A group of Chinese port workers had a providential escape in Karachi today when a bomb targeting their vehicle did not go off as planned, just a day before the arrival of Premier Li Keqiang in Pakistan.        

 

Police said that a major tragedy was averted by good fortune in the city's posh Clifton area when the remote-controlled improvised explosive device aimed at a van carrying the 11 Chinese workers failed to detonate. Police said the IED had been planted in a flower pot at a roadside in Boat Basin in Clifton.  

 

Image: Security officials collect the evidence at the site of a bomb blast in Karachi Tuesday.   Photograph: Athar Hussain/Reuters

Saudi Arabia today executed five Yemenis and displayed their bodies in public for killing a national and forming a gang that committed robberies across several towns in the kingdom, the interior ministry said. 

A US appeals court ruled today that the federal government is not required to release photos that were taken of al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden after he was killed by special forces. 

The United States will carry out today an intercontinental ballistic missile test it had delayed last month to avoid stoking tensions with North Korea, the Air Force announced. 

Pinning the deadly tornado in the US state of Oklahoma on climate change is wrongheaded, even though the world is set to see a rise in high-profile weather disasters due to global warming, the leader of a UN body said today. 

Afghan President Hamid Karzai held talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh tonight discussing the situation in the region in the backdrop of Afghanistan's keenness to enhance defence cooperation with India and get supply of "lethal and non-lethal" weapons. 

India and Saudi Arabia today resolved the issue of refusal of new Indian passports by immigration authorities in Jeddah which had caused concern among the Indian expatriates in the Kingdom. 

Saudi authorities have arrested 10 more suspects in an alleged Iranian spy ring unveiled two months ago, an interior ministry spokesman said today. 

Paris police say Notre Dame Cathedral has been evacuated after a man committed suicide in the 850-year-old monument and tourist site.

India has "flagged" its concerns regarding Chinese activities in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir during talks held with visiting China's Premier Li Keqiang, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid today said.

Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma was today named as the new Comptroller & Auditor General of India.

Just in: The Sahara Group, which owns the Pune Warriors franchise, pulls out of the IPL. This means Pune Warriors have withdrawn from the IPL. More than a year after the Indian cricket Board agreed to resolve Sahara's IPL issues, including reduction the of Pune franchise fee by up to 25 per cent, through arbitration, no headway has been made. The BCCI now encashed the bank guarantee after the Sahara Group failed to pay the full franchise fee for this year -- a whopping Rs 1,702 crore. Pune Warriors is the costliest franchise in the IPL.

The three cricketers -- S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila get five-day police custody along with seven other bookies. Sreesanth faces charges of     criminal breach of trust under Sec.409 of IPC in spot-fixing scandal, which entails life imprisonment.

Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma appointed new CAG. Outgoing CAG Vinod Rai today dismissed charges that he was behind the leak of controversial audit reports on 2G spectrum and coal block allocations. "In the course of the audit process, if somebody asks a question under RTI, the CIC (Central Information Commission) has held that we are bound to answer. So it is not leaking," Rai said.

Joint police commissioner Mumbai police addressing a press conference on Vindoo Dara Singh and bookie's arrest. Himanshu Roy displays the Rs 1crore 28 lakh recovered from the hawala operator Alpesh Patel. He says six arrests were made so far in connection with the IPL spot-fixing case. "Vindoo was arrested for his links with bookies," says Roy.   

Vindoo, booked under sections 420, 465, 466, 467 and 468 of IPC related to cheating and forgery, was later produced before metropolitan magistrate M N
Saleem, who remanded him in police custody till May 24.

In other news: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang today left his audience in splits with his ready wit and lost no opportunity to woo Indians, lending at times personal touches while espousing deeper ties with India.

He not only recalled an earlier trip made by him to India 27 years ago but also quoted Mahatma Gandhi and talked about how Indian songs, dances and yoga were famous in China.

He praised India for the advancement in IT, pharmaceuticals and stressed on the need for India and China to speak in one voice so that the world "will and must listen". Li started off his address at an event organised by ICWA and FICCI here with a 'Namaste'.

Recalling his earlier trip, the Chinese Premier said "In these 27 years, I haven't had the opportunity to use this (Namaste word)". "Twenty seven years ago I visited India and I was deeply impressed by India's vast territory, time-honoured civilisation as well as hard-working and talented people," he said adding the fond memories were still fresh in his mind.

Soon after he said this, the sound system went off and made some strange sound for a second or two, leaving everyone amused. Seizing the opportunity, Li said "so that is a prelude to my remarks," leaving the audience in splits.

CNN IBN: Police are sorting through the purchases made by S Sreesanth. The tainted cricketer paid for all his purchases in cash. All the purchases were recovered from his woman friend's house in Jaipur.

He bought a Blackberry Z10, Rs 1.95 lakh of clothes bought from Diesel. All the purchases were made using money he made from spot-fixing, says the Delhi police.

The cricketer is being taken to Jaipur to recover this other purchases.

Delhi police seeks custody of Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila, Ankit Chavan and eight others for five more days in court in IPL spot-fixing scandal. Provision of criminal breach of trust, which entails life imprisonment, has been invoked against the accused, police tell court.

Meanwhile, Gujarat CM Narendra Modi will inaugurate the first ever yoga university of India in Ahmedabad.

All the arrested bookies have been sent to 14-day judicial custody.

Vindoo, meanwhile, has been sent to police custody till May 24. He has been booked for cheating and criminal conspiracy. His lawyer says his arrest is based on conjecture. The actor has told police that he was in touch with bookies. 

Meanwhile, S Sreesanth was produced in the Saket Court today. The police want his custody extended. A wan Sreesanth appeared in blue T-shirt, without covering his face. The Delhi police want Sreesanth, Chavan's and Chandila's custody extended by another five days. 

Pic: Vindoo Dara Singh (left) at the Killa Court in Mumbai/Arun Patil

With Vindoo Dara Singh's arrest, the number of arrests in the spot-fixing scandal is 20. However, it is not yet known if he was a link between IPL players and the bookies or was just into betting. The actor is booked under section 420 (cheating) and several sections under forging. Bookie Kalpesh Patel was also arrested with Vindoo.

The Mumbai police says Vindoo Dara Singh was seen at a number of IPL matches. Here he is seen seated next to Sakshi Dhoni right through the match in Chennai. Read more

Vindoo's wife, former model, Dina Umarova, speaking to Times Now, says she has not spoken to Vindoo. "I don't know what happened. I'm not in touch with him. I don't know where he is. I  just picked up my daughter from school." 

Vindoo Dara Singh, dressed in a grey T-shirt is being taken from the crime branch to a Mumbai court. A reporter asks him why is he being picked up. He replies, "cricket khelne ke liye."

Times Now report that Vindoo Dara Singh was himself a bookie and accepted bets for other bookies.

The Mumbai police are still interrogating Vindoo Dara Singh. He is the first person from the Indian film industry to be arrested in the spot-fixing scandal. Times Now reports that Vindoo may have been conduit between big league film stars and bookies and used his connections to hang out with cricketers and extract information.

Mumbai police say Vindoo Dara Singh was seen at many IPL matches. CNN IBN citing sources says the actor has confessed to involvement in betting in the IPL and to being in touch with some of the arrested bookies.  

The Mumbai police say Vindoo was in constant touch with bookies. If you haven't the faintest idea of who Vindoo is, here's a small info capsule. He is a film and TV actor and the winner of the third season of Bigg Boss.

Crime Branch sources tell Times Now that there are more Bollywood links, but they are choosing to remain mum for now. Vindoo Dara Singh's name was reflected multiple times in the call detail records of Ramesh Vyas. Vyas is believed to be the head of D-Company's betting operations in Mumbai.

Vindoo Dara Singh's laptop, mobile phones have been confiscated by the crime branch. He will be produced in court tomorrow. 

Vindoo Dara Singh's arrest comes after interrogation of Ramesh Vyas, a link to the bookies, especially key bookie Jupiter. The actor was arrested by the Crime Branch of the Mumbai police last night. He is now being interrogated by the police and will be produced in court tomorrow.

Times Now reports that Dara Singh's son, Vindoo Dara Singh, has been arrested in Mumbai for links with bookies.  Details awaited. 

To encapsulate, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking a stay on the remaining four matches of the IPL, plagued by the spot-fixing scandal. It has asked India's cricket board -- BCCI -- to ensure that cricket, which is a gentleman's game, remains one. The SC has asked the BCCI to take action against those found guilty of spot-fixing.

The court said spot-fixing happens as a result of the lackadaisical approach of the BCCI. "The credibility of the game should be maintained. The BCCI should adopt a rational and scientific approach," said the court.

It has asked the BCCI to submit a report within two weeks.

The BCCI has told the court that it has formed anti-graft teams to accompany the players.

BCCI tells the court that it has appointed Ravi Sawani to look into the irregularities in the game. The SC said spot-fixing happens as a result of the lackadaisical approach of the BCCI. "The credibility of the game should be maintained. The BCCI should adopt a rational and scientific approach," says the court.

The Supreme Court has refused to ban IPL as a game and as a league. Pulling up BCCI, it says that the BCCI is lackadaisical, and there will be no stay on IPL 6. It said that cricket was a gentleman's game and it should remain so. The SC directs the BCCI panel to look into the irregularities and file a report in two weeks.

The BCCI tells the court that anti-graft units will accompany IPL teams. 

Delhi metro today closed down its three stations, including Race Course which near the Prime Minister's official residence, for over an hour in the morning anticipating protests by Tibetans against Chinese Premier Li Keqiang's visit.

Race Course, Udyog Bhawan and Central Secretariat metro stations were closed from 11:15 am to 12:30 pm following instructions from Delhi Police.

However, interchange facility was available at central secretariat, the spokesperson said. Yesterday, four stations around the India Gate were shut down for 2 hours from 8am to 10 am.

NASSCOM Chairman Krishnakumar Natarajan today said iGATE board has taken a right decision to sack its President and CEO Phaneesh Murthy over alleged sexual harassment, emphasising that a "quick and decisive" action in such incidents augurs well for the IT industry.

"A right decision has been taken. I think the decision reflects what IT industry standards for. It stands for the highest standards of governance and integrity," Natarajan told reporters on the sidelines of a NASSCOM event in Bangalore.

Natarajan said the board seems to have done a fairly thorough due deligence before taking the action. "It is a very isolated incident and has no bearing in terms of what implications it has on Indian IT industry," he said.

The Allahabad High Court today rejected a petition of dentist couple Rajesh and Nupur Talwar seeking examination of 14 more witnesses in the Aarushi-Hemraj murder case.

Justice Rajesh Dayal Khare dismissed the petition of the couple who are key accused in the twin murder case, saying, "There is no need to force the prosecution to call witnesses other than those it deems proper." CBI counsel Anurag Khanna had during arguments opposed the plea of the Talwars and submitted that their petition was filed with a view to delaying the trial process.

"The court was of the view that the trial court had the right to decide which of the witnesses should be summoned and their statements be recorded," he said.

Now school kids will get another reason to surf their favourite female actor Priyanka Chopra, reports India Today. An entire chapter on one of the most successful female actors in Bollywood - Priyanka Chopra is being added in the text books of scholars in the Springdales School's curriculum.

The school is affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education and has branches in India and abroad. Students would get to read about Priyanka in in the chapter titled Roving Families: Shifting Homes in their EVS books. 

Sacked iGATE President and CEO Phaneesh Murthy on Tuesday denied all charges against him and alleged that it was a case of extortion.

"The charges against me are completely false. I have not violated company policy," Phaneesh Murthy said.

Alleging extortion, Murthy said, "This is without doubt a case of extortion. The same lawyer who had represented the woman in 2002 is representing the woman this time as well. You can spot the difference."

He also claimed that he had informed the company about his relationship with a female colleague. "I had informed the chairman about my relationship with this woman," Murthy said. "There is no parallel between the 2002 sexual harassment case and this one," Murthy added. Read the full story here.

Delhi HC agrees to hear tomorrow a plea seeking banning of Indian Premier League till steps are taken to stop corrupt practices.

Prospective grooms in Sehore district are posing along side toilets at their homes. This picture would be one of the most important proofs in ensuring their marriage at mass marriages organized by the government in the district. Read

A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck Russia's Kamchatka Peninsula early today, the US Geological Survey reported, striking at a depth of 33 kilometres. The quake hit at 0155 GMT, 136 kilometres east-southeast of the Russian city of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the USGS reported. It said there was a low likelihood of casualties and damage.

During the course of police investigations of the spot-fixing episode, it has emerged that S Sreesanth revealed the names of prominent India players who were reportedly lured by bookies through expensive gifts.Sreesanth alleged that the bookies had gifted these players a Hummer and other high end cars, expensive watches and women at parties, convincing them to spot-fix, revealed sources. Police sources said they are yet to corroborate Sreesanth's statements and are investigating the matter.

Read the Indian Express report. 

IN the same week that cricketer S Sreesanth was arrested for alleged involvement in spot-fixing in IPL, he was set to promote a mineral water and apparel brand based in Tirupur, Tamil Nadu. The brand, S36, was scheduled to be launched last week but failed to take off due to Sreesanth's arrest. The owner of the brand may now be questioned in connection with over 500 photographs of models found in the cricketer's mail inbox. Read the full story here. 

Indians are anxious about Chinese policies and capabilities, but a new survey finds as many prefer partnering Beijing as those who favour joining hands with other countries to contain it. Read

Buoyed by the positive vibes from his India trip, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang has termed the visit as "successful", saying he "felt at home" during talks with his counterpart Manmohan Singh, the state media said today.

"A successful start is halfway to final success," state-run China Daily quoted him as saying about the first leg of his nine-day foreign to India, Pakistan, Switzerland and Germany. Li, 57, is due to visit Pakistan tomorrow.

Terming his talks with Prime Minister Singh as "deep, friendly and frank", Li said, "It made me feel like I was at home. I really appreciate his (Singh's) arrangements," the paper quoted Li as saying about his maiden official visit, 27 years after he toured the country as a youth leader.

"The Indian officials confided to their Chinese counterparts that they are fascinated by Li's sincerity, pragmatism and humour," it said.

Investigators are questioning the three tainted cricketers S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila before they are to appear in court. Their remand ends today. While Sreesanth is applying for bail today, the Delhi police are seeking an extension of the custody. The police also want custody of the main bookies arrested in the spot-fixing case to be extended. 

The Met predicts a good monsoon for this year. The monsoon is expected to hit Kerala on time. 

Premier Li Keqiang's visit to India, close on the heels of a stand-off over the incursion by Chinese troops in Ladakh, was an opportunity for both sides to calm troubled waters and this is evidently what they have tried to do. That's the editorial on the Hindu. Read

US President Barack Obama will hold talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping next month in California to discuss a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues, a presidential spokesman has said. Obama-Xi summit meeting would be held on June 7-8. It would Obama's first meeting with Xi since he became China's President in March. "Obama and Xi will hold in depth discussions on a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said yesterday.

Manorama Kotnis, a 92-year-old from Mumbai, has lost track of the number of Chinese leaders she's met and many of their names now escape her.

But she can remember personal meetings with three of China's most recent rulers; Li Peng, prime minister of China until 1998, his successor Zhu Rongji, and Hu Jintao who stepped down as president in March. Read

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who was inducted into the BJP's Parliamentary board in March this year, will attend his first board meeting in New Delhi today. According to television reports, the board is likely to clear the agenda for the two-party national executive slated to be held in Goa in the second week of June. The party will also review preparations for the 2014 elections. The parliamentary board meeting holds significance it would sign and seal the BJP''s policies and will also finally take a call on the prime ministerial face for 2014.

Modi tweets his Delhi visit: @narendramodi: In Delhi today. Had a wonderful meeting with Advaniji on arrival at Delhi. Now heading to meet Nitin Gadkariji. 

The Supreme Court today agreed to give an urgent hearing to a PIL seeking stay on all remaining matches of IPL in view of the spot-fixing scandal. A bench of justices B S Chauhan and Deepak Misra posted the matter for further hearing at 2 pm on the PIL which is also seeking setting up of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to look into the issues of match fixing and other alleged irregularities in the IPL.

Eighteen people -- three IPL players, four former players and 11 bookies and their assistants -- have been arrested since last Thursday in connection with the spot-fixing scandal that has rocked the cricketing world.

Chinese PM Li Keqiang speaking at FICCI says India and China have not shied away from addressing the boundary question. "We have the wisdom to find a fair and mutually acceptable solution. Peaceful co-existence between India and China will be of global significance. I am confident India and China have the ability to mitigate their trade imbalance. We have been able to put all issues on the table," says Li on his talks with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Yesterday, India and China decided to raise the level of discussions on proposals for a new border defence cooperation pact to that of special representatives (SR) after delegation-level talks led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Premier Li Keqiang. In making it an agenda for SR-level talks, New Delhi has done a course-correction. Initially, the foreign office was not as keen on a new pact in addition to the agreements of 1993 and 2005. Read more

Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, Li Keqiang, who is in India for a three-day state at the invitation of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, will visit all three business chambers in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Speaking to India Inc at FICCI, Li lists common features between the two countries, pointing to history, "our great civilisations, the principles of inclusiveness and mutual learning." He said China wants India take a larger role in international affairs. Li reads from notes, and says India and China have greater impact than the mere sum of parts. "If each person in our two countries buy one mobile each, the telecom market will explode," he said.

Li is likely to visit TCS in Mumbai and will meet relatives of Dr Kotnis while he is there in Maharashtra.

A powerful tornado blasted an area outside of Oklahoma City on Monday, ripping roofs off buildings, leveling homes and leaving a massive band of destruction in its wake. In the desperate seconds and minutes after the storm passed, the human toll was yet to even begin to be counted. Survivors emerged from shelters to see an apocalyptic vision -- the remnants of cars twisted and piled on each other to make what had been a parking lot look like a junk yard.

 

Bright orange flames roaring from a structure that was blazing even as rain continued to fall. At least one school was in the tornado's devastation zone in Moore, Oklahoma. Lance West, a reporter for CNN affiliate KFOR, says there were people pulling students from a classroom at an elementary school heavily damaged by the tornado. There were no immediate reports on the condition of the children.

 

Read the full report on CNN

BBC: Russian counter-terrorism agents have carried out a raid on a group planning a terrorist act in Moscow killing two suspects, officials say. The National Anti-Terrorism Committee said the group was located in a house in the town of Orekhovo-Zuyevo, east of the capital.

 

A third suspect was held in the raid. One agent was slightly hurt. The suspects are said to be Russian citizens who had undergone training in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. The committee statement said: "During an active special operation the bandits were cut off, but when they were called on to surrender they opened fire."

Ahead of the India-US Strategic Dialogue, a bi-partisan group of over a dozen influential lawmakers from the powerful Congressional India Caucus today called for better American co-operation and support to New Delhi on homeland security and counter-terrorism issues.        

 

Appreciating the co-operation between India and the US after the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attack, the group of lawmakers, led by the Congressional India Caucus Co-Chairs Joseph Crowley and Peter J Roskam, have called for expanding this to new areas of transportation security, training, technology cooperation and communication.        

 

There exists a strong bi-partisan support in this regard, the Congressmen said in a letter to Janet Napolitano, Homeland Security Secretary.

Tornadoes destroyed homes and tossed trees around like toothpicks as powerful storms ripped through Oklahoma and the Midwest on Sunday and Monday. And the destructive weather, which killed at least two people, isn't over. Baseball-sized hail, wind gusts and tornadoes could pummel parts of the central Plains and Midwest through Monday.

 

"Today could be potentially as dangerous as yesterday," CNN meteorologist Indra Petersons said Monday morning, pointing to a wide swath of the country spanning from Texas to Michigan. "We're talking about 500,000 square miles under the gun for severe weather." As they braced for more possible storms, residents in the hardest-hit areas were combing through rubble where their homes once stood.  

 

Read the full report on CNN

 

Image: Lightning from a tornadic thunderstorm passing over Clearwater, Kansas Photograph: Gene Blevins/Reuters

Real Madrid have cleared the way for Jos Mourinho to leave the club and take over at Chelsea after the club president, Florentino Prez, announced that Mourinho will leave the club at the end of the season by mutual agreement.

 

The Portuguese is likely to be replaced by another former Chelsea manager, Carlo Ancelotti. "We have decided to bring our relationship to an end at the end of the current season," Prez said of Mourinho. "The club and manager agree the timing is right to bring our relationship to an end.

 

"On behalf of the board of directors I would like to thank Jos Mourinho for all his hard work over the last three years. The team have improved in the last three years and we wish him all the best."

 

Image: Reuters

 

Read the full report on The Guardian

Three Brazilian tourists were killed when two hot air balloons collided in Turkey on Monday, the semiofficial Anadolu news agency reported, citing local officials. The accident, which also injured 22 people, occurred in Turkey's popular tourist destination of Cappadocia, the central Turkish region famous for its chimney rocks, cave houses, underground cities and balloon trips.

 

Abdurrahman Savas, governor of the central province of Nevsehir, said the balloon's envelope ripped open after colliding with the basket of another balloon. Ahmet Tetikci, a spokesman for the town of Ortahisar, told CNN one balloon struck the other balloon from the top, and the second balloon went down.

 

Read the full story on CNN

A man has shot four people dead in a bank in southern Israel before turning the gun on himself, police say. One person was injured, while a woman held hostage for about an hour was freed before the gunman killed himself.  

 

Police initially described the incident as a robbery, but later said the man may have entered the bank with the intention of shooting. Investigators think he was refused a settlement over a 6,000-shekel (1,070) overdraft, Israeli media said.

 

Phootgraph: An Israeli policeman stands guard at the scene of a shooting at a Bank Hapoalim branch in Beersheba   Photograph: Amir Cohen/Reuters

 

Read the full report on Reuters

UPA set for debacle in LS polls, NDA to gain: Survey

Maharashtra traders agree to call off LBT strike

Karzai arrives in India; to seek military aid

Border issue absent from Li's comments circulated in China

Mulayam Singh Yadav skips dinner with Premier Li

Guns are no solution, talks a better option: Sharif

Spot, match fixing to be criminal offences soon: Sibal

Saudi authorities refuse to accept new Indian passports

Memorial scam: UP Lokayukta says Rs 1,400 cr siphoned off

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