Just in: The Delhi police today questioned the team for AIIMS headed by Dr Sudhir Gupta, which prepared Sunanda Pushkar's autopsy report. The team of doctors was questioned on the injection mark found on her hand and the type of poison that killed her, reports CNN-IBN. 

The police wants to investigate how long after being injected did Sunanda die.

51-year-old Sunanda was found dead in her suite at a five-star hotel in south Delhi on the night of January 17, 2014, a day after she was involved in a spat with Pakistani journalist Mehr Tarar on micro-blogging website Twitter over the latter's alleged affair with Tharoor.

Her viscera samples have to be sent to a foreign lab in the US or the UK to determine the nature and quantity of the poison which caused her death, according to the police.

An 18-year-old girl of Pakistani- descent collapsed and died after suffering a suspected allergic reaction after eating a burger at a restaurant in the British city of Manchester.

The woman, named Shahida Shahid, was a math student from Manchester University and was out dining at the Almost Famous Burgers in the city on Friday. She collapsed nearly half a mile from the restaurant in Great Northern Warehouse and died in hospital on Monday.

A police spokesperson said, "Initial inquiries have established the woman had been out for a meal in the Great Northern Warehouse prior to her collapse and may have suffered an allergic reaction to her food. A joint investigation is currently under way involving Greater Manchester Police and the Food Standards Agency to establish the exact circumstances."

The director of The Lego Movie responds to the Oscar snub with possibly the most perfect tweet.

Philip Lord tweets this picture: It's okay. Made my own!

We simply love it. :)  

NPR's Linda Holmes has an interesting take this year's Oscar nominations.

Every year, there is a capricious quality to the nominations that makes it difficult to draw any particular meaning from them, but there are likely to be a few discussion points floating around today in the wake of these announcements, she says.    

Even for the Oscars -- even for the Oscars -- this is a really, really lot of white people.

Every nominated actor in lead and supporting categories -- 20 actors in all is white. Every nominated director is male. Every nominated screenwriter is male. 

It is her again! Meryl Streep continues her run as the actor with the most Oscar nominations ever, now with 19.

She is nominated for the best actress a supporting role category for Into The Woods. 

Just in: The Congress today released a third list of 15 candidates for Delhi Assembly polls.

President Pranab Mukherjee's daughter Sharmistha Mukherjee will fight from the Greater Kailash seat, reports PTI. 

Why Ava DuVernay's 'Selma' Oscar snub matters, writes Scott Mendelson on Forbes.  

And there is a lot of disappointment about Selma on Twitter as well:

"So ... the Academy includes not a single actor or actress of color in nominations, throws "Selma" in for 10-film Best Pic round, tweets American television host Joy-An Reid.

"Anderson was nominated for Best Director?? Sorry I'm slow, but that's huge. Maybe Ava will be nominated a decade after she deserved it, too," tweets critic Miriam Bale.

"One of Oscar's biggest "Selma" oversights is, without a doubt, cinematographer Bradford Young. Rarely has our skin looked so good on film," tweets American Jamil Smith. 

Selma is based on the 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights marches led by James Bevel, Hosea Williams, and Martin Luther King, Jr. 

Here is the list of nominations for Best actor at the Oscars:
Steve Carell, Foxcatcher

Benedict Cumberbatch, The Imitation Game

Bradley Cooper, American Sniper

Eddie Redmayne, The Theory of Everything (Golden Globe winner)

Michael Keaton, Birdman (Golden Globe winner, for actor in a comedy or musical)

Just in: Oscar nominations: Birdman, Grand Budapest Hotel lead the field with nine nods each.

Congress leader Ajay Maken, who will lead the party's campaign for Delhi Assembly polls, today termed as "gross political opportunism" the decision of Kiran Bedi to join the BJP.  She and Arvind Kejriwal "used" Anna Hazare for political gains and "backstabbed" him, he added.

He said Bedi had described India Against Corruption movement, which was led by Hazare and seen enthusiastic people's participation, "neither anti-Congress, nor pro-BJP" but she "betrayed" the trust of the people associated with it.

"Bedi, who had on record criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and claimed the IAC movement to be neither anti-Congress, nor pro-BJP, today betrayed the trust of the people associated with the IAC campaign," he said in a statement.

If there is any real drama in nominations for the 87th Academy Awards, to be announced in two waves beginning at 8:30 a.m. Eastern standard time on Thursday, it is mostly around the edges. There, eager contenders and their fans will be watching to see who gets cut out. Read

The crew of an Air India flight on which politician Shashi Tharoor and his wife Sunanda Pushkar fought publicly a year ago was questioned today by the Delhi Police, said sources.

Delhi police had on January 1 registered a case of murder in connection with Sunanda's death under Section 302 of IPC on the basis of an AIIMS medical report that concluded that her death was unnatural and due to poisoning but did not reveal the nature and the quantity of the poison.

HS Brahma to take over as 19th Chief Election Commissioner of India on January 16.

BJP Central Election Committee to meet on January 19 to decide candidates for Delhi assembly polls: party sources.

Congress leader Ajay Maken on Kiran Bedi joining the BJP. "It is shocking and sad at the same time. Both Arvind Kejriwal and Kiran Bedi have demeaned and raised questions on the stand of 'India against corruption' today." 

Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif left on a two-day private visit of Saudi Arabia this morning to inquire after the health of King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz.

Pope Francis opens up about the Charlie Hebdo massacre, saying, "There are limits to freedom of expression when religion is insulted."

The Pope has arrived in the Philippines for a five-day visit to the nation's 80 million Roman Catholics. He was met at Manila airport by President Benigno Aquino while church bells tolled nationwide to welcome him.

One of the founding members of Charlie Hebdo has accused its slain editor, Stphane Charbonnier, or Charb, of "dragging the team" to their deaths by releasing increasingly provocative cartoons, as five million copies of the "survivors' edition' went on sale.

Henri Roussel, 80, who contributed to the first issue of the satirical weekly in 1970, wrote to the murdered editor, saying: "I really hold it against you."

In this week's Left-leaning magazine Nouvel Obs, Mr Roussel, who publishes under the pen name Delfeil de Ton, wrote: "I know it's not done', but proceeds to criticise the former "boss' of the magazine.Calling Charb an "amazing lad', he said he was also a stubborn "block head'. Read

Amitabh Mattoo votes for the next Delhi CM: '@amitabhmattoo Congratulations in advance to the next CM of Delhi, the Honb'le @thekiranbedi ! Will feel secure for my daughters in a Delhi with her as CM!

Arvind Kejriwal reacts to Kiran Bedi joining the BJP: I have been fond of Kiran Bedi ji. I always tried to convince her, she shud join politics. I am happy she did it today.
 

Omar Abdullah '@abdullah_omar "Note to famous people joining politics - before joining check your Twitter/FB archive & delete all posts critical of party you are joining."

Foxed?

This is what Bedi had tweeted in 2013: Kiran Bedi @thekiranbedi  16 Mar 2013 One day NaMo will need to respond with clarity about riots massacre. Despite Courts clearing him so far.

Around 330 homeless people have died on the brutally wintry streets of the capital starting December last year, in spite of the 257 night shelters functioning in the city.

Fifty-one homeless citizens died during the first nine days of January alone -- around six per day. Eight to nine people die by the roadside, on pavements, shop fronts and below flyovers as the minimum temperature hovers around 2 degree Celsius at night.

Read more

Atishi Marlena, AAP leader on Kiran Bedi joining the BJP: "Kiranji was against party politics during the India against corruption movement, she seemed to have changed her point of view. But she is welcome to join politics, she is welcome to join the BJP."

On a day when BJP got a major shot in the arm in the run up to the Delhi polls with Kiran Bedi formally inducted into the party, in West Bengal,  TMC minister Manjul Krishna Thakur resigns from Mamata Banerjee government, joins BJP.

BJP has given me an opportunity to return back everything I got, to the nation, I'm in mission mode now: Kiran Bedi

Kiran Bedi says she is very happy to join the BJP. "I am here because of PM Modi's leadership, I am here because he has inspired me. I have been serving the nation for the last 40 years. I am thankful to the PM for this blessings and the trust he has placed on me."

She said Delhi required a strong, honest and courageous leadership. 

So, while it's certain she will contest the Delhi polls, no announcement on which seat. 

BJP president Amit Shah and Arun Jaitley gives Kiran Bedi a high-profile welcome to the party. 

Shah says, "I extend my heartiest wishes to Kiran Bediji for joining BJP, her presence will strengthen our Delhi unit. She will definitely contest from the BJP's side, but it is the prerogative of the Parliamentary Board to decide who will be CM candidate. So far Kiran-ji has joined us, we will contest the elections."

Arun Jaitley says that Kiran Bedi is a national figure. 

BJP top league -- Arun Jaitley, Amit Shah, Dr Harsh Vardhan -- at the party headquarters. The party meets to induct Kiran Bedi into its fold just ahead of the Delhi polls next month.

The retired IPS officer had in May 2014 said she was ready to become the chief ministerial nominee in Delhi, if the BJP made such an offer to her. 

Bedi, a former member of the Anna Hazare-led Jan Lokpal Andolan, had turned down the possibility prior to the Delhi Assembly elections last December.

Bedi was a visible face of the Jan Lokpal campaign, which had a strong anti-political colour, standing shoulder to shoulder with AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal.  

BJP President Amit Shah and Kiran Bedi arrive at the party office in Delhi. Bedi will be inducted into the party shortly, ahead of the Delhi polls next month. 

SpiceJet promoter Kalanithi Maran will transfer ownership of the no-frills airline to original founder Ajay Singh, reports PTI.

A clutch of investors led by the airline's co-founder Ajay Singh is likely to sign an agreement with Sun Group chairman Kalanithi Maran, who holds the controlling stake to buy out the latter's shares.

The airline told the aviation ministry that it would submit an investment plan to market regulator, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), soon.

Sources said investors led by Singh, who helped set up the low-cost airline in 2005, and investment bank JP Morgan are likely to inject around $250 million (Rs. 1,550 crore) in the ailing airline that had been staring at a shutdown unless it got an investor on board.

Just in: Three people have been arrested for vandalising a church in Vikaspuri, Delhi.  Three people have been arrested in a case of vandalising church property in west Delhi's Vikaspuri on Wednesday. The church had registered a complaint with police yesterday, after they discovered that a statue had been toppled over from it's position early on Wednesday morning.

Police say that the three men are residents of Tilak Nagar, nearly two kilometres away from where the church is, and so far don't seem to have any connection with any political or fringe groups.

The incident, which took place at 4:19 am, was caught on CCTV camera. Police have registered a case at Vikaspuri police station and efforts are on to nab the attackers, police said.

Here's US president Barack Obama's tentative itinerary for his three-day India visit. The US advance team will be in Delhi tomorrow to finalise itinerary.

The CEO roundtable conference with PM Modi and India Inc will take place on January 26 and 27.
No Varanasi trip for Obama. It was cancelled due to security concerns.
Bilateral talks on January 25, where deals will be negotiated.
The Obamas will visit Agra on January 27.
Obama is also likely to hold a town hall meet in a college much like he did at the St Xavier's college, Mumbai, when he was in India in 2010.

On the first day of his visit, the American president and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold comprehensive talks on the entire gamut of bilateral ties and discuss ways to enhance cooperation in key components, including civil nuclear and defence pacts. The two sides have already decided to renew for 10 years during a summit meeting in September in Washington to start joint development and production of military hardware.

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyay: He has to save his skin, so he will certainly say that he will file a defamation case, let him. Meters may be manufactured anywhere, but installation has been carried out by them (companies owned by BJP members)," says Kejriwal. He said he will release evidence on Upadhyay this evening.

Upaadhyay on his part has said that he will quit politics if the charges are proved to be true. He has also filed a complaint with the Election Commission over Kejriwal's allegations.

The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a bail plea of suspended Gujarat cadre IPS officer NK Amin, arrested in the 2004 Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case.

The court rejected Amin's plea that he was entitled for 'default bail' since the CBI had failed to file chargesheet against him within 90 days of arrest, as required under the Criminal Procedure Code.Amin, who was arrested on April 4, 2013 in the case, had contended that the chargesheet filed on July 3, 2013 was incomplete and hence it amounted to not filing the charge-sheet within 90 days.Amin had to move the apex court after the High Court held that the chargesheet filed by CBI could not be deemed incomplete.

BJP leaders reach Election Commission office to file a complaint against Arvind Kejriwal.

Sachin Tendulkar met boxer Sarita Devi today, tweeting, "Could see the hunger for action in her eyes. Wished her success and wrote a message. Enjoy the game and always give your best."

Boxer L Sarita Devi was handed a one-year ban by the International Boxing Association for refusing to accept her bronze medal at the Incheon Asian Games in October.

In the aftermath of the ban, Sarita Devi had expressed happiness over the AIBA's decision of imposing a ban on her for just one year. There had been speculation of a lifetime ban making rounds in the boxing circles.

She also thanked Sachin Tendulkar, Boxing India and Sports Authority of India for supporting her during hard times.

"I am very happy, I would like to thank the sports ministry, Sachin Tendulkar, Boxing India, SAI and the entire nation for supporting me. Now that I will be able to participate in the Olympics, I want to practice hard and bring glory to the nation," Sarita Devi had said.

Tendulkar had written a letter to AIBA was to save Sarita Devi's career from ending abruptly after the Asian Games controversy in Incheon.

"Our effort was to see that Sarita Devi's career was not jeopardised. She committed a small mistake," said Tendulkar

United States President Barack Obama will have a tight schedule during his three-day visit starting January 25, as he will hold talks with top leadership in New Delhi on ways to make progress on key issues like defence and civil nuclear agreement and attend the Republic Day celebrations as the chief guest, among other engagements.

Obama, who will be the first US president to be the chief guest at the Republic Day parade, will be accompanied by his wife Michelle and a team of senior officials in his administration.

On the first day of his visit, the American president and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold comprehensive talks on the entire gamut of bilateral ties and discuss ways to enhance cooperation in key components, including civil nuclear and defence pacts.

The two sides have already decided to renew for 10 years during a summit meeting in September in Washington to start joint development and production of military hardware.

The visit is also expected to give fillip to the seven- year-old civil nuclear deal as the cooperation in the sector has been stalled over the tough provisions in the Civil Nuclear Liability Act.

Pic: The Rashtrapati Bhavan forecourt being prepared for the ceremonial reception of US President Barack Obama

The delicate idea of France. Read

And this is Arvind Kejriwal's reponse: "Am very fond of @shaziailmi and  respect her a lot. If she wants to join BJP I wish her good luck."

Former AAP leader Shazia Ilmi when asked if she would join the BJP said, "Will let you know about my plans of joining BJP or not, give me some time. But I will be campaigning against AAP. I want to expose AAP for what it is, will do whatever I can to that effect."

Here's the takeaway from the army presser today.

Terrorists can attack soft targets like schools, army convoys and civilian areas, General Officer Commanding of 16 Corps, Lt General K H Singh today.

Lt General Singh said that the troops were fully prepared to meet any eventuality.

The Pakistan army, ISI and the terrorists were working in coordination with each other to engineer violence on the Indian soil, he said, adding that the possibility of Tehreek-e-Taliban joining the Lashkar-e-Toiba outfit for the purpose also cannot be ruled out.

He said that there were 80-90 terrorists including 37 active ones present in Jammu region.

Apart from this, Lt General Singh said that there were also nearly 200 terrorists were waiting across the LoC for infiltration into Jammu region from PoK side.

However, the army foiled all the 15 infiltration attempts made by them from across the Line of Control ensuring zero infiltration in our area of operation in Jammu region during 2014, he added.

BSP to field candidates on all 70 Assembly seats in Delhi: Mayawati.

'If Modi arrived like a juggernaut, he left like a jigsaw puzzle whose pieces were being dismantled bit by bit. It was as if India had seceded quietly from him.' Shiv Viswanathan's social science fiction about India in 2020. Read

Alright, news just coming says, actor-turned politician Jaya Prada is likely to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Delhi ahead of the Assembly polls in the national capital.

According to sources, she is likely to campaign in the Telegu dominated areas for the elections.

She is also said to have expressed her willingness towards contesting against Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal in the New Delhi constituency.

However, sources say that the party has not taken any decision to field her yet.

Jaya Prada had contested Lok Sabha elections in 2014 on Rashtriya Lok Dal's ticket from Bijnor but had lost. The actor turned politician has been a part of the Telugu Desam Party, the Samajwadi Party and later the RLD.

Kiran Bedi and Shazia Ilmi are also likely to join the BJP today.

A US court in New York has dismissed a lawsuit filed against Prime Minister Narendra Modi by a rights group for his alleged role in the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, upholding the Obama administration's stance that he enjoys immunity as a sitting head of a foreign government.

The brave Deepika Padukone on taking medication for depression and anxiety. Read

French President Francois Hollande has insisted Charlie Hebdo and its values will survive, after the new edition of the satirical weekly sold out in hours."Charlie Hebdo is alive and will live on," Mr Hollande said.Millions more copies of the magazine are being printed because of demand.

Read more

Just in: Kiran Bedi likely to join BJP today. The retired IPS officer had in May 2014 said she was ready to become the chief ministerial nominee in Delhi, if the BJP made such an offer to her. 

Bedi, a former member of the Anna Hazare-led Jan Lokpal Andolan, had turned down the possibility prior to the Delhi Assembly elections last December.

Bedi was a visible face of the Jan Lokpal campaign, which had a strong anti-political colour, standing shoulder to shoulder with AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal.

Done and dusted: Two militants killed in the encounter between security forces and militants in Shopian's Kharo. 

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hailed the decision of RBI to cut the interest rate, saying it is positive for the Indian economy and will certainly help in reviving the investment cycle the government is trying to restore.

"The RBI decision to cut the interest rate will lead to more money in the hands of the consumer for greater spending. "It is positive for the Indian economy and it will certainly help in reviving the investment cycle the government is trying to restore," said Jaitley who has been nudging the central bank to ease the interest rate to lower the cost of capital.

Earlier in the day, the RBI cut interest rate by 0.25 per cent to 7.75 per cent.

UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon practices yoga. He was in India for the Vibrant Gujarat summit and visited Delhi on his way out. Read about his Delhi visit here.

Stepping up attack on Delhi BJP president Satish Upadhyay, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal today said that he would present fresh evidence against him.

The former chief minister had alleged a nexus between Upadhyay and certain power distribution companies, saying firms owned by him were installing and repairing meters for the discoms in the national capital.

Yesterday, Upadhyay had said, "If Kejriwal fails to prove, I will file a criminal defamation case against him. If Kejriwal's allegations are found to be true, I will quit politics."

Taking a jibe at Upadhyay, Kejriwal today wondered whether the Delhi BJP chief would keep his words of quitting politics. "Satish Upadhyay said he wud quit politucs if we present evidence. Today we will present evidence. Hope he keeps his word," Kejriwal tweeted.

He had also asked how BJP had made Upadhyay its Delhi chief when he has alleged links with power discom BSES. He also alleged that Upadhyay owns six companies one of which had two VAT numbers which is against law.

Blasphemy involves critiquing a tradition from within, of which Islam has had a long and honourable history (Ijtihad), says renowned academic Mahmood Mamdani. Read more

Freedom of expression was the central motif of the million-strong unity march in Paris last Sunday. But the burst of opinion and actions triggered by the tragic strike on Charlie Hebdo raise some dark challenges about the veracity and the viability of non-violence. While condemning the terrorist strike many have also questioned whether the right to offend, when carried to a certain extreme, is not itself a form of violence.

Read the column by Rajni Bakshi on Rediff.com.

 The sacking of Avinash Chander as the country's top defence technocrat yesterday has brought back into focus allegations of murky deals with international arms lobbies, corruption and nepotism, professional jealousies at the top and a failure to deliver usable and accurate weapons.  Read more

Pak security establishments is currently tackling their own home-grown terrorists. In 14-15 camps south of Pir Panjal area, 200 militants waiting for an opportunity to infiltrate, says Lt Gen KH Singh. 

Lt.Gen KH Singh, GOC of 16 corps, holds a presser on the situation at the LoC. "Situation in the LoC, south of Pir Panjal is by and large peaceful at least for last two months or so. There has been zero infiltration in the Jammu region from PoK during 2014. Our counter infiltration posture is firmly in place, infiltration bid will be eliminated if any attempt is made. Indian Army remains prepared all the time for any eventuality, for anything that may unfold." said

Known for his controversial statements, Justice Markandey Katju, former chairman of the Press Council of India, raised eyebrows by posting on his personal blog on Tuesday that he wants Katrina Kaif to be the next president of India.

A day later, he retracted his statement on Facebook saying that his blog post was "purely in a lighter vein' and that if he had offended anyone, he would like to apologise for it.In his post, Justice Katju wrote that he was inspired by the election of Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovi as the president of Croatia. He went on to surmise that he was in favour of electing beautiful women on all posts. -- Indian Express

More details on the encounter in Shopian.

A gunbattle broke out between security forces and militants in Shopian district of south Kashmir today.

Security forces launched a cordon and search operation in Kaddar forest area of Kellar, 50 kms from Srinagar, following information about presence of militants in the area, police said.

As the search operation was on, the hiding militants opened fire at the security forces triggering an encounter. There was no report so far of any casualty in the gunbattle, they said.

An encounter broke out between security forces and the militant in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district on Thursday morning. 

Fast bowler Brett Lee has announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket, effective from the end of this year's BBL campaign. 

The threat of a possible toxic leak in the US sector of the ISS forced the American astronauts on board to isolate their module and move to the Russian sector. 

Indian-American California Attorney General Kamala Harris has won a major endorsement for her Senate bid from top Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren. 

An American national, who had earlier tweeted his support to ISIS, was arrested on charges of plotting to attack the US Capitol, the seat of the Congress, and kill government officials. 

The Reserve Bank of India has cut repo rate by 25 bps, a move that could bring relief to borrowers.

Plane evacuated at Rome airport over bomb alert  

The US-India Business Council (USIBC) announced today the appointment of Dr. Mukesh Aghi as its new president. 

More than a thousand French websites were hacked since the attack on January 7 against Charlie Hebdo by hackers claiming to be Islamists, and this movement may experience a peak on Thursday, according to experts.

Controversial French comedian Dieudonne was arrested today and will stand trial over a comment suggesting he sympathised with one of the Paris attackers, as France cracks down on those who condone terrorism.

A Washington Post journalist detained in Iran for months has been indicted and will stand trial, Iran's state news agency reported Wednesday, without elaborating on what charges he faced.

Top diplomats from Iran and the United States held "substantive" talks today aimed at speeding up negotiations for a nuclear deal, with US Secretary of State John Kerry heading back for a surprise new round. 

At least 10 people have been killed after a bus carrying prisoners lost control on an icy motorway and collided with a train in Texas, officials say.

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi convicted for poll code violation; gets bail

100 bodies recovered from Ganga, Centre seeks info from UP govt

Obama's 3-day India visit: What he will do here 

'Tharoor told me to persuade Sunanda to be normal'

Offloaded Greenpeace activist addresses British MPs via Skype

Charlie Hebdo 'Survivors' edition' sold out 

Constable alleges Trinamool MP slapped him; police, MP deny

Army jawans vandalise police station in Nasik; 6 detained

Health ministry likely to face massive Rs 6,000-cr budget cut 

Review: Vikram's I is definitely a Pongal treat

In Case You Missed: Wednesday's Live Commentary