Another day of Baba and Hazare interspersed with bits of other news thrown in.

For instance, former telecom minister A Raja will depose before the JPC soon not as an accused in the 2G scam and because he was a minister. The JPC chairman P Chacko also says Tata and Ambani will not be called in the case. The PM and ministers are outside the purview of the JPC.

Scroll down for the big stories this day...

Another volley from BJP after Home minister P Chidambaram's press conference.

The BJP today criticised Chidambaram for alleging that the RSS was behind Ramdev's agitation and announced a three-day anti-corruption campaign starting tomorrow.

"Anybody who speaks against corruption is linked to BJP or RSS by him (Chidambaram). Even if somebody in his office talks about corruption, then he will smell RSS and BJP there also," BJP spokesman Shahnawaz Hussain said.

He said Chidambaram was not giving "measured comments" since his name has allgedly cropped up in the 2G spectrum scam.

Asked about party chief Nitin Gadkari's comment to a TV channel that he has evidence against Chidambaram for his alleged involvement in 2G spectrum scam, Hussain said "Gadkari has raised the issue..We will take it forward."

Meanwhile, from the Daily Mail, a report that says that the sun has woken up from sleep to its busiest sunspot cycle in years and threatens to disrupt Earth communications and power

Read and see the spectacular pictures

At 7 pm Anna Hazare is expected to hold a press conference, a summation of what happened today.

At Rajghat, Anna Hazare is on the verge of ending his one-day fast. The fast began at 10 am today.

Moving moment as the National Anthem is played at Rajghat. (Brace yourself for comments on this from the government).

Chidambaram says the Delhi police will explain the action taken by them in the Supreme Court.

Remember, the SC has issued a showcause notice to the Delhi police over the crackdown.

PC asks people to "appreciate the constraints the Delhi police had to ensure law and order" at the Ramlila Grounds.

Home minister P Chidambaram holds a press conferenceover theBaba Ramdev-RSS connect andthe government's decision to crackdownatthe Ramlila Grounds.

Says Ramdev violated norms by not "removing himself from the Ramlila Grounds". Says the Delhi police "used minimum force".

Reads out numbers of injured, violations etc., with as much passion as a weather report.

OK, Anil Ambani has finally met RComm's Gautam Doshi in Tihar jail today. Next stop is at AIIMS to meet Pipara. The visit's a first for both Tihar and Ambani.

We think Anna Hazare's Man Friday is an amazing speaker. If you can, do hear him on TV. Lucid, erudite, and despite the incendiary issues on hand, is always, always calm.
Decimates the government's opposition to Team Hazare's demands in the Lokpal Bill drafting, point by lucid point.

He says civil society has no arms, except for truth and honesty. And this is what the government wants to steal from civil society.

Unfortunately Baba Ramdev in Haridwar faces ridicule and further distancing from civil society with his remark today that he would raising a private army of 11,000 against government-sponsored 'terrorism'.

And of course, it's a juicy hunk of meat thrown at the Congress, which said today that Ramdev's call for an armed rebellion is a serious issue and hoped that the government would take appropriate action to uphold the Constitution and maintain law and order.

Taking exception to senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj meeting Ramdev in Haridwar today, Congress spokesperson Jayanti Natarajan asked whether the BJP was also a party to the plan to start an "armed struggle".

"Is it correct for the Leader of Opposition to meet Ramdev in Hardiwar when he has called for a war against the government? It is for the BJP to answer whether they are supporting (the plan) and what was the LoP doing there," she said.

On whether Ramdev's statement amounted to sedition and if he should be put behind bars, Natarajan said whatever the yoga guru has said was "completely against rule of law and the Constitution."

A Bill introduced by two lawmakers would require hotels and motels across New York to train staffers on how to report sexual harassment by guests, and to distribute a "Know Your Rights" pamphlet to housekeepers and other workers.

RComm chief Anil Ambani has requested and received permission to meet Gautam Doshi in Tihar jail, an accused in the 2G scam. He will also meet Surendra Pipara in AIIMS.

The meeting comes over a month after the two were jailed. However, Pipara was hospitalised following his incarceration.

Festivity and fasting at Anna Hazare's meet.

A young group in white kurta pyjama and Gandhi topis sing a rap version of Hum Honge Kamyab to a sole guitarist and a chap playing a dholak. Emcee Arvind Kejriwal takes the stage after the singing and clapping is done.

It's little wonder that former British PM Margaret Thatcher is called the Iron Lady. She has reportedly snubbed America's glamorous politician Sarah Palin by refusing her request for a one-to-one meeting in London.

The 47-year-old former Alaskan governor, known to be a great admirer of Baroness Thatcher, was planning to meet Thatcher in London next month as part of her potential campaign for Republican presidential candidate for 2012 polls.

"I am going to Sudan in July and hope to stop in England on the way. I am just hoping Mrs Thatcher is well enough to see me as I so admire her," Palin said.

But 85-year-old Thatcher's aides have poured cold water on the idea saying Palin's "nuts" and an "embarrassment" to mainstream Tories.

An ally told 'The Guardian' newspaper: "Lady Thatcher will not be seeing Sarah Palin. That would be belittling for Margaret. Sarah Palin is nuts."

Chandrasekhar is the same person who had written an open letter to Tata Sons chairman Ratan Tata saying the group had benefited from an out-of-turn allocation of 2G spectrum.

Read and refresh (your mind)

Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Chandrasekhar in a letter to Defence minister AK Antony has urged him to consider better treatment of armed services personnel and their families.

Citing the UK military covenant -- an agreement under which the state pledges a duty of care towards its military personnel in return for the sacrifices that they make -- the MP asks Antony to apply a similar covenant to India.

Read his letter.

Just in: Four people have been killed in a blast at Saptashringi building at Nashik. While the ATS has reached the spot to inspect the cause, the police suspect that it may have been caused by a gas cylinder explosion.

Two floors of the building were completely damaged at 3.10 pm and theimpact of the explosion was so bad that it could be heard two kilometres away from the spot.

Top police officials as well as fire brigade personnel rushed to the spot. Police have managed to pull out bodies of the dead from the debris, but suspect that the number of casualties could go up.

Comments and allegations fly back and forth between the government and civil society (and that includes both Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev)

So take a break and read this...

Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver have already started settlement talks, even though the couple hasn't formally filed for a divorce, according to sources.

"Maria has already begun to move on from her failed marriage. She and Arnold do talk, they have to -- they have four children together. But, Maria has made it clear to Arnold that there is no chance at reconciliation. Arnold finally seems to be accepting this, but he doesn''t like it," an insider added.

Bit of a yawn now that the worst is over, but here's news on Libya.

Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi vowed yesterday that "we will not surrender," even as NATO airstrikes bombarded his compound in Tripoli,cnn.com reports. "I am now speaking as planes and bombs fall around me," Gaddafi said in a live audio broadcast on state television.

"But my soul is in God's hand. We will not think about death or life. We will think about the call of duty." At least three explosions rocked Tripoli late Tuesday night; it was not immediately clear what they hit.

Home minister PChidambaram today criticised civil society members for challenging Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee to a television debate on corruption.

"When someone challenges the Finance Minister to a debate in television, he misses the fact that debate takes place in Parliament and Parliamentary debates are televised and voters watch Parliamentary debates and exercise their franchise from time-to-time," he said.

The Home Minister said the Central government was committed to drafting the Lokpal Bill by June 30.

"We are clearly committed to the goal that a bill will be drafted by June 30. I sincerely hope that the other five members of the Committee will return to the drafting committee's meeting," he said

Chidambaram said the next meeting of the joint drafting committee has been deferred because social activist Anna Hazare is not available on that day. "We have deferred (the meeting) by a few days," he said.

Here are the government's reasons for the crackdown on BabaRamdev at the Ramlila grounds on Saturday midnight.

A bit by bit account

For the naysayers, satyagraha does work to an extent. The government today formed a panel on black money which will recover taxes from untraceable assessees.

In fact, the mere mention of Kapil Sibal created unrest among protesters who raised slogans against the minister.

Hazare then had to intervene to calm them down, saying they were protesting outside Rajghat and therefore had to go by the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi.

On the question of division among civil society, Kejriwal shot back at politicians saying there were differences in Parliament and they unite only when they want a hike in their salaries. "If the civil society is divided, then Parliament is also divided," he said.

At Rajghat, rights activist Arvind Kejriwal today launched a scathing attack on HRD Minister Kapil Sibal, asking him what was wrong in civil society members calling ministers "liars, cheats and conspirators."

He also demanded that all political leaders should declare their assets and liabilities like the civil society members of the joint Lokpal drafting committee did and parties should declare sources of their funding and expenses for organising rallies across the country in the past five years.

Addressing protesters at the day-long fast site of Anna Hazare in Rajghat, he said Sibal has raised questions about civil society calling ministers liars and cheats. "If we have said so, what is wrong in it? There is so much corruption, is it not cheating? If we are cheated, shouldn't we call them liars? Why shouldn't we call them conspirators?

"This government is indulging in conspiracy as we have seen in the Shanti Bhushan CD episode," he said, a day after he rebutted Sibal's statement claiming that they had never used such words.

Sushma says the government sees the RSS everywhere -- the government said the journalist who attempted the shoe attack on Janardhan Dwivediwas an RSSman, but later backtracked.

She says Baba Ramdev has lost 5.5 kilos in five days and was concerned about his health. Doctors have apparently advised him to break his fast asap.

Sushma Swaraj has indeed met Baba Ramdev in Haridwar, so the rumours of Baba joining Hazare in Rajghat appear unfounded, so far.

Addressing a presser in Haridwar, Sushma Swaraj slams the PM and the government in equal measure for the crackdown on Ramdev. Says when the government went to meet Baba, they sent just four ministers; when they went to attack him they sent 5000. Nice rhyme of char and panch hazaar.

Sahim says rumours are rife that Baba Ramdev who has been missing from Haridwar for the past five hours is headed to Rajghat to join Anna Hazare's fast.

This explains the tightened security at the venue with two DCP level officers at the barricades monitoring visitors.

There's no way Baba can dress in a salwar kameez (incidentally, did he get it off a female devotee? Boggles the mind) and enter Rajghat

Rediff.com's Sahim Salim says the the who's who of the Delhi police are in Rajghat from joint commissioners of police to deputies, all personally monitoring entrances. Cars of Bharat Swabhiman were being towed away after reports suggest Ramdev has been missingfromHaridwar for over five hours.

Sahim says he has overheard policetalking on the wireless that borders should be thoroughly checked.

Hang on for the next post...

Anna Hazare says he will go on fast on August 16 if the government tries to sabotage the Lokpal Bill.

Meanwhile, at Rajghat today, Hazare said, "I want to tell the government that we are not two but one. You should wipe it out of your mind that you are the masters. You are not the masters, the people are. Gram Sabha is more powerful than Lok Sabha or State Assemblies," he said.

Comparing the police action at Ramlila Maidan to Jallianwala Bagh "without the firing part", he said what is the difference between your democracy and British Raj? (It was the BJP that made the comparison between the crackdown on Ramdev at Ramlila Maidan and Jallianwala Bagh)

Hazare said he will not seek security for himself and he is not afraid of death. "Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev never asked for security. If they would have done, our country would not be free," he said.

Leon Panetta, the man tapped to be the next US defense secretary, said he supports a "responsible" military withdrawal in Afghanistan beginning next month, sidestepping questions on whether he backs the "significant" drawdown

President Barack Obama has pledged. Panetta, the current CIA director, told senators that the US has made enough progress in the Afghan war to give Obama meaningful options for the troop withdrawal. But he said the size and pace must depend on battlefield conditions.

For a moment, let's leave Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev to their fasts for a story that's caught our interest.

A signed letter by Adolf Hitler, which contains what is believed to be the earliest written expression of his views on Jews and anti-Semitism, was unveiled at a press conference in New York yesterday by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, reportscnn.comRabbi Marvin Hier said the letter, written in 1919, is "one of the most important documents in the entire history of the Third Reich."

Read more

Our home minister P Chidambaram has finally condescended to pay a visit to Rajbala, the woman who was so badly beaten by the Delhi police that she will remain a quadraplegic. Rajabala was at Baba Ramdev's fast at Ramlila Maidan when the police lathi-charged her and 74 others, on Saturday.

Master of understatement, PC calls the incident, "unfortunate".

Apparently Karunanidhi's box of tissues gets depletedevery time Kani's bail plea comes up for hearing. Incidentally, Kalaignar TV MD Sharad Kumar's bail plea has also been rejected.

Kani's bail was cancelled since the High Court believed she was in a position to influence witnesses.

Back in Tihar Jail, DMK MP Kanimozhi will have to continue to call it home. In fact, she must better attuned to her circumstances since she's been in jail for 19 days already. Her bail plea was cancelled today.

Shanmuga Sundaram, Kanimozhi's lawyer says they will approach the Supreme court.

It is the presence of precisely these politicians that have undermined Baba Ramdev's efforts.

Today, senior VHP leader Ashok Singhal met Baba Ramdev extending his support and asked the government to immediately accept all his demands. "There has to be a strict anti-corruption law. There has to be clean and transparent governance, a proper system for the welfare of people. There are people who are looting our country. It must be stopped," Singhal said.

Meanwhile, in Haridwar, Baba Ramdev's health has started deteriorating as his fast for tougher anti-graft laws and bringing back blackmoney from foreign nations, entered the fifth day today.

Doctors attending to the yoga guru have advised liquid intake and requested him to end his fast soon. "He has lost weight and is suffering from dehydration. He is not keeping well," Chief Medical Officer, Haridwar Dr Yogesh Sharma said "We have requested that he should take liquid intake like milk and juices. It will be better if he ends his fast."

Sahim also tells us that Manish Sisodiya, who's the coordinator of today's protest says police have stopped people at the main gate, possibly because the numbers have become unmanageable.

The newly-elected Tamil Nadu assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution seeking economic sanctions against Sri Lanka on the issue of Tamils.

Further details awaited

Rediff.com's Sahim Salim reports from Rajghat, venue of Anna Hazare's protest fast today:

Addressing the people Hazare said he has been fighting using ahimsa for 25 years. "I have sent back 400 corrupt officials and taken the wicket of six cabinet ministers. If I had accepted violence, the government would have broken me. So I appeal to you to use only ahimsa."

After striking a conciliatory tone, Baba Ramdev today again took up the issue of police crackdown on his supporters, saying he would set up a 11,000-strong force to deal with police and anti-social elements attempting to disrupt his anti-corruption movement.

"I appeal that 20 young men from every district should come here (to Haridwar). We will train them in both shastra (Vedas) and astra (weapons)," Baba Ramdev, who is continuing his strike against corruption, told his followers.

The yoga guru said, "We will prepare 11,000 men and women so that next time we do not lose any battle at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi."

However, he said the sena will be raised only for self-defence and not to harm anybody.

Chief of Enforcement Directorate Arun Mathur and officials of the finance ministry will brief the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the ongoing investigations into the 2G scam today.

Mathur, along with other senior officials of the Directorate and representatives of the department of revenue in the finance ministry, will brief the JPC separately about the probe carried out in the spectrum scam, which included obtaining the share holding patterns of various telecom firms from foreign shores like Mauritius and the United Kingdom.

The presentation by the ED comes a day after CBI Director A P Singh briefed the panel on its investigations into the 2G scam.

Rediff.com's Sahim Salim reports from Rajghat, venue of Anna Hazare's protest today, that probably taking a cue from the criticism they faced in their April protest, this time round there is no saffron presence at the hunger strike.

And for all those who have been panning BJP leader Sushma Swaraj for swaying to a patrioticsong at her party's protest rally at the same venue, today people have been dancing at Rajghat to Gandhiji's favourite bhajan, Raghupati Raghava Rajaram....

There is also a strong police presence at the venue. A senior police officer has told Sahim Salim that between 800 and 1000 policemen have been deployed at the protest, presumably to prevent anything "untoward" from happening.

The bail plea of Kanimozhi, DMK MP and daughter of former Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi, and Kalaignar TV MD Sharad Kumarin the 2G scam has been rejected by the Delhi high court.

In its order, the court said there was prima facie evidence to show her complicity in the case.

Kanimozhi has been named as a co-conspirator of former telecom minister A Raja in the case.

"There are certain prima facie evidences against the accused. Considering the complicity of the accused in the offence, the bail applications are dismissed," Justice Ajit Bharihoke said.

Kanimozhi's mother Rajathi Ammal and DMK parliamentary party leader T R Baalu were present in the courtroom when the order was pronounced.

Kanimozhi and Kumar had moved the high court on May 23 challenging the trial court's order which had rejected their bail pleas, saying the offence attributed to them was grave and the possibility of influencing the witnesses cannot be ruled out.

CBI Special Judge O P Saini had on May 20 rejected the bail pleas of Kanimozhi and Kumar and ordered their "forthwith" arrest. They are currently lodged in Tihar Jail.

Today is D-Day for DMK MP Kanimozhi, daughter of former Tamil Nadu chief minister M Karunanidhi.

The Delhi high court is scheduled to pronounce its ruling on her bail plea, along with that Sharad Kumar, MD of Kalaignar TV.

On May 30 the court had reserved order on their bail pleas. The two are co-accused in the 2G scam. Kanimozhi has been named as a co-conspirator of former telecom minister A Raja in the case.

Twenty-three people were charred to death when the bus they were travelling in skidded off a bridge and caught fire near Kaveripakkam, about 40 km from Vellore in Tamil Nadu, the police said today.

The bus, on its way to Tiruppur from Chennai, fell down the bridge last night after the driver lost control over the vehicle.

One of the 24 passengers travelling in the bus managed to escape, they said. Some of the bodies of victims were charred beyond recognition.

While the prosecution and defence presented closing arguments in the 26/11 trial of Tahawwur Hussain Rana, the Pakistani-Canadian doctor chose to remain silent and did not take to the stand.

Rana, a co-accused with David Coleman Headley in the Mumbai terror attacks, did not testify at his trial, as the federal jury was set to begin its deliberations.

After the presentation of the last of the witnesses yesterday, Judge Harry D Leinenweber asked Rana if he had consulted with his lawyers and wanted to testify but a frail-looking Rana, dressed in a brown suit, said that he did not want to testify.

Under US law, Rana has the right to remain silent.

Good morning and welcome to another day of protest fast, this time by Anna Hazare who had gone on fast in April as well.

PTI reports that people have been gathering at Rajghat in New Delhi since the morning to take part in the day-long hunger strike called by Hazare to protest against the police crackdown on Baba Ramdev and his supporters during their agitation against corruption.

With the Delhi police refusing permission for the day-long hunger strike at Jantar Mantar, Hazare had decided to shift the venue to Rajghat to avoid a confrontation.

Our Special Correspondent Sahim Salim, who is at Rajghat, there has been an SMS mobilisation as well since the morning, the one that he got reading: 'No danger of police action or arrest.