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Thousands cometogether to celebrate

Diwali at Trafalgar Square

London’s Trafalgar Square once again became ascene of colour and festivity on Sunday, despitewarnings of severe storms, as thousands flocked tothe Square in the spirit of Diwali.

See more on page 4

Plaque to be unveiledat Stansted Airport

in name of Ugandan Asians

see page 14

AV Correspondent

Gujarat chief minister andBJP’s prime ministerialcandidate Narendra Modisaid that India felt theabsence of Sardar Patel allthe more acutely now thanever before. Had he beenthe first Prime Minister ofIndia, India would havebeen made of a differentmettle.

Speaking at a functionto mark the inaugurationof the newly built SardarPatel National Museum,Modi recalled SardarPatel’s singular contribu-tion in attaining thenation’s unity and integri-ty. He asked the youth toshun the politics of gunsand bombs as terrorismand Maoism are eating upthe very fabric of thenation. He appealed to the

youth to be alert to theneed for unity and join thepath of development. Hecited the example ofPunjab which shuns gunsand bombs to embracedevelopment.

Although, the functionorganized at Ahmedabadbased heritage property of

Sardar Patel Memorial onTuesday was non-political,the comment passed bythe Modi made someCongress workers angryand they tried to shoutslogans against him.

Terming Sardar Patel avisionary and farsighted,

Sardar Patel should havebeen India’s first PM: Modi

Continued on page 26

Manmohan Singh with Narendra Modi

6 killed asserial blaststarget Modi'sPatna rally

In what is suspected tobe the first-ever terrorattack in Patna, six peo-ple were killed and 90injured when serialblasts targetedNarendra Modi's rally inthe state capital'sGandhi Maidan onSunday.

While six of theblasts occurred aroundthe rally venue, twobombs went off within150 metres of theContinued on page 26

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November20132 UK

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Sri Lanka eye of the stormThe Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting(CHOGM) in Colombo has become the eye of agathering storm. The deepening controversy overalleged human rights abuses including attacks onand intimidation of journalists and, most alarmingof all, the disappearance of people, snatched inbroad daylight by masked men and bundled into sin-ister looking white vans, which then speed away.Fear stalks the land. The BBC’s Fergal Keane hasproduced disturbing reports from Sri Lanka; of aTamil newspaper editor viciously beaten on thestreet and frightened of going out lest he be subject-ed to another bruising assault. His office was van-dalized and machinery inside it destroyed. British reporter David Blair has filed stories on

abducted people. “Sometimes I think to myself, per-haps if they had killed my son that may be betterthan me sitting here and wondering where he is,”said Uthayachandra Manuel, mother of fisherman,Anton Saniston Manuel, 23, who was taken away atgunpoint shortly before midnight from his home in asmall town in Northeast Sri Lanka. It is five yearssince he disappeared and nobody knows where he is.Meanwhile, President Mahinder Rajapakse preparesto host visiting heads of Commonwealth govern-ments, including British Prime Minister DavidCameron and Prince Charles. But all is not well.Prime Minister Harper of Canada has decided tostay away - signalling Canada’s displeasure at thegrowing repression of political dissent in Sri Lanka,the violence perpetrated on Tamil civilians, and theunaccounted Tamil civilian deaths during the finalstages of the war against the Tamil Tigers. The UN

inquiry has come up with a damning report whichclaims that 40,000 Tamil civilians died in the cross-fire or were killed in cold blood, something the SriLankan government strenuously rejects. MrRajapakse leads a country where thousands arelocked up without charge or trial under draconianlaws, where the judiciary is under fire and judgesremoved on a whim.The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly in India

has passed a unanimous resolution demanding thatPrime Minister Manmohan Singh boycott CHOGM.But Tamil ministers in Sri Lanka’s newly electedassembly in the country’s northeast are against suchaction. It is a tough call. Dayan Jayatilleka, a formersenior Sri Lankan diplomat, writing in the Hindunewspaper, argued the case for India’s participation.Manmohan Singh’s absence, he avers, would becounter-productive: perceived as a snub to Colomboand would reinforce a view in Sri Lanka, dating backto Sirimavo Bandaranaike time, during Bangladeshconflict of 1971, that the island nation was betterserved depending on the Beijing-Islamabad axis. Asa Pakistani genocide was underway in Bangladesh,the Sinhalese establishment adds not a cubit to itsmoral standing. The threat of a trilateral Beijing-Islamabad-Colombo axis set out in minatory tonesby the author has perils for Sri Lanka as well. MrJayatilleka reverted to a more courteous and ration-al discourse by pointing to the recent elections in theTamil majority Northeast and the soft power lever-age India has in devolution talks on its future. Thereis every likelihood Prime Minister Singh will attendCHOGM.

Consensus on India’s debt to Russian relationshipPrime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Russia –his 10th (and possibly last as India’s leader), in atotal of 14 annual summits between the two coun-tries, ended with a significant speech to the presti-gious Moscow State Institute of InternationalRelations, where he was awarded an honourary doc-torate. He began with a warm tribute to Russia forits support to India when, as a fledgling state, it wasstill wrapped in swaddling clothes. “Over the pastsix decades,” said Dr Singh, “no country has hadcloser relations with India and no country inspiresmore admiration, trust and confidence among thepeople of India than Russia. India has benefitedenormously from Russian support in every aspect ofnational life – be it in the development of heavyindustry, the power sector, our space programme orin meeting our defence needs, Russia has stood byIndia at moments of great international challengewhen our resources were limited and our friendsfew. Russia offered us partnership in nuclear energywhen the world still shunned nuclear commercewith us.”Prime Minister Singh emphasized that India’s

special relationship with Russia enjoyed “completepolitical consensus and enormous public goodwilland support in India. I am convinced,” he contin-ued, “that while the strength and the intensity of ourrelationship will remain undiminished, it must alsoadapt itself to the changing times so that we canaddress the full range of current opportunities andchallenges.” Defence ties with Russia, he went on,were “unmatched by any other relationship (in theworld). Russia will remain an indispensable partnerfor our defence needs. We also see Russia as a keypartner of our energy security.” This included thenuclear field and conventional oil and gas.Concluding, Dr Singh, said: “India’s partnershipwith Russia is “one of the fundamental foundations

of Indian foreign policy.” There remains only the contextual analysis of the

Prime Minister’s speech. One can do no better thanrefer readers to two recently published works: thefirst by American author Gary Bass, entitled “TheBlood Telegram: Nixon, Kissinger and the ForgottenGenocide in Bangladesh; the second by formerPakistan ambassador to the US, Husain Haqqani,once a privileged insider, called “MagnificentDelusions: Pakistan, the United States and an epicHistory of Misunderstanding”. Both works includethe wisdom and foresight of numerous Americanwriters and figures in public life who advocated aclose relationship with India as a creative road for-ward to the future. Unfortunately, it was anti-Indianhardliners, from John Foster Dulles, AdmiralRadford, Alexander Haig, Richard Nixon and HenryKissinger, who crafted a policy of indulgence towardPakistani militarism, export of terrorism and Islamo-nationalism, each with virulent anti-Indian under-pinnings, that won the day in the corridors of power,be it in the White House, State Department orPentagon. Gary Bass, quoting from the Nixon WhiteHouse tapes, tells how Nixon was given to describ-ing Indira Gandhi as “a bitch” while for Kissinger“Indians are bastards.” Nixon told British ForeignSecretary Alec Douglas Home, that ‘bloodthirsty’India was given independence much too soon.Kissinger warned Soviet ambassador Dobrynin ofIndia’s inveterate ingratitude to dispensers of gen-erosity. Nixon is dead, but Kissinger, alive and well,may rue his ill-considered judgments and profani-ties. The Indo-US relationship has moved from itstroubled past, but history has lessons for us all. TheObama Administration has only recently sanctioned$1.6 billion in military and economic aid toPakistan. Clearly, America’s Bourbons have learntnothing and forgotten nothing.

India, China: Managing a difficult relationshipPrime Minister Manmohan Singh flew from Moscowto Beijing for a crucial visit to China, where he wasaccorded a warm welcome, for high level talks withChina’s top leadership including Prime Minister LeKeqiang and President Xi Xinping. The much antici-pated Border Defence Cooperation Agreement whichestablishes a mechanism to resolve local problemssuch as the intrusions into Indian territory of Chinesearmy units last April. The Chinese side was also moreforthcoming about Beijing’s dam construction activi-ties on the Brahmaputra river since India as a ripari-an state has a vital interest in the southward flow ofits waters. Trade and investment issues were dis-cussed, with the Indian side keen for Chinese manu-facturers to set up offices in India and invest inIndian infrastructure development, particular thepower sector. India, for its part, desired greater accessto the Chinese market for its pharmaceuticals anf ITsectors, in a bid to correct the heavy trade imbalanceagainst India.

Dr Singh, in address to China’s CommunistParty school for senior cadres spoke of his country’shopes for a stable and friendly relationship withChina free of Cold War suspicion and mistrust.Such attitudes were redundant in the present-dayworld. The realpolitik of past centuries had dimin-ishing relevance now. He said China’s rise was notinimical to Indian interests and there was consider-able scope for greater cooperation on trade andinvestment to the mutual benefit of both parties. Amore emollient China is handling relations withneighbours in Southeast Asia and elsewhere withdeftness and imagination, so is India with China.Summing up, Prime Minister Singh has been

adroit in fulfilling India’s regional and global vision.India has reached out to ASEAN, Africa, LatinAmerica and Japan with increasing dividends, con-solidating ties with Russia, moving forward withthe US and keeping relations with the EU trouble-free.

COMMENT

Every year, Brentexplodes into fantasticcolour, dazzling vibrancyand excitement as Diwalifestivities take hold.This year will be no dif-ferent.As winter nears,

Diwali – the festival oflights – brings with it amost welcome burst ofbright lights and colour-ful fireworks in our darkautumn skies. Diwali celebrations

amaze me now as muchas they did when I wasgrowing up in Leicester.Its message of hope andlight, and the triumph ofgood over evil, is as pow-erful now as ever. Diwaliis one of the most impor-tant annual festivals forHindus, Sikhs and Jains;but we can all relate toits messages of truth andinner light.Brent Diwali shows

us how multiculturalismenriches our communi-ties. Each year, I aminspired by the inclusive-ness of the celebrationsin the borough as peopleof all races, faiths andbackgrounds cometogether. It is always great to

see children involved inour Diwali celebrations –teaching children andyoung people aboutother cultures andbeliefs is so important ifwe want to build apeaceful and harmo-nious society.As people come

together, we renew thebonds of communitywhich hold us together.Despite falling unem-ployment and promising

signs of economic recov-ery, many families of allbackgrounds are still fac-ing a difficult financialtime. Outside the UK,wars continue to lead tomillions of families hav-ing to flee their homes.As we face these

challenges, the spirituali-ty, love and communityspirit shown by the peo-ple of Brent as we cele-brate together remindsus of what is mostimportant in our world.Funding to local resi-

dents for religious andcultural celebrations wascut in 2011, and I wasconcerned about theeffect this would have onDiwali celebrations.However, fantastic workhas been done since thenby the Brent communityto ensure people cancontinue to come togeth-er at this special time ofyear.In recent years, I

have been fortunateenough to celebrate withmy constituents at boththe Shree SwaminarayanMandir in WillesdenGreen and the ShriSwaminarayan Mandirin Neasden. These twogreat temples are perfectsettings for celebratingthis special time. Thisyear, I will again be join-ing those in Neasden atthe Shri SwaminarayanMandir.

I would like to thankall those in Brent whoput so much effort intomaking these specialoccasions such a successand I would like to wishall Asian Voice readers avery happy Diwali.

Sarah Teather MPLiberal Democrat MP for Brent Central

Celebrating the wonderof Diwali in Brent

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful,committed people can change the world. Indeedit is the only thing that ever has."

Anthropologist Margaret Mead (1901-1978)

moved back to the city.” Ameet Aggarwal,

Chairman, Diwali inLondon said: “Trafalgarsquare once again wel-comed the diversity ofcosmopolitan London forthe Diwali festival; withan over spilling crowd.The Square was beautiful-ly decorated with lampsand the famous fountainswere specially lit for theoccasion. The spirit ofDiwali in the form of cele-bration and mutualrespect was shared by allon the day. I am gratefulfor the opportunity to bepart of such a diverse yetunited committee.”

Boris Johnsonappeared by video linkand gave his blessings forDiwali. He said: “Londonwould not be the excitingand dynamic city that it iswithout the many com-munities that contributeto its dynamism andprsperity, something thatis reflected in festivals likeour Diwali celebrations. Ithas a powerful message,about peace, mutualrespect and the victory oflight over evil, which isimportant for Londonersas well as to Hindus,Sikhs and Jains. I wish

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Ranu Mehta-Radia

The idea of resonating the message ofDiwali to our youths and the Nation wasconceived when 6 prominent Hinduleaders met at Shri Nitin Palan’s housein 2002. The discussions round the tablerevolved around instilling Hindu dhar-ma to our future generations as well assharing the universal values of love, lightand peace with the different communi-ties across the UK.

Their strategy was to target a promi-nent public place where Diwali could becelebrated inviting Londoners to a FreeFestival as well as raise the profile of theHindu community and our fundamentalvalues to all political parties.

Stepping up to take a lead to cele-brate Diwali at a prominent Londonvenue rested on the shoulders of NitinPalan, an active member of the iconicSwami Narayan Neasden temple.

Ramesh Kallidai of Hindu Forumcommitted to taking Diwali to theHouse of Commons which is also anational fixture now in the House ofCommons calendar.

The first Diwali on Trafalgar broughta few hundred people to the Square,those who were present on that historicday remember standing under umbrellasas the rains came down. Defiantly, thesmall team were determined to make a

success the following year, and contact-ed other prominent Hindu, Sikh andJain organisations to collectively worktogether.

The Diwali in London Committee nowconsists of 12 organisations:

BAPS Swaminarayan MandirChinmaya Mission UKInternational Society for KrishnaConsciousness UKThe Art of LivingNational Hindu Students ForumBrahma Kumaris World SpiritualUniversity (UK)Brahmin Society of North LondonOshwal Association of the UKVishwa Hindu Parishad (UK)Telugu Association of LondonMet Police Hindu AssociationSai School of Harrow.

The Chair is rotated annually toensure that each Organisation gets theopportunity to host the Festival. YouthWings of each organisations are men-tored to shadow the currentCoordinators so the baton can be hand-ed over to our dynamic young people tomanage the event in the future.

Diwali in London Committee clearlydemonstrates that all Hindus, Sikhs andJains can work together to strengthenour communities. The annual festivalnow attracts up to 20,000 visitors.

Origins of Diwali on the Square

Asian Voice will not be pub-lishing the Saturday 9thNovember issue as we shallbe on our Diwali break.

In the meantime pleaseenjoy our exclusive Diwalimagazine that has a widerange of articles and helpfulinformation on various interesting subjects.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish allour readers, supporters, advertisers and well wishers avery Happy Diwali and a Prosperous New Year ahead.

Diwali greetings

London’s Trafalgar Squareonce again became a sceneof colour and festivity onSunday, despite warningsof severe storms, as thou-sands flocked to theSquare in the spirit ofDiwali. The free DiwaliFestival, organized by theMayor of London in asso-ciation with the Diwali inLondon committee, wassupported by headlinesponsor Lebara and mediapartner Zee TV.

People gathered toenjoy the festival, includ-ing acts performed bylocal Londoners showcas-ing their diverse talent,from a vibrant Bhajanband, to a diverse repre-sentation of traditionaland cultural dances fromyour latest Bollywoodcharts to the traditions oflocal regions.

Thousands of peoplehad lined up outside at1pm to enter the squareand were given the oppor-tunity to participate inLondon’ largest outdoorGarba dance. Members ofthe public excitedly

queued up for the chanceto wear a traditionalIndian sari as well whilstothers indulged in the vastvariety of delicious foodstalls had to offer

The official openingpeace lamp ceremony wasled by Diwali in London(DIL) Chairman - AmeetAggarwal, from the Art ofLiving alongside fellowdistinguished guests RayLewis, Greater LondonAuthority Senior Advisorto the Mayor and DeputyMayor, Dr Virander Paul,Acting Indian HighCommissioner andSrutidharma das, Templepresident ofBhaktivedenta Manor,Watford.

Diwali in London wereprivileged to have worldrenowned artist AnoushkaShankar perform sometranscendental and pow-erful compositions onstage this year. MsShankar said: “It feelsreally special to me to beconnected to Diwali inLondon especially as I wasborn here and recently

Thousands come together to celebrate Diwali at Trafalgar Square

Anoushka Shankar entertaining the revellers Virander Paul, Acting High Commissioner, Ameet Agarwal,Chairman and others lighting the lamp

DIL Committee Members

Crowds enjoying the Diwali festivities

everyone celebrating inLondon and beyond a

happy and prosperousDiwali. We look forward

to the next Diwali inTrafalgar Square!

Four people were killed,625,000 properties with-out electricity, hundreds ofuprooted or ripped aparttrees and chaos for com-muters as train companieshalted nearly all servicesto and from London andmore than 130 flights atHeathrow were cancelled,as 100mph winds batteredsouthern England.

The St Jude’s Daystorm, named after thepatron saint of lost causes,was the worst gale to hitthe UK in more than a

decade. The damage isexpected to cost over sev-eral hundred millionpounds to repair and cleanup. Victims of the storminclude a sporty 17-year-old grammar school girl,who was killed as she sleptwhen a 30ft tree crushedthe caravan where she hadbeen living while buildingwork was carried out onher family’s home.

One of the worstscenes of devastation wasat a home in Hounslow,where two people died

when a tree blown over bythe wind caused a suspect-ed gas explosion. The bod-ies of the man and woman,who have not been named,

were found in the rubbleof the property hours afterthe blast. Three other peo-ple were taken to hospitalwith cuts and burns.

Havoc and disruption in wake of St Jude’s Day Storm

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 5

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Tara Arts, a global the-atre house has somethingabsolutely brilliant tooffer this time. It’s bring-ing the worlds of theatreand journalism togetherin a unique theatre festi-val where the journalistis the story. Journalistson Stage, curated &introduced by SteveRichards will feature onejournalist each night.Polly Toynbee, JohnPienaar and MihirBose will be interviewedlive on stage. They willgive their views on jour-nalism, politics, sportand current affairs andthere will be the opportu-nity for audience Q&A.At the end of theweek, Steve Richards willperform his hitEdinburgh show, Rock NRoll Politics.

Starting this week,the series involves fourinteresting stories. Thefirst one with: Guardian’sstar columnist, PollyToynbee, who recentlyauthored ‘”Dogma andDisarray”, co-writtenwith David Walker,joined Polly and Steve inconversation. The secondone on November 1stwith Sports writer andformer BBC SportsEditor, Mihir Bose wasanother hit. Mihir writesa weekly “Big SportsInterview” for theLondon EveningStandard, and also writesand broadcasts on sportand social and historicalissues for several outletsincluding the BBC, theFinancial Times andSunday Times. His latestbook is The Spirit of theGame: How Sport Madethe Modern World.

Continuing throughthe week, the third in theseries is with BBC FiveLive’s John Pienaar. John

Pienaar is one of themost prominent andrespected political broad-casters. He presents alive radio show, Pienaar’sPolitics and co-hosts FiveLive’s broadcast ofQuestion Time eachThursday. And finally, toconclude the event,Independent Columnist& BBC Presenter SteveRichards will present hisone- man show Rock NRoll Politics. SteveRichards' sell outEdinburgh show will takeyou for a unique guidebehind the scenes of poli-tics and the media.

Steve’s Rock N RollPolitics has receivedsome extremely fascinat-ing reviews including onefrom Independent whichsays “"Richards' hour isgenial, comfortable andarguably more likely thaneven the best column tomake the case for politi-cians and politics."

This is an extremelyinteresting opportunityfor audience to pose theirquestions to media andto know what goesbehind the scenes.Talking about the series,Steve Richards said,

"In the era of Twitter,blogs, Facebook androlling news there is adanger we all hide behindour computer screensand never get out. For thelast couple of years Ihave taken to the stagewith my one man showRock N Roll Politics, sell-ing out in London venuesand at the EdinburghFestival. At Tara Arts weare going one step furtherby getting three other topjournalists to take to per-form live too. The audi-ence can meet the likes ofPolly Toynbee and theBBC's John Pienaar andthey can engage with

Let us knowwhat you think. Email Spriha ataveditorial@abplgroup.com

Tara Arts brings Journalists on StageSpriha Srivastava

Mahatma Gandhi came to Britain some83 years ago to attend a round tableconference for the future of BritishIndia. During the visit, he (the NakedFakir as per Winston Churchill) wentto Buckingham Palace to meet the KingEmperor. He also went to Lancashireand stayed most of the time in the EastLondon.

An English journalist askedMahatma Gandhi a question, “What isyour opinion about the western civi-lization?” Mahatma’s short reply was,“i think it would be a good idea.”Historians have interpreted these fewwords in various ways. But I do notbelieve that a good communicator likeGandhiji would have meant to insultthe western civilization.

For many people in the West, Indiais a confusing idea. To some, it is diffi-cult to comprehend that India existsmore or less as it is now for thousandsof years. It was the philosopher andpolitical Guru Chankya, who inspiredand guided, King Chandragupta to cre-ate a huge landmass from present dayAfghanistan in the west, up to almostthe border of Myanmar (Burma) as onenation, Bharat Varsha. India at the timeof partition had a landmass of 1.265million sq miles and the population ofIndia alone was just under 300 million.

Today, Pakistan occupies almosthalf of the state of Jammu and Kashmirand it has gifted 25000 sq miles ofIndia illegally to China. The populationof India as it is now is 1.25 billion peo-ple. Hindus form about 900 millionsand it is the largest faith group in anextended land mass all the over theworld map. Many a people, abroadespecially, are baffled how such a hugecountry, larger than Western Europe,with so many different faiths and lin-guistic traditions , can survive and livetogether and people are willing todescribe themselves as Indians. Inspiteof the variations and contradictions interms of education, rituals, economicwellbeing etc Indians are weddedtogether in a living democracy and asecular nation.

What is also very remarkable inspite of so many sects and forms ofworships within Sanatan Hindu tradi-tion, there is no internal warfare or vio-lence. I don’t intend to go into the rea-sons and pros and cons of why it isinspiringly so, in spite of all the forceswhich would encourage separatism anddivisions.

Many reasons are there which actsas a unifying force. Festivals in Indiaare going on all throughout the year.After all in the Bible, Jesus Christ said,a man does not live for bread alone.Societies are formed and they them-selves create the individual identity,perhaps through the festivals availableto themselves and created by them-selves. Diwali is an all encompassingand the most popular Indian festivity,not confined to any faith or tradition assuch, though Hindus, Jains and Sikhshave several important reasons to cele-brate Diwali with all the fanfare anddevotion. It is enjoyed by young as wellas not so young.

‘Dharmashya Moolah Arthah’ –“Economic prosperity is the basis of

sustaining civilization” is linked withthe Diwali Festival which extends overfive days. A day is dedicated to the wor-ship of goddess Laxmi – the goddess ofwealth, which is called Dhanterash.

When people worship the goddessof the wealth, motivations behind it aresimple:1. Wealth Creation2. To increase the quantum of wealth3. How to retain the wealth as a legacy

According to Kautilaya’sArthshashtra; Wealth creation is thefoundation for sustaining civilization.However, Chankya and Hindu scrip-tures are very clear that the process ofwealth creation has to be legal and ulti-mately in public benefit. Gandhiji’sprinciple of Trusteeship is also anextension of the Hindu teachings ofwealth creation, wealth accumulationand its utilization.

Last Sunday, I met a very successfulentrepreneur at The Trafalgar Squareduring the Diwali celebrations. Wewere discussing about this. For me andmany others, whatever is ones job,business or profession, if a person cre-ates wealth lawfully and pays the taxesdue to the country than wealth creationand accumulation becomes a very hon-orable activity.

Our discussions went on furtherand developes some simple messages –each one of us while taking stock of theyear that passed, perhaps can raisequestions for himself by himself.

1. What is the purpose of my life?2. How do I perform to discharge

my duties or obligations?Philantropy is not the only avenue

to serve the community at large.Compassion and caring 'samaydaan'(time devoted in serving others) arealso very important. It reminds me thatphilanthropy and public service arealways encouraged and appreciatedeverywhere. In Britain, there are somany Universities, Museums,Libraries, Art centres and other educa-tional, cultural and health related activ-ities funded by charitable organiza-tions, and they are doing commendableservice to the people because of thegenerous philanthropists.

Ahmedabad, the commercial capitalof Gujarat is also very fortunate to haveIndian Institute of Management (IIM),which is a world renowned manage-ment school. Apart from IIM,Ahmedabad Textile Industry ResearchAssociation (ATIRA), NationalInstitute of Design (NID), SpaceApplication Centre (SAC) and severalhospitals as well as educational andresearch institutes exist today thanksto well-to-do people like KasturbhaiLalbhai, Vikram Sarabhai and manyothers, who had the vision and the bigheart to deploy their private fortunesfor the benefit of public good

Similarly people like DipchandGardy, Azim Premji, Tatas and othersacross India wholeheartedly offer theirpersonal wealth for public cause.Pursuit for riches is good when theprocess of wealth creation is valuebased and it must be utilized with someinspirational motives.

- CB

As I See It

Dharmasya Moolah Arthah

������������ “Economic prosperity is the basis of

sustaining civilisation”- Chanakya (Kautilya's Arthashastra)

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readers, listeners andviewers. Yes, there isa very big role forsocial media but I'mexcited that some ofthe country's bestjournalists are alsoappearing on stagewith me, bringingtheir columns, broad-casting and reportsto life. There is nobetter theatre!"

Tara Arts foundedin 1977 by ArtisticDirector JatinderVerma, began in lifeas touring company.It staged its openingp r o d u c t i o n ,Sacrifice, a play bythe Nobel Prize-win-ning Indian play-wright RabindranathTagore, at BatterseaArts Centre inAugust 1977. TaraArts aspires to be acarbon neutral the-atre through theirwork in London andon tour. They arepart of the pioneer-ing Theatres TrustEcovenue pro-gramme. Tara Artswas awarded a GreenBusiness Award byWandsworth Councilin autumn 2008.

The companyalso produces globaltheatre for locala u d i e n c e s .Positioned betweenEast and West, TaraArts has pioneeredcross-cultural the-atre for over 3decades. The compa-ny tours vibrantadaptations ofEuropean and Asianclassics and newwork, brings thegreat stories of theworld to children injunior schools and,at Tara Theatre,develops emergingartists and new audi-ences. It has pro-duced work at theNational Theatre,Trafalgar Square, theBritish Library and ahost of other the-atres across Britain,Europe, and Asia.

For those of youinterested in watch-ing these shows, it’srunning till 2ndNovember at TaraTheatre, Earlsfieldand it’s available for£12.50, multi-buy(buy tickets for morethan one evening):£11.50 or see all 4Journalists on Stagefor £40.00.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 7

Five men were arrestedlast Tuesday for a ‘smashand grab’ raid that tookplace at Selfridges inOxford Street in June. Agang of at least 6 menescaped with over £1.5mworth of luxury items,including high-endwatches, after posing aswealthy Middle Eastwomen to enter thedepartment store. Theyused sledgehammers tosmash glass cabinetsbefore grabbing handfulsof watches and fleeing onscooters.

Flying Squad officerscornered in on eightaddresses in Islingtonas part of an ongoinginvestigation into tworobberies involving mendressed in burkas.

The men arrested arealso being questionedabout an earlier robberyin Windsor in April whenmen dressed in burka-style black robes carriedout a raid on a jew-ellery store in Windsor.

Over 100 watcheswere taken, worth morethan £1 million, and havestill not been recovered.

Detective InspectorBob Currie, of the FlyingSquad, said: "Theraids represents the nextstage in what is a com-plex and ongoing investi-

gation. The actions of thepeople involved in thesetwo offences showed ablatant disregard for thesafety of the public andthose members of staff atthe premises targeted.

"Today's arrests showthat the Flying Squad

will continue to pursuethose who chose to com-mit these types ofoffences, gathering thenecessary intelligence toarrest them and bringthem before the courts."

Two men werealready jailed in connec-

tion with the Selfridgesraid, after being held bymembers of the public asthe scooter theywere riding crashed asthey made their getaway.Dozens of watchesspilled onto the pave-ment as they crashed.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November20138 UK

WISHING YOUA VERY HAPPY

DIWALI

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Members of the public holding a suspect down outside Selfridges in June

5 members of ‘Burka gang’arrested for Selfridges robbery

The City HindusNetwork and Lord DolarPopat of Harrow hosteda fantastic evening to cel-ebrate Diwali, at theHouse of Lords on Friday25th October. The firstDiwali event of its kind,the dinner was held onthe beautiful terraceoverlooking the RiverThames, making it fittingfor the upcoming festivalof light. The highly antic-ipated dinner was over-subscribed with over 120guests attending theevening, which includeda special tour ofParliament.

In attendance wasRichard Harrington MP,Vice Chairman of theConservative Party andMember of Parliamentfor Watford, LordBilimoria, Chairman ofUK India BusinessCouncil and CEO ofCobra Beer, AlpeshPatel, Advisory Board forCity Hindus Network,Aekta Mahajan, ViceChair, City HindusNetwork, CB Patel,Executive Editor, ABPLGroup and the executiveboard of CHN members:Nishma Gosrani, BijalShah, Dimple Dattani,Punam Denley, DipenJobanputra and thenewly appointed Chair ofCHN, Prinal Nathwani.Mayuri Parmar, Directorof Conservative Friendsof India was also present.

Lord Popat gave anenlightening speech onthe need to engage with

young Hindus to harnessthe opportunities avail-able to them and for theBritish HinduCommunity to reach thenext level by increasingtheir civic participationin society, for examplebecoming school gover-

nors, councillors, JPs etc.Richard Harrington

spoke about the percep-tion of the ConservativeParty amongst ethnicminorities whilst LordBilimoria spoke abouteffective leadership with-in the Hindu community

and the impor-tance of beingleaders oftomorrow.

A specialannouncementwas also madeby CHN,which intro-duced its newChair, PrinalNathwani.

An exqui-site three-course mealfollowed aQ&A sessionwhere CHNm e m b e r squizzed thepanel on sometricky ques-tions.

CHN with Lord Popat hostsfirst ever Diwali Dinner

at House of Lords

L-R - Dimple Dattani, Aekta Mahajan, Richard HarringtonMP, Lord Popat, Alpesh Patel, Ameet Jogia

CB Patel with Lord Bilmoria and Lord Popat

The inaugural IndiaEducation InvestmentConclave 2013 concludedon an optimisticnote regarding the strongsynergy between Indiaand the UK in the educa-tion and skills sector.

The conclave wasorganised by businessnews channelIndiaIncorporated.com and technology-led educa-tion company U-Aspire, inc o n j u n c t i o nwith Deloitte, the UK-India BusinessCouncil, Confederation ofIndian Industry and UKEducation’s InternationalUnit at professional serv-ices firm Deloitte’s officein London on 2-3October.

“As a major employerin both countries, with adepth and breadth ofexpertise across the econ-omy – we are keen to playour part in raising educa-tion standards and skillsin India,” said JulieMercer, Head ofEducation at Deloitte, asshe set the tone for theevent. The objectives ofthe conclave were to facil-itate investment flowsinto Indian education;help create partnershipsbetween Indian andBritish education, as wellas private equity and ven-ture capital; and assistpotential partners to

understand where theopportunities are inIndian education, andhow best to take advan-tage of them.

“The India-UK rela-tionship is deep andremains unparalleled.Today, the countries standas equals in this partner-ship and as both nationsprogress and grow togeth-er, education will prove tobe the key driving force,”said Manoj Ladwa,f o u n d e r - C E Oof Indiaincorporated.com.

Supriyo Chaudhari,director of U-Aspire,added: “India has plentyof opportunities, but youmust have a good localjoint-venture partner,ambition and a willing-ness to stay in it for thelong haul.”

The over-arching mes-sage from the experts inthe know was that foreignproviders would benefitgreatly by engaging on astate-by-state level, asmindsets and conditionsvary greatly across Indiaat large.

Lead Producer for theConclave Pratik Dattanisaid: “India offers greatinvestment opportunitiesand we are looking to sig-nificantly boost invest-ment into, and collabora-tion with, Indian educa-tion through this initia-tive.”

Successful Education InvestmentConclave 2013 strengthens UK-India relationship in education

and skills sector

UKwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 9

As readers of this columnmay know, I was recentlyinvited to the RhodesYouth Forum (RYF) organ-ised by Youth Time; aninternational non-profit,non-governmental organi-sation that promotesequality, peace and under-standing, starting with theyoung. There I discovered

some of the world’s eliteyouth- among them out-standing young SouthAsians –and introducedthem to you as we need toknow what exciting initia-tives and opportunitiesEurope presents to us.29-year old Hrishabh

Sandilya is Vice Presidentof External Relations andDevelopment at the Anglo-American University(AAU) in Prague, CzechRepublic. He co-foundedThe Insaniyat Initiative, athink/action tank that dis-cusses urbanity andPrague, and dabbles insocial commentary andwriting. Born in Bombay to a

Sindhi mother and aSouth Indian father, his

family has historical linksto the UK. On his mother’sside, the family has been inthe UK and theCommonwealth sincePartition and his fatherspent his formative yearsin England (whenHrishabh’s grandfatherwas posted here withUnilever).Hrishabh went to the

Cathedral & John ConnonSchool in Bombay, fol-lowed by college at St.Xavier’s and Sydenhambefore moving to Europe,

where he’s been for thelast nine years.He spent the first peri-

od in Poland and the UK,before he moved to Praguefor his Master’s andDoctorate at Prague’sCharles University.He was asked to coor-

dinate the InternationalMaster’s program atCharles University duringhis doctoral studies, afterwhich he moved into edu-cation management andended up at his currentposition in External

Relations at AAU.“AAU was the first pri-

vate (and non-profit) edu-cational institution inCentral Europe after thefall of Communism.”Hrishabh told me. “It’sshaped many young mindsand has had a positiveimpact on Czech societywith its focus on the liber-al arts. I have a chance tointeract with thinkers,diplomats, politicians andpeople who are making areal impact and that is thepart I cherish about mywork at AAU.”Hrishabh maintains a

UK focus, too. “At AAU weteach in the Anglo-Saxoneducational style and havea strong professional linkwith the University ofLondon. I have extendedfamily spread out over theLondon area and Surrey.My mother’s uncle movedthere in the 40s, and I stillsee my cousins every timeI am there. A lot of myfriends from high schoolare in the UK and mybrother worked there inthe past, so there arestrong ties and I am alwaysglad to be back.”Hrishabh feels that

British Indians could begetting more out ofEurope. “With school feeson the rise in the UK and areduction in the quality ofteaching, British Asiansare in the best position totake advantage of aContinental education.There are some fantastic

universities in Westernand Central Europe,where, in most cases, theseschools teach entirely inEnglish (even for theirown local students). Withreasonable or no fees,quality teaching, and thechance to learn other lan-guages, it makes perfectsense to look at theoptions.Hrishabh is an India

scholar – “I research India-her international anddomestic politics, andcomment on India for theCzech media, as well asadvising companies andorganisations on theirIndia strategies.” Hrishabh thinks that

the Youth Time Movementis important for youngIndians in Britain as wellas in India. It makes sensethat AAU is an academicpartner of Youth Time andthe Rhodes Youth Forum.“The RYF focuses on

different voices and ideascoming from parts of theworld that don’t necessari-ly get their fair share ofattention. Young Indiansneed to realise that thereare great ideas comingfrom outside theAnglophone world. Eventslike this give us a platformto hear these thoughts.”Indians and others also

have a chance to takeadvantage of two scholar-ships at the AngloAmerican UniversityHrishabh has initiatedthrough the RYF.

“Youth Time is a natu-ral partner of AAU. Apartfrom being based inPrague, Youth Time’sfocus on informal educa-tion and innovation inlearning is something AAUholds close to its heart. Webelieve in the role thatlearning outside the class-room plays in the overalldevelopment of graduates.We are happy to supportour students and thosefrom the outside to get thebest out of fora like theRYF or the forthcomingParis event.By offering scholar-

ships to study at AAU, weare hoping to foster a clos-er link with Youth Timemembers, and in the long-run come up with innova-tive projects on revitaliz-ing the discourse on edu-cation together with YouthTime Movement.”Hrishabh is in India

twice a year and lectures atthe Xavier Institute ofCommunications inBombay. He maintainsacademic links to institu-tions in both Delhi andBombay.At the Paris

International Youth Forum“New Paradigm ofEducation: EuropeanDialogue” on26-27November, Europeanyouth leaders aged 20 to35 will present projectsconcerning new paradigmsof education. http://youth-time.org/npe

Leading LightsRani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Rani Singh and Dr Hrishabh Sandilya at Rhodes YouthForum, Greece

A Young Indian with a BritishConnection Impacting Central Europe

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201310 YOUR VOICE

DisclaimerAsian Business Publications Ltd(ABPL) is not in any way respon-sible for the goods and servicesrendered by its advertisers. TheABPL management accepts all

advertisements in good faith andit is entirely up to readers to verifyadvertisers’ products and services,should they feel the need to do so.

Discrediting ModiI would like to comment on the edito-

rial write up (26/10/2013) on NarendraModi.

Since the time Modi was nominatedas the BJP Prime Ministerial candidatethere is a sustained campaign againstModi by Muslim groups in India andabroad especially in U.K and America.

Javed Afthar and Sabhna Ashmi arein the forefront in attacking Modi callingall sorts of names including ‘ascist’and‘Hitler’ Both were nominated by theCongress as MPs in the Rajya Sabha.Both of them are asking Muslims not tosupport Modi as if they are self styledleaders of the Muslim community. Theyoperate their own organisation for anti-Modi campaign in this country and theyare supported and aided by BritishMuslims and anti- BJP groups.

There are also anti-Modi organisa-tions operating in U.S.A. Pheku.comoperating from USA aims to discreditNarendra Modi. The organisation ismainly run Muslims and Christian inAmerica.

CPWR (Council for Parliament of theWorld Religion) withdrew the support forSwami Vivekananda 150 Birth day cele-bration since VHP was involved in organ-ising the function.

FOIL (Forum of Inqualibi Leftists) ismainly run by Muslims and leftists.Campaign against Genocide ( CAG) isrun under the leadership of Dr. RajaSwamy and it is an anti-BJP organisation.All these organisations well funded anddirectly support anti- Modi organisations.

It is interesting to note that Am Admiparty is getting funds from anti- BJPorganisations in Britain in order to takevotes from Hindus in Delhi even thoughthey do not have any organisational baseand run by a few individuals.

Arun VaidyanathanBy email

Being held to RansomLast week NPower announced rises

in gas prices by 9.3% and electricity by11.1%. This follows in the wake of pricerises by British Gas, SSE and EDF ener-gy. SSE will increase prices by 8.2% from15 November and British Gas said priceswould go up by 9.2% on 23 November.

The latest rise by N Power will add anextra £137 to an annual average dual-fuelbill, taking it to £1,459. Five years ago,the average dual-fuel bil was £752; now itis £1,264 - an increase of four timesabove inflation. When wholesale pricesgo up, bills go up, but when, for instance,wholesales fell by 45% in 2009, bills didnot go down proportionately and fell bymere 5%!

The six big energy firms who supply98% of Brirish homes are holding theirconsumers to ransom. We need to havepower, we need to use gas to stay warm inwinter and cannot revert to using cowdung or wood for cooking and heating.People who suffer most from the indis-criminate rises are retired senior citizenswho have nowhere to go during the day,and to avoid heating bills, they stay incold and damp houses and suffer fromdepression and other illnesses and be aburden on the health service.

The solution is to nationalise thecompanies providing the indispensableutilities like gas, electricity and water andor subsidise the cost of these utilities.Instead of giving aid to foreign countrieswhich in fact carry a chip on their shoul-ders against us, let the charity begin athome!

Dinesh ShethNewbury Park, Ilford

Quest for goldHuman quest/craving for gold go

back to days of Ravan/Kuber. Historicalquest of El Dorado (land of gold) bySpanish Conquistadors’ended in loot ofRed Indians’gold/silver of Latin America.Fiction film makers produced block-buster “ing Solomon’ Mines”in 1950s.Lately I read twice a novel entitled“eshwa noo javeraat”depicting eventsabout hiding gold from British soldiersafter Indian freedom War of 1857.

It is remarkable that Shobhan Sarkardreamt nine years ago about 1000 tonnesof gold, buried by Raja Ram BukhshSingh of Avadh. Three more sites alongbanks of Ganga river have been suggest-ed for excavation. It is also remarkablethat top ministers, 20 TV teams, scien-tists, engineers and 140 constabulary,police are now involved. All this fuss isbased on dream when Maharashtra statehas banned practices, rites and ritualsthat spread superstition.

Quest/excavation is ordered afterGSI’ report; but the GSI has equipmentthat is neither adequate to penetratebeyond depth of 1 metre nor pin pointpreciousness of the material.

Revival of 9 year old dream and tim-ing of hastened excavation just a daybefore visit by N. Modi to Kanpur, is alsosuspected to distract public attention byUPA and to clutch straws before generalelection of 2014.

Crucial question: Can such a tinyprincipality have 1000 tonnes of gold?Then how much gold was owned by 565major and minor states!

If gold is found, how much will bestashed abroad/ pocketed by corrupt per-sons.

Ramesh JhallaBy email

Importance ofclassification

I refer to Sh. Ramesh Jhalla`s letter inAV 26th Oct. I quite agree with him. Ibelieve it is very wrong to confuse“arna”with “aste”

Let me first quote Dr BR Ambedkar, aleading member of the Indian constituentassembly, a renowned lawyer and also arecognised leader of those who calledthemselves “alits” “he principle underly-ing caste is fundamentally different fromthe principle underlying “arna” Not onlyare they fundamentally different but alsofundamentally opposed.”

His further statement: “ must admitthat the Vedic theory of “arnas”as inter-preted by Swami Dayanand and someothers is sensible and an inoffensivething. It did not admit birth as determin-ing factor in fixing the place of an indi-vidual in society. It only recognisedworth.”

Many Vedic discussions and dia-logues between Rishis are stated inMahabharata as references and guidance.Rishi Bhrigu said there is no distinctionbetween varnas, this whole jagat isBrahma-roop. Originally all humans wereonly Brahmanas, with passage of timeand variation in individual`s activitiesthe varnas (classification) came about).

Rishi Bhrigu goes on to explain howVarna-vyavastha naturally developed onthe basis of guna-karma with passage oftime. Towards the end of the discussion,the Rishi says: if one born of shudra par-ents does not have qualities of shudra, heis not a shudra. If one born of brahmanparents does not have qualities of brah-man, he is not a brahmana) Manusmritisays: a Brahmana becomes a Shudra andvice versa on the basis of one`s merits,actions and abilities. Similarly, suchinterchange also takes place betweenKshatriyas and Vaishyas.)

The Bhagwad Geeta says: The four-class system developed on the basis ofone`s guna (qualification) and karma(activity).

I believe that it is natural for humanbeings to classify. The classification sys-tem, which is known in Vedas as “arna-vyavastha” exists under one name/styleor another in all cultures. In the samemanner, quality differentiations areapplied to agricultural products, manu-factured goods and so on. There is noth-ing unnatural about this.

Kishor RupareliaBy email

Citizen Khan Series 2 Shame on BBC’s double standard sit-

com - Citizen Khan (Series 2 BBC One,9:30PM Fri, 25 Oct 2013) Mr Khan talksto building society manager including themanager’s wife who is Indian, thatIndians are horrible people, short, ugly,fat with no manners and they have got“poo breath”, and then goes on to urinatein a fish tank of building society himself.Mr Khan tells his daughter that India islike a “toilet”; The developers (AnilGupta-Richard Pinto & Adil Ray) of thisso called sitcom are crass and has in thename of so called comedy insulted allIndians.

I am proud of my Indian heritage andhave been deeply offended by this show.

Mr Khan is disgusting and shouldsimply crawl back into the hole he camefrom. I do not pay my BBC licence fee tosponsor repulsive trite productions.

On one hand UK’s Home-Office wel-comes people of all nationality to becomea British Citizen by taking a test on Lifein the UK and on the other hand BBCpromoting this derogatory, insulting andobnoxious so called entertainment-Citizen Khan.

I want the BBC to publicly apologiseand going forward, be more mindful ofthe content of their productions.

Kiran PurohitBy email

Very informative medicaltourism special

My in-laws have been a subscriber ofboth AV/GS for several years. We live asa joint family. Since last one year or so, Ihave been a regular reader of Asian Voice.Though I was born and brought up inLondon, I find the contents very usefuland keeps me in touch with the globaldiaspora. Last week, we were happy toreceive the medical tourism special. I findit very enlightening and especialy thearticle on keeping fit by Ms Sapna VyasPatel, it was a jewel in the crown. I didbriefly mention the article to my father-in-law and he was unhappy that it wasnot published in the Gujarati language.May I request you to please do that at theearliest and help all family members tolook after their health and live a more ful-filling life.

Many thanks,

Kalpna Patel,Edgware, Middlesex

Making changes for the betterThe number of people in jobs in

London has risen by 30,000 in the pastthree months.

A quarter of a million Londoners havefound jobs since the last General Electionin 2010. And across the UK, more peopleare in work now than ever before.

The economy is showing positivesigns of recovery after several years ofpainful decisions. In the EuropeanParliament Conservative MEPs are work-ing to deliver a more competitive econo-my that will create even more jobs for theUK. We have made sure that the EU cutsits budget; we have secured exemptionfrom regulations for small businesses;and we have seen off attempts to limit thenumber of hours we can work.

There is more to be done and that iswhy, working with David Cameron,Conservative MPs are working on a planto radically cut EU red tape and med-dling, to eliminate the barriers thatimpede businesses from starting up,growing, employing and trading.

We are the only Party that has shownit can make changes for the better in theEU, changes which will help the contin-ued recovery that we all want to see inLondon’s economy.

Syed KamallConservative MEP for London

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 11

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201312 MEDIA WATCH

The Economist’s profile(October 19) of the risingmegastar told of the way Indianbig business had swung behindMr Modi and the high expecta-tions that large Indian compa-nies had of him. His 13 yearbusiness-friendly tenure asGujarat Chief Minister hadapparently convinced honchossuch as Ratan Tata and MukeshAmbani that their (and thecountry’s) best bet would be aModi government in Delhi. The Economist projected Mr

Modi’s visible achievements:efficient and corruption-freeadministration, prompt deci-sion-making, rising all-roundprosperity, good roads, good railtime-keeping, readily availablepower etc. Mr Modi’s electoralsuccesses were proof of the pud-ding being in the eating. TheEconomist referred to theGujarat riots of 2002 in whichMuslims suffered the most, andthe long shadow this had castover Mr Modi’s political reputa-tion, the magazine hinting thatit was time to move on, presum-ably because the top people,including then ministers, hadbeen arrested, tried in a court oflaw, and sentenced to long termsof imprisonment for theirrespective roles in fomenting theviolence.

Modi ‘Dream Team’

The Economist, while rightlylauding Gujarat’s advance as avibrant industrial state, hintedthat it was uniquely so, asopposed to the rest of India.That surely is overblown: neigh-bouring Maharashtra and TamilNadu lead the field as India’smajor industrial hubs.Maharashtra has recorded thethe country’s highest domesticand foreign investment fordecades, while Tamil Nadu andKerala have long been top of thenational league in education andwelfare. The complexities ofmodern government requiresurely a competent team todeliver good governance, a pointunderscored by pro-BJP colum-nist Swapan Dasgupta, whocalled for a “Modi Dream Team”to be put in place (Times ofIndia, October 6).

Wipro confoundssceptics

India’s third-largest softwareservices exporter, Bangalore-based Wipro Ltd, reported ahigher than expected 28 per centnet profit in the second quarterfiscal (July-September).Revenue rose 19 per cent to$1.76 billion.. The company’ssuccess was predicated on win-ning 45 new clients and a weak-er rupee. It now needs two simi-lar quarters to bridge the gapwith its leading competitors.Analysts have been waiting tosee concrete results of a Wiproturnaround following theappointment of T.K.Kurien ascompany CEO in January 2011.His goal was to make up lostground against rivals TataConsultancy Services (TCS),Cognizant Technology SolutionsCorp, and HCL TechnologiesLtd. Mr Kurien said: “We haveplenty of work to do going for-ward… and must make sure thatnext year we can catch up…...”

Infosys buoyant

Meanwhile, Infosys, which hadto call upon its retired founderN.R. Narayana Murthy to takeup the reins following the com-

pany’s declining performnces,has posted a robust second quar-ter and is currently growingfaster than Wipro. ((Mint,October 23)

Domestic airtravel growth

Following three years of declinein domestic air travel, India hasposted a 13.4 per cent increasein September following a 20.4per cent rise in August. Thenumber of passengers taking tothe air in September increasedto 4.5 million over theSeptember 2012 figure of 4 mil-lion. “The peak travel months ofOctober-December are likely tosee a moderate rise in flyers dueto higher fares, but the negativegrowth is behind us for now,”said a senior airline official.While low-cost carrier

IndiGo remained the marketleader with 30.3 per cent sharein domestic travel, Air India sawthe highest aircraft occupancyfor the second month in a row.“There is a distinct improvementin our service and people arecoming back to us. Our airlinehas almost all new planes andpassengers feel the difference,”said an Air India official.(October 21)

Tata-SIA set for the skies

India’s Foreign InvestmentPromotion Board (FIPB) hasaccepted the Tata-SingaporeAirlines proposal to set up a fullservice carrier in India that

would entail an initial foreigninvestment of $49 million. TataSons (the holding company ofthe Tata Group) will be themajority partner in the venturewith a 51 per cent stake, withSingapore Airlines vholding theremaining 49 per cent. The twocompanies plan to set up theirairline with an initial investmentof $100 million, of which Tatawill contribute $51 million andSingapore Airlines 49 per cent.Aviation Consulting firm CAPACentre for Aviation South AsiaCEO, Kapil Kaul, said: “I term itas a very important milestonefor Indian aviation and creditthe government for being deci-sive and clear in its think-ing…..All is in order for thisgame-changing joint venture.”(Hindu, Mint October 25).Ratan Tata said Tata Sons wouldconsider reacquiring Air India, ifthe government wished to priva-tize the airline sometime in thefuture.

Bullish global investors

Axis Direct Director, NileshShah, in an interview with the

Economic Times (October 19)said the market was in consoli-dation following a period of tur-bulence, with a “sense of opti-mism coming up. If you divideglobal and local investors, globalinvestors are far more bullish onIndia than local investors. Insome sense they (the former) arefinding Delhi better off fromtheir respective locations thanwe (Indians) find here.” Globalinvestors appear to be saying tous, “why are you worried aboutyour environment.” Look at thesituation in our country. In theUS, for example, there has beena budgetary shut down 16 timesin the past 30 years and the debtlevels have risen 60 times in thelast 80 years. “There are manycountries in worse shape thanwe are. So all these factors have

contributed to the presentIndian rally,” he said (EconomicTimes October 19)

India, Russia war game

Troops of Russia’s EasternMilitary District in Siberia arepresently engaged in a joint anti-terrorist war game with IndianArmy units in Rajasthan. Theseventh drill in the series ofexercises named “Indra,” thepresent exercise involves themechanized forces of Indian andRussian army formations, whichinclude tanks and armoured per-sonnel carriers. “Both countrieshave troops deployed in activecounter insurgency/terroristoperations and therefore sharingeach other’s military experienceswill pay meaningful dividends,”said a Defence Ministry state-ment. The last “Indra” exercisewas held in Siberia in August2012. (Telegraph October 19)

Oil and gas

Further, India and Russia under-scored the significant potential

for cooperation in sectors such asoil and gas, pharmaceuticals,infrastructure, mining, automo-biles, fertilizers, aviation as wellas modernization of industrialfacilities in their two countries.The Government of India’s ener-gy arm, ONGC, has shown aninterest in Russia’s Arctic off-shore reserves of oil and gas andthe two sides will explore the pos-sibility of building a pipeline topump these to India (HinduOctober 22). Meanwhile the firstRussian-built nuclear reactor atKundakulam has been linkedIndia’s southern grid with a grad-ual augmentation of power pro-duction that should reach itspeak capacity by the year-end.The second reactor is due to gocritical in March next year.Reactors 3 and 4 await final legalscrutiny on both sides, but talkson setting them up are believed tohave been successfully conclud-ed.

Indo-Russian defence ties

Following his talks withPresident Vladimir Putin, PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh saidIndia-Russian defence ties “willremain a key defence partner forIndia as we move into a stage ofjoint design, development andkey production of key defenceplatforms.” In a joint statementat the end of the 14th Indo-Russian summit, the partnersplans “to enhance cooperation inthe field of rocket, missile andnaval technologies and weaponsystems.” India and Russia alsopledged to extend indefinitelytheir 15-year-old partnership inthe production of the BrahMossupersonic anti-ship missile anddevelop an even more potenthypersonic version.

Vikramaditya ready

Aircraft carrier Vikramaditya is tobe handed over to India in mid-November, with the delivery ofthe sixth Russian-built Trikentstealth frigate to India to follow.Progress in the joint developmentof the fifth generation warplaneand a multi-role transport aircraftis ongoing. India and Russia arealso to set up a new workinggroup for Glonass, the Russianequivalent to the US GlobalPositioning System, which willguide Indian weapon systems onland, air, sea and space to theirtargets with improved accuracy.Russia will share this top secrettechnology only with India, saidDmitry Rogozin, Russia’s DeputyPrime Minister with specialresponsibility for the defenceindustry (Hindu, October 22).

Ratan Tata with Singapore Airlines CEO Goh Choon Phong and IndianMinister Anand Sharma

Narendra Modi addressing meeting in UP

N.R. Narayana Murthy

Manmohan Singh receiving doctorate at Moscow Institute ofInternational Relations. See comment page 3

Narendra Modi has emerged from the wings and now occupiesthe centre-stage of Indian politics. The Gujarat Chief Minister,building on his transformational economic agenda for the stateand his three back-to-back election victories, has pitched histent at the heart of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) cam-paign for the general election in May 2014, from which hehopes to emerge as India’s next prime minister.

UKwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 13

‘Here, where the Independence of Hinduswas granted, the mother of allParliaments, we elevate her because weoriginate from the mother of allDemocracies. ‘

My speech as Member of the CityHindu Network Advisory Board at ourAnnual Diwali Dinner at the House ofLords hosted by Lord Popat, with ChiefGuest Richard Harrington MP, ViceChairman of the Conservative Party:

“Jai Shri Krishna and Happy Diwalito you all.

Richard, thank you so very much forbeing here and stepping in for MatthewHancock who sadly could not make ittonight due to Downing Street duties forthe Prime Minister.

Richard, when I worked in the UnitedStates Congress as an intern (– I wrotepaper on the influence of the AIPAC – theIsraeli-Jewish Lobby in America.

Richard, on 6th of October, CityHindu Network sent a tweet mentioningMatthew will be here today. We added thetwitter handle of the Prime Minister tothat tweet.

On the very next day, 7th October, thePrime Minister announced Matthew’spromotion. The very next day.

Richard, make no mistake, the CityHindu Network has that kind of pull andpower. We modelled ourselves on AIPAC.

Now Richard, in Matthews promo-tion, (which is thanks to us), his knowl-edge of global economics will be vital.

The reason the cow is sacred in Hinduculture – it is the giver of life, a mother, itis the provider of milk, a sustainablesource of nutrition to human withouthaving to sacrifice its own life as meat.

Hinduism has believed in sustainableeconomics as something sacred for 5,000years as the oldest of all faiths.

Richard, we want to bestow upon youan immense honour. We want you to bean Ambassador for Hinduism. So let metell you about Hinduism:

No man has ever given freedom to somany ever, in the history of the worldthan a Hindu man - Gandhi. If youbelieve in freedom, you honor him at thetop of your altar. Even before AbrahamLincoln.

Einstein, like you Richard, Jewish,said of that Hindu – ‘generations to comewill scarcely belief that one such as this of

flesh and blood walked this earth.’The greatest minds of the West,

Einstein, have looked up in awe and won-derment at the greatest that Hinduismhas produced.

But we are not pacifists. When the callcame to defend democracy, to fight forBritish Independence, Hindus lined up intheir thousands, volunteers, to march totheir deaths in the Second World War.

My grandfather and great grandfatherwere in the British Army. It is why we feelthis is OUR wonderful country, ourBritain – and we are at home in this greatnation, Great Britain, as she, Britannia,was at home in Hindustan.

India, Hindustan is not a democracybecause of Britain, but Britain is ademocracy because of Hindu soldiers.

Hinduism and Democracy go hand inhand – Empror Ashoka had written downthe pillars of the Rule of Law long beforethe Greeks even conceived of them.

To be an ambassador of Hinduism, isto be an ambassador of Democracy.

Never in its History has the Hindunation invaded another country. In noother nation on earth do so manyMuslims live in harmony with those ofanother faith, as they do with Hindus inIndia.

To be an ambassador of Hinduism istherefore to be an ambassador for Peace.

Diwali, is about the Ramayan, 5,000BC – we believe in one God, in manyincarnations. The longest poem ever writ-ten. It goes hand in hand with the oldeststory ever told – the Hindu epic theMahabharat.

I want you Richard to know, and Iremind the Hindus in this room, know inthis in this Parliament, never has shebeen so rich as she is now to haveParliamentarians with the richness of thisfaith (I’m looking at you Lord Popat).

Here, where the Independence ofHindus was granted, the mother of allParliaments, we elevate her because weoriginate from the mother of allDemocracies.

Richard, like Matthew, we would liketo promote you too, and promote each ofyou in this room, – promote you to be anAmbassador of Hinduism.Congratulations

– Happy Diwali.”

To The Mother of all Parliaments fromthe Mother of All Democracies

Immigration andFamily Law may atfirst glance be con-sidered as quitedistinct areas oflaw; however we atDuncan Lewishave found inpractice they arei n c r e a s i n g l ybecoming inter-twined.Due to an

increasing number of immigrationoverstayers entering into relationshipswith others, often of British orEuropean nationality; issues are nowarising between the need to maintainfamily life and the need to maintain aneffective immigration control. In mid-2013, the Home Office acknowledgedthat up to 70,000 illegal immigrantswere living in the UK and that a signif-icant number had been living in the UKwith children and a family for manyyears. Therefore, it is inevitable thatfamily law issues will overlap withimmigration issues.

There are two main questionswhich arise in all family cases where aperson’s immigration status is unclear.Firstly, what impact can an individual’simmigration status have in family pro-ceedings and secondly, how does fami-ly law impact on a party’s immigrationstatus.

The family issues that can arise bya person’s immigration status rangefrom applying for a divorce in caseswhere your partner holds a non UKpassport; where you are involved incourt proceedings relating to childrenborn in this country i.e. residence orcontact orders; if you have entered theUK on a spouse visa and are then a vic-tim of domestic violence, or where youwish to leave the UK with your chil-dren. Where the other parent is aBritish Citizen you are strongly advisedto obtain expert family and immigra-tion advice immediately.

The current trend in case law sug-

gests that immigration orders arestronger than those of the family courtwhere an individual’s case is beingheard in both courts. Family courtshave become wary about applicationsbeing made to be then used in any sub-sequent immigration matter as theymay fetter the duty and discretion ofthe Secretary of State. Therefore, ifyour immigration status is unclear andyou wish to make an application inrespect of a family or child care issue,then you should obtain specialist fami-ly advice to consider whether indeedyou are in a position to make an appli-cation in the family courts and how orif it will affect your immigration case.

The Immigration Laws appears tohave become more regulated bychanges in the Immigration Rulessince July 2012 but the ImmigrationCourts have recognised the impor-tance of taking into account whatwould be in the best interests of thechild when making decisions andupholding the principle of family unity.

As illustrated above, there arecases where particular family situa-tions involving British and Europeannational partners or children may cre-ate strong ties and prevent the removalof a family member subject to the mer-its of each case. If you are in this posi-tion or know someone who is, theyshould be advised to seek specialistfamily and immigration legal advice toeffectively protect their legal position.

Legal 500 Law Firm, DuncanLewis has extensive experience ofworking with clients and throughoutLondon and across the UK with immi-gration issues in Family Law. DuncanLewis has specialist Family/Childcareand Immigration Law Departmentsthat work closely together to ensurethat both family legal rights andImmigration issues are safeguardedpromptly for all clients.

Mrs Savita Sharma is a Directorand Solicitor of Duncan Lewis and anaccredited specialist in all areas ofFamily Law

By Savita Sharma

What you need to know about Familyand Immigration Law with Duncan Lewis

l City of LondonHarrowHackneyIslingtonLewishamShepherd’s Bush

SouthallTooting

l Birminghaml Cardiffl Leicesterl Manchester

Tel: 020 7923 4020 - www.duncanlewis.comWith over 500 Staff to Assist

Offices across London and throughout UK

Successful entrepreneur Rami Ranger sues Lords for blocking peerageA very successfulentrepreneur and awell-known com-munity leader hassued the House ofLords in a firstsuch case that willhave unprecedent-ed legal proceed-ings. As a SundayTimes articleannounced, RamiRanger was “hyste-riously blackballedin his bid to become a lifepeer”. A self-made millionaire,Rami is forcing the Lords toreveal why his application tobe a “people’s peer” has beentwice rejected.

Rami’s company, SunMark, which has a turnover ofmore than £150m, has won anannual Queen’s award fivetimes and Rami believes thathe “more than meets” thepublished criteria. He blames

the block on poten-tially inaccurate ordamaging informa-tion sent to theappointments com-mission fromunknown sources.

Friends of Ramihave said that hecould be the victimof elitism, becausethe commissiononly supports an‘old boy’s network’

of their ‘friends’.Ranger’s High Court pro-

ceedings aims to force thecommission to disclose allcorrespondence and com-ments that relate to his twoapplications — one in 2007and the other in 2010 —including two unsolicited let-ters that it received from thirdparties. The commission hasstated that it is not required toreveal the material because of

an exemption in the DataProtection Act that covers thehonours system.

A document provedRanger’s first application tothe commission for a peeragein July 2007 reached the sec-ond “sift”stage. But his sec-ond application in August2010 “appears to have beenrejected out of hand withoutso much as a moment’s con-sideration” the court paperssay.

The commission has stat-ed that there is an exemptionin the act relating to “personaldata processed for the purpos-es of the conferring by theCrown of any honour or digni-ty”. Rami’s lawyers haveargued that this definitiondoes not explicitly cover a lifepeerage and that disclosureshould be ordered by the HighCourt as a matter of publicinterest and transparency.

Readers are invited to read the above details very carefully and if youagree, sign the petition:-

We, the undersigned, are aware of this news item. We believe it is rightfor Rami Ranger to take this legal step. We believe that the Honour systemin Great Britain is in a unique way to recognize and involve all citizenswho contribute to the well being of the country.

The community should be given some say. Rami Ranger has a donebrave and honourable thing instead of suffering in silence.

Petition

Name: Address: Signature: Date:

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201314 UK

Business Secretary VinceCable gave an impressivespeech at The InnerTemple last Wednesday,23rd October, about therelevance of MahatmaGandhi's principles andpractice today to the busi-ness sector and the finan-cial markets.

He was answering thequestions put to him byThe Gandhi Foundation -“What would a GandhianBusiness Model looklike? And what stepswould a LibDemGovernment take to getthere?” Some 200 leadersfrom business, finance,the law, politics, acade-mia, the Faiths, mediaand the voluntary sectorhad been invited to hearhim in The Inner Temple'smagnificent Hall over-looking the Thames.

This was The GandhiFoundation's AnnualLecture for 2013. Cablefollowed in the footstepsof The Dalai Lama and 4

Nobel Peace PrizeWinners. The eveningwas opened by SimonThorley QC, Treasurer ofThe Inner Temple, andLord Bhikhu Parekh,President of TheFoundation. Mr Cablespoke for half an hourand then took questions.

The financial and eco-nomic crisis we are still indemands yet more new

thinking. How can oursociety improve trans-parency, accountabilityand trust in business andfinance? The Foundationthinks that Vince Cable'sLecture has offered a sig-nificant start and intendsto build on it by openingup the debate. So, whichof Gandhi's principlesand practices do youthink are relevant today

to these two vital eco-nomic sectors? How canthey best be implement-ed? Can a practicable andacceptable 'Gandhian'Business Model be devel-oped that can lead themout of the current crisis?The Foundation believesthat it can be and that itsimplementation will earnthese companies society'srespect again.

Vince Cable on Gandhi today in business

L to R: Simon Thorley QC, Treasurer of The Inner Temple; Business Secretary Vince Cable;Lord Bhikhu Parekh, President of The Gandhi Foundation

A man who moved toBritain to study will serveat least 40 years behindbars for his campaign of"racial hatred" in theMidlands.

A white supremacistwho murdered a grandfa-ther and bombed threemosques in the Midlandshas been jailed for life.Pavlo Lapshyn, a stu-

dent from Ukraine, wastold he would spend atleast 40 years behindbars despite his guiltyplea, after a judgedescribed his crimes as"abhorrent".

The family of 82-year-old Mohammed Saleem,who was stabbed todeath by Lapshyn inSmall Heath,Birmingham, said thesentence could "never beenough", adding: "Hetook away the life of abeloved person."

Lapshyn, 25, beganhis racist campaign justfive days after arriving inthe UK in April this year.

After killing MrSaleem, he then went onto launch three attackson mosques in the BlackCountry, bringing terrorto Muslim communities.

During their investi-gation, police founddozens of videos andhundreds of images ofchemicals, firearms andbomb parts inside hisoffice. One clip showed

him practising for theattacks by blowing up atree in a forest inUkraine.

Passing sentence atthe Old Bailey, judge MrJustice Sweeney toldLapshyn he had beenmotivated by "religiousand racial hatred".

"You were clearlyplanning to plant anddetonate more devices inthe hope that you wouldignite racial conflict andcause Muslims to leavethe area where you wereliving. Such views, hatredand motivation areabhorrent to all rightthinking people and haveno place whatsoever inour multi-faith and multi-cultural society," he said.

Assistant ChiefConstable Marcus Beale,head of counter-terror-ism for the WestMidlands, said: "Lapshynwill be spending a verylong time in prison andrightly so. He clearlywould have continuedwith his evil bombingcampaign had he notbeen caught."

During the sentenc-ing, which was delayedafter a suspicious pack-age was discovered in thecourtroom, Lapshynshowed no emotion, evenwhile the judge read outa harrowing victimimpact statement fromMr Saleem's family.

Mosque BomberJailed For Life

Racist: Pavlo Lapshyn

Mohammed Saleem

A driver last Friday admit-ted killing a pedestrianafter driving carelessly inHampstead earlier thisyear.Mohammed Rashid,

23, of Weedington Road,Queen’s Crescent, pleadedguilty to causing the deathof 32-year-old journalistLaurence Gunn by care-less driving at BlackfriarsCrown Court.

Mr Gunn, of ShirlandRoad in Maida Vale, wasstruck by Rashid’s FordFocus in East Heath Roadnear to the junction withDownshire Hill, on

Saturday March 3 at about7pm. He suffered majorhead injuries in the crashand died a day later onMarch 4 at St Mary’sHospital, Paddington.

Rashid was arrested atthe scene. He will be sen-tenced on November 29.

Driver admits careless driving

Laurence Gunn died in acar crash in Hampstead

Dhiren Katwa

A plaque to commemo-rate the 40th anniversaryof the expulsion ofUgandan Asians is set tobe unveiled at a ceremonyat Stansted Airport nextweek.

The event has beenorganised by The IndiaOverseas Trust 40thAnniversary CelebrationCommittee, led by PrafulPatel, its Chairman, whois desperately seeking per-sonal glorification, it hasbeen claimed.

On first hearing aboutthis event at Stansted,UK’s fourth busiest air-port, in September, weasked Mr Patel for moreinformation, but failed toget a response. AsianVoice has now seen theinvitation and a coveringletter, dated 22 October,thanks to a source.

In principle, the ideais worth welcoming. Buthaving shown this invita-tion to some of Uganda’smovers and shakers, andthe fact that most of thosewe approached wereunaware of this event,does raise a few ques-tions.

The general feedback

from Asian influencers inUganda was that theywould not welcome thisevent because they feelthey have been well set-tled and are fully satisfiedwith the hospitality of thepeople and theGovernment of Uganda.They are doing theirutmost to contribute inwhatever way they can tothe development andprosperity of their ‘home’Uganda and that areminder of the events of1972 and the deeds of dic-tator Idi Amin are neithernecessary nor desirable.

General YoweriMuseveni, Uganda’sPresident, some 20 yearsago tried to rectify thedamage caused by IdiAmin. The UgandaGovernment with thehelp of the World Bankand others have doneeverything possible tocompensate for what hap-pened in 1972. PresidentMuseveni even made apublic apology atWestminster Abbey and atthe Shri SwaminarayanTemple in Neasden,London, inviting expelledUgandan Asians toreturn. Whilst some,including the Madhvanis

and Dr Sudhir Rupareliadid decide to go back, thelarge majority have stayedin the UK and in otherparts of the world, onwhat then were foreignshores, but are now hometo them.

One respondent askedabout the purpose of thisplaque unveiling whilstanother questioned MrPatel’s objectivity andaims, and that of his sev-eral trusts, which includeThe Indo-British CulturalExchange Limited, KailasManasarovar Trust andThe InternationalAyurveda Foundation,each of which has aninteresting financial histo-ry. For example, The IndiaOverseas Trust, accordingto the CharityCommission, between2008 to 2011 had a totalincome of £587 and totalspend, during this sameperiod, of £8,314, withjust £1 spent in 2008.

Of those who respond-ed, one asked how MrPatel could organise suchevents in the name ofUgandan Asians when hedoes not even live inUganda, nor has he doneso for the last fewdecades. Has Mr Patel

carried out a public con-sultation, specifically ofAsians in Uganda and inthe UK? Do people reallyneed reminding of theexpulsion of UgandanAsians?

In June this year, athanksgiving event tocommemorate the 40thanniversary of the expul-sion of Ugandan Asians,was held at LeicesterCathedral. The keynotespeech at this event wasgiven by CommunitiesSecretary Rt Hon EricPickles MP. Our severalrequests for accounts ofthis, and other recentevents organised by thecharities which Mr Patelrepresents, have beenignored.

After all, this is moneyfrom the public purse andpeople are fully entitled,we feel, to know how andwhere their cash is spent,are they not?We would welcome

your thoughts, comments,observations on this mat-ter as we do genuinelybelieve that every pennyraised in the name ofcharity should beaccounted for. Please emaildhiren.katwa@abplgroup.com

Plaque to be unveiled at StanstedAirport in name of Ugandan Asians

IMMIGRATION officialsarrested three peopleafter raiding a restaurantin Witney and a popularhaunt for Prime MinisterDavid Cameron.

Officials from the UKBorder Agency raidedShaan in Corn Street onFriday 18th October at8pm. Three Bangladeshimales were arrested andofficials said two wereillegal immigrants and

one had overstayed hisvisa. One, aged 21, hadoverstayed his visa whilethe others, aged 28 and35, had entered the coun-try illegally. The restau-rant could now face a fineof up to £10,000 for eachillegal worker.Paul Smith, from the

Thames Valley and SurreyHome Office immigrationenforcement team, said:'The message to employ-

ers in Oxfordshire whochoose to use illegallabour is clear. We willcatch you and you willface a heavy penalty.Illegal working has a neg-ative impact on commu-nities. It defrauds the tax-payer, undercuts honestemployers and cheatslegitimate job seekers outof employment opportu-nities. I would urge mem-bers of the public with

information about sus-pected immigration abuse

to get in touch.'Abdul Chawdhury, the

manager of Shaan, said hechecked the documents ofthe three employees whenhe interviewed them andthought they were in order.The manager said that thearrests had come as ashock to the rest of thestaff at the restaurantwhich has been open since1999. He said: ‘I had inter-viewed the men andchecked their passports

and references andthought everything was inorder. We will have to waitand see what the UKBAinvestigation finds.’ Therestaurant proudly dis-plays a picture of MrCameron posing with staffmembers in its window,and snaps of him diningwith his wife and childrenon its website. The restau-rant is around the cornerfrom Mr Cameron’s con-stituency office.

Immigration officers raid Asian restaurant

PM David Cameron was afrequent visitor to Shaan

in Witney

UKwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 15

Honeymoon murder sus-pect Shrien Dewani haswon a further hearingin his legal battle againstextradition. On Tuesday22nd October, a panel ofthree High Court judges -headed by the Lord ChiefJustice Lord Thomas -ruled that there are out-standing legal issues thecourt must decide.Dewani, 33, is fighting

removal to South Africato face trial over hiswife Anni's death until hehas recovered from men-tal healthproblems, includingdepression and post-trau-matic stress disorder.His lawyers have

repeatedly said that hewill be willing to defendhimself at trial only whenhe is fit to do so.Lord Thomas has

called for a reopening ofthe case to take in to con-sideration, firstly, his sta-tus as "an accused person"and secondly, concernswhether it would be"unjust and oppressive" toextradite Dewani "regard-less of the prognosis" ofhis mental condition.

Anni Dewani's motherNilam Hindocha said out-side court: "I am themother of a murdereddaughter. How long do Ihave to wait? It is nearlythree years since she waskilled and we have keptour dignity and respect

throughout. I was broughtup to believe British jus-tice is the best in theworld, so it is very hard tounderstand why we arestill here."In July, Chief

Magistrate HowardRiddle ruled atWestminster Magistrates'Court that Dewani shouldbe extradited and rejectedhis attempt to stay in theUK for further hospitaltreatment. He saidDewani, from Bristol, wasstill not fit to pleador stand trial at present,but there was evidencethat he would receive thecare he needed in SouthAfrica.Dewani is suspected

of planning the killing ofhis new wife Anni, 28,who was shot as the cou-ple travelled in a taxion the outskirts of CapeTown in November 2010,whilst on their honey-moon. Since then, three

men have been convictedover Mrs Dewani's death.Last year South

African Xolile Mngeniwas convicted of premedi-tated murder for shootingher. Prosecutors claimedthat he was a hitmanhired by Dewani to kill hiswife, yet Dewani has con-sistently denied this. Taxidriver Zola Tongo wasjailed for 18 years afterhe admitted his part in thekilling and anotheraccomplice, Mziwamadoda Qwabe, also pleadedguilty to murder and washanded a 25-year prisonsentence.Lord Thomas said the

further hearing shouldtake place "as soon as pos-sible". Legal experts saidthe renewed hearing,which could lead toappeals all the way to theSupreme Court, coulddelay any possibility ofDewani being extraditedfor months, if not years.

Shrien and Anni Dewani

A millionairess dentistwhose 'strong mutualantipathy’ with her 'con-trolling' former mother-in-law took them to the HighCourt has won a key dis-pute at the heart of herbitter divorce battle.

Anushika Sharma, 36,and her 45-year-old for-mer husband Sunny,worked together runningtheir ‘niche’ dentistrybusiness and are believedto have had assets worthup to £10million. Theyraised two children

together as their empire of12 practices spread acrossLondon and the HomeCounties.When the couple

divorced last year, MrsSharma took ownership ofseven of them, whichupset her former husbandand ‘strong-willed’ motherKesh Sharma. But MrSharma insisted that fiveof those surgeriesbelonged to them, but theHigh Court last Fridaysaid they did not agree.Anushika's barrister,

Alan Gourgey QC, toldthe court about the deeprift between her and hermother-in-law at the heartof the expensive court bat-tle. At the heart of thecase, lay a strong mutualantipathy between twovery strong-willed women,the husband's motherKesh and the wife,' hesaid.'Kesh had been the

driving force of theSharma family businessesand she held a dominantand highly controllingposition within theSharma family...sheexpected deference fromher family, which sheregarded as her due, bothas a mother and one of thefounders of the family for-tune.'

Richard Snowden QC,for Kesh and her sons,confirmed that Anushikawas 'a daughter-in-law forwhom she had no warmfeelings.'Last Friday judges

sided with the youngerparty and handed her vic-tory. Mr Justice Jacksonsaid the business haddepended on her dentistryexpertise and her hus-band’s family had investedno capital and 'no morethan minimal effort' in theventure.

The family of 78-year-oldHarbhajan Kaur, killed bya police motorbike going72 mph, has vowed to con-tinue their fight3 for jus-tice, claiming they hadbeen “failed” by theauthorities. Mrs Kaur washit as she crossed the roadoutside her home in GantsHill. The City of Londonpolice motorcyclerider was escorting a con-voy of taxis carrying dis-abled children for a daytrip to Southend.An inquest into her

death of the grandmother-of-eight on Tuesday rulednobody was to blame andthat the clash was a tragicaccident.The family argues it

was unnecessary to betravelling at 72mph, con-sidering the road it wastravelling on, had a 40mphlimit. They say if the bikehad been slower, or wassounding sirens, the out-come could have been dif-ferent. They are angry that the

officer, who was seriouslyinjured in the collision,was not charged or disci-plined and called fora fresh investigation. Mrs Kaur’s son -, 61,

of Goodmayes, said:“This wasn’t an emer-gency. How can it havebeen that urgent forthe officer to be going thatfast? We feel powerlessthat there hasn’t been aproper investigation. If itwas me, police would have

arrested me straight away.My mother has beencrossing there every dayfor 18 years and she onlycrossed when there wasthe green man.”Police had been slow-

ing traffic at junctionswhile escorting the convoyin June last year. Mr Singhsaid officers told himthe motorbike had tospeed up ahead of thevehicles to reachGants Hill roundaboutbefore the convoy to halttraffic. It had pulled outalongside the taxis butfailed to see her.Her body was so

severely disfigured thefamily were unableto properly conduct a tra-ditional Sikh ceremony ofbathing and dressing thebody and praying with anopen coffin.G r a n d d a u g h t e r

Amandip Kaur said: “Allwe want is justice. He wasgoing over 70 with no

warning. We feel that ifthey are going to travelthat fast, emergency ornot, they should have theirsirens on. She was themost lovely, wise personwho is still missed everyday.” A Met spokesman

said: “The incident wasinvestigated by the Met’sDirectorate ofProfessional Standardsand a full investigationtook place. The officerwas interviewedunder caution.“A file was handed to

the Crown ProsecutionService which made thedecision there was insuffi-cient evidence for a realis-tic prospect of convictionon charges of either deathby dangerous or carelessdriving.”He added that a review

of the evidence recom-mended “that no discipli-nary or misconduct pro-ceedings should be taken”.

Sikh mother killed by 72mph police bike

Gurmej Singh and his family holds up a picture of 78-year-old Harbhajan Kaur

Dentist daughter winsbattle over dynasty

Dr Anushika Sharma Ex-husband Sunny

Shrien Dewaniwins extradition hearing

16 www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013

Actress Ananya, who has done Tamil andMalayalam movies, is comfortable with both the

film industries. However, the actress now says,though she is a Malayali, she is more at ease work-ing in the Tamil film industry! "I find it more com-fortable working in Tamil films rather than inMalayalam. Right from the start, I got strong char-acters and lead roles in Kollywood. Luckily, all thefilms fared well at the box office too," says Ananyaand adds that, she wants to be a part of goodMalayalam films. "I am selective and don't mindwaiting for the best role rather than doing all theprojects coming my way and then regret about itlater,” says the actress.

Ananya morecomfortable inKollywood

Actor Hrithik Roshan, who is currentlybusy promoting "Krrish 3", says the

team might come up with "Krrish 4." "All theother franchise like Spiderman, Supermanall those films were revamped in a span ofthree to four years. This is one film whichhas completed a decade, which is great, andmaybe you will find a 'Krrish 4' in future.You never know," the 39-year-old said.

"Hopefully we will also make 'Krrish 4'," he added. "Krrish 3" is the third film in the franchise that began

with "Koi Mil Gaya" in 2003 followed by "Krrish" in 2006.

Looks like Bollywood starstake the idiom ‘clothes

maketh the man’ a bit tooseriously while preparing toget into character. Shah RukhKhan’s costumes in“RA.One” (2011) apparentlycost over Rs 10 million and inthe latest such case, KanganaRanaut’s all-rubber latex suitin “Krrish 3” comes with ahefty price tag too. It is learntthat Kangana’s custom-madebodysuits have burnt a big

hole in the makers’ pockets - worth a whoppingRs1000,000 per costume. And since, the makers had gotaround 10 such bodysuits, the total expense came to near-ly Rs10 million.

Alia Bhatt is an ambitious girl witha plan for stardom. “I know what

I want. Though I am very young, Idon’t want to be typecast, because Iam not just a baby doll. I am okaywith that image but I want to fit intoany role. While visualising my career,I have not left any room for failureand if it does come my way, it will bedifficult for me to deal with it. I seemyself as a successful actor only.”She says that she is not dating ArjunKapoor or Varun Dhawan. “I contin-

ue to hang out with them and I don’t hide my friendships.I would be totally open if I am dating an actor. Recently Iread somewhere that I have dumped Arjun. I am very fondof Arjun and Varun both but I am not dating either.”

Calling himself job-less, Ranbir Kapoor

has rubbished reports ofhaving raised his actingfee to Rs 200 million.There were reports thatRanbir apparentlycharged a huge sum forAbhinav Kashyap's'Besharam', which failedat the box office. "I amjobless now... have nonew films... hence thislook. I don't know if youhave seen my last film('Besharam' - hinting atthe failure of the film).It is embarrassing totalk about the econom-ics of business (feehike). Actors share prof-it and loss of a film. It is

not true (Rs 200 million hike)," Ranbir told reporters atan event.

Securityarrangements at theoffice and residenceof filmmaker RamGopal Varma havebeen beefed up afterhe received a threat.Varma had gotthreats earlier alsodue to the contentof his forthcomingcrime saga “Satya2,” which thepromos showed. "Heis at the additionalcommissioner'soffice in Bandrapresently. Thesecurityarrangements havebeen tightened athis house as well asoffice," aspokesperson ofVarma, said. Varmatook tomicroblogging siteTwitter to explain hisposition.

RGV gets threat, securitybeefed up

Ajay Devgndoes notgenerallycomplimentother actors.However, thestar is allpraise forDeepikaPadukone'sperformance in“Ram-Leela.”Incidentally,the two haven'tworkedtogether yet.However,Devgn got tosee Deepika'ssongs and acouple ofscenes fromthe SanjayLeela Bhansaliromantic dramarecently, and issaid to beimpressed withher act in it.

Ajay Devgn all praisefor Deepika

Hrithik Roshan ready tocome up with ‘Krrish 4’

Kangana's costumes worthRs 10 million

Not dating Arjun or Varun:Alia Bhatt

I am jobless: Ranbir Kapoor

For someone who is not used to talking all thetime, it is quite a challenge to assume such a

role. But actress Nandita has managed to do justthat, as she handles two interesting roles simul-taneously, in two different films. Nandita has'Anjala' with Vimal and 'Mundasupatti withVishnu, in her hands now. "As for'Mundasupatti', I am playing a school girl in theperiod set film, and am sporting a cool retrohairstyle and very minimal makeup. 'Anjala' isquite a challenge for me. I am an introvert bynature, but the film portrays me as Uthra, whopossesses a diametrically opposite character. Sowhen I had to keep talking to everyone on thesets, it was very difficult in the beginning, but Ihave steadily get used to it,” says the actress.

The shoot of Karthi's nextuntitled film is happen-

ing in the roads of Chennai.The passers by seems to bespell bound by the actor'snew look. Fans have startedpraising the star for his newmakeover on the internet.Karthi whose “All in AllAzaguraja” is going to begrand Diwali release is spot-ted with a French beard andappears with a never seenbefore hairstyle. Ranjith of“Attakathi” fame weilds themegaphone of this film to beproduced by K.E.GnanavelRaja under his bannerStudio Green films.

Nanditabreaks the ice

Karthi'snew looksawesChennaites

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013 17

Sherlyn Chopra isknown to push theenvelope when itcomes to the boldquotient in the industry.Recently, the Twitterqueen posted a sensualpicture which grabbedattention and becameviral online. On beingasked about the picturewhere she is seenwrapping her legsaround a pillar in apalace, Sherlyn said, "Itis one of the posturesfound in Vatsyayana'sKamasutra. It depictsraw passion mixed witha sense of yearning."Sherlyn believes thatthe body and mindshould be in sync tofeel good about one'sbody. "I work my assoff in the gym to beable to look wow evenwhen naked," said thelady lass.

“Idon't have any pressure to get married from my family. My dad never putthis pressure on me to settle down,” Priyanka, who lost her father to can-

cer, said in a group interview. But the actress, who turned 31 this summer,admits that her mother wanted her to get married ever since she turned 18.

“My mum is on her own track, but I never had any pressure because I amvery work driven. But that doesn't mean you can't be in a relationship or can'tget married. India has also changed and you can be a working woman andalso have a family,” added the star of successful films like “Aitraaz,” “MujhseShaadi Karogi” and “Barfi!.”

She says her real hero was her father. She said: “For me, my dad has beenmy superhero. He always did superhero kind of things in my life. I was hisfavourite, so he used to pamper me a lot. He was very protective.”

No family pressure toget married: Priyanka

Sherlyn Chopra works hardto look good when nude

Shah Rukh Khan is 'India's MostAttractive Personality' according to a 16-

city survey conducted by Trust ResearchAdvisory (TRA), based on what it called a '36Trait Matrix', to measure brand attractiveness.Following Shah Rukh Khan in attractivenessquotient are Amitabh Bachchan and cricketerMahendra Singh Dhoni.Aamir Khan is India's fourth most attractive per-

sonality, followed by Mithun Chakraborty, KatrinaKaif, Salman Khan, Sachin Tendulkar and others.Altogether 25 personalities from the field of cinema,sports and social-spiritual, business and music, were list-ed in the report."While we often see attractiveness only in terms of phys-

ical beauty, it is much more. It is a function of four foundingappeals - rational, emotional, aspirational and communica-tion. When the quotient is high on all four appeals, the overallattractiveness quotient becomes high," said N Chandramouli,TRA CEO.

Other notable entries were Rabindranath Tagore, MadhuriDixit, Sourav Ganguly, Sushmita Sen, Chris Gayle, AishwaryaRai Bachchan, Kareena Kapoor, Anil Ambani, KarishmaKapoor, Lata Mangeshkar, Sunny Deol, Priyanka Chopra,

Rekha, Hrithik Roshan, Ranbir Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinhaand Abhishek Bachchan.

SRK is India’s most attractivepersonality

Never did anythingcrazy for love: Kareena

“Gori Tere Pyaar Mein” actress Kareena Kapoor says she is a "boring"person in real life and never did anything "crazy" for her husband

Saif Ali Khan. "I don't think I have done anything crazy for love. I am boring. Saifhas an image of being crazy but he is not. He likes me, he has no choice," Kareenasaid.Kareena is sharing the screen space with Imran Khan again after “Ek Main Aur Ekk

Tu.”Though Kareena might have not gone over the top for love in her real life, Imran cer-

tainly has.Imran narrated how in his real life he had gone to Chennai to meet the family of a

girl he was dating by impersonating another guy, as the girl's family did not like him,and stayed with them for a week.

In “Gori Tere Pyaar Mein,” Imran will pursue his love interest Kareena, who isplaying an urban NGO worker, to a village. Imran, who is playing the role of a SouthIndian youth, said he did not have to work on the accent.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201318

Financial VoiceDear Financial Voice Reader,With interest rates rising in India – is it time to lock

in the fall in the Rupee and sell out of pounds? UK GDPmeant the pound should strengthen. Weak Indian econ-omy should mean the Rupee continues being troubled –so no mad rush to buy Rupees. Dollar at risk during theweek from several delayed US reports, Euro poised toprint new highs if data disappoint.

The week started with a quiet session on Mondaywith little movement across major currency pairs as anumber of US economic reports showed mixed data.Industrial production growth accelerated to 0.6% from0.4% while manufacturing production growth slowedfrom 0.5% to 0.1%. Pending home sales also dropped5.6%, which was the largest decline in 3 years andalthough these figures are second tier we can assessthat economic recovery in the US might be losing pace.

However, the quiet nature of Monday's session mightbe followed by volatile sessions ahead of us as thedelayed Retail Sales scheduled for release on Tuesday isa very important piece of data and a possible decline inthis critical sector of the US economy will once againdrive Dollar lower. Even though the data are delayed dueto the government shutdown in the US the Retail Salesand consumer spending in general are the backbone ofthe US economy and it is very important for us to notedown how the economy was fairing before the shutdownoccurred. Also on Tuesday, another piece of informationis expected as the Consumer Confidence for October willdemonstrate what the climate is in the US regardingconsumer spending after the end of the aforementionedshutdown. Further down the week there are other pieceof data coming in from the US like the ConsumerConfidence report, the ADP Unemployment Change andthe ISM Manufacturing Index and all these should showus how badly hurt is the economy from the recent gov-ernment shutdown.

Across other currencies, the Euro remainedunchanged hovering near the critical 1.3800 level butthe German unemployment and retail sales reports thatare scheduled for release this week might change that.The Single currency has been showing amazingresilience during the last sessions as investors remainoptimistic over Europe's signs of recovery. At the sametime, the Euro acts as a diversification choice for tradersas they distance themselves from the declining Dollar.We expect that the continued weakness shown by theUS currency will lift the Euro even more towards newhighs for the year.

The Pound however was hit by signs of weaker con-sumer spending and is now battling to hold the 1.6100level but even though the report showed a big decline inspending the British retailers are reported to be optimisticabout a strong recovery over the next month. I remainvery bullish on the Pound on a medium-term horizon asthe British economy appears strong and this notion isshared by key policymakers as well. Last Thursday, Bankof England's Governor Carney announced changes to thebank's money market operations. In a significant develop-ment to the UK economics, Carney introduced changes tothe lending requirements and terms in an effort to stimu-late UK recovery even more and I believe that this wouldprove beneficial to the Pound in the long run.

FINANCIAL VOICEChidambaram to usher in fresh

financial reformsIndia’s finance minister PChidambaram signalled thestart of a fresh round offinancial sector reforms,while asking regulators toinitiate steps to boost for-eign investment flows toavoid any adverse impact ofthe withdrawal of the stim-ulus by the US FederalReserve.

The financial sectorreforms, sources said,would be based on the rec-ommendations of theFinancial Sector LegislativeReforms Commission,which has recommendedan overhaul of laws. But,with little scope to pushthrough the legislativechanges, the finance min-istry is pushing regulatorsto implement those movesthat do not require amend-ments to the existing stat-ues. The move is aimed atincreasing confidenceamong global investors,

several of whom have low-ered the expectations fromIndia after a series of policyflipflops. The non-legisla-tive changes could result ina thrust to the much-await-ed deepening of bonds mar-kets and tweaking of rulesto make the system moreefficient. The finance min-istry is in the process offinalizing such changes.But, a big focus of theFSDC (Financial Stability

and Development Council)agenda was related to thetapering, ahead of financeminister’s proposed meet-ing with foreign fund hous-es to attract fresh invest-ments. Chidambaramadvised the regulators andfinance ministry officials touse the “opportunity avail-able due to postponementof the reversal of the mone-tary policies in advancedeconomies to furtheraddress the macroeconom-ic imbalances.”

The US Federal Reservehas a bond purchase pro-gramme of $85 billion amonth, aimed at maintain-ing the economic stimulusby keeping the interest ratelow. With the US economyshowing signs of recovery,the Fed was expected tounwind the stimulus lastmonth itself but was post-poned due to a sluggish-ness in the economy. Fears

of tapering had hit emerg-ing markets such as Indiaadversely with the rupeehitting a lifetime low of68.75 to a dollar at the endof August, resulting in aseries of measures from thegovernment and RBI tocheck outflows from thecountry and boost inflow ofdollars. The FSDC meet-ing, which was attended bySebi chairman U K Sinha,RBI Governor RaghuramRajan, IRDA chief T SVijayan and FMCChairman RameshAbhishek, discussed vari-ous steps to attract foreigninvestment and streamlineprocedures. Over the nexttwo months, sources said,stock exchanges will organ-ize meetings between thefinance minister and largesovereign wealth funds,pension funds and institu-tional investors to wooinvestments.

HC stays tax demands against Vodafone, ShellThe Bombay high courtstayed the DisputeResolution Panel (DRP)proceedings of the incometax authorities on theIndian subsidiaries of theBritish telecom majorVodafone Plc and RoyalDutch Shell Plc till furtherorders. The HC was hear-ing disputes raised byVodafone and Shell over

transfer pricing computa-tions by the I-T depart-ment. A bench of ChiefJustice Mohit Shah andJustice M S Sanklechapassed the order whilehearing two separate peti-tions against the I-Tdepartment filed byVodafone India ServicesPvt Ltd and by Shell IndiaMarkets Pvt Ltd.

The DRP was setup in2009 to deal with incometax-related transfer pricingdisputes. It was largelyprojected to deal with taxassessments of foreignfirms.

Transfer pricing is thepractice of arm’s lengthpricing for transactionsbetween group companiesbased in different coun-

tries to ensure that a fairprice - one that wouldhave been charged to anunrelated party - is levied.

In April 2013, energyand petrochemical compa-ny Shell India approachedthe HC against the Indiantax department’s allega-tions of evasion through atransfer pricing mecha-nism.

BSE sensex surges by 359 pointsThe BSE benchmark sen-sex on Tuesday surgednearly 359 points to end ata three-year high after theReserve Bank enhancedliquidity for banks andexpectedly hiked a key pol-icy rate. Snapping its five-day losing run, the 30-share index closed in onthe 21,000 mark on theback of massive buying inrate-sensitive banking,realty, auto and consumerdurable shares. Investorwealth zoomed by aroundRs 1,000 billion on theBSE as overall 1,294stocks closed with gains.

The BSE sensex, whichhad lost 325 points in thepast five sessions, shot upby 358.73 points, or 1.74per cent to 20,929.01 afterRBI governor RaghuramRajan announced the sec-ond quarter review of mon-etary policy 2013-14.

Market participantsviewed the RBI's move toincrease the liquidity pro-vided through term reposof 7-day and 14-day tenorfrom 0.25 per cent of NetDemand and TimeLiability (NDTL) of bank-ing system to 0.5 per centas a big positive.

"There was fear in thelast few days that the RBImight go on a over-drive inits fight against inflation byhiking repo rate by 50 bpsas against the consensus25 bps hike. After the poli-cy was announced, therewas a relief on this front aswell," said Rikesh Parikh,VP - Institution CorporateBroking, Motilal OswalSecurities.

The 50-scrip NationalStock Exchange indexNifty jumped up by 119.80points, or 1.96 per cent to6,220.90.

P Chidambaram

African Exchanges Could Learn From India’sBourse Development, says LSE Official

Stock exchanges acrossAfrica could “learn les-sons” from developmentsinitiated over the pastdecade by leadingexchanges in India thathave significantly helped toboost market capitalisa-tion, Ibukun Adebayo, Co-head of the PrimaryMarkets at the LondonStock Exchange Group(LSEG), told an audienceat the ‘London InvestorShow 2013’ at Olympia latelast week.

The event in WestLondon attracted well overa thousand attendees tohear experts on investingtopics spanning a broadrange of asset classes - frominternational equities, retailbonds, exchange tradedfunds (ETFs), exchangetraded commodities andderivatives.

Speaking during a‘Global Investing: Focus onAfrica’ seminar, theLSEG’s Adebayo said:“There is a big need and bigdesire to improve the localmarkets in Africa and bringin international standards.”

He added: “The prob-lem with stock markets inAfrica is that although they

are commercial entities,they are still very muchviewed as bastions ofdomestic and national capi-talism. So, suggesting thatthe Johannesburg StockExchange should mergewith the Nigerian StockExchange is frankly notgoing to happen.”

Citing India as anexample with stratosphericgrowth in market capitali-sation of listed companiesfrom some $200m a decadeor so ago to in excess of $1trillion in recent years,Adebayo remarked: “They[Indian exchanges] havetaken a systematicapproach to developing liq-uidity, changing rules andcreating a market infra-structure that is more con-ducive to sustaining liquid-ity.” According to a reportfrom the World Federationof Exchanges the NationalStock Exchange of India(NSE) located in Mumbaiwas ranked in ninth posi-tion among all exchangesglobally with $1,597 billion(bn) in market capitalisa-tion at the end of 2010.More recently, this Augustthe NSE’s market capitali-sation stood at c.$989bn

with 1,635 companies list-ed. Lisa Campbell,Director, InvestorConferences (UK) Ltd.,organisers of the LondonInvestor Show, comment-ing said: “A wide range ofevents for traders andinvestors took placethroughout the day - frominvestment workshops, freeseminars, debates andpanel sessions, to a livetrading hour and a series ofpresentations from AIMcompanies.”

There were aroundforty exhibitor standsincluding CMC Markets,IG Group, LSEG, SocieteGenerale and ShareSoc,the UK IndividualShareholders Society. And,thirty AIM companies werelisted in the agenda span-ning financial services,mining, pharmaceutical,software/IT, support servic-es and oil and gas sectors.

She added: “TheLondon Investor Showoffers unique access forinvestors to some of thebest speakers in the coun-try. Investment Workshoptutors were on hand in theshape of Rodney Hobson,Sandy Jadeja and Justin

Urquhart Stewart.” Even‘Asian Voice’ columnistAlpesh Patel, a successfulprofessional investor, gavea presentation titled ‘Howto Pick WinningStrategies’.

Chris Hulme,Chairman of the UKShareholders’ Association(‘UKSA’), which had standat the show, commentingon the day’s proceedings,said: “It was a well attend-ed event and some verywell educated investorsseemed to enjoy the varioustalks, presentations andseminars that took place.”

He added: “The num-ber of people we saw acrossthe day and the conversa-tions we had indicates sthat there is much moreconfidence in the market.Indeed, a lot more peoplewere talking about comingback to the markets andinvesting. People are alsounderstanding more aboutthe need for shareholderaction groups and represen-tation of members by suchbodies.” The next ‘LondonInvestor Show’ - FOREX -takes place on 21 February2014.

- by Roger Aitken

FINANCIAL VOICEwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 19

Suresh VagjianiSow & Reap

A Property InvestmentCompany

On Monday morning there were mass travel issues due to the harshweather late night. One of my colleagues left home at 7am to get tothe office early, instead he arrived at 9.30am. Public and road trans-port were both delayed. What’s the relevance of this to property I hear you ask? Come

rain or shine there’s an auction on this day; the Savills auction.Whether the room is full or half empty it will take place. Price isdetermined by demand and supply, here the supply is Lots for saleand the demand is based on the number of people who turn up forthe auction and the phone bidders. The good thing about auctions is the sales happen there and

then; once the hammer has fallen the property is sold. It only takestwo buyers to drive the price up and only one of them has to stay athome for the price of the property to be low. Currently we have a property market which is heating up and

this is even more so for Central London properties coming up forauction, where prices currently will be going up almost exponential-ly. I know a dealer who regularly disposes his properties in auction

to achieve a higher price than you can get from agents. However ona day like this where the flow of buyers will be hampered it pays tomake the extra effort to attend. If the train and car won't get youthere on time then jump on a bike if necessary! This will get youthere on time and who knows you may pick up a bargain.

During this time we were in the unfortunate position of selling acouple of Lots in the auction. One, a block of 4 flats in Harlesden;the other, a block of three flats in Shepherd's Bush. We were hopingto dispose of both prior to the completion dates which we hadagreed for three months. The block in Harlesden didn’t sell during the auction. One of the

parties approached me privately and done the deal at £700k underan auction contract. This was still cheap, I later learned they hadsold the block on. The other block didn’t sell, we had an offer of£600k but refused it as £650k was our bottom line. The same prop-erty is now selling for £921k without any work being done on it ormoney spent on it. So what changed? The market has certainly heat-ed up but this was a deal even at £650k, simply the crowd was notthere to bid the prices up. This is a 40% increase in just over a year.We had purchased the pair of properties at £1.25m and were aim-

ing to sell prior to completion by dumping it in the auction, howev-er the timing was wrong. The demand was either on holiday orfocusing on the Olympics and the Queen's Jubilee. It should havebeen foreseen given what was going on in the country, everyoneseemed to be in holiday mood.

Come rain or shine, the deal's got to be done

The year 2012 was when we had the Olympics, it was also the year of the Queen'sJubilee; at one Allsops auction in May the turnout was real ly poor, the room was onlyhalf full. This is in stark contrast to times when the doors in the auction room hadto be closed due to over capacity.

These were both excellent deals and they should havebeen picked up. We were on the wrong side of the fenceon this auction as sellers and not buyers, however ittaught me a valuable lesson. Timing is everything and itpays to know which factors can disrupt the attendance atauctions; bad weather being one.

So, when the weather is bad all the more reason to attend asthere’s a chance you could end up with a good deal. We are currently at the beginning of a spike in property prices

more so in the Central London region, not that this will be the onlyhot spot. I believe areas like Ealing and Shepard's Bush will begoing up heavily in the next 2-3 years. Naturally there will be a sea-sonal lull in prices over the Christmas period, after this time priceswill begin their rise being boosted by the government Help to Buyscheme, which will be rolled out in January 2014. Lending has increased currently, brokers are busy again and val-

uations are taking longer. This is a sign that prices are going up. It'sworth taking note the credit crunch was a shortage of credit, this iswhat led to a decrease in house prices. There is still a fundamentalrequirement for property in the UK this is highlighted in the BarkerReport commissioned by the government in 2004 which points to afundamental lack in the housing supply. Also this quote taken from The Housing Report November 2012

by the National Housing Federation, Shelter and the CharteredInstitute of Housing highlights it too: "DCLG has updated previ-ously published data on the number of new homes built overall in2011, providing an adjusted total of 114,160 homes – up 7% on theprevious year. As was noted in the last edition of The HousingReport, while this increase was welcome, the 2011 figure remainsthe lowest annual total of any year – aside from the 106,720 in2010 – for more than six decades. The numbers of new build startsappear to be far from healthy, hitting 23,510 in the three months tothe end of June 2012 – down slightly from the previous quarter, anddown 30% since the Government took office."Enough houses simply aren't being built. While housing supply

has fallen, demand has increased. We now need to build at the rateof at least 250,000 new homes a year to match the annual popula-tion growth, and at an even higher rate to replace our ageing hous-ing stock and meet the accumulated backlog.The Government has helped with its Help to Buy scheme, but

this alone will not be enough to stimulate the lack of supply. Thisshortage of property is good if you’re an investor. But the high levelof demand means it’s difficult to find deals. But this also meansyou're more likely to benefit from future capital growth.

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l Control your emotions. When it comes toan investment property don't consider thisemotionally; keep buying to live in and buy-ing to Let separate.

l The return on property can only come intwo forms, one is capital growth and theother is rental income; there is no thirdway. But capital growth is how you can-make most of the money and this is drivenby location.Follow us online:

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 201320 FINANCIAL VOICE

Indian steel giant Tata Steelhas confirmed plans to con-struct a new £15-millionfurnace at its SouthYorkshire plant in the UKto enable it to tap into newmarket opportunities anddevelop innovative newproducts for the aerospaceindustry.The vacuum inductionmelting (VIM) furnace atits Stocksbridge unit willenable the firm to increaseits supply of high-puritysteel to the aerospaceindustry and is expected tobe in operation by 2015.

“Having our own man-ufacturing capability willgreatly increase our scopefor VIM sales. This is aclear signal to our cus-tomers that we are fullycommitted to the aerospacemarket for the long term,”said Mark Broxholme,managing director of TataSpeciality Steels.

VIM productioninvolves melting and cast-ing steel in an oxygen-free

atmosphere, producingsteel which is very cleanwith a low gas content. Thedevelopment will also leadto more jobs as the compa-ny said there would also bea minor increase in thenumber of people workingat the site once the furnacewas constructed.

Tata Speciality Steelswill work with Germanmetallurgical technologycompany SMS Mevac, amajor supplier of vacuumsteelmaking equipment, tobuild the VIM facility.

“I am very much look-ing forward to seeing the

plant in full operation in2015, satisfying the require-ments of this demanding,high-end market,” saidMichael Thiehofe, manag-ing director at SMS Mevac.

Tata Steel UK is alsohoping to build a power sta-tion at its Port Talbot worksin Wales to replace oldequipment. The gas-fuelledpower station is likely totake three years to buildand is due to have a lifes-pan of 35 years. Accordingto local media reports, aproposal has been submit-ted to Neath Port TalbotCouncil which confirms

Tata’s intention to apply tothe planning inspectoratefor development consentfor the power station,which would be fuelledusing gases generated as aby-product of the steelmaking process.

“The proposed develop-ment therefore representsan opportunity to signifi-cantly increase energy effi-ciency,” the report says.

Tata Steel is looking toinstall two boilers and twosteam turbines connectedto the existing blast furnacegas distribution network inorder to receive gasesthrough the pipe work. Thefirm is looking to increaseits power generation capac-ity at Port Talbot from115.7MWe (Mega WattsElectrical) to 225MWe.

The European opera-tions of Tata Steel, whosemain steelmaking sites arein the UK and theNetherlands, compriseEurope’s second-largeststeel producer.

The Reserve Bank of India(RBI) raised interest ratesfor the second time in asmany months, warningthat inflation is likely toremain elevated despitesluggish growth, androlled back an emergencymeasure put in place inJuly to support the rupee.

The central bank liftedits policy repo rate by 25basis points (bps) to 7.75per cent.

"Overall WPI (whole-sale price index) inflationis expected to remain high-er than current levelsthrough most of theremaining part of the year,warranting an appropriatepolicy response," RBIGovernor RaghuramRajan said in his review.

While Rajan refrainedfrom giving more explicitguidance, some RBIwatchers say he may not

yet be finished tightening."Another hike is still possi-ble given that the policystance is still hawkish, notdovish at all," said GantiMurthy, head of fixedincome at IDBI AssetManagement Co Ltd. TheRBI next meets inDecember.

With the rupee havingstabilised after a summerslide, the RBI as expectedalso lowered its MarginalStanding Facility (MSF)

rate by a further 25 bps to8.75 per cent, which easesliquidity in the bankingsystem by lowering thecost of borrowing forlenders.

"Today's move was afollow-through of thehawkish September policyguidance, as high and per-sistent inflation is seen asan impediment to themedium-term growth out-look," said Radhika Rao,economist at DBS inSingapore.

India's benchmark 10-year bond yield dropped asmuch as 6 basis pointsfrom before the policystatement to 8.58 per cent,as traders were relievedthat the rate hike wasaccompanied by the MSFcut. The rupee erased loss-es to trade stronger on theday at 61.46/47 per dollarwhile stocks extended

gains.Food fightAnnual food inflation

accelerated to 18.4 percent in September, itshighest since mid-2010,pushed up by prices ofvegetables, includingonions, and stirring publicdiscontent ahead ofnational elections whichmust be held by next May.

However, India's econ-omy grew at just 4.4 percent in the June quarter,its slowest since early2009. The 5 per centgrowth rate recorded inthe last fiscal year throughMarch was the weakest ina decade.

The RBI expects theeconomy again to grow at5 per cent in the currentfiscal year that ends inMarch, below its earlierforecast of around 5.5 percent but still above many

private-sector forecasts."The pass-through of

rupee depreciation intoprices of manufacturedproducts is acting, alongwith elevated food andfuel inflation, to offsetpossible disinflationaryeffects of low growth,"Rajan said in his policystatement.

The headline whole-sale price index unexpect-edly hit a seven-monthhigh in September of 6.46per cent as food pricessurged, while the con-sumer price index jumpedan annual 9.84 per cent.

The RBI said CPI infla-tion would remain above 9per cent in coming months"absent policy action."

D.K. Joshi, principaleconomist at Crisil Ltd inMumbai, said future ratemoves would depend oninflation readings.

A mansion on a super-expensive street nick-named 'Billionaire's row'has become the UK's mostvaluable repossession aftergoing on the market for£30million.

The house, namedDryades, is located in thecentre of The BishopsAvenue, a leafy street inNorth London. But theproperty, owned by aPakistani political dynasty,has been seized by thebank after a lengthy HighCourt battle.

The 8,000square-foothome has now been put onthe market by the bank fora staggering £30million,but plans are already inmotion to knock the exist-ing house down andreplace it with a giant newhome.

Planning permissionhas been granted byBarnet Council for a

46,000square-foot replace-ment, which could morethan triple the presentvalue of the property. Itsvalue could approach £100million mark when com-pleted - making it one ofthe country’s most valu-

able new residences.The property was

bought for around£12,000,000 in 2005 bythe family of Pakistan’sformer privatisation minis-ter Senator Waqar AhmedKhan as they looked toinvest in the London prop-erty market. In 2007 it wasused to secure a £50mil-lion loan with DeutscheBank, but a lengthy ‘debtand possession’ disputebetween both partiesresulted in the family los-ing the home earlier thisyear.

maria@abplgroup.comMaria Fernandes

The NHS: The levyfor migrants

The plan to charge £200levy on migrants does notseem unreasonable at firstsight particularly then tax-payers are alreadystretched. However thehype that preceded thisand the estimated costshave been estimated, andthe benefits wildly exag-gerated.

What is discussed ishealth tourism which sug-gests that the problem lieswith visitors. If this is thecase (and there is no evi-dence that it is) than it issurprising that they will notbe caught by the proposedlevy system. Visitors arecurrently not allowed toseek medical treatmentother than emergency carewhich should be availablefor everyone no matterwhere they come from.After all if someone had aninfectious disease therewould be implications forthe wider public and in ourinterests that the person istreated.

The UK also has recip-rocal agreements withmost European countriesand 28 other nations,including countries suchas Canada and Australia.Therefore if their nationalsused our services wecould reclaim the cost ofthat care from the othercountry. The researchreleased by theDepartment of Healthindicates that the NHS isnot very good at recoup-ing the money.

Charging those whocome to the UK is unfairas they pay their taxesand as part of that areentitled to receive NHScare. With students,some of them work and inthe same position. The

profile of this category ofperson is of young work-ing age people who areunlikely to need healthcare. If required to pay alevy, which after all isminiscule in terms of thetotal amount spent mayencourage this group totry to get their money’sworth and this may endup costing even more thananticipated.

The total budget of theNHS is £104 billion and thecosts that are being target-ed amount to around £30million or 0.15%. Once theadditional administrativecosts of putting this inpractice are taken intoaccount this figure willshrink even more. A sledgehammer to crack a nut?

The group most likelyto seek treatment are expats who live abroad, andaccordingly, althoughBritish, do not pay UKtaxes but come to the UKwhen they become ill andreceive treatment. Thereis no bar to them doing soif they are coming over tosettle here. They will beable to continue using theservices.

Whilst the Governmentclaim that they want toattract the bright and thebest, they continue to tar-get migrants by increasedregulations. Undoubtedlythe levy will start aprocess at a low figureand slowly but surely thefigure will begin toincrease as it is a captiveaudience without much ofa say. These groupsalready have to pay largeamounts of money toenter and to study or workin the UK. To expect themto pay even more may beone step too far.

Tata Steel to build £15 mnfurnace at UK plant

Most expensive mansion repossessed

RBI raises repo rate by 25 bps, eases rupee support

The Tata-SingaporeAirlines (SIA) joint venturefull service airline will soontake to the skies. TheForeign InvestmentPromotion Board (FIPB)cleared this proposal inwhich Tatas will have 51%stake, investing $51 millioninitially, and SIA will have49% share and invest $49million to begin with.

India’s economic affairssecretary Arvind Mayaramtold reporters that the dealwas cleared without anyriders for the proposedDelhi-based airline. Tata-SIA will now require secu-rity clearance from thehome ministry along withnods from first the aviationministry and then a licencefrom the directorate generalof civil aviation (DGCA).A Tata Group spokesmansaid: "We are yet to formallyhear from the FIPB. We aredelighted with the reportsof approval. As and whenthe formal approval comes,we will progress with thesubsequent stages of theprocess."

However desperate toshrug off charges of inertia,UPA-II is keen that the air-line starts within itsremaining term. Tata-SIAhad applied to FIPB onSeptember 19 and got thesame in just over a month.

"Tata-AirAsia applica-tion for starting a low costairline had to wait for alonger time to get FIPB nodwhich they got on March 6,2013. The ministryapproved it last month andnow the DGCA is in theprocess of issuing it thelicence that may happen byDecember. So the entireprocess from filing for FIPBnod to actually start flyingfor Tata-AirAsia will havetaken about a year,” saidsources.

Tata-SIA airlinesgets FIPB nod,to take off soon

Senator Waqar Ahmed Khan

Raghuram Rajan

FINANCIAL VOICEwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November2013 21

GBP - INR = 98.51

USD - INR = 61.31

EUR - INR = 84.46

GBP - USD = 1.61

GBP - EUR = 1.17

EUR - USD = 1.38

GBP - AED = 5.89

GBP - CAD = 1.68

GBP - NZD = 1.94

GBP - AUD = 1.69

GBP - ZAR = 15.85

GBP - HUF = 342.98

www.rationalfx.com

Foreign Exchange

Information provided by RationalFX.None of the information on this pageconstitutes, nor should be construedas financial advice. The exchangerates used are the commercial foreignexchange rates provided byRationalFX. For a live quote or to findout more about how RationalFX canhelp you, call us on 0207 220 8181.

WeeklyCurrenciesAs of Tuesday

29th October 2013 @ 4.15pm

On Friday 25th October we sawa 0.8% rise in GDP for the thirdquarter of 2013 meaning the UKeconomy posted its strongestgrowth since the second quarterof 2010. On a year-on-year basis,the UK economy is 1.5% largerthan a year ago. This was led bya 0.7% increase in the UK’s serv-ice sector. Strong job creationover the summer has cut the job-less rate to 7.7% from 7.8%which has surprised Bank ofEngland officials, meaning thatthey may have to revise theirforecasts for growth, unemploy-ment and inflation.

The recovery has largelybeen driven this year byincreased consumer spendingand falling household savings.Cheap financing has encouragedconsumers into the shops, carshowrooms and estate agents.The housing market is surging,retail sales rose at their strongestrate for five years in the thirdquarter and car sales were upmore than 10% year on year inSeptember. It would be better ifthis was an exports and invest-ment driven recovery, but con-sumption led growth is a goodstart.

Earlier in the week, we sawthe Bank of England’s MonetaryPolicy Committee voting unani-mously at 9-0 to keep quantita-tive easing at £375bn and keepinterest rates low.

In terms of their view on theeconomic recovery, they esti-mate that growth in the secondhalf of the year would remainaround 0.7% a quarter or a littlehigher which is stronger thanexpected from August’s inflationreport. The BoE also felt that therecent reduction in the unem-ployment rate to 7.7% wasreducing slightly faster thanexpected. Despite the positive

outlook it failed to have mucheffect on the pound.

The US dollar continued toslide to the weakest level sinceFebruary as investor appetite forriskier assets rose on bets theFederal Reserve will delay taper-ing stimulus into 2014. The U.S.dollar index, which monitors thegreenback against 10 othermajor currencies, fell by 1% lastweek commencing Monday 21stOctober.

Data from the LabourDepartment showed that theofficial unemployment rate fellto 7.2% in September, non-farmpayroll figures revealed that only

148,000 new jobs were added inthe same month instead of anexpected addition of 180,000.The data suggests that the USeconomy was weakening evenbefore the government shut-down and as stated above, willdelay the Fed’s decision to taperits monetary policy programme.

Friday’s durable goodsorders data and the expectationthat September retail sales willfall is another indicator thatrisks for the economy are stillskewed to the downside and themanufacturing cycle doesn'tseem to have gained momentum.The Fed has promised not toraise rates until unemploymentdrops to at least 6.5%, providedinflation looks set to stay under2.5%. The jobless rate stood at7.2% in September.

On Tuesday 29th October,we saw the Reserve Bank ofIndia decide to raise interestrates 7.75% in an attempt tofight inflation and despite slug-gish growth. India’s annual rateof inflation rose to 9.84% inSeptember from 9.52% inAugust. Growth slowed in thesecond quarter to 4.4% on anannual basis.

UK Economy posted good growth

Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX, Currency Specialists.

Washington: As expected,Pakistan Prime MinisterNawaz Sharif failed to getany traction with USPresident Barack Obama onhis wish list - US mediationon Kashmir, nuclear paritywith India and an end todrone strikes on suspectedterror dens in Pakistani terri-tory.

Despite being rebuffed byboth India and the US, Sharifdid once again dutifully raiseKashmir during his two hourmeeting with Obama at theWhite House, but the jointstatement made no mentionof it or the drones. Speakingto the media with Obamaafter their Oval office meet-ing, Sharif said he was com-mitted to cooperation withIndia, including on Kashmir.

And while India hasdescribed Pakistan as the"epicentre of terrorism" andlinked any progress on peacetalks to Islamabad shuttingdown its "machinery of ter-rorism" he told Obama that"terrorism constitutes a com-

mon threat" for Pakistan andIndia. "We need to ally ourrespective concerns throughserious and sincere effortswithout indulging in anyblame game," Sharif said. Hehad also "brought up theissue of drones in our meet-ing, emphasizing the need foran end to such strikes," hesaid. Obama, on his part,made no mention of eitherKashmir or drone strikes inPakistan that according toSharif "has become a majorirritant in our bilateral rela-tionship" besides being a "a

continual violation of our ter-ritorial integrity."

Acknowledging tensionsand "misunderstandings"between the two countries,Obama said he and Sharifhad pledged to work togetheron security issues in waysthat "respect Pakistan's sov-ereignty.

"We committed to work-ing together and making surethat rather than this being asource of tension betweenour two countries, this can bea source of strength for usworking together," he said.

Obama also praisedSharif for seeking to end ten-sions with India saying, "Ithink he is taking a very wisepath in exploring howdecades of tension betweenIndia and Pakistan can bereduced." Noting that "bil-lions of dollars have beenspent on an arms race inresponse to these tensions,"he said those resources couldbe much more properlyinvested in education, socialwelfare programmes on bothsides of the border betweenIndia and Pakistan.

The joint statement notedthat "the two Leadersstressed that improvement inPakistan-India bilateral rela-tions would greatly enhanceprospects for lasting regionalpeace, stability, and prosperi-ty, as it would significantlybenefit the lives of citizens onboth sides of the border."

In this context, it saidObama welcomed recentengagements between Sharifand Indian Prime MinisterManmohan Singh.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 201322 PAKISTAN-BANGLADESH-SRI LANKAIn FocusGirl buried alive afterrape in Pakistan, survivesLahore: A teenage girl was buried aliveafter being raped in Pakistan's Punjabprovince, prompting a court to order aprobe into the brutal attack. SiddiqueMughal, a resident of a village in TobaTek Singh district, told police that his 13-year-old daughter was abducted by twounidentified men. The men took the girlto a deserted place and raped her. Theybelieved she had died during the assaultand buried her, Mughal said. However,the girl regained consciousness and dugher way out of the mud covering her.

Bangla opposition ralliesturn violent, 5 killedDhaka: At least five protesters werekilled and over 300 injured as workers ofthe main opposition BNP clashed withsecurity forces during rallies acrossBangladesh demanding a neutral care-taker government to oversee the nextgeneral election. BNP chief Khaleda Zia,addressing a massive rally here, issuedan ultimatum to her archrival PM SheikhHasina to initiate talks on her demand.The former PM said if the demand wasnot accepted, the party would enforceanother nationwide strike.

Pakistan to sendSarabjit’s belongingshomeIslamabad: The Pakistan governmentwill send the belongings of Indian prison-er Sarabjit Singh who died afterinmates in the Lahore central jail assault-ed him with bricks in April. A spokesper-son in the interior ministry confirmedthat the Government was shortly plan-ning to send the belongings after arequest by the Indian authorities. Thejail authorities said that a number ofsmall articles like his cup, spoon, plate,his clothes and shoes along with somebooks and other belongings were sent tothe ministry of interior last week.

Pakistani man charged withassaulting Hindu womanIslamabad: A Pakistani court has sent aman to three days' police custody oncharges of assaulting and stripping off aHindu woman in broad daylight in Sindhprovince. After police in New Chhor townin Umerkot district presented the suspectbefore the second judicial magistrate,the court remanded him in police cus-tody for three days. A case has beenregistered under the Pakistan Penal Code- assault or use of criminal force onwoman and stripping her of clothes.

Two Indian prisoners seekreduction in sentencesIslamabad: Two Indian prisoners haveapproached the Lahore High Court (LHC)and sought a reduction in their prisonsentences, and include the time spent injail as under trials. Lahore High Courtjudge Justice Ayesha A Malik hassought a reply from the PakistanGovernment on the appeals. A Pakistanimilitary court had sentenced MuhammadAfzal and Muhammad Islam to serve fouryears each on charges of spying forIndia, the report added.

China, Pakistan to boostdefence tiesBeijing: China and Pakistan have decid-ed to further firm up their close militaryties by expanding their defence coopera-tion as visiting Pakistan army chiefAshfaq Parvez Kayani met topdefence officials here. China andPakistan have agreed to update their mil-itary ties and drive new progress incooperation, state-run Xinhua newsagency reported. Fan Changlong, vice-chairman of China's Central MilitaryCommission, who met Kayani praised thefruitful development of bilateral militaryrelations, which "mirrors our all-weatherfriendship".

Obama says 'no' to Sharif on Kashmir, nuclear parity

Islamabad: Pakistan PrimeMinister Nawaz will hold acrucial meeting in Londonthis week with his Britishcounterpart David Cameronand President Hamid Karzaito boost the Afghan reconcil-iation process.

Sharif will hold the meet-ing on the sidelines of theWorld Islamic EconomicForum in the British capital.The premier left for Londonon Monday afternoon.

The UK's trilateral peaceinitiative, the fourth sincethe summer of 2012, isaimed at strengtheningcooperation betweenAfghanistan and Pakistanand to encourage an Afghan-led peace deal. The last tri-lateral meet was held inFebruary.

Nawaz and Karzai lastmet on August 26 when theAfghan leader visitedPakistan to seek full supportand greater cooperation inthe peace and reconciliationprocess.

This is the World IslamicEconomic Forum's first

annual event in Europe fol-lowing meetings in Malaysia,Kazakhstan, Indonesia,Kuwait and Pakistan.

He would also hold bilat-eral talks with leaders of sev-eral countries, including hisMalaysian counterpart NajibRazak, King Abdullah ofJordan, the Sultan of Brunei,Indonesian President andthe President of Kosovo.

He will talk about thesteps it is taking to createbusiness and investmentopportunities and will alsodiscuss matters relating tofostering greater economiccooperation and collabora-tion among the Muslimcountries and between theIslamic countries and therest of the world.

Senior members of theBritish Cabinet will call onSharif, including ForeignSecretary William Hague,Home Secretary TheresaMay and InternationalDevelopment SecretaryJustine Greening. Pakistan-UK relations will be dis-cussed in these meetings.

Islamabad: Pakistan said thetrial in the Mumbai attackcase would be carried for-ward based on the informa-tion brought by a judicialcommission that had visitedIndia recently.

"Based on the informa-tion brought by the judicialcommission, our courts willproceed further," ForeignOffice spokesman AizazChaudhry said.

Chaudhry said thatPakistan would need moreevidence from the Indianside. Asked what he hadmeant by "more evidence" hehad said, "I do not have thedetails. The point is that thetwo countries need to worktogether in a cooperative

manner so that trials takeplace with proper evidence".

Replying to queries onkind of evidence needed,since the Pakistani judicialcommission had a successfultrip to India, Pakistani offi-cials didn't elaborate and saidthey would have to check onthe latest developments.

Incidentally, Chaudhry'scomments about need foradditional evidence wasmissing from the official tran-scripts released to the medialater. Replying to a query onif the slow pace of Mumbaiterror attack was discussedbetween Pakistan PrimeMinister Nawaz Sharif andUS President Barack Obama,he said issues relating to

counter-terrorism were dis-cussed. "The prime ministermade it clear that the issue ofterrorism is of as much con-cern to Pakistan as for Indiaif not more. In fact we are thevictims of terrorism. Theanswer lies in working jointlyto defeat this commonenemy," he said.

Asked whether Pakistanstill needs more evidencefrom India, Chaudhry said,"Please check with the min-istry of interior".

Meanwhile, advisor toprime minister on nationalsecurity and foreign affairsSartaj Aziz said Pakistanwould take action againstMumbai attacks accusedHafiz Saeed if they get "con-

crete legal evidence" to do so."We told them that the

trial of Mumbai suspects willstart soon...we will takeaction against Hafiz Saeed ifwe have concrete legal evi-dence to do so," Aziz said inan interview. Pakistan's pros-ecution team had earlier saidtheir trip to Mumbai was"excellent from the prosecu-tion's point of view". Specialpublic prosecutor ChaudhuryMohammed Azhar had saidthe Indian authorities coop-erated with the Pakistanicommission.

The Mumbai attacks trialhere in Pakistan has beengoing on at a slow pace andon October 23, it was post-poned by another two weeks.

Islamabad: A court inPakistan has observed thatnobody, be it the federal gov-ernment or parliament, wasready to bring in legislation torein in the Inter-ServicesIntelligence (ISI), Pakistan'sall-powerful intelligenceagency controlled by the mili-tary.

While hearing the case of282 missing people in KhyberPakhtunkhwa province, ChiefJustice of the Peshawar HighCourt (PHC) DostMuhammad Khan warnedthat the courts would beforced to restrict the membersof the law enforcing agenciesand security forces to theirbarracks if they continued towhisk away citizens on a dailybasis through unlawfulmeans, The NewsInternational reported.

The report quoted Khanas saying that the provincialand federal governments hadbecome spectators to the vio-lation of the constitution, lawand fundamental rights of thecitizens by the intelligenceagencies and security forces.

The chief justice observedthat the government and thedemocratic system of thecountry would run smoothlyonly when the law enforcingagencies acted under the law.

He also pointed out thatthe US intelligence agencyCIA too was a powerful intel-ligence agency but its top offi-cials would appear immedi-ately before a court wheneverasked to do so.

The court submitted thatlike the US, the civilian gov-ernment should also make theISI its subordinate.

The judge said that thepeople's problems are on therise and illegal detention cen-tres in the country have alsobecome a big problem for thejudiciary.

However, AdditionalAttorney General of PakistanSyed Attique Shah submittedbefore the two-member benchthat the federal government,following the guidelines of thehigh

courts and SupremeCourt, had established a taskforce for missing persons.

Mumbai attack trial to proceed onjudicial panel's information: Pakistan

Sharif to attend crucial meetingon Afghan in London

Nobody ready to rein inISI: Pak court

Nawaz Sharif with Barack Obama

WORLDwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013 23

Beijing: China and Indiasigned a deal aimed atsoothing tension on theircontested border, as thetwo nuclear-armed giantstry to break a decades-old stalemate on overlap-ping claims to longremote stretches of theHimalayas.

The agreement wassigned in Beijing's GreatHall of the People follow-ing a meeting betweenIndian Prime MinisterManmohan Singh andChinese Premier LiKeqiang.

China, a close ally ofIndia's long-time foe,Pakistan, lays claim tomore than 90,000 sq kmdisputed by New Delhi inthe eastern sector of theHimalayas. India saysChina occupies 38,000square km of its territoryon the Aksai Chinplateau in the west.

The two countriesfought a brief border warin 1962 and since thenties have been mired indistrust, with a series ofalleged violations byChinese military patrolsearlier this year.

"I am sure it will helpto maintain peace, tran-quility and stability inour border areas,"China's Li told reportersfollowing talks withSingh.

The border defencecooperation agreement isbuilt on existing confi-dence-building measuresand is designed to ensurethat patrolling along theLine of Actual Control,as the unsettled border iscalled, does not escalateinto an unintended skir-mish, an Indian officialsaid last week.

Singh said the agree-ment "will add to theexisting instruments toensure peace, stabilityand predictability on our

borders".Under the new deal,

the two sides will givenotice of patrols alongthe ill-defined border toensure that patrols donot "tail" each other toreduce the chance ofconfrontation and willexercise "maximum self-restraint" should the twosides come face to face inareas where the line ofcontrol is unclear.

Peace at borderimportant: Manmohan

While addressing anaudience at the CentralSchool of CommunistParty of China in Beijing,Singh stressed on theneed for sustained bilat-eral cooperation betweenIndia and China. Hestressed that the twonations are activelyengaged in the socio-eco-nomic transformation of“our people”.

He also congratulatedChina on its positive eco-nomic reform and stated

that its growth is asource of inspiration forIndia. He stressed on thefact that India welcomeschina’s emergence. Singhadded that, India andChina cannot be con-tained, and “our recenthistory is witness tothis”.

Singh, in his addressto young leaders talkedabout the need for a con-ducive environment tofoster economic success.He also said that bothIndia and China are ben-eficiaries of an openinternational economythat has been witnessingthe free flow of impor-tant ingredients to suc-cess such as finance.

Singh also talkedabout the challengesposed by the emergingglobal environment. Heurged that the nationsshould work together ina situation where politi-cal and economic powersare being diffused.

China, India sign deal aimedat soothing border tension

People from India,China out-educatingAmericans: Obama

New York: Billions of peo-ple from countries likeIndia and China are strivinghard to "out-educate"Americans in mathematicsand technology, USPresident Barack Obamahas said while stressing oneducation reforms to pre-pare Americans for a globaleconomy where "jobs cango anywhere."

"In previous genera-tions, America's standingeconomically was so muchhigher than everybodyelse's that we did not have alot of competition," Obamasaid. "Now you have got bil-

lions of people from Beijingto Bangalore to Moscow, allof whom are competingwith you directly. And theyare - those countries areworking every day to out-educate and out-competeus," Obama said in hisremarks to students at thePathways in TechnologyEarly College High Schoolin Brooklyn.

"And every year bringsmore research showingthem pulling ahead, espe-cially in some of the subjectmatter that this school spe-cialises in - math and sci-ence and technology. So wehave got a choice to make,"he said.

He said if the workforceis not educated enough, itwill be left behind and findit hard to get a job that pays

a living wage."We live in a 21st centu-

ry global economy. And in aglobal economy, jobs can goanywhere. Companies, theyare looking for the best-educated people, whereverthey live, and they willreward them with good jobsand good pay," the presi-dent said. "We can just kindof shrug our shoulders andsettle for something less, orwe can do what Americahas always done, which isadapt. We pull together, weup our game, we hustle, wefight back, we work hard,and we win," he said.

Obama joked that hehad asked students at theBrooklyn school if theycould help him help hisdaughter Malia with hermath homework.

"I don't know if some ofyou have experienced thiswhere you get to the pointwhere your children askyou for help and you sud-denly realise you have noidea what's going on," hesaid amid laughter from hisyoung audience. ThePresident said America hasto educate its young peopleand prepare them for theglobal economy.

With the cost of highereducation escalating,Obama said he was work-ing hard to reduce the bur-den of student loans onyoung people.

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AnotherAmericanbeauty queenof IndianoriginWashington:Eighteen-year-oldIndian-American EmilyShah has won MissNew Jersey USA 2014title, following in thefootsteps of NinaDavuluri, who wascrowned Miss Americarecently. Emily wouldnow compete for MissAmerica and MissUniverse titles.Shuffling between Indiaand America, Emily hasdabbled in cinema, hav-ing acted in bothBollywood andHollywood films. Shefeatured in Hollywoodmovies like “The GreatNew Wonderful” withNaseeruddin Shah andBollywood films such as“Out of Control” along-side Riteish Deshmukh,“Ta Ra Rum Pum”,“Jaaneman” amongothers.

Indian martyrshonoured inEgyptCairo: Indian martyrswho had played a piv-otal role in the famousBattle of El Alamein,considered to be aturning point during theSecond World War,have been honoured bythe Indian Embassyhere. On the 71stanniversary of the bat-tle, Indian AmbassadorNavdeep Suri laid awreath at the warmemorial. Soldiers ofthe Indian infantry divi-sions had fought withgreat valour during theentire North AfricanCampaign and theirheroic performancehave won them richaccolades.

In Focus

Manmohan Singh with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang

Barack Obama

The Tamil Nadu legislativeassembly unanimouslypassed a resolution urgingthe Indian government toboycott the CommonwealthHeads of GovernmentMeeting slated to be held inColombo in November.

Prime MinisterManmohan Singh hadreportedly informed theDMK leadership recentlythat a decision on India'sparticipation in theCHOGM would be takenconsidering all the "relevantfactors", and the sentimentsof the people of Tamil Naduand the party.

Chief minister JJayalalithaa moved the reso-lution during a short-dura-tion session. The mainopposition parties, theDMK, the DMDK, theCongress, and the Left par-ties, the CPI and the CPMhailed the resolution reflect-ing the sentiments of Tamilsaround the world.

The resolution said Indiashould not send even repre-sentatives for the meetingbeing hosted by Sri Lanka."The Indian governmentshould also take steps to getSri Lanka suspended fromthe CHOGM until the

Island nation ensures Tamilsget equal rights on a parwith Sinhalese," the resolu-tion said.

While welcoming the res-olution, Tamil NaduCongress committee legisla-ture party leader K Gopinathalso sought to register hisparty's apprehensions overIndia's bilateral relations withLanka in future, especially onsecurity issues.

The Congress legislatordetailed the efforts taken bythe UPA government for thewelfare of Lankan Tamils inrecent years, including Rs 40billion it sanctioned for

infrastructure developmentin the Tamil areas in SriLanka and the constitutionof a committee to supervisethe schemes. "Our party lostits leader Rajiv Gandhi tothe Sri Lankan Tamil wel-fare issue," Gopinath said.

In March, the TamilNadu assembly had passed aresolution calling for a refer-endum on Eelam (separateTamil land) for Tamils in SriLanka and the displacedTamils living in other coun-tries. Jayalalithaa had statedthen that the aspirations ofSri Lankan Tamils could berealized only through Eelam.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 201324 INDIA

Police put up with acrank who madeabusive calls to thepolice control roomfor more than ayear, often makingsexual overtures towomen constables.But they finallydecided that enough wasenough and arrested the man. According to police, TPaneerselvam, 27, a lorrycleaner, made more than1,200 calls to the police con-trol room, starting from June2012, while drinking with afriend in Vadanemili inKancheepuram.

"He switched off hisphone immediately aftermaking a call to avoid beingcaught," a senior police offi-cer said. Paneerselvam wouldnot disconnect, even if apolicewomen on the otherend of the line transferred thecall to a policeman, the offi-

cer said. In fact, hewould demand thathe be allowed tospeak to a police-woman.

The officerd e s c r i b e dPaneerselvam, whomade between eight

and 15 calls to the controlroom every day, as being"abusive and menacing" onthe phone.

Police officers did nottake the calls seriously,believing that Paneerselvamwas one of the many peoplewho make prank calls topolice. This emboldenedPaneerselvam and he madeeven more calls to the controlroom.

"He used the same SIMcard to make the calls but hadseveral cellphones," an inves-tigating officer said. "Hewould call at random both atnight and during the day."

Congress vice-presi-dent Rahul Gandhi'sremarks about thedeath of his grand-mother Indira Gandhihas angered Sikh bod-ies. Sikh radicalorganization DalKhalsa has accusedboth Congress and BJPof allegedly teasing theSikhs."As we reminisce thedark days ofNovember 1984, thescion of the ruling fami-ly has chosen to call thedeath of his grandmotheras 'victimization based onanger and hatred'," said DalKhalsa spokespersonKanwar Pal Singh.

While speaking at apolitical rally in Churu,Rajasthan, Rahul Gandhihad mentioned thatSatwant Singh and BeantSingh had killed his grand-mother Indira Gandhi."Rahul has convenientlychosen not to mention thereasons for the anger,which his family, his gov-ernment and the Congresscontinue to ignore to thisday," Singh said.

Meanwhile, the Delhi

Sikh GurdwaraManagement Committee(DSGMC) also took strongexception to Rahul’sremarks. "If Rahul says hisgrandmother and fatherwere killed by communalforces, then who killedmore than 5,000 innocentSikhs all over the countryin the carnage of November1984," DSGMC presidentManjit Singh GK asked.

"The comments byRahul Gandhi has angeredSikhs because in his speechhe has not touched theissue of anti-Sikh carnageof 1984, and he should seekforgiveness for that," GKsaid.

Punjab Deputy ChiefMinister Sukhbir SinghBadal is meeting top industri-alists and business captainsto attract investment to hisdebt-ridden state. In recentdays, Sukhbir has met withTata Sons chairman CyrusMistry, Infosys chairmanN.R. Narayan Murthy,Biocon head KiranMazumdar Shaw, Bajaj Autochairman Rahul Bajaj,Godrej boss Adi Godrej,Hinduja group chairmanAshok P. Hinduja, Mahindraand Mahindra chairmanAnand Mahindra, JSW Steelchairman Sajjan Jindal,Adlabs chairman ManmohanShetty, Force Motors chair-man Abhay Firodia and sev-eral other CEOs and topbosses of companies.

He has travelled toMumbai and Bangalore tomeet with the big names inthe game. Even his father andPunjab Chief MinisterParkash Singh Badal visitedMumbai recently. He is evensending delegations to othercountries like Taiwan, acountry with which India hasno diplomatic ties. He recent-ly travelled to Dubai andTurkey to see development

projects there.The state witnessed a

lengthy phase of terrorism(1981-1993) which sawalmost nil investment at thattime and subsequently. Evenas it came out of that period,no investment came toPunjab as neighbouring hillstates Himachal Pradesh andJammu and Kashmir got a 10-year tax holiday package forindustry investing there.

Punjab, primarily an agri-cultural state with just 1.54per cent of the country's geo-graphical area, has its ownset of problems to deal with.It has a 553-km long interna-tional border with Pakistan,power shortage is a way oflife with outages running intoseveral hours daily and alarge percentage of popula-tion, especially youth, is onsome form of drugs.

AIADMK fields Saroja forYercaud by-electionThe AIADMK has fielded P Saroja as its can-didate to contest the Yercaud by-poll sched-uled for December 4. The by-poll was necessi-tated by the death of AIADMK MLA C Perumalin July. Saroja is Perumal's wife. Meanwhile,DMK had announced V Maran as its candidateand sought support from all the political par-ties. While Bharatiya Janata Party has declaredthat it would not contest the poll, actorVijayakanth’s DMDK and the Congress haveremained silent on the issue. The Left parties,the CPI and the CPM have extended supportto the ruling AIADMK for the by-poll.

DMK serves legal notice toJayalalithaaThe DMK slapped a legal notice on TamilNadu chief minister Jayalalithaa and otherscharging her government with misusing offi-cial position by propagating her party's sym-bol "two leaves" on recently launched publictransport buses, besides complaining toElection Commission. The DMK legal winghas served the notices to state's transportminister Senthil Balaji, chief secretarySheela Balaakrishnan and Managing Directorof Metropolitan Transport Corporation amongothers. The DMK also petitioned the ElectionCommission to derecognize AIADMK for vio-lating model code of conduct in the Yercaudassemby by-poll.

Lecturer kills wife forstudying MTechAll that the 28-year-old HG Preetha ofBangalore wanted to do was complete herMTech course, but she paid a heavy pricebecause her husband had only a BE degree.Santosh Kumar smashed her head with acrowbar at their residence. Preetha suc-cumbed to her injuries later. Santosh, 32, alecturer told police that he fought withPreetha after she refused to discontinue herMTech course. Santosh was against Preethapursuing MTech. In a fit of rage, he hit herwith the crowbar.

South

Heroin worth Rs 1.20 bnrecovered in AmritsarThe Punjab police arrested four men inAmritsar and recovered 24 kg of heroinworth Rs.1.20 billion on the internationalmarket from them, an officer said. Sourcesin the state special operations cell said thatthe recovery was made near the MillenniumGate following a tip-off that a big drugs con-signment was being carried by a group ofsmugglers. This year, the BSF has recoverednearly 282 kg of heroin along the 553 kminternational border in Punjab. In 2012, ithad recovered more than 288 kg of heroin.

ASI to begin restorationwork of Rani MahalHeritage lovers could soon get a chance tosee the historic Rani Mahal in Bathinda fortrestored to its past glory. The dilapidatededifice, situated atop the main gate of QuilaMubarak, where India's first woman ruler,Razia Sultana, was imprisoned, is consid-ered to be the most important structure inthe fort. A team of Archeological Survey ofIndia (ASI) visited Rani Mahal. The teamprepared drawings and took pictures, aheadof starting the restoration work of the struc-ture without altering its original shape. Italso noted minutest details of the murals onthe ceiling and walls.

3 Pakistani smugglers killedAt least three Pakistani smugglers werekilled by Border Security Force (BSF) troop-ers along the India-Pakistan internationalborder in Amritsar. Officials said that theshootout took place when alert BSF troop-ers noticed some movement at the electri-fied barbed wire fence on the internationalborder near Mullankot border out post. Thetroopers accosted the intruders, who wereinside India territory. A shootout ensued asthe intruders fired at the BSF followingwhich the troopers fired back.

Punjab

The group of ministers(GoM), set up to look intothe bifurcation of AndhraPradesh, will submit itsreport to the Union Cabinetbefore the winter session ofParliament, home ministerSushilkumar Shinde said.

"We will submit the reportbefore the winter sessionbegins," Shinde who headsthe seven member GoM toldreporters.

Shinde, however, refusedto divulge anything on whenTelangana will come intoexistence. "There is a process(of creating new state). Whenthe Parliament passes the(Telangana) bill, the newstate will be formed," he said.

The high-powered minis-terial panel had detailed dis-cussions over sharing of riverwater, power, distribution ofassets and demarcating ofboundaries in its two meet-ings held early this month.

The GoM will also lookinto the legal and administra-tive measures required toensure that both Telanganaand the residuary state ofAndhra Pradesh can functionefficiently from Hyderabad asthe common capital for 10years. Detailed reports,department-wise, are nowbeing prepared and will bepresented before the nextmeeting of the GoM to beheld on November 7.

The panel was constitutedto address all the issues thatneed resolution at the centraland state government levels inthe matter. After its firstmeeting on October 11, theGoM had said it wouldaddress all concerns of thepeople of Andhra Pradeshwith "fairness and objectivity".

The GoM has already dis-cussed the approach andmethodology to be adoptedby it.

TN house resolution calls India toboycott Colombo CHOGM

Rahul Gandhi

Chennai man held for making1,200 abusive calls to cops

Report on Telangana beforewinter session: Shinde

Sikh bodies fume at Rahul'sremarks over Indira death

Sukhbir Badal seeks investmentfrom big business in the state

INDIAwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013 25

In FocusThe Supreme Court ofIndia dismissed a pleaseeking its direction to theCBI to name PrimeMinister Manmohan Singhin its FIR filed againstindustrialist KumarMangalam Birla and for-mer coal secretary P CParakh in a coal block allo-cation case.

"The probe is still goingon and it is for the CBI offi-cials to look into it," abench headed by justice RM Lodha said when thepetitioner submitted thatthe Prime Minister shouldalso be questioned as hehimself recently justified

the decision taken by himas a coal minister to allo-cate the natural resourcesto Hindalco in which FIRhas been filed.

"You are reaching at theconclusion when the probeis going on," the bench,also comprising justicesMadan B Lokur andKurian Joseph, said.

It also rejected anotherapplication seeking itsdirection to the PrimeMinister to file an affidavitto make his stand clear onthe allocation of coalblocks which has comeunder the CBI's scrutinyand the agency has filed

FIR. The application, filedby advocate M L Sharmasaid, "Prime MinisterManmohan Singh was indirect charge of the coalministry as the coal minis-ter in 2005 and had decid-ed to allot the coal block tovarious allottees includingHindalco."

Sharma, who was oneof the petitioners on whosePIL the apex court is mon-itoring the probe in coal-gate, also sought court'sdirection to government toplace before the bench allthe recommendation let-ters written by variousministers in favour of pri-

vate companies for alloca-tion of blocks.

He said in his applica-tion that for the first timesince the coal block alloca-tion scam cropped up, thePrime Minister hasexplained about one alloca-tion. "But there have beenmore than 150 coal blockallocations, so will he beable to explain all ofthem?" he said.

The PMO had onOctober 19 defended thedecision as "appropriate"and said the PrimeMinister had approved iton the basis of "merits" ofthe case placed before him.

Coalgate: SC dismisses plea against ManmohanAir Marshal Arup Raha named next IAFchiefThe government on Tuesday announced that AirMarshal Arup Raha will take over as the next chief ofthe Indian Air Force after Air Chief Marshal NAKBrowne retires on December 31, 2013. Commissionedinto the IAF in December 1974 in the "Fighter Stream",Air Marshal Raha is currently posted as the IAF vice-chief. During a career spanning over 39 years, he hasheld various command, staff and instructional appoint-ments in the force. He has served as air attache at theIndian embassy in Ukraine and commanded the CentralAir Command and the Western Air Command.

Harsh Vardhan is BJP's choice forDelhi CMBJP has chosen Harsh Vardhan as its choice for theDelhi chief minister’s post. The assembly polls in Delhiare slated to take place on December 4. The decisiontaken following the BJP's parliamentary board meetingattended by party president Rajnath Singh and sen-ior leader L K Advani among others. "The central par-liamentary board has unanimously decided to projectHarsh Vardhan as the BJP's chief ministerial candidatefor Delhi elections," Rajnath Singh told reporters afterthe meeting. Harsh Vardhan, 59, was elected fromKrishna Nagar constituency in east Delhi for the firsttime in 1993 and went on to retain that seat in the1998, 2003 and 2008 assembly elections. An ENT sur-geon by profession, he is married to Nutan, a special-ist in hospital administration. He has two sons and adaughter.

19 diamantaires from Surat,Mumbai held in ChinaNineteen diamantaires from Surat and Mumbai havebeen arrested in China for allegedly smuggling theprecious stones into Shenzhen from Hong Kong. The Shenzhen customs officials have also seizedsmuggled stones worth $49 million. “We don’t haveinformation about those arrested but we are soongoing to write to the ministry of external affairs toprovide us the details,” said Dinesh Navadia, presi-dent, Surat Diamond Association (SDA). This is thesecond time in three years that the Chinese customsdepartment has exposed a network of cross-bordersmuggling network. In 2010, 21 Indian diamantaireswere arrested in for diamond smuggling. In July, aChina court released 12 diamantaires and rest weregiven the jail sentence ranging from three to fiveyears. Unconfirmed reports said that out of the 19suspects arrested by Shenzhen customs, three areGujarati traders from Surat. As per the reports in theChinese newspaper Legal daily, of the 19 one is aHong Kong citizen. The operation, codenamed‘HS17’, was carried out on September 18 by a teamof nearly 400 anti-smuggling officers deployed inShenzhen and Shanghai.

S Korea appoints SRK as goodwillambassadorBollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan is the newposter boy for South Korea - not its conglomerates,but the nation. The actor has just been appointedgoodwill ambassador for South Korea. So you knowSouth Korea only as the land of Samsung andHyundai? The King Khan could introduce you toKukkiwon, the world famous taekwondo academy,Psy of Gangnam Style fame and K-pop, the mouthwa-tering Korean barbeque. To South Koreans, the actorcould teach their first cricket team a thing or twoabout the business of the game - maybe organize thefirst match between Kolkata Knight Riders and theKoreans. And, perhaps, open Bollywood to a newpart of the world.

Kejriwal formally invites Dikshit for apublic debateAam Admi Party's (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal haswritten a letter to Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,formally inviting her for a public debate ahead of theDec 4 assembly elections in the national capital.Kejriwal said he was informed by some journalists thatthe Delhi chief minister may agree for a debate if a for-mal proposal was sent to her, which, he said, promptedhim to write her a letter Oct 23. "I formally invite youfor a public debate," wrote Kejriwal. "And if you want,we can also invite Harsh Vardhan (BJP's newly appoint-ed chief ministerial candidate) for the debate," headded. Kejriwal said the debate should not take place ina TV studio, but at a public place so that people fromall over the capital could listen to the participants andask questions directly. "I would suggest that the debatetakes place in Ramlila Maidan or any other public placeso that the people get an opportunity to raise ques-tions," wrote Kejriwal. "We can sit together and workout the finer details for the debate," he added.

A BSF head constable waskilled and seven securitypersonnel were injured asPakistani troops openedfire and heavily shelledover 50 border outpostsalong the international bor-der on the night of October22, in the biggest-everprovocative act from acrossthe border in recent times.

The heavy shelling andfresh ceasefire violationcome close on the heels ofhome ministerSushilkumar Shinde's visitto areas long the IBOctober 22 to review thesecurity situation arisingout of ceasefire violationssince October 14, in whichtwo jawans have beenkilled and 18 peopleinjured. BSF officers saidPakistani rangers openedfire with automaticweapons and attacked over5O border posts (BOPs)along the IB in Jammu fron-tier belt with mortar shells.

Pakistani rangers alsorained mortars in forwardvillages of Arnia, RS Puraand Akhnoor sectors, theofficers said.

BSF troops guardingthe border line retaliatedresulting in fierceexchanges of shelling andfiring, which continued tillthe morning of October 23,they said. The injured havebeen hospitalized.

In the exchange of fire,Mukesh Lal Meena, a headconstable of BSF posted inBOP Chinaj, was killed andseven BSF personnel,including two officers,were injured, they said.Politicians urge India togive befitting reply to Pak

Meanwhile, cuttingacross party lines, leadersof various political outfitsurged the CentralGovernment to act toughwith Pakistan.Condemning the attack,Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) spokespersonPrakash Javadekar saidthat such incidents werenot acceptable and Indiashould send a strong mes-sage to Pakistan.

"Now yesterday, whenour Home Minister wasthere on the internationalborder and the Jammu andKashmir Chief Minister,they (Pakistan) are doing itagain, killing our soldiers.

Everyday, we are listeningone soldier is getting seri-ously injured, admitted tohospitals or somebodydies. This is unacceptable,"said Javadekar. "Now, Indiamust take the furthercourse of action which willprohibit Pakistan fromdoing what they are doingnow," he added.

Janata Dal (United)leader Sabir Ali dubbedPakistan's military as 'noto-rious' and blamed them forintentionally poking Indiaat the international border.

"Pakistan has alwayshad a dual governancetrend. One is democraticand the other is led by themilitary, said Ali.”

BSF jawan killed, 7 hurtin Pak firing, shelling

BJP files complaint againstRahul Gandhi before EC

A Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP) delegation filed acomplaint before theElection Commissionagainst what they said were'hate and sensationalspeeches' being delivered byCongress vice presidentRahul Gandhi. The BJP del-egation, which gave a six-page written complaint tothe Election Commission,asked the poll body to takeappropriate action againstRahul and the Congress forviolation of the Model Codeof Conduct. BJP vice-presi-dent Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi,who was one of the mem-bers of the delegation, saidRahul should have beenmore responsible while

commenting about the BJP."Rahul Gandhi not a

Digvijay, he is the star cam-paigner of the Congress, noapologies from the party, orhim, as yet," he said, whileexpressing hope that theElection Commission willtake appropriate action.

The BJP leaders, intheir complaint, demandedaction against the Congressnumber two for electionspeeches that he hadrecently made in Rajasthanand Madhya Pradesh.

Prakash Javadekar andNirmala Sitharaman wereamongst the other BJPleaders that met membersof the ElectionCommission.

6 killed as serial blasts target Modi's Patna rally

Modi calls for Hindu-Muslim unity

Sardar Patel should have been India’s first PM: ModiContinued from page 1Modi targeted UPA gov-ernment indirectly in con-text of women’s reserva-tion bill and said that wayback in 1919, as aCouncilor of AhmedabadMunicipal CorporationSardar Patel moved themotion for women’s reser-vation and his proposalswere accepted unani-mously by the local self-government. He alsopraised Sardar for hisvision of urban townplanning as AhmedabadMayor.Unlike his flamboyant

speeches elsewhere, herefrained from criticizingthe Prime MinisterManmohan Singh whowas also present at themeeting, as well asCongress led UPA govern-ment. On the contrary he

paid respect to Dr Singhin the beginning of hisspeech. Keeping all differ-ences aside he addressedhim as ‘‘Respected PrimeMinister” and endorsedhis visit to SabarmatiAshram as well asGujarat’s Congress head-quarters ‘Rajiv GandhiBhavan’.He appreciated the

Prime Minister for launch-ing awards on GoodGovernance. Modi saidthat the awards startedduring the tenure of Dr.Singh around six yearsback, and thanked himpublicly for bestowingawards to Gujarat for bestwork on good governance.“Gujarat has won

more than 90 awards forgood governance. Apartfrom government of India,World Health

Organization, WorldBank, United Nations andother prestigious organi-zations conferred awardsto the state. So far,Gujarat has won morethan 200 internationaland national awards invarious categories thatinclude good governancetoo,” said the GujaratChief Minister.Modi also appreciated

Dinsha Patel, CongressMinister and President ofSardar Vallabhbhai PatelMemorial Society, for therevamp of the Memorial.He said that the Societyhas utilized the place inbest possible way and alsoused technology to makethe place better.

“Now, those whowould visit SabarmatiAshram will also make it apoint to remember Sardar

Patel by visiting theMemorial,” he saidadding that it would boosttourism activities in thestate.He also spoke about

Sardar’s work for unity ofnation. “Today Maoism,terrorism have merged andbecame a major threats forthe unity of our country.This is Gandhi andSardar’s land. The path ofbombs and guns should beleft behind and youthsshould join the main-stream to become partnersof nation’s development”,he said.Meanwhile, unlike

Modi’s extempore speech,Prime MinisterManmohan Singhadhered to pre-writtenaddress and said thatSardar was instrumentalin merging more than 500

erstwhile princely statesinto one united India.“Because of his strongwill and good governance,he was known as IronMan of India. How heinspired farmers ofKheda, Bardoli andBarasad to unite for civildisobedience movement isstill being rememberedfondly,” said the PrimeMinister adding that he isfeeling proud that he isassociated with the partyin which Sardar workedfor. “In fact Sardar waselected as CongressPresident in KarachiSession and he worked tomake the party strong.”He also touched the

topic to Sardar-Nehrurelations. He said thatpeople talk about theirdifferences but it wasnoteworthy that there

were more subjects ofagreement between thetwo. “Both leaders usedto respect thoughts ofeach other and Sardarused to say that it was hisfortune to advise Panditji.Both leaders lived as goodfriends and used to trusteach other. People shouldtake inspiration fromthem,” he said.The function was

attended by Governor ofGujarat Kamla Beniwal,leader of opposition inGujarat AssemblyShankersinh Vaghela,Union Ministers DinshaPatel, BharatsinhSolanki, TusharChaudhary, Praful Pateland Karasanbhai Patel,chairman of NirmaLimited, who is also theVice President of SardarPatel Society.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 201326 INDIA

Gujarat chief ministerNarendra Modi on Sundaymade a strong pitch forHindu-Muslim unity, say-ing the two communitiesshould be fighting povertyinstead of each other. “Hindu poor should be

fighting the poverty intheir community insteadof Muslims just as thepoor among Muslimsshould be fighting theirpoverty rather thanHindus,” Modi said,adding that Hindus andMuslims needed to unitefor the sake of growth. Although Modi has

been making efforts to livedown his image as a divi-sive leader, this marked asignificant step up withthe BJP’s prime ministerialcandidate’s remarks lustilycheered by the audience. The Gujarat CM, who

was speaking after IndianMujahideen terroristsattacked his rally, avoidedany reference to the explo-sions and rounded off hisspeech by exhorting thetwo communities to main-tain peace and harmony atall costs. The appeal for Hindu-

Muslim unity, along withattacks on Bihar CMNitish Kumar and a politi-cally audacious overturetowards Lalu Prasad’s loy-alist constituency amongYadavs, was the highlightof the nearly hour-longspeech marked by trade-mark aggression and inter-active style, rhetoricalflourishes and invocationsof Vande Mataram andBharat Mata Ki Jai. Modi took many

swipes at Kumar, who splitfrom the BJP over theGujarat CM’s projectionas PM candidate. Hescrupulously avoided men-tioning Kumar by name,referring to him as “myfriend” instead. However,

his speech was anythingbut friendly with Modicalling the Bihar CM anopportunist. He dismissedKumar’s opposition to himas an incredible piece ofhypocrisy. Recalling how BJP

agreed to project Kumar asNDA’s CM candidate forBihar, Modi said theJD(U) leader left the NDAbecause of sycophantswho told him that he couldbecome the PM by joininghands with Congress. Hesaid Kumar’s flirtationswith Congress were abetrayal of the legacy ofRam Manohar Lohia andJaiprakash Narayan. The Gujarat CM also

emphasized that the goodwork for which Kumarwas credited for was actu-ally done by BJP ministersin the NDA coalition, andtook a dig at the Bihar CMfor the state’s failure toavail its Haj subsidy. Theattack on Kumar, whileentirely predictable, con-trasted starkly with hisfond mention of Lalu andhis unabashed appeal toYadavs to cross over to theBJP.

Modi mocks Rahul, says he talksonly about his family & not the poorBharatiya Janata Party'sprime ministerial candidateNarendra Modi took a digat Congress Vice PresidentRahul Gandhi at Jhansi,accusing him of talkingonly about his family andemotional issues and notabout the problems plagu-ing India. Modi, whomockingly called theCongress MP "shahzade"(prince), pointed to Rahul'selection speeches in thelast couple of days andclaimed that they were fullof anecdotes and sacrificesmade by his ancestors whowere also responsible forIndia's myriad problems. "I will not talk about

emotions," said Modi,referring to Rahul's speech-es where he talked aboutthe assassinations of hisgrandmother IndiraGandhi and his father RajivGandhi, both of whom hadbeen prime ministers ofIndia. Questioning whyRahul remains silent onriots that took place whenthe Congress was in power,Modi said, "Rahul Gandhionly says he was angry

when his grandmotherIndira Gandhi was killed.Were you angry when thou-sands of Sikhs were killedin 1984?" He said thatRahul belonged to theCongress which was head-ing the ruling coalition atthe Centre but did not evenonce touch about corrup-tion, price rise and risingcrime during his speeches.The Gujarat strongmanalso questioned the credi-bility of Rahul's statementon the alleged role ofPakistan's ISI inMuzaffarnagar riots. "Rahul Gandhi claimed

that some Muslims were intouch with the ISI. Heshould make their namespublic. Can such leaders betrusted? Is the Congressgovernment a news agencyand is its role only to givenews. The governmentshould tackle the ISI," hesaid. He also questionedhow can Rahul, who is justa MP and has not beenadministered the oath ofoffice and secrecy, be get-ting information from intel-ligence agencies. Modi also

attacked the SamajwadiParty, the Congress andBahujan Samaj Party forthe lack of development inBundelkhand. While recalling the

area's contribution duringthe 1857 war of independ-ence, Modi asked why theregion was lagging behindin spite of its glorious lega-cy. This he said was due tothe neglect of regionalparty's - Samajwadi Partyand Bahujan Samaj Party,which, he claimed, havejoined hands with the UPAgovernment at the Centrein siphoning off the moneymeant for the region'sdevelopment. Modi, who isalso Gujarat chief minister,accused both AkhileshYadav-led Uttar Pradeshgovernment and formerchief minister and BSPchief Mayawati of notusing the Bundelkhandpackage adding that thiswas not the case in BJPruled Madhya Pradeshwhere Chief MinisterShivraj Singh Chouhanused it in an effective man-ner.

Continued from page 1platform from whereModi delivered hisspeech. The last bombwent off at 12.45 pm - 20minutes before Modi andtop BJP leaders took thestage. Four live bombswere later discovered nearthe rally venue.Though the Bihar

police did not officiallycall it a terror attack,Director General of PoliceAbhayanand confirmedthe use of IED and timers.Intelligence sources alsohinted at the use ofammonium nitrate, deto-nators and iron nails.By late Sunday

evening, four people hadbeen arrested. Policeidentified one of them asMohammed Imtiaz fromBhuian Toli, Ranchi.Another person shown as

arrested who has beenbattling for life at theIndira Gandhi Institute ofMedical Sciences and isbelieved to have plantedthe bomb that went offinside a Patna RailwayStation platform toiletdied later. Police claimedto have seized importantdocuments from them.Prime Minister

Manmohan Singh, whospoke to Chief MinisterNitish Kumar, condemnedthe blasts and appealedfor calm. Home Ministryofficials said there was nospecific alert about therally and it was solely upto the state government todecide what kind ofarrangements were to bemade. The Union HomeMinistry had recently sentan advisory to all poll-bound states to maintain

vigilance at election ral-lies.Nitish said in a state-

ment that there had beenno intelligence inputwarning of such an attackwhile BJP claimed thatUnion home ministry hadalerted the state but thestate failed to act. "Weprovided all the helprequired for a rally onsuch a big scale." Rulingout any political conspira-cy, he added that thosetrying to disturb theatmosphere of Biharwould be identified."There may be politi-

cal differences betweenthe BJP and JD(U), but itis time to fight such chal-lenges together," he said.Reports said that Nitishalso called up BJP presi-dent Rajnath Singh, whowas present at the Patna

rally, and assured a thor-ough probe.Calling the blast a

"blot on the glorious tradi-tions of Bihar", the CMadded that the NIA hadbeen called in to join theinvestigation and prom-ised definite details with-in 48 hours.This is the second

series of blasts in Biharafter the July Bodhgayaattack.Fear spread among the

crowd following theexplosions, but only a fewleft the Modi rally. Largenumbers decided to listento him from the approachroads near the ground sothat they could makequick exit in case of anemergency.The first bomb went

off inside a toilet onPlatform No. 10 of Patna

Railway Station at around9.30 am. One person whowas critically injured inthe blast. There were sixsubsequent blasts in andaround Gandhi Maidan.The second blast tookplace at 11.40 am in frontof Udyog Bhavan, injur-ing several. The thirdblast took place at 12.05pm in front of RegentCinema near GandhiMaidan and the fourthnear the old Gandhi stat-ue at the rally venue at12.10 pm. The fifth bombwent off near theBiscomaun Bhawan at12.15 pm, the sixth infront of the SBI Branchadjacent to the Maidan at12.25 pm and the last at12.45 pm at Children'sPark, near the DistrictMagistrate's official resi-dence.

Alleged mastermindheld, several detainedMaking headway in

the blasts case, policehave arrested two sus-pected terrorists, includ-ing one possibly the mas-termind, and detainedseveral others. A searchoperation by NIA andPatna police is on atGandhi Maidan to locateexplosives, if any, a seniorpolice officer said onMonday.The suspected terror-

ists have been identifiedas Tausim and Imtiyaz,official sources said.SSP Patna Manu

Maharaj earlier said that"one of the accused, whois being considered as themastermind, has beenarrested. He has con-fessed how the planningtook place".

Narendra Modi

INDIAwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013 27

By Mayuri Dave

Once considered as ren-dezvous of Ahmedabad’sfashionable society, theheritage Gujarat Club’spresent condition is not asglorious as its past. TheClub had witnessed someof the most important his-torical events of India’s

freedom movement.Currently the club isknown to common peopleas ‘Advocate’s Club’ asmost of its active mem-bers are lawyers. Hardly very few peo-

ple know, even inAhmedabad that theGujarat Club was theplace where Iron man ofIndia Sardar VallabhbhaiPatel first time ever metMahatma Gandhi in theyear 1916. At that timeSardar was a completelydifferent person. He usedto wear European-stylecloths and was part of theelite class of that timehaving western manner-isms. In short he wascompletely urbane, unlikehis image in the publicmind. Sardar Patel was regu-

lar visitor there. He wasfond of playing bridge andalso sometimes used toplay Tennis. Later on hebecame GeneralSecretary of one of themost prestigious club ofold Bombay Presidency.

Apart from Sardar, someof the gentries ofAhmedabad includingKasturbhai Lalbhai,Ambalal Sarabhai,Ganesh VasudevMavlenkar etc wereoffice-bearers of theGujarat Club in differentperiods in the past. Apart

from Mahatma Gandhi,personalities likeS h y a m a p r a s a dMukherjee, Sri Satya SaiBaba, Veer Savarkar, CVRaman amongst otheralso made it a point tovisit the unique place.The club was founded

in the year 1988 by a gen-tleman called NagarjiDesai. Interestingly, firsttime when MahatmaGandhi approachedSardar Patel here, the IronMan was not interested tomeet him. It was Gandhiwho kept on trying andultimately the meetingtook place and togetherboth the Gujaratischanged the history ofIndia. When film director

Ketan Mehta wanted tomake film on Sardar, heinsisted to shoot thefamous seen of Mahatmaand Gandhi at the clubpremise itself in the year1985. Even today theambience for sportingactivities are prevailinghere, said Uday Patel, an

advocate and member ofthe club. According to Patel,

there are more than 1,100members in the club, butregular visitors are hardlyfour hundreds. Facilitieslike billiards & snooker,tennis, table tennis,bridge, chess, carom etc

are available here. “Twobilliard tables made out ofIndian rosewood(Shisham) were importedall the way from England,around 100 years back arestill being used by theplayers,” said Patel addingthat three cement TennisCourts were convertedinto parking place in theevening !!! According to some of

the old-timers the GujaratClub is not all aboutSardar-Gandhi ren-dezvous. It used to be thecradle of many sports.Former world number onebilliard player Geet Sethiand International billiardstar Satish Mohan used tospend hours here duringtheir initial years as play-ers. G Vasant, who repre-sented India in DavisCup, was regularly playingtennis at the Gujarat ClubTennis courts. Besides,the club has produced anumber of national as wellas state level tennis, tabletennis and chess players.“Gujarat ChessAssociation was formedhere,” said Patel. With the changing

time, importance of TheGujarat Club startedreceding. As Ahmedabadstarted developing in thewestern side, many clubswith modern amenitiesstarted coming up. “Afterthe formation of theSports Club of Gujarat,the importance of GujaratClub started declining” JR Dastur wrote in a sou-venir published by theclub in the year 2007.

The heritage Gujarat Club whereSardar first time met Gandhiji

SC orders Kolkata hospital to payRs 59.6 mn for medical negligenceThe Supreme Court ofIndia awarded a whoppingRs 59.6 million as com-pensation to be paid byKolkata- based AMRIHospital and three doctorsto a US-based Indian-ori-gin doctor for medicalnegligence which led tothe death of his wife in1998. A bench of justices SJ

Mukhopadhaya and VGopala Gowda asked thehospital and the three doc-tors to pay the amountwithin eight weeks toKunal Saha, an Ohio-based AIDS researcher. The National

Consumer DisputeRedressal Commission(NCDRC) in 2011 hadawarded Rs 17.3 million tothe doctor whose wifeAnuradha Saha died in1998 following faultytreatment administered atthe hospital. Raising the amount of

compensation, the apexcourt also asked the hospi-tal to pay an interest at therate of six per cent toSaha. The court said out of

the total compensationamount, Dr BalramPrasad and Dr SukumarMukherjee will pay Rs1000,000 each and DrBaidyanath Halder willhave to pay Rs 500,000 toSaha within eight weeks. The rest of the

amount, along with theinterest, will be paid bythe hospital, the apexcourt said, adding that acompliance report be filedbefore it after payment ofthe compensationamount. NCDRC had fixed the

compensation on a direc-tion by the apex court,which had referred Saha'sappeal to it while holdingthe three doctors and thehospital culpable to civilliability for medical negli-gence which had led to thedeath of Anuradha. Anuradha, herself a

child psychologist, hadcome to her home townKolkata in March 1998 ona summer vacation. Shecomplained of skin rasheson April 25 and consultedDr Sukumar Mukherjee,who, without prescribingany medicine, simplyasked her to take rest. As rashes reappeared

more aggressively on May7, 1998, Dr Mukherjeeprescribed Depomedrolinjection 80 mg twicedaily, a step which waslater faulted by experts atthe apex court. After administration of

the injection, Anuradha'scondition deterioratedrapidly following whichshe had to be admitted atAMRI on May 11 underDr Mukherjee's supervi-sion. Saha, in his plea before

NCDRC, had demanded arecord Rs 770 millioncompensation. While awarding Rs

1,72,87,500 compensationto Saha for his wife'sdeath, NCDRC had heldthe US doctor responsiblefor contributing to thenegligence committed bythe three Kolkata doctorsand the hospital and hadordered 10 per cent deduc-tion in the amount of com-pensation making it Rs155 million. Another doctor

involved in Anuradha'streatment, Abani RoyChowdhury had passed

away during the pendencyof the case. As Anuradha's condi-

tion failed to improve, shewas flown to BreachCandy Hospital, Mumbai,where she was found tobe suffering from a rareand deadly skin disease--Toxic EpidermalNecrolysis (TEN). Shedied there on May 28,1998. Saha had then filed a

criminal as well as civilcase against the doctorsand both the hospitals onthe ground that they weregrossly negligent in hertreatment leading to herdeath. In 2009, though the

apex court absolved thedoctors and the hospitalsof criminal liability formedical negligence, it hadheld them culpable ofcivil liabilities andreferred Saha's plea forcompensation under pro-visions of the ConsumerProtection Act toNCDRC, which, had in2006 dismissed, the case. After the NCDRC

judgment, Saha had againmoved the apex court andthe three doctors had alsofiled an appeal before it. NCDRC, in its judg-

ment, had stipulated thatAMRI and Dr Mukherjeewould pay Rs 4040,000each to Saha, while twoother doctors, Halder andPrasad, would pay Rs2693,000 each to him.

Though one of the oldest clubs in Gujarat is not as luxurious as some of thesprawling resort types clubs in the state, but Gujarat Club has kept the mem-ories of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel alive. Sardar used to visit the club regularlyto play ‘Bridge’. Most importantly, Mahatma Gandhi first time approached him

at the Gujarat Club. And rest is the history!!!

Gandhiji and Sardar Patel

Kunal Saha with his wife Anuradha (file photo)

India develops new tactical missile 'Pragati'India has developed anew tactical surface-to-surface missile 'Pragati'with a range between 60-170 km and will offer it tofriendly countries. The new missile, now

on display at a defenceexhibition in SouthKorea, is based on thePrahaar missile devel-oped by the DRDO forthe Army and can betermed as its export vari-ant with minor differ-ences, a DRDO officialsaid. The government has

approved that it may beoffered to friendly coun-tries if anyone showsinterest in it, he said. The missile is the

main exhibit of theDRDO which is showcas-ing an array of indige-nous weapons at theSeoul International

Aerospace and DefenseExhibition (ADEX 2013). This is the first time

ever that an array of lat-est defence equipmentdeveloped by the DRDO,will be unveiled interna-tionally at such a scale.DRDO chief AvinashChander is leading theIndian delegation at theshow. "DRDO is showcasing

'Pragati' tactical missile,'Akash' missile systemand 'Tejas' LCA and itsvariants. Explosive

Detection Kitdeveloped by theDRDO andr e c e n t l ylaunched in theUS will be yetanother keyexhibit," arelease by theIndian embassyin South Korea

said. The LCA is a long-

delayed project of theDRDO which is yet to becompleted and the air-craft not been inductedby the IAF so far. ADEX 2013 is expect-

ed to host more than 300companies from 33 coun-tries. DRDO's participa-tion also commemoratesthe 40th anniversary ofthe establishment ofdiplomatic relationsbetween India and SouthKorea.

AV Correspondent Dispute for assets worthnearly Rs 220 billionamong the Gaekwad fami-ly members, the erstwhilerulers of Vadodara, wassettled after almost twodecades. The members ofone of the richest royalfamilies in India were inlegal battle for palaces thatinclude one which is fourtimes the size of the

Buckingham Palace andother assets like dia-monds, artifacts, jewellery,buildings and land.

Sources close to thedevelopment said thatstakeholders in theGaekwad family inked amemorandum of under-standing before city civilcourt of Vadodara.

S a m a r j i t s i n hGaekwad, one of the mem-bers of Vadodara Royalfamily, said that the out-come was amicable andaccepted unanimously.“This is a new beginningfor the betterment of theroyal family. Hope we willovercome the past andforge a new relationship,”

he said. More than 20 stake-

holders belonging to theGaekwad family thatinclude direct heirs as wellas members of extendedfamilies too were in thebattle for the propertiesspread across multiplelocations.

The Royal family’s dis-pute went into legalpurview way back in 1991,

which was between twosons of the last king oferstwhile princely stateBaroda MaharajaSayajirao Gaekwad –Ranjitsinh andSangramsinh. VisionarySayajirao was known forhis progressive approachin the field of education.He was instrumentalbehind the famousMaharaja SayajiraoUniversity in Vadodara.His initiative for girls’ edu-cation and empowermentof women are still beingremembered fondly by thepeople of Vadodara.

Last year, Ranjitsinhdied, but his sonSamarjitsinh carried for-

ward the battle against hisuncle Sangramsinh forassets worth billions.

As per the signedagreement, Samarjitsinhwould get the lion’s sharefrom the assets thatinclude majestic LaxmiVilas Palace. The sprawl-ing palace spread across243 acres was built in1890. A private golf courseis part of the palace.

Besides, the museum atthe palace with some ofthe most costly paintingsand precious diamondsand other valuable jew-ellery will also belong tohim.

Sangramsinh wouldalso get huge property,despite the fact that hisnephew set to occupy big-ger pie of the cake. He willtake control of familyowned companies,Indumati Mahal Palace inVadodara and propertiesin Mumbai and Vadodara.Besides, female membersof the families and theirheirs would also get theirshare, which would also bein billions.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 201328 TRAVEL - INDIAVadodara Royal family’s battlefor property settled amicably

Modi to lay foundation stonefor Sardar Patel statue

AV Correspondent

Gujarat Chief MinisterNarendra Modi will lay thefoundation stone of theworld’s tallest statue ofSardar Patel on Thursdayto mark his 138th birthanniversary.

Considered as brain-child of Modi, the statuewill be known as ‘Statue ofUnity’ and will be con-structed near SardarSarovar dam. The 182meter tall statue is a trib-ute to the ‘Iron man ofIndia’. The first phase, forwhich bids have alreadybeen invited, is estimatedto cost around Rs 20.60billion.

The statue will beerected at Sadhubet, about3.32 km. away from SardarSarovar dam. The place isexpected to emerge as aworld-class tourist desti-nation. In a uniqueapproach, a drive will belaunched on Oct 31 forcollecting discarded ironfarm tools from the farm-ers all over India for mak-ing the statue.

The idea behind col-lecting iron to build statueis to pay tribute to Patel’spivotal role in dissolving

the then princely statesand making united India,said a senior official ofSardar Sarovar NarmadaNigam Limited (SSNL)adding that Modi made ita resolve to build the stat-ue so that the name of thisgreat son of India isremembered for ages tocome. The statue will bethree times taller thanAmerica’s iconic ‘Statueof Liberty’ and will be con-structed under PublicPrivate Partnership (PPP)model and envisaged torender excellent platformfor research and develop-mental activities.

Further, onlookers willavail benefit to adore thewonderful scenery of

Sardar dam through thespectator gallery built onat the height of 450 feet.There will be audio visualgallery, laser light andsound show on the life ofSardar Patel, virtual tourexplaining an array ofaspects of Sardar SarovarProject, agriculture devel-opment, water manage-ment and programme forthe uplift of scheduledtribes and many more.

A museum and anexhibition center demon-strating the farsightednessand contributions ofSardar Patel will be themain attractions of thevenue. Ferry services willalso be made available tohelp the visitors reach thestatue.

‘‘The significance ofthis statue isn’t merely onheight but will be muchmore valued for the educa-tional, historical, nationaland spiritual values. Mydream is to develop thisplace as a source of inspi-ration for ages to come,”said Modi adding that‘Statue of Unity’ will trulypay glowing tribute to the‘Iron Man’ on his birthanniversary.

The Indian Ocean is swimming withspectacular floating paradise Islands

all fringed with the softest of sands andthe bluest of seas. However, there thesimilarities end. Each island has a uniquequality and ambience. One thing is forsure all the Islands are ideally placed tooffer almost year round sunshine.

Now, dear reader, come close and letme tell you a little secret. The secret is:Mauritius. The secret to what? you mayask, well the answer is simple. Mauritiusis the secret to relaxation. There are somevery busy islands in the Indian Ocean,where you feel compelled to get active.Not in Mauritius, here you can take life atyour own pace and just enjoy naturesmagnificence. There are, of course, someamazing activities if you choose to par-take. The crystal clear waters are perfectfor glass-bottom boat rides, mini-sailingand kayaking. Try snorkelling in thelagoons and discover why its coral reefsare so famous, filled with an abundance ofexotic fish and sea life. For the moreadventurous, there are diving tours avail-able, so you can swim with a dazzlingarray of tropical fish including barracu-das, king fish and eagle rays.

It was writer Mark Twain who said:“You gather the idea that Mauritius wasmade first and then heaven was copiedafter Mauritius.” While you are sittingon one of the numerous beaches, you willno doubt question whether you are infact in heaven!

Apart from the vision of heaven, whatsets Mauritius apart from other Islandretreats? A little style, a little chic and alittle “je ne se quoi”. The Grand Islandhas been a destination for those in the

know for quite a while now. It has under-stated luxury hotels and spa resorts allwell versed at giving visitors just whatthey are looking for. Many of the hotelsare set on their very own private lagoonswith fantastic settings. Palm fringedbeaches abound with views of the reddestof sunsets. While there are many new andtrendy resort islands, Mauritius hasglamour and refinement akin to the tra-ditional design houses of yore, sophisti-cated and established.

So, what price do you put on suchluxury? Starting from a mere £949.00 perperson – the time to book is now!

When booking a holiday, we recom-mend using a well established travelagent who is well versed in deliveringholidays with an ATOL certification,ensuring the security of your booking.When booking with an online agent,check there is a contact phone number –this ensures you will get service from anactual person and get your questionsanswered swiftly.

Brightsun Travel is such an agent andwe were able to uncover a fantastic pack-age in a beach side resort as well as up to20% discount, all from a starting pricefrom just £949 per person with flightsand accommodation and half boardthrown in! The Merville Beach Luxe, alsohas a superb spa and a beach side restau-rant with tables set right on the beach.

Brightsun Travel also offers a pricematch promise on worldwide flights andholidays. To book your dream holiday,visit www.brightsun.co.uk or callBrightsun Travel on 0208 819 0486 andmake a booking with an actual person – arefreshing way to book your next holiday!

MauritiusHeaven on Earth?

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November 2013 29HEALTH WATCH

Back pain is one of themost common fallouts ofeveryday life. But evendumping your heels andstretching may not helpyour spine.

New research showsthat a vast majority ofbackaches are the resultof cumulative effects oflifestyle that we oftenignore. Simple dailyhabits such as hunchingto read your smart phoneor slouching in front ofyour computer can, overtime, strain your spineand the surrounding mus-cles, leaving you vulnera-ble to serious back injury.Here are the habits towatch out for:

Sitting stillForget heavy lifting -

sitting hunched over acomputer all day is poisonfor your back. Researchhas found that peoplewith desk jobs suffer moreback pain than thoseworking in manual jobs.Using your joints andspine strengthens them,reducing risk of injury.But inactivity weakensthem, which makes youmore prone to problems.

Fix it: Get up andwalk around for two min-utes, at least once anhour, and improve yourposture while you're sit-ting down. Aim for a"neutral spine position",in which everything is inline, with no strain spots.Your shoulders should berelaxed, feet flat on thefloor, and eyes in line withthe middle of your screen.

SneezingThis seemingly

innocuous, activity isapparently a very com-

mon cause of back pain -thanks to its sheer force.A sneeze's speed ofrelease can be up to 100miles per hour, and ourfirst instinct is to coverour faces and turn away.According to JanetWakley, author of TheSmart Guide to BackCare, this instinctive turnis terrible for our backs."Spontaneously twistingto the side, combinedwith the force used by thechest muscles to sneeze,can wrench back musclesin a second," she says.

Fix it: Turn your bodywhen you're about tosneeze, so that your backremains straight.

Wearing high heels,pumps

Yes, tottering in highheels for long periods canmake your back sore, buttoo much time in thewrong flats can do just asmuch damage. Heelscause problems because

they force your foot for-ward, altering your body'sangle. Since your weightisn't evenly distributedover the spine, it can trig-ger pain from your kneesall the way up to yourback. But ballet pumpsand flip-flops aren't anybetter as they allow yourfoot to slide around. Thelack of stability that thiscauses puts pressure onyour spine.

Fix it: Ensure yourshoe holds your foot firm-ly in place. Alternatebetween high heels, midsand flats. By wearing dif-ferent shoes every day,you lessen your chance ofexperiencing long-termproblems caused by usingonly one type of shoe.

Your favourite bra Figures suggest 80 per

cent women wear an ill-fitting bra. This can causeseveral muscular prob-lems. A bad bra can leadto hunching and sore

neck and back muscles,while one that gives prop-er support can minimisethat forward hunch andrelieve pain.

Fix it: Get measuredby a trained bra-fitter. Gofor styles with widershoulder straps or a racer-style back, which offerbetter support and drawyou to pull your shouldersback.

Your pot bellyEven an extra couple

of pounds around yourmiddle makes your pelvistilt forward. This puts itout of alignment as yourbody works to rebalanceitself. Also, this meansthat your spine isn't get-ting enough support fromyour abdominal muscles,which can cause exces-sive strain on your lowerback.

Fix it: Don't do sit-ups- they won't flatten yourtummy if there's fat ontop. Fat-burning cardio-vascular exercises, suchas running or swimming,for 45 minutes, threetimes a week, are moreeffective at shifting thebulge.

Your Smartphone The head-down posi-

tion that you use to lookat phones, iPads and lap-tops strains the musclesin the neck and the paincan extend to your lowerback. Using them forhours on end means yourbody will eventually startto adopt this hunchedposition.

Fix it: Make sure youtake frequent screenbreaks. Try to lookstraight ahead and notdown at your screen.

Everyday habits that are damaging your back

Scientists suggest thatdrinking a regular cup oftea or coffee can helpyou live longer.Researchers found that adiet packed withpolyphenols - potentantioxidant compoundscontained in the drinks -can lower the "risk ofseveral chronic diseasesand overall mortality."

Experts fromBarcelona Universitystudied 807 men andwomen aged 65 or overfrom central Italy for 12years.

The researchersrecorded a 30 per centreduction in mortalityamong a group of partic-ipants who had a highintake of polyphenols.

The compoundsoccur naturally in fruits,vegetables, nuts andcereals as well as tea andcoffee. More than 8,000different types have been

identified in plants.They have antioxi-

dant, anti-inflammatoryand anti-cancer effects.

The study, led byProfessor CristinaAndres Lacueva, head ofthe university'sBiomarkers andNutritional and FoodMetabolomics ResearchGroup, measured theparticipants' intake ofpolyphenols by using anutritional biomarker -which showed up in thesubjects' urine.

According to

Professor Lacueva, thisprovided for a moreaccurate study than ask-ing the participants torecord their own intakeof the compounds "as itis not only based on theirmemory when answeringquestionnaires".

The study concludedthat overall mortalitywas reduced by 30 percent in participants whoconsumed more than 650mg of polyphenols a dayin comparison with thosewho took in less than500 mg.

Drinking tea cuts mortality risk by 30%A component of grape-fruit and other citrusfruits like naringenin,blocks the formation ofkidney cysts, a new studyhas revealed. The team ofscientists from RoyalHolloway University, StGeorge's, University ofLondon and KingstonUniversity London used asimple, single-celledamoeba to identify thatnaringenin regulates thePKD2 protein responsi-ble for polycystic kidneydisease and as a result,blocks formation of cysts.

Professor RobinWilliams from the Schoolof Biological Sciences atRoyal Holloway said thatthis discovery providesan important step for-ward in understandinghow polycystic kidneydisease may be con-trolled.

To test how this dis-covery could apply intreatments, the team useda mammalian kidney cell-line, and triggered the for-mation of cysts in thesecells. They were then ableto block the formation ofthe cysts by adding narin-genin and saw that when

levels of the PKD2 pro-tein were reduced in thekidney cells, so was theblock in cyst formation,confirming that the effectwas connected.

Meanwhile, Dr MarkCarew, from the School ofPharmacy and Chemistry

at Kingston University,said further investigationis underway to understandthe action of naringenin atthe molecular level. Thiswork will entail looking atthe function of the PKD2protein as a cell growthregulator.

Eating citrus fruits helps preventformation of kidney cysts

Arthritis: some foods thathelp reduce chronic pain

Arthritis is a form ofinflammation of joints. Itinvolves severe pain,swelling in joints, andjoint stiffness. There aremore than 100 types ofarthritis, of whichOsteoarthritis is the mostcommon. Soundspainful? It is indeed ago-nising. Going by data inour own country, Indiacurrently is home toaround 2.5 million arthri-tis patients, according toexperts.

As such there is nocure for arthritis, but def-initely a change inlifestyle accompaniedwith small alterations inone’s diet can yield bigreturns in keeping acheck on the disease.

Here are some superfoods that can help easearthritis pain.

Flaxseed oilMake room for this

wonder food as flaxseedsas just 2 tablespoons con-tain loads of omega-3sand help ease inflamma-tion and joint pain. It alsocontains alpha-linolenicacid and lignans whichhave antioxidant benefits.

TurmericTurmeric, also known

as `Haldi`, has been onthe Indian food menusince eons. It is widelyused in Indian cooking.Studies suggest thatturmeric helps a lot intreating both osteoarthri-tis and rheumatoid arthri-tis due to its anti-inflam-matory properties.

Green teaIt’s official that tea is

good for your health. Theactive ingredients ingreen tea namely polyphe-nols and flavonoids boostthe immune system,thereby showing promiseto help ease the inflam-mation and pain ofrheumatoid arthritis.

Tart cherriesResearchers suggest

that drinking tart cherryjuice twice daily for threeweeks can lead to signifi-cant reductions in chronicinflammation. Also, thesweet and tangy, redcoloured, tiny seasonalfruit is rich in the antioxi-dant compounds calledanthocyanins - whichhelp relieve muscle andjoint soreness.

To Our ReadersWe are publishing these

items in good faith,kindly consult your

Doctor before you try toimplement it. We do nothold any responsibility

for its efficacy...

There are subtle trans-formations taking shape in

you life and a feeling of helpful influences in the back-ground. There is much to suggest that you are in tunewith your inner self and in touch with those hiddenforces which often seem to take a guiding hand in one'slife. Focus on essentials and establish a solid founda-tion, so that you feel secure.

Whether you’re singleor attached you’ll have to

go through a lot, as deep psychological transformationsare taking place in all types of relationships. No mat-ter what your chosen path is, you’ll be recognised andrewarded for it. Don’t be afraid to experiment, trustyour hunches, go with your gut feeling.

You have been goingthrough major changes in

your relationships, as a result of your own radical per-sonal transformation. Your ideas about love and part-nership are changing daily. As with most things, yourhealth waxes and wanes. You might even find the ener-gy to keep up with your projected gym schedule. Nomatter how hard you are working, try to make time forrelaxation.

Expansive Jupiter inyour Solar 1st house is

going to play a great part for some of you, who arewidening their horizons. An important time to build too,as Saturn in your solar 5th House can be very severeand cold especially regarding relationships. Regardlessof the limits, you have the capacity to turn the courseof your life in a more fulfilling direction.

You’re likely to find your-self doing a lot of thinking

about both new and existing partnerships, and maybetoing and froing in one relationship in particular. Homeand family duties and responsibilities may weigh heavyon you. In effect, you’re building a new foundation, sothe work you put in now will pay off in the future.

You know you’ve gotno choice but to stream-

line and re-assess your priorities before haphazardlysaying yes to everything that smells like a potentialopportunity. Try to create a balance between expansionand conservation. Jupiter in your 11th house makes youfeel invincible, but the way to utilise this transit is to siftthrough all the opportunities that come your way.

If you are your ownboss, then you can look

forward to a fairly good week. Librans who face astrict schedule may find the next seven days a littlefrustrating, because this is a week where you willneed a certain amount of personal space. You maybe absorbing new ideas about how to create financialindependence. Others may not understand, so youmay have to keep your ideas to yourself.

It’s all about commu-nications, as they take

centre stage this week. As stubborn as you tend tobe, you’ll have to openly speak up about your wantsand needs without fear. Regarding love there will bea struggle between devotion and freedom. You needto feel completely consumed by the passion of yourlover, and yet you need personal space to exploreyour own thing.

Anything or any-one that drains your time and energy should be

re-evaluated. It’s time to use that creative imagina-tion of yours to create grandeur in your life. Don'tget too carried away and lose sight of little thingsthat mean a lot to you. Jupiter, the planet of expan-sion in your Solar 8th house is good for jointresources, taxes etc.

Responsibility isyour key word, espe-

cially at work. Set your own goals, rather than try-ing to meet those set by someone else. You willachieve a lot more, especially when you're motivatedby your own desires. Your ability to manage whatyou have on your plate earns respect from othersaround you. You will benefit in every way if you learnto self-discipline and pace yourself wisely.

If your ambitions havebeen undefined, don't

worry as from now on, you understand exactly whatkind of impact you need to make on the world.Jupiter in your work sector rules your daily life. Allthose little details should run perfectly, without youconstantly worrying. That means you can focus onmatters that are important to you. Health-wise youwill be feeling fit and relaxed.

Your social graces willserve you well career-

wise. Mixing business with pleasure will bring youbenefits. You will achieve great success by beingresponsible and diplomatic. Ego confrontations withfamily members are possible now, but the best wayto handle this energy is to do your best to strength-en your relationship with your family and your homebase.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201330 UK

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

���������� ��� ���� ���������������� ��

�������� �

���� �������������

Coming Eventsl Friday 1st November – Dhanteras – laxhmi Pujathroughout the day at Adhya Shakti Mataji Temple.Contact: 07882 253 540.l Sunday 3rd November – Diwali Celebrations atBhaktivedanta Manor Hare Krishna Temple from 4pm– 6.30pm. Contact: 01923 851 003.l Sunday 10th November – Gaata Rahe Mera DilHindu Songs by Pooja Angra and Karan Rana from5.30pm at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 4a Castletownroad, West Kensington, W14 9HE. Contact: 0207 381 3086.l Sunday 10th November – Diwali Celebrations atKadwa Patidar Centre, Kenmore Avenue, Harrow,HA3 8LU from 2pm-9pm. Contact: 007860 430 895.l Monday 4th November - Ankot and New year'sDay Aarti from 1pm at The Jaspar Centre, RosslynCrescent, Harrow, HA1 2SU. Contact: 0208 861 1207l Sunday 17th November - Bhajans and Kirtansfrom 1-6pm at Ramgarhia Community Centre, 231,Plashet Road, Upton Park, London E13. Contact: 07956230307l Friday 29th November - ladies Tulsi Viva from1-4pm at The Jaspar Centre, Rosslyn Crescent,Harrow, HA1 2SU. Contact: 0208 861 1207l Sunday 17th November - Shree Jalaram Bapa's214th Birthday Mahotsav from 11am-5pm at CanonPalmer School, Aldborough Road South, Seven Kings,Ilford, Essex. Contact: 0845 838 2126l Sunday 17th November - Tulsi Vivah at ShreeSwaminarayan Temple from 11am. Contact 0208 679 8050

Anand Mela on B4U

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B4U (Sky 891) will betelevising the annualAnand Mela this Sunday3rd November at 6.30pmin their program TALK OF THE TOWN.

Dr. P.N.Rachhoya isa retired seniorIndian Police Service(IPS) officer who iscurrently an advo-cate of the RajasthanHigh Court. Hejoined the policeservice in 1972 andretired in 2005 serving asthe Additional DirectorGeneral of Police of theRajasthan State. Duringhis 33 years of distin-guished service he heldvarious positions in thedistrict police and wasawarded the 'Indian PoliceMedal for MeritoriousServices' by theHonorable President ofIndia in 2002. He is astrategic thinker withstrong work ethics andexcellent people manage-

ment and leader-ship skills.Whilst serving asthe Director ofthe RajasthanPolice Academy,he has been arole model andmentor for many

young police officers. Heis prolific reader, writer,thinker and public speak-er. He has authored andpublished more than 20books in a variety of sub-jects including laws relat-ing to terrorism, bombs &explosives, cyber crime,police history etc. Mostrecently he completed hisPhD thesis on 'CyberCrime and Indian Police'.He resides in Jaipur withhis wife and is currentlyvisiting London.

Our Guest - Dr. P.N.Rachhoya

On Sunday 20th October a special get together washeld at Harrow High School. It's aim was to enableyoung people from the Lohana and Gujajrati commu-nity to meet prospective partners with a view to mar-riage and was attended by 450 people and was organ-ised by Mr Jethala Hindocha.

Young peoples mela

L to R: Mr Jethala Hindocha, Anitaben Ruparalia, ManubhiaPalan, Kantabhaia Amlani, Kalyanjibhia Thakrar, Shri RamBapa, A Harrow Councilor representing the Mayor of Harrow

Croydon was one of thefirst towns to kickstartDiwali celebrations. TheDiwali festival took placewith great zeal and enthu-siasm at CroydonConference Centre, SurreyStreet.

The spectacular festi-val was organised byISKCON (InternationalSociety of KrishnaConsciousness), locatedat 42 Enmore Road inSouth Norwood and

attracted over 400 people.The occasion was

graced by the presence ofMP Gavin Barwell andDeputy Mayor, VidhiMohan, as well asCounsellors of CroydonCouncil. Not only did thisevent make a mark for allthose who were presentfrom all across theLondon but also had avery positive impact onthe socio-cultural environ-ment of Croydon.

Croydon celebrates Diwali

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SPORTwww.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 2nd November201332

Australia great DonBradman wasnamed captain of anall-time Test WorldXI to mark the150th anniversaryof WisdenC r i c k e t e r s 'Almanack.A l t h o u g h

Bradman played hislast Test in 1948, nobatsman before orsince has come any-where near his stag-gering Test battingaverage of 99.94.Also included is his com-

patriot Shane Warne, whoduring the 1990s establishedhimself as arguably the great-est leg-spinner cricket hasknown. Given that it is a UK-based publication built aroundthe events of the previousEnglish season, albeit one nowencompassing the whole ofsenior international cricket, itis perhaps unsurprising thereare four England players in theside. WG Grace, the 19th cen-tury star who invented thefundamentals of batting, open-ing great Jack Hobbs, wicket-keeper Alan Knott, a mainstayof England teams of the 1970sand Sydney Barnes, a masterof both swing and spin andreckoned by many to havebeen England's greatest

bowler of all time, make it intothe side.West Indies provide three

players in Vivian Richards,widely regarded as the bestbatsman of his generation,Garfield Sobers, frequentlyreferred to as the greatest all-rounder cricket has knownand Malcolm Marshall,viewed as arguably the best ina long line of top-classCaribbean fast bowlers.India provide one player in

the soon-to-retire SachinTendulkar, Test cricket's lead-ing run scorer of all-time, withthe team completed byPakistan's Wasim Akram, longesteemed as the best left-armfast bowler cricket has known.Hobbs, Bradman,

Richards, Sobers and Warne

were named as Wisden's fiveplayers of the 20th Century in2000.

Wisden World XI:1 Jack Hobbs (England,

Wisden Cricketer of theYear 1909) 61 Tests, 5,410runs at 56.94

2 WG Grace (England, CY1896) 22 Tests, 1,098 runsat 32.29

3 Don Bradman (Australia,CY 1931, capt) 52 Tests,6,996 runs at 99.94)

4 Sachin Tendulkar (India,CY 1997) 198 Tests,15,837 runs at 53.86

5 Vivian Richards (WestIndies, CY 1977) 121Tests, 8,540 runs at 50.23

6 Garry Sobers (WestIndies, CY 1964) 93 Tests,8,032 runs at 57.78, 235wickets at 34.03

7 Alan Knott (England, CY1970, wkt) 95 Tests, 4,389runs at 32.75, 250 catches,19 stumpings

8 Wasim Akram (Pakistan,CY 1993) 104 Tests, 414wickets at 23.62

9 Shane Warne (Australia,CY 1994) 145 Tests, 708wickets at 25.41

10 Malcolm Marshall (WestIndies, CY 1983) 81 Tests,376 wickets at 20.94

11 Sydney Barnes (England,CY 1910) 27 Tests, 189wickets at 16.43

Rain played spoilsport at thefourth and fifth ODIs in theseven match series betweenIndia and Australia. Australiahave taken a 2-1 lead overIndia by winning the first andthird matches. India won thesecond match. The outcomeof the 6th and 7th ODIs willdecide the winner of theseries.

4th ODIThe fourth ODI was

played at the JSCA stadiumin Ranchi. While India wasreplying to Australia’s 295 foreight in 50 over rain began.At that time India was 27 forno loss. Due to the rain theplayers trooped into indoors.Once the rain stopped thematch officials conducted aninspection of the groundbefore deciding not to resumethe match. Trailing 1-2, Indiawas hoping to win this matchto restore parity in this series.With this match producing noresult, India will have to winat least two of remainingthree games to not lose theseries.Earlier, Dhoni won the

toss for the first time in thisseries and asked Australia tobat first considering the over-cast sky and moisture in thepitch. Left-armer JaydevUnadkat and MohammadShami, coming in forBhuvneshwar Kumar andIshant Sharma, used the newball well.Shami generated good

pace and movement off thepitch. The 23-year-old cut

through the Australian top-order to leave it gasping at 32for three in eight overs.He brought one in sharply

to surprise Aaron Finch andmade one rise from short oflength to force Phil Hugesedge to Dhoni. Anothersharp incoming delivery shat-tered the woodwork ofWatson.The three-wicket haul

was Shami’s best figures, theprevious being two for 25against Zimbabwe in July.

Dropped catches galoreAustralia should have

been four down as GeorgeBailey, facing the first ball,edged an away going deliveryfrom Shami but Kohli failedto take the regulation catch atthe third slip.That was the beginning of

the six dropped catches bythe Indians. Bailey and GlennMaxwell settled down for thefifth wicket that produced153 runs, an Australian

record against India.Bailey was steady and

solid, while Maxwell wasbold, and at times, brilliant,with his IPL style strokes.His two reverse sweeps

off Ashwin from well outsidethe off-stump to square-legboundary, stood out.Bailey (35) was reprieved

by Ashwin off Vinay at shortmid-wicket at 90 before theAussie captain brought up his11th ODI half-century off 57balls.As the team’s score

neared 150 came anotherdropped catch, this timeMaxwell (44) square cutUnadkat. Yuvraj Singh failedto pouch him at point. TheAussie raced to his fourthhalf-century off 45 balls.The Aussie duo brought

up the 100 partnership in 103balls and soon the score was200.Meanwhile, Dhoni failed

to latch on to an intended

glide past slips by Maxwell(69) off Suresh Raina’s fasterone.Bailey fell 24 runs later

when his attempt to clear theground off Vinay ended in thehands of Rohit Sharma for awell-compiled 98 that hadseven hits to the fence andthree sixes.The batting powerplay

produced 37 runs, as duringthis period, Australia lostthree wickets includingMaxwell for a punishing 92off just 77 balls with six foursand five sixes.The last ten overs pro-

duced 57 as India restrictedAustralia to 295 for eight.

5th ODI called off The 5th ODI in Cuttack

has been officially cancelleddue to unplayable conditionsat the Barabati stadium afterdays of continuous rains.Cuttack has been witnessingregular showers.Yesterday, even the offi-

cial press release from theOdisha Cricket Associationsounded very hopeless inregard to the match takingplace.“We deeply regret to men-

tion that the sunny weatherthat we have been expectinghas failed to come true. Theground is completely water-logged and the match hasbeen cancelled,” a pressrelease said.Surprisingly, rains could-

n’t keep away the fans whocame to buy the tickets any-way.

4th, 5th ODIs washed out

Tendulkar lone Indian in Wisden World XI

England's cricketers werein confident mood whenthey touched down inPerth last week at thestart of their Ashes tourto Australia. Asked abouthis team's chances of win-ning a fourth consecutiveAshes series, spinnerGraeme Swann said theywere "always confident."The England playerslooked fresh and relaxeddespite arriving a littleafter midnight and Swannsaid he "can't wait to getcracking. If we play ourgood cricket," he said,"then it should be a greatseries." Kevin Pietersenwasn't among the playinggroup which arrived. Hehad been granted com-passionate leave toremain in England follow-ing the death of a friendand will join the teamlater, bringing it up to itsfull complement of 17.The players were havingtwo days off before thefirst official practice ses-sion. England have sixdays to acclimatize beforeopening its tour with athree-day match against aWest Australia XI.

India to face Pakistan inWorld Twenty20 opener

Cricket rivals India and Pakistan weredrawn against each other for next year'sWorld Twenty20, according to the ICC.According to Sport24, India and Pakistanare among eight sides which have beengiven direct entry into the Super 10 stage ofthe competition, based on the ICC's T20team rankings. The Super 10 stage will startwith a match between India and Pakistan inMirpur on March 21, while the West Indieswill begin their title defence on March 23against India also in Mirpur, the report said.

MCA names club afterTendulkar

The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) haspaid tribute to Sachin Tendulkar by namingthe Kandivili ground as the Sachin TendulkarGymkhana Club. The announcement wasmade by MCA’s newly elected presidentSharad Pawar. The Club would be inaugurat-ed on November 11. The MCA had formed asmall committee headed by Pawar to decidehow to felicitate Tendulkar who will hang uphis boots after his historic 200th Test againstWest Indies. His glittering career has fetchedhim 100 international hundreds and over34,000 runs in international cricket. "Wehave decided to name our clubhouse atKandivli after Sachin Tendulkar and theunveiling function would be held there onNovember 11 in the presence of both theteams - West Indies and India," said Pawar.

India guaranteed topspot in ODI rankings

World Champions India are guaranteed theNo.1 spot after the last two One-DayInternationals (ODI) in the seven-matchseries against Australia were washed out.Australia currently lead the series 2-1 withthe final two matches to be played in Nagpurand Bangalore on Wednesday and Saturday.If Australia manage to win the final twoODIs, they will rise to 119 points while Indiawill finish on 120. In sharp contrast, if Indiawin both matches, they will finish on 123points while Australia will slide to 114.

BCCI terminates SaharaPune Warriors from IPLThe BCCI working committee terminatedfranchise Sahara Pune Warriors from theIndian Premier League for not paying abank guarantee of Rs 1.74 billion. Ownedby the Sahara Group, the Pune Warriorshave been on collision course with theBCCI after the board encashed its bankguarantee due to non-payment of franchisefee. The Sahara group announced its pull-out from the IPL after that even though thatis yet to be formally conveyed to the BCCI.All the governing council members of theIPL were invited for the meeting. Saharahad been demanding the completion of thearbitration proceedings on the issue of fran-chise fee, which it feels should be loweredsince the BCCI did not deliver on its prom-ised number of IPL matches for the team. The arbitration process has not yet startedbecause of the differences between BCCIand Sahara over the judges to be appointedfor it. Pune Warriors, bought by Sahara for$370 million (approx Rs 17.02 billion) in2010, is the most expensive franchise onthe IPL roster and its termination wouldcause substantial financial loss to the BCCI.With this decision, the IPL is back to aneight-team affair.

England teamin Australia forAshes series

Sachin Tendulkar