Don’t interfere in Kashmir, stop ‘eyeing’ Punjab: Amarinder Singh warns Pakistan

News Network
November 10, 2019

Gurdaspur, Nov 10: Before he left for Kartarpur on Saturday, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh warned Pakistan against interfering in Kashmir and to stop “eyeing” Punjab, and said it won’t succeed in its “nefarious designs”.

Singh also said he hoped Pakistan would understand that India wants friendly relations with it.

The Punjab chief minister was part of the first batch of over 550 Indian pilgrims that entered Pakistan through the Kartarpur corridor, which was thrown open days ahead of the 550th birth anniversary of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev on November 12.

The corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Punjab’s Gurdaspur.

Singh said he had repeatedly asked Pakistan to desist from its “nefarious” activities.

“In Kashmir, they are taking up cudgels against our forces and now they have an eye on Punjab. I have told them many times to desist from such things, Punjabis will not tolerate such things. You will not succeed in your nefarious designs either in Kashmir or in Punjab.

“Punjabis are brave, we are not wearing bangles that you can do whatever and try to foment trouble,” the Punjab chief minister said.

He was addressing a gathering at Shikhaar Masiahan near here in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who inaugurated the Kartarpur corridor on the Indian side.

Singh said Pakistan should concentrate on development, building schools, improving roads and providing clean drinking water to its people.

He wondered aloud what Pakistan will gain by harbouring enmity.

“I hope that they (Pakistan) understand that our country wants friendship with them. I have spoken to the prime minister (Narendra Modi) many times and he too wishes that peace should prevail and the two nations should come close,” he said.

The chief minister called upon the people to follow the path shown by Guru Nanak Dev.

On the opening of the Kartarpur corridor, Singh said he was blessed and privileged to witness the historic day.

“‘Khulle darshan deedar’ (unhindered access) of Kartarpur Sahib has been a cherished dream of every Sikh and it has become a reality today. I am truly fortunate to have this chance to be a part of the jatha and bow my head in the land of my beloved guru,” he said.

“For the last 70 years, every Sikh used to pray for ‘khulle darshan’. In 1947, when India was partitioned, Punjab was divided into two parts and some of our religious shrines remained there (in Pakistan).

“I have had the opportunity to go to Gurdwara Nankana Sahib twice, but for the first time I will be visiting the gurdwara at Kartarpur Sahib. I really wished that I could go there and today the prime minister has fulfilled my wish. I am thankful to the PM for this. Entire Punjab and the Sikh community are happy,” he said.

Later, in a tweet, Singh dubbed the Kartarpur corridor as a “historic” people-to-people initiative which offered a “glimmer of hope for the two countries”.

The Punjab chief minister also touched upon the stubble burning issue and called on people to protect the environment.

“Our water is getting scarce and experts say if we don’t conserve it, Punjab will turn into a desert in another 25 years. We have to ponder over this. If we think about this today, only then can we save our future and our coming generations,” he said.

Earlier, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) chief Gobind Singh Longowal said the opening of the Kartarpur corridor was a long-pending demand of the Sikh community and the Centre had given it a gift.

Speaking on the occasion, former Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal said opening of the corridor was a matter of great happiness.

He said the area should be developed as the biggest centre of religious tourism.

Badal credited Modi with fulfilling the Sikh community’s demand.

“He (PM Modi) has a special bond with Punjab. Be it any issue of Punjab, religious, economic or political, he tries to find a solution,” he said.

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News Network
February 28,2020

Feb 28: The best economic tonic for the coronavirus shock is to contain its spread and worry about stimulus later, said Raghuram Rajan, former head of the Reserve Bank of India.

There’s little central banks can do, and while more government spending would help, the priority should be on convincing companies and households that the virus is under control, he said.

“People want to have a sense that there is a limit to the spread of this virus perhaps because of containment measures or because there is hope that some kind of viral solution can be found,” Rajan told Bloomberg Television’s Haidi Stroud Watts and Shery Ahn.

“At this point I would say the best thing that governments can do is to really fight the epidemic rather than worry about stimulus measures that comes later,” said Rajan, who is currently a professor at the Chicago Booth School of Business.

The spread of coronavirus is pushing the world economy toward its worst performance since the financial crisis more than a decade ago.

Bank of America Corp. economists warned clients Thursday that they now expect 2.8% global growth this year, the weakest since 2009.

“We have moved from extreme confidence in markets to extreme panic, all in the space of one week,” said Rajan, who previously was chief economist at the International Monetary Fund.

The virus outbreak will force companies to rethink supply chains and overseas production facilities, he said.

“I think we will see a lot of rethinking on this, coming on the back of the trade disruption, now we have this,” Rajan said. “Globalization in production is going to be hit quite badly.”

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News Network
June 27,2020

New Delhi, Jun 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that India fared much better compared to some other countries in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The PM made this observation while delivering the inaugural address to mark the 90th birth anniversary celebrations of Reverend Dr Joseph Mar Thoma Metropolitan.

"Earlier this year, some people had predicted that the impact of the virus in India would be very severe. Due to lockdown, many initiatives have been taken by the Government and in this people-driven fight, India is much better placed than many other nations. India's recovery rate is rising," Modi said in his virtual address.

He further warned that the time was not apt to "let our guard down".

The prime minister greeted the Mar Thoma Metropolitan and wished him a "long life and best health."

"Dr Joseph Mar Thoma has devoted his life for the betterment of our society and nation. He has been particularly passionate about the removal of poverty and women empowerment," the prime minister said.

Praising the Mar Thoma Church for its contributions to the country the Prime Minister added that it has worked to bring a positive difference in the lives of people in the country in areas of healthcare and education.

"The Mar Thoma Church is closely linked with the noble ideals of Saint Thomas, the Apostle of Lord Christ. India has always been open to spiritual influences from many sources. It is with this spirit of humility that the Mar Thoma Church has worked to bring a positive difference in the lives of our fellow Indians," Modi said.

Followers of the Mar Thoma Church from India and abroad participated in the programme through video conference.

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News Network
February 14,2020

London, Feb 14: Liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya once again asked the Indian banks to take back 100 per cent of the principal amount owed to them at the end of his three-day British High Court appeal on Thursday against an extradition order to India.

The 64-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss, wanted in India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to an alleged Rs 9,000 crores in unpaid bank loans, said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are fighting over the same assets and not treating him reasonably in the process.

“I request the banks with folded hands, take 100 per cent of your principal back, immediately,” he said outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

“The Enforcement Directorate attached the assets on the complaint by the banks that I was not paying them. I have not committed any offenses under the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) that the Enforcement Directorate should suo moto attach my assets," he said.

"I am saying, please banks take your money. The ED is saying no, we have a claim over these assets. So, the ED on the one side and the banks on the other are fighting over the same assets,” he added.

Asked about heading back to India, he noted: “I should be where my family is, where my interests are.

"If the CBI and the ED are going to be reasonable, it’s a different story. What all they are doing to me for the last four years is totally unreasonable.”

Lord Justice Stephen Irwin and Justice Elisabeth Laing, the two-member bench presiding over the appeal, concluded hearing the arguments in the case and said they will be handing down their verdict at a later date after considering the oral as well as written submissions in the “very dense” case over the next few weeks.

On a day of heated arguments between Mallya’s barrister, Clare Montgomery, and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) counsel Mark Summers, arguing on behalf of the Indian government, both sides clashed over the prima facie case of fraud and deception against Mallya.

“We submit that he lied to get the loans, then did something with the money he wasn’t supposed to and then refused to give back the money. All this could be perceived by a jury as patently dishonest conduct,” said Summers.

“What they [Kingfisher Airlines] were saying [to the banks] about profitability going forward was knowingly wrong,” he said, as he took the High Court through evidence to counter Mallya’s lawyers’ claims that Westminster Magistrates Court Judge Emma Arbuthnot had fallen into error when she found a case to answer in the Indian courts against Mallya.

Mallya, who remains on bail on an extradition warrant, is not required to attend the hearings but has been in court to observe the proceedings since the three-day appeal opened on Tuesday. A key defence to disprove a prima facie case of fraud and misrepresentation on his part has revolved around the fact that Kingfisher Airlines was the victim of economic misfortune alongside other Indian airlines.

However, the CPS has argued that “there is enough in the 32,000 pages of overall evidence to fulfil the [extradition] treaty obligations that there is a case to answer”. “There is not just a prima facie case but overwhelming evidence of dishonesty… and given the volume and depth of evidence the District Judge [Arbuthnot] had before her, the judgment is comprehensive and detailed with the odd error but nothing that impacts the prima facie case,” said Summers.

At the start of the appeal, Mallya’s counsel claimed Arbuthnot did not look at all of the evidence because if she had, she would not have fallen into the multiple errors that permeate her judgment. The High Court must establish if the magistrates’ court had in fact fallen short on a point of law in its verdict in favour of extradition.

Representatives from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), as well as the Indian High Commission in London, have been present in court to take notes during the course of the appeal hearing.

Mallya had received permission to appeal against his extradition order signed off by former UK home secretary Sajid Javid last February only on one ground, which challenges the Indian government's prima facie case against him of fraudulent intentions in acquiring bank loans.

At the end of a year-long extradition trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London in December 2018, Judge Arbuthnot had found “clear evidence of dispersal and misapplication of the loan funds” and accepted a prima facie case of fraud and a conspiracy to launder money against Mallya, as presented by the CPS on behalf of the Indian government.

Mallya remains on bail since his arrest on an extradition warrant in April 2017 involving a bond worth 650,000 pounds and other restrictions on his travel while he contests that ruling.

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