Kupwara attack: Militants strike Army camp near LoC, Captain is among 3 personnel killed

Two militants were gunned down by troops while a third slipped away, leaving behind his weapon.

Near the Army camp in Kupwara which was attacked by militants early Thursday. Source: Shuaib Masoodi

Three Army personnel including a Captain were killed and five others injured when heavily armed militants sneaked into an artillery camp after snipping perimeter wire fences and opened fire in the early hours of Thursday in Panzgam in Kupwara district of north Kashmir.

Two militants were gunned down by troops while a third slipped away, leaving behind his weapon. Officers said there was every possibility that the militants had come from across the Line of Control.

Panzgam is located close to the LoC on the Kupwara-Chowkidar highway, around 20 km from Kupwara town, and houses the rear base — administrative and logistics base for units operationally deployed on the LoC — of nine Army units. The camp is marked by two tiers of barbed-wire fencing, separated by 50-100 meters.

The personnel killed in the attack were identified as Captain Ayush Yadav (26), Subedar Bhoop Singh Gujjar (46) and Naik Bhoota Venkata Ramanna (38). The five who were injured were flown to the Army Base Hospital at the Badami Bagh Cantonment in Srinagar.

Colonel Saurav Joshi, Commanding Officer, Artillery Regiment, said three militants sneaked into the camp from the rear end and began moving towards the residential areas of the camp.

“The militants, who entered the camp after cutting the barbed wire (fencing), were engaged by soldiers. Two militants were killed after intense firing. Another militant who was injured managed to escape, taking advantage of the dark,” he said.

Joshi said three AK-47 rifles were recovered after the gunbattle. “The injured militant will be tracked down soon. The Army is trying to ascertain the identities of the slain militants. They could be foreigners,’’ he said.

The attack took place around 4.30 am. The militants, who were dressed in black Pathani suits with camouflage-pattern sleeveless jackets, had breached two layers of fencing. They fired an Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL) which led to the death of Naik Bhoota Venkata who was in the perimeter patrol team.

The militants then moved towards the shelters where officers were staying and opened fire. A Quick Response Team engaged the militants. In the encounter that followed, Captain Ayush Yadav and Subedar Bhoop Singh Gujjar lost their lives while five other soldiers were injured.

No backpacks were found on the dead militants. During the search, three AK-47 rifles were recovered, along with nine magazines and 156 rounds, one Chinese pistol, one UBGL, two GPS sets and a smartphone. The recovery of three AK-47 pointed to the presence of at least another militant who managed to escape.

Sajjan Jindal holds secret talks with Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif

News that a three-member Indian delegation had secretly met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Muree on Wednesday rocked Islamabad on Thursday afternoon.

Pakistani news channel ARY News, which broke the story, reported that the Indian steel tycoon and JSW Group chairman Sajjan Jindal was among three Indians who called on Sharif in Murree on Wednesday.

The delegation “reached Islamabad from Kabul in a special aircraft at 10 am on Wednesday from where they travelled to Murree by road in three vehicles to meet Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif,” the report said.

The other two members of the delegation were identified as Suket Singhal and Virander Babar Singh, “but details relating to their ranks and affiliation could not be established”, the channel said.

Other media outlets picked up the story, and the Imran Khan-led Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) lawmaker in the Punjab Assembly, Mian Mehmood-ul-Rasheed, reportedly tabled a resolution demanding that Sharif comes clean about the meeting.

“We are concerned over the visit. Prime Minister Sharif has business relations with Indians,” a PTI spokesperson said.

Pakistani analysts and the media speculated that the Indian team had either come with a special message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, or had come to negotiate the release of former Indian naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav, who a Pakistani military court has alleged was an Indian spy and awarded the death sentence.

According to one report, Sajjan Jindal had reportedly played a key role in arranging the surprise meeting between Nawaz Sharif and Narendra Modi in Raiwind on December 25, 2016. Sources further claimed that Jindal was a guest at the wedding ceremony of Sharif’s granddaughter.

Finally, at 7.38 pm on Thursday, Sharif’s daughter Maryam Nawaz went on Twitter to confirm the meeting.

“Mr. Jindal is an old friend of the Prime Minister. Nothing ‘secret’ about the meeting & should not be blown out of proportion. Thank you,” Maryam Nawaz tweeted.

As rift begins within AAP, BJP shuts its doors to defectors

New Delhi, April 28, 2017 | UPDATED 06:03 IST

A +A -

Highly placed BJP sources told Mail Today on Thursday that at least six AAP MLAs approached the party's Delhi leadership immediately after the MCD poll results, but were turned away.After being rejected by Delhi voters in this month's municipal elections, the Aam Aadmi Party is battling to stay united and stay relevant. While buzz about a possible split is growing louder, the victorious Bharatiya Janata Party says it has shut its doors to defectors.

The Arvind Kejriwal-led party stormed to power in Delhi two years ago as it buried the BJP and Congress under a landslide. But it stood a distant second in the civic elections with the Bharatiya Janata Party riding the Narendra Modi wave one more time to a thumping win.

AAP MLAS KNOCK BJP'S DOORS?

"Six AAP MLAs had approached the party leadership, seeking time to meet Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari," a BJP leader said. "They wanted to discuss the political developments in the wake of the civic poll results. They said they were also willing to join the BJP. But the party leadership has refused to meet them."

City BJP leaders said the party was averse to take any AAP legislator to its fold primarily for two reasons. First, the BJP has gained immensely on the development plank of PM Narendra Modi and there was no need to rely on support from AAP defectors.

Secondly, AAP has been extremely critical of the BJP and its top leaders including Modi and party president Amit Shah. "With the BJP riding high on a Modi wave, entry of AAP leaders in the BJP camp would dampen the spirit of the party cadre," BJP leaders said. "We cannot take leaders from a party which has been bitterly critical of our top leaders."

"The BJP is firm on its stand. No defector will be allowed in the party after the election results lest we should be accused of hatching conspiracies or poaching," said the BJP leader.

WAIT AND WATCH

The party has decided to wait and watch the situation in the AAP. Meanwhile, chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday called a meeting of all party MLAs and the newly-elected 48 MCD councilors, and congratulated them on their win.

The developments emerged amid reports that embattled AAP convener Kejriwal told his partymen "not to lose heart" from the embarrassing loss and "get back to serving the people of Delhi the way they were doing."

"Be vigilant, be honest, be brave. Also be sure to secretly record any offers made by the BJP to switch sides," he says in a video posted on YouTube.

Kejriwal concludes his address by leading his audience in an oath which amounts to, "With God as my witness, I pledge never to ditch this pure party or betray the (anticorruption) movement."

RIFT WITHIN AAP

The rift within AAP is palpable after the election results. While there has been no vocal protest so far, a number of party leaders have been questioning Kejriwal's style of functioning. "AAP contested all elections with Kejriwal as its face. But responsibility has to be fixed for repeated electoral defeats. At the same time, the party organisation should be strengthened instead of creating a personality cult," said some leaders, requesting anonymity.

Senior Punjab AAP leader Sanjay Singh resigned on Thursday along with his deputy Durgesh Pathak. "I have submitted my resignation as the party in-charge of Punjab to AAP's national convener Arvind Kejriwal. Durgesh (Pathak) has also submitted his resignation as co-incharge," Singh said in a tweet.

Another senior leader in Delhi, Ashish Talwar, also resigned from his post. The party made transport minister Gopal Rai the Delhi convener on Thursday following Dilip Pandey resigning from the post immediately after the MCD poll debacle on Wednesday

After the meeting at the CM's residence, AAP legislator Vishesh Ravi said, "It's been decided that the MLAs will go back to the people and try to find out where the communication gap between the legislators and them has occurred."

Amazon Echo with built-in screen rumored for next month

1

Amazon has just announced the Echo Look, a device that uses a camera to keep you looking your best. It’s a bit of a crazy idea, but it also serves as an indication of how digital assistants can evolve to fit more specific needs. What’s the next step? “A person familiar with plans” has told CNET the popular online retailer is planning to launch yet another Echo product; one that will come with a built-in screen.

SEE ALSO:

Amazon Echo vs Dot vs Tap: Which is right for you?

4 weeks ago

The source states the Echo team may be feeling pressured after Google’s announcement that its device can recognize different users. This may be pushing Amazon to launch its upcoming project sooner than expected as it tries to keep up with competition. In fact, he says this screen-bearing device could launch as soon as next month, but the release date is not set just yet.

Amazon had good head start in this business, but Google is definitely catching up with great features, sound quality and a competitiveve price tag. This move could be part of Amazon’s efforts to make itself stand out in this market.

Now we have to wonder what this screen will exactly do. I could see it becoming a good recipe tool, news hub or security camera monitor.

This 106-yr-old from Andhra is world’s oldest YouTuber; and she’s winning hearts with her cooking videos

Mastanamma’s YouTube channel is managed by her grandson, who fondly describes the food as ‘made by my grandma’. (Source: Country Foods/YouTube)

We have often seen people getting instant fame on the Internet and becoming YouTube, Facebook sensations overnight. While social media is often seen as something that fascinates youngsters more, this 106-year-old YouTuber from Andhra Pradesh is breaking all such prejudices with her cooking videos.

Reportedly, Mastanamma shot to fame after people started taking notice of her interesting cooking skills on YouTube. On her channel Country Foods, she is often seen making local delicacies using easily available flavours of the state. For over 250,000 subscribers (and the numbers are growing), Mastanamma cooks up delicious egg dosas, fish fry to bamboo chicken biryani in the videos — all from scratch!

ALSO READ | Heaven On Your Plate: From kebabs to biryani, food is serious business in Lucknow

Her YouTube channel is managed by her great grandson, K Laxman, who fondly describes the food as ‘made by my grandma’.

A look through the comments section on her channel will show how Mastanamma is not just a regional celebrity, but there is love pouring in for her from people across the world.

Reportedly hailing from Gudiwada in the Krishna district from Andhra Pradesh, the grandmother likes to do all her household works on her own and generally denies any assistance from the youngsters. As much as she is a YouTube celebrity, she is also known to be one of the typical Indian grandmothers who would make sure that everyone is well fed and full.

Bhupinder Singh Hooda fails in bid to block report on Dhingra probe into land deals

FORMER HARYANA Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda Thursday failed in his bid to get the Punjab and Haryana High Court to issue an order restraining The Economic Times from purportedly publishing the contents of the Justice S N Dhingra report on alleged irregularities in allotment of land licences in Gurgaon.

Hooda withdrew his plea after the court said it had no jurisdiction in the matter.

Among the deals scrutinised by the Dhingra Commission were those related to Congress chief Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra, his company Skylight Hospitality and real estate major DLF.

On September 1, 2016, The Indian Express had reported that the Dhingra Commission, constituted by the Haryana government in May 2015 to probe grant of commercial licences in four villages of Gurgaon to real estate companies, including M/s Skylight Hospitality, had found “gross procedural irregularities in allotment of licences”.

Hours after the court turned down Hooda’s plea, Vadra’s wife Priyanka Gandhi Vadra issued a statement that the source of funds for the land she bought and sold in Faridabad “has no relationship whatsoever with Shri Robert Vadra’s finances and/or Skylight Hospitality and no relationship whatsoever with DLF.”

Hooda, the Congress leader from Rohtak, is being probed by the state vigilance department and CBI for allegedly manipulating land allotment rules and regulations in Gurgaon during his two consecutive-term tenure as chief minister from 2005-2014.

In his report, Justice Dhingra, sources said, indicted certain senior officials who were posted in the Town and Country Planning (T&CP) department and the office of the Chief Minister and recommended registration of FIRs against officials in some cases of grant of commercial licences.

However, before the state government could table the report in Vidhan Sabha — a mandatory requirement under Commission of Inquiry Act — Hooda approached the high court challenging the constitution of the commission.

Responding to Hooda’s plea, Haryana Advocate General Baldev Raj Mahajan repeatedly gave undertakings in court that the report’s contents would not be made public. The court subsequently ordered an interim stay and barred the the state government from releasing the report.

In Thursday’s plea, Hooda’s counsel stated: “It has also been reliably learnt that a newspaper i.e. Economic Times… is going to publish tomorrow a news item based upon and containing contents of the Commission of Inquiry Report dated 31.08.2016, publication of which has already been restrained on the categoric assurance of the learned Advocate General, Haryana.”

The press release issued by Priyanka Gandhi’s office stated: “Six years prior to the purported “land deal involving Skylight Hospitality” on April 28, 2006, Smt. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra purchased 40 Kanal 00 Marla (5 acres) of agricultural land in Village Amipur, Tehsil Faridabad, District Faridabad in Haryana.

“The land was purchased for a total purchase price of Rs 15,00,000 paid for entirely by cheque, which is the equivalent of Rs 3,00,000 per acre. The source of funds for the aforesaid purchase was rental income of Smt. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from property inherited by her from her grandmother Smt. Indira Gandhi. The source of funds for this or any other property acquired by Smt. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has no relationship whatsoever with Shri Robert Vadra’s finances and/or Skylight Hospitality and no relationship whatsoever with DLF.”

“…Smt. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra resold the said land to the original vendor pursuant to a right of first refusal on February 17, 2010 (four years later) for a sale price of Rs 80,00,000 entirely by cheque which is the equivalent of Rs 16,00,000 (Rupees Sixteen Lacs) per acre and was the prevailing market rate at that time.”

Last year, The Indian Express had reported that the Dhingra Commission is said to have cited several instances of approvals and plans being changed to benefit builders. “In many cases, real estate companies were allowed to get revised plans approved while in some cases, the policy was changed to grant benefit to the chosen companies. The files show a clear pattern of senior officers in the office of the previous Chief Minister (Bhupinder Singh Hooda) writing on file,” sources said.

Sources said the files perused by the Commission showed that master plans were changed — in some cases, more than once — to allegedly benefit companies. The Commission also found instances of the government sitting on files seeking grant of licences for unusually long periods.

Survey finds Karnataka the most corrupt state

NEW DELHI: Karnataka occupies the first slot in a list of states perceived to be corrupt on the basis of people's experience in paying bribes for public services, a survey conducted by an NGO has revealed. Karnataka is followed by Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Jammu & Kashmir and Punjab.1

The Centre for Media Studies survey, which covered 20 states, found Himachal Pradesh, Kerala and Chhattisgarh to be the least corrupt. The report said around one-third of the households experienced corruption in public services at least once during the last one year in comparison to about 53% of households that admitted to paying bribes during a similar study in 2005.

The survey covered 3,000 odd persons, both in urban and rural areas. It also claimed that more than half of the respondents felt that the level of corruption had decreased in public services during the demonetisation phase of November and December 2016.

The report estimated that the total bribe paid by households across 20 states and 10 public services was Rs 6,350 crore in 2017 as against Rs 20,500 crore in 2005. However, the study indicated how a lot still remained to be done to reduce corruption in public services.

JEE Main Result 2017: Kalpit Veerwal, Vasu jain, Ananye Agarwal ; Meet The Top 3 Rank Holders

The result of JEE (Main) 2017 and cut-off for eligibility to appear in JEE (Advanced) - 2017 have been published by the CBSE on the results website jeemain.nic.in and cbseresults.nic.in. Kalpit Veerwal (360/360), Vasu jain (350/360)and Ananye Agarwal (350/360) have been ranked toppers in the exam which was held on April 2 (Offline Examination) and April 8, 9 (Online Examination) in 113 cities across India and abroad.

Among the girls category, Vrunda Nandkumar Rathi who scored 321 secured 71th rank Poorva Garg who scored 319 is placed at 96th Rank.

Among the top 1000 rank holders, 932 were boys and 68 were girls. According to a press release from 4534 boys and 466 girls included in top 5000 rank holders.

Out of the total 1186454 students who have registered for the exam, 2,21,427 students qualified for appearing in JEE advanced exam which is scheduled to be conducted in next month.

JEE Main 2017 1 Rank: Kalpit Veerwal

JEE Main Result 2017: Kalpit Veerwal secured first rank with 360/360 marks

JEE Main 2017 2 Rank: Vasu jain
 

JEE Main Result 2017: Vasu jain secured second rank with 350/360 marks

JEE Main 2017 3 Rank: Ananye Agarwal
 

JEE Main Result 2017: Ananye Agarwal secured second rank with 350/360 marks

JEE Main 2017 Girls Topper: Vrunda Nandkumar Rathi (Rank 71)
 

JEE Main 2017: Vrunda Nandkumar Rathi is ranked 71 with 321 marks

Vinod Khanna’s death, Jindal in Pakistan: Top stories to bring you up to date

Vinod Khanna dies at 70: Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor and others attend funeral

Veteran Bollywood actor, politician and former union minister Vinod Khanna passed away in Mumbai on Thursday morning following prolonged illness. He was 70. His funeral took place at a crematorium in Worli, Mumbai, in the evening which was attended by a number of his contemporaries, including Amitabh Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor, Ranjit and many others.

Khanna was hospitalised over a month ago. In a brief statement, the hospital said Khanna breathed his last at 11.20 am due to advanced bladder carcinoma. Read the story here.

Vinod Khanna: The humble MP Pranab Mukherjee couldn’t recognise

One of the everlasting images of the tall, handsome Parliamentarian was when he came to meet the then finance minister Pranab Mukherjee for some work. Mukherjee was returning to his room in Parliament. Khanna introduced himself: “Sir, I am Vinod Khanna.” Mukherjee, who hardly watched Hindi movies, completely ignored him and continued to walk briskly. Read the story here.

Indian steel magnate Sajjan Jindal meets Sharif, sparks speculation of Indo-Pak talks

Indian steel magnate Sajjan Jindal met Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad on Wednesday, sparking speculation that he may have been involved in efforts to revive the stalled dialogue between the two countries. Jindal, who flew into the Rawalpindi airport in a private aircraft with a small delegation, was received by Sharif’s son Hussain Nawaz and Raheel Munir, a businessman who is the husband of Sharif’s granddaughter Mehr-un-Nisa.

The Indian delegation then travelled to the Prime Minister’s House in the capital for a meeting, sources in Islamabad told Hindustan Times. Jindal reportedly played a key role in facilitating a “secret meeting” between PM Modi and Sharif on the sidelines of the Saarc Summit in Nepal in 2014. Read the story here.

Kupwara attack: Brave sentry kills two militants, saves lives of many soldiers

From his bunker at the sentry post, gunner Rishi Kumar of the army’s field artillery regiment saw three militants approach his camp in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district on Thursday morning. He waited, his finger crooked hard on the trigger of his machine gun. When they were within range, he fired — staccato in their direction. The armed militant fired back and a bullet hit his patka or headgear…Kumar was back on his feet in seconds and started firing at the militants again, ringing two of them with bullets and killing them instantly. Read the story here.

Now, Aadhaar must for getting fellowships, scholarships from UGC and AICTE

Students seeking government scholarships and fellowships will need to declare Aadhaar numbers by the end of June, the human resources development (HRD) ministry notified on Wednesday, putting yet another of its benefits programme behind the Unique Identity project (UID) wall. Wednesday’s order covers fellowship schemes implemented by the University Grants Commission and the All India Council for Technical Education. Read the story here.

EC seeks 73,000 central security personnel for LS bypoll in J-K’s Anantnag

The Election Commission (EC) has sought around 73,000 central security personnel to conduct the Anantnag parliamentary constituency bypoll on May 25, a demand termed ‘unprecedented’ by the Union home ministry. “To conduct assembly elections in five states recently, the home ministry provided around 70,000 security personnel and we have been asked to provide more than 73,000 personnel for one parliamentary constituency. It is not even logistically possible to send such a large number of personnel to Jammu and Kashmir in a short span of time,” said a senior home ministry official. Read the story here.

London police arrest man with knives near British PM Theresa May’s home

British police said on Thursday a man had been arrested and armed officers were seen on Whitehall, the street home to numerous government ministries in central London, with a BBC reporter saying two knives had been seen. Police said no one had been injured in the incident close to Prime Minister Theresa May’s official Downing Street residence in Westminster but gave no further details. May was not at Downing Street at the time of the incident, a spokesman said.

A BBC Home Affairs correspondent said on Twitter that two knives had been seen on the ground including a large “breadknife” and added a photograph of an officer wearing a blue forensic suit photographing what appeared to be a knife on the sidewalk next to a rucksack. Read the story here.

Opinion: India’s polity has shifted from hope to fear, and PM Modi knows it

A recent survey found 55% of India’s youth to be highly anxious, and 26% to be moderately so. These numbers have profound implications for the future of Indian democracy. The engine of Indian politics isn’t aspiration, it is anxiety – and no one recognizes this better than Narendra Modi, who has understood that his followers don’t want a Ceo-in-Chief to lead them; they want a parent, or better still, a priest. Read the column here.

Opinion: Post-MCD rout, AAP must go back to its roots and be the voice of the voiceless

Perhaps the scale of AAP’s victory in 2015 along with the failure of the Opposition to throw up a strong alternative to Modi, convinced Kejriwal that he could fill the national leadership vacuum. In the process, he made the strategic mistake of many an ambitious start-up: Attempting to expand without consolidating first.

To rediscover itself, AAP must go back to its original identity built during the anti-corruption Anna agitation: A public spirited movement that becomes the voice of those who feel desperately powerless in the India of today. Read the column here.

Gujarat Lions heap more misery on Royal Challengers Bangalore with 7-wicket win

Riding on Andrew Tye’s three- wicket haul and Aaron Finch’s whirlwind fifty, Gujarat Lions notched up a comfortable seven-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore to keep alive their IPL 2017 play-off hopes at Bangalore on Thursday. Chasing 135 to win, Gujarat lost both openers -- Ishan

Kishan (16) and Brendon McCullum (3) -- to be reduced to 23-2 but Finch blasted 5 fours and 6 sixes in his scintillating 34 -ball 72-run innings as the visitors romped home with 6.1 overs to spare. Read the story here.

Can’t keep hanging, pick Lokpal without Leader of Opposition: SC

THE SUPREME Court ruled on Thursday that the Lokpal could be appointed even in the absence of a Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. Stating that the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 is an “eminently workable piece of legislation”, the court said “there is no justification to keep the enforcement of the Act under suspension till the amendments, as proposed, are carried out”.

Under the Act, the Lokpal has to be appointed by a selection committee comprising the Prime Minister, Lok Sabha Speaker, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Chief Justice of India or his nominee, and an eminent jurist. But since the Congress does not have the required 10 per cent of the total seats in the Lok Sabha, it has been denied the Leader of Opposition’s status.

“If, at present, the Leader of Opposition is not available, surely, the chairperson and other two members of the selection committee, namely, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Chief Justice of India or his nominee, may proceed to appoint an eminent jurist as a member of the selection committee under Section 4(1)(e) of the Act,” held a bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi and Navin Sinha.

The bench maintained that the government does not need to wait for the law to change so that the position of Leader of Opposition in the selection committee can be substituted with the leader of the single largest party in the Opposition.

Responding to the PILs filed by NGOs Common Cause and Youth For Equality, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi had earlier told the bench that the Act was being amended to make the necessary substitution. He said the Lokpal selection process would begin when the amendment is passed by Parliament.

But senior lawyer Shanti Bhushan and advocate Gopal Sankaranarayana, who represented the NGOs, had claimed that the government was delaying the amendment since it did not want a Lokpal. They said the government had already amended various other statutes, including those for selection of Chief Vigilance Commissioner, CBI chief and Chief Information Commissioner, to make the change with regard to Leader of Opposition.

In December, the apex court had asked the government whether it would make the change on its own, or if it should read down the Lokpal Act to give a place to the leader of the single largest opposition party in the selection committee. The court had observed that it would not let the Lokpal become “a dead letter” or “redundant”.

However, the bench declared on Thursday that the government could appoint the Lokpal right away without waiting for the law to change. “The Act, as it stands today, is an eminently workable piece of legislation and there is no justification to keep the enforcement of the Act under suspension till the amendments, as proposed, are carried out,” it said.

Reacting to the court’s ruling, Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge told The Indian Express that the government could have issued an ordinance if it wanted the Lokpal to become functional. He expressed concern that after the SC ruling, the government could appoint anyone, without consulting the Opposition.

The court also held that there was no “legal disability” for the selection committee — without the Leader of Opposition — to constitute a search committee to prepare a panel of persons for consideration for appointment as the chairperson and members of the Lokpal.

“…absence of such a provision (in the Act), by itself, will not invalidate the constitution of the search committee by the truncated selection committee when the Act specifically ‘empowers’ a truncated selection committee to make recommendations for appointment of the chairperson or members of the Lokpal. To hold otherwise would be self-contradictory,” said the bench.

The bench also held that there was no “constitutional infirmity” in the Lokpal Act if it had not given primacy to the opinion of the Chief Justice of India as a member of the selection committee. “It is not the mandate of the Constitution that in all matters concerning the appointment to various offices in different bodies, primacy must be accorded to the opinion of the CJI or his nominee,” said the bench as it dismissed a petition that questioned the validity of a provision in the Act in this regard.

About a recommendation by a parliamentary standing committee in 2015 to replace the Leader of Opposition with the “Leader of largest Opposition Party”, the court said this was “merely an opinion” which has to be first considered by the Executive, and then approved by the Legislature. “The said opinion… would therefore not be sacrosanct. The same, in any case, does not have any material bearing on the validity of the existing provisions of the Act,” it said.

The court said that various other recommendations of the committee were aimed at streamlining the operation of the Act. “Such attempts cannot halt the operation and execution of the law, which the Executive in its wisdom has already given effect to and has brought into force by resorting to the provisions of Section 1(4) of the Act,” it held.

Google: Search Quality & AdSense Teams Don't Talk, Ever

Google has said time and time again that the search team, the organic side, does not talk to the paid side, the AdWords teams. There is a pretty big divide, intentionally, between paid and organic. This is also true with the AdSense team. Google search, organic search, doesn't talk to the AdSense team.

Gary Illyes from Google said this on Twitter yesterday. In response to if they talk, Gary wrote "we absolutely don't talk to them." Adding that they "pretty much ever" never talk to the AdSense team.

Samsung Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+ Hands On

The obvious star of the show here is the screen, which takes up nearly all of the front of the new smartphones. Samsung has managed to maximize the screen here by concealing the physical home button underneath the screen, and using virtual buttons that can disappear when they're not in use.

The result is surprisingly impressive. Given that Samsung has had a similar edge-to-edge design on the Galaxy S7 Edge for a couple of years now, I wasn't expecting to be impressed by a little more room. But kicking out the home button does make a noticeable difference on the phone - giving you more screen on which to surf, work and watch videos.

The change does give both the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ a slightly weird screen size - they feel just a bit too tall for their width - that may be annoying to watch video on over time. The Galaxy S8 has a 5.8-inch screen, while the Galaxy S8+ has a 6.2-inch screen. Despite the odd shape, both models provide a lot of screen for a phone that I can use conveniently with one hand. That's not something I could say of the Galaxy Note 7, which had a 5.7-inch screen. I can't even really say that of the 5.5-inch iPhone 7 Plus.

I thought the virtual buttons might throw me off as well, given my experience with similar designs in the past. But Samsung seems to have done a good job in making sure the button is always accessible, at least from what I saw.

The phone is also very fast and feels powerful. I spent a little time with Samsung DeX, the desktop mode that lets you plug your phone into a monitor and special dock (sold separately for about $160), which was also impressive at first blush. Samsung's secured full support for Microsoft Office for the mode, which makes it feel about as capable as a netbook - one that also shows you your text, call and other notifications. You can pair a Bluetooth keyboard and mouse to the DeX dock, or opt to plug one in, so you can use all the same keyboard commands you're used to, as well as the option to drag and drop.

Samsung has included many of the features that made its phones great in the first place, including the option to expand the memory with your own SD card and waterproofing. It even improved the quality of the front-facing, a.k.a. selfie, camera. It's now 8-megapixel, up from 5-megapixel on the Galaxy S7, and will now auto-focus on faces.

Overall, I was pretty impressed with the look and capabilities of the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+, and would tentatively say it's worth upgrading from an Galaxy S7. (And certainly from an Galaxy S6.) That said, there's so much about the phone that we still don't know. Yes, of course, there's the question of whether it will suffer the same battery problems as the Galaxy Note 7 - unlikely, given Samsung's new safety measures, but also not impossible.

It's worth remembering that the Galaxy Note 7 had rave reviews, too. Until the .And there are also some things that Samsung has promised that I'll need to try for a while before I pass final judgment. For example, I didn't get any real sense of how effective Bixby, the company's new voice assistant, worked in conversation - demonstration halls are notoriously noisy. The features I did see, including its ability to search online for product just by snapping a picture of something, were still in tightly controlled demonstration mode.

That's a pretty important feature to try before coming to a decision on whether this is a phone I'd recommend over, say, Apple's iPhone. Because while the new screen design is nice - and it is, it should be said again, very pretty - a little bit of beauty is not what's going to tip people over the edge when looking to drop $700 or $800 on a phone.

If Samsung is trying to wow us into trusting it again, it's done a pretty good job with this highly-polished, distinctive pair of devices

Reliance Jio Prime Last Date Is March 31: What Will Happen Next?

With last date for Jio Prime membership sign-ups on March 31, Reliance Jio customers will have to start paying for the operator's services from April 1, over six months after it started operations. So, there are several things customers need to figure out by Friday, March 31, such as whether you are a Jio prepaid or postpaid user, whether you should sign-up for the Jio Prime membership, what plans you should choose, and maybe even whether you should keep the Jio connection.

Are you on Reliance Jio prepaid or postpaid?

Although every Reliance Jio user we've talked to has a prepaid SIM, we've seen people in the comments mention using postpaid SIMs. So, step one is to check which one you're using, since if you are on postpaid, you will start receiving a bill from next month.

How to check if your Reliance Jio number is prepaid or postpaid:

• Open the MyJio app, and tap the Open button next to MyJio.
• Sign in with your Jio number and password, if you haven't already.
• Swipe in from the left side to show the menu.
• Tap on My plans

It'll say Happy New Year Offer on top, and it's followed by Prepaid recharge in our case. If you're a postpaid user, it will say postpaid. Now that you know which one applies for you, you can decide if you need to change things, and what plans to go for.

Reliance Jio Prime and non-Jio Prime

Speaking of plans, there are two possibilities here - Jio Prime, and non-Jio Prime. If you subscribe to Jio Prime, you get to access some additional plans, but you'll have to pay Rs. 99 for the year to do so, though you can easily get that money back. Jio Prime subscribers also get nearly double the data benefits on all plans, for a limited amount of time. The big draws here are the Rs. 303 a month (28 days) and Rs. 499 a month plans, which net you 28GB of data, and 56GB of data respectively, capped at 1GB and 2GB per day, respectively.

Reliance Jio Prime vs Non-Jio Prime Plans

If you're happy with the plans you can find on Reliance Jio (with or without Jio Prime) then you should get your plan activated by this weekend to continue using your Jio account.

With Jio Prime last date as March 31, if you don't sign up for the subscription plan by then, you will have to pay for its services without the benefits that Jio Prime members get. If you're a Reliance Jio prepaid customer then you'll need to select a prepaid plan from the MyJio application on your phone, or just visit a nearby Jio Store to select a plan and pay for it, in order to keep using your connection. The other option would be to become a postpaid user - this is pretty easy to do as well; just go to a Reliance Jio store, and you can get your connection changed to postpaid, and select a plan.

Disconnecting from Reliance Jio

If you are a Jio prepaid user, disconnecting is pretty straightforward. Take the SIM card out of your phone, and don't touch it for three months. After 90 days of inactivity, with zero balance, prepaid SIMs are disconnected.

To end a Reliance Jio postpaid connection, you have to call up customer care, or to visit a Jio store, and ask for your number to be disconnected. They will ask for your reasons, and once the request has been accepted, the account should be closed within seven working days. This also works for Jio prepaid, if you don't want to wait 90 days. If you're planning on doing this, make the call before April 1 so no charges are attached to your account.

Paytm pulls out of Snapdeal buyout talks, leaves ball in Flipkart's court

Noida-based Paytm has pulled out of talks to acquire struggling e-commerce firm Snapdeal on valuation issues, highly placed industry sources told Moneycontrol.

According to top sources, Paytm was not keen to consider a valuation of over USD 800 million to USD 1 billion for Snapdeal.

Moneycontrol had earlier reported that besides rival Flipkart, Paytm was also in talks to acquire Snapdeal as both had Alibaba Group as a common investor.

Watch: Why are Indian Startups stumbling?

Snapdeal has raised close to USD 1.76 billion from investors such as Ontario Teachers’ Pension Fund, Softbank, Alibaba Group, Temasek and others. A low valuation would also mean that late stage investors in the company could get a low or negative return on their investments.

This leaves the ball in the court of Flipkart's top investors such as Tiger Global to consider an acquisition of the Softbank-backed company.

Flipkart is also in talks to raise USD 1 billion in funding from investors such as Microsoft, eBay and Tencent. A merger would make eBay as a common investor in both Flipkart and Snapdeal.

Will not grow e-commerce through buyouts: Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Last month, Paytm had unveiled its online shopping portal – Paytm Mall as a new version of its existing e-commerce business.

It was largely expected that the company will acquire Snapdeal to grow its e-commerce business. An integration of Paytm's wallet business with Snapdeal-owned Freecharge was also on the cards which would have resulted in a much larger marketshare for the company.

However, Paytm's founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma told Moneycontrol that it will never acquire a company just to expand its e-commerce business citing integration issues.

"We believe it is better to build vs buy because there are lot integration challenges in the company ...we are a small, nimble company where we believe that the speed of execution happens better if we are building it vs buying," he said. Sharma declined to confirm on talks with Snapdeal.

Moneycontrol had earlier reported that Softbank, the Japanese investor in Snapdeal was leading sale talks with Paytm and Flipkart.

Snapdeal continues to be in conversation with Flipkart. If all goes well, the merger could be announced in May, a person close to developments said.