External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee denied having made any phone call to Pakistan President when Mumbai was under siege by terrorists, calling the hoax calls a means of diverting attention from India’s case that the Mumbai attacks had a Pakistani hand behind them.

“I have seen several misleading stories about a hoax telephone call from me to President Zardari of Pakistan,” Mr Mukherjee said in a statement.

“We were informed by friends from third countries that Pakistan President Zardari believed that he had received a threatening telephone call from me on Nov 28, after the attack on Mumbai. We immediately clarified to those friends, and we also made it clear to the Pakistan authorities, that I had made no such telephone call,” he said.

Tamil Nadu on Sunday sought Rs 1,893 crores from the Centre for flood-relief work. 

Heavy rains brought by Cyclone Nisha battered 12 coastal districts, causing extensive damage and killing 189 people. As many as 1,597 villages were still under water, officials said. Over 3.23 lakh people were living in relief camps. 

The torrential rains have destroyed standing crops in over 550,000 hectares of land. 600,000 farmers have been hit hard by the calamity.  

Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh has again becomes the Finance Minister of the country amid tight monetary policy and global slowdown. Dr. Singh is known as the liberator of the Indian economy, as he initiated market reforms in 1991 as a Union finance minister. He terminated the 'licensee Raj' system and opened the doors of for multinational companies that helped to ensure above 9 per cent growth rate. 

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee met the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh at Raj Bhawan in Kolkata on Saturday evening during his visit to West Bengal. 

”We discussed issues like the (ruling) Communist Party of India-Marxist supported police atrocities on the tribal community at Lalgarh and demanded centre’s intervention in these issues,” Banerjee told after coming out of the meeting. 

She headed a seven-member delegation to the Raj Bhawan. The meeting lasted for around half-an-hour.

“Besides these issues we also told the prime minister about the state sponsored terrorism in Nandigram. Yesterday (Friday) one of our woman activists was assaulted by CPI-M cadres in Nandigram”, she added.

On Friday, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram, confessed that there were 'lapses' in the security mechanism. However, a promise was made by him that the Central and State agencies would make an earnest effort to eliminate terrorism.

At a press conference, he told the reporters, "I am deeply sorry for what has happened [the terror attacks in Mumbai]. Undoubtedly, there have been some lapses. These are being looked into. I will do my utmost best and strain every nerve to overcome lapses and improve the effectiveness of the security system in the country."