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Palkhivala gets Padma VibhushanNEW DELHI: Eminent jurist Nani Palkhivala and noted freedom fighter Lakshmi Sehgal have been awarded the cove...

Palkhivala gets Padma Vibhushan

NEW DELHI: Eminent jurist Nani Palkhivala and noted freedom fighter Lakshmi Sehgal have been awarded the coveted Padma Vibhushan, Hindi litterateur Bhisham Sahani Padma Bhushan while actress Zohra Segal and hockey star Pargat Singh have been bestowed Padma Shri in the Republic Day civilian honours announced today after a gap of six years. Sharing the Padma Vibhushan honour are Usha Mehta, a well-known social worker, and Walter Sisulu, a veteran hero in ANC’s struggle against apartheid regime and a close associate of President Nelson Mandela.

New BJP members

NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha Telugu Desam Party (I) member Dr D Venkateswara Rao today joined the BJP in the presence of party president L K Advani and A B Vajpayee. Dr Rao is the eldest son-in-law of late N T Rama Rao. Others who joined the party today included Sunil Shastri, son of former Prime Minister Lal Vahadur Shastri along with some of his colleagues. Former Haryana minister Mange Ram from Bahadurgarh and former Olympian Ajit Pal Singh also joined the party.

DP Yadav joins SP

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NEW DELHI: DP YADAV, former deputy minister in the Indira Gandhi cabinet, today joined the Samajwadi Party, party spokesman Amar Singh said in a statement here today. Yadav will be the party candidate from Mungher parliamentary constituency in Bihar, which went to RJD under the Cong-RJD pact.

Pak blast kills one

LAHORE: One person was killed and at least 25 wounded by two bomb blasts – one in a bus and the other at a railway station – in Pakistan’s central province of Punjab on Sunday, police said. One of the bombs blew up a bus near Gujranmwala town in northeastern Punjab

Hawala racket

AHMEDABAD: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has busted a major hawala racket worth Rs five crore by conducting simultaneous raids at office premises of an angadia (courier) firm at Mumbai and Ahmedabad. A lot of incriminating documents were found during the raids.