Trump has called the investigation a "witch hunt," denying any collusion with Russia or obstruction of justice. (Photo: File) Washington: US President Donald Trump and his Republican allies in Congress on Friday escalated a campaign against US law enforcement agencies over their probe of Trump’s ties to Russia, releasing a disputed memo that the FBI warned was misleading and inaccurate. Moscow has denied any election meddling.Democrats said the four-page memo mischaracterizes highly sensitive classified information."The selective release and politicization of classified information sets a terrible precedent and will do long-term damage to the Intelligence Community and our law enforcement agencies," House intelligence committee Democrats said in a statement.It alleged that a dossier of alleged Trump-Russia contacts compiled by Steele, and funded in part by US Democrats, formed an "essential part" of requests to a special court to be allowed to conduct electronic surveillance on Page that began in October 2016."Some lawmakers accused Trump of playing into the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin after, as Republican Senator John McCain put it, Russia "engaged in an elaborate plot to interfere in an American election and undermine our democracy. Writing on Twitter, Comey branded the memo "dishonest and misleading.The memo alleges that the Federal Bureau of Investigation concealed the Democratic ties of a source the agency used to justify surveillance on Carter Page, a former Trump campaign advisor with ties to Russia. "I stand by our shared determination to do our work independently and by the book," Wray said in the message, excerpts of which were seen by Reuters.The previously classified document, written by Republicans on the House of Representatives intelligence committee, alleges that the federal probe of potential collusion between Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Russia was a product of political bias against Trump at the FBI and Justice Department. Papadopoulos told an Australian diplomat in May 2016 that Russia had political dirt on Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, information Australian officials passed to the US government, the New York Times reported in December.Ignoring a plea from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Trump approved the memo’s release without redactions, deepening an extraordinary breach between the president and senior law enforcement officials over a probe that has dogged him during his first year in office.""If we continue to undermine our own rule of law, we are doing Putin’s job for him," McCain, who is being treated for brain cancer, said in a statement. He said it laid bare "serious violations of the public trust, and the American people Threaded Rod Din Suppliers have a right to know when officials in crucial institutions are abusing their authority for political purposes.They warned Trump against using it as a pretext to fire Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who hired Mueller and oversees the investigation, or Mueller himself."We fully expect Rod Rosenstein to continue on as the deputy attorney general," he said.Also Read: Trump accuses justice dept, FBI of bias, releases memo‘Sacred investigative process’In a swipe at US law enforcement leaders on Twitter hours before the memo’s release, Trump said, "The top Leadership and Investigators of the FBI and the Justice Department have politicized the sacred investigative process in favour of Democrats and against Republicans – something which would have been unthinkable just a short time ago."FBI Director Christopher Wray sent a message to bureau employees apparently aimed at boosting morale after the memo’s release. It also portrayed Steele as "passionate" about Trump not becoming president.The FBI on Wednesday had expressed "grave concerns about material omissions of fact" in the document and urged that it not be made public.When asked about the potential dismissal of Rosenstein, White House press spokesman Raj Shah told CNN late on Friday that there would be "no changes" at the Justice Department. Trump has called the investigation a ‘witch hunt,’ denying any collusion with Russia or obstruction of justice."Attorney General Jeff Sessions, criticized by Trump for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, offered praise for Rosenstein as well as the department’s No 3 official Rachel Brand on Friday, saying they "represent the kind of quality and leadership that we want in the department.A White House official later said there have been no discussions about firing Rosenstein.The memo was commissioned by the Republican chairman of the House intelligence panel, Devin Nunes.They said they hoped the panel would vote on Monday to release their own memo responding to the allegations.Mueller also is examining whether Trump has committed obstruction of justice in trying to thwart the Russia probe.Despite the memo’s charges, neither the focus on Page nor the FBI’s investigation of Trump-Russia ties began with the Steele dossier."It was his latest attack on top law enforcement officials. Page came to the FBI’s attention as early as 2013, when he met in New York with Russians who were officers of the Kremlin’s foreign intelligence service, sources have said.Mueller’s probe has led to guilty pleas by two of Trump’s foreign policy advisers to charges of lying to the FBI, and indictments of former campaign manager Paul Manafort and Manafort’s business partner Rick Gates

A three-judge bench of Justices Dipak Misra, R. Today’s verdict is a gift for her," the father said. A. "If ever a case called for hanging, this was it," said the court, calling for concerted efforts to prevent such crimes.A fifth man, the suspected ringleader, was found dead in jail in a suspected suicide in 2013, while the 17-year-old was sentenced to three years in a detention centre and has since been released.The last recourse of the convicts would be to seek clemency from President Pranab Mukherjee. She had boarded the private bus while going home from a movie with a male friend, who was also wounded, on December 16, 2012. A fast-track court had in 2014 awarded them the death sentence, which was upheld a year later by the Delhi high court.The court also lauded the Delhi police for completing the investigation scientifically and in a professional Threaded Rod Astm manner to bring the culprits to book.Applause broke out in the courtroom and many stood up in appreciation when the verdict was delivered.

The brutality of the attack, and her determination to survive long enough to identify her attackers, triggered large-scale angry street protests, forcing the government to enact stricter laws for sex crimes."At times I would feel weak, wanting to give up the fight.If ever a case called for hanging, this was it, says Top court. Also brutalised with an iron rod, she died of grievous internal injuries in a Singapore hospital 13 days later. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday upheld the death sentences of four men convicted for the brutal gangrape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student in Delhi in 2012, describing the crime as "a story of a different world" that sparked a "tsunami of shock". But then my daughter’s face would flash in front of my eyes and I would pull myself up," the victim’s mother said." "Our daughter now rests in peace," the couple told PTI. Today I am happy," said the victim’s mother, who wept silently in the court.The Nirbhaya case is one of the fastest trials, culminating in a death sentence, to be completed in the top court.The woman, who later came to be known by an outraged nation as "Nirbhaya" or fearless, was raped on a moving bus and left for dead near the airport by a gang of five men and a teenager.Signalling closure for the sensational case, the court mentioned that the convicts ruptured the victim’s private parts with an iron rod to give vent to their "perverted sexual appetite" and "unthinkable and sadistic pleasure", which was corroborated by medical evidence, oral testimony and the dying declaration. Banumathi and Ashok Bhushan gave its verdict while rejecting the appeals filed by the four convicts, all in their 20s now, seeking that the death sentence be commuted to life imprisonment. Related StoriesMy daughter must be happy today, says Nirbhaya’s motherDelhi gangrape case: Verdict a tight slap to rapists on prowl, says DCW.The court used words such as "gruesome", "gross", "sadistic" and "beastly" in its 429-page, hard-hitting order, referred to the dying declaration of the victim and said the "brutal and demonic" crime had been proven beyond doubt."She would have turned 28 on May 10 if she had lived. Women and child development minister Maneka Gandhi said that the verdict would act as a deterrent against heinous crimes. It’s not just a victory for my family, it’s a victory for each and every woman in our country.The court said the devilish manner in which the convicts played with the victim’s dignity was humanly inconceivable. Singh, a lawyer representing three of them, said justice had not been done and vowed to file a review petition. "It sounds like a story from a different world where humanity has been treated with irreverence," the court said.P. "I am very satisfied.The four men — Akshay Thakur, Vinay Sharma, Pawan Gupta and Mukesh — were not in the court on Friday.Reacting to the verdict, Union law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said it was a victory of the rule of law. The victim’s father said: "I will finally sleep well tonight. By sending the accused to the gallows, the court has sent a strong message to the society, and has also instilled confidence in the minds of the people

The baseball player had earlier introduced his girlfriend to his sister. Things seem to be gettingserious between the two! The baseball player had earlier introduced his girlfriend to his Din976 sister.TMZ.According to sources, A-Rod hit it off really well with Lopez’s mother. Jennifer Lopez has just made a huge move with her new boyfriend A-Rod.com reports that the couple were spotted holding hands and walking in New York City with JLo’s mother. The Monster-in-Law actress introduced him to her mother

Maria opted for a bright pink zip-up jumper with a neon green band and black shorts, while Adelaide native Thanasi kept things cool in a white Nike logo T-shirt.It’s a long-standing tradition that always delights the hard-working ballkids of the Australian Open. And on Tuesday, when the 380 highly-trained youths gathered at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne for the inaugural group photo, they were blown away when Russian tennis champ Maria Sharapova, 27, and talented Australian teenager Thanasi Kokkinakis, 18, decided to join in on the Din976 fun.’ Later the enthusiastic crowd launched their tennis balls towards the cameras, with everyone erupting into a fit of laughter. Hello @AustralianOpen ballkids.jpg It’s a long-standing tradition that always delights the hard-working ballkids of the Australian Open. Hello Rod Laver Arena. The pair posed for a series of happy snaps and even enlisted the help of a selfie stick to try and squeeze everyone in the frame.Swamped in a sea of orange, the two professional players would have blended into the crowd if it wasn’t for their choice of clothing. Taking to Twitter shortly after Maria wrote: ‘Hello Melbourne.'I'm so happy to be back, you make our experience so much better

"This is the first time that I’m seeing my family in over a decade. (Photo: Gayatri Gupta) Sujeet Desai plays the clarinet in the centre of the living room, his fingers finding the notes with uncanny surety as he coaxes Mozart from the brass flute. My visit to Munnar was especially memorable.Sujeet Desai, who has down syndrome, is not just an expert in several musical instruments, but is also an accomplished sportsman. Not only that, he also taught himself how to play several other brass instruments like the bass clarinet and saxophone, as well as the drums. It was like a dream to meet him," Sujeet recalls. As for the drums, it’s all about rhythm, so once I kept that in mind, I picked it up quite easily, too," recalls Sujeet. It had some lovely tea gardens. They also had dancers who performed a kind of martial arts, but it was completely different from Taekwondo, and seemed a bit funny actually," he laughs.A man of simple dreams and the determination to make them come true, Sujeet is looking forward to resuming his routine in Niagara Falls, maintaining his musical and sports skills, and regularly visiting with his parents. "I was also a part of the World Din975 Paralympic Games in 1999. "He has now surpassed even his master and has a second degree black belt. In fact, I have a gig coming up, right after I go home," says Sujeet.Just like his interest in multiple instruments, Sujeet’s interest in sports is also varied and includes swimming, skiing and track and field, which he started when he was studying at a music academy in Massachusetts. When he is not travelling the world, the musician, with Down Syndrome, enjoys living independently in his flat in Niagara Falls, NY and performs paid gigs at hospitals, churches, schools and other institutions. Though it began as a part of alternative therapy for his disability, music soon became a passion for Sujeet, who began his journey with violin lessons and soon also picked up the piano and the clarinet. In Mumbai for a short visit with his family and for an awareness talk on disability, alternative methods of learning and to advocate a support group for parents who have children with down syndrome, Sujeet and his mother, Dr Sindoor Desai, look back on the journey that the young self advocate has gone through to get where he is today. However, one of Sujeet’s favourite memories is not of his performances or shooting for the ad, but the view from the London Eye. And in 2009, I performed for the opening ceremony for the World Games with Kenny G, who was a guest there. This is only one of the instruments that the 35-year-old American Indian, who has down syndrome, can play. The grandmaster, who is a close family friend, is so impressed with Sujeet," says a proud Sindoor.London is only one of the many cities that Sujeet has been invited to in the capacity of a self-advocate for disability.Another memory that the musician cherishes is his trip to London where he shot an advertisement for Paralympics awareness. We all practice together. Sujeet Desai performs at the conference at Mumbai. "I am also part of a band where different members have different disabilities. We also travelled all over South India, to the beaches and resorts.While Sujeet is definitely looking forward to going home again, he also admits that his trip to India has been a fun learning experience. His parents enrolled him in Taekwondo when he was around eight years old and over the years, Sujeet kept the practice alive.As a young boy in Syracuse, NY, Sujeet not only picked up musical instruments with amazing ease, but also showed quite an aptitude for sports. "Playing the other brass instruments were not that difficult because I already knew how to play one of them