NIA files second chargesheet against Yasin Bhatkal for terror attacks

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February 20, 2014

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) filed a supplementary chargesheet on Thursday against Indian Mujahideen (IM) co-founder Yasin Bhatkal and aide Asadullah Akhtar with a case of alleged conspiracy to carry out terror acts in the country.

The supplementary chargesheet was filed before the court of district judge IS Mehta who posted the matter for February 24 for taking cognisance on the final report.

According to court sources, Bhatkal and Akhtar have been listed in the chargesheet under various sections of the IPC, including 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 121 (waging war against the country), 121-A (conspiracy to wage war) and under various sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The sources also said NIA has defined the roles of Bhatkal and Akhtar in the entire conspiracy of the IM to carry out the terror activities.

Bhatkal is alleged to have been involved in the 2010 Pune Gernam Bakery blast and is reported to have planted the bombs himself. 17 people were killed in the attack.

NIA had filed its first chargesheet against IM in July last year.

The IM is under the scanner for a host of terror attacks in India. The blast outside a stadium in Bangalore in 2010 just before a cricket match is said to be one of them. It is also under the scanner for Dilsukhnagar blasts of Hyderabad and the Bodh Gaya serial blasts.

Bhatkal was arrested by the NIA from the Indo-Nepal border on August 29 last year. Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde confirmed the news the next day. Another IM leader Asadullah Akhtar alias Haddi was also picked up along with 30-year-old Bhatkal.

Bhatkal’s real name is Ahmed Siddibappa and he was one of the most wanted men in India. He was the only IM founder member who was operating in the country, with his brothers and founder members of IM, Riaz and Iqbal Bhatkal, having fled to Pakistan.

Five school students suspended for not attending Narendra Modi event

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

In what can bring in huge criticism to Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, on Wednesday said that five school students have been suspended for not attending an event, which was addressed by Gujarat Chief Minister in Vadodara on February 14.

Modi inaugurated a stadium in Vadodara last week, which was attended by Navrachna School students.

The parents, however, have denied the reports and said that their children were suspended as they did not attend the classes.

The Congress has hit back and criticised the BJP leader by saying that school students should not be used as political tools. Congress leader Narendra Rawat said that this is how BJP ensures crowd in Modi’s rallies and events. Rawat said that his party would agitate against it and demanded an investigation into the matter.

After backing Mamata, Anna Hazare says will support anyone doing good work

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

Hours after announcing his support to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the General Elections, social activist Anna Hazare said that he would back anybody doing good work.

When asked about his opinion on some charges levelled against Mamata, Anna said that one needs to change the perspective of seeing things. These days only a few negative things are being highlighted, not an ample amount of good work done by an individual.

Anna’s reaction comes after he announced that he is not backing any party but only an individual.

“I am supporting her (Mamata) but I am not supporting any political party,” he said without elaborating.

The 76-year-old activist said he was supporting Banerjee as she agreed to implement his “17 point agenda” covering a range of issues including containing graft and bringing in more transparency if she comes to power at the Centre.

Anna also said that he won’t support Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi or Kejriwal.

The social activist said that Kejriwal is now a changed person and aspiring to be the prime minister of the country.

Punish my father, he raped me: a Haryana schoolgirl’s horror at home

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

In a matter of four months, a schoolgirl in Haryana was allegedly gang-raped twice and then sexually assaulted by her father.

In her statement to the police, the girl gave a horrifying account of repeated assault in her village in Sonepat, less than an hour from Delhi, and in her own home.

A group of boys from her village allegedly gang-raped her twice in two months.

They were all arrested, but then her father allegedly started raping her.

“My father raped me in September. He said if I tell anyone he will get me killed. I want to study but my father wants to push me into prostitution. Please save me,” she said.

Her story emerged after a local NGO took her to the police and she told them that she did not want to go home.

Her father has been arrested and booked for rape.

“My father raped me. I don’t want to live with him…he should be punished…I want justice,” she said in a letter. She has now been placed in care of the NGO.

The girl’s mother says she was not aware of what was happening in her own home. “She never told me. She only told me now,” she said, asking for strongest possible punishment for her husband.

India enacted harsher laws for crimes against women last year, after the fatal gang-rape of a young student on a moving bus in December, 2012 jolted the nation and brought thousands of protesters out on the streets.

In Gujarat textbooks, Mahatma Gandhi killed in October, Japan nukes US

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

“Japan dropped a nuclear bomb on US during World War 2”, “Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated on October 30, 1948” – these are just two of the many factual errors in textbooks published by the Gujarat government for state-run schools.

This is not where these textbooks, meant for Classes 6 to 8 and published by Gujarat Council of Educational Research and Training (GCERT), stop. They go on to say, “Bal Gangadhar Tilak brought out an English newspaper called the Marathi”, “Proportion of poisonous gas CO3 has increased due to cutting of trees” and “The neighbouring Pakistan is an Islamic Islamabad Nation”.

The class 8 social science textbook, in particular, has over 120 factual, spelling and grammatical mistakes.

The students and their parents have been left fuming.

“This clearly is the reflection of the competency of the writers of the book and even competency of the translators… there should have been some semblance of sensibility while clearing the draft of these books,” said Nirav Thakkar, Principal, A G High School in Ahmedabad.

An embarrassed state government has ordered a probe but the books haven’t been withdrawn.

“We have set up a two member committee to look into these errors and make changes immediately. We are also initiating action against the panelist who had vetted the books,” State Education Minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama said in a statement.

But academicians claim it’s too late. “What is surprising is why basic checks were not carried out before circulating the books? Books for classes 6, 7 and 8 have been out in the market for quite some time now and the state government did nothing to spot it also,” said Vasant Bhatt, Director, school of languages.

Tragedy at wedding party: 3 girls of a family burnt alive, allegedly by uncle

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

Three little girls of a family attending a wedding in their native village in Andhra Pradesh were burnt alive on Wednesday, allegedly by their uncle, for no known motive.

Akshaya, 9, Suri, 6 and Khushi, 4, were daughters of three brothers who had come to the Nizamabad district for the wedding. Their charred bodies were found today, only a few km from the place where the family had gathered for the event, and where they were playing before they vanished.

The brothers’ cousin, Narendra Reddy, allegedly took the girls on a ride in his car on Wednesday afternoon.

The girls’ absence was noticed much later. At around 10.30 pm, Narendra reportedly called to say he was 40 km away, at a place called Basser, and was going to commit suicide. The entire family made frantic calls to him and even called the police for help. His watch and slippers have been found near a bridge.

Stunned relatives say they don’t know why the girls were murdered; there was no property or any other dispute. The police have found a bottle of petrol near the girls’ bodies. “It is a clear case of murder, but the motive is not clear,” said District Superintendent of Police Tarun Joshi.

Some relatives speculate that Narendra, who was not married, may have committed the crime out of jealousy.

The fathers of Akshaya and Suri are civil contractors in Hyderabad. Raju Reddy, father of Khushi, is a manager with Reliance.

Have you tasted NaMo tea? now drink RaGa milk

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

The Congress is seeking to counter NaMo chai with RaGa (Rahul Gandhi) milk, says a report. A week after BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi held a ‘Chai Chaupal’ and interacted with people at 1,000 places in the country, Congress leaders in Uttar Pradesh have begun to sell milk in an one-upmanship campaign.

On Monday, a handful of Congress activists in Gorakhpur gave away free milk to passersby in paper cups with a picture of party vice president Rahul Gandhi embossed on it. The distribution was done at Golghar in Gorakhpur, a major political hub in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Both Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Modi have addressed political rallies in the region in the last one month.

The Congress is seeking to counter NaMo chai with RaGa (Rahul Gandhi) milk, says a report. A week after BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi held a ‘Chai Chaupal’ and interacted with people at 1,000 places in the country, Congress leaders in Uttar Pradesh have begun to sell milk in an one-upmanship campaign.

On Monday, a handful of Congress activists in Gorakhpur gave away free milk to passersby in paper cups with a picture of party vice president Rahul Gandhi embossed on it. The distribution was done at Golghar in Gorakhpur, a major political hub in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

I will miss my college days

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Prakash Jha

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February 20, 2014

Every beginning has an end and every end is a new beginning the same aspect applies to my college life too. College life is one of the best days of every individual’s life. I have written several articles on crime, politics, law and many other issues and have gained vital experience in journalism. I am also a college student pursuing my Third year of Bachelor of Mass Media. Soon I will complete my graduation but I will always cherish the memories of my college days.

Soon I will cease to be a college student hence I want to share memories which I spent with my class mates. I am a student of Thakur College of Science and Commerce and want to thank my professor. Whatever I am today is due to their efforts and blessings.

I recollect the first day of my college. While entering in the classroom I noticed too many new faces which frightened me as most of the students knew each other and I was yet to get introduced to them. After completing three years I know each and every student of the BMM course. I am sure that most of the students might have had the same experience when they entered the class for the first time.

During my college days, we bonded with senior and juniors students and it is difficult to bid adieu to them. How I can forget the time spent in class—the lectures, the exams and study groups. The separation has not been easy for me.
I and my classmates laughed, we cried, leaped have fallen down. We have felt the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat and now it’s coming to an end. Time needs to stand still so that I can continue having fun in my class. I had enjoyed every moment of my college days.

When I was in my first year my seniors used to ask us to organize a farewell for them. I began wondering why should I offer a farewell to my seniors whom I don’t know? Juniors too might be having the same opinion. However, our class used to start working for giving seniors a good farewell.

Even my juniors too had planned something unique for our farewell. Juniors adopted a unique strategy to invite us which really impressed me. The strength of TYBMM is more than 100 students. Juniors personally invited every student by mentioning their name in the greeting cards which is a rare incident in the history of the BMM department. I am grateful to my juniors for coming up with an innovative idea.

A farewell is organized for us on 22nd February. It will be an emotional day for us because we have spent three years in college together. All of sudden we have to bid adieu to everyone which will be an emotional moment for all of us. The whistle has blown, the game is over, it’s time to go home. I would like to dedicate this article to my classmates and my professor. I will miss my friends and the good moments spent with them.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui re-visits theatre days with ‘Ghoomketu’

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

After doing comedy in his theatre days, actor NawazuddinSiddiqui is excited to try comedy for the first time with his film ‘Ghoomketu’.

“`Ghoomketu` is an out-and-out comedy film and I am doing such a film for the first time. However, I did a lot of comedy during my theatre days,” the 39-year-old said here Wednesday at the Top Gear awards.

“The star cast of the film is very good, AnuragKashyap, SwanandKirkire my batchmate and RaghubirYadav,” he added.

Besides ‘Ghoomketu’, Nawazuddin has six to seven films lined up for the year.

“Besides `Ghoomketu` there is `Mountain Man`, Ketan Mehta`s `Monsoon shootout` and `Liar`s Dice` which was at the Sundance festival this time. Another film is `Haramkhor`,” said Nawazuddin.

He was recently seen in ‘Miss Lovely’ and ‘The Lunchbox’.

No issues with bold scenes: Alia Bhatt

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Afternoon Voice

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February 20, 2014

Alia Bhatt already seems to be getting experimental – after playing a fashion-conscious and arrogant young girl in her debut film ‘Student Of The Year’ she will now be seen as a deglamourised character in ‘Highway’. She says she won`t do something as bizarre as going bald for a movie, but she`s game to being bold.

Her father, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, is known to have produced several bold movies like ‘Murder’, ‘Jism’, ‘Raaz’ and ‘Kalyug’ and Alia doesn`t find it tough to take up bold roles.

So what if she started her career with a typical Karan Johar film? The actress said: “I would love to do a film like `Murder`.”

“As far as my limitations are concerned, I would never shave my head for any role and so far as bold scenes are concerned, I have no issues at all,” the 20-year-old said.

Her connect with her father goes beyond her appreciation for his body of work. She keeps her personal life private, but admits she turns to him for advice regarding her professional decisions.

“I don`t discuss my personal life with my father, but I discuss my work with him a lot. We have become closer since I have become an actor. My mother (SoniRazdan) tries to ask everything, but I keep things to myself,” she said.

As a person, she believes she is like her father.

“I have his will power. I am like him and I value my audience,” she said.

Alia is also very sensitive and protective of what people say of her family members.

“I don`t like it when people go on about my family. Because of me, they bring in my father and sister (Pooja Bhatt) and I don`t like it. Write as much as you want to about my clothes…I don`t care, but I am very protective about my family.