Lalu Prasad taken to jail after conviction in fodder scam case

RANCHI: RJD president Lalu Prasad was taken to jail on Monday after being convicted by a special CBI court here in the fodder scam case.

65-year-old Lalu Prasad was taken to the Birsa Munda Central Jail here after the court verdict.

The court has fixed October 3 for pronouncement of sentence against Lalu Prasad, former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra and others convicted in the case.

While coming out from the court, Lalu appeared calm and did not take any questions as his car sped away to the jail located at Hotwar on the outskirts of Ranchi, adjacent to the National Games village.

Besides Lalu, the court of Pravas Kumar Singh convicted another 44 accused, including Mishra, six politicians and four IAS officers, for fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37.7 crore from Chaibasa treasury.

Later, the court sentenced IAS officer K Armugam, former Bihar AHD and labour minister Vidya Sagar Nishad and former MLA Dhruv Bhagat and five fodder suppliers for up to three years.

Earlier, Prasad, who arrived in the court by a white Ambassador car, appeared relaxed and waved to his party supporters. He sat in the second row in the court room as the judge began reading out the judgment against him.

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Shah Rukh, Lata Mangeshkar offer help to Kapil Sharma

Popular comedian Kapil Sharma has been overwhelmed at being offered help from legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar and superstar Shah Rukh Khan after his show set was damaged in a fire.

A massive fire had broken out recently on the sets of hit show 'Comedy Nights With Kapil' at Goregaon Film city. However, there were no casualties in the mishap.

The show, aired on Colors channel, is hosted by Kapil and often sees Bollywood celebrities like Shah Rukh, Rohit Shetty, Deepika Padukone, Sushant Singh Rajput, Parineeti Chopra, Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi, Anil Kapoor and others using the platform to promote their upcoming films.

"I got a call from Lataji and she asked if I need any kind of help, whether monetary or anything. She asked what can I do for you... Her call was a big thing," Kapil said.

"Also Shah Rukh Khan, Rohit Shetty and lot of people from the industry called me and said 'hum tumhare saath hai, batao kitne din mein set khada karna hai' (we are with you, tell in how many days the set has to be put up). The industry is like a family," he said.

Kapil says the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained as investigation is still on.

"We will come to know the exact loss... The figures only after the police verification," he said.

He rubbished rumours of a conspiracy behind the fire.

Kapil felt disappointed as he was unable to shoot with singer Sonu Nigam due to mishap.

"We were even planning to shoot with Akshay Kumar and Hrithik Roshan for the promotion of their forthcoming films. But unfortunately due to the tragedy, we are trying to work out things," he said.

However, Kapil is quite happy that people are loving his show and he hopes it to continue. Two episodes supposed to be aired on this weekend have already been shot. But, for the upcoming episodes they will be shooting on the sets of 'Bigg Boss' show.

"It's not an easy job to reconstruct a huge set in such a short time. The channel is also trying to get the best floor to reconstruct a new set. We have a huge set up and we don't want to compromise with it," he added.

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Gods forbid: India's temples guard their gold from government

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Temples are resisting divulging their gold holdings - perhaps nearly half the amount held in Fort Knox - amid mistrust of the motives of authorities who are trying to cut a hefty import bill that is hurting the economy.

The central bank, which has already taken steps that have slowed to a trickle the incoming supplies that have exacerbated India's current account deficit, has sent letters to some of the country's richest temples asking for details of their gold.

It says the inquiries are simply data collection, but Hindu groups are up in arms.

"The gold stored in temples was contributed by devotees over thousands of years and we will not allow anyone to usurp it," said V Mohanan, secretary of the Hindu nationalist Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) organisation in Kerala, in a statement.

Indians buy as much as 2.3 tonnes of gold, on average, every day - the weight of a small elephant - and what they don't give to the gods is mostly hoarded. Jewellery is handed down as heirlooms and stored away with bars and coins as a hedge against inflation or a source of quick funds in an emergency.

That is costing the economy dear. Gold imports totalled $54 billion in the year ending March 31, 2013, the biggest non-essential item shipped in from overseas and a major factor in swelling the current account deficit to a record in 2012/13.

Guruvayur temple, in Kerala, one of the most sacred in India and boasting a 33.5-metre (110-ft) gold-plated flagstaff, has already told the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) it won't divulge any details.

"The gold we have is mostly offered by the devotees. They would not like the details to be shared with anybody," said V M Gopala Menon, commissioner of the temple's administrative board.

The World Gold Council estimates there are about 2,000 tonnes of gold locked away in temples - worth about $84 billion at current prices - which devotees have offered in the form of jewellery, bars, coins and even replicas of body parts, in the hope of winning favours from the gods or in thanks for blessings received and health restored.

Curbing gold imports and getting the gold squirreled away back into circulation has become a priority for the government and RBI this year. Import duty is at a record 10 percent and the latest new rule - that 20 percent of all imports must leave the country as jewellery exports - caused confusion that dried up buying for two months.

The head of the main opposition BJP in Kerala, V Muralidharan, said the RBI wanted to "take possession" of the gold and maybe sell it for dollars.

DATA COLLECTING?

The central bank said there was "no proposal under its consideration to convert idle gold into bullion at this juncture".

But its letters, sent to leading temple trusts in Kerala, were prompted by a report looking at "issues related to gold imports" and loans outside the banking system in February, which zeroed in on temples and domestic hoards for fresh supplies.

Under the heading "supply-related measures", the report looks at recycling domestic gold and notes: "Temples in India hold large quantities of gold jewellery offered by devotees to the deities."

Subha Unnikrishnan, a clothes shop owner worshipping at one of the temples in Kerala's capital Thiruvananthapuram, said whatever had been given to the temple should stay there.

"We have given it to the god with a purpose," he said. "Nobody can take them away."

Of the three major temple boards in Kerala, which administer more than 2,800 temples, Cochin board has also decided against providing details of its gold, while another has yet to decide and a third says it has not yet received a letter from the RBI.

Some of them cite security reasons for their reticence - and the wealthiest temples do have tight controls and metal detectors at gates to keep their assets safe.

There has been no inquiry from the RBI yet at the centuries-old Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple, where two years ago treasure then estimated to be worth over $20 billion - more than India's education budget - was discovered in secret subterranean vaults. But its hoard is already being checked by the Supreme Court to make sure it is adequately protected.

There are some, for sure, who feel the temples should divulge their centuries of gold offerings.

"Everything the temple gets should be known to the devotees," said Shankaram Kutty, head of an advertising firm based in Cochin, who goes at least once a year to Guruvayur with an offering. "I feel every temple should declare their assets."

Mumbai's Shree Siddhivinayak Ganpati temple, often visited by Bollywood celebrities, had already put 10 kg (22 lbs) of its gold into a bank deposit scheme. It still has 140 kg in its vault.

"The gold we have is the nation's property, we will be proud if the nation can benefit from it," said Subhash Vitthal Mayekar, chairman of the temple's administrative trust. He has not yet received an inquiry from the RBI.

It is not alone. The Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh, considered one of India's richest, has lodged 2,250 kg of gold with the State Bank of India, which pays it interest.

As the central bank ponders its options, it could take heart that the temples themselves are already doing their bit to circulate the gold.

"We use some of it for making gold lockets that we sell in our temple counter. For making the lockets, we send some gold to the Mumbai mint through the State Bank of India, which is one of our bankers," said a source at the Guruvayur temple's administration.

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Montek’s brother slams PM for ‘timidity’, says quit now

NEW DELHI: A blog asking Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to quit is no surprise. After all, the cyberspace is hardly a friendly arena for the PM or the Congress, dominated as it is by right wing opinion.

But this blog, burning up Delhi's bureaucratic grapevine, is different. Its author was till recently a serving Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and is, more significantly, brother of Planning Commission deputy chairperson Montek Ahluwalia - a key long-term aide of the PM; in fact, Singh's original choice for finance minister in 2009.

In a post this week, Sanjeev Ahluwalia, describing himself as an independent consultant, slams the PM for "betraying himself time and again, as he (PM) turned a Nelson's eye to massive corruption, allowed decision-making to be subverted by unconscionably partisan politics and sloth".

The younger Ahluwalia's blog (http://bit.ly/163twJi) piece, titled "The Man who betrayed himself," and offers forthright advice to the PM that he should quit office for having clearly overstayed his welcome.

"Here is some gratuitous advice to Dr Singh. It is not too late to resign...when you became PM you became "our" PM, not the Congress party's representative," Ahluwalia writes.

"You are, hopefully, not just any other policrat. Please preserve our faith in the belief that professionals and intellectuals are actually "high minded" enough to work against their own self-interest," says the blog being devoured in ministries across Delhi.

"There are thousands of babus who do this for 35 long years of their working lives and are none the worse for it. Please shed your intellectual robes and become the babu you have been," the blog advices the PM.

Ahluwalia was a 1980-batch IAS officer from the Uttar Pradesh cadre who retired about a year ago. He has worked with the World Bank in Sudan till recently.

Sanjeev Ahluwalia's blog says the time could be ripe for Rahul Gandhi to step out of the shadows, but more strikingly refers to the PM as returning to his "babu" roots by defining a "narrowly construed "personal" integrity aimed at keeping "his desk clean".

But this manoeuvre, he says, might be dated. "Even this is questioned in the 2G scam and Coalgate, though most would put down the seeming links to him, to a secretariat, outside of his control...He betrayed his earlier characterization of himself as a Sher (Singh) and appeared to meekly toe the backward looking, ineffective and contradictory party line."

"Who holds the nuclear "button" today is really the question? and does the world believe that Dr. Singh would be allowed to press it should the situation warrant?", the blog says.

The PM had debased the high office he holds. Ahluwalia says that in 2004, "when Dr Manmohan Singh was selected by Mrs Gandhi to became PM, there was relief that after a hiatus of two decades, India would again be led by an "intellectual" far above the hurly burly of election politics, with no personal stake and no motive, except to "wipe the tears from the eyes of the poorest Indian" (the Mahatma)."

The blog notes that the PM showed his mettle in "initiating change in our energy policy" and "abandoning the deadweight of polarizing ideology" to "seemingly put India on the track of fast growth with social inclusion. In 1984 (2004) he was an accidental choice as PM, out of the several other "old" faces around, who were considered politically innocuous enough, to keep the seat warm for Rahul."

The PM's image, says Ahluwalia, took a beating soon after 2009 when "we voted for Dr Singh, based on his record of the past five years but also based on our belief, that more and better was to come."

But instead, "Like the collapse of the mountains above Kedarnath, the lofty edifice built up by reputation and public expectations cracked and collapsed under the weight of timidity, poor political instincts but most importantly self-betrayal."

"Could he have acted differently? Was he constrained by the limitations imposed on "outsiders" joining the "policracy" laterally...When the going gets tough, the tough get going....one way or another," says the blog.

Asking the PM to reclaim his upright image, Ahluwalia writes, "This is a time honored tradition amongst babus. We sup with anyone who parties in the evening, but come the morning, we do the "right" thing, no matter what the consequences.

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Narendra Modi attacks Nawaz Sharif for 'insulting' PM

NEW DELHI: BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi on Sunday hit out at Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif for his reported 'dehati aurat' barb at Manmohan Singh.

Nawaz Sharif had reportedly made the comment during a breakfast meeting with reporters upset over frequent complaints by India to the US against Pakistan.

Pakistani prime minister has no right to insult the Prime Minister of India, Modi said while addressing a well-attended rally here.

"We may have political differences, we may fight over policies, but that does not mean we will allow any other country to insult our Prime Minister," Modi said.

The Gujarat chief minister mentioned Rahul Gandhi's recent 'nonsense' comment on the ordinance on convicted politicians and accused him of Modi accused him of undermining the authority of the Prime Minister.

"When you are treated like this at home, how will other countries respect you?" Modi asked.

Targeting Rahul Gandhi's objection to the ordinance, Modi said, there is a fight between democracy and dynasty in the country.

The country has to decide if it wants to be ruled as per Constitution or as per the whims of 'prince' referring to Rahul Gandhi, the BJP prime ministerial candidate said.

Modi went on to take a dig at Manmohan Singh and wondered if he would be able to take a tough position when he meets Pakistani prime minister later in the day.

Please don't let down the kin of soldiers who have sacrificed their lives for the country, Modi said.

Exhorting people to vote for the BJP, Modi said, "In 2014, India needs a dream team and not a dirty team."

Poking the UPA allies, Modi questioned, " Are you ready to work under the 'prince', like the PM who has already made an announcement to this effect."

Earlier, Modi started his speech taking a dig at the Congress for running governments within governments, both at Delhi and at the Centre.

In Delhi, there is a government of the mother and the government of the son, Modi said to cheers from the crowd.

At the national level there are even more governments within the government, he said, adding, each department had become a government in itself.

The UPA government is an alliance, but the allies are not together, Modi said and claimed that the coalition under Atal and Advani functioned smoothly.

Targeting Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit, Narendra Modi said she is the most comfortably placed chief minister in the country.

For every failure Delhi CM blames some one else, Narendra Modi said.

He spoke of the CWG corruption scam and attacked the Delhi government.

Modi claimed that the gathering for party's Delhi rally was unprecedented and thanked the party workers for the show of strength.

He thanked the rain God for respite from the heat that people normally face during this time of the year.

Earlier Modi arrived at the venue in a helicopter, according to TV reports.

There was a fairly good turnout for Narendra Modi's rally in Delhi despite heavy showers in the city.

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When Madhuri, Chitrangada got divorced

While marriages are made in heaven, divorces happen by gossip mongers or so it seems. Be it the suave Michael Douglas or our own Hrithik Roshan, celebs have often faced all kind of rumours about their marital life. Be it linkups, extramarital affairs or divorce, gossip mongers love to spread false rumours. While several celebs head to splitsville due to "irreconcilable differences", there are many who work hard to make a success of their marriages despite news about their divorce splashing across the web. Here's a look at some absurd celebrity divorce rumours:

Madhuri Dixit heading for divorce: Popular actress Madhuri Dixit got a shock of her life when she returned to India. Instead of receiving a warm welcome, the actress got to hear rumours about her troubled marriage. The actress got upset when people asked her if she was getting a divorce from her cardiovascular surgeon husband Dr Shriram Madhav Nene. She ridiculed these rumours and cleared the air on Twitter by tweeting, "Enjoying marital bliss. Team Dixit-Nene on their way to India!"

Denzel Washington separates from his wife: Hollywood actor Denzel Washington slammed the media for spreading rumours about his troubled life. There were reports that the popular Hollywood actor is separating from his wife of 30 years. There were also rumours about his infidelity that had apparently led to the divorce.

Bhumika Chawla is a victim of domestic violence: The Tere Naam actress got furious when there were rumours about how her marriage to yoga guru Bharat Thakur has gone bust. The rumours started with how her husband was cheating on her, took all her money and was violent. However, last we heard the actress is still happily married.

Will Smith getting divorced: The attractive actor got to know about his so-called divorce with his wife while he was in bed with her. The gossip had started last year that said his wife had plans to separate from her husband of 16 years. However, both Will and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith ridiculed these rumours, Will also said that marriage is not easy but will do everything to make it a success.

Chitrangada Singh, Jyoti Randhawa go their separate ways: There were rumours earlier this year that the actress and her golfer husband, who have been married for 12 years and also have a son, mutually consented to part ways after going through a rough patch for a long time. The actress has however rubbished these reports and called them "baseless rumours." If it is true or not that is something time will tell.

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Obama extends 'rarest of rare gesture' to PM

WASHINGTON: In a rarest of the rare gesture, US President Barack Obama personally walked down to the White House portico to see off Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after a meeting with him at the Oval Office.

Those familiar with the strict White House protocol said that this was the 'rarest of the rare' gesture by the president, which they have not seen in the recent past.

Officials in the past have noted that Obama has great respect for the Prime Minister not only as a great leader and a statesman but also as an economist. The two leaders have enjoyed a great personal equation.

Obama had hosted his presidency's first state dinner for the Prime Minister in November 2009 and has described India and US as the indispensable partners of the 21st century.

In his remarks, Obama praised the Prime Minister.

"He has been a great friend and partner to the United States and to me personally during his tenure as Prime Minister of India," Obama said after meeting Singh on Friday.

"Across the board, Prime Minister Singh has been an outstanding partner," he added.

"Thank you so much for all your efforts to continue to strengthen ties between our two countries," Obama told Singh.

Singh too praised Obama for his commitment to the India-US relationship.

"During the time that I have been Prime Minister, and particularly during the time that President Obama and I have worked together, I think President Obama has made an outstanding contribution to strengthening, widening and deepening of our cooperation in diverse fields," Singh said.

"In the president, the United States has a leader who realises and recognises the contribution that a resurgent India can make not only to fighting poverty, but also to global peace and prosperity," Singh said.

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Stung by Rahul's remark on ordinance protecting convicted lawmakers, Manmohan asserts primacy of Cabinet

WASHINGTON: A deeply embarrassed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reeled back on the controversial ordinance aimed at protecting convicted lawmakers that was passed by his Cabinet after it was rubbished by Congress party vice-president Rahul Gandhi. Evidently stunned by the criticism just hours before he was to meet US President Barack Obama, the Prime Minister issued a statement from Washington saying the matter will be reconsidered after his return to India.

Sharp, harsh words by the Congress party vice-president, who called the ordinance "nonsense", and said "it should be torn up and thrown aside", broke like a thunderclap over the Prime Minister's official visit to US overshadowing his meeting with President Obama. Although the issue did not particularly undermine the engagement between two sovereign governments that goes beyond domestic flaps, Singh was sufficiently stung by the criticism, in itself unusual considering it undercut the prime minister when he was on foreign soil, to issue a carefully worded explanation.

"The ordinance cleared by the Cabinet pertaining to the Representation of the People Act has been a matter of much public debate," the Prime Minister said, disclosing that the Congress vice-president has also written to him on the issue beyond his public criticism. The government, Singh said, "is seized of all these developments" and "the issues raised will be considered" on his return to India "after due deliberations in the Cabinet."

While one view of the statement was that the Prime Minister was asserting the primacy of the Cabinet (of which Rahul Gandhi is not a member) and its collective responsibility vis-a-vis the decision on the ordinance, others suggested that he was deferring to the vice-president, on whom he is ready to confer the mantle of prime ministership and party supremo. "I would be happy to work for the Congress party under the leadership of Mr Rahul Gandhi," he tweeted recently from the PMO Twitter account.

Such niceties were clearly lacking in the young Gandhi's frontal attack on the Cabinet decision that came with unusually harsh language. The scuttlebutt in the Washington was that far from being impulsive, it was a well-thought out attack that put the Congress Party's Young Turks front and center vis-a-vis the old guard, and placed them at an advantageous position ahead of the Lok Sabha elections a few months from now.

The Prime Minister, unmindful of advice from at least one former aide that he should scrub the rest of his US trip after the Obama meeting and return home to resign, seems intent on completing his US engagements. He goes to New York after his White House engagements for the U.N general assembly meetings, on the sidelines of which he will have several bilateral meetings, including one with Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief.

Unfortunately, at least insofar as the hack-pack trailing him is concerned, all that has been overshadowed by the ordinance flap back home.

TIMES CAMPAIGN: STOP THE ORDINANCE THAT SAVES CRIMINAL POLITICIANS

You can also join the campaign by giving a missed call (toll free) to 080 6773 0022

To show your support, retweet the tweet below or tweet your own message with hashtags: #StopOrdinance and #CriminalNetas

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Rahul's ordinance remark: Public humiliation weakens Manmohan Singh further

NEW DELHI: Even in extremely tense moments, Prime Minister Mamohan Singh displays minimum emotion. But on Friday he would've steeled himself ahead of meeting Barack Obama, knowing his every nuance is under scrutiny.

The test is all the more severe on foreign soil amid hectic international engagements that include an encounter with Pakistani PM Nawaz Sharif in the wake of escalating terror strikes and opposition attacks.

If Rahul Gandhi's remarks amount to public humiliation for the PM and his government, Singh will take care not to let it show. Congress president Sonia Gandhi's soothing words must be helping his efforts. She called him to reassure the party's support. Sources said the call was to assuage any hurt.

Even Rahul, in his letter to the PM written today, emphasized his respect for Singh and his leadership.

The Congress decision to release contents of the letter pointed to damage control efforts against the backdrop of the rising perception that the Congress vice-president's dramatic performance was a direct humiliation of the PM's office.

The letter from the Congress vice-president was meant to emphasize that his defiance was over a matter of principle rather than disrespect the Prime Minister.

Statements released on Singh's behalf from the US indicate that the attempt was succeeding. A reference to Rahul having written to him and the promise that the Cabinet will consider his views on Singh's return don't signal defiance or a bruised ego.

The manner Rahul rubbished the ordinance to help convicted legislators far surpassed the tongue lashings CPM boss Prakash Karat handed out to Singh over the nuclear deal with the US during UPA-1.

The incident shreds what remains of Singh's prime ministerial authority - already eroded by scams ranging from Commonwealth Games to Coalgate. Many of his Cabinet colleagues apparently resent PMO directions.

But the stiffest cost the PM will pay is in the eyes of the public that has in the past seen him as a PLU, a man who enshrines middle class values of hard work and honesty.

Singh, increasingly seen as a leader who failed to check corruption, will find his esteem further lowered by Rahul's actions. Not too long ago, Singh would have been expected to stand up to such an ordinance rather than swimming with the political class.

The alacrity with which Congress ministers - including many who didn't bat an eyelid in ratifying the ordinance in the Cabinet - raced to greet Rahul's criticism of the government can only have made matters worse.

It was left to Sanjaya Baru, a former media advisor to the PM, to bat for Singh, saying Rahul's remarks smacked of insubordination and that Singh must immediately quit. The consensus in Congress is that Singh is unlikely to do so. In fact, Baru himself said the PM has the ability to take knocks on his chin.

The PM's dilemma could be acute. On the one hand, trashing of the ordinance is a public insult. But throwing a fit over defending the rights of convicted legislators is hardly a noble cause. It does not seem an attractive option.

Till now, differences between Congress's first family and the government have been carefully managed. Sonia Gandhi has ensured that no slight is ever offered to the PM and scrupulously stuck to protocol.

Only recently, on UPA-2's fourth anniversary, Sonia praised Singh for remaining dignified in the face of vitriolic opposition attacks. She has always emphasized that Singh will complete his term.

Rahul, too, has been deferential. Asked a few months ago about his then impending new party responsibilities, he said it would be up to his "two bosses" - Sonia and Singh.

The PM reciprocated, dismissing suggestions that he and Sonia are not on the same page over legislation like food security and land acquisition. On Rahul, Singh went to the extent of saying he is ready to work under the leader.

Genuflection to 10 Janpath hardly evokes comment in Congress. It is pretty much the done thing. The PM is unlikely to misread the mood in his party. But he may hold a grouse that the ordinance isn't his brainchild and he had gone along with what Congress wanted. This is, as far as can be ascertained, what happened.

Some shrewder Congress brains felt Singh was sore at what he feels is inadequate acknowledgement that the policies he shaped during UPA-1 helped the party win a handsome victory in 2009.

For all his hardy political armour, Singh is quite sensitive when the fires of controversy reach him. He bristles at being attacked for corruption by the opposition and is wary of being named in any scam, be it 2G or Coalgate.

TIMES CAMPAIGN: STOP THE ORDINANCE THAT SAVES CRIMINAL POLITICIANS

You can also join the campaign by giving a missed call (toll free) to 080 6773 0022

To show your support, retweet the tweet below or tweet your own message with hashtags: #StopOrdinance and #CriminalNetas

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Rahul Gandhi: Ordinance on convicted politicians is complete nonsense

NEW DELHI: In a major embarrassment to the UPA government, Rahul Gandhi on Friday denounced the controversial ordinance to negate the Supreme Court verdict on convicted lawmakers as "complete nonsense" and said what "our government has done is wrong".

Making a surprise brief appearance at a meet-the-press programme of his party's general secretary Ajay Maken at the Press Club here, he said the ordinance should be "torn up and thrown away".

Storming into the programme, the Congress vice president said before coming there he asked Maken about what was happening and Maken gave him a political line about the ordinance that "everybody will give you, the Congress will give you, the BJP will give you".

"Now, I will tell you what is my opinion on the ordinance. It is complete nonsense, it should be torn up and thrown away. It is my personal opinion," he said.

Rahul said that the arguments given in "my organisation" is that "we need to do this because of political considerations. Everybody is doing this. The Congress does this, the BJP does this, the Samajwadi Party, the JD(U) does this."

"It is time to stop this nonsense, political parties, mine and all others....If you want to fight corruption in the country whether it is Congress party or BJP, we cannot continue making these small compromises. Because if we make these small compromises, then we compromise everywhere."

At this point, Rahul got up from his seat to leave the venue but when journalists persisted, he resumed his seat as a barrage of questions flowed.

"I am interested in what the Congress party is doing and what our government is doing. That is why what our government has done as far as this ordinance is concerned is wrong," he said and left the venue.

After he left, Maken, who heads the Congress media department, said, "What Rahul Gandhi has said is our party policy".

Rahul's dramatic and open denunciation of the ordinance comes a day after President Pranab Mukherjee called three ministers - home, law and parliamentary affairs - and raised questions over the need for an ordinance on an issue on which there was no political consensus.

The President is understood to have asked the ministers the urgency to bring an ordinance when there was a bill already pending before Parliament on the issue.

Government spokespersons have been maintaining that there was an all-party consensus on the need for a bill to negate the Supreme Court judgement that struck down a provision in the electoral law which allowed a convicted MP and MLA to continue in their post if they make an appeal to a higher court within three months.

The all-party meeting was held on August 13 in which the government claimed that the main opposition BJP was also in favour of the legislation to negate the Supreme Court judgement.

However, after the Union Cabinet cleared the ordinance on Tuesday, the BJP and the Left parties have attacked it as "unconstitutional and immoral". Many civil society members and organisations also opposed the ordinance.

On Thursday, a high-level BJP delegation led by L K Advani met the President and urged him to return it to the government for reconsideration.

TIMES CAMPAIGN: STOP THE ORDINANCE THAT SAVES CRIMINAL POLITICIANS

You can also join the campaign by giving a missed call (toll free) to 080 6773 0022

To show your support, retweet the tweet below or tweet your own message with hashtags: #StopOrdinance and #CriminalNetas

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Google's 'Hummingbird' hatches new search formula

MENLO PARK: Google has quietly retooled the closely guarded formula running its internet search engine to give better answers to the increasingly complex questions posed by web surfers.

The overhaul came as part of an update called "Hummingbird" that Google has gradually rolled out in the past month without disclosing the modifications.

The changes could have a major impact on traffic to websites. Hummingbird represents the most dramatic alteration to Google's search engine since it revised the way it indexes websites three years ago as part of a redesign called "Caffeine," according to Amit Singhal, a senior vice president for the company. He estimates that the redesign will affect the analysis of about 90 per cent of the search requests that Google gets.

Any reshuffling of Google's search rankings can have sweeping ramifications because they steer so much of the internet's traffic. Google fields about two of out every three search requests in the US and handles an even larger volume in some parts of Europe. The changes could also drive up the price of Google ads tied to search requests if websites whose rankings are demoted under the new system feel they have to buy the marketing messages to attract traffic.

The search ads and other commercial pitches related to web content account for most of Google's revenue, which is expected to approach $60 billion this year.

Google disclosed the existence of the new search formula on Thursday at an event held in the Menlo Park, California, garage where CEO Larry Page and fellow co-founder Sergey Brin started the company 15 years ago.

Google celebrates its birthday on September 27 each year, even though the company was incorporated a few weeks earlier. The company is now based in Mountain View, California, at a sprawling complex located about seven miles from the 1,900-square-foot home where Page and Brin paid $1,700 per month to rent the garage and a bedroom. The co-founders' landlord was Susan Wojcicki, who is now a top Google executive and Brin's sister-in-law.

Wojcicki sold the home to Google in 2006 and it is now maintained as a monument to the company's humble beginnings.

Google's renovations to its search engine haven't triggered widespread complaints from other websites yet, suggesting that the revisions haven't resulted in a radical reshuffling in how websites rank in the recommendations. The Caffeine update spurred a loud outcry because it explicitly sought to weed out websites that tried to trick Google's search engine into believing their content was related to common search requests. After Caffeine kicked in, hundreds of websites that consistently won a coveted spot near the top of Google's search results had been relegated to the back pages or exiled completely.

Hummingbird is primarily aimed at giving Google's search engine a better grasp at understanding concepts instead of mere words, Singhal said.

The change needed to be done, Singhal said, because people have become so reliant on Google that they now routinely enter lengthy questions into the search box instead of just a few words related to specific topics.

With the advent of smartphones and Google's voice-recognition technology, people also are increasingly submitting search requests in sequences of spoken sentences that resemble an ongoing conversation. That trend also factored into Google's decision to hatch Hummingbird.

Just as Page and Brin set out to do when they started Google in a garage, "we want to keep getting better at helping you make the most of your life," Singhal said.

Besides Hummingbird, Google also announced a few other updates to existing search features aimed at providing information more concisely so people won't need to navigate to another website. These changes are part of Google's effort to adapt to the smaller screens of smartphones that aren't well suited for hopscotching across the Internet.

The additions primarily affect Google's "Knowledge Graph," an encyclopedia-like box that increasingly appears at the top or alongside the search results, and Google Now, a virtual assistant that tailors key information suited to each user's habits, interest and location.

Besides providing informational snapshots of famous people and landmarks, the Knowledge Graph is now capable of comparing the attributes of two different things, such as olive oil and coconut oil. It will also be possible to ask the Knowledge Graph to sort through certain types of information, such as the creative evolution of various artists.

An upcoming update to Google's search application for devices running Apple's mobile operating system will ensure notifications about personal appointments and errand reminders are also delivered on a smartphones or tablets running on Google's competing Android software. Google Now also will start flagging new developments and information about famous people that have previously piqued a user's interest.

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Attarintiki Daredi Telugu movie review highlights

Pawan Kalyan's forthcoming film Attarintiki Daredi is finally seeing the light. The Trivikram's directorial is set to be a family drama and let's quickly cut across to the highlights of the movie review

Attarintiki Daredi Telugu movie review highlights

Pawan Kalyan (as Gautham Nanda) looks ubercool and stylish. He scorches the screen with his performance, outlook, body language and his trademark antics.

Pawan Kalyan has shown it again how an actor can own and carry it on when the right character is offered. His dialogues, which spring straight from the Telugu heartland, are street-smart and colloquial. His performance during the emotional scenes are just about brilliant

Trivikram Srinivas, who is known for his candy floss humour quotient, perfectly blended Pawan Kalyan's mannerism and attitude to the character.

His direction is commendable - he maximises his star cast whilst, maintaining balance and keeps the film packed.

The dialogues penned by Trivikram, especially those written for Pawan Kalyan, are terrific and pack a punch

Samantha as Sashi and Praneetha as Prameela are good

Nadiya perfectly fits in the role of aunt. Perhaps one just gets the feeling that no one else could have done such a character other than her

There are several one-liners that had fans erupt in joys

Prasad Murella's cinematography captures the gloss and grandeur of Spain and Pollachi to the minutest.

Devi Sri Prasad's music and background score is a huge asset to the film

'Attatintiki Daredi' stands on three pillars - Pawan's star power and Trivikram's dialogues and cool music. The film unleashes the powerstar in full fury and flair

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Mumbai world’s second most honest city: Survey

LONDON: India often finds itself embarrassingly high on the corruption index, rating among the most corrupt countries in the world. However, in a recent experiment, the country's commercial capital Mumbai presented a different picture. The ruse was a simple, abandoned wallet lying on the road, and recording how many people stumbling on it return it to its owner. This uncomplicated trick established Mumbai as the second most honest city in the world.

An average Mumbaikar returned nine out of 12 wallets he or she found lying on the road, each carrying Rs 3,000 in cash - not a small amount. The experiment was carried out in 16 cities across four continents with 192 lost wallets, dropped in crowded places like shopping malls, sidewalks and parks in cities as diverse as New York and Zurich. Each of the wallets contained a cell phone number, business cards and a family photo.

Those carrying out the experiment waited to see how many people from each of these places call back to return the wallet. Outside India, the wallet contained $50 or its equivalent in local currency. The experiment saw around 47% - or nearly half of the wallets being returned. Finnish capital city of Helsinki topped the list of honest cities returning 11 of the 12 wallets.

Interestingly, some cities generally believed to be safe and honest figured at the bottom of the honesty heap, for example Zurich, where only four out of 12 wallets were returned. London, too, fared badly with seven of the 12 wallets pocketed by the finders.

Only five of the 12 dropped wallets were returned in Warsaw and six in Berlin. In Prague, four of the 12 wallets made it back while in Madrid, 10 were never returned. Only a third of those dropped in Bucharest and in Rio got back to their owners. In comparison, eight of the 12 wallets dropped were returned in Budapest with a similar count for New Yorkers.

Residents of Amsterdam also returned seven out of 12 wallets. Lisbon in Portugal was the most dishonest city with one wallet returned and that too by a couple on a holiday from Netherlands.

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Raped minor forced to strip at police station

TNN Sep 25, 2013, 04.51AM IST

(A 14-year-old girl was allegedly…)

LUCKNOW: A 14-year-old girl was allegedly asked to strip in front of cops at a police station in Kushinagar district of eastern Uttar Pradesh to convince them that her allegations of rape were genuine and not concocted. This happened after the initial attempts of the girl's father to get the complaint registered proved futile after he failed to pay Rs 50,000 to the police-the price they allegedly demanded to register the complaint and arrest the accused. After the media queries from senior officials on Tuesday, however, the Kushinagar police swung into action and rounded up the accused even before approaching the girl's family to register their complaint.

The incident came to light on Tuesday after the family lodged a complaint with the superintendent of police (SP) Kushinagar accusing the in-charge of a local police station of demanding Rs 50,000 to register a rape complaint and humiliating the girl and her family for failing to meet his demands. The SP Kushinagar ordered a probe into the allegations leveled against the police station in charge to be conducted by a deputy SP rank officer.

As per the complaint, when the family failed to meet the demands of the police officer, he asked the girl to accompany him into a room where he locked the doors from inside and asked the girl to strip saying he wanted to verify if she was raped.

"He took me into a room and closed the door and asked me to remove my clothes," the girl was quoted in the complaint. The police officer also allegedly abused the girl and her parents and chased them away without filing a first information report (FIR).

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Anita Advani annoyed with Arman Kohli’s attitude

TNN Sep 25, 2013, 02.15PM IST

(Arman and Anita More Pics )

Arman's attitude seems to be taking a toll on everybody inside the Bigg Boss house.

After an intense fight with Kushal and Gauahar last week, Arman got into an argument with Anita this time. Later in the evening Bigg Boss asked Tanisha to talk to the heaven-mates and unanimously decide who they want to save from going to the hell-side this week.

After much discussion, they could decide only one name and that was of Anita. While they were struggling to decide the second name, Arman gets furious and feels that he should be saved from going to the hell-side and instead Andy should be nominated.

Anita feels that's Arman's attitude was very wrong and he has been changing his statements time and again. Arman is of the opinion that he has stayed in the hell house for over a week and it should be somebody else's turn to go there. Anita is left stunned with Arman's remarks and says that if need be, she will volunteer to go on the other side.

With all the game plans and plotting going inside the house, it will be interesting to see who will become a victim of the swap this week or will Bigg Boss introduce a new twist.

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Indian strikes offer terror templates to jihadis

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama reached out the country of his paternal ancestors as Kenya battled a savage terrorist attack for which strikes on long-suffering India appears to have provided the template.

The theory that India is used as a staging ground by jihadists for signature strikes that are repeated elsewhere in the world gained ground as the Westgate mall attack in Nairobi, now in its third day, bore an eerie resemblance to the 26/11 assault on Mumbai. More than 60 people have been confirmed dead. The toll is expected to go up once terrorists are eliminated and the building is fully secured, enabling counting of the dead inside.

Terrorists have now used similar modus operandi and imitated several attacks that were first staged in India - from the use of box cutters to hijack aircraft (common to both Kandahar and 9/11), to serial blasts in trains (Mumbai and London), to the current attack on an elite and largely unguarded commercial shopping facility.

In fact, pictures of the attackers in the Westgate Mall in Nairobi show a stunning similarly to Ajmal Kasab and his ratpack in Mumbai - young men dressed in camouflage rampaging around with heavy weapons killing innocent civilians.

As with Mumbai, nationals of several countries, including Indians, Britons, and other foreigners, have been killed. But the primary victims are Kenyans. Non-Muslims have reportedly been singled out.

Obama called Kenya's President Kenyatta on Sunday to express condolences to the government and people of Kenya for the attack. He reiterated US support for Kenya's efforts to bring the perpetrators of the attack to justice, the White House said, adding that the President also reaffirmed the strong and historic partnership between the United States and Kenya.

The US President's father, Barack Obama Sr. came to the United States from Kenya as a student, and returned there after fathering the future president with Ann Durham, who he met as a an exchange student. The US President still has a large extended family from his father's side in Kenya.

Some accounts speak of victims being asked trivia questions in Islam, like the name of Prophet Mohammed mother, and being shot when they failed to answer. Others who recited Islamic religious passages from were let go.

The Guardian newspaper reported a man named Joshua Hakim being spared when he showed them his ID card with his thumb covering his Christian first name. ''They told me to go. Then an Indian man came forward and they said, 'What is the name of Muhammad's mother?' When he couldn't answer they just shot him." Hakim told the paper.

The group said the attack was to retaliate against the Kenyan role in hunting down Al Shabaab in neighboring Somalia, in whose lawless territory the terrorist group is primarily based.

But stunningly, the group claimed that its attackers converged in Nairobi from all over the world, including from the United States. In fact, in a message on Twitter, the group claimed some of the attackers came from Minnesota and Maine, both of which have small communities of immigrant Somalis.

Washington did not comment on the claim but the FBI was said to be checking on it. Britain too was trying to verify reports that Samantha Lewthwaite, the so-called ''white widow'' whose husband was one of the suicide bombers killed in the 2005 London underground attack, was among the attackers.

In fact, while the Mumbai attack was played out in the glare of live television cameras that helped terrorists a great deal, this one involved social media, including a live commentary of the attack by an account claiming to be press office of Al Shabaab. The account was shut down once but it resurfaced under another name and provided a ''live'' commentary of the attack, including one stunning update that ''6 Americans execute point blank'' shortly before falling silent at around 9.30am EST.

But there were other verifiable tweets, including one from Kamal Kaur, who had been shopping in the Mall with her family. ''I just washed my hair and wailed like a child. Blood in my hair. Not mine. That little boy who died right next to me... My son almost had his head blown off. Missed by an inch. Hit wall. Bounced and killed the little boy next to him,'' she tweeted.

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7.8-magnitude quake strikes Pakistan, tremors felt in Delhi

QUETTA, Pakistan: A powerful 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit southwestern Pakistan on Tuesday, the US Geological Survey said, with tremors felt as far away as New Delhi.

The quake struck at 4:29pm local time (1129 GMT) around 100 kilometres (60 miles) southwest of the city of Khuzdar in Baluchistan province, at a depth of 15 kilometres.

USGS originally measured the earthquake at magnitude 7.4 and 29 kilometres deep but later revised their figure. Pakistan's meteorological office gave the magnitude as 7.7.

The area of the epicentre is sparsely populated, but the USGS issued a red alert for the quake, based on past data.

A senior Pakistani meteorologist, Muhammad Riaz, told Dunya TV station it was a "major" earthquake and "heavy destruction" was likely.

Minor tremors were felt as far away as New Delhi, while office workers in the city of Ahmedabad near the border with Pakistan ran out of buildings and into the street.

Mumtaz Baluch, senior local administration official in Awaran district, 350 kilometres southwest of Quetta, told AFP: "There are reports of houses being collapsed in the district due to earthquake."

"We also have initial information about injuries to people as a result of the collapse of houses but there are no reports of any deaths."

"We have dispatched our teams to the affected area to ascertain the losses."

In April a 7.8-magnitude quake centred in southeast Iran, close to the border with Baluchistan, killed 41 people and affected more than 12,000 on the Pakistan side of the border.

People working in offices Karachi rushed out of their building and sat on the footpaths along the roads or stood away from the buildings.

"My work table jerked a bit and again and I impulsively rushed outside," Noor Jabeen, a 28-year woman working for an insurance company said while breathing heavily.

"It was not so intense but it was terrible," said Owais Khan, who works for a provincial government office.

"Whenever I feel jolts it reminds me of the 2005 earthquake in Kashmir," said Amjad Ali, 45, IT official standing on the road said.

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Lady luck hasn't smiled on my son: Mithun Chakraborty

Mithun Chakraborty's son Mahaakshay is yet to find a footing in the Bollywood. The luck has not been on his side so far, feels his dad.

Mahaakshay made his debut in 2008 with action flick 'Jimmy'. It was a dud, both in the critics' books as well as at the box office. The next film, Vikram Bhatt's 'Haunted - 3D' did well at the box office but his next 'Loot' was a flop, so was 'Enemmy', where he was seen with his father.

"His luck has not favoured him yet so he is still fighting. But as an actor I feel he has everything, otherwise I am not a fool to push him. He has it in him but luck has to be there on your side as well. It is ok... it happens," Chakraborty told in an interview.

"You just need a good chance so that it clicks. Like, I never thought 'Disco Dancer' will be a cult film. It is all about chance. I think Mithun Chakraborty is also a chance," he said. After producing 'Enemmy', is the veteran actor interested in producing another film? "I want to produce more films. But my first movie flopped. I have to struggle. I have plans but nothing is concrete so can't talk about it," he said.

Mithun feels that the cinema has changed over a period of a time, and he welcomes the change. "Cinema has changed technically and (in) thought process. There is generation gap and the filmmakers have to move along with the youth, trend."

But he fails to understand the obsession with heavy duty promotions and making 100 crore at the box office. "I don't understand promotion and all this, like going to malls, TV shows etc, as despite doing all this, either the film flops or becomes hit. I don't know why this happens. Also, a movie making some crores of business is something I don't understand. The success of the film should depend on its budget," Chakraborty said.

"A film made at a budget of Rs 65 crore making Rs 100 crore, and a Rs three crore (budget) film making Rs 30 crore, which is bigger? For me Rs 3 crore film crossing Rs 30 crore is more... It is about difference in the margin of profit," he said.

Chakraborty's forthcoming film is 'Boss', where he is starring with Akshay Kumar. The two have worked together in three films -- 'Housefull 2', 'Oh My God' and 'Khiladi 786'. "I am happy to work with him again we share a good rapport. We have a great chemistry on and off screen," he added.

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Indian shot in Nairobi mall for failing to answer query on Islam

ABUJA: An Indian man was shot when he failed to answer a question on Islam asked by Somalian terrorists who were holding hostages after killing 68 people at an upmarket mall in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.

The heavily armed gunmen belonging to al Qaida-linked Somali militant group al Shabab, reports said, were trying to weed out non-Muslims for execution by interrogating people on their faith or asking them to recite the 'Shahada'.

On the second floor of Westgate, Nairobi's swankiest shopping mall, Joshua Hakim saw gunmen, some of whom looked to be teenagers, strapped with ammunition belts, carrying AK-47 assault rifles. "They were firing indiscriminately, they shot a lot of people," he said.

During a lull in the firing, the attackers called out for Muslims to identify themselves and leave, British newspaper The Guardian quoted Hakim as saying.

Covering the Christian name on his ID with his thumb, Hakim approached one of the attackers and showed them the plastic card.

"They told me to go. Then an Indian man came forward and they said, 'What is the name of Muhammad's mother?' When he couldn't answer they just shot him."

It was not clear from the report whether the Indian was injured or fatally shot.

Some Indians were among 68 people killed by the Islamist terrorists in the packed mall. Five Indians, including two women and a girl, were among nearly 200 people injured in the brazen attack on the part Israeli-owned mall.

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Shebab threatens to kill hostages held in Nairobi mall

NAIROBI: Somali Shebab militants on Monday threatened to kill hostages they are holding in a Nairobi shopping mall as Kenyan troops move to end their siege.

"We authorize the mujahideen inside the building to take actions against the prisoners as much as they are pressed," Ali Mohamud Rage said in a statement posted on an Islamist website.

"We are telling Christians advancing onto the mujahideen to have mercy for their prisoners who will bear the brunt of any force directed against the mujahedeen," Rage added.

The al-Qaida linked group claimed to be in contact with the fighters inside the mall. It also said the gunmen were battling both Kenyan and Israeli forces.

As the stand-off entered its third day, sustained bursts of rapid gunfire erupted at dawn and lasted 15 minutes, and soldiers posted around the complex ducked for cover.

This was followed by three big explosions, AFP correspondents at the scene said.

The Shebab have not said how many people were being held by the dozen-or-so attackers, who marched into the sprawling four-storey complex at midday Saturday, spraying shoppers with machine gunfire and tossing grenades.

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Kalki's ‘It’s your fault’ rape satire video raises eyebrows

Chances are you've already seen, liked and shared this video, which has gone viral on various social networking platforms in the past few days. 'It's your fault' was uploaded on Wednesday night by All India Bak***d (AIB), a group of four stand-up comics - Rohan Joshi, Tanmay Bhat, Gursimran Khamba and Ashish Shakya. It features Kalki Koechlin and Juhi Pande. The video has gone viral and has even attracted the attention of international media like the Huffington Post, Al Jazeera and many foreign bloggers.

Rohan, from the popular Mumbai-based group, told us, "It's not what you would expect from a group of four funny guys, and that's just the point. Nothing at all, no part of this, is funny, and therefore we approached it in a different way. The response has been amazing, from the moment we posted the video till now. It is something that every person we know relates to and feels strongly about."

The satirical video has been targeted at the stereotypical social mindset that blames the victim for molestation and sexual assault, and sees Kalki and Juhi repeatedly telling women viewers how every such attack is 'their fault'. Said Juhi, "We knew when we were shooting the video that it would get a lot of reactions. Eyebrows would be raised and there would be a lot of discussion. We've all had these discussions in our social groups and have all felt angry and frustrated at these statements that have made headlines. Yes, this video will only reach the English-speaking, 'sarcasm-understanding' young person, but at least it's out there. It's a drop in the ocean, but it is still a drop and I am glad to be have been a part of it."

Bizarre comments made by political persons that have made headlines - blaming chowmein and mobile phones for rape and calling the attacker your 'bhaiya' to avert rape - have also made it to the video. It ends with a montage of women from different age groups saying the words 'It's my fault', and has been shared and retweeted many times, with the same words added before each post.

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Police file chargesheet in photojournalist's gang-rape case

MUMBAI: The mother of the 22-year-old photojournalist who was gang-raped at Shakti Mills on August 22 had called her twice that evening because the family planned to eat dinner out. It was the mother's birthday the next day.

This was revealed in the 580-page chargesheet filed on Thursday by the Mumbai police before the 37th Esplanade Metropolitan Magistrate and juvenile justice board at Dongri children's home. Four men and a juvenile are accused in the case.

The mother's first call came at 6.40pm—about 40 minutes after the photojournalist and a male colleague of hers had entered the deserted mill compound to take pictures and around a half-hour after the two were accosted by the accused men. The accused had already separated the survivor from her colleague.

Seeing the call to be her mother's, the photojournalist was threatened by the accused men to act normal. So she just replied "Maa, main theek hoon (Mother, I am all right)" and hung up.

Surprised at her daughter's unusual use of Hindi with her and the abruptness of the response, the mother called again: "Baby, what happened? Are you all right?" The 22-year-old said "Mummy main Mahalaxmi station hoon (sic). Main theek hoon." and disconnected again. Believing her daughter to be very busy, the mother did not call after that.

Around 7.30pm, the mother got a call from Jaslok Hospital, where the survivor had been taken. When they met, the survivor said between tears, "Mummy, I am vanished." The mother broke down. But the survivor gave her courage.

After the filing of the chargesheet — in record 27 days — joint commissioner of police (crime) Himanshu Roy told the media: "There is ample evidence, such as medical and DNA reports. The accused have been identified and there are witnesses to corroborate the sequence of events."

The chargesheet said there are 82 witnesses in the case, including the 12-year-old who gave clues about the whereabouts of the juvenile accused; 18 panchnamas have been made; eight mobile call detail records analysed; and DNA reports of 22 people obtained.

The call detail records of the five accused, the police said, show they were at the crime scene at the same time as the survivor. The police have recorded the statements of at least 10 friends of the accused and are likely to submit a supplementary chargesheet "once they get the remaining forensic reports".

The police have recorded the statement of the survivor and her colleague before a magistrate under CrPC section 164(5)(2) so that if they are unable to depose before a trial court the magistrate can.

According to the chargesheet, the accused men told the survivor's colleague, who was tied with belts, that she was being "interrogated" nearby; every time she screamed the accused man watching over him said that "she was being beaten for interrogation".

The survivor told the police that two of the accused men forcibly made her watch porn clips while sexually assaulting her. One of them, Qasim Shaikh, allegedly threatened her with broken glass when she cried in pain. He said: "Quietly do as I tell you or I will kill you and your friend. You don't know how wretched I am. You are not the first one; we have raped many women before. Nobody can hurt me."

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‘Cheaper’ iPhone hits stores, price upsets buyers

TOKYO: Apple acolytes in Asia kicked off the global rollout of two new iPhones on Friday, but complaints about its high price and no new alliance in the vast Chinese market threatened to dampen the mood.

The once-unbeatable king of the smartphones was brandishing a potentially lucrative new deal with Japan's biggest mobile carrier, but was without any new partnership in China.

That, and rumblings over the high cost -- even of the pared-down iPhone 5C -- looked set to mute the fanfare that routinely accompanies launches, observers say.

The double debut kicked off in Australia when stores threw open their doors to crowds at 8:00am (2200 GMT Thursday).

Jimmy Gunawan, 33, was first in line at the company's flagship Sydney store, but was surprised he only had to stake his place 20 hours earlier.

"Last year, I got here around the same time and there was already a queue of about 20 people," the freelance graphic designer said.

In Tokyo, diehard fans began lining up last week and even sat out a weekend typhoon to keep their spot in a queue that grew to around a kilometre (half-a-mile) in length by opening time, police estimated.

Media helicopters hovered over the Japanese capital, where Batman was among those outside the Apple store in Ginza.

Actor Ken Watanabe, star of Inception and Letters From Iwo Jima, was on hand to welcome buyers at Docomo's main Tokyo shop, marking the new alliance between Apple and the country's biggest carrier.

The firm, which has about 42% of the Japanese market, has shed more than 3.5 million subscribers to rivals since 2008, when SoftBank first rolled out the iPhone in Japan, local media have reported.

Hisako Nagashima, a 34-year-old manicurist who was waiting to snap up an iPhone 5S in gold, said it had been make-or-break time for her relationship with the company.

"If NTT Docomo had not released iPhone this time, I would have changed carriers," she told AFP.

'Simply insane'
All three Japanese carriers were offering both models "free" with two-year contracts.

But in places where up-front payments are more common, there was griping over the steep asking price.

"Wow, $1,129 (US$1,065) for an iPhone 5S here in Australia. That's simply insane," tweeted Bill Hutchison, referring to the cost of a 64GB model of the new version, which boasts a speedier processor and a fingerprint sensor.

Another, David Smith, tweeted: "Incredible -- Apple charging $99 for iPhone 5C in the USA (with a contract) but $740 in Australia and its $1,200 for 5S - no wonder Android phones are popular."

The polycarbonate-bodied 5C, supposedly aimed at budget-conscious smartphone shoppers, was widely trailed as Apple's answer to the onslaught of cheaper, Android-powered models, led by Samsung.

But its hefty $700 ticket price in China will put it out of reach of most consumers in the world's biggest mobile market.

"It's not worth the price," said Wang Ying, a Beijing-based analyst with consultant firm iResearch. Many domestically made smartphones are priced as low as $100.

Apple has not revealed what the "C" stands for, but did not knock down months of media speculation that it was intended to signify "cheap" or "China."

In an interview with Bloomberg Businessweek, Apple chief executive Tim Cook countered that quality had always been the driving force.

"We never had an objective to sell a low-cost phone," Cook told the magazine. "Our primary objective is to sell a great phone and provide a great experience, and we figured out a way to do it at a lower cost."

Analyst Wang said Apple also appeared to have missed a trick by not reaching a deal with China Mobile and its 700 million subscribers -- the country's largest carrier.

Currently, Apple has sales contracts with China Unicom and China Telecom.

"Cooperating with China Mobile will be a significant channel for Apple to... win more users."

Despite their simultaneous availability in China -- the first time Apple has brought the country online in the initial wave -- Hong Kong's resellers were pouncing, hoping to flip the phones for as much as double what they paid.

"Handsome boy, are you selling your phones?" a reseller was heard discreetly saying, before leading new iPhone 5S owners to the back stairs of the shopping mall to carry out the transaction.

The much-coveted gold-coloured iPhone, which resellers thought would attract a real premium in status-conscious Hong Kong, was nowhere to be found.

"I haven't seen a gold one yet," a reseller, who declined to give his name, told AFP an hour into the launch.

He said he would sell the 16GB model of the phone for "at least HK$8000 ($1,031)," while another reseller said he would sell the same model for almost double the HK$5,588 ticket price.

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IM operative Afzal Usmani flees from Mumbai court

NEW DELHI: Indian Mujahideen operative Afzal Usmani, an accused in 2008 Ahmedabad and Surat blast cases, escaped from a court in Mumbai on Friday.

The incident, which has embarrassed police, took place when seven accused in the case were being brought from Taloja Jail in Raigad district to the sessions court in south Mumbai.

Usmani helped agencies to bust IM module in Mumbai.

Police have issued an arrest warrant launched a manhunt for Usmani.

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BJP to win 3 of 4 states in upcoming polls, close call in Delhi: Survey

NEW DELHI: The BJP is set to retain power in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh and unseat the Congress in Rajasthan. But in Delhi the party is locked in a neck-and-neck race with the Congress, which could end up in a hung assembly, according to a Times Now-CVoter poll.

If the projections hold, they would come as a massive psychological boost to Narendra Modi and the BJP just months ahead of the Lok Sabaha elections of 2014. They would also mean an impressive debut for the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party, which is estimated to win seven of Delhi's 70 assembly seats.

According to the poll, which surveyed close to 39,000 people across the four states, the BJP could end up with 30 seats in Delhi, six short of a majority. With the Congress estimated to win 29 and AAP seven, that could well end in a situation where no government can be formed as AAP is unlikely to support either Congress or BJP.

In Madhya Pradesh, the poll suggests the BJP is poised to win quite comfortably despite the BJP having been in power for a decade. It projects 130 seats for the Shivraj Chauhan-led party in the 230-member assembly, leaving the Congress a distant second at 84.

In Rajasthan too, the BJP is predicted to gain a decisive verdict, picking up 118 seats in the 200-member House. The Congress is estimated to win a mere 64 seats, with BSP and others winning the remaining 18.

In Chhattisgarh, the BJP seems to be somewhat less securely placed but with the poll predicting it will win 47 of the 90 seats, it could win a majority though a smaller one than in 2008.

The BSP, the poll suggests, will make its presence felt in each of the four state except Chhattisgarh, but in each case it will be only a marginal player, winning two seats in the national capital, three in Rajasthan and five in Madhya Pradesh.

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Google USA offers Delhi Technological University student Rs 93 lakh per annum package

NEW DELHI: It was the best campus placement in the history of Delhi Technological University and comes at a time when the economy is in gloom. A computer engineering student, Himanshu Jindal, received an offer of an annual package of Rs 93 lakh (US$ 1,15,000) plus 125 stock units from Google, USA.

Another final-year software engineering student, Nilesh Aggarwal, received an annual package of Rs 70 lakh (US$ 1,05,000) from EPIC, a US-based software company.

The academic session of the university started on August 1 and over 40 companies have visited the campus so far. A total of 265 job offers were received in the first month. According to officials, Google, USA has offered the highest package so far to Jindal, a fourth-year student.

"I am happy that I've got such an excellent placement in a world-renowned company. This is due to my hard work, the blessings of my parents and the support of my friends," said Jindal.

Eleven students, including Aggarwal, bagged offers from EPIC. Navy Singla, Mohit Yadav, Ekaansh Goel, Ujjwal Arora and Ashutosh Mishra, all from the computer engineering branch, also received offers.

A student has been offered a pay package of Rs 28 lakh by Goldman Sachs and eight students a package of Rs 19 lakh from Amazon. The leading companies are also offering paid internship to third-year students.

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I wouldn't want to live in India if Modi becomes PM, author Ananthamurthy says

BANGALORE: Jnanpith awardee and acclaimed Kannada writer Dr UR Ananthamurthy has said he will not live in a country with Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister, triggering angry reactions from BJP which said he was free to leave India.

As a controversy broke out over his strident anti-Modi remark, Ananthamurthy on Thursday stood his ground and said the Gujarat chief minister would create fear among people if he becomes Prime Minister.

"I would not want to live in a country where Modi is the Prime Minister," he said at an event here recently.

Against the backdrop of vitriolic attacks against him from the BJP and its sympathizers for his remarks, Ananthamurthy said, "He (Modi) will create fear and if a fearsome man is sitting there, people will just bow down to him because a bully creates cowards."

The country needs to build a citizenry who are not afraid and a governance where people do not follow a leader slavishly, he told reporters.

Furious at Ananthamurthy's remarks, BJP and supporters of the BJP's prime ministerial candidate dubbed him "parasite like" alleging he swayed according to political climate, having supported Congress and JDS in the past and "currying" favours with the government of the day.

BJP MP Ananthkumar Hegde and several local party leaders said he was free to leave the country.

Several writers, including Baragur Ramachandrappa and K Marulasiddappa, have come out in support of Ananthamurthy while some others such as noted scholar Dr Chidananda Murthy flayed him.

Ananthamurthy — who lost the Man Booker International Prize to American writer Lydia Davis in May this year — said there was dignity attached to Prime Minister's post when Pandit Nehru and Narasimha Rao assumed the charge, but this will wane away if Modi becomes PM.

"We had people like Nehru who could write a book in jail — Discovery of India, a great book even today. Rao was a great scholar too. There was some dignity for the Prime Minister's post, but that dignity will go (if Modi becomes PM), he said.

On BJP leaders' attacks on him, Ananthamurthy said he had been critical of Indira Gandhi and Nehru in the past but was never abused as much as the saffron party did. "If I say something and I am abused so much by a gang of people, imagine when they are in power what will happen," he said.

Ananthamurthy said the BJP has always criticized him because he did not buy the RSS Hindu philosophy. "They are a fascist party and don't understand Hinduism. It is a great religion," he said.

On UPA government, he said it is not anti-people but was corrupt and should be punished. "But the way out is not choosing a man like Modi," he said.

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Karnataka minister, staff jump into lake, save 6 in sinking car

BANGALORE: At a time when politicians are a vilified lot, a 61-year-old Karnataka minister became a hero on Tuesday morning by jumping into a cold lake along with his guards and saving a family of six trapped in a sinking car. Primary and secondary education minister Kimmane Ratnakar was travelling in his official Innova to Bangalore from his native town of Thirthahalli when he spotted the sinking car and ordered his convoy to stop.

Around 7am, the minister's MUV was near Beguvalli, 20km from Thirthahallli, when a white Maruti Swift car overtook it. About 15 minutes later, as Kimmane's car approached the Beguvalli lake, the minister noticed the same Swift sinking in the lake.

Kimmane, his gunman Halswamy, driver Chandrashekar and escort vehicle driver Krishnamurthy jumped into the water. The four men swam to the sinking car, whose trapped occupants were flailing their hands from the windows.

Chandrashekar opened a rear door and pulled out three children and with the help of his men and brought them safely to the shore. The four then returned to the car, which had by now settled on shallow lake bed, and rescued the other three occupants, including a 55-year-old woman. The man in the driver's seat by then was unconscious.

A doctor called by the minister treated Uday Kumar, 40; his wife Suma, 35; his mother Geetha, 55; sons aged 14 and 8; and a three-year-old nephew of Uday. The minister called his friends and arranged breakfast and medicines for them. He also gave Uday his clothes before resuming his journey to Bangalore.

Uday, a native of Bhadravathi and owner of an electrical goods shop, was driving back from Karkala, his wife's native place. Speaking to TOI from Bhadravathi, Uday said it was a "rebirth" for his family.

"I don't know how to thank minister Kimmane Ratnakar. It's because of his efforts that we are alive. Or else, all the six of us would have drowned," he said.

"I had started at 4am from Karkala. On reaching the tank bund, the steering locked, and the car plunged into the lake." Water began gushing in through an open window. "I made best efforts to open the door and rescue others. But I panicked and fell unconscious," Uday told TOI.

"I realized what had happened and remembered that there were children inside. Taking both drivers and the gunman with me, I waded into the water and saved them," Ratnakar told TOI. "I must congratulate my three companions, who swam swiftly and made a big difference to the lives of the six people in the car."

Heroic act

4am: Pharmacist Uday Kumar leaves Karkala with his family for Bhadravathi in a Swift car

7am: The Swift overtakes minister Kimmane Ratnakar's Toyota Innova at Beguvalli

7.15am: The minister sees the white car drowning in the Beguvalli lake

7.20am: Kimmane, his gunman and two drivers jump into the water and rescue the six persons in the car

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Muzaffarnagar riots: Arrest warrants against several UP politicians

MUZAFFARNAGAR/LUCKNOW: A local court on Wednesday issued arrest warrants against a BSP MP, BJP and BSP MLAs, besides several politicians and senior community leaders for allegedly inciting violence through inflammatory speeches here even as some of the accused politicians denied any role in instigating violence.

The arrest warrants have been issued against 16 politicians and community leaders including BSP MP Qadir Rana, BJP MLAs Sangeet Som and Bhartendu Singh, BSP MLAs Noor Saleem and Maulana Jameel, Congress leader Saeeduzaman and BKU chief Naresh Tikait, police said.

At least two of the accused leaders appeared on television channels on Wednesday and denied any role in inciting violence.

BSP MLA Noor Saleem Rana denied that he instigated the mob and said he is ready to face investigations.

"I am ready to go to jail if I am proved guilty after probe," he told in an interview to Times Now.

Another accused MLA from the BJP Sangeet Som also denied the charges levelled by the cops.

"I was not hiding, I was in my constituency," Som said in an interview.

Police have said action will be taken against guilty politicians after the probe is over.

Action will be taken against them in two days, senior superintendent of police Praveen Kumar said.

"We have arrested three to four politicians ... we have collected some evidence ... some more evidence is to be collected and very soon will be arrested ... whoever is guilty will be arrested in two days ... this is subject to investigation," he said.

They are wanted for violating prohibitory orders and provoking communal tension by inflammatory speeches in different meetings (mahapanchayats) in the district, police said.

Ten police teams have been rushed to arrest those against whom warrants have been issued, a senior official said.

The communal clashes in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining areas claimed 47 lives and displaced over 40,000 people.

UP assembly adjourned

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh assembly was adjourned for half an hour on Wednesday amid uproar by the opposition parties demanding a debate on Muzaffarnagar riots.

As soon as the house assembled at 11am, BSP leader Swami Prasad Maurya demanded that the question hour should be suspended and a debate be held on Muzaffarnagar incident.

He said that a message should go in the state and communal harmony should be restored.

Leader of BJP Legislature Party Hukum Singh alleged that the government and the Cabinet were root of the trouble and a debate should be held on the issue.

Leader of Congress legislature party Pradeep Mathur also demanded a debate on the issue.

While ruling SP members raised objections over the oppositions remarks speaker Mata Prasad Pandey said that the government was ready for the debate under the rules, but the opposition parties were running away.

BJP members later entered into the well of the house demanding President's rule in the state and shouted slogans after which the assembly was adjourned for 30 minutes.

Later talking to the reporters Congress leader Pramod Tiwari alleged that those who do not want the debate were running from it.
As many as 47 people have been killed, over 100 injured and more than 43,000 rendered homeless in the communal clashes that singed the area since September 7.

The Army was called in to contain the situation.

(With inputs from PTI)

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Rooms inside Delhi metro stations rented out to couples

NEW DELHI: A day after a labourer died and two others were injured at a construction site in Rohini, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation ( DMRC) was in the news again for providing rooms to couples looking for privacy. The incident came to light when Zee News, in a sting operation, showed how rooms inside stations were being rented out to couples on an hourly basis.

The sting CD showed a toilet cleaning staff member demanding Rs 500 from a reporter who posed as a customer asking for space in the station's washroom for him and his woman friend. The attendants then revealed that rooms inside the station could be rented for Rs 300-500 per hour. The sting operation was reportedly carried out at several Delhi Metro stations including Race Course, Paschim Vihar, Ashok Park, Green Park and Madipur.

Delhi Metro spokesman Anuj Dayal said, "The CD has been handed over to DMRC's chief security commissioner for investigations. Stern action will be taken against those involved in anything like this. The washrooms at the Delhi Metro stations are maintained and managed by private operators." Interestingly, the sting operation also showed attendants making claims of providing the couples with space in the station's operations areas, which cannot be accessed by the public. It is only accessed by the Delhi Metro and CISF staff.

When asked how these rooms could be accessed by outsiders, the Delhi Metro officials said that these areas are under CCTV surveillance and the movements are usually monitored. The sting operation has also highlighted the lax security inside metro stations, admitted officials. These areas, which are supposed to be monitored by both the Delhi Metro and CISF staff, are high security. "Non-authorized personnel are not allowed in these areas. It is difficult to explain how these couples were allowed to access the rooms," admitted an official.

Officials of the CISF, responsible for security at Metro stations, said the matter should be investigated.

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Madhuri gets her no-nonsense stance from her parents

For those of us who watched Madhuri Dixit rule the roost in the late 1980s and 90s, her parents — Shankar and Snehlata Dixit — were a constant on the sets with her. Easily one of the most soft-spoken and affable set of parents, one can tell where Madhuri got her no-nonsense stance from.

One has seen her father, Shankar, with her on many occasions — be it when she was going dhak-dhak on the set of Beta (1992) or when she was doing meaningful films like Mrityu Dand (1997). One has to grant it to him, that as a superstar's father, Madhuri's dad never had any airs about him.

He would choose a chair behind the monitor, and was happy to watch the proceedings from it. He always had a benign smile for the mediapersons who came to interview his daughter. He made only the required amount of conversation with producers and press- wallahs. There were no attempts to blow Madhuri's trumpet, like a lot of star parents do. Her father simply kept her company on the sets or when she was travelling. He was always unobtrusive.

His health had been failing for a few months now. And one must grant it to Madhuri, that despite knowing this, she kept all her professional commitments. In fact, even a day before her father passed away, Madhuri was on the set of a dance reality show finale. She was on the phone monitoring his health and though she had many anxiety pangs, she made sure she smiled for the cameras.

Others who shared the podium with her — Hrithik Roshan, Karan Johar and Remo D'Souza — were mighty impressed with MD. Our heartfelt condolences to Madhuri and her family on her irreparable loss. Hope her father finds eternal peace.

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Sridevi's daughter flooded with film offers

Sridevi's little girl, Jhanvi Kapoor seems to have a lot more on her plate than shopping and selfies. The 16-year-old has been stepping out with her mother for many on-trend red carpet outings but it is not just the fashionistas who have been watching the teenager closely.

The precocious fashionista has now caught the eye of talent scouts down South and film offers galore for the school student. A source from the family told TOI, "Sridevi has a major fan following down South and she is well connected in the industry and Jhanvi has been getting a lot of offers from Southern producers planning Hindi projects."

The source added that offers include projects starring other star kids from the Southern film industry. "She has been offered a film opposite Ram Charan, Chiranjeevi's son and also another film with Nagarjuna's son Naga Chaitanya. But her parents believe that she is too young to start in the industry," said the source.

But the fact that her own mother started as a child actor seems to be giving hope to the scouts from down South. "Allu Arvind, Ashwini Dutt, Dil Raju, all major filmmakers from the regional industries have contacted her father Boney, but as of now he has said no," added the source.
In an interview to this paper in August 2012, Sridevi had categorically stated, "Right now I want her to concentrate on studies. When she completes her studies, ideally I would like her to get married and settle down. Dekhte hain aage." Will she finally bend her rules, only time will tell.

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Don't attack Hindus in Muslim lands, al-Qaida chief Zawahiri says

LONDON: Al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahri has issued his first specific guidelines for jihad, urging restraint in attacking other Muslim sects and non-Muslims and in starting conflicts in countries where jihadis might find a safe base to promote their ideas.

The document, published by the SITE monitoring service, provides a rare look at al-Qaida's strategy 12 years after the September 11 attacks on the United States and the nature of its global ambitions from North Africa to the Caucasus to Kashmir.

While al-Qaida's military aim remained to weaken the United States and Israel, Zawahri stressed the importance of "dawa", or missionary work, to spread its ideas.

"As far as targeting the proxies of America is concerned, it differs from place to place. The basic principle is to avoid entering into any conflict with them, except in the countries where confronting them becomes inevitable," he said.

Those comments are particularly relevant for North Africa, where many analysts believe al-Qaida is using the less restrictive environment which followed the 2011 Arab uprisings to seek new followers, often through local alliances, while avoiding drawing attention to itself by eschewing attacks.

"... our struggle is a long one, and jihad is in need of safe bases," Zawahri said in his "general guidelines for jihad" posted on jihadi forums.

Zawahri spelled out where conflict was inevitable, including Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Somalia.

In Pakistan, where intelligence sources believe Zawahri is hiding, he said fighting "aims at creating a safe haven for the mujahideen in Pakistan, which can then be used as a launching pad for the struggle of establishing an Islamic system in Pakistan."

Al-Qaida has a strong support network inside Pakistan — its founder Osama bin Laden lived there until his death in May 2011. It also has close ties to the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, with which the Pakistan government has said it will hold peace talks.

Zawahri cited the need to weaken Algeria — which crushed Islamist militants in a civil war in the 1990s — and spread jihadi influence throughout the Maghreb and West Africa.

And, in an apparent nod to those who say al-Qaida's focus on the United States weakens their battle against governments at home, he endorsed the right of militants to fight Russians in the Caucasus, Indians in Kashmir and Chinese in Xinjiang.

Avoid attacking other sects

Founded in 1988 during the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, al-Qaida has adapted to the Western onslaught against it which followed the September 11 attacks by building a network of alliances and affiliates in Muslim countries around the world.

Adept at exploiting conflicts like Afghanistan and Iraq, the Arab uprisings have given al-Qaida a new lease of life — in Syria, for example, fighters loyal to al-Qaida play a powerful role in the opposition to President Bashar al-Assad.

But its indiscriminate violence, including suicide bombings and targeting of Shia Muslims, has made it unpopular among many Muslims.

Zawahri called on his mainly Salafist followers to avoid attacking other Muslim sects, and said if they were attacked, they should limit their response to those involved in fighting.

They should also leave alone Christians, Hindus and Sikhs living in Muslim lands, respect the lives of women and children and refrain from targeting enemies in mosques, markets and gatherings where they mix with Muslims they were not fighting.

But while affiliates subscribe to al-Qaida's ideology, they are largely autonomous in day-to-day operations, making it hard for Zawahri to control the behaviour of their fighters.

"The biggest theme in Zawahri's document is restraint," Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, a expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, said on Twitter. "This seems to acknowledge the excesses that have tarnished AQ's brand."

The document was posted on September 13, according to SITE, although it was unclear when the guidelines were written by Zawahri, whose messages — based on their content — appear to take weeks to be smuggled out from where he is in hiding.

Zawahri, an Egyptian, made no specific reference to Egypt, though he said that "in the environs of Jerusalem, the foremost and primary battle is against the Jews."

He had previously been critical of the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood for participating in democracy, and the overthrow of president Mohamed Morsi by the Egyptian army has raised fears al-Qaida would exploit this to encourage conflict in Egypt.

However, noting that al-Qaida would cooperate with other Islamic groups on areas of agreement, he said "our differences with other Islamic groups should not distract us from confronting the enemies of Islam ..."

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Salman praises Chennai Express' success

Whether it was Aamir Khan's 3 Idiots' collections or Salman Khan's EK Tha Tiger's collections, Shah Rukh Khan's EID release Chennai Express has broken all the previous records at the box-office.

The entire industry is overwhelmed with the response that the superstar's latest film has received. And the list of admirers for Chennai Express just grew longer when SRK's arch rival Salman Khan praised the recent hit.

"Like Shah Rukh Khan recently beat everyone and all previous records with his film Chennai Express, I will also try to beat it with my film," said Salman.

Salman, who shares a love and hate relationship with Shah Rukh also went ahead to invite him on the new season of his TV show Bigg Boss 7 as a guest. "If Shah Rukh wants to promote his film on my show the why not? If he is willing to come on the show, he is always welcome," concluded the Bollywood heartthrob.

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LK Advani praises Narendra Modi for Gujarat's development

KORBA, Chhattisgarh: For the first time after being upstaged by his protege, veteran BJP leader Lal Krishna Advani on Monday praised party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, describing him as "my colleague", who had put Gujarat on the fast track of development.

"Gujarat is the first state in the country to achieve 100 per cent electrification of all the villages. And the credit goes to Narendra Modi", he said while speaking at a function organized at the Hasdeo Power Project in Korba district of Chhattisgarh. Advani dedicated to the nation a 500 MW power plant of the Hasdeo extension project of Chhattisgarh state power generation company limited.

Advani addressed the first public meeting on Monday after the party overruled his reservations and declared Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Advani also praised Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh for the development.

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Nina Davuluri is first Miss America of Indian descent

ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey: Moments after winning the 2014 Miss America crown, Nina Davuluri described how delighted she is that the nearly century-old pageant sees beauty and talent of all kinds.

The 24-year-old Miss New York is the first contestant of Indian heritage to become Miss America; her talent routine was a Bollywood fusion dance.

"I'm so happy this organization has embraced diversity,'' she said in her first press conference after winning the crown in Atlantic City, New Jersey's Boardwalk Hall. "I'm thankful there are children watching at home who can finally relate to a new Miss America.''

Her pageant platform was "celebrating diversity through cultural competency."

The native of Syracuse, New York wants to be a doctor, and is applying to medical school, with the help of a $50,000 scholarship she won as part of the pageant title.

She is the second consecutive Miss New York to win the Miss America crown, succeeding Mallory Hagan, who was selected in January when the pageant was still held in Las Vegas. The Miss America Organization will compensate Hagan for her shortened reign.

Davuluri's victory led to some negative comments on Twitter from users upset that someone of Indian heritage had won the pageant. She brushed those aside.

"I have to rise above that," she said. "I always viewed myself as first and foremost American."

She had planned to go to the scene of a devastating boardwalk fire in the New Jersey communities of Seaside Park and Seaside Heights Monday afternoon. But pageant officials canceled that visit after learning that Gov. Chris Christie was making cabinet officials available at that same time to business owners victimized by the fire.

Her first runner-up was Miss California, Crystal Lee. Other top 5 finalists included Miss Minnesota, Rebecca Yeh; Miss Florida, Myrrhanda Jones, and Miss Oklahoma, Kelsey Griswold.

In the run-up to the pageant, much attention was given to Miss Kansas, Theresa Vail, the Army sergeant who was believed to have been the first Miss America contestant to openly display tattoos. She has the Serenity Prayer on her rib cage, and a smaller military insignia on the back of one shoulder.

Vail won a nationwide "America's Choice" vote to advance as a semi-finalist, but failed to make it into the Top 10.

In a Twitter message on Sunday before the finals began, Vail wrote: "Win or not tonight, I have accomplished what I set out to do. I have empowered women. I have opened eyes."

Jones made it into the top 5 wearing a bedazzled knee brace. She tore knee ligaments Thursday while rehearsing her baton-twirling routine, which she executed flawlessly Sunday night.

The pageant had pitted 53 contestants, one from each state, plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, in swimsuit, evening gown, talent and interview competitions.

Sam Haskell, CEO of the Miss America Organization, said he was thrilled it all played out in Atlantic City after a six-year stint in Las Vegas.

"This is where we belong," he told The Associated Press. "This is the home of Miss America, and this is where we're going to stay."

The pageant started in Atlantic City in 1921 as a way to extend the summer tourism season for an extra weekend.

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How Advani camp’s last hope of stalling Modi’s anointment fizzled out

NEW DELHI: As his meeting with L K Advani ended on Friday afternoon, BJP president Rajnath Singh quietly told the veteran leader that the decision to name Narendra Modi as the party's prime ministerial candidate could not be put off.

"Ab baat jahan pahunch gayi hai, wahan se wapas jaana sambhav nahin hai" (the matter has now reached a point from which there can be no going back), Rajnath told the sulking stalwart on Friday afternoon, according to BJP sources.

The blunt "no" — although couched in polite and deferential Hindi — snuffed out Advani camp's last hope that fear of the veteran's public annoyance would lead the BJP to back off from its plan to declare Modi its prime ministerial choice for 2014.

Rajnath had reached Advani's sprawling Prithviraj Road bungalow as part of a last-ditch effort to get the former deputy PM relent on his opposition to Modi's projection as PM candidate. Significantly, the talks were held against the backdrop of the Advani camp's assessment that RSS and BJP may agree to defer the decision in exchange of an assurance that the former deputy PM would support Gujarat CM's candidature after state polls scheduled for October-November.

The assessment — believed to be the result of the extravagantly optimistic interpretation of a few "peace makers" — came as a shocker to BJP and RSS leadership who lost no time to disabuse the intermediaries of the viability of the proposal.

RSS number 2 Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi is learnt to have reacted to the truce proposal by citing Advani's oft-quoted view that the RSS has no business getting into the micro-management of BJP affairs. Rajnath also dismissed the idea. But while the intermediaries swiftly aborted their mediation bid, the veteran did not give up the hope yet, perhaps also because the mediators could not marshal the courage to admit to their estimates had gone wrong.

That Rajnath's refusal to back down surprised Advani is, according to sources, borne out by his letter where he criticized the BJP chief.

Advani seemed to have made another miscalculation. He mistakenly believed that former party president Nitin Gadkari and senior leader Ananth Kumar would support him at the meeting of the parliamentary board. The addition of Gadkari and Ananth Kumar to Sushma Swaraj and Murli Manohar Joshi and Advani himself would have taken the number of the pro-deferment faction to almost half of the 11-member parliamentary board, excluding the ailing Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

A near-vertical split would have made it difficult for the BJP leadership to press ahead with its plan for an early decision on Modi. This assessment may have led Advani to briefly consider attending the meeting of the parliamentary board.

This was not to be. Gadkari had indeed turned sympathetic to Advani: a twist which is cited to emphasize the acuity of the saying that there are no permanent friends or foes in politics. But Advani was naive to believe Gadkari would defy the RSS. The Nagpur-based leader, who owes his prominence on the national scale to RSS chief Mohanrao Bhagwat, takes pride in his "true swayamsewak" credentials.

Ananth Kumar had appeared openly aligned with Advani and Swaraj till recently. But he had since eased himself into the role of a "peacemaker" with a dexterity that remains the subject of banter in the party: a change which escaped the attention of Advani's tacticians.

In the event, Joshi also decided to drop the ante while Swaraj limited herself to asserting her right to express her point of view while stressing that she would not cross the line that had been drawn.

Her argument about timing not being ripe for the crucial announcement was countered by Arun Jaitley, Venkaiah Naidu and Thawarchand Gehlot. Jaitley pointed to the groundswell for Modi among ranks, while Venkaiah said that the party was losing time. Gehlot stressed that the decision, as communicated by Rajnath, should be followed by everybody.

The troika actually was acting out of a script which the RSS and BJP leadership had prepared, anticipating that the tenacious resistance to Modi will not wilt in the face of show of numbers.

The choreography was also evident from the concerted manner in which all the spokespersons emphasized their respect for Advani and recalled his role in building the party into the force while asserting the supremacy of the majority view.

On Saturday, many leaders called on Advani. But the show of respect for the elderly could not mask the fact that his plan had gone horribly wrong and that the patriarch could be headed for isolation.

Even as the party leaders professed their respect for the Advani, there was apprehension of what the former deputy PM could post on his blog — a platform that he had earlier used to express his disappointment with the style of functioning of BJP leadership — on Sunday.

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