Top Stories

India, EU vow to work
together, fight terror

What is India News Service, Monday, 9 November 2004, 2000 hrs IST

India and the European Union (EU), which perceive themselves as two poles of stability, inked a \93strategic partnership\94 to strengthen the political and economic dimensions to their relationship. 

The EU and India symbolise two poles of stability with enormous areas of instability in between, the Netherlands Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said while addressing a joint press conference along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh after the Fifth Indo-EU Summit was held here on Monday. 

India is the sixth nation that the EU has entered into a strategic partnership after the US, Canada, Russia, Japan and China.

Balkenende, the present President of the European Council, said: \93The Balkans, the Middle East, Iraq and Afghanistan are unstable areas and India has a critical role to contribute to the security of South Asia and Asia as a whole.\94

Dr Singh said India-EU ties are based on shared values of democracy, pluralism, rule of law, a free press and an independent judiciary. The partnership has evolved over the years from economic and development cooperation to a broad-based engagement on a wide range of issues. He said India and the EU represent the large democracies in the world and reiterated that their partnership is based on the sound foundation of shared values and beliefs.

India, EU vow to combat terror: Taking their relationship to a new \93strategic partnership\94 that seeks to expand bilateral trade and investment flows, India and the European Union today condemned all acts of terrorism and pledged to take comprehensive and sustained measures to combat the menace.

Shivraj Patil hopeful of peace returning to J&K: Meanwhile, Pakistan rubbished a statement made by Indian Home Ministry that it was pressuring Kashmiri leaders not to talk to the Indian government.

Zaheera appeals to NCW for protection: Prime witness in the Best Bakery case Zaheera Sheikh has approached the National Commission for Women (NCW) with a plea that she be duly protected. 

Govt to move SC over IAF appointments issue: Government would move the Supreme Court challenging the Delhi High Court order quashing four top level appointments in the Air Force and expedite creation of an Armed Forces Tribunal to ensure that military disputes do not go to civilian courts, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said.

HC indicts Air Force Chief for 'malafide exercise of power': The Delhi High Court, which quashed promotions of four Air Marshals, has indicted Chief of Air Staff S Krishnaswamy for indulging in "malafide exercise of power".

 
States

Patna Court issues NBW against Md Taslimuddin: Union Minister of State for Civil Supplies Mohammad Taslimuddin is embroiled in a fresh controversy as a court here issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against him on the charge of committing a fraud after a cheque issued by him for purchase of a vehicle was dishonoured.

Rahul credits Cong, not SP, for BJP's defeat in UP: Firing yet another salvo at the Samajwadi Party, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi today said it was the Congress and not the SP which had brought about the "Bharatiya Janata Party`s downfall" in Uttar Pradesh.

Rajnikant ends boycott, shakes hands with Jayalalithaa: South Indian superstar Rajnikant has finally ended his long-time boycott of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, setting the tongues wagging in political circles..

DMK to protest against fuel price hike: Jayalalitha accused DMK of playing a fraud on the people as the party is a part of the UPA government, which effected the increase.

India\92s first woman pilot beaten up by nephew: From being a highflier to come crashing into a life of virtual house arrest and being allegedly beaten by her brother\92s son, the past years have been a misery for one of India\92s first woman pilot.

AP to go ahead with Polavaram project: Telangana supporters are crying foul that Coastal Andhra region would benefit at the cost of Telangana.

Doctors map killer tantrik's brain: CBI had brought Narayan Singh Thakur, a tantrik from Ujjain recently arrested for killing eight persons and attempting to kill another, for his brain mapping.

Neighbours

Iqbal's poetry a guide against extremism: The teachings of Allama Iqbal have guided the country in harmonizing society by eliminating sectarianism, factional thinking and subduing forces of dissension and extremism, says President General Pervez Musharraf.

Indian minister strays into Pakistan: Indian Home Minister Shivraj Patil on Sunday inadvertently stepped into Pakistani territory during a visit to Jammu and Kashmir, the Deccan Chronicle newspaper reported on Monday.

Portugal to send more troops to Afghanistan:  Portugal has decided to send 130 more security personnel to Afghanistan next year. These personnel would be deployed at Kabul airport, BBC reported. 

View from abroad

Diaspora can play a big role in nation building, says PM: India sees an increasing role for its worldwide diaspora while seeking to build a modern nation and economy that grows at 7-8 per cent a year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said

Non-Muslim students fast during Ramzan in US: In an effort to raise awareness about Islamic rituals and customs, non-Muslim students from over 150 colleges and universities across the US and Canada fasted for a day during the ongoing Islamic holy month of Ramzan.


Overall:

India got closer to the EU: Manmohan Singh signed an agreement that says the two will fight terror and co-operate on a wide range of subjects.