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Sonia asks partymen to focus on unity

JAIPUR: Gearing up for the 2014 general elections, Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday told partymen that unity should be their watchword as the party had floundered many an opportunity for want of discipline.

Addressing the ‘Chintan Shivir’ in Jaipur, . Gandhi cautioned partymen of increased competition for Congress’ political space among the people and noted that several inroads had been made in the party’s traditional support bases.

“Is it not the case that we have floundered many opportunities that people are willing to give us simply because we have been unable to function as a disciplined and united team,” she asked at the two-day party conclave held at the Birla Auditorium here.

The conclave will be followed by a session of the AICC on Sunday.

Among the leaders present on the dais included Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Defence Minister A K Antony, Rahul Gandhi, Motilal Vora and Ambika Soni.

Gandhi asked the party leaders to set aside personal ambitions and egos to work cohesively and ensure that the party puts up a better performance, particularly in states where it is out of power.

“Why do we forget the simple truth that in the party’s victory lies the victory of each and every one of us,” she asked.

Gandhi said there was a need to strike a fine balance when it comes to dealing with alliance partners while ensuring that the party’s rejuvenation was not compromised.

Gandhi said it was time for introspection and that there was a need to look at the party’s strengths and weaknesses.

She said the Congress was the only pan-India party with presence in every state, district and block-level.

Gandhi said the last nine years of the UPA rule was a period of tremendous economic growth, social change and technological innovation.

She said the people were now better informed and equipped than ever before and their expectation of the people from the government had also grown.

“Our people are fed up with the corruption that they face. We must understand this,” Ms. Gandhi said.

“We cannot allow growing educated middle classes to be alienated from the political process,” she said Gandhi.

She urged party leaders and workers to “seriously” debate issues facing the nation.

In an apparent reference to the killing of two soldiers on the Line of Control, Gandhi said dialogue with neighbours must be based on accepted principles of civilised behaviour.

“Better and closer relations with our immediate neighbours will not only make for regional peace — they will also have a positive impact on some of our own border states,” she said.

“However, let us be clear. Our dialogue must be based on accepted principles of civilised behaviour. We will never compromise on our vigil and preparedness to deal with terrorism and threats on our borders,” Gandhi said

The Congress president noted that women’s security was on top of the party’s agenda, and added the issue must be discussed at length.

The party is also concerned about the poor and backward classes, Ms. Gandhi said and added that inclusive growth was not a party ploy but a conviction.

She also asked partymen to be austere.

“Lavish weddings will lead to questions on where money came from,” Gandhi said. — PTI

Special court to try Italian marines: SC

NEW DELHI: Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the case of two Italian marines accused of murdering Indian fishermen while guarding an oil tanker should be transferred to a special court in New Delhi.

The marines are suspected of shooting dead two fishermen off India's southwestern
coast near Kochi in February 2012, when a fishing boat came close to the Italian oil tanker they were guarding.

The case has caused diplomatic tensions between India and Italy, which has argued that the Indian courts have no jurisdiction to try the marines because the incident took place in international waters.

The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the case should be transferred from a local court in Kerala to a new "special court" in New Delhi which would examine Italy's contention.

"The case is transferred to a special court. The state of Kerala has no jurisdiction," said a ruling from a two-judge bench comprising chief justice Altamas Kabir and Jasti Chelameswar.

The marines, Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, were granted special permission to return home to Italy for Christmas but have since returned to India.

Armed guards are increasingly deployed on cargo ships and tankers in the Indian Ocean to tackle the threat posed by Somali pirates, who often hold ships and crews hostage for months demanding multi-million-dollar ransoms. — AFP

DMK asks govt to reconsider diesel price hike, increase LPG cap

CHENNAI: Disapproving the Centre's diesel deregulation move, UPA key ally DMK today demanded that the government reconsider it and raise the subsidised LPG cylinder cap to 12 from the proposed nine, asking it not to invite the wrath of the poor on cooking gas. "Allowing State-owned oil companies to increase diesel prices even by a small quantum is a wrong decision", DMK chief M Karunanidhi said in a statement, a day after government partially deregulated diesel price allowing a hike of 40-50 paise a litre every month.

He said poor and the middle class people would not be able to bear even the increase of 50 paise per litre in diesel and this would pave the way for increase in inflation.

"The Centre should reconsider the decision on the diesel price issue so that poor and the middle class are not affected", he said, reminding that the diesel price was hiked by Rs. 5.63 per litre in September last.

On the announcement to raise the cap on subsidised cooking gas cylinders from six to nine a year, Karunanidhi said the Parliamentary committee had already recommended that it should be increased to 12 a year.

Observing that LPG is primarily used by the poor and middle class, Karunanidhi said "the Government has to give a cylinder at subsidised rate every month.Though it will cost additional burden, government should bear them so as not to attract the wrath of the poor."

"Government should reconsider the decision to give nine LPG cylinders only.It should come forward to give one cylinder a month," he added. — PTI

High-level Cong meet begins in Jaipur

New Delhi: Ruling Congress' two-day high-level strategy meet begins in Jaipur on Friday with the main focus remaining on the fast-approaching Lok Sabha elections that are due in 2014.

The two-day Chintan Shivir will see party top brass discussing political challenges being faced by the Congress.

With Rahul Gandhi put in charge of the 2014 poll campaign, Congress is also expected to evolve a strategy to blend youth and experience to evolve a winning formula for the Lok Sabha elections just 16 months away.

The significance of the two-day Chintan Shivir and the AICC meeting that will follow on Sunday is in view of the fact that a section of the Congress is favouring early Lok Sabha elections to coincide with Assembly polls in five states by end of the year.

Narendra Modi is expected to emerge as a major talking point with his electoral hattrick in Gujarat with a CWC member saying that a discussion on current political situation cannot take place without direct or indirect mention of the controversial BJP leader.

'One big lie' Armstrong says of 7 drug-fuelled Tours

Los Angeles: Disgraced cycling legend Lance Armstrong's fierce defence of his record finally collapsed as he admitted that his seven Tour de France titles were fueled by an array of drugs.

"I made my decisions. They're my mistake," Armstrong told US talk show host Oprah Winfrey yesterday, in his first interview since he was stripped of his record yellow jersey haul and banned from sport for life.

"And I'm sitting here today to acknowledge that and to say I'm sorry for that," Armstrong said. "I view this situation as one big lie that I repeated a lot of times." "Certainly, I'm a flawed character," said Armstrong, who was once revered as a cancer survivor who beat the odds to succeed on cycling's greatest stage, then used his fame to help others fighting the disease.

"It's just this mythic, perfect story," he said. "And it wasn't true." Winfrey's much-anticipated interview opened with a rapid-fire series of "yes" or "no" questions that saw Armstrong admit to using the blood-booster EPO, blood-doping transfusions and testosterone and human growth hormone.

He said he didn't believe that in his years of competition it was possible to win cycling's greatest races without performance enhancers.