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Key accused in Sankararaman murder case nabbed

     Kancheepuram: With the arrest of one Krishnasamy alias 'Appu', the local police today claimed to have made a major breakthrough in the Sankararaman murder case, in relation to which Kanchi Sankaracharya Jyaendra Saraswati has been in police custody for more than two weeks. He was arrested at Puthur near Chitoor in Andhra Pradesh. According to the police, Appu is the key accused in the murder case. As per the last reports that came in, Appu was taken to Hyderabad and was being brought to Kancheepuram for interrogation. The police said that Appu is the kingpin who organised the killing of Sankararaman, the manager of the Varadaraja Perumal temple at Kancheepuram on September 3.

Police team in Hyderabad to probe Sankaraman case (Go To Top)

     Hyderabad: A seven-member special investigation team has arrived here from Chennai to find out further leads relating to the September 3 murder of temple manager Sankararaman. The team cladestinely landed here by a special aircraft today. The seven-member team includes Premkumar and Additional Superintendent of Police and Investigation officer of the case Mr Sakthivel. Tamil Nadu police have already arrested 20 persons including the Kanchi Kamakoti Seer Jayendra Saraswati in connection with the case.

Cong threatens to rethink alliance with NCP (Go To Top)

     Mumbai: The Vilasrao Deshmukh government in Maharashtra faces its first big crisis after Congress' humiliating defeat at the hands of NCP in the Legislative Council elections across the state. The Congress couldn't bag even a single civic body, while the NCP, which stood on its own, won a majority in six out of seven civic bodies. The Congress and NCP had fought in an alliance and had agreed that the Congress will contest two council seats and the NCP will fight on five. But the Congress claims that the NCP put up candidates in the two seats allotted to them as well and ended up winning those. Stung by the defeat, the Congress today said it will have to rethink on forming an alliance with NCP for contesting future elections. "The Congress will have to rethink on whether to have a truck with NCP for future elections," MPCC chief Prabha Rau told newsmen. However, Rau clarified that a final decision regarding continuance of alliance with NCP for future election will be taken up by the party high command. The NCP has, meanwhile, said that it was the Congress that first put up a candidate in a seat allotted to them.

Putin supports India's entry into UNSC (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday fully supported India's entry into the UN Security Council as a permanent member. Putin, however, said he was not in favour of veto rights to new members. "Speaking about the role of veto, we should say that we believe it would be absolutely unacceptable to erode such tools of the UN," he told a joint press conference with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. "Because, otherwise, the UN organisation will lose its weight and lose its role changing into some discussion club, some new addition of the League of Nations," he said. The press conference followed wide-ranging talks between the two leaders on a host of bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual concern. Favouring re-organisation of the UN, Putin said, "India is our strategic privileged partner.

     Speaking from the point of view of geographical representation, India is number one." He said in the process of negotiations, "We show significant flexibility. We have full understanding, mutual understanding with our Indian partners in this matter." The Russian leader said, "Our position is in preserving United Nation's universal character and serving as a tool for the resolution of all the problems of the modern world." Putin, who is on a three-day visit to India, advocated expansion of the Security Council. "Beyond any doubt, there should be no deterrents in the rights of the members of the Security Council. I think that would have been a destructive approach," Putin said. The two countries also signed a Joint Declaration emphasising strategic partnership and taking note of the transformation in the global environment in the recent past. Accords on outer space, long-term cooperation in the field of joint development and use of Russian Global Navigational Satellite System (GLONASS) for peaceful purposes were also signed. Besides, the two sides inked pacts on visa-free travel for holders of diplomatic and official passports and cooperation between the cities of Mumbai and St Petersburg.

     Putin arrived early on Friday on a three-day official visit to the country. He also met External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh. This is Putin's first visit in two years aimed at seeking to provide new momentum to an old friendship by expanding business, energy and traditional military ties.

India, Russia ink joint declaration for strategic partnership (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Indian and Russia today signed a joint declaration emphasising strategic partnership between the two countries. The two countries also signed accords on outer-space, long-term co-operation in the field of joint development and use of Russian Global Navigational Satellite System (GLONASS) for peaceful purposes, visa-free travel for holders of diplomatic and official passports and co-operation between the cities of Mumbai and St Petersburg. The agreement on outer space and GLONASS was signed by ISRO chairman G. Madhavan Nair and Director of Russian Federal Space Agency A. Perminov. India's Foreign Secretary Shyam Sharan inked the deal on visa- free travel with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Alexeev, while Mumbai Municipal Corporation Mayor Mahadev Deole signed the agreement for co-operation with Valentina Matvienko, Governor of President Vladimir Putin's home town St Petersburg.

Five CRPF men killed in Sopore suicide attack (Go To Top)

     Srinagar: As many as five CRPF soldiers were killed and many security personnel, including a few local policemen, injured in Baramullah when two unidentified terrorists carried out a suicide attack early morning. The terrorist attack was carried out a joint camp of CRPF and local police in Sopore area of the district A terrorist outfit "Al Mansoorian" later claimed responsibility for the attack. Confirming the killing of five CRPF personnel, a CRPF spokesman said that the figure of those injured could not be known. The CRPF camp is located near the townhall and Sopore Degree College.