Will not move no-trust motion against Karnataka govt: Congress

BANGALORE: The Congress will not move a no-confidence motion as it expects the BJP government to collapse on its own, leader of the opposition in the state Assembly said here on Monday.

"We will not move", Siddaramaiah said, when asked if the Congress was planning to bring in a no-trust notice in the Budget session, which commenced on Monday. "We don't have the numbers (to succeed)".

The BJP government "technically" enjoys a majority but the "ground reality" is different and it's in minority as some of the ministers supporting former chief minister BS Yeddyurappa are only continuing in office "to loot", Siddaramaiah alleged.

"The government will fall on its own",he said and likened the step to move a no-trust motion as "flogging a dead horse".

"If government respects the Constitution, it should recommend dissolution of the House, and seek a fresh mandate', Siddaramaiah added.

In the 211-member House, after acceptance of resignation of 12 MLAs and two vacancies, the ruling BJP has a strength of 108, including an independent who is a minister, a nominated member and the Speaker.

The BJP headcount includes two members who have tendered their resignations, yet to be accepted by speaker KG Bopaiah.

Assembly elections are due in Karnataka in May. After a four decade long association with the BJP and playing a key role in building it in the state, Yeddyurappa, quit the party two months ago and formally floated the Karnataka Janata Party.

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High court issues notice to Congress, BJP on taking donations from Vedanta group

NEW DELHI: The Delhi high court issued notice to the Congress and the BJP on Monday on a plea seeking directive for a CBI or SIT probe for allegedly taking donations from subsidiaries of Britain-based Vedanta Group.

A division bench of Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice Indermeet Kaur sought response from both political parties within three weeks and posted the matter for March 19.

The court earlier sought response from the home ministry and the Election Commission saying it will go through their responses before asking the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to respond.

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22 killed in clash of Filipino extremists, rebels

MANILA: A Muslim rebel group said today it attacked Abu Sayyaf gunmen after the al-Qaeda-linked militants refused to free hostages, sparking fierce jungle clashes that left up to 22 combatants dead in the southern Philippines.

There was no word on whether the hostages were hurt in the fighting, but they remained in the grip of the Abu Sayyaf militants, police said.

Rebel commander Khabir Malik of the Moro National Liberation Front, which has an autonomy deal with the government, said his group decided to attack the Abu Sayyaf in the rugged mountains of Patikul town in southern Sulu province after negotiations collapsed on the release of several of its foreign hostages, including a Jordanian TV journalist and two European men who have been held since last year.

Abu Sayyaf militants did release two Filipino hostages over the weekend after an unspecified ransom was paid, security officials said, adding the captives were let loose on their own and not turned over to the Moro rebels.

"We had no choice," Malik told The Associated Press by telephone from Patikul. "They told us they won't hand over their hostages to us even if they die."

The Moro rebels battled the Abu Sayyaf with guns and knives at close range yesterday, Malik said, adding his group lost eight men, including one who was beheaded and a few others who were hacked to death.

Military and police officials in Sulu said up to 14 Abu Sayyaf men were killed, citing intelligence.

The fighting subsided today after Abu Sayyaf gunmen split into smaller groups, with a large group seen fleeing from Patikul to an adjacent town. But the clashes could erupt again, Sulu provincial police chief Senior Superintendent Antonio Freyra said.

It was the first major bloody confrontation between the two insurgent groups, which have coexisted for years and at times were suspected of collaborating on kidnappings and backing each other in clashes against government troops in predominantly Muslim Sulu.

Malik said his group had taken the initiative to seek the freedom of the hostages to help the government clean up the image of Sulu, where the Abu Sayyaf has carried out deadly bombings, kidnappings and beheadings, primarily in the early 2000s.

The two Filipinos freed by the Abu Sayyaf, cameraman Ramel Vela and audio technician Roland Letriro, worked for veteran Jordanian journalist Baker Abdulla Atyani. The rebels were also holding two European bird watchers, a Japanese treasure hunter, a Malaysian man and at least one Filipino resident of Sulu, police said.

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Indian Muslims less privileged than SC, ST's: UK scholar

ALIGARH: Muslims in India are even less privileged than members of scheduled caste and scheduled tribes as they enjoy neither equity nor equality of opportunity, a noted British scholar claimed here today.

Delivering Sir Syed Memorial Lecture at Aligarh Muslim University here, Gordon Campbell, Professor of Renaissance Studies at Leicester University in UK, claimed that the condition of Muslims, especially in the field of education, had worsened "in the seven years since the Sachar Committee Report was published".

"Muslims have been marginalised and have limited access in the field of mainstream education and public sector employment in the country," said Campbell, who is also the founding chairman of the Consortium of British Universities in Saudi Arabia.

He, however, lauded some recent initiatives in the sphere of education of Muslims, particularly AMU's decision "to establish centres of higher education in minority dominated areas of the country including Malappuram and Murshidabad".

He said, the establishment of these centres was a "bold initiative" taken by the university.

Referring to the policies followed by AMU's founder Sir Syed Ahmad Khan, Campbell said some people attribute origins of the two nation theory, which ultimately led to the creation of Pakistan, to him.

He, however, pointed out "Sir Syed Ahmad Khan believed in peaceful co-existence and that Hindus and Muslims should form one nation".

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Congress will not move trust motion against BJP in Karnataka

BANGALORE: Putting all speculations to rest, the Congress on Monday said it will not move a no-confidence motion against the BJP government surviving on a wafer-thin majority.

"We don't have the numbers (to succeed) and so we have decided against it. It will be nothing short of flogging a dead horse," said Siddaramaiah, leader of the opposition in the state assembly.

On the JD(S) assurance that they will support the Congress if they move a no-confidence motion, he retorted: "That's merely a political statement".

He said BJP government technically enjoys a majority but the ground reality is different and it's in minority as some of the ministers supporting former CM B S Yeddyurappa already have one foot outside the ruling party.

"If CM Jagadish Shettar respects the Constitution, he should recommend dissolution of the House, and seek a fresh mandate," Siddaramaiah added.

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Andhra Congress leader Sarojini Reddy passes away

HYDERABAD: Veteran Congress leader and former Andhra Pradesh minister Sarojini Pulla Reddy passed away here on Sunday following prolonged illness. She was 85.

A former member of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), she was suffering from cancer. She breathed her last at her residence here, family sources said.

Joining the Congress five decades ago, Sarojini Pulla Reddy was elected as a councillor in the Hyderabad Municipal Corporation in 1965.

She became the first lady mayor of Hyderabad -- and the second woman to don the honour in India after Tara Cherian, who became the lady mayor of Madras in 1966.

Sarojini was elected to the Andhra assembly from Malakpet in 1967. She represented the constituency twice but lost in 1978. She became the first chairperson of Hyderabad Urban Development Authority in 1975.

She was inducted into the cabinet in 1979. She was also a minister in the cabinets of T Anjaiah, Bhavanam Venkatram and Vijayabhaskar Reddy.

She was the first woman president of the Hyderabad Congress Committee.

In 2001, Sarojini was nominated a member of CWC. Soft spoken, Sarojini had a good rapport with both Indira Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.

Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimhan, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy, and senior Congress and opposition leaders condoled her death.

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Pakistani Taliban condemns 'ideological war' in Mali, urges Muslim world to unite

PESHAWAR: The Pakistani Taliban urged the Muslim world to unite in a video message released on Sunday as they condemned the French military intervention in Mali as an "ideological war".

French President Francois Hollande visited Mali on Saturday and vowed his troops would stay as long as necessary to continue the fight against Islamist rebels who had taken control of the country's north for 10 months.

An offensive led by French troops has driven rebels from all but one of Mali's major towns, but there are fears the Islamists will now wage a guerrilla campaign from the sparsely populated north.

In a video message handed out to journalists in northwest Pakistan, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesman Ehsanullah Ehsan condemned the French intervention, which has had logistical support from other Western countries.

"The French government has attacked mujahedeen in Mali and America has also agreed to support France. I ask the whole Muslim world to unite because it is an ideological war," Ehsan said.

He said the forces of "non-believers" were united and urged Muslims to come together.

"If America is supporting France on an ideological basis then in same way all Muslims should unite and support one another."

The TTP has waged a bloody campaign against the Pakistani state in recent years and the last two months have seen a notable increase in attacks on military posts and personnel.

The group claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on Saturday that killed at least 24 people at a military checkpost near Pakistan's semi-autonomous northwestern tribal belt where militants have carved out strongholds.

In December TTP leader Hakimullah Mehsud, who has a $5 million US government bounty on his head, said the group was open to peace talks but poured scorn on the idea of his men giving up their weapons.

Ehsan repeated the conditional offer of negotiations with Islamabad.

But he said they could only go ahead if certain politicians, including Nawaz Sharif, who leads leader of the main opposition party, the PML-N, acted as guarantors.

"We do not trust the Pakistan army, it has always broken past agreements, even agreements we made with politicians," Ehsan said in the seven-and-a-half minute video, in which he appeared flanked by armed masked men.

"We need solid guarantors who can assure us about the army, because the army is the real power in Pakistan."

He said the TTP needed assurances from Nawaz and the leaders of the two largest religious parties - Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl, led by Pro-Taliban cleric Maulana Fazl-ur-Rehman and Jamaat-e-Islami, headed by Munawar Hassan.

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Censor Board demands apology from TN advocate general in Vishwaroopam row

MUMBAI: The Censor Board has issued a press statement in Mumbai condemning the allegations made by Tamil Nadu advocate general Navaneetha Krishnan in connection with the certification of Kamal Haasan's film Vishwaroopam.

The statement reads, "The Central Board of Film Certification would like to put it on record for all concerned that every action taken and procedure followed by CBFC for certifying Vishwaroopam or any other film has been done in accordance with the Act and Rules framed by the Parliament. The CBFC has been functioning since 1951 and there are judicial precedents upholding the legality of the certification process. In view of the above, the statement of advocate general Navaneetha Krishnan calling the certification process a 'scam' is baseless and irresponsible. (Also) the statement of advocate Sankarasubu calling the board members 'purchasable commodities' is utterly reprehensible and grossly defamatory."

The CBFC has called upon the advocate general and advocate Sankarasubu to issue an apology for the statements made by them.

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Syrian army's missile hits Aleppo building, 13 killed: Watchdog

BEIRUT: At least 13 civilians were killed on Sunday in a missile attack by the Syrian army on a rebel-held neighbourhood in the embattled northern city of Aleppo, a monitoring group said.

"We have documented the names of nine people, while we can confirm at least another four were also killed. All were civilians," Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

The watchdog warned that the number of casualties could rise as people scrambled to sift through the rubble of a five-storey building that collapsed in the attack on Ansari district, in southwestern Aleppo.

A picture taken by an amateur photograph and distributed by the Observatory showed people gathered around a pile of rubble and the watchdog said two other buildings were damaged in the attack.

Large swathes of Aleppo city, once Syria's commercial hub, have been destroyed ever since the army launched an all-out assault in mid-July to stop rebels entering into the city from the neighbouring countryside.

More than 60,000 people have been killed in Syria's 22-month conflict, the UN says.

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No noble family will allow girls to become dancers: Hurriyat

SRINAGAR: Hardline faction of Hurriyat Conference today expressed surprise over Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah's support for the valley's only all-girls rock band, saying there is no room to nourish western culture and immoral values in the state.

"Kashmir is a place of sufis and saints and there is no room to nourish western type of culture and immoral values," Hurriyat spokesman Ayaz Akbar said in a statement.

"Though in a civilised society there is no place for coercion and force, there are some values a citizen has to adopt to safeguard the ethical and religious traditions," he said.

"Hurriyat Conference expresses regret and surprise over the support of Omar Abdullah," Akbar said.

"As a matter of fact no noble family will allow their girls to choose their profession as a dancer so as to be a mere thing of pleasure for strangers," he said.

Akbar said Omar should have gone through the history of Kashmir to find out the high regard and esteem bestowed upon women in order to save them from being sold as commodity.

"It is a matter of concern for us the way Omar Abdullah backed the rock band because the dynasty he belongs to has since long disassociated itself from Islamic and ethical values," he said.

Referring to the reported threats being given to the rock band, the spokesman termed it "not good".

"Instead, parents should have rectified the things and provided advice to their daughters that their activities were not as per ethics of Islam, culture and our unique identity," he said.

Omar had come out in support of the girls yesterday saying police will probe the threats.

"I hope these talented young girls will not let a handful of morons silence them," he said.

The all-girls band, which came to limelight in late December last year after their performance at the annual 'Battle of the Bands' competition here, had defied the convention by stepping into the male-dominated field of music.

The girls' band has received abusive and hate messages on their Facebook page for defying convention by choosing the field of music.

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