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Former Orissa CM Nilamani Routray passes away

       Cuttack: Former Orissa Chief Minister Nilamani Routray passed away at S.C.B. Medical college hospital here this morning. He was 84. Routray, who was a freedom fighter, is survived by a son, Bijoyshree Routray, who is the state's Health Minister. According to the hospital sources, Routray was ailing for sometime. He had been put on life support for past several days but his condition deteriorated on Sunday.

Sonia all set to kick-off Maharashtra road shows (Go To Top)

       Mumbai: Nation-wide road shows conducted by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi during this year's Lok Sabha polls ensured a clear majority for the Congress in Parliament, and this time the Congress president is all set to begin road shows for Assembly polls in Maharashtra. In her two-day road show, starting from today, Sonia will hold rallies at Pauni in Bhandara district, Gadchiroli, Daman Gaon, Amravati, Yavatmal, Parbhani and Nashik, with NCP chief Sharad Pawar joining her there on Tuesday. Meanwhile, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray, have postponed campaigning because of ill-health.

Ranjeeta Ranjan a puzzle for Paswan
by Pankaj Yadav

        New Delhi/ Patna: The Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) is in a catch-22 situation these days, as it is not able to decide whether to oust MP Ranjeeta Ranjan from the party for indulging in anti-party activities, or turning a blind eye to it. Ranjeeta is the wife of controversial politician Pappu Yadav who is contesting on RJD ticket from Madhepura, and is actively campaigning for her husband while castigating her own party. Yadav had recently joined the RJD after being released from the Beur jail. Ranjeeta says her first priority is to campaign for her husband, ensure his win and save him from false cases in which he is being implicated again and again. "My party is secondary to my husband.......I am here to campaign for my husband against whom false cases are being fabricated," Ranjeeta said over phone while on her way from Patna to Madhepura. When pertinently asked if the LJP was thinking over removing her from the party, she said, "it depends upon them......as they wish." Lalu Prasad Yadav's RJD and Ramvilas Paswn's LJP are two staunch rivals in Bihar politics. Incidentally both are union ministers in the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government. As per the anti-defection law, if a party itself suspends the primary membership of a person, the latter doesn't lose his/her seat in the legislature. Hence, it's clear that if the LJP removes Ranjeeta from the party's primary membership, then it stands to lose one of its five MPs in the Lok Sabha, and also brings a bad name to it ahead of the ensuing Madhepura by-poll. So, Ranjeeta continues to remain in LJP, despite indulging in anti-party activities! This correspondent made several attempts to get a response from Ram Vilas or his brother MP Ramchandra Paswan, but all in vain.

Centre hands over Tehelka inquiry to CBI (Go To Top)

         New Delhi: Union Law Minister HR Bharadwaj today announced that the government has decided not to extend the term of the Justice SN Phukan Commission looking into the Tehelka tapes. Bharadwaj said that the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) had decided that the CBI would now investigate the Tehelka tapes as they revealed the involvement of "personalities" in the defence deals where bribes had been allegedly made. The term of the Phukan Inquiry Commission expired on Sunday. The commission has been informed of its non-continuance, Bharadwaj said.

Pakistani journalists meet Kashmir's political leaders (Go To Top)

       Jammu: A delegation of Pakistani journalists, met leaders of five political parties in Jammu on Monday. It is for the first that the Indian government has allowed Pakistani journalists to visit Kashmir Valley after more than half a century. The 18-member team, including two of them from Pakistan administered Kashmir, reached l on Sunday. They held an interaction session with young journalists and opposition leaders of Bharatiya Janata Party and National Conference among others. The delegates, under the aegis of South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA), said though there was flexibility being seen in the approach, it was for the new generation to bring about the change in relations. "I feel that the old generation has a mind set here in India and back in Pakistan also it's the same. The new generation has to bring a change. It is difficult for the old generation to change their perspective. There is flexibility in the approach but has not changed completely," said Mujahid Barewi, Pakistani journalist. The delegation said that they would like to get first hand information about the Kashmir valley. They will call on deputy chief minister Mangat Ram Sharma during their three-day stay in Jammu before leaving for Srinagar.

        Meanwhile, a woman militant outfit has asked the local press to boycott the group who will reach Srinagar on Tuesday. Ariya Andrabi, chairman of Dukhtran-e-Millat, citicised the central government for allowing the delegation to visit the valley. "I don't think that we need to build a consensus on any issue. We also know how the Kashmiris are living in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. What do they want to know? There are more than 100,000 people who have sacrificed their lives. Why are they coming here? They know nothing about our martyrs," Andrabi told reporters. The journalists will also visit camps of displaced Kashmiri Hindus and later meet separatist leaders from both the factions of All Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC). The Pakistani journalists will also take part in a two-day conference on "Resolution of inter-state conflicts in South Asia" in New Delhi before winding up their tour on October 9. SAFMA Pakistan will also reciprocate the move by extending an invitation to Indian journalists from Jammu, Srinagar and other cities to visit Muzaffarabad, Gilgit, Islamabad and Lahore in Pakistan from November 19 to 26. This exchange, first of its kind in 57 years, is intended to provide an opportunity to media persons to assess the situation Šthemselves.

Nukes, trade top South Korean President's India visit (Go To Top)

       New Delhi: South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun began a rare visit to India today aiming to boost economic ties and looking for ways to collaborate against nuclear proliferation. Both countries have found a common concern on nuclear dangers, especially after Pakistan admitted its top nuclear scientist, Abdul Qadeer Khan, smuggled nuclear secrets to North Korea, among other countries. Roh, making the first visit in eight years by a South Korean president to India, will seek to build on a momentum in economic ties between two of Asia's fastest growing economies. Trade volume crossed 4 billion dollars last year, up from a few hundred million in the early 1990s, and is expected to touch 10 billion dollars by 2008. Korean companies were among the first to invest in India when many nations were lukewarn to New Delhi's reforms in 1991. Roh will meet President Abdul Kalam and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his three-day visit. The two sides will also sign an extradition treaty and another on legal assistance on criminal issues, the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement.

Sohail helps Pakistan beat India 3-1 in hockey (Go To Top)

       New Delhi: Pakistan beat India 3-1 today to widen their lead in the eight-match hockey series. Pakistan has increased its overall lead in the series to 3-1. For Pakistan, Kashif Jawad scored in the sixth minute and Sohail Abbas scored in the 29th minute as well as through a penalty in the 65th minute. With his twin strike, Abbas also equalled Dutchman Paul Litjens' world record for the highest number of goals which stands at 267. Sandeep Michael scored India's solitary goal. In a major blow to India, skipper Dilip Tirkey was rendered doubtful for the remaining matches of the series after he was hit on the neck by a Sohail Abbas hit in the 64th minute. Tirkey had to leave the field and is now undergoing treatment in the hospital. Indian fans expressed happiness on hosting the Pakistani fans. "These sort of matches should happen more often. Not only in hockey, but in other sports as well. It is the best thing happening in India. So many Pakistani people have come here are enjoying themselves here in India," said Mahesh, a hockey fan. Pakistan skipper Wasim Ahmed attributed their victory to team spirit. "It is good that our team is back in rhythm and we have improved upon the mistakes that we did during the leg in Pakistan. We played well as a team today and everyone contributed. I think our team spirit and team effort made all the difference for us today," he said. Indian manager Jagbir Singh, on the other hand, said failure to convert crucial penalties cost India the match. "We missed the chances. I would say...we had chances but we missed them. The result could have been different....If we had levelled the scores to 2-2...then I think the result would have been different," Singh said. The next match will be in Chandigarh on October 6.

Delhi HC says PIL maintainable against BCCI (Go To Top)

       New Delhi: The Delhi High Court today said that a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was maintainable, as the board discharged a public function. A division Bench of Chief Justice B.C. Patel and Justice B.D. Ahmed held that in so far as the BCCI discharges public function, it was amenable to the writ jurisdiction of the Court under Article 226 of the Constitution. The PIL was filed by Advocate Rahul Mehra seeking an independent probe into the functioning of the BCCI and its accounts involving huge public money.