Sadhvi Pragya brought to Nashik court, 3 more arrested

The Maharashtra ATS brought the prime accused Sadhvi Pragya Thakur to the Nashik court today, along with her co-accused Sahu , and Shivnarayan.


Meanwhile, the three accused were allowed to meet their siblings and the meetings happened with the lawyers in the court room.


Shiv Sena activists protested outside the court, to demonstrate their anger at the arrest and trial of the sadhvi.


Three other people too have been arrested in the Malegaon blasts case, that the ATF has arrested the sadhvi under.


She has already undergone several brain mapping tests in Mumbai. Reports say that a large number of activists from the Shiv Sena may gather outside the court as a show of support to the sadhvi.


On Sunday, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) joined the Shiv Sena and the BJP in saying that they would provide all legal help to the sadhvi.


They claim that the ATS had absolutely no evidence against her and that her arrest was just a larger part of a political ploy of the UPA government to tarnish the saffron outfits.


The editor of the party mouthpiece Saamana, Sanjay Raut had told CNN-IBN that the Sena is ready to provide legal aide to the accused, including sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur.


"If Dawood Ibrahim's brother was represented by eminent lawyers like Majeed Memon, shouldn't sadhvi Pragya, Ramesh Upadhyay and Sameer Kulkarni be represented by somebody?" said a previous editorial in Saamna.


"The government does not save Hindus from terrorists, and if Hindus defend themselves, they are maligned," it had said.


The Mumbai Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) has arrested Pragya Singh Thakur in the September 29 Malegaon bomb blast case in which five people were killed.

Shah Rukh to play his age in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan sheds his casanova image for a new film, basing his character on a middle-aged man he met while hosting a popular game show on Indian television.


Shah Rukh, who turned 43 on Sunday, has mostly played the young romantic lead in a career spanning nearly two decades and 60 films. But for filmmaker Aditya Chopra's Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, Shah Rukh casts off his designer suits and jeans to play a bespectacled government employee in ill-fitting trousers.


"I want to play the exact opposite of Raj and Rahul, the romantic hero that I have played all these days. I want to show that it is special to be ordinary, which is why I am doing this film," Khan said at a press conference on Sunday.



SRK, Bollywood's most bankable star, said the character was inspired by a "sweet, unassuming" contestant he met last year on the sets of Kaun Banega Crorepati, the Indian version of the worldwide hit TV show, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?.


"I want everyone who watches the film to realise that the person they love is the best romantic hero there could be," he added.


Not much is known about the storyline of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi except that the film is a love story and it also features SRK in a younger role which is again inspired by a contestant in another TV show hosted by the actor.


SRK did not elaborate but said this second character was based on another contestant he met this year on Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?, the Indian version of another American game show Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?. Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi opens in cinemas in December.

North Indian youths attack Maharashtra Sadan in Delhi

The Maharashtrian-North Indian standoff in Mumbai has spilled on to the streets of Delhi.


A group of 20 youths, reportedly from Bihar, attacked Maharashtra Sadan in the capital on Monday.


The Rashtrawadi Sena has claimed responsibility for the attack.


The youths were protesting attacks on North Indians in Maharashtra. The mob ransacked the reception of the building and raised slogans against Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray.


Deputy Commissioner of Police Anand Mohan said that the situation was brought under control soon. However, no one has been arrested.


A journalist, Balasaheb Ambekar working a regional language paper in Maharashtra, Jivhala, said that the guards couldn't stop the attackers.


"The security guards tried to stop them but couldn't. They all looked like bouncers and they went on a rampage," Ambekar said.

Student mistaken for a criminal, shot dead by cops

Haryana Police gunned a student in Bhiwani late on Sunday night in a case of mistaken identity.


The 20-year-old student, Kuldeep Singh, was shot dead while he was returning back home after a party with his friends. The police were allegedly on the lookout for a criminal, Dara Singh, when the tragic incident occurred.


An FIR has been registered in the case and one policeman has been arrested. The main accused constable Karmbir Singh was arrested after the registration of a case against eight cops following the killing of Kuldeep, a student of a local Vaish College.


"There were four men in a jeep and two of them got out. The one in plain clothes shot my brother on the forehead. When they realised he had been shot the policemen ran away," the victim's brother said.


Bhiwani District Commissioner Satya Prakash clarified that the act was unintentional and a FIR has been registered.


"In a case of bank robbery the police had nabbed two people and there was search going on for the other two involved. They belonged to a village in Bhiwani. There was some information that the people would be coming to the same place. The police were waiting and at 0115 hrs IST and they saw three people coming and after repeated requests they did not stop," Prakash said.


"It was an unintentional act. An FIR has been filed. The victim was taken to hospital at 0415 hrs IST. We are investigating the policeman who fired. They went to the thana (police station) and confession was made," he added.


Prakash also said that the Sub Divisional Magistrate, Bhiwani Shiv Prasad Sharma has been asked to investigate the incident.


The SDM would complete his probe at the earliest and submit a report to the District Administration after which further action would be taken against the guilty.



Meanwhile, students went on a rampage in Bhiwani after the tragic incident.


Haryana Chief Minister Bhupender Singh Hooda said that the guilty will not be spared.


"The police are at fault. It is an unfortunate incident and a case has been registered. The guilty will be punished and we have given Rs 5 lakh to the victim's family," Hooda said.


However, Kuldeep's father said that he won't accept the compensation offered by the Chief Minister.


Meanwhile, former chief minister Bhajan Lal visited Kuldeep's home and demanded strict action against the guilty.


Abhay Chautala, the son of another former chief minister Om Prakash Chautala, accused the state police of orchestrating fake encounters.


"The Chief Minister and his government claim that they have chased away anti-social elements from the state. In reality the police are killing innocent people in fake encounters," Chautala said