New Delhi:Expressing ‘surprise’ over Pakistan's claim that the issue of arrest of Hafiz Saeed, one of the 26/11 masterminds, was not taken up during Foreign Secretary- level talks, India said on Sunday that it has been demanding action against him since the barbaric and dastardly attacks in Mumbai and the matter was raised ‘strongly’ during the parleys.
Talking to reporters in Multan, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had claimed that India never demanded the arrest of the Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Saeed nor discussed the issue at the talks between Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir here on February 25.
In response to queries regarding the reported statement of Qureshi, the spokesman, while expressing surprise, said that India has been demanding action against Saeed, one of the masterminds of the Mumbai terrorist strikes, since the barbaric and dastardly attacks took place.
"A dossier containing a compilation of evidence on the involvement of Saeed in the terrorist attacks was handed over to Pakistan on August 21, 2009 and his name featured prominently in yet another dossier handed over to the Pakistan Foreign Secretary during the talks on February 25, 2010," the statement said.
Indian man charged with Indian toddler's death in Australia
MELBOURNE: A 23-year-old Indian man was today charged over the death of an Indian toddler, whose body was found three days ago in a Melbourne suburb.
Dhillon Gursewak has been charged with manslaughter due to criminal negligence and is appearing in an out-of-sessions hearing at St Kilda Road Police complex, local media reports said.
He is not expected to apply for bail. The man, who has been charged with murdering the three-year-old Gurshan Singh Channa from Punjab who was in Australia on a vacation with his parents, is not a relative, but did live in the same house in David Street, Lalor as Gurshan, the reports said.
Channa's body was found by a council worker on Thursday night, six hours after he disappeared from a rented property shared by his parents with friends and family here. A total of 12 people lived in the house.
Indian toddler's death: Parents see body for first time
MELBOURNE: Grieving parents of a three-year-old Indian boy, who died in mysterious circumstances here, for the first time viewed the body of the toddler at a city morgue today, two days after it was found in a suburban area.
Harpreet Kaur Channa and her husband Harjit Singh Channa were taken to the Coroner's Court at 11 am local time to see the body of their child Gurshan, Federation of Indian Association of Victoria (FIAV) President, Vasan Srinivas, said.
The couple, who were interrogated yesterday by Victorian police for five hours in connection with the death of the child, were accompanied by Indian consulate officials to the morgue.
They spent an hour with the body of their child, local media reports said.
The couple were taken to the Coroner's Court from a relative's home in the Melbourne suburb of Thomastown.
Vasan said that FIAV, along with Indian authorities here, has offered to financially support the family to arrange for the cremation.
"FIAV has extended all financial help to the family to arrange for cremation and also any other possible help needed this time, including refund of the fee of the cookery course which toddler's mother was pursuing here," he said.
Meanwhile, homicide detectives continued their probe into the death.
China praises Pak, mum on Arunachal prior to Krishna visit
BEIJING: Chinese foreign minister Yang Jiechi on Sunday gave a health certificate to the Pakistan government and its ability to tackle rising militancy in that country. But he kept silent about India-China relations including the issue of World Bank financing of projects in Arunachal Pradesh.
"Government of Pakistan has effective control over the situation," Yang said in reply to a question about the rising militancy in Pakistan and its possible effect across the border in the restive Xingjian region of western China.
Yang was addressing his annual press conference, which China uses as a diplomatic tool to convey a range of messages to countries across the world. The decision to avoid speaking about India less than a month before Indian foreign minister S M Krishna's schedule visit to Beijing in April seems to be a deliberate one.
During the visit, Krishna is expected to raise the issue of arms sales by China to Pakistan and possible moves by Chinese construction companies to build infrastructure in the disputed areas of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.
Yang on Sunday also talked of expanding "practical cooperation" with Pakistan, which may involve additional sales of arms and military aircraft that Islamabad is seeking.
He said some people cherished the wrong impression that China was playing tough in the external front. "It is unfair to label actions safeguarding one's own core interests and dignity as tough and take it for granted infringing interests of a foreign country," the foreign minister said.
His remarks come a fortnight after Pakistani foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi giving a "blank cheque" to China to intervene in India-Pakistan peace talks.
Many observers feel Beijing backs Pakistan due to fears of a spillover of Taliban militancy to its Xingjian region. Yang was apparently trying to disprove this belief when he expressed faith in the Pakistani government's ability to tackle militancy today.
Yang avoided replying to a question on whether China will send peace keeping troops to Afghanistan if the US withdrew its forces from their country in 2010 end.
Give regard to rape victim's wish to marry rapist: CJI
NEW DELHI: In a radical suggestion, India's Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan on Sunday said that judges, lawyers and social activists should give "due regard" to the wishes of a rape victim if she chooses to marry the rapist or have the baby conceived from the crime.
"Judges, lawyers and social activists should also ensure that they do not take an overtly paternalistic approach when they have to make decisions for the welfare of rape victims," he said at a seminar.
"Due regard must be given to their personal autonomy since in some cases the victim may choose to marry the perpetrator or choose to give birth to a child conceived through forced intercourse," he said.
He was speaking at the seminar on "Access to Justice, Relief and Rehabilitation of Rape Victims" organised by the ministry of women and child development.
Others who addressed it included Law Minister M. Veerappa Moily and Minister of State for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath.
"We must also keep in mind that the interests of the victim are not protected by punishing the offenders alone," said Balakrishnan, referring to a law ministry move to enact a law to set up fast-track courts to try sex-related offences.
"Adequate attention should also be drawn to suggestions for compensatory remedies and the rehabilitation of rape victims through the provision of shelter, counselling services, medical and legal aid."
He also referred to the "secondary victimisation", which a rape victim often has to suffer during the trial of the accused due to inconvenient, probing and often indecent questions by the defence counsel.
"There is a very real phenomenon described as ‘secondary victimisation' wherein the victim of a crime faces additional harassment and humiliation in the course of investigation and trial. Especially when the perpetrators are in a position of power over the victims, there is a strong distrust of the credibility of the investigation itself," pointed out Balakrishnan.
"Some recent cases highlighted in the press have shown how the investigative machinery can often be manipulated to protect influential persons, howsoever reprehensible their crimes may be," he said without naming the Ruchika Girhotra molestation and suicide case involving former Haryana police chief S P S Rathore.
"The investigators, prosecutors and defence counsels must exhibit an appropriate degree of sensitivity to the victims," he said.
"Especially during the trial proceedings, judges need to be proactive in order to restrain the aggressive cross-examination of rape victims."
The CJI also highlighted recent changes in law, which provides that the past sexual history of victims must be ignored.
"The Indian Evidence Act was amended some years ago and a provision was inserted to ensure that the past sexual history of a victim cannot be given weightage in a trial for the offence of rape," pointed out the CJI.
"What is needed now is for judges and lawyers to internalise the principle that facts relating to the past sexual history of a victim should not even be brought up in the first place, since the purpose of a trial is to decide whether or not an offence took place as alleged," said Balakrishnan.
Ruchika case: Rathore willing to undergo narco test
Chandigarh: Former Haryana DGP SPS Rathore, convicted in the Ruchika molestation case, has offered to undergo narco analysis test to clear what he claimed were "lies" being spread against him by the family of the girl and that of her friend Aradhana.
"It's my moral duty to offer myself to the narco test, provided that Ruchika's father S C Girhotra and brother Ashu, Anand Prakash, a family friend of the Girhotras, his wife Madhu and sole witness in the case Aradhana, also undergo the test," he has said in a recent communication to the state government.
"Ruchika and the Prakash families have been spreading lies through the media all over the country and they have succeeded in getting three new false FIRs registered against me," he has said.
The CBI has registered three fresh cases, including abetment to suicide, against the disgraced police officer in the case.
Business News
Inflation series with new base yr from May 14
New Delhi:Items like type writers and VCRs would soon be moving out making way for mobile phones and LCD TVs to be included in the new wholesale price-based index for measuring inflation which would be rolled out from May 14.
The new index, with 2004-05 as the base year, will have 250 new items and is expected to provide a more realistic picture of price rise and its impact on people.
"As per the calendar, April data would be release on May 14 with the new base year," a senior official said.
The new series would have about 680-685 items that include mobile phones, LCD TV among others, the official said adding close to 25 items would be knocked off from the new inflation series.
"Existing series has some obsolete items like type- writers. They will not figure in the new series," the official said.
With the addition of new items, data reporting would be more representative and give a better picture of the price situation, the official added.
The Wholesale Price Inflation (WPI) is at present calculated with 1993-94 as the base year.
Asked if there would be any variations in the inflation when it will switch to the new base year, the official said, "it would be insignificant and the variation would be less than 1 per cent."
India ranks 1st in exporting generic medicines
Bhubaneswar: India ranks first in the world in exporting generic medicines, Union Minster of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Srikanta Jena has said.
These medicines are worth Rs 50,000 crore per annum, Jena said after inaugurating three generic medicine stores here and at Khurdah.
The stores are at the Capital Hospital and Red Cross headquarters here and district headquarters hospital at Khurdha.
The quality of the medicines was being maintained with the help of the Indian Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Limited, Jena said.
Jena said Orissa was the fifth state in the country and first in eastern India to have launched 'Jan Ausadhi Abhiyan', the national campaign to ensure universal reach of generic medicines.
Stating that generic medicine stores would be opened in all 626 district headquarters hospitals in the country soon, the Union minister said the same would be extended to all sub-divisional and block hospitals in phased manner.
States like Punjab and Rajasthan had made rapid strides in the campaign and opened thirty stores as of now, he said.
All the medicine stores would be provided financial assistance of Rs 2.5 lakh as one-time assistance for procuring the medicines and managing stock. Medicines would be supplied in adequate quantity, he said.
L&T MF for new schemes next fiscal
New Delhi: L&T group firm L&T Mutual Fund said it plans to introduce a couple of schemes, which will be a mix of debt and equity, in the first half of the next fiscal and will also focus on retail customers to increase its clientele.
L&T MF has average assets of Rs 2,538 crore at the end of February and offers 18 schemes spread over equity, fixed income and liquid funds.
"We are planning to launch a L&T Balanced Fund, which will invest in equity and debt instruments under a single portfolio in the early part of the next fiscal," L&T MF Chief Executive Sanjay Sinha said.
The company plans to focus on the retail customers to increase its customer base. It currently has about 1.10 lakh retail and 600 institutional customers in its clientele.
"We are looking at making our existing debt products attractive to our customers. Besides, we might come out with new products to increase the size of retail investment in our portfolios," Sinha said.
L&T's financial services subsidiary, L&T Finance, had recently acquired DBS Cholamandalam AMC, which has now been rechristened as L&T Investment Management while the fund-house has been renamed as L&T MF.
Asked whether the asset management company would look at unlocking its value through a merger with another entity in the future, Sinha said, "We might consider the option in the long term. This year would be too early."
Sports News
New Delhi: Drag-flicker Jong Hyun Jang struck thrice as nimble-footed South Korea drubbed lowly Canada 9-2 in a high scoring match to keep their semifinal hopes alive in the hockey World Cup here on Sunday.
Lee Nam Yong (38th) and Sung Hoon Yoon (40th) found the target once in the match, which saw second highest number of goals being scored in this World Cup, after Australia's 12-0 mauling of South Africa.
For Canada, who are already out of contention for a semifinal spot after losing all their earlier three matches, Philip Wright scored twice in the 42nd and 51st minutes at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
The match lacked spark in the first session which the Koreans dominated by taking a 2-0 lead. But the second half saw an open and attacking hockey from both the sides and that resulted to as many as eight goals being scored.
The chances of the Koreans, who have seven points after four matches -- with two wins, one draw and a loss – to qualify for the semifinal now depend on their March 9 match against title contenders the Netherlands.
Neither side did create any goal-scoring chance in the first 15 minutes though South Korea had more ball possession and attack.
Somdev loses tamely to Youzhny, India out of World Group
Moscow: Somdev Devvarman learnt a good tennis lesson from Mikhail Youzhny and was outclassed 2-6 1-6 3-6 in the first reverse singles, resulting in India's ouster from the elite World Group of the Davis Cup tournament here on Sunday. India was playing in the World Group for the first time since their 1998 appearance.
Somdev's defeat has rendered Rohan Bopanna's second reverse singles of the first round tie against Igor Kunitsyn inconsequential. It was first meeting between Somdev and Youzhny and the class difference between the two players was glaring. The Russian conceded just six games in the lop-sided match that lasted one hour and 55 minutes.
Somdev put up a good fight in the third set but Youzhny was too good for him. Youzhny showed why he is top-15 player as he never let Somdev play his style of game from the baseline. He in fact took advantage of it. Somdev had no answer to Youzhny's solid ground-strokes and smart drop volleys. The Russian attacked Somdev's weak second serve and set up and took points at will, executing a perfect gameplan.
In no time Somdev was down by two breaks - third and fifth games - and the Russian comfortably placed with a 5-2 lead. Youzhny served out the first set with a drop volley in just 31 minutes. The very Somdev, who had never bothered about the rankings of his opponents, looked helpless against Youzhny who toyed with the Indian.
Such was the control and domination of the Russian over his opponent that hardly an unforced error came off Youzhny's racquet. Whenever Somdev tried to engage Youzhny in a long rally, the Russian would come with a big stroke or a smart volley, leaving the Indian reach for the ball. Somdev's misery grew all the more in second set as he could not get on the board till the fifth game. And that was the only game he could win on his serve in that set.
Somdev tried to do something different in the third set as he changed his tactics and approached the net more often but Youzhny had all the answers and was not troubled at all. It did look like a contest in the third set and the fourth game saw the most fierce fight for points.
Somdev saved quite a few breakpoints but it was the Russian who ran away with the game to create a 3-1 lead. The Indian though hung in and after one hour and 34 minutes for the first time Youzhny was down a breakpoint. The Russian held after saving two breakpoints but had to sweat it out this time. Somdev fought with his never-say-die spirit but that merely delayed Youzhny's win.
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