NEW DELHI (TIP): Telecom operator Bharti Airtel today said it has received the approval of the SEBI, BSE and NSE for the proposed scheme of merger between Airtel and Telenor (India) Communications Private Limited.
The Sunil Bharti Mittal-owned company in February had announced to acquire the business of Telenor India for an undisclosed sum in all seven circles where the latter holds spectrum.
As part of the deal, Airtel would take over Telenor India’s spectrum, licences and operations, including its employees and customer base of 44 million. Airtel further said it will acquire Telenor India’s running operations in seven circles — Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP (East), UP (West) and Assam.
The company further said Telenor India and Airtel have today filed the joint company application before the New Delhi Bench of the National Company Law Tribunal for approval of the proposed scheme of merger. The merger is inter alia subject to other statutory approvals, including from the Competition Commission of India.
NEW DELHI (TIP): The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is likely to redraw its strategy for contesting the Gujarat assembly elections, which is scheduled to be held later this year, and take a few steps back in favour of consolidating its position in Delhi and Punjab.
Just five months ago, the party launched an elaborate exercise in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state to spread its reach and contest the polls there as a direct challenge to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Its plan was to go all out in the western state, with senior leaders including Delhi’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia put in charge of different zones to oversee election preparations. The change in course will be discussed at the meeting of the party’s national executive – the highest. executive body of AAP comprising around two dozen top leaders – on Sunday, an AAP leader said.
This is the first such meeting after the Delhi municipal polls and the last round of assembly elections in which the AAP fell way short of its expectations of forming a government in Punjab and making electoral gains in Goa.
A series of crises, including infighting in the Delhi and Punjab units, have hit the party since. The last meeting of the NE was held in April 2016.
“A final decision on Gujarat will be taken in a meeting of those involved with the party’s expansion in the state with Arvind Kejriwal next week. It is now a question of how many seats to fight in the assembly elections there,” a party leader privy to the deliberations so far said.
Kejriwal, the party’s national convenor, has called the meeting on June 6. Before that, the party’s top leaders will deliberate on the change in course.
A senior leader said that the consensus within the party brass is to go slow on Gujarat, and therefore the national expansion plan, and look at “consolidating our position in Delhi and Punjab.” “Gujarat is no longer our priority.
Regaining lost ground in Delhi is of utmost importance. Punjab has given us a good opportunity by making us the principal opposition party. We need to build on that,” he added. Source: HT
NEW DELHI (TIP): American auto major General Motors today decided to stop selling its vehicles in India as there was no turnaround in its fortunes here after struggling for over two decades to make a mark. It started its India journey in 1996.
The company will now focus on exporting vehicles from its manufacturing plant at Talegoaon in Maharashtra after it stopped production at its first plant at Halol in Gujarat last month. It has also exited from four other international markets, including Russia and Europe.
GM Executive VP and President of GM International Stefan Jacoby said after exploring many options the company determined that the increased investment originally planned for India would not deliver the returns of other significant global opportunities.
“It would also not help us achieve a leadership position or compelling, long-term profitability in the domestic market,” he added.
GM sales in India were down nearly 21% in 2016-17 to 25,823 units. Its production, however, grew about 16% to 83,368 units most of which were exported.
In 2015, GM had announced plans to invest $1 billion to enhance manufacturing operations and roll out 10 locally produced models in India while deciding to stop production at its first plant at Halol in Gujarat. However, struggling to make a turnaround in India, the company put on hold the plan and undertook a full review of its future product portfolio here.
VOLVO CARS TO START ASSEMBLY IN INDIA
GOTHENBURG (TIP): Swedish auto major Volvo Cars will start assembly operations in India by the end of this year to expand in the local market and become more competitive and profitable. It will start assembling its premium SUV XC90 and has entered into a contract manufacturing agreement with Volvo Group India to use the latter’s existing infrastructure near Bengaluru and production licence. “It’s impossible to grow on imports in India. That’s why we are entering India with local assembly,” Volvo Cars president and CEO Hakan Samuelsson told a group of visiting Indian reporters.
KINGS XI PUNJAB PIP MUMBAI INDIANS TO STAY IN IPL HUNT
Wriddhiman Saha’s unbeaten 55-ball 93 powered Kings XI Punjab to 230/3 against Mumbai Indians in an IPL – Indian Premier League 2017 encounter. In reply, MI could score 223/6 in 20 overs.
MUMBAI (TIP): In a game that swung from one side to the other, Kings XI Punjab came up trumps to record a thrilling seven run win over Mumbai Indians on May 11 (Thursday) and keep their hopes of qualifying for the 2017 IPL playoffs alive.
Mumbai Indians needed 17 off the final over bowled by Mohit Sharma, and 10 off the last four deliveries. The chances of the former champions reaching the target were good with Kieron Pollard, who had hit a six off the second ball, at the crease. However, Mohit Sharma once again showed his skill at bowling in the death overs as he kept his cool to keep the Trinidadian all-rounder at bay.
Kings XI Punjab scored a 2017 IPL record 230/3 and restricted Mumbai Indians to 223 for six.
Wriddhiman Saha struck 11 fours and three sixes in his 55-ball knock of 93, Mumbai Indians vs Kings XI Punjab, IPL 2017, Mumbai, May 11. Photo: BCCI
STAYING IN TOUCH
Kings XI Punjab moved to 14 points after the victory at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, just one point behind defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad, who play their last match against Gujarat Lions in Kanpur. Kings XI Punjab’s last match is on Sunday against Rising Pune Supergiant.
Pollard (50no) would have been disappointed with his effort as at one point, with the help of Hardik Pandya (30) and Karn Sharma (19), had put them on the verge of victory.
Chasing 231 set by Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai Indians got off to a flying start but lost their way after the powerplay overs and then saw their top-four batsman return to the pavilion with the score at 121 in the 13th over.
Lendl Simmons (59) and Parthiv Patel (38) gave Mumbai Indians a rollicking start as they started their chase of the season’s highest total. Patel was the first to go but the turning point of the match came in the 10th over when Martin Guptill took a brilliant one handed catch to dismiss Simmons, who was trying to hit another over the boundary, this time off Glenn Maxwell.
Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma (5) for the fifth time this season fell to a leg-spinner when he holed out at long on off the bowling of Rahul Tewatia while off-colour Nitish Rana (12) followed him soon after.
SAHA’S HEROICS
Wriddhiman Saha mixed caution with aggression to score an unbeaten 53-ball 93 and help Kings XI Punjab post the highest score of 2017 IPL.
Kings XI Punjab scored 230 to overtake the 214 scored by Delhi Daredevils while chasing against Gujarat Lions earlier in the month. The wicketkeeper-batman was the glue the kept the Kings XI Punjab innings together. He shared 50-plus partnerships with Martin Guptill (36), Glenn Maxwell (47) and Shaun Marsh (25) to help Kings XI Punjab post a mammoth total. He stayed at the wicket till the last ball, hitting 11 boundaries and three sixes. While others around him went hammer and tongs, he was given the role of anchoring the innings. While he didn’t boast the same range of shots like his partners, he played to his strengths, playing with a straight bat and taking the occasional risk to go over the top.
BSF nabs 6 Pakistani fishermen from Sir Creek in Kutch
BHUJ (TIP): Six Pakistani fishermen were on Thursday apprehended by the Border Security Force (BSF) personnel from the Indian side of the Nal Creek on the Indo-Pak border in Gujarat, a senior officer said.
Creek in Kutch district, the BSF patrolling party spotted three boats doing fishing in Indian waters in Nal creek. Upon seeing the BSF boats, the fishermen on board two boats sailed off into Pakistani side whereas six fishermen on board third boat were nabbed by the BSF,” a senior BSF official said.
He said the captured boat broke down on its way to a nearby location before sinking.
“However, all the six fishermen from the neighbouring country were safely brought to the nearby BSF post,” the official said.
Given the sensitive nature of the area, even Indian fishermen are barred from catching fish in the creek. However, Pakistani fishermen often venture into Indian waters to catch fish and then sail off to their side.
In the past, the BSF had recovered abandoned Pakistani fishing boats from Creek area on several occasions as the fishermen swam to their side upon spotting the BSF patrol. Earlier in February, the BSF seized four abandoned Pakistani fishing boats from Sir Creek on the Indo-Pak border.
In March this year, the Indian Coast Guard held nine Pakistani fishermen off Jakahu coast and seized their boat from the Indian waters. (PTI)
MUMBAI (TIP): Setting aside the acquittal of seven persons, including five policemen and two doctors, the Bombay High Court on May 4 upheld the conviction and life imprisonment of 12 persons in the Bilkis Bano gangrape case. It, however, dismissed a CBI appeal seeking death penalty for three of the convicts on the grounds that they were the main perpetrators of the crime.
Bilkis Bano said, “My rights, as a human being, as a citizen, woman, and mother were violated in the most brutal manner, but I had trust in the democratic institutions of our country. Now, my family and I feel we can begin to lead our lives again, free of fear.”
A Division Bench of Justices K Tahilramani and Mridula Bhatkar, in a 430-page judgement, said while the probe conducted by the Gujarat Police was “flawed with a dishonest investigation”, the evidence and statements given by Bilkis Bano were “completely trustworthy”. Bilkis was gangraped in March 2002 at a time when she was pregnant. Seven of her family members were killed in Gujarat’s post-Godhra riots.
“The appeal against conviction filed by the 11 convicts (one of them is dead) is dismissed. The conviction and sentence is upheld. The appeal filed by the prosecution against the acquittal of seven persons (in the case) is allowed. The acquittal is set aside,” the Bench announced.
These seven persons — five policemen and two doctors — have been convicted for not performing their duty (Section 218) and for tampering with evidence (Section 201). Each of them were told to pay a fine of Rs 20,000 within eight weeks.
Modi’s preoccupation with domestic politics may continue through the Delhi municipal elections or even till elections in Gujarat. But he must not let foreign policy issues adrift………The Prime Minister cannot alternate between a pugnacious fighter at home and occasionally a statesman abroad,” says the author – KC Singh.
March 11 marked a significant landmark for Modi’s evolution as a dominant national political force, the future of AAP and its leader Arvind Kejriwal and the fate of ‘young’ leaders, 43-year-old Akhilesh Yadav and 46-year-old Rahul Gandhi. The murmurs are the loudest in the Congress against leadership, particularly when despite winning more seats than the BJP in Goa and Manipur, the governments have been formed by the latter.
After winning an unprecedented mandate in Uttar Pradesh, the most populous state of India, Modi could have shown humility in victory and espoused more collegial governance. Instead, he seems succumbing to hubris, as the BJP, particularly in Goa – despite their Chief Minister and six ministers being rejected by the electorate – have induced Independents, including those who campaigned on anti-BJP platform, with ministerial berths to devise an unethical coalition. The Supreme Court Bench of the Chief Justice disappointed in ignoring past guidelines in judgments and advice in commissions by worthy predecessors like Justices Sarkaria and Punchhi on how Governors should deal with split verdicts. Even if the swearing-in of Manohar Parrikar had to go ahead when the floor test was being advanced, how were all non-BJP supporters allowed to be sworn in as ministers?That clearly taints the process.
The April-end municipal elections in Delhi are now critical for the Congress, and even more so for the AAP. Gujarat, where the Patel agitation and poor governance post-Modi has created political uncertainty, looms next and there is talk of election, due later this year, being advanced to keep opponents from regrouping. Gujarat is literally the last hurdle beyond which Modi’s path to re-election in 2019 should be clear.
He is now like Indira Gandhi in her prime, the predominant figure to beat. But strange are the ways of the Indian masses as they both feed the rise of a strong leader and then resist power accumulation. The AAP in Delhi or the Janata Dal in Bihar benefited from this counter urge. Henry Kissinger in his book ‘On China’, comparing India and China, writes that the latter has continuously been a unitary state since 221 BC. India, contrariwise, only thrice: the Mauryas, Guptas and the British, as even the Mughals never controlled the entire south. Indira Gandhi realized after imposing the Emergency in 1975 that she now ruled over a sullen people waiting to punish her. Modi can ignore this lesson of history at his own peril.
Meanwhile, the external Indian environment has evolved drastically while Modi has been in the domestic mode. Victory of Donald Trump and the coming elections in Europe, in the Netherlands on March 15 and then in France and later Germany, can rewrite the future of the European Union. President Xi Jinping of China, with greater power accretion than any leader since Mao, faces the quinquennial 19th party congress later this year when new faces that may lead China in future should emerge. While the fourth generation ruled from 2003 to 2012, it remains to be seen if Xi will pass the baton to a successor in 2022, accepting the 10-year leadership change principle, or will linger as China faces a slowing economy and a mutating and less benign global order. India-Pakistan relations continue to fester as Pakistan is far from isolated. They have just joined Saudi Arabia’s Sunni coalition by sending troops to defend their border with Yemen. Pakistani economy is also on the mend, returning to 5 per cent GDP growth.
Modi’s preoccupation with domestic politics may continue through the Delhi municipal elections or even till elections in Gujarat. But he must not let foreign policy issues adrift. The first concern is to insulate gains in India-US relations over the last two US administrations from vagaries of Trump’s immigration policy, approach to Asia and global regimes. Second is India-Pakistan relations in state of persistent tension. That is hardly a strategy to deal with a nuclear weapon-possessing neighbor. Thirdly, relations with China are getting testier over India’s unwillingness to kowtow over the Dalai Lama while the Chinese become intransigent over Indian membership of the NSG and the listing of Pakistan-based terrorists by the UN Security Council sanctions committee.
Pakistan policy has, time and again, been on hold while Modi fights domestic electoral battles, including subliminally using terror emanating from there as an electoral weapon. Starting with the Maharashtra and Jammu and Kashmir elections in 2014, it has been a recurring tactic. By what definition was the terror attack in Uri comparable to the 26/11 carnage or attack on Indian Parliament in 2001 or the 2006 Mumbai train bombings? When red-lines are shifted to the walls of Indian cantonments then peace is unattainable, as any two terrorists can disrupt it with, or without, Pakistani support.
On the other hand, Pakistan in the last few months has been sending subtle signals. A new army chief, handpicked by PM Nawaz Sharif, appears in line with him. The detention of Hafiz Saeed and some associates may be a beginning that can be reversed or sharpened. Indian Punjab gets a new government with Capt Amarinder Singh, known to be sensitive to Punjabiyat, as a nebulous and diminishing link between the two divided Punjabs. Modi needs to test the window reopening for engagement and the calibrated resumption of normalization, or even talks.
For a start, Indian NSA Ajit Doval needs to talk to his counterpart, who is a former general, with a line to army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa. Signals at a recent India-Pakistan track II were that General Bajwa may indeed be the partner Nawaz has been seeking since 1998, when Vajpayee travelled by bus to Lahore. The cultural and ideological space needed for this can be created between the twin cities of Amritsar and Lahore.
The Prime Minister cannot alternate between a pugnacious fighter at home and occasionally a statesman abroad. He has a limited opportunity to test Pakistani signals and build a consensus behind a new approach to Pakistan. Forcing Pakistan deeper into Chinese arms complicates dealing with both, particularly in an uncertain Trumpian world, when the need to defend Indian diaspora, whether holding Indian citizenship or not, can sour relations. The foreign policy ball has rolled back down the hill which Modi must, like Sisyphus, re-climb.
(The author is a former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India)
DAHOD (TIP): In a shocking incident, two teenage girls were allegedly gang-raped by six men in front of their father in a moving vehicle in Devgadh Baria tehsil of Dahod district in Gujarat on Thursday, police said.
Five of the 13 persons said to be involved in the abduction and rape case have been arrested, they added.
Kumat Baria, Gopsinh Baria and others abducted the two sisters, aged 13 and 15 respectively, and their father from his shop in Bhutpagla village, forced them into a SUV and raped the girls, police said. Four of the accused followed the vehicle on two motorcycles, the victims’ father said in the FIR.
Kumat Baria allegedly told the victims’ father that he committed the ghastly act to take revenge as the latter’s son, arrested in a prohibition case, told Damanvav police that he used to procure liquor from Kumat and the police subsequently filed a case against Kumat.
The accused later dropped the two girls and their father near Mandav village and warned them not to go to the police, the FIR said.
NEW DELHI(TIP): “Vibrant Gujarat is connecting India to the world,” Resident Commissioner of Gujarat in New Delhi Bharat Lal said. “Our objective is to interact with government officials and the business community during this road show in Canada and USA, to attract investors, scientist, and entrepreneurs from all over the world to come to Gujarat and participate in the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017,” he said.
“Vibrant Gujarat is the biggest platform for enabling business in India. In the post GST (Goods and Services Tax Bill) scenario, when India becomes ‘One Nation – One Market’, Gujarat holds a unique distinction with favorable geographical location, state-of-the-art infrastructure and sound policies,” he added.
“We have had various meeting with leading companies across USA and had an amazing response. People are very excited about GST. Business industry is bullish they think this is the right time to invest. The Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, which started in 2003 to rekindle the pace of investments in the state, has since established itself as one of the most important international business events in the country, Bharat Lal told this correspondent.
Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit is an example of the visionary approach of the Government of Gujarat towards inclusive and sustainable development by ensuring policy coherence and effective investment promotion.
Far from the regional investment fair that characterized the first Summit in 2003, the biennial Summit has today become a unique forum for exchanging ideas, sharing knowledge, networking, exploring business opportunities and signing cooperation agreements and partnerships, while setting the policy agenda for meeting some of the current global challenges.
Having successfully organized seven constructive summits, Government of Gujarat, as part of its journey towards sustainable long-term growth and inclusive development is organizing the 8th edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit from the 10th to 13th of January 2017 at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar. The central focus of the Summit is Sustainable Economic and Social Development.
It will bring together heads of states and governments, ministers, leaders from the corporate world, senior policy makers, heads of international institutions and academia from around the world to further the cause of development and to promote cooperation, he said.
There will be enough opportunity to interact with key policy makers, industry leaders, global thought leaders, regulators and renowned academicians from all over the world. The participants can witness deliberations between sector experts and global luminaries in an array of knowledge seminars during the summit to comprehend evolving global sectoral trends.
The Summit provides platform for SMEs to connect globally with potential partners to explore opportunities of collaboration and partnership networking forums to foster interaction between stakeholders through B2B and B2G meetings in an exhibition spread over 1,25,000 sq.mts with exclusive demo sessions showcasing the latest trends and technology, products and services across sectors. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate Global Trade Show by in the presence of Gujarat Chief Minister and MOS (Independent Charge), Commerce & Industries Nirmala Seetharaman. There will be a Global CEO Roundtable chaired by Modi with Select 50 top CEOs. The Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2017 is receiving tremendous response in the US, members of a high level state delegation said after meeting senior government officials and CEOs of top tech companies here.
Underlining the rapid economic development that is taking place underPrime Minister Narendra Modi Lal referred to Gujarat as being the driving engine of Indian growth.
“The state accounts for 19 per cent of industrial output, 41 per cent of cargo exports and 10 per cent of India’s manufacturing industries,” he said, adding that Gujarat ranked number one in “ease of doing business”.
The US has agreed to be a partner country in the next edition of the Vibrant Gujarat Summit, the brainchild of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in January 2017. US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Nisha Desai Biswal had conveyed this to Bharat Lal, Resident Commissioner of Gujarat in New Delhi. Biswal recently met with a Gujarat delegation, led by Resident Commissioner Bharat Lal, who was accompanied by Indian Charge d’Affairs Ambassador Taranjit Singh Sandhu in Washington.
The Assistant Secretary praised Resident Commissioner Lal for his efforts to make the state of Gujarat a model of innovation and sustainable economic growth and reform for India.
She also announced US’ intent to participate as a Partner Country in the 2017 Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, the government of Gujarat’s biennial investors’ summit that brings together global business leaders, investors, corporations, Kerry thought leaders, and policymakers. US Secretary of State John had attended the last Vibrant Gujarat Summit.
GANDHINAGAR (TIP): On Vijaya Dashmi day on Tuesday, the 90th foundation day of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), its volunteers – donning the new uniform in which pants have supplanted shorts -vowed to end discrimination against dalits and adivasis. The volunteers pledged to strive for social harmony in Hindu society. Around 5,000 volunteers across Ahmedabad participated in seven sthapana-din
(foundation day) pathsanchalan (parades), wearing the new dark-brown trousers that have replaced the flared khaki shorts. Brown-green socks and brown belts are part of the kit. White shirts and black caps have been retained from the traditional uniform.
Drawing inspiration from RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s speech delivered in Nagpur, RSS volunteers in Ahmedabad, and across Gujarat, affirmed the new goals of the RSS. Vijay Thakkar, 45, a senior bank officer and prant prachar pramukh (state publicity in-charge) said: “Barring fundamental ideas such as Hindu Rashtra, bhagwa (saffron) flag, and unity in the country, all traditions can be changed in the sangh with changing times.”
Reliance Defence has won a contract for the refit of three naval warships at its facility at Pipavav in Gujarat, sources said. The value of the order is pegged at Rs 300 crore.
The refit of the three warships — identified as survey ship INS Jamuna, fleet tanker INS Deepak and patrol vessel INS Savitri — is expected to be completed by April next year. The first refit will get completed shortly, the sources added.
The latest order comes close on the heels of the Anil Ambani Group company bagging a Rs 920-crore contract for building 14 fast patrol vessels for the Indian Coast Guard to primarily assist in anti-smuggling and anti-terrorism operations.
NEW DELHI (TIP): Gujarat Tourism is offering 32 tourism projects to attract private investments at the forthcoming Incredible India Tourism Investor’s Summit (IITIS) to be held from September 21-23 in New Delhi.
The total estimated value of the projects is around Rs 8,000 crore which includes innovative projects with global appeal like Dev Ni Mori Buddhist tourist site development (Rs 1,200 crore), Sant Nagari, highlighting lives and contributions of India’s saints (Rs 600 crore), Giant Wheel at Sabarmati Riverfront (Rs900 crore) etc.
J. Haider, Principal Secretary-Tourism, Government of Gujarat, says, “Gujarat will be a key partner State at IITIS. We will highlight around Rs 8,000 crore worth of projects in the summit. These will include major religious tourism projects like Dev Ni Mori, Sant Nagari and others. At the same time, we will be putting forward modern tourism projects like the Giant Wheel at Sabarmati Riverfront, Global Village, Mini India at Adalaj in Ahmedabad, cruise tourism, aero sports etc.”Haider further informed that the state government aims to take up all these projects on Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode.
NEW YORK CITY (TIP): Breadth and depth, newness and eternity will color this year’s Sri Chinmoy Poetry Festival, to be held Saturday, August 20, at 8 p.m. at the Sri Chinmoy Aspiration-Ground Meditation Garden in New York. A highlight will be the international launch of Sri Chinmoy’s fully bilingual publication The Garden of Love-Light Poems (Premaloker Kanan), which will include 140 of Sri Chinmoy’s original Bengali poems captured in both Bengali and Western script, coupled with his own English translations.
Festival Director Ranjana K. Ghose notes in her foreword to the volume: “The Garden of Love-Light Poems of Sri Chinmoy is a work of immortal vintage poems. We find herein some of Sri Chinmoy’s earliest poetry and yet the epiphanies within are dawning ever anew, within the self and within mankind.”
A keynote speaker at the Festival will be Ambassador Anwarul Chowdhury, the former United Nations Under-Secretary-General, who will read poetry from the book. Acclaimed singer Debashree Bhattacharya, joined by flutist Premik Russell Tubbs and keyboardist Parichayaka Hammerl, will perform selections of the haunting music which Sri Chinmoy composed to all poems in the book. The evening will be filled with both music and poetry, including performances by the London-based music group “Temple-Song-Hearts”.
Rounding out the major presentations for the evening, Professor Neelima Shukla-Bhatt, Director of the South Asian Studies Program at Wellesley College, will relate Sri Chinmoy’s poetry to that of the 15th century poet Narasinha Mehta of Gujarat, particularly the lyric which became Gandhi’s favorite hymn. Professor Bhatt’s research includes expressions of devotion through poetry and song, and on cultural forms and resources that tie people together across boundaries.
The international launch of The Garden of Love-Light Poems follows the launch held at the World Literature Centre (Bishwo Shahitto Kendra) in Dhaka earlier this year. That launch was presided over by Professor Anisuzzaman, who has received the Bangla Academy Award and the Ananada Purashkar for his work in the field of Bengali literature. He recited the following poem from the volume at that event:
Not word, but work:
This sweet message awakens strength
In our heart.
Inside work remains hidden
The fragrance of flowers.
Let work be the language of our heart
And our proclamation.
Our only aim is progress,
Not victory and failure.
— Sri Chinmoy
The Sri Chinmoy Poetry Festival is an annual event, held in New York since 2009. For more information: Nayana Hein: 347-773-8369; Nishtha Baum: 347-968-9417
In these four years, I also saw with, some disquiet, forces of divisiveness and intolerance trying to raise their ugly head. Attacks on weaker sections that militate against our national ethos are aberrations that need to be dealt with firmly. The collective wisdom of our society and our polity gives me confidence that such forces will remain marginalized, and India’s remarkable growth story will continue uninterrupted,”so said honorable Pranab Mukherjee, President of India, addressing the nation on the eve of the 70th yearof Independencefrom British colonialism.
It is indeed quite an emphatic and forceful statement coming from the bully pulpit of the highest office in the land. It also puts to shame those who refuse to acknowledge the growing intolerance and prejudice that is sweeping across India by the rightwing zealots who are emboldened by the election of Narendra Modi to power. The question to ponder is whether this is only an aberration or a growing trend that may have disastrous consequences to the way of life as we experience it today!
Just as India was celebrating its Independence Day, word has come out from Bengaluru that SEDITION charges are being filed against Amnesty International of India, an organization that promotes human rights and creates awareness when it is violated in any part of the world. Once again, it appears that the law enforcement agencies are madepawns by ultra-nationalists bent upon imposing their version of cultural hegemony on the diverse people of India.
Millions of Indians everywhere must be feeling the shame of India as the President has spoken out on the continuing assaults on Dalits. In a recent incident in Una, Gujarat, four Dalit youths were severely beaten up and dragged on the road for nearly a kilometer for allegedly possessing beef. It is widely known that the so-called upper castes will not touch the carcass and the Dalits are forced to clear or handle it and when they do, they are mercilessly beaten up in the name of self-appointed ‘Gau Rakshak Samiti.’
Dalits who constitute one-sixth of India’s population, some 170 million people, live in precarious existence, shunned by much of Indian society because of their rank as “untouchables” or Dalits – meaning broken people – at the bottom of India’s caste system. Dalits are discriminated against, denied access to land and basic resources, forced to work in degrading conditions, and routinely abused at the hands of police and dominant caste groups that enjoy state’s protection.
It appears that the Prime Minister had finally broken his silence when he made a statement in a town hall meeting saying that “I feel really angry that some people have opened shops in the name of cow protection. I have seen that some people commit anti-social activities through the night, but act as cow protectors by the day”. It is noteworthy that Modi did not call for the prosecution and punishment of these cow vigilantes but asked the authorities to prepare ‘dossiers’ on them and keep them under control!
Almost a year ago, a mob lynched Mohammed Akhlaq in Dadri U.P. on suspicion of possessing beef in his home refrigerator. Subsequently, the meat was sent for forensic examination. In June, Baliyan, who is a member of Modi’s Council of Ministers, BJP MP Yogi Adityanath and BJP MLA Sangeet Som defended the killers and demanded action against the dead man’s family for the ‘crime of eating beef.’
If there is growing intolerance on the dietary habits of Indians and rising violence by the emboldened vigilante groups who have taken up law unto their hands, many in the current leadership are in complicity, lending credence to their nefarious activities with their overt or covert support to this highly charged environment.
Amit Shah, the President of BJP, boasted once that wherever there is a BJP government, there is a ban on beef. Raja Singh, a member of Parliament, went even further stating that he extends his full support to all those who take it upon themselves to teach those Dalits a valuable lesson!Mohinder Lal Khattar, the current Chief Minister of Haryana, is on the record saying that Muslims can live in the country only if they give up eating beef. Panchajanyam, an RSS newspaper has quoted Vedic scriptures that ordered the killing of sinners who slaughtered cows and the Union Minister of Agriculture Radhamohan Singh termed cow slaughter a ‘mortal sin.’
There is no doubt that these vitriolic statements from higher ups have given fodder and cover to these cow vigilantes who roam the streets and become the judge, jury, and the executioners. Since BJP came to power, states like Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkhand have tightened laws against cow slaughter, but those in the leadership used the beef issue as an emotive political tool without any repercussions from the Prime Minister. In Maharashtra state, one may get five years incarceration for possession of beef as opposed to two years for sexual harassment of a woman!
Prime Minister himself effectively conjured up the specter of a ‘pink revolution’ – cow killing on a mass scale – in the event of a BJP’s defeat in the 2014 election as part of a strategy to motivate people and to vote for his party. Both in Western Uttar Pradesh and again in Bihar Modi spoke at length about the dangers of ‘pink revolution.’ “The agenda of the Congress is the pink revolution,” he said. “we have heard of the green revolution and white revolution but never pink, and this means the slaughter of animals (pashu). You see, the color of mutton is pink, and they are committing the sin of exporting it and bringing revolution…Because of this, our animal wealth is being slaughtered, our cows are being slaughtered, or sent abroad to be slaughtered….And now the Congress is saying, ‘if you vote for us, we will give you permission to kill cows’”
It is quite apparent that if Modi has to call the heinous and brutal beating of the Dalit boys in Gujarat as criminal wrongdoing and ask that the perpetrators to be punished, he would have to cross that ideological line he and his party have helped to formulate in attaining the power. However, what he has done with his recent statement to the nation is an attempt to soothe the bruised feelings of Dalits who are critical to the BJP’s prospects in the upcoming elections in U.P. and Punjab. What else could explain his silence in all these months when Muslim youths were lynched or beaten up by cow vigilantes?
The very idea of a consolidated vote bank based on the ideology of ‘Hindutva’ to include the Dalits and other backward castes may be fast unraveling as the video footage of the beating has gone viral and stoked Dalit anger. The nation also witnessed the de-recognition of the Ambedkar Students Association in Chennai, mistreatment and subsequent suicide of the Dalit scholar Rohit Vemula in Hyderabad, torching of a Dalit home in Haryana and killing of two children. All these incidents may only reinforce the age-old Dalit thinking that BJP is essentially a party dominated by an upper caste ideology, and there may be very little room left in it for anyone else!
(The author is a former Chief
Technology Officer of the United
Nations and Chairman of the Indian
National Overseas Congress, USA)
NEW DELHI (TIP): On the eve of India’s 70th Independence Day, President Pranab Mukherjee warned against the rise of divisive and intolerant forces, in what can be seen as a message for the parties in power.
Mukherjee also asked for firm measures to deal with attacks on weaker sections amid allegations of increasing victimisation of Dalits and minorities, often by fringe elements of the ruling establishment.
Reminding about the duties defined in the Constitution, President Mukherjee in his pre-Independence Day speech asked the stakeholders to uphold the “spirit of the Constitution” and maintain the “maryada (sanctity)” of authorities and institutions of state power.
“In these four years, I saw with disgust forces of divisiveness and intolerance trying to raise their ugly head. Attacks on weaker sections that militate against our national ethos are aberrations that need to be dealt with firmly,” Mukherjee said in what may be his last speech as President on August 14.
A spate of incidents, including attacks on churches, the beef controversy, a Muslim’s lynching on the suspicion that he was storing beef, the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemulla and the recent beating of Dalit youth in Gujarat, has raised a number of political storms for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, which has come under increased criticism from the opposition.
“The Constitution has clearly defined the duties and responsibilities of every organ of the state. It has established the ancient Indian ethos of ‘maryada’ as far as authorities and institutions of state power are concerned,” Mukherjee said. “The spirit of the Constitution has to be upheld by adherence to this ‘maryada’ by the functionaries in the discharge of their duties.”
The President hailed the passage of the 122nd Constitution Amendment Bill for the goods and services tax as
“reason enough to celebrate India’s democratic maturity”. “The fact that despite two consecutive drought years, inflation has remained below 6% is a testimony to our nation’s resilience,” he said.
But he also warned against
“disruptions, obstructionism and unmindful pursuit of a divisive political agenda by groups and individuals” that might lead to “nothing but institutional travesty and Constitutional subversion”.
“Polarising debates only deepen the fault lines in public discourse,” he said. “The collective wisdom of the society and India’s polity gives confidence that such forces will remain marginalised and India’s remarkable growth story will continue uninterrupted.”
GANDHINAGAR/NEW DELHI (TIP): Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel on August 2 submitted her resignation to Governor O P Kohli hours after the BJP Parliamentary Board accepted her offer to quit and authorised party president Amit Shah to pick her successor to lead the party in 2017 polls.
Nitin Patel Frontrunner for the Post AHMEDABAD (TIP): Nitin Patel, considered No. 2 in the cabinet of outgoing chief minister Anandiben Patel, seems to be emerging as the consensus candidate for the chief minister’s post in Gujarat, with state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Vijay Rupani withdrawing from the race and the party ruling out the candidature of national BJP president Amit Shah. The Patel factor also seems to be tipping the scales in the favour of the 60-year-old Gujarat health minister.
Anandiben, who will turn 75 this November, handed over the resignation letter to Kohli in the presence of ministers and party leaders at Raj Bhavan in the evening. Kohli has asked her to continue until the new cheif minister takes charge.
“Anandiben has submitted her resignation to the governor,” state unit BJP president Vijay Rupani told reporters after coming out of Raj Bhavan.
Earlier in the day, the BJP Parliamentary Board which met in Delhi authorised Shah to pick Anandiben’s successor after accepting her offer to resign.
The meeting of the Parliamentary Board, which was chaired by Shah and attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, appointed Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and BJP general secretary Saroj Pandey as party’s central observers to hold consultations with the MLAs for electing the new leader.
Shah will be travelling to Gujarat tomorrow where he will hold consultations with party leaders and attend the Legislature Party meeting, likely to be held on Friday to elect the new leader.
Though her departure was anticipated, the first woman chief minister of Gujarat had offered to step down on Monday ostensibly due to her age, as she is turning 75 soon.
Meanwhile, the political circles are abuzz with the likey choice of her replacement.
According to leaders in BJP, the decision on Anandiben’s successor could be taken within the next two days.
“We are yet to decide the time of the Legislature body meeting (to elect new leader) as state Observer Nitin Gadkari is busy. It (meeting) can happen any time after 3 PM tomorrow or even a day after. Our national president Amit Shah will decide it as he is arriving here tomorrow,” said state unit BJP in-charge Dinesh Sharma.
He said the Legislature Party meeting to decide the next CM will be held in the presence of state Observers as per the process.
Parrying a query on likely contenders for CM’s post, Sharma said, “A party worker will be chosen as next chief minister.”
Interestingly, state unit BJP chief Vijay Rupani whose name is in the reckoning for the post besides others, virtually ruled himself out of the race, saying he would like to work for the party organisation.
“I have told the party leadership that I would like to work for the organisation,” Rupani said.
Names of “number two” in state Cabinet and incumbent Health minister Nitin Patel, Union minister Purshottam Rupala and Assembly Speaker Ganpat Vasava, a tribal leader, are still doing the rounds.
Nitin Patel, who is considered to be the front-runner, said, “the party Central leadership will decide on who will be the chief minister.”
Anandiben, meanwhile, issued advertisements in newspapers here today listing the works done during her two-year tenure.
KANPUR (TIP): All 14 policemen at a police post in Kanpur were suspended and a murder case was filed against one of them, after a young Dalit man was found dead in custody.
Kamal Valmiki, who was around 25 years old, was brought to the police station two days ago for questioning about a theft in the area. On Aug 5, his family was informed that he has died. His body was found hanging in a room inside the police post.
The family, however, alleges that he died due to severe beating.
While the postmortem report is yet to come, the family has alleged that the police tried to hush up the death and initially sent the body for postmortem under a false name. The local police claimed it was a case of identity goof-up – the man whose name was mentioned in the papers was Raju, who had committed suicide while in custody.
“The family has said that a constable had taken Valmiki for questioning and then this incident took place,” said Shalabh Mathur, a senior officer of the city police. “On basis of their complaint, we are registering a case of murder and the entire police chowki has been suspended. If other police personnel are involved we will act against them too,” he added.
A case of kidnapping has also been filed against all the policemen because Raju, who the police claimed had died, cannot be traced. “Death in police custody is a very serious offence and we will spare no one in this case,” state police Javed Ahmed has said. Later in the evening, there was tension in the area as Kamal Valmiki’s relatives and locals clashed with the police. The police had to use batons to control the mob. The action against the policemen comes as the ruling Akhilesh Yadav government is under fire from the Congress and the BJP for the law and order situation in the state – an issue that is expected to spell trouble for it in next year’s assembly elections. Dalits, who form 26% of the state’s electorate, are already in protest mode following the increasing instances of cow vigilantism across the country. In July, four young Dalit men were stripped to the wait, beaten and hauled around tied to an SUV after they were accused of cow slaughter in Gujarat’s Una, triggering massive Dalit protests.
AHMEDABAD (TIP): The Gujarat high court on Thursday convicted 11 people for burning a man and his daughter to death during the 2002 anti-Muslim riots in Mehsana district’s Meda-Adraj village.
A trial court had in 2005 acquitted all 27 people accused of burning Kalumiya Saiyad and his daughter, Hasinabibi, to death. The HC reversed the acquittal of 11 of them and held them guilty of murder, arson, and unlawful assembly.
The two had taken shelter in the house of a Hindu neighbour. The mob barged into the house by breaking its door.
It thrashed the neighbour for protecting Muslims before setting the two on fire on March 3, 2002. The accused brought them out and again set them on fire when the two jumped into a water pool.
Special prosecutor J M Panchal said the high court would pronounce the sentences for the convicts on August 4.
The BJP has just done a Bihar in Uttar Pradesh. In Bihar, its electoral prospects were damaged by no less than the RSS chief. In UP, a middling BJP leader called Mayawati, Dalit icon B R Ambedkar’s self-anointed legatee, words that shouldn’t be used even in drawing room conversation. The BJP has been swift in expelling the leader but it remains to be seen whether this is perception management to control the damage not just in UP but also Punjab, a state with the country’s highest Dalit population simultaneously going to the polls.
But for this intemperate statement, the BJP had learnt from the Waterloo in Bihar. It was luring away Mayawati’s lieutenants, started cobbling a Bihar-type grouping of backward caste leaders, party chief Amit Shah made the mandatory pilgrimage to a UP Dalit’s house and Prime Minister Narendra Modi inducted five Dalits in his first Cabinet reshuffle. However, Dalit ferment is underway elsewhere too, beginning with Rohith Vemula’s suicide. Mumbai saw a massive Left-Dalit rally against the demolition of Ambedkar Bhavan and large parts of Gujarat shut down against the public flogging of Dalits by vigilantes of a self-styled cow protection unit.
The BJP has scored all these self goals with no provocation from any quarters. Rather the heightened social and religious tensions in several parts of the country are due to the BJP’s upper caste-centric mindset and the low standards in public speaking set by its senior leaders. From Punjab to Maharashtra, the BJP has single-mindedly pushed a vigilante-led cow protection agenda that ignores the reality on the ground. As for using offensive words, wasn’t it junior Minister V K Singh who described journalists as “presstitutes”? And didn’t the Prime Minister term a fellow-politician’s companion as “50 crore ki girlfriend”? As no party can afford to be counted without the Muslim and Dalit votes, the BJP had no choice but to act contrite to keep the latter in good humor. As political temperatures rise in UP and Punjab, time will tell whether the expulsion of the UP BJP leader was a sincere effort to discipline the cadres.
There is a famous Modi Model which has been ideated, projected and sold by Narendra Modi, which was lapped up by a large number of people and was the reason for his ascension to Prime Minister. This Modi Model was camouflaged into a robust model of development and Zero Tolerance for corruption. Decisive and strong leadership is an integral part of that model. But this model has another side, which, like Anurag Kashyap’s film, is dark and edgy; in that part, there are no democratic bones in its body. There is no place for disagreement and dissent. And that is the part that is coming to the fore now.
The first sign of nervousness in the opposition camp and the first sign of victory are complimentary to each other and happen simultaneously. The BJP has ruled Gujarat long enough to get delusional about its own immortality in the state. Modi won the state for the BJP for three consecutive terms and before him, the BJP won twice despite being faction-ridden. But since Modi moved to center and Anandiben Patel took over the reins of the government, there are clear indications of BJP losing ground and she is nowhere close to what Modi was.
Ideally, the Congress should have been the perfect replacement. By now, they should have successfully challenged the BJP and left it feeling insecure. Unfortunately, the Congress in last 20 years or so has been reduced to a non-entity. It has ceased to even be a political party. This has created a vacuum in the political space. It is this vacuum which AAP is filling up very fast. It is emerging as a real alternative. They are taking up small and big issues on behalf of the common citizens of Gujarat and fighting it out in the streets for them.
It is this fighting spirit which has made the BJP nervous. Therefore, in this context, when traders of Surat district invited Arvind Kejriwal for a meeting and interaction, and he readily accepted, Anandiben Patel had sleepless nights and finally the Vice chancellor of the university that was selected as the venue announced that the permission for the venue of the meeting was being revoked. Anandiben Patel did not stop there. She threatened the traders’ association and they were reprimanded for daring to call Kejriwal to Gujarat. They were told that their business would be ruined if they went ahead with the function. The President of the Association was also asked to give in writing that he had been misled by the AAP. Poor man had no option but to capitulate.
The Vice Chancellor said that the venue could not be given for political activities. The gentleman has forgotten that the same venue was used by the BJP and Congress in the past many times. He also said that university had no idea that Kejriwal was coming for the meeting.
It is rather clear that the BJP is nervous with the exponential growth of AAP.
AAP also wanted to hold a protest in Bhavnagar in February about the corruption charges against Anar Patel, the Chief Minister’s daughter, but permission was not granted. Yet again AAP volunteers were detained. In Saurashtra, our planned Padyatra in April to save Gauchar or land for grazing by cows was not allowed. Senior leader of the AAP Gujarat unit Kanubhai Kalsariya was arrested and then got bail.
So now there is a pattern. Under the Indian constitution, every citizen and group has every democratic right to protest against the government. As long as such protest is peaceful and doesn’t resort to violence or doesn’t threaten the sovereignty of the country, the government of the day has no reason to stop a protest from taking place.
Unfortunately, during the Modi regime, the state has turned into a police state. All voices of dissent are muzzled. Disagreement is strongly disliked by the BJP government. There is a long list of government officers who had to pay a heavy price for the disagreement with then Chief Minister Modi. Many landed in jail. The non-governmental organizations that exposed misdeeds of Modi government are being hounded even now. Several cases are lodged against them and their finances have been choked by the government. This is dictatorship in democratic attire.
Unlike her predecessor, Anandiben is not a charismatic leader; she does not have a similar grip over the administration and the party. She is perceived as a weak Chief Minister who is struggling with intra-party factionalism. AAP’s rise has made her very nervous in a state which in the last 20 years has not seen a robust opposition. But like AAP in Delhi, which is fighting the relentless onslaughts of the Modi government, AAP’s Gujarat unit will withstand BJP’s intimidating tactics and dirty tricks.
AAP is not like the Congress that it will buckle under the BJP’s pressure. Anandiben might be smiling with the cancellation of Kejriwal’s meeting in Surat but AAP will come back strong soon with a massive mobilization and Kejriwal leading the rally. That will be the crushing blow to her corrupt regime. It is just a matter of time.
Lal K Motwani And the name brings up the picture of a multidimensional personality. The name brings to mind a list of prestigious organizations with which Motwani has strong involvement. One starts wondering how come one man can shoulder so many responsibilities simultaneously. This octogenarian is still going strong and takes in a stride all the work that he is expected to do on account of his involvement in so many organizations. To list just a few, he is President, Alliance of Global Sindhi Associations, Inc. and Tri-State NY Coordinator, Global Organization for People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) International, besides a host of other organizations. During 2013-15, he was Chairman, National Federation of Indian American Associations (NFIA)-USA, a colossal organization of scores of associations of Indians.
Kavita and Lal Motwani with PM Atal Behari Vajpayee
Lal Motwani with PM Narendra Modi
Kavita and Lal Motwani with President Bill Clinton
Lal Motwani with Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Lal Motwani and George Abraham with President Abdul Kalam
When I asked him the other day how he managed to spend so much time sitting at his desk and doing so much writing work and then going out to meet people, raise funds, grab sponsorships and take care of publication of a more than 100-page brochure, he looked at me as if I had asked a foolish question and with his usual mischievous smile said it didn’t bother him. “I am used to much harder work”. And it is not just the amount of work that he does which people admire him for. It is the ease with which he does it. It is the perfection that he wants to see in all he does. I have been to many functions he has organized from time to time and have found them well designed and very well executed. One of his specialties is publication of brochure. If I am not mistaken, he may have published more than 60 of them, each of a distinct quality and having a stamp of perfection. I have seen him editing, proof reading and giving personal attention to even printing. I am sure the brochure which Mr. Motwani is publishing on the occasion of the 27th anniversary celebrations of GOPIO will add another feather to his cap. He is truly a leader and an achiever.
This man who has rubbed shoulders with Presidents, Prime Ministers, Senators, Congressmen is simple and humble and has never flaunted his personal relationship with them.
A close knit Motwani family
With a passion for promoting Indian culture and undertaking community service, Lal Motwani has carried on his tireless voluntary work for the past three decades. He was born in 1936 in Sindh, which is now in Pakistan. Motwani moved to Baroda in Gujarat, where he studied and began his professional career in Lucknow. He came to US in 1977 as an Architect from Lucknow, the capital of North India. Through his hard work and dedication he has emerged as one of the leading Indian American Community leaders in the New York metropolitan area. Lal Motwani is a familiar and respected name within the Indian Community as well as in the New York and New Jersey political arena. For the past 35 years, he has established himself as an architect, designer and has been elected to several esteemed positions within the NRI Associations and won many awards. He retired recently as the Assistant Director of New York City’s Housing Authority Office of Facility Planning and Administration.
With his tireless focus in gaining momentum and achieving cordial relations with United State establishments, Motwani got appointed to several prestigious institutions including Advisory Committee of Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Multi Cultural Development Advisory committee in New York. Motwani became the 1st one to organize Diwali Festival and Ramayan Dance-Drama at the prestigious Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York.
Motwani was also part of the initiative to start the Diwali Celebrations in South Sea Port near Wall Street and City Hall to promote India’s heritage, art and culture to mainstream community in the US. Over hundred thousand attend the celebrations, shopping for Indian food, goods, art and watching Diwali fireworks. The event has become an annual cultural exchange tradition in the heart of New York City.
Motwani, a natural-born artist and designer by profession from India has literally been able to leave his “mark” on a number of New York City landmarks. Be it John F Kennedy (JFK) airport, LaGuardia Airport, World Trade Center, American Express, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, City Bank, Chase Manhattan Bank and New York City Housing Authority, the world’s largest public housing facility housing 1/8 of the NYC population.
From Dharma to Karma Lal Motwani excelled in his ability in every walk of life and his crusade was always well supported and applauded by one and all. There are hundreds to mention. His efforts and organizing skills helped to raise over$200,000 for the Heart and Hand for Handicapped and $10,000 for the victims of the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center tragedy, to just give examples.
In every US election Motwani lent his support to candidates who supported Indian-American relations and he raised fund for their elections. His support also helped candidates such as Bobby Jindal to secure a seat in the US House of Representatives and he became the Governor of Louisiana. To promote education and help the needy, Lal Motwani is remembered as a pioneer in establishing scholarship and awards for children of Engineers and Architects.
Motwani is also recognized as the “Ambassador of Dharma” for promoting spirituality and religion among Indians and others, especially during Global Dharma Conference, New York in 2003.
Motwani is the recipient of dozens of awards and honors. He is the first Asian to be awarded the esteemed “Distinguished Service Award; “Manager of the Year 2001” by the New York City Managerial Employees Association.
Lal K. Motwani has always been an outstanding leader and achiever among South Asian migrants in the United States and he always promoted and supported India’s vast wealth of history, culture, education, democracy and cooperation among all. NFIA has been in the forefront of strengthening US-India ties.
As President of NFIA, Motwani organized US Congressional luncheon, White House briefings, lobbying for better US-India relationship and has prepared position papers on this relationship for US Congress and Senate. He has also campaigned against hate crimes against Indians in the United States.
As a president of NFIA, Lai K. Motwani represented 3.2 Million Indo-Americans in the United States. Recently, on June 9, 2012 Lal was awarded “Bharat Gaurav Lifetime Achievement Award” by Sanskriti Yuva Sanstha in New Jersey. It was awarded by Mrs. Mamta Sharma, NCW Chairperson, Govt. of India.
Motwani has served the cause of Indian community through his long and active association with the three most consequential community organizations in the US, of two of which he is also a founding member. National Federation of Indian Associations (NFIA), founded 32 years ago and Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) founded in 1989, and the third, FIA -Federation of Indian’s in America -NY-NJ-CT; known for organizing the annual India day Parade in New York City; the largest event outside India celebrating India’s Independence Day.
In what is another honor for Motwani, he was the coordinator for FIA’s first India Day Parade held in New York City in 1981
Beyond social and cultural barriers, Motwani reaches out to all including the law makers of the two largest democracies of the world, India and the United States. His constant and close relationship with many US lawmakers has helped to generate momentum for India’s voice to be heard on crucial policy decisions leading to progress and safety in the Indian continent.
Motwani through his vast network of social, political and professional relations has helped numerous new immigrants and non-resident Indians in the US to gain access and momentum to reach their dreams. These and other selfless services he provided to the known and unknown became his strength to support and continue serving more when in need.
A powerful motivational force for the community in the last more than 35 years, Motwani’s name is etched out, like his stamp on many monuments and buildings in New York, onmany individuals and organizations. He has lent grace, beauty and strength to them with his mere touch. He is a symbol of India’s heritage and has become forever a part of the history of Indian diaspora in the United States.
As I write this humble introduction to a gigantic personality, I learn he and his wife Kavita, married in 1966, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on May 12.
Here is a man who says he is neither retired nor tired. He is ready to play more innings, which in any case he did play as a cricketer. Play on, Mr. Motwani. The world needs people like you-always determined to lead and achieve.
NEW DELHI (TIP): The one-man panel probing the missing papers pertaining to Ishrat Jahan case affidavits has concluded that the five documents mentioned in the note sheet but not part of the home ministry file were “removed, knowingly or unknowingly, or misplaced” between September 18 and 28, 2009. This was the time when P Chidambaram was home minister.
The panel has, however, not gone into who could have removed or misplaced the papers, leaving it to the home ministry bosses to take a call on further probe to fix responsibility.
A copy of one of the five missing documents-letter written by then home secretary (HS) G K Pillai to the attorney general (AG) on September 18, 2009 -has been retrieved by the panel, comprising additional secretary in the home ministry B K Prasad, from a computer hard disk.
Pillai told TOI that Chidambaram had called then joint secretary (internal secu rity) D Diptivilasa to his office and dictated the revised affidavit, which dropped references to Ishrat’s LeT link and backed a CBI probe into the encounter. It was only after the second affidavit was drafted that it came to Pillai for approval. He subsequently wrote to the AG to vet the affidavit, as approved by the home minister.
Chidambaram maintains Pillai is equally responsible for the revised affidavit.
According to a senior officer, the panel, in its 52-page report submitted to Union home secretary Rajiv Mehrishi, has quoted Diptivilasa, now retired, as saying that when the file came back to him from the home minister and home se cretary in September 2009, the relevant papers were missing.
The four papers still missing are -office copy of the letter sent by the then HS to AG on September 23, 2009; draft further affidavit as vetted by AG; draft further affidavit amended by then home minister on September 24, 2009; and office copy of the further affidavit filed in Gujarat high court on September 29, 2009.
Interestingly , Diptivilasa was the only officer who did not appear before the panel, even though he lives in Noida. He chose to reply to a questionnaire that was sent to him. “All the remaining 10 officers were examined face-toface,” said a senior officer.
Prove you are Indian, ministry tells RTI applicant seeking Ishrat panel details
In a rare instance, the home ministry has asked an RTI applicant to prove he is an Indian before disclosing details about the one-member panel looking into the missing files related to the alleged fake encounter case of Ishrat Jahan. Senior IAS officer B K Prasad, additional secretary in the Home Ministry, heads the inquiry panel. The RTI application was filed with the ministry seeking copies of reports submitted by the panel besides file notings related to extension in service given to Prasad. “In this connection, it is requested that a proof of your Indian citizenship may please be provided,” the MHA said in its reply. As per RTI Act, 2005, only Indian citizens can seek information. Usually, a proof of citizenship is not required to file an application.
AHMEDABAD (TIP): Eleven of 24 people convicted for their participation in the Gulbarg Society massacre were sentenced to life in jail by a special SIT court on Friday.
In addition, one convict was sentenced to 10 years in jail while 12 were given seven years in jail. All 24 were involved in the murder of as many as 69 people, including former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri. The court said all the convicts will serve their sentences concurrently.
“They are not a menace to society, the accused can be reformed,” said the court while delivering the sentence.
Gulbarg Society, a Muslim residential pocket of about 30 bungalows and 10 apartment blocks in Ahmedabad, was attacked a day after the Sabarmati Express train was torched in Godhra. The massacre was committed on February 28, 2002 when Narendra Modi was Gujarat Chief Minister. This case’s trial lasted seven years and was conducted in front of four different judges.
The public prosecutor, representing the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT), had asked the court for nothing less than the death sentence or a jail term till 24 convicts are dead.
The lawyer for the victims, S M Vora, had also sought the maximum punishment for the accused and argued that sentencing for each offence should not run concurrently. That’s so that the convicts spend their entire life in jail, he said.
NEW YORK CITY (TIP): Uplift Humanity, founded in 2010, is an organization that works towards enabling American youth to empower juveniles in India through education. Since UHI’s inception in 2010, they have launched programs at three juvenile rehabilitation centers throughout India: Gujarat, Hyderabad, and the newest in Mumbai. In the past 6 years, Uplift has successfully brought 250 students to India from the United States and contributed approximately 150,000 hours of volunteer work with the demand growing exponentially each year. Uplift’s rapid growth has enabled the organization to educate more than 500 different juveniles and orphans and donate in excess of Rs. 250,000 in scholarships funds to dozens of children who are seeking higher education or vocational studies.
Uplift Humanity, a passion project of Founder Anish Patel, was started when he took a trip to India with his family. Whilst delayed in traffic on the roads of Vadodara, Anish noticed a group of children playing behind the gates of a dilapidated juvenile detention facility. Anish’s curiosity led him to research the treatment of juvenile inmates and orphans in India. He found that many of these children committed crimes out of economic desperation, and would likely never receive the education, or life-skills training necessary to secure a higher standard of living. And thus, Uplift Humanity India was born. Anish believes that through cross-cultural education, the relevant instructional materials, and the right people, we can change the way that education is delivered across institutionalized facilities in India.
The two key platforms that contribute to the success and growth of Uplift Humanity are the organization’s Academic Program and their Annual Summer Program. The academic program is the most crucial element of the on-site work done at juvenile centers year-round, where local educators teach how to read and write in English, and how to use computer technology. The summer rehabilitation program brings students from the United States over to one of the three rehabilitation facilities in India where the volunteers teach orphans and juveniles life skills such as moral decision-making, self-esteem development, anger management, daily etiquette, and public speaking.
In June 2013, Narendra Modi witnessed first-hand the impact of Uplift Humanity’s work with juveniles and orphans in India and invited the team to discuss ways to increase education levels in institutionalized facilities in India. This new partnership allowed Uplift to strengthen their impact in India. With the aid of local and national governments, Uplift Humanity was able to launch in Mumbai.
“Uplift Humanity’s expansion into Mumbai shows our commitment to eradicate juvenile recidivism throughout the Indian subcontinent. We’re so excited to be in Mumbai because it’s such a bustling city with so much potential. What makes Mumbai even more special for our team is that it’s the first location that we’re allowing non-Indians to apply to our programs. Essentially, now any teenager from any demographic can apply to volunteer with our organization” says Founder Anish Patel.
Uplift Humanity has also appointed Hollywood actor, Arjun Gupta as a brand ambassador for the organization. With Gupta’s fan following in hit series such as Showtime’s “Nurse Jackie” and Syfy’s “The Magicians,” Uplift hopes to draw attention of the younger generation for a passion for community service and volunteering with the organization.
“Uplift is a really exciting organization for two reasons: one because their work is directly helping young kids in India get out of a dangerous cycle of recidivism. And secondly, the effect the program has on the young volunteers that travel to India will inform them for the rest of their lives, creating better leaders, more active members of their community, and will continue to help change the world. As an artist, I believe that art is service but often the effects of my work have an indirect effect on change. To be working with an organization that is directly causing change for the better is simply a thrill for me. I am honored to be a part of this organization” says Uplift Humanity Brand Ambassador Arjun Gupta.
Uplift Humanity continues to make huge strides in India and encourages millions to join their journey. They invite volunteers and sponsors to come onboard and help their fight in sending one of 31 million orphans back to school. For more information on Uplift Humanity, please visit: www.uplifthumanityindia.org
About Uplift Humanity Criminals are often created from children who have experienced gross neglect and poverty as children. They fall into the same habits, the same crimes, and the same people their surroundings provide them with. They are victims of recidivism. Uplift Humanity India is a non-profit organization dedicated to the rehabilitation of juvenile inmates in South Asia. Its founding motto epitomizes the method by which it seeks to empower youth through hands-on education, mentoring, and technology training. Uplift Humanity’s goal is to spread its specialized curriculum throughout the continent to give youth opportunities to flourish once they reenter society.
NEW DELHI (TIP): CBI has formed a Special Investigation Team under Gujarat-cadre 1984-batch IPS officer Rakesh Asthana – presently posted as additional director in the agency – to further probe the Rs 3,546-crore VIP chopper scam, Vijay Mallya case and a few other corruption cases.
The development comes even as CBI is preparing to summon some senior IAF and defence ministry officials whose names were mentioned in the bribery note of European middleman Christian Michel. Sources also told TOI that “bank accounts of some of the accused named in the FIR have also been frozen during the probe”.
Asthana had earned the praise of then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi for the probe into serial blasts in Baroda, Surat and Ahmedabad in 2008. He was also associated with the investigations in Sabarmati Express train blast at Godhra in February 2002.
Along with Asthana, officers Ashwini Chand and Sai Manohar of CBI are part of the SIT to expedite the crucial probes. “The SIT has been formed to focus on quickly probing the national and international chapter of these cases as huge amounts are involved,” said an officer.
The development is significant as MoD had shared with CBI details of officials who handled AgustaWestland contract between 2005 and 2013. Some of the officials mentioned in the alleged “bribery” note presently hold important posts in government and constitutional bodies. CBI is in the process of identifying the beneficiaries of bribe money from the Anglo-Italian firm, which was routed to India through a web of companies, and SIT will take it forward, said a source. The alleged note, dictated by Michel and written by another European middleman Guido Haschke, described how “bribe money” of 30 million euros was to be distributed among bureaucrats, politicians and IAF officials. Apart from defence officials, the ED has also started a probe into references made under the heads “BUR” (bureaucrats) and “POL” (politicians) in the note, which is
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