Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani has asked the United States today to respect Pakistan's red lines, its national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Talking to US Ambassador to Pakistan Cameron Munter who called on him at the PM House, Gilani said the United States must guarantee that the frontiers of the country would be respected in future.

More on the Dawn

Our Delhi correspondent writes in to say that the MP most upset by the Rajya Sabha adjournment today was the BJP's Prakash Javadekar, whose resolution on creation of a separate Telangana state was on top of the private members' business listed for the afternoon session.

Friday afternoons are for private members' resolutions and Bills and the Houses are not adjourned for their business even in the event of a pandemonium since protests are basically against the government and not against the members.

"It is betrayal by the Congress to the people of Telangana. Just to avoid the issue they have disturbed the House today. The BJP condemns the act," he said.

And another great read from Outsideonline: Five days before the 2010 Olympic snowboarding trials, Kevin Pearce slammed his head on a rock-hard wall of halfpipe, suffering severe brain trauma that flipped the script of his life. A return to competition is out of the question--he's had to relearn how to walk and talk--but that's not enough to keep him off the mountain.

More

Coming up now: Weekend reads you can cosy up with.

The story of twin boys who were identical in every way but one. Wyatt was a girl to the core, and now lives as one, with the help of a brave, loving family and a path-breaking doctor's care. Read it on the Boston.com

Don't feel shortchanged if you don't measure up, but a report says that an average man has nine sexual partners in a lifetime, women have four.

More on the Telegraph.

An Indian student measuring just a little over two feet has been confirmed as the world's shortest living woman by Guinness World Records. Jyoti Amge, at 62.8cm (24.7in), is 7cm shorter than previous title holder, American Bridgette Jordan, reports the bbc.

Under attack from Rahul Gandhi for its aversion to English and computers, Samajwadi Party today said it was only against their forced and mandatory usage as countries which gave importance to native language have shownthat they can progress faster.

"We have never been against computers and English. And our opposition had only been on its forced and mandatory usage," Samajwadi state unit president, Akhilesh Yadav said.

"We want all to get education and computers be used where they are required, and not forced on people or made compulsory," Yadav, who is presently on the eighth leg of his 'Kranti rath yatra', said. 

Referring to China, Russia and France, the SP leader said it was also a fact that the countries which have given importance to their native language have progressed much faster.

The Su-30MKI aircraft that crashed near Pune on Tuesday due to an unknown fault gave no indication to the pilot. An expert team from Russia has arrived to address it, Air Chief Marshal N A K Browne today said. 

The flying of entire fleet of 120 aircraft which was suspended after the mishap will resume from Monday. "There was a problem in the fly-by-wire system... This is a new thing. Pilot did not get any warning. There were no indications in the cockpit and the aircraft was out of control," the IAF chief said.

The first Su-30MKI which had crashed over Rajasthan in 2009 also faced problems in its fly-by wire system.

Details on the Kudankulam story coming in from Russia.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today cleared the uncertainty over the start of Kudankulam nuclear project declaring that the first unit will be operationalised in a couple of weeks but India and Russia did not sign any agreement for the third and fourth units of the plant.

After his talks with Russsian President Dmitry Medvedev at the Kremlin, he said at a joint press interaction that the second unit of the plant will be operationsalised six months after that.

However, the two countries chose not to sign agreements for the third and fourth unit of the Russian-aided project in Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu

Chidambaram also says: "My order was that the MHA should not give any direction. We will only convey the law ministry advice. I don't have any current subsisting interest with any case. I reject BJP's allegations, the charges are ridiculous."

"I can't have life-long interest in over 25,000 cases I have represented as lawyer in the last four decades," he says.

On the PM's first day in Russia, the host nation backed India's bid for a permanent seat in an expanded UN Security Council as well as its aspirations to join the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, a regional security  grouping. 

Moscow, one of the five veto-wielding members of the UNSC and one of the founders of the SCO, expressed it support in a joint declaration issued after the 12th annual India-Russian Summit between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Dmitry Medvedev in the Kremlin.

Medvedev.also announced that military-technical cooperation between India and Russia had reached unprecedented levels.

Chidambaram says he was clear that no directions should be given.

The report said that the home ministry sought to withdraw the case against the hotelier. PC had appeared as a counsel for the hotelier between 1997 and 2003.

Finally, after two days of silence, union home minister P Chidambaram responds to the charges of conflict of interest, saying, "I feel deeply hurt. I strongly reject the completely unfounded allegations of the BJP. Conflict of interest arises only if I was still the hotelier's lawyer."

This is the Pioneer report that started it all

Also read: Bail for Kanimozhi to set the ball rolling for Union Cabinet reshuffle.

On Saturday, the Congress got a boost for its prospects in Uttar Pradesh with Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok Dal joining hands with it for the crucial UP assembly elections and also adding to strength of the party-led government at the centre by decding to join the UPA. More

Here's what you should know about the Kudankulam controversy:

Count on your support on Kudankulam: PM writes to Jaya

Govt feels Jaya will eventually support Kudankulam N-project.

The amicus curaie has also told the court that at no point did Baba Ramdev merit the crackdown.

On rediff.com: This is what the PM said immediately after the crackdown on Ramdev: We had no option!

Another breaking news coming in: Amicus Curiae (Friend of the Court) tells the Supreme Court that the crackdown on Baba Ramdev on June 3-4 was pre-planned and organised to meet political ends.

The Delhi police was in constant touch with the MEA and at no point did Baba Ramdev make any hate speech, the Amicus Curiae tells the court.

Also from the NYT's India blogs: Indian men have long had a love affair with the European roving reporter Tintin, whose story is told in  a series of adventures. From the 1960s to the 80s, several generations of Indian boys who read English grew up devouring these comic books, with characters like Tintin's faithful companion Snowy the dog, the brilliant Professor Calculus, and the blustering Captain Haddock.  

Ranjani Iyer Mohanty on why Indian men love the Belgian reporter. Read

Not just warm, should heat up all the cockles in your heart.

The Government today said telecom regulator Trai has received Rs 6.05 lakh from Vodafone, Tata Teleservices and Loop Mobile regarding violation of rules by telemarketers for unwanted commercial calls and messages.

In order to prevent harassment to customers from pesky calls and messages, Trai had issued guidelines to put on hold the unsolicited commercial communications. Trai has received Rs 3.30 lakh from Tata Teleservices,
Vodafone has submitted Rs 2 lakh and Loop Telecom has been penalised for Rs 75,000, making a total of Rs 6.05 lakh, Deora said.

The Delhi High Court has quashed the bail plea of former telecom secretary Siddharth Behura in the 2G spectrum scam.

The former telecom secretary was arrested along with former telecom minister A Raja on February 2 in the 2G scam.

He has been charged with criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery. The court had reserved its order on Behura's bail plea on December 1 while freeing DMK MP Kanimozhi and four others on bail the same day. All six had come to the High Court together challenging the trial court's November 3 order, which had dismissed their bail pleas.

Just in: 2G scam: Former telecom secretary Siddharth Behura's bail plea has been dismissed.

With the likes of Leonardo Dicaprio and Brad Pitt up for the Best Actor trophy at the 69th Golden Globes, French film 'The Artist' is leading the nominations having picking up nods in all major categories. 

DiCaprio is nominated for his portrayal of J Edgar Hooverin Clint Eastwood's biopic, as is Michael Fassbender for'Shame', George Clooney for 'The Descendants' and Pitt for'Moneyball'. 'The Artist', Michel Hazanavicius's largely silentblack-and-white homage to Hollywood's golden era, swept theboard being nominated in six categories.

We were friends for more than thirty years, which is a long time but, now that he is gone, seems not nearly long enough. I was rather nervous when I first met him, one night in London in 1977, along with his great friend Martin Amis

A must-read from the New Yorker

India's Missionaries of Charity order said it would pray for British writer Christopher Hitchens' soul, despite his aggressive campaign against its Nobel prize-winning founder, Mother Teresa.

Read

Former Prime Minister Paul Keating has said that Australia can never be a great country while a foreigner is head of state and the flag of another nation resides on the Australian flag. Keating said Australia should get on with the move to becoming a republic and not wait until Queen Elizabeth dies or leaves the throne.

He acknowledged the great affection of Australians for the Queen for her stoicism and conscientiousness. "The fact is that Australia can only be a great country when it claims its head of state as one of its own," he said.

Vladimir Putin has appointed a former Playboy playmate as one of his MPs in the Russian parliament.  

The model is 27-year-old Maria Kozhevnikova who posed nude for the Russian edition of the magazine two years ago soon after breaking up from a boyfriend.  

Kozhevnikova featured on the cover and seven revealing pages were devoted to her inside the magazine.  

That's her on the Daily Mail

The Pakistan government has asked the Supreme Court to dismiss petitions seeking an investigation into the memogate scandal, saying it has already taken appropriate steps to have the issue probed by a Parliamentary committee.

See a related report on our 12:07 post.

On 13 June 1971, an article in the UK's Sunday Times exposed the brutality of Pakistan's suppression of the Bangladeshi uprising. It forced the reporter's family into hiding and changed history. Read

From our special coverage on the 1971 war, read: I cut my leg off and ordered, "Go, bury it"

Congress president Sonia Gandhi today said that implementing development programmes is the answer to Left-wing extremism, which is posing a challenge to public order and governance in several regions, especially tribal areas.

Read the report in the Indian Express.

Even as Parliament was adjourned for the day, one bill did get passed -- Railway Appropriation Bill for 2011-12. It was passed by a voice vote.

Here's what the Bill says.

Rohan Joshi on Twitter: This repugnant cretin claims the Bengali holocaust of 1971 was basically a myth.

Read Javed Jabbar's story on The International News: Revisiting 1971

Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha has been adjourned till Monday after opposition members created uproar demanding dismissal of the Karnataka government for allegedly committing atrocities on Marathi-speaking people. The opposition also wants Home Minister P Chidambaram sacked in the conflict of interest case.

Can the Lok Sabha be far behind?

Pakistan's army chief has said a memo accusing the military of plotting a coup, which could damage the unpopular president and led to the resignation of Islamabad's ambassador to Washington, was an attempt to hurt national security, newspapers said.

General Ashfaq Kayani, arguably the most powerful man in Pakistan, made the remarks in a statement filed to the Supreme Court, which is examining a petition demanding an investigation into who was behind the memo.

Read the report on reuters.

This should illustrate just how illustrious a person writer, columnist Christopher Hitchens, who passed away yesterday, was: The New York Times has redrawn its front page to include his obituary.

Read the Atlantaic's obit on Hitchens.

Back to news of the Lokpal Bill that only threatens to get more furious.

Communist Party of India (Marxist) lawmaker Sitaram Yechury has said that the Parliament had the ''sole right'' to enact laws as per the Constitutional provisions. Yechury said that the Ombudsman Bill, like other laws, could only be made and enacted in accordance with the parliamentary process. 

"We do not differ on the main question, of finding ways to battle corruption, raised by Anna Hazare. We completely support his cause. However, on the point of the means and way in which this question can be addressed, we believe as per the Indian Constitution, the right to make laws lies with the parliament," he said.

Ramesh Srivats tweets: Today is Vijay Diwas in India; Bijoy Dibosh in Bangladesh; and Don't-know-what-you're-talking-about Day in Pakistan.  

On rediff.com: Forty years ago, in a historic war that lasted just 13 days, India defeated Pakistan, marking the nation's greatest military triumph.We salute the heroes of the 1971 War in this special section.

Read: The Flying Hero of the 1971 war

Our Delhi correspondent reporting from Parliament says that Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee went up to senior BJP leader LK Advani before the Lok Sabha session began. Other BJP leaders also spoke to Pranab for a few minutes, by which time the Speaker had arrived.

Out of the 11 rows in the Lok Sabha, six were empty in the Treasury benches, with just six ministers present.

Against the backdrop of demands for revoking AFSPA from parts of Jammu and Kashmir, Defence Minister A K Antony today said though violence levels have come down, cross-border infiltration attempts were still on in the state and the "threat" there can't be ignored.

"Even though violence level has reduc ed substantially, attempts at infiltration are still persisting... We can't ignore the threat," he told reporters at the 40th Vijay Diwas (Victory Day) of Bangladesh Liberation War.

The Minister was asked to comment on the demands for revoking of Armed AFSPA from some parts of the state in view of a recent terrorist attack on a senior Minister there. "We have to be alert regarding our border areas 24X7," Antony said.

Sports heroes Sachin Tendulkar and Dhyan Chand are now eligible for the Bharat Ratna as the government has changed the eligibility criteria for the Bharat Ratna to widen its scope. The Bharat Ratna category has been broadened and excellence in all fields of human endeavour is the new eligibility norm. The Prime Minister's Office has accepted the Ministry of Home Affairs' recommendation of broad basing the Bharat Ratna category.

Read the report on CNN IBN.

Apparently, Lok Sabha was adjourned till noon after uproar over alleged atrocities by Karnataka government on Marathi speakers and not over PC's conflict of interest issue.

Actor Shiney Ahuja, whose career recieved a body blow after he was accused of raping his maid, says that he is skeptical about filmmakers approaching him for their projects. The actor is currently out on bail after he challenged the sentence in the Bombay High Court. He is now making a comeback in Bollywood with Bharat Shah's horror film 'Ghost' after a gap of three years.

On whether he would be able to score again with film-makers he said, "I don't know if anybody will call me...may be somebody will. I am waiting for the film to release. I would approach people whom I am in touch with like Sudhir Mishra, Anurag Basu and few others and love to work with them," Shiney
said.

Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha have been adjourned till noon over the PC conflict of interest issue.

Clueless? Read the report that started it all.

Hooch tragedy toll rises to 167 (The Hindu)
More deaths are feared in the states worst-ever illicit liquor tragedy as condition of several of the victims was critical, health department sources said. Read

Lokpal Bill may be tabled in Lok Sabha on Tuesday (The Hindu)

The Union Cabinet is likely to meet either on December 18 or 19 after the return of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from Russia to take a call on the contentious issues related to the Lokpal Bill. Read

Lokpal Bill: Government may extend session (Indian Express)
Govt is confident of approaching the Lower House for 'consideration and passage' of the Bill. Read

Hazare to put off protests if Parl session extended for lokpal (Hindustan Times)
Team Anna member Kiran Bedi today said Anna Hazare will postpone his protests if Parliament session is extended to introduce and get the lokpal bill passed. Read

Jayalalithaa flays Manmohan for keeping mum on her letters (The Hindu)

Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Thursday criticised the Union government for maintaining silence on her letters to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the Mullaperiyar dam issue. Read

PM likely to raise issue of upgrade of Su-30 MKI fighter with Russia (The Hindustan Times)
Air Headquarters has urgently requested Manmohan Singh to raise the issue of engine serviceability with his Russian counterpart after few incidents of engine failures have occurred in the long range twin-engine fighter. Read