Monday, 15 April 2013
Hyderabad, April 15: |
 |
|||
| ||||
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
I# llegal Construction on Wakf property by #MIM Leader#
#Turned away by hospital staff, woman gives birth near drain#
SALEM, April 15, 2013
Staff Reporter
Staff Reporter
Laxmi with the newborn. Photo: E. Lakshmi Narayanan
Couple allege an employee demanded money to attend to her
In a shocking
incident, a 27-year-old woman was delivered of a baby near a drain
after she was forced to leave the Government Mohan Kumaramangalam
Medical College Hospital here on Sunday, as she could not pay Rs.
1,000 allegedly demanded by an employee in the maternity ward.
Laxmi, her
husband, Samuel (30), and two children, Venkatesh (5) and Naveen Gopal
(2), who hail from Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh, had been in the city
for the past two years.
The couple,
working as labourers, used to take shelter on the veranda of
Corporation’s Commercial Complex on the Old Bus Stand premises at night.
When Laxmi
developed labor pain at around 4 a.m., Samuel with the help of a
55-year-old woman Bannari reached the hospital by foot.
Laxmi was
allotted a bed in the maternity ward at around 5.30 a.m. An employee
allegedly demanded money for the delivery. As the couple did not have
money, they were forced to leave the hospital. With the help of Bannari,
Laxmi was delivered of a male child at around 11 a.m. near the drain
on the Commercial Complex premises.
Members of
the media fraternity who rushed to the spot called the 108 ambulance
and the mother was admitted to the maternity ward, while the child was
admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit.
Dean Dr. R. Vallinayagam told The Hindu that an inquiry would be conducted on Monday.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/turned-away-by-hospital-staff-woman-gives-birth-near-drain/article4617552.ece
#Perarivalan’s plea to be heard through video-conferencing on Monday#
CHENNAI, April 15, 2013
He sent telegram to CIC following execution of Afzal Guru and Ajmal Kasab
S. Vijay Kumar
|
 |
The Central
Information Commission (CIC), New Delhi, will hear the petition of
A.G. Perarivalan alias Arivu, one of the three convicts facing death
penalty in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, through
video-conferencing on Monday. The hearing pertains to a Right to
Information (RTI) petition filed by him seeking to know the grounds
for the rejection of his mercy petition by the President, sources in
the Prison Department said. Perarivalan and the other two convicts,
Murugan alias Sriharan and Santhan, are lodged in the Vellore Central
Prison in Tamil Nadu.
Perarivalan
had petitioned to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in 2012 asking
for the reasons why the President rejected his mercy petition. Since
there was no response, he sent a telegram to the Chief Information
Commissioner stating that his plea should be treated as urgent and
heard on priority.
“The
telegram was in the backdrop of the secret executions of Afzal Guru and
Ajmal Kasab. The hearing through video-conferencing will take place on
Monday and Perarivalan will explain how he was denied access to
certain crucial information relating to his case,” Rajiv Rufus, one of
the advocates for Perarivalan, told The Hindu on Sunday.
Recalling
the petition of advocate K. Mayilsamy in 2011 to the President’s
Secretariat and the MHA seeking, among things, the copy of the mercy
petition rejected by the President and copies of the complete
correspondence, file notings etc., relating to the mercy petitions
filed by Perarivalan, Murugan and Santhan, Mr. Rufus said the CIC had
given specific directions to the respondents that they should provide
the copies of the mercy petitions that were rejected and disclose
copies of the file notings not forming part of the ministerial advice
to the President after removing the names and other references regarding
the identities of the public servants.
Despite the
specific directions, the MHA had not disclosed certain vital
documents. For instance, on Page 25 in the bunch of documents given by
the MHA, it had been mentioned that no investigation was conducted
about the bomb supposed to have been used in the case and that the
Multi-Disciplinary Monitoring Authority (MDMA) was directed to enquire
into it, he said. The MHA said it might seek the MDMA’s comments on
the making of the bomb before processing the mercy petition. “But we
have not been given any copy of the correspondence conducted by the
MHA with the MDMA of documents showing the results of such an
investigation conducted by the MDMA...,” he said.
Also, the
MHA had failed to supply any document pertaining to the correspondence
with the Tamil Nadu Prison Department relating to the conduct of the
convicts in prison. This correspondence to ascertain the behaviour of
convicts on death row was part of a normal procedure while processing
their mercy petitions, Mr. Rufus added.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/perarivalans-plea-to-be-heard-through-videoconferencing-on-monday/article4617500.ece |
|
#SC seeks explanation on govt ads glorifying political #leaders#
PTI
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/sc-seeks-explanation-on-govt-ads-glorifying-political-leaders/article4620308.ece
The Supreme
Court has issued notice to Centre and State governments on a plea
seeking its direction to restrain them for spending public money on
glorifying political leaders through advertisements on their birth and
death anniversaries.
A bench of justices C.K. Prasad and V.G. Gowda granted four weeks time to governments to file their response.
The court
passed the order on a plea of an NGO, Centre for Public Interest
Litigation, seeking its intervention on the issue as crores of tax
payer’s money are spend by the governments and public sector units to
glorify personalities of ruling political parties by way of
advertisements.
“It is
submitted that the Governments and State instrumentalities are
continuously and in routine manner misusing the public funds to glorify
personalities of ruling political parties by way of advertisements,”
advocate Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner, said.
He said “such
a blatant and misuse of public fund by Governments in routine manner
is not only breach of public trust and violation of the rule of law but
it is also damaging the democratic set up of the country.”
“The
political parties in power are blatantly squandering taxpayers’ money to
highlight their achievements and to glorify their leaders of present
or past. Such a practice is either aimed to avail unfair advantage in
elections by political parties or to assert loyalties towards the
political leadership of the party in power. This wasteful and wholly
unnecessary exercise cannot be justified in any manner,” the petition
said.
The bench, after hearing his plea, issued notice and asked the governments to file response within four weeks.
www.amityindians.com
#US aid to India set to drop # by 16% #
First Published: 15:37 IST(15/4/2013) | Last Updated: 15:40 IST(15/4/2013)
|
US Secretary of State John
Kerry has proposed a 16% cut in the American aid to India, reflecting
the transition from a traditional "donor-recipient" relationship to a
"strategic partnership" between the two countries.
"With respect to India, for
the fiscal year 2014, the State Department request is $91 million.
This represents a 16% decrease from the fiscal levels 2012 (the
previous actual spending)," a senior State Department official said.
This is in continuation of the trend that has emerged over the past few years.
In 2010, the United States
aid to India was $126.7 million, which drooped to $121.6 million in
2011 and $108 million in 2012 and was proposed to $98.3 million in the
current fiscal of 2013, which ends on September 30.
"That (drop in US aid to
India this year) reflects the ongoing transition we had under way from
the more traditional donor-recipient kind of relationship to much
more of a strategic partnership," the official said on condition of
anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the press.
"It is a partnership that
is addressing India and increasingly global developmental challenges. I
think the signature initiative there is the Agency for International
Development Millennium Alliance," the official said.
Of the US aid to India, the largest portion - two/third - of that is slated for the health sector.
"The biggest programme is
in global health. About $61 million is going to the health programme.
India still has quite a number of health challenges," the official
said.
In 2012, the US aid to India in the health sector was some $76 million.
Overall the State
Department budget request for FY-2014 was $47.8 billion, which is a
six% cut from the previous FY-2012 of actual spending.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/US-aid-to-India-set-to-drop-by-16/Article1-1044686.aspx?hts0021
|
#TN adopts resolution to name new terminal after# MGR#
www.amityindians.com
#Zakia moves court, challenges clean chit to Modi in #Gulbarg massacre#
Zakia Jafri, wife of slain
former parliamentarian Ehsan Jafri - who was killed along with 68
people during the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat - on Monday filed a
protest petition in a local court in Ahmedabad challenging the clean
chit given to the Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi by the Supreme
Court-appointed SIT which probed the case.
“She has filed two volumes of petition and 10 CDs containing documents and other evidence. The court has directed the SIT to first argue on the matter from April 24,” a lawyer connected with the case said. She has also demanded that the SIT report should be scrapped and another probe be undertaken by some independent agency. Ever since the SIT headed by former CBI director Dr RK Raghavan gave a clean chit to Modi, Zakia has maintained that the SIT has “overlooked evidence she and others had presented during the court of investigation”. She had also accused the SIT of adopting a biased and partisan approach against the victims who are fighting an unyielding legal battle against the accused.
She wants Gujarat chief
minister Narendra Modi and over 60 others to be arraigned as accused
in the massacre case in which a former parliamentarian was put to
death in broad daylight.
http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Gujarat/Zakia-moves-court-challenges-clean-chit-to-Modi-in-Gulbarg-massacre/Article1-1044695.aspx
|
Sunday, April 14, 2013
#Karunanidhi reiterates # demand for abolishing death penalty#
 |
|
DMK president M. Karunanidhi
Renewing
his demand for abolishing death penalty, DMK chief M. Karunanidhi on
Saturday made a fresh pitch for a state cabinet meeting to adopt a
resolution recommending commutation of the death sentence awarded to
three convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
“Our stand
is that capital punishment should be abolished and should be taken off
the law book,” Mr. Karunanidhi said, recalling his remarks that the
death sentence of Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan should be commuted
on humanitarian grounds.
“If the
state government has to approach the problem truly, it should not just
stop after adopting resolutions in the Assembly, but pass a resolution
in a cabinet meeting and send it to the Governor,” the DMK patriarch
said.
His
statement comes a day after the Supreme Court dismissed death row
convict and Khalistani terrorist Devinderpal Singh Bhullar’s plea for
commutation of his death sentence in a judgement that can have a
bearing on the fate of over 20 convicts facing execution, including
those held guilty in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination.
On the apex
court’s observation that commutation of death sentence to accused
cannot be done in the case of terrorists or those involved in mass
killings on the ground of delay in deciding their mercy plea, Mr.
Karunanidhi said in a statement “it has come as a very big shock to
many expecting the verdict as well as our thinking.”
Mr.
Karunanidhi cited the example of Thyagu, whose death sentence, he said,
was commuted during his government’s tenure. “When we see that Thyagu
has now become a writer and essayist, is publishing books and has
become a respectable man in society, we should give a life to Murugan,
Santhan and Perarivalan and should use them for society,” he said.
The DMK chief has been repeatedly pressing for abolition of capital punishment.
His earlier
comments in this regard came against the backdrop of the hanging of
26/11 Mumbai terror attack convict Ajmal Kasab and Parliament attack
accused Afzal Guru which triggered a fresh debate on the death penalty
issue.
He had also
virtually backed the demand for a CBI probe into the 1993 Palar
landmine blast case in which four aides of sandalwood smuggler Veerappan
are facing the gallows.
The four
got a temporary relief in February this year with the apex court
staying their execution on their plea seeking commutation of the
sentence citing delay of eight years in disposal of their mercy
petition by the President.
| |
#Kunda DSP murder: CBI arrests key accused#
Pratapgarh (UP), April 13, 2013
A CBI team visits the Balipur village to probe the killing of DSP Zia-ul-Haq at Kunda in Pratapgarh district. File photo
CBI on Saturday arrested a key accused in DSP Zia-ul-Haque murder and claimed to have cracked the case.
|
 |
Babloo
Yadav, son of slain village head Nanhe Yadav who allegedly shot Haque
dead using a country-made gun, was apprehended here, CBI sources said.
The sources
said CBI has detained two brothers of Nanhe Yadav and members of his
domestic staff in connection with the DSP’s murder and is likely to
arrest them soon.
The sources
claimed Babloo, who is over 19 years of age, has, during intense
grilling by CBI officials, confessed to have shot the police official.
The officials were able to reproduce the complete chain of events
which took place on March 2, 2013.
Asked about
role of UP minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh, alias Raja Bhaiya, in the
murders, they claimed the probe in the larger conspiracy is still on.
CBI sources
claimed Haque, who was posted as Deputy Superintendent of Police at
Kunda, had reached the house of Nanhe Yadav after getting the news of
his murder.
By the time
he approached the site, the news of Yadav’s murder had spread and a
large crowd gathered outside his house which was angry at the alleged
apathy of the police and protested the police’s alleged failure to
stop the murder.
At the
house of Nanhe Yadav, Haque met a mob which entered into a scuffle
with him while his fellow policemen allegedly deserted him, the sources
said.
In the
crowd was Yadav’s brother Suresh who was armed with a rifle. As the
scuffle was on, Suresh was killed after his gun accidentally went off,
they said.
CBI sources
claimed that enraged by the killing of his father and uncle Suresh
Yadav, Babloo Yadav, who had a country-made gun, came out of his house
and shot Zia-Ul-Haque dead who was being beaten up by a mob.
The sources
claimed role of other suspects -- brothers of Nanhe Yadav and his
domestic help -- is also under probe and they are being questioned by
the agency.
The sources said agency has recovered the weapon, allegedly used in the killing Haq, from Babloo.
The agency
has already arrested alleged killers of Yadav -- Ajay Pal and Vijay
Pal -- both sons of Kamta Pal who is also a suspect in his murder and is
absconding, they said.
The Pal family was having land dispute with Nanhe Yadav’s family which resulted in village head’s murder, they claimed.
The case
was handed over to CBI on a request of slain DSP’s wife Parveen Azad
who accused Raghuraj Pratap Singh of having a role in the murder of her
husband. She had also filed an FIR in this regard naming Raja Bhaiya
and his close aides in the murder.
After
getting the case, the agency constituted a team of 10 officers led by
DIG Anurag Garg and SP Rakesh Rathi to investigate the case.
The team
had recently made some important recoveries which included a
blood-stained ammunition belt from a box concealed in a house of Suresh
Yadav, one of the deceased, a bloodstained wooden rod from another
area in the village and service revolver of Haque.
Kunda circle in Pratapgarh district comprises four police stations -- Hathigavan, Manikpur, Kunda and Nawabganj.
CBI has
registered four cases pertaining to the three murders in village
Balipur, police station Hathigawan in Kunda tehsil which included FIR
registered by Haque’s wife Azad who had named five persons as accused
in the murder of her husband.
| |
UPA #vulnerable after DMK pullout, elections around the corner: Pawar#
UPA #vulnerable after DMK pullout, elections around the corner: Pawar# |
Key UPA ally NCP chief Sharad
Pawar on Saturday said the Centre's ruling coalition had become
"vulnerable" after DMK's pullout and that elections were around the
corner.
Pawar, Union agriculture
minister, also said since Congress was the majority party in the UPA,
his party would respect its view on the alliance's prime ministerial
candidate.
"UPA's position has become
vulnerable after DMK's pullout. We have to prepare and plan for
elections. I have suggested to the UPA chairperson to convene a
meeting to discuss this and she is also of the same view," Pawar told
reporters.
Amid conflicting voices on
who should be the UPA's candidate for prime minister's post, Pawar
said the coalition's spearhead Congress would have to take a call.
"Compared to the last time,
UPA has shrunk. It is only the Congress, NCP and National Conference.
Majority party has to take the call. We will respect the majority
party's view," he said.
Pawar's statement follows
similar hints by Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, who had
last month asked his partymen to gear up for a mid-term poll, citing a
"confidential" report.
"I have come to know about a
confidential report which says that elections will be held in
November. You people start preparing for them," he had said addressing
party workers in Lucknow.
The Samajwadi Party with 22
MPs and BSP with 21 are providing crucial outside support to the
government and bailing it out in times of crises.
|
#1993 blasts convict Yakub Memon awarded Master's degree in # English Literature#
Press Trust of India | Updated: April 13,
|
Yakub
Memon, the only convict in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case whose death
sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court, has been awarded a master's
degree in English literature by Indira Gandhi National Open
University (IGNOU).
|
|
Memon is lodged in the Central Prison in Nagpur. Alongwith him, seven other convicts, who are serving life-terms, were awarded IGNOU degrees yesterday. The main convocation was held in New Delhi while a simultaneous function was held at the university's Regional Centre in Nagpur. Memon, however, could not attend the convocation as police authorities refused him permission.
Dr
Shivswaroop, Regional Director, IGNOU, told PTI that if the jail
authorities permitted, he would like to hand degree certificate to Memon
personally.
Memon, a qualified chartered accountant, cleared the MA examination with second division last year.
News sourced by
|
|
Saturday, April 13, 2013
#CBI's 'coalgate' probe report vetted by govt, BJP demands SIT# probe
By PTI | 13 Apr, 2013
|
 |
Photo
caption:Arun Jaitley also charged the govt with "interference in the
administration of justice" by not allowing CBI to acquaint the apex
court with the full truth.
NEW DELHI: The coal
scam resurfaced today following reports of alleged government
interference in CBI investigations with the BJP demanding an SIT probe
into it but the Congress firmly rejected the charge and also ruled
out the resignation of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar.
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley targeted the UPA by accusing it of being a "rogue government" that will not allow CBI to function independently and demanded constitution of a Special Investigation Team. He also charged the government with "interference in the administration of justice" by not allowing CBI to acquaint the apex court with the full truth in the case. "CBI cannot find out the truth and even if some honest officer in the CBI tries to find out the truth, the UPA is a rogue government which will not allow it to operate independently," Jaitley said. His Lok Sabha counterpart, Sushma Swaraj, criticised the government for "vetting" of the CBI report and said it is part of "an attempt to save Prime Minister Manmohan Singh". JD(U) spokesperson Shivanand Tiwari also termed the reports as "very serious", saying this is contempt of court. "Supreme Court is asking CBI to submit its report and government is toning it down. This is for the first time to my knowledge that such a thing is happening." The Opposition's attack on the issue came in the wake of reports that Law Minister Ashwani Kumar summoned CBI Chief and the report was changed and toned down after the meeting. Unfazed by the attack, Congress rejected the charge of interference in the preparation of CBI report in the coal scam for the Supreme Court and ruled out resignation of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar in this regard. "There is no question of resignation of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar. Supreme Court has already asked CBI to file an affidaviat in this regard. CBI will file its affidavit and truth will come out," party spokesperson Rashid Alvi said. The CAG, in its report last year, had estimated a loss of Rs 1.86 lakh crore in allocation of coal blocks since 2004.
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/cbis-coalgate-probe-report-vetted-by-govt-bjp-demands-sit-probe/articleshow/19526578.cms
| |
#Civil Services main exam to be held in #Nov-Dec 2013
# Why not honour Mirza Ghalib with Bharat Ratna after death? asks# Markandey Katju
PTI | Apr 13, 2013
|  |
New Delhi: Classical Urdu and Persian poet Mirza Ghalib should be honoured with the country's highest civilian award Bharat Ratna, PCI Chairman Markandey Katju has said.
"There has been injustice with Urdu in the country. People associate a particular religion with this language. This is a 'divide and rule' policy. A few people know that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh writes his speech in Urdu.
"I believe Mirza Ghalib should be given Bharat Ratna posthumously. If Sardar Vallabhai Patel and B R Ambedkar can be given awards after their deaths, why can’t Ghalib be given?" Katju said at the 15th edition of 'Jashn-e-Bahar', an Urdu poetry symposium attended by poets from India, Pakistan, the US and other countries, here last night.
Union Minister Kapil Sibal, known for his penchant for poetry, read out two of his poems at the event.
"Urdu, if propagated, will spread love and peace. India will be incomplete if it doesn't take Urdu in its stride. Urdu is not a language of the intellectuals; it is of the common man. I believe English, Hindi and Urdu should be taught in every school.
There should be Google (version) in Urdu, also mobile handsets should have Urdu letters," Sibal said.
The open-air seating against a candle-lit stage with modern calligraphy by late painter M F Husain, was in sync with the mood of the evening. Among the foreign participants who drew wide applause were Max Bruce (the US) and Hiroji Kataoka (Japan).
Veteran Urdu poets believe such mushairas (poetic symposiums) help in flourishing the language. "In fact, non-Muslim families are helping a great deal in the process. It is time that Muslim families make their own children learn Urdu," poet and Vice-Chairman of National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language, Waseem Barelvi said.
JBT founder Kamna Prasad echoed similar views.
"It is time to come together and petition the government that Urdu teaching be made compulsory at least till Class V. We can only suggest. But it's our responsibility to make sure that our coming generations are familiar with our composite culture," she said.
The event witnessed a youth, affiliated to Hindu Yuva Vahini, shouting slogans against the participation of Pakistani poets. He was taken out of the venue by police.
http://daily.bhaskar.com/article/NAT-TOP-why-not-honour-mirza-ghalib-with-bharat-ratna-after-death-asks-markandey-katju-4234473-NOR.html
| |
Pak# witness identifies one accused in Mumbai attacks Case#
Islamabad, April 13, 2013 |
Photo caption:The Hindu Fire at Taj Hotel in Mumbai in this November 27, 2008 picture. Photo: Vivek Bendre
A witness on
Saturday identified one of seven Pakistani men charged with
involvement in the 2008 Mumbai attacks as the person who had bought
inflatable boats used by the terrorists involved in the assault on
India’s financial hub.
Prosecutors
said the witness, whom they did not name for security reasons, had
identified accused Shahid Jamil Riaz during proceedings conducted behind
closed doors at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi by anti-terrorism court
Judge Chaudhry Habib-ur-Rehman.
The witness
told the judge that Riaz and 10 other people had bought 11 inflatable
boats, saying they were to be used for fishing. The witness further
told the judge he had never seen these persons returning from sea with
any fish.
A total of four private witnesses testified during the hearing.
Another
witness told the judge that he had sold the accused a Yamaha boat
engine for Rs 1.6 lakh and yet another witness said he had sold the
accused six pumps, prosecutors told PTI.
The witnesses
also identified 10 men, including Amjad Khan and Atiqur Rehman, who
were allegedly involved in planning and executing the Mumbai attacks on
November 26, 2008 that left 166 people dead.
These 10 men were earlier declared “proclaimed offenders” or fugitives by the anti-terrorism court.
“The 10
proclaimed offenders were either trainers or facilitators of the
accused who launched the attacks in Mumbai,” chief prosecutor Chaudhry
Zulifqar Ali told PTI.
One witness
told the court that Amjad Khan had obtained from him a “port clearance
certificate” for Al-Hussaini, a fishing boat used by the terrorists.
Amjad Khan was also involved in purchasing the inflatable boats, another witness said.
Though Chief
prosecutor Ali identified the four private witnesses as Hamza Bin
Tariq, Muhammad Ali, Mohammad Saifullah Khan and Umer Draz Khan, he
refused to go into details of their individual testimony for security
reasons. All the witnesses belong to the port city of Karachi.
Additional
Director Altaf Hussain of the Federal Investigation Agency, who played
a key role in probing the Mumbai attacks, was present during the
hearing but the judge did not allow him to testify as a defence lawyer
argued that Hussain should record his statement after the private
witnesses.
Prosecutors
said the cross—examination of the four private witnesses could not be
conducted as the main defence lawyers did not attend the hearing.
In the past
too, the defence lawyers have held up proceedings by exploiting legal
loopholes and posing hurdles for the proceedings, officials said.
The judge adjourned the case till April 27, when the four witnesses are expected to be cross—examined.
“The witnesses protested against being summoned for the next hearing as it will result in a lot of expenses for them.
They demanded an allowance for travelling back to Rawalpindi from Karachi,” chief prosecutor Ali said.
Amjad Khan,
the fugitive identified by the witnesses, is a shadowy LeT organiser
and financier from Karachi who figured in a majority of dossiers
provided to Pakistan by India.
Khan, who hails from Multan, played a key role in arranging and providing funds to the ten terrorists who attacked Mumbai.
Khan is one of 20 suspects in the Mumbai attacks who are yet to be traced by Pakistani investigators.
These 20
suspects were named in a chargesheet filed in the anti-terrorism court
in 2009. They were all accused of playing a key role in facilitating
the Mumbai attacks.
Pakistani
authorities have so far arrested seven suspects, including LeT
operations commander Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi. They have been charged with
planning, financing and executing the attacks.
Their trial has progressed at a snail’s pace due to repeated adjournments and various technical delays.
Nine of the terrorists involved in the attack were killed by Indian security forces.
The only surviving attacker, Ajmal Kasab, was hanged in Pune jail on November 21 last year.
Keywords: Mumbai terror
attacks, 26/11 attacks, Mumbai attacks case, Pakistani
court, Pakistan witness, inflatable boats, 2008 Mumbai attacks
Courtesy:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/south-asia/pak-witness-identifies-one-accused-in-mumbai-attacks-case/article4614137.ece
|
U.S. will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea: Kerry
South Korean President
Park Geun-Hye (L) and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry shake hands
before their talks at the presidential Blue House in Seoul April 12,
2013.
Credit: Reuters/Kim Jae-Hwan/Pool
By Arshad Mohammed and Jack Kim
SEOUL | Fri Apr 12, 2013 8:07am EDT
(Reuters) - U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry dismissed as "unacceptable by any
standard" weeks of bellicose warnings of impending nuclear war by North
Korea and said Washington would never accept the reclusive state
becoming a nuclear power.
Kerry,
addressing reporters after talks with South Korean President Park
Geun-hye and leaders of the 28,000-strong U.S. military contingent in
the country, also said the United States would defend its allies in
the region if necessary.
"The
rhetoric we are hearing from North Korea is simply unacceptable by
any standard," Kerry said. "We are all united in the fact that North
Korea will not be accepted as a nuclear power."
North
Korea has issued weeks of shrill warnings to the United States and
South Korea, including of waging thermonuclear war, after the
imposition of new U.N. sanctions in response to its third nuclear arms
test in February.
Kerry's
visit coincides with preparations for the anniversary on Monday of
North Korean state founder Kim Il-sung's birth date, a possible pretext
for a military show of strength.
Speculation
has mounted that Pyongyang may launch a medium-range missile after
reports in South Korea and the United States that missiles had been
moved into suitable locations.
Kerry said North Korean leader Kim Jong-un would be making a "huge mistake" if he proceeded with a launch.
He
also said that China, the North's sole diplomatic and financial ally,
has the ability to make a difference on influencing North Korea's
policies.
Hours
before his arrival, a U.S. government agency said North Korea had a
nuclear weapon it can mount on a missile, adding an ominous dimension to
discussions in Seoul.
However,
the assessment by the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA)
was swiftly dismissed by several U.S. officials and South Korea.
Asked if war was imminent, a U.S. official in South Korea said: "Not at all".
YOUTH, INEXPERIENCE
Washington's
greatest concern, the official said, was the possibility of
unexpected developments linked to 30-year-old Kim Jong-un.
"Kim
Jong-un's youth and inexperience make him very vulnerable to
miscalculation. Our greatest concern is a miscalculation and where that
may lead," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
"We
have seen no indications of massive troop movements, or troops massing
on the border, or massive exercises or anything like that that would
back up any of the rhetoric that is going on."
Park,
meeting officials from her ruling Saenuri Party before her talks with
Kerry, struck a conciliatory note by suggesting Seoul should at least
listen to what North Korea had to say.
"We
have a lot of issues, including the Kaesong industrial zone," local
media quoted her as saying. So should we not meet with them and ask:
"Just what are you trying to do?'"
The
president was referring to North Korea's closure this week of the
jointly run Kaesong industrial park, with the loss of 53,000 jobs.
In
Washington, Republican Representative Doug Lamborn quoted the DIA as
saying it had concluded with "moderate confidence" that North Korea had
developed a nuclear bomb that could be fitted on a ballistic missile,
but added such a weapon would probably be unreliable.
North Korea has conducted three nuclear tests, but it was not believed to be near weapons capability.
In
Pyongyang, Rodong Sinmun, the mouthpiece of the ruling Workers' Party,
said North Korea would never abandon its nuclear weapons program, made
necessary by the "invariable ambition of the U.S. to militarily
invade" North Korea.
South Korea's Defence Ministry maintained it did not believe North Korea could mount a nuclear warhead on a missile.
Despite
the DIA report, the Pentagon's spokesman and the U.S. national
intelligence director both said it was "inaccurate" to infer Pyongyang
had the proven ability to launch a nuclear missile.
The
DIA was criticized after the start of the Iraq war in 2003 for being
too bullish in predicting Baghdad might have weapons of mass
destruction.
Its conclusion about North Korea follows more than a month of rising tension on the Korean peninsula.
Asked
about the U.S. reports that Pyongyang may have developed a nuclear
weapon, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said: "China upholds
the maintenance of peace and stability on the Korean peninsula and
pushing for its denuclearization via talks and consultations. No
matter what changes there are in the situation, we will uphold this
direction."
U.N.
sanctions sparked a furious response from Pyongyang. The North has also
called annual military drills between U.S. and South Korean forces a
"hostile" act.
North
Korea has stationed as many as five medium-range missiles on its east
coast, according to defense assessments by Washington and Seoul. South
Korean and U.S. officials believe it is preparing to launch a Musudan
missile, whose range of 3,500 km (2,100 miles) or more would put Japan
within striking distance and may threaten Guam, home to U.S. military
bases.
(Additional
reporting by Jack Kim and Daum Kim in SEOUL, Sui-Lee Wee in BEIJING,
John Ruwitch in SHANGHAI, and Patricia Zengerle, Mark Hosenball and
Jeff Mason in Washington; Writing by Ronald Popeski; Editing by Nick
Macfie)
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/12/us-korea-north-idUSBRE93408020130412
Please visit www.amityindians.com for resourced news from India.
News are posted in the interest of readers only
Gotabaya remarks on India’s role unacceptable: Narayanasamy
Deadly twin bombings outside Iraq mosque
U.S. will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea: Kerry
I apologise for vandalism in Presidency University: Governor MK Narayanan
Akhilesh Yadav snubs the Gandhis, withdraws VIP status from Amethi, Rae Bareli
WikiLeaks: Bizman's offer to sell India's uranium set alarm bells in the US
SC rejects Bhullar's plea for commuting death penalty to life term on grounds of delay
Social media to impact Maharashtra most in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, says study
Sreesanth slapped, not elbowed by Harbhajan: Nanavati
Veteran Bollywood actor Pran to get Dadasaheb Phalke award
Software engineer from Andhra Pradesh who went missing in US found dead
Two Indian-origin persons jailed in US
Gotabaya remarks on India’s role unacceptable: Narayanasamy
http://www.amityindians.com/Deadly twin bombings outside Iraq mosque
http://www.amityindians.com/U.S. will never accept a nuclear-armed North Korea: Kerry
http://www.amityindians.com/I apologise for vandalism in Presidency University: Governor MK Narayanan
http://www.amityindians.com/Akhilesh Yadav snubs the Gandhis, withdraws VIP status from Amethi, Rae Bareli
http://www.amityindians.com/WikiLeaks: Bizman's offer to sell India's uranium set alarm bells in the US
http://www.amityindians.com/SC rejects Bhullar's plea for commuting death penalty to life term on grounds of delay
http://www.amityindians.com/Social media to impact Maharashtra most in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, says study
http://www.amityindians.com/Sreesanth slapped, not elbowed by Harbhajan: Nanavati
http://www.amityindians.com/Veteran Bollywood actor Pran to get Dadasaheb Phalke award
http://www.amityindians.com/Software engineer from Andhra Pradesh who went missing in US found dead
http://www.amityindians.com/Two Indian-origin persons jailed in US
http://www.amityindians.com/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)