KATHMANDU: Ending days of speculation, Nepal's Maoists-led government on Sunday fired army chief Gen Rukmanga Katawal, replacing him with loyalist Gen Kul Bahadur Khadka.
The announcement was made by prime minister Prachanda's press adviser Om Sharma despite domestic and international calls against such a move, including from India.
The cabinet meeting chaired by Prachanda, which decided to sack the army chief, was, however, boycotted by four other ruling alliance partners - CPN-UML, Madhesi People's Rights' Forum, Sadbhavana Party and CPN-United.
But, the decision has to be formally endorsed by president Ram Baran Yadav.
Main opposition Nepali Congress and 16 others political parties have been opposing the Maoists' plans to sack the army chief.
The Maoists' move came a fortnight after they served an ultimatum to Gen Katawal, seeking his clarification on recruitments by military, its "hastiness" in reinstating eight generals retired by the government and its decision not to participate in the national games.
He had furnished his reply contending that he had not disobeyed the government's directives on removing eight generals and halting recruitment in the military.
Lanka govt may offer amnesty to LTTE cadres
Colombo:With the Tiger rebels on their last legs, the Sri Lankan government is mulling a general amnesty to the surrendering LTTE cadres as well
as to those who are in detention in the country.
"Regulations are being worked out in consultation with the Attorney General and they would cover anyone who agrees to lay down weapons and surrender before the security forces," minister for human rights Mahinda Samarasinghe said.
However the amnesty will not be granted to those who have already been charged or convicted in courts.
"In these cases, the legal process will be applied," the minister told reporters.
He said an undisclosed number of LTTE members had come along with the displaced people to the camps in Wanni. "While some have confessed they are members of the LTTE, others are being investigated for their links with the group".
Samarasinghe said he was not aware of the exact number of the LTTE cadres among the displaced people but some estimates put it at 3000.
The LTTE members would be rehabilitated and later allowed to re-integrate with others once the investigators get convinced that they have shunned separatism, Samarasinghe was quoted as saying by the 'Sunday Times'.
20 pro-LTTE activists held for attack on army convoy in Coimbatore
COIMBATORE: At least 20 pro-LTTE activists were arrested Sunday morning for the attack on an Army convoy near Coimbatore a day ago, police said.
Cases have been registered against 200 people belonging to political groups sympathetic to the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The arrested include Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam and Tamil nationalist leader K Ramakrishnan, police sources added.
Supporters of the Tamil Tigers on Saturday stopped five Army trucks and personnel on way back from training in Secunderabad in Andhra Pradesh. They were on their way to Thiruvananthapuram.
The angry protesters pelted stones causing minor damages to a couple of trucks.
"They (Army personnel) were supposed to halt at the unit in Coimbatore for the day. The attack took place just before they reached Coimbatore. There has been no damage (to arms and ammunition) at all," a defence spokesman had said on Saturday.
Sri Lanka's war against the LTTE has caused a stir in Tamil Nadu where the group has many supporters for its cause to carve an independent state for minority Tamils in the island nation. The months of combat operations have pushed the Tamil Tigers to a corner.
Probe ordered into Lawrence School ragging case
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has ordered an inquiry into the bullying incident at Lawrence School, Sanawar.
Earlier, a brutal case of ragging was reported at the Lawrence School, Sanawar, one of the country's most prestigious institutions.
Eleven students are in hospital and six have perforated eardrums and one student reportedly has only 30 per cent of his hearing left.
Seven students at the boarding school in Himachal Pradesh responsible for the incident have been sent back home after the incident. They are all from Delhi, Chandigarh and Punjab. The attack was reportedly led by a student who's the son of a senior police officer in Punjab.
Those ragged were beaten with wet belts and hockey sticks and kicked. The parents of the boys beaten up are reportedly scared to speak because most of them are from Punjab, and they fear a severe backlash.
This horrific incident comes a couple of months after Aman Kachroo, a first year medical student died after he was ragged by his seniors at the Rajendra Prasad Medical College in Kangra, Himachal Pradesh.
Aman, who was just 19 years old, died on March 8. Four students were expelled from the college for two years. They are now in judicial custody. The principal of the college was suspended after a Supreme Court order.
Last month, Akhil Dev, a first year student of a college in Coimbatore, came close to losing his eyesight after he was ragged.
Akhil claimed he was beaten up after he refused to pay the seniors money. Doctors who treated the 19-year-old management student said he might lose his eyesight by the time he turns 25.
Taliban militants hold 2,000 villagers as human shields: Report
Taliban militants were holding 2,000 people in Buner district of restive North West Frontier Province in Pakistan to use them as human shields in case the army attacked. Taliban's move came as Pakistani forces stepped up their campaign to retake territory in the districts of Buner, Dir and Swat. The military said they had killed more than 100 militants and lost several soldiers since fighting began on Tuesday.
Taliban militants are holding 2,000 people as human shields in Pir Baba in Buner district, a local newspaper reported on Sunday.
"Kidnapping has become routine in our village. Armed Taliban were picking up people and then demanding a huge ransom for their release," said an elderly refugee now living with his family in a tent in Timergara, a town in Dir. According to the paper, many of the 90,000 refugees fleeing the conflict zone in NWFP welcomed the military action despite their anger at being forced to leave their homes.
The militants promised to disarm but instead moved their forces into neighbouring Dir and Buner, about 100 km from federal capital triggering panic in Pakistan and heightening fears in the US about the stability of the nuclear-armed state.
Although Pakistani officers described their onslaught as a "mopping up" operation, much of Buner remained under Taliban control, the report said.
Business News:
Swine flu could worsen global recession: Analysts
SINGAPORE: The swine flu outbreak could shatter fragile signs of a global economic rebound, but the gravity of its impact depends on the death
toll it inflicts and the panic it generates, analysts said.
For Asia, where some countries are in recession, the crisis has revived memories of the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak in 2003 that killed hundreds, halted travel and sent economies reeling.
Asia's first case of the A(H1N1) virus was confirmed in Hong Kong on Friday, the epicentre of the 2003 SARS outbreak when close to 300 people died.
"The global economy faces yet another huge challenge," research firm Moody's Economy.com said in a market analysis.
"The recent outbreak of swine flu in Mexico and its rapid spread to other countries could interrupt trade and investment, exacerbating the worldwide recession for an uncertain period."
The World Health Organisation has raised its flu alert level to five out of six, signalling a pandemic was "imminent" as more nations announced cases.
"The risk here is if swine flu is actually more lethal than SARS and containment measures are not effective," Leong Wai Ho, a Singapore-based regional economist with Barclays Capital, said.
IPl News:
Jakati has got the start he needed: Dhoni
May 02, 2009 (Johannesburg):JOHANNESBURG: After having registered a 18-run win over Delhi Daredevils, Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni said that he was happy with the overall performance of the team and would like to carry on the winning momentum.
On his team's performance: I will not say that pressure was not on us but then it is the part and parcel of the game. You win some and then you lose some. It was an important match for us, because Delhi Daredevils are one of the strongest teams in the Indian Premier League. They is a well balanced side. So it was important for us to get points on the board. I think we started off quite well and capitalised in the middle-overs but we failed to finish it off well. All the big-hitters including Albie Morkel, me and Jacob Oram didn't really click. We need to perform in the future as we are a side that relies heavily on its batting. If one of us clicks in future and with our top-order performing well we can give good targets to our bowlers to defend. And that is our strategy.
On Murali's magic: I always knew that Muralitharan will be a tricky customer under lights. We were fortunate to get David Warner's wicket and after that we put pressure on them.
On changes in the side: Well, we had just one change – Parthiv Patel was rested because I was 100 per cent fit. So that was only one change.
On Man of the Match: Shadab Jakati has been bowling well at the nets and today when he got the chance he performed well. So he got the start needed for a youngster to get going in the Indian Premier League. I am quite happy with his performance. He bowls really well and mixes them. He is never afraid to give flight.
On his own batting form: I think I my batting is pathetic in the tournament so far.
On Gautam Gambhir's captaincy: I think he marshaled his resources well. He bowled Amit Mishra well and the leg-spinner is one of their leading bowlers so I think he used him well. He used Rajat Bhatia in the end. So, overall I think it was a good start for Gautam. I was happy to get him early in the innings, because he is capable of playing the sheet-anchor role and bat through the innings. He is dangerous batsman.
On youngsters coming from unknown territory: It is a very open tournament and people are always looking for fresh talent. Jakati was part of our side even last year. But we were quite happy with the bowling as we played with three all-rounders and Muralitharan with Makhaya Ntini spearheading the attack. We had a decent batting line-up last year, so we used to play an extra batsman to strengthen our batting. But this season things have changed, the spinners are able to get good amount of purchase from the wicket as the innings progress. The batsmen tend to go after the spinners and take their chances and that this is one of the reasons why spinners have been so successful in the tournament.
On selector's dilemma over selection of squad for T20 World Cup: The more difficult it becomes, the better for us. We will go with the best 15 players in the ICC World Twenty20. So I am quite happy.
On overwhelming fan support: Well it was quite noisy and one could easily see fans supporting our team. The flags and the yellow T-shirts were all over the stadium. So it was really nice to have support. I am very happy with the kind of support we are getting. I think since today was a Saturday, people came out in large numbers to watch the game.
On S Badrinath's performance: I think Badrinath was batting down the order last year. He was coming at No. 6 or 7 and not getting the right opportunity. So we thought of promoting him to No. 4 this time around. He can play his natural game and then we have big hitters down the order who can go and accelerate and captalise in the last five or six overs. He is working well for us. He is very good over covers and mid-wicket. He is also quite good against the short ball. So overall, the strength of our batting line-up goes up. And I am really happy to see him perform well.
On team composition: More often you will see these four overseas players in our playing XI -- Matthew Hayden, Muttiah Muralitharan, Jacob Oram and Albie Morkel. They are an integral part of the team. Until and unless someone gets injured or loses form we are not going to change them. So, it is not really difficult to pick the playing XI.
Royals thump Chargers by 3 wickets
May 02, 2009 (New Delhi):Rajasthan Royals made a remarkable recovery from a top order slump to beat Deccan Chargers' by three-wickets in a thrilling Indian Premier League match here on Saturday.
The Royals registered their third victory in the event from seven matches to put their title defence campaign on track, while the Deccan Chargers slumped to their second consecutive defeat to slide from the top of the points table.
Chasing a modest 142 run target, the Royals rode on useful contributions from their lower middle order, especially young Abhishek Raut (36 off 23) to scamper home in 19.4 overs after they were tottering at 3/3 at one stage of the match.
Earlier opting to bat, Adam Gilchrist (39) started the Chargers' innings on a blistering note, picking up 27 runs of the first three overs and then Rohit Sharma (38) and T Suman (41) stitched a crucial 59-run stand for the fourth wicket to guide Deccan Chargers to 141 for five.
The Royals started their innings on a disastrous note as they lost three quick wickets by the end of the second over.
Graeme Smith's misery with the bat continued as he fell without troubling the scorers in the second ball off Fidel Edwards' opening over, caught at third man by Shoaib Ahmed.
Swanpil Asnodkar did not do any justice either as he was run out by Gibbs in the very next ball and then Naman Ojha added more worries for the Royals when he gave a straight forward catch to Gibbs at point off RP Singh in the second over to see the defending champions slump to a precarious 3/3.
But then came in Lee Carseldine, and in young Ravindra Jadeja's (12) company, the Queenslander added 51 runs in 7.1 overs for the fourth wicket to set the tone for the run chase.
The Queenslander showed why offence is always regarded as the best defence as he brought back the Royals' chase on track, hitting six fours enroute his 31-ball 39.
But much to the dislike of Royals' supporters, the bowling change in the 10th over did the trick for Chargers as Venugopal Rao (2/23) broke the partnership, scalping both Jadeja and Carseldine's wickets in a span of four balls to see the defending champions struggle at 60/5 at the halfway mark.
However, skipper Shane Warne (21) had other plans.
Needing 74 off 54, he hoiked Rao over long on for a six and then added another after the bowler dropped an easy caught and ball chance in his previous delivery. Raut finished off the over with a cheeky four to take 17 runs of the eventful 12th over.
Pragyan Ojha (1/27) stopped Warne's cameo with Gilchrist easily pouncing on to a skier.
Dangerous Yusuf Pathan (24 off 14) made his intentions clear from the word go. He struck two back-to-back sixes of Shoaib Mohammad in the 15th over to bring the Royals back in the hunt.
With 11 runs needing off 13 balls, the game witnessed another anti-climax when Pathan got out, trying another big hit, caught by Gibbs off RP Singh (2/18).
But Raut and Shane Harwood (3) ensured no further worries for the Royals bringing them home with two balls to spare.
Earlier, Gilchrist struck Munaf for a boundary and a six over fine leg in the second over and then followed it up with two more fours of Yusuf Pathan's next over to signal his intentions.
Herschelle Gibbs (8) was the first to depart when in-form Pathan (1/19) caught him plumb in front of the wicket. However, the South African seemed unhappy with the decision.
Debutant Shane Harwood (2/25) ensured double blow for the Chargers, picking up Azhar Bilakhia with his very first ball of the tournament, caught by Siddharth Trivedi to send the Hyderabad outfit in a spot of bother at 35/2.
From there on, Gilchrist and new man in Rohit found boundaries hard to come by, but kept the scoreboard ticking with ones and twos.
The former Australian wicket-keeper, however, cut lose in Shane Warne opening over, dispatching the leggie over long on.
But Ravindra Jadeja (1/22) cut Gilchrist's innings short just two balls before the strategy break with Pathan taking a smart catch at short mid-wicket.
But a 42-ball 59-run stand between Rohit and Suman finally saved the day for Chargers and ensured a decent total for the table toppers.
Suman hit Warne for a four and six in consecutive balls in the 13th over to set the tone for the Chargers.
Rohit too joined the party, dispatching Munaf over the mid-wicket fence in first ball of the 15th over and then followed it up with a boundary a delivery later.
However, Rohit's over aggression finally did him with Warne latching on to an easy catch off Siddharth Trivedi just after the right-hander hit a six off the bowler in his previous delivery.
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