New Delhi, July 5 (IANS):

The Delhi High Court Monday said that there was no need for ailing former defence minister George Fernandes to change his place of residence and allowed his wife to take care of him till July 19. 

After a one-hour in-chamber hearing, Justice V.K. Shali directed the socialist leader's wife Leila Kabir to continue nursing him.

The court announced the decision after a hearing attended by Fernandes, his wife and two brothers. Along with his family members, an interpretor and a priest were also present in the court.

The court was hearing a petition filed by Fernandes' brothers, Richard and Michael,  seeking custody of their brother alleging that the former minister and convenor of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease, was not being properly treated by his wife.

Fernandes was seen talking to his wife and brothers in English. His brothers, however, talked to him in Konkani while he responded in English.
His brothers claimed that he recognized them. “He is not very well. He needs proper medical attention," they said.

The court July 1 asked Kabir to present the Fernandes before it. "The court wants to ascertain what he wants. The person who, due to some incapability, was not able to be heard, the court wants to know what is in his mind to settle the issue," Shali said.
An application was also filed by his brothers seeking the constitution of a medical board to assess his health condition.

The family members of the leader are fighting a legal battle for getting his custody.

His brothers have alleged that Kabir was not allowing them access to the veteran leader. They also alleged that she was staying separately from Fernandes for the past 25 years and had now come back to him as she was eyeing his property.
 

New Delhi, July 5 (IANS):

A day-long general strike disrupted normal business activities across India, affecting key sectors of the economy and causing losses anywhere between a conservative Rs.3,000 crore ($666 million) and a humongous Rs.13,000 crore ($2.8 billion) to the country. 

The 12-hour strike called by opposition parties against the recent fuel price hike threw road and rail transport and cargo handling out of gear, particularly in the Left and Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states.

Over 60 long-distance trains were cancelled or disrupted, according to railway ministry officials.

About 93 domestic and international flights were cancelled and trucks stayed off the roads. Offices were either shut or reported thin attendance in many parts of the country and markets were deserted.

The impact of the strike was quite evident in the country's financial capital Mumbai. Taxis and trucks stayed off the street while buses and trains ran near empty. At least 86 domestic flights - 46 outgoing and 40 incoming - were cancelled to and from Mumbai.
Many offices reported thin attendance and trading volumes plunged on the Dalal Street.  

According to an estimate by a well known non-governmental organisation, Agni, Mumbai's lost its daily contribution to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) of about Rs.300 crore, of which Rs.200 crore comes from the organised sector and the rest Rs.100 crore from the unorganised sector.

Airports in Delhi was open, but some flights were cancelled in response to low passenger loads, a spokesman said. The airport in Kolkata was shut.
Life and business came to a standstill in the country's silicon valley, Bangalore. All the software firms in this tech hub were closed. 

According to the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the total losses to the economy was Rs.13,000 crore.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) put the figure at Rs.3,000 crore.

"The bharat bandh has led to significant impact on business and trade in some parts of the country. As is the case with any bandh, the worst affected are daily wage earners and people dependent on small trade," said a CII statement.

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said the strike affected manufacturing in most of the states.

"Bharat Bandh almost paralysed Indian economy and eroded its national GDP by a production loss of nearly a full day which in monetary terms can be roughly estimated at Rs. 10,000 crore, assuming that India's GDP would stay around Rs.50 lakh crore with a growth rate of over 8 percent in current fiscal," said Assocham.

The sectors which were badly hit were road transport and logistics, manufacturing, ports.

The deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia said the opposition to the fuel price hike "did not make any sense".
"It is completely illogical to oppose the fuel price hike if it is your view that you should drive the country into economic policies that do not make any sense," Ahluwalia told reporters.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had Sunday ruled out any rollback of the fuel prices. On June 25, the government raised the prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene by Rs 3.50, Rs.2 and Rs.3 a litre respectively, and increased the rates for cooking gas by Rs.35 per cylinder.

The hike in prices of petroleum goods, however, is likely to have a cascading, though short-term effect on the already high inflation.
Wholesale prices-based inflation crossed double-digits, (10.16 percent provisionally) in May, but as per the final figures, the rate of price rise has been 11 percent or more since February. 

Dubai:  The pilot of a hot-air balloon that crashed in UAE killing two people including an Indian, has been sentenced to a year in prison and ordered to pay 200,000 dirhams (USD 54,466) each in blood money, court officials have said.

Polish pilot Piotr Gorny was in charge of the balloon on April 25 as it came in for an emergency landing about 50 km outside Al Ain near Abu Dhabi.

The tourists Jean-Pierre Chamignon, 53, of France, and Mukesh Shah, 56, of India, were killed as the craft hit the ground and dragged for hundreds of metres.

Each of the victims' families will get 200,000 dirhams in compensation, according to a source at the court.

Gorny, who was also fined 20,000 dirhams, is the only person convicted of any offence relating to the crash of the Cameron Z-425 balloon, which was operated by Balloon Adventures Emirates.

The company has been forbidden from flying as the General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) continues its investigation. The firm's owner, Peter Kollar has reportedly been convicted twice for breaching safety standards while running a ballooning business in New Zealand.

New Delhi:  Bearing out the version of Gujarat Police, American-born Lashker-e-Toiba terrorist David Headley has claimed before NIA sleuths that Ishrat Jahan, a Mumbai girl killed in a police encounter in Ahmedabad, was a suicide bomber of the outfit.

Official sources said that Headley shared this information with the four-member team comprising officials from National Investigation Agency and Law Department during their visit to Chicago in the US.
    
The girl, whose death had sparked a major controversy, was alleged to be a member of Lashker's suicide squad who had been inducted by top LeT operative Muzamil.

Headley's information corroborates the stand of Gujarat Police and the Centre. The encounter had run into controversy after Jahan's family claimed that she was just a student and filed an appeal in the court. Gujarat Police had claimed that the terrorists were in the state to attack Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

Sources said Headley's reconnaissance missions for Lashkar in India started in 2006.

Jahan was killed along with Javed Sheikh alias Pranesh Pillai and two Pakistani nationals - Amjad Ali and Jishan Johar Abdul Ghani - on June 15, 2004.
    
As per police records, they were intercepted on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, travelling in a car. When they were confronted, an encounter ensued in which all were shot dead.

Ishrat's mother Shamima Kausar in her petition to Gujarat High Court had claimed that her daughter was working as a saleswoman for Sheikh's perfumes business.

New Delhi, July 4 (PTI)

The Centre has asked Karnataka to consider taking the CBI's help to investigate illegal mining in the state, an issue that was taken up by Chief Minister BS Yeddyurappa himself with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh last week. 

In a letter to Yeddyurappa, Union Mines Minister B K Handique said that Karnataka could take the assistance of the Centre for investigating various incidents of illegal mining in the state.

"For these purposes, central agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are also available, and their expertise can be effectively utilised," Handique said in the letter, dated July 1.

It is for the third time since November 2009 that the Mines Ministry has asked the state government to rein in the menace of illegal mining, especially of iron ore.

He said reports on iron ore theft "in utter disregard for the law of the land shows that the illegal mining mafia in Karnataka needs to be tackled without any further delay."

Handique said the steps were urgently needed "to avoid a complete breakdown in the regulatory system at the field level in your government".

He also took a dig at the BJP government, stating that "these developments are likely to have multi-sectoral ramifications with regard to the quality of governance".Yeddyurappa had written a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday, seeking a ban on export of iron ore to effectively curb illegal mining. India had exported about 106 million tonnes of iron ore in the last fiscal.

Karnataka is a mineral-rich state with estimated reserves of about 9,000 million tonnes, or 11 per cent, of the country's hematite iron ore deposits. The state is a major exporter of the mineral.

Illegal mining has emerged as a major political issue in Karnataka, with three ministers in the Yeddyurappa government -- Bellary district mining magnates Janaradhana Reddy, Karunakara Reddy and Sriramulu -- facing charges of illegal mining, which they have denied.

PTI, Jul 4, 2010, DEHRADUN: Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni will tie the knot with childhood friend Sakshi Singh Rawat in a hush-hush ceremony at a farmhouse about 40km from here on Sunday.

The 28-year-old wicket-keeper batsman got engaged to Sakshi, a 23-year-old hotel management student, at a private ceremony on Saturday.

The wedding is also expected to be a private affair with only very close family members and friends, including Dhoni's teammates Harbhajan Singh and Ashish Nehra, among those attending.

BCCI bigwigs including president Shashank Manohar are also expected to attend the wedding.

Although family sources had indicated after the engagement that the marriage will take place in October, India's tight schedule in the next few months might have prompted the pre-ponement.

Despite being a private ceremony, the wedding will have its share of glamour as Dhoni's Bollywood friend John Abraham is reportedly in Dehradun to attend the marriage.

The couple is expected to host a reception in Mumbai on July 7, which also happens to be Dhoni's 29th birthday.

Dhoni and Sakshi, who hails from Aurangabad, had been school friends at DAV, Shamily in Ranchi.

"Their fathers worked together in MECON, and the Rawats moved to Dehradun after retirement," a family friend said.

The Indian captain is currently enjoying a rare break from international cricket and will be next seen in action during a three-Test series against Sri Lanka scheduled to begin from July 18 at Galle.

Dhoni, who made his international debut against Bangladesh in December 2004, has so far played 43 Tests, 166 ODIs and 25 T20s.

Under his captaincy, India won the 2007 ICC World Cup Twenty20, CB Series of 2007-08, and the Border-Gavaskar trophy 2008 beating Australia 2-0.

He also captained Chennai Super Kings to victory in this year's Indian Premier League. He is now captain of India in all three forms of the game, leading the team to its first ever bilateral ODI series wins in Sri Lanka and New Zealand.

Under his leadership, India attained the number one status in Test cricket and became number two this year in ODI rankings.

Dhoni has also been the recipient of ICC ODI Player of the Year award in 2008 and 2009 (the first Indian to achieve this feat). He was bestowed the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award and the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honour in 2009.

New Delhi:  As top National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders meet in Delhi on Sunday to chalk out the strategy for Monday's Bharat bandh, senior leader LK Advani says this is the first time so many parties have collaborated and he is hopeful of success.

Across the country, Opposition parties have called for a bandh against rising prices and the NDA is keen to get as many parties on board as possible, however, they have failed to put up a united front. Both RJD chief Lalu Yadav and LJP chief Ramvilas Paswan have decided not to support the strike.

Hence, NDA members, mainly BJP, have decided to meet and work out a common agenda to ensure that Monday's bandh has the stamp of the party.

During the meet leaders are expected to workout separate agenda for NDA ruled and those ruled by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA).

In an attempt to make tomorrow's strike a success, BJP today decided to send its senior leaders out to various state capitals to lead demonstrations and protest marches.

According to the decision, party president Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh will lead the protest in New Delhi.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj will lead a protest in Bhopal while Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley and vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi will do so in Lucknow.

Among other leaders, Venkaiah Naidu will be in Hyderabad, Anant Kumar in Bangalore, Gopinath Munde in Mumbai and Vasundhara Raje in Jaipur, Naqvi said.

He said the party leaders have been deputed to states to ensure success of the nation-wide 'bandh' called against rise in prices and "arrogant attitude of the Central government".

Meanwhile, the Left parties have also called for a separate bandh on Monday against the soaring prices. Today is the second day of the Politburo meeting.

The Communist Party of India Marxist (CPM) has made it clear that it is not joining the NDA in its bandh call and that their bandh is separate with only their dates coinciding.

The protests are being organized in run up to the Parliament Session that begins on July 26. Extra forces will stationed so that no traffic is blocked during the Bandh. (With PTI inputs)

Bangalore, July 3, DHNS:

In an unexpected turn of events, Lokayukta Justice Santosh Haegde on Saturday chose to withdraw his resignation which he submitted exactly ten days ago citing inability to stem bureaucratic and political corruption. 

“If Governor H R Bhardwaj gives me time, I will meet him tomorrow to withdraw my resignation,” Hegde told reporters minutes after Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa, BJP national president Nitin Gadkari and State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar emerged from his residence after nearly an hour-long closed-door meeting with him.

Coinciding with Justice Hegde’s decision to withdraw his quit letter, Yeddyurappa requested Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to impose curbs on iron ore export, failing which undue exploitation and illegal mining were likely to continue.

In a letter to Singh, Yeddyurappa said over-exploitation of mines and illegal mining was a major concern for all mineral-rich states.  He admitted that despite all efforts by his government, the problem continued to persist.

Despite his willingness to take back his resignation letter, Justice Hegde held out a warning that he would be prepared to put in his papers if the state government failed to fulfil his demand of empowering the office of the ombudsman.

“My option to walk out is always open. The moment I come to know the government is not  doing anything, I will resign,” he said. Justice Hegde might have to wait till Tuesday when the Governor returns to Raj Bhavan following a tour.

Immediately after submitting his resignation to Bhardwaj on June 23, Justice Hedge had repeatedly said that the decision to put in his papers was “irrevocable”. But justifying his stand to go back on his words, Justice Hegde said: You may ask why I decided to withdraw the resignation though I had repeatedly stressed my decision was irrevocable.

The reason is BJP leader Advani’s request and advice. ”The Lokayukta, who stirred a hornet’s nest by making public instances of corruption which he sought to link with the illegal transportation of iron ore and the sudden disappearance of over 5 lakh metric tonnes of the mineral from Belekeri port earlier last month, said he has “great love and respect” for Advani since his father was a close friend of the BJP leader. “Besides, he is like my father. I cannot ignore his words of advice,” he said.

Justice Hegde also appreciated the chief minister’s stand on stopping illegal transportation of iron ore and hoped Yeddyurappa would act swiftly on that front.

On his part, Yeddyurappa  assured he would take immediate steps to fulfil Justice Hegde’s demands. In this context, Justice Hegde said his demands were “minor” in nature. “Mainly, I wanted the government to empower the institution of the Lokayukta. I am now convinced the government will take positive steps,” he said.

While admitting that his government would extend full cooperation to Hegde, Yeddyurappa said: “I cannot make certain statements as the Assembly is in session. I am expected to reply in the Assembly on Monday. I will announce the government’s steps regarding strengthening of the Lokayukta institution on the floor of the house,” the CM declared.

Earlier in the day, BJP national president Nitin Gadkari met Hegde along with Law Minister Suresh Kumar and handed over a letter Advani had written to the Lokayukta. “Advani has advised the state government to fulfill all of Justice Hegde’s demands,” Gadkari said. 

It could be trouble time for suspended IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi as all charges against him have been ratified, and he may have to face both civil and criminal action.

In the Special General Meeting on Saturday, all charges against Modi, who has been accused of several financial irregularities in the IPL, were unanimously ratified by all 30 members including 29 state associations.

"The house, after deliberation and debate on the matter, resolved that the Board President has the right to start any legal proceedings, including civil and criminal proceedings, against Mr Modi," BCCI President Shashank Manohar told a press conference.

This could also be the first step towards a possible life ban. At least 3/4th vote is required to expel him from the Board.

"The civil and criminal matters would be decided after inquiry and that is for the Disciplinary Committee to decide. I can tell you that there were certain rights given to parties without there being contracts like the ticketing rights of the finals and the third-place match given to a company called 'Ticket Genie'. There was no contract to show how many tickets were printed and how many were sold," he said.

Timeline: Lalit Modi vs BCCI

In the meet that was attended by all board members, the BCCI reconstituted the Disciplinary Committee for probe against Modi.

Chirayu Amin, Arun Jaitley, Jyotiraditya Scindia form the new committee that will hear the case against Modi.

Jyotiraditya, who is also the President of the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association, was named the third member of the committee after BCCI President Shashank Manohar recused himself from all the proceedings against Modi.

"Jyotiraditya's inclusion in Disciplinary Committee was unanimous," Manohar said.

"Jyotiraditya is not associated with day-to-day function of the Board and that's why we chose him. Modi had accused me and Srinivasan of being biased. So we wanted someone who's not involved with everyday functioning," he added.

The Board President also said that the Disciplinary Committee will decide further action against Modi and it has six months from the date of suspension (April 26th) to complete the enquiry.

Disciplinary Committee will issue notices to Mr Modi. Now it's in the Committee's hands, Not the BCCI's. General body will take all decisions with regard to the IPL.

Asked about an estimate of the financial irregularities, Manohar said, "I can't say on that but I can say there were number of contracts of which we had no knowledge."

Manohar said Modi will have to appear before the disciplinary committee where he would get a chance to put forth his reply on accusations that include taking kickbacks from TV and internet rights.

"Modi says he was not aware about the facilitation fee of USD 80 million. Modi who has signed the contract has given us the reply that he was not aware of the fee. He will be asked to appear before the inquiry committee where he can give his additional reply," he said.

On the World Sports Group's threat to initiate legal action against the BCCI for scrapping its telecast deals, Manohar said, "If they want to go to court, it's fine."

Manohar also said that Kings XI team couldn't be sold till all enquiries were over.
 

A year after Section 377 was decriminalised, Mumbai is emerging as India's gay capital.

A comparison across four cities -- Pune, Bangalore, New Delhi and Mumbai -- has revealed this. By far, life's far better for gays and lesbians across India after the reading-down of section 377, and going by figures and what gay activists have to say, Mumbai is the country's gay capital. PIC FOR REPRESENTATION
 
For instance, in the last two months, there were more than 20 parties organised only in Mumbai. While Delhi hosted 15, 10 were held in Bangalore and there weren't any in Pune.

While Mumbai has nearly half a dozen active gay support groups, it's not so in Delhi, Bangalore and Pune.

While the city has a magazine for gays -- Bombay Dost, Pune has two -- PUCK and The Queer Chronicle.

By far, India's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) world is buzzing. However, going by figures and what gay activists say, Mumbai is India's gay capital.

Here are a few counts on which Mumbai overshadows Bangalore, Delhi and Pune.

Voodoos, a gay club in the city, has already made its mark. On Saturday nights, gays in Mumbai have a number of parties to choose from.

"Being a cosmopolitan city, we are more accepting than any other city," says Nitin Karani of Bombay Dost Trust. "The number of parties, conferences, film festivals are more than in other cities."

To add on to Mumbai's pride is the country's first and only LGBT shop -- Azad Bazaar.

Party-pooper Bangalore
"The number of parties in Bangalore has risen from one a month to 10," says Abhishek Aggarwal, event manager of Pink Nation, a Bangalore-based gay group. "In recent times though, we have had difficulty finding a venue."

He said hotels are not open to letting out their space to hold gay parties.  "Until recently, I was convinced Bangalore was gay-friendly," said Aggarwal. "But now, I feel otherwise."

Pune's warming up
In Pune, it's not conducive for gays to come out of the closet.

"Last year, 55 of us started off as a group. Today, we have 200 members," said Apphia K of a Pune-based LGBT group, Birds of a Feather. "We have straight friends in favour of equal human rights."

Delhi party hots up
Though there are no confirmed statistics on the rise of queer-related events in the capital, Mohnish Malhotra, an active member of queer activities, says, "Earlier, we had one party a week, but now at least four are held. Participation has also increased."

Looking down south
Girish Kumar of Humsafar Trust stresses on why Mumbai, not Delhi, is the gay capital. "Mumbai's outlook is more open than Delhi's. Bangalore is progressive, but has not yet reached the mark. So Mumbai is the the undisputed champion," says Kumar.

However, Vikram Doctor, founder of Gay Bombay, a support group for LGBT persons, feels Mumbai ranks next to Chennai in terms of facilities towards the community. "Tamil Nadu has policies for the LGBT community and has even offered houses and free medical supervision," he said.
 

(malathi)