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New Delhi: Nationalist Congress Party in Maharashtra is “broadly agreed” with ally Congress on power sharing issues.

Senior NCP leader Praful Patel said today that a new government in the state would be formed shortly. The NCP General Secretary told reporters, “We have broadly agreed on most of the issues,”

Patel, who was present for the meeting, left midway and held discussions with his Congress interlocutor Ahmad Patel.He later drove back to Pawar’s residence and briefed NCP leaders about the deliberations.

The top NCP leadership held a meeting with party chief Sharad Pawar here last evening which was attended by Ajit Pawar, Chhagan Bhujbal, R R Patil and Jayant Patil.

Patel said that he had conveyed the NCP stand to Congress which is likely to be discussed with Defence Minister A K Antony, who is also incharge of Congress affairs in Maharashtra.

Mumbai: Bollywood actors came in huge numbers at the polling booths to exercise their rights yesterday. All three Khans-Shah Rukh, Salman, Aamir-were there.

While the Baadshah of Bollywood spoke about cleanliness, infrastructure and the economy, and Salman voted for “prosperity,” Aamir wanted, “a leader who does not rule on the basis of caste or creed.”

Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan voted in Juhu, minus Abhi and Ash, who were shooting with Mani Ratnam. Rakesh and Pinky Roshan came minus Hrithik and Suzanne.

Samajwadi party leader Sanjay Dutt came with wife Manyata, and wanted his leader to fulfill all promises. Manyata, though, said she was only voting to exercise her fundamental right but had no expectations because, “they are never fulfilled.”

Khiladi Kumar Akshay was registered as a voter two stations. He voted at Lokhandwala since his ration card has that address but he clarified that he has a house in Juhu too.

As always, John Abraham was one of the first actors to vote. John stressed on the importance of better infrastructure in Mumbai. First-time voter Priyanka Chopra had to wait for over an hour at a Versova polling booth after the EVM collapsed. She wants a young government to rule the state.

Director Karan Johar had to make two trips to the polling booth after he was sent back for not carrying a voting slip. He stressed on infrastructure, slum rehab and citizen protection against civil and criminal injustice.

Zayed Khan, Ranjeet , Prem Chopra, Anupam and Kiron Kher, Javed Akhtar and Shabana Azmi, Gulzar, Rishi Kapoor and Naseer also voted.

Among those who didn’t show up were Saif, Kareena, Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, Kajol, Ajay Devgan, Yash Chopra, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol and Preity Zinta.

Kolkata: It’s like a jote jolt for Congress as it’s ally Trinamool Congress have decided to field its candidates in both the Malda seats Sujapur and Goalpokhor assembly constituencies.

Trinamool Congress also did a campaign meeting at Kaliachowk and Mothabari for their candidates.

Congress won the Goalpokhor assembly seat in the 2006 assembly elections while it won the Sujapur seat more recently in the 2008 by-election.

The decision comes at a time when seat-sharing talks between Trinamool Congress and Congress for the November 7 by-elections for 10 assembly seats in West Bengal are yet to even start.

When contacted, Malda Trinamool Congress president Goutam Chakraborty said that the local unit has selected the names of Mozahar Hossain, Mosharaf Mantu and Hazi Azabul Biswas for the Sujapur assembly seat.

Chakraborty said, “We will send the names to our leader Mamata Banerjee, who will select one of them for the Sujapur seat.”

Interestingly, Abu Naser Khan Chowdhury, brother of legendary Malda Congress leader A B A Ghani Khan Chowdhury, is keen to contest the Sujapur seat on a Congress ticket.

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati has ordered to stop work all construction activities at various sites, as her government is now cornered by the Supreme Court.

The state government was completely shaken as the apex court summoned state Chief Secretary Atul Kumar Gupta for a personal appearance before the bench on November 4 to explain why work was not stopped despite repeated orders.

This followed stern directives of the Supreme Court that took serious note of “flagrant violation” of its directives on a lawsuit seeking suspension of all such construction activity.

A top official in the chief minister’s secretariat told on Tuesday evening, “We have stopped all construction work with immediate effect and that includes even those sites which were not subject matter of any pending writ petition.”

Denying any violation of the court orders, the official asserted, “There was no question of defying the honorable court’s orders.

We had brought all construction activity to a halt at each of the sites that were subject matter of the pending petitions.”

Lucknow: Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi is upset over Dalit Drama in Uttar Pradesh. Though, he inspired party leaders for such move, but he’s reportedly upset on this issue.

It’s being said that party would be setting some guidelines on the matter.

There were media reports which suggested that Congress president Sonia Gandhi was upset with the developments. However, Congress refused comment on Ms Gandhi’s reaction.

A swarm of UP leaders descended on Dalit settlements across UP on Gandhi Jayanti in bid to emulate Mr Gandhi.

But, unlike the Congress general secretary who sticks to the rudimentary fare available at Dalit homes, several of his footsoldiers made sure they were not short of any amenities or conveniences.

Some, accompanied by big bands of supporters, went to the extent of hiring their own cooks, bringing food supplies and even disposable plates to dinner.

New Delhi: Union Home Minister P Chidambaram has asserted once again that naxal menace in country is growing day by day.

He expressed his outrage at the murder of a Jharkhand police officer by Maoists and vowed the rebels’ “scheme” will not succeed.

Chidambaram was commenting on the murder of Jharkhand Police’s special branch officer Francis Induwar, who was abducted a week ago and was found dead on the Ranchi-Jamshedpur highway on Tuesday morning.

Chidambaram said, “I condemn this cold-blooded murder. The Naxal menace is a growing menace and this incident proves they kill in cold blood.”

The Communist Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist) left a pamphlet claiming it had killed the officer, a police official said. “Francis has been awarded death to protest the police repression,” said a pamphlet left near Induwar’s body.

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Sunday sought to send a strong message to the Congress, saying the ally must accept TMC supremacy in West Bengal.

Three days after the Congress snubbed her by taking the support of the Left to clinch the mayoral post of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation, Mamata attacked her ally.

Addressing a rally at Bagha Jatin Park here, she said that without the blessings of the Congress top brass the developments at Siliguri could not have happened.

“We gave support to the Manmohan Singh government because of our earlier commitments (for support) and for stability. As we accepted the Manmohan Singh government at the Centre, the Congress will have to accept Trinamool’s supremacy in Bengal,” she said amidst thunderous applause.

“One cannot stop Mamata Banerjee by joining hands with the CPM. TMC is the only way in Bengal. Our friends (Congress) are greedy. May God pardon them. They have sold themselves,” she added.

Kolkata: Two days after Congress formed the Siliguri municipal board with Left Front support, Left partner RSP bitterly criticized the move.

Now the party questioned the very existence of the Front as a united entity. In the mean time, Congress MLA D P Roy quit the PCC vice-president’s post in protest.

The RSP blow came with the announcement by party leader Manoj Bhattacharya that RSP councillor in Siliguri, Anju Mahato, would be asked to withdraw support to the Congress-run board.

In a strongly worded letter to Left Front chairman Biman Bose, RSP state secretary Debabrata Bandyopadhyay described the move to extend support to Congress – “the main representatives of bourgeois rulers” – as “unprincipled”.

Siliguri, meanwhile, is waiting with bated breath for Mamata Banerjee’s visit. The Trinamool Congress chief will be “apologizing” to the people for the breakdown of the alliance with Congress in Siliguri.

New Delhi: Varun Gandhi would not campaigning in any of the three poll-bound states of Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunchal Pradesh. He was the one who caused the party considerable unease in the Lok Sabha polls with his Pilibhit speech.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, will be to addressing rallies in Maharashtra and Haryana, as per a speakers’ lists submitted by the party to the Election Commission.

BJP vice-president and the party’s campaign chief for the three states, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, said the lists are to make sure that their helicopter expenses are recorded with the Election Commission. This is in agreement with the views of the party’s state units.

He, however, said that there are more star performers in the party and those names which are not mentioned could also be campaigning.

Lucknow: The Mayawati government has removed Director General of Police Vikram Singh and replaced him with Karamveer Singh.

Vikram Singh, a 1975 batch IPS officer, had been heading the UP police force since the Mayawati government came to power in the state in 2007.

No official reason has been cited for removing Vikram Singh in the orders issued last night.

Karamveer Singh, also a 1975 batch officer, returned to the state last week after a deputation at the Centre where he was posted as Special DG in Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

Karamveer Singh’s return to the state had sparked speculation about a change in DGP.

The Mayawati government has been under fire from the opposition for alleged deterioration in law and order across the state.