Pataudi granted bail in poaching case
NEW DELHI, June 20 (UNI) Former Indian Cricket captain Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, who had surrendered in a court in Jhajjar in a black buck hunting case on June 18, was today granted bail.
Pataudi, who evaded the law for about a fortnight, had surrendered after the Punjab and Haryana High Court rejected his anticipatory bail application.
He, along with seven other, had been booked under the Wild Life Protection Act on June 5 after Rohtak-based social activist Naresh Kadyan of the People For Animal (PFA) unearthed the carcass of the black buck.
"Pataudi got the bail after the two-day police remand ended today and the police did not press for further time," the former cricketer's lawyer Shyam Sunder Goyal said.
He was taken to a hospital in Jhajjar before being produced in a court there.
"Pataudi complained of breathlessness following which he was taken to hospital for a check-up," Jhajjar SP Hanif Qureshi told UNI over phone.
He, however, denied reports that the former cricketer was taken back to his New Delhi residence for obtaining Registration papers of the Maruti Gypsy recovered from the posh Vasant Vihar mansion.
"Since his lawyer produced the RC here, we did not feel any need to take Pataudi to New Delhi," Qureshi said.
Left asks govt to reverse hike, calls for nationwide protests NEW DELHI, June 20 (UNI) Soon after the government decided to hike petrol and diesel prices, the supporting Left parties today asked it to reverse the decision and called for country-wide protests on June 28.
Firmly opposing the increase in prices of petrol by Rs 2.50 per litre and diesel by Rs 2.00 per litre, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) said in a statement that the government's decision would affect the farmers and increase the cost of living for those who rely on transportation for their daily work.
The price increase in diesel in particular will be inflationary and have cascading effect on prices of all commodities, it said.
The CPI(M) pointed out that today's price hike comes in the wake of three price hikes in petroleum products in the past one year, saying, it had imposed an added burden on the people.
"It is unfortunate that the government has not taken up the proposals given to the government by the Left parties to avert the hike.
We have decided to mobilise the people and launch a vigorous protest all over the country.
"We call upon the people all over the country to join together to register their strong protest by coming out into the streets and demonstrate their oppostion on June 28," the statement said.
The Left parties have called upon the government to revoke the decision and take the measures which can absorb the burden of the increased international oil prices.