Vol.9 Issue 38 - January 21-27, 2017

The South Asian Times
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Vol.9 No. 38 January 21-27, 2017 80 Cents
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Trump declares in challenge to world, taking office

Washington DC: Donald Trump
began his presidency on Friday
with a challenge to the world,
declaring "From this forward it is
going to be only America first",
and this will be "heard in every
foreign capital".
After he was swornin as the
45th president of the United States
with his hands on two Bibles, his
own and President Abraham
Lincoln in a ceremony full of reli
giosity and patriotism, he said,
"We assembled here today are
issuing a new decree to be heard
in every city, in every foreign capi
tal, and in every hall of power.
From this day forward, a new
vision will govern our land. From
this day forward, it's going to be
only America first, America first."
"We will shine for everyone to
follow," he added. "America will
start winning again. Winning like
never before."
He conceded that all nations had
the right to put their own interests
first. But he added, "We will bring
back our jobs, we will bring back
our borders, we will bring back
our wealth, and we will bring back
our dreams." "We've defended
other nation's borders while refus
ing to defend our own, and spent

trillions of dollars overseas while
America's infrastructure has fallen
into disrepair and decay," he said
in his 15minute, succinct speech.
That will stop with his presiden
cy, he said. He promised "a great
national ef fort to rebuild our
country and restore its promise for
all of our people" and that "buy
Continued on page 4
MORE STORIES AND PICTURES
FROM TRUMPS INUGURATION
ON PAGES 1417.
Soon after being sworn in the 45th President, Donald Trump in his
short inaugural speech promised to work for all Americans.
Modi congratulates Trump,

looks forward to working with him
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday con
gratulated Donald Trump on his becoming the
US President and said he looked forward to
working with him to further deepen IndiaUS ties.
"Congratulations Donald Trump on assuming office
as US President. Best wishes in leading USA to greater
achievements in the coming years," Modi said in a
tweet.
"Strength of the IndiaUSA strategic partnership lies in our shared val
ues and common interests," the Prime Minister Continued on page 4
President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump got out of their car to
wave to the crowd during the inaugural parade on Friday evening.
(Photo by:
Jayesh Patel)
Bollywood dance at Trumps

inaugural concert
By SATimes Team
Manasvi & Mika Singh with Arya dance performers wowed the American audience.
Washington DC: In a first for India and

Indians, a Bollywood dance performance
formed a proud part of President Donald
Trumps inauguration ceremonies. Arya
Dance Academy made history by being the
first South Asian dance company to per
form at the Presidential Inauguration
Welcome Concert on Thursday.

Arya joined hands with Shalabh Kumar,
founder of the Republican Hindu Coalition,
to present a mind blowing performance
with 30 Arya performers, and featuring for
mer Miss India and actor Manasvi Mamgai
and a special appearance by singer Mika
Singh. Suresh Mukund from Mumbai
joined the Arya team Continued on page 4
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January 21-27, 2017
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
January 21-27, 2017
Indian community has come of age: Amb. Sarna

Edison, NJ: The Indian communi
ty in the tristate area accorded a
ceremonial welcome to Indias
new Ambassador Navtej Singh
Sarna under the leadership of the
Federation of Indian Associations
(NYNJCT) at the Royal Alberts
Palace on January 12.
Sarna, who served in the Indian
Embassy in Washington DC 14
years ago, noted the tremendous
changes that happened in his
absence. He pointed out the
changes and improvement in the
IndoUS eng agement. T he
biggest change is the strength
and standing the Indian commu
nity has acquired. The community
has come of age.
Indians are only 1% of the US
population. Yet 13% of all start
ups are set up by Indians, 50% of
all hotel business is controlled by
them and 8 percent of all doctors
in the US are of Indian origin.
It means all of you carry a
weight much bigger than what
Indian ambassador to the US, Navtej Singh Sarna (third from left), at the FIAled reception in New Jersey.
your number of 3 million would
have given. Wherever I go I see
Indian elected of ficials in the
local level or county level or state
level, Sarna said.
He argued that the Fabulous
Five people of Indian origin in the
Senate and the U.S. House of
Representatives has shown the
growing political clout of the
community.
Sarna said he looks at the com
munitys work from three angles.
T he diaspora is constantly
engaged with the adopted coun
try, he said. At the same time
they (its members) continue their
engagements with the mother
land. The third thing I noticed is
the passion to bring the two
together.
Going by these standards the
Indian community is a huge suc
cess, he said.
He said things have changed in
India, too.
Trump signs executive

order on Obamacare
Washington: Within hours of taking the
oath of office, US President Donald Trump
on Friday night signed an executive order
aimed at trying to fulfil one of his most
impassioned campaign promises: repealing
the Af fordable Care Act (ACA) or
Obamacare. The multipart executive order
stated that the administration's official poli
cy is "to seek the prompt repeal" of the ACA
but at the same time emphasized that his
administration must continue to uphold the
law, CNN reported.
With his signature, Trump sent a powerful
signal on Day One of his presidency: His top
priority in the Oval Office will be disman
tling the health care law that covers some
20 million Americans.
The order directs the secretary of health
and human services and the heads of other
agencies to use their discretion to help indi
viduals, healthcare providers, insurers and
others avoid any burdens stemming from
the ACA. The order also looks to give states
more flexibility and control over their health
care markets, in keeping with longstanding
Republican beliefs.
According to Capitol Hill sources, senior
Republicans are exploring multiple avenues
through which to replace what gets rolled
back, including measures tucked into the
repeal bill, executive orders as well as
First Lady Melania Trumps elegant

dresses at the inauguration and
inaugural balls were widely admired.
administrative actions taken by Trump's
nominee for Health and Human Services
secretary, Tom Price.White House Chief of
Staff Reince Priebus also sent out a memo to
all government agencies and departments
calling for a regulatory freeze.
Also on Friday, shortly after Trump was
sworn into, the newly updated White House
website said the new administration will
eliminate the Climate Action Plan, the cen
terpiece of Obama's climate legacy that aims
to cut carbon emissions from power plants.
It is not the same India when

you had left. Opportunities are
many, which you did not see dur
ing your time there, Sarna said. I
know you all have invested in
India in one way or the other. The
Indian community here is a
knowledgebased community. Our
strength is our knowledge.
He pointed out that the US is
moving to a new administration
soon and said USIndia relations
are very robust and that everyone
knows the strength of this rela

tionship.
FIA President Andy Bhat ia
greeted the ambassador and the
community. Ramesh Patel, chair
man of FIA, we lcoming Amb.
Sarna said all in the community
are also Indias ambassadors in
an informal way.
Vandana Sharma, regional man
ager of Air India noted that they
are trying to make more gate
ways to India.
Trumps America First strategy

can damage IndoUS ties
Washington: Warning that
ship.
Donald Trumps America
Going back to the earliest
First strategy has the poten
years of the George W. Bush
tial to damage IndoUS
administration, the US rap
t ies, prominent Indian
prochement with India was
American scholar Ashley
premised on the assumption
Tellis, who is speculated to
that the principle strategic
be the next envoy to India,
problem facing both coun
has said the President needs
tries consisted of the rise of
to strengthen bilateral rela
China and the threat it posed
tions to cope with the chal
to both US primacy and
lenges posed by China.
Indian securitynot to men
Tellis is a senior fellow,
tion the safety of the US
South Asia Program at the
other Asian partner and
IndianAmerican scholar
Carneg ie Endowment for
allies simultaneously, he
Ashley Tellis, who is
International Peace, a top
wrote.
speculated to be the next
American thinktank. In an
Since it was assumed that
US envoy to India
oped published in Asia
the United States would sub
Policy by the National Bureau of Asian sist as the principal protector of the liberal
Research, Mumbaiborn Tellis said that the international order, and the Western alliance
variety of positions expressed by Trump sug system in particular, even in circumstances
gests that the potential threat to the continu where the containment of China was impossi
ing transformation of USIndia relations ble because of the new realities of economic
comes less from his views on Indiawhich interdependence, the Bush administration
are probably unsettledthan it does from his slowly gravitated toward a strategy of bal
iconoclastic convictions about the relation ancing China by building up the power of key
ship between the US and the world.
states located on its periphery, Tellis said.
Tellis, 55, argues that while many elements
Tellis observes that the current US commit
of Trumps nationalist agenda are under ment to the rise of Indian power sans sym
standableeven defensiblethe worldview metric reciprocity was devised during the
it represents diverges from that which initial Bush administration but has been faithfully
ly cultured the evolving USIndian partner continued by Obama for very good reasons.
January-21-27, 2017
TURN PAGE
America First
Three score Democratic lawmakers

boycott Trump inauguration
Washington: Over 60 Democratic Congress
men and women boycotted Donald Trumps
inauguration ceremonies here. Some had
made up their minds before but most fol
lowed the example of civil right hero and
Congressman John Lewis who questioned
Trumps legitimacy to take over as presi
dent because of Russian hand in the elec
tion. Trump of course hit back at Lewis, fur
ther alienating Dems, when he tweeted:
"Congressman John Lewis should spend
more time on fixing and helping his district,
which is in horrible shape and falling apart
(not to mention crime infested) rather than
falsely complaining about the election
results." Many politicians on both sides of
Civil rights hero John Lewis questioned

the incoming presidents legitimacy.
the aisle defended Lewis saying his district
in Atlanta, GA, is doing fine and he is an
American legend.
Indian Americans celebrate as

Trump becomes President
Washington DC: Indian Americans gathered
for the presidential gala here to celebrate the
inauguration of Donald Trump as the 45th
President of the US.
The gala, which was attended by a hundred
Indian Americans, took place at the Grand
Ballroom of the central Mayflower hotel in
Washington and was organized by the Asian
Pacific American Advisory Council and
National Committee of Asian American
Republicans, American Bazaar online reported
on Friday. The event was attended by the
ambassadors of several countries, including
the Indian ambassador to the US, Navtej
Sarna. This is a great celebration of Asian
success, said Sarna, speaking on the occasion.
I am very happy that Indian Americans are
part of the successful large Asian community.
It was a grand success, Virginia Republican
Puneet Ahluwalia, one of the organizers of the
event, told a media outlet.
We were able to create a platform for the
AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islanders)
community to come together and celebrate
the Trump election. The gala also made a
strong statement that we are very much part
of the American mainstream and will play an
effective role in the next administration.

Ahluwalia added that by showing up in good
numbers, the Indian American community has
made showed their desire for the USIndia
relationship to be on the front and centre for
the next administration.
Top diplomats from Sri Lanka, Afghanistan,
South Korea and Singapore attended the gala.
Dozens of dignitaries attended the event,
including Congressman Ed Royce, chairman of
the powerful Foreign Relations Committee,
Representative Barbara Comstack, Guam
Governor Eddie Baza Calvo, Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands Governor Ralph
DLG Torres as well as a number of Republican
leaders from various Asian American and
Pacific Islanders communities.
The [Trump] administration is looking to
increase its relationship with the Asian coun
tries, Royce said. We should reach out to our
friends in Asia. We will work to further and
deepen this relationship. Indian American
Republicans who were present included
Californian K.V. Kumar, Floridian Harry Walia
and Puneet Ahluwalia. All the three are mem
bers of TrumpPence campaigns Asian Pacific
American Advisory Committee.
Continued from page 1

American and hire American" will be the
new national order. He called for national
unity in his first speech to the nation as
President after a campaign that created a
deep abyss of political division. "When you
open your heart to patriotism, there is no
room for prejudice."
All children, regardless of where they are
born in the US, "are infused with the breath
of life by the same almighty creator".
He promised a new deal for inner cities
that are dominated by minorities and said,
the oath of office I take today is an oath of
allegiance to all Americans."
He called the Obamas "magnificent" and
thanked them for being gracious.
The ceremony was disrupted by protest
ers along the parade route, who held up
placards that spelled, "Resist". Law enforce
ment removed them peacefully and at cer
tain points there were clashes and arrests.
Marking the peaceful transfer of power,
the Trumps visited the Obamas at the White
House. The soontobe exPresident accom
panied his successor to the Capitol Hill.
T he defeated Democratic candidate,
Hillary Clinton, was at the ceremony with
her husband, Bill, a former President.
After the ceremony the Trumps witnessed
the parade from the Capitol Hill to the
White House, wand in the evening took part
in inaugural balls.
Associate Editors:
Hiral Dholakia-Dave
Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull
Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

Nilima Madan, Melvin Durai,
Dr Prem Kumar Sharma, Ashok Vyas,
Dr Akshat Jain, Ashok Ojha
President: Arjit Mehta
Modi congratulates Trump,

looks forward to working with him
said. "Looking forward to working with
President Donald Trump to further deepen
IndiaUS ties and realise the full potential of
our cooperation," Modi added.
Bollywood dance at
Trumps inaugural concert
to choreograph the performance.
Aryas excited founder Rupal Patel told
The South Asian Times after the achieve
ment, The energy, the power, the creativity,
the vibrant costumes left the American
audience cheering nonstop. They had never
seen Indian or Bollywood dance before!
Rupal felt honored that Arya was invited
to perform at the concert. The organizers
had discerned that Arya had the caliber of
performers that they were looking for to
present Indian culture.
Acknowledging resistance to Trumps
presidency in certain quarters, Rupal said,
Both my husband Rahul Dave and I believe
that it is time for us to put aside our differ
ences and hope for a promising future by
supporting the President in his term of
office.
With headquarters in Parsippany, NJ, Arya
Dance Academy is the largest Indian dance
company US with over 324 locations across
America.
Tricolor at presidential inauguration: Arya Dance Academy started the performance

with Jai Ho. Photo by Jayesh Patel
Jaipur (India) Bureau

Prakash Bhandari
Prakash@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Chairman and Co-Founder
Kamlesh C. Mehta
IANS Newswire Services

IANS Washington Bureau
Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in
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masalajunction.com.
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
January 21-27, 2017
Children asked if 'We have to leave

US after Trump won: Nisha Biswal
Washington, DC: Highlighting the postelec
tion fear and anxiety among immigrants, a
senior IndianAmerican of ficial in the
Obama Administration has said she experi
enced it in her own home when the children
asked if Donald Trump's win meant they will
"have to leave" the country.
"There is a lot of anxiety now in a lot of
communit ies across the country.
Immigrants, minorities, people who have
lived in the kind of vulnerable communities
across America, the lower income, those
who might be of dif ferent sexual orienta
tion, those who worship a faith that is not a
dominant faith," Assistant Secretary of State
for South and Central Asia Nisha Desai
Biswal said.
A day after the elections were held, Biswal
Assistant Secretary of State for South and

Central Asia Nisha Desai Biswal
said she experienced this fear in her own
home. "It was shocking to me that my young
children, seven and nine, had picked up so
much of the rhetoric of the campaign that
themse lves, a day after the e lections,
expressed their concerns and said, 'Does this
Amit Kanodia jailed for $1

million insider trading scheme
New York: An IndianAmerican
man has been sentenced to 20
months in prison for a $1 million
insider trading scheme involving
the failed Apollo Tyres bid to
takeover Cooper Tire, prosecutors
said on Wednesday.
Amit Kanodia, 49, was sentenced
in Boston by Federal Judge
Nathaniel M. Gorton, who also
imposed a $200,000 fine and 100
hours of community service and
ordered the forfeiture of the
$242,500 illegal profit he made.
A jury had found the real estate
entrepreneur guilty of securities
fraud and conspiracy after a six
day trial last October, but he was
sentenced only now.
Kanodia's exwife was a lawyer
for Apollo Tyres and he heard
from her about her company's
plans to acquire the USbased
Cooper Tire in 2013, according to
the office of the federal prosecutor
for Massachusetts.
He tipped off two of his friends,
Iftikar Ahmed and Steven Watson,
about the proposed acquisition
and they bought shares and
options of Cooper Tires, which
trades on the New York Stock
Exchange, prosecutors said.
When the takeover plan was
unveiled in June 2013, the share
prices shot up by 41 per cent giv
ing the two friends a profit of more
than $1 million and they gave
Amit Kanodia
(Image : skoll.org)
Kanodia a share of it, according to
officials. Ahmed fled to India when
he was charged with insider trad
ing and is believed to be still in
India. US authorities consider him
a fugitive from justice. Ahmed, an
IITDelhi and Harvard Business
School graduate, has also been
charged with embezzling $54 mil
lion from the investment company
Oak Investment Partners, where he
was a general partner. Watson,
who admitted his guilt and turned
approver, testified against
Kanodia. He was fined $25,000
and given two years of probation
in November last year for insider
trading. He also had to give up
almost $170,000 in illegal trading
profits. The Apollo Tyres plan to
takeover Cooper Tire ultimately
failed by December 2013 mainly
because unions in the US and the
management and workers at its
Chinese subsidiary opposed the
deal.
(IANS)
mean that we have to leave, because we are

immigrants'." "And I reassured them that
they are Americans, they have every right to
be here and they have an obligation to be
here, to be part of what brings this country
and moves this country forward and I reas
sured them that not only do they belong
here, but that they are welcomed and valued
members of America," she said.
Biswal said there is a lot of fear and anxi
ety in those communities. "Will this govern
ment continue to value us, respect our
rights and provide opportunities for us? And
that is something that the Presidentelect
(Donald Trump) and the incoming adminis
tration need to address and need to provide
leadership and build confidence across all
Americans that they would lead for all
Americans," she said.

Biswal said people are anxious if the new
administration would stand for those values
and those principles that have defined the
country for so many years and that all
Americans will have their due rights and
respect and will have opportunities to con
tinue to grow and thrive and contribute to
the society.
"I am hopeful that so many of the people
that are coming in to this next administra
tion are people who share those values, peo
ple who are patriots and want to see
America continue to be that beacon, that
shining beacon on the hill... that represents
inclusion. But that has not been the rhetoric
that has brought this Presidentelect into
(PTI)
office," she said.
Town of North Hempstead

celebrates 1st RDay
Manhasset, NY: The Town Hall at
North Hempstead in Manhasset
was decorated in green, white and
orange as the Town celebrated its
first Republic Day of India on
January 10th. Town Supervisor
Judi Bosworth and Council mem
bers Vivian Russe ll, Peter
Zuckerman, Angelo Ferrara, Anna
Kaplan, Lee Seeman, Dina De
Giorgio and Town Clerk Wayne H
Wink, hosted this event. Several
members of the Indian American
Forum and IALI attended the event
made possible with the support of
Indu Jaiswal, Chairperson IAF, and
Bina Sabapathy, new President of
IALI. In his keynote speech, Aron
Govil, chief of Ducon Group, spoke
(from left) IALI President Bina Sabapathy, Council Members Viviana

Russell, Peter Zuckerman, and Dina De Giorgio, Town Clerk Wayne
Wink, Council Member Lee Seeman, keynote speaker Aron Govil,
North Hempstead Town Supervisor Judi Bosworth, IAF Chair Indu
Jaiswal and Trustee Dr. Urmilesh Arya, Council Member Anna Kaplan
and IAF Trustee Mohinder Taneja at the celebration.
on the importance of Indias
Republic Day and the Constitution
of India, as well as progress made
by Indian Americans. Supervisor

Bosworth presented a proclama
tion to Mr.Govil.
'India & US may work closely during Trump era'

New Delhi: India and the US are
like ly to work close ly during
Donald Trump's tenure as the
President, as he is expected to shift
focus of his administration to con
taining China and tackling Islamic
terrorism, feels former Canada
Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
"I think India will have lots of
opportunities to work with the
United States with the shifting of
focus by the new administration," a
release from the Observer Research
Foundation quoted Harper as say
ing here when he addressed the sec

ond edition of the Raisina Dialogue
on Thursday. The program was
organized jointly by the Ministry of
External Af fairs and the Observer
Research Foundation.
Harper, according to the release,
said: "My friend and Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and President
Trump will work closely to ensure a
better world." Describing Trump as
a realist politician, who wants to
focus on real issues af fecting the
US, Harper said issues like immigra
tion are really af fecting people in

many countries. T he former
Canadian Prime Minister also said
that as the US looks inward focus
ing on economic issues under the
Trump presidency, it could be good
for America and also for the world.
Over 250 participants from 65
countries are taking part in this
year's threeday dialogue, which
was inaugurated by Modi on
Tuesday. T he first edition was
attended by 120 participants from
40 countries.
January 21-27, 2017
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Ajit Pai meets Trump, may be appointed

to communications commission
Washington, DC: US president
elect Donald Trump met Indian
American Ajit Pai, commissioner of
the Federal Communications Com
mission, fueling speculation about
his role in the incoming adminis
tration.
No other details were immediate
ly available about the content of the
meeting that Trump had with Pai.
The presidentelect normally has
been holding meetings at the
Trump Towers in New York with
those who he intends to appoint at
senior positions in his administra
tion beginning January 20.
Pai is the senior Republican on
Ajit Pai
(Image courtesy: twitter)
the Federal Communications Com
mission (FCC).
Pai is widely expected to be

tapped as interim FCC chair when
Presidentelect Trump becomes
President on January 20 and could
be named permanent chair as well,
though his fellow Republican Com
missioner Michael O'Rielly is also in
the conversation.
He was nominated to the FCC by
President Barack Obama and was
confirmed unanimously by the Sen
ate on May 7, 2012.
Pai was born in the US after his
parents moved from India to the US
in 1971. His mother grew up in
Bangalore, and father was raised in
(PTI)
Hyderabad.
Indian American student

wins essay contest
New York: Parth Patel, an Indian
American student at the UCLA
School of Dentistry, earned a
$5,000 scholarship for his win
ning essay on how dental health
contributes to the well being of
children and families.
Kool Smiles, a provider of qual
ity dental care in underserved
communities in the US, an
nounced the winner of its first an
nual My Kool Smiles Scholarship
Fund essay contest, sponsored by
the Benevis Foundation, Indi
awest.com reported.
"I'm very excited to win the es
say contest and to use the schol

arship funds to further my edu
cation in dental school," said Pa
tel.
In his essay, the UCLA dental
student discussed his experience
growing up in rural India where
quality dental care was not avail
able and how his family benefited
from access to communitybased
dental healthcare programs after
moving to the United States.
Patel discovered his passion for
dentistry while volunteering at a
local community health clinic.
(IANS)
Indian-American ex-CEO convicted of 30 million fraud
Nanny Nasipho Nxumalo (inset) (Image courtesy: theblackloop.com)
Nanny singes two year

old boy with curling iron
New York: A twoyear old Indian
origin baby boy was burned by
his nanny with a curling iron
and the incident was captured
by a security camera leading to
her arrest, according to media
reports quoting police.
The baby's mother, Angela
Persaud, noticed the signs of the
burning on little Alexander's
hand and feet and checked the
security camera video in their
home in the New York suburb of
Baldwin, WABC TV reported on
Friday.
The recording showed the nan
ny, Nasipho Nxumalo, burning
him and she called the police, the
station said.
Police arrested Nxumalo, 21,
on Thursday and charged her
with assault and endangering
the welfare of a child, according
to media reports.
NBC New York reported that

according to court documents,
the woman admitted to the at
tack, saying, "The child wouldn't
listen. I wanted to discipline him
using the iron, so I burned him."
The injuries were not serious,
according to the mother. "It's a
little superficial burn now, but it
was welted (Thursday)," she told
WABC. The alleged incident took
place while the parents were at
work and the nanny was looking
after the baby.
Describing what she saw on
the security camera video, An
gela Persaud told WCBS that the
nanny "pulled out the curling
iron several times. She heated it
up. You see her showing him
that it's going to be hot, and, I am
going to use it on you.' You see
her yelling at him. You see her
(IANS)
grab him a few times."
New York: A 44yearold Indianori

gin former CEO of a firm has been
convicted of two separate fraud
schemes totalling more than $30
million and faces up to 40 years in
prison.
Shankar
Subramaniam
Xavier, who also went by the name
of Navin Xavier, was the Chief Exec
utive Officer of Essex Holdings.
He was convicted of two separate
fraud schemes totalling more than
USD 30 million.
The first scheme involved nearly
100 investors who purchased inter
ests in iron ore mining in Chile while
the second scheme involved unlaw
fully obtaining economic develop
ment funds from the state of South
Carolina. Xavier had entered a guilty
plea last week before US District
Judge Darrin Gayles in Miami to two
counts of wire fraud.

He faces a maximum statutory
sentence of 20 years in prison for
each count and a fine up to
$250,000 when he is sentenced in
March.
According to documents filed in
court, from September 2010
through May 2014, Xavier raised
more than $29 million from nearly
100 investors for supposed invest
ments in sugar transportation and
shipping, as well as iron ore mining
in Chile. Xavier used a false financial
statement, forged documents, and
false promises of fixed rates of re
turn, to induce investors to invest
with his company. He used most of
the money on his lavish lifestyle,
buying expensive jewellery, luxury
vehicles for his wife and on wedding
expenses, cosmetic surgery.

The second scheme involved
Xavier using Essex Holdings to ob
tain $1.2 million in payments and
approximately $1.5 million worth of
commercial real estate from the
South Carolina Coordinating Council
for Economic Development, a divi
sion of the South Carolina state gov
ernment that was supposed to be
used to develop a dilapidated indus
trial property into a diaper plant and
rice packaging facility.
Xavier provided false financial
documentation to South Carolina Co
ordinating Council for Economic De
velopment (SCCCED) in order to ob
tain the contract and later provided
fake contractor invoices and fake
bank statements in order to get paid
(PTI)
under the contract.
ATA elects new Executive Committee for 2017

New York: The American Telugu
Association (ATA), an umbrella
body of the community in the Unit
ed States, has held its board meet
ing at the Bellagio hotel in Las Ve
gas, Nevada on Jan 14th.
Karunakar Asireddy was sworn in
as the new president of the organi
zation. Aside from the ATA board
members, standing committee
Chairs, Regional Coordinators and
prominent Telugu community
members from across America at
tended the meeting. In all, more
than 200 delegates came from
across the US. Incumbent President
Sudhakar Perkari passed on the ba
ton to the new president. Along
with Asireddy, a revamped board of
The new ATA executive committee

trustees were also installed.
ATA unanimously elected 13 of
its board of trustees (BOT) from dif
ferent categories: Bhuvanesh Boo
jala, Parashuram Pinnapureddy,
Vinod Koduru, Jayanth Challa, Kr
ishna Dyapa, Ravinder Reddy,
Raghuveer Bandaru, Murali Bom

manaveni, Soumya Kondapalli, Ki
ran Reddy Pasham, Raghuveer Red
dy, Rinda Kumar Sama, Sharat Vem
ula. The new trustees will be in
place for a four year term begin
ning this year.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
All 5 Indian American

lawmakers nominated to key
Congressional panels
Washington, DC: All ve Indian
American lawmakers have been
nominated to key Congressional
panels, the media here reported.
All ve are Democrats, as are
the bulk of IndianAmericans.
US Congresswoman Pramila
Jayapal, elected to the House of
Representatives from Seattle, will
serve on the House Judiciary
Committee, helping to oversee
the federalcourt system and law
enforcement agencies, said a
report in the Seattle Times.
Jayapal said she looks forward
to working on immig rat ion
reform, criminaljustice reform,
reproductive rights and voting
rights.
Congressman Ro Khanna was
appointed to two key committees
Budget and Armed Services,

reported daily Mercury News. He
represents the 17th District of
California, which covers the
Silicon Valley communities of
Cupertino, Fremont, Newark,
Santa Clara, and Sunnyvale.
Indian
American
Raja
Krishnamoorthi, who was sworn
in as a Member of the US House
of Representatives earlier this
month, would be serving on two
inuential committees.
In addition to being the voice
of Illinois' Eighth Congressional
District, the Democrat will serve
on the House Educat ion and
Workforce Committee, as well as
the House Democratic Policy and
Steering Committee.
Congressman Ami Bera was
'Hate crimes against

South Asians increased
during US polls'
Washington, DC: South Asians in
the US experienced a spike in hate
violence and xenophobic political
rhetoric during the 2016 presiden
tial election similar to levels seen
the year following the September
11, 2001, attacks, said a report by
a leading South Asian American
advocacy organization here. The
report titled, "Power, Pain,
Potential," by South Asian
Americans Leading Together
(Saalt)
organization
on
Wednesday, mentioned 140 inci
dents of hate violence and 67
instances of xenophobic political
rhetoric aimed at South Asians,
Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Arabs, and
Middle Eastern Americans
between November 15, 2015, to
November 15, 2016.
It examined the dramatic demo
graphic growth of South Asians
across the US, particularly in the
South, and revealed how an
increase in population was met
with increase in intolerance during
the presidential elections.
About 95 per cent of incidents
were motivated by antiMuslim
sentiment, said the report, accord

ing to the website saalt.org.
"I think that the spike in hate
violence really quanties the level
of suspicion and mistrust that
many of our community members
continue to experience, feel and
see on a daily basis," said Suman
Raghunathan, executive director of
Saalt. The report also documented
that US Presidentelect Trump was
responsible for one in ve (21 per
cent) xenophobic political state
ments. "With over 4.3 million
South Asians in the US, policymak
ers must make it a rst priority to
address and dismantle the paradox
of our communities living at the
intersection of growth and hate,"
Raghunathan said. She further said
that report was crucial at this time
and "offers policymakers compre
hensive recommendations to
address hate crimes underreport
ing, improve relations between our
communities and law enforcement,
dismantle policies that promote
racial proling and shift immigra
tion policies to respect our com
(IANS)
munities' needs."
renominated to the House

Foreign Af fairs Committee and
House Science, Space and
Technology Committee. He is the
senior most among all Indian
American lawmakers in the
House of Representatives and is
also
cochair
of
the
Congressional Caucus on India
and Indian Americans, said a
report.
Kamala Harris, rst Indian
American to serve in the US
Senate, will serve on four inuen
tial committees the Homeland
Security and Governmental
Af fairs Committee; the Select
Committee on Intelligence; the
Committee on Environment &
Public Works; and the Committee
(IANS)
on the Budget.
January 21-27, 2017
Obama appoints 2
Indian-Americans to senior
administration posts
Washington, DC: With
only hours to go until
he leaves the W hite
House,
President
Barack Obama appoint
ed
two
Indian
Americans to key
administrat ion posi
tions.
Maneesh Goyal (left), D J Patil
Maneesh Goyal was
made a member of J. William US chief data scientist at the
Fulbright Foreign Scholarship White House Ofce of Science
Board while D.J. Patil was made a and Technology Policy since
member of the Nat ional February 2015.
Obama announced appoint
Infrastructure Advisory Council,
ments
for 27 ofcials to govern
according to a W hite House
ment
positions
and named two to
press release on Tuesday.
Goyal is the founder of several jobs requiring Senate conrma
companies, including 214, Live tion. T he wave of announce
in the Grey, Pink Sparrow Scenic, ments included several White
MKG and Pineapple Co, where he House ofcials, who will serve
also serves as the Chie f well after Obama leaves ofce,
(IANS)
Executive. Patil has served as the AOL News reported.
INDIAN-AMERICANS GET 1% REPRESENTATION

IN US CONGRESS: FORBES
Washington,
DC:
Indian
Americans, who comprise around
one per cent of the US population,
now for the rsttime ever also
make up one per cent of the US
Congress.
The community is experiencing
unprecedented political success
with all of its ve elected mem
bers being nominated to key
Congressional panels, reported
Forbes.
During last year's elections, four
Indian Americans Ro Khanna,
Pramila
Jayapal,
Raja
Krishnamoorthi and Kamala
Harris were elected to the US
Cong ress,
while
a
fth,
Representative Ami Bera, won re
election to a third term.
This represents the largest num
ber of Indian Americans to ever
serve in Congressional history,
said the report on Monday.
M.R. Rangaswami, the founder
of San Franciscobased nonprot
Indiaspora, told Forbes, "T his
doesn't count the scores of Indian
Americans senior staffers serving
on Capitol Hill working for dozens
of members on both sides of the
aisle." Beyond the leg islat ive
branch, Donald Trump's election

to the White House is also prov
ing a boon to some members of
the community, according to the
report.
Several other Indian Americans
are poised to receive presidential
appointments in the new adminis
tration as well. The recent slate of
elections and appointments is a
part of a relatively new, larger
trend: the growing success of
Indian Americans in the public
service arena, reported Forbes.
T he Forbes report said that
before outgoing President Barack
Obama took ofce for the rst
time, not a single Indian American
had ever served as an American
ambassador. Now there are two,
Atul Keshap in Sri Lanka, and Rich
Verma in India, who have earned
consistent praise for their diplo
matic work.
Nisha Desai Biswal serves as
Assistant Secretary of State for
South and Central Asian Af fairs
while her deputy, Manpreet
Anand, is also Indian American.
Many other qualied Indian
Americans have also served in
vary ing leve ls across the
Executive Branch.
The Indian American communi
ty has also made its mark on the
judiciary, said the report.
In addition to numerous local
and state judges like Sanjay Tailor
in Chicago's Cook County, several
Indian Americans are serving as
socalled "Art icle III" judges,
judges who are nominated by the
President and conrmed by the
US Senate.
In 2013, Sri Srinivasan became
the rst Indian American appel
late court judge after being unani
mously conrmed by the Senate
to the District of Columbia Circuit
Court of Appeals.
Kentucky District Court Judge
Amul Tharpar's name has been
oated as a possible contender for
the vacancy under Donald Trump.
"As Indian Americans have con
tinued to succeed and prosper in
the United States, their sense of
commitment to the United States,
desire to give back, and simulta
neously strengthen and be a part
of the fabric of the country has
also g rown as we ll," Sanjeev
Joshipura, director at Indiaspora,
(IANS)
told Forbes.
January 21-27, 2017
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Clash of titans in Telugu Tinseltown

Versatile actor Balaiah crosses swords with megastar Chiranjeevi
in setting the box-ofce on re, including in America.
Special to The South Asian Times
New York: Te lugu lmgoers
around the world, particularly in
Andhra and Telangana, had a
treat during the just concluded
festival season of Sankranti, prob
ably the best t ime for movie
releases in southern India.
This Sankranti was special as
Balakrishna, or Balaiah, a son of
late N.T. Rama Rao, and veteran
actor Chiranjeevi clashed at the
box ofce with two very different
movies: Gautami Putra Satakarni
and Khaidi Number 150. Khaidi
was released on January 12 and
Satakarni the following day. The
opening weekend raked in Rs 106
cr for Khaidi while Satakarnis
collection was impressive though
it seemed to have brought in
around Rs 50 cr. Both Telugu
speaking states waived entertain
ment tax for Satakarni. Telugus in
the US also enjoyed the movies by
ocking to the theaters as it was a
Posters of 'Gautami Putra Satakarni' and 'Khaidi Number 150

long weekend for them. The num
ber of their respective theaters
could easily be more than 100
each. Khaidi (prisoner) is a come
back movie for Chiranjeevi after
almost a decade. It highlights the
problem of farmers at a village in
the parched Rayalaseema region
of Andhra.
Kaththi Seenu (the hero) is a
smalltime thief who is trans
formed by witnessing the exem
plary work of Sankar (also played
DJ Ravidrums performs at
Trump's inauguration
Washington, DC: Indian
American DJ and drummer
Ravi Jakhotia, popularly
known as DJ Ravidrums
performed at President
elect Donald Trumps inau
guration at Washington
National Mall on January
19. T he "Make America
Great Again! We lcome
DJ Ravidrums (Image : alchetron.com)
Ce lebration" event on
Thursday saw performances by role in The Matrix Reloaded.
The New York born private party
singers Toby Keith, Lee
DJ
had performed at the 2009
Greenwood, rockers 3 Doors
Oscars
where two nominated
Down, the Piano Guys along with
the Frontmen of Country (featur songs came from Slumdog
ing Tim Rushlow, Larry Stewart Millionaire, a movie lmed in
India.
and Richie McDonald).
He has performed with Paula
Ravidrums was the rst Indian
American music director to show Abdul, Ricky Martin, Will Smith,
case his skills on NBC TV series The Black Eyed Peas and in events
"Howie Do It" and he is also credit like the HBO Emmy after party,
ed with inventing the process of Fashion Week in New York City
live drum playing while remixing, and Los Angeles, and a Michael
Jordan party.
according to his website.
He was also as voted 2010
Ravidrums also served as per
People's
Choice "Best Innovative
sonal DJ for Playboy founder
Dj/Drummer."
Hugh Hefner and played a small
by Chiranjeevi) and walks in his

footsteps.
A message of saving the farmer
and his land is skillfully weaved
with commercial elements that
are the hallmark of Chiranjeevi
lms such as Tagore, Indra and
Stalin. Chiranjeevi continues to be
terric in action scenes, though
he is not as agile now that age is
catching up with him. He wears a
lungi over a pair of gaudy jeans
and sings joyfully with Kajal, the
heroine. Ali, the heros associate,

and Brahmanandam, the senior
comedian, give comic relief.
The story of Satakarni revolves
around a Telugu ruler of the sec
ond century AD, who is strong
willed against foreign aggression
and vows to unite Bharat under
one umbre lla. Aside from
Balaiahs acting skills, Krishs
screenplay and direct ion are
major plus points for the movie.
Hema Malini as the mother of
Actors Pawan
Kalyan, Madhavan
to speak at Harvard
Chennai: Actors Pawan Kalyan and R.
Madhavan have been invited as guest
speakers at the 14th edition of the India
Conference at Harvard, one of the largest
studentrun conferences with a focus on
India in the US.
The conference, which will take place
on February 11 and 12, is hosted at the
Harvard Business School and Harvard
Kennedy School by the graduate students
of Harvard University.
The event will bring together business
leaders, entertainment professionals, and
many other leaders to engage in a con
versation about India's path to global
leadership.
"The king of Tollywood and Jana Sena
party, Pawan Kalyan will be speaking at
India Conference 2017 at Harvard," read
a post on the Twitter handle of the India
Conference 2017, on Monday.
"Really looking forward to having R.
Mad havan as a speaker at India
Conference 2017," the post read further.
Madhavan is excited and tweeted that
he can't wait to be part of the conference.
(IANS)
Satakarni is impressive. Kabir

Bedi and Kannada star Shiv
Rajkumar don key roles. Another
Bollywood import is the singing
by Shreya Ghosal and Udit
Narayan. Songs and the back
ground music scored by Chintan
Bhatt are melodious while pho
tographer Gnanasekhar, who shot
the war scenes in Georgia and
Moro cco, as we ll as Mad hya
Pradesh, drew praise. Its sequel is
also being planned.
Alderman Ameya Pawar

announces candidacy
for Illinois Governor
Chicago: Alderman Ameya
Pawar, who was the rst
Indian American elected to
the Chicago City Council in
2011 and then reelected to
his post in 2015, announced
Jan. 3 his intentions to run
for governor in the state.
Pawar made the announce
ment on his so cial media
platforms saying, With the
blessing of my wife and best
friend, Im in. Im running for
governor.
A Demo crat, Pawar is
among the several chal
lengers expected to run
ag ainst Republican Gov.
Bruce Rauner in 2018.
T he 36yearold Indian
American became 47th Ward
Alderman in 2011 and won
reelection in 2015. His ward
covers the North Center,
Lincoln
Square
and
Ravenswood neighborhoods.
Ameya Pawar
(Image : chicagotribune.com)
Pawar, whose parents came
to the U.S. from India in the
1970s, was 30 when he won
the Alderman seat in 2011.
Since taking over ofce, he
has directed $40 million in
TIF funds to libraries and
schools in his ward and the
towing bill of rights, among
other things, according to the
SunTimes report.
January 21-27, 2017
INDIA
Obama thanks Modi

for partnership
New Delhi: Hours before he exits
the White House, US President
Barack Obama made a farewell call
to Prime Minister Narendra Modi,
thanking him for his partnership
and to review bilateral cooperation
in various fields, including defence
and civil nuclear energy.
Modi in turn thanked Obama, who
leaves the White House on Friday,
"for his strong support and contri
bution to strengthening the strate
gic partnership between India and
the US", said an official statement.
"Narendra Modi received a tele
phone call from US President
Barack
Obama
yesterday
( Wednesday) evening," said the
statement from the Prime Minister's
Of fice. "The two leaders reviewed
with satisfaction the significant all
round progress and cooperation in
ties between India and the US in the
past few years."
Modi also conveyed his best wish
es to President Obama in his future
endeavors.
A White House statement said,
President Obama spoke by phone
with Prime Minister Modi "to thank
the Prime Minister for his partner
ship and to review joint ef forts of
US President Barack Obama made a farewell

call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
cooperation including defense, civil
nuclear energy, and enhanced peo
pletopeople ties".
Obama also recalled his visit as
Chief Guest at India's Republic Day
celebrations in 2015.
He wished Modi "warm congratu
lations ahead of India's upcoming
68th Republic Day anniversary".
"Both leaders discussed the
progress they have made on shared
economic and security priorities,
including recognition of India as a
Major Defense Partner of the United
States and addressing the global
challenge of climate change", the
White House statement said.

Obama, who visited India twice in
his eight year tenure, is leaving the
White House on Friday. President
elect Donald Trump will be sworn
in as the 45th American President.
Among other South Asian neigh
bors, Obama also made a farewell
call to Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani, who was joined by Chief
Executive Of ficer Abdullah
Abdullah.
The outgoing President expressed
"his deep appreciation for the stead
fast partnership between the US
and Afghanistan".
CBI to probe
Sisodia over 'Talk
to AK' campaign
New Delhi: The CBI registered a
preliminary enquiry (PE) against
De lhi Deputy Chief Minister
Manish Sisodia and some
unnamed state government of fi
cials to probe alleged irregulari
ties in the "Talk to AK" campaign.
"We have filed a PE against
Sisodia and other unknown gov
ernment of ficials, as there are
allegations of improprieties and
violation of extent rules and regu
lations in award of work pertain
ing to media campaign 'Talk to
AK'," a Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI) official said.
The campaign was an interac
tive session of De lhi Chief
Minister Arvind Kejriwal, under
which people could reach out to
the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader
through social media.
Reacting to the CBI probe,
Sisodia said he would be expect
ing a CBI raid in his office and his
home on Thursday morning.
"Welcome Modiji to the battle
field. I will be waiting for your CBI
at my home and my of fice," he
Delhi
Deputy CM
Manish
Sisodia.
tweeted. The CBI had last month

raided De lhi Health Minister
Satyendar Jain's OSD (Officer on
Special Duty) Nikunj Aggarwal's
office in the Delhi Secretariat over
alleged irregularities in his
appointment.
Kejriwal also took to Twitter
and said that Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has nothing else
to do except going after the AAP.
"It seems like Modiji has gone
mad. There is only one thing left
for the Prime Minister of the
nation to do to go after us," he
said. Calling Modi a coward,
Kejriwal asked if he unleashed the
CBI because the Bharatiya Janata
Party is losing in Punjab and Goa.
Congress demands RBI Jallikattu: Tamil Nadu's

Governor's resignation
'ARAB SPRING'
New Delhi: The Congress held nation
wide protests against "poor imple
mentation" of demonetization and
gheraoed RBI of fices in dif ferent
state capitals demanding restoration
of the apex bank's autonomy and res
ignation of RBI Governor Urjit Patel.
In Mumbai, several Congress lead
ers were detained from outside
Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, where
they were scheduled to hold demon
strations at the Reserve Bank of India
office. But they moved their agitation
to the railway stat ion after the
Mumbai Police denied them permis
sion to hold protests outside the RBI
office.
"We have submitted a memoran
dum at the RBI's headquarters in
Mumbai. We demand restoration of
the RBI's autonomy," Congress leader
Randeep Sing h Surjewala told
reporters. In a memorandum submit
ted to Governor, Deputy Governors
and Central Board of Directors of the
RBI, the Congress alleged that RBI's
autonomy and statutory powers have
been subjugated and compromised.
"Responsibility lies at the doorsteps
of RBI Governor for this erosion of
credibility. RBI Governor must forth
with resign taking responsibility for
the 'demonetisation mess' as also
permitt ing Mo di government to
encroach upon the jurisdiction of
RBI, rendering it as a mouthpiece of

the government," the memorandum
said.
"Indian National Congress has cre
ated and nurtured the institution of
RBI over decades," it said, and
demanded that "RBI's autonomy as
India's financial regulator be restored
forthwith".
In Delhi, addressing media person,
senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi
Azad said: "If I see the RBI Governor
anywhere I won't be able to recog
nize him as he is hardly visible in
newspapers or on TV. RBI's autono
my is lost, it has now become a rub
ber stamp of the Government."
He said the demonetisation of 500
and 1,000 rupee notes, announced
on November 8, has deeply hurt the
'National Income' and 'GDP'.
Similar protests were held across
the country in several cities, helmed
by senior Congress leaders. Apart
from Mumbai and Delhi the party
leaders held protests in Bengaluru
and Chennai, and also held in cities in
Bihar, Meg halaya, Uttarakhand,
Odisha, and West Bengal, among oth
ers. Hundreds of Congress party pro
testers gheraoed the RBI of fice in
De lhi w ith slog ans denouncing
demonetisation and the Centre's role
in "destruct ion of the RBI's
autonomy".
Chennai: Tamil Nadu experi

enced a sort of 'Arab Spring' as
thousands of youth rallied at the
Marina beach here and were all
set to continue their protest in
support of Jallikattu.
They rejected Chief Minister
O. Panneerselvam's appeal to
end the mass protest. He prom
ised to personally press Prime
Minister Narendra Modi to issue
an ordinance to allow Jallikattu,
the bulltaming sport banned by
the Supreme Court.
He assured the crowds of stu
dent and youths stationed at the
beach that his government will
take all steps to hold the tradi
tional sport. But the appeal fell
on deaf ears.
The peaceful protestors at the
Marina beach blocked the road
for some time, forcing the police
to do a mild baton charge to dis
perse them.
Protestors comprised mostly
members of various social media
groups though it is also said that
some nongovernmental organi
zations (NGO) are extending
silent support to the protests.
The Marina turned into a sea
of humanity as several thousand
young men and women demand
ed not only an end to the ban on
The Marina turned into a sea of humanity as several

thousand young men and women demanded
an end to the ban on Jallikattu. (Photo: IANS)
Jallikattu but also a ban on
People for Ethical Treatment of
Animals, which opposes the
sport. The common complaint
among the protest leaders was
that the Supreme Court had
insulted the Tamil culture by dis
allowing the animal sport that
coincides with the justended
Pongal festival.
Support for the protesters
grew, as students of SRM
University here announced
protest outside their institution.
Similar protests have been
reported at other places in Tamil
Nadu.
Lawyers in Namakkal district
announced a boycott of courts.
Speaking to the media, some
protestors voiced the demand
for Jallikattu and also spoke
against the central government
and liberalization of economy.
They also demanded a ban on
some multinational company
products.
In Jallikattu, a bull vaulter is
expected to hang on to the ani
mal's hump for a stipulated dis
tance or for a minimum of three
jumps by the bull.
10
January 21-27, 2017
INDIA
SPCongress together in Uttar Pradesh

New Delhi/Lucknow: Setting the
stage for a triangular contest in
Uttar Pradesh, the Congress has
said it will contest the assembly
election along with the Akhilesh
Yadavled Samajwadi Party.
Akhilesh Yadav said in Lucknow
there would be an alliance with the
Congress for the staggered election
starting on February 11.
"The CongressSamajwadi alliance
will form the next government in
Uttar Pradesh," Congress leader
Ghulam Nabi Azad said in New
De lhi, a day after the Election
Commission allotted the 'cycle' sym
bol to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister
Akhilesh Yadav.
Azad said the nittygritties of the
alliance, particularly seat sharing,
was being worked out.
Asked if the alliance would
include Ajit Singh's Rashtriya Lok
Dal (RLD), Azad declined to com
Akhilesh Yadav confirmed that his Samajwadi Party was closing a deal
with the Congress and smaller regional parties like the RLD.
ment. "On that (Grand Alliance), I
cannot say anything right now.
"T here has been speculation
whether or not this alliance is hap
pening. This is to confirm that it is
happening," he said. According to
NDTV, Akhilesh Yadav confirmed

that his Samajwadi Party was clos
ing a deal with the Congress and a
number of smaller regional parties
like the RLD.
It said Akhilesh Yadav had tried
convincing his father Mulayam

Singh Yadav to agree to an alliance
with the Congress for a sweeping
win.
Meanwhile, the Congress Chief
Ministerial candidate for Uttar
Pradesh, Sheila Dikshit, said she
would step down if asked to. "There
can't be two Chief Ministerial faces,
so I will step down."
Alliance talks between the
Congress and the Akhilesh faction
have been on for some days for the
sevenphase Uttar Pradesh election.
Akhilesh Yadav met Mulayam
Singh Yadav twice since Monday
evening, apparently to pacify him
and ensure that he does not pit him
self against the official party candi
dates.
Mulayam Singh lost the battle for
the 'cycle' symbol to his son after
the Election Commission recognized
the Chief Minister as the leader of
the Samajwadi Party.

Since then, Mulayam Singh is said
to be pondering his next move.
Informed sources said the veteran
77yearold patriarch had not yet
made up his mind on whether to sit
quiet or take the battle ahead by
contesting against the Akhilesh
camp.
The sources said Mulayam Singh
heard out his son on both occasions
since Monday but remained bel
ligerent over the developments,
igniting speculation that he could
eventually throw his hat in the elec
toral ring.
The former UP Chief Minister has
reportedly handed over a list of
some four dozen party leaders loyal
to him whom he wants to be given
ticket for assembly seats of their
choice.
This could become a bone of con
tention between the father and son.
Goa polls: Men who matter

Panaji: The 2012 assembly polls were largely
centered on the man of the moment, Goa's
seniormost BJP leader who promised hope
and change: Manohar Parrikar.
In 2017, however, after much water has
flowed under the Mandovi bridge gently
caressing the parked offshore casinos, after
the mining ban, after unfulfilled promises to
cut down corruption and after his elevation
as Defense Minister, the spotlight is now on
five personalities, each of whom is playing a
defining role as February 4 looms closer.
Parrikar, as Defense Minister, continues to
carpetbomb the BJP cadre with his charm
and industry, amid opposition barbs over his
constant visits to Goa. The indefatigable
Parrikar has, nevertheless, gone on to attend
more than 30 "vijay sankalp" rallies organ
ized by the BJP across Goa.
His significance to these elections isn't lost
on his rivals. "It is more of an election of
Manohar Parrikar individually, rather than
that of BJP or the RSS," Congress General
Secretary for Goa Digvijaya Singh told IANS.
Over in the Congress, Parrikar's guile is
somewhat met by state unit President
Luizinho Faleiro, who, over the last few
weeks, through clever selection of candidates
and outmanoeuvring aggressive alliance
seeking parties, has helped gain lost ground
for the party, which was in tatters since its
battering in 2012.
Reduced to an unprecedented nine MLAs
and with BJP poaching two of its "winnable",
but tainted, MLAs Mauvin Godinho and
Pandurang Madkaikar the late revival engi
neered by the former Congress Working
Committee member could see the outfit gain
a few more seats.
The party's gumption and confidence can
be gauged by its rejection of a formal alliance
with the Nationalist Congress Party and Goa
Foward, and its decision to allot a big chunk
of seats to fresh candidates.
"We may have made mistakes in the past,
but we've apologized for it. We are here now
to win people's hearts, not just the elections,"
Faleiro maintained.
Former PWD Minister Sudin Dhavalikar has
The Assembly elections in Goa are

scheduled to be held in single phase
on February 4.
allied with both Congress and BJPled govern
ments in the past but 2017 presents him an
opportunity to vault to chief ministership.
With the BJP weakened by antiincumben
cy, the formal absence of Parrikar and the
ef fects of demonetisation, Dhavalikar's
Maharashtrwadi Gomantak Party (MGP) has
ambitiously spread its wings this time, con
testing 26 of the 40 assembly seats, leaving
the rest for alliance partners Goa Suraksha
Manch (GSM) and Shiv Sena.
The three parties are gunning for the same
Hindu conservative vote that the BJP had suc
cessfully cornered in 2012. While he claims
the alliance is going strong, Dhavalikar, who
is its mutuallyaccepted chief ministerial can
didate, doesn't deny the possibility of a post
poll alliance with the BJP.
Meanwhile, the former high priest of the
RSS in Goa, Subhash Velingkar, continues to
torment the BJP and its leaders, whom he has
criticized (at one poll rally, he even described
the BJP cadre as dogs) for their neglect of
regional languages, especially in primary
schools.
His role and that of the GSM are proving to
be a thorn in the BJP's flesh. Neither the
Congress, nor the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP),
nor the MGP has been able to match the
intensity of Velingkar's accusations and sin
gularly antiBJP campaign, which has the RSS
and the BJP cadre in a bind.
"The BJP and Parrikar have betrayed Goa.
They deserve to be packed of f," Velingkar
told IANS.
To make things tough for the ruling Akali Dal, the Congress and the AAP have
fielded strong candidates against the Badals.
Punjab polls: No cake-walk for Badals

By Jaideep Sarin
Chandigarh: With the Punjab assembly polls
turning into a threehorse race for the first
time, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal
and his son and deputy, Sukhbir Singh
Badal, face the most serious electoral chal
lenge of their careers.
Unlike on earlier occasions, when the con
test was a straight fight between the
Shiromani Akali DalBharatiya Janata Party
(SADBJP) combine and the Congress, the
emergence of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
on Punjab's political scene has spiced up
the poll scenario, with threecornered con
tests on most seats.
And to make things tough for the ruling
Akali Dal, the Congress and the AAP have
fie lded strong candidates against the
Badals. Thus, for the first time in Punjab's
political history, the February 4 assembly
election will witness the biggest political
fight for the Lambi assembly seat hitherto
the elder Badal's pocket borough with
Punjab Congress president Amarinder
Singh, a former Chief Minister (20022007),
throwing down the gauntlet. Badal, 89, has
been representing the seat since 1997.
"I am contesting from Lambi as I want to
teach a lesson to those who have looted and
ruined Punjab. I will make a man out of him
(Badal)," said Amarinder Singh, who turns
75 in March and has announced that this is

the last election of his political life.
However, playing it safe, Amarinder Singh
is also contesting his home seat of Patiala
Urban.
The Akali Dal has tried to spice up the
contest for this seat by fielding Gen J.J.
Singh, the first Sikh chief of the Indian Army
and former Governor of Arunachal Pradesh.
It was the AAP which first upped the ante
on the Lambi seat by fielding Delhi lawmak
er Jarnail Singh, who came into the lime
light for throwing a shoe at the then Union
Home Minister, P. Chidambaram, in Delhi in
2009, to take on Badal senior.
Lambi falls in the Malout subdivision of
Muktsar district of southwest Punjab. It is
part of the Bathinda parliamentary con
stituency which is represented in the Lok
Sabha by Union Food Processing Minister
Harsimrat Badal (Sukhbir Badal's wife and
the Chief Minister's daughterinlaw). Badal
village, where the Chief Minister hails from,
is part of this constituency.
The AAP has made the election for the
Jalalabad assembly seat, held by Sukhbir
Badal, interesting this time by fielding sit
ting Lok Sabha MP from Sangrur, comedian
turnedpolitician Bhagwant Mann.
The Congress has stirred the pot further
by fielding Ludhiana MP Ravneet Singh
Bittu for the seat.
INDIA
India asserts its NSG

membership can be no gift
New Delhi: Following China's state
ment that India's entry into the
Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) can
not be a "farewell gift" to the outgo
ing US President Barack Obama,
India made it clear that it is not
seeking membership in the group
ing as a gift.
"Our views on India's membership
of the NSG are clear and have been
stated on many occasions before,"
External
Af fairs
Ministry
spokesperson Vikas Swarup said in
a media briefing here.
"India is not seeking NSG mem
bership as a gift. India is seeking it
on its nonproliferation record. I of
course cannot speak for other appli
cants," he said.
The statement by China, which
has been consistently opposing
India's membership to the elite club,
came after US Assistant Secretary of
State for South and Central Asia
Nisha Desai Biswal described China
as an "outlier" in the process of let
ting India join the nuclear trade
bloc.
"Regarding India's application to
the Nuclear Suppliers Group,
regarding nonNPT countries
admission to the NSG, we have
made our position clear before so I
will not repeat it," Chinese Foreign
Ministry spokesperson Hua
Chunying said at a media briefing in
Vikas Swarup
Beijing on Monday.
"I just want to point out that NSG
membership shall not be some kind
of farewell gift for countries to give
to each other," Hua said, referring
to Obama who will be succeeded by
Donald J. Trump on Friday.
T he US administration, under
Obama, strongly backed India's
membership in the 48member
NSG, which regulates global nuclear
trade.
China, a close friend of Pakistan,
has opposed India's entry into the
grouping, which has been an irri
tant in SinoIndian ties.
Beijing objects to New Delhi's
inclusion in the bloc, citing India's
nonsignatory status to the nuclear
nonproliferation treaty.
It argues that if New Delhi can be
allowed an exception why not its
"allweather ally" Pakistan.
January 21-27, 2017
11
Maneesh Media releases book

on eminent South Indians
Bengaluru: Maneesh Media
released their new publication
Jewels of South India Leading &
Emerging Global Personalities on
the eve of the 14th Pravasi
Bharatiya Divas here earlier this
month. The coffeetable book was
unveiled in the presence of sever
al dignitaries including Jagadguru
Dr.
Nirmalanandanatha
Mahaswami; founder Chairman of
T hyro care, Mumbai, Dr. A.
Velumani; Chairman of Sabinsa
Group of Companies, USA, Dr.
Muhammed Majeed; the Founder
Chairman of Dr. Sunny Healthcare
Group, UAE, Dr. Sunny Kurian; the
FounderMD of Emerald Jewel
Industry
India
Limited,
Coimbatore, Mr. K. Srinivasan; the
Founder Chairman of TACT
Consultancy Services, Kenya, Mr.
P. V. R. Rao; and the CEO of
Surana & Surana International
Attorneys, Chennai, Dr. Vinod
Surana.
Chandmal Kumawat, Chairman
of Maneesh Media Group, was
praised for compilation of such
publications making the world
aware of hidden Jewels among
Indians.
It is more than an honor for us
to be recognized in our native
land after achieving success in
Chandmal Kumawat (third from right), Chairman of Maneesh Media

Group, with other dignitaries at the book release.
the far distant lands, said Dr.
Sunny Kurian, while Dr.
Muhammed Majeed added,
w ith such compilat ions, the
young generations would surely
get inspired and learn to struggle
to achieve success.
The dignitaries honored during
the event included Dr. Arathi
Krishna, Deputy Chairman of NRI
Forum, Karnataka; Dr. Tejaswani
AnanthKumar, CEO, Smt. Girija
Shastry Memorial Trusts Adamya
Chetna; Mr. B.S. Yeddyurappa, the
Former Chie f Minister of
Karnataka; Mr. Bollineni Seenaiah,
the Managing Director of BSCPL
Infrastructure Ltd.; Dr. Anand
Jacob Verghese, Director & CEO
of
Hindustan
Group
of
Institutions (HGI).
The Jewels of South India book
also profiles bigwigs like Mr.
Yusuff Ali MA, the Lulu King; Ms.
Indra Nooyi, Adviser to President
of USA, Donald Trump and
Chairperson & CEO of PepsiCo;
N.R. Narayana Murthy, Chairman
Emeritus of Infosys; Dr. Ausaf
Sayeed, the outgoing Consul
General of India in Chicago; and
Azim Premji, Chairman of Wipro.
Established in the year 1999
Maneesh Media is headquartered
in Jaipur and has published sever
al books profiling eminent
Indians, including those settled
abroad.
January 21-27, 2017
12
OP-ED
UP elections Akhilesh back in the race with bicycle

By Prashant Jha
ith
the
Elect ion
Commission recognizing
the Akhilesh Yadav fac
tion as the of ficial Samajwadi
Party, and allowing it to retain the
bicycle symbol, the UP election is
truly open. It also throws up the
possibility that, for a first time in
over two decades, a party may
defy antiincumbency and return
to power.
In recent travels across East and
West UP, three things clearly
emerged. One, the CM is enor
mously popular. No one speaks a
word against Akhilesh Yadav.
People may or may not vote for
him but the CM is seen as an
aacha aadmi, good man who has
worked. Kaam to kiya hai.
A Lucknow Bania businessman,
whose family has been in BJP for
three generations, told this writer,
We now have a credible option in
Akhilesh. He is good for industry.
The government is responsive to
our concerns. He is clean. What
else do we want?
Read more| Akhilesh Yadav tri
umphs in SP symbol war: Why EC
didnt give the cycle to Mulayam
A Muslim student in Aligarh
said, He gave us laptops last time.
Supporters of Akhilesh Yadav celebrate after the Election Commission

allotted him the 'cycle' symbol, in Agra. (Photo: Pawan Sharma/IANS)
Now, I have filled up a smartphone
form; if he w ins, I w ill get a
phone.
A Brahman hote l waiter in
Banaras was a BJP supporter, but
added, Modiji is fine in Delhi, we
want Akhilesh bhaiya in Lucknow.
Look at the expressway he made.
A Yadav in Jaunpur claimed his
son was injured in the village. I
got to know six hours later. But he
had already reached the hospital
because of the CMs ambulance
sewa. These are fragments and
voices and none of this con
strues a general conclusion of a
By Jaideep Sarin
ith threecornered contests on

the cards in a majority of the 117
assembly seats in Punjab this
time, younger voters are likely to hold the
key for the major political parties the rul
ing Shiromani Akali DalBJP alliance, the
Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
for the crucial assembly elections on
February 4.
In a population of over 28 million, there
are over 19.7 million registered voters in
Punjab 10.4 million males and 9.31mil
lion females.
Of the total voters, 53 per cent, or nearly
10.5 million, are young voters, including
firsttime voters, in the 1839 age group.
Ironically, the young voters have to
choose between ageing leaders who are the
chief ministerial faces of two parties the
Akali Dal and the Congress.
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is 89
years old. His Congress rival, Amarinder
Singh, claims that Badal is actually 94
years old, while he himself will turn 75 in
March. The AAP is yet to project its chief
ministerial face.
All the four major political parties in the
fray are focusing on the younger voters
through social media, direct interaction
with top leaders and doortodoor cam
paigns.
"Our focus has been to enroll the maxi
mum number of new voters. Special cam
paigns were carried out in colleges and
other places to register new voters," Punjab
Chief Electoral Officer V.K. Singh said here.
Compared to the straig ht contest
state as complex and large as UP.

But they indicate that antiincum
bency against Akhilesh is low; that
there is public sentiment in his
favour; that he has followers
across castes and religions; and
that he has been able to carve out
an image of SP as a young, mod
ernist outfit away from its goon
da taint.
Read More| UP election 2017:
W hy gett ing the SP cycle is
Akhilesh Yadavs biggest victory
Mark it. Not all of this may be
rooted in facts. There are many
who have sided with Akhilesh
whose activities are not as clean

as they seen; he may be practicing
the same patronage politics in a
more sophisticated manner as
administrat ive appointments
show. But as a BJP worker in
Varanasi said, Akhilesh ne Modiji
ko bhi marketing main peeche
chod diya (Akhilesh has surpassed
even Modi in marketing).
This however, does not mean
that the e lect ion is done. UP
remains a completely open, trian
gular contest. Mulayam Singhs
candidates may still tear away a
section of SPs votes. BJP has
Modi, a carefully constructed
caste coalition of upper castes and
nonYadav backwards, and a pro
poor image going for it. They
have been the only party cam
paigning on the g round for
months; their outreach has been
deep; they are breaking into new
constituencies.
BSP has Mayawati, a core Dalit
vote spread across the state, and
possibly, arithmetic going for it. In
West UP, particularly, this will
play out in seats where she has
given tickets to Muslims. A former
pradhan of the Bassi Kallan village
of Muzaffarnagar, said, If father
and son are together, I will vote
SP. Otherwise Behenji.
Read More| Gift me UP,

Mayawati tells cadre on her 61st
birthday A senior cleric in
Deoband said that in the town,
there is a substantial Dalit vote
and so Muslims would vote BSP to
defeat BJP.
In Rampur, in the Swar con
stituency, Nawab Kazim Ali Khan,
known as Navaid Bhai, is banking
on a similar coalition of his own
Muslim vote with the BSPDalit
vote. This means that while SP has
the most popular CM face, if fac
tors like local candidate and arith
metic become predominant, the
game could turn either side.
And finally, it is important to
note that SP still has not released
its list of candidates; that alliance
has not been formed yet with the
Congress; that having been in
power has resulted in local contra
dict ions and rivalries which
Akhilesh has not been able to con
front yet. Most importantly, the
CM has not stepped out of
Lucknow to campaign.
All of this may happen within
the next 48 hours and it is only
then that we will be able to judge
if riding on the cycle, or hopping
on his chopper, Akhilesh would be
able to sell his grand narrative in
Indias biggest state.
PUNJAB ELECTIONS: YOUNGER VOTERS

HOLD KEY FOR AGEING LEADERS
Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is 89 years old.

between the Akali DalBJP combine and the
Congress for the past few decades, Punjab
will witness an interesting contest this time
with the AAP breathing down the necks of
the traditional opponents.
While the ruling alliance is upbeat about
securing a third consecutive term, it faces a
10year antiincumbency vote. Allegations

of corruption, nepotism, encouraging vari
ous mafias dealing in drugs, transport,
land, sand, liquor and others, are flying
thick and fast against the leaders of both
parties.
"The Akalis, particularly the ruling Badal
family (headed by Parkash Singh Badal),

has thrived in the past decade at the cost of
the state. People are fed up with their mis
rule and the mafia that they encouraged,"
Punjab Congress president Amarinder
Singh, who has announced he is fighting
his last election, has said.
While rural voters, mostly from an agri
cultural backg round in the Green
Revolution state, form a substantial vote
bank for parties, many of the rural voters
are also in the age group of the younger
voters.
The four parties have opted for relatively
younger leaders on several seats to woo
the youth this time.
"The Akalis (who are contesting 94 seats)
have their traditional votebank in rural
Punjab. The BJP (which is contesting 23
seats) banks mostly on urban votes. The
AAP and the Congress have made inroads
into the rural votebank of the Akalis,"
Ajmer Singh, an agriculturist from Sangrur
district who closely follows Punjab's poli
tics, told IANS.
While the AAP was in a stronger position
at the ground level around this time last
year, the party continues to have a major
role to play in next month's election which
could mar the chances of the ruling
alliance and the Congress.
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
January 21-27, 2017
OP-ED
l By Saeed Naqvi
ardon my naivete, but I cannot for the
life of me comprehend why the entire
US establishment, with the intelligence
community in the vanguard, is in convulsions
about the alleged Russian efforts to hack into
the US elections which brought Donald
Trump to power. The CIA must be lazy if it
doesn't hack into Moscow, Beijing, every
where.
The Washington Post on December 23
published a story by Lindsey A. Rourke,
under the headline: "The US tried to change
other countries' governments 72 times dur
ing the Cold War."
As a journalist, I have been witness to
efforts at regime change or attempted assas
sination of leaders. Ronald Reagan bombed
Tripoli and Benghazi in 1986, killing
Qaddafi's sixmonthold daughter. Qaddafi
barely escaped.
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was so moved
that he arranged for a delegation of non
aligned foreign ministers to Tripoli to com
miserate with the Libyan leader.
The Reagan White House was not pleased.
The power a particular Indian ambassador to
Washington had acquired depended largely
on extraordinary access to key of ficials
around the President. To preserve this price
less access, Rajiv Gandhi was persuaded to
sack Foreign Minister Bali Ram Bhagat. His
guilt? He led the "peace" delegation to Tripoli
at Rajiv's behest.
In 1987, in Managua, Nicaragua, Cardinal
Ovando Bravo led me to Mother Mary's stat
ue in the center of the town which had not
stopped "shedding tears" ever since the
Daniel Ortegaled Sandinistas came to power.
Mary's tears were not in vain. God was work
ing through the US which was financing and
arming the antiSandinista Contra rebels.
Mysterious were God's ways. The money for
the Contras came from a secret fund in Iran
(Devil incarnate for neocons) which was
receiving arms from the US for this extraor
dinary munificence.
It might be argued that the examples listed
above belong to the Cold War era. Well,
Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, all victims of
13
Western intelligence at
sixes and sevens
The strange sight of Trump and the US intelligence
not being on the same page on foreign policy.
US interventions, are clearly postCold War

enterprises. Agreed, the creation of the
Islamist Mujahideen did result in the Soviet
Union vacating Afghanistan, but at the cost
of the Afghan nation. Zbigniew Brzezinski
placed the matter in a kind of perspective:
"Our aim was to defeat the Soviet Union," he
said. "And not worry about stirred up
Muslims."
The tizzy in which the US intelligence com
munity finds itself might be a good occasion
to revisit the Syrian story to which I am wit
ness from the very beginning. I extricate
myself from a group of Arab experts at the
Semiramis hotel in Damascus, to keep an
appointment with Bouthaina Shaaban, senior
adviser to President Bashar al Assad.
How do you explain US ambassador Robert
Stephen Ford and his French counterpart
holding meetings in Hama, Homs and Darra
with rebel groups, in full public gaze? I ask
her. Shaaban, elegant and articulate, shrugs
her shoulders. "Just shows how much we

have been penetrated." Ford, it is commonly
known, was a great favorite of Hillary Clinton
when she was Secretary of State.
Among the senior Arabists in Damascus at
that time is also Edward Lionel Peck, a for
mer US ambassador to Arab countries. His
disgust with Ford's behavior is contained in a
letter he wrote to members of the group who
were in Damascus with him. There is such
universal endorsement of the Ford school of
diplomacy which borders on Secret Service
type operations that I feel obliged to give
Peck as much airing as I can.
He wrote: "I have been dismayed by the
accolades and support given to Ambassador
Ford, our man in and now out of Syria, for
stepping well out of the traditional and
appropriate role of a diplomat and actively
encouraging the revolt/insurrection/sectari
an strife/outside meddling, call it what you
will, that is still going on. I fear my country
remains somewhat more than merely insen

sitive, and is sliding into just plain rampant
and offensive arrogance."
Will Trump put an end to such shenani
gans?
There is something strained and edgy in
the way the neocons, the media, with the
intelligence community in front, have mount
ed a virtual war on the incoming administra
tion. It is actually a kind of blackmail. The
message seems to be: you will get more of
the same if you deviate from the ongoing pol
icy which sees Vladimir Putin as arch enemy.
Trump's commitment to "bomb the shit"
out of terrorists threatens to expose the dou
blespeak of established policy on Syria too.
So far the US and its allies have pursued a
policy riddled with ambiguity: fight IS and al
Nusra but also oust or at least weaken the
Assad regime a paradox which cannot be
reconciled. T he Russian policy is more
straightforward: fight the IS and Nusra in
which the regime troops can be decisive.
Trump is quite clear: seek Russian coopera
tion to defeat terrorism. Who can quarrel
with this line? The moment of reckoning may
also have arrived in Afghanistan, where the
Taliban are to be mobilized by Russia and
China to fight IS and Al Qaeda. Can Trump be
far behind? That's the tricky one.
In brief, with Trump's arrival on the scene,
the stranglehold of the intelligence commu
nity on foreign policy may well weaken.
The world of Western Intelligence is there
fore all upside down.
Naqvi is a senior commentator on diplo
matic and political affairs.
Trump to enter office with worst approval rating
onald Trump was set to become

President on Jan 20 with an
approval rating of just 40 per cent,
according to a new CNN/Opinion
Research Corporation Poll, the lowest of
any recent President and 44 points below
that of outgoing President Barack Obama.
Following a tumultuous transition peri
od, approval ratings for Trump's handling
of the transition are more than 20 points
below those for any of his three most
recent predecessors, reported CNN on
Tuesday.
Obama took the oath in 2009 with an
84 per cent approval rating, 67 per cent
approved of Clinton's transition as of late
December 1992 and 61 per cent
approved of George W. Bush's transition
just before he took office in January
2001.
According to the report, Trump's wob
bly handling of the presidential transition
has left most Americans with growing
doubts about the Presidentelect's ability
to handle the job. About 53 per cent say

Trump's statements and actions since
Election Day have made them less confi
dent in his ability to handle the presiden
cy, and the public is split evenly on
whether Trump will be a good or poor
President (48 per cent on each side).
Americans' impressions of Trump have
worsened since November. Trump's favor
ability rating has taken less of a hit,
decreasing by just 3 points to 44 per cent,
shows the poll. Trump himself shot back

in a tweet, The same people who did the
phony election polls, and were so wrong,
are now doing approval rating polls. They
are rigged just like before.
Yet what is true is that many Americans
remain confident that Trump will achieve
several signature campaign promises,
with most saying it's at least somewhat
likely that he will impose tariffs on com
panies that manufacture goods in Mexico
(71 per cent), renegotiate the North
American Free Trade Agreement (61 per
cent) and create goodpaying jobs in eco
nomically challenged areas (61 per cent).
About 50 per cent of Americans think
Trump will be able to simplify the tax
code or protect sensitive electronic infor
mation from theft by foreign governments
(48 per cent). About 44 per cent say it's
likely that Trump will be able to build a
wall along the border with Mexico.
About 4in10 think that the President
elect will be able to defeat ISIS, down
from 50 per cent in November.

More broadly, less than half (46 per
cent) say Trump's priorities for the coun
try reflect their own. The country is
almost evenly divided on whether the
policies he's proposed will move the coun
try in the right direction or the wrong one
(48 per cent right direction, 49 per cent
wrong direction).
Opinions on Melania Trump are mixed,
with a sizable share still unsure how they
feel about the incoming first lady (36 per
cent favourable, 35 per cent
unfavourable, 28 per cent unsure).
Trump's daughter Ivanka heads into her
role in the first family with more goodwill
than her father or the future first lady.
Overall, 44 per cent have a favorable
impression of her, 33 per cent
unfavourable.
The CNN/ORC Poll was conducted on
January 1215 among a random national
sample of 1,000 adults.
(IANS)
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
14
Janury 21-27, 2016
US Affairs
An early evaluation
of Obamas Presidency
By Shivaji Sengupta
o we are at the end of the Obama

presidency. By the time you read this,
sipping your morning coffee, getting
ready for work, youll be probably saying to yourself, Tomorrow, we will have
a new president! Barack Hussein Obama,
the 43rd and 44th president of the United
States, will be handing over the reins of the
country to Donald Trump. And so here I am,
the perennial pen pusher, sharing with you
my humble opinion of Obamas presidency.
People talk too easily, too loosely of legacy.The Oxford English Dictionary records
two meanings for the word as noun.Legacy
means, anything handed down from the
past as from ancestor or predecessor. Legacy is also a gift from an ancestor to later
generations. It is in the sense of a gift that
legacy is being used here, something of
value handed down. Generations imply that
legacy takes time, doesnt happen overnight.
Therefore, it is not yet time to pronounce
a verdict on what Obama is leaving us with.
Presidential historians, such as Arthur
Schlesinger, have said that to discover the
true value of a presidents contribution to
this country takes at least a decade. Many
presidents were unpopular at the time of
their leaving, but have risen in the publics
eyes since: Presidents Truman and Carter
are two examples. What we need to do instead, is take stock of the outgoing presidents achievements, or the lack thereof.
In his farewell speech last Tuesday, President Obama himself highlighted them in the
context of American democracy. He spoke
about the mandates of a Democratic America: equity in opportunity for everyone,fairness in judgment by applying the same criteria regardless of party, creed and color;
and taking responsibility to rectify public
ill through direct action such as voting and
righteous intervention. Change only happens when people get involved and demand
it, he said. He says that his - and Americas
- achievements for the past eight years, sup-
port these demands of democracy: cutting

down unemployment from nearly 10 to
less than 5; rescuing the auto industry; defeating Al Qaeda and taking out their leader
mental health coverage. Even the cutting

of unemployment into half had its critics.
Some said that what was produced was the
most menial of jobs. The rich continued to
If we take into
account the
dire economic
conditions in
which Obama
was sworn
in as president, he put
the country
back on its
wheels before
his time was
up. But it is
too early to
talk about his
legacy.
who master-minded 9-11, Osama bin Laden;
and, what he considers his single largest
achievement, the Affordable Healthcare Act
through which 20 million more people qualified for healthcare in the country. Because
of this law, offsprings can be under parental
healthcare until age 26, as long as they are
students; and, last but not least, healthcare
agencies cannot deny coverage to patients
with previous medical conditions.
Now, to be sure, Obamas opponents
would find objections to every one of these
achievements, except perhaps the one
about bin Laden. That is not my concern
here. I am satisfied that, if we take into
account the dire economic conditions in
which Obama was sworn in as president, he
put the country back on its wheels before
his time was up. Of course, the new laws
didnt please everyone, not even the Healthcare Act. It did not please the left wing of
this country that Obama did not go far
enough with healthcare; and the right was
adamantly opposed to any kind of govern-
get richer, according to the left; and did not

get rich enough, according to the right.
As far as I am concerned, the three areas where President Obama didnt achieve
enough were immigration, improving veterans lives, and improving the infrastructure of roads, bridges and tunnels.
Here, I need to point out the massive
obstructionist strategies that Republicans
adopted once they captured an overwhelming majority in the House of Representatives in the midterm elections of 2014.
Some of the reasons for obstruction were
ideological differences. Improving the
infrastructure, for example, would have
increased the national debt. But other oppositions were openly racist. For instance,
when Justice Scalia passed away, the Republicans in the Senate wouldnt even
give Obamas nominee the courtesy of a
hearing. When some Republicans pointed
out that Obamas nominee could be much
more conservative than any Hillary Clinton
would nominate if she became president,
the latter simply said that if that were to

happen, so be it; their purpose was to stop
Obama from nominating anybody to the
Supreme Court. The Republicans seemed
determined to forestall everything Obama
brought to the table just because, as President Carter bluntly put it, of his color.
In fact, Obamas presidency proved to
the American people and, indeed to the
world, that just as democracy doesnt
have to be the same all over the world, the
American president doesnt always have to
be the same: white, Anglo-Saxon and Protestant. As an African American, he made
the White House multicultural forever. In
his farewell speech he said, Understand,
democracy does not require uniformity.
Our founders quarreled and compromised,
and expected us to do the same. But they
knew that democracy does require a basic
sense of solidarity the idea that for all
our outward differences, we are all in this
together; that we rise or fall as one. Democracy represents the people.
President Obama is thus thrice representative of the United States: multicultural,
ideologically Democratic and a believer in
public good. As he leaves the presidency,
I am reminded of his very moving autobiography, Dreams from My Father. He
grew up in Hawaii with white grandparents. He had hardly known his Kenyan father, grew up away from his white mother
who worked for many years in Indonesia.
Young Barak, around the age of ten, also
went to that country, and lived there, becoming close to his Indonesian step father,
Lo Lo, only to be shipped back to the United States when he was a young adult. At
twenty-something, he was still finding his
identity, struggling to find his moorings.
Like an epic hero, Barack Hussein Obama
has completed his journey to return home.
But I do not compare him to the Greeks. To
me he is not Homer but Omeros, the fisherman in the Nobel Laureate Derek Walcotts epic, who travelled with the slaves,
from Africa to America, liberating them
after massive struggles, then coming back
home. Likewise, our 44th President has returned to Chicago, his adopted home.
Its good to be home. My fellow Americans, Barack Obama said in his farewell
speech in Chicago, his voice full of relief
but not without a tinge of sadness.not
without a tinge of sadness.
Ivanka stepping into powerful mode
ome January 20, one person besides Donald Trump, who would
don a new role, is his daughter
Ivanka, who is poised to play a crucial
role in her fathers administration.
Ivanka Trump has already quit her post
at the Trump Organization. She and her
family have moved to DC. She would fulfill
traditional duties of presidential wives,
while First Lady Melania Trump continues to live in New York with her son Barron as he completes the school year.
The 35-year-old businesswoman will
move to DC with her husband Jared Kushner and their three kids. Jared has been
appointed Senior Advisor to the President.
The New York Times has already
crowned her the most influential first
daughter since Alice Roosevelt Longworth.

And Ivanka-Kushner are set to become the
most powerful couple in Washington.
A CNN report on her had those close to
her describe her as smart, independentminded and relentless. The report aired
recently further said that like few others
in the incoming presidents orbit, Ivanka
has her fathers ear and his trust.
She... has a great way of being able to talk
to him, Don Jr. told CNN. He trusts her.
What Trump values most in his daughter, Eric Trump said, comes down to one
word: Loyalty.
So, although she may not have a formal
position in the Trump administration and
even may not be working in the White
House, she is quietly laying the ground-
(Photo
courtesy:
Reuters)
work for an effort that

could make her perhaps
the best-connected policy
advocate in Washington.
Making it clear that she
wanted to push for policies benefiting women and
girls, she recently sought
the advice of a group of
female executives and media stars in New York.
IANS
Ivanka Trump would

fulfill traditional duties
of presidential wives
while First Lady Melania
Trump continues to
live in NYC.
PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION
January 21-27, 2017
15
Trump sworn in as President,

lays down agenda
Washington DC: Donald Trump, the real

estate mogul and reality television star
who upended American politics and energized voters angry with Washington, was
sworn in as the 45th President of the United States on Friday noon, putting Republicans in control of the White House for the
first time in eight years.
He was joined at the inauguration by
members of his family, including his wife
Melania Trump. Outgoing President Barack
Obama, along with former Presidents
George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy
Carter were also in attendance.
Here is a transcript of his Trumps inaugural address as the new President:
Chief Justice Roberts, President Carter,
President Clinton, President Bush, President Obama, fellow Americans, and people
of the world: thank you.
We, the citizens of America, are now
joined in a great national effort to rebuild
our country and to restore its promise for
all of our people.
Together, we will determine the course
of America and the world for years to come.
We will face challenges. We will confront
hardships. But we will get the job done.
Every four years, we gather on these steps
to carry out the orderly and peaceful transfer of power, and we are grateful to President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama
for their gracious aid throughout this transition. They have been magnificent.
Todays ceremony, however, has very
special meaning. Because today we are not
merely transferring power from one Administration to another, or from one party
to another but we are transferring power
from Washington, D.C. and giving it back to
you, the American People.
For too long, a small group in our nations
Capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost.
Washington flourished but the people did
not share in its wealth. Politicians prospered
but the jobs left, and the factories closed.
The establishment protected itself, but not
the citizens of our country.
That all changes starting right here,
and right now, because this moment is your
moment: it belongs to you. It belongs to ev-
eryone gathered here today and everyone

watching all across America.
What truly matters is not which party controls our government, but whether our government is controlled by the people. January
20th 2017, will be remembered as the day
the people became the rulers of this nation
again. The forgotten men and women of our
country will be forgotten no longer.
Americans want great schools for their
children, safe neighborhoods for their families, and good jobs for themselves. These
are the just and reasonable demands of a
righteous public.
and stops right now.

For many decades, weve enriched foreign industry at the expense of American
industry; Subsidized the armies of other
countries while allowing for the very sad
depletion of our military; Weve defended
other nations borders while refusing to
defend our own; And spent trillions of dollars overseas while Americas infrastructure has fallen into disrepair and decay.
Weve made other countries rich while the
wealth, strength, and confidence of our
country has disappeared over the horizon.
But that is the past. And now we are look-
But for too many of our citizens, a different reality exists: Mothers and children
trapped in poverty in our inner cities; rusted-out factories scattered like tombstones
across the landscape of our nation; an education system, flush with cash, but which
leaves our young and beautiful students
deprived of knowledge; and the crime and
gangs and drugs that have stolen too many
lives and robbed our country of so much
unrealized potential.
This American carnage stops right here
ing only to the future. We assembled here

today are issuing a new decree to be heard
in every city, in every foreign capital, and in
every hall of power. From this day forward,
a new vision will govern our land. From this
moment on, its going to be America First. Every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs, will be made to benefit American workers and American families.
We must protect our borders from the
ravages of other countries making our
products, stealing our companies, and destroying our jobs. Protection will lead to
great prosperity and strength.
We will bring back our jobs. We will bring
back our borders. We will bring back our
wealth. And we will bring back our dreams.
We will build new roads, and highways,
and bridges, and airports, and tunnels, and
railways all across our wonderful nation.
We will get our people off of welfare and
back to work rebuilding our country with
American hands and American labor.
We will follow two simple rules: Buy
American and Hire American.
We will seek friendship and goodwill with
the nations of the world but we do so with
the understanding that it is the right of all
nations to put their own interests first.
We do not seek to impose our way of life
on anyone, but rather to let it shine as an
example for everyone to follow.
Donald J. Trump taking the oath of office as 45th President from Supreme
Court Chief Justice John Roberts on the steps of the Capitol Hill.
In his inaugural address to

the nation, President Donald J.
Trump vowed to put America
First at the center of all his
policies. Excerpts:
We will reinforce old alliances and form new

ones and unite the civilized world against
Radical Islamic Terrorism, which we will eradicate completely from the face of the Earth.
At the bedrock of our politics will be a total allegiance to the United States of America, and through our loyalty to our country,
we will rediscover our loyalty to each other.
When you open your heart to patriotism,
there is no room for prejudice.
There should be no fear we are protected, and we will always be protected.

We will be protected by the great men and
women of our military and law enforcement
and, most importantly, we are protected by God.
We stand at the birth of a new millennium, ready to unlock the mysteries of
space, to free the Earth from the miseries
of disease, and to harness the energies, industries and technologies of tomorrow.
A new national pride will stir our souls,
lift our sights, and heal our divisions.
So to all Americans, in every city near
and far, small and large, from mountain to
mountain, and from ocean to ocean, hear
these words:
You will never be ignored again.

Your voice, your hopes, and your dreams,
will define our American destiny.
And your courage and goodness and love
will forever guide us along the way.
Together, We Will Make America
Strong Again.
We Will Make America Wealthy Again.
We Will Make America Proud Again.
We Will Make America Safe Again.
And, Yes, Together, We Will Make
America Great Again. Thank you, God
Bless You, And God Bless America.
16
January 21-27, 2017
Trump admins radical

agenda on WhiteHouse.gov
Washington DC: While new President
Donald Trump was laying out a short version of his agenda in an inaugural speech,
his communications team was busy rewriting the White House website with a slew
of new objectives including scrapping environmental regulations it claims kill jobs.
Among the commitments was immediate
elimination of the Climate Action Plan and
the Waters of the U.S. rule, two administrative regulations Trumps predecessor, President Obama, considered environmental
safeguards. Lifting these restrictions will
greatly help American workers, increasing
wages by more than $30 billion over the
next 7 years, the website now states.
Trump made clear his administration
will seek energy independence for the U.S.
by giving a shot in the arm to the oil and
gas industries, a platform plank he touted
during his successful campaign against
Democrat Hillary Clinton.
The rapid reversal of prior policy drew a
sharp rebuke from environmentalists.
Elsewhere on the official sites Issues
section, the new administration spelled
out other top priorities, wasting no time in
sending a message it plans to aggressively
implement the new agenda.
On defense, the site vows to rebuild the

military to give America firmer footing
in pursuing peace through strength.
On trade, the Trump administration
intends to withdraw from the TransPacific Partnership and renegotiate the
North American Free Trade Agreement.

The site proposes a moratorium on new
federal regulations and states that Trump
will order the heads of federal agencies
and departments to identify job-killing
regulations that should be repealed.
On crime, the new policies include

plans to deport illegal immigrants
with violent criminal records and to
safeguard Second Amendment rights,
which Trump believes allow Americans to ensure their own safety.
Newly sworn-in President Trump signed a series of executive orders at the US Capitol shortly after taking
office, among them, formal nominations and a proclamation for National Day of Patriotism.
Protesters, police clash

along parade route
The various protest groups scattered

around the city chanted anti-Trump slogans and carried signs with slogans including Make Racists Afraid Again, a play on
the New York businessman-turned-politicians Make America Great Again campaign slogan. The incident occurred about
90 minutes before Trump was sworn in at
the U.S. Capitol a mile and a half away.
Police detained dozens of people and
said they had charged an unspecified number of people with rioting.
The group of detainees became a flash
point after Trump was sworn in, when a

crowd of several hundred that had formed to
call for their release turned violent, with some
throwing bottles and rocks at police, who responded with tear gas and stun grenades.
CNN reported that 90 people had been
arrested. Two police officers sustained minor injuries from people who were trying
to avoid arrest, police said.
Thousands of women are expected to descend on the capital on January 21 to march
in protest against Trumps presidency fearing
that it will violate womens hard-earned rights.
UN pick Nikki Haley breaks with Trump on Russia, NATO
Crimea region belongs to Ukraine, not Russia.

She also called to strengthen NATO, an
alliance Trump has routinely criticized.
But she defended Trump for looking for
ways to engage with Russia, arguing its
help will be vital on issues such as fighting
the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
The position of United Nations ambassador
in a Trump administration may be a precarious one, given Trumps skepticism about the
international organization called a waste of
time and money and just a club for people
to get together, talk and have a good time.
Trump has voiced skepticism about the
U.N. in light of the recent vote to condemn
Israeli settlement-building and Haley used
that vote as a vehicle for her own skepticism Wednesday, noting that America pays
for 22 percent of the bodys budget.
Nowhere has the U.N.s failure been
more consistent and more outrageous than
in its bias against our close ally Israel, she
said during her opening remarks.
Haley pointed to that vote, which passed
thanks to an American abstention, as proof
the U.N. needs a serious shift.
Big womens march in DC planned for Saturday.
Washington: Black-clad activists smashed

store windows and blocked traffic in Washington during US President Donald Trumps
inauguration on Friday, and fought with
police in riot gear who responded with tear
gas and stun grenades.
About 500 people, some wearing masks,

marched through the citys downtown, using hammers to claw up chunks of pavement to smash the windows of a Bank of
America branch and a McDonalds outlet, all
symbols of the American capitalist system.
Indian American Nikki Haley is Trump nominee for UN ambassador
Washington: Nikki Haley, President-elect

Donald Trumps pick to represent America
at the United Nations, faced little resistance
Wednesday at a mostly friendly confirmation hearing. The South Carolina governor
wasnt met with the firing squads that awaited other potential Cabinet members such as
Secretary of State-designate Rex Tillerson
or Education secretary pick Betsy DeVos.
Democrats asked her questions that might
drive a wedge between Trump and his proposed
nominee, specifically in regards to the United
Nations and the NATO, as well as on Russia.
Haley brushed aside concerns surrounding a new administration, and said Americans
should judge Trump by what he says after he
takes office, not by his campaign rhetoric.
Haley took a stance on Russia that was
stronger than that of her future boss.
She agreed that Russia committed war
crimes in Syria by bombing civilians, said
sanctions shouldnt be lifted on Russia until theres a strong change, and said the
January 21-27, 2017
17
Senate Dems will only confirm

2 Trump nominees on Day 1
Washington: The Senate was in a partisan
war over wholl get confirmed for Trumps
Cabinet on the first day of his presidency.
Senate Democrats are prepared to allow
two of Donald Trumps Cabinet nominees to
be confirmed on Day One but for them,
thats where the senatorial comity ends.
At the same time, Republicans are broadening their wish list of Day One nominees
to other Cabinet hopefuls, including Ben
Carson to lead the Department of Housing
and Urban Development and Nikki Haley
to be the U.S. ambassador to the United
Nations. The battle over who will get con-
firmed on Friday may not be defused, aides

say, until senators begin processing the
nominees later Friday afternoon.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer
(D-N.Y.) said Thursday that his caucus will allow quick votes on retired Marine Gen. James
Mattis to lead the Pentagon and retired Marine Gen. John Kelly to become secretary of
the Department of Homeland Security, two
national-security nominees whove faced
little controversy in the narrowly divided
Senate. As for another national security pick,
Rep. Mike Pompeo (R-Kan.) to become director of the CIA, Schumer said Democrats
look forward to beginning to debate on his
nomination but said a confirmation vote for
Pompeo might not come until Monday.
Trumps first cabinet members to be confirmed: Gen. James Mattis

to lead the Pentagon. Gen. John Kelly to become secretary
of the Department of Homeland Security.
In a longstanding inaugural tradition, the Obamas welcomed the Trumps to the White
House for tea on Friday morning, just hours before President-elect Donald Trump was due
to be sworn in as the 45th US President. (right up) Former President Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn Carter, former President Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton and former President George W.
Bush at the Presidential inauguration Jan. 20, 2017. (right down) President-elect Donald
Trump attended an inauguration eve concert at Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC.
Trump asks 50 Obama appointees to continue

Washington: US President-elect Donald
Trump has asked roughly 50 senior Obama
administration officials to remain in their
roles in order to ensure the continuity of
government, his incoming White House
Press Secretary Sean Spicer said Thursday.
Among the Obama holdovers were key
national security officials, including Brett
McGurk, special envoy to the global coalition fighting the Islamic State in Iraq and
Syria, the Hill newspaper reported.
The decision came as Trump is reportedly struggling to fill important posts in his
new administration.
Spicer told reporters during a briefing in
Washington that McGurk will remain at the
State Department until a replacement can
be named.
What weve ensured is that, for the time

being, weve got a team in place that will
continue to advise him and make sure that
the country remains safe and that our priorities will be carried out, he said.
Another top Obama administration official staying on was Adam Szubin, who
oversees international sanctions at the
Treasury Department.
Outgoing President Barack Obama nominated Szubin as undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence in 2015, but
he was never confirmed by the GOP-controlled Senate.
Szubin, who has served under Obama
and Bush, has been serving in his role in an
acting capacity.
A Treasury Department spokesperson
said Szubin would serve as acting secretary of the Treasury until a new secretary
is confirmed and in place.
Others remaining in government include
Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Work, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs Tom
Shannon, National Counterterrorism Center
head Nick Rasmussen and Dabney Kern, the
director of the White House Military Office.
Chuck Rosenberg, acting administrator
of the Drug Enforcement Administration,
and Treasury assistant secretary Kody Kinsley will also remain on board.
Prior to joining the DEA, Rosenberg served
as chief of staff to FBI Director James Comey.
Trump started slowly in appointing officials to key government posts, including on
his national security team.
The President-elect has filled out his entire Cabinet and many senior White House
and National Security Council (NSC) roles.
But of the 690 administration posts that
require Senate confirmation, only 29 have
been named.
That includes key staff roles at the NSC
and Pentagon, raising concerns about the
incoming administrations ability to handle
national emergencies, such as potential
terrorist attacks or catastrophic weather
events, said the newspaper report.
Spicer blamed Democrats in the Senate,
saying they have been slow-walking Cabinet nominees tasked with filling out many
of those posts.
Make no mistake, we are ready to go on
day one, the spokesman said.
18
January 21-27, 2017
Diljit Dosanjh to
star in Punjabi
superhero lm
'Dangal', Alia Bhatt win

big at Filmfare Awards
fter setting new records at the box
office, "Dangal" swept away the
night's three of four major awards
Best Actor, Film and Director while Alia
Bhatt won the Filmfare Best Actor Award
(Female) for her performance in "Udta
Punjab".
Attended by
most actors
of the
Bollywood film fraternity, the iconic 62nd

Jio Filmfare Awards was a starstudded
event hosted by actor Shah Rukh Khan.
After winning the Best Director award,
Nitesh Tiwari said, "This award is the
reassurance of how much people loved
our film (Dangal). So I would like to take
the opportunity to thank everyone in
India and abroad who loved and sup
ported our film. It means everything."
Alia, who came along with her
mother Soni Razdan and sister
Shaheen Bhatt, received the Best
Actor (Female) award from Sridevi
and Boney Kapoor.
On receiving the award, she said,
"It's very close to my heart (Udta
Punjab). Thank you Shahid for
sending the script to me. Today is
very special day for me. Sridevi ji
receiving it from you is an honor.
Another reason is my sister is here.
Got her out of home." Sharing her
father Mahesh Bhatt's
message, the actor
said, "My dad said
'I feel you are
going to win.
You should do
what you feel. If
you feel like
crying, cry.
This is a dream
come true for
me. Finally,
thanks Karan
for giving me
the first
Alia won the award for her role in the movie Udta Punjab.
break."
Amitabh
Bachchan
not
heading to
Hollywood
anytime
soon
Amitabh
Bachchan
made his
debut in
Hollywood
with 2003 film
"The Great
Gatsby", but he
is not heading
to the West
anytime soon. The megastar says he
has no offers from the foreign shores at
the moment.
Many Indian actors like Priyanka
Chopra, Deepika Padukone, Irrfan Khan
and Nimrat Kaur are crossing borders,
and making a mark in Hollywood.
Ask Big B about this, and he says he
has no plans to venture out to the for
eign shores. "There are no projects that
have come my way, so the answer is
no," Amitabh said over an email from
Mumbai.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Actress Sonam Kapoor won the Critics'

Award For Best Actor (Female) for her
performance in "Neerja" while actors
Manoj Bajpayee and Shahid Kapoor
shared the award for their portrayals in
"Aligarh" and "Udta Punjab" respectively,
in the Male category.
Sooraj Pancholi and Kriti Sanon pre
sented the Filmfare Best Debut Awards
Male and Female to Diljit Dosanjh for
"Udta Punjab" and Ritika Singh for "Saala
Khadoos" respectively.
While Diljit sung 'Ikk kudi' after win
ning the award, Ritika said, "I've never
acted before. For those who dont know, I
am a wrestler".
Karan Johar's "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" was
one of the most celebrated films of the
evening, with four awards.
While Arijit Singh won the Best
Playback (Male) for the title song of "Ae
Dil Hai Mushkil", Pritam bagged the Best
Music Director and the Best Music Album.
Amitabh Bhattacharya won the award for
Best Lyrics for "Channa Mereya" from the
same film.
Neha Bhasin won the Best Playback
Singer (Female) for 'Jag Ghoomeya' from
"Sultan". Holding her precious 'black
lady', Neha hummed the song and said, "I
would like to thank the entire team of
Filmfare, you guys rock!"
The film "Kapoor and Sons" won three
awards Rishi Kapoor won The Best
Actor in a Supporting Role (Male); Adil
Shaikh won Best Choreography for 'Kar
Gayi Chul', and Shakun Batra and Ayesha
Devitre won the Best Story and Best
Screenplay for "Kapoor and Sons".
Winning Best
Actress award truly
special: Sonam
ctress Sonam Kapoor says winning the Best
Actress award for "Neerja" is special
and that she will cherish the moment
forever. Sonam won the Critics' Award
For Best Actor (Female) for her perform
ance in "Neerja" at the 62nd Jio Filmfare
Awards. Directed by Ram Madhvani and
produced by Fox Star Studios and Bling
Unplugged, "Neerja" featured Sonam in
the lead. She essayed the late valiant
flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, who
lost her life while saving others on a
hijacked Pan Am plane a Karachi.
Sonam tweeted: "Winning the best
actress award for 'Neerja', was a
truly special moment... But it was
made more special because Aanand L
Rai gave it to me... love you sir.
Thank you Filmfare. I'll forever cher
ish this moment."
Actress Athiya Shetty also con
gratulated Sonam with a tweet:
"Congratulations to the kindest
one, Sonam Kapoor. Nobody
could have played Neerja with
such honesty and love. Shine
on."
Actress
Sonam
Kapoor.
Diljit made his big Bollywood debut

with Udta Punjab.
ctor and singer Diljit Dosanjh will be seen
starring in a Punjabi superhero film titled
"Super Singh". Diljit, who was lauded for his
performance in the Bollywood film 2016 "Udta
Punjab", tweeted: "'Super Singh' this June... Ek tan
asi Singh uton super (As it is I am Singh and on
top of that super)."
Helmed by Anurag Singh, the film will be jointly
produced by Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor,
Anurag Singh and Pawan Gill. It is slated to
release in June.
A tweet from the official Twitter account of
Balaji Motion Pictures read: "The first ever
Punjabi language superhero film is here! Ekta
kapoor, Anurag Singh and Diljit Dosanjh come
together for 'Super Singh'...Releasing June 2017."
Sometimes relationship ends: Karan Johar

on fallout with Kajol
roducerdirector Karan Johar, who ended
his longstanding friendship with actress
Kajol said sometimes a relationship ends
and added that he only wants to remember the
"great history" shared with the actress.
"About Kajol, I think enough has
been said recently. I don't want
to say any more. Sometimes,
a chapter ends... book
ends... relationship ends,"
Karan said at the launch
event of his book "An
Unsuitable Boy".
"Good friends" Kajol
and Karan Johar report
edly turned foes during
the release clash of their
respective films "Ae Dil Hai
Mushkil" and "Shivaay".
In his book "An
The Karan JoharKajol
Unsuitable
Boy",
friendship used to be
Karan,
who
had
in
est
among the warm
worked
in
many
block
d.
oo
Bollyw
buster films with
Kajol, also spoke about the end of his friend
ship with the "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" actress.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
SRK to appear on
Salman Khan's
'Tubelight'
The film is slated for a July 26 release.

ollywood superstars
Salman Khan and Shah
Rukh Khan will be sharing
the screen space in Kabir Khan's
forthcoming film "Tubelight".
This was confirmed by Amar
Butala, the film's coproducer
and Chief Operating Officer at
Salman Khan Films.
Butala tweeted: "When u have
2 of india's biggest superstars on
set it's MAGIC! Thank u @iamsrk
for making #Tubelight even
more special!
@BeingSalmanKhan #skf."
The talk was going around for
GenY girl and boy meet,

are physically attracted,
become friends, livein
together, sans any commitment,
then eventually fall in love and
get
married.
Familiar?
Extremely. Trite, oftseen and
offering nothing new. That in a
nutshell, is what Shaad Ali's "OK
Jaanu" is.
Adi (Aditya Roy Kapur), a fun
loving, small town guy who cre
ates video games, aspires to
make it big and settle down in
the US but does not believe in
marriage. Tara (Shradd ha
Kapoor), a girl from a broken
home who abhors the institution
of marriage, is studying architec
ture and hopes to pursue further
studies in Paris. They meet by
chance and are attracted instant
ly and become friends. Livingin
together where neither of them
can "haq jutao" on the other, is
their convenient arrangement.
They are happy together, party
ing, going on long drives and
yes, even sleeping together.
Sadly, the film is predictable
from word go and drags at an
quite some time and with

Butala's tweet has confirmed all.
After Rakesh Roshan's iconic
film "Karan Arjun", Shah Rukh
and Salman appeared together
in films like "Kuch Kuch Hota
Hai", "Hum Tumhare Hai Sanam"
and "Har Dil Jo Pyaar Karega".
Based on 1962 SinoIndian
War, this historical war drama is
featuring Chinese actress Zhu
Zhu, Shatrughan Sinha, Late Om
Puri among others.
Directed by Kabir Khan, the
film is slated to release on July
26.
ashmiri actress Zaira Wasim of

"Dangal" fame posted on social
media an apology for meeting J&K
CM Mehbooba Mufti an action for which
she had been subjected to vicious trolling
but later withdrew the apology after receiv
ing unstinted support from wellwishers
including Bollywood celebrities and leading
politicians.
After receiving accolade from the film
industry and elsewhere for her work in
"Dangal", the 16yearold met Mehbooba
Mufti, who enquired about her education and
interest in other creative fields like acting.
However, the Srinagarbased Zaira was
trolled on social media when photos from the
meeting emerged.
Without saying what she was sorry for, the
actress took to social media to apologize for
hurting the sentiments of fellow Kashmiris
and posted that she does not want anyone to
follow her footsteps or even consider her as a
role model.
But politicians like former J&K CM Omar
Abdullah and film celebrities Javed Akhtar,
Anupam Kher and Vivek Agnihotri came out in
her support, lashing out at those who trolled
her, questioning her 'azadi' (freedom) in the
country.
Later, however, Zaira deleted the apology and
posted a clarification but this, too, the actress
took down later.
The nowdeleted clarification read: "Regarding
my last post, I have no idea why this has become
such a big issue. I just wanted to make sure that I did
not hurt anyone's feelings and all of a sudden it has
been turned into national news. Again and again I
am telling people that I have not been forced into
anything by anyone.
"This post was not meant against anyone, just
wanted to make sure that people were not hurt by
Hackneyed and
superficial
even keel, offering no twists or
drama, thus making the viewing
extremely tedious. The treat
ment too is not novel and offers
nothing that has not been por
trayed earlier. The film is a mish
mash of several such films with
the same theme. Garbed in arti
fice, the story credited to Mani
Ratnam adds no magic to the
film.
Aditya Roy Kapur is competent
and essays his happygolucky
character with ease but is bound
by the limited script which does
not allow him to go beyond a
certain level. His chemistry with
Shraddha Kapoor is palpable,
19
'Dangal' actor posts, deletes

apology for meeting Mehbooba
Ok Jaanu
REVIEW
January 21-27, 2017
but that's all there is to it.

Shraddha Kapoor too is her
usual confident and charming
self, but is not able to add any
nuance to her flat character.
The scenes appear disconnect
ed and the actions of the charac
ters often defy logic. Shaad Ali
merely goes on with the narra
tive, as if with a set intention of
telling a story, no matter how
clichd. There is no element of
freshness to the plot.
Overall, "OK Jaanu" is a strictly
ok film, devoid of anything new
or interesting.
Actors Shraddha Kapoor and

Aditya Roy Kapur during the
films press conference.
g Geeta
ed the role of youn
Zaira Wasim play
l'.
Phogat in 'Danga
what I was doing. From media to everyone else,

please don't blow this out of proportion. Neither was
I forced nor am I against anyone. Hopefully this post
just stops this once and for all."
20
January 21-27, 2017
DIASPORA
Indianorigin appointed to top Malaysia lifts curbs on

military post in Kyrgyzstan hiring foreign workers
Dubai: An Indianorigin Saudibased
entrepreneur has been appointed
major general of Kyrgyzstan, a rare
military position occupied by an
Indian in the Central Asian country.
Shaikh Rafik Mohammed, who
hails from Kerala, was appointed
major general of Kyrgyzstan by Ali
Mirza, de fence minister of
Kyrgyzstan at an official ceremony
held in the country, Khaleej Times
reported.
It is a rare military position occu
pied by an overseas Keralite, said
Omar Abu Baker, media adviser of
Rafik.
Rafik, whose family resides in
Dubai, holds Kyrgyzstan nationality
conferred by its former President
Kurmanbek Saliyevich Bakiyev
whom he casually met in his 20s
while working in Iran, the report
said.
Rafik was invited by the
Kyrgyzstan government to take up
the prestigious military position in
view of his earlier contribution to
the country.
While there are scores of success
ful business tycoons inthe region,
in more sectors
Shaikh Rafik Mohammed (Image courtesy: hindustantimes.com)

this could well be the first time a
Malayali has occupied a top mili
tary leadership of a foreign coun
try. Rafiq earlier worked as an
adviser to the former Kyrgyzstan
President Kurmanbek Saliyevich
Bakiyev whom he met in Iran
where the young Indian entrepre
neur was developing a major steel
plant.
After selling the successful proj
ect to the Iranian government,
Rafik went to Kyrgyzstan and pre
sented a similar project to
Kurmanbek, then a governor who

was preparing to contest presiden
tial elections.
After Kurmanbek won the elec
tion, he appointed young Rafik as
his chief adviser a milestone in his
career in his midtwenties.
Rafik developed wide network of
friends in the Central Asian country
which has witnessed a rapid flow of
foreign investment and reversal of
socialist mode of development to a
capitalist mode of production, the
(PTI)
report said.
Kaula Lumpur: Citing critical need

for manpower and economic
progress following dismal recep
tion from locals, the Malaysian
government has withdrawn curbs
on hiring foreign workers for two
industries on Tuesday, a newspa
per here reported.
Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad
Zahid Hamidi announced that
Putrajaya city has ended the
moratorium and will now allow
foreign workers in the mining and
services sectors, and provide
"more leeway" for those in the
agriculture sector, reported Malay
Mail Online newspaper.
At 2.14 million, the number of
documented foreign workers from
at least 13 countries in 2015
exceeded the 1.99 million Indian
Malaysians the country's third
largest ethnic group after the
Malays and Chinese Malaysians.
Among the foreign workers,
Indonesians were 835,965 or
39.2 per cent of the 2.14 million
documented workers, followed by
502,596 Nepalese (23.5 per cent)

and 282,437 Bangladeshis (13.2
per cent). The government agreed
with the Agriculture and Agro
based Ministry to provide more
leeway for foreign workers intake
for the agricultural subsector of
chicken farming, Hamidi said in
an official statement.
The committee also allowed the
Natural
Resources
and
Environment Ministry to hire for
eign workers, on an interim basis
until 2020, for the mining and
quarrying sectors. Hamidi said the
Transport Ministry's also would
have foreign workers fill the void
of manpower in the services sec
tor, such as cargo operations at
ports. In February last year, the
Cabinet Committee announced the
blanket freeze but in May agreed
to allow certain sectors like
manufacturing, construction, agri
culture, and its subsectors such
as vegetable, fruit and flower
planting to continue hiring for
(IANS)
eign workers.
20% of Indian migrants

reside in UAE: Report
Mumbai: The migration of Indians
from the country to the United
Arab Emirates (UAE) formed the
second largest corridor in terms of
number of migrants in 2015,
according to a report released by
the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development
(OECD). The flow of migrants from
India to the UAE between 1995
and 2015 stood at 28 lakh, mak
ing UAE the top destination coun
try for Indian migrants (It ranked
fourth place in 1995). The corri
dor between Mexico and the
United States remains the largest
in terms of the volume of
migrants.
In 2015, the flow from Mexico
to US stood at nearly 55 lakh.
Migration flow between 1995 and
2015 has been computed by
OECD by taking the dif ference
between the number of migrants
in each of these two years.
In 2015, Indians account for the

largest diaspora in the world with
156 lakh migrants, according to
OECD's report 'Perspectives on
g lobal deve lopment, 2017:
International migration in a shift
ing world.' The report points out
that 24.3 crore people were living
outside their country of birth in
2015, accounting for 3.3% of the
world's population.
This was a significant increase
over the past twenty years in
1995 only 2.7% of the world's
population comprised of diaspora.
The move of migrants has increas
ingly been towards high income
countries.
The number of migrants from
India living in the UAE grew by
126% between 2005 and 2010,
accounting for nearly 20% of the
global Indian migrant stock in
2015 (in 1995, this constituted
just 9% of India's diaspora).
High Commission of India in Trinidad & Tabago celebrated World Hindi Day 2017,
on January 14th at Chaguanas Borough Corporation.
Indo-Canadians to mark India's 68th Republic Day

Ottawa: To mark India's 68th
Republic Day, an umbrella body of
IndoCanadian community organi
zations here will host a oneday
entertainment event in Brampton.
Panorama India has been host
ing this event for the last several
years to promote India's cultures
and
heritage,
reported
Mississaug a online daily on
Wednesday. This year's event fea

tures cultural exhibits, a folk
dance competition along with the
Panorama Idol finale, a Bollywood
singing competition, where peo
ple can vote for their favorite
singers.
There would also be a drawing
competition for children and an
exhibition of handicrafts, ethnic
outfits, jewellery and food show

casing various regions of India.
On January 26, a large number of
IndoCanadians, leaders and
politicians are expected to attend
a flaghoisting ceremony at the
Indian mission in Toronto.
Consul General Dinesh Bhatia
would lead the ceremony with his
(IANS)
wife Seema.
SUBCONTINENT
January 21-27, 2017
21
Afghan attackers 'live, recruit 'Pak to give befitting

reply in case of Indian
and operate' in Pak: Ghani
Kabul: Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani told Pakistan Army chief
General Qamar Javed Bajwa that
those who recently launched
attacks in Afghanistan "lived, were
recruited and operated freely in
Pakistan and no action was taken
against them", a Presidential Palace
statement said.
Ghani's allegations came during a
phone call with Pakistan Army chief
General Qamar Bajwa, who tele
phoned the Afghan President on
Sunday to condemn recent attacks
in the country.
General Bajwa of fered intelli
gence cooperation and border man
agement to stop illegal crossborder
movement, the army said.
The offer came following attacks
in Kabul, Kandahar and Helmand in
which at least 60 people, including
five UAE diplomats, were killed.
Taliban claimed the attacks in Kabul
and Helmand and denied involve
ment in the Kandahar attack, which
they blamed on the internal power
strugg le between of ficials in
Kandahar.
"In his telephonic talk, President
surgical strike'
President Ghani said he wants serious talks with Pakistan.

Ghani vowed to take revenge from
the perpetrators of the terrorist
attacks and said his country is
ready to ensure security of his
country," a statement from Ghani's
office said.
"He again described terrorism and
extremism as a serious threat for
Bangladesh court
sentences 26 to
death in murder case
Dhaka: A Bangladeshi
court sentenced 26
persons to death in a
sensat ional seven
murder
case
in
Narayanganj area of
the country in 2014.
T hose g iven the
death penalty included
former Narayanganj
councilor Nur Hossain
who was extradited
from Kolkata, and for
The investigation took almost a year.
mer Bangladesh Army
Lt Col Tarek Sayeed for abduct verdict to be implemented as
ing and killing seven persons in soon as possible and hope the
April 2014, Dhaka Tribune high court upholds it," Nazrul's
wife Selina Islam Beauty told the
reported.
At least nine others have been media.
Chandan's daughter Sushmita
given various jail terms.
T he bo dies of those killed, Sarkar said: "We want quick exe
including that of former city cution."
Counsel Shakhawat Hossain,
Councilor Nazrul Islam and sen
ior lawyer Chandan Kumar who represented Chandan's fami
Sarkar, were found floating in a ly, said he was happy with the
verdict, but wanted all the 35 to
river several days later.
The court said all the 35 per get the death penalty.
However, the defense counsel
sons, of whom 19 were from the
Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), said they will challenge the ver
were guilty of the murders. dict in the high court.
According to Law Minister
Twe lve of the convicts are
absconding. The families of the Anisul Huq, the verdict indicates
victims said they were satisfied that criminals, irrespective of
with the verdict. "We want the their identity, will not be spared.
the region and the world and said

that lack of determination to fight
against the common threat could
pose dangers to Pakistan itself and
the region," the statement added.
President Ghani said he wants
"serious talks" to discuss Kabul's
future relationship with Pakistan.
Islamabad: Pakistan Defense

Minister Khawaja Asif said the
country's armed forces would
respond with full force if India
tried to carry out any surgical
strikes inside Pakistan.
This comes days after Indian
Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat said
that "surgical strikes in Pakistan
cannot be ruled out".
Khawaja Asif, in a fiery speech,
said: "If India dared to carry out
surgical strikes inside Pakistan, a
be fitt ing response would be
meted out."
He also said that India's past
claims of surgical strikes were
found to be "baseless and false".
Asif claimed that the Kashmiri
struggle for freedom, India's
internal political compulsion, and
its avoidance of composite dia
logue were among the reasons
behind its ceasefire violations
along the Line of Control and
International Border.
He informed the Senate that
India had carried out 330 cease
Minister Khawaja Asif claims

that India carried out 330
ceasefire violations.
fire violations 290 along the
LoC and 40 along the IB until
December 2016, in which 45
civilians were killed and 138 oth
ers injured.
The frequency of violations
had declined after December, he
said.
Asif told the Senate that the
violations had been reported to
the UN Military Observers Group
and the UN had been apprised
for the purpose of investigations.
Nepal invites new Indian Army

chief to visit in Feb
Kathmandu: Nepal has extended an
invitation to new Indian Army chief
Gen. Bipin Rawat to visit the coun
try in February, a Nepal Army
spokesperson here said.
A cabinet meet ing recently
approved issuance of an invitation
for the new Indian Army chief to
Nepal which would possibly the
first foreign visit by Gen Rawat
after assuming office on December
31.
Nepal Army spokesperson Brig
Gen Tara Bahadur Karki said the
proposed visit of Gen Rawat has
been approved recently and the
itinerary of his visit would be made
public soon.
T he visit will come at a time
when Nepal and China are holding
General Bipin Rawat is the 27th

Chief of Indian Army Staff.
their firstever military exercise in
Nepal. The proposed military drill
between Nepal and China, with the
aim of counterterrorism and disas

ter management, has raised eye
brows in strategic circle in New
Delhi due to traditionally close mili
tary and strategic ties between
Nepal and India.
During the visit, as per estab
lished practice, Gen. Rawat will be
conferred with the rank of hon
orary General of the Nepal Army by
President Bidhya Devi Bhandari.
A special function will be organ
ized at the President's Office for the
funct ion where Gen Rawat, a
Gurkha Regiment of ficer of the
Indian Army, will be honored for
his "commendable military prowess
and immeasurable contribution to
fostering India's long standing and
friendly ties with Nepal".
Sri Lanka faces severe drought conditions

Colombo: Several districts in Sri
Lanka would face severe drought
conditions in the coming three
weeks as very little rain was expect
ed, the country's disaster manage
ment officials said.
Disaster management of ficials
were quoted by Xinhua news
agency as say ing that at least
10,000 people were affected by the
ongoing drought, which, it called
"the worst droug ht in four
decades". T he numbers were
expected to increase in the coming
weeks. Drinking water was distrib

uted in 17 districts to families who
faced a severe water shortage and
President Maithripala Sirisena said
that the triforces were also
deployed to assist people in the
affected areas.
Disaster Management Minister
Anura Yapa said the government
was gearing up to deal w ith
drought relief, including food and
water but early conservat ion
ef forts could help mitigate the
coming crisis.
Lankan authorities have expressed

concern that the situation may
lead to social instability.
22 January 21-27, 2017
INTERNATIONAL
'Won't renegotiate
'China will take off the gloves,
if Trump messes with Taiwan' n-deal because of Trump'
Beijing: China will not shy away
from taking "off the gloves", if the
US wants to use Taiwan as a "bar
gaining chip", a Chinese daily
warned.
An editorial in staterun China
Daily called Taiwan a "Pandora's
box" which had "the lethal potential
to upend" SinoUS ties.
The hardhitting article came in
the wake of US Presidentelect D
Donald Trump's recent interview to
a newspaper in which the former
realestate mogul said America need
not consider Taiwan as an integral
part of China.
"Taiwan has been of f limits in
ChinaUS diplomacy thanks to the
understanding that it is a Pandora's
box of lethal potential, and that
opening it may upend the hard
earned, firmly held fundamentals
governing the relationship."
"If Trump is determined to use
this gambit on taking office, a peri
od of fierce, damaging interactions
will be unavoidable, as Beijing will
have no choice but to take off the
gloves." Taiwan, a selfruled island,
is claimed by China. The US, since
1979, has acceded to the 'One
China' policy and refrained from
diplomatic ties with Taiwan.
Trump had said that one China policy was up for negotiation.
USChina ties have come under
severe strain after Trump made
incendiary remarks against the sec
ondlargest economy of the world.
Besides Taiwan, Trump has
aggressively challenged Beijing's
sovereignty over the disputed South
China Sea. So much so that US
Secretary of Statee lect Rex
Tillerson threatened to bar China
from the islands in the contested
waters. The paper said China chose
not to slam the US when Trump
received the phone call from
Taiwan President TsaiIng Wen.
Instead, the Chinese Foreign
Trump hails Brexit,

vows swift trade deal
with Britain
Minister termed the call a "petty

trick" by Taipei, the paper said.
It said Beijing showed patience
even when Trump told a news chan
nel that the US would not "be bound
by the One China policy".
"Beijing simply reiterated that
acknowledgment of One China is
fundamental, and nonnegotiable,
for healthy ties."
However, the paper said that
Trump's reiterating the same point
in another newspaper interview
cannot be a repeated mistake.
"To many, that was a mistake
Trump made twice."
Tehran: The President of Iran

said his country would not
accept a renegotiation of its
nuclear agreement even if the
Presidentelect of the United
States demands one.
Hassan Rouhani said at a press
conference that renegotiating the
deal with Donald Trump's incom
ing administration was out of the
question, Efe news reports.
"We cannot reverse a deal
whose signature required years
of negotiations, article by article
and word for word," Rouhani
said.
He added that he be lieved
Trump's critical views on the
Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action (JCPOA) would not have
much impact because it was not a
bilateral agreement between Iran
and the USA, but rather a multi
lateral one between several par
ties. Trump has repeatedly lam
basted the deal, while his
appointee to lead the State
Department, Rex Tillerson, said
last week that the deal needed to
undergo a "full review."
This stance heavily contradicts
the views of the plan's other sig
natories, such as Russia, China,
of fer Britain a quick and fair

trade deal w ith the United
States within weeks of taking
office, saying that "we're gonna
work very hard to get it done
quickly and done properly.
Good for both sides," Xinhua
news agency reported.
The US Presidentelect also
predicted that other countries
would follow Britain's lead in
leaving the European Union. "I
think people want ... their own
identity, so if you ask me ... I
be lieve others w ill leave,"
Trump said.
Britain, France and Germany,

who along with the US make up
the P5+1 group.
The deal, signed in July 2015,
led to a lifting of sanctions on the
Asian country in exchange for
limitations to its nuclear pro
gram.
Rouhani said that the lifting of
sanctions "has proven Iran's suc
cess in the nuclear deal," citing
the removal of sanctions against
the oil, gas and transportation
industries.
The Iranian leader described
the JCPOA as a "political victory"
for his country.
Trump offers Russia deal

to end sanctions
Trump vowed to strike a swift trade deal with Britain.

Washington: US Presidentelect
Donald Trump said in an inter
view that Britain's exit from the
European Union will turn out to
be "a great thing" and pledged
to strike a swift trade deal with
Britain.
"I think Brexit is going to end
up being a great thing," Trump
told the Times of London news
paper during an interview. "I'll
te ll you, the fact that your
pound sterling has gone down?
Great. Because business is
unbelievable in a lot of parts in
the UK." Trump pledged to
The deal was signed

in July 2015.
Trump criticized Russia for its

intervention in the Syrian war.
London: US Presidentelect
Donald Trump told a British
newspaper that he will offer
to end sanctions against
Russia in return for a
nuclear arms reduction deal
with the Kremlin.
In an interview with the
Times of London, Trump
said he wanted nuclear
weapons arsenals of the
world's two biggest nuclear
powers the US and Russia
to be "reduced very sub
stantially".
"They have sanctions on
Russia let's see if we can
make some good deals with
Russia. For one thing, I think
nuclear weapons should be
way down and reduced very
substantially, that's part of
it," Trump was quoted by the
newspaper as saying.
However, on December 22
Trump tweeted that the US
must "greatly strengthen
and expand its nuclear capa
bility until the world comes
to its senses regarding
nukes". Around the same
time, Russian leader
Vladimir Putin also called for
the strengthening of "strate
gic nuclear forces".
Trump said the North

Atlantic Treaty Organisation
(NATO), an alliance formed
to counter the military
power of the former USSR,
has become obsolete.
Trump also criticized
Russia for its intervention in
the Syrian war, describing it
as "a very bad thing" that
had led to a "terrible human
itarian situation".
In Moscow, Members of
Parliament gave a mixed
reaction to Trump's state
ment on the sanctions
imposed by the Obama
administration on Moscow
over the Ukraine crisis.
Konstantin Kosachev, head
of the upper house of parlia
ment's International Affairs
Committee, was cited by RIA
Novosti news agency as say
ing that getting the sanc
tions annulled was not a goal
in itself and not worth mak
ing security concessions for.
But another Russian sena
tor, Oleg Morozov, was quot
ed by the same agency as
saying that Moscow would
be ready to discuss the issue
of nuclear cuts, something,
he said, Russia itself favored.
January 21-27, 2017
BUSINESS
23
World needs India as much as India needs it: Modi
Narendra Modi also said that the

relations between India and US are
witnessing expansion across the spectrum.
New Delhi: The world needs India's sus

tained rise as much as India needs the
world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said
on Tuesday but warned "parochial and pro
tectionist attitudes" are threatening globali
sation goals and "nonstate actors" are stok
ing instability, violence and extremism.
He also pitched for a new "open and
inclusive" security architecture in the Asia
Pacific region and asked Pakistan to aban
don terrorism if it wanted dialogue with
India. Modi also said that the relations
between India and US are witnessing
expansion across the spectrum.
"India's transformation is not separated
from its external context. Our economic
growth, employment opportunities for our
youth, our access to capital, technology,
markets and resources and security of our
nation are all deeply impacted by develop
ments in the world. But, the reverse is also
true. The world needs India's sustained rise
as much as India needs the world," Modi
said while inaugurating the Second Raisina
Dialogue, India's flagship geopolitical con
ference.
Noting that self interest alone is "neither
in our culture nor in our behavior", he said
IMF cuts India's 2016

growth forecast
United Nations/Washington:
T he International Monetary
Fund cut India's growth esti
mate for the current fiscal year
by one percent to 6.6 percent
unseating the nation as the
world's fastest growing econo
my for 2016.
A senior IMF official, Maurice
Obstfeld, said that, however,
"this is likely to be temporary
factor" and that he expected a
full bounce back after the 2017
fiscal year.
The IMF's World Economic
Outlook Update released here
said the cut was "primarily due
to the temporary negative con
sumption shock induced by cash
shortages and payment disrup
tions associated with the recent
currency note withdrawal and
exchange initiative".
The earlier Outlook report
released in October, projected
India's growth at 7.6 percent for
both 2016 and 2017 fiscal
years. The Update trims the
2017 projection to 7.2 percent.

Obstfeld, who is the Economic
Counse llor and Director of
Research, backed the aim of the
demonetization measures. "We
agree with the general goal that
motivated this, which is reduc
ing the extent of illicit transac
tions," he said.
For getting growth back on
track, he said that the govern
ment can help "by ensuring that
cash supplies are adequate for
the transactions the economy
needs to carry out".
Although India falls by a tiny
0.1 percent for 2016 behind
China, whose economic growth
is estimated at 6.7 percent,
India is back at the top for 2017
projections with a 7.2 percent
to China's 6.5, and for 2018 at
7.7 percent to 6 percent.
Overall, the world economy was
expected to grow by 3.4 percent
in 2017 and 3.6 percent in
2018. For 2016, the estimate
was 3.1 percent.
that India's economic and political rise rep

resents a "regional and global opportunity
of great significance".
"Our actions and aspirations, capacities
and human capital, democracy and demog
raphy, and strength and success will contin
ue to be an anchor for all round regional
and global progress," Modi said.
Attacking Pakistan over its support to
extremism, Modi said that India alone can
not walk the path of peace and that
Pakistan must reciprocate the sentiment in
letter and spirit.
"A thriving wellconnected and integrated
neighborhood is my dream... My vision for
our neighborhood puts premium on peace
ful and harmonious ties with entire South
Asia. That vision had led me to invite lead
ers of all SAARC nat ions, including
Pakistan, for my swearing in. For this
vision, I had also traveled to Lahore.
"But, India alone cannot walk the path of
peace. It also has to be Pakistan's journey
to make. Pakistan must walk away from ter
ror if it wants to walk towards dialogue
with India," he added. The Prime Minister
pointed out that India has redefined,
despite uncertainty and conflict, partner
ships with Gulf and West Asia, including

Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar and Iran.
Visavis China, MOdi said it was "not
unnatural" for two large neighboring pow
ers to have "some differences".
"In our eng agement w ith China, as
President Xi and I agreed, we have sought
to tap the vast area of commercial and busi
ness opportunities in the relationship. I see
the development of India and China as an
unprecedented opportunity, for our two
countries and for the whole world," Modi
said.
The Prime Minister said that over the
past two and a half years, his government
has given a strong momentum to India's
engagement with the US, Russia, Japan and
other major global powers.
"These partnerships are a good fit with
India's economic priorities of capital and
capacities, commerce and technology,
industry and infrastructure, skills and
development, and defense and security," he
said.
On the US, he said he and Presidentelect
Donald Trump have "agreed to keep build
ing on these gains in our strategic partner
ship".
No one can win a trade

war, says Xi at Davos
Davos: China has robustly
defended globalization with its
President Xi Jinping arguing at
the World Economic Forum here
that economic integration has
powered human advancement
and improved the lives of mil
lions of people.
"Many of the problems trou
bling the world are not caused by
economic globalization," Xi was
quoted as saying by CNN in his
address to the forum as the first
Chinese President to attend the
mega economic summit he ld
annually high in the Swiss moun
tains.
"Whether you like it or not, the
global economy is the big ocean
you cannot escape from."
His speech was rich in symbol
ism with Beijing positioning
itself as a global leader at a time
when Western powers, and espe
cially the United States, are
retreating from the world stage
and questioning the particular
brand of globalization that now
Chinese President
Xi Jinping.
defines global trade. "We must

remain committed to free trade
and investment. We must pro
mote trade and investment liber
alization," he said. "No one will
emerge as a winner in a trade
war."
This year's meeting coincides
with the formal handover of
power in the US, with Donald
Trump's inauguration scheduled
for January 20, the final day of
the forum.
During the election campaign,
Trump blasted internat ional
trade deals, tapping into a deep
well of popular anger over glob
alization.
He described one huge USled
trade agreement the Trans
Pacific Partnership as a "disas
ter done and pushed by special
interests who want to rape our
country".
24
January 21-27, 2017
SPORTS
INDIA DEFEAT ENGLAND TO CLINCH ODI SERIES

Cuttack: England skipper Eoin Morgan's
fighting century went in vain as they fell 15
runs short in a highscoring second One
day International (ODI) to trail the three
match rubber 02 against India at the
Barabati Stadium here.
Chasing a massive 382run target,
Morgan led the fightback with a blistering
81ball 102 coupled with brilliant half cen
turies from opener Jason Roy (82), Joe Root
(54) and Moeen Ali (55), only to find them
selves 15 runs short at the end.
Morgan almost took the game from
India's grasp until pacer Jasprit Bumrah's
brilliant throw at the nonstriker's end jolt
ed the visitors' chase in the 49th over, with
28 runs needed from the last nine balls.
England recovered from the early jolt of
opener Alex Hales's (14) wicket with Roy
and Root setting the platform with a 100
run stand for the second wicket before off
spinner Ravichandran Ashwin sent back
Root in his very first over of the match.
Roy, however, made full use of the life he
got on 44, when Jasprit Bumrah dropped a
fingertip chance at midwicket of f all
rounder Hardik Pandya and went on to
bring up his half century off 52 deliveries.
Morgan then joined Roy in the middle
and the duo added 42 runs for the third
wicket before leftarm spinner Ravindra
Jadeja left his stumps in a mess with a
straight ball. Roy's hurricane innings came
off 73 deliveries and was laced with nine
boundaries and two sixes.
Ashwin then jolted England with two
quick wickets of allrounder Ben Stokes (1)
India has taken an unassailable 20 lead in the series.

and wicketkeeperbatsman Jos Buttler (10)
to reduce the visitors to 206/5.
With the asking rate mounting to more
than 15 runs per over, England were look
ing down the barrel before southpaw
Moeen joined the skipper to add some spice
to the chase.
Moeen, who got two lives on 2 when
stumper Mahendra Singh Dhoni missed a
runout chance and then on 37 when Jadeja
dropped him at longon of f Bhuvneshwar
Kumar added 93 runs for the sixth wicket
with his captain as the 40,000 crowd at the
Barabati went into a pin drop silence.
Kumar, however, avenged the dropped
chance immediately in his next over when
he ended the lefthander's 43ball vigil by

inducing a bottom edge into the offstump.
Bumrah immediately removed next man
Chris Woakes (5) to put the visitors into
more trouble.
Thereafter, Morgan and Liam Plunkett
(26 not out) added another 50 runs for the
eighth wicket before the captain was shown
the door by Bumrah's quick reflexes off his
own follow through. Morgan's knock was
laced with six hits to the fence and five
over it.
With just more than one over left, pacer
David Willey (5 not out) could do very little
with Plunkett to get the visitors over the
line.
For India, Ashwin was the pick of the

bowlers with figures of 3/65 while Bumrah
took 2/81. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jadeja
chipped in with one wicket apiece.
Earlier, manofthematch Yuvraj Singh
and former skipper Dhoni were at their vin
tage best, powering India to 381/6 after
being sent into bat.
Yuvraj, who returned to the national side
on the back of some prolific scores for
Punjab in the Ranji Trophy, looked in omi
nous touch as he went on to amass his
careerbest score of 150 runs in only 127
deliveries, comprising 21 fours and three
huge sixes.
Returning to the side after a threeyear
hiatus, the 35yearold lefthander con
sumed 98 balls to bring up his career's
14th ODI ton and also eclipsed his own
record of 138 to become the highest run
getter at this ground. He also became the
first Indian player to score a 150 against
England in ODIs.
Coming in to bat with India reeling at
25/3, the southpaw took his time in the
middle before forging a 100run stand with
Dhoni off 118 balls.
Dhoni, who relinquished the limited overs
captaincy ahead of the series commence
ment, showed glimpses of his vintage self,
when he went after the English pacers at
will to bring up his 10th ODI ton.
With India taking an unassailable 20
lead in the series, both the sides will now
move to Kolkata, where the third and final
ODI will be played at the Eden Gardens on
January 22.
Australia's tour to India can't Paes out of men's doubles in Australian Open
be worse than 2013: Watson
Brisbane: Australia's tour to India next
month can't be worse than the side's 2013
campaign when he and four other players
were suspended for a Test, former all
rounder Shane Watson said.
India dealt a 40 whitewash to the
Aussies in 2013, a tour remembered for
Watson, James Pattinson, Mitchell Johnson
and Usman Khawaja being handed a one
Test ban for disciplinary breaches.
"It really can't get any worse than what it
was in 2013," Watson told Cricket
Australia's website.
"So that's a good starting point because
that's as bad as it can get, players getting
suspended from a Test match. I'm sure that
won't happen this time."
Australia have included three spinners to
India, including uncapped legspinner
Mitch Swepson, and allrounders Ashton
Agar and Glenn Maxwell in their 16man
squad.
"Obviously the way that you win over
there is through spin bowling, but not nec
essarily just only spin bowling," Watson
said.
"The time the Aussie team won in 2004,
they only had Shane Warne and three
quick bowlers. It's more so just playing to
your absolute strengths, playing your best
players, who've got the best chance of
being able to play in those extreme condi
tions than what we're used to."
Watson recalled how the 200405 squad
Melbourne: India's doubles specialist

Leander Paes and his partner Brazilian
Andre Sa were knocked out of the men's
doubles of the Australian Open tennis tour
nament, losing 64, 67 (3), 46 to Belarus'
Max Mirnyi and Philippines' Treat Huey in
the first round.
The IndoBrazilian pair accepted defeat to
the 10th seeds after an intense 2 hour 13
minute fight on Court 15.
PaesSa started brightly, breaking in the
fifth game of the first set to take a 32 lead.
They protected that lead to claim the first

set 64.
Both sides then held on to their serves in
the second set, forcing a tiebreak. But Paes
Sa lost their serve thrice in the tiebreak to
surrender the second set. It turned the
momentum of the contest away from Paes
Sa. MirnyiHuey then snatched the initiative,
grabbing a break in the seventh game of the
decisive third set.
They maintained their advantage, winning
the third set 64.
Former allrounder Shane Watson.

fed off the back of pace triumvirate Glenn
McGrath, Michael Kasprowicz and Jason
Gillespie working in tandem with legendary
legspinner Shane Warne.
Watson reserved rich praise for opener
Matt Renshaw, saying he knows what to do
and should just stick to his game plan.
"He knows his game incredibly well and
I'm sure he'll just stick to his game plan like
he did in the Test matches he's played. I'm
sure he'll have a lot of success," Watson
said.
"For a young guy to be able to have so
much control over what he's doing, shows
he's got what it takes to be successful in
any conditions."
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev displayed his wrestling skills as he went headtohead with 2008
Olympic silver medalist Andriy Stadnik in a promotional bout of the Patanjali Powervita Pro
Wrestling League (PWL) in New Delhi. Sporting his typical saffron langot, Ramdev came out
on top 120 over Stadnik, who defeated wrestler Sushil Kumar in the Beijing Olympics.
January 21-27, 2017
BOOKS
25
A publisher's account of the Indian literary & cultural scene

A Scrapbook of
Memories by
Ashok Chopra
By Vikas Datta
or an unrivalled and intimate look into

the life, predilections and scandals of
celebrities across the spectrum, from
politics to films, cultural and educational lev
els of a people and their prospects, and close
accounts from the frontlines in the battles
over freedom of expression, no one can beat a
top publisher.
And Ashok Chopra, who began as a journal
ist but soon found his real calling in the pub
lishing industry where he was associated with
almost all top Indian establishments Vikas
Publishing House, Macmillan India, UBS, India
Today Book Club, HarperCollins India and
currently Hay House India does not disap
point.
Chopra, who begins with a most thorough
examination of the definition of a (successful)
publisher, stresses it is not an autobiography
nor a memoir but instead "a journey with, and
through, the written word; a journey with the
life and times of authors, writers, poets,
singers, composers, lyricists, actors, directors,
literary agents, publishers and their publish
ing houses, artists, painters and designers" he
has published or interacted with.
All the same, it well justifies its provocative
subtitle "My Life With the Rich, the Famous,
and the Scandalous", providing valuable
insights into a remarkable crosssection of
Indian cultural icons as they were, not merely
as they presented themselves to the public
Publisher:
Harper Collins India
Pages: 432;
Price: Rs 399
gaze.
While there are ego issues, pride, prejudice,
jealousy, and other less than salutary
instances of other human emotions, there is
also generosity and humility, even as not
many of those featured come out with flying
colors.
The foremost among those who do is that
"Vintage Sardar", Khushwant Singh, with
whom Chopra had a long relationship but
could never convince to adopt his idea of
titles. T hen, Shobha De proves to be as

frankly direct and decisive in life as in writing
(but quite amenable to adulation, which
Chopra arranged artfully), and the actor Raj
"Jaani" Kumar, who despite all his eccentric
public behavior, proved to be a committed
and knowledgeable reader of books. And vet
eran diplomat J.N. Dixit was careful and
meticulous in writing as in safeguarding
Indian interests in international negotiations.
On the flip side, there is a remarkable range
of unlike ly Casanovas, a sexaddicted
Bollywood actor whose rejected autobiogra
phy led to a caustic comment that left Chopra
at a loss, an artist who proved to be quite
ungrateful, film stars who did not keep their
commitments, and the like.
There are also some historic moments, both
public (Giani Zail Singh contesting a century
and more of evolutionary theory at an
address to an anthropologists meet in
Chandigarh and the author's impish
attempt to recast how it may have sounded in
Punjabi; a fierce but civilized fight between

T.N. Seshan and Mani Shankar Aiyar) and rel
atively private (Indira Gandhi's cold snub to
poet and writer Dom Moraes as he tried to
present a copy of his biography of her) and
more.
Among the best, though not for the indus
try, is his account of Indian publishing's (and
cinema's) biggest fiasco, which may have
helped to put the brakes on a potentially
lucrative genre of film novelizations, that of
Krishna Shah's "Shalimar". This, Indian film
dom's first attempt to make a global film, was
thoroughly stillborn, but witnessed some
juicy episodes Zeenat Aman's triumph over
the legendary Gina Lollobrigida in a dareall,
cleavage and thigh display contest which left
the latter so piqued that she did not sign on
for the project. The replacement was the
largely unknown Sylvia Miles, who created a
farcical flutter at dinner one night which
afforded Shammi Kapoor and O.P. Ralhan a
good laugh at least.
But apart from looselyconnected series of
accounts of people, places and situations, he
provides a selection of frequently trenchant,
arguable but cogentlyargued opinions on
issues, ranging from those facing his industry
to those with wider social import, such as
great authors he has read, the effect of rising
of intolerant fundamentalism, the status of
books and what it means for Indian literacy,
knowledge and expertise. This alone makes it
a valuable read for any bibliophile.
US statesman who outargued the Devil and

twice declined VicePresidency
By Vikas Datta
mong the outstanding American statesmen to never
become President, Daniel Webster never let ambition,
pride or popularity deflect him from his inalienable polit
ical principle: his country's preservation, even by tactical com
promises over policies that might be personally detestable, and
negotiations over force. But he is chiefly remembered as a pol
ished, powerful and persuasive orator who once even bested the
Devil. And while Webster (17821852) was a prominent lawyer
and twice Secretary of State, this particular achievement only
came in an iconic story. Stephen Vincent Benet's "The Devil and
Daniel Webster" (published as a book in 1937) is a typical
American adaptation of the "Bargain with the Devil" genre pop
ular across all forms of Western art since Goethes "Faust".
However, some motifs about the making of the US, nationalism,
rights and justice keep it from being another "tall tale".
Partly inspired by Washington Irving's "The Devil and Tom
Walker" (1824), it tells about New Hampshire farmer Jabez
Stone, who unwisely makes a deal with the Devil (in the form of
the suave Mr Scratch) for a prosperous period in return for his
soul. However, when time is running out, he seeks the help of
Webster, now a prominent politician, who began life as a lawyer
and was keen to help anyone from his New Hampshire.
And Dan'l Webster, as rendered, was no ordinary man for
when he "stood up to speak, stars and stripes came right out in
the sky, and once he spoke against a river and made it sink into
the ground. They said, when he walked the woods with his fish
ing rod, Killall, the trout would jump out of the streams right
into his pockets, for they knew it was no use putting up a fight
against him; and, when he argued a case, he could turn on the
harps of the blessed and the shaking of the earth underground".
But even he is hardpressed and all legal stratagems fail
though "he was a great lawyer, Dan'l Webster, but we know
who's the King of Lawyers...".
Even his trump card, that Stone is an American citizen who
may not "be forced into the service of a foreign prince", is coun
An edition of Benet's short stories, with statesman Daniel

Webster (inset) playing a prominent role in the title
tered, as Scratch says he has been an American earlier ever
since "the first wrong was done to the first Indian", and "the first
slaver put out for the Congo".
Ultimately, Webster plays his last card, insisting on a trial, and
when Scratch points out it is not a case for any ordinary court,
offers "let it be any court you choose, so it is an American judge
and an American jury".
Scratch complies, summoning a "jury of the damned" (includ

ing Americans who fought for Britain in the Independence War,
a Native American chief, colonial governors, a pirate), all evil,
but all Americans. Presiding is a judge of the Salem Witch Trials
who had never repented his role, like the others.
It still goes hard for Webster, and he is ready to go down
fighting before suddenly realizing that it is he who is the actual
target, and will be in their power if he succumbs to rage. He
instead switches to making a gentle but powerful speech about
man and his faults, and even how they play their part in the
making of a glorious country. And the jury require no time to
decide, finding for the plaintiff, with their foreman observing:
"Perhaps 'tis not strictly in accordance with the evidence, but
even the damned may salute the eloquence of Mr Webster."
Nothing else Benet (18981943) wrote in his short career
equaled this story, which won the O. Henry Prize in 1937,
inspired an Academy Awardwinning Hollywood movie in 1941
and another modernized version in 2003, serials, radio shows,
plays (including one by Benet) and countless reference in other
works from a "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode to a
Superman novel.
What of Webster himself? His future is foretold by Mr
Scratch, whom he forces to sign a promise not to molest Stone
or any other New Hampshire man. He is told that he will come
close to becoming President but will not make it, have both his
sons die in war, and his last great speech will make many of his
followers turn against him, questioning his loyalties and calling
him names. But Webster is unfazed and kicks the Devil off.
All that came to pass. Webster declined to accept Vice
Presidency under two Presidents who died soon into their
terms, his speech for the Compromise of 1850, which averted
the Civil War (in which both his sons died) by a decade, earned
him both bouquets and brickbats and scuppered his
Presidential candidacy in 1852.
But he is ranked an orator to be emulated, one of the greatest
Senators ever and future President John F. Kennedy featured
him in his Pulitzerwinning "Profiles in Courage".
26
January 21-27, 2017
SELF HELP
How to tell if you have flu, cold or stomach flu

W
hile each year millions in the

U.S. are sickened during flu sea
son, many cant dist inguish
between symptoms of the seasonal strain
of the flu, a cold and the stomach flu.
Knowing the difference, and how to prop
erly treat each virus, can speed recovery.
SIMILAR YET DIFFERENT

While cold symptoms come on slowly
and are limited to the head and upper res
piratory system, flu symptoms affect the
whole body and come on quickly. Telltale
signs of the flu are fever and body aches.
However, these are also symptoms of
stomach flu, which isnt related to a flu
virus at all. Common viruses that wreak
havoc on the digestive system include the
norovirus and the rotavirus. Ironically, an
immune system weakened by seasonal flu
can leave you vulnerable to these so
called stomach flu viruses.
WHAT YOU NEED

TO KNOW
Although high fever and body aches
occur with both seasonal flu and viruses
that attack the gastrointestinal system,
these symptoms are more prevalent and
severe in seasonal flu cases, and are

accompanied by fatigue and headache.
The norovirus and the rotavirus both get
the misnomer stomach flu from primary
symptoms being watery diarrhea, abdom
inal cramps, and nausea or vomiting.
Fever and body aches can also occur but
are milder.
No matter what the cause of a fever, its

best to monitor your temperature. See a
healthcare professional if a fever is too
high or lingers for days.
TREATMENT
For seasonal flu, the homeopathic medi
Five morning tips to

prepare for the day
re most of your mornings spent
running out the door with break
fast inhand, and applying your
makeup onthego? Its easy to snooze,
and rush all the way to work but
building a routine that gives you a calm
and ef ficient morning can make you
feel more prepared to take on your day.
If you havent nailed it yet, dont fret.
To celebrate the similarities and dif
ferences of womens routines, the team
at Carefree is of fering some tips to
make mornings easier.
1. Rise and shine. Do you hit the
snooze button one too many times?
Avoid being late again. Place your
alarm out of reach so that in order to
turn it off, you have to get out of bed. If
you use your phone to wake up, consid
er setting your alarm tone to a song
that annoys you youll be happy to
get out of bed to make it stop!
You may not have time for a full
workout in the morning, but moving a
bit upon getting out of bed can get the
blood flowing, help wake you up and
give you a metabolism boost. Start the
day with a few stretches and body
weight exercises, such as lunges and
planks.
2. Perk up. Perk up with a morning
ritual that activates your mind. Enjoy
your cup of coffee or green tea along
side a brain teaser, Sodoku or cross
word puzzle. Or spend the time writing
a journal entry, scanning the morning
headlines, or reading a chapter of a
book. Taking a few moments to warm
up the mind can encourage greater pro

ductivity all day long.
3. Eliminate bed head. You can shave
substantial minutes of f your morning
routine by doing your hair the night
before. After washing and conditioning
your locks, leave hair up in buns or
clips while sleeping. In the morning,
undo the updo and use a little spray
before heading out the door.
4. Makeup magic. When theres no
time for a full morning makeover, stick
to the basics. Start with a moisturizer
with SPF so you can protect your skin
and keep it hydrated. Use under eye
concealer to easily eliminate any signs
of fatigue. If you do need to abbreviate
the full eye makeup routine, dont omit
a quick coat of mascara, which can help
you look widereyed and more awake

with a few seconds of ef fort. Lastly,
give lips shine and protect them from
chapping with a lip balm that prefer
ably contains SPF.
5. Be Free to Be You. Feminine care is
one routine element that links all
women. Its a part of life, and as we all
know its not always predictable.
Liner Up! every morning with
Carefree ActiFresh liners, which are
soft, thin and absorbent enough to go
unnoticed, helping you feel confident
as you go throughout your day. It is
easy to incorporate them into your
daily regimen by storing them in your
underwear draweryou will never for
get to give yourself a layer of protec
tion again.
cine Oscillococcinum has been clinically

shown to shorten both the severity and
duration of symptoms.
When patients took it within 24 hours
of the onset of symptoms, nearly 63 per
cent showed clear improvement or
complete resolution within 48 hours.
The key is to act quickly when symptoms
surface, nipping them in the bud in a way
that wont interact with other medications
or cause unwanted side ef fects like
drowsiness.
For stomach flu, stop eating solid food
for a few hours. This will help settle your
stomach. Then stick to foods that are
easy to digest, such as toast, gelatin,
bananas, rice and chicken avoiding fatty
or spicy options. Stop eating if nausea
occurs. Additionally, ibuprofen may upset
the stomach, and antidiarrheal medica
tions may slow down the elimination of
the virus. Trust the bo dys natural
process.
No matter what ails you, Vitamins D and
C are important when you are recovering,
helping to boost immunity. Remember,
antibiotics do not treat viruses and their
overuse contribute to the spread of the
superbug, a strain of bacteria that
becomes resistant to antibiotic drugs.
Keep acne at
bay -- here's how
hey come uninvited, and can stay on for long acne is a

common problem that most of us go through. Drinking
lots of water,
eating a balanced
diet and keeping the
skin clean can help
you keep them at
bay, says an expert.
Chiranjiv Chhabra,
dermatologist at
Skin Alive in Delhi,
lists simple tips to
keep acne away.
l Keep the skin
clean. The first step
of skin care is to
clean it thoroughly.
If not done regularly,
it leads to acne. Be
very gentle while
you clean your skin.
Hard scrubbing will
only make your skin
condition worse.
Gently wash your skin with a mild cleanser in the morning, at
bedtime, and after heavy exercise
l Don't pop pimples: It's tempting, but here's why you
shouldn't Popping pimples can push infected material fur
ther into the skin, leading to more swelling and redness, and
even scarring.
l Water is most important because it aids in the digestion
and absorption of food. Water is also responsible for carrying
nutrients to the skin and waste away from the cells, as well as
regulating body temperature.
l Eat a balanced diet. Your diet plays a vital role in skin
care. You must eat a balanced diet so that your body can func
tion properly. Eating a lowfat diet is recommended for
healthy skin. A diet high in fruits and vegetables is best since
they are loaded with antioxidants which help to keep the skin
supple and nourished.
Transcendental meditation may

reduce trauma in female prisoners
New York: Practicing transcendental medita
tion technique for 20 minutes twice a day can
significantly reduce trauma symptoms such
as unwanted thoughts and help female pris
oners find inner peace, a study has found.
Transcendental meditation is a technique
for detaching oneself from anxiety and pro
moting harmony and selfrealization by medi
tation, repetition of a mantra, and other yogic
practices.
The results showed that after four months
of practicing the meditation technique, the
women inmates had significant reductions in
total trauma symptoms, including intrusive
thoughts and hyperarousal.
They also felt less stressed and experienced
a greater sense of inner freedom and
resilience, the researchers said.
'The study shows a natural and effortless
alternative approach to reducing trauma
symptoms in women's mental health," said
lead author Sanford Nidich, Director of the
Center for Social and Emotional Health at
Maharishi University of Management in Iowa,
US. Practising the meditation technique
allows the mind to transcend to quieter levels
January 21-27, 2017
LIFESTYLE
and has very specific effects on the body

ef fects that are the opposite of the body's
hyperaroused state known as the flightor
fight response.
The system involved in this arousal, known
as the hypothalamicpituitaryadrenal axis, is
significantly decreased in its activity, thus
helping people not to get affected by stress.
Apart from acting as a stress management
tool, the meditation technique can also pro
vide other benefits such as reduced recidi
vism to improved cardiovascular health, the
researchers stated.
For the study, the team encouraged prison
inmates to practice transcendental medita
tion individually in their prison cells twice
daily and encouraged them to attend 3040
minutes group meditation sessions, super
vised by a teacher, twice a week over the
fourmonth study period.
The participants reported that transcenden
tal meditation helped them reduce their
obsessivecompulsive behavior, social intro
version, anxiety and neuroticism as well as
rates of recidivism and increased positive
social relations and improved sleep.
27
Over 80% Indian youngsters use

smartphone for shopping: Study
New Delhi: More
than eig ht in 10
young adults use
their smartphones
for shopping, a sur
vey has showed.
T he findings, by
dig ital market ing
firm Regalix, showed
that a whopping 83
per cent used their
advanced smart
phones for some
online retail shop
ping, emarketer.com reported on
Wednesday.
Despite this, only a minority of smart
phone shoppers were actually making a
purchase with any significant frequency.
Only 28 per cent of respondents made a
weekly purchase using their device.
Onethird of those polled bought some
thing via smartphone monthly, while one
quarter did so on a quarterly basis.
Further, 94 per cent respondents
revealed that apps were more convenient

than mobile websites. However, citing the
example of Myntra an apparelfocused e
commerce platform owned by Flipkart
the study indicated that Indian consumers
still prefer the flexibility of having the
option of using either the mobile web or a
native app.
The study was based on a September
2016 survey of adult smartphone owners
under 35 in India conducted by Regalix.
How being playful can help you live better

Emojis, emoticons
now conveying
messages on Facebook
London: On social media plat

forms like Facebook, WhatsApp
or Instagram, emojis and emoti
cons have replaced nonverbal
cues like facial movements, voice
pitch and other gestures to clari
fy a message, a study has found.
More than 90 per cent of
online population uses emojis
and emoticons into their texts
and emails.
Researchers from the Edge Hill
University in Britain found that
emojis and emoticons are now
being used frequently as visual
aids to clarify and understand a
message.
"We mostly use emojis like ges
tures, as a way of enhancing
emotional expressions," said
Linda Kaye, a cyberpsychologist
at Edge Hill.
"T here are a lot of idiosyn
crasies in how we gesture and
emojis are similar to that, espe
cially because of the discrepan
cies as to how and why we use
them," Kaye added.
The data available with the

researchers can be used to
understand how communicating
through emojis and emoticons
can provide insights into social
inclusion.
Manifestation of these virtual
emotions can impact how we
perceive each other.
"If you look at personality
traits, like agreeableness, how
amenable you are to other peo
ple, it seems to be related to
whether you use emojis or not,"
Kaye added.
People may not be necessarily
accurate when they make judg
ments based on how they see
others using emojis.
"What we need to be aware of
is that those judgments might
dif fer depending on where or
with whom you are using those
emojis, such as in the workplace
or between family members,"
noted the study published in the
journal Trends in Cognit ive
Sciences.
London: If you think playfulness is

associated only with childhood, you
may be wrong.
A new study suggests that playful
ness in adults is a positive trait
which may help them to see things
from new perspectives, turn monot
onous tasks into something inter
esting as well as help them when
choosing partners and in romantic
relationships.
The study showed that playful
people are able to reinterpret situa
tions in their lives so that they expe
rience them as entertaining or are
able to reduce stress levels.
People who describe themselves
as playful are also viewed by others
as such.
Playfulness should not be equated
with humor. Instead we need a new
vocabulary to describe it, said Rene
Proyer from Martin Luther
University (MLU) in Halle
Wittenberg, Germany. "Playfulness
is an independent personality trait

that shares certain aspects with five
g lobal dimensions including
extraversion, agreeableness, consci
entiousness, openness to experi
ence and emotional stability that
are frequently used to describe per
sonality but which cannot be
interchanged," Proyer explained.
In the study, the researchers iden
tified four basic types of playful
adults. "There are people who like
to fool around with friends and
acquaintances. We describe this as
otherdirected playfulness. By con
trast, lightheartedly playful people
regard their whole life as a type of

game," Proyer said.
Another category includes people
who like to play with thoughts and
ideas this describes intellectual
playfulness. These people are able
to turn monotonous tasks into
something interesting.
The psychologist describes the
final group as being whimsically
playful. "These people tend to be
interested in strange and unusual
things and are amused by small
daytoday observations."
Conversely, playfulness in adults
has also been associated with nega
tive connotations.
Playful people are sometimes not
taken seriously or are seen as unre
liable, as they may easily change
perspectives to find unusual and
novel solutions, to complex prob
lems. The study was published in
the journal Personality and
Individual Differences.
Changing location may help bring changes in yourself

London: Want to make your New
Year resolution successful? Try
relocating, as it may help to over
come the things one wants to
change in themselves, a new study
says. The study showed that the
time for successful habit change is
not based on the calendar, but on
big changes in our everyday lives
like moving to a new home.
"Changing your habits is very dif
ficult, including finding the right
moment to make a change," said Bas
Verplanken, Professor at the
University of Bath in Britain.
New Year may be a nice moment
to mark the start of a new phase,
but "the change in behavior is
embedded in other changes,"
Verplanken explains.
"In the case of moving to a new
home for instance, people may need
to find new solutions for how to do
things in the new house, where and
how to shop, commute, and so on.
All of these aspects are absent when
talking about New Year resolu
tions," Verplanken added. For the
study, the researchers studied the
behaviors of over 800 people, half

of whom had recently moved and
the rest who had been at the same
home for several years.
The participants responded to
questions on 25 environment relat
ed behaviors including water and
energy use, commuting choices, and
waste (food waste, recycling).
The result showed that people
who recently relocated reported
more change eight weeks later on a
composite of twentyfive environ
mentrelevant behaviors compared
to participants who had not recently
relocated. These results were consis
tent in spite of the strength of previ
ous habits and views, and are consis
tent with research from others.
28
January 21-27, 2017
HUMOR
Humor with Melvin Durai
Rest in peace, New Years resolutions

Its that time of the year again.
Yes, its time to do what you always do at
this time: write an obituary for your New
Years resolutions.
First, let me offer my condolences. Im truly
sorry for your loss. I can only imagine what
sadness you must be feeling, having to go
through almost an entire year as the same
old you.
The new you was going to be better. The
new you was going to wake up at 5 each
morning and do 30 minutes of jogging, 30
minutes of yoga and 30 minutes of medita
tion. The old you wakes up at 7 a.m. and
does 30 minutes of eating, 30 minutes of driv
ing and 30 minutes of complaining.
The new you was going to read 100 pages
of fiction every day. The old you reads fic
tion only now and then, whenever Donald
Trump decides to tweet.
The new you was going to focus on impor
tant goals. The old you focuses on too many
goals, switching excitedly from one goal to
another, unable to decide which one is the
Goal of the Year in the English Premier
League.
While it may be disappointing that the new
you hasnt quite materialized yet, its impor
tant to realize that the old you isnt all that

bad. You are happy with many of the things
that the old you gives you, whether its more
sleep, more food, or more opportunities to
visit the mall in search of bigger clothes.
But if you really want to leave the old you
behind, here are three tips to help you:
1. Dont wait until the beginning of a year to
make changes in your life. You can do it at
any time, as long as you convince yourself

that its a good time for a new start. You could
do it on your birthday, on the first of the
month, or even when you get a haircut. Every
morning is an opportunity to pursue a better
you; every night is a chance to say, Darn it,
Ill try again tomorrow!
2. Dont aim high aim low. Aiming high is
how most people fail. Some of them have
never exercised in their lives, yet they some
how convince themselves that theyre going
to run for an hour a day, beginning on
January 1. This usually results in a long line
at the doctors office on January 2.
First patient: Ouch, my foot!
Second patient: Ouch, my back!

Third patient: Ouch, my wallet!
Trust me, you are better off running for 10
minutes a day consistently than aiming for
something longer and wishing you had
Obamacare. But heres what usually happens
to people: they arent satisfied with 10 min
utes, so they try 20 minutes, then 30, then
40. Before long, their body resists this big
change, perhaps through a muscle strain or
illness, and they go from 40 minutes of exer
cise all the way down to five minutes of
excuses.
3. Dont give up. Remember: its better to
make a little progress toward your goals than
none at all. If your resolution to run for 30
minutes a day crumbles, create another reso
lution right away to run for 20 minutes a day.
If that fails, try 10 minutes a day. You will
eventually be successful, even if youre run
ning for just 30 seconds a day.
If that doesnt seem like a big achievement,
just take a look around you. How many peo
ple do you see running for even 10 seconds
when there isnt a cop around?
Now and then, you may spot someone run
ning down your road at an Olympic pace, but
thats only because your neighbor lets his dog
run loose.
Studies show that the average young adult
in big cities like Delhi or Chicago runs for
only 20 seconds a year just long enough to
take a photo for their annual I ran the
marathon post on Facebook.
Laughter is the Best Medicine
BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801
5168271010
by Mahendra Shah
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession, artist and
humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording the plight of the
immigrant Indians for the past many years in his cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat,
he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
ASTROLOGY
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma

JANUARY 2127, 2016
ARIES: Promotion is likely to make you
vulnerable, as everyone is watching you
closely and failure could be embarrass
ing and expensive. Matrimonial alliance for eli
gible bachelor in family brings joy to all.
Expenses take an upward swing as you involve
yourself in groupentertainment. If possible,
dont allow your romantic views to be aired.
You need to develop selftrust to encourage
yourself to fight illness. Time to relax and
unwind for few days. You can apply for your
home loan. Your innovative style & creativity
will come as a pleasant relief to people.
TAURUS: Politicians find a very smooth
sailing as results go in your favor, thus
immensely boosting confidence. Help
from family members would take care of your
needs. Monetary position is likely to improve
later in the week. Warm romantic thoughts
occupy mind. Meditation and yoga prove bene
ficial for spiritual as well as physical gains.
Excitement for a vacation is not enough, plan
ning is also required. If you wish to achieve a
good deal in property then try at commercial
basis. You successfully solve your old disputes
and landrelated problems.
GEMINI: People engaged in tourism will
have the energy to keep pace with fast
taking events thus giving themselves an
edge over others. You will enjoy the time spent
with family members and friends. You need to
make a proper planning before embarking on
love journey. Time for Hypertension patients
to change their eating habits. Many people
want to fly international and you are one of
them. It is advisable to check the authenticity
of the real estate agent, whom you are dealing
with. Make sure you save yourself from temp
tation.
CANCER: Journey undertaken for
business purpose might fail to bring
expected results. Property dispute
might erupt causing mental tension to all at
family front. An unrealistic planning could
lead to paucity of funds. Your charm & gen
erosity bring new romantic opportunities for
you. Health problem could make it difficult to
concentrate. By traveling youll learn about
new places and cultures, which is ultimately a
great deal about yourself. Develop an attitude
to be successful on your property investment
plans. Personal efforts would greatly help in
increasing influence in social & political fields.
LEO: Betterment awaits people engaged
in the field of graphic designing. Your
generous behavior would enable to
enjoy some lovely moments with family.
Instead of wasting time, better to get involved
in something to improve your financial posi
tion. Love life brightens your week. Health
secret for you: mental enemies lower the dis
easeresisting power of the body therefore, do
not allow any unwanted thoughts to come in
your mind. You and your loved ones been
busy for quite sometimes and have finally
decided to go on a vacation. If you are looking
for a surefine method to earn on your proper
ty, student rental could be exactly what you
need. This week, you will be able to increase
your contacts with intellectuals.
VIRGO: Se lfconfidence would
immensely help in achieving good
results at professional front. Friends
and family members would lend a helping
hand. You succeed in making some extra cash
on playing your cards well. Avoid raising con
troversial issues in love rather enjoy the com
pany. Wasting invaluable energy by getting
irritated over small matters brings disappoint
ment. Your next journey is to a place which is
full of natural beauty and ravishing. If you are
hoping to sell your house quickly then you
should consider a private sale. Trust to a limit
in friendship.
LIBRA: The efforts of people aspiring

to join interior designing course are
likely to be handsomely rewarded. An
unexpected message from a distant relative
brings happy news for the entire family. An
auspicious week to invest money on items that
would grow in value. Make sure you dont sur
render yourself under physical passions to
save romantic bond. You need to take advan
tage of your enormous confidence to make
new contacts and friends. Time for a vacation,
sit back and relax. Looking to buy property,
then go for commercial one. Your opponents
find you a headache.
SCORPIO: Leadership qualities and abil
ity to understand people would benefit
at work. An auspicious week for family
functions and important ceremonies. The
secret mantra of earning your profits: invest
wisely. If possible avoid wearing clothes, which
could offend love partner. Engaging yourself
in creative work would keep you relaxed. If
you are thinking of escaping from the hectic
daily routine plan a trip. Good time to pur
chase a property. Recognition and influence
would increase in social field.
SAGITTARIUS: At work you will be
perfect in whatever you do during this
week. Relatives are likely to give some
valuable advice regarding personal life.
Investment on longterm plans would pave the
way for earning financial gains. Your wit &
charm would help in catching the attention of
opposite sex. A very healthy week when your
cheerfulness gives the desired tonic and confi
dence. Your travel experience is going to be an
extent of sharing your knowledge and commu
nication. Avoid the use of estate agents to sell
your house or property. Keep yourself away
from bad habits and bad company. This will
pave the way for success in your life.
CAPRICORN: To take business to
newer heights you will have to induct
highly motivated persons with excel
lent interpersonal skills in your team. A week
for renewal of bonds and family t ies.
Investment is recommended but after a proper
advice/guidance. Dont worry everything
changes with time so will your romantic life.
Cataract patients should avoid visiting a pollut
ed environment as smoke could cause further
problems to their eyes. It is advisable to be
careful regarding your safety, while traveling.
A good deal for your new property is ready to
be made. Legal problem will be solved with the
timely help of friends.
AQUARIUS: If possible, take the help
of emotional intelligence to succeed
at professional front. You receive care
and affection from family members. You will
make good money, but dont let it slip through
your fingers. Love partner would be extremely
supportive and in a loving mood. High time for
you to realize your true potentials. Its time for
a vacation after a long and hard year at work.
Buying overseas property will be beneficiary
for you. Unexpected accolades bring happi
ness. Better to share them with close friends to
double the joy.
PISCES: Support and appreciation from
seniors would raise your morale and
confidence. A new outlook will be the
source of laughter at family front today.
Improvement in finances makes it convenient
in clearing long pending dues & bills. A roman
tic week as you receive all praises from
partner.
You are likely to maintain good health that
would also give you success. Vacations are
meant to be fun filled and relaxing but hectic
schedules may ruin it. Your search for a house
is towards its final destination. You succeed in
convincing people that colors have spiritual
and symbolic values.
January 21-27, 2017
29
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874

Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK

21st January, 2017
You are governed by the number 3 and by the
planet Jupiter. You are also dominated by the
planet Mercury. Kind hearted and loving by
nature, you are surrounded by friends. You
are popular with both sexes. In the coming
year, some of you are likely to inherit ances
tral property, especially from your fathers
side. Travel will form an important part of
your career, in the year ahead of you. You like
to develop spiritual powers, and you like to
use this to bring relieve for the oppressed
class. Helping those in need, gives you a feel
ing of satisfaction. Your selfconfidence will
help you to achieve popularity and success, in
the year ahead of you. Friends and relatives
will look to you for advice and help. You can
expect to receive a lot of happiness and love
at the domestic front, especially your chil
dren. Your lucky colours are shades of yellow,
violet, purple and green. The months of May,
December and March will be very eventful.
22nd January, 2017
Governed by the number 4, you are also gov
erned by the planet Uranus, and dominated
by the planet Mercury. Your dynamic person
ality makes you the centre of attraction in
any social gathering. In the year ahead of you,
you will be able to impress the opposite sex
with your style of dressing and also impress
them with your conversation skills. In love
matters, it will be a good year for you. Those
of you, who are single, can expect to find your
life partner. Those of you in your 40th year
can expect to attain success. In fact, you will
reach newer heights of excellence, and can
expect to reach the top hierarchy, at work.
You will have to be careful about respiratory
infections. But care and precaution, will help
you to overcome your health ailments, with
out much dif ficulty. Your lucky jewels are
emerald, pearl and diamond and you should
wear these to attain happiness and prosperi
ty. The months of July, October and January
will be very significant.
23rd January, 2017
You are governed by the number 5 and by the
planet Mercury. Ambitious by nature, you go
all out to achieve what you desire to. You will
be able to study the subject of your choice
and will be able to go deep into its study. This
will bring you success in your educational
field. Following the law and order, is an
obsession with you. You do not tolerate any
thing, which is not correct, and what is not
abiding by the law. Religion and customs
attract you, but you do not overdo them. You
maintain a perfect balance between religion
and practicality. Travel will form an impor
tant part of your life in the coming year.
Music and literature will fascinate you, and
you will be able to get peace through music.
You get a sense of satisfaction in helping the
oppressed. In the coming year, you will get
many opportunities, to work for the needy.
The months of May, July and September will
be very important.
24th January, 2017
Dominated by the planet Venus, you are also
influenced by Mercury and the number 6.
You are independent and full of selfconfi
dence. You will move in an intellectual crowd,
in the year ahead of you. This will be benefi
cial to you in all ways. Your personality and
positive attitude to life, will allow you to have
a vast circle of friends around you. In the
coming year, proximity to a water body will
bring you prosperity. You should try to get a

position in a city or town, near a riverside or
a seaside. Those of you, who are single, can
expect to tie the nuptial knot. You will pros
per and achieve success after your marriage.
New schemes and projects are waiting to be
undertaken. All you need to do is push your
self ahead and make the best of opportunities
that are waiting for you. The months of July,
September and December will be very signifi
cant.
25th January, 2017
You are dominated by the planet Neptune and
governed by the planet Mercury. The number
7 also dominates you. You are honest faithful
and goodnatured. You have the ability of tak
ing charge over a difficult situation. Those of
you in the field of writing and oratory can
expect to achieve success, in their profession
al field, in the year ahead of you. You have the
ability to control your emotions. You can hide
your thoughts and feelings no matter how
upset you are. The coming year will see you
travel a lot. Visits to foreign countries is also
possible. You should use your extensive mem
ory, to your advantage. But a word of caution
give up your fickle minded attitude to life.
You tend to get inconsistent and thus create
problems for yourself. In love matters, you
will be careful, and will not take the first step,
if you are not sure of a positive response. The
months of June and September will be very
eventful.
26th January, 2017
You are governed by the number 8 and the
planet Saturn. You are also dominated by the
planet Mercury. The coming year will see you
executing big projects into action. This will
not only bring you success, but will also give
you a sense of satisfaction, but you are
advised to control your restless nature. You
expect things to happen in double quick time.
Learn to relax and let time take its own
course. This will relieve you from unneces
sary stress. You will also be lucky in financial
matters, in the year ahead of you. Neatness is
a passion for you. The opposite sex will be
attracted to your neat and perfect sense of
dressing. But you are advised, to be careful in
love matters. Take a step forward, only when
you are sure of a positive response. Most of
you will travel a lot in the coming year.
Pleasure trips with friends is foreseen. The
months of May, October and November will
be very important.
27th January, 2017
You are governed by the number 9 and domi
nated by the planet Mars. You are also influ
enced by the planet Mercury. Sacrifice and
care for the needy, is what gives you ultimate
satisfaction. You will be involved in voluntary
work, which will help the handicapped and
you will be appreciated for your good deeds,
in the year ahead of you. But you tend to
become a little dogmatic in your views and
ideas. You will have to learn to control this
trait. Trivial matters may disturb you. Learn
to relax and let small matters sort themselves
out on their own. This will keep you away
from stress and strain. Your personality will
attract the opposite sex. You do not like many
people around you. But you will be able to
make few but good friends, in the coming
year. You will be prepared to do your best for
your friends and loved ones. The months of
July, September and November will be very
eventful.
30
January 21-27, 2017
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
Moral dimensions of leadership
By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj
o be a leader requires knowing
what to do, and why to do it.
Enthusiasm, motivation, skill, and
knowing how to do things right is
not enough. We have to know
whether it is the right thing to do.
For that, moral leadership is
required. Moral leadership has
two central aspects: understand
ing our true self and serving oth
ers. True leaders need knowledge
of the self that gives access to an
inner moral compass that guides
our activities and gives direction
for those who follow us. A clear
and simple directive has come to
us throug h the ages:Know
Thyself.
Leadership is about who we
are , and what we do.Along
with learning to act as a leader, we

must possess the characteristics,
behavior and habits of mind and
heart of true leaders. True leaders
have the courage to confront the
meaning of existence. They have
the courage to live in a manner
that of fer meaning to others, By
their example, they inspire hope in
others that they too can become
one of Gods noble works. Such
leadership transcends organiza
tional leadership and also moral
leadership. It is life leadership.
Such leaders enter within their
own hearts and souls, engage in
selfanalysis, and connect with the
spiritual force within themselves.
They become connected to the
limitless spiritual power within
and radiate unmatched strength of
character and will. Yet they are the
most humble and compassionate
of leaders. True leadership is not
acting a certain way; it is a reflec
tion of who we are within.
Many focus on the routines of
life, such as waking up, getting
dressed, eating, driving, working
to earn a living, coming home, and
repeating the cycle the
following day. We go through
life growing up, having a job, rais
ing a family, retiring, and then
passing away. We wonder if that is
Great moral leaders of history have said that serv

ice before self was the key to a full and rewarding
life. A leader must be a servant first. It is by serving
others that we earn the right to lead them.
all there is to human existence.
Those who raise this question can
not rest until they find answers.
They conclude that there is a high
er power within that guides us.
That inner spiritual power is the
source of morals, virtues, power,
and life. It does not matter what
name we call it whether God,
consciousness, soul that power is
within, enlivening each of us.
Once we contact the eternal
spiritual power, we connect with
the source of the qualities of true

leaders. We automatically and
ef fortlessly inculcate the virtues
and characteristics associated with
great leaders.
The second aspect of leadership
is service. Great moral leaders of
history have said that service
before self was the key to a full
and rewarding life. A leader must
be a servant first. It is by serving
others that we earn the right to
lead them. We may act as leaders ,
but we must be servants to lead

meaningfully. How is it possible?
Those who are spiritually aware
see the same power enlivening all
creation. A life of service is based
on deep spiritual and moral princi
ples that are understoo d and
internalized when we contact the
Truth within. Intellectually under
standing service does not provide
the conviction we need when we
are tested, as we most certainly be,
by people and circumstances.
Becoming a true leader is about
becoming a true human being.
Leadership is a product of deep,
ongoing selfanalysis. It is about
choosing a life committed to spiri
tual growth and service. If we tap
into spiritual sources within, we
will become leaders whose lives
will inspire others to follow and
who will be a blessing to those we
meet.
We need dedication and perse
verance to achieve anything. For
those who turn towards spiritual
path, moral leadership will come
without fail. We do not need to act
or pose. Our moral leadership and
spiritual strength will flow from
our words and actions and will
reach the hearts of others as natu
rally and inevitably as a stream
flows towards its source.
Mysticism, the science that injects life with peace and joy
By Sant Rajinder Singh
Ji Maharaj
ysticism, rightly under

stood, is the most univer
sal and fundamental
approach to achieving an integrat
ed and fulfilling life. In a world
that has made such remarkable
scientific and material progress,
the challenge before us, individual
ly and collectively, is to make simi
larly spectacular progress in the
spiritual sphere.
Each of us is allotted a limited
amount of time on earth. During
this time we have a unique oppor
tunity to investigate the purpose
for which we were born and try to
understand the meaning of life
itself.
The desire to know and under
stand things seems to be innate in
human beings.
Scientists are engaged in this
pursuit, but the tools they use are
limited to those that are physical
and intellectual. Over the years,
saints and mystics have unraveled
the mysteries of life and death and
have discovered that complete
understanding could only be
g ained at the spiritual leve l.
Because the spiritual pursuit deals
with realms of experience that
ultimately transcend that which is
physical and mental, it seems mys

terious. That is why this approach
came to be known as mysticism.
Mysticism, however, is a science
that injects life with understand
ing, joy, peace, and love. It is a
practical approach to living that
enriches our inner life and enrich
es our relationships with others.
The basic premise of mysticism is
that each of us, in reality, is a soul
inhabiting a physical body for a
rather short period of time. It may
be twenty, forty, sixty, eighty, or
even a hundred years, but in the
not too distant future, each of us
will die and leave this world.
Where did our soul come from
before we entered this world?
Where will it go after we leave
here? What is the purpose of this
world, and of life itself? These
questions are fundamental to
understanding our human exis
tence.
The mystics are those enlight
ened individuals who have
searched and found the answers to
these questions. They tell us that
the purpose of our life is to reunite
our soul with its Creator, and they
of fer to teach us a method by
which we can do so. Throughout
the ages many methods have been
taught to achieve this union, but in
our contemporary world, we need
an approach that takes into

account the realities of modern
life. Such an approach to mysti
cism of fers unlimited opportuni
ties for improving our lives and
improving the lives of people
throughout the globe.
The beginning of our souls jour
ney is the contact with the Light
and Sound of God. The Light and
Sound current flows out from God,
but it also flows back to God.
We can catch this current at the
point of the third or single eye.
T hat is the connect ing point
between our soul in the body and
the Light and Sound current ema
nating from the Creator. If we can
concentrate our attention at that
point, we can soar on it back
through the higher regions of exis
tence. The current will ultimately
lead us to our primary Source,
back to the Lord.
The method is simple. As we
gaze within, we transcend aware
ness of bodyconsciousness into
realms of Light and Sound within.
As we continue this process we
will prove to ourselves that there
is Light and Sound beyond, that
we can exist separately from the
physical body, and that there are
higher realms of divine conscious
ness. The test is to prove it to our
selves. T hose who spend time
Where did our soul come from before we entered this

world? Where will it go after we leave here? What is the
purpose of this world, and of life itself? These questions
are fundamental to understanding our human existence.
daily in this process have had suc
cess in proving the hypothesis that
there is an existence beyond this
world.
Through meditation on the inner
Light and Sound we can achieve
the peace, harmony, love, and bliss

that we so desperately seek, and
we can be a part of an ever
increasing group of people who
are spreading peace and human
unity throughout the world.
January 21-27, 2017

Vol.9 Issue 38 - January 21-27, 2017

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Vol.9 Issue 38 - January 21-27, 2017

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The South Asian Times

Vol.9 No. 38 January 21-27, 2017 80 Cents

New York Edition

Trump declares in challenge to world, taking office

ing to defend our own, and spent

Modi congratulates Trump,

Bollywood dance at Trumps

Washington DC: In a first for India and

Welcome Concert on Thursday.

OWN YOUR FUTURE

x More than 60 undergraduate and graduate degrees

January 21-27, 2017

January 21-27, 2017

Indian community has come of age: Amb. Sarna

Trump signs executive

First Lady Melania Trumps elegant

It is not the same India when

knows the strength of this rela

Trumps America First strategy

Three score Democratic lawmakers

Civil rights hero John Lewis questioned

Indian Americans celebrate as

effective role in the next administration.

Continued from page 1

Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull

Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

President: Arjit Mehta

Modi congratulates Trump,

Tricolor at presidential inauguration: Arya Dance Academy started the performance

Jaipur (India) Bureau

IANS Newswire Services

Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/

Printing: Five Star Printing, NY

Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra

Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah

Chief Operating Officer:

West Coast Correspondent

Art and Design: Dhiraj Kumar Showaan

Managing Editor: Parveen Chopra

New Delhi Bureau

Web Editor: Bharat Bhushan Chopra

January 21-27, 2017

Children asked if 'We have to leave

Assistant Secretary of State for South and

Amit Kanodia jailed for $1

mean that we have to leave, because we are

Americans," she said.

Town of North Hempstead

(from left) IALI President Bina Sabapathy, Council Members Viviana

by Indian Americans. Supervisor

'India & US may work closely during Trump era'

ing here when he addressed the sec

tion are really af fecting people in

January 21-27, 2017

Ajit Pai meets Trump, may be appointed

Pai is widely expected to be

Indian American student

say contest and to use the schol

Indian-American ex-CEO convicted of 30 million fraud

Nanny Nasipho Nxumalo (inset) (Image courtesy: theblackloop.com)

Nanny singes two year

NBC New York reported that

New York: A 44yearold Indianori

counts of wire fraud.