Chennai, May 18 (IANS) Relief and frank disbelief - as news came in that Tamil Tigers chief Velupillai Prabhakaran had actually been killed, some in this Tamil Nadu capital said it was long in coming and others simply refused to believe it was true.

Unwilling to take chances, the establishment tightened security all over the state and especially in Chennai, where the issue of Tamil Eelam, or a separate state for Tamils in Sri Lanka, has always been an emotive one.

Mumbai, May 18 (ANI): India’s main stock market is booming after the people gave a thumping mandate in favour of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in the Lok Sabha polls, dispelling fears of a fractured mandate.

The main stock market leapt by nearly 15 percent on Monday, triggering a temporary trading halt, after the ruling coalition sealed a decisive election victory that calmed fears of political uncertainty.

Sydney, May 18 (ANI): Australian bank WESTPAC has dispatched a strike team to India as part of an offshoring reconnaissance mission a week after the bank’s chief, Gail Kelly, drew widespread praise for suspending the practice of sending jobs overseas.

New York, May 18 (ANI): Academy Award winning film director Martin Scorsese is facing the biggest challenge of his career, as he has to cast an actor to play the role of a young Frank Sinatra in his big-budget biopic.

Islamabad, May 18 (IANS) Years of democracy have brought dividends to India, something Pakistan too can learn from, an editorial in a leading English daily said Wednesday on the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance’s (UPA) decisive victory in the Indian general elections.

The editorial, as also a leader in another English daily, sounded upbeat on improved India-Pakistan ties in the wake of the election results.

Brussels, May 18 (DPA) European Union foreign ministers Monday condemned as a “show trial” the legal process against Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

But they shied away from adding to the bloc’s sanctions against the Myanmar military regime, saying that these had so far failed to have any significant impact on its actions, and that the EU should instead turn to regional powers such as China and India for help.

Mumbai, May 18 (IANS) Indian equities markets Monday gave a resounding welcome to the electoral victory of the Congress-led alliance as investor frenzy forced the suspension of trading for the day after indices hit upper circuit filters twice within seconds.

If the sensitive index (Sensex) of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) rose an unprecedented 2,099.21 points, or 17.24 percent, the broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) did even better, gaining 636.4 points, or 17.33 percent.

Bhopal, May 18 (IANS) Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Scheduled Castes (SCs) returned to the Congress party fold in Madhya Pradesh in the just-concluded general elections; the party bagged six of the 10 parliamentary seats reserved for these marginalised communities.

The Congress, which seemed to be losing its grip over a vast tribal electorate in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled state during the past few Lok Sabha elections, has won four of the six tribal seats.