Terming government’s failure to resolve the Mullaperiyar dam issue as “paralysis of decision making,” the BJP on Thursday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to urgently call a meeting of chief ministers of both Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the two affected states.

In the backdrop of Kerala pushing hard for an out of court settlement on the vexatious Mullaperiyar issue, Tamil Nadu government has decided not to send its public works and water resources department secretary M. Saikumar for talks with Kerala on December 16.

As the Lokayukta police registered an FIR against Union minister for external affairs S.M. Krishna, in an illegal mining scam, he responded by saying that attempts were being made at his character assassination and that he was sure that the judiciary would vindicate him.

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, also the Leader of the Lok Sabha, on Thursday briefed the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) on the coalition compulsions while strongly defending its decision to allow the FDI in retail.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi is likely to addr-ess a CPP general body meeting next week agai-nst the backdrop developments within the UPA, suspension of the decision on the FDI in retail and the Lokpal issue.

Congress MP Mohammed Azharuddin smiles as MPs from Telangana demonstrate at Parliament House during the ongoing Winter Session in New Delhi on Thursday. — PRITAM BANDYOPADHYAY

Delhi BJP president Vijender Gupta and Leader of the Opposition in Delhi Assembly Prof. Vijay Malhotra have directed MCD standing committee chairman Yogendra Chandolia to reject the imposition of the new taxes proposed in the MCD budget.

The Delhi high court on Thursday asked the Centre and the city governments to find a solution within two months to the problem of pesticides beyond permissible limits in fruits and vegetables.

A Honda City car of a squadron leader of Indian Air Force was broken open, allegedly in presence of police personnel outside Hanuman Mandir in Mandir Marg area on Tuesday by miscreants who decamped with cash and valuables from the vehicle.

The Delhi government and Reliance Power are likely to pay an amount of `500 crores each as bailout for the leading private discom BSES. Sources confirmed that a bank loan of `5,000 crore is likely to be approved but the partners Reliance Energy and Delhi government will have to pay 20 per cent of the amount to get the loan.