Petrol prices to be cut by Rs 2 per litre with effect with effect from midnight. The decision comes two days after a nationwide bandh against the hike in petrol prices.

State-owned oil firms will reduce petrol price by Rs 1.68 per litre, excluding taxes. After including 20 per cent VAT, the cut in Delhi comes to Rs 2 per litre, industry sources said.Petrol after last week's steepest ever hike of Rs 7.54 a litre costs Rs 73.18 per litre in Delhi.

After the reduction, it will cost Rs 71.18 a litre.  

A court in Delhi today rejected a plea filed by Congress leader Sajjan Kumar asking if witnesses can be confronted with their affidavits submitted to the judicial commissions set up to examine the 1984 riots cases. 

Kumar is facing trial in one of these cases.

District Judge J R Aryan had reserved his order on the plea on May 26 after hearing arguments of the counsels for the CBI and the accused.

In his application, the former Outer Delhi MP has said that prosecutor RS Cheema had on July 12, 2010, made a statement in the court that affidavits and statement of a key witness and complainant Jagdish Kaur recorded by GT Nanavati and Ranganath Mishra Commissions cannot be used because of contradictions, reports NDTV.

Andhra Pradesh high court granted five-day custody of YSR Congress chief and Kadapa MPJaganmohan Reddy to the Central Bureau of Investigation. Jagan was held last Sunday in connection with the disproportionate assets case.

The special CBI court dismissed Jagan's petition for interim bail yesterday.

The CBI had told the court that Jagan had not cooperated during the initial three-day questioning before his arrest. The CBI counsel said that the questioning of former excise minister M Venkatramanna and YSR family's auditor has yielded some new information about which it needs to question Jagan.

Rejecting Jagan's allegation that his arrest was a political conspiracy, the CBI had opposed his quash petition saying that if he is released on bail he will try to damage the evidence and influence witnesses.

In the first ever conviction of a legislator in Karnataka under the Prevention of Corruption Act, a ruling Bharatiya Janata Party MLA was today sentenced to three-and-a half year rigorous imprisonment in a bribery case by the Lokayukta special court.

Judge N K Sudheendra Rao also imposed a fine of Rs 40,000 on Y Sampangi failing which he has to undergo imprisonment for another six months. The judge directed the Lokayukta deputy superintendent of police to issue arrest warrant on Sampangi and take him into custody.

Sampangi, who represents Kolar Gold Fields assembly constituency, was trapped by Lokayukta police on January 29, 2009 while accepting Rs 50,000 and a cheque for Rs 4.5 lakh from a person to settle a civil dispute. He was found guilty under section 13 (1) d of the Prevention of Corruption Act in the trial that lasted more than three years.

Soon after the verdict that jailed former Egyptian president Hosni Mumbarak for life angry protesters disrupted the proceedings.

Punches were thrown as victims' family members protested the verdict inside the court.

Others stood on chairs, raising fists in the air and chanting the sentence was not enough, CNN reported.

An ailing Mubarak, who spent much of his time during the trial on a mobile bed, and the judge were removed from the courtroom amid the melee.

A court in Cairo has sentenced Egyptian ex-President Hosni Mubarak to life imprisonment for complicity in the killing of demonstrators during last year's uprising.  

The January 25 revolution ended 35 years of tyranny. Protestors against poverty oppression were peaceful, said the judge, who delivered the verdict at the Cairo court.

Along with Mubarak former interior minister Habib al-Adly was also handed a life term. The duo was convicted of ordering the deaths of some of the estimated 850 people. 

However, Mubarak was acquitted of all corruption charges. Mubarak's sons and six senior officers were also acquitted.

The judge suspended the session after shouts erupted in the courtroom as the verdict was being read out.

The Central Bureau of Investigation has raided the residence of a retired judge Chalapathi Rao in Chikaluripet town of Guntur district in connection with the cash-for-bail scandal involving a CBI Special Court judge T Pattabhi Rama Rao and mining baron and former Bharatiya Janata Party Karnataka minister Gali Janardhan Reddy.

The CBI teams were also searching the houses of a document writer Srinivas Rao and a lawyer Tarakaram, reports Rediff.com's Mohammed Siddique.  

Durng the search that began this morning, the CBI recovered some incriminating documents.   Chalapathi Rao was facing the allegation of playing the role of a middle men in securing bail for illegal mining case accused Janardhan Reddy from the court of Patthabi Rama Rao. The Andhra Pradesh high court chief justice Madanlal B Lokur has already put the CBI judge under suspension.  

During the investigations the CBI has found that an amount of Rs 10 core changed the hands to ensure that Gali Janardhan Reddy gets the bail. Patthabi Rama Rao had granted him the bail on May 11 but Gali could not come out of the jail as he was lodged in Bangalore jail in connection with another illegal mining case.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit today discussed the security scenario with city Police Commissioner B K Gupta in the wake of an MLA being shot at by unidentified assailants and demands from Congress legislators for enhanced personal security.

The meeting was held on the direction of Speaker Yoganand Shastri after MLAs demand police protection citing increased "threat perception" while having to deal with difficult situations in public interest.Gupta met Dikshit hours after MLA Bharat Singh was shot at by unidentified men at his office in southwest Delhi today.

Yesterday in Delhi Assembly, an extortion call to MLA Jaswant Rana's son had prompted other legislators to seek enhanced protection. The strong demand by the legislators came after senior MLA Jaswant Rana said in the assembly that his son received a call last week from an unknown person demanding Rs 50 lakh.

Ruchika Girhotra's family has withdrawn the torture charges against former Deputy General of Police of Haryana SPS Rathore. They have told the Central Bureau of Investigation that they have no objection to closing of the case, reports NDTV.

The Girhotra family had earlier alleged that Rathore had tortured Ruchika's brother. The CBI had filed a closure report in the case around 20 months back.

Teenager Ruchika had committed suicide on December 28, 1993, three years after being allegedly being molested and harassed by the former top cop.

Her father and brother have reportedly withdrawn three cases against Rathore.
These cases were filed after public outcry against Rathore following a six-month sentence by a Chandigarh trial court, the report said.  

Ruchika's Ashu had alleged that a false case of auto theft was slapped on him at the behest of Rathore and he was brutally tortured by Haryana police. But the CBI closure report said there was no evidence to substantiate the allegations.

Her father had alleged that his signatures were taken on blank papers during the post-mortem proceedings of his daughter Ruchika.

Shumsher K Sheriff is likely to be appointed as the new election commissioner. An Indian Administrative Service office he is currently the secretary to Vice President Hamid Anasari, according to our correspondent in New Delhi.

As there will be a vacancy for the Election Commission following the demitting of office by Chief Election Commissioner SY Quraishi and the likely appointment of EC VS Sampath in his place, the name of Sheriff is being considered at the top level.

Sheriff if appointed the EC will be in office till August 2018.

H S Brahma is the other EC in the three-member Commission, reports the Hindu.

Quraishi is demitting office on June 10.

Najafgarh Independent MLA Bharat Singh was shot at in New Delhi. The firing happened at Najafgarh at 8.30 am today.

He has suffered two bullet injuries and is admitted to Charan Devi Hospital. Sources say he is critical.

Singh is a relative of gangster Kishen Pahalwan.

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit will hold a meeting with the police commissioner B K Gupta with regard to the incident and media will be briefed at 11.00 am.

The Central Bureau of Investigation is carrying out searches at the residential premises offormer Uttar Pradesh health minister Anant Mishra in Lucknow and Kanpur in connection with National Rural Health Mission scam. The raids were conducted at two places in Lucknow and one in Kanpur.

The action came after an FIR was filed by the CBI nearly two days ago in connection with the appointment of nearly 100 chief medical officers. The CBI said the appointments were made in total disregard of the rules and hence, were illegal.

The investigative body claimed that the plan was to appoint 100 CMOs who would only look after the implementation of the NRHM and report directly to former family welfare minister Babu Singh Kushwaha and the then principal health secretary Pradeep Shukla.

Indian Express reports: Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi received a standing ovation at her first speech before an international audience Friday, but shifted the focus from herself to Myanmar's many needs. 

Indian Express reports: Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi received a standing ovation at her first speech before an international audience Friday, but shifted the focus from herself to Myanmar's many needs. 

CNN reports: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday denied that Russia is providing weapons that are killing Syrian civilians."We don't supply weapons that can be used in civil conflicts," he said.

AFP reports: A Florida judge revoked the bail bond of George Zimmerman, the man charged with killing unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin, and ordered him to surrender within 48 hours, US media reports said on Friday.

AP reports: The United Nations said on Friday that the Syrian government has released 223 prisoners, but stressed that many more must still be freed.

AP reports: An Al Qaeda-linked group in Yemen says it has released 27 government troops captured in a surpriseattack last month on an army base in the south.

AP reports: An Al Qaeda-linked group in Yemen says it has released 27 government troops captured in a surpriseattack last month on an army base in the south.

Pakistan is committed to the"expeditious implementation" of mega projects with Iran,including a multi-billion dollar gas pipeline, construction of the Nashki-Dalbandin road and upgrading of Quetta-Taftanrailway line, President Asif Ali Zardari said on Friday.

CBI has conducted a raid at the residence of an employee of South Eastern Coalfields Limited at Nourozabad in Umaria district and recovered huge amount of cash and property disproportionate to his known sources of income, a official said.