Srujal Parikh is President and Daxa Amin, Secretary
EDISON, NJ (TIP): Federation of Indian Associations NY/NJ/CT held a General Body meeting at Royal Albert’s Palace, December 28th, 2017.
In the absence of President Andy Bhatia, Executive Vice President Srujal Parikh submitted an annual report. He spoke about various programs which were undertaken during 2017, which included, besides the India Day Parade, Consulate Outreach program and community reception to outgoing and incoming Consul Generals. The report carried special mention and thanks of sponsors who have been generous in their support to FIA programs.
Earlier, Secretary Chhavi Dharayan welcome Board of Directors In absence of President Andy Bhatia.
FIA Chairman and Election Committee announced the new Executive Committee for 2018.
Ayad Akhtar, the Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright of Disgraced, has now returned to Broadway with his play JUNK.
He had long wanted to write “a very big play about finance” he confesses. He is not going to be solely defined as an ethnic playwright. Having been a decoder of a strain of Muslim-American life — middle-class, educated, assimilated, though less comfortably so after 2001 — he has, for now, moved on.
Company of Actors in JUNK.
His interest in finance is longstanding. When Akhtar set off for New York to become a writer, his Muslim-American father who founded a cardiology practice in Wisconsin, made him promise to read The Wall Street Journal, every day. He helped support himself by trading stocks, using as seed money annual stipends of $12,000 or so sent by his parents.
JUNK is set in the 1980s, in the high-flying, risk-seeking, teetering financial world and inspired by the real junk bond kings of the day. This fictionalized, riveting story shows us from the inside how money became the only thing that mattered.
“The play strives, frankly, to implicate us ALL: the culture that seems driven by money, “the financialization of everything.” “It’s about the forces that are secretly or not-so-secretly running our lives: it’s the “financialization” of everything! …the fact that it’s happened so quickly…it’s happened in my lifetime. I think the country has undergone a sea change…about what constitutes wealth” bemoans Tony winning director Doug Hughes (Doubt).
Although his drama is set a quarter-century ago, JUNK speaks to the present day. Mr. Akhtar believes that all the sound and fury and political chaos of the Trump-era America covers for even greater shifts of money and power to the upper classes — and that we are looking in the wrong direction and have been for quite some time. “The new landed gentry are those who manufacture money, who have access to massive amounts of capital,” says Akhtar. “That’s the strand the play is really following.”
Identity politics on both sides, he believes, has the nation “consumed and distracted from the real story.” “Money,” he says, “is what’s happening.”
In the play, financier Robert Merkin (played by Steven Pasquale as a Michael Milken-like junk bond king), the resident genius of the upstart firm Sackler Lowell, has just landed on the cover of Time Magazine. Hailed as “America’s Alchemist,” his proclamation that debt is an asset has propelled him to dizzying heights. Zealously promoting his belief in the near-sacred infallibility of markets, he is trying to re-shape the world. He will stop at nothing to take over an iconic American manufacturing company, changing the rules as he goes. With his brilliance matched only by his swagger, Merkin sets in motion nothing less than a financial civil war, pitting magnates against workers, lawyers against journalists, and everyone against themselves.
Steven Pasquale (The Bridges of Madison County and TV’s Rescue Me) leads an impeccable cast, in this portrait of the dark side of the American Dream.
Steven Pasquale, plays the lead in JUNKThe Stock Ticker.
“It is not a judgment or an indictment about how we do things on Wall Street, but it is an examination of where we are as a country in terms of how we live economically, and it asks the audience to really think about it” explains Steven Pasquale. He plays the lead among a cast of 23 actors: Ito Aghayere, Philip James Brannon, Tony Carlin, Demosthenes Chrysan, Jenelle Chu, Caroline Hewitt, Rick Holmes, Tec Koch, Ian Lasiter, Teresa Avia Lim, Adam Ludwig, Sean McIntyre, Nate Miller, Steven Pasquale, Ethan Phillips, Matthew Rauche, Matthew Saldivar, Charlie Semine, Michael Silberry, Miriam Silverman, Joey Slotnick, Henry Stram, and Stephanie Umoh.
JUNK has sets by John Lee Beatty, costumes by Catherine Zuber, lighting by Ben Stanton, and original music and sound by Mark Bennett.
Junk had its world premiere season production at La Jolla Playhouse, La Jolla, CA in 2016,
For tickets or more information, call Telecharge at 212 239 6200, visit lct.org org or the box office at The Vivian Beaumont Theater, 150 West 65th Street, New York.
Twelfth Night, or What You Will?
A Shakespeare Comedy
Classic Stage Company (CSC) is celebrating its 50th Anniversary season. CSC is committed to re-imagining classic stories for contemporary audiences.
Emily YoungNoah Brody
Classic Stage Company, as part of its 50th anniversary season, presents Fiasco Theater’s Twelfth Night, Or What You Will by William Shakespeare. “Twelfth Night is a fitting companion piece to As You Like It (that initiated the season earlier in Fall 2017),” both among Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, “in Act I of (the) 50th anniversary season,” explains John Doyle, Artistic Director of Classic Stage Company.
Shipwrecked on the island of Illyria, Viola and her twin brother Sebastian are separated, each fearing the other lost to the sea. Viola disguises herself as a boy and wades into a complex romantic triangle with Duke Orsino and the Countess Olivia. New York’s innovative Fiasco Theater brings their hallmark style and expansive imagination to one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies.
“One of the primary realms of interest in Twelfth Night relies equally on prose as well as verse,” say Noah Brody and Ben Steinfeld, directors of Fiasco’s production of Twelfth Night. Being heavily influenced by the works of Cicely Berry and Andrew Wade, and having developed the tools of purpose, structure, and rhythm of prose since 2010, the directors were excited to put them to use in Twelfth Night.
“Fiasco was born out of the crucible of (their) shared graduate training at the Brown/Trinity MFA acting program,” they said.
In spite of presenting work by other playwrights, they have consistently returned to the work of Shakespeare mainly for the language, the stories, the wilderness, the boldness, the honesty, the surprise, the rhythms, the specificity, the depth, the silliness.
Shakespeare was uniquely capable of breathing the full richness of universal human experience into the language of his characters: love and hate; honor and sin; the mortal thoughts that drive us; humor and wit …are all realized.
Ben Steinfeld, serving as musical director for Fiasco’s Shakespeare productions considers it “a gift” “to help figure out how to serve the production, while simultaneously giving the ensemble a chance to explore their musical identities and indulging his own musical passions.” The joy of making “music together, flows into the acting.” “It’s important,” says Steinfeld, for him and the ensemble “that the actors make that music live on stage.”
The Full Company Photos / Joan Marcus
Directed by Noah Brody and Ben Steinfeld, the cast of Twelfth Night, Or What You Will features Jessie Austrian (Olivia), Noah Brody (Orsino), Tina Chilip (Maria), Paul L. Coffey (Malvolio), Andy Grotelueschen (Sir Toby Belch), Javier Ignacio (Sebastian), David Samuel (Antonio), Ben Steinfeld (Feste), Paco Tolson (Sir Andrew Aguecheek) and Emily Young (Viola). Scenic design is by John Doyle, costume design by Emily Rebholz and lighting design by Ben Stanton.
For tickets or more information, call (212) 352 3101 or (866) 811 4111, visit classicstage.org or the box office at 136 East 13th Street, New York.
(Mabel Pais is a freelance writer. She writes on The Arts and Entertainment, Social Issues, Health and Wellness, and Spirituality)
Guyanese American’s 30-year unlawful imprisonment a systemic evil
By Albert Baldeo
“An unjust law is no law at all…Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”- Martin Luther King Jr.
The evil and injustice that plague our judicial system have been painfully confirmed-yet again. Mark Denny, a 47 year old Guyanese national who came to achieve the American dream, was dealt an excruciating blow by the perverse inequities inherent in the USA’s justice system. He was freed from a U.S. prison where he spent nearly 30 years for a crime he never committed, and now faces the legal challenge of fighting to remain in the United States where he has lived since the age of five.
He spent the past three decades behind bars for a brutal rape and robbery he didn’t commit, yet he waxed magnanimously after his release, stating that he was “overwhelmed thinking of what I’ll do next to get my life back on track.”
Denny continued that, he has “no ill feelings towards the victim. Going to prison was a traumatic experience mentally. There’s a lot of people in my position. I appreciate everyone for all they have done for me.”
He is the 24th person to have his conviction vacated by the Conviction Review Unit of Brooklyn District Attorney, Eric Gonzalez, who said his review team examined evidence and interviewed witnesses as well as Denny’s co-defendants in the case, a legacy of his predecessor, the legendary Ken Thompson.
“The rights of every man are diminished when the rights of one man are threatened.”- John F. Kennedy
As if that injustice was not enough, the Daily News reported that Denny has new legal hurdles. He came to the US as a child from Guyana as a lawful permanent resident, and was ordered to be deported due to his conviction. Indeed, the collateral consequences of a conviction are devastating, and perpetuate a vicious cycle.
Trust me, I suffered American injustice first hand. Many legal experts are still at a loss to fathom how I could have logically obstructed a bogus federal crime, when my campaign contributions did not contravene the NY City Campaign Finance Act. Others reason that my attempts to buck the system and run for public office was the real crime, noting that more connected politicians have done worse than what was alleged against me, yet suffered no consequences-from Presidents to Governors to Mayors.
Others condemn how our laws can be manipulated by vile prosecutors to convict a candidate for federal obstruction while merely trying to comply with a mandated Campaign Finance Board Audit-a civil, administrative matter. This abomination exemplifies how the government can indiscriminately expand legal boundaries, invent a federal crime, and then selectively charge you over thousands of candidates for “committing, conspiring and/or obstructing” it. The jury acquitted me of all predicate mail and wire fraud charges, yet were coerced to convict me for obstructing a non-existent crime by the use of an overreaching Allen charge, despite their deadlock! See, e.g., http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/errol-louis-nyc-campaign-finance-tangle-article-1.2403316.
Inhumane and barbaric injustice is all too common in America. Indeed, you, a law-abiding citizen, could be made the next “criminal” of the USA. We are the prison capital of the world. Thousands of laws exist that most people are not aware of, and which penalize conduct that few would even imagine was criminal. Daily, ordinary Americans are prosecuted and even jailed for routine activities that somehow contravene the multitude of statutes and regulations that can be used by governments to trap the unwary. Surveillance cameras, immigration raids, drug-sniffing dogs, SWAT team raids, roadside strip searches, blood draws at DUI checkpoints, mosquito drones, Tasers, privatized prisons, GPS tracking devices, zero tolerance policies, over criminalization, free speech zones—these are all symptomatic of our police state in America.
“I was made, by the law, a criminal, not because of what I had done, but because of what I stood for, because of what I thought, because of my conscience.” (Statement during trial, 1962)- Nelson Mandela
In their revealing book, One Nation Under Arrest: How Crazy Laws, Rogue Prosecutors, and Activist Judges Threaten Your Liberty, Paul Rosenzwieg and Brian W. Walsh highlight the over criminalization- the skyrocketing trend at both the state and federal levels of criminalizing conduct that could be regulated through civil law or administrative action, or should not even be regulated at all. Many other treatises expose our emerging, chilling, Orwellian police state. In Three Felonies a Day, Harvey A. Silverglate reveals how federal criminal laws have become dangerously disconnected and how prosecutors can overreach and pin dubious federal crimes on any one of us, for even the most seemingly innocuous behavior. Government employment in criminal justice has grown by 1 million employees since 1980, as noted by Michelle Alexander in The New Jim Crow.
Our so called “Department of Justice” is accountable for the outrageous reality that the USA has the highest per capita incarceration in the world. Although we have only 5% of the world’s population, we top the world’s prison population with 25% of that total! Worse yet, the US incarcerates a disproportionate ratio of minorities-1 in every 15 African American men and 1 in every 36 Hispanic men are incarcerated in comparison to 1 in every 106 white men. The Bureau of Justice Statistics reveals that 1 in every 3 black men go to prison in their lifetime, making our justice system one big cesspool of brazen injustices, unashamed bullyism and transparent contradictions.
In 2008, two judges, President Judge Mark Ciavarella and Senior Judge Michael Conahan, were convicted of accepting money from Robert Mericle, the builder of two private, for-profit youth centers for the detention of juveniles, in return for contracting with the facilities and imposing harsh adjudications on juveniles brought before their courts to increase the number of residents in the centers. Appropriately, it was dubbed the “kids for cash” scandal for the judicial kickbacks. Unfortunately, the Constitution has been sadly transformed to, “One Nation under Arrest, With Liberty and Justice for Some!”
“Therefore, send not to know…For whom the bell tolls…It tolls for thee. -John Donne
This catastrophic reality is further exacerbated by the fact that America, the land of the free and the home of the brave, has led the world in making incarceration a leading industry by itself. Our multimillion-dollar prison complex is one of the fastest-growing public private industries, with Wall Street investors, having its own trade exhibitions, conventions, websites, and mail-order and internet catalogs. 95% of people charged with crimes plead guilty in the US, an inexhaustible supply source, and a tragic reality of how justice is dispensed in America.
Prosecutors and law enforcement budgets are rewarded for convictions, but they are never asked to account for their perverse contribution to the prison budget, increases in welfare and Medicaid dependence on the nation, and the destruction of innocent lives wantonly wrought with immunity and impunity, on their way to higher offices.
Most Americans have suffered the brunt of injustice, discrimination and oppression at every level, from top to bottom. Immigration raids on homes and businesses, livelihoods disrupted, and families torn apart, the DACA rescission, undocumented children taken out of schools, state and federal agencies harassing residents, the attack on Obamacare and the FBI overreaching minor infractions to major crimes, have all put us under siege.
America is losing its soul through over criminalization, making and enforcing far too many stereotypes and criminal laws that are making criminals out of those who are respectable, law-abiding citizens. The abuse of the criminal law and practice over the past few decades by the government have raised troubling questions about the fairness of our criminal justice system as it affects all of us. We must fight back and realize the dream of making democracy, equal justice and the rule of law a priority for all!
Remember what Edward R. Murrow cautioned, “A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves.” Don’t be a sheep! Enough is enough!
(The author is a civil rights activist and community advocate, and his political battles placed previously ignored minority communities like Richmond Hill and Ozone Park firmly on the political and economic map. As the President of the Baldeo Foundation and Queens Justice Center, he has continued to fight for equal rights, dignity and inclusion in the decision- making process. He can be contacted at the Baldeo Foundation: (718) 529-2300).
Countries ‘benefiting’ from China’s ‘largesse’ will end in a debt burden
By G Parthasarathy
“Unable to repay its debts to China, Sri Lanka has been forced to convert Chinese investments into equity in Hambantota, giving the Chinese partial ownership of the port. Following discreet Indian expressions of concern, Sri Lanka has retained operational control of the port, ensuring that Chinese submarines and warships do not freely berth there. Some pre-emptive action has also been taken to ensure that the eastern port of Trincomalee does not become the next port of interest for Chinese strategic ambitions”, says the author.
China’s much-touted “Silk Roads” and “Maritime Silk Routes” trace their origin historically to its trade across Central Asia and the Indian Ocean. Interestingly, silk constituted a relatively small portion of Chinese trade, though it gave an exotic content to what was primarily commercial activity, in which China was the principal beneficiary. The Maritime Silk Route across the Indian Ocean was first set during the course of seven expeditions between 1404 and 1433 by a Chinese naval fleet headed by Admiral Zheng He, a Mongolian Muslim eunuch, appointed by Ming emperor Yongle. During the course of these expeditions to Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and Calicut, Zheng brought back kings and princes to “kowtow” (genuflect) before the Ming emperor.
Indonesia has ensured that it responds cautiously to Chinese inducements and avoids getting closely drawn into a Chinese embrace. Beijing, however, seems to have drawn Sri Lanka into its spiders’ web, taking advantage of the island’s economic vulnerabilities. One has to recall what Admiral Zheng did to the hapless island-nation after a visit to Calicut in 1406, to “get the Buddha’s tooth relic”. He returned to Sri Lanka in 1411 with a large army to take revenge for an earlier perceived insult. Parts of the island were plundered and the Sri Lankan king, Vira Alakeswara, taken back to Nanjing to kowtow before the emperor, together with the holy relic. The king was replaced by a “malleable” ruler. While the humiliated king was returned to his people a few years later, the relic was returned six centuries later in 1960, by PM Chou en Lai, as a gesture of “goodwill”, Chinese style. Chinese trade was historically as exploitative as trade by the British East India Company!
Colombo is, nowadays, full of hoardings of China’s “magnanimity”, manifested in its “assistance” in infrastructure, industrial and construction projects. Beyond the Galle Main Road in Colombo is the $1.4 billion Port City Project to be filled with Chinese built, owned, or managed, luxury apartments, golf course, theme park, hotels and office buildings. All these projects will soon become part of Sri Lanka’s mounting official debt burdens and accentuate the already unbearable debt burden Colombo has accumulated, from earlier Chinese “aid”. The main instruments of this aid and plunder of natural resources are the China Communications Construction Company and its subsidiary, the China Harbour Engineering Company. World Bank has blacklisted both these companies across the world because of their corrupt practices, including bribery. The only well executed and profitable Chinese-built project in Sri Lanka is the Container Terminal in Colombo.
Apart from the crushing debt burden of the Colombo Port City Project, Chinese projects located in President Rajapakse’s own constituency, Hambantota, have imposed an unsustainable debt burden on Sri Lanka. Given Western aversion for his regime and Indian doubts about the project’s viability, President Rajapakse welcomed Chinese “assistance” to develop his constituency. He sought and obtained Chinese “support” to heavily finance projects ranging from the Hambantota Port to a power plant, an airport, an industrial park, a cricket stadium and a sports complex. All these investments have proved uneconomical. Hardly any ships visit Hambantota Port, barely one aircraft lands at the airport daily and the sports facilities remain unutilized, even as local opinion was outraged by the proposed construction of an industrial park. Sri Lanka has been spending 90 per cent of government revenues to service debts.
Unable to repay its debts to China, Sri Lanka has been forced to convert Chinese investments into equity in Hambantota, giving the Chinese partial ownership of the port. Following discreet Indian expressions of concern, Sri Lanka has retained operational control of the port, ensuring that Chinese submarines and warships do not freely berth there. Some pre-emptive action has also been taken to ensure that the eastern port of Trincomalee does not become the next port of interest for Chinese strategic ambitions, thanks to a timely initiative of Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The Indian Oil Corporation has established a business presence in Sri Lanka for progressive involvement in the use of Trincomalee for import and processing of petroleum products. It is imperative to build on this by constructing a modern petroleum refinery on equitable terms in Trincomalee.
China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Myanmar is primarily concentrated on developing the Bay of Bengal port of Kyaukpyu and connecting it to its neighboring Yunnan province by oil and gas pipelines and road and rail networks. But, Myanmar is wary of overdependence on China, among other reasons, because of Beijing’s insatiable quest for environmentally damaging energy projects and its yearning for access to precious metals and stones. Myanmar may, however, find it difficult to resist Chinese pressures on such projects unless India, Japan, South Korea, the US, the EU and neighboring ASEAN countries make a coordinated effort to strengthen economic relations with it. A similar approach would be needed to China’s approach to construction projects in Nepal and Bangladesh.
China’s “all-weather friend” Pakistan is also facing problems in implementing the much-touted CPEC. Despite high-level meetings, important projects like the Diamer-Bhasha Dam located in Gilgit-Baltistan, in POK, are stalled because of disagreements on financial terms set by the Chinese. There are also differences on implementing the railway projects based out of Peshawar and Karachi, apart from a series of road projects. Moreover, there is very little transfer of technology and knowhow, and minimal local participation in Chinese construction projects. Beijing has, after all, to utilize its vast surplus labor force and construction machinery and materials, abroad as its unprecedented domestic construction projects at home are completed.
Questions are now being raised in Pakistan about where resources will come from to repay the over $50 billion debt that will accrue from CPEC projects, where local participation is minimal. Moreover, Pakistan will soon be unable to credibly claim that it exercises its sovereignty in places like the Gwadar Port, which is all set to become a Chinese-run military base, close to the strategic Straits of Hormuz. Writing in the respected Dawn newspaper, columnist Khurram Hussein perceptively observes: “In reality, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is about allowing Chinese enterprises to assume dominant positions in all dynamic sectors of Pakistan’s economy, as well as a ‘strategic’ direction that is often hinted at, but never fleshed out.”
NEW YORK (TIP): Petrodollars have dominated the global energy markets for more than 40 years. But now, China is looking to change that by replacing the word dollars for yuan.
Nations, of course, have tried this before since the system was set up by former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger in tandem with the House of Saud back in 1974, ATimes reported.
Vast populations across the Middle East and Northern Africa quickly felt the consequences when Iraq’s Saddam Hussein decided to sell oil in euros. Then there was Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi’s pan-African gold dinar blueprint, which failed to create a splash in an oil barrel.
Fast forward 25 years and China is making a move to break the United States petrodollar stranglehold. The plan is to set up oil-futures trading in the yuan, which will be fully convertible into gold on the Shanghai and Hong Kong foreign exchange markets.
The Shanghai Futures Exchange and its subsidiary, the Shanghai International Energy Exchange, have already run four simulations for crude futures. It was expected to be rolled out by the end of this year, but that looks unlikely to happen. But when it does get off the ground in 2018, the fundamentals will be clear—this triple oil-yuan-gold route will bypass the mighty green back.
The Era of Petroyuan
Still, there are questions on how Beijing will technically set up a rival futures market in crude oil to Brent and WTI, and how China’s capital controls will influence it.
Bejing has been quite discreet on this. The petroyuan was not even mentioned in the National Development and Reform Commission documents following the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party last October.
What is certain is that the BRICS, the acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, did support the petroyuan move at their summit in Xiamen earlier this year. Diplomats confirmed that to Asia Times.
Venezuela is also on board. It is crucial to remember that Russia is number two and Venezuela is number seven among the world’s top 10 oil producers. Beijing already has close economic ties with Moscow, while it is distinctly possible that other producers will join the club.
BRI Program
An extensive report by DBS in Singapore also hits most of the right notes, linking the internationalization of the yuan with the expansion of the grandiose Belt and Road Initiative. Next year, six major BRI projects will be on the table.
Mega infrastructure developments will include the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, the China-Laos railway and the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway. The other key projects will be the Hungary-Serbia railway, the Melaka Gateway project in Malaysia and the upgrading of Gwadar port in Pakistan.
HSBC has estimated that the expansive Belt and Road program will generate no less than an additional, game-changing $2.5 trillion worth of new trade a year.
It is important to remember that the “belt” in BRI is a series of corridors connecting Eastern China with oil-gas rich regions in Central Asia and the Middle East. The high-speed rail networks, or new “Silk Roads”, will simply traverse regions filled with, what else, un-mined gold.
But a key to the future of the petroyuan will revolve around the House of Saud, and what it will do. Should the Crown Prince, Mohammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, also known as MBS, follow Russia’s lead? If it did, this would be one of the paradigm shifts of the century.
Yet there are signs of what could happen. Yuan-denominated gold contracts will be traded not only in Shanghai and Hong Kong but also in Dubai. Saudi Arabia is also considering issuing so-called Panda bonds, with close ally, the United Arab Emirates, taking the lead in the Middle East for Chinese interbank bonds.
Embracing the Yuan
In the end, it will be China which will dictate future terms. That may include extra pressure for Beijing’s participation in Aramco’s IPO. In parallel, Washington would see Riyadh embracing the petroyuan as the ultimate red line.
An independent European report pointed to what might be Beijing’s trump card– “an authorization to issue treasury bills in yuan by Saudi Arabia” as well as the creation of a Saudi investment fund and a 5% share of Aramco.
Nations hit hard by US sanctions, such as Russia, Iran and Venezuela, will be among the first to embrace the petroyuan. Smaller producers, such as Angola and Nigeria, are already selling oil and gas to the world’s second largest economy in Chinese currency.
NEW YORK (TIP): The Chinese cities of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei will allow visitors from 53 countries to visit the region, without having to obtain a visa, for a six-day stay. The measure will be applied to visitors from 53 countries including the Schengen area member states, the US, Brazil, Mexico, Chile and Argentina.
WASHINGTON (TIP): For the 10th year in a row, Americans have named former US president Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton as the man and woman they admire most, according to a recent Gallup poll published on Thursday, December 28.
Obama edged out President Donald Trump, 17 per cent to 14 per cent, while former secretary of state Clinton moved past Michelle Obama, 9 per cent to 7 per cent and First Lady Melania Trump scored one per cent, the poll said. Obama wins over Trump, who is suffering brutally low approval ratings as he is about to complete his first year in the White House, came in second place followed by Pope Francis.
WASHINGTON (TIP): An Alabama circuit judge on Thursday, December 28, rejected Republican Roy Moore’s request to halt the certification, arguing the court did not have jurisdiction. Meanwhile, officials from the secretary of state’s office dismissed accounts of voter fraud provided by Moore’s attorneys.
“There have not been any issues at this time that have been reported and determined to be verified as fraud,” said John Bennett, Merrill’s deputy chief of staff.
Still, Moore, 70, the defiant former chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court, refused to concede.
The three Republicans who make up Alabama’s canvassing board — Gov. Kay Ivey, Atty. Gen. Steve Marshall and Secretary of State John Merrill — certified Jones as the victor of the closely watched Dec. 12 special election.
“I’ve had to fight not only the Democrats but also the Republican Senate Leadership Fund and over $50 million in opposition spending from the Washington establishment,” he said in a statement after Republican state leaders certified Jones’ win. “I have stood for the truth about God and the Constitution for the people of Alabama”
“I have no regrets,” he added. “To God be the glory.”
In the 80-page complaint filed in state court, Moore’s attorneys asked that state officials be ordered to preserve election-related documents and data, block the certification, and direct state officials to set a new special election.
On Thursday, an attorney for Jones filed a motion to dismiss Moore’s complaint on the grounds that “there is a lack of subject matter jurisdiction; [the complaint] fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted; and/or [it] has no basis in the law.”
In a statement, a spokesman for the Jones transition team urged Moore to bow out of the race.
“This desperate attempt by Roy Moore to subvert the will of the people will not succeed,” Sam Coleman said. “The election is over, it’s time to move on.”
In the complaint, Moore’s attorneys maintain that he will “suffer irreparable harm” if the election results are certified “without preserving and investigating all the evidence of potential fraud.” He would be denied “his full right as a candidate to a fair election,” they argue.
Merrill, a Republican, maintains his office has found no evidence of voter fraud. Last week, he issued a statement noting that his office had discounted one widely publicized report of potential voter fraud — a viral video in which a male voter claimed in a local news broadcast that he and others had come “all the way from different parts of the country” to vote and canvass for Jones.
“The Alabama Secretary of State’s Office was able to identify the young man who was anonymously featured on the news broadcast,” Merrill said in a statement. “After additional research was conducted, it was determined that this young man has lived and worked in Alabama for more than one year and is currently a registered voter in this state.”
Yet Moore’s campaign states in the complaint that Merrill never conducted a “meaningful, in-depth investigation of voter fraud.”
They also list a series of election “anomalies,” claiming there were an unusual number of out-of-state drivers’ licenses and suggesting that Democrats attempted to intimidate voters, with a Democratic super PAC running “fraudulent, false and misleading advertisements” against Moore.
“I am looking forward to going to work for the people of Alabama in the new year,” Jones said in a statement. “As I said on election night, our victory marks a new chapter for our state and the nation. I will be an independent voice and work to find common ground with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get Washington back on track and fight to make our country a better place for all.”
Official totals indicated Jones won by 21,924 votes, his margin of victory up to 1.6 percentage points from the previous unofficial total of 1.5 points.
How many more have to die this way before the Legislature will act? – Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas
I.S. Saluja
MINEOLA, NY (TIP): Nassau County Police announced December 23 that the suspected killer of Taranjit Kaur Parmar had been arrested and that he will be arraigned on December 24.
On December 24, Nassau County Police held a press conference to announce the arrest and the arraignment of Daniel Coppolo, 31 of Kinsella Street, Deer Park, New York.
D/Lt. Fitzpatrick of Homicide Squad recounted that Taranjit K Parmar, 18 of Levittown was on November 9, operating a 2018 Jeep traveling eastbound on Hempstead Turnpike when she was struck by a red pickup truck, traveling northbound, attempting to turn eastbound on Hempstead Turnpike in the vicinity of Gardiners Lane. After the minor collision- a fender bender – both operators immediately pulled off the roadway at 3300 Hempstead Turnpike. While the victim was out of her vehicle, the suspect fled the scene striking Taranjit and running her over.
Fitzpatrick also spoke about how Coppolo was arrested. He said,” Investigators did not have far to look once they determined Coppolo was their suspect: He was being held in the Nassau County jail on an unrelated robbery charge.
“On Dec. 23, Daniel was released from the jail. We were there to arrest him,” Fitzpatrick said.
The suspected killer Daniel Coppolo is led by detectives at the Nassau County Police Headquarters on December 24.
Detectives determined Coppolo was a suspect in Parmar’s death through witness testimony, video from nearby cameras, and tips from the public. They also scoured motor vehicle records for a red late-model pickup truck, Fitzpatrick said. Detectives identified Coppolo’s red 2013 Toyota Tacoma pickup by decals and lights on the vehicle, and obtained a court order to impound and search the truck on Nov. 16.
Nassau County Acting Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the investigators received 50 tips about the crime and did a great job to identify the suspect.
Speaking at the press conference, Ranjit Parmar, father of Taranjit Kaur appreciated the Homicide department of Nassau County Police who, he said, had worked tirelessly to piece together the case which led to arrest of the suspect. “It makes us feel good that so many people were involved in this investigation,” Ranjit Parmar said. Later, he told The Indian Panorama that he was satisfied with the investigation.
The victim: Taranjit Kaur Parmar
Speaking on the occasion, Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas, apart from giving details of the case and the story of investigation done exhorted the Legislature to come up with measures to prevent loss of life in such cases. She said, “How many more have to die this way before legislature acts?”
Coppolo was charged with Manslaughter 2nd degree, Leaving the Scene of an Accident with Death, Tampering with Physical Evidence, and Reckless Endangerment 2nd degree.
Coppolo faces up to 26 years in prison if convicted of the charges, Coppolo was arraigned, December 24 in the court of Judge Eileen J Goggin. Coppolo pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Judge Eileen Goggin set bail at $1 million bond or $600,000 cash, more than the prosecutors had asked for, citing previous contacts with police and the seriousness of the charges.
Coppolo’s attorney, Lawrence V. Carrà of Mineola, told Goggin his client had been on psychiatric medical leave from the New York City Fire Department for three months. Carrà said Coppolo suffers from manic depression and does not always take his medication. Carrà asked for bail to be set at $25,000 and for mental health treatment for his client.
But Parmar’s attorney Brian R. Gunn of Garden City said the bail was appropriate “given the serious nature of the charges as well as the relatively young defendant’s past criminal history.”
Cuppolo has a criminal record. He was arrested for DWI in 2016 and, in another case, was charged with attempted robbery at a Target Store.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
KABUL (TIP): At least 41 persons were killed when an Islamic State suicide bomber struck a Shiite cultural center in Kabul, December 28
An AFP report says that the attack may have targeted the pro-Iran Afghan Voice news agency housed in the two-story building. The Sunni extremists of IS view Shiite Muslims as apostates and have repeatedly attacked Afghanistan’s Shiite minority and targets linked to neighboring Iran.
The attack wounded more than 80 persons, many of whom suffered severe burns. The center was marking the anniversary of the 1979 Soviet invasion with a seminar about the event’s impact on the country.
Local Shiite leader Abdul Hussain Ramazandada said the bomber slipped into an academic seminar at the center and blew himself up among the participants. More bombs went off just outside the center as people fled.
The IS-linked Aamaq news agency said four bombs were used in the assault, one strapped to the suicide attacker. It said the center was funded by Iran and used to propagate Shiite beliefs.
Ali Reza Ahmadi, a journalist with Afghan Voice, said he leaped from the window of his second-floor office after the first bomb went off and saw flames pouring from the basement.
“I jumped from the roof toward the basement, yelling at people to get water to put out the fire,” he said. At nearby Istiqlal Hospital, Director Mohammed Sabir Nasib said the emergency room was overwhelmed. Additional doctors and nurses were called in to help. At the height of the crisis, more than 50 medics were working to save the wounded.
By late afternoon, Health Ministry spokesman Wahid Mujro said 41 people were dead and 84 others wounded. The IS affiliate in Afghanistan, which emerged in 2014 at around the same time the group declared a caliphate in large parts of Syria and Iraq, has vowed to target Shiites.
“How many more have to die this way before the Legislature will act?” asked Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas
MINEOLA, NY (TIP): Nassau County Police announced December 23 that the suspected killer of Taranjit Kaur Parmar had been arrested and that he will be arraigned on December 24.
The victim: Taranjit Kaur Parmar
On December 24, Nassau County Police held a press conference to announce the arrest and the arraignment of Daniel Coppolo, 31 of Kinsella Street, Deer Park, New York.
D/Lt. Fitzpatrick of Homicide Squad recounted that Taranjit K Parmar, 18 of Levittown was on November 9, operating a 2018 Jeep traveling eastbound on Hempstead Turnpike when she was struck by a red pickup truck, traveling northbound, attempting to turn eastbound on Hempstead Turnpike in the vicinity of Gardiners Lane. After the minor collision- a fender bender – both operators immediately pulled off the roadway at 3300 Hempstead Turnpike. While the victim was out of her vehicle, the suspect fled the scene striking Taranjit and running her over.
Fitzpatrick also spoke about how Coppolo was arrested. He said,” Investigators did not have far to look once they determined Coppolo was their suspect: He was being held in the Nassau County jail on an unrelated robbery charge.
“On Dec. 23, Daniel was released from the jail. We were there to arrest him,” Fitzpatrick said.
Detectives determined Coppolo was a suspect in Parmar’s death through witness testimony, video from nearby cameras, and tips from the public. They also scoured motor vehicle records for a red late-model pickup truck, Fitzpatrick said. Detectives identified Coppolo’s red 2013 Toyota Tacoma pickup by decals and lights on the vehicle, and obtained a court order to impound and search the truck on Nov. 16.
Nassau County Acting Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the investigators received 50 tips about the crime and did a great job to identify the suspect.
Taranjit Parmar’s father Ranjit Parmar speaking at the press conference. Also seen are Taranjit’s mother Kulvinder Kaur (second from left). Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas (7th from left). Others present included Nassau County Acting Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder and Detective Fitzpatrick among others.
Speaking at the press conference, Ranjit Parmar, father of Taranjit Kaur appreciated the Homicide department of Nassau County Police who, he said, had worked tirelessly to piece together the case which led to arrest of the suspect. “It makes us feel good that so many people were involved in this investigation,” Ranjit Parmar said. Later, he told The Indian Panorama that he was satisfied with the investigation.
Speaking on the occasion, Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas, apart from giving details of the case and the story of investigation done exhorted the Legislature to come up with measures to prevent loss of life in such cases. She said, “How many more have to die this way before legislature acts?”
Coppolo was charged with Manslaughter 2nd degree, Leaving the Scene of an Accident with Death, Tampering with Physical Evidence, and Reckless Endangerment 2nd degree.
Coppolo faces up to 26 years in prison if convicted of the charges, Coppolo was arraigned, December 24 in the court of Judge Eileen J Goggin. Coppolo pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Judge Eileen Goggin set bail at $1 million bond or $600,000 cash, more than the prosecutors had asked for, citing previous contacts with police and the seriousness of the charges.
Coppolo’s attorney, Lawrence V. Carrà of Mineola, told Goggin his client had been on psychiatric medical leave from the New York City Fire Department for three months. Carrà said Coppolo suffers from manic depression and does not always take his medication. Carrà asked for bail to be set at $25,000 and for mental health treatment for his client.
But Parmar’s attorney Brian R. Gunn of Garden City said the bail was appropriate “given the serious nature of the charges as well as the relatively young defendant’s past criminal history.”
Cuppolo has a criminal record. He was arrested for DWI in 2016 and, in another case, was charged with attempted robbery at a Target Store.
A criminal charge is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
JAIPUR (TIP): Ace Indian boxer Vijender Singh on Wednesday exuded confidence of ending the year on a high note as he takes on African champion Ernest Amuzu of Ghana at the Sawai Man Singh Indoor Stadium here on Saturday.
The 32-year-old Indian, who is WBO Oriental Super Middleweight and WBO Asia Pacific champions, laughed at his opponent’s recent statement that he would leave the crowd favourite “beaten and broken” in the upcoming bout.
“Perhaps Amuzu has not goggled about me otherwise he would not have dared to talk like that about me. Only time will tell who is going to thrash whom,” said Vijuender, who holds a 9-0 professional record. “I can’t predict how long would the fight last but I can assure you that the first round of the bout would set the tone. I am an experienced boxer and I know what and how to do. I have undergone rigorous training sessions for almost two months. I am fully prepared physically and mentally to defend my titles and want to end my year on a winning note in front of my own countrymen,” he added.
Vijender also said he has serious doubts about how his opponent will last before him on Saturday.
“Undoubtedly Amuzu is an experienced boxer and capable of giving me a few new tests. He has done more rounds than me and fought in title fights but he will have to compete with my power. I don’t think he would be standing there for too long,” he said.
DUBAI (TIP): India captain Mithali Raj was named in the ICC Women’s ODI Team of the Year while left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht was the lone cricketer to find a place in both the ODI and T20 teams of the year announced by the world body. Besides the duo, Moga girl Harmanpreet Kaur has found a place in the ICC Women’s T20I Team of the Year. ICC announced the women’s ODI and T20I teams of the year with England’s Heather Knight named as the captain of the 50-overs side and Stafanie Taylor of West Indies appointed skipper of the 20-overs side.
The teams were selected taking into consideration players’ performances from September 21, 2016 to date.
Bisht, 31, from Uttarakhand is ranked 14th in the ODIs and 12th in the T20Is. She took 34 wickets in 19 matches and 11 wickets in 7 T20Is in the period under consideration.
ODI Team of the Year: Tammy Beaumont
(Eng), Meg Lanning (Aus), Mithali Raj (Ind),Amy Satterthwaite (NZ), Ellyse Perry, (Aus), Heather Knight (captain) (Eng), Sarah Taylor
(wk) (Eng), Dane van Niekerk (SA), Marizanne Kapp (SA), Ekta Bisht (Ind), Alex Hartley (Eng).
T20I Team of the Year: Beth Mooney (wk) (Aus), Danni Wyatt (Eng), Harmanpreet Kaur (Ind), Stafanie Taylor (captain) (WI), Sophie
CUTTACK (TIP): India defeated Sri Lanka by a massive 93 runs in the first T20 International, here on December 20. Sri Lanka were bowled out for 87 runs with Yuzvendra Chahal picking four wickets.
Earlier, opener KL Rahul’s classy 61 and some sensible batting from Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Manish Pandey powered India to a challenging 180 for three.
In absence of the first-choice opener Shikhar Dhawan, Rahul grabbed the opportunity with both hands hitting seven fours and one six en route to a 48-balls 61 after they were put in by Sri Lanka skipper Thisara Perera.
Rahul and number three Shreyas Iyer (24) put together 63 runs from 46 balls as India looked to push for a 200 on a two-paced Barabati wicket before Sri Lanka bounced back dismissing the duo in 11 balls.
But former skipper Dhoni, who was promoted to number four, smashed an unbeaten 22-ball 39 and finished with a huge six over square leg.
Manish Pandey provided fine support to Dhoni with an unbeaten 32 from 18 balls as the duo added an unbeaten 68 runs from 34 balls to prop up the total.
Rahul paced his innings brilliantly and also successfully reviewed to overturn an LBW decision when he was on 23.
Sri Lanka looked to attack through Mathews and brought him back in the ninth over to break the partnership.
Stepping out against Mathews, Rahul was hit awkwardly in the abdominal region when on 37 as he had to be attended to by the physio.
But he braved the pain and took on the Lankan former skipper and in the next ball dispatched Mathews over square leg with a crunching pull and completed his second T20 half- century in 34 balls.
There was no looking back for India but Sri Lanka slowed down the run-rate, removing Iyer and Rahul in space of 11 balls.
Iyer edged one behind the stumps and Rahul was deceived by a slower one by skipper Perera.
Dhoni came in at four to a rousing reception by a capacity crowd of 43,000 and he did not disappoint as India added 66 runs in the last five overs without losing a wicket.
Four off eight balls, Rahul decided to break free with an inside out lofted shot against Chameera en route to his boundary in the third over. 11 runs came from Danajaya’s next over with boundary each by Rahul and Sharma as India were going strong for 38 for no loss from 29 balls when Mathews gave the first breakthrough dismissing the Indian skipper.
Looking to clear the midwicket, Sharma mistimed and a brilliant forward diving catch by Chameera ended his innings for 17, but not before he became the second Indian to reach 1500 T20 runs after Virat Kohli. Sharma got to the milestone when he was on 15.
LONDON (TIP): The British arm of Amazon has dropped sale of a circumcision training kit from its website after concerns were raised.
The kit had been offered by a third party seller and offered instructions and instruments that could be used to practice circumcision on a model of male genitals.
Circumcision consists of removing part of the foreskin of the penis and is typically done for religious or medical purposes on very young boys.
The National Secular Society in Britain complained to Amazon that the training kit violated Amazon’s standard’s policy.
The group said it feared the sale of the kit would encourage unqualified practitioners to carry out unneeded surgery in non-clinical conditions. Source: AP
TOKYO (TIP): Bitcoin prices plunged about 15% in Asian trade today before recouping some of the losses as investors apparently took fright at news that a South Korean exchange had been hacked. The unit, which hit a record $19,500 at the start of the week, took a hit as it emerged that South Korean exchange Youbit had been hacked, leading the firm to say it will close and start bankruptcy proceedings, according to Bloomberg News. The US on December 19 suspended trading in a Bitcoin-related stock, citing concerns about market manipulation. Source: AFP
NEW DELHI (TIP): The RBI has initiated a ‘prompt corrective action’ against Bank of India for mounting bad loans, placing various restrictions on it including issuing of fresh loans and dividend distribution, BoI said today.
In a filing to stock exchanges, BoI said RBI has placed it under Prompt Corrective Action Framework, consequent to the onsite inspection under the risk-based supervision model carried out for the year ended March 2017.
“This is in view of high net NPA, insufficient CET1 Capital and negative ROA (return on asset) for two consequent years.
This action will contribute to the overall improvement in risk management, asset quality, profitability, efficiency, etc of the bank,” BoI said.
At the end of March 2017, the bank’s asset quality worsened with gross non-performing assets (NPAs) at 13.22%, as against 13.07% in the previous year. Net NPAs, however, improved to 6.90% from 7.79%.
For the second quarter ended September, 2017-18, asset quality improved as gross NPAs declined marginally to 12.62% of gross advances, from 13.45% a year ago.
In absolute terms, gross NPAs stood at Rs 49,306.90 crore as on September 2017, from Rs 52,261.95 crore earlier.
BRUSSELS (TIP): The EU’s top court ruled on December 20 that Uber is an ordinary transportation company instead of an app and should be regulated as such, in a decision that will be closely watched around the world.
The case is yet another thorn in the side for US-based Uber, which has drawn the fury of taxi drivers and officials for flouting local regulations.
It also comes the same week as one of its drivers admitted to the attempted rape and murder of a British embassy worker coming home from a night out in Beirut, Lebanon.
“The service provided by Uber connecting individuals with nonprofessional drivers is covered by services in the field of transport,” said the Luxembourg-based European Court of Justice.
“Member states can therefore regulate the conditions for providing that service.”
Uber, the biggest name in the growing gig economy, claims it is a mere service provider, connecting consumers with drivers in more than 600 cities.
Uber has run into huge opposition from taxi companies and other competitors who say this allows it to dodge costly regulations such as training and licensing requirements for drivers and vehicles.
The case was brought by a taxi drivers’ association in the Spanish city of Barcelona, where belief runs high that Uber is a taxi company that should be subject to rules governing such vehicles.
Uber said the ruling would make little difference in practice. “This ruling will not change things in most EU countries where we already operate under transportation law,” an Uber spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “However, millions of Europeans are still prevented from using apps like ours.”
In a dense legal judgement, the ECJ said that Uber was a service that connects “by means of a smartphone application and for remuneration nonprofessional drivers using their own vehicle with persons who wish to make urban journeys.”
That means it is “inherently linked to a transport service and, accordingly, must be classified as a ‘service in the field of transport’ within the meaning of EU law.”
The EU court’s senior adviser had said in a legal opinion in May that Uber was indeed a transport company. Uber has had a rough ride in Spain, where a judge ruled in 2014 that its UberPop service risked breaking the law, leading to the Barcelona submission to the ECJ.
Early last year it decided to only operate a limited a version of its UberX service in Spain which uses licensed, professional drivers instead of the amateurs who had previously worked via the UberPop application.
Uber has already had problems with the law in several European countries, particularly France where the company was forced to overhaul its business model.
In November a labour court in London, where the company is threatened with losing its license, said it had to pay the drivers a minimum wage and give them paid leave.
Uber does not employ drivers or own vehicles, but instead relies on private contractors with their own cars, allowing them to run their own businesses.
Licensed taxi drivers meanwhile often have to undergo hundreds of hours of training, and they accuse Uber of endangering their jobs by using cheaper drivers who rely only on a GPS to get around.
MOSUL (TIP): The price Mosul’s residents paid in blood to see their city freed was 9,000 to 11,000 dead, a civilian casualty rate nearly 10 times higher than what has been previously reported. The number killed in the nine-month battle to liberate the city from the Islamic State group marauders has not been acknowledged by the U.S.-led coalition, the Iraqi government or the self-styled caliphate.
But Mosul’s gravediggers, its morgue workers and the volunteers who retrieve bodies from the city’s rubble are keeping count. Iraqi or coalition forces are responsible for at least 3,200 civilian deaths from airstrikes, artillery fire or mortar rounds between October 2016 and the fall of the Islamic State group in July 2017, according to an Associated Press investigation that cross-referenced independent databases from non-governmental organizations.
Most of those victims are simply described as “crushed” in health ministry reports.
The coalition, which says it lacks the resources to send investigators into Mosul, acknowledges responsibility for only 326 of the deaths.
“It was the biggest assault on a city in a couple of generations, all told. And thousands died,” said Chris Woods, head of Airwars , an independent organization that documents air and artillery strikes in Iraq and Syria and shared its database with the AP.
“There doesn’t seem to be any disagreement about that, except from the federal government and the coalition. And understanding how those civilians died, and obviously ISIS played a big part in that as well, could help save a lot of lives the next time something like this has to happen. And the disinterest in any sort of investigation is very disheartening,” Woods said, using an alternative acronym for the Islamic State group.
In addition to the Airwars database, the AP analyzed information from Amnesty International , Iraq Body Count and a United Nations report. The AP also obtained a list of 9,606 people killed during the operation from Mosul’s morgue. Hundreds of dead civilians are believed to still be buried in the rubble. (AP)
MOSCOW (TIP): President Vladimir Putin says Russian security agencies have thwarted 60 terror attacks in the country this year.
Russia marked its Day of Employees of State Security Agencies on Wednesday. Speaking to intelligence officers on their professional holiday, Putin said Russia would continue working to “destroy hotbeds of international terrorism” following its campaign in Syria.
The Russian leader called US President Donald Trump on Sunday to thank him for a CIA tip that the Kremlin said helped prevent a series of bombings in St. Petersburg last weekend.
The Kremlin’s account of the call was Russia’s first public assertion that information from the U.S. has helped prevent an attack.
In his comments Wednesday, Putin nonetheless emphasized the need to counter foreign spies and block foreign attempts to meddle in Russia’s domestic politics.
LONDON (TIP): Key ally of British Prime Minister Theresa May was forced to resign on Dec 20 after an investigation concluded he made misleading statements about pornographic images found on a Parliament computer in his office in 2008.
Damian Green, who was ousted as first secretary of state, maintains he did not use pornography on his office computers, but he agreed he had not been forthcoming in statements made about the matter in November. A report by May’s Cabinet secretary concluded Green had made misleading statements regarding his knowledge about the indecent images found by police. “I accept that I should have been clear in my press statements that police lawyers talked to my lawyers in 2008 about the pornography on the computers, and that the police raised it with me in a subsequent phone call in 2013,” Green said in his resignation letter, which was made public Wednesday night.
May said she asked Green for his resignation after the investigation concluded he had not been open about the matter.
“I have also carefully considered the report’s conclusions in relation to two statements you made on 4 and 11 November which you now accept were inaccurate and misleading,” the prime minister wrote in a letter requesting Green to step aside. She said he had fallen short of the standards expected of him. “It is therefore with deep regret, and enduring gratitude for the contribution you have made over many years, that I asked you to resign from the Government and have accepted your resignation,” May wrote. Green was a vital political ally who acted as a de facto deputy prime minister and supported May in her difficult Brexit negotiations. His removal will cost her an important supporter as she tries to balance competing visions of Brexit within her Cabinet.
Green had claimed earlier he was the victim of a smear campaign. The pornography was found on his office computer during a police investigation of government leaks.
The Cabinet investigation did not yield a conclusion about sexual misconduct allegations writer Kate Maltby made against Green. Maltby said Green had “fleetingly” touched her knee during a meeting in a pub and later sent a suggestive text after a picture of her wearing a corset appeared in a newspaper.
The cabinet secretary investigation said it was “not possible to reach a definitive conclusion” on whether Green’s behavior with Maltby was appropriate wily, but added that her account was “plausible.”
Green is among a number of British politicians who have stepped down or been forced out in recent weeks as a wave of allegations of sexual harassment has surfaced. (AP)
Actress Eva Longoria is expecting her first child – a boy – with husband Jose Baston. Longoria, 42, is four months pregnant, her representative told the media.
The couple began dating in 2013, got married in May 2016 in Mexico in a star-studded party. Baston, who already has three children from his previous marriage, is the president of a US based media company.
Longoria had previously denied her pregnancy rumours on multiple occasions. Longoria has also appeared in films like ‘The Sentinel’, ‘Over Her Dead Body’, ‘For Greater Glory’, ‘Frontera’ and ‘Lowriders’.
Actor Amanda Seyfried, who plays the role of Sophie in ‘Mamma Mia!’, has promised fans that the upcoming sequel is going to be better than the original.
Seyfried said she too was doubtful when she was approached for a follow-up initially.
“Truthfully, when they were like, ‘We’re making Mamma Mia 2′ I was like, ‘That’s going to be terrible.’ But it’s not! It’s amazing,” she told.
The film, titled ‘Mamma Mia!: Here We Go Again’, will focus on Donna’s, Meryl Streep younger days. Actor Lily James plays the younger Donna in the movie.
“As soon as you see Lily on screen, you’re like, ‘Oh my God, that’s Donna! I’m seeing Donna when she was wild and young and free, and she has the essence that Meryl brought to it. And it’s kind of extraordinary,” Seyfriend said.
The actor believes she had a better time filming the sequel than she did while shooting the first movie.
“Everybody’s back together and it’s been 10 years. There’s so much love and so much family that it’s infused 100 times in this movie. It was so unexpected for me.”
Taapsee Pannu cant wait to shoot the “final leg” of her upcoming film ‘Soorma’ in Serbia. The actress said that she is excited to visit a new country. “It’s the final leg of shooting and I am getting to visit a country which I have never been to before,” Taapsee said in a statement.
She added, “I fear cold weather as I am not a cold weather person but the excitement of visiting a new place keeps me warm and getting to play a hockey player along with some real hockey players is what makes the journey even more exciting. I will be done in a week in Serbia and that will be a wrap for team Soorma.”
The cast have just wrapped up the India schedule shoot specifically in Shahabad (in Uttar Pradesh) and Chandigarh and now is all ready to move ahead for the next half in Serbia. ‘Soorma’ is a sports biopic based on the hockey legend Sandeep Singh and is being directed by Shaad Ali, who has earlier directed hit films like ‘Saathiya’ and ‘Bunty Aur Babli’.
It also features Dilit Dosanjh in the lead role. The film is all set to be released on June 29, 2018.
Source: IANS
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