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Geetika suicide: Gopal Kanda's bail plea rejected

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court today rejected anticipatory bail plea of former Haryana Minister Gopal Kanda in connection with ex-airhostess Geetika Sharma's suicide case.

Kanda had sought anticipatory bail from the court, saying she was a "hypersensitive girl" with "mixed emotions of love and hatred towards him" and she might have been "jilted".
Kanda's counsel K T S Tusli told Additional Sessions Judge Rajnish Bhatnagar that Geetika's suicide note shows she had "an element of jealousy and mixed emotions of love and hatred" towards his client.

"Nowhere has Geetika said in her note that I instigated her to commit suicide" he argued before the court, which reserved its order for 4 pm.

Tulsi referred to Geetika's August 4 suicide note, in which she had said she is "shattered from inside" as her trust is broken and that Kanda is a "fraud" and had purportedly held him and his aide Aruna Chaddah responsible for her death.

The suicide note shows she had a disturbed state of mind, argued Tulsi.

Tulsi also referred to another letter written by Geetika on May 4 in which she had said, "Gopal is a fraud. He always keeps bad intentions towards girls. He is a man of no shame and guilt...he also has illicit relations with another girl and has a child from her..." Tulsi said this shows Geetika was jealous of Kanda's relations with other girls and that the victim had an emotional attachment and wanted a relationship with him, for which he was not willing.

"She may be jilted," Tulsi said, referring to the victim, who worked earlier in a firm owned by Kanda. — PTI

Ramdev launches 3-day fast, says fight for Lokpal still on

NEW DELHI: Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Thursday launched a three-day fast along with his supporters demanding immediate action to enact a strong Lokpal and steps to bring back black money stashed away in foreign banks failing which he will announce his future strategy.

Returning to Ramlila Maidan in the heart of the capital from where he was bundled out in the middle of night in June last year after a police crackdown, the yoga guru claimed his agitation was neither against any individual nor targeted at any political party.

Taking his supporters by surprise, Ramdev announced he would go on a fast for three days over demands that also include an independent CBI.

"We will go without food and water for three days. After that, we think about our future strategy," he told his supporters.

Offering to talk to the government on the issues, Ramdev also demanded a change in the process of appointing election commissioners, CAG, CVC and CBI director.

He also shed some light on his association with the erstwhile team led by Anna Hazare, saying he was supportive of the agenda being pursued by the social activist but was not part of the team.

"The fight for Lokpal has not ended but we will take it forward. All corrupt people have to be punished," he said and demanded that a strong Lokpal Bill be passed in the ongoing monsoon session of Parliament.

Ramdev's comments assume significance as they come days after Hazare called off his fast and disbanded his team which has decided to take a political plunge.

"We are not against any individual or party. Our intention is to make India a great nation. This is not to overthrow someone from power," he said.

Ramdev said he has no political agenda and the second phase of his protest will be announced if the government does not agree to his demands on blackmoney, Lokpal Bill, appointment procedures and making CBI independent. 

Referring to Union minister Harish Rawat's statement that the government was ready to talk to him, he said that he was also open to dialogue with it. 

"Somebody in power is saying they are ready to talk to us. I am telling Sonia Gandhi that our doors are also open for dialogue," he said. 

Anna Hazare was not there at the fast venue though he had earlier declared that he will join the protest. 

"Many have questioned about this 'andolan' (movement). We are with Anna's social agenda but not with the team. We will not cement and trigger controversy. No body from the dais will talk," Ramdev said. — PTI

Intensive communication with India on Gurdwara shooting: US 

Washington: United States is having an ongoing and intensive communication with India on the Wisconsin Gurdwara shoot out that killed six people, a senior administration official said.

"Obviously our communication is ongoing and intensive. We have good lines of communication with the Indians and discuss matters such as these," the State Department spokesman, Patrick Ventrell, told reporters at his daily news conference.

Ventrall remarks came hours after the US President, Barack Obama, spoke with the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, to express his sympathy and condolences for those killed in the shooting incident.

A day earlier, the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, spoke with the External Affairs Minister, S M Krishna; while told White House and State Department officials have spoken to the Indian Ambassador to the US, Nirupama Rao, on a regular basis.

"The Secretary did have a chance to talk to her counterpart to convey her heartfelt condolences to him and the greater Sikh community both in the United States and India," he said.

The US and India both strongly share the values of freedom of religion and freedom of worship, and respecting and protecting all faiths.

"So that's definitely a message that the Secretary conveyed. Our officials at the ambassadorial level continue to be in contact as necessary so that we can facilitate communication," Ventrell said.

"Obviously, our role as the Department of State can be in a facilitative role to make sure that our state and local authorities and our national law enforcement authorities are in touch with their Indian counterparts, to the extent that it's necessary. So we provide that facilitative role," he said in response to a question.

Agni-II successfully test-fired 

Balasore (Odisha): Sharpening its missile teeth, India today successfully test-fired its medium range nuclear capable Agni-II missile with a strike range of 2000 km as part of a user trial by the Army from the Wheeler Island off Odisha coast. "The trial of the surface-to-surface missile was conducted from a mobile launcher from the Launch Complex-4 of Integrated Test Range (ITR) at around 0848 hours," defence sources said.

Describing the launch as a complete success, ITR Director MVKV Prasad said, "All mission parameters were met during the trial of the indigenously developed missile." Agni-II Intermediate Range Ballistic Missile (IRBM) has already been inducted into the services and today’s test was carried out by the Strategic Forces Command (SFC) of the Army with logistic support provided by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) "The 2000 km range versatile missile, already inducted and part of countries arsenal for strategic deterrence, was launched as a training exercise by the armed forces," a DRDO scientist said.

The state-of-the-art Agni-II missile was developed by Advanced Systems Laboratory along with other DRDO laboratories and integrated by the Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL), Hyderabad, the sources said.

Agni-II is part of the Agni series of missiles which includes Agni-I with a 700 km range, Agni-III with a 3,000 km range, Agni-IV and Agni-V.

The first prototype of Agni-II missile was carried out on April 11, 1999.

Though trial conducted on May 19, 2009 and the first night trial on November 23, 2009 from Wheelers Island could not meet all the parameters, all other trials including the last one carried out on September 30, 2011 from the same base were successful.