Month: October 2012

The welfare projects undertaken by his father President Pranab Mukherjee during his tenure as Lok Sabha MP have stood son Abhijit, contesting the Oct 10 Jangipur Lok Sabha by-poll in West Bengal’s border district of Murshidabad, in good stead.

Abhijit, a first-time Congress legislator from Nalhati assembly constituency of Birbhum district of the state, is being fielded by the Congress from Jangipur. The Lok Sabha seat fell vacant after his father Pranab Mukherjee was elected president.

Three Tunisian jihadists have been arrested by the Syrian army, Xinhua reported.

According to Shems FM, the three belong to a group of foreign fighters, dubbed “Jibhat Nosrat El Shem”, who are supporting the rebel Free Syrian Army against the forces of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

It is estimated that hundreds of Tunisian jihadists are currently fighting against Assad’s troops.

The Syrian conflict has claimed up to 20,000 lives, according to various groups. The UN puts the toll at over 18,000 people, while Syrian authorities say 8,000 have died.

–IANS

The Empowered Group of Ministers on Spectrum, headed by Finance Minister P Chidambaram, is likely to decide on the issue of on one-time spectrum fee in its meeting Monday.

The EGOM in its last meeting on October 3 could not decide on the issue of one-time spectrum for existing telecom operators as the legal opinion from the Attorney General on the matter was not received.

Government sources said the AG has submitted his view on Friday. They, however, did not disclose the content of the legal opinion.

At least seven persons were killed and 10 others injured when unidentified gunmen opened fire at a rally on Monday in Sindh province that was being addressed by senior Pakistan People’s Party leader Nafisa Shah, officials said.

Shah, the daughter of Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, escaped unhurt when the gunmen began firing at the rally in Khairpur area of Sindh this evening.

“Nafisa Shah is unhurt but seven others were killed including a local journalist while three other reporters were also injured in the firing,” a senior police official said.

Israel on Sunday vowed a strong response after its fighter jets shot down an unidentified drone that violated its airspace, possibly for gathering intelligence.

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu commended the army for successfully downing the unarmed and unmanned aerial vehicle without any casualty.

Australian all-rounder Shane Watson was named the player of the tournament at the conclusion of the World Twenty20 at the R. Premadasa Stadium here Sunday.

Watson was the unanimous choice of the select group of experts following his sensational form that helped guide his side to the semi-final before they were knocked out by West Indies.

The 31-year-old batted six innings in the tournament, scoring a total of 249 runs at an average of 49.80.

He also took 11 wickets at an average of 16 and an economy rate of 7.33 with his extremely useful medium pace bowling.

At least six people were killed and 10 injured when two rival groups fired at each other during a political gathering in Pakistan Sunday night, police and witnesses said.

The incident took place in Khairpur district of Sindh province, Xinhua reported citing local media.

Police and witnesses told Geo TV channel that the firing took place around 8.20 p.m. after a fierce argument between two rival groups at a political gathering organised by the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party.

Clad in a beautiful navy blue-orange lehanga, teamed with a deep-cut choli and a heavy dupatta, chirpy and spontaneous actress Parineeti Chopra left the audience applauding and cheering when she walked the ramp for veteran designer Manish Malhotra at the ongoing Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week (WIFW).

Known for her bubbly image on the silver screen, Parineeti walked the ramp with a lot of elegance and poise.

Her entry made people cheer her. She could not help smiling and waving at her fans, even as she looked stunning without any accessories and minimal make-up.

The US embassy in Islamabad has issued a threat alert for Americans in Pakistan, especially in the capital, and asked them to keep a low profile.

Xinhua said the embassy drew attention of Americans that the Pakistani interior ministry Sunday issued a general threat alert on possible terrorist attacks in Islamabad.

It said the attacks will be against key government installations in Islamabad’s “Red Zone” and on five-star hotels in the city.

Syrian rebels have claimed to have captured Housam al-Assad, the cousin of President Bashar al-Assad, the Al Arabiya news channel reported.

Assad’s cousin was arrested by the al-Farouq brigade of the rebel Free Syrian Army, according to Sheikh Adnan Al Arour, a Sunni Muslim preacher and a major Salafist leader in Syria.

“Housam al-Assad, the cousin of Bashar has been captured,” Arour announced on his Twitter account.

The 73-year-old Arour fled Syria under the rule of Hafez al-Assad following the 1982 massacre in his hometown of Hama and settled in Saudi Arabia.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has welcomed the announcement of a peace agreement between the Philippines government and the country’s largest rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

“This agreement is a testament to the commitment of all sides for a peaceful resolution to the conflict in the southern Philippines,” Xinhua quoted Clinton as saying in a statement.

“The next steps will be to ensure that the framework agreement is fully implemented,” she said.

An Iranian official has warned Israel that it would lose at least 10,000 soldiers in the event of a military strike on Iran, Press TV reported.

“If the Israelis attack, Iran’s deterrent power would deal a mortal blow to them and the Israeli death toll would not be less than 10,000. Therefore, they would be stopped soon,” Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Expediency Council, was quoted as saying.

A volatile volcano in northern Indonesia erupted today, spewing smoke and ash that caused muddy rain to fall in nearby villages, an official said.

Mount Lokon in North Sulawesi province rumbled as heavy rain fell around its cloud-covered crater, local monitoring official Farid Ruskanda Bina said.

He said the sound was heard 5 kilometers away but the height of the eruption was not visible.

The ash made the rain thick and muddy in six villages, Bina said. “Soldiers are distributing masks to the villagers,” he said.

A 37-year-old woman lost her vision after her “paramour” threw acid on her face when she refused to continue maintaining relations with him, police said on Sunday.

The accused identified as P Rama Rao flung acid on the woman, who is the mother of three children, at Vankailapadu village in Prakasam district last night, they said.

Rao and the woman, who lost her husband some time back, were allegedly having an “illicit” affair for the past several years. However, she recently refused to continue the relationship, which angered him.

The Central Governing Council and the Central Executive Council of YSR Congress will meet here on Monday to draw an action plan for the party.

The meeting comes at a time when the Supreme Court had recently rejected the bail plea of Jagan, arrested by CBI and lodged in the Chanchalguda jail here in the disproportionate assets case.

The fledgling party that has been on a high since its launch in March, 2011 suddenly finds itself in a desolate situation in the absence of Jagan.

An Iranian official has warned Israel that it would lose at least 10,000 soldiers in the event of a military strike on Iran, Press TV reported.

“If the Israelis attack, Iran’s deterrent power would deal a mortal blow to them and the Israeli death toll would not be less than 10,000. Therefore, they would be stopped soon,” Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Expediency Council, was quoted as saying.

Sufi legend Abida Parveen was honoured with a lifetime achievement award here by Kaladharmi Begum Akhtar Academy of Ghazal.

Abida is an internationally acclaimed Pakistani singer of Sindhi descent and one of the foremost exponents of Sufi music.

Her songs include mainly ghazals, Urdu love tracks and her forte, Kafis, a classical form of Sufi poetry. Some of her hits are ‘Duma Dum Mast Qalandar’, ‘Teray Ishaq Nachaya’, ‘Latthe Di Chadar’, ‘Kuch Is Ada Se Aaj’ and ‘Kafian Bulleh Shah’.

A three-year-old girl is suspected to have been kidnapped and raped before being murdered by a man from her village in Odisha’s Sambalpur district, police said Sunday.

The matter came to light after the victim’s body was found in a forest Sunday about seven km from her village Budhiapali, about 355 km from state capital Bhubaneswar.

According to Additional Deputy Superintendent of Police D.K. Deo, a 30-year-old labourer, whose name was not being disclosed, lured away the girl Oct 3 when her family members were not at home.

BJP today said it will support any no-confidence motion to be moved by Mamata Banerjee and declared that its Prime Ministerial candidate will be decided after the Lok Sabha polls.

“100 per cent. We will support her…there is one formula,” BJP President Nitin Gadkari said, adding that the UPA government has no moral authority and lost majority in Parliament after Trinamool Congress quit the coalition.

In a major boost to his re-election bid, US President Barack Obama raised a whopping $181 million last month taking the total amount in his kitty to nearly $947 million so far, nearing the record- breaking billion-dollar mark in the run-up to the polls.

With a month to go for the November 6 Presidential polls, the Obama Campaign is expected to cross the magic figure of $one billion in this election cycle.

This would be for the first time that any candidate would raise more than a billion dollars in an election cycle.

A 16-year-old girl set herself on fire after she was gangraped by two people in Haryana’s Jind district on Saturday, police said. She later died of burn injuries. Police have arrested two people in the case.

The girl, who was from the Balmiki community, had told the police that she was dragged by one Pradeep into his house in Sachhakhera village and raped. One Naveen also raped her, she had said.

A third man, Sanjeev, had bolted the house’s door to stop her from escaping while Pradeep’s sister-in-law Meenu stood on the terrace to keep watch, she had said in her complaint.

Elaborate arrangements are being made for the three-day long World Conference from December 7.

Talking to reporters after holding a review meeting with the officials at Padmavathi Guest House here on Sunday, Minister for Tourism and Culture Vatti Vasantha Kumar informed that the State Government has sanctioned Rs 25 crore for the event. He said elaborate arrangements were being made for the conference which would be attended by about 1,500 people from abroad, nearly 2,000 from various Indian states and 8,000 from Andhra Pradesh.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Sunday directed the Guntur District Collector to enquire into the incident relating to suicide of a ZP High School girl student Devarampati Esther Rani in Bapatla.

Speaking to the Collector over phone, the Chief Minister asked him to initiate stern action against the culprits and also to send detailed report on the incident.

TDP Chief N Chandrababu Naidu has said that he announced ‘BC Declaration’ to develop the BCs in all sectors including good education.

Chandrababu, who was on his ‘Vasthunna Meekosam’ padayatra in Rapthadu constituency in this district on sixth day, has said that he will launch BC Sub-Plan with Rs.10,000 crores and spend the amount for the development of BCs.

India will chair the second part of the International Biodiversity meeting to begin here on Monday.