Facing heat from the Congress in the run-up to next year’s UP Assembly polls, BSP supremo Mayawati on Thursday went on the offensive in an attempt to turn the table by raising the Commonwealth Games scam and corruption issues in a party workers’ meet in Delhi.

India has not felt the need for a bilateral river waters sharing agreement with China similar to the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan, a government source said, implying that the present arrangement is adequate.

A debate has begun in the Congress circles whether regional satraps be given a free hand to revive the party in different states ahead of Assembly elections and the next General Election.

An Indian military delegation led by a senior Army officer of the rank of major-general in the Northern Command will leave for China on June 19, defence sources confirmed on Thursday. This will mean the resumption of the defence exchanges between the two countries that was decided upon during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s recent visit

Setting the ball rolling for formal peace talks, a Suspension of Operations Agreement, is likely to be signed between the outlawed Ulfa and the Centre by June end.

The Supreme Court on Thursday took serious view of the Centre taking divergent stand on the application of the controversial Armed Forces Special Power Act in the context of two “fake encounters” in Jammu and Kashmir and Assam and asked the government to take a clear view on the issue.

The Congress Party on Thursday intensified its attack on BJP president Nitin Gadkari, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati and the civil society group led by social activist Anna Hazare. It asked senior BJP leaders L.K. Advani and Sushma Swaraj to “pull up” Mr Gadkari’s ears for his anti-Sonia Gandhi remarks and Ms Mayawati to declare her income-tax returns if she is really concerned about corruption.

Three Tihar prisoners, including a murder convict and an IIT passout, appeared in the UPSC examination held last Sunday inside the jail. The three inmates appeared in the exam after being granted permission by the court for the same.

As the UN convention against corruption-2003 is being repeatedly referred by the members of “civil society” in support of their demand for a strong Lokpal on the face of government toughening its stand on brining the Prime Minister under its ambit, the provisions of the convention would throw a light on what the world body had actually recommended to the member nations.

While both the government and Team Anna indicated Thursday that they were willing to talk further on the Lokpal Bill, a further hardening of positions by the two sides showed that a consensus in the joint drafting committee on the proposed anti-corruption legislation was still elusive.