Sonia to skip Tamil Nadu
The Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, will not be campaigning in Tamil Nadu, Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad, general secretary, said today. ``Ms. Gandhi is coming to Pondicherry where she will address a public meeting on the afternoon of May 8 (the last day of campaigning),'' Mr. Azad told presspersons here.

Hasina for talks on border row
The Bangladesh Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, whose proposed visit to India in May second week has reportedly been dropped, expressed the hope that border disputes between the two countries would be resolved through discussions.

Deendar Anjuman banned
The Centre has banned the Deendar Anjuman which was accused of engineering bomb blasts in May-July last year in Church premises in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Goa, and carrying out a hate campaign against the Christian community.

NDA Govt. will fall soon: Scindia
The Congress(I) has said that it would ``not stand aloof'' in the event of the fall of the Vajpayee Government, which it feels ``cannot survive too long'', but the party's role is ``something to be worked out''.

Mehta resigns from Congress
The veteran Congress leader and former Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr. Chhabildas Mehta, today resigned from the primary membership of the party.

Fatal end to a routine flight
Squadron Leader, Sanjay Gaur (35), a senior instructor of the IAF Tambaram Air Force base, had taken off in a Kiran Mk-1, from the nearby IAF base on a routine flight and crashlanded in a deserted interior area of the Vandalur zoo, some 20 minutes after take-off.

Directive on car seat belts
All motor vehicles to be manufactured after October 2002 have to be equipped with safety belts for rear seats as well. The Centre has already mandated seat belts for the front seats.

3 AGP workers killed
In yet another round of violence ahead of next week's Assembly polls in Assam, suspected ULFA ultras tonight shot dead three activists of Assam's ruling Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and set off a grenade wounding 16 in Nalbari and Goalara districts.