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Rahul Gandhi flays PM Modi</br> In a veiled attack on PM Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today said he and other leaders are not listening to the voice of people as they believe they have the power and take all the decisions. "They are not listening to you because they believe they have the power. It is because they have the power, they don't need to listen to you,” Rahul Gandhi said addressing a public meeting to celebrate the birth centenary of the late K Kamaraj, a chief minister who rose to become AICC President. "May be sitting in the CM's house for so many years they have forgotten something. It is when they are in power, listening becomes most important," Rahul Gandhi said. "The Prime Minister had assured the country that he will not tolerate corruption. But he speaks in air. We asked the PM what he thinks about Lalit Modi. We got no answer. We got no answer on the Vyapam scam, no answer on Chhattisgarh and no answer on Sushma," Rahul Gandhi added. (PTI) (23/07/2015)
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Snubbed by Sonia Gandhi, Shashi Tharoor earns Modi's praise </br> Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who got an earful from his party chief Sonia Gandhi yesterday, received accolades today from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his skills in public speaking, leaving political tongues wagging on the timing of the praise. Modi showered praise on Shashi Tharoor, the only Congress MP present at a function organised by the Lok Sabha Speaker for MPs, while talking about the need for free airing of views on national issues irrespective of the party affiliations. "Oxford debate has a huge significance. It is good that Shashiji was there…. What he spoke there reflected the sentiments of the citizens of India," he said while inaugurating a workshop on the Speaker's Research Initiative (SRI) to train MPs on various subjects of global importance. The praise for Shashi Tharoor, the lone Congress MP present at the function, came a day after he was snubbed by his party chief for the leak of his remarks counselling Congress against disruption of Parliament over scams. (PTI) (23/07/2015)
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Death penalty better than entire life behind bars: SC </br> The award of life imprisonment with a rider that it means "remainder of life" today came under sharp attack from the Supreme Court which said that it would be better to award death penalty to such convicts. "All of us live in hope, if this is the prevailing situation then there will be no hope for such convicts. What is the point in keeping a man in jail for whole life… Give him the death sentence. That will be better," a five-judge constitutional bench, headed by Chief Justice H L Dattu, said. The remarks came while hearing a petition of the Centre against Tamil Nadu Government's decision to set free convicts of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case in which the court today allowed states to exercise power of remission in certain class of cases. (Express Photo By Amit Mehra) (23/07/2015)
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R K Pachauri sacked as TERI chief over sexual harassment charges </br> Renowned climate scientist R K Pachauri, who is battling charges of sexual harassment by a junior colleague, was today sacked as chief of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) by its top decision making body. he decision to show the door to Pachauri as Director General of the non-profit think-tank, TERI, was taken by its Governing Council that has some of the influential names of corporate India, at a meeting held here. The Council chose Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) Director General Dr Ajay Mathur as successor to 74-year old Pachauri, who was allowed by a Delhi court recently to enter his office premises while keeping the head office and a branch in Gurgaon off limits for him. "The Governing Council (GC) of TERI at its meeting held in Bangalore today took a decision to appoint Dr Ajay Mathur, currently Director General of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), Government of India, as the Director General (DG) of TERI," the environment body said in a statement. Pachauri has been booked on charges of molestation, stalking, sexual harassment (Sections 354, 354A, 354D of IPC) and criminal intimidation (Section 506 of IPC) on a complaint by a 29-year-old woman in February 13. (Express photo) (23/07/2015)
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Absconding 'boyfriend' held over actress's death </br> The 23-year-old 'boyfriend' of TV and film actress Shilpa, who was found dead in Karamana river here, was arrested today in connection with the incident, police said. Lijin was seen with the 19-year-old actress shortly before her body was found in the river on July 18, police said. He had been absconding since then and police intensified searches to find him. He was nabbed from Mandapathinkadavu near here this noon, officials said. Police said the arrest of Lijin would help crack the mystery behind the death of the actress. (Twitter) (23/07/2015)
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Bus with 52 aboard plunges into river near Shimla </br> Eight persons were killed and 26 others were feared to have been washed away as the bus they were travelling by plunged into turbulent Parbati River at Sarsari Kullu district today. The private tourist bus was carrying 52 pilgrims and was on its way from Anadpur Sahib to Manikaran. Most of the victims hailed from Barnala and Mansa area, police said. Massive search operations have been launched and eight bodies have been recovered so far and 18 rescued persons have been rushed to trauma centre at Kullu hospital while 26 persons are feared to have been washed away, they added. The chances of survival of missing persons are slim as the river was swollen and the bodies seems to have been swept away by gushing waters, Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kanwar said. </br> <br>(In picture: <i>Rescue work is carried out after a bus, carrying pilgrims, fell into Parbati River in Kullu district on Thursday.</i>) (PTI) (23/07/2015)
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Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal questions LG's stand, shoots off letter </br> Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal today slammed Lt Governor Najeeb Jung for his assertion that 'Government' in Delhi meant the LG, saying it will result in dictatorship and that his stand was not only unconstitutional but "laughable" in a democratic country. In a terse letter to Jung on the row over appointment of the DCW chief, Kejriwal said it was not an ego issue and alleged that the LG was acting at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The LG says he is the government of Delhi. How can it be? How can anyone call himself the government? This will result in dictatorship in Delhi. Nothing can be more laughable than this. India is a democracy. Delhi has an elected government. "This is not a battle of ego for us. Respected LG, PM has won, we all have lost. We fold our hands in requesting you to kindly sign the files pertaining to DCW and make it functional. I am sending the file to you," he said in the letter. (Express photo by Praveen Khanna) (23/07/2015)
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Yakub Memon seeks stay of execution of his death sentence </br> Yakub Abdul Razak Memon, the sole death row convict in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, today moved the Supreme Court seeking stay of execution of his death sentence scheduled for July 30 on the ground that all legal remedies have not been exhausted. Memon, in his petition said that a lower court's death warrant is illegal as all the legal remedies available to him under the law have not been exhausted and that he has also approached the Maharastra Governor with a plea for mercy. He had filed the mercy plea before the Governor immediately after his curative petition was dismissed by the apex court on Tuesday. (23/07/2015)
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Union Home Ministry bars journos from meeting senior officers </br> The Union Home Ministry today barred journalists from meeting senior officials other than the spokesperson and came out with a set of guidelines on dissemination of information to the media. In the order, the Home Ministry said that the Additional Director General (Media) will be the single point for dissemination of all publicity material to the media including clarifications sought by journalists. "The ADG (Media) will obtain approval of the Home Secretary, wherever required, for release of information to the media," the order issued by the Ministry Joint Secretary Satpal Chouhan said. Sources said that with the order, the practice of journalists meeting senior officers of the Home Ministry in their chambers virtually comes to an end. (Reuters) (23/07/2015)
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'War of placards' between Congress, BJP in Lok Sabha </br> It was as much a 'war of placards' between the Congress and the BJP as it was a war of words in the Lok Sabha today. BJP members had brought in placards highlighting various scams under the Congress rule to counter the main opposition party's posters attacking the Narendra Modi government. "Ulta chor kotwal ko daante, kisano ki zameen damaad ko baante (Like a thief rebuking cops, farmers' land is given to the son-in-law)" was one such BJP poster, referring to the controversial land deals involving Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra. "C for corruption, C for Congress" read another BJP poster, while a third one said "Congress ka raaj jahan, ghotalon ki baadh wahan (scams flood wherever Congress rules)". These posters were aimed at countering the Congress placards, one of which read: "Modiji 56 inch dikhao, Sushma, Raje ko turant hatao (Show your 56 inch (chest) Modiji, sack Sushma and Raje immediately). Other Congress placards read: 'Bade Modi meherban, toh chhote Modi pehelwan' (a Hindi idiom meaning that a small person is strong if supported by a powerful person) and 'PM chuppi todo' (PM, break your silence). (PTI) (23/07/2015)
