Mulayam's Undisclosed Assets

A whopping Rs275.5 million. That is the difference between assets declared by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav before the returning officer and the figure submitted in the Supreme Court. - Khaleej Times, 22 March 2007

Indian World Cup (Non) Performance

India's World Cup bandwagon hit an abrupt dead-end after a thorough thrashing at the hands of Sri Lanka in their last league match. No one in India was smiling. Their World Cup was over in eight days, their team had lost to Bangladesh, and had just been humiliated by Sri Lanka, that record 413 against Bermuda now just a pathetic joke. Except for a mathematical probability (see table on page 20), which comes into play only if rank outsiders Bermuda upset Bangladesh in their last league match, the 69-run defeat virtually means the end of road for India at the 2007 Caribbean carnival. - Indian Express, 25 March 2007

Killing Cricket

The hunt for Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer's killers may take the lid off cricket's darkest secret - match-fixing and betting, a racket worth crores of rupees that has tainted the gentleman's game. - NDTV, 25 March 2007

See No Evil, Shoot No Evil

The French constitutional council has approved a law that criminalises the filming or broadcasting of acts of violence by people other than professional journalists. Perpetrators face up to five years in prison and a fine of €75,000 (£51,000). According to a French civil liberties group, the law could also be used against eyewitnesses who video acts of police violence, and the website operators who publish such images. - Excerpts from http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/greenslade, 08 March 2007

Human Rights & Wrongs

This year's State Department annual report on human rights practices around the world puts China at the top of the list of violators repressing freedom of speech and information, including blocking access to Internet sites.

For the last eight years, China has issued a rebuttal in the form of its "Human Rights Record of the United States." This year is no different. In its annual 'back-at-ya' document, China criticizes the United States for using its military might to trespass on the sovereignty of other countries and for violating human rights domestically and across the globe. - ABC News, 08 March 2007

America Goes Green 2

The ethanol boom is coming. The twin threats of climate change and energy security are creating an unprecedented thirst for alternative energy with ethanol leading the way. That process is set to reach a landmark on Thursday when the US President, George Bush, arrives in Brazil to kick-start the creation of an international market for ethanol that could one day rival oil as a global commodity. The expected creation of an "Opec for ethanol" replicating the cartel of major oil producers has spurred frenzied investment in biofuels across the Americas. - The Independant, 05 March 2007

Hide & Seek

The cat-and-mouse game involving Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi has taken a dramatic turn. Even as the Supreme Court took exception on Monday to being kept in the dark about Quattrocchi's detention, the government let on that the fugitive, who is wanted in the Bofors payoffs case, had secured bail on Friday—the very day the CBI formally announced his detention in Argentina. - Times of India, 27 February 2007

Pakistan Acting On Terror

America warns Pakistan to act on terror. Vice President Dick Cheney made an unannounced trip to Pakistan on Monday to deliver what officials in Washington described as an unusually tough message to General Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, warning him that the newly Democratic Congress could cut aid to his country unless his forces become far more aggressive in hunting down operatives with Al Qaeda. - Indian Express, 26 February 2007

IT MATters

Reacting a good four hours after the FM finished his Union Budget speech in which he sought to levy a minimum alternate tax on 11.33% on IT companies, the main lobbying association for the sector Nasscom said in a carefully worded statement that it was dismayed at the proposal and described it as a “regressive step”. - Indiatimes Infotech, 28 February 2007