Terming the Union Cabinet's decision to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh as "high-handed", Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu today accused Congress of resorting to "worst politics" and said Sonia Gandhi would remain as the "first culprit" in the issue.

Addressing a press conference at his residence late tonight, Chandrababu attacked the Centre over the manner in which it sought to go ahead with the bifurcation process without addressing the concerns of the people of coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema.

"It's a high-handed decision. It (Centre) has never engaged both sides in discussion to sort out the problems despite a strong people's agitation in Seemaandhra for the last 65 days. The Centre behaved as if it didn't care about the people," the former chief minister alleged.

Chandrababu recalled that senior BJP leader L K Advani too wanted justice to be done to both sides before going ahead with the division.

"The Congress took the decision to divide AP only to serve its political vested interests. It has never cared about the national interests or the people's interests. Congress has only contributed to enhancement of animosity between Telugu people," he said.

A Taliban suicide bomber rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into the headquarters of a pro-government militant commander in northwest Pakistan today, killing at least 15 people. 

A ship carrying African migrants to Europe caught fire and capsized today off the southern Italian island of Lampedusa, killing at least 114 people as hundreds were dumped into the sea, officials said. 

The Gun Park or Telangana Martyrs Memorial opposite the State Assembly in the heart of Hyderabad has turned into a massive celebration centre.   

The association president Ashok Babu, who is leading the 52-day strike by government employees, appealed to the people to make the strike successful. Don't allow even central government offices to work from tomorrow. 

Authorities in Pakistan's southern Sindh province today banned Skype, Whatsapp and Viber to facilitate security operations, triggering angry reactions from numerous users of the instant messaging applications. 

Mohammed Siddique reports: 

Mohammed Siddique reports: Thousands of supporters of Telangana have gathered at the Telangana Rashtra Samithi office at Banjara Hills to celebrate the decision of the Union Cabinet.   

News is just coming in that the Union Cabinet has approved the formation of GoM for creation of Telangana.   Hyderabad is set to be the joint capital for the two states.  

 

More details are awaited.

VHP leader Pravin Togadia today slammed BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi for his reported statement that constructing toilets should take precedence over building temples.        

 

"We are stunned and shocked to hear about the unnecessary mention of temples by Narendra Modi in a statement wherein he was talking about the need for better sanitation facilities in the country," the VHP international working president said in a statement.        

 

"We too believe in the need for better hygiene. But the way temples were dragged in the matter was uncalled for. "It is nothing short of an insult to the Hindu society," Togadia said.

A Delhi court today reserved its order on the plea for extension of interim bail by former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda, accused of abetting the suicide of a former airhostess.

Additional Sessions Judge MC Gupta reserved till tommorow his orders on the application moved by Kanda, who was granted interim bail till October 4.

Yet another attempt by Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to be disarmingly honest, it seems.  

Speaking about the convicted MPs ordinance, Rahul, who is in Ahmedabad said, "My mother told me the words I used was perhanps too strong. In hindsight, the language was strong, but the sentiment was honest. I was flabbergasted by the ordinance and had to express my opinion.

"If Rajiv Gandhi were alive today, the Congress would have been a wholly different party.

"The problem with the Congress is too much centralisation, too few people run this company," he says.

Rahul faced a huge amount of criticism and the normally reticent PM said he was surprised at the manner in which Rahul had trashed the ordinance.

The National Conference and the NCP had both criticised the manner in which Rahul had hijacked Ajay Maken's press conference and said the ordinance was nonsense and should be torn up and thrown away.

Rahul today said his comments have hurt allies. "My comments and sentiment are detrimental and have hurt the alliance with allies," he said.

The Election Commission is likely to announce dates for the Delhi Assembly elections, including four other states, on October 5.

Sources in the Delhi electoral office say the expected date for polling in the national capital may fall on November 25 or 26 as the last poll was held on November 29 in the year 2008.

Moments after the announcement of the date, the model code of conduct will be implemented in the city and all ceremonies of laying foundation stones or inaugurating projects will be stopped. Read more

Former Army Chief Gen VK Singh, who sparked a political storm by claiming that certain Jammu and Kashmir ministers received funds from the Army, today said the money was used only to bring harmony and stability in the state and not misused.

"Let me clarify categorically. No Army funds have been misused in Kashmir. They have been used in Kashmir to bring in harmony, to ensure stability in that state,to ensure youth get involved in activities which are beneficial for them and for the state and for development and infrastructure," he said.

Asked by reporters later if he had 'let out a secret' by publicy mentioning the funds, Singh said whatever he had stated had already been revealed by former US Ambassador to India David Mulford in 2011, which was reported in an English daily.

The West Bengal government today launched a scheme under which a monthly dole of Rs 1,500 will be provided to the unemployed youth in the state.

Inaugurating the 'Yuvashree' scheme, Banerjee said 1 lakh youth enrolled in employment exchanges would receive the amount every month in the first phase, while maintaining that it was not an unemployment allowance but "assistance" for them to meet their expenses.

Swarms of aggressive hornets, in their fall mating season, are inflicting a deadly toll in a central Chinese province.Hornets have killed 42 people and injured 1,675 people in three cities in Shaanxi province since July, according to the local government. Thirty-seven patients remain in critical or serious condition. Read

10 things you must know about Telangana. Read

United Andhra protestors break barricades outside 7 Racecourse Road where the Cabinet meeting is on. 

In a move bound to create a major political storm in Andhra Pradesh, the Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has reportedly signed the cabinet note okaying the formation of the Telangana state, reports Rediff.com's Mohammed Siddique from Hyderabad.

Shinde signed the papers just before the scheduled meeting of the Union Cabinet, which is on right now at the PM's residence at 7 RCR after he received the green signal from Congress President and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

There are indications that the note will come up for consideration by the Union Cabinet today.

Sources said that the note contained the proposal for the formation of the Telangana state comprising 10 districts with Hyderabad as its capital.

Earlier in the day, Shinde had dismissed reports that cabinet would discuss the Telangana note today.

Lalu Prasad Yadav's wife, Rabri Devi says they haven't received justice from the lower court and would appeal in the high court.

The RJD chief was today sentenced to five years in jail after he was convicted in the fodder scam on Monday.

At least 94 people, including a pregnant woman and two children, died when a boat capsized and caught fire off the island of Lampedusa, the Italian coast guard told CNN on Thursday. The coast guard has been able to save at least 151 people, and the rescue operation is ongoing. Read

RBI still addresses Dr Subramanian Swamy a minister though he has ceased being one 22 years ago! See

A look at how Beijing and New Delhi are spinning events across their border. Read

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been playing his cards close to his chest as he ponders over whom to appoint as successor to Gen Khalid Shameem Wynne retiring this week as Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee. Read

Aditya Thackeray, the 23-year-old president of the Shiv Sena's youth wing or Yuva Sena, has a plan for Mumbai.  He wants the city to have 24-hour cafes, restaurants and convenience stores for "some chilling time post work."

The young college graduate's proposal has been cleared by the city's municipal corporation, which is run by the Sena, which is headed by Thackeray's father, Uddhav. Read

Luscious read: A murdered president. A fleeing assassin. A dead man's vertebrae. A deathbed confession and a ghastly suicide. A family's disgrace. Conspiracy theories and courtroom battles. Secret burials and an unmarked grave. An aborted exhumation and a hopeful DNA analysis. Oh, and then there's the riddle of that missing mummy. Read

Why RJD and Lalu's prospects will be very, very, weak after his five-year jail term. Read 

The still stunning Padma Lakshmi teaches her daughter to ride a tricycle. See

Kiran Bedi tweets: Lalu's gets 5 yrs in jail with fine of 25 Lakhs. This is not enough. We must recover proceeds of crime too! Only then crime will stop paying.

Rubbishing reports that Sachin Tendulkar has been asked by the BCCI to retire after his 200th Test, the Board's Secretary Sanjay Patel today said it was the senior batsman's prerogative to decide on his future.

"That is is absolutely absurd and rubbish. Let me tell you, it will be the prerogative of Mr Sachin Tendulkar.

Board has not talked or asked him to resign (retire) and the Board is never going to do it because he is such a great player," BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel said.

In other news: Ahead of the RBI's central board meet, the central bank chief Raghuram Rajan today met Finance Minister P Chidambaram and is understood to have discussed economic issues.

"Our meeting was part of regular interaction that takes place between RBI and Finance Ministry," Rajan said after his hour long meeting with the Minister and Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram.

The Central Board of Reserve Bank will meet in Raipur tomorrow to discuss key economic and financial developments. The RBI board meets at least once every quarter.

Reactions coming in:

Congress: We are not in alliance since 2009. Of course his four MPs support the UPA govt but everyone is equal before the law.

BJP's Ravishankar Prasad: This judgment is a lesson - Those who commit corruption with impunity, the law will catch up with them.

Six other politicians and four IAS officers, among the convicted, were also sentenced to prison terms for fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37.7 crore from Chaibasa treasury when Prasad was heading the RJD government in the early 1990s.

Of the 45 convicts, the judge had delivered the sentence against eight of them on September 30 itself.

Earlier today, arguments on the quantum of sentence Prasad and 36 other convicts were completed in the special court here with CBI seeking maximum prison term of up to seven years for them.

The counsel of Yadav, Mishra, sitting JD(U) MP Jagdish Sharma, former legislator R K Rana and others had pleaded for lesser sentence.

Former Development Commissioner Phoolchand Singh, former Science and Technology Secretary Mahesh Prasad, former AHD Secretary Beck Juleus, former Income Tax Commissioner Adhip Chandra Choudhary, former Class I officers Gouri Shankar Prasad, Brajnandan Sharma, K M Prasad (all three were with the Animal Husbandry Department) and other officials, suppliers were among those found guilty.

A sitting MP from Jahanabad, Sharma also faces disqualification in the wake of a Supreme Court judgement that an MP or MLA would stand disqualified immediately if convicted by a court for crimes with punishment of two years or more and under some other laws even without jail sentence.

We have always known this: the kitsch was a facade. Lalu in power, the jesting monarch of Pataliputra, played it out to maximum effect. Read more.

Incidentally, Lalu Yadav has instructed his wife and former Bihar CM Rabri Devi not to make public statements on behalf of the party. On Monday, when Lalu was convicted, Rabri said if Sonia and Rahul can run the Congress so can she and Tejaswi. The RJD has now said it was a slip-of-tongue and she did not mean it.

RJD chief Lalu Prasad's private secretary during 1990-96 and his partner in crime in the fodder scam has continued to dodge the CBI for 17 years, even though he was seen reportedly "enjoying life" in Dehradun in Uttarakhand state.

Lalu Prasad is among the 45 people convicted Sep 30 in a fodder scam case by a special CBI court in Ranchi. His secretary Mukul Kishore Kapoor disappeared after the scam was unearthed. Read

Although Lalu has been convicted and sentenced, the fodder scam cases are by no means over. In all there were 54 cases, and nine more are yet to be decided. In all more than there were more than 600 accused, of whom more than 500 have been convicted so far.

When Bihar was bifurcated to form Jharkhand, 52 of the cases went to Ranchi, and only two remained with Bihar. 

All that you need to know on the fodder scam. Read

Desperate reality check needed: Raghuvansh Prasad of RJD tells CNN IBN that he has given Lalu a copy of the Gita to read in jail.  "All he has to do is read a few paras and he will get bail."

The RJD has reiterated (first reactions on the Monday, when Lalu was convicted) that there is no leadership crisis, Lalu remains the leader.

Lalu Yadav's RJD says the party will appeal in the higher court. Former Bihar CM Jagannath Mishra has been sentenced to four years in the case. The prosecution had pushed for a maximum sentence of seven years in the case.

Also read: Arun Jaitley on why Lalu's conviction is a defining moment in politics.

Lalu Prasad Yadav gets five years in the fodder scam along with a fine of Rs 25 lakh. He was convicted for criminal conspiracy, cheating and corruption in the case. The immediate fallout is that Lalu stands disqualified as a member of Parliament. Lalu was convicted on Monday in the multi-crore scam.

Also on Monday, Rajya Sabha member and Congress leader, Rasheed Masood, became the first MP to lose his seat after the recent Supreme Court judgement had removed the immunity for convicted lawmakers.

The CBI Court will announce the quantum of punishment for RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, any time now.  

Want to be an Asian superpower? Then an aircraft carrier, it seems, is the minimum requirement for joining this elite club. Remember, the Vikrant? Read

Lalu Prasad's lawyers today argued that he was too old and suffered from many diseases, to counter the CBI's plea for maximum punishment of seven years in jail for the Bihar politician in the fodder scam case. Read more

Holi parties are springing up from England to South Africa, luring big-hearted partygoers touting an intoxicating blend of Woodstock and Bollywood, the gatherings can draw more than 10,000 people. Read

Sushil Kumar Shinde would help the cause of Muslims a lot more if he spoke a little less. In February this year, the Union Home Minister declaimed on 'Hindu terror,' when the correct expression should have been Hindutva-linked terror. Read

An earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter Scale jolted Sikkim today, Regional Seismological Centre said. The quake struck at 11:43 am. 

 A report from Gangtok in Sikkim said some buildings had developed cracks and people were out on the streets.

Some schools announced holiday and a massive traffic jam was reported from there.

A report from Siliguri said the tremor was also felt in Siliguri and people came out of their houses in panic.

A 36-year-old Indian woman has died in a freak accident in Thailand's popular beach town of Pattaya, where she was celebrating her wedding anniversary, after her parasail failed to launch.

Police said Shilpi Agarwal, 36, and her husband had hired a speedboat to parasail yesterday, but it failed to launch. She fell into water and the boat's driver reversed to retrieve her but the boats rotating blade killed her, they said.

Police plans to charge the operator for causing death by careless action, which carries a maximum jail term of 10 years or a fine of USD 638.

The boat's insurance company will give the woman's family compensation of USD 6,383, they added.

Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi' fades away and a male voice says "Q Radio '" out and proud' before the sexually evocative lyrics of Bollywood number 'Choli Ke Peeche' (Under the Blouse) begin to blare out of the speakers.

Q Radio is India's first radio station tailored to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender audience and has been broadcasting around the clock from Bangalore since September. Read

President Pranab Mukherjee on being received by King Philippe of Belgium upon his arrival in Brussels. This is the first visit by an Indian head of state to Belgium, says the MEA. 

The BCCI today awarded the title sponsorship for all international series and the domestic tournaments in India for the year 2013-14 to Star Private Ltd. and ESPN at the base price of Rs 2 crore per fixture, considerably low compared to their previous deal with Airtel.

"The Marketing Committee of the BCCI met at the Cricket Centre, Mumbai, earlier today, to receive the bids made for Title Sponsorship of International Series and Domestic Tournaments to be played in India in the 2013-14 season," BCCI Secretary Sanjay Patel said in a statement.

"The Marketing Committee has awarded the Title Sponsorship Rights for all series to be played in India in the 2013-14 season to Star India Pvt. Ltd and ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd, at a fee of Rs 2 crore per international match," he added.

Patel said bidders had the option of "bidding for either the series between India and Australia, or the series between India and the West Indies, or both."

There are two international series currently scheduled during the period -- the seven-match ODI series and a T20 game between India and Australia, followed by two Tests and three ODIs against the West Indies.

Just in: The Pakistan Army denies as baseless, reports of infiltration attempts from across the LoC into Jammu and Kashmir.

 The army has launched a major anti-infiltration operation against militants and suspected Pakistan special troops holed up in an area in Keran sector along Line of Control in which five Indian soldiers have been injured. Read

In this country of 1.2 billion, there may be a few Indians who might dislike Muslims and wish them ill. But the vast majority of Indians remain secular, no matter how grave Hindu-Muslim tensions,' says Amberish Kathewad Diwanji. Read

Also read: The last surviving stretch of German autobahn built under Hitler is set to disappear, almost 80 years after it was first constructed.

A Bhubaneshwar court has sentenced all eight convicts to a life sentence in the murder of Hindu seer Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four others in Kandhamal district in 2008.

Unidentified gunmen shot dead Saraswati and four others, including a woman, at his ashram at Jalespeta in Tumudibandh during Janmashtami celebrations on August 23, 2008, triggering widespread ethno-communal riots leaving at least 38 dead and thousands homeless.

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today began his two-day Gujarat tour as part of the Lok Sabha election preparations, by visiting Mahatma Gandhi's Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad.

Rahul spent almost half-an-hour in the ashram, from where the Mahatma had spearheaded the non-violent freedom movement of the country till he left for Dandi yatra.

"Its always an honour for me to come to the ashram. I am a follower of Gandhi and his ideas. Thank you," Rahul wrote in the visitor's book at the ashram.

Rahul will interact with party office-bearers in Ahmedabad and Rajkot during his visit to the state, guiding them how to take on the BJP led by Modi government in his home turf in the next general elections.

Winston Churchill wanted chemical weapons to be used against "troublesome" tribes in north India during British colonial rule to suppress them, a noted historian has claimed citing an official memo.

Giles Milton, who has written a number of non-fiction historical books, has illustrated Churchill's commitment to the use of chemical weapons, explaining that he had supported their use against rebellious Indian tribes in early 20th century when he was not the Prime Minister.

"What I found really shocking was when he (Churchill) wrote this internal memo to the India Office, along the lines of 'we should use it against the tribes on the North West front. They're really troublesome, let's gas them," Giles was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

"There's a line in the memo that says, 'I really don't understand this squeamishness about poison gas'. Today that reads pretty badly," Milton said.

If you can't go to Taj Mahal, Taj Mahal will come to you, virtually.

The Archaeological Survey of India is signing a memorandum of understanding with Google tomorrow that will allow the Internet services company to host panoramic images of 100 Indian monuments, including the Taj and the Red Fort.

The tagline for the project is: "Taking heritage online.' The idea is to take the monument as close as possible to people who cannot visit it. Read

A Delhi court today reserved its order on framing of charges in the 2008 cash-for-vote-scam involving former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh and two BJP MPs. Special Judge Narottam Kaushal reserved for October 19 order on framing of charges.

The government, engulfed in controversy over a botched attempt to protect convicted MPs, claims that both the BJP and the Left, supported its move till as recently as August, and offers the minutes of two different meetings of political parties as proof of its allegations. Read

Besharam is so unbelievably sloppy and senseless, not even the best actors in the business can redeem it no matter how hard they try. Sukanya Verma pronounces her judgement on the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer. Read before you go

A suspected Pakistani militant of Lashkar-e-Toiba, who engaged the Police and Central Reserve Police in a fierce gun battle after getting trapped in Ahmednagar, in the periphery of Srinagar city, has escaped from the cordoned area. Read more

Some good news: The Goa government has towed away the casino ship of a firm belonging to former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda, accused of abetting suicide of an ex-airhostess, for failing to pay Rs 12 crore fees to authorities.

Senior IPS officer Ranjit Sahay, who was hospitalised with severe burns after he allegedly attempted suicide at his residence, on Thursday succumbed to his injuries in Mumbai. Read

China has come out with a code of conduct for Chinese travellers which includes advice about not picking their noses in public. The government has issued a 64-page handbook to stop Chinese tourists from damaging the country's image abroad. Read

The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) turned one on Wednesday. But the question everyone seems to be asking is, will the party provide an alternative to the two national parties in Delhi and will the support it has been getting translate into votes?

Political pundits agree that AAP has been able to make its presence felt in the country. Read

In a startling disclosure, the Juvenile Justice Board in it's order on the Nirbhaya case has made it clear that in their testimonies, neither Nirbhaya nor her male friend singled out the juvenile as the person who had brutally assaulted her with a rod, resulting in an injury that led to her death within a fortnight last December. Read

The shutdown of the American federal government has not spared Mahatma Gandhi. But the shutdown has been ideologically undiscriminating and the late Deendayal Upadhyaya's memory also suffered in the Republican crusade against President Barack Obama's healthcare law. Read

The political impasse in the US Congress over budget showed no signs of easing as the first meeting between President Barack Obama and lawmakers since a budget deadlock shut wide swaths of the federal government failed to yield any result.

Obama told lawmakers that he is not going to negotiate over the need for Congress to act to reopen the government or to raise the debt limit to pay the bills Congress has already incurred, the White House said after the meeting.

Also read: Shutdown 'extremely damaging' to U.S. intelligence operations

A VP storms a roadshow, rolls up his sleeves, calls his bosses' blueprint "complete nonsense' and declares it should be torn up and thrown away. If the VP works for a company, chances are the pink slip will hit him before he returns to his cubicle. Read

There was heavy exchange of fire through the night between terrorists and security forces in the outskirts of Srinagar on Wednesday, hours after the army revealed that its troops had been engaged in an encounter with Pakistani forces since a massive infiltration attempt by at least 30 terrorists last week. Read

From the uncrowned king of Bihar to "qaidi no 3312" at Birsa Munda Central Jail, it has been a steep descent for RJD chief Lalu Prasad.

More worrying for him is the sentencing on Thursday as the CBI is seeking a minimum of three to a maximum of seven years imprisonment for the former CM held guilty in the animal husbandry fodder scam case.

Also the conviction comes when the ordinance protecting convicted netas has been thrown out, and there will be no trappings for them in prison. Read

Just In: Suicide bomber kills 12 people in northwestern Pakistan.

Rahul power: Cabinet withdraws ordinance, bill on lawmakers

Keran: 5 troops injured as anti-infiltration op reaches 9th day

ADB lowers India's growth projection for 2013-14 to 4.7%

Trinidad thrash Chennai, to face Mumbai in semis