NewsBriefs
Back to Headlines

BEST strike ends

      Mumbai: Employees' of the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport (BEST) called off their two-day strike on late Saturday night, following a meeting between the employees union and the management. Representatives of the striking employees, who were demanding pay hike, had a two-hour-long meeting with the management, during which BEST workers' demands were met and an agreement worth Rs 402 crore was reached. Under the new agreement, BEST employees will get a medical allowance of Rs 350 per month and Pay Revision Committee rules will not be binding on the 44,000 BEST employees. With the BEST buses back on the roads, commuters in Mumbai heaved a sigh of relief on Sunday morning. BEST workers had launched an indefinite strike from Friday demanding better pay packets. During the strike, nearly 3200 BEST buses had stayed off the road, affecting nearly 50 lakh commuters across Mumbai and its suburbs as about 44,000 BEST employees supported the strike. Over 42,000 BEST employees have been on an indefinite strike since Thursday midnight, in defiance of a April 20 order issued by an industrial court here that restrained the BEST Kamgar Karmachari Sangathan from resorting to the strike. BEST union leader Sharad Rao had said they have gone on strike in protest against the freeze on pay revision and the dearness allowance (DA) from this month. Rao claimed that some of the employees would have to suffer losses between Rs.600 and Rs.1, 800 per month. Officials estimated a revenue loss of about Rs.2 crores during the two-day strike as operations along nearly 335 routes came to a standstill.

Five cops suspended in Mehar case (Go To Top)

      Lucknow: Five policemen, including the Hazratganj Police Station SHO (Station House Officer), have been suspended for failing to arrest Sachin Pahari, the main accused in the Mehar Bhargava murder case. According to reports, the suspended policemen were part of the special teams formed to nab Sachin, who had allegedly shot down Mehar Bhargav in February. Pahari, who carried a reward of Rs 50,000 on his head, had managed to escape after he was shot at in an encounter with the police last month. Mehar Bhargava, wife of state Congress leader Luv Bhargava, was shot on February 28 by a group of young men when she confronted them for eve-teasing her daughter in law, Kavita.

Raj Babbar, VP launch 'Jan Morcha' (Go To Top)

      New Delhi: Suspended Samajwadi Party (SP) leader and Lok Sabha MP from Agra, Raj Babbar today launched a new political front called 'Jan Morcha' (People's front) along with the former Prime Minister, V.P.Singh. Speaking to reporters, Babbar said that the new political front, which is the extension V.P.Singh's Kisan Morcha launched earlier, would fight for the rights of the farmers, youth, poor and weaker section of society. "Jan Morcha is not a political party but a political front" Babbar said, adding, "The front has been formed by the leaders who have been associated with the common people and would struggle against the atrocities done to farmers and poor." Terming that the new front was not against any political party but for the common poor people, Babbar said that presently, Uttar Pradesh is "our priority where there is complete anarchy and the youth are facing unemployment problem and the minority are living in constant fear". Former Prime Minister V.P.Singh also expressed his unhappiness with the present state of the nation and said that the poor people of the country are facing tough days. Enumerating Medha Patkar's Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), Singh said, that NBA too is struggling a lot as no political parties were bold enough to take a stand for the displaced people. On being asked whether the new outfit would act as the first step in the formation of a third front, Singh said that it would be too early to say and added "wait till the elections". Babbar was suspended from the Samajwadi Party last month after he alleged that senior party leader Amar Singh had led to the downfall of the party by bringing in broker culture in the party.

Actor Navin Nishchal's wife ends life (Go To Top)

      Mumbai: In a shocking incident Gitanjali Nishchal, the wife of Cinestar Navin Nischal, committed suicide after hanging herself from the ceiling fan of her room on Saturday night here. She is reported to have ended her life, after being disappointed over some property dispute. Before taking the extreme step to end her life she is also reportedly to have got into a bitter argument with her husband, Navin Nischal. Although, in her suicide note, Gitanjali is reported to have said that she had been suffering from depression for a long time and nobody should be held responsible for her death. The Mumbai Police is investigating into the matter and reportedly inquiring Navin Nishchal.

Sex racket busted in Allahabad (Go To Top)

      Allahabad: A sex racket was busted here today in a police raid on two hotels in which 24 men and 23 women, besides minors were nabbed in the operation. Police also said that they had recovered CDs of blue films and cash of around rupees 25, 000. The owners of both the hotels have also been arrested from the spot. The police officer said that the raid was conducted after investigating the matter for a couple of days. "We had information for the past 5-6 days that flesh trade is being run in City hotel and Laxmi hotel. I sent some Special Operation Group (SOG) personnel in the guise of decoys to fix the deal. I raided the hotels with two COs and two SOs after getting information from on my mobile phone. We have arrested 23 women and 24 men from the spot. Owners of both the hotels have also been arested from the spot. We have recovered cash amount of around rupees 25, 000 and some CDS of blue films. By interrogating the women we learnt that the hotel owners continuously used to get in touch with them and used to call them up according to the requirement. Some minor girls are also involved in this trade," said Vijay Singh Meena, Senior Superintendent of Police, Allahabad. Both the hotels have been sealed and case have been registered against their owners Rajesh Gupta and Suresh Gupta.

Artillery, choppers pound Waziristan (Go To Top)

      Islamabad: After Balochistan, it's now Waziristan where the Pakistan military had to resort to heavy artillery and helicopter gunships to pound militant outfits waging war against the federal forces. Officials said security forces pounded suspected Taliban hideouts with heavy artillery fire and gunships in retaliation to an attack on a security check post in North Waziristan. ISPR spokesman Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan said security forces "retaliated" after seven rockets were fired at the Thall check- post. No casualties were however, reported, he said. Residents said heavy artillery guns and gunship helicopters pounded the area hours after the attack, damaging seven houses. No details of civilian casualties were however, available, they said. Pro-Taliban local militants also attacked a tribal police check- post on a road leading towards the Afghan border, beating up the police personnel and stealing their weapons, reports the Daily Times. In another incident a pro-government tribal elder escaped an assassination bid near Wana, capital of South Waziristan. The attack on Malik Syed Abbas Khan, however, wounded seven other passengers in a private van, said reports. The situation in Waziristan has been quite grim for sometime. The local Taliban have taken control of most of North and South Waziristan and enforced a strict Islamic code, including a ban on sale of music and films. They have also ordered the men to not shave off their beards. While they have established an Islamic court in Wana, headquarters of South Waziristan, replacing the traditional jirga, in Miramshah, capital of North Waziristan, curfew has been imposed after bloody clashes between federal forces and alleged Al Qaeda militants. And though the capital is under the control of the security forces, the situation is far from normal and sporadic incidents of violence occur every now and then. The federal government has also imposed a ban on carrying arms and ammunition in North Waziristan, which has met with stiff opposition from tribal elders who have said that the ban, if enforced, will put their lives at stake. Elsewhere, Musharraf has said that though the situation in Waziristan is bad, it has not deteriorated to the extent that it won't be possible to hold talks to find an amicable solution to the crisis.