NEW DELHI: Defence Minister A. K. Antony on Wednesday condoled the death of naval personnel on the submarine INS Sindhurakshak that exploded and sank in the naval dockyard in Mumbai.

He briefed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the mishap before leaving for Mumbai where the incident took place.

"I have briefed the Prime Minister on the fire...I am just now going to Mumbai to see and get the details there," Antony told reporters outside Parliament House.

He said he was saddened at the tragedy of this magnitude which has happened in recent times. 

"I also feel sad about those Navy personnel who lost their lives in the service of the country," he said without giving details. It is feared that 18 personnel on board have died.

Navy chief Admiral D. K. Joshi, who briefed Antony on the mishap, is already in Mumbai.

Navy sources, meanwhile, said here that the explosion took place in the forward section of the Kilo class INS Sindhurakshak submarine which houses torpedoes and missiles.

The Navy has ordered a board of inquiry to probe the explosion and subsequent fire on board the submarine.

Due to the explosion, the submarine has submerged at the dock with only a portion visible above the surface, a defence statement said. — PTI

NEW DELHI: Parliament on Wednesday rejected the Pakistan National Assembly resolution, saying it levelled "absolutely baseless and unfounded" allegations against India and asserted that Pakistan army was actually involved in "unprovoked" attack on the Line of Control (LoC) last week.

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha unanimously adopted identical resolutions condemning Pakistan army for indulging in the attacks and asked the government of Pakistan to abide by the ceasefire commitment of 2003 along the international border and the LoC in letter and spirit.

The Houses regretted that the Pakistan army was indulging in attacks at a time "when efforts are being made to establish a long-lasting framework of peaceful, friendly and cooperative ties so that both the countries may henceforth devote their resources and energies to the pressing task of advancing the welfare of their people."

The resolutions read out by Chairman Hamid Ansari in Rajya Sabha and Speaker Meira Kumar in Lok Sabha said, "This House rejects and deplores the resolutions passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on August 13,2013 and the Federal Assembly of Punjab which made absolutely baseless and unfounded allegations against the Indian Army and the people of India."

Both the Houses underlined that "there should be absolutely no doubt in anyone's mind, including members of the Pakistan National Assembly that it was the Pakistan Army that was involved in unprovoked attack on an Indian Army patrol on our side of the LoC" on August 6. — PTI

PATNA: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) probing the serial bomb blasts at Bodh Gaya’s Mahabodhi temple, has arrested a Hindu priest, Arup Brahmachari, police said on Wednesday.

“The NIA team, with the help of the police, arrested Arup Brahmachari who was absconding after the blasts,” an officer of the Bodh Gaya police station said.

Brahmachari, hailing from West Bengal and staying at Bodh Gaya, has been lodged in Rampur police station of Gaya town due to security reasons, the officer said.

“The NIA team will interrogate him,” he added.

A breakthrough still eludes the NIA, investigating the July 7 blasts, in which 10 bombs exploded while three other devices were defused. — IANS

KISHTWAR: Curfew continued in Kishtwar for the sixth day running even as restrictions were partially lifted in Samba district and other areas of Jammu region which were witness to recent incidents of communal clashes.

"No relaxation in the curfew was given in Kishtwar. The decision to relax the curfew is taken keeping in view the situation on the ground, which is being reviewed regularly. There are no reports of any untoward incidents in the past 24 hours," Kishtwar District Magistrate Baseer Khan told the Press Trust of India.

The day curfew in the border district of Samba was lifted today, a senior police officer said, adding that Indian Army personnel have now been withdrawn from the area. The day curfew was also lifted in the border town of Sunderbani in Rajouri district.

The curfew was relaxed for between three to eight hours in Jammu (south), Rajouri, Bhaderwah, Udhampur, Reasi, Billawar, Bani, Basholi, Kathua and Sunderbani, police said.

But restrictions continued in the Old City and eastern areas of Jammu, in parts of Rajouri town, at Thathri and in the Gandoh area of Doda district.

"The curfew has been relaxed in several areas at different timings. In Jammu region, the southern part was given a relaxation, along with a portion of Rajouri today," said Jammu Zone Divisional Commissioner, Shantmanu.

He said that the curfew may be briefly relaxed in Kishtwar tomorrow in view of Independence Day celebrations.

But internet services for mobile phone and wi-fi users remained suspended for the fourth day today across Jammu and Kashmir. Internet speeds for broadband services, too, were reduced with a view to checking the upload of objectionable material on social networking sites, official sources said.

The Jammu Chamber of Commerce and Industries has given a 48-hour bandh call beginning today seeking full compensation for losses incurred by minority community traders in Kishtwar in the communal clashes which rocked the town on Eid.

Meanwhile, full dress rehearsals were held at Jammu and other district headquarters in the region in the run-up to Independence Day tomorrow.

Schoolchildren, however, did not participate in the preparations on account of prevailing tensions.

Police on Wednesday detained 13 activists belonging to a local outfit as they were on their way to the summer capital of Srinagar to hoist the National flag there.

"Thirteen activists of an organisation were detained in the Bakshinagar area of the city as they were on their way to Srinagar to hoist the National flag there," police said.

The activists, who belong to 'Jammu Hurriyat Conference', were being led by their President Chetan Sharma.

Nineteen people were arrested in Jammu region yesterday in connection with protests and violence over the Kishtwar clashes. A total of 141 people have so far been taken into custody in connection with violence on Eid day in Kishtwar.

Jammu Bar Association president MK Bharadwaj has alleged that police were also arresting minor children in their crack down against protesters.

A total of 68 shops, seven hotels and 35 vehicles were damaged during Friday's violence in Kishtwar, which also led to the deaths of three persons. — PTI