LIVE! Iran rounds up 450 social network users

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Tue, 23 August 2016

Iran rounds up 450 social network users

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A suspected ISI agent was today arrested here by a joint team of Uttar Pradesh Anti Terrorist Squad and Rajasthan CID.

"Jamaluddin, a resident of Ghazipur, has been arrested from Trans-Gomti area here. He used to distribute money to other agents on directives of ISI after receiving it from the UAE," Additional Director General, Law and Order, Daljeet Singh Chowdhury said.

The accused had transferred money to Gordhan Singh, who was arrested on December 27, 2015 from Pokhran in Rajasthan, he said.

Singh had allegedly leaked military information to Pakistani spy agency ISI.

"The probe is on and besides ATS, Rajasthan CID and intelligence agencies are interrogating him," he said.

The officer, however, did not divulge more details about the arrested agent.

Despite almost two years of silence, NASA never stopped searching for its long lost spacecraft STEREO-B.

This week that determination paid off.

NASA announced Sunday that it had re-established contact with STEREO-B after communications were lost in October 2014.

Contact with the spacecraft -- which works in tandem with a second spacecraft STEREO-A to study the sun -- was lost during a test of one of its timers.

23:27 Iran rounds up 450 social network users

Iran has "arrested or summoned" around 450 social media users over their online activities, a website linked to the powerful Revolutionary Guards said today.

Gherdab, the cyber arm of the Guards, said the people targeted administered pages on social networks including smartphone applications such as Instagram, Telegram and WhatsApp.

"These people were carrying out immoral activities, insulted religious beliefs or had illegal activities in the field of fashion," said Gherdab.

It said the suspects would be put on trial without specifying how many exactly have been placed under arrest.

Isna news agency carried a similar report.

Iranian authorities have for years tried to impose curbs on its citizens using social media.

Facebook and Twitter are officially banned in the Islamic republic, although users can gain access with easily available and cheap software.

22:35 Turkey strikes ISIS, Kurds in northern Syria

Turkey's military bombarded ISIS targets in northern Syria for the second consecutive day Tuesday after mortars from Syria struck two Turkish border towns, a senior Turkish official and state media reported.

On Tuesday, two mortar bombs struck a residential area in Karkamis, a Turkish town about a mile across the border from the ISIS-held Syrian city of Jarablus, Turkey's state-run Anadolu news agency reported.

Read full story HERE.

22:19 Floods: 10 more NDRF teams for Bihar, UP

Ten more teams of the NDRF were on Tuesday deployed for rescue and relief operations in flood-hit Bihar and Uttar Pradesh even as the force rescued over 33,000 marooned people from various states.

Witnessing continuous rains and with people not wanting to leave their homes, the force has also deployed a number of 'boat ambulances' in these states on which the personnel of the force provide pre-hospitalisation treatment and medicines to the affected.

"The 10 teams that were airlifted yesterday for Bihar and Uttar Pradesh have been deployed. We are intensifying our operations," National Disaster Response Force chief O P Singh said.

A special control room at the forces' headquarter here is monitoring the situation 24X7, he said.

As per reports coming from the flood-affected areas of UP, the water level is increasing by 1 cm per hour in areas around Varanasi and about 15 cm rise in the water level has been seen in the day till now, a senior official said.

There are reports of waterlogging in Varanasi and Ghazipur, the official said.

22:06 Grand welcome awaits Olympics medallist Sakshi

A grand welcome awaits Rio Olympics bronze medallist wrestler Sakshi Malik when she arrives home on Wednesday, with preparations underway to give her a rousing reception at Bahadurgarh and at her village Mokhra Khas in Rohtak district.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was earlier scheduled to honour her at her village, will felicitate her at Bahadurgarh at Jhajjar district, a senior officer of the State's Sports and Youth Affairs Department said.

When Sakshi touches down at Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi at around 3:50 am on Wednesday, as many as five ministers of the BJP government in Haryana will be there to receive her.

Among the ministers who will be there to receive her include Kavita Jain, Rao Narbir Singh, Manish Grover and Vipul Goel, Director of Sports and Youth Affairs Department, Haryana, Jagdeep Singh Sheoran said.

Haryana's Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Anil Vij, who was present in Rio as head of state delegation, will accompany Sakshi on the return flight.

It was an inauspicious start to the inaugural Day/Night Duleep Trophy match with a major floodlight malfunction grabbing more attention than Pink ball making its first class debut in India.

A power failure saw two stoppages in play with the second one leading to lights going off completely in a couple of floodlight towers.

There was a total 78 minutes of interruption due to power tripping in two towers in two separate phases.

Yuvraj Singh's India Red lasted only 48.2 overs as they were bowled out for 161 with Sandeep Sharma grabbing 4 for 62.

Left-handed opener Abhinav Mukund was the only batsman who looked in control during his innings of 77 off 116 balls that had 12 boundaries.

Incidentally, Red team were all out even before the floodlights became functional.

One thing was evident that the pink ball swung a bit more under lights than in the afternoon session. The entire focus during the duration of play was on the pink kookaburra.

21:26 IITs to have non-resident students soon

IITs have decided to increase the number of seats in various courses for admitting "non-resident students" with an aim to take their total intake to one lakh by 2020.

According to senior officials, in a meeting of the IIT Council headed by HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar today, "in-principle" approval was given to the proposal for admitting non-resident students.

The authorities of different IITs will now undertake an exercise to fix the number of additional students they can accommodate.

"At present, the IITs have around 72,000 students in their undergraduate, postgraduate or doctorate courses which are residential. However, it is now planned that students, who will not stay in hostels, should be admitted to these institutes," an official said.

The plan is to increase the number by 10,000 per year so that the number of IITians touches 1 lakh by 2020, the official said, suggesting that ideally there would be an increase of 4,000 seats in undergraduate courses and 6,000 seats in postgraduate and Ph.D seats, an official said.

21:00 Hoax call on blast near Jama Masjid

Police and security agencies were sent in a tizzy over a call which later turned out to be hoax, about a bomb blast near historic Jama Masjid in Old Delhi, in the evening today.

"A PCR call was received at 5.17 PM today where the caller said that there had been a bomb blast and 50 people were reportedly injured. When the local police checked, the call was found to be a hoax," DCP (PCR) R K Singh said.

The caller, a man, while calling the PCR claimed that the several persons were injured in the blast. The entire area was scanned after the call although the call was found to be a hoax.

Police said that the caller was traced to Seelampur. Through the mobile number, the caller was identified as one Chaudhary Bangad and police was trying to nab him.

The 12-day Krishna Pushkaram ended with a grand 'Harathi' (aarti) at the Pavitra Sangamam, the confluence of Godavari and Krishna rivers at Ferry near Vijayawada, in the presence of thousands of pilgrims.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Union Ministers M Venkaiah Naidu, Suresh Prabhu, ace shuttler P V Sindhu, her coach Pullela Gopichand were among those who attended the 'Pavitra Harathi'.

The 'Pavitra Harathi', conducted on all 12 days of the river festival, had been the biggest draw of the Pushkaram that comes once in 12 years.

Close to two crore pilgrims took a holy dip in Krishna river at various bathing ghats during the 12-day event in Kurnool, Guntur and Krishna districts of AP with a vast majority of them taking part in the rituals in Vijayawada city.

Naidu and Prabhu took a holy dip at the VIP bathing ghat in Vijayawada this evening.

The Delhi Police Commissioner will be called by the Lok Sabha panel probing AAP MP Bhagwant Mann's Parliament House videography issue, to discuss about security of the Parliament.

The nine member-panel was assigned to probe Mann's conduct and his act of live-streaming his journey to, and inside the Parliament, and also inquire into the serious security implications and suggest suitable remedial measures to avoid recurrence of such incidents.

"The panel today deliberated over the issues of security and videography done by Mann with security personnel. And in the next meeting which will be held next month, we will call the Delhi Police Commissioner to discuss the same," Chairman of the committee BJP MP Kirit Somaiya said.

In the last meeting also, the panel had heard security personnel deployed at the gate from where the AAP MP entered the high security zone while making the video.

The panel has been given extension by speaker Sumitra Mahajan till the end of the first week of next (Winter) session.

Chief of Army Staff Gen Dalbir Singh visited the Line of Control formations and units in North Kashmir on Tuesday.

Army chief, Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag visited the Valley to review the security situation in the state after the killing of 'militant commander' Burhan Wani, a defence spokesman said.

"At Badamibagh headquarters of Chinar Corps in Srinagar, he made an earnest appeal to the people to eschew violence and help restore peace and calm at the earliest," he said.

"Commending the alertness of all troops deployed along the line of control in foiling the nefarious designs of inimical forces, Gen. Dalbir Singh paid stress on the need to continue high degree of vigil and operational focus.

"The chief also visited the Victor Force Headquarters at Awantipura where he was apprised of the latest situation in south Kashmir.

"He appreciated the professionalism with which the troops had been operating in full synergy with other security and civil agencies to keep the situation under control.

"He impressed upon everyone to uphold human rights and exercise maximum possible restraint while dealing with the protesting mobs," the spokesman added.

During the visit, the chief was accompanied by Northern Army Commander Lt Gen D S Hooda and Chinar Corps Commander Lt Gen Satish Dua. The Chief had visited the Valley last month as well to review the security in the region.

Indian carriers operating from Ahmedabad to Gulf can now avoid flying over Pakistan airspace and take a new route over Arabian sea, even as regulator DGCA said the 'straightening' of the path has been done to save fuel and not because of any "political issue".

The redrawing of the route, which reportedly has been done at the request of some carriers, comes at a time when bilateral ties have been strained between India and Pakistan, raising concerns about the move.

Rejecting any such apprehensions, a senior DGCA official today said there is "no political issue" in the matter, as reflected in some reports.

"Airports Authority of India (AAI) has straightened the route from Ahmedabad to Gulf which will save on fuel," the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said.

"On the existing route from Ahmedabad to Gulf, our carriers fly over Pakistan airspace. However, on new route, they will not fly over Pakistan airspace," the official said

20:21 Pakistan charges MQM chief with treason

Pakistan today charged MQM chief Altaf Hussain with treason for his inflammatory speech that incited party workers to attack media outlets in Karachi.

Hussain, leader of Mutthaida-E-Qaumi Movement -- the single largest party in Karachi, was accused of raising anti-Pakistan

slogans at a protest rally that turned violent.

Several journalists of various media organisation were attacked by the activists of the MQM. The protesters pelted stones and resorted to heavy aerial firing that killed one person and wounded others.

Two cases have been filed against Hussain: one for treason for his anti-Pakistan speech to participants in the hunger strike organised by MQM and the other for inciting party workers to violent protests, Inspector General of Sindh AD Khawaja was quoted as saying by the Geo News.

The case pertains to the attack on 'ARY' News' office, vandalising of property, arson and pelting of stones at police.

MQM party workers took to streets yesterday after Hussain, in an address from London, incited them to storm media outlets and chant anti-Pakistan slogans during the hunger strike. The hunger strike was launched to protest the disappearance and arrest of their workers by the paramilitary rangers.

A draft bill which aims to safeguard the rights of surrogate mothers and make parentage of such children legal, is likely to be taken up by the Union Cabinet on Wednesday.

The proposal has been listed as an agenda item for the Cabinet meeting which will be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sources said today.

According to the Health Ministry proposal, the draft Surrogacy Bill, 2016 aims at regulating commissioning surrogacy in the country in a proper manner.

The draft has already been cleared by Group of Ministers (GoM) after consideration. The GoM was constituted at the behest of the Prime Minister's Office.

Apart from Health Minister J P Nadda, Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Food Processing Industries Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal, were among those part of the GoM.

French President Francois Hollande voiced his "concern" over a spike in tensions in Ukraine, in a telephone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, his office said today.

"The president ... expressed his concern over a rise in tensions these past weeks and a growing number of ceasefire violations," it said in a statement after the call, which also included German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

"He underlined the risk an escalation of violence posed to the (peace) process."

Ukraine has been in the grip of a conflict between its army and pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country for two years.

Kiev and the West accuse Russia of supporting the separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine and deploying troops across the border - claims Moscow denies.

More than 9,500 people have been killed since the conflict started in April 2014, and deadly clashes continue to occur despite several truces.

Tensions between Russia and Ukraine soared last week after Putin accused Kiev of attempting an armed incursion into Crimea - the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014. Meanwhile as fighting increased in the east, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko warned of a possible "full-scale" Russian invasion.

The Congress today sought to turn tables on BJP over its attack on actress-turned-politician Ramya, contending that if wanting better ties with Pakistan was sedition then the first case should be lodged against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"The entire country wants a better relationship between India and Pakistan. Certain elements in BJP and RSS are unnecessarily trying to gain cheap publicity by polluting...."

"If wanting better relations with Pakistan is sedition, then the first case should be lodged against the Prime Minister who made an impromptu stopover for festivities with the Pakistan premier," the party's chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told reporters.

He said that the second case should be filed against BJP veteran L K Advani for praising Pakistan founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah.

Such cases should also be filed against all former Prime Ministers, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee, for advocating peace between India and Pakistan, he said.

Surjewala advised BJP and its leaders to refrain from playing petty politics and look at more serious issues facing the country.

The Congress reaction came after a private complaint in a court in Somwarpet in Kodagu district of Karnataka sought action on sedition and other charges against 33-year-old Ramya for "insulting" Indian patriots by her remark that "Pakistan is not hell".

Indian men's hockey team slipped one place to occupy sixth in the FIH rankings after their lackluster show in Rio Olympics while their female counterparts surprisingly gained one position to be at 12th in the latest charts released today.

The Indian men's side crashed out of the Olympics in the quarterfinals by losing to eventual runners-up team Belgium 1-3 while the women's team failed to get past the group stage.

Roelant Oltman-coached side went into the Olympics as fifth in the rankings but two wins, two losses and a draw in the group stage and a defeat to Belgium in the last-eight stage saw them pushed down to sixth in the latest rankings.

19:19 PM to release success stories of RTI Act

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will release success stories of Right to Information Act, during a programme to be held in October, to mark over 10 years of implementation of the transparency law enacted by the UPA government.

The RTI Act, which was enacted in 2005, mandates time- bound reply to citizens query on governance related matters.

The Department of Personnel and Training, which acts as nodal authority for the RTI Act, today wrote to chief of Administrative Training Institutes of all state governments seeking success stories.

The institutes impart training for promotion of the transparency Act.

"RTI Act has been instrumental in ensuring greater and more effective access to information to all citizens of the country, especially the marginalised sections of the society," it said.

On the occasion of completion of more than 10-years of implementation of the RTI Act, the Central Information Commission is going to hold annual convention in October, the DoPT said.

Athlete Sudha Singh, who returned from Rio with fever, doesn't have Zika virus, but tests positive for swine flu.

Sudha, who participated in the 3000m steeplechase at the Rio 2016 Olympics, had given blood samples for tests to check for the Zika virus.

Sudha developed fever on her return journey to India and consumed some medicines on her own and did not report her illness at the health office at the airport set-up to screen passengers with symptoms of Ebola and Zika.

She, however, reported being ill when she reached the SAI hostel in Bengaluru.

India and Pakistan will not be able to find a solution to the Kashmir problem on their own, moderate Hurriyat leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said on Tuesday as he wrote letters to several religious leaders across the world, including Pope Francis, and others to seek their intervention.

Besides the Pope, he also sent letters to the Dalai Lama, Imam Kaa'ba in Mecca, Shankarachrya Jayendra Saraswathi as well as to ambassadors of various countries in New Delhi, United Nations, European Union and Organisation of Islamic Cooperation regarding the "urgent and grave situation" in Kashmir, a Hurriyat spokesman said.

He said Mirwaiz called upon them to take the situation in the Valley seriously and use their offices to get this issue on the table for an "imaginative solution".

"India and Pakistan cannot and are not able to do this on their own," Mirwaiz said in the letter.

"If we are to see economic prosperity and development, education and progress, peace and security in South Asia, it becomes imperative that the international community take this seriously and be proactive in appraising themselves of the ground reality in Kashmir and use their good offices to get this issue on the table for an imaginative solution," said the letter, copies of which were released to the media.

The Enforcement Directorate has registered fresh money laundering case against liquor baron Vijay Mallya and others.

The fresh probe is in addition to the Rs.900 crore IDBI Bank loan default case that the agency is currently investigating.

On Saturday, the ED had registered a case against Mallya and also named as accused the company United Breweries Holdings Limited to probe the "larger conspiracy" to cheat the consortium of 17 banks led by State Bank of India.

Mallya, who fled to London on March 2 this year without informing the agencies and government, has refused to come to India and assist in the probe.

18:17 BSF companies in Srinagar schools

The Border Security Force, which was deployed in Srinagar yesterday after a gap of 12 years, today occupied several school buildings here to set up their camps.

The force occupied buildings of government and semi-government schools like SP Higher Secondary at MA Road near Lal Chowk and DAVP School at Jawahar Nagar, they said.

With unrest continuing in Kashmir for the last 46 days, the Centre has rushed 26 companies (about 2,600 personnel) of the BSF to the Valley.

These forces have been drawn from Gujarat, Rajasthan and West Bengal. An additional 30 companies (about 3,000 personnel) of the force are also expected to be sent to the Valley in the next few days after their withdrawal from the Amarnath Yatra duties.

The officials said the BSF would assist the state police and paramilitary CRPF in maintaining law and order in the Valley where over a month-and-a-half long unrest has claimed 65 lives, including two cops.

The force will also strengthen the counter-terror grid, the officials said.

The BSF, which conducted anti-militancy operations in Kashmir for nearly 13 years from 1991, was replaced in the city by Central Reserve Police Force in 2004.

It was taken off from counter-insurgency operations in Kashmir in 2004 and was moved to their primary duty of guarding the borders.

This is for the first time since 2004 that the force has been called for active duty in the city.

IMAGE: BSF personnel in Srinagar during 46th day of curfew. Photograph: Umar Ganie/Rediff.com

The United States today expressed the view that issues concerning Kashmir or Balochistan should be decided by the 'two parties involved'.

US Ambassador to India Richard Verma was quoted by news website Quint as having said in an interview that, 'When it comes to Balochistan, or even increased tensions in Kashmir in particular, it is our long-standing policy to leave the matter to be decided by the two parties.'

Asked about why the US does not raise concern over terrorism originating in Pakistan directed at India, Verma said he would like to 'disagree' with the suggestion.

'In the last 15 years in particular, the US under different administrations has gone after terrorists, wherever they are, including LeT. I don't think there should be any mistaking our commitment,' the US envoy added.

Terming counter-terrorism as a 'huge issue', he said the US has also been a victim of terrorism just like India. Since 9/11, the US has been unrelenting vis-a-vis terrorism, he said.

17:20

JUST IN: A boat carrying over 15 people, including schoolchildren, sinks in Punpun river in Aurangabad district of Bihar. Search and rescue operations are underway.

17:16 Resolution in Pak assembly against Modi's Balochistan remark

Pakistan's Punjab province assembly today adopted a resolution 'condemning' Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks on Balochistan and Gilgit-Biltistan and asked the federal government to take up the issue at international fora, including the United Nations.

Tabled by Punjab Law Minister Rana Sanaullah, the unanimously adopted resolution said the House 'strongly condemned Modi's statement on Balochistan and Gilgit-Biltistan and termed it as interference in Pakistan's affairs'.

'The federal government should raise this matter at international forums including the United Nations. The world should be told about the Modi government's interference in Pakistan's affairs,' the resolution said.

Pakistan Peoples Party legislator Khurram Wattoo asked the chair to also request the federal government to sever trade ties with India.

Opposition Leader in Punjab Assembly Mahmoodur Rashid alleged that Modi's statement manifested his policy of intolerance and interference into affairs of other states.

Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel has constituted a two-member committee to inquire into the allegations leveled by marathoner O P Jaisha.

The committee has been asked to submit a report in seven days.

Jaisha had alleged that Indian officials did not arrange for water and energy drinks during her race in the Rio Olympics run under scorching heat despite designated stations being given for the country.

However, Athletics Federation of India denied her claims.

Her co-runner Kavita Raut also said that the AFI had provided her with an option of having energy drinks during the race and, therefore, she has no complaints against the apex body.

To mark Mother Teresa's sainthood ceremony in Vatican on September 4, a postal cover, coin and statue will be dedicated to the late Roman Catholic nun.

Made of pure silk, India Post will release a special postal and numismatic cover of Mother Teresa, the first of its kind, on September 2.

"A five-rupee commemorative coin issued by the Indian government in 2010 to mark the centenary birth celebrations of the legend will be engraved on the cover. This is a special feature as it combines the two collectible items of coins and stamps," eminent philatelist Alok K Goyal, who designed the stamps, said.

The collectors' item will be released in a limited edition of 1,000 pieces.

A grand welcome awaits bronze medallist Sakshi Malik as she makes her way home from Rio. The whole of Rohtak is gearing up to host a champion's welcome which they feel that Sakshi deserves.

Prior to her return, the wrestler tweeted this image with the caption 'Aa rahi hoon main, apne des apne ghar'.

Earlier, PV Sindhu, silver medallist, and Dipa Karmakar received a champions' welcome in their home states of Telangana and Tripura respectively.

After controversy over his statement over freedom fighter that mentioned 'Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose were hanged', HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar issued a clarification saying it's a confusion of punctuation in his quote.

While paying homage to freedom fighters, Javadekar had said, "We salute our freedom fighters. So many bravehearts -- Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Patel, Pandit Nehru, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru all were hanged, revolutionary Savarkarji and all other great fighters."

Javadekar clarified that it was just an issue of confusion over punctuation while quoting him.

I am amused with the news. I paid my respect to all the freedom fighters since 1857. I mentioned leaders like Gandhi, Nehru Subhash. It was a full stop. In the next sentence, I recounted those who were hanged, jailed and suffered at the hands of British. There was no confusion in the minds of those who listened. I hope this removes all confusion, tweeted Javadekar.

Russia will not compete at next month's Paralympics in Rio after losing an appeal against a ban imposed for state-sponsored doping.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld the International Paralympic Committee's ban on all Russian competitors. The IPC made the decision in light of the McLaren report, which detailed a state-sponsored doping programme operated by Russia.

The Paralympics begin on 7 September.

Contradicting marathon runner OP Jaisha's claim of official apathy in the Rio Olympics, co-runner Kavita Raut said that the Athletics Federation of Indian had provided her with an option of having energy drinks during the race and, therefore, she has no complaints against the apex body.

"The Athletics Federation of Indian had offered to provide personalised drinks ahead of the marathon, but I had refused. I am speaking only about myself. I refused because I am not used to take glucose or honey while running. I only take water. That is why I refused to avail personalised drink during the marathon.AFI provided all facilities and, therefore, I have no complaints against them," Kavita said.

Jaisha, who fainted at the end of gruelling race at the recently-concluded Rio Olympics, alleged that she neither received water nor energy drinks at refreshment points from the Indian officials during her marathon event under blistering heat.

"Running that distance, in that heat, you need so much water. There is a common water point after 8 km, but you need water after each kilometre. Other athletes were getting food along the way but I got nothing," added the 33-year-old Kerala-born athlete, who currently holds the national record in marathon.

While accusing the Indian authorities of showing partiality towards the long-distance runners, the veteran athlete, who finished 89th in Rio Olympics women's marathon event with a timing of 2:47:19, insisted that she would have made a better finish had she received water and refreshments on time.

As per rules, India could have assigned four officials at four points in addition to the official stations to provide water and refreshments but Jaisha had to rely on the latter which was placed about 8 km apart.

The AFI, however, had countered Jaisha's charges about official apathy and callousness in the prestigious quadrennial games, saying the athlete and her coach themselves refused to avail the option of having personalized drinks during the race.

The AFI further insisted that Jaisha and Raut had said that they would use the drinks available at the water booth and refreshment booth provided by the organizers in case they needed.

According to reports, as per the rule, Indian team manager carried 16 empty bottles, eight each for Jaisha and Raut and visited the duo and their coach Nikolai Snesarev on the eve of the women's marathon race. He provided them with the choice of personalised drink which would then be sealed in their presence and handed over to the organisers for installing them on the booth along with a placard as per the requirement of the athlete.

She may be India's best-known rights activist with millions of followers across the world but back home in Manipur, Irom Sharmila has no legal identification document.

The 44-year-old broke a 16-year fast earlier this month, saying she would fight elections to continue her campaign against a controversial law shielding armymen from prosecution against even rape and murder charges.

But she has no documents to establish even her citizenship--no permanent account number card, bank account or voter identity card '" which are necessary for her to fight the polls.

Read full story HERE

As normal life in Kashmir Valley remained affected for the 46th day owing to restrictions imposed in several parts of the region, the Union government on Tuesday announced that Home Minister Rajnath Singh will undertake two-day visit to the valley to review its security situation, beginning Wednesday.

State authorities have imposed restrictions in the valley in the wake of violence that broke out over the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani.

However, curfew has been lifted from most areas of Srinagar in view of the improving situation. It will remain in force in five police station areas of downtown city and Batamaloo, Maisuma and Kralkhud in the uptown, a police official said, adding that curfew was also in force in Anantnag town of south Kashmir.

The authorities on Monday relaxed curfew for eight hours in the jurisdiction of 12 police stations in Srinagar from 9 am and the relaxation period passed off peacefully, without any untoward incident.

14:31 Canada's Justin Trudeau defends the burkini

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended individual rights and freedoms while touting cultural diversity and tolerance when asked about a controversy swirling in France over a burkini ban.

"We should be past tolerance in Canada," Trudeau said.

Some lawmakers in Canada's Quebec province have called for outlawing "burkinis" -- body-concealing Islamic swimsuits -- following bans in at least 15 towns in France's southeast.

They include the French Riviera resort town of Nice, the target of a jihadist attack on July 14, with the proponents citing the need to prevent public disorder.

Trudeau called for "the respect of individual rights and choices. "This, he said, should be "at the top of public discourse and debate."

Trudeau dismissed the idea of a burkini ban in Canada, saying Canadians should rise above the controversy.

The US has refrained from commenting on the sedition charges slapped against Amnesty International over an event where anti-India slogans were allegedly raised, but said it respects the right of the global rights watchdog to express itself freely.

"We obviously, as we do around the world, support the right to freedom of expression and assembly, including through civil society," State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said. "We have seen these reports that local police in Bangalore have initiated preliminary investigation into allegations of sedition against Amnesty International. I direct you to the Bangalore police for more details into this investigation, but certainly we, as I said, respect the right for Amnesty and others to express themselves freely," Toner said.

13:41 When PM Modi lost his cool over GST

"Garib ki thaali mei farak nahi padna chahiye (the poor should not be affected)..." was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's angry retort to an official who sought to explain that there shall be a marginal increase in the prices of common man's items once the Goods and Services Tax is implemented.

In an interaction with officials of the Central Board of Excise and Customs and the Central Board of Direct Taxes, Modi implicated that tax collectors should be aware that this is the government policy.

Modi's outburst left the CBEC and CBDT members shocked.

Congress leader P Chidambaram today said the meeting between a delegation of J-K opposition parties and the prime minister must be welcomed if it is the first sign of "fresh thinking" even as he pitched for sending an all-party delegation to the Valley.

"Yesterday's meeting between PM and J-K opposition parties: if it is the first sign of fresh thinking, we must welcome it.

"Next step should be sending all parties delegation to J&K," the senior Congress leader said in a tweet.

Only yesterday, Congress had dismissed as "shooting from the hip" the PM's call for a dialogue to find a lasting solution to the unrest in Kashmir Valley which is on the boil for last 45 days.

"It looks that the Prime Minister's words keep changing. What he said at the all-party meeting, his remarks in the Independence Day address and today he is talking of dialogue, but dialogue with whom? There is a suspicion that these are mere words, mere empty rhetoric for the Prime Minister. He is unfortunately shooting from his hip and merely shooting the breeze," party spokesman Manish Tewari had said.

Modi had a 75-minute-long meeting with a joint opposition delegation led by former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah yesterday. The PM emphasised on the need for dialogue to find a "permanent and lasting solution" within the framework of the Constitution and also asked all political parties to work together to find a solution to the problems in Jammu and Kashmir.

At a time "sedition" is being hotly debated in Karnataka after controversial charges against Amnesty international, actor-politician Ramya faces the same allegation over her comments in praise of Pakistan after a recent visit.

Reacting to the sedition complaint filed against her, she said, "Its really sad, but such is situation in the country today. Politicians want to polarise and spread hatred. Just because borders separate us we shouldnt hate others. Dont think Im wrong. I also love Bangladesh, Sri Lanka. Of course I wont leave India, its my home & I am not going to leave my dogs. We talk of terrorism across the border, lets not forget what we do to our own fellow men."

She added, "I dont have ego at all and in any given incident, I wouldve apologised, but if I do in this case, the larger cause were fighting for would go."

The Bengal government has given bars in three-star hotels and above and clubs permission to serve liquor all 365 days a year and pruned the list of dry days to four-and-a-half days from 12.

The decision ahead of the festive season has been described as "pragmatic" by some industrialists against the backdrop of a scramble to stock up on the eve of all big holidays and in the middle of a debate about prohibition or restrictions in some states, including neighbouring Bihar.

Read full story HERE

May be Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar should brush up on his history!

Speaking at a meeting in Madhya Pradesh, Javadekar said, "The fight for independence that began in 1857 ended 90 years later when we threw the British out. We salute freedom fighters. Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Sardar Patel, Pandit (Jawahar Lal Nehru), Bhagat Singh and Rajguru who were hanged."

Uhh, Mr Minister, India's first prime minister Nehru died of natural causes in 1964. He was 74.

Patel, who went on be independent India's first home minister, died in 1950 at the age of 75.

Bose's death is still a matter of debate. The freedom fighter disappeared after a plane crash in Taiwan in 1945.

Bhagat Singh and Rajguru were indeed executed by the British in 1931.

Image: File pic of Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Vallabhai Patel.

11:47

Gujarat Assembly Speaker suspends 44 Congress MLAs for a day after ruckus over Una Dalit flogging incident.

11:26 Farmer commits suicide, blames former Karnataka minister KJ George

Former Karnataka minister KJ George finds himself in the news again for the wrong reasons. He has been accused for yet another suicide after a 60 year old farmer blamed him and Karnataka DGP Om Prakash's son Karthik for his death.

The farmer --who had a property dispute with his brother -- said Karthik was doing quarrying business on their land. He has accused Karthik of preventing him from filing a complaint due to his influence. The farmer's son has filed a complaint with Magdi police in Ramanagara.

Recently, MK Ganapathy, a deputy superintendent with the state police committed suicide in Kodagu, hours after he held a press conference accusing George, his son Rana and two top police officials of harassing him.

11:20

JUST IN: Nine-member parliamentary inquiry committee on Bhagwant Mann's viral video case to meet at 4 pm today.

11:02 Narsingh's sabotage theory dismissed by CAS

In a detailed report, the Court of Arbitration for Sports has said wrestler Narsingh Yadav failed to produce any "real evidence" regarding the "sabotage theory" he had advanced and the balance of probabilities was that he took the "banned substance intentionally in tablet form", which is why he has been banned for four years.

In its full award, the ad hoc panel of the CAS relied on expert evidence that Narsingh's dope offence was not due to one-time ingestion of the prohibited substance, and its concentration in the first test result (June 25) was so high that it had to come from an oral ingestion of one or two tablets of 'methandienone', rather than from a drink where the powder had been mixed with water.

The expert opinion was given by Professor Christiane Ayotte from Canada, who was presented by the World Anti-Doping Agency.

Narsingh's urine sample taken out-of competition on June 25 was found to contain metabolites of methandienone and long term metabolite of methandienone. Another sample taken out of competition on July 5 was also found to contain long term metabolites of methandienone.

Rubbishing the sabotage theory of Narsingh, the CAS panel observed, "...all in all found the sabotage theory possible, but not probable and certainly not grounded in any real evidence. The panel therefore determined that the athlete had failed to satisfy his burden of proof and the panel was satisfied that the most likely explanation was that the athlete simply and intentionally ingested the prohibited substance in tablet form on more than one occasion."

CAS had handed Narsingh a four-year ban in its 'operative award' on August 18 barely hours before his 74kg freestyle opening bout was scheduled at the Rio Olympics.

Two earthquakes measuring 3.1 and 5.5 on the Richter scale shook Assam on Tuesday, forcing people to rush out of their houses in panic.

There was no immediate report of any injury or damage to property due to the tremors, the police said.

Met office said the first quake of 3.1 intensity rocked Guwahati and other places of the state at 5.30 am. It had its epicentre at latitude 25.6 degree north and longitude 93.2 degree east at a depth of 10 km in Karbi Anglong district of the state.

The second tremor of moderate intensity was at 7.41 am with its epicentre 23.8 north and 94.5 degree east in the Indo-Myanmar region at a depth of 100 km, the office said.

A report from Shillong said a moderate intensity quake also rocked Meghalaya and most of the north eastern region.

Officials at the Regional Seismological Centre said that the earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter Scale occurred at around 7:11 am and its epicentre was traced to a depth of 100 km underneath the earth's crust in Myanmar but close to Manipur.

There was no report of any casualty following the tremor which lasted for a few seconds only.

After being given a grand welcome in Hyderabad, PV Sindhu, silver medallist at the Olympics, was accorded a victory procession in Vijaywada in Andhra Pradesh.

Both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, born out of a bifurcation two years ago, claim that 21-year-old Sindhu belongs to them and so the star athlete has to participate in double celebrations.

Thousands had showed up in Hyderabad yesterday, lining the 30-km route from the airport to the Gachibowli stadium that Sindhu travelled in an open double-decker bus, specially driven in from Mumbai.

Patidar quota stir spearhead Hardik Patel used the agitation as a tool to satisfy his ambition to emerge as a leader and has become a 'crorepati' within one year of launching the movement, two of his former aides have claimed.

Hardik's former close associates -- Chirag Patel and Ketan Patel -- have levelled these allegations against him in an open letter addressed to him, indicating fissures in the agitation launched by Patidars to seek OBC status and qualify for reservation in government jobs and education in Gujarat.

In the letter, Chirag and Ketan alleged that the 23-year-old Hardik has become a crorepati (millionaire) within one year of launching the Patel quota agitation.

Your ambition to become a leader, selfishness and urge to be wealthy has caused huge damage to the community as well as to our agitation, alleged the PAAS leaders.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi today as the flood situation worsened in the state. More than five lakh people have been affected and over 2 lakh people have reportedly lost their homes in flood-ravaged Bihar.

At least 50 people have been taken ill after inhaling toxic gas which leaked from a fertilizer factory in south-eastern port city of Chittagong, officials said today.

"The gas is spreading from the Diammonium phosphate factory causing breathing problems of the people within several kilometre in the neighbourhood. Fire fighters are trying to stop the emission," officer-in-charge of the nearby police station said.

The people were admitted to the state-run Chittagong hospital on the banks of Karnaphuli River last night.

TV reports quoting the factory officials said one of the gas tanks with a 500 tonne capacity leaked around 11:30 pm while the ammonia gas spread across to the other bank of the Karnaphuli. "Our people are working to plug the leakage," a factory official said.

In May, Maharashtra's Department of Animal Husbandry issued a call for volunteers engaged in animal welfare activities on religious grounds to apply for "honorary" non-salaried position of welfare officers to serve as 'eyes to monitor the beef ban' imposed last year.

The advertisement stipulated that they have no political affiliations. Since then, a deluge of 2,388 applications has come rushing in, each recommended by district deputy commissioners of animal husbandry, with officers having "vouched for the sincerity and integrity of the applicant" and taking "responsibility for their conduct'.

Of these, 2,371 applications were officially admitted, awaiting scrutiny by the high court-appointed committee to monitor animal welfare laws.

Read more HERE

Indian carriers are increasingly seeking the government's nod to fly to the Gulf from western India (mainly Ahmedabad) over the Arabian Sea to avoid the circuitous route over Pakistan. Security fears due to deteriorating India-Pakistan ties as well as economic factors are driving the requests. Air India, Jet Airways, IndiGo and SpiceJet operate flights to Gulf over Pakistan.

"In the past few days, India has asked some non-scheduled aircraft flying from Pakistan to return and Pakistan may also retaliate. This is one fear that is behind the demand and the other is pure and simple cost factors," said an airline official.

Defence authorities are yet to give clearance to the direct access as it involves flying over some sensitive areas.

A direct dialogue between India and Pakistan is good for them and the region, the US has said as it voiced support to meetings at any level between the two countries. "We strongly support all efforts between India and Pakistan that can contribute to a more stable and prosperous region, and that includes meetings at any level between Indian and Pakistani officials," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Mark Toner said.

"Our longstanding position has always been that India and Pakistan stand to benefit from a normalisation of relations and practical cooperation, and so we would be encouraged that India and Pakistan continue to engage in direct dialogue aimed at reducing tensions," he added.

The State Department's statement came days after India rejected Pakistan's proposal to hold Foreign Secretary-level talks on Kashmir and asserted that it would like to discuss aspects related to cross-border terrorism which are central to the current situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

08:34

JUST IN: A 5.5 magnitude earthquake hit Myanmar-India border region at 7:11 am this morning: IMD

08:15 Actor Ramya booked for sedition for 'Pakistan not hell' remark

Film actor-turned-politician Ramya, who was on social media for her "Pakistan is not hell' remark, has also been booked for sedition. The complaint accused Ramya of "insulting India" and "provoking the people of India" by "appreciating Pakistan, which is a traditional enemy of India".

According to a Kannada news channel, Ramya describing her Islamabad visit to attend a SAARC Young Parliamentarians Conference in August, said, "Minister Manohar Parrikar said that going to Pakistan is like going to hell. It is nothing like that. People there are just like us and there is no difference. They treated us very well

Illinois Senator Mark Kirk criticized President Barack Obama for delivering money to the Iranian government in coordination with the release of Americans being held prisoner there -- saying he was "acting like the drug dealer in chief."

The comments came in a sit-down last week with the editorial board of The State Journal-Register, according to the Illinois paper's political writer, reports CNN.

"We can't have the president of the United States acting like the drug dealer in chief," Kirk said. "Giving clean packs of money to a ... state sponsor of terror. Those 500-euro notes will pop up across the Middle East. .... We're going to see problems in multiple (countries) because of that money given to them."

Read full story HERE.

A 43-year-old Indian migrant's release from police custody after he tried to abduct a small girl from a beach resort in Italy has sparked calls for his deportation.

Justice Minister Andrea Orlando has sent inspectors to the Ragusa city prosecutor's office after Ram Lubhaya was caught in the act of trying to abduct a 5-year-old girl off the beach near the Sicilian city of Ragusabut immediately released, because attempted kidnapping is a non-carcerable offence under Italian law.

The parents chased him down, and had to fight with him to get him to let go of their child. The man fled, but was arrested an hour later based on eyewitness descriptions, Ansa news agency reported.

Prosecutor Giulia Bisello ordered the man - who has a criminal record, no residency permit, and currently makes a living giving henna tattoos on the beach where he also sometimes spends the night - released without questioning.

The American epidemiologist whose unwavering leadership resulted in the eradication nearly 40 years ago of smallpox, one of the world's most feared contagious diseases, has died.

Dr. Donald "D.A." Henderson was 87 when he died on Friday at a hospice care facility in Towson, Maryland, from complications following a hip fracture, Johns Hopkins University said in a statement. Henderson was a former dean of the school's Bloomberg School of Public Health.

He was most recently employed as a distinguished scholar at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center's Center for Health Security in Baltimore.

"D.A. Henderson truly changed the world for the better," the center's director, Tom Inglesby, said in a statement. Henderson was working on smallpox eradication at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1966 when the World Health Organization chose him to lead the global

eradication effort.

The United Nations' top aid official voiced anger today at world powers' inability to agree on a truce to allow aid into Aleppo, warning of an "unparalleled" humanitarian catastrophe in the battleground Syrian city.

Stephen O'Brien told the Security Council that plans were in place to quickly send 70 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid to eastern Aleppo if all sides agreed on a truce.

"I'm not going to pretend. I'm angry, very angry," O'Brien told council members holding their third meeting on the crisis in Aleppo this month.

"As the UN's humanitarian chief, this callous carnage that is Syria has long since moved from the cynical to the sinful."

O'Brien renewed his call for a 48-hour pause in fighting in Aleppo, where the violence escalated sharply in July when regime forces surrounded the rebel-held east.

Up to 275,000 people in eastern Aleppo have been almost entirely cut off from food, water, medicine and electricity for over a month, while 1.5 million people living in the west of the city also face severe shortages.

A German court has ruled that a public school was within its rights to prohibit a Muslim woman from wearing a face-covering veil while attending high school night classes.

The Osnabrueck administrative court today rejected the appeal of the 18-year-old German woman to wear the face-covering niqab, with only a slit for her eyes, who had argued it was important for her religious beliefs, the dpa news agency reported.

The school rejected her request, saying it hampered teachers from having "open communication" with her and thus harmed their educational mandate.

Security officials from German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative bloc last week proposed a ban on the burqa and other face-covering veils in public schools, courts, and in other situations, but it still needs to pass several hurdles.

Turkey's foreign minister says the country has withdrawn its ambassador to Austria following a growing diplomatic spat.

Mevlut Cavusoglu said today that the ambassador was called back to Ankara for "consultations."

Ties between Turkey and Austria have been tense for several weeks, with a top Austrian official saying Turkey was heading toward a dictatorship and other leaders calling for an end to Turkey's European Union membership talks.

Turkish armed forces today launched artillery strikes on separate targets of Islamic State jihadists and the Democratic Union Party Kurdish militia

in northern Syria, television reports said.

Turkish army howitzers stationed inside Turkey fired on IS targets in the town of Jarablus and PYD targets around the area of Manbij, the CNN-Turk and NTV channels reported.

Turkey was deploying tanks and heavy weaponry on the border for the strikes, the reports added.

The reports came after as activists said hundreds of Ankara-backed rebels were preparing an offensive against the IS group in Syria.

This offensive coincides with a similar move by Syrian Kurdish militia, potentially putting them on a collision course in the fight for IS-held Jarablus.

Former French leader Nicolas Sarkozy launched a fresh bid today to win back the presidency, announcing he would seek the nomination of his centre-right party to run in next year's election.

The pugnacious 61-year-old conservative, who was deeply unpopular by the end of his five years as president, had made no secret of his ambition to reconquer the top office.

"I have decided to be a candidate in the 2017 presidential election," Sarkozy, who was voted out of office in 2012, wrote in the foreword to a new book "Tout pour la France" (All for France) due out later this week.

His aides told AFP he would be stepping down today as the leader of the Republicans party to focus on his campaign.

"This book is the starting point," Sarkozy tweeted, together with a link to the foreword.

00:06 Top headlines of the last hour

10 NDRF teams rushed to flood-hit Bihar, Uttar Pradesh

ULFA kidnaps Assam BJP leader's son, demands Rs 1cr as ransom

Now, EC to review national, state status of political parties every 10 years

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