Month: June 2015

France’s foreign minister is warning that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can explode “at any moment” and the Islamic State extremist group can interfere at any time.

Laurent Fabius told a group of reporters today that “if and when it explodes, it’s very, very, very problematic for the whole region and for the world.”

He said that “every radical group,” especially in Gaza, can take advantage of the deadlocked peace process, and it would be lamentable if the Islamic State group “the most radical of the radicals” used this as a pretext for violence.

Delhi High Court today asked Lt Governor-appointee Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) chief M K Meena to act in accordance with the law, while refusing to issue directions to restrain him from entering office as sought by the Delhi government.

Justice V P Vaish also declined Delhi government’s pleas to stop Meena from removing the FIR book from ACB headquarter, recording new FIRs and seeking immediate removal of paramilitary personnel posted there.

The Rajya Sabha will begin on July 21 for the Monsoon Session.

The President has summoned the Upper House to meet on July 21 for the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

Subject to exigencies of business, the Session is scheduled to conclude on August 13, according to a Rajya Sabha Secretariat statement.

Veteran Marxist leader V S Achuthanandan, an atheist, today quoted the Holy Bible in the state Assembly while launching a scathing attack on Finance Minister K M Mani, a die-hard Catholic, for his alleged involvement in bar bribery scam.

Quoting from the Gospel of Mathew, the nonagenarian leader, who stole the limelight on the opening day of the Assembly, asked Mani whether he wanted to remove all his taints after chopping off the organs that had committed sin or rot in hell.

In tune with its efforts to ensure uniformity in Value Added Tax with neighbouring states, Delhi government on Monday tabled an amendment bill in the Assembly for bringing flexibility in fixing VAT on liquor, tobacco, aerated drinks and certain other items.

The government said the bill will make enabling provisions for levy of VAT in respect of goods enlisted in the Fourth Schedule such as liquor, tobacco, aerated drinks and others – at flexible rates instead of a flat slab of 20 per cent.

Passengers of the the Aisbagh-Gonda passenger train faced anxious moments when six of its coaches today got detached at the outer signal of Bankeyganj railway station here and the engine chugged forward, railway officials said.

No one was hurt in the incident.

The coupling connecting the bogies with the engine broke down, leading to the incident. The train was later brought to the Mailani junction for repair and safety check up, they said.

Opposition BJP and JDS confronted the Congress government on a host of issues, including farmers’ suicide, as the monsoon session of Karnataka legislature begins here today.

Giving an indication of the shape of things to come, BJP senior leader B S Yeddyurappa, former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar and other state leaders were arrested today as they tried to stage a march here defying prohibitory orders against government over various issues, including payment of dues by sugar mills to sugarcane growers.

A middle-aged woman died this morning when a private bus lost control and rammed her on the footpath, the police said.

“The accident happened at around 8.50 AM when a private bus hit a 50-year-old lady on the footpath of the Ultadanga Main Road under Manicktala Police Station,” a senior police officer said.

The lady was rushed to the Medical College and Hospital where she was pronounced dead on arrival, he said adding the driver was taken into custody.

Geologists reignited the debate about whether to blame nature or humans for the devastating eruption nine years ago of an Indonesian mud volcano still oozing its all-consuming sludge today.

New analysis of underground gas levels measured at the time of the outburst point the finger to gas exploration — not an earthquake — as the trigger, a research team from the United States, Britain and Australia wrote in the journal Nature Geosciences.

Olympic bronze-medallist Vijender Singh, the country’s most celebrated boxer, today bid adieu to his amateur career by turning professional, ruling himself out of next year’s Olympics as he no longer remains eligible to represent India.

The biggest name in Indian boxing by a mile after he became the first to bag an Olympic medal—the 29-year-old today signed a multi-year agreement with Queensberry Promotions through IOS Sports and Entertainment, that will see the middleweight fight a minimum of six times in the first year.

Former India cricket captain Sourav Ganguly today hailed Harbhajan Singh’s comeback to the ODI team and said it’s a good opportunity for the veteran off-spinner to make a mark following his return to the 50-over format side after a gap of four years.

“It’s a good comeback for Harbhajan. Hope he uses the opportunity to cement his place in the team,” Ganguly said about Harbhajan, who has represented the country in 102 Tests and 228 ODIs.

Lt Governor Najeeb Jung today ordered a magisterial inquiry by District Magistrate (South West) into the daring jail break incident at Tihar Jail even as the Delhi government said the probe be entrusted to Divisional Commissioner (west district) as the prison falls under his jurisdiction.

Jung has directed District Magistrate (South West) Ankur Garg to probe the matter and sought an inquiry report within a week.

Around 30 people, including three policemen, were injured as Hindu and Muslim mobs clashed here in Ghaziabad over the use of loudspeakers, police said on Monday.

Several vehicles were set on fire and shops looted and gutted in the Sunday night frenzy at Farid Nagar.

According to police officials, the trouble erupted when the two communities quarrelled over the use of loudspeakers in two adjacent places of worship.

As some youths from one community forcibly tried to shut down the loudspeaker of the other community, the quarrel led to widespread clashes.

The US Supreme Court today rejected an environmental regulation limiting the amount of mercury emissions and other pollutants that power plants can pump into the atmosphere.

In a 5-4 decision split along conservative and liberal lines, America’s top court sided with 21 states and industry groups protesting standards imposed in 2012 that require power plants to cut toxic emissions.

The standards had been imposed by the national Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The Central Water Commission (CWC) has been directed not to give permission for dam projects that hinder environmental flow of rivers, Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti today said.

Bharti, who reviewed a joint presentation on ‘Namami Gange – National Mission for Clean Ganga’ in Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh, said that the river would be cleaned in 11 important cities situated across its basin in the next three years, a statement here said.

The 11 cities includes Rishikesh, Haridwar, Allahabad, Varanasi, Garhmukteshwar, Kanpur, Patna, Sahibganj, Kolkata and Nabadweep.

Police have detained a new suspect in connection with torching of about 85 vehicles after his profile matched considerably with the image of the person seen in the closed circuit television (CCTV) camera footage obtained from parking lots’ of residential societies.

Joint Commissioner of Police S Ramanand told reporters here today that the suspect who was originally picked up by the police late last night in connection with a murder in the Sinhagad Road area, was subsequently found to resemble the individual seen in the CCTV footage.

The Opposition on Monday turned the heat on the Siddaramaiah government on recurring farmers’ suicides in Karnataka, accusing it of being “irresponsible” and “careless” in addressing the issues concerning peasants.

Giving a stormy start to the monsoon session, the opening day was marred by protests by a united opposition over government’s alleged failure, which BJP leader Jagadish Shettar charged had left the farmers with no other option but to commit suicide.

Karnataka government’s ‘Suvarna Gramodaya Yojana’ was a “failure” as the overall development of each village was not achieved, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India has stated.

Suvarna Gramodaya Yojana was launched by the state government in February 2007 with an intention to develop village communities by adopting an intensive and integrated approach to rural development.

The objective of the scheme was development of 1,000 villages every year through the concentrated efforts of government, non-government organizations, partners from private sector and village communities.

In the second case of suicide by a debit-ridden farmer in the district since last week, a 37-year-old man, slapped with a bank notice to repay his farm loan, allegedly ended his life, police said on Monday.

Shivalinge Gowda alias Kumar of Honnanayakanahalli village committed suicide by jumping into a well in his field last night, they said.

This is the second such incident in the district since last week. A distressed debt-ridden sugarcane farmer set afire the crop he had grown and jumped into the blaze at Ganadahosuru village on June 25.

Syrian regime forces took back several parts of a neighbourhood in the northeastern city of Hasakeh from the Islamic State group today, but heavy clashes continued, a monitor said.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said regime forces had seized parts of Al-Nashwa district in southern Hasakeh, which IS fighters entered last Thursday.

But it said clashes were continuing around the neighbourhood with “shelling by both sides and air raids on the area where fighting is taking place”.

A 33-year old man was today sentenced to life imprisonment by the women’s court here for sexually assaulting a minor girl in August last.

Judge M Pitchammal held that the prosecution has proved the case beyond doubt and sentenced Vellaichamy of Neerpazhani village in the district to life imprisonment.

According to prosecution, the 11-year old girl was sexually assaulted by the man when she was alone in her house on August 30, 2014.

Expressing deep concern over the acquittal of eight of the 10 men jailed for attack on Nobel Laureate Malala Yousafzai, two top US lawmakers have asked Pakistan to bring the attackers to justice.

“We urge the government of Pakistan to re-double its efforts in a transparent and public manner to bring those responsible for this brutal attack to justice,” Senators Marco Rubio and Barbara Boxer said in a letter to Pakistan Ambassador to the US Jalil Abbas Jilani.

Pop Idol runner up Gareth Gates has slammed Glastonbury acts in a foul mouthed Twitter rant.

The singer criticised hip-hop stars Young Fathers and other bands like them performing at Glastonbury Festival this year, reported Digital Spy.

Writing on Twitter, Gates said: “Watching Glastonbury… Bands like ‘Young Fathers’ offend me. Is this talent? Is this musicianship?”

Young Fathers won the Mercury Prize last year for their debut album Dead.

They performed at Glastonbury Festival on June 27. The Who will bring the festival to a close this evening with a headline slot.

The shooting of the sequel to 2002 film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” has commenced.

Actor John Corbett is seen topless filming the movie in a photo posted by writer and co-star Nia Vardalos on Instagram, reported The Wrap.

In the caption with the photo Vardalos referenced the scene in the first film, saying: “Is someone trying to get baptised again in #MyBigFatGreekWedding2 ?”

The US supports the “pro-business reforms” of the Modi Government but at the same time remains concerned about difficulties caused to non-governmental organisations, a top State Department official has said.