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BJP Loses Hindi Heartland Statesof Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh

and Rajasthan to Congress Opposition sees itsopportunity in 2019 NEW DELHI (TIP): A resurgent Congress

on Tuesday, December 11 made significantgains in the Assembly elections, dealing abody blow to the BJP in ChhattisgarhRajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

The reverses for the BJP in the Hindiheartland threw wide open the 2019 LokSabha elections which until a few months agoappeared to be in the grip of Prime MinisterNarendra Modi's party.

The Assembly polls held for five states alsosaw the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS)recording a landslide win for a secondconsecutive term and the Mizo National

contd on Page 20Congress supporters celebrate party's victory in assembly election outside AICC HQ

in New Delhi, India, on Tuesday, December 11, 2018. Photo Courtesy HT

Court orders FIR against ManjitSingh GK in Gurdwara FinancialIrregularities CaseShiromani Akali Dal (SAD) dissolves Delhi,UP, Rajasthan units

NEW DELHI (TIP): A court onThursday, December 13, ordered filingof a FIR against DSGMC leader ManjitSingh GK and others in a financialirregularities case. MetropolitanMagistrate Vijaita Singh, Patiala HouseCourt, in her judgement, ordered theDelhi Police to lodge a complaintagainst DSGMC leader Manjit SinghGK, general manager Harjit Singh

contd on Page 20

Trump's ex-lawyer gets 3-yrprison term for financial crimes

NEW YORK (TIP):

President Donald Trump'sformer personal lawyerMichael Cohen wassentenced to three years inprison on Wednesday,December 12, for financialcrimes and orchestratinghush payments to womenbefore the 2016 election,telling the judge his "blindloyalty" led him to cover upfor Trump. The sentencing by US District Judge William Pauley inManhattan capped a stunning about-face by a lawyer who once said hewould "take a bullet" for Trump but has now implicated the RepublicanPresident in criminal conduct. contd on Page 20

‘Seriously’ considering runningfor President: Tulsi Gabbard

WASHINGTON (TIP): Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindulawmaker in the US Congress, has said she was "seriously"considering running for the White House in 2020.

This is for the first time that the four-time Democraticlawmaker in the US House of Representatives from Hawaiihas indicated that she may run for the presidency. If sheannounced her candidature, she would be the first Hinduever to be running for the presidency in the US. And ifelected in 2020, she would be the first Hindu president of

contd on Page 20

Tulsi Gabbard is the first Hindu lawmaker in the US Congress

Former DSGMCPresident Manjit Singh

GK at a pressconference (file photo)

Michael Cohen in New York City (File photo)

Apple to Add $1 Billion Texas Campus andThousands of Jobs Across U.S.

DALLAS, TX (TIP): Apple said onThursday, December 13, that it wouldexpand its operations in Austin, Tex.,with a new $1 billion campus on thenorth side of the city that would nearlydouble the size of the company's current6,000-employee work force in the area.

The technology giant said it alsoplanned to establish new, 1,000-workeroperations in San Diego, Seattle andCulver City, Calif., and to add hundreds ofworkers in offices in New York,Pittsburgh and Boulder, Colo. over thenext three years.

The new 133-acre campus in NorthAustin will initially employ 5,000 workersin engineering, research anddevelopment, operations, finance, salesand customer support. It will ultimatelyhave the capacity to accommodate up to15,000 workers. Apple said it expectedthat its expanded presence would make itthe area's largest employer.

"Apple is proud to bring new

investment, jobs and opportunity tocities across the United States and tosignificantly deepen our quarter-centurypartnership with the city and people ofAustin," Tim Cook, Apple's chiefexecutive, said in a statement.

Apple had become synonymous withhoarding money overseas after deferringtax payments on its foreign earnings foryears. In January, it said that it wouldincrease its spending in the United States

substantially after last year's tax cuts ledit to bring back most of the $252 billion ithad stashed abroad.

The company said at the time that itplanned to invest more than $30 billion inthe United States over the next five yearsand to create 20,000 jobs by expanding itsoperations and adding a new campus.

President Trump, who had chidedApple over various issues in the past,reacted to the January announcement bypraising the company while crediting hisown policies for getting it to make theinvestments.

In September, though, Mr. Trump tookaim at Apple over jobs after the companytold trade officials in a letter that theadministration's tariffs would affect awide range of products.

"Make your products in the UnitedStates instead of China," Mr. Trumpwrote on Twitter. "Start building newplants now." (Read full story on

www.theindianpanorama.news)

The company said it was building a new facility that would double the size of its workforce in the city.

2 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018ADVERTISEMENT

3INDIANS ABROADTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

Air India raises JFK International-Mumbai connection to ten flights a weekNEW YORK (TIP): Air India has revealed

it has boosted its connections to the UnitedStates this week by announcing theintroduction of three new non-stop flightscovering the JFK International to Mumbairoute.

As of 7 December of this year the newroute, operated by Air India's Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, depart at 1105 from JFK onWednesday, Friday and Sunday on 777-300ERplanes. They will arrive in Mumbai at 12:10the following day.

Commenting on the new route, BhuvanaRao, Air India's regional head in theAmericas, highlighted how the new flightsreflect the growth of India as a hot spot forNorth American travelers when she said:

"The additional New York to Mumbai non-stop service reflects the growing popularity ofIndia as a business and leisure destination.Our flights are also among the mostconvenient for passengers travelling beyondMumbai and Delhi, with customs andimmigration formalities completed at thefinal destination on select connecting flightsto major cities across India."

All flights to India from the US featureconvenient transfers onto from the US Indiandestinations, such as Bangalore, Amritsar,Hyderabad, Chennai, and Pune.

The airline already operates a daily servicebetween New York's most well-known airport

and the Indian capital and the new flights willtake this coverage from seven flights a week toten. And, increasing Air India's total non-stopservices from the US to India to the US to 36nationwide, including Newark-Delhi (daily),Chicago-Delhi (daily), Washington-Delhi(weekly) and San Francisco-Delhi (nine times

a week).To celebrate the launch Air India is offering

special fares on the new route, good for travelfrom 9 December 2018 to 11 May 2019. All ofAir India's non-stop flights from the UnitedStates feature first, business, and economyclass.

JFK - Mumbai inaugural flight

Ms Bhuvana Rao, Air India's regional head forAmericas said, "The additional New York to

Mumbai non-stop service reflects thegrowing popularity of India as a business and

leisure destination".

Indian origin techie sentenced to 9years for sexual assault insideairplane

WASHINGTON (TIP): An Indian IT professional was sentenced tonine years of imprisonment on Thursday, December 14, on charges ofa "brazen sexual assault" against a fellow female passenger inside acommercial airplane earlier this year.

Prabhu Ramamoorthy, 35, who came to the US on an H-1B visa in2015, will be deported after he serves his sentence, a federal court inDetroit said as it sentenced the Indian national to nine years ofimprisonment.

Judge Terrence Berge hoped it would be grave enough to deterothers from committing similar crimes. Federal prosecutors hadsought 11 years of imprisonment for Ramamoorthy.

"Everyone has the right to be secure and safe when they travel onairplanes. We will not tolerate the behavior of anyone who takesadvantage of victims who are in a vulnerable position. We appreciatethe victim in this case for her courage to speak out," US AttorneyMatthew Schneider said after the sentencing was announced.

Ramamoorthy was convicted in August after a five-day trial thatwas conducted before United States District Judge Terrence Berg. Thejury deliberated approximately three-and-a-half hours beforereturning the guilty verdict.

According to the evidence presented at the trial, on January 3,Ramamoorthy had engaged in a sexual act with a female, while shewas sleeping on a flight from Las Vegas to Detroit. Ramamoorthy wasseated along with his wife, when he sexually assaulted his co-passenger. During the trial, the government admitted evidencedemonstrating that Ramamoorthy had digitally penetrated thewoman sleeping next to him during the overnight flight. The sexualassault woke her up, she found her pants unbuttoned and unzipped,and sought help from the flight attendants.

The sentence was proof that the safety and security of all aircraftpassengers was a priority for the FBI, said Timothy R Slater, SpecialAgent in Charge, Detroit Division of the FBI.

In recent years, a number of Indian nationals have been arrested orcharged with sexual assaults inside a plane. The FBI says airplanesexual assault is a serious offence that is on the rise. FBI statisticsindicate that investigations of mid-air sexual assaults increased by 66per cent from 2014 to 2017. That was in part due to increasingly"cramped, confined spaces; alcohol and drugs; fewer flight attendants;and dark cabins on night flights"--factors that "likely emboldenoffenders"--the FBI said in a recent report. The cramped style ofairplane seating can exacerbate trauma for victims. According tomental health professionals, victims who are violated in confinedspaces feel even more helpless, vulnerable and powerless.

Read full story on www.theindianpanorama.news

Indian origin Members of InternationalMovie Piracy Ring Indicted in Schemeto Steal and Sell Pre-ReleaseHollywood Films and TV Shows

LOS ANGELES (TIP): A federal grand jury , on December 12,indicted five men in four countries on federal charges alleging theydistributed or offered for sale stolen digital versions of hundreds ofmotion pictures and television shows - including "Fifty Shades ofGrey," "The Expendables 3" and "The Walking Dead" - prior to theirofficial release.

According to the indictment filed this afternoon in United StatesDistrict Court, members of the hacking conspiracy broke intocomputer systems used by Hollywood film production companiesand stole digital files, including feature films, trailers, televisionseries episodes and audio tracks. The ring allegedly put the stolenfiles on a server in France, which contained more than 25,000motion picture-related files, including the feature films "Godzilla,""How to Train Your Dragon 2" and "Horrible Bosses 2."

The defendants also illicitly acquired copies of films by othermeans, including recording cinema screenings and obtainingcopies of motion pictures distributed to movie industryprofessionals, according to the indictment, which outlines criminalconduct beginning in early 2013 and continuing into the spring of2015.

Once they obtained the movies and other content, the defendantsallegedly altered the properties of the computer files to make themeasier to distribute online. According to the indictment, theyoffered the stolen motion picture files for sale via private electroniccommunications, but they also uploaded stolen movies onto piratemovie websites. The defendants used a shared PayPal account toreceive and distribute money from the sale of the pirated motionpictures, the indictment states.

In February 2015, one of the defendants allegedly told aprospective buyer that the ring would be offering copies of the films"Kingsman: The Secret Service" and "Fifty Shades of Grey" for saleon the same day as their U.S. theatrical release.

The defendants charged in the indictment are:Malik Luqman Farooq, 30, a resident of the United Kingdom, who

allegedly sold more than a dozen stolen pre-release orcontemporaneous-release films over a period of two years. Farooqwas previously arrested by the City of London Police on relatedcharges and is awaiting trial in the United Kingdom.

Aditya Raj, believed to reside in India, who allegedly releasedpirated movies on the internet and helped arrange for thecamcording of various films in India.

Read full story on www.theindianpanorama.news

Indian social workercommits suicide in UAE

DUBAI (TIP): A 35-year-old prominentIndian social worker in the UAE hasallegedly committed suicide by hanginghimself from a ceiling fan in hisapartment, a media report has said.

Sandeep Vellaloor, a staff surveyor inRas Al Khaimah (RAK) emirate, suffered ahuge financial loss after setting up atransport company, which is believed tohave prompted him to hang himself,Khaleej Times reported on Sunday,December 9.

The father of three was a prominentsocial worker. His two roommates were notat home when he apparently committedsuicide, it said.

Police have started an investigation intothe incident, the report said.

"After coming back from work, theyfound the door locked from inside, and hadto break open the lock to get in. To theirshock, they found him hanging from theceiling," said Prasad Sreedharan, a socialworker affiliated with a medicalcommittee recently constituted by theConsulate General of India in Dubai.

Vellaloor was the general secretary ofYulan Kala Sahiti and team leader of theFriends Cricket Association.

"He regularly organized blood donationcamps in RAK. The Ministry of Health andPrevention had honored him in 2016 with acertificate of appreciation and mementofor the humanitarian act," Sreedharansaid.

"He contributed Rs 400,000 to the familyof an Indian worker who was paralyzedand then died in a road accident here inRAK in 2017," he said.

Vellaloor sent his family to India threeyears ago and was staying with two of hisfriends in a villa behind the RAKimmigration department.

His body has been shifted to the morgueat the Ibrahim Bin Obaidulla Hospital andthe repatriation process will be initiatedshortly, said Nisham Noorudheen,president RAK Indian Relief Committee(IRC). (Source: PTI)

Indian arrested oncharges of smugglingforeign nationals into US

WASHINGTON (TIP): A 38-year-oldIndian national has been arrested oncharges of smuggling foreign nationalsinto the US for private financial gain,according to Department of Justice.

Bhavin Patel, is charged by indictmentwith one count of conspiracy to bring inand harbor aliens and six counts ofsmuggling foreign nationals into the USvia commercial airline flights, New JerseyUS Attorney Craig Carpenito said onMonday, December 10. (Read full story on

www.theindianpanorama.news)

Sandeep Vellaloor suffered financial losswhich prompted him to hang himself

Facebook photo

4 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018US

WASHINGTON (TIP): Maria Butina, a 30-year-old Russian gun rights activist, hassigned onto a plea agreement with the U.S.government, officially pivoting away from hermonths-long campaign to prove her innocenceafter standing accused of developing a covertinfluence operation in the United States.

As part of her plea deal, the details ofwhich ABC News reported earlier this week,Butina agreed to plead guilty to conspiracyand cooperate with federal, state and localauthorities in any ongoing investigations.

ABC News reported earlier this week that,as part of her deal, Butina admitted that sheand an unnamed "U.S. Person 1," whichsources have identified as longtimeRepublican operative Paul Erickson, withwhom she had a multiyear romanticrelationship, "agreed and conspired, with aRussian government official ("RussianOfficial") and at least one other person, forButina to act in the United States under thedirection of Russian Official without priornotification to the Attorney General."

Based on the description, the "RussianOfficial" appears to be Alexander Torshin,deputy governor of the Russian Central Bankand a close ally of Russian President Vladimir

Putin. Under his Torshin direction, theagreement said, she "sought to establishunofficial lines of communication withAmericans having power and influence overU.S. politics."

As Butina prepared to change her pleabefore a federal judge in Washington, DC,Thursday morning, the judge confronteddirectly questions raised about the starkconditions of her confinement-which thisweek has brought a rebuke from the Russiangovernment. Butina's lawyer had complainedshe was held alone in her cell for longstretches and had little personal or sensorycontact.

The judge asked Butina and her attorney ifconditions had impaired her psychologicallyto the point she had agreed to plead guilty.

"Is your mind clear?" the judge asked."Absolutely clear," Butina replied in a firm

voice. Driscoll told the court that while heremains concerned about the overuse ofsolitary confinement, he did not consider thata factor in her change of plea.

"As of today, I believe she is doing wellmentally," Driscoll said.

Ahead of Thursday's hearing, aspokeswoman with the Russian Foreign

Ministry told reporters in Moscow againcalled for Butina's "soonest release fromcustody" and said the Russian government"will support any decision she might takeaimed at her liberation."

"Once again, we demand that Washingtonobserve her lawful rights and ensure hersoonest release from custody," thespokeswoman said, adding that whateverdecision Butina makes with her lawyers, "shewould take them in order to be freed,considering that she is a political prisoner."

Butina was arrested in Washington, DC, inJuly on charges of conspiracy and failure toregister as a foreign agent. Her indictmentattracted headlines at the time for salaciousclaims made by the government that she usedsex as part of an alleged effort to infiltratepowerful conservative groups and buildrelationships with prominent Americans,drawing comparisons to the recent Hollywoodfilm, Red Sparrow, which focused on theseductive aspects of spycraft.

But the government was later forced to backaway from some of those allegations,conceding that they were based on amisreading of a series of text messages.Prosecutors wrote that "the government's

understanding of this particular textconversation was mistaken," according tocourt filings.

Butina has been held in jail since her arrestand indictment, with a federal judge claimingin September that she "cannot imagine ascenario where it is not possible" that Butinawould flee the country if allowed out on bail.

(Source: ABC News)

Maria Butina's booking photograph when shewas admitted into the Alexandria Detention

Center August 17, 2018.

Photo / courtesy Alexandria, Va. Sheriff'sOffice

Senate votes to condemn Saudi CrownPrince Mohammed bin Salman asresponsible for Khashoggi killing

WASHINGTON (TIP): The Senate cast twohistoric votes Thursday, December 13, to endU.S. participation in the Saudi-led war effortin Yemen and condemn the Saudi crownprince as responsible for the killing ofjournalist Jamal Khashoggi, delivering clearpolitical rebukes of President Trump'scontinued embrace of the kingdom.

The unanimous vote to hold Crown PrinceMohammed bin Salman responsible forKhashoggi's murder reflects the extent towhich senators of both parties have growntired of Trump's continued defense ofMohammed's denials. It also puts significantpressure on leaders in the House - where thepresident's Saudi policy is a much morepartisan issue - to allow members to cast asimilar vote condemning the crown princebefore the end of the year.

Regardless, the two Senate votes Thursdayset the stage for broader strategic debatesabout Saudi policy when Congress regroupsnext year.

Just before the Senate voted to condemnMohammed over Khashoggi's murder,senators voted 56-to-41 vote to end U.S.participation in the Saudi-led campaign inYemen by invoking the War PowersResolution - the first time a chamber ofCongress has ever done so.

More importantly, the 56-vote majority - afigure that includes seven Republicans -suggests that Saudi critics will still have amajority next year to challenge Trump onSaudi policy. Both Republicans and Democratshave said they plan to pursue sanctionsagainst Saudi officials involved inKhashoggi's murder, to stop the transfer ofnondefensive weapons until Saudi forceswithdraw from Yemen, and other measures torestrain a crown prince whom many

lawmakers see as out of control."Today we tell the despotic regime in Saudi

Arabia that we will not be part of theirmilitary adventurism," said Sen. BernieSanders (I-Vt.), who co-sponsored the Yemenresolution with Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah)."Today, for the first time, we are going to goforward .?.?. and tell the president of theUnited States, and any president … that theconstitutional responsibility of making warrests in the United States Congress, not theWhite House."

The votes came just hours after Secretary ofState Mike Pompeo and Defense SecretaryJim Mattis briefed House lawmakers behindclosed doors - a meeting from whichRepublicans and Democrats emerged urgingvery different responses to Saudi Arabia andits crown prince.

A recent CIA assessment found Mohammedwas probably responsible for the killing ofKhashoggi, a Washington Post contributingcolumnist, in a Saudi consulate in Istanbul onOct. 2. "They have to be held responsible," Rep.Eliot L. Engel (D-N.Y.), the incoming

chairman of the House Foreign AffairsCommittee, said after the briefing, referringto Mohammed and Saudi King Salman.

But there remain Republicans in the Housewho defend the crown prince - and those whothink that even if he should be called out forhis involvement in Khashoggi's death, thepunishment should stop there.

"We recognize killing journalists isabsolutely evil and despicable, but tocompletely realign our interests in the MiddleEast as a result of this, when for instance theRussians kill journalists .?.?. Turkeyimprisons journalists?" Rep. Adam Kinzinger(R-Ill.) said. "It's not a sinless world out there."

That stands in sharp contrast to the Senate,where several Republicans have beenencouraging a broad response to Saudi Arabiaover not just Khashoggi's killing and theYemen war, but the Kingdom's blockade inQatar, its recent detainment of LebanesePrime Minister Saad Hariri, and a slate ofhuman rights abuses they say havecompromised the U.S.-Saudi alliance.

Trump has refused to condemn Mohammed

for the killing of Khashoggi, a Saudi national.Pompeo has echoed Trump's stance in publicinterviews, and behind closed doors as well,lawmakers said.

"All we heard today was more disgracefulducking and dodging by the secretary," saidRep. Lloyd Doggett (D-Tex.), who supportsbringing up a War Powers resolution in theHouse to cut off U.S. support for the Saudis'Yemen war effort. On Wednesday, the Housenarrowly voted to block rank-and-filemembers from demanding a floor vote on anysuch Yemen resolution, after leaders slippedin a rule change to do so into an unrelatedagricultural bill.

House leaders also met with CIA directorGina Haspel on Wednesday to hear the detailsof Khashoggi's slaying. But they emergedoffering few details about the briefing - orabout what step House Democrats would take,once they assume the majority in January, topursue more punitive measures against SaudiArabia, beyond holding hearings.

In the Senate, meanwhile, both Republicanand Democratic lawmakers are making plansto capi-tal-ize on the Yemen resolution votewith further measures next year - includingsanctions on Mohammed and the other Saudisimplicated in Khashoggi's killing, and anorder to halt all nondefensive weaponstransfers to Saudi Arabia until hostilities inYemen cease.

"The current relationship with SaudiArabia is not working for America," Sen.Lindsey O. Graham (R-S.C.) said Wednesday,in comments to reporters about what nextsteps senators planned to take to addressSaudi policy. "I'm never going to let this gountil things change in Saudi Arabia."killing ofjournalist Jamal Khashoggi. (Source:Agencies)

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., joined at left by Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., holds a news conference

Maria Butina pleads guilty toconspiring to act as a Russian agent

5USTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

U.S. Budget Deficit HitsWidest on Record forMonth of NovemberU.S. ran largest fiscal gap in sixyears in fiscal 2018

WASHINGTON (TIP): Outlays jumped 18percent to $411 billion last month, while receiptswere little changed at $206 billion, the TreasuryDepartment said in a monthly report on Thursday,December 13. That left a $205 billion shortfall,compared with a $139 billion gap a year earlier.

The U.S. ran the largest deficit in six years infiscal 2018, the first full year of Donald Trump'spresidency when his Republican party enacted atax-cut package and raised federal spending for themilitary and other priorities. The measures haveadded to the growing federal deficit, which isforecast to push past $1 trillion by 2020 when theU.S. next holds presidential elections.

In the first two months of the fiscal year thatbegan Oct. 1, the gap widened to $305.4 billion,compared with $201.8 billion the same period ayear earlier.

Spending on Department of Defense militaryprograms rose 18 percent in October andNovember from the same two months a yearearlier, while outlays for total interest on thepublic debt jumped by 7 percent. (Source:Bloomberg)

The First-Ever Diwali Fireworks Show in SanFrancisco Makes History: An estimated 10,000people attend to usher in the Indian New Year

SAN FRANCISCO, CA(TIP): November10th, 2018, marked a historic day as an estimated10,000 excited children and nostalgic parentscame out to experience the first-ever BrookeBond Taj Mahal Diwali Day held at SanFrancisco's iconic Pier 39 to commemorateDiwali, the Festival of Lights, celebrated byIndians around the globe. The family-friendlyevent culminated with a spectacular fireworkshow, an especially meaningful element of theprogram since it is the traditional form ofcelebration in India.

While fireworks are commonly associatedwith major U.S. holidays such as the 4th of Julyand New Year's Eve, this was the first time theywere launched over the San Francisco Bay tocelebrate Diwali. It was a beautiful example ofcultures coming together and anunderstandably proud moment for the over350,000 Asian Indians that call San Franciscoand the Bay Area home--making them thesecond largest population of Indians in theUnited States.

Not to be missed, close to 60,000 people tunedin via Facebook Live to view special moments

from the event including the fireworks finale.Sponsored by Brooke Bond Taj Mahal Tea

and produced by MIKADO International, theday-long event was free and open to the public,thoughtfully curated for the entire family toenjoy in the celebrations. In addition to savoringdelicious tea samplings from the Brooke BondTaj Mahal tea cart throughout the day, attendeeseagerly lined up to receive henna tattoos, paintpersonalized diyas (ceremonial clay oil lamps),go for a spin on the teacup ride, snap selfies forthe photo mosaic wall and participate in a meetand greet with celebrity Bollywood dancerManpreet Toor and comedian Rajiv Satyal.

The much-anticipated fireworks display didnot disappoint, lighting up the sky and thehearts of the tens of thousands of spectators onsite and online. It was a memorable moment forall South Asians witnessing the recognition of aholiday so dear to them on display over theiconic San Francisco Bay.

"Asian Indians are a strong, proud andculturally rich population with traditions thathave not only survived but continue to thriveoutside of our motherland. We at Brooke Bond

Taj Mahal are committed to ensuring SouthAsian immigrants feel at home, no matterwhere they live, which is why we are thrilled tohave been able to provide the South Asiancommunity of the Bay Area with an authenticDiwali celebration experience echoing thetraditions of home,"commented Partha Guha,Sr. Manager - Marketing & BusinessDevelopment at Unilever International.

"We were honored to have produced theBrooke Bond Taj Mahal Diwali Day at Pier 39"says Sandrine Vohra, CEO of MIKADOInternational, a global multiculturaladvertising agency.

"Representation matters. Who tells your storyand how they communicate your messagematters, which is why it was so important for usto design an experience on such a publicplatform that fully represented the beauty andsignificance of the traditions around Diwali,from the diyas and dancing to the family fun andfireworks."

Highlights from this year's Brooke Bond TajMahal Diwali Day, including the 10-minutefireworks display can be viewed on the event's

Facebook page. Professional photos availableupon request.

ABOUT BROOKE BOND TAJ MAHAL TEAWith over 50 years of experience, Brooke

Bond Taj Mahal is one of India's greatestrefreshment brands, offering the finestpremium teas. Its tea is made from carefullyselected leaves from the choicest gardens of theUpper Assam, which give it an unmatchedaroma and flavor. Brooke Bond Taj Mahal Tea

ABOUT MIKADO INTERNATIONALMIKADO International is a culture first

advertising agency that strives to create aworld more connected. Through opportunityanalysis, research, and market planning, ithelps brands effectively cater to underservedand fragmented cultural and/or religiouscommunities with unparalleled expertise.MIKADO works with startups and Fortune 500companies, utilizing native language-basedmarketing as well as social and culturalelements to target these communities.MIKADO International.

WASHINGTON (TIP): A Reuter reporthas quoted Democratic leader Nancy Pelosias saying on Thursday, December 13, thatmembers of congress from her party willseek to obtain President Donald Trump's taxreturns when they take control of the U.S.House of Representatives in January - amove the White House is likely to stronglyresist.

The House Ways and Means Committeewill "take the first steps" toward obtainingthe documents, said Pelosi, who has thebacking of her members to become speakerof the House next month. As it is likely to bea challenging process, it will be up to thecommittee to figure out how to proceed, shesaid. "There is popular demand for theCongress to request the president's taxreturns," she told reporters in the Capitol.

"I'm sure the White House will resist andso the question is where do we go fromthere," she said. Trump defied decades oftradition when he refused to release his taxrecords as a candidate and after his victoryin the 2016 U.S. presidential election. No lawor rule compels a president or candidate todisclose their returns, but nearly everynominee and president has done so in recentdecades. As they prepare to take overmajority control of the House, Democraticleaders have tried to walk a fine line in

articulating their goals. They have said theyplan to pursue policies popular with their

voter base, but have also said they will notshy away from examining Trump, hispersonal business dealings and hispresidency.

Representative Bill Pascrell praised theplan to seek Trump's records. "I amconfident we will have the will and the toolsto finally expose Trump's financial historyto sunlight," he said. The records wouldprovide congressional investigators fromvarious House committees withinformation crucial to efforts to determineif Trump's business generates conflicts ofinterest. Democrats have alleged Trump isviolating the U.S. Constitution'semoluments clause, which bars presidentsfrom receiving gifts of value from foreigngovernments, citing Trump's continuedownership of hotels that foreigngovernment delegations patronize.

Trump denies ties to ex-lawyer Cohen'scrimes

Democratic leaders on the HouseIntelligence Committee have said Trump'spersonal financial information would helpilluminate whether foreign leaders mighthave leverage over the president.

Pelosi said committees will also take upissues like healthcare and trade.

The White House did not respond to arequest for comment. (Source: Reuters)

House Democrats to seek Trump tax returns: Pelosi

"There is popular demand for the Congressto request the president's tax returns,"

Pelosi told reporters in the Capitol.

6 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018 INDIA

Akali Dal rakes up 1984 againstKamal Nath’s appointment asMadhya Pradesh CM

CHANDIGARH (TIP): With the Congress leadershipfinalising Kamal Nath’s name for the post of chief ministerof Madhya Pradesh, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) onThursday accused the Gandhi family of “protecting theperpetrators” of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

The Akali Dal alleges that Nath had a hand in the anti-Sikh riots that broke out in the national capital followingthe assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. “Whenever theGandhi family comes to power, it protects the perpetratorsof the 1984 riots. Now Rahul Gandhi and the Gandhi familyare rewarding Kamal Nath as chief minister of MadhyaPradesh...,” Akali Dal leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa toldreporters. “Rahul Gandhi wants to give a message that thoseinvolved in the killings of Sikhs in 1984 now need notworry... that they are behind them and will reward theminstead,” he added.

“He (Kamal Nath) himself had agreed before the JRanganath Misra and J Nanawati commissions set up in1985 that on November 1, 1984, he was very much present onthe premises of Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib when twoSikhs were burnt to death,” said Sirsa.

Sirsa said Kamal Nath’s presence at the gurdwara wasalso confirmed by two senior government officers. He saidthe then reporter of an English daily, Sanjay Suri, hadreportedly seen Kamal Nath leading a mob.

A section of Sikhs had raised objections when Nath wasappointed general secretary in-charge of Punjab andHaryana. While Nath continued to hold the charge forHaryana affairs, he was replaced in Punjab.

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP spokesperson Tajinder SinghBagga claimed the Congress is aware of Nath’s involvementin the riots and that was why he was “removed” as thePunjab in-charge of the Congress before assembly electionsin that state in 2017. He said Punjab chief ministerAmarinder Singh should register his protest against theparty’s decision to make Nath the Madhya Pradesh CM andshould resign if Rahul Gandhi does not agree to his demand.

Leader of opposition in the Punjab assembly HarpalSingh Cheema on Thursday asked chief minister CaptAmarinder to clarify his stand on Congress leader KamalNath’s likely elevation as Madhya Pradesh CM. Source: HT

How Cong led by Rahul turned the party around in 3 statesNEW DELHI (TIP): The Congress is back,

winning the states of Rajasthan, MadhyaPradesh and Chhattisgarh. And it is back inthe region where it was most deeplyvulnerable. If there is a pattern in this set ofelections, here are five factors Congress gotright.

Ironically, or perhaps appropriately, thoseare the same factors the BJP has got rightsince it embarked on its winning spree since2014.

The first is leadership. This was alwaysNarendra Modi’s forte. What changed?

Rahul Gandhi got it right — not because hewon the election on his own steam but becausea leader has to take the right decisions. Hetook the right decisions in Madhya Pradesh.The state president was the old, but theresourceful, Kamal Nath who knew how to revup an organisation. Jyotiraditya Scindia wasthe most popular of all leaders across regionsand demographics. Digvijay Singh knew thestate organisation inside out but was kept inthe background because of his perceivedpublic unpopularity. In Rajasthan, AshokGehlot was most popular. Sachin Pilot workedhard, and rebuilt the organisation. InChhattisgarh, TS Singh Deo, as the Thakurleader and leader of opposition, andTamardhwaj Sahu and Bhupesh Bagel, as thekey swingers of the crucial Other BackwardClasses vote, were empowered. Gandhi pickedno chief ministerial candidate, although hewill have to do so now (but everyone workedhard believing that they had a chance). But ina loose organisational setup, to manageleadership, and reconcile factions, is

testament to Gandhi’s underestimatedmanagement skills. Once he had figuredleadership, he led from the front with anaggressive and energetic campaign.

The second is religion. In Indian elections,you have to get religion right. The BJP hasalways relied on polarisation, portrayingitself as the Hindu and the Congress as thepro-Muslim party.

The Congress, soon after the 2014 electionsbut definitely after the Uttar Pradeshelections, realised that it had to change itsgame. And this led to Rahul Gandhi picking upstraight from his grandmother’s textbook ofdisplaying Hindu religiosity rather than fromhis great grandfather’s practice of aggressiveagnosticism. Many criticised this as theCongress’ turn to soft Hindutva. But Gandhi

stayed on the path, convinced that he needed tobe in tune with the beliefs , but not necessarilythe prejudices, of his society. The polarisationtrick did not work.

The third is the economic narrative. TheBJP constructed the vikas (development)promise as an overarching platform. It isunravelling.

The Congress picked up local issues in eachdistrict and constituency. It helped that theparty was the challenger and thus had theadvantage of taking on an incumbent. But asGandhi said in each state, there were twopillars of the party’s strategy, a promise toprotect farmers, reeling from low prices, and apromise to provide jobs to the young. Agrariandistress and unemployment have become thetwo biggest failures of the government. The

Congress capitalised on the resentment, andpromised both short term measures such asloan waivers and longer term measures ofpromising ways to encourage small andmedium industries everywhere to create jobs.These are not easy promises to keep, but fornow they have worked. It also built on theanger that has been accumulating over bothdemonetisation and implementation of theGoods and Services Tax.

No Indian election can be won withoutgetting caste right, and this is the fourth factor.The BJP has, since 2014, become an inclusiveHindu party. It has consolidated upper castes,and gone beyond them to win over the supportof OBCs, Dalits and tribals.

The Congress recognised it had to be as all-embracing. It went back to the upper castesand leveraged on their latent sense that theBJP has betrayed them by turning probackward and Dalit. It went to the Dalits andconstantly emphasised the BJP’s upper castecharacter. It picked on local issues, from theencounter of a Rajput gangster in Rajasthan toputting up its own upper caste candidates inseveral constituencies. It also sought to winback the OBC vote by giving themrepresentation in leadership in bothRajasthan and Chhattisgarh. All of this helpedthe Congress create a far more inclusive andumbrella coalition within the Hindu fold thanit has at any point since 2014.

The fifth is organisation, which matters.And the BJP has got this right with theextensive use of its booth committee andpanna pramukhs and cadre based machine.

Source: HT

Kamal Nath named chief minister of Madhya PradeshNEW DELHI (TIP): Senior Congress

leader Kamal Nath will be the next chiefminister of Madhya Pradesh, the partyannounced late on Thursday, Dec 13. Theannouncement came after a day ofmeetings between Congress chief RahulGandhi and the two contenders for thepost in New Delhi. Jyotiraditya Scindiawas the other front-runner.

Nath is a nine-time Lok Sabha MPfrom Chhindwara constituency inMadhya Pradesh and is the statepresident of the Congress. He succeedsShivraj Singh Chouhan of the BharatiyaJanata Party, which had been in powerfor 15 years.

Nath and Scindia had arrived in Delhion Thursday to meet Rahul Gandhi athis residence, where they remained tilllate evening. They left for Bhopal around8 pm and said a decision would beannounced by night.

As the suspense continued till lateThursday, Gandhi posted a tweet with apicture of himself flanked by Scindiaand Nath, with a quote attributed to LeoTolstoy: “The two most powerfulwarriors are patience and time.”

In an interview with The IndianExpress published on Thursday, Nathhad said the Congress will focus onimproving the state’s fiscal health andexposing the prime minister for hispolicies such as the Goods and ServicesTax regime and demonetisation.

Final results of the recently-heldAssembly elections in the state weredeclared on Wednesday morning. The

Congress emerged the single-largestparty with 114 seats, while the BJP got109 – both parties were short of themajority mark of 116. Mayawati’sBahujan Samaj Party and theSamajwadi Party have offered support tothe Congress, which will help them crossthe majority.

Besides Madhya Pradesh, the Congresswon a clear majority in Chhattisgarh andwas the single largest party in Rajasthan.The party finished just two short of themajority mark, at 99, in Rajasthan, withthe BJP winning 73 seats. InChhattisgarh, the Congress won 68 seatsand the saffron party 15.

On Wednesday, a single-line proposalhad been passed at the Madhya Pradesh

Congress Legislature Party meeting inBhopal. The Congress high commandwas expected to decide the chief minister.

Outgoing Chief Minister Shivraj SinghChouhan did not stake claim to form thegovernment, saying the BJP did not get amajority. After submitting hisresignation, he said he took fullresponsibility for his party’s loss. “Iworked tirelessly for the poor andfarmers,” Chouhan said at a pressconference on Wednesday. “I apologise ifI upset the people of Madhya Pradesh.”

Chouhan said the BJP will be a strongOpposition. “My job is to provideconstructive support, we now have theresponsibility to be the watchdog,” hesaid.

7INDIATHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

CBI SECURES INTERPOL REDCORNER AGAINST CHOKSI

NEW DELHI (TIP): TheCentral Bureau ofInvestigation (CBI) hasmanaged to secure anInterpol Red Notice againstfugitive diamond traderMehul Choksi, in what isseen as a big boost to itsefforts to bring him back toIndia to face trial in thePunjab National Bank(PNB) fraud.

Choksi became a citizenof the Caribbean country Antigua and Barbuda under aprogramme in which a certain quantum of investmententitles an individual to citizenship.

Investigations have showed that Choksi began theprocess to take citizenship of the twin-island nation lastyear, well before he left India in the first week of January.

The fraud came out a little later.Choksi was formally granted citizenship in November

last year but took oath as an Antiguan citizen on January15.

Choksi , who, along with his nephew, diamond jewellerNirav Modi, who, too, is a fugitive from India, perpetrateda fraud on PNB amounting to over Rs 13,500 crore,according to CBI.

Neither has returned to India despite repeated summonsfrom the investigation agencies and courts.

“In July, Choksi, 59, was traced to Antigua after USauthorities informed their India counterparts about histravel to the Caribbean nation. The CBI, through theministry of external affairs, immediately approached theAntiguan authorities asking for extradition of Choksi. Theisland nation has informed the Indian authorities that itwould honour any legitimate request to extradite him. Theprocess has begun,” said a government official who spokeon the condition of anonymity.

The Antiguan authorities also pointed out the absence ofa Red Notice against Choksi and the fact that one has nowbeen secured means that gap has been addressed, thisofficial added.

A lawyer for Mehul Choksi said Mehul Choksi’s legalteam will work on setting aside the notice.

“This [notice] appears to have been obtained by makingmisrepresentations to Interpol. As we didn’t get anopportunity to represent our stand, this Red Notice hasbeen issued. We shall be exposing the misrepresentationsat various forums and we are confident that this RedNotice shall be set aside in due course,” said Sanjay Abbot.

The Red Notice is basically an appeal to all Interpolmember countries to arrest the person and send him or herback to the country which requested issuance of the same.

A Central Bureau of Investigation official disputedAbbot’s version.

Rafale: No favouritism, rulesapex court while rejecting

court-monitored probeNEW DELHI (TIP): In a big relief to

the Narendra Modi government, theSupreme Court on Friday dismissedpetitions seeking a court-monitoredprobe into the purchase of 36 Rafalefighter jets from France under an intergovernment agreement.

A Bench of Chief Justice of IndiaRanjan Gogoi, Justice Sanjay KishanKaul and Justice KM Joseph said therewere no irregularities in the deal andthe decision making process for thepurchase 36 Rafale fighter jets fromDassault was above board.

The court said the need for fighter jetsand Rafale's quality we're never underquestion and it was not the court's job toget into comparative pricing details.

"We cannot go into the wisdom of whythe deal for 36 Rafale jets was made andnot the original 126 aircraft. We cannotask the government to go for 126aircraft," the Bench said.

For the first time, four senior IAFofficers – three Air Marshalls and anAir Vice Marshall – and AdditionalSecretary (Defence) had appeared in thetop court to explain various aspects of adefence deal.

CJI Gogoi had asked severalquestions about previous acquisitions,which generation of aircraft IAF wasusing. Air Vice Marshall J Chalapathihad told the Bench that the lastacquisition was Sukhoi-30 and beforethat Mirage Aircraft were bought in1985.

He had said while most of thecountries were using 4th and 5thgeneration fighter planes, IAF wasusing 3rd or sub-4th generation (3.5)aircraft.

"Our country can't remainunprepared when adversaries haveacquired 4th & 5th generation fighterjets compared to none by India. We haveinteracted with senior Indian Air Forceofficers and there is no doubt about

need and quality of Rafale jets," theBench said.

It's not correct for the court to sit asan appellate authority on every aspectof the deal," the Bench added.

Terming it "unfortunate", PrashantBhushan, cousel for one of thepetitioners said, "It's a totally incorrectjudgment given by the Supreme Court."

The top court had reserved theverdict on November 13 on thecontentious issue after hearingarguments from counsel for thepetitioners, including PrashantBhushan, senior journalist ArunShourie and Attorney General KKVenugopal who had defended secrecyclause of the deal estimated to be of Rs58,000 crore.

Alleging irregularities in the deal,petitioners ML Sharma, PrashantBhushan, Vineet Dhanda and SanjaySingh had demanded registration of anFIR and a court-monitored investigationinto it. Following the court’s October 31order, the Centre had submitted in a sealedcover the pricing details of 36 Rafale jets.

The process of acquisition had started

in 2001 and India was to purchase 126Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft(MMRCA) but the contract negationsreached a stalemate and Request forProposal compliance was finallywithdrawn in June 2015. During theprotracted process India’s adversariesmodernized their combact capabilities, theAG had submitted.

It was in this background that Indiasigned an agreement with France inSeptember 2016 for the purchase of 36Rafale fighter aircraft in a fly-awaycondition as part of upgrading process ofthe Indian Air Force equipment.

It has better deliverables, the AG hadsaid, adding norms prescribed underDefence Procurement Policy -2013 werefollowed.

The Bench said, "Minor variations inclauses should not amount to setting asideof the Rafale jet deal.

The Bench agreed with AttorneyGeneral's argument that the decision ontypes of aircraft and weapons needed to beprocured was a matter for experts andcould not be adjudicated upon by thejudiciary. Source: The Tribune

India, Russia agree to extend bilateral cooperation on defence NEW DELHI (TIP): India and Russia

agreed to extend bilateral cooperation ondefence joint-venture (JV) manufacturingprojects on Thursday (December 13) at the18th meeting of the India-RussiaGovernmental Commission on MilitaryTechnical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC).

The meeting was co-chaired by DefenceMinister Nirmala Sitharaman and herRussian counterpart General SergeiShoigu.

With regards to the framework of Specialand Privileged Strategic Partnership’, theminister discussed a wide range of issuesrelated to defence equipment, industry andtechnological engagement between Indiaand Russia.

Both ministers expressed satisfactionciting dynamism and progress in bilateraldefence cooperation.

Intensive discussions were held on jointmanufacturing projects, including theKamov-226T helicopters, naval frigates andprojects related to land systems.

The two countries also agreed to take

forward inter-governmental arrangementsfor facilitating joint manufacturing ofspares for Russian origin equipment inIndia, under the Make in India’ initiative.

With a view to enhancing military-to-military engagement and rationalising thefunctioning of the Commission, a revisedInter-Governmental Agreement was signedby the two defence ministers.

It will help restructure the existingIRIGC-MTC to the IRIGC on Military andMilitary Technical Cooperation. Anadditional institutional working groupwould also be set up under the expandedCommission.

The ministers expressed satisfaction overthe level of progress in structuredengagement between the two armed forces,including joint exercises and resumption oftraining exchanges, as per the framework ofthe Bilateral Road Map on DefenceCooperation’ signed in June 2017.

The inaugural meeting of the IRIGC-MTC is proposed to be held in Russia nextyear. Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu along with Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman.

8 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018EDITORIAL

Pakistan's sudden decision to open theKartarpur shrine for Indian pilgrimspredictably raised suspicions in India.

Pakistan had earlier opened other Sikh holyshrines, like Gurdwara Nankana Sahib andDera Sahib Gurdwara in Lahore, under abilateral agreement. The decision to open theKartarpur shrine, located virtually on theIndia-Pakistan border, was, however,conveyed 'informally' by Pakistan's armychief Gen Bajwa to Punjab's tempestuousminister, Navjot Sidhu. Interestingly, GeneralBajwa's sudden interest was manifestedmuch after repeated requests by Indianleaders, including former PM Vajpayee, wereignored.

This unusual action by Pakistan's armychief raised hackles in New Delhi, as thePakistan army controls the gurdwaras therethrough the Pakistani Gurudwara PrabandakCommittee. This committee's first head wasformer ISI chief, Lt Gen Javed Nasir, themastermind of the 1993 Mumbai blasts.'Khalistani' flags are often provocativelyraised during visits of Sikh pilgrims fromIndia. They are also constantly sought to beincited by specially invited 'Khalistani'activists from countries like Canada, the USand the UK. Obviously, the ISI is now againlooking to fish in troubled waters in Punjab,evident from the recent terrorist strike inAmritsar and the continuing smuggling ofnarcotics across the border.

These developments took place when PMImran Khan was engaged in organizingcountrywide celebrations for his firsthundred days in office. Contrary to hisexpectations, his first hundred days have beenmarked by a less than satisfactoryperformance in fulfilling the expectations hehad raised. This happened despite being theblue-eyed boy of the army, which hadfacilitated his election as Prime Minister.Pakistan's foreign exchange reserves havereached the perilously low level of $8 billion.With the country expecting to have a further$12 billion trade deficit in the currentfinancial year, Pakistan had to go with bendedknees to its past financial mentors - SaudiArabia, China, US, EU, UAE and IMF - for abailout.

The Saudis were not quite as generous asthey have been in the past. On offer was ashort-term deposit of $3 billion in a Pakistanibank and a similar offer of petroleum under ashort-term, deferred payment arrangement.The IMF imposed strict conditionalities,including asking for details of repaymentliabilities on Chinese loans for CPEC.Negotiations with the IMF are presently onhold. Pakistan's expectations of long-term,low-interest/interest-free credits from Chinawere not fulfilled. The US has ended military

and economic aid for Pakistan. Pakistan'sfinance minister Asad Umar recentlyproclaimed: 'Right now, we have a $18 billiondeficit and $9 billion of debt repayment duethis year, which brings the total to $27billion... we cannot afford that.'

Imran Khan has reached out to India,urging the resumption of dialogue and India'sparticipation at SAARC summit in Islamabad.Our standard reply 'talks and terrorism can'tgo together' is not endorsed internationallyand conveys rigidity. It needs to be nuanced.Detailed 'back-channel' negotiations after theJeM attack on our Parliament, resulted in anagreement in which General Musharrafassured Vajpayee that 'territory underPakistan's control' would not be used forterrorism against India. Pakistan abided bythat assurance till 2007. The CompositeDialogue Process also resumed on all issues,including Kashmir. There was progress, basedon PM Manmohan Singh's offer that while'borders can't be redrawn', we can worktowards making them 'irrelevant' by makingthem 'just lines on a map'. The 26/11 attacksended it.

Pakistan would like to resume theComposite Dialogue Process. This should berejected as terrorism is accorded a lowpriority. This does not mean that India shouldcut off all diplomatic contacts with Pakistan.It is essential that we stand firm on refusing todiscuss J&K unless the sponsorship ofterrorism ends.

But we go wrong by equating the prioritiesof the Pakistan army, with the interest aboutIndia across wide sections of ordinaryPakistanis. Vajpayee's directive on liberalissue of visas, particularly to Mohajirs inKarachi and urban Sind, produced dramaticresults in changing public opinion about

India. It pays us richly to expose ordinaryPakistanis to realities in contemporaryIndia. We need to welcome exchanges ofvisits by students, academics, businessorganizations, cultural troupes and thosewith familial ties.

There also has to be firmness and realismin dealing with the Pakistan militaryestablishment. Pakistan has to be told bluntlythat it has rendered SAARC non-functionaland SAARC Free Trade Agreementmeaningless by its restrictions on Indianexports and by denial of transit toAfghanistan. Not just India, Bangladesh andAfghanistan should also have reservations onthe next summit being hosted in Pakistan.Moreover, Pakistan wastes time and resourcesin pushing for China, which is not a SouthAsian country, to be admitted to SAARC. Thisis a proposal India will not accept. We neednot, therefore, be in a hurry to respondpositively to Imran Khan's call for an earlysummit.

Apart from reaching out to people, back-channel contacts - free from the glare ofpublicity - between diplomats, army officialsand intelligence agencies are essential to dealwith terrorism and bilateral cooperation,while at the same time, maintaining pressureto respond to challenges of terrorism. Withthe snows closing the passes, cross-borderterrorism in the Valley falls. Imran Khan hasshown some readiness to consider movingforward on proposals to address the J&Kissue, on lines akin to what happened in 2004-2007, when terrorism was minimal. We can,however, address major issues only after thegeneral election. But we should spare no effortto raise the costs of sponsoring terrorism forthe military establishment of Pakistan.

(The author is a former diplomat)

Not Muchfor Congress

to FeelElated About Recent Assembly electionwins may not replicate

The recent Assembly elections inIndia in which the CongressParty wrested three Hindi

heartland States from BJP shouldalarm the BJP. However, the CongressParty had better not have themisconception that it is their victory.In fact, the BJP lost to Congress inRajasthan, Madhya Pradesh andChhattisgarh because it failed to comeup to the expectations of people whowere desperate to get rid of a non-performing government. Theyrejected the BJP. Since there was noother choice for people in these Stateswhich do not have regional parties,they voted or Congress Party. Wherethere was a regional party, as inTelangana, or in Mizoram, votersrejected both the BJP and theCongress.

These results are not likely toreplicate in other Assembly electionsor in Parliamentary elections. In largeStates, like Bihar and UP (Hindiheartland again), there are so manyregional parties who have in the pastgiven ample evidence of their swayover voters. The BJP which won alandslide in Parliamentary elections inUP will have a lot to worry, going by itsperformance in the 3 States it recentlylost. It is not the Congress Party whichwill pose a threat to BJP; it is theregional parties in these two Stateswhich have a large number ofParliamentary seats. In fact, for boththe national parties, real threat comesfrom regional parties. Congress will behandicapper in asking for a biggerslice of seats when it sits down withthe partners in alliance which includeall kinds of regional parties- BSP, SP inUP, and RJD and other outfits in Bihar.

What the Congress Party need tofocus on is good governance whichmeans taking care of the people. Maybe, the performance of Congressgovernments as people-friendlygovernments in the freshly acquiredStates will send a message to otherStates and people will regain their lostfaith in the Congress Party. It alonecan revive the Congress Party. It alonecan make once again Congress YuktBharat, as against Congress muktBharat.

THE INDIAN PANORAMA PPRREESSIIDDEENNTT//PPUUBBLLIISSHHEERR: Prof. Indrajit S. SalujaVVIICCEE PPRREESSIIDDEENNTT:: Chitagam SalujaCCHHIIEEFF EEDDIITTOORR:: Prof Indrajit S. SalujaAASSSSIISSTTAANNTT EEDDIITTOORR:: Bidisha RoyGGRRAAPPHHIICCSS DDIIRREECCTTOORR:: Om Parkash MalikDDIIRREECCTTOORR AADDMMIINNIISSTTRRAATTIIOONN:: Gauri BeriCCOONNTTRRIIBBUUTTIINNGG PPHHOOTTOOGGRRAAPPHHEERRSS:: Baldev Singh / BJ VideosGunjesh Desai / Masala JunctionJay Mandal, Mohammad Jaffer/ SnapsIndia

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AS I SEE IT

By G Parthasarathy

Keep the Pakistan door ajarIndia needs to be cautious, but should not completely shut itself to talks

“Imran Khan has reached out to India, urging the resumption ofdialogue and India's participation at SAARC summit inIslamabad. Our standard reply 'talks and terrorism can't gotogether' is not endorsed internationally and conveys rigidity. Itneeds to be nuanced", says the author.

Imran Khan has reached out to India. The opportunity should not be lost

COMMENTProf I.S.Saluja

9PERSPECTIVETHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

Atsunami of good news has just hitIndia, five of the 29 states of India heldthe elections in December 2018, and

produced amazing results, and the winner isthe Indian Democracy.

Parties come and go, but what is constant isour freedom. Freedom to speak, freedom toprosper, and freedom to marry whom youwant, eat what you want, drink what appealsto you, wear what works for you, and believewhatever the hell suits you.

I am sure no Indian wants someone to tellhim or her how to live. The BJP followers willnot like what the Congress may tell them todo, and the same is true the other way around.The durable policy is to follow the principlesof freedom.

Modi has time to show that he reallybelieves in Democracy and is notauthoritarian. He can do that by initiatingthree national awards; Patriotic Citizen,Patriotic Media and National ChamchaAward. The award goes to those individualsand News Media who relentlessly criticize thegovernment to keep them on their toes, andNational Chamcha Award goes to theindividuals who consistently equate supportfor Government as a Patriotic act. A truepatriot would hold the feet of the governmentto the fire rather than do the chamchagiri andlet the country make mistake after mistake.

If Congress were to wins elections in 2019,the BJP supporters will go ballistic againstthe elected government and that is the timeCongress party needs to show its civility, andthey will, as they have a proven record.Unlike our Goonga Prime Minister, theCongress Prime Minister will speak outagainst anyone calling the BJP supportersanti-National or anti-Hindu. No one is anti-National or anti-Hindu, it is the wildimagination of fanatics among BJP to sow theseeds of discord.

I am proud of India's freedom and salute the

men and women who went to jail and took thebeatings but chose to fight for freedom. Theynot only got the freedom but set up greatinstitutions for India. Today India is amongthe top 7 powerful nations, and the credit goesto Gandhi, Nehru, Azad, Patel, Ambedkar anda few others who had the vision and laid thefoundation of a great nation.

Whether you align with BJP, INC or otherparties, you have the freedom to speak andprosper because the foundation of our nationwas laid out on the principles of Democracy.We cannot let anyone curb those freedoms, themedia needs to be free and people need to free.

I admire Modi's supporters in America andtheir loyalty. I wish they show the samedevotion to India by respecting every Indianwithout prejudice.

Do you recall a tyrant grandfather or even afather, who is all about control, he claims tolive a simple life, but wants to keep everyoneunder his thumb? Our Prime Minister, underthe guise of Sanyasi (hermit), claims that hehas nothing to gain and wants nothing. Howdoes he account for enriching his friends?Would a Sanyasi do that?

We cannot blame Modi for who he is, he isconditioned by the RSS schools where theyteach exclusive ideology and disrespect toothers who do not think like them. A majorityof Hindus innocently believe that RSS is aservice organization but fail to see the poisonit injects into the innocent children. I wishModi frees himself from the petty Hindutvaideology and becomes an all-embracing leaderand a giant like Nehru.

I pray that a handful of right-leaning HinduAmericans fight their temptations to supportthe forces in India who want to deny thefreedoms to 'other' Indians. Their Americanborn children think they are stupid to havesuch hatred towards the other.

A young Hindu Medical doctor doing hisresidency stayed with me for a month whileattending a conference in Washington DC. Wehad terrific conversations on a daily basis. Hewished his parents had the opportunity toknow Muslims, Christians, Dalits, Sikhs, andthe Blacks. He deplored their hatred towardsthem. He said, he has lived in the dorms, andeverything they have said about others waswrong.

There are parents out there who are selfishand poison their kids by injecting ill-willtowards others. Some Hindu parents tell theirkids how bad Muslims, Christians and Sikhsare and vice versa goes as well, they evenbelieve Dalits are untouchables. The dumbmen (women are not as hateful) don't realizethat when the kids grow up in America, theyhave to work with the very people they weretold to stay away from. It must be painful for

the kids to work with others, many of themwish they did not have such ugly parents. Iurge the Indian Americans not to poison theirkids, the kids have sixty to seventy years tolive, let them decide whom to love or hatebased on their personal experience and notprejudice.

The Law of Karma does not spare anyone.Modi's arrogance will bring him down in 2019.He has got to stop bullshitting Indians with

issues that don't put food on their tables orclothe their kids or have clean drinking water.Let him make one promise and keep ratherthan make ten and cheat.

All of us want the best for fellow humansincluding Modi. Mr. Modi can make acomeback in 2024 if he turns BJP into a partywhere every Indian, be it a Muslim, Sikh,Christian or Dalit wants to become a memberof his party. He has got to do his praischit(repentance) for quietly letting a few goons togo on a killing spree in 2001. Indians willforgive him if seeks forgiveness. Hinduism isnot a religion of violence or revenge, it is notabout forcing others to eat, drink or believeagainst their will. It Hinduism is not a violentreligion, then the moderate Hindus have anobligation to protect the image of Hinduismand not let the Hindutva guys tarnish it.

Indians are good people, they are as good asgold. They are clamoring for a leader who canbring jobs and don't want to be fooled again.

Two BJP contestants in two states, aMinister for Cow Welfare and Minister forHappiness lost the elections badly. This is amajor loss and a clear signal to the party thatIndians cannot be fooled over and over againwith the issue of cow or the building of atemple.

(The author is a public speaker and theExecutive Director of the Center for Pluralism

in Washington, DC. He is committed tobuilding cohesive societies and offers

pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.More about him at

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeghouse/)

By Mike Ghouse

If Congress were towins elections in

2019, the BJPsupporters will go

ballistic against theelected

government andthat is the timeCongress party

needs to show itscivility, and theywill, as they havea proven record.

Unlike our GoongaPrime Minister, the

Congress PrimeMinister will speakout against anyone

calling the BJPsupporters anti-National or anti-Hindu. No one isanti-National or

anti-Hindu, it is thewild imagination offanatics among BJPto sow the seeds of

discord.

India awakened, democracy restored

Whether you align with BJP,INC or other parties, youhave the freedom to speakand prosper because thefoundation of our nationwas laid out on theprinciples of Democracy.We cannot let anyone curbthose freedoms, the medianeeds to be free and peopleneed to free.

Two BJP contestants in twostates, a Minister for CowWelfare and Minister forHappiness lost the electionsbadly. This is a major lossand a clear signal to theparty that Indians cannotbe fooled over and overagain with the issue of cowor the building of a temple.

10 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018WORLD

France: Yellow vestprotester dies in roadaccident

STRASBOURG (TIP): A sixth “yellowvest” protester has been killed in Franceafter being hit by a truck at a roadblockade near the southern city ofAvignon, French authorities said Dec 13,as the protest movement showed no signsof abating. Officials in the Vauclusedepartment said the driver was arrestedand taken into custody after he tried to fleethe scene.

The Vaucluse prefect’s office said theprotester got emergency treatment butdied from his wounds overnight. Theprefect urged the protesters — who wearthe yellow fluorescent safety vests thatFrance requires drivers to keep in theircars — to use “the utmost caution,”especially at night, in order to avoid moreaccidents.

In an effort to defuse tensions, FrenchPresident Emmanuel Macron hasacknowledged he’s partially responsiblefor the anger that has fuelled the protestsand has announced a series of measuresaimed at improving the spending power ofordinary French workers.

But many yellow vest protesters haveexpressed disappointment at the measuresand are planning more protests acrossFrance on Saturday. Macron’s centristgovernment is also going to face a no-confidence vote in the lower house ofparliament later on Dec 13.

The vote, prompted by far-left andSocialist lawmakers, is not expected tosucceed, however, as Macron’s party andits allies have a strong majority at theNational Assembly.

Fearing more violence at protests thisweekend, authorities have alreadypostponed five French league soccermatches as the government diverts policeto deploy extra security around thecountry following the extremist attack Dec13 that left three people dead inStrasbourg.

The French league says the reason forthe cancellations is because police forcesare being stretched.

France has raised its three-stage threatindex to the highest level and deployed1,800 additional soldiers across France tohelp patrol streets and secure crowdedevents in the wake of the Strasbourgattack on a Christmas market. More than700 officers are involved in the manhuntfor the 29-year-old suspect, Cherif Chekatt,who had a long criminal record and hadbeen flagged for extremism, according togovernment spokesman BenjaminGriveaux. He urged the “yellow vest”protesters not to take to the streets. (AP)

Gandhi statue removedfrom University ofGhana followingstudent protests

ACCRA (TIP): A statue of Indianindependence leader Mahatma Gandhi hasbeen removed from Ghana's mostprestigious university after complaints thathe was racist against black Africans. India'sformer president Pranab Mukherjeeunveiled the statue to the global peace iconat the University of Ghana in Accra twoyears ago as a symbol of ties between thetwo nations. But lecturers soon began apetition calling for its removal, citingpassages written by Gandhi claiming thatIndians were "infinitely superior" to blackAfricans. (PTI)

In a first under Justin Trudeau,Canada lists Khalistani

extremism as threatSikh groups Babbar Khalsa International and the International Sikh Youth

Federation, which are already on Canada's watch list, remain listed as terrorentities under the criminal code, the report mentions.

TORONTO (TIP): Taking into accountIndia’s concerns over support of Khalistanimilitants on its soil, Canada has for the firsttime under the Justin Trudeau regime listedSikh extremism as a threat to the country.Public Safety Canada, an arm of the Canadiangovernment, said some individuals in thecountry continue to support Sikh (Khalistani)extremist ideologies and movements in its“2018 Public Report on the Terrorism Threatto Canada“.

Sikh groups Babbar Khalsa Internationaland the International Sikh Youth Federation,which are already on Canada’s watch list,remain listed as terror entities under thecriminal code, the report mentions.

The report notes that while violentactivities in support of an independent Sikhhomeland (Khalistan) in India have fallensince the 1980s when terrorists carried out thebombing of an Air India flight, killing 331people, “support for the extreme ideologies ofsuch groups remains”.

“Violent activities in support of anindependent Sikh homeland have fallen sincetheir height during the 1982-1993 period whenindividuals and groups conducted numerousterrorist attacks. While attacks around theworld in support of this movement havedeclined, support for the extreme ideologies ofsuch groups remains,” the report mentions.

Sikh groups Babbar Khalsa Internationaland the International Sikh Youth Federation,which are already on Canada’s watch list,remain listed as terror entities under thecriminal code, the report mentions.

The report notes that while violentactivities in support of an independent Sikhhomeland (Khalistan) in India have fallensince the 1980s when terrorists carried out thebombing of an Air India flight, killing 331people, “support for the extreme ideologies ofsuch groups remains”.

“Violent activities in support of anindependent Sikh homeland have fallen sincetheir height during the 1982-1993 period whenindividuals and groups conducted numerousterrorist attacks. While attacks around theworld in support of this movement havedeclined, support for the extreme ideologies ofsuch groups remains,” the report mentions.

The Canadian PM has repeatedly failed to

take into account the sensitivities in Indiaregarding support to Sikh terror groups inCanada.

His visit to India earlier this year had madethe Khalistan movement a talking point onceagain. During his meeting with Trudeau,Punjab Chief Minister Captain AmarinderSingh said he had raised the issue ofKhalistan. In an incident that caused furtherembarrassment to the Canadian premiere,Trudeau’s wife was clicked with Jaspal Atwal,a member of an illegal Sikh separatist group,who was invited to an event hosted by theCanadian High Commission.

(Express Web Desk)

North Korea leader Kim Jong Un unlikelyto visit Seoul this month: Official

SEOUL (TIP): North Korean leader KimJong Un’s return visit to Seoul appearsunlikely to take place this month, a seniorSouth Korean official said. Kim and SouthKorean President Moon Jae-in had agreed onKim’s visit to Seoul “in the near future”following their September summit inPyongyang. Moon later said that Kim wouldcome “within this year.” Kim’s possible trip toSeoul has been the focus of media attention inSouth Korea in the past two weeks.

The presidential Blue House on Dec 13quoted senior presidential adviser Yoon Young-chan as saying in a text message to localreporters on Wednesday that Kim’s visit thisyear was “difficult.” Yoon said Kim’s trip earlynext year was still possible.

Experts say Kim is reluctant to comebecause of stalled nuclear negotiations withthe United States and worries about securityarrangements in the South. If Kim does visitSeoul, he will become the first North Koreanleader to do so since the end of the 1950-53Korean War. The Koreas are divided by theworld’s most heavily fortified border, and about28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Koreato deter potential aggression from NorthKorea. Kim and Moon have taken a series ofsteps to reduce military tensions and boost ties

this year. But they find it difficult to launcheconomic cooperation projects as the UnitedStates says it will maintain internationalsanctions on the North until it completes itsnuclear disarmament.

The negotiations between the U.S. and NorthKorea have produced no major breakthroughsince Kim’s summit with President DonaldTrump in Singapore in June. (AP)

Kim and South KoreanPresident Moon Jae-in hadagreed on Kim's visit to Seoul"in the near future" followingtheir September summit inPyongyang. Moon later saidthat Kim would come "withinthis year."

11WORLDTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

Second Canadianmissing in China afterdetention of formerdiplomat

BEIJING, OTTAWA (TIP): Canadianbusinessman Michael Spavor, who workedwith North Korea, is missing in China, aCanadian official said, days after Chineseauthorities detained a former Canadiandiplomat amid an escalating diplomaticrow.

His disappearance follows the detentionin Beijing on Monday of former diplomatMichael Kovrig, who works for theInternational Crisis Group. State media inChina has reported Kovrig is beinginvestigated “on suspicion of engaging inactivities that harm China’s statesecurity”.

China has reacted angrily to Canada’sarrest on Dec 1 of Chinese executive MengWanzhou, the chief financial officer ofChina’s Huawei Technologies, andSpavor’s disappearance is likely to furtherescalate the diplomatic row.

Meng’s arrest was made at Washington’srequest. She has been accused by U.S.prosecutors of misleading banks abouttransactions linked to Iran, putting thebanks at risk of violating sanctions.

Canada has been unable to contactSpavor since he notified the Canadiangovernment that he was being questionedby Chinese authorities, Foreign Ministryspokesman Guillaume Bérubé said instatement issued in Canada late on Dec 12.

Canada was working hard to ascertainSpavor’s whereabouts and would continueto raise the issue with the Chinesegovernment, Bérubé said. Phone calls,messages and emails to Spavor wentunanswered on Dec 13.

Friends of Spavor told Reuters he wasdue to fly out of Dalian on a Korean Airflight to South Korea at 2:05 p.m. (0605GMT) on Dec 10 but had not arrived.Spavor, who is based in the northernChinese city of Dandong, on the borderwith North Korea, is the head of PaektuCultural Exchange, a China- and UK-basednon-profit social enterprise.

More recently he has been trying tofacilitate investment in North Korea inanticipation of sanctions being lifted,often hosting both North Korean officialsand potential investors at his office inDadong as well as on trips inside NorthKorea, Spavor told Reuters in previousinterviews. (Reuters)

China to continue strictbans on trading of rhino,tiger products: official

BEIJING (TIP): China will continue tostrictly ban the trade and use of rhinos,tigers and their byproducts, the NationalForestry and Grassland Administration(NFGA) said on Dec 13.

The agency's spokesperson Huang Caiyisaid the following "three strict bans" willcontinue to be enforced: strictly ban theimporting and exporting of rhinos, tigersand their byproducts; strictly ban thesales, purchasing, transporting, carryingand mailing of rhinos, tigers and theirbyproducts; and strictly ban the use ofrhino horns and tiger bones in medicine.

Since Nov 13, the NFGA has beenstaging special crackdown campaigns thattarget the illegal trade of rhinos, tigers,their byproducts and related illegalities,Huang told a news conference. (UNI)

Turkey: Train crash in Ankarakills nine, injures 47

There were 206 passengers on the high-speed train, according to state-owned Anadolu news agency, which also reported that the Ankara state

prosecutor's office had launched an investigation.ANKARA (TIP): Nine people were killed

and nearly 50 injured in Turkey when a high-speed train collided with a locomotive andcrashed into a station platform and overpassin an Ankara suburb early on Dec 13, officialssaid.

Rescuers worked to free people trappedunder the mangled wreckage at Marsandiztrain station, 8 km (5 miles) from centralAnkara. It was not clear at which speed thetrain and locomotive were travelling when thecollision occurred. There was light snow onthe tracks.

The train had been heading from Ankara tothe central Turkish province of Konya andwas not due to stop at Marsandiz. AnkaraGovernor Vasip Sahin said the locomotive,which lay battered 20 metres (22 yards)further ahead, carried out track inspections.

Three train drivers were among the ninekilled in the crash, Transport Minister CahitTurhan told reporters on the scene.

There were 206 passengers on the high-speed train, according to state-owned Anadolu

news agency, which also reported that theAnkara state prosecutor’s office had launchedan investigation.

Turkey has been developing a network of

high-speed rail links during Tayyip Erdogan’s16-year-old rule as it looks to ease the burdenon increasingly congested highways.(Reuters)

Theresa May wins confidence vote, losesover one-third of her party support

BRUSSELS (TIP): British Prime MinisterTheresa May survived a confidence vote withthe support of 200 lawmakers from her partyDec 12. However, 117 lawmakers, more than athird of the Tories, dissented indicating asplit within the conservative party over theBrexit deal. May, who needed 159 votes to winthe vote, cannot be challenged for anotheryear.

With Britain due to leave the EU on March29, Wednesday’s vote has suddenly opened uppossibilities including a potentiallydisorderly exit with no deal or even anotherreferendum on the country’s membership.

Why the confidence vote was called?The confidence vote was called after weeks

of discord over the Brexit deal when at least48 Conservative lawmakers submitted lettersof protest challenging May’s leadership.Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922committee — the body that representsConservative backbenchers — announcedWednesday that he had received more thanthe required number of letters to proceedwith the confidence vote. May had cancelled atrip to Dublin where she had hoped to talk toher Irish counterpart, Leo Varadkar, aboutchanges that might help build support in theBritish Parliament for her Brexit proposals.But it had already been clear that she was indeep waters, battered from multipledirections by her management of theEuropean Union withdrawal.

What Theresa May said after winning?After winning the confidence vote, May

said she would get on with the job of pullingBritain out of the European Union. Speakingin Downing Street, the British PM said, “Thishas been a long and challenging day but at theend of it I am pleased to have received thebacking of my colleagues in tonight’s ballot.Whilst I am grateful for that support, a

significant number of colleagues did cast avote against me and I have listened to whatthey said. Following this ballot, we now needto get on with the job of delivering Brexit forthe British people and building a better futurefor this country. A Brexit that delivers on thevote that people gave, that brings back controlof our money, our borders and our laws, thatprotects jobs, security and the Union, thatbrings the country back together rather thanentrenching division. That must start here inWestminster, with politicians on all sidescoming together and acting in the nationalinterest.”

“For my part, I have heard what the Houseof Commons said about the Northern Irelandbackstop and when I go to the EuropeanCouncil tomorrow I will be seeking legal andpolitical assurances that will assuage theconcerns that members of Parliament have onthat issue. But while delivering Brexit isimportant, we also need to focus on the otherissues that people feel are vital to them, thatmatter to them day-to-day, the issues that we

came into politics to deal with. Building astronger economy, delivering first-class publicservices, building the homes that familiesneed. We owe it to people who put us here toput their priorities first. So here is ourrenewed mission: delivering the Brexit thatpeople voted for, bringing the country backtogether, and building the country that trulyworks for everyone.”

What would have happened if Theresa Mayhad lost?

In this case, May would no longer be theleader of the Conservative Party, and Bradywould have begun the process to choose asuccessor. Lawmakers would have voted inrounds of secret ballots, with the least-popular candidate eliminated each time, untiltwo contenders remain. Brady said hebelieved that part of the process could be doneby the end of business next Thursday whenParliament is scheduled to break for theChristmas vacation.

(Express Desk)

Kartik Aaryan is amongthe hottest youngactors in Bollywood,

thanks to the spectacularshowing of his film, Sonu KeTitu Ki Sweety. So much sothat Sara Ali Khan recentlysaid that she wants to datehim. Speaking on Koffee WithKaran, the Kedarnath actorsaid she finds him hot.

Now, it is Kartik’s turn tospeak and he has done so withflourish. Speaking on NehaDhupia’s No Filter Neha, theactor was in his elements ashe did not duck any questionsand answered all head on. Onan earlier occasion, he hadmentioned that he would liketo have babies with KatrinaKaif. On No Filter Neha, hefinally explained his stance,stating that he had a thing for

accents. Since Katrina hadone, she fitted the bill. OnNeha’s insistence thatJacqueline Fernandez toohad one, Kartik feignedinnocence, adding that hedidn’t know that.

Speaking about hisequation with Sara and askedif any sparks few between thetwo at a recent party, Kartikreplied saying that since Saifwas present at the do,everything was “ecofriendly”. “I think Saif (AliKhan) sir was also there, so itwas all eco-friendly.”

He was further asked hepretends to drink, to which,he answered in theaffirmative. He reportedlysaid that when he entered theindustry, he pretended todrink at parties, else

everyone tries to force aperson to drink. “So from myfirst party, I ask the bartenderto give me a glass of water,put lemon and ice in it. Then,I look at the colour of otherpeople’s drink and addorange juice or any otherjuice to it so that it looks likea proper mocktail,” IndianExpress quoted him assaying.

On the question to whichBollywood couple ought toadmit to being together, henamed Arjun Kapoor andMalaika Arora and gave thetag of being the couple of2018, he named RanbirKapoor and Alia Bhatt. Healso said that one actor whoought to delete his socialmedia account is SushantSingh Rajput.

12 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018 BOLLYWOOD

AISHWARYA AND KARISMADANCE TOGETHER AT THE

AMBANI’S CELEBRATION

ANUSHKA SHARMA:RAB NE BANA DI JODICHANGED MY LIFE

Actor Anushka Sharma says her debutfilm Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, which clocks10 years on Wednesday, has a special

place in her heart as she got to work with peoplewho had faith in her.

The actor said she is close to producer AdityaChopra and her co-star Shah Rukh Khan eventoday. “Adi (Aditya Chopra, director) used to saythat ‘we have taken you because you can standon your own against anyone’. Yashji (YashChopra) had also said the same. For a youngperson like me to hear that was a hugeconfidence booster,” Anushka said.

“I got to work with people who were very niceand generous to me. I share a beautiful equationwith all of them even now. I am blessed to beworking on this film. It changed my life. It issomething that is going to be the most specialthing I have done,” she added.

The actor, who was 20 when she made herdebut, was praised for her confidence on screen,something that she says, came after a lot ofhardwork.

I valued the art I was in, I valued acting a lot,I paid attention and worked towards it. I wouldread the same script almost everyday, findingsomething new in it to do. They understood thehard work I was putting into the film. And theonly reason I was so confident when I did thefilm is because I was so prepared. Confidencecomes because you work so hard,” she said.

Isha Ambani’s pre-wedding ceremonieslike the recently concluded sangeet atUdaipur has seen many firsts, like the

three Khans —Salman, Shah Rukh andAamir — dancing at the same event. Now,yet another ‘wall’ seems to have beenbroken. At the sangeet ceremony,Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and KarismaKapoor were seen dancing together.

Why would that be of any consequence?Well, that is because Aishwarya is the wifeof actor Abhishek Bachchan while Karismadated Abhishek for seven years before theywere engaged to get married. However, theengagement was broken off and Karismawent on to marry her now-ex husband,Sunjay Kapur. So seeing them dancetogether was pleasant indeed.

It seems, all the concerned parties havelet bygones be bygones. In fact, it would notbe inappropriate to add here that showingthe way for such an attitude is the youngbrigade of Bollywood.

Some time back, a picture was onlinewhich showed Karan Johar in the companyof Deepika Padukone, Ranbir Kapoor, AliaBhatt, Ranveer Singh, Shah Rukh Khan andAamir Khan. Nothing out of place there,other than the fact that Deepika and Ranbirare ex-lovers (Deepika even had a tattoo ofhis initials on her nape, at one time). Thefact that ex-lovers and their currentpartners could meet and enjoy timetogether showed how these stars weren’tletting themselves be victims of their past.

Deepika and Ranbir have realised thatbeing friends is more important, it seems.The result was that they have walked theramp together and done films opposite eachother. In fact, Deepika and Alia evenappeared on Koffee With Karan together inthis season’s inaugural episode.

Meanwhile, the Isha Ambani weddingfunctions’ juggernaut rolls on. After a

dreamy engagement at Italy’s scenic LakeComo in September this year and anexciting sangeet ceremony in Udaipur, thecouple is all set to tie the knot at MukeshAmbani’s residence Antilia, in South

Mumbai on December 12. Isha will marryAnand Piramal, son of Swati and AjayPiramal - founder of Piramal Realty, aleading real estate firm.

Source: HT

Kartik Aaryan on why he wantsto have babies with Katrina

Actor Margot Robbie has revealedthat she was initially hesitant toplay Queen Elizabeth in "Mary

Queen of Scots" as she felt "terrified".The 28-year-old actor believes that to

take on a character which has beenpreviously portrayed by the likes of JudiDench, Helen Mirren and Cate Blanchett istoo big a task.

"That (history of portrayals) wasdefinitely something that ran through mymind many times. I'm not going to lie, I wasterrified, and I initially passed on the role,"Robbie told Entertainment Weekly in aninterview.

The actor said director Josie Rourke wasadamant that she play the part andrelentlessly pursued her.

The film is based on John Guy's 2004biography of 'Mary, Mary Queen of Scots'and chronicles the deterioration of Maryand Elizabeth's relationship in the yearsafter she returns to Scotland.

Margot Robbie exudes old Hollywood glamour

She's been on a worldwide promotional

trail with her latest historical drama filmMary Queen of Scots.

And Margot Robbie pulled all out thestops as she joined Saoirse Ronan for theEuropean Premiere of the film atCineworld Leicester Square in London onMonday evening.

The Wolf Of Wall Street star, 28, oozedOld Hollywood glamour as she donned apolka dot gown, embellished a plungingneckline and rose details on its bodice.

Putting her best fashion foot forward,the blonde's busty ensemble wasembroidered with pleated trimming alongthe ends.

Margot ensured focus remained on heroutfit as she went accessory-free for herred carpet appearance in the Englishcapital.

The Australian actress appeared to takestyle inspiration from the 60s as she styledher glossy tresses into pin-up curls.

Maintaining the red colour scheme, sheenhanced her out-of-this-world beauty withmatte crimson lipstick, rose-tintedeyeshadow and a heavy winged eyelinerlook.

13HOLLYWOOD THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

JENNIFER LOPEZ CAN SEE WHYPEOPLE WANT HER AND ALEXRODRIGUEZ TO GET MARRIED

I'D BE 'VICTIM-SHAMED'IF I SHARED MY METOOSTORY: MEGAN FOX

Megan Fox thinks she'd be "victim-shamed" if she was to come forwardwith her own #MeToo experiences.

The 32-year-old actress has claimed thereason she hasn't joined the dozens of womenspeaking out about alleged sexual misconductin Hollywood is because she thinks she'd bepainted as an "unsympathetic victim".

She said: "I didn't speak out for many reasons.I just didn't think based on how I'd been receivedby people, and by feminists, that I would be asympathetic victim.

"I thought if ever there were a time when theworld would agree that it's appropriate tovictim-shame someone, it would be when I cameforward with my story."

The 'Transformers' star claims she has "quitea few stories" involving sexual misconduct thatshe could tell, but insisted she wouldn't becommenting on them in public as she doesn'tbelieve it's her "job to punish someone" for theirpast actions.

She added: "I don't feel it's my job to punishsomeone because they did something bad to me.I'm not the universal hammer of justice."

But although she might not be speaking outabout her past, Megan is determined to raiseher sons - Noah, six, Bodhi, four, and Journey,two, all of whom she has with husband BrianAustin Green - to respect women.

MARGOT ROBBIE WAS ‘TERRIFIED’ TO PLAY QUEEN ELIZABETH I

Jennifer Lopez understands whypeople want her and boyfriend AlexRodriguez to get married.

"Everyone wants a fairy tale," she toldUSA Today during an interview. "They allwant a romantic comedy, a happy ending.We all do. But it's not a movie, even if yousee us on Instagram or on the shows."

The "Second Act" star added that eventhough she and the former baseball playerhave been going steady for more than oneyear, they're not rushing into tying theknot.

"We're happy," she said. "We're taking itday-by-day. And it's great."

In recent months, Lopez and Rodriguezhave shared videos from their jointworkout sessions, red carpet appearances,and photos with their children. The singerhas two kids named Max and Emme withex-husband Marc Anthony and Rodriguezhas two daughters, Natasha and Ella, fromhis previous marriage to Cynthia Scurtis.

"2018 has really moved us to place wherewe feel like a real family," Lopez said."That's nice. And it's good enough rightnow." Recently, Lopez was grilled about herrelationship during an appearance on "TheEllen DeGeneres Show." The talk show hostsneakily lied to the 49-year-old and said thatRodriguez told her that he was planning onproposing to Lopez, but the singer didn'tfall for it. When DeGeneres asked if Lopezand Rodriguez are actually gettingmarried, Lopez explained that she wasn'tsure, but they've "been together a couple ofyears and it's nice."

In July, the "Dinero" singer also said thatshe wasn't rushing into a wedding withRodriguez because she's "made plenty ofmistakes" in the past. Lopez marriedAnthony in 2004 and separated in 2011.Before that, she was married to Ojani Noain the late '90s, married to Cris Judd in theearly 2000s, and engaged to Ben Affleck.

14 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018SOUTH ASIA

Sri Lankan Parliamentdissolution‘unconstitutional’, rulesSupreme Court

COLOMBO (TIP): The Sri LankanSupreme Court on Thursday ruled thatPresident Maithripala Sirisena’s decision todissolve the Parliament 20 months before theend of its term was “unconstitutional”. Aseven-member apex court bench said that thePresident cannot dissolve Parliament until itcompletes a four-and-a-half year term, theColombo Gazette reported.

The ruling comes as a double blow toSirisena a day after Prime Minister RanilWickremesinghe proved his majority inParliament, with 117 out of 225 lawmakersvoting to pass a confidence motion in hisleadership. Rajapaksa has so far failed toprove his majority in Parliament.

The island nation plunged into politicalcrisis after Sirisena removed PMWickremesinghe on October 26 andappointed former president MahindaRajapaksa in his place. When it appeared thatRajapaksa would not be able to muster thesupport of the majority in the Parliament,Sirisena dissolved the House on November 9and called for a snap election on January 5.

As many as 13 petitions had been filedagainst Sirisena’s dissolution of theParliament. However, in an interim order onNovember 13, the Supreme Court ruledSirisena’s gazette notification as temporarilyillegal and halted the preparations for snappolls.

Sirisena has said that he had always takendecisions in the best interest of the countryand the people. He had also said that hewould honour the court’s decision. (Expressdesk)

Scores of migrant girlsquietly vanishing fromIndonesia

FATUKOKO (TIP): The stranger showedup at the girl’s door one night with atantalizing job offer: Give up your world, andI will give you a future.

It was a chance for 16-year-old MarselinaNeonbota to leave her isolated village in oneof the poorest parts of Indonesia forneighbouring Malaysia, where some migrantworkers can earn more in a few years than ina lifetime at home. A way out for a girl sohungry for a life beyond subsistence farmingthat she walked 22 kilometres (14 miles)every day to the schoolhouse and back.

She grabbed the opportunity — anddisappeared.

The cheerful child known to her family asLina joined the army of Indonesians whomigrate every year to wealthier countries inAsia and the Middle East for work.Thousands come home in coffins, or vanish.Among them, possibly hundreds of traffickedgirls have quietly disappeared from theimpoverished western half of Timor islandand elsewhere in Indonesia’s East NusaTenggara province. The National Agency forPlacement and Protection of IndonesianWorkers has counted more than 2,600 cases ofdead or missing Indonesian migrants since2014. And even those numbers mostly leaveout people like Lina who are recruitedillegally — an estimated 30 per cent ofIndonesia’s 6.2 million migrant workers.

On that night in 2010, Lina didn’t seem tosense the danger posed by the strangernamed Sarah. But Lina’s great-aunt andgreat-uncle, who had raised her, werehesitant. Sarah insisted they could trust her;she was related to the village chief. And Linawould only be gone two years. (AP)

Malaysian ex-PM Najib Razak slappedwith new charge over 1MDB scandal

KUALA LUMPUR (TIP): FormerMalaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak wascharged Wednesday with tampering with thefinal audit report into a defunct stateinvestment fund, adding to a long list ofcorruption allegations against him since hisouster in May elections.

Najib was charged along with Arul KandaKandasamy, the former head of the 1MDBfund, which is being investigated in the USand other countries for alleged cross-borderembezzlement and money laundering.

Najib pleaded not guilty to abusing powerto order the modification of the report inFebruary 2016 before it was presented to thePublic Accounts Committee, in order toprotect himself from disciplinary and legalaction. Kandasamy, who was detainedovernight by anti-graft officials, pleaded notguilty to abetting Najib.

The charges came after the auditor-generalrevealed last month that some details hadbeen removed from the 1MDB report.Kandasamy led 1MDB from 2015 until he wasterminated in June. The two men werereleased on bail, and face up to 20 years inprison if found guilty.

Najib set up 1MDB when he took power in2009 to promote economic development, but

the fund amassed billions in debts. U.S.investigators say Najib’s associates stole andlaundered $4.5 billion from the fund,including some that landed in Najib’s bankaccount.

Public anger over the scandal led to thedefeat of Najib’s long-ruling coalition in May9 elections and ushered in the first change ofpower since Malaysia gained independence

from Britain in 1957.The new government reopened the

investigations stifled under Najib’s rule.Najib, his wife and several top-ranking formergovernment officials have been charged withmultiple counts of corruption, criminalbreach of trust and money laundering.

Najib, 65, has accused the new governmentof political vengeance. (AP)

Saudi package would be ‘biggestforeign investment’ in history:

Pakistan finance ministerSaudi Arabia announced to provide cash-strapped Pakistan $3billion in balance of payment support and additionally give oil

worth $3 billion on deferred payment.ISLAMABAD (TIP): Pakistan’s

Finance Minister Asad Umar saidThursday that an incoming investmentpackage from Saudi Arabia would be“the biggest foreign investment” in thecountry’s history. The announcementof the package will be made followinga cabinet approval next week, theDawn reported.

“The ball is in our court. We have toget cabinet approval next week, afterwhich an announcement will bemade,” the paper quoted Umar assaying at an event in Islamabad.Pakistan and Saudi Arabia have beenin talks recently over a bailoutpackage for Islamabad.

At a time when various foreigncountries and business delegationswere pulling out of an investmentconference in Saudi after the murderof journalist Jamal Khashoggi inKingdom’s consulate in Istanbul,Prime Minister Imran Khan attendedthe event, inviting foreign investors toput their money into projects inPakistan.

Saudi Arabia announced to providecash-strapped Pakistan $3 billion inbalance of payment support andadditionally give oil worth $3 billionon deferred payment after PrimeMinister Khan met Saudi King Salmanin Riyadh October. (PTI)

India's negative attitude unhelpful in improving ties:Pakistan Foreign Secretary

ISLAMABAD (TIP): Accusing India of perpetuating "dynamic rivalry", Pakistan ForeignSecretary Tehmina Janjua has said New Delhi's negative attitude was not only unhelpful forimproving bilateral ties, but was also stopping South Asia from making progress and attaining peace.

Speaking at a conference on 'Conflict and Cooperation in South Asia: Role of Major Powers' hostedby the Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI), Janjua said that India, by refusing to attend theSouth Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit in Islamabad, was holding theregional body's summit process hostage. Referring to India's approach on ties with Pakistan, Janjuasaid India was "spinning hatred" and perpetuating "dynamic rivalry", according to Dawn newspaper.

15TRAVELTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

The former British capital of Indiaboasts of an illustrious past whichreflects through the fascinating art,

marvellous architecture, and declamatoryliterature of the city. Being the cultural andintellectual hub of India, this vibrant cityinvites you to witness its artistic grandeur,dazzling culture, and literary legacy throughan exhilarating Kolkata sightseeing tour.Apart from its rich history, and ancientculture, here are some of the best places tovisit in Kolkata which form an essential partof the city’s tourism.

Victoria MemorialSpread over 57 acres of land, housing 21

lush green gardens, 28,394 artefacts, and 3,900artistic paintings, Victoria memorial is oneof the best places to visit in Kolkata. Built inthe memory of Queen Victoria, this whitemarble beauty is a host to 20 lakhs annualvisitors.

Fort WilliamSituated on the eastern banks of Hooghly

river, Fort Williams is a huge building fromthe colonial era that has served multiplepurposes till date. It is one of the few Kolkatapoints of interest which is a must visit placeduring your Kolkata sightseeing tour. Knownas the ‘black hole of Calcutta’, this place wasonce a temporary jail where prisoners werehauled, but now it serves as the headquartersof the Eastern Command.

Marble PalaceThis nineteenth century palatial mansion

in North Kolkata, is one of the most visitedtourist places in Kolkata. It is one of the bestrestored royal family palaces in India thatboasts of artistic statues, elegant glassware,and noteworthy paintings of illustriousartists of the British Raj.

Howrah BridgeA Kolkata sightseeing tour is truly

incomplete without visiting the ‘HarbourBridge of India’, the Howrah Bridge. Titledas the ‘oldest but the busiest’ place inKolkata, the Howrah Bridge was built overthe Hooghly river to ensure connectivitybetween the two major cities of Kolkata andHowrah.

Tagore’s HouseKnown as the ‘Jorasanko Thakur Bari’,

Tagore’s house is one of the most importanthistorical places in Kolkata. The formerresidence of India’s most renownedliteraries, Rabindranath Tagore, is nowconverted into a museum which houses aphoto gallery, fascinating paintings, andTagore’s literary works.

SunderbansThe most famous Kolkata tourist spot,

Sunderbans is one of the natural wonders ofthe world. Listed as a UNESCO WorldHeritage Site, Sunderbans is a part of theworld’s largest delta formed by the Ganges,Brahmaputra, and Meghna. It is also thelargest Tiger reserve, and national park inIndia.

Rabindra SarovarPreviously known as Dhakuria lake,

Rabindra Sarovar is an artificial lake inKolkata. It is one of the best places to visit inKolkata if you are looking for a quiet, andpeaceful time. Every morning one would findnumerous people jogging, or walking alongthe shores of the lake. It is also a perfect spotfor nature admirers who wish to get close tothe beauty of nature.

Botanical Gardens

Located along the western banks of RiverGanga, Botanical Garden is a 273 acre gardenknown for its extensive floral diversity.Housing more than 12,000 different species ofplants, it is one of the most beautiful placesto see in Kolkata for travelers who wish towitness the mesmerising beauty of nature.

AquaticaSpread across a huge 75,000 square feet

area. Aquatica is one of the largest wateramusement parks in Eastern India. Forpeople who seek light hearted adventurealong with some fun filled activities,Aquatica is one of the best places to visit inKolkata with friends where one can enjoynumerous thrilling rides and activities.

Nicco ParkOne of the best places to visit in Kolkata,

Nicco Park is an exhilarating amusementpark developed for the sole purpose ofrecreational activities for families. It is one ofthe oldest amusement parks in Kolkata thathouses various adventurous, and fun filledrides for children as well as adults wherethey can spend some rejuvenating time withtheir families.

Dakshineswar Kali TempleLocated in the Dakshineswar town of

Kolkata, the Dakshineswar Kali Temple is apopular pilgrimage site dedicated to GoddessKali. It is one of the must visit places to visitin Kolkata in one day as one cannot afford tomiss out on this architectural masterpiecewhich is also considered as one of the holiestplaces in the city.

Kalighat Kali TempleSeek blessings from Goddess Kali during

your trip to Kolkata when you visit themystical Kali Temple. It is one of the bestplaces to visit in Kolkata to get familiar withthe culture, traditions, and religious beliefsof the people of this beautiful city.

St. Paul’s CathedralKnown for its Gothic style of architecture,

St. Paul’s Cathedral is the largest cathedralin Kolkata. Resembling closely to NorwichCathedral,St Paul’s Cathedral is also one of

the best places to visit in Kolkata for peopleseeking a religious tour.

Birla MandirBuilt by the renowned Birla family, Birla

Mandir is a famous Hindu Temple in Kolkata

known for its magnificent architecture. Thistemple is an epitome of craftsmanship that isa product of amalgamation of traditional,and contemporary art, and is also one of thebest places to visit in Kolkata.

KOLKATA: CULTURAL HUB OF INDIA

Most women prefer getting rid ofexcess body hair using differenthair removal methods. While

shaving and waxing are popular choices,there are many other ways to get rid ofunwanted hair.

ShavingShaving works by cutting off the hair

at the skin level. It’s the most commonlyused method of hair removal. You canchoose between electric shavers anddisposable razors, depending on yourbudget.ADVANTAGES: Shaving is painless aslong as you are careful to not cut yourself.Make sure you use shaving cream or soapand sharp blades. That way you candecrease the chance of having razor burnor post-shave irritation. It is also the leastexpensive and fastest way to removeunwanted hair.DISADVANTAGES: Since the hair isonly removed at the skin level, it tends togrow back soon.

Where does it work best: Shavingworks on various body parts but manywomen avoid shaving their face for thefear of thick hair growth post the session.However, shaving your legs, arms,underarms and even pubic area is safe.HOW TO USE IT: Shaving in the showerespecially when you are using disposablerazors is the best way to get a smooth,hair-free body. Wet the area you want toshave and then lather it up with shavinggel or cream. Then, wet the razor withwater and shave in the opposite directionof the hair growth. Hold the skin taut ifneeded for a smoother glide. This step isessential when using an electric shaveras there is no cream used. Once done, patdry the skin and apply moisturiser toprevent dryness.HOW LONG WILL IT LAST: The hairtends to grow back faster with this hairremoval method. Depending on your hairgrowth, you will notice tiny hair growingback anything between two-three days toa week’s time post shaving.

Hair removal creamsHair removal creams, also known as

depilatories, have chemicals that breakdown the hair structure. In this method,you apply the cream on an area, wait for 5to 10 minutes for it to break down the hairand then use a towel or a plastic scraperto remove the cream along with the hair.ADVANTAGES: Hair removal creamsprovide results that will typically lastlonger than shaving but less than waxing.DISADVANTAGES: The chemicals inhair removal creams are strong and canirritate your skin. So do a patch test firstand if the skin is fine with no irritationor redness, continue to apply it on alarger area.WHERE DOES IT WORK BEST: Hairremoval creams can be used on largeareas like legs and arms and also onpatches that are difficult to shave or waxlike your upper lip or elbows.HOW TO USE IT: Simply apply thecream in the direction of the hair growthand leave it on for the required time asmentioned in the instructions. Thenwash it off and pat dry your hairless,smooth skin.HOW LONG WILL IT LAST: Thesecreams can keep your hair growth awayfor up to a week depending on thethickness.

WaxingWaxing is a hair removal technique

that uses wax to remove hair from theroot. It is done by applying warm waxover an area and then using a strip ofcloth or paper to remove the wax alongwith the unwanted hair.ADVANTAGES: You have to sufferthrough only a few seconds of pain for atleast two weeks of hairlessness. And itdoesn' grow back as stubble. It'll have atapered tip, making the hair growth lessobvious than when you shave. Waxingalso leaves your skin feeling silky, andover time re-growth of hair is likely to befiner and slower.DISADVANTAGES: The drawback of

waxing is that you have to let the hairgrow enough for the wax to pull it out.WHERE DOES IT WORK BEST:

Waxing is a hair removal technique thatcan be done on every part of the bodyincluding the face and pubic area. Itworks best when the hair is fully grownso that it can be pulled out in one stroke.HOW TO USE IT: It is best to go to asalon and get waxed but you also gethome waxing kits that have strips coatedwith wax. You need to apply these stripsin the direction of the hair growth andhold the skin taut. Then, in one quickmotion, pull the strip in the oppositedirection to get rid of the hair. In salons,wax is applied on the skin using a spatulaand the same process is followed.HOW LONG WILL IT LAST: Waxingkeeps you hair-free for two-three weeks atleast, and in many cases, it can be fourweeks too.

ElectrolysisIn this method of hair removal, a

needle is used to deliver a short blast ofelectric current into the hair follicle. It’ssaid to result in permanent hair removalafter just a few sessions. Unlike lasers,electrolysis works for any type of hairand skin.ADVANTAGES: The main advantage ofelectrolysis is that it provides permanentresults. But this procedure has to beperformed only by a professional. There’sno way you can do it on your own.Electrolysis is also much less expensivethan laser hair removal, and requiresfewer follow-up visits.DISADVANTAGES: During electrolysis,the hair is removed one at a time. Thismakes it a much slower process thanlaser hair removal. There is a stingingsensation for each follicle that could bepainful, again depending on yourthreshold.WHERE DOES IT WORK BEST: Sincethe process is long, it works best onsmaller areas like the face, neck andunderarms.

16 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018 WOMEN

METHODS TO REMOVEUNWANTED BODY HAIR

HALF ROAST CHICKENIngredients Cooking oil, Whole chicken (skin on- rinsed and dressed), 2-3Onions (quartered- skin on), 1 bulb Garlic (halved - skin on),4-5 Carrots (roughly quartered), 1/2 Cup Celery , finely,chopped, 5 sprigs Thyme, 250 Ml Dunkleweizen (pour into aglass and keep open at room temperature for an hour or twoto make flat), 2 Cups Chicken stock, 3 Tbsp Butter, To tasteSea salt.

Method Preheat oven to 220 degree C.

In a greased oven tray line the carrots, celery, onions,garlic and thyme.

Place the chicken on the tray and grease with oil andsprinkle with sea salt.

Roast the chicken for 1.5 hours or till the juices runclear. Remove from the tray and reserve/rest.

While the chicken is resting, pour the dunkelweizen intothe tray turn the oven to the highest heat setting and letit bubble for five minutes.

Remove the tray from the oven and transfer all contentsto a sauce pan before adding in the chicken stock andthe butter.

Reduce the mixture of the beer, and chicken stock till itcoats a spoon, adjust the salt.

Serve with buttery mashed potatoes.

FOOD CORNER

Beauty benefitsof banana

This humble fruit can do much more than you think!From treating acne to anti-ageing benefits, thisgenius fruit needs to be part of your beauty regime.

And here’s our scoop on top 5 benefits of banana.

Natural moisturiserBanana is rich in potassium, which makes it a great

moisturiser for your skin. All you need to do is mash halfa banana and use it as mask to reveal soft and supple skin.For extreme dry skin, you can also add honey to make themask more effective.

Acne controlBanana peels is as useful as banana; it’s rich in

antioxidant properties and does wonder to your skin too.For acne solution, you can rub the white part of the peelon acne affected areas till the peel turns brown. Like thisthe active nutrients on your skin will do its magic. You cando this twice a week to reduce acne and even the scars.

Reduce puffy eyesFor instant DIY solution; you can use banana mash to

reduce puffy eyes. Use the mash bananas on the affectedarea for about 15-20 minutes and rinse with cold water.This will help to reduce the swelling.

Foot careJust like your face, you can use banana mash on your

feet too. Use banana mask on your feet as a foot mask for 15minutes and wash them with lukewarm water to getsmoother and softer feet.

Hair maskFor anti-hair loss treatment, make a paste of yoghurt

and banana. Use this pack on your hair for 15 minutes andrinse with cold water. While for dry hair, you can usehoney and banana combo to get luscious locks!

17HEALTH & FITNESSTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

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PPAAGGEE SSPPOONNSSOORREEDD BBYY

Coffee compoundsmay help fight

Parkinson’sScientists have identified a compound in coffee that

could be teamed up with caffeine to fight Parkinson'sdisease and Lewy body dementia—two currently

incurable neurodegenerative disorders.The discovery, published in the journal Proceedings of the

National Academy of Sciences, suggests these twocompounds combined may become a therapeutic option toslow brain degeneration.

Prior research has shown that drinking coffee may reducethe risk of developing Parkinson's disease.

While caffeine has traditionally been credited as coffee'sspecial protective agent, coffee beans contain more than athousand other compounds that are less well known.

Researchers from Rutgers University in the US focused ona fatty acid derivative of the neurotransmitter serotonin,called EHT (Eicosanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamide), found in thebean's waxy coating.

They found that EHT protects the brains of mice againstabnormal protein accumulation associated with Parkinson'sdisease and Lewy body dementia.

In the current research, the team asked whether EHT andcaffeine could work together for even greater brainprotection.

They gave mice small doses of caffeine or EHT separatelyas well as together.

Each compound alone was not effective, but when giventogether they boosted the activity of a catalyst that helpsprevent the accumulation of harmful proteins in the brain.

This suggests the combination of EHT and caffeine may beable to slow or stop the progression of these diseases.

Current treatments address only the symptoms ofParkinson's disease but do not protect against braindegeneration.

Further research is needed to determine the properamounts and ratio of EHT and caffeine required for theprotective effect in people, the scientists said. Source: PTI

NEW SPRAY GEL COULDHELP FIGHT CANCER

AFTER SURGERYScientists have developed a spray

gel embedded with immune-boosting drugs which they say

could help the body fight off cancer aftersurgery.

Many people who are diagnosed withcancer will undergo some type ofsurgery to treat their disease, saidresearchers from the University ofCalifornia, Los Angeles (UCLA) in theUS. Almost 95 per cent of people withearly—diagnosed breast cancer willrequire surgery and it is often the firstline of treatment for people with braintumours, according to the studypublished in the journal NatureNanotechnology.

However, despite improvements insurgical techniques over the pastdecade, the cancer often comes backafter the procedure.

The researchers tested thebiodegradable spray gel in mice that hadadvanced melanoma tumours surgicallyremoved.

They found that the gel reduced thegrowth of the tumour cells thatremained after surgery, which helpedprevent recurrences of the cancer.

After receiving the treatment, 50 percent of the mice survived for at least 60days without their tumours regrowing.

The spray not only inhibited therecurrence of tumours from the area onthe body where it was removed, but alsocontrolled the development of tumours

in other parts of the body, said Zhen Gu,a professor at UCLA.

The substance will have to go throughfurther testing and approvals before itcould be used in humans, Gu said.

However, the scientists envision thegel being applied to the tumourresection site by surgeons immediatelyafter the tumour is removed duringsurgery. "This sprayable gel showspromise against one of the greatestobstacles in curing cancer," Gu said.

"One of the trademarks of cancers isthat it spreads. In fact, around 90 percent of people with cancerous tumoursend up dying because of tumourrecurrence or metastasis," he said.

The researchers loaded nanoparticleswith an antibody specifically targeted toblock CD47, a protein that cancer cellsrelease as a "don't-eat-me" signal.

By blocking CD47, the antibodyenables the immune system to find andultimately destroy the cancer cells.

The nanoparticles are made ofcalcium carbonate, a substance that isthe main component of egg shells and isoften found in rocks.

"We also learned that the gel couldactivate T cells in the immune system toget them to work together as anotherline of attack against lingering cancercells," said Qian Chen, a postdoctoralresearcher in Gu's lab.

Once the solution is sprayed on thesurgical site, it quickly forms a gelembedded with the nanoparticles.

The gel helps stop at the surgical siteand promotes would heal; thenanoparticles gradually dissolve andrelease the anti-CD47 antibodies into thebody. Source: PTI

Vitamin C may offset effects ofmaternal smoking on baby

Although smoking duringpregnancy is reported to have anadverse effect on foetus health, a

new study shows that regular intake ofVitamin C by smoker mom-to-be mayhelp reduce harm done to infant's lungsafter birth.

The study showed that at threemonths of age, infants whose motherstook 500 mg of Vitamin C per day inaddition to their prenatal vitamin hadsignificantly better forced expiratoryflows (FEFs) that measure how fast aircan be exhaled from the lung and candetect airway obstruction.

In addition, the researchers alsofound an association between the infantFEFs and a genetic variant some of themothers possessed that increased thenegative impact of nicotine on thebabies before they were born.

"Smoking during pregnancy reflectsthe highly addictive nature of nicotinethat disproportionately affects the mostvulnerable populations," said leadauthor Cindy T. McEvoy, Professor fromthe Oregon Health and ScienceUniversity in the US.

"Finding a way to help infants exposedto smoking and nicotine in uterusrecognises the unique dangers posed bya highly advertised, addictive product

and the lifetime effects on offspring whodid not choose to be exposed," McEvoyadded. For the study, published in theAmerican Journal of Respiratory andCritical Care Medicine, the teamrandomly assigned 251 pregnant womenwho smoked, to either receive vitamin C(125 women) or a placebo (126 women).

The study also demonstrated that allparticipants received counsellingsessions of discontinuing tobaccosmoking throughout the study, andabout 10 per cent of the women quit

smoking during the study.The researchers mentioned that

helping mothers quit smoking shouldremain the primary goal for healthprofessionals and public health officials.

"Although vitamin C supplementationmay protect to some extent the lungs ofbabies born to mothers who smokeduring pregnancy, those children willstill be at greater risk for obesity,behavioural disorders and other serioushealth issues," the team noted.

Source: IANS

18 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018 SCIENCE & TECH

ARCTIC’S RECORD WARMINGDRIVING ‘BROAD CHANGE’ IN ENVIRONMENT

Global warming is heating the Arctic at a record pace,driving broad environmental changes across theplanet, including extreme storms in the mid-latitudes,

a major US scientific report said Tuesday.Persistent heat records have rattled the fragile Arctic for

each of the past five years, a record-long warming streak,said the 2018 Arctic Report Card, released by the NationalOceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The mounting heat in the north is upsetting typicalweather patterns, a trend that “coincides” with severe winterstorms in the eastern United States and an extreme cold snapin Europe in March, it said.

“Continued warming of the Arctic atmosphere and oceanare driving broad change in the environmental system inpredicted and, also, unexpected ways,” warned the report.

“New and rapidly emerging threats are taking form andhighlighting the level of uncertainty in the breadth ofenvironmental change that is to come.”

Arctic air temperatures for the past five years, from 2014 to2018, “have exceeded all previous records since 1900”, whenrecord-keeping began, it said.

This warming trend “is unlike any other period onrecord”, said the peer-reviewed report compiled by 81scientists working for governments and academia in 12nations.

During the latest period studied, October 2017 throughSeptember 2018, annual average temperature in the Arcticwas 3.1 Fahrenheit (1.7 Celsius) higher than the 1981-2010average.

“The year 2018 was the second warmest year on record inthe Arctic since 1900 (after 2016),” it said.

The Arctic also saw the second-lowest overall sea-icecoverage and the lowest recorded winter ice in the BeringSea.

“One of the more remarkable features of Arctic sea ice in2018 was the dearth of ice in the Bering Sea, which was at arecord low extent for virtually the entire 2017-2018 iceseason,” said the report. Source: AFP

INSTAGRAM ROLLS OUT VOICE MESSAGING FEATURE

If WhatsApp voice messages were not enough, Instagramhas also added the new communication feature to its app.A new microphone button has been added to the photo

and video app. You simply need to hold down the microphonein Instagram Direct and record a voice message.

Unlike WhatsApp where you first choose the recipient, onInstagram you can first record the message and then share itwith a single contact or group, FastCompany reported.

Additionally, these voice messages appear in the receiver’schat window as a Wav file and don’t disappear after beinglistened to.

NASA’S INSIGHT SENDSBACK FIRST SELFIE ON MARSBarely two weeks after touching

down on Mars, NASA's InSightlander has taken its first selfie

using the spacecraft's robotic arm the USspace agency has said.

InSight landed safely at ElysiumPlanitia on Mars on November 26,kicking off a two-year mission to explorethe deep interior of the Red Planet.

On December 6, the InSight landerused a camera on its robotic arm to takeits first selfie—a mosaic made up of 11images. The image includes the lander'ssolar panel and its entire deck, includingits science instruments, weather sensorbooms and UHF antenna, NASA said ina statement on Wednesday.

In addition, InSight sent another set ofmosaic composed of 52 individualphotos.

It showcases the first complete look of"workspace"—the approximately 14-by-7-foot (4-by-2-metre) crescent of terraindirectly in front of the spacecraft—where the spacecraft's instruments suchas seismometer (called the SeismicExperiment for Interior Structure, or

SEIS) and heat-flow probe (known as theHeat Flow and Physical PropertiesPackage, or HP3) can be placed.

"The near-absence of rocks, hills andholes means it'll be extremely safe forour instruments," said InSight'sprincipal investigator Bruce Banerdt ofNASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory inCalifornia.

"This might seem like a pretty plain

piece of ground if it weren't on Mars,but we're glad to see that," Banerdtadded.

InSight's landing team deliberatelychose a landing region in ElysiumPlanitia that is relatively free of rocks.

The spacecraft sits in what appears tobe a nearly rock-free "hollow"—adepression created by a meteor impactthat later filled with sand. Source: IANS

WhatsApp for iPhonenow gets new group

calling buttonWhatsApp Messenger for iPhone

has received a new update thatbrings an easy way to make

group calls. The new development wasinitially a part of an iOS beta that wasreleased last month. There is also a newshortcut to make group calls directlyfrom the New Call screen. As per theofficial changelog, the latest WhatsAppfor iPhone update also brings the abilityto play consecutive voice messages insequence. This change, however,debuted alongside the stickerintegration back in October. The apprequires an iPhone running iOS 8.0 orlater.

The updated WhatsApp for iPhone(version 2.18.110) brings a new groupcalling button that sits just next to thename of the groups once you open thechat window. This new change gives youan easier way to make group voice orvideo calls. Once tapped the new groupcalling button, you'll see a screen fromwhere you can select the members ofthe group to whom you'd like to call viaWhatsApp. You can also select whetheryou'd like to make a voice call or a videocall.

Notably, you'll see only thoseWhatsApp users on the list after tappingthe group calling button whosenumbers are saved in your addressbook. It is also worth pointing out thatas the native group calling support onWhatsApp has a limit of four callers onone call, you aren't allowed to add morethan three people for your group call.

The new group calling button waspreviously spotted in iOS beta version2.18.110.17. The beta update was rolled

out to iPhone users via TestFlight.In addition to the new group calling

button, the updated WhatsAppMessenger for iPhone has included aNew Group Call shortcut that comes onthe New Call screen. The shortcutessentially works just as the new groupcalling button and has a limit of up tothree participants. However, you havethe entire list of the contacts availableyour address book once you tap the NewGroup Call shortcut, instead of havingsome group members.

Interestingly, WhatsApp for Androidis due to add both new group calling-focused features. The New Group Callshortcut was spotted in Android betalate last month, but wasn't available forusers. However, the Facebook-ownedcompany is yet to bring the new changeto the public release of the WhatsAppapp for Android devices.

Google+ hit by another majorsecurity breach, 52.5million users affected

Alphabet Inc’s Google said onMonday it would shut downits Google+ social media

service in April, four months aheadof schedule, after finding a softwareflaw for the second time this year thatallowed partner apps to access itsusers’ private data.

However, Google said in a blog postthat it found no evidence that anyother apps had accessed the data,such as name, email, gender and age,using the latest bug. It affected 52.5million Google+ accounts, includingthose of some business customers,for six days after it was introducedlast month, Google said.

The disclosure comes a day beforeChief Executive Sundar Pichai is setto testify before the House JudiciaryCommittee of the US Congress aboutGoogle’s data collection practices.Some US lawmakers from both majorpolitical parties have called for newprivacy rules to better controlGoogle, Facebook Inc and other largetechnology companies.

In October, the company said itwould shut down the consumerversion Google+ in August 2019because it would be too challengingto maintain the unpopular service. Atthe time, it said profile data from upto 500,000 users might have beenexposed to partner apps by a bug thatwas present for more than two years.

Apps that pull data from Google+to personalise their own serviceswith user authorization will loseaccess in 90 days, the company said.Developing Google+ for businesscustomers would remain a focus, itadded.

Source: Reuters

19BIZ & FINANCETHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

APPLE PLANS NEW $1 BILLIONCAMPUS FOR AUSTIN, TEXAS

Apple Inc said on Thursday it would spend $1 billion tobuild a second campus in Austin, Texas, that willhouse up to 15,000 workers as part of a broader push

by US companies to create more domestic jobs.The iPhone maker also said it plans to expand in Seattle,

San Diego and Culver City, California, and add hundreds ofjobs in Pittsburgh, New York and Boulder, Colorado, over thenext three years.

Apple said at the start of the year it would invest $30 billionin the United States, taking advantage of a windfall from USPresident Donald Trump's sweeping tax code overhaul.

The 133-acre campus in Austin will be less than a mile fromApple's existing facilities and initially have 5,000 employees.The jobs created would be in engineering, research anddevelopment, operations and finance.

Amazon.com Inc in November said it will create more than25,000 jobs in both New York and the Washington, D.C. areaby opening massive new offices. The two technologycompanies chose cities with a wealth of white-collar workersand high employment, bypassing other regions that may haverequired more investment. Austin is one of the fastest-growing US cities with a population of nearly 1 million, andis home to the University of Texas and other tech companiesincluding Dell Technologies Inc in nearby Round Rock,Texas, and IBM. Apple's existing facility in north Austin hasmore than 6,000 workers, the most outside its headquarters inCupertino, California. With the new campus, the companywill become the largest private employer in the city.

Source: Reuters

RBI slaps Rs 1 cr fine on bank forviolating cyber security norms

NEW DELHI (TIP): The Reserve Bank of India Tuesdaysaid it has imposed a fine of Rs 1 crore on Indian Bank forviolating cyber security norms.

The RBI has imposed, by an order dated November 30, 2018,a monetary penalty of Rs 10 million on Indian Bank forcontravention of Circular on Cyber Security Framework inbanks, the central bank said in a release.

The contravention is with regard to RBI’s directions onFrauds- Classification and Reporting by Commercial Banks.

“This penalty has been imposed in exercise of powersvested in RBI under the provisions of...the BankingRegulation Act, 1949 taking into account the failure of thebank to adhere to the aforesaid guidelines and directionsissued by RBI,” it said. This action is based on deficiencies inregulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce uponthe validity of any transaction or agreement entered into bythe bank with its customers, the release added. Source: PTI

Debt-ridden Air India puts itsiconic Mumbai building on sale

NEW DELHI (TIP): In a fresh bid to generate funds, loss-making national carrier Air India has put on sale its iconiceponymous 23-storey building in Mumbai’s posh NarimanPoint, hoping to mop up nearly Rs 2000 crore, an Air Indiaofficial, familiar with the matter, said.

The latest move is part of the airline’s plans to monetise itsreal estate assets and come less than a month after it invitedbids for over 70 residential and commercial properties spreadacross the country. The national carrier has issued tenderinviting bids for the building, which also happens to be theairline’s erstwhile headquarters. However, only governmententities are eligible to participate in the bidding process.

“Air India will retain approximately 5000 square feet ofcarpet area on 22nd floor for its office use. It will also retainthe logo on the top of the building and will maintain it. Also,the buyer can’t change the name of the building and it willcontinue to be called ‘Air India building’,” said anotherairline official.

NEW RBI GUV SHAKTIKANTADAS TAKES CHARGE, HAS A

LONG TO-DO LISTMUMBAI (TIP): Shaktikanta Das on

Dec 12 (Wednesday) assumed charge asthe 25th Governor of the Reserve Bankof India.

“Assumed charge as Governor,Reserve Bank of India. Thank you eachand everyone for your good wishes,” Dastweeted.

The new central bank governor has alist of challenges to face as he takesoffice: from fixing a banking crisis toconvincing investors of the institution’sautonomy.

Shaktikanta Das, 61, a formereconomic affairs secretary at theFinance Ministry, took charge at theReserve Bank of India for a three-yearterm on Wednesday, two days after UrjitPatel quit amid worries that thegovernment was encroaching on thecentral bank’s turf. Das, a careerbureaucrat, is seen as someone who canease tensions with the state, prompting amixed reaction from markets onWednesday.

Sovereign bonds rallied on optimismhe may shift the monetary policy stanceto a less hawkish one, while the rupee,Asia’s worst-performer among majorcurrencies this year, weakened. Therupee declined for a third dayWednesday, falling as much as 0.4percent to 72.1712 against the dollar.

“Mr. Das will be initially consideredmore as a Finance Ministry insider, andonly time will tell whether he preservesthe RBI’s independence,” said SonalVarma, an economist at Nomura Plc inSingapore. “Our analysis of his viewssuggests that he has a neutral-to-dovishbent on monetary policy. We expectregulatory policies under hisgovernorship to be more sympathetic tothe government’s arguments.”

Das’s first test comes on Friday when

the central bank’s board is due to meet.The government is expected to push fortighter supervision of the RBI,including setting up committees to haveoversight of various functions, fromforeign exchange management tofinancial stability.

A former economic affairs secretaryfrom 2015 to 2017, Das worked closelywith the central bank and oversawPrime Minister Narendra Modi’scontroversial plan to ban high-valuenotes in late 2016, an exercise that hurtthe economy and led to thousands of joblosses. He is currently a member of theFinance Commission of India, andserves as the government’srepresentative at the Group of 20

summits. He will also need to win overcolleagues at the RBI. Speculation is rifethat Viral Acharya, the deputy governorin charge of monetary policy and Patel’smessenger in the public showdown withthe government, may step down. It washe who had delivered a hard-hittingspeech in October warning aboutgovernment’s interference in centralbanking. That caused friction betweenthe authorities and Patel, resulting inhis departure on Monday.

The government is pushing the RBI tohand over more of its capital to thegovernment and loosen curbs on some ofthe weakest banks to ensure lendingcontinues ahead of an election next year.

Source: Bloomberg

Shaktikanta Das assumed charge as the 25th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India.

Liquidity constraints faced by NBFIsto tighten credit supply: Moody’s

Liquidity constraints faced by some non-bank financialinstitutions (NBFIs) will tighten credit supply and slowgrowth to a little over 7 percent for the current fiscal,

Moody's Investors Service said."The liquidity constraints faced by some NBFIs in India,

after the default of Infrastructure Leasing & FinancialServices Ltd (IL&FS) in September 2018, will likely tightenoverall credit supply in the country," Moody's said in astatement.

Besides, any further distress in the NBFI sector will posesignificant downside risks to India's growth outlook, it said.

Moody's Managing Director and Chief Credit Officer (AsiaPacific) Michael Taylor said India's GDP growth will slow tojust above 7 percent for fiscal 2019 and 2020.

Indian economy grew at 7.1 percent in the July-Septemberquarter, lower than 8.2 percent in April-June.

The rating agency said NBFIs are an important provider ofcredit to the economy and, in the fiscal ended March 31, 2018,accounted for nearly 17 percent of total loans and one third oftotal retail loans.

"In a downside scenario, a sharper slowdown in NBFI creditsupply would significantly tighten overall credit availability,drive up borrowing costs and reduce economic growth by

around half a percentage point over a few years," Moody's VPand Senior Analyst Joy Rankothge said.

Weaker nominal GDP growth over a prolonged period wouldweigh on India's fiscal strength and the overall sovereigncredit profile, Rankothge added.

Source: PTI

20 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018MISCELLANY

contd from page 1

BJP Loses Hindi Heartland...Front (MNF) scripting a spectacular victory dislodging the

Congress in its last bastion in the Northeast to return to powerafter 10 years.

Buoyed by the Congress' good showing in the polls that wasdubbed as a semi-final for the 2019 general elections, partypresident Rahul Gandhi said the outcome is a "clear message"to the Modi government that people are not happy with it andtime has come for a change.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi got a massive mandate butrefused to listen to "heartbeat of the country", Gandhi toldreporters.

With Congress set to form governments in Chhattisgarh,Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, Gandhi said the selection ofchief ministers in the three states will be done "smoothly". "Wehave defeated the BJP in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan andChhattisgarh... There will be no issue over (selection of) chiefminister. It will be done smoothly."

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the results werecertainly not as expected and asserted the poll outcome was anopportunity to pause and analyze. (With Inputs from PTI)

‘Seriously’ considering running...USA. Also, she could be the youngest ever and first woman

to be elected as the US President."I'm concerned about the direction of our country. I'm

thinking through it very carefully," she said in response to aquestion on her presidential run.

Before challenging President Donald Trump in theNovember 2020 elections, she would have to contest against herown Democratic Party colleagues in primary electionsbeginning early that year.

In the last few weeks, Gabbard has been talking to her partyleaders and reaching out to Indian-Americans to get theirfeedback on the issue.

Among those Democrats speculated to run for the 2020primaries include former Vice-President Joe Biden, SenatorsElizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, Amy Klobuchar, TimKaine and Indian-origin Senator Kamala Harris. (Source:

PTI)

Court orders FIR against Manjit...Subedar and joint secretary Amarjit Singh Pappu for alleged

financial irregularities in gurdwara committee.The court pronounced the order on a petition of Gurmeet

Singh Shanty who alleged that the accused had embezzled Rs51 lakh from the gurdwara fund. Shanty alleged that a fake billof 82,000 books of Sikh heritage and a fake bill of safari suitwere also submitted by the accused.

Shanty had first lodged a complaint with North Avenuepolice station.

When police allegedly failed to lodge the FIR, Shanty filed apetition in the court. After getting the case investigated, thecourt, on December 13, ordered for registration of the FIR.

The court also ordered the police to appear before the courton December 14.

Manjit Singh GK was president of the Delhi unit of the SADand Manjinder Singh Sirsa was the youth president.

Meanwhile, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, SADchief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday, December 13,dissolved the party units in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh andRajasthan with immediate effect.

The decision, aimed at overhauling the state units, wastaken based on suggestions by party observers for the twostates and the national capital - MPs Balwinder Singh Bhundarand Prem Singh Chandumajra, and former minister SikandarSingh Maluka, SAD senior vice-president and spokesperson

Daljit Singh Cheema said.Cheema said the process of making major changes in the

organizational structure of the party had been going on in thewake of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

"New organizational structure will be announced in the nexttwo months after having extensive deliberation with the seniorleadership of the party," he said. (With inputs from PTI)

Trump's ex-lawyer gets 3-yr...Cohen said in his guilty plea in August he was directed by

Trump to make hush money payments to two women who saidthey had sexual affairs with Trump in the past.

Trump has denied the affairs and any involvement in thepayments.

The three-year sentence was a modest reduction from thefour to five years recommended under federal guidelines, butstill underscored the seriousness of the charges of violatingcampaign finance laws and seeking to influence the outcome ofan election.

Pauley sentenced Cohen to 36 months for the payments andto two months for Cohen's lies to Congress about a proposedTrump Tower project in Russia. The two terms will runsimultaneously.

The judge set March 6 for Cohen's voluntary surrender. Aspart of the sentence, the judge ordered Cohen to forfeit $500,000and pay restitution of nearly $1.4 million.

Cohen pleaded guilty in August to charges including taxevasion, bank fraud and campaign finance violations in a casebrought by federal prosecutors in New York.

Cohen was sentenced on a separate charge of lying toCongress brought by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who isinvestigating Russia's role in the 2016 election and possiblecoordination between Trump's campaign and Moscow.(Source: Reuters)

Trump inauguralcommittee under

criminal investigation:Wall Street Journal

WASHINGTON (TIP): President Donald Trump's 2017 inaugural committee iscurrently being investigated by federal prosecutors in New York for possiblefinancial abuses related to the more than $100 million in donations raised for theevent, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, December 13.

Citing conversations with people familiar with the investigation, which isbeing handled by the US Attorney's office in Manhattan, the Journal reportedthat prosecutors are also looking into whether the committee accepted donationsfrom individuals looking to gain influence or access to the new administration.

The paper notes that "giving money in exchange for political favors" is illegal,as is misuse of any donated funds. The committee was registered as a nonprofit.

According to the Journal, sources told the paper that the investigation "partlyarises out of materials seized in the federal probe of former Trump lawyerMichael Cohen's business dealings."

(Source: Wall Street Journal)

CNN Screenshot

Bomb threats emailed to multiplelocations across the country

NEW YORK (TIP): Dozens of businesses and institutions across the United States and Canadareceived email threats Thursday, December 13 afternoon, prompting evacuations and sweeps ofbuildings.

At this time it's unclear if the threats -- which have been received in San Francisco, New York,Seattle, Miami, Washington, DC and other locations nationwide -- are connected. The FBI and theBureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said they are aware of the threats and areworking with law enforcement to provide assistance.

"As always, we encourage the public to remain vigilant and to promptly report suspicious activitieswhich could represent a threat to public safety," the FBI said.

Email threats also have been received in Vancouver, Ottowa and Toronto, Canada.This email demanding $20,000 via Bitcoin was forwarded to CNN affiliate KOCO-TV in Oklahoma

City by a viewer who received it at her business. It's unclear whether everyone who received a threaton Thursday received the same email.

The message was identical to an email warning posted on social media by the Cedar Rapids, IowaPolice Department and similar to descriptions of other threats posted on social media nationwide.

The Cedar Rapids Police Department posted: "The Police Department has found NO CREDIBLEEVIDENCE that these emails are authentic. It appears to be a robo-email that has been sent throughoutthe area hoping to scam businesses out of money. We have also received information that businessesin surrounding counties may have also received this email."

CNN is not disclosing the names of the sender and recipient or specifics of the Bitcoin account.Threats at universities, media, courthouseIn Seattle, the University of Washington noted in a campus-wide alert that the FBI had "advised that

the email is not a credible threat."The university concluded sweeps of possibly affected buildings.The Thurston County Courthouse in Olympia, Washington and the Park Record newspaper in Park

City, Utah also received similarly threatening emails. People have been allowed back inside buildingsat those locations, according to tweets on their verified Twitter accounts.

In California, the Riverside Sheriff's Office had "an influx of email threats" and is taking themseriously, although no threat has been substantiated.

The San Francisco Police Department responded to reports of bomb threats at locations throughoutthe city.

"We have received information that several other cities across the United States have receivedsimilar threats," police said.

Pennsylvania State Police are "investigating some bomb threats in the eastern part of the state," aspokesman for the department tells CNN.

"Penn State University Police, in conjunction with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, isinvestigating a message received by individuals in multiple locations on campus and across the state,"the university said in a statement. "Police say this does not appear to be a legitimate threat, however,an investigation is ongoing."

University police later said the threat appears to be a hoax.The Chicago Police Department received 15 to 20 reports of emailed threats in the past few hours,

according to Officer Jennifer Bryk.Director of Communications Anthony Guglielmi tweeted, "#ChicagoPolice are working with federal

partners on the investigation, and at this time there is no elevated threat level for the city of Chicago."Threats were also emailed to the Charlotte News & Observer and the Raleigh News & Observer

newspapers in North Carolina.Dozens more threats continued to come in across the country later into the day, authorities reported.

(Source: CNN)

Lord Shiva is considered as the supremeGod in the Hinduism. For setting up anideal work on the earth in front of his

creatures, he had taken variety of the avatarsand incarnations. Some of his avatars arerelated to protecting his devotees from thedevils and proud Gods as well. However, fiveavatars of all his incarnations are hideouslyimportant as well as assumed to be the mostvaluable and effective for his devotees. Themost important five incarnations are:Tatpurush, Namadeva, Aghoresh, Sadhojatand Ishan.

TatpurushTatpurush is the most popular third

incarnation of the Lord Shiva which wasmanifested in the 21st Kalpa of the planetknown as Peetavasa. It was appeared by theprayer of the Lord Brahma.

NaamdevaDuring the 20th Kalpa known as the Rakta,

Lord Brahma got his complexion changed toa red. Another entity was appeared from himof the red complexion, which was name byhim as a Namadeva. It is considered as theNaamdeva was also the incarnation of LordShiva.

AghoreshIn the Shiva Kalpa (after the Peetavasa

Kalp), an entity of black color complexionwas appeared by the Lord Brahma when hewas in deep meditation state. Lord Brahmanamed that entity as Aghor Shiva andconsidered as another form of Lord Shiva.

SadhojatDuring the 19th Kalpa known as Shweta

Lohit, there appeared an entity by the LordBrahma while he was meditating, which wasnamed by him as Sadhojat. It is consideredthat this form of the Lord Shiva was the firstincarnation. Four disciples of the Sadhojatwere appeared by his own body namedNandan, Vishwanandan, Sunand andUpanandan.

ISHANIn the Vishwaroop Kalpa, Ishan form of

the Lord Shiva and Saraswati weremanifested. Four divine entities like Mundi,Shikhandi, Caste and Ardhamundi weremanifested from the Ishan Shiva. LordBrahma was blessed by all of them for thecreation facility.

Eight Idols of the Lord ShivaThere are eight idols of the Lord Shiva

which includes Ugra, Sharva, Bhava, Rudra,Bheema, Pashupati, Ishan and Mahadeva.Ten fastidious incarnations of the God Shivaknown as Dash Avatar and 10 incarnations ofthe Mata Sakti known as the DashMahavidya. Describing concerning to the 10incarnations and their corresponding power(Shakti), the first incarnation of Lord Shivawas the Mahakal and Shakti was Mahakali.Second incarnation of both of them was Tarand Tara. Third incarnation of both of themwas Bhuvaneshwar and Bhuvaneshwari.Fourth incarnation was Shodash andShodashi or Shri. Fifth incarnation wasBhairav and Bhairavi. The sixth incarnationwas Chhinamastak and Chhinamasta.Seventh incarnation was Dhoomvan andDhoomvati. The eighth incarnation wasBaglamukh and Baglamukhi. The ninthincarnation was Matang and Matangi. Tenthincarnation was Kamal and Kamala.

Rudra AvatarsLord Shiva took birth on the earth as the

eleven Rudras from the Kashyap wife’s(Surabhi) womb. These forms of the elevenRudras are associated with the battles withdemons in the past in order to save the peopleand Gods. Following are the name of elevenRudras: 1) Kapali 2) Pingal 3) Bheem 4)Virupaksha 5) Vilohit 6) Shastra 7) Ajapaad 8)Ahirbudhnya 9) Shambhu 10) Chand and 11)Bhav.

Incarnations of Lord ShivaApart from all the above incarnations of

the Lord Shiva, he had taken some otherincarnations which are described as below:

Ardhnaarishwar AvatarArdhnaarishwar form of the Lord Shiva

includes half body of Lord Shiva and otherhalf of the Mata Parvati. This form is verycalm and peaceful, provides blessings to thedevotees.

Nandi AvatarLord Shiva had taken lots of avatars on the

earth according to the requirement for theirdevotees. Nandi avatar is one of all theavatars.

Sharabh AvatarThis form of the Lord Shiva was the 6th

avatar of him.

Grihpati AvatarGrihpati avatar of the Lord Shiva was the

7th avatar of him.

Neel Kanth Neel Kanth avatar is also a main form of

him. Once there was arisen a lot of Vish fromthe churning of the ocean. Lord Shiva had

drunk all the Vish to prevent his beautifulworld from the bad effects of Vish. MataParvati had stopped the Vish to fall below theneck by putting her palm on his neck. So, thisform of him is known as the Neel kanth avatar.

Rishi Durvasha It is considered as this avatar of the Lord

is the main avatar. He has taken this avataron the earth to maintain the discipline of theuniverse.

Mahesh AvatarMahesh avatar is also a peaceful form of

the Lord Shiva which blesses his devotees.

Hanuman AvatarHanuman avatar is considered as the

supreme avatar of him. Lord Shiva has taken

this avatar during the time Lord Rama topresent a good example of the Lord andBhakt in front of the people.

Brishabh AvatarBrishabh avatar is the very significant

form of the God Shiva.

Piplaad AvatarLord Shiva helps their devotees to get free

from the Shani Dosha in this form. It isconsidered as the name of this avatar wasgiven by the Lord Brahma.

Vaishyanath AvatarThis is the main avatar of the Lord Shiva

to his devotees.

Yatinath AvatarYatinath avatar of the God Shiva

represents a peaceful form of him to hisdevotees.

Krishna Darshan AvatarLord Shiva, in this form had represented

the significance of the yagya and importantreligious rituals in Hinduism.

Awdhuteshwar AvatarIn this form Lord Shiva had crushed the

ego of proud Indra.

Bhichhuwarya AvatarIn this form, Lord Shiva protects his all

creatures from any difficulty.

Sureshwar AvatarThis form of Lord Shiva represents the

love and care of him towards his devotees.

Bramhchari AvatarLord Shiva had taken this avatar to test the

Mata Parvati. When Sati rebirth on the earthto the Himalaya’s house as his daughter,Parvati and started worshipping the GodShiva to marry him.

Sunatnartak AvatarLord Shiva had taken this form to ask the

hand of Parvati from her father, Himalaya.

Saddhu AvatarLord Shiva had taken Sadhu avatar many

times according to the need of his devotees.

Vibhuashwathama AvatarLord Shiva had taken this avatar in the

Mahabharat as Ashwatthama (sonDronacharya).

Kiraat AvatarLord Shiva, in this form had taken the test

of Arjuna.

21SPIRITUALITYTHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

AVATARS OF LORD SHIVA

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PPAAGGEE SSPPOONNSSOORREEDD BBYY

““IIff HHiinndduuss ddoonn’’tt mmaaiinnttaaiinn HHiinndduuiissmm,, wwhhoo sshhaallll ssaavvee iitt??””

““IIff IInnddiiaa’’ss oowwnn cchhiillddrreenn ddoonn''tt cclliinngg ttoo tthheeiirr ffaaiitthh,, wwhhoo sshhaallll gguuaarrdd iitt??””

““IInnddiiaannss aalloonnee ccaann ssaavvee IInnddiiaa,, aanndd IInnddiiaa aanndd HHiinndduuiissmm aarree oonnee..””

22 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018 SPORTS

INDIA KNOCKED OUT AFTER LOSINGTO NETHERLANDS IN QUARTERFINAL

BHUBANESWAR (TIP): India's 43-year-long wait to reachthe semi-finals of the Hockey World Cup was prolonged by theNetherlands as they beat the hosts 2-1 on Thursday at theKalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. World No.4 Netherlandswere clearly the better team as they dominated the hosts fromthe very beginning. After scoring one in the first quarter,another goal from Mink van der Weerden in the fourth quarterdoubled the Netherlands lead, virtually leaving India out ofcontention. However, India tried to claw their way back in thegame but the Netherlands were too strong for them.

Both sides started with a bang in an eventful first quarterthat witnessed Akashdeep putting the hosts ahead in the 12thminute with a brilliant reverse flick after the initial penaltycorner attempt was parried by the Dutch goalkeeper. Thevisitors pulled off a stunning equaliser just before the end ofthe first quarter, thanks to Thierry hitting the box to make it 1-1.

The second half saw both teams battling for the lead even asthe tourists managed to keep possession of the ball on mostoccasions, only to return to the dug out locked at 1-1 by halftime.

On resumption, the tourists earned three back-to-back PC'sbut India blocked away all of them even as the hosts weretemporarily reduced to 10 men after Hardik was shown thegreen card towards the end of the quarter.

With both sides desperate for the lead, the Netherlandsstarted the final quarter by successfully converting theirfourth PC to make it 2-1.

It was in the 50th minute, when Van Der Weerden hit the balldead straight only to find India's custodian PR Sreejesh wrongfooted as the ball found the target.

With 10 minutes to go, India were once again penalised afterAmit Rohidas was shown the yellow card but the ManpreetSingh-led side kept pressing for the equaliser.

In the next minute, India had a golden opportunity to squarethings off but Harmanpreet's shot was saved by the Dutch

goalkeeper.From there on, the Dutch defence did not allow any room to

the home side as the tie ended in a heartbreak for thevociferous home crowd.

The Dutch side will meet Australia in the semi-finals onSaturday.

Earlier, Olympic silver medallists Belgium edged out two-time champions Germany 2-1 in a keenly contested quarter-final.

In a neck and neck fight, third ranked Belgium held theirnerves and came back from a goal down to enter the semi-finalsfor the first time.

Belgium will face a resurgent England in the semi-final, whohad defeated Argentina 3-2 in the first quarter-final on

Wednesday.

BELGIUM DOWN GERMANY 2-1 TO ENTER MAIDEN SEMIFINAL

They may not have much of a hockey history to boast aboutbut are surely on the lookout to create some. World No.3Belgium stormed into the semi-finals of the World Cup to setup a clash against England after earning a come from behind2-1 victory against two-time champions Germany at theKalinga Stadium here on Thursday.

It was a pure case of Belgian strikers against the Germandefence throughout 60 minutes as the 2016 Rio Olympics silvermedallists entered their maiden semi-finals in the history ofthe quadrennial event.

BWF World Tour Finals: PV Sindhu snaps six-match losing streak

The invincibility needed to bebroken, and it was inevitably PVSindhu who channeled her vintage

Olympic confidence and funneledrenewed maturity into her approach, toget past World No. 1 Tai Tzu Ying at theWorld Tour Finals in Guangzhou. The 14-21, 21-16, 21-18 victory in the tough groupmatch ended a 6-match losing streakagainst the dominant shuttler fromChinese Taipei, whom the Indian hadswept past in the pre-quarters of the RioOlympics. Tai Tzu looked in visiblediscomfort in her movements, but Sindhushowed focus to get the job done, andreverse the tide that had been weighingher down against arguably the toughestopponent on the circuit.

The Guangzhou courts playednotoriously slow, but PV Sindhu —through the course of her five big finalsacross the world — has proven that shecan master any condition, and remainundeterred by the sluggish shuttle that’stough to kill. The 24-year-old World No. 1,also the Asian games champion, has beenparticularly difficult to get past since she

immersed herself in getting stronger andtightened her game and temperament inthe last two years. Four of Sindhu’s past 6losses have come in straight sets, with theIndian getting a marginal look-in atAustralia in June 2017. At Guangzhou,wisened from reverses, Sindhu was readyfor the champion. To be sure, she has hadto dramatically alter her game whilebeating her. At Rio, Sindhu towered overTai Tzu, using her power game.

Tai Tzu hadn’t been as fit back then,tended to play the charming game morethan the gritty one, and was coming into

the Olympics on the back of a ruckusing,triggered by disagreements with herfederation. She wears two different sizedshoes on her feet, and the confusion arosefrom the federation’s insistence onmaking her wear the official sponsors’shoes, while she needed a customisedpair. “Too tall, too strong,” Tai Tzu wasleft saying, dazed after her loss at Rio.The Guangzhou win for Sindhu was farmore well-rounded.

Nothing amplified the enormity of thechallenge better than Tai Tzu rushing to19-14 in the opener. It was one of Tai Tzu’soutrageous shots — body turned backfrom the net, the wrist flicking the shuttleback magically to soar to the lead,pocketing the first set. To compoundmatters, Sindhu would offer an unforcederror to hand her opponent the set at 21-14. While Sindhu’s second set aggressionwas a throwback to the Rio match, itneeded more than her down the linesmashes to level things on the court.Starting at 6-3, Sindhu would clinicallypush Tai Tzu back even as she threatenedto close in at 10-12.

Ashwin, Rohit outwith injury

PERTH (TIP): Key spinner Ravichandran Ashwin andbatsman Rohit Sharma were today ruled out of the secondTest due to injuries. Rohit jarred his lower back while fieldingduring India’s win in Adelaide and is undergoing treatment,while Ashwin, who took 6/149 in the first Test, is unavailabledue to a left-sided abdominal strain. Prithvi Shaw, who missedthe first Test after injuring his ankle while fielding during atour match, is also recovering.

“The team management is closely monitoring these playersand a call on their availability for the third test will be takenat an appropriate time,” a BCCI statement said. HanumaVihari has been named in place of Rohit and left-arm spinbowler Ravindra Jadeja replacing Ashwin.

23PERSPECTIVETHE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018

Honor Sardar Patel, don’t forget Gandhi and Nehru

By George Abraham

It is quiteconfusing for an

ordinary Indian tofigure out the

motivation for thePrime Minister tohonor a devoted

Congressman andfreedom fighter

who is a Gujaratiahead of anothergreat leader from

the state:Mohandas

KaramchandGandhi.

Nevertheless, tothe world, Gandhi,Nehru, and Patelwill remain greaticons of freedomand justice, andthe height of thestatues will notdiminish their

greatness one wayor the other.

Prime Minister Narendra Modiinaugurated the world's tallest statue ofSardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the Iron Man

of India, who was the first home minister, onhis 143rd birth anniversary in Gujaratrecently. The country has spent about Rs 3000crore (about $430 million) from the treasuryon the monument, which is being promoted asa Statue of Unity. It reflects Patel's effortsafter Independence to consolidate the princelystates into the current Republic of India.

We owe it ourselves to remember ourheroes and icons of history and it is also thelegacy of these legends that motivates us to goforward. Our lives are indeed built upon theshoulders of these giants who went throughimmeasurable hardships to guarantee us thefreedom and liberty we enjoy today.

Nobody questions the wisdom of honoringSardar Patel. However, they will be hard-pressed to explain how in a country that ranksat the bottom of the list of nations in ensuringfood security for its people could afford such aluxury. According to the latest report on theGlobal Hunger Index, India ranks 100 out of119 on an index that weighs the ability ofcountries to provide food for its citizens. Indiafares worse than Iraq, Bangladesh, and NorthKorea.

Then again, if we were to build the talleststatue for anyone, the first name on anybody'slist would be of Mahatma Gandhi, who is notonly the father of the nation but also world-renowned for his philosophy of non-violence.Gandhi was considered a great inspiration forworld leaders such as Nelson Mandela andMartin Luther King Jr and many cities in the

world are adorned with his statues.Then there was Jawaharlal Nehru, the first

prime minister, and architect of modern Indiawho spent almost ten years in prison underthe British and was considered the foremostleader in the freedom struggle. It should beremembered that Patel's heroic effort fornational integration was conducted underNehru's leadership. Nehru inherited an Indiawhere life expectancy was 31 years, only 20percent of the people could read or write, and80 per cent of the people could not afford twomeals a day.

It was Nehru along with B.R. Ambedkarwho built institutions that have continued toprovide freedom, justice, and opportunities toevery Indian citizen regardless of caste,creed, region or religion. However, today, theruling BJP is engaged in running a bittercampaign to undo and discredit his legacy ofsecularism and inclusiveness. It would be agrave injustice to forget Nehru's significantrole in building a post-independentdemocratic society and imbuing it with prideand purpose at a time of conflict and chaos.

Sardar Patel was a loyal Congressman whoupheld the values and principles of theCongress party which he served throughouthis . Since the ascendance of the BJP to powerin New Delhi four years ago, it appears that acarefully crafted strategy is in place toappropriate icons and legacies that the partyis sorely lacking. It is as if the party is soembarrassed by the lack of pedigree that it iseven willing to go out and create some historyof its own.

After Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated, it

was Sardar Patel who was instrumental inbanning the RSS. He subsequently wrote toRSS chief M.S. Golwalkar on September 11,1948: 'As regards to RSS and HinduMahasabha, our reports do confirm that as aresult of the activities of these two bodies,particularly the former, an atmosphere wascreated in the country in which such ghastlytragedy became possible.'

It is known that the RSS remained aloofduring the freedom struggle. The words anddeeds of erstwhile leaders of the RSS fromrecorded history indicate that they were notonly non-participants in the freedom strugglein which hundreds of people were riskingtheir lives every day but also collaboratorswho supported the British on criticaloccasions. The British acknowledged that theRSS had 'scrupulously kept itself within thelaw, and refrained from taking part in thedisturbances that broke out in August 1942.'

Therefore, it is quite confusing for anordinary Indian to figure out the motivationfor the Prime Minister to honor a devotedCongressman and freedom fighter who is aGujarati ahead of another great leader fromthe state: Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi.Nevertheless, to the world, Gandhi, Nehru,and Patel will remain great icons of freedomand justice, and the height of the statues willnot diminish their greatness one way or theother.

(The author is a former Chief TechnologyOfficer of the United Nations and Vice-

Chairman of the Indian Overseas Congress,USA)

Honoring a pillar of Indian democracy is agood thing. However, can we forget the

other pillars? Can a building stand withoutall the pillars in its place?

24 THE INDIAN PANORAMAFRIDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2018ADVERTISEMENT