PTI, Bilaspur, 10 February : The Chhattisgarh High Court rejected the bail application of rights activist Dr Binayak Sen, who has been sentenced to life imprisonment by a sessions court on charges of sedition and links with Maoists. While turning down 61-year-old Sen's plea for bail, a division bench of justices T P Sharma and R L Jhanwar also dismissed the bail petition of Kolkata businessman Piyush Guha, who has also been awarded life term in the case. The High Court had reserved its order on the bail pleas of Sen and Guha yesterday. Sen has also challenged his conviction in the case. Elina Sen, wife of the rights activist, said an appeal will be filed in the Supreme Court challenging the High Court's decision. န Photos : PTI, AP-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cricket-Bangladesh stage mock security drill ahead of WCReuters, Dhaka, 10 February : Security forces staged a mock emergency drill after a controlled blast at a stadium in the Bangladesh capital of Dhaka on Thursday which will host the opening ceremony for the cricket World Cup on 17 February. Bangladesh meet India in the opening match two days later at the Shere Bangla National stadium. "The blast and the subsequent actions were parts of a security drill ahead of the World Cup," Abdul Jalil, a senior officer in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police, told Reuters. READ FULL STORY
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Darjeeling hills peaceful, but GJM's shutdown disrupts life Darjeeling, Siliguri, 10 February : The Darjeeling hills were peaceful Thursday but normal life was paralysed by the indefinite shutdown called by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) to protest the death of two supporters in police firing two days ago. "There are no reports of any untoward incident. The situation is peaceful and under control. The security forces are on high alert," Inspector General of Police (North Bengal) Randhir Kumar told Bengal Newz over phone. Vehicular movement was almost nil and offices, shops and commercial establishments remained closed in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong - the three hill subdivisions of Darjeeling district.-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Agartala city chairperson Sankar Das(64) dies in New Delhi
Agartala, 10 February : Agartala Municipal Council chairperson and a leading intellectual of northeastern India Sankar Das died in New Delhi Thursday. He was 64. Das, a senior lawyer of the Gauhati High Court, was elected to the Agartala Municipal Council and became its chairperson three times since 2000. He was suffering from heart related ailments and diabetes. Das had suffered a cerebral attack 25 January and was admitted to Govind Ballabh Pant Medical College and Hospital here. Next day, he was flown to Kolkata and treated at a private hospital there before being taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi last week, family sources told reporters here. "He breathed his last in AIIMS in the wee hours Thursday," an official said. A leading cultural activist of northeast India, Das is survived by his 82-year-old mother, a daughter and wife Fulan Bhattacharjee, who is herself a renowned journalist, writer and social worker. Das's body was brought here in the evening and a condolence march will be organised Friday. His body will be donated to the Govind Ballabh Pant Medical College and Hospital here. Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, leader of opposition and Congress leader Ratan Lal Nath and top leaders of all political parties have expressed their grief over his death. န Photo : Parthajit Dutta-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
India Government holds talks with some ULFA leaders
PTI, New Delhi, 10 February : Breaking new grounds, Government today held for the first time unconditional talks with leaders of banned outfit ULFA and said it was "confident" of finding a "just and honourable solution" to the over three decade-old insurgency problem in Assam."As you are aware that they (ULFA) have offered unconditional talks with Government of India and Government of Assam to find out a honurable and just solution to the issues raised by them. "I welcome them. I assured them that the Government of India and Government of Assam will engage them in sincere and meaningful talks and I am confident that we will find a just and honourable solution," Home Minister P Chidambaram said after ULFA leaders led by their 'chairman' Arabinda Rajkhowa met him before entering into talks here.
"They called on me which is a courtesy call... န Photo : PTI
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Centre silent in the face of multiple scams: Venkaiah NaiduBurdwan, 10 February : Dubbing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the ''mouni muni'' (silent spectator), senior BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu today accused the Centre ofremaining unmoved despite thousands of crores swindled in different scams. "One scam after another rocked the country in recent times. Thousands of crores were lost in Commonwealth, IPL, 2Gspectrum and Adarsh Housing scams. But the UPA government remains unmoved and our Prime Minister remains the mouni-baba," Naidu said at a BJP meeting in Burdwan today.
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