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I am not scared of anyone: Sonia Gandhi

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Sonia Gandhi

New Delhi: “I am the daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi. I am not scared of anyone,” a combative Congress President Sonia Gandhi asserted today, invoking the legacy of the late Prime Minister in the wake of the National Herald case.

“I am the daughter-in-law of Indira Gandhi. I am not scared of anyone. I am not disturbed.” Gandhi told reporters after a meeting of the strategy committee of Congress party in Parliament.

She was asked about the Delhi High Court rejecting their pleas for quashing the summons by a Delhi court against them in the National Herald case.

Her remarks came as the metropolitan magistrate’s court here earlier in the day allowed her exemption plea as well as that of Rahul Gandhi and others for the day.

The court, however, directed them to appear in person on December 19.

The National Herald case had its echo in Parliament with Congress members staging protest in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha over what they described as “political vendetta”.

They, however, did not specifically mention the National Herald case in their protests in either of the House.

(PTI)

Siddaramaiah govt likely to ban telecast of astrology shows

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astrology_shows

Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah led Congress government in Karnataka is all set to ban astrology-based shows being telecast on regional Kannada TV channels, as Chief Minister Siddaramaiah believes that too much of superstition is being spread by the astrologers.

 

“Every TV channel wants to air astrology-based shows in Karnataka. In my home too, the scenario is no different. It is time we banned such shows,” Siddaramaiah said in Bengaluru on Monday. The chief minister was speaking at a programme organised to felicitate a senior leader of the Dalits.

This is not for the first time that the Congress government has proposed imposition of a ban on astrology based shows in Karnataka.

Though not an atheist, Siddaramaiah has been a critic of superstitious practices, including astrology. In Karnataka, all the leading TV channels have astrology based shows, which are aired at prime time. The shows enjoy high TRPs.

(Agencies)

Karnataka Lokayukta resigns over alleged bribery scandal

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Bhaskar-Rao

Bengaluru: Facing the prospect of his removal, controversial Karnataka Lokayukta Y Bhaskar Rao has resigned over an alleged extortion racket in the anti-graft ombudsman’s office involving his son.

Rao, who had resisted growing calls for stepping down following the allegation, had tendered his resignation on Monday and it was accepted by Governor Vajubhai R Vala today, ending months of uncertainty hanging over the institution.

“Hon’ble Governor of Karnataka is pleased to accept the resignation of Dr. Justice Y. Bhaskar Rao, as Lokayukta of Karnataka State with immediate effect,” a Raj Bhavan communique said today.

Rao is on a long leave since July last after his son Ashwin Rao was arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in connection with the case.

A motion moved by BJP and JDS and also supported by the ruling Congress seeking the removal of Rao is pending before the Karnataka Assembly with the Speaker Kagodu Thimappa considering it before referring the issue to the Karnataka High Court Chief Justice to take the process forward.

According to the Lokayukta Act, recently amended to simplify rules for removal of the anti-graft ombudsman, on admission of the motion, the presiding officers shall refer the matter to the High Court Chief Justice for investigation into the grounds over which the removal is sought.

If the charges against the Lokayukta are proved by the inquiry, it is then taken up for consideration and adoption of the motion and sent to the Governor for assent.

The investigation for proof of misbehaviour or incapacity of Lokayukta has to be done as provided in the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, by a three-member committee, comprising two judges and a jurist.

The scandal surfaced after Lokayukta Superintendent of Police Sonia Narang wrote a letter to the Registrar of Karnataka Lokayukta about the complaint she received from a person who alleged that someone from the Lokayukta office demanded Rs 1 crore in bribe to avoid a raid.

The SIT has arrested 11 persons, including Ashwin Rao, and registered five cases in connection with the alleged racket.

In another development, a motion seeking removal of Upa Lokayukta Subhash Adi, moved by the Congress but not supported by BJP and JDS, is also before the Assembly.

In their petition against Adi, the ruling party members have accused him of “misuse of office, misconduct and inefficiency”. The Opposition maintains there are no specific charges against Adi and the move against him is an attempt to shut down the Lokayukta institution itself.

Former Upa Lokayukta SB Majage had earlier alleged that Adi had closed a case of misconduct against a medical officer from Hubballi, which was a being handled by him. Following that, some Congress leaders had demanded Adi’s resignation.

The Congress leaders had also alleged that the medical officer was a relative of Opposition BJP leader in the Assembly Jagadish Shettar, during whose Chief Ministership Adi was appointed as the Upa Lokayukta.

Procedure for removal of the Upa Lokayukta is similar to that for a Lokayukta.
The Assembly Speaker has, however, said that he is not convinced with the evidence produced that alleged Adi had shown favouritism and exceeded his jurisdiction.

(Agencies)

Sanjay Dutt to be freed from jail in March

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sanjay_dutt

Pune: Incarcerated Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt, whose five-year sentence for his involvement in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts was confirmed by the Supreme Court in March 2013, will be freed from prison by March 7, 2016, official sources said here on Tuesday.

The sources indicated that barring last-minute glitches, Sanjay would be released by March 7 after completing the remaining 42-month period of his sentence.

Dutt was acquitted of terror charges under the TADA, but found guilty of possessing illegal arms, acquired ostensibly to protect his family during the communal conflagration that engulfed Mumbai after the demolition of the Babri Mosque on December 6, 1992.

Following the apex court orders, his bail was cancelled and he was ordered to surrender within four weeks, which he complied with on May 16, 2013 and was lodged in Arthur Road Central Jail.

A week later, he was shifted to the Yeravada Central Jail, Pune, where he has been lodged since then and has earned the reputation of being a well-behaved inmate.

Of the five-year sentence, the actor had already served 18 months as an undertrial and was required to undergo another 42 months, which is now on the verge of completing.

In between serving time, Dutt was granted either parole or furlough on various grounds, attracting a lot of criticism from various quarters, while some prominent personalities demanded his release from jail.

(Agencies)

National Herald case: HC dismisses Gandhis’ plea against summons

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sonia-rahul

New Delhi: In a setback to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi, the Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed their plea to quash summons issued to them by a trial court on BJP leader Subramanian Swamy’s complaint in the National Herald case.

Justice Sunil Gaur dismissed their pleas which means the Gandhis will have to appear before the trial court in the case.

Apart from the Gandhis, the court also dismissed the pleas of Congress treasurer Motilal Vora, family friend Suman Dubey and party leader Oscar Fernandes who had moved the high court for quashing of summons to them by the trial court.

On June 26, the trial court issued summons to the Congress leaders on Swamy’s complaint about “cheating” in the acquisition of Associated Journals Ltd. (AJL) by Young India Ltd. (YIL) – “a firm in which Sonia and Rahul Gandhi each own a 38 percent stake”.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who had appeared for Sonia Gandhi, sought quashing of the proceedings initiated by the lower court against her and the others, saying that the complaint made by Swamy against them were only “allegations without any supporting proof”.

He had said there was no illegality in Young India Ltd. (YIL) taking over Associated Journals Ltd. (AJL), the publisher of the now-defunct National Herald newspaper, as per the Companies Act.

Swamy had claimed that Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, as majority shareholders of YIL, benefited from the acquisition of AJL. He alleged that AJL had received an interest-free loan of Rs.90.25 crore from the Congress and that the party transferred the debt to YIL for Rs.50 lakh.

At the time, AJL, which had Vora as its chairman, claimed that it could not repay the loan and agreed to transfer the company and its assets to YIL.

Filing the plea in the high court, the Congress leaders had said Swamy was a political opponent and the present criminal proceedings were initiated only with an intent to secure an oblique political objective.

(IANS)

Insects found in Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali noodles

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Baba-Ramdev-noodles

Haryana: Baba Ramdev’s Patanjali Noodles is in trouble again.

First, it was not being able to obtain the mandatory product approval from the Food Safety and Regulatory Authority of India (FSSAI), and now a customer in Haryana has founds bugs inside a packet of Patanjali Noodles.

According to reports, the bugs were spotted inside the sealed pack by a man who purchased it from Swadeshi store in Narwana, in the Jind region of Haryana.

The customer is now reportedly gearing up to file a lawsuit against Patanjali noodles.

Soon after the launch of Patanjali, it had come under the scanner of government where FSSAI had said that Ramdev did not get approval for Patanjali Noodles but packets displayed the license number.

Apparently, FSSAI had given approval for Patanjali’s pasta brand. “We have licence for Pasta in central category from FSSAI. As per FSSAI, noodles come under the ‘pasta’ category. FSSAI has given us licence for relabeling in the pasta category,” Patanjali said in a statement.

(Agencies)

SC declines PIL on uniform civil code

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Supreme Court

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a public interest petition seeking direction to parliament to enact a uniform civil code to put an end to alleged discrimination being faced by Muslim women.

An apex court bench headed by Chief Justice T.S. Thakur said that it is for parliament to take a call on the issue and it was not in the realm of the apex court to issue a direction on this.

Chief Justice Thakur, in a disapproving note, told senior counsel Gopal Subramaniam that if such petitions were filed without regard to the law, the court will come down very heavily.

The court asked why none of those who are being allegedly discriminated against have come forward for redressal.

Advocate Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay had filed the PIL.

(Agencies)

Three injured in Guwahati blast

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The explosions occurred at 3:18 pm and 3:20 pm. (ANI Twitter account)

The explosions occurred at 3:18 pm and 3:20 pm. (ANI Twitter account)

Guwahati: Three people, including a minor, were injured in a low-intensity explosion at the busy Fancy Bazar area here on Saturday afternoon, police said, adding that witnesses said there were two explosions.

Police suspected the involvement of the anti-talk faction of ULFA militants initially, but it later turned out to be a low-intensity explosion.

“The impact of the explosion does not indicate that it was a grenade or high-powered bomb. Had it been a grenade or bomb, the damage would have been more,” said Guwahati Police Commissioner Mukesh Agarwala.

He said that witnesses said there were two explosions.

“We are investigating the matter and we have called the forensic teams to ascertain the exact nature of the explosives that led to the explosion,” said Agarwala.

(IANS)

Chennai residents suffer drinking water shortage

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Chennai-water

Chennai: An intermittent light drizzle since the morning on Saturday has added to the worries of Chennai residents who are battling the worst floods in a century amid shortage of drinking water and power cuts.

Chennai and its suburbs were battered by record rains for the past one month, leaving at least 325 people dead.

Unlike some areas such as Mylapore, Adyar and Annasalai where the water level has receded and electricity supply has been partially restored, people in many pockets in north Chennai continued to remain cut-off.

“Rumours of surplus water being released are also a cause of serious worry,” Revathi Vasan, a resident of West Mambalam, told IANS.

She said power supply has not been restored in her locality while their is water- logging around her apartment complex and on the roads.

Lakshman, a resident of Adyar, told IANS: “Milk was available at the shop near our apartment. It was sold at the normal price. But water cans have become very costly.”

In several localities, apartment owners pumped out stagnant water through hired pumps.

Southern Railway on Saturday announced operation of a special train from Chennai Beach Station to Bengaluru. The train will leave Chennai Beach at 4.30 p.m on Saturday.

A special train will be operated from Bengaluru to Chennai Beach Station on December 6.

Suburban train services between Chennai Egmore – Tambaram have commenced.

Fish carts and two wheelers were the mode of transport for patients to reach hospitals during the past three days, said an official.

N. Sathyabhama, director of medical services and quality-southern region at Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd., said the hospital also received patients from several other hospitals affected by floods and power cuts.

“Some patients came by fish cart. One was brought by her brother on the bike as that was the only means of navigation through the heavily flooded Greams Lane (where the hospital is located),” Sathyabhama told IANS.

She said there was no power supply for 57 hours in one block and 69 hours in another and the situation was managed with generators.

As a safety measure the electricity power was cut for a couple of days in Chennai and its suburbs.

Many household items such as plastic chairs and tables, beds and TVs have been washed out to the shore of the Adyar river and are being collected by rag-pickers.

The government Royapettah Hospital and Sri Ramachandra Hospitals also got patients from the hospitals affected by flood and power cut.

Royapettah Hospital got 23 patients from other hospitals in flood affected areas, a senior official at the hospital told IANS.

(IANS)

PM should get a ‘salary hike’: Arvind Kejriwal

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Arvind Kejriwal

New Delhi: Seeking to deflect criticism over the proposed hike in the salaries of Delhi MLAs, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today said Pime Minister Narendra Modi should get a “salary hike” as well.

In a strident defence of the decision of his government, Kejriwal said even after the hike is effected, MLAs won’t earn even “120th fraction” of what editors of media organisations and top TV anchors earn.

“How is Rs 1 lakh per month unreasonable? If the Prime Minister’s salary is less than this, even his salary should be raised. We all demand that his salary should be hiked,” he said while speaking in Delhi Assembly over Janlokpal.

However, in a tongue-in-cheek remark, Kejriwal envisaged an embarassing situation for Modi when he encounters US President Barack Obama. “Kal ko Obama miley toh kya bolenege…(if he meets Obama tomorrow, what will he say. It (PM’s salary) should be at least 8-10 lakh.”

Kejriwal said it was important to give legislators proper salaries and other facilities but “if they still indulge in corruption don’t spare them.”

Delhi Assembly had yesterday cleared a bill providing for hefty hike in salaries of MLAs and ministers. As per its provision, the basic salary of legislators will rise from current Rs 12,000 to Rs 50,000 and their overall monthly package will be around Rs 2.1 lakh as against Rs 88,000 at present.

(Agencies)

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