US President Barack Obama today said the entire world is appalled by the brutal murder of American journalist James Foley by ISIL militants, and added that the Iraq-based terrorist group speaks for no religion and its ideology is bankrupt.

"Today, the entire world is appalled by the brutal murder of Jim Foley by the terrorist group, ISIL. Jim was a journalist, a son, a brother, and a friend. He reported from difficult and dangerous places, bearing witness to the lives of people a world away," Obama told reporters at Martha's Vineyard, where he is spending his two-week summer vacation.

Foley was taken hostage nearly two years ago in Syria, and he was courageously reporting at the time on the conflict there, he said.

"Jim was taken from us in an act of violence that shocked the conscience of the entire world. He was 40 years old. One of five siblings, the son of a mom and dad who worked tirelessly for his release," he added.

The report of forensic experts had confirmed that Telugu film actor V Uday Kiran had committed suicide, police said today. Forensic science laboratory's report, submitted to the Banjara Hills Police here today, says that "the death is due to hanging".

It also says that the actor had consumed alcohol before committing the suicide, said inspector P Murali Krishna. Vajapeyajula Uday Kiran,33, was found hanging from the ceiling of mini-gymnasium at his flat in Srinagar Colony here on the midnight of January 5 this year.

The Banjara Hills police had initially registered a case of suspicious death and had probed various angles. But following the conclusion of forensic experts, IPC sections regarding the suicide would be applied, the police officer said.

Uday Kiran started his career with the Telugu film Chitram, directed by Teja, in 2000. The film did very well at the box office. In 2001 he won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor in Telugu films for 'Nuvvu Nenu'.

Taking an aggressive stand on the incidents of heckling at functions attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Congress-ruled states, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan today said he would not attend tomorrow's function in Nagpur. Modi will perform bhumi-pujan of a Metro project in Nagpur, Maharashtra's second capital, tomorrow.

At a function in Solapur on Saturday, where the prime minister inaugurated four-laned National Highway Number 9, Chavan had to stop speaking midway as alleged BJP supporters started chanting Modi's name. "What happened at Solapur was unfortunate," Chavan told reporters after the state cabinet meeting today.

"We have taken a decision to skip the function in Nagpur tomorrow," he said. "The federal structure of the country has been undermined at the programmes in Congress-ruled states where the PM was present recently," he said.

Two unidentified militants were killed in a gunbattle with army in Kupwara district in Kashmir today, an army spokesman said. Two militants were killed in an army operation at Furkian Gali in Kupwara, he said.

The identity and group affliliation of the slain militants were being ascertained, the spokesman said. The army operation in the area was still on, he said.

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar today said that the erstwhile Congress-led state government had "fixed" former tourism minister Fransisco Miccky Pacheco in connection with the death of his female friend, Nadia Torrado.

"There is no base in the case. You were fixed in the case," Parrikar told Pacheco on the floor of the House while responding to his statement over the demands for grants of Home ministry.

Parrikar said that the case would be expedited after receiving a report from Central Forensic Science Laboratory, which is studying the CDs recovered during the investigation.

Earlier, on the floor of the House, Pacheco had claimed that the erstwhile Congress government in Goa had falsely implicated him in connection with the death of Nadia Torrado in 2010. The Goa Vikas Party legislator alleged that during the Congress rule a former Home Minister had framed him in the case.

Prime Minister David Cameron today described the apparent beheading of a US journalist by an Islamic State militant with a British accent as "shocking and depraved". 

The Supreme Court today questioned self-styled godman Nithyananda's reluctance to undergo potency test in a 2010 rape case and the "delay" by the police in conducting it, saying such examinations were necessary in view of growing number of rape cases.

A single family has dominated Indian politics since independence. One man's incompetence is about to bring it all to an end. Read Sadanand Dhume's argument on the end of the Congress.

After two Goa lawmakers termed Nigerians "cancer" and "wild animals", the state home ministry has referred to Africans as "Nigros" in an annexure submitted to the assembly. The annexure was submitted along with chief minister Manohar Parrikar's written reply tabled during the monsoon session of the assembly on Wednesday. It referred to an African national arrested in the beach village of Calangute May 8 as an "unknown African Nigro".

Just in: An IndiGo flight from Mumbai to Delhi with 147 passengers on board caught fire while landing at the Indira Gandhi International airport Terminal 1-D in New Delhi.

As per the initial reports, several passengers sustained injuries while they were being evacuated through the emergency exits of the plane.

However, the nature of injuries and the number of passengers injured are yet not clear. The injured have been taken to the nearby hospital.

'Modi as the PM of the country has to take everybody on board and deliver on good governance. That is his responsibility. In that, talking alone won't help, he's working.'

Commerce Minister Dr Nirmala Sitharaman tells Sheela Bhatt/ Rediff.com how the Modi government plans to change India. Read the interview.

Sharmila had been kept in judicial custody in a ward at JNIMS hospital for the last 14 years. Walking out on to the courtyard, she smiled, wiped away tears and said the fresh air was refreshing.

Speaking to reporters outside the hospital, she said she is happy to be free. She said she sought mass support and will not take any medical help, which means she will not be fed by a tube. 

Just in: Finally, after 14 years, Manipur's Irom Sharmila is released from the Jawaharlal Nehru Hospital. An emotional Sharmila wiped away tears and said her stand on AFSPA remains the same and she would continue her hunger strike. "I want an end to the draconian law and I want my demands to be met," she said. 

The phone call from President Barack Obama to Narendra Modi to congratulate him on his electoral victory "set the tone" for ending the chill in the US' relations with the Indian leader caused by a decade-long visa ban, America's interim Ambassador Kathleen Stephens said today.

"I arrived here in June shortly after the new government was formed. You know that President (Barack) Obama called up Prime Minister elect even before he was sworn in to congratulate him and extend an invitation and I think that set the tone," Stephens, US Ambassador Charge d'Affaires ad interim to India told reporters.

Manipur's Iron Lady, Irom Sharmila, expected to walk free in an hour.  A local court on Tuesday ordered the release of rights activist Irom Chanu Sharmila, under detention for attempting to commit suicide by fasting for nearly 14 years demanding withdrawal of a tough law that gives sweeping powers to armed forces from Manipur.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has cancelled his visit to Pakistan in the wake of the country's political situation.

During the visit which was scheduled to begin on August 22, the Sri Lankan president was scheduled to hold meetings with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, President Mamnoon Hussain and Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Sharif.

The Supreme Court expresses satisfaction on steps taken by the SIT for bringing back black money stashed away by Indians in foreign banks.

Hundreds of yoga practitioners gathered at the Ramamani Iyengar Memorial Yoga Institute in Pune to pay their respects to yogacharya B K S Iyengar, who passed into the ages on Wednesday. Rediff.com contributor Devidas Deshpande reports. Read

What the NYT says on India cancelling the foreign secretaries meeting with Pakistan...

"Canceling the meeting was an overreaction on India's part, especially when it could have served as an opportunity to discuss grievances and press for a solution.

Absent of such an airing, there is a tendency on both sides to escalate the tensions, with the Indian news media emphasizing Mr. Modi's willingness to take a tough stand and Pakistan asserting it was not"subservient' to India.

There will always be political excuses not to take risks. Both leaders have challenges at home, but Mr. Modi, who won a huge victory in the May election, is in the strongest political position, while Mr. Sharif is facing street protests led by politicians seeking his ouster.

What's needed is a meeting between the leaders to establish a continuing dialogue. Read the full piece here.

Even if aren't particularly fond of animals, this video of goats is a must see. Watch

Do you have the following work experience:
-- Minimum of 14 years in the IT industry with at least 7 years into building large scale system architectures.
-- An Engineering degree (preferably Computer Science), Masters in Computer Applications, Masters in Science in Mathematics/Statistics/Operation Research/Computer Science/IT from a leading university in India or abroad.

If it's an yes, the PM is looking for you.

The Narendra Modi-blessed government of India website is looking for  a Chief Technology Architect among others.

Try your luck here.

With the Narendra Modi Government according top priority to cleaning River Ganga, the Centre has set a target of three years to rejuvenate the polluted holy river.

Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti today said that efforts are being made to rejuvenate the river in three years, for which steps would be taken to address the problem of pollution from industries and sewage.

"We want to rejuvenate it in three years. In three years, we want to establish the Environmental flow (E-Flow). We want to resolve the issue of pollution on the banks of River Ganga and the pollution caused by industries and sewage," Bharti, who is also holding the Ganga Rejuvenation portfolio, said.

The anonymous watchdogs who outed BuzzFeed's Benny Johnson for serial plagiarism have set their sights on a far bigger target: Fareed Zakaria, the veteran foreign policy journalist who has claimed that a previous plagiarism incident was merely a "terrible mistake."

In Tuesday's report, @blippoblappo & @crushingbort cite 12 instances where Zakaria appears to have lifted passages wholesale from other authors. Their findings cast doubt on the three news outlets -- Time Magazine, CNN and The Washington Post -- which claimed to have conducted reviews of Zakaria's work and found the so-called "mistake" to be an isolated incident. Read more

President Barack Obama looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US next month, despite an online petition by a Sikh rights group seeking cancellation of his meeting at the White House, a top American official has said.

"The President, the Secretary (of State) looks forward to welcoming Prime Minister Modi to the US. We have said that consistently since his election, and that remains the case," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Marie Harf said.

When asked about an online petition by New York-based Sikh for Justice rights group seeking cancellation of Modi's meeting, she said: "I believe it's one of the 'We, the People' petitions. There were some fraud checks that indicated a high number of nomalous '" I don't know how to say this word."

Fareed Zakaria faces fresh plagiarism allegations. Read

Just in: Bail has been granted to all the nine accused, including DMK MP and Karunanidhi's daughter Kanimozhi and former telecom minister A Raja.

Earlier in the day, a Delhi court today granted bail to DMK supremo M Karunanidhi's wife Dayalu Ammal, who along with others including former Telecom Minister A Raja, was chargesheeted by the Enforcement Directorate in a 2G scam-related money laundering case.

Special CBI Judge O P Saini allowed the bail plea of 83-year-old Ammal on a personal bond of Rs five lakh with two sureties of the like amount.

On August 6, the court had deferred for today its order on the bail pleas of former Telecom Minister Raja, DMK MP Kanimozhi and others who were chargesheeted by the ED in this case.

ED had chargesheeted 19 accused -- 10 individuals and nine firms -- in the case saying that the transaction of Rs 200 crore, which was allegedly paid to DMK-run Kalaignar TV, was "not genuine" and it was a "bribe for grant of telecom licences to DB Group companies".

Tahir-ul-Qadri, the cleric who is leading protests along with Tehreek-e-Insaaf chief Imran Khan in Islamabad, has asked protesters to prevent law-makers present in parliament today from leaving the premises till Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif resigns. His deadline ends this evening. 

Rahul Gandhi addressing Congress Workers at the Talkatora Stadium on Rajiv Gandhi's 70th birth anniversary.

Rahul says, "In India people worship goddesses, address women as mother/sister, but the same people molest you in buses, suppress your voices. We see rapes being reported, laws being made, but we can't change society with just laws. Change happens with a change in mindset. We need to change the thought process/ people's perspective towards women in India. Only women can change the mindset of men. The Congress party organisation needs to be changed. Women should tell the people of India that women cannot be stopped. Go out on to the streets and empower yourselves. It is a fight to change the mindset."

Sonia Gandhi today accused the Narendra Modi government of showing "false dreams" to the people of India and urged her Congress party to stay the course even though the road to revival may be "longer" and the struggle, harder.

On the occasion of 70th birth anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi, the Congress President said empowering women was one of the two priorities which the Congress leader had pursued ever since he had become the General Secretary of the party.

He believed that no country can move forward by ignoring half of its population, she said. Listing a number of steps taken by Rajiv for women empowerment including reservation for them in panchayats and setting up of a national commission for women, the Congress chief said that the late Prime Minister also wanted that women should get representation in Parliament and Assemblies.

She, however, regretted that nobody took the issue forward after Rajiv's death. Unfortunately the bill could not get passed in Lok Sabha because of some political parties, she said, noting that the Congress-led UPA government took up the issue when it came to power in 2004 and ensured passage of the measure in Rajya Sabha.

"Today, we are in opposition but Congress will not withdraw from its commitment to women's reservation and we will build full pressure on the NDA government to pass the bill as soon as possible," she said

Read:The Making of Vladimir Putin by Strobe Talbot. Talbot was the deputy secretary of state in the Clinton administration.  

Whether chilling like David Cameron or tense like Gordon Brown, politicians can't win in August -- a usually explosive month. Read

At least 39 journalists are still missing worldwide, 20 missing in Syria. Read

Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeks report from Home Ministry on clashes along Assam-Nagaland border.

The mother of executed photo-journalist James Wright Foley, 40, has issued a statement after a video surfaced on Tuesday showing his horrific beheading by Islamic State of Iraq and Syria terrorists as revenge for US airstrikes in Iraq.

In a statement posted on the Free James Foley Facebook page, Diane Foley writes that she and husband John have never been prouder of our son Jim.  Read

Carrying out beheadings and other extreme acts is unthinkable for most people, but the right cocktail of factors can make anyone an extremist, says neuroscientist Prof Ian Robertson. Read

No meeting finalised between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Pak PM Nawaz Sharif in New York next month: Basit.

Basit: It is important to engage with all stakeholders. That is the bottomline. Back channel talks have not begun yet.

On Pakistan's reaction if Indian leaders would have met separatists in Balochistan: J&K is a different issue, Indian Diplomats keep meeting people of all hues, it's not a problem. 

Basit: We must engage with a comprehensive and meaningful dialogue, time has come to move forward.

On the meeting with separatists, Basit said this has been a long standing practice. "Both India and Pakistan agree that Jammu and Kashmir is a bilateral issue. As to where we go from here, we will see. This is a setback (the cancelled meet with foreign secretaries), but diplomacy is the art of possible. We will persevere in finding peaceful solution to our problems in line with our leadership vision on both sides of the border."

Basit: We need to look at these issues (Kashmir) dispassionately and in a more realistic manner. Kashmiris are legitimate stakeholders in finding a peaceful solution to the issue. We in Pakistan are very positive and will not allow distractions in normalising ties. This setback on talks should not disappoint us or discourage us to translate both our leaderships vision into reality. 

Basit says Pakistan appreciates PM Modi's words on Independence Day that SAARC nations need to work together to fight issues like poverty. He said Pakistan has resolved to cleanse their land from all militants within 8-10 weeks and Pak Army ops is underway in Waziristan. "The time has come for the two countries to move from confrontation to cooperation. Problems with India can be resolved through meaningful dialogue," he said.  "We need to work with mutual respect," said Basit.  

Pakistan envoy Abdul Basit is addressing a press conference in New Delhi. Basit says Pakistan is committed to ensuring peace in the south Asian region. Yesterday, Kashmiri separatist leaders meet Basit in New Delhi, in the backdrop of India cancelling talks with its nuclear-armed neighbour that prompted a strong reaction from the Pakistani media and the United States to term the move "unfortunate'.

Even as Islamabad is under siege as calls for Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to step down grow louder, the heavyweight Pakistan army has assured the PM that they will not stage a coup, but will have to share space with them.

Sharif is also likely to meet Tehreek-e-Insaaf chief Imran Khan shortly. Khan has claimed last year's polls were rigged.

Last night, thousands of protesters led by Khan and cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri reached Pakistan's Parliament in the heavily fortified 'Red Zone', which is Islamabad's diplomatic enclave.

Khan and Qadri have been demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif over allegations of vote rigging and corruption.

Somdev Devvarman loses to Ernesto Escobedo (USA) 3-6 2-6 in the US Open qualifiers.

Medha Patkar, perhaps the best-known 'civil society' activist of the country, who was contesting on an Aam Aadmi Party ticket there, lost her deposit. This was particularly striking because Maharashtra is her home state, Marathi is her mother tongue, and Mumbai a metropolis where people are likely to have read and known about her struggles.

So, what are the lessons to be learnt? Read

President Pranab Mukherjee pays homage today at the samadhi of former PM Rajiv Gandhi on his 70th birth anniversary. 

Update on the bail plea of the accused in the 2G case.

The judge, who was also scheduled to pass the verdict on the bail pleas of other nine accused today, said that the order was not ready yet.

The court said it would pass the order at 2.30 pm today.

On August 6, the court had deferred for today its order on the bail pleas of former Telecom Minister Raja, DMK MP Kanimozhi and others who were chargesheeted by the ED in this case. ED had chargesheeted 19 accused -- 10 individuals and nine firms -- in the case saying that the transaction of Rs 200 crore, which was allegedly paid to DMK-run Kalaignar TV, was "not genuine" and it was a "bribe for grant of telecom licences to DB Group companies".

Ammal was holding 60 per cent stake in Kalaignar TV while Kanimozhi and Sharad Kumar were holding 20 per cent stake each, the agency had said.

Anti-superstition campaigners will not only pay tribute to Narendra Dabholkar, their acclamation will also be an indictment of the government's utter failure to find his killers. Read

Diplomacy is not a limited overs cricket match. But by calling off the Foreign Secretary-level talks with Pakistan scheduled for August 25, the Narendra Modi government has behaved precisely as if it was that.

For more than a decade now leaders of the secessionist Hurriyat have regularly met Pakistani diplomats stationed in India, as well as visiting leaders starting with General Pervez Musharraf when he came for the Agra summit in 2001. Such meetings that demonstrate Pakistan's preference for the separatists are no doubt an irritant, but New Delhi's usual practice had been to register an objection and move on, not letting the issue derail the dialogue process.

Read more

Tributes pour in over yoga guru B K S Iyengar's demise.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar today expressed deep grief over the death of world-renowned yoga guru B K S Iyengar whom he hailed as "great lion of Indian yoga".

"My homage to the great lion of Indian yoga who passed away today. He made Pune the capital of yoga and spread it all over the world," Javdekar said in a condolence message. Iyengar passed away early this morning in Pune following illness.

96-year-old Iyengar had been ailing for some time and was admitted to a private hospital here a week back.

He was put on dialysis after his condition worsened two days back. He breathed his last at 3.15 am. Iyengar, honoured with Padma Vibhushan, is survived by a son and daughter.

DMK chief M Karunanidhi's wife Dayalu Ammal has been granted bail in the 2G case on a personal bond of Rs 5 lakh and surety.  Former Telecom Minister A Raja and DMK MP Kanimozhi's bail hearing being heard now. If they do not get bail, both face jail terms.

Former Telecom Minister A Raja and MP Kanimozhi could be arrested this afternoon if their request for bail is rejected in a Delhi court.  They are both attending the hearing. Both leaders are from the Tamil Nadu regional party, the DMK, and have been accused of money-laundering a bribe of nearly 200 crores in the telecom scam that was allegedly engineered by Mr Raja when he was union telecom minister in 2008. Read

Scores of anti-superstition activists today took out a protest march through streets in Pune paying tributes to slain rationalist Narendra Dabholkar and condemning police failure in tracking down his assassins even after a year.

Dabholkar was shot dead from a close range by unknown assailants on a city bridge when he was taking a morning walk on August 20 last year, jolting the progressive social movement which he endeavoured to promote through his NGO Anddhashraddha Nirmulan Samiti (ANS) in Maharashtra.

The ANS activists joined by other volunteers, which included veteran Bollywood actor Naseeruddin Shah, participated in the march that started from the Omkareshwar bridge, to the spot where Dabholkar fell to bullets. Although Maharashtra government passed the anti-superstition and black magic law last year for which Dabholkar campaigned all his life, the state police remained clueless about his murderers and the case was subsequently transferred to CBI for investigation on a High Court directive.

Keeping the focus firmly on the armed forces, the PM said that DRDO scientists should come out with innovative ideas to make life more comfortable for jawans.

Speaking at the Defence Research and Development Organisation Awards, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised the scientists and thanked them for their contribution to the nation. "Our scientists work very hard in the lab. They sacrifice a lot and that is when they come out with something in the interest of humankind." He added, "The big challenge is how we complete work before time. If the world will finish something in 2020 can we do it by 2018?"

Six organisations have called for an indefinite strike in Assam's Golaghat district on Wednesday. Fresh protests broke out in the area a day after security troops opened fire on innocent people in the area. 

Liberia has imposed a curfew and has quarantined an area of the capital Monrovia in a bid to halt the deadly Ebola outbreak Liberia already imposed a state of emergency earlier this month, but the number of deaths from the disease has continued to climb. Since the beginning of the year, 1,229 people have died of the virus, of which 466 were in Liberia. 

Just two days after India called off foreign secretary talks with Pakistan over their meeting with Kashmiri separatist leaders, Pakistan troops stoked the issue further when they open fired at Indian posts in Hamirpur area in Poonch along the Line of Control late Tuesday night. 

Even as the protests against him mount, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif refuses to step down. The anti-government protesters, headed by PTI chief Imran Khan and cleric Tahir-ul-Qadri, raided the red zone on Tuesday and have been camping there. They said they won't move till the Sharif steps down. The Pakistan Army has also been deployed to the area to ensure peace is maintained and the situation is kept under control

Thousands of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Pakistan Awami Tehreek protesters marched on Pakistan's parliament on Wednesday in a bid to depose Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. PTI chief Imran Khan said, "Nawaz Sharif, I will wait for your resignation until Wednesday evening and after that, we will enter inside the prime minister's house." Meanwhile, extra troops are being deployed to stop marchers entering the red zone. 

Yoga guru BKS Iyengar, founder of Iyengar Yoga, died at a hospital in Pune this morning. The nonagenarian had been admitted to the intensive care unit of a private hospital for poor heart function and difficulty in breathing on August 12. On Sunday, reports suggest, he was put on dialysis due to renal failure. Renowned internationally, he was awarded the Padma Shri in 1991, the Padma Bhushan in 2002 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2014. 

Militants in Gaza broke a temporary ceasefire by launching rockets at Israel on Tuesday, and Israel responded with airstrikes. The resumption of hostilities shut down talks in Cairo that seek a permanent truce between Israel and Hamas after more than a month of war. The two sides, though exhausted by the conflict, vowed to continue fighting. 

NYTimes reports: The tech company's former chief executive said new responsibilities, including ownership of the Los Angeles Clippers, have made him too busy to serve.

Read the full story here

Pakistan opposition leader Imran Khan and cleric Tahirul Qadri tonight marched with thousands of their supporters to enter the heavily fortified 'Red Zone', the capital's diplomatic and political enclave, as minor clashes took place between anti-government protesters and security personnel.

"Promise me, if something were to happen to me, you will take revenge from Nawaz Sharif," Khan said while addressing his supporters before starting his march towards the Red Zone that houses important government buildings including the Parliament House, Prime Minister House, President House, the Supreme Court besides embassies of various countries.

Unfazed by army deployment, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf chief and Qadri marched towards the Parliament demanding Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's resignation, putting the PML-N-led government on the backfoot.

The police baton-charged Qadri's Pakistan Awami Tehreek protesters as they neared the parliament.

Responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for `Clean India' initiative and focus on school sanitation, Chhattisgarh Government has decided to construct toilets in as many as 100 schools.

The Chhattisgarh Housing Board will execute the plan to build the lavatories.

"A project has been prepared by Chhattisgarh Housing Board to construct toilets in 100 Government schools in the State," CHB Commissioner Sanjay Shukla said.

CHB Chairman N Baijendra Kumar has directed officials to use funds from the board's Corporate Social Responsibility division to implement the project, he said.