Sanjay Dutt says beaten up while in jail

BAREILLY - Actor-turned-politician Sanjay Dutt has caused flutters in the political circles with his revelation that he was beaten up while he was in police custody in the nineties under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA).

Screening of porn flick by students threatens college funding

WASHINGTON - A porn flick has been receiving stiff resistance from critics, who have said that universities should not be paying for the screening of such smut.

Apex court refuses to revive Uttar Pradesh quota law

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Wednesday refused to revive an Uttar Pradesh law which sought to reserve 50 percent of seats in the state’s all public and private educational institutions for students from Dalit, tribal and backward communities.

Rita Bahuguna Joshi named Congress candidate from Lucknow

NEW DELHI - Uttar Pradesh’s Congress unit chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi was Tuesday named the party’s candidate for the prestigious Lucknow Lok Sabha constituency.

Was Nafisa hijacked by Amar from Congress fold?

LUCKNOW - Samajwadi Party general secretary Amar Singh ensured that actress-turned-social activist Nafisa Ali left the Congress and joined his party to contest from the Lucknow constituency, according to informed sources.

Nafisa Ali is Samajwadi Party candidate from Lucknow

LUCKNOW - Film actress and socialite Nafisa Ali is the Samajwadi Party candidate for the Lucknow Lok Sabha seat.

Bull versus bull again, under the Goa sun

PANAJI - Blood glistens again in the sunlight as specially-bred and reared fighter bulls take on one another openly once more, following the legalising of bullfighting in Goa. Now, without fearing the law, spectators can egg on the animals in the local form of bullfighting called dhirio, which has its parallel only in South Korea.

Economic slowdown brings bounty to ship-breaking yard in Gujarat

SACHANA - A global economic slowdown has hit industries ranging from automakers to investment banks, but in Sachana village of Gujarat, business is at record levels and workers are struggling to meet the demands.

Patna High Court dashes Shahabuddin’s hope to contest in Lok Sabha polls

PATNA - RJD MP Shahabuddin’s petition seeking to contest Lok Sabha polls in Bihar has been rejected by Patna High Court, which has rejected to stay his conviction in a kidnap and murder case.

Shahabuddin’s poll hopes dashed by Patna High Court

PATNA - In a final blow to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Mohammed Shahabuddin’s election hopes, the Patna High Court Tuesday dismissed his plea to suspend his conviction in a criminal case so that he can contest the Lok Sabha election.

Apex court dismisses lawsuit for Navin Chawla’s removal

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Friday dismissed a lawsuit that sought removal of Navin Chawla from the Election Commission. Chawla is set to become the chief election commissioner after N. Gopalaswami’s retirement April 20.

No problem working with Nawaz Sharif, says Pakistani premier

LONDON - Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani says he has ‘no problem’ working with opposition leader Nawaz Sharif, adding he wants to immediately lift federal rule in Punjab.

Sharif could return, parliament to be supreme: Gilani

ISLAMABAD - In the strongest assertion of his authority yet, Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani has said opposition leader Nawaz Sharif could rejoin his government, which will endeavour to return to parliament the powers that had been taken away by former military strongman Pervez Musharraf.

Highway to Shimla reopened after demolitions at Kalka

SHIMLA - Driving between this Himachal Pradesh capital and Chandigarh, Delhi or elsewhere in the plains is once again pleasurable for motorists as the National Highway (NH) 22 has been reopened after the authorities demolished encroachments on the road at Kalka.

11 sacked Pakistani judges reinstated: Report

ISLAMABAD - At least 11 sacked Pakistani judges have been reinstated Tuesday, a media report said.

Dutt asks Muslim clerics to pray for him

LUCKNOW - Bollywood star and Samajwadi Party candidate from Lucknow Sanjay Dutt Monday met prominent Muslim clerics and urged them to pray for him so that he gets the Supreme Court’s permission to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections.

Leaders, intellectuals welcome Pak Govt’s move to restore deposed chief justice

LAHORE/ISLAMABAD/ GUJRANWALA - Former Pakistan Prime Minister and chief of the opposition Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N), Nawaz Sharif, on Monday congratulated the whole nation over the reinstatement of the deposed judges.

Long march is ‘prelude to revolution’: Sharif

ISLAMABAD - Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif Sunday called the protest march to Islamabad a ‘prelude to revolution’, as the country remained gripped in an intensifying political crisis.

Thousands join Sharif on long march, pitched battles in Lahore

LAHORE - Thousands of people joined former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif as he defied house arrest orders Sunday to lead his party’s ‘long march’ to demand reinstatement of sacked judges as lawyers and political activists fought pitched battles with the police.

Candle-light vigils demand justice for ragging victim

NEW DELHI/TANDA - Hundreds of people marched and held candle-light vigils in New Delhi and Himachal Pradesh’s Tanda town Saturday evening to demand justice for Aman Kachru, a medical student who died after ragging.

Kayani meets PM as confrontation looms over sacked judges

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani Wednesday met Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani against the backdrop of a confrontation looming over restoring Supreme Court judges sacked two years ago, with former prime minister Nawaz Sharif bent on leading a countrywide ‘Long March’ of lawyers to force the issue.

Sobhraj ready to take on Bollywood, with or without old foe

KATHMANDU - The entry of his old foe in the ring once again does not scare yesteryear’s super criminal Charles Sobhraj, who says he is ready to take on Bollywood, with or without the diplomat-turned-consultant who has hounded him for years.

IPL boss Modi loses Rajasthan Cricket Association election

JAIPUR - Lalit Modi, Indian Premier League (IPL) supremo, suffered a big jolt Sunday as he lost the election for the president in the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA).

Chawla set to be CEC, president refuses to remove him

NEW DELHI - Navin Chawla is all set to take over as chief election commissioner (CEC) ahead of the April-May Lok Sabha polls with President Pratibha Patil Sunday rejecting the present incumbent N. Gopalaswami’s recommendation to remove him.

Nepal prosecution stalls Sobhraj trial

KATHMANDU - Having failed to produce the vital original documents that can put yesteryear’s ‘Serpent’ Charles Sobhraj behind bars for ever, Nepal’s prosecution has fallen back on its old strategy of delaying the trial of the 64-year-old.

Pakistan simmers with protests against Sharifs’ poll bar

ISLAMABAD - Former Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif Thursday vowed to take his fight against a Supreme Court decision barring him and his brother from contesting elections to the people, as President Asif Ali Zardari attempted to distance himself from the verdict, which has triggered violent protests in the country.

Amar Singh finally deposes in court in cheating case

NEW DELHI - Amidst high drama, Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh Thursday finally deposed in a city court in a two-year-old cheating case registered by him.

58 MPs move motion for scam-tainted judge’s removal

NEW DELHI - Fifty-eight Rajya Sabha members Friday moved a motion for the impeachment of Calcutta High Court judge Soumitra Sen whose removal Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishna has sought on corruption charges.

Lawsuits on Lucknow land allotment scam transferred to apex court

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Monday transferred from the Allahabad High Court to itself lawsuits by people close to former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, who are defending the allotment of huge residential plots in Lucknow to themselves in 2005.

Apex court allows Subramanian Swamy his say in Ayodhya lawsuits

NEW DELHI - The Supreme Court Tuesday allowed former central minister Subramanian Swamy to have his say during adjudication of lawsuits related to the Ayodhya dispute.