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Dreaded militant arrested in Ludhiana

          Ludhiana: Police claimed to have arrested a dreaded terrorist accused in high-profile kidnappings and murders, here Monday. Harnek Singh alias Nattu, a member of Khalistan Liberation Force (KLO), was arrested in Ludhiana. Police said Singh was also accused of abducting son of a former federal minister for ransom. Singh said he had joined the militant outfit to avenge the killings of Sikhs in 1984 after the assassination of former prime minister Indira Gandhi. "I joined the Khalistan Liberation Force in 1990 because our community was attacked in Delhi. So I wanted to take revenge. I have always been with the movement. Till 1995 our movement was strong but now I was working alone," he told reporters.

Youth attempts suicide for new capital for Uttaranchal (Go To Top)

          Dehradun: A youth activist protesting for a new capital in Uttaranchal made an unsuccessful suicide attempt on Monday, accusing state authorities of apathy and indifference. The attempt was the latest in the ongoing agitation for shifting of capital to Gairsain in Chamoli district from the present Dehradun. Earlier this month, a 61-year old leader died after sitting on an indefinite fast over the issue, leading to massive protests and shutdowns in the state. The activists say Gairsain, an ethnic region nestled in the Himalayas, gives a much truer representation of the hilly state. Mukesh Chand, who attempted suicide by poisioning and called his friends asking them to hold the state government responsible, was saved after they managed to reach his home in time. "The movement's activists are on the verge of disappointment. When there is extreme disappointment then people take extreme steps and for this the administration and state is reponsible for the consequences," Sushila Baluni, leader of the state's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, said. The Congress party-ruled state has, however, refused to budge on the matter saying the matter will be resolved only after a political consensus. State chief Narain Dutt Tiwari said the feasibility of a new capital, costs of infrastructure and practical details like terrian and connectivity will have to be taken into consideration. "We are waiting for the Dixit commissions's reports. We have to find out whether there are facilities nearby. Accomodation for the employees and other facilities will have to be there then only we can think of shifting the capital," Tiwari said.

'Tainted ministers' issue returns to rock LS (Go To Top)

         New Delhi: The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes on Monday as it resumed sittings for the Budget session following uproar by opposition lawmakers on the "tainted ministers" issue. The main opposition, the NDA, demanded the ruling UPA to explain why the Bihar government had withdrawn a slew of criminal cases against Minister for State for Food and Civil Supplies Md. Taslimuddin. BJP spokesman Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said: "The federal government will have to give clarification what was the urgency on the part of Bihar government that overnight the state chief minister decided to withdraw all cases against Taslimuddin. All these things needs to be discussed." The BJP has been running a campaign demanding from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to remove ministers from his cabinet charged with anything from swindling money to murder. Last month Shibu Soren quit the union cabinet after a court ordered his arrest in a nearly three decades old case. The NDA has also been boycotting Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, the RJD chief, undergoing trial in scores of cases related to fodder scam. Meanwhile, Taslimuddin lashed out at the Hindu nationalists, saying their "tainted" ministers never quit during the NDA's rule. On the other hand, Taslimuddin said that he won't resign as he had been given a clean chit by the Bihar government. "The BJP closes its eyes to what it itself has been doing for so long. There were at least four ministers in its cabinet against whom cases were registered but they did not do anything. They have got nothing to do so they are raking up such issues," Taslimuddin told reporters.

Cable TV operators to go on indefinite strike (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: Cable TV services will be paralysed across the country from Tuesday with a major cable operators forum deciding to go on an indefinite strike against the proposal to bring them under the service tax net. The decision was taken by All India Cable TV Forum, a group of major Multi System Operators (MSO) that includes MSOs like Hathway, Siti Cable, IN Cable, RPG, Trinity, Rajasthan Cable Operators Front and Federation of Punjab Cable Operators. "The imposition of service tax on cable industry is unjustified and we have decided to go on an indefinite strike from tomorrow," Jawahar Goel from SitiCable told newspersons here. The Forum said that their members will distribute only four news channels, while all other channels will be blocked.

Student agitator dies in Manipur, tension mounts (Go To Top)

          Imphal: A student leader who attempted self- immolation succumbed to his injuries today, raising tension in Manipur where the government cracked down on the agitation for the withdrawal of the Armed Forces Special Powers Act arresting eight proment women leaders, official sources said. The sources said 28-year old Pebam Chitaranjan, who received ninety per cent burns while attempting to set himself ablaze yesterday, died at 2:00 pm this afternoon at the Regional Institute of Medical Science Hospital here. Reports said security and police posts were put on maximum alert as the news of the death of Chitaranjan, advisor to the Manipur Students Federation, spread like wildfire creating tension in the valley.

Arjun rejects RSS demand for apology (Go To Top)

         New Delhi: HRD Minister Arjun Singh today rejected the RSS demand for an apology for suggesting the organisation's involvement in Mahatma Gandhi's assassination and dismissed reports that he was 'posturing' for the Prime Minister's post. "As a Congress worker it has been an article of faith for me to fight against all communal forces, which I have been doing for the last 45 years," he said while addressing reporters. Meanwhile, the RSS said that it would initiate legal proceedings against Arjun Singh 'very soon' after the latter rejected its demand for apology for suggesting the organisation's involvement in Mahatma Gandhi's assassination. "We will file a case. We will be initiating the legal process very soon," RSS spokesman Ram Madhav said. He added that the organisation was awaiting a "formal response" to its legal notice from Singh.

Soren gets bail in 1999 case  (Go To Top)

         Jamshedpur: A local court granted bail to JMM chief and former coal minister Shibu Soren in connection with a case of violation of Section 144 CrPC in 1999. Chief Judicial Magistrate AK Chaturvedi granted bail to Soren, who was brought in Jamshedpur from Jamtara this morning. At present Soren is under arrest in Jamtara in connection with the Chirrudih massacre case where he is accused of killing a man several decades ago. He had surrendered before a lower court following the non-bailable warrants issued against him. He remained underground for several weeks before surrendering. Soren was included in the Congress-led UPA government headed by Dr Manmohan Singh. But he had to resign after the Opposition vociferously demanded his resignation for more than a week. The Soren issue had rocked the Parliament during the first half of the ongoing Budget session.

CPM MP's husband held for running sex racket  (Go To Top)

         Kolkata/ New Delhi: The West Bengal police arrested Avtar Singh, the husband of Jyotirmoyee Sikdar, a sitting Lok Sabha MP and former celebrated sprint runner, on charges of running a sex racket. Jyotirmoyee belongs to CPM and is an MP from Krishnagar in West Bengal The police also nabbed at least four men and an equal number of women from the Merilyn Park Hotel, owned by Singh himself, during the raid conducted after getting a tip off. The hotel is located at Sector Five in Salt Lake. The arrest took place late on Sunday night, and the accused were slated to be produced in a lower court on Monday. Efforts were made to contact the MP in the Capital, where she was present to attend the Budget session, but in vain.