Russia backs referendum in eastern Ukraine

Moscow:Russia said Monday it respects the choice of people in Donetsk and Lugansk regions in Ukraine, and hoped for implementation of the referendum results to be processed along civilised lines.

'We have taken note of the high voter turnout despite attempts to derail the voting and we condemn the force used, including military hardware, against civilians, which lead to fatalities,' the Kremlin press service said in a statement.

Moscow called for dialogue between Kiev authorities and those two regions, saying 'all mediation efforts, including by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, are welcome', Xinhua reported.

Local residents in Donetsk and Lugansk went to the polls Sunday in referendums aimed at seeking independence from Ukraine.

The final results are yet to be announced. IANS

Russia backs referendum in eastern Ukraine

Moscow:Russia said Monday it respects the choice of people in Donetsk and Lugansk regions in Ukraine, and hoped for implementation of the referendum results to be processed along civilised lines.

'We have taken note of the high voter turnout despite attempts to derail the voting and we condemn the force used, including military hardware, against civilians, which lead to fatalities,' the Kremlin press service said in a statement.

Moscow called for dialogue between Kiev authorities and those two regions, saying 'all mediation efforts, including by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, are welcome', Xinhua reported.

Local residents in Donetsk and Lugansk went to the polls Sunday in referendums aimed at seeking independence from Ukraine.

The final results are yet to be announced. IANS

20 injured in political clash in Bengal, 12 held

Kolkata: At least 20 people were injured Monday in a clash between activists of the CPI-M and Trinamool Congress in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district, police said. Twelve people have been arrested in this connection.

The incident took place in Brahmanchak village in Haroa block in Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, some 40 km from Kolkata.

Sub-divisional police officer Abhijit Banerjee said 12 people were arrested in connection with the clash.

The injured said they were CPI-M activists and supporters, and accused the Trinamool cadres of orchestrating the attack. They claimed four of them received bullet injuries.

The ruling party in the state, however, rubbished the allegations and claimed that 11 of its activists sustained injuries.

One of the injured said around 200 of them -- all CPI-M supporters -- were on their way to cast their votes in Brahmanchak village when they were attacked.

'We were going to the polling booth when around 30-40 men, all Trinamool activists, attacked us with weapons, including guns,' said Ruma Mandal, one of the injured who was admitted to a hospital.

Another injured, Tutul Mandal, said at least four of them received bullet injuries and most of the injured lay bleeding for hours before police eventually carried them to a hospital.

The Trinamool blamed the CPI-M for the incident.

'In Haroa, CPI-M's former panchayat head Dinabandhu Mandal was behind this clash, in which 11 of our workers were injured,' Trinamool spokesperson Derek O'Brien said. IANS

20 injured in political clash in Bengal, 12 held

Kolkata: At least 20 people were injured Monday in a clash between activists of the CPI-M and Trinamool Congress in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district, police said. Twelve people have been arrested in this connection.

The incident took place in Brahmanchak village in Haroa block in Basirhat Lok Sabha constituency, some 40 km from Kolkata.

Sub-divisional police officer Abhijit Banerjee said 12 people were arrested in connection with the clash.

The injured said they were CPI-M activists and supporters, and accused the Trinamool cadres of orchestrating the attack. They claimed four of them received bullet injuries.

The ruling party in the state, however, rubbished the allegations and claimed that 11 of its activists sustained injuries.

One of the injured said around 200 of them -- all CPI-M supporters -- were on their way to cast their votes in Brahmanchak village when they were attacked.

'We were going to the polling booth when around 30-40 men, all Trinamool activists, attacked us with weapons, including guns,' said Ruma Mandal, one of the injured who was admitted to a hospital.

Another injured, Tutul Mandal, said at least four of them received bullet injuries and most of the injured lay bleeding for hours before police eventually carried them to a hospital.

The Trinamool blamed the CPI-M for the incident.

'In Haroa, CPI-M's former panchayat head Dinabandhu Mandal was behind this clash, in which 11 of our workers were injured,' Trinamool spokesperson Derek O'Brien said. IANS

Nifty breaches 7,000 level on capital inflows

Mumbai: The broader NSE Nifty today crossed the 7,000 level for the first time on a strong rally in oil and gas, PSUs, banking and capital goods sector stocks driven by sustained foreign capital inflows ahead of the exit poll results.

The 50-issue NSE Nifty crossed the 7,000 level after rising 141.45 points, or 2.06 per cent, to trade at an all-time high of 7,000.25, surpassing its previous intra-day high of 6,871.35 reached on May 9.

Brokers said sentiment was upbeat on sustained capital inflows and widespread buying by retail investors before the exit poll results after trading hours today.

Further, a higher opening on the European markets and trends on the other Asian bourses influenced the trading sentiments here, they said.

The benchmark BSE Sensex too climbed 534.77 points,or 2.32 per cent, to trade at new record high of 23,529.00.

Major gainers which lifted Nifty to fresh record high included Ultra Cement, Coal India, HDFC Bank, ITC Ltd, GAIL, Grasim Industries, Hero Motorcorp, Reliance Industries, ONGC, SBI, Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Larsen and Toubro and BHEL.

Among other Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 1.91 per cent while Japan's Nikkei fell by 0.35 per cent. PTI 

Nifty breaches 7,000 level on capital inflows

Mumbai: The broader NSE Nifty today crossed the 7,000 level for the first time on a strong rally in oil and gas, PSUs, banking and capital goods sector stocks driven by sustained foreign capital inflows ahead of the exit poll results.

The 50-issue NSE Nifty crossed the 7,000 level after rising 141.45 points, or 2.06 per cent, to trade at an all-time high of 7,000.25, surpassing its previous intra-day high of 6,871.35 reached on May 9.

Brokers said sentiment was upbeat on sustained capital inflows and widespread buying by retail investors before the exit poll results after trading hours today.

Further, a higher opening on the European markets and trends on the other Asian bourses influenced the trading sentiments here, they said.

The benchmark BSE Sensex too climbed 534.77 points,or 2.32 per cent, to trade at new record high of 23,529.00.

Major gainers which lifted Nifty to fresh record high included Ultra Cement, Coal India, HDFC Bank, ITC Ltd, GAIL, Grasim Industries, Hero Motorcorp, Reliance Industries, ONGC, SBI, Axis Bank, Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors, Larsen and Toubro and BHEL.

Among other Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index was up 1.91 per cent while Japan's Nikkei fell by 0.35 per cent. PTI 

Five found guilty in Harihara Varma murder case

Thiruvananthapuram: A fast track court here found five persons guilty of the murder of gem dealer Harihara Varma. The sixth accused in the case Adv. Haridas, who is also an acquaintance of Harihara Varma, has been acquitted.

The court will deliver sentences on those found accused _ M Jithesh (33), Ajeesh (27), Rakhil (24), Ragesh (21) and Joseph (20) _ on Tuesday. Of the five, three are students of engineering colleges in Bangalore.

Varma was found dead at Haridas' house in Puthoorkonam near Nettayam under mysterious circumstances in December, 2012.

According to the prosecution, the accused approached Varma in the guise of buying gem stones and flee with the stones after murdering him.

Though prosecution claimed that Haridas too assisted the accused, it could not produce the evidence to prove it.

The accused tried to subdue Varma and Haridas using chloroform after serving them sedative-laceddrink. Varma later succumbed to the effect of chloroform smothering.

Five found guilty in Harihara Varma murder case

Thiruvananthapuram: A fast track court here found five persons guilty of the murder of gem dealer Harihara Varma. The sixth accused in the case Adv. Haridas, who is also an acquaintance of Harihara Varma, has been acquitted.

The court will deliver sentences on those found accused _ M Jithesh (33), Ajeesh (27), Rakhil (24), Ragesh (21) and Joseph (20) _ on Tuesday. Of the five, three are students of engineering colleges in Bangalore.

Varma was found dead at Haridas' house in Puthoorkonam near Nettayam under mysterious circumstances in December, 2012.

According to the prosecution, the accused approached Varma in the guise of buying gem stones and flee with the stones after murdering him.

Though prosecution claimed that Haridas too assisted the accused, it could not produce the evidence to prove it.

The accused tried to subdue Varma and Haridas using chloroform after serving them sedative-laceddrink. Varma later succumbed to the effect of chloroform smothering.

13 new MERS deaths in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has announced 13 more deaths from the MERS coronavirus, as the World Health Organisation prepared for an emergency meeting over worries about the spread of the disease.

The Middle East Respiratory System coronavirus has now killed 139 people and infected 480 in the kingdom since it first appeared in 2012, accounting for the bulk of cases registered across the globe.

In its most recent tally, issued at midday on Saturday, the Saudi health ministry said six people had died from the disease over the past 24 hours.

They were three women aged 22, 26 and 35 who died in Riyadh, a 68-year-old woman and a 78-year-old man in the western city of Medina, and a man in his 70s in the commercial capital Jeddah.

On Friday the ministry said three men aged 94, 51 and 42 had died from MERS in the Jeddah region.

It added that a 74-year-old man had died in the city of Taef, while a woman, 71, and two men aged 81 and 25 respectively, had died in the capital Riyadh.

MERS is considered a deadlier but less-transmissible cousin of the SARS virus that broke out in Asia in 2003, infecting 8,273 people and killing nearly 800.

Like SARS, it appears to cause a lung infection, with patients suffering coughing, breathing difficulties and a temperature, but MERS differs in that it also causes rapid kidney failure.

Experts are struggling to understand the disease for which there are currently no vaccines or antiviral treatments.

The announcement of the latest fatalities in Saudi Arabia came the day after the WHO said it would hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss the spread of the virus.

The UN health agency's emergency committee has already met four times to discuss the mysterious coronavirus since it surfaced in 2012.

"The increase in the number of cases in different countries raises a number of questions," spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told reporters in Geneva on Friday, without giving further details of the aim of the new talks.

MERS cases have also been reported in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and even the United States, with most involving people who had travelled to Saudi Arabia or worked there, often as medical staff.

 

 

13 new MERS deaths in Saudi Arabia

RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has announced 13 more deaths from the MERS coronavirus, as the World Health Organisation prepared for an emergency meeting over worries about the spread of the disease.

The Middle East Respiratory System coronavirus has now killed 139 people and infected 480 in the kingdom since it first appeared in 2012, accounting for the bulk of cases registered across the globe.

In its most recent tally, issued at midday on Saturday, the Saudi health ministry said six people had died from the disease over the past 24 hours.

They were three women aged 22, 26 and 35 who died in Riyadh, a 68-year-old woman and a 78-year-old man in the western city of Medina, and a man in his 70s in the commercial capital Jeddah.

On Friday the ministry said three men aged 94, 51 and 42 had died from MERS in the Jeddah region.

It added that a 74-year-old man had died in the city of Taef, while a woman, 71, and two men aged 81 and 25 respectively, had died in the capital Riyadh.

MERS is considered a deadlier but less-transmissible cousin of the SARS virus that broke out in Asia in 2003, infecting 8,273 people and killing nearly 800.

Like SARS, it appears to cause a lung infection, with patients suffering coughing, breathing difficulties and a temperature, but MERS differs in that it also causes rapid kidney failure.

Experts are struggling to understand the disease for which there are currently no vaccines or antiviral treatments.

The announcement of the latest fatalities in Saudi Arabia came the day after the WHO said it would hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday to discuss the spread of the virus.

The UN health agency's emergency committee has already met four times to discuss the mysterious coronavirus since it surfaced in 2012.

"The increase in the number of cases in different countries raises a number of questions," spokesman Tarik Jasarevic told reporters in Geneva on Friday, without giving further details of the aim of the new talks.

MERS cases have also been reported in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Egypt, Lebanon and even the United States, with most involving people who had travelled to Saudi Arabia or worked there, often as medical staff.