Architect arrested for RTI activist murder
More than six months after Right to Information (RTI) activist Shehla Masood was shot dead, the CBI on Monday said it had solved the case with the arrest of a woman architect in Bhopal along with her associate. The main accused — Zahida Parvez, 36 — was taken in custody on Tuesday. She and her associate will be produced in a court in Bhopal on Wednesday.
The CBI has said it has arrested Zahida, who is an interior designer also, because she is believed to have planned the killing. But the agency gave no motive for the crime in its press release.
Sources said Zahida and Shehla, 39, were on bad terms.
Shehla was killed at around 11 am on August 16, when she was in her Santro outside her residence.
As suspected earlier, a professional shooter was hired to kill Shehla.
Sources, however, said the Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation had floated a tender for constructing a five-star hotel in Bhopal. Yes Bank was financing the project but it was delayed, ostensibly due to Shehla’s RTI queries about land use, change of partners in the project, and other terms and conditions. It is speculated that Zahida had a contract in the project.
The CBI’s other surmise is that Zahida had allegedly “issued the contract to kill Shehla due to a romantic triangle. Zahida was convinced that her husband, Asad Parvez, was involved in a relationship with Shehla”.
One of the two criminals hired to kill Shehla is suspected to be dead. A CBI source said, “The female architect had hired a contract killer, who in turn sub-contracted the job to kill Shehla to another hired criminal.”
The source added, “One of the two hired killers is now suspected to be dead. We are examining if he had been killed to avoid detection of the conspiracy to target Shehla.”
The CBI has also not ruled out the possibility of the involvement of “some political elements” in the crime.
British photographer Conroy safe in Lebanon: newspaper
Wounded British photographer Paul Conroy is safe in Lebanon after escaping from the besieged Syrian city of Homs and is in "good shape", The Sunday Times newspaper he was working for said on Tuesday. "The Sunday Times can confirm that the photographer Paul Conroy is safe and in Lebanon. He is in good shape and good spirits," a spokeswoman for the newspaper said.
Conroy's father Les said earlier that his son had reached Lebanon.
The 47-year-old freelance photographer was hurt when Syrian forces bombarded a makeshift press centre in Homs last week in an attack which killed veteran Sunday Times reporter Marie Colvin and French photographer Remi Ochlik.
Conroy issued a video appeal for help last week, saying he was injured and being treated by Free Syrian Army rebels.
A Lebanese activist said Conroy had been smuggled during the night from Homs to Lebanon through an illegal crossing.
"Conroy and people accompanying him entered the Wadi Khaled region through the Hnayder border village after midnight on motorbikes," said the activist in northern Lebanon who helps smuggle wounded people out of Syria.
The northern region of Wadi Khaled borders Syria and is close to Homs.
The French embassy in Beirut said it could not confirm reports that a French journalist who was also wounded in Homs, Edith Bouvier of Le Figaro newspaper, had also managed to cross the border into Lebanon.
Mamata says rape concocted to malign govt
West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee courted controversy on Tuesday once again, describing the alleged February 25 rape in Katwa (in Burdwan district) as concocted and a conspiracy against her government. Earlier this month, she had made similar allegations about the February 5 Park Street rape and had to eat her words after the Kolkata Police arrested the accused youths who admitted to their crime.
“The Katwa incident is made up by political parties. Who says that rape happened? Did you find any evidence?” she said at the Writers’ Building on Tuesday while briefing the media about the countrywide trade union strike.
While Banerjee denied one incident, a teenage handicapped patient was allegedly raped by a junior doctor at a government hospital in Bankura district, prompting hospital authorities to order a probe.
The 19-year-old girl was found lying naked in an unconscious state in the medicine department of Bankura Sammilani Medical College where she was admitted after she complained of chest pains last night.
On February 25, a middle-aged woman was allegedly gangraped by dacoits, who had attacked the Ahmedpur-Katwa train the woman was traveling in.
“The woman said her husband is a CPI(M) supporter. If such an incident really happened, the culprits will be punished. But if you make up stories to malign the state government, those liars, too, would be punished,” said Banerjee.
The CM’s remarks attracted scathing criticism from all quarters, including the CPI(M) leadership. “The woman’s husband died 11 years ago. I do not know from where she gets her information,” said Surjya Kanta Mishra, leader of the opposition.
Kohli’s sizzling ton ensures win, keeps final hopes alive
Virat Kohli (L) is congratulated by teammate Suresh Raina after hitting the winning runs against Sri Lanka in their international one day cricket match played in Hobart. AFP/William Westmore photos » After two fruitless months in Australia, India decided to free their minds ahead of what could have been their last game of the tour. And it worked.Nobody at the Bellerive Oval gave them a chance of chasing down Sri Lanka’s gargantuan 320 for four, let alone doing it in less than 40
related stories Hurting India would be totally different in ODIs: ArthurTendulkar conundrum: When is the right time? overs to earn the bonus point and keep alive their hopes of making it to the finals.
However, the Men in Blue did it in style thanks to Virat Kohli, who blasted an unbeaten 133 off 86 balls. With cameos from the other four specialist batsmen, India did the unthinkable by achieving the target off just 36.4 overs.
The victory meant India will prolong their tour by at least three days. But if Australia beat Sri Lanka in the last league tie of the CB Series in Melbourne on Friday, it will be India who will face the hosts in the best-of-three finals.
Victory with a bonus was the only way for India to stay alive and it didn’t come as a surprise when skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni put Sri Lanka in to bat. However, once Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara had feasted on the Indian attack, it looked near-impossible that they would knock off the required 321 runs in 40 overs to earn the bonus point.
Old firm
A quickfire opening stand was imperative and Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar did just that.
By the time Sehwag holed out to Dilshan at mid-on in the seventh over, the total was already 54 runs. Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir maintained the momentum until Tendulkar was trapped plumb in front trying to flick a Lasith Malinga yorker.
Instead of going for the kill by persisting with Malinga, who had changed ends after being taken for runs in his first three overs, skipper Mahela Jayawardene chose to hold him back for the late burst. And that is where India turned the tide in their favour as Gambhir and Kohli batted sensibly.
After 20 overs, the third wicket pair had taken the total to 160 for two, maintaining the required run rate of eight. With 161 required off the next 20 overs, which included 10 Powerplay overs as Jayawardene had delayed the bowling Powerplay - it effectively turned into a Twenty20 game.
And once Kohli launched an assault on Malinga and Suresh Raina finally put a price on his wicket, it was clear India would not have to take the flight back home on Wednesday.
Kohli was so ferocious that the last 30 balls he faced produced 71 runs. And the 35th over, bowled by Malinga, sealed the deal for India.
Kohli started off with a brace that fetched him his ninth ODI century and followed it up with a six and four boundaries to help India cross 300.
Points tableMurray struggles but wins in Dubai opener
British tennis player Andy Murray returns the ball to Michael Berrer of Germany during their match in the ATP Tennis Championship in Dubai. AFP/Marwan Naamani Three-time Grand Slam finalist Andy Murray was made to struggle by a qualifier on Tuesday before surviving the opening round of the Dubai Open.
Murray, playing for the first time since almost halting Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of last month's Australian Open in Melbourne, trailed 3-4 in the final set to Michael Berrer of Germany before coming through.
The third-seeded Scot admitted to being "frustrated" with his up-and down performance after sneaking through 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 against an increasingly ambitious world number 116.
Berrer became encouraged after Murray was unable to consolidate breaks of serve at 3-2 in the second set, and at 1-0 and 2-1 in the final set.
He became bolder and more aggressive, sometimes hitting fiercely angled drives, and more often charging the net to break up the rhythm of Murray's high quality ground strokes.
Murray played a well-controlled and canny last three games to escape from the increasing danger, and afterwards complained of having felt unwell.
"I felt like I wanted to vomit - I don't know if I wasn't hydrated," he said. "I was feeling really, really bad. I was getting it after long points and after getting up from the change-over.
"I wasn't drinking that much after the change-over in the third set and then I felt better."
Murray expects to give an account of his matches to his coach Ivan Lendl, the world number one on this date in 1983, who is at Delray Beach in the United States playing in the Champions Tour where he has reached the final.
"You can't look at your first match in four weeks and over-analyse," said Murray. But I shall need to be more solid in the second round."
There Murray will play Marco Chiudinelli, a Swiss qualifier who caused a minor upset by coming from 1-4 down in the final set to beat Nikolay Davydenko, the former world number four from Russia, by 6-4, 5-7, 6-4.
Another player seeded to reach the semi-finals here this week, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, also had to battle hard to get over the first hurdle, beating a fellow former Australian Open finalist, Marcos Baghdatis 7-6(2), 6-4.
The world number five from France only arrived at midnight the evening before the match but twice recovered from 15-40 on his serve in the second set.
"I am confident about winning matches, and although I didn't play well today, I fought and won," said Tsonga, who next plays Lukas Rosol, the world number 96 from the Czech republic.
Another leading Frenchman, Richard Gasquet, was less fortunate. The former world number seven's tough run continued when he was forced to retire with 'flu against Mikael Youzhny of Russia, which means Gasquet not progressed past the quarter-finals of an ATP World Tour event since May.
He tried to soldier through the first round in the hope of recovering and playing better next time, but the draw landed him with one of the most difficult opening opponents of all.
Youzhny, the former world number eight, is also the man who won the final rubber against France in the 2002 Davis Cup final at Bercy, and is still playing to a very high standard.
After his fluent ground strokes had carried him to the first set
6-3 in exactly half an hour, Gasquet no longer had the energy to have any prospect of turning the match around.
MCD verdict
The Delhi high court on Wednesday will pronounce its verdict on a bunch of petitions by MCD councillors seeking quashing of a state election commission’s notification reserving seats for Dalit candidates for upcoming civic body polls after its trifurcation.
The court had reserved its order on February 16.
German deported for aiding anti-Kudankulam protests
India deported a German national in the early hours of Tuesday for anti-national activities in the form of helping raise funds to part-finance ongoing protests against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in southern Tamil Nadu. Sonnteg Reiner Hermann, 49,
related stories No foreign funds: Nuke protestors write to citizens described by the police as a social activist, was put on a Lufthansa flight bound for Frankfurt around 2 am from Chennai.
“He was verbally informed that his visa was being cancelled for indulging in anti-national activities,” a senior police officer said.
In New Delhi, acting ambassador of Germany, Meier Klodt said, “Through our channels we have been informed that by now the German has left the country. I don't have any more information at my disposal.”
Hermann, who has visited India many times, was in Tamil Nadu on a tourist visa. Acting on an alert by a central agency, the Q branch (intelligence wing) of Tamil Nadu Police had picked him up from a low-budget hotel at Nagercoil, some 650 km south of Chennai, on Monday.
The intelligence department had been tracking Hermann’s movement for the past three days. Police seized his laptop and found from his phone records that he was in constant touch with activist RS Lal Mohan.
“I did not know he was involved in raising funds for protesters. But being anti-nuclear does not mean being anti-national," said Mohan, who runs an NGO from Nagercoil.
The crackdown on the German national comes within days of PM Manmohan Singh blaming American and Scandinavian NGOs of stoking the protests against the Rs 13,000-crore Indo-Russian project.
SP Udayakumar, convenor of the People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy denied that his organisation had any ties with Hermann.
Kripashankar Singh could get life term if convicted
In the FIR lodged by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) with the Nirmal Nagar police station on Tuesday, former MRCC president Kripashankar Singh and “others” (family members) have been charged with offences ranging from criminal conspiracy, forgery, cheating and destruction of evidence. They also face charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Under these legal provisions, Singh and the other accused in the case can be sentenced to life imprisonment (maximum), if convicted. The compoundable offences, on account of the string of charges, could hasten the awarding of the maximum punishment to the accused in the case upon conviction by the court of law, according to sources.
What next?
As per the normal procedure, the lodging of the FIR would essentially mean the beginning of investigation.
As per the court’s order, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) should not make it’s findings on the basis of the report submitted by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), dated July 7, 2011, which has been totally rejected by the court.
The court has directed the police to continue with the investigation based on the FIR of the petitioner (Sanjay Tiwari) and a report of the ACB, dated March 30, 2011 with regard to the enumerated assets of Kripashankar Singh and his family members.
The SIT will have to collect documentary evidence with regard to the movable and immovable properties of Singh and his family,including flats, shops, agricultural land, bungalow, office/commercial premises, motor cars, bank accounts, forward trading account etc.
As per the routine procedure in any investigation, Kripashankar and his family members can be arrested by the SIT at any time, at the discretion of the Investigating Officer (in this case, the police commissioner) to further the investigation.
No foreign funds: Nuke protestors write to citizens
The anti-nuclear activists under the banner of Peoples’ Movement Against Nuclear Energy have written an open letter addressed to the citizens of the country clarifying that they have not received any foreign funding as alleged by the government.
Through the letter, the
related stories German deported for aiding anti-nuke protests in TN activists requested people to write to the chief minister of Tamil Nadu, J Jayalalithaa as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking them not to move in the opposite direction when the whole world is going the ‘beyond thermal and nuclear’ route.
You can read the letter here:
On February 23, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s alleged that foreign NGOs were stoking protests at the Kudankulam nuclear plant, a charge that was vehemently opposed by the People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), which is spearheading the stir.
Speaking exclusively to HT.com, SP Udayakumar, coordinator of Peoples Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE), said that he would take legal action against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over his remarks on foreign NGOs funding the protests against Kudankulam nuclear power plant.
He also categorically denied receiving any money from foreign sources, stating that if any such allegation is proved, he and his organisation are willing to face punishment, if not, the Prime Minister should retract his statement and resign.
"The Congress is not considering people's sentiment and is only interested in kickbacks and profits."
"Earlier, the PMO minister had alleged that PMANE received Rs 1.5cr as funding, but when I filed a case against him, he denied making any such allegation."
The government has been belittling our protests and has never understood the needs of the people of this country.
Singh, in an interview to the Science journal, accused non-governmental organisations that received support from abroad of leading protests against the nuclear plant.
Rejecting Singh’s remark as baseless, SP Udayakumar of PMANE said, “It is unfortunate that the PM has made the allegations without any documentary proof. We strongly deny his observation that the agitation is being funded by other countries.”
Former Atomic Energy Commission chief Anil Kakodkar shared Singh’s sentiments, saying “a nuclear power plant cannot be put under siege the way it has happened now”.
PMANE had in a recent statement alleged that the Centre and its intelligence agencies were sending spies into villages to divide communities, create fear and panic among the people and to instigate violence.
England prepares for life after Capello
Stuart Pearce has been appointed as interim England manager after Fabio Capello resigned. (AP photo/Sang Tan, File) An injury-depleted England face a demanding friendly against 2010 World Cup finalists Holland in London on Wednesday as they begin life without departed manager Fabio Capello.
Capello’s shock resignation following the decision to strip John Terry of the captaincy has left England’s Euro 2012 preparations in limbo, with the Football Association yet to appoint a full-time successor to the Italian.
While Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp is the overwhelming favourite to take over, the FA has yet to make a move for the Spurs boss, leaving Stuart Pearce to oversee Wednesday’s friendly at Wembley.
Pearce — who is coach of England’s Under-21 team and who will manage Britain’s football team at the Olympics — has made no secret of his willingness to lead England’s challenge at the Euros in Poland and Ukraine, but remains a long-odds outside bet to succeed Capello on a permanent basis.
Any hopes Pearce may have had of using Wednesday’s friendly to enhance his credentials have not been helped by an injury crisis that has deprived him of Wayne Rooney, Tom Cleverly, Darren Bent and Kyle Walker.
Strangely, Pearce has declined to draft in replacements for strikers Rooney and Bent, meaning that the three forwards who remain — Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge and Fraizer Campbell — have only four caps between them.
Nazi salute rankles German federation
The German football federation has condemned an anti-Semitic incident involving Kaiserslautern’s Israel striker Itay Shechter and says it will not tolerate such abuse. A small group of Kaiserslautern fans directed Hitler salutes at Shechter during Sunday’s practice.
The German football federation’s designated president Wolfgang Niersbach says such abuse has to be “nipped in the bud” and “we must act decisively.”