A local court today dismissed the bail petition of suspended IAS officer B P Acharya, prime accused in the case pertaining to alleged irregularities in APIIC-Emaar properties deal. The special court for CBI cases agreed with CBI lawyer that Acharya may tamper with evidence if released. Acharya, a 1983-batch IAS officer, who was the Andhra Pradesh Home Secretary when arrested by CBI on January 31, is in judicial custody.
Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar will now play the new role of a parliamentarian with President Pratibha Patil Thursday approving his nomination to the Rajya Sabha, along with that of renowned actor Rekha and businesswoman Anu Aga.
“The president has approved the nomination of Sachin Tendulkar, Rekha and Anu Aga to the Rajya Sabha,” Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson Archana Datta told IANS.
The nomination of the three eminent personalities was approved by the president under rules that allow the nomination of 12 members to the upper house.
A petitioner who had filed a PIL on Nanavati Commission’s status, today told the Gujarat High Court that state government disregarded the authority of the court by unilaterally granting nine-month extension to the Commission which is probing the 2002 Gujarat riots.
Pakistan and the US today acknowledged they were yet to resolve differences which took their ties to a new low last year and said more talks were needed to address outstanding issues like “illegal” CIA drone strikes and reopening of NATO supply routes to Afghanistan.
The outstanding issues figured in meetings between visiting US Special Representative Marc Grossman and
Pakistan’s civil and military leaders, officials said.
Grossman held separate meetings with army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar and
Foreign Secretary Jalil Abbas Jillani.
Foreign Secretary William Hague today reiterated Britain’s support for permanent seats for India and Japan in the United Nations Security Council, and said the council should be expanded.
Delivering the International Institute for Strategic Studies-Fullerton Lecture in Singapore, Hague, who is
currently on a visit to Asia, said across the board in international organisations Britain was championing change and values that matter to many Asian countries.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni today hailed the nomination of Sachin Tendulkar for Rajya Sabha saying it was a “very good step”.
It is a very good step. Whenever Congress is in government, it has always nominated such personalities, which
leads to an enviornment of energy and encouragement in the country,” Soni told reporters here.
—————–PTI
JKDFP chairman Shabir Ahmed Shah was today prevented by police from visiting twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch.
Shah, who reached Jammu today to proceed towards Rajouri and Poonch districts to address series of public rallies, was not allowed by police to move forward from here.
Police denied that Shah has been put under house arrest and said he was merely not allowed to move to sensitive
districts.
“I had to address public rallies in Darhal tehsil of Rajouri district and in Poonch but I was not allowed to move,”
Deccan Chargers tasted their first win of the fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as they beat Pune Warriors by 19 runs at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium here Thursday.
It took an all-round effort by Deccan Chargers for their first win, having suffered five consecutive losses.
Deccan Chargers, however, are still languishing at the bottom of the league with six points from three matches.
Pune Warriors, who were cheered by former skipper Yuvraj Singh from the dug out, suffered their second consecutive loss in the IPL and are now sixth with eight points from nine matches.
BJP MLA Abdul Sageer Khan today demanded stern action against those who were involved in the illegal demolition of the ancient mosque in Bhilwara district.
In the state Legislative Assembly today, he said the people of the Muslim community were angry after the demolition
of Kalandiri mosque in Pur village on April 19.
As soon as the House assembled for the day, he raised the issue and stormed to the Well of the House, but Speaker
Deependra Singh Shekhawat assured him that he will allow him to speak on the issue after the Question Hour, following which he returned to his seat.
Pakistan early Friday deported slain Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s three widows and 11 other family members to Saudi Arabia.
They had been in custody since the US special forces killed the Al Qaeda chief in a raid on his hideout in Pakistan’s Abbotabad town in May last year.
The family members, including the widows – two Saudi Arabians and a Yemeni – were handed over to Saudi officials prior to their departure, Xinhua reported.
The Yemeni widow and her five children will be later sent to Yemen from Saudi Arabia.
Pakistan early Friday deported slain Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s three widows and 11 other family members to Saudi Arabia.
They had been in custody since the US special forces killed the Al Qaeda chief in a raid on his hideout in Pakistan’s Abbotabad town in May last year.
The family members, including the widows – two Saudi Arabians and a Yemeni – were handed over to Saudi officials prior to their departure, Xinhua reported.
The Yemeni widow and her five children will be later sent to Yemen from Saudi Arabia.
Shah Rukh Khan at IPL Twenty-20 cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore.
The additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM) court in Jaipur has summoned Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan for smoking in the stadium during an IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals.
The Kolkata Knight Riders owner was caught smoking in public on April 8 in the Sawai Man Singh Stadium. Anand Singh Rathore, director of Jaipur Cricket Academy, had filed a complaint against him.
The Supreme Court on Thursday said its attempt to frame guidelines for media for covering courts was aimed at making clear the “limitations” of journalists under the Constitutional scheme.
The five-judge Constitution Bench deliberating on the issue got support from the Centre which
said there was no constitutional bar on the apex court to regulate the reporting of judicial proceedings by media.
“We want the journalists to know their limitations,” observed the Bench headed by Chief Justice S H Kapadia.
The Cabinet on Thursday approved amendments in a Bill under which any sexual activity, even consensual, with a person below the age of 18 would be considered an offence.
In the earlier version of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Bill, 2011, consensual sexual activity with children between the age groups 16 to 18 was not considered a crime.
The Ministry recommended these amendments to its original draft following the recommendation pf the parliamentary Standing Committee in its report in December 2011.
Govt approves 18 years as age bar for legal sex
Salman Khan has finished the first schedule of Dabangg 2 and is back on the sets of Kabir Khan’s Ek Tha Tiger . The actor, after completing some heavy action scenes in Cuba, is going to shoot few light scenes in Mumbai.
Salman wants to stick to the stipulated time and has been working back to back to finish the shooting on time.
Salman has also reportedly instructed the production units of both the films to ensure that the shooting is not delayed so that no problem is faced at the time of release of the films.
Ek Tha Tiger is all set to be the big Eid release this year.
The Cabinet on Thursday approved amendments in a Bill under which any sexual activity, even consensual, with a person below the age of 18 would be considered an offence.
In the earlier version of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Bill, 2011, consensual sexual activity with children between the age groups 16 to 18 was not considered a crime.
The Ministry recommended these amendments to its original draft following the recommendation pf the parliamentary Standing Committee in its report in December 2011.
Communist Party of India state secretary K Narayana on Thursday stated that his party has extended support to the Opposition Telugu Desam party in the by-elections as there was no better prospects for Communist Party of India (Marxist).
Former minister P Shankar Rao on Thursday suspected the involvement of Chief Minister’s brother Santosh Kumar Reddy in the reduction of Value Added Tax.
Talking to media persons at the Congress Legislature Party Office, P Shankar Rao stated that Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, who earlier opposed to reduction of VAT on textile merchants, suddenly withdrew his stand and reduced VAT. Alleging that a big scam to the tune of Rs 100 crore took place in the reduction of VAT, he demanded that the government order CBI probe into the entire issue.
The Congress MPs from Telangana region, who were suspended from the Lok Sabha for four days for stalling the proceedings over statehood issue, were given a heroic welcome in Hyderabad on Thursday.
The MPs – G Vivek, S Rajaiah, Madhu Yaskhi, Ponnam Prabhakar, Gutta Sukhender Reddy, Balram Naik, Komatreddy Rajagopal Reddy and Manda Jagannatham were brought in a rally from Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Shamshabad to Gun Park on their return from the national capital. Led by former Rajya Sabha MP K Keshava Rao, the MPs paid tributes to the martyrs of Telangana at Gun Park.
Saudi Arabia’s Ambassador to Egypt and Arab League Representative Ahmed Al-Qattan voiced deep regret over incorrect media reports with regard to the arrest of Egyptian national Ahmed Al-Gizawi in Jeddah.
In a press statement, Al-Qattan said lawyer Al-Gizawi (whose name in passport is Ahmed Mohammed Tharwat Al-Sayyid) was apprehended for possessing narcotic pills when he landed at King Abdulaziz International Airport on Tuesday.
In cooperation with Saudi Journalists Association (SJA), the US Embassy in Riyadh organized a four-day training workshop for Saudi female journalists, on April 22-25 in Riyadh and Jeddah. The training workshops addressed several aspects of journalism, including investigative journalism, multi-media, digital journalism, and journalism ethics. Close to 100 journalists took part in the workshops.
Firefighters rescued a 12- year- old boy in outer Delhi after an iron rod impaled his left thigh while he was trying to cross a locked gate by climbing over it.
The boy, Ikrar of Sultanpuri, was on his way home from the nearby playground on Wednesday night when he found that the colony’s main entrance gate was locked.
Without calling for help and ignoring the sharp spear- like rods on the top section of the tall irongate, he climbed it.
As he was about to turn and climb down on the other side, he lost balance and got his left leg skewered to the gate.
A week after India successfully tested a long-range missile, Pakistan yesterday said it had also fired an upgraded nuclear-capable device in a reminder of the ongoing arms race that has gripped Asia.
Officials in Pakistan said they had completed a positive trial of the Shaheen-1A, an intermediate range missile that is capable of reaching targets across India. Officials said the missile came down in the Indian Ocean.
A Delhi court today dismissed a plea for lodging an FIR against Congress leader Digvijay Singh for allegedly beating a man after he purportedly tried to attack party spokesperson Janardhan Dwivedi with a shoe last June.
Metropolitan Magistrate (MM) Jay Thareja rejected the plea of complainant Sunil Kumar Sharma, who had allegedly tried to attack Dwivedi on June 6 last year at the AICC headquarters, saying that he had not appeared before the court on the last two hearings to present his case.
Will 100-century man Sachin Tendulkar sit on seat number 100 in Rajya Sabha? This question was posed by quizmaster-turned-politician Derek O’Brien today shortly after the 39-year-old batting maestro was recommended by Government for nomination as a member of the House of Elders.