High Court refuses to stay release of Zanjeer remake

In a setback to script writers Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, the Bombay High Court on Monday refused to stay the release of filmZanjeer, a remake of the hit Amitabh Bachchan-starrer of the same name, made by Prakash Mehra, which is slated to hit screens this Friday.
Salim and Javed had filed a suit in the High Court claiming they had copyrights over the script, story and dialogues of the 1973 blockbuster Zanjeerand demanded Rs six crore as monetary compensation from the kin of Prakash Mehra for remaking the film.
The duo contented they had the copyrights on the script of the old film and they had allowed Prakash Mehra to produce the film based on their script just once. Hence, a remake could not be produced without their permission.
However, Justice SJ Kathawala did not grant any interim relief by staying the release of the film. He cited two grounds for refusing interim relief. One was the delay made by the plaintiffs (Salim and Javed) in giving defendants legal notice and filing the suit against them. The other was that the plaintiffs were demanding monetary compensation.
Soon after the verdict, the counsel for the plaintiffs, Ravi Kadam made an oral plea before a division bench headed by Justice D Y Chandrachud who asked him to file a written plea and posted the matter for hearing on Tuesday.
Justice Kathawala, dismissing the notice of motion moved by Salm and Javed, said "in this case, the plaintiffs have not only delayed issuing of the legal notice as well as filing of the suit against the defendants but have themselves asserted that a sum of Rs six crores would be a fair and reasonable monetary compensation".
"The plaintiffs are, therefore, not entitled to a mandatory injunction as sought even if this court would have come to the conclusion that the plaintiffs are the owners of the copyright as alleged since the plaintiffs' claim falls within the provisions of Section 38(3)(c) and not under Section 38(3)(b) of Specific Relief Act", the judge ruled.
Under section 38(3)(c) of the Act, a court can grant permanent injunction in cases where the defendant invades plaintiff's right and the invasion is such that compensation in money would not afford adequate relief.

Lindsay to re-shoot Playboy pictures

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By Babu Ram : Lindsay to re-shoot Playboy pictures Sanaya Chavda Lindsay Lohan who was recently awarded a 30-days jail sentence after she infringed her probation, has been asked to re-shoot her Playboy pictures after magazine executives decided they wanted a new theme for the nude spread. The 25-year-old posed nude for the famous magazine barely a week back and was paid about $1 million for the same. However, now the Mean Girls star may have to shoot again. A source said, Lindsay was told the Playboy executives wanted to go in another direction with her shoot so they asked her to come back for a second time. The first pictures of Lindsay weren't exactly what they wanted so they have a new theme that they want to shoot. The magazine cover featuring the actress is due to hit stands in January 2012. The source added, There is never a guarantee that everyone will like the photos or that they will be of high enough quality to use for the cover but Playboy wanted to make sure that Lindsay's pictures were exactly what they wanted.

Two train accidents kill 39, injure over 300

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By Babu Ram : New Delhi: At least 35 people were killed and over 200 injured on Sunday when over dozen coaches of two superfast Express trains got derailed in Uttar Pradesh and Assam, raising concerns once again about the patchy safety record of Indian Railways.
Thirty-five have been confirmed dead and over 140 injured as the Howrah-Delhi-Kalka Express got derailed near Fatehpur Malwa in Uttar Pradesh. The incident took place around 12:30 pm. Approximately 1200 people were travelling on board Kalka Mail.
The train was travelling from Howrah to New Delhi and was moving at the speed of 108 Km/Hr when the driver used emergency brakes to slow it down, which led to the derailment, sources claimed.

The accident occurred when the driver of the train applied emergency brakes, said AK Jain, additional director general of the railway police.
Jain said he feared the death toll would go up, as injured passengers were being admitted in nearby hospitals.
Meanwhile, some coaches of the Guwahati-Puri Express got derailed at Nalbari district in western Assam Sunday, officials said, adding that casualties were feared. Nearly 50 people were injured in the incident.
The accident occurred near Ghograpara at around 8:30 pm as the train was on its way to Puri. Police and railway teams were rushing to the spot.
An IED blast on the railway track caused the derailment of the train.
In Uttar Pradesh, local sources confirmed that gas cutters arrived at the accident spot and that the mangled bogies were being cut open to take out the injured.
Seven bogies were badly mangled while three more bogies have capsized. The badly damaged bogies are - three AC 3 tier cars, one pantry car, five sleeper cars and two general cars.
The train driver is said to be among the injured. Reports also claim that the count of injured will rise as some bogies have not yet been cut open for the rescue efforts.
The Ministry of Railways has announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the families of those dead, Rs 1 lakh for those critically injured and Rs 25,000 for those with minor injuries. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh condoled the death of the victims.
The train was passing through Malwa station when its engine and 12 bogies got derailed, sources said. The injured have been taken to the Fatehpur District Hospital.
Sources say that three rescue trains including one from Allahabad and Kanpur have rushed to the spot. One relief train reached the spot. The National Disaster Relief Force said it was sending three teams from Delhi, even as the Army was being called in for medical support.
Mukul Goel, IG National Disaster Relief Force, said, Three teams of total 100 people are going to the accident spot. These teams are specialised in collapse structure rescue. We are waiting for the Indian Air Force plane."
The Commissioner of Railways Safety PK Vajpayee will conduct an enquiry into the derailment of the train.
The busy Delhi-Howrah route has been hit and many trains on the route have been cancelled or diverted. Twelve trains were cancelled and 23 trains were diverted.
On July 7, at least 31 people were killed when a train rammed into a bus driving over a level crossing which did not have a gate or an attendant, typical of several such crossings in India.
Latest government data showed that 336 people were killed and 437 injured between April 2010 and mid-January 2011.
Railway authorities have given out a railways helpline number for the Kalka Express derailment - 033 - 26413660.
The other helpline numbers for the Kalka Express derailment are:
New Delhi: 011-23342954 , 23341074
Delhi: 011-23962389, 23967332
Allahabad: 0532-2407353, 2408128
Fatehpur: 05180-222025, 222026, 222436
Kanpur: 0512-2323015, 2323016, 2323018
Khurja: 05738-253084, 253085
The helpline numbers for the Puri-Guwahati derailment are:
Rangia: 03621-240238, 03621-2731621, 2731622, 2731623
(With additional information from agencies)
Map: Kalka Express derailed in Uttar Pradesh



Map: Puri-Guwahati Express derailed in Assam


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2G scam: No bail for Karim Morani, sent to Tihar Jail

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By Babu Ram : New Delhi: Bollywood bigwig Karim Morani, an accused in the 2G spectrum allocation scam, was on Monday sent to Tihar Jail by a Delhi court which rejected his bail plea and ordered his arrest.

"Bail is dismissed. Take him to custody," Special CBI judge OP Saini said while pronouncing the order.

Morani, Cineyug Films Pvt Ltd Director, now joins a long list of multi-crore 2G scam accused who have been sent to Tihar jail.

The court said Morani, who is accused of facilitating the transaction of Rs 200 crore from DB Realty to DMK-run Kalaignar TV, in which DMK MP Kanimozhi holds 20 percent stake, has "failed to make out a case for bail."

The court also questioned his conduct and said the apprehension of the CBI that he may influence the witnesses if not arrested cannot be ruled out.

"Considering the magnitude of the crime, nature and anormity of allegations, character of evidence on record and the apprehension that the witnesses may be influenced in case the accused is released on bail, I have no hesitation in holding that accused (Morani) has failed to make out a case for bail.

"The bail application is without merit and the same is dismissed," Special CBI judge OP Saini said.
Morani is accused of facilitating the transaction of Rs 200 crore from DB Realty to DMK-run Kalaignar TV, in which DMK MP Kanimozhi holds 20 percent stake.

The Special Judge, in its 67-page order, also observed that Morani used every possible legal subterfuge by filing various applications to delay the proceedings.

The court said that allegations against Morani are of very serious nature and the case involves alleged loss to the state exchequer amounting to about Rs 30,000 crores.

"In the end, I may add that allegations against the accused are of very serious nature, which are supported by evidence on record and in cases of such magnitude, the danger of witnesses or evidence being tampered with is always there and cannot be dismissed with this disdain as remote, far fetched or imaginary," the court said.

The CBI had alleged that Morani took six crore for facilitating the Rs 200 crore transaction.

Morani had filed his regular bail plea on May 24 after the court had denied anticipatory bail and directed him to appear before it.

CBI, in its second charge sheet in the 2G case, had alleged that Swan Telecom and Dynamix Realty Promoters Shahid Usman Balwa and Vinod Goenka channeled Rs 200 crore to DMK-run Kalaignar TV through Kusegaon Fruits and Vegetables Pvt Ltd and Morani's Cineyug Films Pvt Ltd.

PTI

Human Rights Commission will examine Greater Noida atrocities

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By Babu Ram
  

New Delhi: The recent violence over land acquisition and police atrocities in Greater Noida has "pained" the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), which said it will send an investigation team to the affected villages.

The panel said it has received complaints about police trespassing into villagers' houses, outraging women's dignity and mercilessly lathicharging farmers demanding more compensation for their land acquired for a road project.

"The NHRC is pained to see complaints and media reports alleging large-scale violence in village Bhatta and other nearby areas in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh leading to loss of life and injuries to several persons, including the officers on the state government's duty," it said.

In view of the "gravity of the situation", the commission has decided to depute its investigation team for conducting an on-the-spot inquiry in the matter, the NHRC said.

"In several complaints received in the Commission, it has been alleged that the police mercilessly lathicharged the farmers who were demanding more compensation for their land which is being acquired by the state government.

"Incidents of stone-pelting of government officials by the agitating farmers, and the police personnel trespassing the villagers' houses, outraging women's dignity and burning crops were alleged. Allegedly, fire was also exchanged between the police and some agitators," it said in a statement.

Four persons, including two policemen, were killed in farmers-police clashes and firing in Bhatta-Parsaul villages on Saturday last. Political parties have condemned the police action while villagers alleged that most of the male residents have either gone missing or are in hospitals.

The Opposition has flayed the UP government for its land acquisition policy while Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who sat on a dharna at the village before being arrested late last night, alleged that the government has "unleashed atrocities on its own people."

The incident has reopened debate over acquiring land for development projects in the country, even as the Centre today said it has plans to introduce a bill in this regard in the next session of Parliament.


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