Just in: LeT commander Abdullah has been killed in Sopore encounter, which is just over. 

Anna Hazare today called L K Advani's proposed yatra against corruption as a "gimmick" and said he would not support the BJP unless it backs the Jan
Lokpal Bill in Parliament and its governments enact a legislation for appointing Lokayuktas in states. 

Hazare, who was on a 12-day fast demanding strong Lokpal in New Delhi last month, tore into the Congress and UPA Government saying many people "inside the Congress think they are the Prime Minister".

Stressing that development was the key, the PM added that its lack leads to a sense of alienation and it was therefore necessary to ensure that any programme must ensure Naxals have an equitable share.

He said learning from facts has to be the key note of the government's five-year police and it was necessary to see how the Panchayat Raj can be used to change life in Naxal areas. For this it was important that the experience of field officers be shared.  

He reiterated he had zero tolerance for corruption.

PM Manmohan Singh today announced a new Naxal policy. Speaking in New Delhi the PM said a holistic approach was needed to tackle the Naxal menace and called for an integrated action plan for Naxal affected areas.

While admitting that grassroots development was the key, the PM said the development has to be integrated to be meaningful and called for a holistic approach for development needs.

The National Investigations Agency, heading the probe in the Delhi blast has doubled the reward money to Rs 10 lakh for anyone providing information in the case. A bomb at Gate #7 at the Delhi high court killed 13 and injured 75 on September 7.

Read: Toral Varia's analysis on why the Delhi blast mails seem to be bogus.

Jitesh Pillaai tweets: When they lifted his body, they played his favourite opera piece. Gautam the angels will sing for you forever while u remain in our hearts.

Eminent tashion photographer Gautam Rajadhyaksha passed away this morning.

A local court today allowed the NIA to compare next week's  forensic evidence collected in Samjhauta Express train blast case with that of the bomb blasts in Malegaon, Hyderabad and Ajmer, in which the role of right-wing Hindu extremists is suspected. 

Following a High Court direction, District and Sessions Judge Subhash Mehla, hearing charges against Swami Assemanand and four other accused in the 2007 Samjhauta case, said forensic experts from National Investigation Agency  can study the sealed material on September 20-21. The judge adjourned the case till October 10, when arguments on the charges will be taken up.

The Central Vigilance Commission will give its views to avoid overlapping of responsibilities with the proposed Lokpal when it meets this week a
Parliamentary panel considering suggestions for a stronger anti-corruption bill.
Sources said that the Commission will seek greater powers to prosecute higher bureaucracy in corruption related cases.

More updates on the Kabul attack.

The Taliban launched a major attack in the centre of Kabul today, hitting NATO's coalition force headquarters next to the US embassy in the Afghan capital. The insurgent group said the ongoing assault began with a suicide attack targeting local and foreign intelligence buildings at a roundabout in the city.

AFP reporters heard a string of loud blasts while police confirmed one explosion and a gunfight close to the heavily-guarded embassy compound.
An AFP reporter close to the scene saw a string of mortar rounds fired and small arms fire, and heard explosions that seemed to hit multiple targets.

We'll get you updates on the Kabul attack as it happens.

Meanwhile, the Reuters story that low-fare carrier SpiceJet will raise Rs 1.3 billion by issuing fresh shares at 36 rupees a share to its majority-owner Kalanithi Maran to cover its operational losses and fund expansion, its chief executive said. The fresh shares will be issued by October and raise Maran's stake to 43 percent from 38.7 percent now, Neil Mills told Reuters.

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Here's what Reuters has on the terror attacks in Kabul...

Blasts and gunfire echoed through the Afghan capital Kabul on Tuesday, as the Taliban said several attackers armed with rocket-propelled grenades and suicide vests were targeting government buildings near the embassy district.

At least six loud explosions were interspersed with gunfire around the middle of the day. Television pictures from near the attack showed a burned out minivan, a bicycle lying in the middle of the street and people running away.

Police and other security officials blocked roads around the US embassy and other diplomatic missions, and said the attack had happened at a nearby square. 

Several Taliban attackers armed with rocket-propelled grenades, AK-47s and suicide vests have taken up positions in Kabul, near the embassy district, to attack government buildings, a spokesman for the insurgents said.

An ongoing bomb and gun attack is rocking the centre of the Afghan capital Kabul, with a string of blasts hitting the city's embassy district, says the bbc.co.uk.

A string of loud blasts was heard and insurgents are believed to be holed up in a building in the area. The Taliban has claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it targeted official buildings in the area. The violence comes weeks after suicide attackers stormed the city's British Council office, killing 12 people. Insurgents are believed to be firing rockets at the US embassy.

A Reuters news flash says Iran's President Ahmadinejad says the two jailed US hikers will be freed in two days. The two Americans held in Iran for more than two years had been convicted last months as spies and sentenced to eight years' jail, reports Reuters.

Read more

One in every four Indian employers is uncertain about their hiring plans during the fourth quarter of 2011, says a report by global staffing services firm Manpower. 

Nevertheless, India has one of the most bullish employment outlooks across the globe, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today. India's net employment outlook -- an indicator of recruitment intentions -- stood at 30 per cent for the October-December quarter of 2011, the strongest in the 41 countries and territories surveyed, but is likely to witness the slowest pace of hiring since the first quarter of 2010, as per the survey.

As part of expanding its global reach, leading US daily the New York Times has launched 'India Ink', an English-language website offering news and analysis
about Indian politics, culture, business, sports and lifestyle. The site, which is The New York Times' first-ever country-specific site for news and information, provides a distinct perspective on news and events that matter most to Indians and those who follow news about India, both on the subcontinent and abroad, the paper said.

See

Reactions coming in after CNN-IBN's Rajdeep Sardesai's interview with Anna Hazare...

D Raja, CPI: Fight against corruption cannot be apolitical. Anna isn't clear on most issues

Rita Bahuguna Joshi, UP Congress Chief: Nation would like it if Anna's movement remains apolitical.

Anna tells Rajdeep: Manmohan Singh is not the only PM, lot of people consider themselves to be PM.

In the Pakistani paper, Dawn.com, Gen Pervez Musharraf says he is determined to return home, but he might find his farmhouse in the Chak Shahzad suburb partly demolished if he did.

Dawn has learnt that the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has notified him that his house covers 764 square feet in excess of the permitted limit and "is required to be demolished'. Read more

In his first interview since the August 16 agitation, Anna Hazare tells CNN-IBN's Rajdeep Sardesain that they will protest again if the Standing Committee does not agree to their demands. He also says...

1. -- He will not allow blackmoney in his movement against corruption.
2. -- If I get to know that black money is used, I will not stay in this movement.
3. -- Political parties want to take advantage of me
4. -- Won't join or support BJP's rath yatra.
5. -- If the BJP says they say they support Anna. they should bring Lokayukta in their states.
6. -- Movement not anti-Parliament, but against those blocking the bill. 
7. -- PM is remote controlled by many people
8. -- Politicians should take lessons from Indira Gandhi on standing up for the poor.

In an exclusive interview with CNN-IBN's Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, Anna Hazare says he's ready to campaign for and support a like-minded non-Congress, non-BJP political outfit that is corruption-free. 

This is Anna's first interview since the 13-day fast against corruption demanding the Jan Lokpal Bill, he spoke at length to Rajdeep Sardesai in his home town Ralegaon Siddhi. He says that he plans to re-start the movement if the standing committee doesn't agree to their demands on the Jan-Lokpal bill.

Remember the 30 Pakistani schoolboys abducted by militants from Pakistan's Bajaur tribal region by the Taliban on September 1? The update is that finally, NATO alliance troops have launched an aerial surveillance of Taliban sanctuaries in border areas of Afghanistan after a Pakistani Taliban leader released a video footage of kidnapped boys. 

The Afghan government has sought the help of tribal elders to help secure the release of the boys. Pakistani authorities claimed the boys were taken away by the Taliban after mistakenly crossing into Afghanistan while on an Eid outing in Bajaur Agency on September 1.

"This year, proud Hansarians should put a banner at the gate during 'Confluence' -- Dogs are allowed, not Stephenians (especially Mani Shankar Aiyar),' sayd Animesh Biswas on Facebook.

So what brought on that comment from the students of Hansraj College, Delhi?

Read it in the Telegraph, Kolkata.

Read only on rediff.com: MK Bhadrakumar's blog.

British PM David Cameron's visit to Moscow on Monday signifies that UK and Russia have resumed their political dialogue after a 6-year period of stagnation. Britain kept raising human rights issues and Russia brusquely told it off and stagnation followed.

Meanwhile, another son of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi has reportedly crossed the border to take refuge in neighbouring Nigeria. A Nigerian government spokesman has confirmed that 37-year-old Saadi Gaddafi, a former footballer in Italy, has also fled.  

Also read in the bbc.co.uk: Libya's rebel forces committed abuses, says Amnesty 

Home Minister P Chidambaram addressing the press in New Delhi says the most violent movement in India is not terrorism or insurgency, but left-wing extremism. He says the CRPF is supposed to be a fighting force, but how can CRPF be used as a static force since it is not trained for anti-naxal activities

He admitted that it was not possible to recruit security officials easily and therefore whatever resources there are, have to be optimised. He added that the burden of governance in Naxal-hit districts must remain squarely with state governments.

He said the naxals have been targeting infrastructre and their main targets are pipelines, road, school buildings, telephone towers. "They have a well-organised people's liberation army and until they come to the table, we must acknowledge their goal," Chidambaram said.

US President Barack Obama indicated raising taxes on the rich and on energy firms to fund his USD 447 billion jobs stimulus bill, asking lawmakers
to pass the law without "delays" and "politics", a proposal that immediately drew sharp reactions from the Republicans. 

Obama sent to the US Congress, the jobs bill that he intends to pay for by ending tax incentives for oil and gas firms and individuals earning over USD 200,000, setting in the process a fresh showdown with the Republicans, who are strictly opposed to the raising of taxes. 

Amitabh Bachchan tweets:

Gautam Rajadhyaksha the most gentlest of humans, and one of the finest photographers in the Industry, a friend,family favorite ..RIP. Gautam! You have left behind a legacy that shall keep you in our hearts forever .. pictures that you took shall be with us always ! Too shocked to learn of Gautam! Were talking about him just the other day. Many of his pictures adorn our house and our books ..

The condition of Rajya Sabha MPAmar Singh, who was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences following a rise in creatinine level in his body, is stable.

Creatinine is a fairly reliable indicator of a person's kidney functioning. "His condition is hemodynamically stable. He had homemade food in the morning. In due course of time he will undergo different tests. He has urine infection," a senior doctor with AIIMS said.

Arrested for his alleged role in the 2008 cash-for-vote scam, Singh, 55, was admitted in the private ward of AIIMS at around 8 pm yesterday, Tihar Jail spokesman Sunil Gupta said.

Just in: The CBI has been granted custody of the Bellary Reddys till September 19. 

With the arrest of Bellary mining magnate Janardhan Reddy by the Central Bureau of Investigation, the focus has now shifted to the Obulapuram Mining Company, the lease for which was granted by the Andhra Pradesh government then led by Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. G Janardhan Reddy, G Lakshmi Aruna (Janardhan Reddy's wife), G Karunakara Reddy, D  Parameshwara Reddy and B Sree Ramulu are directors of the Bellary-based Obulapuram Mining Company Private Limited (OMC).

Besides its probe, the CBI is relying on the reports submitted by the Lokayukta, forest department and the Income Tax department to nail Obulapuram Mining Company for illegal mining in Bellary.

In other news, UK Special Forces are to join the hunt for a British woman seized in Kenya amid fears she has been taken by Al Qaeda. An air, sea and land search yesterday failed to turn up any trace of Judith Tebbutt, 56, who was snatched by a gang after watching them execute her husband David with a single gunshot to his chest, reports the Daily Mail.

Read

Just in: Mumbai's Chhattrapati Shivaji airport is on high alert. Central agencies warn of a possible threat from aircraft. Security at the airport has been tightened. The details of the what the threat from aircraft is, has not been specified.

Last year, Gautam Rajadhyaksha compiled a collection of some of his favourite pictures and wrote about how he came to shoot the images. The coffee table book, Chehere, is in Marathi and meant only for private circulation.has captured actors, musicians, singers, artists and businessmen through his lens.

See the rediff.com story and of course, the pictures he shared with us.

And some more

Former US First Lady Jackie Kennedy described the late Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as a 'prune -- bitter, kind of pushy, horrible woman,' according to previously unreleased interviews.  

The same interviews also highlighted her criticisms of French President Charles de Gaulle, sister-in-law Eunice Shriver as well as her calling her late brother-in-law Joe Kennedy Jr 'unimaginative' compared to her husband John F Kennedy. She referred to de Gaulle, whom she famously charmed on a visit to Paris, as "that egomaniac' and "that spiteful man'.  

Jackie also said Kennedy Jr would not have been very imaginative as president when compared to her husband.

We'll get you updates on Rajadhyaksha's death in a bit.

Meanwhile, celebrated lawyer and BJP member of Rajya Sabha Ram Jethmalani embarrassed the saffron outfit yesterday when he argued for interim bail for Amar Singh in the cash-for-vote scam case, saying the money used to bribe opposition MPs during the July 2008 trust vote was likely to have come from the BJP.  Read the story in the Times of India

Reminiscences on Twitter....  

Jitesh Pillaai  Some of the best pictures Ive ever seen of nutan, sridevi, madhuri dixit, kajol, salman khan were clicked by the magical gautam rajadhyaksha

On Twitter...

Karan Johar  Gautam rajadhyaksha was one my most favourite people in the fraternity...funny,sensitive and always positive.. I love you gautam and I miss u   When I was hugely overweight...gautam told me.."Darling...not that it makes a difference but try to give me your left profile...it may help!      

Atul Kasbekar My Guru n Mentor, Gautam Rajadhyaksha passed away this morning. my principal influence n a truly wonderful, gentle, kind n talented man.