AV 19th April 2014

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In a run-up to 2014 Lok Sabha elections, first time ever, a poll survey predicted a clear majority for NDA. NDTV’s survey projected that BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would get 275 seats in the 543member House.

This is 16 seats more than the poll had predicted last month. The BJP on its own would win 226 seats, the highest tally ever for the party and the best by any party since 1991, the poll done by H a n s a Research estimated.

The UPA would win just 111 seats, with

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Congress sinking to its lowest tally ever of 92 seats, it said. According to the poll, BJP will corner 22 of Gujarat’s 26 seats, with the Congress winning the rest.

The NDA’s projected victory is based on impressive gains compared to 2009 in UP (a gain of 41 seats), Maharashtra (17), Rajasthan (17), Bihar (12), Andhra Pradesh (12) and Madhya Pradesh (10). In just these six states, it stands to gain 109 seats. The Narendra Modi led alliance is projected to gain in most other states too, though by more modest amounts.

Narendra Modi The only major

states in which NDA could do worse than five years ago are Karnataka (a loss of seven seats), Chhattisgarh (two) and West Bengal (one), according to the poll.

In contrast, UPA is predicted to lose seats vis a vis 2009 in almost every major state, with AP being the worst case, where the Congress tally could drop from 33 five years ago to just six this time. Barring Karnataka and Chhattisgarh, the only states where UPA stands to gain are Assam (a gain of two) and Bihar, where the gain of six is only because RJD is now part of the alliance unlike in 2009.

Continued on page 26

Conservatives appoint first Asian male in the Cabinet Sajid Javid, a former City banker has become the first Asian male Conservative Cabinet Minister, succeeding Maria Miller as the Culture Secretary. Mr Javid, whose bus driver father came from Pakistan, went on to make millions in the City, moving up from his Treasury role to replace Mrs Miller.

Nicky Morgan is going to take up Mr Javid's old position as the Economic Secretary to the Treasury. It is not known who is replacing Miss Morgan while it is understood that Mr Javid has

Sajid Javid MP

been given Mrs Miller's equalities brief. Both Mr Javid and Miss Morgan were elected to Parliament in 2010 after the expenses scandal.

Continued on page 8

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Keith Vazwith MP

Keith Vaz MP

Dr Ashraf Chohan

Dr Ashraf Chohan was born in a city called Gujranwala 40 miles away from Lahore, Pakistan in a landowning family.

Although he grew up in an affluent family, he felt that the level of education in the area in which he lived was not enough for him. His father had encouraged him and his six siblings to get a good education, and so from a young age, he believed that education was essential for a better society. Therefore, all of the younger members of his family soon moved to the bigger city of Lahore. Ashraf played hockey, football and cricket in his childhood. His main focus was always on education and he got a place in medical school.

After graduation, Ashraf wanted to undertake postgraduate study in the UK. In the Indian subcontinent, a medical qualification from the UK could guarantee you a position in a successful private practice. Whilst working on his postgraduate degree he fell in love with Britain. He felt that it significantly increased his employability. He had only appeared in one interview and then his career took off. However, when he became fully qualified and was at the peak of his work as a surgeon, he had to leave the NHS, through no fault of his own, which was very difficult for him. He misses working with patients; this was an element of his work in the NHS that he loved. He now works as a private practitioner but feels that this field has different dynamics.

1) Please tell me about your current position?

Private Medical Practitioner in Harley Street in Orthopaedics.

I have a portfolio of properties and restaurant and I am Chairman of Chohan Group of Companies. This included business in health care.

2) What are your proudest achievements?

To set up a charity 15 years ago to help sufferers of natural disasters and promote education internationally. This charity is running schools for orphans and poor. This charity is largely funded through our group.

This charity has also helped in earth quacks and natural disasters.

3) What inspires you?

and this action changed my career.

From being a successful dedicated surgeon in NHS I had to go on a business route.

Outside NHS you can do limited surgery and then private sector is for money and NHS include service factor too.

Political leaders who make difference to the lives of ordinary people. Individual efforts and work is limited. Charismatic leaders can turn all this into a collective efforts that can bring a change in a society. A good leader can change the lives of poor people which is important not few on the top.

4) What has been the biggest obstacle in your career?

Removal from NHS. I love my profession and I love surgery. I was one of those surgeons who loved being in the theatre. I believe I was removed unfairly

Report reveals there is no Institutional Racism in Harrow Council A report carried out by Dal Babu, pictured, former borough police commander of Harrow and an officer with 30 years’ experience in the Metropolitan Police, into claims of institutional racism, has revealed that there is no evidence of institutional racism at Harrow Council.

Mr Babu has also performed a national role on equalities as Chair of the Association of Muslim Police Officers.

The investigation invited staff members to give evidence in confidence, either in person or by writing. More than 30 did so. After careful consideration, the 37-page document concluded there is no evidence of institutional racism at Harrow Council.

Before the report was revealed, the investigation was missing cooperation from the

Dal Babu

Thaya Idaikkadar

Independent Labour party, led by former council leader Councillor Thaya Idaikkadar, who refused to participate in the probe because they were unhappy with Mr Babu's appointment.

An Independent Labour group statement reportedly said: “The Independent Labour Group, which has been defined by its willingness to defend the constitution and rule of law, cannot take part in the investigation which is flawed and cannot lead to any helpful outcome.”

In response, Opposition leader Councillor David Perry (Labour) had said: “It is a disgrace that before the investigation has reached its conclusions, they have decided to hit out at a former borough commander who everyone knows worked tirelessly to serve Harrow's diverse community.”

The report has made nine recommendations, which the council will now consider and any other actions which are necessary as a result of the report.

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

I am impressed with Ed Milliband. His background, sufferings of the last generation , him being a solicitor and now party leader influence me positively as I have more or less similar back ground and if he becomes Prime minister it will another success of British democracy.

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

I am independent to make decision about my business and this allows me to make independent decisions. I can choose my times.

7) And the worst?

There is no support for any difficult decisions and sometimes you feel insecure.

8) What are your long term goals?

To make a place in British Political system. I want to grow in business. I find Business is challenging and rewarding. I also believe that when you are in politics money should not be your objective. I resent issue of financial malpractices by politicians. Politicians must be better people so that people can trust.

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

Eliminate politics of rich and poor and promote politics of issues and problems for low income people.

Presently British politics is between rich and poor. There is clear division between millionaires and suffers. Policies by some parties are to protect the wealthy people. This aspect of politics in this society is deplorable and completely not acceptable.

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

"Mahatma Gandhi " Gandhi to learn patience and teaching for peace in the world.

Gandhi said hate is sin and love the sinner.

£170 million to help young people find jobs The Youth Employment Initiative (YEI), a funding boost of £170mn will target 5 areas of the UK, to help young people into work.

This funding, which aims to help young people aged 15-24 find work, will be matched by an equal amount from the European Social Fund and also by project partners, bringing the total funding to nearly £490 million.

The five eligible areas will each receive a share of the money to fund new and innovative youth employment programmes including: Inner London - £35.7 million, Merseyside £22.2 million, Southwest Scotland - £38.6 million, Tees Valley & Durham £19.8 million, West Midlands - £42.2 million.

In addition, a small amount of the funds is being targeted at smaller regions or cities outside these areas where youth unemployment is also high. These locations are:

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However, in a report by the Department for Work and Pensions, in January 2014 it was established that ethnic groups are more than twice as likely to be unemployed than their white counterparts.

While the unemployment rate for whites aged 16-24 was 19% last September, the rate was 46% for young Pakistani and Bangladeshi workers and 45% for young black people. All minority ethnic groups in the study had a higher joblessness rate than whites, especially those under 25.

The rate was 26% for young mixed-race workers, 34% for young Indians and 29% for Chinese under-25s. The figures also showed that the situation is worsening and ethnic minorities

have missed out on the recent jobs boom as public sector jobs, where ethnic minorities are overrepresented, have continued to be squeezed.

Minister for Employment Esther McVey said: “With youth unemployment falling and the number of young people in jobs going up, it’s clear that many young people across the country have the drive and ideas to be successful. Through our schemes I want to make sure we do all we can so young people have the skills they need to get their foot in the door, and also to progress their careers.

“As the economy grows and youth unemployment continues to drop, this extra funding will support those efforts and help to make sure that even more young people are able to get into work, and know for themselves the security of a regular wage.”

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

COMMENT

New chapter in Anglo-Irish relationship

The recent state visit to London by Irish President Joe Higgins and the pomp and ceremony with which he was received, including his address to the joint Houses of Parliament, was a historic landmark. It sealed a friendship after long years of bitterness and violence had cast a deep shadow on ties between Britain and Ireland. Their shared language and culture was subsumed by years of political discord, suspicion and suffering. Ireland for centuries was Britain’s colony, the one closest to home. Irish aspirations for independent nationhood were conceded after World War I, but the country was divided between a sovereign entity centred in Dublin and six counties to the north called Ulster, which preferred to remain British.

The conflict between the two halves of Ireland, assumed a murderous sectarian form with the Roman Catholic majority pitted against an intransigent Protestant minority. This was a continuation of the religious wars that had disfigured Continental Europe in the sixteenth century and the first half of the seventeenth, ending finally with the Peace of Westphalia in 1649. which opened the doors to the Enlightenment and to Science, enabling Europe to outstrip the rest of the world in all matters of the mind. The blessings of Westphalia, alas, did not include Ireland, but Irish

men of letters, from Swift, Burke, Goldsmith, Sheridan, Wilde, Shaw, O’Casey, Joyce, Yeats, Beckett and Heaney have adorned English literature, contributing immeasurably to the global force the English language is today.

The troubles in Ireland, the bombings and shootings and much else since the 1960s ended in what is best described as a truce. Thereafter came a serious dialogue between all the parties, ending in a peace process that took hold. The role of Tony Blair as British prime minister should be acknowledged. He shares responsibility, with George W. Bush, for the havoc of Iraq and the desolation it has become, but he did contribute nobly to the peace in Ireland, when swords were turned into ploughshares: “peace hath her victories/No less renowned than war,” wrote the poet John Milton to the warrior and tormentor of Ireland, Oliver Cromwell.

President Higgins, to rapturous acclaim from MPs in Westminster, spoke of an enduring peace and an abiding friendship between two nations, who had applied closure to a fraught and troubled past. Their shared culture, democratic values based on the rule of law have prevailed and the road ahead promises satisfaction, glory and the pursuit of mutual happiness. Long may this endure.

Mirwaz Umar Farooq, Chairman of the Kashmiri separatist All Parties Hurriyat Conference penned a full-page letter “To the People of India” in the Hindu newspaper (April 8). The letter was prolix, tediously repetitive and short on detail on how the peace he and his colleagues advocate can be realistically achieved. Mr Farooq began by pointing out the advantages that the peace dividend held for the people of India, stressing that 800 million Indians earned a mere two US dollars a day. For a start, two US dollars in Indian currency is Rs 125 and the purchasing power of that sum in the country is nowhere near as miniscule as it is in the United States. Having said that, there is no hiding the fact that a daily wage of Rs125 or so does condemn earners to a life of poverty and undue hardship. If there was some way in which these numbers of poor could be assured uplift in one fell swoop, it would surely have been applied by now. Alas, there is no such magic formula, only hard grind at the end of the day.

The numbers of Indians living below the poverty line has been substantially reduced, by 140 million over the past decade. Literacy has increased by 10 per cent during this period and the middle class is a sizeable one by any standard. All this is worth emphasizing because Mirwaz Farooq appears to be under the illusion that India’s military expenditure is reducing India to a state of dire want. He quotes sums India spends on arms imports and the size of the country’s military budget. All of which happens to be true, but the perimeter of Indian security covers an enormous coastline abutting the Arabian Sea, the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean, not to speak of the mountain ranges to the north. Kashmir is a small area in a vast landscape. The predatory world in which we live has not been of India’s making, but being part of that world, India has borne the burden of a previous military weakness, now being put right.

The Mirwaz writes of the suffering endured by the Kashmiri people, by which he presumably means

the valley’s majority Muslim population, since no complaints have been made on that score by the majority Hindu population of Jammu or the majority Buddhist population of Ladakh, each a constituent territory of the larger Kashmir. Yes, things are far from perfect in the Kashmir valley. There is jihadi violence, much of it sponsored from across the border by Pakistan. Despite the fraught situation, there are more freedoms in Kashmir than there are in any Islamic country one cares to mention. The Mirwaz in his litany of complaints against Indian rule, made no mention of the forcible expulsion of the minority Hindu Pandit community who had lived the valley for the past millennium and more. It would appear that Mirwaz Farooq and his Hurriyat colleagues, and more hard-line elements, desire an Islamic state, which established practice in the Islamic world means reducing the dhimmi (unbelievers) to an institutionalized second class status.

There would be no gender equality and no freedom of thought or speech as the civilized world understands these terms. Pakistan, to which the Mirwaz makes frequent reference, is a wasteland of bigotry and jihadi violence, hence remains a warning of what may be in store in the new exclusivist Kashmir.

Mirwaz Farooq writes of Pakistan’s legitimate participation in a Kashmir peace process, but is silent about its sponsorship of the Pathan tribal invasion Kashmir valley in 1947 and the gruesome horrors inflicted on the Hindu, Sikh and Christian communities living there; he is silent on Pakistan’s export of terror to India, including the savage jihadi assaults on Mumbai in 1993 and 2008 respectively an undeclared war against India surely. It has long been a Pakistani jihadi-military plan to “bleed India”- preferably to death. The intended victim’s reluctance to be led like a lamb to slaughter is understandable. Pakistan cannot hope to win at the negotiating table what it has failed to achieve on the battlefield. Politics is the art of the possible, not of the hallucinatory absurd.

While the Indian general election proceeds apace at its and five-yearly frequency, Afghanistan recent exercise is more unique in its novelty. It is the third such democratic exercise in a country long occupied by a foreign military presence and wracked by a jihadi insurgency led by the medievalist brutality of the Taliban, which considers democracy to be an infidel import and violation of holy writ. Worse is the participation of women in political life. Despite the Taliban violence, the election went ahead, with women casting their ballots as never before – a gleam of light amid darkness. President Hamid Karzai, who has had a fraught relationship with the United States is to step down and make way for his democratically elected successor. During this difficult period the Afghan armed forces have stood their ground against the Taliban challenge and perfumed their protective role creditably. This bodes

well for the Afghanistan’s future. But this future is far from assured. US troops are in the process of withdrawal. Washington wishes to retain a 15,000 military presence in Afghanistan for training the locals and safeguarding the country from possible Taliban offensives in the years to come. The increasing US drone attacks on Afghan population centres, in a desperate bid to defeat Taliban operatives, have resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians, much to Mr Karzai’s chagrin. The aggrieved Afghan President refused, therefore, to sign a deal with the US government, permitting a continuing US military presence in the country. He has left this onerous decision to his elected successor. It will be a difficult call. India has a vital stake in Afghanistan’s stability and prosperity. A spillover of jihadi violence into India, aided and abetted by Pakistan, is not what Indian dreams are made on.

Mirwaz Umar Farooq must think again

Afghanistan election: What it portends

3

A crank is a small engine that causes revolutions

- Frank Sheehy - Skeffington

(1878-1916)

Seema Malhotra MP For Feltham and Heston

Diversity on Public Boards A few weeks ago I held an Adjournment debate in the House of Commons on Diversity on Public Boards. This is a key issue not just for equality but for ensuring the best decision making possible for our public services.

Civic engagement in public life is vital for building and sustaining links between all parts of society and our public institutions.

Since the Race Relations Act 1976 and the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 were passed into law, notable milestones have been achieved. We have had the first female Prime Minister, the first black woman in the Cabinet, and the first Asian and Muslim to attend Cabinet – the Rt Hon Sadiq Khan MP. However, we have not seen commensurate attainment in the public sector as a whole. The most recent “Public Bodies” report published in June 2013 by the Cabinet Office shows a worrying reversal in progress. We all agree that public appointments must be made on merit; the question is whether the processes we have in place are really delivering that.

Last year, 1,087 appointments were made to the boards of bodies in the UK, but of those only 56 were ethnic minority individuals.

In just one year, black and minority ethnic representation went down from 7.2% in 2011-12 to 5.5% in 2012-13—the lowest level in more than a decade. It is positive that the number of female appointments went up from 33.9% to 35.6% in the same period, but diversity strategies must go wider than gender.

The drop is of particular concern because diversity on public boards has been seemingly high on the agenda for the Government Equalities Office, the Cabinet Office and the Office of the Commissioner for

Public Appointments.

The 2011 review of the public appointments system addressed the core principles of fairness, openness and merit, and the Public Appointments Order in Council 2013 refers to a duty for the commissioner to promote equality of opportunity and diversity in public appointments.

When the Commissioner published the diversity strategy last March it was acknowledged that the pace of change was too slow.

At the heart of the issue is whether there is a gap between those with the talent, expertise and desire to be able to reach those appointments and them actually achieving that through the appointments process.

Indeed, whether our system and processes are fair and bring in talent fairly in the way that we need.

It is also the case that since David Cameron came to power, targets for those with disabilities or those from ethnic minorities have been removed. The gender target has been kept in the Cabinet Office diversity strategy, but it is now only described as an aspiration.

The inclusion think tank Diversity UK undertook a survey to investigate what was happening behind the statistics and launched its findings at a crossparty event. The report showed that respondents simply want a level playing field and a strong referee on this issue.

Our country is admired the world over for its openness, its sense of liberty and opportunity.

The Government needs to do more to help achieve greater diversity in public appointments, which is vital in ensuring that we deliver the public services that all parts of our communities need and the best decisions are made in the interests of all members of our society.

MIDLANDS VOICE

Special Adviser appointed to investigate 25 Birmingham schools

The Education Secretary, Michael Gove is preparing to send inspectors into dozens of State schools where conservative Islamic practices are allegedly damaging children's education.

An anonymous letter was sent to the city council and the media has claimed that Islamic fundamentalists were attempting to take control of Birmingham schools in an operation called 'Trojan Horse'. Allegations include the takeover of governing bodies

by Islamic fundamentalists, harassment of non-Muslim heads, bullying of female staff and the segregation of girls and boys in lessons.

A report suggests that the city council had now received more than 200 points of contact on Trojan Horse and 25 schools are being investigated in this connection. Amongst the school's being investigated is Ladypool Primary School in Birmingham, which cancelled an annual visit by Santa Claus at Christmas. Vicky Hubble, the teacher organising the event, was told Santa’s visit would be cancelled and there would be no presents and “no mention” of

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Sir Albert Bore

Michael Gove

Jesus being the son of God. The new rules were put into place by Huda Aslam, the head teacher recruited last September from al-Hijrah, an Islamic secondary school about two miles from Ladypool. Aslam wanted to reduce Christmas festivities to little more than sing-alongs such as Jingle Bells, according to a teacher at Ladypool. Sir Albert Bore, leader of the City Council said a special adviser has been appointed to help investigate the ‘Trojan Horse’ allegations. The press release sent by Birmingham Council had explained that former head teacher, Ian Kershaw, has been appointed as the

city’s new chief adviser on Trojan Horse and will work on a full-time basis for the next six months. The operational group is investigating along with officers from the Department for Education, West Midlands Police, Ofsted and other agencies including representatives from faith groups and Birmingham MPs. Mohammed Shafiq, chief executive of the Ramadhan Foundation, the Muslim charity which campaigns for peaceful coexistence has reportedly said: “The allegations of alleged extremist takeover of schools in Birmingham are very serious, however, there is a wider concern that this is a witch-hunt against the Muslim community” Some of the schools had not told the city that they had also received the Trojan Horse letters and more have come forward in recent weeks. The council announced a freeze on the recruitment of local authority school governors last week stating that the system was “not fit for purpose”.

It is understood the results of these inspections will be published after Easter.

Gurdwara wins legal battle against meat processing plant

Guru Gobind Singh Gurdwara on Leeds Road in Bradford has won a legal battle to stop the construction of a meat processing plant by the Pakeezah group next door. Pakeezah Group, a halal meat specialists is owned by a Pakistani family.

As many Sikhs are strict vegetarians, campaigners for the Gurdwara told local council officials that carcasses being cut up next to the Gurdwara would upset worshippers.

The Gurdwara's general secretary Govinder Singh

Dhaliwal (pictured) said they were delighted by the Council's decision and were grateful for all the support they had received from

European delegation visits Calthorpe School

Dhiren Katwa

An European delegation of over 70 learners and their mentors have paid tribute to Graham Hardy, headteacher, and his team at Calthorpe School in Highgate, Birmingham for hosting them. During their week-long experience, the delegation, pic-

Bradford's other religious groups during their fight. Asian Voice also ran a petition circulated by the group, on being requested to publish it, by our Sikh readers.

He further said, "This decision will strengthen the relationships among the faith communities and their support is a good example of community cohesion. This decision by the Council strengthens our belief in the

democratic political process, which has responded to public opinion". leader, Council Councillor David Green, said, "We have listened to the considerable concerns expressed by local people and groups about the planning application. In light of the legal advice we've received, we'd rather not spend any public money and have therefore decided not to oppose the judicial review".

Pakeezah was unavailable for comment.

Wife and family of murdered takeaway driver demands justice

Queen (life-size cardboard cut-out) also made a guest appearance, which proved to be a popular photo opportunity.

Mounir Meghalsi, a director at Calthorpe, thanked everyone. Reciprocating, teachers Monika Gunz-Arnaud and Fabrice Seigneurie and their counterparts from Germany and Yasar Abbas and his children

tured, visited various landmark sites including Cadbury’s World, Drayton Manor, Central Library and Black Country Museum. Their visit culminated in a prestigious round-table dinner last Thursday at the Paragon Hotel. Her Majesty The

Bulgaria handed Mr Hardy and his team native food hampers. This visit was part of Comenius, a British Council-led project, one of the most popular international education programmes for UK schools, colleges and local authorities.

Wife of the Walsall takeaway delivery driver, 28 years old Yasar Abbas, who was brutally murdered in a 'premeditated' ambush has said that she is unable to enjoy peace of mind until her husband's killers are imprisoned.

The father-of-two was attacked last April while delivering Chinese takeaway in Madison avenue, by masked thugs outside an address in a planned attack. The Post mortem concluded that Mr Abbas died from head injury inflicted by a “heavy bladed weapon.” Nine people have already been arrested in the last 12 months and all remain on police bail while investigations continue.

West Midlands Police investigating officer Det Insp Gary

Plant told the Birmingham Mail: “This anniversary is a particularly difficult time for Yasar’s wife and her young sons.

Her youngest son is approaching his first birthday following his birth on the day of Yasar’s funeral last year.

“Yasar was a well-liked, popular member of the community.” Yasar’s brother-in-Law, Aftab Hussain, said his family desperately wanted the killers brought to justice.

Abbas died days later in Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital. A £10,000 reward for information his murder has been announced. Anyone with information can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or use the anonymous online form at www.crimestoppers-uk.org.

Food drive by Leicester Gurdwara marks start of Vaisakhi

Guru Tegh Bahadur Gurdwara in Leicester collected food from thousands, to help the vulnerable people, marking the beginning of Vaisakhi. Canned goods, pasta and bottled water were among the items collected.

Vaisakhi is celebrated by Sikh worshippers worldwide and is traditionally a time to help others.

Photo courtesy: Leicester Mercury

4

Jas Dosanjh-Sidhu with tins donated at the food drive

Amandeep Rai, of the Leicestershire Sikh Alliance, which organised the food drive, reportedly said: "We had a massive turnout and everyone, from lots of different communities, came along.

"It is so important for individuals to look around and see the problems surrounding them.

"We want to try to help those people who are struggling."

The food donated will be put into food banks across the county, including Leicester charity Link and FareShare Leicester.

Amandeep also added that one of the central beliefs of Vaisakhi was the principle of Seva, which means selfless service, which is why the food drive was organised.

Men involved in car crash at 2 different instances, appear in court

A man appeared in Birmingham Magistrates Court for causing death by dangerous driving a £100,000 car. Mr Hussain was allegedly behind the wheel of an Audi R8 Spyder when a collision took place with a Red Ford Fiesta carrying 49year-old Noreen. The horrific smash killed Noreen Ryan last August.

Saqib Hussain, aged 24, of Alexander Road, Acocks Green, was committed at the Court where he will face a charge of causing death by dangerSaqib Hussain ous driving and two charges of causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

The computer engineer will also face charges of causing death by driving while not insured and failing to stop at the scene of an accident. He is bailed to appear at Birmingham Crown Court on August 4.

Another uninsured man and M a n c h e s t e r Metropolitan University student Zain Iqbal, 21, undertook another motorist on Great Ancoats Street at 50mph in his powerful Volkswagen Golf before crashing into a taxi carrying pregnant Wei Liu. A boy racer who caused a devastating Zain Iqbal road smash claimed five victims - including a pregnant woman forced into early labour. He has been jailed for two years and four months and disqualified from driving for four months at Manchester Crown Court after admitting causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Life sentence for gay husband who killed wife to hide sexuality

Two pupils achieve high scores in national mathematics challenge

Photograph by Sabiha Khatri

Two boys from Barham Primary School in Wembley have achieved excellent scores in this year’s Primary Mathematics Challenge (PMC).

Bhav Rambhiya achieved a Silver medal and Rishy Mohananthass narrowly missed (by one mark) a Bronze. The prestigious honour demonstrates their achievement as among the best young mathematicians in the UK. The first stage of the challenge took place in November 2013 when the Barham pupils competed alongside 77,000 children across the coun- Bhav Rambhiya (11) silver medal winner, Shireen Manikam Maths Teacher try. Successfully answerRishy Mohananthass (10) finalist ing a variety of multiple choice mathematics probwon a Silver award. It is a siglems, Bhav aged 11 years and nificant achievement to receive Rishy aged 10, joined the top recognition for mathematical 1% highest scorers that were ability on a national scale. The invited to take part in the PMC PMC website lists all the winBonus Round in February. ners and it is great to have Bhav rose to the challenge Barham’s name listed again this and is one of only 256 pupils year! Rishy was only one point nationally to win an award in away from a medal and this the Bonus Round. year’s paper was especially Speaking of the pupils’ succhallenging! Their teacher – cess Jean Joyce, Deputy Shireen Manikam – prepared Headteacher, said: “We are all them well to meet this year’s extremely proud that Bhav has challenge.”

Jasvir Ram Ginday, from Walsall, has been jailed for life for murdering his wife in a bid to stop her revealing his homosexuality. Ginday, 29, attacked Varkha Rani at their home with a metal pipe from a vacuum cleaner. He strangled her then burnt her body in a garden incinerator, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard.

Judge John Warner reportedly told the court Ginday had struggled "being a gay man in a straight world". He told him he would serve a minimum of 21 years in prison.

Ginday had flown to attend his arranged wedding to Varkha, 24, from India, at a luxurious ceremony attended by up to 700 guests last year. But he had told a friend he was attracted to men as early as 2008, said prosecutor Deborah Gould.

On 12 September, Ginday who had been preparing to take up a job with the Financial Ombudsman Service in London - had a fight with his new wife.

The court heard that Ginday had alleged his wife had threatened to "expose" him as homosexual to family and friends, after apparently discovering

Jasvir Ram Ginday

Jasvir Ram Ginday with Varkha Rani

"compromising" material on an iPad and iPhone. The pair ended up on the floor, at which point he claimed he grabbed the metal pipe of a vacuum cleaner which was lying nearby and "in the spur of the moment" put it on her neck.

Ginday said he then "panicked", dragged his new bride to the patio incinerator and placed her inside using a metal pole.

After the killing, Ginday went to Walsall Police Station with his uncle and reported her as miss-

ing. Although he admitted manslaughter and perverting the course of justice, he denied planning to kill his wife.

Varkha's cousin Sunil Kumar said: "No words can truly express the sadness and hurt my family and I are experiencing at the loss of Varkha. She was loved dearly by all. She had a great passion for life and doted on her family. Unfortunately she fell prey to Ginday who had ulterior motives which Varkha would not have appreciated."

Sunrise Radio owner declared as Bankrupt Avtar Lit, the Sunrise Radio owner has been declared Bankrupt at the London High Court, last week.

BizAsia reported that this brings to end years of legal haggling between Lit and Geeta Kohli, who was the founder director and shareholder of Sunrise Radio Ltd. Lit, pictured, reportedly made a submission in the court to adjourn the decision, allowing him to have a meeting with his creditors, considering a proposal to avoid Bankrupcy called Individual Voluntary Arrangement or IVA. A barrister representing the Insolvency Practitioner who would supervise any such IVA also made submissions thereafter.

But Miss Kohli’s solicitor, Mark Rondel of EMW Law LLP submitted that both Ms Kohli and the other creditors he represented would oppose any IVA. There were sufficient number of creditors to block any vote for an

WE’RE HERE TO IVA. The court therefore agreed that any further delay would be futile and ordered that Mr Lit should be made bankrupt.

It now remains to be seen how this Bankruptcy will impact assets such as Sunrise Radio (963AM & 972AM), which Lit is a Director of, along with Mr Gurdev Ram Jassi, Mrs Anita Lit and Mrs. Rajinder Kaur Bajwa. Lit has recently lost five companies after they fell into administration.

Lyca Media has acquired five companies including 1458AM and 1035AM frequencies in the lucrative London market.

Ethnic minority students are disadvantaged at GP exams, says high court judge With the NHS system requiring a huge reform, it is interesting that a recent high court judge has rejected claims from Indian physicians that role-playing assessments are unlawful, though he has raised his concern about results. Mr Justice John Mitting has warned the body responsible for conducting GPs' exams that it must change its assessment process after acknowledging that ethnic minority medical graduates were put at a disadvantage by the current system. At a judicial review in central London, Mr Justice John Mitting rejected a claim by the British Association of

Physicians of Indian Origin (Bapio) that the clinical skills assessment (CSA), which includes role-playing assessments, should be declared unlawful. He reportedly said that the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) was not racially discriminatory or breaching its public sector equality duty. But he did add that there was a clear disparity in results between different groups, which does call for the RCGP to take action.

UK graduates from ethnic minority backgrounds are nearly four times more likely to fail the Continued on page 8

5

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

St Luke’s prisoners are freed and raised over £18,000

Vishu celebrations in the UK Spriha Srivastava

UK-based Malyalee & Tamil community celebrated Vishu on April 15.

Vishu is a Hindu festival celebrated in the Indian state of Kerala and inthe Mangalore and Udupi districts of Karnataka. It marks the New Year in accordance with the Malayalam calendar, known as the Kolla Varsha.

In the UK, Vishu was celebrated by a number of groups including the Harrogate Malyalees Association and the East Midland Hindu Samajam. The Kent Hindu Samajam celebrated Vishu on Tuesday, 15th April 2014 in its traditional way, at The Millennium Centre in Kent.

“This is the fourth year in a row that Kent Hindu Samajam is bringing the real Vishu spirit to whole Hindu Malayalee Community in Kent with a variety cultural programmes and Vishu Sadhya,” said a press note issued to this website.

In addition to this, the Cardiff Malayalee Association will be celebrating Vishu on 03rd May Saturday 2014, between 7pm to 10pm and the West Yorkshire Malayalee Association is celebrating it on 26th April.

The most important event in Vishu is the Vishukkani, which literally means "the first thing seen on the day of Vishu after waking up". The

Vishukkani consists of a ritual arrangement of auspicious articles like raw rice, fresh lemon, golden cucumber, betel leaves, areca nut, metal mirror, yellow flowers, and a holy text and coins, in a bell metal vessel called uruli in the puja room of the house. A

women and kids joined the men and had the meals together. This was followed by sharing of several stories of traditional importance to the occasion.

The festival will also be celebrated in Birmingham where a number of Malayalees

lighted bell metal lamp called nilavilakku is also placed alongside. This is arranged the night before. On Vishu, the custom is to wake up at dawn and go to the puja room with eyes closed so that the Vishukkani is the first sight of the new season.

Celebrations also took place in some other areas in the UK too. The sadhya (food) was prepared by the men when women and children were enjoying their time by sharing the fun time in another house, local reports said. Once the sadhya was ready the

and Tamils will come together to celebrate the auspicious day along with good food and lots of sweets.

"Vishu" is celebrated with much fanfare and vigour in all parts of Kerala. Setting off fire crackers is part of the celebration, especially for children. People wear new clothes for the occasion and elders of the family gift money, called Vishukkaineetam, to youngsters. Vishu is also a day of feasting. The foods consist of equal proportions of salty, sweet, sour and bitter items.

Christie’s concluded Islamic Art Week in London from 8 to 11 April 2014 with a combined sales total of £ 1 0 , 2 3 0 , 1 8 8 ($17,028,757). An auction record was set for any piece of pottery from today’s Islamic world when a rare Iznik bowl sold for £1.4 million.

William Robinson, International Head of Islamic and Indian Art, said: “Christie’s consistent success in the London week of Islamic Art sales this spring was underpinned by rare and beautiful works with strong provenance sourced from private collections. A celebration of creativity and technical excellence from the Islamic and Indian worlds encom-

passing works of art, carpets and rugs and manuscripts, the works offered throughout the sales at both King Street and South Kensington drew competitive international bidding across media, periods and price levels.”

Christie’s, the world's leading art business, reached a total of £2.4 billion/$3.68 billion in global auction and private sales in the first six months of 2013. Christie’s has consistently offered the finest Indian works of art since James Christie, the charismatic founder of the firm, offered four fine India pictures painted on glass in his inaugural sale on 5 December, 1766.

Growing interest in

Indian Art led to the opening of Christie’s first representative office in India in 1994.

The following year, Christie’s held its first stand-alone Indian Art sale in London. Today Christie’s holds regular sales in New York and London and is the market leader in all categories of Indian art.

Collectors from India make an increasingly important contribution to the global art market across international categories. In the last one year, Christie’s has lent its support and international reach to the India Art Fair in January and to the Homelands exhibition, organised by the British Council and exhibited in New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Bengaluru.

Christie’s Islamic art week breaks record

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at aveditorial@abplgroup.com

13 local community members were arrested and put behind bars in an effort to raise money for St Luke’s Hospice.

CB Patel, L George and 11 other prominent community figures were arrested and put behind bars at Pinner police station as part of St Luke’s Jail and Bail event on Friday 4 April. Our detainees collectively raised over £18,000 for the Hospice.

The Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice & Gujarat Samacher, CB Patel, pictured, said, ‘I think being arrested is something of a humbling effect. I have never been to any such detention of imprisonment before but it is for a worthwhile cause so it is worth it.

It is illuminating that there is some sense of human dignity while being arrested. St Luke’s is a noble cause and this is a very small effort to support them on my part. I’m happy to be a part of this.’

Asian Voice’s Chief Operating Office, L George, said, ‘This is the first time I was arrested.

Because I knew it was fictitious I thought it was a funny experience that I’ve never had. If I ever commit a crime, I now know what to expect at the police station.

The Jail and Bail was

for a worthwhile cause and I hope more people continue to support St Luke’s and join us to get locked up next year.’

CB Patel and L George were locked up with: Navin Shah, Cllr & Assembly Member for Brent & Harrow; Mohammed Rahman, Trustee of Harrow Central Mosque; Graham Buckland, husband of St Luke’s Trustee; Ramesh Bhanderi, St Luke’s Trustee; Nigel Orton, Bench Chairman, NW London Magistrates; Mahesh Patel, Halifax Wealdstone Branch Manager; Dorab Mistry OBE, Director of Godrej International; Kathleen O’Connor, St Luke’s Supporter; Gopaljeet Bhachu, Chair of Harrow Sikh Association; James Mercer, Vicar at All Saints Church Harrow Weald and Sherry Sendanayake,

Local Business Owner.

St Luke’s Hospice provides free end of life care to people whose illnesses are no longer curable. The Hospice give their patients the best possible quality of life during the final stages of their illness and relies on the support of the community to raise £3 million each year in order to do this. You can still make a donation to the Hospice by contacting Aneka on 020 8382 8063 or visiting CB Patel’s page a t www.justgiving.com/CBPatel.

St Luke’s Hospice would like to thank everyone who took part in the event, the local police for their support and to West House in Pinner for providing a free lunch for our hungry convicts. CB Patel and L George would like to thank all those who donated to bail them out.

Tagore Celebrated at the Palace of Westminster

Rani Singh

MP Virendra Sharma hosted a historic event at Westminster last Thursday 3rd April 2014. It was conceived and directed by Bithika Raha Basu, Founder Director of the Nrityakala Dance Heritage.

Bithika had organised a powerful event, called “Remembering Tagore-The Legend,” to commemorate the centenary of the Nobel Prize being awarded to Tagore. Portraits of the great and the good looked down on a packed room of Tagore fans.

There was the Bangladesh High Commissioner, HE Mijarul Quayes; the Indian High Commissioner, HE Ranjan Mathai, and Lord Navnit Dholakia, PC, OBE, DL, Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats and Patron of Nrityakala Dance Academy. Lord Loomba was present, as was Sangeeta Bahadur, Director of the Nehru Centre and Minister for Culture.

Virendra welcomed the High Commissioners, Lord Dholakia and special guests, saying that it was important for younger

Bithika Raha Basu, HE Ranjan Mathai, the Indian High Commissioner, Virendra Sharma MP, Bangladesh High Commissioner HE Mijarul Quayes, Lord Navnit Dholakia, Lord Raj Loomba and senior journalist Ashis Ray

generations to know about Tagore. He told us that the poet influenced his own life, and he recalled how in a room in his childhood home, a portrait of Tagore was placed between those of Gandhi and Nehru. Mr Mathai said that Tagore was a “Towering figure.”

Lord Dholakia commented, “Bengal has produced erudite people,” so it is not surprising that Tagore comes from there.

He added, “I always find his poetry and literature unique.” Lord Dholakia sagely finished with; “The Indian High Commissioner coming here means that everything that is good about India is being celebrated in the Houses of Parliament.” The noble Lord had previously hosted an event for Bithika’s

Nrityakala Dance Heritage and its international work, along with a reading of Tagore’s poem in the House of Lords.

HE Mohamed Mijarul Quayes said, “Tagore celebrated the essence of man.

He was the quintessential Bengali and man of the world.” H.E. added that rather than be elevated by the Nobel Prize, Tagore elevated the Nobel prize to a world level.

The Bangladeshi High Commissioner also pointed out that Tagore was promoting human rights along with the right of all people to have freedom from fear and freedom from want.

Bithika is clearly a visionary on a mission and it might not be long before she is recognised by Continued on page 30

Asians flourishing in all fields in UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

With Sajid Javid recently becoming the first Asian to enter the Cabinet, Asians elsewhere are dominating all fields.

Asians currently make up 7.5% of the population, 4.2m in England and Wales. They are are also more likely to have a full-time job and have reached the top in many fields, from music to mining.

Mishal Husain

Priti Patel

Anil Agarwal

Six Successful Asians from different fields

Singer Zayn Malik - 21 years old, born to a Pakistani father and an Anglo-Irish mother, the One Anshuman Jain Dev Patel Zayn Malik Direction star grew up in old. Agarwal was born in admirer of Margaret Bradford and shot to fame Patna, northeast India, Thatcher, is one of the after he appeared on The and moved to Mumbai at party’s rising stars. Her X Factor in 2010.

15 to start building a busiparents came to the UK Presenter Mishal ness. Vedanta Resources after the expulsion Husain – 41 years old. was the first Indian comof Indians from Uganda in Born in England to pany listed on the London the early 1970s.

Pakistani parents, Husain, Stock Exchange. His forBanker Anshuman who spent part of tune is put at £2.2bn.

Jain – 51 years old. Jain her childhood in Actor Dev Patel – 23 has been co-chief executhe Middle East, went years old actor. Best tive of Deutsche Bank into television known for his role in for nearly two years. after Cambridge and is Millionaire, Slumdog He studied economics the first Muslim presenPatel has also starred in at the University of ter of the Today proSkins and The Best Delhi and in 2010 gramme on Radio 4.

Exotic Marigold Hotel. made almost £10m, makPolitician Priti Patel – His parents are ing him the bank’s 42 years old. Elected Gujarati Indians who top earner. in 2010 as came to Britain from Mining Magnate Anil Conservative MP for Kenya.

Agarwal – 60 years Witham, Patel, an strong

UK

7

NHS doctor sent email listing military personnel for Islamists to 'recruit’ Questions are being asked over why an NHS psychiatrist sent an email, containing the names of senior military personnel based in London embassies, to leading members of Hizb ut-Tahrir, an extremist Islamist organisation.

Dr Imran Waheed, pictured, a consultant psychiatrist at Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Trust, had collected the names and sent them to other members of Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT) in 2006. There is no explanation within the email why he gathered the names. But a source has reportedly said: “There were a number of meetings where these

names were discussed.

These were people Hizb ut-Tahrir wanted to target and recruit.” The email contained the names of 21 senior military figures from Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, as well as Turkey. The list also includes some telephone numbers and email addresses. Dr Waheed, was HT’s chief

Parents at Little Hill Primary School in Leicester, have expressed their anger at the school's decision to allow the acting headmistress Vina Pankhania, to have a month off during term time to get married to Amit Jain, whilst they would get fined if pulling out their children.

Pankhania has been given four weeks unpaid leave because 'she has worked

extremely hard over the past two years'. Parents have turned on the headteacher and accused the school of double standards because they would be fined if they took their children on holiday in term time. Governors wrote to parents last week to tell them that while Miss Pankhania was off, acting deputy head Helen CartledgeSplitt would be in charge.

media adviser and one of its leading figures at the time.

Khalid Mahmood, MP who has campaigned against HT, reportedly “Why is a said: senior NHS doctor sending names in an email, other than to target them?” Taji Mustafa, a spokesman for Hizb utTahrir Britain, reportedly said: “Hizb ut-Tahrir is widely known to roucontact and tinely account members of staff of Muslim embassies around the world regarding their statements and actions. It is also well known that we widely circulate our publications to members of such embassies.”

Parents anger at Headmistress taking a month off term to get married

Miss Pankhania refused to comment.

Vina Pankhania with Amit Jain

MASSIVE BANK HOLIDAY SALE

8

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

As I See It

Poor, old and tired Cameron Prime Minister David Cameron has almost completed four years of his Coalition government. His administration, like others in the past, had its ups and downs and thank goodness, the economy is on the upturn. Credit goes to the steadfastness of his Chancellor George Osborne. As to the Prime Minister himself, some of the headlines in the mainstream dailies should make him think.

the blinkers, even on Europe itself.

Perhaps he could well look at the challenges faced by PM Margaret Thatcher, which she was capable to turn in to opportunities.

However, everything Cameron does is not wrong. There are several policies, decisions and pronouncements which are right and promising. The appointment of Sajid Javid as the new Culture Secretary is most appropriate and timely.

Never before, a Pakistani origin Asian has reached such a powerful and promising position in the British Government.

He is intelligent, highly successful in his previous career as a banker, very level headed and keeps on repeating that he is son of a Pakistani bus driver. We talked about Yuppie culture and we don’t have to go far to look for one.

Increasing illnesses among middle aged people causes concern

Occasionally, I have to visit some patients in hospitals. Up until the nineties we had elderly patients and visitors were mainly their children and family members– mainly the younger generations. In the last few months, several times I have noticed that now people in their 40s are taken ill as patients, while visitors mainly include their elderly parents and family members.

cess is much incomplete. It is not the job of the government alone; it is not the job for others to advise. All adults must think seriously, about health, family and especially how we cause pain and agonise to our elders and children.

A worrying report in The Sunday Times states, “Young shrug as pride in Britain takes a fall”. In the list of some 50 odd individuals, who are role models, there is only one Asian – Shami Chakrabarti – kudos to Shami for her achievements, but why do we not have more Asians on the list?

The Sunday Telegraph reported that pensioners are advised to draw up legal plans setting out how they wish to be cared for in old age to protect them from exploitation. It needs not much elaboration. Our mothers carried us for nine months, cared and nurtured us when we were young. It is not only our duty to take appropriate care of ourselves, but remember our children will also not forget how we deal with our parents in their time of need.

Vijay and Bhikhu Patel

Shami Chakrabarti

There are physical ailments which can be termed as ‘natural’, but liver and kidney problems, heart ailments and diabetic related illnesses to a very large extent have a lot to do with lifestyle.

Since the Tony Blair government, followed by many others, reduced taxes on alcohol and lifted time restrictions regarding pubs, clubs and off licenses, has led to a steady consumption of alcohol. The physical illnesses related to binge drinking are so evident when you visit the hospital.

Drinking is also leading to an increasing amount of crime, on streets as well as domestic violence. Unless we check it now, in 10 years time, the elderly will visit their loved ones at hospitals more frequently than ever before and also witness many untimely deaths.

The problem for the ambitious and hardworking Asian youngsters is that their work typically involves long hours of desk activities. Sitting on a chair, facing the screen for long hours is definitely harmful for the health.

Ambitions are important. But unless we find a happy balance between work and life, the so called promotion or suc-

Conservatives appoint first Asian male in the Cabinet

Continued from page 1 Javid is son of a man who arrived at the Heathrow airport from Pakistan in 1961 with a £1 note in his pocket, after his family lost everything during partition. He made his way up north in Britain and found a job at a Rochadale cotton mill.

Though employed, he strived for more. He wanted to become a bus

driver and despite being turned away repeatedly, he did not give up his dream. He persisted and was later hired as a bus conductor, then to become a driver, earning the nickname 'Mr Night and Day' from his coworkers. After that he got his own market stall, selling ladies clothes (sewn

by Sajid's mother at home) and eventually

opened his own shop in Bristol. Sajid and his four brothers were born in Rochadale, and lived with his parents in a 2 bed room flat above their shop on Stapleton Road (dubbed as Britain's most dangerous street later).

Mr Javid who has been a Chief Guest at the launch of Asian Voice's Finance, Banking and Insurance magazine last

British national dailies and mainstream magazines are increasingly focussing on the ongoing Indian elections. So they should. India is going through a bold and inspiring experience at its 16th General Election.

Not to forget the old parents

PM David Cameron with wife Sumantha

“Stop the bungling before it’s too late, Mr. Cameron”, says Iain Martin on the Edit page of The Sunday Telegraph.

“Cameron must rise to the challenge of UKIP”, says the Editorial comment in The Daily Telegraph of 12th April.

“Labour questions Cameron’s tax letter”, says The Sunday Telegraph.

These are some of the headlines, which must be bothering Mr. Cameron.

He is not poor in the financial sense. He was born with a silver spoon. His charming wife Samantha is also a very successful entrepreneur. He is not old (by age), but perhaps is running out of ideas (if not has ruån out already). The leaked news of the overture to the London Mayor and the alleged demands of the Mayor doesn’t augur well for a leader’s confidence and vision.

We all would feel tired after four challenging years in Downing Street. The Coalition has also not been able to put forward its ideas in a very cogent way on Scotland. The Sunday Telegraph is right when it says, “We will all be the poorer, if Scotland goes its own way.”

The Conservative policy makers made a big issue on the number of immigrants entering the government. Perhaps such an opportunistic declaration was ill-timed and futile, looking at the experience of Mr. Cameron’s predecessors as party leaders (William Hague, Ian Duncan Smith and Michael Howard).

The British, especially the business community and the youth are not bothered about immigration.

PM Cameron must now look out of

Unfair and futile Modi bashing in British Media

Asian youngsters are more if not as ambitious as their parents, who migrated to Britain, absolutely penniless, in the last 40-50 years. I was very impressed by the interview of Vijay and Bhikhu Patel of Waymade Group by Louise Armistead, whose business amassed £500 million fortunes in ‘no time’.

Much more than the wealth creation, the values of these brothers are also very praiseworthy. Naturally, Vijay and Bhikhu are wealthy, ambitious and passionate about their business. But they remember and remind all others how much we owe it to our mothers. Their mother, a widow at a young age, worked extremely hard to bring up her two sons and a daughter.

Vijay describes, “Honesty, integrity and education were the priorities. She was a tiger mother and fulfilled our needs as father and mother”.

I happen to know this Patel family quite well. They are not known for their lavish tastes, despite living in their beautiful estate in Essex. They contribute largely for humane and social causes in India, Kenya, UK and other countries.

The brothers have involved their own children to run their businesses they started. Here are role models that we need. Thank goodness there are such brilliant individuals around. Let’s know them and learn from them. year at the House of Commons, told the newspaper, “It’s a privilege to be asked to serve my country as the Secretary of State for Culture, Media, Sport and Equalities and I am extremely proud to be the first ever Asian Secretary of State. The work of DCMS sits at the heart of so much of what makes Britain great and I am looking forward to this exciting new role.

Narendra Modi

In less than four weeks a new government will be formed in New Delhi. By all indications, Narendra Modi is likely to become the Prime Minister of India – the first from a very humble and modest background, especially in the caste ridden society of India.

No one in the British press raise an eye-brow when PM Cameron repeatedly proclaimed that Britain is a Christian country. Personally I applaud him saying so. Christian faith has given the world – concept of democracy, compassion and forgiveness. But the British media doesn’t miss a chance to label Narendra Modi and his party – the Bhartiya Janata Party as the Hindu Nationalist party for promoting Hinduism. How is such double standards permitted?

The Times and The Telegraph are seemingly in competition in an attempt to frighten the Muslims about Modi's probable appointment as the Prime Minister. They are not looking at the progress Gujarat has made over the last 12 years. Not only I am talking about development process but communal harmony too. Over the last decade, not one religious riot has taken place in Gujarat.

But the British Media is solely focusing on negative publicity. Perhaps its helping Modi indirectly.

In Gujarat, the Muslims and other minorities as well as Hindus have gathered to support Narendra Modi when he was accused of communalism on totally flimsy grounds. British Media does not want to know what Ratan Tata, Narayan Murthy, noted writer Salim Khan or Anna Hazare or others say about Mr. Modi.

Finally, what a tragedy in India! A good and decent man, a learned gentleman, a brilliant economist and a successful finance minister – Manmohman Singh is now the focus because of two books, in which his omissions and commissions are scrutinised. Probably he is made a scapegoat. But India deserves better. And India shall get a better government soon.

- CB

Ethnic minority students are disadvantaged....

Continued from page 5 CSA, and international medical graduates are nearly 15 times more likely to fail than white UK graduates. The CSA was introduced in 2007 and is taken at the end of three years of vocational training.

Mitting said the RCGP had carried out numerous assessments that identified the disparity in performance between different

groups and that it should now take action, including by selecting more representative examiners and roleplayers for the assessment.

He also said the relative performance of international medical graduates could be explained, at least in part, by inferior education systems overseas but he described the number of individuals who failed as very small.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Leading Lights

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

The Bangladeshi Writer-Actress Uncovering an Important Hidden Story Leesa Gazi has developed a play with her theatre and arts company, Komola Collective, about a crucial, under-researched story; the women sexually violated, tortured and killed during the war for the Independence of Bangladesh in 1971. I saw her two-headed play, Birangona, last week, performed by her and actor Amith Rahman, using live acting, shadow animation, music, and documentary footage. Birangona means brave woman. The show is short, (55 mins), gripping and moved me to tears.

There is so little current research done in this field that it is remarkable that Leesa took the trouble to locate some female survivors of that tortuous period. It was critical to understand how Leesa came to this point with her team.

She interviewed 21 Birangona women in Sirajgonj in 2010 and decided to develop a theatre piece based on their accounts. Leesa with her theatre company did an

Leesa Gazi

early test performance in Dhaka August 2013. “My co-writer, Samina Luthfa, wrote the Dhaka research and development phase script. We returned to London with feedback from the audience. We developed and performed

the second phase piece in London November 2013, which I co-wrote. Since then we have made changes in design and in script for the final production of the play, which I continued writing.

Currently we are in the

middle of a two- week run of 'Birangona: Women of War' at London’s Lost Theatre, till the 20th of April 2014.”

The number of violated women is sometimes difficult to pin down for a journalist, but Leesa is clear on this from her research. She explained, “I researched and came to this figure from research materials, interviews, and books. They all came to a consensus of more than 200,000 women and girls who were sexually violated and tortured in a systematic campaign of genocidal rape by the Pakistani Army and their local collaborators.

Dr. Geoffrey Davis, a physician who participated in the victim relief programme to perform lateterm abortions on the survivors of rape, estimated in interview with Dr Bina D’Costa that the commonly stated number of 200,000 was "very conservative''. This number is also claimed in a report by the War Crimes Fact Finding Committee and in research by Susan Brownmiller.”

Leesa testified to me that Bangladesh’s history has changed according to who was ruling.

“While I was growing up, we had two or three versions of history of the country’s bloody birth.

History changed with the change of power. We had

seen two nasty army coups. The curriculum history books of my generation used to read something like: in 1971 ‘we fought against the ‘Perpetrators’ (Hanadar Bahini).’ But who those perpetrators were, was not mentioned. We were not allowed to know who the real perpetrators were.

I grew up hearing stories of ’71 from my father.

Once in a while, bleak stories of Birangona women would crop up We were not allowed to say ‘Pakistani Army’, ‘Razakar’ or any ‘truth’ about the war.

People used to get ridiculed, harassed, even killed, for being freedom fighters. Freedom fighters from the Armed Forces were singled out after 1975. Some of them were given postings abroad, early retirements, put in jail and some were killed.

They represented a popular ideal which the authorities wanted to wipe out. Also, the name of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was not allowed to be mentioned in history books, in the media or in the public domain.

9

We grew up knowing lies about our own history.

Those like me, whose families were closely involved or affected by the war, would hear their parents whispering into their ears, tales of their proudest moments like forbidden stories.

I grew up hearing stories of ’71 from my father.

Once in a while, bleak stories of Birangona women would crop up. A few haunting images never left me – like that nameless boy who died, on the eve of our victory day the 16th of December 1971, right after knowing that Bangladesh has been liberated. When he was being told the news, he smiled and then died. My father was with him at the time. Another one is these mute, faceless hundreds of women standing back-to-back on a convoy of trucks. Their stories were not only forbidden, these women were also hidden, ostracised from society.”

Leesa described how a rehabilitation centre, Sirajgonj Uttaran Mohila Sangstha, was established by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1972. Shafina Lohani was the Secretary General of the centre. “50 to 60 Birangona women were found in that small area. Many of them did not want anyone to know about what had happened to them.

Continued on page 30

10

YOUR VOICE

The Economist's negativity towards Modi

Your remarks in your “As I See It” column regarding the negative views in “The Economist,” about Modi are an eye opener. At first reading, the write up in “The Economist” appears as mixed, but has an undercurrent of hatred towards Modi.

Certain points need attention. Why indulge in and focus hatred on Modi and that too for last 12 years post Godhra episode? No one mentions that communal riots began, after and due to, the barbaric burning alive of Hindus by Muslims. No such noise is made for many similar communal riots in other states eg killings of Hindus in Kashmir (1989 onwards), riots in Muzaffarnagar, Guahati, massacre of Hindus by Moplas in 1920, and attacks/abduction/persecution of Hindus in West Bengal and Bangladesh. Why is a blind eye turned towards tyranny by Aurangzeb and Jalainwala Baug massacre by British with no apology being given?

If Modi is to be blamed for polarisation, what about remarks by one Muslim candidate about chopping Modi to pieces, Imam appealing Muslims for votes to Congress, and remarks that only Muslims won Kargil war?

The world is afraid of Modiji exposing barbaric burning of Hindus, looting/stashing abroad of millions of rupees by most prestigious leaders, diminishing status of Prime Minister, and free meddling by foreign governments in India’s domestic matters.

Modi has survived and reversed 12 years of national and international persecution and ostracization. That non-stop ability frightens dirty tricks mongers and guilty adversaries.

Ramesh Jhalla By email

Corrupt politics in India

Most of today’s problems in India are due to corrupt politics. Unless it is cleansed, nothing will improve. Mahatma Gandhi once said that politics devoid of honesty and spirituality is disastrous for the nation. We have to change the politics of India and I am confident that together, we can.

Today, most of the politicians in India make tall claims before the onset of elections but forget to deliver them after coming to power. This only goes on to show that they are least bothered about the welfare of the common man who takes time from his/her busy schedule to exercise his/her franchisee.

Jubel D’Cruz, Mumbai, India

Indian elections

The fact is and remains that whatever Mr Modi has to do, he does not need to do it to satisfy 'The Economist' or any other media. His aim is to gain support and confidence of his fellow Indians. Let the western media keep a distance as Indians are capable to choose the leader.

High Speed 2 project

The High Speed 2 rail project bill is being proposed in Parliament and if approved, work on the London-Birmingham route will commence in 2017.

The next elected government in 2015 should seriously rethink the project. HS2 will save journey time to Birmingham by 33 minutes from the present 82 minutes.

Contrast journey time from 300 km per hour to 30 km per hour within the city.

One could easily waste these 33 minutes in traffic jams within the city.

The whole project is very costly environmentally and economically. HS2 will mostly be used by those in the 50% tax bracket. HS2 will only connect to 6% of the total number of 525 pair cities in the UK. It will be a motorway route, not a network.

The current high speed trains travelling at 125 km per hour and the new ones called Pendoleno are giving an excellent service. They are only being used at 50% capacity. The price structure is very confusing and/or very expensive at peak times. Why not spend money instead on improving the existing network operationally and subsidising fares so that they are used to full capacity?

HS2 benefits' inclusion of £36.96 per hour of costs saved by a railway passenger has been described as voodoo economics by 2016 London Mayoral hopeful Christian Wolmar in his article "What is the point of HS2?" [London Review of Books, p3, 17 April 2014].

Nagin Khajuria By email

Is Mulayam fit to be in public life?

Mulayam Singh Yadav’s shocking statement that boys are boys and they should not be hanged in brutal rape cases has shocked the entire nation.

While women safety is the prime issue, main concern with 90% voters, Samajwadi Party seems to be out of touch with reality, competing with Saudi Arabia who could subjugate women most!

While most politicians have condemned this outburst, there is a tiny minority who not only supports Mulayam but even goes one step further. Abu Azim, Mulayam’s compatriot, goes even further. He would like to punish, hang victims and perpetrators, even sex between consensus adults should be no exception. No wonder Azim’s own son distances himself from his father’s utterance.

The NCW (National Commission for Women) has issued notice but it is now up to the women of India, especially political stalwarts like Mayawati, Sonia, Smriti, Sushma and Jayalalitha to galvanize women, educate men and confine Samajwadi Party to political wilderness, to wipe it out from the State. Mulayam and Azim have given the voters a long rope to hang themselves.

It is at election time people realise how backward, ignorant, partisan and stupid some of these politicians are. It is time to introduce quality, culture, patriotism and honesty in politicians with mini-

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

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ASIAN VOICE

If there is anyone in India who can transform India economically, politically and socially, it can be none other than Narendra Modi.

Some people say he is arrogant. So be it. He is capable to deliver what he says and he will. He speaks what he means and he means what he speaks. He is genuine and sincere. He is strong, determined and has a fire in his speech to move the earth. He is logical, methodical, poetical and much more. He is simply the best. Undoubtedly, a true, unique leader.

He has a dream and a vision to make India one of the greatest countries on earth. He wants India to return to its past glory. He knows he can do this by integration of all different faiths, be fairer to all and exercise justice. He does not look a person to divide because that hinders progress, growth, prosperity and development. He is not an ordinary man. He is a great human being. Given the chance, people of India will not regret electing him to power. He will make us all proud.

Let us hope he becomes the next PM of India, an incredible country in need of a good system of governance of which its people have been deprived for years.

Niranjan Vasant W Norwood

Western media’s condemnation of Modi

I am really concerned how the British and American press take every opportunity to condemn Modi as a Hindu communalist who will divide India if he becomes the Prime Minister of India.

The Economist article and the letter sent to Guardian by Indian writers including Salmon Rushdie is very damaging to Modi and India. In India Mullahs all over the country are urging Muslims to vote against BJP and support Congress.

BJP members should not gloat over BJP standing in the opinion poll and things can happen even in the last week of the election. BJP should take note of what happened in 2004 election.

The real danger is that all opposition parties in desperation are wooing for the Muslim support and go and kneel before the bearded Mullahs forgetting 80 per cent of the Population are Hindus. Hindu support counts for all political parties rather than Muslim votes alone.

The time has come for Hindus to unite and support BJP and Modi and reclaim India from Muslim and Italian aggressors who think Hindus are fools and they cannot rule India.

Tel: 020 7749 4080 Fax: 020 7749 4081 E-mail: support@abplgroup.com

Dr. Jatindra Saha By email

Mahavir Jayanti

mum education standard. I was shocked to learn that Indian Finance Minister could not understand Hindi, India's national language and needed an interpreter to translate questions from the press!

Bhupendra M Gandhi By email

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Arun Vaidyanathan By email

Karma Yoga House substantial reduction in 12 Hoxton Market London N1 6HW

Who would preside over the national affairs after the election – Narendra Modi or Rahul Gandhi? The contrast between the two cannot be more obvious and striking.

Rahul Gandhi was born in the most privileged social condition. He never had to do any work to earn his living. He does not have even the experience of running a full-fledged family let alone a govt. or even a govt. department. He has been an MP for at least ten years but has never proposed any legislation of any kind.

If he is given the charge of a ministry he is most likely to prove himself to be an utter failure. So far he has appeared in one extended interview and it has been universally adjudged to be an unmitigated disaster.

In contrast Narendra Modi began his life from very humble origins. A former tea-seller he had established himself through sheer hard work, brilliant strategy, able leadership and right knowledge and now poised to be the next Prime Minister of India.

He has been so successful in wooing private investment that today Gujarat accounts for 17.2% of India's fixed capital investment, 15.6% of production, 20% of industrial output, and 22% of the country's exports.

As regards Muslim fears, their number below poverty line has fallen from 31% in 2004 – 2005 to 7% in 2011 -2012 in rural Gujarat while in urban areas it has fallen from 42% to 14.6%.

Lord Mahavira, Jainism’s 24th and last Tiranthakara (prophet) was born most probably in the year 599 BC. Therefore, according to my calculations, if we add 2014 (the current Christian year) and 599 together, we arrive at the figure 2613.

The exact date is given in the Jain scriptures as the thirteenth day of the bright half (ie when the moon was waxing) of the month of Chaitra. In the European calendar, this usually falls in the month of April.

The festival to commemorate this, known as Mahavir Jayanti is an occasion for great celebration. Jains gather together to hear Mahavira’s message of Ahimsa (non-violence in the strictest possible sense), Satya (adhering to speaking of truth), Prem (love) and Karuna (kindness) expounded, so that they can follow his teachings and emulate his example.

In India, Jains celebrate this religious event by visiting sacred sites and worshipping the Tirthankaras.

We in the UK cannot easily visit sacred sites like Shatrunjay (near Palitana), Sammetshikhar, Pavapuri, Girnar etc therefore we celebrate Mahavir Jayanti locally at Jain temples and assembly halls by singing prayers and exchanging good wishes on or around the day of Mahavira’s birth.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Indo-British relationship in need of innovative partnerships

Rupanjana Dutta

On a crispy sunny Wednesday morning, journalists were invited to a seminar discussing “The UK and India – A New at the Relationship�

Courthouse Hotel, near Oxford Circus. It was attended by opinion formers, journalists, organisation representatives, medical doctors and members of the business community.

The event was an opportunity to share thoughts on how we can strengthen Indo-British trade relations, and explore what Britain can also learn from India, over a cup of coffee and breakfast.

The seminar started with a speech by Seema Malhotra MP on her experience during her recent official visit to India, where she met businesses, women entrepreneurs and the head of the new Women’s Bank the Bharatiya Mahila Bank, Usha Anantha Seema Subramanian. called for a new relationship between Britain and India that recognises the future depends on innovative partnerships and on increased cultural connectivity, not just with India but with new emerging economies.

Seema explained the importance of nurturing the Indian diaspora in Britain, to improve relationship with the country, change mindsets about India and also praised India's progress with modern technology, and especially increasing number women in enterprises. She also spoke about the need to improve Whitehall's quality of service. The

event marked the first in a series of discussions Indo-British exploring trade relations as part of a review launched by Seema Malhotra MP and Jonathan Ashworth MP last month.

Present also were Shadow Minister for Trade and Investment Ian Murray MP, and Mr Sundip Roy from the Confederation of Indian Industry.

Speaking to Asian Voice exclusively, Seema said: “There is a perception to many observers that Britain is closing its doors to outsiders. It is a perception shared by students and businesses alike and one that three visits to India by the Prime Minister has done very little to diminish.

Labour recognises this, and the need for an outward facing agenda for Britain.

There is a wider context in which both India and the United Kingdom today face the future – a time of fundamental shifts in the balance of global wealth and influence. A profound re-ordering of world power of a kind that occurs only once every century or more.

This is not just perceiving that India has much to learn from Britain, but that Britain now has much it can learn

from India. Trade relations between Britain and India have not grown as fast as the historical relationships between the two nations would suggest is possible.

But if we think about some of India’s big challenges, it is also clear that addressing them plays to Britain’s strengths in terms of our core capabilities, experience and traditions.�

The audience that included mostly people with Indian roots, shared their experience in doing business and taking delegations to India and also raised questions about visas, and failures of the UK bodies and banks to encourage and help Indians to set up businesses here especially the SMEs. Such challenges were spoken about by Sundip Roy and some possible solutions were also discussed by Ian Murray MP. The audience included important guests like Subhash Thakrar, Deputy President, London Chamber of Commerce, Vijay Goel, Chairman of the Asian Business Association, Journalists Parvathi Menon and Vidya Ram from The Hindu, Gunveena Chadha, Director and Head, CII UK, Cllr Mimi Harker OBE and many others.

He told the panel that she had been unhappy with the appearance and suffered discomfort.

The tribunal later ruled that no warning was necessary for Dr Pandya.

Doctor is cleared for mistaken operation

A “designer v a g i n a � operation, which went horribly wrong, has been regarded as a serious clinical failure but did not amount to female genital mutilation, a tribunal ruled on Friday 11 April.

Dr Sureshkumar Pandya, pictured, reduced the size of a woman’s labia because “it was ugly�, but the patient, 33, was left “distraught� by the results, the Manchester tribunal had been told. A fitness to practise panel ruled that although the anatomical result of the procedure could be said “to be equivalent to FGM,� Dr Pandya should be cleared because he did not intend to perform such an operation.

Dr Pandya performed the labiaplasty on the Muslim woman at the Regency Clinic in London in March 2012.

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11

No. 10 investigates Council's links to Islamic extremists

A London Council, which is already undergoing an investigation of fraud, is now being probed over its links to Muslim extremists, a report has revealed.

Tower Hamlets council made headlines after mayor Lutfur Rahman allegedly doubled recomfunding to mended Bengali-run charities in an apparent attempt to buy favour. But a recent leaked government report has now suggested the mayor and his finance minister, Alibor Choudhury, have links to Islamic extremist groups, including one seeking to set up a Sharia state in Europe.

A document, which was given to The Sunday Telegraph, reportedly says

Lutfur Rahman

that three community centres owned by the council were used for meetings of radical groups including al-Muhajiroun, the banned Islamist terrorist organisation founded by Omar Bakri Mohammed

and Anjem Choudary The council also gave ÂŁ2million of funding to the East London Mosque, which previously held a telephone Q&A with al-Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki, and the Osmani Trust, a Muslim-only youth group.

Mr Rahman has also been accused by Panorama of increasing public funding to Bangladeshi and Somali groups from ÂŁ1.5 million to ÂŁ3.6 million in the face of officer recommendations.

The mayor has denied the claims and has said that they are motivated by racism and Islamophobia.

60% of students' loans will never be fully repaid Almost two-thirds of students will never repay their taxpayer-funded tuition fee loans, according to new government figures.

To cover the cost of student fees, billions of pounds in government loans are given to students. This tripled to ÂŁ9,000 a year under coalition reforms introduced in 2012. Students are not required to repay their debts until they are earn-

ing more than ÂŁ21,000 a year and any unpaid debts are written off after 30 years.

Ministers have argued that the system is intended ensure that to students from working class backgrounds are not put off applying to university as a result of higher tuition fees. However, new figures published by David Willetts, the Universities Minister, stated that 60 per cent of stu-

dents are expected never to repay the full value of their loans.

Liam Byrne, the shadow universities minister, said the estimate exposed damage “the this Government has done to higher education funding. They’ve tripled tuition fees, saddling our children and grandchildren with a mountain of debt and yet their system is haemorrhaging taxpayers’ money,� he said.

12

MEDIA WATCH

Assam and Tripura set India’s general election rolling at the start of last week – Monday April 7, to be precise – with an encouraging turnout of 76 per cent, astounding surely by any standard. Women voters outnumbered men, with old and young in visible attendance, eager and willing to share their thoughts with the media on the significance of the exercise and how they viewed the future for themselves and the country.

Voters line up to cast their vote outside a polling station in Nakhrai village in Tinsukia district, in Assam

As striking was the peace and serenity of the environment and the discipline in the polling booths, with queues of voters patiently waiting their turn to cast their ballots in one of India’s least developed territories. It was, all in all, a moving sight. Accept that election promises have been routinely made in the past and routinely broken – yet these humble folk keep reaf-

Trinamool Congress was broken when the Gujarat Chief Minister, on a tour of West Bengal’s sub-Himalayan region fired a broadside, dismissing her government’s economic development as a fraud and accusing her of indulging in vote bank politics. (Telegraph, Times of India, Hindu April 11) Modi also attacked the Odisha Chief Minister Navin Patnaik, saying

Voting in Delhi

firming their faith in the system and the hope it offers. No cynicism was in evidence, no hatred or despair. The next round of voting took place in Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, with a high 70 per cent-plus turnout. Voting in a peaceful environment occurred in Delhi, in 14 Uttar Pradesh constituencies, and in the coastal districts of Kerala in India’s deep south. Later the exercise was repeated in Haryana and Chandigarh.

Mamata shenanigans

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, true to form, squared up for a fight with the Election Commission over the transfer of of its members on the ground that their credentials on political impartiality were suspect. Caesar’s wife must be above suspicion, after all. The Commission refused to retreat and weathered the well-worn Banerjee tantrum without fuss or bother and the transfers were duly put in place. Trinamool thugs manhandled Commission members, further soiling the party’s public image. (Telegraph April 8,9)

he was unfit for office because of his inability to speak or write the local language.

Married Modi

Filing in his nomination form from his Vadodara constituency, the Gujarat Chief Minister, the BJP’s candidate for India’s next prime minister, Narendra Modi, under oath, revealed that he had been married, that his wife Jashodaben, a retired schoolteacher lived in Brahmanwade, a village approximately 35 kilometres from Modi’s hometown, Vadnagar. (Times of India, Telegraph April 10)

Shah, Khan banned

The Election Commission has banned the BJP’s Amit Shah and the Samajwadi Dal leader Azam Khan from holding public rallies in Uttar Pradesh after holding both guilty of making hate speeches there. The

Modi ends truce

Narendra Modi’s truce with Mamata Banerjee and her

Amit Shah, Azam Khan

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Commission instructed the Uttar Pradesh State government to institute criminal proceedings against the pair and ban public meetings where their presence was expected. Addressing a rally at Muzaffarnagar, the scene of communal violence between Hindus and Muslims, Shah’s speech to a Hindu audience (captured on television) included the following words: “You have been treated as secondgrade citizens. It is time for revenge now.”

Khan told a Muslim gathering that only Muslim soldiers had fought and died in India’s victory in the 1999 Kargil war with Pakistan. No Hindu had died, ergo, no Hindu had participated in the conflict. The Commission censured the UP government for its lax handling of hate speeches.

BJP manifesto

The long awaited BJP election manifesto made its appearance on the first day of the election. It was less a bang and more a damp squib. The projection that the party would come out with guns blazing on economic reforms turned out to be media hype, for which the media rather than the party must take prime responsibility. The manifesto in general provided a list of impressive goals without the details on how these were to be achieved – the devil lies, as always, in the detail. The Times of India’s editorial (April 8) reflected the disappointment of the free market buccaneer. It opened thus: BJP’s long awaited manifesto is a lacklustre effort. It lacks freshness in terms of ideas, is inclined to follow some ruinous economic policies of the UPA governments….is stingy on details.

Given its lack of boldness or incisiveness, it’s surprising that the manifesto took this long to release.”

No to FDI in retail, yes in defence

The manifesto’s plus points include greater consultation with the States on the economy and other national issues, and its assurance to the Muslim community that its rights and interests would be respected and protected. Foreign direct investment (FDI) would be curtailed, but there would be no such restriction in the defence sector.

Under the present UPA dispensation, FDI in defence is scrutinized on a case-by-case basis since national security is involved.

Political shift to centre

Mint (April 8), which is also strongly free market, received the manifesto with a measure of sympathy, perceiving it in the round as a move to the centre of the political spectrum. The paper wrote: “The 52-page document, which proffers something for everybody, signals a political shift of the BJP to the centre – consistent with the strategy to make itself politically more acceptable. Industrialist Adi Godrej, Chairman, Godrej Group, thought the manifesto to

Irish President Joe Higgins addressing MPs at Westminster See Comment page 3

be a –business friendly document. Abolishing the present government’s retrospective tax demands would augment the flow of foreign investors into the country, he said.

Sun-Ranbaxy deal to create generics giant

Pharmaceutical India Sun Industries Ltd, India’s biggest drug maker by market value has entered into a deal to acquire Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd, controlled by Japan’s Daiichi Sankyo Ltd in an all-stock arrangement that will create the world’s fifth biggest drug company by revenue and India’s largest drug company by market share.

The deal, which will also see Sun assume $800 million of debt on Ranbaxy’s books, needs share holder and regulatory clearances. Daiichi bet on the market when it acquired a 68 per cent in Ranbaxy, but with the US Food and Drug Manufacturing Administration banning all Ranbaxy products into the US, the value of the Daiichi acquisition has been hard hit. However, Sun owner Dilip Shanghvi justified the deal with the following statement: “Ranbaxy has a significant presence in the Indian pharma market and in the US where it enjoys a broad portfolio of new drug applications and-first-tofile opportunities. It provides a strong platform, which is highly complementary to the Sun Pharma’s strengths.”

IMF India growth 5.4 per cent 2014-15

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects India’s growth rate to rise to 5.4 per cent for the current fiscal,201415, then to 6.4 per cent in the following year. The announcement should cheer consumers, investors, businesses, and, not least, the next government that will assume office in after midMay when the general election results are expected. The estimates for the last fiscal vary from 4.4 per cent to near 5 per cent, which is the government figure. According to the IMF, “Overall growth is expected to firm up on policies supporting investment and a confidence boost from recent policy actions.”(Mint April 9, 10))

Rising confidence

India’s economic confidence is on the rise, according to the

global research firm Ipsos. It says India is the sixth-most economically confident country in the world after Saudi Arabia, Germany, China, Sweden and Canada.

“Bullish foreign investors are returning to India and ploughing in billions of dollars into Indian equities in anticipation of a more businessfriendly government winning the general election this spring,” said Mick Gordon Chief Executive Ipsos India. (Mint April 8)

BrahMos test-fired

The Indian Army successfully test-fired an advanced version of its supersonic cruise missile BrahMos - which India is jointly

BrahMos missile

developing with Russia - at its Pokhran range in Rajasthan. The missile was fired from a mobile autonomous launcher. “The launch was successful and the missile hit the designated target,” said the Army spokesman Colonel S.D. Goswami. The team in charge of the launch was warmly congratulated. BrahMos is in service with the Army and Navy (Mint April 8)

Queen honours Ratan Tata

Ratan Tata, the former chairman of the Tata Group, has been honoured by Queen Elizabeth II with an Honorary Knight Grand

Ratan Tata

Cross, one of Britain’s highest civilian awards. Tata, 76, one of five foreigners to be so honoured, was the architect of the huge Tata presence in the UK, where its Jaguar Land Rover cars has made the company one of the largest employers in the country.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Fighting the Anti-Modi Crowd

Apparently anybody who stands up for Narendra Modi is a communalist apologist anti-Muslim Hindu nationalist fascist…ummmm…that’ll be me then and about 400m Indians.

Watching a Ms Patel of the Southall Black Sisters on Newsnight sum up the case for the prosecution of Mr Modi in a manner far more convincing to herself than any of the courts have done against Mr Modi helped crystallise the charge against all of us.

So here are some questions the anti-Modi groups need to face: If Mr Modi is anti-Muslim, why does he have Muslim supporters?

What the heck is a Hindu nationalist?

Is a Hindu Nationalist someone like Mahatma Gandhi, a nationalist plus a Hindu?

What is a Hindu ‘Fascist’ – is that even possible?

Do you believe that in a Democracy with a free press such as in India the electoral majority is simply wrong and hate Muslims, because it appears they will vote for Modi?

If Narendra Modi had not been

CM when Godhra happened, would you still find him objectionable?

Would it be because of his saffron robes.

Do you believe any BJP supporter who says you can be a Hindu, a liberal?

Do you object to the Shiv Sena when on their watch in Mumbai Hindu girls are being subjected to sex slavery?

Have you protested at other mass murders against Hindus?

Have you ever had criticism of those of other faiths in India?

Do you believe the election in India is free and fair?

When more people died in riots in India in the 90s under a Congress Government, did you raise objection then?

Do you object only when Muslims are killed? What about Sikhs – a genuine minority in Delhi in 1984 post Mrs Gandhi’s assignation? Ie is it the BJP you don’t like? Or do you really care about the Government in power.

Given the BJP have no plans to change the law on murder, what will you do when the end of Indian civil-

isation and rise of communalism you expect to happen does not occur?

Do you feel more needs to be done to prevent Hindus in India feeling they are threatened? Just as more needs to be done to protect minority faiths too in India from the same perception and beliefs?

Do you think it is possible to be secular and Hindu?

Were you oppressed by Hinduism? Or were you taught to fight for your beliefs?

Do you agree with Mr Modi on these points and support him on them: That anyone involved in the murder of the Godhra riots should be prosecuted, regardless of faith?

That the people of Gujarat have repeatedly elected him for the good governance they believe he has brought to the State?

If we are Modi apologists, you are Hindu apologists – apologising for being Hindu at all. Modi is not about being Hindu. It is about wanting a fair society where no sides feel oppressed. Where secular and liberal does not mean apologising for being Hindu.

Rana Plaza collapse: One Year On

Rupanjana Dutta

Rana Plaza was a factory building that collapsed last year on April 24th, outside Dhaka, killing more than 1100 workers, with more than 2500 injured and at least 800 children orphaned. It is one of the deadliest disasters in the history of garment industry. The plaza was home to several firms, including UK retailers Primark and Tesco, Swedish retailing giant H&M and Inditex, owner of the Zara chain, which all had factories inside the building that collapsed.

One year on, Rt Hon Alan Duncan MP, the Minister of State for International Development, visited Dhaka for the second time since the collapse, to meet the survivors and look at the work the UK has been funding to improve regulations and help survivors.

The factory was constructed with substandard materials and in blatant disregard for building codes, a highlevel 400 pages government report concluded that the mayor wrongly granted construction approvals and recommended charges against the building’s owner, Sohel Rana.

The Rana Plaza disaster has focused global attention on unsafe conditions in the garment industry in Bangladesh, which is the world’s second-leading exporter of clothing, trailing only China. Bangladesh has more than 5,000 garment factories, handling orders for nearly all of the world’s top brands and retailers.

Many international celebrities including actress Cate Blunchett and Emma Watson have subtly campaigned about ethical fashion movement, asking youngsters to change their attitudes towards the ethics of clothes manufacture.

In mid March this year Primark announced that it would pay an additional $10 million in compensation to the victims of the Rana Plaza factory. This is in addition to the $2 million which Primark has already distributed to these workers, or their

13

Vic Sethi and Vijay Bhola host successful sell out Pankaj Uddhas Show

HRH The Prince of Bahrain Sheikh Khalifa with Shamshed Riaz and Vic Sethi presenting flowers on stage to Pankaj Udhas

Vijay of 'Rock On Music', an International promoter and Vic Sethi of 'Anand International and Daewoo International' have made history after their Pankaj Udhas show, hosted at De Montfort Hall, was sold out three days before the event date. The duo partnered up to bring a variety of shows to Leicester from Dramas, Ghazals to

hardcore Bollywood artists.

The show was a super hit and the audience thoroughly enjoyed the show. It was attended by HRH Prince Sheikh Khalifa of Bahrain.

There was a great mixed audience and the team said they are grateful to the audience of Leicester who made this show a great success.

Launch of the British Sikh Report The British Sikh Report was launched on Wednesday 9th April 2014 at Portcullis House, hosted by the City Sikhs Network, British Sikh Report Team and the All Party Parliamentary Group for British Sikhs. Sto ry to follo w next week .

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Using a mixture of face to face, telephone and electronic contact, the position will entail selling advertising space for both Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, theme based specials, sponsorships for various events we conduct through out the year.

Alan Duncan MP meets children who are being treated at the UK-funded Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed in Dhaka

families.

The International Labour Organisation has provided £4.8mn funding to improve fire safety and protect workers. Some of the three projects announced by the Minister are part of the UK aid-funded Trade and Global Value Chains Initiative includes training for middle management to improve knowledge and understanding of labour and safety standards, according to Bangladesh's new labour law, available in an easy to use software app, and how to apply these in their garment factories and also improve the healthcare and advice given to garment factory workers, training nurses who work in factory clinics to increase the range of services they provide.

However the pertaining question remains how one would ensure that such accidents do not happen in the future, in a developing country, where raging corruption is not new.

Alan Duncan, in an exclusive interview at the Dfid headquarters told

Asian Voice, “We are ensuring that the factories are structurally safe, qualified structural surveyors are present to inspect factories. Any building that has more than 10 people working need to be licensed, there needs to be a proper enforcement regime for health and safety standards in this country, particularly fire, hygiene in addition to structural requirements. Also it is important to make sure that people working in these factories are properly paid, at least the minimum wage. A full register will be available to ensure there is no illegal subcontracting, and the whistle blowers can get objections or complains registered. For compensation, ILO sponsored trust fund and brands like Primark have done a lot, and deserve credit.

“I would like to see that one year on, this is treated as a wake up call in the garment industry...

“Our all embracing focus is to ensure women's safety and equal rights.”

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COMMUNITY

14

British Zorostrians come The Jews in Britain - Part Two together to celebrate Jamsheedi Nowruz

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Charusmita

The Boothroyd Room at the Portcullis House (Houses of Parliament) saw members of both Houses of Parliament and representatives from the British and International Zoroastrian communities coming together to celebrate Jamsheedi Nowruzthe Zoroastrian Iranian Spring New Year on Monday, the 1st of April.

An All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) is a backbench cross-party group of MPs and Peers who share an interest in a particular issue. The event was hosted by the Zoroastrian All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) and was its second official event.

The APPG was formed in October 2013 by Lord Karan Faridoon Bilimoria and Gareth Thomas MP to celebrate the work and history of the Zoroastrian community not only in the UK but also globally.

Zoroastrianism, which has its origins in Iran circa 1500 BC, is the oldest remaining monotheistic religion in the world. It is also one of the world’s smallest religious groups, with fewer than 200,000 practitioners spread across a dozen countries.

With only 6,000 members, the Zoroastrian community is the United Kingdom’s smallest recognised faith group.

The evening’s welcome note was by Lord Bilimoria who opened the meeting with the talk of developments of interest for the Zoroastrian community since the founding of the APPG. Gareth Thomas MP, the APPG’s Secretary and Treasurer, welcomed those in atten-

dance. Lord Noon and Lord Dholakia- Deputy Leader of the Liberal Democrats spoke about how important was the contribution of the Zoroastrian community, given their size in terms of ethnicity. They mentioned some members of the international Zoroastrian community including the Tata family, founders and managers of the Tata Group, Maestro Zubin Mehta, one of the world’s most famous classical conductors; and the late Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara), the lead vocalist and lyricist of the rock band Queen. They also mentioned the noted Indian scientist Homi Jahangir Bhabha, a nuclear physicist.

Additionally, the first three Indian Members of Parliament in Westminster, Dadabhai Naoroji, Sir Mancherjee Bhownagree and Shapurji Saklatvala, were Zoroastrians.

A speech about the history of Nowruz was presented by Malcolm M Deboo, President of the ZTFE (Zoroastrian Trust Funds of Europe). He went on to tell about how, in the Zoroastrian tradition, Nowruz is one of the

most important dates in the religious calendar and is believed to have been founded by Zoroaster himself.

The High Commissioner of India to the United Kingdom, His Excellency, Mr Ranjan Mathai, was the Guest of Honour for the evening.

He spoke about the history of the Zoroastrian community in India, citing the ancient fable of the ‘Sugar in Milk’. This ancient tale states that the first Zoroastrian Parsis to flee Persia for India convinced a local monarch, Jadi Rana, to grant them refuge by adding sugar to a full bowl of milk without causing it to spill over.

Mr. Mathai was delighted to state how this held true in India. He was then presented with a medallion, which was minted originally to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the founding of ZTFE. The event concluded with a final speech from Lord Bilimoria, who thanked all delegates for attending and announced that the APPGs next event would commemorate the contributions made by Zoroastrians during the First World War.

The community at the newly established Shree Swaminarayan Mandir Kingsbury held its first Blood Donation Session at its new premises on Sunday 13th April 2014.

Despite part of the venue still being an active building site as the Mandir continues to develop, the community was adamant to not let that halt their habit of holding such sessions on a regular basis.

The session is part of the community’s much wider charity campaign in the lead up to the Mandir’s formal opening in August.

A total of 75 units were collected, bringing the Mandir community’s grand total to 1049 units.

This was in fact the eleventh session organ-

ised by this Hindu community, having run ten extremely successful events at their previous home in Golders Green.

Those sessions were held in partnership with other local faith groups and attracted people of all backgrounds and faiths but who all had one purpose in mind – to help

save lives. The organisation received a civic award from Barnet Council for its outstanding charity community work. Having now moved to Kingsbury, they have now encouraged locals here to do something amazing and give blood, the most selfless of acts, to help save lives.

Michael Whine

Malcolm M Deboo, President of the ZTFE, HE Ranjan Mathai, the Indian High Commissioner and Lord Karan Bilimoria

We’ve seen how the Jewish community established itself after the re-admittance in 1656 and how it sought from the outset to provide for its own social needs. This urge was prompted both by a lack of governmental support and the community’s own concern that every Jew is responsible to some extent, for the other.

In this second article, I examine briefly how the community represents itself to others, and government in particular.

The 2011 UK Census showed that that there are 300,000 Jews in Britain, living everywhere, but with two thirds living in the Greater London region.

Although the mainstream community is shrinking, due to its low birth rate, the Strictly Orthodox section of the community, is growing and outpacing the others to the point where they may constitute the majority in a couple of generations.

The community is surveyed extensively by the Institute for Jewish Policy Research, which provides data on demographic and social trends enabling community leaders to plan ahead. A typical project, on the decline of the community in north east

London and the growth of a new community in Hertfordshire, prompted the community to amalgamate old institutions in the former, and establish new ones in the latter.

The representative body of the community, the Board of Deputies of British Jews, was founded in 1760, and it continues to represent the civil and political rights of the community. Its members and leaders are elected by the constituents, primarily synagogues, for a three year renewable term.

However, the community’s power centres have shifted in recent years to the social and other agencies, which with their larger budgets, exert more power and influence internally. It was to give some voice to this sector of the community that the Jewish Leadership Council was formed. Its members are the elected leaders of all the main agencies, together with some members of the community who have distinguished themselves in other arenas. Efforts are now underway to achieve a degree of amalgamation between the JLC and the Board.

Communal defence is entrusted to the Community Security Trust, now an independent body, but once a part of the Board. A myriad of other agencies deal with strengthening links with Israel, such as the Zionist Federation, the United Jewish Israel Appeal, the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat Friends of Israel. There are also many youth organisations.

But it is the informal education area that has seen the most dynamic growth in recent years.

Limmud, once an annual meeting for educators has developed into an annual residential festival of Jewish life in all its many facets, attended by over two thousand people every Christmas time. It is now in its twentieth year, and has spawned regional and international offshoots. Like most other communal initiatives, it is run completely by volunteers.

The Jewish Film Festival, Jewish Book Week and the Jewish Music Institute’s public concerts are all further indications of a flourishing and growing Jewish cultural scene, run by volunteers, that provides models for the rest of the world.

Mr Mik e W hin e, Director, Government and International Affairs, Community Security Trust (CST) has been involved with community work for over 25 years and Asian Voice is delighted to inform its readers that over the next few weeks, Mike will discuss varied topics in his column, starting with the worldwide journey of the Jews to how they coordinate nationally and internationally. He will include details about British Jewry, the formation of its agencies, the challenges they face, and how they handle them.

His messages will interest British Indians on how Jews interact amongst themselves, how they interact with others and the government.

British Indians consider the Jewish experience as a valuable role model for our communities.

Swamirayan Mandir Kingsbury inspire locals to selflessly donate blood

On 19th March 2014 Skylord Travel celebrated it's 30th Anniversary at Indali Lounge, Baker Street.

They were joined by managers and representatives from the worlds leading airlines and hotels who all come together to congratulate Skylord on this achievement.

Founded by Rajan and Kartick Sehgal in 1983, Skylord has grown in to one of the UK's leading travel companies issuing over 80,000 tickets every

year with offices in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Delhi. Skylord Travel has big plans for the future and aims to be a household brand, offering the best service and value for those looking for flights and holidays abroad.

During the event Skylord announced plans to expand it's retail presence in the market having specialised in wholesale and launch a dedicated corporate travel department.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Life and MUSIC

15

If you have any particular topics you would like covered on my page, please let me know.

www.punjabeeblonde.com

tanveer.mann@abplgroup.com

BEAUTY Beauty and Brains:

Tanveer Mann

Serena Kern new single ‘I Lied' out April 28th!

Serena Kern is an Indian/Swiss singer-songwriter whose multi faceted, soulful pop has garnered fans from all over the world and it’s not difficult to see why. Her latest release, a three track EP that brings in multiple influences from her pop sensibilities as well as her past in India, is released on April 28th.

Comprising heartfelt pop ballad ‘I Lied’, as well as the upbeat and Indian music inflected ‘Better to Have Loved’ and the slow acoustic build of ‘Lullaby’, the EP continues her approach of writing autobiographical music with a varied sound.

It’s been clear for some time that Serena Kern was going to be a success in whatever field she chose. Given an award for achieving the highest IGCSE exam results in India in 2005, she has since graduated from the London School of Economics with a Law Degree and now works at one of the top global law firms in the city. Despite her demanding day job, she works hard to make sure her musical work does not suffer, marking her out as one of the most ambitious artists on the independent scene.

Miss Morjaria set to take on the Miss London Final!

Following in the footsteps of some of Great Britain’s most beautiful women, engineer/model Miss Arianna Morjaria has been selected for the finals of Miss London 2014 at the Hippodrome Casino, Leicester Square on 21st and 26th of April.

As one of only four Asians selected for the finals, where 29 girls will be battling it out against each other, Miss Morjaria is hoping to prepare herself in good stead for the pageant.

Particularly because she has the muchdesired beauty and brains combo, which will prove a strong threat to all the other girls.

Having completed her BEng at City University, the 24 year old from Wembley, juggles a full-time job in banking as well as being a cinemareleased actress and model.

On top of that, she spends weekends teaching students Maths and English.

As an avid charity worker, this year she’s chosen to raise money for the organization Beauty with a Purpose. Her fundraising, which has now begun, will go towards helping children from disadvantaged backgrounds. She is also being sponsored by VH Whizz Kids, an after-school organization determined to make a difference to young people and preparing them for a better future.

Miss Morjaria said, “the fruits of

BOOK REVIEW Willow Trees Don't Weep

by Fadia Faqir FASHION In this swift and gripping narrative, writer Fadia Faqir explores the battlefield of family, politics, religion, terrorism and secularism. With extreme strength, the author explores some of the most challenging issues present today through the eyes of a young girl and her absentee father.

In the aftermath of her mother's death, Najwa, a young Jordanian woman, goes on a search to find her father who left them when she was only four years old. Being told only by her mother that her father chose 'allah' over her, Najwa's sets out to discover some harrowing truths about her father, and is placed in the midst of a battle between her mum's secularism principles and his extremist commitment to Islam. During her quest, she is placed in various dangers as she becomes swept up with a mysterious organization which sends her into the mountains of Afghanistan. Following in her father's footsteps to track him down, Najwa unknowingly becomes complicit in a terrorist plot, when she follows her father all the way to Britain.

The narrative switches between Najwa and her father, with Faqir cleverly leading the reader to empathise with Najwa's feelings of anger and hatred.

What is also interesting is Faqir's indepth and all rounded portrayal of Najwa's father. By providing the context behind his decisions and his guilt and sadness at leaving his family, we slowly start to see that his decision was understandable due to the pressures he faced.

Thus, Faqir presents the 'terrorist', not as a figure of perpetual evil but as a human who we can relate too.

UK

Willow Trees Don’t Weep is an insightful and thought-provoking novel, showing one young girl's longing for order in a chaotic conflict-ridden world and a father's sacrifice due to the disillusionment he feels.

TV Presenter Tasmin Lucia-Khan becomes Brand Ambassador for Khubsoorat Renowned designer Mani Kohli of fashion brand Khubsoorat Collection has signed up talented TV presenter Tasmin Lucia-Khan to be the face of the brand. “Khubsoorat is a brand I love; rich, beautifully made outfits and always so timeless. I have admired Mani’s work for years, so it was a definite yes when I was approached to be Brand Ambassador for the Khubsoorat Collection.” said Tasmin, who is currently presenting for American commercial broadcast television NBC. Tasmin was recently spotted at an Awards ceremony, wearing a pink princess inspired gown by Khubsoorat Collection. Mani Kohli, entrepreneur and designer of Khubsoorat says the actress is the ideal choice for the brand: “Tasmin portrays strength, resilience, beauty and intelligence which are true

One of my favourite guilty pleasures!

With Easter coming up, why not try making these delicious treats?! They are definitely one of my favourite guilty pleasures! This recipe makes 6 chocolate nests, filled with eggs and is really simple to make! For more recipes, visit: www.greatlittleminds.com What you need 90g Cereal – shredded wheat type 100g Dark Chocolate 1 tbsp Golden Syrup 50g Butter 100g Bag of mini eggs or similar 6 Muffin cases

What to do 1) Firstly break up the chocolate and put it in a heatproof bowl. Then add the butter and golden syrup.

2) Afterwards, place the bowl over a saucepan of boiling water, making sure the bowl's bottom doesn't actually touch the water below. Heat gently until it's all melted together.

3) Meanwhile break the cereal up and put it in a bowl. Once the chocolate mixture has all melted pour over the cereal. Then mix well until all the cereal

the hard work put in to fundraising are second to none. I have always enjoyed getting involved in promoting the importance of education through holding workshops for children in Maths, verbal and non-verbal reasoning to raising money for charities such as this one.”

(To vote for Arianna for Miss London, text Miss London 04 to 64343 or call 0901 299 3211)

requisites for women empowerment and my beliefs in Khubsoorat representation."

FOOD is covered in chocolate.

4) Spoon the mixture into muffin cases, then using a spoon, flatten the centre, so they resemble a nest shape. Muffin cases seem to work better, as they are bigger, but if you only have fairy cake cases you can use those too. It's just the centre will be smaller and won't hold as many eggs.

5) Then place some chocolate eggs, 3 seems to be a good fit into the centre of the nest. Place in the fridge for at least 20 minutes to set. Then the treats should be ready to eat!

16

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Adani in, Advani out says Rahul

Srinagar: Continuing blistering attack on Narendra Modi, All India Congress Committee (AICC) vicepresident Rahul Gandhi said that BJP leaders like LK Advani and Jaswant Singh were shown the doors and businessmen like Adani are given redcarpet welcome.

"Advani was thrown out-- Jaswant Singh was thrown out (from the party) and Adani was taken in", he said addressing a rally in support of party candidate and Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad.

Rahul also raked up the issue of Modi's marriage to hit out at BJP, say-

ing while the party made claims of ensuring safety of women, it took several elections for its prime ministerial candidate to mention the name of his wife in the poll affidavit.

"Don't know how many elections he has contested till now, but he has revealed for the first time that he is married. In Delhi, he talks about honour of women, but his own wife's name doesn't reach the affidavit," he said.

Modi has for the first time declared himself as a married man by revealing his wife's name as Jashodaben in an affidavit filed before the Election Commission along with his nomination papers for

Vadodara Lok Sabha seat.

Taking a dig at Modi's claim of governance, Gandhi said it was "Adani government" being run there. "He is Gujarat's big businessman. How was he given everything. They (Modi Government) work like this," Rahul said.

"They talk of development...will undertake development...In Gujarat, one person was given hundreds of acres of land free and asked to do whatever he wants to do with it, but at the same time, workers and farmers were weeping," he said, without naming the person who was granted huge chunk of land.

This is the second time in as many days that Rahul has attacked Modi on his alleged links with the Adani group.

Addressing a meeting in Udaipur on Thursday, Rahul had said, "BJP has chucked out Advani and brought in Adani in its race to make one person the Prime Minister of India".

stituency in Mau district.

"We will discuss our future course of action later.

Now SP, BSP and AAP have to decide how to defeat Modi," the (QED) president said.

As a BSP candidate, Mukhtar Ansari went down fighting against the BJP's Murli Manohar Joshi in 2009 by just around 17,000 votes. His entry into the contest was

earlier being considered to make the high-profile poll battle in Varansi acutely polarised.

Now, in Mukhtar Ansari's absence, the Muslims votes are likely to consolidate behind the Congress candidate from Varanasi, Ajay Rai. The QED's decision not to field Mukhtar Ansari from Varanasi comes in the backdrop of a popular perception among Muslims in the region that the Mau based don has entered some sort of a 'political agreement' with the BJP for division of Muslim votes in Varanasi.

The Varanasi unit of the party is also believed to have conveyed to Afzal Ansari that Mukhtar Ansari is losing ground to Rai in the constituency.

Gandhi v/s Gandhi: P

Sridevi and Boney Kapoor campaign for Amar Singh in UP

Agra: Bollywood actress Sridevi and her husband Bonney Kapoor on Tuesday campaigned for Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) candidate Amar Singh in Fatehpur Sikri in Uttar Pradesh. Huge crowds turned up to see Sri Devi, causing traffic jams on the national highway, witnesses said. Amar Singh's RLD has an alliance with the Congress. He is pitted against Samajwadi Party's Pakshlika Singh and

BJP's Choudhary Babu Lal. The Aam Admi Party

has fielded Choudhary.

Laxmi

about Varun and maintained that those were her views.

She said she did not speak to Varun after her remarks were leaked. Asked about the BJP attack on Congress president Sonia Gandhi for her appeal to people, Priyanka said, "That's because they don't like what she says and it is very clear, what the election is, as it is the fight for the heart of India and they don't like to hear that."

The daughter of Congress president Sonia Gandhi and late former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, said she would not have even forgiven her children for being with a group that is out to destroy the country's social and secular fabric.

"My father laid down his life for the unity of this country. How can I take all this silently?" she said when asked about her remarks against her cousin.

Priyanka said she was not upset over the leakage of her speech at a closed door meet-

L a c k n o w : Dismissing speculation over Priyanka Gandhi’s role in 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress party clarified that she would campaign for her mother and brother in Raebareli and Amethi respectively.

All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Ajay Maken confirmed that Priyanka would campaign only in Amethi and Rae Bareli. Maken charged some people and channels with spreading

disinformation on the issue to divert the attention of the people from the temple tragedy in Madhya Pradesh yesterday that left 115 dead. “Over 100 people have died in the tragedy. The whole country is looking at the Madhya Pradesh government which could not even provide police arrangement at the place.I deny those reports absolutely. It (news about Priyanka Gandhi) is an attempt by some people to divert attention from the issue and to hide MP

Priyanka Gandhi to cam in Amethi & Rae

Ansari bows out of Varanasi

Lucknow: In a strategic move, don-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari declared he will not contest the Varanasi seat against the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

The decision has been taken to avoid the division of votes, Ansari's party, the Quami Ekta Dal, said.

The QED leader, who is currently lodged in Agra jail on charges of murdering a BJP MLA, conveyed the decision through his brother and national party president Afzal Ansari in Varanasi. The decision was taken "to strengthen secular forces and avoid division of votes", Afzal Ansari said.

Mukhtar Ansari will, however, contest from the Ghosi parliamentary con-

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra fired yet another salvo at her cousin Varun Gandhi, saying the Lok Sabha elections is "an ideological war and not a family tea party". She said that he has gone "astray" and should be shown the right path, Priyanka said she would not have forgiven her child if he had did something like this.

She was apparently referring to Varun contesting on a BJP ticket in the elections. "This is not a family tea party. It is an ideological war.

Would not have forgiven my child, if he did something like this," she told reporters on a day Varun filed papers as BJP candidate from Sultanpur adjacent to Amethi Parliamentary seat represented by Rahul Gandhi.

Priyanka said she was "not upset" over the leak of the video in which she had spoken

Controversy erupts over Nar

AV Correspondent

Gandhinagar: Right from the year 2002, Narendra Modi fought his first election from Rajkot-2 assembly constituency till the last assembly elections in 2012, the Gujarat Chief Minister used to keep the 'Marital Status' column blank, while filing nomination paper.

However, for the 2014 Lok Sabha election affidavit, Modi has admitted for the first time under oath that he has a wife in Jashodaben. In the column where he has to declare assets in the name of his wife, Modi has written that he has no information on it. Training his guns on Modi, Gujarat Congress president Arjun Modhvadia said that by concealing information on his marital status in the past assembly elections, Modi has cheated the people of India. It was because of Supreme Court verdict of 2013 that candi-

Jashodaben

dates would require to reveal all their personal details while filing nomination, Modi had to mention that he is married, claimed Modhvadia. "Marriage is a sacred bondage and a natural process. Why he tried to camouflage it, is a big question. Election commission should take action again such candidate who provided

wrong details. Lok Sabha candidate from Vadodara and the Gujarat Chief Minister has put all the moral credentials aside," he said in a press conference.

Meanwhile, Nishant Varma, a member of Aam Adami Party (AAP) has filed a complaint to Chief Election Officer (CEO) of Gujarat Anita Kanwar to cancel the result of 53- Maninagar Assembly Constituency , from where Modi got elected in 2012. He also demanded to disqualify Modi as MLA with immediate effect, through which he is the Chief Minister of Gujarat.

He also demanded to cancel Modi's nomination for 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Vadodara on two counts - first for furnishing wrong details in 2012 & now or secondly on furnishing baseless facts of a lady's name as spouse in 2014 affidavit, which he didn't furnish until 2012 under oath.

SPECIAL

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Priyanka slams Varun "If he (Varun) has gone astray while serving the country, the country will decide."

- Maneka Gandhi

ing a few days back where she urged people to vote against Varun and bring him back to the right path.

Varun hits back

Varun Gandhi hit back at his cousin Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, suggesting that she crossed the "lakshman rekha of decency" with her remarks that he had gone "astray" and said that his "decency and large-heartedness" should not be construed as a weakness by anyone. In a statement, the 34-year-old BJP leader said, "In the past decade, whether it has been a member of my family or a senior leader of any political party, I have never crossed the laksh-

mpaign only Bareli

Government's failure," he said. Maken was reacting to reports that Congress has decided to make Priyanka campaign in the next Lok Sabha elections across the country and not confine her to Amethi and Raebareli.

Meanwhile, asked to comment on Priyanka Gandhi's possibility of campaigning against Narendra Modi and in other parts of the country, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal said, "Everybody in Congress must campaign to ensure that UPA II's positive things are told to people."

Varun Files nomination from Sultanpur

Varun, who filed his nomination papers from here as a BJP candidate, said, "We should debate unemployment, corruption, poverty and illiteracy instead of making personal attacks. "Let us try to raise the level of discourse rather than lowering it. When we practice politics centered on personal criticism, we deviate from the crucial issues of our time. If India has to move towards politics of hope, we will have to raise the level of debate," he said.

rendra Modi's marital status

Elder brother comes to rescue

AV Correspondent

incident that happened 45-50 years back.

Gandhinagar: With In an attempt to controversies over pacify attacks from BJP's prime ministeriopposition parties al candidate over Narendra Narendra Modi Modi's marital staerupted again followtus,Somabhai issued ing first-time ever official admission in Somabhai a letter describing their family background an affidavit filed with his almost four decades ago and nomination papers for under what circumstances Vadodara Lok Sabha seats, young NaMo got marriedand non-other than his elder how he dedicated his life for brother Somabhai the service of nation.

Damodardas Modi came to "What happened 45-50 his rescue. years ago should be seen in This for the first time, context with the circumany of the Modi's sibling (4 stances of a poor and superbrothers and asisters) came stitious family and please publicly to support him. In don't evaluate it with his curan emotional appeal, rent position," he said in a Somabhai through a written written statement. statement said that not to he wrote that inspired by evaluate his younger brothpatriotism and social service er's present stature and creNarendrabhai left home at a dentials on the basis of an

BJP PM Candidate files nomination from Vadodara

AV Correspondent

Vadodara: Flamboyance writ large in his dress and demeanor, Narendra Modi zoomed into this cultural capital as the chief minister of Gujarat and flew out with the air of a virtual prime minister in waiting.

For the less than two hours that he was around, Modi alighted at the airport, waded through a throng, filed his Lok Sabha nominations, spoke for two minutes and was gone. The haze of dust thrown by his cavalcade was all that was left behind as he was airborne again, this time to neighb o u r i n g Maharashtra where another mass of humans waited to hear the BJP s prime ministerial probable.

Exuding authority that is the hallmark of his stylized impatience with sartorial exuberance to match in a muted red jacket contrasting an off-white kurta, Modi walked into a city which knew no stops in his

man rekha of decency in my speeches.”There has been talk of my path.

I have always considered the nation's path as more important than my own.

In my lifetime, if I am able to constructively contribute towards nationbuilding, I would consider my life meaningful."

very young age and continuing work with these intensions.

"Our family comes from humble background. We are progeny of a poor family, which was influenced by orthodox traditions of caste having limited education. Of all siblings, Narendrabhai's thoughts, interests and activities were completely different. Our parents were not educated and for them he was like any other ordinary child.

In such perspective, they got him married with Jashodaben at a very young age," he said. However, Narendrabhai's religion was 'service of the nation' and left home leaving behind all marital pleasures, he said adding, thus his marriage with Jashodaben remained just a formality.

17

welcome. The official machinery was in overdrive citing security and the people in thrall of cradling a potential premier. It was a Modi event all the way. His managers had worked overtime to make it a show to remember. Saffron Gandhi caps were all over as were Modi masks to match as enthusiastic party men and people alike waved hands and flags in unison. Modi responded as only he can. There were five proposers of Modi.

Shubhanginiraje Gaekwad representing the erstwhile royalty, Neela Desai, the widow of the first BJP mayor and one of the founding pillars of the party, late Makrand Desai and Bhupendra Patel, the first city BJP president. The fourth was a city tea vendor, Kiran Mahida,in marked recognition of the

commoner.

Speaking after filing his nominations, Modi traced his relations in the days of yore with the city. “I thank the BJP for providing me the opportunity to contest from such a distinguished place as Vadodara and urge the people to come out in strength to ensure a BJP victory,” he said.

For Modi who is also contesting from Varanasi, Vadodara is a BJP bastion.

A predominantly urban constituency with a large educated, middle class voter population the BJP has been winning the seat since 1991 except for 1996 when Satyajit Gaekwad had bagged it for the Congress. In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections Bal Krishna Shukla had bagged the seat for the BJP with the highest margin in the state 1.36 lakh votes.

Kasmiri youth to experience Modi’s development model

AV Correspondent

Gandhinagar: Detractors of BJP's PM candidates may have been describing him communal, but a section of Muslims have already endorsed him for Gujarat's development model, in which inclusive growth happens. Now, young educated Kashmiri youth is joining the chorus.

A delegation of young Muslim entrepreneur will pay a visit to the Gujarat Chief Minister next week at the state capital Gandhinagar to understand ‘Gujarat Model’, which stands for economic development.

Sheikh Khalid Jehangir, who recently joined BJP, is playing key role in bringing the delegation to Gujarat for three days. Jehangir who earlier worked as journalist has

Sheikh Khalid Jehangir identified young foreign educated Muslim entrepreneurs ranging from 30 to 36 years of age mainly functioning as CEO and above positions in three segments – Hydro Power, Food processing and Tourism.

Talking to The Pioneer, Jehangir said that the idea is to make them aware of what is happening in Gujarat under on economic front. The members of the delegations would experience the development process that includes participation of minority community too, he added.

“People of Kashmir are fed-up of the single family run governments – in their home state as well as at the centre. There has been no economic development in Kashmir over the past three decades. Status co has been put as far as growth process of the state is concern. The economy is traumatized under the burden of redtappism,” he said, adding that the new generation of Kashmiris see ray of hope in Narendra Modi, who believes in peace and development.

Apart from meeting with Modi, the delegation will visit industrial clusters in Ahmedabad, Vadodara and Surat, said Jagat Shah, who is associated with economic development agency – Cluster Pulse. Shah will accompany the delegation during their visit to Gujarat.

18

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Dear Financial Voice Reader, I write to you having just finished the BBC Radio 4 Today Programme. I want to share with you the best financial wisdom I can muster: 1. The UK stock market has been for a year now going through a very predictable up down cycle.

2. Yes there are some worrying signs the market may fall – these are technical in nature and real and we are keeping a close eye on them for you.

3. We still see based on conventional share value measures the following being very good names; Aberdeen Asset management, Barratt, Bunzl, EasyJet, Hammerson, Kingfisher.

4. When we look at American names we see Amkor, Atlas Financial, OFS, Questor – all worth a detailed look 5. The technology stocks which are falling - like Just Eat is not a sign of another bubble in tech, it is a sign there are many goods stocks to choose from.

6. Most people should invest in an index tracker – something following the Dow 7. Most people really need to understand what Exchange Traded Funds are – it will really help their portfolios.

8. Over the past 6 months the largest British companies to do well have not been in Tech – they’ve been: Associated British Food, Ashtead, EasyJet, Next, St James’s Place, Whitbread. Even among the smaller companies, it has been the likes of Topps Tiles that have done very well (all those people buying new homes!).

9. If you like big American giant companies then the following are doing very well: a. Caterpillar – given the development around the world their diggers, like JCB are everywhere. I saw this in Loas. b. Walt Disney, up 20% in just 6 months – remember they own Star Wars now. c. Microsoft – they may not be the coolest or the first, but they are big enough to innovate through copying, like they do with cloud, or browsers.

Guess what – I’m converted back to Windows. d. Intel – up 13% in 6 months – and their new faster processors are the key buying reason for my new laptop. e. American Express – up 10% in 6 months and Warren Buffett likes them. The brand is excellent and global growth means they have much they can do – unlike Visa, they are a prestige brand, charging retailers a premium. f. McDonalds – just when we thought healthy living would kill them – they have survived and continue to do well.

That’s a lot of homework over Easter for you.

India tops global remittances list

India received $ 70 billion in 2013 and topped the list of countries receiving remittances from overseas workers, the World Bank said.

The World Bank's latest list said international migrants from developing countries are expected to send $ 436 billion in remittances to their home countries this year (2014).

In 2014, remittance flows to developing coun-

tries will see an increase of 7.8 per cent over the 2013 volume of $ 404 billion, rising to $ 516 billion in 2016.

Global remittances, including those to highincome countries, are estimated at $ 581 billion this year, from $ 542 billion in 2013, rising to $ 681 billion in 2016.

"Remittances have become a major component of the balance of payments of nations.

Commercial Finance BusinessPurchase Property Purchase

Mortgages Residential Buy to let

A discussion on doing business in India Tanveer Mann

Leaders of retail brands came together on Wednesday, 10 April, at an event hosted by UK India Business Council (UKIBC). The panel of inspirational speakers included leading figures such as Jamie Lloyd, MD of Religion, Robert Bready, Creative and Retail Director, KOOVs and cofounder of ASOS, Samar Singh, President and CEO of Iksula, India's leading integrated end-to-end ecommerce solutions provider, and Hillary Andrews, from Brandspoke, a consultancy specialising in helping fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands enter the Indian market, who all shared their valuable experience of doing business in India to an intimate room of guests.

With both the dual engines of economic growth and desirable demographics, the Indian consumer goods market continues to evolve rapidly, and is predicted to expand by a staggering 20 per cent over the next 5 years to reach over £ 770 billion by 2020. As the Asos co-founder Robert Bready, explained, “India has a young population and 40 million middle

class households, meaning huge number of potential fashion consumers. India is gearing up for an explosive increase in e-commerce.” He continued, “there is a real hunger for brands currently not available in India, and barriers to e-commerce are constantly falling.”

However, he cautioned “UK companies need to adapt their business model to India.

Seventy per cent of ecommerce customers pay by cash on delivery and the UK’s affordable high street brands need to realise they become premium in India. So they should pitch their brand correctly.” India’s luxury goods market is also growing rapidly, with Standard Chartered predicting the number of high net worth individuals (HNIs) in India, those with assets of £ 600,000 or more, to double to over 40,000 by 2015.

According to Standard Chartered, there will also

be a five-fold increase in India’s per-capita income by 2030, creating a huge market for the UK’s high street fashion brands.

Talking about the practicalities of setting up shop in India, Jamie Lloyd, MD, Religion, commented that one of the challenges in promoting the Religion brand in India, with its risky and controversial style, was that “Indian decision-makers are usually 35 plus and do not understand the brand, whereas young consumers in their twenties who do, are willing to pay high prices for trendy clothes.

The trick is to make the older generation, your potential investors, see that there is a market there.”

Discussing the future potential for e-commerce in India, Samar Singh, President and CEO, Iksula India's leading integrated end-to-end e-commerce solutions provider, said, “I see a very large opportunity for UK

brands to enter India.

Online is a faster route to Indian consumers, more so now mobile traffic is growing rapidly, with 500 million mobiles we are leapfrogging technology in the e-commerce sector.”

Hillary Andrews from Brandspoke a consultancy specialising in helping fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands which enter the Indian market, said, “Over two million mom & pop stores line every street in India, we need to protect and respect them as a key part of the social fabric in India, and companies should work with them to supplement their business channels through the use of technology.”

Speaking about the opportunities for UK companies in the Indian market, Richard Heald, CEO, UKIBC said, “UK brands have huge appeal in India, and “Made in Britain” is a unique selling point. It gives them a huge competitive advantage in the fashion sector. The importance of British branding in India retail is demonstrated by the success of Pavers England, the India subsidiary of UK companies Pavers.” The insightful seminar closed with an engaging networking session and drinks.

Facebook users in India are growing steadily and rapidly and have surpassed 100 million users now. Now, India is the social network’s largest national market after the US. The number of people who access Facebook each month has risen from just 8 m in the middle of 2010. Facebook seeks both to expand in emerging markets and to adapt as more users access its services on mobile devices. This is the case for more than eight in 10 of its users in India.

WhatsApp, the chat service that Facebook bought for $19 billion in

February, has 40 million users in India. That deal was part of wider plans to expand in a fast-growing segment that is especially popular among young users in developing nations.

For the first time Facebook also reported that more than half of its advertising revenue came via mobile platforms in the quarter ended in December, up from less than 23 per cent in the same period a year earlier.

Kevin D’Souza, head of growth and mobile partnerships at Facebook in India, said the company had only just begun its India expansion.

Vodafone has acquired full control of its India operations by buying out minority shareholders, including an 11 per cent stake held by a local conglomerate, for nearly $1.7 billion.

UK-based Vodafone closed the deal by buying a minority stake worth $1.48 billion from Piramal Enterprises Ltd. The latest buyout of Piramal’s stake follows the company’s announcement of the purchase of a 4.5 per cent stake from another minority shareholder, Analjit Singh, for an undisclosed amount. The company had received the Indian government's approval for the takeover of its India subsidiary in February.

“In March 2014, Vodafone completed the acquisition of indirect equity interests in VIL held by Analjit Singh and Neelu Analjit Singh, taking its stake to 89.03% of VIL. Today Vodafone acquired the remaining 10.97% of VIL from Piramal Enterprises Limited. The combined cash consideration for both transactions

was £1.0 billion,” the company said in a statement.

Vodafone announced that the company now owns its Indian business in its entirety and the deal will make India the secondlargest market for Vodafone after Germany, once New York-based Verizon Communications Inc sells back its 45 per cent stake worth $130 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported, quoting Vittorio Colao, Vo d a f o n e ’ s CEO. Vodafone is stuck in a long-running tax dispute with the Indian government since 2007 and the country's tax authorities claim that the company owes more than $2 billion in capital gains taxes linked to the British telecom giant's acquisition of a controlling stake in Hong Kong-based telecom company, Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. Vodafone had added 4.9 million mobile customers in India until December, while the parent company generated nearly $7.21 billion in revenues for the year ending March 2013.

India is Facebook’s second largest market after US

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Vodafone takes full control of Indian operations

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

REAL ESTATE VOICE

Money For Nothing

19

We have recently closed a deal in Bell Street, W2 for £4.4m. The investors in this deal should do well out of this as a property on the same street which isn’t as good, both in terms of the location and the property itself, sold for £5.25m only a few weeks ago.

The property comprises of four office buildings which have planning for residential development. The goal is to enhance the planning and then develop and resell the properties as individual houses in excess of £2m each, giving a resell figure of £8m.

With the way the market is rising we are confident by the time the properties come up for resell the price would have increased even higher than we have assumed currently.

When we purchase deals we always aim to put around 50% in cash; at this Loan to Value it is doubtful we will have an issue with raising the other 50% by way of a loan. The documentation between investors is also kept clear and watertight. If problems do occur then we want them to only occur with the property, not in any other department.

This is an exciting project and it is rare to get lumps of property this size in this location. This property never came on to the market, it was sold to us without ever touching the open market, like many deals in London.

Th ere are seve ral reason s for this, fo r e xample man y sell ers d o n ot wan t to mak e it k nown they are selling a property. Some pro pe rties are owned by we althy or promin ent perso ns, these parties want a discree t sale so as n ot to c reate any bad percept io ns in the mark et, which is actu ally a ve ry small plac e. There was one d eal we had be en working on fo r two years which belo nge d t o t he f ormer rule r of a mid dle east e rn cou ntry an d for obvious reaso ns it didn ’t hit t he o pe n mark et.

Another reason is many people in the market want to flip the property, meaning resell the property after exchanging on it. In this situation they do not necessarily want the original owner to become aware of this.

If you think about it no one really wants to market a property; what they want is to have one person come and buy the property at an agreed price. Marketing means you will have lots of inquiries and viewings in order to filter out the one person who will actually do the deal. And note it is only one party who will do the deal. At times this process can take many months to generate a genuine buyer, therefore having a serious buyer in advance who you know will execute the deal with discretion is very attractive to certain sellers. This ability to move quickly and quietly allows you to demand a margin on the property price.

Indeed the property we purchased for £4.4m had a valuation for £4.8m, which the seller was aware of. We had agreed the deal at £4.4m and so it was honored.

They would like to see what they term as ‘hurt money’ in the deal. I don’t like this term very much, I like ‘free money’ much better. It almost seems a little spiteful, after all, their funds which will be only 65% are secured by a first charge on an asset which will be producing £260k per annum and rising in value every month. What’s more is there is a potential planning gain on the building for another £1m at least.

It also begs the question at which point can we take this money out of the deal? If after spending £500k (ok it wasn’t our money, but it was spent) to enhance the building, how long do we have to wait - 2 years, 5 years?

At which point does it stop being hurt money and become simply equity in the property? I’m not sure they can answer this question satisfactorily and I’m pretty sure it’s not in their underwriting criteria. It seems this is simply something they would like to see, a preference. In their world you should not be allowed to have what they see as a free lunch.

We also have the choice to decide whether we wish to draw down upon their offer or not, after all despite complaining we are not forced to take their offer. Good or bad it’s their money and their terms. But it is interesting to note this condition they have placed on the deal.

W e are also in the process of re finan cing a deal we did in J uly of last year which we purchased f or £2.675m and is now value d at £4.75m. Not because we have spent any mon ey on it, it’s because a nice housing association came an d g ave us £500k for f ree t o de ve lop it in return fo r rent in g it back to them which we we re mo re t han happy to d o anyhow.

I’m reasonably sure the valuation will come in close to this level.

What I didn’t like too much was the bank who is offering us the lending didn’t like the fact we are now in a position to take all the cash which was originally put in completely back out. See, at 65% of £4.75m we will get £3m back out; this means all our initial investment is out within a year and there is a passive income.

The Real Deal

B elieve it or no t it is st ill possible t o get a ‘fre e lunch ’ even in the post cre dit cru nch we live in no w. If yo u can find a pro pe rty cheap enou gh, say 35% belo w t he marke t valu e, t here are ways an d means to finan ce th is in a way that le aves no ne o f yo ur mo ney in; and if the d isco unt is more you can even get some cash back.

London, W2 Purchase Price: £1.9m l Freehold property in this highly sought after location l Currently arranged as six commercial units l Planning permission in place to convert it into four residential units and one commercial unit l Approx 3,250 sq ft area l End value after conversion expected to be more than £3.25m l Will benefit from the cross rail regeneration now in full swing l 30 seconds from Paddington station

However these aren’t the good old days of Mortgage Express when you could buy a property with no money and even get a cash back when you completed the deal, but there are some methods still open.

During these times we would openly write regarding how to do no money down deals, with little response. This is strange and did not make sense to me. It took me a while to realize that people fundamentally do not believe in getting a free lunch. They always think there must be a catch – it cannot be so easy. After all they have to work hard all year to get this kind of money.

This is something which has been ingrained in the psyche. This is the blockage, and nothing else; similar to our bank manager friend who doesn’t want us to have a free lunch too!

Call us now to join in this deal

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Tips of the Week

l Central London property prices are higher than the rest of the country with good reason; demand outstrips supply. Don’t look for rental yield in this location, it’s sheer capital growth which drives this market.

l A heavily discounted property may not be the best buy. Where is the price going to go in the years to come, should be the question. It may stay the same, or go even lower.

20

LEGAL VOICE

Global financial giants keeping close tab on Indian elections

Global financial giants, including Goldman Sachs, HSBC and Citigroup, are keeping a close tab on Indian elections and are analysing the likely economic impact of different possible outcomes.

The unprecedented interest shown by these international financial services firms in the ongoing elections largely stems from India's emergence as a major centre both politically as well as economically - on the global landscape. These firms also include Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Nomura, Barclays, UBS, CLSA, BNP Paribas, RBS, Deutsche Bank, Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley and JP Morgan.

India, which has a huge market, thanks to its large population, is expected to become the third largest economy globally in the next few decades. A change in leadership at the central level, along with changes in policies of the government, will have a direct impact on global front.

Most of the global financial services majors believe that Narendra Modi, the prime ministerial candidate of the BJP, is a clear front runner and describe him as more business friendly, shows an analysis of surveys conducted by these firms for internal use and for the benefit of large clients. The observations assume significance as they come at a time when a political debate is underway on the comparison between socalled growth model of Modi-led Gujarat and that of other states ruled

by Congress and other parties.

BJP is trying to wrest power from Congress at the Centre.

Giving thumbs up to the Gujarat business model, a Goldman Sachs study said that 40 million new manufacturing jobs can

be created in a decade if states follow flexible labour laws like in Gujarat.

In November 2013, Goldman Sachs had came under sharp attack from government and the Congress over upgrading Indian markets on a likely Narendra Modi election win.

Analysing the Indian elections, economists from leading foreign fund houses like Credit Suisse, BNP Paribas and Bank of America Merrill Lynch said that Indian economy is much more dependent on the global economic cycle than who rules in New Delhi.

Economists have broadly listed four postpoll scenarios and their possible repercussions on the Indian market. The four scenarios are Modi-led NDA government with two-three allies; Modi-led NDA government with five-six allies; other leader ledNDA government with 810 allies or a Third Front government supported

by Congress.

Some of the recent surveys suggest the BJPled National Democratic Alliance coalition has solidified its lead and is now poised to emerge as the largest coalition.

According to a BofA-ML report, the BJP-led NDA has a "fighting chance in around 425 of the 543 seats", but it did not predict a final tally.

BofA-ML, in a separate report, further said that in the upcoming general elections the key states that are likely to shape the next government are UP, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, and Tamil Nadu as these are potential swing states where there is a multicornered fight. According to Morgan Stanley, the elections will produce a stable government, which can then take up some of these reforms in a steady fashion.

Fitch retains India’s stable outlook

Rating agency Fitch said that India benefited from its relative high level of growth and reaffirmed India's BBB-investment grade rating with a stable outlook ahead of elections.

"The course of the Indian economy is uncertain in light of the on-going parliamentary elections.

Once the next government starts implementing its economic policies, it will become clearer whether the economy can return to a higher sustainable growth path or whether it remains stuck at current levels. A policy push that includes structural and governance reforms, fiscal consolida-

tion and efforts to rein in inflationary pressures would likely require a coherent coalition with a strong electoral mandate," the rating agency said. It added that so far India's sovereign rating benefited from relatively high real GDP growth: the five-year average is 6.7%, compared with the median of 3.2% for peers in the 'BBB' rating category. "However, the Indian economy has lost much of its dynamism in recent years and the average is coming down. Fitch forecasts real GDP growth to rise from 4.7% in FY14 to 5.5% in FY15 and 6% in FY16," the agency said.

Highest UK award for Ratan Tata

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Queen Elizabeth has honoured Ratan Tata, former chairman of Tata group, with the highest civilian award - the rank of Knight Commander (KBE). This award is usually given on Diplomatic Service and Overseas list but can also be given to Britons based abroad or in an honorary capacity to foreign nationals.

He was given the honour for his "services to UK/India relations, investment in UK and philanthropy". The Tata group is highly popular in UK. British car brands Jaguar and Land Rover became part of the Tata group in 2008.

The company employs over 16,000 people in the UK.

Ratan Tata

Tata Limited was established in London in 1907 to be Tata group's representative in Europe.

Tata companies employ a 60,000strong workforce spread across Europe. Tata group is also associated in UK education field with the establishment of the Sir Ratan Tata Department at the London School of Economics.

Tata has maintained close links with the London School of Economics through a research collaboration with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. In 1920, the Department of Engineering at the University of Cambridge

moved to its current Trumpington Street site thanks to a donation from Sir Dorabji Tata, an alumnus of the institution.

Tata International Social Entrepreneurship Scheme (ISES) began in 2008 as a two-month social internship programme for international students from the University of California, Berkeley, USA, and the University of Cambridge, UK. In 2010, the London School of Economics joined hands with Tata ISES to enable its students to be part of the programme. The students are selected for an eight-week summer internship at different Tata community initiatives in India.

Tax discounts will encourage house extensions

In a move that can reduce the shortage of houses, the government has given tax breaks to house owners so that you can create additional space into your flats or convert your garages into living space.

Earlier anyone who created a separate flat with its own front door had to pay full council tax on it, unless the occupant was a dependent. Now, house owners who have an annex and occupied by a family member can get 50 per cent tax discount.

With this tax discount, the families can create additional living space and three generations of one family can live in the same house. These steps have been taken with a view to help the families support the elderly grandparents or adult children who cannot afford to buy their own houses.

There are an estimated 24,150 family annexes in England, but ministers

believe more families would build more or convert outbuildings and build new extensions if helped by tax cuts. The Government estimates the tax discount will help households save, on average, ÂŁ485 a year, based on a combined council tax bill of ÂŁ2,427. The Government has already changed some local authority levies that discouraged house owners from creating additional

space. The community infrastructure levy was scrapped for extensions and family annexes and Eric Pickles, the communities secretary, has initiated a move on abolishing section 106 charges, which are imposed on home extensions to raise funds for affordable housing.

Small building firms and individuals will also be exempt from the charges. Pickles said the

tax cuts will increase the provision of affordable housing to those on lower and middle incomes and encourage extended families to stay together.

Staying together will reduce social care costs and protect independence and dignity for the young and old.

Sundeep Bhatia, 48, a solicitor from Pinner, north London, is planning to convert his garage into a separate dwelling for his father. He says that he wanted his father to stay nearby so that he can take care of him and his father can spend more time with his family.

Bhatia, who is married with two children, plans to turn the garage into a two-storey dwelling with a living area downstairs for his father. It may not be classified as an annex as it will not have its own front door, but Bhatia could benefit from reduced local authority levies.

to strengthen to 5.4% in (2014-15) and 6.4% in (2015-16), assuming that government efforts to revive investment growth succeed and export growth strengthens after the recent rupee depreciation," IMF said.

Though IMF's growth projections for India is faster than most of the major EMEs such as Brazil (1.8%) and Russia (1.3%), it continues to lag China whose growth is projected at 7.5% in 2014 and 7.3% in 2015.

While warning of India's high inflation, IMF said "further tightening of the monetary stance might be needed for a durable reduction in inflation and inflation expectations."

"Continued fiscal consolidation will be essential to lower macroeconomic i m b a l a n c e s .

Policymakers must also concentrate on structural reforms to support investment, which has slowed markedly," IMF said.

For current account deficit of nations such as India and South Africa, IMF said removing supply bottlenecks to strengthen exports are not only good for growth, but also will help improve external positions and allow for more sustained growth. Overall, however, the IMF outlook remains broadly the same as in the October with global growth projected to strengthen from 3% in the last calendar year to 3.6% in 2014 and then increase further to 3.9% in 2015.

Advanced economies are projected to expand by 2.2% in 2014 compared with 1.3% last year while emerging economies will grow by 4.9% this year compared to 4.7% in 2013.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc announced plans to open 50 more wholesale outlets in India and start online operations to sell to small shopkeepers, several months after it decided against opening its own retail stores. The world's largest retailer said it would open the stores over four to five years.

The company already has 20 Indian wholesale outlets. They sell goods to small shopkeepers, who dominate the nation's $500 billion retail market, rather than directly to consumers. Wal-Mart has no retail stores in India.

Wal-Mart's growth in India has been stunted by an internal bribery probe, uncertainty over regulations on foreign investment in the country, and in October, the severing of a partnership with New Delhi-based Bharti Enterprises aimed at opening retail stores.

Sundeep Bhatia and his family

IMF sees modest recovery for India

The International Monetary Fund forecast a modest recovery for India with the GDP growth accelerating from 4.6% in FY14 to 5.4% in FY15 and 6.4% in FY16.

In its World Economic Outlook for 2014, the IMF presented a mixed trend with a forecast of a modest recovery in the global economy in 2014, even though emerging nations' growth may not pick up due to deceleration in China, Brazil and Asean.

As for India, the Fund advocated a tighter monetary policy and further reduction in fiscal deficit.

It stressed the need for continuation of reforms, including fiscal consolidation, cutting of subsidies and rolling out of the Goods and Services Tax, market-based pricing of natural resources and addressing delays in infrastructure projects.

"For India, the real GDP growth is projected

Wal-Mart plans 50 more India outlets

CURRENCY VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

21

Foreign Exchange

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

Exchange Rate Important for Price Stability The Bank of England unsurprisingly left interest rates at the historic low of 0.5% as well as keeping the current stimulus program at £375bn. Also there was no following statement made by the central bank.

Construction output in Britain declined in February, as heavy rain led to flooding in many parts of the country delayed work. Output dropped 2.8%, the biggest fall since November, after rising 2.1% in January. In coming months, the construction industry could benefit from the flooding as repairs of flood damage get underway.

This saw the pound weaken off after pushing close to 30 month highs earlier in the week against the US Dollar.

UK’s overall trade balance and goods trade balance (the difference between exports and imports) both reduced, which is typically seen as good news.

However, on a closer look at the data it is not so positive. Exports are down to their lowest level since November 2010. Imports have also declined which underlines the IMF’s warnings yesterday that the UK is at risk of an

unbalanced recovery which is just built on domestic demand and not international trade.

US consumer confidence rose to its highest level in nine months, with optimism about current conditions as well as the outlook.

The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index came in at 82.6 compared with 80 in March, and higher than forecasts of 81. The Producer Price in for March jumped up to show a 0.5% increase exceeding expectations of a 0.1% increase.

This helped the dollar regain some losses after the dollar index falling to an 8 month low earlier in Last week commencing Monday 07th April.

ECB President Mario Draghi told the IMF spring gathering that the exchange rate “has become more important for price

Weekly Currencies

As of Tuesday 15th April 2014 @ 4pm

GBP - INR = 100.97 USD - INR = 60.33 EUR - INR = 83.43 GBP - USD = 1.67 GBP - EUR = 1.21

EUR - USD = 1.38 GBP - AED = 6.14

GBP - CAD = 1.84

GBP - NZD = 1.93

GBP - AUD = 1.79

GBP - ZAR = 17.65

stability” in recent months. He warned that keeping policy monetary accommodative as it is today given further appreciation of the Euro would “require further monetary policy stimulus”.

Essentially stating that if the Euro strengthened further the ECB would provide further stimulus to help demand and hopefully in turn weaken the Euro.

German industrial production orders increased to 4.8% for the month of February. Also Sentix Investor Confidence increased to 14.1 in April from 13.9 in March. German trade balance, data was not as good as their traditional trade surplus has decreased from €17.3bn to €15.7bn, indicating that their export volume is shrinking.

GBP - HUF = 373.49

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22

INTERNATIONAL

IN BRIEF

Vegetarian diet for crocodiles in Zimbabwe

Harare: In a bid to enhance the skin to make handbags or shoes for fashion world, vegetarian diet is being served at the Nyanyana crocodile farm on the shores of Zimbabwe’s Lake Kariba. Nyanyana is home to 50,000 Nile crocodiles and feeding it with pellets began in 2006 when Zimbabwe was faced with economic crisis. Oliver Kamundimu, the financial director of the farm, said that vegetarian diet improves the skin quality.

Fruit juices contain high levels of sugar

London: A survey conducted at some supermarkets, coffee shops and other outlets found that the fruit juices and other soft drinks they serve contain four times more sugar the World Health Organisation recommends an average person should consume in a day. Experts and campaigners described the amounts as “horrifying”. They believe that high levels of sugar are contributing to health conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, tooth decay and cancer.

Internet users told to change passwords

London: Following the discovery of a bug called ‘Heartbleed,’ internet users have been advised to change the password of their computers and phones. The bug is able to bypass the computer security settings. Computer expert Tony McDowell said that if the password is in any dictionary in any language then it will take just three minutes to crack. His advice is to use a phrase rather than a word. For example, use ‘nameisabella’ rather than just ‘Isabella’ – and use a mixture of letters and numbers.

Tamiflu not effective against swine flu

London: A study has found that the use of drug Tamiflu is not effective in halting the spread of swine flu. The study finds that the government has wasted £ 500 million by stockpiling the drug. The review claims that Roche, the drug’s Swiss manufacturer, gave a “false impression” of its effectiveness and accuses the company of “sloppy science.”

Cost of policing badger culls

London: Damian Green, the policing minister, told MPs that almost £ 3.5 million of taxpayers’ money has been spent policing badger culls. He said that costs connected to the culls so far are thought to be £ 2.3 million in Gloucestershire, £ 739,000 in Avon and Somerset and £ 446,000 in West Mercia.

Hungry baby delays birth of a sibling

London: A study on breastfeeding and sleeping practices finds that babies are “evolutionarily programmed” to wake up in the night demanding food.

The night-time feed is not just satisfying a hungry tummy, but delaying the birth of a sibling. David Haig, professor of biology at Harvard University, argues that by waking frequently at night to breastfeed, infants are able to delay the return of their mother’s ovulation cycle. This would help prevent the birth of a sibling, with whom they would have to compete for food and attention.

Faulty airbags in 7million Toyota cars

London: The Japanese car manufacturer Toyota has issued recall notices to nearly 7 million vehicles around the world, including 35,000 in UK, faulty airbags, driver’s seats and steering columns. This has dented the reputation for quality and reliability of Toyota. Earlier in 2010 the company grounded millions of vehicles.

Man cleared of murder after 25 years in prison

Florida: Jonathan Fleming who spent 24 years and 8 months in prison for the murder of Darryl "Black" Rush was finally cleared of murder and released from prison following a review of his case. When the murder took place in Brooklyn while Fleming was on holiday at Disney World in Florida, more than 1,100 miles away. Fleming’s lawyers asked the Defence Attorney's office to review the case last year and it was subsequently taken up by Brooklyn’s Conviction Review Unit.

Pulitzer prize for Bangaloreborn Vijay Seshadri

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Washington: Bangalore born Indian-American poet Vijay Seshadri has won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for poetry for "3 Sections", called "a compelling collection of poems that examine human consciousness, from birth to dementia."

Seshadri, 60, will get the $10,000 prize for a distinguished volume of original verse by an American author, Columbia University, which administers the prestigious prizes announced Monday.

The citation describes "3 Sections" published by Graywolf Press as "a compelling collection of poems that examine human consciousness, from birth to dementia, in a voice that is by turns witty and grave, compassionate and

Vijay Seshadri

remorseless."

Also nominated as finalists in the poetry category were "The Sleep of Reason," by Morri Creech (The Waywiser Press) and "The Big Smoke," by Adrian Matejka (Penguin).

Seshadri's other poetry collections include "The Long Meadow" (Graywolf Press, 2004), which won the James Laughlin Award from the Academy of

American Poets, and "Wild Kingdom (1996)," according to poets.org.

Seshadri, who came to America at the age of five, grew up in Columbus, Ohio, where his father taught chemistry at Ohio State University, according to his biography on the website.

He has lived in many parts of America, including the Pacific Northwest where he spent five years working in the fishing and logging industries.

His poems, essays, and reviews have appeared in The American Scholar, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, The Yale Review, the Times Book Review, and in many anthologies, including Under 35: The New Generation of American Poets, Contours

of the Heart, Staying Alive: Real Poems for Unreal Times, and The Best American Poetry 1997 and 2003.

Seshadri has received grants from the New York Foundation for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts, and has been awarded The Paris Review's Bernard F. Conners Long Poem Prize and the MacDowell Colony's Fellowship for Distinguished Poetic Achievement.

He holds an AB degree from Oberlin College and an MFA from Columbia University.

He currently teaches poetry and nonfiction writing at Sarah Lawrence College and lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.

Pakistan, I believe,' she said. 'He is also probably being hidden the same way and protected.'

'Instead of fighting a very grim and tough war which was very high in casualties on Afghans, as well as NATO and American soldiers, the problem wasn't in the Afghan villages,' Gall said. 'The source of the problem, the radicalization, the sponsoring of the insurgency, was all happening in Pakistan.' Gall told ABC News that she realized 'very soon' after 9/11 that Pakistan was to blame for the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Pakistan hid Osama Bin Laden from the US

Washington: A Pullitzer Prize-winning New York Times journalist Carlotta Gall claims that not only did Pakistan willfully hide 9/11 mastermind Osama Bin Laden but also sponsored the Taliban insurgency after 2001 that has cost 2,625 American and British lives. The reporter, who spent more than a decade in the region for the newspaper, alleges that Pakistan's leadership have been tricking the United States into treating it as a friend for decades.

Did they know all along? Osama Bin Laden watching himself on TV

in his hideout before the dramatic raid that ended with his death in May 2011. 'Pakistan did know,' Gall said, speaking about bin Laden’s location.

'They were hiding him, they were handling him.

Someone on the inside told me this. They had a

special desk that knew where bin Laden was.

'Not only that, but put him there, protected him, oversaw him, handled him in the terms of the secret intelligence services,' she added. 'And it's all deniable, but I’m told the top bosses knew.'

Gall also makes the allegation that bin Laden's number two, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is most probably being provided with safe haven by Pakistan. 'Our relations with Pakistan have gone back to the same thing, and the thing that concerns me is that Zawahiri is still out there, in

Washington: An Indianorigin academician has been appointed as one of the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship, an initiative to help develop the next generation of American entrepreneurs.

Salman Khan, whose mother was born in Kolkata and father in Bangladesh, was named as one among the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE).

US President Barack Obama chaired the firstever meeting of the PAGE

initiative, which is a group of successful American business people who have committed to share their time, energy, ideas and experience to help develop the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Khan has produced more than 4,800 video lessons teaching a wide spectrum of academic subjects, mainly focusing on mathematics and the sciences. Till date, his Khan Academy channel on YouTube has attracted 1,633,000 subscribers and the Khan Academy videos have been viewed

over 355 million times.

After the meeting with Obama, the White House said PAGE members agreed to participate in an ongoing dialogue with policy makers globally, acting as goodwill ambassadors in discussions about how to create an environment where creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship can grow and thrive.

During the meeting, Obama urged them to use the PAGE platform to help others learn from their experiences, benefit from their networks and

inspire new business owners to create economic opportunity in their own communities, throughout the country and across the globe.

Established by the Department of Commerce, PAGE members will participate in outreach and mentorship activities to help promote start-up culture and energise their own personal and professional networks to challenge and inspire budding entrepreneurs and raise awareness of the many resources available to them.

ed not guilty to all charges.

The court earlier granted Musharraf exemption from appearing in the hearings for health reasons, saying that he could be ordered to appear whenever required.

Musharraf has been charged with high treason for suspending the constitution when he declared Emergency rule in 2007.

He assumed power in

Pakistan in a bloodless coup when he dismissed the government of then prime minister Nawaz Sharif in 1999.

Musharraf resigned in 2008 as president and went into exile, but returned to Pakistan in March last year to run in the parliamentary elections. However, a court disqualified him from contesting in the general elections held in May 2013.

Osama Bin Laden

Indian named US presidential envoy for global entrepreneurship

Musharraf's treason case hearing resumes

Islamabad: The special court constituted to try former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf on Tuesday resumed his trial for high treason after his formal indictment last month.

Justice Faisal Arab, who heads the three-judge court, is hearing the case pertaining to high treason charges against the former army strongman, Dawn online reported.

Pervez Musharraf

Musharraf was indicted in the previous hearing March 31 where he plead-

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

IN BRIEF

Murder accused cleared of charges

London: The prosecution of Nicholas Jacobs, 45, of involvement in hacking to death constable Keith Blakelock during the Broadwater Farm riots in 1985 failed to pass the test at the end of a trial that rested on the word of drug-addicted witnesses.. A jury took just six hours to clear Nicholas of the murder charges. It emerged during the trial that two of the witnesses received cash, hotel stays and other perks despite admitting having kicked Blakelock, as he was stabbed to death by a gang in Tottenham, North London.

Nigel Evans faces financial ruin over sex case bill

London: Nigel Evans, the former deputy Commons speaker, who was facing a number sex offences cases has been cleared of the offences, but he was unable to repay £100,000 he raised to fight the case. Several Tories have called for reforms to the Crown rosecution Service. Bob Stewart, the Tory MP for Beckenham and a friend of Evans, said: “He’s really concerned that Evans has to pay a huge amount of money in fees to lawyers when he’s actually been found not guilty.”

Pressure on Bank to act as house prices hit danger levels

London: Bank of England has been under pressure to halt the unprecedented rise in house prices. According to LSL Property Services, a resurgence of confidence among buyers has pushed the average house price in England and Wales up by £ 17,500 to £ 262,291 in the past 12 months, the highest annual rise recorded since September 2010.

Cultural revolution needed in handling complaints

London: The Public Administration select committee has called for a cultural 'revolution' in handling complaints as millions suffer due to faulty public sector complaints system. MPs say public bodies are increasingly resorting to using “euphemistic” terms such as review, appeal and feedback to describe complaints, a practice that should be banned. They urge David Cameron to create a new minister for complaints to champion those with grievances and overhaul the way that the public sector is run.

False hope given to men with prostate cancer

London: A new study has found that up to half of the men diagnosed with prostrate cancer were given false hopes by not disclosing the severity of their disease.

The research by Cambridge University found that 50 per cent of men who were reassured that their disease was slow-growing and confined to the prostate in fact turned out to have more dangerous tumours. In addition, in one third of cases, the biopsies used to establish the severity of disease did not even detect that it had spread beyond the prostate, the major study found.

No abortion for minor disabilities

London: A minor disability will not be the ground for abortions, public health minister Jane Ellison said. The law permits an abortion “up to birth” if tests indicate that the child may be disabled when born, while there is a legal limit of 24 weeks for abortions on other grounds.

Faith can bring a lot of love

London: A study has found that married churchgoers with busy social lives are likely to be the happiest in love. Researchers also noted that people aged 31 to 59 tended to be slightly happier with their love lives than those who were 60 and over. Education was found not to have an effect on a person’s happiness in love, religion was.

Swan attacks foreign students

London: A swan at Warwick University has been accused of attacking students from ethnic minorities.

The university has now erected a fence to stop the swan from attacking students. Undergraduates revealed that the swan only appeared to target students from ethnic minorities. One 24-year-old student from India said: "These swans are very annoying, and the students feel as though they're being bullied.”

Abu Hamza terror trial to begin

London: The trial of Abu Hamza, the radical Muslim cleric who was extradited from the UK to America in 2012, is expected to begin in New York. Hamza denies 11 terror charges – related to the taking of hostages in Yemen in 1998, supporting al-Qaeda, advocating jihad in Afghanistan and planning to set up a terrorist training camp in Bly, Oregon.

INTERNATIONAL

Abdullah leads Ghani in first partial results of Afghan vote

Kabul: Former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah is leading his closest rival Ashraf Ghani in early results from the Afghan presidential election, the Independent Election Commission (IEC) said, but figures indicate a likely run-off vote.

In a positive sign for supporters of the country's democracy, former World Bank economist Ghani told reporters he welcomed the announcement, adding he was still confident of victory when final results are released.

The eventual winner will have to lead the fight against a resurgent Taliban as US-led combat troops prepare to leave at yearend, and strengthen an economy reliant on declining aid money.

"Today we announce

Abdullah Abdullah

the partial results of 26 provinces with 10 per cent of votes counted, these include (provinces) in the north, south, east, west and Kabul," said Ahmad Yousuf Nuristani, the IEC chief.

"With 500,000 votes from 26 provinces Abdullah is leading with 41.9 per cent; Ashraf Ghani has 37.6 per cent and is in second; and

23

Zalmai Rassoul has 9.8 per cent in third position."

Nuristani stressed the figure was only partial and could change drastically in coming days, when more partial results would be announced. A run-off election between the two leading candidates will be triggered if no single candidate gains more than 50 per cent of the vote when the final results are announced in late May. But Nuristani cautioned against reading too much into the early results. "These results are changeable... today one candidate might be leading but when we announce more results another candidate might be leading," he said.

Ghani said: "We welcome the commission's announcement because it created an environment of

more certainty," and praised the state's security forces for remaining neutral "with some small exceptions." But he said he was still confident of overall victory. "We are in a 100 minute game and we have just completed the first 10 minutes," he said.

Abdullah, who was born to an ethnic Pashtun father and a Tajik mother, is more associated with the northern Tajiks. More than seven million people defied bad weather and Taliban threats of violence to vote in the April 5 first round of the election, earning praise from world leaders. Ahead of the vote there were fears that a repeat of the massive fraud which blighted Karzai's reelection in 2009 would undermine the winner's legitimacy at a testing time for the war-torn country.

Cameron had for days given Miller his “warm support” and said that people should “leave” the matter.

However, after Tory colleagues called for her to be sacked, Downing Street announced her departure.

“This has been a really difficult 16 months,” she said. “Because I was cleared of the central allegation made about me … I hoped that I could stay.

But it has become clear to me that it has become an enormous distraction.”

Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, said that Cameron was the “last person in the country” to realise that Miller had to

go. At Prime Minister’s Questions, Cameron defended his decision to support Miller. He said: “If people clear themselves of a serious offence, you let them get on with their job.

That is actually the right thing to do.”

There was widespread public anger after the standards committee overruled Kathryn Hudson, the independent standards Commissioner, who called for Miller to repay more that £40,000.

Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minster, said: “The level of public despair about this episode is such that we have to try to see if there is more we can do.”

Cameron pledges to reform Parliament

London: British Prime Minister David Cameron said that he would reform parliament following Maria Miller’s resignation.

He said that he would do more to reassure the public that Parliament is “good and honest” after Miller left the Cabinet.

“The biggest lesson I learnt is that that anger is still very raw and it needs to be acted on,” he said.

Parliament’s independent Standards Commissioner last week found Miller had broken Commons rules and should repay more than £40,000 in expenses she claimed on a London house she later sold at a £1

California man confesses to 40 killings

California: Prosecutors say a man charged with murdering nine people in California has told authorities that he has killed up to 40 people while working for a drug cartel. Errek Jett, a district attorney in Lawrence County, Alabama, said that 51year-old Jose Manuel Martinez told investigators he carried out the crimes working as a drug cartel enforcer.

Jett said they believe Martinez because of the details he gave. Martinez was arrested last year and sent to Alabama, where he awaits trial on one murder charge. He once lived in central California where prosecutors say he awaits nine more cases stemming from crimes committed in three counties.

He's also accused of kidnapping and committing murder for financial gain, which makes him eligible for a death sentence.

Prosecutors in California say the slayings happened over 30 years.

David Cameron

million profit.

A committee of MPs reduced the repayment to £5,800 and accepted a 31second apology from Miller that was described as “unacceptably perfunctory” by one Conservative MP.

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24

INDIA

SOUTH BRIEFS

Jaya fails to appear before court again

Chennai: AIADMK supremo and Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa failed to appear before the court of additional chief metropolitan magistrate (economic offences) in Chennai in connection with the income tax case against her. Jaya's counsel informed the court that she had filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking an extension of the proceedings in the trial court on the ground that Lok Sabha elections are going on. After hearing both sides, the judge adjourned the matter to April 28.

Hundreds file nominations on last day in Telangana

Hyderabad: Hundreds of candidates filed their nomination for Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in Telangana on Wednesday, the last day of filing the papers. With most of the parties deciding their candidates, the candidates rushed against time to file the nominations. Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) chief K Chandrasekhara Rao, president of Telangana unit of the Congress Ponnala Lakshmaiah, chief of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unit G Kishan Reddy, actresses Vijayashanti and Jayasudha were among prominent personalities who filed their nominations. According to Election Commission officials, 1,109 nominations were received so far for Assembly elections and 143 nominations for Lok Sabha polls.

TDP’s Telangana CM aspirant attacked

Hyderabad: R. Krishnaiah, who is considered the Telugu Desam Party’s candidate for the chief minister’s post in Telangana, was injured when supporters of a party rebel attacked him at Saroornagar on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Krishnaiah, the TDP candidate for L.B. Nagar assembly seat, was attacked when he was going to file his nomination. The attackers damaged his car. The police managed to rescue him and chased away the assailants.

Wild visitor saunters into Manipal University campus

Manipal: A leopard which strayed into the Manipal University campus, was captured by Forest Department. This is the first time a leopard had strayed into densely populated area (campus holds nearly 15,000 students) in the district. Leopards used usually stray into villages near the forests. The leopard had strayed from nearby forests around midnight. It was first seen by a security guard. The authorities later informed the police and the forest department. Forest department officials trapped the predator.

NORTH BRIEFS

Dismissed cop disrupts Jaitley's press meet

Amritsar: A dismissed head constable of Punjab police disrupted BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Amritsar Arun Jaitley's press conference when he questioned him on his stand on alliance partner SAD (B)'s sympathetic views towards terrorists and their honouring by Akali-backed Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. Jaswant Singh Azad was waiting unnoticed near BJP's media centre and walked up to Jaitley and shook hands with him, introducing himself as a cop who had been fighting terrorism but was dismissed. Jaitely asked him to sit and tell his story briefly. Jaswant told him that he was annoyed at SAD (B) leadership for showing sympathy towards terrorists and questioned the BJP's silence over it. While maintaining that BJP was against terrorism, Jaitley asked Jaswant to give his concerns in writing.

Spiritual and devotional Baishaki celebrated at DBC Trust

Ludhiana: Dream and Beauty Charitable Trust celebrated Baishaki with a spiritual and devotional touch.

The trust organized a devotional program at Heavenly Palace- Senior citizen care home, Doraha. The programme was well attended by more than 500 senior citizens and also the other senior citizen associations from the region. The residents were enlightened by the Mahamandaleshwar Swami Kailashanand Brahamchari, who emphasized in his discourse on 'Karama and Dharma'. He urged everyone to focus on their deeds that will yield good times in future. He pointed out that relationships are souls of our lives.

Baba Lakha Ji from Nanaksar, liberated the attendees about the reality of life. He emphasized them to utilize their time to show gratitude to God for his kindness.

Poll panel chides Karnataka CM for remarks against Narendra Modi

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Bangalore: The Election Commission has admonished Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah for his derogatory remarks against BJP PM nominee Narendra Modi.

The EC warned Siddaramaiah against making such statements in future. The CM during canvassing in Hassan clarified that he never addressed Modi as murderer, but the BJP government led by Modi as murderer. "I have not indulged in personal attack", he

Siddaramaiah

said.

Following complaint from BJP, the EC issued show-cause notice to Siddaramaiah for his alleged remarks. Chief electoral officer in

Karnataka Anil Kumar Jha said that the commission after examining the CM's statement found it be "personal attack".

Both Siddaramaiah and Karnataka Congress chief Parameshwara have been accused of making controversial statements in this election. Besides CM's murderer statement, Parameshwara had stoked a controversy by taunting JD (S) supremo HD Deve Gowda for not consuming poison as he had allegedly promised to do so if his

Modi, Jayalalithaa target each other Modi meets Rajinikanth

Chennai: BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi and Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who was widely seen as a probable ally if BJP fails to get a majority in the general elections, attacked each other at public rallies in Tamil Nadu on Sunday.

Jayalalithaa, who has so far avoided overt criticism of the BJP, fired the first salvo. At a rally in Karur in the Cauvery belt of her state, Jayalalithaa accused the BJP of "betrayal" and of being no different from the Congress on the contentious issue of water-sharing between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

"With an eye on Lok Sabha seats in the elections, the BJP has not even mentioned the issue in its 2014 poll manifesto," the AIADMK chief said, asking people to ensure that DMK, Congress and BJP candidates forfeited their deposits.

Modi, who was in Tamil Nadu lost no time in hitting back. Addressing his first rally in the state

after the BJP stitched a six-party alliance in Tamil Nadu, the BJP leader accused Jayalalithaa's AIADMK and its archrival the DMK of being unconcerned about the welfare of the people and only focusing on battling

Chandigarh: In a State where electoral politics, in recent years, has alternated between the Congress and the Indian National Lok Dal-BJP alliance, this time the scene was muddled with a different set of alliances. For the first time, the BJP contested the election as a senior partner with the relatively new Haryana Janhit Congress as its regional face. The INLD having failed to stitch an alliance with the BJP went alone and the buoyant Aam Aadmi Party, post its Delhi debut, has emerged as the fourth strand in the State’s caste ridden politics.

The Congress went to the polls on April 10 facing double anti-incumbency.

The Bhupinder Singh Hooda government will end a 10-year rule in October; nearly coinciding with the United Progressive Alliance’s run at the Centre. A desire for

change is the all-pervasive sentiment. The present elections are being seen as a “semi final for the Assembly elections.”

This explains the reluctance of some of its sitting MPs to contest even though the Congress won nine out of the 10 constituencies in 2009. Its MP from Ambala and Union Minister Kumari Selja made a move to the Rajya Sabha just days before elections were announced. Rao Inderjeet Singh, the stalwart from Gurgaon, left the party and contested as a BJP candidate.

From Sonepat, MP Jagbir Malik refused to contest and the party was forced to nominate someone else. The BJP, which contested eight out of the 10 seats was hoping to ride the ‘Modi wave’ to emerge out of the shadow of its regional partners, past and present, to have a major say in any future State government.

Narendra Modi is a strong leader and an able administrator, Tamil superstar Rajinikanth said on Sunday. "My good wishes to him," Rajinikanth told reporters after his 30minute meeting with Modi who called on him at his Poes Garden residence in Chennai. "There is nothing political. He met me when I was in hospital and I invited him to come home and have a cup of tea whenever he is in Chennai and he came today. I'm very happy. Everyone knows he is a strong leader and an able administrator.

He is my well wisher and I am his well wisher. I pray by Gods grace

party did not win the assembly elections in 2013.

Terming it as "personal attack", the JD (S) has filed a complaint against Karnataka Congress chief.

According to Parameshwara, Gowda had said that if JD (S) didn't come to power, he will consume poison and die. "I was hoping that he would consume it. But he is not consuming it," the Congress chief had said.

He, however, expressed regret over his comments.

No intention to form party: Alagiri

each other.

He also raised the emotive issue of attacks on Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri Lankan navy and vowed to protect them if the NDA, the national alliance that the BJP leads, is voted to power.

Chennai: In what appears to be a patch up bid after going hammer and tongs against his younger brother, expelled DMK leader M K Alagiri claimed differences with M K Stalin were based on policy and principles and nobody can ‘create a rift in our family relationship.’ Asserting that he had no intention to launch his own party, Alagiri, ousted from DMK for anti-party activities, also said his father and party chief M Karunanidhi could not disown him as his son.

“Nobody can create a rift in the brotherly relationship with Stalin,” said Alagiri, who is cut up with the rising stature of his younger brother, tipped to be the political heir-apparent of Karunanidhi. “My father could not say I am (Alagiri) not his son”, he said and asked “Can he give in writing that I am not his son?” Alagiri asked while participating in a function.

Gurgaon: Political consultant Saurabh Vyas is waiting for May 16 with bated breath when the results of Lok Sabha election will be declared. The 34-year-old IIT Bombay graduate has advised a few aspiring MPs during their "fight" for the prize.

"I am at present working for some candidates to assess the public mood in their respective constituencies through research carried out by our teams of surveyors who are politically neutral," said Vyas, an aeronautical engineering graduate from IIT (Bombay) who worked with an analytics firm before becoming a consultant in 2005.

"As candidates remain busy most of the time during campaigning, they fail to gauge the public mood.

We can't tell a client that he is losing out to his rival by 50,000 votes in a particular constituency. Instead, we

offer him/her solutions to race ahead of a rival in the areas where he is found weak," he said. Lalu Prasad Yadav's daughter Misa recently hired two Gurgaon-based IIT graduates, Pankaj Sudan and Perween Tyagi, to manage her political campaign and to reach out to voters through the social media.

Depending on the involvement and depth of work, the consultant can charge anywhere between Rs 50,000 and a few lakhs of rupees for just "helping out". "We just help them in the election campaign. We never make any commitment on helping a leader win. If someone makes such a commitment, he is taking the client for a ride," Vyas said.

Though the business of consultants picks up significantly during election time, some leaders share long-term engagement with their consultants.

whatever he thinks should happen," the actor said.

Despite Rajinikanth staying away from politics, the leaders are making a beeline to his residence in the run up to the polls.

A different set of alliances IIT graduates mint money in Haryana this time by advising candidates

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Lessons in career management from the Hanuman Chalisa

By Dhruv Chhatralia

The world has yet to have a manager like Hanuman. The first reason for this is that He is an absolutely successful person.

He has never failed in life.

There are six reasons why He is successful.

The first is a positive mind. Second, His goal inspired Him: Ram Kaaj (the work of Ram). We must ask ourselves: what is the purpose for which I have come here. Every individual has a gift inside them that is unique. Ask yourself two questions: if you had no limitation of time and no compulsion to earn money then would you do what you are doing? If the answer is "yes" then you are fulfilling your purpose.

Third He accepts challenges with a positive attitude.

Fourth, He bowed down to everyone. He is not an egotist at all. The definition of Hanuman is Hanu (to destroy) and maan (ego); one who has destroyed His ego is Hanuman.

Fifth, Hanuman had faith towards His mission.

When you have faith in your work then your work will be worship.

Sixth emotional intelligence. If an intelligent person is not emotional then he will not be successful and a person must be spiritually orientated to use his intelligence and emotions in the right combination. Hanuman is described as having all three.

The second reason why Hanuman is an excellent manager is because He breaks boundaries. When going to find Sita, Hanuman did the job He had to do but He is not remembered in Lanka for meeting Sitaji but for burning Lanka. Third, a person's inner wealth is determined by how much efforts are needed to break his self-esteem. In Lanka, everyone was taunting Hanuman but it did not affect Him. There are some people who support us and some who are opponents. Both of these people are always in a minority. Not more than 5% are supporters and not more than 5% are opponents. Then there is the 90% who cannot take a clear stand. Our success in life depends not how you behave with the supporters or opponents but how you deal with the 90% independent

people. If we think 95% of people are our opponents then that energy works against us but if we think 95% of people are our supporters then that energy supports us.

Hanuman understood this law of nature and won 95% supporters.

INDIA

25

Easter celebrates Christ’s unconditional love

The Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ was the most significant event in the history of Church. According to Gospel, Jesus was crucified in Golgotha, a place outside the city of Jerusalem. In Latin the place is called Calvary. At Calvary, the Roman soldiers stretched Jesus on the cross and drove nails through his hands and feet and placed his cross between the crosses of two robbers who had been sentenced to die at the same time with Jesus. While the soldiers were crucifying him, Jesus prayed for them to God, saying, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they are doing."

One of the robbers cried out and said to Jesus, "If you are the Christ, save yourself and save us!" But the other robber said to him, "Have you no fear of God, to speak thus, while you are suffering the same fate with this man? And we deserve to die, but this man has done nothing wrong." Then this man

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said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom!"

And Jesus answered him, "Today you shall be with me in heaven."

The week of crucifixion and resurrection is called the Holy Week. This Holy Week will bring us through the darkness of Calvary (where Lord Jesus was crucified) to the light

of Easter. The cross will be a throne and the man on it a king.

In the violence of Calvary is the faith that injustice and violence never win, but also that the victory of love is slow. The resurrection took three days - a time scale, which says the grace of God comes slowly, and takes time to ease its way through the toughness and the darkness of sin and fear.

The 40 days prior to Easter is known as Lent.

Lent is a time to discover and experience the love of God. God’s love is unconditional. God does not say, “I love you, if….”. There are no ‘ifs’ in God’s heart.

God’s love for us does not depend on what we do or say, on our looks or intelligence, on our success or popularity, God’s love for

us existed before we were born and will exist after we have died. God’s love is from eternity to eternity and is not bound to any time-related events or circumstances.

Lent is the most important time of the year to nurture our inner life. It is the time during which we not only prepare ourselves to celebrate the mystery of the death and resurrection of Lord Jesus, but also the death and resurrection that constantly takes place within us. Life is a continuing process of the death of the old and the familiar, and being reborn again into a new hope, a new trust and a new love. The death and resurrection of Lord Jesus therefore is not just a historical event that took place a long time ago, but an inner event that takes place in our own heart when we are willing to let go of everything that prevents us from growing into spiritual maturity.

- Christopher Benjamin, The Presbyterian Church, Wembley,

NOMINATION FORM

The prestigious Asian Achievers Awards is hosted every year by UK’s leading news weeklies Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar to honour British Asians par excellence. If there is someone you know who has broken boundaries and deserves recognition for their unique contribution to the community and the nation then please nominate them for one of the awards listed below.

Make sure that you fill in this application form and send it on or before 14th July, 2014 by post, fax or email to Mr. L George, Tel: 020 7749 4013, Fax 020 7749 4081, Email: aaa@abplgroup.com. If you are sending it by post the address is Mr. L George, ABPL Group, Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, London N1 6HW.

Please tick the appropriate category Entrepreneur of the Year ....................................................

Uniformed and Civil Services ............................................

Awarded to an entrepreneur with a proven track record of operating a successful business enterprise.

For outstanding achievements in uniformed and civil services or contribution to the community through any of the above services.

Achievement in Media, Arts and Culture ....................

Professional of the Year ......................................................

Someone who has made a mark in media including print and broadcast media; cinema, art and culture.

Achievement in Community Service................................

Professionals in the field of medicine, law, education, banking, finance and others, who have scaled the heights of their chosen profession.

International Personality of the Year ............................

In recognition for an individuals service to community.

Awarded to those who have acclaimed popularity internationally for his/her contribution in any particular sector and is recognised for their timeless philanthropic activities.

Sports Personality of the Year............................................

Awarded for excellence in sports.

Woman of the Year ................................................................

The award will recognise and honour a woman who has made a significant mark in any chosen field.

Business Person of the Year ..............................................

Awarded to a business person who is a success in every sense of the word and can demonstrate a genuine passion for social issues.

Lifetime Achievement Award ............................................

To honour those individuals, who during their lifetime, have made immense contributions in any given field. This remarkable individual can be marked as an example for the younger generation.

Application Form

Name of the Person you are Nominating: __________________________________________________________________________

Contact Details of the Nominee (Tel & email):_______________________________________________________________________

Present Occupation of the Nominee:_______________________________________________________________________________

Please attach the Nominees's CV which includes the following information (Please do not exceed a limit of 1000 words) (1) Personal background (2) Most important career achievements till date.

(3) Nominee's contribution to the community and nation.

(4) Future Plans, ambitions and visions.

(5) Any notable obstacles in the Nominee's career that has helped him/her to reach where they are today.

Summary- (Please include a summary in not more than 150 words why the nominee is worthy of winning the particular award in a separate sheet) Nominator’s name and contact details: ____________________________________________________________________________ Nominator’s current Occupation/Company: _________________________________________________________________________ Tel/Mobile: _________________________________ Email: __________________________________________________________

NOMINATION AND SELECTION PROCESS This is a unique event where readers nominate and an independent panel of judges comprising of eminent personalities selects the winner. Judges’ decision is final. ABPL Group will not entertain any dialogue with members of the public regarding the judging process. In order to ensure a high degree of transparency and fairness, the management and members of the staff of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar will play no role in the nomination or judging process. You may use an additional sheet if the space provided is insufficient. The winners will be announced at the AAA Awards ceremony on 19th September, 2014. Asian Voice, Gujarat Samachar will publish the names of the short listed candidates and winners after the event. The winners names will also appear in our e-edition www.abplgroup.com You can nominate yourself if you wish to.

Nominations and entries must follow the prescribed format. All nomination forms must reach our offices on or before 14th July, 2014

26

INDIA-INTERNATIONAL

Son wins battle to deny his father share of his wealth

London: Sixty three -year-old millionaire businessman Jasminder Singh, boss of the £ 800 million Radisson Blue Edwardian hotels group, has won his High Court battle to deny his elderly father’s claim to a share of his family wealth. Jasminder Singh successfully defended his 87year-old father Bal Mohinder Singh’s claim that under Sikh tradition he was entitled to a third of the family wealth.

Despite living in the same seven-bedroom country house Tetworth Hall near Ascot racecourse, Berkshire, with their families, Singh sought a one-third share of the family business.

The father who is suffering from ill health and gave his evidence from a hotel claimed that family property is covered by a constructive trust. His counsel John McDonnell QC reportedly told the judge Sir William Blackburne: 'The father is not claiming a share of any of Jasminder’s wealth acquired by his own efforts. It is our claim that Jasminder’s wealth is the family’s wealth. The only cash put into the family’s

empire is that put in by the father in the 70s.'

Jasminder is said to be worth around £415 million. But the court claim was said to be worth about £50m. In a long written judgment the judge described the proceedings as the 'most unusual' case, dismissing the father’s claim. He added: 'Although I have rejected father’s claim, it by no means follows that I regard him or mother as having in any way acted dishonestly in making it.

On the contrary, they struck me as having advanced this claim in all good faith believing it to be well founded. In his witness statement in the court proceedings, his father said: 'Both I and

his mother are deeply ashamed that Jasminder should publicly renounce his cultural heritage and the mutual rights and obligations in which he was brought up. For Jasminder to deny that and claim all the credit and ownership for himself will be shocking to wide sections of those communities particularly our family friends - that is why his mother and I are so ashamed.” But Jasminder maintained that he did not have a particularly religious upbringing, that neither of his parents regarded the family to be living under an agreement to share property nor was there any such agreement.

Andaman & Nicobar Islands. In Kerala, the high turnout boosted hopes of both major political combines: LDF and UDF. In western UP, Muzaffarnagar witnessed record polling but some booths reported faulty EVMs. There were minor skirmishes reported in Meerut, Bijnor, Saharanpur and Bulandshahr. Meerut reported 63% polling by the end of the day, Baghpat 57%, Bijnor 62%, Bulandshahr 56%, Kairana 67%, Muzaffarnagar 66% and Saharanpur 67%. In SP-BSP clashes in Meerut, the son of SP candidate Shahid Manzoor was injured.

Nagma, the Congress candidate, was unable to vote as she is not registered as voter in Meerut.

Saharanpur documented its highest polling percentage ever (73%) with a chunky contribution to the record-busting feat coming from Deoband, home to Darul Uloom Islamic seminary. The voter turnout in Deoband was 75.4% - a huge jump from 2009 when it was between 50-55%. In Baghpat, former Mumbai police commissioner and BJP candidate Satyapal

Singh was roughed up by unidentified men at a polling booth in Malakpur tehsil of Baraut. Singh had objected to alleged bogus voting at the booth when a group of men attacked him and his supporters. Singh was rescued by paramilitary forces personnel at the booth.

Polling ends in four NE states Polling was held for six Lok Sabha seats in the four northeastern states of Manipur, Nagaland, Meghalaya besides Arunachal Pradesh where Assembly elections to the 60-member House were also held. Polling was not held in a disputed area in Longleng district of Nagaland bordering Assam.

Modi’s interview captures nation’s imagination BJP’s Prime Ministetial candidate Narendra Modi appeared on the show ‘Aap Ki Adalat’ on April 12th.

The conversation between him and Rajat Sharma has since become a hit discussion point on social media and remains a trending topic. One can visit http://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=5RRIQvViQw0 to see the full interview.

Poll survey predicts clear majority for NDA

Continued from page 1

Record-breaking polling in 3rd phase The Election Commission’s drive to maximize voter participation showed encouraging results with every state and Union territory, barring Lakshadweep, that polled for the third phase registered much larger turn-outs than in the 2009 general elections. Voters gave a high-five for democracy even in four Maoist-hit constituencies in Jharkhand where 58% of them voted, an increase by 8% from 2009. In Chhattisgarh’s tribal Bastar, around 52% polled despite Maoists firing at security forces near 10 polling booths, up from 47% in 2009. Chandigarh set a record with 75% voters exercising their franchise. The previous high was 67% in 1971. Third phase voting covered all 20 seats in Kerala, 10 each in Haryana, Maharashtra, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh, nine in Madhya Pradesh, all seven seats in Delhi, six in Bihar, four in Jharkhand and one each in Chhattisgarh, Jammu & Kashmir, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep and

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

10th grader’s Windows phone application voted best

Bangalore: Pratik Mohapatra, a class X Odisha boy from Bangalore excels in the art and has made numerous apps some of which have even found space in Microsoft’s app store.

The latest from the 10th grader from National Public School, Koramangala, is ‘Resolve’ which is a windows phone app and has been voted as the best app at the inaugural event of Developers Premier League which was held in Bangalore in February and was hosted

by Nokia, Intel and ThoughtWorks.

“All participating team were from professional companies like Accenture, Nokia, DevTeam, etc. We were the youngest team and we won the event,” said Pratik, who developed this app with the help of his two friends, H. S. Srihari and Aditya Menon.

The app provides the

organisations with a solution to their logistical problem which includes physical items such as equipment, material and staff.

“Usually, the department concerned gets to know the problem very late but with the help of our app, they will get to know the problem immediately and try to resolve it. For example, if a person happens to see a tap leaking in the washroom, he can click a picture of the tap leaking through the camera facility in our app and send the information and the image regarding the problem to the concerned department immediately. We also added the option of predefined contacts which the user will have to set, so that no time is wasted in transmitting the message.

The history page provided in the app keeps track of previous complaints and therefore we will get to know if it is resolved,” Pratik explains.

Continued from page 1 With the opening match of the Indian Premier League all set to kick off on April 16, the excitement among sports enthusiasts in the United Arab Emirates has reached fever pitch with the first four games of the season, as well as the double header in Dubai on 25 April, already being sold out. There are, however, still plenty of tickets available for the weekday games. The opening match is between Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders at Sheikh Zayed

Stadium, Abu Dhabi at 18.30 local time (14.30 GMT).

The matches will be played at Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.

Tickets can be purchased at the various stadia Dubai International Stadium's box office at Dubai Sports City, Sharjah Cricket Stadium's box office at the stadium and Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi.

Tickets can also be purchased online: www.Iplt20.Com or www.Ticketmaster.Ae. For details see page 32.

IPL kicks off on April 16

SC recognizes transgenders as 'third gender'

New Delhi: In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court on Tuesday created the "third gender" status for hijras or transgenders.

Earlier, they were forced to write male or female against their gender.

The SC asked the Centre to treat transgender as socially and economically backward.

The apex court said that transgenders will be allowed admission in educational institutions and given employment on the basis that they belonged to the third gender category.

The SC said absence of law recognizing hijras as third gender could not be continued as a ground to discriminate them in availing equal opportunities in education and employment. This is for the first time that the third gender has got a formal recognition. The third gender people will be considered as OBCs, the SC said.

The SC said they will be given educational and employment reservation as OBCs. The apex court also said states and the Centre will devise social welfare schemes for third gender community and run a public awareness campaign to erase social stigma. The SC said the states must construct special public toilets and departments to look into their special medical issues. The SC also added that if a person surgically changes his/her sex, then he or she is entitled to her changed sex and can not be discriminated.

The apex court expressed concern over transgenders being harasssed and discriminated in the society and passed a slew of directions for their social welfare.

Hatch-Match-Dispatch

There are occasion we would like to share with our love ones. Some of them may have moved on. Our address book may not be accurate. Such acquaintance may be from our ancestral home, residence in India or East Africa or some other places we have resided earlier. In the UK. Information regarding Birth of a child, Engagement of family member, Wedding or Sad occasions like Bereavement can be quickly shared through the pages of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar.

As you are aware our total number of subscribers are 25,000, and they may be reached through the pages of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar.

We are able to serve the purpose either no cost or minimum charge.

Both our newsweeklies provide the following services:

1. Birth, weddings and bereavement: Up to 25 words free of charge without photo.

2. Birth, birthday, weddings, anniversary, bereavement notices and other occasion: Up to 150 words and a photograph £120 including VAT. The written message has to be in English and the photograph will have to be provided by the sender, with their relevant contact details and need to be emailed to Saroj Patel by Monday 5pm at saroj.patel@abplgroup.com. Phone: 020 7749 4006 / 4080

ELECTION SPECIAL

27

S India holds the ‘master key’ in formation of next govt

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Mayuri Dave

Could the 16th general election be a game changer? BJP led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is banking heavily on South Indian states – Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. In fact, if Narendra Modi would have to form government at the centre, he will have to win maximum seats out of 132 seat in South India that include three union territories – Andaman & Nicobar Island, Lakshadweep and Pondicherry.

No other BJP leader has put in efforts in the past, the way Modi is campaigning in Southern States. Compared to rest of India, the four souther states are largely dominated by regional parties.

With a population of over 250 million, South India occupies 19.31 per cent of India’s area and is as diverse as its numerous political outfits. Politics there is dominated by regional parties and larger

South India Andhra Pradesh Karnataka Kerala Tamil Nadu Andaman & Nicobar Island Lakshadweep Pondicherry Total Seats

national political parties including the Congress, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Communist parties.

Except Karnataka, BJP is having negligible presence here.

BJP’s PM candidate Modi is trying hard to make his party’s presence felt here.

Regional parties like Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and All India Anna Dravida

GENERAL ELECTION 2014 ANALYSIS

Andhra Pradesh is the largest state with 42 seats.

Major worry for the

ANDHRA PRADESH

KARNATAKA

KERALA

Seat 42 28 20 39 1 01 01 132

TAMIL NADU

Election Dates April 30, May 7 April 17 April 10 April 24 April 10 April 10 April 24

Congress is increasing popularity of BJP and Modi in particular. The main issue which dominates Andhra politics is the bifurcation of the state. Caste also figures prominently in Andhra politics. There is also the problem of Naxalism in the state, especially in the Rayalaseema and Telangana regions. Like in the past, film industry in

Cong to have upper hand in Pondy There are many political parties in Pondicherry and several new political formations are taking place. The upcoming Lok Sabha election is going to witness a multi-cornered contest involving the Congress, AIADMK, PMK, DMK, and AINRC-BJP. R.R. Radhakrishnan, former assembly speaker, is the AINRC-BJP candidate, while sitting MLA A.M.H. Nazeem is the

Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in Tamil Nadu, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) in Andhra Pradesh, left wing parties and Muslim League in Kerala and Janata Party in Karnataka are the forces to reckon with. These parties are mainly based on caste, language and ethnicity.

in other states of South India. Karnataka's political environment is dominated by two rival caste groups - the Vokkaligas and the Lingayats.

Politics in Kerala comprises two major political alliances: the United Democratic Front (led by the Congress)

DMK candidate. R.K.R. Anantharaman and V. Narayanasamy (sitting MP from Congress), respectively, will be the Lok Sabha candidates of PMK and Congress. Pondicherry is basically a Congress stronghold, where the seat has been won 10 out of 13 times by the party.

Though this time there is a multi-cornered contest, the Congress is having upper hand.

the state will influence Andhra politics. Film stars like Chiranjeevi, his brother Pawan Kalyan and others will be the key factors.

The Janata Dal has been more successful in Karnataka than it has been in national olitics.

BJP and Congress have experienced more comparative success in Karnataka than they have

and the Left Democratic Front (led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist)). An interesting phenomenon of Kerala politics is the alternate election of UDF and LDF to power. Kerala has a significant number

of Muslim and Christian population, which traditionally form the base of UDF, whereas Ezhavas, a backward class community form the core of LDF. Congress’ political influence over Tamil Nadu gave way to the rise of the DMK in 1967.

In 1972, a split in the DMK resulted in the formation of AIADMK, led by film star MG Ramachandran.

Together, the AIADMK and the DMK currently command a 60% share in Tamil Nadu state elections.

In 2009, the BJP couldn’t win single seat in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

Specifically, look at Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. These two made all the difference to the fortunes of the Congress and the BJP, in three successive general elections.

In 1999 the pre-poll alliance between the BJP and the Telugu Desam swept Andhra Pradesh, winning 36 of the state's 42 seats. In Tamil Nadu,

Lakshadweep – Cong bastion

Lakshadweep is a Union Territory of India, located in the Laccadive Sea. It is an archipelago that consists of 36 islands and 12 atolls. The group of islands was a part of Madras Presidency during the British rule. It became a part of the Union of India after independence. Kavaratti is the UT's administrative centre. Lakshadweep has only one Lok Sabha constituency, which is reserved for a Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidate.

The Congress has been the most dominant political party in Lakshadweep, and has won the constituency ten out of twelve times. The first Lok Sabha elections

to be held in Lakshadweep were the 1967 elections. P M Sayeed contested and won as an independent candidate. He joined the Congress party and went on to win every election from 1971 elections to 1999 elections.

In the 2004 elections however, this dominance of the Congress was successfully challenged by the Janata Dal (United).

But, Congress bounced back in the 2009 elections, and reclaimed the Lakshadweep constituency. At present it is the most powerful party in the state, with Muhammed Hamdullah Sayeed of INC as the UT's member to the Lok Sabha.

Important politicians in South India Nandan Nilekeni Party: Congress State: Karnataka

Chandrababu Naidu Party: TDP State: Andhra Pradesh

Ommen Chandy Party: Congress State: Kerala

J. Jayalalithaa Party: AIDMK State: Tamil Nadu

Ananth Kumar Party: BJP State: Karnataka

Shashi Tharoor Party: Congress State: Kerala

Cheranjeevi Party: Congress State: Andhra Pardesh

M. Karunanidhi Party: DMK State: Tamil Nadu

BJP is hopeful in Andaman Nicobar constituency

It is a group of islands located in the Bay of Bengal. The UT is home to tribes like Shompen, Nicobarese and Andamanese.

Andaman and Nicobar islands have a long coastline and have great maritime importance. In the electoral history of Andaman and Nicobar, the Congress has been the most dominant political the DMK joined hands with the BJP and a group of smaller parties to win 26 of the state's 39 seats.

The NDA went on to form the government. In 2004 the Congress aligned with the Telangana Rashtra Samithi in Andhra Pradesh and won 34 seats. Meanwhile, the DMK and its smaller parties chose to go with the Congress; the new alliance won all the 39 seats in Tamil Nadu. The United Progressive Alliance went on to form the government.

There are three major regional players in Andhra Pradesh, namely the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, Jaganmohan Reddy's YSR Congress and the Telugu Desam.

There are two new par-

party, though recently the BJP has made its presence felt in the UT. The Congress went on to win every election till the 12th Lok Sabha elections. This winning streak was broken by the BJP in the 13th Lok Sabha elections. INC reclaimed the seat in the 14th Lok Sabha polls, but in the 15th general elections BJP won the seat.

ties, namely actor Pawan Kalyan's Jana Sena and the Jai Samaikyandhra Party of former chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy.

Jayalalithaa who was having a good rapport with Modi till recently drifted away after the announcement of the election schedule. The DMK's attitude is more telling.

“Modi is my good friend too,” M Karunanidhi said about Modi. “My personal opinion is that Modi is a good person and has taken much care about the development of his state.” Five smaller parties Captain Vijaykanth's DMDK, the PMK of the Ramadoss family, Vaiko's MDMK, the IJK, and the KMDK – joined the BJP in a prepoll alliance.

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29

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Latest

No nude scene for Alia Bhatt

ewcomer Alia Bhatt says that she would never do a nude scene as it is something N which she is not comfortable in doing. “As a per-

son I will not be able to do. I think it come from the way you are brought up, your ideologies and how you want people to look at you.” But she says that she has no reservations when it comes to kissing on screen or wearing a bikini if that is important for the script and if she felt that the scene is unnecessary she would express her opinion.

In her debut film ‘Student of the Year’

Alia, 21, had a kissing scene and even wore a bikini.

Her upcoming film “2 States” is in news thanks to her sizzling chemistry with co-star Arjun Kapoor.

Off late, kissing has been part of several films and Alia thinks Anushka Sharma-Ranveer Singh starrer ‘Band Baaja Baarat’ broke the jinx. Alia did admit that there was some level of awkwardness while kissing Arjun on screen for “2 States.” “There is awkwardness. I feel it is acting at the end of the day.. he is playing Krish and I am playing Anaya we are not Arjun and Alia when we are doing that scene.”

‘Bhootnath Returns’ delivers a message mitabh Bachchan has been an ambassador of Indian cinema for A close to four decades now. His contri-

bution is celebrated across the world by lovers of cinema. The ‘angry young man’ of the 1970s spoke to the UK media at a video conference held in Central London. Bachchan talked about his film “Bhootnath Returns,” a sequel of its 2008 venture. “Bhootnath Returns starts from where the first Bhootnath ended,” explains the superstar.

Being touted as a supernatural comedy film, Bhootnath revolved around the friendship between an 8 year old Baku and Kailash Nath, an in-house ‘ghost’. The film ended with a promise of Bhootnath returning back to earth. And so he does, with none other than Amitabh Bachchan playing Bhootnath again. This time, the film boasts of other shining performers like Boman Irani and Marathi child artist Parth Bhalerao. The sequel is about how Bhootnath returns to earth after being mocked in ‘heaven’ for not being able to do what ghosts are supposed to scare people! That’s how he returns to earth, finding the society in a state of political and civil distress owing to the local crookturned-politician ‘Bhau’ (Boman Irani).

The film unfolds a message that Bachchan proudly points out- “This film is not just for children, it is for all of us as a civil society and delineates how in times of a crisis, we must all come forward if we want to see a positive change, for e.g., we must exercise our voting rights”. A film with a message like this couldn’t have had a better timing, just ahead of the Indian Lok Sabha elections. Big B, as he is fondly called, was all praise for Parth Bhalerao

(‘Akhrot’), one of the protagonists. He spoke at length about how impressive is the younger lot of actors today, “They have absolutely zero inhibitions in terms of confidence on camera, something which we actors still struggle with. They are highly skilled and more adaptive”.

So if children are such an important part of our society, why are the children’s films so few and far in between? “Although there have been children’s films before, I still feel that there is a serious dearth of films which are made for kids or have a child artist as one of the main protagonists. Children are the future and constitute a major part of our society, just like men or women and that should reflect in our films too”. Bachchan extended his message to address the Bollywood fan base in the UK, “They (the UK audience) have always supported us. Over the years newer people have joined in and I hope we continue to have that special place in the hearts of the people in the UK.” For fans who were keen to know why they have not seen a lot of him in recent times, he promised a string of projects from R Balki’s next film to Kaun Banega Crorepati Season 8.

- Charusmita

Hollywood beckons Hrithik opts out of Rahman again Excel’s next f t e r t seems Excel scoring the A Entertainment's I music for time-travel drama

“Slumdog Millionaire” (2008) and “127 Hours” (2010), music maestro AR Rahman will once again compose the background score for a Hollywood film. For the movie “Million Dollar Arm,” Rahman has composed a host of original scores, along with lending his chartbusters from the past such as Ring ring ringa and Kawa kawa. A source close to the production reveals, “Rahman has composed around seven songs for the film. They will be a mix of English, Hindi and Tamil numbers, in order to attract audiences from all over.” The movie, which stars “Mad Men” actor Jon Hamm, will release in India a week before it comes to theatres in the US.

is turning out be a classic game of musical chairs.

After Aamir Khan opted out of the film, to be directed

by Nitya Mehra, Hrithik had stepped in to his shoes. Now, we hear that Hrithik is on his way out too.

A source said, “Hrithik has already agreed to do Ashutosh Gowariker's period epic, Mohenjo-Daro.

The time when Ashutosh's film goes on floor clashes with Excel's time-travel drama. He can only choose one out of the two." Added the source, "Now they are looking for another A-lister. They are planning to approach Ranbir Kapoor for the same role. It remains to be seen if he agrees to do it."

Jacqueline enjoys doing exercises c t r e s s Jacqueline A Fernandez known

for having one of the best bodies in Bollywood says she does not work out for more than an hour in a day.

“Usually by 7 am, I am up and I do yoga by 8 am. I can’t work out for more than an hour but I enjoy that one hour as it’s time for me. I alternate between weight training at the gym, yoga and some cardio occas i o n a l l y, ” Jacqueline said.

When it comes to diet, Jacqueline relies on a macrobiotic diet which is the balance of grains, proteins and loads of veggies.

Kareena creates a controversy

ecently Kareena Kapoor has created a controversy by sayR ing that she is not aware of Super

Star Suriya. If sources are to be believed then Kareena Kapoor was supposed to do an item number in Tamil film “Anjaan” which has “Ghajini” star Suriya. When this news reached Kareena, she made a comment that has hurt Surya’s fans.

Kareena stated that she does not know from where these rumours came from, she has not signed any film in Tamil and that she does not even know who is Surya. Kareena says that she is not interested in doing anything other than Hindi films. She said, “How can I emote in a language that I don’t know? I love the work being done in South Indian languages, Marathi and Bengali. But I’ll have to learn these languages to act in them.”

Currently Kareena is busy with shooting for “Gabbar” with Akshay Kumar and “Singham 2” with Ajay Devgan.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award for Gulzar

ilm lyricist and director Gulzar has been chosen for Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year F 2013. It is highest award given annually by the

Indian government for lifetime contribution to Indian cinema. Gulzar was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2004 for his contribution to the arts and the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2002. He has won a number of National Film Awards. At the 81st Academy Awards, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Jai Ho" (shared with A R Rahman), for the film “Slumdog Millionaire.” On 31 January 2010, the same song won him a Grammy Award in the category of Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media.

30

UK

Tagore Celebrated at the Palace of Westminster

Continued from page 6 governments here and back home for her devotion to Tagore. I remember her talking to me ages ago about a film that she was producing and directing; “A Touch of Tagore,” and she asked if I was interested in presenting it. We were shown it here this evening. It was beautifully educative about Tagore, and featured several people in the room, like Lord Dholakia.

Bithika, who brings intellectualism to dance, designed a panel discussion on the “World view of Tagore” with John Stevens from SOAS who enthusiastically placed Tagore in a world context, and Dia Sudeshna Chakravorty.

Ashis Ray, gifted senior journalist and Editor of RayMedia, masterfully chaired the panel discus-

sion and took questions from the floor, keeping things moving and simple.

He told us that Tagore was a patriot, but not a jingoist.

Then the Bangladeshi High Commissioner and Sangeeta Bahadur, Director Nehru Centre, launched a wonderful music CD, “The Legend Lives On.” It is a set of Tagore songs and poems in Bengali, Urdu, Hindi and English, composed with the participation of eminent artists from four countries. The spirit of Tagore really seemed to unite and dominate the evening.

Bithika’s son, Shomik, daughter Bipasha Sreya, and husband were present- her daughter works with her on Tagore; the youngster also gave the vote of thanks.

What is the secret to success without the stress?

To learn more about the secrets of Success without Stress come to six free evening discourses in English

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Coming Events

l Sunday 20th April 2014 – Bhajans at 3pm by Shree Budhdevbhai at Adhya Shakti Mataji Temple, 55 High Street, Cowley, Middlesex UB8 2DZ. Contact: 07882 253 540. l Tuesday 22nd April 2014 - Exhibition: Touched

by Alex from 6.15pm at The Nehru Centre, 8 South Audley Street, London W1K 1HF. Contact: 02074913567. l Friday 25th April 2014 – Satya Narayan Katha at 5.30pm at Adhya Shakti Mataji Temple, 55 High Street, Cowley, Middlesex UB8 2DZ. Contact: 07882 253 540. l Sunday 27th April 2014 – Indo-UK Theatre Arts presents A Gujlish Drama at Winston Churchill Theatre, Pinn Way, Ruislip, Middx, HA4 7QL at 2.30pm. Contact: 0208 416 609. l Sunday 27th April 2014 – Manorath Celebration from 10.30am at Cannon Community Centre, 1-17 Wemborough Road, Stanmore, HA7 2DU. Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Editorial Executive: Tanveer Mann Tel: 020 7749 4010 - Email: tanveer.mann@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief Operating Officer: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Chief Financial Officer: Surendra Patel Tel: 020 7749 4093 Mobile: 07875 229 220 Email: surendra.patel@abplgroup.com Chief Accountant: Akshay Desai Tel: 020 7749 4087 Email:accounts@abplgroup.com Business Manager: Alka Shah Tel: 020 7749 4002 - Mobile: 07944 151 893 Email: alka.shah@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Business Development Managers: Rovin J George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Graphic Designers: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

The Bangladeshi Writer-Actress Uncovering an Important Hidden Story

Continued from page 9 They took the treatment and left.

36 Birangona women ended up living there. They were given treatment and later on vocational training; sewing, handicrafts, gardening. After the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman this centre was closed, and all the documents about these women destroyed, like other rehabilitation centres in the country.

These 36 women were driven out and became destitute.

By 1978, Shafina Lohani found 30 of them and started this centre named Uttaran Mohila Sangstha (SUMS). Since then she has been looking after them like a mother.

When I went there I met 21 of them, the rest had died. They don't live in the centre but remain attached to it and come if they have problems. The centre gives them money, treatment and whatever they need.”

The director of the play, Filiz Ozcan, played a major role in the creative process in developing ‘Birangona: Women of War.’ Leesa said; “We always wanted to know them as they are. The crimes that had been inflicted on them during the war are not them, nor are they how they see themselves. That’s why we wanted to explore the topic. They are not num-

bers. These women don’t have one linear narrative; each woman has her own story to tell.”

The play uses the different media and the narrative of one woman, Moryam, to gently take us through the pleasure, pain and horror of her life.

Through sophisticated subtlety we are never shown any graphic detail, which makes the story more painful to experience. Moryam’s poignant happy moments are a relief, but they invoke fear as they cannot last. The description of a boy infant being killed in front of his mother was riveting but performed without hysteria, as was talk of how the women used to get kicked and beaten if they screamed when captured.

Memorable features were the symbolic use of the sari, lighting and shadow work, and the idea of smell.

I was most moved when Leesa, as a Birongana, saluted with her right clenched fist and said, “Joi Bangla!”

For a precious, vivid snapshot of a terrifying part of Bangladesh’s history, which is also the untold universal story of war occurrence, see Birangona –it runs through May 2014 in the UK and deserves an international airing.

For detail; http://www.komola.co.uk/

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ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 The Lunar Eclipse on the 15th April activates your solar seventh house. There will be a lot of things that need to be dealt with regarding partnerships and relationships.

There are decisions to be made if something that has been bothering you and comes to light.

Whatever you decide now, will impact your future.

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 The Lunar Eclipse on the 15th of April stimulates your solar sixth house. Surprises surrounding work, daily routines, or health issues are in store. You can use this surge of emotional energy to make positive changes to your life. Do something to improve your work conditions and get going on your exercise or nutrition program that you've been thinking of.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

The Lunar Eclipse falls in your solar fifth house. Your house of creativity, romance, pleasure, and children is involved. This could manifest, as a romantic proclamation from a lover, a creative project coming to its own conclusions, or your child revealing something significant to you.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

This Lunar Eclipse stimulates your solar fourth house. Your sector of house and home, property, family, parents, and foundations is involved.

This could involve a project that you have been dealing with on the home, an event involving a family member or a flurry of activity in your home that demands attention.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 This Lunar Eclipse on the 15th of April, activates your solar third house.

Surprises surrounding your siblings, neighbors, or communications are in store. Something that has been brewing for while comes to light which needs to be dealt with. A flurry of activity in your immediate environment or neighborhood that requires attention, is also noticed.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

The Lunar Eclipse stimulates your solar second house. Your sector of personal finances is involved. Something that has been bothering you comes to light, or there is a significant fruition or culmination. This could be to do with a money-making opportunity, and other such possibilities.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

The Lunar Eclipse on the 15th of April activates your solar first house. Surprises surrounding your personal plans and your personal presence may be in store. Your sector of personal appearance, initiative, and "me first" energy is involved. Finding a balance between self rule and dependence is what this Lunar Eclipse is about for you.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 This Lunar Eclipse stimulates your solar twelfth house. This part of your life is about the compassionate care and attention you give others - self-undoing, privacy, and dreams are involved. Finding a balance between practical concerns and spiritual or non-material matters is what this Lunar Eclipse is about for you.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 This Lunar Eclipse on the 15th April stimulates your solar eleventh house. This surrounds your long-term goals, friendships, and group affiliations. This could test a friendship, or a friend may experience a little crisis and ask for your help. You could suddenly find yourself amongst people through no choice of your own.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

This Lunar Eclipse on the 15th April stimulates your solar tenth house. Surprising issues surrounding career and reputation may surface this could manifest, for example, as a career change or challenge that you didn't expect, a new promotion or career direction dropped into your lap, and other such possibilities.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 This Lunar Eclipse on the 15th April activates your solar ninth house.

Matters of personal philosophy, faith, travel, and the higher mind may be in store. This could manifest, for example, as a surprising adventure that takes you beyond your normal routine, a sudden opportunity to travel or for higher learning, and other such possibilities.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

The Lunar Eclipse activates your solar eighth house. Issues surrounding intimate matters, joint finances and resources, or financial support may be in store. This could manifest as, for example, the paying off of a loan, the loss of financial support, a change in your spouse's status and other such possibilities. Do not allow your emotions to cloud your judgement when making financial decisions.

Wisden honours Shikhar Dhawan

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Wisden has named India's opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan as one of the Five Cricketers of the Year for his performance in 2013.

The 28-year-old Dhawan was the highest run-scorer during India's triumph in the ICC Champions Trophy, amassing 363 runs in five ODIs at an average of 90.75. He was awarded Man of the Series for his performance that included centuries against South Africa and West Indies.

His performance during the tournament in England was acknowledged by Wisden, which also named Australian duo

Chris Rogers and Ryan Harris, England batsman Joe Root and England women's captain Charlotte Edwards in the list.

Opener Rogers, fast bowler Harris and Root were chosen for their contributions to the 2013 Ashes, while Edwards was

acknowledged for leading the English side to the finals of the recent World Twenty20.

In 2013, Dhawan scored 1,162 runs in 26 ODIs at an average of 50.52, but the left-hander is currently going through a dip in form and was dropped from the side after the Bangladesh match during the recent World Twenty20.

The Cricketer of the Year is chosen by the editor of the Wisden

Cricketers' Almanack, based on their "excellence in, or performance on, the previous English summer".

It can be won only once in a player's career.

Dale Steyn was Wisden's Leading Cricketer in the World for 2013. He was the second South African to be selected for the award after Jacques Kallis in 2007.

Wisden editor, Lawrence Booth, however, criticised the sports administrators and dismissed the new ICC blueprint as "colonialstyle divide and rule", that meant "the rich would be getting a whole lot richer".

Somdev Devvarman play.

While Indians would love to see Djokovic in action, the Indian team may not be complaining as that will give them some chance of winning the tie.

India were knocked out of the World Group by Serbia

in 2009, but interestingly Tipseravic was defeated by Somdev Devvarman.

It was the presence of Djokovic and Tipsarevic that was instrumental in taking Serbia to the final last year where Djokovic won both his matches though the team lost to the Czech Republic.

Serbia had fielded Dusan Lajovic (76), Ilija Bozoljac (189), Filip Krajinovic (223) and Nenad Zimonjic (doubles No.13) in the tie against Switzerland earlier this year, which the latter won 3-2.

India beat Korea 3-1 in Busan in the Asia-Oceania group ‘I’ tie last week to

qualify for the World Group play-off. The team had earlier beaten Chinese Taipei 5-0 in Indore in the first round.

Bhupathi available Indian doubles ace Mahesh Bhupathi says he is available to play for the country and would love to play against Serbia. “I am always available. I know the captain’s talked about the same just like coach has. I think it is important because the doubles will be pivotal in that match, so let’s see how things pan out,” said Bhupathi when asked about his name being mentioned by the Davis Cup coach Zeehsan Ali.

Davis Cup World Group: India to meet Serbia

As India are looking to return to the World Group, their first challenger would be top-seed Serbia and more importantly they will be meeting them at home. There might be an added advantage as Novak Djokovic is unlikely to take part in the tie.

The tie will be held from September 12 to 14 and just one week after the US Open, which might be a good reason for Djokovic to miss the encounter. Interestingly, Serbia were knocked put of the first round of the Davis Cup World Group, when both Djokovic and Janko Tipseravic did not

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Nilesh Solanki with his friends: Left: Dharmesh Mistry Middle: Nilesh Solanki Right: Sunil Pala

Thirty nine year old Nilesh Solanki has decided to run The London Marathon one year ago with his friends Dharmesh Mistry (Social Entrepreneur) and Sunil Pala (Business Analyst, Formicary). Nilesh works for PwC Consulting in UK IT, Co-founder and Network Leader for the Hindu network which supports the Board's Diversity strategy. Outside work Nilesh is the Head of PR for Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (UK), on the Advisory Board for NHSF and other various community positions.

So, embarking on this 26 mile challenge was a challenge in itself. Through the weeks he ran whenever he could get time whilst managing his family duties and social responsibilities at the same time.

Nilesh was running the marathon and raising money for a very good cause. He raised over £2,500 for The Children's Trust. The Children's Trust is the UK's leading charity for children with brain injury.

As marathon day came it was his attitude that got him through the 26 miles. Despite his knee playing up, and having the ambulance look at it at 14 miles, he picked up his pace and finished the marathon in 6 hours and 15minutes.

If you are of Asian origin and took part in London marathon, share your success story with a photo in no more than 150 words. And email it to aveditorial@abplgroup.com.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 19th April 2014

Indian football goes IPL way Sachin, Sourav, Salman, Ranbir, John Abrahan among team owners

Former cricket captains Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly will own teams in the much-awaited Indian Super League (ISL) football tournament. Tendulkar, along with PVP Ventures bagged the Kochi franchise, while Ganguly successfully bid for Kolkata, which he will jointly own with Harshavardhan Neotia, La Liga giants Atletico Madrid, Sanjeev Goenka and Utsav Parekh.

"I will always remain a sportsman at heart who is keen to positively impact the sporting fabric of the nation. The Indian Super League presents a great opportunity to develop a platform for the youngsters to learn and enhance their talent to develop into outstanding players," Kochi co-owner

Tendulkar said.

"It has been an interesting experience interacting with the young, passionate team at PVP Ventures led by Prasad Potluri. Based on the various insights shared by the team, the opportunity of the Kochi club seemed like a compelling and challenging proposition.

With the Kochi club, we will strive to 'score our goals' and play a part in developing the game of

football across the country," he added.

Sun TV, which also owns Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad, got the Bangalore franchise.

Sameer Manchanda led Den Network will own Delhi while Videocon's Venugopal Dhoot, Dattaraj Salgaocar and Shrinivas V. Dempo will co-own Goa. Bollywood star John Abraham and ILeague team Shillong

Lajong bagged the Guwahati franchise.

Ranbir Kapoor and Bimal Parekh made a successful bid for Mumbai and Salman Khan together with Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan of the Wadhawan Group will own Pune.

The ISL is managed

by IMG-Reliance, commercial partners of the All India Football Federation (AIFF). The eight cities that made the cut are Delhi, Mumbai, Kochi, Kolkata, Bangalore, Pune, Goa, and Guwahati. The twomonth tournament will be played in SeptemberOctober.

Some of the yesteryear stars like Hernan Crespo, Robbie Fowler, Thierry Henry and Dwight Yorke may also be seen in action in the ISL.

IPL - golden opportunity for test discards

The Indian Premier League (IPL) which begins in United Arab Emirates on April 16 gives an opportunity for not only to the young and talented players but also the test discards to prove their worth once again.

This year's tournament is significant because the countdown to the 2015 World Cup starts from here. There are players who know that a successful IPL will make a world of difference to them if they are to stay in the reckoning and clinch that coveted berth in eight months' time.

On top of that list is Gautam Gambhir, the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders. The left-hander has fallen off the selectors' radar in the last one year, but he must have noticed even in the recently-concluded T20 World Cup in Bangladesh, that India didn't have a settled opening pair. Gambhir had led KKR to the title in 2012 and it was the dip in his

The India A cricket team will tour Australia in JulyAugust to play two four-day games followed by a limited overs quadrangular series. "The team will play two four-day games against Australia 'A' and participate in a limited-overs quadrangular series featuring South Africa A, Australia A and Cricket Australia's (CA) National Performance Squad," said Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Sanjay Patel. "This tour is a part of the exchange programme that has been initiated by BCCI along with CA and Cricket South Africa (CSA) to provide increased exposure to our upcoming players and an opportunity to familiarise and compete in overseas conditions." The two four-day matches will be played July 6-9 and 13-16 at the Allan Border Field in Brisbane while the quadrangular series will be played from July 20 to Aug 2 in the Northern Territory.

Sandhu wins gold at Shotgun World Cup

Indian shooter Manavjit Singh Sandhu bagged the gold in the trap event by overcoming Australia's two-time Olympic gold medallist Michael Diamond at the ISSF Shotgun World Cup at Tucson, United States. Sandhu earlier scored 72. With his consistent performance, he shot 25 and 24 in the remaining two rounds and was ranked third in the qualifying round. His series scores were 24, 25, 23, 25 and 24 in the qualifier. In the final round, he beat five-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist Diamond by shooting 13 whereas his rival could only shoot 9. The Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Awardee also won the 2006 World Championships apart from winnings the gold at the 2010 World Cup in Mexico. The Indian has also won golds at the 2012 Asian Championships and finished second at the Asian Shotgun Championships in Patiala.

Pakistan ends ICC 'isolation', want series with India

Gautam Gambhir

Virender Sehwag

Harbhajan Singh

form that let Shah Rukh Khan's men down last season. There will be huge responsibility on the Delhi man and he will stand to gain as much as KKR if he finds form in the next oneand-a-half months.

There is Virender Sehwag who still harbours dreams of a comeback. He had a poor domestic season and even his home franchise Delhi Daredevils didn't retain him. But in

Kings XI Punjab, he will get the opportunity to express himself. The IPL will also offer Harbhajan Singh a chance to prove his worth. The team for the England series will be selected right after the IPL and the selectors will keep in mind that India still lack a match-winning spinner in Tests.

IPL will also give an opportunity to Irfan Pathan. He has been

picked by Sunrisers Hyderabad team and will be guided by the likes of Chika, VVS Laxman and Tom Moody. If the younger Pathan can work up a decent pace and get some runs with the bat, India captain may be tempted to look at him with renewed interest keeping in mind the seamer-friendly conditions of Australia and New Zealand.

meeting would not have taken place if England had

decided to move on from Panesar. While he is unlikely to play in the first Test series against Sri Lanka, he could be back for the second against India if he plays good for Essex.

He has worked on bowling with more over-spin, something Nathan Lyon did to good effect during the Ashes and something that

can get the ball to both dip in flight and bounce more than expected. Panesar bowled five overs and took one wicket for seven runs.

Tymal Mills, meanwhile, bowled as fast as Mitchell Johnson and would have decimated the students. After winning an lbw with his second ball, he lost line and length. If he was looking for guidance, Napierâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s seven wickets for 21 would give him enough tips.

Best chance for Panesar to prove his worth

Graham Napier outshines England hopefuls Monty Panesar and Tymal Mills in Essexâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s match against Cambridge MCCU. But England looking to fill the vacant spin and fast bowling spots may look at Panesar and Mills.

Judging from the hourlong meeting Panesar had with Andy Flower, in his new role as technical director of elite coaching, England still want the old Panesar back. Such a

India A to tour Australia in July

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) said that it had got assurances from India and other member countries of the ICC for the future bilateral tours. The PCB chairman, Najam Sethi said in a statement that because of these assurances the PCB had announced its conditional support to the revised ICC resolutions regarding the future governance structure and financial model approved previously by all members excluding PCB at the ICC executive board meeting held in Singapore on February 8th. Sethi said this unconditional support had ended Pakistan's isolation within the international cricket community and will open the doors to international cricket in a vital manner. The conditions are signing of mutually beneficial bilateral cricket tours from 2015-23 with all members, especially India," Sethi said.

Gary Kirsten is new Delhi Daredevils coach

Gary Kirsten, former Indian cricket coach has landed in Delhi, but this time as coach of Delhi Daredevils. Kirsten got down to business immediately after getting into town as the Daredevils conducted their first practice ahead of their UAE sojourn. So is life as an IPL coach different for Kirsten? "There are many different things to being an IPL coach. I believe there is lot more intensity to it. But then it's just my first day. I am finding my way into it," Kirsten told the media after a training session at Palam grounds.

The former South Africa opener had a memorable journey with Team India and says he was itching to return to the country. "IPL is a very important tournament for everyone involved, not just Indian players. I always felt that I was going to come back to the country and it was just a matter of time. I love watching T20 and it's good to be back here in this new role," the 46-year-old from Cape Town said.