Police claim Amna was never raped

LAHORE: A three-member bench of the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday rejected a police report on a Class 10th student Amna Bibi’s self-immolation case and directed the district and sessions judge to probe the incident and furnish a comprehensive report within six weeks.

Police claimed that 18-year-old Amna was never raped and alleged that she concocted the story to implicate her family’s opponents.The bench, led by Chief Justice Tassaduq Hussain Jillani, was hearing a suo moto notice case of Amna Bibi’s self-immolation attempt in Muzaffargarh. As the hearing started, Additional Inspector General of Punjab Police, Khaliq Dad Malik, presented the police report, stating that Amna Bibi was not subjected to rape.

Expressing displeasure over the police report, the chief justice remarked how a girl could set herself on fire only to settle scores with her family’s opponents. Justice Sheikh Azmat Saeed observed that the police usually declared the culprits innocent in such cases to show its performance. “Police can say that neither any girl was there by the name of Amna nor any such incident had taken place,” he observed.

Chief Justice Jillani called Nizam Bibi, the mother of Amna Bibi, to rostrum and expressed his deep regret over the incident in the Seraiki language, saying that those who had subjected the girl to the brutal act would not escape the grip of law.

Last month, the alleged rape victim had attempted self-immolation outside a police station in the presence of her younger brother after a police report helped the accused to secure bail.After hearing the arguments, the court disposed of the suo moto notice and directed the Multan sessions judge to submit the report within six weeks.

Malaysia police: Jet mystery may never be solved

KUALA LUMPUR: The investigation into what happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 may take a long time and may never determine the cause of the tragedy, Malaysia´s national police chief warned Wednesday.

Khalid Abu Bakar said the criminal investigation was still focused on four areas — hijacking, sabotage and personal or psychological problems of those on board the plane.

"Investigations may go on and on and on. We have to clear every little thing," Khalid said. "At the end of the investigations, we may not even know the real cause.

We may not even know the reason for this incident."The plane disappeared March 8 on a flight to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur with 239 on board.

No trace of the plane has been found, although searchers are now focused on a crash site in the southern Indian Ocean.

Khalid said that police had conducted more than 170 interviews with family members of the pilots and crew members.

"We must be very thorough and we need all the time ... you cannot hurry us," he said.

Police are also investigating the cargo and even the food served on the plane to eliminate possible sabotage, he said.

Relatives of the passengers have been critical of the handling of the search for the plane, especially as the focus of the hunt has shifted.

After experts analyzed the limited radar and satellite data from the plane, the search area was moved from the seas off Vietnam, to several areas in the Indian Ocean west of Australia, and finally to a 221,000-square-kilometer (85,000-square-mile) area roughly a 2½-hour flight from Perth.

The search resumed Wednesday, with the first of nine planes heading out to the search zone, about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) west of Perth, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said.

Nine ships also were scouring the area. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott reiterated his commitment to the search ahead of meeting his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak later Wednesday in Perth.

"Look, it´s one of the great mysteries of our time," Abbott told Perth Radio 6iX. "It´s a terrible tragedy.

There are 239 devastated families. ... We owe it to the world, we owe it to those families to do whatever we reasonably can do get to the bottom of this.

"Najib´s trip to Perth also will include a visit to the joint agency coordinating the multinational search effort.

Malaysia police: Jet mystery may never be solved

KUALA LUMPUR: The investigation into what happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 may take a long time and may never determine the cause of the tragedy, Malaysia´s national police chief warned Wednesday.

Khalid Abu Bakar said the criminal investigation was still focused on four areas — hijacking, sabotage and personal or psychological problems of those on board the plane.

"Investigations may go on and on and on. We have to clear every little thing," Khalid said. "At the end of the investigations, we may not even know the real cause.

We may not even know the reason for this incident."The plane disappeared March 8 on a flight to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur with 239 on board.

No trace of the plane has been found, although searchers are now focused on a crash site in the southern Indian Ocean.

Khalid said that police had conducted more than 170 interviews with family members of the pilots and crew members.

"We must be very thorough and we need all the time ... you cannot hurry us," he said.

Police are also investigating the cargo and even the food served on the plane to eliminate possible sabotage, he said.

Relatives of the passengers have been critical of the handling of the search for the plane, especially as the focus of the hunt has shifted.

After experts analyzed the limited radar and satellite data from the plane, the search area was moved from the seas off Vietnam, to several areas in the Indian Ocean west of Australia, and finally to a 221,000-square-kilometer (85,000-square-mile) area roughly a 2½-hour flight from Perth.

The search resumed Wednesday, with the first of nine planes heading out to the search zone, about 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) west of Perth, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said.

Nine ships also were scouring the area. Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott reiterated his commitment to the search ahead of meeting his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak later Wednesday in Perth.

"Look, it´s one of the great mysteries of our time," Abbott told Perth Radio 6iX. "It´s a terrible tragedy.

There are 239 devastated families. ... We owe it to the world, we owe it to those families to do whatever we reasonably can do get to the bottom of this.

"Najib´s trip to Perth also will include a visit to the joint agency coordinating the multinational search effort.

'Nanda was a soft-spoken person, who never lost her temper'

Subhash K Jha

'She was a soft-spoken person, who never lost her temper. She loved being at home.'

'She was a delight to work with. Unlike many heroines, she never threw tantrums on the sets.'

Asha Parekh, one of Nanda's closest friends, and Sanjay Khan, her costar in three films -- Beti, Abhilasha and Woh Din Yaad Karo -- remember the yesteryear actress, who passed away on March 25.

Asha Parekh

I spoke to her over the phone on Monday night (March 24). She was gone the next day.

She sounded absolutely normal. It is frightening to know that sometimes you don't even get a chance to say goodbye. It reminds one just how fragile life is.

We (along with Helen, Waheeda Rehman and Sadhna) would meet regularly. Sadhana had lately been busy, so she couldn't join us every time. In fact, she couldn't even make it to the funeral.

All four of us had met on Saturday for lunch. That was just three days before she was suddenly snatched away from us.

Now I wonder if the rest of us will ever meet without missing her constantly.

She was a soft-spoken person, who never lost her temper. She loved being at home.

She had become more of a homebody in the later years. She loved her family. The death of one of her brothers a few years ago left her shattered. 

Getting Nanda out of the house was an ordeal.

She had come for my 60th birthday but didn't show up for the 70th.

But I never held that against her. I knew it was too much work for her to dress up for public appearances.

We were very close. We spoke about everything under the sun. My last conversation with her is now etched permanently on my mind.

It's hard to believe that now when I dial her number, she won't be there on the other end of the line. I have lost not just a friend but my confidante.

Aamir will never join politics

Set to launch the second season of his TV show "Satyamev Jayate", leading Bollywood actor Aamir Khan Friday said he is not interested in joining politics, and does not consider himself a social activist either.

"I don't belong to the field of politics, won't be able to do well in politics. Why does one enter politics, to contribute to the society... I can contribute to the society from where I am. This is why I would not join politics," said Aamir while interacting with women journalists at Indian Women's Press Corps (IWPC).

The actor, whose "Satyamev Jayate" has raised several social issues, also said he did not consider himself a social activist.

"I don't see myself as a social activist. An activist is one who takes up a cause close to his heart and lives with that. I an an entertainer and a creative person..." he said.

He said as an entertainer, his responsibility includes bringing grace to society and building a moral fabric.

Asked if he supports any political party, the actor said: "I don't see any such party which I feel would change a lot of things if it comes to a majority."

He however said that he liked the idea of "swaraj" given by Arvind Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party.



"I agree with their concept of 'swaraj'. This is the only party which says they people would be a part of deciding how they rule... but the reason I don't support any party is that even AAP has to be tested. I am not in a rush to support any party. Don't want to have a knee jerk reaction," said Aamir who had supported the Anna Hazare movement.

"And elections should be free and fair, who am I to influence the people," he added.

On a question on the violence against north Indians by Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, Aamir said he was against any violence or forceful shutdowns.

"Any political party which uses power and muscle in the country is wrong. Earlier during the struggle for independence, Gandhiji would say people to boycott something and they would do it voluntarily," he said, questioning use of force to stop people from leaving their houses.

"They burn buses, use violence. It just indicates hooliganism. You are just a goon. It's not got any ground support," he said.