The Indian Panorama

Month: January 2013

  • Govt, BJP Spar Over Grant Of Visa To Miandad

    Govt, BJP Spar Over Grant Of Visa To Miandad

    NEW DELHI (tip): The government and main Opposition BJP — backed by ally Shiv Sena — sparred over the Union home ministry’s decision to grant visa to former Pakistani cricket captain Javed Miandad, who has family ties with the UN-designated global terrorist Dawood Ibrahim. Miandad’s son Junaid is married to Mahrukh, daughter of Dawood, who is wanted in India in connection with the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case. Foreign minister Salman Khurshid defended the decision, saying the visa was granted by the MHA while following the right procedures. “It is a decision taken by the ministry of home affairs and the government.

    What are the circumstances, what is considered when an approval is given… what goes into it, is an internal government matter,” Khurshid told reporters in Bangalore. He was responding to a question about the opposition to the grant of visa to Miandad, an official of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), for the India- Pakistan ODI to be played here on January 6. Due to Miandad’s family ties with Dawood, India’s most wanted terrorist, there had been reports before a series in 2005 that any requests for a visa by Miandad could be turned down by the Indian government. “It is the job of MHA.

    They have taken a decision. No Pakistani visa gets cleared without MHA clearance. Inputs from all agencies are taken into consideration. It is an internal procedure,” Khurshid said. On Shiv Sena’s objections over grant of visa, he said, “Opposition only questions. Proper procedures have been gone through in this. Any law of prudence which had to be followed, it was followed, I am sure law will take care”. Criticizing the government’s decision, BJP vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, “This country loves the game of cricket but does not love terrorists. Dawood has been the mastermind of several terror acts. Pakistan has refused to hand him over to India despite several efforts. India should not allow any relative of Dawood to come to India”.

    BJP maintained that Islamabad should hand over Dawood before Miandad is allowed to visit India. “Pakistan today is a factory of terror and manufactures terrorists who work against India,” Naqvi said. BJP MP Kirti Azad, who had played for India, asked why the government had allowed Miandad to visit the country after seven years when Indian government had refused to give him visa since 2005. “Will Dawood Ibrahim’s relative come and the Indian government question him?…..giving him visa and playing cricket, how do they think it will improve relations?” Azad asked.

    Shiv Sena, which had opposed renewing of cricketing ties with Pakistan, said the whole country should condemn the move. “He’s a relative of Dawood and you lay out a red carpet for him…. The whole country should oppose it. Pakistan has spread terrorism whether it is in Delhi, Mumbai or Kashmir,” Sena MP Sanjay Raut said. “He is a well known cricketer. His visa application papers were in order and valid and that is why the government has decided to give him visa,” the minister of state for home R P N Singh told reporters on January 3. When asked if Miandad was not on India’s “negative list”, Singh said “no, nothing like that”. “He was given visa when his visa papers were found valid,” he said.

  • Fbi Must Track Religious Hate Crimes: Hindus In Us

    Fbi Must Track Religious Hate Crimes: Hindus In Us

    WASHINGTON (TIP): Expressing shock at the death of Sunande Sen, an Indian man, who was shoved to his death in front of an oncoming subway train in New York last week, Indian Americans have asked the department of justice and FBI to separately track hate crimes against religious minorities in the US. “Such a violent and hateful attack on any individual, especially because of religious hatred is completely unconscionable in any society” said Suhag Shukla, executive director and legal counsel for the Washington headquartered Hindu American Foundation (HAF).

    “We need the department of justice (DOJ) to have a separate Hindu category to track anti Hindu hate crimes and urge Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to implement to raise the profile,” Hindu American Seva Communities (HASC) said.

    Police have arrested 31-year-old Erika Menendez in connection with the case in New York, and charged her with second-degree murder as a hate crime. The defendant reportedly targeted 46- year old Sunando Sen out of hatred for Hindus and Muslims.

    Menendez pushed an unsuspecting Sen on to the subway tracks in front of an oncoming train at a Queens station as he was waiting on the platform on the night of December 27. “Though there is high acceptance of our community in America, sometimes we see gaps through intolerance and violence. Unfortunately, innocent people are impacted when individuals turn against any group of people ,” HASC said. HASC expressed grief over Sen’s tragic death and showed concern over xenophobia against Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs.

  • Vulgarity A Trend In Punjabi Songs Since 80s, Censor Board To Check It

    Vulgarity A Trend In Punjabi Songs Since 80s, Censor Board To Check It

    JALANDHAR/ CHANDIGARH (TIP): Honey Singh and Jazzy B are not the only singers drawing flak for vulgar, misogynist songs, but there are several other Punjabi singers, who have been doing the same without any subtlety for some time. In fact, Amar Chamkila started the trend of using double entendres in the 1980s even as he had sung a number of popular religious and folk songs. He even defied militant threats warning him against singing vulgar songs till he was killed along another singer Amarjot in March 1988.

    “Romanticism has always been there in Punjabi folk and other popular songs, but Chamkila had crossed the line and started openly using double-entendres. After his killing, no Punjabi singer sang any vulgar song for around a decade,” said columnist Swaran Tehna. He pointed out that then there was no internet and only those with cassette players could listen to these songs along with those who attended Chimkila’s Akharas (programs) in villages. “What these singers are singing today may even shame Chamkila as abuses and explicit words are being unabashedly used in and these songs are reaching most youngsters,” said Tehna.

    Others like Ashok Masti, Geeta Zaildar, Diljit Dosanjh and Gippy Grewal have also been drawing flak for singing vulgar songs. Gippy and Zaildar had to apologize for their songs after women activists staged dharnas before their residences. Critics say many Punjabi songs depict women as “mere enjoyment objects”. They cite songs like Jassi’s `Yaaro Aaundian rehndia kudian te Bassan (girls and buses keep on coming)’. Even most popular Punjabi female singer Miss Pooja has sung songs on similar lines. Dinesh of Speed Records, which recently released Jazzy B and Honey Singh’s song facing flak for vulgarity, argued that the two cannot be made scapegoats. “If there is going to be action, then it should be for everybody,” he said.

    “Nobody speaks out against Bollywood.” Speed Records had apologized and pledged to avoid vulgarity after activists protested outside its office. The vulgarity in Honey Singh’s songs has not impacted his popularity. His songs on video-sharing sites get millions of hits. On such song ‘G**** mein Danda’ has got over 8.5 million hits since 2008. Another song he sang with Deep Money that describes Punjabi girls as “second hand stuff” has over 6.5 million hits. “Honey Singh is popular among teens for using sexually explicit words,” said Tehna. He sought action against channels playing such songs.

    “(They) are also responsible for promoting these songs.” But the outrage over vulgarity has prompted the Punjab government to set up a censor board to screen their content. Cultural affairs minister Sarwan Singh Phillaur has mooted the proposal in August last year. The move is likely to be fast-tracked following the national outrage over Honey Singh’s songs. “The objective is to screen the content shown in such videos besides lyrics so that the censored content reaches the public,” said Phillaur. Phillaur forwarded his proposal to the Punjab Cabinet along with the list of Honey Singh’s lewd songs. Earlier, Punjab transport minister Ajit Singh Kohar had banned drivers from playing “vulgar and provocative songs” in state-run transport buses to prevent accidents in November.

  • Want To Be A Doctor In Britain? Brace For Tougher Examinations

    Want To Be A Doctor In Britain? Brace For Tougher Examinations

    LONDON (TIP): Indian doctors wanting to work in Britain will face a more rigorous assessment in future. This was decided by the United Kingdom’s health authorities after figures showed a high proportion of doctors who lose their registration in UK are from abroad. Almost 36% of all doctors practicing in the UK are from abroad, with the largest segment coming from India. Without them the National Health Service (NHS) would collapse.

    But in the last five years it was found that 63% of overseas doctors either struck off from the register or suspended by the General Medical Council (GMC) are qualified for the profession outside UK. Dr Vivienne Nathanson, British Medical Association (BMA) director of professional activities, said, “It is clear that doctors qualified overseas are more likely to be subject to disciplinary action. However, more research is needed to understand why this is the case.

    The UK is still short of doctors and so we must ensure that those coming from overseas are given adequate support to be able to practice medicine in the UK.” The GMC’s new reforms included an induction programme , better checks and a review of the present testing system. Niall Dickson, the chief executive of the GMC, said, “We absolutely acknowledge that when it comes to the serious end of the scale, those from overseas are more likely to appear, and we have set about a series of reforms to address this.” A pilot scheme of the new induction programme for all arriving doctors is scheduled to be launched in early 2013. This will combine online training in British medical practices with a one-day course covering some of the issues facing new entrants.

    The Performance and Linguistic Assessments Board test for applying doctors will be made more difficult then present. The doctors will have to demonstrate their clinical skills and competence before they are accepted for practice in the UK.

  • Opposition Steals UPA’s Food Bill Thunder

    Opposition Steals UPA’s Food Bill Thunder

    NEW DELHI (TIP): The benchmark has been set higher for the UPA’s overdue National Food Security Bill, with Opposition-ruled states expanding the coverage of cheap food grains and improvising services under the public distribution system. Chhattisgarh may have scored recently with its state food act that expands coverage to almost 90% of the state’s voters but other states are also gearing up to do more even as the central government is yet to legislate its bill that is stuck in a standing committee. The central draft envisages covering 67% of India’s population and while states are setting the bar higher.

    Uttar Pradesh has sought 100% coverage while in Tamil Nadu it is already universal. The slow pace of the draft bill’s progress has frustrated Congress as the proposed law has the strong backing of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi. Take the case of Madhya Pradesh where the state extended the PDS for below poverty line rates to 71 lakh families against 56 lakh odd beneficiaries the Centre currently approves of. With a bumper crop in 2012 and a decent coffer, the state is looking to reduce prices at which it offers food grains to the poor. Others, such as BJD-ruled Odisha too are buying food grains out of their own pocket to supply to bigger number of beneficiaries than what the Centre supports.

    Odisha’s BJD government may have come under the CAG scanner for altering norms, but it has been more than happy to advertise that it is buying 8,669 metric tonnes rice every month beyond what the Centre’s supplies. The state provides an additional annual subsidy of around Rs 189 crore to distribute subsidized grains. With the new BPL survey still pending, Congress’s task to churn out a law offering greater benefits to reap a political dividend could get tougher in coming days. The central government had retained flexibility in the design of the survey to prune or expand the list of beneficiaries after the raw data is available.

    But pruning the numbers – already a friction point with influential chief ministers like Bihar’s Nitish Kumar disputing the Centre’s numbers — by a fiat is bound to be politically imprudent and invite a backlash. Since the time it began working on the bill, UPA and its various arms and agencies – relevant ministries, National Advisory Council, PMO and the Planning Commission – have often been at loggerheads about what was billed as ‘the’ flagship scheme for UPA2. The differences in approach, coverage and benefits is continuing. The new ‘game-changer’ social sector scheme – cash transfers – has only confounded the case further.

    The government’s reluctance to provide food subsidy through cash transfers has also added greater uncertainty about the proposed law. Finance minister P Chidambaram reiterated that the government would not include food subsidy in the cash transfer scheme at the moment. But debate rages on within the government and while sections f the from civil society, including some NAC members, are opposed to the Centre’s formulations.

  • Developed world looks at India for investment, trade : US report

    Developed world looks at India for investment, trade : US report

    NEW YORK (TIP): As the global centre of economic growth moves to Asia, India has captured the attention of developed economies looking for new investment and trade opportunities, says a new report. Noting that recent growth in India has also emanated from a number of under-examined sectors other than information technology (IT) sector, it says, the Indian economy will need to continue to diversify in order to propel its development.

    And the US will need to pay close attention to all aspects of these changes in order to sustain strong bilateral economic ties, says the report by Wadhwani Chair in USIndia Policy Studies at the Centre for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS).

    Authored by CSIS fellow Persis Khambatta Karl Inderfurth, Wadhwani Chair and former assistant secretary of state for South Asia, the report lists some key recommendations from its year-long Emerging Indian Economy Signature Speaker Series.

    There is arguably no sector more critical to India’s future growth than energy, says the report, with a chronic energy shortage, inadequate infrastructure, and an insatiable demand coupled with environmental concerns.

    Vikram Mehta of the Shell Group of Companies (India) stressed that India must find a way to handle a surge in energy demand, highlighting that technology is underutilised, the environment is threatened, and New Delhi has an inadequate policy framework through which to address these issues.

    Rajiv Lall of the Infrastructure Development Finance Company used the term “infrastruggles” to describe the obstacles facing the private sector for the delivery of infrastructurerelated services.

    John Flannery of GE India suggested that governments should view infrastructure as a top national priority after national security. Innovative, efficient infrastructure enables many other vital sectors to flourish.

    Indian health care industry’s biggest challenges include ramping up capacity to serve hundreds of millions of citizens and a growing incidence of non-communicable diseases, according to Prathap Reddy of the Apollo Hospitals Group. India’s National Manufacturing Policy plans to increase the sector’s share of GDP from 16 percent to 25 percent, including creating 100 million new jobs.

    Explaining how India can accomplish this, Arvind Goel of Tata AutoComp Systems referred to a number of policy instruments, including the recent creation of National Investment and Manufacturing Zones, zones in which state and central governments modify regulations on difficult issues in order to encourage greater manufacturing growth.

  • Chidambaram: I’m Not As Foolish As You Think I Am

    Chidambaram: I’m Not As Foolish As You Think I Am

    NEW DELHI (TIP): Reacting to the remarks made by DMK chief M Karunanidhi that he is a potential prime ministerial candidate, finance minister P Chidambaram on Monday said he knows his limitations. “If you are expecting a light-hearted comment,” Chidambaram told reporters, then “I tell you this: I know that some of you think I am foolish. But I am not so foolish as you think.” “I know my limitations and I live and conduct myself according to my limitations,” Chidambaram said here when asked to respond to the remarks of the DMK chief who had supported actor Kamal Hassan’s suggestion that the FM was a potential PM candidate. “I don’t know whether I should take your question very seriously. But let me give you a very serious answer. I know my limitations,” he told reporters. On Saturday while releasing a book, Karunanidhi had endorsed actor Kamal Hassan’s view on the FM becoming the PM.

  • US offers India help in combating violence against women

    US offers India help in combating violence against women

    WASHINGTON (TIP): In the wake of the gang-rape of an Indian woman, the United States has offered to help India strengthen public and private organizations working to combat violence against women. “Our goal is, whether it’s in India or anywhere else, to help strengthen all of the public and private organizations that are working to combat violence against women,” State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told reporters on January 3 The US has worked very hard around the world to combat violence against women and will continue to make it a strong tenet of itsforeign policy wherever there is a problem, she said when asked about the gang-rape in Delhi and subsequent death of the victim Delhi that sparked huge protests in India.

    US Ambassador to India Nancy Powell had put out a statement on Dec 29 “after the victim died from this assault, offering our heartfelt condolences and our absolute abhorrence of these events”, Nuland noted. “Obviously, we have as a government worked very hard around the world with regard to combating violence against women,” she added. “We have a number of programes, including programes in India in public education, in support for NGOs, that help women who are victims of violence, including domestic violence,” she said.

    “And we will continue to make this a strong tenet of our foreign policy wherever there is a problem, and unfortunately, there are problems in countries around the world, including our own.” “Obviously, if the result of the investigation into this case indicates that the Indian Government wants to make changes or go in a different set of directions with regard to those programmes, we’d be interested in talking to them about it,” Nuland said. “Our goal is, whether it’s in India or anywhere else, to help strengthen all of the public and private organizations that are working to combat violence against women,” Nuland added. Asked if Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, recovering from a clot in her head, was aware of the issue in India, the spokesperson said: “I’m sure she’s aware of it. It’s, as you know, had enormous press and it’s a subject that is very close to her heart.”

  • Delhi Women Gun For Licenses; Rape Triggers Big Rush To Acquire Arms

    Delhi Women Gun For Licenses; Rape Triggers Big Rush To Acquire Arms

    NEW DELHI (TIP): The horrific attack on Nirbhaya has led to a spurt in requests for gun licenses from women. Since December 18, the day the news of the brutal gang rape appeared in newspapers, the licensing department of Delhi Police has received a total of 274 applications from women. In addition, it has also been flooded with hundreds of queries on how to obtain a license. “We have received over 1,200 calls since that day. These include not only the average working woman, but even students who travel long distances to colleges and even their concerned parents. They were eager to find out more on the procedure to acquire arms,” said a Delhi police officer. Delhi police sources say hundreds more had turned up at their office itself. “We had to patiently tell them that one needs to have a clear danger to one’s life to be given a licence. However, some of the parents were not happy with our replies. They said that with even public transport no longer safe in the city, they just cannot take chances.When we told them this could not be reason enough, we were told to give in writing that their daughters were indeed safe on Delhi’s roads,” said a source.

    20% increase in self-defence classes in city
    A member of the National Association for Gun Rights India claimed women were discriminated against. “Men are issued more gun licences than women in Delhi even if the later have genuine reasons to apply for them,” said a member. “The fact that even parents are ready to hand over weapons to their daughters shows they are living in fear. There is a 20% increase in self-defence courses across the city,” added the source. In the past two years, Delhi cops have received over 800 applications for guns from women. While the year 2010 saw around 320 applications, the figure had risen to around 500 in 2011.

    But it’s not only the numbers that’s a break from the past. There’s a change as well in the reasons cited. “Women earlier mostly cited the inheritance clause — saying their fathers or husbands had a licence which they want to continue holding. Many women applying under this clause were proxies for men. But of late women are citing ‘self-defence’ to apply for a licence,” said an officer in the licencing department.In general, 20- 22% of all applicants are now women. Since the past two weeks, the percentage has shot up to around 35%. The officer said 27 licences were issued to women in 2010. Of these, 17 applied under the inheritance clause. Till July this year, five women were granted licences for personal threats. In 2010 and 2011, over 600 applications were rejected as no “personal safety threat was assessed”.

  • Visa delays leave Indian students in UK stranded

    Visa delays leave Indian students in UK stranded

    LONDON (TIP): Several international students, including some from India have been stranded in the UK without passports and are unable to get home for Christmas after the UK Border Agency asked them to reapply for their visas. According to a report in The Guardian, London School of Film students from as far afield as the US, India, Russia and Lebanon were asked to hand over their passports to the Border Agency in November so they could be issued with new study permits. This was following the decision to strip London Metropolitan University of its “higher trusted status” before the start of the academic year.

    The Guardian said that London Met, which sponsors the students and issues degrees on behalf of the film school, also has hundreds of international students who are unable to get home due to lengthy delays at the Border Agency, despite being promised a fast-track service. Education vice-president at London Met, Syed Rumman, said he believed around 600-700 Met Uni students were stuck because UKBA still had their passports.

  • Accused of rape, Congress leader thrashed in Assam

    Accused of rape, Congress leader thrashed in Assam

    GUWAHATI (TIP): A Congress leader in Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Areas Districts (BTAD) was taken into custody by police on January 3 after he allegedly attempted to rape a woman and was beaten up by villagers. He will be formally arrested as soon the case is filed. The incident took place at Salbari in Chirang district , police said, adding that Bikramsingh Brahma was handed over to police by the woman’s husband and the villagers Thursday morning. “Local people caught hold of Brahma in the house of the victim and handed him over to the police. The villagers also beat up the politician before handing him over.

    The victim’s husband filed a complaint against Brahma, alleging that Brahma had raped his wife,” said Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) S.N. Singh. “Brahma is in police custody now and he would be arrested soon. The police are waiting for the case to be registered,” said Singh.Brahma is the coordinator of the Congress party for the four districts of BTAD — Kokrajhar, Baksa, Chirang and Udalguri — and he had also contested the 2011 Assam assembly polls from Chapaguri constituency on a Congress ticket. “It seems that Brahma had been taking advantage of the woman for quite sometime by giving her hopes that he would make her beneficiary of various government schemes,” the IGP said. Meanwhile, Congress spokesman Haren Das said that strong disciplinary action will be taken against Brahma if the allegations against him were found to be true. “Brahma has also been temporarily suspended from the party after the incident,” said Das

  • Punjab Unveils Steps To Combat Crime Against Women, Kids

    Punjab Unveils Steps To Combat Crime Against Women, Kids

    CHANDIGARH (TIP): Punjab government announced a slew of measures, including lodging of gender-related cases at the complainants’ residences instead of police stations, to effectively combat crimes against women and children. It was decided that no complainant of gender-related cases would be called at police stations in future and the complainant would be examined at her residence by the police accompanied by a lady police official that too in the presence of her family members. The government has also decided that only gazetted officers not below the rank of DSP will be deputed to be a supervisory officer in investigating gender-related cases.

    A dedicated telephone number manned by lady constables will be set up in all police stations to deal with complaints of gender-related crimes so that the complainants could air their grievances without any fear, hesitation or inhibition. The chief minister in a letter to Chief Justice of Punjab and Haryana high court Justice A K Sikri asked him to allocate dedicated courts in all districts across the state to ensure speedy trial of cases involving women and children. He also constituted a four-member committee comprising the advocate general, the principal secretary (home), the DGP and the director prosecution & litigation to recommend stricter laws to deal with the accused involved in such dastardly acts against humanity especially women and children besides swifter procedures to be adopted for speedy prosecution. The committee has been asked to submit its report within 10 days.

  • Pakistan’s report on how Osama bin Laden lived undetected out, but not made public

    Pakistan’s report on how Osama bin Laden lived undetected out, but not made public

    ISLAMABAD (TIP): A Pakistan commission has submitted a report on probe into how Osama bin Laden lived in the country undetected for years until his killing by US special forces, but the report might never be revealed, officials have said. The judicial commission was appointed 18 months ago, to probe one of the most embarrassing episodes in Pakistani history, but its findings could remain classified.

    The Pakistani government set up the five-member panel after US Navy SEALs conducted a secret raid on a compound in the garrison city of Abbottabad on May 2, 2011, killing bin Laden without informing Islamabad until afterwards, the Daily Times reports. According to the report, the commission interviewed senior civilian and military officials and the three widows of bin Laden before they were deported to Saudi Arabia in April last year. Pakistani-US ties drastically deteriorated over the bin Laden raid, which prompted accusations of incompetence or complicity against the military.

  • Tougher Rape Laws: Shinde Wants Parties To Pitch In

    Tougher Rape Laws: Shinde Wants Parties To Pitch In

    NEW DELHI (TIP): Two days after the death of the 23-year-old Delhi gang-rape victim, Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has sent letters to all political parties inviting suggestions on the issue of amending laws pertaining to rape. At present, anti-rape laws are seen to be lax with very low conviction rates. According to the National Crimes Record Bureau, there were 22,171 reported cases of rapes in the country in 2010. The conviction rate in these cases stood at just 26.6 per cent. In the same year, 40,613 molestation cases were reported with 29.7 per cent convictions. The maximum punishment for rape under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code is life term. But those convicted are often let off after serving only a few months or years. Moreover, proving the offence of rape in courts is a traumatic experience for victims. One suggestion being considered by the government is having fast-track courts with fixed periods for such trials.

    Bjp too wants chemical Castration for rapists
    The BJP on December 31 suggested maximum punishment to the accused in rape cases– either death penalty or chemical castration. “There should be maximum punishment to the rapists, death penalty or emasculation (chemical castration of the rapist),” senior BJP leader Venkiah Naidu told reporters here. His suggestions come close on the heels of the Congress proposing castration for rapists.

  • Gunman Kills Five In Philippines

    Gunman Kills Five In Philippines

    KAWIT (TIP): A gunman armed with a semi-automatic pistol killed at least five people and wounded 11 others as he rampaged through a slum on the outskirts of the Philippine capital on January 4, authorities said. The ordeal, which took place in a rundown residential area and a market about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Manila, ended when the gunman died in a gunbattle with police, said investigating officer Arnulfo Lopez. “It was random.

    He would fire at anybody who crossed his path,” Lopez said. A seven-year-old girl was one of the people killed, with four other children among the wounded, according to Lopez.

    He identified the suspect as Ronaldo Bae, a middle-aged man who had once contested and lost an election for the post of local village chief. Initial police reports had identified the gunman as “Ronald Pae”. Lopez said no motive for the killings had yet been determined, but residents said Bae had been drinking heavily on Thursday night.

    They said the rampage began near Bae’s home in a rundown part of Kawit town and nearby neighbors were among those killed. “He was running swiftly and waving his gun… I told my children, and grandchildren to run,” Maita Lacorte, one of Bae’s neighbors and the aunt of the dead seven-year-old girl, told AFP.

    Lopez said Bae shot dead the girl in her home. Another neighbour, 56-year-old Alberto Fernandez, was also shot as he stood on his porch, according to the victim’s brother-in-law, Lito Ronquillo. Ronquillo spoke to AFP in the narrow street where the initial shootings took place.

    A bullet hole could be seen in a window above the porch where Fernandez died. Bae then walked towards a nearby market, shooting more people before returning home where police demanded he surrender, according to Lopez.

  • More Cases Of Alleged Sexual Assault Reported From Punjab, Haryana

    More Cases Of Alleged Sexual Assault Reported From Punjab, Haryana

    CHANDIGARH (TIP): Amid outrage and condemnation against the brutal Delhi gang-rape, more cases of alleged sexual assault were reported from Punjab and Haryana on Monday. However, the demand for immediate action against the perpetrators seems to have ensured swift action and police arrested the accused in most cases. Jhajjar police have booked two persons for allegedly abducting and raping a 19-year-old girl from Bahadurgarh. In her complaint, the victim said that she had gone for a walk in a park on Sunday when two persons – – Anil Kumar, 20, of Barahi village and Subhash Kumar, 30, of Sonipat district – – bundled her into a car and sped away.

    They raped her before dumping her near her residence the next morning. Jhajjar SP Anil Dhawan said the accused were booked under sections 365 (kidnapping or abducting) and 376 (rape) of IPC and arrested within hours of the complaint being lodged. In another case, a doctor allegedly raped a girl after inviting her to Ludhiana with the promise of getting her admission in a post-graduate course. He has been arrested and sent to police remand till January 1.

    According to the police, Kanwar Samrat was arrested after a complaint by a 29-year-old divorcee woman, who had got in touch with the accused from Samana through the internet. They had got engaged on May 22. Samrat called her to Ludhiana city on October 10 and violated her .When he neither got her an admission nor married her, she went to the police. “We have registered a case of cheating and rape against the accused on the basis of complaint. He was produced before the court which sent him to two days police remand.We are interrogating him,” a police officer said. Two more cases were reported in Amritsar.

    While police arrested a migrant worker for allegedly raping a minor girl for over four months, they have registered a case against a local, Milan Kapoor, for raping a woman on the pretext of marrying her and is now absconding. Police said Dhoti Yadav, a resident of Bihar, allegedly raped the 13-year-old girl repeatedly for months. In a similar case in Mansa, an Armyman has been booked for raping a 24-year-old woman for about two years on the pretext of marriage.When the girl came to know that her perpetrator, Sukhpal Singh, was already married, she approached the police on Saturday and was registered. Sukhpal is a resident of Chak Bhai Ka village and at present posted in Rajasthan.

    Similarly in Ferozepur’s Jhirka town, three youths were arrested for allegedly raping and blackmailing an 18-year-old girl for six months, said SP Sukhbir Singh. The victim, in her complaint, had alleged that the accused had raped her and made an MMS of the same for the purpose of blackmailing, he said. In Gurdaspur district, a labourer Radhey Shyam was arrested on Saturday for allegedly raping and killing a minor girl, police said. The 13- year-old’s body was found in a sugarcane field at Hassanpur village. In Jalandhar, four persons were arrested for allegedly raping a minor girl in Bhogpur area and making her pregnant, local SHO B S Bajwa said. A youth Abhimanyu was arrested by the Mohali police for allegedly molesting a girl and making an MMS of the act after taking the victim to Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh on the pretext of attending a marriage, SSP (Ludhiana) G P S Bhullar said.

    Meanwhile, a 19-year-old student of a private engineering college, arrested for allegedly abducting and raping his dalit classmate in Kurukshetra, was produced in a court on Monday and remanded in judicial custody. Both the victim and the accused, Gugandeep Virk, are BTech students of a private engineering college in Karnal.In Sirsa, students blocked the Sirsa-Hisar-Delhi highway for more than an hour on Monday, demanding death penalty for the Delhi gang rape and murder accused and a new legislation to curb crime against women. The entire traffic on NH-10 had to be diverted from Sirsa bypass as students refused to lift the blockade and raised slogans demanding death penalty to the rapists and murderers. Roshan Suchan, a student, said, “The rapists must be hanged and the government must bring fast track courts to dispose of all rape case.” Heavy police force was rushed to the spot and students were finally persuaded to lift the blockade.

  • Venezuela’s Chavez Still Has ‘Severe’ Respiratory Problem

    Venezuela’s Chavez Still Has ‘Severe’ Respiratory Problem

    CARACAS (TIP) Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is still suffering a “severe” respiratory infection that has hindered his breathing as he struggles to recover from cancer surgery in Cuba, the government said on January 3 .

    The 58-year-old socialist leader has not been seen in public nor heard from in more than three weeks. Officials say he is in delicate condition after his fourth operation in just 18 months for an undisclosed form of cancer in his pelvic area. “Comandante Chavez has faced complications as a result of a severe lung infection,” Information Minister Ernesto Villegas said in the latest official update on the president’s condition. “This infection has caused a breathing insufficiency that requires Comandante Chavez to comply strictly with medical treatment,” the communique added, giving no further details. Vice President Nicolas Maduro had earlier returned to Venezuela on Thursday after visiting Chavez in hospital as rumors swirled that the president could be close to death.

    Flanked by senior government figures including Diosdado Cabello, the head of the National Assembly, Maduro toured a coffee production plant in Caracas – the type of visit that the president made frequently before he fell ill. “He is conscious of the battle that he’s in, and has the same fighting spirit as always, with the same strength and energy as always, with his confidence and security,” Maduro said. “We’re going to be alongside him with the same strength and the same energy.” Maduro said Cabello, Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez and Chavez’s elder brother Adan, among others, had all been with the president in the Havana hospital. Venezuelan bonds rallied to five-year highs earlier on Thursday on rumors that Chavez’s health had taken a turn for the worse.

    Foreign investors generally hope for a more business-friendly government in Venezuela, and its assets have rallied in recent months on news of his illness. In scenes that recalled Chavez’s hourslong televised visits to building sites, hospitals and oil refineries, Maduro told workers at the nationalized Fama de America factory that there was no “transition” taking place in the country.

    “The only transition in Venezuela is the transition to socialism,” he said in comments carried live by state television. “It began six years ago, ordered by Comandante Hugo Chavez as chief and president, elected, re-elected and ratified, much as it pains the bourgeois hucksters and the right, who have done so much damage to our fatherland.” Chavez’s abrupt exit from the political scene would be a huge shock for the South American OPEC nation. His oil-financed socialism has made him a hero to the poor majority but critics call him a dictator. His condition is being watched closely by Latin American allies that have benefited from his help, as well as investors attracted by Venezuela’s lucrative and widely traded debt.

    ‘MAKE NO MISTAKE’
    Chavez is still set to be sworn in on January 10, as spelled out in the constitution.

    If he were to die or had to step aside, new elections would be held within 30 days, with Maduro running as the ruling Socialist Party (PSUV) candidate. While the constitution gives January 10 as the start of a new presidential term, it does not explicitly state what happens if a president-elect cannot take office on that date. Top PSUV officials have suggested that Chavez’s inauguration could be postponed – while the opposition says any delay would be just the latest sign the former soldier is not fit to govern.

    Cabello said the “Chavismo” movement was in pain but remained resolute, and he issued a warning to the opposition: “Make no mistake about these people or this revolution. It is going to cost you very, but very, dearly,” he said. On Saturday, Cabello will likely be reelected as head of the Chavista-dominated National Assembly, a key post that could see him assume Chavez’s role temporarily while new elections are called should the president have to step down.

    In the past Cabello has been considered as a rival of Maduro, but the pair have been at pains to deny that. Their appearance side-by-side at the coffee factory on Thursday looked to be the latest effort to project a unified front. Last year, Chavez staged what appeared to be remarkable comeback from the disease to win re-election to a new six-year term in October despite being weakened by radiation therapy. But he returned to Cuba for more treatment within weeks of his win.

    Officials have said he suffered unexpected bleeding and then a respiratory infection after a six-hour operation on December 11. That respiratory infection caused further complications, they have said, without giving more details.

  • Maharaja Ranjit Singh Haveli In Pak Losing Its Sheen

    Maharaja Ranjit Singh Haveli In Pak Losing Its Sheen

    AMRITSAR (TIP): Land grabbers in Pakistan have completely brought down the front portion of the haveli of “Sher-e-Punjab” Maharaja Ranjit Singh situated in Gujranwala, historian Surinder Kochhar said. Earlier, Pakistan government had converted a portion Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s ancestral haveli into a garbage dump. Maharja Ranjit Singh was born in this haveli, the lower floor of which was being used as a police station for long after the partition.

    Expressing differences with the recent statement of minister of state for external affairs Preneet Kaur,who had claimed that the haveli was safe, Kochhar said that he obtained a photograph of the haveli from his acquaintance in Gujranwala on Monday morning which revealed the present condition. He said that the process of razing the haveli had started on instigation of a Member National Assembly of Muslim League in January 2012. He said that Pakistani government had removed the garbage dump but had started using the place as a parking area. He said that many locals use the haveli as a gambling den which was seen in the photograph. He appealed the government to take a swift action and save the haveli.

  • Accused Of Rape, Congress Leader Thrashed In Assam

    Accused Of Rape, Congress Leader Thrashed In Assam

    GUWAHATI (TIP): A Congress leader in Assam’s Bodoland Territorial Areas Districts (BTAD) was taken into custody by police on January 3 after he allegedly attempted to rape a woman and was beaten up by villagers. He will be formally arrested as soon the case is filed. The incident took place at Salbari in Chirang district , police said, adding that Bikramsingh Brahma was handed over to police by the woman’s husband and the villagers Thursday morning. “Local people caught hold of Brahma in the house of the victim and handed him over to the police.

    The villagers also beat up the politician before handing him over. The victim’s husband filed a complaint against Brahma, alleging that Brahma had raped his wife,” said Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) S.N. Singh. “Brahma is in police custody now and he would be arrested soon. The police are waiting for the case to be registered,” said Singh.Brahma is the coordinator of the Congress party for the four districts of BTAD — Kokrajhar, Baksa, Chirang and Udalguri — and he had also contested the 2011 Assam assembly polls from Chapaguri constituency on a Congress ticket.

    “It seems that Brahma had been taking advantage of the woman for quite sometime by giving her hopes that he would make her beneficiary of various government schemes,” the IGP said. Meanwhile, Congress spokesman Haren Das said that strong disciplinary action will be taken against Brahma if the allegations against him were found to be true. “Brahma has also been temporarily suspended from the party after the incident,” said Das.

  • ‘Midnight’s Children’ fails to draw viewers in UK

    ‘Midnight’s Children’ fails to draw viewers in UK

    LONDON (TIP): ‘Midnight’s Children’, a film based on the 1981 Booker Prize winning novel by Salman Rushdie is scheduled to release in India on February 1, 2013, and could be heading for an unimpressive box office result in Britain, where it opened on Boxing Day. That it is showing at central London’s Empire cinema is prestigious. But allocated to it is a mini-theatre with a capacity of about 40.

    Only two tickets, including the one bought by this correspondent, were sold for a performance, during what’s a holiday period in the UK. If this reflects a nationwide trend – and reports are not encouraging – the Deepa Mehta directed movie can bid goodbye to decent returns from the British Isles. What was deemed to be an “unfilmable” novel was converted into a screenplay by the author himself after two years’ of labour (he is also the film’s narrator).

    By remaining faithful to the book, he may have sacrificed its celluloid potential. The UK’s Guardian newspaper in its review said: “It sheds no fresh light on the material, turns and turns but with no new spin, fails to pepper the source. This is self-defeating faithfulness, which genuflects so far as to insist the audience can’t be released for some 148 minutes, and employs actors perfectly cast to the point of blandness.” Screen magazine is kinder. It sees the film “emerging as a prestige, middlebrow arthouse attraction”.

    The story of two newborns “tumbling forth” at the hour of India’s independence meanders from Mumbai to Karachi, Dhaka, and to Pakistan being inflicted a resounding military defeat by Indian forces and the consequent loss of its eastern wing in 1971.

  • Anglican leader Rowan Williams steps down

    Anglican leader Rowan Williams steps down

    LONDON (TIP): The head of the Church of England is leaving office after a decade as the spiritual leader of the world’s 80 million-strong Anglican Communion. Rowan Williams, the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury, will be replaced by 56-year-old former oil executive Justin Welby, the Bishop of Durham.

    The ten years in which the 62-yearold Williams held office saw him struggling to maintain unity within the Anglican Communion amid bitter disagreements over female bishops and church teachings on gay relationships.

    Williams has been praised for engaging with church critics and atheists including Richard Dawkins, but he has also raised eyebrows with his opinions on controversial issues including the war in Iraq and Sharia law. Williams will step down on Monday to start a new role as Master of Cambridge University’s Magdalene College.

  • Super-Charged Pakistan Thrash India To Nail Series

    Super-Charged Pakistan Thrash India To Nail Series

    KOLKATA (TIP): Indian batting fizzled out virtually without a spark as Pakistan took a winning 2-0 lead in the One-Day International (ODI) series by carving out a comprehensive 85- run victory in the second match here on January 3. Replying to Pakistan’s 250, spearheaded by opener Nasir Jamshed’s second consecutive hundred of the series, India were bundled out for 165 in 48 overs as they failed to break their Eden Gardens jinx against Pakistan. As Junaid Khan shattered Ishant Sharma’s stumps with a snorter of a delivery, the visitors got their fourth win in as many ODIs against India at the iconic ground.

    India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni remained unbeaten on 54. With the hosts losing the opener by six wickets in Chennai, the final match in Delhi is now reduced to a mere formality. This is Pakistan’s first ODI series triumph in India since the 4-2 win in 2005. It was a fine show from pacers Junaid (3/39) and Umar Gul (2/24), who backed up Jamshed’s efforts with their variations and movement rattling the Indian willowers. Much to the dismay of a capacity crowd, the Indian top order showed its brittleness for the second straight match, with half the side back into the pavilion even before reaching 100.

    India lost the plot there and literally gave up the chase. It was only a painful display to extend the proceedings at the end with Pakistani bowlers building the pressure up to a crescendo. Openers Gautam Gambhir (11) and Virender Sehwag (31) looked tentative against the beauty of deliveries sent down by Junaid and Mohammed Irfan but managed to put on a stand of 42. However, Gambhir, who never looked confident, inside edged Junaid to the stumps, thereby starting the procession. A short while later Virat Kohli (6) nicked Junaid behind the wicket while Gul picked up Sehwag by getting him plumb with a moving delivery.

    Gul continued the momentum by evicting Yuvraj Singh (9) as India tottered at 70/4 in 18.5 overs. The strokes also dried up. After a boundary from Suresh Raina’s blade in the 24th over, the Indian batsmen could not send the ball across the ropes for the next 101 deliveries. Spinner Saeed Ajmal took three late wickets — seeing the back of Ravindra Jadeja (13), Bhuvaneshwar Kumar (0) and Ashok Dinda (2) — before Dhoni and Sharma added 33 for the last wicket.

    Earlier, Man of the Match Jamshed fired a 124-ball 106 (12×4, 2×6) to give Pakistan a rollicking start before India fought back to run through the visitors’ batting line-up. Riding on the hundred by the 23-year-old Jamshed — who completed a hat-trick of hundreds against India — and his 141-run opening wicket stand with Mohammed Hafeez (76), Pakistan looked poised for a 300- plus total after being put into bat. But they surrendered wickets at regular intervals to fold up in 48.3 overs. Except the opening stand, there was not a single half-century partnership in the innings.

    Jamshed seemed to have started from where he left off in Chennai reaching his century off 120 balls in the 40th over, driving Ravichandran Ashwin for a boundary past mid-off. The only blemish in Jamshed’s innings came on 35 when he edged one to backward point but Kohli failed to grip the offering. Hafeez initially looked circumspect but grew in confidence as the overs progressed. Ultimately, left arm spinner Jadeja got the breakthrough. Hafeez missed a sweep and lost his wicket. Skipper Misbah-ul Haq (2) did not last long while Jamshed’s knock ended in the 41st over.

    The lefthander darted down the track to Jadeja, missed, and Dhoni rattled his stumps in his second effort, reducing Pakistan to 210/5. Azhar Ali (2) was run out, while Younis Khan (10) got an unfortunate leg before decision. Television replays showed the ball striking the pad off an inside edge. Pakistan were 177/3 then in 34.3 overs. The young Jadeja celebrated by sending Kamran Akmal (0) back two balls later. Ishant Sharma (3/33), luckless till then, struck gold in his last spell, removing Shoaib Malik (24), Umar Gul (17) and Mohammad Irfan (0) within nine balls.

  • Sachin Tendulkar Record

    Sachin Tendulkar Record

  • Sachin Tendulkar has spent more than 69418 minutes of his life batting in international cricket,easily the most than any other batsman.
  • Sachin Tendulkar scored 19.24% of the total bat runs that India scored in the matches he played in his ODI career (18426 runs out of 95765).
  • Did You Know Sachin Tendulkar has run nearly 600 kilometers between the wickets in his international career.
  • In ODI history, Sachin Tendulkar has scored most runs in wins (11157 runs) and also hit most 100s in wins (33 hundreds)

    • ODI Records
    LARGEST ODI CAREER: 22 years and 91 days
    MOST NUMBER OF RUNS: 18,426
    MOST HUNDREDS: 49
    MOST FIFTIES: 96
    MOST MATCHES: 463
    MOST BALL FACED: 21,392
    MOST RUNS IN WORLD CUP HISTORY: 2,278
    MOST HUNDREDS IN WORLD CUP: 06
    MOST FIFTIES IN WORLD CUP: 15
    MOST RUNS IN SINGLE EDITION OF WC: 673 in 11 maches (2003)
    YOUNGEST INDIAN TO MAKE ODI DEBUT: 16 years and 238 days
    MOST MAN OF THE MATCH AWARD: 62
    MOST MAN OF THE SERIES AWARD: 15
    MOST CONSECUTIVE ODIs FOR INDIA: 185
    MOST CENTURIES IN A CALENDER YEAR: 9 (1998)
    FASTEST TO REACH 10,000 ODI runs and onward (11,000 to 18,000)
    MOST HUNDREDS AGAINST ONE TEAM: 9 (Aus)
    MOST TIMES IN NINETIES: 18
    JOINT RECORD HOLDER OF MOST WORLD CUP APPREANCES: 6 (1992-2011)
    SECOND HIGHEST NUMBER OF WORLD

  • Lindsay Lohan To Feature In Porn Film?

    Lindsay Lohan To Feature In Porn Film?

    Actress Lindsay Lohan has reportedly been offered a role in an X-rated film. “Her acting career is going south and it seems as if people are run-ning scared from working with her – some industry insiders think she’s uninsurable, unreliable and far too much trouble,” showbizspy.com quoted a source as saying. Lindsay might star in a “selfpleasuring” porn video much like the one filmed by “Octomom” Nadya Suleman. “Lindsay has had offers before, but one particular online porn com-pany has put $2.5 million on the table,” said a source. “If she says yes, the footage will be offered to pay-per-view subscribers – and LiLo’s friends say her back is against the wall. Every time her law-yers go to court it’s another $50,000. It’s unsustainable and she must know she’s running out of options fast. A move into porn isn’t ideal – especially if she wants to return to mainstream film acting. But right now, she’s not in a position to pick and choose,” the source added.

  • Jennifer Garner Is Celeb Mother Of The Year

    Jennifer Garner Is Celeb Mother Of The Year

    Jennifer Garner has been named celebrity Mother of the Year 2012 by a magazine. According to Today’s Parent Magazine, the 40-year-old actress, who is a hands-on mother to three kids with Ben Affleck, won by “a landslide”. The magazine had a list of reasons to choose Garner as a winner for this title, one of them being her appearance, which is relatable yet still “gorgeous and put-together,” and her honesty about being overwhelmed and tired as a mother of three was also noticed, CBS News reported. Apart from this, her candid confession in August that she’s done having kids, was also seen as a strong reason to get this title.