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Kanchi Acharya files anticipatory bail application

     Chennai: Kanchi Sankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati on Tuesday moved an application in the Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail fearing arrest in a case related to tampering with records of the Mutt's accounts. Acharya's another anticipatory bail application in the Thirukoshtiyur Madhavan assault case is pending with the sessions court in Chennai. Jayendra has been held in is the main accused in the Sankaraman murder case.

Shiv Sena opposes Pak tour to India

     New Delhi: The New Delhi unit of the Shiv Sena on Tuesday staged a demonstration against the proposed tour of the Pakistan cricket team to India. The party said it would oppose the tour as Pakistan is encouraging and abetting terrorism in India. Shiv Sena activists raised slogans against Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf and warned that they would disrupt the one-day international match allotted to Delhi in April. "We are clearly saying that until Pakistan talks about friendship, we should not conduct cricket matches. Whenever India has tried to extend the hand of friendship towards Pakistan, that country has backed off," alleged senior party leader Jai Bhagwan Goyal. The Pakistani team is slated to play three tests and five one dayers during its 45 day tour begining on the 25th of this month. Activists said that when Pakistani cricket board officials are inspecting the venues for the matches, attacks on innocent people continue.

    "Till Pakistan does not talk about friendship, we should not talk about cricket. Where there are talks of cricket tour being conducted, a member of Pakistani cricket board officials are inspecting the venues, there are attacks on innocent people in Jammu and Kashmir. Yesterday itself, five people were killed. How can we think of a game of cricket when Pakistan is busy sponsoring terrorism," Goyal added. The Shiv Sena activists later submitted a memorandum to the Prime Minister demanding cancellation of the tour. In 1999, Shiv Sena activists dug up the cricket pitch at the Feroze Shah Kotla ground in Delhi in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent a Test match from taking place. The Indian government lifted a ban imposed in 2000 on bilateral cricketing ties with Pakistan, paving the way for India's highly popular first tour of Pakistan for over 14 years in March-April last year. India won the Test series 2-1 and the one-day series 3-2.

No visitors to Velankanni shrine post-tsunami (Go To Top)

     Velankanni (Tamil Nadu): It has been more than a month since hundreds of pilgrims perished when the tsunami hit Velankanni, a famous Catholic shrine in Tamil Nadu. Although, there was no casualty inside the basilica as water did not enter the compound, the town of Velankanni, famous for the sea-facing Marian Shrine, was one of the worst hit, with about 850 deaths. The streets adjacent the shrine bear a deserted look, shopkeepers sitting idle with their unsold wares, anticipating the arrival of some pilgrims. Among the worst hit are barbers who used to make a living by shaving heads of the pilgrims, considered to be an important ritual. "Had you come before the tsunami struck, we would not have had the time to talk to you. We used to be that busy. Hundreds of pilgrims would be in line to get their heads shaved. But now more than a month after the tsunami the pilgrims arrival is very low though we do expect a crowd in the coming days, " said Selvam, a barber. For those who survived the deadly waves that lashed across the south-east Asian coastal belt , it's a tough task rebuilding their scattered life. Nearly 20 million pilgrims from all over India and southeast Asia would visit this 17th century Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health at Velankanni in Nagapattinam district, south of the state capital Madras, in search of healing for physical ailments. But there has been a drastic fall in the number of tourists and now shopkeepers are feeling the heat. "Before the tsunami 20,000 pilgrims would visit the shrine each day. But now, even though more than a month has passed, the tsunami scare has not gone and less number of pilgrims are visiting," said Anthony Stoubee, a shopkeeper. Velankanni attracts more pilgrims than any other sacred shrine in India. Not only do multitudes of Catholics travel here throughout the year but many non-Christians visit as well. Hundreds of miraculous cures are reported every year.