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Villagers in Bihar set police station on fire

         Delha (Bihar): Hundreds of angry villagers attacked and burnt a police station here Friday after some unidentified gunmen shot dead four members of a family and critically injured a two-year-old. The motive behind the killings, which happened late Thursday in Delha village, few kilometers from Gaya, are yet to be ascertained but police suspect an old family feud. "The son of the family escaped unhurt but the remaining people were killed. The mother, father and two sisters were killed. A small child is injured. We think there is an old enmity. Otherwise there seems to be no other reason," SHO Sudhir Kumar said. The incident was reported by the the family's only son, Manoj, who survived by hiding under a cot. Manoj's two-year old cousin, who was badly hit on the neck, also survived. "We were sleeping. I heard gunshots. They were firing and I heard people crying. They were saying how long will we remain alive," he said. The locals, however, allege that the police are taking the incident casually and are waging an open battle against them, breaking jeeps and other vehicles used by the authorities. Meanwhile, at least 25 people, including two activists of the Communist Party of India (ML), have been taken into custody for attacking the police station

Justice Rajendra Babu new CJI (Go To Top)

New Delhi: Senior-most Supreme Court judge Justice S. Rajendra Babu will be sworn in as the 34th Chief Justice of India by President APJ Abdul Kalam here Sunday. The present incumbent Visheshwar Nath Khare retires on that day after nearly 17 months in office. Justice Babu's is expected to be one of the shortest tenures in office - 30 days, he being due to retire on June 1. The warrants of appointment were issued by President Kalam two weeks ago under Clause (2) of Article 124 of the Constitution. Born on June 1, 1939, Justice Babu enrolled as an advocate in January 1965. He was appointed a permanent judge of the Karnataka High Court in February 1988 and a judge of the country's apex court in September 1997.

Bilkis case: Warrant against cop (Go To Top)

          Ahmedabad: A local court on Friday issued non- bailable warrants against a police officer involved in the gang rape of Muslim woman and murder of 14 of her family members during communal riots in Gujarat in 2002. The latest warrants come against R.S Bhagora, who was the then police station officer in the area. The court also exempted two more senior superintendents of police, named in the chargesheet, from being present for Friday's hearing but directed them to appear before it on May 4. "Today in the court we have submitted a petition that the officers who had to appear in both the high court and this court, since they have already appeared in the high court have sought exemption to be present here. This court has given them the exemption and has asked them to appear on May 4," Arvind Pandya, the defence lawyer, told reporters in Ahmedabad, where the case is being tried.

         The CBI had earlier this year confirmed a police cover-up of the rape and filed chargesheets against 20 people, of which 14 have been arrested. More than 1000 people, mostly Muslims died in revenge killings after 59 Hindus were burned to death in a train by a Muslim mob. Rights group estimate the death toll at 2500. Bilkis Bano, a key witness in the gang rape case, had alleged that a mob of 500 people had attacked them and at least three women, including her sister, were gang raped on March 3, 2002. Bano and her husband Yakoob Patel are the only survivors in the family of 16 even as the rest were burnt alive. The CBI report confirmed that pieces of cloth exhumed from the grave of those killed in Dahod match those in a photograph taken by the police after the post- mortem. The report also confirmed that police dumped 60 kg of salt to decompose the bodies faster.

Central team to submit Godhra riot report (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: A Central team that recently visited riot-affected areas of Gujarat will submit its report to the Home Ministry today. The team is likely to recommend security cover for key witnesses in nine riot cases. The three-member team visited several areas in and around Ahmedabad and other suburban areas and held talks with the riot victims besides examining the security provided by the state police.

Delhi 'PMT-tainted' cop arrested (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: Threatening the family members of the accused in the CBSE-PMT paper leak case today landed sub- inspector Sanjay Gupta in jail. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Gupta after he allegedly threatened the family members of Ranjit Singh. The CBI also recovered Rs.2.5 lakh from Gupta's residence, besides several other incriminating documents. According to an agency report, the entire CBSE-PMT case took a curious turn on Thursday evening with the arrest of Gupta and his conduit constable Umed Singh. Both were to be produced before a CBI court later today.

Four militants killed (Go To Top)

          Srinagar: Four militants, including two belonging to Hizbul Mujahideen, were killed today in separate operations in the Kashmir Valley. Two Hizb militants were killed at Dardpora in Anantnag district in south Kashmir early this morning. Two AK assault rifles were recovered from their possession. Two other militants were killed at Kulangam in North Kashmir's Kupwara district.

Indian-Americans celebrate launch of Senate Caucus (Go To Top)
by Priscilla Huff

          Washington: The Indian-American community celebrated the launch of the U.S. Senate's new caucus on India, with a press conference and reception here on Thursday. A caucus is an alliance of like-minded U.S. Senators who intend to discuss issues of interest to themselves, their constituents and to members of the Indian-American community. U.S. Senator John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, who will chair the caucus, praised its creation by telling ANI TV, "This provides a forum for U.S. Senators and Indian leaders to consider strategic and economic cooperation between the two nations."

          The tone of most of the remarks was one of praise and celebration, but the U.S. Senators could not avoid the more difficult issues of the U.S.-India relationship. Former U.S. First Lady and now the Democratic Senator from New York, Hillary Clinton, agreed, the caucus must address the question of nuclear proliferation that had affected the Indian subcontinent, most notably Pakistan. Clinton also noted that the immigrants from Asia are one of the fastest growing population groups in the United States, with more than 13 million residents coming over since July 1, 2002. The growing role of Indian Americans in the US political arena could also be seen by the fact that leaders of this community were active participants in American politics, examples being the recent gubernatorial races in conservative states like Louisiana and Indiana, she said.

          Already, 332 members of the U.S. Senate, that's about a third of the membership, has joined the caucus. The membership is bipartisan, both Republicans and Democrats. The press conference attracted a roster of important Washington names, including the chairman of the Senate's all-powerful Appropriations Committee, Senator Ted Stevens of Alaska, the former Senate Majority Leader, Senator Trent Lott and the current Senate Majority Leader Dr.Bill Frist.

Pak tells India to reduce its troops (Go To Top)

          Islamabad: Pakistan has asked India to consider reducing its troops to improve the regional situation. "It was Pakistan's decision to reduce the army by 50,000 soldiers, but the idea of reducing troops can be discussed with New Delhi if India agrees on a mutual agreement in this regard," Pakistan Army spokesman Major General Shaukat Sultan told a private TV channel. According to the Daily Times, Sultan said that a joint agreement could be arrived at in this regard to improve the regional situation. Pakistan did not want to be part of a regional arms race or increase its troop strength, but the military would maintain a minimum deterrence for defense purposes, he added.

Pak film exhibitors' threat over Indian movies (Go To Top)

          Lahore: The Pakistan Film Exhibitors Association (PFEA) and the Pakistan Film Producers Association (PFPA) have decided to defer their planned strike from May 6 to May 15, asking the government to meet its demands before that date. Talking to the Daily Times, Zoraiz Lashari of the PFEA and Amjad Farzand of the PFPA said they would close all cinemas in the country soon as the government was not allowing them to screen Indian films. Farzand said that their major concern was the recognition of film and cinema as an industry in Pakistan. He also said that Indian films should be allowed in Pakistani cinemas, as "We need to save our cinemas from total collapse and provide quality entertainment to our cinema viewers."

Victorious junior hockey team returns (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: Indian colts returned home Friday after winning the junior Asia Cup Hockey championship in Pakistan. The players were given a warm welcome by the supporters when they arrived at the international airport in New Delhi. They had beaten Pakistan 5-2 on Thursday in Karachi. The players were very happy to beat the Pakistani team in the finals, and that too in Pakistan. "We are feeling very happy to be back home. We won the trophy for the first time .. we won the seniors' cup, we won the women's cup and now this. The best part is that we won in Pakistan. That is the best part," Sandeep Michael, the captain, said. Harinder Singh, the team coach, described the victory as ultimate dream by any hockey player. "I think it is ultimate achievement that for any hockey player. It's a dream for any hockey player to play and win in Pakistan. I think it's an ultimate achievement," he said. It was India's first Asia Cup victory on Pakistani soil.