Kathmandu, October 31
The Maoists-led Nepalese government today said it did not need any help from India to hold dialogue with the armed groups demanding autonomy for the Indian-origin Madhesi people in the southern Terai belt.

“We don’t need any help from India or third country to hold dialogue with the armed groups in Terai,” Minister for peace and reconstruction and former deputy commander of the Maoists’ People’s Liberation Army Janardan Sharma said today.

Sharma said the government had established contacts with various armed groups of Terai and they have responded positively to government’s call for dialogue.

“We are getting support and goodwill from international community, including India, China and the USA, to move ahead the peace process but can do on our own to initiate dialogue with the armed outfits,” he said.

Sharma also said the process of integrating and rehabilitating the Maoists’ combatants will begin soon.

Talking to reporters here, he denied the allegations by the main opposition Nepali Congress that the Maoist-led government formed the five-member Special Committee for Army Integration without consulting with the opposition parties.

After the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML raised objection to Maoists’ heading the special committee, we sacrificed the leadership of the committee and CPN-UML leader and home minister Bamdev Gautam was made its convener, he said.

The committee headed by Gautam includes one each member from Nepali Congress and Madhesi People’s Forum and two from CPN-Maoist. — PTI

Islamabad, October 31
A suicide bomber blew himself up near the convoy of a top police officer in northwestern Pakistan today, killing at least eight people and injuring over 20 others.

The blast occurred around 1.30 pm local time near the motorcade of deputy inspector general of police Akhtar Ali Shah in a high-security area in Mardan city of North West Frontier Province (NWFP), where the circuit house, police offices and a passport office are located.

Four policemen and as many civilians died in the attack, district police chief Muhammad Iqbal Khan said.

Shah, who was on his way to his office after addressing a news conference, escaped unhurt. He said he believed he was the target of the suicide bombing.

Doctors said 20 injured people were brought to the local hospital for treatment. The critically injured were taken to Peshawar, the capital of NWFP.

The head and a leg of the suicide bomber had been found at the site of the blast, Shah said. He said security measures had recently been improved for all top police officers as they could be targeted in attacks.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack. The police rushed to the site and sealed the area to traffic and public. A large number of people reached the local hospital to donate blood and to inquire if their kin were among the victims.

President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani condemned the attack and ordered an immediate inquiry.

The bombing was the latest in a series of suicide blasts that have rocked Pakistan. In recent weeks, hundreds of people were killed when suicide bombers struck at high-value targets like the Marriott Hotel in the Pakistani capital and an ordnance factory complex in Wah cantonment. — PTI

A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court requesting the court to cancel the land on which former President Pervez Musharraf is building a farmhouse in Islamabad’s suburbs as it is meant for growing vegetables and fruits.

The petitioner Jamil Akhtar also questioned the source of Musharraf’s wealth to buy an expensive piece of land worth about Rs 220 million.

The deposed chief justice had begun suo moto proceedings against acquisition of agricultural plots by influential politicians and civil and military bureaucrats on which they have built palatial farmhouses while the land was meant to grow vegetables, fruits and poultry to cater for the population of the capital. The case fell through after his dismissal by Musharraf on November 3 last year.

Petitioner’s counsel Barrister Farooq Hassan requested the court to order the Capital Development Authority (CDA) to cancel the allotment because it was being used in an unauthorised manner. The counsel also accused the respondent of ‘occupying’ the army house despite retiring from the army and said the former President was denying army chief Ashfaq Kayani the right to reside there.

The petition stated that the land could only be used to grow vegetables and poultry but Musharraf’s farmhouse had a swimming pool and a jogging track, among other facilities in violation of CDA rules.

New York, October 31
After an Indian-American killed his family of five in Los Angeles before shooting himself three weeks ago over financial problems, the global meltdown seems to have taken further toll as an unemployed Indian techie is suspected to have killed his family of three in Detroit.

A Telugu software programmer, who lost his job recently, is a suspected in the brutal murders of his wife and two children whose bodies were discovered Monday in their Novi township home, 20 km from Detroit, according to a report. The US federal police have launched a manhunt for the 42-year-old Lakshminivasa Rao Nerusu, who has disappeared after the homicides. According to unconfirmed reports, he is said to have gone back to India about a fortnight ago.

The bodies of his wife, Jayalakshmi Nerusu, 37, their daughter Tejasvi, 14, and son Siva, 12 had grievous injuries on the head and neck areas of each victim. Novi police chief David E. Molloy described the crime scene as “very disturbing”. However, he declined to divulge the information regarding how long the family had been dead, the Detroit paper said. — IANS

BRIEFLY

LONDON
‘Slumdog Millionaire’ smash hit: A film based on Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup’s award-winning novel Q & A, has become a smash hit at the London Film Festival, which closed here on Thursday night. The Daily Telegraph on Friday said Danny Boyle’s British production, partly subtitled and with no stars known in the West, looked an unlikely prospect. In the two-hour long film, Bollywood superstar Anil Kapoor is splendid as Prem, the TV show’s quizmaster. — PTI

DUBAI
70 Indians held for forgery: Seventy Indians were arrested in Sharjah for allegedly dealing in forged government documents, visas, medical certificates and over 100 passports of various nationalities. The men were arrested on Thursday in several raids across the Emirate. Acting on a tip-off, the Sharjah police raided an apartment and recovered a large number of forged documents pertaining to department of health, and interior and foreign ministries. — UNI

CAPE CANAVERAL
Hubble back in business: The Hubble Space Telescope is back in business after a month of problems, but preparing spare equipment to keep the orbital observatory running will force NASA to delay its final servicing mission beyond February, officials said. The agency released an image taken by the telescope’s wide field planetary camera showing a pair of gravitationally locked galaxies, located more than 400 million light years away in the constellation Cetus. — Reuters

BEIJING
Mercy killing of daughter: A mother has been spared jail after admitting poisoning and smothering her 20-year-old mentally disabled daughter, a case that throws the spotlight on the plight of the mentally ill in China. Li Daohong (47), said she had spent all her money over 20 years taking her daughter, Xiao Fei, who could not even go to the toilet by herself, across the country for treatment for ''brain paralysis'', Xinhua news agency said. She was given a suspended three-year jail sentence. — Reuters

KUALA LUMPUR
Food vendor wins jackpot: A food vendor who had been playing the lottery for a decade has won Malaysia’s biggest-ever jackpot of $ 5.7 million, reports said. The vendor and his wife were so astonished by their big win on the Toto lottery that they slapped each other to make sure they were not dreaming, The Star daily said. The couple plan to use the money to pay off their debts, help out family members and make donations to charities. — AFP

Islamabad
Afghan minister’s brother kidnapped: Unidentified men on Friday kidnapped the brother of Afghan finance minister Anwar-ul-Haq Ahadi in the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar. Zia-ul-Haq Ahadi, the brother of the Ahadi was returning home from a mosque when four unidentified men overpowered and kidnapped him in the posh Hayatabad neighbourhood, another brother of the minister, Israr-ul-Haq Ahadi said.The men bundled Zia-ul-Haq into a car and drove away from the spot, he said. — PTI