It's better to be a multi-billionaire politician than displaying wealth: Vijay Mallya

October 27, 2012

Vijay_mallya

New Delhi, October 27: Liquor baron Vijay Mallya on Saturday said he has learnt the hard way that wealth should not be displayed in India, and that it is better to be a multi-billionaire politician in the country. "I have learnt the hard way that in India wealth should not be displayed. (It is) Better to be a multi-billionaire politician dressed in Khadi," Mallya tweeted amid a long-continuing crisis at his UB Group's Kingfisher Airlines and his exit from the league of Indian billionaires.

On Friday, Mallya had posted on Twitter that he was thankful to 'the Almighty' for losing his billionaire status, and hoped it would lead to "less jealousy, less frenzy and (less of) wrongful attacks" on him. Often referred to as 'King of Good Times', Mallya has slipped out of the billionaire league in the Forbes rich list, as "bad times" in his aviation business have dragged down his networth to below the $ 1 billion mark.

According to the business magazine's latest list of 100 richest people in India that was published yesterday, Mallya is now ranked 73rd with a fortune of $ 800 million (about Rs 4,285 crore) -- a sharp plunge from 49th place last year with a fortune of $ 1.1 billion. Cash-strapped Kingfisher Airlines, part of Mallya-led UB Group, is going through turbulent times for several months now and had to halt operations earlier this month.

"King of good times is having nothing but bad times lately. His (Mallya's) Kingfisher Airlines, weighed down by what is believed to be $ 2 billion in debt, had its licence suspended in mid-October..." Forbes had said. Mallya is attending Formula One race at Greater Noida near the national capital, where a team part-owned by him, Sahara Force India, is participating.

The UB Group Chairman further tweeted that the qualifying prospects of Sahara Force India is secondary and the focus of even sports journalists was on Kingfisher only. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of Formula One venue, Mallya said: "We are here to enjoy Formula One, so let's enjoy it. But I have always been available and whatever settlement has been reached (between the airline management and the employees) it's because of my participation".

The employees of the airline, who were on strike since September 29, agreed to resume work on the management's promise to clear three months dues before Diwali. During the entire impasse, agitating employees had demanded his presence and even threatened to stage protest at the venue of Formula One race. "If they wanted to say something to me they could have come to my house. What is the point of coming here? There is no question of any disturbance or protest," Mallya said.

Also read: Mallya thanks 'Almighty' for losing billionaire tag, hopes it will lead to 'less jealousy'


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Agencies
May 9,2020

New Delhi, May 9: The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to consider a plea raising the issue of mass termination and the illegal salary cut of employees in IT/ITES/BPO/KPI by their employers during the lockdown due to the spread of the coronavirus.

A bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan, S.K. Kaul and B.R. Gavai, taking up the matter through video conferencing, agreed to examine the issue and listed it for May 15.

The petition, argued by senior advocate Devadatt Kamat, was filed by National Information Technology Employees Sena (NITES) through advocate-on-record Amit Pai, and sought implementation of directions issued by the Centre on March 29 and similar advisories issued by several other states mandating payment of wages/salaries to the employees and also directed not to terminate them during the period of lockdown.

A directive was issued by the Union Ministry of Labour and Empowerment to all Chief Secretaries of state governments to issue advisories to public and private companies to not lay off employees or implement pay cuts during lockdown.

In the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) report published on April 19, it was noted that "several companies across the country have started to terminate its employees without any reasonable cause and have started withholding their salaries. It is submitted that in such testing times, the rights of the employees ought to be protected by necessary orders/directions to the companies through the Respondents to effectively implement the lockdown and to contain the spread of the virus", said the plea.

On March 29, the Centre issued an order directing all states and Union Territories to issue orders, requiring all the employers in the industrial sector and shops and commercial establishments to pay wages on the due date without any deduction during their closure due to the lockdown.

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coastaldigest.com news network
July 27,2020

Ayodhya, Jul 27: With days to go for the August 5 "bhoomi pujan" ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, the mosques adjacent to the demolished Babri Masjid premises are spreading the message of a peaceful coexistence of Hindus and Muslims.

There are eight mosques and two mausoleums located close to the 70-acre Babri Masjid premises mandated by the Supreme Court for a temple of Sri Ram.

Azaan and namaaz are offered in the mosques and the annual "Urs" is held at the mausoleums without any objection from the local Hindus.

The eight mosques located near the upcoming Ram temple premises are Masjid Dorahikuan, Masjid Mali Mandir ke Bagal, Masjid Kaziyana Achchan ke Bagal, Masjid Imambara, Masjid Riyaz ke Bagal, Masjid Badar Paanjitola, Masjid Madaar Shah and Masjid Tehribazar Jogiyon ki.

The two mausoleums are Khanqaahe Muzaffariya and Imambara.

"It is the greatness of Ayodhya that the mosques surrounding the Ram temple are giving a strong message of communal harmony to the rest of the world," Haji Asad Ahmad, the corporator of the Ram Kot ward, said. The Ram temple area is situated in Ahmad's ward.

"Muslims take out the 'juloos' of Barawafaat that goes through the periphery of Ram Janmabhoomi. All religious functions and rituals of Muslims are respected by their fellow citizens," the corporator said.

Asked for a comment on the presence of mosques near the upcoming Ram temple premises, the chief priest of the temple, Acharya Satyendra Das, said, "We had a dispute only with the structure that was connected to the name of (Mughal emperor) Babur. We have never had any issue with the other mosques and mausoleums in Ayodhya. This is a town where Hindus and Muslims live in peace."

"Muslims offer namaaz, we perform our puja. The mosques around us will strengthen Ayodhya's communal harmony and peace will prevail," he added.

Both Hindus and Muslims have accepted the Supreme Court verdict over Ram Janmabhoomi, Das said, adding, "We have no dispute with each other."

Sayyad Akhlaq Ahmad Latifi, the "sajjada nasheen" and "pir" of the 500-year-old Khanqaahe Muzaffariya mausoleum, said Muslims in Ayodhya are performing all religious practices freely.

"We offer prayers five times a day in the mosque at Khanqaah and hold the yearly 'Urs'," he added.

"What a scene would it be -- a grand Ram temple surrounded by small mosques and mausoleums and everyone offering prayers according to their beliefs. That will be representative of the true culture of India," Mahant Yugal Kishore Sharan Shastri, the chief priest of the Sarayu Kunj temple adjacent to the Ram Janmabhoomi premises, said.

Reacting to the presence of mosques and mausoleums near the Ram Janmabhoomi premises, Triloki Nath Pandey, the decree holder of the land as the "first friend of Ram Lalla" as mandated by the Supreme Court, said, "We do not have any objection to either those mosques or any other mosques. We will not trigger a dispute regarding any structure, Ayodhya must live in peace and communal harmony."

Mahant Raju Das, the priest of the Hanumangarhi temple, said, "The presence of the mosques tells the story of Ayodhya's communal harmony. A Ram mandir will be built and there will be no objection to the mosques or religious practices of Muslims."

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News Network
May 28,2020

New Delhi, May 28: With 6,566 more coronavirus cases and 194 deaths reported in the past 24 hours, India's COVID-19 tally reached 1,58,333 on Thursday, according to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Affairs.

The number of active coronavirus cases stands at 86,110, while 67,692 people have recovered and one patient has migrated, it said. The death toll due to the infection has reached 4,531 in the country.

Maharashtra is the worst affected state with 56,948 cases. Tamil Nadu has recorded as many as 18,545 cases while Gujarat and Delhi have recorded 15,195 and 15,257 coronavirus cases respectively.

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