Shimla, May 24 (IANS) In a setback to the previous Prem Kumar Dhumal-led BJP government in the state, the Himachal Pradesh High Court Friday quashed appointments of 480 teachers made in 2011 as these were not in accordance with law. Delivering the judgment, Justice Rajiv Sharma said the appointments of postgraduate teachers under the Postgraduate Teacher Class III (non-gazetted) Recruitment and Promotion Rules of 2011, which have not been published, are illegal
New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) Hours after its spokesperson demanded resignation of Indian cricket board chief N. Srinivasan over his son-in-law's name figuring in the investigations into the IPL spot fixing scandal, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) Friday sought to distance itself from the demand.
Kannur (Kerala), May 24 (IANS) Defence Minister A.K. Antony Friday expressed confidence that leaders of the Congress' Kerala unit would themselves resolve any issue facing them. "You (the media) think that there are issues that cannot be resolved in the state unit of the party.
Darjeeling, May 24 (IANS) The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) Friday called an indefinite shutdown in north Bengal's Darjeeling hills from Sunday to protest the arrest of an elected member of the hill development body for alleged involvement in arson and violence.
Tokyo, May 24 (IANS/RIA Novosti) The Japanese government has denied rumours which said the prime minister's official residence was haunted. The denial came after a query by an opposition lawmaker, who wanted to know if Prime Minister Shinzo Abe had not yet moved into his official residence, five months after coming to power, because of rumours that the building was haunted by the ghosts of young military officers who died there in a failed 1936 military coup. "We are not aware" of any ghosts, the government said, in a written response to the enquiry by Ken Kagaya, an upper house member of the Democratic Party of Japan.
New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) Amid speculation that the Congress is exploring government formation in Jharkhand -- which is under President's rule -- party vice president Rahul Gandhi reviewed the political situation with state leaders Friday.
Shimla, May 24 (IANS) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh Friday submitted a memorandum to visiting President Pranab Mukherjee, seeking additional central financial assistance to overcome a shortfall of Rs.10,725 crore. The chief minister cited the "unfavourable" award of 13th Finance Commission, which recommended an overall increase of only 50 percent for the state while the other states were given an average increase of 126 percent, an official statement said. "Had the 13th Finance Commission recommended grants on a par with other states, we would have been entitled to receive additional share of Rs.10,725 crore from 2010 to 2015," he said.
New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) The first meeting of the BJP's reconstituted national executive next month will work out strategy for an effective campaign against the UPA government in its last year in office and discuss preparations for the forthcoming assembly polls, party vice president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said here Friday. Naqvi said the two-day meeting in Goa starting June 8 will discuss "strategy and effective nationwide campaign" against the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government. He said the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national office bearers will meet June 7 to finalise the agenda of national executive meeting.
Thiruvananthapuram, May 24 (IANS) Kerala Governor Nikhil Kumar turned a commoner after flying in from New Delhi when Air India failed to open the VIP exit door for him, airport sources said Friday. The incident took place almost a week ago. Kumar arrived by Air India close to 11 p.m.
New Delhi, May 24 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Delhi unit Friday staged a sit-in protest near Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit's official residence here, demanding her resignation over alleged misuse of public money for "political purposes" ahead of the 2008 assembly polls. Led by unit chief Vijay Goel and former chief Vijender Gupta, over 100 BJP workers, including party legislators, shouted slogans against Dikshit, whom they accused of resorting to "propaganda" to win three successive elections. "This is the first time in the history of India that a Lokayukta has indicted a chief minister for misusing public funds
