Today's Hot Stories – February 20, 2014
10 Headlines for Today(1) Govt to set up Equal Opportunities Commission for minorities
(2) T-Bill stuck in Rajya Sabha
(3) 15 militants killed in North Waziristan
(4) Additional spectrum: Hearing against Mittal, Ruia on April 4
(5) Narayana Murthy to lay off non-performers in Infosys
(6) Facebook to acquire WhatsApp
(7) Gangjee’s course record puts AVT Kolkata in lead
(8) Races: Regal Classic wins main event R
(9) Football: Barcelona, PSG storm towards quarterfinals
(10) Odia gets classical language status
5 Stories for Today
(1) Centre moves SC to stay release of Rajiv assassins
(2) 50 feared dead in Nigeria attack: Witnesses
(3) Cabinet gives nod for coal regulator
(4) First US bitcoin ATMs to open in Seattle, Austin
(5) GlaxoSmithKline's Rs.6,400 cr FDI proposal cleared by govt
(1) Centre moves SC to stay release of Rajiv assassins
Seeking a stay on Tamil Nadu government’s decision to release all seven convicts in Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, the Centre on Thursday moved the Supreme Court which agreed to give an urgent hearing and decided to take up the case later in the day.
Appearing before a bench headed by Chief Justice P Sathasivam, Solicitor General Mohan Parasaran pleaded for a stay saying the state government should not be allowed to release the prisoners till the apex court decided its review petition challenging commutation of death sentence of three condemned prisoners to life imprisonment on ground of delay in deciding mercy petitions.
The bench, after a brief hearing, agreed to hear the case at length and posted it at 12.40 pm.
The Jayalalithaa government had on Wednesday decided to set free all seven convicts in the assassination case after the apex court had commuted the death penalty of three of them to life imprisonment.
Besides Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan, who earned a major reprieve on February 18 from the apex court which spared them from gallows, Nalini, Robert Pious, Jayakumar and Ravichandran are the other four convicts whose release was decided by the Tamil Nadu government.
Santhan, Murugan and Perarivalan are currently lodged in the Central Prison, Vellore, in Tamil Nadu and they are in incarceration since 1991.
Nalini, Robert Pious, Jayakumar and Ravichandran, are undergoing life sentence for their role in the assassination of Gandhi on May 21, 1991 in Sriperumbudur.
The Tamil Nadu government has set a three-day deadline for itself and also to the Centre over the release of the seven convicts.
The Supreme Court had commuted the death sentence of Murugan, Santhan (both Sri Lankan Tamils) and A G Perarivalan on the ground of 11 years delay in deciding their mercy pleas by the Centre.
It had also rejected the Centre’s submission that there was no unreasonable delay in deciding their mercy plea and the condemned prisoners did not go through agonising experience as they were enjoying life behind the bars.
Gandhi’s assassins were convicted by a TADA court in January 1998 and were awarded death sentence, which was confirmed by the apex court May 11, 1999.
PMO's press statement
The Government is moving a review petition in the Supreme Court on fundamental issues of law arising from the assassination of the late Shri Rajiv Gandhi.
We have also informed the Tamil Nadu Government that their proposed course of action to release the killers of Shri Rajiv Gandhi is not legally tenable and should not be proceeded with.
The assassination of Shri Rajiv Gandhi was an attack on the soul of India. The release of the killers of a former Prime Minister of India and our great leader, as well as several other innocent Indians, would be contrary to all principles of justice. No government or party should be soft in our fight against terrorism.
Source: The Hindu
(2) 50 feared dead in Nigeria attack: Witnesses
At least 50 people were feared dead after an attack in Nigeria's northeast Borno state early Wednesday by suspected Boko Haram militants, witnesses said.
Eyewitnesses told Xinhua the attackers invaded the town of Bama.
Baba Ali, a member of a vigilance group who witnessed the incident, told reporters in Maiduguri, the state capital, that the invaders drove in heavy trucks into the town through Government Science College in Bama.
"We were lucky that they came through one route so we tried to resist them," Ali said. "But we realized that they were in hundreds carrying sophisticated weapons."
Ali, who escaped to Maiduguri on foot, said his team of seven men took cover at the nearby Bama General Hospital before fleeing into the bush.
He said about 3,000 houses were destroyed by the attackers who operated in groups.
Zanna Shettima, former chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in the state, also a resident, described the attack as barbaric.
Lawan Tanko, the Borno commissioner of police, confirmed the attack, saying he had no details yet.
"I can confirm there was an attack in Bama this morning but we are still collating the data," he said.
Source: The Times of India
(3) Cabinet gives nod for coal regulator
A regulator for the coal sector would be set up through an executive order, the government said on Thursday.
“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has given nod to the proposal to set up coal regulator through an executive order,” a senior Minister said after the meeting here.
The regulator will be empowered to specify the principles and methodology for determination of price of raw coal and washed coal and any other by-product generated during washing.
The regulator will also regulate methods for testing for declaration of grades or quality of coal, specify procedure for automatic coal sampling and adjudicate upon disputes between the parties besides monitoring closure of mines and approval of mining plans, among other things.
Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal had earlier informed Parliament that a non-statutory regulator for the coal sector will be set up through an executive order as enacting a legislation on the subject will take some time.
The bill for setting up a regulator for the sector is pending before Parliament.
“The competent authority has...decided that a non-statutory Regulator will be set up through an executive order as enactment of legislation would take some time,” Mr. Jaiswal had said in a reply to the Lok Sabha last week.
He had said that based on the recommendations of various committees, the ministry appointed a consultant to draft the Coal Regulatory Authority Bill.
This is for regulating as well as conserving resources in the sector and protecting the interests of coal consumers and producers, he had said.
The Draft Bill on the sectoral regulator was circulated to all the ministries and departments concerned seeking their views, he had said.
After consideration of the comments received from different ministries/departments and taking them into account, the draft Bill, 2012 was prepared and submitted for the consideration of the competent authority and it was decided to refer the same to the Group of Ministers (GoM).
The GoM held five meetings and a draft Bill, 2013 with changes as per the discussions was finalised with consultations with the Law Ministry.
The same was approved by the competent authority on June 27, 2013. The Ministry of Coal had introduced the Coal Regulatory Authority Bill, 2013 in the Lok Sabha on December 13, 2013.
Source: The Economic Times
(4) First US bitcoin ATMs to open in Seattle, Austin
Robocoin said on Tuesday that later this month it will install the first automated teller machines in the United States that let users buy and sell bitcoin, the latest step into the mainstream for the digital currency.
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The kiosks, to be installed in Seattle, and Austin, Texas, are similar to ATMs but have scanners to read government-issued identification such as a driver's license or a passport to confirm users' identities.
The ATMs will allow people to swap bitcoin for cash, or deposit cash to buy more bitcoin by transferring funds to or from a virtual wallet on their smartphones.
Bitcoin was launched in 2008 and is traded within a global network of computers. It is not backed by a single company or government and has no assets behind it, but its release is tightly controlled, mimicking a central banking system's control over the minting of money.
Robocoin, based in Las Vegas, installed its first bitcoin ATM in Vancouver last fall and will also start operating one in Calgary, Alberta, later this month. Robocoin also is planning to install ATMs in Asia and Europe.
A bitcoin is currently worth about $636, but its value has fluctuated widely as the currency's visibility has increased. Last September, a bitcoin was worth around $150. By late December the value was near the $1,000 mark.
Users can buy products and services online on sites including Overstock.com or in a handful of stores.
The currency's reputation took a hit last week when two of its best known exchanges suspended withdrawals. One of them, Slovenia-based Bitstamp, said Friday it planned to allow redemptions to resume.
Source: Hindustan Times
(5) GlaxoSmithKline's Rs 6,400 cr FDI proposal cleared by govt
The government today cleared Rs 6,400 crore FDI proposal of global healthcare company GlaxoSmithKline to acquire additional 24.33 per cent stake in its India arm.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) has approved the proposal of GlaxoSmithKline Pte Limited, Singapore for acquisition of 24.33 percent shares in existing Indian subsidiary company of GSK Group.
The said acquisition "would be done by way of a voluntary open offer under SEBI (SAST Regulations) in the pharmaceutical sector," an official statement said today.
"The approval would result in foreign investment of approximately Rs 6,390 crore in the country," the statement added.
GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals is already majority owned and controlled by the GSK Group.
After the purchase, holding of the promoter group firm in the Indian subsidiary will go up to 75 per cent from the current level of 50.67 per cent.
GSK Pharma makes, distributes and trades in a variety of drugs. Its portfolio include prescription medicines and vaccines across areas such as anti-infectives, dermatology, and gynaecology.
The company employs more than 5,000 people and generated more than Rs 2,600 crore turn-over during the financial year ended December 31, 2012.
Source: The Indian Express
Disclaimer: All news stories and content sourced from freely available material on the internet. All sources are acknowledged.
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