AV 20th April 2019

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20 - 26 APRIL 2019 - VOL 47 ISSUE 49

JUSTICE AT LAST

inside: You don't have to be a Sikh to celebrate Vaisakhi SEE PAGE 5

Highly-skilled migrants win Court of Appeal case over UK settlement rights Rupanjana Dutta The Court of Appeal in a judgement has severely criticised Home Office's use of a terrorism related immigration law as “legally flawed”, asking for the ruling to be changed.

Asian Voice wrote a number of campaigning articles, interviewed victims and repeatedly highlighted the Home Office's misuse of paragraph 322(5), refusing applications of hundreds of

people – in many cases because they amended their tax records, tagging them as 'terrorists'.

The department has reportedly tried to refuse at least 300 highly-skilled migrants, mostly Indians and Pakistanis, with a further 87 leaving the country.

Around 400 people have been potentially affected between January 2015-May 2018. Many have termed this as the ‘Asian Windrush scandal’.

The Court of Appeal judgement on

Tuesday (16 April 2019) has examined four applicants, three of whom are Indian and one Pakistani, who had been refused their Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) in the UK under the highly-skilled category.

Their cases were clubbed together for the hearing at the Royal Courts of Justice in London, which ruled against UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid and found his approach as "legally flawed".

Continued on page 15

115 LS seats to go to the polls on April 23 SEE PAGE 17

EC cracks whip on Yogi Adityanath, Mayawati, Azam Khan and Maneka Gandhi SEE PAGE 26

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20 - 26 April 2019

onetoone WITH KEITH VAZ, MP

Dr Onkar Singh Sahota "Dr Onkar Sahota's family arrived in the UK from Punjab, India in the 1960’s. His dad worked in a factory and later ran a grocery shop. His family instilled the values of working hard, sharing with others and working for the common good.

Fulfilling a lifelong ambition to be a doctor, Onkar graduated in Medicine from Sheffield University and was elected Fellow of the Royal College of General Practitioners in 2006. He holds an MBA from the London Business School and worked on World Bank and DFID funded project on Health Reforms in Russia for 3 years.

He has been a GP in West London since 1989 and the practice now serves 10,000 patients from two sites. Like many clinicians who’ve been elected to public office, he still practices part-time to stay in touch with issues that his patients encounter.

He has been Chair of the London Assembly Health Committee since 2013 and is Labour’s health spokesperson at the Assembly."

1

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

I’m lucky enough to call London my home. The diversity of cultures, heritage and people make London a great city. We have the world’s best galleries & museums, many of which are free for all to enjoy. I am proud to say that London celebrates diversity, and that London is Open!

2

What are your proudest achievements?

Winning my seat at the London Assembly in 2012 by overturning the 28,500 majority of the Tory incumbent, and being re-elected in 2016 were very proud moments.

Another community success I am proud of is leading the ‘Ealing Save our Hospitals' campaign, securing access to healthcare for my constituents.

3

What inspires you?

6

What is the best aspect about your current role?

At the beginning of my career I could only help my community from the consultation room in my capacity as their doctor.

Now I have the platform, ability and opportunities to makes a difference in people’s lives on a much bigger scale, by influencing policy and lobbying for change.

4

What has been biggest obstacle in your career?

As a medical professional the biggest obstacle has been the change in the culture of the NHS. Patients have become numbers in a system and are no longer treated as individuals. This frustration with the NHS system is what drives me to lobby for change and better healthcare for all.

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

Growing up in a working class family, the value of honest, hard work was instilled in my childhood. I was encouraged to choose the path that served my community best.

cent a month, she shunned the invasive treatment.

She started taking a near-pure form of illegal cannabis tablets which her friend makes at home, by growing her own cannabis plants and using oil to make tablets. It has an 80 per cent cannabinoid strength – 78.8 per cent over the legal treatments – and contains THC, the principal psychoactive constituent of the drug.

Sue, a grandmother-ofone, then buys the drug from her friend at a cost price of around £16 a day.

And after five months of

I have absolutely no complaints, I feel very priviliged and grateful to serve as an Assembly Member.

8

I am committed to continue to serve my community. And also to inspire and help younger generations to achieve their ambitions, by demonstrating that through helping others and working hard we can achieve great things, and make a lasting, positive impact in the world.

9

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

I would like to make trade equitable in the world. I would advocate strongly for fair trade agreements and legislation, to ensure that global communities can enjoy lives of dignity, free from exploitation and 'modern slavery'.

10

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

Without a shadow of a doubt, Louis Armstrong. If you are sitting on a desert island paradise, it would be lovely to enjoy a melodious song and a moment to appreciate "What a wonderful world" we are living in after all.

speaking in February as he outlined his intention to appoint former Cabinet minister Lord Falconer to review the party’s complaints process, the newspaper said. The Labour leader also said he had been the target of abuse, according to the newspaper. Lord Falconer has said Labour needs to do more to deal

with accusations of antiSemitism in its ranks. A Labour spokesman said the party takes allegations of anti-Semitism seriously.

According to Labour figures, the party received 673 accusations of antisemitism by Labour members between April 2018 and January 2019.

Sue and son Dil

taking a tablet a day, doctors were shocked to discover some of the tumours had disappeared, and others had stopped growing or shrunk.

Netflix and Amazon Prime next targets for government crackdown The Government is considering an overhaul of rules for Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, a week after targeting social media companies with strict new penalties.

According to the Daily Telegraph the Department for Culture, Media and Sport is looking at whether rules for on-demand video streaming sites should be brought in line with those which apply to traditional broadcasters as part of its digital charter.

Separately, the influential DCMS select committee, the parliamentary body headed up by Damian Collins MP, may also “do something” in this area this

year, sources familiar with the matter said.

Internet companies have been subject to significant scrutiny in the UK, with regulation recently.

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And the worst?

Jeremy Corbyn says evidence of anti-semitism was 'ignored by Labour' Jeremy Corbyn has privately expressed concern that evidence of anti-Semitism in Labour has been “mislaid or ignored”, according to reports. The Labour leader made the comments during a secretly recorded meeting with MP Dame Margaret Hodge, the Sunday Times said. Mr Corbyn was

A mum who was given weeks to live after she shunned chemotherapy has baffled doctors by treating her cancer – with illegal super strength cannabis and Manuka honey.

Susan Dhillon, 51, from Slough, was diagnosed with inoperable stage four cancer of the mouth, nose and lower skull in June 2018.

Doctors said unless she had chemotherapy – and then incredibly risky facial surgery – her only option was end of life care.

But despite the tumours growing at a rate of five per

7

What are your long term goals?

The community that I serve inspires me.

My constituents and patients regularly approach me to champion issues and causes they believe in, and their tireless determination to do good for others is a source of great inspiration to me. I am honoured to advocate on their behalf and represent them.

5

This is why I initially chose to be a doctor, and the reason I am a London Assembly Member now.

Slough mum who was given weeks to live after cancer diagnosis beats condition with 'miracle cannabis'

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COMMENTS

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20 - 26 April 2019

India and its leaders are not the white man's burden When India became independent, its GDP was less than half of that of Britain's, at the market exchange rate. In 1991 India's economy was less than a quarter the size of Britain's. But as The Economist says, in 2019, at today's market exchange rates, India will 'indisputably' overtake Britain's economy and its glorious days are arriving three years sooner than Goldman Sachs had predicted it. India is not the first of the UK's colony to match the clout of its formner 'colonial ruler'. Brazil and America long ago surpassed Portugal and Britain's economy respectively. Mexico's economy surpassed that of Spain's in 1980s but could not maintain it. Indonesia surpassed the GDP of Netherlands in 2012.

India's growth has had its unique journey- same as its democracy, elections and leaders. When the British left India in 1947, there was no proper transition or handing over. Overnight two countries were bornIndia and Pakistan (east- now Bangladesh and westnow Pakistan). From a colony, India became the largest democracy with no experience whatsover. Neither the leaders knew how to cope nor they knew how to serve, but they had the foresight. Fast forward three years.

Indian constitution was born in 1950 with the help of B R Ambedkar. Till 2019 it has had 103 amendments- and it suitably serves a population of 1.5bn people.

Britain's media has criticised the Indian government for several reasons. Financial Times has said that if the acurrent Prime Minister Narendra Modi comes back to

power, he should shift away from populism. It has also said that Modi is wooing his voters through patriotic sentiments, while Muslims in India are afraid of marginilasiation. The Times has called Modi 'divisive'.

The Sunday Times wrote how Modi promised Indians a corruption free country while the Indian National Congress has blamed the BJP government to let fugitives like Nirav Modi or Vijay Mallya slip away to the UK. There is no point in bashing Indian leaders and its democratic system in British media- it is for Indians to decide who or what they want.

India's successful 'A-Sat’ launch into orbit marks its emergence as a space power with the US, Russia and China. The country’s military muscle grows a pace.

India is facing the challenge of translating military and industrial power into effective policy – it is not easy, but necessary nevertheless. Calibrating regional relationships and making these fit for purpose in a wider strategic architecture surely is the desired Indian goal and being effective to a large extent.

The old global order has clearly outlived its allotted time-span. It is time to close the chapter of the white man’s burden in all corners of the world. Carrying the big stick and talking softly about shared democratic values and human rights, with contrary evidence on the ground is no basis for concord and true dialogue between nations great and small.

A long way to go for 'new' Pakistan During last year's election campaign, prime minister Imran Khan promised a 'new' Pakistan. He wants to start with madrasa education, where most of the students are being taught to read Koran with very few modern subjects. There are more than 30,000 madrasas, with perhaps 2.5 million students. Many of the students spent long periods to the religious charities that run such schools. They graduate with strong opinions on religion, but few skills. That will all change, says Khan’s team. His minister of education insists that the religious schools will have to teach a wide range of subjects to gain government accreditation. Eventually, a single national curriculum will be imposed. The army, which often appeared indulgent to religious extremism, supports education reform. Its own growing network of fee-paying schools is heavy on sciences and English.

Many of the madrasa graduates turn to jihadist militancy, but a senior commander says that the state will no longer favour jihadist groups. “We will not allow these goons to run around and dictate our foreign policy,” he insists. Khan is also equally emphatic. What use does Pakistani intelligence have for such groups anymore, he asks. They were created to fight the Soviets in Afghanistan, and then lingered in the 1990s when they were encouraged to make life difficult for India and its part of Kashmir. But from now on there will be no Kashmir exception, says Khan, hinting that it may become harder for Pakistan-based militants to infiltrate Indian territory. “What we found is that Kashmiris are the ones who suffer,” he says, alluding to harsh measures India has often taken to maintain security on its side of the border.

Pakistani politicians and soldiers have made such pledges before. India tends to dismiss them as insincere attempts to escape international condemnation after terrorist groups based in Pakistan mount attacks in

India - as in February, when an outfit called Jaish-eMuhammad killed 40 CRPF men in Kashmir. India responded by sending jets to drop bombs deep inside Pakistani territory. Their target was the madrasa, which Indian officials said was a training centre for terrorists.

Khan has won praise for trying to honour his election promise, which was to crack down on corruption. Since he came into office last August the National Accountability Bureau has mounted a fierce offensive against allegedly corrupt officials. No fewer than five former prime ministers are under investigation. Yet the offensive has been so vigorous that some fear it has put a chill on investment, at a time Pakistan desperately needs it. It is also clear that, fairly or not, the biggest targets of the campaign happen to be Khan’s political opponents. Similarly, the government has justified sudden, drastic cuts in spending on advertising as a needed economy. This move has irked media houses and cost as many as 3,000 jobs. The army, despite its professed commitment to democracy, quells criticism in even more radical ways, ordering irksome channels off the air and abducting nettlesome bloggers.

There will be more resentment when the government takes painful steps needed to mend the economy. The IMF, which looks set to impose tough conditions for a bailout. The rupee has lost more than 30% of its value since Khan took office, inflation has soared and both the current-account and budget deficits are unsustainable. The prime minister puts on a brave face, noting that things were worse a few months ago, when foreign-exchange reserves were only enough to pay for two weeks of imports. The improvement, alas, is solely owing to charity from China and the Gulf.

The unkind may conclude that the kinder, gentler image Pakistan is trying to project is prompted by a sobering look at its finances.

Severe reprimand for Bengal Chief Minister The Supreme Court of India issued a severe reprimand to Bengal Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, for pressing into service the State police to violate the rule of law and thereby infringe the rights of India’s citizenry to free speech and expression guaranteed by the Indian Constitution. The court found her government guilty of ‘clear abuse of public power’ for ordering the State Intelligence agency and the police to bully and browbeat cinemas and theatres screening of the Bengali satirical film, Bhobishyoter Bhoot [Ghosts of the Future].

A Bench of Justices D.Y. Chandrachaud and Hemant Gupta ordered the West Bengal government to pay an indemnity to the film-makers for its ‘unconstitutional attempt to invade the fundamental rights of the producers, the actors and the audience.’ The Supreme Court passed a restraint order against the State government from interfering with the lawful screening of the film.

The judgment was delivered in response to a petition by the film’s producers, supported by a galaxy of cultural figures.

‘The power of the State is what the people give it.

Freedom is not subject to power, but power is answerable to freedom,’ said Justice Chandrachaud.

Chief Minister Banerjee has led a government with a creditable record in the revival of the Bengal economy, following three decades and more of Left Front misrule that had left it impoverished. Its metropolis, Kolkata, which had hovered on the brink of an urban disaster is unrecognizable from what it once was. The rural hinterland has burst into a new life. That said, Mamata Banerjee has blotted her copybook with an outsized ego and her dictatorial ways. She has much to learn. She must either grow up, or else may have to climb down.

Overweening conceit has been the undoing of leaders great and small.

The job of a citizen is to keep his mouth open - Guünter Grass (1927-2015)

Alpesh Patel

Why presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard is the best for the Middle East?

Gabbard is one of the several candidates who has already thrown her hat into the ring. There will undoubtedly be more lawmakers who will join her.

Those candidates will then have to slug it out in order to have the privilege to take on President Trump in the 2020 general election. That said, at this time, Tulsi Gabbard is the best candidate (in either party) to ensure peace and prosperity in the Middle East.

American voters should educate themselves on her background and her strategies to enable security and prosperity in the region.

Even though she is in the early days of her presidential campaign, congresswoman Gabbard has made it clear that she can be a positive force of change in directing the American policy towards the Middle East.

Congresswoman Gabbard’s anti-interventionist stance developed from her personal experience in the Middle East (she volunteered for the U.S. Army National Guard service in Iraq and Kuwait).

This anti-interventionist view may raise suspicions among voters in the U.S. military or voters who are reliant on the U.S. military for their livelihoods.

Having said this, these voters should not fear the congresswoman.

First, the congresswoman has said she does not believe in “counter-productive wars of regime change,” but she has made it known that she won’t avoid taking on terrorism in the region. In addition, congresswoman Gabbard, contrary to some beliefs, is not saying that the U.S. military will pick up and leave the region entirely. Instead, she is most likely to favor an expansion of the Al Udeid Air Base located in Qatar.

Congresswoman Gabbard also has some promising policy positions related to two substantive issues in the Middle East: the war in Yemen and the blockade of Qatar.

Let’s start with the war in Yemen. In November 2018 (before her presidential campaign), she called for Congress to vote against a Republican resolution that would have blocked a vote on ending U.S. military support to the war in Yemen. Gabbard made it clear that she was against any U.S. military support of the conflict, calling it “a war that has created the world’s worst humanitarian disaster in generations.”

She added that it “was long overdue” for the Congress to end “U.S. complicity in Saudi Arabia’s atrocities.” She is so opposed to enabling any advancement of the conflict in Yemen that she co-sponsored a bill in the House of Representatives that would have immediately halted all military sales and aid to the government in Saudi Arabian. In total, Gabbard has made it clear that she is willing to take drastic actions to end the suffering and conflict in Yemen—including rattling the relationship between America and one of the most influential nations in the Middle East.

There is also the continuing blockade of Qatar by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and other regional states. Her willingness to take on Saudi Arabia, which has been the leading force in blockading Qatar, signals that she wouldn’t be afraid to call for an end to the blockade. The blockade has had a negative impact on many individuals, including migrant workers in Qatar. An end to this would improve trade within the region and would re-ignite economic growth.

Gabbard will not be afraid to take on the power players in the region in order to end the blockade and bring back a sense of normalcy in Qatar.

Editor: CB Patel Asian Voice is published by Asian Business Publications Ltd Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080 • Fax: 020 7749 4081 Email: aveditorial@abplgroup.com Website: www.abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

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20 - 26 April 2019

100th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre commemorated in House of Lords Rupanjana Dutta Six years ago, the then British Prime Minister David Cameron had visited India, he became the first serving Prime Minister to pay his respects by visiting Jallianwala Bagh and described the incident as 'deeply shameful'. The current Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday during Prime Minister's Question Time called it as the a 'shameful scar'- but none of them issued a formal apology. However, the government has been criticised for not going far enough to make a formal apology, with the Opposition Labour Party demanding a "full, clear and unequivocal apology."

Hundred years on, the wounds are still raw. The massacre seethed with tyranny and opression broke the trsut between the people and their rulers.

Noble laureate Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood in protest of the Jallianwala Bagh mass killing.

To commemorate the centenary a dinner was hosted at the House of Lords by Indian-origin peers Lord Raj Loomba and Lord Meghnad Desai along with fellow members of the Jallianwala bagh Centenary Commemoration Committee (JBCCC) to conclude a series of events and exhibitions held in the UK to mark the 100th anniversary of the massacre.

Lord Desai speaking at the dinner, said, "India in 2019 is a very different proposition from 1919, and is now a power to be reckoned with". The massacre, he said, "triggered a change in Indian/British relationships, and Ghandi declared that the British cannot be trusted". Lord Desai underlined that it was a crucial event on the road to India's independence.

Lord Loomba added, “I do not understand why the British government has not to this day agreed to say sorry” and called for an investigation into whether Very special morning at Nagar Kirtan in Southall as crowds gather for the Vaisakhi religious procession. The procession started at Park Avenue Gurdwara and continues up King Street towards Norwood Green. Streets are lined with people coming out to pay their respects and many stalls with free refreshments set up by people and shops in the community. MP Seema Malhotra joined the occasion.

Indians".

Balbir Singh Kakar, chairman of the JBCCC, spoke about the aims of the committee, which came together to raise awareness of the tragic events that unfolded that day and to inform and educate people today about the way "1000's of Indians were bruHE Mrs Ruchi Ghanashyam (centre) with husband Mr A R Ghanashyam (second from tally murdered" on left) with peers, JBCCC members and other guests the orders of one man. Noting how Prime Minister Theresa May spoke in the House of Commons on Wednesday saying "it was a shameful scar on British Indian history", but stopped short of apologising, he said "Gandhi and Mandela have both shown the world the way to resolve conflict, and forge peace; and that peace and forgiveness are more powerful weapons than any military force or acts of violence and oppression."

Dr Rami Ranger CBE, HE Ruchi Ghanashyam, High Commissioner of India "One hundred years is to UK and CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar a long time," he continued, Bagh massacre shook the Colonel Dyer instigated the "but pain and hurt do not very soul of a nation. It will "huge atrocity" of his own have prescribed end dates, be a long while before it accord or was following and often have long memfades away. History will orders from higher authoriories," as he called on the keep reminding successive ties when he opened fire on British Government "to future generations about innocent unarmed civilians. ask for the Indian peoples' it.”

Her Excellency, the forgiveness by issuing an Manjit Singh GK, High Commissioner of unreserved apology".

Patron-in-Chief of the India to UK Mrs Ruchi The commemorative JBCCC said, "The pain Ghanashyam remembered event included a screening remains etched in the those martyred one hunof a short clip from memory of Punjabi people. dred years ago who were Richard Attenborough's An apology will not bring gathered in peace as the 1982 epic ''Gandhi'', reback the dead or give any Punjab celebrated its new enacting the fateful day. real comfort to their famiyear. She described the Lord Jitesh Gadhia, ly and friends. However, it praise heaped on General stressed the importance of will help to mitigate the Dyer for his actions by the the tragedy forming part pain and bring closure to then members of the House of a compulsory "warts and us all.” of Lords. =Noting the recent all" colonial history curVikramjit Singh Sahni, House of Commons debate riculum to be taught a Patron of the JBCCC, on the issue, when Mark across all British schools. spoke movingly of how the Field MP, Minister of State Contrary to the trend, main exits to the park were for the Foreign and Lord Suri speaking at the blocked, and there was no Commonwealth described event said, “I was one of escape for the innocent it as one of the most the speakers on Jallianwala people trapped in the line shameful events in British Bagh debate and I endorse of fire, as he described the history, the High that we must have an apol"carnage of unbelievable Commissioner also spoke ogy. But we must not overproportions". He echoed about the phenomenal look what caused it. Before the High Commissioner's success of India today, and Jallianwala Bagh, British words, that the atrocity how the UK and India now officers were humiliated "shook the soul of India", work closely together on and killed- we can’t overas he said General Dyer's the international stage. look that.” intent was to "punish She said, “The Jallianwala

3 out of 4 Sikhs want the Government to apologise for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre 78% want an apology, and 85% believe it should be taught at school. According to a report being launched later this month, the majority of British Sikhs believe that the British Government should give a formal apology for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, which took place 100 years ago.

The seventh annual British Sikh Report (BSR) is the

only robust strategic document of its kind. Based on the results of a survey of over 2,000 Sikhs throughout the country, it aims to provide quantitative data about the British Sikh community at large.

This year's report has included British Sikhs’ views on various anniversaries over the course of 2019, including the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919. Also known as the Amritsar massacre, it saw hundreds of Punjabis at a peaceful gathering shot dead by members of the British Indian Army.

78% of respondents stated that the British Government should apologise for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.

Furthermore, 85% of respondents stated that events like the massacre should be included in the school syllabus.

Jagdev Singh Virdee MBE, editor of the British Sikh Report, commented, “There are several major anniversaries this year, and the BSR team thought it was a good time to ask British Sikhs for their views on issues related to these key events. It is interesting to see that more Sikhs want the Jallianwala Bagh massacre to be taught in schools than would want a formal apology from the Government. This year's British Sikh Report, which will be launched in a few days time, will also cover current issues that affect people's lives, such as attitudes towards organ donations, adoption and fostering, disability and mental health.”

Alison Thewliss MP, Pat McFadden MP, Seema Malhotra MP and Preet Gill MP

Wolverhampton South East MP Pat McFadden saw hundreds gather into the Speaker's House to celebrate Vaisakhi.

Mr McFadden, who is vice-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for British Sikhs, said: "I think it's really important to celebrate festivals like Vaisakhi in Parliament, in the heart of our democracy.”

Young Birmingham school pupils opened the celebrations with the singing of traditional hymns before a number of speakers took to the stage.

He was joined by Alison Thewliss MP, Seema Malhotra MP, Preet Gill MP, Dr Opinderjit Takhar and other community leaders.

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20 - 26 April 2019

You don't have to be a Sikh to celebrate Vaisakhi (L-R) Anita Anand, Gurpreet Singh Anand, Mandeep Moore and Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan

On Sunday 14th April, Khalsa Jatha in Central London celebrated Viasakhi in the presence of Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, Deputy Mayor of London for business Rajesh Agrawal, Labour politician Dr. Onkar Sahota, journalist Anita Anand, celebrity chef Manpreet Singh Ahuja among other members of the Sikh diaspora.

Vaisakhi commemorates the formation of Khalsa panth of warriors under Guru Gobind Singh in 1699, this year co-incided with the centenary of the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.

Explaining the significant role, the Gurudwara had played in ensuring solidarity among the South Asians when undivided India was still ruled by the UK before 1947, Gurpreet Singh Anand, one of the main sevadaars of the Gurudwara said“This was the holy site where many immigrant South Asians used to come and plan for the overthrow of the British colonial rule.”

The Khalsa Jatha, British Isles, was formed in 1908, to promote religious and social activities among the Sikhs who had settled in the UK. Later in the same year it was affiliated to the Chief Khalsa Diwan, Amritsar. In 1911, the Jatha acquired a house in Putney (South London) for two years where the opening ceremony was performed

by Maharaja Bhupindra Singh of Patiala.

This year at the Vaisakhi celebration, journalist Anita Anand recently published her book “Patient Assassin” chronicling Udham Singh's, journey. At the Gurudwara, she spoke about her grandfather living with “survivor's guilt”.

“People often ask me how do I choose to write about the stories that I do. But whether it is my story on Sophia Duleep Singh or

Udham Singh, I chose these stories because I was surprised that people didn't know about the oppressions of the colonial rule. In all my recent interviews, English journalists were quiet surprised when I detailed about the oppression of the British Raj,” she said.

Over the last few weeks there has been an increasing push from the Sikh diaspora over teaching colonial history in schools, which many academics argue would be the biggest apology that the government could owe to the injustice done with the Sikh community.

Taking the auspicious ocassion of Vaisakhi, the Mayor of London said-

“It is very important that all of us understand the teachings of other faiths and that is why it is important for all of us to celebrate Vaisakhi. You don't have to be a Sikh to celebrate Vaisakhi.”

“The reason why it is important to understand history is to realise that not everything in the British empire was hunky-dory.

And one of the reasons why this country is so prosperous is because of the fruits of its empire in India,” said.

But like India, the UK had colonised much of Africa which even today struggles to combat modern slavery and land-possessions. In 2013, William Hague had acknowledged for the first time that the elderly Kikuyu and other Kenyans had been subjected to torture and other horrific abuses at the hands of the colonial administration during the Mau Mau

emergency. On behalf of the British government he had expressed "sincere regret" that these abuses had taken place, and announced payments of £2,600 to each of 5,200 vetted claimants, and urged that the process of healing for both nations begin. While Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn may have apologised for the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre, the conservative government still remains on the brink of “deep regret”.

“We understand that British empire didn't always do things that we condone. Many things done should be apologised for, and that includes what happened in Indian sub-continent, Africa among others, and this explains why some countries which have only achieved independence recently are struggling to be successful” said Sadiq Khan to the Asian Voice.

Myths associated with Jallianwala Bagh massacre and the well On Saturday 13th April, 100 years of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre were commemorated at the National Army Museum in presence of historian and author Kim Wagner, journalist Sathnam Sanghera, the Singh twins, and historians Amandeep Madra and Parmjit Singh. But the event also dispelled some myths surrounding the tragedy.

“One of the myths associated with the massacre is that some 120 bodies were recovered from the well but there weren't any bodies recovered,” said Kim Wagner, senior lecturer in British Imperial History at Queen Mary University of London.

According to certain historic sources, when Brigadier General Reginald Dyer had opened fire in the Bagh, some innocent civillians jumped into the well in panic to save themselves from the firing.

This well, located inside the premises of the Jallianwala Bagh,

stands testimony to 120 dead bodies were later recovered from the well. Some eyewitnesses had described one or two people falling in the well. But what affirmative evidence does Wagner rely upon to contradict history as is written?

“It was quite a high number of bodies which I had never heard about when I was gathering my primary sources. But when Motilal Nehru and Madan Mohan Malaviya go to inspect the site after the martial law is lifted, they think that they see something in the well but it was some clay and cloth,” said Wagner.

The event hosted two sets of panel discussions where historians, authors and journalists shed light on the history of the brutal massacre and its discussion in schools today.

“I first visited India in 1920 and our visit to the Punjab had a deep impact on us considering how little we were taught about it

(L-R) Kim Wagner, Amandeep Madra, Parmjit Singh, Singh twins, Justin, Chris Durlacher, Sathnam Sanghera and Jasdeep at the National Army Museum

in our schools,” said the Singh twins. Educated in Catholic schools, the Singh twins spoke about the problems associated with not teaching the oppressions of the British empire in schools.

Chris Durlacher, who is an award winning documentary maker, and the director of the recent 'The Massacre That Shook the Empire' agreed about the problems associated with teaching about the colonial conquests as “British achieve-

ments”.

“There was some questioning around the incident but it was mostly around the benefits of these conquests and more importantly, there wasn't any sort of investigation around the morality of the Raj,” said the BAFTA awardee, Durlacher.

Durlacher first came to know about the story of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre after watching Richard Attenborough's 'Gandhi'

where it was directed as a random two-minute sequence.

But Durlacher's curious filmmaker's eye embarked on a mission to examine the 1919 massacre and it's legacy.

The event was followed by a book signing session where authors Amandeep Madra and Parmjit Singh signed copies of their latest book 'Eyewitnesses at Amritsar: A Visual History of the 1919 Jallianwala Bagh Massacre'.

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BBC’s Rangan Chatterjee makes Park Runs a family affair Most people are happy going to the gym or exercising alone but there are some that prefer to get healthy in a more social way. Whether it’s a relative or friend, they are much more likely to commit to a class if they have someone to do it with, The BBC’s Dr Rangan Chatterjee, GP and author of The Stress Solution believes that this communal element is crucial to help with individual motivation which is often a major barrier to making healthy choices. He also firmly believes that modelling a healthy

llifestyle can have a positive effect on getting children moving and off the sofa.

Studies show that our innate desire to compare ourselves to our peers means we are more likely to live well if those around us do, too – if the whole family embraces an active routine, then, it’s easier for us to stick with.

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph Dr Chatterjee talked about how his son, then five, spotted a poster for Junior Park Runs (a weekly 2km course) in their local Wilmslow park and

together began attending as a pair and when his daughter was old enough she and his wife Vidh joined in too.

“Initially, my wife wasn’t that keen and just came along [to watch], but it’s got her running now, and it’s motivating her to get fitter.

You help to motivate each other.”

The four of them are so committed that these weekly fitness bursts have become “a family institution”, Rangan says. “It’s completely changed the

landscape of our weekend. Instead of moping around on a Sunday morning, we’re out in the fresh air for the 9:30am start time: it’s got a routine and a rhythm to it.”

Their local Cheshire crowd usually reaches 50-100 people, and Park Run’s motto – ‘It’s a run, not a race’ – demonstrates the accommodating atmosphere it engenders. Many of the children walk the course, rather than running it, and the Chatterjees often spot schoolmates and friends from local clubs en route.

“Kids don’t really do what you tell them to – they’ll do what they see you do,” Rangan says. “If I want them to be active, it’s best to all be active together.”

St Albans mum needs a stem cell transplant as she battles leukaemia A mother of twins needs a blood stem cell transplant in her critical fight against cancer.

Meena Kumari-Sharma, 42, loved long weekend trips with her friends and family but her life changed early last year when she was diagnosed with leukaemia.

The mum, whose family lives in St Albans, was initially responding well to treatment but she received the shattering news in March 2018 that she had been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia – and she needs a blood stem cell transplant.

Meena did receive positive news towards the end of last year after doctors were able to control the leukaemia and she now has the chronic leukaemia left.

She is currently taking chemotherapy tablets to try and kill off the rest of the

leukaemia.

But due to Meena’s Punjabi background, her search for a blood stem cell match has become a lot more difficult.

The probability of finding a matching blood stem cell donor is even lower for those of diverse black, Asian and mixed race ethnicity.

The shortage of registered BAME donors means that BAME patients have only a 20 per cent chance of finding a match, compared to 69% from northern Europeans background.

Supported by blood cancer charity DKMS, Meena began touring the country in a drive to find more donors from diverse backgrounds but so far, she has not found what she is looking for.

Meena said: “I do still need to find a donor. Ideally, we will find someone with as close to 100 per cent

Meena with her two five-year-old twins

match as me as possible.

They need to be the same sort of heritage mix as myself.”

Meena has moved up to Leicester for treatment but her two five-year-olds and their dad remain in St Albans, where they moved to in 2010.

“I just want to get back to my normal life and be with my children on a daily basis. I’m stuck in Leicester

until I get this transplant.”

Despite not being successful so far in her search, Meena is encouraging people to register as a possible stem donor.

DKMS is dedicated to the fight against blood cancer. If you’re 17 – 55 (and in general good health) take the first step go to DKMS to register as a potential stem donor.

Register at dkms.org.uk

Admits he could have been ‘drawn into life of crime’ and is worried for his kids

way for a run at the Conservative leadership when Theresa May steps aside.

"I may be the home secretary, but I'm not ashamed to confess I have stayed up late at night waiting to hear the key turning in the door," he said.

"And only then going to

SELF-PROCLAIMED ‘MUSLIM PRINCE’ PLANNED TO BLOW UP MEGHAN-HARRY WEDDING

The 37-year-old, who proclaimed himself the Muslim Prince of Spain, currently faces a term in prison after he was found guilty of malicious communications. He awaits sentencing at home due to suspected mental problems.

A man prompted a security scare in the UK after he sent a raft of emails to Prince Andrew and government officials, in which he threatened to blow up the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s wedding last May, according to The Daily Telegraph.

In one email, Mohammed Jibra-Eel Saleh reportedly challenged what he described as “f*****g stupid British royal family”, proclaiming himself “the Muslim Prince of Spain married to the illegitimate daughter of the former King of Spain, Juan Carlos’s daughter called Marguerita”.

Police managed to track down Saleh and detain him just two days before Prince Harry married Meghan Markle on 19 May 2018. Prosecutors told Leicester Crown Court that three threatening emails had been sent to the various recipients with the help of two different mobile phones and police determined that Saleh was the user following a Google “subscriber check”.

Last month, Saleh was found guilty of three charges of sending electronic communications with intent to cause distress and anxiety, as well as sending an electronic communication which conveyed a threat. The 37-year-old, who suffers from suspected mental health issues and was deemed unfit to stand trial and plea, is currently at home on unconditional bail awaiting sentencing.

GOVERNMENT PAYS £1M TO CYPRUS 'TORTURE VICTIMS'

Sajid Javid sets out plan for battling crime Sajid Javid has admitted that the violence on Britain's streets has left him scared for his children's safety.

The home secretary made the admission as he outlined his blueprint for ending the bloodshed, which he said was a "national emergency" that should be treated like the outbreak of a "virulent disease".

Mr Javid, who has been in his role since April 2018, called for a dual approach that limits opportunities to commit crime, coupled with early intervention to prevent young people being drawn into it.

The major policy speech from Mr Javid has been interpreted as paving the

in brief

bed knowing that they have come home safe and sound. I know that if I don't feel safe on the streets, if I don't think the streets are safe enough for my own children, or if we see our communities being torn apart by crime, then something has gone terribly wrong."

On his own experience growing up, Mr Javid told the audience in east London: "It's not so difficult to see how, instead of being in the Cabinet, I could have actually turned out to have a life of crime myself.

"There were the pupils

at school that shoplifted, and asked if I wanted to help. There were the drug dealers who stood near my school gates and told me that if joined in, I too could make some easy money.

"But I was lucky. I had loving and supporting parents, who despite their own circumstances gave me security. I had some brilliant teachers who motivated me.

Thanks to them all I have built a better life for myself and my family."

In England and Wales in 2017/18 there were 285 homicides where the method of killing was a knife or sharp instrument, the highest number since records started in 1946.

Thirty-three Cypriots who claimed they were tortured by British forces during an armed uprising in the late 1950s are to be awarded £1m damages, to be shared between them, by the UK government. The group was arrested on suspicion of being part of paramilitary organisation EOKA, which fought a guerrilla campaign to overthrow British control in Cyprus.

One woman, aged 16 at the time, said she was repeatedly raped by soldiers. The government said the settlement was not "any admission of liability".

The 1955-59 rebellion was known as the Cyprus Emergency, during which the governor enacted draconian laws, flooding the island with thousands of soldiers and increasing the size of the police force. Some 371 British military personnel died during the emergency. The claimants - now in their 70s and 80s and in poor health - have had to wait almost 60 years to seek justice for their injuries, because the government documents outlining their treatment were classified and out of reach until 2012.

GLASWEGIAN IN £300M ‘FRAUD LINKED TO BIN LADEN’ A Scot who was allegedly part of a multibillion fraud against the British taxpayer and may have helped to fund Osama bin Laden’s terrorist operations. Imran “Immy” Hussain, 41, was believed to be the leader of a Scottish gang that extracted £300m of taxpayers’ money through “carousel” frauds that involved the bogus import and export of high-value items such as mobile phones and computer chips.

The gang’s activities are believed to have been part of a larger network run by British Asians, who mounted VAT and benefit frauds over two decades. One gang is alleged to have sent 1% of the total gains, £80m, to al-Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan, funding madrasahs, as well as training camps and other terrorist activities, according to leaked intelligence files but there is no evidence that Hussain knew, or suspected, that proceeds of his alleged crimes may ultimately have funded terrorism.

Hussain, who grew up in an affluent Glasgow suburb, is believed to be in Pakistan where he fled in 2007, shortly before he was due to be arrested. In 2012, he was considering a plea bargain about standing trial in England. He met Paul McBride QC and the human rights lawyer, Aamer Anwar, in Lahore but talks collapsed when McBride died of a suspected heart attack in his hotel room.

A CPS spokesman said: “Imran Hussain is the main principal in Operation Vex. He is wanted and there is a domestic warrant outstanding for him.” Hussain could not be contacted.

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Domestic abuse survivor jailed for manslaughter Packiam Ramanathan, a 73-year-old woman went into a trance when she disabled her 76-year-old husband Kanagusabi Ramanathan, as he lay in his bed, the Old Bailey heard. She denied murder however, she pleaded guilty of manslaughter.

Packiam used a wooden pole to beat her husband to death after facing years of abuse in her 35 years of marriage and has been jailed for two years and four months by Judge Anuja Dhir QC. Packiam was in an arranged marriage with her “abusive husband” since 1983 after fleeing Sri Lanka during the civil war. Having fled from there, they had moved to Germany and subsequently to London, heard the Old Bailey. After hearing the case, the Judge was “satisfied” that from the very outset of that marriage until about 2007 Packiam was “abused physically, mentally and sexually”. But, the Old Bailey heard that the false allegations of infidetility, the foul language as well as the coercive and controlling behaviour continued.

However, on September 21, last year paramedics found former shopkeeper and husband Ramanathan dead in his bedroom in Newham, east London, after the defendant told her neighbour she had hit him. A blood-stained wooden stick was found in a cupboard in the hall of the couple's flat.

According to Prosecutor Sally O'Neill

Packiam Ramanathan

QC there had been arguments about money and the defendant Packiam had become "very angry" at finding out her husband had written to Sri Lankan police accusing her brother of fraud and theft.

She said- “There is no dispute that the person who used that stick to cause those injuries which killed him was his wife and the prosecution case is that there also can be no doubt that she did so intending, at the least, to cause him really serious harm and that he was unlawfully killed as a result.”

But in her evidence, Ramanathan spoke about the years of bullying and abusive behaviour by her husband. He repeatedly accused her of having an affair with the fishmonger, the court heard.

Recalling the killing, Ramanathan told the jurors- "It was like I was in a trance. I hit him. I do not know. I did not know what I was doing. I remember him saying, 'Don't hit me'.

"I lost control at that time. I did not plan anything. I don't know how I did it. For me I still feel like somebody else did it."

Stephen Kamlish QC, defending, suggested that if Ramanathan had wanted to kill her diabetic husband she could have simply given him a bigger dose of insulin and "no-one would have known".

Kamlish urged jurors to acquit her of murder, saying- “After the hell of 36 years of abuse, you can show what you think of this prosecution and do the right thing by coming to a very fast verdict.”

During the sentencing hearing, Anuja Dhir QC jailed her for two years and four months over the incident but with time served on remand she will likely be freed in upcoming months and the jury deliberated for only half an hour to find Ramanathan not guilt of murder.

Packiam's story is similar to the domestic abuse story of Kiranjit Ahluwalia in 1989 when she had set her husband on fire. Her case was later taken up by Southall Black Sisters and through their legal aid and campaigns, her appeal for a re-trial had been accepted. She was later sentenced to three years and four months of prison time, the amount she had served earlier and was released immediately.

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Brexit Halloween nightmare and local council elections Priyanka Mehta More than 8,000 local councillors across England are going to be elected to 248 councils on 2 May. These include 33 metropolitan districts except Birmingham, Doncaster and Rotherham, 47 unitary authorities, 179 districts (mostly rural).

Additionally, votes will also be counted for directlyelected mayors at six authorities; Bedford, Copeland, Leicester, Mansfield, Middlesbrough and North of Tyne (Newcastle).

Local councils have urged everyone who is over 18 years old to register and come out to v o t e .

However, turnoaut in local elections has always been low with just one in three voters voting in some areas in 2018. The UK was slated to leave the EU on 29th March and over the last three years, Brexit divide has led to the emergence of extreme identities.

But will the national issues of Brexit, uncertainty over immigration and customs union be enough to drive higher participation in local elections?

“Usually it is difficult to witness a high voter turnout in local elections because of national policies. However, if the local elections of 1990 are to monitored then one would observe a high voter turnout because of the introduction of the poll tax

by the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and this year due to the ongoing Brexit there is a possibility for people to vote in increasing numbers,” said professor Tony Travers, of Director of LSE London.

Some communities in Bedford, Leicester and Swindon are “anxious and frightened” by the on-going Brexit debate, as data indicated the “devastating” impact a no-deal exit could have on the region.

Many migrants are unsure of their rights postBrexit. People are especially worried about paying large sums of money to apply for settled status. Opinnions

Professor Sara Hobolt

over Brexit have remained mostly consistent according to the latest YouGov polls where currently 54% people would prefer the UK to stay in the EU as compared to the 46% who are of the 'leave' camp.

“But it is interesting to note that young people have very little trust in the political leadership today and although, the Labour party appears on the softer side of Brexit, there is an on-going crisis with very little confidence in Jeremy Corbyn himself,” said Professor Sara Hobolt of London School of

Economics and Political Science.

The Conservatives are reportedly fielding candidates in 96% of the available seats, whereas Labour are contesting 77% of these seats.

The Liberal Democrats are standing prospective councillors in 53% of seats, while the Green Party is contesting in 30% and UKIP in 16% seats will be hoping for marginal gains.

Both the professors however, believe that manifestos released by the two national parties for these elections would be the subject of extreme scrutiny which would potentially reflect on each party's proposal to

Tony Travers

move ahead with the Brexit negotiation.

“Usually, the trend observed in the UK politics is that if the Conservatives form the national government then the opposition politcal party would form the local government. While expectations are that Labour will relatively see a modest victory at the polls but Brexit fallout will likely damage the Conservatives vote share,” said Professor Hobolt.

The elections will take place on Thursday, May 2.

Polls open at 7am and close at 10pm.

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20 - 26 April 2019

When I grow up, I want to join the Indian Army; Says Gauri Jha! Gauri, an eighth-grade student of a government middle school in Sikhanderpur Ghosa, Haryana, India shares her personal experiences: In a nostalgic conversation, Gauri shared her school experience from two years ago with us. She said, “My ambitions have been high, I always have aimed to study hard, stay fit to join the Indian Army when I grow up. But, unfortunately due to the limited finance that my family can provide, I have studied in a government school. We had good teachers, but we faced many struggles studying in my school. Our Infrastructure, especially sanitation amenities have been in extremely poor condition. Due to lack of basic hygiene facilities, there was high drop-out ratio among girls. Lot of us suffered from water-borne diseases due to open defecation near schools. Open defecation among students was normal due to lack of proper toilets in our school but today- Yuva Unstoppable has completely changed the situation of my school. Today, we have separate private toilets for boys and girls, new drinking and dishwashing area.

They have also painted our school with bright colours. We feel welcomed in our own school. It has increased motivation, enthusiasm and zeal to study in hundreds of students. I wish Yuva Unstoppable creates a magical future for many other schools like ours and transform the world into a happier place”.

In 2005, a group of enthusiastic like-minded people who strongly believed in the power of the Youth found this organisation. Yuva, literally translates into Youth and this organisation strives to make the youth of today, unstoppable. Today, Yuva Unstoppable has mobilized more than 1,50,000 young and have impacted about half a million children across the country. Yuva Unstoppable collaborates with top corporate companies like Cisco, Microsoft and Facebook. They have transformed about nine-hundred schools by developing better toilets, improving drinking water, providing scholarships, digital literacy and value-based trainings. In 2015, the founder of Yuva Unstoppable, Amitabh Shah received, Prince’s Prize for Innovative Philanthropy by Prince Albert II of Monaco.

About 72% of government schools in India lack proper sanitation facilities and this is an extremely poor situation which leads to various macro-level problems related to education and development in India. Since a decade, Yuva Unstoppable has been rigorously working for the betterment of education in India. They gave birth to a revolutionary movement which empowers children by providing right facilities and infrastructure to make the environment hospitable for learnin-. Yuva Unstoppable envisions to transform ten-thousand schools by 2025.

Yuva Unstoppable has not just inspired thousands from the young audiences and motivated them to participate in their cause but has also received tremendous support and applaud from celebrities and leading personalities. PM Shri Narendra Modi, Late President of India Dr. APJ Kalam, Amitabh Bachchan, Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Sir Ian Botham, Chetan Bhagat, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra participate pro-actively in Yuva’s initiatives. According to Mr. Modi, Prime Minister of India, “The reason why YUVA Unstoppable is Unstoppable because YUVA-ites (young people) are totally self-motivated.” Internationally acclaimed director of Hindi Film Industry, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra created a commercial film called, ‘Mere Pyare Prime Minister’. The film is said to be inspired by grassroot-level efforts by Yuva Unstoppable in the slums of Mumbai. The film is now in theatres across the country.

Sponsored Charity of Asian Achievers Awards 2019

To know more about Yuva Unstoppabl please visit www.yuvaunstoppable.org.

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Indian political circus As I See It CB Patel

Make sure you vote for the Ringmaster

My dear readers and well-wishers, India is currently transpiring through a historical turning point. I believe we have to agree that even after 70 years of independence, several governments have ruled and left but none have been truly successful in satisfying the needs and expectations of the general public. As they say, as the ruler so the ruled. Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi is considered a saintly person.

However, how efficient he would have been as someone running the nation, I leave it for you to conclude.

Human culture has come a long way since the creation of man. Man started living in groups, and then the Society was created. Eventually nation spirit and governance set in.

On some day, at some moment, an ambitious and strong man with great leadership qualities stood up and decided to take things into his own hands, called people with the same thoughts, purposes and behaviour together, and formed an authoritative group. In time, the feudal group expanded, established power and evolved. First comes feudalism, then came monarchy, and over time with experiences passed on through generations, democracy came to become more acceptable.

Over 2500 years ago, under the guidance of Chanakya, Emperor Chandragupta had created an integral India. I would like to believe that spirit continues to this day, as despite scarring differences within the country, India has held on to itself and continues to host diversity and culture.

In his book 'Arthshastra', Chanakya has clearly stated that a good governance means 'Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas'. It was during his era that the panchayat system was born. Today, panchayat raj can be considered as one of the pillars of democracy. It won't be an overstatement to say India stands tall and firm today. A brief look at the last 1000 years of Indian history stands testimony for the country's journey.

1100 years back, Adi Shankaracharya had traveled on foot across the country. Jagannath Puri in the East, Dwarka in the West, Badrinath in North and Kanchi Kamkoti in the South were Maths (centres) were established. Jyotirling stotra was created. All 12 Jyotirlings in India were highlighted.

In that sense, India is an elegant mixture of spirituality, modernity, and ancient history.

Having said this, I am astonished at the kind of environment has been created by ongoing elections in the country.

Verbal shots are being fired left and right, and it's perfectly expected. What has caught me by surprise is how all political parties have united against Narendra Modi and are stooping to any level to bring him down, despite their own lack of clarity or ambition.

I know what you are thinking. The polls are being held in India, how does it affect us? Given the current situation of global connectivity, the government of one nation inherently also affects another nation. It doesn't hurt one to keep himself aware of international politics and when it comes to India, I find myself unwittingly alert and keen on how my motherland progresses with time. In the beginning of this column, I asked a million dollar question on what kind of political leader Mahatma Gandhi would have been. If one sits to contemplate all successful political leaders in the country, Narendra Modi comes first in mind. Yes, before you pounce at me, I know, Modi is not flawless. But then, who really is? I openly deject the notion of him being called a “rogue” and would like to put across my point of view openly and responsibly.

Yes, I left India decades ago, and yes, my passport isn't Indian, but as Raj Kapoor melodiously sang: “Mera joota hai Japani, ye Patloon Englishtani, Sar pe lal topi Rusi, fir bhi dil hai Hindustani.”

My patriotism towards India is not to be questioned, I won't allow it. While Britain is my Karmabhoomi, my love towards my Janmbhoomi still stands pure. After all, doesn't the Great Britain allow everyone to foster their own opinions?

I believe Narendra Modi is capable. He is involved. He is determined. He is patriotic, and most importantly, he is here for his people. Modi is working diligently to bring his country to the pedestal. He is always on his toes, a quality that is exemplary and essential in a Prime Minister. He took up reigns as the chief minister of Gujarat, and then took over as the PM. Modi has almost one and a half decade's worth of experience running the governments. And yet, there is not one person on this planet who can point their finger at him when it comes to personal corruption.

We might be staying abroad today, however, India's prevailing circumstances are our and our family's principal responsibility. Indian national politics affects the globe today. There was a time when only Russia even cared to

befriend India, and look at the country’s image upliftment today! Barring China and Pakistan, all other countries in the world openly stand beside India. While Palestine has always been friendly with India, now, its rival national Israel too expresses keenness towards it. India has maintained stable and balanced relations with both of them without miffing the other.

India conducted a much-needed airstrike on terrorist-cradling nation Pakistan, and not a single nation came forward and condemned India for doing so. In fact, countries came forward in support for us. The same was the case in the previous surgical strike. Dear Readers, these are flowers bloomed from the seeds planted by Narendra Modi.

Not only on the international level, Modi has paved quite the path on a national level too. Make in India, Skill India, Goods and Services Tax, zero balance facility-deriving Jan Dhan Yojana, curbs on corruption at the lowest level, there are several achievements to Modi's name. According to the government, 3.71 Lakh villages are free from public defecation and urination in the last 48 months. While toilets have been built in 77 Crore houses under the Swachh Bharat mission. 1,71,383 km long roads have been built under the Pradhan Mantri Dram Sadak Yojana. There is also the Ujjwala Yojana, and the Saubhagya Yojana that will provide electricity to each and every house in the rural areas.

Imagine women still using a wood fire stove for cooking, seven decades after independence. The lack of progress makes one cringe.

Zero tolerance towards black money. After the notorious demonetisation, 3 Lakh bogus companies were shut down. Over 20,000 companies with funding from abroad closed. To encourage self-employment, the Mudra Yojana offers up to Rs 7 Crore in loans without guarantee. 1.30 Crore houses for the economically challenged and the homeless, electricity in houses, were all promises made by the Congress in 2004, 2009, and 2014. However, they were all put into effect by Modi.

Today, streets in the most rural areas are lit with electricity. India has in effect, the world's largest health protection scheme that provides health provisions to more than 5 crore families. Over 5000 pharmacies to make medication affordable, broadband connections in 1.16 Lakh villages.

50,000 in 2016, and 1.86 Lakh bulletproof vests in 2018, to the jawans.

The list, as I have proven, is long. This is just the tip of the iceberg, the wonders Modi government has done to the country is beyond commendable. For those holding their breaths, I would like to says yes, the past five years under Modi has not been entirely rosy. However, if you compare him to the previous prime ministers, I feel all of us would agree he has been most effective and productive.

The Congress and other Opposition parties are currently high on their need to push Modi to the ground. It is with confidence that I say none of these parties would know what to do next if they win the polls. Who will be the leader of the so-called pack that is Mahagathbandhan? All these parties have come together only because of their dire need to watch Modi lose. They have little to no plans for the country otherwise. In case, India inadvertently elects them to win, it won't be seconds before they start pulling each other down for the post. On the other hand, the NDA has one , and only one person to take the reins- Shri Narendrabhai Modi.

Well-known politician Harry Emerson Fosdick rightly said, “Democracy is based upon the conviction that there are extraordinary possibilities in ordinary people.” A simple man, from simple roots, Modi took the opportunity provided by his office and with competence and potential, did his duty fairly. Now is our chance, to help him run the country better.

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Lambeth Basaveshwara Foundation celebrates Basaveshwara & Ambedkar’s birth anniversary Narendra Modi simultaneously unveiled the statue of Basaveshwara and Ambedkar’s house in London.

The Basaveshwara statue erected at the Albert Embankment is not only the first statue to be unveiled by an Indian Prime Minister in the UK, but is also the first conceptual statue approved by the

British Cabinet in the vicinity of the British Parliament.

Ambedkar House in London's Camden borough (10, King Henry’s Road, London NW3 3RP) was brought by Government of Maharashtra and converted into a museum, while acquiring higher education in London during 1921-1922, he lived in this house.

High Commissioner of India to UK, Mrs Ruchi Ghanashyam and the Deputy Indian High Commissioner, Mr Charanjeet Singh and Dr Neeraj Patil with others

both champions of liberty, freedom of speech and human rights. Members of Indian community took a pledge at the statue to oppose caste discrimination.

On 14th Nov 2015 Indian P r i m e Minister

paying tribute to both Basaveshwara and Ambedkar jointly because both share a conceptual relationship. Both opposed caste discrimination and gender inequality.”

Basaveshwara pioneered the idea of 'Democracy' in the 12th century, Ambedkar was the architect of Indian democracy and its Constitution. They were

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The event was organised by the former Mayor of the London borough of Lambeth, Dr Neeraj Patil on behalf of the Lambeth Basaveshwara Foundation, a non-profit organisation that own’s the intellectual property rights of the Basaveshwara statue and its vicinity.

Speaking on the occasion Dr Patil said, “We are

ar

Basaveshwara & Ambedkar’s birth anniversary was jointly celebrated as Anti-discrimination day in London.The Indian High Commissioner to UK, Mrs Ruchi Ghanashyam and The Deputy Indian High Commissioner, Mr Charanjeet Singh paid joint tribute to Basaveshwara and Ambedkar at Albert embankment in London.

Pianist wins Alumni of the Year award from University of Leicester

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Rekesh Chauhan (centre)- winner of the Alumni of the Year award

British Indian Pianist and composer Rekesh Chauhan has won the Alumni of the Year award from the University of Leicester.

Chauhan, 28, graduated from the University of Leicester with a first class honours degree in Economics (2011). He is the winner of the Young Musician of the Year 2018 award at the Southbank Centre London and Alumni of the Year Award from University of Leicester. He has performed at the Royal Albert Hall, British Houses of Parliament, Symphony Hall to name a few. His collaborations include Mercury Prize winner Talvin Singh OBE and many Bollywood playback singers including Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.

Chauhan’s recent album ‘Avartan’ earned him a no.2 position on the iTunes World Charts. As a 4th generation of the

Indian diaspora, his influence is pivotal in shaping and representing British Indians. He is a published book co-author and guest columnist.

Chauhan was selected as a ‘rising millennial’ to provide advisory assistance to the Government of India to strengthen bilateral relations and shape policy.

In 2018 he was selected as one of the 35 under 35 India-UK Young Leaders.

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20 - 26 April 2019

Does Hinduism discriminate against women?

With reference to Baroness Flather’s comment with regards to the Swaminarayan Santha priests remain isolated from seeing the faces of women in 21st centaury published in Asian Voice 13-19 April 2019.

Before I reply, I would like to make clear that Neasden temple’s devotees are giving excellent selfless services to the community. Swaminarayan have successfully spread the culture of Hinduism in the world. I whole-heartedly respect the teachings of Swaminarayan Bagwan.

Below is short reviews (March 2007) of two women published in travl.ciao.co.uk/Swaminarayan mandir Neasden.

Does Hinduism discriminate women?

I was open minded enough to visit the most beautiful temple outside India, however I was unfairly treated.

I took my boyfriend with me and to my surprise, the current Shri Swaminarayan wanted to speak to my boyfriend, rather than me and was told that ‘I wasn’t allow to see the Swaminarayan’.

When I asked the member of the staff about this, they said the Swaminarayan had taken a vow of ‘Chastity’!

Hinduism is supposed to be a philosophy rather than a doctrine religion and it is a shame that the religion is practiced in such a way by some people and the worst of all, women accept this injustice imposed on them.

Miss A By email A woman devotee of Neasden temple replies her with title:

Mutual Respect for the Sexes I wish to clarify the issue of speaking to sadhus and discrimination. Our sadhus are ordained and follow strict religious guidance’s. There are also appropriate lines of communication within the mandir infrastructure, which allow female devotees to write the sadhus through a male intermediary for any guidance or clarification should they wish to or want to.

Anyone who properly practices Hinduism will know that it does not discriminate against women on every stage of their life, ie education, marriage, childbirth, etc. in order to enrich their lives.

I feel that this review is an insult to Hindu females and even to the men who attend the Swaminarayan Mandir. To suggest that Hinduism discriminates against women creates prejudice, and hampers spiritual development is wrong. I totally disagree with this statement.

Miss B By email In the past I have written to the senior sadhus to abolish this out dated rules that has created lots of injustice to mankind especially to women. Sadhus of Swaminarayan Sanstha should realize we are all human beings of one God Why sadhus consider themselves as different?

Manoj Hemel Hempstead

Philanthropy - a way of life India is a vast, varied and a highly populated country and therefore our problems are also deep routed and complex that cannot be easily tackled. It is however heartening to know how the new generation of celebrities that include the Bollywood fraternity, as also several industrialists and businessmen, are contributing to tackle the mammoth problems that the nation is facing.

The Premji Foundation, floated by Wipro founder Azim Premji, is at the forefront of cracking educational problems in India. Other notable entrepreneurs in this list are Mukesh Ambani and Ajay Piramal who have committed substantial amount of their personal wealth to charitable purposes.

Shah Rukh Khan is active through his Meer Foundation and Make a Wish Foundation. Salman Khan has launched Being Human charity that provides education and healthcare services for the underprivileged in India. Many of these celebrities do not believe in showing off or talking about it anywhere.

With so many NGOs & charitable associations actively involved in varied areas, the positive impact will certainly be felt more and more as the years pass. Moreover, their efforts are supported by government initiatives also. It has been rightly said that the longest journeys in the world begin with a small step.

Bharat Shah Harrow What do you think?

We want to know your views on any issue. Write to: Asian Voice, 12 Hoxton Market, London N1 6HW or e-mail: aveditorial@abplgroup.com

Wild animal killing is a crime

Brexit heading towards a black hole

I was disgusted to hear that Ron Thomson has no regrets about killing 5,000 elephants and 50 hippos. His reasoning is that he is controlling the population of these majestic animals. Who, I wonder, gave him the God-given right to eliminate these animals?

It is cowardly to sneak up on these poor creatures and blast them with powerful guns. Hunting is a disgrace and brings shame to the human species.

Just as we have a law for war criminals, we need a law for crimes against animal species. Human beings crave for peace and despair at the violence that engulfs them and yet they are completely blase about killing animals. This violence rebounds on us and hangs on us like a immovable cloud of negativity which deprives us of the peace we desperately seek.

Nitin Mehta Croydon

It is really sad to see the way Brexit is heading. There is no agreement in the cabinet, in Tory membership and parliamentarians, with the Brexiteers, ERG, DUP and Labour party. Theresa May is digging a hole deeper and deeper into a black hole of no return, instead of getting out of it. She has stubbornly stuck with her uncompromising withdrawal agreement, which has been already rejected 3 times by the parliament.

This agreement has passed its sell by date, yet she is still clinging to it. This Brexit imbroglio, lack of decision and extending the dates unnecessarily has caused acute frustration, anger, disappointment and deep divisions amongst the British people.

The Prime Minister, Theresa May, her cabinet, parliamentarians, and the political parties have miserably failed in resolving the Brexit issue and have badly let down the people of United Kingdom. They will not be forgiven for their incompetence and failure. There has been complete lack of preparation and preparedness by the government to tackle this issue in the two years given to it negotiate the agreement, which has landed us in this huge mess.

Theresa May’s only option now is to dismount from her high horse and agree for a soft Brexit and move on other important issues facing the country. If she is not prepared to do that and with all doors closed now, her withdrawal agreement rejected, failure of the parliament’s indicative vote, opposition of the hard core Brexiteers and of DUP. The only way out for her is to go back to the people, who are now well aware of all the complexities and complications of Brexit negotiations. About which they did not know before nor were they told about it at the time of 2016 referendum. This time knowing all the facts, they will be able make an informed and correct decision for their and the future generations sake.

It is the responsibility of the government, all the political parties and other interested parties to give priority to the National interest first and not their own selfish interests.

Baldev Sharma Rayners Lane, Harrow

Revoke Article 50 On 29 March 2017, the United Kingdom invoked Article 50 of the treaty on European Union (EU), which began the member state’s withdrawal, commonly known as the Brexit, from the EU. Article 50 of the treaty on EU states that any member state can withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements. So we are all set to leave the EU on Friday the 19th of the month without a deal.

There are still calls for a second referrundum as the whole uncertainty surrounding the issue is damaging the economy. We understand from media reports that the PM wants the date to be extended to the end of June. Some MPs and others want the Brexit date to be extended to more than a year.

It would appear that the whole thing is being conducted in a shambolic way. Some say that we should stick to our guns and leave on Friday the 19th with or without a deal.

Since there are concerns about our exit from the mighty EU, why not go for a second referundum?

After all, the first referendum, when people voted 51 to 49 in favour of coming out was not very convincing.But what would leaving the EU without a deal mean? Would there be a shortage of medicines? Would diabetics die en masse without the import of life saving medicines, say for example, insulin? These uncertainties need to be fully addressed before it is too late.

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Reigniting race to the Moon When Russia, then Soviet Union (SU) launched sputnik way back in October 1957, America was caught napping, Soviet Union President Nikita Khrushchev taking full advantage on the propaganda front, the launch was followed by two more sputniks in space, in quick succession, one with a dog called Laika, the first living creature in space, who died after a week in orbit.

To make matters worse, first American launch exploded before take-off and SU also announced the successful launch of ICBM that created panic and inferior complexion on technology front, reignited arms race in earnest. Although President Eisenhower tried to play down the significance of the launch, American public demanded action.

No wonder, Eisenhower’s deputy, Vice President Richard Nixon lost to young, dynamic President John F. Kennedy who embarked on a ten year mission to put an astronaut on Moon, giving unlimited funding to NASA. He succeeded beyond his wildest dreams, America landing astronaut on Moon in 1968 well before deadline, although President Kennedy was not there to see his dream come true!

Recently Vice President Mike Pence, speaking on behalf of President Trump, celebrating 50th anniversary of first Moon landing in 1969, announced America’s intention to send first woman astronaut to Moon by 2024, followed by establishing Moon base to explore universe and launch manned mission to Mars. The last astronaut to walk on Moon was way back in 1972. One may wonder why America abandoned Moon mission! If it was continued, then America may have succeeded in putting a man on Mars well before now.

It seems America’s desire to enter space race has been ignited by Chinese success in landing a space-craft on dark side of the Moon, success never achieved before by any nation. America also feels that it is only a matter of time before China would land astronauts on Moon and unlike America and Russia, China would go on building permanent human settlements on Moon, not only to explore Universe but to use Moon as military base to subjugate the world. Mr Pen also announced Mr Trump’s desire to establish U S Space Force, to counter Chinese threat.

Whatever we may think of Mr Trump, he is street-wise politician, understands who are America’s real friends, including Russia and who poses real threat to Western world, namely China, unlike our holier-than- thou, self-righteous politicians living in their Ivory Tower, cut-off from reality at ground level! They cannot even negotiate a successful Brexit, let alone enter space race!

Bhupendra M. Gandhi By email

Garden of Eden At one time English people were known as keen gardeners.

When we first came here in mid-sixties, there were hardly any Asians, even in the East End where we first landed, bought our first home and settled down. Naturally our neighbours on both sides were friendly English people, ever ready to help and advise us.

Fortunately we were keen gardeners and although we did not know much, especially about English plants, flora and fauna, we loved roses, as they were so hard to grow in Dar, with hot climate all year round.

When we started planting flowers, especially tropical plants like African Marigold, Pink Rose, Sun Flower, Periwinkle and especially colourful roses, our neighbour was surprised, soon came to our aid, giving us tips. He was himself a keen gardener and his back garden was like floral shop.

There was a huge Sunday flower market near Mile End which he used to visit and buy most of his plants, in April or early May, taking us with him. That is how we developed our interest in gardening which is still with us, although with age and infirmity, we now go for ever-green permanent shrubs rather than seasonal plants.

Hanging baskets which were familiar sights in seventies, were seen as relics of gentler age, mainly confined to pubs, streets and few roundabouts, depending on Councils, how much they are able and willing to spend. But impetus, after a short interlude, is back in fashion, sales are up, mainly due to younger generation taking interest, posting on Instagram.

Even lustre plants used are vast and varied, with traditional petunias, ivy, begonias, supplemented with cacti, colourful chilli peppers and few more.

It is indeed sad to notice how beautiful streets and roundabouts are in most EU countries where streets and roundabouts are meretriciously decorated with colourful fountains, statutes, lights and flowers galore!

In Spain, with their sub-tropical climate, even central reserves, dividing duel carriages and motorways are planted with flowering shrubs with rubber pipeline to automatically water these plants, twice a day in hot weather, with exercise machines everywhere for people to use and keep fit!

How come Spain, a struggling economy can afford such expenses! Spanish OAPs also get annual two weeks paid holidays. Could it be that they are indirectly paid for by Britain and Germany through our EU monthly contribution of £1 billion! It is time for our politicians to wise up and the need of our people a priority!

Kumudini Valambia By email

We are grateful to all letter writers for more and more versatile letters well within word limit.

Please keep contributing as always.

If you are new, then write to Rupanjana at rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com - AV

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20 - 26 April 2019

Shortage of primary school Abuse of teachers leading to places leaves thousands of 'millions' in compensation children disappointed Almost 100,000 children will be dumped in failing primary schools this week amid a countrywide squeeze on places. On National Offer Day, nine per cent are expected to miss out on their first choice – although in some areas it will be as high as 30 per cent.

The shortage has been caused by a baby boom fuelled in part by high levels of immigration in the early 2000s. Data analysed by the New Schools Network, a charity which supports free schools, shows 95,000 children will be placed in failing schools – those rated 'inadequate' or 'requires improvement' by Ofsted. It also found 12,500 families are due to be offered places in failing schools which have not made any improvement since 2005.

Luke Tryl, director of NSN, said: 'Finding out which primary school your child is going to should be a time of excitement, but

today nearly 100,000 families will find out their child is being sent to a school that isn't good.'

Ofsted data shows that 2,223 primary schools are rated as 'inadequate' or 'requires improvement' and 290 have been stuck with these ratings since 2005. In total, across that 14-year period, 1million pupils will have attended these 'stuck' schools – two-thirds of which are in the North and Midlands.

Schools minister Nick Gibb said the system is much better than it was in 2010, because 87 per cent of primaries are now rated good or outstanding, compared with 67 per cent nine years ago.

Mr Gibb added: 'Even in instances where parents aren't getting the news they hoped for today, the likelihood is that their child will be attending a school which will provide a first-class education.'

Four out of ten teachers plan to quit Where do you see yourself in five years' time? No longer working in education, 40% of UK teachers surveyed by a teachers' union replied. It may sound like a cliched interview question, but the National Education Union says that the answer is evidence of a "culture of fear" in schools.

Its survey of 8,600 members found most of those leaving blamed "huge workloads and excessive accountability".

Education Secretary Damian Hinds has promised to tackle the workload issue.

NEU joint general secretary Kevin Courtney said: "The government is doing a far better job of driving

teachers out of the profession than they are solving the issue of excessive workload."

He said that the main problem was one of excessive accountability, adding: "So long as the main drivers of a performance-based system are still in place, schools will continue to be in the grip of fear, over-regulation and a lack of trust."

Mr Hinds has acknowledged that long hours and red tape are among the "biggest threats" to recruiting and retaining staff.

A spokesperson for the Department for Education said reducing teacher workload was a key part of its retention and recruitment

strategy.

"We have worked with school leaders and teachers to create a workload reduction toolkit, which provides practical advice and resources that schools can use rather than creating new ones from scratch.

“We are also tackling excessive data burdens in schools; simplifying the accountability system to target the associated burdens and working with Ofsted to ensure staff workload is considered as part of a school's inspection judgement," he added.

Recruitment targets for teachers have been missed in England for five years in a row.

Drivers lose parking fine fight after confusion at claims court The small claims court is usually the best way to get back your money or for challenging an unfair fine but this was not what happened to Suleman Sattar when he became embroiled in a battle with a parking company over an unpaid fine and found himself being taken to the small claims court and then left feeling unjustly treated when the hearing went ahead without him.

Suleman, 40, from Finchley in north London, had been hit with a £100 ticket last March for using his friend’s parking space in a private road on a housing estate near Colindale.

Speaking to The Times newspaper Suleman says his friend had given him per-

mission to park there and so he refused to pay the fine.

The parking firm took him to court.

He was given a hearing date of February 13, at Clerkenwell and Shoreditch county court in London. He prepared an 18-page dossier of evidence to support his case, including a statement from his friend confirming that he had permission to park in his space.

Suleman, a property investor with two young children, took the day off work to arrive an hour early for the hearing, ready to present his case before a judge. It had been scheduled to start after midday; the time was printed in bold type on an official court letter.

A solicitor for the parking company had been sent a different letter, with a 10am starting time, and the hearing had taken place then, denying Suleman the chance to argue his case. He showed his own letter to a member of court staff and was told the judgment would be struck out and another hearing arranged.

Suleman was given a new court date — Wednesday April 9. He informed the court he could not attend on that date, however, and had already paid the fine.

However, this did not stop the court sending him yet another letter confirming the hearing date, which it later said had been done in error.

UK teachers were awarded millions of pounds in compensation from schools last year after suffering "appalling treatment", a union has claimed.

The NASUWT teachers' union said its members had received £14.9m over the past 12 months as a result of attacks, injuries and discrimination at work.

One teacher received £10,000 after being racially abused more than a dozen times in 18 months, the NASUWT said.

The Department for Education said schools had a "duty" to protect staff.

The union also reported that a 54-year-old disabled member of teaching staff

received £45,000 after being dismissed for querying the failure to put in place reasonable adjustments to enable him to do his job.

He had multiple disabilities, including a form of arthritis, hypertension, gout and diabetes, which the employer was aware of.

Other cases included members experiencing assaults from pupils, discriminatory practices related to pregnancy-related and flexible-working requests, race discrimination and discrimination based on age, sexual orientation and religion or belief.

A DfE spokeswoman said: "No teacher should face discrimination or ill-

treatment in the workplace.

"The majority of schools provide safe and reasonable working environments for teaching staff, and it's important that they remain as such."

Despite winning financial compensation for many of its members, the NASUWT said it believed the recorded cases of abuse were "only the tip of the iceberg".

It added: "In most cases the money awarded does not compensate for the fact that a teacher's physical or mental health may have been affected and they can no longer work in their chosen profession."

Worsening child poverty harms learning, say teachers Poverty is harming children's capacity to learn and it's getting worse, suggests a survey of teachers. Pupils who go to school hungry from cramped, noisy homes where they can't sleep properly, struggle to learn says the National Education Union (NEU).

"I try to teach my phonics group as I am giving others cereal to eat," one teacher

told NEU researchers.

Ministers say employment is at a record high, wages outstrip inflation and fewer people are in "absolute" poverty. But the NEU says anecdotal evidence from its members suggests more families are falling into poverty.

More than 8,600 NEU members from across the UK responded to an online sur-

vey between March 20 and April 3. Of these, an overwhelming 91% said poverty was a factor in limiting children's capacity to learn, with almost half (49%) deeming it a major factor. Among state school teachers, the figures rose to 97% and 52%.

Overall, half the teachers who responded said pupil poverty was worse than in 2016.

12 MEDIA WATCH

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20 - 26 April 2019

SCRUTATOR’S The most divisive, abusive general election campaign in living memory ended its first phase merciful on April 10, with voting beginning the following day. The campaign resumed and descended at times to the pits; the BJP, on one occasion, described Congress as a pro-Pakistan and pro-terrorist party. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ego Amit Shah, the BJP President, kept up a sustained barrage of insults at their Congress opponents; Congress President Rahul Gandhi replied in kind, when it would have been in his and his party’s best interest to rely on elucidations of policies as the government in waiting – the tactic of a responsible opposition in most mature democracies.

Asian investors in India big time The epicentre of foreign investment in Indian startups is moving from North America (and perhaps Europe) to Asia, according to US-based venture capital firms such as Tiger Global and Sequoia Capital, Although still dominant, US firms are giving way to Asian heavyweights Softbank, Been-exit, Alibaba and Tencent. Data from research Venture Intelligence reveal that deals involving Chinese investors rose from 1 in 2013 to 27 in 2018, while deals backed by Japanese investors rose from 3 to 54 over the same period.

Supporting data from EY India point to the emergence of Singapore as a significant player with its India participation rising from 3 to 24 deals across the same timeline.

Stated reasons ‘Not only is the Indian startup ecosystem the third-largest after the United States and China, it also has the third-highest number of unicorns. So it’s no surprise that that global investors are lining up to join the party,’ said Vivek Soni, partner and zonal leader for PE Services EY India.

Digitizing economy

PM Modi, BJP learder L.K.Advani

It was left to the 91 year-old BJP veteran L.K. Advani to reprove those indulgent of smear tactics against their opponents.

According to Mr Advani, ‘The essence of Indian democracy is respect for diversity and freedom of expression. BJP has never regarded those who disagree with us as our enemies, but only as our adversaries. Similarly, we have never regarded those who disagree with us as anti-national…The party has been committed to freedom of choice of every citizen at personal as well as political level.’

Mr Modi responded thus: ‘Advaniji perfectly sums up the essence of BJP, most notably the guiding Mantra of Nation First, Party Next, Self Last.’ (Times of India April 5).

Rahul, Mamata at loggerheads Congress President Rahul Gandhi attacked Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader, Mamata Banerjee, who responded with the imbecilic riposte

Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee

targeting his alleged links with the RSS, widely seen as the power generator of the country’s Hindutva ideology. There are clearly no limits to political insanity. The Times of India’s opinion poll -– the last permitted by the Election Commission before voting commenced on April 11 – gave the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance 275 seats to the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance of around 164 seats in the new Lok Sabha.

Polling ends on May 23.

Voting begins The first day of voting was brisk, reminiscent of the 2014 general election, said some observers. The first phase of the elections in West Bengal’s Cooch Behar and Alipurduar; 80.85 per cent of the electorate cast their ballots in Cooch Behar, while in Alipurduar 80.58 per cent did likewise. Voting was largely peaceful, with scattered instances of violence, which were quickly brought under control. (Statesman April 12).

According to a recent Mckinsey Global Institute study, the Indian economy’s digitization has the potential to boost core sectors like IT, digital communication, and online retail, it also has a transformative potential in other areas of the economy such as financial services, agriculture, logistics and education. India has 560 million internet users. ‘The opportunity for leapfrogging is available to the poorest sections of society, as the lowest income states have seen the the biggest jump in mobile internet subscribers. So now education, healthcare and livelihood opportunities can be delivered to them which won’t have been possible in the PC driven internet age,’ said Alok Kshirsagar and Anu Madgavkar, co-authors of the McKinsey report. ‘This is not just about startups but also includes incumbents who are able to use technology to drive 30 to 40 per cent change in business outcomes.’ (Times of India March 31).

Canada welcomes Indian migrants Canada is set to offer hassle-free entry norms into the country to aspiring Indians - including those based in the US – with science, engineering, technology and mathematics (STEM) qualifications to make the most of its emerging job opportunities.

According to available statistics provided by Canada’s Immigration Ministry, 41,000-odd such entrees in 2018 were Indian. ‘We are attracting some of the most highly skilled people of the world through our global skills strategy,’ said Ahmed Husain, Minister, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship in a budget statement to Parliament in Ottawa. This more a strategic than an

immigration measure that companies were adopting to build more diverse and innovative teams, explained Vartika Manasvi, co-founder of Stackraft, a techtalent platform that matches skilled individuals with potential employees (Times of India April 10).

Germany, which were demolished along battlefronts along the route to Berlin, in the greatest war fought on earth (Business Standard April 9, with a contribution on Red Army by Asian Voice staff).

India’s new sniffer in the sky

The Indian Institute of Technology-Madras topped the list of excellence in India’s science institutions. The Indian Institute of Science, Bangasluru came second, followed by IITs-Delhi, Bombay, Kharagpur, Kanpur, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, IIT-Roorkee, IIT-Guwahati, with Banaras Hindu University in tenth place (Business Line April 9).

A few days after striking down a low earth satellite, A-Sat - the fourth country with such capability after the US, Russia and China – India launched a satellite designed to protect its assets, including protection of its fighter jets and spacecraft through detection of radars on enemy territory.

The Electro-Magnetic Intelligence Satellite will intercept radar signals and the kind of radar involved plus their location. This project is a collaborative exercise by the Indian Space Research and Organization (ISRO) and the Defence Reseach and Development Organization (DRDO), whose Director General Satheesh Reddy, said was a major milestone after A-Sat. ‘We were able to to enhance our capabilityies with two successes in a short time.’

ISRO’s PSLV C45 undertook unique manoeuvres to three different circular orbits and inject 28 foreign satellites. It also has specific uses for India (Times of India April 2).

IIT-Madras on top

Jamia’s first woman Vice Chancellor Professor Najma Akhtar has become the first woman Vice Chancellor of the Jamia Millia Islamia in its four-decade history.

According to her bio-data posted on the National Institute of Education and Administration (NIEPA) website, Professor Akhtar

NASA chief’s criticism Earlier, US space agency NASA Director issued a strong statement critical of India’s successful A-Sat launch for scattering space debris endangering American satellites.

This provoked an equally trenchant rebuttal strong from India’s former DRDO chief, V.K. Saraswat, who denied the NASA facts and pointed to previous US disapprovals of Indian science and technological breakthroughs, most notably the Pokhran nuclear tests of May 1998.

India’s Bofors ready for service In an important step forward the Indian Army has received the from country’s Ordinance Factory Board the first six Dhanush 155 millimetre artillery guns for the Indian Army. This is part of an order for 114 guns manufactured at Jabalpur. Described as the Indian Bofors, developed from the blueprint supplied by the Swedish Bofors company in the 1980s of its iconic model artillery weapon, of which India had bought 400 pieces, which proved their worth in the Kargil conflict in the summer of 1999. Now, the government’s Defence Acquisition Council has cleared the purchase of 414 Dhanush guns in tranches, so that the refining process of this formidable weapon could continue.

Overall, the Army has 218 field artillery regiments equipped with Dhanush. Artillery is an integral component in modern warfare. It Was the Soviet Red Army’s most devastating weapon of choice against the forces of Nazi

Najma Akhtar

is a gold medalist Aligarh Muslim University, completing her PhD [Education] from Kurukshetra University, and has been a Commonwealth Fellow at the University of Warwickshire UK, and trained at the International In000stitute of Educational Planning, Paris (Times of India April 12).

Supreme Court rejects Rafale secrecy plea The Supreme Court has rejected a secrecy plea on documents concerning the Rfale aircraft deal India signed with France. Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, who shared the lead judgement Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul, upheld a newspaper’s right to publish details of the deal.

‘The press in India greatly contributed to the strengthening of democracy in India, ‘ they said (Hindu April 11).

UN awards for Mamata govt Two West Bengal government projects for skill development and distribution of bicycles to students, have won the prestigious World Summit on the Information Society United Nations awards. West Bengal’s TMC government is headed by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee (Hindu April 12).

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AsianVoiceNews

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20 - 26 April 2019

Crossbow killer only wanted to confront ex-wife's new partner A man who shot his pregnant ex-wife with a crossbow claims he had only wanted to confront her new partner about allegedly forcing his daughter to live as a Muslim.

Ramanodge Unmathallegadoo, 51, killed 35-year-old Devi Unmathallegadoo at the home she shared with her husband on the morning of November 12 last year. Their arranged marriage had broken down in 2012 and she had since married builder Imtiaz Muhammad.

Unmathallegadoo, a former site manager at Newham General Hospital, allegedly became obsessed with getting revenge on the pair, and built up a cache of weapons costing thousands of pounds, even though he had been sleeping rough after losing his job. He spent the night before the attack sleeping in the victim's garden shed, armed with two

new crossbows, bolts, a hammer and a knife in a homemade sheath.

The defendant shot the pregnant women through the abdomen as she attempted to flee upstairs at the family home in Ilford, East London. She suffered catastrophic internal injuries and died a short while later, but her unborn son was delivered by emergency caesarean section and survived.

But in his evidence, Unmathallegadoo claimed he had only wanted to confront Mr Muhammad for allegedly forcing his 12-yearold daughter with his exwife to live as a Muslim.

Unmathallegadoo explained how he had spent more than two hours hoisting all his equipment over three garden fences and into the victim's garden shed on the evening before the killing. He denied stockpil-

Multiple stabbing and closure of South Harrow station On the evening of 15th April a video had emerged on social media which showed two youth groups fighting on the street on the Northholt Road in South Harrow.

The footage that was re-tweeted by the Harrow Police showed one of the gang members picking up a weapon and slamming it on the ground amidst shouting and fights.

This was followed by the closure of the underground station at South Harrow and one of the teenage victims being stabbed multiple times.

An eye witness described the fighting as ‘frightening’.

According to the witness- “I would say there were two groups of around 10 involved. At least one guy had been hurt, possibly badly.

Several ambulances arrived first, before any police arrived.”

Harrow MPS later tweeted about the incident as follows- “Officers are on scene at High Street, #Wealdstone #Harrow following reports of a teenage male being stabbed multiple times. His condition is currently unknown, a crime scene has been put in place. Please avoid the area whilst officers investigate the incident.”

1,800 Zambians can sue Vedanta says UK Supreme Court The UK's Supreme Court has ruled that thousands of Zambian villagers can now legally sue mining company Vedanta in the courts in London over alleged pollution in Zambia.

The Supreme Court's verdict comes amidst concerns raised by the claimants, who are all living in poverty, and would struggle to access justice in Zambia, a country that does not permit “no-win, no-fee” arrangements for claimants to pay legal fees.

The Court has said that the lawsuit brought by 1,800 Zambian villagers can be

heard in London despite arguments by Vedanta that the case should be tried by the Zambian courts.

The ruling is significant because it paves the way for more environmental claims to be brought in London against large multinationals with global operations — particularly from claimants living in poorer countries where there is a difficulty in accessing legal funding.

The ruling also indicates that companies have a duty of care to third parties for the commitments they make publicly regarding their subsidiaries.

Imtiaz and Sana Muhammad with one of their children. She was a mother of six and gave birth just before death from a crossbow arrow

ing weapons with the intention of killing his former partner, claiming that he had bought them to take back to his native Mauritius so he could go hunting with his brother. He claimed Mr Muhammad had prevented his daughter from celebrating Halloween or Christmas, and that he had confiscated a mobile phone he had given her.

The court heard Unmathallegadoo was barred from contacting his children by a restraining

order, but claimed he had spoken to his daughter on her way to school. The defendant told the court how he felt about his wife having two more children with Mr Muhammad, and her pregnancy.

He said both Mr Muhammad and the victim had tried to run upstairs and that he had been aiming the crossbow into the wooden railing of the bannisters to make a loud noise and scare the couple. The trial continues.

ISIS bride Begum allowed legal aid Shamima Begum, 19-yearold teenager from Bethnal Green who had joined the Islamic State in 2015 is slated to be granted legal aid to fight Sajid Javid's decision of stripping her off her citizenship. While, Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt has said that the idea of the provision of legal aid makes him “very uncomfortable”.

The legal aid that is expected to be granted covers a case before the semisecret Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC), which adjudicates on cases where the Home

Secretary has stripped someone of their nationality on grounds of national security.

However, labour leader Jeremy Corbyn argued Ms Begum had the right to apply for legal aid.

"She is a British citizen," he said. "She's therefore entitled to apply for legal aid if she has a legal problem just like anybody else is."

Meanwhile Javid said that decision of granting legal aid depends on the organisation and not for the ministers.

500 illegal schools uncovered by Ofsted Almost over 500 schools are suspected to be illegal and educating thousands of children across the UK in the last three years, according to data published by Ofsted.

According to the report some of these schools were found in an appalling condition with rat traps, exposed wires and open sewers. In one, pupils were left to play computer games

all day, while in another inspectors found children in every classroom repeating religious texts with no other apparent education going on.

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said they had already signalled its intention to legislate to enable Ofsted gather evidence to support prosecutions and help close down illegal schools.

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British Asian diaspora's economic contribution On 10th April at Prime Minister's Questions, Conservative MP Shailesh Vara, made a reference to the contribution of the British Indian disapora to the UK's economy.

“Does she agree that the diaspora should be commended for the fact that, despite comprising 4% of the UK population, they contribute some 10% of taxes to the Treasury?” asked the former minister of state for Northern Ireland.

The UK is India’s fourth largest inward investor and the Indian diaspora in the UK of around 1.5 million is not only one of the largest ethnic minority communities but also one of the most productive, contributing around 6 percent to the country’s GDP. Theresa May took the floor of the Parliament to

Shailesh Vara

“welcome the contribution that the Indian diaspora make to our country. My hon. Friend has referenced the economic contribution they make through their taxes, but many of them run successful businesses that employ people up and down the country, many of them are successfully exporting from this country and supporting our economy.” she said.

UAE's Finablr plans to list on London Stock Exchange Finablr, a UAE based payments company founded by Indian billionaire Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty has confirmed its plans to proceed with an Initial Public Offer on the London Stock Exchange which could raise over £153m.

The company's other brands include UAE Exchange, Travelex Holdings and Xpress Money but it plans to sell at least 25% of its equity.

The company is expected to be listed in May while the sale prospectus is expected to be published

by May 1.

The move follows Middle East payments firm Network International listing in London last week, while Italian payments firm Nexi is due to debut in Milan this week with a valuation of 5.7 billion euros ($6.4 billion).

Last year Finablr said it processed 150m transac-

Founder Bavaguthu Raghuram Shetty

tions, managing around $115bn in volumes for its customers.

In his statement to City A.M. Chief Executive Promoth Manghat said: “Through Finablr we have consolidated our global business and assets onto a common integrated platform combining agile and scalable technology, best in class operating capabilities, and our broad pay-in and pay-out network”.

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14 COMMUNITY

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Inaugural BAPS Charities Women's indoor cricket tournament in London More than 160 players from across the UK participated in the Bhakti Cup – a national community indoor women’s cricket tournament organised by BAPS Charities at Harrow Leisure Centre on Sunday 7 April 2019.

This was the first women’s cricket tournament to be organised by BAPS, and was inaugurated

by Sangeeta Theivendra, a talented cricketer and City Programme Executive (London) at the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB), and Sharon Eyers, Cricket Development Manager at Middlesex Cricket.

A signed cricket bat from His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, and the ICC Women’s World Cup trophy granted by the ECB were displayed to commemorate the occasion.

The opening ceremony included the reading of blessings from Mahant Swami Maharaj and prayers for the spirit of teamwork and unity to prevail.

Sangeeta Theivendra addressed the participants

with words of motivation: “Determination, perseverance and passion are the three key ingredients that have helped women to achieve so much in every arena.” She also shared her cricketing journey and spoke of her passion for cricket. Sharon Eyers, recognised as the first woman to

secure a job a county cricket club, elaborated on the core values of the game and the spirit with which it should be played.

The competition began in earnest thereafter. Vocal support and encouragement from spectators echoed throughout the playing area as they cheered every run

and wicket enthusiastically.

The teams exhibited a very high standard of cricket throughout the tournament.

The final brought together Brent and Birmingham where Brent prevailed victorious in an evenly contested match, claiming the first Bhakti Cup trophy.

The tournament proved to be an overwhelming suc-

BAPS Arts student wins borough talent contest A young student from the BAPS Akshar Arts Academy has won first prize in the ‘Spelthorne’s Got Talent’ competition – a boroughwide talent contest.

Param Patel, aged 10, won the prize for his masterful performance of the tabla – an Indian percussion instrument. Param has developed his talent at the Akshar Arts Academy run by BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, London (popularly known as the ‘Neasden Temple’).

Param has performed at various cultural events in front of thousands of people at the BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir. He has also performed at an interfaith music event at the British Museum, and the Language Show in London’s Kensington Olympia. In addition to the tabla, Param also plays the guitar and keyboard.

‘Spelthorne’s Got Talent’ is a borough-wide talent contest open to all ages, endorsed by the Mayor of Spelthorne, Councillor Jean Pinkerton OBE. It is open to singers, dancers, actors, poets, musicians, comedians, artists, magicians and more.

13 finalists from the borough competed at the John Crook Theatre in Shepperton on Friday 22 March 2019. Cllr Pinkerton presented the trophy to Param, who also

incredible sense of community. The audience were hugely supportive.

I would like to thank everyone who donated their time and resources to this project, raising lots of money for charity and giving all the contestants an experience they will remember for years to come.”

Param’s Mayor of Spelthorne, Councillor Jean Pinkerton OBE father Hitesh with Param Patel and mother received a two-hour recordBhavika, shared, “Param has ing session at Skyline Studios worked very hard, practising and a tour of Pinewood for 30 minutes daily to develStudios.The difficult job of op his proficiency. We’re picking the winners was especially grateful for all the given to a panel of judges guidance and support he’s including Nina Wadia, who received from everyone in have a wealth of experience the Bal-Balika Mandal [chilin theatre, dance, music and dren’s forum] at Neasden acting.

Mandir. They’ve helped to Spelthorne Council’s Arts not only nurture his musical and Wellbeing Officer, abilities but also his focus in Catherine Learmonth, said, education and just all-round “Spelthorne’s Got Talent has development and confidence. provided an opportunity for We’re both very proud of the local talent to showcase their commitment he has shown skills in a professional enviand the sacrifices he has ronment and highlighted an made to achieve this award.”

cess which encouraged youths and adults leading busy lifestyles to engage in some healthy activity and helped foster positive community relations. Many inspiring stories of women juggling their professional and family lives to attend practices and develop their technical cricketing skills provided a testimony of the commitment and passion with which the tournament was received.

Rakhee Shah, one of the organisers of the event, said, “It’s thanks to all the players and supporters, many of whom travelled long distances to take part, that the tournament was such a wonderful success. We’re especially grateful for all the support of Neasden Temple [BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, London] for helping organise the tournament and encouraging so many women to get involved.”

Ram Navami celebration at Neasden Temple The divine manifestation of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Bhagwan Rama was celebrated over the weekend of 13 and 14 April 2019 at the Neasden temple, London.

An evening cultural programme of devotional singing, presentations and short sketches involving children, youths and elders was held at the Mandir on Saturday 13 April to mark this joyous occasion. Their performances drew upon the Bhagwan Swaminarayan’s message of faith and knowledge of God’s greatness encapsulated in the Vachanamrut – a compilation of 273 spiritual discourses delivered by Bhagwan Swaminarayan containing the profound wisdom of Hindu scriptures. This year celebrates 200 years since the first Vachanamrut was delivered.

Swamis discoursed on these messages further, narrating inspiring accounts of faith from devotees amid hardships and adversity. Video blessings from His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj brought these concepts together before youths performed a vibrant and colourful dance in honour of the Vachanamrut to

provide an uplifting conclusion to the assembly.

Chaitra sud 9 is the Hindu calendrical day on which Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Bhagwan Rama manifested on earth. This year the day fell on Sunday 14 April and was marked with a host of devotional festivities at the Mandir, including a ceremonial offering of food (the ‘annakut’), singing, chanting, and an evening assembly.

A special musical programme was held in the evening where youths, senior devotees and swamis sang a series of devotional songs extolling the greatness and glory of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Bhagwan Rama. Their devotional hymns were

accompanied by the melodious sounds of various musical instruments and interspersed with short commentaries.

In his keynote address, Yogvivek Swami, Head Swami of the Mandir, drew upon the exemplary lives of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and Bhagwan Rama and encouraged everyone to incorporate their teachings into daily spiritual living.

The evening assembly culminated with a special arti at 10.10pm, signifying the precise time Bhagwan Swaminarayan chose to be born to mother Bhaktimata in the small north Indian village of Chhapaiya. The birth of Bhagwan Rama was marked with an arti earlier in the day at noon.

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A stain on Wembley’s streets Paan and gutka spitting challenged with new communityled campaign Cllr Muhammed Butt and Cllr Krupa Sheth at a local shop

Rupanjana Dutta People who spit paan on the streets of Wembley faced a rude awakening this weekend. Local volunteers, together with councillors, launched a campaign with two days of action to tackle the problem of paan spitting in the area.

Paan is a leaf-based mixture, popular in Asia, which is customarily chewed and spat out. When it dries, the gutka tobacco leaves a dark red, blood-like stain on pavements which is difficult and costly to remove. Brent Council spends around £30,000 getting rid of paan stains each year.

To tackle the problem, volunteers took to the streets of Wembley last weekend (April 13 and 14) to talk to local people and businesses about the environmental, health and hygiene implications of public paan spitting and drum up support for the new Brent Paan Action Network.

The volunteers were supported by street cleaning and enforcement teams

from Brent Council.

Enforcement patrols have been stepped up, with public paan spitters facing on-the-spot fines of £100, while the pavements of Ealing Road and Wembley High Road were jet washed by Veolia to remove the existing stains.

Councillor Krupa Sheth, Lead Member for Environment, said: "Paan and gutka spitting is disgusting and a stain on our community. It costs Brent council £30,000 a year to clean up these stains and at a time where our budget has been slashed by 79%, this money could be used on more vital services for our residents. We want people to love where they live and work."

The campaign is supported by the Brent Indian Association, Diu Kadia Nyati Samaj UK, Bharatvasi On Duty, Federation of Patidar Associations, and Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, a Hindu temple in Wembley which is beset by paan stains.

But speaking to Asian

Cllr Krupesh Hirani, Cllr Muhammed Butt and Cllr Krupa Sheth

Voice, Pankaj Shah owner of the Panachand Pan House in Wembley's Ealing Road told the newsweekly that there are several posters on the window of their shop to ask people not to spit on the roads, but people don't care.

“They even spit on the posters and go. I have been around for 32 years. More than 20 years there have been no spitting on the

streets. These are new Asian immigrants and in the country for no more than 5 years.”

When asked if they have complained to the council, he added, “Yes many times.

The wardens used to fine but the councils took them off in a month. If they were there for 6 months or a year, it would have been effective.”

JUSTICE AT LAST Continued from page 1

That led to a scathing 60-page judgment criticising the Home Office. One of these cases have been reportedly 'quashed' while the other three will be allowed to appeal, including one in which the court said there was “at least arguably, a distinct unlawfulness, in that the secretary of state failed to make an explicit finding of dishonesty.”

The judgment handed down by Lord Justice Underhill, Lord Justice Hickinbottom and Lord Justice Singh concluded, "The formal result is that each of these four appeals will be allowed...

"The approach taken by the Secretary of State in deciding to refuse the applications for leave to remain in each of these cases on paragraph 322(5) grounds

which we take to have been his general approach in all earnings discrepancy cases was legally flawed.”

The judges concluded that the Home Office proceeded directly from finding discrepancies in filed taxes by applicants that were already resolved by the HMRC saying that the applicants were dishonest, without giving them an opportunity to "proffer an innocent explanation".

They also lay out a number of procedural directions, which are likely to affect future similar cases.

Ashis Balajigari from Hyderabad said, "It is a big relief but it has been a very long and difficult journey.”

His application for ILR must now be reassessed after the court found that he had not been given "an opportunity to make representations" in response to

an allegation that he had "acted dishonestly" over what he had submitted was a rectified error.

Somnath Majumder, was also found to have been "plainly flawed" and a "clear breach of the duty of procedural fairness by the Secretary of the State.”

Majumder, who is believed to have since returned to India, has had the refusal of his settlement right in the UK quashed.

Indian-origin Avais Kawos, his wife and children are also be among those whose case must be reconsidered, alongside the case of Pakistani national Amor Albert.

A Home Office spokesperson said that the department would consider the judgment and its response to it carefully, "The Court agreed that the use of paragraph 322(5) is

appropriate in these types of cases and that we are right to expect a full and convincing explanation from people when there are discrepancies in their tax records and immigration applications.”

There are more than 70 other 322(5) appeals or applications for permission to appeal pending before the court and an unknown number of challenges pending in the first-tier tribunal or upper tribunal.

Many of these affected people have lived here for more than a decade and have UK born children.

Some were given only 14 days to leave, without any permission to apply for any other category visa. Those who stayed on and appealed, face severe restrictions on their right to work, have a bank account, driving licence or access NHS treatment that is free.

UK

15

On the precipice or business as usual?

In 2005, we, in Britain were around 20% richer than we are today.

Sterling has never recovered. 13 years on and we are still hovering at 80% of the value of the pound in 2005. In the same time period, our country has only ever grown once by more than 1%. Every year our economy has drudged along at less Sachin Nandha than 0.8% growth per annum. Chief Executive PillboxCapital 3 We achieved this dismal feat with cheap credit. We’ve never had credit so cheap and for so long. Yet, growth is near zero!

Between 2005 and today, our national output, that is things we produce has been oscillating between 2% and -3%. Our net average has been somewhere near 0.5% growth in production. Construction across the country has been wavering near zero and with peaks at 2% and troughs at -5%. So, we haven’t really been building much either, despite the blocks of flats we keep seeing on the London skyline; of course, the UK is slighter bigger than London.

With cheap money, and ease of borrowing one might think that we’ve been spending our way out of trouble. But not so. Retail has on average between 2005 and today has been around 1%. The high street is dying, and many household brands are shutting shop or on the verge of doing so. Investments have been volatile. Year on year, there is some euphemism that ‘now things will get better’, and we see a rise in investments across business sectors. Then the markets give less than spectacular returns and everybody pulls back. Investments on average have been bobbing up and down between 5% and negative 5%.

Then there’s the biggie. Real estate. The average house price has risen from £150k in 2005 to over £220k today. Yet, growth as a percentage after some big waves of plus 10% and then negative 10%, have on the whole been slowly, but surely, coming down to zero. Over the last four years house prices across the country are zeroing in. The trajectory is clear.

But there is some good news, or so they tell us, that employment is higher than ever, and for the first time in 10 years pay has risen above inflation. So, there’s more money for employed people.

With so much cheap money, and ease of borrowing around, two things we should be asking: 1) where on earth is the growth? and 2) where is the inflation?

I don’t think there are too many people out there who can conclusively answer these questions. And if there are then I’ve not found them. Either way, we find ourselves in a Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA) environment. In this climate where do we find some degree of certainty?

Healthcare.

This is the time to invest in healthcare related opportunities. The macro indicators are all favourable. If we want growth over the next 10-years, then investing in healthcare is where we should be turning our gaze.

My crystal ball tells me healthcare in this country over the medium term will be relatively well incubated and will see real growth in returns.

The challenge is how do you get direct access to investments in healthcare?

To find out more about PillboxCapital visit: www.pillboxcapital3.com or call 0116 274 0707

16

ELECTION SPECIAL

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20 - 26 April 2019

17

20 - 26 April 2019

Moderate polling in phase 1 of Lok Sabha election 115 LS seats to go to the polls on April 23 The first phase of polling for Lok Sabha elections on April 11 saw long lines of voters in several places with turnouts across 20 states more or less matching the voting percentages recorded in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls with Tripura and West Bengal topping the charts at 81.8% and 80% respectively. J&K recorded brisk polling - 72% in Jammu and a creditable 35% in terrorism-affected Baramulla, which was not far from 38.5% clocked in 2014.

Polling is now complete in 10 states and Union Territories.

Also, assembly elections concluded in Andhra Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh, while Odisha had the first phase.

Given that this is the first Lok Sabha election where VVPATs were used on a 100% basis, the EC reported a minimal replacement of 0.73% of EVM ballot units, 0.61% of EVM control units and 1.7% VVPATs. Cash seizures so far are double those of the entire 2014 election at £60.7 million.

There were a few incidents of violence in Chhattisgarh, and a polling party came under attack in Maoist-hit Gadchiroli in Maharashtra. An IED blast

the Lok Sabha, reported a dip in voter turnout. Eight Lok Sabha seats in Western UP that went to polls on April 11 recorded a 63.69 per cent turnout. Except for Gautam Buddh Nagar and Meerut, all of them reported lower polling percentage compared to 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Three Union ministers VK Singh from Ghaziabad, Satyapal Singh from Baghpat and Mahesh Sharma from Gautam Buddh Nagar - were in the fray in the first phase of polling. Ghaziabad recorded a 55.78 per cent voter turnout this time - a marginal low of 1.16 per cent compared to the 2014 polls, according to the poll data. Here, the main contest is between Union minister VK Singh, Suresh Bansal of the SP-BSP-RLD combined and Dolly Sharma of the Congress.

Gautam Buddh Nagar registered a marginal high of 0.08 per cent in polling - from 60.39 per cent in 2014 to 60.47 per cent this time. But seats like Kairana, Baghpat, Bijnor, and Saharanpur reported a low turnout.

According to the Election Commission (EC), Saharanpur recorded a 70.82

occurred at Narayanpur in Chhattisgarh. No casualties were reported.

Within 48hours of MLA’s death in blast, kin turn up to vote In an inspiring display of fortitude, family of slain BJP MLA Bhima Mandavi turned up to vote on Thursday, less than 48 hours after his assassination by Maoists in Dantewada. Mandavi’s widow Ojaswi, her in-laws and six other members of the family stood in queue as they waited for their turn to vote. As if to send a message to Maoists, 77% voters in nearby Shamgiri - where Mandavi was killed cast their ballot.

In Malkangiri, some booths recorded zero polling Shyamgiri, where BJP MLA Bheema Mandavi was killed by Maoists few days prior to voting along with four police personnel, recorded 77% polling. In Naxal-affected Malkangiri in Odisha, a couple of polling stations recorded zero polling.

UP sees dip in polling percentage Uttar Pradesh, that elect the largest number of MPs to

per cent, Kairana 67.46 per cent, Muzaffarnagar 68.22 per cent, Bijnor 64 per cent, Meerut 64.18 per cent and Baghpat 64.22 per cent voting.

Communally-sensitive Kairana witnessed a sharp fall in poll percentage - from 73.10 per cent in 2014 to 67.46 per cent this time. Saharanpur recorded a 3.44 per cent lower turnout, followed by Muzzafarnagar (-1.52 per cent), Baghpat (-2.53 per cent) and Bijnor (-3.88 per cent) compared to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

UP, with 80 Lok Sabha seats, is the decisive factor on who gets to form the government at the Centre.

In the 2014 elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 71 seats in the state.

Political experts say the lower turnout may be a bad signal for foes-turnedfriends Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati.

Low turnout in Telangana The case is not different for Telangana, too. In its first Lok Sabha elections after getting statehood, Telangana witnessed a major drop in voting turnout. Out of 17 seats, not

a single constituency of Telangana could surpass 2014 turnout level of previous Andhra Pradesh.

However, Telangana reported an estimated 62.69 per cent turnout. Nizamabad, where 170 farmers were in the fray for the single phase voting, recorded a 68.33 per cent vote. While, in 2014 elections, Nizamabad reported a 69.11 per cent turnout.

Whereas, Hyderabad reported more than 8 per cent lower turnout with 44.75 per cent in this elections, despite the month-long campaign by Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to ensure a higher voter turnout.

The two Lok S a b h a constituencies Secunderabad and Malkajgiri registered a 46.26 per cent and 49.4 per cent voting respectively.

Also, the Chevelle Lok Sabha constituency recorded a 53 per cent polling.

Nagarkurnool witnessed a maximum drop of 13.26 per cent in voting from last Lok sabha elections.

61.81 per cent voting in Maharashtra Maharashtra reported 61.81 per cent voting in the seven Lok Sabha constituencies in the first phase of the elections. Out of seven seats, four registered a lower turnout than the last Lok Sabha elections. BhandaraGondiya recorded a 68.27 per cent, 4.04 per cent lower than

the 2014 turnout (72.31 per cent).

Similarly, the battleground of cabinet minister Nitin Gadkari, Nagpur recorded a turnout of 54.74 per cent, 2.38 per cent low against 2014.

Higher voting in Andhra Andhra Pradesh polling percentage is slightly higher than 2014 elections (77.80 per cent) with 79.64 per cent turnout. The details of voting percentage are awaited as some parties demanded repoll on some booths.

All five seats of Uttarakhand witnessed a slightly lower turnout than the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Over 59.89 per cent of the 78.56 lakh voters exercised their votes on Thursday in comparison to 61.50 per cent in 2014.

Positive turnout in Bihar However, Bihar registered a positive turnout on four Lok Sabha seats.

Gaya recorded 56 per cent voting followed by Jamui standing at 55.3 per cent, Nawada at 52.5 per cent and Aurangabad at 53.6 per cent vote.

80 per cent voting in Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim Voting in northeastern states has seen major turnout as usual, as Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim recorded around 80 per cent turnout. Arunachal east and west recorded 73.53 per cent and 62.36 per cent votes respectively.

Meghalaya's Tura and Shillong posted higher turnout from the last election. Mizoram posted figures around 63 per cent.

A total of 91 Lok Sabha seats across 18 states and two Union territories have gone for polls in the first phase.

Over 142 million voters have decided the fate of 1,279 candidates in the 91 constituencies.

2 killed as TDP, YSRC cadre clash in Andhra Violence broke out during elections in Andhra Pradesh

Bhaskar is a follower of TDP MP JC Diwakar Reddy.

At Puthalapattu assembly constituency in Chittoor, YSRCP’s candidate MS Babu was allegedly kidnapped by TDP workers. He was taken to an orchard and beaten up.

Babu, however, managed to escape. He was later rushed to hospital by police. The Election Commission said 20 incidents of violence were reported across the state.

EVMs damaged In Guntakal assembly segment in Anantapur district, Jana Sena candidate K Madhusudan Gupta threw an EVM on the ground damaging it. At Narasaraopet in Guntur district, an EVM was damaged in a clash between YSRCP and TDP workers. News agency IANS reported another five incidents of EVMs being damaged in Arunachal Pradesh, two in Manipur, and one each in Bihar and West Bengal.f EVMs had been reported in earlier polls, told reporters that legal action would be taken against persons involved in such actions.

Complaints of EVM snags While there were complaints

The Phase 3 of the Lok Sabha election for 115 seats across 14 states and Union will take place on April 23. Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal will witness voting in some Lok Sabha seats. All parliamentary constituencies in Gujarat, Kerala, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa and Daman and Diu will vote in this phase.

There are 82 candidates in the fray for five constituencies. Maximum 20 candidates each are in Khagaria and Supaul followed by 17 in Jhanjharpur and 13 in Madhepura. 12 candidates are in Araria constituency.

Some of the prominent candidates in UP included Shivpal Singh Yadav (Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia) from Firozabad, Rajveer Singh (Bharatiya Janata Party) from Etah and Saleem Iqbal Sherwani (Congress) from Badaun.

BJP president Amit Shah,

Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai of Bharatiya Janata Party and Vijay Parmar of Bahujan

election from Gujarat.

Amongst them, 262 candidates (19%) have

(29%) are crorepatis and Rs.3.05 crore is the average asset of a candidate. 45 per

crorepatis. Andaman and Nicobar Islands have the lowest number (just 13 per

as clashes between TDP and rival YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) left two persons dead and scores wounded.

The acrimonious electoral battle between chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and YSRCP leader Jaganmohan Reddy, as the state held simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha polls, was marred by allegations of rigging, kidnapping of a candidate, damages to electronic voting machines (EVMs) and violations of the model code of conduct.

YSRCP activist Venkataramanappa was killed during a political clash at T Sadum village in Thamballapalle assembly constituency in Chittoor district. In another clash, TDP worker Chinta Bhaskar Reddy died as activists of the two parties attacked each other with sticks and stones at Veerapuram village in Anantapur district. YSRCP worker Pulla Reddy received severe head injuries and his condition is said to be critical.

of EVM snags and glitches, especially in Andhra Pradesh with CM N Chandrababu Naidu complaining to the EC, the commission said data on replacement of EVMs and VVPATs showed an improvement over previous elections.

A poll officer deployed in Tirap, Arunachal Pradesh, died of a heart attack, the EC said.

Seizure of cash, liquor Seizures by the EC till April 11 touched £242.6 million, more than double the overall figure for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The seizures included £60.7 million in cash (as against £30.3 million seized in 2014), liquor worth £19.8 million, drugs totalling £109.1 million, gold worth £48.6 million and other freebies worth £4.8 million.

As for complaints from some constituencies about voters not finding their names in the rolls upon reaching the polling station, the EC said it had already initiated the ‘GoVerify’ campaign to avoid such eventualities.

Kagathara Lalitbhai, Ahmed Patel & Paresh Dhanani of Congress, Kundaria

Samaj Party are a few prominent candidates contesting for general

criminal records, 147 of them (11%) are facing criminal charges, 397 of the candidates

cent candidates from Uttar Pradesh and 40 per cent candidates from Haryana are

cent) of crorepati candidates.

Kerala with 20 Lok Sabha seats have 29 per cent candidates with criminal background. Lakshadweep with just one Lok Sabha seat has 50 per cent criminal background candidates.

Jammu and Kashmir has no criminal background candidates in the third phase of polling. Just one Lok Sabha constituency in J&K is going to polls in this phase.

Kameshar Baitha, a Trinamool Congress candidate from Palamau in

State-wise list of constituencies Assam (4 seats) Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Gauhati Bihar (5 seats) Jhanjharpur, Supaul, Araria, Madhepura, Khagaria Chhattisgarh (7 seats) Surguja, Raigarh, Janjgir-Champa, Korba, Bilaspur, Durg, Raipur Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1 seat) Daman and Diu (1 seat) Goa (2 seats) North Goa, South Goa Gujarat (26 seats) Kutch, Banaskantha, Patan, Mahesana, Sabarkantha, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad East, Ahmedabad West, Surendranagar, Rajkot, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Amreli, Bhavnagar, Anand, Kheda, Panchmahal, Dahod, Vadodara, Chhota Udaipur, Bharuch, Bardoli, Surat, Navsari, Valsad.

Jammu and Kashmir (1 seat)

Karnataka (14 seats) Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Bellary, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davanagere, Shimoga Kerala (20 seats) Kasaragod, Kannur, Vadakara, WAyanad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Ponnani, Palakkad, Alanthur, Thrissur, Chalakudy, Ernakulam, Idukki, Kottayam, Alappuzha, Mavelikkara, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, Attingal, Thiruvananthapuram Maharashtra (14 seats) Jalgaon, RAver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Raigad, Pune, Baramati, Ahmednagar, Madha, Sangli, Satara, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Kolhapur, Hatkanangle Odisha (6 seats) Sambalpur, Keonjhar, Bhubaneswar

Dhenkanal,

Cuttack,

Puri,

Uttar Pradesh (10 seats) Moradabad, Rampur, Sambhal, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah, Badaun, Aonla, Bareilly, Pilibhit West Bengal (5 seats) Balurghat, Maldaha Uttar, Maldaha Dakshin, Jangipur, Murshidabad

Paresh Dhanani

Jharkhand has declared 109 serious criminal cases against him. Narendra Mohanty of AAP contesting from Kandhamal in Odisha is

facing 28 serious criminal cases.

Kameshwar Yadav, SP candidate from Chattra is facing 20 criminal cases.

Nine candidates have declared cases related to murder and 29 have declared cases related to attempt to murder.

9 candidates have declared cases related to crime against women which includes even rape.

Party-wise candidates with serious criminal cases: The BJP tops the list with 38 of its candidates (48%) facing criminal cases.

21 Congress candidates (29%) and 15 of the AAP (19%) are also facing criminal cases.

The Congress has 82 per cent crorepati candidates, the BJP is second with 54 per cent crorepati candidates.

46% AAP candidates are also crorepatis.

The Congress candidate from Kurukshetra in Haryana, Naveen Jindal is the

richest

candidate

with

Ahmed Patel

declared assets worth Rs.308 crore.

Union minister Kamalnath from Chhindwara has declared assets worth Rs.206 crore.

Ramanuj Patel of Samaik Parivartan Party from New Delhi is the poorest candidate with declared assets worth just Rs 100 (one hundred rupee). 52 per cent of the candidates have not declared their income tax details, while 48 per cent have declared it.

48 per cent of the candidates are graduates and above; 47 per cent are 12th pass and below. While 2 per cent of the candidates have not given their educational qualification details, 1 per cent nominees are illiterate.

16

ELECTION SPECIAL

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ELECTION SPECIAL

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20 - 26 April 2019

17

20 - 26 April 2019

Moderate polling in phase 1 of Lok Sabha election 115 LS seats to go to the polls on April 23 The first phase of polling for Lok Sabha elections on April 11 saw long lines of voters in several places with turnouts across 20 states more or less matching the voting percentages recorded in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls with Tripura and West Bengal topping the charts at 81.8% and 80% respectively. J&K recorded brisk polling - 72% in Jammu and a creditable 35% in terrorism-affected Baramulla, which was not far from 38.5% clocked in 2014.

Polling is now complete in 10 states and Union Territories.

Also, assembly elections concluded in Andhra Pradesh and Arunachal Pradesh, while Odisha had the first phase.

Given that this is the first Lok Sabha election where VVPATs were used on a 100% basis, the EC reported a minimal replacement of 0.73% of EVM ballot units, 0.61% of EVM control units and 1.7% VVPATs. Cash seizures so far are double those of the entire 2014 election at £60.7 million.

There were a few incidents of violence in Chhattisgarh, and a polling party came under attack in Maoist-hit Gadchiroli in Maharashtra. An IED blast

the Lok Sabha, reported a dip in voter turnout. Eight Lok Sabha seats in Western UP that went to polls on April 11 recorded a 63.69 per cent turnout. Except for Gautam Buddh Nagar and Meerut, all of them reported lower polling percentage compared to 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

Three Union ministers VK Singh from Ghaziabad, Satyapal Singh from Baghpat and Mahesh Sharma from Gautam Buddh Nagar - were in the fray in the first phase of polling. Ghaziabad recorded a 55.78 per cent voter turnout this time - a marginal low of 1.16 per cent compared to the 2014 polls, according to the poll data. Here, the main contest is between Union minister VK Singh, Suresh Bansal of the SP-BSP-RLD combined and Dolly Sharma of the Congress.

Gautam Buddh Nagar registered a marginal high of 0.08 per cent in polling - from 60.39 per cent in 2014 to 60.47 per cent this time. But seats like Kairana, Baghpat, Bijnor, and Saharanpur reported a low turnout.

According to the Election Commission (EC), Saharanpur recorded a 70.82

occurred at Narayanpur in Chhattisgarh. No casualties were reported.

Within 48hours of MLA’s death in blast, kin turn up to vote In an inspiring display of fortitude, family of slain BJP MLA Bhima Mandavi turned up to vote on Thursday, less than 48 hours after his assassination by Maoists in Dantewada. Mandavi’s widow Ojaswi, her in-laws and six other members of the family stood in queue as they waited for their turn to vote. As if to send a message to Maoists, 77% voters in nearby Shamgiri - where Mandavi was killed cast their ballot.

In Malkangiri, some booths recorded zero polling Shyamgiri, where BJP MLA Bheema Mandavi was killed by Maoists few days prior to voting along with four police personnel, recorded 77% polling. In Naxal-affected Malkangiri in Odisha, a couple of polling stations recorded zero polling.

UP sees dip in polling percentage Uttar Pradesh, that elect the largest number of MPs to

per cent, Kairana 67.46 per cent, Muzaffarnagar 68.22 per cent, Bijnor 64 per cent, Meerut 64.18 per cent and Baghpat 64.22 per cent voting.

Communally-sensitive Kairana witnessed a sharp fall in poll percentage - from 73.10 per cent in 2014 to 67.46 per cent this time. Saharanpur recorded a 3.44 per cent lower turnout, followed by Muzzafarnagar (-1.52 per cent), Baghpat (-2.53 per cent) and Bijnor (-3.88 per cent) compared to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

UP, with 80 Lok Sabha seats, is the decisive factor on who gets to form the government at the Centre.

In the 2014 elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 71 seats in the state.

Political experts say the lower turnout may be a bad signal for foes-turnedfriends Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati.

Low turnout in Telangana The case is not different for Telangana, too. In its first Lok Sabha elections after getting statehood, Telangana witnessed a major drop in voting turnout. Out of 17 seats, not

a single constituency of Telangana could surpass 2014 turnout level of previous Andhra Pradesh.

However, Telangana reported an estimated 62.69 per cent turnout. Nizamabad, where 170 farmers were in the fray for the single phase voting, recorded a 68.33 per cent vote. While, in 2014 elections, Nizamabad reported a 69.11 per cent turnout.

Whereas, Hyderabad reported more than 8 per cent lower turnout with 44.75 per cent in this elections, despite the month-long campaign by Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) to ensure a higher voter turnout.

The two Lok S a b h a constituencies Secunderabad and Malkajgiri registered a 46.26 per cent and 49.4 per cent voting respectively.

Also, the Chevelle Lok Sabha constituency recorded a 53 per cent polling.

Nagarkurnool witnessed a maximum drop of 13.26 per cent in voting from last Lok sabha elections.

61.81 per cent voting in Maharashtra Maharashtra reported 61.81 per cent voting in the seven Lok Sabha constituencies in the first phase of the elections. Out of seven seats, four registered a lower turnout than the last Lok Sabha elections. BhandaraGondiya recorded a 68.27 per cent, 4.04 per cent lower than

the 2014 turnout (72.31 per cent).

Similarly, the battleground of cabinet minister Nitin Gadkari, Nagpur recorded a turnout of 54.74 per cent, 2.38 per cent low against 2014.

Higher voting in Andhra Andhra Pradesh polling percentage is slightly higher than 2014 elections (77.80 per cent) with 79.64 per cent turnout. The details of voting percentage are awaited as some parties demanded repoll on some booths.

All five seats of Uttarakhand witnessed a slightly lower turnout than the 2014 Lok Sabha polls. Over 59.89 per cent of the 78.56 lakh voters exercised their votes on Thursday in comparison to 61.50 per cent in 2014.

Positive turnout in Bihar However, Bihar registered a positive turnout on four Lok Sabha seats.

Gaya recorded 56 per cent voting followed by Jamui standing at 55.3 per cent, Nawada at 52.5 per cent and Aurangabad at 53.6 per cent vote.

80 per cent voting in Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim Voting in northeastern states has seen major turnout as usual, as Tripura, Nagaland, Manipur and Sikkim recorded around 80 per cent turnout. Arunachal east and west recorded 73.53 per cent and 62.36 per cent votes respectively.

Meghalaya's Tura and Shillong posted higher turnout from the last election. Mizoram posted figures around 63 per cent.

A total of 91 Lok Sabha seats across 18 states and two Union territories have gone for polls in the first phase.

Over 142 million voters have decided the fate of 1,279 candidates in the 91 constituencies.

2 killed as TDP, YSRC cadre clash in Andhra Violence broke out during elections in Andhra Pradesh

Bhaskar is a follower of TDP MP JC Diwakar Reddy.

At Puthalapattu assembly constituency in Chittoor, YSRCP’s candidate MS Babu was allegedly kidnapped by TDP workers. He was taken to an orchard and beaten up.

Babu, however, managed to escape. He was later rushed to hospital by police. The Election Commission said 20 incidents of violence were reported across the state.

EVMs damaged In Guntakal assembly segment in Anantapur district, Jana Sena candidate K Madhusudan Gupta threw an EVM on the ground damaging it. At Narasaraopet in Guntur district, an EVM was damaged in a clash between YSRCP and TDP workers. News agency IANS reported another five incidents of EVMs being damaged in Arunachal Pradesh, two in Manipur, and one each in Bihar and West Bengal.f EVMs had been reported in earlier polls, told reporters that legal action would be taken against persons involved in such actions.

Complaints of EVM snags While there were complaints

The Phase 3 of the Lok Sabha election for 115 seats across 14 states and Union will take place on April 23. Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal will witness voting in some Lok Sabha seats. All parliamentary constituencies in Gujarat, Kerala, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Goa and Daman and Diu will vote in this phase.

There are 82 candidates in the fray for five constituencies. Maximum 20 candidates each are in Khagaria and Supaul followed by 17 in Jhanjharpur and 13 in Madhepura. 12 candidates are in Araria constituency.

Some of the prominent candidates in UP included Shivpal Singh Yadav (Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia) from Firozabad, Rajveer Singh (Bharatiya Janata Party) from Etah and Saleem Iqbal Sherwani (Congress) from Badaun.

BJP president Amit Shah,

Mohanbhai Kalyanjibhai of Bharatiya Janata Party and Vijay Parmar of Bahujan

election from Gujarat.

Amongst them, 262 candidates (19%) have

(29%) are crorepatis and Rs.3.05 crore is the average asset of a candidate. 45 per

crorepatis. Andaman and Nicobar Islands have the lowest number (just 13 per

as clashes between TDP and rival YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) left two persons dead and scores wounded.

The acrimonious electoral battle between chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and YSRCP leader Jaganmohan Reddy, as the state held simultaneous assembly and Lok Sabha polls, was marred by allegations of rigging, kidnapping of a candidate, damages to electronic voting machines (EVMs) and violations of the model code of conduct.

YSRCP activist Venkataramanappa was killed during a political clash at T Sadum village in Thamballapalle assembly constituency in Chittoor district. In another clash, TDP worker Chinta Bhaskar Reddy died as activists of the two parties attacked each other with sticks and stones at Veerapuram village in Anantapur district. YSRCP worker Pulla Reddy received severe head injuries and his condition is said to be critical.

of EVM snags and glitches, especially in Andhra Pradesh with CM N Chandrababu Naidu complaining to the EC, the commission said data on replacement of EVMs and VVPATs showed an improvement over previous elections.

A poll officer deployed in Tirap, Arunachal Pradesh, died of a heart attack, the EC said.

Seizure of cash, liquor Seizures by the EC till April 11 touched £242.6 million, more than double the overall figure for the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. The seizures included £60.7 million in cash (as against £30.3 million seized in 2014), liquor worth £19.8 million, drugs totalling £109.1 million, gold worth £48.6 million and other freebies worth £4.8 million.

As for complaints from some constituencies about voters not finding their names in the rolls upon reaching the polling station, the EC said it had already initiated the ‘GoVerify’ campaign to avoid such eventualities.

Kagathara Lalitbhai, Ahmed Patel & Paresh Dhanani of Congress, Kundaria

Samaj Party are a few prominent candidates contesting for general

criminal records, 147 of them (11%) are facing criminal charges, 397 of the candidates

cent candidates from Uttar Pradesh and 40 per cent candidates from Haryana are

cent) of crorepati candidates.

Kerala with 20 Lok Sabha seats have 29 per cent candidates with criminal background. Lakshadweep with just one Lok Sabha seat has 50 per cent criminal background candidates.

Jammu and Kashmir has no criminal background candidates in the third phase of polling. Just one Lok Sabha constituency in J&K is going to polls in this phase.

Kameshar Baitha, a Trinamool Congress candidate from Palamau in

State-wise list of constituencies Assam (4 seats) Dhubri, Kokrajhar, Barpeta, Gauhati Bihar (5 seats) Jhanjharpur, Supaul, Araria, Madhepura, Khagaria Chhattisgarh (7 seats) Surguja, Raigarh, Janjgir-Champa, Korba, Bilaspur, Durg, Raipur Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1 seat) Daman and Diu (1 seat) Goa (2 seats) North Goa, South Goa Gujarat (26 seats) Kutch, Banaskantha, Patan, Mahesana, Sabarkantha, Gandhinagar, Ahmedabad East, Ahmedabad West, Surendranagar, Rajkot, Porbandar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Amreli, Bhavnagar, Anand, Kheda, Panchmahal, Dahod, Vadodara, Chhota Udaipur, Bharuch, Bardoli, Surat, Navsari, Valsad.

Jammu and Kashmir (1 seat)

Karnataka (14 seats) Chikkodi, Belgaum, Bagalkot, Bijapur, Gulbarga, Raichur, Bidar, Koppal, Bellary, Haveri, Dharwad, Uttara Kannada, Davanagere, Shimoga Kerala (20 seats) Kasaragod, Kannur, Vadakara, WAyanad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Ponnani, Palakkad, Alanthur, Thrissur, Chalakudy, Ernakulam, Idukki, Kottayam, Alappuzha, Mavelikkara, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, Attingal, Thiruvananthapuram Maharashtra (14 seats) Jalgaon, RAver, Jalna, Aurangabad, Raigad, Pune, Baramati, Ahmednagar, Madha, Sangli, Satara, Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg, Kolhapur, Hatkanangle Odisha (6 seats) Sambalpur, Keonjhar, Bhubaneswar

Dhenkanal,

Cuttack,

Puri,

Uttar Pradesh (10 seats) Moradabad, Rampur, Sambhal, Firozabad, Mainpuri, Etah, Badaun, Aonla, Bareilly, Pilibhit West Bengal (5 seats) Balurghat, Maldaha Uttar, Maldaha Dakshin, Jangipur, Murshidabad

Paresh Dhanani

Jharkhand has declared 109 serious criminal cases against him. Narendra Mohanty of AAP contesting from Kandhamal in Odisha is

facing 28 serious criminal cases.

Kameshwar Yadav, SP candidate from Chattra is facing 20 criminal cases.

Nine candidates have declared cases related to murder and 29 have declared cases related to attempt to murder.

9 candidates have declared cases related to crime against women which includes even rape.

Party-wise candidates with serious criminal cases: The BJP tops the list with 38 of its candidates (48%) facing criminal cases.

21 Congress candidates (29%) and 15 of the AAP (19%) are also facing criminal cases.

The Congress has 82 per cent crorepati candidates, the BJP is second with 54 per cent crorepati candidates.

46% AAP candidates are also crorepatis.

The Congress candidate from Kurukshetra in Haryana, Naveen Jindal is the

richest

candidate

with

Ahmed Patel

declared assets worth Rs.308 crore.

Union minister Kamalnath from Chhindwara has declared assets worth Rs.206 crore.

Ramanuj Patel of Samaik Parivartan Party from New Delhi is the poorest candidate with declared assets worth just Rs 100 (one hundred rupee). 52 per cent of the candidates have not declared their income tax details, while 48 per cent have declared it.

48 per cent of the candidates are graduates and above; 47 per cent are 12th pass and below. While 2 per cent of the candidates have not given their educational qualification details, 1 per cent nominees are illiterate.

18 FINANCE - UK

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20 - 26 April 2019

Consultant Editor Financial Voice Alpesh Patel Dear Financial Voice Reader, Keeping Britain Great – the Role of Indian Companies and British Indians.

The UK is buzzing with UK India events. Just the ones I am involved in alone, from Manoj Ladwa’s IndiaInc’s fantastic India week Awards, conclave, plus much more, to UK-India Business Summit 2019, by the India Business Group hosted by Lord Patel and Amarjit Singh, to the Bengal Awards hosted by this paper and Samit Biswas of Advatech, and their Meditoura 2019 event at QEII. Then there is the new UK India FICCI Council. Plus the Techrocketships winners from India delegation of startups led by the British High Commission.

And like I said those are just the ones I am participating in!

This financial year, just finished on 31st March, I had the most successful year in landing overseas tech companies to the UK in my 15 years as a Department for International Trade Dealmaker. These included World Wide Generation (Blockchain, UN Social Development Goals, from Australia), Asset Vault (Data protection, from Hyderabad), Advatech (Medical transportation - thank you too to David Amess MP from India), Finboot (Fintech blockchain), Automata.live (Blockchain and trading from France), Medicheck (Medical devices from Sweden), Aspire (Recruitment blockchain tech from Poland), TinkerBell Labs (Behavioural analysis from Singapore), Lattice80 (Fintech incubator, Singapore), LendEnable (SME lending made more efficient, India).

So what’s going on, where, and how do entrepreneurs get in on the action?

My role as a UK Government ‘Dealmaker’ is to look for the most outstanding growth potential intellectual property rich companies of strategic importance to the UK to set up a regional HQ in the UK – and do the deals, such as help find clients and VC funds, to make it happen.

So what makes them willing and able to establish in the UK? What kind of companies are they? All businesses want several key things to succeed and the UK. First, skilled labour. Britain’s hubs allowing companies using their talents to lead globally. From Northern Ireland’s Cybersecurity specialties to Scotland’s alternative energy hubs; from Midlands in automotive to Manchester in Nano.

As PM Modi explained to me – it is intellectual property that makes a nation wealthy, and Indians have it in abundance – from the number zero onwards. (He had a mischievous twinkle in his eye when he said that!).

Second, the networks. Again, not just Techcity (www.techcityuk.com) with the thousand plus companies all interacting, sharing costs, doing business, like the UK’s Silicon Valley. Or TechHub and its workspaces, Springboard in Cambridge, Oxygen in Birmingham and loads more all over the UK. And a big shout out to Leeds.

I co-founded TIE-UK connecting Indian and British Indian entrepreneurs through mentoring knowing this would pull in investment from India to the UK because companies need ‘soft-landings’ to help them grow. And British Indian NRIs have exactly that – they can help pull in even more in their image and British organisations like this which help NRIs throughout the UK to help attract Indian companies to set up in the UK are vital to keeping Britain great.

Third is capital. Investment groups like the Indian Angel Network with whom then PM Brown launched with UKIBC in Delhi my initiative of the UK India Business Angel Network to invest in British companies of Indian origin is one of many sources of capital for Indian companies setting up their UK HQs. Long may the excitement continue.

6.5% rise in Cake Box's sales Egg-free cake maker Cake Box Holdings reported 6.5 per cent rise in its sales this year compared to 15% in the last financial year. The company has earned £17.1 million, up around 30% yearon-year. Profit is set to be in line with market expectations. Results for the 12 months to March, in which Cake Box listed in London, will be released on June 24.

Chief Executive Sukh Chamdal said: "Our first year as a public company has been an exciting one. We've achieved record revenue, opened a record number of stores and continue to see strong appetite for our unique products. As we continue to grow our presence for customers

Sukh Chamdal, CEO of Egg Free Cake Box

across the UK, we have invested in new facilities to support expansion, including two new warehouses and distribution centres in Bradford and Coventry. We believe the group ideally positioned to deliver profitable growth and enter our new financial year with confidence."

Following the good showing shares were 0.6% higher on Tuesday last at a price of 157.50 pence each.

‘Massive’ demand ups UK drinks exports to India The UK Department of International Trade has pegged a 49.2 per cent increase in the export of Scotch whiskey, gin, and other UK drinks to India in the last year ending February 2019. Calling the demand in India a "massive increase", it said the country along with other non-EU countries accounted for 63.4 per cent of all exports. The department also said the increase in drinks exports to India grew by 49.2 per cent to £179 million.

Figures reveal a spike in beverage exports in October and November by

approximately 23 per cent above the 12monthly average for drinks exports, as people across the world stocked up on the liquor ahead of the festive period. The department, which has renewed focus on exports to India in the context of Brexit, said overall UK exports of beverages, which include British gin, vodka, and Scotch whiskey, reached a high of £8.3 billion in the year to February 2019, increasing by 7 per cent on the previous year.

The US, meanwhile, remains the top destination for UK drinks, growing by 3.9 per cent to £1.8 billion.

International Trade Secretary Liam Fox said the "Figures show that despite the challenging economic environment, people across the world are continuing to

demand high-quality British exports." Sarah Dickson of the Scotch Whiskey Association said, "Last year, 41 bottles of Scotch whiskey were shipped from Scotland every second to around 180 global markets, with an export value of £4.7 billion."

UK property market ‘in line for summer Brexit relief rally’ Britain's biggest property website reveals the market is likely to stage a Brexit "relief rally" over the summer, as it revealed signs of bounce back in prices over the past month.

Rightmove said asking prices on its website jumped by an average of 1.1 per cent, an increase of £3,447 in the month of April 6, however, remain 0.1 per cent below the level of a year ago. It said the Brexit delay is most likely to boost confidence in the market.

Miles Shipside of Rightmove said, "No doubt there are still a lot of twists and turns to come, but this extension could give hesitating home movers encouragement that there is now a window of relative certainty in uncertain times.

We are not anticipating an activity

surge but maybe a wave of relief that releases some pent-up demand to take advantage of static property prices and cheap fixed-rate mortgages."

While the property website said rise over the past month was the strongest since 2016, its data shows that the time it takes to sell a property remains at elevated levels, at about 67 days, although below the peak at the start of the year. The property major's analysis comes in stark contrast to a downbeat assessment of the market by Britain's surveyors issued last week.

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said it was likely that house prices would fall nationally for the next six months and that in London and the south-east the declines would stretch

on for a full year.

House price data has recently become highly volatile, with falling transaction numbers resulting in extremely variable monthly figures.

Halifax reported that in February prices rose by an extraordinary 5.9 per cent on the month alone.

However, its March report said prices had fallen by 1.6 per cent.

Meanwhile, Rightmove said the strongest part of

the property market was family homes, with parents no longer able to put off moving because of Brexit uncertainty. Shipside said, "Properties in the middle sector are often secondsteppers outgrowing their first property and it gets harder to postpone a move with growing children.

They may have already delayed for a year or two waiting for Brexit clarity and, understandably, their patience is wearing thin."

Dividend income for holders of UK shares jumps to record £19.7bn Data tracked by Link Asset Services reveal dividends paid to holders of UK shares jumped to a record high in the first three months of the year, putting investors on track for £100 bn in payouts this year. The payments rose 15.7 per cent to £19.7 bn, an easy first-quarter record.

Regular dividends have risen every year since the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2009. TUC General Secretary, Frances O'Grady said the figures underlined the inequality between rewards for shareholders and workers, and said the economy needed to be redesigned to ensure everyone got a fair share.

The big increase in dividend income in the first quarter of 2019 was mainly driven by a £2.6 bn special dividend from the FTSE 100 mining company BHP. The

largest dividend payment in the quarter, at £2.9 bn, was the oil company Royal Dutch Shell, while pharma company Astrazeneca, oil giant BP, Vodafone and British American Tobacco all paid out more than £1bn in the quarter.

Michael Kempe, chief operating officer at Link Market Services, said the growth in dividends was "in truth, a touch weaker than we expected on an underlying basis." He said 2019 was set for further increases in payouts to

shareholders despite uncertainty about the global economy and Brexit negotiations in the UK. Link predicts total annual UK dividend payments will break £100 bn for the first time in 2019.

Data from the Office for National Statistics said real average weekly earnings peaked at £525 in February 2008, just as the crisis began, but have not yet surpassed that value. Analysis of separate government figures by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in March showed

that the median income recorded 0 per cent growth after adjusting for inflation in 2017-18.

O'Grady said the 'portion of national income going to workers was declining around the world. "At a time when millions of working people are struggling to make ends meet, shareholders are making a mint. We need to redesign the economy so that everyone gets a fair share.

That means giving people more voice and power at work,"she said.

Chief executive of ShareAction, a group that campaigns for responsible investment, Catherine Howarth said, "As pleasing as these bumper dividends are for shareholders, it's right to ask if company boards have their priorities straight when dividend payouts could have been used to address chronic low pay."

REAL ESTATE VOICE

SWEETENING THE DEAL

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We secured a couple of probates in Harrow last week, predictably they went over the weekend.

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap London Property Investment

One was a freehold house.

Developed properties on the road have sold for more than £650K, so this was a good deal at only £425K. The location is very rentable as well, as it is only 3 minutes from the station. Proximity to a station and infrastructure ensures good rental demand. This allows you the freedom to choose your tenant, rather than the other way around.

A property like this, in this location, will always rent for a good amount of money, say £2K per month.

However, in order to really milk this property and enhance the yield, one should look at converting this property into an HMO. Especially because it will be completely renovated, therefore one is able to design similar sized rooms and have some uniformity through the building.

This is something we are putting into motion for another client, who owns a freehold house in Wembley; where the current rental is at £1,800 pm. In truth, I was surprised the property attracted this much rental given the condition it was in. We

20 - 26 April 2019

had not one but two offers for rental for the property as it was.

The reason why they took the property in that condition is because for them it was a business, and they were not the end tenants.

They touched up the property, and sublet it for a profit. They told me they cannot not get enough properties to satisfy the local demand.

The aim with this property is to do a rear extension of 6 metres before the deadline expires on the 30th May. Then open up the loft, on both sides. Planning permission is in, though there is no immediate urgency in terms of time. Following this, the property will be rejigged to provide 7 rooms, well designed and in proportion, with good communal facilities. The rent roll will increase substantially. The aim is to attract a rental of £750 per room, per month.

This will give a rent roll of £5,250 pm or 63,000 per annum. An increase of £41,400. There will of course be expenses to be taken into consideration. Let us assume an extra £10K. This means an extra £30K is expected to be generated for our client.

The work should cost no more than £150K. An estimated return of 33%

THE INCOMPLETE LANDLORD A few questions that I am asked from time to time from landlords managing their own BTL properties: Where can I get a tenancy agreement? Can I have help with my tenants? Can you protect my deposit? Can you inspect my property? Can you help me evict my tenants?

We already tailor our services to the needs of each of our landlords, however, we have now decided to offer a menu of services, so we can assist those landlords that prefer to

do it themselves.

Some landlords have informed me that most high street agents won’t stray from the path of standard services, which has left them at a loose end when looking for just one or two services. We on the other hand are more than happy to rip apart our packaged service and offer a menu service where you can pick and choose the areas you would like assistance with.

For example, a while ago, I had a landlord that went traveling and needed someone to look after his

BUY TO LET OPPORTUNITY London, W9 Purchase Price: £450,000

19

per annum consecutively is a no brainer. For this property, in this location, it is clearly the way to go.

The same principle can be applied to the house in Harrow. It is a probate deal, and in terrible condition, as many probate deals are; however, this property is hazardous to even enter. There are missing floor boards, fungus and damp.

This means you have a blank canvas to work from, and therefore are able to create something which is fit for purpose.

To do this within an existing property structure, you would be restricted by the existing shape and fabric of the property. This property’s closeness to the station will mean tenants can be in Euston in as little as 27mins.

This means instead of only attracting the local crowd, you are also able to attract professionals who work in the city.

properties only whilst he was out of the country. We discussed what services he required and then provided this for the four months that he was away. Another example is a landlord that had found her own tenants and only wanted a tenancy agreement, which we were able to provide to her.

If you are finding yourself in a situation where you need a little help but don’t want the whole package, then please do get in touch.

Richard Bond

l A very large two bedroom first floor flat l Share of freehold

l Excellent condition

l Allotted parking space

l Excellent yield of 5.2% per annum for a central location l Close to Westbourne Park tube station

l We manage three flats in this building and they rent out in days l Sustained long term growth due to the location Call us now for more information!

Specialists in Central London Property Sourcing

0207 993 0103

info@sowandreap.co.uk www.sowandreap.co.uk 27 Gloucester Place, London, W1U 8HU SowandReapProperties

Sowandreapuk

Turning land into cash Get in touch about our land opportunities

20 FINANCE - INDIA

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Banks close fiscal 2019 with 13% credit growth, deposits up 10% Data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reveals that banks closed fiscal 2019 with robust disbursal that rose in double-digits for the second year in a row, after the sub-5 per cent in FY17- the lowest in five decades.

The data stated that bank credit rose 13.2 per cent to £977 billion for the fortnight to March 29, while deposits grew by 10 per cent to £1,257 billion during the same period. This is the second consecutive double-digits credit growth after the same had declined to 4.5 per cent in FY17 at £784 billion, which was the lowest since 1963.

The data revealed deposits were made at £1,143 billion in the year-ago fortnight, and advances at £ 863 billion. In FY17, aggregate deposits in the banking system grew a mere 6.7 per cent in 2017-18. Bank deposits growth fell to a fivedecade low in year to March 2017 as demonetisation bonanza withered.

During NovemberDecember 2016, banks had received a whopping £153 billion as people deposited high denomination currency notes that were withdrawn from circulation on November 8.

Which is why, aggregate

deposits in the fiscal ended March 2017 grew 15.8 per cent to £1,080 billion. In the previous fortnight to March 15, 2019, credit demand had grown by 14.5 per cent to £ 955 billion, while deposits increased by 10 per cent to £1,223 billion.

Non-food credit increased by 13.2 per cent in February 2019 on a year-on-year basis as compared with an increase of 9.8 per cent in the year-ago period.

Loans to the services sector almost doubled with a 23.7 per cent growth in February compared to 14.2 per cent in the same month last year. Advances

to agriculture and allied activities increased by 7.5 per cent in February compared to an increase of 9 per cent in February 2018.

Credit to the industry rose by 5.6 per cent in February, up from an increase of 1 per cent last year.

Credit to infrastructure, chemical & chemical products, and all engineering sectors accelerated.

However, credit growth to basic metal & metal products, textiles, and food processing decelerated/contracted.

Personal loans rose 16.7 per cent in February down from 20.4 per cent in February 2018.

India tops remittances list, got $79bn in 2018 India retained its position as the world's top recipient of remittances with its diaspora sending a whopping $79 billion back home in 2018. India is closely followed by China ($67 billion), Mexico ($36 billion), the Philippines ($34 billion) and Egypt ($29 billion) in the report published by the World Bank.

According to the report titled Migration and Development Brief, with the position, India has retained its top spot on remittances. Over the last three years, India has registered a significant flow of remittances from $62.7 billion in 2016 to $65.3 billion 2017.

The bank said, "Remittances grew by more than 14 per cent in India, where a flooding disaster in Kerala likely boosted the financial help that migrants sent to

families."

Remittance growth in Pakistan was moderate (7 per cent) due to significant declines in inflows from Saudi Arabia, its largest remittance source. In Bangladesh, remittances showed a brisk uptick in 2018 (15 per cent). According to the report, remittances to low and middleincome countries reached a

record high of $529 billion in 2018, an increase of 9.6 per cent over the previous record high of $483 billion in 2017.

The bank said remittances to South Asia grew 12 per cent to $131 billion in 2018, outpacing the 6 per cent growth in 2017. The report said, "The upsurge was driven by stronger economic conditions in the United States and pickup in oil prices, which had a positive impact on outward remittances from some GCC countries."

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is a regional intergovernmental political and economic bloc of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. However, the Bank in its report rued that the global average cost of sending $200 remained high, at around

seven per cent in the first quarter of 2019. Reducing remittance costs to three per cent by 2030 is a global target under Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 10.7.

Remittance costs across many African corridors and small islands in the Pacific remain above 10 per cent.

Dilip Ratha, lead author of the Brief and head of KNOMAD, said, "Remittances are on track to become the largest source of external financing in developing countries. The high costs of money transfers reduce the benefits of migration.

Renegotiating exclusive partnerships and letting new players operate through national post offices, banks and telecommunications companies will increase competition and lower remittance prices."

Jet Airways on the brink of collapse Lenders are seeing merit in the offer by overseas funds TPG and Indigo Partners for ailing Jet Airways, even as they failed to disburse a £150 million lifeline for the private carrier despite pleas by the airline that it's staring at a possible shutdown in the absence of funds. With immediate funding proving tough, the Jet board will meet to consider all options - including a temporary shutdown. “...the current status of our engagement with the lenders and other related matters shall be placed before the board in the meeting, where the management will seek guidance from the board on the next steps forward. We will

keep you updated on all critical developments,” Jet CEO Vinay Dube told employees, adding that international operations would remain suspended until Thursday.

In a statement, SBI said the bid process was being vetted by the legal team at SBI Caps and prospective bidders would be shortlisted soon.

Sources, however, indicated that the lenders may back the funds if they found their bid attractive, a move that may come as a blow to founder Naresh Goyal and shareholder Etihad’s attempts to wrest control. The two submitted separate offers last week

with financial bids due to be submitted by the end of the month.

The discomfort of banks may be stemming from the reluctance of the two Jet shareholders to bring money on the table despite the airline being on the brink of collapse. At Monday’s meeting with Jet, lenders suggested that the £150 million being demanded by the current management may not be able sustain the carrier for long and Goyal and Etihad may need to chip in as well, a senior banker said. SBI-led lenders had promised to infuse additional funds of £150 million last month, after they acquired a 50.1 per cent stake in the airline. The proposed transactions did not happen. According to the bank-led resolution plan,

Cash and carry vs cost of carry

Abhishek Sachdev

Since the financial crisis, central banks have used their monetary policy arsenal to artificially lower interest rates. This has supported asset prices, including property values (which are beloved to Asian Voice readers!), and provided stakeholders with the opportunity to clean up their balance sheets. The Bank of England

(BoE) is no different, driving interest rates to historic lows.

Despite many false starts, the BoE has not yet been compelled to reverse this. Ongoing Brexit uncertainty provides the latest reason for the prolonged use of such ‘emergency’ measures. Low interest rates are increasingly a source of frustration for Mark Carney, who is hampered from responding to the underlying inflationary pressure that a redhot labour market brings.

With unemployment at a 44-year low of 4% and still falling, central banks’ models would suggest it is only a matter of time before workers are granted the real wage

growth that their scarcity demands. A Brexit deal that appeases businesses’ concerns would potentially empower workers further.

Such a deal, if attainable, would likely be the catalyst for the BoE to tighten monetary policy in anticipation of future inflation. In turn, leveraged real estate investors could see returns adversely affected by rising debt costs.

While any hedging strategy should be tailored to an investor’s business plan and financial covenants, the prevailing flat ‘yield curve’ (from where swap rates / fixed rates are derived from) provides a potential opportunity. This is particularly

true for long term investors focused on income, who might be more receptive to less flexible strategies such as swaps.

Firstly, the duration that can be achieved on hedging solutions is at quite a low marginal cost; the 5yr swap rate is 1.07% and the 10yr swap rate is 1.23%. Many investors have already been quick to take advantage by increasing their debt maturities with longer-dated institutional fixed-rate debt that references swaps or gilts.

Secondly, why does this matter? Savvy Asian Voice readers are of course often loathe to pay any more interest cost than they need to. Fixing interest rates is a

India's exports hit record high in 2018-19 India’s exports hit a new high of $331 billion in the last financial year, but higher imports pushed up the trade deficit. In March, as 20 of the 30 major product segments saw higher shipments, exports expanded 11% to reach $32.5 billion, the highest in a month in recent years. In fact, the growth in March was the fastest in five months, helping the government scale a new peak during the fifth year of its term.

Not surprisingly, the government was patting itself on the back for the “revival” in exports.

“Through secular growth over the last three financial years, following major downturn in the face of global slowdown, merchandise exports for 2018-19 are estimated at $331 billion, the highest ever, surpassing the earlier peak of $314.4 billion achieved in 2013-14. This has been achieved in a challenging global environment,” the commerce ministry said in a statement.

Exports are seen as a weak link in the economic growth story, with both BJP and the Congress pledging to focus on reviving exports. “I am sure the new government will renew its focus on this sector and address the concerns of Indian export industry.

Exports further need to focus on new products like food commodity and break free from traditional items so that the growth is more resilient and sustainable.

Also, it will cushion our exports from global volatility and shocks in the long run,” said Mohit Singla, president of Trade Promotion Council of India, an industry lobby group.

While exporters pointed to several policy-related difficulties - from credit flow to GST refunds - they seemed to be rejoicing for the moment.

“Economies across Asia, especially China and Southeast Asian nations, have been showing signs of sluggishness with contraction in manufacturing due to slowdown in global trade and fragile world economy, but almost all our value-added product segments of exports have shown impressive growth,” said FIEO president Ganesh Kumar Gupta. lenders were to convert one rupee of equity into 114 million shares of the airline. That, however, did not happen as the RBI circular dated February 12, 2018 facilitating this was struck down by the Supreme Court.

Seven entities submit EoI Meanwhile, estranged partners Etihad and Naresh Goyal are rumoured to be among the seven entities who have submitted an expression of interest (EoI). Others are California-based investment firm TPG, Phoenix-based private equity firm IndiGo Partners, which owns budget airline Frontier, Redcliffe and Think Equity as a consortium, two individuals together and a senior executive vice president of Jet Airways with two others.

form of insurance and hence this does cost money.

However, this ‘cost of fixing’ compared to the current floating Libor rates is called the ‘cost of carry’ and is at low levels at present (0.24% for a 5yr swap). In this respect, the ‘cost’ of hedging with fixed rates/swaps is relatively attractive at present. This is in fact the lowest level since October 2016.

Admittedly, it would increase were the BoE’s rate to fall. However, with the scope for interest rate rises arguably larger than that for falls, one could assert that the cost benefit tradeoff is favourable.

The combination of these factors makes swaps relatively attractive in comparison with flexible strategies such as caps. A corol-

lary to this is that Libor would have to drop to a pessimistically low level in order to recoup the cap premium and make this strategy economically preferable to a swap. That said, investors with business plans that require flexibility should not necessarily be put off.

We are the UK’s largest FCA authorised firm that is regulated to be able to advise all types of business on derivatives. Please don’t hesitate to call us to discuss any aspect of hedging / fixed rates.

Tel: 020 7183 2277 www.vedantahedging.com

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20 - 26 April 2019

in brief 16 KILLED IN PAK BLAST TARGETING HAZARAS At least 16 people were killed and over two dozen others injured in a blast that targeted members of the ethnic Hazara community in Pakistan's Quetta city last week. A top police official said that eight of the victims belonged to the community, that has been targeted by sectarian violence as they are easily identifiable due to their distinctive physical appearance.

"The attack took place in a (green grocer's) shop (in Hazarganji area). An improvised explosive device was planted in a gunny bag filled with potatoes. We are yet to ascertain if it was timed or remotecontrolled. An investigation is on," the official said. The victims also included a Frontier Corps (FC) soldier. No one has claimed responsibility for the blast. Nearly half a million Hazaras have settled in Quetta since fleeing Afghanistan to escape violence in their homeland during the past four decades. The city's Hazarganji area has been witness to similar attacks in the past.

HINDU SISTERS WEREN’T FORCIBLY CONVERTED: PAK COURT The Islamabad high court declared that the two sisters from Sindh province were not forcibly converted from Hinduism to Islam, and allowed them to reunite with their spouses. A bench led by the chief justice of the Islamabad HC, Athar Minallah, made the decision after a five-member commission that the court had constituted on April 2 to probe the matter of alleged abduction, forced conversion and marriage of Reena and Raveena - the two Hindu sisters - concluded in its report that they were not forcibly converted to Islam. On March 25, the sisters and their husbands had filed a petition against alleged harassment by police days after the girls’ father and brother claimed that they were underage, had been abducted and forced to change their religion before being married to Muslim men. Interior secretary Azam Suleman told the court about the findings of the commission and told it that the panel’s opinion was that it was a facilitated conversion.

NO USE FOR ARMED MILITIAS ANYMORE: IMRAN Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan vowed to rid his country of the militants created and tolerated by the powerful military, including groups carrying out attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. “We have decided, for the future of our country and will not allow armed militias to operate anymore,” Khan said during an interaction with a small group of foreign journalists in Islamabad.

“Those to be dismantled include groups involved in attacks in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said. He added that the Pakistan army had created these militias in the 1980s when his country and the US were backing Muslim insurgents in Afghanistan against Soviet forces. “But there is no use for these groups anymore,” he said, adding the crackdown had the full support of Pakistan’s army and ISI, its main intelligence agency.

PAK ISSUES VISAS TO 2,200 SIKH PILGRIMS In a bid to facilitate the participation of pilgrims during the annual Baisakhi celebrations, Pakistan has issued visas to 2,200 Indian Sikh devotees this year. The Pakistan High Commissioner said the gesture by Pakistan to issue these visas was reflective of the reverence attached to Baisakhi, both in its religious and cultural dimensions. The annual Baisakhi celebrations will be held from April 12 to 21.

Apart from marking the beginning of the new Sikh year, Baisakhi is the time to harvest the rabi crop. According to reports, it said the 2,200 visas were in addition to those granted to Sikh pilgrims participating in the event from other countries. This gesture by Pakistan is seen as sign of easing of tension between the two countries, and came nearly six weeks after the Balakot strike and subsequent Pakistani retaliation.

PAKISTAN

Pak seeks cancellation of 26/11 kingpin Lakhvi’s bail Islamabad: Pakistan's Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) opposed the bail of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind behind the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks. The top investigative agency approached the Islamabad High Court seeking cancellation of the postarrest bail of Lakhvi. The court then asked the authorities to submit the record of the Mumbai attacks case in two weeks.

Lakhvi, a commander of terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), and six of his associates are facing charges of abatement to murder, attempted murder, planning and executing the Mumbai attacks since 2009. On December 18, 2014, Lakhvi was granted the post-arrest bail by an Islamabad-based AntiTerrorism Court (ATC). Lakhvi

Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi

has been living in an undisclosed location since then.

Seeking cancellation of Lkahvi's bail, Pakistan's FIA told the court that it has enough evidence against him. "In the

present case, the learned trial judge (of ATC) after the terrorist attack in Islamabad courts (of March 2013) refused to visit Adiala Jail for a long time due to security reasons," the FIA said in

its appeal against the ATC judge’s order, Pakistan-based Dawn newspaper reported.

"Even the prosecutors of this case have been receiving threats through cell phones during the proceedings which were duly conveyed to the concerned authorities. The witnesses are also not secured, and reluctant to depose against the accused persons in the given situation," it added.

Some 166 people were killed in the attack carried out by 10 LeT terrorists. Nine of the attackers were killed by police while lone survivor Ajmal Kasab was caught and hanged after handed down death sentence by an Indian court. It's been 11 years since the ghastly attack on Mumbai but none of its suspects in Pakistan has been punished yet.

IMF bailout package to Pakistan may be delayed Islamabad: International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) bailout package to cash-strapped Pakistan could be delayed as the global lender is pressing it to be transparent on the CPEC project and wants a written guarantee from Islamabad that its assistance will not be used to repay the loans to China, media report said.

Pakistan is seeking $8 billion from the IMF to bail itself out from a severe balance-ofpayments crisis that threatens to cripple the country’s economy.

With the generous Chinese assistance, Pakistan has so far received a total of $9.1 billion in financial aid packages from friendly countries during the current fiscal year.

Finance minister Asad Umar said earlier this month that an IMF team would visit Islamabad soon after the spring meetings of the World Bank Group, which includes the IMF, and an agreement should be signed by the end of this month. Pakistani daily Dawn quoting official

sources said the visit of the IMF mission to Islamabad for finalising the bailout package may be delayed as both sides are still engaged in an “ i n t e n s e discussion” on the final details of the deal. “So, the IMF mission is now more likely to visit Islamabad in May, not April,” the sources said.

The finance minister, who led the Pakistani delegation at the meetings, went to New York but his team stayed in Washington for further talks. Umar during a press conference said the two sides had “more or less, reached an understanding” on the bailout package and “in a day or two, we hope to reach a full agreement.”

An official familiar with the Pakistan-IMF talks said, “Islamabad still hopes to conclude the agreement before June, as they believe the bailout

package would help budget prospects.”

If concluded, it would be the 14th IMF aid package for Pakistan.

The sticking points, however, are the demands for marketdetermined exchange rates and sharing details of Chinese loans which Pakistan is reluctant to do so. The sources said that IMF officials were also seeking details of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), along with a written guarantee from both Pakistan and China that the IMF assistance will not be used to repay loans to China.

The IMF insists on full disclosure of all financial cooperation between Pakistan and China, including assistance related to infrastructure development, nuclear power plants, joint manufacturing of JF-17 Thunder

fighter jets and procurement of submarines. The IMF is also demanding details of more than $6.5 billion of commercial loans Pakistan has received from China in the past two and a half years. In July, China also deposited $2 billion with the State Bank of Pakistan.

The finance minister is likely to visit China on April 25 for talks on the IMF concerns over CPEC and IMF will wait to hear from him before it finalises the bailout package, the daily reported.

Some of the other conditions proposed by the IMF include: making the State Bank of Pakistan independent, a market oriented exchange rate, expanding the tax target by Rs 5,000 billion, ending income tax concessions, more taxes on salaries, narrowing the amount of taxable income from Rs12,00,000 a year to Rs 4,00,000, reducing electricity and gas losses, Rs140 billion electricity and gas revenue losses be recovered from consumers.

Fresh evidence of graft against Sharifs found: Imran Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has said that his government has dug out new proof of corruption and money laundering against the Sharif family members and fresh cases would be instituted against them in the days to come. Khan's comments came during a joint meeting of the Pakistan Tehreek-eInsaf (PTI) parliamentary party and members of the federal and Punjab cabinets.

"This will be the first case against the Sharif family members to be instituted by the PTI government," Khan was quoted as saying. Khan expressed resentment over money laundering and corruption Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of Sharif's son - belonged to the PML-N leader that had plagued the country and claimed that who could not demonstrate how the project the Sharif family members were filling bags of was funded. Later, the apex court in March money and laundering it through their granted Sharif a bail of six weeks for health frontmen in Dubai, a report said. reasons.

Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was In July 2018, a judge of the National sentenced to seven years in prison in Accountability Bureau, Pakistan's top antiDecember after a ruling that Al-Azizia Steel corruption organization, had sentenced the Mills - a Saudi Arabian firm carrying the name

three-time Premier to 10 years in prison for corrupt practices in connection with owning luxury properties in an upscale London neighbourhood. His daughter Maryam Nawaz was jailed for seven years.

Both were imprisoned, but in September the sentence was suspended by the Islamabad High Court while an appeal was heard concerning that case. In July 2017, the Supreme Court had ousted Sharif as Prime Minister and barred him from public office for life after an investigation spurred by the publication of the Panama Papers found that he failed to disclose payments from a company belonging to his son.

The Panama Papers revealed in April 2016 that three of Sharif's children had set up offshore companies in the British Virgin Islands through which they owned property in London, leading the top court to order an investigation after a year of protests by the opposition.

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AFRICA - SRI LANKA- BANGLADESH

Cyclone Idai's death toll now above 1,000 in southern Africa HARARE: The death toll from the cyclone that ripped through southern Africa last month is now above 1,000, while the number of cholera cases among survivors has risen above 4,000.

The United Nations has described Cyclone Idai, which hit Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi nearly a month ago, as "one of the deadliest storms on record in the southern hemisphere."

Zimbabwe's information minister said the death toll in that country has risen to 344.

Mozambique has reported 602 deaths and Malawi at least 59.

Zimbabwe's efforts are now "confined to recovery of the deceased" and the government will send pathologists to Mozambique to help identify bodies, said Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa.

An unknown number of Zimbabweans were washed down mountainsides into Mozambique, which also has turned from search and recovery efforts to relief work providing food and shelter to survivors.

Zimbabwe, whose economy

TALIBAN ANNOUNCE ANNUAL SPRING OFFENSIVE IN AFGHANISTAN The Taliban launched their annual spring offensive, calling on Afghan soldiers and police to abandon the government in a statement that points to further violence before peace negotiations with Washington bear any fruit. Fighting has intensified across Afghanistan in recent weeks, killing and wounding hundreds of Afghan troops and civilians, making the announcement of the Al-Fath ("Victory") operation largely symbolic. The Afghan government launched its own offensive, dubbed Khalid, in March.

TRUMP ATTACKS MUSLIM CONGRESSWOMAN

is badly struggling, said it needs $612 million to assist survivors and has appealed for international support. A final death toll is yet to be established and might never be known.

A cholera outbreak among survivors was declared in Mozambique on March 27 and had led to 4,072 cases and seven deaths, according to government figures. Most of the

cases of the acute diarrheal disease have been in Mozambique's hard-hit port city of Beira, where running water recently was restored. The system, however, reaches just 60% of the population of roughly 500,000.

More than 745,000 doses of oral cholera vaccine have been distributed since the vaccination campaign launched, the

government said. Cholera is spread via contaminated water or food and can kill within hours if untreated. Treatment is relatively easy with rehydration and antibiotics. Now malaria is a growing concern as floodwaters continue to recede in parts of the sodden region. More than 7,500 cases of the mosquitoborne disease have been reported, the government said.

UN torture prevention body concludes visit to Lanka Colombo: The United Nations Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture has completed its first visit to Sri Lanka from 2 to 12 April where it examined the treatment of people deprived of their liberty and the safeguards in place for their protection against torture and ill-treatment. “We have received good cooperation during the visit, having access to all places of detention, getting all relevant information and performing confidential interviews. We look positively on Sri Lanka’s prospective development of a national preventive mechanism, as required under the Optional

in brief

Protocol to the Convention against Torture,” said Victor Zaharia, who led the fourmember delegation.

“Our work is guided by the principles of confidentiality, impartiality, non-selectivity, universality and objectivity,” Zaharia said. The delegation visited police stations, prisons, remand prisons, military camps, rehabilitation centres, mental health institution, a rehabilitation centre for children, and held meetings with the Government representatives, Sri Lanka’s Human Rights Commission and civil society representatives.

The Optional Protocol, which Sri Lanka ratified in 2017, says that no authority or official shall order, apply, permit or tolerate any sanction against any person or organization for having communicated to the Subcommittee or to its delegates any information, whether true or false, and no such person or organization shall be otherwise prejudiced in any way.

The Subcommittee carries out its work within the framework of the Charter of the United Nations and is guided by the purposes and principles thereof, as well as the norms of the United Nations concerning

the treatment of people deprived of their liberty.

“The Subcommittee’s next step will be to submit its confidential report to the Government of Sri Lanka, containing its observations and recommendations arising from the visit. The Subcommittee on Prevention of Torture encourages the State parties to make its reports public,” the statement said.

The delegation was composed of Victor Zaharia, head of delegation (Republic of Moldova), Satyabhooshun Gupt Domah (Mauritius), Petros Michaelides (Cyprus), and June Lopez (Philippines).

SA urged to prosecute perpetrators of xenophobic attacks

BNP demands unconditional release of Khaleda

Pretoria: The South African government has been tasked to take strong action over its citizens involved in a recent flare up of xenophobic violence in the country. Two human rights groups are calling for urgent investigations, arrests and prosecutions of persons believed to be behind the attacks that lasted about a week, March 25 – April 2, 2019.

South Africa-based African Diaspora Forum and Human Rights Watch, HRW, said the government needed to do more than just condemning the attacks. Apart from its call for an end to attacks on foreign nationals, the South African government has done little to ensure the arrest and prosecution of those responsible. Strong action is needed to show there are consequences for such acts before there is another round of violence against vulnerable foreign nationals.

President Cyril Ramaphosa expressly condemned the attacks as did leader of the opposition EFF, Julius Malema. The groups said they were even more so concerned that the violence came amid rising political tension as South Africa goes to the polls on May 8.

Dhaka: The BNP has demanded unconditional release of its chief Khaleda Zia from jail as political discussions about possibilities of her seeking parole continue.

“We want the leader of the country to be freed unconditionally. We haven’t said anything about parole,” Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said during a token hunger strike in Dhaka.

“We are making it clear that she deserves the right to get bail. All the others named in the case, over which she has been forcefully jailed, are out on bail,” he added. He urged party leaders and activists to prepare for a movement to free Khaleda.

“Our target is to free democracy under her leadership in order to save the country,” the BNP leader said. Government ministers earlier said the legal procedure will be followed if Khaleda applies for parole.

Khandaker Mahbub Hossain, one of the lawyers for Khaleda, had demanded the BNP chief be freed on parole for treatment. He had said he saw it as being the only path that leads to her release. Hossain, a BNP vice-chairman,

had been hopeful in June last year that the government will arrange treatment for Khaleda because she has fallen ‘seriously’ ill in jail and her ‘life is in danger’.

On Sunday, Mirza Fakhrul also reiterated the demand for transfer of Khaleda to a specialised hospital of her choice from Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University. The 73-year-old former prime minister, who has been serving total 17 years in jail for corruption, was recently moved to the hospital for treatment from the old jailhouse on Nazimuddin Road in the capital.

Govt may consider Khaleda’s release on parole Meanwhile, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the government may consider the release of Khaleda on parole for treatment.

“If she wants to be released on parole, then she will have to apply for it by mentioning a specific reason. We will think about it if she applies," he said in response to a question at a function. The home ministry is yet to receive any requests related to the issue, he said.

US President Donald Trump created another controversy by involving Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, retweeting video edited to suggest that the congresswoman was dismissive of the significance of the Sept 11 attacks. The video pulls a snippet of Omar’s speech last month to the Council on American-Islamic Relations in which she described the 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center as “some people did something,” as well as news footage of the hijacked planes hitting the towers. Trump tweeted, “we will never forget!” Omar’s remark has drawn criticism from conservatives who say the congresswoman, one of the first Muslim women to serve in Congress, offered a flippant description of the attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people.

DEMOCRATS CONDEMN TRUMP PLAN AGAINST MIGRANTS Democrats have accused Donald Trump’s administration of “cruelty” and using people as political pawns in the wake of reports that presidential aides considered a plan to release migrants in sanctuary cities. At least twice in the past six months, the White House weighed a plan to pressure US immigration authorities to release people detained at the border in these cities, which limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities. Trump confirmed that he was considering such a plan, contradicting his own Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which told reporters it had rejected the plan.

KAMALA HARRIS GIVES 15 YEARS OF TAX DETAILS Democratic US senator Kamala Harris released 15 years of tax returns through 2018, offering the most complete look to date at a presidential candidate’s finances.

With her husband, Douglas Emhoff, an attorney, she had a combined adjusted gross income in 2018 of about $1.89 million, and paid total taxes of about $697,000, according to the returns. Harris and Emhoff have paid more than $2.2 million in taxes over the past five years.

RAJAPAKSA’S BROTHER RETURNS TO FIGHT ELECTION Former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s brother Gotabhaya Rajapaksa returned to the island nation and said he has taken necessary steps to denounce his US citizenship to be able to contest the presidential polls later this year. Former defence secretary Gotabhaya is being promoted as the main candidate from the Rajapaksa camp to face the next presidential election as Rajapaksa cannot constitutionally run for a third term.

Gotabhaya, a dual-citizen of Sri Lanka and the United States, returned after a private visit to America. Gotabhaya, who under his brother’s rule spearheaded the military onslaught against the LTTE, will have to renounce his dual citizenship to contest the election to be held this year.

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20 - 26 April 2019

in brief JAPAN JET FALLS IN PACIFIC IN ONLY 2ND F-35 CRASH Search teams found wreckage from a crashed Japanese F-35 stealth fighter in the Pacific Ocean close to northern Japan, and are scouring the waters for the missing pilot, authorities said. The aircraft, less than a year old, was the first F-35 assembled in Japan and was aloft for only 28 minutes before contact was lost. It was only the second F-35 to crash since the aircraft’s first flight in 2006. Manufacturer Lockheed Martin said it was standing by to support the Japanese Air Self Defence Force as needed.

NZ HOUSE VOTES TO BAN MILITARY STYLE WEAPONS New Zealand’s Parliament passed sweeping gun laws that outlaw military-style weapons, less than a month after mass shootings at two mosques left 50 people dead and dozens wounded. A bill outlawing most automatic and semi-automatic weapons and banning components that modify existing weapons was passed by a vote of 119 to 1. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern spoke emotionally during the bill’s final reading of the traumatic injuries suffered by victims of the March 15 attacks.

The law includes a buyback scheme under which owners of outlawed weapons can surrender them to police in return for compensation based on the weapon’s age and condition. Anyone who retains such a weapon faces a penalty of up to five years in prison.

SUDAN'S ARMY OUSTS LONG-TIME RULER OMAR AL-BASHIR Sudan’s army has toppled the country’s long-time ruler Omar Al-Bashir and placed him under arrest. Bashir has ruled Sudan with an iron-fist for nearly 30 years.

Sudan’s Defence minister Awad Ibn Ouf made the announcement on state TV. "I announce as minister of defence the toppling of the regime and detaining its chief in a secure place," Ibn Ouf said in a statement. The Defence minister also said the country had been suffering from "poor management, corruption, and an absence of justice" and he apologised "for the killing and violence that took place".

CHINA TO BUILD ‘ECO-TOILET’ ON MOUNT EVEREST Climbers on Mount Everest will soon find an “eco-friendly” toilet at a Chinese campsite 7,028 metres above sea level in an ongoing campaign to deal with the peak’s waste problem. During the climbing season this spring, a Chinese expedition firm will add what state media dubbed an “eco-friendly” loo at the higher campsite on the northern slope in Tibet. “The toilet makes it easy to collect human waste produced by the climbers as there is a barrel with rubbish bags underneath the toilet,” Xinhua was quoted as saying.

PENIS ENLARGEMENT CRAZE SWEEPS PAPUA NEW GUINEA Doctors in Papua New Guinea have warned they are facing a national problem as thousands of men suffer the effects of botched DIY penis enlargements. Some men have injected their genitals with many substances including silicon, coconut oil, baby oil and cooking oil. A doctor said his clinic had treated over 500 men who were suffering the effects of the injections. The results can be life altering, and range from painful ulcers to swelling on the penis and testicles, and in some cases lifelong impotence.

Bill introduced in US Congress to give India ‘Nato ally’ status Washington: A group of half a dozen influential American lawmakers has reintroduced an important legislation in the House of Representatives which seeks to advance the US-India strategic relationship. If enacted, the legislation would ensure that the US state department treats India as a Nato ally for the purposes of the Arms Export Control Act. It would send a powerful signal that defence sales to India should be prioritised according to USIndia Strategic Partnership Forum. The bill was introduced

by Congressman Joe Wilson, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

“This adjustment to US law will further allow the US-India partnership to flourish in line with our security commitment to the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.

The original co-sponsors of the legislation are Congressman Ami Bera - the longest serving

Congressman Joe Wilson

Indian-American in Congress and the House India Caucus CoChairs, Congressmen George Holding, Brad Sherman and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard and Congressman Ted Yoho.

"India is the world's largest democracy, a pillar of stability in the region, and has shown strong commitments to export control policies," said Wilson.

The National Defense

Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal 2017 included special language recognising the unique US-India defence relationship that designated India as a "Major Defence Partner" of the United States. The language seeks unique consideration for trade and technology sharing with India and increased attention and support to advance this relationship in the areas of

defence trade and technology sharing.

"The legislation bolsters national security and helps ensure full alignment between the Department of Defense and the Department of State. Such a change will institutionalise the gains made in the relationship and provide a more stable foundation upon which both countries can solidify this unique defence partnership," USISPF said. Although powerful in its own right, the NDAA FY 2017 has no legal bearing on the State Department's body of legislation, nor does it compel the State Department to view defence with India more favourably, USISPF said in a statement. To fulfill the spirit and intent of the NDAA 2017, the US-India Enhanced Cooperation Act would amend the Arms Export Control Act to put India on par with NATO allies and Israel, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia and Japan.

Indian American prosecutor re-nominated for federal judge seat California: The White House announced that President Donald Trump has announced his intention to re-nominate a dozen individuals for judicial posts, including Diane Gujarati.

Gujarati, of New York, is the daughter of an Indian father and Jewish mother. She has been nominated by the president to serve as a district judge on the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Gujarati serves as deputy chief of the criminal division of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, where she has served as an assistant United

States attorney for the past 19 years. She has also served as an adjunct professor of clinical law at New York University School of Law until earlier this year.

Before joining the US Attorney’s Office, Gujarati practiced for three years as a litigation associate in the New York City office of Davis Polk & Wardwell, LLP, her bio said.

Upon graduation from law school, Gujarati served as a law clerk to Judge John M. Walker Jr. of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Gujarati had previously been nominated by former President Barack Obama to the same post in which Trump

Indian American prosecutor Diane Gujarati

nominated her for April 8.

The nomination by Trump shows both her legal standing as well as the administration's difficulty in finding candidates within its ideological spectrum

who will be able to win Senate support. The Trump nomination advanced to the full Senate in November 2018, during which the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association lauded Gujarati.

Bhutan too may give China’s BRI meet a miss New Delhi: While India has rejected China’s invite for Belt and Road Forum meet, Bhutan is the only country in the immediate neighbourhood which is again holding out against Chinese attempts to rope it in for the event which is likely to be attended by 40 heads of state and government. Diplomatic sources said Bhutan is unlikely to attend the BRI Forum meet.

China has in the past 12 months intensified engagement with the new government in Thimphu in an effort to wean it away from India’s sphere of influence. While Bhutan, which does not have diplomatic relations with China, is looking at Beijing as a potential partner in attempts to diversify its economy, it knows that its presence at the Forum meet is unlikely to go down well with the Indian establishment.

Bhutan boycotted the first Forum meet in 2017 too, aligning itself with India which sees BRI as undermining its sovereignty in

Chinese President Xi Jinping

the form of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor that passes through Pakistan controlled Gilgit-Baltistan region of the state of J&K. China has actively courted Bhutan in the recent past with Thimphu seeing regular visits by Chinese ambassador to

India Luo Zhaohui. China’s vice foreign minister Kong Xuanyou had also visited Bhutan last year.

Bhutan has been cagey about bilateral exchanges with China. A press release issued after Kong’s visit merely said that during the visit the two sides discussed

issues of mutual interest. China though had said in a statement that it respected Bhutan’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

“China welcomes Bhutan’s active participation in the Belt and Road Initiative and sharing China’s development dividend,” the Chinese foreign ministry had said in a statement. India also closely follows Bhutan’s talks with Beijing on their border dispute and it is of concern to the Indian government.

According to strategic affairs expert Brahma Chellaney, China has by slowly capturing Doklam now effectively overturned the land-swap deal it has long offered Thimphu, under which Bhutan was to cede its claim to the Doklam plateau in return for Beijing renouncing its claim to a slice of land in northern Bhutan.

For India though, Bhutan’s Doklam is located dangerously close to the Siliguri Corridor, which connects India’s northeast with the mainland.

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SOUTH INDIA

Tamil parties bank on social media to draw millennial CHENNAI: Just a few days to go before campaigning for the Tamil Nadu polls end, the limelight has shifted to media platforms. In an effort to target the 20 million millennial votes in the state, the two big political rivals have began campaigning extensively on social media with series of videos that cater to the smartphone generation. Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu are scheduled to be held in a single phase on April 18.

Leading the political media war on both television and on social media is the state's key opposition party - DMK or Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam led by MK Stalin. The party have, through a a series of videos on twitter, aimed at reminding people of several instances, including the police firing that killed 13 anti-Sterlite protesters in Tuticorin, student suicides related to the imposition of NEET, the entrance test for

MK Stalin

E. Palaniswami

medical admission replacing Tamil Nadu's class XII marks based admission system, the hardship following demonetisation and GST implementation and the recent sexual abuse of women in Pollachi. The videos, mostly in Tamil, target the E Palaniswamy led AIADMK government with it's tagline - "No slaves and

oppressors. Vote for DMK".

Most clips show the rising sun, the symbol of the DMK party.

However, the ruling AIADMK seems to be giving the opposition party an equal fight.

Facing flak for the Pollachi sexual abuse case, supporters of the ruling AIADMK are taking on the DMK-Congress alliance in their own creative way. A

video recording by AIADMK shows a television news clip on a DMK functionary assaulting a woman, who the party had later suspended. Also included in the clip were visuals of DMK founder late Karunandhi laughing, over which popular comedian's well known dialogue is heard saying "These things are common in politics".

In yet another campaign, the ruling party used old videos of former chief minister and visionary, J Jayalalaithaa's seeking votes from people.

In another rather cinematic campaign video by actorpolitician Kamal Haasan, he is seen asking voters to check with the parents of the students who killed themselves over NEET on whom to vote for. Kamal Hassan is heard saying, "If we have to be the feeder hand for the people we can't even shake hands or touch them. They are so corrupt".

PUNJAB

India pays tributes to victims of Jallianwala Bagh massacre Amritsar: Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu released a postage stamp and a coin commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Hundreds of innocent Indian lives were lost when British forces fired indiscriminately inside the Jallianwala Bagh in Punjab's Amritsar on April 13, 1919.

Offering tributes to the fallen, Naidu's message in the visitor's book at the memorial read, "I feel extremely humbled as I pay my homage to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives fighting the evil hegemony of the oppressive British rule. I salute the martyrs who sacrificed their lives on this very spot 100 years ago."

Accompanied by Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore, Naidu stood in silence at the memorial as contingents of the Punjab police and the Border

Security Force (BSF) reversed their arms to pay homage to those killed. Naidu also released a coin and a postal stamp to commemorate the event.

Saturday marked the centenary of the bloodbath in Jallianwala Bagh when British forces led by Brigadier General Reginald Dyer opened fire on unarmed, innocent Indians, including women and children, who had gathered there to hold a peaceful protest against the oppressive Rowlatt Act of the British government.

Earlier in the day, President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid their tributes to the victims of Jallianwala Bagh. "A 100 years ago today, our beloved freedom fighters were martyred at Jallianwala Bagh. A horrific massacre, a stain on civilisation, that day of sacrifice can never be

forgotten by India. At this solemn moment, we pay our tribute to the immortals of Jallianwala," President Kovind tweeted.

"Today, when we observe 100 years of the h o r r i f i c Vice President Venkaiah Naidu pays tributes to the Jallianwala Bagh martyrs massacre, India Minister Captain Amarinder pays tributes to all those Singh and state minister Navjot martyred on that fateful day.

Singh Sidhu. British High Their valour and sacrifice will Commissioner to India Sir never be forgotten. Their Dominic Asquith also laid the memory inspires us to work even wreath at the memorial and harder to build an India they penned a message on the visitor's would be proud of," the Prime book, which read, "The events of Minister wrote on Twitter.

Jallianwala Bagh 100 years ago Congress president Rahul today reflects a shameful act in Gandhi visited the memorial to the British-Indian history. We pay homage and was deeply regret what happened and accompanied by Punjab Chief the suffering caused."

WEST BENGAL

SC seeks Rajeev Kumar’s response on CBI plea for arrest NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court directed former Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar to file his response on a CBI plea seeking his arrest in the multi-million Saradha chit fund case. In an application, the CBI sought the SC to abandon its earlier order directing that no coercive action be taken against the former Kolkata Police Commissioner. A bench headed

by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi issued a notice to Kumar on CBI's plea and sought his response within four weeks.

The court had on February 5 stayed the arrest of Kumar in the Saradha and Rose Valley Ponzi

Rajeev Kumar

scam cases. The agency said the custodial interrogation of Kumar was required to make

progress on gathering evidence on the nexus between politicians and the top management of Saradha Group.

The agency also said that Kumar on apex court direction had appeared before the agency in Shillong, but during the questioning he remained elusive. The CBI also sought the apex court's direction to the West Bengal authorities to cooperate in the investigations and not to interfere in the scope of investigation. Counsels for Vodafone and Airtel were present in the court during the hearing.

Mukul Rohatgi, who

appeared for Vodafone, said the company had already cooperated with the agency in the investigation and handed over all call data and records.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta asked Airtel to hand over all the call data and other records concerning the case.

The SC rejected a plea by AM Singhvi appearing on behalf of the West Bengal government, that the CBI's affidavit must be vetted by its Director. Singhvi claimed that the action had been ordered was due to the West Bengal Police probe into alleged dealings of then CBI chief Nageshwar Rao's wife.

in brief PM MODI RAPS DMK-CONG ALLIANCE Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a fiery verbal attack against the Opposition saying the DMK, Congress and their “mahamilavati” friends cannot accept strides India has made and therefore were “unhappy” with him. He took a swipe at the DMK-Congress combine, and said those who were “sworn enemies” have joined hands. Speaking at an election rally at Theni, Modi said, “Today India is rapidly making a mark in the world. The Congress, DMK and their mahamilavati friends cannot accept this. That is why they are unhappy with me.” Modi has been calling the opposition mahagathbandhan (mega alliance) as mahamilavati (adulterated).

TAX MEN SEIZE £13.7 MN IN TN 10 DAYS AHEAD OF POLLS Income Tax officials have seized £13.7 million worth unaccounted cash over the last ten days ahead of the Lok Sabha and assembly by-polls in Tamil Nadu. The state leads in terms of the single largest seizure of cash followed by Andhra Pradesh with £9.57 million. Last week, £1.15 million unaccounted cash was seized from a cement warehouse allegedly belonging to an associate of a DMK leader in Vellore, TN. The DMK's candidate Kathir Anand is under the scanner. Officials suspect the cash was used to ensure his victory in polls.

Election officials seized £199,000 from DMK ally Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) also in Perambalur district. The DMK says these are politically motivated allegations. DMK spokesperson A Saravanan said, “The Income Tax department is colluding with the BJP and AIADMKA in Tamil Nadu. It is being projected as though the opposition parties are trying to distribute cash when the truth is other way around. Today we've registered a complaint before the Election Commission that cash is transported through police vehicles.”

CAPT, HARSIMRAT IN TWITTER WAR AGAIN Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh took on union minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal on twitter to question her great grandfather’s “lavish dinner” to General Dyer on the day of the barbaric Jallianwala Bagh massacre. The CM launched a scathing attack on Harsimrat as well as her husband and SAD chief Sukhbir Badal and his father Parkash Singh Badal, after her tweet, attacking Capt Amarinder on his visit to Akal Takht with Congress president Rahul Gandhi. The CM lashed out at Harsimrat, her brother Bikram Majithia and the Badals “playing the charade of nationalism to promote their political interests”. The minister’s remarks, he alleged, not only smacked of duplicity, but ignorance of the facts. The two leaders had engaged in twitter war on several issues earlier as well.

SC FINES BENGAL GOVT FOR ‘BLOCKING’ FILM Expressing concern over growing intolerance to dissent and curbing of artistic freedom, the SC said the state is constitutionally bound to protect people's freedom and slapped a fine of Rs 20,00,000 on the West Bengal government for blocking release of satirical film 'Bhobishyoter Bhoot'. A bench of Justices DY Chandrachud and Hemant Gupta said artistes are entitled to the fullest liberty and freedom to critique and criticise, and government agencies cannot put restrictions on artistic freedom to express their views. Justice Chandrachud who wrote the judgment, said, “The Constitution does not permit those in authority to crush the freedom of others to believe, think and express.”

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20 - 26 April 2019

Indira fulfilled Patel’s Sikkim Dream • It was Prime Minister Gandhi’s decision to start Sikkim project • In March 1978, PM Morarji Desai called the merger a mistake! ome pages of history remain hidden till some of the key-operators of the most important historic moments come out with the first hand reports of the chronology of the events. The merger of Sikkim State with India in 1975 was one such example. Unlike Kashmir affairs, hardly anyone refers the merger of Sikkim publicly. Though records suggest Pandit Nehru and Sardar Patel jointly handled the process of accession of Jammu and Kashmir State from June to December 1947, Nehru is solely blamed for the complexity of Kashmir affairs even today. Not many people may be aware that Sardar Patel was keen to merge Sikkim State with India in the initial days of freedom but Pandit Nehru was opposed to it for various reasons. His daughter Indira Gandhi fulfilled the dream of Patel in 1975 showing guts to acknowledge her father’s mistake.

S

G. B. S. Sidhu, a former Special Secretary in the Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India, was closely involved with the manoeuvres that led to the merger of Sikkim with India, explains why the move was crucial to India’s security in his newly published book, “Sikkim: Dawn of Democracy: The Truth behind the merger with India”. Sidhu has fulfilled the promise he made to his boss and head

of the Research and Analysis Wing(R&AW), Rameshwar Nath Kao to write a book on the merger of Sikkim. Sidhu went to Gangtok in 1973 and left in February 1976 after the merger in May 1975. He was a key-actor in the carefully choreographed drama directed by R&AW’s legendary head, Kao, in close collaboration with Foreign Secretary Kewal Singh. It was Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s decision to start the project. Kao, who

left the R&AW in 1977, following Smt. G’s defeat, asked Sidhu in 1988 to write a book on Sikkim’s merger as Sidhu had meticulously kept a diary. Sidhu was then Joint Secretary at R&AW headquarters.

The book gives a sound but succinct account of the relations between the Namgyal dynasty that ruled Sikkim and the British government in India. In 1947, Sardar Patel and B.N. Rao (Constitutional Adviser to the Constituent Assembly) were for including Sikkim among the Princely States to be integrated with India. But Nehru “due to his idealism,

Next Column: The Prime Ministers of Republic of India Pan-Asia vision and sensitivity to the Chinese concerns in this region wanted Sikkim to be treated

as a special case”.

Sidhu, IPS (Retd.) writes: “The merger of Sikkim with India in May 1975 was a historic event in more than one way. Firstly, it undid the wrong done by India to the people of Sikkim by denying them the right to accede to, and finally merge with, the Union of India through the signing of the Instrument of Accession, as was the case with the rest of the 565 Indian princely States, which like Sikkim, were also members of the Chamber of Princes and the Constituent Assembly of India, before the country attained Independence on August 15, 1947…Secondly, to protect its strategic interests in this vulnerable and heavily defended sector along the Sino-Indian border, India no longer had to depend upon the whims and fancies, and the growing unpredictability, of the Chogyal who had long

After the merger of Sikkim with India, PM Indira Gandhi visited Gangtok

cherished the ambition to secure an independent status for Sikkim like that of neighbouring Bhutan…

Thirdly, through it, India’s international borders achieved a finality, which will continue to remain the same unless minor adjustments, if any, are made based on mutual agreements with some of our neighbouring countries

with whom we have festering territorial disputes.” Surprisingly, in March 1978 PM Morarji Desai declared that merger was a mistake that could not be undone!

Dr. Hari Desai (The writer is a Socio-political Historian.

E-mail: haridesai@gmail.com)

Russia confers PM Modi with highest civilian award

Breakthrough soon on fugitives Choksi, Mehta as govt pursues Big Four

Russia has conferred its highest civilian award on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. In a statement announcing the award, the Russian government said, “Narendra Modi was decorated with the Order of St Andrew the Apostle - the highest state decoration of Russia - for exceptional services in promoting special and privileged strategic partnership between the Russian Federation and the Republic of India and friendly relations between the Russian and Indian peoples.”

The recognition, coming as it does right in the middle of electioneering, is the seventh international award conferred on PM Narendra Modi in the past few years. It was only last week that Modi was conferred the Zayed Medal, the highest decoration by the UAE, in recognition for his “pivotal role” in strengthening relations.

Government sources have indicated that they are pursuing four quarries - Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Jatin Mehta - all economic offenders and fugitives from the law relentlessly. In each case, a carefully calibrated strategy is in place to bring the culprits to book, and more importantly, home.

A major breakthrough is expected shortly, in the middle of the elections.

While Neerav Modi and Mallya are ensconced in Britain and the local criminal justice system is in their pursuit, the Indian government is trying all the necessary tactics to bring both diamantaires Choksi and Mehta back from the Caribbean islands.

Government-to government negotiations are on with Antigua and Barbuda for Choksi and St Kitts and Nevis for Winsome Diamonds' Mehta. Availing of the controversial paid citizenship programme provided by many of the islands in the Caribbean, diamantaire Mehul Choksi and Winsome Diamonds' promoter Jatin Mehta have taken citizenship in these parts.

Mehta became a citizen of St Kitts and Nevis some years ago while Choksi took Antigua and Barbuda citizenship recently. These islands provide visa-free travel to 132 countries.

Citizenship through investment has become popular among Indian economic offenders. Investigating agency sources also revealed that Choksi and Mehta are the principal targets of this exercise.

The government-togovernment communication revolves around securing both targets through extradition, which is difficult because there are no extradition treaties with these

Nirav Mod

countries. Mehul Choksi may be picked up in the Caribbean, while Nirav Modi who remains under arrest in London are most wanted.

The lack of extradition treaties has made these islands a safe haven for India's uber rich. Other countries like Grenada, St Lucia, Dominica also have similar citizenship by investment programmes. India has appealed to these small islands with a pitch that they are economic offenders and fugitives for committing financial crimes.

Dominica and St Lucia give citizenship and a valid passport for just $100,000 which is chump change for ultra rich Indians on the run. If your spouse needs a similar passport then it is $165,000 in St Lucia and $175,000 in Dominica.

Meanwhile, Grenada gives a similar passport for $200,000.

Predicated on its nine-point agenda presented in the G-20 Leaders' Summit held on November 30, 2018 and December 1, 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for action against fugitive economic offenders,

Mehul Choksi

Vijay Mallya

Indian diplomats in conjunction with Interpol and domestic probe agencies are determined to bring all four back.

India has pursued the agenda against fugitive economic offenders in various forums of the G20, like, Finance and Sherpa Tracks, AntiCorruption Working Group and the Denial of Entry Experts Network.

Consequently, Leaders' Declaration, adopted at the G20 Buenos Aires Summit, inter alia, says: "We will further explore the links between corruption and other economic crimes and ways to tackle them, including through cooperation on the return of persons sought for such offences and stolen assets, consistent with international obligations and domestic legal systems.

We ask relevant international organizations to report back to us on those issues during the next presidency."

This reflects the will exhibited by the G20 members to tackle the

Jatin Mehta

issue of return of persons sought for economic offences and stolen assets through international cooperation.

This came after the government got the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill in July 2018 by both Houses of Parliament.

The Bill allows for a person to be declared as a fugitive economic offender (FEO) if: (i) an arrest warrant has been issued against him for any specified offences where the value involved is over Rs 100 crore, and (ii) he has left the country and refuses to return to face prosecution.

To declare a person an FEO, an application will be filed in a Special Court (designated under the Prevention of Money-Laundering Act, 2002) containing details of the properties to be confiscated, and any information about the person's whereabouts.

The Special Court will require the person to appear at a specified place at least six weeks from issue of notice. Proceedings will be terminated if the person appears.

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EC cracks whip on Yogi Adityanath, Mayawati, Azam Khan and Maneka Gandhi On the day it was asked searching questions by the Supreme Court on the action taken against leaders for provocative speeches during the poll campaign, the Election Commission invoked its extraordinary powers to temporarily ban four political leaders - UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BSP chief Mayawati, Union Minister Maneka Gandhi and SP leader Azam Khan - from campaigning. While Adityanath and Khan were barred for three days (72 hours) starting Tuesday morning, Gandhi and Mayawati cannot campaign for two days (48 hours).

The punitive action was taken against the BSP chief for appealing directly to Muslim voters in Saharanpur and Bareilly districts during a joint rally of the BSP-SP alliance on April 7. Adityanath was punished for his “Ali and Bajrangbali” remark at a Meerut rally on April 9 and the “green virus” comment which was a reference to Muslims.

Maneka Gandhi was barred for saying, at a meeting in Sultanpur on April 11, that she will not be inclined to

BSP chief Mayawati,

help Muslims if they do not vote for her. Khan was punished for the “indecent and repugnant” remarks he made on April 14 against BJP’s Rampur candidate Jaya Prada.

This is only the second time the EC has imposed a temporary ban on a political leader’s poll campaign. In 2014, it barred now BJP chief Amit Shah and SP leader Azam Khan for making inflammatory speeches in defiance of notices.

While Adityanath, Mayawati and Maneka were given an opportunity to explain their conduct, the Commission acted directly against Khan citing his past conduct and the fact that he hadn’t “changed his ways of campaigning” and was still “indulging in using very objectionable language in election campaigning”.

SP leader Azam Khan

Condemning remarks by Mayawati and Adityanath, the Commission, in a strongly-worded order, noted that such

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath

public utterances “contaminate the electoral process” and have the “propensity to polarise the elections”.

On Gandhi, the EC said that her statement, apart from being violative of the Model Code of Conduct, was also a corrupt practice under Section 123 of the Representation of the People Act. All four leaders have been barred from “holding any public meetings, public processions, public rallies, road shows and interviews, public utterances in media (electronic, print and social media etc.) in connection with ongoing elections” during the ban period. While the ban on Maneka and Khan is effective from 10 am Tuesday, it starts 6 am for the remaining two leaders.

Responding to the temporary ban order, Mayawati called it “unconstitutional and cruel”, saying “I have been prevented from my basic rights to go anywhere and speak… This order will be remembered as a black day in the history of our Election Commission. This decision appears to have been taken under some pressure…

Intention behind this order is clear that as BSP chief, I cannot appeal to people to remove the BJP from power”.

SP leader Akhilesh Yadav took to Twitter to ask the EC whether it would move against the Prime Minister for his remarks. “EC directive against @mayawati ji begs the question: do they have integrity to stop PM from asking for votes in name of the army?” he tweeted, tagging a quote of the PM appealing to first-time voters to dedicate their votes to soldiers who died in the Pulwama terror attack.

BJP UP president Mahendra Nath Pandey appealed to the EC to review its order, claiming that Adityanath was only remembering his deity, He demanded that action should instead be taken against Mayawati and Khan.

The EC order will cast a shadow on scheduled rallies. While Adityanath was suppose to campaign in Nagina and Fatehpur Sikri and participate in Union Home Minister’s Rajnath Singh’s nomination Tuesday, Mayawati had a rally scheduled in Agra.

“There was supposed to be a joint rally of the (SP, BSP, RLD) alliance in Agra, but following the latest order, it appears that Mayawatiji would not be able to attend. Nothing has been decided about the future line of action.

Discussions are on and a decision is likely to be taken late night,” SP spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary said.

The Commission’s order came shortly after the Supreme Court

questioned the poll panel over action taken against leaders like Adityanath and Mayawati, and decided to examine the Commission’s powers in this regard.

The bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi and Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjeev Khanna did not appear satisfied with the Commission’s submission that it had only limited powers in the matter. It said “we would like to examine the matter” and asked the Commission to send a “representative… who is well conversant with the issues raised” to the court at 10.30 am Tuesday when it will consider the matter again.

As the bench heard a petition seeking action over communal speeches and votes being sought on religious lines, the CJI told Commission counsel Amit Sharma: “This is something you are duty-bound to do. Tell us what are you doing.”

Sharma told the bench “we are issuing notices”. He handed over a table which he said showed “specific instances where we have taken steps”.

Referring to the mention of Adityanath and Mayawati in the table, the bench asked the counsel what the complaint against them was and what action had been taken.

Sharma said that the matter involving Adityanath had been closed after his explanation and, in another matter, Mayawati who was supposed to reply by April 12 was yet to respond.

“It’s the 15th. What are you doing about it?” the CJI remarked, adding “answer… or we will get the Chief Election Commissioner here… is it not a defiance of the EC order? What are you mandated to do?”

Sharma said if there are more

Union Minister Maneka Gandhi

complaints, the EC will issue notice and lodge a complaint. “We can’t disqualify them,” he said.

Both Yogi & Maya stood by remarks Adityanath and Mayawati stood by their remarks. “I used the term ‘green virus’ for the thought which practises vote bank politics on religious lines for electoral gains.

Just like a virus weakens a healthy person, such narrow thought is harmful for healthy politics in the country. Those practising such politics have to be eliminated just the way a virus is removed,” the CM said.

Mayawati called the EC “anti-Dalit” and accused it of working at the behest of BJP. The action came after the SC frowned upon the poll watchdog for failing to curb controversial utterances, and termed it “toothless”

Happy Birthday Raj Happy birthday Raj, you are an ever smiling and highly active photographer.

Wish you all the best for a very long, successful and satisfying future.

Team ABPL

After raid at DMK leader Kanimozhi's house tax officials say 'false tip' Amid allegations of a huge cash-for-votes racket in Tamil Nadu, officials of the Income Tax department visited the house of DMK leader Kanimozhi to "verify allegations of cash being stashed there," sources said.

Kanimozhi, DMK lawmaker and the sister of party chief MK Stalin, is the candidate for the Tuticorin seat. It was alleged that "lots of cash" was stashed on the first floor of her house in Thoothukudi, sources said. IT sources, however, said later that it was a "false tip" and they drew a blank. No case has been registered.

"Crores and crores of rupees are kept in the house of Tamilisai Soundararajan's (state BJP chief) residence, why no raids there? Modi is using IT, CBI, judiciary and now Election Commission to interfere in the elections.

They are doing this as they fear losing," DMK chief Stalin said. Elections for the state's 39 Lok Sabha seats and 18 assembly seats will be held on Thursday, during the second phase.

In the run-up to the polls, a string of raids have been held in the state, in which around £50 million in illegal cash and gold - has been seized. Today, in a first, election for the Vellore Lok Sabha seat was cancelled following recovery of huge cash from alleged associates of DMK candidate Kathir Anand, the son of DMK treasurer Durai Murugan.

On March 30, tax officials raided Durai Murugan's residence and allegedly seized Rs 10,50,000.

DMK leader Kanimozhi

Two days later, they claimed to have seized £1.15 million from a cement godown belonging to an associate of the DMK leader. Last week, tax department officials conducted searches at 18 locations in the state. The list of sites included state capital Chennai, Namakkal and Tirunelveli. Most of the searches were on properties owned by opposition leaders.

Tax raids on opposition leaders have become one of the key issues in the ongoing elections, with most leaders accusing the BJP of targeting political rivals through government agencies. DMK spokesperson A Saravanan called it "a murder of democracy and a sick joke".

He added, "This is not an embarrassment for us, but this will backfire and the sympathy this would generate will make the DMK win all seats".

Though £20.4 million unaccounted cash has been recovered in Tamil Nadu ahead of polls, the Income Tax officials have not named any political party or candidates with regard to the remaining £19 million cash. A senior officer said, "We are investigating their political affiliation."

Obituary Mugat Vishnubhai Patel Mugat Patel, son of late Shri Vishnubhai and Smt. Anilaben (residing in Vadodara), nephew of CB, Janardhanbhai and kalpanaben, after a short illness passed away peacefully in a London hospital on last Friday. He was only 39 years old. We all are deeply saddened with this tragedy.

We at ABPL pray for this young soul to rest in peace and give strength to his family members to withstand this unfortunate situation.

Om Shanti... Shanti.... Shanti.......

Jay Shree Krishna ......

SHRIJIT [Business Co-Ordinator] Contact-020 7749 4002 E-mail: shrijit.rajan@abplgroup

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HEALTH & LIFESTYLE

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20 - 26 April 2019

World's oldest yoga instructor still teaching despite four hip replacements Awarded lifetime award from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi At 100 years old, legendary yoga instructor Tao Porchon-Lynch has no plans to slow down. She is still teaching multiple times a week in Hartsdale, a northern suburb of New York City, and she dances in the local Fred Astaire society.

Since she first encountered yoga at age seven in her native India, Porchon-Lynch has trained with some of the greatest, and went on to mentor, among others, Deepak Chopra. In recent years she has appeared on America's Got Talent as a ballroom dancer, and authored two books. Earlier this year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi

awarded her the prestigious Padma Shri Award for exceptional achievement. But with her 101st birthday round the corner - on August 13 Porchon-Lynch insists she feels as spritely as ever.

'When I wake up in the morning, I look at the sun and I say, "This is going to be the best day of my life" and it will be. It always is.'

Porchon-Lynch lives alone in her suburban apart-

ment, but when needed, she has a circle of care that includes current and former students and friends dropping by, plus members of a wine society she's in. She told the Associated Press she first discovered yoga while strolling along a beach, transfixed by a group of boys doing yoga poses. Her aunt told her the movements were 'not ladylike,' and she responded, 'If boys can do it, I can do it.'

By the time PorchonLynch was a teenager, already teaching yoga, she was able to explain how to breathe in a healthy way especially to people in awkward sitting positions.

Nose spray could treat depression in as little as two hours A nasal spray could be a new way to tackle depression.

Based on a horse tranquilliser, the spray gets to work in as little as two hours, far quicker than widely used medications that can take weeks to kick in.

The liquid contains a compound called esketamine, which is thought to act on the brain chemical glutamate to restore connections between brain cells. It’s used in far smaller doses than the street drug ketamine.

The U.S. regulator, the Food and Drug Administration, last week approved the use of the

spray for patients with depression that does not respond to other treatments.

Five UK centres are taking part in a long-term trial of the spray, which is used twice a week. Depression is a mood disorder that causes persistent feelings of sadness and loss of interest.

Clinical depression is estimated to affect one in 15 adults at some time.

It is the result of changes in brain chemistry, and causes range from genetics and changes in hormone levels, to chronic medical conditions, stress and grief.

The most common

treatments are drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). These work for some — not all — patients, and can take between two and six weeks to exert full effects. A study of 3,000 cases of severe depression in the American Journal of Psychiatry found

that less than 30 per cent had remission after taking SSRIs. A nasal spray has been investigated, as it offers quicker relief because the drug gets to where it is needed in the brain without being processed through the body.

Gut-health expert reveals best tips to tackle irritable bowel syndrome From pain and flatulence to diarrhoea and constipation, IBS is unpleasant to say the least. And nearly half of us battle this daily discomfort, with statistics suggesting as many as 40 per cent of adults have irritable bowel syndrome to some extent.

But we needn't suffer in silence. Dr Simon Smale, a consultant gastroenterologist at Manchester University, claims we can transform our gut health with his 18 easy tips. And some are so simple you could even start tonight.

Don't leave long gaps between meals: ‘Diet is important and it should come as no surprise that what you put in the tank influences your symptoms,’ advises Dr Smale. But as well as what you put in the tank you should also watch how long you leave it in between filling this so-called tank.

‘Start by eating regularly, by not leaving long gaps between your meals and certainly don’t skip meals,’ says Dr Smale.

Try two coffees a week

rather than a day: Avoid excess caffeine says Dr Smale. Caffeine can have a negative effect on the gut and can promote wind and gas, so try to limit yourself to a couple of cups of coffee a week rather than a couple of cups a day.

Ditch the fizz and try a herbal tea: Carbonated drinks that are full of sugar have got to make a swift exit from your cupboards immediately if you suffer from gut health problems. Ditch those fizzy drinks and drink water instead. Water comes with an added bonus as it will help lubricate your gut to keep everything moving; if water feels too boring try a herbal tea for healthy flavour hit – you’ll feel ten times better. Plus, drinking too many fizzy drinks could even make you feel anxious.

This is due to the gut brain connection. A diverse gut biome links to higher blood tryptophan and trytophan turns into serotonin, the brain chemical we need to be happy.

Go to bed at a similar time

every night: Often it seems that people who sleep badly are the ones who end up with gut dysbiosis or an imbalance in the gut and so it follows that by looking after our sleep we could improve our gut bacteria.

Get up from your desk every hour: It seems obvious that it’s not exactly healthy for those of us who sit at a desk all day, and unfortunately it’s bad news for our gut health too.

Moving around encourages peristalsis, which is a fancy word for helping food and waste move through the bowel quicker. We need to move for our gut bacteria to thrive, this is because the movement triggers the short chain fatty acids which keeps the gut lining healthy.

Try getting up from your desk and moving around once an hour. Go for a walk around the office or walk up and down the stairs a few times, that way people wont think you’ve gone made by walking in circles.

Try incorporating yoga into your daily routine:

You may be running at one hundred miles per hour, and unfortunately most of us have jobs that require nothing less, but try as much as you can to chill out, as overstressing can be bad news for your gut. It turns out IBS could also be worsened by your mental health. Stress is considered a key cause of IBS symptoms, suggesting whatever is going on in your mind could be having a direct impact on your gut health, which again links to the brain-gut connection.

Try to relieve your stress with yoga or meditation.

Taking 20-30 minutes out of your day to practice yoga will significantly help your stress levels.

in brief NHS TRUSTS HANDING OUT CASH TOP-UPS TO CONVINCE DOCTORS NOT TO RETIRE EARLY The NHS is handing out cash top-ups to doctors' salaries in a desperate bid to stop them from retiring early. Doctors are trying to avoid big tax bills from stricter pension rules that put a cap on their saving allowances. It's led to thousands leaving the profession early, amid a worsening staff shortage in the NHS workforce.

Around ten NHS trusts have now offered to contribute cash to doctors' pensions so they can opt out of the pension scheme, the Financial Times reports. York and Harrogate NHS trusts are among the organisations offering cash topups to salaries to senior doctors as an incentive to stay.

'Our trust has an established scheme to support employees who wish to opt out of the pension scheme because of the lifetime allowance cap,' said a spokesperson for the York Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.

'We are in discussions regarding expanding the scheme to support those who wish to opt out because it is no longer economically viable for them to contribute if they would exceed the annual allowance by remaining in the scheme.'

Harrogate NHS Trust did not respond to a request for comment. Restrictions which came into affect in 2016 mean doctors who earn more than £110,000 a year enter a 'taper zone' which triggers big tax bills. This can reduce the annual allowance – the tax-free amount workers can contribute to their pension – to £10,000 for those earning £210,000.

HAVING A RESTING HEART RATE OF 75 BEATS PER MINUTE IN YOUR FIFTIES 'COULD DOUBLE YOUR RISK OF AN EARLY DEATH' Having a resting heart rate of 75 beats per minute (bpm) in middle age could double your risk of an early death, research suggests. Men with a resting heart rate of 75 or above in their fifties were twice as likely to die within the next two decades compared to those with a rate of 55bpm or less.

And every additional resting heart beat per minute was linked to a three per cent greater risk of death from any cause.

The research was carried out by the University of Gothenburg and led by Dr Salim Bary Barywani, of the department of molecular and clinical medicine. Resting heart rate is the number of times the organ beats per minute while you are not exercising. A normal reading ranges from between 50 to 100bpm, the authors wrote in the British Medical Journal's publication Open Heart. A lower heart rate generally indicates better cardiovascular health and overall fitness. To uncover how changes in our heart rate may affect the risk of an early death, the researchers analysed 798 men.

They were all born in 1943. The men completed a questionnaire in 1993 on their lifestyle, stress and any family history of heart disease. They were also given a medical check-up, which included measuring their resting heart rate.

The men were divided into four groups: Those with a resting heart rate of 55bpm or less; 56-to-65bpm; 66-to-75bpm; and more than 75bpm. Resting heart rate was measured again in 2003 and 2014 among the 654 and 536 participants, respectively, who were still alive and willing to take part

HAND SANITISERS NEED TO BE RUBBED IN FOR 15 SECONDS TO KILL BACTERIA LURKING ON YOUR PALMS Many of us rely on hand sanitiser to keep us 'germ free' at a festival, on the tube or while grabbing lunch on the go. But while most just rub a blob into their hand and carry on with their day, a study suggests the gels are only effective if thoroughly applied for 15 seconds. Although this may sound unnecessary, it is actually half as complicated as the World Health Organization's advice, which recommends applying hand sanitiser in a six-step, 30-second process. The research was carried out by University Hospital Basel and led by Dr Sarah Tschudin-Sutter, of the department of infectiology and hospital hygiene. Hand hygiene is the single most effective thing healthcare workers can do to reduce the spread of infectious diseases, the scientists claim. The WHO says sanitiser is the 'preferred route' due to it being 'faster, more effective and better tolerated than washing with soap and water'.

To Our Readers

We are publishing these items in good faith, kindly consult your Doctor before you try to implement any advice. We do not hold any responsibility for its efficacy...

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I am a wild child, I do whatever I want : Priyanka Priyanka Chopra has opened up about one of her first dates with now husband Nick Jonas, revealing how Nick proved he respects her hard work. Speaking at the Women in World Summit 2019, the actress shared an anecdote from one of their initial dates, she said they were out with a few friends and she kept dropping hints that she needs a reason to cancel a meeting she had. “I said it twice. I said it thrice. And finally he pulled me aside

and was like, 'Look, I'm not stupid, I know what you're trying to do. But I will never be the one that tells you to cancel work, because I know how hard you work to be where you are. If you could have canceled the meeting, you would have done it.'”

Nick then offered to take the group out to dinner so they could wait for her to finish her meeting, Priyanka added, “I was like, this is the first (time) anyone has ever done that for me, the first person who gave me credit for what I have done.” She added, “I am a wild child, I do whatever I want whenever I want and he always supports me.” The 'Quantico' actress said

she is glad that the #MeToo movement happened and women came together for each other. “Sexual harassment had become a norm with women. Now because of the support we are giving each other, people don't have the power to shut us down.”

When asked how she has managed transition into Hollywood, she said, “A lot of actors that I speak to don't have ambitions to move out of the industry.

Bollywood is the biggest, if not the first industry to make films and the demographic is so large, they don't want to leave that.”

Salman doesn't endorse kissing and nudity in films Bhaijaan Salman Khan has maintained that he will always keep a “clean” image as far as his production ventures are concerned, adding that content these platforms “is shocking”. Salman said, “One thing is clear in my mind. I just want to make clean, entertaining films.” The actor said that because of his upbringing, he has decided to “move into the Barjatya zone” with his films. Salman

recently produced 'Notebook', in which actors Pranutan Bahl and Zaheer Iqbal were launched.

“I'm constantly wondering if I'm doing the right thing or the wrong thing because there are bizarre trends today. The kind of films that are being made are shocking! I can't even watch the stuff, but people are watching it,” Salman said.

He said he understands if people want to watch such content in privacy, but he can't manage it even when he's alone. He said he still gets awkward when a kissing scene happens, and he is surrounded by others. “See it whichever way you want, but I will put my heft behind clean cinema,”

he said.

“Instead of ones and twos coming in to watch movies, I'd rather want our banner to have films where people know they will have the naughtiness, humour, action, and romance, but all of us can watch them together. That's what I want to keep it to. If there's even an 'A' rated picture, then it will be because of action. I'm not for kissing and nudity in films at all,” Khan said. On the work front, the actor has two releases lined up for 2019. Eid will see the release of Ali Abbas Zafar's 'Bharat' starring Katrina Kaif. He will reunite with Sonakshi Sinha with 'Dabangg 3' in December.

Alia Bhatt says 'Brahmastra' could put them ‘on a global pedestal’ Alia Bhatt believes Ayan Mukerji's 'Brahmastra' is unique and at par with global standards. The first part of the three-part fantasy drama series stars Ranbir Kapoor, Alia and Amitabh Bachchan in important roles. Speaking in an interview, Alia said she has immense faith in Ayan's vision.

She said, “Ranbir and I have always maintained that 'Brahmastra' is not a superhero film; it is a mystical fantasy drama.

There is no reference. It's a new film that is emerging from our industry. It could be a film that will make this industry proud and put us on a global pedestal. I don't want to blow my own trumpet,

but there's immense faith in Ayan's vision.”

She also lavished praise on Ranbir and his craft. She said, “I have always been a great admirer of his craft. He is an honest actor who extracts the best from himself when in front of the camera. There are no trappings, and even if he has a process, it is an internal one, on camera.” The logo for the movie was unveiled on Maha Shivratri during the Kumbh Mela. Alia believes the film has the biggest of weapons in mythology and occupies an all-important place from the Ramayana to the Mahabharata. She added that 'Brahmastra' is not simply a superhero film, it is mystical fantasy drama. The film has been shot in various places across the world including Israel, Bulgaria and Mumbai. Apart from Ranbir, Alia and Amitabh, it also stars Nagarjuna and Mouni Roy.

Shahid smoked 20 cigarettes a day for 'Kabir Singh' Shahid Kapoor is absolutely crushing it in his upcoming titular 'Kabir Singh'. In its recently-released teaser of the movie, the actor is seen smoking cigarettes, beedis, snort cocaine, and drink alcohol. The actor said requirements for the character were really tough on him. Kapoor said he had to bathe for two hours after every shoot to rid him of the smell before going home to his kids. He revealed how

playing Kabir was difficult for him.

“I don't endorse smoking at all.

However, the role required it, as the protagonist uses it to channel his angst and rage. It wasn't easy, and it came to a point where I smoked almost 20 cigarettes a day. It would take me close to two hours to shower and get rid of the smells before I could return home to my children,” Shahid said. A remake of Telugu film 'Arjun Reddy', the film is

about brilliant but flawed medical student who takes to drugs and alcohol after he is separated from his girlfriend in the film. Shahid has been shooting for the film in Mumbai, Delhi, and Mussoorie for the past few months.

Directed by Sandeep Vanga, who directed the Telugu film as well, 'Kabir Singh' also stars Kiara Advani, who will be seen in the role played by Shalini Pandey in the original.

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20 - 26 April 2019

Madhuri Dixit reunites with Sanjay Dutt onscreen after 25 years Madhuri Dixit and Sanjay Dutt have come together after 25 years for Karan Johar's latest production. The two who were rumoured to be dating each other in the 90s have worked together in hit films like 'Saajan', 'Khalnayak', and 'Thaanedar' in the past. Madhuri said both of them now speak about their kids and their education. “We enjoy pulling each other's leg. We both have kids now and discuss their education.

It's been great working with him again,” he said.

She also revealed that she signed 'Kalank' without reading the script because Karan is a close friend. Madhuri also announced that she may soon come up with a new single. “I've cut an English album but am yet to shoot the songs.

Hopefully this year we will get that done,” she said. She also said she was surprised to see Alia Bhatt dancing on the sets of the film. “She's a

hardworking girl and I was pleasantly surprised to see her dancing on the set. She confided she'd gone on my dance app to take a few lessons from Maharaj Ji (Birju Maharaj).”

About Varun, who also stars in the movie, Madhuri said, “I've seen Varun as a child when we were filming his dad's (director David Dhawan) 'Yaraana' in Switzerland. He couldn't sit in one place for long and was always running around. I would tell him to dance and give him marks to keep him occupied. He always wants to dance and give him marks to keep him occupied.

He always wants to do the best and is a marketing whiz. There are so many ideas buzzing in his head all the time.”

Kalank will hit theatres on April 17. It also stars Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Sonakshi Sinha and Aditya Roy Kapur.

Deepika was asked about motherhood, actress says it's unfair Bollywood actors Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh, who got married in November last year, had been together for over six years before they tied the knot. While they were dating, they were often asked about their plans of settling down with each other, and now that the couple is married, fans are eager to know when they will venture into parenthood. In a recent interview, when Deepika was asked about pregnancy and embracing motherhood in an interview, the actress opened about the same adding that it's unfair to ask women such questions.

The actor said, “It will happen when it has to happen. Motherhood trumps being married. That's

Ananya speaks up on competition with Janhvi, Sara and others

Over 15 new talents have debuted in the Indian film industry in the last one year.

From Janhvi Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan and Ishaan Khattar to Pranutan Bahl, fresh faces have created quite the stir. Tara Sutaria and Ananya Panday, who are making their debut with 'Student of the Year 2', say they did not

fear competition. Daughter of actor Chunky Panday, Ananya said, “I love competition.

You can see it in 'SOTY 2'. It was so much fun. It is very motivating to have new people.

Our film industry needs new people all the time. So, it is amazing.”

Tara added, “I do not think there will be any unhealthy competition.

There will be healthy competition and I am very excited about this. I have seen a couple of film and now they all are going to see our films.”

Both youngsters are going to share screen space with Bollywood hearthrob Tiger Shroff in the sequel to 2012 film 'Student of the Year' which had launched Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Malhotra.

what I hear from people who have had children. Of course, it will happen at some point but no, I think it is unfair to put women through that, to put a couple through that. I guess the day we stop asking the questions is when we will bring about change.”

Deepika and Ranveer have been very vocal about her love, respect, and admiration for each other and even through they have hectic professional work commitments, they make sure to take time for each other. On the work front, Deepika is currently shooting for 'Chhpaak' where she will essay the role of acid attack survivor Laxmi Aggarwal. Directed by Meghna Gulzar, the film costars Vikrant Massey in the lead.

Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi to share screen in a thriller Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi are currently teaming up for a mystery thriller that will be released on February 21, 2020. This is the first collaboration between both actors. The yet-to-betitled film will be helmed by writer-director Rumi Jaffrey. The filmmaker issued a statement saying, “A film is a collaborative effort and when you have one of the best actors in front of the camera and a veteran producer behind the lens supporting you and leading all creative efforts, then making the film is a fantastic experience.” The movie produced by Anand Pandit Motion Pictures and Saraswati Entertainment Private Limited. Producer Anand Pandit said she is looking forward to the project with the two stars.

Pandit said, “My friendship with Mr Bachchan goes back a long way. I have not met any other actor who matches his skill and commitment. It is an honour to be a part of creating a film with him, and I have always admired Emraan's body of work, so am looking forward to seeing him onscreen with the legend for the first time.” The film, set to go on floors from May 10, also stars Annu Kapoor. Amitabh seems to have developed a taste for thrillers and murder mysteries.

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20 - 26 April 2019

Priya Prakash Varrier goes viral again Priya Prakash Varrier, who shot to fame for her viral wink in the song 'Manikya Malaraya Poovi' from her Malayalam debut film 'Oru Addar Lov' is trending again, however, for a faux pas. Priya shared a picture from her new ad on her Instagram account and mistakenly shared the caption shared to her as part of the image description including, “Text content for Instagram and Facebook'.

Once she realised she was being attacked by trolls, she corrected

seen recreating her famous wink in the her mistake. television commercial. She also became The actress was last seen in the trailer of Google's most popular celebrity in 2018 by her controversial Bollywood debut film replacing Sunny Leone as the most searched 'Sridevi Bungalow' in January this year. She personality of the year. had defended the movie saying, “Sridevi is just the name of my character in the movie. Who would want to create such controversies? I think the curiosity surrounding the WEDNESDAY APRIL 24, 2019 00:25 FILM: BAAT BANN GAYI trailer is good and we have 05:00 FILM: SHIKAAR to leave it to the audience to 07:28 FILM: KRANTIVEER judge if the film is based on 10:25 FILM: JAI BHARAT the veteran actress Sridevi 13:28 FILM: SATYA ma'am.” After her smashing 16:55 FILM: ENTERTAINMENT entry into the public eye, 19:47 FILM: SANAM TERI KASAM * Schedule is subject to change Priya has featured in an 22:56 FILM: PAPPU CAN'T DANCE SAALA SUNDAY APRIL 21, 2019 advertisement for a THURSDAY APRIL 25, 2019 00:35 FILM: YES BOSS chocolate brand and can be 01:15 FILM: YEH ZINDAGI KA SAFAR

Mahesh Babu and Trivikram reunite for an ad shoot Filmmaker Trivikram and Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu reunited almost after a decade for a new project. After 'Athadu' and 'Khaleja', the actors have now come together for an ad shoot. Social media was buzzing with pictures of Mahesh and Trivikram from the sets of their ad shoot for a popular commercial brand last week. The former took to Twitter and wrote, “Back with my favourite. Love the experience.” After the pictures went viral, fans wanted the popular duo to join hands soon for a project. The industry grapevine is that Trivikram and Mahesh Babu are in talks for a project which might take off next year.

Mahesh currently awaits the release of his 25th film 'Maharshi', which has been directed by Vamshi Paidipally. The film which is currently gearing up for release on May 9, was originally planned to be release on April 25. The makers added that the film's shoot is currently in the final stages. Except for two songs, the shoot of the entire film will be completed by March 15. Producer Dil Raju has confirmed in a press meet that the release has been pushed to May 9.

TV LISTING

05:00 FILM: THE SILENT HEROES 07:20 FILM: MR. INDIA 10:52 FILM: AAKHREE RAASTA 14:10 FILM: ALL THE BEST 17:02 FILM: BADLAPUR 19:45 FILM: TANU WEDS MANU RETURNS 22:23 FILM: SADIYAAN MONDAY APRIL 22, 2019 01:17 FILM: 1920 LONDON 05:00 FILM: BAS EK TAMANNA 07:11 FILM: INSANIYAT 10:41 FILM: KEEMAT 14:01 FILM: KHAKEE 16:30 FILM: SHAURYA 19:25 FILM: ENTERTAINMENT 22:17 FILM: ISHQ CLICK TUESDAY APRIL 23, 2019 00:50 FILM: TUMSA NAHIN DEKHA 05:00 FILM: AAJ KA RAAVAN 07:21 FILM: TAQDEER KA TAMASHA 10:55 FILM: KAYDA KANOON 13:46 FILM: AGNIVARSHA 16:31 FILM: TANU WEDS MANU RETURNS 19:10 FILM: ALIGARH 21:40 FILM: SHAURYA

* Schedule is subject to change

Mohanlal’s ‘Lucifer’ sets new industry record, mints £ 10 mn in 8 days Superstar Mohanlal's latest offering 'Lucifer' has struck massive gold. The movie has set new industry record for being the fastest Malayalam film to enter the Rs 100 Crore club worldwide. The masala film crossed the milestone in just eight days.

Mohanlal took to Twitter to announce the news.

He wrote, “In just 8 days, Lucifer is in the coveted 100 crore club. This is truly humbling. As a result of your unwavering support, Malayalam film industry is being launched into uncharted territories. Well done Prithviraj and team L.” 'Lucifer' which is currently running to packed houses, is the third Malayalam film to earn over Rs 100 crore. A political thriller, the movie stars Mohanlal in a character called Stephen Nedumpally. It also was actor Prithviraj's directorial debut. Prithviraj said in a tweet, “From growing up watching his films to supervising his dubbing for my debut directorial! I couldn't have asked for more. Thank you Lalettan Mohanlal.” He had earlier said that he learnt more about cinema and his craft in the last six months than the 16 years preceding it. He also thanked Mohanlal for believing in him. “Directing you has been the absolute highlight of my career regardless of how many ever films I direct or een if I'll never direct again,” he had said. Produced by Antony Perumbavoor, the film also stars Vivek Oberoi, Tovino Thomas, Indrajith and Manju Warrier in crucial roles.

SATURDAY 20TH APRIL TIME TV PROGRAM NAMES 16:30 KAUN BANEGA CROREPATI 18:30 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW 20:00 SUPER DANCER CHAPTER 3 21:30 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW 23:00 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW

* Schedule is subject to change

MONDAY 22ND APRIL 16:30: RASOI SHOW 17:30: CHHUTA CHHEDA 18:00: RADHA PREM KI DEEWANI 18:30: UTTARAN 19:00: JAHAANARA 19:30: BEPANNAH 20:00: ISHQ MEIN MARJAWAN 20:30: MOHE RANNG DO LAAL

* Schedule is subject to change

MONDAY 22ND APRIL 18:30: KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA 19:30: UDAAN 20:00: SHAKTI ASTITVA KE EHSAAS KI 20:30: KESARRI NANDAN 21:00: GATHBANDHAN

05:00 FILM: PYAR KI KAHANI 07:55 FILM: JAAN SE PYARA 11:00 FILM: SABSE BADA MAWALI 13:52 FILM: SANAM TERI KASAM 17:00 FILM: ALIGARH 19:25 FILM: VIVAH 22:57 FILM: KOYELAANCHAL FRIDAY APRIL 26, 2019 01:36 FILM: JAANAM 05:00 FILM: YEH HAI JUDGEMENT HANGED TILL DEATH 07:40 FILM: MAST 10:26 FILM: GURUDEV 13:47 FILM: AWAARA PAAGAL DEEWANA 17:06 FILM: ANDAAZ 20:20 FILM: UDTA PUNJAB SATURDAY APRIL 27, 2019 23:16 FILM: VEER 02:05 FILM: NAZAR 05:00 FILM: KRISHNA ARJUN 07:32 FILM: JOHNY I LOVE YOU 10:24 FILM: CHALO ISHQ LADAAYE 13:28 FILM: PHIR HERA PHERI 16:42 FILM: VIVAH 20:05 FILM: AGNEEPATH SUNDAY 21ST APRIL TIME TV PROGRAM NAMES 16:30 KAUN BANEGA CROREPATI 18:30 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW 20:00 SUPER DANCER CHAPTER 3 21:30 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW 23:00 THE KAPIL SHARMA SHOW MON 22ND APR – FRI 26TH APR TIME TV PROGRAM NAMES 16:30 BEYHADH 17:00 EK DUJE KE VAASTE 17:30 KUCH RANG PYAR KE AISE BHI 18:00 VIGHNAHARTA GANESH 18:45 MERE SAI 19:30 YEH UN DINON KI BAAT HAI 20:00 CHANDRAGUPTA MAURYA 20:30 MAIN MAAYKE CHALI JAAUNGI 21:00 PATIALA BABES 21:30 LADIES SPECIAL 22:00 CRIME PATROL 21:00: BALIKA VADHU - LAMHE PYAAR KE 22:00: RED ALERT SATURDAY 23RD APRIL 17:30: CHHUTA CHHEDA 18:00: RADHA PREM KI DEE WANI 18:30: UTTARAN 19:00: FILMFARE AWARDS 2019 23:00: CHHUTA CHHEDA SUNDAY 24TH APRIL 18:00: RADHA PREM KI DEEWANI 18:30: UTTARAN 19:00: NAVRANGI RE 19:30: GLOBAL KITCHEN 20:00: KHATRON KE KHILADI 22:00: ZINDAGI KI HAQEEQAT SE AAMNA SAAMNA 23:00: CHHUTA CHHEDA

21:30: ROOP 22:00: SILSILA 22:30: KHOOB LADI MARDANI JHANSI KI RANI 23:00: SITARA SATURDAY 23RD APRIL 18:30: DESI BEAT RESET 19:00: KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA 20:00: NAAGIN - SEASON 3 21:00: RISING STAR - SEASON 3 22:30: COURT ROOM SUNDAY 24TH APRIL 18:30: FAMOUSLY FILMFARE 19:00: KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA 20:00: NAAGIN - SEASON 3 21:00: RISING STAR - SEASON 3 22:00: COURT ROOM

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20 - 26 April 2019

Mahant Swami gave nutan Swaminarayan ashray mantra in Sarangpur

Bochasanwasi Shree Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha head Pujya Mahant Swami is currently in Gandhinagar. He was in Sarangpur earlier, and during his stay, on April 9, performed the Ishtka Poojan of four temples in Coventry, UK, Visavadar in Junagadh, and temples in Umedpura, Himmatnagar. A five-day celebration was held in regard to Shriji Maharaj's birth anniversary. During Mahant Swami's morning pooja, kirtans describing Shriji Maharaj's life were presented. On April 11, Mahant Swami performed the pratishtha vidhi of temples in Rajasthan's Sirohi, Rojakpar in Limbdi, and Nirbhay Mandal in Bhavnagar. Shri Hari Jayanti was celebrated on April 14.

Pujya Mahant Swami gave the nutan Swaminarayan ashray mantra to all devotees. In his address, he said, “Who knows fear once they are under Shriji's guidance. And if there is fear, you haven't completely accepted him.” In the evening address, saints described the meaning of pad and gave an address. Pujya Mahant Swami said, “Everybody supports you in your happiness, but Maharaj has blessed those you support you in your bad times. Whatever circumstances dictate, never leave satsang.” Mahant Swami arrived in Gandhinagar on April 15. After spending two days there, he will leave for his vicharan in Abu Dhabi.

Coming Events

l Shree Jalaram Jyot Mandir to celebrate Hanuman Jayanti on April 19, Friday, 9.00 am to 12.30 pm. l Shree Depala Hanuman Satsang Mandal- London has organised holy recital of Shree Hanuman Chalisa, Dhun and Bhajan to honour Hanuman Jayanti. The function will be held on April 20, Saturday, 10.00 am to 6.00 pm at Kingsbury High School, Bacon Lane, Kingsbury, London NW9 9AT.

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Sneh Joshi

The Easter holidays are here so, if you're looking for some ideas on how to have fun on a budget, look no further.

The National Trust has loads of other Easter themed events this holiday from birdwatching trails to lambing. Make a leaf crown at Nymans in West Sussex or become Robin Hood for a day at Bodiam Castle.

It's bluebell season!

Check out the National Trust and the Woodland Trust to find a bluebell walk near you for a family photoshoot.

The Southbank Centre have a few free family events on this Easter including Boogie Monsters and an Afro Dance Party where you can learn some new moves.

Edinburgh Science Festival is on from the 6-21 April and there's a whole bunch of events to get involved in, many of which are free.

The Cadbury Easter Egg Hunt is running at 260 National Trust locations across the UK. Sign up here and entry is just £3.

English Heritage is running Easter Adventure Quests at its sites from the 6th-28th of April. It's £1 to take part in the quest plus entry admission if you're a non-member.

For Londoners, Somerset House is hosting Now Play This, a festival of gaming. It's £4 for a child under 12 and the ticket price gives you access to lots of interactive exhibits.

Winchester Science Centre is offering the Science of Sweets from the 5th to the 23rd of April.

Think a sugar flame thrower and an invention centre.

Admission to the centre is £9 but once you're in all the exhibits are free to enjoy.

The National Ice Centre in Nottingham is hosting an Easter Family Fun Weekend on the 20th and 21st of April.

Kids under 5 are free (older kids-£7.50) and there will be a petting zoo as well as access to the ice.

Leeds' Royal Armouries is offering an Easter Activity Pack for £10. It sounds like a lot but your child will get a go at sword fighting, crossbow shooting and archery.

Tennis for free has free tennis coaching all over the country. Sessions are popular so book fast here.

The National Trust has a wealth of cycle and walking routes (even some for little legs) that the whole family can enjoy. Websites such as nationaltrail.co.uk and walkingbritain.co.uk have lots of free routes to try out as well. The Woodland Trust website has more than 1,000 woodland sites which are free to visit across the country.

The website includes a selection of downloadable woodland walks. For something a little more fast-paced they can do a junior Parkrun. There are 2K runs happening every Sunday at 9:30am across the country – find out where your nearest one is.

Untimely Leave - Rabindranath Tagore No more noisy, loud words from me---such is my master's will.

Henceforth I deal in whispers.

The speech of my heart will be carried on in murmurings of a song.

Men hasten to the King's market. All the buyers and sellers are there.

But I have my untimely leave in the middle of the day, in the thick of work.

Let then the flowers come out in my garden, though it is not their time; and let the midday bees strike up their lazy hum.

Full many an hour have I spent in the strife of the good and the evil, but now it is the pleasure of my playmate of the empty days to draw my heart on to him; and I know not why is this sudden call to what useless inconsequence!

SANDEEP ADHWARYU FOR TOI

NOTICE In our article on April p7 (Lemon.Connect to attract overseas FinTech companies to do business in the UK) in AV issue 13-19 April, we wrote about the Lemon.Connect FinTech conference (23-26 April). The organisers have informed us that it is regretfully cancelled.

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Asian Business Publications Ltd (ABPL) is not in any way responsible for the goods and services rendered by its advertisers. The ABPL management accepts all advertisements in good faith and it is entirely up to readers to verify advertisers’ products and services, should they feel the need to do so.

The UK’s leading Vedic writer and TV personality

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 An exchange of opinions ought

to prove very enlivening at this time. An influence that should help to enjoy the 'nicer' side of others, also bring out the best in friends, colleagues and partners alike. As Jupiter is retrograde in your Solar 9th house, be extremely careful as an argument over personal philosophies of life can get you into hot water.

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 in your eighth house of intimacy, shared resources, and personal transformation. Hold onto your money, work on a budget, and avoid arguments with loved ones that revolve around intimacy and sexuality. You could also be dealing with past actions or karma. It's time to redefine what it is that you want out of life.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22 Jupiter goes retrograde for

some time to come. This is going to be a time of frustration and re-assessment. It’s all about cultivating patience until planet goes direct. This is evident mainly in the arena of relationships, but it could also flow over into business partnerships and joint ventures. While you wait, don’t waste any time organise yourself.

Jupiter’s Retrograde cycle occurs in your sixth house of work, health, and daily routines. The social aspect of relationships on the job may be strained for the time being. The desire to get on with people around you is very strong in this period. Do your best not to let people get to you. Make sure you are also upto-date with your tax affairs.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

Things to do during the Easter holidays

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23

With Jupiter turning retrograde, it's time to realign your thinking and adjust plans accordingly. There may be some waning enthusiasm experienced regarding a romance or a creative project. But once you adjust your expectations you will find the right balance to get on easily with people around you.

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs in your fourth house of home and family. Relations with your family may be a little strained. You might want to wait until Jupiter is direct before you express your frustrations with family members!

This retrograde cycle also affects your relationships and business partnerships, so be aware of any pitfalls.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

Jupiter’s Retrograde cycle occurs in your third house of communication. People around you may seem insincere. In fact, you may have a hard time getting your ideas across in a warm, genuine manner. As Jupiter also rules your health and routine, both of these things may have to be re-assessed during this retrograde cycle.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs in your second house of money and values. Take the time to re-think your sources of income and how you spend your cash during this period, and avoid making any big purchases for a while.Because Jupiter rules your romance sector, don't jump to conclusions if a loved one is acting a little distant.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

020 8518 5500

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs in your sign. This cycle will affect the personal image you project to others. Jupiter also rules your home and relationships, so tread carefully, and reassess your options. Wait it out. Your desires from love and relationship may be hard to figure out for the time being.

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs in your twelfth house. What you want from love and your desires are very ambiguous and obscure during this cycle. Deal with your past so that you can put it behind you, but don't do it at the expense of your present. Relationships with friends and family you will be philosophical.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

Jupiter Retrograde cycle occurs in your eleventh house of friendships, groups, and aspirations.

Your friendships or associations with groups may be a little strained during this period. You must make good use of the energy that is flowing, by channeling it positively! Personal standing regarding finances is also under scrutiny.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

Focus on essentials and establish a solid foundation. The outlook remains optimistic and brings you a sense of real achievement.

With Jupiter retrograde, transiting your career sector, you will want to re-assess whether you are spending too much time at work. Time to create a better work-life balance.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

32

Sport

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20 - 26 April 2019

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Royal Challengers suffer 7th defeat Royal Challengers Bangalore suffered their 7th defeat at the hands of Mumbai Indians at Wankhede Stadium. MI captain Rohit Sharma asked RCB to bat after winning the toss. RCB finished at 171 for seven in 20 overs. Skipper Virat Kohli was out for 8 but AB de Villiers contributed 74 off 51 balls as RCB finished at 171 for 7 in 20 overs. England all-rounder Moeen Ali emerged the dark horse in the encounter, first hitting a 32-ball 50 and then taking 218 in four overs. He got rid of MI openers Rohit and Quinton de Kock. Rohit and de Kock gave MI a flying start carting around the RCB bowlers with ease and put on 70 before the former was bowled by Ali. MI needed 22 off the last two overs and Hardik Pandya smashed these runs in the19th over itself.

Super Kings tame Knight Riders Chennai Super Kings showed how sticking to the basics can win you matches.

Bowling to the field and taking the chances that came their way helped the defending champions restrict Kolkata Knight Riders to 161 for eight after skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni had won the toss and opted to field first at the Eden Gardens. Suresh Raina then showed flashes of his old form and was involved in two fruitful partnerships -

with skipper Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja - to guide the visitors to a five-wicket victory. KKR suffered third defeat on the trot while CSK established themselves firmly on top of the table by recording their first win at Eden after 2013.

Sunrisers fail to rise It was a tough call for Sunrisers Hyderabad while chasing a modest 156 for victory against Delhi Capitals at the RGIC Stadium in Hyderabad. The hosts crashed to a 39–run loss as pacers Keemo Paul (3/17), Kagiso Rabada (4/22) and Chris Morris (3/22) proved quite a handful for the SRH batsmen. At 69 for three, things were not rosy for Capitals but Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant put their heads down as they tried to give their bowlers something to bowl at.

Bangalore finally get off the mark Skipper Virat Kohli led from the front with a crafty half century to help Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) eventually pull off an eight-wicket win after six consecutive losses and halt Kings XI Punjab’s sevenmatch unbeaten streak at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium.

Chasing a healthy 174 mainly built around Chris Gayle’s unbeaten 64-ball 99, the stage was set for the master chaser Kohli (67 off 53 balls) to revive his team’s fortunes in this must-win

Hardik Pandya the finisher for Mumbai Indians

contest, and the 30-year-old did it in style by forging two crucial partnerships.

Opening the innings with stumper Parthiv Patel (19 off 9 balls), Kohli gave the visitors a flying start with a 63-run opening stand and then combined with South African great AB de Villiers (59 not out off 38), to add 55 runs for the second wicket and take the team to sniffing distance of their maiden win in IPL 2019.

Buttler serves it hot to MI Batting perhaps with the intention of putting the R Ashwin run-out incident behind him for good, Jos Buttler blasted seven sixes and eight fours during his hurricane innings of 89 off 43 balls, which helped Rajasthan Royals beat Mumbai Indians by four wickets in a thrilling game at Wankhede Stadium. This was RR’s just second win in seven games, as they

continue to be placed second from bottom, while MI suffered their third defeat and are currently in third spot. Chasing 188, Buttler added 60 in just 38 balls with skipper Ajinkya Rahane (37/ 21b), who attacked from ball one in uncharacteristic fashion.

The ultra-aggressive opener then found a good ally in Sanju Samson (31 off 26 balls), as the duo put on 87 in 42 balls to put RR in the driver’s seat.

Dhawan stars as DC slay KKR Left is right for Delhi Capitals as their two lefthanders Shikhar Dhawan and Rishabh Pant combined to help his side script a ‘double’ on Kolkata Knight Riders by recording a sevenwicket victory at the Eden Gardens. The Dhawan-Pant show was quite in contrast to the way the KKR innings unfolded where Andre

Russell once again played a hurricane innings of 45 runs off 21 balls to help the hosts post 178/7 after DC skipper Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bowl. There were no such huge shots as the 69-ball 105-run second wicket stand between Dhawan and Pant but they slowly by steadily took DC home with seven balls to spare.

MSD loses cool, CSK win match The match between Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings at Sawai Mansingh Stadium will be better known for Captain Cool losing his cool than his team winning the contest. An infuriated Mahendra Singh Dhoni walked into the ground to challenge the umpire’s decision to revoke a no ball (high). That was just a ball before the match’s last official delivery, which Mitch Santner dispatched for a six. Ben Stokes, who bowled that eventful over, might get sleepless nights for the wides and no-balls he

IPL 2019 - Points Table

Teams Mat Won Lost Tied 1 0 Chennai Super Kings 8 7 Delhi Capitals 8 5 3 0 8 5 3 0 Mumbai Indians Kolkata Knight Riders 8 4 4 0 Kings XI Punjab 8 4 4 0 Sunrisers Hyderabad 7 3 4 0 Rajasthan Royals 7 2 5 0 Royal Challengers Bangalore 8 1 7 0

Karthik, Vijay Shankar in India's World Cup squad India have named Vijay Shankar, Dinesh Karthik and KL Rahul in the squad for the upcoming World Cup 2019 in England and Wales. Ambati Rayudu and Rishabh Pant were left out of the squad, which also has a place for Ravindra Jadeja.

Squad: Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, KL Rahul, Dinesh Karthik There had been a lot of talk regarding the potential number four for India, a pain point that the team has been trying to resolve for quite a while now. Vijay Shankar will now bat at two-drop, as revealed by chairman of selectors MSK Prasad. The reserve 'keeper slot has gone to Karthik, while KL Rahul will be the back up opener.

Prasad stated that Karthik was preferred over Pant due to his superior 'keeping skills. “Definitely a case where we debated (at) length. We all (agreed) that either Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik will come in only when (Dhoni) is injured. In an important game, wicket keeping is also important. That's the reason we went with Dinesh Karthik," said Prasad.

Ravindra Jadeja took up the third spinner's slot, alongside wrist spinners Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav. The four pacers in the side picked themselves with Jasprit Bumrah leading an attack that

bowled in it. With this defeat, the Royals show in this edition is all but over.

The best thing about Chennai Super Kings is that someone steps up to deliver when needed. It was Ambati Rayudu and Mahendra Singh Dhoni who came good to deliver the Super Kings their seventh victory in the ongoing IPL. Pollard turns the table on Kings Kieron Pollard played a blinder to pull off a miraculous win for the Mumbai Indians. Chasing a mammoth 198 runs to win Mumbai rode on Pollard’s 31ball-83 to romp home by three wickets against Kings XI Punjab.

Though Pollard got out in the last over of Mumbai’s innings, the team needed only four runs off the last four balls and Alzarri Joseph hit the winning runs off the last ball of the match.

Earlier, L Rahul smashed his maiden IPL hundred while Chris Gayle struck a 36-ball 63 to power Kings XI Punjab to an imposing 197 for four.

Pts 14 10 10 8 8 6 4 2

NRR +0.288 +0.418 +0.244 +0.350 -0.093 +0.409 -0.587 -1.114

Tiger Wood wins 15th major title

Tiger Woods with the tropy

also includes Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

Speaking about Rayudu's exclusion, Prasad said: "After the Champions Trophy (2017), we tried quite a few people in that position. We did give a few more chances to Rayudu.

Vijay Shankar is three dimensional. We are looking at him at no. 4 to begin with. We also have Dinesh Karthik and Kedar Jadhav.

It's not that anything that went against (Rayudu), it's that a few things went for

(Shankar)."

"To begin with KL Rahul will be reserve opener, if need arises the team management will take a call," he added. Prasad also said that a few other bowlers will travel along with the team, as net bowlers, but added that they will be named later.

India begin their quest for a third World Cup title on June 5 against South Africa at Southampton. They'll play two warm-up fixtures before that, against New Zealand at The Oval on May 25 and against Bangladesh at Cardiff on May 28.

Tiger Woods completed an epic comeback from career-threatening injury and scandal by winning the 83rd Masters on Sunday, capturing his 15th major title with an unprecedented back-nine rally.

Ending an 11-year major drought, the 43-year-old American seized his first major title since the 2008 US Open. “It's overwhelming just because of what has transpired,” Woods said. “I could barely walk. Couldn't sleep. Couldn't do anything.

“To have the opportunity to come back, it's one of the biggest wins I've ever had for sure.”

Winning a fifth Masters title, and his first since 2005, cemented a fairytale comeback to the pinnacle of golf for Woods, whose career imploded after a 2009 sex scandal and nagging knee and back injuries that required a total of seven surgeries. “It's overwhelming just because of what has transpired,” Wood said.