Head Line:

• Congress: Rahul has all qualification to lead India (AA)
• Sanjay does not deserve to be an MP: Jethmalani (TOI)

LEAD:

At a time when the country is debating whether or not Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt can contest an election in view of his conviction under the Arms Act in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, his former lawyer Ram Jethmalani has virtually termed him as a security threat to the nation and said the cine star did not deserve to be an MP. Jethmalani, who had unsuccesfully argued for Dutt's bail before the Supreme Court in the late 1990s and had the privilege of going through the probe agency's dossier against him in the serial blasts case, did not mince words in waging a battle against his proposed candidature as a Samajwadi Party nominee for the Lucknow Lok Sabha seat. "He does not deserve to be an MP and any political party that sets him as its candidate is totally impervious to the security to the nation," the noted criminal law expert said in a press release. He being a loner in politics with little influence over the voters was of little consequence for the noted lawyer as he vowed to "fight all the way against him and any party that supports him, the ruling Congress included". (TOI)

• New Delhi: Shibu Soren is likely to resign as CM of Jharkhand on Saturday after Congress leadership put its foot down, even as the JMM chief showed his resolve to cling on to the chair by getting a BJP rebel to vacate Jamtara for him. Congress rebuffed the Jamtara re-election bid, asking Soren "to respect the people's mandate". It has, however, held out an "honourable exit route" to the veteran by asking him to nominate a legislator outside his family as his replacement in Ranchi. The party needs JMM as an ally in future. Key UPA players JMM and RJD chief Lalu Prasad are locked in an intense debate on a mutually acceptable name. The bargaining started in right earnest as Lalu's choice and former CM Madhu Koda was vetoed by Soren and Congress, and JMM's nominee Bandhu Tirkey was also turned down, leading to a deadlock. Though President's rule has been rejected by UPA parties, sources warned that RJD and JMM have to agree to a name quickly so that Centre is not forced to take an extreme measure to save face ahead of Lok Sabha polls. Soren is returning to Ranchi after a day in Delhi. He will preside over a JMM meeting before putting in his papers. The AICC incharge of Jharkhand Ajay Maken told TOI, "We have asked him to respect the people's mandate." (TOI)
• New Delhi: The Bombay high court's effort to make Mumbaikars' voice heard on tackling terrorism in the aftermath of the audacious 26/11 attack has not gone down well with the Ashok Chavan Govt, which on Friday challenged it saying, multiplicity of committees would lead only to more meetings. Acting on eight PILs, the HC had constituted a 15-member 'Citizen Coordination Committee' headed by retired SC judge B N Srikrishna to act as a 'watchdog' and offer Mumbaikars' suggestions to the Govt on the 'protection of their lives and property'. "The intent of this committee should only be to put forward the viewpoints which will help overcome the sense of insecurity which is stated to be prevalent," the HC had said while asking the state to consider these suggestions within two weeks. Appearing for the state, senior advocate Harish Salve and Ravindra S Adsure argued before a bench comprising Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan and Justice P Sathasivam that many members of the Citizen Coordination Committee were already part of the State Security Council headed by the CM, which was set up after the November 26 terror attack on Mumbai.(TOI)
• New Delhi: As the Govt's gaze turned into a glare, the agitators blinked and it was all over. With the Govt conveying the firm message that strikers would lose their jobs and face arrest, officers of state-run oil companies unconditionally withdrew their two-day-old stir that had reduced fuel supplies to a trickle across the country, hit power generation and forced closure of several fertilizer units. Indian Oil chairman Sarthak Behuria said petrol pumps would get full stocks and deliveries of cooking gas refills would return to normal by Monday. Mumbai started getting CNG supplies early evening after ONGC chairman R S Sharma's personal intervention succeeded in restoring the company's biggest gasfield at Hazira in Gujarat much before the strike was called off. The Cabinet, which met on Friday morning, endorsed a no-negotiation approach towards the agitators. Union home minister P Chidambaram said PM Manmohan Singh had asked the oil ministry to deal firmly with the strike that had crippled normal life and spurred panic buying. (TOI)
• New Delhi: With the strikes by truckers and Oil sector employees disrupting normal life across the country, there was more frustration for PM Manmohan Singh on Friday with his Transport Minister absent from the Cabinet meeting. While the Cabinet was unanimous about the need for tough action to break the strike, the PM was unusually and visibly "upset" as he found T R Baalu, Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways, absent from the Cabinet meeting when the issue of truckers' strike came up for discussion, sources said. The Secretary who represented the Ministry at the meeting had no explanation for the minister's absence. The PM, sources said, called up the minister later and asked him to fly to Delhi immediately. Petroleum Minister Murli Deora read out from a two-page note summing up the background and the context of the strike by oil sector employees. As there were more queries, the Petroleum Secretary was called in to brief the Cabinet. (IE)
• Hyderabad/New Delhi: Disgraced promoter-chairman of Satyam, Ramalinga Raju surrendered to the police on Friday night and was arrested for criminal fraud. Through the day, there was a strong buzz in Hyderabad that Raju, who had gone underground since his confession of a Rs 7,000-crore fraud on Wednesday, would be arrested around midnight. Eventually, Raju and his brother drove down in two Mercedes Benz limos to the DGP's office. They were arrested under sections 420, 406, 120B and 471. That the screws were tightening on the Satyam management was clear earlier in the evening when the Govt super ceded the board of directors of Satyam, signalling that it had no faith in the existing board members. In fact, sources said the board members were not above suspicion for possible involvement in the fraud. The Andhra Pradesh police filed a case of fraud against Raju even as an impression was gaining ground that CM Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was going soft on him.

MANMOHAN SINGH & GOVT

PM Manmohan Singh was said to be upset with the non-serious approach of some of his ministers on the serious issues and cancelled a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs. According to well-placed sources, Dr Singh was unhappy with the casual and callous attitude of road transport and highways minister T.R. Baalu at a time when truckers have been on strike since the last five days. They said Mr Baalu was not present in the Cabinet meeting held here on Friday. He was in Chennai and has been asked to come to the national capital soon, they added.(AA)

BJP

The BJP has demanded that PM Manmohan Singh, who holds the finance portfolio, should come out with a statement to restore investors' confidence after the disclosure of massive financial fraud in Satyam Computer. Demanding a Central regulatory agency probe in the scam, senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi said all regulatory agencies and ministries failed to check the fraud. "There are scams coming out of a scam ... Was the Govt sleeping when it occurred? Even the Planning Commission did not take any action. This shows high mismanagement of the economy," said the BJP leader.(AA)

• New Delhi: Placed in an unenviable situation by party veteran Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, BJP has decided that it will not join issue with the former Rajasthan CM but wait for mediation efforts aimed at mollifying the leader to bear fruit. BJP has been left with little option but to take refuge behind the argument that Shekhawat was a "respected senior" who would not act against party interests. But with the party hoping to concentrate on the fast-approaching elections, the Shekhawat bouncer has come as a nasty surprise and the question he has raised on L K Advani's prime ministerial projection has to be answered. With Shekhawat in a truculent mood, the party has little choice but to wait for tempers to cool. His virtual rebellion has hurt not only the BJP campaign but also cast a shadow on the Rajasthan unit where former CM Vasundhara Raje has just received the party's backing as leader of Opposition. Shekhawat's demand for an inquiry into corruption allegations involving the previous Raje Govt is nothing less than a clarion call to other BJP rebels. (TOI)
• The BJP on Friday expressed concern over the impact of the truckers' strike on the people and also the future of some 53,000 employees of Satyam Computer Services, rocked by a Rs.7000-crore fraud. Leader of the Opposition L.K. Advani urged the Govt to urgently negotiate with the striking truckers while pointing out that the disruption in supplies of essential food items and goods resulted in a 30-50 per cent increase in their prices. Mr. Advani said some of the demands of the truckers were "reasonable." While aviation fuel prices had been revised downwards several times over the last several months, the price of diesel was cut by a mere Rs. 2 a litre. On the Satyam scandal, senior party leader Murli Manohar Joshi demanded that a central regulatory agency probe the Satyam fraud from all angles, including the roles played by the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, the Income Tax Department, stock exchanges and the firm auditing Satyam.(HINDU)

CONGRESS

A day after External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee reignited the debate on AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi's projection as the prime ministerial candidate, saying he may follow in the footsteps of his father who had become PM at 40, the Congress sounded ambivalent on the issue on Friday. Party spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed endorsed Mukherjee's remarks in Chennai on Thursday, even as he maintained that the Congress stood by what party president Sonia Gandhi had said at the party headquarters on August 15. Asked by reporters on the sidelines of the Independence Day function at the party office whether Dr Manmohan Singh would unfurl the flag at the Red Fort next year also, she had said, "Why not, certainly?" On Friday, the party spokesperson said, "It is true that Rahul Gandhi has all the qualities, which are necessary for anybody to lead the country. But Pranab Mukherjee has not said whether it would be after the next Lok Sabha election or next to that. It is for Rahulji to decide when, where and how (he chooses to take over the mantle)." Ahmed added that Singh had done a "very good job" in the past five years. The Congress had then officially distanced itself from Singh's remark with party spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan saying there was no vacancy for the post of the PM. "The AICC would like to put an end to all speculation. It is not appropriate to spread political speculation in this way. Congress president Soniaji and general secretary Rahulji have always kept away from any environment of sycophancy," she had said. Shakeel Ahmed on Friday clarified that the party had not called Arjun Singh a sycophant. "He is a very respectable leader. The Congress had not called him a sycophant." (IE)

STATES

ASSAM

At least two persons were killed and about 10 injured when a powerful explosion occurred in a crowded evening market at the Maligaon Shuttle Gate locality in Guwahati on Friday. The blast, said to be from an improvised explosive device (IED), occurred at about 6:30 PM. The bomb was planted on a bicycle and placed between two cars, killing two persons on the spot. The number of casualties was, however, less because of the barrier created by the two cars. "It was an IED, and we suspect this to be the handiwork of the ULFA," Pradip Chandra Saloi, SP, Guwahati City Police, told The Indian Express. Assam Health Minister, who visited the blast site an hour afterwards, said the blast was caused by militants to gain publicity especially at a time when the state Assembly was in session. "We can't rule out the involvement of the ULFA. They have definitely done this to gain publicity," the minister said. (IE)

J&K

CM Omar Abdullah on Friday suggested that Pakistan as a whole was not India's enemy but "some elements in that country certainly do not want good relations between the two countries." In his first interaction with the media after assuming charge, he said his Govt would seek to create a conducive atmosphere for a dialogue between the Centre and the separatists. Mr. Abdullah said he was not aware of any State declaring Pakistan as a threat to India. "There are forces in Pakistan who are not in favour of good relations between the two neighbours but if someone suggests that the whole of Pakistan was against India, it is not fair" he told a questioner. He referred to Pakistan President Asif Zardari and PM Yusuf Raza Gillani's statements in which they talked about friendly relations and said "we should take that at face value." It is in our interest that these forces in Pakistan do not succeed, he said, adding, (HINDU)

RAJASTHAN

A local court here on Friday directed the police to register a case against former Rajasthan CM Vasundhara Raje and five others in the controversial Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay Trust land scam. Others against whom the FIR has been registered are former Jaipur mayor and MLA Ashok Parnami, former Rajasthan BJP president Lalit Kishore Chaturvedi, former minister Pratap Singh Singhvi, former housing board chairman Ajaypal Singh and then Jaipur Development Authority commissioner D P Gupta. The court passed this order on a complaint filed by Shriprakash Kukkar seeking investigation into the case and seizure of bank accounts of the alleged trust. One of Congress state Govt's first job was to appoint a special public prosecutor to replace the one during the BJP regime who had absolved Raje and others of all charges against them. After the land scam was highlighted by the media, CM Ashok Gehlot appointed a special public prosecutor who, on Friday, asserted that whatever directions will be passed by the court would be carried out in toto. (TOI)

UTTAR PRADESH

For the first time since the formation of the BSP Govt in the state 20 months ago, on Thursday CM Mayawati threw open her doors to her party MLAs and heard their problems whether personal or those related to their constituencies. During her one-on-one meetings with the MLAs, she did not talk about anything else, not even her birthday celebrations. In the past, Mayawati has always communicated with her MLAs through her aides, senior party functionaries, and ministers. At the MLAs' meetings, she has been the one to speak while the others were all expected to just listen. If and when others were allowed to speak, they spoke only briefly. This had led to a murmur in the party that she had become inaccessible. On Thursday, post the meeting, the BSP MLAs looked happy. "Behenji has changed; she seemed keen to listen to our problems. There was no time limit given to any of the MLAs. We were free to put forward our opinions," said one of them. (IE)

WEST BENGAL

The sun didn't rise in Nandigram as the Red brigade had announced after recapturing the villages in November last year. Instead, the Red bastion went with Trinamool Congress, casting a shadow on regional CPM strongman and Tamluk MP Laxman Seth's prospects in the coming Lok Sabha elections. Trinamool candidate Firoza Biwi won the Nandigram assembly bypoll defeating CPI's Paramananda Bharati by more than 40,000 votes. And it came at a time when the Opposition was divided, with Trinamool, BJP and Siddiqullah Chowdhury's Party for Democratic Conference of India (PDCI) fielding candidates. PDCI's Badsah Alam lost his security deposit whereas his party had spearheaded the anti-land acquisition stir in the Muslim-dominated areas in Nandigram along with Trinamool. The bypoll was necessitated after former CPI legislator Mohammad Ilyas from Nandigram, caught taking money from an NGO for issuing fake certificates, was expelled from the party. Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee said, "It's a victory of the people and a befitting reply to the Left Front Govt's forcible land acquisition policy and the high-handedness of CPM." Nandigram bypoll signalled the winds of change in West Bengal, she said.(TOI)

EDITORIAL

Time for harder line on Pakistan: If Pakistan was in right earnest about pursuing the terrorist case after the November 26 attacks on Mumbai, which external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee has quite appropriately called "unpardonable," it would have long ago begun processes that were credible and that evoked in Indians a feeling of confidence. This would have been in line with its bilateral assurances to India at the highest level, and in keeping with its position as a signatory to regional and international protocols on terrorism. That, alas, has so far not been the case. On Monday India officially handed over material to Pakistan that it has been able to painstakingly collect, collate and analyse to nail the involvement and complicity of Pakistani "actors" of different kinds, state and non-state, a distinction not always easy to draw in Pakistan's case as the line between them is thin, as foreign secretary Shivshankar Menon has noted. Union home minister P. Chidambaram had earlier stated the matter with greater frankness. He observed that the Mumbai massacre was the handiwork of Pakistani "state actors," or it was "state-assisted". The information offered to Islamabad is, thus, pinpointed. Nevertheless, given Pakistan's track record, it was not surprising in the least to see Islamabad officially dismiss all the material submitted by India as "not credible" evidence. President Asif Ali Zardari had already been preparing the ground to wriggle out, suggesting earlier that India was using the Mumbai attacks to serve its "political ambitions against Pakistan". The Pakistan President did not, of course, specify what these might be, but his words can hardly be said to set the right tone.(AA)