges.

Sania stumbles in final at Wrexham ITF event

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New Delhi, July 25: After mauling lower-ranked opponents all through the week, Sania Mirza lost the title clash of the Wrexham ITF event 2-6 4-6 to local favourite Heather Watson today.

Top seed Sania had reached the final for the loss of nine games only but in an anti-climactic fashion lost the summit clash to fourth seed Watson, who is 121 placed below the Indian at 252.

Sania thus missed a chance to win her second title in Wrexham. She had triumphed there in 2004.

Sania had also lost the summit clash of the doubles event of the USD 25,000 tournament in Great Britain.

Heroin smuggled from Pak seized at Attari

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Attari (Amritsar), July 25: About one kg heroin being smuggled from Pakistan worth crores in the international market was seized at Attari railway station here, customs officials said today.

The drug, weighing 952 grams and worth Rs 4.85 crore in the international market, was concealed in a specially-created cavity in a Goods train wagon that arrived here from Lahore in Pakistan.

A team led by Customs Superintendent K K Sharma detected the drug during an inspection last night, Deputy Commissioner (Customs, Attari) V K Mahajan said.

Stage set for an acrimonious monsoon session

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New Delhi, July 25: With the plunge in Government- BJP relations, stage is set for an acrimonious monsoon session of Parliament that begins tomorrow as Opposition prepares to corner the UPA on price rise and other issues but the treasury benches may take heart from the fact that parties on the other side are divided on Hindu terror and Gujarat events.

Andhra Chief Minister travels by Delhi Metro

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New Delhi, July 25: As the state government prepares to introduce Metro in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister K Rosaiah today travelled on the Delhi Metro to get a first-hand experience of the new age transport system.

Rosaiah, who is here on a visit, travelled on the Metro from Central Secretariat to Rajiv Chowk Metro station.

Accompanied by DMRC directors Mangu Singh and Raj Kumar, Rosaiah went around the Rajiv Chowk underground metro station and enquired about the new-age transport system.

Entire world wants direct Mideast talks: Abbas

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Ramallah, West Bank, July 25: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Sunday that despite intense international pressure from the “entire world,” he is still not willing to start direct negotiations with Israel.

Abbas told the Voice of Palestine radio that talks would be doomed without a clear framework.

The Palestinians are wary of entering open-ended negotiations with Israel’s hardline prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. They want Israel to first accept the principle of a Palestinian state in the lands it captured in the 1967 Mideast War, with some alterations.

Mumbai Crime Branch to enquire into attack on Abu Salem

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Mumbai, July 25: The Crime Branch of the Mumbai police will investigate the attack on mafia don Abu Salem, allegedly by an aide of rival gangster Dawood Ibrahim, inside the Arthur Road Jail, a senior officer said here Sunday.

“We are in the process of taking over the investigation into the attack on Salem,,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Nisar Tamboli told IANS.

Salem, 43, was attacked during breakfast time Saturday with a sharpened spoon allegedly by Mohammed Dossa, a member of absconding mafia don Dawood Ibrahim’s gang. Salem had injuries on the face and neck.

Refused Rs.5, boy commits suicide

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Kolkata, July 25: A nine-year-old boy committed suicide here after his mother refused him Rs.5, police said Sunday.

Babusona Shaw, whose mother is a maid servant, took his life Saturday by hanging himself using a sari at their house in Behala area.

Deputy Superintendent of Police Subrata Ganguly said the boy’s mother Anjali had rebuked him for demanding the money. “The boy might have become sentimental and committed suicide,” he said.

–IANS

Shah joins other accused in Sabarmati jail

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Ahmedabad, July 25: Gujarat’s former minister Amit Shah Sunday joined the other accused in the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh killing at the historic Sabarmati Jail here, where Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak were imprisoned during the freedom struggle.

Shah, sent to 14 days judical custody, has been lodged in the Sardar barracks, named after Sardar Patel, who was once confined there. The former minister of state for home has been permitted home-cooked food.

No job, wage cuts in Air India: Praful Patel

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Mumbai, July 25: National carrier Air India is on the path of strong recovery and there would be no job or wage cuts, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Praful Patel said Sunday.

The AI team, headed by the chairman and managing director Arvind Jadhav, made a presentation on the plan for financial restructuring and turnaround till 2014-2015 before the board of directors, making an announcement that the operations will break even by 2015.

Campaign for Andhra Pradesh bypolls ends

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Hyderabad, July 25: Curtains came down today on campaign for by-elections to the 12 Assembly constituencies in Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh, scheduled to be held on Tuesday.

The campaign has ended at 5 pm, so the contesting candidates should not organise any public meetings any more, Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) I V Subba Rao said.

The campaign for the bypolls, necessitated by the resignation of the 12 sitting MLAs in support of separate Telangana demand, centred around the same issue. Ten MLAs among those who quit were from TRS and one each from TDP and BJP.

Villagers chase away Maoists

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Jhargram (WB), July 25: For the second time in a week, villagers refused to abide by Maoist diktats and chased them away in West Midnapore district.

Two youths came on a motorbike to Nischinta village near Lodhasoli and asked the villagers to gather for a meeting by PCPA, a frontal organisation of the Maoists, in neighbouring Nohoria village last night, police said.

As the villagers declined, about 14 Peoples Committee against Police Atrocities (PCPA) activists on motorbikes came to Nischinta and threatened them.

Inflation to come down after new crops arrive: FM

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New Delhi, Jul 25 (PTI) Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said he does not have a magic lamp to bring down inflation automatically and exuded confidence that it will decline from the present level of over 10 per cent after new crops arrive in the market.

“It (inflation) is a matter of concern, no doubt. But…

there is no magic lamp through which you can bring it down or raise it… I do hope it would stabilise after good crop prospects, which is likely to happen during this kharif season,” Mukherjee told reporters after meeting with heads of regional rural banks here.

CBI likely to take Amit Chah’s custody next week

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New Delhi, July 25: The CBI is likely to take the custody of junior Gujarat Home Minister Amit Shah next week after examining two senior police officials including Geetha Johri, who was part of the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team probing the 2002 communal riots.

Sources in the investigating agency said that Shah, who was arrested in Gandhinagar today after he surrendered, needs to be confronted with some people who were being examined by the CBI in connection with the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case.

TDP chief seeks PM intervention in Babhli project issue

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New Delhi, July 25: TDP today accused the Central government of ignoring Andhra Pradesh by doing nothing to prevent Maharashtra from going ahead with the Babhli project despite directives from Supreme Court and Central Water Commission.

Addressing a press conference here five days after he was taken back to his state by Maharashtra authorities following his protest at the Babhli site, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu said the Centre has to “come into the picture” and direct Maharashtra to stop work at the Babhali barrage in Nanded district.

CBI ignoring Andhra Pradesh angle in Sohrabuddin case: BJP

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New Delhi, July 25: BJP today accused the CBI of working in a partisan manner by targeting Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh, where it has governments, and ignoring the Andhra Pradesh angle in the Sohrabuddin case as the Congress is in power in that state.
Sohrabuddin Shaikh was a terrorist from whose premises in Indore nearly 300 AK-47s were recovered. He used to operate an inter-state gang.