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Panaji: Goa witnessed a huge turnout for the Assembly elections today with record 81 per cent voters casting their ballots.
North Goa district reported a big turnout with constituencies of Poriem, Sanguem and Madkai recording 89 per cent voting followed by Sankhalimat 87 per cent while an estimated 75 per cent voters cast their ballots in South Goa.
Chief Election Commissioner S Y Quraishi told reporters in New Delhi that an estimated 81 per cent voters had cast their ballots in the coastal state. The previous highest voting in the state was in 2007 when 70.51 per cent voters had voted.
The Election Commission officials were in for a surprise when a booth in Dovorlim locality near Margao reported 100 per cent voting by 3.30 pm, 90 minutes before the close of polling. Two booths, one in Poriem and another in Sankhalim constituency, had recorded 95 per cent voting by 4 pm.
The figures received till 4 pm indicated that people in the mining belt came out in large number for polling.
Minor scuffles reported during the day with Congress' Panaji candidate Yatin Parekh hurling abuses against BJP workers while Public Works Department minister Churchill Alemao threatened a senior police officer in front of the media in his Navelim constituency.
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Mumbai, March. 2 -- On March 6, actor Madhuri Dixit will fly to London to unveil her wax statue at Madam Tussauds the following day. The museum already houses the lookalikes of Bollywood actors Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.
Though a contract prevents her from divulging details about what her 'double' will be wearing, the actor herself plans to go 'desi' since she will be representing India. "It's flattering to be the chosen one and it makes all the hard work that went into a career spanning two decades worth it. Everyone at home is looking forward to a weekday for a change," says Madhuri.
Her sons, Arin (9) and Rayan (7), along with husband, Dr Sriram Nene, will accompany her to London, but her parents, Shankar and Snehlata Dixit, will not make the eight-hour trip. "As much as I'd like them to be with me on my big day, I know they are too old to travel that far. Besides, London is really cold now and I don't want them to fall ill," Madhuri reasons, adding, "So, I'll just take their blessings before I leave. Thanks to technology, we can mail them pictures within minutes of unveiling the statue, so they will virtually be sharing the moment with me."
Her boys are particularly excited and can't wait to see their mother's wax twin. Madhuri had planned to surprise them, but an announcement on TV stole her thunder. "As soon as th announcement was made, Arin and Rayan were wondering if my double would look exactly like me and if they'd be flying out to London too," she laughs.
"Well, they have the answe to the second query by now but as far as the first one goes, it is still a surprise waiting to be unwrapped." Meanwhile, Madhuri insists that she hasn't signed any new film yet. Talk of her working in the Indira Gandhi bio-pic, a Malayalam remake with Akshay Kumar and sequels to Fashion (2008) and Ishqiya (2010) are nothing but idle gossip. "I'm in talks for a couple of projects, but the ones mentioned are not on the list," she says. "All I can tell you at this stage is that you can expect some announcements soon."
The union cabinet approved buyback of shares for public sector enterprises to meet the daunting Rs 40,000 crore disinvestment target set in the budget of February 2011. The cabinet also cleared cross-holdings among various state-owned enterprises. So far the government has managed to raise about Rs 1,100 crore and is looking to mobilise another Rs 12,500 crore with the offer for sale of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation today.
Here are key highlights:
• Public sector units or PSU boards will decide on implementation of the share buyback. Cash rich public sector companies like Coal India (cash of Rs 45,862 crore, 90 per cent government ownership), Oil and Natural Gas or ONGC (Rs 28,688 crore, 74 per cent government ownership), National Thermal Power Corporation or NTPC (Rs 17,859 crore, 84.5 per cent), Steel Authority or SAIL (Rs 17,747 crore, 85.82 per cent), National Mineral Development or NMDC (Rs 17,228 crore, 90 percent) among others can execute the buyback plan. These companies would purchase government shares using the cash on their balance sheet.
• The Cabinet has empowered a group of ministers to decide on pricing and number of shares that the government would tender in the buyback offer. However, not all public sector companies want to participate. NTPC has expressed reservations since it needs money for funding capacity.
• The government has also approved a cross-holding scheme wherein cash rich state-owned companies or financial institutions like LIC and State Bank of India would buy government holding in other public sector companies. The two financial institutions have agreed to participate in the process. This would allow government to raise money and still maintain an indirect ownership.
• Buybacks, cross-holdings are a way to increase divestment proceeds. Economists estimate that the government may be able to raise Rs20,000-30,000 crore through this route. The government needs significant non tax revenue to improve the fiscal situation. The fiscal deficit has already exceeded the limit set in budget 2011 and is set to be close to 6 per cent of GDP. This is much higher than 4.6 per cent target.
• LIC has said that it would participate in the disinvestment programme. It would consider buying PSU stocks at attractive prices. The LIC board will take a decision on individual investments and that that the institution has enough cash to participate in the programme.
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Bollywood actors Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor will attend the premiere of their film Agent Vinod at the seventh edition of the Muscat International Film Festival (MIFF) on March 25. Gulf News quoted the organisers, as saying in a press release that the Bollywood spy thriller is being premiered for the first time at the festival.
The film has been directed by Sriram Raghavan under the banner of Saif Ali Khan's home production, Illuminati Films.
"A bit of Tintin, a bit of Bond, a bit of Alistair McLean and well, a little bit of fun and frolic and a lot of adventure…that is what Agent Vinod, the much awaited Bollywood flick is all about," said Saif Ali Khan in a statement issued here.
The movie was shot in Morocco, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Latvia, besides other countries.
MIFF Chairman, Dr Khalid Al Zadjali, who has the honour of making Oman''s first ever feature film Boom, was quoted, as saying: "This movie''s entry is ground-breaking as far as the nascent cinema industry in Oman is concerned."
He said that it would be great to have movie stars like Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor visiting Muscat for the MIFF.
Kolkata: A junior doctor who allegedly raped a differently-abled teenager at a government hospital in West Bengal's Bankura district, about 150 kms from Kolkata, has been arrested.
The girl, who is hearing and speech impaired, was found naked and unconscious in the Bankura Sammilani Medical College by her mother. She was admitted there on Monday night for chest pains. Yesterday, she was sent to Kolkata for medical tests.
"They asked me to wait outside and they took her inside. For two hours, they were inside. Then I went inside and saw that her clothes were not on her and she was crying. Then I shouted at the doctor, asked him is this how you do treatment?" the victim's mother said. She added that her daughter later told her everything using sign language.
Hospital officials insist that the family has mistakenly accused the doctor in question of rape. They say he was examining the victim. The hospital has also formed a three-member committee to investigate the complaint.
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Long Beach (California): Tech-savvy TED-goers watched in wonder as flying robots darted through tossed hoops, worked together in swarms and even formed a band to play trademark "James Bond" film theme music. A video of University of Pennsylvania Professor Vijay Kumar showing off palm-sized "agile aerial robots" from the college lab logged more than 200,000 views online at ted.com by the time the prestigious gathering ended on Friday. "Robots like this have many applications," he said. "They can be sent in buildings as first responders to look for intruders or check for biochemical leaks. Into collapsed buildings after disasters or into reactor buildings to check radiation levels," he continued. Mr Kumar held in one hand a small robot resembling a miniature helicopter with four rotors. It was fitted with gyroscopes and other sensors to feed information about its position and things around it to an on-board processor, which operated as a brain letting it react autonomously and instantly to situations. "There is no GPS," Mr Kumar explained. "The coordinate system is defined by the robot, where it is and what it is looking at." He showed groups of flying robots working as teams to carry heavy objects or build block structures based on blueprints alone. The professor likened the robots' behavior to desert ants naturally working together to haul a piece of fig back to their nest. "Once you know how to fly in formation, you can actually pick up objects cooperatively," Mr Kumar said.
"We can double, triple, quadruple the robots strength by getting them to team with neighbors." His presentation finished with nine flying robots banding together to play the James Bond spy film on musical instruments. "Magnificent," a person writing under the name Kimani Burton said in a chat forum beneath Kumar's video at ted.com. "Its technological breakthroughs like these that remind me daily of the limitless creative capacity of humans." Meanwhile, some in the forum lamented the potential military uses of what they saw as self-guided mini-drones. TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) is a series of conferences designed to present cutting-edge ideas. Speakers are given only 18 minutes to give deliver their pitch.
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Shirish Kunder, who was recently in news for his tiff with Shah Rukh Khan, has apparently angered Akshay Kumar this time.
The buzz has it that Akki was very upset with the director after watching the rough cut of his upcoming movie Joker.
The Khiladi Kumar was unhappy with the way the film had turned out, and demanded quite a few changes in it.
The 44-year-old actor was reportedly so angry with Kunder that he shouted at him and almost decided to walk out of the film at the last moment.
However, the two later sorted out their differences.
Akshay Kumar however trashed the report. He tweeted, "To anyone who has read or heard the rumour that I was upset with my director Shirish Kunder,sorry to disappoint you but that's exactly what it is, a RUMOUR!! I haven't seen Joker yet, so I have no reason to be upset."
Joker is an upcoming Hindi fantasy adventure film and the first 3D film directed by Shirish Kunder.
The film will star Akshay Kumar opposite Sonakshi Sinha. It will be the fourth Hindi film to be released in both 2D and 3D formats after Haunted – 3D, Ra.One and Don 2.
The film is currently in post-production stage, set to release on August 31, 2012.
On a serious note Mirza admits she’s looking forward to having an intimate ceremony. “Sahil comes from a very big family, while mine is very small. I just want an intimate wedding, surrounded by the people I wouldn’t want to get married without.”
What’s more, the actor’s trousseau might just give her a chance to venture into a new field — designing. “I have so many close designer friends, that I’ll be in such a dilemma when I have to chose my wedding outfit. Maybe the first thing I should design is my wedding dress,” she says.
The actor, who is currently working on three new production ventures simultaneously, will walk the ramp today for designer Khushali Kumar at Lakme Fashion Week. She admits the bejewelled collection tempted her to return as showstopper.
Ask her whether she’s still racked by nerves when she hits the runway, and Dia responds, “Completely. There’s something about being on stage with all the attention focussed on you that gives you an adrenaline rush. I’m smiling, but in my head, I’m begging ‘God, please don’t let me slip.’”
Bareilly: Polling for the seventh and final phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections covering 60 constituencies ended today with around 62 per cent of voters exercising their franchise.
The final phase today is in the western part and Terai region of the state. 968 candidates will battle it out today in 60 constituencies in Uttar Pradesh. Most of these constituencies like Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur and Lakhempur Kheri fall under the Tarai region of the state.
The area also falls under the sugarcane belt of the state. And, issues related to cane pricing, procurement of produce by sugar mills have acquired political prominence.
Each year during monsoons, the region is ravaged by floods and lives are lost due to release of water from dams along the Indo-Nepal border. So flood relief, rescue and rehabilitation are also issues That matter to locals.
With 28 per cent Muslim voters in these 60 odd constituencies, the Samajwadi Party's Azam Khan, the party's Muslim face is one of the tallest leaders in the fray from the Rampur city constituency. His rivalry with actor Jaya Prada, the sitting MP, led to high drama in the run up to the elections. Jaya Prada accused him of running a smear campaign against her, something that has reduced her to tears not once but several times in this elections.
Bharatiya Janata Party's Varun Gandhi has also been confined only to his pockets of influence, Pilibhit. He has been literally missing from this elections, which saw a massive display of youth power in the name of Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi. Both these leaders were leading their parties from the front in these polls.
DP Yadav, a strongman with a criminal past, whose entry into the Samajwadi Party was stalled by state president Akhilesh Yadav is also contesting from the Sahaswan constituency. It is the same seat from which his wife Kamlesh earned the dubious distinction of being the first MLA to be disqualified after the Election Commission found charges of paid news against her to be true.
But fighting against him is the BJP's lone Muslim candidate in this election Saphi Shakil Alam, who was a mechanic by profession.
Former BSP MLA Nawab Kazim Ali Khan is also contesting on a congress ticket from the Suar assembly. He switched sides after being denied a ticket by the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP).
Three ex-BSP ministers, who were axed by Mayawati, in a clean-up act just before polls, Yashpal Singh, Phool Babu and Avdhesh Verma, Who broke down after being denied a ticket, have all migrated to rival political parties and are contesting these elections.
Varun's uncle V M singh, on the other hand, is the richest candidate in this election with declared assets of more than 630 crores. Mr Singh is contesting from the Pallia constituency in Lakhimpur Kheri district on a Trinamool Congress ticket.
The Election Commission expects heavy turnout in this phase also in keeping with the trend seen in the earlier rounds where voting percentage has witnessed an unprecedented rise.
More than 1.82 crore voters in this phase of polling, which was earlier scheduled for February 4 but was later postponed to March 3, would decide the fate of 962 candidates including some political veterans.
In the 2007 assembly polls, BSP had emerged the biggest party bagging 27 seats, while SP and BJP had got 17 and nine seats respectively.
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Beijing: China is preparing to overhaul a key criminal law amid public confusion - and some dread - over whether the government is about to give police the legal authority to disappear people.
At issue is an amendment to the criminal procedure law that would allow police to secretly detain suspects for months without informing their families. The effect would be to legalize the secret detentions police have increasingly been using against political critics, activist lawyers and other dissidents. Activist Hu Jia, himself living under a form of house arrest, has dubbed it the "KGB clause."
The proposed powers, when first mooted in a draft released last summer, caused uproar among legal scholars, who called them dangerous, and ordinary Chinese, who posted comments online to the government's draft by the tens of thousands.
Now, as the national legislature prepares to pass the revised law during its annual session which starts Monday, it isn't clear whether the proposed changes are still in the bill. New drafts have not been released, as is typical in China. One well-connected scholar claims the clause has been excised out, but others say it's uncertain or won't say.
Chi Shusheng, a lawmaker and lawyer from Heilongjiang province with a reputation for defending human rights, said she last saw the revised law in January.
"I think there's been some progress," Chi said. She wouldn't elaborate.
Members of the National People's Congress legal committee, who advise the drafting of the law, declined to talk.
"Wait until the final version comes out," said Zhou Guangquan, a legal scholar and committee member. "It's not convenient for me to discuss it now." Chinese laws are generally crafted by the central government behind closed doors with little public consultation, though there have been experiments with increased transparency in recent years. The precise reasons for the secrecy aren't entirely clear, but seem borne out of habit and expediency.
Behind the uncertainty is a tug of war between people who think China needs greater legal protections to keep advancing, and the security establishment and politicians who see a strong Communist Party as the best guarantee of the country's continuing success.
Chinese society, poor and egalitarian 30 years ago, has been stratified as decades of economic reforms create droves of millionaires and push up a new middle class while leaving behind others. People increasingly turn to the law to protect their rights and to protest when other methods don't work.
More open Chinese media and the Internet have raised awareness about miscarriages of justice, such as wrongful convictions, and the need for legal safeguards.
"People are increasingly realizing that procedural justice matters," said Joshua Rosenzweig, a human rights researcher based in Hong Kong. "There is also a general sense too that public power, the power of the state, needs to be checked."
The proposed revisions to the criminal procedure law, last amended 15 years ago, attempt to address the changing demands of this remade society. It includes rules on the exclusion of illegally obtained evidence and enshrines the privilege against self-incrimination, both measures meant to better protect detainees, said Flora Sapio, a visiting scholar at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and an expert on Chinese law.
For the most part, though, the overhaul consolidates existing rules and regulations without significantly breaking new ground, Sapio said.
The controversial exception is the expansion of police powers in Article 73 on "residential surveillance," a kind of house arrest without charge. The August draft said police could hold suspects under residential surveillance - at a fixed location outside their home - for up to six months without notifying families in cases involving state security or terrorism or if notification would impede the investigation.
In practice, police have disappeared regime critics, from Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo and his wife to prominent avant-garde artist Ai Weiwei, who disappeared into police custody for nearly three months last year.
Ai's wife Lu Qing, who was distraught over the official silence during her husband's disappearance, has written an open letter to the government saying that codifying the more muscular powers for police would mark a "legal setback for China and deterioration of human rights."
The outcry may have had some effect. One prominent Beijing legal scholar, Chen Guangzhong, said this week that Article 73 has been changed from its August version and now requires that families be notified within 24 hours if a relative is put under residential surveillance in all cases except when the family cannot be reached.
Chen said he has not seen the latest version himself but was informed of the change by a colleague who he declined to identify. Chen was among the more vocal critics of the August draft when it came out.
"Personally speaking, I am relatively satisfied," said the 82-year-old tenured professor at the Chinese University of Political Science and Law in Beijing.
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The union cabinet approved buyback of shares for public sector enterprises to meet the daunting Rs 40,000 crore disinvestment target set in the budget of February 2011. The cabinet also cleared cross-holdings among various state-owned enterprises. So far the government has managed to raise about Rs 1,100 crore and is looking to mobilise another Rs 12,500 crore with the offer for sale of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation today.
Here are key highlights:
• Public sector units or PSU boards will decide on implementation of the share buyback. Cash rich public sector companies like Coal India (cash of Rs 45,862 crore, 90 per cent government ownership), Oil and Natural Gas or ONGC (Rs 28,688 crore, 74 per cent government ownership), National Thermal Power Corporation or NTPC (Rs 17,859 crore, 84.5 per cent), Steel Authority or SAIL (Rs 17,747 crore, 85.82 per cent), National Mineral Development or NMDC (Rs 17,228 crore, 90 percent) among others can execute the buyback plan. These companies would purchase government shares using the cash on their balance sheet.
• The Cabinet has empowered a group of ministers to decide on pricing and number of shares that the government would tender in the buyback offer. However, not all public sector companies want to participate. NTPC has expressed reservations since it needs money for funding capacity.
• The government has also approved a cross-holding scheme wherein cash rich state-owned companies or financial institutions like LIC and State Bank of India would buy government holding in other public sector companies. The two financial institutions have agreed to participate in the process. This would allow government to raise money and still maintain an indirect ownership.
• Buybacks, cross-holdings are a way to increase divestment proceeds. Economists estimate that the government may be able to raise Rs20,000-30,000 crore through this route. The government needs significant non tax revenue to improve the fiscal situation. The fiscal deficit has already exceeded the limit set in budget 2011 and is set to be close to 6 per cent of GDP. This is much higher than 4.6 per cent target.
• LIC has said that it would participate in the disinvestment programme. It would consider buying PSU stocks at attractive prices. The LIC board will take a decision on individual investments and that that the institution has enough cash to participate in the programme.
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New Delhi: Ending the suspense, Government today announced the appointment of Lieutenant General Bikram Singh as the next Army Chief from May 31 to succeed General V K Singh.
59-year-old Lieutenant General Singh, the Eastern Army Commander, will head the 13-lakh strong force and have a tenure of just over two years till August 2014.
"Lieutenant General Singh has been designated as the next Chief of Army Staff, in the rank of General, with effect from the afternoon of 31 May 2012," Defence Ministry spokesperson Sitanshu Kar said here.
"He will succeed the present COAS General V K Singh, who retires from the service on May 31," he added.
As per the normal practice, the appointment of Chiefs of Defence Services is announced 60 days in advance but in this case, the government made the announcement 90 days in advance.
"I am honoured and grateful to the government for having reposed confidence in me and having appointed me as the next Chief of Army Staff," said Lieutenant General Singh in a statement this evening.
Lieutenant General Bikram Singh was the senior most among the present Army Commanders but his appointment as the Chief of Army Staff had got caught in a suspense as General V K Singh was fighting out his date of birth battle that would have given him tenure till April next year.
There had been questions over Lieutenant General Bikram Singh in connection with an alleged fake encounter in Kashmir but the government went ahead to appoint him as the Army Chief.
General V K Singh, who had two dates of birth in his official records, had dragged the government to the Supreme Court, contending that he was born on May 10, 1951 and not a year earlier.
However, the top court refused to accept his contention, holding that he had taken promotions on the basis of May 10,1950 as his date of birth and could not "resile" on his commitment accepting that date.
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Mumbai, Feb. 29 -- He coached and captained Rajasthan Royals successfully in the first edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008. But last year, champion leg spinner Shane Warne announced his retirement from professional cricket. Soon after, the Royals stated that they are "looking forward to him assuming a larger role in the team".
But even as the fifth edition of IPL gets set to kick-off in April, team co-owner Raj Kundra says Shane "has had his innings (with Rajasthan Royals)". "He is doing his own thing and is busy with his girlfriend (Liz Hurley)," says Kundra, adding, "Shane was with us for four years, and he has been great. But we need to move on and give Rahul Dravid (new captain) a chance. He is a great idol, and that's why all the kids look up to him." But isn't Rahul seen as a player who doesn't fit the IPL mould?
"Hence we kept him for a year with Shane. We believe he has the potential to captain the team," says Kundra, adding, "Still we had to persuade Rahul to become the captain. but we feel he will deliver. The main reason being he got a chance to experience how Shane worked in an out-of-the-box manner. Plus, he comes with his own mindset. He is a focused cricketer, very disciplined and his training is better than anyone I know in the cricketing world."
At the same time, Kundra accepts that the absence of Pakistani players has hit his team. "It definitely hit us but it's 20-20 cricket and that's entertainment and not pure cricket. So, the team that comes first one year can end up at the last position in the next and vice versa. This year, we have picked up a couple of good Sri Lankan players, and Brad Hodge and S Sreesanth. So, we've got a nice mix," he says.
There seems to be no end to turbulent times for debt-laden Kingfisher Airlines. The service tax department has frozen some more of its bank accounts after it missed the deadline for clearing its dues.
"Over Thursday and Friday, we froze 40 bank accounts of Kingfisher Airlines. They failed to meet the February 29 deadline to make the payments. The airline owes Rs 40 crore to the department," said Service Tax Commissioner SK Solanki on Saturday.
Last week, the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) had frozen some of its bank accounts for nonpayment of dues and had given it time till February 29 (Wednesday) to pay Rs 10 crore as arrears.
Asked if the airline had communicated with the department, he said, "Not yet as today being a Saturday. We hope to hear from them on Monday."
Since the account was frozen first time in early November last, the airline had paid only a little over Rs 30 crore, Solanki added.
Meanwhile, Corporate Affairs Minister M Veerappa Moily has said that the cash-strapped carrier was "not professionally managed" and the onus was on promoter Vijay Mallya to convince the lenders.
Chairman of the Central Board of Excise and Customs, under which the service tax department falls, SK Goel had on February 22 said the airline had to clear this indirect tax dues of Rs 70 crore before March 31. "Kingfisher has an outstanding service tax dues of Rs 70 crore and the company had promised to pay in instalments," Goel had said in New Delhi.
The beleaguered airline has been in a financial mess and is unable to meet its obligations, including paying salaries to its employees, for months on end now.
Following continuous non-payment of salaries, late last week a section of its engineers went on a 'tools-down' protest for a day. This came even as airline chairman Vijay Mallya in an internal communication towards the middle of last week had promised to clear all the salary arrears at the earliest saying he had made arrangements for that.
As crisis deepened and salaries did not come by, its employees left the crippled organisation en-masse, especially the most critical pilots. Over 60 pilots have left so far in the past few months alone.
As pilots left and the cash flow turned dry, the airline massively reduced its flights beginning mid-October. From 400 flights a day, it is operating only 170 flights now, using just 28 of its 64 fleet.
Kingfisher, suffered a loss of Rs 1,027 crore in 2010-11 and has a debt of Rs 7,057 crore. It posted a Rs 444.26 crore loss in the third quarter of this fiscal due to high fuel costs and weaker rupee, up from Rs 253.69 crore a year ago. The government has said repeatedly that it will not bailout Kingfisher Airlines.
Following orders of the aviation regulator DGCA, Kingfisher Airlines submitted a revised schedule of its flights on February 22 based on its current flying capacity. It has scaled down its operations to about 170 flights daily. When the winter schedule for the airline came into operation last October, it had sought permission for 400 daily flights. Only 28 of Kingfisher's 64 planes are currently in use.
Kingfisher Airlines is reportedly in talks with two foreign carriers including International Airlines Group (IAG), the owner of British Airways and Iberia, for a potential rescue package.
The State Bank of India (SBI), the lead lender to Kingfisher Airlines, has said it would not consider any fresh loans for the debt-laden carrier until it raises new equity itself.
The airline urgently needs at least Rs 2,000 crore working capital to remain afloat.
(With inputs from PTI )
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Mumbai: A woman in her 20s was forced by a group of four men into a car in Mumbai's Goregaon area on Wednesday afternoon; she says she was then blindfolded and molested. She was exiting a cyber-cafe when the men grabbed her. They robbed her of the jewelry she was wearing as well. They allegedly allowed her to leave the car when she told them she was pregnant. A case of attempted rape and robbery have been registered by the police.
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Mumbai: A day after the Economic Offences Wing of the Mumbai Police raided and attached properties owned by former Mumbai Congress chief Kripashankar Singh and his family, the Maharashtra government has withdrawn his security.
Mr Singh, who is alleged to have amassed assets worth over Rs. 300 crore, disproportionate to his known sources of income, had resigned from his post soon after the Bombay High Court ordered his prosecution for "criminal misconduct" under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Since then, he was untraceable. The tainted leader returned to Mumbai today.
In its February 22 order, the court had asked Mumbai Police to collect documentary evidence regarding all movable and immovable properties owned by Mr Singh and his family. The court had also ordered that the role of his family members be investigated. The court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by activist Sanjay Tiwari, who alleged that the Congress MLA had amassed wealth disproportionate to his known sources of income.
Speaking to NDTV in Mumbai today, Mr Singh said, "A PIL alone cannot be used as the basis for levelling charges against me. Allegations against me have wrecked my career."
"I am not guilty. I am not absconding. I have done nothing wrong. I will fight as per law," he asserted. "The media targeting me and my family is wrong. I do not own those many properties as are being shown," he added.
Yesterday, 12 properties owned by Mr Singh and his family members were attached by the Mumbai Police. This after over 120 police personnel spread across the city and raided the premises. The attached properties include a duplex flat with terrace in Jupiter building in Vile Parle, Tarang bungalow, two flats, two offices and a plot in suburban Bandra, a shop at Bhandup and a shop and two flats including one he obtained through Chief Minister's quota in suburban Powai and a flat in Kurla. Only one of these properties in the metropolis is in the name of Mr Singh, the rest are owned by his wife, son, daughter and son-in-law.
The attachment of his properties at Panvel, Ratnagiri and Uttar Pradesh is likely to happen today. The raids are also said to be on for the second day. Sources say the Congress leader and his family members will be questioned after documents recovered during the raids are scrutinized.
During the searches conducted yesterday, Mr Singh's two BMWs were also seized. The police also found 400 live cartridges at his residence "Tarang", located in upmarket Bandra. The police are now trying to probe whether Mr Singh and his family have the necessary arms licences.
The once powerful Congress leader yesterday failed to secure from the Supreme Court an interim stay or quashing of the Bombay High Court order on his prosecution. KRIPASHANKAR'S SON APOLOGISES
In a display of arrogance, while raids were on at tainted Mumbai Congress chief Kripashankar Singh's properties yesterday, his son Narendra Mohan flipped off mediapersons.
Today, he released a statement aplogising for the obscene gesture. "I regret the incident that took place. I am a responsible citizen and do respect freedom of press. My action though wrong, was a consequence of being under pressure at this juncture. I apologise to all media persons," the statement read.
Mr Singh also said, "What my son did was wrong and I apologise on his behalf."
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New Delhi: The Home Ministry has postponed a meeting of top police and civil officials of all states scheduled for March 9 to end the logjam on NCTC and it will now be held on March 12.
The meeting of the Chief Secretaries, Directors General of Police, state Home Secretaries and Chiefs of state Anti-Terror Squads was convened by the Union Home Secretary to discuss in detail the scope and functions of the NCTC.
Home Ministry officials said the decision to reschedule the conference to March 12 has been taken following requests from several states that due to Holi festival and a long week-end, many of the officials would not be able to attend the meeting.
Some of them also conveyed their inability to attend the crucial meeting on March 9 citing the short notice given to them and pre-scheduled engagements.
In the wake of strong protests by non-Congress Chief Ministers, the Centre has put on hold the operationalization of the National Counter Terrorism Centre from March 1 and decided to discuss with the state governments before going ahead with the plan.
In his letter to 10 Chief Ministers, Home Minister P Chidambaram had assured that the "next steps" on NCTC will be taken only after the meeting of the top officials of the states.
The Home Ministry officials are expected to allay the apprehensions of the states which said empowering NCTC with Section 43 (A) of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act would infringe on the state's powers. Section 43(A) of UA (P) A gives an officer power to arrest and search.
Chidambaram had said the powers conferred under Section 43(A) of the UA (P) Act must be read with the duty under Section 43 (B) to produce the person or article without unnecessary delay before the nearest police station (which will be under the state government), and the SHO of the police station will take further action in accordance with the provisions of the CrPC.
"I am confident that this meeting will find a way forward. My note (sent to the Chief Ministers) is self explanatory. I think the note should, I believe, have allayed many of the apprehensions including apprehensions of a section of the media and therefore let us hope that the meeting convened by the HS will find a way forward," he had said.
However, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who spearheaded protests by over a dozen Chief Ministers on the issue of setting up of NCTC on the ground that it would erode states' powers, in his third letter on NCTC to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh opposed the government calling the meeting of top state officials.
"It is imperative that instead of a meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary, an immediate meeting of Chief Ministers may be called by you to address the concerns of the states on this very urgent matter regarding the security of the nation," he told the Prime Minister
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Hyderabad: On camera, a policeman is seen slapping a young boy repeatedly. That footage - filmed by a local TV channel in Karminagar in Andhra Pradesh, has prompted an inquiry by the state's human rights commission (NDTV did not film the incident; the footage used is courtesy TV9 channel). "This incident appears to be barbaric and violates the human rights of the boy, who was dealt with unlawfully," said a member of the commission, Kakumanu Peda Peri Reddy. The boy who is assaulted repeatedly and with full force is 16 years old. The police has been asked to explain what happened by March 7. Circle police inspector Deva Reddy and constable Ganga Reddy suspected that the teen was guilty of stealing petrol and spare parts from parked cars. His family says that the policemen hit him on his hands with a stick and that the inspector took out his revolver and pointed it at him. After a local television channel telecast the footage, senior policemen conducted an inquiry. Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) A Rama Rajeshwari said the inspector and constable were guilty of "high-handedness" and has recommended disciplinary action against the duo. "I also saw the original video footage and the cops prima facie seem to be responsible for the high-handedness and I recommended for disciplinary action against them," she told PTI, adding the locals handed over the boy to the police when they caught him "indulging in theft".
As part of the investigation, the inspector had taken the boy to scene of offence and while being examined the CI and the constable seem to have slapped and hit the boy with a stick, she explained.
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There is an understated elegance about Irrfan (he dropped the last name Khan some time ago) in Paan Singh Tomar. He plays a national level athlete who becomes a dreaded dacoit in the Chambal Valley. Tomar sprints over hurdles with breathtaking ease and eventually displays the same stubborn determination while murdering men who have robbed him of his ancestral land. Irrfan imbues Tomar with grace and a quiet dignity. So even when he meets the inevitable fate of a bandit and his body riddled with bullets, collapses into the dusty ground, there is something heroic about him.
Paan Singh Tomar is fiction inspired by true events. The story is remarkable –Tomar is an army subedaar who gets into athletics only because sportsmen get more to eat. After a race, the first thing he does is grab and devour a bunch of bananas. Tomar keeps his faith in the system and doesn’t resort to violence until a lethargic, blatantly corrupt cop refuses to register his complaint and instead asks Tomar, who has travelled abroad for sporting competitions, why foreigners wear such few clothes. Hurt and angry, Tomar wonders: Desh keliye faltu bhagey kya?
The moment has genuine pathos. As does Tomar’s wounded declaration to a journalist that despite being a seven-time National Games winner, he remained anonymous, while murder and kidnapping brought him fame. But despite the rich raw material and quality performances, Paan Singh Tomar doesn’t soar. Stretches of the screenplay are sluggish and strangely inert. More critically, I never got a sense of what Tomar’s conversion from an army man to a murderer did to his psyche. Yes, he resorts to violence only because he is provoked but subsequently, he seems oddly at ease with his criminality. Director Tigmanshu Dhulia establishes a loving relationship between Tomar and his wife, Indra, played by Mahie Gill. But Indra and his two children largely disappear from his life when he becomes an outlaw and we never really see him ache for them.
Dhulia was a casting director on Shekhar Kapur’s Bandit Queen. In interviews, he has said that he first heard about Paan Singh Tomar while working on that film and decided that some day he would make a film on him. Tomar was a confrère of Phoolan Devi. Naturally then, we see some of the same motifs – the spidery curves of the ravines that seem to swallow up the dacoits, their habit of announcing their presence on loudspeakers, a massacre that leads to a police clampdown. But Paan Singh Tomar doesn’t sock you in the gut like Bandit Queen did, partly because none of the supporting characters have enough flesh on them. The villains are especially non-descript, nasty but not menacing.
Paan Singh Tomar has good intentions but not enough emotional heft. I wanted to feel more. But what Dhulia and Irrfan do give us is a fascinating character who was at once, complex and childlike. He makes it worth watching.
KRIPASHANKAR'S SON APOLOGISES 
