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The much-awaited cabinet expansion in Madhya Pradesh could be witnessed shortly. CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan hinted this while meeting PM Narendra Modi as part of his three-day visit at New Delhi on Friday.
Besides, the long awaited appointments in commissions and boards could be made soon.

Chouhan had close door consultations with PM Modi for half an hour. After meeting, Chouhan though avoided discussions on cabinet expansion with the media he affirmed that expansion would be brought about shortly.

He, however, hinted that there was no question of removing octogenarian Babulal Gaur from the cabinet. “Why should we remove Babulal Gaur,” he asked when inquired about any possible exclusion of Gaur from the cabinet.

In his mid 80s, Gaur’s fate as minister in Shivraj government has been hanging in balance for a while as PM Modi last year had made it clear that elderly politicians won’t be accommodated in governments at the centre or states.

Sources claimed that CM Chouhan had discussions with union minister

Narendra Singh Tomar and BJP national president Amit Shah as well. He also called on several senior party leaders including MP in charge Vinay Sahashtrabuddhe.

Close to half a dozen new faces could be inducted into the cabinet. Besides, some non-performing ministers could face shifting of departments. Those who are expecting a cabinet berth include Archana Chitnis, Rustam Singh, Mahendra Hardia, Ramesh Mendola, Jaibhan Singh Pawaiya, Vishwas Sarang and others.

Former Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda, former coal secretary HC Gupta and seven others were on put on trial by a special court here in connection with a case pertaining to alleged irregularities in allocation of a coal block.

Special CBI Judge Bharat Parasar also framed charges against former Jharkhand Chief Secretary AK Basu, two public servants - Basant Kumar Bhattacharya and Bipin Bihari Singh - Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Ltd (VISUL), its director Vaibhav Tulsyan, Koda's alleged close aide Vijay Joshi and chartered accountant Navin Kumar Tulsyan in the case.
 
The case pertains to alleged irregularities in allocation of Rajhara North (Central and Eastern) coal block in Jharkhand to VISUL.
All these accused did not plead guilty to the charge framed against them and claimed trial after which the fixed the matter for August 17 for admission/denial of documents by them.

"Separate charges against various accused persons have been framed. All the accused persons did not plead guilty and claimed trial," the court said.
The court had ordered to put these accused on trial for the alleged offence of Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.

The court said Gupta also prima facie committed offence under section 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) of the IPC while Vaibhav Tulsyan, Joshi and VISUL prima facie committed offence of cheating under section 420 of the IPC.

The charges under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act were framed against five public servants -- Koda, Gupta, Basu, Singh and Bhattacharya.

On July 14, the court had ordered to put these accused on trial noting that various acts of omission and commission committed by the accused prima facie made it clear that they had conspired with a "sole objective" to accommodate VISUL in Rajhara North (Central and Eastern) coal block in Jharkhand.
CBI, in its charge sheet, had said that VISUL had applied for allocation of Rajhara North coal block on January 8, 2007 to the Ministry of Coal.

CBI had alleged that although Jharkhand government and the Steel Ministry did not recommend VISUL's case for the coal block allocation, the 36th Screening Committee recommended the block to the accused firm.

Today (July 31, 2015) is Guru Purnima. The festival of Guru Purnima is celebrated with much joy in Hindu religion. The glory of teachers is not just mentioned in Hindu religion, but also in other religions.

People with other religions too respect their teachers and treat them as their gods.

 

Lets see, what GURUS are called in different religions :

Hindu Religion

In this religion, the teachers are called by various names. Some are called ‘Sant’ and some ‘Mahatma’. They are also called as ‘Guruji’ who saying in not denied by anyone.

Sikh Religion

There are 100 gurus in Sikhism that are considered to be Gods. The 10 out of these 11 gurus are - Nanak Dev Ji, Angad Dev, Amar Das, Ram Dass, Arjundev, Hargovind, Harray, Teg Bahadur and Govind singh. The 11th guru is Guru Granth Saheb.


Christianity

The guru of Christianity is priest. People call them as ‘Father’.


Muslim Religion

The Ulemao in other words are knows as teachers.


Buddhism

Like Hinduism, in Buddhism too, teachers are considered to be Gods.  Buddhists call them as Lama.

SAN FRANCISCO: Oracle Corp's long-running legal battle with Google Inc over Android operating system for smartphones and other devices probably will not proceed to another trial until the middle of 2016, a US judge said on Thursday.

The closely watched case involves how much copyright protection should extend to the Java programming language, which Google used to design the operating system. Oracle is seeking royalties for Google's use of some of the Java language, while Google argues it should be able to use Java without paying a fee.

Last month, the US Supreme Court declined to end the case in Google's favor and sent the case back to San Francisco federal court for further proceedings. In 2012, a jury found that Google infringed Oracle's copyright but deadlocked on Google's fair use defense.

In court on Thursday, US district judge William Alsup reviewed a series of legal issues that must be resolved before a retrial on fair use and damages. Oracle has said in court filings that the stakes have only grown, given Android's "dramatically enhanced market position" compared to when the first trial took place.

Google's Android operating system is the world's best-selling smartphone platform. Oracle sued Google five years ago and is seeking roughly $1 billion in copyright claims.

Alsup on Thursday said his trial calendar likely precludes another trial until spring of next year. He also asked whether mediation would help the companies settle the case. Google attorney Robert Van Nest said he thought mediation would be "premature."

Still, Alsup ordered the companies into mediation "whether you like it our not."

SEOUL: Samsung Electronics reported Thursday a fifth straight drop in quarterly earnings as the Galaxy S6 failed to reverse its declining fortunes in the smartphone industry.

The company's overall earnings drop during the April-June quarter was 8% but it reported a much bigger decline of 38% in the mobile division's income. The sharp profit drop in the mobile business came despite its ambitious start to the quarter with the launch of two flagship smartphones: The Galaxy S6 and the S6 Edge featuring a curved side display.

"Total sales of the S6 and S6 Edge during the second quarter were below expectations," Park Jinyoung, a vice president at Samsung's mobile communications team, said on a conference call.

The decline in the mobile profit was smaller than the previous quarter's nearly 60% plunge, but it extended the mobile division's losing streak. Samsung's sky-high growth in the smartphone industry came to a sudden stop in 2013 as bigger iPhone models lured buyers from Samsung phones and Chinese phone makers squeezed its sales in China.

Samsung's April-June net income was 5.8 trillion won ($5 billion), down 8% from 6.3 trillion won a year earlier. A FactSet survey of analysts predicted 5.6 trillion won of net income.

Sales fell 7% over a year earlier to 48.5 trillion won while operating income dropped 4% to 6.9 trillion won, in line with its earnings preview earlier this month. It generated 2.8 trillion won operating income from the mobile business compared with 4.4 trillion won a year earlier.

The only bright spot came from sales of components powering smartphones. A robust performance at its semiconductor department helped narrow the overall profit decline. Operating income from its semiconductor division surpassed the 3 trillion won mark for the first time in several years.

Samsung pinned high hopes on the S6 and S6 Edge phones when they were introduced in April. So much so that local media dubbed them the "Lee Jae-yong phone," indicating that they were overseen by the Samsung chairman's son, Lee Jae-yong. He is a vice chairman at Samsung who is widely expected to succeed his ailing father.

But sales of the flagship models fell short, dealing a blow to the 47-year-old heir apparent who has not proven that he is capable of leading the Asian tech giant at a time of serious challenges.

The company was hit by two problems with its Galaxy S6 series. The regular version of the phone, the Galaxy S6, wasn't as popular as expected, while it could not keep up with demand for the S6 Edge model, which features a display that curves on both sides that is more difficult to produce.

Market research firm IDC said Samsung, still the world's largest maker of smartphones, was the only top five smartphone vendor that lost market share during the second quarter, falling to 22%, from 25% a year earlier.

Samsung executives did not give many details about whether the company would tweak its mobile strategies. Their response during the earnings conference call was to "innovate the hardware to lead the market in the premium segment" and to "continue to add services."

The company is scheduled to hold an event on August 13 in New York city, bringing forward its usual product launch schedule by one month. It is widely expected to announce two new mobile devices. Samsung has held the new product launch in September in previous years.

Samsung shares fell nearly 3% after earnings announcement.

New Delhi:  Four persons have been arrested for allegedly running a racket which helped students get admission in Delhi University colleges using forged documents and papers.

A Crime Branch team of Delhi Police arrested accused Sunil Panwar aka Guruji, Mohammad Zubeir, Praveen Jha and Ranchit Khurana yesterday for running the admission racket using fake marksheets, migration certificates, degrees, character certificates and other such papers to admit students to colleges, said ACP Crime Branch K P S Malhotra.
              
The accused were allegedly behind 25 fake admissions in various colleges of North and South Campus of Delhi University including Bhagat Singh College, Aurobindo College, Dayal Singh College, Ram Lal Anand College, Hindu College, Kirori Mal College and Kamla Nehru College.
              
On a tip-off, the four persons were arrested from Malviya Nagar main market, said the officer.
              
A case has been registered against them who were running the racket for nearly 3 years. They also forged degrees and certificates of different universities which they sold to persons seeking job, he said.

During interrogation, they said the gang leaders Sunil Panwar and Zubeir, a final year student of Aurobindo College, used to scout for candidates who could not get admissions in DU.
              
Ranchit was involved in procuring fake documents for such candidates from Praveen Jha, the officer said.          

Large number of blank and complete degrees, mark sheets, caste certificates and other documents were seized from Praveen's house in West Vinod Nagar. Computer, printers and stamps of different schools and education boards were also recovered from there, he said.
              
The gang also created fake websites of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar boards as they mainly prepared documents of UP and Bihar boards as most of their candidates belonged to that area, police said.
              
Documents of students who are suspected to have secured admission on the basis of forged documents are being obtained from the concerned colleges and will be examined, the ACP said.
              
The racketeers used to charge Rs 3-7 lakh from the students seeking admission in a college and course of their choice, he said, adding, further investigations were underway.

Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu): Former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was laid to rest on Thursday here with full military honours in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several other leaders.

The People's President's body, draped in the Indian tricolour was brought to the burial site at Pei Karumbu in a flower-bedecked gun carriage, escorted by columns of the three armed services.

A gun salute was accorded to the former supreme commander of the armed forces and a military band played the haunting Last Post.

Modi, who arrived here on Thursday morning, paid his last respects to the country's youth icon and most popular president by laying a wreath.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dr Kalam to be buried at 11 am with full state honours at Pei Karambu, about two kilometres from Rameswaram town.

Thousands pour on the streets of Rameswaram to bid their final goodbyes to APJ Abdul Kalam.

Tamil Nadu Governor K. Rosaiah, union Ministers M. Venkaiah Naidu, Manohar Parrikar and Pon Radhakrishnan, Tamil Nadu ministers like O.Panneerselvam, Natham R. Viswanathan and others also paid their last respects to Kalam.

Kerala Governor P. Sathasivam, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy were also present, as was Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu.

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and other party leaders also paid their last respects to Kalam - also known as India's Missile Man.

Earlier the mortal remains of Kalam were taken to the family mosque for prayers.

His family members also reached here.

"All our relatives have also arrived to attend the last rites," A.P.J.M.K. Sheik Saleem, the former president's brother's grandson, told IANS.

The Tamil Nadu government declared a public holiday on Thursday under the Negotiable Instruments Act. Banks, insurance companies, schools and colleges are closed throughout the state.

The government has also ordered closure of liquor shops and bars throughout the state.

Around 30,000 jewellery shops would also remain closed, while petrol bunks stopped sales for an hour between 10-11 a.m. as a mark of respect for Kalam.

Movie-theatre owners too have decided to shut down for the day while fishermen have decided not to venture into the sea.

Political parties like the DMK and the AIADMK have cancelled their functions.

Interestingly, the decision of private sector organisations to voluntarily shut shows that Kalam was truly a People's President.

Born in Rameswaram on October 15, 1931, Kalam, as a boy, hawked newspapers to supplement his family's income. His father owned a boat and his mother constantly struggled to keep the family sufficiently fed and clothed.

His sister pawned jewellery with a moneylender so that the studious Kalam could carry Rs.600 when he left Rameswaram to join the Madras Institute of Technology.

New Delhi: Stoking a controversy, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Thursday said the credibility of government and judiciary was at stake after the "urgency" shown in Yakub Memon's case while his party MP Shashi Tharoor questioned the efficacy of death sentence in serving as a deterrent.


Reacting sharply, BJP said such remarks were "irresponsible" and "unfortunate" as they seek to question the judicial process and demanded that the opposition party clear its stand on the issue.


After 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon was hanged in Nagpur jail this morning, Singh, in a series of tweets, said the government and judiciary should display the same "exemplary urgency and commitment" in all cases of terror irrespective of the religion of the accused.

"Yakub Memon hanged. Exemplary urgency and commitment has been shown by Govt and Judiciary in punishing an accused of Terror. I hope similar commitment of Govt and Judiciary would be shown in all cases of terror irrespective of their caste creed and religion," he said.

"I have my doubts the way the cases of other Terror accused are being conducted. Let's see. Credibility of the Govt and Judiciary is at stake," Singh said.

The remarks came in the backdrop of allegations of slowing of probe in the 2008 Malegaon case, in which right wing Hindu elements were allegedly involved.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said that he was "saddened" by the news that "our government has hanged a human being. State-sponsored killing diminishes us all by reducing us to murderers too".

He, however, later added that he was not going into the merits of this case but was opposed "to the principle and practice of the death penalty in our country".

In his tweets, Tharoor raised questions over the efficacy of death penalty in acting as a deterrent. "There is no evidence that death penalty serves as a deterrent: to the contrary in fact. All it does is exact retribution: unworthy of a Govt."

The Kerala MP said while "we must fight against terrorism with all the means at our command but cold-blooded execution" has never prevented a terror attack anywhere.

He at the same time clarified that he was not commenting on the merits of a specific case saying it was for the Supreme Court to decide. "Problem is death penalty in principle & practice," he said.

The remarks by Singh and Tharoor evoked angry reactions from the BJP.

BJP said Congress leaders remarks underlined the conflicting voices in the opposition party over the issue of terrorism. "He (Tharoor) is insulting the peace-loving people who want to get rid of terrorism," BJP secretary Shrikant Sharma said.

Union Minister Arun Jaitley said "irresponsible" statements by Congress leaders with regard Mumbai blast accused were a cause of concern. "We expect Sonia Gandhi to clarify before the nation," he said.

Nagpur: Yakub Memon, the lone 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict, was on Thursday executed by the same prison constable from Yerwada jail who carried out the hanging of Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab, one of the perpetrators of 26/11 Mumbai attacks, three years ago.

The hangman, whose identity has been kept under wraps due to security reasons, had arrived at the Central Prison here a week ago as part of a 20-member team of prison personnel from Yerwada Jail in Pune.

He had pulled the lever to hang Kasab on November 21, 2012 at Yerwada.Jail Superintendent of Yerwada, Yogesh Desai, who led the team during Kasab's hanging in Pune, was transferred to the Nagpur Central Prison a few months back, apparently to oversee Yakub's hanging.

According to jail officials, the constable executed the hanging with "clinical precision".

Also, another constable from Yerwada was brought here a week ago and trained with two others to assist the hangman. The other members of the team were entrusted with the task of preparing the drop and the platform in the execution yard (Fansi Yard).

Nagpur and Yerwada are the two Central Prisons in Maharashtra equipped with the hanging facility.

The previous execution at Nagpur jail was carried out in 1984, when two brothers from Amravati had been hanged for murder.

As the world awaits the Wednesday launch of Windows 10 operating system by Microsoft, with which its Indian-born chief executive Satya Nadella wants to power a billion devices in a few years, its potential efficacy in India has evoked mixed response among analysts.

While some feel it may not be a super hit, despite a free update for those with versions above Windows 7, others say it will prove more of use on devices other than personal computers, like smartphones, tablets and other handhelds.

This apart, its acceptability at the enterprise level is also in doubt. Nevertheless, Windows 10 will also help those with pirated versions of Microsoft operating systems to migrate to an authentic version, making room for a wide range of applications to choose from.

“At the enterprise level, adoption will vary. Early adopters of Windows 7 may migrate to Windows 10 if they have some compelling business reasons. Cost is not the only concern for organisations. It is also about security, compatibility and manageability,” said Vishal Tripathi, research director at Gartner India.

“Organisations use legacy- and custom-based applications than regular plug-and-play software. A compatibility test is needed. That will require time and effort. Those that recently migrated to Windows 7 will not move away too quickly, while others will wait and watch,” Tripathi told IANS

According to Prasanto K. Roy, a noted technology writer and chief editor of Trivone, a media and digital services company, Windows is an overhaul of the previous version that had flopped. But getting enterprises to upgrade to it will be near-impossible.

“This apart, PC sales are also weak and Windows users don’t upgrade the way Mac OS users (or iOS users) do when a new OS is launched. This is true worldwide, and even more so in India,” Roy told IANS.

“Overall, I think Windows 10 is great. But it isn’t going to save Microsoft or do much for its desktop revenues.”

Another analyst, Kiran Kumar of IDC, said India has an installed base of 55-60 million personal computers, out of which some 55 percent are with individual consumers while the remaining are with businesses and institutions.

“An increase of even 1.5-2 percent in PC volumes will mean around 10 million additional volumes. Consumers will be eager to go for the new Microsoft launch, as Windows 10 is a free upgrade. These will be targets for vendors like Microsoft,” Kumar told IANS.

But it is over the enterprises market that analysts seem to converge with the forecasts.

“The enterprise market remains a tough nut to crack for Windows. This is true globally and more so in India, because enterprises are reluctant to upgrade,” said Roy, adding, as stability is the main criteria, may will hold on to ageing Windows 7 or even the obsolete, 13-year-old Windows XP.

“It’s next to impossible to get a large enterprise to upgrade Windows, or even to agree to buy hardware with the latest version of Windows within the same year of a new version’s launch,” Roy said.

Clearly, the experts feel that Microsoft appears to be targeting new devices.

“By offering Windows 10 free, Microsoft is attempting to compete with Apple, Samsung and Sony in the tablets and smartphones segment where they use iOS and Andriod OS, developed by Google,” said Siva Kumar, a software engineer in Bengaluru.

“With more users shifting to tablets and smartphones for their mobility and convenience, Microsoft is trying to catch up with peers with its Lumia, which it acquired from Nokia post its takeover,” he added.

Even Microsoft has conceded this bit.

“The world today is very different from the one in which Windows grew up. Today, devices outnumber people. Connectivity is like oxygen. The tension between the desire for agility versus stability poses a huge challenge for IT Pros,” Microsoft said.

“The new Windows must be built from the ground-up for a mobile-first, cloud-first world. This new Windows must help our customers be productive in both their digital work and their digital life,” the company said ahead of the launch

“This new Windows must empower people and organisations to do great things. That new Windows is Windows 10,” it said, adding it will target devices small or large screens, or even some that don’t have screens at all.

Stating that it will also target devices that are 10 feet away, use touch, or a pen, or even gestures, besides the traditional mouse or keyboards, Microsoft said Windows 10 is not about one user interface but one product family, tailored for every device.

But how far will Microsoft be able to penetrate the smartphone market?

Said Roy: “Mobiles, including tablets are a big focus for Windows 10. But its share of smartphones is so low in India and the world that it becomes irrelevant. I don’t see that changing in India or elsewhere, however great Windows 10 Mobile may be – even with smoother Android-apps support.”

Mumbai - Nestle India Ltd slipped to a second-quarter loss as sales plunged after its hugely popular Maggi noodles were pulled off shelves over safety concerns.

The unit of Swiss food giant Nestle SA said on Wednesday the quarter was "extremely challenging", as it reported a net loss of Rs 64.4 crore, compared with a profit of Rs 288 crore rupees a year earlier. This was its first quarterly loss in 15 years.

"Net sales for the quarter have decreased by 20.1 per cent largely due to the impact of the Maggi noodles issue. Net domestic sales decreased by 20.6 per cent," Nestle India said.

The company also reported one-off costs of Rs 452 crore in the quarter, which "relates to estimates of loss on account of stocks withdrawn including incidental costs thereto and other related costs incurred".

Its total income from operations during the period under review declined 19.52 per cent to Rs 1,957.01 crore as against Rs 2,431.97 crore in the same period of previous year.

The company follows January-December financial year.

"This quarter has been extremely challenging for the company. Nestl India would like to reassure consumers that our products are safe. Consumer trust is and will always remain the cornerstone of Nestle. Nestle India is making all efforts and will continue to engage with authorities to bring Maggi Noodles back on the shelves," Nestle Managing Director (Designate) Suresh Narayanan said in the statement.

"The Maggi issue disrupted business. In addition to loss of sales from the business disruption, net sales worth Rs 288.4 crore has been reversed during the quarter in relation to Maggi noodle stocks already sold and withdrawn from the market," the company said.

Nestle has been at the centre of India's worst food scare in a decade after local regulators reported that some packets of the company's Maggi instant noodles -- one of India's most popular snacks -- contained dangerous levels of lead.

Etienne Benet stepped down as the company's managing director last week, days after India's food safety regulator banned Maggi noodles, calling them "unsafe and hazardous for human consumption".

The noodles sell at roughly a dozen rupees ($0.20) per packet, and Maggi has long been market leader in India, even though its sales represent only 0.005 percent of Nestle's global revenue of about 92 billion Swiss francs ($96 billion).

Nestle has maintained Maggi is safe, and appealed against the ban in court. But it has to continue with a nationwide recall of some 27,400 tonnes of the noodles until a verdict is reached.

Shares of Nestle India, which has a market value of about $9 billion, have slumped 12 percent since mid-May, when reports of the excess lead surfaced.

On Wednesday, Nestle India's shares closed down 0.6 percent at 6,152 rupees in Mumbai.

Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma who landed in a controversy after misspelling late former President APJ Abdul Kalam's name in her tweets, on Wednesday termed her action as "an honest mistake" while maintaining that her intention and feelings should not be misconstrued.

While expressing grief over the demise of Kalam, who passed away on Monday, Anushka spelt the Missile Man's name incorrectly on micro-blogging site Twitter.

"Very sad to hear about the passing of ABJ Kalam Azad. Loss of an inspiring visionary and a wonderful soul. May his soul RIP," she had posted on Twitter while paying tribute to the former President.

Anushka realised her mistake soon and tried to rectify it, but in vain. She got the name wrong again. She deleted her previous tweets and got the renowned defence scientist's name right only in the third attempt.

The 27-year-old personality faced the wrath of Twitteratis for the slip-up.

"It was an honest mistake. My intention...my feelings can't be misconstrued. But I know with what intention I was writing," Anushka told reporters at an event in Mumbai this evening.

The 'NH 10' actress hit back at social media users who lambasted her over the error, dubbing them "cowards".

"I don't want to pay attention to cowards who hide behind computer screens...with fake names. If you want to say things come and say it on my face," Anushka said.

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08:29(IST)

Yakub Memon's body to be flown to Mumbai in air ambulance at 10.45 am

Reports suggest that Yakub Memon's body will be flown to Mumbai at 10.45 am by his family, reports The Indian Express.

Meanwhile ABP news reports that his last rites will take place at the Marine Lines burial ground.

08:07 (IST)

No family member present inside Nagpur jail

The Hindu reports that no one from Yakub Memon's family was present at the Nagpur jail at the time of his hanging. However, "Suleiman Memon and Usman, who were camping in Nagpur, were at a local hospital. Authorities yet to decide whether to hand over the body to the family. Suleiman had made an application to jail authorities requesting that his remains be handed over to him."

08:04 (IST)

Yakub Memon turned 53 today, and his family had sent him a birthday cake

Even as the news of Yakub Memon's hanging hit early morning headlines, NDTV reports that his family had sent him a birthday cake at midnight last night as the convict turned 53 today.

07:40 (IST)

Yakub Memon's last rights likely at Mumbai's Bada Kabristan or Mahim

Sources at the Maharashtra Home Department tells ANI that Yakub Memon's body will be handed over to his family. Meanwhile, CNN-IBN reports that last rights will take place either at the Bada Kabristan or at Mahim.

07:33 (IST)

Section 144 has been imposed in Nagpur

In the aftermath of Yakub Memon's hanging, Sec 144 has been imposed in Nagpur. CNN-IBN reports that around 8,000 police officers have been deployed across the city. Sources have also told the TV channel that Memon's body will be brought to Mumbai by noon today.

Meanwhile ANI reports suggest that Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis is likely to speak on the hanging at 11 am.

07:30 (IST)

Yakub Memon's post mortem conducted in Nagpur jail, declared dead by doctor

Now, jail sources have told CNN-IBN that Yakub Memon's post mortem was being conducted inside the Nagpur jail. The doctor present at the jail has confirmed that Memon is dead.

Memon was declared dead at 7.01 am.

07:10 (IST)

1993 Mumbai blasts convict Yakub Memon hanged in Nagpur jail

After an unprecedented Supreme Court order at 3 am on Thursday, the lone death row convict in the 1993 Mumbai blasts Yakub Memon was hanged in the Nagpur jail at 6.43 am.

It was not clear even two hours ago if his execution would take place because of a last minute plea by his lawyers to delay his hanging. But that was rejected by the Supreme Court.

07:05 (IST)

Ample opportunity was given to him: SC rejects Yakub Memon's mercy plea in midnight hearing

The apex court bench, while rejecting Memon's latest plea, observed that there was nothing new in the new petition as it was a repetition of the same argument that was advanced on Wednesday.

"Same thing was there in yesterday's (Wednesday) petition. There is nothing new in the new petition," said Justice Misra in the course of the hearing.

Justice Misra headed the three-judges bench of the Supreme Court which had on Wednesday rejected Memon's plea seeking stay of his execution and quashing of the death warrant.

Saying that Memon was given "ample opportunity" to present his case before the apex court, the bench said that he was heard for 10 days in the course of the hearing of his review petition while law mandates per half an hour hearing.

"Ample opportunity was given to him to present his case in the hearing of the review petition," the court said.

06:59 (IST)



Security stepped up in Nagpur and Mumbai

And as Yakub Memon is to be hanged in a matter of a few minutes, security has been stepped up in Nagpur, as well as in Mumbai.

CNN-IBN reports that there is security outside Yakub Memon's home and at the airport.

06:51 (IST)

In historic yearing in wee hours of Thursday, SC rejects Yakub Memon's plea

In an unprecedented hearing, that is first of its kind in the history of Supreme Court that sat at 3 am on Thursday to hear Yakub Memon's plea, it said that "the petitioner did not raise any question when earlier, the mercy petition by his brother was rejected by the president in 2014".

n a reiteration of its earlier order passed on Wednesday, the Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a last ditch attempt by 1993 Mumbai serial blasts convict Yakub Memon to stall his execution by 14 days.

Memon had challenged the rejection of his mercy petition by the president.

The apex court bench comprising Justice Dipak Misra, Justice Prafulla C. Pant and Justice Amitava Roy rejected Memon's plea seeking 14 days' time before the execution of his death sentence is carried out.

His mercy petition was earlier rejected by the president on Wednesday, wherein, he raised fresh grounds for clemency -- commuting his death sentence to life imprisonment.

The apex court bench, while rejecting Memon's latest plea, observed that there was nothing new in the new petition as it was a repetition of the same argument that was advanced on Wednesday.

Microsoft announced that its Windows 10 platform will be available today via a free upgrade or with new PCs or tablets. Microsoft claims that the new OS platform is the most ‘secure Windows ever’. The new edition of Windows, which is available in 190 countries as a free upgrade, will be offered on a range of devices including PCs, tablets, phones, Raspberry Pi, Xbox One, HoloLens and more. The new Windows Store and Windows Software Development Kit also become available from today, opening doors for a better app experiences on Windows 10.

The new Windows Store opens today and has begun accepting new apps for Windows 10. Windows 10 includes built-in enterprise grade security, so that users can replace passwords with more secure options, protect corporate data and corporate identities, and run their trusted software.

Commenting on the launch, Bhaskar Pramanik, Chairman, Microsoft India said, “Windows 10 is the best Windows ever. Today, Windows 10 will be available across 190 countries as a free upgrade or with new PCs and tablets. It is more personal and more productive. It’s safer and more secure. And it’s familiar and always up to date. In India, more than 1500 retail stores across the country will help consumers move up to Windows 10.  I am excited that many Indian and multinational partners are ready to offer a variety of Windows 10 devices.”

Windows 10 is more personal and productive, with voice, pen and gesture inputs for natural interaction with PCs. It’s designed to work with Office and Skype and allows users to switch between apps and stay organized with Snap and Task View.

Upgrading to Windows 10 is easy for customers running a genuine Windows 7 or Windows 8.1 PC or tablet. Here’s a checklist to follow before you upgrade to the new Windows edition. Many industry experts had a comment on the newest and last edition on Windows by Microsoft. Here’s what they had to say.

Sudeep Jit Singh DGM – IT Solutions, Tata Communications said, “Rich features, enhanced user experience, multi-tasking with live tiles and better productivity make Windows 10 a great fit for us. Windows 10 is the most secure Windows Microsoft has ever released, with enhancements to Windows Defender and SmartScreen to help safeguard against viruses, malware and phishing.” He added, “New innovations like Windows Hello offer a fast, secure, password-free way to log in. Windows 10 aims to provide the best of touch and keyboard modes, giving an absolutely seamless flow between devices, helping increase productivity.”

S. Rajendran, Chief Marketing Officer, Acer India said, “We congratulate Microsoft on the launch of Windows 10. We are very excited to be associated with Microsoft in bringing about form factor innovation and best-in-class performance through devices for a host of dynamic consumer needs. Windows 10 will be the most comprehensive platform ever. The collaboration with Microsoft enables Acer to launch PCs ahead of time that work with some of Windows 10’s more advanced features.”

Windows 10 offers many innovative experiences such as personal digital assistant Cortana, Edge, integrated Xbox app that delivers the Xbox experience to Windows 10, Continuum that optimizes apps and experiences across touch and desktop modes, built-in apps and also the Microsoft Phone Companion app that enables iPhones, Android or Windows phones to work with Windows 10 devices.

Peter Chang Regional Head, South Asia & Country Manager, System Business Group, ASUS India said, “Incredible technology innovation has been one of ASUS’ core beliefs and we have been jubilant to deliver it to our consumers so far with support from our much valued and long-standing partner Microsoft. With Windows 10, Microsoft has created a unique product that enables consumers to embrace the future while retaining the familiarity of the past. Together we will be able to deliver a more cohesive experience to our consumers with Windows 10; providing them with the best of both hardware and OS.”

Vikas Jain Co-founder, Micromax Informatics Ltd said, “Microsoft and Micromax, together, has been synonymous with innovation, productivity and durability for the Indian consumers. We believe that Windows 10 will only boost this positioning, especially on the backing of the different screen sizes presented by Micromax in partnership with Microsoft, the new Canvas Tab, Canvas Laptab & Canvas Lapbook devices shall shortly be featuring Windows 10.” He added, “We wish Microsoft all the very best on the introduction of this next generation operating system.”

P. Krishnakumar Vice President, Consumer & Small Business, Dell India said, “Dell and Microsoft have a long and successful history and over the years, we have helped redefine the PC industry. We are sure that Windows 10 will revolutionize the very concept of personal computing and we are excited to work closely with Microsoft to take personal computing to the next level.”

Facebook Inc plans to scale up its service to offer free basic Internet on mobile phones, an executive said, after introducing the application in 17 developing countries over the past year.

In a blog post released to mark the first year of the initiative, Facebook said it will open a portal allowing any mobile operator to offer the service under its Internet.org platform. Facebook currently partners with specific operators to launch the service in different countries.

Internet.org has brought over 9 million people online over the past year, Chris Daniels, vice president of product for Internet.org, told Reuters on Monday. Facebook developed the platform with six technology partners to bring an estimated 4.5 billion unconnected people online, mainly in Latin America, Asia and Africa.

It offers pared-down Web services for free to users, along with access to Facebook’s own social network and messaging services.

Facebook’s blog post said that over the past year, the service had bought new users onto mobile networks on average over 50 percent faster and that more than half the people using Internet.org are paying for data to access the wider Internet within 30 days.

“This is really a customer acquisition tool for mobile operators where the benefit to them of offering a very light amount of free data is to bring on more paying subscribers to their networks,” Daniels said, speaking over phone from Nairobi, where he is attending a summit.

Facebook was not paying for any of the data being used to access the service, he said. The Internet.org application, launched in India in February in partnership with Reliance Communications, faced backlash with a number of leading technology and Internet firms pulling out of the service after activists claimed it violated the principles of a neutral Internet.

“I would say India is unique in that respect and very much an outlier. In other markets, Internet.org has been embraced as a pro-connectivity initiative that has garnered a lot of support,” Daniels said.

A committee of the telecoms ministry set up to examine the issue of net neutrality earlier this month recommended that collaborations between mobile operators and content providers that enable “gatekeeping” roles should be discouraged.

A three-judge newly constituted bench of the Supreme Court, who were to take a decision on 1993 Mumbai blast convict Yakub Abdul Razak Memon's curative petition, have dismissed the plea, reports on Wednesday said.

Earlier in the day, the bench was hearing afresh the plea of Memon after two judges gave a split order. Senior advocate Raju Ramachndran, appearing for Memon, initiated arguments by referring to the separate, divergent orders passed by Justice A R Dave and Justice Kurian Joseph on Tuesday and said that the procedures established by the law have not been followed while deciding the curative petition of the convict.

Ramachandran said, "The judges, who were part of judicial process earlier, must be party to curative petition. It cannot be decided by judges who are strangers to the matters."

He further said that besides the three senior most judges, the curative petition should have been circulated to the judges, if available, who had decided the criminal appeal and the review petition.

Senior advocates T R Andhyarujina and Anand Grover both supported the contention of Ramachandran and said that this death warrant is illegal and can not be executed tomorrow.

Attorney general Mukul Rohatgi, who is presently continuing his argument, said that the court should not forget the fact that it was the first terror attack at the heart of the country that had led to the death of 257 persons and several hundred injured.

Rohatgi on Tuesday had told the two judge bench that all judicial remedies available to Memon got exhausted with the dismissal of the curative petition on 21 July.

A three-judge bench headed by CJI had on 21 July rejected Memon's plea, contending that the grounds raised by him for relief did not fall within principles laid down by the apex court in 2002 in deciding curative petitions.

Memon, in his plea, had claimed he was suffering from schizophrenia since 1996 and has remained behind bars for nearly 20 years, much more than a person serving life term has to spend in jail.

He had sought commutation of death penalty, contending that a convict cannot be awarded life term and the death sentence for the same offence.

The apex court had on June 2, 2014 stayed the execution of Memon and referred his plea to a Constitution Bench as to whether review petitions in death penalty cases be heard in an open court or in chambers.

The apex court had on 9 April this year dismissed Memon's petition seeking review of his death sentence which was upheld on 21 March, 2013.
Memon's review petition was heard by a three-judge bench in an open court in pursuance of the Constitution Bench verdict that the practice of deciding review pleas in chambers be done away with, in cases where death penalty has been awarded.

12 coordinated blasts had rocked Bombay, as the city was then known, on 12 March, 1993, leaving 257 dead and over 700 injured.

New Delhi: Coming down hard on carmakers found to be restricting sale of spare parts in open market, fair trade regulator CCI on Tuesday imposed a penalty of Rs 420.26 crore on Hyundai Motor India and asked two others -- Reva and Premier -- to 'cease and desist' from anti-competitive practices.

This follows penalties totaling Rs 2,544.64 crore imposed on 14 other car makers in August last year in the same case. Those companies included Honda Siel, Fiat, Volkswagen, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Hindustan Motors, M&M, Maruti Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan Motors, Skoda, Tata Motors and Toyota Kirloskar Motors.

Passing the latest order, which completes the action in the case of a long-running probe against 17 carmakers, CCI said that there are certain "mitigating factors" which work in favour of Premier and Reva (a subsidiary of auto giant Mahindra and Mahindra) and therefore, the Commission has decided not to impose any monetary penalty against the two.

However, other directions for all the 17 companies would be applicable to these two also.

CCI said that all these companies "had stringent warranty conditions which required their customers to only get their automobile repaired through their authorised service network of dealers, otherwise their warranty would be invalidated".

Besides, these companies, either specifically through their agreements or otherwise through understanding with their dealers, have restricted or prohibited the sale of spare parts over the counter, thereby resulting in prescribing exclusive distribution agreements and refusal to deal as per the fair competition norms.

While Hyundai submitted before CCI that its case was different from the other companies and it deserved "a reduced penalty", CCI ruled that "most of the factors cited by Hyundai are general in nature which do not qualify for a reduced penalty".

Accordingly, CCI decided to impose a penalty of 2 per cent of the average annual turnover for three financial years in India, resulting in a fine of Rs 420.26 crore, as per the 58-page order issued on Tuesday.

CCI ordered all the three companies (Hyundai, Reva and Premier) to "immediately cease and desist from indulging in conduct which has been found to be in contravention of the provisions of the Competition Act".

They have also been directed to put in place an effective system to make the spare parts and diagnostic tools easily available through an efficient network.

Besides, they have been asked to allow sale of spare parts in the open market without any restriction, including on prices. In the case of intellectual property rights on some parts, they can charge royalty or a fee while ensuring that they are not in violation of the competition law.

The carmakers have also been asked to ensure they do not place any restrictions or impediment on the operation of independent repairers/garages.

About Premier, CCI said it was found to be dominant in the aftermarket for its genuine spare parts and diagnostic tools and correspondingly in the aftermarket for the repair services of its brand of automobiles.

However, "its conduct remained untested during the DG (Director General) investigation", CCI said.

"It is to be noted that at the relevant time period of the investigation, all Premier cars were under warranty and as such, the conduct of Premier with respect to abuse of dominance remained untested. Furthermore, Premier did not impose any restrictions on its authorised dealers to deal with vehicles of competing brands," the order said.

In the case of Reva, CCI said that with respect to the agreements entered with the authorised dealers, the DG during the investigation has found that its spare parts were, to some extent, available over the counter.

On Hyundai, CCI said the company urged that its case was entirely different from others.

"It has been contended that the excessive pricing by the other OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturer) was extremely high as compared to Hyundai. It was further urged that it's the very first competition law infringement case against Hyundai and it has effectively cooperated with the DG and also with the Commission.

"Hyundai also submitted that it allowed over-the-counter sales partially. It was also contended that the automobile sector is being investigated for the first time and, therefore, no fine should be levied. It may be noted that most of the factors cited by Hyundai are general in nature which do not qualify for a reduced penalty," CCI said.

CCI said that its directions "will have to be complied with" by the present Opposite Parties -- Hyundai, Premier and Reva -- in letter and spirit.

"Each OP is directed to file an individual undertaking, within 60 days of the receipt of their order, about compliance to cease and desist from the present anti-competitive conduct, and initiation of action in compliance of the other directions.

"This will be followed by a detailed compliance report on all directions within 180 days of the receipt of the order. The amount of penalty will have to be paid by Hyundai within 60 days of the receipt of this order," it added.

Later, Hyundai said the matter is already sub-judice.

"The matter is sub-judice since the issue is pending before the Madras High Court. We shall await the final order from the high court," the company said in a statement.

Comments could not be obtained from Reva and Premier.

CCI's orders can be challenged before the Competition Appellate Tribunal.

Qatar Airways said on Tuesday it was in talks with IndiGo about taking a stake in India's biggest airline that would expand the Gulf carrier's foothold in one of the world’s fastest growing aviation markets.

"Qatar Airways confirms that the only airline it is talking to is the Indian carrier Indigo," Qatar said in a statement in which it rejected reports that it was interested in acquiring a stake in rival Indian low-cost carrier SpiceJet.

Qatar has long coveted a stake in IndiGo, the fast-growing airline owned by InterGlobe Aviation which last month filed a draft prospectus for a stock market listing.

In May, Akbar Al Baker, chief executive of the Doha-based carrier, said Qatar would be interested in buying up to 49 percent of IndiGo, although he said then that there had been no talks. Al Baker also said IndiGo's owners had no immediate plans to sell.

Analysts expect IndiGo to push ahead with its flotation.

IndiGo did not respond to a request for comment.

Gulf-based carriers are keen on expanding into India, partly because about seven million Indians live in the Gulf region and air travel between the two markets is growing rapidly. Qatar is catching up with rivals Emirates and Etihad, which owns a stake in India's Jet Airways, in terms of frequency of services to the country.

Privately-held IndiGo is forecast to have made a record profit of between $150 million and $175 million in the year to March 2015, making it India's most profitable carrier, according to Delhi-based aviation consultancy CAPA.

However, Qatar said it had no plans to take a stake in stake in India's SpiceJet.

"Qatar Airways is not in talks to pursue a commercial stake in SpiceJet," Qatar Airways said in a statement, following a newspaper report.

"These stake sale comments are unfounded and are believed to be deliberately spread to influence share valuations," it said.

SpiceJet shares have surged for four sessions, hitting a two-year closing high on Tuesday at Rs 26.60 .

Dubai's budget carrier Flydubai also said it was not in talks with SpiceJet.

SpiceJet said on Friday it was in preliminary talks with potential investors who have shown an interest in putting money into the airline but it did not say who the potential investors were.

The April-June quarter numbers of Chennai-based Indian Overseas Bank (IoB) clearly shows the extent of mess some of the state-run banks find themselves in on the asset-quality front. The gross non-performing assets (NPAs) of the bank grew to 9.4 percent of its total loans in the June quarter, compared with 8.33 percent in the preceding quarter and 5.34 per cent in the year-ago quarter.

In absolute terms, the gross NPAs of the bank shot up to Rs 16,451 crore from Rs 10,351 crore in the year-ago quarter, in dark reminder of the crisis that crippled Kolkata-based United Bank of India a while back. There the gross NPA levels had risen to double digits, prompting the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to impose lending restrictions.

Shares of IoB tanked nearly 8 percent intraday on Monday following the dismal numbers. At 9.4 percent, the bank’s gross NPA level is one of the highest in the banking industry. High bad loans necessitated higher provisions (provisions rose to Rs 663 crore in the June quarter from Rs 299 crore a year ago) eating into the profitability. Net profit of the bank fell sharply by almost 95 percent in the June quarter.

Another leading lender, Union Bank of India, too reported higher gross NPAs at 5.53 percent from 4.96 percent on a quarter on quarter basis. Punjab National Bank, meanwhile, witnessed a marginal decline in the figure to 6.47 percent from 6.55 percent a quarter ago.

As Firstpost said in a recent piece, state-run banks are likely to post weak numbers in the June quarter too, since there haven’t been any major changes in the situation on the ground to improve the health of loan book of these lenders, which have high exposure to high-risk sectors such as infrastructure and agriculture.

Persisting stress on corporate balance sheets continue to reflect on the bank’s business too. Private banks have smartly managed to escape unhurt since these lenders have stayed away from high-risk loans to safer retail loans. Bad loans on the books of state-run banks, currently being reported, are a result of reckless lending and poor credit assessment of many years. It will take long time to repair these loans since revival in economic recovery is key. But, government’s lack of enthusiasm in addressing the capital scarcity of state-run banks can worsen the
situation further. Timely infusion of additional capital would have aided state-run banks to make provisions and show better profitability.

The government has been prodding state-run banks to not depend upon it for capital and tap the market instead. But it is forgetting that with their weak balance sheets, these banks wouldn’t be able to attract private capital. The weaker these banks become, lesser will be their ability to fend for themselves.

This is something finance minister Arun Jaitley should take note of.

After budgeting a paltry Rs 8,000 crore in the Union Budget, Jaitley was forced to rethink on his plan after the RBI took up the issue of bank capitalisation with the government. But, so far there hasn’t been any action on the recapitalisation.

Global rating agencies have been warning about the weak capital position of banks as a major area concern in the Indian economy.

Currently, over 90 percent of the bad loans in the banking system (about Rs 3 lakh crore) is on the books of state-run banks. On the other hand, private banks continue to do well and their bad loans are well within the limits.

HDFC Bank, the first large private bank announcing the results, came up with a good earnings card. Profit numbers have been healthy and the asset quality is stable even though there is slight increase in stress on a sequential basis. Net profit came at Rs 2,695 crore in the first quarter compared with Rs 2,233 crore in the year-ago quarter.

Gross non performing assets (NPAs) as a percentage of total loans stood at 0.95 percent in the June quarter, slightly higher than 0.93 percent in the preceding quarter, but lower than 1.07 percent in the year-ago quarter.

Axis Bank, another large private lender, too has reported a relatively lower Gross NPA level at 1.38 per cent. The question Jaitley should ask himself is if one set of banks has got the formula of profitability right, why can’t the others that operate in the same industry environment too?

The key differentiating factor, as Firstpost has noted several times before, has been the freedom to take business decision and operate without external intervention (read political and business interests) — something absent in state-run banks even to date. Pubic banks are endlessly under pressure from government to direct lending to certain sectors.

Capitalisation of state-run banks would be too big of a problem for the government to handle in the coming years, if not addressed now.

Besides making weak state-run banks weaker, this would also act as a hurdle in the way of a speedy economic recovery.

Bad loan provisioning is one among the many areas for banks where capital is essential. Even with the proposed additional capital infusion of about Rs 11,200 crore (above the budgeted Rs 8,000 crore), the government would not be able to sufficiently capitalize government banks since they need capital also to meet Basel-III norms and fund credit expansion besides making provisions on stressed assets.

The survival of state-run banks in the long-term is inevitably linked to the government’s willingness to cut stake in public banks and letting these banks raise capital. But, this government doesn’t seem to be inclined to bring in such radical reforms.

New Delhi: A two-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday delivered a split verdict on a plea by Yakub Abdul Razak Memon, the lone death convict in 1993 Mumbai blasts case, seeking stay of his scheduled execution on July 30 and referred the matter to the Chief Justice to take call on it.

While Justice A R Dave dismissed his plea, Justice Kurian Joseph stayed the death warrant issued on April 30 for his execution on July 30.

Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi and other senior advocates, including Raju Ramachandran, appearing for Memon, said that since the two judges have differed on staying the death warrant, "there will be no order in law if one judge has stayed it and the other has not".

The bench referred the matter to Chief Justice of India H L Dattu to take an urgent call at 4 PM in view of the divergence of opinion on the issue of death warrant.

The bench also requested the Chief Justice to constitute an appropriate bench and list the matter for hearing tomorrow.

After the launch of the Moto G (3rd gen) in India earlier today, Motorola had three events happening simultaneously in New York City, Sao Paolo and London where it announced the two variants of the Moto X – the Moto X Play and the Moto X Style. While the Moto X Play will start selling from August and the Moto X Style will start selling from September.

Motorola didn’t announced their official prices at the event, considering it was a simultaneous launch across three different continents. But post the event, according to The Guardian, the Moto X Play will be priced at £299 which is approx Rs 30,000 and the Moto X Style will be priced at £359 or approx Rs 36,000. The Indian prices and launch date are yet to be announced.

The Moto X Style features a 5.7-inch QuadHD display offering a 515ppi pixel density. The phone houses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808 SoC with a 1.8GHz hexa-core processor paired with 3GB of RAM. It will come with Android 5.1.1 Lollipop on board with Motorola’s proprietary features such as Moto Voice, Moto Assist, Moto Display, Moto Actions and so on. The Moto X Style will come in 16/32/64GB storage variants with microSD card slot to add in an additional 128GB.

On the camera front, you get a 21MP rear camera with an f/2.0 aperture and a 5MP front-facing camera which will be accompanied with a flash as well. The camera is capable of shooting 4K videos. It will be powered by a 3,000 mAh battery.

The Moto X Style will support the Moto Maker program letting you customise the phone according to your preferences. You can choose between leather, and natural wood covers.

The Moto X Play was the other variant announced after the Moto X Style. Motorola did not give any reasoning behind using the same Moto X branding for both the phones. But as we will notice with the specs, these phones have different internals.

The Moto X Play will come with a 5.5-inch full HD display thereby giving it a pixel density of 400 ppi. Moto X Play will come with Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 SoC featuring a 1.7GHz octa-core processor paired with 2GB of RAM. Just like the Moto X Style, this will also feature 4G LTE support, Android 5.1.1 with the same Motorola software features, 21MP rear and 5MP front facing camera.

The video capture mode of the the Moto X Play is limited to full HD mode and its front camera won’t get a dedicate flash unit. But the Play will come with a staggering 3,630mAh battery which according to Motorola will offer a 48 hours of mixed use time. The Moto X Play is expected to come in 16GB and 32GB variants only with the option to expand the storage via a microSD card slot.

Mumbai: In a fresh crackdown on Sahara companies, market regulator Sebi on Tuesday cancelled the registration of Sahara Mutual Fund saying it was no longer "fit and proper" to carry out this business and ordered transfer of its operations to another fund house.



Sahara group has been engaged in a long-running regulatory and legal battle with Sebi ever since the regulator ordered refund of a massive amount of over Rs 24,000 crore by two Sahara entities. Recently, Sebi had also cancelled the portfolio management licence of a Sahara firm.

In the latest order, Sebi directed cancellation of Sahara Mutual Fund's certificate of registration on expiry of a six-month period from Tuesday.

Sebi also directed Sahara Mutual Fund and Sahara Asset Management Company to stop accepting subscription from its existing or new investors with immediate effect.

Besides, Sahara MF has been asked to "make efforts to transfer the activities of Sahara India Financial Corporation Limited (Sahara Sponsor) and Sahara Asset Management Company Private Limited (Sahara AMC) to a new sponsor and a Sebi-approved asset management company at the earliest."

Sahara MF's board of trustees have been asked to "oversee and ensure protection of the unit-holders' interests during the above period". The board of trustees would need to be reconstituted after the transfer, Sebi said.


If Sahara MF fails to complete the process of transition within five months, it would have to compulsorily redeem the units allotted to its investors and credit the respective funds to its investors, without any additional cost, within a period of 30 days thereafter and wind up the operations of the mutual fund.

In his 22-page order, Sebi's whole-time member Prashant Saran said: "Having held Sahara India Financial Corporation Limited (Sahara Sponsor) and Sahara Asset Management Company Private Limited (Sahara AMC) are not 'fit and proper persons,' I find that they have failed to fulfil the eligibility criteria to remain as the sponsor and asset management company respectively."

As per the order, the various actions and proceedings against the group chief Subrata Roy, who is in jail for over a year now, and various other companies of Sahara Group results into Sahara AMC not being "a fit and proper person" in accordance with the MF regulations.

The spotlight will be on Test skipper Virat Kohli as India A go into the second and final unofficial Test against Australia A here tomorrow, looking to secure a win after drawing the first match last week.

Looking to get some vital competitive match practice ahead of the tough Sri Lanka tour, Kohli straight away joined the practice sessions yesterday.

His decision to play the match was to get acclimatized to the conditions which is similar to Colombo where he would be leading the Indian team for the first time in a three-Test series starting on August 12.


In the first unofficial test that ended last week, the wicket condition at MA Chidambaram Stadium was tough and slow resulting in the teams drawing the match.

India A hoped for a better wicket for tomorrow's match with a view to assess the pacers as the strip in the last match was 'dead' for fast bowlers.

In fact, the captains of India A and Australia A have termed the first match wicket as one which was difficult to bat on and spin friendly and that the competition between bat and ball was lost.

In the last three days, the grounds men here have been working on the wicket and with Kohli being around in the playing eleven for the hosts, the match is likely to throw a strip that is to the liking of the players.

In the first match, Indian spinners Pragyan Ojha and Amit Mishra were the biggest gainers with match hauls of six and five wickets respectively, while opening batsman Lokesh Rahul (96 in first innings) made the most of the slow wicket. Skipper Cheteshwar Pujara, Vijay Shankar and Shreyas Iyer also chipped in with useful contributions.

However, the hosts would need to up their game a lot more if they hope to put it across the Australian outfit in the second match to seal the two-match series.

The visitors, on the other hand, would be banking on their strong pace attack and their first match hero left-arm spinner Stephen O'Keefe, who claimed eight Indian wickets in the match.

"I am completely indigenous," APJ Abdul Kalam told The New York Times in 1998.

Nobody could have put it better. Kalam was the embodiment of every Indian ideal. His rags-to-success story made him an achiever against insurmountable odds; contribution to Indian defence and military gave him the aura of a nationalist; conduct in the Rashtrapati Bhawan turned him into a People's President-- a People's Prince type epithet that instantly gave the West a measure of his popularity; and his inspiring speeches and books made him a hero of the youth and children.

As a son, student, scientist, President, teacher, preacher, poet, writer, aficionado of classical Indian music, inspiration for a film (I am Kalam) and the new Chacha of children of India, Kalam lived an all Indian dream.
PTI image.

PTI image.

"In recent history, only a few had endeared themselves to the young and old, poor and the rich, and to people belonging to different faiths,” former finance minister P Chidambaram rightly summed up Kalam's enormous popularity.

Kalam had many virtues that we hold close to our heart. Never give up, don't let failure destroy your dream, concentrate on your karma without thinking of the result, don't let success get to your head and put country above race and religion. Kalam practiced all of them.

As a student born in a humble family, he sold newspapers to support the family and finance his education. When Kalam was rejected for the job of a fighter pilot, a dream he had nourished since childhood, he took up an entry-level post at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.

And there was no looking back. A man, who was considered not good enough to fly a plane, became the architect of India's missile programme. From somebody who was rejected as a fighter, Kalam went on to become the face of India's nuclear programme. Kalam showed the world that he had wings of steel and determination of iron.

Kalam's karma brought him not just the deserved fruits of labour, but much more than that. "Kalam did not seek office; the office sought him," Natwar Singh memorably said after he was elected President. He remains a compelling example of how a karma yogi becomes destiny's favourite child.

Kalam was not the original choice for President in 2002. It was widely believed that PC Alexander, principal secretary to former PM Indira Gandhi, would get the job. Alexander, who was the governor of Maharashtra during Atal Bihari Vajpayee's government, was acceptable to most of the NDA constituents. And his past made him believe that even the Congress would back him. To his dismay, Sonia Gandhi refused to back Alexander's candidature.

For a very brief period, it seemed vice-president Krishna Kant would get the job. But he was also denied the opportunity after being tipped off to be ready for the election.

During this period, the BJP was trying to shed its rabid pro-Hindutva image -- a pursuit that ultimately ended with LK Advani's ill-fated paean to MA Jinnah. And Mulayam Singh, it is believed, offered a deal that the BJP couldn't resist. (Ironically, when Kalam became the front-runner for the President's post in 2012, it was Mulayam Singh who backed out at the last minute, paving the way for Pranab Mukherjee's election.)

When the Samajwadi Party agreed to support Kalam as the next President, a consensus soon developed even within the Congress to back his presidency. His election could have been unanimous, but for the Left's decision to prop up Captain Lakshmi Sehgal as token of resistance. Kalam's tenure had the potential of getting marred with controversies. But it is an ode to his personal integrity and administrative tact that he managed to steer India through a political storm.

His biggest challenge, of course, was the issue of Sonia Gandhi's eligibility to become PM. After the Congress emerged as the single-largest party in 2004, Sonia's expected ascent to the top job created a political furore. Unexpectedly, Sonia opted out of the race and named Manmohan Singh as the party's choice for PM.


There were rumours that Sonia had backed out because President Kalam raised the issue of her Italian citizenship. But Kalam maintained a dignified silence through the brouhaha. Years later, in his memoirs, Kalam revealed that if Sonia had staked claim to the post, he would have had no option but to appoint her.

Controversies, though, dogged Kalam for his role as a nuclear scientist. Some of his critics, like Homi Sethna, questioned Kalam's credentials saying he had received his masters degree in aerospace engineering, which is completely different from nuclear engineering. Kalam's entire cult as the face of India's nuclear programme also came under cloud when K Santhanam, the site director of Pokaran II, called the test a 'fizzle' and criticised Kalam for giving a false report.

And when Kalam became the President, Princeton scholar M V Ramana attributed it to Kalam's ability to "dress up even mediocre work with the tricolour to pass them off as great achievements." But, nothing could stop Kalam from becoming a legend.

When the history of post-Independence India is written, Kalam would rank right up there, in the company of legends like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Rabindranath Tagore. He will inspire India and Indians for years to come.

In his poignant goodbye to Kalam, his aide Srijan Pal Singh says, he once asked Kalam what would he like to be remembered as: "President, scientist, writer, Missile Man, Indian 2020, Target 3 billion..what?"

Kalam replied: "Teacher."

Yes, Kalam would be remembered for teaching us the value of both karma and raj dharma.

Shillong: India's 11th President APJ Abdul Kalam (83 years) died on Monday evening at a hospital in Meghalaya, where he had gone to deliver a lecture.
Kalam, who would have turned 84 in October, was confirmed dead more than two hours after he was wheeled into the ICU of Bethany hospital in a critical condition following the collapse at around 6.30 pm.





According to reports, Kalam suffered a massive cardiac arrest during the lecture at IIM, Shillong.

Considered the most popular President, Kalam became the 11th head of the state and occupied the post between 2002 and 2007 but lack of consensus denied a second term in office for a man who came from outside political spectrum.

Meghalaya Governor V Shanmughanathan, who rushed to the hospital on hearing the news of his admission, said Kalam died at 7.45 pm. Despite medical team best efforts, he could not be revived.

Chief Secretary PBO Warjiri told reporters outside the hospital that he had spoken to Union Home Secretary LC Goyal asking for necessary arrangements to be made for carrying Kalam's body from Guwahati to Delhi on Tuesday morning.

"The former President has been admitted to Bethany hospital in a critical condition," M Kharkrang, SP Khasi Hills said earlier.

Doctors from the army hospital and North Eastern Indira Gandhi Regional Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (NEIGRIHMS) rushed to Bethany hospital but their efforts proved to be of no avail.

A seven-day national mourning will be declared by the Centre, Union Home Secretary LC Goyal said. Both the Houses of Parliament are likely to make obituary references and adjourn as a mark of respect to his memory.

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam rose from humble origins to become the President in the most unexpected manner during the NDA government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee after an all party consensus minus the left parties that saw him through in an election which he won handsomely.

An aeronautics engineer from Madras Institute of Technology, Kalam was considered the brain of missile programme in India got and as Chief Scientific Adviser to Vajpayee was also instrumental in the Pokhran nuclear test in 1998.

As President, Kalam utilised any opportunity that came to him to address students, especially school children, to dream big so that they became achievers in life. A bachelor, the former President was a veena player and was deeply interested in Carnatic music. He was vegetarian all his life.

Earlier during the day, Kalam had tweeted about his function at IIM Shillong.

President Pranab Mukherjee, Vice-President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and leaders cutting across party lines condoled the demise of the former President.

"He had a special love for children and fought to constantly inspire the youth of our country," said President Pranab Mukherjee. "Dr Kalam will be long remembered for his passion, science and innovation and his contributions have enabled scientists, educationists and writers. His achievements as leader of DRDO vastly enhanced the security of our nation.

"In his passing away, we have lost a great son of India who dedicated his entire life to the welfare of his motherland. Dr Kalam was a people's president during his lifetime and will remain so," the President said.

"I got to work with him closely. I have lost an uttam marg darshak. The country has lost a son who worked for the strength of India. He had spent every moment for the youth of India. No person will be able to fill the gap left by him. His work will inspire us to work for the development of the nation," said Prime Minister Modi. Aslo PM Modi tweets, "India mourns the loss of a great scientist, a wonderful President & above all an inspiring individual. RIP Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam."

Home Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted, saying that "Dr Kalam was a man of impeccable character, indomitable spirit, profound knowledge and firm conviction."

In Nitish Kumar's opinion, Narendra Modi is the "most unbecoming" of prime ministers he (Nitish) has seen in his life and Lalu Prasad is "best suited" to retort to the Prime Minister in his inimitable style. In an interview with Nalin Verma on Sunday on the eve of presenting the last report card of his present dispensation, the chief minister expressed his displeasure at the Centre's "inability" to provide second term to Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen as Nalanda University's chancellor but hoped that George Yeo would carry forward Sen's legacy. Excerpts:

• TT: What is your take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi focusing on the economic development and announcing over Rs 50,000-crore package for Bihar at the end of Parliament's session?



Nitish Kumar: The Prime Minister brazenly banks on speaking ardhsatya (half truth) all the time. I am unable to figure out why he should wait for Parliament's session to end for such an announcement? The session, in no way, stops a Prime Minister from making an announcement. He can announce it in Parliament itself. And what package? Bihar is about to suffer a loss of Rs 50,000 crore because of the new devolution rules as per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission. Modi said the state was going to receive Rs 3.75 lakh crore in the next five years against about Rs 1.5 lakh crore in the previous five years. But he concealed the fact that the state had got Rs 1.5 lakh crore out of Rs 14 lakh crore in the overall central pool. Now, the state will get Rs 3.75 lakh crore out of Rs 40 lakh crore in the central pool. It is a matter of record... in black and white... that none of the projects he inaugurated yesterday was his "gift" to the state. All the projects and schemes had been initiated by the previous UPA government. He had nothing to give to the state. He is the most unbecoming of the Prime Ministers. I do not remember too much of Jawahar Lalji (Jawahar Lal Nehru) but I have watched and heard the Prime Ministers from Lal Bahadur Sashtri onwards speaking. No Prime Minister spoke as much half truth as he (Modi) speaks.





• TT: It is an election year. How will you counter Modi who is going to be the star campaigner of his party in the state?



Nitish: I will speak on the basis of facts and figures. But Lalu Prasad ji is best suited to reply Modi in his (Modi's) language. Laluji jaisa pratiutpanna matitva ka dimag rakhne walaa desh mein birle hoga (There are very few in the country to match Lalu's presence of mind and gift with the gab). I have already praised his initiative with tumtum (tonga) against the BJP's hi-tech rath.



• TT: Amartya Sen has given way to George Yeo as chancellor of the Nalanda University - your dream project, which the Nobel Laureate was committed to. How will you react?

Nitish: Had Sen been allowed the second term, the Nalanda University, a world-class facility in the making, would have been benefited by his recognition as the world-class academic personality in attracting academic faculties from all across the world. Sen had played a pivotal role in working the out the modalities of the university. He had worked out each and every theoretical and practical tenets of the institution. But the present dispensation (led by Modi) does not accommodate our views in the matter of appointments unlike the previous one. I am unhappy at the Centre's inability to give second term to Sen. Still, I hope that Yeo, the new chancellor who has been associated with the Nalanda project since beginning, will carry forward Sen's legacy. Yeo met me after taking over as the chancellor saying that he had agreed to enter Sen's shoes on the condition that the autonomy of the project would not be fiddled with. We have given 100 acres of additional land to the university as endowment. We will always keep a watch on any nefarious move to fiddle with the institution's autonomy.



• TT: Actor-turned-BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha had a long meeting with you last night...



Nitish: Shatrughan is a fabulous actor and is known as Bihari Babu. I have regards for him and vice versa. We keep on meeting. He is an actor who cannot speak the language of parochial Sangh parivar. He is not a Sanghi. The current crop of the BJP leaders wants him to speak in their language, which he cannot afford to do as an actor, popular in all the sections of society. We treat him as pride of Bihar. The BJP believes in use and throw policy, which Shatrughan abhors.



• TT: It will be your last report card detailing your achievements of about 10 years in office. Are you satisfied?



Nitish: There is no reason for dissatisfaction. We have done extremely well at almost all the indicators of human development - education, health, power and overall infrastructure building. Against 39 patients per month when I took over the reigns in 2005, our public health centres are receiving 11,000 patients each per month. Girls and boys are attending schools almost in equal number which is far above the national average, thanks to our cycle and uniform schemes. By all accounts, the power situation has vastly improved and the state has got a wide network of roads and bridges in the last 10 years.



• TT: But the law and order is said to have been deteriorated in the last one year or so...



Nitish: Yes, I admit that localised communal tension has increased since the BJP parted ways with us. We are cognisant to the development. We are studying why such incidents, particularly on local scale, have grown. But it is known to all that the BJP gets benefited more because of such a situation. They (BJP) thrive on such a situation. But we are keeping a vigil.