The harried passengers had literally been stood up by an Air India airline crew in Cairo, for 16 hours on end - all because the crew members wanted to see the great pyramids of Egypt.

The flight, which was originally scheduled from Mumbai to Toronto, had to be diverted to Frankfurt via Cairo. However, on April 15, when the Boeing 777 landed at Cairo airport, fliers had little idea of what was in store for them.

After waiting for a few hours, the passengers initially thought there was a technical snag. However, they were surprised to note that the pilot was there in his seat, but the seven-member crew from Cairo that was supposed to board the flight was missing. To add to their shock, they learnt that the missing members were actually sight seeing, which was why they could not return in time for the flight's onward journey.

An Air India spokesperson, confirming the incident, said, "We have initiated action against the crew members who did not report to work on time. Stern action will be taken against them."

One of the crewmembers admitted that they were off to see the pyramids, but denied that the delay was for 16 hours. He said that they were late by only five hours.

"Language is a big problem in Egypt. Hotel accommodation was not provided on time and when we reached Cairo, we were taken to a different terminal, which added to the delay," he added.  
 

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Will there be a thaw between India and Pakistan at Thimphu? That's the big question as the Prime Ministers of the two countries prepare to sit down for talks once again.

They are meeting on Thursday on the sidelines of the SAARC summit; this will be their first meeting since Sharm-al-Sheikh in Egypt

External Affairs Minister SM Krishna said that there was no fixed agenda for talks.

But the divergence in their approach to today's talks is clear.  While Pakistan is insisting that the Sharm-al-Sheikh document, which delinks terrorism from composite dialogue, should be the basis for talks, India is sticking to its position that there can be no composite dialogue but only a channel of communication open till Pakistan takes credible action against the perpetrators of the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai.

"Dialogue is the only way forward. And secondly the peace process should not be overshadowed by issues of terrorism," said Abdul Basit, Spokesperson, Foreign Office, Pakistan.

India is hoping to get some commitment from Pakistan to punish them.

India is keeping its expectations from this meeting low as it has a limited political mandate, especially after the Sharm-al-Sheikh disaster. The joint statement issued after those talks in Egypt had led to a major political confrontation back home, with the Opposition accusing the government of selling out to Pakistan.

There were rumblings even within the Congress. The drafting of the statement became a major controversy, as it seemed to indicate that India had agreed to delink the peace process from terrorism and accepted that it had a role in Balochistan.

The PM had to clarify personally in Parliament that India had only agreed to keep a channel of communication open and not delink the composite dialogue from terrorism.
 

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Jharkhand's political crisis is far from over, but top BJP leaders are meeting right now to discuss the offer made by Shibu Soren's son, Hemant, late last night.

A panicky Soren Junior suggested on Wednesday that the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) could give up the Chief Minister's post in the state if the BJP would reconsider its decision to withdraw support.

The BJP, which is watching the situation more than working on immediate action, seems to have no plan to say yes in a hurry as party leaders say the proposal is not even a concrete one. 

But the party has missed its 11 am appointment with the Jharkhand Governor to formally withdraw support, with sources saying the party's Parliamentary Board may meet again to review yesterday's decision to withdraw support if it means a BJP Chief Minister in Jharkhand.

But till that happens, the shadow of President's Rule looms large over the state, which has had no political stability for the last decade.

The BJP pulled the rug on Wednesday, shocked at Shibu Soren's vote against its Cut Motion and in favour of the UPA in the majority test. (Read: Cut motion: BJP fumes over Soren betrayal)  

After the voting on the Cut Motions on Tuesday, Soren said, "We just voted... we had to vote for someone... so we voted for the Congress." (Watch: Soren on why he voted for UPA)
 
The BJP's top leaders met and the faction opposed to an alliance with Soren for his unpredictability and criminal record had its way. The party announced it was withdrawing support to the JMM government, reducing it to a minority. (Read: BJP withdraws support to Shibu Soren govt in Jharkhand)

But given Shibu Soren's political track record, the BJP should have known this was coming.
Since 1993, Shibu Soren has displayed an unwillingness to remain in Opposition. To be in power, he has changed loyalties on the floor of the House and changed allies.

So, did the Congress have a hand in Soren's startling U-turn? It has denied this and has ruled out supporting Soren, given his soft approach to Naxals.
 
Sources in JMM say Soren's flip-flop is really about palace intrigue. Shibu's son Hemant Soren was desperate to be the Chief Minister. To remain in the CM's chair, Soren had to get elected to the state Assembly by June 12. But his MLAs, including his son and daughter-in-law refused to step down to make way for him. Upset, Soren has now checkmated them.
 
It is Hemant Soren, thus, who has gone running to the BJP and apologised, claiming his father is ready to resign for a new leader. "We would request them to rethink on withdrawing the support," Hemant said on Wednesday. The BJP will now need to confirm if this offer indeed has his father's nod. (Read: BJP dumps Shibu Soren, gets apology from son)
 
The UPA, meanwhile, is watching the split closely. If the Soren government falls, the Congress has a good chance of installing a chief minister with these numbers:
 
Congress + Babulal Marandi's Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) + Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) together have 31 seats, while Teklal Mahato's breakaway JMM faction has 10. Also, small groups like All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) have eight seats, which takes the potential total to 49. The half-way mark in the 82-member Assembly is 41.
 
"If the getting together of secular forces permits, all reasonable, valid and legal options can be explored," Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.
 

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Given Shibu Soren's political track record, the BJP should have known this was coming. The Jharkhand Chief Minister voted against his ally in the state and supported the UPA when it faced a majority test.

"We just voted... we had to vote for someone... so we voted for the Congress," Soren said after the voting on the Cut Motions on Tuesday.

The BJP's top leaders met and the faction opposed to an alliance with Soren for his unpredictability and criminal record had its way. The party withdrew support to the JMM government in Jharkhand, reducing it to a minority.

"We have decided to withdraw support," BJP general secretary Anant Kumar said.
 
Since 1993, Shibu Soren has displayed an unwillingness to remain in Opposition. To be in power, he has changed loyalties on the floor of the House and changed allies. But this time,his political adventure might bring him instant losses.
 
So, did the Congress have a hand in Soren's startling U-turn? It denies this and has ruled out supporting Soren, given his soft approach to Naxals.
 
But sources in JMM say Soren's flip-flop is really about palace intrigue. Shibu's son Hemant Soren was desperate to be the Chief Minister. To remain in the CM's chair, Soren had to get elected to the state Assembly by June 12. But his MLAs, including his son and daughter-in-law refused to step down to make way for him. Upset, Soren has now checkmated them.
 
Hemant Soren is now scrambling, especially with the Congress shutting its doors. In a desperate bid to remain in power, he apologised to the BJP on Wednesday night and claimed his father was ready to resign for a new leader.
 
"We would request them to rethink on withdrawing the support," Hemant said.
 
But the BJP is not blinking - at least not right now. Its leaders plan to keep their appointment with the Governor on Thursday morning - to withdraw support. But back channels are working to find  out if this offer has Shibu Soren's nod. Meanwhile, the UPA is watching the split closely. If the Soren government falls, the Congress has a good chance of installing a chief minister with these numbers:
 
Congress + Babulal Marandi's Jharkhand Vikas Morcha (JVM) + Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) together have 31 seats, while Teklal Mahato's breakaway JMM faction has 10. Also, small groups like All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) have eight seats, which takes the potential total to 49. The half-way mark in the 82-member Assembly is 41.
 
"If the getting together of secular forces permits, all reasonable, valid and legal options can be explored," Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said.
 
But if this too fails then Jharkhand - a mine-rich yet very poor state - will face President's Rule, or still more political instability and horsetrading, pushing the state's real problems like hunger and Naxalism out of the headlines. 
 

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CBI on Thursday arrested a senior IAS officer and his associate in connection with the alleged Rs 340 crore excise duty evasion scam, taking to six the total number of persons held in the case.

A 1983 batch IAS officer, O Ravi, Joint Secretary (Disaster Management), Ministry of Home Affairs, was placed under arrest by CBI after hours of grilling by agency sleuths, official sources said. Top bureaucrats linked to big bribes)

The Home Ministry has asked the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to suspend Ravi. The suspension orders are likely to be issued soon.

His associate Rakesh Rastogi, who is alleged to have been keeping his wealth believed to have been accumulated through illegal means, was also arrested by the CBI.

The agency has conducted exhaustive searches on his residential and official premises in connection with the scam.

A case under various sections of IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act has been registered against Ravi, two excise inspectors - Ramesh Mahyavanshi and Vijay Halpati - and sub-inspector Suresh Dhodi, CBI has said.

CBI had arrested owner of Royal distilleries Ashok Khemani and three excise officials last night. Khemani was arrested from a posh hotel in the national capital while the others were arrested from Daman.

Ravi is alleged have taken a bribe of Rs 25 lakh to get the Daman administrator transferred, a CBI spokesperson said.

The directors of six distilleries - Royal, Jupiter, Krimpy, Silver Star and Dharmesh and some unknown persons - were also booked for alleged fraud.

"It has been alleged that in order to evade excise duty and VAT, the distilleries of Daman in connivance with the officials of the excise department resorted to under-reporting of production by preparing fake documents," the spokesman said.

CBI has conducted searches at 36 places of the accused persons at Daman, Mumbai and New Delhi.
   

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Police plans to dispose of 24 kgs of RDX recovered from the target spots of the 26/11 terror attack after the verdict in the case is delivered on May 3.

Judge M H Tahaliyani had last month allowed police to dispose of the RDX recovered from the terror target areas.

The RDX will be burnt in a controlled atmosphere in the presence of a magistrate, crime branch sources told PTI, adding that they have yet to decide the place where the explosive would be destroyed.

The RDX was recovered from three unexploded improvised explosive devices -- one outside Taj Mahal Hotel, another near Gokul Restaurant and the third from an unclaimed baggage at Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus -- in November 2008.

The seized explosive was placed before the court as evidence, according to Special Public Prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam.

It is the prosecution's case that two slain terrorist, Abdul Rehman Bada and Abu Ali, had kept 8-10 kg of RDX-laden IED outside the main porch of Taj Hotel in south Mumbai.

However, before it could explode, the Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad defused the bomb.

Two other terrorists, Abu Shoib and Abu Umer, who had fired at people at Leopold Cafe, had planted 8-10 kg of RDX-laden IED on the kerb near Gokul Restaurant in the same area, which did not explode.

Both Shoib and Umer were later killed by the security forces in the gunbattle at Hotel Taj.

The third pair of attackers, Ajmal Kasab and slain terrorist Abu Ismail, had kept RDX-filled IED in a bag at CST station, before firing indiscriminately at people there. The IED had not exploded.

In the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case, the police had similarly disposed of RDX in the presence of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM).

At that time, M L Tahaliyani, who is now presiding over the 26/11 court, was the CMM and the seized RDX was destroyed in his presence.

Nine terrorists were shot dead by security forces while Ajmal Kasab was caught alive during an encounter with the police 
 

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A reception for newly-weds Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik in this eastern Pakistani city was cut short after a large number of guests began pressing the couple to pose for pictures with them. (See Pics)

Shoaib and Sania left the venue of the 'walima' (reception hosted by the groom's family) at the Pearl Continental Hotel and the ceremony ended before the scheduled time last night after some guests began acting in an unruly manner, sources said.

The event was better organised than another reception held for the couple in Shoaib's hometown of Sialkot on April 25. That event was marred by mismanagement.

Sania, who was wearing a flowing gown, and Shoaib, clad in a dark suit, waved to TV cameras and fans as they entered the venue of the walima with their relatives.

Only two former Test cricketers Wasim Bari and Aamir Sohail attended the ceremony.

Bari was the head of an inquiry committee that announced stiff punishment for seven cricketers, including Shoaib, for on and off-field problems.

An invitation was reportedly sent to Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ijaz Butt but he preferred not to attend, sources said.
Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani's son Abdul Qadir, federal Sports Minister Aijaz Jakhrani and Population Welfare Minister Firdous Aashiq Awan were among the high-profile guest who attended the event.

Speaking on the occasion, Awan said such "marriage diplomacy" will improve people-to-people contacts between Pakistan and India.

She hoped this relationship will melt the ice between the two countries.

Jakhrani congratulated the couple on starting a new life and prayed for their success.
He said Shoaib will be given a fair chance in an inquiry to prove his innocence.

Malik and the other top Pakistani cricketers punished by the PCB have filed appeals with an appellant tribunal that will begin its hearing on Friday.
The cricketer's brother-in-law Imran Zafar was conspicuous by his absence at the walima.

Zafar was blamed for the mismanagement witnessed during the reception in Sialkot.

In accordance with the rules of the Punjab government banning the serving of more than one dish at wedding functions, guests were served a chicken 'korma' with rice and naans and a dessert.

Sania's family is scheduled to return to India today.

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An unemployed doctor was charged on Monday with fatally shooting a Yale University Indian-origin doctor Dr Vajinder Toor and firing at the victim's pregnant wife after a history of confrontations with the victim and other colleagues that led to his dismissal from a New York hospital.

Branford police said 44-year-old Lishan Wang is charged with murder, attempted murder and firearms offenses in the fatal shooting Monday of Vajinder Toor outside his home. Police say Wang, a Chinese citizen from Beijing who was last known to be living in Marietta, Ga., also fired at Toor's wife, but she was not struck. Vajinder has left behind a three-year-old baby and his pregnant wife.

Thirty four year-old Toor, went to the US five years ago and had worked with CRPF in India before he left for the States. Back home in Mohali, a shocked family says Vajinder was very soft spoken and brilliant in his studies. His father has left for the US.

"He was brilliant, we are shocked," said Tajinder Toor, younger brother.

Lishan Wang, 44, was arraigned Tuesday and held on $2 million bail in the killing of Vajinder Toor. The two had worked together at a hospital in New York City. Toor, originally from India, was shot five times Monday outside his Branford home.

Printouts on two other people directly involved in Wang's dismissal were found in his van when he was arrested nearby, police said. The names were not disclosed.

Police said directions were also in the van, but further details on the report were blacked out.

"Had we not captured him, I don't know what his future plans were," Branford Police Lt. Geoffrey Morgan told The Associated Press.

Wang's van had the words "May-08-10" handwritten on a temporary plate, police said. Wang was suspended from his job in May 2008 after a heated exchange with Toor at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in New York.

A wig, a hammer and a knife were also found in the van, police said.

Wang was found with handguns matching shell casings from the slaying scene, loaded magazines, Google directions to the shooting location and a picture of the victim, authorities said.

Police say Wang also shot at Toor's pregnant wife, but missed. Wang is charged with murder, attempted murder and firearms offenses.

Wang had a history of confrontations with Toor and other colleagues at Kingsbrook that led to his dismissal, and he had a federal discrimination lawsuit pending against the hospital.

Wang hung his head throughout Tuesday's hearing and did not speak. No plea was entered. A Chinese citizen from Beijing, Wang was assisted by a Mandarin interpreter.

Wang's public defender, Scott Jones, requested his client be placed in protective custody. Jones declined to comment after the hearing.

Bail commissioner Sharon Moye-Johnson said Wang had declined to be interviewed but he has no previous criminal record.

Wang is a married father of three, and his last known address was in Marietta, Ga.
Toor was a postdoctoral fellow at the Yale School of Medicine who was working with the infectious disease section of Yale-New Haven Hospital.

Records show Wang's lawsuit against Kingsbrook had been heating up.

The hospital's attorneys asked a judge this month to dismiss the case, and they were wrangling with Wang over how much he had to disclose about his income and prescription history.

The parties were due for a conference call May 6 to discuss that impasse and his claim they were violating his privacy.

"I am deeply saddened by the tragic turn of events that took place yesterday near Yale," Wang's attorney, Christine Rodriguez, said in a statement Tuesday.

Wang worked from 2002 through 2005 at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, according to court records, before joining Kingsbrook for residency training in 2006.

His firing was the start of several setbacks, according to his lawsuit.

In May 2009, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission rejected his discrimination claim, saying Kingsbrook showed he was fired for "multiple performance problems."

Toor was not a defendant in the lawsuit, though Wang cited alleged conflicts with Toor and other doctors several times in the claim.

Wang said in his court filings he was doing postdoctoral work from February 2009 through last February at Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta on a $34,000 annual salary.

Morehouse medical school spokeswoman Cherie A. Richardson said in a statement Tuesday the college was "horrified" to hear that a former employee is charged in the killing.

Toor, who has been praised by colleagues as diligent and ambitious, left Kingsbrook not long after Wang.

Toor, who graduated from Guru Gobind Singh Medical College in India in 2001, moved to Texas after his Kingsbrook position and practiced at Austin Regional Clinic.

"I really have no doubt that he would have been, wherever he ended up, some kind of lead physician," said Tim Rye, the clinic's regional operations director. "For a physician his age, he was more motivated than most. He was a good solid doctor, a very energetic guy with a lot ahead of him."

Dawn Eisensmith, 42, who heard the gunshots and the screams of Toor's wife, said that her 12-year-old son is carrying a baseball bat with him since the incident.
He had walked past the Toors' home on his way to the bus stop shortly before the shooting.

"That's the scariest part from me, is that he was there just minutes before," she said. 
 

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Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren's sudden support to the UPA government on the cut motions in the Lok Sabha has set off speculation that there might be emergence of new power equations in the state.

Is Jharkhand CM and its coalition partner BJP on a collision course?

A shocked BJP said after the vote that it has taken note of Soren's act of "ditching" the coalition partner in Parliament. Soren, still a member of the Lok Sabha, made a rare appearance to spring a surprise on the BJP.

"We have taken note of it," a senior BJP leader said outside Parliament, indicating that Soren could face trouble.

BJP sources said Soren may have struck a deal with the Congress under which he may move to the Centre and his son Hemant may become Deputy Chief Minister of Jharkhand.

Former Chief Minister Babulal Marandi, who had quit BJP a few years ago and is now an MP, may join a new coalition that will stake its claim to form the government.

The new alliance will have Soren's JMM, Congress and Marandi's Jharkhand Vikas Morcha-Prajatantrik (JVM-P) which has 11 MLAs. Congress has 14 MLAs while JMM has 18 members in the 81-member assembly.

Till Monday, BJP had been claiming that Soren and another JMM MP Kameshwar Baitha would vote with the NDA.

Baitha, who is in jail, did not turn up.

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The damning basics of Madhuri Gupta's story are the must-haves of any spy story. Which is what this is. For real.

The 53-year-old was posted at the Islamabad High Commission. The Indian Foreign Services B-Cadre diplomat was the Second Secretary for Press and Information at the highly-sensitive Islamabad embassy. She allegedly fell in love with Rana, her Pakistani handler, and began selling secrets to him. Sources say that in her confession to the police, she said she also wanted revenge - she had been overlooked for promotion, and was unhappy with her service conditions.

In other words, she did it for love and money.

She was arrested in Delhi on Tuesday, after being summoned from Pakistan on the pretext that she was needed for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) meet, now underway in Thimphu.

Eight months ago, Gupta's colleagues at the mission became suspicious of her motives, and alerted her seniors.

"We have reason to believe an official of  the Indian High Commission in Islamabad had been passing info to Pakistan intelligence agencies. The matter is currently under investigation. The officer is cooperating with us," said Vishnu Prakash, a spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs.

Officials confirm that as a second secretary, Gupta's access to classified information may have been limited.

Gupta, who was known for her proficiency in Urdu, is accused of having shared the identity of undercover Indian officers, and of sharing details of their assignments.

To the Pakistanis who she worked for, however, she bragged that she had intimate access to the station chief of India's intelligence agency, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), in Islamabad. RAW has investigated emails she sent, but say much of the information she gave, quoting or citing the RAW chief, is incorrect.  So far, RAW has no evidence against him.

When asked about Gupta's arrest, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, who is at the SAARC meet in Thimphu said, "My information is as good as yours because it is based on media reports."
 

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