| 18/03/2010 | Delight as Sahil is reunited with father |
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The five-year-old boy freed by kidnappers in Pakistan after his family paid a £110,000 ransom was “really happy” to be reunited with his father today, a spokesman for the British High Commission said. Sahil Saeed, who was released on Tuesday after being snatched at gunpoint in Pakistan two weeks ago, met Raja Naqqash Saeed at the home of the British High Commissioner in Islamabad. 
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| 18/03/2010 | British police helped with £100k ransom that got Sahil freed |
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Greater Manchester Police helped organise the payment of a ransom to the kidnappers of five-year-old Sahil Saeed, the M.E.N can reveal today. Senior sources confirmed that GMP officers – working with police in Pakistan and Spain – helped ‘facilitate’ a payment. 
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| 18/03/2010 | Asian men's domestic abuse hell |
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Scalded with boiling water, glass bottles thrown against his head, slammed against the wall, kicked and punched and mentally tortured. Domestic violence doesn't just affect women in the UK but a growing number of Asian men are also suffering as one Bangladeshi born father-of-three found when he married his British spouse and came to the UK seven-years-ago. 
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| 18/03/2010 | Four on drugs arrest |
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Four Oldham men have been arrested in Glodwick on suspicion of money laundering and conspiracy to supply class A and class B drugs. On Wednesday 17 March officers from Greater Manchester Police’s Serious Crime Division executed warrants at houses on Grendon Avenue, Cranbrook Street and Brompton Street. A large amount of cash was also recovered from the addresses. 
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| 18/03/2010 | EDL demo to go ahead in Bolton |
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The English Defence League rally in Bolton will go ahead on Saturday after the Home Secretary said he had no power to ban it. The council was hoping that Alan Johnson would outlaw the demonstration on safety grounds, fearing violence could erupt in the town centre. 
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| 17/03/2010 | RDB perform at UK Asian Music Awards |
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RDB rocked the stage last week with a special performance at the UK Asian Music Awards. The annual award ceremony took place on March 11th at the Royal Festival Hall in London. The event was a star studded affair with appearances from Jay Sean, Malkit Singh and Sugababes. 
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| 16/03/2010 | Indian soap deals with issues of female feticide |
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It's been nearly a month and Megha Malik has only just taken a day off from shooting for the popular Colors TV show, Na Aana Is Des Laado.
Most people will recognise Megna as the over zealous lady of the house, Amma in the programme which deals with the controversial issues of female feticide and infanticide. 
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| 15/03/2010 | Academics gather at Bollywood and Beyond conference |
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Leading academics of Hindi cinema gathered to speak at the cinema studies conference Bollywood and Beyond, at University of Westminster’s recently launched India Media Centre. The nine experts from leading institutions in the UK and India presented on a range of Bollywood topics, to an audience of cinema fans and film students attending from as far afield as New York. 
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| 15/03/2010 | Akshay Kumar returns in Housefull |
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Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar is all set to rock the Box Office this year with the much anticipated release of his first film of 2010, romantic comedy Housefull. Co-produced by Eros International, Housefull was filmed on location in UK, Italy, Hong Kong and India. 
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| 10/03/2010 | Shyam Benegal celebrated at film festival |
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One of India’s leading filmmakers, Shyam Benegal, is in the UK for a series of events exploring his vast career and celebrating his achievements in Indian cinema. As part of the Tongues on Fire 12th Asian Film Festival, the director is attending a range of functions across London, including a BAFTA interview, a director’s workshop at the University of Westminster, and a talk on women in films at the Nehru Centre. 
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| 08/03/2010 | From tea-boy to Bollywood star - Abhishek Bachchan on his climb to fame |
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In a 36 hour visit to the UK, Abhishek Bachchan gave London audiences an insight into his life and work at the 12th London Asian Film Festival. The actor opened the ten day series of events with a BAFTA interview and gala dinner on Friday, wrapping his jam-packed visit with an Actor’s Masterclass at a West End cinema on Saturday, before flying home. 
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| 03/03/2010 | Akshay Kumar kickstarts shoot for Tees Maar Khan |
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Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar and Bollywood’s most lovable director, Farah Khan have just kick-started their already-hyped new venture Tees Maar Khan at Mumbai's Film City. Akshay is currently shooting his introductory shot in the film - a major action comedy scene on a huge jumbo jet constructed by set director, Sabu Cyril. 
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| 03/03/2010 | Hrithik Roshan on the colours of love |
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On the occasion of Holi, Hrithik Roshan speaks up on his colourful life and his upcoming movie Kites, which stars Brazilian actress Barbara Mori and the beautiful Kangana Ranaut in a never-seen-before role. 
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| 08/03/2010 | 12th London Asian Film Festival attracts Bollywood stars |
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Bollywood fans in the UK will get the chance to interact with some of the biggest names in the Hindi film industry at the Tongues on Fire 12th London Asian Film Festival (5-14 March 2010). Leading Bollywood figures are scheduled to attend including Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Jaya Bachchan, Soha Ali Khan and Sharmila Tagore. 
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| 18/03/2010 | Man charged with Zhen Asghar murder |
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A man has been charged with the murder of Zhen Asghar.
Haashim Us Salaam, aged 20 of Werneth Hall Road, Oldham, has been charged with murder and is due to appear at Manchester City Magistrates' Court today, Thursday 18 March 2010. |
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| 17/03/2010 | Twin ‘confessed over shooting’ to river rescuer |
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A man accused with his twin of shooting dead a young dad told an ambulancewoman about the killing after trying to take his own life, a jury was told. Brett and Jordan Francis, 26, of Birch Avenue, Chadderton, deny murdering Amran Khan, 29, in a row over £12,000 of drugs money. 
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| 17/03/2010 | 13 years for man who fired shotgun in nightclub |
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A 24-year-old man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison following a shooting in Bradford city centre last year. Omar Shah of Little Horton was arrested and charged after the incident at the Cube Nightclub on Ivegate in November 2009. He was convicted of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, GBH and two counts of ABH. 
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| 17/03/2010 | Fusion awards final call for nominations |
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Nominations for this year's north west Fusion Awards is closing at the end of the month. The awards recognise the commitment of individuals across communities who help make the north west a better place to live and work. 
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| 17/03/2010 | Sahil kidnap gang hunt switches to Spain |
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The hunt for the kidnap gang who snatched five-year-old Sahil Saeed has switched to Spain after part of the ransom was paid there. It is understood that the family of Sahil’s mother, Akila Naqqash, managed to raise the cash. Sahil, from Oldham, was kidnapped two weeks ago while on holiday in Pakistan when his family were held at gunpoint by robbers. 
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| 17/03/2010 | Three arrested in Spain over Sahil kidnapping |
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Three people have been arrested in Spain suspected of being linked to the kidnapping of five-year-old Sahil Saeed, according to reports. A Spanish newspaper said two Pakistanis and a Romanian woman were arrested in the town of Constanti, near the north-eastern city of Tarragona. 
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| 19/03/2010 | BSP govt responsible for riots in Bareilly: Katiyar |
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Holding the BSP government in Uttar Pradesh responsible for the riots in Bareilly, newly-appointed BJP vice-president Vijay Katiyar today alleged it proved "a complete failure" in controlling the disturbances despite curfew being imposed in the town.
"Though a case was registered and the accused arrested, he was let off," Katiyar said, referring to the arrest of Muslim cleric Tauqir Raza Khan.
Under the BSP government "innocents are being targeted while the rioters are moving about freely," he alleged.
Attacking the UPA government at the Centre, he alleged it was giving importance to vote-bank politics over internal security.
"The Union government is soft on terrorism and shying away from taking firm action against it," Katiyar told reporters here.
On the recent visit of Congress leader Digvijay Singh to Azamgarh, Katiyar alleged that it was only vote-bank appeasement policy which guided him to Sanjarpur recently.
www.indianexpress.com/news/bsp-govt-responsible-for-riots-in-bareilly-katiyar/592646/
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| 19/03/2010 | Rahul Gandhi oversees Youth Cong elections in TN |
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Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi has said hardworking members of the Youth Congress have a bright future and they will be given responsibilities in the organisation.
"Members will have a bright future and be given responsibilities if they are intelligent, hardworking and entered into the team to be formed by it," Gandhi said on a brief visit here to oversee Youth Congress elections on Wednesday.
He visited two polling stations and observed the election process. He also interacted with Youth Congress members.
The exercise to elect the Youth Congress office-bearers at the local level is going on in Tamil Nadu, and on his part, Rahul Gandhi is keen to bring the Congress back to power in the state during next year’s Assembly elections.
He travelled 300 kilometres from Kerala, where he and his sister Priyanka Gandhi attended the wedding of a close aide’s son.
www.indianexpress.com/news/rahul-gandhi-oversees-youth-cong-elections-in-tn/592485/
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| 19/03/2010 | Pranab to hold talks with opponents of Women’s Bill |
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Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will hold talks with the opponents of Women’s Reservation Bill before the government’s takes the next step on it, Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said on Thursday.
He said the government has no re-thinking on the bill which has been cleared by the Parliamentary Standing Committee.
"I do not think we would have a re-thinking on it," Khurshid told reporters here when asked about the fate of the bill that provides for 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies as it is facing stiff resistance from Samajwadi Party, RJD and JD(U).
He said Mukherjee will talk to opponents of the Bill as promised by him in Parliament and government "will proceed for the next step only after discussions with them."
In view of the opposition by SP, RJD and JD(U), whose members disrupted proceedings of Lok Sabha for days, Mukherjee had announced that the government would discuss the issue with "all concerned" before tabling it in the Lower House of Parliament.
www.indianexpress.com/news/pranab-to-hold-talks-with-opponents-of-womens-bill/592591/
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| 19/03/2010 | Mayawati garland worth Rs 5 crore, say I-T sleuths |
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Mayawati may have set her cops on a bee chase but the income tax department is sniffing up the curious case of the currency garland. While the BSP claims the garland of Rs 1,000 notes gifted to the Uttar Pradesh chief minister during the party’s 25th founding day celebrations was worth Rs 21 lakh, taxmen say the value could run to Rs 5 crore.
Here’s how. Preliminary investigations by the I-T sleuths reveal the garland weighed 65kg, all in Rs 1,000 notes. A wad of one hundred Rs 1,000 notes weighs around 120g. Taking out the weight of the thread in the garland, sleuths say the net mass of the currency "mala" would not be anything less than 60 kg. With inputs gathered from RBI, officials say it would take at least 500 bundles of Rs 1,000 denomination to make the garland.
Sources said I-T sleuths gathered information from BSP insiders on the composition of the garland while a team has been working with banks and other sources to track the money transaction and "sponsors" who, according to the party, "gifted" the notes.
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Mayawati-garland-worth-Rs-5-crore-say-I-T-sleuths/articleshow/5699616.cms
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| 19/03/2010 | Food grains rotting due to poor storage in Punjab |
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If you thought price rise was because of shortage due to drought, think again. The rotting mountains of grains in the open in Fatehgarh Sahib district of Punjab seem to tell a different story. They were procured more than two year ago.
Moreover, the problem is not restricted to Punjab alone. Food stock, primarily wheat and rice lying in the open is a common sight in states across India, simply because the country has not invested in creating adequate storage.
The Punjab government is laying the blame on the Center, saying it is better to distribute the grain free of cost rather than have rats eat it. They have already written to the Agriculture MInister asking for the grain to be picked up by other states
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal says he has been writing to Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to take it away to other states.
The finance minister Manpreet Badal says their godowns are too full.
ibnlive.in.com/news/food-grains-rotting-due-to-poor-storage-in-punjab/111709-3.html
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| 19/03/2010 | FM demands explanation |
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The government has demanded for an official explanation from a Lankan diplomat who has allegedly returned home from Japan with his landlord’s belongings. The diplomat is likely to face charges in accordance to the penal code if found guilty.
Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama told journalists today that he had received a detailed report from the Sri Lankan Embassy in Tokyo over the alleged misconduct and had demanded for an explanation from the ’politically appointed’ diplomat.
"Severe action will be taken against him by the Foreign Ministry if he is found guilty. He will also face appropriate legal action. We will ensure that such misbehavior does not reoccur as the reputation of the Ministry has to be safeguarded," Minister Bogollagama said.
The Lankan Diplomat had returned back to the island five months ago after serving his term in Tokyo as a Minister Counselor
Soon after his return, the Japanese landlord had contacted the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry and had alleged that the diplomat had shipped back some of his (the landlord’s) personal belongings. The landlord had demanded that his items be shipped back to him immediately.
Soon after the complaint had been lodged, the Ministry had launched a full scale investigation.
www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/news/2463-diplomat-told-to-explain-his-actions.html
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| 19/03/2010 | Headley pleads guilty in 26/11, Danish plot |
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Pakistani-American David Coleman Headley, accused of plotting the 26/11 Mumbai attacks at the behest of Lashkar-e-Toiba and conspiring to target a Danish newspaper, on Thursday pleaded guilty to all terror charges before a US court .
Forty-nine-year-old Headley, who faces six counts of conspiracy involving bombing public places in India, murdering and maiming persons in India and providing material support to foreign terrorist plots and LeT; and six counts of aiding and abetting the murder of US citizens in India, could have been sentenced to death if convicted.
But his plea agreement with federal prosecutors ruled out the death penalty and extradition to India, Pakistan and Denmark, provided that he cooperates with the government’s terrorism investigations.
"Headley will cooperate in foreign investigation conducted in the US," his lawyer John Theis told reporters after the hearing.
ibnlive.in.com/news/headley-pleads-guilty-in-2611-danish-plot/111711-2.html
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| 18/03/2010 | Manhunt for Lankan’s killer |
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The Canadian police have launched a nationwide manhunt to arrest a man wanted over the death of a Sri Lankan in Toronto in what was initially believed to have been a hit and run incident, the Canadian media reported.
According to CBC, the Toronto police have issued a Canada-wide second-degree murder warrant for a 28-year-old man charged in a homicide in the city’s east end on Saturday.
Police responded to what they originally believed was a hit and run at Terraview Learning Centre at 1641 Pharmacy Avenue.
Officers discovered the body of Nanthi Eashan Dharmaratnam, 25, in the centre’s parking lot. After further investigation, police believe Dharmaratnam was deliberately hit by a vehicle. An autopsy on Sunday determined Dharmaratnam died from head and torso injuries.
Seran Kasilingam of Toronto has been charged with second-degree murder. Kasilingam is described as five feet 11 inches tall, 230 pounds with black hair and brown eyes.
He goes by the nickname Kuttyshawn. Toronto’s homicide squad said the two knew each other.
www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/news/2428-manhunt-for-lankans-killer.html
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| 18/03/2010 | Second Court Martial to be reconvened |
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The second Court Martial assembled at the Navy Headquarters yesterday morning to hear charges of alleged contravention of military procurement procedures against General Sarath Fonseka unanimously decided to adjourn its sittings and refer the composition of the tribunal to convening authorities.
The tribunal, considering submissions maintained that although the provisions in the Army Act empower same members of one Court Martial to sit for another tribunal for the same accused, provided alleged prosecuting charges are of different nature, it prefers to be reconvened for the sake of maintaining high degree of transparency and unprejudiced nature.
The sittings were therefore adjourned.
www.dailynews.lk/2010/03/18/news03.asp
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| 18/03/2010 | Plate activities being watched |
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The Geological Survey and Mines Bureau says it is monitoring the seismic activity close to Sri Lanka following the 6.0 earthquake recorded in the area earlier this week.
The 6.0 quake was the biggest to have been recorded from that particular plate and a bigger one could occur but is unlikely to cause any major damage to Sri Lanka, the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau added.
Speaking to Daily Mirror online, Chairman of the Bureau, Dr. N.J. Vithyananda said, "We are monitoring the situation closely. 6.0 is the highest earthquake we have had."
A magnitude 6.0 earthquake struck close to Sri Lanka early on Monday morning but did not cause any damages nor was there a threat of a tsunami. The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.0 and was centered about 1,151 kilometers (716 miles) south-southeast of Colombo according to the West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Center. It struck about 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake.
www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/news/2439-plate-activities-being-watched.html
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| 18/03/2010 | EU - Lanka to continue talks |
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The Sri Lankan government and the European Union (EU) have agreed to meet again for further discussions following preliminary talks held in Brussels this week on continuing with the GSP plus facility, a EU spokesman told Daily Mirror online.
EU Trade Spokesman John Clancy said the delegation of high-level Sri Lankan officials held a preliminary exchange of views with European Commission officials following the announcement by the EU on 15th February of the decision for the temporary withdrawal of GSP+ benefits from Sri Lanka.
The delegation led by Romesh Jayasinghe, Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs met with Commisisoner De Gucht and held a preliminary exchange of views. The EU spokesman however refused to elaborate further on what was discussed and if the talks so far were fruitful.
"The Commission remains committed to work with Sri Lanka to see whether the conditions for a reversal of such a decision are in place as a result of significant improvements on the effective implementation of the human rights conventions at issue. The Sri Lankans and EU counterparts agreed to meet again," John Clancy told Daily Mirror online via email.
http://www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/news/2430-eu-lanka-to-continue-talks.html
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| 18/03/2010 | Trial of Sri Lanka ex-army chief Fonseka adjourned |
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The second of two courts martial set up to try Sri Lanka’s ex-army chief, Sarath Fonseka, has abruptly adjourned.
The three-judges said they wanted to clarify whether they could conduct both sets of proceedings, a defence lawyer told the BBC.
Wednesday’s trial was to have heard charges that Gen Fonseka broke procedure on military procurement.
Gen Fonseka says all the charges are politically motivated and an attempt to bar him from forthcoming elections.
He was arrested by the army last month, after losing presidential elections to incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa in January.
Gen Fonseka led Sri Lanka’s army when it defeated Tamil Tiger rebels last year but he and President Rajapaksa later fell out.
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8572586.stm
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| 18/03/2010 | Court Martial adjourns sittings |
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The second Court Martial which convened today to hear charges over the alleged contravention of military procurement procedures by General Sarath Fonseka, adjourned sittings over the composition of the tribunal, the army said in a statement.
The second Court Martial assembled at Navy Headquarters this morning to hear the charges but later unanimously decided to adjourn its sittings and refer the composition of the tribunal to convening authorities.
The tribune, considering submissions maintained that although the provisions in the Army Act empower same members of one Court Martial to sit for another tribunal, provided alleged prosecuting charges are of different nature, it prefers to be reconvened for the sake of maintaining high degree of transparency and unprejudiced nature.
www.dailymirror.lk/index.php/news/2426-court-martial-adjures-over-tribunal.html
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| 18/03/2010 | Won’t allow firings to recur, PC tells Lapang |
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Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday assured Meghalaya Chief Minister D D Lapang that the Centre would not allow incidents of firing between BSF and BDR to recur.
Lapang, who called on Chidambaram in New Delhi on Wednesday, discussed the recent incidents of firing by BDR and BSF along the border in Meghalaya and raised concerns of the civilian population living in the area, an official statement here said.
Asserting that the land at Muktapur, which BDR has been claiming, has been with India since decades, Lapang said the cordial atmosphere prevailing between New Delhi and Dhaka should not be disturbed by such incidents.
"The Union Home Minister informed that he has already taken up the matter with concerned authorities and assured that such incidents will not be allowed to recur," the statement said.
Lapang also apprised the Home Minister of the outcome of Tuesday’s talks between the banned Achik National Volunteers Council and Centre’s interlocutor P C Haldar.
www.indianexpress.com/news/wont-allow-firings-to-recur-pc-tells-lapang/592105/
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| 18/03/2010 | BJP takes credit for Women’s Bill |
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BJP on Wednesday sought to take credit for its role in passage of the Women’s Reservation Bill in Rajya Sabha and forcing the government to defer the nuclear liability bill.
"When the Women’s Reservation Bill came many said opposition unity will be broken but we were not affected by criticism that BJP was aligning with the Left," Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj told a press conference.
When she was reminded that Congress has already taken credit for passage of the women’s bill in Rajya Sabha, she said, "Democracy runs on numbers. In the House where it was passed, government did not have a majority."
Leader of Opposition in the Upper House Arun Jaitley, who was also present, referred to the din and use of marshals when the contentious bill came up for discussion and passage.
"My de facto intervention became the de jure debate," he claimed, adding that he had objected to the use of marshals even in his speech. "You cannot have voting or debate in the presence of marshals," he said.
www.indianexpress.com/news/bjp-takes-credit-for-womens-bill/592059/
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