Salman Khan 2002 hit-and-run case to be heard today

MUMBAI: A sessions court will hear the case against actor Salman Khan in the 11-year-old hit-and-run case today. The court had earlier ordered for a fresh trial in the case. The new trial will require that witnesses and evidence be examined again.
The Bollywood superstar — who is accused of driving an SUV onto five sleeping men in 2002-had to face a fresh trial after prosecutors succeeded in substituting the charge of 'causing death by negligence' with the graver 'culpable homicide not amounting to murder'. The new charge attracts a maximum penalty of 10 years' jail.

The trial had commenced before the magistrate court in 2006. Over the years, the prosecution had examined 17 out of 39 witnesses. Among them was the complainant, police constable Ravindra Patil, who was assigned to protect Khan after the actor complained of underworld threats.

The policeman was with Khan in his car when the incident occurred on September 28, 2002, and gave two statements to the police. He stood by the second statement, where he said he had warned a "drunk" Khan to drive slowly, but the actor paid no heed. The first statement had no mention of Khan's inebriation. Patil died during the course of the trial.

Telugu hero Uday Kiran commits suicide

In a shocking incident, Telugu cinema hero Uday Kiran died by committing suicide. Initial reports say that the actor died after taking the extreme step in his flat at Srinagar colony on Sunday night. Later, he was rushed to a private hospital where the doctors declared him dead. The reasons for Uday Kiran's death are yet to be known.

Uday Kiran shot to fame with the films like Chitram, Nuvvu Nenu, Manasantha Nuvve, Nee Sneham, etc. The actor was last seen in the action entertainer Jai Sriram. Uday Kiran married Vishitha in October 2012.

Zol, Samson star as India beat Pakistan to lift U-19 Asia Cup

MUMBAI: The World champions of junior cricket have roared at the perfect time. With less than two months to go before they begin defending their Under-19 World Cup crown, India made an emphatic statement by winning the Asia Cup in Sharjah on Sunday, beating arch-rivals Pakistan by 40 runs in a thrilling final.

Put into bat, the Indian colts made 314 for four, with skipper Vijay Zol and Sanju Samson - two of the hottest young talents in India presently - smashing hundreds after India enjoyed a 65-run stand in just 6.4 overs, largely due to opener Ankush Bains, who smashed 47 (34b, 7x4, 1x6). Both made exactly 100.

While Zol's effort took him 120 balls, and included seven fours and a couple of sixes, Samson's knock came off merely 87 balls (8x4, 4x6). Both added 180 for the third wicket to ensure India finished with a massive total. Pakistan, in reply, were restricted to 287 for eight, as Kamran Gulam (102 not out) and skipper Sami Aslam's (87) efforts went in vain. For India, left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav took three for 72.

It is a triumph that should stand India in good stead for the forthcoming World Cup which will be held in UAE too.

"Ankush gave us a fabulous start and then both Samson and Zol, whose roles were critical, batted brilliantly before losing concentration on getting their hundreds. We should have got 360-odd but still got a reasonable total. We then bowled and fielded well to defend our score successfully against a very good Pakistan side. Even beating Sri Lanka in the semis wasn't easy. It was an excellent all-round performance by the boys and an ideal exposure to the conditions that will be prevalent during the World Cup. Both the teams enjoyed tremendous crowd support and the atmosphere of the final was electric. It was a joy to win this tournament with this lovely bunch," an elated Bharat Arun, coach of the India U-19 team, told TOI moments after the victory.

It was redemption time for the colts too. In the last Asia Cup, back in July 2012, India had to share the trophy with Pakistan after the final finished in a tie. In this edition, India had already lost to the Green Brigade once in the league stage - on December 31 - by two wickets.

"Pakistan won that game by a whisker. Before the final, our boys were fired up in the team meeting. I'm glad we pulled off a comfortable win in a tough match," Arun said, revealing an interesting fact - this team has as many as seven left-handers!

While the coach understandably chose to praise all his wards, he conceded that Maharashtra's Zol and Kerala's Samson were 'special boys.' "Both are technically sound. They don't play rash strokes. They have tremendous power and the gift of timing which enables them to clear boundaries comfortably. They have the experience of the IPL and the Ranji behind them now. They are in for a bigger league," Arun gushed.

Amongst the bowlers, he singled out Kuldeep Yadav and medium-pacers Deepak Hooda and pacer Avesh Khan for special praise.

"Yadav is a real talent. He has great attitude and he is a wicket-taking bowler. He can bowl well under pressure and batsmen would find it tough to hit him out of the attack."

Arun revealed that his wards were "too tired right now to celebrate". "They will turn out for their Ranji sides after returning. We will then have a camp for the World Cup before launching into the campaign."

Brief scores: India Under-19 314 for 8 (Zol 100, Samson 100) beat Pakistan Under-19 274 for 9 (Ghulam 102, Aslam 87*) by 40 runs.

BlackBerry sues American Idol host’s firm

TORONTO: BlackBerry said it has filed a lawsuit against a company co-founded by American Idol host Ryan Seacrest that offers a physical keyboard that can be attached to some iPhones.

The company, Typo Products, is currently taking pre-orders for the $99 keyboard, which features angled miniature keys similar to those used on many of BlackBerry's devices.

Canada's BlackBerry, a once dominant smartphone maker that has lost market share to the iPhone and other touchscreen devices, said Typo's keyboard infringes its own design.

The allegation has not been proven in court. Typo and Seacrest could not immediately be reached to comment on the legal proceedings.

"We are flattered by the desire to graft our keyboard onto other smartphones, but we will not tolerate such activity without fair compensation for using our intellectual property and our technological innovations," Steve Zipperstein, BlackBerry's chief legal officer, said in a statement.

BlackBerry posted billions in losses in recent quarters as its latest devices sold poorly, but it has maintained a loyal niche of customers who prefer to type on a physical keyboard.

The BlackBerry complaint is case no. 3:14-cv-23 in the United States District Court for the northern district of California.

BJP defends Modi, calls PM's tenure 'wasted opportunity'

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Friday lashed out at Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his remarks that Narendra Modi as Prime Minister will be disastrous for the nation, saying it is unfortunate that such language is used even after a court and SIT have given the BJP leader a clean chit.

The Prime Minister's words did not add to the dignity of the high office he holds, it said.

Attacking Singh for not taking steps to curb inflation, corruption and not create employment oppotunities during his 10 years of prime ministership, leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley termed his tenure as a "wasted opportunity" and accused him of not providing any direction to a developing society like India.

BJP president Rajnath Singh while condemning the remarks also said that the Prime Minister had admitted to the dual power centre that existed in the UPA government, a contention that the saffron party has been making for quite some time.

"The use of such language against Narendra Modi does not add to the dignity of Prime Minister's office. The dirty tricks department of the Congress party has carried out certain tricks against Narendra Modi. If the dirty tricks department used such language, it was understandable. I am sure the Prime Minister of India is not a party of that dirty tricks department," Jaitley said.

Rajnath Singh said that the Prime Minister has accepted that the next government is not going to be that of UPA and that is why is has opted himself out for a third term.

"I condemn this statement(on Modi) of the Prime Minister. It is very unfortunate that the Prime Minister is saying this even when the SIT and court have given him a clean chit," he said.

The BJP chief said it was "laughable" to make such a statement even when Modi as chief minister has presented Gujarat as a model state in the country through the development work initiated by him there.

"It is a laughable statement to say that he should not be the Prime Minister as during his tenure riots have taken place in Gujarat. Modi in his tenure as chief minister has presented Gujarat as a model of development and a model state in the country," he said.

"Whatever has happened in 2002 is unfortunate and painful," he added.

Jaitley hit out at the Prime Minister for using the logic of 2009 Congress victory to brush aside charges of corruption during UPA 1 and said this can be used as a logic by criminals after they win elections.

He said Singh's government has failed to deliver on its promise of curbing corruption and inflation and increasing employment opportunities.

"He ( PM) manufactured a new logic. This new logic that electoral sanction of a corrupt government wipes out the allegations of corruption ... The logic of Manmohan Singh can be used by criminals also when they win elections. There is anger in society that criminals are entering politics," he said.

With its failure to tackle corruption, mounting inflation and unemployment, the government has prepared a "perfect recipe for disaster," he said.

Reacting to the statements made by the Prime Minister during his press conference, Rajnath Singh said he has admitted that his government has failed to control rising prices and corruption and could not create enough employment opportunities.

"Instead of listing out his achievements, the Prime Minister has instead listed out the failures... This government has proved a failure on all fronts. The Prime Minister has admitted that there is a dual power centre...

"The Prime Minister has tried to justify whatever BJP has been saying that due to dual power centre you cannot expect anything good from this government. That the freedom to take decisions has been completely eroded," he said.

Lamenting that the Prime Minister did not talk about national security during his press conference, he said this government has also proved a "failure" on the issue of internal and external security.

The BJP president said it was "laughable" to say that UPA has done better than NDA and claimed that India had become current-account deficit, growth rate had reduced and economic disparity had increased and employment opportunities had reduced during this government.

AAP government wins confidence vote in Delhi Assembly

New Delhi: The minority Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government today won a critical trust vote in the Delhi assembly after all eight Congress legislators extended their support to it.

With only 28 legislators in the 70-member house, the AAP needed the backing of the Congress - whose 15-year rule ended in December - to remain in office.

Eventually, the confidence vote moved by AAP leader and Education Minister Manish Sisodia was passed 37-32. The 31-strong Bharatiya Janata Party and the sole Akali Dal legislator voted against the government.

Breaking Afridi’s record, New Zealand’s Corey Anderson hits fastest ever century in ODI

Queenstown/New Delhi: Giving New Year gift to his country, New Zealand batsman Corey Anderson set a new world record by hitting fastest ever century in one-day International cricket format, making a ton off 36 balls against the West Indies in Queenstown.

Anderson broke the previous record set by Pakistani all-rounder Shahid Afridi who hit century on 37 balls against Sri Lanka at Nairobi in 1996.

The young New Zealand all-rounder hit 12 sixes and 4 fours in his 100 runs.

Anderson was unbeaten on 131 runs off 47 balls with 14 sixes and half a dozen fours.

The 23-year-old left hander batsman has played 6 ODIs so far for the Kiwi team. West Indies lead the five match series by 1-0.