Poonam Dhillon backs Asha over reality show row

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Sat, 01 September 2012

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22:06 Poonam Dhillon backs Asha over reality show row

Bollywood actress Poonam Dhillon today supported renowned singer Asha Bhosale's decision to participate in a TV reality show with Pakistani artists. Raj Thackeray-led MNS has opposed the show on account of the participation of Pakistani singers.

Dhillon, who visited the Sai Baba temple in Shirdi said, "I respect Asha Bhosale... she is like my mother. Her decision to take part in the show is right. It would spread message of love of peace.' "Ashatai is a great singer," she said, adding that art should not be mixed up with the politics

21:10 JKLF chief Yasin Malik detained in Kashmir

Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chairman Mohammad Yasin Malik and several leaders of the separatist outfit were detained during a protest rally led by him in Kulgam district of south Kashmir.

Malik was taken into preventive custody from Badroo-Yaripora village of Kulgam, 70 kms from Srinagar, after he led a rally in violation of prohibitory orders, officials said.

They said police used batons to disperse his supporters and party colleagues who tried to prevent his detention, resulting in injuries to a couple of persons.

19:53 Sonia goes abroad for checkup: Congress

Congress president Sonia Gandhi has gone abroad for medical checkup, party spokesperson Janardan Dwivedi has said. The Congress chief will return in a week, Dwivedi added.

PTI: Mumbai Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh today said he would try to correct if there was any procedural lapse committed by his officers while arresting an Azad Maidan violence accused from Bihar.

Singh, who replaced Arup Patnaik in the aftermath of August 11 Azad Maidan violence, told PTI, "I have been told that a letter was received from the DGP of Bihar (in connection with the incident)but I am yet to go through it".

Singh said, "I know the Bihar DGP very well. I don't think there should be any problem. Do not portray it as an ego problem or so. We had co-operated with each other and would continue to do so. In case there was some lapse in procedure, we will try to correct it."

The city police chief's statement comes a day after MNS chief Raj Thackeray threatened to brand Biharis as "infiltrators" and force them out of Maharashtra if authorities in Bihar take legal action against Mumbai policemen who picked up a teenager from there without informing their counterparts in that state.

PTI: Six suspected workers of Maharashtra Navnirman Sena allegedly ransacked a theatre located at Grant Road of south Mumbai, protesting screening of a Bhojpuri film, police said.

According to police, a group of around six persons barged into Super Cinema, a single-screen theatre, last night and threatened the security guard, Mohammed Alam (19) and the management of dire consequences if they did not stop screening the Bhojpuri film titled 'Ek Bihari Sau Pe Bhaari'.

The accused claimed that the film "hurts the sentiments of locals and is provocative," police said, quoting the complainant Alam.

An FIR was registered at D B Marg police station and a manhunt had been launched to nab the accused, police said.

17:51 It's time Raj Thackeray focuses on unity: JD-U

PTI: The Janata Dal-United today asked Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray to work for strengthening the country's unity instead of making provocative remarks.

"It's time that Raj Thackeray focuses on unity of the nation and stop making inflammatory remarks dividing people," JD-U's Jharkhand unit spokesman Pramod Mishra said in Ranchi.

"There are several better words to express one's grievances on any issue. But Thackeray has always used provocative remarks, which should be condemned by all political parties," Mishra said.

16:54 Raj Thackeray's family is from Bihar: Digvijay

Congress General Secretary Digvijay Singh on Saturday criticized Raj Thackeray's threat to brand Biharis 'infiltrators' and force them out of Maharashtra, saying fishermen are the true inhabitants of Mumbai and that the MNS chief's family is also from Bihar.

"The fishermen are the true inhabitants of Mumbai and rest of people have come from outside. Raj Thackeray's family also is from Bihar. They came from Bihar, got settled in Dhar, and then they reached Mumbai," said Singh.

"If we look back into history then we can say that Mumbai is a city of fishermen and others have come from outside," he added.

The Congress General Secretary demanded that the incident, which took place in Mumbai, should be investigate.

"Around 100 to 150 people came with weapons and were involved in this. The investigation should be done to know by whom it was done. I think there is a conspiracy behind it," he said.

Keen to break the logjam in Parliament over the CAG report, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has reached out to Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj but the Bharatiya Janata Party appeared unrelenting on its stand.

Taking the initiative, Gandhi talked to the senior BJP leader on Friday coinciding with her hectic consultations with the party top brass including Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, sources said.

The BJP, however, said there is no change in their stand of seeking the Prime Minister's resignation on the issue.

"There will be no let up. We will further intensify our fight inside and outside Parliament," BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain said.

Asked if BJP would allow passage of some crucial bills, he said, "This is not a question of bills but of the nation. Our fight will continue."

Congress sources said Gandhi's reaching out to Swaraj is a further vindication that the party is always prepared to consult all stakeholders on any issue in keeping with the best traditions of Parliamentary democracy, where a way should be found out through dialogue and debate.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday justified the disruption of Parliament over the coal blocks allocation issue, saying the tactics have been adopted to ensure that the UPA government led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accepts accountability.

Senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said the BJP could not be a silent spectator to the looting of the nation's wealth, and added that obstruction is sometimes a parliamentary tactics.

Naidu alleged that the ruling Congress Party did not allow the Parliament's Public Accounts committee (PAC) to probe the 2G spectrum scam.

"They didn't allow the PAC to function properly. They are not allowing even the JPC to function properly now. They are criticising all the institutions. Lets us invent a new tactics so that the principle of accountability is not sacrificed. We will not keep quiet. We will take the fight to the people," he added.

Naidu further said they were firm on their three demands, including resignation of Dr Singh, cancellation and re-auctioning of 142 coal blocks and an independent inquiry into the scam.

15:55 Taliban calls off talks with Pak government

Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) called off talks with the Pakistani government, as it was 'playing tricks', and 'wasn't serious', a senior commander of the banned terror group has claimed.

"The government contacted me and some other TTP leaders through intermediaries several times, but the contacts were suspended because government officials were not serious," TTP's Maulvi Faqir said.

Faqir was the deputy of TTP chief Hakimullah Mehsud and the group's head honcho in Bajaur Agency until early 2012 when he was deposed for his "unauthorised contacts" with the government.

According to The Express Tribune, Faqir claimed that a religious group had mediated between them and the government.

"The Pakistani government is not independent in taking decisions as it is under the US pressure. No one can refuse talks, but the government has always tricked us," he added.

Raj Thackeray's comments threatening to brand Biharis as 'infiltrators' have fuelled a controversy with leaders from various political parties slamming the MNS chief over the issue.

Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh said the Thackeray family itself belonged to Bihar and had settled in Dhar in Western Madhya Pradesh from where they migrated to Mumbai.

"If you look at the history of Mumbai, then it is a city of fishermen. Rest all have settled there from outside," Singh said.

Thacekray had yesterday threatened to force Biharis out of Maharashtra if authorities in Bihar take legal action against Mumbai policemen who picked up a teenager from there without informing their counterparts in that state.

Thackeray, whose party has often launched violent campaigns against Hindi-speaking people in Maharashtra, was reacting to reports that Bihar chief secretary Navin Kumar has written to Mumbai police commissioner voicing displeasure over the arrest of the youth for vandalising the martyrs memorial during Azad Maidan protest on August 11.

14:13 There is not a single benami money: Sahara

Faced with Friday's damning verdict ordering him to repay Rs 24,400 crore to investors in two of his companies -- Sahara India Real Estate Corporation (SIREC) and Sahara Housing Investment Corporation (SHIC) -- within three months and with 15 percent interest, Sahara Group boss Subrata Roy lashed out in all directions.

"For the past seven-eight years, we have faced the onslaught of various authorities since they concluded whimsicallythat the deposits and investments we have received from the public are fictitious and bogus as they feel the money with us is ill-gotten from politicians, etc," The Times of India quoted the group as saying.

The reference to the authorities' whimsicality can only be about either the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which ordered him to wind up his Sahara India Financial Corporation (SIFC) in 2008, or Sebi, which ordered SIREC and SHIC to repay the money raised from fraudulently issued optionally fully convertible debentures (OFCDs) in June 2011.

The Sahara statement issued on 31 August said: "The fact is that there is not a single benami money (sic) and this statement is Sahara's challenge to all authorities of our country. Each and every rupee we have accepted in (the) last 33 years is always against receipt from the company and with an application form duly signed by its depositors and investors."

A move by the Uttar Pradesh government to sell telecast and advertising rights of the coming Maha Kumbh, to be held in January 2013, has caused resentment among seers and saints who feel it is wrong to commercialise a religious event.

"We will strongly oppose any move to sell telecast rights. How can the government even think of making money out of religious events," asked Swami Anand Giri Maharaj, head of Ganga Sena. Acharya Govind Murari of Vrindavan was equally upset.

"This is almost like saying you will sell telecast rights of Id prayers or Christmas mass. The government should know certain events related to religion cannot be used to make money. Besides, the Kumbh Mela is not 'owned' by the state government, and it has no right to buy or sell rights related to it," he said.

enior police officials are also against the move, fearing it could create a law and order problem. The controversy, sources said, began after UP chief secretary Javed Usmani sent a letter to the Allahabad administration asking it to 'generate revenue by auctioning advertising and telecast rights' for the event.

11:31 Amazon snubs Google for Nokia

The next edition of Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet will introduce mapping services in partnership with Nokia, as the firm has snubbed Internet search giant Google.

Amazon is reportedly planning to release a new version of the Kindle Fire next Thursday.

According to people familiar with the matter, the new Kindle Fire will have mapping services provided by Nokia Oyj, the Telegraph reports.

This time the firm has decided to snub Google, whose Android mobile operating system powers the Kindle Fire platform.

According to the paper, the sources also claimed that the new Kindle Fire will have either a GPS chip or Wifi based positioning system, which will make the mapping services possible.

This will most likely include street maps as well as information about local businesses and traffic updates, the sources added.

11:28 FIR against woman impersonating as SP member

An FIR has been registered against a woman impersonating as executive member of ruling Samajwadi Party and making recommendations to the district authorities for getting various works done, police said here today.

The FIR was registered by SP city unit president Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Babloo yesterday against one Deepa Bhatt, a resident of Jankipurm area here.

According to the complaint, Bhatt was approaching the administrative authorities for favours posing as a member of the SP's national executive.

11:26 New mobile tower radiation norms from today

With new guidelines coming into force from Saturday, radiation emission from telecom towers will come down to 1/10th of the present level, a development that will address public health concerns.

Also, the handsets to be rolled out from domestic manufacturing units or to be imported will have reduced absorption capacity, as per the new guidelines.

The minimum distance of a tower (with two antenna) will be 35 meter from a residential building.

02:17 29 dead, 16 injured in Nigeria bus crash

AP reports: Two buses on Friday collided head-on and burst into flames killing at least 29 people and injuring 16 others in northern Nigeria's Yobe state, the police said.

"Two Toyota Hiace Buses... travelling in opposite directions had a head-on collision and thereafter went off in flames.

"Twenty nine persons -- eleven of them burnt beyond recognition -- have so far been confirmed dead," national police spokesman Frank Mba said in a statement. The accident occurred in the state's Nengere area, the statement added. The injured were taken to a hospital in the nearby city of Potiskum.

01:04 Feminist writer Shulamith Firestone dead at 67

AP reports: Writer Shulamith Firestone, who published her influential The Dialectic of Sex at age 25 and then retreated into isolation and mental illness, has died at age 67.

Firestone was found dead Tuesday in her Manhattan apartment, said her sister Laya Firestone Seghi. The death was from natural causes.

The Dialectic of Sex: The Case for Feminist Revolution was published in 1970 during the height of the women's liberation movement.

00:39 Top headlines of the last 24 hours

Cabinet rejig likely after monsoon session

Naroda Patiya: Kodnani gets 28 yrs, lifer for Bajrangi

Cong core group meets on Coalgate, Parliament impasse

If I was resigning, I would not be here: PM

Will brand Biharis 'infiltrators', warns Raj Thackeray

Sonia meets Pranab on Coalgate Parl logjam

00:32 Iran urges nonaligned nations role in Syria

Iran's supreme leader said on Friday that emerging nations have a greater right than the West or United Nations to help resolve Syria's escalating civil war.

The comments appeared to reflect a hope by Iran to lead a diplomatic push over the crisis in its close ally Syria through the Nonaligned Movement, the grouping of 120 nations whose annual conference Tehran has hosted this week.

However, Iran has faced an uphill challenge in garnering support for Syrian President Bashar Assad. Some in the organisation -- particularly Sunni Muslim majority nations -- are more sympathetic with the rebels, if not outright backing it.

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