CURRENT AFFAIRS: 08/24/11

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Earthquake in US: Quake rattles Washington, felt in New York

Washington: A 5.9 magnitude earthquake centered northwest of Richmond, Va., shook much of Washington, D.C., and was felt as far north as Rhode Island, New York City and Martha's Vineyard, Mass., where President Barack Obama is vacationing.

Tripoli: From an unknown location, Muammar Gaddafi has called on the residents of the Libyan capital to "free Tripoli" from the "devils" who have overrun it.

Indian featured on 'America's Most Wanted' is arrested

Washington: US authorities have arrested an Indian national, who featured on the "America's Most Wanted" TV show, in Los Angeles over the 1999 slaying of his teenage ex-girlfriend in Canada.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Wednesday said 33-year-old Ninderjit Singh, also a green card holder of Canada, has been arrested by the federal authorities on Friday.

Mineral, Virginia: Tens of millions of people from Georgia to Canada were jolted on Tuesday by the strongest earthquake to strike the East Coast since World War II. Three weeks before the 10th anniversary of September 11, office workers poured out of New York skyscrapers and the Pentagon, relieved it was nothing more sinister than an act of nature.

Tripoli: International journalists were freed from the Rixos Hotel in Tripoli on Wednesday, after being held for five days by armed men loyal to Moammar Gaddafi.

The dozens of journalists were taken in Red Cross cars and vans to a Tripoli hotel, where they were united with friends and colleagues.

Indian-origin analyst fined $34m for insider trading

New York: An Indian-origin former analyst has been accused of providing confidential company information in the Raj Rajaratnam-led insider trading scheme, has been fined $34 million for his role in the scheme.

New Delhi: In Parliament today, BJP leader Sushma Swaraj asked the government about an alleged statement made last night by Pranab Mukherjee that Anna Hazare's fast - and how to end it - is his problem. The Finance Minister said his remarks had been totally distorted.

Washington: Congress party president Sonia Gandhi figures as the seventh most powerful woman of the world in the Forbes list which is topped by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Dubai: The six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has welcomed the collapse of Muammar Gaddafi regime, saying the group will continue its support for the Libyan people to realise their hopes for a better future.

Bravery award for woman officer who seized Rs 5 cr during Tamil Nadu polls

Chennai: A woman revenue official, who single-handedly recovered Rs five crore in cash from a bus in Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu believed to have been meant for bribing voters during the April 13 Assembly elections, was honoured by the state government with its bravery award on Monday.

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New Delhi: With Anna Hazare refusing to end his hunger strike, the government met with leaders of all major opposition parties to arrive at a compromise that the 74-year-old Gandhian may accept. In his opening remarks, the PM explained the status of his minister's negotiations with the activists.

New Delhi: Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray has appealed to Anna Hazare to give up his fast since it has succeeded in "awakening the nation and rattling the government".

In a letter to Mr Hazare on Wednesday, Mr Thackeray said that there was no need for him to stop the anti-corruption agitation but only end the fast in view of his failing health.

New Delhi: Politician Amar Singh has been formally chargesheeted under the Prevention of Corruption Act for offering bribes to three BJP MPs in 2008. A crore was reportedly given in cash to the MPs for supporting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during a trust vote in July that year.

New Delhi: With Anna Hazare declaring this evening that he will not end his hunger strike against corruption, the Government is preparing a plan to move him to hospital, if needed. So far, his doctors say this is not required. His aides also say the police present at Anna's camp at Ramlila Maidan have promised they will not try to move him without the consent of Anna's doctors.

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New Delhi: Anna Hazare, now on the tenth day of his hunger strike, asked the thousands gathered at his camp in Delhi last night to make a promise to him. "When they come to take me away," the 74-year-old said, "Don't try to stop them. You must remain calm, you must ills the non-violent movement we have begun together," he urged. "I am strong," he joked, "I can still run two kilometers without a problem if someone asks me to." His aides said they had heard that Anna would be airlifted on Wednesday night to a hospital. (Read: Who is Anna Hazare?)

Tripoli: Libyan rebels have announced an amnesty for anyone within Col Muammar Gaddafi's "inner circle" who captures or kills him, and a $1.7m (£1m) reward.

The head of the National Transitional Council (NTC), Mustafa Abdel Jalil, announced the amnesty offer from the eastern city of Benghazi.

New Delhi: Here's a brief chronology of what happened at the Government-Team Anna talks last night. It led to a bitter exchange between the two sides later:

Ajmer dargah blast case: Next hearing on Sep 29

Jaipur: A special court on Tuesday put off the hearing in the 2007 Ajmer dargah bomb blast after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) failed to appoint a public prosecutor and fixed September 29 as the next date of hearing.

New Delhi: Ahead of a crucial and fourth round of talks with Anna Hazare's representatives, the government has indicated it's running out of patience with the activists. Last night, three of Anna's aides said negotiations were "back to Square One" after they met with Law Minister Salman Khursheed and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee. Team Anna has said it may boycott today's session.

New Delhi: As Anna Hazare's fast entered the tenth day on Thursday, his team accused "some strong elements" in the government of nullifying the entire dialogue process and said that they have become victims of Congress' "internal politics".

Salman bans ‘Don2’

The actor refuses to have ‘Don 2’ trailer in his upcoming Eid release

No one wants to mess with Salman Khan and Reliance Entertainment’s wish of releasing ‘Don 2’ trailer with ‘Bodyguard’ has been dashed. The actor has flatly refused to have any mention of arch-rival Shah Rukh Khan’s film in his upcoming release.

Bengaluru: "We for sure need a Lokpal Bill because it will bring in a clean government. Anna Hazare should be worshipped for what he is doing," Sonu, a barber, told me earlier this week.

Not just Sonu, but many I chatted with believe the Lokpal can be a solution to all their problems, from water supply to ration cards to gas connections.

New Delhi, Aug 25 (IANS) Talks between the government and Anna Hazare's team on a sweeping anti-corruption law ended in a deadlock Wednesday night, shattering hopes of an early resolution to spiralling political crisis triggered by the social activist''s indefinite fast

Libyan rebel fighters celebrate after seizing control of the Gaddafi army women's officer training center in Tripoli's Qarqarsh district August 22, 2011. REUTERS/Bob Strong

CAIRO | Mon Aug 22, 2011 11:31am EDT

(Reuters) - The Arab League and Egypt threw their weight behind Libya's rebels on Monday as opposition forces cornered Muammar Gaddafi's loyalists in their remaining strongholds in the capital Tripoli.

Gaza City (CNN) -- Israeli warplanes struck several times Wednesday and early Thursday along the country's border with Gaza, killing three people and wounding several others, medical sources told CNN.

Early Thursday, an Israeli warplane shot missiles at a social club in northern Gaza, killing two people and wounding 20, including women and children, medical sources said.

On Wednesday, an air strike on a tunnel between Rafa and Egypt left three people seriously wounded, the sources said.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly suggested Wednesday a moratorium on nuclear testing and unconditional resumption of six-party talks on its nuclear program. This suggestion was dismissed by South Korea and the United States.

Saif al-Islam Gaddafi, the son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, attends a news conference in Tripoli in this February 25, 2011 file photograph. Libya's rebels have captured Muammar Gaddafi's son, Saif Al-Islam, the head of the rebel National Transitional Council told Al Jazeera television on August 21,2011. REUTERS/Ahmed Jadallah

(Reuters) - Libya's rebel envoy to Paris said on Monday there was a chance Muammar Gaddafi's son Saif al-Islam could be tried in Libya and not handed over to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.

"Everything is possible, it is up to the NTC (National Transitional Council) to decide. It is possible that he will be handed over to the ICC but it's also possible he won't," Mansour Saif al-Nasr told Reuters Television outside the Libyan embassy in Paris.

The United States put its eastern seaboard on alert for Hurricane Irene Tuesday, as the powerful storm barrelled up from the Caribbean on a path that could hit the U.S. coast on the weekend.

Even as the first hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic season pounded the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeast Bahamas with battering winds, rain and a dangerous storm surge, coastal residents in the Carolinas were preparing for Irene’s approach.

Cops pulled up for not serving summons to Reddy

BANGALORE: The High Court on Monday directed the Home Department to take action against police officers who failed to execute as many as nine summons issued by Sandur JMFC court to MLC and former minister G Janardhan Reddy, and disposed of the petition challenging non-execution of summons.

Bangalore: Blaming police for non-execution of warrants issued by a court in Sandur against former minister and mining magnate G Janardhana Reddy, Karnataka Government on Wednesday assured the high court that action would be taken against him within a week.

Calcutta, Aug. 24: The spectre of funds crunch hung heavy on the first collective review meeting of the Mamata Banerjee government that was held this evening to ensure better funds utilisation and co-ordination among departments.

The meeting at Town Hall was attended by almost all ministers and departmental secretaries.

After intense political and personal rivalry, several rounds of legal wrangling and postponement, and finally a reluctant administrative nod, over a crore school students of Tamil Nadu have finally got their new textbooks, the subject of a controversy that the courts have eventually managed to put a lid on.

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court Wednesday asked the capital's private power distribution companies (discoms) BSES Rajdhani, BSES Yamuna and NDPL to respond to a petition that the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) should be directed to audit their accounts.

The division bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna issued the notices to the discoms and asked them to file their affidavits within six weeks.

Why are women exempted from helmet rule, HC to govt

Deciding to hear a petition stating that women must also be asked to wear helmets as road accidents affect men and women alike, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought a response from the state government as to why the rule providing this exception must not be struck down.

Mahesh Bhatt's 'fascist' remark irks Anna's suppporters

MUMBAI: Anna Hazare's supporters have now come up with a new means to fight those who are protesting against their leader's struggle against corruption.

Producer director Mahesh Bhatt turned out to be one of the first victims of this dissent. On Wednesday, Anna's followers held a protest against Bhatt, who allegedly had called Anna a 'fascist'. More than 50 supporters from Azad Maidan were instructed to march towards the filmmaker's home and stage a protest there. They shouted slogans like 'Anna is cool cool, Mahesh Bhatt is fool fool' and a few others.

Impose President's Rule in the Country, Says Shiv Sena

Mumbai, Aug 23 (IANS): President's rule should be imposed in the country as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government has been unable to control the anti-corruption movement led by Anna Hazare, Shiv Sena Chief Bal Thackeray Tuesday said.

Dhumal calls Congress Padyatra a flop show

Shimla: Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal lashed out at opposition congress for resorting to a padyatra while nationwide the party was in the dock over not enacting a strong Lokpal bill to combat corruption.

He termed the three day padyatra that started from Solan on Monday as a failed one for it had failed to evoke any response.

“There are very few participants in the padyatra and going by the number plates of vehicles deployed during the protest march, it is clear that people from outside have been brought over for the demonstration,” he said.

Congress marchers near Shoghi on Tuesday

Kiran Reddy, Botsa to take Jaganmohan by horns

HYDERABAD: Taking the YS Jaganmohan Reddy loyalist Congress MLAs head on, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy and Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Botsa Satyanarayana want Speaker Nadendla Manohar to accept the resignations submitted by the 29 legislators provided they are in order.

Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda said on Wednesday that the Reach-1 of the Namma Metro will be commercially launched in September second week.

He set September 15 as the tentative date for the inauguration of the Byappanahalli-MG Road stretch. “The Prime Minister has agreed to inaugurate the Metro during the second week of September soon after his return from a two-day visit to Bangladesh. Tentatively, the inaugural ceremony will be held on September 15.”

In a setback to YSR Congress founder Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy, the Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to interfere with the Andhra Pradesh High Court order directing the Central Bureau of Investigation to register a first information report to probe his alleged ill-gotten wealth.

Yoga guru Baba Ramdev on Wednesday said Anna Hazare's indefinite fast against corruption would benefit the whole country, especially the future generations.

"Hazare's fast will benefit the whole country and the future generations," Ramdev said at Ramlila Maidan where he visited the social activist on the ninth day of his fast to demand a stronger Lokpal Bill.

New Delhi: As Anna's fast enters the tenth day and concerns over his health mount, here are the latest health updates:

Aug 25 9:30 am: Dr Naresh Trehan, expressing concerns over Anna's health, says, "It is a worrying situation, we are monitoring him closely... examining him every two hours."

PM's appeal, falling health fail to move Anna

Even as the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government took the first major step to engage with Team Anna on the issue of a strong Lokpal on Tuesday, Anna Hazare refused to end his eight-day-long fast despite his worsening health and appeal by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to do so. Just a few minutes after doctors attending to him at New Delhi's Ramlila Maidan told him to get hospitalised, Hazare came out on the dais and announced that he was fasting for the nation and would not call it off.

NEW DELHI: Senior ministers Kapil Sibal and P. Chidambaram strongly opposed the talks between government and civil society representatives and jeopardised the negotiations over the contentious Lokpal bill, activist Arvind Kejriwal said Thursday, the 10th day of Anna Hazare's indefinite fast.

Senior ministers Kapil Sibal and P. Chidambaram strongly opposed the talks between government and civil society representatives and jeopardised the negotiations over the contentious Lokpal bill, activist Arvind Kejriwal said Thursday, the 10th day of Anna Hazare's indefinite fast.

Bolstered by consensus at the all-party meeting that parliamentary processes cannot be subverted, the government drew the hard line in its talks with Team Anna this evening, rejecting their demand to adopt the Jan Lokpal Bill in toto, and telling them bluntly that the collective will of parties in Parliament could not be defied.

Veteran Indian social activist Anna Hazare greets his supporters on the ninth day of his fasting at Ramlila grounds in New Delhi August 24, 2011. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

(Reuters) - India's bickering political parties united on Wednesday to urge ailing anti-corruption campaigner Anna Hazare to end his 9-day fast that has rallied millions of middle class Indians tired of rampant corruption in Asia's third largest economy.

The former Samajwadi Party general secretary, Amar Singh, was on Wednesday chargesheeted along with BJP leader L.K. Advani's former aide, Sudheendra Kulkarni, two former BJP MPs and two others for allegedly entering into a conspiracy to bribe MPs for their votes during the confidence motion in the Lok Sabha over the India-U.S. nuclear deal in 2008.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs leaves the stage after unveiling the iPhone 4 during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference in San Francisco, California, June 7, 2010. REUTERS/Robert Galraith

(Reuters) - Hard to understand, difficult to work with and deemed irreplaceable by many Apple fans and investors, Steve Jobs has made a life defying conventions and expectations.

Mum on Succession, Board Got Heat

Steve Jobs has been battling cancer and related effects for seven years, but directors of Apple Inc. had been largely silent on who would succeed him until Wednesday, when it named Tim Cook the company's new CEO.

Photos: Steve Jobs Through the Years

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Timeline: Steve Jobs and Apple

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Photos: The Apple Evolution

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The board's reticence about Mr. Jobs's health and succession has rankled corporate-governance watchdogs, investors and even some close to the company. Jerry York, a now-deceased outside director, had said in 2009 that the company should have been more forthcoming about Mr.

Jobs's health

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Photos: Steve Jobs Through the Years

Timeline: Steve Jobs and Apple

Photos: The Apple Evolution

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