Yasin detained again, 80 injured in Kashmir clashes

Srinagar: Amid high drama, detained separatist leader Yasin Malik was freed from his house here by a mob before being held by the police again on Friday, even as nearly 80 people were injured on the fifth day of violent protests across the Kashmir Valley over the alleged rape and murder of two women. Malik, chairman of the Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), had been held under house arrest for the past week. As fresh trouble erupted on Friday, a large number of people protesting against the deaths of the women in south Kashmir's Shopian town a week ago marched to Malik's uptown Maisuma house in Srinagar shouting slogans. In no time, Malik was brought out of the house. Perched on the shoulders of a few, the JKLF chief then led the demonstrators shouting anti-India slogans. But the police soon took him into custody along with a few of his supporters. As angry young men took to the streets hurtling stones at the security forces after Friday prayers in several towns, the police and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel used teargas and batons to disperse them, a police official said. Over 80 people, including 10 policemen, were wounded in clashes across Kashmir and hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani extended his protest shutdown call by two more days. Protests began immediately after the Friday prayers in summer capital Srinagar, south Kashmir's Shopian and other valley towns as hundreds of people, shouting slogans, took to the streets. Fierce clashes erupted as hundreds of villagers from adjoining areas made attempts to march to Shopian town, where two women were allegedly raped and murdered on last Friday by the security forces. Police sources here said 70 people, including 20 women, were injured in protests and resultant clashes on Friday. Tension is running high in Srinagar following the death of a 25-year old youth on Thursday after he was hit by a teargas shell during protests in the Barzalla locality. There were reports of protests after Friday prayers in Baramulla, Sopore, Kupwara, Anantnag, Pulwama, Tral and other towns. For the fifth day in running, life across the Kashmir Valley was paralysed due to the shutdown called by Geelani against the rape and murder of the two women. Shops, businesses, government offices, banks and educational institutions were shut and vehicles went off the roads. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has vowed to "dig out the truth" about the death of the women. He said the victims, Neloofar and Asiya, were "like his sisters" and he as a "brother feels the pain of the tragedy that has befallen the family". The chief minister said he would not rest till he finds out "the truth behind their mysterious deaths". Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti, meanwhile, asked state government to take "the first essential step of registering an FIR on the rape-cum-murder case of Shopian women if it was serious in finding out the truth". "Unless police registers the case and takes up investigation seriously, no amount of assurances would work," Mehbooba Mufti said in a statement. The ruling National Conference said the PDP was "playing politics over the tragedy"

CPI, Congress question pension for JP activists

Patna: The Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Congress have criticised a pension plan announced by the Bihar government for those who participated in a mass movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan, popularly known as JP, in the 1970s. "It is a bad precedence set by the Nitish Kumar government," said CPI leader Jabbar Alam. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had on Friday announced the pension scheme for activists of the JP movement. Alam, who is a member of the CPI national council, said the move by Nitish Kumar was just to gain political benefit at the cost of the public exchequer. "The JP movement was not the first and last witnessed by the state. If activists of all mass movements were given pension like this, the public exchequer would become empty," he remarked. Bihar Pradesh Congress president Anil Kumar Sharma also questioned the plan. "It is not proper to provide pension to them because the movement was against the Congress. It will set a new trend in the country," Sharma said. The step came as good news for thousands of activists of the JP movement who protested against Congress rule and even served jail terms for it. Under the plan, those who participated in the movement and served jail terms under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) or Defence of India India Rule (DIR) will get a monthly pension. They will be entitled to a monthly pension ranging from Rs.2,500 to Rs.5,000. Besides, the next of kin of JP followers who died in police firing and in prison would get a monthly pension of Rs.5,000. The scheme would be effective from June 1, 2009. The state government received a total of 58,000 pension applications and out of those 8,770 were selected. Former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra said the move was against the Constitution and its provisions. "It is a joke on the democratic system and will set a bad precedent," said Mishra, who quit the ruling Janata Dal-United (JD-U) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Leading followers of JP have been calling the shots in Bihar politics for the past decade. Among them are Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad and former central minister Ram Vilas Paswan. But none of them have applied for the pension scheme. Beginning in Bihar, the JP movement spread all over India and resulted in the first non-Congress government taking office in New Delhi in 1977.

CPI, Congress question pension for JP activists

Patna: The Communist Party of India (CPI) and the Congress have criticised a pension plan announced by the Bihar government for those who participated in a mass movement led by Jayaprakash Narayan, popularly known as JP, in the 1970s. "It is a bad precedence set by the Nitish Kumar government," said CPI leader Jabbar Alam. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had on Friday announced the pension scheme for activists of the JP movement. Alam, who is a member of the CPI national council, said the move by Nitish Kumar was just to gain political benefit at the cost of the public exchequer. "The JP movement was not the first and last witnessed by the state. If activists of all mass movements were given pension like this, the public exchequer would become empty," he remarked. Bihar Pradesh Congress president Anil Kumar Sharma also questioned the plan. "It is not proper to provide pension to them because the movement was against the Congress. It will set a new trend in the country," Sharma said. The step came as good news for thousands of activists of the JP movement who protested against Congress rule and even served jail terms for it. Under the plan, those who participated in the movement and served jail terms under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) or Defence of India India Rule (DIR) will get a monthly pension. They will be entitled to a monthly pension ranging from Rs.2,500 to Rs.5,000. Besides, the next of kin of JP followers who died in police firing and in prison would get a monthly pension of Rs.5,000. The scheme would be effective from June 1, 2009. The state government received a total of 58,000 pension applications and out of those 8,770 were selected. Former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra said the move was against the Constitution and its provisions. "It is a joke on the democratic system and will set a bad precedent," said Mishra, who quit the ruling Janata Dal-United (JD-U) ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Leading followers of JP have been calling the shots in Bihar politics for the past decade. Among them are Nitish Kumar, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi, former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad and former central minister Ram Vilas Paswan. But none of them have applied for the pension scheme. Beginning in Bihar, the JP movement spread all over India and resulted in the first non-Congress government taking office in New Delhi in 1977.

Canada's parliament hails 'miracle' of Indian democracy

Toronto: The election of Meira Kumar as India's first woman and Dalit speaker figured in the Canadian parliament on Friday, with Indian-origin MP Deepak Obhrai describing it as a "miracle" of Indian democracy. Obhrai, 58, who as the parliamentary secretary to Foreign Minister Lawrence Cannon is the highest-ranking Indian in the government, said: "Wednesday, Meira Kumar was elected unanimously as the speaker of the 15th Lok Sabha, the lower house in the Indian Parliament." With her election, he said, Kumar has joined "other female leaders of India, the likes of Indira Gandhi, current President Pratibha Patil and business leaders like the CEO of ICICI Bank, Chanda Kochhar, all of whom inspire millions of women in South Asia". With her Dalit background, he said, Kumar "has created another milestone, as her appointment breaks through centuries of discrimination against the Dalits in India". "Like all fights against social evils, the fight against barriers for women and Dalits is a work in progress. I wish to officially congratulate Ms Kumar for this stunning achievement." Obhrai said India has made huge strides in bettering the lot of the Dalits. "The rise of Meira Kumar, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati and Indian Supreme Court chief justice K.G. Balakrishnan bears testimony to the fact that Dalits have come a long way in India," Obhrai said later outside the House of Commons. As parliamentary secretary to the foreign minister (equivalent to a minister of state in India), he is the senior-most Indian in the Canadian government. Tanzanian-born, India-educated Obhrai has represented the Calgary East constituency in parliament since 1997

West Bengal govt calls all-party meet on Aila

Kolkata: With thousands fleeing the coastal areas amid fears of another cyclone, the West Bengal government has convened an all-party meeting on Sunday to discuss relief and rehabilitation in the areas devastated by Cyclone Aila 10 days ago. The main opposition Trinamool Congress announced on Friday it would not participate in the meeting. "The meeting will be held at the secretariat on Sunday. We will inform the parties of the measures taken by the government for relief and rehabilitation. We will also listen to suggestions from the other parties," Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee's personal secretary Subesh Das told newspersons here. Hundreds of thousands of people have reportedly fled remote areas of South 24 Parganas district following weather forecast of another low pressure area forming over the Bay of Bengal and the high full moon tide - giving rise to fears that the coastal districts may be swamped again on June 6. There are reports of people fleeing villages in Gosaba and Pathapratima, fearing fresh inundation. The state government has started shifting people from the Aila-hit areas while keeping ready mechanised boats and helicopters to rescue the people and set up more camps if people are rendered homeless again due to nature's fury. It is feared that the high full moon tide could hit areas like Kakdwip, Gosaba, Hingalganj and Sandeshkhali in the two districts of North and South 24 Parganas that were ravaged by Aila on May 25. However, the Trinamool Congress ridiculed the move saying the meeting has been convened only to add some semblance of credibility to the Left Front government's "shoddy handling" of the relief work. "The relief operations of the CPI-M-led government are a saga of failure, incompetence and negligence," Leader of Opposition in the assembly and Trinamool heavyweight Partha Chattopadhyay told media on Friday night. "Trinamool is not ready to give the government any such stamp of approval, And why has the government called the meeting after everything is over? They could have convened it two-three days back," he said. Trinamool Congress' alliance partner Congress will announce its decision on attending the deliberations today. So far, 128 deaths have been reported due to Cyclone Aila, which tore through extensive parts of West Bengal on May 25, levelling houses, uprooting trees, snapping power cables and leaving a trail of destruction in 13 of its 19 districts. Nearly 600,000 houses have been damaged in the calamity which has affected over six million people. South 24 Parganas - where the Sundarbans take up most of the area - and North 24 Parganas districts were the worst-hit in the cyclone. Hundreds of villages continue to be marooned with salt water intrusion destroying the paddy crop and freshwater fish.

Advani demands probe panel on 26/11 attacks, govt says no

New Delhi: Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday asked the government to share with parliament the dossier of 26/11 evidence given to Pakistan and also called for setting up an enquiry commission - a demand the government rejected. "I believe that the 26/11 attack was a proxy war. The mastermind behind this attacks, Hafiz Saeed, was released in the absence of concrete evidence. The evidence given by us to Pakistan should therefore be shared in parliament," Advani said while participating in a debate on the president's address on Thursday to the joint session of parliament. However, Home Minister P. Chidambaram ruled out setting up any probe commission and said the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government had not set up any commission after the hijacking of the Indian Airlines flight to Kandahar in December 1999. Citing lack of evidence, the Lahore High Court this week ordered the release of Jamaat-ud-Daawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, suspected mastermind of the Nov 26 terrorist attack in Mumbai. More than 170 people were killed after 10 Pakistani terrorists attacked key spots in Mumbai on the night of Nov 26. Advani also suggested that the sharing of evidence with parliament "will help the country and international community to apply pressure on Pakistan." Referring to the findings of the R.D. Pradhan committee constituted by the Maharashtra government to inquire into security lapses on the night of Nov 26, Advani said the government-appointed panel had blamed the central government. "It is very serious. So a separate enquiry commission should be constituted to enquire it," Advani said. Vinita Kamte, wife of police officer Ashok Kamte who was killed while battling the terrorist, had expressed disappointment over the Pradhan Committee findings reportedly giving a clean chit to Mumbai Police. Earlier Advani congratulated Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi on their party's electoral victory. He called for a new beginning in government-opposition relations and said it was possible to reach such a "common goal". He also wanted to know what concrete steps the government was taking to bring back illegal money Indian citizens have stashed outside the country in secret bank accounts - an issue the BJP had raised during the election campaign. "Money has been stashed away. There has to be some clarification on what steps the government is taking. Is it part of the prime minister's 100-day action plan?" queried Advani. Referring to the allegedly racist attacks on Indian students in Australia during the past month, Advani said the disturbing events had worried everyone in the country. "They (Australian government) have replied. But I think someone or a delegation from India must go there and get a first-hand account of what is happening."

No talks till Pakistan acts against terror: India

New Delhi: India reiterated on Thursday the subcontinental dialogue process could not resume unless Pakistan acts credibly against terror directed against this country. "There is no change in our position. Unless Pakistan acts credibly against terror directed against India, there can be no talks," External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna told reporters here. The response came when he was asked to comment on Pakistan saying it would welcome the unconditional resumption of the dialogue process. At his weekly briefing in Islamabad, Pakistani Foreign Office Spokesman Abdul Basir said that it was through dialogue that the two countries understand each other and could get down to resolving the issues facing the region. He also hoped the two countries would quickly move toward resuming their dialogue. Basit also linked the resumption of the dialogue process to the resolution of the Kashmir issue, holding that peace in the region depended on this. However, with India sticking to its stance, subcontinental tensions were heightened with the release on Tuesday of 26/11 Mumbai terror mastermind Hafiz Saeed. India has presented Pakistan with evidence linking the LeT to the Nov 26-29, 2008 Mumbai carnage that claimed the lives of over 170 people, including 26 foreigners. Ajmal Amir Kasab, the lone gunman captured alive during the carnage has owned up his Pakistani nationality and admitted the LeT had trained him for the attacks. India had frozen the subcontinental composite dialogue process in the wake of 26/11 and has repeatedly said that the talks could resume only if Pakistan showed tangible results in prosecuting the perpetrators of the Mumbai attacks. At his briefing, Basit said the Indian preconditions for resuming the talks were "untenable".

Three militants killed in Jammu and Kashmir

Jammu: Three militants, suspected to be members of the Hizbul Mujahideen terror outfit, were killed in a gun battle with security forces in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir early today, officials said. The terrorists were killed in a joint operation by the police and army in Manthala forest, about 200 km from here. The security forces had been tracking the group for the last three days, Deputy Inspector General of Police (Doda-Kishtwar Range) Hemant Lohia said. The security personnel are yet to recover the bodies of the killed militants, one of whom is believed to have been a foreign national.

President speech 'bundle of promises': BJP

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday described President Pratibha Patil's address to the parliament unveiling the Congress-led government's agenda as a "bundle of promises". "Hope the manifesto for the next five years released by the president does not remain on paper. As an opposition, we will play our role and ensure that it does not," BJP's deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said in her first press conference after being anointed to the post by Leader of Opposition L.K. Advani. Advani, 81, effected a generational change in the party on Wednesday when he named Swaraj as deputy leader and general secretary Arun Jaitley as leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha. Both are in their mid-fifties. While Swaraj appreciated that the government was intending to make women's reservation in elected bodies a reality, she said: "It is a challenge for the government to do so in the next 100 days as it claims." "But I hope now that we have a woman speaker (Meira Kumar), the bill will become law," she said. Asked if Meira Kumar should quit as a Congress member after becoming the speaker, Swaraj said: "Whether she resigns or not, she should forget that she is in the Congress."

Pak envoy meets Menon, seeks translation of 26/11 evidence

New Delhi: Pakistan High Commissioner Shahid Malik met Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and urged India to provide English translation of the Mumbai terror strike evidence today, a day after the release of Hafiz Saeed, founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror group that is accused of masterminding the Nov 26 carnage. "India conveyed its disappointment at the release of Saeed," Menon told reporters after the meeting. The Pakistani envoy told Menon about the actions the Pakistan government has taken against the perpetrators of the Mumbai attack. He also reiterated his request that some of the evidence given by India to Pakistan which was originally in Marathi could be translated into English and sent back. The Lahore High Court freed Saeed and his associate Col. (retd) Nazir Ahmad Tuesday saying there was insufficient evidence to establish their involvement in terrorist activities. India in January handed over a dossier to Pakistan linking the LeT and some Pakistani nationals to the Mumbai carnage. In February, Pakistan admitted that part of the Mumbai conspiracy was planned in that country and also submitted a list of 30 questions on the Indian dossier of the evidence on the Mumbai attack. India replied to this in March. Pakistan then sought another set of clarifications that India has provided.

India to mobilise global pressure over Saeed's release

New Delhi: India today conveyed to Pakistan its "disappointment" over the release of Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief Hafiz Saeed, the suspected mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, and said it was in touch with the international community to pressurise Pakistan to act against terrorism. "We conveyed our disappointment at the release of Saeed," Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon told reporters after his meeting with Pakistan's High Commissioner Shahid Malik. The Pakistani envoy had sought a meeting with Menon a day after Saeed was released by Lahore High Court, a move that elicited angry reaction from India. Malik told Menon about the actions taken by the Pakistan government against the suspected perpetrators of the Nov 26 Mumbai carnage that killed over 170 people. The Pakistani envoy also requested that some portions of court-certified evidence India had provided in its dossier on the Mumbai attacks be translated into English and handed over to Islamabad. India agreed to the request as it had given Pakistan documents which were in Marathi language. The envoy said the Pakistan government was considering legal options to appeal against the court order to release Saeed, who had been put under house arrest Dec 11 for its suspected involvement in the Mumbai attacks. He, however, said any decision on this issue will be taken only after getting the text of the court verdict. Saeed, an Islamist ideologue who often preaches hatred against India in his fiery Friday sermons at the JuD headquarters in Muridke near Lahore, had been detained nearly six months ago after the United Nations declared the JuD a terrorist group. External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna termed the release of Saeed as disturbing. "The developments are disturbing. We are closely monitoring the developments," Krishna told reporters when asked to comment on the release of Saeed, the founder of the Lashkar-e-Taiba that has morphed into JuD after it was banned in 2001. Krishna added that India wanted to normalise relations with Pakistan and would try to do so through diplomatic channels. Menon, however, stressed that although India wanted good relations with Pakistan, the process of normalisation of relations will be affected so long as terrorism against India continues from Pakistan's territory. India is in touch with its friends in the international community over Saeed's release, which, according to New Delhi, demonstrated the lack of Pakistan's sincerity in taking action against terrorism emanating from its territory. India will also press the UN to include the names of four other Pakistani nationals in the list of terrorists and terrorist entities. Hours after the release of Saeed, Krishna on Tuesday met US' Charge d'Affaires A. Peter Burleigh and discussed terrorism in Pakistan. The Mumbai attacks and Pakistan's perceived inaction against plotters and perpetrators of the Mumbai terror spree will figure prominently in discussions between India and the US when US Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs William Burns comes to New Delhi next week. The issue will be also discussed when US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visits India in July.

Meira Kumar as speaker impresses opposition MPs

New Delhi: Meira Kumar, the first woman speaker of the Lok Sabha, impressed the opposition MPs on her first day in chair, with many saying she will be a success in this role. "She was very impressive as speaker. She is humble and able," said Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shahnawaz Hussain. "She looked like a guardian... not like a headmaster," Hussain told media. Meira Kumar made history earlier in the day as the former diplomat and Dalit leader became the first woman to hold the prestigious constitutional position. M.B. Rajesh, Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP from Kerala, said Meira Kumar would be successful as speaker. "She managed the proceedings effectively today. She silenced Lalu Prasad and Sharad Yadav when they engaged in a verbal spat. There was no sign of excessive interference," said Rajesh. Meira Kumar intervened to maintain order in the house when the two Yadav leaders from her home state of Bihar - Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad and Janta Dal-United (JD-U) leader Sharad Yadvav - exchanged heated arguments in the house. The speaker issued a directive to reporters to expunge the arguments between them. "She will be a successful speaker. Her speech was encouraging and impressive," said Rajesh, a first time MP from Kerala.

1984 riots: Court rejects Sikh body's plea

New Delhi: A city court today dismissed the plea of the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGMC) to make a representation on behalf of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots allegedly involving former union minister Jagdish Tytler. The court, however, allowed Lakhwinder Kaur, wife of Badal Singh who was killed in the riots, to take part in the proceedings and represent herself in the case. Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Rakesh Pandit disposed of the application filed by DSGMC and the November '84 Carnage Justice Committee, seeking to be heard before the court decides on the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) probe report in which Tytler has been given a clean chit. "It is a criminal matter involving the death of three persons on account of riots. Now the applicants represent witnesses who have already deposed. It is argued by them that they also represent the general public who feel affected by the riots. I think the arguments are not tenable as the scope of the case is limited to the cause of death and who caused the death of three persons. The scope cannot be extended beyond that," the court said. The court also turned down the plea of Kaur, who had prayed that the CBI's closure report be provided to her, saying there is no provision in the Criminal Procedure Code to that effect and posted the matter for Aug 1. Rebecca M. John, appearing for Lakhwinder Kaur, had contended before the court: "The injured or aggrieved parties do have a right to be heard. The investigating agency is bound to give notice to such parties and if they fail to do so, the court is bound to hear us as settled by the Supreme Court." The CBI had on April 9 filed a closure report giving a clean chit to Tytler, who is accused of having incited mobs to attack Sikhs in the aftermath of the assassination of then prime minister Indira Gandhi. The CBI clean chit to Tytler triggered protests, forcing the Congress to drop him as a Lok Sabha candidate.

Fresh protests rock Kashmir, 10 injured

Srinagar: Fresh violence engulfed the Jammu and Kashmir summer capital today as angry residents clashed with security personnel to protest the alleged rape and murder of two women last week. Ten people were injured, including one hit by a rubber bullet. Strict curfew like restrictions were in place for the second day running in Srinagar as a shutdown called by senior hardline separatist leader, Syed Ali Geelani, paralysed life across the Kashmir Valley. The deaths last Saturday of the two women, Nilofar Jan, 22, and her niece, Asiya Jan, 17, have caused Valley-wide outrage. The women were found dead in a stream near Shopian town after they had gone to collect fodder from the fields. Their relatives and locals allege that they were raped and murdered. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday ordered a judicial probe into the deaths of the women and also ordered immediate transfer of the Shopian district magistrate M.R. Thakur. Today, heavy police and paramilitary Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) reinforcements were moved into the various city areas to strictly enforce an undeclared curfew following Monday's large scale protests. Angry youths grouped in various uptown localities of Batmallo, Noorbagh, Safakadal, Malik Sahib, Chanpora and Watal Kadal and clashed with steel helmeted police and CRPF troopers. The mobs, shouting anti-India slogans, pelted stones at security forces who responded with baton charges and lobbed tear gas shells. Ten people were injured in clashes. Four of the injured were taken to SMHS hospital for treatment. One person was injured when police fired rubber bullets to disperse stone pelting crowds in the Batmallo locality. Authorities said the situation in the city was tense but under control. "We have imposed the restrictions as a precautionary measure," said a police officer here. Security forces have blocked road intersections in the old city by placing coils of wire fitted with razors and barricades. No movement is being allowed in the old city areas where mobs had Monday indulged in heavy stone pelting on security forces. The opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti led a protest march through the city Lal Chowk today. Shouting 'Punish the Shopian guilty' and 'Solve the Kashmir problem' slogans, the PDP leaders and activists were escorted by a large posse of police and paramilitary CRPF. Zamrooda Habib of the Hurriyat Conference led a group of slogan-shouting women in the city centre, Lal Chowk. She was later arrested by the police. A report from north Kashmir's Bandipore said groups of protesters threw stones at policemen. Angry youth smashed window panes of passing vehicles in south Kashmir's Awantipore town.

Meira Kumar files nomination for Lok Sabha speaker

New Delhi: Congress leader Meira Kumar today filed her nomination for the post of Lok Sabha speaker. Her nomination, proposed by United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, leader of the Congress in the house Pranab Mukherjee, leader of opposition L.K. Advani of the Bharatiya Janata Party and most other parliamentary party leaders, is likely to be unanimous. Meira Kumar, accompanied by Mukherjee, submitted her nomination at the Lok Sabha secretary general's office. "Meira Kumar's nomination for the post of Lok Sabha speaker has been submitted," Lok Sabha Secretary General P.D.T. Achary said. Meira Kumar, a Dalit leader and five-time MP, will become the first woman in the coveted post. She was chosen for the post by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) on Monday and resigned from the post of union minister of water resources. The formality of the election is slated for Wednesday. "We have submitted the nomination. Her (Meira Kumar) named was proposed by Soniaji and I seconded it," Mukherjee told reporters after Meira Kumar filed her nomination. He also read out a long list of proposers that included leaders of most political parties in the Lok Sabha. Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah and DMK leader T.R. Baalu also accompanied Meira Kumar when she went to file her nomination.

BJP picks tribal leader for deputy speaker's post

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today decided to nominate senior tribal leader from Jharkhand, Karia Munda, for the post of deputy speaker in the Lok Sabha, which by tradition is offered to the opposition. BJP general secretary Arun Jaitley told reporters after a meeting of the party's parliamentary board that Munda had "vast parliamentary experience" and was among the senior MPs of the party. Jaitley added: "Considering his experience we thought he is the most appropriate person (for the post)." Munda, 72, is a six-time MP and was a minister in the Morarji Desai government (1977-79) and also in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee ministry. He was earlier a legislator in Bihar and later in Jharkhand. The party, which was earlier mulling the name of Madhya Pradesh's Sumitra Mahajan for the post, changed its mind after the Congress propped up Dalit woman MP Meira Kumar from Bihar for the speaker's post.

With sales topping $2 bn, South Korea's LG bets on India

Seoul: South Korean chaebol LG, the third largest conglomerate in this country, has charted an ambitious plan for India, hoping to drive revenues from there by at least 20 percent from the present $2.14 billion, along with a 50 percent push to exports. The company, which has a major presence in consumer durables and mobile telecom industries in India, also hopes to draw significantly from the $13.3 billion set aside for global research to launch new products in the South Asian country, top officials here said. Environment-friendly technologies along with products oriented toward a healthier lifestyle would be the new focus areas as the company hopes to see its India operations contribute more to its global revenues from around 5 percent at present. "Indian consumers are increasingly looking at products which can help provide a healthy environment," said Simon Hahm, vice president of LG Air Conditioning, who had helped start his group's operations in India in 1997. "The general trend in appliances business is moving towards health conscious products. Our research shows this is the case in India as well," Simon told a group of visiting Indian journalists. Among the new technologies that will be on offer in India is a new refrigerant for air-conditioners with a more environment-friendly version by 2010. The group will replace the existing gas that causes ozone layer depletion. "The R-22A gas will be phased out gradually, and replaced by the R-410 A which is used in the European markets," said Virender Rana, from the commercial air-conditioning team at the LG's Changwon manufacturing facility. "While the R-22A is a more potent refrigerant, conducive for extreme climates like India, it is harmful to the ozone layer. Comparatively the R-410A is more environment friendly," said Rana. Under the umbrella of healthcare products, LG has also launched air-conditioners that remove dust and microscopic contaminants that cause allergy and asthma. Its new washing machines use steam technology to ensure hygiene and have features like detergent-free cleaning. "We hope our healthcare products contribute 15-20 percent to the total revenues of LG in Asia where we are carrying out the campaign for healthy lifestyles," Simon added. Speaking about the specific financial performance in India and the investment plan, LG officials said the group intended to pump Rs.4 billion ($80 million) towards marketing and Rs.2 billion ($40 million) for research. "We hope to grow our revenues in India to Rs.130 billion ($2.6 billion). For that we will launch products across the consumer durables and home appliances categories. We also hope to see a 50-percent export growth from India," said Simon. The group's facilities are located at Greater Noida in Uttar Pradesh, on the outskirts of New Delhi, and Pune in Maharashtra. The products include phones, TVs, air-conditioners, microwaves, washing machines, vacuum cleaners and disc drives. LG Electronics has a global turnover of $44.7 billion employing over 84,000 people in 115 operations. It has five business units - home entertainment, mobile telecom, home appliances, air-conditioning and business solutions.