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Friday, April 23, 2010

Tehelka column on The Indian Premier Leak

 
A movie will probably be made out of this juicy story,
it sounds like the Indian soaps of continuous revenging...
 
If you embarrass an imbecile with one small comment,  
his life mission becomes an eternal combat to pull the other guy down. 
 
This is the first "rumor-gossip-novely" story I have read in nearly
15 years. However, I must admire the writer that he has "apparently"
put the facts together without accusing or blaming any one, but just
pointing out who has done what... it runs more like a fact finding report
as a reader, I did not feel ridiculing any one, or biased towards any one, but sorry for all.
 
Mike Ghouse
 
 
 

The Indian Premier Leak

April 24, 2010

THE IPL ISN'T ABOUT CRICKET. IT'S ABOUT BIG MONEY, POLITICS, SEX AND DRUGS. SHANTANU GUHA RAY ON THE MURKY CANVAS OF THE THAROOR-MODI SPAT

IT'S THE open secret no one wants to acknowledge: the IPL is not about cricket. The ugly controversy surrounding Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor and IPL chief Lalit Modi — over Tharoor's friend Sunanda Pushkar owning 4.9 percent free sweat equity in the Kochi team that Tharoor helped put together — is merely a warning sign pointing to a much deeper dirt pit that comprises in equal parts big money, politics, glamour, greed, sex, drugs and intense backroom jostling.

The reason the Tharoor-Pushkar controversy snowballed at the speed it did is less to do with the facts of the case than this unsavoury combination that underpins everything to do with the IPL these days. Unfortunately, much of the news about these seamy dealings is still merely in the realm of gossip and speculation: murmurs in a baroque gossip bazaar. Yet, recounting these murmurs is enough to outline the shape of things. After all, remember, the murmurs are all emanating from insiders. But to put things in perspective, first the primary question: What are the facts of the Tharoor- Pushkar case? With the IPL announcing that it would invite two new franchises to join the league, a few months ago Tharoor actively began to promote the idea of a Kochi team and helped cobble together a consortium of investors — Rendezvous Sports World — to sponsor the team. As a cricket enthusiast and MP from Kerala, Tharoor was presumably motivated by his zeal to bring home turf Kerala into the lucrative circle of the IPL. Ordinarily, the fact that a female real estate professional close to him was given 4.9 percent free equity in the team would have raised absolutely no eyebrows. After all, prima facie, there was no allegation of any money transaction or public funds being misused, nor had Tharoor extended any ministerial favours for the franchise. So why the disproportionate stink?

Why did the Tharoor fracas threaten to disrupt Parliament? Why did news of it reach Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in far away Washington and overshadow his talks with President Obama on Afghanistan and the Nuclear Liability Bill? Why did Tharoor have to spend two-anda- half hours on Thursday morning, April 15, with one of the Capital's top corporate lobbyists and troubleshooters (who works for one of the richest men in the world) seeking help? After all, as one of the protagonists said, "It's common knowledge that other politicians running across aviation, agriculture road transport and the Opposition, are minting money and have undeclared stakes in every cricket pie. Why has there been no uproar about all that?"

The answer is, wittingly or unwittingly, Tharoor had disturbed equations in the dirt pit. Rumours are, when the Kochi team won the bid, many carefully laid plans by others were laid to waste. To understand this, for a moment, return to the facts: the other stakeholders jostling for a franchise were the Sahara Group, owned by Subrata Roy; the Pune team sponsored by Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor and relatively lesser-known businessmen; and an Ahmedabad team sponsored by the Adani Group, one of India's top infrastructure companies.

Subrata Roy, of course, outplayed everyone by making an astronomical bid of $370 million, prompted by his numerologist. Pune was out of the running. That left Kochi and Gujarat running neck and neck.

So what made Lalit Modi suddenly twitter innocuously last weekend about Sunanda Pushkar and how Tharoor had allegedly asked him not to inquire into who she was — the kindle that lit the fire stack? It's common knowledge that Modi and Tharoor are friends, so why this sudden and ugly fall out? (Friends of Tharoor say that Modi is misusing a bantering remark the minister had made to him over a drink. Tharoor is, indeed, set to marry Pushkar but is waiting for a divorce from his Canadian wife Christa Giles to come through and, therefore, has been loath to make his relationship public. This is why when Modi asked him in a nudge-nudge sort of way, "So, who is Sunanda Pushkar?" Tharoor had laughingly evaded the question saying, 'Don't ask me that as yet.' So what made Modi turn that into something sinister?)

The answers lie muddied in the pit and snake back to earlier events. When Lalit Modi lost the elections to the Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA), he not only lost a fiefdom, he lost much-needed immunity. With a Congress government replacing the BJP in the saddle, his political patronage was blown and more than 20 cases were opened against him, relating to tax evasion and financial irregularities when he was at the helm of the RCA. He desperately needed new armour, and a firm foot back in the Board for Control of Cricket in India (BCCI). The rumour mills say that Lalit Modi had approached Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and was assured by the latter that if he could ensure that the Gujarat team wins the franchise and brings both glamour and money to the state, he'd be made the secretary of the Gujarat Cricket Association (of which the chief minister is the president).

At first, Modi tried hard to make friend Tharoor back off so that the Adani bid could be more competitive. He even tried to mislead the Kochi group by telling them that all they needed to win the race was $299 million. The consortium, however, was reportedly alerted by former Indian skippers Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri that Modi was actually seeking $322 million. The Kochi team was also told that they would face many technical hurdles to block them from winning the bid.

But instead of backing off, the Tharoor- mentored Kochi consortium bid an astronomical Rs 1,500 crore and won the franchise. Powerful men — potential investors and politicians — across the country flew into a tizzy. Allegations began to fly fast and thick. The Kochi consortium alleges that Modi offered them a $50 million bribe to abandon their bid after they had won the Kochi franchise. They refused. The desperation in different quarters soared.

The rumour goes too that, at one point, Modi made an urgent call to Tharoor saying things had gone beyond him and if Tharoor didn't back off, Modi's life would be in danger. But Modi was not the only angry man. Rumour also has it that Tharoor finds himself politically isolated for other reasons.

Such is the jostling for stakes in the IPL money-glamour-influence pie, a very senior UPA cabinet minister from Maharashtra and a former classmate of Tharoor's, had called the latter asking him to get Rendezvous Sports to offload its stakes in favour of an owner of a Maharashtra- based white goods giant. (In a serpentine twist, this businessman had apparently first paid Modi money for a chance to invest in the Ahmedabad team. When that franchise bid was foiled, he wanted to invest in the Kochi team.) However, apparently driven by some sense of chivalry to the original consortium, Tharoor refused.

Soon after, a senior functionary of the BCCI sent Tharoor a similar message in favour of the corporate giant. Tharoor again declined. He had just made himself another enemy within the world's richest cricket board.

The further irony is that, according to highly reliable sources in the cricketing management fraternity, the 4.9 percent free sweat equity Sunanda Pushkar is being pilloried for does not even belong to her. A mere .5 percent is reserved for Pushkar. Disturbingly, the rest belongs — off paper and on trust — to two iconic cricketing giants, one of who is still playing for the Mumbai IPL team. This free equity is the quid pro quo they demanded for helping put the Kochi team and its promoters together — not a rank corruption perhaps in the larger scheme of things, but certainly an impropriety.

One has a greater sense of the fantastical world of the IPL and what passes for right and wrong when you take into account the fact that Tharoor is probably right in saying the equity will not benefit him and is commensurate with what Pushkar was bringing to the table as a highly attractive and successful marketing professional. Yet, he is caught in a twilight zone where he is honourbound and cannot entirely disclose why he is saying this. (This might be why small white lies seem to be sprouting around them. Pushkar claimed in a written statement to the media that she had been approached by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to assist them as a marketing consultant. While it seems true that top-line event management professional Karim Murani associated with KKR is a friend of hers, KKR co-owners Shah Rukh Khan and Jay Mehta, actor Juhi Chawla's husband, have denied the claim outright.)

BUT MONEY, influence and ambition are only one set of ingredients in the IPL dirt pit. Each match is accompanied by a swirling constellation of late-night parties and beautiful women that moves with it across cities. Drugs and sex, then, seem to be another equally potent mix driving rivalries and events in the world of IPL.

Back to murmurs in the rumour bazaar then. It appears a thwarted franchise bid is not the only reason Lalit Modi set out to discredit the Kochi team in the hope that he could have it disqualified. He has other personal reasons for declaring war on Tharoor.

Sources in the rumour business say that the night before Tharoor met the city's most influential troubleshooter, he and his Man Friday, Jacob Joseph, had put together what they claimed were documents that would sully Modi's reputation. A few days earlier, newspapers had carried front-page stories linking a beautiful South African model, Gabriella Demetriades, with Modi. It seems Modi no longer wanted the association and had requested Tharoor's office, as Minister of State for External Affairs, to deny Gabriella a visa. Piqued by the backroom pressure and anxiety Modi had been visiting on his boss and the Kochi team, Tharoor's aide Jacob Joseph refused to entertain the request and not only expedited the visa but apparently taunted Modi's aides about it. The story goes that when Modi found out, he called Tharoor in a rage at night and slammed the phone down, vowing vendetta.

Modi has consistently told the media that he does not know Gabriella and has nothing to do with her. Unfortunately for him, however, he seems to have left an e-mail trail when he wrote to Joseph for help about denying the visa. These mails contravene his claim about not knowing Gabriella because in his hurry to shunt her off, he apparently forgot to delete his chain-mail exchanges with her. "In the mail to her, Modi clearly tells Gabriella that he will handle the visa and that there should be no problems. So why did he change his mind? Is there a fear that Gabriella would spill some beans he would not be able to handle?" says a senior BCCI functionary, who is aghast at the Modi-Tharoor row and the way it has blown craters in the reputation of a tournament that, till recently, was being touted as the world's fastest growing sports show.

There are other pieces in the counter-campaign being prepared against Lalit Modi. Among them is the assertion that Modi was not only booked for drug abuse in college but is involved in a court case for cocaine abuse as recently as 2006 in the UAE.

The April 15 meeting with Delhi's top corporate troubleshooter also seems to have paid other dividends for Tharoor. Support has started pouring in from many quarters. The office of Subhash Chandra Goel, Chairmain Zee Telefilms, for instance, has offered clinching evidence of Modi's involvement in a lottery scandal in India's northeastern states for which a court case has been going on for years. (It's in keeping with the dirt pit that Goel has, of course, been at loggerheads with Modi ever since his Indian Cricket League (ICL) was scuttled by Modi and his IPL with the backing of the BCCI, even though the ICL had been first off the block.)

"It's become a free for all," BCCI top man Shashank Manohar told TEHELKA in disgust over a brief telephonic conversation. "The IPL is now becoming the dirty underbelly of Indian cricket." Manohar — who has been named as IPL co-chairman — insisted every issue would be discussed and debated at the BCCI-IPL sub-committee meeting scheduled next week and asserted that he would happy if all franchisees opened up their stakes for review in a transparent manner.

As this story went to press, in fact, news began to trickle in that the Income Tax department had launched a raid on the IPL headquarters in Mumbai.

This would probably be worrying news for almost everyone involved in the IPL. To open up everyone's stakes is equivalent to yanking the lid off a can of worms. In the grimy mess that would ensue, Sunanda Pushkar's 4.9 percent would probably look like a child's playtime snack.

Sources in the Intelligence Bureau (IB) say that when one of the richest men in the country says he owns a team through personal wealth, it is something of a lie. The stakes have apparently been bought through his company with shareholders' money, which makes the Rs 43 crore his team lost last season an unlisted liability for public shareholders.

But as the cliché goes, this is merely the tip. There are also rumours that a key protagonist and IPL official has holdings not just in Rajasthan Royals, but also in Kings XI Punjab and KKR. IB officials add that this functionary also has a stake in a media company associated with the IPL and owned by a relative.

There are other lateral movements afoot — unfortunately motivated more by a need for secure pastures it seems, than a consideration for the game. KKR skipper Saurav Ganguly, for instance, has apparently approached fellow Bengali Subrata Roy for possible absorption in the Sahara Team. A top KKR official says Ganguly has also advised many of his fellow players to jump ship. The rumour mills say Yuvraj Singh has also sent a similar message to the Sahara chairman.

But these are relatively minor moves. The bazaar gossip says the editor of a major media house, whose son had recently come under the radar of corporate intelligence bodies, is also trying to get into the IPL franchise racket.

In the middle of all this, a third angle is brewing silently that threatens to queer things for those batting themselves sixers through the IPL. This involves the former BCCI and ICC president, Jagmohan Dalmiya, who has been camping in Delhi for the last few days.

Dalmiya, totally sidelined within the BCCI and left watching the IPL circus from the wings, is now determined to force the IPL to share its profits with the state cricket associations — thereby divvying up the money pie. Currently, IPL — which earns more than Rs 700 crore a year — pays a pittance of Rs 4 crore to each state association. Dalmiya wants to raise that to around Rs 30-40 crore. He has enlisted several politicians cutting across party lines in this campaign. By getting the state cricket associations to back him, the wily gamester could get a chance to reinsert himself into the big game.

The pity is nothing it seems is above board with the IPL anymore. Even spectators have a scam going on. Last month, Income Tax officials were alerted across the country to find out whether IPL officials were fudging tickets and avoiding tax. Their findings were in the affirmative. In a demeaning instance of 'you scratch my back, I scratch yours', it appears corporates were buying loads of lower denomination tickets yet accessing box seats that come with complimentary liquor and food. This was helping IPL organisers to avoid paying entertainment tax.

With the IPL having stooped so low, it might really be time to blow the whistle officially. The irony is that this must have been the last thing on Lalit Modi's mind when he tweeted about Shashi Tharoor and Sunanda Pushkar last weekend. But his tweet has indeed become a whistle.

WRITER'S EMAIL:
shantanu@tehelka.com

From Tehelka Magazine, Vol 7, Issue 16, Dated April 24, 2010

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Narendra Modi: Travails of Travel Abroad

Narendra Modi: Travails of Travel Abroad
Ram Puniyani

While law of the land is trying to catch up with the acts of commission and omission in the Gujarat carnage, another set of laws, the global ones have been very clear about permitting the entry of a person like Narendra Modi into their country.

Recently (April 8, 2010), a group of German MPs justified the denial of visa to Modi. They advocated a ban on his visiting Europe. This parliamentary delegation was on a two day visit to the city of Ahmedabad to study the state of minorities in Gujarat. It concluded that the European Union (EU) decision not to grant visa to him was justified. They went to the extent of banning his trip to Europe in near future. They pointed out that “the Chief Minister of Gujarat has a radical tone to his politics and is described as dictatorial. He has a wrong perception of religious freedom.” This four member team has been closely following developments in the Gujarat riot cases.

One member of delegation pointed out that he was shocked by parallels between Germany under Hitler and Gujarat under Modi. Incidentally in Gujarat school books Hitler has been glorified as a great nationalist. Modi, in response to this has written to Prime Minister to seek apology from the German delegation for tarnishing the image of democratically elected head of state. The Congress Government endorsed Modi’s view and clarified that the EU had put a ban on Modi’s visit in the aftermath of Gujarat carnage but that has been withdrawn. Also that it was not an official delegation. Whatever that be, the opinion of the members of the delegation does reflect a deeper truth of our political phenomenon.


That apart, this is not the first time that such a thing has happened. Modi was earlier denied visa to US. On March 18, 2005 in a severe rebuke to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, the United States denied him entry to America. US Consular division had taken a strong stand against Modi, the Hindutva icon. They denied him diplomatic visa apparently holding him responsible for communal carnage of 2002. In addition, his tourist/business visa which was already granted was revoked under a section of US Immigration and Nationality Act since he was not coming for a purpose that qualifies for a diplomatic visa. In response to the query that he was already holding a tourist-cum-business visa, the Consulate pointed out that the "existing tourist/business visa has been revoked under Section 212 (a) (2) (g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act." According this section any foreign government official who was responsible or "directly carried out, at any time, particularly severe violations of religions freedom" is denied the visa. The decision of US authorities was based on the observations of India's National Human Rights Commission findings and other independent Indian sources. The observation of German delegation raises one additional major point about the state of Gujarat being similar to that of Germany under Hitler. Who will know it better than Germans who have suffered the political tragedy of fascism for bad many years? Modi’s point that he is an elected person again matches so well with Hitler. One recalls, Hitler came to power through democratic means and then he gradually eroded liberal-democratic norms from inside to bring in worst type of fascist state. The parallels are unmistakable. There are some differences from German fascism here but all the same the basic phenomenon is the same. Fascism is a politics where the liberal democratic space is abolished in the name of targeting some section of society for the supposed cause of National interest. In case of Germany the process was accompanied by a cultural paradigm shift and political aggression against communists, then trade unionists and then the Jews. Millions of Jews were subjected to the gas chambers, one of the greatest tragedies of the human history of twentieth century.

The politics of Hitler, and his clone Mussolini was praised by M.S. Golwalkar the ideologue of RSS, the organization where Modi has been indoctrinated and trained. Golwalkar’s formulations of aggressive nationalism and relegating minorities to second-class citizenship are being actualized by Modi and company in different ways.

While the similarities with German case are so glaring, there are some differences as well. The German fascism began to take social roots after the economic crisis generated in the aftermath of First World War. The cultural offensive in the field of arts, music, literature and the ‘glorification of ancient past’ picked up rapidly. In one of the major assaults on democracy, the fire at Reichstag was attributed to having been done by Communists, and physical violence was unleashed against them. Analogies with Godhra train burning are unmistakable.

Here the ascendance of Modi comes on the background of the economic crisis of the decade of 1980s, the adverse effects of globalization picking up, the loss of jobs of the downtrodden due to closure of textile mills, the attacks on the dalits OBCs in the name of anti reservation riots. The cultural manipulation began with Ram Temple movement, and spreading of hate against minorities, Muslims first and then the Christians, who by now have been relegated to second class citizenship in Gujarat and some other states and the trend in other states is going in that direction.

While in Germany whole of the Nation came under the grip of fascism, the saving grace in India is that the electoral face of ‘Indian fascism’, BJP, has not been able to come to absolute majority in the center by itself. That’s not to say that fascism is not marching. In Germany the defeat of Germany in Second World War led to the collapse of the nation along with the edifice of fascism with the fascist-in-chief committing suicide. In India here it has gripped Gujarat in full, while in other states like Karnataka, Orissa, MP its presence is getting strengthened by and by. At national level though BJP might have faced two electoral debacles, the infiltration of fascist ideology through the pores of Indian democracy is going on in various ways. The phenomenon is creeping slowly though section of media, communalization of education, and infiltration of the followers of this ideology in different section of state. The gradual attempt to erode the liberal and plural values is a dangerous portent for democracy. Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit’s alleged involvement in Malegon blast may just be the tip of the iceberg. The judicial pronouncements that ‘Gita should be our national book’ are also reflective of the same phenomenon.

Indian fascism is a slow growing one, capturing different aspects of society one by one. It is not for nothing that Modi is the darling of big capitalists, who stand to gain maximum from the fascist type set ups. One can label Indian phenomenon as a chronic fascism, going in a step ladder pattern. Those of us relived because of electoral debacles of BJP at center need to wake up and realize that fascism is marching, irrespective of BJP’s electoral debacle in last two general elections.

The incidental observation from German delegates report is that since Germany went through such a painful period of history, many Germans realize and can sense the symptoms of fascism so easily. Same applies to many Japanese joining anti-Nuke protests and campaigns against Nuclear weapons. Who knows better than them as to what a nuclear weapon can do to the society?

So while here in India the justice to Modi ilk is elusive, globally there are norms which do recognize the nature of incidents happening here, the politics which abuses religious identity to come to power is in essence a variant of fascism whatever be its other characteristics.

--
Issues in Secular Politics
II April 2010
www.pluralindia.com
Response only to ram.puniyani@gmail.com

Friday, April 16, 2010

Dallas Indians - Friday, April 16, 2010

http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2010/04/dallas-indians-friday-april-16-2010.html

Several articles have been shared for posting and I am glad every one is adding the links.

If you get a chance read, whether you like it or not, express the reason for it and mostly certainly offer an acceptable solution to the common sense.

1. 1000 year old Hindu Temple Uncovered - Photos
2. Maligning Modi
3. Splendour of Chulukyas - Photos
4. Hyderabad communal riots
5. Maoists Forced Into Violence: Arundhati Roy

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Ancient Temple Uncovered - 1000 years old.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_1-3IC6X34&feature=related

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Maligning Modi
http://www.dailypioneer.com/248891/Maligning-Modi.html

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Badami, Karnataka - Splendor of Chalukyas
Check out these beautiful photos
http://picasaweb.google.com/karnataka.explored/Badami?feat=directlink

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Hyderabad communal riots: 272 arrested, 170 cases registered
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Hyderabad-communal-riots-272-arrested-170-cases-registered-/articleshow/5785416.cms

Case booked against VHP leader
http://www.thehindu.com/2010/04/04/stories/2010040462700500.htm

Who was behind Hyderabad riots? Many rumors, no answer

http://www.twocircles.net/2010mar31/who_was_behind_hyderabad_riots_many_rumours_no_answer.html

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Maoists Forced Into Violence: Arundhati Roy
By Arundhati Roy Interiviewed By Sagarika Ghose

http://www.countercurrents.org/roy160410.htm

[[[[[(0)]]]]]

You can write you comments here: Link

Friday, April 9, 2010

NYC Sikhs protest appearance of Indian minister they blame for Sikh Massa...

 

Justice is the most important element of a society, indeed peace and prosperity are the outcomes of justice in any given society.

 

We have to learn to see things in terms of human lives and not color them with ethnicity, religion, race,  language or culture. We have to learn to see every Indian as Indian, and loss of one life should be treated as though it is the loss of everyone in the kutumbukum (Universe of Family). When someone is murdered, a group is massacred or the weak is oppressed, we all have to stand up together. Each one of us must do our part without keeping score on others.

 

The Sikh Massacres in Delhi, the purging of the Pandits from Kashmir, Burning of Godhra train, massacre of Muslims in Gujarat and the harassment of Christians in Orissa  in Independent India must be treated in terms of a few bad Indians against the innocent many. We should see the long-term value in not blaming the victims, not to blame Christians, Muslims, Hindus or other, but blame the individuals behind it for the sake of creating good societies. By placing the blame on the culprits and instigators, we can restore justice and faith in governance, if we blame the religion, nothing happens as you cannot hang the religion, you cannot bury the religion or kill it; for God's sake it is intangible. No religion instigates one to do wrong and WE SHOULD NOT VALIDATE THE CLAIMS TO BLAME GROUPS OR RELIGIONS for the acts of the individuals as it does not produce any good.

 

The Holocaust and Genocides event that we held in January this year (www.HolocaustandGenocides.com) mentioned these atrocities relating to independent India along with all other atrocities. I am glad the Pain the Sikh community is being addressed now.

 

Here are two pieces shared by the South Asian Journalists Association and Khalid Azam, both are published stories.

 

What are your solutions – without blaming any group or religion?

 

Mike Ghouse is a frequent guest at the media offering pluralistic solutions to issues of the day. He is a thinker, writer, speaker, optimist and an activist of Pluralism, Interfaith, Co-existence, Peace, Islam,  India and Civil Societies. His work is reflected at 3 websites & 22 Blogs listed at http://www.mikeghouse.net/

# # #

 

NYC Sikhs protest appearance of Indian minister they blame for Sikh Massacre
http://www.wpix.com/news/nationworld/sns-ap-us-nath-sikh-protest,0,4301760.story

 

 MEGAN K. SCOTT
 Associated Press Writer

> April 8 2010, 10:27 AM EDT
>
> NEW YORK (AP) — Several dozen Sikhs on Thursday protested a 
> speech by an Indian minister who they say instigated mob riots in 
> their country in 1984 that left more than 3,000 dead, most of them 
> Sikhs.

84 riots: US court summons Kamal

http://epaper. timesofindia. com/Default/ Scripting/ ArticleWin.asp? From=Archive& Source=Page&Skin=TOINEW& BaseHref=TOIM/ 2010/04/08& PageLabel=21&EntityId=Ar02100& ViewMode=HTML&GZ=T

New York: A US federal district court has summoned road transport and highways minister Kamal Nath for his alleged role in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots based on a case filed by a Sikh outfit.

     In the civil case filed under the Alien Torts Claims Act, the petitioners sought compensatory and punitive damages for several allegations, including crimes against humanity, degrading treatment and wrongful killing. 

     Nath, who is incidentally here on a visit, said he was â€Å“surprised and appalled’’ as the case has been filed 25 years after the anti-Sikh riots in India.

    I really have no clue about it. I don’t have a basis and I don’t know the authenticity. I don’t know the validity. It was for the first time that I saw it,’’ Nath said. He has been served a notice and has to respond within 21 days, failing which the court will give a default judgment on the matter.


    Ã¢€Å“A piece of paper was given to me. I will have to see what the piece of paper is all about,’’ he said. Nath stressed that he had never been charged in any court. â€Å“Nobody has ever charged me in India. But if the US charges me 25 years later for something that has happened in India... well it just reflects on the authenticity,’’ he said.


    For the last 25 years I wasn't involved...suddenly in 2010 I get involved...There was nobody who stood up and said that he was a victim or that I was in any way connected. So I’m surprised and appalled.’’

    The case was filed by two Sikhs, Jasbir Singh and Mahinder Singh, on behalf of New York-based organisation Sikhs for Justice.

    Their attorney Gurpatwant Pannun claimed Jasbir lost 24 members of his family and Mahinder, who was two years-old then, lost his father.

    In India it is impossible to hold human rights violators,’’ Pannun said. The Sikh group said that they are acting now because they have given up hope for action to be taken in India. â€Å“We waited for all these years because commissions were being set up...there was hope but because of his position Kamal Nath has successfully avoided justice for 25 years,  said Pannun.  AGENCIES

 

Thursday, April 8, 2010

India offers US $600 bn investment opp in infrastructure

Purnima,
Thanks for the updates, I am pleased to share this with my fellow Indians, we have a US India Chamber of commerce in Dallas as well.

Mike Ghouse

India Offers US $600 Billion investment opp in infrastructure
PTI - New Delhi, April 06, 2010

India on Tuesday asked US investors to participate in its $600 billion infrastructure programme in the next five years, even as America sought greater financial cooperation for bringing about global economic stability.

"Deepening our ties with India is critical to the broader global effort to develop a framework for strong... And balanced growth and will facilitate more trade, investment and job creation in our two countries," US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said after meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

Geithner's two-day visit, his first as Treasury Secretary, comes ahead of Manmohan Singh's visit to the US from Sunday for a nuclear security summit. Singh is likely to meet US President Barack Obama, who had earlier described India as an "indispensable partner in securing the future prosperity and security of the world."

Addressing a joint press conference to announce the launch of the India-US Financial and Economic Partnership, Mukherjee said: "Immense opportunities are there for investment in the infrastructure sector. As much as $600 billion can be invested in port, communications, road... In the next five years."

The India-US Financial and Economic Partnership would help strengthen bilateral engagement and understanding on macro-economic financial sector and infrastructure related issues.

Geithner said that such a cooperation would be critical for a stable global financial system, more balanced global economic growth "that is less dependent on the willingness of Americans to live beyond our means... And a more open global trading system."

The US Treasury Secretary, who had spent five years of his childhood in Delhi's posh New Friend's Colony, said: "India has navigated the financial crisis with a steady hand and has emerged from the global recession stronger and faster than most other large economies."

He appreciated India's commitment on policy reforms and said: "During our discussions the Minister (Mukherjee) and his colleagues outlined the opportunity and challenges ahead for the Indian economy and the policy reforms they are undertaking to raise the rate of overall economic growth..."

Mukherjee said: "The discussion held today focused on global development with a special emphasis on US and Indian economies including monetary and fiscal policies, financial sector regulations and managing capital flow, infrastructure finance and Public Private Partnership (PPP)."

Geithner also held discussions with Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

If interested in India Infrastructure opportunities, please contact National US INDIA CHAMBER of Commerce- THE RIGHT PASSAGE TO INDIA!

Purnima Voria, Founder/CEO
National US India Chamber of Commerce (NUICC)

www.nuicc.org

Knowledge is Power - AND PROFIT