UPA Presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee said in Kolkata on Saturday night that if necessary, he would definitely talk to Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, seeking her support to his candidature.

Dr Singh on Saturday sought the cooperation of all political parties to tackle the economic slowdown.  

The Trinamool Congress is still part of the UPA government, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said.  

The annual Amarnath yatra is all set to begin on Sunday when the first batch of pilgrims will leave early morning for the cave shrine from the base camp in Jammu amid tight security. 

Egypt will declare the much-awaited results of its presidential election on Sunday, a week after a run-off between an Islamist and a Mubarak-era premier polarised the country and saw both candidates claim victory. 

Three crew members of Salman Khan-starrer Dabangg 2 were today injured in a mishap at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai where shooting for the film was underway, police said. 

Eyeing 2014 Parliamentary polls, Samajwadi Party patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav today exhorted party workers to channelise their energies for the upcoming battle to help party emerge stronger at the Centre. 

Unidentified gunmen shot dead nine men in two separate attacks while another man was kidnapped in the restive city of Quetta in southwest Pakistan today, police said. 

With his and party leader Shivanand Tiwari's remarks causing unease to the NDA, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today asked JD-U leaders and spokesmen to refrain from issuing statements on contentious issues without prior permission from the leadership. 

The Congress Working Committee will meet on Monday to give farewell to Pranab Mukherjee, the UPA's candidate for the post of President.

Upping the ante after their agitation entered its 47th day, Air India pilots have decided to start an indefinite hunger strike from Sunday to highlight their demands. 

The Centre has released 60,000 ton of foodgrain to Karnataka this year in addition to its regular allotment of 2.4 lakh tons in view of the state facing severe drought conditions, Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh said today.

Two days after a devastating fire swept Maharashtra's seat of power in Mumbai, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan today said all files of the Urban Development Department will be reconstructed in a month's time. 

First United States  President George Washington's personal copy of the American Constitution has fetched a record price of nearly $10 million at an auction. 

A landmine planted by Maoists was defused by security personnel in Odisha's Naxal-hit Nabarangpur district today. 

Former Maldivian president Mohamed Nasheed today left for the United States on a week-long visit during which he is scheduled to meet top American officials. 

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood today appeared to be backing down from a showdown with the powerful military by negotiating a 'political deal' to pave the way for its candidate Mohammad Mursi to be declared as the country's president-elect. 

The openness of the news media in Pakistan has given way since the last three-four years to the domination of opinion reinforcing extremism, according to an Islamabad-based nuclear physicist. 

Actor Apurva Agnihotri, who rose to fame with popular TV serial Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin, was among the 44 people who tested positive for drugs consumed at a high-profile rave party at a suburban hotel in May, said the police. 

A clear picture on Leander Paes' participation at the London Olympics is unlikely to emerge before June 28, when ITF will reveal whether Sania Mirza has been given a wild card.
   
Despite Paes' reservations, All India Tennis Association had partnered him with 206th ranked Vishnu Vardhan for the men's doubles but he was assured of a pairing with Sania for the mixed doubles event.
    
The AITA was forced to give in to the demand of Mahesh Bhupathi and Rohan Bopanna that they be sent as a team to London after initially selecting Paes and Bhupathi as the lone Indian entry.
   
Sania, on the back of her recent French Open victory, is likely to get a wild card entry either in the singles or the women's doubles draw with Rushmi Chakravarthy.
   
In case she does not get it, Paes' chances of winning a medal at Olympics will diminish since his combination with Vardhan may not survive long in the tough men's doubles field.

Maoists have given a call for bandh in Gadchiroli district of Maharashtra on June 25 to protest against 'Operation Green Hunt' launched by the police.
    
The ultras dropped leaflets at some places in the district appealing people to make the bandh a success.

The leaflets circulated by a local organisation of the ultras called 'North Gadchiroli-Gondia Divisional Committee of CPI-Maoists' has demanded to stop the 'Operation green hunt' launched by the police which it alleged was leading to harassment of the people.

With some constituents of BJP-led NDA supporting the candidature of UPA's presidential nominee Pranab Mukerjee, his victory is a "foregone conclusion", Minister of State in the PMO, V Narayanasamy, said in Chennai.

"It is a forgone conclusion (Mukherjee's win)...apart from UPA, many political parties are supporting him. Sangma is also in the race but Mukherjee will win by an overwhelming majority," he said.

Bollywood superstar Rajesh Khanna has been admitted to Lilavati Hospital in suburban Bandra, say hospital sources.

 

The actor, who has not been keeping well for a while, gave a rare appearance to his fans from his Mumbai residence a few days back to dispel fears.

BCCI chief and India Cements Managing Director N Srinivasan today appeared before the CBI in Hyderabad for the second time this week for questioning in connection with a disproportionate assets case filed against YSR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy.
 
A senior CBI officer said, "He (Srinivasan) is being questioned in the Jagan assets case."
 
The Central agency had on Monday last quizzed Srinivasan for over six hours with regard to the alleged investments made by his company (India Cements) in the firms promoted by the Kadapa MP when his father late Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was the Andhra Pradesh chief minister (2004-09).

A Correspondent in New Delhi reports:

Deeply concerned over growing the influence of YCR Congress chief Jaganmohan Reddy and the political instability he threatens to create, the Prime Ministers Office and the All India Congress Committee are have summoned Andhra Governor ESL Narasimhan on Monday to Delhi to discuss political situation in the state.

The PMO is keen to ensure that theres no cross-voting during the July 19 Presidential poll.

Expressing concern over signs of weakness in the Indian economy, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said the government is set to announce certain measures on Monday to improve market conditions in consultations with the Reserve Bank.
    
He said the Department of Economic Affairs had consulted with RBI Governor D Subbarao about the measures to be taken in this regard.
    
"We will be able to take certain measures to be announced on Monday which will improve the market condition," Pranab Mukherjee said.

"GDP is at 6.5. There is inflationary pressure, there is depreciation of rupee. There are no doubt signs of weakness in Indian economy," the minister said, adding, "I am concerned but not depressed".
   
When the world is in turmoil, then a large economy like India cannot stay immune", Mukherjee told reporters.

India has now allowed access to video and file-sharing sites, including The Pirate Bay, which were blocked earlier over the issue of Internet piracy.

The Madras high courts earlier ruling made Internet service providers (ISPs) block access to entire sites to prevent a single film from being shared online.

The new order was issued after an appeal filed by a consortium of ISPs, the BBC reports.

The order stated that only specific web addresses, URLs, carrying the pirated content should be blocked, but not the entire website.

Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has sacked his National Security Adviser General Owoye Azazi replacing him with Colonel Sambo Dasuki.
 
Jonathan has removed his Defence Minister Bello Mohammed but his replacement is ye to be announced.
 
"The president has relieved the National Security Adviser of his job and replaced him with Colonel Sambo Dasuki. The president has also sacked the minister of defence and will announce his replacement later," presidential spokesman Reuben Abati said in a statement, released after a meeting held by the president with his top security chiefs following a new wave of terrorist attacks in some states in northern Nigeria.
 
On Sunday, suicide bombers of Islamic fundamentalist group Boko Haram went to three churches and killed around 18 persons in Nigeria's northern state of Kaduna triggering a reprisal that increased the death toll beyond 80.
 
Another attack in neighbouring state of Yobe by the insurgents on Monday brought the total death to 101.

 

United States President Barack Obama on Friday attacked presumptive Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney for outsourcing the jobs by his companies and said Americans don't need pioneers of outsourcing in Oval Office.

Obama said this while referring to a report in 'The Washington Post' that the companies owned by Romney's firms were pioneers in the outsourcing of US jobs to countries like India and China.
 
"Today, it was reported in The Washington Post that the companies his firm owned were 'pioneers' in the outsourcing of American jobs to places like China and India," he said at an election campaign event at Tampa in Florida.
 
"Let me tell you, Tampa, we don't need an outsourcing pioneer in the Oval Office. We need a President who will fight for American jobs and fight for American manufacturing. That's what my plan will do. That's why I am running for a second term as President of the US," Obama said amidst rounds of applause from the cheering audience.

Vicky Nanjappa reports from Bengaluru:

Karnataka Law Minister Suresh Kumar tendered his resignation on Saturday morning over allegations that a Rs 4 crore site was allotted to his close relatives under the chief minister's discretionary quota.

The resignation sent to Chief Minister Sadananda Gowda has, however, not been accepted yet.

The allegation is that some close relatives of Kumar had got a site under the discretionary quota of then CM B S Yeddyurappa.

The Rs 4 cr worth site allotted in Bengaluru had raised an issue which prompted the law minister to resign from his post.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today congratulated Raja Parvez Ashraf on his appointment as Pakistan's new Prime Minister and expressed confidence that the two countries will continue to make progress on bilateral issues during his tenure.
 
"I am confident that during your term as Prime Minister our two countries will continue to make progress in their bilateral dialogue on all issues and build good neighbourly relations by strengthening their cooperation in all areas for the benefit of the people," he said in a message to the Pakistan Prime Minister.

AP reports:  United Nations envoy Kofi Annan said that Iranshould be involved in efforts to end the escalating violencethat has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands of people from their homes.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived in Pretoria on Friday on his way home after a visit to Mexicoand Brazil for attending two international summits. He will have an overnight stay in this South African city before leaving for New Delhi on Saturday morning.

USA today reports: First Lady Michelle Obama will lead a US delegation to the London Olympics next month, featuring the famed double gold medalist woman footballer Brandi Chastain, the White House said on Friday.

An official involved in the Olympic movement said on Friday that Britain has refused to grant a visa to Syrian Olympic Committee chief Gen Mowaffak Joumaa to attend the London Games.

CNN says: Ahmed Shafik, the last prime minister under former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak, will be named the country's new president on Sunday, the semi-official Ahram Online news site reported on Friday, citing several unnamed government sources.