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Sikh boy's haircut: one arrested

      Jaipur/Amritsar/Nagpur/New Delhi: The police on Thursday arrested one person, Arjun Meena, allegedly responsible for forcibly cutting the hair of a Sikh boy in Jaipur early this week. The accused was arrested from New Delhi, but it was not clear what the charges he has been facing. Police are searching for his other accomplices. Jaipur Police Superintendent Vishal Bansal said that further investigation were on. Protests began early this week after a group of youngsters allegedly beat up a Sikh boy and trimmed his hair.

     The incident has led to demonstrations by Sikhs in many states including Rajasthan, Punjab, Maharashtra and New Delhi, with some men belonging to the community brandishing sacred swords in the streets. In Amritsar, agitated Sikhs took to streets despite the arrest. In Nagpur, protestors wore black badges and turbans to show their anger. "This attack has now been on one person but it might be on others too. It's just not right," said Malkit Singh Bal, a protestor.

    Seventeen-year-old Inderpreet Singh was reportedly waylaid by a gang of six who dragged him to a deserted place and forcibly trimmed his hair and beat him up, as per the FIR lodged by Singh's parents with the Gandhi Nagar Police Station. The six boys were apparently upset about the boy's friendship with a local girl, police said.

   Meanwhile in New Delhi, Sikhs protested outside Saudi Arabian embassy to protest a new directive by the Saudi Arabian government to Sikhs to go clean-shaven and undergo haircut there. "The Saudi Arabia government has given a directive that the Sikhs have to get their hair and beard cut. We have come to protest against this rule," said Avtar Singh, Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee President.

Hair-chopping rocks Parliament  (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The incident of a Sikh teen boy's forcible hair chopping in Jaipur rocked Parliament on Thursday, as opposition members demanded a thorough inquiry against perpetrators of the act. In spite of repeated assurances by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, the opposition benches led by Akali Dal MPs refused to sit down, leading the Speaker to adjourn the house till 2 p.m. In the Rajya Sabha also, the BJP Leader SS Ahluwalia raised the issue during Zero Hour. Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil, however, assured the House that action would be taken against those boys who forcibly chopped 17-year-old Inderpreet Singh's hair. Terming the incident as unfortunate, Patil said it should not be used to divide the country along majority- minority lines. He said that the Centre is ready to assist the Rajasthan Government in its probe, and if required, necessary directives would be issued to the State Government.

Floods still ravaging Orissa, Rajasthan (Go To Top)

      Bhubaneshwar/Barmer: Flood situation in eastern and western parts of the country continue to be grim with 64 people being reported to have died in Orissa in flash floods and lightning strikes so far, said officials on Thursday. Rivers across the eastern region were at or nearing danger levels, and road and rail networks along the east coast were badly hit with heavy downpours. Mahanadi, the main river in Orissa, and its tributaries have already breached their banks at 15 places in six districts while all rivers in the state continue to flow above the danger mark. The state is still trying to recover from the devastation wreaked by the 1999 super cyclone that killed an estimated 10,000 people that hit the coastal areas. Ironically, the region was suffering from drought prior to this year's monsoons. In

    Rajasthan, heavy rains and floods have killed more than 50 people in the last one week. Over 1,500 villages and several towns had been cut off by the rising waters, schools and colleges ordered shut in the lake city of Udaipur, and electricity and telephone networks disrupted across the region. Soldiers used motorboats to rescue those stranded by the floodwaters. On Saturday, hundreds of people watched five members of a family got drowned after struggling for more than eight hours in a flooded river near Falna village in Jodhpur district. As more and more dead bodies washed ashore at different places, locals expressed their angst at the official machinery.The rains were the heaviest in more than two decades. Floods have killed nearly 400 people in western and southern India in recent weeks, and displaced up to four million people.

BARC, Siddhivinayak temple on terrorists' list

      Mumbai: Two of the major landmarks in Mumbai -- the Siddhivinayak Temple in Prabhadevi and the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Trombay -- were on the list of two suspected Pakistani militants, whom the Anti-Terrorist Squad tracked down earlier this week. While one of them, Abu Osama, was killed in an encounter on Tuesday, it was the arrest of Mohammad Riaz Nawabuddin (21) a day before that has led the ATS to believe the two landmarks could have been targets. During interrogation, cops recovered a tourist map from Nawabuddin, who had led the police to his accomplice's hideout at Antop Hill. The map has two spots marked with blue ink -- the letters "SV" denotes the temple, while BARC was marked by a star.The police believe Nawabuddin, who was arrested near the Wadala truck terminus on Tuesday with a Chinese pistol, 5 catridges and 1.5 kg of white powder, was "brain-washed in Pakistan about jehad". They believe suspects reached Maharashtra via Gujarat, and both were familiar with both the states.

Bihar MPs' clash in Parliament (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: Law-makers from Bihar engaged in hand-to- hand combat in Parliament on Thursday afternoon following an adverse comment made by one of them against Railways Minister Lalu Yadav. The unruly scenes involving members of the Janata Dal (United) and the Rashtriya Janata Dal plummeted to the throwing of microphones at each other. The incident took place after the House met at 1 p.m. when Prabhu Nath Singh of JD (U) speaking over the issue of an alleged rape of a Dalit woman in Lakhisarai said that in Arra also, a similar incident had taken place, where the accused claims to be a "relative of Lalu Prasad Yadav". This led to strong protests from RJD members seated in the treasury benches and RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav himself stood up to register his protest. The shouting and cross-allegations in the House by the RJD and JD (U) members led Speaker Somnath Chatterjee to adjourn the House. But soon after the House was adjourned RJD members rushed towards Prabhunath Singh and entered into a scuffle with the JD (U) members. In the ensuing fight that continued for around 10 minutes, Sadhu Yadav, RJD MP, took hold of Singh's collar as members fought against each other with microphones and head-phones. The Parliament's Watch and Ward Staff had to be summoned to end the scuffle. Lalu said, "On behalf of my people who may have hurt someone, I would like to say sorry".

TRS stalls Andhra Assembly again (Go To Top)

      Hyderabad: Proceedings in the Andhra Pradesh State Assembly were stalled for the second consecutive day on Thursday after representatives of the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) refused to permit legislative business to go ahead. The demand for the creation of a separate Telangana state dominated activities in the House, and spilled over into the streets, when TRS activists organised a road blockade. The TRS, which represents the interests the Telangana region, has been campaigning for a separate Telangana state to boost development in the area. Telangana leaders Chandrasekhara Rao and A Nagendra resigned from the Union Cabinet on Tuesday over the issue. Rao has since begun a `fast unto death'. The Telangana region constitutes Hyderabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar, Khammam, Mahaboobnagar, Medak, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, RangaReddy and Warangal districts. It is one of the least developed regions in India. Rampant underdevelopment,unemployment, water scarcity and electricity shortage are some of the problems of this region. The Telangana struggle began in July 1948, when 2,500 villages organised into 'communes' as part of a peasant movement.

Shiv Sainiks object Chadarposhi at Taj (Go To Top)

      Agra: Activists of the right-wing Shiv Sena have raised objections to plans to observe the Urs of 17th century Mughal Emperor Shahjahan at the Taj Mahal, as well as to moves by a Raza Committee to place a shroud over his grave during a ceremony called 'Chadarposhi'. The Shiv Sena is of the view that no such ceremony should take place at the venue as it was originally the site of a temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and only milk should be offered. The President of the Roza Committee, Tahiruddin Tahir, has claimed that the Chadarposhi ceremony has been going on for decades. He also disclosed that every year, the length of the sheet is increased by 10 metres and this year it is 120 metres. "I will be covering the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Shahjahan at an Urs. This has been the practice for the past many decades from my forefathers' time. This time the sheet is about 120 meters. The name of offering the sheet has also been changed unlike the earlier occasions when they were offered by my forefathers' names. This time it is named as the Hindustani Satrangi Chaddar to symbolise communal harmony," said Tahir.

    "Previously, at the place of Taj Mahal, there was a Shiv Mandir and in Shiv Mandir we do not offer sheet. We offer milk to lord Shiva. We have been protesting that in Taj Mahal sheet should not be offered but the police have stopped us from doing so," said Binu Lavaniya, President of the Agra chapter of the Shiv Sena. He also said that as per the Supreme Court orders no political or religious activities can be held at Taj Mahal. The District administration has deployed police to ensure security, peace and stop the Shiv Sainiks from entering the Taj Mahal.

Explosives from a pond in Wada (Go To Top)

     Wada (Maharashtra): Police have recovered nearly two dozen metal pieces resembling hand grenades from a pond, 120 km away from Mumbai. Some children here first spotted the explosives in Abid Ghar Village of Wada sub division in Thane district. "The children were grazing their animals near the pond and they came to know that something was here. They did not know initially it was a bomb and they went back to their village and informed their father. Then the police party arrived here," Sainik Deshmuk Pushte, a villager said. The police suspect the explosives surfaced as the water level in the pond receded. The local police sought the help of experts to find out if the material were explosive. The police are questioning people from the nearby factories and scrap yards for any clue about the origin of the suspected material. On Tuesday, Mumbai police shot dead one Pakistani national suspected to be responsible for the July 11 blasts and arrested another from a city centre. So far, 13 people have been arrested, including an engineer, a journalist, computer software professional and a doctor, in connection with the July 11 serial train bomb blast that killed more than 180 people.

Kerala Govt says cola ban will continue (Go To Top)

      Thiruvananthpuram: The Government of Kerala has said that the ban on soft drinks will continue, notwithstanding the state Health Ministry's doubts over a Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) report on pesticides being present in colas. Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Issac has said that the state government is exercising its option to make an independent judgement. He also said there was considerable opposition to colas from peasants in the Palakkad area which feels the MNCs have depleted ground water levels in the area. The state health department is likely to present laboratory examination report. The Kerala Government's ban on colas came into effect on August 9. Karnataka followed suit on August 10 by deciding to ban the sale of 11 brands of soft drinks, including Pepsi and Coca-Cola, in educational institutions and hospitals from August 14 in the wake of an NGO's claim that the beverages contained high levels of pesticide residues. An analysis of the soft drinks at a laboratory indicated that they contained chemicals and pesticides -- including linadane, DDT, malathion and chlorpyrifos -- in higher quantities than the stipulated norms.

    Earlier this week, the Kerala High Court declined to stay the state government's order banning the production and sale of Coca Cola and Pepsi products in the state. The case is to be heard today.

Chennai rally in support of LTTE (Go To Top)

      Chennai: Several regional parties in Tamil Nadu took out a rally here on Thursday in support of their "brethren" in the embattled Sri Lanka. The parties - All India Forward Block, Hindu People's Front and other Tamil movements - demanded New Delhi to step up pressure on Colombo to accept the demands of Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). "We want that the Tamil Eelam should be created by the intervention of the Indian government by military intervention, just like in 1971, Indian army and government helped create Bangladesh. That is the reason for our protest today," said Arjun Sampath, of the Hindu People's Front. The escalating conflict in Sri Lanka between the Buddhist Sinhala majority and the Hindu Tamil minority has prompted daily protests in Chennai for the past two weeks, with ethnic Indian Tamils coming out in support of their "brethren" across the seas.

Pluto no longer a planet (Go To Top)

     Prague: The top astronomers from across the world on Thursday decided to strip Pluto of its status as a planet. The decision came at the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) general assembly held here which was attended by about 2,500 experts, who voted out a proposal to retain Pluto as a planet, reports BBC. "The eight planets are Mercury, Earth, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune," said the IAU resolution. Following this resolution, the hitherto smallest planet of the universe is expected to be scarped out of school and university textbooks Pluto was so far considered a planet since its discovery in 1930 by the American Clyde Tombaugh.

Pope sacks astronomer for supporting
Darwin theory  (Go To Top)

      London: The theory of evolution has put scientists and theologians at odds since time immemorial. However, it seems that the debate over the creation of the world has reached such heights in the Vatican, that Pope Benedict XVI has now sacked his chief astronomer for supporting the Darwinian rather than the Intelligent Design theory. The Intelligent Design theory basically supports the religious discourse that the world was created by God over a period of seven days, and also that man was created by God and did not evolve through the random, unplanned processes of genetic mutation and the survival of the fittest, as argued by Charles Darwin. The battle of the theories has reportedly caused such discord between the Pope and Father George Coyne, who is an outspoken supported for the Darwinian theory, that the priest has been removed from his position as director of the Vatican Observatory after 28 years, reports the Daily Mail. Coyne has now been replaced by Argentine Jesuit Father Jose Funes, an expert on disk galaxies.

'Passenger behaviour was not terror related'

      Amsterdam/New Delhi: The Dutch Justice Minister said on Thursday that the suspicious behaviour of passengers that led a Mumbai-bound US airliner to return to Amsterdam did not seem to be terrorism related. "Up until now, it does not appear to be terror related," BBC quoted Dutch Justice Minister Piet Hein Donner telling a foreign news agency. Meanwhile, Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma said that the 12 passengers of the 149 passengers on board the airlines detained in Amsterdam were of Indian origin and were born in Mumbai. "We have got the list of the 12 people. They all were born in Mumbai. Nobody has been arrested as per the latest information but detentions are there," Sharma told reporters. India has sought consular access for those detained, he added. "They are all from Mumbai and they all have Mumbai addresses," the Minister said. It was, however, not known how many of them were carrying Indian passports. Those detained have been identified as Yusuf Mohammad, Mustafa Ghulam, Memon Yusuf Hazi Gaffar, Shakeel Usman, Ayub Qadir, Sajid Qadir, Mohammad Farukhi Usmaan, Ayub Khan, Mohammad Iqbal Batliwala, Shakil Usman Chotani, Nur Mohammad Batliwala. Earlier, the flight rescheduled from Amsterdam to Mumbai on Thursday was cancelled and the remaining passengers were rebooked on other Northwest Airlines flight. The Northwest Airlines of the US cancelled its Mumbai-bound flight No 42 which returned to Amsterdam's Schiphol airport shortly after take off following a security alarm. The Amsterdam-Mumbai flight, was escorted back to Amsterdam by two Dutch F-16 jetfighters after a couple of passengers "displayed behaviour of concern" yesterday.

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