Headlines from today's papers:
Ships to investigate debris spotted by Chinese satellite
A Chinese satellite had spotted debris in the southern Indian Ocean and ships were being sent to inspect the site, Malaysian Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein announced. Satellite images show an object 22 metres by 13 metres floating 2,500 km south-west of Perth, Australia. The debris, which authorities suspected could have come from the Malaysian plane that went missing on March 8, was spotted 120 km south-west of another floating object. That second bit of debris – measuring 24 metres (79 ft) – was sighted but has not yet been found. It is unclear whether the objects are the same or unrelated. Thirty countries are participating in the hunt for the plane that went missing after it took off from Kuala Lumpur with 239 passengers on board, five of whom were Indian.
After fresh sanctions, Russia reaches out to India
After Western sanctions were imposed against Russia to retaliate against the country's annexation of Crimea, President Vladimir Putin is seeking out India through his most trusted lieutenant, Igor Sechin, in a move to improve strategic relations with Asian nations. Moscow's attempt to push business in the region is aimed at countering sanctions imposed on it by the US and Europe after Russia formalised the incorporation of Crimea into its territory. Sechin, head of Russia's biggest oil company Rosneft, will arrive in New Delhi on March 24 and will meet with External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily.
AAP's manifesto focuses on women's safety, minority rights
The Aam Aadmi Party's manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections emphasises "safety, security and equality for the women of this country". It also promises to disqualify MLAs and MPs charged with violence against women. Other pivotal issues in the manifesto include stringent laws against sex-selective abortions, recognition of madrassa degrees by universities and encouraging mixed neighbourhoods for minorities. The manifesto will be made public soon.
Sunanda Pushkar's viscera report reveals no poison
The death of Sunanda Pushkar, the 52-year-old wife of Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, found in her luxury hotel suite in January, remains a mystery even after the viscera report became available on Friday. The report ruled out any signs of poison in her body. Since both the postmortem and sub-divisional magistrate's reports had conclusively indicated poison, the viscera report has flummoxed the police. Pushkar was found dead days after a Twitter row with Mehr Tarar, a Pakistani journalist, whom she alleged was having an affair with Tharoor.
BJP crisis continues as Sushma backs Jaswant
The confusion in the Bharatiya Janata Party refused to abate as senior leader Sushma Swaraj came out in support of her colleague Jaswant Singh. Having being denied a ticket to contest from his hometown of Barmer, Singh was on the brink of resigning from the party and contesting as an Independent. Swaraj added a twist to the tale by saying that she was hurt by the party’s decision to deny Singh the ticket he wanted. This is the second such skirmish in the BJP, after LK Advani refused to contest from Gandhinagar.
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Ships to investigate debris spotted by Chinese satellite
A Chinese satellite had spotted debris in the southern Indian Ocean and ships were being sent to inspect the site, Malaysian Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein announced. Satellite images show an object 22 metres by 13 metres floating 2,500 km south-west of Perth, Australia. The debris, which authorities suspected could have come from the Malaysian plane that went missing on March 8, was spotted 120 km south-west of another floating object. That second bit of debris – measuring 24 metres (79 ft) – was sighted but has not yet been found. It is unclear whether the objects are the same or unrelated. Thirty countries are participating in the hunt for the plane that went missing after it took off from Kuala Lumpur with 239 passengers on board, five of whom were Indian.
After fresh sanctions, Russia reaches out to India
After Western sanctions were imposed against Russia to retaliate against the country's annexation of Crimea, President Vladimir Putin is seeking out India through his most trusted lieutenant, Igor Sechin, in a move to improve strategic relations with Asian nations. Moscow's attempt to push business in the region is aimed at countering sanctions imposed on it by the US and Europe after Russia formalised the incorporation of Crimea into its territory. Sechin, head of Russia's biggest oil company Rosneft, will arrive in New Delhi on March 24 and will meet with External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Petroleum Minister M Veerappa Moily.
AAP's manifesto focuses on women's safety, minority rights
The Aam Aadmi Party's manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections emphasises "safety, security and equality for the women of this country". It also promises to disqualify MLAs and MPs charged with violence against women. Other pivotal issues in the manifesto include stringent laws against sex-selective abortions, recognition of madrassa degrees by universities and encouraging mixed neighbourhoods for minorities. The manifesto will be made public soon.
Sunanda Pushkar's viscera report reveals no poison
The death of Sunanda Pushkar, the 52-year-old wife of Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, found in her luxury hotel suite in January, remains a mystery even after the viscera report became available on Friday. The report ruled out any signs of poison in her body. Since both the postmortem and sub-divisional magistrate's reports had conclusively indicated poison, the viscera report has flummoxed the police. Pushkar was found dead days after a Twitter row with Mehr Tarar, a Pakistani journalist, whom she alleged was having an affair with Tharoor.
BJP crisis continues as Sushma backs Jaswant
The confusion in the Bharatiya Janata Party refused to abate as senior leader Sushma Swaraj came out in support of her colleague Jaswant Singh. Having being denied a ticket to contest from his hometown of Barmer, Singh was on the brink of resigning from the party and contesting as an Independent. Swaraj added a twist to the tale by saying that she was hurt by the party’s decision to deny Singh the ticket he wanted. This is the second such skirmish in the BJP, after LK Advani refused to contest from Gandhinagar.