Kabul hit by multiple blasts, gun attacks

                                                        
KABUL: Gunmen launched multiple attacks in the Afghan capital Kabul on Sunday, assaulting Western embassies in the heavily guarded, central diplomatic area and at the parliament in the west, witnesses and officials said.

The Taliban claimed responsibility, saying their main targets were the German and British embassies and the headquarters of Afghanistan's NATO-led force.

Taliban fighers had also launched assaults in two provinces, a spokesman for the insurgents said.

"We claim responsibility for these attacks," said Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid.

Attackers fired a rocket-propelled grenade into a house used by British diplomats in the city centre and smoke billowed from the building after the blast, a Reuters witness said.

Two rockets hit a British Embassy guard tower near the Reuters office in the city.

Three others hit a supermarket near the German Embassy popular with foreigners, Reuters witnesses said. Women scurried for cover as crackling gunfire was heard above.

As the gunfire continued, US army convoys could be seen coming to the area accompanied by Afghan police in flak jackets.

There was no word on any casualties. The coordinated attack is bound to intensify worry in the run-up to the planned withdrawal of foreign combat troops by the end of 2014.

Afghan security forces, who are responsible for the safety of the capital, were scrambling to reinforce areas around the so-called green diplomatic section of the city centre.

Gunfire came from various directions in the area, close to both the US and British embassies, while smoke billowed from the nearby German embassy, the Reuters witnesses said.

Embassy alarms were sounding. Staff at the embassies were not available for comment.

Attackers also fired rockets at the parliament building, in the west of the city, and at the Russian embassy, a spokesman for the parliament said.

Afghan media said insurgents had stormed the Star Hotel complex near the presidential palace and the Iranian embassy and black smoke was pouring from the building.
from times of india

Tara bares it all in confession to cops

                                                                                
Film artiste-turned sex racketeer Tara Chowdhary has admitted that she used to film girls in semi-naked poses and shoot obscene photographs and videos, and used these to force them into the sex racket involving VIPs, in a 'confession' to the Banjara Hills police.
A copy of her 'confession' is available with this newspaper, in which the woman explained the activities of her shady network in detail. Tara and her so-called husband Durga Prasad, residents of Banjara Hills, had been arrested on March 31, 2010 by the police in a sex trafficking case.
In the confession, she told the police, “I used to record the voices of many people including police officials, political leaders and business magnates when they used to talk to me over my phone. I used to provide sex workers to them. I recorded their voices with an intention to blackmail them and extort huge amounts. I used to download the recordings in CD. I procured many girls from various parts of Andhra Pradesh and other states promising employment in Hyderabad or chances to act in movies.”
“After bringing the girls to Hyderabad, I used to force them into flesh trade. If any one among them refused, we threatened them with dire consequences, like exhibiting their nude pictures in public. I also used to show those photographs to the customers. My assistant, Haneef, used to help me with all this work,” she told police.
The police retrieved the videos from her laptop with the help of cyber forensic experts. “I used to blackmail the customers also who used to visit the brothel I ran,” she told the police.
“I used to lend money on high interest to many by executing promissory notes, bonds and also blank post-dated cheques,” she said.
Meanwhile, the police is investigating into the modus operandi of a sex network run by one Prameela with whom Tara Chowdhary had rivalry.
from DC

Hikaka release efforts hit bail hurdle

                                                            
BHUBANESWAR/ KORAPUT: A day after Maoists freed Italian Bosusco Paolo from their month-long custody, the Odisha government on Friday said it was in touch with the Red rebels' lawyers to facilitate the release of certain prisoners so as to secure freedom for abducted Laxmipur legislator Jhina Hikaka. The jailed persons, whom the government wants to free, however, do not want to go on bail and want withdrawal of cases against them.

"The district administration (of Koraput) has taken up the matter of filing of bail petitions with the advocate of the members of the Chasi Muliya Adivasi Sangha (CMAS) and members of CPI (Maoist). Bail petitions are being organized," home secretary U N Behera told media persons here. Koraput collector Sachin Jadhav said, "We are trying to convince the lawyer (of CMAS and Maoists) to move bail petitions." However, Nihar Patnaik, a lawyer who represents some members of CMAS and CPI (Maoist), told TOI: "My clients are not willing to file bail applications. They want withdrawal of cases against them."

This came on a day chief minister Naveen Patnaik undertook a whirlwind trip to Koraput and briefed Hikaka's family members about measures the state government had initiated to free the MLA. "The family is deeply distressed and anxious under these terrible circumstances. I explained to them the state government's efforts to facilitate the MLA's release," Naveen said. Hikaka's wife Kaushalya said the CM assured her of her husband's return. "I strongly believe he will come back," she said, appealing to Maoists to free Hikaka. Naveen also deliberated for two hours on the hostage crisis and local development issues with legislators and district officials.

Earlier, co-advisor of CMAS, Dandapani Mohanty, had said the organization's president, Nachika Linga, had told him that they would not seek release of its activists by moving bail applications in courts and wants the government to withdraw the cases against those CMAS activists whom it has committed to release. Mohanty said the government can withdraw cases under section 321 of Criminal Procedure Code, which provides for the public prosecutor in charge of a case, with the consent of the court, before the judgment is pronounced withdraw from prosecution of a person under trial. The state government, which describes CMAS as a Maoist frontal outfit, had on April 5 announced it would free 23 persons (15 CMAS activists and eight Maoists) for Hikaka's freedom and four others for Paolo's release. Those to be freed for the Italian include two CMAS activists, Suka Nachika (who is relative of Nachika Linga) and Chakra Tadingi. 

from  times of india

Mamata to skip internal security meet tomorrow

                                             
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will not attend the chief ministers meeting on Internal Security in the New Delhi on Monday. However, she is likely to attend the May 5 meeting on National Counter Terrorism Centre. Mamata Banerjee,  Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa and Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik are opposed to the setting up of the NCTC, saying it was against the federal structure.
The Centre had last week heeded the demand of these leaders, with Union home minister P Chidambaram writing to them saying NCTC will be discussed at a separate meeting on May 5.
The April 16 meeting, which will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, would review the internal security situation in the country.

 from hindustantimes

Delhi civic polls: 40% voting till 3 pm

                                                               

New Delhi:  Moderate polling was witnessed in the Delhi municipal elections, the first for the trifurcated civic body, today with around 40 per cent of the 1.15 crore electorate exercising its franchise till late afternoon.

There were reports of delay in the start of voting at a few places due to malfunctioning of electronic voting machines (EVMs) while some people, including Congress Rajya Sabha member Pervez Hashmi, complained about not finding their names in the electoral rolls.

No report of any untoward incident was received till 3 PM though two persons were detained in west Delhi's Rajouri Garden area for alleged bogus voting. There was some tension near a polling station in Janakpuri after police prevented some people from gathering near it but the issue was sorted out
"Around 40 per cent of voters have exercised their franchise till three PM," a State Election Commission official said. In the 2007 municipal polls, 42.78 per cent of the around 99 lakh voters had exercised their franchise.

Some people complained that they were not allowed inside polling booths because they did not possess the 'letter' from the State Election Commission.

The fate of 2,423 candidates would be sealed in the polling being held for 272 wards of the three civic bodies -- East, South and North -- carved out of the existing Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). Counting of votes will take place on Tuesday.

As many as 83,000 policemen were keeping a tight vigil across the capital where polling began at 8 AM. 77,000 officials are conducting the elections in over 11,543 voting stations. 
from ndtv

Wear cotton to encourage weavers

Latest varieties of cotton and silk wear, bed sheets and decoration material are on display at the cotton and silk mela-cum-sale at Sri Vidya Sadan, near Maris Stella College in the city.

The garments exhibition is being organised by Lepakshi Handicrafts Emporium from April 14 to 23. Customers can visit the expo from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. and select the garments of their choice. Vijayawada East MLA Yelamanchili Ravi inaugurated the exhibition on Saturday. Mr. Ravi who went round the stalls praised the weavers and artisans for their skills. He asked people to wear cotton garments and encourage weavers and artisans. Lepakshi Handicrafts Emporium (Vijayawada) Manager D. Pardha Saradhi said more than 51 stalls have been arranged at the exhibition. Weavers from Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Mysore, West Bengal and other states displayed dress material, bed sheets, sarees and other material. Several new varieties including pure Bengali silk, Narayanapeta dress material, pure cotton painted sarees from Mysore, lace works from Narsapur in West Godavari, Pochampalli bed sheets and pillow covers, Khadi shirts and dress material were available, said Mr. Pardha Saradhi. Venkatagiri jari sarees, readymade garments and rapid print, and export cotton dresses were the latest varieties displayed for sale in the exhibition, said Lepakshi Handicrafts Emporium accountant P. Uma Maheswara Ra
from hindu

Baby sale: UP CM Akhilesh Yadav promises action

                                                                 

Faizabad: Taking note of the CNN-IBN Cobrapost expose on sale of babies in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said on Sunday that he will look into the matter.

"If anything of the sort is found, we will ask the district administration to help the families," he said.
The young Chief Minister also promised to ask the district administration to help in the investigations and contact the concerned families.
The CNN-IBN Cobrapost expose showed how government hospital nurses and doctors were selling newborn babies from poor families for about Rs 60,000. They even claimed there was a high demand for baby boys.
form ibn live