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Birlas to move court over Priyamvada's will

          Kolkata: The Birlas have decided to move the court challenging the will of Priyamvada Birla bequeathing Rs 5000 crore assets of the MP Birla group to Rajendra S. Lodha, who was appointed as co-chairman of the company five years back. According to sources, Gangaprasad, Basant Kumar and Krishna Kumar of the Birla group unanimously took the decision after a series of meetings with lawyers, solicitors and family members. "We're sure that the will is fabricated and so are going to challenge it in the court of law. We'll be moving the Calcutta High Court within next two to three days and if possible earlier also," he added. The Birla veterans met on Tuesday in the aftermath of the opening of the will of widow of Madhav Prasad Birla late Priyamvada Birla who passed away on July 3.

BJP to oppose FDI hike: Vajpayee (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: Former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today announced that the BJP will oppose the Congress-led UPA government's move to increase the limit on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the insurance, telecom and civil aviation sectors. "We will oppose it," Vajpayee was quoted as saying after a meeting with NDA leaders, which was attended by senior leaders LK Advani, George Fernandes, Jaswant Singh and SS Dhindsa. Though the BJP was initially in favour of the increase in FDI, pressure from the Sangh Parivar and NDA allies forced it to backtrack on its decision.

Armitage apologises to Fernandes (Go To Top)

          New Delhi: US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage on Wednesday met the Leader of Opposition LK Advani during his two-day visit to the Capital. Armitage said that he discussed all regional and international issues, including India's relations with the US and Pakistan, during his brief 30-minute meeting. "I wanted to get his appreciation on both Indo-US and India-Pakistan relations and also discussed the neighbourhood and I briefed him very concisely about Iraq and the situation there," Armitage told reporters after the meeting. He said he apologised to India's former defence minister George Fernandes after it was reported that he was twice strip-searched at Washington airport while on official business during his ministership. "On the way in the car, I had an opportunity to telephone my old friend George Fernandes and I told him I heard about this and I was horrified about it and I personally apologised to him," he said. Former US deputy secretary of state, Strobe Talbott in his latest book had mentioned that Fernandes quietly swallowed the post 9/11 humiliation after he was twice searched in 2003. Armitage's visit is the first by a senior member of the US after the new UPA government took office in New Delhi. The US had not made any request to India for sending its troops to Iraq, Armitage told reporters after meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh here.

30 killed in Bihar floods (Go To Top)

          Patna: At least 30 people have been killed so far by floods in Bihar, and the situation is likely to worsen further with several rivers submerging fresh areas in 16 districts of the state. Sources here said that all communication links between Madhubani district and the rest of Bihar are down. Roads and rail lines are also submerged, and even the railway station is under water. Minister of State for Telecommunication Shakeel Ahmed admitted that the situation is grim. Floodwaters in neighbouring Muzzafarpur are spreading at a rapid pace, but the Army has begun relief efforts. However, the state administration is providing soldiers engaged in rescue efforts, with only one sack of food per village. The state government has said that it will carry out relief efforts as soon the floodwater recedes a bit and for people here, it will be an anxious wait until then.

J-K Deputy CM flags off Amarnath yatra (Go To Top)

          Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma today flagged of the official Amarnath yatra amid tight security from the Maulana Azad Stadium here. About 1.5 lakh devotees are expected to visit the cave shrine during the one-and-half month-long yatra. The authorities have allowed 3,500 yatris per day to proceed to the holy shrine in south Kashmir. (SEE TRAVEL NEWS FOR DETAILS)

Miandad heading for India (Go To Top)

          Karachi: Having been shown the door by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), Javed Miandad is reportedly seriously considering the option of taking up coaching and television broadcasting assignments in India. "Nothing is final as yet but I have got offers and if I get the time I will definitely be keen to do some coaching with the Indian players," Miandad told The News. About his television assignment, he said it was linked to the Asia Cup that gets underway from July 16, adding that Zee TV had hired him as an expert. "It will be similar to what I did for Ten Sports during the last World Cup. I would be giving expert comments on every match of the Asia Cup," he informed. Besides him, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Rameez Raja, Imran Khan are also doing the same work for other channels. Wasim and Waqar have been signed on by the main broadcasters of the Asia Cup, ESPN/Star sports while Imran and Rameez are scheduled to do some work for another private channel. The Cricket Club of India in Mumbai had recently given Miandad an official invitation to spend some time and do some coaching at its cricket academy in Mumbai.