Record 81 per cent voting in Goa, 100 per cent in one booth

Panaji, Mar 3: Goa witnessed a huge turnout for the Assembly elections today with a record 81 per cent voters casting their ballots.

North Goa district reported a big turnout with constituencies of Poriem, Sanguem and Madkai recording 89 per cent voting followed by Sankhalimat 87 per cent while an estimated 75 per cent voters cast their ballots in South Goa.

Chief Election Commissioner S Y Quraishi told reporters in New Delhi that an estimated 81 per cent voters had cast their ballots in the coastal state. The previous highest voting in the state was in 2007 when 70.51 per cent voters had voted.

The Election Commission officials were in for a surprise when a booth in Dovorlim locality near Margao reported 100 per cent voting by 3.30 pm, 90 minutes before the close of polling. Two booths, one in Poriem and another in Sankhalim constituency, had recorded 95 per cent voting by 4 pm.

The figures received till 4 pm indicated that people in the mining belt came out in large number for polling.

Minor scuffles reported during the day with Congress’ Panaji candidate Yatin Parekh hurling abuses against BJP workers while Public Works Department minister Churchill Alemao threatened a senior police officer in front of the media in his Navelim constituency. (PTI)

Around 52 pc polling till late afternoon

Lucknow, March 3: Around 52 per cent votes were polled amidst sporadic incidents of violence till 3 PM on Saturday for the seventh and final phase of Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, marking the end of the month-long exercise. Polling for the 60 seats, nearly half of which were bagged by BSP last time, in ten

districts began at 7 AM and 51.9 per cent polling was registered till 3 PM, Chief Electoral Officer Umesh Sinha said. The maximum 55 per cent polling was registered in Lakhimpur, followed by 53 per cent in Bijnor.

Bheemnagar recorded 52 per cent polling, Bareilly 50 per cent, Pilibhit 52 per cent, Shahjahanpur 51 per cent and Badaun 49.83 per cent voting, he said.

Meanwhile at Ujhani area in Badaun, JD(U) candidate for Shekhupura seat, Sanjeev Gupta, was assaulted allegedly by SP supporters.

In another incident at Pilibhit district, BJP and Congress men gheraoed a police station after some workers were detained. Trouble started when DSP Rafeeq Ahmad allegedly assaulted some BJP and Congress booth workers and took them to the police station where the candidates of both the parties created a ruckus along with their supporters.

Following the incident Ahmad was removed from poll duty.

At a booth in Jahangirabad in Sahaswan seat of Badaun, sitting MLA D P Yadav had dispute with security forces after he was prevented from entering the booth with his supporters. More than 1.82 crore voters would decide the electoral fate of 962 candidates, including some political veterans in Bijnore, Moradabad, Bheem Nagar, Rampur, Jyotiba Phule Nagar, Badaun, Bareilly, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur and Lakhimpur.

Earlier scheduled for February four, this phase was later postponed to March three. (PTI)

Court dismisses plea in Mulayam assets case

New Delhi, March 3: A Delhi court on Saturday dismissed a plea seeking registration of a case against Attorney General GE Vahanvati, Karnataka Governor HR Bhardwaj and Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan for ‘shielding’ Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and his family in a disproportionate assets case. Special CBI judge Talwant Singh dismissed the petition of Vishwanath Chaturvedi who had sought direction from the court to register an FIR to initiate a ‘fair and impartial probe’ into all the offences chronicled in his complaint against the people, including Vahanvati. Chaturvedi filed the petition on Monday. (IANS)

Bikram Singh will be next Indian Army chief

New Delhi, March 3: Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh will be the next Indian Army chief, it was announced Saturday thus ending months of a bitter succession row originating from the disputed age of incumbent General VK Singh.

Bikram Singh (59) will be the first army chief who joined the 1.13-million strong force after the 1971 Bangladesh war with Pakistan. He will be the second Sikh to head the army after Gen. JJ Singh.

“Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh has been designated as the next chief of army staff in the rank of general, with effect from the afternoon of May 31, 2012,” a government statement said.

Lt. Gen. Bikram Singh currently heads the Army’s eastern command and will take the top post on May 31 when Gen. VK Singh will be retiring from service.

The appointment of the next army chief comes after an intricate vetting process in the wake of allegation that Bikram Singh was involved in a fake shootout case in Kashmir and an intelligence check on his family members.

According to sources, the defence ministry had sought a detailed clearance from intelligence agencies on his eldest daughter-in-law who was alleged to be a Pakistani citizen. This had raised fears of “security risks and implications”.

But intelligence agencies rubbished this and in fact informed the defence ministry that the daughter-in-law is a US citizen. She is a daughter of an Afghan and her mother is from a Central Asian country.

The designated army chief was also alleged to be involved in a fake shootout in Kashmir in March 2001.

The mother of an alleged militant killed in a south Kashmir village alleged that his son was a civilian labourer and troops brigaded by Bikram Singh had killed him in a staged gunbattle.

But Kashmir Police gave Bikram Singh a clean chit over the case even though a petition is still pending in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court.

Bikram Singh was among the three short-listed senior-most officers — Vice Chief of Army Lt Gen Shri Krishna Singh and Northern Army Commander Lt Gen KT Parnaik being the other two — contending for the top post.

He emerged as the front-runner for the top post because of his seniority amongst the short-listed candidates.

Bikram Singh was commissioned into the Sikh Light Infantry Regiment in 1972 after finishing his course in the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy.

He also attended the US Army War College, Pennsylvania.

During his 40-year-long service in the Indian Army, he has served in a variety of command and staff appointments.

He has commanded a corps in the Northern Command.

He had served as deputy force commander of a multi-nation UN peace-keeping mission in Congo and also as UN observer in Nicaragua and El Salvador during the early 1990s.

Incumbent Gen V.K. Singh, who was till a fortnight ago engaged in a bitter legal battle over his date of birth, was issued the Retirement Warning Letter (RWL) by the Military Secretary’s branch early this week after months of row over his age which was finally settled in the Supreme Court last month. (IANS)

NRHM case: Former UP minister, BSP legislator arrested

New Delhi, March 3: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday arrested former Uttar Pradesh minister Babu Singh Kushwaha and his aide and sitting BSP legislator Ram Prasad Jaiswal for alleged involvement in the multi-crore-rupee National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scam, officials said.

Kushwaha, who had recently quit his Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and crossed over to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), was arrested after day-long interrogation, said a CBI official, adding that he will be presented in court on Sunday.

The arrests of the two, long under the agency’s scanner for their role in the NRHM scam, minutes after the seventh and last phase of state elections came to an end.

CBI, which is investigating the scam, had called Kushwaha and Jaiswal Saturday morning for questioning.

According to agency sources, both the leaders were arrested after they failed to give satisfactory answers.

The agency is also expected to question a few politicians like former health minister Anant Mishra and legislative councillor Ram Chandra Pradhan.

The CBI had in January conducted raids in Delhi, Lucknow and other places while investigating Kushwaha’s alleged involvement in the scam.

A former family welfare minister, Kushwaha was questioned in connection with the three FIRs, registered on January 19, in which contracts to the tune of Rs.250 crore were given to various firms for works.

Kushwaha has been named as the accused in the first FIR and the CBI is probing his role in at least 12 contracts.

Kushwaha’s name was included as an accused in the case on the basis of the statement of the former principal secretary (medical & health) Pradip Shukla, two directors general of the family welfare directorate SP Ram and Usha Narayan and chief medical officers of the districts concerned, the source added.

“Till now, our investigations suggest that family welfare and health departments of the state government awarded contracts to certain private companies allegedly on the basis of bogus documents,” said a source.

The case was registered against the former minister in the matter of alleged financial irregularities done in the supply of medicines and medical equipment in 24 districts of Uttar Pradesh under the NRHM scheme during 2010-2011. (IANS)

Thane BJP corporator goes missing

Thane, March 3: Days before the election of the mayor here, a Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) corporator has gone missing with her family, police said on Saturday. Suhasini Lokhande, who represented ward 48, went on a vacation with her husband and son on February 24 but has not been heard of since then, according to a complaint by her brother Prakash Tambat. An official from Thane’s Naupada police station said: “Tambat said he has not been able to reach his sister or brother-in-law and he is worried about their safety.” Lokhande went missing only two days after the Shiv Sena-BJP-Republican Party of India (RPI) alliance claimed to have reached the magic figure of 66 to establish majority in the Thane Municipal Corporation. The alliance claimed that the support from independents and others would pave the way for the election of a Sena mayor. In the civic polls held on February 16, no political party got a clear majority. While the Shiv Sena-led alliance won 62 seats and fell four seats short of the required 66, the Congress-NCP combine secured 52 seats. (IANS)

Antony’s office bugged? Defence Ministry denies

New Delhi, March 3: Mystery shrouded reports of alleged bugging in the office of Defence Minister A K Antony in the South Block which is said to have occurred in the middle of last month. Sources, who did not wish to be identified, spoke of the bugging incident that is said to have come to light during a routine check by Military Intelligence personnel of the phones of the Minister on February 16, but the Ministry officially came out with a release denying any bugging. “Reports of bugging in South Block in a section of the media is hereby denied. Routine checks are conducted in the offices of Raksha Mantri and other officers of the South Block. Nothing has been found in these checks,” the Defence Ministry said in a release. The denial came on a day when news magazine came out with a report that panic gripped South Block on February 16 morning after a bug alarm was triggered in Antony's office. A hand-held bug detector wielded by MI personnel beeped, indicating the presence of a monitoring device, the report had claimed. Once the bugging incident reportedly came to light, the Minister is believed to have asked for a check by the Intelligence Bureau. (PTI)

Hung assembly, Samajwadi Party to be largest party: Exit polls

New Delhi, March 3: The Samajwadi Party will emerge as the single largest party in Uttar Pradesh but India’s most populous state will have a hung assembly, exit polls after the final round of voting in the seven-phase assembly elections in the state predicted on Saturday. Star News-Nielsen Exit poll predicts a hung assembly in the assembly elections. The poll predicts Mulayam Singh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party to be the single largest party with a tally of 160 in the 403-seat house, and 26 per cent vote share. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is predicted to get just 86 seats with 24 per cent vote share, indicating a disillusionment with Chief Minister Mayawati. According to Star News-Nielsen Exit poll, the Bharatiya Janata Party will be the third largest party in the state with a tally of 80 seats, just six seats less than the ruling BSP. The BJP will garner a vote share of 18 per cent. Buoyed by Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi’s extensive campaigning, the Congress is predicted to more than double its figure of 22 in 2007 to 58 this time. The Congress’s ally, Ajit Singh’s Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) is expected to win 12 seats. The India TV-C voter exit poll shows the SP emerging as the single largest party with 141 seats followed by the BSP at 126. The Congress, according to the India TV poll, is predicted to get only 36 seats and the BJP will do much better with 83 seats. According to another exit poll conducted by News 24-Chanakya, the SP will grab 185 seats, falling 17-seat short of a simple majority in the 403-member assembly. The BSP will get only 85 seats, followed by the BJP and Congress with 55 seats each. (IANS)

Tagore, spirituality and Islam on bookshelf

New Delhi, March 3: The book shelf this week is loaded with exciting titles that tease the brain and broaden the horizons with words on Tagore, Islam and the trials of the Indian diaspora under Idi Amin. These are the books on the bookshelf this week:

1. Filming Fiction: Tagore, Premchand And Ray; Anthology edited by M Asaduddin and Anuradha Ghosh; Published by Oxford University Press; Priced at Rs 695

Rabindrantah Tagore, Premchand and Satyajit Ray have deeply influenced India’s intellectual and cultural life since the late 19th century and their legacy continues well into the present.

The book addresses the mutual relationship between literature and movies in the Indian context involving these three plinths of Indian cinema.

2. On Tagore, Reading the Poet Today; Essays by Amit Chaudhuri; Published by Penguin India; Priced at Rs 399

Rabindranath Tagore is widely regarded as a romantic poet speaking of beauty and truth. He is remembered as a transcendentalist, a believer in the absolute, a propagandist for universal man. But as these remarkable essays about the poet and his milieu show, his secret concern was really with life, play and contingency, with the momentary as with the eternal.

The essays are written over 12 years. The earliest of them, The Flute of Modernity was first published in The New Republic in 1998 and the latest An Anniversary Begins was published in The Guardian in 2011.

3. The Sacred Quest: Turning Darkness Into Light; Written by AK Luthienne; Published Shree Book Centre; Priced at US$21 (Rs.1,038)

Some lives are connected with the same magic. This is the story of Ahqulieah, the alchemist, and her Magus, an ancient wise love — a king — who illuminated the world with his wisdom.

Ahqulieah is Louise in this life but her quest is to find Magus, who took her on as an apprentice to pass the secret knowledge of mysticism, shamanism and universal truth. They are torn apart in their past life and Louise connects to him in this life through an ancient silver ring. It is based on the writer’s true life story.

4. Culture of the Sepulchre: Idi Amin’s Monster Regime; Written by Madanjeet Singh; Published by Penguin-Books; Priced at Rs 499

The book is not only a retelling of Idi Amin’s brutality and buffoonery, which unfolded in the 1970s but also a heartrending saga of the forced evacuation of the Indian diaspora from Uganda and their trials against the backdrop of a fierce internal armed conflict. The former high commissioner to Uganda offers a first hand account of the unimaginable violence and savagery.

5. The Monk, The Moor & Moses Ben Jalloun; Written by Saeed Akhtar Mirza; Published by Harper Collins-India; Priced at Rs 450

It is a novel about a deliberately forgotten history — a history that remains hidden in the sanctums of Western academic institutions. A group of young students in an American University in 2008 set out to discover those truths on their own; not just because they need to know but because they see how the past affects their lives in real ways. It brings to life an Islamic civilization that was a centre for sciences and liberal arts. (IANS)

Censors object to expletives in Paan Singh Tomar

Mumbai, March 3: The censors displayed unprecedented liberality by passing an inherently violent story like Paan Singh Tomar with a ‘UA’ certification, which allows it to be a suitable watch under parental guidance. But it wasn’t easy for director Tigmanshu Dhulia to get a clearance without toning down the language in the movie. “Though the film is set in the Indian heartland and the characters speak a rough raw earthy bhasha, they don’t use expletives as such. There is only one character played by veteran actor Rajendra Gupta, whose colourful language had the censorboard running for the scissors and gunning for the gaalis (abuses),” said a source close to the project. Dhulia apparently had to fight tooth and nail to prove that cleaning-out the character’s language would be tantamount to emasculating him. He had to wage a long battle, and still he had to finally expunge the expletives from the film, starring Irrfan Khan. “There was a specially heated argument over one sequence towards the end where Irrfan’s character is speaking to Gupta,” said the source. When contacted, Dhulia said: “Yes, the censor board did have a problem with Rajendra Guptaji’s dialogues. He plays Irrfan’s coach in the film. He uses a certain abuse in his language liberally and frequently. While I did agree to do away with most of the objectionable expletives, there’s a scene towards the end when Irrfan visits his old coach, who asks, ‘Why have you come to see me?’ Irrfan says he’s come to hear his gaali. Now, to not have a gaali here would be impossible. The whole sequence is based on the gaali.” Dhulia apparently argued his case. But the censor board was adamant, arguing that a ‘UA’ certification meant children would hear a member of the educational community abusing in a film. Finally, Dhulia settled for a compromise, and tweaked the abuse. Dhulia also had to alter some scenes showing the characters smoking. “But that’s okay. I’m just happy that the censor board is looking at a film with its given specific theme and milieu and not making arbitrary cuts,” he added. (IANS)

Tara debuts on ramp; says doing films less scary

Mumbai, March 3: Actress Tara Sharma, who walked the ramp for the first time at the ongoing Lakme Fashion Week here, says the experience was more scary than doing films.

Tara ended the show in a gold metallic sheath for designer Pia Pauro on the second day of LFW.

“This is a debut for me in a way as I have never been a show stopper. This is for the first time I am walking the ramp I have never really been a ramp model at all so I was a bit nervous. I find doing films a less scary...when you have to walk quietly its quite scary,” she told reporters here.

“For me, Pia is a friend and the other connection is that we both are mothers and have two kids each. I feel women can multi-task. So you can be a mother..and be working, can be doing a show, walking the ramp,” she felt.

The designer line was called 'Shamal', a north-westerly wind blowing over the Middle East deserts.

Divided into four parts, Pia stayed firm on the tribal concept, but separated the sections into bling, rocks, de Luxe and tunics.

The garments were in vibrant hues of indigo, orange, naturals, pink and electric blue. The fabrics matched the youthful tones as jerseys, chiffons, georgettes, cottons and silks were beautifully created into cool sundresses, comfy tunics, flowing kaftans, elegant saris and slinky evening wear. (PTI)

‘Hi sexy!’ Sexist comment or compliment?

New Delhi, March 3: The word ‘sexy’ crept into the Indian lexicon a long time ago, but it continues to create ripples in a society where the conservative goes hand in hand with the modern. Some find it outrageous and derogatory while others say it is important to see how the term is used.

The renewed debate comes after Mamta Sharma, chairperson of the National Commission for Women (NCW), said: “If a group of boys eve-teases you by calling you sexy, you should not get provoked and instead you should take it positively.”

Smriti Irani, president of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) All India Mahila Morcha, finds Sharma’s statement irresponsible and derogatory. “It’s extremely unfortunate that a woman of this stature has come up with such a remark. Being the NCW chairperson, it was her duty to talk in a responsible manner. With this statement, she has made a derogatory remark about the entire women’s community. It is absolutely outrageous to get comment like this from any man. It is objectionable and disrespectful,” Irani said. Irani feels such remarks will add to crimes. Despite several new initiatives by Delhi Police, the year 2011 saw a significant rise in the number of rape and molestation cases - 568 rape cases were reported last year compared to 507 in the previous year.

Sharma later regretted her remark saying, “If the remarks caused offence to anyone, I apologise and withdraw any mention of it.”

Social activist Nafisa Ali agrees with Irani but respects Sharma’s apology. “I think the word ‘sexy’ is derogatory for women but if Mamta said sorry then I don’t have any problem. I think she also highlighted that men should take care of words while talking to women,” Ali said.

Actress and anchor Pooja Bedi says what is important is the manner in which such words are used. “Sexy is an adjective and one that denotes physical beauty. I think the important aspect is not ‘what’ is said but ‘how’ it is said. If the eyes rove lecherously and the facial expression is sleazy, then it’s pure harassment,” Bedi said. “But someone randomly shouting it or stating it in a complimentary manner is something one can choose to ignore or smile and thank,” she said.

In the last few years, filmdom has gone bold and brazen when it comes to the use of slangs. In 1994, a song titled Sexy, sexy, sexy mujhe log bole, featuring Karisma Kapoor, had to be changed to  Baby, baby, baby... after the word ‘sexy’ created an uproar. So is Bollywood responsible for popularising such words?

Item girl Rakhi Sawant, known for making headlines with her bold statements, said: “Such remarks are perfectly fine as long as they are not from an unknown guy. In fact, there are many girls who are offended when a guy doesn’t notice them. I don’t think there is anything wrong when someone calls you sexy. After all, you are sexy!”

Pakistani actress Veena Malik says ‘sexy’ is a beautiful word. “When men call a girl or woman ‘sexy’, I feel it’s a compliment and every girl should believe that she is hot and sexy. They should not feel bad or offended because it’s a beautiful word. I personally feel great when men compliment me with such words. I hear these compliments almost every day. It’s so common,” she added.

Former Miss India and model Shonal Rawat feels in today’s time “when modern girls work so hard on their bodies, compliments like ‘sexy’ could be termed as a confidence booster.” “Getting such compliments from acquaintances gives a boost to the personality and from strangers too, it is fine unless he harms you.”

Perhaps model-actress Sophie Chaudhary hits bull’s eye when she says Indian men should first learn how to compliment a woman. “I don’t think there is anything wrong. But there is a way of saying everything and that’s something, unfortunately, our Indian men need to learn. There is a way to talk to a girl, complimenting a girl,” the 31-year-old actor said,adding, “Even if they are saying you are looking sexy, it should not be sleazy, it should not be tacky. If it’s said genuinely and nicely, then it is definitely a compliment.” (IANS)

After item song, RGV casts Nathalia for film

Mumbai, March 3: Indo-Canadian porn star Sunny Leone’s loss has become Nathalia Kaur’s gain. The Brazilian girl of Indian descent, who features in an item number in Ram Gopal Varma’s Department, has now been cast in a new movie by the filmmaker. “I am going to do an action thriller romantic film starring Rana Daggubati and Nathalia Kaur and the shooting will start very soon,” Varma announced on Twitter on Saturday. (IANS)

People tend to forget we are basically actors: Saif Ali Khan

Kolkata, Mar 3: Actor Saif Ali Khan says people tend to forget that he and his girlfriend Kareena Kapoor are basically actors and it is the ‘most shallow’ reason to see a film just because two people are involved off-screen as well. “People forget that we are actors as well. Whenever we are together people tend to see us more as a couple. They stop thinking that we are basically actors. The USP of a film will be different for different people. But I think this is the most shallow reason to watch a film just because two people who are involved off-screen as well as acting in the film. This should not matter,” Saif said at a promotional event. Asked whether the increasing focus on his personal life was affecting his career, he said, “I don’t think so. All these things don’t last long. These are sensational and silly things.” Action-thriller Agent Vinod is made at a budget of around Rs 50 crore and will see Saif play a spy agent. The film will be release on March 23. “For the first time in my 20-year-old career my film is not for a sophisticated audience, but for a majority of the people,” he said referring to his earlier works like Hum Tum and Salaam Namaste. (PTI)