AV 13th May 2023

Sonam’s outfit for King Charles’ coronation concert had an Indian connection

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Let noble thoughts come to us from

Thousands avoid type 2 diabetes with free evidence-based N H S lifestyle programme

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L O N G L I V E T H E K I N G !

Rupanjana Dutta and Shefali Saxena

B r i t a i n w i t n e s s e s a h i s t o r i c , diverse and inclusive coronation ceremony of King Charles III and Q u e e n C a m i l l a , 7 0 y e a r s a f t e r Queen Elizabeth II’s crowning, in a strategically planned ceremony T h e l a s t t i m e B r i t a i n h e l d a coronation, was in 1953, it was r a i n i n g a s i t r a i n e d o n M a y 6 , 2023 Back then, Prince Charles, n o w K i n g C h a r l e s I I I w a s o n l y f o u r y e a r s o l d . S e v e n t y y e a r s l a t e r , t h e K i n g ’ s c o r o n a t i o n , b r i m m e d w i t h r i t u a l a n d symbolism rooted in centurieso l d t r a d i t i o n m u c h l i k e h i s m o t h e r ’ s H o w e v e r , i t ’ s n o t t h e same Britain as it was 70 years ago.

Continued on page 11

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see inside

Pharmacists to offer prescriptions

14

Be 24X7 ambassadors of Bharat, says Indian VP Jagdeep Dhankhar

20

Imran Khan's arrest leads to massive protests in Pakistan

King Charles III and Queen Camilla

with Keith Vaz

NA I SH A D C H H AT R A L I A

Naishad Chh atralia also know n as “Nash” He was born and bough t up in Leicester and m arried to Isha Chh atralia His father is from Uganda and m oth er is from Dar-es-salaam Tanzania Th ey all liv e tog ether with his 96-year-old g rand mother

He studied at Abbey Primary school, Soar Valley, WQE II and graduated from Sheff ield Hallam University in Business Information Technology Nash moved to London where he worked at The Ford Motor Company as a computer programmer and Project Manager He soon moved back to Leicester to pursue his passion of cooking and opened a restaurant called Paprika They had run the restaurant for over 10 years then took a break where he and his wife were blessed with twin boys Shiven & Shailen now aged 6

In 2016 he went back into business and opened a Small Supermarket and Post off ice Further down the years an opportunity came up at The Peepul Centre to join the team where he is currently the Director of Charity & Business development His hobbies include cooking, golf & music Charity & community projects have always been a huge part of his life including being part of the Lions Club, Freemasonry, past president on the Leicester Vishwakarma Manda and now a part of The Peepul Centre which furthermore enables him to pursue that passion

1) Which place, or city or country do you most feel at home in?

Leicester has been and will always be my home I have made many friends here especially during my time at paprika and 1000 ’ s of unforgettable memories but having spent a long time in Anand, Gujarat I do miss it and would love to retire there some day

2) What are your proudest achievements?

The Covid19 Pandemic was probably the worst times for a lot of us but as a positive it gave me one of my proudest achievements, the opportunity to run The Peepul Covid Food project where we were making, packing & delivering 1000 ’ s of hot meals to local vulnerable Peepul & the NHS every week for over a year all with just volunteers, I saw our local community truly come together at a time of crisis

3) What inspires you?

Everything around me inspires me, seeing other people achieve their goals, watching people uniting for a good cause, but most of all I think listening to the historical stories and understanding some of the hardships and achievements from my parents' life has always been a big inspiration

4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career?

There is only 1 obstacle – The Covid19 Pandemic - Stepping into the unknown but at the same time trying to give the rest of the team conf idence that all will be ok Not knowing what’s going to happen tomorrow, how will we f inancially and mentally survive this? Trying to give hope without seeing hope yourself…..

5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date?

There has been a lot of people who have influenced my career but most of all

Post Office Scandal: Corrupted decision-making by Lawyers

A fter sc ru tinis ing a d o cument, acad emics th at were probing the role of lawyers in th e Post Off ice Horizon scandal d elivered a d am ning interim verdict They conclu ded that legal regulators must com e up with ‘practic al’ w ays of s tress in g th e i m p o rt anc e o f i nd e p end en ce w h en law yer s co ndu ct reviews for clients

The recommendation came in a 41-page forthright working paper from Exeter University’s Evidence-based Justice Lab, which has been examining the scandal for two years The paper focuses

I have to say it was my f irst boss, Dineshbhai Amlani, owner of Pizza Parlour I started work there at the age of 15 and I don’t think I actually ever left, the place became part of my life I learnt so much about business from him, how to respect customers and make your staff feel part of the family

6) What is the best aspect about your current role?

Working for an organisation whose fundamental goal is to make a difference and provide to the local community I am an Indian at heart and I am proud to be involved in events and activities that keeping the south Asian culture alive But the best bit has to be the Friday karaoke club, I get to pursue my passion of singing while working

7) And the worst?

I can’t really say there is a worst I guess time is always an issue, there are never enough hours in the day to do what I set out to do Another major challenge has always been funding or the lack of We are constantly looking for different avenues and income streams to sustain our self as a centre and charitable projects

8) What are your long term goals?

The long-term goal is always to retire from work and spend more time at home with the family But before that I would love to see myself running my own charitable organisation and giving back to those who are less fortunate.

9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?

I would bring a change in the education system, remove all university fees and provide grants to underprivileged children I feel that investing in education is the same as investing in the future of our country Further education should not just be for those who can afford it, and no one should come out of university in debt If it was not for the grant system, I don’t think my family would have been able to send me to university

10) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why?

It would have to be Mohd Raf i In my eyes one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent I could listen to his singing all day long and hopefully he could teach me how to sing as well

on a review conducted by eminent silk Brian Altman for the Post Off ice in 2013

Until Januar y this year, Altman’s review was not made public His review inspected the conduct of past prosecutions and pros-

ecution policy at the Post Off ice

Richard Moorhead, professor of law and professional ethics at the university led the Exeter project His team was commissioned in April 2023 to carry out a threeyear project on the scandal that was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council

The Altman paper will be submitted to the off icial Post Off ice Inquiry, which will soon begin inquiring in detail about the conduct of lawyers that were involved in the affair

Ramadan Radio Leicester station busy breaking norms

Th e l o c a l p owe r ho us e Ram adan Radio Leices ter has b e e n s e r vi n g Le i c e s t e r ’ s Muslim c om munity for the past 26 years with the help of b r oa d c a s t in g Is l a m ic re l igious tea chings along wit h providing a platform to local res idents to s hare their stories

Breaking the barriers, the station conducts discussions on taboo social, cultural, and religious topics such as drug addictions It also discussed the East Leicester tensions that took place last year in

the city

Locally, Ramadan Radio has a listenership of 18,000 loyal fans and over 60,000 listeners nationally The station has been accommodating more female and young presenters

Recently, the Ramadan Radio team announced that it managed to raise over £1 million pound for several local charities in the past year and hoped to build on its previous work - as the team recently announced that it will broadcast all year round

Formerly, the station operated during Ramadan, which is considered to be the holiest and most prominent month of the year in the Islamic faith

Since 2011, Muhammed Yusuf has volunteered at the station and has been proactive in carrying out a lot of its activities and building the station's social media presence He said: "We want to create a legacy within our community and bridge the gap between young people in the community and radio ”

Care technologist was victimised, tribunal rules

A tribu nal has ruled that a senior critical care technolog is t at Barts Health NHS Trust, who raised a series o f d is crim inati on c om pl ai nts, was victimised when h is line m a nag er “ p u bl i cl y nam ed an d sh a m ed ” h im an d assu med fault with no prior inv estigation

According to the East London tribunal, Mr N Chowdhur y ’ s treatment amounted to victimisation, with one incident involving his manager “ venting his feelings because

[Chowdhur y] had made himself out to be the victim when it was [his] alleged perpetrator who had ended up off sick”

The tribunal ruled that “ no critical thinking” was applied when Chowdhur y was assumed guilty and he was unfairly “blamed for the impact he had on other staff ”

For now, Chowdhury’s claim of victimisation has succeeded, however, further claims for direct race discrimination and harassment

related to race were not upheld Chowdhury joined as a senior critical care technologist at Barts Health NHS Trust on April 2, 2001 During his course of employment, Chowdhur y made a series of protected acts

On March 27, 2021, there was an altercation between Chowdhur y and another senior critical care technologist, Mr Patelca, which both brought complaints the following day

Climate charity unveils plan for Hammersmith Bridge

A ccording to a clim ate charity, a major Lo nd on bridg e s h o u ld re m ai n c lo s ed to cars, with d riv erless electric pod s intro duced for people with mo bility diff iculties

The proposal would cost a fraction of the “hundreds of millions of pounds” that are needed to fully reopen Hammersmith Bridge in the west of the capital, as per the Possible

Motor vehicles have been banned from using the 136-year-old cast iron structure since 2019 following the cracks in the pedestals

The plan published by Possible includes a two-way protected cycle lane that will run across the bridge, adjacent to autonomous pods

available for people who cannot easily walk or cycle

Along with this, there would also be paths for pedestrians

The solution is aimed and designed to work within the “existing engineering constraints” of the bridge, meaning only one of the fleet of 10 pods would be

authorised to cross at any time Possibly said that the total scheme would cost less than £10 million

In August 2020, the bridge was closed to all users after the cracks deteriorated during a heatwave In July 2021, it reopened to pedestrians, cyclists and river traff ic

Thought for the week

The King of Hearts

Amidst criticism of various kinds, challenges, backlashes and constant scrutiny, King Charles III and Queen Camilla have been able to bring the nation together to celebrate a new dawn

The coronation marked many things new It marked an era of diversity, inclusivity and it also stood as a symbol of triumph, love and duty

The ceremony itself was a first of many It was an abridged version of the 1953 coronation, when Queen Elizabeth II ascended on the throne This coronation celebration was watched by over 14mn viewers, something rare before It also included representatives of different faiths, not only as part of showering blessings on the newly crowned king but also as an integral part of the ceremony (see p1, 11-17)

King Charles III has been associated with the Asian community for years Through Prince’s Trust and the British Asian Trust (BAT), he has not only interacted with the community, visited temples and gurdwaras in the UK, but also visited India a few times The BAT extended huge support to India during Covid-19 and even, in November last year, to mark 50 years of the Ugandan expulsion, he hosted the diaspora at the Buckingham Palace, for a celebration to remember their arrival

From Hindus in India to Jewish settlers in the West Bank and fundamentalist Christians in the United States, King Charles tried to bridge the differences between the faith groups that make up Britain’s increasingly diverse society

The King’s commitment to diversity was on display at his coronation when religious leaders representing the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh traditions for the first time played an active role in the ceremonies

Gopal Kambo, a graduate studying Masters's at

Cambridge in music and was selected to join the choir for his musical ability The fact he is able to do that and still identifies as himself puts paid to the myth that the royals are not inclusive

Raaghav Das, a 16-year-old with roots in India’s Bihar state was among the attendees and one of the 48 King’s Scholars at the Westminster School of London in the choir

Amongst other dignitaries of Indian origin who graced the occasion, was British Sikh Lord Indarjit Singh of Wimbledon presented the Glove to hold the Sovereign Sceptre during the Crowning of King Charles III, Lord Syed Kamall, 56, of Indo-Guyanese heritage, represented the Muslim faith and presented the Armills or a pair of bracelets and Lord Narendra Babubhai Patel, 84, represented the Hindu faith and handed over the Sovereign's Ring

Invitees also included people from across faiths, charities, youngsters and 450 BEMs Lord Jitesh Gadhia spoke about his association and experiences (see p13) and so did 16-year old Iona Mandal from Birmingham

The Harry-Meghan or Princess Diana controversies have never left the King's shadow But that Prince Harry was present, even for a short while, despite every allegation and retaliation, and that the King celebrated Archie’s birthday, whom he has never met in person, speaks volumes about the father and grandfather he is

Camilla from once the most hated woman of Britain to today’s Queen, has also come a long way

Love is another thing, and with all that has been lost (and won), as Princess Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell said, that despite the fall out, Diana would have definitely attended the coronation and outshone everybody at the ceremony

Crucial assembly election in Karnataka

The electorates in Karnataka

will vote to decide on

their

future

rulers this week It is a crucial one not because Karnataka is one of India’s biggest and most influential states, but because it might set the stage for several other elections in the coming months that will lead all the way to the national elections in early 2024 For the past few days, the leaders of the three major political parties - the BJP, Congress, and JD(S) - have been on a blitz of campaigning across the state, even as the ruling BJP has been striving to break the 38-year-old pattern of alternating governments and retain its southern citadel

"Government with a full majority" seemed to be the favourite slogan of the leaders of all the political parties during the campaigning for the elections to the 224-member Assembly, as they emphasised getting a clear mandate to build a strong and stable government in the state The BJP's campaign was largely centralised, with a focus on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the "double-engine" government, national issues, and union government programmes and accomplishments, as well as a few from the state Since April 29, Prime Minister Modi's campaign has gained momentum, holding 18 large-scale public gatherings and six road shows He canvassed votes for BJP candidates across the state with the poll slogan 'Ee Baariya Nirdhara, Bahumatada BJP Sarkara' (This Time's Decision: Majority BJP Government)

Since the BJP has been in power in Karnataka for the past five years, the state has had one of the fastest rates of economic growth The party also won 25 out of the 28 parliament seats in the state in 2019 According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data, Karnataka’s budget and the economic survey showed the economy of Karnataka has grown 68 per cent from 2018 to 2023 In the same time frame, the nation's nominal GDP expanded by 59%, from £1,710 billion in FY18 to £2,720 billion

in FY23 Inflation and the fiscal deficit in the state have also remained lower than the national average The per capita income of Karnataka recorded highest amongst other major states in India

On the other hand, Congress is working hard to wrest power from the BJP to give itself much-needed elbow room and momentum to position itself as the main opposition player in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections By winning Karnataka, it also wants to give momentum of sorts to workers to take on the battle-ready election machinery of the BJP later this year in the Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan The party has been engaged in high-stakes campaigning this time around as a result of its attention to the issue

The JD(S), led by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, was seen putting all its might into campaigning, wanting to emerge as "king" and not "kingmaker", hoping to get the required numbers to form a government on its own Plagued by desertions, internal rifts, and the image of being a family party", Gowda's son Kumaraswamy led the JD(S) campaign throughout the state on his own, with the ailing father taking a back seat

Pre-election polls or surveys conducted by the majority of regional news channels in Karnataka place the Congress in the lead and the BJP in a close second The Karnataka election is seen as a crucial one for the Congress and the BJP as it is the first big election of the year and is also the first of several ahead of next year's Lok Sabha election In the current Assembly the BJP - which came to power after the Congress-JDS alliance collapsed in 2019 after more than a dozen MLAs controversially jumped to the saffron party - holds 119 seats The Congress has 75 seats and the JD(S) 28

Time to focus on long-term management of Covid

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said that Covid-19 is no longer a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and that the focus would now be on the long-term management of the infection The viral infection came to light after China reported a cluster of pneumonia cases with no known cause from Wuhan on December 31, 2019 By the end of January 2020, nearly 10,000 cases had been reported, including more than 100 cases in 19 other countries WHO raised its highest level of alert and termed the infection a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, a designation that remained in place for over three years SARS-CoV2 was a novel virus about which very little was known in the initial days Later, as many patients reached hospitals with pneumonia and in need of oxygen support, doctors and researchers discovered that the infection put the immune system into overdrive when immune cells started attacking the patient’s own organs This tended to happen more in the elderly, and in those with existing comorbidities like diabetes India's handling of its Covid cases and the supply of affordable vaccines to neighbouring and poor countries was acknowledged all over the world India has undertaken the largest immunisation programme against Covid India has reported 44 3 million cases and 530,000 deaths due to Covid-19 so far Globally, the number of infections has crossed 765 million and caused 69,20,000 deaths Governments have strengthened healthcare systems and

rolled out vaccination drives In India, more than 90% of people above the age of 12 years have received their two primary doses India witnessed three distinct waves of Covid-19 infections The first wave, from mid-2020 to around September of that year, was caused by the original variant The second wave in April-May 2021 saw a large number of cases and deaths over a short period The surge was driven by the Delta variant that led to deep lung impact and resulted in hospitals overflowing with people in need of oxygen and ventilator support There was a shortage of medical oxygen The third wave, driven by the Omicron variant, was smaller both in terms of number of cases and hospitalisations and deaths

There are no lockdowns; international travel, restaurants, and cinemas are normal; and containment and control measures haven’t been needed for some time now So, not much will change on ground with the WHO declaration Although universal vaccination is no longer required, as immunity declines it may be considered old and comorbid Those at high risk should wear masks in crowded and poorly ventilated spaces as a precaution Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, said it was time for most countries to return to life as we knew it before Covid-19 He also spoke about the enormous damage inflicted on all aspects of global life by the virus, including enormous economic upheaval, “erasing trillions from GDP, disrupting travel and trade, shuttering businesses, and plunging millions into poverty ”

Courage is

Political Sketchbook

Alpesh Patel

muscle

India’s Independent Foreign Policy

“Ultim ately, wh at should g uide India is th e quest to m ake itself a great p ower with a difference, namely, in a way which enables it to achieve Mahatma Gand hi’s d ream o f ‘wiping the tear from the eye of every Ind ian ’ T hat would be in keeping with India’s core values and national interest That is the right obj ectiv e for a great cou ntry like Ind ia ” Writes India’s former National Security A dv iso r, Shiv sh ankar M enon

On the eve of the Coronation, sadly I could not make dinner with His Excellency the Vice President of India But it did give me pause for thought

In addition to its bilateral relations, India has been actively participating in multilateral forums such as the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, and the G20 India has been advocating for global issues such as climate change, sustainable development, and the fight against terrorism

Overall, India s current stance on international relations is one of engagement and cooperation India is committed to building strong relationships with other countries and contributing to global peace and stability With its growing economic and political influence, India is poised to play an increasingly important role in the international arena

India's economic growth has had a significant impact on its foreign policy in recent years As one of the fastestgrowing economies in the world, India has become an influential player in the global arena, and its economic success has helped to shape its foreign policy objectives

One of the most significant ways in which India's economic growth has influenced its foreign policy is by increasing its global stature and influence As India's economy has grown, it has become a more attractive partner for other countries, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region India has also become a key player in international trade, with its exports and imports increasing significantly over the past decade

India’s foreign policy has undoubtedly been shaped by its nuclear capability Since India s nuclear tests in 1998, the country has faced a complex set of challenges and opportunities in the international arena On the one hand, India's nuclear weapons have given it a more prominent role in global affairs, allowing it to assert its position as a major regional power On the other hand, India's nuclear status has also led to a number of diplomatic challenges and complications, particularly with regards to its relationship with the United States and other Western powers

What are th e major chall enges facing India' s f oreign pol icy?

1 China's Rise: The rise of China as a global superpower has changed the power dynamics in Asia China's assertive and aggressive foreign policy has raised concerns in India, particularly with regards to its territorial claims and military presence in the region India must find a way to balance its relationship with China while safeguarding its own interests

2 Terrorism: India has long been a target of terrorist groups

3 Pakistan: Pakistan has been a longstanding adversary of India and continues to support terrorist groups targeting India

4 Energy Security: India is heavily dependent on imported energy sources, particularly oil The volatility of global energy markets poses a significant threat to India's energy security India must diversify its energy sources and reduce its dependence on imports

5 Climate Change: India is one of the world's largest emitters of greenhouse gases and is highly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change India must balance its economic growth with sustainable development practices to mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure a livable future for its citizens

6 Cybersecurity and National Infrastructure: Jealous neighbours near and far threaten India’s infrastructure, civilian, military and nuclear Actions of allies and adversaries will determine the speed and change of India’s foreign policy

Finally, God save the King! As I said, I am sorry to have missed meeting the Vice President of India

like a

We strengthen it by use. -Ruth Gordo

Two Met officers arrested over woman’s ‘rape, kidnap and assault’

Two Metropolitan Police offic er s have be en arr es ted for alleged kidnapping, assault and rape of a woman

The woman has alleged that the off-duty pair and another man took her by taxi to a flat following their meeting at a club in Kingston, south-west London

The incident is believed to have happened at a north London property early on April 30, she raised the alarm, the Sun reported

Based on the Met’s North West command unit, the PCs were detained by colleagues On suspicion of kidnap, rape and common assault, one officer was held

Over the sex assault claim, detectives bailed him until June but dropped the other two alleged offences

Pharmacist struck off for illegitimate codeine supply

Meanwhile, on suspicion of kidnap and possessing Class A drugs, along with the third man for kidnap only, the second PC was arrested

They were kept in custody and later released Both have been suspended from duty

A police spokesman said: “Two serving Met officers have been suspended from duty after being arrested

“The arrests relate to an incident that occurred on Sunday, 30 April and began in Kingston The officers were off duty at the time

“A woman is being supported by specially trained officers

“The Directorate of Professional Standards has been informed and a referral has been made to the Independent Office for Police Conduct ”

one NHS Trust provides training on sexual harassment: Study

O nl y one N HS Trus t of fe rs training to its staff focused on how to intervene when they witness sexual harassment at work, a new study published on May 5 revealed

The research was based on responses from 199 NHS Trusts received by Dr Sarah Steele of the University of Cambridge and Jesus College, Cambridge, and Dr Ava Robertson, to their Freedom of Information request It was published in the JRSM Open 35 Trusts offer their staff Active Bystander Training (ABT) but only one of these has a specific module on sexual harassment, according to the study For staff the module is optional and outsourced to a private provider, but no staff have yet completed the module

As per the research, of the 163 Trusts without any ABT programmes, only 23 (13 per cent) have plans to implement it

in brief

Kapil Ramesh Rabadia who was employed as a pharmacist manager at Golborne Pharmacy, was ha nde d t he judg emen t a t a General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) fitness-to-practise (FtP) hearing held last month (April 13-14) via remote video link

According to a determination document published last week, the committee heard how he was convicted of “fraud by abuse of position and being concerned in supplying controlled drugs following a guilty plea” in September 2021

Mr Rabadia “facilitated the removal of over 2,000 bottles of codeine linctus along with Phenergan from the pharmacy premises” after being threatened by four men, it said Currently, he is serving a concurrent sentence of 12 months imprisonment for fraud and six months in respect of

SCHOOLS AT RISK OF CLOSING DOWN IN LONDON

Owing to the rising rents and sky-high housing prices coupled with the cost-of-living crisis London schools are struggling to stay open as pupil numbers are plummeting

supplying a Class B drug, suspended for 18 months and due to expire on October 25, it added

Where the regulator accepted that Mr Rabadia “ was subject to coercion from unknown individuals” and that there is no evidence of either financial gain for him or harm towards the public, but it stressed that his conduct “took place over a substantial period of time” and that he supplied “excessive amounts” of the drugs “outside of the legitimate supply chain”

Pensioner charged with murdering wife

An East London pensioner has been arrested for murdering his 77-year-old wife after admitting he had assaulted her 80-year-old Tarsame Singh walked into a police station confessing that he had battered his wife Maya Devi, a retired postmistress, at their home in Cowdray Way, Elm Park

According to data from London Council there was a 17% decrease between 2012 and 2021 in London s birth rate accounting for 23,000 fewer babies in the capital The worst-hit central borough is Camden which has the second-lowest birth rate in the country, while the average house price in the area is more than £1m Four primary schools are set to close over the past four years in this borough In 2021 before Carlton Primary School in Kentish Town got closed it was half full It has then merged with Rhyl Community School, across two sites For every primary pupil that leaves the school it loses about £4,000 To keep its funding going, Rhyl has now broadened its age group to include babies providing community services such as breastfeeding clinics and adult learning to keep parents in the area Meanwhile, since 2015, Southwark has had 16 schools at risk with a 26% decrease in demand A Department for Education spokesperson said: "Next year school funding will be at its highest level n history - in real terms - as measured by the Institute for Fiscal Studies following the additional £2bn of investment for both 2023 to 24 and 2024 to 2025 in the autumn statement

The study also revealed that only five Trusts produce their ABT training in-house, with 27 outsourcing to private providers, who do not allow wider sharing of training materials

“Without access to training materials for external evaluation, there is no means to assess the training adequacy and to share knowledge across NHS bodies Policymakers should heed caution before winding out further training and recall that private companies have commercial interests to protect,” they said

Upon reaching the address, officers and paramedics found Devi with grievous head injuries The elderly woman was pronounced dead at the scene Singh appeared at Barkingside Magistrates’ Court Meanwhile, Scotland Yard said

specially trained officers are continuing to support Devi’s next of kin

Both Singh and Devi belonged to India and had moved to the UK more than 50 years ago Before shifting to Hornchurch, they lived in East Ham Devi used to daily practise yoga and regularly used to visit the Havering Asian Social and Welfare Association community centre near her home

Her close friend told MailOnline that she was planning to go to Lanzarote on a sixday holiday

Palace garden was given to Johnson in lockdowns

During the covid lockdowns, the late Queen took pity on Boris Johns on and all owed him to m ake us e of B uck ingha m Palace’s gardens to exercise out of the public eye

In a very unusual way, the

Met Police defends officers for tasering man and shooting dogs dead

The off ice rs who ta sere d the ac cused and shot two dogs in f ron t of sc re aming w it nes s es were d ef end ed b y the Metropolitan Police

As per the footage that was posted on social media, officers were seen pursuing a man holding the two dogs on a short lead along a canal in Limehouse, east London on Sunday afternoon

The situation then went out of hands as the man was tasered to the floor and the animals were shot dead

Referring to the incident, police said officers “have a duty to act where necessary before any further injury is caused ”

In a statement, the force

NUMBER OF POTENTIAL MODERN SLAVERY VICTIMS HITS RECORD HIGH

According to the official statistics, the number of potential victims of modern slavery in England and Wales is at the highest levels since records began Between January and March a total of 4 746 peop e were referred to the Home Office as potentia victims of exploitation As the government prepares to fight attempts in the House of Lords to alter the illegal migration bill critics believe that it w ll make it harder to rescue modern slavery victims Senior MPs including Theresa May believe that the bill would scrap protection and support for those in forced labour It is not possible to know the exact numbers of victims, the police have said modern slavery victims including children, work across many sectors from construction and agriculture to the sex industry, and in places such as nail bars car washes and cannabis farms The Home Office said, the number of people referred into the national referral mechanism (NRM) –a system that identifies potential victims of modern slavery and human traffick ng so their cases can be considered – in the first three months of this year was the highest since the scheme started in 2009 In the first quarter of 2022 this is an increase of 27% from 3 773 and a rise of 7% in the period between October and December

UK’S FIRST PILOT STUDY FOR PORN ADDICTION TREATMENT GETS A NOD

nection with the incident for having a dog dangerously out of control and assault offences He has been taken into police custody

“A Taser was discharged by police ” The statement continued: “No person was taken to hospital

Queen allowed Johnson to use the gardens for his early morning runs as he tried to build up his strength after having Covid while he was prime minister Johnson’s personal protection officer imposed restrictions on where he could run, which led to the Queen’s offer, for security reasons

said: “Police were called just after 5:00 pm on Sunday May 7 to a woman being attacked by a dog in Commercial Road, E14

“Officers attended the location where the aggressive behaviour of two dogs was of considerable concern and posed a significant threat to them

“A man was arrested in con-

“Both dogs were destroyed by police at the scene “This is never an easy decision for any officer to take, but police have a duty to act where necessary before any further injury is caused

“The Met’s Directorate of Professional Standards will review the circumstances of the incident ”

Not only Johnson, but she also extended the invitation to his then-fiancée Carrie Symonds and allowed her to use the gardens with the couple’s baby son, Wilfred

The historian Anthony Seldon, whose biography Johnson at 10: The Inside Story is out, said, that the offer was in response to the difficulties the couple faced “cooped up ” in the Downing Street bustle “There was little privacy,” Seldon writes

As society deals with a sharp rise in the number of people seeking medical help for porn addiction, the first-ever pilot study for the treatment of porn addiction has received ethical approval The Pivotal Recovery Course led by psychotherapist Dr Paula Hall will help people who are struggling with unwanted sexual behaviours and impulses Dr Hall already owns the Laurel Centre a specialist private clinic that treats people with porn addiction The centre last year warned that working from home had fuelled a sharp rise in the number of people reporting addiction to porn Some who sought help from the centre were said to be watching up to 14 hours of porn a day The pilot study will imitate the CHOICE recovery model, which spells out six steps of recovery: challenging core beliefs, having a vision overcoming compulsive behaviours, identifying positive sexuality, connecting with others and establishing confident recovery Participants will be asked to listen to 60 podcasts accompanied by workbooks and further resources The study which is being carried out in partnership with Leeds Trinity University, will be offered to users free of charge

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£20 million India Gardens Project: Foundation Stone

Laying Ceremony on 17 May

Shree Kutch Leva Patel

Commun ity (SKLPC )

UK is orga nis ing the Khat M urat (Founda tion St one Lay ing) C ere mony of India Gardens Project on Wednesday 17 May

This sa cr ed Hind u Ceremony will be followed by Shanti Havan on Mon day 2 9 Ma y

This will be a self-funded project with a build cost of £20 million The centre has been designed to sit beautifully and subtly within the Greenbelt 18-acre site

India Gardens complex has been designed as a central hub for SKLPC members and the local community to enrich their lives through sports and community events The vision is to have a community centre that will cater for the needs of all ages and support and promote their health, mental health and well-being

The modern facilities will encourage the youth to participate in activities and develop their sporting abilities The elders of the community will be able to enjoy socials and activities that promote culture The young families will have access to a child-friendly environment with a playground and a

café A well-established cricket club with 7 teams of different ages playing in county leagues and over 125 colts in the training academy are already in operation

President Mavji Dhanji Jadva said, “SKLPC(UK) hosts the largest Asian 5-aside football tournament each year with over 80 teams from juniors to seniors competing for the champions trophy We also have our own badminton league and volleyball tournament, these will all be enhanced with better facilities and more training for the youth In addition to our sporting activities, we run a Saturday school where we tutor over 400 students in English, Maths, Dance, Music and our mother tongue Gujarati The school has been running every Saturday during term time

Pharmacists to offer prescriptions

for over 40 years ”

SKLPC (UK): 50 years of community service, enhancement

The community originated from the Kutch region in Gujarat, India

SKLPC (UK) was established in the United Kingdom 50 years ago as a selffunded charitable organisation, with the aim of enhancing the lives of our members through education, sports, and culture The first community centre was purchased in West Hendon, London In 1996, an 18-acre green belt site in Northolt, London was purchased The community has grown from strength to strength since our humble beginnings in 1972 and now is a community of approximately 30,000 members

The ceremonies: Khat Murat Poojan: Wednesday 17th May 2023, at 10am Shanti Havan: Monday 29th May 2023, at 10 30am Venue: Premises of India Gardens, West End Road, Northolt UB5 6RE

Pharmacists in the UK will s oon be ab le to presc ribe medicines and oral contraception to patients without G Ps ’ s ign-of f This is an attempt to ease the pressure on surgeries

According to PM Rishi Sunak, treatments for seven common conditions –including earache, sore throat and urinary tract infections – will be available without seeing a doctor He hopes the measures will help end the “all-too stressful wait” for appointments by freeing up 15 million slots at doctors’ surgeries over the next two years This reform is hoped to be introduced this winter after consultation with the industry This also implies that over half-amillion women would no longer need to speak to a nurse or GP to get oral contraception The other medications that pharmacies would be able to hand out would treat conditions are sinusitis, infected insect

bite, impetigo and shingles

According to The Independent, the number of people able to access blood pressure checks in pharmacies would be more than doubled to 2 5 million a year Self-referrals will also be increased for access to services such as physiotherapy, hearing tests and podiatry without having to see a GP first

“I know how frustrating it is to be stuck on hold to your GP practice when you or a family member desperately need an appointment

for a common illness,” Sunak said, “We will end the 8am rush and expand the services offered by pharmacies ” NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard has termed this move as an “ ambitious package” that will help transform how care is provided within the health service Thorrun Govind, the chairwoman of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in England, said the plans are a “ real game-changer” for patients

Local elections 2023: Tories lose massive seats; Sunak under pressure

Rishi Sunak lost control of 50 councils in his first electoral test as Prime Minister The Tories lost 48 councils and more than 1,000 counci llors acr os s E ngla nd in Thursday's polls, exceeding their worst predictions The shocking part is the places they lost where they traditionally enjoyed strong support including the southern heartlands Labour says it is now the largest party in local government, surpassing the Tories for the first time since 2002 "The British public has sent a clear rejection of a prime minister who never had a mandate, to begin with," a Labour spokesperson said

For the first time, levelling up secretary, former

leadership contender and Surrey Heath MP Michael Gove witnessed the council in his constituency go to the Lib Dems While Surrey Heath Tory councillors lost 12 seats, the Greens lost two Meanwhile, amidst the massive losses in local elections, Labour has said that the party is on track to cease power at the next general election

Labour made important gains in the north of England and the Midlands, as well as taking southern councils such as Plymouth, Swindon, Dover and Medway Since the days of Tony Blair in 2022, it has not happened that Labour celebrated becoming the largest party in local government

Labour took over Windsor and Maidenhead, the local council of former prime minister Theresa May, and Stratford-upon-Avon, the seat of the former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi

While Sunak and his party chairman, Greg Hands, tried to put a positive spin on the results, some Tory MPs expressed displeasure at the loss Tension in Conservative unity has already begun with Rehman Chishti, a former leadership contender, criticising Suella Braverman’s rhetoric on immigration Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer claimed his party was on course to win the next general election, expected next year

Watford Palace Theatre showcases new play 'Happy Birthday Sunita'

Watford Palace’s newest pl ay 'H appy B irthd ay Sunit a' s hows how a family’s secrets unravel through comedic storytelling Also, it is a must see before its final performance

The Sunday, matinee show of Happy Birthday Sunita was houseful and the audience had a hearty laugh

The play written by Harvey Virdi, will run until Friday, May 12 It explores themes of communication, race, culture, sexism, ageism, and independence

The premise is the new kitchen which is pristine and looks perfect to the outside,

just

worn

with flaws – as the Johal family has – was built in the garage for the “actual

cooking to be done”

The plot revolves around Sunita whose mum, brother and his wife pays her a visit to celebrate her 40th birthday

When Sunita makes an entrance it becomes evident that each and every family member has been quietly dealing with the father’s absence who left them 20 years ago to live in India

It is Maurice, the builder, an outsider who sees their flaws and the family begins to speak with one another instead of at each other The play is about growth and acceptance

Southampton, United Kingdom Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks to staff and patients at Weston Lane Surgery Primary Care Picture by Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street

T TYLE LIFES E E TH OU SAND WITH FREE RAMM ROG P B CEEN VID E AV D S AVVO O ID TYPME AS P E 2 D IABETES ED NHS S

ag Bakhai Dr Chir

Around 90% of people with diabetes in the England haave type 2 diabetes. W ve With currents trends suggesting that 1 in 10 people might haave the conditi ve condition by 2030, preventing type 2 diabetes is more important now than ever befforore.

“People with an ethnic origin from the Indian subcontinent are at much higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The condition generally develops at younger ages and at lower levels of excess weight compared to what is typically seen in people of es,” sa white ethniciti ays ys Dr Chirag Bakhai a GP and

hirag Bakhai, Primary Care Advisor to the NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme.

Dr Bakhai continues, “TType 2 diabetes can ha ype have serious complications such as blindness, nerve damage and ulcers leading to amputations, as well as increasing the risks of k heart attacks and strokes. es. The best way to avoid the complications is to prevent the condition in the first place. For people at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes, adopting a y lif healthhy liffestyestyle with regular cal activity and k physi keeping eeping off excess body weight can

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lik determining the kelihood elihood of developing type 2 diabetes and its prevention.

The NHS offffers the fr ers free er Y Healthi You NHS Diabetes ou ogramme f Prevention Pr for or those at risk. Lasting nine months, this behavioural and liffestyestyle change programme has seen over ef 1.3M people r ferrerred to it to help lower their blood sugar levels through making sustainable changes to their h diet and physiysical activity and, ultimately, avoid the onset of type 2 diabetes.

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NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme after routine blood tests showed high sugar levels.”

Kishor continues, Although I was already active and had a good fruit and veg diet, I must admit I indulged in sweets. The ha liffestyestyle changes I ave ve made educe m have helped me r y blood sugar level and I have also lost 7kg in weight. I highly recommend those at risk of type 2 diabetes join the programme.”

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Participants can choose tween face-to-face groups local venues and a digital rvice providing coaching rough apps and websites.

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people completing the ogramme ha pr ave a 37% l ve lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

T To o find out if you are at risk of developing type 2 ch f diabetes, sear for “ or “diabetes know your risk” online ete a f and compl few simp ew simple questions on the Diabetes UK website, including about your age, ethnicity and if you have a close relative with diabetes.

If the tool says that you are at moderate or high risk of developing type 2 diabetes, contact your GP ce f practi for a simp or a simple blood test to check your sugar evels and assess f l for diabetes. or e f If you ar found to ha ound have nonh diabetic hyperglyperglycaemia (pre-diabetes), you might be ef e f eligibl for a r or a r ferral to the erral Y Healthier You ou NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme.

Kishor Chauhan

Air India CEO takes note of diaspora’s concern

Asian Voice and Gujarat Sam achar receiv ed a huge amo unt of public feedback in reference to the closing o f th e London Heathrow-A hmedabad direct flight o perations and div erting it to the Gatwick Airp ort

We wrote a letter to the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of Air India Mr Campbell Wilson and informed him that this decision made the ‘Living Bridge’ upset We urged him to reconsider the decision of moving the London Heathrow-Ahmedabad direct flight to Gatwick Mr Wilson replied to our letter and mentioned various reasons for this change We thank him very much for taking the note of the concerns of the diaspora We are working on a detailed report involving experts, travel agents and diaspora leaders We will keep you updated on the progress of this issue in due course

Imperial College London introduces new scholarship programme for Indian students

A n e w sc ho l a r sh i p p r ogr amme the 'Future Leader s S ch o l a r sh i p' ha s b e e n l a un c he d b y t he Im pe r i a l Col lege London for Indian Maste rs students

Over the next three years, around 30 students will receive support from the programme with half of the scholarships reserved for female scholars The scholarships will be for students in MSc programmes including Engineering, Natural Sciences, Business School and Medicine

The launch was aimed to mark the university’s tour by Indian Minister for Science & Tech, Earth Sciences, Dr Jitendra Singh, to meet researchers and students and strengthen ties with India

On a visit to Imperial’s Carbon Capture Pilot Plant the Minister saw how Imperial students are training to become the next generation of chemical engi-

New UK funding to boost education opportunities for women and girls in Southeast Asia

A n e w U K fu n de d p r ogramme will offer some of t he mo st m a r g in a l i se d wo me n a n d g i r l s in So ut h e a st A s ia a b e t t e r future by b oosting a ccess t o a quality education

Funding will go towards improving the quality of education for women and girls by prioritising teaching basic reading and maths skills to unlock their full potential

The programme will expand women and girls’ access to digital and technical education – focusing on what skills are needed to gain employment in highskill sectors such as technology and manufacturing

It will also promote the inclusion of remote and minority communities, urban poor and children with disabilities by setting up disability assessments to identify additional needs and medical referrals for eye tests

International Development Minister Andrew Mitchell was due to announce the funding at the Education World Forum (EWF) conference in London on Tuesday - the largest international gathering of education ministers

Have you come under the pressure of performance?

Rohit Vadhwana

Andrew Mitchell

children stay in school

UK expertise will help schools improve the quality of teaching through lesson planning and in-class support so more children are able to read and understand a short story by the age of ten years old This means the programme will directly support progress towards the UK’s commitments for 40 million more girls in school and 20 million more girls reading

It is part of the UK’s effort to improve effectiveness of education and follows the recently announced Scaling Access and Learning in Education programme to help get an additional six million girls around the world into school

Recently Kelvin Kip tu m w on th e TCS Lo nd on Maratho n 20 23 in the second fastest time in w orld h istory At the young age of 23 years, he h as pro ven his capability in th e last year by becoming the fastest-ev er marath on debut at the Valencia marath on in 20 22 On the o ther hand, Eluid Kipch oge, who is considered th e all-time best long-d istance runner of the world finished 6th in the Boston Marathon, h is slowest till now He is now 38 years old Both are Kenyans

There are discussions as to whether Kelvin is coming up as Kipchoge 2 0 It certainly puts a lot of pressure on Kelvin to perform He has just begun and is yet to prove his ability to continue with the same amount of success and energy in future In many sports, it is easy to start well but not easy to continue that efficiently It doesn't mean the player is not good, but sometimes it is difficult to sustain the performance In such cases, when people raise the expectation by comparing with someone who has been steady and successful, the amount of stress on the newcomer is evident Many athletes and sportspersons have started with a bang but then missed the bus for various reasons What will happen to Kelvin is a separate story, but coming under such comparison, too quickly at the early stage of his career, will put him under pressure

neers He also witnessed a demonstration of the latest imaging from the Mars Rover at the Data Science Institute by Professor Sanjeev Gupta

Professor Mary Ryan, Vice Provost (Research and Enterprise) at Imperial College London expressed that it is good to see India driving the science agenda for sustainable development and is leading an impressive series of engagement through the Science20 group

She further added that they look forward to learning more about the outcomes and to work with their partners in India on the priority areas

WhatsApp could disappear from the UK, Ministers told

M inis ters have been warne d t hat the UK governm ent is r is king s le epwalk ing into a c on f r on t a t io n wi t h WhatsApp t hat could l ead to t he m ess aging app disappearing from Brita in, l eaving out with no opt ions

The online safety bill which is progressing through the House of Lords is more than 250 pages long and the table of contents alone spans 10 pages

It's making took more than four years with eight secretaries of state and five prime ministers involved in its drafting

The bill imparts Ofcom the power to apply requirements for social networks to use technology to tackle terrorism or child sexual abuse content, with fines of up to 10% of global turnover for

those services that do not follow the rules

However, for messaging apps that secure their user data with “ end-to-end encryption” (E2EE), it becomes technologically difficult to read user messages without breaking their promises to users

Market leaders WhatsApp and Signal including a coalition of providers wrote in an open letter, “The bill provides no explicit protection for encryption and if implemented as written, could empower Ofcom to try to force the proactive scanning of private messages on end-to-end encrypted communication services, nullifying the purpose of end-toend encryption as a result and compromising the privacy of all users ”

Mr Mitchell, said, “Greater gender equality brings freedom, boosts prosperity and strengthens global security Countries can ’t develop if half the population are held back from fulfilling their full potential

“This means working in partnership with countries to provide a quality education for all with a focus on girls to address the barriers they face including violence, poverty, harmful gender norms and climate change

“We’re working with partners across Southeast Asia to tackle the learning crisis and improve education and future employment opportunities of women and girls to ensure a prosperous future ”

Around 140 million children in Southeast Asia experienced loss of education due to school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic This is made worse by low quality schooling, learning poverty, limited access to schools in rural areas, education that fails to equip students with workplace skills and girls dropping out of school because of early marriage

In the ASEAN region, girls make up a larger proportion of out of-school children at primary level This limits opportunities in later life and increases the risks of facing early marriage, young pregnancy and poverty

The new UK funding of £30m will address these barriers to education for the 1 2m girls threatened with permanent school drop-out through cost-effective measures such as merit-based scholarships, girls clubs and catch up classes to ensure

The UK also launched a new report with the Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel and World Bank on ‘Cost Effective Approaches to Improve Global Learning’, which builds on the importance of early childhood education and provides recommendations covering health, nutrition and socio-emotional development

Have you ever come under such pressure of performance? It might be in your office space, or in areas of personal life It might be a comparison with someone known to you or unknown Boss compares two employees with an intention to improve their performance Parents also compare their children with their classmates But such parity is useless and counterproductive Many people succumb to such comparisons and lose their steam How do you tackle that kind of pressure? It is better to make it clear to whoever is making such comparisons that you are not looking at it from that angle You might have to say that you are unique in your own way and would like to retain that specificity Without losing your cool, better to ward off that kind of pressure The most important aspect is that in your mind also, you should retain your uniqueness Do not juxtapose yourself, ever, with anyone similar to you

'Comparison is the thief of joy' - Theodore Roosevelt (Expressed opinions are personal)

British Indian peer pushes for State visit by King Charles and PM Rishi Sunak

A ver y vocal champion of closer U K-India relations, Lor d Karan Bilimoria, is r e po r t e dl y p us hi n g fo r Pr im e Mi n is t e r R is h i Sunak t o lead a significant business an d trade del egat ion t o India soon

Lord Bilimoria reportedly said: “Prime Minister Rishi Sunak must soon lead a jumbo jet packed delegation to India, which is long overdue

“The last prime ministerial delegation from the UK to India was in 2016, which is quite a gap It would be just the ticket to celebrate the diaspora living bridge and push for-

Lord Karan Bilimoria

ward the relationship ”

During the interaction with Mr Sunak and King Charles III, the subject of visits to India was very much the topic of the hour

The Founder of Cobra Beer and former president of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Lord Bilimoria also raised the matter with the King and called for a State Visit by the monarch to India

“We know that the King is a friend of India and has great fondness for the country He said he would love to go to India on a State Visit and that we should plan it soon, ” he said

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak might meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G7 Summit that is scheduled in Japan later this month

Local pharmacies closing across England

O ver t he la st t wo yea rs, the n um be r of p ha r ma ci e s in Eng la nd ha s fallen by 16 0, a s pe r the BBC a na ly sis According to data from NHS Business Services Authority, there are now 11,026 community chemists, the lowest number since 2015 The reasons being rising operational costs, staff shortages and reduced government financial support

Despite rising patient demand, and plans for pharmacists to provide more ser-

vices to ease pressure on GPs, community chemists are closing down

Pharmacists are warning that many more local businesses could close, if not helped Though online services are available, however, many rely on a local chemist for advice and to pick up prescriptions

The government published a primary care access plan on Tuesday, designed to improve and extend availability of consultations

by GPs Ministers have also announced £240m ($303m) for practices that will replace old phones with more modern call systems and online tools to make it easier for patients to get in contact Dr Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies, said every year, there was a shortfall of £1 1bn in funding for independent pharmacies

Hundreds of NHS staff join coronation celebrations

NH S staff b ecame a part of h ist o r y l a st we e k e n d a ft e r b e in g se l e c t e d t o a t t e n d e vents to cel ebra te the coron at ion of King C har le s III a nd Que en Camil la

Two hundred staff had prime seats for the coronation in recognition of the dedication, service and impact of hundreds of thousands of NHS staff and volunteers over its 75-year history – with a special grandstand set up near Buckingham Palace giving them a unique view of Their Majesties The King and Queen Consort leaving for Westminster Abbey and returning in the Gold State Coach after officially being crowned

To represent the health

service, chief executive Amanda Pritchard attended the Coronation Ceremony at Westminster Abbey, as well as paramedic Chris Bell, who attended the first Covid patient in the UK in 2020

Professor Dame

Elizabeth Anionwu played a key role in the ceremony, carrying the gold Sovereign Orb Dame Elizabeth first started working with the NHS as a school nurse assistant in Wolverhampton aged 16 and went on to become the first sickle cell nurse specialist in the UK, devoting her career to working with black and minority ethnic communities in London, and recognised as one of the 70 most influential nurses and midwives in the history of

Met arrests dozens during King coronation ceremony

Hum an rights g rou ps have accused the Met o f attacking civ il liberties wh en the latter a rrest ed d o zens o f pe op le d u ri ng th e c o ro n ati o n o f K ing C harles III to prevent d isrup tion

On the day Charles was crowned King, the Metropolitan Police said it had made 52 arrests including for “affray, public order offences, breach of the peace and conspiracy to cause apublic nuisance” After the government pushed through new powers to prevent protests days before the coronation on Saturday, rights organisations said the arrests showed the right to expression in the UK was under threat Martha

Spurrier, director of campaign organisation Liberty said the crackdown was the latest in a “concerted attack” on civil liberties Antimonarchy group Republic took to Twitter and said that six of its members, including chief executive Graham Smith were arrested and hundreds of placards were seized on Saturday morning Meanwhile, the Met said it had received intelligence that groups were planning to disrupt the coronation procession using rape alarms On Saturday, it arrested three people in central London at about 2:00 am Later they were released on bail

Feltham and Heston MP fighting for interfaith dialogue funding

S ee m a Ma l h o t r a M P , t h e Labour MP for F eltham and H e s to n, h a s w r it t en t o M ich ael Gove, the Level ling U p , Ho u s in g a nd C o m m u ni t ie s Se c r e ta r y , t o a s k w h y f u n di ng h a s b e en w i t h dr a w n f r o m t h e U K ’ s l argest organis ation sup po rti ng i nte rf ai th d ial o gu e and ac tio n

For almost four decades, Inter Faith Network UK (IFN) has been dedicated to increasing understanding and cooperation between people of different faiths and growing public awareness of the distinct religious traditions in the UK IFN also supports hundreds of member bodies, including Hounslow Friends of Faith

IFN has been supported by annual grants from the Government of at least £220,000 for the past decade

But this year, the Government withdrew all funding from IFN with little notice, putting the future of the charity and its member bodies at risk

Seema Malhotra MP said:

“Our experience in Hounslow has shown the vital contribu-

the NHS when the health service marked its 70th anniversary Individuals who have been awarded the BEM were invited to the ceremony

The following day, on the evening of Sunday 7th May, 50 more NHS staff from around the country attended the Coronation Concert, held at Windsor Castle, where they enjoyed the entertainment from acts including Take That, Olly Murs, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, Tom Cruise and Winnie the Pooh

A 300-strong Coronation Choir performed at the concert, including members of Hull's NHS choir, and Emma Withey, a housekeeper at Black Country Healthcare

NHS Foundation Trust and member of UNIFY Choir, an all-deaf sign performance group and the only deaf choir in the UK King's College London celebrated with treats for staff as well as a special Coronation high tea for inpatients, while children at Evelina London Children's Hospital prepared by creating crowns, artwork and play dough cupcakes, and the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital in Oswestry hosted a tea party for local veterans in their Headley Court Veterans' Orthopaedic Centre NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard, who attended the Coronation at

An extra pair for

Westminster Abbey, said: “It is an extraordinary honour to be asked to attend the Coronation service on behalf of the NHS For so many health service staff to be invited to be part of this historic occasion shows the huge amount of respect and admiration the Royal Family has for the NHS and the work our dedicated staff do

“As we start a new chapter for the country with the coronation of His Majesty King Charles, we are also looking to the future of the health service and the opportunities ahead of us, while reflecting on the incredible history and achievements of our organisation – and our staff and volunteers – over the past 75 years

“From Britain’s first heart transplant in 1958, pioneering new treatments such as bionic eyes and, in more recent times, the world’s first rapid whole genome sequencing service for seriously ill babies and children, and rolling out the biggest and fastest vaccination programme in NHS history during the Covid pandemic, the health service has always adapted to meet the changing needs of the country, and will continue to do so to ensure local care is fit for the future ”

More than 20,000 NHS workers entered the ballot for places at the procession and concert this weekend, with entries numbered and chosen at random

tion of interfaith dialogue and action in modern Britain, with Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu and Buddhist places of worship, as well as many people of other faiths and no faith It’s important we build understanding and knowledge of one another – it’s what lets us work together and celebrate each other’s festivals and religious occasions ”

“I’ve seen how Hounslow Friends of Faith brings our communities together in dialogue and action that wouldn’t happen otherwise Every year they organise an Interfaith Walk, so members of the public can visit different places of worship and experience some of the richness and variety of local faith communities ”

“In a time when it’s more vital than ever before to increase connection and understanding between our diverse communities, it’s concerning that the Government has made this funding cut without planning for the continued need to promote interfaith dialogue and action ”

Online Scroungers

Retired people like us have plenty of free time I utilize my time watching TV programmes like news, sports, occasional movies and specially programs that we can learn from One such programme is online Scroungers that target elderly, lonely, sick and such venerable people who are easy preys, especially if they do not have children to look after them

These scams are perpetrated from Overseas Call Centres Once they were mostly based in Nigeria but now Indian cities like Jaipur, Delhi and Agra are the prime locations One reason is that it is much cheaper and there are plenty of well educated, smart girls readily available to employ, as the pay is well above going rate with bonuses to those who are most successful at conning people

Main victims are those who apply for loans to banks, building societies and money lenders They employ young, smart IT experts who could hack into most computers and steal the date-base to con these people

One may get an unexpected telephone call, telling the person that his loan is approved and money will be deposited in his bank account But after he pays one-off arrangement fee of £50 to £100, depending on the loan amount applied for

Poignantly not only he loses his money but more importantly the scammer has now his financial details, including his bank account His details are then sold to other crooks, end-up in identity theft Most of us are not equipped to deal with such problems and may ruin one ’ s health as well

Prevention is better than cure, so beware, do not give out any personal information and put down the phone if it is from an unknown person I always ask; is this unsolicited call? If so I put down the receiver and keep my line busy for a short time

We have few people here in London who has direct line of communication with Indian PM Narendra Modi and his deputy Amit Shah, urging them to close down such rogue Overseas Call Centres that gives India an unenviable reputation!

Bhup endra M Gand hi

Coronation of King Charles III

I write to you having watched parts of the Coronation of King Charles III at the weekend

From an Indian origin person with over 5 decades in the UK, and with great pride of my origins; I would like to note a few things from what I saw

In Westminster Abbey, I noticed a man who looked of South Asian origin had his hands in his trouser pockets, all the time, even when The King walked past himtwice How rude!

The Prime Minister's wife, of Indian origin and citizenship, I felt should have worn a dress which represented the part of the world of her heritage; as many dignitaries do My wife and I were deeply disappointed at this

When the ceremony had finished and the King was leaving The Abbey, he met leaders of other faiths A Buddhist monk, a Sikh priest represented by Lord Singh in his Lordship robes, a Jewish Rabbi, a Muslim Imam and another person All these people were in their traditional robes except the man who I assume was a Hindu (Santana Dharma) priest If this is the case, why was he in a suit and not a 'jabha & dhoti'? How disappointing!

In this world where we are having to reassert our identity in a daily grind, again and again, these soft power messages were missed opportunities?

The small people of this nation would have liked a visual helping hand from those in high positions who are representing us

At the Coronation Concert, there were some Indian ladies in a group leading the large entourage of singers were wearing Saris How wonderful

Yogi Pandya

The forgotten freedom fighter

During the celebration of 75 years of our Independence on August 15, 2022, our media had mentioned the names of most of the great men and women who struggled hard and sacrificed their lives for the freedom of our country But however, perhaps inadvertently, one important name had been forgotten, that of the great barrister, Kaka Joseph Baptista

It was Kaka Joseph Baptista who pleaded the cause of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak and secured his release, when he would almost certainly have been arrested by the then British Government It was also Kaka Joseph Baptista who coined the slogan, "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it," which is being incorrectly attributed by everyone to the same Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Moreover, Kaka Joseph Baptista, as the President of the Oxford Students' Union, spoke very strongly in favour of Independence for India in England It is necessary that our people recognise and appreciate the significant contribution of Kaka Joseph Baptista to our Independence Jubel D'C ruz

Plight of Gurkhas

I am a former Gurkha and a first Gulf war veteran

UK government have still not stopped the illegal mining of the martial race from the foot hills of Nepal

The Gurkhas are used as a diplomacy currency in the international markets and collected as a huge revenue from the respected, Malaysian, Singapore, Hong Kong and now from the oil rich state of Brunei

And when the war ends, dumped or sent back empty handed back to Nepal

The Gurkhas are still struggling to find the "status", dignity they deserve and are still barred from the basic voting rights and against human rights abuses

UK government been providing all the facilities to the terrorists/bombers, thugs and others But been penny pinching on the plight of the Gurkhas issues

War is a business to sell a web of lies, create instability and refugee crisis for the west, especially the US and it's cronies

Because US never fought a major war on their own soil But have always created chaos and toxic environment in Japan, Hiroshima, Vietnam, Afghanistan,Iraq, Syria, now in Ukraine

Nepal is also a sovereign country like Ukraine

And still we have not learned the lessons?

We do not want our only beautiful "Sovereign Himalayan Kingdom of Nepal" to be turned into another battleground for the vested interest of the American and it's greatest poodle UK and others

American hegemony and foreign policy is failing and the media and politicians are divided and creating a very unhealthy and toxic environment in home and across the globe

Yam Gurung (rtd )

Innovative Water Metro of Kerala

“Innovative Water Metro of Kerala” (Asian Voice – 6-12 May 2023) shows that as a country we have innovative ways to think and find our own solutions based on the local circumstances

This will not only reduce congestion on the roads but also will provide more employment opportunities to the local population This project will be a combination of technology and the dedication of the project management team to provide the best to the people

Many foreigners go to Kerala to enjoy its natural beauty and to get more ideas about ancient as well as traditional medicinal therapies Water metro can become an additional attraction for them Since Kerala has a good Englishspeaking population, it is a golden opportunity to make this a tourist destination as well

There are many other parts of the country where inland water resources can be harnessed for transportation/tourism If we keep the party and regional politics away when it comes to major projects like this, the chances of success automatically multiply

Hitesh Hingu

Kapil

D

udakia Is Gareth Lying?

T his is th e question th at everyo ne is asking I have h ad so many disc ussions with members o f o ur community wh o a re al l as ki ng, ‘ Is G areth Ly ing?’ Last week K ap il’ s K hich adi broke the news wh at T ru ptiben had said that in h er chat with Gareth ( regarding the AP PG Gu jarati ), th at th ere i ndeed wa s a wi tness p res ent who h eard th e co nversation However, on 29th April Gareth said on twitter, ‘T he comments attri bu ted to me i n th is letter (the letter T ru ptiben had written to him) are simply not true’

You might think the matter was now in dispute However, that’s not true because Truptiben is adamant that what she has stated is the truth and has a witness who can confirm it On 8th May Truptiben tweeted, ‘I want to make it clear, @GarethThomasMP is misrepresenting the conversation I had with him He did say, ‘I am unfortunate enough to represent a significant section of the Gujarati community in my constituency' I stand by what I have stated and can also prove it'

She is calling out Gareth So, I say to Gareth, are you lying? Are you lying about the contents of that discussion with Truptiben? Are you lying about the consultation you carried out for the APPG Gujarati? Are you lying about the level of support the APPG has got (after all, the vast majority of organisations have rejected it)? Is lying your modus operandi?

Let me remind readers, I have asked Gareth to provide a full list of every organisation that he consulted, and the criteria for selecting them And to provide a full list of all individuals that they consulted and why? And to also provide copies of all letters of support they have received So far, and after more than 6 weeks, I am still waiting So, I say to Gareth, what are you afraid of? The truth?

Anti-Hindu hatred is now on the rise The Labour Party seems to give refuge to those who thrive in attacking the Hindu community We saw this when Islamists attacked us at the High Commission in London, and we saw members of the Labour Party were also in the crowd The silence of Labour MPs was deafening

We witnessed a similar pattern when Islamists attacked Hindus and our Mandirs in Leicester The few Labour Hindu councillors who did call it out – soon found to their cost that the Labour Party was going to exact revenge on them The compromised Labour Mayor of Leicester had to give up his ill-conceived inquiry into the Islamist attacks because many people felt he was already biased in favour of these extremists

If this madness by Labour was not enough, they then stopped most of the Hindu councillors from standing up at the recent Council elections Instead, they put up their own faithful candidates The locals felt this was open racism, and in full knowledge of their leader Keir Starmer Not one word from Keir, his silence is even more deafening

Fortunately, the people of Leicester gave their verdict on 5th May Labour that hitherto controlled 53 of the 54 seats, lost 22 Yes, that’s right, the unthinkable happened After decades of total control, they found their prejudice was now being rejected by the voters The Tories went from 1 seat, to 17 overnight I suspect if some of the independent candidates had not stood, then there was every possibility that Labour would have lost even more seats to the Tories

That was not the only devastating result for Labour In Slough where they controlled 36 of the 42 seats, they lost 18 in one night The Tories went from 5 seats to 21, a gain of 16 seats

Mann Ki Baat

Mann Ki Baat showed India to Indians! A radio revolution for which ideas and opinions poured in from common man Apart from giving birth to an idea, executing it till finality, overcoming practical problems is a herculean task, which requires 3Ds dedication, determination and discipline The programme brought to light many hidden talents and recognised the contributions of common man

The message to Keir, and to Gareth, and to the antiIndia and anti-Hindu MPs is clear, enough is enough The Indian and Hindu community are finally waking up and smelling the coffee The fact that someone like Keir and Gareth can treat our community with such contempt is distasteful The Jewish community taught Labour a lesson more than a decade ago, maybe General Election 2024 might be the year when our community shows its displeasure to those who practice prejudice, and to those who wish to divide us

We are grateful to all letter writers for more and more versatile letters well within word limit Please keep contributing as always

If you are new, then write to Shefali at shefali.saxena@abplgroup.com

Long Live The King!

Continued from page 1

Today, Britain remains in the grips of the worst costof-living crisis in a generation The 1953 coronation of Elizabeth II was seen as a breakthrough in broadcasting, as it was the first shown on TV More than 14 million people tuned in to watch King Charles III's coronation on BBC television, the corporation said on Sunday

Approximately 2 million people were on the streets, braving the weather on Saturday 6 May to partake in the coronation celebration and catch a glimpse of the procession to Westminster Abbey and back

Compared to Queen Elizabeth II’s, Charles’ coronation was a more scaled-back affair, with fewer people in attendance and a shorter service and procession than his mother’s

Whereas the Queen was crowned alone in 1953 (her husband, the late Duke of Edinburgh, was not, as is custom for the consorts of female sovereigns), Charles was crowned alongside his wife, the now Queen Camilla At King Charles’ coronation, there was a greater effort to make the service more inclusive and reflective of Britain’s diversity, most notably through the inclusion of a diverse array of faith leaders In King Charles’ coronation oath, he said: “Grant that I may be a blessing to all thy children, of every faith and belief, that together we may discover the ways of gentleness and be led into the paths of peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen ”

One of the starkest differences between King Charles’ and Queen Elizabeth’s coronations was their oaths When Elizabeth II became queen, Britain was still very much an empire and, as such, she pledged to “ govern the People of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Pakistan and Ceylon, and of your Possessions and other Territories ”

King Charles, meanwhile, now rules over a considerably smaller realm

In his oath, he pledged only to “ govern the People of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, your other Realms and the Territories ” The King knelt before the Altar and said, “God of compassion and mercy whose Son was sent not to be served but to serve, give grace that I may find in thy service perfect freedom and in that freedom knowledge of thy truth Grant that I may be a blessing to all thy children, of every faith and

belief, that together we may discover the ways of gentleness and be led into the paths of peace; through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen ”

The Coronation of King Charles III was a three-day affair that celebrated Britain’s diversity in its truest form

"As my grandmother said when she was crowned, coronations are a declaration of our hopes for the future And I know she's up there, fondly keeping an eye on us, and she'd be a very proud mother," Charles' heir, William, said in a speech at the evening concert at Windsor on May 7, to huge cheers

Th ree-day festiviti es

Across the Coronation Weekend, there were further opportunities for people to come together in celebration of the historic occasion On Sunday, 7th May 2023, a special Coronation Concert was staged and broadcast live at Windsor Castle by the BBC and BBC Studios, with several thousand pairs of tickets to be made available via a public ballot It was attended by many renowned British Indians, including actor Sonam Kapoor who gave a short speech on the Commonwealth, and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty called it a date night The Coronation Big Lunch, at which neighbours and communities were invited to share food and fun together, took place across the country on the same date On Monday, 8th May 2023, members of the public were invited to take part in The Big Help Out, which encouraged people to try volunteering for themselves and join the work being undertaken to support their local areas More than 2,200 people were invited to the Coronation of King Charles

The final guest list included members of the Royal family, representatives from

Coronation Service were instrumental in providing services and support to their local communities during the Covid-19 lockdowns Dr Hareen De Silva received a

203 countries and approximately 100 heads of state Dame Emma Thompson, Katy Perry and Ant and Dec were among the first celebrities to arrive at Westminster Abbey Mu ltifaith blessings

From Hindus in India to Jewish settlers in the West Bank and fundamentalist Christians in the United States King Charles tried to bridge the differences between the faith groups that make up Britain’s increasingly diverse society

The king’s commitment to diversity was on display at his coronation when religious leaders representing the Buddhist, Hindu, Jewish, Muslim and Sikh traditions for the first time played an active role in the ceremonies

Go p al K a mb o , a graduate studying Masters's at Cambridge in music and was selected to join the choir for his musical ability The fact he is able to do that and still identifies as himself puts paid to the myth that the royals are not inclusive Raghav Das, a 16-year-old from India’s Bihar state was among the attendees who was one of the 48 King’s Scholars at the Westminster School of London in the choir His mother Dr Shikta Das was a professor at The Imperial College London

Amongst other dignitaries of Indian origin who graced the occasion, was B ri ti s h S i kh Lo r d I nd ar j i t S i ng h o f Wi mbledo n presented the Glove to hold the Sovereign Sceptre during the Crowning of King Charles III, Lo rd S yed K amall, 56, of Indo-Guyanese heritage, represented the Muslim faith and presented the Armills or a pair of bracelets and Lo r d N ar en dr a B ab u b h a i P at el , 84, represented the Hindu faith and handed over the Sovereign's Ring BEM recip ients attend the Coronation Service

Many of the BEM recipients who attended the

British Empire Medal for services to general practice during Covid-19

Throughout the pandemic, he worked in various settings including NHS Nightingale, the Test and Trace service, and GP clinics in London B an s ar i Ru p arelia’s British Empire

to 80 food banks and supported over 40 hospitals by providing PPE

who

graduate of the Prince’s Foundation Building Craft Programme and an alumnus of the Prince’s Foundation School of Traditional Arts who attended the coronation D r I s a ac Mathai, a Bengaluru-based doctor was also among the esteemed attendees He is the chairman of SOUKYA, a top Ayurvedic healing centre in India of which Camilla has been a patron since 2010

Medal was awarded in recognition of the services she has carried out for the community Working on a volunteer basis, she provides support and care to people experiencing social isolation, an issue which she believes has become more widely acknowledged and recognised in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic

D ee p a k P at h a k, who

has been volunteering for over 20 years for organisations including Sewa Day and Durga Bhawan Mandir Smethwick, was one of 45 volunteers from the West Midlands and 500 nationally to have been recognised for their contribution and crowned a Coronation Champion too After seeing how the Asian community were struggling during the pandemic, Madhu set up Sewa Day craft groups to help combat social isolation and lift the community’s spirits Nearly 15,000 knitted items have been made at the groups and donated to hospitals and shelters

M u m ba i D a b ba wa la s , the lunchbox delivery men from Mumbai, India’s financial capital, were also among the invitees and gifted India’s traditional ‘Punedi Pagdi’ turban and ‘Warkari’ shawl to the newly crowned king Manju Malh i, a noted Indian-origin chef, who is a recipient of the British Empire Medal for her community service during the Covid-19 pandemic, also attended the ceremony She works with the charity Open Age which helps elderly citizens to remain fit and active Sales plummet

mobilised over 4500 volunteers to support their communities during the pandemic, was among one of around 45 volunteers from the West Midlands and 500 nationally to have been recognised for their contribution and crowned a Coronation Champion When Covid struck, as global lead of the charity, Deepak was instrumental in turning Sewa Day into a vital resource He encouraged over 4,500 volunteers to get involved (many who had not volunteered before) and the charity became active every single day, in 42 different towns and cities across the UK Under Deepak’s leadership, Sewa Day volunteers provided over two million meals to people in need, helped supply food

Among the many Indian and Indian-origin celebrities, politicians and public figures were Indian Vice President, J a gd e ep D hankar who represented India at the coronation ceremony He reached the UK along with his wife on Friday and was seen greeting King Charles III and other dignitaries at a reception at Buckingham Palace on the eve of the coronation Sonam Kapoor was one of the high-profile Indian celebrities present at the ceremony She also delivered a speech and introduced British rhythm and blues artiste Steve Winwood and the Commonwealth virtual choir at the event, the Economic Times reported

P ri m e M i n i s te r R i s h i Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty were also present at the coronation ceremony as a custom He also read from the Biblical ‘Book of Colossians’ Sunak’s Indianborn wife Akshata Murty was also among the guests The businesswoman led the procession with the premier, carrying the UK’s national flag

S our a b Ph ad k e , a renowned architect is a

The streets of central London including Regent Street, The Mall upto Buckingham Palace were covered with hanging flags bearing Union Jack and some with the official coronation emblem Shops and theatres were covered with buntings and other decorations In the Mayfair area of London, street parties were held on the streets and footpaths covered in red, white and blue floral displays, including in the shape of a crown High street retailers reported a “ coronation effect” sales boost as shoppers make a lastminute dash to the shops to stock up on party fare including bunting, champagne and cakes for this weekend’s celebrations

With potentially more than £200m of extra sales riding on the festivities surrounding the coronation of King Charles, retailers’ shelves were cleared of fizz, quiche, and scones as well as buffet favourites such as pies and scotch eggs Inspired by the official “ coronation quiche”, Lidl said its budget-friendly deluxe version of the dish –at £2 79 each – is popular with party planners, with sales up a third in the past month

Royal Coronation celebrations were held at Belgrave Neighbourhood Centre and Shree Sanatan Mandir with our own King Charles and Queen Camilla performed by Dilipbhai and Kirti Savjani of Leicester The Coronation was celebrated with beautiful dances and singing at both venues

Dr Hareen De Silva

Bansari Ruparelia

Deepak Pathak

Madhu Basudev

King and Queen Consort on their way to Westminster Abbey for coronation

Long Live The King!

Coronation at the Cost of Living

The King’s coronation is set to cost many millions –and it falls to taxpayers to foot the bill But with no budget revealed for the historic national state occasion, and the government not commenting on the expected total cost, the amount of public funds due to be spent remains unknown Some predictions suggest Operation Golden Orb – the crowning of Charles III and the Queen Consort – could cost the nation between £50-100m

The late Elizabeth II’s coronation cost £912,000 in 1953

£20 5m in today’s money

while Charles’s grandfather George VI was crowned at a cost of £454,000 in 1937 – worth £24 8m in 2023 and the most expensive coronation of the last 300 years

Community members share their experiences of attending the coronation

16-year-old Iona Mandal

was fortunate to witness the presence of King Charles, Queen Camilla, and the Royal family on Saturday outside Westminster Abbey, as they left for Buckingham Palace after the coronation

She was invited to the coronation by the Royal Household in recommendation of the National Literacy Trust where she is a young volunteer The Trust also nominated her for Coronation Champions

Awards

Iona Mandal was seated at St Margaret’s Church, an adjacent church to the main Westminster Abbey, along with other 399 youngsters of 13-18 years of age, representing other charities that the Royal Household support

Speaking to Asian Voice

Iona said that she admired that King Charles brought in the diversity factor to his coronation - It was different from the last coronation in 1953, as it was a shorter affair and represented a different British society Today’s Britain is much more diverse and that multi-faith and various communities were included and represented at the Coronation, made it worth admiring

She mentioned that it would have been nicer and more revolutionising if King Charles acknowledged Britain’s past and dark history of colonisation I am

not saying an apology but some form of recognition of Britain’s past doings “It might have been nice if King Charles had somehow addressed Britain's colonial history in his coronation In some aspects, it was nice that he brought all the changes to make it more inclusive But I think, if Britain addressed their past, that might have been more revolutionary At the same time, I obviously did have a great time at the event, but I just wanted to mention that many others and I haven't forgotten about it,” Iona told us

Iona wore formal lilac trousers with a top and blazer to the Coronation, that she carefully chose for the occasion They arrived from Birmingham the night before, 5 May Her day started with breakfast at the Lambeth Palace Her father Partha and her then walked to St Margaret’s Church, adjacent to Westminster Abbey, where they were seated Before the coronation was screened for

back to the Lambeth Palace for lunch, where they were joined by the Archbishop of Canterbury - It was a surreal moment for me We had just seen him crowning the King And here he was, so humble, and politely speaking to us

and had a brief conversation “As I walked down the aisle to find a place to sit, diversity was instantly discernible; people from across the UK and beyond, of different faiths and nationalities wearing their best dresses, hats, suits, and national costumes As I sat down, I was so excited to see the globally renowned people (heads of State, Commonwealth officials, senior politicians, dignitaries) parade down the aisle in drips and drabs; it was such an exciting moment ”

works for a consultancy firm, providing price estimates for construction projects Jay Patel from Prince’s Trust Canada is a resilient

them on a gigantic screen, there were performances and speeches that were age appropriate and relevant for youngsters and they could ask any question or clear doubts about the coronation After the coronation they walked

Harilal Narandas Patel of Cardiff who was invited to the Coronation, told the newsweekly, “It was a magical moment Absolutely fantastic! Being physically present at Westminster Abbey witnessing the Coronation of King Charles and Queen Camilla was indeed a great and unique experience and a great honour- once in a lifetime opportunity It’s difficult to express how it feels to be present on such a historical and momentous occasion When I arrived here in the UK from Uganda over 50 years ago, as a refugee, I never even in my wildest dreams thought I would one day have this one great memory for witnessing a coronation ” “It was nice to see Lord Patel from the Hindu Faith being part of the Ceremony There was a great sense of peace and harmony in the Westminster Abbey Being present at this historical event, reminded me of Lord Rama's coronation, popularly known as ‘Rama Pattabhishekam’” Harilal Patel said Prof es s or Me en a Upadhyaya OBE said, “It was such an honour to attend King's coronation at Westminster Abbey on 6th May; the congregation was asked to be there four hours before the ceremony; this allowed me to absorb the finer details of the abbey and soak the buzzing atmosphere of this glorious,

unforgettable day “Despite standing in a long queue for a considerable length of time for security checks, it was an enjoyable experience as we chatted with each other; people in front of me were from New Zealand, and those behind me were from Northern Island; I also spotted Emma Thompson

The Prince’s Trust International attendees included Gul fs ha from India, who was awarded The Prince’s Trust Global Award in 2022 in recognition of her exceptional determination and achievements demonstrated through her participation in the Get Into programme in India Delivered by The Prince’s Trust International partner Magic Bus India Foundation, Gulfsha completed the Get Into programme she had heard about at college Learning via an online environment, Gulfsha honed a range of workplace skills and successfully interviewed for her first-ever job She now

individual who overcame isolation and low confidence after moving from India to Canada in 2021 By completing The Prince's Trust Canada's Youth Employment programme in May 2022, Jay gained valuable skills and secured a job as a cook at Toronto’s iconic CN Tower – one of the city’s most famous landmarks Now on his way to becoming a Chef, Jay is passionate about inspiring others to find the same kind of support network that helped him achieve success (With inputs from Rupali Shinde)

First Jain to participate in a coronation leads the King’s procession into Westminster Abbey

The coronation of His Majesty, King Charles III was ma gnific ent in its pageantry and its continuation of a ce nturi es- old tradi tion in the historic and stunning Westminster Abbey The Christian service was incorporated by the commonwealth as well as the faiths in modern Britain This included the faith leaders present leading the procession leading the King into the Abbey

For the Jain community, this was a truly historic moment as Dr Mehool H Sanghrajka, Managing Trustee of the Institute of Jainology (IoJ), led the procession of other faith leaders down the nave and into the seating in the transept The IoJ leads OneJAIN, the collection of all UK Jain Organisations, that work collectively in government and inter-faith matters

The inclusion of Jain and other faith leaders into the ceremony is further recognition of the important part that faiths and the commonwealth play in modern Britain Dr Sanghrajka said, “The 65,000-strong Jain community in the UK has been growing since the 1960s, and today’s ceremony is a truly historic moment for us The event itself was magnificent filled with much history and pageantry I will certainly cherish the memory ”

The King has had an interest in the Jain faith for many years, initially opening the ‘Jainpedia exhibition’ at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and then visiting the Jain temple at the Oshwal Centre in Potters Bar, Hertfordshire He has also been presented with the coveted IoJ Ahimsa Award for his work on environmental sustainability and promoting interfaith dialogue Dr Sanghrajka added, “The day was also an opportunity to renew old friendships and make new ones with both other religious leaders and statesmen This is a start to a new phase for Jainism in Britain, integrated into the fabric of the state and supporting its own diverse communities ”

Iona Mandal with her father Partha

Harilal Patel

Professor Meena Upadhyaya

Jay Patel

Lord Narendra Patel during coronation ceremony

The Royal Family

Coronation of the Servant King

Lord Jitesh Gadhia

It was a huge honour and privilege to attend the Coronation of His Majesty King Cha rl es III a nd Q ue en Ca mil la a t Westminster Abbey last Saturday and be part of history in the making

The British Indian and South Asian community can relate to last weekend’s Coronation in multiple ways King Charles’ day of destiny has been more than seven decades in the making and, during this period, he has championed many causes and global relationships - often well

the Chair of the British Asian Trust’s Advisory Board in India, summed it up well: “he has remained coronated in the hearts of billions of people across the globe for a long time”

The King wishes

Harry’s son on his birthday

The King wished his grandson Prince Archie a happy fourth birthday during an emotional family gathering Harry did not join the private party at Buckingham Palace following the c or onat ion during whic h his fa ther ac k nowle dge d his a bs ent gra ndc hildr en, Archie and Princess Lilibet, one

The King looked “genuinely quite disappointed” that Harry did not stay for the celebration while other members of the family “breathed a sigh of relief”,the Source told the Daily Mail

saw Archie and met Lilibet only briefly

ahead of his time Among them is a deep and abiding connection with India and the wider sub-continent For example, he first visited India in 1975 and has made 9 official trips to the country and has also visited Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal

As Prince of Wales, he founded the British Asian Trust, which I am honoured to Chair I have therefore witnessed firsthand his passion for, and commitment to, the development of South Asia and engagement with the diaspora communities in the United Kingdom The most recent example being a National Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the arrival of British Asians from Uganda, hosted personally by the King at Buckingham Palace last November

In turn, the diaspora communities have responded with equal enthusiasm finding someone who is genuinely interested in their experiences and challenges and shares many of their cultural values and family dilemmas Mukesh Ambani,

Indian culture and scriptures are rich in narratives about the ideal qualities and virtues of a King Through all the pomp and circumstancethe glamorous guests, gowns and glitter - there was a profound message which came through loudly from His Majesty at the very outset of the Coronation ceremony: “I come not be served but to serve ” This golden thread of “ sewa ” or selfless service was weaved throughout the proceedings and over the whole weekend of activities - a theme which will resonate with Indians from all backgrounds

Although the Coronation is essentially a Christian service held in an ancient church, with a history dating back almost 1000 years, there was a concerted effort to include all faiths and reflect the multicultural diversity of modern Britain The King was determined to shape the content in his own image and signal his own priorities What could be more emblematic of this inclusivity than our first British Indian Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, a practising Hindu, reading a passage from the bibleand completely flawlessly

If Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II epitomised “duty” then her son Charles will take up the baton as monarch emphasising the theme of “service” In turn, his heir and eventual successor Prince William - the new Prince of Wales - shows every sign of embodying “empathy”, a trait perhaps inherited from his late mother, Princess Diana This is not just a line of succession in monarchs but also one in noble virtues

King and Queen’s surprise appearance on American Idol

A s the King a nd the Queen made a surprise appearance on the hit US show American Idol, the King shared a joke with Lionel Richie

Following his performance at the coronation concert on Sunday night, the King jokingly asked the star if he was going to be using one of the halls at Windsor Castle "all night long"

After cracking the joke, the chuckling King added: "I just wanted to check how long you'll be using this room for?"

He also thanked Katy Perry and Lionel Richie for their performance, which was watched by the Royal Family and a 20,000strong crowd outside Windsor Castle

"Thank you so much for your brilliant performance, and Katy, it was wonderful, it really was A great treat to have you both here," the King said

The Queen also praised the pair, adding:

"Fantastic, absolutely fantastic "

The King and Queen were joined by about 20,000 members of the public at The musical extravaganza opened with Feel The Love by Rudimental - a track handpicked by the King himself The King and Queen were joined by about 20,000 members of the public at the event

Top Gun star Tom Cruise called the King his “wingman” in his pre-recorded video at the Windsor show

On the King’s momentous day, the Prince of Wales, 40, congratulated his father The King reacted by raising a glass to William’s children, Prince George, nine, who also served as a page of honour, Princess Charlotte, eight, and Prince Louis, five

According to the source, he also toasted “those that weren’t there” and wished Archie happy birthday “wherever he was ” During last year ’ s Platinum Jubilee, Charles barely

Although Harry and William were seated at a distance of only two rows, there was no public interaction between the brothers

Since Harry criticised his family in his controversial memoir, Spare, it was his first public appearance alongside the royals Meanwhile, his wife, Meghan, 41, stayed at home in Montecito with their two children, where she hosted a birthday party for family and friends

Chef and charity champion didn’t believe Westminster Abbey for King Charles III's Coronation was real

A Leicester chef and community champion, Syed Rahman who ha s rais ed m or e t han £780,000 for various causes over the last 16 years was in London after receiving a surprise invitation to the King's Cor onat ion H e in itial ly thought the invitation was a hoax He was awarded a British Empire Medal for his charity work and is one of more than 850 recipients to join the congregation at Westminster Abbey on Saturday, May 6 Mr Rahman runs restaurants Chef and Spice in Leicester and Cuisine of India in W igs t on a nd has spe nt a ye ar hos ting fundraising events for various charities

"After I received the first email I thought it was a hoax because I know the numbers were limited," he told Leicestershirelive "Two weeks later I received another email about the procedures so I rang the number at the bottom and they confirmed it

"I just could not believe it because there will be so many dignitaries there and heads of state - people like that "

He added: "Things like this only happen once in a lifetime It's an amazing privilege to witness such a historical moment -it's a story I will tell my future grandchildren "

L-R: Manoj Badale OBE, former Chair British Asian Trust Katy Perry, Ambassador, British Asian Trust who also performed at the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle Lord Jitesh Gadhia, Chair British Asian Trust Ruth Ganesh, Elephant Family, conservation charity part of British Asian Trust Hitan Mehta OBE Executive Director British Asian Trust

Be 24X7 ambassadors of Bharat, says Indian VP Jagdeep Dhankhar

On May 6, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar and his wife Dr Sudeep Dhankhar represented India at the historic Coronation ceremony of King Charles III and Queen Camilla

The VP had not one but two intimate interactions with representatives of the Indian dia spor a or gan ise d b y the India n High Com miss ioner to the UK Vikr am Doraiswami during his short visit to the UK

The VP appealed to people to act as 24/7 ambassadors of India in the UK Dhankhar

A crown jewel of Hounslow, a mosaic of cultures and colour

Creative Art Campus has announced the painting of a large-scale mural to celebrate the upcoming Coronation of His Majesty The King and H er Majes ty The Que en Consort

said: “Every one of you has to be 24x7 an ambassador of Bharat India is now the hub of manufacturing activity for the globe I would therefore appeal to all of you, in whatever manner you can contribute to the growth of the nation, for the rise in its reputation and to ensure that untenable, illpremised, unfounded, baseless narratives do not take strides in the public domain

“No one is against honest assessment or criticism, that will always help us attain our goals But malicious, pernicious orchestration is antithetical to good conscience We must antidote it ”

He also met several British Indian mem-

bers of the UK Parliament, including peers

Lord Meghnad Desai and Lord Karan Bilimoria and MPs Virendra Sharma and Seema Malhotra

While interacting with Indian students based in the UK, the VP stressed dispelling falsehoods about India He said: “If you don’t approve of it, you must antidote it A false narrative about such a vibrant democracy is antithetical to our national interest if we don’t react And, I have no doubt, the most powerful reaction always comes from rational minds ”

After a packed schedule of royal engagements including a Commonwealth Heads of Government meet hosted by Commonwealth Secretary-General Baroness Patricia Scotland and a reception hosted by King Charles for world leaders at Buckingham Palace in London, his two-day visit to the UK concluded

Diversity and Inclusion

The Coronation Mural Project is a firstof-its-kind project an initiative by Indian origin team in the UK, celebrating multiculturalism and the commonwealth The project aims to create a mosaic of cultures and colours by featuring 54 flags of the commonwealth countries and showcasing the coronation theme of the British monarchy The project is a unique blend of history and art, reflecting the future of multicultural Britain

The design composition and art details are created by Mr Rohit Patel, a renowned Indian artist with over 20 years of experience in the art industry Their unique approach to mural painting is based on a deep understanding of the local environment, culture, and history, as well as a commitment to using the highest quality materials and techniques This approach ensures that their murals are not only beautiful and visually striking but also meaningful and impactful

established themselves as experts in mural painting Jignesh and Yash have a wealth of experience creating stunning and unique murals that capture the imagination and inspire awe in all who see them They have worked on a wide range of projects, from large-scale public murals to intricate indoor designs, and their work has been featured in numerous publications and media outlets

With their extensive experience and Guinness World Record recognition, Jignesh and Yash are the perfect artists to lead the creation of the Coronation Commonwealth Mural in Hounslow The planning, execution, and support team includes Sudeep Sakalle, Kamal Prabhakar, Kuldeep Shekhawat, Nachiket Joshi, Babji S Vundavilli Tapan Shah, Acharya Jyoti Prakash, Shreyansh Jain, Khushi Shah & Aditi Chourey Sakalle Their creativity and expertise will ensure that the mural is a stunning and unforgettable work of art that will be admired and celebrated for many years to come

Britain has come a long way says head of UK’s leading ethnic media agency Javed Husain is the Founder and Director of Mediareach Advertising Ltd, a full-service advertising agency spec ia li zi ng i n multi c ul tural and ethnic marketing With over 36 years of experience in the industry, Javed has es tab li shed hi mse lf as an ex pe rt i n mar keti ng to diverse audiences

Speaking to Asian Voice on the eve of King Charles’ coronation he said: “I believe that with the coronation of King Charles the nation is entering a new phase in embracing diversity

"As someone who came to Britain in 1984, I can see first-hand how far this country has come in embracing multiculturalism Ethnic minorities have also imbibed a lot from the British during these years Growing up in Lucknow, India, I was exposed to multicultural and multi-faith communities which taught me the importance of celebrating diversity and respecting other cultures I believe we must continue to make positive strides towards a more just and equal society for all ”

Javed was born in the Nawabi city of Lucknow, India, into a family of entrepreneurs He received his early education at La Martiniere College and went on to earn a BA in Business from Christian College He later received a post-graduate degree in advertising from Watford College, Hertfordshire

A fifth generation Syed with ancestors from Iraq and Iran, Javed’s formative years in India shaped his views on diversity and inclusion One of Javed's fond memories of

celebrating cultural and multi-faith traditions during his early days is sharing his special Eid meals with friends from other faiths He recalls: “I shared my Lucknow Biryani, Murg Musallam, Sheermal, and kebabs with them In turn, I looked forward to their vegetarian delights during Diwali and Holi ”

Javed recalls fondly his own family’s role in raising funds for a Bhairav Mandir in Lucknow, India He says: “Initially it was the Nawab’s of Lucknow who played an active role After that my father took over the responsibility of raising funds for the annual prayer service of the temple After my father’s demise my brother continued the tradition That was my family’s role in nurturing communal harmony in the community

“This upbringing taught me the importance of diversity and inclusion at an early age I learned to appreciate and respect people from different backgrounds and to celebrate our differences This experience has stayed with me throughout my life and has constantly informed my work in promoting diversity and inclusion at Mediareach

“I firmly believe that by embracing diversity and inclusion, we can create a more vibrant and dynamic

society where everyone can thrive ”

Advertising journey

Javed co-founded Mediareach Advertising in the late 80s, bringing together key skills to become the first full-service advertising agency targeting ethnic markets He was instrumental in raising awareness of the potential that the then untapped ethnic markets in the UK offered to mainstream brands He has created bespoke campaigns and has won several awards earning him the title ‘Godfather of multicultural media in the UK and Europe’

A passionate speaker and sought after media consultant, Javed has helped brands to adapt to the changing face of Europe, as diversity became a mandatory requirement for many brands and organizations He was a strategic advisor on multiculturalism to the London 2012 Olympics committee, GLA and the UK government

Regarding advertising and marketing communications, Javed feels that very often brands follow a broadbrush approach when it comes to targeting diverse communities He bemoans, “In the name of diversity advertising messages are created with a sprinkling of people of colour in them but there’s no real insight into creating them There is no holistic understanding of who the real customer is As a result, brands do not cater to the real target audience There is a mismatch between brands and end users ”

The project is led by two Guinness World Record-holder artists, Jignesh Patel and Yash Patel of Indian origin who have

Jignesh told Asian Voice, “One very old white lady came down when we painting and told me“ I was leaving in Hounslow all my life and I see press only when there is murder or rape for the first time This many years now press is coming for positive news ”

A Baker’s Confession on Coronation

Janannie Rangaswamy owns a sm all bu si ness na med ‘A Baker’s Conf essi o n ’ in Basingstoke and specialises in Cus tom Celebrati ons Cakes , Engagement Cakes, Wedding Cakes, Sculpted Cakes and all things sweet

Speaking to Asian Voice, she said that at the end of last year, she decided to offer treat boxes for all the occasions/celebrations for the first half of 2023 beginning with Valentine's Day “I was absolutely certain to offer treat boxes for the King's Coronation though the details were not worked out then At the beginning of April, I was jotting down ideas for treat boxes for the King's Coronation and I was inspired by the storm of embossers and acrylic charms available for the Coronation by other local small businesses I wanted to offer something simple so that my Clients could enjoy with their family and friends during this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity whilst I would be able to bake, decorate and do the packaging in large numbers So I

decided to offer Cupcakes and Bento Box Cakes,”

Janannie said

“By mid of April, I decided to offer a Box of 3 and a Box of 6 for a small family or small group of people can enjoy and Bento Sharing Box(Serves 16) which has a 5 inch Cake and 6 Cupcake which can be shared by a large group of people or at a street party,” she added She kept the Red, Blue and Beige colours of the frosting in line with the Traditional British colour scheme and decorated the cupcakes and cake with Gold sprinkles, flag toppers and Fondant Toppers with embossed Charles Rex and God Save The King The Treat Boxes came out as beautifully as planned and the Preorders were open from 24th April till 1st May

“I had an amazing response to the Coronation cupcakes compared to other holidays this year, which shows the true British spirit and rich culture,” she further added

British High Commission celebrates the coronation in New Delhi

The British High Commissioner to India, Alex Ellis hosted a reception and screening of the Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and the Queen, at his residence in New Delhi This historic milestone is being celebrated in the UK over a special long weekend with events to bring the UK together, and celebrations and events taking place at 2 80 diploma tic mis sion s ar oun d the world

The reception was attended by a wide range of dignitaries from the Government of India, representatives from Commonwealth nations, business leaders, and other eminent personalities The High Commissioner also joined Chef Shaun Kenworthy in the kitchen to prepare the ‘Coronation Quiche’ for the guests Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner to India, said: “The

Coronation of Their Majesties The King and The Queen is a historic event Today’s ceremony reflected a modern and diverse UK, with representatives from many faithsincluding Hinduism, Sikhism, and Islam –carrying the Coronation Regalia “His Majesty has had a long and enduring love for India and it is my privilege to celebrate this moment with friends here in Delhi ”

CB Patel, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar (standing, third from right) with India’s Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar (centre seated) wife Dr Sudesh Dhankhar and HE Vikram Doraiswami, High Commissioner of India to the UK

Indian Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and his wife with King Charles III

British HC to India, Alex Ellis preparing Quiche for guests in Delhi

Javed Husain

BAPS in the UK marks HM King Charles III’s coronation at Westminster Abbey and Neasden Temple

B APS Swamin arayan Sa nstha ( BAPS) in the U K marked the historic Coronati on of Hi s

M ajesty Kin g C harles III and Her Maj esty

Q ue e n C am i ll a on Sa t ur d a y 6 M a y a t Westm inster Abb ey, and als o through a s pec ial even ing tribute at N easden Te mple

Chairperson of BAPS UK, Jitu Patel, was invited to join other senior faith leaders at Westminster Abbey to greet HM The King at the coronation ceremony with a joint message of goodwill

Later in the evening, a special tribute was held at Neasden Temple, during which Yogvivekdas Swami, Head Swami of the Temple and BAPS UK, offered congratulations to Their Majesties and reflected upon the warm, friendly relationship that His Majesty has enjoyed with BAPS for over four decades, as well as his personal affection and admiration for His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj

Mahant Swami Maharaj had written a personal letter to His Majesty King Charles III, in which he extended his warmest congratulations on behalf of the global BAPS Swaminarayan fellowship This letter was shared during the programme before Mahant Swami Maharaj lighted a traditional lamp as a symbol of auspiciousness while young children chanted the Shanti-Path –

an ancient Vedic prayer – as the whole congregation prayed for peace, prosperity and harmony to prevail across the world

Mahant Swami Maharaj reiterated his congratulations to His Majesty in his address, saying that he was “praying that he [His Majesty] remains in good health and that he can serve the people of this country with righteousness and moral for-

The coronation concert

Pro duced by BBC Stu dios, the C oro nation Concert took place on th e g rounds of Windsor C astle on Su nd ay 7th M ay, celebrating the Coronatio n of T heir Majesties in front of 20 ,00 0 members of the public and inv ited guests, and will be broadcast liv e to th e natio n on BBC One, B BC iPlayer, BBC Rad io 2 and BBC Sounds and seen in ov er 10 0 countries arou nd the world

The staging created multiple levels for the 70-piece orchestra and band in the form of a Union flag, with four additional catwalks branching out of the stage Above the Union flag stage rose a halo-like screen that envelops the roof and symbolised the crown

A choir leader who took part in the spectacular Coronation Concert has described the ‘electric’ atmosphere as his LGBTQ+ group gave the biggest performance of their lives The diverse ensemble, also including cabbies, RNLI volunteers, farmers from Northern Ireland and NHS workers, sang in front of 20,000 people and millions more watching worldwide

Bradford s first South Asian Women s choir, Song-Geet, which began at the University of Bradford’s Theatre in the Mill, also performed at the coronation of King Charles III They performed a rendition of Brighter Days by Emeli Sandé at Windsor Castle Choir leader Madiha Ansari, who graduated from the university with a degree in clinical sciences in 2009 and who now works as a theatre producer, said: “It’s such a privilege to be performing at the coronation We’re proud to be representing not just our community but the region This is a great opportunity for women, and it’s particularly poignant in the run-up to Bradford City of Culture 2025 ”

Actress Sonam Kapoor started off her

speech with a “namaste” at the coronation ceremony of King Charles III in Berkshire on Sunday as she dazzled in a white floral floor-length gown by Anamika Khanna and Emilia Wickstead at the Windsor Castle ground

“Our Commonwealth is a union Together we are one-third of the world’s people, one-third of the world’s ocean, and one-quarter of the world’s land Each of our countries is unique Each of our people is special But we choose to stand this one Learning from our history, blessed by our diversity, driven by our values and determined to build a more peaceful, sustainable and prosperous future for everyone, where every voice is heard,” Sonam said

Katy Perry has revealed she spent the night in Windsor Castle ahead of delivering a spectacular performance at the King’s Coronation Concert The US singer, 38, gave an electric rendition of her hit tracks Roar and Firework at the celebratory event held on the grounds of the castle on Sunday evening, dedicating the latter to the King in honour of the work they do together with the British Asian Trust and their Children’s Protection Fund

Actor Tom Cruise delivered his prerecorded airborne messages while at the controls of his Top Gun Warbird plane, wearing the same pale blue top, aviator sunglasses, green headphones and headset In Cruise's brief royal message from the same cockpit, he highlighted the fact the King qualified as a pilot, saying: "Pilot to pilot, Your Majesty, you can be my wingman any time " Cruise then saluted and steered the plane away from the camera at speed in the coronation concert clip

PM Sunak called it a ‘date night’ with his wife Akshata Murty

titude”

Jitu Patel also shared his experiences: “It was an honour and privilege to be representing His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, the swamis and devotees of Neasden Temple, and the wider global BAPS Hindu fellowship It was especially fitting to join with other faith leaders to celebrate this historic occasion, as it is a true testament of the King’s pledge to be a defender of all faiths

“We are equally delighted to be participating in the Coronation Big Lunch and Big Help Out events, which will bring together communities from across the country for a good cause – values that His Majesty and we, at BAPS, share deeply ”

The Big Lunch was held on Sunday 7 May at Neasden Temple, which brought

together neighbours and members of the local community for fun, food and friendship

The Big Help Out was organised at the Temple on Monday 8 May with free community health screenings throughout the day and a partnership with the NSPCC to encourage volunteers at the Temple as well as parents across the community to take a short training course to support children’s online safety

Coronation Lighting

Coronation Celebration Neasden Temple

Chair of BAPS - Jitu Patel, meeting the King

His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharah's letter to HM King Charles III

Prime Minister’s Coronation Big Lunch at Downing Street

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty hos ted a Coronati on B ig Lunch at Downing Street in London on Sunday for community heroes to celebrate t he cr owni ng of King

over 1,000 families without access to an electric machine in underdeveloped countries or refugee camps

The event was one of an estimated 50,000 Big Lunches or street parties

More gold than at a Punjabi wedding

up the bunting, pour the tea and cut the cake at street parties and community events across the UK,” said Sunak “I am proud to welcome Ukrainians forced to flee their homes and some

Aasmah Saira Mir who is a Scottish television and radio bro adcaste r and j ou rnali st said that she wasn’t planning on watching the coronation until she was asked to do so for a piece, but glad that she did She clarified that she is nei ther rep ub lic an nor monarchist and hence she watched it with no expectations

She mentioned Rishi Sunak who read an epistle in a confident, human-sounding voice was surely not lost on anyone

She added that there was great excitement when the King was handed an actual orb and sceptre, which she had seen in children’s storybooks In fact, there was more gold than at a Punjabi wedding, exclaimed Aasmah

“In 1977, when I was six, it felt like everyone celebrated the late Queen’s Silver Jubilee

Elizabeth II was much loved and my Muslim parents adored her I remember standing on a windy hill, trying to keep my skirt from flying over my head, waving a plastic flag ”

She said that glad she

watched the coronation but she cannot do it again

“Like elaborate weddings, West End musicals and red peppers, they’re not for me As the King and Queen rolled away into the rain in their Cinderella coach, it reminded me how unique and crazy we are in this country I wouldn’t have it any other way ”

Kate Middleton pays homage to Lady Diana

The Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton donned pearl earrings that were gifted to Diana before her wedding to Prince Charles in 1981 The earrings, made by Collingwood, mark a touching handover from one Princess of Wales to the other They became firm favourites of Diana and were sported on royal tours of Australia, Canada and Italy

Princess Diana’s brother left out

Char les II I and Queen Camilla as part of the country’s long celebratory weekend

The invitees included US first lady Jill Biden and British Sikh entrepreneur Navjot Singh Sawhney, who won the UK PM’s Points of Light Award earlier this year for his eco-friendly handcranked Washing Machine Project, which is benefitting

being organised up and down the United Kingdom to celebrate the Coronation at Westminster Abbey in London on Saturday Ukrainians forced to flee the war-torn country amid its conflict with Russia were also present at the lunch

“Come rain or shine, thousands of friends and neighbours are coming together this weekend to put

incredible community heroes to Downing Street for our very own Coronation lunch to celebrate this historic moment In England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland – and across our Overseas Territories and the wider Commonwealth –people are marking this momentous occasion in the spirit of unity and hope for the future,” he said

Penny Mordaunt's swordwielding stole the show

Pe nn y M or daun t d id not break a sweat when she held a n 8lb (3 6k g) swor d for nearly an hour Being the lord president of the privy c ouncil it was her job to carry the 17th-c entury silver-gilt sword of state into Westminster Abbey For 51 m in utes st raight ,a s tonyf ac ed Morda unt held the sword

Social media was filled with posts about Mordaunt being one of the stars of the show Tony Blair’s former spin doctor, Alastair Campbell, tweeted: “Don’t let anyone ever say I never say anything positive about Tories I am in awe of Penny Mordaunt’s arm and shoulder strength!”

The leader of the House of Commons, Mordaunt told Matt Chorley on Times Radio that she had been doing press-ups and strength training and had practised with a weighted replica

Andrea Leadsom, the former cabinet minister who is a close friend and helped run her leadership campaigns, said: “She is extremely determined and very committed to doing her best and always with a smile on her face It was no mean feat to hold that sword for so long and keep smiling She wanted to make sure she did justice to the occasion ”

Mordaunt, 50, carried the sword in a scabbard, which features moulds of lions, unicorns and shamrocks, with a crimson red velvet covering with a strap around her neck to take some of the weight, for the first part of the service

Sitting this one out Princess D iana ’ s b rothe r Char les Spe nc er was not ic ea bl y absent from King Charles III's coronation on Saturday, May 6

Earlier this year, however, Prince William and Prince Harry’s 58-year-old

uncle hinted that he wasn’t planning to attend the festivities "I think we've never had an official role in it, just turned up like everyone else used to, when it was the hereditary peers and the House of Lords That's no longer the case, ” Spencer

said on the “Off Air with Jane and Fi” podcast in February when asked about participating in the crowning ceremony “There is some old coronet knocking around somewhere, but I won't be wearing it soon, I don't think "

Coronation Garden Party: King

Charles III's coronation and platinum jubilee of Mt Everest

T he K ing a nd Que en Consort host ed a ga rd en party at Buckingham Palace o n We d ne sd a y 3 Ma y, attended by members of the community

The King and Queen have been out and about at the Westminster Abbey for rehearsals They also surprised fans with a surprise walk about outside Buckingham Palace with William and Kate Prashant Kunwar told Asian Voice, “It was a great experience to be invited to the coronation garden party It was with huge honour and pleasure to be part of the regal event I was fortunate to have an audience with King Charles III and Queen consort Camilla I congratulated the King and wish for a glorious reign I also reminded the king that 70 years ago when the Queen was coronated that was when Mt Everest was ascended and it’s a coincidence that while we are celebrating King Charles III's coronation and

platinum jubilee of Mt Everest 70 years after The Mt Everest and Gurkhas hold an important space in the royal family and also in larger British people The UK and Nepal hold a special relationship which dates back more than 200 years The event was blessed with good weather and a fantastic atmosphere, and it was great to blend with so many distinguished guests from all walks of life ”

The Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty, together with their children Anoushka and Kristna host a 'Big Lunch' Coronation celebration lunch in 10 Downing Street Picture by Simon Walker / No 10 Downing Street

Queen Camilla with Prashant Kunwar Rajesh and Madhu Jain at the coronation garden party

King Charless III and Kunwar shake hands

Faith Communities and Groups get active in the Big Help Out

F aith co mmunit ies and act iv ists h ave p layed a sig nificant p ar t in v olunteering activities for t h e Big H el p Out o n Coronation Bank Holiday Mo nday Ev ent s and init iativ es t oo k p lace al l over the country involving Christian, Muslim, Jewish, H indu , S ikh and ot her co mmunit ies Ano op am Mission’s Bake competition was a major highlight of the community events

Senior faith leaders also took part in Big Help Out activities The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby with his wife Mrs Caroline Welby, served lunch at a homeless charity, Catching Lives in Canterbury The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, and Deputy Lieutenant of North Yorkshire, Rebecca Cottrell, helped out at a Trussell Trust food bank at St Joseph’s Church in York

Faith communities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland also led volunteers into action as part of the Big Help Out Interfaith Scotland partnered with Trees for Life to plant trees in the World Interfaith Harmony Grove in the Scottish Highlands while the Archbishop of Wales Andrew John led a beach clean in Dinas Dinlle in North Wales In South Belfast, Northern Ireland Interfaith Forum worked with local volunteers as well as those who have recently arrived in Belfast from Ukraine and Russia to completely rebuild the Windsor Community Garden

Faith activists leading other Big Help Out projects included the following:

Sukhbir Singh, Founder o f Feed My Cit y ( Sikh community charity), said:

Sunak’s Big Help Out surprise

Prime Minister Sunak paid a surprise visit at the Diners a t a loca l lu nch club in Hertfordshire as part of the Big Help Out

“Feedmycity as part of the #The Big Help Out Coronation celebrations of our King Charles, have provided hundreds of hot meals to Faith organisations, Community groups, Homeless Shelters and street parties in Greater Manchester! We are proud of our inspirational, amazing volunteers who work so hard and joining in the festivities to celebrate the Coronation ”

Gurpreet Singh Anand, Ch air o f t he Centr al Gu rd w ar a ( Kh al sa Jat ha) L ond on (S ikh Templ e), said:

“The Khalsa Jatha British Isles is delighted to be participating in The Big Help Out today, a campaign championing faith groups and volunteering to make a real difference in our communities We prepared 150 hot meals for the homeless to be distributed by our partners SWAT ”

Zaki Cooper, who led t he mobil isat ion of fait h co mmunities for t he Big Help Out, said:

“The UK’s range of faith communities did amazing volunteering today as part of The Big Help Out They donated and distributed food, collected old clothes as well as organised tree planting, litter picks and even a beach clean-up in Wales Inspired by their religious obligations to do good and build a better society, they volunteered in very high numbers They were also moved to be active in tribute to the King, who has been so passionate about cultivating strong

relationships with all of Britain’s different faith communities They helped to make the Big Help Out even bigger and better and to enhance community spirit By focusing on what we have in common rather than what divides us, we are so much stronger as a nation ”

Across the nation, the volunteers at Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK (HSS UK) were enthusiastically participating in activities as part of the BIG HELP OUT Nine HSS shakhas, 132 participants engaged in 11 different community projects Clearing community gardens, planting flowers, serving teas, cleaning benches, clearing charity shop clutter, litter picking, visiting care homes, cooking and serving meals, and taking calls on helplines were just some of the activities that were well received with much gratitude and lovely words of gratitude by the elderly and the infirm, community groups, temples and charity shops

The Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK volunteering activities took place alongside 55000 The Big Help Out volunteering initiatives nationwide

Dr Harsha Jani at HSS UK Outreach Team said, ‘We love volunteering and really it comes naturally to us as Hindus It was a privilege to participate in the Big Help Out and contribute positively to the welfare of so many ’

No Kohinoor in the crown

The c ontr over sy -st ir ring Kohinoor diamond the 1 05-c ara t s par kle r at the centre of the violet crown C amill a was ex pec te d to w ear , did not mak e an

appearance

The royals kept the gem out of Saturday’s coronation festivities The crown jewel of the crown jewels is widely considered an ill-gotten spoil of Britain’s colonial conquests, and calls for the British to return the stone

to India have grown increasingly loud since the death of Queen Elizabeth II last year (The current Indian government, under

According to Evening Standard, local residents, most of them elderly, were served lamb casserole and wine by “ very special guests” Rishi Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty, in the dining room of Mill End Community Centre in Rickmansworth Sunak his wife Akshata Murty chopped parsnips and strawberries in the kitchen in black aprons before joining the room in a toast which ended in the group saying “long live the King” and giving three cheers Diners, who had not been

warned about their prestigious helpers, chatted and took selfies with the Prime Minister surrounded by Union flag tablecloths, napkins and helium balloons, and rows of golden paper crowns

Sunak could be heard telling people about a “big

street party” he attended yesterday in Downing Street to celebrate the coronation

He chatted with volunteers about how many courses the club usually serves and whether there were any “ particular favourites” on the menu

Will and Kate shoot arrows in Big Help Out

Cor onat ion c ele br ations continued on Monday with Prin ce W ill ia m, his wif e, Kate Middleton, and their kids Pr inc e George, 9, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prin ce Louis, 5 tak ing part in a variety of activities at the 3r d Upt on Sc out Group The r oy als vis ited the B rownie tr oop in Sl oug h, En gla nd, to participate in an initiative titled “The Big Help Out” a day full of cha rit y a nd vol unte erin g The y accompanied the group to he lp re model their Sc out H ut, doing ta sk s suc h as

ex ca vat ing, sa ndin g an d painting

At one point, William and George sat in a big yellow excavator to dig into a pile of dirt The father of three then took Louis up into the vehicle and steered it into the mud

The family also wore matching burgundy and yellow ribbons that hung around their necks for the springtime outing Little Louis even drove a wheelbarrow into the grass that was full of debris The event was actually the tot’s first official royal

Narendra Modi, has vacillated on whether it wants the diamondback, but many others do ) The British have yet to heed them

With the death of the queen last year came a massive reassessment of the symbolism of British royalty and the moral and cultural wrongs of colonialism it has perpetrated and continues to condone explicitly and implicitly, particularly by keeping plundered artefacts

The King was caught complaining prior coronation ceremony

On Saturday, the King was c au gh t o n ca me r a a p pa re nt ly co mp l aining about being made to wait o ut side West minste r Abbey

It is believed that he and the Queen arrived on schedule for the coronation

ceremony but had to wait for five minutes in the Diamond Jubilee State Coach outside because the Prince and Princess of Wales and their children were apparently late and during the procession, their carriage was unable to

overtake the King’s coach

A lip reader for Sky News has claimed that the King while being filmed in the coach, said: “We can never be on time Yes I’m

This is a negative There’s always something This is boring ”

engagement

It was then archery time for the fam, with the kiddies living out their “Hunger Games” fantasies by shooting bows and arrows Louis made funny faces again as he pulled back the plastic darts and made sure to hit his target

Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty

No 10 Downing Street

Dear Financia Voice Reader Alpesh Patel OBE

I’ve been speaking to a few people about the stocks in their pensions Here’s what I’ve learnt and lessons for them

• Few people realise they can have a SIPP or ISA tax free and invest in stocks

• Fewer still know how easy it is

• Most thought they could only buy UK stocks

• Many didn’t realise that the stocks they can pick are the same that fund managers pick on their behalf

• Many did not realise they can have US companies such as Microsoft

• When asked many felt that if they picked the same stocks as a fund manager, their chosen picks would somehow be wrong Even though they were the same stocks

• Many did not realise that most fund managers do not outperform the broader market

• Many did not know how to open an online account to do this, even though they have online banking and other online accounts

• Some thought there would be more tax forms, there would not

• Most knew that experts charge fees annually and these could be removed by picking the companies themselves

• Most did not know that their workplace pension is invested through funds into stocks

• Most thought investing in funds is safer than investing in individual stocks – even when shown that funds are made up of stocks

• Most did not realise IFAs and fund managers try to match a benchmark, not produce an absolute positive return and so just add more or less stocks than in the benchmark

• Most did not realise how big an impact over time underperformance is on their retirement funds

• Most did not know that the Government adds to money you put in a SIPP and gains are grown tax free

• None knew the Nobel Prize in Economics a few years ago went Eugene Fama and how important his work was

Financial advisors and fund managers have long been sought after for their expertise in investment management However, with the advancements in technology and the democratization of information, individual investors can now manage their own portfolios with ease Drawing on the work of Eugene Fama, a Nobel Prize-winning economist, this article highlights the key reasons why individuals should consider investing themselves rather than relying on IFAs or fund managers

Investing in yourself eliminates the need to pay fees to IFAs or fund managers, which can be quite substantial over time These fees often include a percentage of assets under management, commissions, and other hidden charges

Managing your own investments allows for greater control and customization of your portfolio Individuals can tailor their investment strategy to their specific risk tolerance, financial goals, and personal values, without being restricted by the limitations or biases of an IFA or fund manager This can lead to more satisfying investment outcomes and a greater sense of financial ownership

Investing in yourself encourages financial literacy and fosters a sense of self-reliance By learning the ins and outs of investing, individuals can make more informed decisions about their financial future, not only in investing but also in other aspects of their lives This knowledge can also be passed down to future generations, creating a lasting legacy of financial empowerment

Tata Steel warns of uncertainty over future of UK business

Tata Steel has warned that the fin anc es of its UK bus ines s f ac e "ma ter ia l uncertainty" given market conditions and the level of government support Tata sa id a st res s -tes t of it s European arm to assess the impact of a downturn had flagged concerns for the UK unit

However, Tata Steel UK said it expected trading to pick up later this year The Department for Business said the government is providing support to

protect the steel industry from "unfair trade and energy costs"

The UK business of India's Tata Steel employs about 8,000 people, with half at the Port Talbot steelworks in Wales In results published last week, Tata said that earnings at Tata Steel Europe - which includes the UK businessfell by more than 60% in the year to 31 March

It added it had carried out tests to assess the potential impact of an

Shell looking to sell its stake in North Sea oil field

After Lab our acc used the Conservatives of failing to enact 'appropriate windfall taxes ' on en ergy corporati ons, Shell i s looking to sell its part in a contentious North Sea oil fiel d The oil c ompany i s looking for a buyer for its 30 pc holding in the Cambo oil projec t, i ts partner Ithaca Energy said Cambo, which is the second-largest undeveloped oil and gas discovery in the North Sea, has been the focal point of many protests Shell has been rumoured for months to be looking for someone to take over its part The remaining 70 pc of the oil field is owned by Ithaca Energy

In 2021 Shell scrapped its development plans for the project, putting its future

into doubt The corporation produced roughly £1 4 billion more in profit than analysts had anticipated in the first three months of the year, with adjusted earnings climbing 5 7 per cent to £7 6 billion

Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves said: "Shell reports £7 6 bn profits for its first quarter yet the Tories refuse to bring in a proper windfall tax on oil and gas giants to freeze council tax this year, as Labour would "We'll tackle the cost-ofliving crisis, and put working people first " Speaking after Shell's quarterly results, chief executive Wael Sawan said the company wants to be a major investor in renewable power but needed "the right ecosystem to be able to do that"

BA owner raises profit forecast as travel demand rebounds

Due to the high demand for holiday travel, the airline firm said it expects to fly about the same number of people this year as it did prior to th e co ronavirus outbreak This has led to an improvement in the o wner of Br it is h Ai rwa ys ' ful l- ye ar pr of it estimates

British Gas stops using contractors to forcefit prepayment meters

Follow ing cri tici sm of a c on tra cto r's ac tio ns , British Gas said that it will perform any future forced installation of prepayment me tre s d ire ctly Med ia r epor ts re vea led that Bri tis h Gas a gen ts h ad trespassed into the homes of vulnerable persons

A review found there had been "no systemic issues" with prepayment meters (PPMs) fitted under warrant However, it added that in a small number of cases, "things have gone wrong"

British Gas said it was "permanently" ending all activity with the contractor and would bring the

work in-house

As part of its decision to stop offering in-person debt collection services, Arvato stated that its contract with the company had been terminated "by mutual agreement " The ban on force-fitting meters under warrant has now been lifted, but under

guidance from energy regulator Ofgem, customers must be given more chance to clear debts and forced meter fittings are banned in homes with residents all aged over 85

All energy suppliers in England, Scotland and Wales have signed up to Ofgem's code of conduct, under which they have to make at least 10 attempts to contact a customer and conduct a "site welfare visit" before a prepayment meter is installed

economic downturn in Europe, given factors such as higher inflation and interest rates

These tests found the outlook for the UK business would be "adversely impacted", but it added it was continuing to "implement various measures aimed at improving its business performance and conserving cash"

In July last year, Tata Steel said it would make a decision over the future of

the its UK business in the next 12 months One uncertainty hanging over Tata Steel UK is what level of help it could get from the government

The company is still in talks with the UK government over support to switch away from existing steelmaking processes to ones that emit less carbon

Pound hits 11-month high against US dollar

The Br itish po und wa s ste ady a ga in st t he dol la r having hit an 11-month high af ter th e Fe de ral R eser ve raised rates but signalled an end to its tightening cycle

The US central bank raised its benchmark rate by a quarter point but dropped from its policy statement language that said it "anticipates" further rate increases would be needed, sending the dollar lower against other major currencies, including the pound

"It (the pound) has capitalised on the weaker dollar in the wake of the dovish Fed decision," said George Vessey, foreign exchange and macro strategist at Convera Sterling had little changed against the dollar at $1 2567, having hit its highest level since June last year at $1 2593 overnight

The pound was edging

higher against the euro ahead of an expected rate increase from the European Central Bank, with the size of the move still up for debate

With about a 20% likelihood of a greater 50 basis point increase, the markets have fully priced in a move of 25 basis points Among the 69 economists queried by the media, 57 predict a quarter-point change, while the remaining 12 predict a 50 basis point increase The euro recently traded at 87 94 pence, down 0 1% from the pound In the meantime, a poll revealed that the UK's services sector experienced its quickest growth in a year in April, helped along by new orders, but company pricing increased, increasing pressure on the Bank of England to continue rising interest rates

International Airlines Group (IAG) reported a first-quarter profit for the first time since 2019, before the travel industry was plunged into chaos by Covid lockdowns It made an operating profit of £7 9m in the first three months of the year

Since the end of most global travel restrictions airlines have been racing to restart routes, with demand for holidays in particular soaring and business travel also recovering, albeit more slowly

British Airways was benefiting from strong demand for leisure travel on long- and short-haul routes, the group said

IAG, which also owns the Spanish flag carrier Iberia and the low-cost carrier Vueling, predicted that capacity will be roughly 97% of what it was in 2019 Its operating profit for the entire year will therefore likely surpass the €2 3 billion it had initially projected

The group returned to full-year profit in 2022 after racking up losses of almost €11bn through 2020 and 2021

First-time house buyers paying £200 a month more for mortgage

Following criticism of a contractor's actions, British Gas said that it will perform any future forced installation of prepayment metres directly Media reports revealed that British Gas agents had trespassed into the homes of vulnerable persons

A review found there had been "no systemic issues" with prepayment meters (PPMs) fitted under warrant However, it added that in a small number of cases, "things have gone wrong British Gas said it was permanently ending all activity with the contractor and would bring the work in-house

As part of its decision to stop offering in-person debt collection services, Arvato stated that its contract with the company had been terminated "by mutual agreement " The ban on force-fitting meters under warrant has now been lifted, but under guidance from energy regulator Ofgem, customers must be given more chance to clear debts and forced meter fittings are banned in homes with residents all aged over 85

All energy suppliers in England, Scotland and Wales have signed up to Ofgem's code of conduct, under which they have to make at least 10 attempts to contact a customer and conduct a "site welfare visit" before a prepayment meter is installed

India is an an incredibly exciting market: Apple’s Cook

Durin g th e compa ny's quarterly results call, Apple CEO Tim Coo k pra ise d Ind ia s e xp an di ng mi ddle class and claimed that the ma rk et is a t the "tip pin g point" of a high development trajectory This praise came just weeks after Cook's visit to India to inaugurate the first two compa ny-o wne d stores

Such was the optimism that Cook, responding to questions on a conference call in the US following the release of worldwide earnings, cited India over 20

Certainty in an uncertain world

times during the exchange, when he also mentioned several other markets and spoke about record sales there

“ India is an incredibly exciting market It’s a major

CBI searches sites linked to Jet Airways, its founder

The CBI has searched seven sites, including the offices of Jet Airways and its founder Naresh Goyal, in connection with an alleged bank fraud case totaling £53 8 million

On May 3, the organisation lodged a formal complaint against Goyal, his wife, and the former airline director G aurang Anan da Shet ty

Last week's searc hes were spread across residences of Ani ta and Shetty as well, sources said

The FIR, filed on the complaint of Canara Bank, had detailed alleged siphoning of funds through payments made to process and consultancy expenses

“It was noted that £115 26 million was incurred towards professional and consultancy expenses during the review period 1 4 2011 to 30 6 2019 Out of these, suspicious transactions to the tune of £19 75 million were identified in the case of entities which were linked to JIL, i e key managerial

personnel of JIL were also linked to these entities,” the FIR claims

“It is observed that professional and consultancy expenses to the extent of £42 04 million out of £115 26 million were paid to entities whose nature of business is different from the service description in their invoices raised on JIL,” it further reads

The bank also noted that the turnover of these firms was comparable to the expense amount JIL was recording against those entities as professional and consultancy fees

focus for us I was just there, and the dynamism in the market, the vibrancy was u n b e l i e v a b l e There are a lot of people coming into the middle class, and I really feel that India is at a tipping point, and it’s great to be there," he said The Apple CEO said that the company - which reported global revenues of $94 8 billion for the March quarter - had record

numbers in India

He said that the company has been expanding its operations in India to serve more customers, and gave the example of the Apple Online Store that went live around three years ago “We've got a number of channel partners in India as well that we're partnering with, and we're very happy with how that's going overall Overall, I couldn't be more delighted and excited by the enthusiasm I'm seeing for the brand there ”

Credit Suisse sends legal notice to halt RCap’s sale

Cred it Suis se (C S) ha s written to the administrator of Reliance Capital, stating that a resolution plan for the compa ny c ann ot b e implemented as the Swis s lender’s petition against the rejection of its claims on RCap is still pending with the National Company Law Tribunal

CS, through their lawyers, have written to the administrator of RCap, Nageswara Rao, informing him about their claim for a debt of £66 million

Following the rejection of the two lenders' claims in the bankruptcy case, CS and Axis Bank filed a motion with the tribunal last year Both lenders had wished to be acknowledged as creditors The overall debt, according to the notice from the CS lawyer, is £66 million as of December 2021

CS has claimed it is a

secured creditor with a pledge on the bankrupt company ’ s shares in its subsidiary, Reliance General Insurance, with IDBI Trusteeship company being a trustee The notice states there have been reports of a second round of auction on April 26, where IndusInd International Holdings has emerged as the sole bidder, and discussion regarding the finalisation of the resolution plan is underway

The administrator has been instructed by CS to hold off on even discussing the resolution plan, let alone finalising it According to the notification, the resolution plan s completion while a decision was pending would constitute a complete failure to comply with regulation 38 of the corporate insolvency resolution plan regulation

Go First files for bankruptcy, blames US engine maker

In dia's te le com r eve nues have reached a record high of £30 billion for the first time as income increas ed 20% in FY23 due to rising d ata a nd con ten t c ons umpt ion as w ell as f ina nc ia l rel ief fr om t he g over nme nt' s r ef orm pa c kag e D ue to t he expansion, the government was also able to increase its r eve nue s hare , w hic h t otal ed over £1 6 7 bil lion through licence fee receipts

Ac cording to sourc es, the In dian tel ec om indus tr y c l os e d FY23 with gr oss r eve nues of £31 bill ion, significantly higher than the £26 billion in 2021-22

B e s t - p e r f o r m i n g

Reliance Jio and Bharti Airte both experienced growth as a result of rate increases and increased customer usage of data and other services

However, Vodafone Idea, the third-biggest private operator in the nation, has yet to deliver as it works to

turn things around, particularly after the government decided to become the company's largest shareholder by turning its unpaid interest liabilities into equity

“There has been a credible and strong revival of the telecom industry, indicating that reforms ushered in by the government have been in the right direction Also, the commencement of 5G rollout by the mobile operators and further investments into network expansion will give a fresh impetus to the industry and its revenues which will only get stronger over the coming years, ” sources said

Go Ai rli ne s, the low-c ost carrier owned by billionaire Nus li Wadi a, f il ed for bank ruptc y, acc usi ng US engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney for forcing half of its fleet to be grounded The 2005- la un ched ai rli ne, which was renamed Go First in May, b eca me the f ir st Wadi a Group company to file for bankruptcy in its 287year existence and the third si gni fi ca nt ai rli ne to g o un der si nc e 2 012, af ter Kingfisher and Jet

When the National Company Law Tribunal in Delhi grants the bankruptcy plea, Wadia, his son Ness Wadia, airline chairman Varun Berry, other board members, and the management would hand over authority to a resolution specialist chosen by the forum

Civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said “it’s incumbent upon the airline to make alternative travel

arrangements for passengers so that inconvenience is minimal ” On its website, Go First said: “ due to operational reasons, Go First flights scheduled for May have been cancelled A full refund will be issued to the original mode of payment shortly committed to providing all the assistance we can ”

The airline, which has 61 aircraft in its fleet, said it moved the NCLT under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) “due to the everincreasing number of failing engines supplied by PW which has resulted in Go First having to ground 25 aircraft (nearly 50% of its Airbus A320neo aircraft fleet) as of May 1, 2023 ”

Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

We are exploring an interesting deal in West London The reason it’s of interest is not architectural, it’s the numbers More specifically the certainty of the numbers

The property is a mixed use building, a shop and uppers The uppers consist of two flats, both producing a decent rental, due to the location

There is a separate office building which is currently used as an office This can be converted into residential, under PD This means this can be done without the need for planning, thus removing the uncertainty associated with planning permission

The commercial itself can be converted into residential under the same rules; thereby negating the risk associated with obtaining planning permission

The reason why this is a good deal is the risk associated with obtaining planning in both these scenarios has been mitigated

This of course does not mean the deal is without risk You still have interest rates, build costs, and market conditions etc to contend with

In a project, gaining planning permission is usually a big variable, therefore mitigating this gives much certainty to the project

Not only is it defined but the time period within which the council has to grant the permission is also laid out in stone – 56 days is the rule On a previous development the permission was granted bang on the 56th day Otherwise, my understanding is you have the permission by default

The first option for the commercial element would be to keep it as commercial This removes the need for any refurbishment, or only a minimal level in order to appeal to the prospective tenant

The second option is to consider splitting the premises into smaller units, this would enable the prospective unit to fall below the threshold of paying business rates This then becomes very appealing for any tenants Under the new Class E the usage of a commercial premises is not only variegated but one can switch between the two, it is not locked This means it can even operate as an office during the day and be a café in the evenings There exists much flexibility with this class

There is of course always the potential to create residential This will require development In comparison, commercial rental is more favourable, as you don’t have voids, no maintenance, and the tenant is responsible for the upkeep of the external, at least partially

However, if the goal is to extract money then the route to go would be residential This would give the greatest uplift in values, which would mean this can be extracted on completion by way of refinance

The cost of the deal is £2M, and requires an investment of £1M It is income producing from day one, and one can expect to receive a large chunk of the £1M back at completion; and have an asset which is income producing in a strong location, where values are only expected to increase

For the w ee k en din g April 28, India's foreign ex cha ng e r ese rv es incr ea se d t o a 1 0month high of $588 8 bil lion , accord ing t o data released by the RBI (Reserve Bank of India)

Tha t is $4 5 b ill ion more from the prior week

The reserves had dropped by $2 2 billion to $584 3 billion in the previous reporting week In October 2021, foreign exchange reserves had touched an all-time high of $645 billion The central bank intervenes in the spot and forwards markets to prevent runaway moves in the rupee Changes in foreign exchange reserves also stem from valuation gains or losses

Earlier this week, media

reported, citing traders, that the RBI was likely buying dollars via public sector banks to ensure that the rupee remained in a narrow range The rupee had a weekly end value of 81 61 and had moved in a range of 82 01 to 82 61 versus the US dollar The data on foreign exchange reserves was released last week The local currency reached an intraday high of 81 61 on April 27 This was a threemonth high

Suresh

India's telecom revenues top record £30 bn in FY23

Naresh Goyal

India's forex reserves rise to 10-month high of $589 billion

Imran Khan's arrest leads to massive protests in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The arrest of former Pa kista n prime min is ter Imran Khan on Tuesday led to mass ive protests and demonstrations by Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI) supporters across the country Workers entered compounds of army commanders' residence in Lahore and army HQ in Rawalpindi, as per reports PTI workers protested in c ities a cr oss t he c ount ry, in cl uding Is la mab ad, Raw alpin di, La hore, Kar ac hi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan, Peshawar, and Mardan, reported Geo News

In Karachi, protesters clashed with the police near Nursery where they pelted stones at police vehicles and tore down street lights Reports also showed that police fired teargas shells and water cannons at the protesters Police

TWO INDIAN ORIGIN BROTHERS KILLED IN US

also fired teargas shells at protesters on Rawalpindi's Murree Road

The PTI supporters were seen shouting "Release Imran Khan," and "Shut down Pakistan," in the streets of Lahore, Faizabad, Bannu, and Peshawar People of Lahore moving from Liberty towards Lahore Cantt," tweeted PTI's handle

Meanwhile, reports suggest that Air force dummy aircraft

was set on fire outside Mianwali air base It has been further reported that two protesters died in Pakistan's Faisalabad in Punjab province, over 180 km east of provincial capital Lahore after Army fired to stop their protests Imran Khan's party Twitter handle asked Pakistanis to come out and protest against his arrest "Pakistan, its your time now It's now or never an opportunity People must come out to defend their country now," it tweeted

Khan's supporters have started protests in various cities against his arrest The party workers started converging at the Insaf House, PTI main office, in Karachi, in Peshawar

Outrage in Lanka over export bid of crop-raiding monkeys to China

COLOMBO: Despite the fact that crop raids and other animal-human conflicts are on the rise in Sr i Lan ka, a recen t r eq ue st f or 100,000 toque macaques from Sri Lanka by a Chinese company has reignited the conversation about wildlife exploitation

The destruction of crops by wild has been a significant issue for many people, particularly rural communities, and a survey published last year anticipated an overall loss of 30 215 billion Sri Lankan rupees ($93 6 million) during the first half of 2022

The toque macaque (Macaca sinica) tops this list of pests with coconuts being the most affected crop As Sri Lanka looks for solutions to the problem, a statement by Agriculture Minister Mahinda Amaraweera about a Chinese company ’ s wishes to import 100,000 macaques has resulted in a huge outcry from animal rights activists and environmentalists

“The minister says the animals will be

exported to some Chinese zoos However, there are only a few zoos there with the ability to accommodate this many number of monkeys This just fuels our fear that this is not the real purpose and the macaques may be used for medical research,” says Panchali Panapitiya of the animal rights non-profit Rally for Animal Rights and Environment

However, it is now illegal to serve monkey brains in China and violations can result in imprisonment extending up to 10 years

Recent news stories that claimed China was having a shortage of experimental monkeys raised suspicions According to other media sources, China was interested in importing donkeys and dogs from Pakistan, primarily for domestic consumption

As the controversy grew, the Chinese Embassy of Sri Lanka issued a statement denying any involvement of the government of the People’s Republic of China in any “monkey imports” from Sri Lanka

Taliban agree with China, Pak to extend BRI in Afghanistan

IS L A MA B A D: The Ta liba n a gr ee d wit h China and Pakistan to extend the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) to Afghanistan, potentially drawing in billions of dollars to fund infrastructure projects in the sanctions-hit country As part of their agreement to coope r a te on Afg ha nista n' s re ha bil ita tio n, including bringing the $60 billion ChinaPakistan Economic Corridor to the Talibanruled country, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Pakistani counterpart Bilawal Bhutto Zardari met in Islamabad

“The two sides agreed to continue their humanitarian and economic assistance for the Afghan people and enhance development cooperation in Afghanistan,” according to a joint statement issued by Pakistan’s foreign ministry

Officials from China and Pakistan have previously talked about expanding the project to Afghanistan The cash-strapped Taliban government has stated its willingness to take part in the endeavour and the opportunity to get much-needed infrastructure funding

The Taliban’s top diplomat Amir Khan Muttaqi travelled to Islamabad to meet his Chinese and Pakistani counterparts and reached an agreement, his deputy spokesman Hafiz Zia Ahmad said

The Taliban have also harboured hopes for China to boost investments in the country’s rich resources, estimated to be $1

trillion The government inked its first contract in January with a subsidiary of China National Petroleum Corporation to extract oil from the Amu Darya basin The Chinese and Pakistani ministers also stressed on the need to unfreeze Afghanistan’s overseas assets The Taliban have been blocked from accessing about $9 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank reserves held overseas on concerns the funds will be used for terror activities

and Lahore There were also reports of workers seen on the roads of Rawalpindi and Islamabad as well

Imran Khan has been arrested by Rangers in the Al-Qadir Trust case He was arrested from outside the Islamabad High Court (IHC) The arrest of the 70-year-old former cricketer-turned-politician comes a day after the powerful army accused Khan of levelling baseless allegations against a senior officer of the spy agency ISI Khan has been facing a slew of cases since his ouster through a no trust vote in April last year He has rejected all these cases as political victimisation by the ruling alliance Currently, Khan is facing over 140 cases related to terrorism, blasphemy, murder, violence, inciting to violence

50 Hindus convert to Islam in Pakistan's Sindh province

S I ND H : At l east 50 members fr om ten Hindu families converted to Islam in the southern Sindh province of Pakistan, troubl in g Hi ndu a cti vi sts who al lege d t he involvement of the state in the mass conversion

The people were from different areas of the Mirpurkhas region of the province and were converted in a ceremony organised at the Baitul Iman New Muslim Colony seminary of the city, The Express Tribune newspaper reported Qari Taimur Rajput, one of the caretakers of the seminary, confirmed that a total of 50 people from 10 families converted to Islam, including 23 females and a one-yearold girl Mohammad Shamroz Khan, the son of minister for religious affairs senator Muhammad Talha Mahmood, also attended the conversion ceremony, the report said "They all willingly converted to Islam No one has forced them," Rajput said, quoting Khan During the conversion ceremony attended by several residents, Rajput reportedly inquired the new converts if they had taken the step willingly Hindu activists, on the other hand, were troubled over the mass conversions and expressed their anger and disappointment

Faqir Shiva Kucchi, a Hindu activist who often raises his voice against the practice, said, "It seems the state itself is involved in these conversions " He added that demands to initiate legislation against conversions had been made to the government by local community members for several years

IMF warns of economic dangers to Bangladesh

D HAKA: In its final report for $4 7 billion loan programme, the Int ern ation al Mon eta ry Fund warned of economic dangers to Bangladesh, including inflation, growth, and foreign reserves

“Persistent inflationary pressures, elevated volatility of global financial conditions, and slowdown in major advanced trading partners continue to weigh on growth, foreign currency reserves, and the Taka,” according to an IMF press release following the conclusion of the staff team visit on May 7

Later this year, the IMF will conduct the first review of its extended credit facility, extended fund facility, and resilience and

sustainability facility agreements, according to the press release After two months' worth of import bill payments during next week, reserves are predicted to drop to $29 8 billion, the lowest level in seven years

Exports fell 16 5% to $3 9 billion in April from a year earlier as orders from clothing retailers slowed Inward remittances that help the country’s balance of payments declined 16% year onyear to $1 6 billion in April Banks will be allowed, starting July, to set their lending rates at a maximum of 3% above six month weighted average rates for Treasury bills

Two Indian origin brothers were shot dead by a compatriot in the US state of Oregon in a case of possible homicide police and media reports said The accused 21-year-old Jobanpreet Singh shot and killed two men in their 20s in a strip mall in Portland city The identities of the victims were not released by the police However Kamal Singh an owner of a tobacco shop across the mall, said he believed the two victims were his cousins The two men were brothers and in their 20s, Singh said Jobanpreet was detained at the scene on two counts of first-degree murder and booked into a detention centre

PAK INFLATION HIT RECORD 36 4% IN APRIL

Pakistan consumer prices rose a record 36 4% in the year to April the highest inflation rate in South Asia, up from March s previous record of 35 4%, the statistics bureau said Pakistan s rural areas recorded food inflation of 40 2% the bureau said Food inflation for both rural and urban areas reached 48 1%, the highest since FY16 when the bureau started recording the categories separately Pakistan has been in economic turmoil for months with an acute balance of payments crisis while talks with the IMF to secure $1 1 billion as part of a $6 5 billion bailout have not been successful Prices rose 2 4% in April from March the bureau said

IMRAN TO FACE INDICTMENT

An Islamabad court announced that it will indict former Pakistan PM Imran Khan on May 10 in a case in which he allegedly hid the proceeds from the sale of state gifts The Toshakhana case was filed against Khan last year after the Election Commission of Pakistan ruled that he failed to declare the funds he received after selling the gifts given by foreign dignitaries A Toshkhana is a treasure house where gifts that are received as honour from foreign dignitaries are stored Khan, 70, has challenged the maintainability of the case but a additional sessions judge of the sessions court dismissed the pleas and objection regarding the jurisdiction after hearing arguments by the lawyers The judge announced to indict the accused Khan and also summoned him in person on the day of the indictment

130 KILLED IN RWANDA FLOODS

Powerful floods and landslides tore through Rwanda killing at least 130 people and leaving many thousands homeless The government was still counting the cost as families buried their dead in the aftermath of one of the worst such natural disasters in years in the hilly East African nation Rivers of mud swept away homes and other infrastructure and cut off roads after heavy rains in several areas, particularly the Western Province bordering Lake Kivu where the worst devastation was reported The death toll is now 130 people We do not know the total number of homeless people at the moment but counting is ongoing " deputy government spokesperson Alain Mukuralinda said

7 TEACHERS KILLED IN SHOOTING AT PAK SCHOOL

At least seven teachers were killed in a shooting at a school in northwestern Pakistan, in an apparent retaliation to an earlier attack in which another teacher was shot dead, Geo TV reported Both incidents took place on in the Parachinar area of Kurram tribal district near the border with Afghanistan, the local television channel said It said the motive behind the killings remained unclear, and that the teachers killed in both incidents belong to the country s Shi'ite Muslim minority The tribal district contains a majority Shi ite population who are often attacked by Sunni militant groups as part of the local Taliban movement

in brief Biden appoints Indian-American Neera Tanden as top domestic policy advisor

ASTRONOMERS SPOT SUN-LIKE STAR

For the first time, astronomers have caught a star in the act of swallowing an entire planet, hinting that Earth may meet the same fate though not in the near future The Sun-like star, called ZTF SLRN-2020 lies about 15,000 light-years away in the Milky Way galaxy in the constellation Aquila and is said to have engulfed a hot gas giant bigger than Jupiter The study, published in Nature journal, is an international collaboration among 26 astronomers from several key institutes mainly MIT Harvard University and Caltech Among the 26 astronomers six are Indianorigin researchers

IRAN FORCES SEIZE SECOND OIL TANKER IN 6 DAYS

Iranian forces seized a Panama-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, the US navy said, the second such incident in less than a week The Greek-owned tanker was sailing from Dubai towards Fujairah, another port in the UAE, when it was stopped by Iran s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy “A dozen IRGCN fast-attack craft swarmed the vessel in the middle of the strait,” said a Bahrain-based US Fifth Fleet statement “The IRGCN forced the oil tanker to head toward Iranian territorial waters off the coast of Bandar Abbas,” it said

Six days ago, Iran’s navy seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman, maritime security firm Ambrey The captured tanker was also moved to Bandar Abbas Ambrey said the latest seizure followed a warning from Greek authorities after the US seized a tanker with Iranian oil last month

100 HELD DURING EUROPEAN ANI-MAFIA SWOOP

Police in eight European countries raided 150 addresses and arrested more than 100 people in a vast, coordinated swoop targeting the notorious Italian Ndrangheta mafia, Belgian prosecutors said “It is likely the biggest operation ever carried out in Europe against the Calabrese mafia,” a spokesman for the federal prosecutors’ office Eric van Duyse said He said 1,400 police officers in Italy and over 1,000 officers in Germany took part

W A SHI NG T O N : Nee ra Tand en, a p r o m in e n t m e m be r o f t h e

In d ia n -A m e r ic a n De m o c r a t i c

Par ty, was chosen by Pre side nt

Joe Biden to be his domestic policy a dviser , ma king he r t he first

A si a n - A m e r i c a n t o e v e r c ha ir o n e of t he m o s t i m p o r t a n t White House ad visor y councils

In a statement, Biden said, “I am pleased to announce that Neera Tanden will continue to drive the formulation and implementation of my domestic policy, from economic mobility and racial equity to health care, immigration and education ” Tanden, who has served as Biden’s staff secretary in this term, will replace Susan Rice, a

former American national security advisor and ambassador to the United Nations who worked as Biden’s top domestic policy advisor since his presidency began Tanden had supervised decision-making procedures across

Musk settles defamation case brought by Indian-origin student

N EW YO RK : Tesla CEO El on Musk has agre ed to pay $10,000 to r esol ve a de fama tion cl a im made against him b y Randee p Hothi, an Indian-America n Sik h cr i t ic a n d i n d e pe n d e n t resear cher

Hothi, a doctoral student in Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Michigan, had filed a defamation case against Musk in 2020, alleging that the billionaire businessman falsely accused him of actively harassing and "almost killing" Tesla

employees

Following a lengthy and hard-fought litigation, in March 2023, Musk asked Hothi to settle the case "This case was about taking a stand, not seeking fame or money I feel vindicated," said Hothi, announcing that he accepted Musk's settlement offer in a statement "I brought this case to defend my work, clear my name, and send a message I believe I ve accomplished that, thanks in no small part to Musk,

whose own behaviour over the last year has highlighted the need to scrutinise his every word and deed "

In 2018, Hothi began to monitor Tesla s manufacturing at its Fremont, California, factory while posing as a social activist

In April 2019, Tesla filed a restraining order against Hothi, claiming that the latter struck an employee with his car in a parking area of the Tesla factory Hothi fiercely rejected the claim

When Hothi and his legal team successfully obtained a court order requiring Tesla to hand over video evidence of the alleged encounter, Tesla abruptly dropped its lawsuit in July 2019

Yet the following month, Musk e-mailed a reporter accusing Hothi of "actively harassing" and "almost kill(ing)" Tesla employees

Musk's accusations prompted an outpouring of public support for Hothi, including from whistleblowers, researchers, journalists, and critics

India-born engineer among Texas mall shooting victims

T E X A S : A 27 - ye ar- o l d I nd i a n w oman, wh o was wo rking in th e U S as a project engineer, w as among th e eigh t peo ple killed wh en a gunman o pened fire at a crowded m all in A llen in Texas state

Aishwarya Thatikonda was shopping with a friend when they were shot by a gunman at the Allen Premium Outlets The shooting erupted as throngs of shoppers filled

the outdoor mall At least eight people were killed before Mauricio Garcia, the 33-year-old gunman, was shot dead by a police officer

Aishwarya, the daughter of a judge in Rangareddy district court in Telangana, worked as a project engineer at Perfect General Contractors LLC She had been working in the US for more than two years

Aishwarya had spoken to her

family members before the incident, and when they called her back after learning about the shooting, they did not get any response, according to a family friend “They (the family) is in shock,” the friend said Aishwarya’s family is planning to bring her body back to India Aishwarya’s friend, who was not identified, was injured but is currently in stable at the hospital

Mehul Choksi who alleges Indian kidnap plot wins Antiguan court ruling

S ain t John 's: Fug iti ve Ind ia n-bor n busin essman ha s won the fir st r ound of a court ba ttle t o prove that a UKba sed gr oup, includ ing a y oun ge r wom an, was pa rt of an India n in tellig ence ser vice plot to lure him to a C aribbe an villa to be kidn appe d a nd e xt rad it ed t o his home count ry

The high court of Antigua and Barbuda has found that Mehul Choksi has an “arguable” case in relation to his civil claim against the country’s attorney general and chief of police over the response to his alleged abduction and illegal rendition to Dominica in May 2021

A submission from Choksi’s lawyers details an alleged conspiracy in which he is said to have been subjected to “inhuman or degrading

treatment” after his alleged kidnapping in Antigua It is claimed that the elaborate plot to steal him away had been carefully prepared in collusion with India Should it go to trial, the case could open up to scrutiny the world of secret service operations and the alleged role of experienced individuals in the UK Choksi, 64, is seeking an admission from the Antiguan police that they failed to properly look into the alleged crime and a declaration that they will now relaunch a “speedy and effective” investigation Antigua’s attorney general and police commissioner had sought to have the claim struck out as “ vexatious” But the high court said the

defendants had not shown the case to be “unsustainable” It ordered the defendants to file a defence and awarded Choksi 75% of his costs

According to the businessman’s affidavit, Choksi, who is wanted on fraud and money laundering charges in India, was invited to a villa near his luxury home in the Antiguan resort of Jolly Harbour in May 2021

A separate police report identified the person who invited Choksi as a 33-year-old woman Immediately after arriving, it is alleged, he was surrounded by a group of men who claimed to be police officers and repeatedly punched to his head, arm, chest and leg, leaving him covered in cuts and bruises

domestic, economic, and national security teams, according to Biden, who said that Tanden served as his staff secretary, processing any material that came to the president's desk

“She has 25 years of experience in public policy, has served three Presidents, and led one of the largest think tanks in the country for nearly a decade She was a key architect of the Affordable Care Act and helped drive key domestic policies that became part of my agenda, including clean energy subsidies

and sensible gun reform,” Biden said in his statement Biden said Tanden's perspectives will be beneficial to his administration and the American people because Tanden had relied on some of the same initiatives she will now manage as a child Tanden was born in Massachusetts to Indian immigrant parents, and studied at the University of California Los Angeles and Yale University Her appointment is particularly significant as America heads towards elections in 2024, where domestic policy will be a key area of focus and contestation

China ‘keen’ to recruit Gurkha soldiers to exploit discontent against India

K AT HM AN DU : The Communist gove rn ment in Ne pal ha s de cid ed not t o a llow the 1,3 00-odd Gor kha s to join the In dian Ar my in 2023

The pred icam ent has been the new ly laun ch ed four-ye ar -se rvice Agn ipath (Fir e War riors) sche me of the Ind ia n Ar my

This is an apparent opportunity for Chinese government to exploit the Communist government in Nepal to create an anti-India sentiment in the Himalayan nation For young people in Nepal, joining the Indian Army has been advantageous because the salary is 2 5 times more than in the Nepalese Army, and the pension offers both economic and social security Nepalese nationals have the option to settle in India thanks to jobs in the Indian Army

But, Agnipath changes that There are seven Gorkha regiments in the Indian Army, with 40 battalions and a total of 40,000 soldiers, but only one-fourth of them are of Nepalese origin There are 126,000 Gurkha pensioners of the Indian Army in Nepal, and there is an Indian Ex-servicemen Welfare Organization in Nepal working for retired army personnel

“I really hope that the Nepal government will take a favorable view on it and start the recruitment process, ” Lt Gen DS Hooda (Retired) told the media “The recruitment is mutually beneficial as it gives them employment, and the Gorkha veterans act as goodwill ambassadors between the two countries,” Hooda said

China will not shy from exploiting the situation The Gorkha soldiers have proved their mettle in the various wars India fought in 1947-48, 1965, and 1971 against Pakistan and the one against China in 1962 And an intrigued China funded a study in 2020 to find out what drives the Nepalese youth to join the Indian Army

As the Maoist in Nepal got a say in the government process, the clamor against Nepalese youth joining the Indian Army has been rising There have been demands that India should not post Nepalese Gorkha against China if there is a war

Ajay Banga appointed World Bank President for five-year term

WA SH ING TON : Indian-A merican bu siness leader Ajay Banga h as been appointed as th e President of the World Bank for a five-year term He is the first Ind ian-born nom inee to the World Bank presid ent's role He is exp ected to start the new job in early June, reports said

Banga, 63, was nominated for the office by US President Joe Biden in late February He was the only contender to replace departing World Bank chief David Malpass According to reports, Banga had impressed World Bank shareholders in recent weeks as a true change maker" who will help accelerate reforms at the global development bank It already loans out hundreds of billions of dollars to developing countries but is working to increase its lending to help them address global challenges such as climate change

Banga, a US citizen since 2007, currently serves as vice chair of General Atlantic, a private equity company He also serves as co-chair of the Partnership for Central America, where he worked closely with US Vice President Kamala Harris to mobilise public, private and nonprofit resources for Northern Central America

He is a former CEO of Mastercard He retired in December 2021 after 12 years at the helm of Mastercard Inc, where he set a target of bringing 1 billion people and 50 million micro- and small businesses into the digital economy by 2025

While making the pick, Biden had singled out Banga's experience in mobilising public-private resources to tackle urgent challenges such as climate change at a range of organisations

Born in Pune, Banga completed his bachelor's degree in economics from Delhi's St Stephen's College before pursuing an MBA degree from IIM Ahmedabad He began his career with Nestle in India and went on to work with the Citigroup in India and Malaysia

Neera Tanden

Manipur clashes leave 60 dead, 35,00,000 displaced: CM

Manipur c hief minister N

B iren Singh sa id that 60 “innocent” lives were lost and over 200 wounded in t he e thn ic c l as hes in the state that displaced 35,000 people, while around 1,700 houses were burned down, a nd 1,041 we apon s a nd 7,4 60 round s of a mmun it ion loot ed f rom police armouries

He appealed for peace and said: “It is a very, very unfortunate incident ” A high-level probe will be conducted to fix responsibility on persons or groups who incited/instigated the violence, he said Government employees will also come under the purview of the probe for not meeting responsibilities

A clash broke out between the Kuki-led tribal groups and the majority Meitei community in Churachandpur district, causing authorities to impose curfews and shut down internet access

Additionally, a shoot-onsight directive was given for urgent circumstances

CM Singh said curfew was relaxed for three hours on Monday as no violence

was reported the past two days The government is working round-theclock to resolve the crisis and enable the displaced people to return home Union home minister Amit Shah is directly monitoring the situation, he said

He said that roughly 20,000 displaced individuals had successfully returned home, and that procedures for the safe return of the remaining 15,000 had been delegated to a subcommittee made up of three cabinet ministers States race to get people out of Manipur

The governments of Maharashtra, Andhra

Blackout during President's speech in Odisha

Pradesh, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and Uttarakhand are acting quickly to connect with and return their citizens who have been left trapped in Manipur where ethnic violence have claimed over 60 lives since May 3 Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh have arranged special flights, while the Rajasthan government is talking to private airline IndiGO to bring back around 125 Rajasthanis, majority of them students, from Imphal Manipur’s northeastern neighbours Assam, Meghalalaya and Tripura have already initiated the evacuation process of their residents stuck in the strife-hit state

5 army men killed as militants trigger blast in Kashmir

A n ex pl osion set of f b y terrorists during a battle in the heavily forested Kandi

K otr an ka a re a of R a jo uri district where troops had fought terrorists sheltering in a cave resul ted in the d ea th s of f iv e A rm y personnel and the injury of a Ma jor (Sp ecia l For ce s), according to officials

As a part of a big operation to find the men responsible for the April 20 ambush of an Army truck in Poonch that killed five Army personnel, two of the five dead Special Forces soldiers were killed instantly The People’s AntiFascist Front, an offshoot of the Pakistan-backed terrorist outfit Jaish-eMuhammed, claimed responsibility for the killings as well and uploaded on social media its

claim that it had carefully prepared an ambush “How easy to goad you into ambush sites and kill zones How predictable your every move, ” PAFF said How easy to exploit your volatile and over excitable behaviour,” it said, adding, “We threw a bait on April 20 with that ambush to draw you into the jungle Jungle that we have finely prepared for a long time And you did

three soldiers succumbed “Mobile internet facilities in Rajouri have been suspended as a preventive measure, ” official sources said

Whe n th e p ower we nt ou t f our min utes in to Presi de nt D roupa di Murmu's speech at the convocation of her hometown Mayurbhanj district's Maharaja Sriram Chandra Bhanja Deo University, it revealed severe security flaws at the location and threats to the First Citizen during travels

Security experts questioned why President Murmu wasn't quickly removed from the location as the Odisha government and the university initiated separate investigations to determine how the power wires tripped for a full nine minutes, throwing the entire indoor hall into darkness

The President continued speaking while asking the audience whether they could hear her as her security guards took up positions in front of the dais and security staff switched to night-vision equipment to check admission and exit points While the microphone and air conditioner were operating, there was discussion of sabotage

Former DGP Prakash Mishra said it was surprising that the potential threat (the audience side) was in the dark, while the dignitary was the lone face visible because of a dim light “This should be the other way round The audience is the perceived threat side, and they should be in the light and the dignitary should be in the dark It is very risky to expose the dignitary to light when the entire hall was pitch-dark,” he said

The President tweaked a popular Robert Frost poem to suit the situation: “Andhar Jetiki, Aloka Setiki ehe je gahana bana, chalibi chalibi na padi bi thaki, bujiba agaru aakahi”, which loosely translates to “Light and darkness exist in equal measure The woods are deep and dark, I will persist and keep walking until I fall asleep ”

“One has to take light and darkness in the same stride,” she said in the dark before an audience of a thousand

Centre, Gujarat agree to share Bilkis case remission documents in SC

exactly what we expected you to do!” PAFF had earlier claimed responsibility for the April 20 Poonch ambush

Official sources said that initially two army men were killed in an explosion set off by the terrorists while four others, including an officer, a Major, were injured The wounded were immediately evacuated to Command Hospital Udhampur where

Dr. Sudhir Shah received the FRCP award from the Royal College of Physicians

A well-known neurologist and Padma Shri Dr Sudhir S hah f rom Ah m edab ad, Gujarat was conferred with the prestigious Fellowship FRCP Award fro m the Royal College of Physicians, London, on the evening of May 2, 2023 (Tuesday), at a grand function held at St Andrew Pl ace, Regent's Park In 2016, the Indian governm ent awarded the Padma Shri; in 2018, the Dr BC Roy Award and UNO's Award for Development of Neurology and Medicine

He was also awarded the FAAN award by the Fellowship of the American College of Neurology in 2022 Dr Shah has won many prestigious awards at the national and international level; he is still simple and humble in nature

Dr Sudhir Shah is a teacher, orator, writer,

scientist, scholar, musician, philanthropist and businessman He made a significant impact by creating and elevating a number of courses for neurologists in Gujarat He is also credited with launching the first courses in Gujarat for IV & IA Thrombosis, Epilepsy, Parkinson Surgery (DBS),

and

Neurology

He published four books in English, Gujarati, and Hindi to help the underprivileged and educate them about such complex topics as neurology and medicine

These books sold about 7,000 copies, and money from their sale was donated to the poor and needy

The Supreme Court was informed by the Centre and the Gujarat government that they would waive any claims of privilege with regard to the information pertaining to the commutation of the sentences of 11 convicts in the 2002 post-Godhra riots case involving the gang rape of Bilkis Bano and the murder of her seven family members and agreed to place the original records before the court for its perusal

During the previous hearing on April 18, the government had claimed privilege and sought adjournment of hearing on the ground that it was intending to seek review of the SC’s order to place the original files before the court

Even when the government made it clear that it would not request a review, the hearing in the case could not continue since one inmate had not yet received notice and other convicts requested an adjournment so they could respond to

Bilkis' plea

Bilkis' lawyer Shobha Gupta argued that the release of the convicts caused a miscarriage of justice and that justice must be restored as soon as possible in opposition to the convicts' attorneys, who requested an adjournment and said there was no rush for an early hearing in the case She pleaded the court not to allow them to disrupt the proceedings in the case and submitted that hearing be done But it was strongly opposed by the other side which contended that the court cannot proceed without serving notice to the parties

Amidst war of words between both sides, a bench of Justices K M Joseph asked the parties to maintain decorum and not to treat the courtroom as a marketplace Advocate Sanjay Tyagi, appearing for one convict, said that Shobha Gupta had filed a false affidavit by alleging that all convicts had been served with the notice

Indian firms invested $40 bn in US, generated 425,000 jobs: CII survey

In dian companies spent nearly USD 185 million on corporate social responsibility in the US, and they funded nearly USD 1 billion in U S-b as ed r es ea rc h and deve lopme nt (R& D ) proje ct s, ac c ording to the Con fe der ation of Indian Indus tr y (CII) survey Indian Roots, American Soil, which was re lea se d by Tara njit Sin gh San dhu, India's Ambassador to the United States, in the pr es en ce of Er ic Gar ce tti, the U S Ambassador-designate to India

“Indian companies in the US bring strength, resilience and competitiveness to the US They create jobs, support the local communities, and build capacity and technical know-how They create virtuous cycles of prosperity,” Sandhu said in his address in the presence of a large number of representatives of Indian companies who are currently in the city to attend the Select USA Summit

“In my travels across the US, I have been amazed to see what Indian companies have

done to transform neighbourhoods in the US They not only create virtuous cycles of employment, investment and growth in the US; but go beyond- they support local communities and partner with schools and universities India has always believed that success is to be shared, and sharing is a success, ” Sandhu said The survey said that as many as 163 Indian companies have invested over USD 40 billion in the United States that further has created nearly 425,000 jobs in the country

Chandrajit Banerjee, director general of the CII, claims that Indian businesses have proven their tenacity and dedication to the US market through growing investments and job creation, as well as growing sector diversification and extending geographic presence throughout the country

“Their future plans to invest and hire more, further indicate a positive growth trajectory for the US-India economic relationship," he said

Droupadi Murmu

PM Modi attacks Cong, pitches for ‘growth’ to woo Karnataka voters

BE NGA L U RU : Prim e Minister Narendra M odi wrapped u p his Karnataka camp aign on Sund ay with an 8km saffron sweep of B eng a lu r u ’ s e as ter n c o rr id o r and th e central business d istrict, follow ed by one last sw ipe at Co ng ress in Shiv am ogg a, where he asked first-time v oters if they w an ted to end u p s tru g g l in g “ li k e yo u r g ra nd f at h ers an d fathers” or im pro ve their quality of life by backing BJP “Think about development and tell me if Congress can put Karnataka on the path to development It is a corrupt party that indulges in appeasement politics,” Modi said at Hosanagar “I won ’t watch you face the difficulties your elders did I will remove these hardships andvclear the path to allow you to march on, ” he promised

On Congress’ poll promise of creating 10,00,000 jobs, he said, “In three-and-a-half years, the BJP government has created 13,00,000 jobs in the state This is how they (Congress) try to fool people Its misinformation

22 killed in Kerala boat tragedy; police take owner into custody CONG PROPOSES BAN ON BAJRANG DAL

machinery spreads canards ”

A translator was at hand to repeat in Kannada what the PM said, but his services weren ’t required as the crowd signalled they wanted to hear only one person Amid chanting of his name, Modi bowed to the gathering and said, “Language isn’t a barrier between you and me ” Former CM BS Yediyurappa, ex-minister KS Eshwarappa, Shivamogga MP

M A L A P P U R A M ( K E R A L A ) : Police on Monday took the boat owner, identified as Nasar, into custo dy from Kozhikode after 22 p eo ple lo st th eir liv es after a tourist boat capsized near th e T h o o v a lth e er am b ea ch in K er al a ’ s M ala p p u ra m d i st ri ct Eigh t peo ple, who were rescued o n S u nd a y ev e ni ng , ar e underg oing treatment at v arious hosp itals

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan visited the Taluk Hospital in Tirurangadi in Malappuram district where survivors of the incident are admitted State Revenue Minister K Rajan and Forests and Wildlife Minister AK Saseendran also visited the spot

BY Raghavendra

and seven candidates from Shivamogga attended the rally

In Bengaluru, an estimated 200,000 supporters lined the roadshow route during the last leg of Modi’s campaign tour of the city Union home minister Amit Shah held roadshows in Doddaballapur and Anekal during the day

N E W D EL H I : G a n gs t e r Sa t i n d e r ji t S i n gh B r a r a l i a s G ol d y B r a r , ma i n a ccused in t he kill in g of Punjabi sin ger Sidhu Moosewala , is now amon g the t o p 25 m os t wa n t e d f ug it iv e s i n

Ca nada

The Be On Look Out (BOLO) Programme, a non-profit organisation that publicises police fugitive cases to raise awareness, has revised its list of the top 25 wanted criminals, according to a statement from the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi

“Interpol-Ottawa’s Fugitive Apprehension Support Team (FAST) has added fugitive ‘Goldy’ Brar as the latest addition to the top 25 list,” the statement said Brar’s lifesize cutout among all 25 fugitives has been displayed at Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas Square, according to the BOLO Programme list The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) is investigating the allegations against Brar originating from India

Brar is charged with planning the targeted assassinations of at least two more people, as well as with attempted murder, murder conspiracy, and illegal arms trafficking in India The offences Brar allegedly committed in India are very serious in nature and merit the interest of the police in Canada, the statement issued by the Canadian High Commission read It added he “is believed to be in Canada and represents a risk to public safety ”

The state human rights commission registered a case on its own over the tragic accident Judicial member of the Human Rights Commission K Baiju Nath directed the Malappuram district collector and the chief port surveyor of Alappuzha to submit a report within 10 days The Commission said the suo motu case, based on media reports, would be considered on May 19

Chief Minister Vijayan after

visiting the survivors said a judicial inquiry has been ordered to look into the cause of the accident “We have to take measures to ensure that such an incident should not happen For that, we have decided there should be a judicial inquiry In this inquiry, we will include the technical aspects of the boat A special investigation team of police will be inquiring into this case," the Chief Minister said He also announced Rs 10,00,000 ex gratia to the kin of the deceased Prime Minister Narendra Modi also has expressed deep shock at the tragedy and announced an ex gratia of Rs 200,000 to the families of the deceased “Pained by the loss of lives due to the boat mishap in Malappuram, Kerala,” Modi tweeted

SC declines to commute death penalty of Rajoana

N E W D E L H I : Th e Su pr e me C our t d e cl i n e d t o co mm ut e t h e d e a t h penal ty of Bal wa nt Singh Ra joan a, who was convicted in the 1995 a ssassinat ion ca se of then Punjab Chie f Minister Bea nt Sing h, to life imprison me nt

The court said the competent authority may deal with Rajoana's mercy plea What we have decided is that the stand of the Ministry of Home Affairs to defer the decision on the mercy petition of the petitioner is also our decision for the reasons given hereunder

This actually amounts to declining grant the same (remission) for the present Therefore, we have directed that the competent authority will again as and when they deem necessary will deal with the mercy petition and take a further decision The writ petition (of Rajoana) is disposed of accordingly, a bench comprising Justices B R Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol said

On March 2, the top court had reserved its verdict on the plea of Rajoana after hearing the submissions of senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the convict, and

Additional Solicitor General K M Natraj

Earlier, the counsel for Rohatgi had said that keeping him on death row while sitting over his mercy plea for such a long period violated his fundamental right His plea for mercy has been pending before the government for over a decade

On October 11 last year, the top court had said that a three-judge bench would be set up to hear the plea of Rajoana Rohatgi had said that his client was in jail for 26 years and has a substantive case based on the judgments of the apex court that his rights under Article 21 of the Constitution (the right to protection of life and personal liberty) has been violated

On September 28 last year, the top court had expressed dissatisfaction over the Centre's failure to take a decision on Rajoana's plea for his death penalty to be commuted to life imprisonment Rohatgi had said Rajoana has been in jail since January 1996 and his mercy petition was filed in March 2012 He said his client has been on death row since 2007

Congress headlined its manifesto for Karnataka with a controversial proposal to ban Bajrang Dal “Congress is committed to taking firm and decisive action against individuals and organisations like Bajrang Dal and PFI as we believe that law and the Constitution are sacrosanct ” states the 62-page document released by AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge A day after BJP promised to bring the proposed uniform civil code and NRC to Karnataka alongside big bang development Congress also spoke of repealing within a year of coming to government all unjust and other anti-people laws passed by the BJP-led government The manifesto mentions the party s intent to raise reservation from the current 50% to 75%, besides restoring the 4% quota for Muslims that the Basavaraj Bommai government recently did away with All of this is besides the five big guarantees in the manifesto Gruha Jyoti promises 200 units of free electricity a month to each family, Gruha Laxmi assures Rs 2,000 a month to every woman who heads a household Yuva Nidhi will provide Rs 3,000 a month to unemployed graduates and Rs 1 500 to diploma holders; Anna Bhagya covers free 10 kg of rice per person each month to BPL families; and Shakti ensures free travel for women in state-run transport

EXPLOSION NEAR GOLDEN TEMPLE HURTS 6

Six people mainly devotees were injured in a minor blast on Heritage Street near Golden Temple last week leading to panic in the area Police however said it was not a terror attack but an accident A forensic team launched an investigation The injuries were caused by the flying shards of windowpanes of nearby buildings that shattered due to the impact of the explosion A resident said the explosion near the Saragarhi Sarai parking left a group of girls injured Former minister Navjot Singh Sidhu attacked the Bhagwant Mann government saying “the war in which the life of the king is not at risk is called politics, not war”

HC STAYS VISVA-BHARATI’S EVICTION NOTICE TO AMARTYA SEN

The Calcutta High Court asked the Suri district judge to hear Amartya Sen’s appeal against the Visva-Bharati eviction on May 10 and stayed the VB’s eviction order till the Suri judge disposes off Sen’s appeal VB had given Sen a May 6 deadline either to vacate the 13 decimals of land in Pratichi or face forcible eviction Justice Bibhas Ranjan De in his two-page order said “Having heard the learned advocates the learned District Judge Birbhum is requested to hear the stay application on 10th May 2023 and till then the order of Joint Registrar Visva Bharati & Estate Officer should not been forced or till the date of disposal of the stay application, whichever is later When the matter came up for hearing Sen s counsel Jayanta Mitra said the district judge had failed to act by not passing any order on Sen’s appeal VB s counsel Sucharita Biswas argued if the district judge did not pass any order, there is no basis to challenge anything

Teachers recruitment scam: CBI conducts searches in Bengal

n d u ct e d s e a r ch e s i n W e s t Be nga l in conn ecti on w ith the p r i m a r y t e a c h e r s r e c r ui tm e n t s ca m cas e at the premis es of aid es o f f or m e r e d u ca t i o n mi n i s t e r

Pa rtha C hatterj ee, offi ci als sai d

"It was found that the accused were allegedly acting as conduits in collecting bribe money from candidates by promising them jobs as primary teachers," the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said in a statement

During the operation the

premises of Chatterjee s former political private secretary, Partha Sarkar alias Bhaja, former officer of special duty, Prabir Banerjee, and former government private secretary, Sukanta Acharjee, were searched by the agency

"During the searches, various incriminating documents/articles were recovered and are under scrutiny," the statement said Cas es shi fted f rom HC j ud ge

Meanwhile, two cases being heard by Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay of the Calcutta

HC were reassigned to Justice Amrita Sinha in accordance with a Supreme Court directive

Justice Sinha will now hear both cases The SC recently asked Calcutta HC

Chief Justice TS Sivagnanam to reassign cases away from Justice G a n g o p a d h y a y after Trinamool general secretary Abhishek Banerjee challenged an order by the judge last month asking the ED and the CBI to

probe him in the teacher recruitment scam

Justice Gangopadhyay referred to this issue while speaking to reporters The SC said a judge should be “disabled from hearing a case ” against a political personality if s/he gave an opinion to the media on the political personality It also sought a report from the Calcutta HC registrar-general, after ascertaining from Justice Gangopadhyay, whether he had indeed given such an interview

Gangster Goldy Brar now among Canada’s most wanted criminals

Narendra Modi

Goldy Brar

Pawar will continue as party chief, to focus on quelling revolt

Four days after he resigned as NCP c hie f, Shara d Pawar a ltere d his decision and decided to stay on at the helm of the party, declaring that he was responding to the sent iment of par ty work er s an d appeals made to him by several national leaders However, senior party leaders said Pawar had carried out the entire episode to quell rebellion within the party and to put a stop to rumour-mongering a bout wh ethe r Ajit Pawa r an d other NCP netas would leave and join the BJP

Pawar’s U-turn came after the committee set up by him for election of the new NCP president

Sharad Pawar

decided that it was not going to accept his resignation and appealed to him to continue as

NCP chief

Interestingly, Ajit Pawar was

not present at the press briefing at which Pawar announced the reversal of his move to quit An NCP exminister said notwithstanding Sharad Pawar’s categorical statement that there was no substance to speculation that Ajit was going to quit the party, it was quite clear in political circles that a section of NCP legislators led by Ajit Pawar were in the process of raising a banner of revolt

“Rebellion has been on the cards in the NCP, and when it will

Rajnath gifts 2 military platforms to Maldives

India's defence minister

Raj nath S i ngh handed over a swift patrol ship and a landing craft to the M aldi ves wh il e u rging i ncreas ed co op eratio n b etween li ke-m inded s tates t o tac kle sh ared p roblem s i n the Indian Oc ean, an area th at w i tnessed i ncreas ing

Chinese aggressiveness

On the second day of his visit, Singh also discussed the extension of defence ties with the president of the island nation, Ibrahim

Rajnath Singh

Mohamed Solih, and gave him an assurance that India would continue to support the Maldives

After handing over the two platforms to the Maldives National

Defence Forces (MNDF) as India's "gift" at a ceremony in Male, the defence minister described the relationship between the two countries as "truly special" and said it has evolved as a model for the entire region to follow Outlining India's policy to engage with friendly nations, he said New Delhi wishes to "create symbiotic relationships where it can create

a win-win situation for all and that it offers defence partnership while being accommodative of the national priorities of the countries"

"The Indian Ocean is our shared space The primary responsibility for peace, stability and prosperity in the region rests with those who live in the region Peace and security of a region are best secured with cooperation and collaboration of the regional players," Singh said

Mehsana family borrowed Rs 60,00,000 from 11 to reach US

T he Cha ud ha r ys fr om Me h sana h ad t a ken loans from nine people, a cooperative bank and a gold finance company to reach their dream destination in US However, on March 30, the family of four, which included a couple and their teenage so n a nd d a ugh te r , d r ow ned in th e St Lawrence River on the Ca nad a -US bor de r , putting an end to their deadly US dreams

An FIR against three

agents filed by police in Mehsana mentioned that the agents were Rs 15,00,000 for each individual According to the FIR, Ashwin Chaudhary, the younger brother of the late Pravin Chaudhary, received Rs 700,000 from Nagrik Bank of Gozaria, Rs 600,000 from IIFL Gozaria against a gold deposit, and Rs 500,000 each from nine peopleall of them were close family members, includ-

UP’s ‘mostwanted’ gangster Dujana killed in encounter

A confrontation with the UP STF resulted in the death of notorious UP criminal Anil Dujana, aka Anil Nagar, 43, who had just been released on bail after "absconding" from prison

The mobster, a resident of Noida's Dujana hamlet, was wanted by numerous police teams and was facing 63 criminal charges against him, including 18 killings His name appeared on the most recent list of "most-dreaded criminals" published by the UP government Only Dujana was free among the seven names from Gautam Budh Nagar

ASP and commanding officer of the Meerut field unit of UP STF, Brijesh Singh, who also led the operation, told the media: “We had got a tip off that Dujana was present in the Jani area of Meerut near the upper Ganga canal Our unit surrounded him and asked him to surrender But he began firing In return fire, he was wounded and died ”

ing cousins and uncles

Ashwin shelled out Rs 200,000 to complete the figure of Rs 60,00,000 The details, according to investigators, give a peek into the financing system for the illegal immigration racket rampant in some parts of central Gujarat

The money, according to the FIR, was raised in a matter of 12 days After the initial deal on March 11, the money was handed over to the two

accused including Nikulsinh Vihol and Arjunsinh Chavda on March 23

The agents involved in the state were charged under IPC section 304 for causing death by negligence in the third FIR filed in Gujarat following the arrest of the suspects in an illegal immigration scheme Investigators stated that all three defendants included in the FIR are missing

KCF chief sheltered by ISI shot dead in Pakistan

Paramjit Singh Panjwar, who is a Khalistan Commando Force (KCF) chief and designated terrorist was shot dead in Pakistan’s Lahore The native of Punjab’s Tarn Taran district was said to have joined the KCF in 1986 He faced several cases in Punjab and fled to Pakistan in 1990 with the help of spy agency ISI, which had allegedly provided him a safe house in Lahore and a new identity: Malik Sardar Singh

Panjwar engaged in subversive actions such as teaching young people the use of firearms and importing drugs and weapons He was labelled as a terrorist by the Indian government in July 2020 in accordance with the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act

According to reports, Panjwar was gunned down by two unidentified bike-borne assassins while on morning walk in Lahore’s residential neighbourhood of Nawab Town While Panjwar died on the spot, his guard was wounded According to a report, Panjwar was pronounced dead by doctors when he was taken to a hospital

No group has claimed responsibility

Several rounds were fired at Panjwar and he received a fatal gunshot to the head,” a security official, Asad Abbas, said in Lahore No group has so far claimed responsibility for the attack

Rupinder Singh, a nephew of KCF chief in their Panjwar village of Tarn Taran, said: “We came to know through media reports that Paramjit was shot dead We know nothing more ” Rupinder added that three of Panjwar’s brothers lived in the village In 2020, another fugitive and leader of the Khalistan Liberation Force, Harmeet Singh alias Happy, was killed in Pakistan

take place is a question of time

When Pawar quit, the entire rank and file of the party rallied around him In fact, his decision to quit and withdraw the resignation in four days strengthened the organisation at all levels In our opinion, Pawar has succeeded in quelling the rebellion and ending rumours, ” the leader said Ajit Pawar himself had dismissed speculation that he was going to leave the NCP Ajit said Pawar’s decision to withdraw his resignation would energise party workers and strengthen the Maha Vikas Aghadi

Sharad Pawar said that there

must be a succession plan for any post or responsibility in the organisation “In future, I will focus on making organisational changes in the party, assigning new responsibilities, creating new leadership,” he said

Another NCP leader said opposition unity at the national level in view of the 2024 general elections was on top on Pawar’s agenda and was one of the factors which influenced his decision to reverse his resignation move NCP leaders felt that if Pawar was not NCP president, his importance in the task of bringing about opposition unity would be reduced

HC clamps interim stay on Bihar caste survey

The Patna high court clamped an interim stay on the ongoing Bihar caste survey, terming the exercise virtually a census by another name and hence “ prima facie unconstitutional” as it “impinges on the legislative powers of Parliament”

The court ordered the Nitish Kumar administration, which in a former guise had persuaded the BJP to reluctantly support a caste counting, to make sure that the information gathered thus far by enumerators doesn't leak The following hearing will take place on July 3 A split bench consisting of Chief Justice K Vinod Chandran and Justice Madhuresh Prasad heard a number of petitions opposing the exercise and distinguished between a census and a survey using Black's Law Dictionary and other books Census is defined as “collection of empirical facts about individuals” and survey as “collection of

opinion and perceptions of the general public”, the bench said while noting that the former was being conducted “in the garb of a survey ”

The 31-page ruling notes that the state government "has no right to conduct such a caste census in Bihar," noting that the bench did not discover any specific justification in the June 6, 2022 notification for a caste-based survey that would be "relevant for the contemporary period "

The bench held that the state government's intention to share data of a caste survey with various political parties in the state assembly raises a larger question of the infringement of the fundamental right to privacy of the people in general” “There is also the question of data integrity and security, which has to be more elaborately addressed by the state,” the judges said

Kedarnath trek route blocked after avalanche, 3rd in two days

Follo wi ng a s ig ni fi ca nt avalanche that happened after a section of the Bhairav glac ier broke off about three kilometres from Kedarnath, the hike path to the shrine was shut

The event occurs just one day after two avalanches were seen between the Kuber and Bhairav glaciers, which were labelled as "dangerous spots" on the 16 km long hike route by the district emergency operation centre (DEOC) According to information from DEOC, the trek route remained blocked till

the filing of this report and efforts were on to remove the snow

Last week, avalanches were reported even as a landslide occurred near Helang, about 13 ahead of subsidence-hit Joshimath town The landslide completely blocked NH-58

“An avalanche was triggered after a massive piece of Bhairav glacier broke off around 2 25pm, completely blocking the trek route,” said Nand Singh Rajwar, disaster management officer (DMO) of Rudraprayag district

SC questions extensions given to ED director Mishra

The Supreme Court has questioned the extensions given to Enforcement Director (ED) Sanjay Kumar Mishra and asked the the Centre whether he is "indispensable" and there is no other qualified officer in the investigating agency

The court made its comments after the Centre defended its choice to grant Mishra extensions by noting that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and the actions India has taken will be examined by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international watchdog

Appearing before a bench of Justices B R Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol, solicitor general Tushar Mehta contended that there was no mala fide in granting extension and told the court that the present director’s continuance in office was needed as a peer review group of FATF is about to visit the country to examine steps taken by the country to tackle the menace of money laundering and international financial terrorism

But the bench asked: “Do you want to say that there is no other person in ED who can do the task He cannot continue after November 2023 and what will happen if the group visits the country after that Is he so indispensable for ED and there is no other competent officer in the agency ”

SCRUTATOR’S

Transport firm to pay ₹156,000 for lost ‘Bengal cat’

A transport firm has agreed to pay Rs 156,000 compensation to the distraught owner for misplacing a 'Bengal cat' while transporting it from Delhi to Hyderabad Mohammad Alam from UP’s Bulandshahr has sent the cat for ferrying from Delhi to Hyderabad to the transport firm and it mysteriously went missing Alam said he had brought up the cat with “much love and care” after it was given to him by a friend in March 2021. But circumstances compelled him to sell Rose, his pet, to one Tabrez Khan in Hyderabad. He then hired a Gujarat-based transport company, which has a branch in Delhi, to deliver the cat to its new owner He handed over the cat in a basket to two employees of the transport company at Delhi’s Nizamuddin railway station from where they were supposed to catch a train and take Rose to Hyderabad Later, he was informed that the cat had escaped After much delay and filing of a police complaint, the transport firm finally agreed to pay Rs 156,000 to Alam. (Agency)

Record number of Indians take domestic flights

After the pandemic hit India, travel had been in a slump for a while As per reports, India experienced a boom in the aviation sector as 4,56,082 passengers flew on April 30, 2023 and it would be marked as the record-breaking day Post-pandemic hardships, the nation's economic recovery has resulted in an increase of travellers In just the first few months of 2023, domestic airlines handled more than 35 million passengers Due to the increasing demand, India has around 1,100 fleet deliveries pending over the next few years according to ratings agency ICRA (Agency)

US woman can rotate her feet back to front

Kelsey Grubb, a 32-year-old from New Mexico has set a Guinness World Record for the “largest foot rotation (female)” with a 171 4 degree twist She told Guinness World Records that she found out about the record when her colleague read about it, “I work at a library and the newest world record book (2021) had just come out A coworker was flipping through and randomly opened to the page with the largest foot rotation and said ‘ew! That’s so gross Naturally, I looked over her shoulder and said, ‘I think I can do that’ ” She further said, “I always knew I was flexible there but had assumed most people could turn their feet farther than 90 degrees out ” (Agency)

14 varieties of aam hang on this mango tree

A mango tree with 14 different species growing on each of its branches has been established by Ukabhai Bhatti, a farmer of Kesar mangoes in his sixties from Ditla village in the Dhari taluka of Gujarat Bhatti’s magical tree at his home can be ascribed as a celebration of fruits as it bears mangoes from Holi to Diwali! And Bhatti hasn’t stopped adding more variety to his magical tree He cultivated the tree with varieties that were cultivated during the Nawab era of Junagadh Varieties like Naliyero, Gulabiyo, Sindoriyo, Dadmo, Kalo Jamadar, Captain, Pilot, Variyaliyo, Badam,

Saradar, Shravaniyo, Ashadhiyo among others “There were more than 200 varieties of mangoes that were cultivated in the Nawab’s era Only Kesar has survived to this date and is as popular,” said Bhatti, who has christened a few mangoes with monikers that suit the fruit’s characteristics (The Times of India)

2,000-year-old ‘modern society’

unearthed

For the first time, a 1,500-yearold rock art as well as a 2,000-year-old water body and proof of a modern society have been discovered in Madhya Pradesh's renowned tiger reserve's Umaria district According to ASI superintending engineer Shivakant Bajpai, who is overseeing the explorations, the region that we now refer to as Bandhavgarh was likely a stop along a trade route where travellers would seek refuge “The presence of numerous (man-made) water bodies suggests a modern society The water bodies found this time were made at a height and used for collecting rainwater They could be roughly 1,8002,000 years old Evidence suggests some sort of renovation around 1,000 years ago, ” he said (Agency)

Woman dances to Punjabi song inside Delhi Metro

The way some passengers argue, shoot dancing videos or act inappropriately within the Delhi Metro coaches irritates many people That’s why the video of a woman making Instagram reels inside the metro has gone viral In the video a woman can be seen dancing to the Punjabi song sung by Kaka “Yes I know this is not allowed but I just did this, first time in Delhi Metro,” read the caption People who watched the video and commented on it were perplexed as to why the woman tried to make a dance reel despite knowing that doing so was against the rules while using the metro Many people emphasised how the Delhi Metro frequently advises riders not to bother others while they are travelling (Agency)

Traffic comes to a halt as tiger sips water from puddle

Some clips show people misbehaving in front of the wild animals, others show how locals have tremendous respect for the majestic beings IFS officer Parveen Kaswan shares some of those videos that act as the perfect example of the harmony that should

exist between humans and animals Shot at the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh, the video shows a tiger perched on the side of a path running along a jungle The big cat can be seen drinking water from a puddle Cars can be seen parking a good distance away from the large cat, giving it some privacy Over 80,00,000 people have watched the video, and the number is quickly rising People were impressed with the rare sight and thanked the tourists or locals in the cars for maintaining composure and not disturbing the tiger (Agency)

Pak court saves Kapoor haveli from demolition

The Peshawar high court has dismissed a petition seeking ownership over legendary actor Raj Kapoor’s Haveli in the city The house was declared a national heritage by the provincial government in 2016 In view of a previous ruling by the same court concerning the acquisition of renowned actor Dilip Kumar's haveli in Peshawar, which has also been designated a national historic landmark, the court dismissed the plea seeking ownership The petitioner told the court that his family had purchased the mansion during an auction in 1969 His counsel claimed that there are no documents to prove that the late Raj Kapoor and his family ever lived or owned this property However, the court said the matter ought to be taken to civil court (Agency)

After rare jaw surgery, lion cub ready to roar in the wild

In a first, a lion cub with a jaw fracture successfully recovered after it was operated upon four months ago Doctors from College of Veterinary Science and Animal Husbandry, Junagadh, who performed the rare surgery declared the seven-month-old cub fit for hunting and ready to be released into the wild This was likely the first surgery of its kind The cub was found three months old and in very bad condition, according to Junagadh forest officials On close examination, it was revealed that it had a jaw fracture because of which it was not able to eat It is assumed that the cub could have tried to chew on something hard or a barbed wire, resulting in the injury After being rescued from the Paniya range of the Gir (east) wildlife circle, the cub was brought for treatment to the Jasadhar animal care clinic, where it was kept under surveillance until it recovered (The Times of India)

VRS for boozing cops

About 300 Assam cops will lose their jobs due to one too many nightcaps This is the message CM Himanta Biswa Sarma uncorked when he said that such "habitual drinkers" inside the police force will be given the option of voluntary retirement

(VRS) The process has already started, and new hires will fill the positions "Three hundred officers and jawans are chronic drinkers, and their bodies have been harmed by excessive alcohol intake The government has a provision of VRS for them,” Sarma, who also holds the home portfolio, added Ahead of the second anniversary of the second BJP-led government in Assam on May 10, Sarma has embarked on a mission to overhaul the functioning of the administration and make the police a leaner, more honest force (Agency)

Galwan hero's wife commissioned as army officer

Rekha Singh, wife of Naik Deepak Singh who was killed in the Galwan Valley clashes in 2020, has been commissioned into the Indian Army as a Lieutenant, officials said She has been posted to a frontline base along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, they said Lt Singh completed her one-year training at the Chennai-based Officers Training Academy (OTA) Naik Singh was from the 16th Battalion of Bihar Regiment and he was posthumously awarded Vir Chakra in 2021 It said Deepak Singh made the supreme sacrifice during the Galwan Valley clashes (Agency)

Guest goes into labour at Mann Ki Baat conclave

Poonam Devi, a member of a selfhelp group in Uttar Pradesh attending the Mann ki Baat @100 Conclave, gave birth to a baby boy

Poonam Devi was among the special invitees for the Conclave at Vigyan Bhawan In one of the editions of the radio series Mann ki Baat, the Prime Minister discussed her work at a self-help group close to Lakhimpuri Kheri Poonam gave birth to a healthy baby boy at the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital after going into labour in Vigyan Bhawan during the Conclave, according to an official The self-help group in Lakhimpur Kheri produces handbags, mats, and other items using fibre from banana stems, an initiative that provides an additional source of income for women in the village and also contributes to reducing waste Poonam was among the 100 invitees whose names had been mentioned by the Prime Minister in his previous Mann Ki Baat episodes for their exceptional contribution to society (Agency)

Meal skipping, diet pills linked to minimal weight loss: Study

A new study analyzing data on over 20,000 US adults asso ci ates a healthier diet and i ncreas ed exerc is e w it h wei ght lo ss th at reduces heart disease risk It also linked skipping meals and taking prescription diet pills with minimal weight loss, weight maintenance or weight gain For many in the study sample, however, losing a “clinically significant” five per cent of their body weight did not eliminate their risk factors for cardiovascular disease

The average composite score on eight risk factors for heart disease was the same across the entirety of the study population, regardless of reported weight changes, up or down

The research was published recently in the Journal of the American Heart Association

The study is the first to compare weight-loss strategies and results in the context of the American Heart Association’s ‘Life’s Essential

8,’ a checklist promoting heart disease risk reduction through the pursuit of recommended metrics for body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, smoking, physical activity, diet and sleep

Senior study author Colleen Spees, associate professor of medical dietetics in the

Obesity increases the risk of colorectal cancer: Study

Research from the German C anc e r R es ea rc h C ent re (DKFZ) shares that the assoc iation between c olorectal cancer and obesity has likely been severely underestimated thus far The cause is that m any pe ople ac c id ent al ly lose weight before receiving a c ol on ca nc er diag nos is When studies consider body weight at diagnosis, the true link between obesity and the risk of colorectal cancer is ob s cur ed The new s tudy also demonstrates that inadv ert ent weight r educ tion may be a precursor to colorectal cancer

Herman Brenner, epidemiologist and prevention expert at the German Cancer Research Center, said, “However, these studies have so far not considered that many affected people lose weight in the years before their colorectal cancer diagnosis This has led to the risk contribution of obesity being significantly underestimated in many trials ”

The nearly 12,000 study participants included in the current evaluation had provided information on their body weight at diagnosis They reported their weight in the years preceding diagnosis (measured at 10-year intervals)

Based on body weight at the time of diagnosis, no indication of a relationship between body weight and colorectal cancer risk could be established However, the picture was quite different when the researchers looked at the participants' earlier body weight: A strong correlation between being over-

weight and the probability of developing colorectal cancer was found, most pronounced 8 to 10 years before diagnosis

Study participants who were highly overweightreferred to as obese- during this period were twice as likely as those of normal weight to develop colorectal cancer "If we had only looked at weight at baseline, as has been done in many previous studies, we would have completely missed the link between obesity and increased risk of colorectal cancer, said Marko Mandic, the study's first author

Researchers discover new treatment strategy for damaged cartilage

A team of researchers from PO STECH , D ongguk

U nive rs it y Med ic al Cen tre , and Nature Gluetech in Korea ha ve de vise d a t hera peutic solution for damaged cartilage

It en ta il s us ing a visc ous immiscible liquid that, when combined with a sticky protein generated from mussels and hyaluronic acid, can assist in th e t ran s plan ting of s te m c el ls in to damaged tissue

Cartilage is a bone-protecting tissue that absorbs trauma and allows for fluid joint mobility Despite its poor inherent healing capacity, stem cell transplantation is a viable therapeutic technique for dealing with cartilage inflammation and injury, as well as promoting cartilage regeneration

The research, supported by the Korea Health Technology R&D Project through Korea Health Industry Development under the Ministry of Health and Welfare, has been published in the Chemical Engineering

Journal The researchers developed a novel bioadhesive material in the form of a viscous immiscible liquid phase to overcome the limitations of the conventional treatment strategy This was achieved by combining adhesion protein derived from mussels with high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, which exhibits opposing charges and thus facilitates electrostatic interactions between them

Professor Hyung Joon Cha, who led the research, stated, "The therapeutic effects of stem cells can be significantly enhanced by using mussel adhesion protein, an original biomaterial developed in Korea

He also noted that Because the liquid bioadhesive can be formulated for injection, it has the potential to be an effective treatment for damaged cartilage when used in stem cell transplantation via an arthroscope, similar to an endoscope ”

School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences

at Ohio State, said, “The Life's Essential 8 is a valuable tool that provides the core components for cardiovascular health, many of which are modifiable through behaviour change ”

"Based on the findings in this study, we have a lot of work to do as a country," she said "Even though there were significant differences on several parameters between the groups, the fact remains that as a whole, adults in this country are not adopting the Life's Essential 8 behaviours that are directly correlated with heart health ”

"Clinically significant weight loss results in improvements in some health indices," Spees said "People should feel hopeful in knowing that losing just 5% of their body weight is meaningful in terms of clinical improvements This is not a huge weight loss

It's achievable for most, and I would hope that incentives people instead of being paralyzed with a fear of failure ”

A greater proportion of people who did not lose at least five per cent of their weight reported skipping meals or using prescription diet pills as weight-loss strategies Additional strategies reported by this group included low-carb and liquid diets, taking laxatives or vomiting, and smoking

"We saw that people are still gravitating to non-evidence-based approaches for weight loss, which are not sustainable What is sustainable is changing behaviours and eating patterns," Spees said

"We have fantastic research, we have incredible educators," she added "What we don't have is a policy that promotes optimal health across the lifespan, from pregnancy through older adulthood ”

Summer-friendly grains to add to your diet and how to consume them

Summer is around the corner, and the change in season can affect your appetite and overall health Adding weather-appropriate foods to your diet is important, as foods that seemed tempting in winter may no longer appeal to your taste buds Health experts suggest adding certain summer grains to your diet for the right nutrition and prevention against summer illnesses

Certain whole grains and millets are ideal for the summer season as they have cooling properties and are a storehouse of nutrients Millets can help protect from heat exhaustion, migraines and sunstrokes In her recent Instagram post, nutritionist Juhi Kapoor shared four grains perfect for summers regarding nutrients and potency

1 Jau (Barley)

Rich in many amazing nutrients, barley is the perfect grain for summer A diuretic, barley helps with UTI and replenishes essential nutrients lost due to heat Barley is used to make soups, stews, and breads, among other dishes

Soaking time: 4 hours

Recipe: Use it in pulao or salads or as atta to make rotis

2 Ragi (Finger Millet)

Also known as Mandua atta, ragi is high in fibre and calcium and is a superfood for people with diabetes Babies are often fed ragi porridge for easy digestion The grain is also useful for weight loss and keeps the body cool in the summer

Soaking time: 8 hours

Recipe: Use it in dosa or use it as atta to make porridge or roti

3 Sama (Barnyard Millet)

Barnyard millet or Sama rice is rich in protein, calcium, iron, minerals, and vitamin B It is also gluten-free and low in carbs It is also beneficial for people with Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases

Soaking time: 8 hours

Recipe: Use it to make dosa or pulao, or khichdi

4 Jowar (Sorghum)

This is another nutritious millet that you can consume during summer Good for the brain, jowar is also rich in Vitamin B1, iron, and fibre, which can aid in fat loss

Soaking time: 10 hours

Recipe: Use it to make roti (with atta) or khichdi

GlyNAC supplementation improves cognitive decline in older people

As people age, they want to live healthy lives as free from age-related cognitive los s as f eas ible Thi s decrease is a natural aspect of ageing

Researchers at Baylor College of Medicine are developing food progra mm es to prom ote healthy brain ageing and studying the biochemical reasons of age-related cognitive decline

The study is published in the journal Antioxidants, researchers found that supplementing with GlyNAC, a compound made up of the amino acids glycine and N-acetylcysteine, which act as precursors to the naturally occurring antioxidant glutathione, improved or

reversed age-related cognitive decline in old mice and corrected multiple associated defects in the ageing brain

Corresponding and senior author Dr Rajagopal Sekhar, professor of medicineendocrinology, diabetes and metabolism at Baylor said, "For over two decades, my lab has been studying natural aging in older humans and aged mice "

"Our work provides an understanding of how ageassociated cognitive decline in older humans is linked to glutathione deficiency, increased oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, abnormal glu-

cose metabolism and insulin resistance, inflammation and low levels of neurotrophic or neuronsupporting factors, and that supplementing GlyNAC reverses these defects and improves cognition "

This study is significant for a variety of reasons, including the fact that it examines whether agerelated cognitive decline that occurs naturally can be reversed as opposed to cognitive decline brought on by introducing gene defects; that getting older is the biggest risk factor for Alzheimer s disease; and that these naturally occurring defects were examined in the brain

‘The Kerala Story’ pulled down from Tamil Nadu theatres

Sudipto Sen’s ‘The Kerala Story’ remained controversial even before its release The movie, released on May 5, is no longer running in theatres in Tamil Nadu Produced by Viper Amrutlal Shah, it has triggered a massive political row, with many calling it a propaganda film

Mom-to-be Ileana D’Cruz talks about baby’s dance party in the belly

The movie stars Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Siddhi Idnani and Sonia Balani in the lead roles The trailer came under fire as it previously claimed that 32,000 girls from the state went missing and later joined the terrorist group ISIS The Kerala High Court noted last week that the producers had published a disclaimer along with the movie, which specifically says that the film has fictionalised and is a dramatised version of events and doesn't claim accuracy or factuality of historical events

President of Tamil Nadu Theatre and Multiplex Owners Association, M Subramaniam, confirmed that the few multiplexes showing the film had decided to withdraw it He said, “The film was only shown in a few multiplexes owned by pan-India groups, mostly PVR Locally-owned multiplexes had already decided not to show the film, as it did not have any popular stars In Coimbatore for instance, there were two shows so far - one on Friday and one on Saturday Even those did not do well Given that, theatres decided that it was not worth going through the threat of protests and such ”

Film trade analyst Sreedhar Pillai, who had earlier said that he was planning to watch the film, tweeted, "#Multiplexes stop screening of the controversial #TheKeralaStory from today (Sunday) all over #TamilNadu! They have cited “potential law and order issues and lack of reception from general public as reasons for the move!”

The Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) in Tamil Nadu, headed by actor and director Seeman, had staged a protest against releasing The Kerala Story in Chennai Seeman said that they will break the screens and theatres if the film is screened in cinemas despite the protests

D’Cruz, who is expecting her first child, recently shared her daily life on Instagram She shared pictures of herself before and after taking a nap and pictures from her process of making soft bread

Illeana

Taking to her Instagram Stories, Ileana shared a selfie before going to sleep and wrote, “When you want to get some sleep but baby nugget decides to have a dance party in your belly ” After waking up, she shared a selfie of her fresh face and wrote, “We got some sleep ”

Later, she shared glimpses of making soft bread at home on Wednesday Sharing pictures of the dough and then the bread, she wrote, "Decided to try and bake the famous Shokupan aka Japanese soft sandwich bread yesterday I gotta say I was in love when I pulled this beauty out the oven Aptly named soft bread ”

Sharing a picture of the final meal, she wrote, “Baby nugget and I enjoyed a gorgeous slice of bread slathered with a thick layer of Irish butter and baked shakshuka chorizo eggs ”

She had recently also shared a glimpse of her

baby bump for the first tim she relaxed in bed with a cup beverage Sharing the vide she wrote, “Life lately ” She also showed how she was satisfying her cravings during pregnancy She shared pictures of a black forest cake made by her sister and wrote, “Preggy Perks Especially because makes the best Black Forest c Ileana announced her pre month She shared a pictur romper and a “ mama ” pe captioned, “Coming soon C meet you my little darling ” rumoured to be dating Ka brother Sebastian Laurent M the two had also accompan group vacations They, how not officially announc relationship

Alia jokingly complains about being stalked by the media

Alia Bhatt met the mother of a media photographer in Mumbai The actress attended the Global Sports Pickleball Championship, where the photographer brought his mother to meet her A video of their interaction has been doing the rounds on the internet and features Alia jokingly complaining about being stalked by the media

As seen in the video, she was waiting to pose for pictures when she spotted the photographer bringing his mother, She instantly walked towards that direction and greeted her with folded hands She shook hands with the lady and said, “Bada acha laga aapse milke (nice to meet you) ” Pointing towards the photographer, she added jokingly, “Aapka beta bohot pareshan karta hai mujhe Nahi, bohot acha kaam karta hai (Your son keeps irritating me But, no, he is good at his job) ” She also posed with the lady for pictures and told her son, “Aaramse le kar jao (Be careful with her) ”

Sharing the video on Instagram, a paparazzo wrote, “Alia Bhatt is the most beautiful and lovely

person interacts with all her fans today, how lovely ” Reacting to the video, a fan wrote, “Alia looks so young! Sometimes it's hard to believe she's a mother already ” “The most down to earth actress ever, ” said another On the other hand, one user also claimed, “Old formula for PUBLICITY ”

On the work front, Alia will soon make her Hollywood debut with ‘Heart of Stone,’ which also stars Gal Gadot and Jamie Dornan The actor will also be seen in Karan Johar’s ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani,’ alongside Ranveer Singh The movie also has veteran actors Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan, and Shabana Azmi

Alia is also part of Farhan Akhtar’s directorial comeback ‘Jee Le Zaraa,’ alongside Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kai The shoot is slated to begin soon this year

Veteran

actor Zeenat Aman has responded after fashion designer Amit Aggarwal shared a post and called her a “woman who defies time ” Amit posted several pictures on Instagram of Zeenat and himself from his new store in Delhi They both wore black outfits for the event Amit captioned the post by sharing the pictures, "Eternity has always been an emotion at the heart and in every genome of the brand and its core So it is no surprise why we as a brand are so magnetically pulled to Ms Zeenat Aman A woman who defies time, with whom the lens of the past, present or the coming future feel blurred ”

"Zeenat cannot be placed within the context of time She has inspired not just one but all generations since she created magic for the first time on celluloid An epitome of what it means to be eternal and timeless, I am grateful to her for bringing so much light to our new store at DLF Emporio," he added "@thezeenataman thank you for taking this journey with me, I believe we are creators from our soul, we will never cease to exist, just will keep coming back to create art that makes everything feel infinitely possible, he concluded Reacting to the post, Zeenat

commented, "Thank you your beautiful new stor success (purple heart emo

A fan commented "Stunning Zeenat Aman gracious " Another perso Queen! Yesterday, today, praised her beauty "So be ma'am, old is gold," read "This lady is elegance p wrote an Instagram user

"What gorgeousnes muse, and the dress both still looks amazing That card never declines," sa another fan "Wow isn't she any Hollywood Superstar? Would you please tell her that she is our all-time favourite and she is looking stunning each and every day," wrote another person Zeenat also shared the post on her Instagram Stories with a purple heart emoji

Zeenat Aman responds to post calling her 'woman who defies time'

Naga Chaitanya says ex-wife Samantha deserves all the happiness

‘PS2’ singer Rashita Suresh meets with a car accident in Malaysia

Naga Chaitanya, who is gearing up to release his next film ‘Custody,’ addressed his relationship with his ex-wife and actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu He shared they both had since moved on from their marriage after their divorce last year, but the media and public kept bringing it up, diminishing the healthy space they both have built The two met on Gautham Menon’s ‘Ye Maaya Chesave’ in 2010 They also went on to star together in several movies, including the National Film Awardwinning ‘Mahanati’ in 2018 The couple got married in 2017 and announced they were divorcing in 2021 Chai said in a recent interview that he thinks Sam is a “lovely person ” and “deserves all the happiness ”

Actor

Singer Rakshita Suresh was involved in a horrifying car accident in Malaysia on May 7 She took to her social media handle and updated her fans about her situation, and revealed that her vehicle collided with a road divider, causing significant damage.

He said, “Yes It has been more than two years since we separated and a year since we formally divorced The court has anted us a divorce Both of us have moved with our lives I have tremendous respect for that phase of my life ” He added, "[Samantha] is a lovely person and deserves all the happiness It is only when the media speculates that things get awkward between us In the public eye, that mutual respect is taken away That's what I feel bad about ”

TV Listing

She wrote on Twitter, “Met with a major accident today The car that I was in rammed into a divider, and smashed to the side of the road while I was heading back to the airport in Malaysia this morning My entire life flashed in front of me during those 10 seconds of impact ”

She added, “Thanks to the airbags, otherwise things would’ve been worse Still shaking from whatever happened, but I’m so glad that me, the driver and the other copassenger who was sitting in the front seat are safe with just

Selvan 2'

minor external injuries and a few internal injuries Grateful and lucky to be alive ”

Rakshita, who was the winner of singing reality shows ‘Rhythm Tadheem’ and ‘Little Star Singer,’ has crooned songs like ‘Kirunage,’ ‘Yaane Yaane,’ ‘Sol,’ ‘Yele Ilanchingamey’ and ‘Kaalathukkam Nee Venum ’

MON 15 MAY - FRI 19 MAY 2022

SHOW DESI FLAVOURS

NA PAGLA PADYA

2023

6:00 Mane Lai De Ne Navrang Chundadi

Amar Prem Love of Heart

KALAKAAR

RAGHAV

MAN MOHI GAYU

NI NANI VAHU

MRS SINGHAM

KALAKAAR

20 MAY 2023

SHOW-DESI FLAVOURS

17:30 KUMKUM NA PAGLA PADYA 18:00 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

BANE HUMSAFAR

SUNDAY 21 JAN 2023

16:30

SHOW-DESI FLAVOURS

17:30 KUMKUM NA PAGLA PADYA 18:00 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:00

19:30

20:00

AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

Nima Denzonpga

NRI HAADSA SEASON 4

21:00 Entertainment Ki Raat-Housefull 22:00

Mani Ratnam's 'Ponniyin Selvan 2' just like the first part released last years has received widespread appreciation from critics and fans alike The epic film based on Kalki's novel of the same name is said to have crossed the magical 250 crore rupees mark at the worldwide box office Isaipuyal A R Rahman has scored the music for 'Ponniyin Selvan 2' and fans cant stop raving about his songs and bgm Meanwhile young music composer Sam C S had posted a request on Twitter tagging Rahman "Sir âextraordinary musicâ Enjoyed & loved the score Plz release the OST soon sir " ARR has promptly replied that the original sound track of 'PS-2' will be released

on the 100th day of the film The news has delighted the Oscar Nayagan fans who are expressing the same on the timeline

'Ponniyin Selvan 2' has Chiyaan Vikram, Karthi, Jayam Ravi, Trisha, Vikram Prabhu, Jayaram, Prabhu, Sarathkumar, Parthiban and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the principal roles

Rajinikanth impresses the internet with his simplicity

Veteran star Rajinikanth was recently spotted arriving at the Mumbai airport with tight security He is reportedly in the city for the shoot of his daughter Aishwarya Rajinikanth’s film ‘Lal Salaam ’ A recent paparazzi video of him exiting the airport surfaced online, leaving fans praising him for his simplicity

The video features Rajinikanth smiling and waving at the media and others at the airport He wore a simple blue Tshirt with grey pants and a black sling bag He also greeted fans and security personnel in an ordinary hatchback car while leaving the airport premises

Reacting to his simple airport sighting, fans appreciated the actor for being down to earth One of them wrote in the comments, “So down to earth no expensive car, no ego ” Another commented, “Thalaivaaaaaaaa What a man Looks so young at the age of 72 and look at that speed ” A fan also called him “The boss”

Rajinikanth will reportedly be filming for Lal Salaam in Mumbai According to a media

report, the film will be led by Vikranth, while Rajinikanth will appear in a significant role It's believed that the film will be a cricket drama, and the first schedule was already wrapped up last month

Talking about the project, Aishwarya Rajinikanth shared an update on Twitter earlier in the day She said the first look of Appa from Lal Salaam will be unveiled at midnight “THE MAN THE MANIDHAN THE POWER MAGNET ARRIVES MIDNIGHT #Thalaivar #Appa #lalsalaam,” read her post The post featured a poster on which a silhouette of a man is seen at Mumbai's Gateway Of India

Reacting to the post, many fans guessed that the original poster would feature none other than Rajinikanth A fan commented, “What a surprise The man The maidan superstar Rajinikanth sir Thalaivar has arrived ” “That’s a surprise tweet,” added another one

Rajinikanth was last seen in ‘Annaatthe ’ Besides ‘Lal Salaam,’ he also has his muchanticipated film ‘Jailer’ in the pipeline

A.R. Rahman promises an awesome gift on 100th day of 'Ponniyin

Backstreet Boys perform in Mumbai, celebrities attend the concert

Popular American boy band the Backstreet Boys, performed in Mumbai last week

The five-member group comprising Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson kicked off the DNA World Tour concert held at Jim World Garden in Mumbai with the song ‘I Wanna Be With You ’

Sonam’s outfit for King Charles’ coronation concert had an Indian connection

KingCharles III’s coronation concert included performances and appearances from several celebrities Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor, who lives in London with husband and businessman Anand Abuja and their son Vayu made a spoken word performance to introduce the Commonwealth virtual choir This was her first appearance at an event for the royal family

For the event, Sonam opted for a floorlength gown co-designed by Kolkata-based Anamika Khan and UK-based designer Emilia Wickstead The bespoke floor-length gown for the concert featured a band detail around the shoulders that framed the corseted bodice, extending into a full skirt lined with architectural godet pleats

Designed by Wickstead, the calico-inspired

print to finish the entire look was contributed by Khanna A report by Vogue India said the Indian designer took inspiration from the 17th and 18th-century calico prints, a commodity commonly traded between India and the UK in the past

On the work front, Sonam is all set to make a comeback with Shome Makhija’s ‘Blind ’ This will be her first film since she gave birth to her son Vayu Kapoor Ahuja in August last year The first look from the film was shared by the director on Instagram last month

The movie features Sonam in the lead role, with Purab Kohli, Vinay Pathak and Lillete Dubey in supporting roles ‘Blind’ is a remake of the 2011 Korean film of the same name and centres around a blind police officer searching for a serial killer

Turkish actor Burak Deniz’s first India trip features visit to the ISKCON temple

Turkish actor Burak Deniz was in Mumbai last week, a part of his “excellent” India trip Known for shows such as ‘Don’t Leave’ and ‘The Ignorant Angels,’ he attended an event with actors Anil Kapoor, Sobhita Dhulipala and Aditya Roy Kapur A video showed him grooving to Salman Khan and Samir Khan’s song ‘Ye Rat Aur Ye Door’ from their cult film ‘Andaz Apna Apna ’ Deniz also recently visited the ISKCON temple in Mumbai and shared many videos and photos on Instagram

Sharing clips of the Mumbai skyline, he wrote in his Instagram caption, “India It was an excellent experience, thank you!” He shared some videos of the prayers at the ISKCON temple He also posted photos and videos of himself with a flower garland around his neck There was also a picture of him sitting inside the temple with folded hands

The band went on to perform their hits, including ‘Backstreet’s Back,’ ‘I Want It That Way,' ‘The Call,' ‘Get Down,’ ‘Incomplete,’ ‘As Long As You Love Me,’ ‘Drowning,’ ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,’ ‘Larger Than Life ’ Videos of the concert have been doing rounds on the internet all week

In the middle of the over two hours concert, Carter remarked someone should have warned the band about how hot it is in India He added, “It is not the weather that is making it hot, it because of all you We had no idea we had so many BSB fans here, but we now see it and we love it It’s our second time in India and we were waiting from a very long time to come to Mumbai ” Richardson, meanwhile, said that next time “it won’t be just two cities but four, five and six cities ”

Actors Shraddha Kapoor, Jacqueline Fernandez, Meezaan Jafri, Ram Pothineni, singers Benny Dayal, Dhvani Bhanushali, Prakriti Kakar, Sukriti Kakar, social media sensation Faisal Shaikh, politician Zeeshan Siddique and Varun Dhawan’s wife, Natasha Dalal among others were also spotted at the concert After the concert, Jacqueline said, “It was an amazing experience I am the band’s biggest fan This is like a childhood dream come true ”

This was the actor’s first trip to India, and he opened up about it in a recent interview Burak said in an interview, “I would have liked to come here to India much before,

Priyanka hosts an afterat her New York restaur

Actress Priyanka Chopra was busy promoting her upcoming movie

‘Love Again,’ which stars her alongside actor Sam Heughan Last week she hosted an after-party for her family and close friends at her co-owned Indian restaurant Sona in New York City

Priyanka shared photos and wrote, “Family to every one that came to support I love you without you, none of it is possible @loveagainmovie #afterparty @sonanewyork: @nicolasgerardin ” In the pictures, Priyanka was seen happily posing with her husband Nick Jonas, mom Madhu Chopra, mother-in-law Denise Jonas, sister-in-law Danielle Jonas and brother-in-law Kevin Jonas

More photos from the night made it to social media Priyanka’s manager and friend Anjula Acharia too shared some photos and wrote, “Congratulations @priyankachopra @samheughan on the premiere of @loveagainmovie out in theatres next week! Absolutely loved this sweet and funny romcom @nicolasgerardin ”

DJ SZNaina, who played the music at Sona, also shared some inside videos from the night The guests were seen dancing to Priyanka Chopra’s song ‘Gallan Goodiyaan’ from the Bollywood film, ‘Dil Dhadakne Do ’ Priyanka was dressed in a pink dress for the night, while Nick was all suited up The duo walked hand in hand

Priyanka and Sam’s movie ‘Love Again’ was released on May 5 in the US

because I know your culture and like everything about it, it’s unbelievable I know it deeply, and want to know more If I wasn’t this busy with the many things I do as a job in my own country, I wanted to spend more time It’s a big culture ” When asked about his fan following in India, Burak said, “Let’s see, it’s my first time! Our culture is so similar, so because of that our projects are also in the same plane Both our projects are full of sensitivity, and hence we understand each other People here see me as a family member because of it This is a powerful experience for me too ”

Kolkata win a last ball thriller

K olkata Knight Riders d efeated Punjab K ing s in a dram atic match to join th e 1 0-point log jam in the 2023 IPL points table K KR ch ased dow n 1 80 at th e Ed en Gard ens to secure th eir second consecutive v ictory o f t h e s ea so n an d s to rm t o fi f th i n t h e standings KKR captain Nitish Rana had set the tone fo r the w in w ith 51 off 3 8 balls befo re A nd re Russell smash ed 4 2 off 21 balls T h e o n u s w as o n R in ku S in g h a s K K R need ed 2 runs off the final ball; h e hit a boundary off Arshdeep S ing h as KKR wo n a nail biter

Titans beat Lucknow by 56 ru ns

Gujarat Titans defeated Lucknow Super Giants by 56 runs in their match Sent in to bat, GT posted an imposing 227 for two The hosts then stopped LSG at 171 for seven in the stipulated 20 overs

For LSG, Quinton de Kock was the top scorer with a 41-ball 70, while Kyle Mayers made 48 off 32 deliveries Mohit Sharma finished with excellent figures of 4/29 in four overs for GT Earlier, defending champions GT were off to a blistering start with both Wriddhiman Saha (81 off 43 balls) and Shubman Gill (94 not out off 51) going after the bowling from the word go, helping the team amass 78 runs in the powerplay The two were involved in an opening partnership of 142 runs in just 12 1 overs

Hyd erabad claim d ramatic win

Abdul Samad spoiled Rajasthan Royals party by hitting a last-ball six to guide Sunrisers Hyderabad to a 4-wicket victory at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Sunday

Bottom-placed SRH halted their losing

sequence by chasing a daunting target of 215 with a sensational late burst Abdul Samad struck a match-winning 17 off just 7 balls to give his team the much-needed win The Jammu youngster slammed a six at long-on when 4 runs were needed from the final ball

It was the third consecutive defeat for the Royals as they remained on 10 points after 11 matches, while SRH registered their fourth win in the competition from 10 ties Sandeep Sharma was again given the charge to bowl the last over when SRH needed 17 Samad scored 2 on the first ball and then clobbered a six to long-on

Delhi cha se down 82-run ta rge t Phil Salt emerged as the standout performer of the evening as Delhi Capitals secured a seven-wicket win against Royal

China clears shuttlers’ visas to attend Sudirman Cup

then joined the proceedings and kept the ante He was dismissed for 26(17), following which Rilee Rossouw walked out The batter scored an unbeaten 35 off 22 balls Earlier, powerful fifties by Virat Kohli and Mahipal Lomror drove RCB to 181/4 in 20 overs after they opted to bat Lomror returned unbeaten on 54 off 29 balls, while Kohli scored 55 (46) Che nna i bea t Mumba i

Indian ba dmint on pl aye rs a nd coaching st aff ca n he ave a sigh of rel ie f Their trip to Suzhou in China for the Sudirman Cup was confirmed fol lowing t he complet ion of their biome trics at the Chinese embassy in De lhi India’s leading players, including twotime Olympic medallist PV Sindhu, World No 9 HS Prannoy and Asian Championships doubles title winners Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, are part of the 23-member strong contingent It’s been learnt that the issue was taken up at a diplomatic level by the Indian government with the Chinese foreign ministry delegation, which was in India to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) foreign ministers’ meeting in Goa

Challengers Bangalore at home on Saturday

The opener scored 87(45) as Delhi completed the stiff 182 chase in 16 4 overs He along with his skipper David Warner got Delhi off to an explosive start and added 60 in 5 1 overs before Warner fell for 22 (14) Mitchell Marsh

Chennai Super Kings defeated Mumbai Indians by six wickets at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai Chasing a target of 140 runs, CSK reached to 140/4 in 17 4 overs, with Devon Conway smacking 44 off 42 balls Meanwhile, Conway s opening partner Ruturaj Gaikwad registered 30 runs off 16 deliveries and Shivam Dube played an unbeaten knock of 26 runs off 18 balls For MI's bowling department, Piyush Chawla took two wickets Initially, Nehal Wadhera's knock of 64 off 51 balls took MI to 139/8 in 20 overs Matheesha Pathirana was in hot form for CSK's bowling department, taking three wickets Deepak Chahar and Tushar Deshpande bagged two dismissals each

Neeraj Chopra wins Doha Diamond League title Ishan Kishan replaces Rahul

O lym p i c ch a m p i o n j a v el i n thro wer Neeraj C hopra began h i s D i am o n d L ea g u e ti tl e d efence w ith a comfortable w in in th e seaso n-op eni ng leg i n

Doha, with a w orld leading and fourth career-best effort

The 25-year-old Neeraj, who had pocketed the 2022 Diamond League Final trophy in Switzerland in September last, beat a star-studded field with a best throw of 88 67m to begin his season in style

Neeraj hit his straps in his first attempt itself with a worldleading throw of 88 67m, which was his fourth career-best effort to position himself on the top of the pile He maintained the lead till the end to win the event in his second appearance at the Qatar Sports Club

He had finished fourth in his first appearance here in 2018 Silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch of Czech Republic went agonisingly close to Neeraj's best mark with a second round throw of 88 63m,

four centimeter short of the Indian's effort

Vadlejch had also won silver in the Tokyo Olympics He had also won a silver in the Doha Diamond League last year with a 90 88m throw Reigning world champion Anderson Peters, who had won the event in Doha last year with a monster throw of 93 07m, finished third with a modest best throw of 85 88m

Neeraj, who has a personal best of 89 94m, could not sustain the tempo of his first attempt as he could only send the spear to 86 04m and then to 85 47m before fouling his throw in the fourth He managed 84 37m and 85 62m in his fifth and sixth attempts

for WTC final

W ic k e t k e e p e r -b a t sm a n I sh a n Kishan was na med as the in jure d KL R a h ul ’ s r e p la c e m e n t in In dia’s squa d for t he Wor ld Te st C ha mp i o n sh i p ( W T C ) fi n a l aga in st Austr alia at Th e Ov al in Ju n e R a h u l, w h o h a d be e n ca pta ining the Luckn ow Super Gian ts, was r ule d out of the re st of t he IPL a nd t he W TC fin al after suffe ring a t high injury in a match while cha sin g a ba ll As per a BCCI statement, a decision on the availability of left-arm seamer Jaydev Unadkatwho had hurt his left shoulder while training - for the WTC final has been deferred Once Rahul was ruled out, the choice was between a specialist opener (Yashasvi Jaiswal or Ruturaj Gaikwad and a ’keeper-bat ) Ultimately, Kishan made the cut Kishan has played 14 ODIs and 27 T20Is so far He scored the fastest-ever ODI double hundred (210) off just 126 balls-against Bangladesh in Chattogram in December last year

“After consultations with

specialists, it has been decided that Rahul will undergo surgery at the earliest, followed by rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) for the same, ” the BCCI said in its statement Rahul’s LSG teammate Unadkat has been out of the IPL after suffering a freak injury while training He fell over the side rope while bowling in the nets “Unadkat is currently at the NCA in Bengaluru undergoing strength and rehab sessions for his shoulder A decision on his participation in the WTC final will be taken at a later stage,” the BCCI said in its statement Squad for WTC final: Rohit Sharma (capt ), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, KS Bharat (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Ishan Kishan (wk) Standby players: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Mukesh Kumar and Suryakumar Yadav

Gambhir, Kohli fined for ugly fracas

V i ra t Ko hl i a n d G au ta m

Gambhir were both fined 100% of thei r match fee following an u gl y po s t m a tc h a l te rc a t i on a f te r th e c on c l us i o n o f t he

RCB- LSG game

Afghan bowler Naveen-ul Haq of the Lucknow Super Giants was fined 50% of his match fee, who grabbed Virat Kohli's arm during some heated exchanges before RCB's Glenn Maxwell was able to separate the two Gambhir, mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants, and RCB batting mainstay Kohli were fined for breaching Article 2 21 of the IPL code of conduct, which relates to public acts of

misconduct, unruly behaviour and inappropriate comments detrimental to the interests of the game

Both Kohli and Gambhir have indulged in aggressive onfield behaviour in the past They also have a previous history of public post-IPL match

brawling The two had a showdown, and a heated

exchange of obscenities, way back in 2013 following an RCB-KKR game Gambhir was then KKR captain This time, the conversation between LSG opener Kyle Mayers and Kohli appeared to be the catalyst Gambhir then appeared to break up the conversation by yanking Mayers away Kohli was agitated following Gambhir's boisterous celebration of LSG's one-run victory during the first leg of this match at the Chinnaswamy in Bengaluru Gambhir had earlier

pointed at the Chinnaswamy crowd and gestured it to shut up Kohli repeated the gesture at the Ekana Stadium crowd in Lucknow Following the incident, cryptic messages were put out from the social-media handles of both Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq

This is the second time during this IPL that Kohli has got into a controversy for his post-match behaviour Earlier, his apparent refusal to shake hands with Delhi Capitals mentor Sourav Ganguly during the customary post-game handshakes created a minor furore on social media

After the government’s intervention, the Chinese embassy informed the BAI about the processing of visas and appointment time for biometrics on Monday The matter had also been taken up with the Badminton World Federation – the sport’s global governing body “It has certainly come as a relief to everyone We were worried about missing the tournament this time India are one of the favourites to lift the trophy banking on our players’ recent performances in team events,” a source said India had qualified for the Sudirman Cup after winning bronze at the Badminton Asia mixed team championships in February

Khaps, farm unions join wrestlers, give Centre 2 weeks to arrest WFI president

The call to arrest Wrestling Fed eration of Ind ia (WF I) presi dent and BJP M P Brij Bh ushan Sharan S ing h grew shriller with more than 30 0 kh ap panch ayats and sev eral fa rm e rs ’ u n i on s j o i ni n g th e ag it ati n g wrestlers at Jantar Mantar

The protesters gave the Centre time till May 21 to arrest Singh over allegations of sexual harassment against him Urging more people to join, the protestors announced they would hold a candle march at 7 pm daily and appealed to people in other cities to hold similar marches Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU) spokesperson Rakesh Tikait, Khap Maham 24 chief Mehar Singh, Sankyut Kisan Morcha’s (nonpolitical) Baldev Singh Sirsa and RLD joined the wrestlers on the dias Tikait said, “These wrestlers are the pride of the nation and we will support them at any cost We will continue our silent protest with them We are giving time till May 21 to the government However, if something happens to these wrestlers, we will gather nationwide support in solidarity with them Vinesh Phogat said that people’s anger is uniting them “We are glad that the khap and kisan unions have come to our support and make us feel strong in this fight for justice ” Talking about the deadline on May 21, she said if no action was taken till then by the officials, “ we will take this fight further”

She said many women can connect to the cause and hence is a fight for all the women “Why are senior officials silent on the issue,” she asked Speaking about the disruption in wrestlers’ practice, she said, “We are trying to continue our practice while we are sitting on protest

Protestors, especially women who came to Jantar Mantar to support the protest, claimed that many of them faced difficulties crossing borders Kavita Goyat (34), sarpanch of Haryana’s Kharakramji panchyat, said, “We could not come by buses as buses are not being allowed to enter Delhi So we had to come by train There are around 250 women who have come together from our village We were stopped at different Metro stations and interrogated ”

Neeraj Chopra