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Negotiations on to resolve Chinese incursion issue: Antony
Bangalore: India on Wednesday said negotiations are in progress at “various levels” to resolve the incursion issue with China peacefully.
“Negotiations are going on at various levels to resolve the issue peacefully,” Defence Minister A K Antony told reporters here.
“Our government will take every step to protect the national integrity and security”, he said, when asked about the issue.
India on Tuesday asked China to revert to the status quo position in Depsang Valley in Ladakh where troops of both countries were in a face-to-face situation after Chinese forces intruded nearly 10km inside Indian territory.
“We have asked the Chinese side to maintain the status quo in this sector (of the western border),” official spokesperson in the Ministry of External Affairs Syed Akbaruddin had said, adding, “by this I mean the status quo prior to this incident.”
He had also added that “we see this as a face-to-face situation between border personnel of two sides due to differences on their alignment of Line of Actual Control”.
The term “face-to-face” is not something that India has “conjured up”, it is something that is referred to in 2005 Protocol for implementation of CBMs in military field in the LAC in India-China border areas, he had said. — PTI
5.7 quake strikes Afghanistan,
tremors felt in Delhi, Kashmir
NEW DELHI: Tremors were felt in North India, including the national Capital and adjoining satellite townships, on Wednesday afternoon, the second such occurrence in nine days.
The quake, measuring 5.7 on the Richter Scale at 2:51 pm, was epicentred in southern Afghanistan, the MeT Department said. The quake took place 6.6 km down the surface.
The tremors were felt in the capital, Gurgaon and Noida. There were no immediate reports of any casualty or injury.
Tremors were also felt in Srinagar and adjoining areas but there was no report of any casualty, officials said.
In Srinagar, the tremor lasted a few seconds, prompting people to rush out of buildings for safety.
On April 16, tremors were felt in north India following a quake measuring 7.8 on the Richter Scale on Pakistan-Iran border. — PTI
Chit fund scam: Transit remand for Sudipto Sen
SRINAGAR: A local court in Kashmir on Wednesday granted four-day transit remand of chitfund scam accused Sudipto Sen and two others to Kolkata police.
Sen, chairman of Saradha group which is accused of defrauding thousands of depositors, along with the company director Debjani Mukherjee and another official Arvind Singh Chauhan were presented before Chief Judicial Magistrate of Ganderbal, Parvez Hussain Kachroo, who granted the transit remand.
The trio, who were detained from Sonamarg area of the district on Tuesday, will now be taken to Delhi on way to Kolkata.
A Scorpio vehicle with a West Bengal number plate has also been seized.
Earlier, Sen, Mukherjee and Chauhan were put through medical examination before being presented in the court.
Doctors declared them fit to be taken out of the Valley by the Kolkata police team.
Lakhs of investors of the chit fund group have hit the roads alleging they have been duped of over Rs 30,000 crore.
Hundreds of agents of the company have also been rendered jobless.
The West Bengal government has announced formation of a Special Investigation Team and a high-level inquiry into chit fund companies after the collapse of Saradha group.
The bubble burst after capital market regulator SEBI started cracking the whip on chit fund companies for flouting rules, triggering pressure on the group’s finances. — PTI
UP DSP's murder: Raja Bhaiya's guard
among 7 arrested
PRATAPGARH: CBI on Wednesday arrested seven persons, including security guard of influential MLA Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya, in connection with the murder case of Kunda DSP Zia-Ul-Haq.
CBI sources said the seven persons allegedly incited the mob to kill the DSP, who had arrived on the scene after getting information about the murder of village head Nanhe Yadav.
They said one of the men who allegedly led the mob to the kill the officer was Bhulle Pal, a security guard with then state minister Raja Bhaiya who has been named by the slain officer's wife in her FIR as the main suspect.
The sources said four persons — son, two brothers and a domestic help of Nanhe Yadav — have already been arrested in connection with the murder of the DSP on April 13 and the new arrests take the numbers of arrested accused to 11.
They said those arrested on Wednesday included Chhote Lal Yadav, Ghanshyam Saroj, Ramlakhan Gautam, Ramashray, Shivram Pasi, Munna Patel and Bulle Pal.
Yadav, Saroj, Gautam and Ramashray were associates of village head Nanhe Yadav, who was murdered hours before the killing of the DSP, while Chhote Lal Yadav and Munna Patel were his neighbours.
The sources said the agency is continuing its investigation to probe the larger conspiracy behind the murder of Nanhe Yadav and DSP Zia-Ul-Haq.
CBI sources claimed Haque, who was posted as deputy superintendent of police at Kunda, had reached the house of Nanhe Yadav after getting the news of his murder on March 2.
By the time he approached the site, the news of Yadav's murder had spread and a large crowd gathered outside his house which was angry at the alleged apathy of the police and protested the police's alleged failure to stop the murder.
The sources said agency has recovered the weapon, allegedly used in the killing Haq. — PTI
Legendary singer Shamshad Begum dies at 94
NEW DELHI: Legendary singer ShamshadBegum, one of the first playback singers in the Hindi film industry and voice behind hit songs like 'Mere Piya Gaye Rangoon', 'Kabhi
aar kabhi paar' and 'Kajra mohabbat wala', died at her Mumbai residence. She was 94.
"She was not keeping well for past few months and was admitted to the hospital. She passed away on Tuesday night. The funeral was a solemn affair with a few friends present," Begum's daughter Usha said.
Begum was born on April 14, 1919 in Amritsar, Punjab. She made her debut on Peshawar Radio in Lahore on December 16, 1947, captivating the hearts of her listeners with her enchanting voice.
The singer has been living with her daughter Usha Ratra and son-in-law in Mumbai, ever since her husband Ganpat Lal Batto died in 1955.
Her other hit tracks include 'Kahin pe nigahen kahin pe nishana', 'Boojh
mera kya naam re', 'Saiyan dil mein aana re', 'Leke pehla pehla pyar' and 'Chod
babul ka ghar'. — PTI
Musharraf denied bail in Bhutto murder case
ISLAMABAD: A Pakistani court on Wednesday rejected bail for former military ruler Pervez Musharraf in a case relating to the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007, a Government prosecutor said.
It was the latest setback for Musharraf, who returned to Pakistan last month from four years in self-imposed exile to make a political comeback, but is currently under house arrest in connection with a different case.
Musharraf returned to run in the Parliamentary election scheduled for May 11, but was disqualified because of his actions while in power and is spending most of his time battling legal cases.
He blamed the Pakistani Taliban for Bhutto’s slaying, but Government investigators later said there was evidence of his involvement. A U.N. report had faulted
Musharraf’s Government for failing to provide Bhutto with adequate security.
Musharraf has denied the allegations against him.
The former military ruler had arranged a pre-arrest bail in the Bhutto case and several others before returning to Pakistan, meaning he could not be immediately arrested on arrival.
On Wednesday, the Islamabad High Court rejected Musharraf’s bail after his lawyer failed to appear to argue for an extension in the Bhutto case, said Government prosecutor Zulfikar
Chaudhry.
Musharraf could now be arrested and tried in connection with the Bhutto case as well,
Chaudhry said.
The former General was placed under house arrest over the weekend in connection with a case involving his decision to fire senior judges, including the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, while in power. His arrest followed a dramatic escape from court in which he fled in a speeding vehicle to avoid detention. He was eventually placed under arrest at his heavily guarded house on the outskirts of Islamabad.
Musharraf stepped down from power in 2008 in the wake of growing discontent with his rule, especially among the legal community because of his decision to dismiss judges. He returned last month despite the legal challenges against him, as well as death threats by the Pakistani
Taliban.
Police defused a car bomb parked about 150 m (500 ft) from Musharraf’s house in Islamabad on Tuesday and are investigating how the vehicle was able to get so close to his home. — AP
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