Convict Queen
Though AIADMK leader Jayalalitha was debarred from contesting the elections on grounds of her conviction in a corruption case, she was sworn in as chief minister of Tamil Nadu. Will her aggressive game plan work? And should popular mandate overrule judicial verdicts?

Great Call Of China
Indian entrepreneurs are eagerly joining the swiftly growing queue to set up shop in China.
The land once considered forbidden has suddenly become
the hottest destination for Indian businessmen.

Looking East
Atal Bihari Vajpayee's visit to Malaysia may have achieved little on Quattrochi's extradition and India's greater ties with ASEAN, but it showed there is more to their bilateral relations than these two issues.

Mother's Day
Stalinist methods played a vital role in the humiliating finale of M. Karunanidhi's dynastic ambition.

Readying For Nukes For the first time after India became a nuclear power, the Army stages a nuclear war game to check preparedness.

CAPLOOKS

Lord Of The Files

Delhi: Remember former defence minister George Fernandes announcing with much fanfare the scrutiny of Rs 3,000-crore worth of purchases by his ministry during the Kargil war? The ministry, of course, did not live up to the promise. It sent out only routine papers to the CAG, holding back 41 crucial files. When CAG Vijay Shunglu wrote to Jaswant Singh, Fernandes's successor asked the ministry to make the 41 purchase files available for the special audit. Despite the intervention, the CAG is yet to get them.

Promises To Breach

Chandigarh: Under fire from party rebels for his royal lifestyle, Punjab Congress chief Captain Amarinder Singh now wants to portray himself as one of them. For a good reason: the state assembly elections are not too far away. Last week, the descendant of the former Patiala royal family publicly vowed to forsake meat, fish and liquor. But given that it was an impetuous promise prompted by a Sikh religious leader, Singh's vegetarianism and abstinence from alcohol is yet to be swallowed by many in Punjab.

Diminished Returns

Bhopal: Mamata Banerjee is not the only one sulking after the drubbing of the Congress-Trinamool alliance in the West Bengal elections. The Left Front sweep has put paid to Congress MP Kamal Nath's well laid-out plans to oust Digvijay Singh from the chief ministership of Madhya Pradesh. Nath was the architect of the alliance and his supporters had maintained that after the campaign in Bengal, Nath's stock would be so high that the chief ministership of his home state would be offered to him on a platter. Try again.

Tired Excuse

Bangalore: Karnataka Chief Minister S.M. Krishna does not believe that austerity, like charity, should begin at home. To save money, he has banned foreign trips by his ministers. But he himself is leaving for a fortnight-long tour of the US. Reason: after campaigning in the Kerala elections he is tired and needs a rest.

MetroScape

Delhi Cinema:
"Flicks Down Under"

Mumbai Restaurant:
Karma

Kolkata Restaurant:
Teej

The Madhya Pradesh governor orders a CBI inquiry into a land allotment by the chief minister to the Nai Duniya group, kicking off a constitutional crisis. INDIA TODAY Special Correspondent Neeraj Mishra reports in
Conflict Of Interest.