Gandhinagar: Giving a new twist, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who refused to appear before the SIT, on Monday called as a ‘lie’ that the Supreme-court appointed panel had fixed March 21 for questioning him in connection with the 2002 riots.
Jaitley, who met Modi, himself released the ‘carefully worded’ letter of the chief minister to the media calling reports of March 21 for his appearance as entirely incorrect.
In another development on Modi's role during the communal violence, the Gujarat High Court asked the Nanavati Commission, which is probing the riots, to clarify by April 1 whether it has taken a final decision not to summon the chief minister for questioning.
The 59-year-old BJP leader in the open letter said, "SIT had not fixed March 21, 2010 for my appearance. To say that I was summoned on March 21 is completely false."
SIT Chief R K Raghavan had on March 11 said Modi was summoned to appear before SIT for questioning on March 21. The SIT office was kept open the whole day on Sunday but the chief minister did not turn up.
Without delving on the debate over the date, Raghavan said on Monday that there was no response from Modi or his office with regard to the summons till now.
SIT will wait for the response from Modi with regard to the summons issued by them, SIT sources said. Modi said, "It is a matter of grave concern and needs investigation as to why and who started spreading lies that SIT summons Narendra Modi on March 21, 2010"
He further said, "The date of 21st March 2010 was invented by some vested interests and as part of their effort to interfere in the due process of law. They wanted to paint me as a person who refused to respond to the SIT".
The Chief Minister was also unsparing in his attack on "vested interests" who he said have lost no opportunity to defame Gujarat since 2002. Rushing to the defence of Modi, Jaitley said the nation has been misled on the basis of a "lie".
"Gujarat government and CM Modi has said said they have been and will cooperate with the legal process of the country as well as fully cooperate with SIT," he added.
Jaitley said that the entire debate that Modi was supposed to appear before SIT and did not, showing disrespect to Supreme Court lacked any basis.
Three convicted in Satyendra Dubey murder case
NEW DELHI: Over six years after the murder of NHAI whistleblower Satyendra Kumar Dubey who exposed corruption in the golden quadrilateral project in Bihar, a court today convicted three accused in the case.
The special CBI court in Patna has convicted Mantu Kumar, Udai Kumar and Pinku Ravidas in the murder case of Dubey, a young engineer working in the Golden Quadrilateral Project of National Highway Authority of India, CBI spokesperson said in a statement, adding the quantum of sentence will be pronounced on March 27.
The young IIT-Kanpur alumni, who had blown the lid off various instances of large-scale flouting of rules in the Golden Quadrilateral Project was shot dead in the early hours of November 27, 2003 in front of Circuit House, Gaya, Bihar.
His murder sparked protests across the country amidst calls for a legislation to protect whistleblowers who expose corruption.
The CBI, which had taken over the investigation of the case from Bihar police on December 14, 2003 had filed a chargesheet in the case on September 3, 2004.
Mantu was convicted under sections for murder, voluntary causing hurt in committing robbery and the Arms Act for possessing unlicensed weapon, the statement said.
The other two accused persons were convicted for murder committed in furtherance of common intention and for voluntary causing hurt in committing robbery, it said.
"During the investigation, CBI arrested four persons, namely Mantu, Udai, Pinku and Sharvan Kumar, all residents of Katari village in Gaya, Bihar.
"They had all assembled near Circuit House, Gaya on the fateful intervening night of November 26/27, 2003. Around 3.30 AM on November 27, when Dubey was passing in front of Circuit House, Gaya in a cycle-rickshaw, the accused persons robbed him of his belongings and during the ensuing scuffle, Mantu shot him dead with a .315 country-made weapon," the statement said.
The CBI said a briefcase containing documents belonging to Dubey including his Identity Card were recovered from an abandoned well and also the country-made pistol were recovered during investigation.
The agency said Sharvan gave full and voluntary disclosure about the incident and was made an approver.
Godhra case: Vested interests spreading lies on summon date, says Modi
GANDHINAGAR: Giving a new twist, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, who refused to appear before the SIT, today called as a "lie" that the Supreme-court appointed panel had fixed March 21 for questioning him in connection with the 2002 riots.
Breaking his silence on the summons by the Special Investigating Team(SIT), Modi wrote an open letter apparently drafted in consultation with party colleague and legal eagle Arun Jaitley in which he said he will respond to the SIT fully respecting the law and keeping in view the dignity of a body appointed by the Supreme Court.
Jaitley, who met Modi, himself released the "carefully worded" letter of the chief minister to the media calling reports of March 21 for his appearance as entirely incorrect.
In another development on Modi's role during the communal violence, the Gujarat High Court asked the Nanavati Commission, which is probing the riots, to clarify by April 1 whether it has taken a final decision not to summon the chief minister for questioning.
The 59-year-old BJP leader in the open letter said, "SIT had not fixed March 21, 2010 for my appearance. To say that I was summoned on March 21 is completely false."
SIT Chief R K Raghavan had on March 11 said Modi was summoned to appear before SIT for questioning on March 21. The SIT office was kept open the whole day yesterday but the chief minister did not turn up.
Without delving on the debate over the date, Raghavan today said there was no response from Modi or his office with regard to the summons till now.
SIT will wait for the response from Modi with regard to the summons issued by them, SIT sources said.
Modi said, "It is a matter of grave concern and needs investigation as to why and who started spreading lies that "SIT summons Narendra Modi on March 21, 2010"."
He further said, "The date of 21st March 2010 was invented by some vested interests and as part of their effort to interfere in the due process of law. They wanted to paint me as a person who refused to respond to the SIT".
The Chief Minister was also unsparing in his attack on "vested interests" who he said have lost no opportunity to defame Gujarat since 2002.
Rushing to the defence of Modi, Jaitley said the nation has been misled on the basis of a "lie".
"Gujarat government and CM Modi has said said they have been and will cooperate with the legal process of the country as well as fully cooperate with SIT," he added.
Jaitley said that the entire debate that Modi was supposed to appear before SIT and did not, showing disrespect to Supreme Court lacked any basis.
26/11 trial: Court rejects plea to examine Headley as witness
Mumbai: A special 26/11 court on Monday rejected the plea of one of the arrested accused Sabauddin Ahmed seeking to examine US terror accused David Headley as court witness via video-conference.
Judge M L Tahilyani said he had rejected a similar plea earlier and no fresh grounds have been made by Sabauddin in the application to examine Headley as a court witness in the November 26 terror attacks.
Sabauddin in his application had attached a copy of the guilt plea bargain between Headley and the US government.
The court, however, said it cannot take cognisance of the copy as it was downloaded from the internet and not an authentic copy.
The court has also restrained Sabauddin's lawyer Ejaz Naqvi from circulating the copy to anyone else.
Headley, arrested by the FBI in October last year, had last week pleaded guilty to all the charges levelled against him, including his involvement in the 26/11 terror attacks.
Sabauddin along with another Indian national Faheem Ansari and lone surviving Pakistani gunman Ajmal Kasab are facing a trial for their alleged involvement in the conspiracy of the terror attack and for the murder of 166 persons.
Sabauddin and Faheem have been accused of preparing maps of the sites that were targeted and of supplying them to members of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
Business News
Govt mulls differential pricing for Euro IV
New Delhi: The government is considering differential pricing for Euro IV-compliant fuel to be sold in select cities from April 1, Oil Secretary S. Sundareshan said on Monday.
He did not give details.
India is keen to cut emissions as Asia's third-largest economy expands rapidly and aim to catch up with fuel quality in Europe, which now follows Euro V standards.
It has been gradually reducing sulphur from 2000, when fuel had 500 parts per million (ppm). Motorists in major cities will now move to Euro-IV norms, locally known as Bharat Stage-IV, that allow up to 50 ppm sulphur.
In January, India decided to adhere to an April deadline for the Euro IV launch in major cities. The roll out of Euro III specifications in the rest of the country has been staggered until October.
India on course for 7.2 pct growth: FM
Bangalore: The government expects the economy to expand by 7.2 this fiscal and increase by 8.5 per cent in the next, Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said.
"We are sticking to the advance estimate of 7.2 per cent for 2009-10...," he told reporters on the sidelines of a function in Bangalore.
For 2010-11, the country hopes to achieve a GDP growth of 8.5 per cent (plus or minus of 0.25 per cent), he said.
India eyes China partnerships for roads, rail
Hong Kong : India is interested in partnerships with China for road and high-speed rail projects, an govt official said on Monday.
"We would like to foster partnership (between) India and China in infrastructure -- especially for high speed railway networks, there is a very good opportunity for China and India," said Kamal Nath, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, speaking at the Credit Suisse Asian Investment Conference in Hong Kong.
India is inviting overseas participation in the country's road projects but the government hasn't publicly discussed plans for high-speed rail.
In July last year, Nath said he expected foreign investors to fund half of the $20 billion per year earmarked for road construction and was seeking investment from pension funds and private equity.
India will need to spend $70 billion building roads over the next three years as it looks to infrastructure spending to stimulate demand and boost the economy. Of the total, $40 billion could come from private investors, with a quarter of that coming for overseas.
Any partnership with Chinese firms could be politically sensitive in India, where many regard Chinese companies with suspicion.
In January, three engineers with a Chinese construction firm were arrested and charged with homicide in connection with a chimney collapse that killed 41 people in central India. The government has also recently tightened visa requirements for Chinese workers.
India has launched the world's biggest public-private partnership programme to develop 15,000 km of roads and highways over the next three years.
Nath, who assumed his current post in May 2009 after serving as commerce and industry minister from 2004, has been carrying out road shows since last year to drum up overseas investment for road projects.
Sports News
2 new IPL teams cost more than first 8 squads together
CHENNAI/MUMBAI: Barely two years ago, when Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd made the highest bid for an Indian Premier League franchise (Rs 441 crore for Mumbai), many termed it as a gamble on a risky concept.
The IPL sure has come a long way in a short time, with the Sahara group on Sunday bidding Rs 1,702 crore for Pune and Rendezvous Sports World forking out Rs 1,533 crore for Kochi.
In fact, these two bids, worth a total of about Rs 3,235 crore, add up to more than the Rs 2,853 crore collectively paid by the existing eight franchise owners in the first auction, on January 24, 2008.
The IPL is invariably full of surprises and Sunday was no different. Favourites Adani Group and VC Digital (Videocon Group) were pipped by Sahara and a consortium of real estate players and businessmen brought together by Union minister Shashi Tharoor under the banner of Rendezvous Sports.
The two new teams will become part of IPL in the 2011 edition. The franchises will be valid for 10 years.
The bidding, conducted behind closed doors, lasted less than an hour after the contenders trooped into a hotel in Chennai.
The base price for each team was $225 million, more than four times the rate at which the first IPL auction began in 2008.
IPL commissioner Lalit Modi said five eligible bids were received in all, which included Rendezvous Sports, Sahara, Aman Vohra, Adani and VC Digital. There was a dash of glamour with Salman Khan and Saif Ali Khan dropping in to represent some groups.
Sahara topped with a $370-million (Rs 1,702 crore) bid for a clutch of cities which included Ahmedabad, Nagpur or Pune. Eventually, the Subrata Roy-controlled group opted for Pune.
Live IPL updates: Chris Gayle slams maiden IPL fifty
NEW DELHI: Chris Gayle slammed maiden IPL fifty to lead Kolkata Knight Riders run charge against Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League encounter at Brabourne stadium, Mumbai on Monday.
Scorecard
Chris Gayle completed his fifty in 47 balls hitting five fours and a six.
Knight Riders lost skipper Sourav Ganguly (31) after he put up a solid 70-run opening partnership with Chris Gayle.
Ganguly hit five fours in his 34-ball knock before being clean bowled by former international teammate Harbhajan Singh in the 11th over.
Ganguly started his innings with a bang as he hit medium pacer Ryan McLaren for three consecutive fours in the third over of the match.
Earlier, Knight Riders skipper Sourav Ganguly won the toss and decided to bat against Mumbai at Brabourne stadium.
Their winning streaks snapped, hosts Mumbai as well as visitors Kolkata would be anxious to regain that momentum as they clash in the 17th IPL match.
Sachin Tendulkar-led MI, after starting off their campaign in great style by winning the opening two ties, came a cropper at the Brabourne Stadium last night against a highly-disciplined effort by Anil Kumble's Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Sourav Ganguly-captained KKR too began their campaign after two largely unsuccessful editions by fashioning upset away victories against defending champions Deccan Chargers and runners-up RCB before losing the next two ties.
These two charismatic captains, who have rubbed shoulders over more than a decade and a half for India, would be anxious to rediscover the magic potion for their teams to cut the losing streak before it spoils their campaign.
Teams:
Mumbai Indians: Sachin Tendulkar (capt), Dwayne Bravo, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ryan McLaren, Lasith Malinga, Kieron Pollard, Rajagopal Sathish, Aditya Tare (wk), Saurabh Tiwary.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Chris Gayle, Shane Bond, Murali Kartik, Angelo Mathews, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Owais Shah, Ishant Sharma, Harpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh.
Wish Sachin to captain & Bachchans to promote team: Sahara
New Delhi: Having missed the opportunity to join IPL in the first round of bidding, Sahara group chief Subroto Roy on Monday said that he would want Sachin Tendulkar to captain the Pune franchise that the group won with a bid of over Rs 1,700 crore.
"Who would not... I certainly would want Sachin to captain if he is available," Roy, whose group is team sponsor of the Indian cricketing side, said over telephone.
Sachin currently leads Mumbai Indians IPL franchise owned by Nita and Mukesh Ambani.
Players are coming up for auction in September for the next three years and key players of any franchise would be available if there was no negotiated settlement between them and the owners.
Roy, who also has a close association with Bollywood, said that he would also consider talking to superstar Amitabh Bachchan and his family for promoting his team, which he acquired on Sunday in an aggressive bid against Videocon, Adani and others.
"No human can deny the element of glamour.. so glamour should be added to these kind of activities... it definitely helps," he said on ownership of teams by cine stars Shahrukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty.
Asserting that he would certainly talk to Bollywood stars for promotion of the team, Roy said that he would also broach the issue with Amitabh Bachchan, who the Sahara group chief is believed to have bailed out in reviving the Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited a few years ago.
"Why not... I have not talked to them yet (Bachchan family)... I will talk to him (Amitabh)," he said.
On his rather delayed decision to join the Indian Premier League, Roy said that today the event is the biggest eye-ball catcher than any other event. "The TRP of even India Australia match is lower than IPL matches."
Explaining his decision not to participate in the first round of bidding for IPL, he said: "We are the team sponsors of BCCI and so emotionally I felt why put our logo on the club level chest... It was an emotional decision.
"Now, the situation is completely different... our decision (now) is a good combination of emotion and materialism... there is a business (angle) to it."
Roy said that having won a team, he would now want to make the best of the situation to make a success out of it.
"Right in the first year it will give operational profits," he said, although admitting that during the first year even the topmost bid of over USD 100 million by the Ambani, was considered very high.
"Now we have have bid more than 3-4 times and we consider there is value to it. In the long run, it will be very, very beneficial," he said, adding that though advantage would go to the first mover, the group would consider all the commercial aspects.
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