Kuala Lumpur, Jan. 20 : Astrologers have said that America''s President-elect Barack Hussein Obama will be ''America''s luckiest president''.

Born on August 4, 1961, Obama, whose star sign is Leo, will be the 44th US president when he is inaugurated today.

According to reputed Indian astrologer Bejan Daruwala, Obama''s basic numbers are 2 (from Jan 20), 4 (from his birthday) and 8 (from 4+4 of the 44th president), which signify leadership, happiness and success.

Daruwala predicts that Obama would be a better person for world peace and prosperity as compared with American presidents of the last four decades.

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysian police seized cannabis valued at 169,800 ringgit (51,455 dollars) and detained two Indonesian men, a news report said Monday.

Police from the southern Johor state raided a shop early Sunday and discovered 8.5 kilograms, said district police chief Roslan Zainuddin.

"The suspects have been in operation since two months ago. We are investigating whether the drugs were supplied from any neighbouring country," Roslan was quoted as saying by the Star online news portal Monday.

Kuala Lumpur - Malaysian police on Monday shot dead three Indonesian men believed to be part of a gang responsible for more than 50 armed robberies in several states, a top police officer said.

The robbers targeted homes of politicians and high-profile corporate figures, and were believed to have hit at least 50 homes in seven states, said central Selangor state police chief Khalid Abu Bakar.

The three, including the alleged gang leader, were killed during a pre-dawn gun fight in the southern state of Johor, he said.

Kuala Lumpur, Jan. 18 : A Malay Indian, who started out as a bharat natyam dancer at 11, has won a ticket to Mumbai for winning the Siva Gopal Award here.

Prakash Kandasamy, a father of two, recalls he was also studying tabla under Suresh Ramachandran back in 1989 "because the school needed more male students".

He told the New Strait Times, that his fascination for the arts perked up during a fortnight-long visit to Malaysia by Ustad Usman Khan, the grandson of Ustad Rehmat Khan of Dharwadis, the man credited with turning the three-stringed sitar into the seven-stringed instrument of today.

Wellington  - A claim by Malaysian tourist Choi Lok Siong, 38, that he was too busy travelling to go to court and face a drunken driving charge, did not wash with a New Zealand judge, a newspaper reported on Saturday.

Judge Geoff Rea issued a warrant for Choi's arrest when he failed to appear in the Napier District Court, sending a letter pleading guilty and promising not to re-offend, the Dominion Post reported.

Ipoh (Malaysia), Jan.