British team to probe charges against Stewart
British investigators will visit India this week to join the inquiry into allegations of match-fixing against the former England skipper, Alec Stewart, who is in Pakistan playing a test series.

Sonia throws coterie charge back at Jitendra Prasada
The Congress president, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, today hit back at Mr. Jitendra Prasada for his charge that a coterie surrounded her, saying similar allegations were levelled against him when he was adviser to the Prime Minister and Congress president.

Cabinet skips petro prices rollback again
The Cabinet again skipped the issue of rollback in oil prices though the Railway Minister, Ms. Mamata Bannerjee, maintained she raised the demand at today's meeting. She said the topic was raised by her but the Finance Minister, Mr. Yashwant Sinha, said he wanted more time to decide.

Prabhakaran keen on settlement: Solheim
The Norwegian special envoy, Mr Erik Solheim, who met Mr Velupillai Prabhakaran on Wednesday, expressed confidence that the LTTE leader was `interested' in and `serious' about a negotiated political settlement to the country's ethnic conflict but cautioned that the road ahead would be uncertain and difficult.

'Azhar had links with Memon'
The Mumbai Police Commissioner, Mr. M. N. Singh, tonight said the former Indian cricket captain, Mohammed Azharuddin, had close links with `Tiger' Memon, one of the prime suspects in the serial bomb blasts which rocked Mumbai in 1993.

Two soldiers killed in Fiji coup attempt
At least two soldiers were killed and 10 others wounded as pro- George Speight special forces soldiers revolted against the military command led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama.