One held for attacking British couple

Mumbai Police today booked a person for allegedly assaulting a British couple and placed him under preventive arrest.

According to Shivaji Park police in suburban Mumbai, 25-year-old Raju Kalal was placed under preventive arrest as he assaulted the couple after he mistook that they were clicking his pictures.

According to police, James Henman (22) and his female friend were casually taking pictures at Shivaji Park area. However, Kalal, who was drunk, thought that they were clicking his pictures.

Man held for ‘sexually abusing’ minor daughter

A forty-year-old man was arrested today for allegedly sexually abusing his teenage daughter here, police said.

According to police, they had received a complaint of kidnapping of the 13-year-old victim on October 31.

Following that, police launched a probe only to find out later that the girl had in fact left home on her own as her father had been sexually abusing her since the last two years, PSI V R Bankar of the Kasarwadavali police station said.

50 plus workers happier with jobs than young counterparts

A new survey has revealed that 50 and above people are the most content with their jobs than younger ones.

According to the AP-NORC poll, conducted on workers in the US, 9 out of 10 older employees were very or to some extent satisfied with their job regardless of gender, race, educational level, and income, News.com.au reported.

While very few respondents complained of undesirable comments at work place regarding their age, being passed over for raises and promotions, and other negative incidents related to being older, majority said that their age had a positive impact on their job.

Modi’s Patna visit to meet blast victims ‘purely political’: Rashid Alvi

Congress Party leader Rashid Alvi on Saturday said that Bharatiya Janata Party’s ( BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi’s visit to Patna to meet the victims of the serial blasts is purely political.

He also asked Modi why he did not meet the victims of Muzaffarnagar where more than 60 people died in communal clashes last month.

Actress Shweta Menon molested; Cong MP denies charge

Actress Shweta Menon was allegedly molested by an “elected representative” from the area at a function in Kollam, sparking strong protests from the Malayalam film fraternity and women outfits, which demanded stern action against the politician.

Though Ms Menon did not reveal the identity of the politician who allegedly harassed her at the President’s Trophy boat race last evening, media footage showed Congress MP N Peethambara Kurup from the area touching her but the lawmaker today strongly denied having committed such an act.

The actress, however, stood by her charge.

127 Haj pilgrims from Bihar stranded in Madina

About 127 Haj pilgrims from Bihar are stranded in Saudi Arabia for more than 36 hours after their flight was cancelled due to some technical reason.

The group, consisting of 54 women and 73 men, claimed they were not being provided any information when their flight would actually take off for Gaya from Prince Mohammad bin Abdulaziz airport in Medina.

Lata Mangeshkar would change her view on Modi after knowing reality: Congress

Maharashtra Congress on Saturday said that legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar would reconsider her endorsement of Narendra Modi for the Prime Minister’s post after knowing the reality.

Yesterday, at a function in Pune where BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Modi inaugurated a hospital named after Lata’s late father Deenanath Mangeshkar, the singer said she wanted to see him become the Prime Minister.

Don’t want BJP-SAD alliance broken at any cost: Harshvardhan

BJP on Saturday said it was making all efforts to fight the Delhi Assembly election unitedly with its “natural ally” — Shromani Akali Dal — to defeat the Congress government and asserted that the party does not want the alliance to break at “any cost”.

BJP’s initiative to salvage the alliance came in the backdrop of Delhi unit of Shiromani Akali Dal (Badal) announcing to contest 16 seats on its own in the December 4 Assembly polls while breaking away from one of its oldest allies.

Sonia Gandhi greets people on Diwali

Making a strong appeal for “communal harmony”, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday greeted people on the occasion of Diwali.

“May this festival renew and strengthen the bonds of family, community and friendship and may each diya we light be a prayer for communal harmony and fraternal relations between people of different regions and faiths of our country,” Gandhi said in her greetings.

She said that may the festival of lights bring in peace, prosperity and progress all around.

–PTI

‘Premium housing prices may fall soon on inventory pile-up’

Investorscan look forward to premium housing units getting cheaper by up to 20 percent and gold prices rising significantly this festive season, says a financial advisory firm.

“We are expecting premium housing projects to get cheaper by up to 20 percent… Potential buyers will not have to negotiate discounts, since realty companies are in all probability going to make such announcements,” a Delhi-based financial advisory firm InvestCare said in a statement.

Inflation in goods used by rich higher than those by poor: PHD

Inflation during the current festive season is impacting the rich more than poor as the goods used by them have seen a higher price rise a report by a industry body said.

“The impact of price rise as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) is found higher on rich class at around 9.3 percent as compared with the poor class at around 8.4 percent,” PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry Executive Director Saurabh Sanyal said.

Rupee drops 24 paise to two-week low of 61.74 against dollar

The rupee on Friday dropped further by 24 paise to close at a more-than two-week low of 61.74 against the dollar following sustained demand from importers for the strengthening US currency, in stark contrast to stocks.

The demand from importers, mainly oil refiners, was so strong that heavy capital inflows amid record local stocks failed to stem the rupee’s fall, a forex dealer said.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened sharply lower at 61.95 a dollar from the previous close of 61.50 and touched the day’s low of 61.96.

JP Morgan’s hiring practices in India, Singapore under scrutiny

The US authorities are believed to be scrutinising the hiring practices of banking giant JP Morgan Chase in India, South Korea and Singapore following a probe into its activities in China regarding hiring children of powerful officials to win lucrative business deals.

A report in the New York Time said that the federal investigation into the hiring practices of JPMorgan Chase appears to be expanding beyond China into other Asian markets.

India asks IBM to pay $866 million in outstanding tax: Reports

Indian tax authorities have asked IBM`s local unit to pay Rs 53.57 billion in outstanding income tax on fiscal 2009 revenue, media reported on Saturday.

In an emailed statement, an IBM India spokeswoman confirmed the company had received a tax notice, but declined to comment on the amount of tax liability or the nature of the notice.

The Income Tax office issued the company a notice for under-reporting revenue for fiscal 2009 by the Indian unit, a daily newspaper said, citing a tax official.

Warplanes strike rebel area near Damascus: Monitor

Syria’s air force struck Sbeineh south of Damascus on Saturday, as loyalists pressed a fierce bid to crush rebel bastions around the capital, a monitoring group said.

“Warplanes struck areas of Sbeineh… As regime troops shelled the town,” said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Rebels on the capital’s southern front were battling government troops backed by both pro-regime militias and fighters from the Lebanese Shiite movement.

Greece probes extremist link to neo-Nazi murders

Greek authorities believe an extremist group may be behind a drive-by shooting outside the offices of the neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party in which two men were killed and another wounded, sources close to the investigation said on Saturday.

Investigators are examining “all avenues, particularly those that link these events to extremist groups” behind a series of attacks on politicians, police, banks and the media, according to one source.

Attacks by groups describing themselves as revolutionary and anti-authoritarian are relatively common in Greece.

Shootings kill 4 in north-central Iraq: Officials

Authorities in Iraq say shootings have killed four security members, including two anti-al Qaeda militiamen, in north-central Iraq.

Police officials say the first attack took place early today when gunmen in a speeding car killed two fighters and wounded four at a security checkpoint manned by Sunni Sahwa militiamen in the city of Samarra.

China detains man in kidnap, killing of 3 children

Chinese authorities detained a man who they said confessed to kidnapping three children from the same southern village and killing them in a forest, officials said on Saturday.

Zhang Xingyan, 33, was taken into custody two days after a boy and two girls aged 8 to 9 went missing on their way to school early this week, the city government of Yueyang in southern China’s Hunan province said in a statement.

Japan, Russia agree to cooperate on security as China rises

Japan and Russia held their first joint defence and foreign ministers’ meeting on Saturday and agreed to boost security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific as they both warily watch neighbouring China’s rising influence.

Japan and Russia have never signed a treaty to mark the end of World War Two because of a territorial dispute but they are moving to deepen ties despite that, and despite Russian concern about Japan’s role in a US missile defence program.

The foreign ministers of both countries said the meeting helped build trust.

Congress squirms at Lata’s wish for Modi

Congress today expressed its discomfiture with iconic singer Lata Mangeshkar’s praise for BJP’s Prime Ministerial candidate saying the entire country feels pain when something like this comes out from her mouth for an “insensitive” person like Narendra Modi.

“The entire country respects Lata Mangeshkar. Congress party has always respected her. There is pain and sensitivity in the voice of Lataji…when something like this comes out from her mouth for an insensitive person like Narendra Modi, the entire country feels the pain,” party spokespersoon Bhakta Charan Das told reporters here.

Pakistani Taliban put on hold naming of new chief

The Pakistani Taliban on Saturday put on hold a decision to make Khan Syed alias Sajna its new chief after the killing of warlord Hakimullah Mehsud in a US drone strike when several militant commanders opposed the move.

The banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) named Shehryar Mehsud as the caretaker chief and its Shura or council will meet again in the next few days to decide on a new leader, Taliban sources said.

Hamilton fears never winning F1 title again after `big-money` Mercedes move

Formula One driver Lewis Hamilton has said that he fears he would never win the world championship title again following his big-money move to Mercedes.

According to Metro.co.uk, Hamilton is coming to the end of his first season with the Brackley-based team after leaving boyhood outfit McLaren last year.

Hamilton said that a while ago, that would have been a scary thought, but it is not so much anymore.

Vettori likely to make return to international cricket during India series

Former New Zealand skipper Daniel Vettori marked his long-awaited return to the first-class arena by taking five wickets but said that the visit of West Indies in December is likely to be too early for him to return to the national team.

According to Stuff.co.nz, Vettori, while making great strides in his recovery from a second operation on an Achilles tendon injury, still wants to tread warily for a while yet.

He said that he needed to do this day in, day out for a long time, adding that he still thinks he is a wee way away from overall fitness and conditioning.

TDP MLAs stage protest outside Andhra Pradesh CM’s camp office

Over ten legislators of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) were taken into police custody after they staged a protest outside the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister’s camp office here on Saturday.

Led by Telugu Desam Legislature Party deputy leader Gali Muddukrishnama Naidu, TDP legislators came to meet AP Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy adhering to an appointment fixed earlier.

—PTI

Dortmund reclaim Bundesliga summit after Stuttgart rout

Borussia Dortmund reclaimed the Bundesliga summit on Friday, Jurgen Klopp`s side going two points clear of Bayern Munich on the back of an impressive 6-1 win over Stuttgart.

Stuttgart arrived at the Champions League runners-up in buoyant form, unbeaten in seven league outings.

And number eight was on the cards when their Tunisian defender Karim Haggui put them in front before the quarter of an hour.

But that was to be Stuttgart`s only high point as it was all one way traffic in Dortmund`s favour from then on.