Kashmir Valley remained shut for the seventh-day straight on Saturday and it was the turn of lawyers, doctors and paramedical staff of various hospitals to sign up with the separatists’ “Quit Jammu and Kashmir” catch phrase.

In the wake of Indian sports facing one controversy after the other and politicians clinging to the top positions of various sports bodies for decades, noted jurists led by former Chief Justice of India J.S. Verma on Saturday felt an urgent need for enacting special laws to regulate sports in India.

Representatives of the Central and West Bengal governments and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) on Saturday discussed the modalities on how to carry forward the dialogue process on the demands of the GJM.

Union home minister P. Chidambaram on Saturday said India is hopeful of getting “something” from Pakistan on the information provided to it last month on Mumbai attacks and “is willing to give it some time” in this regard.

The DGCA has stipulated — in a draft regulation issued — that foreign military aircraft can only overfly Indian airspace if the diplomatic mission of that country in India receives permission from the Indian ministry of external affairs and the necessary “AOR code” from the concerned armed forces headquarters. In the draft regulation

Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah pressed for amendments to the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), stating it will help rebuild trust and faith in minds and hearts of the young in the state.

Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee assured the states that they will be fully compensated by the government on possible losses arising from implementation of the goods and services tax (GST).

Pinning hopes on the expected good monsoon this year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said food prices will soon come down and consequently inflation would ease to six per cent by December. Inflation currently is in double digits.

Samajwadi Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal members, at a meeting of the chief whips of the political parties here on Friday, demanded a structured discussion on “Hindu terrorism” during the Monsoon Session of Parliament, beginning Monday, with the calculation that this could embarrass the JD(U), BJP and Congress ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls.

If the CBI’s detailed chargesheet is to be believed, then the agency has found sound evidence to prove Mr Narendra Modi’s key lieutenant Amit Shah’s involvement in the killing of Kauser Bi, who was eliminated subsequent to the fake encounter of Sohrabuddin in November 2005.