Just in: Former CWG OC boss Suresh Kalmadi has apparently called his lawyers fearing an arrest over the weekend. The scam-tainted man fears he will be arrested after the National Games ceremony on February 26. He may be seeking anticipatory bail.

Meanwhile, buzz is that Tihar jailbirds are practicing singing the golden oldie: Con aaya mere man ke dware...

Mumbai mayor Shraddha Jadhav under a cloud for asking the BCCI for free tickets to the World Cup finals at Wankhede,today justified herself saying she Wankhede was a big stadium andshehad just asked for only a few tickets. She said it was a world event, and civic officials were bound to get tickets.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan government has announced that actors and artists will have to obtain a No-Objection Certificate before travelling to India. This comes close on the heels of the detention of singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in Delhi on charges of illegal possession of foreign currency.

The Culture Ministry will certify Pakistani actors and artistes before the NOCs are issued to them by the Interior Ministry for travelling to India. A decision to this effect was made at a high-level meeting chaired by Interior Minister Rehman Malik.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has heaved a sigh of relief after the Indian High Commission cleared visas for the national squad to play across the border if they qualify for the knockout stages of the 2011 World Cup.

Pakistan could be required to play their quarterfinal in Ahmedabad or the semifinals or final in India if they qualify for these matches.

The PCB had, in a preemptive move, submitted applications for visas for the entire squad and other board officials to the Indian High Commission in Islamabad for clearance at an early stage.

What possible answer could Ajmal Kasab, the Pakistani terrorist convicted in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks case, have given to a Census query on 'reasons of migration'?

Kasab, whose conviction and death sentence for his role in the November 2008 attacks were upheld by the Bombay High Court this week, was counted for the 15th National Census and answered all the questions asked by the enumerators.

Full story on rediff.com shortly

Rediff.com's Krishnakumar Padmanabhan is back from Godhra with this story of hope, despair and anger.Here's a teaser. Full story on rediff.com shortly.

Godhra's Signal Falia area is buzzing. The previous night, police buses carrying 63 people acquitted in the 2002 Sabarmati Express-burning case had arrived from the Sabarmati Central Prison, Ahmedabad.

These were people who had lost nine years of their lives because they were caught in the crossfire of a battle between the state government and civil activists, who disagreed on how the case should be conducted.

In the police buses were people who had never seen their children.

There were people who could not perform their fathers' last rites.

Hang in therefor thewhole story

A story that must be told if only to read about how brave people are in a crisis. This is from a quake victim's family in Christchurch.

The first text message said: "Mommy, I got buried." About 40 minutes later: "Mommy, I can't move my right hand." Then, a brief call from New Zealand's earthquake rubble to parents in the Philippines pleading to send help, reports the Las Vegas Sun.

After another harrowing hour in a crumpled building, when she sent a half-dozen more texts about increasing pain, continued shaking and overwhelming smoke, came the final one: "Please make it quick."

That was the last the Amantillo family heard from 23-year-old student Louise Amantillo, who is among dozens of foreigners missing after their language school disintegrated in Tuesday's collapse of the prominent CTV building in Christchurch.

Read more

Horror alert. Story that shows before and after pictures of people wasted by a narcotics habit.

Read the storyand you will never be tempted.

Six Moroccan men have been arrested in northern Italy on suspicion of seeking to incite hatred of Pope Benedict among Muslims, reports the bbc.co.uk.

Police in the city of Brescia said the suspects had allegedly banded together to stir up religious hatred. A note was found calling for the Pope to be punished for converting a Muslim journalist to Roman Catholicism.

Mamata Banerjee speaks to a TV channel, post rail budget presentation. She's being told that railway finances are poor. She says it was earlier, not any more. And then suddenly jumps at the reporter's throat saying: "I am not like others. I hate the word jugglery. Financial situation is very good in raliways. PM has said so. Says railways isfully viable."

It was an incendiary allegation and a mystery of great intrigue in the media world: After the publishing powerhouseJudith Reganwas fired by HarperCollins in 2006,she claimed that a senior executiveat its parent company, News Corporation, had encouraged her to lie two years earlier to federal investigators who were vettingBernard B. Kerikfor the job of homeland security secretary.

Read the story

The CBI is finally getting its act together in the 2G scam.

Anil Sardana, former MD of Tata Teleservices at CBI office for questioning in the 2G scam.

Just in: The Air India plane for Tripoli, Libya leave tonight. Another tomorrow.

If you've just joined us, here's what you missed on this update.

TheLibyan government has given landing clearance for two Air India planes per day from tomorrow for evacuation of Indian nationals, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said today.

He said two flights have been given clearance to operate by Libyan authorities for 10 days. He said the country has also requested the Libyan government to extend the flight clearance if the evacuation was not completed within the given time period.

So unfair that Indians love slamming the national airline, but in an emergency queue up for relief. AI never gets its due.

John Galliano has been arrested for an alleged assault,says BBC Breaking News, this morning. TheChristian Dior creative director was reportedly apprehended in Paris for assault as well as alleged anti-Semitic remarks.

More on that when we get it.

Details of the quantum of punishment in the Godhra verdict, which, we told you over an hour ago, was postponed to March 1.

The prosecution today sought death penalty for all the 31 convicts in the Godhra train carnage case in a special court here which reserved till March 1 the pronouncement of quantum of punishment for them.

Designated Judge P R Patel heard the prosecution and the convicts inside the Sabarmati Jail here on the quantum of punishment and reserved the order for next Tuesday.

On February 22, the court while upholding the pre-planned conspiracy theory had convicted 31 people on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy and acquitted 63 others in the 2002 train burning incident, which left 59 karsevaks dead.

A break from tabloid stories for our sports reporter Harish Kotian's exclusive from Bangalore...

Where there is a will, there is a way! And this certainly holds true for Australian veteran Michael Hussey. After his controversial omission from the 15-member Australian World Cup squad, it seems Lady Luck has finally smiled on him.

Rediff.com has been learnt that he could be sent in as a replacement player for the injured Doug Bollinger, who is sent to return home with a left ankle injury. A source close to the ICC confirmed that Hussey could make it to the World Cup, once the formalities are completed and cleared by the technical committee.

Proof there are people sick in the head everywhere.

The family of a TV presenter, Donna Manning, had their home burgled as they waited outside the flattened building where she worked, desperately waiting for news from rescue crews. Manning was among 100 staff trapped in the building when it collapsed in Tuesday's 6.3 magnitude earthquake in Christchurch.

The telegraph.co.uk reports that her children, Kent, 15, and Lizzy 18, and her husband were waiting for news near the collapsed site when looters targeted their home. They were later told that there was no chance of survivors and left the Canterbury TV building devastated, only to return home to find that their house had been stripped of many of their possessions.

When Oscar, the cat, curls up next to an elderly resident at Steere House nursing home in the US, it usually means one thing. Nicknamed the "cat of death", this ordinary-looking tabby has extraordinary abilities and doctors believe he has predicted the passing of more than 50 patients, reports the sun.co.uk.

Read more

Coming up now, human-interest stories from around the world.

NRI businessman Shrien Dewani, accused of hiring a hitman to murder his Indo-Swedish wife Anni on their honeymoon in South Africa, has been granted bail by a UK court after his father insisted his son would go on to prove his innocence.

Dewani (31) appeared in Woolwich Crown Court, south London yesterday after allegedly taking a massive drugs overdose in a bid to kill himself.

The South African authorities, who want to try him for the murder of 28-year-old Anni last year, called for his bail to be revoked and for him to be remanded in custody.

Uddhav Thackeray says his bit on the JPC.

Expressing displeasure over the formation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee only for the 2G Spectrum allocation scam, Sena Executive President Uddhav Thackeray today said his party would stay away from it.

"Why was the JPC was formed only to inquire 2G spectrum scam by the Centre. Shiv Sena would prefer to keep a distance from it," Uddhav said in party mouthpiece 'Saamana'.

"The NDA had demanded the JPC for inquiring all corruption cases including 2G spectrum, Commonwealth Games and Adarsh Housing Society. The announcement of JPC by the Prime Minister is a mere eyewash," he said.

Nostalgia for a generation who has grown up with news of space shuttle Discovery.

The USspaceshuttle blasted off for the last time on a mission that marks the beginning of the end of the shuttle era, reports guardian.co.uk.

Around 40,000 guests gathered at Kennedy Space Centre to watch the launch of the historic mission, carrying six astronauts and the first humanoid robot into space.

"For those watching, get ready to witness the majesty and the power of Discovery as she lifts off one final time," the mission commander Steven Lindsey radioed just before the launch at 21.53 GMT.

Forces loyal to Muammar Gaddafi were yesterday said to be launching fierce counter-attacks as the Libyan uprising edged closer to the capital and the dictator chose to blame Osama bin Laden and teenagers on hallucinogenic drugs for the rebellion, reports the independent.co.uk.

Troops were said to be filling the streets of Sabratha, 50 miles to the west of the capital. A Libyan newspaper reported that in Zawiya 10 people had been killed, and a witness told the BBC that pro-Gaddafi forces had used machine-guns on unarmed residents in a main square of the city.

Read more

A sigh of collective relief from India.

Opener Virender Sehwag will play the World Cup.He survived an injury scare after being hit on his ribs by a local fast bowler during the Indian cricket team's practice session ahead of the much-anticipated World Cup clash against England on Sunday.

He was taken to the dressing room immediately, but fortunately for India, nothing serious was found.

He later went to the gymnasium and also joined the training session. Team Manager Ranjib Biswal said, "He is fit to play. There was no need to even go for scans."

The Obama Administration today appeared to be moving ahead with proposals to impose sanctions on the authoritarian Gaddafi regime of Libya which has been using lethal force against its own people resulting in hundreds of casualties.

A meeting in this regard was held at the White House which among others was attended by Tom Malinowski of the Human Rights Watch.

It is believed that while the US Treasury Department is looking into the possibility of slapping unilateral sanctions on Libya, it would also support a European Union resolution to be tabled by France, its current president, at the UN Security Council later today.

From our blogger MK Bhadrakumar...

Over one month has passed since the uprising in the Middle East broke out. Yet, India is struggling to formulate a stance that is coherent, forward-looking and sustainable. No doubt, the uprising is taking different forms from country to country, but what is crystal-clear is that an era in Middle Eastern history is ending.

The CBI today questioned former telecom minister Arun Shourie for three hours at its New Delhi headquarters in connection with the 2G spectrum case. Shourie said he had presented to the CBI the facts of the case and even introduced to the agency to the person who had given all the details about the scam and its alleged actors.

When asked about Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's statement on coalition politics, Shourie said, "Now that Raja has been put in jail, has any consequence followed for the coalition. Why not look at the compulsions of the DMK? They cannot go against the central government. See their compulsions as well."

Rediff.com's Bikash Mohapatra reporting from Nagpur says:

Cricket Australia medical staff today confirmed fast bowler Doug Bollinger will return to Australia from the ICC World Cup with a left ankle injury.

Australian team physiotherapist Alex Kountouris said, "Doug Bollinger has been experiencing increasing left ankle pain since arriving in India. Unfortunately the pain is now significantly affecting his ability to bowl and he will not be playing any further part in the tournament. "Doug will now return to Australia and seek specialist opinion to determine the best course of management for this injury."

TheLibyan government has given landing clearance for two Air India planes per day from tomorrow for evacuation of Indian nationals, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said today.

He said two flights have been given clearance to operate by Libyan authorities for 10 days. He said the country has also requested the Libyan government to extend the flight clearance if the evacuation was not completed within the given time period.

India had already chartered ships to evacuate its nationals numbering about 18,000 in strife-torn Libya and they have set sail from Egypt.

India was also considering dispatching three warships including its largest amphibious vessel INS Jalashwa

The Ministry of External Affairs has sais that it not charge Indians who are being evacuated from Libya.

The MEA said it has come to its notice that some unscrupulous elements were asking for payments/handling charges/facilitation fee etc., for arranging evacuation of Indian nationals, through the Embassy of India in Libya.

It warned that these activities were completely illegal and individuals engaged in them should be immediately reported to the law enforcement authorities.

It said no payment or charge of any kind is being levied by the government, for the evacuation/assisted departure of any Indian national in Libya.

On to world news.

An Australian doctor described how he used a pocket knife and a hacksaw to amputate the legs of a man trapped under rubble after New Zealand's deadly earthquake. He told Australian broadcaster ABC that he was scared for his life as he and other medics decided that the only way to save the injured man, whose legs were crushed under a heavy beam, was to perform the amputation.

Mamata is back:Yells at the opposition benches: enaapheez enapph. Bhoteez thees.

The rant happens after somebody dares to interrupt her from the Opposition benches over 50 per cent concessions to media professionals and family once a year. (Sops ahead of Bengal polls?)

OK, on to other news since didi is back at the lectern. Opposition is allowing her to speak as she has moved on from the Bengal sops.

Read what's happening in LS as it happens

Mamata Banerjee is miffed. And her expressions are beautifully petulant. She bangs her speech papers on the lectern and looks at the Opposition benches and asks "Bhot izz teees."

She says she is proud of her state and will continue to do projects for WB and other states.

She says: Nobody protests when I do work for other states.

This while, she was announcing trains, metro expansion to West Bengal and in Kolkata.

Speaker continues her "Please sit down" and a more irked, "Baith Jaiye" If only we could be paid every time she said these two sentences, we'd be rich.

Oops, Mamata has sat down. Pandemonium reigns.

Figure it out.

Mamata Banerjee says railway earnings set to exceed Rs 1 lakh crore for 2011.

The 2G spectrum scam put the figure at Rs 1.76 lakh crore.

The Huffinton Post reports:

A shocking questionwas asked at a town hall event held by Rep. Paul Broun on Tuesday.

An audience member asked the Congressman, "Who is going to shoot Obama?" Broun's press secretary, Jessica Morris, confirmed that the question was indeed, who is going to shoot Obama?

"Obviously, the question was inappropriate, so Congressman Broun moved on," she said.

However, rather than confronting the questioner or condemning the question, Broun instead acknowledged "frustration" with Obama.

Former Two And A Half Men star Charlie Sheen is living every full-blooded man's fantasy. His nanny girlfriend, ex-wife and a porn star - have all moved into his Hollywood mansion.

The Sun.co.uk reports that the beauties had scarcely unpacked when the wildman actor, 45, whisked them off for an adults-only break.

The foursome flew to the Bahamas by private jet on Wednesday for a few days.

CBS announced yesterday that it has ended production of the hit comedyshow for the season.

Here's where you look and sigh

Mamata has asked for rail roko agitations to end.

RT: @fakingnews: Railway Budget:MamataBanerjee announces special railway tracks for Gujjars and other protesters.

One of the sons of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi is in hiding on an island off the coast of Venezuela, a politician in the South American country has claimed.

Orlando Fernandez Medina said that sources within the Venezuelan government had told him that one of Gaddafi's sons arrived on the island of Margarita around two days ago.

Gaddafi, who has ruled Libya for 41 years, has seven sons including Saif al-Islam, who has a PhD from the London School of Economics and recently appeared on television to warn of a possible civil war, and Mutassim, who is Libya's National Security Adviser.

Mamata Banerjee presenting the rail budget. Please go on to this linkfor everything that's happening in Parliament right now

Meanwhile, in Libya, Muammar Gaddafi (newspapers have spelt his name in six different ways, we've counted) blamed the uprising sweeping Libya on Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda, accusing the terrorist group of supplying Libyans with pills inducing them to revolt.

Cnn.com says, "Our children have been manipulated by al Qaeda," he told Libyan state television by telephone.

Some may view this as Gadhafi's greatest delusion yet. Militant Islamists have played almost no role in the uprisings in Libya or anywhere else in the Arab world, and for most Arabs, energized by a powerful democracy movement, al Qaeda now appears more irrelevant that ever.

Read more

Railway minister Mamata Banerjee begins presenting the railway budget.

Read the special commentary

Pranab Mukherjee in LS: I phail to anderstand bhy 20 peepul hab to raise questions simultaneously.

The finance minister was tabling the Economic Survey (2010-2011) in Lok Sabha. Theeconomy is expected togrow at 9 per cent in 2010-11 according to the ES.

Latest from Indian nets: Virender Sehwag felled by ball in training, which hit him on the left side of his ribs.

Medical staff attend him for 20 minutes and he leaves training while his team mates practise on. No more details yet available, I'm afraid.

Indian medical and team staff refused to answer our questions.

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee drops a bomb in Parliament saying there has been an income tax raid on a CPM leader, but he cannot divulge names.

Pranab was talking about black money and reiterated that names cannot be disclosed till the court hauls up black money hoarders. Pranab loses his cool over a question on India's biggest tax offender Hasan Ali, when the opposition benches refuse to let him speak.

If you're a Two and a Half Men fan, here's bad news. CBS announced yesterday that it has ended production of the hit comedyshow for the season. The move came after the show's star Charlie Sheen's took to the air waves to slam Two and a Half Men creator Chuck Lorre in a rambling, erratic interview on the syndicated radio show "The Alex Jones Show."

ABC writes that based on the totality of Charlie Sheen's statements, conduct and condition, CBS and Warner Bros. Television have decided to discontinue production of "Two and a Half Men" for the remainder of the season," CBS Entertainment and Warner Bros. Television said in a statement.

The show has been in hiatus since January when Sheen entered rehab following erratic behavior.

Calamity Kalmadi now says the CWG officials did not act alone. The CBI should therefore question Delhi CM Sheila Dixit and former union sports minister MS Gill as well.

Here's the backgrounder.

Yesterday, the sacked chairman of the CWG Organizing Committee Suresh Kalmadi accused investigating agencies -- the CBI -- of targeting his team and demanded that Delhi chief minister Shiela Dikshit, then sports minister M S Gill and urban development minister Jaipal Reddy also be questioned.

He said, "I am surprised why only OC officials are being questioned and no government officer has been called for interrogation so far. The entire focus seems to be on OC officials who worked so hard for months to put together a very successful Games,`` Kalmadi said at the National Games venue in Ranchi.

Still no joy for arrested American national Raymond Davis in Pakistan. Salute Pakistan for having the wherewithal (wanted to use a stronger word) to stand up to the US, especially since their relationship is so symbiotic.

The US today asked Pakistan to once again release Davis in accordance with the Vienna Convention which provides him the diplomatic immunity.

Pakistan and the US are both signatories to the Vienna convention, along with 185 other countries.

Lok Sabha proceedings have begun amid the Speaker's Baith Jaiye pleas. Question hour is on. Question raised is on the tourism policy in Maharashtra to develop the Konkan region -- the Western Ghats tying in Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to the belt.

Proud to say proceedings are very civilised.

Next question is also on tourism -- developing the Buddhist circuit in UP.

The US Immigration and Custom Enforcement today removed radio tags of four more Indian students of the now closed Tri-Valley University in California. So far radio tags of 11 of the 18 Indian students have been removed.

These students were radio tagged in California after Tri Valley University was shut down in January on charges of massive visa fraud.

The students had been tagged for over a month now.

By the way, we have a special coverage on the rail budget orchestrated by our business desk. Updates, interpretations, explanations onevery single point...

A good morning to you, but apparently not for Arun Shourie.

The former telecom minister in the NDA government had to make an early morning call at the CBI headquartes in New Delhi for questioning in connection with the agency's probe into possible criminal aspects in the telecom policy. The CBIis investigating the 2G scam since 2001.

Shourie said he will hand over a 50-page document detailing answers to broad questions in connection with the spectrum allocation case to the CBI and will share whatever the CBI wants to know. He said he was happy that the Supreme Court had taken up the matter. Hesaid the government was trying to divert the media attention from the issue.