Cong tells Antulay to take back Karkare remarks
Minister refuses to confirm or deny he has quit
New Delhi, December 19
To say that the Congress-led UPA government is in a catch-22 situation over how to deal with the situation arising out of the statement made by union minister for minority affairs A.R. Antulay would be an understatement.

Sack him: BJP
Editorial: Utterly irresponsible

Sharif: Pak ungovernable
Pakistan presents the picture of a “failed” state, former premier and PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has said and called for a new social contract among all stakeholders to steer the country out of the current crisis. “The country is fast becoming ungovernable” Sharif said in an interview with Geo TV adding, We need to draw a road map to determine the country’s direction to make it a successful state”.

‘Cordoning off Kasab’s village bid to hide facts’
The government has cordoned off the Faridkot district, hometown of Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving gunman in the Mumbai carnage, and stopped reporters from interviewing his parents, PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has disclosed.

We are obliged to consider full range of options: Pranab
Gangtok, December 19
India today said it was obliged to “consider the entire range of options that exist” with the failure of Pakistan to deliver on its promise of not supporting terror activities.

Mumbai Attacks
Chotta Shakeel’s link being probed
New Delhi, December 19
The presence of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim’s most trusted aide, Chotta Shakeel in Bangladesh, while terrorists were conducting attacks in Mumbai has found the attention of investigating agencies. The Indian intelligence agencies are tracings Shakeel’s movement to find out as to what kind of logistic support he was providing to the Mumbai attackers.

NSG hubs in 4 metropolis
Mumbai, December 19
Decks have been cleared for setting up four (National Security Guard) NSG hubs in key metropolis, including commercial capital Mumbai and IT city Bangalore, to help mobilise commandos quickly during any crisis situations.

Andhra forms mechanism to deal wih terror
Hyderabad, December 19
In the backdrop of Mumbai terror attacks, the Andhra Pradesh government has put in place an administrative mechanism to effectively deal with any such crisis. The government issued orders constituting the State Crisis Management Group, headed by chief secretary, to act as a single command and quickly swing into action in times of emergency situations.

CBI team in Assam to probe blasts, riots
Guwahati, December 19
A team of officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today arrived here to take over the investigation into the October 30 serial blasts that rocked four places in Assam, including Guwahati. The CBI would also take over the investigation into the ethnic flare-up that left 58 dead and over two lakh homeless in Udalguri and Darrang districts of the state earlier in the same month.

Uphaar Tragedy
Victims’ kin in shock as jail term of Ansals cut short
New Delhi, December 19
Real Estate barons Sushil and Gopal Ansal today got away with a lighter one year sentence by the Delhi High Court in the Uphaar fire tragedy that claimed 59 lives, leaving families of the victims who fought a bitter legal battle for over 11 years shocked.