Today's PUBLISHED Newspaper
Edition update time 2:30 am (IST)

EC rebuts BJP charge, says it�s not afraid of anybody
Justifies Varanasi DM�s refusal to grant permission for Modi rally
New Delhi, May 8
The Election Commission today justified its decision to deny permission to BJP prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi�s rally in Varanasi and asked leaders to �behave maturely�.
Chief Election Commissioner VS Sampath addresses media in Delhi.

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BJP keeps up tirade, calls EC move match-fixing
New Delhi, May 8
The Election Commission today faced an all-out attack from an unrelenting BJP, both in New Delhi and Varanasi, after its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi was prevented from holding a rally at the venue of his choice in the heart of the temple town from where he is a party candidate.
BJP PM nominee Narendra Modi waves to the crowd during a road show in Varanasi on Thursday. � PTI 

Cong: Poll panel did a splendid job Mayawati sees BJP-SP nexus (Nation page)

Modi a fake OBC: Cong
New Delhi, May 8
Just before the final phase of polling on May 12, it turns out that BJP prime ministerial nominee Narendra Modi, who has been underlining his backward status far too often these days, is not a born backward. Giving a dramatic twist to the ongoing �neech rajniti� debate with Modi, the Congress today produced documentary evidence to show that the Gujarat Chief Minister was a �fake OBC�; that he used his high office as the CM to declare his caste as backward and all that happened in 2002. By this calculation, Modi is only a 12-year-old OBC.

Keen to engage with new govt, but it takes two to tango: Pak 
Amritsar, May 8
Pakistan High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit today said Pakistan was looking forward to engaging with the new Indian Government for a comprehensive and meaningful dialogue to sort out all bilateral issues.
Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit (C) at a stall at �Pakistan Show� in Amritsar on Thursday. Photo: Vishal Kumar 

Protesters thrash those who voted in Baramulla, Sopore
Baramulla, May 8
Angry youths, who boycotted the Lok Sabha poll, were today seen thrashing and humiliating those who cast their votes in Baramulla and Sopore towns yesterday.

103 captive workers freed in Jhajjar
A team of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) with the help of Bahadurgarh police got 103 bonded labourers, including women and children, freed from the captivity of a brick-kiln owner in Mukundpur village in this district last night.