Punters put odds on Oscar awards! (Go To Top)

          Sydney: The Oscar night is fast approaching and adrenalin levels are at an all-time high. And pepping up the excitement a bit further are the punters who have now swung into action. Lord of the Rings: Return of the King is the stand-out favourite for a best picture Oscar, having garnered acclaim from BAFTA, the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild earlier. According to the Hearld Sun, it's the shortest-priced Oscar favourite ever with TAB Sportsbet at only 1.06 dollars.

          The next best bet is Mystic River at 9 dollars while Lost in Translation, Master and Commander and Seabiscuit just blow out. According to Sportsbet's Gary Davies, in this year of the short- priced Oscar favourite, Sean Penn for Best Actor in Mystic River is the longest price, and even then he's only paying 1.55 dollars. Bill Murray (Lost in Translation) at 2.60 dollars, and Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean) at 7 dollars are his close competitors.

          Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor and Best Supporting Actress are the five categories open for betting. Charlize Theron serial killer prostitute in Monster is down to 1.12 dollars from 1.30 dollars raising hopes of her winning the Best Actress Oscar. Diane Keaton, for her role opposite Jack Nicholson in the romantic comedy Something's Gotta Give seems to be her only possible challenger, the reprt concludes.

Mufti escapes unhurt, girl dies in Srinagar grenade attack (Go To Top)

          Beeru (J and K): Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed escaped unhurt when suspected militants fired two grenades at him at a public meeting here on Friday. A girl died and four people, including a policeman, were wounded in the attack that took place in Beeru area, west of Srinagar. Police guarding the meeting returned fire. Sayeed, who took power in 2002 promising a healing touch to the Kashmiri people, was in Beeru to inaugurate a government building. The attack on Sayeed's meeting came as hundreds of demonstrators gathered near Srinagar's main mosque to protest against what they said were human rights violations by Indian security forces in the region.

30 killed in West Bengal train-truck collision (Go To Top)

         Kolkata: At least 30 people were killed when a train collided with a truck here Friday. The accident occurred at an unmanned level-crossing in Dinajpur district of West Bengal when the super-fast Kanchenjunga Express slammed into the truck carrying a marriage party. The killed were all occupants of the truck, the railway sources said, adding, the accident occurred between Suraj Kamal and Kanke railway stations, around 100 km from Jalpaiguri, at 5:10 p.m. The number of injured was not known, they said.

Sonia urges `like-minded secular parties' to join hands (Go To Top)

          New Delhi/Gorakhpur: Congress president and leader of Opposition Sonia Gandhi has urged the like-minded parties to join hands and work for the rights of the low caste people. Without naming any party, Sonia on Friday appealed to them to join hands. "Whoever is fighting against the atrocities and injustice towards the weaker sections of the society have to come together. I strongly believe that if we come together and go forward, we will get rid of injustice and atrocities. We will reach destination of justice and equality," Gandhi said while addressing a national convention of All-India Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Castes Employees Association in the Capital.

          Meanwhile, in a related development, the Congress received a shot in the arm on Friday with steel magnate Naveen Jindal formally joining the party. Jindal's entry is seen as a morale booster for the party especially in Haryana from where he is likely to contest the election.

          Meanwhile, the BJP also swelled ranks with the joining of a popular figure in the north-eastern region. "With Bhupen da (Bhupen Hazarika) joining the BJP today, I can say that Congress will start from zero in the north-east. The claim made by Congress that it will win all the 25 seats in the north-east has been nullified. They are going to lose those seats and the BJP is going to gain all the 25 seats. I, on behalf of the entire party welcome Bhupen da," said Sushma Swaraj, the Union health minister.

          Singh Yadav said the real "feel-good" factor is in his state, where he announced a series of sops in different fields. "This is real good when the fees till the 12th standard will be made free. This is real good," Singh said addressing a public rally in northern Gorakhpur town. Yadav's Samajwadi Party is a strong force in the country's most populous state, which sends 80 members to the Lok Sabha. Though the Election Commission has not yet announced the election dates, opinion polls ahead of it indicated that Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee's BJP-led coalition would return to power.

Daler Mehndi back in action! (Go To Top)

          Lalheri (Punjab): Famous Punjabi pop singer Daler Mehndi enthralled hundreds of fans in village Lalheri in Punjab on Thursday even as he gave a live song and dance performance. The show was one of Mehndi's firsts, after being let off in a fraud visa case, which had virtually threatened the pop star's musical career. But, what made the event so special was the fact that it was Mehndi's first performance at a religious place. After his indictment last year, Mehndi had prayed at the shrine of a local saint in Lalheri village, and Thursday's performance was a thanks-giving. Mehndi said that he was relieved to be back in the business. "I am very happy that I am performing for the first time at a religious place. I will perform whenever these people call me in the future also," said Mehndi. The high-profile singer, who was jailed for his alleged involvement in human trafficking, was later granted a bail in the absence of any evidence against him. Mehndi hit headlines in 1998 when he signed a 25 million rupees contract with music major Magnasound to become the country's highest-paid pop singer.

Gujarat case: SC seeks explanation from Centre (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought an explanation from the Centre regarding protection demanded by witnesses in the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat. The witnesses and victims have alleged that they were facing constant threats and harassment, and feared for their lives. They have stated that they do not have faith in the state machinery, particularly the police. The court asked the Centre to reply by March 15. "Witnesses are not safe in Gujarat. Petitioners requested the Centre that witness should be given protection from the CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force). The Supreme Court has asked the Union government to examine the application and fixed the date for the next hearing for March 15," said Teesta Setalvad, representing one of the main petitioners Zahira Sheikh.

          Zaheera is the main witness in Best Bakery case, which involved the killing of 14 Muslims in a bakery by a frenzied mob during the savage communal riots. The Muslim girl had earlier refused to depose before a special court that acquitted 21 accused in the massacre due to lack of evidence, saying she was being threatened. At least 1000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed in reprisal killings in Gujarat in 2002, after a Muslim mob torched a train, burning alive 59 Hindu activists. The state has so far failed to convict any one for the riots, the country's worst religious violence in a decade, although trials are going on in several courts.

UK women MPs raise doubts over women's reservation in India (Go To Top)
by Trevor Barnard

          London: Not surprisingly, when a group of ten women Labour MPs visited India earlier this month, women's issues featured prominently in their discussions - not the least the issue of reserved seats for women in Parliament. Back in London, the MPs have spoken of their general impression that the people in India want to see more women in Parliament but are doubtful about how best to achieve that goal.

          Recalling discussions with students in Delhi, one of the visiting MPs, Jackie Lawrence, said: "What they were actually interested in amongst a group of ten women was the mechanism by which we personally had progressed through politics and become MPs. They were very interested in the fact that in this country we could approach it through our various political parties, and while there was great support for the idea of more women in parliament, nobody seemed entirely sure how the 20% reservation system was actually going to work in practice."

         The students felt that Indian women had to have family or other connections to enter politics, and were fascinated to know that the ten visiting MPs had entered politics either through student activities or family encouragement. And in discussions with the National Women's Commission, the question arose as to whether greater representation for women was better approached through the political parties rather than by reservation. Talking to politicians, the visitors got the impression that they believed that having a woman candidate could be an advantage, and a view was expressed that women were considered less corrupt than men.

          The MPs nine-day itinerary included a visit to a call centre, which led to their unanimous praise for the way India's fastest growing industry is being run. The delegation included several whose constituencies had seen job losses through the transfer of local call centres to India, but they expressed the view that outsourcing was of benefit to both the UK and India, and that it was a global market that could not be stopped.

Jehadis threaten to scuttle Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service (Go To Top)

          Muzaffarabad: Unhappy with the Indian and Pakistani governments' slew of confidence-building measures, Jehadi groups based in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir have threatened to strike and sabotage the proposed bus service between Muzaffarabad and Srinagar as and when it starts. "The Akhwan-ul-Muslimeen, Jaish Muhammad and Jamiat-ul-Ansar have warned the public not to take the bus because they will hit it when it starts," a Jihadi leader requesting anonymity told the Daily Times. "Militant organisations from both sides of Kashmir are against such peace initiatives and want to scare people away from the bus service," is the general public view here.

          They claimed that because of this threat, most political parties and people were unwilling to accept visas or other conditional requirements for travel. "Visa restrictions also weaken Pakistan's official stance that Kashmir is a disputed territory according to United Nations resolutions," Mir Dawood, a local leader of the Jammu Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), was quoted by the paper, as saying. "Jihadis' will be out of business if the divided families meet," commented Aysha Afroze Butt, the Jammu Kashmir National Liberation Front (JKNLF) women's wing president. "The bus service could damage the Kashmiris' freedom struggle. They are fighting for their right of self-determination and the bus service would mean that Pakistan has withdrawn from its position," an unnamed Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander was quoted as saying.

Sharif, Benazir can come back, but will have to face cases: Jamali (Go To Top)

          Islamabad: Former premiers Mian Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto are welcome to come back to Pakistan any time, but they will have to face all the pending cases against them, said incumbent Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali. "Benazir Bhutto left the country during the Nawaz Sharif tenure on her own. And Nawaz Sharif was bound to proceed to Saudi Arabia under an agreement," Jamali was quoted by The Nation, as saying. He said that the two exiled leaders have the same rights in Pakistan as he did. "If they call themselves true public leaders, it is binding on them to come back to play their due political role without much ado," Jamali said. Taking exception to some of Benazir's recent statements, he sarcastically said: "My advice for her is nothing but to return and ask us what is imperative for the national security and solidarity, like a true public-representative leader."

Now, Pak's health minister calls for a nuke-free world (Go To Top)

          Islamabad: The international uproar over Pakistan's clandestine nuclear activities notwithstanding, Pakistan's Health Minister Nasir Khan has said that a nuclear-free world is imperative to ensure sustainable peace. Khan voiced this opinion while talking to a delegation of International Physicians for Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) here on Thursday.

Chinese and Hindi likely to dethrone English! (Go To Top)

          London: By 2050 Hindi will be widely spoken over the world, in addition to Urdu, Arabic and Chinese which will replace English as the first language, according to David Graddol, a language expert. The proportion of the world's population that grows up speaking English is likely to decline and Mandarin Chinese will become the next "must learn" language, reports the Telegraph. In 1995, English was second only to Chinese as the most common language in the world, in terms of native speakers. But, it would probably fall in importance within the next 50 years, said Mr. Graddol, director of the Milton Keynes-based language consultancy, the English Company (UK) Ltd. For the young generation of 15 to 24-year-olds, English was expected to slip to fourth place in the language "league". Chinese would still dominate, with 166 million native speakers aged 15 to 24.

US bid to `democratise' Islamic world: Paper (Go To Top)

         London: The US has evolved a "greater Middle East initiative" the core objective of which is ridding of the kings and monarchs in several Middle East countries, the News reported on Friday. The initiative, yet to be unveiled, has been evolved for "democratisation and economic liberalisation of the Arab and Islamic world, bringing it under a Western security umbrella," the paper quoted a source as saying. According to the report, in the preparation of the US-EU Summit, the Nato Summit and the G-8 Summit to be held in Europe this summer, the issue of democratisation and economic liberalisation of the Arab and Islamic world is regarded as the fulcrum of all discussions as the EU wants to forge a joint approach to the Middle East. Discussions on this issue among the Nato allies, EU member states and the G-8 countries are already under way. The US will face strong opposition from some EU member states, when it unveils its plan in June this year, the report states.

          EU foreign policy Chief Javier Solana has been mandated to draw up a more detailed strategy for a "common future with the Middle East". Solana will travel to Washington on Monday where he will outline key points of the EU's approach at a ministerial meeting. According to the report, the "greater Middle East" initiative mooted by the US is facing vitriolic criticism from some European countries even before the US-EU summit. In his meeting with the Irish Prime Minister, US President George Bush would try to take the block of 25 European countries into confidence on the plan, the diplomat confided to the News on condition of anonymity.

Indians a bunch of 'under-achievers': Rashid Latif (Go To Top)

         Karachi: India is certainly are not the favourite to win next month's one-day and Test series against Pakistan, claims former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif. "To me they are not the favourites for this series. Simply look at their recent record. They have not achieved anything notable in Test cricket and in One-day Internationals and they have choked in the big matches," Latif told the News in an interview. Describing the "Men in Blue" as a bunch of "under-achievers", the 35-year old former wicket-keeper who has appeared in 37 Tests and 164 one-day internationals, further pointed out that, "You can count the occasions when they have bowled out sides twice in a Test. Which is why they have not won many tests or series. Plus they are prone to playing negative cricket."

         Even in Australia, he said the Indians did not have the confidence to enforce the follow-on after scoring 700 runs in the Sydney Test. "In comparison you look at Pakistan's record. It may be an unpredictable team but it has won more Tests and ODIs in the last four five years simply because it has had the bowling to bowl out sides twice. Secondly Pakistan has no big superstar but plays like a unit with every player capable of turning in a match winning performance," he said. "Pakistan has another edge over them, an edge which will be very important in the coming series. Inzamam-ul-Haq commands his place in the team on pure performances alone and not simply because he is the captain," Latif said.