AV 18th June 2022 by Asian Business Publications Ltd

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Ashok J. Rabheru awarded Knighthood in Queen’s Birthday Honours List

The Kashmir Files director Vivek Agnihotri speaks at the UK Parliament

Representation of South Asian and Muslim women is pretty non-existent

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Idols at Hindu temple in Karachi destroyed

ED questions Rahul Gandhi in National Herald moneylaundering case

Rahul Gandhi

The travel chaos across Britain’s airports and other ports have added to the angst of travellers, after two years of staying put due to Coronavirus restrictions. As summer arrives in most European cities, people travelling abroad have been met with constant delays, cancelled flights and queues meandering outside airports and the Eurostar station at St Pancras. Namita Dey, as she landed in Gatwick on Thursday, had to wait for hours, before she could go through immigration, despite having a UK passport. “I had a long flight”, she told

the newsweekly. “Everything went smooth till we landed. When we approached immigration in the North Terminus, we were asked to wait, before we could even join the immigration queue. However, reaching the floor, we could not avail the e-gates, and amidst the heat and chaos, British nationals and foreigner passport holders stood together in the same queue. There were few counters open and overwhelmed passengers kept joining the queue. It took me more than an hour to cross immigration, and you can imagine the frustration.” Continued on page 06

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was questioned by the ED for the second consecutive day on Tuesday in the National Herald money-laundering case, with the grand old party calling the agency action vendetta politics of the Centre against opposition leaders. Rahul arrived at the Enforcement Directorate (ED) headquarters accompanied by his sister and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. His questioning began at 11:30 am after the completion of some legal formalities, officials said. After a session of about four hours, Rahul took a break for about an hour at around 3:30 pm and went home. He rejoined the questioning around 4:30 pm just like Monday. Delhi Police personnel were deployed in huge numbers and section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) was imposed around the agency’s office. Continued on page 25

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with Keith Vaz

Teen student nurse headbutted by unknown man

NIKHIL MEHTA Barrister Nikhil was born in “Bombay” (now Mumbai), both his parents were Surgeons, although his father decided on a small career change in his mid-forties by becoming a Tax Lawyer and an expert on Foreign Exchange Control Law in India. After being called to the Bar at Lincoln’s Inn and completing Chancery and tax pupillages, Nikhil went back to Mumbai and enrolled as an Indian Tax Advocate. On returning to the UK he joined the (then) Inland Revenue Solicitor’s Office in Somerset House, then joined Linklaters, where he was requalified as a solicitor. In 2001, Nikhil became one of the first tax solicitor-advocates. He joined Cleary Gottlieb Steen &

1) Which place, or city or country do you most feel at home in? London, which has been the capital city in which I have spent most of my life. I am also attached to Bombay, my birthplace. But the key to my love for London is that, whenever I go abroad, I find it reassuring to have a return ticket. 2) What are your proudest achievements? Without doubt, my family consisting of my wife, my two sons and their wives, and our two grandchildren. We now watch with love and pride how the younger generations develop. 3) What inspires you? Helping people and solving problems. I am also not too old or proud to learn from others and to be inspired by them, no matter if they are younger or older. 4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career? My inability to do more than I have. The day does not have enough hours and I don’t have enough stamina. 5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date? No single person. I have been fortunate to have a handful of mentors, starting with my uncle, Sanat P Mehta, who was one of India’s two leading tax advocates, along with Nani Palkhivala. My father switched from medicine to law at 45 and I was very lucky to have worked with both of them early in my career. 6) What is the best aspect about your current role? Independence as a sole practitioner: I share chambers with others, but my practice is my own.

7) And the worst? Dealing with situations where tax authorities (in my case those in the UK and in India), act in a manner inconsistent with good administration. Fishing expeditions are becoming too common and can involve an abuse of information powers. 8) What are your long term goals? I am now 68, so the long term is perhaps shorter than many. But I love my work so I want to keep going and perhaps also to get involved in other business activities which mean I never operate in a box. Of course I would also like to do things pro bono to help others. 9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change? The complexity of tax legislation and the extent of the powers given to the tax administration. The volume of legislation is out of control, and the hardening attitude of HMRC towards taxpayers without discriminating between aggressive avoiders and others is increasingly worrying. The pendulum has swung too far in the direction of the authorities regarding their powers. 10) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why. Group Captain Leonard Cheshire. His wartime achievements earned him a VC and he was one of two official observers from the UK on board one of the US planes that bombed Nagasaki. How he turned from that into a great humanitarian championing the disabled is the stuff of legend. He even persuaded Nehru to give him land in India for a charitable home.

Ed Sheeran grabs dinner at curry house after Platinum Jubilee performance Ed Sheeran, 31, sang his hit song Perfect to close the pageant marking Queen

Elizabeth II’s 70 years on the throne over the weekend, before heading to his

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favourite Indian restaurant, Curry India on the way home. In an interview ahead of his performance at Buckingham Palace, Ed had revealed that he will be having a curry. Hours after his performance, he stopped by the Curry India restaurant near his home in Framlingham, where he happily posed for photos with restaurant manager Belal Mintu, 34, who’d asked him to pick up his food in person. He also posed with Belal’s daughters, Mahdiya, eight, and Nabeeha, six, before heading home. He’d ordered his favourite dish, a paneer tikka chilli masala costing £9.55, as well as rice and naan bread.

Birmingham City University student Kareena Patel, 19, was headbutted by an unknown man when she 'rebuffed a man's advances'. The victim was on a night out with a female friend,20, when two men

tried to strike up a conversation and became abusive when the pair showed disinterest. She was then followed and at about 5 am on Friday, June 3, one of the unknown men suddenly lunged forward and struck her in the face causing a

heavy nosebleed outside the Altura complex on Bath Row, Five Ways. The attack was caught on CCTV and the footage. No arrests had been made and inquiries were ongoing, the West Midlands force said.

White NHS nurses likely to be promoted than black and Asian colleagues- study Minority ethnic staff is being overlooked due to structural racism, as white nurses are more likely to be promoted in the NHS in comparison to black and Asian colleagues, according to research. The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) which carried out a survey of almost 10,000 nursing staff found

out that racism is “endemic” in health and care. According to the RCN, while 65.9 per cent of white and 64 per cent of mixed ethnic respondents in the 35-44 age group said they had been promoted, this dropped to just 38.3 per cent of Asian and 35.2 per cent of black respondents. Bruno Daniel, the RCN’s

diversity and equalities coordinator, said: “Examples of racism experienced by nursing staff in the workplace are deeply shocking. The pandemic has shone a spotlight on structural racism in health and care services and we must seize this opportunity to stamp out this vile behaviour once and for all.”

£98m wasted on failed upgrade of offender tagging system Whitehall’s spending watchdog the National Audit Office (NAO) has found out that a failed government plan to transform the system for electronically tagging offenders wasted £98m of taxpayers’ money. In the month of March, attempts to upgrade HM Prison & Probation

Service’s (HMPPS) tagging system were abandoned after 11 years and a net spend of £153m. According to the NAO report, ministers still do not know if electronically tagging criminals is helping to cut reoffending because of failings in the system

Meg Hillier, the chair of the public accounts committee, said, “After years of poor performance, missed deadlines and almost £100m of taxpayer money down the pan, electronic tagging has failed to become the modern and effective service intended,” she said.

Boris Johnson encouraged to take up Jeremy Hunt as chancellor and ditch Rishi Sunak Boris Johnson’s allies are advising to ditch Rishi Sunak and make Jeremy Hunt chancellor considering his fragile leadership and to prevent a Tory civil war. After a vote of confidence on Monday night that saw 148 Conservative MPs vote against him, the

prime minister’s future in No 10 was left hanging in the balance. Johnson loyalists believe the move would have the dual advantage of bringing in the prime minister’s most competitive leadership rival and ensuring he was affixed to the government’s agenda and

priorities. However, it is unsure that Mr Hunt, a staunch critic of the prime minister, would accept the job. He promised to cut taxes and also urged colleagues to trim costs and drive reforms in Whitehall in an attempt to reboot his floundering government.

NHS to cut diversity and inclusion jobs To improve the quality of leadership in the health service, as part of a war on “waste and wokery” amid record NHS spending, the NHS has been told to cut “diversity and inclusion” jobs as a landmark report set out plans for the biggest shake-up of management in a generation. The Health Secretary

called for radical change to “dramatically” boost productivity in the health service. General Sir Gordon Messenger, a general who led the Royal Marines’ invasion of Iraq, had been asked to carry out the eight-month inquiry into the health and social care leadership. His report warns of widespread failings, which have allowed

“poor behaviours and attitudes such as discrimination, bullying and blame cultures” to go unchecked. Mr Javid said: “As this report sets out, it should be the responsibility of everyone to encourage fairness and equality of opportunity which is why we must reduce the number of these roles.”

Protesters force Cineworld to drop film about prophet Muhammad’s daughter Cineworld was forced to pull a film about the prophet Muhammad’s daughter The Lady of Heaven over fears for the safety of its staff. It removed the movie from schedules across the UK following protests by Muslims who accused the firm of “promoting hate”.

Demonstrations took place in Bradford, Bolton, Birmingham and Sheffield. Demonstrators claimed the work was blasphemous and that freedom of speech should not apply to the subject of Islam. One person in Bradford, West Yorkshire, said: “We are very offended. We have a

right not to be insulted. “You talk about freedom of speech but where does your freedom of speech go when it goes to criticising your policies when it goes to making a critical analysis of your version of history. “You have no right to tell us our history. We will not let this film go on further.”

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The lost dignity of Grenfell victims It has been five years since Grenfell Tower. As Asian Voice went to press, the victims were remembered at the Westminster Abbey service. 72 people were killed at the blaze on 14 June 2017. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge joined the base of the tower, to pay a special tribute, to those lives lost. Former prime minister Theresa May, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and Housing Secretary Michael Gove were among those in the congregation. Earlier this month, the government reportedly imposed a total ban on the specific type of cladding, that allowed the blaze to spread so rapidly. Previously, the ban applied only to buildings higher than 11m (36ft). The government first received data demonstrating the danger of polyethylenecored cladding in 2002. The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) said it was taking steps to ensure buildings were safer. But what has actually changed five years since that fateful day? In an interview with Guardian, a disabled member of the community spoke about her experience since Grenfell tragedy. She and her three children live on a ground floor flat in Kensington. There’s damp, mould and the hob keep catching fire. Although the council did adapt the flat for her, it doesn’t necessarily meet her needs. She can’t reach into the fridge, or load the washing machine, or open the cupboards from her wheelchair. She can’t reach the bathroom sink to wash her hands either. How much ever she complaints the Council does not seem to realise her problems. With the local community centre lift not working, the member remains isolated in her house. But at Grenfell, not only they had a home, they also had a community and life. During the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, Grenfell Tower survivors and the families of victims have held a "street party", with places laid out for those who died in the west London tower block blaze five years ago. Each of the 72 places at the street party, which took place underneath a flyover motorway, was set with a name card, along with napkins and cups in the green colours of the Justice4Grenfell campaign. Hanan Wahabi, a survivor often forgets she does not live in Grenfell anymore. She finds herself driving towards it, missing the vertical village they lived in. Speaking to Sky News, she told how time is not always a healer. She is lonely and had lost her brother and family to the fire that killed 18 children. Her brother Abdulaziz, a hospital porter and his wife

lived on the 21st floor with their three children. The fire destroyed most family photographs too. Hanan lived in a nearby Premier Inn for 18 months sharing one room. She suffered from trauma and had to leave her job as a teacher due to anxiety and panic attacks. While the ongoing public enquiry has unearthed many errors, corporate complacency, not one person has been charged with the crime yet. Theresa May demanded an explanation and reached for a public enquiry, an investigatory method that “governments love to prove they are doing something after devastating scandals, disasters, and wars”. The investigation is chaired by a retired, dependable, white, male judge. Since 1997, none of such enquiries have ever been chaired by a woman, let alone someone from the ethnic minority background. Journalist Robert Booth wrote, “As survivors and the bereaved mark the disaster’s fifth anniversary, the inquiry hearings are finally nearing their end. It has been a painstaking and expensive – £149mn and counting – attempt to figure out who is responsible, and why. While the public inquiry will not determine civil or criminal liability, Scotland Yard detectives will weigh its evidence when they consider whether to press charges. “Reporting on the inquiry since its first day, I have sometimes worried that with 27 commercial organisations and eight public bodies tangled up in the Grenfell story, the inquiry will never reach a clear answer. In a 21st-century economy obsessed with outsourcing risk, witness after witness has repeated that key decisions were ‘someone else’s responsibility’. Fault was found with almost every player, from the architect and the manufacturers to the fire brigade and the building inspectors. But conclusions that share blame and point to system failure will offer the bereaved little satisfaction.” Death is inevitable. But when it lacks dignity the fallen or their family deserve, it is a failure of humanity. From the Kashmiri Hindus to the victims of the Grenfell Tower, it is not a merry-go-round of money that they are ever after. Their lives have been tattered, taken apart piece by piece by failing authorities, decision makers and various others. Loved ones lost. Memories destroyed, now living in isolation with trauma. They have been fighting to get what they deserve, a closure, a hope or glimpse of justice. Yet nothing has happened in the last five years, and one knows if anything will even happen ever.

Private sector to boost India's space programme The opening of Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (INSPACe) will give a big boost to India's space programme. The primary objective of the space program is to establish operational space services in a selfreliant manner in the thrust areas of satellite communication, satellite-based resource survey/management, satellite navigation, satellite meteorological applications, and other emerging areas and to carry out sustained research and development in these areas. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is a premier research and development organization under the Department of Space. To address the vast areas of the mandate different centres and units have been created by ISRO, with high technology infrastructure. To enable enhanced participation of Indian industry in taking up high-tech space-related activities, the Government of India has incorporated NewSpace India Limited (NSIL), a wholly-owned Central Public Sector Enterprise (CPSE), under the administrative control of the Department of Space. In June 2020 the government announced a new organization, IN-SPACe, part of reforms to increase private participation in the space sector. Indian space has had the participation of private sectors on a small scale for a long time. A large part of the manufacturing and fabrication of rockets and satellites happens in the private sector. There is increasing participation of research institutions as well. But the Indian industry had a bare 3% share in a rapidly growing global space economy which is already worth at least $360 billion. Only 2% of this market is for rocket and satellite launch services, which require fairly large infrastructure and heavy investment. The remaining 95% related to satellite-based services, and ground-based systems. Indian industry is unable to compete because till now its role has been mainly that of suppliers of components and sub-systems. Indian industries do not have the resources or the technology to undertake independent space projects of the kind that US companies such as SpaceX have been doing or provide space-based services. The demand for space-based applications and services is growing even within India, and ISRO is unable to cater to this. The need for satellite data, imageries, and space technology now cut across sectors, from weather to agriculture to transport to urban development and more. There is a need for greater dispersion of space technologies, better utilization of space resources, and increased requirement of spacebased services. Several Indian companies are waiting to make use of

these opportunities and a few companies are in the process of developing their launch vehicles, the rockets like ISRO’s PSLV that carry the satellites and other payloads into space. Hence, the need for the expanding space sector and readiness of private sector players have given the idea encouragement. ISRO is also ready to provide all its facilities to private players whose projects had been approved by IN-SPACe. Private companies could even build their launchpad within the Sriharikota launch station, and ISRO would provide the necessary land for that. IN-SPACe is supposed to be a facilitator, and also a regulator. It will act as an interface between ISRO and private parties and assess how best to utilize India’s space resources and increase space-based activities. IN-SPACe is the second space organization created by the government in the last two years. IN-SPACE is a significant step in the space sector development in India and will provide a level playing field for private companies to use Indian space infrastructure. These reforms will allow ISRO to focus more on new technologies, exploration missions, and human spaceflight programs. Allowing industries and others like students, researchers, or academic bodies greater access to space assets would lead to much better utilization of Indian space resources. IN-SPACe will attempt to enhance the activities, including access to space assets data and activities. It will propel the Indian Industry as an important player in the global space economy. There is also an opportunity for large-scale employment in the technology sector and India becoming a powerhouse. The space sector can play a catalytic role in the technological advancement and expansion of the Indian industrial base. India is among a few countries with advanced capabilities in the space sector hence with the reforms, the sector will receive new energy and dynamism, to help the country leapfrog to the next stages of space activities. And there need more steps to make the Indian space sector an inclusive and successful venture. After inaugurating INSPACe headquarters in Ahmedabad Prime minister Narendra Modi said the global space industry is valued at 400 billion US dollars today. By 2040, it has the potential to become a 1 trillion-dollar industry. India currently has participation in the industry at only 3 per cent. India would have to increase its share, and there’s a big role of the private sector in the same,” said the PM, adding that he also envisions a major role played by India in the fields of space tourism and space diplomacy. IN-SPACe is envisaged as a single contact point for the private players.

Thought for the week Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it - Confucius

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel

London tech week is upon so us and reminds us why tech scale-ups cannot ignore the UK The UK's history as a world-leading business centre goes back many centuries and, these days, it's a hub for tech scale-ups and innovation. So, what has lead so many global tech entrepreneurs to establish their HQ in the United Kingdom? This article will look why the UK is a hotbed of tech talent and start-ups, from access to capital, grants and a diverse and educated workforce. 1. Ease of doing business One of the primary reasons why the UK is such an excellent destination for scale-ups is the ease at which you can do business. The country regularly features near the top of indexes that judge nations based on criteria like infrastructure, credit availability, internet access, trading, taxes, and low levels of corruption. UK services reach a global market. In order to achieve impressive growth you need access to a broad market, and the UK is frequently seen as a suitable base for large ventures that seek to positively impact climate change, food, and health on an international stage. There are scores of businesses in the UK's knowledgeeconomy sector that use cutting-edge tech to solve global problems. Overall, Britain's stability, modernity, and first-class infrastructure make it an excellent place to start a business that can thrive beyond UK borders. 2. Access to capital In the first quarter of 2022, UK start-ups raised almost $7bn in venture capital. Last year, investment in tech scale-ups and start-ups tripled. The UK accounts for about one-third of all money invested in the European tech sector. Disrupting industries takes time and a lot of resources. Access to capital is essential for growth. Tech scale-ups need to be allowed the space to mature and realise their potential. Additionally, competition for the best and brightest minds is fierce. Across the world, tech companies struggle to compete for a small pool of specialists. Without access to capital from VC firms and angel investors, most hightech businesses wouldn't have the runway they need for success. 3. R&D from universities in the UK The UK has several prestigious institutions with firstclass researchers from around the world. More importantly, universities and scale-ups share the common goal of innovation and, additionally, they are a source of the excellent graduates required to help a business scale. Researcher-start-up collaborations are on the rise. Additionally, universities have spun out some of the UK's most promising and innovative new businesses in recent years across various sectors, like VR, fintech, AI, and healthcare. Access to cutting-edge research, investments, workspace, and networks facilitates growth and innovation. University commercialisation teams will continue to help new businesses hit their potential. 4. Help from grants Help from grants is another reason tech scale-ups are flourishing in the UK. There are plenty of government and private grants for cutting-edge businesses. Support comes in different forms and targets both general and specialised businesses. UK start-ups can access tax relief for R&D, millions of pounds of seed money, and other excellent benefits. 5. Government support The UK government is hugely supportive of innovation. They aren’t just focused on helping big tech businesses but also understand the importance of small challenger brands. Continued on page 16 Asian Voice is published by

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The curious case of Patiala necklace Popular US YouTuber Emma Chamberlain is being widely criticised for wearing a ‘choker’ at this year’s Met Gala, similar to what Maharaja Yadavindra Singh-son and successor of Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, the erstwhile ruler of the princely state of Patiala- was seen wearing in the photos along with the necklace. It is believed that the necklace disappeared from the Royal Treasury of Patiala around 1948, and parts of it, including the

massive De Beers diamond, were later purchased by Cartier. Following the appearance at Gala, historians and others started posting the Maharaja’s photos online questioning if it was the same necklace that was once

owned by the Patiala Royals. UK-based hisAmar torian, Singh Panesar, reportedly said, “It remains a mystery who actually sold the necklace or its pieces and to whom, maybe it was someone from within the royal family. We cannot verify if the choker was also a part of the Patiala necklace or was commissioned later or maybe it was sold later separately. Only Cartier can verify it from its archives.”

Luton Councillor in brief SAJID JAVID RAISES sentenced for CONCERNS ABOUT benefit fraud CANCEL CULTURE Labour Councillor, Hannah Adrees, 26, has been awarded an eight-month suspended sentence for misusing the position with regard to an adult social care payment. She took about £7,500 intended for the personal care of her brain-damaged uncle, Luton Crown Court heard. The council said it "is committed to investigating and prosecuting" fraud.

People cashing Council tax rebate cheques at pawnbrokers People have been queuing outside the Cash Shop in Rotherham to cash their £150 council tax rebate cheques because they cannot afford to wait for the money. The Rotherham Council has advised people to use the bank, post office or the local

authority to avoid fees as pawnbrokers deduct £15 fee for the service. To help with the cost of living crisis, the government is giving all households in bands A to D £150 through their council tax. A cheque is issued for those

who do not pay theirs through direct debit. Standing in a queue of about 50 people outside the Cash Shop, Aaron Parker, 39, said: "I've got no gas or electricity so it's really important I get the money now."

UK to cap interest on student loans To guard against soaring inflation student loan interest rates will be capped to a maximum of 7.3 per cent for a year, the Government has announced. It will not affect monthly repayments, which are based on income, but means borrowers will owe less than they would have done in the long term. The Department for

Education (DfE) said, due to a rise in the Retail Price Index (RPI) inflation, bor-

rowers were due to face a 12 per cent interest rate in September. The Government has decided to intervene to “provide greater clarity and peace of mind for graduates at this time”. The cap that will be applied from September 2022, will not affect monthly repayments, which are based on income.

Doctor warns couples against sharing a bed Couples should not share the same bed if they want to improve their quality of sleep, Doctor Karan Rajan says. He has advised couples against sleeping next to each other, warning of the damaging effect sharing a bed can have on a person's health. According to Dr Karan Rajan, if your partner moves a lot or snore then they will

most likely prevent the other person from entering REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, the deepest stage of the sleep cycle. Dr Karan, who works as a surgeon and lecturer at the University of Sunderland, expressed his views on the Tik Tok video that was shared with his 4.8 million followers.

In a TikTok video shared with his 4.8 million followers, Dr Karan, who works as a surgeon and lecturer at the University of Sunderland, said: "One of the triggers you need to be able to fall asleep is the drop in core body temperature. Sharing a bed increases body heat so it'll take longer for you to fall asleep."

Increase smoking age every yeargovernment review The age at which people buy tobacco should be increased by one year every year, a gove r n me n t - co mm i ssi o n e d review has said, to help people quit smoking. Along with this, vapes should be promoted as an effective “swap to stop” tool, the review said. Dr Javed Khan who carried out an independent review made 15 recommended interventions, including an extra £125 million per year invested in smoke-free policies and a further £70 million per year ring fenced for stop smoking services. Dr Khan, former chief executive of children’s charity Barnardo’s, said: “Without immediate and sustained action, England will miss the smoke-free target by many years and most likely decades. “My proposals are not just a plan for this government, but successive govern-

ments too. To truly achieve a smoke-free society in our great country, we need to commit to making smoking obsolete, once and for all.” The Department of

Health said, almost six million people in England smoke, and tobacco remains the single biggest cause of preventable illness and death.

UCL apologises for ‘bullying and sexual misconduct’ The University College London has apologised to current and former students and staff for a “culture of unacceptable behaviour” at its architecture school going back decades, after the university conducted an investigation into complaints of sexism and racism on campus. In response to the internal investigation’s findings, Michael Spence, UCL’s president and provost said, “I want to apologise to everyone who has suffered because of the culture of bullying, harass-

ment and sexual misconduct within the Bartlett School of Architecture”. Howlett Brown, an intelligence company specialising in employee investigations and appointed by the university as an impartial investigator began the inquiry in October 2021, concluded in mid-April with findings detailed in an 119-page report. The investigation included 49 individual interviews, focus groups, written submissions and a survey with more than 300 respondents.

Having received a suspended sentence for more than three months, Adrees, who represents the Dallow Ward, will now be disqualified as a councillor. After a heart attack in 2011, Adrees' uncle suffered brain damage and had money paid directly into a bank account, of which the defendant took over management in December 2017. Between December 2017 and November 2019, £28,000 was paid out, prosecutor Andrew Johnson said. On Adrees provided receipts and bank statements, he said, "it was blatantly obvious some of the funds were not being used in accordance with the care plan". "She misused her position as the person authorised to receive the direct personal care payment for her relative," he said.

Pharmacists will sign people off sick Soon, pharmacists and some other healthcare professionals rather than just GPs will be able to sign people off sick from work, under new rules. In the month of July, the law will be changed and will be applicable across England, Wales and Scotland.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid has raised concerns about cancel culture after screenings of a film about the Prophet Muhammed’s daughter The Lady of Heaven were cancelled in the UK. To “ensure the safety” of their customers and staff, on June 7, Cineworld pulled all of its screenings of The Lady of Heaven after hundreds of protestors took to cinemas in Birmingham, Bolton, Bradford and Sheffield. In response to the screenings being pulled, Javid said: “I am very concerned about the growing cancel culture in this country. There’s people out there who think they have a right not to be offended and of course, no one has that right. “You might not like what someone’s got to say, but they have a right to say it.” He added: “What we have in this country is freedom of speech and expression, and that is a fundamental value.”

KILLER WHO LEFT MAN TO DIE AFTER BURGLING HIS HOME IS JAILED FOR LIFE A heartless burglar who tied up 78-year-old David Varlow Adris Mohammed and left him to die has been jailed for life. Police discovered the body of seventy-eight-yearold David Varlow, who had "no prospect of being rescued" after they forced entry to his property in November last year. Following a trial at Birmingham Crown Court a jury found Adris Mohammed, of Icknield Port Road, Ladywood, guilty of murder, as well as attempted burglary, two counts of burglary and two counts of fraud. Co-defendant O'Shay Swan who accompanied Mohammed to the home sometime after the initial break-in was found guilty of burglary and fraud was jailed for six years. Peter Grieves-Smith QC, prosecuting, said: "To have done that he must have known the pin and Mr Varlow must have been forced to divulge it. He did not do it of his own free will. He must have been terrified.

COVID INFECTIONS ON RISE IN UK The main objective and aim is to free up family doctors' time. However, people who take sick leave for more than seven consecutive days, may need to show a note from a healthcare professional to their employer. In addition to GPs, when the new legislation is passed, nurses, occupational therapists, pharmacists (working in hospitals and GP practices) and physiotherapists will be able to provide the notes. Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid said: "It is part of our mission to deliver an extra 50 million GP appointments a year by 2024."

For the first time in two months, Covid infections have risen in the UK, data released reveals. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has estimated that one in 70 people in England had the virus last week, compared to one in 75 in Wales, one in 65 in Northern Ireland and one in 40 in Scotland. A total of 989,800 people in private homes are estimated to have had the virus last week - up from 953,900 the previous week. The jump is attributed to the increase in cases compatible with the original Omicron variant BA.1 and the newer variants BA.4 and BA.5, experts said. Although cases dropped in the West Midlands and South West, the North West, London and the South East all saw a week-on-week rise.

Gang jailed for more than 20 years for conning pensioners Mohammed Rahman, Muhammed Maarjan, Muhammed Hussain and Shoriful Islam were jailed for coning 68 elderly people out of hundreds of thousands of pounds. They have been jailed for a combined 20 years 8 months when they appeared at Bristol Crown Court today (10

June), after an investigation was carried out by Gloucestershire Police despite their victims being based across the country. The modus operandi of the gang was to pose as police officers and to gain access to the savings of their vulnerable victims who were over the age of 75, with two

aged 99. Some of them were terminally ill or had dementia. Under the pretext of investigating the bank fraud, the gang scammed the pensioners out of more than £290,000. Unfortunately, many of their victims were not able to get their money back.

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Immigration solutions for social care Maria Fernandes, Fernandes Vaz Solicitors The influential Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) were asked to look at the impact of Brexit on the adult social care sector. What they have to say makes an interesting read on the issue of carers. It makes recommendations from a much wider perspective offering new models and new ways of looking at the issues facing this industry. It invites the public sector as well as the NHS to consider a number of ways to offer social care in a person’s home. For most of this article I will be referring to large sections of the report as they are written. Those looking at the care industry should read this report and look at ways of engaging with MAC to develop workable models. The report acknowledges that social care sector is facing a workforce crisis. Care workers were placed on the shortage occupation list since December 2021 following the acknowledgement of crisis and upon MAC’s recommendations. They also qualify separately for Health and Care visas. MAC made an interesting observation about care workers who are still considered not to be at RQF Level 3: We also recognise the anger that many within the sector have felt at workers being viewed as ‘low-skilled’. We categorically disagree that care work is lowskilled;[our emphasis] although some basic technical skills can be acquired through training, other skills are vital attributes in providing good quality care, such as emotional and physical resilience, communication, planning and organisation, problem solving skills as well as understanding individuals’ needs. We also recognise the further strain that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has caused the sector, with workers going above and beyond to continue providing a vital service in challenging conditions. The Skilled Worker route is now the principal sponsored immigration route for hiring migrant workers in social care. This is through the Health and Care visa or through it being on the shortage occupation list. The advantage of it being in the shortage list is that it enables employers to sponsor care workers for a minimum salary of £20,480 per year. This is particularly useful for small employers. MAC has recognised the need to make the system of sponsorship for employers easier: We recommend that the Government either conduct or commission research to identify administrative burdens for employers and workers that could be eliminated across the Skilled worker route. This analysis should consider both the benefits to the integrity of the immigration route of specific requirements, and the burdens on those who must fulfil them. On the issue of the Immigration Skills charge: We recommend the removal of the Immigration Skills Charge for all Health and Care visas. More broadly, it would be useful to conduct a full review of the Immigration Skills Charge across the entire Skilled Worker route. Mac also has a view on Settlement Rights and fee waivers: We recommend that workers who spend the full 5 years working in nursing or care roles on the Health and Care visa should either receive a complete settlement fee waiver or pay a lower fee, that is no higher than the unit cost of processing. The cost of this recommendation should not be passed on to other visa fees. Care Workers placed on permanent occupation list: The MAC recommends that the decision to make care workers eligible for the

Health and Care worker visa should be made permanent, i.e., should not have an automatic sunset date. This will give more certainty to employers in the sector. By placing it on the Occupation Code it will also recognise the skill level of the care workers. For those on the Shortage Occupation List (SOL): MAC recommends that the Government keep care workers on this list until the next review. It points out that: While any future SOL review will examine the situation in the labour market at that time, realistically it is very unlikely that shortages in the social care sector will be resolved in such a short period. The MAC would likely only be minded to remove care workers from the SOL in the event of a very substantial change in the conditions facing social care employers. It goes on to consider direct employment of care workers: A small, but highly impacted, proportion of people who receive care and support in the UK directly employ care workers, and stakeholders from this sector have told us how vital those care workers are to these people being able to function and live independent lives. They also told us about the difficulties in finding and recruiting suitable individuals to provide personal care, and the high harm to their lives when they could not find appropriate care. MAC considered models in other countries for provision of social care. They have concluded that there are better ways of achieving the same objectives through the existing Skilled worker route. It points out that the regulations already allow an agency to sponsor a migrant provided that they are delivering a service to a client (rather than simply providing workers). It should therefore be possible for organisations to use the Health and Care visas to employ care workers, with individuals using personal budgets to purchase care and support services from those organisations. The important distinction is that the care worker must be formally employed by the agency rather than the person receiving care and support. They suggest: That Local Authority’s have a role in shaping social care markets and the MAC would encourage DHSC and the Devolved Administrations to work with local authorities to support the development of this market. However MAC goes further and recommends the setting up of a pilot scheme: There is likely to be a small group of people who receive care and support who would not want to use an agency to contract care services in their home. They would prefer to have more involvement in the recruitment of the person they will rely on for their care and not be required to pay agency fees. Whilst using an agency would be the preferred model for many, if the Government is clear that allowing people who receive care and support to directly hire workers is a fundamental element of social care policy, the Government could consider the introduction of a pilot umbrella scheme. Under the scheme, an umbrella body would be appointed to sponsor care workers from overseas and people who can show their level of need requires live-in care would be able to directly recruit from the umbrella body. MAC have offered to be involved in the design and evaluation of such a pilot if the Government decided to pursue it and also strongly urges close involvement with the sector. The Home Office usually accept the recommendations of MAC. This time there is much more depth to the recommendations especially on the pilot umbrella scheme. It will be interesting to see how far their recommendations go.

CAN SUMMER HOLIDAYS BE SAVED? Continued from page 1

me £300 out of pocket because a flight was cancelled last minute. For small business owners every penny counts. And luckily through zoom we can still have the conversations to build business partnerships, but there's nothing like a face-to-face meeting

Travellers from the community face disappointments Speaking to Asian Voice, Vaneet Mehta described how his friend’s flight cancellation led to his trip being called off last minute and he even had to pay for a night’s stay at the hotel. “My friend and I planned the trip at the start of May for the Jubilee Bank Holiday. “When the airline cancelled my friend's flight, I phoned my flight operator and managed to get a travel voucher. “We were not compensated. My friend got a full refund, and I got a travel voucher equal to my flight cost. Sonya Barlow Vaneet Mehta Though we haven't rebooked yet, but with a potential client when you're trying to we will be for next year. “We lost a bit of money on cancelling the cross the line with.” hotel, yes. But managed to get a refund on Reviewed timetable to ensure they are deliverable most of it (had to pay for one night out of As we went to press on Tuesday, airlines four).” When asked if he would advise people to have been urged to review their summer cancel holidays to avoid chaos, he said, “I don't timetables to ensure they are deliverable. The Independent reported, The think I'd advise people to cancel. But just be wary and prepared for delays and cancella- Department for Transport and the Civil tions. Get insurance. Book with free cancella- Aviation Authority stated that earlier cancellations are “better” than axing flights on the tion or the option to get a travel voucher.” Sarabjeet Kaley’s flight to Rotterdam got day of departure. They issued a joint letter to the aviation cancelled when he was waiting at the queue to check in their luggage. Speaking to Asian industry calling on companies to take “all Voice he said, “We planned our trip on 18 possible steps” to “avoid the unacceptable March. We have family in Rotterdam. So, I scenes we have recently witnessed”. Tens and thousands of passengers have booked 2 adults 1 toddler and 1 baby ticket. We were waiting to check in our luggage been affected by flight cancellations, long when the flight was announced as cancelled. queues at airports especially during the holiNo warning. The airline said we cannot days. Rannia Leontaridi, director general for rebook on any flights on the same day due to aviation at the Department for Transport staff “pilot” testing positive for covid. “However, the Airline has offered to pay and CAA boss Richard Moriarty set out five for tickets when we rebook within 12 months “specific expectations” for the sector in their plus a free upgrade to business class. Also letter, according to the newspaper. The letter gave 25% discount code for 12 months if we reportedly stated that airlines must have “the book any other flights but we haven’t processes and resources in place to keep consumers informed” about their rights during rebooked. “I’d highly recommend people to not disruption, such as having “sufficiently travel abroad this year. Airlines have serious staffed call centres and user-friendly digital staff shortages and its utter chaos at the air- channels”. It also proposed that airport chief execuports with people Queuing up outside waiting to get into airport. We are planning to tives create working groups to bring together explore beaches this year and museums with airlines, ground handlers, air traffic control the children including theme parks like and Border Force to “ensure a more coordiAlton Towers. Staying in nearby hotels and nated strategic approach”. The letter comes as Oliver Richardson, using more public transport instead of our national officer for civil aviation at trade own family car due to rise in fuel costs.” Sonya Barlow, an award-winning union Unite, told MPs that a ranking of airentrepreneur, diversity, and inclusion coach, lines based on their number of cancellations TedX speaker and author told Asian Voice, “almost exactly corresponds” with how many how as a small business owner she struggled jobs they cut during the pandemic, the with flight cancellations hampering her Independent reported. Can summer vacations can be saved? Let work. She said, “Due to the travel disruptions know your experience at I've had to reschedule my business meetings us as there's a high chance of change. In aveditorial@abplgroup.com for a follow up February the same thing occurred, costing story.

UK Asian Film Festival presented the Tongues on Fire Flame Awards The 22nd, annual UK Asian Film Festival presented the Tongues on Fire Flame Awards at the Closing Gala ceremony on 15 May at BFI Southbank. The presentation, hosted by actors, Nisha Aaliya and Yanick Ghanty, was followed the UK Premiere of Gangnam Girls. Representing the film at the Closing Gala were director, Charmi Nemchand Chheda, and producer, Nyema Zam. Additional guests in attendance included actors, Hina Khan, Lillete Dubey, Shaheen Khan, Yasir Hussain, Sudha Bhuchar, Himanshi Choudhry, Beo Raana Zafar, Harv Nagra and Vishnu Krishnan; supermodel and actress, Elena Fernandes; and music artists, Talvin Singh OBE and Abbas Hasan. The ‘Dare to Dream’ theme of this year’s festival commemorated 75 years of India and Pakistan’s Independence. The curation acknowledged personal and societal freedoms as well as address topical issues such as climate change and human resilience in the face of oppression through the festival programme.

Tongues on Fire Flame Award-winners:

u Best Film Curator’s Choice: Gandhi & Co u Best Short Film: February 1st u Best Actor: Yasir Hussain u Celebrating Dare to Dream Theme: Adieu

Godard

u Best Original Screenplay: Adh Chanani

Raat

u Best Documentary: Kekee Manzil: House

of Art

u Best Music Score: Talvin Singh u Best Director: Abu Aleeha u Best Debut Feature Film: Gangnam Girls u Best Film: Dostojee, Two Friends u Trail Blazer: Hina Khan u Rising Star Award: Nisha Aaliya u Best Animated Film: Priya and The

Twirling Wind

u Championing Change: Emergence – Out

of Shadows

u Silver Flame Award – Contribution to

Film & Television: Shaheen Khan

u Golden Flame Award – Contribution to

Film and Theatre: Lillete Dubey

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Investment in skills to unlock growth in Greater Manchester needed, ex-levelling up chief says Andy Haldane, who was the head of the Levelling Up taskforce is backing Greater Manchester's calls to be given more control over its post-school skills system. Local leaders believe that technical education and training opportunities should be made available to people from the age of 16 onwards. This includes investment in skills needed in the digital, technology and life science sectors as well as the green economy such as for retrofitting homes. The former chief economist at the Bank of England, who is now

the chief executive at the Royal Society for the Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce (RSA), made the comments on a visit to HOST, an innovation hub in Media City. "Within the whole range of dimensions of devo, skills is crucially important. If you're asking me to pick an issue that will be the key to unlocking growth here in Greater Manchester, and indeed across the whole of the UK, there is no bigger or more important one than skills,” Mr Haldane said.

Chemical incident involved 1,000 litre container of acid split in Rochdale On Wednesday evening, at Mellor Street in the Spotland area of the town, around 1,000 litres of peracetic acid, which is used as a disinfectant or bleaching agent, had been spilt after reportedly being punctured by a forklift truck Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said. This chemical incident sparked a huge emergency service response in Rochdale where Fire crews, paramedics and police all raced to the scene.

The road was closed with nearby residents advised to close their doors and windows. "At 4.21pm on Wednesday 8 June, four fire engines from Rochdale, Heywood and Bury attended an incident on Mellor Street, Rochdale involving a chemical spillage," a GMFRS spokesperson said. The advice on keeping windows and doors shut was eventually lifted and traffic was initially allowed to flow on the opposite side of the road.

Fifth Anniversary of Grenfell tragedy The Grenfell Tower fire left 72 people dead in what is remembered as one of the worst tragedies in the history of modern Britain. Later, it emerged there were serious problems with the safety of the building. The refurbishment project that took place on the Grenfell Tower was undermined by "shockingly poor workmanship", the inquiry heard in July 2020. The local authority building control officer responsible for inspecting the Grenfell Tower refurbishment had no previous experience of an overcladding project on an occupied

high-rise residential building, the inquiry heard in September 2020. Sir Martin Moore-Bick, the inquiry chairman, also criticised the London Fire Brigade for how

it implemented a "stay put" strategy, where firefighters and 999 operators told residents to stay in their flats for nearly two hours after the blaze broke out. On the fifth anniversary of the tragedy, a wideranging public inquiry into the disaster is due to end next month as activists continue to fight for justice. The Metropolitan Police has been investigating the fire but cannot bring any criminal charges, such as corporate manslaughter, until the public inquiry has been completed.

Duchess of Sussex coaches girls in Amsterdam The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan visited the Project Fearless initiative in Amsterdam in April while in the Netherlands for the Invictus Games and took on a role as a guest coach for a girls’ entrepreneurship course. Project Fearless aims to give girls and non-binary youngsters aged nine to 14 the tools to succeed through after-school courses, including climate science, skateboarding, kick-boxing and entrepreneurship. Photos shared by the Dutch non-profit organisation on Monday showed the duchess hugging a delighted young partici-

pant and also cheering with her hand in the air in a team photo

with the teenagers. The Duchess said in a statement released by Archewell: “Safe, supportive spaces like Project Fearless allow girls the opportunity to express themselves, build each other up, gain resilience and tackle new challenges.” Merida Miller, founder of Project Fearless, said, “The duchess’ visit was a brilliant way to celebrate the impact Project Fearless has made over the last three years, introducing the girls to an accessible role model who is making a difference and using her voice.”

UK Visas and Immigration

Secure English Language Tests (SELTs) approved for applications to UKVI for visas, visa renewals, British Citizenship and Settlement GESE: Graded Examinations in Spoken English A speaking and listening in English test available at levels A1, A2 and B1 Tests available seven days a week at centres UK wide Provisional result received by 9am the next day and certificates sent within seven days

New Trinity SELT test centre now open in Newcastle! You can now book your Trinity SELT test in Newcastle, only a 10-minute walk from Newcastle Central Train Station

Scan the QR code or visit trinitySELT.co.uk to book your Trinity SELT test

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Sanskruti Centre facilitates Cultural Diplomacy at House of Lords event

orld Day for Cultural Diversity for Dialogue and Development, an important United Nations observance Day, was marked at the House of Lords of British Parliament recently, during which a range of rare folk and classical dances of India were showcased, besides Nepalese folk dance. Organised by Sanskruti Centre for Cultural Excellence under the aegis of Baroness Sandip Verma, former Under Secretary of International Development, the event highlighted the positive role of performing arts in enhancing mutual respect, cooperation, and development. Impactful inputs by Ambassador Joakim K Kamere- Deputy High Commissioner, Kenya High Commission, Mrs Roshan KhanalDCM/Counsellor, Embassy of Nepal, Dr Phil. Sahidi Bilan, Cllr. Sharad Jha and Chanukya Rajagopala on the role of cultural and linguistic diversity adorned the content-rich evening. Diplomats Ms Fathika Fayaz from the High Commission of the Maldives and

World Day for Cultural Diversity 2022 at the House of Lords

Performers at WDCD event 2022

Ms Thivanka Athuraliya from the High

Sir David Attenborough receives royal honour The Prince of Wales honoured Sir David Attenborough with the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George for services to TV, broadcasting and conservation at an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Wednesday. In 1985, Sir David, 96, was knighted by The Queen in 1985. It comes after Sir David’s celebrated documentaries including The

Green Planet and A Plastic Ocean were featured in a segment at the Platinum Jubilee concert that was held outside Buckingham Palace last weekend. On Wednesday in Windsor along with Sir David, Snow Patrol singer Gary Lightbody collected his OBE for services to music and to charity in Northern Ireland, while actor Toby Jones also received the same accolade for services to drama.

Commission of Sri Lanka were in attendance. Classical dances Mohiniattam and Bharatanatyam, rarely seen Garo (Meghalaya), Miji (Arunachal Pradesh), Siddi & Hejje Kunita (Karnataka) Shondol (Ladakh), and the oldest Nepalese dance Maruni have all enhanced the cultural awareness of attendees. Sanskruti Centre has been lauded for the unique initiative as such events are key to facilitating the exchange of ideas, information, art, language and other aspects of culture among nations and their peoples.

Husband fatally stabs wife, later dies in custody- inquest hears Sukhjeet Uppal,41, was repeatedly stabbed by her husband Jai Singh, 50, at her home in Tangmere Road at about 8 pm on Sunday, September 19. She died at the scene. The victim’s husband who was charged with murder, later died after suffering 'catastrophic brain damage' in prison, in January, an inquest has heard. Singh had brain damage, and multiple organ failure and suffered a cardiac arrest due to asphyxia, a post-

mortem examination report says. An inquest into his death was heard at the time of his death, he was in detention at HMP Birmingham The record of the inquest states: "On 19/9/21 Mrs Sukhjeet Uppal was at her home address when she was attacked with a knife whilst she was sitting on a sofa. Mrs Uppal was stabbed multiple times by her attacker resulting in injuries that led to her death."

SKLPC Golden Jubilee Trek Team celebrates Queen’s Jubilee weekend by conquering Mt Snowdon Members from SKLPC (Shree Kutch Leva Patel Community) under the leadership of Vijay and Lax Hirani with contributions from Joshna Hirani, Kishore Nardani and Dipak Hirani started walking/hiking for 10 weeks every Sunday on planned routes around Stanmore, Dunstable Hills, Wendover and Ashridge. The hikers were as young as 11 to the oldest being 68. Occupations varied from professionals, students, with some physical or mental challenges, made this a rewarding community endeavour. On day 1, rangers learnt about the poor weather forecast and no possibility for night or day climb. The leadership team therefore embarked on plan B – sunset climb on Thursday 3 Jun that started at 9:30pm. This was

limited to 12 experienced hikers with the right equipment and fitness levels and those participating in the next challenge in August 2022 in Kilimanjaro. On Day 2, participants reached Summit at 3051ft. Comments from participants showed what one could achieve when we create an atmosphere of cooperation and teamwork. 15-year-old Maya said, “I really enjoyed walking and climbing

the steep hills with people of all ages and really felt part of a community doing healthy walks whilst my friends were asleep.” Umang added, “I want to thank the leaders and all those that helped me. In

NHS hiring more doctors from outside UK and EEA For the first time, the NHS is hiring more doctors from outside the UK and the European Economic Area than from within, setting off a moral argument over the health service’s growing mentality of “poaching” from the developing world. Around 37 per cent of the 19,977 doctors who started work in the NHS in 2021 had a British qualification, unpublished figures from the General Medical Council (GMC) show. Compared with 9,968 within, a total of 10,009 new

medics learned medicine outside the UK and the EEA – so-called international medical graduates (IMGs). Hunt, the chair of the Commons health select committee, said: “The NHS would simply fall over without clinicians from abroad and we should welcome them with open arms. But depending on immigration from poorer countries to staff our NHS as a longterm strategy is morally dubious where these doctors are desperately needed in their home countries.”

M&S boss leaves with £2.6m pay packet Amid a cost of living crisis for UK households, former M&S boss Steve Rowe saw his pay packet for the last year more than double to £2.6m. Rowe, who stepped down as chief executive last month, received a salary of £841,000 for the year to April 2 but saw his total pay deal lifted heavily by £1.6m with bonuses alongside other benefits. Meanwhile, chief finance officer Eoin Tonge received a

£1.85m package representing a slight decrease from the previous financial year. The bosses of Tesco and Sainsbury’s also witnessed large jumps in their total pay deals despite the volatile economic backdrop. Stuart Machin and Katie Bickerstaffe were handed over the leadership last month, yet Rowe will continue to advise the new leadership team in the short term.

Rise in abuse and attacks against pharmacists The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA), a union for UK pharmacists, says there have been reports of a stabbing and physical attacks in pharmacies around the UK. The union said more needs to be done to enforce the NHS's zerotolerance policy on worker abuse. To handle pharmacy-based crimes, police forces are being called out as well. An agitated patient threatened Glasgow pharmacist Chand Kausar with a knife and cornered her

against a wall. "My hands were above my head and I could hear all the noise around me, but I actually felt very calm. In my head all was quiet. I remember thinking it was like a movie scene. I'd never seen a knife like that, and I never imagined I'd have one held to my throat”, Ms Kausar said. The police who were alerted quickly arrested her attacker, saving Ms Kausar from any physical injuries, but she is still haunted by the mental scars.

Alok Sharma in the race for UN’s global climate chief my wildest dreams I would not have thought I could climb a mountain. This really helped my self-confidence and improved my mental well-being”. 11-year-old Naya said, “Never knew Snowdon would turn me into a bird.” SKLPC raised over £6,000 for the India Gardens project as well as donations in kinds.

Alok Sharma, the UK cabinet minister is in the running to be the UN’s global climate chief, at a crucial time for international action on greenhouse gas emissions.Last year, he led the Cop26 climate summit. Patricia Espinosa, the UN’s current top climate official will step down next month, leaving a vacancy as the world prepares for the next stage in vital negotiations to stave

off climate breakdown. It is believed that Sharma has been approached about the pivotal role of the UN’s top climate official, and would be willing to take it on. If Sharma is appointed, then Downing Street would face a tricky byelection in his Reading West seat, formerly a Tory stronghold but now regarded as a potential “blue wall” target.

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From the back streets of Nairobi to two national recognitions Ramesh Vala is an ultimate example of how a single person can make such an impact to uplift the lives of so many, while wearing these initiatives lightly. Losing his mother during his childhood in Nairobi he became a parental figure to his three siblings when he was just a child himself. However, his dream of becoming a lawyer, his tenacity, his intellectual prowess and his ‘can do’ attitude led him to being a super achiever. With the limited financial availability and a lady benefactor, he came to the UK and studied Law at the LSE. Ramesh’s many fundraising initiatives are truly inspiring. He is also a role model and an advocate for the unique and proud role of the British Indian community in our country. Ramesh is also a global ambassador for the UK advocating for British law firms and businesses. He has received various accolades and in recognition of his OBE (in 2001), the Indian Government honoured him with a Videsh Samman as a token of appreciation for contributing to the enhancement of human welfare and Indo-British understanding. Having met Her Majesty The Queen, His Royal Highness Prince Charles, and other world leaders, Ramesh’s biggest inspiration remains Mother Teresa. In his own words, “I am both deeply humbled and honoured to have been appointed a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE) in Her Majesty The Queen’s 2022 Birthday Honours list. I am so thankful to so many, my incredible wife (Ella), family and friends, clients and colleagues. I have been lucky to have been able to spearhead has been a blessing and the funds we have raised (over £2m) for various causes have often left me speechless. My most recent memories stem from being able to make a difference during Covid-19 in many different areas. I take this opportunity to reaffirm my continued commitment to working tirelessly to serve the public and the communities in which I live and balancing this with my professional life."

Construction firm fined £30,000 after workers illegally removed asbestos A construction firm Sal Construction Services Limited has been reportedly fined after its workers illegally removed asbestos while refurbishing a block of student flats. Between May and June 2021, it had been contracted to carry out the work at Darbishire House in Upper Brook Street, Manchester. The project involved providing bathrooms for all rooms and constructing two studio flats, Manchester Magistrates Court heard. Before moving on to the top floor, workers built two showrooms on the ground floor which was stripped back to brickwork. During this work, asbestos pipe lagging was removed, and debris spread across the site and in and around the skip in the yard area. Sal Construction Services Limited of Finney Lane, Heald Green, Cheadle pleaded guilty to breaches of Section 2 (1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £30,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,133.45.

Ashok J. Rabheru awarded Knighthood in Queen’s Birthday Honours List

harity supporter and IT Morogoro, Tanzania in 1952. chief, Ashok J Rabheru, He emigrated to the UK at has been awarded a the age of 15 and went on to Knighthood in the Queen’s study for a BSc in Physics at Birthday Honours List 2022. He University College London. becomes Knight Commander of He obtained his M Phil in the Royal Victorian Order in Applied Mathematics, at the recognition of his work for The Royal Holloway College, Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, and later his Post Graduate which he has supported in variDiploma in Computing at ous capacities for over twentyLondon University. five years. He founded his current Genisys Group of IT services Sir Ashok served as a Ashok J. Rabheru companies in 1985 in Surrey Trustee of the DofE UK Award with just five employees. Genisys Group from 2000 until December 2010 and was a now has offices in three continents and prominent member of the steering group employs over 1100 people. for planning and raising funds for the 50th He has been an active supporter of sevanniversary of the DofE Award in 2006. eral charities including Heart of Bucks, Since 2010 he has held the position of medical research institutions such as Chairman of the DoE UK and International University College London and Imperial Joint Funding Board. More recently he also College London, Combat Stress and Debra worked tirelessly to assist in marking the together with ongoing work within the centenary of His Royal Highness The Asian community. He is passionate about Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and parhelping to improve underprivileged chilticularly to celebrate all he did to champion dren’s education, health and opportunities. the infinite potential of young people. Sir Lord Graham Kirkham KCVO said, “I Ashok is currently assisting HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex with the launch of a three-year campaign, The Founder’s 100 Legacy Fund to raise awareness of the importance of non-formal education and learning for young people across A Loughborough businessman, Taj Bola has the world. hit out at impending rail strikes which he He said, “I am flattered to receive this believes will hit trade in Skegness. he who personal award from Her Majesty. I am owns the Hive entertainment complex and constantly humbled by the efforts that so The Royal Hotel in the town has blasted rail many volunteers put in to enable the DofE workers who are set to strike later this Award to function and grow. It has been a month as part of an ongoing pay dispute. privilege to participate, and I have enjoyed He referred to the action as "callous”, myself immensely. This honour may be and believes that the action will badly affect undeserved but is greatly appreciated”. his and other people's business. The strikes, Sir Rabheru, pictured, was born in which will involve around 50,000 staff up

am privileged and proud to have worked with Ashok for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award for over 20 years. Diminutive in stature, quiet in voice and gentle in manner, he is a determined, vigorous, passionate giant in all his efforts to do good, and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has been a massive beneficiary of his guidance, commitment, relentless work, energy, generosity and sound entrepreneurial judgement. The Award could not have a more passionate, resolute or effective supporter, advocate and Ambassador. Ashok richly deserves this personal honour from Her Majesty that I know he accepts with great gratitude, humility and pride. I offer him my heartfelt congratulations.” Sir Ashok Rabheru was appointed a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order by Her Majesty The Queen in 2011. In the same year, he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Buckinghamshire. He is an enthusiastic sports fan and spends time as a cricket supporter, whilst remaining an active golfer. He is married to Harshida and they are proud parents to adult triplets: Nikita, Rishi and Shayan.

Businessman calls out 'callous' rail striker fearing impacts on trade

Hundreds of pounds of electronics stolen in home burglary A property in Huggett Close, Rushey Mead, was broken into between 10.30pm and midnight on Tuesday, June 7 and hundreds of pounds worth of personal items were stolen in Leicester. The incident saw an iPad and iPhone and a Samsung tablet among the things that were taken.

With regard to the incident that happened close to Troon Way, Leicestershire Police are appealing for information. PC Jamie Anderson, the investigating officer, said: "I’d like to speak to anyone living in Huggett Close or the surrounding area who has not yet come forward". He continued: "Please cast your mind back to Tuesday night. Did you see anyone acting in a manner that caught your attention? Was it unusual or suspicious? Did you notice anything on your video doorbell? Any information you have could help my investigation.”

and down the country, are scheduled to take plave on June 21, 23 and 25, with 13 train operators, including LNER and East Midlands Railway, (EMR), affected. Mr Bola said, "It is likely to have a detrimental effect because we do have good rail links with Nottingham which are very important for us. You only have to look at the hordes of people who come off a train whenever it arrives in Skegness to see how important the rail links are for this town.”

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18 - 24 June 2022

Lions, Pride of Gujarat! Recently Gujarat was in the news discussing the ever rising population of lions in Gir forest. Gir is the only place in Asia where wild lions roam free since time- memorial but the narrow-minded attitude on part of politicians is putting at risk the entire population of Gir lions. When wild animals live in a crowded place, there is a danger of interbreeding that may result in poor, unhealthy younger population. This is indeed detrimental for their well-being, as male lions are forced out of their pack on attaining sexual maturity to stop interbreeding. lthough lion population has increased to a record level, so many lions confined in a small place like Gir, has led to the death of thirty lions recently from tick-born parasite causing babesiosis that infects blood and is fatal, especially to lion cubs. It is time; either Gujarat government takes brave but overdue steps and transfer some of these lions to other States like Kerala and Madhya Pradesh which all have well managed wild-life sanctuary to accommodate excess lion population which will guarantee their survival indefinitely! Another option, although not as good or as safe as the above mentioned one, is to open up large part of Gujarat surrounding Gir forest to give more space and variety of diet, by introducing other wild animals like deer, wild goats, pigs and wild asses only found in Run of Kutch. Junagadh is just few miles from Arabian Sea. If 50 to 100 square miles area, stretching to the sea is added to Gir Forest, it will give space, variety and purpose to lion preservation efforts, making them safe from being wipe-out by disease! Some tribal people are already living in Gir forest, side by side with lions without any serious incident, even when some lions stray into villages in search of food, as people of Gujarat are vegetarian on most part, love and protect their wild life with zeal and passion. Clearing such vast area, turning into forest, resettling villagers, paying compensation will cost a fortune but Gujarat has some of the richest billionaires in India, that include Ambanis, Premjis, Tatas and many more who could fund the project in partnership with Gujarat if invited, enticed by BJP government. This will help in attracting Western tourists that India is aiming at, especially from Europe and North America. Even Indians, mainly Gujaratis who have settled in West and are one of the most prosperous minorities could play a significant part if encouraged.

50th Anniversary of Napalm Bomb in South Vietnam South Vietnamese forces follow terrified children, including 9- years old Kim Puch, as they run down Route 1 near Trang Bang after as aerial napalm attack on suspected Viet Cong hiding places on June 8,1972 . A South Vietnamese plane accidentally dropped it’s flaming napalm on South Vietnamese troops and civilians and terrified girl had ripped off burning clothes while fleeing. At that time AP photographer Nick Ut took photo of Kim Phuc running naked and other fleeing South Vietnamese soldiers towards him. After snapping photo ,Ut took Kim Phuc and other children to Barsky Hospital in Saigon, where it was determined that her burns were so severe that she would not survive. After 14 month in hospital stay and many surgical procedures and skin transplantations she was able to return. Nick Ut won a Pulitzer Prize for a photography in 1973 as his photo of Kim Phuc became almost an iconic image that for many symbolized the failure of the war in Vietnam. As any other famous photographs this one is also little controversial. At first President Richard Nixon, doubted photo’s authenticity. Nixon suggested that the photo was fake and that girl perhaps burned by cooking oil. As it is very rightly said that first casualty of war is truth. Canada gave Kim Phuc , asylum (The image of her photo titled “The Terror of War” but better know as “Napalm Girl”, as symbol of horrors of war itself. To day Kim Phuc Phan Thi lives in Ajax , Ontario (few kilometres from Markham,Ontario where we live ) with her mother and husband and runs a non-profit organization to help kids in conflict . A most worthiest charity cause for kids. Suresh and Bhavna Patel. Markham. Canada. Suresh Patel

Research finds drivers in London are most likely to have their car stolen

Bhupendra M. Gandhi

Help your dad give up smoking Are you looking for an original, meaningful and inexpensive Father's Day gift for your dad? If your dad smokes, show him your love by supporting him in quitting smoking. Quitting the butt can take many tries and he doesn't have to do it alone. Let your dad know you'll stand by him for as long as it takes. Even if he has tried to quit smoking before, encourage him to keep trying --- mya smoker attempts to quit an average of seven times before quitting for good. Remind him that a smoker who gets support and use medicines are nearly three times as likely to quit for good. Quitting smoking is one of the most difficult things your dad will ever do. Tell him not to get discouraged. If he slips up, let him know that you're there for him when he's ready to try again, no matter how many times he tries to quit. A father is the one who maintains strict discipline among the family members and is looked upon with respect by everyone. He shows the right path to his children and motivates them to achieve the goals of their lives through proper education. A father is the one who stands rock solid beside his family and protects them from the evils of society. He acts as the root of his family and binds each member with love and respect. On Father’s Day, which is celebrated on the third Sunday in June, we celebrate the importance of fathers as we take time to recognise all fathers, both past and present. In India, Father’s Day is celebrated on the third Sunday of June. This year, it will be celebrated on Sunday, June 19. Jubel D'Cruz, Mumbai, India

Pillow talk When I saw a TV commercial which showed a couple sleeping with small pillows between their knees I dismissed it as a money-making gimmick. However, when I tried it with a cushion I was amazed at the deep refreshing sleep I had and now continue to have. I looked up “knee pillows for sleeping” on the internet and found the practice has many benefits ranging from spine alignment to easing knee pains. Rudy Otter

Research has revealed that out of the whole of England and Wales, London is the place where people are most likely to have their cars stolen. The study, conducted by A-Plan Insurance, was carried out by assessing Home Office data of vehicle thefts in each Police Force Area and determining the rate according to the number of thefts per household. With 100,185 cars stolen in London in 2021, England’s capital had 11.1. vehicle thefts per thousand households. This puts it first for the area where drivers are most likely to be the victims of vehicle theft. The West Midlands comes second for its vehicle crime rate, with 10.4 vehicle thefts per thousand households (30,608 cars stolen in 2021), while Greater Manchester had nine cars stolen per thousand households (25,495 vehicle thefts), making it the third most dangerous place to own a car. At the other end of the scale, Dyfed-Powys, in Wales, is the place where drivers can be most confident their car won’t get stolen, with 623 vehicle thefts in 2021. This means just 1.2 cars were stolen per thousand households. Cumbria and North Yorkshire are also some of the least likely areas for vehicle theft, with 727 and 1,433 cars stolen respectively in 2021. That’s 1.5 vehicle thefts per thousand households in Cumbria and 1.7 in North Yorkshire. The research also analysed data from 2020, to determine whether vehicle thefts have increased or decreased in each Police Force Area since last year, finding that although London is still the worst place for vehicle theft, the crime rate is improving. Compared to 2020, car thefts in the capital are down by nine per cent, however, it’s a different story in the West Midlands, with 12 per cent more vehicles stolen in 2021. Greater Manchester also saw an increase of five per cent on last year, but Hampshire is the area where vehicle theft has increased the most, with 22 per cent more cars stolen in 2021 than in 2020. Gloucestershire has seen the biggest improvement when it comes to the number of cars stolen in the area, with nearly a third fewer thefts in 2021, compared to 2020.

KAPIL’S

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Kapil Dudakia

KHICHADI

Ralib Galib Chalib The minarets of Kashmir screeched, ‘Ralib Galib Chalib’translated to, convert, die or leave. In 1989/90, thousands of Hindus woke up to the madness of Islamist butcherswho declared that their faith was more important than their humanity. What took place thereafter was the physical, mental, and cultural genocide of Hindus in Kashmir, otherwise known as Kashmiri Pandits. The cradle of civilisationhad become the battleground for the barbarians to murder and rape their Hindu neighbours and force them out from their ancestral land. Kashmir has always been Hindu. In fact, it was Hindu for thousands of years even before Islam came into existence. The Islamists, sponsored by Pakistan and other Islamic entities care not for humanity, for human rights, for honour or decency, they live in the gutter of their own excreta which guides their mental condition. So when Vivek Agnihotri made the movie, ‘The Kashmir Files’, all hell broke loose. After all, the truth about the genocide of Hindus in Kashmir had been hidden by a conspiracy of silence. The biggest failurebeing that of India itself. Successive governments turned a blind eye to the truth, favouring the appeasement of families like the Abdullahs. These Pakistani agents of terror were given a free hand, even worse, they were given billions of dollars to try and buy their loyalty. As most of us know, the nature of a snake is to bite regardless of their own security. Is it any wonder that these snakes turned on India and Hindus? Hindus have been enslaved for some 1400 years by various invaders. This did not happen by chance. Our very own sold us out, time and again. Is history going to repeat itself again in India? They tried to silence ‘The Kashmir Files’, but the very opposite happened. It has gone worldwide and reached those people who hitherto had no idea about the truth. However, as we in the UK come out in our thousands to support Vivek Agnihotri on his humanitarian tour, we witness the targeted killings taking place in Kashmir. In fact, some Hindus in Kashmir are even contemplating leaving the valley again. Under the stewardship of PM Modi and the BJP government, this is not just a disaster, it is shameful. In the same week a young lady by the name of Nupur Sharma who had made certain observations about Islam, was fired from the BJPand has since faced thousands of death threats. Threats by leading Muslims and Islamic entities in India and abroad. If a government exhibits cowardice in facing terrorists and extremists, then they have no business being in governance.I say to PM Modi, it’s time to eradicate Ravana and restore Dharma. The world is defined by narratives. At present the fake narratives peddled out by Islamists, communists, Naxals, anti-India forces and anti-Hindu forces are winning the day. No amount of chest thumping or sticking one’s head in the sand will eliminate the existential threat that exists to Hindus and their way of life. If PM Modi does not address the issue head on, then don’t be too surprised if the ordinary citizen takes this in their own hands and restores justice the only way they know how. No law or state can take away the fundamental human right to defend oneself, to protect one's own life and the lives of those we love. At your peril ignore the silent majority who are now at their breaking point. And there is also a message to Muslims of India. Know that your bloodline is Hindu. Know that the barbarism you have inherited from the middle east is not your saviour. Know that if you really are true to your humanity, then you must reject the Islamists in all their forms. If you don’t defuse this ticking time bomb, don’t be too surprised if it blows up in your face. ‘Ralib Galib Chalib’: We will never accept this.

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

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AsianVoiceNewsweekly

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18 - 24 June 2022

The actual responsibility Rohit Vadhwana

here are chances that you might have come across a situation where nobody is at fault but still you need to identify someone who can be held responsible for certain incident. This happens especially in big events, both in social setups and professional organisations. Some mistake might have happened but it turns out that no one in particular is answerable for it. No one in responsible position was expected to perform certain acts and ommission of which has lead to the episode in question, or that the particular task was not allocated at all to anyone. But if explanation is asked for, who can be blamed in such a situation? More often people try to put blame on others in an attempt to clear oneself out. After all, who likes to take the blame? People immediately point a finger at other individuals. While some members of the group might simply try to exonerate themselves of all liabilities, others might go a step forward to fix it somewhere else. A few might even do back-stabbing to punish someone else, specific or in general. If confidential opinions are taken then someone may even blame a certain specific soul who they don't like. In open discussion, a group of people my make a cartel to help each other so the left outs have to share the blame. Different ways, but all aimed at not taking the blame, not finding the actual reasons, just to absolve ownself from any liability. Imagine how difficult it is for the head of any organisation to actually find out who is responsible for the fault. Can he be objectively clear to apportion proportionate liability for the mistakes? Some management gurus would say that the true leader would take the blame on himself. That is totally fine, because the leader is always answerable for the faults and limitations of his team. But that doesn't resolve the problem. The true leader should also be able to identify the portion of error and oversight which have played a role in creation of such predicament. There is a particular type of bosses who would be very quick to put blame on one person whom s/he doesn't like. Any such incident gives her/him a much desired opportunity to guillotine the detested people from organisation. This approach is also evidently faulty, rather conspiratorial. Ever in future if you have to decide in such contingency, better to work towards finding out actual blunder, and fix it. Proportionating it is also a good way, but simply acquitting ownself or cartelling or conspiring to fix it on others is never a productive way for anyone. (Expressed opinions are personal)

Two derelict schools set to be demolished to make room for new council homes Two disused primary schools, the Newry and Southfields schools in Leicester are set to be demolished to make space for more housing. The schools in the Eyres Monsell ward of the city, have been vacant and derelict for over a decade since their replacement, the Samworth Academy, opened. To help address the ‘huge need’ for council homes, at least 53 new homes could

now be built in their place, a planning application submitted to the city council reveals. These would be made up of 41 houses, three bungalows and nine flats at the northern edge of the site, if the application is approved. The majority of these (34) would be two-bed homes, but there will be seven onebed and 12 three-bed homes as well.

Pensioner’s car stolen twice in 24 hours A pensioner woke up to find his £4,000 Fiat 500C missing from his Gornalwood home in Dudley, twice in one day. Simon Perfitt, 66, from Ranscombe Road, found his car abandoned on a nearby road on the morning of his birthday on June 5, outside a bus stop, with its door open and lights on. He contacted West Midlands Police who came and carried out forensic tests on the car, however, to his shock, on Monday, June 6, his car was stolen

again from outside his home, never to be found. The second time he saw his car being moved and he called 999 but it was to no avail. CCTV from his home captured his Fiat being driven away at around 5am. In response to the story, a West Midlands Police spokesperson said: "We can confirm this was reported to us. Anyone with information can contact us via Live Chat on our website or by calling 101, quoting crime ref 20/527888/22."

FISI UK conducts an event to help sketch reasons for the missing human catastrophe narrative of Kashmir in the western societies Friends of Indian Society International (FISI) organised a spectacular event at the Nehru Centre to understand the lopsided and biased narrative of Kashmir in western societies wherein the gruesome stories of the Kashmiri Hindus are either distorted or blatantly hidden. The event was opened by well-known Author & Director of Nehru Centre, Amish Tripathi and to provide different dimensions to the topic in hand, a distinguished panel of speakers were present including Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (The Kashmir Files Director & Author), Pallavi Joshi (Actor and Producer), Chris Blackburn (Political Analyst in the UK) and Pandit Satish Kumar Sharma (Author of Caste, Conversion, A Colonial Conspiracy). The interjections touched upon many aspects including global terrorism of which Kashmir is a prime victim, a prevalent anti-Hindu bias and a need to deliberate for protection of diverse Indian aka Bharatiya values and thought processes. The discussion also included under-representation of India’s voice-share in the international media circuit and policy-making forums. Pandit Satish Sharma, an active ambassador of Indian culture in the UK, provided cultural and philosophical aspects of the Indian thoughts and urged the need for the Indian diaspora to come together. Chris Blackburn shared his experiences on global terrorism and exposed its links with Islamist charities in the US and UK. He also underlined how the mindspace of specific communities are almost monopolized by fringe organizations which in turn aids ter-

The speakers with members of FISI

revealed that his upcoming film ‘The Delhi Files’ tagged as the ‘Right to Life’ would broadly try to address this issue. He remarked that hiding the truth about Kashmiri Hindus’ massacre and displacement was as vicious and justice-defeating as the terrorising violence and torture and the subsequent cleansing that the community had to endure. His remarks got a thunderous applause from the jam-packed audience. The event left the audience intrigued and inspired. It was attended by a cross section of the Indian diaspora including councillors, heads of dif-

rorists. He highlited the sinster effort to muzzle his voice by certain menacing forces who didn’t want the world to know about the underlying nexus between the terrorists. Pallavi Joshi pointed to the fact that while the Indian diaspora is hugely successful and have made significant economic contributions to the countries they live in, they lack influence proportional to their economic success in critical issues pertaining to India. She relayed the difChris Blackburn, Pallavi Joshi, Vivek Agnihotri ficulties and price that they had and Satish Sharma to pay for bringing out stories of ferent community organisations and India on sensitive issues that no filmjournalists. The event was compered maker had ever ventured upon. She by FISI Executive Member Saritha questioned the muting of freedom of Rahul & the panel discussion was expression under the diktats and bigmoderated by FISI Executive Member otry of a certain ideology seen on Sweta Bhatia. The vote of thanks was British soil. given by FISI Executive member Sushil Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri, famed Rapatwar. The guest speakers were director of The Kashmir Files, said felicitated by FISI President, that he and his production company, I Madhuresh Mishra & FISI General am Buddha, had made it their mission Secretary Manu Khajuria. to make purposeful cinema which Friends of India Society challenged skewed narratives and International (FISI) UK is a non-profit revealed hidden truths. He spoke of organisation that strives to strengthen Hindus being a global minority and the relationship between UK and India Bharat which is both a modern democracy & an ancient civilisation and also promotes dialogue on India’s facing a multi-pronged attack. He social and cultural issues.

The Kashmir Files director Vivek Agnihotri speaks at the UK Parliament on India, world peace and humanism The Kashmir Files director Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri and actress-producer wife Pallavi Joshi were bestowed with the rare honour of speaking at the UK Parliament on Wednesday. They were invited to an event themed ‘India, World Peace and Humanism’. The event marking the importance of freedom of expression and human rights of minorities was attended by a number of

Genocide is as heinous as Genocide itself as Hindus continue to be murdered in Kashmir valley by Islamist terrorists even till today. Vivek Agnihotri further tweeted: “Last night was historical as for the first time ever so many ideologically diverse MPs, Lords, Baronesses, Mayors & Councillors stood up in support of Kashmiri Hindus and pledged to take the cause of Genocide further at Lord Rami Ranger addressing the guests at House of Lords

Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri

Members of Parliament from the House of Commons and the House of Lords as well as local elected Councillors from across the UK. Lord Bhiku Parekh, Lord Rami Ranger, Lord

Navnit Dholakia, Lord Jitesh Gadhia, Jonathan Lord MP, Virendra Sharma MP, Jane Stevenson MP, Henry Smith MP, Navendu Mishra MP, Theresa Villiers MP, Sam Terry and CB Patel (Editor-in-Chief) of Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar joined Vivek and Pallavi in a frank conversation about freedom, liberty and humanity extended by virtue of respect towards human rights. The event was hosted by former Minister, Baroness Sandip Verma and Member of Parliament, Gagan

Mohindra. Lord Rami Ranger hosted the lunch event at the House of Lords. Vivek Agnihotri highlighted the atrocities inflicted on the Hindus of Kashmir via a short documentary that records firstperson accounts of persecuted victims of the Hindu Genocide in Kashmir. He talked about the Right to Free Speech and how certain vested interests and anti-India lobbies in UK were suffocating this basic freedom, thereby denying the Hindus their Genocide in Kashmir. Denial of

Pallavi Joshi

the UK Parliament. Extremely proud to be the first filmmakers ever to receive such honour. It’s our mission for the world to recognise Kashmiri Hindu Genocide through our art.”

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AsianVoiceNewsweekly

18 - 24 June 2022

SCRUTATOR’S 107-year-old undergoes angioplasty A 107-year-old woman from Madhya Pradesh successfully underwent an angioplasty at an Ahmedabad hospital. The centenarian had suffered two heart attacks recently. The doctors were surprised to see her move by herself within three hours of the procedure. The officials of Marengo CIMS Hospital said they believe they have created history by treating the world’s oldest woman patient aged 107 years through angioplasty to restore normal functioning of her heart. Dr Keyur Parikh, the chief surgeon, said, “After almost suffering a second heart attack within a week in MP, her family brought Badamben Vyas to our hospital. An angiography showed a 99% blockage of the arteries of the heart. Her being frail was a significant challenge in itself. However, we conducted the procedure with zero error and a drug eluting stent was planted in 15 minutes to revive the condition of the heart.” The elderly lady was brought to Ahmedabad after an eight hour journey from MP. “The family was very confident about a successful operation here as I had done an angioplasty on her son a few years ago. He is 75 years old now,” Dr Parikh said. In the case of Badamben the challenges were beyond the age factor. The radial interventional procedure needed the patient to be healthy enough for doctors to find a radial artery in the wrist which was accomplished successfully. (The Times of India) Pune firm builds 25.6 km of bituminous road in 78 hours

Creating a world record, a Pune-based infrastructure company built a 25.56 km or 75 lane km bituminous National Highway in Maharashtra in just 78 hours. The earlier world record of 25.27 km was achieved in Doha, Qatar. The feat was achieved by Rajpath Infracon recently, which had deployed around 800 employees and over 700 workers on this 25.56-km stretch of NH-53 between Amravati and Akola. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has awarded the work for expansion of the entire 70-km highway to the Pune-based firm. The construction work commenced on June 3 and continued without any break for 78 hours. Union road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari congratulated the NHAI officials for successfully completing the work in world record time. The representatives Guinness Book of World Records were present at the work site to record all activities. (Agency) 17-year-old girl gang-raped in Bihar bus

A 17-year -old girl was gang-raped on a bus behind Bettiah bus stand in Bihar's West Champaran. Four persons have been arrested in this connection. The girl was waiting at the bus stand to board a bus to Patna. The bus driver told her that the bus would go to Patna in a few minutes and she boarded, SDPO (Bettiah) Mukul Parimal Pandey said. The SDPO said the girl was offered a spiked drink that rendered her drowsy. The bus driver then took a secluded place where four men raped her. After committing the crime, the accused locked the bus and fled. When the girl regained consciousness, she started thumping the windows, drawing the attention of some passers by. They rescued the girl and she later filed a police complaint. (Agency)

2 ‘Husbands’ approach cops to trace woman who eloped with 3rd Policemen at the 'Bharosa' cell in Nagpur were surprised after two men approached them seeking their help to bring their estranged wife back. The woman is alleged to have ran away with her third paramour and has been untraceable since she left the home of her ‘second’ husband. It’s learnt that she befriended the third paramour through social media. Not much details about him is available with police. As per the cops, the woman had a love marriage with her first husband, and they had two children. After four years of marriage, the woman, in her mid-twenties, befriended her second paramour-turned-husband. Once the second man entered her life, the woman left her first husband and children and eloped with him before having an informal marriage. Later, they began living like a couple. Sources said the first and second husbands have joined hands now to teach the third one a lesson. The 'Bharosa' cell told the men to approach Sonegaon police station to lodge a complaint about the third paramour and the woman. (Agency) The perils of Viagra overdose A 28-year-old man in Prayagraj, UP, who took Viagra pills up to six to eight times the prescribed dose within three months of getting married had to undergo two surgeries to ease a persistent and painful erection. The surgeries were performed by doctors at the urology department of MLN Medical College, Prayagraj. Doctors said the man started taking the pills on the suggestion of his friends and gradually increased his dose to six to eight times the prescribed limit. “He developed a condition called priapism, which is an unwanted, persistent erection with progressively worsening pain. It may occur spontaneously or from certain antidepressants or erectile dysfunction drugs,” said Dr Dilip Chaurasia of MLN Medical College, Prayagraj. The symptoms include an erection lasting for several hours. (Agency) CEC treks 18 km to reach a polling station in Uttarakhand

Leading from the front to set an example, Rajiv Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner of India (CEC), trekked for 18 km to a polling station in a remote

village in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district. Giving examples of areas where there are remote polling stations, the CEC said reaching booths in J&K, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, and Uttarakhand is a difficult task. In a statement, the CEC said, “This polling station in Dumak village is in a remote location. I want to motivate election workers. Before polling, election officers usually reach the booths three days before polling day.” This is not the first time the newly appointed CEC has taken the road less travelled, to set an example. Earlier in May, he and the other election commissioners decided to reduce the number of leave travel concessions in a year. Also, the commission has decided that the CEC and ECs will not take any income tax benefits which are currently available to them. Meanwhile, the visit comes amid indications that the EC is keen to explore ways to grant “hardship allowance and even insurance cover” to polling personnel deployed in difficult-toaccess terrains, areas bordering Pakistan and also in insurgency or terrorismaffected pockets. (Agency) Rescuing stray dogs from Little Rann Rajkumari Dubey, an animal lover, has been roaming the Little Rann of Kutch to rescue stray dogs in the sweltering heat. She has so far rescued 70 of them from the desert. Salt farmers who work to produce salt in the Little Rann of Kutch often take a stray dog along with them to guard their hutments, machinery and also alert them of wildlife movement. “However, these stray dogs are not spayed and they tend to multiply. Moreover, whenever the salt farmers return they abandon them in the Little Rann. Once the monsoon sets in, the entire desert will be filled with neck-deep salty water wherein these dogs would not survive. Season after season, umpteen stray dogs succumb to starvation and heat. I have been rescuing dogs over the past ten days and by now, I have run out of cages to keep them,” said Rajkumari who lives in Surendranagar district, on the outskirts of the desert. People for Animals (PFA), an organisation that works for animal welfare, has also in the past taken initiatives to create awareness among salt farmers to ensure they take the dogs back whenever they return so that the lives of stray dogs can be saved. (The Times of India) Help pours in for Covid orphan facing recovery notices Help poured in for the Bhopal Class X topper, a Covid orphan who was getting recovery notices from LIC for a home loan her late father had taken. After her

pathetic condition was reported in newspapers, help poured in from MP government to individuals and private firms. Despite losing both her parents to Covid last year, she scored 99. 8% in her board exams. But her courageous fight to ‘stand tall’ was hit by the loan repayment notices. LIC in a statement said that loan recovery notices “were sent as per company norms” and said that she and her family wouldn’t get any more notices. Bhopal collector Avinash Lavania spoke with the family and assured them that the administration would discuss with LIC officials ways to help the 17-year-old, who also has a little brother to take care of. Social media platforms were abuzz with the report and people from across the country offered to help. Many suggested there should be a policy to help out children in such a predicament. Several offered to pay off the loan or sponsor her education. (The Times of India) Woman claims to be ‘parvati’ and staying in restricted area

A woman from Lucknow who has been staying illegally in a restricted area of Nabhidhang close to the Indo-China border has refused to leave it, claiming she is an incarnation of Goddess Parvati and will wed Lord Shiva who lives on Mount Kailash. A police team, which had gone to persuade Harminder Kaur to vacate the restricted area, had to return disappointed as she threatened to commit suicide if they insisted on taking her away, Pithoragarh SP Lokendra Singh said. However, we have decided to send a bigger team to bring her down forcibly to Dharchula, he said. "The woman, a resident of Aliganj locality in Uttar Pradesh, had gone to Gunji with her mother on 15 days' permission issued by SDM Dharchula, but refused to leave the restricted area even after her permission expired on May 25," the SP said. The police officer said a three-member police team was sent from Dharchula to bring back the woman from restricted area but had to return empty handed. "We have now planned to send a bigger 12-member police team, including medical personnel, to bring back the woman," he said. The woman does not sound mentally stable as she claims she is an incarnation of Goddess Parvati, and has come to wed Lord Shiva. Gunji is on way to KailashMansarovar. (Agency)

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18 - 24 June 2022

in brief ILFORD FATHER KILLS WIFE, WHILE THREE CHILDREN WERE AT SCHOOL Muhammad Ilyas, 41, killed Maria Rafael Chavex, 32, at their home on Kingston Road in Ilford on May 13, 2021. Ilyas was father-of-three children who were in school when he murdered his wife at their home in east London. An initial investigation found Maria hadn’t suffered any obvious injuries and there were no signs of a disturbance. Officers arranged for a special postmortem examination to establish how she died. The examination revealed Maria had suffered compression to her neck, likely to have been as a result of being strangled. Homicide detectives from the Met’s Specialist Crime Command carried out further enquiries, which included collecting CCTV evidence and speaking to neighbours. According to Detective Chief Inspector Laurence Smith, from the Specialist Crime Command, “Ilyas has not offered any explanation about the circumstances that led to his wife’s death and has refused to accept responsibility for her murder”. He added, “This is a tragic case that has left three children without their parents and I’m sure what they’ve been through will remain with them for the rest of their lives. My thoughts are with them and the rest of Maria’s family and friends.”

CRIMINALS OBSESSED WITH THEIR VICTIMS Some criminals deliberately target their victims to ruin their lives. Almost one in five women over the age of 16 had experienced stalking, as well as almost one in ten men, according to a Crime Survey for England and Wales, referenced by the Government in 2020. Here are a few criminals who were convicted of stalking, harassment and other crimes.

STALKER MADE A GYM INSTRUCTOR A PRISONER IN HER OWN HOME Stalker Sikander Ahmed,58, who got infatuated with a gym instructor he had barely spoken to, used to ogle at her from a car park as she left work, and follow her. One of the ‘creepy' Facebook posts read: "We need to sort this, I have spent thousands of nights coming down so I can keep you here." The victim felt unsafe leaving her home and her anxiety increased. He was sentenced to an 18month community order.

LOVER THREATENED TO REVEAL VICTIM'S SEXUALITY As part of a harassment campaign, Luke Lal injured the victim by repeatedly pulling on his penis following an argument. He threatened to reveal the victim's sexuality to his parents as well. Lal, 31, was sentenced to 12 months, suspended for 18 months, and ordered to do 150 hours unpaid work.

39-year-old terrorist sentenced for breaching release conditions Shah Rahman, 39, of east London, was originally jailed in 2012 following an investigation led by the West Midland Counter Terrorism Unit (WMCTU), where he was convicted of conspiracy to cause explosions and engaging in conduct in preparation for acts of terrorism. He was again arrested by counter terrorism officers on March 22 and recalled to prison after officers found that he had breached legislation that had imposed certain requirements on him, following his release from jail. While in custody, further investigations into his activity were carried out by the Counter Terrorism Command

who identified two further breaches of his restrictions. He was sentenced on June 10 to eight months in jail, after admitting to the three breaches of Part 4 Notification Order requirements, under the Counter-Terrorism Act 2008. He was also convicted of being in possession of items useful to a person committing or preparing an act of terrorism, Scotland Yard added. As part of his sentence, he was made subject to a Part 4 Notification Order for 30 years after his release, which means he has to notify police of certain changes to circumstances, such as use of financial accounts, email accounts and vehicles.

Prejudice exists against north English and denigrated ascents A research team will next week set up shop at the British Academy’s grand headquarters overlooking the Mall in London, shining light on a large-scale project exploring prejudice against northern English accents and their speakers. On many levels the subject of how people speak is a fun one. But it is also important, researchers say, because of the “profound” negative social, economic and educational implications for speakers with denigrated accents. For four years Dr Robert McKenzie who leads the Northumbria University project and his team have been studying how English people evaluate northern and southern English accents. They have examined the explicit and implicit – in other words, unconscious – prejudices. For people with strong northern accents, the conclusions are not good. “People do think that speakers in the north of England are less intelligent, less ambitious, less educated and so on, solely from the way they speak,” said McKenzie. “On the other hand, people in the south are thought to be more ambitious,

more intelligent.” People in the north were also “stereotyped as being friendly, outgoing and trustworthy salt-ofthe-earth folk”. McKenzie’s study found big differences in the selfreported biases and implicit ones. “The negativity towards northern English speech or the northern English speaker was much more extreme, much more intense when you were looking at the implicit level. Each year the British Academy opens its doors for a summer showcase of the research work it has funded, billed as a “free festival of ideas for curious minds”. For the past two years it has been online. This year McKenzie and his team will be one of 12 projects taking part, with visitors invited to come along and talk about their own experience of accent prejudice or take part in interactive activities.

Heather Wheeler apologises for describing Birmingham as 'godawful place’ Heather Wheeler, the Tory MP for South Derbyshire, has apologised for describing Birmingham and Blackpool are "godawful" place. She reportedly said: "I was just at a conference in Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful." She tweeted: "Whilst speaking at a conference on Thursday, I made an inappropriate remark that does not reflect my actual view. I apologise for any offence caused."

Deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner fumed: "It's frankly embarrassing that she's still in her position as a minister.” Shadow levelling up secretary Lisa Nandy tweeted: "What an absolute shower. They tell us they're levelling up the country but this is what they truly think. They can't even tell the difference between 'Blackpool or Birmingham or somewhere godawful'. Clueless and offensive."

PM facing mounting revolt against party backers With the prime minister, pictured, facing a split over Brexit within days and a mounting revolt among party backers after last week’s humiliating confidence vote, the hotelier Sir Rocco Forte said that he “will not put up” with the direction Johnson is taking the party. A big Tory donor has said he cannot support Boris Johnson, after accusing him of overseeing an un-Conservative government, delivering a “pathetic” tax-cutting pledge and refusing to heed calls to change the course of his premiership. Forte had handed Johnson £100,000 for the last election campaign. Worryingly for Johnson, other donors are also losing faith – but there are competing views on how the prime minister should fix things. While the government has

been trying to reassure MPs that the proposals will not reignite Brexit tensions, it is expected the government’s bill still includes sections that override the protocol agreed with the EU – a move that critics say is illegal and will spark a rebellion.

Book on Banaz’s honour killing released by sister At 17, Banaz Mahmod was forced into an arranged marriage to an older man named Binar. Her body was found in a suitcase buried 6ft down in a garden in Birmingham. Her Dad was charged with her murder as well as her uncle Ari, and three cousins. A book called No Safe Place by her sister Bekhal Mahmod is out on July 7 Bekhal describes in the book, “When I was 15, my parents tried to send me from London back to Iraq, to marry my first cousin, Akam, a big, balding man almost double my age. No way did I want to marry Akam, and I told my parents as much. I endured beatings and threats from Dad before I finally fled home, having ‘dishonoured’ and ‘shamed’ our Sunni Muslim family. Today, I was visiting one of my younger sisters, Banaz, whom I hadn’t seen in more than four years. Should the Kurdish community find out that I’d spoken with Banaz, a price would probably be put on both of our heads. In January 2006, the police knocked on my door to tell me my sister had gone missing. In April, they found her body. They couldn’t say how Banaz had died, only that my darling sister had been identified through dental records. It was August 2006 when Dad was charged with her murder,

along with my uncle Ari, and three cousins named Mohammad Hama, Mohammed Saleh Ali and Omar Hussein. I learned later that Mohammad Hama had boasted about the rape and torture to which the cousins had subjected my darling sister in the hours before she was strangled to death. Banaz had been to the police five times in the 14 weeks leading up to her murder, even giving them a list of the men who would go on to kill her. We can be in no doubt who is to blame for the terrible death of my sister. But the authorities failed her.

Four imprisoned for executing a fraud, posing as police officer Four men Mohammed Maarjan, 23, Muhammed Rahman, 28, Shoriful Islam, 25 and Mohammed Hussain, 25, all from Islington, were sentenced at Bristol Crown Court. The four men pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit fraud by false representation at an earlier hearing. The gang worked on the modus operandi of claiming to be police officers when cold-calling people and urging them to withdraw large sums of cash. They then asked the victim to hand the money over to a police courierwho was in reality another member of the gang. Rahman, Maarjan and Islam

also admitted possessing criminal property. Bristol Crown Court heard the gang targeted dozens of vulnerable victims across the country, taking thousands of pounds from their bank accounts. Rahman, of Leirum Street, was sentenced to six years, Hussain, of Collier Street, received a prison term of five years and four months, Maarjan, of James Morgan Mews, and Islam, of Highbury New Park, were both handed prison terms of four years and eight months. Two other members of the gang, Kawsar Ahmed and Mohemmed Ahmed, will be sentenced later in June.

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Representation of South Asian and Muslim women is pretty non-existent Shefali Saxena

man Zawahry is one of the first hijabi American-Muslim filmmakers in the nation. She has worked on numerous films that have played at over 100 venues worldwide. Iman also collaborated with the non-profit Islamic Scholarship Fund to create the first-ever American Muslim film grant where she currently serves as director. Iman works to amplify the underrepresented female voice. She wrote and directed her debut feature film Americanish with a majority female crew. Here’s her Q&A with Asian Voice: As a woman, are there any challenges associated with marketing your film or taking them to festivals? Iman: Our biggest challenge has really been making a comedy, with three brown Muslim women leads, in an independent world that predominantly uplifts dramas. We’ve noticed that most festivals really want to see dramas of Muslim women dealing with trauma and oppression which is something that we are really trying to move away from. Showing that woman are strong, independent and funny is what our audiences and world needs to create more understanding and peace in our world. Finding the right home and place for the film to excel was the biggest challenge but once we found it, it soured. It’s been so uplifting that our own communities have been the ones to uplift our story and our voice. The Asian-American film festivals and other predominantly diverse film festivals recognized the importance of our story and how much it has impacted audiences. And we are forever grateful for their support. What according to you is the future of women in filmmaking, especially in the new normal? Iman: I am really optimistic about the future of women in filmmaking. We have always been here but have never been given the opportunities or platform. Now studios and organizations are uplifting women's stories more than ever. Moreover, more women are in leadership positions to create opportunities and uplift other women which I have seen countless

times and how I see things really changing. I feel it’s going to continue to be a slow process but will continue to flourish. You embrace your identity as a Hijabi with pride, which comes across as quite empowering for more women like you. What is your approach to being unapologetic and confident about who you are? I think it’s incredibly important to form connections with others in order to create more of a peaceful understanding. This in turn creates less animosity and hate in the world. The only way to create these connections it is as true and real as you can be as a human. My identity as an American Muslim is the essence of who I am and is how I build stories and connections to my community and my art. Aizzah Fatima - co-writer, producer and lead actor (South Asian specific) also spoke to us: While creating south Asian characters, especially women in your film, do you go with representing the culture as it is, or, do you direct as the film demands? Where do you strike the balance? Aizzah: As filmmakers and agents of change our job is to hold a mirror up to the society we live in. So we can all learn from where we are, and grow as people. For me, this manifests in the writing in two ways. First to depict female characters in all their contradictions and complexities so they aren't just dimensional which is how we often see them being portrayed when people outside of our communities tell our stories. When a group of people has never seen themselves portrayed authentically, it's important to create real and nuanced characters that are recognizable and relatable. Second, with Americanish there are parts we wanted to show that we hope to give our communities an opportunity to reflect on and to aspire to. Some examples of this are how Sam stands up to her male colleagues at her job including her boss. I think most men and women no matter their ethnicity would think twice before doing something like that.. Ameera and

Trolling and safety fears plague many young women online Young women are more concerned about the mental health impact of being online than other internet users, with many citing personal safety fears and the harm caused by trolling, a study by Britain's media watchdog has found. Regulators and activists across the world are increasingly calling on Big Tech companies to tackle hate speech on online platforms, a plea echoed by the head of Britain's Ofcom regulator as she unveiled the report on internet usage. "The message from women who go online is loud and clear," Ofcom Chief Executive Melanie Dawes said in a statement on Wednesday. "They are less confident

about their personal online safety, and feel the negative effects of harmful content like trolling more deeply." The report found that women aged 18-34 were more likely than any other group to report a negative overall impact on mental health, with 23% of them disagreeing that being online has a positive effect on their mental health. In comparison, 45% of men over the age of 18 agreed with that statement, while boys aged 13-17 were most likely to agree with it.

Maryam both choose a path outside of what is expected of them within their communities or society at large. This we know happens in our communities, but we also wanted to show the change of heart with Khala's character. Our parent's generation is also capable of change, and seeing things from a different point of view they may not have considered before. Your film, Americanish is in some ways similar to Ms Marvel (2022), where women take their life into their own hands, whether it is about finding a groom or wearing a hijab. Comment on how this representation can change the way we view South Asians. Aizzah: Representation of South Asian and Muslim women is pretty non-existent in mainstream media. Just showing a young Muslim woman who might choose to wear the hijab against her family's wishes turns out to be a radical act because the media constantly and inaccurately shows Muslim women being oppressed into wearing the hijab usually at the hands of a Muslim man. This is dangerous and toxic as Muslim women in the west chose to wear it for many reasons, and sometimes as part of their activism. Yet this narrative is missing from the media. South Asian women are often depicted as timid and voiceless. We wanted to change that narrative by showing characters who aren't afraid to go after what they want. What's also important here is to show the diversity within the South Asian Muslim community. That we aren't a monolith, and that's why the film is an ensemble with four South Asian female characters. The European premiere of Americanish is at the London Indian Film Festival on 26th June at Picturehouse Central https://londonindianfilmfestival.co.uk/

Half of UK’s smaller listed companies have no female leaders Half of the UK’s smaller listed companies still have all-male leadership teams, a sign of how efforts to bolster diversity have struggled to trickle down to smaller firms. According to a study by the Women on Boards UK network, while only 4.6% of the 350 largest firms on the FTSE have no female representation in their C-suites, a proportion rises to 50% for FTSE All-Share firms below that. The report found that only 16% of board chairs are women, and even fewer -just 7% -- are chief executive officers. “Progress is too slow,” Fiona Hathorn, CEO of

Civil Service becomes largest organisation to sign Menopause Workplace Pledge The Civil Service signed the Menopause Workplace pledge on 7th June, committing to recognise the impact of menopause and actively support women who are affected. The pledge, organised by the Wellbeing of Women charity, calls on signatories to recognise the impact that menopause can have, create open environments to talk about the issue and provide active support for staff. Ministers and senior civil servants endorsed the pledge at a special event to show the Civil Service’s ongoing commitment to supporting women in the workplace. The Civil Service is now the largest organisation to signal its support. 262,670 women work in the Civil Service, making up more than half of the Civil Service (54%). 48% of the

Senior Civil Service is made up of women, up from 35% in 2011. The median age of civil servants is 45 years and this is often when women will be going through perimenopause or menopause. Becoming a signatory of the Wellbeing of Women Workplace ‘Menopause Pledge’ demonstrates the government’s ongoing commitment to support women in the workplace, including by helping to generate more conversations between managers and employees, and creating a more incluworkplace which sive enables women of all ages to thrive.

Midwifery education in Bangladesh is improving women’s access to safe childbirth In association with the British High Commission in Bangladesh, the Directorate General of Nursing and Midwifery (DGNM) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) organised a dissemination seminar on Wednesday 1 June 2022, at the auditorium of DGNM in Dhaka, to share findings of two studies on midwifery in Bangladesh. The two independent studies focused on the lessons learnt while strengthening midwifery in Bangladesh, and pathways to women’s empowerment through midwifery educa-

tion. The findings indicate that the UK Government’s support helped the Government of Bangladesh increase deployment and utilize the diploma holder midwives which greatly improved women’s access to safe childbirth, over the last three years. In 2021, the midwives, deployed in 403 Upazila Health Complexes (UzHCs), conducted 87 per cent of the total deliveries at those UzHCs. In 2018, the percentage was only 24.

New non-fatal strangulation offence comes into force

Women on Boards UK, said on Bloomberg Radio Monday. “We’ve seen almost no progress at all with regard to the number of women chief executives.” That’s important as the study found that companies with women CEOs have significantly more diverse executive teams. Just a quarter of boards outside the 350 largest listed firms have at least one non-White director.

Non-fatal strangulation was made a specific offence as part of the government’s landmark Domestic Abuse Act. The practise typically involves a perpetrator strangling or intentionally affecting their victim’s ability to breathe in an attempt to control or intimidate them. It followed concerns that perpetrators were avoiding punishment as the act can often leave no visible injury, making it harder to prosecute under existing offences such as Actual Bodily Harm (ABH). Studies have shown that victims are seven times more likely to be murdered by their partner if there had been nonfatal strangulation before-

hand. The new offence will also apply to British nationals abroad. It means perpetrators can be prosecuted in England and Wales for offences committed overseas – ensuring there is no escape for abusers. It comes as even more victims of rape will be spared the trauma of being cross-examined in court during a live trial, with the extension of special measures schemes. A further 11 Crown Courts across the Midlands and the South West will now be able to provide victims the chance to pre-record their evidence before their case gets to trial, subject to a successful application to the court.

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GCS presenting “Waves of Sounds by Jyotsna Srikanth” concert at Hove

Vinesh Pomal: Inside Diverse Architecture (Part One) Sunetra Senior

orally conscious as well as industrious, Vinesh does not simply thrive as a rising architect but further builds contemporary inclusive communities. He has co-founded the Asian Architects Association, sits on the Design Review Panels for Harrow and Sutton local councils, the Young Architects and Developers Alliance Board and is an Associate Design Council Expert as well as being a former councillor representing the London region on National Council for the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). Vinesh has done much to raise the profile of his profession and as much to foster equality within it. In terms of philosophical design, he told us: “I draw a lot from my lived experience as a South-Asian intergenerational occupant who has co-cared for the elderly, including where I cared for my grandad alongside my mum, dad and sister. There are many alternative ways of existing e.g., it can be rewarding to live with your grandparents, to

enjoy the benefit of close interpersonal support. They raised me whilst my parents were running our family newsagent. Co-habitation starts at home. By extension, why not have nurseries and nursing homes nearer each other too? The elderly could entertain the young ones and vice versa. Furthermore, nursing and care facilities do generally tend to be isolated from communities rather than combined and the same goes for student accommodation. These separate pockets of land with respective social groups generally creates friction instead of cohesion. The elderly and the young are separated from amenities, accessibility and sociability. In the town centres, where high streets are dying, why don’t we then put care homes on top of shops so the vulnerable are at the heart of life? Where I can, I try to incorporate such an ethos into my residential projects to create mixed communities; , integrating housing for the elderly and other communal facilities as part of the scheme. . Such

salubrious mixing does happen a lot in Europe. Younger people are encouraged to go and interact with the older generation to boost healthy interactive dynamics. They volunteer to go and spend time with the older generation in exchange for a place to stay. The microcosm of this is designing different types of apartments with unique features that encourage amenable interactions immediately. I have outlined this kind of plan too. From the interior nuances to the

external aesthetic and harmonisation with surroundings, architecture encompasses all: it’s a balance of artistic architectural principles and proximate human-centred pragmatism.” ***

“I draw a lot from my lived experience as a SouthAsian intergenerational occupant who has cocared for the elderly, including where I cared for my grandad alongside my mum, dad and sister. There are many alternative ways of existing e.g., it can be rewarding to live with your grandparents, to enjoy the benefit of close interpersonal support." Indeed, it is this unity on which Vinesh advises when collaborating with local authorities who require “a second pair of eyes”: e.g., “open-plan layouts are very popular in buildings, but not everyone is happy with that. Many do want separate kitchens, reflecting their cultural backgrounds,

Father’s Day Gift Ideas Top Trumps Pub Quiz 500 questions on 5 different categories: Sports, Music, Film and TV, Science and General Knowledge. With cards on every subject from Art, Animals, Adverts and Acronyms, to Toys, Transport, Technology, and Theme Tunes, with Decades, Food and Drink, and even Weather covered along the way, there’s something to test the brains of all ages and interests. Deal 5 cards each, ask the first question and see if your opponent gets it right or not. It's the first to win 3 pairs, but then comes the Top Trumps Twist!

VINESH POMAL or simply because they prefer that separation. Similarly, you wouldn’t want the sun pouring into just one room, causing it to overheat. It is better to spread the light out among a few places. There are some key fundamentals that should be followed even as one executes an individual grand vision.” Going beyond cultural diversity then, Vinesh looks to integrate into social consciousness the appreciation of modern difference itself. The experienced architect has worked for reputable firms within the industry such as Jestico and Whiles, Tatehindle, Levitt Bernstein and ECD Architects. For the former three, Vinesh worked on a variety of residential projects which grew his inherent aptitude for designing homes of the everyday. “I have worked on a multitude of residential and mixed-use developments from estate regeneration and new-build housing, including specialist housing (extra care, nursing, sheltered) through to urban design where I look at the macro and micro factors that are needed to create places to live and work. My work has ranged in scale from designing anywhere between 3 to 1,500 homes. Memorable schemes have included Stanstead Road in South London where I designed four apartments and a communal lounge for residents with autism, the Alton Estate in Roehampton where I led the design of 230 homes as part of a much wider masterplan for the site, and Darwin Green, the creation of a new neighbourhood of 411 homes in Cambridge. The two latter projects have recently been shortlisted for Housing Design Awards. I have also written a chapter on intergenerational living to raise issues in relation to EDI, not just in terms of design but also the social issue of inclusion at large to evolve the status-quo. Personally, it is very rewarding to work on projects where you can fundamentally make a difference to someone’s life.” T: @vineshpomal

Top Trumps has been a favourite card game for almost 50 years and the kids that once enjoyed it in the playground are now dads, still loving the Top Trumps brand. With loads of different topics including pop culture, film and TV, there’s a gift for every dad this Father’s Day (Sunday June 19th 2022) Peaky Blinders Top Trumps Top Trumps is under new management, by order of the Peaky Blinders. Walk the streets of Birmingham with this new Limited Editions deck of Top Trumps, starring Arthur, Ada, Polly, Michael, Finn and Tommy Shelby himself. Thirty key players from this epic gangster saga feature, including Jessie Eden, May Carleton, Oswald Mosley, Winston Churchill and Alfie Solomons. Choose from five categories - Power, Loyalty, Notoriety, Integrity and Resilience - as you battle it out to claim every card for your own, and secure control of Shelby Company Limited.

Gujarat Cultural Society will present “Waves of Sounds by Jyotsna Srikanth” concert on 26 June 2022 from 4 to 6 PM at The Old Market, Upper Market Street, Hove BN3 1AS. Providing this informathe organiser tion, Dhirubhai Lamba said, “GCS is trying to bring a different type of cultural programs which attracts all different communities.” Jyotsna is the most sought-after South Indian Carnatic violinist and composer known for her versatility and ability to collaborate with different genres, seamlessly and with ease. She will be taking the audience through a journey from the classical to the contemporary era. The concert will be an amalgamation of North Indian bhajans, South Indian Carnatic songs and popular film songs with explanations. She has played the violin for more than 300 films under music directors like Ilaiyaraja.

Her most memorable concert was her performance with the London Philharmonic Orchestra for 90,000 people at the Wembley Stadium during the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the UK. Jyotsna is the Artistic Director of London International Arts Festival and Dhruv Arts, UK. She is a medical doctor, a postgraduate in Pathology and now into music completely. The other artists at the concert are Amit Anand – keyboard, RN Prakash – mridangam, Sithamparanathan - tabla and rhythm pads. Tickets can be booked online at The Old Market website: boxoffice@theoldmarket.com.

BFI Southbank celebrates Satyajit Ray The BFI has announced the full programme for Satyajit Ray: The Language of Film, a season celebrating one of the true masters of world cinema. Satyajit Ray’s centenary in 2021, as well as 75 years of Indian independence, mark a timely juncture to showcase his com-

the mid-50s Calcutta, in a society still adjusting to Independence and gripped by the social and financial crisis, this powerful, progressive cinema classic sees a middle-class housewife brilliantly and excitingly defy expectations and find herself becoming a success-

plete body of remarkable work including his ‘Apu Trilogy’ Pather Panchali (1955), Aparajito (1956) And The World Of Apu (1959), The Music Room (1958), The Lonely Wife (1964), Days And Nights In The Forest (1970) and many more. Programmed thematically by Sangeeta Datta, the season is presented in association with the Academy Film Archive and will include numerous restorations on 35mm from their archives, as well as three 4K restorations made by the Criterion Collection and the UK premiere of four brand new 4K restorations presented by NFDC – National Film Archive of India. One of the highlights of the season will be a BFI re-release of The Big City (1963), in selected cinemas UK-wide from 22 July and screening on an extended run at BFI Southbank. Set in

ful businesswoman. There will be a screening of Ray’s adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore’s short stories The Postmaster And Samapti (1961) on 7 July introduced by Aparna Sen, who made her screen debut in the latter and has since become India’s greatest and longeststanding female writerdirector. Sen will also make an appearance at BFI Southbank as part of this year’s London Indian Film Festival on 2 July, with an In Conversation event followed by a screening of her powerful new film The Rapist (2021). Sangeeta Datta will give a richly illustrated talk to introduce audiences to the film screening and their thematic curation, as well as offer a close analysis of key titles in The Film Language of Satyajit Ray on 6 July.

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Birmingham Councillor under investigation for social media posts Councillor Shabina Bano, who represents the Small Heath ward is under investigation for social media posts and her views regarding Coronovirus. She espoused skeptical views that lockdowns would not end until “a certain number of deaths” were recorded.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) unearthed the Facebook posts that were posted in 2020. Replying to one individual post in April 2020 about coronavirus deaths being exaggerated, councillor Bano said: “Well I’m sure

the government has to reach a certain number of deaths before lockdown ends. So, they [sic] playing the game at our own expense.” Another comment by Councillor Bano on a post about two people suffering allergic reactions to the

Pfizer vaccine, published in December 2020, said: “Six dying means nothing. Masses have to die before any legal action can be taken. And [sic] I’m sure the company has that covered. Out of 10,000, maybe 800 have to die before anything can be done.”

Migrant women charged up to £14,000 for NHS maternity services According to a report on the experiences of migrant women who have been billed for NHS maternity services, new mothers are being charged up to £14,000 to give birth in England. The healthcare charity Doctors of the World (DOTW) published the

report reveals that more than a third (37.8 per cent) of the mothers surveyed – who include undocumented, refugee and asylum-seeking women – received a bill for maternity care after their babies were delivered, ranging from £296 to £14,000. Of that group, half were

charged £7,000 or more. Anna Miller, of DOTW, said: “At our clinic we see women with a range of different immigration status who are charged for NHS maternity services and avoid antenatal care as a result. “In some cases, these are women without formal sta-

Allergy alert by Met Office experts over clouds of super-pollen Many people feel their hay fever has been worse than usual this year due to the warm and wet conditions of last month, experts have said. Met Office experts are warning of another ingredient: hay fever from “particularly potent” pollen. Yolanda Clewlow, the Met Office relationship manager for health and air quality, said: “The potency of these pollen grains could

be more intense this year, and that comes down to the weather we’ve had in spring. “A warm and wet May, coupled with a relatively warm spring, means there’s

a chance that the pollen that has developed is particularly potent.” Provisional statistics from the Met Office show that last month was the fifth warmest May on record, while rainfall was slightly above average for the UK. “The Met Office said pollen releases would “continue to impact the one in five people who suffer from hay fever in the UK”.

Government advice on free sanitary products in schools becomes gender-neutral After women and girls were referred to as ‘students who menstruate’, government advice on free sanitary products in schools has become gender-neutral. A seven-page 2020 document on the Department for Education (DfE) website described how period products, such as pads and tampons, should be available for all who need them mentioning 'young people menstruating', 'learners who menstruate' and ‘students who menstruate’, The Times reported. There was one mention

of “girls” and one of “women”, both in the footnotes, and two of “female”. This angered women’s campaigners, however, who have warned of the dangers of alienating women and girls by using more inclusive gender-neutral language. A DfE spokesman said: “The wording is being amended and we are urgently reviewing all of our pages to that effect.” Helen Joyce, of the advocacy group Sex Matters,

said: “Replacing those ordinary words with ludicrous expressions ... reduces girls to their bodily functions and increases the stigma around menstruation, making it even harder for them to navigate puberty.”

Rail and Tube strikes threaten school exams By carrying out industrial action during the national exam period, rail union members have been accused of subjecting school students to “callous treatment”, Jenny Brown, head teacher of the City of London School for Girls in the Barbican, central London believes. She has warned that pupils in the capital will face a “double whammy” of upcoming rail and Tube strikes. She wrote to The Times, mentioning that

the strikers are “concerned about ‘unfair’ pay” but asks whether they have “considered the unfairness of the Tube and rail strikes on thousands of students”. Walkouts are planned on the rail and Tube net-

work on June 21 when exams include A-level maths, religious studies and German, as well as GCSE history are scheduled; and rail services on June 23, when exams include A-level chemistry and GCSE physics are scheduled. Brown said: “Pupils across the country, already nervous about the first public exams any of them have faced after two years of the pandemic, have the added anxiety of missing the exam.”

tus in the UK who are charged under the policy and will end up with large bills they are unable to pay. In other cases, it’s people who are eligible for free NHS maternity care, such as refugees and asylum seekers, who have been charged incorrectly.”

Britain did not open the door to my community, we had to kick it down, says Shayma Bakht The Conservative Party has distanced itself from “anti-Muslim” comments made by one of its major donors, Maurizio Bragagni, the Republic of San Marino’s consul to the UK. he has given £650,000 to the party. He resides in London and regularly rubs shoulders with senior Tories, including the prime minister and members of the cabinet.

The poll, carried out by Savanta ComRes and commissioned by Hyphen, a new online publication that “aims to create a meeting place for Muslims and nonMuslims”, found that life had improved for British Muslims since 2017 in 10 out of 12 categories. “I am a 26-year-old Muslim woman living in London and I cannot say with certainty that life has improved, despite some superficial changes. “When I speak to members of my community from across the UK, all say that deep-rooted issues of day-to-day discrimination and erasure are still very much felt, casting a shadow over the wider progress being made”, Shyama Bakht says.

London tech week is upon so us and reminds us why tech scale-ups cannot ignore the UK Continued from page 3 Furthermore, they have committed to supporting female entrepreneurs by tackling investment barriers and improving gender diversity in fast-growing businesses. The UK government understands that attracting future global giants to these shores is a great way to drive high-quality employment and tax revenues. In response, they have implemented various excellent programs to tempt the best overseas entrepreneurs. For example, the Global Entrepreneur Programme (GEP) aims to encourage overseas companies to come to the UK. It provides free training, mentorship, and networking opportunities to help non-UK based businesses to reach the next level. Finally, we can’t forget the various tax deductibles provided to startups. Additionally, across the UK, there are 24 tax-free Enterprise Zones that offer tax relief for five years, up to £275,000. 6. Incubators/accelerators London’s start-up scene is ranked just behind Silicon Valley and New York. And it's no surprise. The capital is full of opportunities to help entrepreneurs turn their dreams into reality. Incubators and accelerators offer scale-ups some of the best ways to gain a foothold. With free space, mentoring, and advice, promising companies can get the support to succeed. Some of the most notable and influential incubators and accelerators are Level 39, Collider Accelerator, and TechStars London. Several other notable programs were designed to help UK entrepreneurs alongside these enterprises. For example, the Tech2Great initiative provides free services, advice, and support for scale-ups, focusing on female founders and tech that can help solve world problems. Conclusion We're living in a golden age of UK innovation. The country, long considered the world's financial capital, has been producing world-leading tech scale-ups at an unprecedented rate in recent years. The reason for this remarkable success is the confluence of factors, like access to capital, a high-quality workforce, and government support that encourages the growth of tech companies. Tech scale-ups cannot ignore the UK as a potential base. The conditions are perfect for helping the best companies realise their potential, both in the UK and abroad.

Train passengers to face 11% rise in cost of season tickets An industry watchdog has said unless the government changes its policy, rail passengers might face fare increases of more than 11 per cent next year. The chief executive of Transport Focus Anthony Smith has called on ministers to stall the decision on setting fares for 2023 during the cost of living crisis. Anthony Smith, chief executive of Transport Focus, the independent watchdog, said: “The gov-

ernment is not tied to the July figure and they’re not tied to when they make an announcement. It’s a political decision.” “My sense is they will leave a decision as late as possible given the uncertainty around the economy with inflation as well as strikes and various discontents looming.This kind of titanic clash of a cost of living crisis meeting a cost of running the railway crisis is a very tricky one to unpick.”

Pay up £330m to infected blood victims, ministers told The government should make an immediate payment of at least £330 million as preliminary compensation to thousands of NHS patients that got infected with HIV and hepatitis C in contaminated blood treatments, a report commissioned by the Cabinet Office has said. The final bill for the worst treatment disaster in NHS history could be well over £1 billion. As a result of receiving blood treatments contaminated with deadly viruses in the 1970s and 1980s, up to

25,000 NHS patients were infected, and at least 2,400 people have died. Many are still dying every year. According to Sir Robert Francis QC, no compensation has yet been paid, and victims fear that they “will not survive long enough to see, let alone enjoy, the fruits of an award of compensation”. As part of the Infected Blood Inquiry, the Cabinet Office commissioned Francis’s report, known as the Compensation Framework Study.

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in brief NEW JUNIOR DOCTORS AND CRIMINAL BARRISTERS THREATEN TO STRIKE It comes amid a wave of strikes already planned by rail workers, rubbish collectors and possible action from postal workers in what is shaping up to be a 'Summer of Discontent'. Junior doctors and criminal law barristers are the latest groups threatening to strike this summer over disputes around pay and conditions. Both professions are in dispute with the government, and while junior doctors are threatening to strike, barristers are already being balloted from today on in action. Junior doctors currently get paid up to £35,000 while newly qualified criminal barristers can be paid as little as £12,000 after expenses although this can rise to almost £60,000 within several years. The British Medical Association has said that junior doctors had backed a motion to demand the 'full restoration of their pay' from the government - claiming their real wages have fallen by 22 per cent in 12 years and that rising inflation is accelerating losses. A potential strike has already been approved, to take place by early next year 'at the latest'. The government claims to have boosted legal aid funding by £135 million - but criminal barristers have pointed out that this funding did not go directly to them, as it was shared across all advocates including solicitors. The Criminal Bar Association is balloting 2,500 of its members and claims a 25 per cent increase in pay is needed in order to boost barrister retention.

UK FACING EXODUS OF STAR SCIENTISTS At least 16 recipients of prestigious European grants are making plans to move their labs abroad as the UK remains frozen out of the EU’s flagship science programme. Britain’s participation in Horizon Europe has been caught in the crosshairs of the dispute over Brexit in Northern Ireland, meaning that 143 UK-based recipients of European Research Council fellowships this week faced a deadline of either relinquishing their grant or transferring it to an institute in an eligible country. The UK government has promised to underwrite the funding, totalling about £250m, but a growing number of scientists appear likely to reject the offer and instead relocate, along with entire teams of researchers. The ERC said 16 academics had recently informed it that they intend to move their lab abroad or are in negotiations about doing so. These researchers, and some others, have been given an extension before their grants are terminated. The loss of these academics is a blow to the UK government’s proposed “bold, global alternative to Horizon”. The science minister, George Freeman, called on the EU not to “weaponise science for politics” before a meeting in Brussels, but said the UK was ready to press ahead with its plan B if the dispute is not resolved. Others who are remaining in the UK said they had been left in limbo, with little clarity on when the UKRI funding will be available.

EAST MIDLANDS AIRPORT SHUT DUE TO DRONE SIGHTINGS Due to the drone sightings within the EMA aerodrome, East Midlands Airport was forced to shut. The drones were spotted near Donington Park in Castle Donington - the site of three-day rock-fest, Download Festival. As flights were re-routed to other airports, passengers flying in and out from the airport faced delays. One passenger said their Jet2 flight from Malaga was due to land at 2.30pm, but it was redirected to Leeds Bradford Airport to refuel and wait. After 2pm, the disruptions began as a spokesman for EMA confirmed the airport was shut for 30 minutes. A joint statement from Leicestershire Police, Download Festival and East Midlands Airport confirmed only a "small number of flights" were affected.

India Exim Bank: Creating socio-economic impact in partner countries In a 'Stakeholder Outreach' event held on 8 June in London, Chief Managers of the London branch of India Exim Bank in partnership with FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry) presented a summary of the bank’s line of business and new initiatives. The event was part of the ‘Iconic Week’ being organised by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India, to celebrate the 'Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav'. Sreejesh Neelanath and Shanker, Chief Sidharth Managers of the London branch presented the bank’s operational philosophy, line of business, flagship programmes, commercial business and new initiatives. Sreejesh said, “Exim Bank's vision has evolved from a product-centric approach with Export Credits and Export Capability Creation to a more customer-centric approach by offering a comprehensive range of products and services to empower businesses at all stages of a company's business cycle.” They explained, “India Exim Bank extends and operates lines of credit (LOC) on behalf of the Government of India, and also extends it on its own. Loans outstanding under LOCs as of March 31, 2022, aggregate US$ 6,609.00 million. The Compound Annual Growth Rate is 12.74% over the last ten years. This constitutes 41% of the Bank’s total loan portfolio, creating socio-economic impact in partner countries across an

array of diverse sectors. As of March 31, 2022 there are 310 LOCs, covering 66 countries with credit commitments of US$ 31.96 billion. During the financial year 2022, six LOCs aggregating US$ 1.13 billion were sanctioned by the government of India, to the governments of Guyana, Kyrgyz Republic, Madagascar, Myanmar, Palestine and Sri Lanka. As on March 31, 2022, sanctions of US$ 3.01 billion were made under Buyers Credit NEIA (National Export Insurance Account) for 34 projects across 16 countries. The outstanding BC-NEIA portfolio is at US$ 1.50 billion as of March 31, 2022. GOI infusion of C 1,650 crores to NEIA to support project exports worth C 33,000 crores is at full capacity utilization.” Sreejesh said, “129 proposals with an aggregate value of C30,806 crores were sanctioned under Commercial Business during the financial year 2022. During the financial year 2022, support for 75 project export contracts valued at C19,380 crores, in 39 countries across Asia-Pacific, Africa and CIS were extended. Three credit lines were sanctioned to Africa Finance Corporation, Sri Lankan banks, and QNB Finansbank Sriketi AS, Turkey. As of March 31, 2022, finance was provided for 652 joint ventures and wholly owned subsidiaries set up by over 483 companies in 78 countries. Aggregate assistance for overseas investment is

Tony Blair to join medieval royal order at Windsor Former PM Tony Blair, pictured, received his knighthood from the Queen and will now join this medieval royal order, at the event at Windsor Castle. It is not yet confirmed if the Queen will be at the ceremony. The Duke of York will attend - but will not be in the public procession. The honour, which is a personal choice of the Queen, comes with the status of a knight and Sir Tony received his knighthood, without any publicity, from the Queen in an audience at Windsor last week.

C63,877.51 crore. Under the trade assistance programme our objective is to enhance trade between countries by exploring new markets and increase the confidence of counterparties in the settlement of trade transactions.” Dr. Param Shah, Director of FICCI UK said, “We are happy to have partnered with the Exim Bank, London Branch for the

NHS recruiting nurses from countries with shortages Analysis suggests, thousands of nurses have been recruited from countries suffering shortages of health workers in defiance of government guidelines. Last year, the Nursing and Midwifery Council’s register recruited 4,272 nurses from 47 “red list” countries, more than ten times the 2018-19 total. As compared to a global median of 48.6 per 10,000 people, countries graded “red” by the World Health Organisation have fewer doctors, nurses and midwives. The list includes Afghanistan, Cameroon, Somalia and Yemen. The largest influx was from Nigeria, with 3,010 nurses trained there joining the register. Pat Cullen, the Royal

College of Nursing chief executive, said: “Ministers are overly reliant on nurses from countries with critical workforce shortages. Their lack of investment in UK nursing staff . . . is deeply concerning.” Amanda Pritchard, the NHS England chief executive, informed the Commons health and social care select committee that the health service had “about 100,000 vacancies”.

Johnson faces fury over extending school meals Boris Johnson, pictured, faces fury after shelving plans to extend free school meals to up to a million more poor kids. Tory ministers have brushed aside the plea as they watered down radical plans to solve Britain’s problems with hunger, health and the environment. The Prime Minister will unveil a Food Strategy White Paper on Monday, but has ditched a string of suggestions from his food tsar Henry Dimbleby. It’s understood the Leon founder’s demand to

While Brits face soaring prices, Tory minister’s wife purchase supermarket Nadhim Zahawi, pictured, the 55year-old MP for Stratford-on-Avon and former vaccines minister, is tipped as a leadership contender if Boris Johnson is forced out. Mr. Zahawi ’s wife Lana now owns two superstores as part of their £100 million property empire. Last September she bought a £6.3million plot which includes a giant Co-op and car park in St Neot’s, Cambridgeshire. The superstores were purchased through Zahawi and Zahawi Ltd, a company controlled by Mr Zahawi’s wife, the day before he became Secretary of State for Education. Mr Zahawi was a director and founder but stood down in 2018 upon joining the Government.

event organised as part of the ‘Iconic Week’. The event helped in sharing with stakeholders about the Bank’s expertise in Export Finance to make a lasting difference to Indian companies with global aspirations. The presentation made by the team also showcased the dynamic nature of the offerings of the bank for businesses to keep pace with the ever-changing business environment.”

The purchase by mega-rich top Tory’s family comes, while many worry about paying for their shopping, In the past six years, the couple’s companies have spent over £80million on commercial properties. They also own five residences worth £17million – three in London, one in Warwickshire and one in Dubai. Questions have been raised about Mr Zahawi’s declaration of interests. Last year, it emerged one of his wife’s firms bought a £3.5million industrial estate by the Eurotunnel train station in Ashford, Kent, mortgage-free – days before the Government secured the trade deal with the EU in December 2020.

expand free school meals to all children in Universal Credit households has been shelved, and will instead be kept under review. Andrew Forsey, director of Feeding Britain, told the Mirror: "At first glance this looks like a bowl of thin gruel being served up to families who are struggling to put food on the table.While it is noteworthy that the free school meals threshold is to be kept under review, this strategy should have been the Prime Minister's moment to ride to the rescue of those families - often working for low wages - who are in desperate need of that help now." Currently, most children in Year 3 and above are ineligible for free school meals if their household income from work is more than £7,400 a year.

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Dear Financial Voice Reader,

Alpesh Patel OBE

Should we forget tech stocks and just keep to energy stocks? Some of my energy stocks are soaring and my tech stocks are bargains. So what next? It has been a tumultuous year for the stock market. After last year's record-breaking bull run, many investors are wondering if the good times can continue. The answer, as is so often the case in the world of investing, is "it depends." Energy stocks and tech stocks have both had their moments in the sun this year. After a strong rally in energy stocks, many investors are wondering if they should put their money in that sector. However, given the recent sell-off in tech stocks, some are wondering if that is where the real opportunities lie. So, which is it? Energy stocks or tech stocks? Let's take a look at the data and see what the experts have to say. Energy Stocks The energy sector has had a strong year so far. After a sharp sell-off in early 2020, energy stocks have rallied strongly. The sector is up nearly 30% since March of 2020. This rally has been driven by some factors. First, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a sharp drop in oil demand. However, as the world began to reopen, oil demand rebounded strongly. In addition, major producers such as Saudi Arabia and Russia agreed to production cuts, which helped to stabilize prices. Given the strong rally in energy stocks, many investors are wondering if they should put their money in that sector. However, there are a few things to consider before making that decision. First, it is important to remember that the energy sector is notoriously volatile. Prices can rise and fall sharply in a short period. Second, the sector is heavily dependent on global events. geopolitical factors can have a major impact on energy prices. Finally, it is worth noting that the energy sector is not without its challenges. The transition to renewable energy sources is likely to continue to weigh on oil demand in the years ahead. Tech Stocks While energy stocks have had a strong year, tech stocks have been under pressure in recent months. After hitting all-time highs in February, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index has fallen sharply. The index is down nearly 10% from its peak. The sell-off in tech stocks has been driven by a number of critical factors. • First, valuations in the sector had become extremely stretched. • Second, there are concerns that the Biden administration will enact stricter regulations on the tech industry. • Finally, many investors are simply taking profits after a spectacular run-up in prices. Given the recent sell-off in tech stocks, some investors are wondering if now is the time to buy. However, it is important to remember that the sector still faces a number of challenges. In addition to regulatory concerns, the sector is also grappling with several other issues, including the transition to 5G and the rise of artificial intelligence. The Bottom Line There is no one size to fit all. If you have the time and are not risk averse, then investing, whether in tech or energy can pay off (no guarantee) and you should see my free campaign to teach people to be better investors – www.campaignforamillion.com

UK farmers turn to Nepal and Tajikistan for fruit pickers Every spring thousands of seasonal workers come to harvest the UK's soft fruits, but this year they're coming. Before Brexit many people came from Poland, Romania and Bulgaria to harvest UK's fruits. Now, UK growers are employing people from Nepal, Indonesia, Tajikistan and other places. Most of the workers do not speak English but they have picked some English and the farm owners are relieved that they can at least understand some English and the communication is possible. Getting enough workers for the summer season is always a challenge, but this year, with the soft fruit season just about to hit its peak, many growers say they're more worried than they've ever been that there won't be enough pickers. Jenny Tasker from Harwill Farm near Retford which supplies Waitrose, Tesco and Marks and Spencer, has always had a mix of nationalities. But this year their workers come from nine different countries, including 35 from Nepal for the first time, 45 Tajikistan, and even three from Indonesia.

Bank of England set to raise interest rate The Bank of England is expected to raise interest rate from 1 to 1.25 per cent, its steepest rate hikes in 25 years, and is likely to keep going in the coming months as inflation heads for double digits. Investors and most economists are predicting a quarter-point rate hike by the BoE this week. While historically low, expectations for British borrowing costs over the next couple of years have risen sharply recently and they jumped again this week when the European Central Bank flagged rate hikes at its next two meetings, including a possible half percentage-point rise

in September. Investors are betting on the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee doubling Bank Rate to 2% by September and hitting 3% by March next year. Some economists are ramping up their forecasts too. Sanjay Raja at Deutsche Bank said he now expected rates to peak at 2.5%, up from a previous call of

1.75%, starting with a 0.25% increase next week. "We don't expect a unanimous decision, however. Instead, risks are skewed to a more split MPC, with at least three members on the committee looking for a bigger 50 basis-point move," he said. "There's also a possibility of an even messier vote, with one or two members looking for no change to the Bank Rate." The BoE was the first big central bank to start reversing its pandemic stimulus in December,

before the US Federal Reserve and others began to move to head off the jump in inflation caused by the reopening of the world economy after the coronavirus pandemic and then Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But that did not stop British inflation hitting a 4year high of 9% in April, almost five times the BoE's 2% target. The BoE thinks inflation is set to surpass 10% later in 2022, when regulated energy tariffs are due to jump by a further 40%, and consumers have already reined in their spending while there are signs of a slowdown in the housing market.

UK economy shrinks as cost of living crisis continues The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said April’s data showed UK's gross domestic product (GDP), a measure of the size of the economy, fell by 0.3% in the main services sector, primarily due to the government’s Covid Test and Trace scheme ending and lower vaccination activity. The ONS added that there were declines in the manufacturing and construction sectors, down 1% and 0.4% respectively in April, with manufacturers in particular noting the impact of soaring prices and supply chain issues. Darren Morgan, director

of economic statistics at the ONS, said: “A big drop in the health sector due to the winding down of the test and trace scheme pushed the UK economy into negative territory in April. Manufacturing also suffered due to the rising fuel and energy prices. Responding to the latest GDP figures released by the ONS, Chancellor Rishi Sunak said: “Countries around the world are seeing slowing growth and the UK is not immune from these challenges. I want to reassure people, we’re fully focused on growing the economy to address the cost

of living in the longer term, while supporting families and businesses with the immediate pressures they’re facing. “We have a plan to turbocharge productivity through investment in capital, people and ideas, so everyone across the country can benefit from a strong, healthy economy.” Environment Secretary George Eustice said the decline in the UK economy in April presents “some real challenges ahead” and blamed both recovery from the pandemic and supply

chain pressure as the reason for the fall. He said: “We’ve known for some time this was going to be a challenge. We’ve got unemployment that’s at record lows, the lowest it’s been since 1974, but of course there are some real challenges ahead and these GDP figures are a reminder of those challenges.”

Rising petrol prices putting Labour shortages hit UK pressure on households economy badly Rising petrol and diesel prices are putting pressure on household budgets, with energy bills and food prices also now at multi-year highs. The RAC motoring group called it "a truly dark day" as the cost of filling a 55-litre tank reached £100.27 for petrol and £103.43 for diesel. The RAC and the AA urged the chancellor to cut VAT on fuel or to reduce fuel duty further. The Treasury said it had provided £37bn to ease the cost of living already. Fuel prices began to soar after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February led to oil supply fears. However, there are concerns that petrol retailers are not passing on a recent 5p cut in fuel duty to consumers. According to the RAC, the average pump price of a litre of unleaded petrol is now 182.31p while for diesel it is 188.05p. However, the motoring group has warned this could rise to over £2 a litre soon. RAC spokesman Simon Williams said: "While fuel prices have been setting new records on a daily basis, households never have expected to see the cost of filling an average-sized family car reach three figures. "A further duty cut or a temporary reduction in VAT would go a long way towards helping drivers, especially those on lower incomes who have no choice other than to drive." The AA called on the government to cut fuel duty by 10p per litre immediately and introduce a "fuel price stabiliser", which would reduce fuel duty when petrol prices go up and increase it when they drop.

The UK is currently in the grip of an “employment crisis”there are 1.3 million job vacancies, and for the first time, there are not enough people looking for work to fill them. This is partly due to Brexit: it has “contributed to the exodus of 200,000 EU citizens” in the past two years; but a greater number of people – 450,000 – have simply left the workforce since 2019, and are now “economically inactive” (neither in work, nor looking for work). When the ONS surveyed some of those who have left the jobs, almost half said they’d left their jobs of their own volition, and only two-fifths said they’d consider going back to work. The shrinking workforce is “the most urgent problem facing the UK economy”, said Chris Giles. In total, there are 900,000 fewer workers today than the Bank of England expected before Covid struck. Its governor, Andrew Bailey, has warned that labour shortages are driving up prices and wages (as employers feel obliged to concede to pay demands), thus contributing to his struggle to bring down inflation. Most worrying is “that this is a UK-specific problem”. We have “the most persistent post-pandemic drop in employment of any G7 country”. And while some of it may not be the government’s fault, the fact that many of those who’ve left the work force are long-term sick is a black mark on its record, underlining the broader harm caused by the UK’s high levels of long Covid and record NHS waiting lists.

Train services to affect as drivers plan to join strike by others There will be major disruption in Britain's train services in June and July as drivers are planning to join thousands of other rail workers on strike. Aslef, Britain's trade union for train drivers, announced strikes at three companies over pay. It comes after the RMT Union, which represents guards and other railway staff, said 40,000 workers from Network Rail and 13 train firms would walkout. The separate strikes are expected to cause severe disruption across the UK.

Train drivers of ASLEF will hold their own strike over pay on 26 June at Hull Trains, at Greater Anglia on 23 June, and on Croydon Tramlink on 28, 29 June and 13 and 14 July. Meanwhile, RMT workers will take their industrial action on 21, 23 and 25 June after talks over pay and redundancies fell through. Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said its members were not given a pay rise since 2019 and the union wanted drivers to get a pay rise "in line with the cost of living, so that we are not, in real terms, worse

off". "We are not naive. The train companies are doing very well with handsome profits, dividends for shareholders, and big salaries for managers - and we are not going to work longer, for less," he said. The various planned strikes coincide with several large events, ranging from Glastonbury Festival, which runs from 22 to 26 June, to a cricket Test match between England and New Zealand taking place from 23 to 27 June. The industrial action has been described as the "biggest rail strike in modern history".

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India’s industrial growth high but some areas still weak Data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) showed India’s index of industrial production (IIP) rose to an annual 7.1% in April, compared with an upwardly revised 2.2% in March. The industrial output growth rose to an eight-month high in April, helped by a low base, pointing to a gradual and continuing recovery but the data still showed some areas of weakness in the sector, which is crucial for faster economic expansion. The sector had grown by 133. 5% in April 2021 on the back of a very low base of

2020 when the Covid-19 induced lockdown had economic smothered activity and growth. Several indicators had pointed to the recovery gathering momentum, including PMI manufacturing surveys and GST receipts. The impact of the war in Ukraine and the breakdown in supply chains

have triggered stubborn price pressures which will have an impact on growth and the manufacturing sector going forward. But economists were surprised by the resilience of the sector although they pointed to the weak spots that still need to be watched in the manufacturing sector. Aditi Nayar, chief economist at ratings agency Icra said “When compared with the pre-Covid level of April 2019, the IIP was 6.8% higher in April 2022, with a

double-digit growth in intermediate, infrastructure and primary goods, amid a flattish performance of consumer non-durables, and an unpalatable contraction in capital goods and consumer durables.” Nayar said the weak showing of capital goods output relative to the preCovid level confirms the view that the uptick in capacity utilisation in the fourth quarter of FY2022 will not trigger a rapid private sector capacity expansion in light of the uncertainties generated by geopolitical developments.

India’s sovereign rating upgraded All three major global ratings agencies, Moody’s, S&P and now Fitch, have stable outlook for India’s sovereign ratings, which provides comfort to policymakers battling to secure growth against the backdrop of geopolitical tensions. The rating also balances India's external resilience from solid foreign exchange reserve buffers against some

lagging structural indicators. Fitch Ratings has now revised the outlook on India’s sovereign rating to stable from negative, saying downside risks to mediumterm growth have diminished due to the rapid economic recovery and easing financial sector weaknesses, despite nearterm headwinds from the global commodity price

Amazon warns Future Group against deal with RIL E-commerce major Amazon has sent a notice to Future Group promoters, asking them to refrain from entering into any kind of transaction with Reliance Industries group either directly or indirectly. The notice follows reports that the Future Group is in the midst of negotiations with the Mukesh Ambani-led group for sale of its supply chain and logistics businesses. In the notice, Amazon said that the scheme of arrangement between Future Group and Reliance was rejected by the creditors of Future Retail (FRL), but still “FRL has through a fraudulent and convoluted stratagem already handed over as many as 835 retail stores to the MDA (Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani) Group and now intends to transfer the entire supply chain, warehousing and logistics business by way of the proposed transaction to the MDA Group”. It said that the “proposed transaction is in continuation of a larger fraudulent stratagem to give effect to the impugned transaction”. It said FRL had claimed that the MDA Group had “forcefully” taken over the retail stores. “It is telling to note that the Future Group has not taken any action against the takeover of the retail stores. On the contrary, the Future Group is now intending to enter into a fresh commercial transaction for sale of its supply chain and logistics businesses, which are ancillary and supplementary to the operations of the retail stores to the same entity, that is, the MDA Group,” Amazon said.

shock. Fitch retained the rating at BBB (minus) and said that it expects robust growth relative to peers to support credit metrics in line with the current rating. It said India's economy continues to see a robust recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic shock. India’s GDP recovered by 8.7% in the fiscal year ended March 2022 (FY22), and forecast

GDP growth to remain robust at 7.8% in FY23, lower than the 8.5% forecast in March as the inflationary impacts of the global commodity price shock are dampening some of the positive growth momentum. It said conditions in the financial sector were a key growth impediment before the pandemic, but have improved in recent years

Home loans get costlier in India with repo rate hike The latest 50 basis points (bps) rate hike by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is set to make home loans costlier. The RBI's action will automatically push up the cost of mortgages as over 90% of bank home loans are linked to the repo rate. With the last increase, the EMI on a Rs 10 million, 20-year home loan rose by Rs 3,029 from Rs 77,530 to Rs 80,559. Taken together with the latest hike, there will be a total increase of Rs 5,500 per month on such a loan. Realty experts said middle income group (MIG) home buyers’ will be discouraged to buy new homes as they are most sensitive to change in home loan rates. Banks have already raised the interest rate on home loans by 30-40

India moves up in UNCTAD's investment report India has moved up one notch to be ranked seventh in the UNCTAD’s (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) annual World Investment Report despite a 30% decline in foreign direct investment (FDI) into the country. During 2021, FDI inflows into India were estimated at $45 billion as large mergers and acquisitions, especially in the digital technology space, were not repeated in 2021. During the previous year, companies such as Reliance Jio received large investments from Facebook and Alphabet. But India remains the preferred destination for digital MNCs looking to invest outside the developed world with the country cornering 7% of deals due to the “thriving tech startup scene”. UNCTD also appeared upbeat on the overall investment situation in the country. According to them, “a flurry of new international project finance deals were announced in the country: 108 projects, compared with 20 projects on average for the last 10 years. The largest number of projects (23) was in renewables. Large projects include the construction in India of a steel and cement plant for $13. 5 billion by Arcelormittal Nippon Steel (Japan) and the construction of a new car manufacturing facility by Suzuki Motor (Japan) for $2.4 billion. ”

bps since the first hike in May. Most banks are likely to pass on the latest rate hike in the coming days. Experts opined that costlier home loans can affect developers’ sentiments and they would wait and watch to launch new schemes. Reacting to the rate hike, President of CREDAI Ahmedabad GIHED Tejas Joshi said, “Since 65 to 70 per cent of the residential projects are in the affordable category in the city, the lower-middle class and middle class will be affected the most.”

Indian banks sue GVK in London In a shocking turn of events, six Indian banks, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, Canara Bank, ICICI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Axis Bank are suing Indian corporate GVK Coal Developers (Singapore) (GVK) part of the GVK group - for $1.5 billion plus interest, in the London High Court. The banks state in their claim that GVK failed to make certain repayments as they fell due and failed to obtain a mining lease in the Alpha project in Queensland, Australia by December 31, 2012, which was a project milestone that had to be satisfied. The banks wrote to GVK in November 2020 cancelling the agreement and requesting repayment but neither GVK, nor its guarantors, has paid any of the sums owed, the banks claim. Nine other GVK group companies which were guarantors for the loans, are also being sued in the case. GVK denies it is breach of the agreements and denies that $1.5 billion is owed. The dispute is over a $1 billion loan and $35 million letter of credit facility that five of the banks lent to GVK in 2011, plus a $160 million loan lent to GVK in 2014, that the banks claim GVK defaulted on.

The Glitch In The Matrix Suresh Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

Some time ago we were focusing on an auction deal which came up in Harrow & Wealdstone. It was a piece of land which had planning for a commercial premises and uppers. The next door building, which was existing, consisted of the same. It was on the market with a naff agent who would not return our calls. Consequently, we managed to contact the owner, and showed up at his door step; he was surprised but hospitable. He was not aware a third party could track him down without having connections in the MI6. Nonetheless he entertained us. The property was on the market for £650K, they would take an offer of £625K. They weren’t budging. The building seemed solid though derelict. The neighbouring property was in an auction, with a guide of £200K. The construction cost for a sizable new build was quoted at £350K, therefore, there was some margin there. And, you would have a new build with the energy efficiency which goes with it. We were prepared to go up to £275K on this property at a push. However, the bidding price went all the way to £331K, which made absolutely no sense to me at all. The only way I could rationalise this price, was for two reasons. One, perhaps someone had over paid simply to have a project in their locality. Two, perhaps someone wanted to keep their builders busy in between jobs. However, in showing an investor and an accountant a derelict property recently, we got talking about the state of the property market and how everything seemed to be going for way more than it’s worth, especially when the properties required refurbishment. It was then he mentioned the reason for this is perhaps this is used as a good way to get rid of any cash the purchaser has lying around, as this could be used to pay builders etc. This would serve to get rid of any cash and provide a cheaper pool of builders, especially labourers. This for me was the missing link. This resonated more as to why many refurbishments or small scale development deals were achieving more than they should have been. It often looked like a glitch in the market, but this piece of information provided the reason why. The noose on this is tightening. Soon cash will be a thing of the past. Something we all used to use. Already, many people pay with their mobile phone alone, no requirement for even a card. Everything which is online is trackable and traceable. Therefore, there is a move for society world over to be heading into this direction. This is probably one of the few remaining chinks in the matrix which can be used currently. If this theory is correct, when we are finally in a cashless society these sort of chinks will no longer show up in the market. It will be interesting to see, when the day finally arrives.

World Bank again cuts India’s GDP growth forecast In April, the World Bank had cut India’s growth estimate to 8% for FY23 from the earlier 8.7% due to the impact of supply chain disruptions and soaring inflation. India’s economy has staged a sharp recovery from the impact of lockdowns that were imposed to prevent the spread of Covid but the war in Ukraine has dealt another blow, resulting in surging price pressures, which have prompted the RBI to raise interest rates sharply. The World Bank has now further cut India's GDP growth forecast for 2022-23 to 7.5% from the earlier estimate of 8%, citing the impact of high inflation, supply chain disruptions

and geopolitical tensions. “Growth will also be supported by fixed investment undertaken by the private sector and by the government, which has introduced incentives and reforms to improve the business climate. This forecast reflects a 1.2percentage-point downward revision of growth from the January projection. Growth is expected to slow further to 7.1% in FY24 back towards its longer-run potential,” the World Bank said in its latest report. The RBI has also lowered its GDP growth forecast to 7.2% for 2022-23 from the earlier estimate of 7.8% due to the impact of geopolitical tensions and the impact on prices.

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Idols at Hindu temple in Karachi destroyed KARACHI: The idols of deities at a Hindu temple in Karachi have been destroyed, police said, the latest incident of vandalism against the places of worship of the minority community in this country. The idols of deities at Shri Mari Maata Mandir in Karachi’s Korangi area were attacked on Wednesday. The ‘Express Tribune’ reported that the incident caused panic and fear among the Hindu community living in Karachi, particularly in the

Korangi area where police were deployed to avoid any untoward incident. Sanjeev, a resident of the area, said that six to eight

individuals on motorcycles came and attacked the temple. “We don’t know who has attacked the temple and why,” he said, adding that police were approached to lodge a complaint. “Five to six unknown suspects entered the temple and escaped after vandalising it,” Korangi SHO Farooq Sanjrani confirmed. He

added that the case was being registered against unknown suspects who attacked the temple. In August, dozens of people reportedly vandalised a Hindu temple in Bhong town and blocked the Sukkur-Multan Motorway after an eight-yearold Hindu boy, who allegedly urinated in a local seminary, was granted bail by a local court. Following the court’s decision, a mob gathered and vandalised the Shree Ganesh Hindu temple in the town, according to the paper.

Lanka announces petrol rationing COLOMBO: Crisis-hit Sri Lanka announced weekly fuel quotas for motorists, as an acute shortage worsened and longer queues formed outside the few pumping stations still operating. Energy minister Kanchana Wijesekera said the state-run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation was struggling to finance oil imports, while consumption had shot up due to shortages of electricity and liquefied petroleum gas. “We have no choice but to register consumers at filling stations and give them a guaranteed weekly quota until we are able to strengthen the financial situation,” the minister said. “I hope to have this system in place

by the first week of July. ” He did not say how much fuel motorists will be allowed to buy under the system. In midApril, the government ordered all fuel stations not to pump more than four litres of petrol for a motorcycle, five for a threewheeler and 19. 5 litres of gasoline or diesel for cars and SUVs. Two weeks ago, Sri Lanka received a shipment of Russian crude oil to be refined on the island. Sri Lanka may be compelled to buy more oil from Russia, PM Ranil Wickremesinghe said. He said he would first look to other sources, but would be open to buying more crude from Moscow.

Gotabaya seeks support from India, China President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, meanwhile, sought all possible assistance from India, China and the countries in the West Asia when he met the high commissioners and ambassadors amid the unprecedented economic crisis faced by the island nation. “I requested their assistance in resolving the existing crisis, while briefing them on the current economic, social and politsituation,” President ical Rajapaksa tweeted. The president appreciated the assistance already provided by these countries to Sri Lanka, which has been grappling with unprece-

dented economic turmoil since its independence from Britain in 1948. Sri Lanka’s economic crisis has created political unrest with protesters demanding President Rajapaksa’s resignation. In keeping with India's ‘Neighbourhood First' policy, New Delhi has extended this year alone support worth over $3.5 billion to Sri Lanka to help them overcome the current difficulties. India has rushed assistance in the form of line credit and other modes to help Sri Lanka which has virtually declared insolvency and defaulted on all foreign loans, including that of China totalling $51 billion.

in brief IMF ASKS PAK TO REOPEN CPEC DEALS The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has asked the Pakistan government to renegotiate the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) energy deals before making payments of around 300 billion PKR to the Chinese power plants, putting Islamabad in a tight spot. The global lender has asked the government to treat the Chinese CPEC power plants at par with the power plants established under the 1994 and 2002 power policies, highly placed sources said. The IMF’s demand came after China’s refusal in the past to renegotiate the terms of agreements with the independent power producers (IPPs). Sources said the IMF suspected that the Chinese IPPs might have been overcharging Pakistan and there was a need to reopen these deals.

22 DEAD AS VAN FALLS INTO RAVINE IN BALOCHISTAN At least 22 people, including women and children, were killed and several others injured as a van they were travelling in fell hundreds of feet into a ravine in Pakistan’s mountainous Balochistan province, an official said. The vehicle plunged into the ravine when the driver apparently failed to negotiate a sharp bend in the mountainous area of Akhtarzai near Killa Saifullah, which is at an elevation of 1,572 metres. Deputy commissioner of Zhob district, Hafiz Muhammad Qasim, said, “The vehicle fell from a hilltop near Akhtarzai. We have so far recovered 10 bodies as rescue operations are difficult due to the deep ravine,” he said

Pak, China step up defence Dhaka rejects Chinese support 9 ARRESTED AFTER for high-speed rail link cooperartion VIOLENT ASSAULT ON

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and China have stepped up their defence cooperation by reaffirming their “strategic partnership in the challenging times” as army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa, accompanied by defence officials, held talks with the Chinese team led by vice chairman Central Military Commission General Zhang Youxia. The tri-service military delegation of Pakistan visited China from June 9 to 12 where it held wide ranging discussions with senior officials of the Chinese military and other government departments, according to a statement by Pakistan army. The apex meeting was held on June 12 wherein the Pakistani side was headed by Gen Bajwa, while the Chinese side was led by Gen Zhang. “Both sides discussed their perspectives on the international and regional security situa-

tion, and expressed satisfaction on defence cooperation between the two countries,” the statement said. “Pakistan and China reaffirmed their strategic partnership in challenging times and agreed to continue regular exchange of perspectives on issues of mutual interest. Both sides also vowed to enhance their training, technology and counterterrorism cooperation at tri service level,” it added. The visit was part of Pak-China Joint Military Cooperation Committee - its apex committee is the highest military cooperation body.

DHAKA: Even as Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina prepares to inaugurate later this month the landmark China-built Padma bridge, which promises to transform the country’s economy, Dhaka is treading cautiously on economic assistance from China. The Hasina government, according to an official source in Dhaka, has nixed a proposal for a high-speed Dhaka-Chittagong railway line that China was aggressively pursuing. According to Indian authorities, Bangladesh has been mindful of India’s security interests while allowing Chinese companies to implement projects in the country. Bangladesh is one of the few Muslimmajority countries that have not officially lodged a protest with India over the remarks by (former) BJP spokespersons against the Prophet. Bangladesh information minister Hasan Mahmud told a visiting Indian media delegation that Dhaka is thankful to the Indian government for the action against those who insulted the Prophet. Significantly, while a Chinese firm has built the multipurpose bridge on the Padma river, Bangladesh is proud of the fact that its government financed the construction without any loan assistance from China or any other country or entity. The 6km bridge built on the choppy waters of the Padma is expected to provide a major fillip to trade and commerce in Bangladesh’s southwest region and, according to official estimates, increase the country’s GDP by 1. 2 per cent. While India didn’t have any role in the construction of the bridge, for Indian authorities it’s still a source of satisfaction that it will bring Bangladesh closer to India by reducing the rail travel time from Dhaka to Kolkata by almost three hours.According to diplomatic sources, Hasina is expected to visit India in a few months. The visit will probably be the last high-level contact between the two governments before the elections in Bangladesh next year.

Musharraf seriously ill, hospitalised in UAE DUBAI: Pakistan’s former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf is hospitalised in the UAE after his condition deteriorated as he is going through a “difficult stage where recovery is not possible”, his family said amid speculation about his wellbeing. Musharraf, 78, ruled Pakistan from 1999 to 2008. Some reports say that he is more, but his family says that he is still alive. His family issued a statement on Twitter and said that he is “not on the ventilator”. “(He) has been hospitalised for the last 3 weeks due to a complication of

Pervez Musharraf

his ailment (amyloidosis). Going through a difficult stage where recovery is not possible and organs are malfunctioning,” Musharraf's family said.

Amyloidosis is a rare disease that occurs when an abnormal protein builds up in organs and interferes with the normal function. Earlier, his close aide and

former information minister Fawad Chaudhry said Musharraf is critical and on ventilator support in a UAE hospital. He said he spoke to Musharraf’s son who confirmed his illness. Chaudhry, who was the information minister in the Imran Khan government, was once a media spokesperson for Musharraf. Musharraf came to power in a bloodless coup in 1999, deposing the then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. Facing impeachment following elections in 2008, Musharraf was forced to resign as president and went into self-imposed exile in Dubai.

WOMEN IN CHINA EATERY Chinese authorities arrested nine people on suspicion of assaulting several women at a restaurant after surveillance footage of the attack sparked widespread outrage. Footage from a barbecue restaurant in Tangshan in Hebei province showed one of the men approaching a table where a party of four women were seated and placing his hand on a woman’s back. She rebuffed him several times before he flew into a rage and slapped her, prompting her to fight back. A brawl ensued, with a group of men entering the restaurant and brutally attacking the woman and her partners. Footage from outside the restaurant also showed the attackers dragging a woman out of the establishment before being beaten. Photos of her lying on a stretcher, with a swollen and bloodied face, and footage of the attack, went viral.

US, S KOREA FLY 20 FIGHTER JETS AMID TENSIONS WITH NORTH South Korea and the US flew fighter jets in formation over South Korea’s western sea in a show of force amid signs that a North Korean nuclear test explosion could be imminent. The flight came as US deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman travelled to Seoul for discussions with South Korea and Japanese allies over the gathering North Korean threat and warned of a “swift and forceful” response if the North proceeds with a nuclear test, which would be its first in nearly five years. If staged, the test would mark another leap forward in North Korean leader Kim Jongun’s goals to build an arsenal that could viably threaten regional US allies and the American homeland. That would escalate a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the US to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and negotiating economic and security concessions.

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in brief IRAN CURRENCY HITS NEW RECORD LOW Iran’s currency dropped to its lowest value ever as talks to revive the country’s tattered nuclear deal with world powers remained deadlocked. Traders in Tehran exchanged the rial at 332,000 to the US dollar, up from 327,500 on Saturday. That marked more than a 4.4% change compared to June 1 when it traded at 318,000 to the dollar. The rial’s new low came as US sanctions are still in force. Iran’s economy is struggling mostly because of the US pullout from the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers that restored sanctions on Iran’s oil and banking sectors. Talks in Vienna to renew the agreement have been deadlocked for months.

AUSTRALIAN COURT CURTAILS CITIZENSHIP POWERS OF GOVT Australia’s highest court found a cabinet minister illegally cancelled a suspected Islamic State group fighter’s citizenship in a landmark ruling that curtails how governments can deal with extremists. The high court, in a 6-to-1 judgment, restored Delil Alexander’s Australian citizenship that was removed in July last year by the then-home affairs minister Karen Andrews. Alexander, who was born in Australia and has Turkish citizenship by descent, is in a Syrian prison on terrorism convictions. He had left Australia in 2013, crossed the Syrian border and was arrested by a Kurdish militia in 2017. Andrews cancelled Alexander’s citizenship based on an intelligence report that he had joined the IS and had likely engaged in fighting and recruiting for the group. The court ruled the power she used was unconstitutional because it gave her the power of a court to determine criminal guilt.

KENYA, SOMALIA AGREE TO EASE RELATIONS Somalia has agreed to lift a ban on air freighting khat (miraa) from Kenya that had been in place for more than two years, Kenya's agriculture minister Peter Munya said. The announcement, which comes a day after Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta visited Mogadishu for the inauguration of Somalia's new president Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud, marks an easing of relations between the two countries. Peter Munya said that the two countries had agreed on trade deals, one of which will allow Kenya to resume exports of miraa, a popular plant that is chewed for its stimulant and appetite-suppressant properties, while Somalia will sell fish and other products to its neighbor.

MYSTERY PLANE FLIES ACROSS 7 EAST EUROPE NATIONS A two-seater plane whizzed through half a dozen eastern European countries without permission, alerting air forces, before being abandoned in Bulgaria by a mysterious crew, the defence ministry in Sofia said. The aircraft flew over Hungary, crossed briefly into Serbia and then Romania before entering Bulgarian airspace, the Bulgarian defence ministry said. The twin-engine Beechcraft with two people onboard had no approved flight plan and its transponders were turned off. The pilot did not respond to radio requests. Two Hungarian fighter jets, two US F-16s and two Romanian F-16s intercepted the intruder one after the other and escorted it until it entered Bulgarian airspace. Bulgaria’s interior ministry later found it abandoned in an old airfield. Interior minister Boyko Rashkov said the crew had vanished.

Krishna Srinivasan appointed as head of IMF’s Asia-Pacific dept WASHINGTON: Indian national Krishna Srinivasan has been appointed as the director of the Asia and Pacific Department (APD) of IMF from June 22. According to International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, Srinivasan will succeed Changyong Rhee whose retirement from the Fund was announced on March 23. " Srinivasan is a highly regarded member of our Fund family and has made many important and innovative contributions to our mission throughout his career at the Fund," Georgieva said. Srinivasan has more than 27 years of Fund experience, starting in 1994 in the Economist Program. He is currently a Deputy Director in APD where

Department (AFR), E u r o p e a n Department (EUR), Monetary and Capital Market Department (MCM), RES, Strategy, Policy and Review Department (SPR), and West H e m i s p h e r e Department (WHD). Krishna Srinivasan said Georgieva he oversees the department's over the years, he has built an surveillance work on a number outstanding reputation as a of large and systemically imporfirst-rate collaborator and trusttant countries such as China ed advisor in his relationships and Korea, and smaller states in with Fund colleagues and counthe Pacific such as Fiji and try authorities alike. "He is Vanuatu. known for fostering an open Georgieva said Srinivasan's dialogue as the way to building appointment is a culmination strong relationships and achievof his superior record of leadering traction with country ship across a wide range of authorities. Srinivasan has also departments, including African helped to nurture the careers of

many Fund staff as a coach and mentor. As Director, I know that he will continue to provide excellent leadership and advice to our membership and to staff within and outside APD,” Georgieva stated. Srinivasan holds a PhD (Honors) in Economics from Indiana University, a Master’s in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics, and a Bachelor’s (Honors) in Economics from the University of Delhi. Prior to joining the Fund, Srinivasan was an Assistant Professor of Economics and International Finance at Indiana-Purdue University and a consultant at the World Bank in DC and the Center for Policy Research and Planning Commission in New Delhi.

US offers to stand by its friends to Islamists threaten Dutch legislator face China's coercive approach for supporting Nupur Sharma WASHINGTON: China continues to harden its position along the borders with India, US defence secretary Lloyd James Austin said, while underlining that Washington will stand by its friends in upholding their rights in the face of Beijing’s “war Lloyd Austin coercive” and “aggressive prowess can be a stabilising approach” in the Indo-Pacific. force in the region.” China must desist from its Austin’s statement about aggressive and illegal approachChina hardening its posture es to push its territorial claims, with India is the second such Austin said at the Shangri-La observation by a top US official Dialogue in Singapore. While this week amidst the continuing noting China is “pushing limits” military confrontation in eastin the East China Sea and South ern Ladakh, which is into its China Sea, he said: “Further to third year now with over 50,000 the west, we're seeing Beijing soldiers each forward deployed continue to harden its position with heavy weapons along the along the border that it shares frontier. with India.” In New Delhi, the US army's Stressing that US partnerPacific Commanding General ships with treaty allies and Charles A Flynn had described Asean countries as well as China’s rapid build-up of milithrough mechanisms like the tary infrastructure along the Quad have grown and matured Line of Actual Control as in the Indo-Pacific, which is at “alarming” and the activity lev“the heart of American grand els of its People’s Liberation strategy”, Austin said, “We Army as “eyeopening” in the believe India's growing military region. capability and technological

AMSTERDAM: Geert Wilders, a Dutch legislator, is receiving death threats for his support of ex-BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma for her statements about Prophet Muhammad. Geert, who has repeatedly taken a tough stance against Islamic extremism in his country, had shown his support for Nupur Sharma, who has been under relentless attack from Islamists all over the world after making statements about the Islamic Prophet during a news debate on television. Geert tweeted screenshots of threats to assassinate him as soon as possible. He stated in the tweet, “So this is what I get supporting the brave #NupurSharma. Hundreds of death threats. It makes me even more determined and proud of supporting her. For evil may never win. Never. #IsupportNupurSharma” The screenshots Geert shared contain vulgar threat messages intended at the assassination of him. One of them reads, “InshaAllah, a day will come when I will take off your head with my dagger and hang it on the minaret of Pakistan, then we will raise a slogan. Mumtaz Qadri has passed away but the gun is still there. You have no more days.” Another one reads, “You Son of a bitch you will be killed soon. We will make you a sign of fear for people like you till end of times..” “It is ridiculous that Arab and Islamic countries are angered by Indian politician Nupur Sharma’s statement for speaking the truth about Prophet Muhammad who indeed married Aisha when she was six years old and consumed the marriage when she was nine. Why does India apologize?” said Geert in a tweet on June 6 in support of Nupur Sharma. Geert has maintained that he receives death threats on a daily basis from Pakistani and Turkish Muslims who wish to kill in the name of Prophet Muhammad and that he would never stop telling the truth. Geert, a 58-year-old Dutch parliamentarian, is the head of the Party for Freedom. He is a right-wing politician who has been loud in his opposition to the Dutch government’s immigration policy, particularly those aimed at Muslim nations and has even declared that his country should exit the EU.

US Capitol riot an attempted coup by Trump: House panel

Thailand first nation in Asia to decriminalise marijuana

WASHINGTON: The house panel investigating the January 6 insurrection at the US Capitol laid the blame firmly on Donald Trump, saying the assault was hardly spontaneous but an “attempted coup” and a direct result of the defeated president’s effort to overturn the 2020 election. With a never-before-seen 12-minute video of extremist groups leading the deadly siege and startling testimony from Trump’s most inner circle, the 1/6 committee provided gripping detail in contending that Trump’s repeated lies about election fraud and his public effort to stop Joe Biden’s victory led to the attack and imperiled American democracy. “January 6 was the culmination of an attempted coup, a brazen attempt, as one rioter put it shortly after January 6, to overthrow the government,” Bennie Thompson, chairman of the panel, during the hearing, timed for prime time to reach as many Americans as possible, said. “The violence was no accident. ” The hearings may not change Americans’ views on the Capitol attack, but the panel’s investigation is intended to stand as its public record. Ahead of this fall’s midterm elections, and with Trump considering another White House run, the committee’s final report aims to account for the most violent attack on the Capitol since 1814. Testimony showed how Trump desperately clung to his own false claims of election fraud, beckoning supporters to the Capitol on January 6 when Congress would certify the results, despite those around him insisting Biden had won the election.

BANGKOK: With an aim to boosting its agriculture and tourism sectors, Thailand became the first Asian nation to legalise the growing of marijuana and its consumption in food and drinks. Smoking the pot is still not legalised. Shoppers queued up at outlets selling cannabis-infused drinks, sweets and other items as advocates of the plant welcomed the reform in a country that has long had a reputation for strict anti-drug laws. The public health minister's plan to distribute 1 million marijuana seedlings has added to the impression that Thailand is turning into a weed wonderland. Thailand, which has a tradition of using cannabis to relieve pain and fatigue, legalised medicinal marijuana in 2018. The decision makes Thailand the first nation in Asia to decriminalise marijuana. But it is not following the examples of Uruguay and Canada, the only two countries so far that have legalised recreational marijuana on a national basis. The government, banking on the plant as a cash crop, plans to give away a million plants to encourage farmers to take up its cultivation. “After Covid, the economy going down the drain, we really do need this,” said Chokwan Kitty Chopaka, who owns a shop selling cannabis gum sweets. But authorities aim to head off an explosion of recreational use by limiting the strength of the products on offer. The possession and sale of cannabis extracts containing more than 0.2% of its psychoactive ingredient is not allowed, which will mean smokers of the drug known as "pot", "weed" and a host of other names, will struggle to get "stoned".

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Presidential polls on July 18, BJP yet to finalise its nominee With the Election Commission announcing July 18 as the date to conduct the presidential election, the spotlight is on YSR Congress and Biju Janata Dal as the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance is just short of the halfway mark. June 29 is the last date for candidates to file papers. Voting is scheduled for July 18 and counting on July 21. While PM Modi will have the final word on deciding the presidential candidate, support from YSR Congress or BJD would pave the way for NDA’s nominee in the race for the country’s top office. Recently, YSR Congress chief Jagan Mohan Reddy and Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik had met Modi in Delhi, although it is not clear what transpired during the meeting. The two regional parties have maintained a low profile; both

went with BJP in backing Ramnath Kovind in 2017. Based on the current arithmetic, NDA is around 13,000 votes short and support from either BJD, which has over 31,000 votes in the electoral college, or YSR Congress (over 43,000 votes) will ensure smooth sailing for the BJP-led alliance. NDA is estimated to have 526,000 votes out of a possible 10,79,000 in the electoral college, comprising elected members of the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and the state legislatures. The NDA has the option to renominate Kovind, field vicepresident M Venkaiah Naidu, who is seen as a potential candidate orspring a surprise. Although BJP’s numbers have significantly increased in the Lok Sabha, its changed equations with the regional parties and

reduced strength in several state assemblies have led to its reliance on regional parties such as YSR Congress and BJD. The party has severed ties with Shiv Sena, and Akali Dal, while AIADMK members occupy fewer benches in the Tamil Nadu assembly. The saffron party won the Uttar Pradesh polls this year, but its numbers have reduced. Besides, it has suffered losses in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and also in Madhya Pradesh compared to the numbers it had in the 2017 presidential polls. But the NDA seems to have an edge, especially because the opposition is yet to come to a common ground on a candidate, who could be acareer politician or a distinguished personality. There has been a tug-of-war among the opposition parties

PM Modi inaugurates IN-SPACe in Ahmedabad Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India is all poised to increase its share in the global space industry from existing 3%. Inaugurating the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (INSPACe) headquarters in Ahmedabad, PM Modi termed the launch epoch moment for the Indian space industry as it would be a precursor to many development and opportunities. "Today a glorious chapter has been added in the development journey of modern India. Many congratulations to all the countrymen, and scientific community for the headquarters of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Center," Modi said addressing the inauguration ceremony. PM Modi hailed India's space mission and called it the biggest recognition of the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative. “The global space industry is valued at 400 billion US dollars today. By 2040, it has the potential to become a 1 trillion-dollar industry. India currently has

participation in the industry at only 3%. India would have to increase its share, and there’s a big role for the private sector in the same,” said the PM, adding that he also envisions a major role played by India in the fields of space tourism and space diplomacy. IN-SPACe is envisaged as a single contact point for the private players. A total of 10 MoUs were exchanged in the presence of PM Modi, union home minister Amit Shah, Gujarat CM Bhupendra Patel, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and ISRO chairman S Somanath. Development works Taking a swipe at the Congress, PM Modi said in

Navsari that those who were in power for the longest time since Independence never gave priority to the development of tribal and far-flung areas as it required hard work. Launching projects worth £305 million for tribal districts of south Gujarat in Khudvel village of Navsari, Modi categorically rejected the narrative that development projects are launched only with an eye on votes ahead of elections and said welfare of poor has been the sole priority of his government for the last eight years. “I have been in public life for over two decades. I challenge them to dig out a single week when I did not launch a developmental project,” he said.

with regional parties such as TMC, TRS and AAP insisting on a non-Congress joint front against BJP. Not in race, clarifies Pawar Amid moves to forge consensus for an oppositionbacked candidate, NCP chief Sharad Pawar quietly nipped in the bud a proposal to prop him up as a contender. “I am not in the race, I will not be opposition candidate for the President’s post,’’ the 81-year-old said. Pawar’s statement ruling out his presence in the contest came a day after the Maharashtra Congress unit expressed support for his candidature. An NCP leader said Pawar made it clear he will not be the candidate but will enable a dialogue among opposition parties to ensure unity on the issue. “The general feeling was the opposition will

put up a consensus candidate despite lack of adequate numbers. West Bengla chief minister Mamata Banerjee has called a meeting in Delhi to discuss the common opposition candidate and its strategy. BJP deputes Nadda, Rajnath BJP has authorised party preisdent JP Nadda and Union minister Rajnath Singh to hold consultations on the President’s election with different political parties, including those in the opposition, to forge a consensus on the choice for the top constitutional post. The move to reach out to opposition parties comes on the heels of parallel moves by Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee to finalise a joint opposition candidate for the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Shakti Kapoor’s son, 4 others held for drug consumption Bollywood actor Shraddha Kapoor’s brother, Siddhanth Kapoor and four others were arrested for consumption of drugs during a raid by Bengaluru police at The Park hotel. Siddhanth is the son of Bollywood actor Shakti Kapoor. According to police, Siddhanth, an actor and assistant director in Bollywood, was the DJ at a party in the hotel. The others arrested were Akhil Soni (28), business manager with a private firm; Harjoth Singh (28), operational head of a logistics firm; Akhil (23), a

Shraddha Kapoor

freelance photographer; and Hani Rafeeque (25), who is in digital marketing. ACP (east) Subramanyeshwar Rao said that Ulsoor police raided the hotel based on a tip-off about the use of banned substances at the party. “There were more

than 100 people at the party, and some of them escaped from the premises. Police managed to catch 35 people and subjected them to medical examinations. Urine tests of five of those caught confirmed drug consumption,” said Rao. Siddhanth Kapoor is among those who tested positive for drug consumption. The police team searched the premises and found two packets of drugs near the dustbin. There were seven MDMA tablets in one packet and ganja weighing around 5 to 10 gm in another packet. ”

Sonia admitted to hospital with Covid-related complications After she contracted Covid last week, Congress president Sonia Gandhi was admitted to the Ganga Ram Hospital for infectionrelated issues. AICC spokesman Randeep Surjewala tweeted, “Congress president Sonia Gandhi was admitted to Ganga Ram Hospital owing to Covid related issues. She

Sonia Gandhi

is stable and will be kept at

the hospital for observation. ”He added, “We thank all the Congress men and women as also all the wellwishers for their concern and good wishes. ” Reports quoting the hospital said Gandhi visited the Ganga Ram for a routine medical check-up. She tested positive for Covid on June 2 and is recuperating.

RS election: BJP's number falls from 95 to 92 The ruling BJP's strength in the Rajya Sabha has fallen from the current 95 to 92 while the number of Congress members has gone up slightly from 29 to 31 after results of the justconcluded Rajya Sabha elections. In the biennial elections to the Council of States that which witnessed a keen contest in four states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Karnataka and Maharashtra, BJP won 22 of the 57 vacancies while the Congress won nine seats. From among the 57 retiring members, the BJP had 25 of its members and the Congress had seven who will retire by next month and new ones will replace them. Both the BJP and the Congress have banked on new and young faces, some of whom have been nominated by the parties for the first time. With more strength, the Congress which nominated younger faces is expected to be more aggressive in the coming days in the upper house. The BJP's strength includes four

nominated members who have opted to be with the ruling party. The BJP will have the support of seven more nominated members. These seven seats are currently vacant. The BJP will also have the support of independent Kartikeya Sharma, whom it backed during the just concluded polls in Haryana. It had also supported independent Subhash Chandra, who has lost from Rajasthan this time. Chandra's current term ends on August 1. Among other regional parties, the strength of YSR-Congress which is in power in Andhra Pradesh, has gone up from the current six to nine seats, while that of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) which is in power in Delhi and Punjab will now have the strength of 10 seats in the upper house. The strength of other regional parties like DMK, BJD, TRS, JDU, NCP and Shiv Sena also remains the same as their candidates won as many seats as those who retired.

While DMK has 10 members in the Rajya Sabha, BJD has nine, TRS has seven, JDU has five, NCP has four and Shiv Sena has three. The strength of TMC and CPI-M remains the same with 13 and 5 members respectively. The AIADMK, which currently has five members in the Upper House will now have four as it won only two while three of its members have retired. The strength of Samajwadi Party has gone down from the current five to three in the RS, as it has given its seats to independent Kapil Sibal and RLD leader Jayant Chaudhary. RJD with more seats in the assembly will also have one more member now, raising the strength to six from the current five.The Bahujan Samaj Party will now has only one member in the upper house, down from three currently. While Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), which had only one member current will now have two and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)

which had two members will not have any member in the Rajya Sabha as all its MPs are retiring. Some of the prominent names who will return to the Rajya Sabha after their reelection are union ministers Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal, P Chidambaram, Jairam Ramesh (both Congress), Kapil Sibal (Independent), Misa Bharti (RJD), Praful Patel (NCP) and Sanjay Raut (Shiv Sena). Besides, the Congress has brought some new names including Randeep Surjewala and Imran Pratapgarhi, while its leaders Mukul Wasnik, Rajeev Shukla, Ranjeet Ranjan and Pramod Tiwari have earlier been Parliamentarians. The winners from Uttar Pradesh are Jayant Chaudhary (RLD), Javed Ali Khan (SP), Darshana Singh, Babu Ram Nishad, Mithilesh Kumar, Radha Mohan Dal Agarwal, K Laxman, Laxmikant Bajpai, Surendra Singh Nagar, Sangeeta Yadav (all BJP).

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ED attaches Choksi’s Violence over Prophet comment: shares in Japan firm, kin’s 2 killed in Ranchi unrest Two people died while a dozen others sustained injuries in street violence after Friday prayers in Ranchi as the storm over a suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma's remarks on Prophet Muhammad spread in Jharkhand and invited strong administrative responses in UP and Bengal, including around 350 arrests across the two states, NSA cases and bulldozer action on suspects’ houses in Saharanpur. In Bengal’s Howrah, where at least 12 cops were injured in clashes with protesters on Friday, the entire Howrah Police brass was reshuffled as part of the Mamata Banerjee government’s attempt to stymie trouble in new pockets of unrest. Prohibitory orders were clamped in Uluberia subdivision and the internet ban extended to Murshidabad’s Beldanga, Rejinagar and Shaktipur till Tuesday. Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar was briefly in custody along with 29 party workers for allegedly trying to foment trouble. They were released on bail later in the day. UP Police arrested 245 people by Saturday afternoon for stonepelting and defying prohibitory orders. A total of 16 FIRs were lodged, mentioning 6,000-odd suspects. In Ambedkarnagar, the imam of a mosque, identified as Faraz Ahmad, was among those rounded up. The houses of two among 64 people arrested in Saharanpur were bulldozed amid instructions from CM Yogi Adityanath to also make those responsible for damage to property to “pay for it”. “The process of sending recovery notices has started in Prayagraj. It should similarly be started in other districts at the earliest,” he said, also mentioning that the “bulldozer action” is restricted to history-sheeters and the mafia. “If,

by any chance, a poor family has built a home in a place where it shouldn’t be, the administration should first find them alternative accommodation,” he said. The CM’s adviser, Mrityunjay Kumar, tweeted that “rowdy elements” should remember “there is always a Saturday after each Friday”. MLA Shalabh Mani Tripathi tweeted a video of cops beating up an accused in the police station, captioning it “return gift for protesters”. Saharanpur MP Haji Fazlur Rehman met DM Akhilesh Singh and SSP Akash Tomar along with local clerics and politicians, including Behat MLA Umar Ali Khan, to complain about the “arbitrary arrest of innocent youngsters”. In Muzaffarnagar, police detained some suspects for allegedly sharing fake messages Unrest in several states Unrest also erupted in several other parts of India as members of the minority community came out on the streets soon after the Friday prayers. While the demonstrations were largely peaceful in Gujarat, Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, Maharashtra and Telangana, several people were injured in the violence that erupted in Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Jharkhand. In Bihar, large numbers of Muslims came out on the roads after offering ‘namaz’ in the

mosques in Nawada, Biharsharif and Ara towns. Barring in Nawada, where some people threw stones, the protests were largely peaceful. In the Old City area in Hyderabad, hundreds of people took to the streets after the Friday prayers. In Madhya Pradesh, minority community members held peaceful protests in Vidisha and Chhindwara districts and submitted memorandums to the administration demanding action against Nupur Sharma. In Karnataka’s Kalaburagi, hundreds of protesters gathered at Muslim Chowk and held a demonstration demanding action against Sharma. Jamaat to issue fatwa against protests Muslim clerics associated with Delhi based ‘Jamaat Ulama-eHind’ on Sunday claimed that they would soon issue a fatwa backed by at least a 1,000 prominent signatories, urging Muslims to refrain from joining any violent protests in the name of Prophet Muhammad. They said while no insult to the Prophet will be tolerated, peaceful dialogue was the only way to a solution as the Prophet's teachings profess love and peace. Talking to reporters, Maulana Sohaib Qasami, head of the outfit that was launched in 2015, accused Maulana Arshad Madani and Mahmood Asad Madani, who are steering the rival factions of prominent Muslim organisation Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, members of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) and AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi of "instigating Muslims to take to protests", which ended up seeing violence.

Union health minister rules out law to regulate population Amid speculation that the Centre may be working to bring a law to regulate population, the health ministry has stressed no such plan is on the cards. Sources said that Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya is strongly opposed to the idea of regulating population by force at a time when campaigns and awareness creation are showing results and have led to a dip in numbers, top official sources said. “We are not working on any proposal to bring a law or a policy on population control,” a senior health ministry official said. India’s total fertility rate (TFR) has declined from 2. 2 in 2015-16 to 2. 0 in 201921 - indicating average number of children per woman - which is below the replacement fertility level of 2. 1. The latest NFHS-5 data also shows that women of all religious communities are now on average giving birth to fewer children than in the past. The stand assumes significance in wake of recent comments by Union minister of state for food processing Prahlad Patel that there could soon be a law on population control. Patel's remark sparked a buzz about a shift from the stand

Mansukh Mandaviya

government had taken in Parliament this year where Mandaviya argued against need for a law in view of decline in population growth. It grew when BJP chief J P Nadda recently said that discussions have been on and that the process of making a law takes time. When asked about Nadda's comment, health ministry officials refused to comment saying that they are unaware of the context in which he spoke and; more specifically, the question that he responded to. They, however, felt that Nadda's reference could be to the aspiration of BJP governments in UP and Assam to have a population policy. According to NFHS-5 data, while India has made significant progress in population control measures in recent times, there are

wide inter-regional variations with five states still not having achieved a replacement level of fertility of 2. 1. Bihar (2. 98), Meghalaya (2. 91), Uttar Pradesh (2. 35), Jharkhand (2. 26) and Manipur (2. 17) are the five states, according to the NFHS-5 conducted from 2019-21. In April this year, Union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya had firmly opposed a private member bill by BJP’s Rakesh Sinha in Parliament, which sought to enforce a two-child rule with penal provisions for violations to sta bilise the country’s population. Mandaviya had told Rajya Sabha that instead of using “force (jabran)”, the government had successfully used awareness and health campaigns to achieve population control. The bill wa s withdrawn following M andaviya’s intervention. Arguing against the need for a population control law, health ministry officials say the results of the National Family Health Survey and census are indicat ive that population growth has declined over the years and that the government’s efforts are in the right direction.

New York flat

Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached a flat in New York of fugitive diamond merchant Mehul Choksi’s daughter in law and his shares worth £1.1 million in a Japanese company, in lieu of the properties that he had purchased through defrauded Punjab National Bank (PNB) money but remained untraceable. “It has been revealed during the investigation that huge amount of proceeds of crime (POC) generated in this case has been siphoned off by Mehul Choksi abroad…,” the ED said in its supplementary chargesheet filed before the special court. The chargesheet said, “It has been revealed during the investigation that huge amount of POC generated in this case has been siphoned off by Mehul Choksi abroad and the same was not available for attachment. Hence, the above detailed shares beneficially owned by Mehul Choksi representing property equivalent in value of proceeds of crime was

attached. ” The ED said that in 2015, Choksi transferred the £572,000 (flat value when he purchased it in 2010) in Manhattan, New York, to his daughter-in-law Snagdha Talreja. The flat was transferred in the name of Talreja’s company My Tree, 1211, LLC without any payment received by Choksi. Choksi wife abettor in PNB case: ED Calling her an “abettor of the crime” in a supplementary chargesheet filed in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case, the ED has submitted that fugitive diamantaire Mehul Choksi’s wife Priti Kothari had helped him in incorporating firms in UAE to acquire properties and in the layering of proceeds of crime. The ED alleged Priti was hand in glove with her husband in getting companies incorporated for him for laundering, siphoning of proceeds of crime and projecting them as untainted.

LeT terrorist involved in targeted attacks among 3 killed in J&K

Three local Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists were killed in an overnight encounter in Drabgam area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Sunday. One among the slain trio was involved in the targeted killing of police constable Riyaz Naikoo on May 13, and an attack on labourers at a brick kiln in Budgam on June 2, in which one migrant labourer was killed and two more injured, IGP (Kashmir Range) Vijay Kumar said. So far, 99 terrorists have been gunned down in antiterror operations in J&K this year, Kumar said. “The encounter started on Saturday evening after a joint team of the Army, CRPF and J&K Police launched a cordon-and search operation in Drabgam based on intelligence inputs received by SSP Pulwama about the presence of three local terrorists in the area,” the IGP said, adding: “Two AK-47 rifles and a pistol were recovered from the site of the firefight. ” Two Pakistanis among 4 terrorists killed Two Pakistanis were among four terrorists killed in two separate encounters while security forces also foiled a plot to carry out a series of explosions in the Valley by sending out drones to drop explosive devices. The Pakistanis belonging to

Lashkar-e Taiba were identified as Tufail and Hanzula from Lahore. Another terrorist killed by security forces was identified as Nadeem Ahmad Rather alias Raja Nadeem, a resident of Kulgam who was pursuing a Bachelor of Veterinary Sciences course before vanishing to join Hizb-ul-Mujahideen. The fourth slain terrorist was suspected to be Ishtiyaq but his identity was yet to be confirmed. The operation which followed the high-level review meeting held by Union home minister on Friday coincided with the BSF downing drones with Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) as their payload. The payload downed by BSF troopers at Dayaran area of Kanachak in Akhnoor sector contained three magnetic IEDs packed inside children tiffin boxes and timed to go off after three and eight hours. The drone, however, could not be brought down. BSF spotted and fired at another drone in the Akhnoor sector. The two Pakistani LeT terrorists were killed in an ongoing anti-militancy operation in Chaktaras-Kadi area of North Kashmir's Kupwara district on Tuesday morning, officials said. The encounter in which terrorist Nadem was eliminated took place at Badimarg village of south Kashmir’s Shopian district.

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in brief

SOUTH INDIA

BJP ready to use UP's Karnataka makes mask bulldozer model in mandatory in public places Karnataka MANGALURU: BJP is ready to use the ‘bulldozer model' of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath against those who hamper peace and communal harmony in Karnataka, party national general secretary CT Ravi said. Speaking after participating in a BJP Mahila Morcha conference in Bantwal in Dakshina Kannada district, he said a few political parties which have lost elections are trying to create unrest in the country. The parties which failed in elections are promoting communalism and casteism, he alleged. The peoplefriendly projects brought by the Narendra Modi government should reach every doorstep, he said. Without naming the Congress, he said parties which broke the base of the nation cannot teach the principles of religion, language and caste to the BJP. Later, talking to reporters, Ravi said BJP does not have any ‘B' team and the party has grown by itself, gaining the confidence of the people. Earlier, speaking at a programme organised by the citizen's council, the BJP leader said the Congress, Communists, and the conversion mafia are politicising and opposing the revision of school textbooks in the state. The hullabaloo over the revision of textbooks is to weaken the spirit of Indianness and Hindutva. During the Congress rule, they did not include chapters on nationalism in school textbooks as they feared that would strengthen the nationalist movement, Ravi said.

BENGALURU: Amid a rapid spike in cases of coronavirus across Karnataka, the state government has made it mandatory for the public to wear masks with immediate effect. The order which was issued by the health commissioner mandated the wearing of masks in all public places, buses, private vehicles, malls, educational institutions. It further mentioned that restaurants, pubs, hotels, hostels, offices (private, public) factories staff should also wear masks compulsorily. The order also authorized the health department to take necessary action to implement the rules with the help of Marshals and Police. Earlier the Bengaluru civic agency had made masks compulsory in public places and decided to increase the tests for the virus from the existing 16,000 a day to 20,000 a day. Every day, more than 200 new Covid cases are being reported and

we are conducting 16,000 tests. Now, Chief Commissioner Tushar Girinath has asked us to increase the tests to 20,000 from 16,000 by the BBMP and 4,000 at the private labs. Since many cases of severe acute respiratory illness and influenza-like illness are coming in private clinics, the chief commissioner has asked BBMP officials to survey each zone and submit a report, the officer said. He, however, appealed to the people not to panic. Karnataka breached the 400 mark in daily Covid cases as the state logged 471 fresh infections, taking the number of total active cases to 2,880, of which 2,776 are in Bengaluru.

PUNJAB

Bishnoi named as mastermind behind Moosewala killing

Pakistan issues 163 visas to Sikh pilgrims

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Mandavi tehsil at Bhuj in police said gangster Gujarat. Jadhav was Lawrence Bishnoi, nabbed in a 2021 murder currently in its custody, was case registered at the mastermind behind Manchar police station in singer Sidhu Moosewala’s Maharashtra’s Pune murder, and that a close district, he said. Lawrence Bishnoi associate of the main The official said shooter involved in the brutal killing in Jadhav, who was on the run for a year, Punjab’s Mansa had been arrested. had shaved his head and changed his appearance to evade arrest. A Pune police The police, however, did not divulge team has also gone to Delhi to the details about the motive behind the interrogate Bishnoi, who is in the Delhi killing of the popular singer and Police custody. The names of Jadhav and Congress leader and how Bishnoi Suryavanshi had cropped up in the conspired to execute the crime despite Moosewala murder probe. Multiple being lodged in the high-security Tihar police teams were searching from them. Jail in the national capital. The Pune police had also intensified Addressing a press conference, their search and last week arrested Special Commissioner of Police H S Siddhesh Kamble alias Mahakal, accused Dhaliwal said that they have identified of sheltering Jadhav after the 2021 five more people involved in the murder murder case. The Mumbai Police had case. Dhaliwal said that Lawrence’s also grilled Mahakal in connection with a relative Sachin Bishnoi’s role in the threat letter to scriptwriter Salim Khan killing has also emerged. 2 arrested from Gujarat and his actor-son Salman Khan. Police said as per the information, Mahakal had An official said that Pune police have knowledge about the threat letter given arrested Santosh Jadhav, a sharp shooter, to Salim Khan. and his aide Navnath Suryavanshi from

NEW DELHI: On the eve of martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev, the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi issued 163 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to participate in the annual festival scheduled to be held in Pakistan from June 8 to June 17. The issuance of visas is covered under the framework of the Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines of 1974. Every year, a large number of Sikh pilgrims from India visited Pakistan to observe various religious festivals and occasions. The visas issued from New Delhi are in addition to the visas granted to Sikh pilgrims participating in these events from other countries. Pakistan Charge d’Affaires Aftab Hasan Khan said the pilgrims would visit Panja Sahib, Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur Sahib. They would enter Pakistan on June 8 and return back to India on June 17.

WEST BENGAL

Presidential election: Mamata calls meeting of Oppn leaders NEW DELHI: Ahead of the upcoming presidential election 2022, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reached out to the Opposition leaders urging them to attend a meeting on June 15 in New Delhi to chalk out a joint strategy for the polls. In a letter to 22 Opposition leaders, Mamata asked them to participate in a huddle at Constitution Club in Delhi. The West Bengal CM has written the letter to her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal, Kerala’s Pinarayi Vijayan, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, Telangana counterpart K Chandrashekar Rao, Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren,

Mamata Banerjee

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi among others. The development comes after senior Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Rajya

Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge held consultations with TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee as well as leaders of the DMK, CPI, CPI-M and the AAP to declare a joint opposition candidate. As

per sources, Kharge dialed Banerjee who told him the opposition should put up a consensus candidate for the top job. Earlier, Sonia Gandhi had talked to the West Bengal CM, MK Stalin, Uddhav Thackeray, NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury, requesting them to call a common meeting to discuss the joint presidential candidate, the sources said. The Election Commission announced that polling for the next President of India will be held on July 18. As many as 4,809 electors comprising MPs and MLAs will vote to elect the next President. Incumbent President Ram Nath Kovind's term ends on July 24.

ACTOR MOHANLAL TO FACE TRIAL IN IVORY CASE Actor Mohanlal will have to face trial in the wildlife crime case booked against him for the illegal possession of two pairs of ivory as a trial court dismissed the State government’s plea to withdraw the prosecution proceedings against him. Though the trial court had earlier dismissed the plea of two public-spirited persons for their plea to intervene in the case as third party intervenors, the Kerala High Court had ruled in their favour and permitted them to put forward their arguments. Though the assistant public prosecutor (APP) contended that proceeding with the case would be a futile exercise and waste of the precious time of the court, counsel for the petitioners, opposed the withdrawal of prosecution by arguing that it was against the provisions of law and legal precedents.

TN GOVERNOR'S REMARKS DRAW FLAK FROM DMK A day after Governor RN Ravi said India has been guided by Sanatan Dharma for several thousands of years, DMK treasurer and former Union minister TR Baalu condemned the remarks, and said they ought to be withdrawn. Ravi had expressed his opinion while speaking at an event to commemorate the 100th year of the Lord Iyyappan devotional song 'Harivarasanam'. The former Union minister further alleged that the Governor's statement, issued in peace-loving Tamil Nadu, has created strong doubts and fears. Baalu asserted that it is the Constitution of India, and not Sanatan Dharma, that guides India; and it is democracy, not Manu Dharma, that rules the country. He further urged the Governor to withdraw his comments and ensure that such statements are avoided in the future.

BADAL SENIOR ADMITTED TO HOSPITAL Shiromani Akali Dal patriarch Parkash Singh Badal has been admitted to hospital and his condition is stable, a statement from Fortis Hospital in Mohali said. The 94-year-old leader and five-time chief minister of Punjab was taken to the hospital on Saturday after he complained of gastritis and bronchial asthma. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar visited the hospital and enquired about the veteran leader's well-being. "I pray to God for his long life and speedy recovery," Khattar said in a tweet in Hindi. He also posted a short video of his visit, where he is seen talking to Badal, who is sitting on a chair at a private room in the hospital. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Sunday wished Badal a speedy recovery.

KOLKATA COP OPENS FIRE, KILLS WOMAN, SELF A 28-year-old Kolkata police constable, on his first day of duty outside the Bangladesh deputy high commission near Park Circus, opened indiscriminate fire from his SLR, killing a 28-year-old woman and injuring three others. Constable Chodup Lepcha kept loading and shooting seven times before aiming the final bullet at his own neck. Rima Singh, a resident of Dasnagar in Howrah, was riding pillion when they encountered Lepcha right in the middle of Lower Range Road. CCTV footage showed the bike stopping in front of Lepcha, who crouches for a while and then shoots at them from behind. One of the bullets killed Rima, who fell off the bike while the rider was hit on the arm.

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Kshama Bindu weds herself without priest or temple Gujarat's Kshama Bindu, 24, married herself last week in what is perhaps India's first sologamy or self-marriage, but not as she had planned before. A controversy erupted after Kshama announced her plans to marry herself and a BJP leader said Hinduism doesn't permit such marriages and that the young woman shouldn't be allowed to marry in a temple. Undeterred by the row, Kshama went ahead with the wedding ceremony solemnised at her home, complete with haldi and mehendi rituals, sans priest. She had earlier planned to tie the knot on June 11, but married ahead of schedule, anticipating controversy. There was no priest or temple involved in her marriage. Meanwhile Kshama thanked all her fans and followers for their support in a video message. "I love you all. I can't describe it in words you have been so kind to me with all the trolls happening taking my side. I have tears of joy reading your messages and stories and I am so excited for my wedding day," she said. What is sologamy Sologamy is when a person marries oneself. While more and more people are choosing themselves over a life partner across the world, the trend has just reached India with Kshama's self-marriage. Taking self love to another level, proponents of sologamy says it's liberating to be married to oneself. "Sologamy refers to a person who is going to marry and spend the rest of their lives with themselves. We have seen

instances of it in the TV series Sex and the City where Carrie Bradshaw marries herself. Contrary to popular belief, this relationship is not isolating or lonesome but according to accounts, it is liberating; from the ties that people expect them to be bound to, an expanded sense of self is realized, says Bhoomeeka Jain, Psychologist and relationship expert. "Calling Sologamy a fad may be wrong in many ways. It's a new way of looking at selflove and individualism or the modified sense of companionship. Perhaps it creates a feeling of contentment and pure, unconditional happiness, and helps one heal and recover from some past experiences," says Jain. Priya Rajendran, influencer and a blogger says sologamy looks like a fad but may become a concept thanks to the fad. "I would say to "each their own". But for me, it looks like a meaningless expenditure and a doublespeak because on one hand, you claim you are against traditions but want to do those same rituals too. A kind of hypocrisy and even a social media publicity stunt!" says Priya.

Fear in Gujarat villages over drone sighting Rumours are spreading in at least six districts of Gujarat - Kheda, Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Morbi, Surendranagar and Anand – that some helicopters flying and they will abduct children and carry our robberies. These rumours led the villagers to live in unwarranted fear and put cops on alert. At Sarsavani village in Mahemdavad taluka of Kheda district, the rumour mongering has been growing for around a month. The villagers claimed to have seen drones in the sky, which they say are flown by thieves or “child lifters”. Ashwin Chauhan, a resident of Sarsavani village, said, “It started with incident involving theft of two buffaloes two months ago. Since then, rumours started spreading about gangs roaming the village to abduct small children. Some villagers saw blinking lights of drones at night and say that criminals keep a watch on them with the intention of carrying out burglaries or abducting children.” Another resident of Sarsavani said the villagers keep vigil round the clock to thwart untoward incidents. The rumour-mills have put cops on alert who are wary of overzealous crowds taking law in their hands like in 2016 when a tidal wave of rumour mongering had gripped the state while in 2018 a woman was

lynched in Ahmedabad following rumours of child kidnappers on prowl. Inspector N D Nakum of Mahemdavad said a lack of understanding and misinformation cause such rumour mongering. “A countrywide drone festival was held recently, where participants flew their drones and these villagers thought they were criminals. We deployed cops in such villages and regularly send out patrols to smother these rumours,” said Nakum. Kheda SP Rajesh Gadhia said it has come to their notice that such rumours are spreading in Morbi, Surendranagar and Anand too. “Someone recently flew a toy helicopter in a village of Umreth taluka in Anand district. Some villagers caught it when it flew low and found it was just a toy, said Gadhia. “Having said that, we have been taking these rumours and incidents very seriously. We have been talking to sarpanches. As they also sometimes get scared of planes in the sky, we made them download a flight tracker app, so they know there are planes above and not drones watching them,” Gadhia said. He said police have been making extra efforts to ensure no one faces mob violence because of these rumours, which have also spread in the adjacent parts of Ahmedabad district.

Covid cases on the rise in India India added 3,714 new coronavirus cases to its tally Monday, taking the total to 4,31,85,049, according to Union Health Ministry data. Active cases increased to 26,976, while the death toll climbed to 5,24,708 with seven fresh fatalities. An increase of 1,194 cases has been recorded in the active Covid-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The active cases comprise 0.06 per cent of the total infections. The daily positivity rate is 1.21 per cent, while the weekly positivity rate is 0.97 per cent. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,26,33,365, taking the national recovery rate to 98.72 per cent, the ministry said. Masks made compulsory in Bengaluru again With a significant rise in daily Covid cases in Bengaluru, the civic body Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Monday stated that its marshals will once again enforce the mandatory wearing of masks in public places. “Adherence to Covid-appropriate behaviour is compulsory. Daily testing will also be increased from 16,000 to 20,000. Chief Commissioner Tushar Giri Nath has instructed zonal commissioners to submit a report on ILI (influenza-like illness) and SARI (severe acute respiratory infections) cases being reported in the hospitals,” Kumar added. Hospitalisations low in Mumbai Even though the severity of Covid-19 cases remains mild and very few cases of hospitalisations are reported, the current test positivity rate (TPR) - the number of positive cases out of the total tests conducted - over the past week exceeds five times that of December 2021, when Omicron started proliferating in the third wave. Over the last week, 54,164 tests were conducted in Mumbai and 4,732 people were identified with Covid-19 taking the TPR to 8.7 per cent. By comparison, in the period between December 21-27, 2021, which was the beginning of the third wave, 4,263 indi-

viduals tested positive out of the 2,45,538 tests conducted — registering a TPR of 1.7 per cent. Public health experts believe that due to low testing, many infected patients might be going unreported. Some say since the TPR is high, if the tests were to increase, there could be a sharp rise in cases across the city. Meanwhile, as the active Covid-19 count in Maharashtra stood at 7,429 on Monday, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope advised citizens to wear masks to avoid any possible contraction of infection. A day after recording 1,494 cases on Sunday, the daily caseload dropped to 1,036 on Monday. This has been attributed to the plunge in testing in the weekend from 25,994 to 15,988 in the last 48 hours. Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian on Sunday said that 12 people have been diagnosed with the BA.4 and BA.5 variants of Covid-19 strain Omicron in Tamil Nadu. While BA.4 was detected in four samples, BA.5 was detected in eight and all the 12 infected people are doing fine and being monitored, said the minister. Delhi logs 247 new Covid cases The national capital on Monday logged 247 fresh Covid-19 cases with a positivity rate of 3.47 per cent while no new death was reported due to the viral disease, according to data shared by the city health department. This is the highest positivity rate since May 12 when 3.47 per cent of those tested turned out positive.

ED seizes cash, gold coins in raids on Delhi minister, kin Disclosing details of its seizures made during searches conducted on the premises of Delhi cabinet minister Satyendar Jain and his family members, the Enforcement Directorate said it has confiscated £285,000 in unaccounted cash and 133 gold coins weighing 1. 8 kg, besides various “incriminating documents and digital records” in connection with the money laundering allegations against the AAP minister. The ED also said that it has searched the premises of several accused in the case who “assisted” Jain in money laundering, identifying Ankush Jain, Vaibhav Jain, Naveen Jain and Siddharth Jain and Yogesh Jain (all directors of Ram Prakash

Jewellers), G S Matharoo chairman of Lala Sher Singh Jivan Vigyan Trust which runs Prudence Group of Schools. The ED’s claim came even as AAP continued to stand by Jain, who was arrested on May 30, and refused to sack him as health minister. Contradicting statements made by Kejriwal and other AAP leaders that Jain was innocent and that even the CBI “had not” found anything against him, the agency cited a chargesheet filed by the CBI on December 3, 2018 in which the latter had held the former Delhi health minister and his wife Poonam Jain, along with accomplices Vaibhav Jain and Ankush Jain, liable in the process of acquiring disproportionate assets.

ED questions Rahul in National Herald money-laundering case Continued from page 1 All approach roads leading to the ED office were out of bounds for the public as barricades were put up and central anti-riot police force RAF and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel were deployed, who detained hundreds of Congress leaders and supporters outside the party headquarters at 24, Akbar Road and around central Delhi. Congress leader Randeep Surjewala and Youth Congress president Srinivas BV, among others, were rounded up and made to board police buses. Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel told reporters after meeting the Gandhi siblings at the Congress headquarters that there is “no money laundering in the National Herald case and the central agencies are acting at the behest of the government”.

Former Uttarakhand chief minister Harish Rawat said the Gandhis are being targeted and that he was stopped by police from going to the Congress office. Rahul spent over 10 hours at the federal agency’s office on Monday, where he was questioned over multiple sessions and his statement recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Officials said as the former Congress chief’s questioning could not be completed on Monday and was summoned again. While agency sources said that Gandhi recorded his statement and checked its transcript minutely, Congress leaders claimed that the investigators took multiple breaks during his questioning. The investigating officer of the case, an assistant director-rank ED officer, is expected to continue the questioning related to the incorporation of

the Young Indian company, the operations of the National Herald newspaper, the loan given by the Congress to AJL and the funds transfer within the news media establishment. The probe pertains to alleged financial irregularities in Young Indian Private Limited, promoted by the Congress, that owns National Herald. The newspaper is published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL) and owned by Young Indian. Rahul's mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, who is currently admitted to a hospital due to Covid-related issues, has also been summoned by the agency for questioning in the case on June 23. This is the first time that any member of the Congress’s first family is being questioned in a criminal case. Priyanka Gandhi’s husband Robert Vadra was questioned by the ED in

a money-laundering case linked to an alleged land scam in Rajasthan a few years ago. The Congress has accused the Centre of targeting opposition leaders by misusing investigative agencies. Putting across its version, the party has said AJL, which was established in 1937, faced huge debts and the Congress, from 2002 to 2011, gave £9 million to the National Herald newspaper to pay the salaries of the journalists and staffers who worked there. The ED questioned senior Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Pawan Bansal in April as part of its probe. Kharge has claimed that he gave “evidence” to the agency during the recording of his statement. The questioning of the senior Congress leaders and the Gandhis is part of the ED’s investigation to understand the shareholding pattern, financial transac-

tions and role of the promoters of Young Indian and AJL, officials had said. The ED recently registered a fresh case under the criminal provisions of the PMLA after a trial court here took cognisance of an IncomeTax department probe against Young Indian on the basis of a private criminal complaint filed by BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in 2013. Sonia and Rahul are among the promoters and shareholders of Young Indian. Swamy had accused Sonia, Rahul and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds, with Young Indian paying only Rs 50,00,000 to obtain the right to recover £9.02 million that AJL owed to the Congress. In February last year, the Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Gandhis for their response on Swamy’s plea, seeking to lead evidence in the matter before the trial court.

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A love affair with South Asia Shefali Saxena

rom prehistoric artefacts of the Indus and medieval sculptures to Mughal paintings and modernist dance – discover the links between South Asia’s diverse works of art and historical change in the new book India: A History in Objects. Publishing on 30 June, the latest title in the British Museum’s superbly illustrated series reveals South Asia’s extraordinary range of history and culture from 1.5 million years ago to today. Author and archaeologist Richard Blurton, former Head of the South and Southeast Asia section at the British Museum, offers an authoritative yet accessible path across the subcontinent, from the splendour of dynastic empires to rural and tribal life. This is a compelling visual history of one of the world’s oldest and most vibrant cultures, drawing on the British Museum’s world-leading collection. Here’s our exclusive Q&A with Richard. . What according to you is the impetus of material objects in deciphering the past/history of cultures? Objects of whatever type provide a great clue for anyone trying to understand the past. If we rely solely on written texts, often written long after an event, an analysis of those events will be restricted on account of writer bias. Objects are a great deal more impersonal. Also, objects survive both from the highest cultural level, to the lowest so they can tell us much about parts of society that are otherwise ignored. Often, objects are also interesting - even thrilling - to view and take us straight to how people thought and behaved. . Your book seems to be a secular compilation of cultures and their related objects, which is a pleasant change in hostile environments when it comes to secularism in India right now. Could you elaborate on what went into making this? Was this intentional? The physical evidence from the subcontinent is both secular and religious. And, of the religious objects that survive from the past, there is a great deal of variety. Over the centuries there have been many voices, each apparently the dominant one at that time. For instance, Buddhism was the most powerful voice in the early centuries AD, later what we now know as Hinduism developed along with the vision of bhakti. Later still, Islam becomes important, while throughout these various periods, other, smaller religious traditions have flourished Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Judaism and Sikhism. All have contributed to the extraordinary and

vibrant culture of the subcontinent. To try and isolate one of these as the most important reduces the whole magnificent edifice. But, not all my book is about religious objects anyway, not by a long way. Many objects discussed and illustrated have non-religious uses and were used by all manner of people. Was this deliberate? Not really, as in this book I am not making a political statement - I am not a polemicist. I am merely trying to present the culture of the entire subcontinent and that, inevitably and dispassionately means that all elements should be included, in so far as can be done in a single volume. . In the age of the internet, what role do books like this play in documenting the history and do you think they get their due? The book as a genre still has a major part to play in our modern world where we also have access to the internet - this is especially true of a book with over 450 illustrations. To be able to hold a book in a hand, look at the illustrations and easily compare those, for instance, on p.20 with those on p.200 is easy in a book, but much less so on the internet. The digital world does though of course have a part to play and I hope that readers - if interested in a particular object - will use the museum registration numbers that are published with each illustration to consult the individual records on the Museum’s database to learn more https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection . What can our readers look forward to in the book the most? This is a tricky question to answer! However, one element of the story of Indian culture that I’ve tried to emphasise

in the book is the story of Indian textiles. I’ve illustrated one of the very earliest surviving fragments of woven Indian cotton. Interestingly, it was not found in South Asia, but at a desert site - Niya - in Central Asia that was abandoned already by the 3rd century AD. This provenance outside the subcontinent implies trade, and elsewhere in the book are examples of Indian textiles also traded - to medieval Egypt, to Indonesia and to many parts of Europe. This link between India and the international textile trade is one that continues to the present day - and yet has its origins in the ancient subcontinent (woven and dyed cotton and spun silk are known from the Indus Civilisation, from about 2,500 BC). There are many other areas of the book that I hope readers will enjoy, such as the many Buddhist cultures that flourished throughout the subcontinent and the great bronze-casting work commissioned by the Chola kings in southern India - and then in more recent times, the export of other Indian cultural products throughout the world - music, dance and cinema. And, finally, I’ve highlighted the flourishing of modern artistic practice everywhere in South Asia; this too is reflected in the book and in the Museum’s collection. I’ve written on all these topics, and they can all be viewed in the British Museum, and digitally through the Collections Online facility https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection . How did you develop and nurture your penchant for writing about South Asian culture? I’ve had a love affair with South Asia since I first visited more than 50 years ago (teaching in a Tibetan refugee school in Himachal Pradesh). Following university, I worked on archaeological excavations in south Afghanistan, and then on a documentation project in southern Karnataka, at Vijayanagara - I learned hugely from both experiences. From Karnataka, where we lived under canvas and deep in the countryside, I joined the British Museum in 1986. I then stayed there for thirty-two years, retiring in 2018 having worked on conserving and adding to collections, mounting exhibitions, teaching both to the general public as well as to university students - and providing a showcase for the outstanding cultural achievements of South Asia at the heart of an international institution which was open free of charge to anyone who wanted to visit. I have wonderful friends in South Asia and I continue to visit, to research and to write. I hope this will continue for a long time yet!

Proud City launch MUMBAI MASALA Brought to you by the award-winning writer-director of the sell-out West End shows Taj Express and Merchants of Bollywood and starring the three main stars from Merchants of Bollywood along with Bollywood dancers from your favourite movies. This is the first major Bollywood immersive experience of its kind to be launched in the West End. Mumbai Masala is a spicy new immersive dance show, with hip-shaking dances, heartbreaking romance, hilarious comedy, washed down with tantalising drama and delectable cuisine. Performed by the three lead actors from Merchants of Bollywood, stars of stage and screen: Arif Zakaria, Sushant Pujari and Carol Furtado, and crafted by leading Bollywood choreographers The Pujari Brothers, Mumbai Masala is a dazzling new immersive theatrical spectacular full of passion, sequined costumes and spicy Indian cuisine. It features songs and dances from the

world’s most successful Film Industry, including smash-hit Bollywood movies like Lagaan, Devdas, Musafir, Bunty Aur Babli, JhoomBarabarJhoom, Rang de

Basanti, Dhoom and Dhoom 2, and music from the Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman, composer of Slumdog Millionaire. Memorable moments from Bollywood will be performed live on stage in a glittering, lavish production capturing the essence of India, its rich and diverse culture, and people in an explosion of dazzling Technicolor brilliance. The choreography combines the ancient traditions of Indian Classical Dance with the contemporary and western dance forms in Bollywood’s true glamorous style. Mumbai Masala tells the story of a legendary culinary family who has cooked curry for the stars over three generations on the film sets of our favourite Bollywood movies. The show is written and directed by Toby Gough, who has become famous for his creations that cross conventions, cultures and continents.

A new genre of music is born; The Indian Afrobeat Fusion Just months after the success of the recent release of the first Hindi-Afrobeat track 'Temperature,' Nigerian artist GCN and British Indian singer Hemina Shah once again collaborate to create a brand new music genre of Indian-Afrobeat fusion music. 'Temperature' took audiences by surprise when the two artists combined two languages, culture, and sounds to prove that music is truly a universal language and has no boundaries. The pair were interviewed by BBC World and Nigerian's Channels Television, who mentioned that this was the 'birth of a new music genre' and the possible 'opportunities of Afro-beats in the Asian market.' Since the release of 'Temperature,' the duo has wasted no time getting into the studio to create a completely unique 'Bollywood fusion sound.' "Bollywood movies are filmed in different parts of the world, but the music has been stuck with the same vibe. It needs a new sound, even if it does not realize it. I haven't heard much of the latest music that appeals to me in any new movies - they have been re-making old songs like 'Tip Tip Barsa Pani,' 'Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast,' 'Dilbar Dilbar' and many more, so I thought it is right time to create our own unique music. I am working on new compositions that bring different cultures and unique sounds together to create aesthetically pleasing masterpieces. In particular, Bollywood needs to come to Africa and hear the true potential of African music and Afrobeats. African beats and rhythms are so catchy, and there is no doubt that they will get the Bollywood stars dancing in the movies. Hopefully, some of these pieces catch the ears of Bollywood, and in turn, they too see the need to evolve.", says Hemina.

Sadiq Khan launches Ms Marvel at a special screening in London Disney+ and Marvel Studios held a special screening of Ms Marvel to celebrate stories and storytellers who reflect the rich diversity of our world. The screening was attended and introduced by Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and hosted by Deana Hassanein ahead of its debut on Disney+ from today, June 8. The event was held at the Rich Mix Cinema, London, UK. The event was also attended by Justine Simons OBE, the Deputy Mayor for Culture and Creative Industries and Dr Debbie Weekes-Bernard, the Deputy Mayor for Communities and Social Justice. Over 100 VIP guests also included British Muslim world champion kickboxer and best-selling author Ruqsana Begum, leading Pakistani bloggers Pakistan Street Style and Annam Ahmad, Sky News presenter Saima Mohsin and British Asian actress Nikkita Chaddha, who featured in Marvel Studios' Eternals. In attendance were guests and representatives from community groups and charities from organisations such as London Screen Academy, Mama Youth, the British Pakistan Foundation, Muslim Sisterhood Collective, North London Muslim Community Centre, the British Asian Trust, UK Muslim Film Council, Amal, SOAS Pakistan Society and charity UBELE. Marvel Studios’ Original Series “Ms Marvel” debuts exclusively on Disney+ beginning June 8.

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found a decreased mortality risk associated with drinking coffee. However, “these studies did not distinguish between coffee consumed with sugar or artificial sweeteners and coffee consumed without.” The study included over 170,000 participants, and researchers followed up with participants over an average of 7 years. Participants were eligible for the study if they did not have cardiovascular disease (CVD) or cancer at baseline. Researchers got a baseline assessment of participants’ coffee consumption, noting if they drank sugar-sweetened, artificially sweetened, or unsweetened coffee. Then they examined the association of coffee consumption with all-cause mortality and mortality from cancer and cardiovascular disease. The authors accounted for lifestyle, clinical, and sociodemographic factors in the analysis. They found that more than half of coffee drinkers in the study drank unsweetened coffee. Typically, those who added sugar added less than 1.5 tea-

ations with genetically predicted height - and found interesting associations with cardiovascular conditions and with socioeconomic status,” Dr. Raghavan said. “Since we had genetic data linked to clinical data in the VA Million Veteran Program and our understanding of the genetic predictors of height had expanded since those prior studies, we thought it was an opportunity to look for disease associations across a broader scope of conditions,” he explained. Researchers examined over 1,000 conditions and traits and found that adult height was associated with more than 100 clinical traits, including several medical conditions.

spoons of sugar. The study found that moderate coffee consumption, with or without sugar, was associated with a decreased mortality risk. However, the results regarding mortality risk and artificial sweeteners were inconsistent. Christina Wee, MD, MPH and Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, published an editorial on the study. Dr. Wee noted a few of the study’s highlights: “The observational study, while not conclusive, found that moderate coffee consumption – about 1.5 to 3.5 cups a day – even with added sugar, likely was not harmful for most people and appeared to be associated with a 30% reduction in mortality risk. These findings suggest that people who drink coffee can continue to do so with no cause for worry, which is good news for a large portion of the population.”

For example, researchers observed a connection between taller height and an increased risk of developing leg and foot ulcers, peripheral neuropathy, and venous circulatory disorders. Why does height matter? When asked why a taller person may be at a greater risk for certain diseases, Dr. Raghavan explained it was not surprising to see fundamental processes like growth and metabolism which are related to height connected to many aspects of health. “In some cases, associations that we observed may have to do with biological processes shared between growth/height and physiology,” he added. “In other

Health benefits of beetroot juice The beautiful and bright colour of beetroots can make anyone fall in love with it yet it is often ignored, perhaps because of its distinctive taste. If you’re not a fan, you should know that beetroot has been gaining amazing popularity as the new superfood around the world. It’s low in fat, full of powerful antioxidants, rich in Vitamin C, and helps in the absorption of iron. Both the leaves and the roots can be eaten. While the pink root is sweet, the dark green leaves are bitter but very rich in calcium, iron and Vitamin A. Beetroots are best enjoyed raw and uncooked as cooking may destroy most of its nutrients. You can add them in salads or easier to just juice them up. Beetroots are one of the healthiest vegetables you can juice, undoubtedly. A glass of beetroot juice helps in giving you all the vitamins and minerals in a concentrated form. If your mixture is too thick you can add some water to balance the consistency. Don’t remove the pulp that’s where all your fiber is. Also, remember that plain beetroot juice may contain oxalic acid and therefore it is

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Height is linked to more than 100 medical conditions A research team from the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center has found evidence that a person’s height impacts their predisposition to certain diseases. Researchers identified some conditions not previously linked to height, including peripheral neuropathy and leg and foot ulcers. Researchers examined genetics and height data from the VA Million Veteran Program database for the study led by Dr. Sridharan Raghavan. Their data group included information from more than 200,000 white adults and more than 50,000 Black adults. “Prior studies had used a method similar to the one we used - examining associ-

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Drinking coffee linked to lower mortality risk Coffee is a popular beverage worldwide. It contains some nutrients as well as caffeine. Because coffee is so popular, consumers and researchers alike have a vested interest in understanding the drink’s impact on health and well-being. A recent narrative review found that it is safe for most people to consume between one and four cups of coffee daily, which amounts to a maximum of 400 mg of caffeine daily. Coffee drinkers may have a lower risk of specific health problems, such as type 2 diabetes and obesity. Consuming coffee is also associated with a decreased risk for certain types of cancers and reduced mortality risk. But how people drink their coffee make a difference? That’s what researchers in the current study sought to uncover. Coffee and mortality risk In this study, researchers sought to determine if the lower mortality risk associated with coffee use is still applied with the addition of artificial sweeteners or sugar to the coffee. They noted that earlier studies had