AAP convenor Arvind Kejriwal today said he was hurt that anti-graft crusader Anna Hazare doubted his integrity, and he was ready to face any probe into his party's alleged misuse of funds collected during the Jan Lokpal agitation.

"If Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde or Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit raise objections to the funds, it doesn't hurt and they can go for any probe, but when Annaji says such things, it hurts me personally," he said.

The AAP convenor said audit of all the accounts had been done after the agitation at Ramlila maidan ended.

"Even the income tax returns have been filed, but again the issue had been raised," he said, adding that he was nevertheless ready to face a probe in the matter.

BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi today said at a campaign rally that Congress changed its name and symbol many times, but never changed its "intentions".

"Just see how many times the Congress has changed its name... Congress changed its name, its symbol, its slogans, but their 'niyat' (intentions) has not changed," Modi said in Jabalpur ahead of November 25 Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls.

The 'C' in Congress stood for corruption, and its scams covered the entire alphabet, said Modi.

"Will you vote on the basis of performance or will you vote on community lines, family," Modi asked people further adding that he was sure that people will vote for the best interests of Madhya Pradesh. Praising Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for following the development agenda religiously, Modi said that the state was no longer counted among the Bimaru (sick) states.

Veteran actor Kamal Haasan says he has asked his elder daughter Shruti Haasan to be more vigilant after an unidentified stalker tried to enter her residence in Mumbai.        

The Delhi police has moved the Delhi high court seeking enhancement of life term to death for 2008 Batla House encounter case convict Shahzad Ahmed for killing a decorated police officer on duty.        

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif today pulled up the local administration and police for sectarian clashes in Rawalpindi and ordered a crackdown on those responsible for the violence that has claimed 11 lives.        

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar today promised the construction of a special facility to host the International Film Festival of India in the state,  next to the Miramar beach, by the next edition of the event.        

The NSCN-IM and the government's interlocutor will hold the next round of peace talks in Delhi on Tuesday to find a lasting solution to the vexed insurgency problem in Nagaland.    

Noted social activist Medha Patkar today claimed there are many "loopholes" in the Land Acquisition Act and political parties should listen to the voice of the "struggling people" if they want to resolve the conflicts over the issue of land.        

Narendra Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, referred to Mahatma Gandhi as Mohanlal, and not Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi at a rally in Rajasthan on Tuesday. 

Modi has already received a stack of middle school history textbooks earlier this month from the Youth Congress, which said it was a Diwali gift to help him "improve his knowledge" of the subject. Read more

And this is what DeshGujarat says: Now is this an issue? Das and Lal both words same in Gujarati

Details on the EC notice to Arvind Kejriwal.

The Election Commission today issued a notice to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal for an alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct by way of an appeal on grounds of religion to Muslim voters to support his party in the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls.

EC has given Kejriwal time till 11 A.M. on November 25 to file a reply as to why action should not be initiated against him for prima facie violation of the Model Code, which prohibits appeals to voters on grounds of religion.

"The Commission has prima facie observed that by distributing the pamphlet (seeking Muslim votes), you have violated the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct.

"You are hereby called upon to explain by 11 am on November 25 as to why action should not be initiated against you for the said violation," the notice states.

In case Kejriwal failed to submit his reply by the said deadline, appropriate action would be initiated against him without any further notice on the assumption that he has nothing to say, EC added.

The notice follows a complaint filed by Harish Khurana, son of former Delhi Chief Minister Madan Lal Khurana, who objected to pamphlets being distributed by Kejriwal containing appeals to Muslim voters for their backing.

The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has sought a response from the home ministry and the election commission to a public interest litigation inquiring into foreign donations to the Congress, the BJP and other parties. 

Rise from your grave O Nizamuddin Auliya of Delhi, your nation cries out. Read

After Narendra Modi received an Election Commission notice for using the term 'khooni panja' or bloody hand to target the Congress, another BJP leader, Vasundhara Raje has used the same words while campaigning in Rajasthan, where she is running for chief minister.

At an election meeting in Barmer on Tuesday, Vasundhara Raje waved at the gathering, with lotus flowers painted on her hands, and said, "Can you see my palms? Can you see the lotus? This hand, when it's with the Congress, is a khooni panja (bloody hand). But when you put lotuses on it, hundreds of people reach out to hold these hands." Read more

The Election Commission issues a notice to Arvind Kejriwal for violating the model code of conduct by appealing to Muslim voters on religious grounds.  Details awaited.

AAP joins BJP and Congress in this stellar feat. The Election Commission had pulled up Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi for having violated the model code of conduct with his "communal" remarks during poll speeches in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh last month.

The Election Commission also issued a notice to BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi over his khooni panja and zaalim haath remarks, holding that they prima facie violated the model code of conduct.

Heads up, Amitav Ghosh fans. @GhoshAmitav: It's official! The title of Book III of the 'Ibis Trilogy' is FLOOD OF FIRE. Estimated date of publication - spring 2015.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will address an election rally at Ramlila Maidan in Jaipur tomorrow.

Security has been beefed up in the city in view of the rally. The Prime Minister will address the public meeting at around 4 pm, he said. Assembly polls in Rajasthan are slated for December 1.

The Supreme Court accepted an  apology tendered by former chief of army staff General V.K. Singh on Wednesday.

It dropped the contempt proceedings as soon as it received the apology from General Singh.

The contempt notice was issued after the apex court took suo motu cognizance of General Singh accusing the court of malafide intent with regard to his date of birth.

"Once an apology is tendered from heart", and all that has been said by the general is withdrawn, "I don''t think that matter should be pursued even for a minute", said Justice RM Lodha, who headed the bench that initiated the contempt proceedings against General Singh.

The apex court also disallowed an attempt by a lawyer to raise the issues about what the general had said on other occasions.

"This is a matter exclusively between the court and the contemenor (General Singh)" and "surely we don''t want to enlarge the scope of the hearing", said Justice Lodha and Justice H.L. Gokhale

The Bombay High Court today refused to allow Congress party to celebrate its 128th foundation day at the Shivaji Park ground on December 28, saying there had been gross violations of noise pollution control rules and damage to the playground in the past.

"We are not inclined to allow the petitioner to hold the celebrations as there has been violation of rules by a political party and others in the past and also damage to the ground," said Justices S C Dharmadhikari and R Y Ganoo.

Earlier, another bench had allowed Shiv Sena to hold Dussehra rally at the same ground subject with certain conditions.

However, a committee appointed by the court to monitor noise pollution control rules submitted a report saying Sena followers had committed violations.

SEBI has told the Supreme Court that Sahara group has overvalued its properties and did not hand over all original title deeds of assets worth Rs 20,000 crore. Read more

Jolted by the brutal attack on a woman at an unguarded ATM here, Karnataka government today bluntly told banks to close down such kiosks unless they provide security.

As the shocking episode continued to grab media attention with the cctv footage of the gory act being beamed, Home Minister K J George held a high-level meeting to discuss measures to curb such incidents.

George said more than 600 of the total 2,580 ATMs in Bengaluru have no security guards.

"We want them to deploy security guards immediately or close down the things until suitable arrangements have been made.....that's why the Police Commissioner (Raghavendra Auradkar) will take appropriate action," he said.

Read: ATM victim paralysed, police confident of nabbing attacker

On the NYT, William Dalrymple's piece on Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai. Read

Vicky Roy's story is something that most of us would see only in the movies. The 25-year-old, who fled from his grandparents' home in Purulia, West Bengal at the age of 11 and boarded the train to Delhi, is today living his dream. See his work on Rediff.com.

Sharpening attack on BJP, its former ally JD(U) today assailed its Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi for decision to honour two party legislators accused in Muzaffarnagar communal riots and alleged he was trying to win elections by patronising communal clashes.

"The act (honouring two Uttar Pradesh MLAs Sangeet Som and Suresh Rana at Agra rally tomorrow) proves his love for communal riots," JD(U) General Secretary and state minister Shyam Rajak said in a statement.

"It's a clear message for party workers to trigger communal riots and get honoured by Narendra Modi," Rajak added.

CM Sheila Dikshit releases the party's manifesto for Delhi. Earlier today, the AAP released its manifesto for Delhi. Here's what it says.

A Spanish court issues international arrest warrant for China ex-president Jiang Zemin and three others over actions in Tibet. Read

Prithvi Shaw is back in the headlines. The 15-year-old batsman scored a marathon 546 as Rizvi Springfield piled on the runs in reply to St Francis DAssisis first innings total of 92 in the Harris Shield (Under-16) schools cricket tournament in Mumbai on Wednesday. Read

The first leg of Modi's last-lap carpet bombing of Madhya Pradesh to wipe out rising anti-incumbency was not a blitzkrieg if one goes by the turnouts at his rallies.

Just 7 weeks ago, there were 7 lakh people rooting for Modi at the party's mahakumbh in Bhopal.

On Monday, there were only 7,000 people listening to BJP's PM-in-waiting - a trickle in comparison to the mahakumbh flood. His rallies at Sagar, Chattarpur and Guna also received tepid response. Is the Modi charm fading in Madhya Pradesh? Read more

The man who attacked the bank manager in an ATM in Bengaluru is still at large. The girl's condition is reported to be stable.

Do you feel safe using an ATM after this incident?  Tell us.

Proposal to name the road after slain Mid Day journalist, J Dey up before the BMC's Works Committee tomorrow; final nod will be taken at the civic body's General Body meeting. Read more

When it comes to spying, our netas are habitual offenders. Vicky Nanjappa digs up past records of prying politicians that date back to the 1980s. Read

A 14-year-old girl in Mumbai allegedly committed suicide on Tuesday after being stalked on Facebook for days.

The girl's family accuses the police of not responding to their complaint against the alleged stalker, who has been identified and is now being questioned.

The boy had allegedly posted offensive content on the girl's account on the popular social networking site. Read more

Plans to build the Mumbai Trans Harbor Link, a 22-kilometer bridge that would connect South Mumbai to New Mumbai, the township to the city's east, could have an adverse effect on one of the financial capital's many migrant populations:  Flamingos. Read

The BJP today urged the Election Commission to derecognise Congress as a national party, accusing it and its Vice President Rahul Gandhi of repeatedly violating the Model Code of Conduct.

A party delegation met the Chief Election Commissioner and lodged a complaint against Rahul for allegedly equating BJP government in Chhattisgarh with "thieves and looters" at a rally on November 16.

The delegation led by BJP Vice President Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi also complained against him for alleging in a rally in Delhi on November 17 that BJP created social tension in Karnataka and Maharashtra.

Moneylife invoked Section 7 of the RTI Act to procure the safety audit report, after four young ad professionals of Pune died after their car plunged into Neera River. What it discovered was shocking. Read on

BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi today called upon the people in Madhya Pradesh to rout out Congress as it was "untrustworthy" and has always failed to fulfill its promises.

Addressing an election meeting at the Banganga Maidan in Shahdol, Modi expressed confidence that his party would win Assembly elections in all the four states.

"There is so much anger in the minds of the people against the Congress that it is bound to lose the Assembly elections in Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh," Modi said.

"I call the Congress untrustworthy because down the years, it has always made promises only to break them..it should be rooted out," he said.

Trying to woo tribal voters, Modi said, "Congress ruled the country for 50 years after independence but it was only the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee which set up a separate Ministry for tribals."

It has not given a single thought for the welfare of tribals, he alleged. The Gujarat Chief Minister also showered praise on his Madhya Pradesh counterpart Shivraj Singh Chouhan for a number of things including reduction in infant mortality rate and deaths during deliveries.

A Road Transport Corporation bus in Secunderabad has reportedly run over pedestrians, injuring seven people. The accident happened near the Secunderabad railway station in China Bazaar in southern part of the city at about 1 pm, reports NDTV.

Five of the seven injured were pedestrians while the other two were on a scooter. All the injured have been rushed to a hospital.

The driver of the bus has reportedly told the police that the brakes of the bus failed.

A very senior IPS officer in Delhi seems to like his drink a bit too much. The PMO is still hiccuping about news that this senior cop enjoys a tipple or two at work in his office. Lights are switched off, doors are shut and the officer downs a couple in the afternoons. This is followed by a brief nap and apparently he is so inebriated that he can barely walk upright or talk without slurring. The PM has been informed. Watch this space. 

The old guard in the Congress has been tittering about how Rahul Gandhi's speeches, not so much the content, but his facial expressions.

They believe that the MP and Congress vice president has a lot to learn and are still appalled at his rash behaviour at Ajay Maken's press conference where he said the tainted neta ordinance was rubbish. 

Our sources in Delhi tell us that the BJP is readying to take on the Congress in the backdrop of the explosive Amit Shah tapes by digging up a a 30-year-old story.

It's a written complaint made by the wife of a Union Minister in the Rajiv Gandhi government in 1986.

The woman asks that her husband should be probed for his liaison with a woman leader of the party. She asks that Rajiv Gandhi should free the husband from the party.

The BJP may not put its entire weight behind the issue for fear that it may boomerang on them. BJP spokespersons say they may drop hints and leave the rest to the media to speculate. If this affair comes into the public domain, Dr Manmohan Singh may find it difficult to find answers, as both the people involved are now in his council of ministers.

The cartoon on the Hindu today on the Anna-Kejriwal tiff. See

If you're in Delhi make time for this. Rare exhibits including Shah Jahan's recipe book, a route map from Delhi to Quandhar, a river front map of Agra, a bird's eye view of Red Fort are among other Mughal miniatures set to go on display here.

Titled 'Mughal India: Life, Art and Culture', an exhintion tracing the evolution of Mughal art and empire between the 16th and 19th centuries has been curated by Malini Roy for the British Library in London in March this year.

On from November 22 to December 31.

The frequent incidence of rape in India has created an adverse image of India abroad. US ambassador to India, Nancy Powell, on her maiden visit to Jharkhand, on Tuesday highlighted this saying how this was possibly a factor in American students not coming to India. Read more

Sachin Tendulkar is making the most of his retirement. Tendulkar, who announced his retirement from the international cricket, arrived in Mussoorie to spend a quiet vacation with his family today.

The legendary batsman, accompanied by wife Anjali, headed straight for the hill station soon after landing at Jollygrant Airport in a chartered plane, airport authority officials said.

He will be staying at family friend and business partner Sanjay Narang's hotel in Mussoorie. Tendulkar had spent a few days in Mussoorie last year also after announcing his retirement from the ODI cricket.

Philanthropist Diane Disney Miller, the daughter of Walt Disney, has died at the age of 79. Diane, the eldest and the only biological daughter of Lillian and Walt Disney, died from the injuries that she had suffered from a fall in September.

Yashodhara Raje, a BJP candidate in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, raised eyebrows when she declared a tea set worth Rs. 1.5 crore in her affidavit to the Election Commission earlier this month.Speaking on it for the first time, the Lok Sabha MP from Gwalior said there is nothing wrong with it; it's part of her royal past.  Read the full story here.

The Aam Admi Party releases it electoral manifesto for Delhi.
AAP member Yogendra Yadav says the party will bring the Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill on December 29, basically a commitment to introduce the bill in a month of coming to power. Details in a bit

Bangladesh's political impasse appears all set to worsen in the coming weeks unless the two main political parties, the Awami League and the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, demonstrate maturity of a high order. Read more

Right now, Narendra Modi is campaigning in Shadol, Madhya Pradesh. 

As the Centre moves to split Andhra Pradesh, the united-AP protagonists hope that President Pranab Mukherjee and the Supreme Court will intervene in the matter and the Bharatiya Janata Party will also play a role in stalling the formation of Telangana. Read more

Also see: Reddy's 36 reasons why Andhra Pradesh should not be bifurcated

And the opinion piece on the Hindu: Rationales for separation

In other reads: The real question in the debate over India's Sri Lanka policy isn't whether it is pragmatic or ethical. It goes, instead, to the heart of the ethics of the wars our country fights, and will fight in years to come. Read

Update on the gruesome attack on a woman in an ATM in Bengaluru. Doctors treating her say she has a skull fracture, brain injuries and the right side of her body is paralyzed.  A shard of bone is lodged in her brain.

The 38-year-old woman bank official was attacked with meat cleaver by a man in an ATM kiosk in the heart of the city, leaving her in a pool of blood with severe head injuries on Tuesday.

As the woman entered the unguarded kiosk at 7 am to withdraw money before going to work office for the morning shift, the assailant, carrying a shoulder bag, closely followed her inside and pulled down the shutter before threatening and attacking her, the police said.

The victim raised an alarm, but was threatened not to do so by the assailant who then took out what looked like a pistol from his bag, as seen in the CCTV footage and later shoved her down and hit her repeatedly with a machete as she resisted.

Read more on that story here.

A day for manifestos, it seems. The Rajasthan BJP has released its election manifesto in Jaipur.   

Eleven months post the gang rape of a paramedic student in a moving bus here, cries for safe city spaces continue to be heard with many citizens gearing up to vote for parties who have a substantial "plan of action" to address issues of women's security.

Days after the December 16 incident, the Centre as well as Delhi Government had announced a series of measures to enhance security of women.

Suggestions were made to make public spaces safe for women and create an "all-inclusive" movement to battle the issue. Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit had promised to bring a plan of action to ensure safety of women in Delhi.

Ahead of the release of the AAP's manifesto, Arvind Kejriwal says the Anna Hazare video has hurt him deeply.

He says, "If my guru questions my honesty it has hurt me deeply. I have said earlier that if any wrongdoing surfaces, I will not contest the elections. If the BJP or Congress questions my integrity, it doesn't bother me because that is expected of them. But if Anna Hazare questions my honesty and integrity, it disturbs me a lot. It worries me," he says.

On the manifesto, he says Yogendra Yadav has drafted it and if Anna's name has been used, it will be removed.

He says AAP wants to pass Anna's Lokpal, but the party has never used his name since he expressed his displeasure over it.

A day after the rift between Arvind Kejriwal and his mentor Anna Hazare came out in the open, the former RTI activist-turned-politician will finally release the election manifesto of his political outfit Aam Admi party on Wednesday.

Kejiwal, who was supposed to release the manifesto on a previous date, had to reschedule it after Anna expressed his displeasure that his name was being used by the former to campaign for Delhi elections.-- Zee News

The Supreme Court pulls up advocate Prashant Bhushan for making remarks against a bench hearing the coalgate scam, saying it was very "disturbing". "This is not something we are used to and the statement is speculative and has deeply disturbed us," the court tells Bhushan. 

Emirates' whopping order for 50 of the world's biggest jets should end doubts about the A380 that have tested the nerve of manufacturer Airbus, the airline's chief said - adding it was so sure of filling the planes it might have bought 10 more.

The record $23 billion A380 order at the Dubai Airshow turned round the fortunes of a recently slow-selling jet that is synonymous not only with Europe's industrial ambitions, but also the rapid growth of its largest customer. Read more

Senior AAP leaders say they see a political conspiracy to target Arvind Kejriwal in the emergence of 11-month-old videos just 15 days before Delhi votes.

"The BJP and Congress are frustrated about the growing popularity of AAP. They should merge to defeat AAP," said Kumar Vishwas, a senior party leader. We expect "more mud-slinging in the next 48 hours," said another AAP leader, Yogendra Yadav.

Earlier this week, the fractious relationship between Anna Hazare and Kejriwal appeared further frayed as the former discharged searing questions in letter to the AAP chief.

He asked Kejriwal to explain whether the funds they raised together in 2011 have been used for his Delhi campaign.

Anna has refused to back the party, or campaign for it.Speaking in Maharashtra yesterday, Anna made clear that Arvind Kejriwal, "is not an enemy."

He also endorsed Kejriwal as "a good man" and said he worried only that his name must not be misused. -- NDTV

Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) has turned to its old confidant Dawood Ibrahim seeking his aid to attack the BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, if the central intelligence agencies are to be believed.

This has been revealed in a secret note of the intelligence agencies on Modi's threat perception.The Gujarat chief minister is facing threats from various terror outfits also. -- Mail Today.

With voter-verified paper audit trail being used on a large-scale for the first time in the country in the Mizoram assembly polls, the Election Commission is leaving no stone unturned to make it easily accessible to voters.   

The VVPAT is a machine attached to EVMS which allows voters to verify that their vote has been cast in the way they wished.

As soon as the voter casts his vote, the VVPAT will show a small slip in a glass covered screen with the symbol and the candidate he has voted for in a form of a small ballot paper, which after 3 to 4 seconds would automatically fall into an attached closed box.

A New Jersey car dealership will pay monetary compensation to a Sikh man to settle a religious discrimination lawsuit, which alleged that he was not hired by the dealership because he maintains a beard.

Gurpreet Kherha had filed a discrimination charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and a lawsuit in 2009 against Tri-County Lexus, where he had applied for a position as a sales associate and was qualified for the job.

EEOC said after the car dealership requested Kherha to shave his beard, he refused to comply due to his religious beliefs. The dealership denied him the job, the agency charged.

Ahead of the Delhi polls, a video recording of Anna Hazare in a meeting in December 2012. The anti-corruption crusader is seen expressing his disappointment in the video where he says that more than Rs 3 crore that were given in his name during the Ramlila agitation were being misused, reports CNN-IBN. 

Arvind Kejirwal's Aam Aadmi Party has said today that the release of the video footage is political conspiracy.

"Why was the CD released after 11 months? With just 15 days to go for Delhi polls? This is a political conspiracy.  If we are found guilty of misuse of any funds Arvind Kejriwal has already said that AAP will not contest any elections," said AAP leader Sanjay Singh told CNN-IBN.    

NDTV reports: A woman, who was attacked with a machete in an ATM in Bangalore yesterday, has suffered a fracture in her skull and may be paralysed for months, say doctors. The woman had brain surgery last night.

No arrests have been made in the incident.

The attack on the woman, a manager at Corporation Bank, was captured on the CCTV camera installed inside the ATM.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be awarded the coveted Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for 2013 with an international jury headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh choosing her.

The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Indira Gandhi Memorial Trust which said that the award was being given to 59-year-old Merkel for her exemplary leadership in Europe and the world during the financial crisis and her stewardship of German economic growth.

The trust said the prize was being given to the German leader because of the work done by her for promotion of global economic stability, her commitment to universal peace and disarmament and her leadership role in strengthening productive and mutually beneficial relations with India and other developing countries.

India provides intrinsic and important link between the developing and the developed world, and maintains a distinct relationships with the United States and China on individual basis, said External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid.

"I think, that expectation of India is reflected in people supporting India for a permanent seat in the [United Nations] Security Seat whenever the UN is reformed," he said in an interview with the Institute of South Asian Studies (ISAS), a think tank of National University of Singapore.

"[This is] because they [people] think we provide intrinsic and important link between the developing world and the developed world," stressed Khurshid in the interview published today.

Pakistan today set up a special court to try former President Pervez Musharraf for high treason, the first time a civilian administration has sought to prosecute a military ruler. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif approved the names of three judges for the special court.

"The government has notified the tribunal," a senior official in the Prime Minister's Office said. The judges were chosen on the basis of seniority. Justice Faisal Arab from Sindh high court, the senior most, will head the court. Syed Tahira Safdar of Balochistan high court and Yawaar Ali of Lahore high court are the other judges, the official said.

The charges levelled against the 70-year-old Musharraf for imposing emergency and subverting the Constitution in 2007 could entail the death penalty or life imprisonment.

Snooping case: Father of woman tells NCW no probe needed
'Khhoni panja' remark used as coloquial metaphor: Modi
Woman brutally attacked with machete in Bengaluru ATM
Probe into distribution of funds among politicians by ISI
Nitish Kumar tapping BJP leaders' phones: Sushil Modi
Is Vasundhara Raje avoiding Modi?