Kerala minister KB Ganesh Kumar quits after wife alleges domestic violence

April 2, 2013

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 2: Kerala's Forest Minister K B Ganesh Kumar handed over his resignation to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy late on Monday night after his estranged wife accused him of ill-treatment.ganes

Forty-six-year old film star-turned-politician was accompanied by his friend and State Labour Minister Shibu Baby John and other friends from the film industry including ace director Shaji Kailas and producer Suresh Kumar at the chief minister's official residence.

Though earlier in the evening he refused to resign, K.B.Ganesh Kumar was forced to change his mind after his estranged wife Yamini Thankachi, a medical professional, complained about his ill treatment of her in written to Chandy.

Chandy accepted the letter and asked her to approach the nearest police station.

The chief minister then called the director general of police, K.S.Balasubramanion, and his senior cabinet colleagues and held closed door discussions.

Speaking to reporters Chandy said that Kumar's wife had come with a written complaint against the minister. "I called the DGP and handed over the complaint. In the morning Kumar had also registered a complaint at the police station.

"And now in the light of this he has decided to resign and his resignation will be sent to the governor tomorrow," he said.

Kumar, in the presence of Chandy, said he was stepping down to keep the high moral standards."For an impartial inquiry into the allegations that have been levelled, it's improper for me to continue as a minister and hence I have stepped down."

Earlier in the day, Thankachi accused Chandy of "cheating" her by not accepting her complaint of domestic violence by her husband who was now moving to divorce her.

She claimed to have been assured by Chandy for his intervention to solve the matter amicably. But hours later Kumar filed for divorce, alleging harassment including physical torture, by his doctor wife Thankachy.

"I had a complaint with me but the CM did not accept it and told me that he will intervene and bring an amicable settlement.

Chandy dismissed the charge

"The last date according to the agreement was yesterday (Sunday) and I spoke to the CM yesterday (Sunday) also but today (Monday) I hear that the minister has filed a divorce petition. I was cheated by the CM," said Thankachi.

"I have been facing the brutal physical assault against me by the minister for the past 16 years and everyone in his family (including his father and former minister R.Balakrishna Pillai) is well aware of my sufferings.

"I placed a lot of hope on the CM but he too cheated me," she added.

Earlier in the day, Kumar refused to resign in the wake of the allegations and accused her of demanding Rs.75 lakh to be deposited in her name.

Reacting to Thankachi's allegations, Chandy admitted having assured her of his intervention to solve the dispute. "She had not given me any written complaint."

"I did my best to intervene to solve their issues and in the first round, I succeeded. The agreement was made out but it failed in the implementation part. I feel she is being prompted by some external forces," he said.

Meanwhile, the opposition Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) accused Chandy of misleading the assembly and demanded his resignation.

"If a minister's wife is not able to get her issues sorted out in a domestic violence case and Chandy totally hid this from the assembly when he made a statement last month. He has no other go but to quit," former home minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan told reporters.

Leader of Opposition V.S.Achuthanandan also jumped into the fray and demanded Chandy's resignation for misleading the house on the issue of domestic violence in the case of the minister and his wife.

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Agencies
June 28,2020

New Delhi, Jun 28: Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday targeted former Congress President Rahul Gandhi, saying he was indulging in "shallow-minded" politics and making statements that make Pakistan and China happy when soldiers are fighting a spirited battle.

Shah said the government is ready for a discussion in Parliament about the situation from 1962 (when India-China war took place) and it is sad that a former president of a party making statements, which are being celebrated in Pakistan and China.

The Home Minister's comments came during an interview with ANI when he was asked about Rahul's "Surrender (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi" remarks while criticising the BJP-led government on India-China border row.

Rahul has been consistent in his criticism of the government on the handling of both Covid-19 situation and India-China border row, which escalated into a "violent face-off" earlier this month in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.

"Let there be a robust debate in Parliament. Let us have one. Let us discuss from 1962. Nobody is scared of debate. But one should not make a statement that makes Pakistan and China happy when the soldiers are fighting a spirited battle and the government is taking strong steps," he said.

Asked whether India can handle the anti-India propaganda unleashed by Rahul's 'Surrender Modi' hashtag, he said the government is capable of handling it but it is a matter of introspection for the former Congress president and his party that their remarks are being used against the country.

Modi's remarks at an all-party meeting that no one has intruded into Indian territory triggered a controversy with a section arguing that it went against the previous statement of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar.

Claiming that he could not advise Rahul as it is Congress' job to do so, he said the government has fought Covid-19 well but some people have a twisted way of seeing things. He said India fought well against Covid-19 and the statistics will speak for itself as it is much better compared to the world.

Shah said under Modi's leadership, India is going to win both the battles -- Covid-19 and India-China border row.

The Home Minister also refused to be drawn into a question on whether Chinese soldiers are holding on to Indian territory on the border at present, saying the government is doing enough to address border row with China.

"I don't want to do anything that goes against my primary aim of this interview (to highlight the steps taken to fight Covid-19 pandemic in Delhi) and create headlines that keep citizens further in fear," Shah said.

When pointed out that people are also in panic due to the border situation, he said the government has taken steps to address the situation and at an appropriate time he would make comments, if needed.

Asked about his tweets on Emergency, which was targeted by Congress asking whether there is democracy in the BJP, he countered it saying that BJP has presidents L K Advani followed by Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath again, himself and now J P Nadda.

"After Indira-ji, was there any Congress President from outside Gandhi family? What democracy do they talk about? I did not do any politics during Covid-19. You look at my tweets of the past 10 years. Every June 25, I give a statement," he said.

"Emergency should be remembered by people as it attacked the roots of our democracy. No one should ever forget it. There should be awareness about it. It is not about a party but about the attack on the country's democracy," he said.

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News Network
January 15,2020

Jan 15: Amazon.com Inc Chief Executive Officer Jeff Bezos is facing a bitter welcome during his India visit this week as the country’s antitrust regulator initiated a formal investigation just hours before his arrival and trader bodies comprising millions of infuriated small store owners announced demonstrations.

Bezos is in New Delhi for the Smbhav summit, an Amazon India event for small and medium businesses. The billionaire is scheduled to conduct a fireside chat with Amazon India chief Amit Agarwal, anchoring an event that also features Infosys Ltd. co-founder Narayana Murthy and retail billionaire Kishore Biyani, who recently sold a stake in his retail group to Amazon. Ahead of the event, Bezos paid his respects at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial, wearing a white tunic and a rust-colored Indian vest.

The small businesses that Amazon’s CEO is hoping to endear himself to, however, are organizing in opposition. The Confederation of All India Traders announced that members of its affiliate bodies across the country would stage sit-ins and public rallies in 300 cities to raise a war cry against the world’s largest online retailer. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, the confederation’s Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal alleged that Amazon, much like Walmart Inc.-owned Flipkart, was an “economic terrorist” who engaged in predatory pricing that deprived the government of tax revenue and “compelled the closure of thousands of small traders.”

India’s e-commerce market is projected to grow to $150 billion by 2022, according to a 2018 report by software industry group Nasscom and consulting firm PwC India. Competition for this rapidly expanding sector is intensifying as Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, prepares to go live with JioMart, an online shopping platform challenging Amazon and Walmart directly. The latter’s Flipkart Online Services Pvt is also delving deeper into the countryside in its pursuit for more customers. Amazon, for its part, opened a huge office complex in the southern city of Hyderabad in September, underscoring its commitment to the country.

The Competition Commission of India said it would probe the deep discounts, preferential listings and exclusionary tactics that Amazon and Flipkart are alleged to have used as anti-competitive levers. India’s trade bodies have long argued that both retail giants were flouting rules by promoting sales and discounts through their favoured sellers, many of whom they have preexisting commercial arrangements. The regulator has ordered for the investigation to be completed within two months.

Bezos last visited India in 2014 under starkly different circumstances. During that trip, the Amazon founder wore local festive garb, rode atop a festooned truck for a photo opp and presented Amazon’s Indian unit with a giant check for $2 billion. Since then, Amazon has pledged a further $3.5 billion to expand in the country.

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News Network
February 17,2020

New Delhi, Feb 17: Indian officials denied entry to British lawmaker Debbie Abrahams on Monday after she landed at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport.

Debbie Abrahams, a Labour Party Member of Parliament who chairs a parliamentary group focused on the Kashmir, was unable to clear customs after her valid Indian visa was rejected, her aide, Harpreet Upal, told The Associated Press.

Abrahams and Upal arrived at the airport on an Emirates flight from Dubai at 9 am. Upal said the immigration officials did not cite any reason for denying Abrahams entry and revoking her visa, a copy of which, valid until October 2020, was shared with the AP. A spokesman for India's foreign ministry did not immediately comment.

Abrahams has been a member of Parliament since 2011 and was on a two-day personal trip to India, she said in a statement.

"I tried to establish why the visa had been revoked and if I could get a 'visa on arrival' but no one seemed to know," she said in the statement.

"Even the person who seemed to be in charge said he didn't know and was really sorry about what had happened. So now I am just waiting to be deported ... unless the Indian Government has a change of heart. I'm prepared to let the fact that I've been treated like a criminal go, and I hope they will let me visit my family and friends."

Abrahams has been an outspoken critic of the Indian government's move last August stripping Jammu and Kashmir of its semi-autonomy and bifurcating the state into two Union Territories.

Shortly after the changes to Kashmir's status were passed by Parliament, Abrahams wrote a letter to India's High Commissioner to the UK, saying the action "betrays the trust of the people" of Kashmir.

India took more than 20 foreign diplomats on a visit to Kashmir last week, the second such trips in six months.

Access to the region remains tight, with no foreign journalists allowed.

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