23.01.10 / Cricket / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
NEW DELHI: The Kotlaâs troubles,
it seems, are not over yet. Soon after having been âexemptedâ from
hosting international cricket for a year following the preparation of an
unplayable pitch, the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) is back to
courting controversy.
This time, it is facing the wrath of an
inquisitive Delhi High Court, which has dismissed the associationâs
objections and decided to examine a plea questioning the legal validity of
issuing complimentary passes and tickets on the eve of every major international
game.
Saying the petitioner had raised an important issue, Justice
Manmohan Singh, in a recent order, listed the matter for hearing in
February.
The court acted on a suit filed by one Jai Karan, who
requested the HC to tell DDCA that it had no right to distribute complimentary
tickets. Karan also pointed out that during a recent match it issued 25,288
complimentary passes while only 14,997 actual tickets were made available to the
paying public. The DDCA, in its reply, had no choice but to admit this
fact.
Alleging widespread misuse, the petitioner has requested HC to
ban this practice. Seeking dismissal of the suit, DDCA had argued that Karan
just wanted the association to hold an annual general body meeting, a condition
that had already been satisfied.
ââThe main grievance in
the suit is there was no AGM after 2002. The other issues are totally
irrelevant,ââ the counsel for cricketing body contended before HC,
arguing that complimentary passes/tickets were never issued against saleable
tickets.
23.01.10 / Cricket / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
KOLKATA: Even as a diplomatic row
continues to brew over the recent IPL auction, another auction – which will be a
far bigger affair – is just a few months away. With the BCCI committed to adding
two new teams to the league and all current IPL players having served out their
contracted period, the next auction, in July, promises to be the biggest trade
fair in international cricket, with over 500 players expected to go under the
hammer.
Blog:
IPL
franchisees right in ignoring Pak players
Blog:
No
Pakistani in IPL is a matter of shame
According to a reliable
IPL source, the existing eight franchises will be allowed to retain up to six
players – four Indian and two foreigners – from their existing squad provided
both parties agree to a mutual deal. However, it is not obligatory on the part
of the franchises or the players to hang on each other if they are not
comfortable with the idea. Barring a handful of players who choose to stay on,
all others, as well as new ones itching to join the IPL bandwagon will be
treated as free players and will have to go through the auction in order to find
berths in 10 teams which will compete for honours next season. The two new teams
will have to recruit afresh.
The IPL plans to limit the number of
matches played by a player to a maximum of 14 in order to manage the extra
workload. It also plans to raise the cap on foreign players to at least 12
players per team, but the restriction on foreign players in the playing XI will
remain. According to the IPL source, the BCCI is dead against allowing more than
four foreigners in the playing XI to protect the interests of the Indian
players.
The logic behind raising the overall cap on foreigners to 12
is the increased matches due to the new teams.
With 10 teams now in
the fray, vying with one another on a home and away basis, the total number of
matches will also jump from 60 to 94.
With each team required to
play at least 18 matches, the IPL plans to limit the number of matches played by
a player to a maximum of 14 in order to manage the extra workload. This means
every franchise will be obliged to rotate not only their players but also the
captaincy in order to make the optimum use of the available
resources.
The IPL, on the other hand, plans to cope with this
problem of plenty by scheduling matches in the morning session, especially on
weekends and holidays. In IPL 1 & 2 matches had been slotted only in the
evenings, with the early match scheduled at 4 pm and the late match from 8 pm.
The final schedule, of course, will have to be worked out in consultation with
IPLâs telecast partners.
The IPL also plans to do away with
the icon tag for star players which means that even the big guns like Sachin
Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh will
figure in the auction list unless their current employers choose to retain
them.
However, one thing is for sure. Unlike in the first IPL auction
where reputation mattered more than pedigree of the players, the July auction
will see current form getting more weightage. So players doing well in IPL-3 and
the ICC World T20 in the West Indies will be the hot picks and not old lions who
are long in the tooth.
23.01.10 / News / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
Haiti’s government has made the “heartbreaking” decision to declare the search and rescue phase for survivors of the earthquake over, the UN says.
The announcement came a day after two people, an 84-year-old woman and a 21-year-old man, were pulled alive from the rubble in Port-au-Prince.
The UN spokeswoman Elizabeth Byrs says 132 people have been rescued since the earthquake 11 days ago.
On Friday the official government death toll from the quake rose to 110,000.
Speaking in Geneva, Ms Byrs said that the decision to end the rescue operation was “heartbreaking” but that it had been taken on the advice of experts.
She said most search and rescue teams would now be leaving Haiti, although some with heavy lifting equipment may stay to help with the clean-up operation and with aid distribution.
She added that humanitarian relief efforts were still being scaled up in Port-au-Prince, as well as in the towns of Jacmel, Leogane and other areas affected by the earthquake.
The BBC’s Adam Mynott, at a university building in Port-au-Prince where many people are feared buried, says there has been some disquiet among Haitians about the decision to end search efforts.
But although two people were pulled out alive in the capital on Friday, it is believed rescue teams have detected no new signs of life under the rubble for the past three days, our correspondent says.
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Rescued after 10 days in rubble
On Friday an 84-year-old woman was found in the wreckage of her home seriously injured and severely dehydrated.
She is being treated by doctors at the main city hospital with intravenous fluids and drugs.
Her son said he had heard her cries on Thursday morning and, almost a day later, he dug her out with the help of friends.
Meanwhile, a 21-year-old man, Emmannuel Buso, was pulled out alive by an Israeli search team and is said to be in a stable condition.
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HAITI’S REMARKABLE SURVIVORS
Emmannuel Buso, 21 – rescued after 10 days
Marie Carida, 84 – saved after 10 days
Mendji Bahina Sanon, 11 – trapped for eight days
Lozama Hotteline, 25 – pulled out after seven days
Elisabeth Joassaint, 15 days – buried for seven days, half her life
Ena Zizi, 69 – rescued after seven days
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Speaking from his hospital bed he described coming out of the shower when the earthquake hit.
He said he had no food, and drank his own urine to keep thirst at bay.
The head of the Israeli team, Major Amir Ben David, said the rescue had given hope more people could be found alive.
No decision has yet been taken on whether the Israeli team will now go home, the Associated Press news agency reported.
More than 1,000 mourners gathered on Saturday by Port-au-Prince’s shattered Roman Catholic Cathedral for the funeral of Haiti’s Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot and a vicar, Charles Benoit.
President Rene Preval attended the service, joined by New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan and the Vatican’s ambassador to Haiti.
“I came here to pay my respects to all the dead from the earthquake, and to see them have a funeral,” mourner Esther Belizair told AP, saying that she had lost a cousin.
Few funeral services have been held in Haiti for those killed by the quake.
At least 75,000 bodies have so far been buried in mass graves, Haiti’s government has said. Many more remain uncollected in the streets.
‘Most complex operation’
The BBC has started a new radio service in Creole, one of the country’s main languages.
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BBC HAITIAN CREOLE SERVICE
Broadcasting on the radio daily at 0910 local time (1410 GMT)
Twenty-minute programme in Haitian Creole
Broadcasting on FM in Haiti’s six largest cities
Also available on satellite and online, and via social media
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The 20-minute long daily broadcast, called Connexion Haiti, will try to give people up-to-date information about the basic services they need to survive – such as where to find food, clean drinking water, medical assistance and shelter.
An estimated 1.5 million people were left homeless by the 7.0-magnitude quake, which some have estimated has killed as many as 200,000 people.
The UN says 130,000 people have now been relocated out of Port-au-Prince, easing the pressure on overcrowded camps in the city.
Meanwhile the UN agency the World Food Programme says it has increased its food aid to survivors.
Speaking after a two-day evaluation mission to Port-au-Prince, the executive director of WFP, Josette Sheeran, said that on Friday the agency had delivered about 2 million meals.
“This is the most complex operation WFP has ever launched,” she said.
“Haiti’s entire supply chain infrastructure has been devastated, and we have been faced with launching an operation from scratch.”
A benefit concert featuring more than 100 music and Hollywood stars has been broadcast around the world to raise money for the victims of the earthquake.
23.01.10 / News / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
US Vice-President Joe Biden says the US government will appeal against a court ruling dismissing manslaughter charges in the Blackwater shootings case.
Mr Biden was speaking after meeting Iraqi politicians in Baghdad.
Iraqis were furious when a US judge threw out charges against five Blackwater security guards over the 2007 killing of 17 Iraqis in Baghdad.
Mr Biden is in Iraq in an attempt to defuse a political crisis over candidates for the election in March.
Class action
Mr Biden said the dismissal of the Blackwater charges was just that and “not an acquittal”.
Expressing “personal regret” over the 16 September 2007 shootings in Baghdad’s Nisoor Square, he said the US justice department would file its appeal against the court’s decision next week.
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THE BLACKWATER INCIDENT
16 Sep 2007 – 17 Iraqi civilians killed in Nisoor Square, Baghdad
Iraq said – civilians fired on by Blackwater guards without provocation
Blackwater said – Iraqis killed in shoot-out when Blackwater convoy ambushed
Iraqi eyewitnesses – guards fired on white sedan that failed to slow down and then fired into surrounding area as people tried to flee
Nov 2007 – New York Times quotes FBI officials saying killings of at least 14 of the Iraqis were “unjustified”
Dec 2008 – five guards charged with 14 counts of manslaughter
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“The United States is determined to hold to account anyone who commits crimes against Iraqi people,” Mr Biden added.
“While we fully respect the independence and the integrity of the US judicial system, we were disappointed with the judge’s decision to dismiss the indictment, which was based on the way some evidence had been acquired.”
Iraq maintains the Blackwater guards fired without provocation. Blackwater said the firing followed an ambush on one of its convoys.
The US rejected attempts for a trial in Iraq but charges in the US were thrown out when a judge ruled in December that the guards’ constitutional rights had been violated and that the justice department had mishandled evidence.
The ruling provoked anger in Iraq and this month the Iraqi government began collecting signatures for a class action lawsuit on behalf of people killed or wounded in incidents involving Blackwater.
Iraq said it would seek compensation for a number of such cases and would continue to “act forcefully and decisively to prosecute”.
The 2007 incident caused widespread public anger against foreign security companies operating in Iraq and their activities have been severely curbed since then.
Election concerns
Mr Biden’s comments came as he tried to defuse a political crisis over the banning of more than 500 candidates in the March election, many on suspicion of loyalty to Saddam Hussein’s dissolved Baath Party.
Many Sunnis are outraged, saying their community is being marginalised, but many Shias are adamant Baathists cannot be rehabilitated.
Joe Biden told Nouri Maliki the US did not want to interfere in Iraqi politics
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Mr Biden met PM Nouri Maliki and President Jalal Talabani among others.
Mr Maliki, a Shia, has generally backed the disqualifications but Mr Talabani, a Kurd, has questioned the legality of the commission which issued the disqualifications, referring it to the supreme court for a ruling.
Mr Biden said he was confident there would be a solution.
The BBC’s Jim Muir in Baghdad says both the US and UN are increasingly worried that the March elections could become discredited.
He says the Americans will be eager for the elections to foster national reconciliation so the withdrawal of troops can be achieved against a stable background.
Although violence has lessened in Iraq over the past two years, security remains fragile.
Both Iraq and its Western backers see the March election as a crucial test of whether peace can be made sustainable.
23.01.10 / News / Author: timepasss / Comments: (0)
Professional and amateur photographers have gathered in London’s Trafalgar Square to protest against terror stop and searches.
The photographers say police are intimidating people with cameras in tactics to target possible terrorists.
Last week the European Court of Human Rights ruled the power to stop people without suspicion was indiscriminate.
The government is appealing, saying it is vital to make cities a hostile place for any possible attacker.
Rising tensions
Freelance photographer and writer Marc Vallee, who helped organise the protest, said: “It’s quite surreal today but we are pleased with the support.
“It’s quite obvious that professional photographers across the country are being searched because they are photographers not because they are suspicious.
“It’s a common law right to take pictures in public places and we are here to show that.”
The demonstration comes after a year of rising tensions between professional photographers and police over the exact scope of Section 44 of the Terrorism Act 2000.
This special stop and search power allows police in specifically designated areas to stop people without suspicion of wrongdoing in an attempt to make it difficult for potential attackers to move around.
It is used in some key areas of London and other cities or airports where counter-terrorism officers suspect that violent extremists may be looking for targets.
According to the latest available figures, some 36,000 people were stopped under the power between April and June last year.
But photographers say the practical effect has been that increasing numbers of people with cameras are being left intimidated, angry and afraid after being asked to account for their actions.
Shami Chakrabarti, director of human rights group Liberty, said it had warned of the dangers of blanket stop and search for a decade.
She said: “We have been completely vindicated by the Court of Human Rights and in the coming weeks MPs will have the chance to change this law. Let’s hope they step up to their responsibilities.”
A series of controversial incidents over the past year have included photographers being stopped while taking pictures of landmarks and public buildings.
A separate counter-terrorism law, which in theory restricts the rights to photograph police officers, has added to the tensions.
Advice to officers
Shortly before Christmas, Assistant Commissioner John Yates, the head of counter-terrorism at the Metropolitan Police, warned officers they risked losing public confidence if they did not use the Section 44 powers sensibly.
But last week the European Court of Human Rights ruled the entire law was illegal because it was indiscriminate rather than properly targeted at the threat.
The government is appealing against that ruling and the power remains in force in the meantime.
Chief Constable Craig Mackey, the Association of Chief Police Officers’ (Acpo) spokesman on stop and search, said: “Acpo has stated previously that everyone – photographers, members of the media and the general public – has a right to take photographs and film in public places. That has not changed.
“It is the job of police officers out on the beat to be vigilant, to keep an eye out for any suspicious behaviour and to act accordingly.
“And there is no doubt that every day their vigilance stops crime. Used correctly, stop and search is a powerful tool that can help protect all our communities from terrorism. Protecting the public remains our priority.”
