Regional stalwarts from Bihar, AP skipped Narendra Modi’s swearing in ceremony
By TCN Staff Reporter,
Akabruddin Owaisi files writ petition in HC to quash ‘hate speech’ cases
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Asaduddin Owaisi’s official residence in Delhi attacked by Hindutva activists
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Muslim clerics in Lucknow want ‘objectionable’ portion from Kamal’s film deleted
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Dispatch from Kashmir: Afzal Guru hanging and the ‘core’ of Indian nationhood
Transforming Kashmir from ‘the issue’ to ‘one of the issues’ is a rich reflection of India’s diplomatic craftsmanship, even though Pakistan continued to harp...
Now Muslim group wants ‘Bharat Ratna’ for Sir Syed
By TCN News,
Aligarh: Millat Bedari Muhim Committee (MBMC), Aligarh is now demanding the highest civilian award to be awarded posthumously to Sir Syed Ahmed Khan.
‘Muslim girls want to study – Delhi Government School says No’
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Play “Quli: Dilon Ka Shahzada” at MANUU
By TCN News,
Hyderabad: Maulana Azad National Urdu University, H.K. Sherwani Centre for Deccan Studies hosted the play “Quli: Dilon Ka Shahzaada,” a Qadir Ali Baig Theatre Foundation production on 13th February 2014 at 7 pm at the Open Air Auditorium of the University.
Discussion on voting patterns in India and ‘tactical’ voting of Muslims
By TCN News,
New Delhi: Institute of Objective Studies organised a discussion on “Voting Patterns in India with Reference to Tactical Voting by Muslims” on February 27 in the Capital.
India dismisses Pakistan’s offer to Kashmiri students
New Delhi : India Friday dismissed Pakistan's offer to Kashmiri students, who had been booked in Uttar Pradesh's Meerut city for celebrating Pakistan's victory...
EC probing BJP’s ‘communal party’ tag in Tripura school books
Agartala : The Election Commission of India is probing the BJP being tagged a "communal party" in the textbooks of government schools in Left-ruled...
Quirks of History: How Jinnah forestalled Fazlul Haq’s gambit
By Prof. Refaqat Ali Khan,
Write Foundation, Dhaka, Bangladesh, an NGO, invited me to attend the SAARC Literary Festival in Dhaka on 27-28 February, 2014. Delegates from Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives were participants. The seminar / festival proposed a discussion / review “Beyond Borders, Trust and Reconciliation”.
AAP’s Bhopal candidate Rachna Dhingra finds support at MIT
By TCN News,
Boston, USA. Supporters of the Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) from the Greater Boston area gathered to screen award winning documentary (on the Bhopal disaster) Bhopali on Sunday April 6th at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The event was organized by the Boston chapter of University Students for Aam Admi Party (us4AAP), an organization with chapters in more than 100 campuses, and AAP - New England who have been actively working on supporting AAP candidates in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections in India.
Social Media got brighter with Munawwar Rana’s Muhajir Nama
By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Mumbai: Who would not be familiar with Munawwar Rana’s name? Munawwar Rana, whose poetry is the place where a mother, surrounded by the fence of mundaneness, breathes freely. Munawwar Rana, for whom the way to heaven is not above skies but at the feet of mother.
Muslim Organizations in Mumbai send memorandum to Egypt’s Ambassador to India
By A. Mirsab, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: Expressing their concerns for the violation of Human Rights in Egypt, some Muslim organizations in Mumbai has sent a combined memorandum to the Egypt’s Ambassador to India. These organizations have also appealed Government of India to bring the matter before United Nations and help restore democracy in Egypt.
Of Pakistan’s Punjab and high levels of drug use
By Aslam Chandio, TwoCircles.net,
Islamabad: When it comes to drug use, Pakistan’s province of Punjab due to its large share of the population, has the highest number of people who use and inject drugs with 2.9 million people using illicit substances in the past year and approximately 260,000 people who currently inject drugs.
Two Dalit girls’ rape and murder in Badaun draws international flak
By A. Mirsab, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: The alleged gang rape and murder of two dalit girls on 27 May 2014 in the Katra village of Budaun district, Uttar Pradesh has been condemned largely throughout the country by every section of the society. The condemnation did not stop within the borders of the country but international organizations have also expressed their dissatisfaction towards lack of adequate sanitation facilities and growing sexual violence of women resulting into the violations of human rights in India. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon appalled by the brutal rape and killing of two dalit girls in UP whereas Amnesty International has criticized the police machinery of India who have time and again found to have derelict towards registering and investigating cases of rapes of low caste girls and their lackadaisical behavior in booking higher caste culprits in those cases.
Pakistan’s SC orders formation of national council for protecting minorities’ rights
By Aslam Chandio, TwoCircles.net,
Islamabad: The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday ordered the federal government to form a national council of minorities' rights for protection of minority rights and ensuring religious harmony.
Love Thy Neighbor: Nawaz Sharif’s Visit to India
By Ram Puniyani,
India Pakistan relations have always been mired with in various controversies, which have been preventing the friendly relations with our neighbor, who in ‘popular perception’ is seen as an enemy. It is due to this that while all the members of SAARC countries have been invited, the one to draw maximum popular attention has been the coming of Nawaz Sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan. In a deft move India’s the then Prime Minister designate sent an invite to all the heads of SAARC countries for his swearing in ceremony, (16 May 2014)which was held with great pomp and show.
POTA court rejects Maulana Qavi’s bail in 10 year old Modi’s assassination conspiracy case;...
By A. Mirsab, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: On Wednesday Special POTA court in Ahmedabad rejected Maulana Abdul Qavi’s bail in a 10 year old conspiracy case registered in Gujarat. The special judge accepted all the defenses of Maulana Abdul Qavi except that he was not absconding since last 10 years and turned down his bail on the ground of him being absconding before arrest. Jamiat Ulema Hind, an NGO providing legal assistance to the Maulana has shown determination to approach Gujarat High Court for the relief.
“We are all Palestinians” Chant tens of thousands in London
By M Ghazali Khan,
London: Thousands of protesters, estimated around 100,000, have demonstrated outside the Israeli Embassy against Israeli aggression on Gaza and the ongoing genocide of Palestinians.
Obama’s Eid greeting to Muslims backfires
Washington : A White House message on Twitter wishing “Muslims in the United States and around the world a blessed and joyous celebration” of...
Pakistan lodges protest with India over firing across ‘working boundary’
By Aslam Chandio, TwoCircles.net,
Islamabad: The Pakistan’s Foreign Office on Monday summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner and lodged a protest over what it called...
Faizan Mustafa of AMU gets SAARC’s Best Law Teacher Award
By TCN News,
Aligarh: Professor Faizan Mustafa of Aligarh Muslim University and presently Vice Chancellor of Nalsar Law University Hyderabad got this year’s prestigious SAARC’s Best Law Teacher Award. In a unanimous decision, the high-powered jury consisting of Professor NR Madhav Menon, eminent jurist and Founder Vice Chancellor of NLSIU, Bangalore and Mr Lalit Bhasin, President of Indian Law Firms, announced the conferment of the award on Professor Mustafa.
Family of Sep 13 blast’s Kashmiri victim gets compensation
By IANS,
New Delhi : For Ghulam Hassan, the pain of losing his brother in the Sep 13 blast in the capital will never go away. But the migrant from Jammu and Kashmir is a relieved man after receiving Thursday the compensation cheques in the name of his mother, his widowed sister-in-law and fixed deposit for his niece.
The compensation amounts were handed to him at the Daryaganj District Revenue Office here Thursday evening.
Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Awards announced
By RINA,
New Delhi: Charanjeet Singh Atwal, Deputy Speaker, Lok Sabha and Justice Mohammad Suhail Ejaz Siddiqui, Chairman, National Commission for Minorities Educational Institutions, are among those to be honoured this year with Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Award.
Others to be honoured with Maulana Mohammad Ali Jauhar Award 2008 are Manorama Deevan, Chief Editor, Press Asia International, Shahid Ali Khan (IPS), Mohammad Ateeq Siddiqui, Editor, AlYaum, New Delhi, Dr. Haneef Tareen and Saulat Public Library, Rampur.
BJP puts Congress on dock over Deoband remark
By Andalib Akhter, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: The BJP put Congress party in big trouble on Saturday when it asked the party to apologize the Muslims for its remark on India’s one of great seats of learning.
Would have run roller over Varun: Lalu Prasad
By IANS,
Patna : Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Monday said that had he been the country's home minister he would have run a "roller" over Varun Gandhi for his hate speeches against Muslims and bothered about the consequences later.
Speaking at an election rally in Kishanganj in Bihar, Lalu Prasad said: "If I were the country's home minister, and if Varun had said this (inflammatory speeches), then I would have run a roller over his chest, and thought about the consequences later."
Five days on, little progress in probing schoolgirl’s death
By IANS,
New Delhi : Five days after the death of 11-year-old Shano Khan, there was hardly any progress in the investigations as Delhi Police Tuesday said they were awaiting the post-mortem report to find out if she died due to corporal punishment she had received at school.
"We are still waiting for the post-mortem report. And without the report we cannot take any further action," a senior police officer told IANS on condition of anonymity.
"But today we spoke to some of Shano's classmates and took their versions into account," said the officer.
Muslims & Dalits urged to strengthen SDPI
By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
Bhopal: In the backdrop of atrocities being committed on Muslims and Dalits it is imperative that Muslim voluntary organizations and movements come to the forefront for the advancement of these communities. It is high time for the Muslims to take initiative for the political movement that values democracy and social and economic equality, said A. Sayeed, general secretary of Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) while addressing its Madhya Pradesh state party delegates here on Sunday.
Police reveal bloodied bag clue in Indian taxi driver’s murder
By DPA,
Wellington : New Zealand police said Thursday they were looking for the owner of a bloodstained bag found near the place in suburban Auckland where an Indian taxi driver was stabbed to death in his cab.
Hiren Mohini, 39, who migrated to New Zealand from Mumbai six years ago to give his wife and two daughters aged five and three a safe place to live, was killed by a passenger he had picked up in the city early Sunday morning.
Andhra to challenge high court order on Muslim reservation
By IANS,
Hyderabad : The Andhra Pradesh government Monday decided to challenge in the Supreme Court the verdict of the high court quashing a legislation for four percent reservation to Muslims in education and jobs.
Immediately after the seven-member constitutional bench delivered its verdict, Chief Minister K. Rosaiah directed the state advocate general to file a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court.
Sa’adi’s poetry transcends boundaries of nations: Sonia Gandhi
By IRNA,
New Delhi : Sheik Sa’adi’s poetry transcends the boundaries of nations and the passage of time to embrace all humanity and all cultures, said Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi on Friday.
Christian cemetery closed by British being ‘revived’ by Bihar Govt
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
National Conf. on ‘Creativity & Innovation in Education’ on Jun. 25 at Bhopal
By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
MMA seeks Law ministry’s view on quota for backward Muslims
By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net,
Khurshid’s rebuttal to critics: No separate cadre for Hindu trusts
By Md. Ali, TwoCircles.net,
An interview with Dr Shariq Nisar, the architect of India’s Shariah Index
By Rehan Ansari, TwoCircles.net,
Dr Shariq Nisar, the architect of India’s Shariah Index (i.e. BSE TASIS Shariah 50) has been the man behind the launch of many shariah compliant products in the country such as Taurus Ethical Fund (By Taurus Mutual Fund), Pure Stock Pension Fund (By Bajaj Allianz), Secura India Real Estate Fund (India’s only Shariah compliant SEBI approved real estate venture capital fund). Most recently Dr Shariq has been associated with the launch of Shariah compliant commodities trading by National Spot Exchange Ltd.
‘Right to recall’ elected politicians only hope for Muslim community
By Aziz A. Mubaraki,
‘Azaan’: Raza Academy sends legal notice, SP threatens agitation
By Rehan Ansari, TwoCircles.net,
Bhopal Gas victims give call for indefinite ‘Rail Roko’ stir
By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,
For her, New Year’s vow is wildlife conservation
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
‘Save Constitutional Rights Movement’ launched by Muslim Law Board
By Rehan Ansari, TwoCircles.net,
Do Muslims ever follow ‘Imams’ in elections?
By Ashfaque Khan,
Self-proclaimed tellers of the imagined Muslim Vote Bank are not going to influence voting behaviour in any significant way.
Israeli car blast: Kazmi moves bail application
By IANS,
New Delhi : Journalist Syed Mohammed Ahmad Kazmi, arrested for alleged involvement in the Israeli embassy car blast case, Friday moved his bail application in a Delhi court here.
Welfare Party of India’s organized its first public meeting in Kolkata
By Zaidul Haque, Kolkata
Home Ministry didn’t allow protest; Activists detained within 15 minutes
By TCN Staff Reporter,
Andhra’s cap on fee reimbursement will impact thousands of students
By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net
Minority Ministry’s Independence Day ad depicts Sunita, talks about Salma
By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net,
TDP’s ‘Muslim declaration’ has placed the community on cloud nine
10% quota in job and education; 8% quota in assembly; Rs 2500Cr in annual budget
By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net,
IUML holds rally against ‘Cruelties of Air India against non-resident Keralites’
By Abdul Basith MA, TwoCircles.net,
Restrictions in Srinagar after youth’s death
By IANS,
Srinagar : Angry youths clashed with security forces here in Jammu and Kashmir Saturday following the death of a teenager they allege was killed in a street protest a day earlier.
The young men hurled stones at police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in several areas including Narwara, Rainawari, Nawa Kadal, Bimina, Batmaloo, Sonawar, Natipora, Abi Guzar and Hari Singh High Street.
Police used batons and tear gas to disperse the mobs, which would repeatedly run into the narrow streets and reappear to again attack the security personnel.
Four killed in Turkey blast
By DPA,
Istanbul: At least four people were killed when a roadside bomb hit a minibus carrying military personnel in Istanbul Tuesday, Turkish media reported.
The blast occurred as the minibus was passing a cemetery on its way from a military housing complex.
One of the victims was the 17-year-old daughter of an officer. At least nine people on the bus were injured in the blast.
Huseyin Avni Mutlu, the governor of Istanbul, said the bomb was detonated by remote control, according to the state-run Anatolian Agency.
Eight killed, 25 injured in Iraq blasts
By DPA,
Baghdad : A total of eight people were killed and 25 injured Tuesday in two attacks in Iraq, police and government sources said.
A car bomb attack in Baquba city, north of Baghdad, killed eight people and injured 22, a government source said.
The car was parked between a automobile shop and a coffee shop overlooking Diyala river, in central Baquba, the source said according to Yaqen news website.
The blast damaged several cars, the source added.
Former policeman appears before CBI in Sohrabuddin case
By IANS,
Gandhinagar : O.P. Mathur, former additional director general of police, appeared before the CBI Thursday for questioning in connection with the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake shootout case.
Mathur was head of the state CID (Crime) department which was heading the investigation into the case before the Supreme Court handed it over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Mathur had been issued summons to appear before the CBI.
The Rape of Nizam’s – a book on Hyderabad fall released
By Shafee Ahmed Ko, TwoCircles.net,
Kerala’s Hajj flights and Hajj Camp end tomorrow
By TwoCircles.net Staff Correspondent
Notion that police is anti-Muslim should be changed – P Chidambaram
By TwoCircles.net Staff Correspondent,
Abul Hussain – A different story of a differently able person
By Diganta Sharma and Anjuman Ara Begum,
South Indian film actress held for prostitution
By IANS,
Bangalore : Nine people, including a woman who had acted in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam movies, have been arrested on prostitution charges, police said Friday.
Polls for 5 Assemblies: A mid-term ‘referendum’ for UPA-II?
By Mumtaz Alam Falahi, TwoCircles.net,
After Japan’s Tsunami North East CMs urged to halt construction of dams
By Munize Ali, TwoCircles.net,
Suicide bomber hits Afghan army base
By IANS,
Kabul : A suicide bomber Saturday attacked an Afghan army base in Gambiray area in the eastern province of Laghman. Casualties are feared.
Pakistan’s Official: Musharraf to doff uniform by Dec. 1
By Xinhua
Islamabad : Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf has said that he will quit as army chief before Dec. 1, the government's top lawyer said Thursday.
"The president has said that he will give up his uniform before Dec. 1," Attorney General Malik Mohammad Qayyum told a news conference.
Qayyum said that the Supreme Court of Pakistan would decide on Musharraf's re-election case next week.
Guerrilla commander killed in Kashmir encounter
By IANS
Srinagar : A top commander of the Harkatul Mujaheedin (HuM) militant outfit was Friday killed in a fierce encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir, police officials said.
Sajad alias Chacha, division commander of HuM, was gunned down by troops of the 18 Rashtriya Rifles, 10 Para regiment and Special Operations Group (SOG) during a joint operation at Shokbagh, 64 km from here in north Kashmir's Bandipore district.
Saudi king: OPEC to launch 500-mln-fund on development and environment
By Xinhua
Riyadh : The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) will launch a fund to deal with development and environmental issues, Saudi Arabia's king said on Saturday night.
King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud made the announcement at the two-day 3rd OPEC summit which opened here on Saturday afternoon amid surging oil prices.
The OPEC fund of 500 million U.S. dollars will be launched to help developing countries to deal with development and global climate change, said the king, without elaborating more.
Musharraf is now Pakistan’s civilian president
By Mohammed Najeeb
Islamabad, Nov 29 (IANS) Attired in a black sherwani, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf Thursday took oath as head of state for five more years, this time as a civilian, vowing to hold parliamentary elections in January come what may.
The country's opposition boycotted the official ceremony where Musharraf, who stepped down as the army chief Wednesday after ruling the country in uniform for eight years following intense Western pressure.
Israeli PM says Iran still a threat
By Xinhua
Jerusalem : Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Tuesday that Iran's nuclear program still poses a major threat to the West, rebutting a U.S. intelligence report that determined Tehran has halted its nuclear weapons program.
; According to Israeli daily Ha'aretz's website, Olmert addressed a security conference Tuesday, saying that, "Iran was and remains dangerous, and we must continue international pressure with full force to dissuade Iran from nuclear tendencies."
U.S. intelligence probing al-Qaeda link with Bhutto killing
By Xinhua
Washington : The U.S. intelligence agencies were still investigating whether al-Qaeda terrorists had been behind the assassination of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, the White House said on Friday.
"There have been many claims of responsibility. Our intelligence community is still looking into it," White House spokesman Scott Stanzel told reporters at Crawford, Texas, where President George W. Bush's family is spending their New Year holiday.
Pakistan poll to be postponed: Election Commission
By Muhammad Najeeb, IANS
Islamabad : The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has decided to postpone the Jan 8 polls in view of the situation in the country after the murder of former prime minister Benaqzir Bhutto and will announce new dates for national and provincial assembly elections on Monday, a senior official of the commission told IANS.
"Today in an informal meeting the senior officials of the ECP discussed the situation and unrest in the country and concluded that elections will have to be postponed," said the official requesting anonymity.
Pakistan targets 86% literacy rate by year 2015
By NNN-APP
Islamabad : Pakistan's National Commission for Human Development (NCHD) to achieve 86 percent literacy rate in the country by year 2015 through expanding its ‘Literacy Program’ nationwide.
This was stated by Dr. Nasim Ashraf, Chairman NCHD while talking to APP. The Commission, he said, has successfully entered its 5th year of operations through expanding its literacy and health programmes from two districts in 2002 to more than 122 districts in 2007.
Pakistan cancels election in Benazir’s constituency
By IRNA
Islamabad : The Election Commission of Pakistan has cancelled election in the constituency where former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was contesting election for the Lower House of the Parliament, the Commission said on Friday.
Benazir Bhutto was assassinated on December 27 in the city of Rawalpindi after she addressed a huge election public meeting.
"The election process was terminated on National Assembly-207 Larkana-cum-Shikarpur in Sindh due to the death of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto," the commission said in a statement.
Four-year-old kidnapped, murdered in Andhra Pradesh
By IANS
Hyderabad : In a shocking incident, a four-year-old child was kidnapped and murdered in Himayatsagar near here, police said Tuesday.
Kartik, who was kidnapped by his father's friend a week ago, was murdered within hours of the kidnap. Babu, the alleged kidnapper who had demanded a ransom of Rs.5 million, confessed after the police arrested him early Tuesday.
After a three-hour effort, police retrieved the victim's body from rocks in Peeramcheru area in Rajendernagar on the outskirts of Hyderabad.
Armed men flee with businessman’s car in Greater Noida
By IANS
Noida : Three unidentified men fled with the Santro car of a businessman as well as his belongings after forcing the driver off the car at gun point, police said here Saturday.
The men requested the driver of businessman Kamal Mehta, a resident of Gamma I sector of Greater Noida, for a lift late Friday night as he was returning to his own home after dropping Mehta.
Rs.1 mn robbed in daylight heist
By IANS,
Ghaziabad : In a daring daylight robbery, five armed dacoits looted cash and jewellery worth over Rs.1 million from the house of a leading industrialist here Thursday.
The incident occurred in Raj Nagar locality of Ghaziabad, a suburb of national capital Delhi.
According to the family, the five unidentified men barged into the house around 2.00 p.m. when the maid arrived for work and left the main gate open. The men overpowered the maid and pinned her down by tying her arms.
The robbers then at gunpoint looted the cash and jewellery from the house owner's wife.
Kashmir land transfer controversy: Separatists under house arrest
By IANS,
Srinagar : The police here Monday put some Kashmiri separatist leaders under house arrest in order to prevent protest demonstrations against the allotment of forest land to the Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB).
"We have supported the protest call given by Syed Ali Shah Geelani's Tehreek-e-Hurriyat for today (Monday), but the administration put us under house arrest in order to prevent our participation in these protests," Nayeem Khan, chairman of the National Front, told IANS on phone.
Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam to contest Lok Sabha election
By TwoCircles.net reporter,
Tiruchirapalli: Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (TMMK) will make formal inauguration of the Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (MMK), its newly-floated political party, at the party's state conference at Chennai after the rainy season.
Addressing a press conference here on 6th July TMMK president M H Jawahirullah announced it and said efforts were on to register the MMK with the Election Commission. He further said the party would contest in the ensuing Lok Sabha elections.
AMU to set up modern information and communication lab
By IANS,
Lucknow : The Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) will set up a state-of-art information and communication laboratory for its engineering students, a university official said Friday.
"An alumnus of the university, M.P. Varshney, has donated Rs.1 million for setting up the lab," AMU spokesperson Rahat Abrar told IANS on phone.
The lab will be equipped with all the latest information and communication technology devices, including fast-speed computers, Internet and other facilities, he added.
Two Jaish guerrillas, soldier killed in Kashmir
By IANS
Srinagar : Two guerrillas of the Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) and a soldier were killed early Tuesday when security personnel surrounded a militant hideout in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district.
Murmurs against Musharraf, former PM Jamali resigns from party
By IANS
Islamabad : There were murmurs against Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's poll plans and dissensions within the party he blessed erupted, leading to the resignation of former prime minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali from the Pakistan Muslim League (Qaid).
Gogoi offers ULFA safe passage
By IANS
Guwahati : Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi Saturday offered a month-long safe passage to leaders of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom (ULFA) to visit the state and gauge for themselves if people want peace and an end to violence.
Chhattisgarh Maoists call for economic blockade, police on alert
By IANS
Raipur : Maoists in Chhattisgarh have called for a two-day economic blockade in the state's insurgency-hit Bastar region next week and police forces have been put on high alert to foil the rebels' plans.
Olmert: Israel to release 250 Fatah prisoners
By Xinhua
Sharm El-Sheikh : Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that he plans to release 250 prisoners from the Fatah movement of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.
   Olmert made the remarks in a four-way summit at this Red Sea resort which aims to ease the current grave situation in the Palestinian territories and activate the stalled Mideast peace process.
Suicide bomb kills 23 Iraqi army recruits
By Xinhua
Baghdad : A suicide truck bomb struck an Iraqi recruitment centre in a town west of Baghdad Sunday, killing at least 23 recruits and wounding some 30, police source said.
President Musharraf rejects amnesty for Ghazi
By IANS
Islamabad : Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has rejected a proposal by an ulema delegation for amnesty for Lal Masjid deputy head cleric Abdul Rashid Ghazi, Online news agency reported Tuesday.
Pakistan’s suspended CJ reinstated; blow to Musharraf
By IANS
Islamabad : Pakistan's Supreme Court Friday reinstated Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry in a judgement that was seen as a major blow to President Pervez Musharraf.
Justice Kalil-ur-Rehman Ramday, heading a 13-member bench, in a short order declared the presidential reference illegal, ultra vires the constitution and without lawful authority, the Online news agency reported.
Hundreds of lawyers chanted "Go, Musharraf go, Live long CJP" slogans soon after the verdict was announced at around 4 p.m.
Indian Muslims are not well served by their leaders
By Amulya Ganguli, IANS
It may be a coincidence, but both India and Pakistan have started talking in terms of reforming the traditional madrassa system of education. While Pakistan's initiative has understandably followed the tragic Lal Masjid episode, the Indian government's proposed measures are evidently the fallout of pressure from the Hindu communal outfits.
South Korea-Taliban hostage talks end inconclusively
By DPA
Seoul : The fate of 21 South Koreans held hostage in Afghanistan by the Taliban remained unclear after the first direct talks between negotiators from Seoul and the militant group ended inconclusively, officials said Saturday.
Further details of the talks held Friday could not be given, a spokesman for the South Korean president's office told reporters. But he added that the end of the first round of talks did not mean efforts to negotiate had ended.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency said the government was working to arrange further meetings with the Taliban.
Death toll in Assam massacre mounts to 14
By Syed Zarir Hussain, IANS
Guwahati : The toll in the overnight massacre of Hindi-speaking migrant workers in Assam rose to 14 Saturday with the discovery of three more bodies as security forces across the state have been put on a maximum alert, officials said.
Heavily armed militants late Friday attacked sleeping villagers at Dolamara in Karbi Anglong district, about 250 km east of Assam's main city of Guwahati.
Three killed, eight wounded in Kashmir road accident
By IANS
Srinagar : Three people were killed and eight others wounded when an over-loaded minibus carrying devotees from the Hazratbal shrine turned turtle near here Friday.
Police here said the mini bus, returning with devotees after the special Friday prayers at Hazratbal, overturned at Zakura locality, 14 km from here.
"Three people died on the spot while another eight sustained serious injuries in the accident. All the injured have been shifted to hospital," said Javaid Ahmad Koul, superintendent of police (Hazrtabal).
Blast rocks Peshawar cantonment
By Xinhua
Islamabad : A blast rocked the military area in northwest Pakistan's Peshawar city Saturday injuring two people, private Dawn news TV channel reported.
The report said the explosion occurred in Peshawar cantonment, damaging many vehicles.
IAEA officials start new round of talks with Iran over nuclear file
By Xinhua
Tehran : Officials from the UN atomic watchdog on Monday started a new round of talks here with Iran over its disputed nuclear program, the state-run media reported.
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini was quoted as saying that the talks were mainly about Iran's progress on the development of P1 and P2 centrifuges which are used to enrich uranium.
Pakistan media slams Musharraf regime for arresting opposition leaders
By NNN-PTI
Islamabad : Pakistani media Tuesday slammed the country's government for rounding up leaders of opposition parties ahead of the presidential polls to facilitate Pervez Musharraf's re-election for another five-year term.
A number of leading newspapers warned the government that the arrests would only lead to more political turmoil in the country and said the act would favour the opposition outfits that constitute the All Parties Democratic Movement.
Turkey, Iraq sign agreement no combating terrorism
By Xinhua
Ankara : Turkey and Iraq signed an agreement to fight against terrorism in the Turkish capital of Ankara on Friday.
Turkish Interior Minister Besir Atalay and his Iraqi counterpart Jawad al-Bulani signed the agreement.
Iranian FM meets his French counterpart in New York
By NNN-IRNA
Tehran : Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki has held a meeting with his French counterpart Bernard Kouchner on the sidelines of the 62nd session of the UN General Assembly in New York.
In the meeting Wednesday, Kouchner said: "Iran is a great country and we will never want to fight with it and we are looking for peace."
According to Foreign Ministry Media Department report, Kouchner, in the meeting, said that the media had distorted his statements about Iran.
US putting Laden, me in same boat: Ahmadinejad
By DPA
Tehran : Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has accused "some circles" in the US of putting him in the same boat as Al Qaeda head Osama bin Laden.
"Some US circles wanted to sabotage my trip to New York by, for example, putting my picture next to bin Laden," Ahmadinejad told the Khabar news network.
Ahmadinejad also accused the US government and New York City officials of rejecting his request to visit the site of the Sep 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
Kidnapped Red Cross officials freed in Afghanistan
By NNN-KUNA
Kabul : Four Red Cross officials, kidnapped in central Afghanistan last week, were safely released by their captors Saturday.
The two Afghans and two foreign nationals, one from Myanmar and Macedonia each, were seized by armed men, believed to be Taliban militants, in Said Abad district of the central Maidan Wardak province last week.
According to local officials, the four people were involved in efforts to secure release of a German national, who was kidnapped by Taliban militants more than two months back.
Pakistan Supreme Court permits presidential poll
By Muhammad Najeeb, IANS
Islamabad : The Supreme Court of Pakistan Friday gave its go-ahead for polling in Saturday's presidential election but restrained the Election Commission from notifying the result till it takes a final decision on petitions filed against President Pervez Musharraf's candidature.
A 10-judge bench headed by Justice Javed Iqbal asked the Election Commission to notify the results only after the court permitted.
Iraqi major Shiite rivals agree to curb clash
By Xinhua
Baghdad : Two leading Iraqi Shiite political rivals agreed Saturday to jointly prevent further violence and bloodshed in the country bogged down by factional scuffles.
Maoist leader arrested
Ranchi, (IANS) A leader of a breakaway group of the outlawed Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) has been arrested in Palamau district of Jharkhand, police said Monday.
Pramod alias Kanna, a zonal commander of the Tritiya Prastuti Committee (TPC), was arrested Sunday after the police raided his hideout in the Paki jungle in Palamau, 190 km from Ranchi. The police seized a pistol and Maoist literature from him.
Rizwanur episode has affected Left government: Basu
By IANS
Kolkata : Veteran Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Jyoti Basu Friday admitted the Left Front government in West Bengal has suffered political damage due to the inordinate delay in removal of tainted police officers following the mysterious death of a Muslim youth.
"Yes, the state government's image has received a beating due to the delay in transferring the policemen who had allegedly coerced Rizwanur. We have suffered politically," Basu told reporters while replying to a question at the state CPM's headquarters in Alimuddin Street here.