NEWS IN BRIEF – NOV 9, 2011
1. No Rollback in Petrol Price: PM to Trinamool, Will withdraw support
if diesel, LPG and kerosene prices are deregulated: Mamata:
KOLKATA : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh may be calling for a
movement towards de-regulation of fuel prices to take diesel, LPG and
kerosene out of the administered pricing mechanism, but the option
appeared more difficult for the Centre on Tuesday. [ET p2]
2. Bush era warmth over? US seen drifting from India, Niggles Are
Many, Few Tears Being Shed At Top Level In Delhi: New Delhi: It was
a walkpast that raised eyebrows. At the G20 summit in Cannes, observers
saw what they described as a strange scene — PM Manmohan Singh
standing to the side while US President Barack Obama strode past him to
greet another head of state with nary a glance at him. [TOI p9]
3. Swamy gets access to ‘crucial’ 2G file : New Delhi: Janata Party chief
Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday moved a special CBI court seeking a
copy of a file relating to 2G spectrum allocation scam that was seized by
CBI two years ago. Swamy alleged that the document would prove the
“complicity” of the then finance minister P Chidambaram in the scam.[TOI
p14]
4. CBI set to book officials of Mahajan Era : New Delhi : The CBI is set to
book former and serving officials of the Department of
Telecommunications (DoT) in connection with its probe into alleged
irregularities in awarding spectrum licences when the late Pramod
Mahajan was communications minister.[AA p1]
5. CBI ordered to place crucial PC-Raja talk documents : New Delhi
:The special CBI Court hearing 2G scam on Tuesday directed the CBI to
place before it some crucial documents containing communication
between A Raja and the then Finance Minister P Chidambaram.[Pioneer
Daily p4]
6. India receives Swiss black money info : New Delhi: The finance
ministry on Tuesday said it has started receiving banking and tax-related
information from Switzerland following revision of a tax treaty, a
development that will help India in combating the black money menace
and bring back funds stashed abroad. [TOI p15]
7. One more hike, we’re out : Kolkata : Trinamool Congress chairperson
and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said here on Tuesday
that her party would pull out of the ruling United Progressive Alliance
(UPA) coalition if there was another hike in the prices of petroleum
products.[The Hindu p1]
8. All-party meet on Nov 22 ahead of House session: New Delhi: With
foreign visits filling Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s diary, an all-party
meeting to discuss legislation and debating points during Parliament’s
winter session will be held on the morning of November 22 just ahead of
the session getting underway. [TOI p17]
9. PC to review strategy for ‘liberated’ Red areas : New Delhi:The
Centre’s new strategy to “clear, hold and develop” Maoist-affected areas
— being tried in the Saranda forests — will see its first comprehensive
review during home minister P Chidambaram’s visit to Orissa and
Jharkhand on Wednesday. [TOI p14]
10. Haridwar yagya stampede kills 16, Over 50 Injured As Devotees Fall
Down Steps At Venue: Haridwar: At least 16 people, 14 of them women,
were crushed to death and more than 50 injured in a stampede during a
religious ceremony attended by tens of thousands of devotees of a
religious organization, Akhil Vishwa Gayatri Parivar, near Har Ki Pauri
here on Tuesday. [TOI p1]
11. Uttar Pradesh to be split into 4 states? Maya drops poll hint, BSP
May Push Move Ahead Of State Elections: Lucknow: Chief minister
Mayawati is likely to soon push for reorganization of Uttar Pradesh,
splitting the sprawling state into four parts. The move is being seen by her
supporters as a masterstroke ahead of the 2012 assembly polls. [TOI p1]
12. Amar: I have full info on cash for vote : New Delhi: After being
released on bail in the ‘cashfor-vote’ scam on “humanitarian grounds”,
former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh on Tuesday claimed that he
had “full information” about the episode. [TOI p14]
13. Centre working on package for Bengal to pacify Mamata: New Delhi :
The Trinamool Congress got no consolation from the Centre on the petrol
price raise, but the UPA government is working out a financial package for
cashstrapped West Bengal in a bid to pacify one of its closest allies. The
size of the deal is yet to be worked out, senior government sources said
on Tuesday. [TOI p1]
14. Give Documents to Swamy, Court tells CBI : NEW DELHI : A special
court hearing the 2G case has asked the Central Bureau of Investigation
to provide documents related to equity dilution by telecom operators that
received spectrum in 2008 to Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy.
[ET p2]
15. Advani ‘Natural Choice’ for PM Post: Rajnath : NEW DELHI : BJP
leader LK Advani became emotional as party colleagues lavishly praised
him on his 84th birthday here on Tuesday, with Rajnath Singh saying he
was the party’s “natural choice” for the prime minister’s post.[ET p2]
16. LK turns 84, gets emotional : New Delhi : The BJP’s “lauh purush (iron
man)” L.K. Advani turned emotional on his birthday on Tuesday and even
had to leave the dais for few minutes to regain his composure. At a
function organised at his official residence, Mr Advani, who turned 84, was
seen wiping tears when party colleagues praised him for his contribution
towards Indian politics and the BJP.[AA p2]
17. All PM candidates of BJP to contest LS polls : Gadkari : Nagpur : BJP
president Nitin Gadkari wants all prospective prime ministerial candidates
from the party to contest the Lok Sabha polls next time. “All prospective
candidates for the PM’s post will contest Lok Sabha polls next time, and
they will all win,” Gadkari told reporters in Nagpur.[HT p11]
18. PMO denies seeking report on Kejriwal : New Delhi: Distancing itself
from the controversy of Team Anna member Arvind Kejriwal’s pending
resignation, the Prime Minister’s Office denied that it had asked for a
report on the matter. [TOI p13]
19. Self-regulation is no regulation: Katju : New Delhi : Dismissive of the
news broadcast industry’s self-regulatory mechanism, Press Council of
India Chairman Justice Markandey Katju has said if TV channels do not
want to come under the PCI they should choose another body like the
Lokpal.[The Hindu p9]
20. BSY out of jail on bail, gets hero’s welcome : Bangalore: It wasn’t
exactly a walk to freedom, but when a grim-looking B S Yeddyurappa
walked out of central jail on being granted bail on Tuesday, he was
received like a home-coming hero by his not inconsiderable
supporters.[TOI p13]
21. Rahul’s clout growing, Sonia will decide on new role : Cong : New
Delhi : For the first time since furious speculation started in the media
about Rahul Gandhi playing a bigger role in the party organisation,
perhaps even taking over his mother’s role, the Congress on Tuesday
officially said the Amethi MP’s growing importance was no longer a matter
of suspense.[HT p1]
22. Immolation bid in front of Arun Jaitley’s house : New Delhi : A 40-
year-old man, claiming to be a member of the Bharatiya Janta Party
(BJP), tried to immolate himself in front of 9, Ashoka Road — which is the
official residence of Arun Jaitley, leader of opposition in the Rajya
Sabha.[HT p2]
23. Docs want Dasmunshi to be taken home, kin differ : New Delhi:
Former Union minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunshi, who was admitted to
Apollo Hospital in New Delhi three years ago after suffering stroke and
paralysis, continues to be in coma. Hospital authorities have advised his
family to take the 66-year-old politician home as there are no signs of
improvement in his neurological condition. But the family is not willing to
do so as they say ‘there is no deterioration either’. [TOI p5]
24. Sonia to lay foundation of new rail line in Uttarakhand : New Delhi :
Congress president Sonia Gandhi will lay the foundation of the Rishikesh-
Karan Prayag rail line this Wednesday and launch her party’s election
campaign in Uttarakhand, where Assembly elections are due early next
year.[The Hindu p5]
25. ‘Rahul’s growing role no suspense’, Sonia Still In Charge, But
Partymen Want Him To Lead In Future: Dwivedi: New Delhi: Congress
on Tuesday said Rahul Gandhi’s growing role in the party was obvious
and in keeping with the sentiments of partymen, but supremo Sonia
Gandhi was the ultimate arbiter on leadership issues. [TOI p13]
26. ‘Sonia to decide Rahul role timeline’ : Mr Rahul Gandhi is set play a
bigger role, but when he will do so will be decided by Congress president
Sonia Gandhi. This was made clear by the party on Tuesday against the
backdrop of media reports that the young Gandhi will be made a working
president of the Congress in the coming days.[AA p2]
27. Mayawati woos farmers ahead of elections : Lucknow : Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Mayawati on Tuesday announced a hike ranging from Rs
35 to Rs 40 per quintal in the State Advised Prised (SAP) of the three
main varieties of sugarcane for the 2011-12 crushing season and
immediately set upon the task of scoring brownie points over her political
rivals, especially the Samajwadi Party.[The Hindu p7]
28. K’taka CM meets Gadkari in Delhi : New Delhi : Karnataka chief
minister D.V. Sadananda Gowda, who was in the national capital on
Tuesday, expressed happiness over the bail granted by the high court to
his predecessor B.S. Yeddyurappa in a graft case. Mr Gowda met BJP
chief Nitin Gadkari at the latter’s residence later.[AA p2]
29. Poor state of affairs in Maharashtra PCC : New Delhi :The
Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) is seemingly facing
an “acute funds crunch”, so much so that it is not able to pay even
salaries, allowances, telephone bills and other expenses which aggregate
roughly to Rs 15 lakh per month.[Pioneer Daily p5]
30. ‘Sonia to decide Rahul role timeline’ : New Delhi : Mr Rahul Gandhi is
set play a bigger role, but when he will do so will be decided by Congress
president Sonia Gandhi. This was made clear by the party on Tuesday
against the backdrop of media reports that the young Gandhi will be made
a working president of the Congress in the coming days.[AA p2]
31. ED questions SRK over IPL irregularities : Mumbai : The Enforcement
Directorate (ED) on Saturday questioned actor Shah Rukh Khan in
connection with the ongoing investigation in Indian Premier League (IPL)
season two.[HT p1]
32. Bihar CM under Lokayukta ambit soon : Patna : The Bihar government
has decided to bring in a new law to lend more teeth to the institution of
the Lokayukta, the anti-corruption watchdog that keeps tabs on public
servants.[HT p10]
33. Stakeholders to discuss Master Plan 2021 : Greater Noida :The
National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) has called all the
stakeholders to deliberate on implementation of Master Plan 2021 and to
clear the road block and crisis prevailing in Noida Extension and Greater
Noida affecting thousands of home buyers.[Pioneer Daily p3]
34. Nitish begins Seva Yatra today, Opposition fumes : Patna : With Bihar
chief minister Nitish Kumar all set to begin his most elaborate and
politically far-sighted tour of Bihar called Seva Yatra on Wednesday, the
state’s Opposition parties are fuming at the move, calling it drama and a
drain on public money.[AA p2]
35. 7 MLAs IN JAGAN GROUP TO BE BACK WITH CONG? : Government
whip Kondru Murali on Tuesday said that a few MLAs, who had resigned
from the Congress and their Assembly membership, have “sent” a word to
the Pradesh Congress Committee about their intention to rejoin the party.
[AA p2]
36. BJP plays down JD-U `rift’ over Ayodhya : New Delhi : Calling
Ayodhya the country’s “cultural legacy”, the BJP on Tuesday tried to play
down reports of its alliance partner JD(U)’s reluctance to attend the
concluding function of the saffron party’s Janswabhiman yatra in Ayodhya
on November 17.[AA p2]
37. Long wait : Home Ministry yet to approve MCD trifurcation : New
Delhi : The Union home ministry is yet to send a formal approval to the
Delhi government on its proposal for trifurcation of MCD – strongly being
pushed by chief minister Sheila Dikshit – despite an indication to this effect
last week. The officials said that the decision may take some more
time.[HT p4]
38. Sheila still to get nod for MCD split : New Delhi: Even as the Delhi
Government eagerly awaits the trifurcation of the Municipal Corporation of
Delhi (MCD), Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit’s hopes of an official clearance
arriving from the Union home ministry on the trifurcation proposal by
Tuesday failed to fructify. Unfazed the CM said that she was optimistic
that a clearance will arrive soon. [TOI p3]
39. MCD overpays Rs 10 crore to 150 employees by mistake : New Delhi
: One-hundred and fifty vaccinators were overpaid their salaries by the
Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) — since the salary revision in 2005
— costing taxpayers more than Rs 10 crore, revealed an enquiry
conducted by the agency’s chief auditor.[HT p2]
LEGAL/CRIME NEWS
40. CBI to File SLP in SC in Pandya Murder Case: NEW DELHI : CBI is
expected to file a special leave petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court within
a fortnight, challenging the Gujarat High Court’s order acquitting 12 people
accused in the Haren Pandya murder case. [ET p2]
41. Shivani case: Cops get ready to file plea in SC : New Delhi: At least
two units of the crime branch are in regular consultation with top lawyers
as they draw up the petition to be filed at the Supreme Court challenging
the acquittal of former IPS officer R K Sharma in the Shivani Bhatnagar
murder case. [TOI p2]
42. Supreme Court ticks off Agnivesh: New Delhi: The Supreme Court on
Tuesday cautioned public figures against hurting people’s sentiments by
making indiscreet statements. The court said this while hearing social
activist Swami Agnivesh’s plea to quash an FIR lodged at Hansi police
station in Haryana for his alleged statement on the Amarnath yatra in May
while on a visit to Jammu.[TOI p9]
BUSINESS NEWS
43. Cash strapped kingfisher cuts flights : New Delhi : Vijay Mallya-led
Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) on Tuesday cancelled 34 flights across various
sectors, increasing the risk of upsetting passengers’ travel plans ahead of
the peak winter season as the country’s second-largest airline struggled to
find funds even for basic needs such as jet fuel.[HT p1]
