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Torch Run
Sarabjit’s kin apply for visa
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Human Rights
MNS push for job quota in pvt firms
Rising prices hit spring fest in Assam
Andhra launches Rs 2 kg rice scheme
‘Support barter for UNSC seat’ Identity of ’84 riots witnesses IAS officer’s wife seeks his suspension HC: Corrupt officer’s spouse equally guilty US citizen held for bid to rape Briton Complaint against ex-RAW official
Bihar HC stays hike in court fees
Pay panel report draws flak
Obituary NCW for policy on protection of foreign tourists Akola sex scam: SP suspended Custodial Deaths
CPM to support SP in UP bypoll
Navy completes Three Poles
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Torch Run
New Delhi, April 9 In fact, sources close to Rahul Gandhi said he had not received any invitation but if he does, it is highly unlikely that he will accept it. Gandhi junior is learnt to be of the view that politicians should keep away from this event, which should ideally be confined, to sportspersons. IOA president Suresh Kalmadi, who is presently in China, told mediapersons that an invitation had been sent to Rahul Gandhi and other young parliamentarians like Jyotiraditya Scindia, Jitin Prasada and Sachin Pilot. He also said he would call on them personally on his return to invite them. Kalmadi maintained the young MPs were being extended an invitation because the organisers wanted people from different walks of life to participate in the relay .Kalmadi’s statement, however, has not gone done well with the Congress top brass, which feels he had unnecessarily dragged Rahul Gandhi into this controversy. Several Congress leaders agreed that politicians should not get involved in this event, particularly in view of the ongoing worldwide storm over the Olympic torch relay and the overwhelming public support for the Tibetans. China would have been delighted if Rahul Gandhi was to participate in the relay as it has been assiduously wooing the Congress party. A high-level delegation of the Chinese Communist Party, which called on senior Congress leaders recently, had invited Rahul Gandhi to attend a special conference they propose to organise later this year to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi’s path-breaking visit to their country. Although protesting Tibetans propose to disrupt the relay here as they did in London and Paris, the Indian government has assured China that it will make all arrangements to see that the relay passes off peacefully. External affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee gave this assurance to his Chinese counterpart last week. Mukherjee had even warned the Dalai Lama and his supporters that they should keep away from political activity and not do anything which will hamper Sino-India relations.
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Sarabjit’s kin apply for visa
New Delhi, April 9 The wife of Sarabjit, Sukhpreet Kaur, his sister Dalbir Kaur, his two young daughters Swapandeep Kaur and Poonam, and his father Baldev Singh applied for a visa this morning. A decision on their application is expected tomorrow morning. The family has been advised to appear before the visa officer. Normally, a visa to Pakistan is not granted the same day. The family went inside the Pakistan High Commission this morning with a prayer on their lips that they be allowed to go and pray before the Pakistani authorities for the release of Sarabjit, who is facing a death row. His hanging was stayed after the Indian government intervened last month and got a grace period. The issue came in forefront after President Pervez Musharraf had recently rejected the mercy petition of Sarabjit, for his alleged involvement in bomb blasts in 1990. Emerging after depositing the applications, Dalbir Kaur told The Tribune: “We are hopeful of getting a visa.” Former human right minister of Pakistan Ansar Burney had also promised that he would get a visa for the family and arrange for their meeting with top dignitaries in Pakistan’s newly elected democratic government. The family will be meeting Pakistan Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, co-chairman of PPP Asif Ali Zardari, besides offering prayers at the Nankana Sahib and Panja Sahib and of course meeting Sarabjit in jail. In case the visa is granted, it will be the first meeting of the family with Sarabjit in more than decade. The family’s hopes had been re-kindled after another spy, Kashmir Singh, was released from prison. Burney was seen to be the man behind the release. Two days ago, Burney while talking to a the media had promised that he would carry a CD given by the family of Sarabjit to Pakistan and would also speak to the witness on whose testimony Sarabjit had been condemned to a death sentence.
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Human Rights
New Delhi, April 9 What has gone to rattle the Islamabad’s diplomatic corps is the fact that till recently they were pointing fingers at India for the human rights violations and living conditions in Jammu and Kashmir. However, the speakers at the conference caught the Islamabad’s foreign policy establishment by surprise as many Members of European Parliament came down heavily on Pakistan for violating democratic rights to the people living in the PoK. A two-day conference on “Constitutional, political and socio-economic conditions in northern parts of Kashmir” began in the European Parliament, Brussels, yesterday. This conference, held under the banner of the International Kashmir Alliance, was attended by about 10 MEPs, other European dignitaries, members of some European NGOs, and Kashmiris from both sides of the LoC. Important leaders from Kashmir who attended the conference were Abdur Rahim Rather of the National Conference, Shaukat Ali Kashmiri, secretary-general of the International Kashmir Alliance, Abdul Hamid Khan, president of the Balwaristan National Front , Dr Syed Nazir Geelani, president of the IKA , Shabir Chowdhary of the JKLF , Mumtaz Khan and Abbas Butt. In her speech, Baroness Emma Nicholson pointed out that while Pakistan was seeking self-determination in Kashmir, it was not even prepared to allow democracy on its side of the border. Van Orden also stated that while there had been extensive political and economic development on the Indian side of the border, this was totally lacking on the Pakistan side.
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MNS push for job quota in pvt firms
Mumbai, April 9 According to MNS officials, the anti-Bihari agitation launched by the party in many parts of the state since January resulted in scores of local youth finding jobs with industries. “After our agitation, companies in Nashik’s industrial estates asked us to help find employees. We have thus helped provide jobs to a number of youth from around Nashik,” says MNS activist Manoj Chavan. Reports from Nashik say many of the small units in the town have been handicapped by severe labour shortage after people from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, who were employed here, were driven away by the MNS. Though many of the migrants are trickling back, several units took the help of the MNS and the Shiv Sena to employ local candidates. According to Chavan, the drive to employ more locals in the state is being spearheaded by the Maharashtra Navnirman Kamgar Sena, the workers’ union of the MNS. According to the organisation, letters have been written to nearly 50,000 industries across the state asking them to reserve 80 per cent of the jobs for people domiciled in the state. Apart from threatening an agitation, the MNS says it would file a public interest litigation petition to ensure that 80 per cent of the jobs are reserved for local residents. In this, the MNS is following in the footsteps of the Shiv Sena that made deep inroads among the Marathi middle class by forcing banks and government organisations to hire locals in the 1960s and 1970s. The Sthaniya Lokadhikar Samiti, set up by the Shiv Sena to champion the cause of Marathi employees, has a presence in offices of the Reserve Bank of India, the State Bank of India and other PSU banks.
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Rising prices hit spring fest in Assam
Guwahati, April 9 Reeling under spiralling prices, people in many parts of the state have hit the street demanding resignation of the incumbent government in the state. The All Assam Students Union (AASU) has taken the lead in mobilising the masses against the steep rise in prices. The leading students body alleges that nexus between the politicians in power with the trading community has led to unprecedented rise in price of all commodities in the state. The protesters accuse the state government of playing to the tune of traders ignoring the plight of the common people. The AASU has demanded resignation of the government led by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, if it fails to control the escalating prices. The Assam government, in the budget for the fiscal 2008-09, has resorted to abolition of VAT on some essential items, including rice, pulses, all wheat products, onion, potato and mustard oil, to facilitate easing of prices. However, the step has failed to provide relief to the common consumer given that the prices line has not come down much to the chagrin of the people. Wholesale traders of these items, however, claimed that the prices have come down in the wholesale market and alleged that a vicious circle of retailers and corrupt officials of the Food and Civil Supplies Department was responsible for depriving the people of the relief provided by the government in the budget. A spokesman of Kamrup Chambers of Commerce (KCC), which controls the wholesale market of essentials in the Northeastern states, claimed that there were big differences between wholesale and retail rates of various essential commodities and hinted at ‘officials-retailers’ nexus for it. Meanwhile, Assam government’s fresh proposal to impose entry tax on different items, including food items brought to the state from outside by roadways, has spurred apprehensions about further escalation of prices.
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Andhra launches Rs 2 kg rice scheme
Hyderabad, April 9 The sop, involving a whopping subsidy burden of Rs 2,000 crore per year, is expected to be a major electoral plank of the Congress to woo voters as competitive populism is in full display in the poll-bound state. Over 1.85 crore families, accounting for nearly 80 per cent of the state’s population, will get 20 Kg of rice per month. Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy formally launched the scheme at Jadcherla town in the backward Mahaboobnagar district and described it as a major step towards providing food security to the poor. The Opposition parties, however, dubbed it as an election stunt and accused the Congress of trying to gain political mileage ahead of elections. The populist scheme involves an administrative exercise of mind-boggling dimensions: Over 4 lakh lorries will have to be deployed to transport 35.60 lakh tonnes of rice to 41,000 fair price shops every month. The brainchild late N.T. Rama Rao, the subsidised rice scheme was first introduced in 1983.
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‘Support barter for UNSC seat’ New Delhi, April 9 The Delhi Declaration unveiled at the end of the two-day summit called for the negotiation of specific steps that would reduce and finally eliminate nuclear weapons, thereby leading to a world free from the weapons of mass destruction as envisaged in the Rajiv Gandhi Action Plan of 1988 and the Africa Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone Treaty of 1995. The declaration also comes heavy on terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, saying: “An act of terrorism anywhere is a threat to the entire international community.” It agrees to make concerted efforts towards expeditious finalisation of a comprehensive convention on international terrorism at the UN. India and Africa agreed to further strengthen cooperation between them towards early realisation of a genuine reform of the UN and its working methods, particularly revitalising and enhancing the role of the General Assembly and reform and expansion of the Security Council. The two sides also declared their support to each other for a permanent seat in the expanded United Nations Security Council. The two partners at the summit also adopted a framework for cooperation to further strengthen their partnership in political, security, economic, science and technology, human resource development, social, cultural and other areas of mutual interest. They agreed to develop within one year a joint action plan at a continental level and an appropriate follow-up mechanism to implement their framework for cooperation. The Delhi Declaration, together with the framework for India-Africa cooperation, is a reiteration of India’s commitment to the development of Africa and is meant to serve as a blueprint for creating sustainable and mutually beneficial partnerships between India and Africa. The declaration aims at redefining and re-invigorating the decades-old partnership and historical and civilisational links between the African continent and India. On the issues of climate change and global warming, the declaration laments the lack of demonstrable progress by developed countries on green house gas reduction commitments in the first commitment period under the Kyoto Protocol. It takes note of the proposal of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on convergence of per-capita emissions of developing and developed countries. It also urged the members of the WTO to implement duty-free and quota-free market access for all products originating from the least developed countries. The declaration underlines the need to reform the international financial architecture, especially the International Financial Institutions (IFIs), to reflect the changing global scenario and balance of power.
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Identity of ’84 riots witnesses New Delhi, April 9 While refusing to give a copy of the status report of the case to senior counsel H.S. Phoolka, who is appearing for the riot victims, the CBI voiced the apprehension that disclosing names of the witnesses would imperil their lives. It had submitted the status report of the case in sealed covers on March 19 on the directions of Sanjiv Jain, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Karkardooma. Phoolka did not give in to the CBI’s explanation and told Jain that he would file an application to make a formal request for the status report. Sources said that at least three of the five witnesses examined by the CBI have spoken in favour of Tytler. These are Ajit Singh, Jaswant Singh and Harpal Bedi, two of whom are estranged family members of Gyani Surinder Singh, who deposed against Tytler before the Nanawati Commission, probing the ’84 riots. This case has been mired in controversy right from the very start. In 1984, this case was registered by the Delhi police. All 31 accused were acquitted by the court after an eight year long trial. Tytler’s name did not figure in the names of the accused. The police claimed that the accused were arrested on the spot when they were setting fire to the Pul Bangesh Gurudwara. Three persons were killed in the incident. While acquitting all accused in 1992, Additional Sessions Judge J.B. Goel at Tis Hazari, passed strictures against Ranbir Singh, investigating officer who was then a sub-inspector of the Delhi police.
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IAS officer’s wife seeks his suspension
Bangalore, April 9 In a letter to the Governor, Rameshwar Thakur on April 3, K N Jayashree, wife of M N Vijayakumar, Administrator, Command Area Development Authority in Belgaum, pleaded that her husband be placed under suspension for six months as he faced threats to his life. "I have urged the Governor to suspend my husband and order an inquiry into the life threats he faced, as police in Belgaum have not acted on his complaints filed in September and December last", Jayashree told PTI here. Lending a supporting hand to her husband in his battle against corruption, Jayashree said a letter had also been addressed to President Pratibha Patil seeking a CBI probe into the frequent transfers of Vijayakumar. Between September 2006 and March 2007, Vijayakumar, a 1981 batch IAS officer, was transferred seven times, before he was posted at Belgaum in a down-graded post, she said. Jayashree contended that the post of the administrator of CADA was normally held by Engineers and not by IAS officials, barring two who preferred it for their own reasons. Alleging that there was a high degree of corruption in CADA, she said that after her husband took over as administrator, there were at least two attempts on his life in the months of September and December last year. Though immediate complaints were lodged, police refused to act on them, she charged. — PTI
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HC: Corrupt officer’s spouse equally guilty Mumbai, April 9 Justice V.R. Kingaonkar of the Bombay High Court while hearing a corruption case against Bhaskar Wagh, an official in the Maharashtra government’s Public Works Department, today found Wagh’s wife Mangalabai of being guilty in abetting the main accused in the case as well. Mangalabai was found guilty as she allowed her husband to purchase property, jewellery and other assets in her name. Wagh and Mangalabai were already found guilty by a local court in Dhulia. Wagh had allegedly purchased shares in various companies, a bungalow and some 30 tolas of gold jewellery in his wife’s name. Mangalabai had, however, claimed that she had received much of the stuff as ‘streedhan’. However, she could not provide evidence to this effect and charges were pressed against her. The lower court had ruled that the lady was equally guilty since she had assisted her husband in committing the offences. Mangalabai had been sentenced to three years rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 2 lakh by the lower court. However, her husband had been sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment and fined Rs 3 lakh. His appeal was also rejected by the court.
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US citizen held for bid to rape Briton
Bangalore, April 9 Fifty-two-year-old Alfred Lary, a software engineer, barged into the room of British citizen Gardinar Anita (33), also a software engineer, in a five-star hotel last night and attempted to rape her. Anita is in Bangalore for professional work and was staying in a room on the third floor of the hotel. Lary, who had also come on a professional visit and was staying in the next room, forced his way into Anita’s room when she returned from work. After Anita screamed for help, hotel employees Pratap and Yallappa broke open the door, rescued her. The police has registered a case against Lary for offences, including rape, trespass, assault and intent to outrage the modesty of woman. — PTI
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Complaint against ex-RAW official New Delhi, April 9 The nation’s premier investigating agency has also filed a complaint against the publisher of the book, Vivek Garg, for allegedly publishing some classified details. In the course of investigation of the case registered by the CBI on the complaint of Cabinet Secretariat, the agency found that the author had disclosed the contents of the “secret” recommendations of the Group of Ministers on Internal Security given in 2001. Sources said the author had divulged details of the ‘top secret’ future technology upgradation project ‘Vision 2000’ of Cabinet Secretariat (RAW) and given details of the technical aspects of two of the sub-projects namely VSAT and UHF/VHF which were classified as ‘secret.’
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Bihar HC stays hike in court fees
Patna, April 9 “We have decided to suspend our agitation following the High Court putting on hold operationalisation of the Bihar government’s order of steep and irrational hike that would have made seeking justice too costly for the common man,” Yogesh Chandra Verma, convenor
of the coordination committee of the three associations of the lawyers of the High Court spearheading the
stir, told PTI. Earlier in the day, a special three-judge special bench comprising Justices Barin Ghosh and J.N. Singh besides Prasad stayed the state government order while hearing a PIL filed by a Muzaffarpur lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha, who had challenged the step, saying though the per capita income in Bihar was lower than most states, the court fees as the result of the hike was more than most developed states. The court fixed May 16 for next hearing of the case after advocate-general P.K. Sahi told the court that a special ministerial committee headed by deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi was looking into the matter and that it would hold its next meeting with the agitating lawyers on April 10.
— PTI
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Pay panel report draws flak
New Delhi, April 9 An association, representing gazetted officers of grade B and promotee officers of grade A in various departments of the Central government, in a release today said the recommendations of the Justice B.N. Srikrishna pay panel would increase the inequality in their grades. “The minimum-maximum ratio has been fixed at 1:15.7, which was only 1:11.8 at present. What is the justification for this?” the Confederation of Central Government Gazetted Officers Organisation said. Besides, the minimum pay granted is Rs 5,740 as on January 1, 2006. This was approved after considering two increments of 2.5 per cent per annum for 2006 and 2007, which as on April 1, 2008, was Rs 6,031, the confederation said, adding, “this is much below the minimum wage in today’s cost of living.” The confederation represents employees of ordinance factory, income tax, postal department, railways, customs, excise and other central government jobs. The government yesterday constituted a panel to look into grievances of armed forces and IPS officers.
— PTI
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Obituary
THE 'queen of sarod' is no more but the echo of her soul-stirring melody lingers in the air. A pioneer and path maker, Sharan Rani was the first woman to take up sarod, always known as a "man's instrument". The saint musician, born on April 9, 1929, died a day before completing 79 years.
A special function was to be held at the National Museum auditorium to celebrate her birthday. Releasing of a two-CD music album of Sharan Rani's live concerts by Music Today, a divine sarod book written by her on the origin and development of sarod in India published by Prentice Hall of India and screening of a short documentary on her life and works, produced and directed by Radhika Backliwal Narain, were all part of the programme. Perhaps, instinctively, Sharan Rani realised that the knots of her fragile ties with this world were withering away. So, the function was advanced for a smaller audience on the evening of April 8. I got up early in the morning to check up the arrangements for the auspicious function which was to take place at our son's residence. Our plans got crashed. The divine soul slipped away at 8 a.m. With a heavy heart, we left for her Defence Colony residence for the last darshan of our beloved's face. The body, wrapped in white sheet, was brought there to give aesthetically the final touches, with tender care and complete devotion before her departure for the final journey to Nigambodh Ghat. Spell-bound, we watched the whole process. The peaceful gentle face seemed to be spilling blessings to all of us occupying the room. We were not destined to see her physical presence in the evening as pre-planned but the blessings radiating from her wrinkleless youthful face are ever inspiring for all of us. The echo of her soul-touching melody will perpetually linger in the air.
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NCW for policy on protection of foreign tourists New Delhi, April 9 “We will take up this matter with the Ministry of Tourism and Culture,” Vyas today told The Tribune, after she had served a notice on Noida SSP in the case involving cold-blooded murder of Sheeba Thomas, 24, who was shot dead late Tuesday by four unidentified assailants.
Sheeba, an airhostess with an international airline, was returning home to Sector 31 in Noida around 11.30 pm when people on two motorbikes waylaid her car. A scuffle ensued and was followed by a murderous attack. The men
escaped. Vyas took suo motu notice of the case and asked the Noida SSP to submit a report on action taken in the matter. Uttar
Pradesh, she said, was emerging as the worst in terms of crimes against women. “We are also very disturbed with Andhra
Pradesh, though we have welcomed their model of creating awareness regarding Domestic Violence Act
(DVA),” she said today, adding that the commission favoured a policy for protection of foreign tourists in India. The NCW is, meanwhile, embarking on a pilot project to sensitise police on gender issues, including
DVA. The project will be launched this May in collaboration with the Delhi police. “The idea is to create an atmosphere where women don’t feel inhibited to walk in and talk about their problems. We will hire professionals for counselling and help the police look at issues from the women’s point of view,” said
Vyas, adding that the project would be extended to the country if it bore fruit. Also on the commission’s priority this year is the review of the Mental Health Act and Indecent Representation of Women Act. The commission has been seeking inclusion of molestation in the wider definition of rape. Besides, it wants eve teasing to be made a
non-bailable offence, with a minimum imprisonment of seven years. For the while, the commission is busy tracking the Scarlette Keeling murder case in
Goa. It earlier sought the transfer of investigation in the case to CBI. A team of NCW officials visited Goa and found that nothing concrete had so far been achieved to bring the guilty to justice. “It is very said that no attention is being paid to this very sensitive aspect. Investigations in many cases involving foreign tourists, including three in
Rajasthan, have reached nowhere. We will take up this issue with the Ministry of Tourism and Culture. They might like to frame a policy in this regard,” Vyas later told The Tribune.
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Akola sex scam: SP suspended
Mumbai, April 9 The announcement was made by Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil in the legislative assembly today while replying to a debate on budgetary demands of the Home department. Pandey was SP of Akola when the sex scandal took place. There were reports that the victim had initially alleged the official’s involvement but later rescinded her statement. Pandey’s wife Nidhi, who is an IAS official, had also alleged that he harassed her and the couple’s divorce case is pending in a family court. Patil also announced that a senior police official would probe allegations against encounter specialist Pradeep Sharma. An Additional Commissioner of Police would probe charges against the police inspector, Patil said. Leader of Opposition Ramdas Kadam, while participating in the discussion on the Home Department yesterday, had alleged that Sharma had links with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and had amassed Rs 5,000 crore illegally. On the Deepak Pandey case, Patil said he was being suspended to facilitate CID probe into the Akola sex scandal. “Some CID officers had expressed apprehensions that witnesses were not coming forward fearing that Pandey would resume duty,” Patil said.
— PTI
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Custodial Deaths New Delhi, April 9 The recommendation came on two different cases -- one referred by the superintendent of district jail, Kanpur, and another by superintendent of Central Jail, Nagpur. The relief, said NHRC, should be given to the next kin of the deceased Kishanji and Swapnil. Kishanji, an under trial was attacked, when the police was escorting him from the railway station in Orai to the court complex. The assailants managed to escape and the prisoner succumbed to injuries. Although the magistrate, who enquired the case gave a clean chit to the police, the commission took the view that the police was negligent insofar as it failed to protect the prisoner. A show-cause notice in this matter was also issued earlier to the state of Uttar Pradesh. Since the state did not respond, the commission today recommended that Rs 1 lakh as monetary relief be given to the family of the deceased. The commission directed chief secretary of UP to submit compliance report with a proof of payment within eight weeks. In another similar case, under trial Swapnil was shot dead by some people on June 19, 2002, while being escorted by police to the court of third additional sessions judge, Nagpur. Taking it as a case of violation of human rights, the commission issued a show-cause notice to the state of Maharashtra. Following the state’s failure to respond, the commission ordered it to pay Rs 1 lakh as compensation.
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CPM to support SP in UP bypoll
Lucknow, April 9 The CPM had decided to support SP candidates at Khalilabad and Azamgarh Lok Sabha seats and Bilgram, Moradnagar and Colonelganj Vidhan Sabha seats, party’s state unit committee member S.P. Kashyap said here.
— UNI
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Navy completes Three Poles
New Delhi, April 9 The Indian Navy North Pole Expedition team is the first Indian to ski traverse to the Geographic North Pole. It is also the first Indian team to complete the Three Pole challenge.
— UNI
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Girl kills abusive father Tribal beheaded Leopard cubs charred to death PCS officer’s son kidnapped Body exhumed second time
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