Chennai, August 31:Syed Abdul Rahman Geelani, who was a convict in the Parliament attack case, today said he was against capital punishment to the three convicts on death row in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.

Geelani, himself awarded capital punishment in the Parliament case, but subsequently acquitted by the Delhi High Court, told PTI here that Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan had already suffered imprisonment for the past 20 years.

“Hanging them now is not legal. Which law permits it?” he asked. He said he was against capital punishment to anybody.

Malda, August 30: A three-year-old girl was hacked to death by her aunt on suspicion of stealing in this West Bengal district, police said today.

Nausad Khatun”s body with her head bludgeoned and bearing deep knife wounds on her neck and stomach was found on a verandah near the house where she lived at Malopara village, they said.

She was reported missing since yesterday.

Her aunt, 35 year-old Shakeena Bibi, had lost her gold chain a few days ago and suspected Nausad”s mother and had grilled her, the police said.

Mumbai, August 30 : A Mumbai court Tuesday sentenced two men to 10 years rigorous imprisonment for the 2008 Thane and Vashi bomb blasts.

The duo Ramesh Gadkari and Vikram Bhave were also slapped with a fine of Rs.11,000 each for their role in the blasts in two theatres and a cinema in Thane, Vashi and Panvel in mid-2008.

Sessions Judge N.V. Nhavkar had Monday found them guilty in the case while acquitting four others for lack of evidence.

The four men acquitted are Mangesh Nikam, Santosh Angre, Hemant Chalke and Hari Divekar.

Hyderabad, August 31: The Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind today thanked the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy for his announcement on releasing innocent Muslims from state jails arrested in connection with various blasts.

State President of Jamiat, Hafiz Peer Shabbir Ahmed, in a release here today said it is a gift from the government on the occasion of Eid ul Fitr.

New Delhi, August 30: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday greeted the nation on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, and said the celebrations reflect the “true spirit” of India’s composite culture.

In his message, the prime minister said the festival of Eid highlights the spirit of sacrifice and the joy of sharing.

“The celebrations marking the end of the Ramzan fasting foster peace and harmony and reflect the true spirit of our composite culture.”

“May the festival spread peace, tolerance and harmony among all,” he said.

Eid will be celebrated in the country Wednesday.

New Delhi, August 30: Though Salman Khan won’t be in India for the release of his much talked about “Bodyguard”, his charm seems to have cast a spell on his fans as is evident from the advance bookings for the film, releasing on Eid. The cash registers are ringing and multiplex owners are hoping that the mid-week celebrations will continue till the weekend.

New Delhi, August 30: A total of 299 motorists were prosecuted till July-end this year for illegally using red beacons on vehicles, parliament was told Tuesday.

This is a sharp rise from the 36 prosecutions spread over the previous three years (2008 to 2010), Minister of State for Home Affairs M. Ramachandran told the Lok Sabha.

The minister said there was no provision for arrest under the Motor Vehicles Act for the unauthorized use of red beacon lights, which is meant for VIP vehicles.

London, August 30: On the eve of her 14th death anniversary, a survey has revealed that Princess Diana is still Britain’s favourite Royal.

The Princess of Wales was dubbed the Queen of Hearts for her ability to connect with ordinary people and those less fortunate than herself, the Daily Express reported.

The poll carried out by Skype, the computer software maker that allows users to make video calls over the Internet, revealed that Diana was the only woman in the Top 10 list of celebrities with whom Briton’s would like to talk.

Lucknow, August 30: A junior college student was allegedly shot at by his seniors in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut district after he opposed the ragging of a batch-mate, police said on Tuesday.

Rudraksh Kumar, a first semester law student of the Dewan Institute, was on Monday shot at by several third year students of Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) for opposing the ragging of a girl student.

Hyderabad, August 30: MIM president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday said that his stand on Haren Pandya murder case has been vindicated with the acquittal of all the 12 accused, particularly those from Hyderabad and Nalgonda, by the Gujarat High Court.

Hyderabad, August 30:It was soon after Hyderabad’s worst riots in 1991 that left 150 dead and hundreds others injured, Mazher Hussain got himself involved in the relief works in the Old City for the first time. Now, two decades later, as the director of Confederation of Voluntary Associations (Cova), an NGO based in the Old City, Hussain says the asal city is in need of an image makeover.

Lucknow, August 30: Police on Monday confirmed that the wife of a convict was allegedly gang raped by four wardens in the jail compound of the Central Jail at Fatehgarh.

Investigators are now probing the role of two deputy jailors in the crime after the victim pointed fingers at them as well. According to sources, the incident took place in the evening on August 22 and reported to the police the next day.

Preliminary investigations into the allegations that concluded on Monday, confirmed the allegations of sexual assault.

Kozhikode, August 30: Women bagged the majority ranks in this year’s annual Qur’an exams conducted by the Qur’an Hadith Learning School of the ISM (Ittihadu Shubbanil Mujahideen). There are 15 rank holders in the exams which were held in five groups, informed the office bearers in a press conference.

The rank holders are (in the order of first, second and third ranks):
Group I – Haseena Rasheed (Kannur), U Sabira (Malappuram), Haseena (Thiruvananthapuram).
Group II – Hasnath (Kasargode), Nusrath (Kannur), Muhasabith (Malappuram).

Wife kills first husband

Hyderabad, August 30 (Siasat News): In a bizarre incident, a woman allegedly killed her first divorced husband with the help of her second husband. This incident occurred in Rajendranagar’s Suleman Nagar area.  As per the details, one Khadija Begum, with the help of her second husband Ismail, killed her first husband Sheikh Raheem alias Raghunandan Reddy as he was insisting upon her to get remarried with her.

Hyderabad, August 30: The Telangana Joint Action Committee (JAC) Monday ruled out postponing the proposed indefinite mass strike from Sep 6 to press the demand for a separate Telangana state.

JAC convenor M. Kodandaram rejected the suggestion of some Congress leaders that the indefinite strike by government employees and teachers be postponed in view of the ill-health of party chief Sonia Gandhi.

The group, which is spearheading the movement for a separate state, said government employees, teachers and the workers of public sector undertakings would go on strike from Sep 6.

Mumbai, August 30: It’s undoubtedly the most important time of the year for Bollywood’s Dabangg Khan. It’s the end of Ramzan, the beginning of Ganeshotsav and the release of his much-awaited film Bodyguard. But unfortunately, for the first time in years, Salman will not be around to celebrate the festivals or his film release with friends and family.

Contrary to reports that Khan has cancelled his trip to America (on account of Hurricane Irene), he is definitely travelling abroad for his treatment today.

New Delhi, August 30: A city advocate has moved the Delhi High Court seeking its direction to declare the Centre’s act of introducing the Lokpal Bill in Parliament early this month as unconstitutional on the grounds of breach of laid down parliamentary procedures for introduction of bills.

“The government’s action in introducing all Lokpal bills (government as well as private ones) are unconstitutional and be declared so,” advocate Manohar Lal Sharma pleaded in his lawsuit filed in the court’s registry.

Dubai, August 30: It’s Eid Al Fitr on Tuesday for millions of Muslims across the globe who are celebrating after a month-long day time fasting during Ramadan.

People were seen dressed in their best clothes and hugging and kissing friends and relatives. In the UAE, festivities start soon after the early morning prayers at the various prayer grounds and mosques across the emirates.

The moon sighting committee chaired by Hadif Juan Al Dahiri, Minister of Justice, which met in Abu Dhabi on Monday evening, said that the new moon was sighted on Monday evening.

Mumbai, August 30: Preity Zinta and Bipasha Basu are impressed with the Salman Khan-starrer “Bodyguard”, due for release Wednesday.

“Just saw BODYGUARD! Salman U n Kareena Rock! Its FAB & the action is AMAZING ! All da best This one is full Paisa Vasool,” Preity posted to Salman on Twitter, after watching the movie at a special preview in Mumbai Sunday night.

Bipasha tweeted: “Just saw Bodyguard! Another blockbuster for Salman Khan! It would be nice to have a cute bodyguard like lovely singh!”

Srinagar, August 30: Seeking to put a lid on the controversy over his reported remarks, Farooq Abdullah today clarified that he had never questioned the belief of Muslims that the holy Quran was revealed to Prophet Mohammad.

“I wish to categorically reassert that I had at no point of time made any reference to the holy Qur’an being revealed to anybody other than Prophet Mohammad,” Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy said in a statement here.

Abdullah, also the NC chief, was quoted in a media report of having made statements contrary to Muslim faith.

Sanaa, August 30: A new round of fierce fighting in southern Yemen killed 10 soldiers and 26 militants, military officials said on Monday, the latest battle in a government campaign to retake territory from al Qaeda-linked fighters.

Another 38 militants and about 30 soldiers were wounded in the clashes that took place near the city of Dufas in the southern province of Abyan, they said.

The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with military regulations, said the fighting took place over the past 24 hours. Among the military dead was a colonel.

Hyderabad, August 30: The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation has finalised the list of 30 villages which are likely to be merged with the corporation.

The list was presented to chief minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy by mayor B.Kartika Reddy and commissioner MT Krishna Babu on Thursday.

Hyderabad, August 30: Technology hub Hyderabad changes its stripes during Ramazan it doesn’t flock to its futuristic malls but to a bazaar near Charminar known for its quaint old-world charm.

Despite being old-fashioned, the market has one feature in common with the city’s new-age industries: it is open 24X7, much like the countless BPOs and software firms.

But the bazaar, spread from Madina square to Charminar and beyond, will fold up on Wednesday, the day the month-long Ramazan culminates in Id.

New Delhi, August 30: As monsoon fury continues across India, the latest to be hit is Gujarat. Incessant rains have caused floods in parts of Navsari, crippling normal life.

The floods have cut off roads, bridges and inundated vast areas. The residential areas of Surat have also been flooded after the Tapi river overflowed in Navsari.

Hundreds of people and vehicles remain stranded due to roads either being cut-off by the floodwaters or closed as a precautionary measure.

Kochi, August 30: The Gulf Air plane from Bahrain, which had skidded off the runway into a muddy area while landing at the international airport here, was towed back to the taxibay early today (Aug 30).

After a night-long operation, the aircraft was lifted at 6 am with the help of huge cranes. A 100-member expert team from Mumbai was at the spot to assist the operation.

Airport sources said the runway has been cleared and normal services would soon resume at the airport.