The bhoomi pooja for the memorial of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will be done at the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 19, 2015, it was announced today.

Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has submitted his resignation as a member of Goa Legislative Assembly from the Panaji constituency following his election to Rajya Sabha from Lucknow. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's wife Jashodaben has filed an RTI application asking for an explanation of the sort of security that she gets from the government.

United States Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel is set to resign from his post and will be leaving after less than two years at the helm of the Defence Department.

The Shiv Sena has said that it will oppose the Insurance Bill which is set to be tabled in Parliament, if some amendments are not made. The BJP of course is confident of passing the bills. It has decided to stand firm on passing the bill. Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley already hinted that government is ready with reforms.

China is building an island in the South China Sea that could accommodate the country's first airstrip in bitterly contested waters, according to satellite images.

Pakistan NSA Sartaj Aziz on the likelihood of the India-Pakistan meet in SAARC: No plans yet, if she (Sushma Swaraj) requests then I will. No meeting meeting Narendra Modi and PM Nawaz Sharif planned yet."

Also read: Stage set for Modi-Sharif meet in Kathmandu

Shobhaa De tweets: Sonia Gandhi in Bandra to meet ailing Dilip Kumar. True?

Salman Khan exempted from appearance in a Mumbai sessions court today in the 2002 hit-and-run case after his lawyer pleaded that he was busy shooting for a film.

A group of journalists today moved the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the Centre and Haryana for ordering a judicial probe into alleged assault on them and other media persons during recent police operation to arrest self-styled 'godman' Rampal at Barwala in Hisar.

In the plea, which is likely to be taken up for hearing during the week, they have also sought punishment for "erring police officials" for resorting to 'lathi charge' without caution and care".

It alleged there was an increasing tendency to "muzzle the press" by the government authorities and sought "appropriate compensation" for the affected journalists and framing of guidelines to ensure "free and fair functioning of the media".

A powerful bomb was found in the compartment of a local train at a railway station near Guwahati today, a day after a blast killed two people and injured over 25 others in Dibrugarh.

The bomb found on a train in Kamrup district of Assam was defused by security officials. Sources say 7 kilos of explosives were recovered from the toilet of the train. Alert security personnel spotted an unclaimed plastic bag covered with a towel and wires sticking out from it.

The blast comes ahead of the PM's visit to the northeast beginning November 29. 

Omar Abdullah tweets: Very sorry to hear about the tragic passing of Murli Deora. May his soul rest in peace. My heart felt condolences to my friend @milinddeora. 

Afghanistan's intelligence agency today blamed the Haqqani network, a hardline militant group aligned with the Taliban, for the suicide blast at a
volleyball game that killed 57 people.

Nisha Biswal,US Assistant Secy of State for South & Central Asian Affairs says of President Obama's visit to India in January: "He is very much looking forward to it."

India has invited United States President Barack Obama to be the chief guest at the 2015 Republic Day celebrations, an invitation which has been accepted by the American leader.

"This Republic Day, we hope to have a friend over... Invited President Obama to be the 1st US President to grace the occasion as Chief Guest," Modi tweeted.

Confirming Obama's acceptance, the press secretary on the president's travel in a statement said, "At the invitation of Prime Minister Modi, the president will travel to India in January 2015 to participate in the Indian Republic Day celebration in New Delhi as the chief guest."

CPI(M) MP, Sitaram Yechury, walks alone nowadays especially after the politburo meeting where differences between him and Prakash Karat surfaced. Inside Parliament, several Congress, JDU and SP leaders used to stand around talking, not just politics but also personal conversation. Yechury stands alone now.

Priyanka Vadra and her husband Robert at the funeral of Murli Deora  Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi are also likely to attend the funeral of the veteran party leader and former union minister.  

And while on Smriti Irani, we hear that the HRD minister has kept foreign minister Sushma Swaraj informed of her meeting with the German ambassador over scrapping German language in Kendriya Vidyalayas. It's simply protocol that a junior minister has to follow.

Buzz heard at the Central Hall of Parliament is that Irani is blaming the ongoing furore over Sanskritisation of the syllabus on the UPA regime, which scrapped Sanskrit and included German. Irani is likely to make a statement in Parliament. 

There was a time when Maulana Azad and S Radhakrishnan were education policy makers  and see the situation today: AAP's Yogendra Yadav on Smriti Irani. The HRD minister is in the news for consulting a astrologer.  

The Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment, which is part of the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, is famous for its role in the discovery of the Higgs Boson a.k.a the god particle. It is expected to start collecting data once again around March 2015. But this time, it will include another member from our environs -- IIT-Madras. Read

Suspended Trinamool Congress MP Kunal Ghosh today said that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was the "biggest beneficiary" in the Saradha ponzi scheme scam and termed her a "coward".

"Mamata Banerjee is holding party workers' meetings to save herself," Ghosh charged.

Speaking outside Bankshall Court after being brought from Presidency Correctional Home, he said, "She is a coward. She should be made to sit in front of me and questioned".

Ghosh reiterating his demand for a joint questioning by the CBI in the scam.

The suspended MP was brought to the court for production in connection with a case of salary default in Channel 10 news channel, where he was CEO. He is an accused in the multi-crore Saradha scam case and was arrested in November 2013. 

NCP MP Supriya Sule crossed the floor to the treasury benches and greeted defence minister Manohar Parrikar and every union minister as well. Sule is the daughter of NCP chief Sharad Pawar and a well-known face amongst the BJP MPs. Sule also introduced MP Sushmita Dev daughter of former Union Minister Santosh Mohan Dev to BJP MPs.  

Union cabinet minister for Food Processing, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, seemed a little uneasy in Parliament today and it was noticed since she's always cheerful and chatty.

Her body language suggested that all may not be well between the BJP and the Shiromani Akali Dal.

After the Lok Sabha was adjourned, she went to Central Hall where all Akali Dal MPs converged on her. The conversation, it is believed, was shop talk -- specifically internal politics of the Akali Dal.

On the first day of the winter session of Parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi went up to the Opposition benches to greet the leaders of various political parties. Nothing unusual in this, it's customary etiquette in Parliament.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi were absent in Parliament today, which meant the front row was empty.  And it probably saved Sonia the discomfiture of being greeted by the PM.

Modi stood for a few moments to greet Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, who celebrated his 76th birthday on Saturday. Mulayam hugged Modi and thanked him for his wishes.

Modi then walked past the seats of LK Advani and Dr Murli Manohar Joshi.

Union Cabinet Secretary, Ajit Seth, is all set to get a year's extension. 

There is a possibility of a meeting between Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and PM Narendra Modi when they travel to Nepal this week to attend the SAARC Summit.

Citing an official, the Express Tribune reported that the two premiers may interact on the sidelines of the Summit. "The two prime ministers will come face-to-face at the retreat ceremony in Kathmandu," the official said.

As part of a tradition, the heads of states and governments attending the SAARC Summit are taken for a retreat after the inauguration of the conference in order to create a conducive environment for bilateral meetings.

In a nightmarish experience caught on camera, five women sitting in a car were stalked and harassed by unidentified men in the heart of Bengaluru city with their screams for help going unnoticed.

The incident happened on Saturday around 11:30 pm when the women on a weekend outing stopped their car near an ice cream parlour on M.G. Road and found to their shock unidentified men trying to open the doors of their vehicle.

As they were seated inside waiting for their driver who had gone to pick up ice cream for them, the men stared at them, stood around the vehicle and tried to open the doors, according to the complaint lodged by one of the victims.

Police said according to the complaint, first, three men were seen staring at them and they were later joined by two others who tried to open the car door. They even tried to open the door with an object on getting to know that the door was locked, the complaint said.

As the women started raising an alarm by repeatedly screaming for help and honking, the men fled from the spot, police said. The women even managed to take video of the men, which they have submitted to the police.

The grainy video shows the men standing around and the women crying for help persistently.

DCP(Central) Sandeep Patil said their husbands were in a different car near the place where the incident happened.

City police are on the lookout for culprits. "....certain sections have been invoked like stalking, criminal intimidation and outraging the modesty of the women. Let the investigation take place. Let us detect the case. Let us nab the culprits," City Police Commissioner M N Reddi said.

Ajit Doval has been appointed as the Special Representative of India to conduct boundary negotiations and strategic consultations with China. Doval, who is the National Security Adviser, has been appointed as the Special Representative of India to conduct boundary negotiations and strategic consultations with China. This arrangement will be part of NSA's overall assignment. 

SC to BCCI on the spot-fixing scandal: IPL has become a mutual benefit society.  If you allow such things to happen, then you are killing the game of cricket. Benefit of doubt should go in favour of the game rather than in favour of any individual.

As many as 3,441 Kashmiri Pandit voters will exercise their franchise through ballot papers in the first phase of Jammu and Kashmir Assembly polls tomorrow. Five Assembly segments in Kashmir Valley will go to polls in the first phase of elections on November 25 along with nine other constituencies of Jammu and Ladakh regions.

A total of 10,502,50 voters, including 5,49,698 men and 5,00,539 women, will decide the fate of 12 sitting MLAs, including seven ministers among 123 candidates at 1,900 polling stations in 15 constituencies tomorrow.

The Supreme Court on Monday slammed the Board of Control for Cricket in India over the spot-fixing scandal in the sixth edition of the Indian Premier League and also questioned the return of Narayanswami Srinivasan as the BCCI president.

"BCCI must uphold glory of the game. If you allow these things to happen, then you are killing the game of cricket, SC to BCCI on IPL spot fixing scandal," the Supreme Court said as it took up the IPL betting report filed by the Justice Mudgal Committee.

NSA Ajit Doval appointed Special Representative to conduct boundary negotiations with China. 

Politicians cutting across party lines in Maharashtra paid rich tributes to veteran Congress leader Murli Deora, who died here this morning.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who is in Nagpur, described Deora as one of the tallest leaders from the state. "He leaves behind a rich legacy of political and social work," Fadnavis said.

Former Congress MP Priya Dutt said Deora was a mentor to her in politics after her father Sunil Dutt passed away.

NCP leader Praful Patel described Deora as a leader who groomed young talent.

Maharashtra Rural Development Minister Pankaja Munde said she was sad and shocked to learn about Deora's demise. "Since I was small, I have seen his dedication to his work and his party," she said.

BJP MP Poonam Mahajan said the senior Congress leader was a family friend as her father Pramod Mahajan and Deora were colleagues in Parliament.

Also read: Murli Deora: The politician who was loved by all

In just the same way as Narendra Modi used Mani Shankar Aiyar's chaiwalla taunt to his benefit and launched his iconic chai pe charcha debates, the Aam Aadmi Party has turned the ridicule heaped at Arvind Kejriwal and his muffler to a winner of a campaign.

Last week, social networking sites were trending with "mufflerman" as party volunteers put out innumerable posters (see picture) and slogans, hailing the return of the "humble superhero".

Soon enough mufflerman began trending on Twitter.

One poster Kejriwal to PM Narendra Modi, asking people to choose between the 'blufferman' and the 'mufflerman'. The party has already started an aggressive campaign on radio and outdoor media much before its rivals and without even waiting for the announcement of the poll date.

This is what the organisers of the Times of India Litfest put out while withdrawing their invite to Tarun Tejpal.

"We have regretfully withdrawn our invitation to Tarun Tejpal to participate in The Times Of India Litfest, Dec 5-7,2014, While there was never a question of a subjudice case being discussed at any of its forums, the reaction to his inclusion suggests that our litfest was in danger of being overwhelmed by an extraneous issue. A great deal of thought and effort went into putting together intellectually stimulating topics and panelists, and we did not want any distractions from either. All these years we have managed to be about discussion not noise, and we'd like to keep it that way for the sake of our acclaimed participants and engaged audiences."

The deadly land policies planned by Modi's advisers and the links to Ukraine and Honduras. Read

On the first day of the winter session of Parliament, MPs trooping out of the adjourned houses and into the famous canteen were welcomed with a new menu card on the tables. The card which looks staid (see picture) may have got a new look and feel, but the price remain cheap -- Upma for Rs 8, Mosambi juice for Rs 14 and a chicken biryan for just Rs 51. Waiters have been told to serve hot meals and stick to the menu. Bon Appetit.

Senior journalist Bachi Karkaria tweeted: We have asked Tarun Tejpal to drop out of the TOI Litfest. We've got a great program & we don't want it hijacked by extraneous noise.

Karkaria, senior journalist, writer, former editor, is also a director at the Litfest.

The organisers of the Times of India Litfest have withdrawn the invitation to Tarun Tejpal to appear in a panel titled, The Tyranny of Power.

It would have been Tejpal's first public appearance since the scandal broke last year. Tejpal, former Tehelka editor, has been accused of raping a junior colleague at the magazine's annual confab in Goa last year. Tejpal is now out on bail. 

The government can breathe easy with Shiv Sena on Sunday announcing its support for the NDA agenda during the winter session of Parliament beginning on Monday, even as several opposition parties braced to scuttle the insurance bill and corner the government on black money.

Making his party's stand clear ahead of the crucial session where government has lined up key reform bills, Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut said, "Differences in Maharashtra will have no bearing on Sena's relations with BJP at the Centre." Read more

It used to be India's urban showpiece. Today, its sceptre and crown have fallen down and, in a phase of cynical destruction masquerading as "development', Mumbai has become a metaphor for urban blight. Read

Oz skipper Michael Clarke tweets this picture: Proud to partner with Swiss timepiece brand @Hublot, Official Timekeeper for the Cricket World Cup 2015. Honoured to join the @Hublot family.

Clarke has been named in Australia's 12-man squad to face India in the first Test in Brisbane subject to a fitness test.

If you're in Mumbai, the area to avoid today is Peddar Road. Media circus near Murli Deora's home. The senior Congress leader and former union minister passed away today. His funeral is at 3 pm today. 

Almost a year to the day after Tarun Tejpal, one of India's most-prominent journalists, was accused of sexually assaulting one of his reporters, The Times of India has invited him to appear at their literature festival on a panel titled The Tyranny of Power.

Tejpal, the former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine, was arrested in December 2013 and charged with rape in February. He denies wrongdoing and is currently on bail awaiting trial.  Read

Smriti Irani reacts to her visit to an astrologer: "What I do in my personal life doesn't come under the responsibility of the media. I appreciate your effort to keep me in the headlines. I realize I contribute to your TRPs and I am glad I could be of help."

Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani was told by a Rajasthan-based astrologer yesterday, that she will be the President of India one day.

The minister was accompanied by her husband Zubin Irani. She met the astrologer -- Nathuram Vyas -- in Bhilwara and is believed to have spent four hours asking him about her future.

While the opposition is yet to react to this visit, Irani, has opened herself to attack, in the wake of being accused of pandering to right-wing groups by calling for a revision of India's education system.


This is what a pro-AAP group tweeted: @smritiirani going to an astrologer is deliberate. WHen MHRD goes to an astrologer, expect some astrology courses in Universities soon.

India must lift its game for SAARC's rescue and resuscitation. It must lead by example, building trust with its neighbours, showing solidarity, and forging with them a habit of cooperation. Read more

It is rare that a single bilateral invitation conveys as much as Prime Minister Modi's invitation to U.S. President Obama to be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade does.

To begin with, the invitation corrects an anomaly, that has meant that America is the only world power never to have had a dignitary grace the occasion that Russian and Soviet leaders, as well as leaders of France, the U.K., Japan and China have, over 64 years.

Secondly, the invitation signals that the India-U.S. relationship is now stepping out of the shadows on all aspects of bilateral relations: economic, political and military. Read more

India must lift its game for SAARC's rescue and resuscitation. It must lead by example, building trust with its neighbours, showing solidarity, and forging with them a habit of cooperation. Read more

A 12-year-old boy has been shot dead by police in the US city of Cleveland, after brandishing what turned out to be a fake gun in a playground.

Police say an officer fired two shots at the boy after he failed to obey an order to raise his hands.

A caller reported the boy to police for scaring people with a gun but said that he did not know if it was real.

One of the officers was in his first year on the local force, the other had more than 10 years of experience.

Read more

Have no differences with BJP on national level, we will raise issues that Maharashtra faces: Sanjay Raut, Shiv Sena.

The stage is set for the first of the five-phased Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir as 12 sitting MLAs, including seven ministers, are among 123 candidates trying their luck in 15 constituencies that will go to polls tomorrow in all three regions of the state.

While six constituencies in Jammu division will vote to elect their representatives, electorate in five segments in Kashmir and four in Ladakh will seal the fate of the aspirants in the polling that is scheduled to begin at 8 am

Benchmark indices have trimmed some of the early gains after opening on a firm note as gains in metals and information technology shares are being capped by losses in select index heavyweights like ITC and Reliance.

Earlier, Nifty breached the 8,500 mark for the first time and hit the all-time high of 8,529 while Sensex hit the fresh record high of 28,514.98. At 10:20AM, the 30-share Sensex was up 96 points at 28,427 and the 50-share Nifty was up 24 points at 8,501.

Both houses of Parliament have adjourned for the day. 

Parliament session begins as members take oath. PM Modi introduces new members in Parliament. "The winter session of the Parliament is starting today, good work for the nation will happen in a cool state of mind. People have given us the huge responsibility of running the country. But everyone who sits in the Parliament has this responsibility," Modi said.

The PM reached out to the opposition saying, he hoped the winter session of Parliament would be fruitful. Narendra Modi said the last session of Parliament was fruitful as the opposition had played a positive role. "All MPs have responsibility to run the country," Modi said addressing the media outside Parliament house.

Polling will take place amidst tight security in 13 Maoist-affected constituencies in the first phase of five-stage elections to the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly tomorrow.

Adequate security forces have been deployed as all the 13 constituencies are affected by Maoist activities and the personnel have been asked to follow the standard operating procedure.

Altogether 33,61,938 voters, including 15,77,090 women, are eligible to exercise their franchise to elect their representatives from among 199 candidates in the fray. More than 3,900 polling booths have been set up and 35,425 polling personnel deployed to conduct free, fair and peaceful polling.

Burdwan blast: Police arrest 4 members of banned Islamist outfit: Police have arrested 4 members of banned Islamist outfit Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh in Dhaka, including the wife of Sajid, the prime suspect of Burdwan blast.

Both Houses of Parliament to be adjourned: Parliament to be adjourned: Both the houses of Parliament will be adjourned today due to senior Congress leader and former Union minister Murli Deora's death.

Sensex surges 180.35 pts to hit yet another record of 28,514.98; Nifty breaches 8,500-mark for the first time in opening trade.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today condoled the death of senior Congress leader Murli Deora and said his warm nature made him popular across party lines.     

Iran releases British-Iranian woman on bail: 

A Russian capsule carrying three astronauts from Russia, the United States and Italy has blasted off for the International Space Station. The Soyuz capsule roared into the pre-dawn darkness just after 3 am today (2100 GMT Sunday) from the Russian manned space facility in Baikonur, Kazakhstan.

World powers and Iran began looking at giving themselves more time to reach a nuclear deal, as they struggled to overcome major gaps barely 24 hours before a deadline. 

Kenya claims anti-Shebab strikes in Somalia after bus attack: Kenya has said its troops had killed dozens of Shebab Islamists in raids inside Somalia after the execution of 28 non-Muslim people on a Kenyan bus. 

Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Murli Deora passed away here this morning after prolonged illness. He was 77 and is survived by his wife and two sons, including former MP Milind Deora. Murli bhai, as he was known as, died at around 3.25 am. He had been unwell and admitted to hospital. He was brought home two days ago, family sources said.