NewsBriefs
Back to Headlines

Seven of a family murdered in Delhi

     New Delhi: Seven members of a family, including a man, his wife and five children were found dead under suspicious circumstances inside their apartment in North Delhi's Inderlok locality this morning. The bodies of Om Prakash and his wife Santosh were found in a room on the first floor of their apartment, while those of his four daughters and a son were found on the ground floor. Om Prakash used to make and sell mattresses. According to witnesses, the body of Om Prakash was partly burnt, while two of his daughters had cut marks on their throats. Two of the girls were found naked. Sunil Garg, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (North Delhi), said that it was a clear case of murder, and added that detailed investigations are on in the matter. "The incident is a clear case of murder. But anything can be said after investigations only. We are looking in to the matter. I hope we will reach some results very soon," DCP Garg said. Sources said that the crime may be the offshoot of a property dispute.

Army deployed in flood-hit Maharashtra, Gujarat

     Mumbai/Ahmedabad: The Army has been called out to evacuate villagers in Maharashtra's flood-hit Sangli district. Heavy monsoon rains have forced thousands of people to leave their homes in the low-lying areas of the district. So far, 14 people have died and 64,000 people have been shifted to safer areas in the state. A flood alert was sounded on Sunday as the water level in the River Krishna continues to hover over the danger mark. Major rivers have risen to alarming levels and inundated their catchments, leading to the authorities ordering massive rescue and relocation operations at 12 locations. An emergency meeting was called on Sunday to take stock of the situation and to chalk out a plan of action in view of forecasts of further rain. Water has also entered residential and commercial areas located on the outskirts of Mumbai, where life has come to a standstill. Railway services, the lifeline of Mumbai, have been badly hit as the floodwaters submerged tracks in several places. A year ago, two days of heavy rain exposed the pathetic infrastructure and dismal emergency response in Mumbai. The floods then had killed hundreds of people and prevented the city from communicating with the outside world for nearly a week.

     Meanwhile, in neighbouring Gujarat, heavy monsoon rains have killed at least 12 people and forced thousands to evacuate their homes and move to higher ground. The deaths were due to drowning, lighting strikes and building collapses, informed sources said. More than 15,000 villagers have been affected since Friday in the southern and central regions of Gujarat. "For the past three nights our house is water logged. We have been sitting out and haven't slept all night. Milk and other provisions haven't come here today, there are a lot of problems," a flood victim said. Police have been asked to be on alert to speed up evacuations as several rivers were close to bursting their banks. So far around 30,000 people have been evacuated. Railway traffic between Ahmedabad and Mumbai has been affected due to flood waters covering rail tracks. Last year, floods in Gujarat killed at least 56 people and left more than 65,000 people homeless.

Jessica Lal case: 60 days reprieve to cops (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: The Delhi High Court today directed the Delhi Police to conclude its investigations in the Jessica Lal murder case within two months. Hearing a Delhi Police appeal not to release the accused, the High Court said that the investigation report submitted so far, contained insufficient details. On July 6, the Delhi Government Standing Counsel Mukta Gupta submitted before the court that the Delhi Police were not only inquiring into lapses allegedly committed by investigating police officials, but also had assisted in the release of the accused in the case. Mukta also told Justices Vijender Jain and Kailash Gambhir that three cases have been registered by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). On February 21, all nine accused, including Siddharth Vashishtha alias Manu Sharma, were acquitted by the then Additional Sessions Judge S.L. Bhayana. Model Jessica Lall was shot at point blank range on the night of April 29, 1999 while she was working as a celebrity bar-maid in the Tamarind Court Bar owned by socialite Bina Ramani. It was alleged that Jessica Lal was murdered by Manu Sharma, the son of Congress politician and former Union Minister of State for Food and Civil Supplies Vinod Sharma, after she refused to serve him a drink since the bar had closed for the evening. The Delhi Police in its primary investigation had also indicted Vikas Yadav, the son of former Rajya Sabha Parliamentarian D P Yadav, along with ten others on the charge of destroying evidences. The sensational murder case had a high profile list of accused which included names like Amardeep Singh Gill, Coca-Cola company officials Alok Khanna, Shyam Sunder Sharma, Amit Jhingan, Yograj Singh, Harvinder Chopra, Vikas Gill, Raja Chopra, Ravinder Krishan Sudan and Dhanraj.

Army guns down 4 militants in Baramulla (Go To Top)

     Srinagar: Army troops gunned down four militants in an overnight encounter in Baramulla district of the Kashmir Valley. The militants' attempt at sneaking into Indian territory from across the Line of Control (LoC) has been foiled by Army personnel. Army troops deployed at the LoC in the Gurez sector of Baramulla district received information about the movement of the four terrorists. The troops opened fire on the militants and succeeded in killing them, a defence spokesman said.

Security tightened around N-installations (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said that security around all nuclear installations in the country has been beefed up keeping in view the recent terror incidents. Asserting that the government was taking the terror threats seriously, Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha: "Special security measures have been taken and more are under consideration to prevent any such attempt from succeeding". The Defence Minister informed the Lower House about this in response to queries regarding the possibility of attacks on atomic energy installations in the country as stated by National Security Advisor M K Narayanan in an interview. Narayanan had said in an interview to the private news channel CNN-IBN that the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) was planning strikes on critical nuclear installations. "I would like to tell you that at the moment, we have at least two or three serious threats, on which we have information. We have to work it out. We do not know where it will take place," Narayanan had said. "...There is information that may be one of our atomic energy installations could be the target," he had added. The public sector Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) spearheads India's nuclear power programme. Fifteen reactors are under operation and seven reactors are under construction. Nuclear power in India is environment friendly, technologically proven, economically competitive and associated with the advantage of energy security and diversity. The NPCIL, with its record of safety and excellence, preserves the environment, keeping it healthy; as the nature intended it to be. NPCIL uses available resources in a self reliant, safe, economical and rapid manner in keeping with the growth of energy demand in the country.Power generated during fiscal 2004-05 was 16709 MUs and profit was pegged at Rs.1780.79 crores.

Bt Brinjal protest rally in Bhubaneswar  (Go To Top)
by Sarada Lahangir

     Bhubaneswar: Thousands of farmers and activists from several non-government organisations (NGOs) took to the streets of Bhubaneswar on Monday to protest against the proposed field testing of Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) brinjals in Orissa. The protestors sought an explanation from the government and other concerned authorities as to why the GM (Genetically Modified) food is being introduced in India when it is banned in Europe because of its hazardous components. The activists said that Asian and African countries should not be used as the dumping ground of European countries. The protestors warned of a mass resistance movement if Bt Brinjal is introduced in Orissa. In 2004, the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) undertook research work for developing new brinjal (egg plant) varieties with the Bt gene.

Stranded ship sparks fear of oil spill (Go To Top)

     Porbander: A Panama vessel that ran aground off the Porbandar coast has sparked fears of oil spill that could prove disastrous for the marine environment and the region's fishing industry. The vessel, MV Christina ran aground after its main engines failed, due to rough weather. Indian Coast Guard (ICG) officials said they rescued the carrier's 25 crewmembers on Friday after their Porbandar office received a request for help from the stranded crew. "The vessel had come to Porbandar to load cement so it was empty but its tank has 220 scales of oil which can be dangerous to environment, if it leaks," said BK Singh, ICG Commandant of Porbandar. The salvage work on the bulk carrier, laden with 180 metric tonnes of marine gas oil and 40 metric tonnes of high-speed diesel (HSD) began on Monday. ICG and local authorities are trying to de-fuel the vessel at the earliest to avoid any oil spill. The ship owners, marine experts and the vessel's local agent are carrying out the de-fuelling.

Delhi-based IIT alumnus gets Magsaysay (Go To Top)

     New Delhi: Delhi based social activist, Arvind Kejriwal was on Monday selected for this year's Ramon Magsaysay award for his contribution to India's right-to-information movement at the grass-root level and empowerment of poor citizens to fight corruption. An IIT Kharagpur alumnus, Kejriwal, heads a Delhi based citizens' movement - Parivartan - and is among five others selected for the high profile award, often regarded as the Asian Nobel Prize. The other five selected are Sanduk Ruit (Nepal), Ek Sonn Chan (Cambodia), Park Won Soon (South Korea) and Eugenia Duran Apostol and Antonio Meloto (from The Philippines). The award committee said in a statement that it recognized Kejriwal's contribution in activating India's right-to- information movement at the grass-root level while at the same time empowering New Delhi's poorest citizens to fight corruption, while selecting him for 2006 Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership. A mechanical engineer from IIT Kharagpur, Kejriwal, 38, joined the Indian Revenue Service in 1992.

Office of Profit Bill back to President (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: The Lok Sabha on Monday passed the Office of Profit (OoP) Bill by an overwhelming majority, putting the onus on President APJ Abdul Kalam to give his assent to the Bill. Lok Sabha passed it by 230-71 votes, with the opposition BJP and Trinamool Congress voting against the Bill. The Bill that was earlier passed by the Rajya Sabha did not incorporate any changes that President Kalam had asked Parliament to review. Neither the "retrospective clause" of the Bill nor a uniform legislation for the entire country on this issue was incorporated by the Houses, which were the concerns that President Kalam had raised. Though the Constitution makes it obligatory for the President to give his assent to the Bill after it has been returned back to him by Parliament, speculations that he would opt for other ways is doing the rounds in the media circle. The Opposition BJP has urged President Kalam to refer the Bill to the Supreme Court for its opinion under the Article 143 of the Constitution. Article 143 of the Constitution grants President the power to consult the Supreme Court if at any time it appears to the President that a question of law or fact has arisen which is of such a nature and of such public importance that it is expedient to obtain the opinion of the Supreme Court upon it. However, the President may also go for 'pocket-veto', since nowhere in the Constitution a time limit has been provided for the President to give his assent to the Bill. This 'veto' was earlier used by former President Giani Zail Singh and did not oblige with his assent on the "Postal Bill".

7 Amarnath pilgrims injured in attack (Go To Top)

     Srinagar: Seven pilgrims and three pedestrians were injured in a grenade attack on a bus, minutes before it was to leave for the Amarnath cave shrine at Batmaloo on Monday. Official sources said, militants hurled a grenade at the crowded bus before its departure for the Baltal base camp, 100 km from here at around 3 pm. The devotees were boarding the bus when they were attacked, they added. The injured were identified as Jeevan Prasad, Ramanand, Udaiya, Bihari, Rohit, Bahudi (all from Uttar Pradesh), Surjeet Kaur (Punjab), Mohd Latief Gujri, Ghulam Ahmad Magray and Mohd Afzal (locals) and were immediately rushed to a nearby hospital, sources said. Security forces have sealed the entire area and have launched a massive search operation. So far no militant group has claimed any responsibility for the attack.

NRIs to honour M.J.Akbar, Sunil Dutt (Go To Top)

     New York: The American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI) will honour noted journalist and author, MJ Akbar, and the late actor-turned-politician Sunil Dutt with the 'Pride of India' awards 2006. While Akbar will get this award for his contributions to Indian society through his literary and journalistic accomplishments, Dutt will be honoured for his efforts in promoting communal harmony and social justice. The awards will be received by Akbar and Priya Dutt, Sunil Dutt's daughter and political heir at the annual convention of AFMI to be held on September 16 in New York. Announcing this year's award recipients in Farmington, AFMI President Akram Syed said that they have been selected for their commitment and dedication for a strong, secular and pluralistic India. The earlier recipients of AFMI's Pride of India Award include former Prime Ministers V P Singh and I K Gujral and Dr. Obaid Siddiqi, Kiran Bedi, N.Ram, Maulana Abdul Karim Parekh, Dr.Arun Gandhi and Dr.Sam Pitroda. Formed in 1989, AFMI has its representatives across USA and Canada. The organisation sponsors several schools and educational programs in India with an aim to eradicate illiteracy among Indian Muslims.

Dalmiya retains CAB presidentship (Go To Top)

     Kolkata: Cricket Association of Bengal president Jagmohan Dalmiya defied all odds on Sunday to beat his challenger Kolkata Police Commissioner Prasun Mukherjee by five votes to retain the state cricket body's top job. Of the 117 votes polled, Dalmiya got 61 while Mukherjee got 56. The former BCCI chief has been at the helm of affairs at the CAB for the last 14 years. Other members of the Dalmiya faction also made a clean sweep at the elections. S K Kalyani was elected treasurer, while S Pal and A Banerjee were elected to the two posts of joint secretaries. Of the four vice presidents, three belong to the Dalmiya faction. They are R Jeejebhoy, A Chatterjee and S C Basu. The CAB has 121 affiliate members but with two voters debarred by the court-appointed observer from attending the AGM over disputes and another affiliated unit restrained by a court order, the total number of votes to be polled were 118. However on Sunday, only 117 were polled as ABP Sports Club did not participate in the process. Dalmiya said he was happy with the result, though unhappy about contesting it. He also said that his winning of the CAB presidentship would serve as a good platform to take on the BCCI bigwigs. Dalmiya's victory is all the more creditable in the wake of political pressure mounting on him to quit and make way for Mukherjee. West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharya and former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly had joined the chorus for his ouster. On June 19, Bhattacharya said that for the sake of Sourav and cricket, Dalmiya should go. Dalmiya never thought that Bhattacharya would speak his mind. Bhattacharya left no one in doubt about his conviction that Sourav Ganguly's exit from the Indian team was because of his known proximity to Dalmiya. Mukherjee was fielded with Bhattacharya's blessings. The dice, however, ended up rolling Dalmiya's way.

Back to Headlines                  Go To Top