Money laundering case: ED attaches Rs 863 crore

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday attached assets worth Rs 863 crore of YSR Congress leader Jaganmohan Reddy and his associates in connection with its probe into alleged corruption in an infrastructure project in Andhra Pradesh. 

The ED slapped separate notices against Jagan and Nimmagada Prasad whose companies were allegedly favoured by the then AP government (when Jagan's father Y S Rajasekhara Reddy was Chief Minister) in the Vadarevu and Nizampatnam Industrial Corridor (VANPIC) project whose aim was to develop sea ports and a green field airport in coastal areas of the southern state and industrial corridors in Prakasam and Guntur districts.

The ED had in 2012 registered a criminal probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) against the individuals and associated firms based on a CBI FIR in this case. The ED probe said there was 'quid pro quo' in this deal and hence illegal money exchanged hands. 

"Various concessions were extended to the VANPIC project in the form of alienation of huge chunks of assigned government land to the companies floated by Nimmagadda Prasad, development of shipyard, green filed airport, exemptions from levy of stamp duty and registration charges, seigniorage (deed-signing) fee and other undue benefits were extended," the ED probe report said. 

The CBI chargesheet, which the ED relied upon, said "illegal gains to the tune of Rs 1426.17 crore was made to Prasad in the acquisition of lands and Rs 854.54 crore was made to Jagan and his companies as quid pro quo by Prasad and his companies." 

"This is one of the biggest attachments done by the ED in a money laundering case. The assets will now be seized," sources privy to the development told PTI. 

The properties which have been attached, the ED notice said, are in the name of "Jagan and his companies Ms Carmel Asia Holding Pvt Ltd and Jagathi Publications Ltd" along with Prasad and his firms "G2 corporate services Ltd, Alpha Villas Pvt Ltd, Alpha Avenues Pvt Ltd, Gilchrist Investment Pvt Ltd, Suguni Constructions Pvt Ltd and Beta Avenues Pvt Ltd." 

Sources said the attached assets are broadly divided into various financial instruments. 

While Rs 365.45 crore of shares, plant and machinery of the project have been attached, fixed deposists of Rs 4.14 crore in the name of Jagathi Publications Public Ltd, Rs 10.44 crore shares of Indira Television Pvt Ltd and Jagan's various properties worth Rs 11 crore have been attached among others. 

This the fourth PMLA attachment order issued by the ED in this case and the three earlier such orders had a value of approximately Rs 265 crore. 

Under the latest order, Rs 57 crore shares of Sandur Power Co Ltd, another set of shares of Sandur Power Public Ltd worth Rs 35 crore and immovable assets of Rs 2.55 crore held by Prasad, shares of JPPL held by Alpha Avenue of Rs 97.81 crore, shares of JPPL held by Alpha Villas of Rs 35.89 crore, shares of JPPL held by Gilchrist Investment Pvt Ltd of worth Rs 44.78 crore, land worth Rs 5.80 crore owned by Ms G2 Corporate Services Pvt Ltd, shares of Silicon Builders Pvt Ltd held by G2 Corporate Services Pvt Ltd worth Rs 44.20 crore, shares of Silicon Builders Pvt Ltd held by Ms Suguni Constructions Pvt Ltd worth Rs 7 crore, lands of value Rs 23.23 crore, 561.20 acres held by Ms Vanpic Ports Ltd and land worth Rs 27.72 crore and area of 855.71 acres held by Ms Vanpic Projects Ltd have been attached. 

An attachment order under PMLA laws is an enforcement action to restrict the accused from taking benefit out of the properties or assets they have created through illegal means. 

Jagan was released from jail after 16 months in September 24 last year following bail in the case of corruption. The 40-year- old Jagan had been in jail since being arrested in a disproportionate assets case on May 27, 2012. He had been lodged in Chanchalguda jail. 

Jagan's father died in a helicopter crash in September 2009, a few months after he led Congress party to a second consecutive term in power. Following differences with Congress leadership, Jagan quit the Congress party in 2010 and floated the YSR Congress. 

The Andhra Pradesh High Court in 2011 ordered CBI investigations into Jagan's alleged illegal assets when Congress leader P Shankar Rao wrote a letter to the chief justice. 

MARADONA : Messi doesn`t need to win the World Cup

Buenos Aires: Lionel Messi does not need a World Cup winners` medal to be considered among soccer`s all-time greats, fellow Argentine Diego Maradona said on Tuesday.

"Messi doesn`t need to win the World Cup to be the best player in the world," Maradona, who inspired Argentina to the title in Mexico in 1986, told La Nacion.

"(If he did) it would be great for Argentina, the fans and Lio, but (winning) a World Cup or not won`t take away any of his achievements up to now to be among the greatest."

Twice World Cup winners Argentina face Romania in a friendly in Bucharest on Wednesday as they begin to crank up their preparations for this year`s finals in Brazil.

Former captain and coach Maradona said everything appeared in place for Messi to shine although Argentina`s task would be tough with hosts Brazil, title holders Spain and Germany among the sides to beat.

Maradona said Messi had had a great World Cup in South Africa in 2010 despite not scoring any goals. The Argentina team coached by Maradona lost 4-0 to Germany in the quarter-finals.

"Messi had an exceptional World Cup with me... and no-one said so. (Was it) because he didn`t score? He turned all the goalkeepers into stars," he said.

Maradona said he could not forget Messi`s sobs when Argentina were eliminated.

"I approached him and told him he`d have many World Cups to get revenge. I said it with all my heart. While the rest were thinking about our return (home) he was there, head bowed, crying."

Argentina are in Group F with Bosnia, Iran and Nigeria at the finals starting on June 12.

"There`s Spain, Germany and there`s Brazil with a tremendous defence. You think of Brazil`s defence and six or seven names come to mind, you think of their attack and there`s only Neymar," Maradona said.

"For Lio it will be a test of character, to bring out all that crying he has in his heart. Brazil can be his great revenge," added Maradona, who will commentate on the tournament for a Venezuelan television programme

Male hormones important for female fertility

Washington: Researchers including and an Indian origin researcher has said that male hormones, also called androgens, help drive the development of follicles - structures that contain and ultimately release an egg that can be fertilized by a man's sperm.

The research also details how male hormones boost the production of follicles in mice. Authors believe the study provides potential biological targets to enhance fertility in women with diminished ovarian reserve, who produce few or no follicles in response to IVF drugs designed to boost follicle development.

Using multiple animal models and cell experiments, Stephen R. Hammes, M.D., Ph.D.,senior study author and professor of Endocrinology at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, and lead study author Aritro Sen , Ph.D., research assistant professor of Endocrinology at the medical school found that male hormones promote follicle development in two ways.

First, they prevent follicles from dying at an early stage. They do this by ramping up a molecule that stops cells from self destructing, a process called apoptosis. Hammes and Sen speculate that if a woman doesn't have enough androgens (male hormones), more of her follicles may be dying and fewer progressing to a mature stage when they produce and release an egg.

Second, androgens make ovarian cells more sensitive to follicle-stimulating hormone or FSH, which promotes follicle growth. They do this by creating more FSH receptors - molecules on the surface of ovarian cells that jumpstart the follicle making process in response to the hormone.

When the team administered small doses of androgens to mice that were taking the equivalent of medications given to women undergoing IVF therapy, they developed more mature, egg-containing follicles than mice that didn't receive androgens.

The androgen-treated female mice also released larger numbers of eggs with ovulation.

The study has been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Micromax Canvas Knight octa-core smartphone launched at Rs 19,999

New Delhi: Domestic handset firm Micromax on Wednesday launched its first octa-core smartphone 'Canvas Knight' for Rs 19,999, which will be sold only through its website.

The device has a MediaTek 2GHz tru octa-core processor with 2GB RAM and has a 5-inch full high definition display.

"Canvas Knight is another milestone for Micromax to bring the best combination of technology, style and affordability for the masses," Micromax co-founder Rahul Sharma said in a statement.

The phone comes with a 16 megapixel rear camera and voice command capabilities wherein a user can click images by saying 'cheese' or 'capture' while on-the-move.

It runs on Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean operating system and has a 2350 mAh battery and equipped with 32GB of internal storage.

"With MediaTek's Tru Octa-Core MT6592T, users can enjoy heavy web downloading, hardcore gaming, high-quality premium video viewing or other types of rigorous multitasking without experiencing lag times or excessive battery consumption," MediaTek General Manager (International Sales and Marketing) Finbarr Moynihan said.

Micromax, which is the second largest smartphone player in India, has 18.2 percent market share. 

GLOBAL GIANT Google unveils 'URL Shortener' app for free

Washington: In yet another service, Google has reportedly unveiled an Android app for shortening URLs - goo.gl. 

Users can log in to the site and paste a long URL, where it will be shortened by Google. 

Google URL Shortener app would also provide analytic details as to who has been clicking on the links.

According to Cnet, Google released an Android app for the service, taking link shrinking and tracking mobile, earlier this week. 

The best thing is that the app is free and can be downloaded from the Google Play Store.

With Agency Inputs

UP govt invokes ESMA against striking doctors; HC

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday invoked the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) in the wake of the strike by doctors which entered its sixth day today, paralysing health services in the state. 

An official spokesman of the UP government said that the decision to invoke ESMA came amidst reports of deaths of patients across the state due to the strike. 

However, the striking doctors stuck to their demand that cases be lodged against Samajwadi Party MLA Irfan Solanki for allegedly beating up junior doctors in Kanpur. The doctors, who are seeking withdrawal of cases lodged against 24 of their colleagues who were arrested over the incident, have also demanded action against Kanpur SSP Yashaswi Yadav.

The Allahabad High Court today ordered the transfer of Yadav after taking suo motu cognisance in the matter. 

"Our campaign will continue... If there is any attempt to nab us, we will resign en masse. If we are no longer in government service, ESMA would not apply to us," president of the junior doctors' association, Aditya Patel, told a news agency. 

"There is no scope for ending the deadlock... Whatever action is being taken is against us... Cases should be lodged against Solanki and Yadav and action should be initiated against them," Patel said while alleging that doctors were being harassed all over the state. 

"Junior doctors were beaten up at the railway station at Saifai (Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav's native village)... Those lodged in jail have been kept in separate barracks and their families are not being allowed to meet them," he said.

Patel said transferring the SSP was not enough and called for the cases against the doctors to be withdrawn. Although the 24 doctors have been released on bail, they refused to come out of the jail, officials, meanwhile, said. 

Ukraine crisis? US, Russia hold direct talks over coffee

Paris: As the diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the crisis in Ukraine gathers pace, the US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Wednesday held discussions on Ukraine in Paris. 

The talks were held on the sidelines of an international meeting on Lebanon. 

According to a US State Department official, Kerry and Lavrov held informal discussions along with their British, French and German counterparts over coffee after lunch at the French presidential palace, the AFP reported. 

This was the first meeting between Russia's FM Lavrov and US diplomat Kerry after the develpments in Ukraine have taken the world by surprise and concern. 

The Crimean peninsula in Ukraine has seen the build-up of forces which President Vladimir Putin said, were not Russian slodiers, but pro-Moscow local forces of self defence. 

Though, US has earlier claimed that Crimea was in full control of Russia, Moscow has denied such claims saying it has no control over the Black Sea Peninsula. 

Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Tuesday tried to present a sturdy justification over his moves in Ukraine claiming that he had no intention to go to war. 

However he asserted that Russia reserved the right to protect Russians in Ukraine by “all means” and it would be legitimate.  

Reacting to Putin's statement, US Secretary of State John Kerry who arrived in Kiev on Tuesday said that Moscow was trying to stitch up excuses to invade further than Crimea.  

 Kerry said that there were no signs that Russian-speakers in Ukraine were in any sort of danger or threat after Kiev saw new leaders taking up the reins.  

Earlier speaking in Madrid, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, told a press conference that Russia will not allow bloodshed in Ukraine.