PM Modi all set for another Middle East trip; may launch Abu Dhabi’s first Hindu temple

coastaldigest.com web desk
January 30, 2018

In a pleasant news lakhs of Indian Hindus residing across United Arab Emirates, the rulers of the oil-rich country have reportedly okayed a proposal to invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to launch Abu Dhabi’s first Hindu temple.

According to reports, Modi will witness video link to ground breaking ('shila pujan') for the historic temple during his forthcoming visit to West Asia -- Palestine, UAE & Oman – between Feb 9-12 . Currently, the UAE has only one temple for Hindu worshippers, and that is in Dubai.

The UAE government had announced it was allocating land in Abu Dhabi to build a temple during Modi's first visit to the emirates in 2015 and allocated 20,000 square metres of land in Al Wathba. The temple is being privately funded.

There are as much as 2.6 million Indians in the UAE, accounting for 30% of its total population. Majority of them are Hindus.

Modi will arrive in Abu Dhabi on February 10 evening and will travel to Dubai the next day. He is expected to address Indian community reception at the Dubai Opera on February 11, a Sunday.

As many as 1,800 people are expected to participate in the event. Modi will also be a star attraction at the sixth World Government Summit — a three-day annual event in Dubai that will see India as the guest country — on February 11.

Security and economic partnerships between India and the UAE have been on the upswing since Modi's visit in 2015. Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan was the chief guest at 2017 Republic Day parade in New Delhi.

Modi will start his West Asia from Palestine. He is expected to land in Jordan to enter Palestine on February 9. This could also provide Modi an opportunity to meet Jordan's leadership ahead of the visit of Jordan King Abdullah II to India later in the month. Jordan also plays an important role in the Israeli -Palestinian question and the fate of Jerusalem.

It is the custodian of Al-Aqsa Mosque in old city of Jerusalem (third holy site in Islam) and therefore has significant say in Palestinian affairs. The mosque remains under the administration of the Jordanian/Palestinianled Islamic Waqf.

The West Bank does not have an airport, so to get to Ramallah one has to go either via Israel's Ben Gurion Airport, or via Amman in Jordan. During his trip to Palestine, Modi is expected to offer additional support for capacity building projects.

India has, over the decades, called for a "two-state solution" to end the conflict in West Asia and it hopes to use its good offices with both Israel and Palestine to contribute to the peace process.

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Charan Kumar | coastaldigest.com
June 24,2020

Bengaluru, June 24: City-based I Monetary Advisory (IMA), which duped thousands of families, mostly Muslims, in the name of halal investment, has become a bitter reality of "we were robbed by our own people". All the accused except its CEO Mohammad Mansoor Khan have been released on bail in this ponzi scam worth thousands of crores of rupees.

The scam has not only been investigated by SIT and CBI, but it has reverberated many times in the Assembly, corridors of power, and in the courts.

Around 80,000 investors are in trouble after the Monetary Advisory (IMA) scam came to light. Many investors have left this world, many families have split, many marriages have broken down and many have become unemployed, homeless, helpless and hapless. One of the senior IAS office, who had faced arrest in the scam, reportedly killed himself just a day ago.

It has been more than a year since this multi-billion scam came to light. But the affected families still do not see any ray of hope. The government, led by senior IAS officer Harsh Gupta, has set up a special competent authority to address investor grievances in the matter.

According to information provided by Harsh Gupta, investors have to be paid Rs 2,900 crore. But the value of the company's assets seized so far could be around Rs 450 crore. The process of auctioning the assets has not started yet. The authority has developed an online portal for submission of claim forms from investors. But the process of taking applications has not started yet. Syed Gulab, a social worker overseeing the case, says that after all the claim forms have been submitted, we will get a clear picture about the exact number of investors and the total amount of arrears. But this process may take a few more months to complete.

Senior journalist Maqbool Ahmed Siraj says that IMA has systematically deceived people in the name of halal investment through capital scheme. In 2006, Muhammad Mansoor Khan, a one-time small businessman, set up a company. He began to attract large number of investors by creating the greed for more profit among middle class and poor people.

By 2015, the company had received money from more than 12,000 investors and continued to pay monthly profits. By the time the company closed in 2019, 80,000 people had invested their hard-earned money here. In Bengaluru, the company expanded its reach by investing in two major gold showrooms, hospitals, schools, several medical stores, a publishing center, a supermarket, and real estate firm.

Mr Siraj says that Mansoor Khan and his team not only lured the poor and middle class to pursue their own interests but also created a favourable atmosphere for their so called business by winning the hearts of politicians, government officials, clerics, religious institutions and media.

Unsuspecting people invested their money in a bid to make more profit in less time. When the company stopped making profits and Mansoor Khan suddenly fled on June 9, 2019, the investors woke up the to the reality.

Apart from residents of Bengaluru and other parts of Karnataka, people from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra other states also have invested their money.

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News Network
February 2,2020

Newsroom, Feb 2: American business magnate Bill Gates has congratulated her daughter Jennifer Gates after she announced her engagement to her Muslim boyfriend Nayel Nassar.

“I am completely thrilled! Congratulations, @jenniferkgates and @nayelnassar”, commented the Microsoft boss to her daughter’s surprise Instagram story.

The proposal took place on a ski getaway. "Nayel Nassar, you are one of a kind. Absolutely swept me off my feet this past weekend, surprising me in the most meaningful location over one of our many shared passions," she wrote on Instagram. The pair does have one very significant shared passion - horses.

Nassar, 29, is a showjumper. Gates, 23, has famously grown up an equestrian, and has even competed against Steve Jobs' daughter.

In October, Nassar helped Egypt qualify for Tokyo 2020 - Egypt's first Olympic equestrian qualification in 60 years. He has been jumping since he was 10 years old and has the accolades to show for it - he has taken first place in a number of notable competitions, including the Longines FEI Jumping World Cup.

Nassar was born in Chicago to Egyptian parents and spent many of his formative years in Kuwait, where his well-to-do parents run an architecture and design firm, according to People. He is fluent in English, Arabic, and French.

He moved back to the US in 2009 and graduated from Stanford with an economics degree in 2013 - later, he supported Gates at her own Stanford graduation in 2018.

The couple received well wishes from many notable personalities on each of their Instagram posts, including comments from Bill and Melinda Gates, Georgina Bloomberg, and Eve Jobs.

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News Network
May 1,2020

Bengaluru, May 1: Karnataka has reported 11 new cases of coronavirus, taking the State's count to 576, informed the Health Department on Friday.

Out of the total COVID-19 cases found in the State, 235 people have been discharged and 22 people have died.

"11 new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Karnataka from April 30, 5 pm till noon today, taking the total number of cases to 576, which includes 22 deaths and 235 discharges," said the State government COVID-19 bulletin.

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