Candlelight Protests As Anna Wave Sweeps The Nation; Sensex Rises 109 Pts; Gold Rallies To Record High Of Rs 26,680

Wednesday, Aug 17, 2011 BREAKING NEWS Click here for India Business Update Mobile Version AFTER DILLY-DALLYING, GOVT BOWS TO ANNA'S DEMAND The Delhi Police on Wednesday buckled under people pressure and agreed to most of Team Anna's demands and agreed to allow Anna Hazare, the anti-corruption crusader, to carry on his fast as long as he wants to. Instead of its earlier stand of setting the cap on number of people, the police said that the number of people should correspond to the capacity of the Ramlila Maidan, which can hold approximately 25,000 people. Similarly the Delhi Police has also agreed to allow parking of vehicles till the parking is full rather than limiting the number of cars and two-wheelers to be parked. However, the Delhi Police has said that the use of loud speakers will be allowed as per the Supreme Court guidelines. However, Anna is still in Tihar jail and has agreed to come out only if all his conditions are met. read more ANNA WAVE SWEEPS THE NATION Thousands of Anna Hazare supporters took out a candlelight march from India Gate to Jantar Mantar to express solidarity with the Gandhian in his fight against corruption. Baba Ramdev and Sri Sri Ravishankar too joined protesters outside Tihar Jail. Silent protests, candlelight vigils, human chains, peace walks, car and bike rallies and 'mashaal morcha' (torch rally) were organised in most parts of Mumbai, including a huge gathering at Azad Maidan. 5,000 members of the Diamond Merchants' Association and 2,000 members from Dhobi Talao joined the protest. 5,000 students and faculty from IIT formed a 5-km human chain. Lawyers continued to abstain from work for the second day. In Surat, protesters stopped the Gujarat Express at Udhna station for 30 minutes. 151 people were detained in Uttar Pradesh. read more LEAD STORIES SENSEX SNAPS 3-DAY FALLING STREAK, GAINS 109 PTS Sensex swung 300 points in volatile trade before closing at 16,840.80. Midcap, smallcap were in deep red. Nifty ended at 5,056.60, up 20.8 points. read more GOLD RALLIES TO RECORD HIGH OF RS 26,680 Gold prices today surged further by Rs 430 to touch an all-time high of Rs 26,680 per 10 grams, tracking firm trends in the global markets. read more RS TAKES UP IMPEACHMENT MOTION AGAINST JUSTICE SEN The first ever impeachment proceedings was taken up in Rajya Sabha. This was against Justice Soumitra Sen for misappropriation of large sums of money. read more TOP STORIES • Coal India overtakes RIL in mkt cap game • Hazare's path "totally misconceived": PM • BJP slams PM's statement on Anna's arrest • Probe 'U.S. hand' in Hazare's campaign: Cong to govt • Govt may decide on SBI rights issue in 3 mths • SEBI to implement report on NSDL role in IPO scam • Over 1.20 lk firms defaulted in submission of PF return • DLF may challenge CCI order at CAT • Strike at Dr Reddy's plant enters 5th day • Rediffusion sells stake in outdoor media co Selvel • DoT has no say in merger of companies, Idea tells HC • No extra charge on choice of seat in low cost airlines • Cox & Kings takes IRCTC to court • Deepak Parekh joins Lafarge's Intl Advisory Board • Volkswagen launches diesel Jetta at Rs 14.12 lakh • Maruti Suzuki launches all-new Swift from Rs 4.22 lakh • Acer pips HP as No. 2 PC seller in India: Gartner • Rajaratnam loses acquittal bid in insider-trading case • News Corp's 'next scandal' may be computer hacking • SABMiller goes hostile with $10 bn Foster's bid more stories TOP VIDEOS The Issue Is Not Whether Lokpal Bill Is Necessary Or Not...The Question Is Who Makes The Law: Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister Arrogance Of Power Has Become The Character Of The Government: Arun Jaitley, Leader Of The Opposition In Rajya Sabha I Believe That One Should Not Have Fast-Unto-Death In A Constitutional Republic: Gurcharan Das, Author & Columnist Agriculture Is Not Much Of A Problem...Delay In Projects And Slowing Down Of Consumer Demands Are Little Troublesome: Mahesh Vyas, MD & CEO, CMIE AT A GLANCE BSE 16840.8 +109.86 NSE 5056.6 +20.8 TURNOVER Rs. 152,650 cr BSE CASH Rs. 2,327 cr NSE CASH Rs. 10,532 cr NSE F&O Rs. 139,790 cr BULLION GOLD 26354 +129 SILVER 60661 +943 CRUDE NYMEX 88.43 +1.78 BRENT 111.53 +2.4 FOREX $ / Re 45.3 -0.08 £ / Re 75.039 +0.41 € / Re 65.617 +0.27 EVENTS 18-19 August 6th Annual Conference On Road Development In India, The Imperial, New Delhi 6th Global Summit On Supply Chain & Logistics Management, Sheraton, New Delhi 19 August State Finance Ministers Panel Meet To Discuss Issues Related To Roll Out Of Indirect Tax Regime 23 August Karnataka To Hold Meeting With POSCO Officials 23-25 August FIBAC 2011: Productivity Excellence, Trident, Mumbai 24 August High Level Committee Under Textiles Ministry To Meet To Take Stock Of The Prevailing Situation, Tirupur, TamilNadu EXPERT VIEWS "Hazare may be inspired by high ideals in his campaign to set up a strong and effective Lokpal. However, the path that he has chosen to impose his draft of the bill upon Parliament is totally misconceived and fraught with grave consequences for our Parliamentary democracy." Manmohan Singh Prime Minister "Do you even recollect from British regime when these kinds of restrictions were imposed on freedom fighters and Gandhiji...You cannot impose such unnecessary conditions (on Anna Hazare)...Is Congress party willing to give a guarantee that they will not hold a protest having more than 5,000 people in future?" Arun Jaitley Leader Of Opposition In Rajya Sabha "One positive thing that has come out (of Hazare's agitation) is that non-violence is powerful. Not one glass pane has been broken by the protesters, not one stone hurled. That is a potent sign. It shows the power of non-violence." Tushar Gandhi Mahatma Gandhi's Great Grandson WATCH OUT India Healthcare Awards 2011 ICICI Lombard Health Insurance and CNBC-TV18 present the India Healthcare Awards 2011. Do your bit by voting for the best hospital in India, SMS 'BH (hospital name)' to 51818 or log on on to http://hca.moneycontrol.com for more details. SHOW TIMINGS Coming Soon