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Foreign policy now process
oriented, says Natwar

What is India News Service, Thursday, 9 December 2004, 1700 hrs IST

 Minister for External Affairs Natwar Singh on Wednesday said India's foreign policy has graduated from its event-oriented to a process-oriented approach. To buttress his claim, he argued that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government had put behind a reactive policy on Pakistan, which frequently oscillated between euphoria and despair during the last regime.

Replying to the debate under Rule 193 in the Lok Sabha, where members had expressed concern at the attitude of the United States and Pakistan's unpredictable ways, Mr Natwar Singh said, "We have cautioned the US against supplying the F-16s to Pakistan. They have conveyed to us that no decision had been taken in this regard. I would like to assure members that in the case of the US arms supply to Pakistan, the UPA Govern-ment will not hesitate to take steps to ensure that our defence preparedness is not compromised in any way."

Seer to move Supreme Court: The Kanchi Shankaracharya, denied bail by the Madras High Court on Wednesday, will move the Supreme Court on Thursday. The pontiff is charged with involvement in the murder of a mutt official, K Sankararaman, in September. Dismissing the bail plea, Justice R Balasubramaniam accepted the prosecution lawyer KTS Tulsi's contention that the court could not grant bail under section 439 CrPC, as it had to be read along with section 437 (i) (i) CrPC. Section 437 (i) (i) came in the way of granting bail, the Judge said. The defendant's advocate, M N Krishnamani, will fly to New Delhi with the HC order, sources said.

Yesterday's story: Madras HC dismisses Kanchi seer's bail plea again

KANCHI CASE UPDATES

Bank fraud case: NBW against Usha 
The police are reportedly in the process of executing a non-bailable warrant against Usha had allegedly cheated the SBI on the pretext of starting a cement brick factory near Srikalahasti. Usha was last week interrogated about her "links" with the Kanchi seer.


'Nobody is above
the law of the country...' 
The manager of the Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam has made clear the mutt's position on charges made against the seer. He quotes the arrested Shankaracharya:
 \93Nobody is above the law of our country. Let truth prevail,
and the guilty be punished.\94 The manager's statement also urges devotees not to despair: "Frankly," it says,  "what matters most is your devotion and willingness to come out and do something.  Devotees (especially those in far off lands) feel helpless because they think, all they can do is to protest, pray and send money.  There is no need for any one to despair in this manner."


OPINION
Will the Chief Minister have a look at what is happening?: Twentyfour hours later it turns out that Usha is a cancer patient for 15 years and has undergone radiation therapy 130 times, yes 130 times! By S Gurumurthy

Kalam visits Kargil: On his first visit to Kargil, President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam today appreciated the role played by the jawans in the area close to the LoC and said the government was acquiring latest weapons and equipment for use in border areas.

Troop reduction has created goodwill, says Pranab: The decision to reduce troops in Jammu and Kashmir was taken "consciously" and the move has created a lot of goodwill in the State, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee, told the Rajya Sabha.

Maoist emissary appeals for truce extension: Poet Varavara Rao said that in last six months the Naxalites had scrupulously adhered to the ceasefire and blamed the police for the stray firing incidents.

Indo-Pak bus talks all words, no result: The inevitable happened as the first ever technical-level talks on the proposed Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service failed to produce any positive outcome.

HC orders raids on Bihar jails: Severely indicting the Bihar Government on the law and order situation in view of criminals operating extortion and kidnapping rackets from jails, the Patna High Court today ordered search of various prisons by the state paramilitary forces to effectively put an end to such activities.

Related story: After the hapless traders, professors and doctors, it is the turn of politicians to feel the heat of "Mafia-Goonda Raj" in Lalu's Bihar

CBI raids residence of former mining centre chief: The CBI on Wednesday raided 24 places including the residence of Trilochan Nath Singh, former director of Dhanbad-based Central Mining Research Institute (CMRI).

No bar on induction of chargesheeted ministers:  The Centre today filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court explaining its stand on induction of chargesheeted persons into the Cabinet.

 Sonia's birthday to be observed as 'renunciation day': Sonia Gandhi was saluted today by her partymen on the eve of her birthday tomorrow, which will be observed as `Tyaag Divas' (renunciation day), a celebration of her giving up the Prime Minister's post in May. 

Sunil Shastri resigns from BJP: Sunil Shastri, a former general secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party, has resigned from the primary membership of the party. He met the party president, L.K. Advani, today and submitted his resignation letter to him.

Nobel medal replicas presented: Eight months after it was stolen, Sweden today presented replicas of Rabindranath Tagore's Nobel Prize medal to be placed in Vishwa Bharati, Shantiniketan. 
States

Work on Karnataka \91IT\92 roads to be completed by March-end: Minister Revanna will discuss with the chief minister the need for a law to empower the PWD to demolish structures to make way for widening of roads. 

Orissa assembly adjourned for fifth consecutive day: Though the Opposition, which was demanding the Chief Minister\92s resignation has softened its stand, a fresh legal row has forced the adjournment of the House. 

Few buyers at Film Bazaar: Film Bazaar was inaugurated with much fanfare in Goa on the sidelines of the 35th International Film Festival of India but the response has been lukewarm at best. Foreign buyers are just not there. 
Neighbours


 Pakistan test-fires missile: Pakistan today test-fired its surface-to-surface 700 km-range Shaheen-1 Hatf IV missile, which can carry all kinds of warheads, including nuclear weapons. The test was Pakistan's sixth this year and its second in 10 days.

\91Bangladesh radio station threat to Indian troops\92: Indian intelligence fears that the new radio station established close to Tripura, could intercept wireless communications of the border forces.

'Nepal soil not for anti-India activities': This statement by a Nepal minister may hamper the visit of Hurriyat leaders to Kathmandu. 
 
 

 View from abroad

'Indian tech wizard donates $ 1 mn to California varsity: An Indian IT wizard who prospered in the Silicon Valley has now done his bit for the area. He has donated a hefty $1 million (Rs 4.5 crore) to the University of California Santa Cruz.

Indian girl sweeps Hard Spell, wins laurels:  NRI Gayathri Pannikar has been crowned the best young speller. In an immaculate performance, she scored over 100,000 competitors.
 

Overall

Foreign minister said approach had changed:  Natwar Singh said India was now taking the initiative instead of just reacting to what others did. 

Bihar jails were raided: The High Court ordered the cleaning up of jails, from where many are operating rackets. 

Nepal refused to allow anti-India activity: A minister has said Nepali soil could not be used for anything anti-Indian.