August 17, 2010
Kollam, Kerala: Abdul Nasar Madani, accused in the 2008 Bangalore blasts case was produced before a magistrate in Bangalore late on Tuesday night. He was sent to police custody till August 26. Madani was arrested in Kollam on Tuesday after a week of drama and suspense.
His supporters were clearly outnumbered by the more than 800 Kerala policemen who had been deployed to facilitate the arrest.
When Madani knew his arrest was imminent he hurriedly called a press conference where he announced his decision to finally surrender before the law.
"I will surrender before a magistrate court but if the police arrest me before that, I am ready for it," he said.
And the actual arrest happened as Madani was heading for the Magistrate's court. Emotional scenes followed with Madani's supporters weeping as their leader was taken away.
With Madani finally in Karnataka police custody, there was a sense of relief.
"I would like to convey my appreciation to Karnataka Police for pursuing this case seriously. I would also like to thank the Kerala government for their cooperation in the matter. Karnataka government will continue our effort to contain such anti social elements," Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa said.
Karnataka Police say they have a good case against him; Madani himself maintains his innocence and he has not given up the legal battle.
The hearing is going on in High Court and Madani wants the chargesheet against him quashed. The next hearing on that issue is on Wednesday.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
US jobs will not go to China, India, Germany: Obama
August 10th, 2010
The US President, Mr Barack Obama, has said that America had returned to robust competitiveness and the danger of jobs and industries fleeing to countries like China, India or Germany was over. "When I took office, we put in place a new economic plan that rewards hard work instead of greed; a plan that rewards responsibility instead of reckless; a plan that focused on our middle class, (and) making them more secure," Mr Obama said at a Democratic Fund Raiser in Austin, Texas. The US President said that the US "was competitive over the long run so the jobs and industries of the future weren’t going to China or India or Germany, but were going to the United States of America, right here." Gradually entering into an election mode with the mid-term elections less than three months ago, the US President has been frequently in his public speeches claiming how his policies are aimed towards stopping outsourcing of jobs and manufacturing. Instead of spending money on special interest tax loopholes that don't create American jobs, we said we're going to make smart investments in education and innovation and clean energy that will benefit all people and our entire economy, he said. "Instead of giving special interests free rein to write their own regulations, we demanded new accountability from Washington to Wall Street so that big corporations had to play by the same rules as small companies and by individuals. That's only fair," Mr Obama said. Observing that it took nearly a decade to enter the current phase of the economic mess he inherited, Obama said it's going to take some more time to "dig our way out" of that hole. "The devastation that has touched so many of our families, so many of our communities, that is going to take some time to heal. And I hear those stories firsthand wherever I travel. I hear about them in the letters that I receive every night that I read from people who are doing their best to keep on striving towards that American Dream, but keep on hitting a bunch of road blocks and are looking for help. So the road to recovery is long and it’s filled with challenges. And I'm under no illusion that we’ve gotten there yet. We've got a lot more work to do," he said. Continuing with his critic of the Republican policies, Mr Obama said: "We've got a choice between a forward-looking agenda that is rebuilding the structure of this economy so it's working for all Americans, or just going back to the same stuff that got us into this mess."
The US President, Mr Barack Obama, has said that America had returned to robust competitiveness and the danger of jobs and industries fleeing to countries like China, India or Germany was over. "When I took office, we put in place a new economic plan that rewards hard work instead of greed; a plan that rewards responsibility instead of reckless; a plan that focused on our middle class, (and) making them more secure," Mr Obama said at a Democratic Fund Raiser in Austin, Texas. The US President said that the US "was competitive over the long run so the jobs and industries of the future weren’t going to China or India or Germany, but were going to the United States of America, right here." Gradually entering into an election mode with the mid-term elections less than three months ago, the US President has been frequently in his public speeches claiming how his policies are aimed towards stopping outsourcing of jobs and manufacturing. Instead of spending money on special interest tax loopholes that don't create American jobs, we said we're going to make smart investments in education and innovation and clean energy that will benefit all people and our entire economy, he said. "Instead of giving special interests free rein to write their own regulations, we demanded new accountability from Washington to Wall Street so that big corporations had to play by the same rules as small companies and by individuals. That's only fair," Mr Obama said. Observing that it took nearly a decade to enter the current phase of the economic mess he inherited, Obama said it's going to take some more time to "dig our way out" of that hole. "The devastation that has touched so many of our families, so many of our communities, that is going to take some time to heal. And I hear those stories firsthand wherever I travel. I hear about them in the letters that I receive every night that I read from people who are doing their best to keep on striving towards that American Dream, but keep on hitting a bunch of road blocks and are looking for help. So the road to recovery is long and it’s filled with challenges. And I'm under no illusion that we’ve gotten there yet. We've got a lot more work to do," he said. Continuing with his critic of the Republican policies, Mr Obama said: "We've got a choice between a forward-looking agenda that is rebuilding the structure of this economy so it's working for all Americans, or just going back to the same stuff that got us into this mess."
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Dikshit’s ’final’ CWG deadline: Delhi to miss date again?
August 8, 2010
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s promise of completing all Commonwealth Games projects being implemented by her government by the extended deadline of August 31 is appearing to fall flat.
Top officials in Delhi government admitted that key projects like Barapullah Nallah elevated road and renovation of the Yamuna Sports Complex, apart from street-scaping around the Games venues are unlikely to finished by August-end.
Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta said although a carriageway of the Barapulla Nallah elevated road will be completed by August 25, the construction activities on second carriageway could be finished by first week of September only.
The four-km-long elevated road between Sarai Kale Khan and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main venue of the event, is being built to provide uninterrupted traffic flow from Games Village near Akshardham temple to the stadium.
The over Rs 550-crore project has already missed several deadlines. Similarly, renovation of Yamuna Sports Complex, where archery and table tennis events will take place, is not likely to be completed by August-end. Peripheral works in and around Talkatora Stadium and Karni Singh Shooting Range are also not expected to be over by the deadline.
Finance Minister A K Walia has publicly stated that work in Yamuna Sports Complex will not be over by the month-end. Delhi government had undertaken projects worth over Rs 10,000 crore to improve infrastructure in the city ahead of the Games that start on October 3.
Works related to plantation and greenery are also lagging far behind. Although plantation works have been allowed to run through September, several agencies planning to put up potted plants are a bit confused as police have objected to placing the pots near the gates of the venues.
Facing severe criticism for delay in finishing Games- related projects, Dikshit had last month directed all agencies concerned to complete pending work within the final deadline. Top PWD officials, overseeing street-scaping projects across the city, have also admitted that the works will only be over by mid-September.
The department has deployed an additional workforce of 700 labourers to wrap up the street-scaping projects. "Nine agencies are working on various projects to improve various infrastructure in the city. Some of the projects are getting delayed because of lack of coordination among the agencies," said Chief Secretary Mehta.
Questions are also being raised over whether the 2,000 flats being renovated by the DDA in Vasant Kunj for stay of technical staff of the Games will be completed ahead of the mega sporting event. DDA engineers, earlier in the week, had said that they will not be able to complete the flats before the Games.
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s promise of completing all Commonwealth Games projects being implemented by her government by the extended deadline of August 31 is appearing to fall flat.
Top officials in Delhi government admitted that key projects like Barapullah Nallah elevated road and renovation of the Yamuna Sports Complex, apart from street-scaping around the Games venues are unlikely to finished by August-end.
Chief Secretary Rakesh Mehta said although a carriageway of the Barapulla Nallah elevated road will be completed by August 25, the construction activities on second carriageway could be finished by first week of September only.
The four-km-long elevated road between Sarai Kale Khan and the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main venue of the event, is being built to provide uninterrupted traffic flow from Games Village near Akshardham temple to the stadium.
The over Rs 550-crore project has already missed several deadlines. Similarly, renovation of Yamuna Sports Complex, where archery and table tennis events will take place, is not likely to be completed by August-end. Peripheral works in and around Talkatora Stadium and Karni Singh Shooting Range are also not expected to be over by the deadline.
Finance Minister A K Walia has publicly stated that work in Yamuna Sports Complex will not be over by the month-end. Delhi government had undertaken projects worth over Rs 10,000 crore to improve infrastructure in the city ahead of the Games that start on October 3.
Works related to plantation and greenery are also lagging far behind. Although plantation works have been allowed to run through September, several agencies planning to put up potted plants are a bit confused as police have objected to placing the pots near the gates of the venues.
Facing severe criticism for delay in finishing Games- related projects, Dikshit had last month directed all agencies concerned to complete pending work within the final deadline. Top PWD officials, overseeing street-scaping projects across the city, have also admitted that the works will only be over by mid-September.
The department has deployed an additional workforce of 700 labourers to wrap up the street-scaping projects. "Nine agencies are working on various projects to improve various infrastructure in the city. Some of the projects are getting delayed because of lack of coordination among the agencies," said Chief Secretary Mehta.
Questions are also being raised over whether the 2,000 flats being renovated by the DDA in Vasant Kunj for stay of technical staff of the Games will be completed ahead of the mega sporting event. DDA engineers, earlier in the week, had said that they will not be able to complete the flats before the Games.
Aiyar takes another dig at Games
08 Aug 2010
New Delhi: Nominated Rajya Sabha MP Mani Shankar Aiyar Saturday took a potshot at the coming Delhi Commonwealth Games, saying arrangements were being made to ensure that the 100,000 foreign guests expected to come were not mobbed by beggars and the poor.
He was addressing a seminar on the 'Role of Media in the 21st century and India's Image' in the capital.
'In a globalised India, the English media feels prosperous and wants to carry India forward. Nearly 100,000 foreign guests will come to India in less then two months (for the Commonwealth Games). I hear that 70,000 have confirmed their bookings. Special arrangements are being made to ensure that they are not besieged by beggars and the poor, but interact with men attired only in coats and ties,' he said.
'On their way to the Jawahar Lal Nehru stadium, they (the foreign visitors) should not chance upon those begging for livelihood at shrine of (Sufi saint) Nizamuddin Auliya,' Aiyar said, adding the 'economic imbalance between the citizens and consumers is glaring'.
The question is 'whether Indians should be made prosperous or India should made richer,' Aiyar said.
New Delhi: Nominated Rajya Sabha MP Mani Shankar Aiyar Saturday took a potshot at the coming Delhi Commonwealth Games, saying arrangements were being made to ensure that the 100,000 foreign guests expected to come were not mobbed by beggars and the poor.
He was addressing a seminar on the 'Role of Media in the 21st century and India's Image' in the capital.
'In a globalised India, the English media feels prosperous and wants to carry India forward. Nearly 100,000 foreign guests will come to India in less then two months (for the Commonwealth Games). I hear that 70,000 have confirmed their bookings. Special arrangements are being made to ensure that they are not besieged by beggars and the poor, but interact with men attired only in coats and ties,' he said.
'On their way to the Jawahar Lal Nehru stadium, they (the foreign visitors) should not chance upon those begging for livelihood at shrine of (Sufi saint) Nizamuddin Auliya,' Aiyar said, adding the 'economic imbalance between the citizens and consumers is glaring'.
The question is 'whether Indians should be made prosperous or India should made richer,' Aiyar said.
CBI continues to quiz Amit Shah
07 Aug 2010
Gandhinagar; Former Gujarat minister Amit Shah continued to be quizzed by CBI officials here Sunday, a day after he was grilled for nine hours in connection with the 2005 killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh in a staged shootout.
The former minister of state for home was at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office here in the morning for the final day of questioning. His two-day period of CBI remand ends Sunday night.
Though Shah has been lodged in Sabarmati jail after his arrest July 25 and judicial remand thereafter, he spent Saturday night in the CBI lock-up in it's regional office in Sector-10 here.
In the morning, he was brought to the CBI camp office in the old secretariat here for further questioning.
Sources in the CBI said the minister faced over 300 questions over the length of the day Saturday. His lawyers who were present, though at a visual distance, said they had no complaints in relation to the questioning.
According to the source, Shah has been less than cooperative in answering questions. On Saturday, he was in the custody of the CBI from almost 10 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. The questioning began around 10.a.m. Sunday again.
He has answered largely in monosyllables or at best with 'I don't remember'.
The former minister has been asked searching questions about the orders he issued in relation to the transfer of key police officers who are now co-accused and his phone conversations - 32 times with Deputy Superintendent of Police N.K. Amin on the day Sohrabuddin's wife Kauserbi is suspected to have been killed, the source said.
The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has been accused of killing Sheikh in a staged shootout Nov 26, 2005, in Ahmedabad. His wife Kauserbi is suspected to have been killed at a farm near here two days later.
Gandhinagar; Former Gujarat minister Amit Shah continued to be quizzed by CBI officials here Sunday, a day after he was grilled for nine hours in connection with the 2005 killing of Sohrabuddin Sheikh in a staged shootout.
The former minister of state for home was at the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office here in the morning for the final day of questioning. His two-day period of CBI remand ends Sunday night.
Though Shah has been lodged in Sabarmati jail after his arrest July 25 and judicial remand thereafter, he spent Saturday night in the CBI lock-up in it's regional office in Sector-10 here.
In the morning, he was brought to the CBI camp office in the old secretariat here for further questioning.
Sources in the CBI said the minister faced over 300 questions over the length of the day Saturday. His lawyers who were present, though at a visual distance, said they had no complaints in relation to the questioning.
According to the source, Shah has been less than cooperative in answering questions. On Saturday, he was in the custody of the CBI from almost 10 a.m. to 8.30 p.m. The questioning began around 10.a.m. Sunday again.
He has answered largely in monosyllables or at best with 'I don't remember'.
The former minister has been asked searching questions about the orders he issued in relation to the transfer of key police officers who are now co-accused and his phone conversations - 32 times with Deputy Superintendent of Police N.K. Amin on the day Sohrabuddin's wife Kauserbi is suspected to have been killed, the source said.
The Gujarat Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has been accused of killing Sheikh in a staged shootout Nov 26, 2005, in Ahmedabad. His wife Kauserbi is suspected to have been killed at a farm near here two days later.
Eighth suspect arrested in Gyaneshwari train tragedy
02 Aug 2010
Kolkata: A pro-Maoist activist has been arrested for his alleged involvement in the May 28 Gyaneshwari Express tragedy in West Bengal that killed 148 people, police said Sunday. A court later sent the suspect, the eighth to be caught in the case, to 10 days Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody.
Laxman Mahato, a People's Committee against Police Activities (PCAPA) leader, was arrested Saturday night from Manikpara area in Jhargram for his alleged role in opening the pandrol clips (used to fix the rail to the sleeper) that caused the derailment of the Mumbai-bound train in West Bengal's West Midnapore district.
'He was arrested by a police team from the Jhargram police district and later handed over to the CBI, which is probing the incident,' Inspector General (Western Range) Zulfiqar Hassan told IANS over the phone.
Laxman was produced before the additional judicial magistrate Sunday afternoon and remanded to 10 days CBI custody.
Laxman alias Dhun, a resident of Kshumgara in Manikpara, was arrested earlier by the Jhargram police July 1 on charges of arms smuggling and remanded in judicial custody. He came back home after being released on bail July 30.
'Laxman's bail was granted July 29 and he was released on July 30,' his defence counsel Kaushik Sinha.
'Laxman was arrested on Saturday night when he was walking past a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Manikpara,' he added.
Earlier two prime accused in the alleged sabotage, Manik Mahato and Bapi Mahato, were arrested. However, two other prime accused Umakanto Mahato and Asit Mahato have so far managed to evade the security agencies.
The CBI has already declared a reward of Rs.1 lakh for providing information leading to their arrest
Kolkata: A pro-Maoist activist has been arrested for his alleged involvement in the May 28 Gyaneshwari Express tragedy in West Bengal that killed 148 people, police said Sunday. A court later sent the suspect, the eighth to be caught in the case, to 10 days Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody.
Laxman Mahato, a People's Committee against Police Activities (PCAPA) leader, was arrested Saturday night from Manikpara area in Jhargram for his alleged role in opening the pandrol clips (used to fix the rail to the sleeper) that caused the derailment of the Mumbai-bound train in West Bengal's West Midnapore district.
'He was arrested by a police team from the Jhargram police district and later handed over to the CBI, which is probing the incident,' Inspector General (Western Range) Zulfiqar Hassan told IANS over the phone.
Laxman was produced before the additional judicial magistrate Sunday afternoon and remanded to 10 days CBI custody.
Laxman alias Dhun, a resident of Kshumgara in Manikpara, was arrested earlier by the Jhargram police July 1 on charges of arms smuggling and remanded in judicial custody. He came back home after being released on bail July 30.
'Laxman's bail was granted July 29 and he was released on July 30,' his defence counsel Kaushik Sinha.
'Laxman was arrested on Saturday night when he was walking past a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) camp in Manikpara,' he added.
Earlier two prime accused in the alleged sabotage, Manik Mahato and Bapi Mahato, were arrested. However, two other prime accused Umakanto Mahato and Asit Mahato have so far managed to evade the security agencies.
The CBI has already declared a reward of Rs.1 lakh for providing information leading to their arrest
Friday, August 6, 2010
44 killed, over 300 injured in Leh flash floods
06 Aug 2010
Srinagar: At least 44 people have been killed and over 300 injured in flash floods triggered by a massive cloudburst in Leh town of Jammu and Kashmir's Ladakh region, police said Friday.
A massive cloudburst struck the town around midnight Thursday, triggering flash floods and mud slides, Inspector General of Police (Kashmir zone) Farooq Ahmed told IANS.
A polytechnic college, headquarters of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp, many government offices and houses have been damaged. The Leh airport has been inundated.
As many as 4,000 army men, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and police personnel have launched a massive relief and rescue operation.
Over 160 injured people have been admitted to the army hospital.
All communication in the town has been disrupted and authorities are finding it very difficult to reach administration officials there.
Srinagar: At least 44 people have been killed and over 300 injured in flash floods triggered by a massive cloudburst in Leh town of Jammu and Kashmir's Ladakh region, police said Friday.
A massive cloudburst struck the town around midnight Thursday, triggering flash floods and mud slides, Inspector General of Police (Kashmir zone) Farooq Ahmed told IANS.
A polytechnic college, headquarters of the Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) camp, many government offices and houses have been damaged. The Leh airport has been inundated.
As many as 4,000 army men, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and police personnel have launched a massive relief and rescue operation.
Over 160 injured people have been admitted to the army hospital.
All communication in the town has been disrupted and authorities are finding it very difficult to reach administration officials there.
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