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NOV 28: Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, was today discharged from the Escorts hospital here where he was admitted in the morning after he complained of abdominal pain.

Bachchan, wearing a red monkey cap and covered in a cream-color shawl, came out of the hospital shortly after 6:30 pm and got into a car with the help of his actor-son Abhishek Bachchan.

The 63-year-old legendary actor, who underwent a series of tests during the day, was looking very weak. Escorts Director and leading cardiologist Naresh Trehan, said the actor was feeling better than before. "It was just a stomach ache," he added.
Asked whether he was suffering from food poison, Trehan said "something like that.", reports PTI.

Monica�s defense: I was don�s captive

Hyderabad, Nov. 28: �Monica Bedi was in mafia don Abu Salem�s captivity all these years. He used her as a puppet,� her new lawyer Sudhir Batra told the special court for CBI cases on Monday. The court was hearing her bail petition.

Special court judge C.V. Subrahmanyam reserved his ruling on the petition for December 1 after hearing arguments of Mr Batra and CBI�s additional legal adviser Jacob Daniel. Monica had already stated in court that she is single and not married to Abu Salem. Her defence team, appointed by her uncle Purushottam Lal Bedi, is now trying to delink charges against Monica from those against Abu Salem. The tussle between the two teams of lawyers continues.

Mr Batra told the court, �Monica was a young girl when this happened. She was in the captivity of Abu Salem. She was given a passport by Abu Salem. She is innocent. For the same offence, she was in jail in Portugal for three years.� Opposing the bail, Mr Daniel said, �Monica has links with the mafia and she can threaten witnesses if released on bail. She can flee the country as it will be very easy for her to get a fake passport as she already possesses three of them.�

He added, �Even earlier she was not willing to cooperate with the investigation. During extradition she filed a petition in Portugal that she is not willing to go to India. She was extradited on the clause that she shall be tried on the charge of conspiracy and procuring forged passport.

On the issue of her being jailed in Lisbon, Mr Daniel said, �In Portugal she was imprisoned for traveling on a fake passport. Our case is that she had procured a fake passport in Kurnool for which she was not tried.� (Source: Deccan Chronicle)

No place for Lalu�s 200 cows at �10 Janpath�
Laloo's cows

PATNA, Nov 28 � Divested of their sprawling official residence, Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi have been allotted 10 Janpath here � the same address as that of Congress president Sonia Gandhi in New Delhi. But there is a problem: it cannot accommodate their 200 cows.

The palatial bungalow on Circular Road, popularly known as 10 Janpath, was allotted to them yesterday, four days after Rabri Devi was served a notice to vacate 1 Anne Marg, which the couple occupied as chief ministers since 1990.

Rabri Devi has been asked to make way for Nitish Kumar, the new chief minister of Bihar who ended the 15-year reign of the Rashtriya Janata Dal this week.

But though huge, 10 Janpath is less than half the size of the chief minister's official residence spread over five acres.

The couple is now confronted with a problem. How to accommodate the 200 cows, two horses and other pets that live with them at 1 Anne Marg?

The cattle and pets had specially constructed sheds at the chief minister's bungalow, which the state's most famous couple occupied for 15 long years.

Lalu Prasad had moved into 1 Anne Marg along with his wife and nine children on March 10, 1990 when he first became the chief minister of the state.

Though 1 Anne Marg was never notified as the official residence of the chief minister, located in high security area, it was considered the most apt for the person occupying the post.
Three other chief ministers, Bindeshwari Dube, Chandrasekhar Singh and Bhagwat Jha Azad � had lived in the bungalow earlier. (Source: Khaleej Times)

Girl dies after enacting Bollywood fire dance

Nov 28: A 10-year-old girl died in Kolkata after she caught fire while enacting a Bollywood dance number in her room, reports IANS.

According to the Police report, Prajukti Roy, who succumbed to her 80 per cent burn injuries in the SSKM Hospital, was trying to enact a dance sequence from a Hindi film in which the heroine keeps dancing despite her clothes catching fire.

Prajukti, a resident of south Kolkata and a student of Class VI, was hooked to Bollywood dance and song numbers and she used to perform those in her room every day.

On Tuesday night, Prajukti's mother heard her scream from her room in which she had locked herself in while enacting the fire dance. As the door was broken open, the girl was found engulfed in fire.

Anonymous threat to blow up Ayodhya temple

Nov. 28: An anonymous letter, threatening to blow up the makeshift Ramjanambhoomi complex and found in the letterbox of a bank in Ayodhya today, has sent the police into a tizzy, reports PTI.

"The letter appears to be a hoax and the handiwork of some mischief-monger," Senior Superintendent of Police Avinash Chandra, told the Indian News Agency.

He said the letter was recovered today after which the branch manager of the bank called in the police. Apart from a threat to blow up the acquired land complex, the letter also carried "obscene remarks" about some film personalities, he added.

Shiv Sena gets a blow
Raj, nephew of founder Bal Thackeray

MUMBAI, Nov 28 � The Shiv Sena suffered a crippling blow yesterday, when the second most popular leader in the party, Raj, nephew of founder Bal Thackeray, resigned after accusing his cousin Uddhav of mismanaging the affairs of the Sena.

Announcing his decision to quit as a member of the party executive committee and also as president of the Bharatiya Vidyarthi Sena (the student wing of the Sena), Raj blamed Uddhav and the �coterie� around him � �a quartet of clerks� � for his decision. He charged that these people had reduced the Sena to �a party of brokers and middlemen.�

Raj precipitated the crisis in the Sena on Friday, when he dashed off a letter to Bal Thackeray, accusing his son Uddhav, of mismanaging the party affairs. He blamed him for the recent setbacks suffered by the party and also called for a restructuring of the party.

However, Thackeray continued to back his son Uddhav � a more sober, though ineffective leader. About 10 days ago in Malwan, Thackeray senior had announced his virtual retirement from politics, and had also asserted that his son Uddhav would take over the reigns of the party.

The party suffered a blow when its candidate for the Malwan assembly seat by-election lost his deposit. Narayan Rane, the expelled Sena leader, who joined the Congress and became Revenue Minister, won with a record margin from Malwan, demoralizing the Sena cadre.

The Malwan debacle was the last straw for Raj, who according to sources close to him, had decided to quit from the party. His letter to Bal Thackeray was seen as a final warning, but his uncle did not take kindly to the ultimatum.

After returning from Nashik yesterday, where he had a phenomenal reception from Shiv Sainiks, despite warnings from �Matoshree,� the Thackeray headquarters in Bandra in Mumbai, not to attend his meetings, Raj drove to his home at Dadar. He then told the media that he had sent in his resignation from the party.

Uddhav

But Raj, like Rane a few months earlier, denied he had plans to join any other party. According to him, he had great respect for Bal Thackeray, who would forever remain his idol. But some people who were close to the senior Thackeray had poisoned his ears against Raj and his supporters, forcing him to take the decision, he claimed.

He also denied that he wanted to be the executive president of the party, replacing Uddhav. �In fact, I had myself suggested Uddhav�s name for the top post,� he said, but was now regretting the decision.

Accusing Uddhav and the coterie surrounding him, including Sena leader Subhash Desai, of working for their own selfish gains, he said the party was on a steady decline all over the state. He had remained silent because of his respect for Balasaheb Thackeray, but he could not continue forever in this manner.

Asked about the �invitation� by another former Sena leader, Sanjay Nirupam (now with the Congress), urging him to join the Congress, Raj ridiculed the offer.

Congress circles were overjoyed with the development, and many were hoping that Raj would follow Narayan Rane and join the party. Raj�s departure from the Sena is expected to result in a major exodus from the party, and could also perhaps lead to its demise.

Bal Thackeray will be turning 80 next month, and has already announced his virtual retirement from active politics. Son Uddhav is not an organization man, and has alienated many of the veteran party leaders. Rane, the shining new star in the Congress, who is expected to take over as chief minister of Maharashtra in a few months � has already drawn up a strategy of wooing over several other Sena parliamentarians and legislators. (Source: Khaleej Times)

Dev Anand will not exhibit 'Mr Prime Minister' at IFFI

Nov 26: Evergreen actor-turned-director Dev Anand, will not exhibit his latest film 'Mr Prime Minister' at the International Film Festival of India as he wanted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, to see it first.

"I did not enter it (the film at IFFI) for various reasons... I think I want to show it to my Prime Minister first," said 81-year-old Anand when asked about the absence of his film at the IFFI.

'Mr Prime Minister', a political satire, is scheduled to be released on December 30. "I think I want to show it to the world first... 30th December is fixed for the release of Mr Prime Minister all over the world," he told a television channel.

Envoy secures UN docs on Natwar Singh
By Masood Haider

Natwar Singh (R) with Condolezza Rice

NEW YORK, NOV 25. Indian government's special envoy Virendra Dayal sent to obtain crucial documents from the United Nations Independent Inquiry Commission (IIC) regarding alleged Oil-for-food payoffs to India's External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh and the Congress, told reporters Thursday that he has secured all essential documents he had sought from the Commission.

Mr Dayal, himself a retired UN official, has an inside track at the world body. He was sent to obtain documents from IIC headed by former US Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, which is investigating the scandal ridden Iraqi oil for Food program .

The IIC which ended its investigations had alleged that some 2,200 companies doing business with UN's oil for food program were involved in giving kickbacks and bribes to Iraqi and UN officials. It named some 133 Indian companies which had obtained such contracts from the UN program. Most of them allegedly paid bribes to Iraqi officials to obtain lucrative contracts.

In an appendix, the report charged that Mr Natwar Singh and the Congress Party had received as "non contractual" beneficiaries eight million barrels of oil, that equals $240 million worth of oil if calculated at approximately $30 a barrel, which was the crude oil price roughly during 1999-2000.

Volcker

Mr Dayal told reporters that these documents would now be examined by experts in New Delhi to see what more is required. If necessary, he might come to New York once more to seek information.

He said the Volcker Committee had handed over all documents which were in its capacity to do so and only after their analysis would a decision be taken as whether India needs to contact some other countries.

The Committee, he said, was convinced that the documents on which it had based its findings were authentic but all aspects would be examined the Indian investigators to arrive at their own conclusions.

Mr Dayal said the Committee was sorting out some other documents, implying that he had sought more information. But he repeated his assertion that he has been able to get all essential documents he had sought.

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