Month: January 2012

Hyderabad, January 28: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today snubbed the textile traders when they met him with a request to abolish value-added tax (VAT) on textiles in the State.

The textile traders across AP have been observing a ‘cloth trade’ bandh for the past five days demanding abolition of VAT.

A delegation of textile traders’ association met the Chief Minister here this morning to put forth their demand.

Mr. Kiran curtly told them that there was no question of conceding their demand.

Kakdwip, January 28: Two groups of Bangladeshi pirates on Friday night killed four Indian fishermen, injured eight others and hijacked a trawler carrying 12 fishermen in the Bay of Bengal, police said.

One group of pirates fired at the fishermen travelling in ‘Maa Basanti’ trawler at Kendua in the bay resulting in four of them being killed, Rahul Majumdar, SDO at Kakdwip, said, adding eight others were injured.

In the meantime, another group of pirates hijacked ‘Tara’ trawler carrying twelve fishermen and sailed away to the Bangladeshi side, he said.

Tokyo, January 28: A magnitude 5.5 earthquake rattled Yamanashi prefecture in central Japan on Saturday morning, the Japan Meteorological Agency reported. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The temblor was some 20 kilometres deep and hit at 7.43 a.m. local time (2243 GMT Friday), the Japanese earthquake-reporting agency said.

Last year, a magnitude 9 quake on March 11 and subsequent tsunami about 230 kilometres northeast of Tokyo left nearly 20,000 people dead or missing.

–Agencies

Lucknow, January 28: Reiterating its opposition to the UPA government decision to provide a 4.5 per cent sub-quota to backward Muslims in the OBC reservation, the Bharatiya Janata Party has expressed its resolve to give Uttar Pradesh a corruption-free, clean and transparent administration based on the principle of good governance (sushasan), if it is voted to power in the State.

This is the underlying theme of the BJP manifesto, released by State unit chief Surya Pratap Shahi and Legislature Party leader Om Prakash Singh here on Friday.

Mumbai, January 28: A wanted accused in the 13/7 Mumbai blasts, who had planted one of the bombs that went off that fateful evening, had enrolled himself at a gymnasium owned by the family of underworld don-turned-politician Arun Gawli, the Anti-terrorism Squad said on Friday.

While announcing a breakthrough in the blast probe on Monday with the arrest of Naqi Ahmed and Nadeem Akhtar from Bihar, the ATS had withheld the names of the two planters of the bombs whom its chief Rakesh Maria referred to only as wanted accused ‘A’ and ‘B’.

Mumbai, January 28: The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) is set to announce its list of candidates for the coming civic polls within two days, its chief Raj Thackeray told his party workers here on Friday.

Written examination

In a novel experiment, the party had conducted a written examination for the aspiring candidates. Mr. Thackeray said the experiment had borne fruit.

“Let me tell you, all of you have done well. I conducted this test to make you read about the functioning of the civic body,” he said.

Field work

Ahmedabad, January 28: In a possibly embarrassing gaffe, the main opposition Congress has praised Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in an advertisement in this election year.

A pull-out by Congress, distributed with newspapers on the Republic Day in some parts of the state, features Modi’s photograph, and describes him as “a master organiser and astute election strategist”.

The two-page advert tries to say that Gujarat has been a progressive state from its birth, and seeks to highlight contribution of all the Chief Minsters of the state, including Modi.

Kakinada, January 28: In a major outbreak of industrial violence following the death of a trade union leader, a top official of a ceramic company in Yanam, a small enclave of Puducherry in Andhra Pradesh, was killed by workers at his residence here on Friday.

The workers went on the rampage after their leader M.S. Murali Mohan was killed in police action outside the factory. A group went to the house of president (Operations) of Regency Ceramics Limited K. C. Chandrasekhar and attacked him, resulting in serious head injuries.

Hyderabad, January 28: The Chief Minister Mr N Kiran Kumar Reddy today asked the officials to make all preparations for the Municipal elections likely to be held soon. The Chief Minister also asked the officials to finalise the staffing pattern of the newly constituted Municipalities within 3 days. The Chief Minister today held a detailed review meeting on the progress of the Urban Infrastructure developmental activities with Minister and officials at Secretariat.

NEW YORK, January 28: Gold provided the best returns of all commodities in the past five years when adjusted for volatility, and Goldman Sachs says the rally will continue as options traders signal no change in the metal’s relatively low risk.

New Delhi, January 28: Observing that even educated girls from well-off families were entering the flesh trade to fund their lifestyles, the Supreme Court Friday said rescue and rehabilitation of sex workers was a complex problem and sought to know how the government proposed to tackle it.

“It is very complex. It is also a transgender problem and it is not confined to girls alone. It is very complicated problem,” said a bench of Justice Altamas Kabir and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra.

Jaipur, January 28: The family of a 23-year-old married woman, who committed suicide, alleged Friday that she killed herself following dowry harassment by her in-laws, said police, adding cases have been filed against her husband and others.

The incident took place in city’s Shyam Nagar police station area late Thursday night.

“The deceased, Indu Devi Yadav, was pursuing a master of science degree from Malviya National Institute of Technology (MNIT) and was married to Sudhir Yadav, a junior engineer in pollution board last year, ” a police officer told IANS.

New Delhi,January 28:A minaret of the famed Taj Mahal has recorded a tilt of 3.57 cm in three decades but overall there is no significant change in heights of points lying on the main structure of the monument.

This has been revealed in an affidavit filed by the Archaeological Survey of India in the Supreme Court which had issued a direction in this regard in December last year.

Hyderabad,January 28:The president of Regency Ceramics, one of the largest tiles manufacturer in the country, located at Yanam in Puducherry was hacked to death Friday morning by his workers, just hours after a trade union leader died allegedly due to police beating.

The factory workers attacked K C Chandra Shekhar at his residence after they learnt about the death of their union leader M Murali Mohan.

New Delhi, January 27: Union Government has approached the Delhi High Court for urgent disposal of the petition of Delhi Police seeking dropping of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) charges against underworld don Abu Salem who faces prosecution in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts and other criminal cases.

New York, January 27: New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly speaks at the swearing in ceremony of New York Police Department recruits. AFP
New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly is under fire from civil rights group, who are demanding his resignation over his appearance in an inflammatory anti-Muslim film shown to his department’s officers during training.

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC)

New Delhi, January 27: After courting controversy over his ‘slap for corruption’ remarks, Anna Hazare today distanced himself from it saying that he has never advocated violence and accused section of politicians of conspiring to brand him as a “big criminal”.

In his latest blog, Hazare said he has been fighting against corruption for the past so many years but has never beaten anyone asked anybody to do so.

Guntur, January 27: Y S R Congress Party president Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday assured textile traders that if his party came to power in the state in the next elections he would sign the first file exempting them from VAT.

Vijayawada, January 27: Director General of Police V Dinesh Reddy on Friday said that the teams, appointed to investigate the cases of desecration of Dr B R Ambedkar statues in Amalapuram in East Godavari district, had got vital clues about the incidents.

Talking to media persons, after conducting a review meeting at Police Commissionerate here, the DGP said that those responsible for disfiguring of statues would be arrested by Saturday.

New Delhi, January 27: Observing that even educated girls from well-off families were entering the flesh trade to fund their lifestyles, the Supreme Court Friday said rescue and rehabilitation of sex workers was a complex problem and sought to know how the government proposed to tackle it.

“It is very complex. It is also a transgender problem and it is not confined to girls alone. It is very complicated problem,” said a bench of Justice Altamas Kabir and Justice Gyan Sudha Misra.

Davos (Switzerland), January 27: Former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf will definitely be arrested if he returns to the country, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said here Friday.

“In fact, there had been murder charges against him, and there had even been some very grave charges against him, and the Supreme Court had already given a verdict against him,” CNN quoted Gilani as saying at the Global Economic Forum in Davos.

“Certainly when he’ll come back, he has to face those charges and certainly be arrested,” the prime minister said.

Hyderabad, January 27: The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) today urged Andhra Pradesh Assembly Speaker Nadendla Manohar to take steps for the installation of a bronze statue of Dalit leader Dr B R Ambedkar on the state Legislature premises.

A delegation of TDP legislators met the Speaker this afternoon and handed over a letter written by their chief N Chandrababu Naidu.

London, January 27: Eighteen British Muslim dignitaries have been awarded in the Queens New Year Honors for their valuable contributions in British society in health, science and community services.

“I am deeply indebted to my colleagues, family and friends all of whom have played an important part in my professional life,” Professor Mohamed El-Gomati, who was awarded the Queen honor ‘Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE)’, told The Muslim News on Friday, January 27.

Tehran, January 27: An Iranian lawmaker says entering into oil war with Iran will bring European Union member states to their knees as Tehran will prevent the export of even one drop of oil.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran has the world’s third biggest oil reserves and cannot be eliminated from global energy equations,” Seyyed Emad Hosseini, spokesman for the Majlis (parliament) Energy Commission, said on Friday.

New Delhi, January 27: With the whole nation shocked over the images of a two-year-old battered baby girl battling for life, women groups and political leaders Friday emphasised the need to bring in a strict law to check sexual abuse of children.

Falak was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) last week with multiple injuries, including a fractured skull and a clot on the right side of her brain. The baby also had human bite marks all over her body.