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JULY 19
Maharashtra bans play on Godse
Bowing to pressure from the central government, and keeping in
mind the fierce opposition it has generated, the Maharashtra
government has banned the controversial play, Mi Nathuram Godse Boltoy.
Women's Bill deferred till Vajpayee completes fresh peace talks
The Union government has dropped the move to introduce the controversial Bill next week. Meanwhile, the AIADMK struck a discordant note, demanding reservation for backward classes
and minorities within the 33 per cent.
'The ploy is to cover up for Gandhi's dishonesty'
'The controversial Marathi play Mi Nathuram
Godse Boltoy has traced history in the right
perspective. By cancelling it, a false picture of history is sought to be portrayed before
the younger generation...' Gopal Godse, the brother of
Gandhi's assassin, speaks out!
LS deputy speaker likely to be a Vajpayee man
The Lok Sabha is all set to witness a contest for
the post of deputy speaker as the government and Opposition
have failed to reach an agreement. But indications are that it
won't be much of a contest -- with the 11-member TDP backing it,
the ruling party appears comfortably placed to breeze home.
Bofors case won't be affected by Win Chadha's
Belizian status: CBI
The former Bofors company agent in India had secured a
passport from Belize, a central American state, in
December 1992. However, the CBI has
taken 'prompt steps' to ensure that
its investigations are not affected
by this move, Bureau sources said.
Win back pro-Mulayam Muslims, party tells
new UPCC chief
Khursheed's task of revitalising the UP Congress looks a difficult proposition because
members of his own community continue to nurse a grievance against the party for failing
to protect the Babri mosque, Congress sources said.
Four more BJD MPs tell Patnaik to behave
Tathagat Satpathy, Padmanav Behera, Prasanna
Patsani and Bhagban Majhi urged the party president
to take the political affairs committee, the BJD legislature party,
and the parliamentary party into confidence while
deciding party affairs. They were reacting to
Patnaik's 'unilateral' induction of four Dal leaders.
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
New US bill seeks to vest Clinton
with greater discretion in waiving sanctions
Congressman Frank Pallone's bill would clear the way for international financial institutions,
including the World Bank, to resume normal lending to India and
Pakistan that has been stalled because of US objections.
Talbott will meet PM, Advani in Delhi
The US deputy secretary of state's visit to New Delhi comes on the heels of the
US senate giving President Clinton the authority
to lift, for up to a year, the non-military sanctions imposed against
India and Pakistan.
Indian machismo forced us to go nuclear, says Sharief
The Pakistani prime minister said the country would tide over the current crisis and
emerge as a prosperous and strong nation. ''The government is
determined to make efforts on a war-footing to achieve the
objectives of self-reliance,'' he told a public meeting in Islamabad.
THE REDIFF SPECIALS
Statehood brings fears of poverty and partition to Pondicherry
Statehood, it would seem, is only the start of
problems for the tiny Union territory and not their end.
Sex, Drugs and Bill Clinton
"Oxford is like that, I suppose. You share a few years there
together. You share the same interests, ideals, ambitions.
And then you go out into the real world, and that really sorts you out. Someone ends up becoming the president of the US and
someone else," David Allen smiled ruefully, "ends up making his
way to an ashram in South India to figure out the meaning of life."
THE REDIFF INTERVIEWS
'We lepers, we don't care about compassion. We want action'
'The slogan of eradication of leprosy by 2000 by the Indian government and WHO, to my mind, is wishful thinking, Eradication by that year is stuck with dreams, notions and presumptions. Eradication is impossible. Tuberculosis is something far more dangerous nowadays. So, funds for leprosy have been shifted. Here and at WHO, the emphasis has shifted from leprosy to TB. It is most unfortunate,' says Gerhard Fischer.
'If there is an election for the Father of the Nation title today, I would not vote for Gandhiji'
'The nation does not need a father. The nation should be run by youths. Why do we need old people to run a nation. If you are old, one should retire and leave things to the youngsters. And that is why our nation is lagging behind the rest of the world, because old men run our country.' Pradeep Dalvi,playwright of the controversial Mi Nathuram Godse Boltoy,in an exclusive interview.
THE REDIFF COLUMNISTS
The menace of the other Gill
Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj thought she knew how to put Prasar Bharati Chief
Executive Officer S S Gill
in his place. However, things now seem to be
progressing in a manner none too pleasant -- for Swaraj,
that is...' Capital Buzz. Political gossip from the Delhi
Durbar.
Boy Bureaucrat has no say in Man Minister's affairs!
'Officials in the PMO are quite worried about
the rigidity in attitude of certain ministers. A number
of them, mostly belonging to the allies, are doing whatever they feel like, unmindful of what the bureaucrats advice. For instance, Food Minister Surjeet Singh Barnala. He has shown his largesse towards sugar
mill owners by deciding to purchase 110,000 tonnes of sugar at the
higher rate of Rs 1,350 per quintal,' says Rajiv Shukla.
JULY 18
Congress disrupts Godse play in Bombay
Friday's performance of the controversial drama, Mi Nathuram Godse Boltoy, was cancelled following protests from Congress activists. The play's fate now hangs in balance, with the Maharashtra cabinet scheduled to decide on the Centre's advice to ban it, on Saturday.
Sonia rebuffs Pawar, sends Prataprao Bhosle as MPCC chief
Even while ignoring the Sharad Pawar group's demand to send someone close to them as PCC chief, the Congress president has attempted a balancing act by revoking disciplinary action against 10 Maharashtra legislators for cross-voting in the recent Rajya Sabha elections.
Vajpayee working for consensus over Women's Bill
But the bill granting reservations for women is nowhere near being passed, with opinion still divided among parliamentarians about its contours.
Home ministry finds overall law and order situation 'satisfactory'
Except for the insurgency in J&K and the North-East, and the
naxal violence in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, the situation
in the country causes no worry, according to its
annual report.
EC backs down on Model Code, but steams up on criminalisation
The turnaround on the Code of Conduct
forms part of a booklet, Electoral reforms -- views and
proposals, released by Chief Election
Commissioner M S Gill in New Delhi.
Delhi HC cancels Mayawati's anticipatory bail
The Delhi high court on Friday revoked
its earlier order granting anticipatory bail
to former Uttar Pradesh chief
minister and Bahujan Samaj Party general
secretary Mayawati in the Rs 36.6 million floating
pumps purchase case. However, it granted her 10
days to obtain relief from an appropriate court.
British high commission tells Indian atomic scientists they aren't welcome in London
The deputy high commission of the United Kingdom
in Madras has decided to refer to London the visa applications of
all Indian atomic research scientists.
Supreme Court stays defamation case against Kesri
The Supreme Court on Friday stayed further trial
in a defamation case against former Congress president Sitaram Kesri
scheduled to begin on Saturday before chief metropolitan magistrate
Prem Kumar. The court also stayed trial in similar cases filed by the Rashtriya
Swayamsewak Sangh at Pratapgarh in Chittorgarh in Rajasthan
and before the civil judge of Purulia district in West Bengal.
AIADMK-MDMK parting of ways seems final
While leaders of the AIADMK, Pattali Makkal Katchi, Janata
Party and Tamizhaga Rajiv Congress submitted a
memorandum to the prime minister on Thursday, the MDMK representatives chose to go along with BJP members
of Parliament from Tamil Nadu.
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
No decision to lift sanctions taken, clarifies US
US official James Rubin said there had been some 'unfortunate' interpretations of the amendment passed by the senate on Wednesday. ''We want authority to waive sanctions so that we would have flexibility in our dealings with India and Pakistan to help us meet our objective (of nuclear non-proliferation). We are not walking back from our sanctions policy towards India and Pakistan, or lifting or easing, and nor is it correct that lifting or easing of sanctions is imminent," he said.
Islamabad looks to Talbott's visit with hope
Pakistan welcomes the US deputy secretary of state's visit next week as a positive step,
and expects a complete waiver on all economic sanctions. A foreign
ministry spokesman said a cooperative approach is always better than
a coercive approach.
Sanctions are squeezing Pakistan dry, cries finance minister
The flow of money from lenders around the world into Pakistan's coffers had dried up since the sanctions were imposed last month. ''Our reserves are low. If we don't get new money, then obviously we are unable to service our debts,'' said Pakistan's Finance Minister Sartaj Aziz in an interview to The Washington Times.
US to review policy on science talks with India, Pakistan
The review decision could have an impact on Indian and Pakistani scientists engaged in nuclear and missile development programmes. It includes the visa application process for individuals involved in these fields.
Resolve Kashmir to defuse tension, Pakistan urges SAARC leaders
Pakistani envoy Muhammad Zaki has said in Colombo that Kashmir could not be separated from the nuclear issue, and urged leaders of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal and
Sri Lanka to push Indian Prime Minister A B Vajpayee to open
'serious talks' with Pakistan.
THE REDIFF INTERVIEW
'Reservation must be for those who deserve it, it cannot be cornered by upper class women alone'
'We don't want the Women's Reservation Bill to be introduced in its present form. I hope that OBC and Muslim women will be given due representation.' Laloo Prasad Yadav, in his first interview since Monday's events.
THE REDIFF COLUMNISTS
Don't demonise Godse, don't deify Gandhi either
'Godse's family has suffered enough ignominy, stigma over the last 50 years. Given that Indian jurisprudence believes in reform and restitution, and also that a criminal ceases to be one on serving his sentence, how fair is to expect the Godses to carry the cross forever?' asks Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
The Politics of Bungee Jumping
'Will this bill do any good for the Indian woman? Which leads me to the more
basic question: Do reservations do good for anyone? Must we always see ourselves in terms of our past? Setting right historic wrongs. Empowering the weaker castes. Enforcing gender equality through legislative measures. Or is it time we readied ourselves for a new era in which everyone is actually equal, irrespective of caste, creed, religion, gender or sexual
preference?' asks Pritish Nandy.
TODAY'S WEATHER
Wet weather in South India
Rain or thundershowers are likely to occur
at many places in Andhra Pradesh, coastal
Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep.
JULY 17
Sonia accused of creating 'Christian coterie', sparks Congressmen's ire
Among the favourite leaders are former Union minister Margaret Alva, former Lok Sabha speaker Purno A Sangma, party general secretary Oscar Fernandes, Kerala leader A K Antony and the party's chief whip in the Lok Sabha P J Kurien. ''We do not know whether it is a deliberate attempt from Sonia to induct pro-Christian leaders to key posts in the party. But we feel that she is very sympathetic to Christian and Muslim leaders in the Congress than the Hindus,'' an All India Congress Committee secretary told Rediff On The
Net.
Opposition calls for ban on play glorifying Godse
Amid shouts of 'shame', Opposition members charged the government with being soft on anti-national activities and said Godse had drawn inspiration from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and that this force was encouraging staging such plays.
Congress formally asks for OBC, minorities quota in women's bill
CWC member Arjun Singh declined to specify whether the party would move an amendment to incorporate the proposal to include OBCs and the minorities, but made it clear that the initiative for reaching a consensus rested with the government. After all Prime Minister A B Vajapyee is swearing by consensus on every issue facing the country, he remarked.
PM rejects Sino-US communique on mediating between India and Pakistan
Vajpayee asserted in the Rajya Sabha that India would not accept any outside intervention in the resolution of differences among South Asian nations.
Not ISI alone, but economic backwardness too fuels insurgency in NE, says Advani
It is wrong to blame ISI alone for insurgency in the area. It is the result of discontentment among the people who feel alienated, the home minister told the Rajya Sabha.
Press Council chief is concerned over 'judicial populism'
P B Sawant said instead of playing to the gallery, a judge
should be ready to take the podium and ''swim against the tide''.
But in the garb of judicial activism, these judges were laying down
wrong laws and precedents. He said populist judgments adverselyaffected the entire society.
Karunanidhi, Jaya and allies call on PM to notify Cauvery award
The political foes on Thursday exerted pressure, separately, on Vajpayee to have his government honour the Cauvery tribunal's interim award to Tamil Nadu without further delay.
Ministry denies reports on Agni
Test-firing of the miniaturised nuclear warhead-tipped improved ballistic missile Agni is not scheduled, the defence ministry said.
Kar demands more UN observers at Kashmir LoC
Senior Congress leader and former MP Ghulam Rasool Kar has demanded an increase in the number of United Nations
Military Observers at the Line of Control in
Kashmir in view of the increased troop movements
there.
Postal strike called off
About 60,000 postal employees returned to work on Thursday after union leaders ended their eight-day-old strike, reposing "full faith" in Communication Minister Sushma Swaraj's assurances that their
10 demands would be settled sympathetically.
Widow has 'pre-existing right' to maintenance: SC
In a significant judgment, the Supreme Court has held that the right to maintenance of a Hindu woman flows from the social and temporal relationship between the husband and the wife and that right in the case of a widow is a 'pre-existing right.'
Film Development Council set up
Renowned litterateur U R Anantha Murthy, veteran
film-makers Sunil Dutt and Ramanand Sagar, and
members of Parliament Jaya Prada and Vinod Khanna
are among the 39 members of the newly-constituted
Council, set up in the wake of recognition of cinema
as an industry.
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Defence expert says clear nuclear doctrine crucial for India
Lieutenant General (retired) R K Jasbir Singh says a first-strike policy would require surveillance satellites and electronic intelligence for quick, accurate decisions. He said Vajpayee's announcement in Parliament about the country's no-first use policy had helped in deflecting much of the flak from countries which had reconciled to India's nuclear capabilities and did not wish to toe the US line on sanctions.
Steps taken to meet forces's requirements after N-tests: Fernandes
The defence minister said a proper assessment had been made
by the government and steps initiated to ensure that the three armed
forces were able to discharge their duties efficiently and
effectively in view of the new scenario.
India, France discuss nuclear co-operation
The two countries are exploring the possibility of
co-operating in the field of nuclear energy, Minister
of State for External Affairs Vasundhara Raje Scindia
informed the Rajya Sabha.
THE REDIFF COLUMNISTS
The TINA factor
'In Delhi, Sonia Gandhi struggles to keep control of the Congress. In Bombay, Bal Thackeray finds his remote control is malfunctioning. In Calcutta, Mamata Bannerjee has her hands full. And in Madras, Jayalalitha is in danger of being left empty-handed. Is this enough to bring about a realignment of forces as some predict?' asks T V R Shenoy.
THE REDIFF SPECIAL
The route to bottling the nuclear genie does not lie in revolution
'As a revisionist state within the international system India has the ability to disrupt the global nuclear order. But it does not have the clout to control its outcome and Indian security interests would be threatened by uncontrolled proliferation,' says Gaurav Kampani.
Andhra Pradesh:Ban on PWG renewed
Maharashtra:Unite to unseat Sena-BJP government, Pawar tells partymen
TODAY'S WEATHER
Rain in the Andamans
Rain or thundershowers would also occur at
many places in
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, West
Bengal, Sikkim and Bihar.
JULY 16
Sonia buys peace with Pawar, may send Prithviraj Chavan as MPCC chief
The Congress president has made up her mind to appoint the member of Parliament from Karad,
Prithviraj Chavan, as the next MPCC chief
to ensure that the month-long confrontation between her and the Maratha leader
over the Maharashtra Rajya Sabha elections fiasco comes to an end.
Women's Bill still hangs fire
The impasse over the Constitution (Eightyfourth Amendment) Bill granting one-third reservations to women in legislatures continued for the third day on Wednesday.
Court orders CBI to probe Kesri Jr's finances...
The Delhi high court on Wednesday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to
further probe into whether the source of the huge assets amassed by
Amarnath Kesri, son of former Congress president Sitaram Kesri,
was relatable to his father.
...And to file status report in Lakhubhai cheating case
A designated court on Wednesday asked the bureau to
file a status report on sending a commission to Canada in the 100,000-dollar
Lakhubhai cheating case against former prime minister P V Narasimha
Rao and two others.
Thakre opposes religion-based reservations
Pointing out that reservation on the basis of religion was in
force during the pre-independence period, the BJP president said the
Constitution-makers considered this issue but ruled against
such provisions. ''We are against reviving religion-based
reservations," he added.
HC directs EC to produce records of TDP's recognition
A division bench
of the Andhra Pradesh high court has
expressed the view that it was necessary to look into the records of
the EC to find out whether the commission had conducted itself in an
objective manner or whether the decision to recognise TDP was biased.
Chief justice of Calcutta HC resigns
The Chief Justice of Calcutta high court, Prabha
Shankar Mishra, has resigned citing "very personal reasons."
Chief Justice Mishra said his resignation,
tendered on May 2, would be effective from Wednesday. He was due to
retire next month.
Don Arun Gawli is acquitted
Underworld don Arun Gawli, who was arrested for
the murder of builder Nathubhai Desai last year, was on Wednesday acquitted for lack
of evidence by sessions judge S R Jaiswal in Bombay.
DMK-MDMK marriage put on hold
The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's decision to continue to support the BJP-led government at the Centre appears to have put the brakes, for now, on moves to bring the ruling DMK and its prodigal progeny, the rival Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, together.
Flood toll in UP reaches 30, situation worsens in Assam, Rajasthan
While 870 villages and more than 550,000 people in nine
districts of eastern Uttar Pradesh have been affected,
the continuous torrent in the last 48 hours has left
several areas in Assam inundated, with the Brahmaputra rising
above the danger mark all through its course.
Ram temple may take 10 years, says architect
For Chandrakant Pathak 'Sompura', whose grandfather was involved in the reconstruction of Somnath temple, work is progressing rather slowly on the Ram temple at Ayodhya, a project which he considers the jewel in his crown.
First Viagra, now Rigiscan!
Well, heck, time was when sex was simple -- a matter of desire on the part of both partners, the requisite privacy, and... well, you know the rest.
Not any more, apparently -- not if science has anything to do with it.
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Defence experts fear India will compromise on CTBT
The shroud of secrecy on
the Frankfurt talks is
causing grave misgivings in
defence circles.
US senate exempts agriculture credits from sanctions
The bill, cleared with an unusual promptness by both houses of
the US congress would open the way for an agreement with Pakistan
for the purchase of 385,000 tonnes of white wheat, most of which is
grown in the Pacific north-west.
US refuses to give ground on missile testing
The Clinton administration has discounted the idea of any
shift in its policy on missile testing vis-a-vis India and
Pakistan, asserting that all ballistic missile flight
tests are acts of provocation.
'Six August' starts its fight against nuke arms race
Film-makers, writers, sports personnel, politicians,
scientists and the eminent citizens of West Bengal
have joined together to launch a platform, the Six August Committee, to spearhead a movement to refrain the Union
government from testing nuclear bombs in
future.
US denies visa to Atomic Commission chief
US officials, however, claim the visa was not
denied as such, but AEC chairman R Chidambaram withdrew
his request.
Sharief's European tour called off due to cold response
European leaders would like Pakistan to sign the
Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, but they would offer no concrete assurance for an economic bailout in return.
Pak changed CTBT stand because of 'national concerns': Ayub Khan
Pakistan Foreign Minister Gohar Ayub Khan has said that
India's signing the CTBT doesn't
necessarily mean that Islamabad
would follow suit.
All but four fundamental rights restored in Pakistan
A Supreme Court bench observed that the imposition of Emergency in the wake of nuclear tests and suspension of fundamental rights are two separate things to be
examined by the court.
THE REDIFF CHAT
'The way the Congress has backtracked seems ominous'
'I am hearing that parties who never questioned 33 per cent are now thinking of agreeing to 15 to 18 per cent... Most of the people are speaking one thing and doing another... Most parties included reservation for women in their election manifestoes for getting votes. This has to be stopped.' CPI MP Geeta Mukherjee assesses the future of the women's bill on the Rediff Chat.
THE REDIFF COLUMNISTS
Intolerant India
'Indians (not just Hindus because followers of other faiths in India are perhaps even more radical and intolerant) would do well to ponder the increasing religiosity of our nation. And to remember that whenever religion has dominated society, that civilisation has only declined,' says Amberish K Diwanji.
Mapillai Diplomacy
'When Atalji's son-in-law arrives in Madras,' says V Gangadhar, 'the AIADMK leaders and people would immediately take
to him. I am sure he will be accorded the red carpet treatment. Jaya will sit and talk to him for hours together and find out what Atalji wants her to do. And she will do it. That could signal the end of the political tension in the country...'
THE REDIFF SPECIAL
Play on Godse's point of view draws cheers in Bombay
Applause is what one does not expect when Nathuram Godse voices his reasons for murdering the father of the nation -- Mahatma Gandhi. Yet Me Nathuram Godse Boltoy (I am Nathuram Godse speaking), the latest Marathi play in the Gandhi series, surprises in more ways than one when we realise that Godse gets more applause for his ideology and principles than Gandhi.
TODAY'S WEATHER
Wet weather continues in Bengal
Heavy rains are also likely at isolated places
in Sikkim and Lakshadweep during the next 48 hours.
JULY 15
Women's quota bill is shelved
Several leaders who attended Tuesday's meeting with the speaker felt that the government
should complete the passage of the finance bills in the next few
days before any other business was taken up. In all probability, the
government might convene another round of all-party meeting
next Monday in a bid to arrive at a consensus over the Women's Reservation Bill.
Balayogi evicts unruly member, house abandons action against two RJD MPs
In an unprecedented move, the Lok Sabha on Tuesday
sought to suspend two Rashtriya Janata Dal members, Surendra Yadav
and Ajit Kumar Mehta for their unruly behaviour in the house
on Monday, but dropped the action following an unconditional
apology tendered by the RJD chief Laloo Prasad Yadav and Samajwadi
Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav.
After the fiasco over the bill, comes the buck-passing
The Congress on Tuesday made it clear that it wanted
the Women's Reservation Bill be passed in the current session of
Parliament, and it should ensure welfare of the minorities, Scheduled
Castes and Scheduled Tribes. The BJP, meanwhile, has questioned the change in stance of various political parties over the issue.
NCW castigates 'patriarchal conspiracy'
If the Women's Reservation Bill is not passed in the current
session, the NCW said it will, in accordance with its mandate, give a call to
the women of India to assert their collective will and ensure that each
and every member who has opposed this bill never gets a single vote
ever again -- neither from the women nor from the millions of men who
believe in gender equality.
Fernandes rules out plebiscite in Kashmir
We have come far beyond the point when the United Nations
decision (on plebiscite) was taken and from where we are today,
plebiscite is out of the question, the defence minister stated on Tuesday.
Government may rope in private couriers as postal strike continues
The government will implement a
contingency plan to maintain postal services so as to avoid
inconvenience to the public due to the strike by postal employees,
Communications Minister Sushma Swaraj told the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Congress leaders try to push President's rule in UP with Narayanan
''The entire state has been dragged into lawlessness and
anarchy with no hope of any control by the BJP-led government," the leaders told the President, who heard them out for 45 minutes and assured that the demand would be given due consideration.
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
US asks Congress for power to waive economic sanctions
Testifying before the senate foreign relations sub-committee on
near east and South Asian affairs on Monday, assistant secretary of
state Karl Inderfurth said the waiver would give the US more
leverage in negotiating a non-proliferation deal with India and Pakistan.
War in MEA cripples India's battle for world support
The men whom Vajpayee has deployed to bail
India out from economic sanctions and the CTBT -- Planning Commission Deputy Chairperson Jaswant
Singh, prime minister's Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra
and Foreign Secretary K Raghunath -- are now 'speaking and acting at cross-purposes.'
Arafat backs Pak nuclear tests
Addressing the media at Islamabad airport during his brief
stopover before leaving for Beijing, the Palestinian leader said Arab and Muslim
countries backed Pakistan for its nuclear tests, and added that there was a very
positive and strong reaction from the Muslim world to Pakistan's
nuclear tests. Islamic countries, he said, will extend assistance to Pakistan if
the sanctions continued.
Sharief renews invitation to US secretary general
''We hope that the UN secretary general will be able to
visit the region prior to the Colombo SAARC summit so that the
United Nations is enabled to play its indispensable role for the
facilitation of a process of peace and rapprochement in South
Asia,'' an official Pakistani statement stated.
Pak PM's envoy to visit Lanka for damage-control
The head of the Pakistani senate standing committee on foreign
affairs, Kashmir affairs and northern affairs, Muhammad Akram Zaki,
is expected to arrive in Colombo on Thursday, less than two weeks ahead of the South Asian
summit that is due to open in the Lankan capital on July 29.
THE REDIFF INTERVIEW
'Whatever went wrong, somebody close to Sharad Pawar will have to be held responsible'
'To some extent it is true, there is demoralisation over the Rajya Sabha election. In such incidents, word goes around that apna MLA bhik gaya hoga. So, these things do affect the grassroot workers to some extent.' Ranjit Deshmukh, the Maharashtra Congress president who was sacked following party candidate Ram Pradhan's defeat in last month's Rajya Sabha election, breaks his silence.
THE REDIFF SPECIAL
'We are third rate, unfit to be a democracy'
'We are not made for democracy. We are made to be ruled by a strong man. Like Kemal Ataturk. I have said repeatedly that India needs a strong man, not adult franchise. I haven't seen anyone yet. I hope it does happen in my lifetime.' Nani Palkhivala on the need to review the Constitution.
Operation Leech: What really happened?
'It will go down as the most astounding encounter staged by India's war machine. Yet, in the end, not many of those who took part in Operation Leech would perhaps like to cherish its memory, tainted as it may be by the blood of friends and the guilt that goes with betrayal.'
Ruskin strengthens bond with Hindi readers
After the great success of Ek Tha Rusty,
translated into Hindi by the National Book Trust, Hindi readers can
now get a deeper insight into the literary world of renowned English
author Ruskin Bond through Raat ke Ajnabi,an impressive Hindi
translation of Strangers in the Night.
Meghalaya: Speaker refuses to answer court about House proceedings
Orissa: Patnaik's absence sends Opposition scurrying out of assembly
Tamil Nadu: New PCC chief's choice could create more problems for Congress
Tamil Nadu: High court to hear Jaya's petition afresh
Tripura: Central team to study Reang refugee problem
TODAY'S WEATHER
Rain in North-East
Rain or thundershowers are likely to occur at many places in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura.
JULY 14
Opposition hijacks Women's Bill
The Bill was lost to sight, and hearing, when the Opposition started a violent agitation, which culminated with RJD member Surinder Yadav snatching away copies from the speaker and law minister. Earlier, the speaker had adjourned the House five times following unruly behaviour from opposers. He may allow the Bill to be introduced Tuesday.
210 out of India's 535 districts face security risks, says home secretary
It is a sign of the times that the security forces arrested 4,397 Pakistan-trained militants and intercepted 711 gangs from the border during 1990-98. They killed
1,501 terrorists and arrested 1,031. Also, 2,820 militants of various outfits surrendered to the authorities in the same period.
Karunanidhi appeals to MPs to pressurise Centre over Cauvery
In a six-page letter to Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry MPs, the TN chief minister appealed to the
MPs to raise the issue in both the houses of Parliament and highlight
the state's legitimate right and ensure that the Centre finalise the
draft scheme and issue a gazette notification soon.
Vajpayee is an indecisive PM, says Shekhar
The former prime minister said the decisions taken by Vajpayee during the
last 100 days were done without going into their deeper implications.
Compromises were made at the prestige and office of the prime
minister. "This should not be done. Anyone in this chair should be
respected if not by the people at least by the alliance partners,"
he said.
Advani bemoans erosion in judicial credibility
Citing reasons for this ''disturbing development'', the home minister said delay
and unaffordability built into the present system of justice
dispensation were perhaps the major issues. ''Even for innocent and
wronged citizens, the sheer process of seeking justice in the formal
system becomes a punishment in itself,'' he said, and added that if
the judiciary wanted to regain its credibility, the nation must
act concertedly and swiftly.
Government rejects separate defence Pay Commission
The department of personnel and training has taken the view that if this
demand was conceded, then employees of Union territories and
industrial employees would also demand separation from the Pay Commission.
ITBP unit complains of discrimination while on UN mission
M K Singh, deputy commandant of the ITBP and a member of the
delegation to Bosnia-Herzegovina, said very few Indians were given top posts despite their
better performance. ''Most of the top positions went to officials
from European countries, mainly the US and Britain. However, the Indian
contingent was the only one to have 90 special appointees.''
THE NUCLEAR CRISIS
Clinton visit linked to India signing CTBT
Even as Washington insists that there was no question of the American president visiting India if it did not sign the CTBT, diplomatic observers believe the third round of exhaustive talks
between Jaswant Singh and Strobe Talbott in New Delhi from July 20 will considerably thaw the frosty Indo-US relations.
US sanctions hit progress on LCA and light chopper projects
India's two most ambitious projects -- the
Light Combat Aircraft and the Advanced Light Helicopter
-- have been thrown out of gear following American sanctions in the
wake of Pokhran II.
Pakistan team on Saudi mission in pursuit of economic bailout
The delegation hopes to use Saudi
influence to soften the G-8 countries' tough stance towards Pakistan. Its members said Pakistan was in a better situation than some of the East Asian countries. "The problem has been created because international financial agencies are reneging from their commitments."
THE REDIFF INTERVIEW
'I expect early elections to the Lok Sabha, and it is my duty to prepare the state unit for the same'
'Congress president Sonia Gandhi has already invited all Congressmen to return to the parent organisation. I extend a similar invitation to my friends in the TMC. Otherwise, Moopanar and I are not enemies, and do exchange pleasantries whenever we get to meet each other. But we do not get to meet each other as frequently as we used to, because we have chosen separate paths.' The newly appointed president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee, Tindivanam K Ramamurthee, elaborates on the priorities before him.
THE REDIFF SPECIAL
Commercialisation of Mt Everest irks mountaineers
What irks diehard mountaineers is that despite their complaints,
nothing has been done so far to save the world's highest peak
from plunder on account of uncontrolled
and unregulated number of expeditions.
THE REDIFF COLUMNISTS
You Unwashed Immigrant, You!
'Mosquitoes and boa constrictors are not convenient scapegoats; immigrants and minorities are. I suspect the numbers are more favourable to the "ban immigrants" cause in the USA than they are in Bombay, but I also suspect a certain broad truth holds here just as well as it does in Bombay: the tangled problems societies face are less the fault of new entrants than of those who live in them,' says Dilip D'Souza.
Uttar Pradesh: Tussle over Udham Singh Nagar could lead to violence in tranquil UP hillside
•
Life at 84 remains eventful for Vijayawada's British Baba!
Tony Rogers, or Tony Baba as he is affectionately known, helps people in need, buries the dead, drafts letters for people seeking jobs, collects funds for churches and bills for the Anglo-Indian Association, traversing through nook and corner of the town on a bicycle. He wakes up his Muslim brethren for morning namaz (prayers) during the holy month of Ramzan.
TODAY'S WEATHER
Wet spell in South India
Heavy rainfall is likely to occur at isolated places in coastal Karnataka and Kerala during the next 48 hours.
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