Monday, October 21, 2002, Chandigarh, India
Updated at 3:00 am (IST)

Manmohan hopeful
Talks with Mufti to continue today

Srinagar, October 20 The stalemate between the Congress and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) on the issue of sharing power in Jammu and Kashmir was broken here today with Dr Manmohan Singh, a senior Congress leader, initiating talks with Mufti Sayeed for installing a coalition government.

Dr Manmohan Singh shakes hand with People’s Democratic Party President Mufti Mohammad Sayeed at his residence at Nowgam in Srinagar on Sunday. — Photo Amin War In video (28k, 56k)

Moneybags in Srinagar
Jammu, October 20
A couple of businessmen from outside the state have reached Srinagar with money bags for helping the National Conference in winning the support of all the Independent candidates besides a faction of the People’s Democratic Party, which has 16 MLAs.

  Nation page: V.P. Singh offers to break J&K deadlock
J&K page: CM issue: students flay Mufti

PM runs from rebel MLAs?
New Delhi, October 20
Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee arrived here from Lucknow, hours ahead of schedule, due to a “bad throat” even as there was speculation that his early return was a move to avoid embarrassment at the hands of dissident BJP MLAs in Uttar Pradesh.

     PM may visit Pak In video (28k, 56k)
    Fernandes rules out early talks with Pak

Karnataka to give TN water
New Delhi, October 20
The Karnataka Government today claimed that it had complied with most of the directions of the Supreme Court and the Cauvery River Authority pertaining to the release of Cauvery waters to Tamil Nadu and asserted that it had no intention to “flout” the orders of the constitutional authorities.

BKU (E) threat to stop rail traffic
Bathinda, October 20
In protest against the decision of the Punjab Government to stop free power supply to farmers, the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta) said they would stop rail traffic all over the state on October 24 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

SAD threatens mass movement 15-point charter of demands submitted Chandigarh, October 20 The SAD today served a 15-point charter of demands on the Congress Government seeking its implementation by November 15 or else face a ‘’peaceful, democratic mass movement’’ in protest against the state government’s ‘’injustice, tyranny and repression’’. The charter has the restoration of free power to agriculture and Dalits as its anchor.