Gita ban plea rejected

A Russian court on Wednesday dismissed a petition seeking a ban on a translated version of Bhagavad Gita for being "extremist", bringing cheers to followers across the world, months after the issue threatened to strain Moscow's strategic ties with India. "The court in the Siberian city of Tomsk has dismissed the plea," Sadhu Priya Das of Moscow ISKCON told PTI soon after the verdict was announced. The verdict also comes just days before Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to India next week for the BRICS Summit.