Month: July 2011

New Delhi, July 06: The Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probing the 2G spectrum allocation scam will start questioning from tomorrow former telecom secretaries including Siddharth Behura who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail, and ex-chiefs of TRAI.

Behura will be produced before the committee on July 12 after the special CBI court dealing with the 2G spectrum allocation scam case agreed for the same.

He is in jail since February facing charges of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy in the 2G scam.

Baghdad, July 06: Despite repeated calls by Iraqis for a complete US military withdrawal from Iraq, the White House has again expressed the desire to maintain thousands of troops in the war-weary country.

The White House seeks to keep between 8,500 and 10,000 active-duty soldiers in Iraq in 2012, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday, quoting senior US administration and military officials.

Bahrain, July 06: Bahraini protesters have staged new demonstrations against the Al Khalifa rule after leaders of two opposition parties attended a reconciliation meeting with the Manama regime.

The latest demonstration happened in north Sehla district, south of Manama, in an apparent protest against the negotiation, which is reportedly aimed to put an end to the political crisis in the Persian Gulf Sheikhdom, local sources told Press TV on Wednesday.

Cargo, July 06: The aircraft hit a mountain peak some 50 km north of the Afghan capital of Kabul late Tuesday.

Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, has claimed responsibility for the incident, a Press TV correspondent reported. However, it is still not clear what caused the crash.

Sayed Aleem Agha, a top official in Sayagred district of Parwan province, said the plane’s crew members were feared dead but that rescue workers had not yet reached the crash site.

Hyderabad, July 6: Fresh incident of police excess and rowdyism occurred in LB Nagar area where some policemen attacked a hotel owner Chandrashekhar. Some police workers are said to have taken dinner at the hotel and was trying to get away without paying bill. When the hotel owner objected and demanded money policemen abused him and even assaulted him. The hotel owner was shifted to Global hospital located nearby while LB Nagar police expressed ignorance regarding the incident.

Siasat news

Lucknow, July 06: Police clashed with a group of Muslims in an Uttar Pradesh village Wednesday over the alleged desecration of a Quran, an event some police officials said never happened.

The clash, which led to exchange of fire, took place in Arahlatnagar Bagah village on the outskirts of Moradabad city, about 350 km from here. Some people were injured but no one was killed, officials said.

Shabota (Uttar Pradesh), July 06: For the first time after starting a campaign against the government’s land takeover, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Wednesday attacked Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati by name.

Addressing people in a temple complex in this village in Gautam Budh Nagar district, Gandhi said Mayawati was trying to hush up the victims of her land acquisition policy that has sparked mass protests.

“Mayawati declared a new compensation policy but has she ever implemented the existing one?” Gandhi asked the 200-strong crowd that included both men and women.

Canberra, July 06: In the wake of the new powers that would allow the Australian police to force Muslim women to remove head coverings during security checks, many have raised concerns that the decision was part of a renewed push to ban the Islamic garb.

In Lakemba, where the face-covering veil is commonplace, most Muslim women were willing to cautiously accept the law as long as it wasn”t misused.

“Absolutely I”m worried, I”m worried I won”t be able to wear my niqab,” the Daily Telegraph quoted a woman, as saying.

AHmedabad, July 06: The Gujarat government has ordered an inquiry into the affairs of a minority institution in Ahmedabad where a six-year-old student of class one was reportedly paraded naked in the all-girl school and made to clean toilets. All because she had not completed her home work and the class teacher found her handwriting to be “too bad.”

The class teacher was arrested after the parents lodged a police complaint against her and some of the trustees of the private high school in the minority-dominated area of Shahpur in the heart of the city.

School unregistered

New Delhi, July 06: Congress MPs and MLAs from Telangana who have resigned their membership from Parliament and state Assembly, today asked the Centre and the party high command to fix a “time frame” for the creation of the new state.

“Give us a time frame. Be it six months, three months or two months,” Congress leader from Telangana K Keshav Rao, who has resigned from his Rajya Sabha membership told reporters here.

Rao, who was accompanied by several MLAs and MPs from the region, said they wanted the process of formation of Telangana as a separate state, to be completed.

Mumbai, July 06: Priyanka Chopra turns 29 on July 18 but she is already being showered gifts by her mother, Madhu.

“Hey guys… so I looooves happy birthday month.. My mom bought me the awesomest gifts today.. I looooves surprise gifts..teeeheeeheee,” (sic) the actress posted on a micro-blogging site.

Zayed Khan turned 32 on July 5. The actor is looking forward to being a father for the second time (his wife Mallika is due in August) as well his production Love Breakups Zindagi.

Mumbai, July 06: Salman Khan has been in a generous mood lately. On Monday night, he gifted his Bodyguard co-star Raj Babbar a Merc!

It was a belated birthday gift for the star politician after the shoot of the film wrapped up in Patiala. Babbar’s birthday was on June 23.

Says a source, “Raj Babbar was taken by surprise. He was, in fact, shocked when he saw the vehicle.”

The car is silver in colour and the number plate adds up to five the number Babbar prefers.

Mumbai, July 06: Karan Johar’s remake of director Mukul Anand’s Agneepath is going to be a lot different from the original 1990 film.

Well, the tall and lanky Vijay Dinanath Chauhan played by Amitabh Bachchan has been replaced by the muscular Hrithik Roshan in the remake. It’s yet to be seen if Hrithik can match Big B’s swagger and charisma, but the actor did work quite hard for his role in the film.

Hyderabad, July 06: The Telangana Advocates Joint Action Committee (TAJAC) on Tuesday said that those who don’t support Telangana won’t be permitted to stay in Hyderabad. The advocates association maintained that all those staying in the city should support statehood for Telangana. A large number of advocates were bundled into a jeep and shifted to Falaknuma police station, on the first day of the two-day bandh, when they tried to obstruct a meeting of TD MLAs from the Seemandra region at the MLA quarters. The TAJAC co-convenor, Mr T.

Hyderabad, July 06: Those working in the IT industry in the city had a tough time on Tuesday as the T-bandh brought public transport to a halt and those who drive to work stayed off the roads fearing attacks by the bandh supporters. A few incidents of techies being stopped by agitators in the Malkajgiri area were reported in the morning on Tuesday. Nearly 40 per cent of the smaller companies (mostly smaller firms) remained shut on Tuesday and those working in IT companies that had remained open had a tough time getting to work as taxis and autorickshaws were hard to come by.

Hyderabad, July 06: While malaria is raging in the city and adjacent districts, dengue fever has also started to make its presence felt. As per official data, there are 31 confirmed and 30 suspected cases of dengue in Hyderabad as of July 4. Sources in the health department say dengue test facilities are not available at major government hospitals while hospitals claim there hasn’t been any dengue case in the last two-three months.

Lucknow, July 06: Alleging a BSP MP and an MLC were involved in the killing of Dr YS Sachan, senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh today said the Mayawati government was shielding the masterminds behind the murder of three CMOs.

“First CMO Dr Vinod Arya was killed in October, 2010, then Dr BP Singh was murdered in April this year and now deputy CMO Sachan was killed inside the Lucknow district jail.

“All the three cases are related to each other and the materminds behind them are yet to be exposed,” Singh told reporters here.

New Delhi, July 06: The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Wednesday urged the government to quickly decide on the growing demand for a Telangana state in Andhra Pradesh.

“The political crisis in Andhra Pradesh with regard to the Telangana issue has deepened with the resignation of many legislators and MPs belonging to the Telangana region,” the party said.

“The inaction of the central government and the Congress leadership in resolving the issue is the main cause for the present impasse.”

Lucknow, July 06: The Aligarh district administration, which has already given permission for Congress Mahapanchayat at the Exhibition ground on July 9, today promulgated ban orders under section 144 before arrival of Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi-led Kisan Sandesh Padyatra.

The padyatra, which began yesterday, is slated to reach
Tappal in Aligarh by this evening. Senior Aligarh district officials including the Additional District Magistrate(ADM) along with large contingent of policemen are waiting at the borders of the district for the arrival of Rahul Gandhi at Tappal.

Hyderabad, July 6 (IANS) Clashes erupted between students of Osmania University seeking a separate Telangana state and the police for the second consecutive day Wednesday.

Police fired teargas shells to disperse a large number of students who tried to defy ban orders in the city by taking out a rally.

Trouble began when students tried to march out of the campus but were prevented by the police at the main gate.

Mumbai, July 06: Bollywood Big B Amitabh Bachchan visited Ajmer Sharif to untie a sacred thread tied by him 40 years ago.

He paid homage at the Dargah in the afternoon amidst a huge crowd of about 20,000 people.

Speaking about his trip to the holy place, Mr Bachchan said that he decided to make the trip after a long—wished prayer came true.

He tweeted:

“On my way to Ajmer Sharif… was there almost 40 years ago… so much has changed since for me… reason enough to thank and pray”.

Islamabad, July 6: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has sought further enhancement of bilateral ties with Sri Lanka and welcomed the convening of the Joint Economic Commission in Colombo, which is to be held after a gap of six years.
Gilani Tuesday said that the JEC should meet every year to expand the scope of bilateral economic and commercial relations.

Khartoum, July 6: Around 200 people, presumably illegal migrants to Saudi Arabia, drowned when their vessel caught fire in the Red Sea off Sudan late Tuesday, Sudanese media reported.
A total of 197 people died in the incident, the Sudanese Media Centre news agency said.
Three people were rescued, and a search for possible survivors was launched, officials said.
The boat was flying a Cuban flag. Four Yemeni nationals, suspected to be owners of the boat, have been detained.

Rome, July 6: Documents on the 17th century trial of Italian astronomer Galileo Galilei and and Britain’s 16th century monarch King Henry XIII will now be exhibited outside the Vatican for the first time.
The exhibition marking the Vatican Secret Archive’s 400th anniversary will showcase around 100 documents at Rome’s Capitoline Museum from February next year.
The show titled “Lux in Arcana: The Vatican Secret Archives Revealed” will run till September.

Rome, July 6: The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has distributed 6,000 tonnes of emergency food aid to over 500,000 people in conflict-hit Libya over the past four months, a statement said.
Working with other humanitarian organisations, such as the Libyan Red Crescent, the WFP has fed 543,000 people – 282,000 people in eastern Libya, and 261,000 in western Libya, the Rome-based organisation said.
WFP had earlier announced an initiative to feed 1.06 million people in North Africa where uprisings toppled governments in Egypt and Tunisia and sparked a civil war in Libya.

–Agencies