MJ’s mother wins will ruling

London, September 19 (ANI): Michael Jackson’s mother Katherine can challenge the administrators of the singer’s estate without any threat to her 40 per cent stake, a judge has ruled.

The 79-year-old’s legal team said that she wants to have more say over the manner in which the 400 million dollar estate is handled.

According to the ruling, the King of Pop’s mum will not breach a ‘no contest’ clause in the family trust if she sets up a challenge before the executors over Jackson’s will, reports the Sun.

Katherine is the legal guardian of the star’s children, Prince Michael, 12, Paris, 11, and seven-year-old Prince Michael II, after his sudden death on June 25.

She will receive more than 1 million dollars a year from his estate including a sum of 26,804 dollars a month for herself apart from a monthly allowance of 60,000 dollars for the three kids, as per the court’s order. (ANI)

Miss Fresh Face of North East contest a major draw for youth

Guwahati, Sep.18 (ANI): With the growing number of fashion conscious youngsters present in the northeast region of the country, the fashion and beauty industry is gaining popularity here.

This was recently noticed when Miss Fresh Face of North East 2009 contest was held in Guwahati and it received an enthusiastic response from people of the region.

Dabur Gulabari organized the Miss Fresh Face of North East 2009 for which a model hunt was conducted across colleges and institutes in the region to discover fresh new faces from the northeast.

The organisers of the contest received an overwhelming response with over 700 entries of which 150 girls were short-listed for the auditions.

After extensive screening and audition, 18 participants were selected for the Grand Finale.

It was a unique way of spreading awareness among the beauty conscious women of the North East and provides them a platform to enter the world of mainstream modelling.

“Northeast is full of talent. We don’t get into big celebrities. We take fresh faces from the common public and make them a celebrity. We want to associate with fresh talents and bring them to the national platform so that they can grow,” said Dyas Anand, the organizer.

“It is gradually increasing and I believe that it will go on increasing and the reputation will also keep on going up as good upcoming models are also there. I feel it is very good,” said Bidisha Baruah, the winner.

Bidisha Baruah, a resident of Guwahati, was awarded one-year modelling contract with Dabur Gulabari and a cash prize of rupees 50,000.

The first and second runner-up, Wanda Mary of Shillong and Nabanita Sarma of Guwahati also received cash prize of rupees 30,000 and rupees 20,000 respectively. By Peter Alex Todd (ANI)

PCB believes India-Pak Champions Trophy clash would help improve ties

Lahore, Sep.16 (ANI): The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is hoping that the encounter between India and Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy would help improve ties between both the countries.

PCB’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Wasim Bari said the match would help remove the distrust and improve bilateral relations which had deteriorated after the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks.

“It is a good opportunity for people of both countries to come together and enjoy a good cricket contest. The match can also serve to improve relations and remove distrust. This is a sport and the result should be accepted sportingly,” Bari said.

India will take on Pakistan at Centurion on September 26.

Bari said cricket has always helped in healing differences between both nations, and expressed the hope that this time too it works to resolve the stalemate.

He also stressed that the PCB must improve ties with its Indian counterpart, the Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI).

“Relations between the two boards have always been good even when relations between the governments and people were not so good. Cricket is a big healer for both people of both nations and the PCB must improve its relations with India,” The Nation quoted Bari, as saying. (ANI)

Serena Williams remains unrepentant about her US Open outburst

New York, Sep 14(ANI): American tennis star Serena Williams has said she won’t apologise to the lineswoman for her outburst during her US Open semi-final defeat by Kim Clijsters.

“An apology from me? Know many people yell at linespeople? Players, athletes get frustrated,” The Mirror quoted Williams, as saying.

Williams lost her cool after being foot-faulted at the end of the contest. She unleashed a tirade on the line judge, briefly walked away and then returned for another blast at the line judge. he incident saw her receiving a point penalty for a second code violation, thus handing the semi-final match to Clijsters 6-4, 7-5.

Williams was unrepentant about the incident even during her post-match press conference as well, where she claimed she did not remember what she had said to the line judge.

Williams has been fined 10,000 dollars by US Open organisers for her outburst. (ANI)

Lady Gaga says no to judging ‘American Idol’

Washington, Sep 14 (ANI): Lady Gaga has said that she does not want to be a judge on TV show ‘American Idol’, because it is difficult for her to criticise someone else’s talent.

The ‘Poker Face’ singer denied that she would be a judge on the show.

“I did appear on the show but I am not going to be a judge. I generally feel uncomfortable judging other artists anyway. I don’t feel that a musician’s life is a contest,” Contactmusic quoted her as saying.

The singer also slammed shows that push new artists straight into the limelight, claiming they should spend time nurturing their talent.

“It’s more about growing and struggling and playing live. It would be very uncomfortable for me to judge someone else,” she said.

Already, celebrities of the likes of Victoria Beckham, Shania Twain and Mary J Blige have appeared as guest judges on the talent show after Paula Abdul decided not to return for the new season.

Meanwhile, it was recently announced that US talk show host Ellen DeGeneres has replaced Paula on the judging panel, alongside Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi. (ANI)

Brit female soldier ‘Combat Barbie’ advertises Armed Forces lingerie deal

London, September 7 (ANI): A British female soldier has been selected to promote a lingerie chain’s discount offer to members of the Armed Forces.

Katrina Hodge, nicknamed “Combat Barbie” by her Royal Anglian Regiment colleagues, is helping to promote La Senza’s offer of a 15 per cent off to servicemen and women.

“I am enjoying the attention and profile but my job is still as an army soldier. I love the army life and if this encourages more women to join up then that would be brilliant,” the Telegraph quoted her as saying.

“I’m so proud of this campaign and I really hope that it encourages other high street stores to offer discounts to men and women in the armed forces,” she added.

Hodge, 22, came second in this year’s Miss England contest, and served in Iraq, where she was recognised for her bravery. (ANI)

Jo Wood taking tips from Mick Jagger to win ‘Strictly Come Dancing’

London, Sep 4 (ANI): Jo Wood, who is participating in ‘Strictly Come Dancing’, is getting performance tips from none other than Mick Jagger for winning the show.

The ex-model has been chasing her ex-hubby Ronnie Wood’s flamboyant bandmate for advice on how to shine in the contest.

It is believed that Jo, 53, is ultra-competitive and wants to gain an advantage over her younger rivals, such as The Bill’s Ali Bastian and ex-EastEnder Natalie Cassidy, both 26.

“Jo’s been after some performance tips from Mick Jagger,” the Sun quoted a BBC1 insider as saying.

“She knows that he’s got lots of experience as a showman and she really wants to make sure she dazzles in the competition.

“So who better than the Rolling Stones’ frontman for some advice? The pair are pals and she’s really keen to do her best on Strictly,” added the insider.

Jo, paired with hunk Brendan Cole, has been working very hard and practising the dances for hours on end, which has left her with painful feet.

The mum of four was married to Stones guitarist Ronnie, 62 and has admitted she would never have got the chance to take part in the show if not for the split.

And now she wants to prove that she can stand on her own two feet by winning the show. (ANI)

Keen contest expected at One Day tri-series cricket in Sri Lanka

Bangalore, Sep 1 (ANI): Former New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming has said that the upcoming One Day tri-series in Sri Lanka would see a tough competition.

The series in Sri Lanka, which also involves New Zealand and India, will be held from September 8-14.

The hosts are upbeat after clinching a recent two match test series over Kiwis 2-0.

“Well I think Sri Lanka is a decent side…this series is going to be great…India is of course a good one day side, New Zealand have been in one day format. So, Kiwis are the underdogs…” Fleming told reporters here on Monday.

India earlier this month declared the squad for the Sri Lanka tri-series followed by the Champions Trophy, recalling Rahul Dravid and leaving out explosive batsman Virender Sehwag due to his shoulder surgery.

The former captain, Dravid’s last one-day international appearance came in October 2007 before selectors opted for a more youthful side with an eye on the 2011 World Cup.

Indian selectors hope Dravid will bolster the batting in the Champions Trophy on pacy South African pitches. A young Indian batting unit struggled against short-pitched bowling at the Twenty20 World Cup in England in June.

Sachin Tendulkar returned to the frame after opting out of the one-day series in the West Indies, which the tourists won 2-1 last month. (ANI)

Indian hopes dashed at Miss Universe contest

Nassau (Bahamas), Aug 23, (ANI): Indian hopes were dashed when Miss India Ekta Choudhry failed to make the top 15 in the Miss Universe 2009 contest.

Miss Venezuela Stefania Fernandez, was eventually named winner of the 2009 Miss Universe pageant.

Miss Australia, Rachael Finch and Miss Puerto Rico, Mayra Matos Perez were stood as the first runner ups, while Miss Kosovo, Gona Dragusha was second runner up.

The pageant, held in Nassau, Bahamas was hosted by Billy Bush and actress and former Miss Rhode Island USA Claudia Jordan.

Miss Universe 2008, Dayana Mendoza, also of the Venezuela, crowned her successor.(ANI)

Aussie batsman North confident of chasing down a record 546

London, Aug 23(ANI): Australian cricketer Marcus North, who took four wickets with his part time off-spinners on the low turning pitch in England’s second innings of the final Ashes Test at The Oval, has said that his team might be able to chase down a record 546.

“History is against us. It’s too early to look that far ahead. There is still a lot of cricket to be played,” The Daily Telegraph quoted North, as saying. What you’ll see are 11 guys, who have got a lot of character to show, who are going to give everything for every contest for every over. Hopefully, that can lay the foundation to give us a chance,” he added.

North said that if past second innings scores are taken into consideration, Australia has a good chance to retain the Ashes. At Lord’s Australia scored 406 before losing and in the rain-ruined match at Edgbaston they had scored 5-375 to save the game.

“Our first objective was to get through tonight unscathed and Simon and Watto did that superbly. To walk off at 0 for 80, it’s the position we need to be in,” North said.

“We batted well at Lord’s, had some big partnerships, and laid some foundations to give us some opportunity to chase that target down. This is a different Test, different conditions. Again, we’ll have to show some character,” he added.

Australia will resume at 0-80 today, they are still 465 behind with two days to play. (ANI)

Kidman makes reality show debut on Project Runway

Washington, Aug 20 (ANI): Actress Nicole Kidman is all set to debut on reality TV with a cameo role in the fashion series Project Runway: All-Star Challenge.

The 42-year-old star, famous for her graceful red carpet style, will put up a design contest for eight contestants in a spin-off from the original Project Runway, with all the participants having appeared on the original U.S. show earlier.

Kidman will inaugurate the all-star series today. The event coincides with the debut of the star-studded sixth series of Project Runway, reports Contactmusic.

Lindsay Lohan, Eva Longoria Parker, Christina Aguilera are celebs who’ve signed up for the latest Project Runway series. (ANI)

Paula Abdul heading Down Under for ‘Australian Idol’?

Washington, Aug 15 (ANI): Rumours are abuzz that former American Idol judge Paula Abdul is in discussions either to host or judge Australian Idol, Australia’s version of the TV talent contest.

The rumours came in the wake of the firing of one of the Australian Idol ‘s judges, Kyle Sandilands, who, on his radio show, had strapped a 14-year-old girl to a lie detector and quizzed her about her sex life, reports Contactmusic.

Abdul recently announced she would not be returning to her post as a judge on American Idol when the show kicks off its ninth season.

In the week since announcing her departure, Abdu has reportedly been offered to judge ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and even appear on TV show ‘Ugly Betty’.

Now, the star is said to have been approached by the Aussie version of America’s most-watched TV talent show. (ANI)

Mitch Johnson is loving his newly discovered art of sledging

London, Aug.12 (ANI): Australian left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson is loving his newly discovered art of sledging, and said he will ramp it up during next week’s fifth and final Test at The Oval after rediscovering his form and confidence at Headingley.

“I don’t normally say too much, but maybe it was a bit of a surprise to those guys for me to say something,” Johnson said.

“It felt good to do it and I’ll continue to do it. Just keep puffing my chest out and keep getting into the contest … a stare here and there. I think that’s definitely worked for me and I’ve definitely got a lot more confidence now and really enjoying it again,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him, as saying.

The rejuvenated pacer also admitted that the English crowd had got under his skin in the second Test, causing him to lose focus and nearly his spot in the side.

“I didn’t really know where they were going, to be honest. I bowled a lot of wide, short balls. That was a pretty tough moment for me. To be copping it from the English crowd, I didn’t know how to deal with it at the time. It was the most I’ve copped it,” Jonson said of that experience at Lord’s.

There were no more mocking songs to be heard after Johnson’s excellent spell of 5-69 to wrap up the fourth Test inside three days.

Johnson is not a bowler who responds well to intense coaching. These technical considerations got inside Johnson’s head earlier this tour, when he was wound up and unable to think clearly. It took a simple word with vice-captain Michael Clarke during a tour match in Northamptonshire, between the second and third Tests, for Johnson to click again.

“During that Lord’s Test, I can remember clearly I was thinking about wrist position, I was thinking about front-arm pull-down, I was thinking about running in, I was thinking about everything that I could,” Johnson said.

“Edgbaston was totally different. I just ran in, didn’t worry about it. Michael Clarke said to me at the practice game, when he came out to field, ‘Just run in and bowl fast. That’s what you do best’. That’s what I’ve been trying to do: run in, hit my areas and not worry about technical stuff out on the field. It’s been a bit different than normal. The first two Tests especially, I felt a bit more pressure than I have in the past. I’ve started to handle it a lot more now,” Johnson said.

He also said issues taking place off the field did not affect when he was on the field.

He was referring to the much publicised spat between his mother, Vicky Harber, and his girlfriend, Jessica Bratich.

Johnson has 16 wickets at 32.62 for the series, and has retained his No.3 ranking on the ICC’s top Test bowlers list after the spirited fight back in Leeds. (ANI)

MIC polls attracts an overwhelming number of candidates

Kuala Lumpur, July 14 (ANI): The Malaysian Indian Congress polls are shaping up to be one of the most intense elections held, as the number of candidates contending for various posts has surpassed the number of contestants in previous years.

According to party sources, the September contest for the 23-seat central working committee is expected to attract an overwhelming number of candidates.

“It will see more than 100 people contesting this time around,” said a senior party member,” The News Straits Times quoted a senior party, as saying.

It is predicted by party leaders that around 50 contestants would be from Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

An MIC observer highlighted that there could be two reasons for the increased number of candidates, one was that the party was still significant and thus attracting more contestants.

“On the other hand, it can also be read that the party leadership is losing its ability to rein in members,” he added.

The three vice-presidents’ post is also likely to see a major increase from the current number of 13 candidates.

Last time around, in the 2006 elections, 63 candidates had contested for 27 posts at different levels. And 52 candidates, including six women, had contended for the Congress Working Committee seats. (ANI)

Indian students stand second in non-US division of NASA supersonic design contest

Washington, July 11 (ANI): Sahaj Panchal and Dhrumir Patel from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Technology, Gujarat, India, have stood second in the category of ‘non-US team’ in a contest to design a supersonic airliner, hosted by NASA.

The contest saw college students from the US, Japan and India, who researched technology and created concepts for a supersonic passenger jet.

The Fundamental Aeronautics Program in NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate sponsored the competition.

The participants were challenged to design a small supersonic airliner and submit a research paper limited to 25 pages.

Designs had to be efficient, environmentally friendly, low sonic boom commercial aircraft that could be ready for initial service by 2020.

A team of undergraduates from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, and a team of graduate students from the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta tied for first place in the US division.

A University of Tokyo undergraduate team won top honors in the non-US category, with Panchal and Patel from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Institute of Technology, standing second for their design called ‘RASTOFUST’.

A group of NASA engineers reviewed the entries. The judges based their scores on how well students addressed all aspects of the problem they chose to discuss.

The judges used the following criteria: innovation and creativity; discussion of feasibility; a brief review of pertinent literature; and a baseline comparison with the relevant current technology, system or design.

“We use these competitions to generate excitement for aeronautics and the engineering behind aviation,” said Peter Coen, principal investigator of the Supersonics Project at Langley.

“I was pleased by the number and diversity of the entries we received. And I was impressed by the quality and innovative thinking demonstrated in the designs,” he added. (ANI)

Rudd says navy sex betting ring ‘disturbing’

Canberra (Australia), July 6 (ANI): Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has expressed his dismay over reports of a sex betting ring on board a ship of the Australian Navy.

“Can I say I’m sure the Chief of Navy has all those matters under active investigation and that appropriate action will be taken? These alleged behaviours are disturbing, but it’s important also to get to the facts of it all and we’ll await the investigations by the chief of navy to establish all those facts,” Rudd told reporters here.

Rudd’s comment came after it was revealed that a group of sailors from HMAS Success had been sent home for allegedly organizing a challenge to have sex with as many female crewmates as possible.

The Seven Network reported that the sailors detailed their contest in a document called The Ledger, where dollar values were placed on each woman during an overseas deployment in May.

Larger amounts were offered if the sailors could sleep with a female officer or a lesbian and sailors challenged each other to have sex in various locations, including on top of a pool table, the report said.

The arrangement was discovered while HMAS Success was visiting Singapore.

The captain ordered the sailors to return to Australia immediately after they were formally interviewed.

On Sunday’ Australia’s Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard called for a full investigation of the incident by the Australian Defence Force.

Gillard said nothing should preclude women from enjoying a full and rewarding career in the Australian Defence Force.

“Obviously this is a matter for our defence forces to deal with and to fully investigate,” Gillard told Network Ten on Sunday.

She said both the government and the nation had been saying for a long time that women should be able to join the army, the navy or air force.

“We don’t want to see anything that precludes women from having a good career in our armed forces if that is what they choose to do with their lives. Clearly these allegations need to be fully investigated,” she said.

The Defence Department confirmed a formal inquiry was underway, but said: “The veracity of any allegations has yet to be confirmed.” (ANI)

Californian smashes hot dog eating world record by having 68 in 10 mins

London, July 05 (ANI): A man from California wolfed down 68 hot dogs in 10 minutes to smash the previous world record of 66 and to win America’s Coney Island annual hot dog eating contest.

Joey Chestnut defeated Takeru Kobayashi- six-time titleholder from Japan- in the food competition to retain the title at Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating for three consecutive years now, Sky News reports.

Chestnut is also currently number one in the world by the International Federation of Competitive Eating and has achieved many other feats in the past.

His world records include eating 9.8 pounds of pork rib meat in 12 minutes, 182 chicken wings in 30 minutes and drinking eight pints of milk in one minute.

Last year’s Nathan’s Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest had initially ended in a tie, with Chestnut and Kobayashi both eating up 59 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. (ANI)

India beat West Indies in first ODI by 20 runs

Kingston (Jamaica, West Indies), June 27 (ANI): Spearheaded by Yuvraj Singh’s scintillating 131 of 102 balls, India beat the West Indies by 20 runs in the thrilling first cricket one-day international here to take a 1-0 lead in the four-match series on Friday.

The Indian batsmen scored an intimidating 339 for six after opting to bat at Sabina Park. The hosts responded with 319 in 48.1 overs.

For the West Indians, Shivnarain Chanderpaul top scored with 63, while wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin played a sparkling 29-run knock.

Earlier, Yuvraj treated the West Indian bowlers with utter disdain, clobbering them for seven huge sixes and 10 boundaries apart from sharing a crucial 135-run stand with Dinesh Karthik (67).

Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (41), Yusuf Pathan (40 unbeaten) and Harbhajan Singh (21 not out) also chipped in with useful contributions.

With the wicket of Chanderpaul in the 36th over it looked all over for the hosts but their lower order batted with steely resolve and made it an edge-of-the-seat contest.

West Indies required 21 off the last two overs with one wicket in hand but Ashish Nehra removed Ramdin in the first ball of the 49th over to bring a huge relief for his side.

Ramnaresh Sarwan (45) and Runako Morton (42) did well and got the starts for the West Indies but could not convert those into big knocks.

Jerome Taylor (21) and David Bernard (19), batting at number seven and nine respectively did their best but their effort went in vain in the end.

For India, Nehra (3/49) and Yusuf Pathan (3/56) took three wickets each. It was raining sixes as 23 of them were hit in the match. (ANI)

MIC to fight for inclusion of Tamil language and literature subjects in curriculum

Kuala Lumpur, June 19 (ANI): In a bid to enable Malay Tamil students to take Tamil language and literature subjects, the Malaysian Indian Congress has said it wants to extend the 10-subject limit for SPM students to 11 subjects by 2010.

“We have received feedback from students, and their parents, who are worried about not being able to take the two subjects due to the limit,” The Star quoted MIC President S. Samy Vellu, as saying.

Samy Vellu added that the Human Resources Minister Dr S. Subramaniam, who is also party secretary-general, would raise this issue in the Cabinet.

On Wednesday, Malaysia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister, Muhyiddin Yassin, said SPM students would be allowed to take a maximum of 10 subjects from 2010.

Speaking about the MIC deputy presidential contest, Samy Vellu said any of the party’s leaders, including those in government positions, could contest for the position.

He indicated that deputy minister M. Saravanan and S.K. Devamany would be allowed to contest for the post.

According to sources, Samy Vellu said he still had not decided whom to back for the post. (ANI)