L A T E S T      N E W S

Jaswant is NDA’s Vice-Presidential candidate

NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jaswant Singh was today chosen by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as its unanimous candidate for the August 7 Vice-Presidential election against UPA nominee Hamid Ansari. 

The Opposition alliance said it had reservations over the re-nomination of Ansari, particularly the manner in which he conducted the Rajya Sabha when the Lokpal Bill was discussed and the Women’s Reservation Bill was passed. 

“We have decided not to give them (UPA) a walkover... We have unanimously decided that Jaswant Singh will be the NDA candidate in the Vice-Presidential poll,” LK Advani, NDA Working President, announced after an NDA meeting. 

Advani said JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav had also raised concerns over Ansari’s conduct in the passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Rajya Sabha, where marshals were used to oust those opposed to the legislation. 

He said the same concerns were shared with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when he had called him on Saturday to seek support for Ansari’s candidature. 

Advani said Yadav, also the NDA convenor, was initially approached to contest the Vice-Presidential election, but he declined citing his interest in active politics. 

The BJP leader indicated that the NDA would reach out to all such parties which have not committed their support to the UPA nominee. 

Reacting to his nomination, 74-year-old Jaswant Singh said, “It is a matter of great respect that the NDA has unanimously chosen me as their candidate for the post of Vice-President. It is a big responsibility and also a challenge”. — PTI

India-Pakistan cricket ties set to resume after 5 years

NEW DELHI: India-Pakistan bilateral cricket ties are set for revival after a five-year gap with the BCCI on Monday deciding to invite the neighbouring team for a three-match ODI series in December.

The ties had been snapped after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks and there have been several attempts by the Pakistan Cricket Board in recent months to convince the BCCI.

The planned series is subject to government approval.

“The government is ready in principle to host the Pakistan team”, a top BCCI official said after the Working Committee meeting here.

The PCB had earlier proposed that either India tour Pakistan or play them at a neutral venue.

Resumption of Indo-Pak bilateral cricket ties got a boost after the foreign secretaries of both the countries asserted that sporting relations should be strengthened.

The thaw in the relations had begun much before that when BCCI invited Pakistan’s domestic Twenty20 champion Sialkot Stallions to participate in the Qualifying Tournament of Champions League Twenty20 to be held in South Africa later this year.

During the recent visit of PCB chief Zaka Ashraf to India and at last month’s ICC and Asian Cricket Council meetings in Malaysia, there had been discussions between officials of both the Boards on the matter.

India and Pakistan last played in a bilateral series in November 2007, in which the former beat the latter 3-2.

After that, there was no bilateral cricket between the two arch-rivals even though they did face each other in multi-team events like the World Cup.

Although the fixture of the three-match series is yet to be decided, Mohali and Chennai are the likely venues to host the matches. The third venue could be either New Delhi or Bangalore. — PTI

Obama misinformed on Indian economy: Govt

New Delhi: Responding to US President Barack Obama's concerns over the "deteriorating" investment climate in India, Government today said certain "international lobbies" were spreading such stories and that he was not properly informed about the country's strong economic fundamentals.

"Certain international lobbies like Vodafone are spreading this kind of a story and Obama was not properly informed about the things that are happening, particularly when India's economic fundamentals are strong," Corporate Affairs Minister M Veerappa Moily told reporters in Bangalore when asked about the US President's remarks in an interview to PTI.

Opposition parties also lashed out at Obama for his remarks that India prohibits foreign investment in too many sectors, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) saying the country cannot open its markets just because he wants it.

"If Obama wants FDI in retail and India does not want, then it won't come just because he is demanding it," was the terse reaction of BJP leader Yashwant Sinha. Moily said the perception of deteriorating investment climate in India was not based on economic parameters, but on certain impressions of a few individuals, entrepreneurs and investors.

HC upholds life term for MLA in murder case

Nainital: The Uttarakhand High Court on Monday upheld the life imprisonment awarded to former Samajwadi Party MLA Amarmani Tripathi and others accused in poetess Madhumita Shukla murder case.

Pronouncing its decision, the High Court said that no relief can be granted to Amarmani or any other accused since their role in Madhumita Shukla’s murder has been proved by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Amarmani Tripathi, his wife Madhumani and two others were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment by a Dehradun court in 2007 for hatching a conspiracy and killing Shukla in Lucknow in 2003.

The investigations revealed that the poetess was pregnant when she was murdered.

Today’s ruling is a big setback for Tripathi, who has made several attempts in past to get bail to be able to contest state Assembly and Lok Sabha elections.