Srinagar under grenade attack
Srinagar, June 14
In an indication of heightened terror tactics, militants carried out three grenade attacks, including one near civil secretariat, seat of the Jammu and Kashmir Government, injuring a CRPF head constable and a civilian today.

2 militants holed up

An injured CRPF head constable is carried on to a bed by colleagues and medical staff at the main hospital in Srinagar on Saturday. — AFP

Sharif stirs call for Mush hanging
Islamabad, June 14
Pakistan’s former prime minister Nawaz Sharif today stepped up his attack on President Pervez Musharraf, suggesting he could be hanged while addressing thousands of protesters outside the presidency. “We asked you to quit with honour after the election but you didn’t,’’ Sharif told the crowd, referring to US ally Musharraf, who overthrew him in a 1999 coup.
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1,100 Afghan prisoners escape; hunt under way
Kandahar, June 14
A desperate hunt was under way for more than 1,100 prisoners who escaped from a jail in southern Afghanistan when Taliban rebels blasted it open killing 15 guards today officials said. The prisoners, some of them Taliban militants, fled when the rebels attacked the facility in the city of Kandahar yesterday, blasting it open with suicide bombs before shooting the guards.
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Pranab rules out Gorkhaland
Kolkata, June 14
External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee today said the Centre was ready to hold talks with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), but there should not be any preconditions. He was talking to newspersons here after a meeting with state Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. The Centre was against the formation of Gorkhaland or any separate state. But the problems of the hill people should be looked into sympathetically and adequate steps be taken to redress these, he added.

Plane with Lalu returns after bird-hit
New Delhi, June 14
A possible tragedy was averted today when the pilot of a plane carrying railway minister Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and 70 other passengers, decided to land shortly after the aircraft was hit by a bird.

India falter in final
Dhaka, June 14
Imposing Pakistan total proved much for the celebrated Indian batting line-up as they lost the tri-series final by 25 runs. Chasing 316-run victory target, India were bowled out for 290 in the second last over being bowled by Shahid Afridi. (Details on Sports page)

Labourer’s son tops in matric exam Gandla Lahri (Pathankot), June 14 Neeraj Saini, a 17-year-old boy of this village, has topped in the state matriculation examination, the result of which was declared by the Punjab State Education Board today. Neeraj Saini with his parents and other family members at his home at Gandla Lahri in Pathankot on Saturday . — Photo by N. P. Dhawan