Thursday, December 20, 2012

I am Back

I am thankful to all my avid blog readers who in the past have graced my blog with their eyeballs, the good news is that I am back and in original.

I am still contributing my articles for Aam Aadmi Party and shall continue, but now I can be the face to you. I shall be posting my thoughts in Hindi and English as well. It is sometimes that I relate to a particular topic much better in Hindi and sometimes to topics which shall be in English.   


AAP ki khabar is a dedicated site where you shall get to know all the News, Information, Articles related to Aam Aadmi Party.The website is called Aap Ki Khabar.

Please click here to explore more about  

http://www.aapkikhabar.org/

Saturday, December 15, 2012

Watch Arvind Kejriwal Explosive Conversation with Arnab Goswami

Under the aegis of Times of India Literary Carnival 2012, held in Mumbai recently, Times Now Editor-In-Chief Interviewed Aam Aadmi Party Chief Arvind Kejriwal. Watch the explosive Interview.

http://www.timesnow.tv/videoshow/4416862.cms

http://www.timesnow.tv/videoshow/4416863.cms

http://www.timesnow.tv/videoshow/4416864.cms

Monday, December 10, 2012

Wait a Minute !!! IOC Ban on IOA

Wait a Minute ... If you don't like your country !!!! Don't waste your time reading it. It all happens in India

My Thumbs Up to IOC ban on IOA.

I know this is rather late to comment on an incident which, to many of us would really not quite bother to react on, but this post still needs some serious eye balls.

After all it takes the guts of an international body such as IOC, International Olympic Committee to remind Indian Government that they can’t have their whims and fancies overrule the International Sports charter all the time.

My sympathies with the sportsmen of this country, but I feel very ecstatic about the ban.

It’s time to churn the whole system, under which sports bodies are governed. Take a look around and you are ashamed of events that lead to the management of sport bodies.

Each and every sport body (to my knowledge) is administered by the people who are affiliated to political entities or corporate of stature.

It’s an opportunity to clean up the mess. A nation of 1 billion plus proud individuals and yet we muster a tally of only six medals and rank 55th in the recent London Olympics, behind countries like Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Cuba, Iran, Jamaica, Ethiopia, Belarus, Croatia, Romania etc. There are countless of such nations who have drubbed India. I am sure none of these countries are geographically bigger than any of our states, and probably in population too, but yet they score a respectable tally of medals, and mind it some of these countries were war torn and have a history of malnutrition.

But here in our country, what we could see is malnourished sportsmen in spirit, embroiled midst favoritism, biased selections by the overly nourished sports administrators. They all are the living memorabilia of being intoxicated in power.
Don’t believe me (In fact you don’t have to) look at these names: -

Abhishek Matoria – BJP MLA from Rajasthan is the president of Indian Amateur Boxing Federation.

Arun Jaitley – BJP MP is the president of DDCA (Delhi District Cricket Association) and a member of sub committee in BCCI.

Sharad Pawar has been the former BCCI chief, while being a minister, N Srinivasan the current BCCI president from Chennai owns India Cements, a company which manages Chennai Super Kings and has MS Dhoni captaining it. Can there not be any possible link or business interest linked to such deals and tie ups.

Vijay Kumar Malhotra of BJP is the president of Indian Archery Association; he is also the President of the General Association of National Sports Federations and the senior vice president of the IOA. This is his 10th term, 81-year-old Malhotra’s becoming the president of the AAI violates the age and tenure guidelines under the Sports Code.

Rajeev Shukla is the chairman of IPL and other sub committee of BCCI.

Anurag Thakur of BJP is Hon. Joint Secretary of BCCI.

Jyotiraditya Scindia is the chairman of Finance Committee in BCCI.

Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is the president of Wrestling Federation of India and BJP MP from Kaiserganj, UP.

Political heavyweights including Natwar Singh, Satish Sharma and Yashwant Sinha have headed the All-India Tennis Association (AITA).

The recent elections in IOA (Indian Olympic Association) are eye opener; Abhay Chautala is elected as the President of IOA, although I do admit he was a sportsman and represented nation, but isn't it true that he has political ambitions too, and these posts are only chosen to be in limelight and throw your weight around, which is the foremost qualification to be an politician.

I just don’t understand why not a sports person from a particular sport is made the president of a federation or an association, why one should see politically motivated individuals grabbing the chair, why can’t the Indian government set us certain legislation to it, to understand this it’s beyond my intellect.

All that the government likes is to see, the retaining of CWG co-accused and jailed Lalit Bhanot becoming the Vice President of IOA, or Suresh Kalmadi holding such an important chair even after he was jailed for the alleged irregularities in the CWG Scam.

Do these people have the required expertise and experience regarding the concerned sports?

The answer is no. When the boss is ignorant what to do, the fate of the game is nothing but bleak. Hence, passion and professionalism need to replace politics for the betterment of Indian sports.

I am sure India though little, but in abundance have produced sportsmen like Zafar Iqbal, Dhanraj Pillay, Mohd. Shahid, Gagan Ajit Singh (Hockey), Prakash Padukone, Pullela Gopichand, Aparna Popat (Badminton), Dingko Singh, Mohammad Ali Qamar (Boxing), Limba Ram (Archery) Ramesh Krishnan, Vijay Amritraj, Mahesh Bhupati (Tennis) Kamlesh Mehta, Chetan Baboor (TT) Sunil Gavaskar, Dilip Vengsarkar, Kapil Dev, etc (Cricket).

Why can’t they be elected as the President’s and Chairman of respective sport bodies, federations and associations. Why an eminent sportsman can’t be elected the IOA President, why these politicians who are deep rooted in one or the other controversy?

The answer lies in the minds of these people who besides satisfying their political aspirations, are playing with the esteem of country’s honor, and making us we the citizens of India a laughing stock.

Corruption in Shackles

A very interesting article appeared in the regional hindi newspaper Rajasthan Patrika.

The article talks about how science is put to use to curb cases of corruption. Chemical Test, Narco Test, Poly-graphic Test, Bugging & CCTV surveillance, Finger Printing, Phone Tapping, Forensic, Sting Operations etc all act as saviors for various investigative agencies to arm themselves and act against perpetrators.

The articles also throws light on various departments of the government prone to corruption and also talks about how this grave problem can be controlled.

To read full article click here


Tuesday, November 27, 2012

‘Why I’m Joining the Aam Aadmi Party’

Activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal took the official plunge into electoral politics on Monday, launching his Aam Aadmi Party, the party of the “common man.”

Addressing a crowd of roughly 10,000 people gathered at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar monument for the launch, Mr. Kejriwal said the Aam Aadmi Party would follow the principle of “swaraj,” the Gandhian concept of self-rule, or rule of the people, and focus on issues that concern common people, like “social inequality, health, education, farmer’s rights and price rise.”


Describing the event as “history in the making,” on Twitter Mr. Kejriwal earlier said his party’s aim was also to “throw out” India’s “corrupt political system.”


Mr. Kejriwal, who announced his anti-corruption movement would turn political in September, added that those present at the public rally “will be treated as founding members” of his party.


The Aam Aadmi Party has two kinds of members: general and active. General members have to work for the party for four months before becoming active members, which would allow them to vote on all important party decisions. The party already has 23 active members, including several of Mr. Kejriwal’s closest associates, like social activist Manish Sisodia and lawyer-turned-activist Prashant Bhushan.


We asked several people at the rally why they decided to join Mr. Kejriwal’s newborn Aam Aadmi Party as “general” members.


Adarsh Kumar, a 38-year-old businessman, came to Delhi all the way from Kotdwara, a town in the northern state of Uttarakhand to show his support for the party. “This party has given us a chance to vote for something we believe in. There is no rhetoric or false promises. It is formed for a cause,” Mr. Kumar said, with reference to Mr. Kejriwal’s anti-corruption crusade. “So far, the fight was through rallies and sit-in-strike. Now, the voice will be heard in Parliament,” added Mr. Kumar.

Like most people at the rally, Mr. Kumar was wearing a Gandhi cap, which Mr. Kejriwal turned into a symbol of his political initiative. The caps, also known as “topis,” were printed with the phrase, “Main Hoon Aam Aadmi,” Hindi for “I am common man.”


 

Surinder Maini, a farmer from Delhi’s neighboring state of Haryana, described the creation of the party as “possibly a step in the right direction to ward off corruption.”

He said he was joining the party despite having “no expectations” Mr. Kejriwal could challenge established parties like Congress or the Bharatiya Janata Party to become a leading political force in the country. “I’m here to lend my support to the movement, which I feel is the need of the hour,” said Mr. Maini. 


 
Rajiv Malhotra, a student at Delhi University, said he wanted the party to make its stand clear on issues of development. “I like the idea of forming this people’s party. But it should focus on development. When development happens, corruption will automatically end,” he argued.  

Tauseef Khan, a trader from the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir, said he was “proud to be part of AAP”.

Mr. Khan said he had joined the Congress party last year after its general secretary, Rahul Gandhi, visited his village. At the time, “that was the only party committed to serving the interests of the common man,” said Mr. Khan, who has since changed his mind. “I have been following Kejriwal and his activities and it has finally dawned on me that most of these major political parties are corrupt and exist for their leaders’ existence. So, I have made a shift,” he added.

Anju Rani, a 32-year-old primary school teacher from New Delhi, said she joined the party in the hope that it would give equal representation to women in its ranks, unlike established parties. “This is the right time to join and be part of it,” said Ms. Rani.

Mr. Kejriwal said his party was likely to contest its first election late next year, when New Delhi is set to hold state polls.


Article Courtesy : The Wall Street Journal - India

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Mother of all Scams - Party Donations

A very interesting front page editorial was recently brought out by Rajasthan Patrika, which talked about the nitty-gritty of how the political funding is undertaken by various political parties.

Anil Bairwal, National Convener of ADR (Association for Democratic Reforms) is of opinion that major political parties do not like to reveal the sources of their donations. According to him the irony is that its mandatory for parties to make public, the source of funds received in excess of Rs 20000/- which they seldom do.

To read this editorial featured in Rajasthan Patrika click here

  

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Repeal Draconian Section 66 A of the Information Technology Act, 2008


Our sincere appeal to all of you, kindly forward to all your groups, friends and relatives.

I am sure we want to get rid of this act, which has threatened our very right to freedom of speech.

Its such an irony that whenever a common man speaks up, he's pushed against the wall, where as these politicians can speak anything and everything and get away, why is the Law enforcement, Judicial authorities silent on them and act pro-actively on common man's pain and anguish which comes out through social networking platforms. When will these people (In Power) come to their rightful senses? That's a big question and we the people of India have answers to these questions, just don't sit, wake up and act . Please ..


http://www.activism.com/en_IN/petition/repeal-draconian-section-66-a-of-the-information-technology-act-2008/40495

Monday, November 12, 2012

Gang rape of Mother India: Aseem Trivedi is right after all

With all the scams that have been tumbling out in India one after the other and the government’s blind rejection of any wrongdoing, it would perhaps be appropriate to acknowledge that Aseem Trivedi’s acerbic cartoon ‘The Gang Rape of Mother India’ has captured the spirit of the times. Perhaps, more effectively and certainly more forcefully than what could have been depicted by India’s most popular cartoonist, RK Laxman.

Juxtapose Trivedi’s cartoon with what happened last week and consider the merits of the case: the Manmohan Singh government’s inept handling of the black money issue raked up by activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) Vinod Rai’s observation about the appalling brazenness with which decisions were being taken by the government and the murkiness around the first family of Indian politics as exposed by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy in the National Herald acquisition case. So far, the Congress has been unconvincing in its defence of making unsecured loans of Rs 90 crore to Rahul Gandhi’s firm, Young Indian.



Aseem Trivedi. PTI

When you put all the scams together, be it the unchecked flow of black money estimated at $462 billion, the Coalgate scam, the 2G spectrum scam, the Maharashtra irrigation scam, the Adarsh Housing Society scam and other such, the feeling that India is being raped and robbed by a nexus of corrupt politicians-bureaucrats-corporates-builders is unmistakable.

Whose vote will Kejriwal cut into, Congress or BJP?

The big question doing the rounds in Delhi’s political circles is who will Arvind Kejriwal damage more – the Congress or the BJP?

Prima facie, it seems like it is the Congress that is bearing the brunt of India Against Corruption’s anti-graft crusade, the latest target being no less than Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra.

But with the Delhi elections due next year, and with Kejriwal targeting that opportunity as his first test, the BJP reckons it has something to worry about. Minus Kejriwal, the BJP could have hoped to benefit from Sheila Dikshit’s anti-incumbency. Now, the game is open.


Arvind Kejriwal. PTI








This was evident in the Kejriwal-BJP tussle during the power tariff agitation, where Team Kejriwal’s white Aam Aadmi caps were in contrast to BJP’s black Bijli Andolan.Vijay Goel had a tough time convincing everyone that he had been spearheading the anti-power tariff struggle against Sheila Dikshit all this while.

Goel is, in fact, fighting two battles – one against the public perception that Kejriwal is the real fighter for aam aadmicauses like power tariffs, and the other to convince the BJP leadership that he is the man to take on Sheila Dikshit and lead the party in the 2013 Delhi campaign.

Goel had a faceoff with Kejriwal three days ago and is still feeling the sting. Kejriwal, who was invited to Goel’s anti-power tariff protest, used the opportunity to ask the BJP some uncomfortable questions on the power tariff hike. He achieved his purpose of putting both Congress and BJP in the same bucket.

All’s fair in love or politics, is not it? Goel felt offended when Firstpost asked him this. He fumed: “Kejirwal misused a gentleman’s courtesy extended by me. He came uninvited. It was our stage and our people. He requested me to let him speak for two minutes. I extended the courtesy because my fight is against the Sheila Dikshit government. Any support in this regard is welcome. Instead he blasted us. That’s not fair. He has entered Delhi politics only a few days back. I have demanded an apology from him. I am told that he has responded by saying that I was like an elder brother.”

During his agitation, Kejriwal reconnected the power lines of two people whose power had been cut due to non-payment of bills. Two FIRs have been filed against the persons whose lines Kejriwal connected, but one of them has since paid his dues while the other has not.

Quite clearly, the arrival of Kejriwal has forced both BJP and Congress to wonder who will lose more from his entry, but there is one point of convergence between the two: both blame the media for making Kejriwal a hero to the Delhi aam aadmi.

Party spokespersons believe that if the media stops treating Kejriwal like a celebrity, his fortunes will plummet.

The Congress MP from West Delhi, Mahabal Mishra, a migrant from Madhubani in Bihar, has risen up the ladder by winning three assembly elections and finally a Lok Sabha seat from the Punjabi-dominated constituency. He says: “Let the Delhi elections come, and his bubble will burst. Here the fight has always been a straight one between BJP and Congress. So many parties have tried to succeed in Delhi but none have succeeded. Kejriwal and party can at best cut into the anti-Congress votes, not into Congress votes.”

He shied away from directly saying that Kejriwal will eat into BJP votes and that this will ultimately help the Congress. Many Congress leaders are of the same opinion and believe that Kejriwal will cut into the BJP vote and let Sheila Dikshit win again.

There is also quiet talk about Kejriwal’s relationship with Sandeep Diskshit, Congress’s East Delhi MP and Sheila Dikshit’s son. Sandeep has an NGO background and played the part of an interlocutor during Anna Hazare’s second Jan Lokpal dharna.

A senior functionary of the Delhi BJP echoed similar sentiments on Kejriwal. “He is going to play the role of spoiler or, as they say, `Vote Katua’ in Bihar. For now it looks like he is going to make inroads into the votes that could have come to the BJP and help the Congress. But once the media stops playing him up the way it is doing now, the game will change.”

But a minority view in the BJP is that Kejriwal will help build up the anti-Congress mood and ultimately help the BJP. “There is a distinct possibility that he will help in creating an anti-Congress atmosphere in the city. But when it comes to voting the people will realise that his party is not in a position to win so they will vote for the party which can offer an alternate government – the BJP.”

Voters in Delhi have, on various occasions, proved their unpredictability. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh contested only one election in his lifetime and lost to the BJP’s VK Malhotra in Delhi. Singh’s poll managers had then blamed his loss on some rumors spread against him.

BJP veteran LK Advani managed to win a Delhi seat narrowly against Rajesh Khanna. He subsequently left Delhi for the safer Gandhinagar in Gujarat. Former Minister Jagmohan, who has been considered an able administrator, lost from New Delhi. A Bihari migrant, Mahabal Mishra, to the surprise of many in his own party, won comfortably from West Delhi in 2009.

It won’t be easy for Kejriwal to convert interest into votes since every party needs huge logistical support during campaigning and on polling day. By a rough estimate, one needs 5-7 persons at each polling booth. This means a political party requires, by conservative estimates, about 25,000 workers on polling day in the national capital. Will Kejriwal have that kind of numbers? But then, the reforms introduced by the Election Commission are helping reduce the number of party workers needed to be present at polling stations.

Will Kejriwal have the appetite to hijack the opposition space from the BJP in the long run, as he did the other day with Vijay Goel? The answer to his success in Delhi lies here. His Congress and BJP rivals cite those dwindling numbers at the Mumbai and Jantar Mantar rallies in December last year when Team Anna tried to relaunch the Jan Lokpal movement with yet another fast. This proved to them that Kejriwal without media support can’t muster the numbers.

But neither party is sure who will ultimately benefit from Kejriwal’s gatecrashing their party in Delhi.

Sunday, November 11, 2012

UPA wishes you a Very Happy Diwali


Government to gag CAG

In a move which might see opposition from various political parties and other bodies is on Governments idea to limit powers of the CAG.






















A gag order may be passed at the earliest. There has already been lot of sharp reactions from various people and bodies.

Arvind Kejriwal said the CAG appointments should be independent and neither the government nor the opposition must have a say in the selection process, BJP leader Venkaiah Naidu accused the UPA of trying to undermine the institution of CAG.

Kejriwal on Monday blamed the government of trying to weaken the CAG office, saying the UPA wants to make CAG their agent. "Government's intentions are not correct. When CAG was coming out with strong reports, government tried to suppress it. The politicians should not decide about the selection of members of the CAG. Even the Opposition should not have a say in the selection of CAG,” Kejriwal said.

IAC member Kumar Vishwas says he was threatened

Activist and close associate of activist turned politician Arvind Kejriwal, Kumar Vishwas has said that his life is in danger and said that apart from receiving threatening calls and emails, had a gang of 12 unidentified people who gathered outside his house on Sunday.




























Vishwas, who filed an FIR at the Indirapuram police station in Ghaziabad, said that he fears for his life and that he is being threatened, reported CNN-IBN.

Kumar Vishwas said that two persons had entered his house on Sunday. ibnlive

“I have been receiving threatening calls and emails for several days. Two men entered my house and said that they wanted to join the IAC,” Vishwas said.

Earlier, Manish Sisodia, another associate of Kejriwal, had alleged that he was being threatened.

Vishwas claimed that two men had allegedly entered Sisodia’s house and threatened his wife.

IAC has taken the issue seriously and had issued a press release alleging that some groups were trying to silence them, reported CNN-IBN.



Arvind Kejriwal not to use 'India Against Corruption' name after Nov 26, 2012

Arvind Kejriwal has said that his group will not use 'India Against Corruption' (IAC) as its name after the formation of his political party on November 26, a day after the veteran activist's group insisted that they would like to retain the name.

"Anna is too dear to us. I have deepest respects for him. After launch of our party on November 26, we will not use IAC name," Mr Kejriwal tweeted on Sunday.















Earlier in the day, the activist-turned-politician said he considers Mr Hazare as his "Guru" and talks to him everyday.

"If he asks me to stop using the IAC's name, I won't use it," Mr Kejriwal said when asked about Mr Hazare and his associates' claim that the name remains with them.

Meanwhile, activist Kiran Bedi told reporters that the name IAC will remain with Mr Hazare.

"We will seek donations in the name of IAC. People can donate in the name of IAC. Arvind's organisation is PCRF (Public Cause Research Foundation)," she said.

After the first meeting of Mr Hazare's new team on Saturday, the group had insisted that they would retain IAC with Ms Bedi saying that it was not Mr Hazare who left the organisation but Arvind Kejriwal-led group which wanted to enter politics.

"They will be announcing the new name of the party. So, it won't be a problem on the name," she said. A press statement issued by the group yesterday said that Mr Hazare reconstituted the Coordination Committee to re-energise India Against Corruption movement, signalling that they were not ready to forgo the name.

Speaking to media, Mr Hazare said the group's bank account will be in the name of Ms Bedi, Sunita Godara and Lt Colonel Brijender Kokhar, all members of the new Coordination Committee.

Saturday, November 10, 2012

How to Curb Black Money Menace?

Rajasthan Patrika published a News Article, in its daily on 10-11-12.

The subject was "Kaise Kaaboo mein aayega Kaale Dhan ka Jinn"?

Please find attached the link here

http://epaper.patrika.com/67637/Rajasthan-Patrika-Jaipur/10-11-2012#page/20/2

 

Watch Arvind Kejriwal's answers to TEN questions on ABP News Channel

Watch Very Interesting video of 10 question & answers session posed to Arvind Kejriwal on ABP News yesterday night.

Arvind Kejriwal's sharp and witty answers to ABP News Anchor left him speechless at times.

The only solace is that Arvind Kejriwal's promised ABP News to be back on the News Channel for an interview to answer Digvijay's posse of questions.

Watch out this blog for more.

Courtesy: ABP News

Arvind Kejriwal: The Emerging Fourth Front?

He has announced a new political party, which promises to change the way politics happens in India. But are Indians ready for a systemic change and is Kejriwal the right man for the job?












Friday, November 9, 2012

Govt dismisses Kejriwal's black money claims, IAC activists to protest

The government has dismissed India Against Corruption activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal's allegations of black money against big corporate houses, saying there is nothing new in it. "Nothing new in the allegations. This has already been discussed in Parliament. Government may issue a statement if required," the government said.

Meanwhile, Kejriwal has defended his allegations of black money against big corporate houses. "The government is not able to force the banks to give details of account holders. Are we a banana republic," Kejriwal asked. "Set up a Jan Lokpal and an independent agency to investigate the cases or else there will never be an honest investigation against high and mighty," he added.

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said investigations will begin only if there's a formal complaint is made. "Let me turn to Kejriwal. He's welcome to make these allegations. If he has material, it will be taken into account. There's no doubt. Nobody is belittling him. If he's made allegations against anyone, of course not everyone has the same freedom as he does, but if they are disclosing something in the nature of what he said, you can be rest assured investigation will start. That's about it. What else should we do? We can't go to cameras. If there is credible information, if I have information about you, will I go only to the cameras? Will I have only a press conference? You can have a press conference because you like publicity. But thereafter, send the information as a complaint or an FIR to the appropriate authority.

Taking their fight further, India Against Corruption activists will gherao the Mumbai residences of RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani and Reliance ADAG Anil Ambani later on saturday. They will also hold protests outside Reliance outlets and HSBC branches in Chennai, Allahabad, Jodhpur, Raipur, Jabalpur and Gwalior.

Corporate houses deny allegations

Reliance Industries Limited, the HSBC bank, the Dabur group have all denied the charges levelled against them by India Against Corruption activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal who accused their chiefs of having crores of cash deposits in Swiss bank accounts where money, he alleged, was transferred through hawala.

Reliance Industries denied that chief Mukesh Ambani had stashed Rs 100 crore in black money in the HSBC Bank in Geneva. It issued a press release, rubbishing Kejriwal's allegations. The company said that neither Reliance Industries Limited nor Mukesh Ambani had any accounts with HSBC in Geneva. The company added that vested interests seemed to be behind such baseless allegations.

HSBC Bank, however, came out with a more cautious reaction saying that it took compliance with the law very seriously. "HSBC Bank in India notes certain allegations made today. The bank cannot comment on the specific details of the allegations that have been made, which relate to issues in the past," it said in its statement. "HSBC takes compliance with the law, wherever it operates, very seriously. With a new senior global leadership team and a new strategy in place since last year, HSBC continues to take concrete steps to strengthen compliance, risk management and culture," the bank added.

Dabur India, on the other hand, regretted the allegations against the Burman brothers, saying, "It was unfortunate that every person having a foreign bank account is being painted with the same brush." Kejriwal had accused the Burman brothers of having accounts at the HSBC bank in Geneva. "We wish to state that these accounts were opened by the Burman family members when they were NRIs, and were legally allowed to open such accounts," the Dabur India statement said.

Claiming that the monies have been sent out of the declared and tax-assessed incomes received in India, the statement said the amounts have been officially remitted from India through official banking channels and as per applicable FEMA guidelines. "The complete details regarding the remittances have been voluntarily, and as per law, filed with the Income Tax Department, and appropriate taxes paid as applicable," the statement said.

Kejriwal's allegations

India Against Corruption activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal on Friday targeted several top Indian business groups and a Congress MP, alleging that they had stashed black money worth several hundred crores in the HSBC Bank in Geneva, Switzerland. He claimed that a senior Congress leader gave him the details about the black money. "The black money from Swiss banks can come but the government doesn't wish to bring it back," Kejriwal said.

Targeting the Ambani brothers, Kejriwal claimed that Reliance ADAG Chairman Anil Ambani and Reliance Industries Limited Chairman Mukesh Ambani had Rs 100 crore each in banks in Switzerland. "Anil Ambani has Rs 100 crore in HSBC Bank in Geneva. Mukesh Ambani also has Rs 100 crore in HSBC Bank in Geneva," Kejriwal said, claiming he has got a few names from the list of Swiss account holders from sources. However, the HSBC Bank had in a statement in January 2012 apologised to Mukesh Ambani for putting his name on a list of alleged Swiss bank account holders.

Kejriwal also targeted Congress MP Annu Tandon, alleging she had Rs 125 crore in Swiss accounts. He alleged that a total of Rs 6,000 crore was stashed abroad. Annu Tandon reacted saying Kejriwal's allegations were baseless.

The activist-turned-politician also alleged that three family members of Dabur group and Naresh Goyal of Jet Airways have crores stashed in Swiss banks.

He also said that the process of opening an account in the Geneva branch of HSBC Bank was easier than opening an account in the SBI account. "Documents show how easy it is to operate the Swiss accounts sitting here in India. Documents show how money gets deposited and transferred through hawala. Opening an account is just a matter of a phone call," Kejriwal said.

Kejriwal claimed that only 100 people of those in the list of 700 people having Swiss bank accounts have been raided. "Why did the government not raid the Ambanis and the Daburs? Small fish were raided by the ED, I-T Department, but the big guys were let off," Kejriwal said.


Following are the links to the details released by Arvind Kejriwal on Friday. The documents are hosted on the website of India Against Corruption:

Is Government encouraging hawala, asks IAC

Annexure 1_Statement of Parminder Singh Kalra

Annexure 2_Statement of Vikram Dhirani

Annexure 3_Statement of Praveen Sawhney

Annexure 4_Media release - What did US do in similar situation

Question in Parliament

Related Media Reports


Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/govt-says-nothing-new-in-kejriwals-black-money-claims-iac-to-protest/304871-37-64.html

Is Indian Media Scared of Ambani's? Not Hamish McDonald

Why does Indian media refrain to talk about controversies related around big corporates, especially Ambani Brothers. Is Media really free or they are just private clones of DD? It takes the guts of the likes of Hamish McDonald to dig deep into Ambani's Empire and write about them. The following link is an extract from an article published in Hindustan Times, some time back.  

Black money flowing out of India is more than fiscal deficit

In the period 2000-2009 the illicit capital flows from India stood at a whopping $104 billion. Currently one dollar is worth around Rs 55. Hence in rupee terms this amounts to a huge Rs 5,70,00 crore. To give the reader a sense of comparison, the fiscal deficit of the government of India for the financial year 2012-2013 ( i.e. the period between April 1, 2012 and March 31, 2013) was initially estimated to be at Rs 5,13,590 crore.



for full article click the link below

Senior Congress Leader provided Information to Arvind Kejriwal !!

Today afternoon Arvind Kejriwal came with yet another hard hitting expose to enlighten the Nation about the issue of Black Money and how the government had the details in July 2011 itself. The government received a list of roughly 700 people having bank accounts in HSBC, Geneva.


















Kejriwal claimed that the information for the 'expose' had been provided to IAC by a senior Congress leader.

To read the full article click here

Complete coverage: Arvind Kejriwal's latest revelation


Demand put forward by the IAC activists:
Arrest HSBC bank's top officers and book them under the Prevention and Corruption Act. Seeking that the bank's officials be booked for sedition, Kejriwal said, "Laundering black money is only making the country vulnerable to terror and drugs."

"Like America, we should enact a law that makes it mandatory for foreign banks operating in the country to furnish a list of all account holders to the income tax department," the activist said.
Appealing the 25,000 workers in HSBC to quit their jobs, for the sake of the country, Kejriwal said, "It is this black money stashed away in foreign banks that is routed back into the markets in the name of foreign direct investments (FDI)."
* It may be recalled that earlier in the year, HSBC had issued an apology for naming him in its list of account holders.
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 14:18 IST
Stating that the information on black money was sourced from government records, Kejriwal said, "What we cannot understand why India, unlike the USA, is not able to act against banks like HSBC and UBS, which openly operate in the most brazen fashion in both India and the US."
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 14:15 IST
Raid the Ambanis, Dabur's Burman, Jet's Goyal and Yash Birla for black money: Kejriwal
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 14:13 IST
The three whose premises were raided had promised to pay their taxes on the black money they have deposited in HSBC, Geneva. "But the big question is why only a few of the 700-odd names in the list were searched," asked Kejriwal. 

Accusing the Indian government of dragging its feet on the issue of getting the black money stashed away in Swiss banks back to the country, Kejriwal said, "Every company or individual named in the list of HSBC account holders should be probed. Then honest officials should be put deployed to explain every suspect entry in their books."
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 14:03 IST
Here is the list of people Arvind Kejriwal named:
Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani – Rs 100 crores
Anil Dhirubhai Ambani – Rs 100 crores
Motech Software Private Ltd (Reliance Group company) – Rs 2,100 crores
Reliance Industries Ltd – Rs 500 crores
Sandeep Tandon – Rs 125 crores
Anu Tandon – Rs 125 crores
Kokila Dhirubhai Ambani – She has an account but there was no balance on that date
Naresh Kumar Goyal – Rs 80 crores Burmans (3 family members) – Rs 25 crores
Yashovardhan Birla – No balance
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 14:00 IST
The activist also provided a detailed questionnaire answered by three account holders, including one Parminder Kalra, whose premises were raided earlier in the year.
Kejriwal said, "The money transfer would be done by an agent in Delhi. Similarly, if one wants to withdraw the money, all one had to do was call the HSBC in Geneva and the amount would be delivered to you."
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 13:54 IST
Stating that the total amount of black money in HSBC branch is Rs 6000 crore, Kejriwal said, "Naresh Goyal has Rs 100 crore in his Swiss bank account."

As for the modus operandi used to deposit black money in their accounts, Kejriwal said, "There is no need to go to a teller machine in the State Bank of India. Rather, a person comes to your house only after a phone call. One phone call to the  HSBC Geneva would trigger the delivery process, all telephonically."
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 13:51 IST
One name that keeps cropping along side the Ambanis is that of Sandeep Tandon. An official in the Enforcement Directorate, who had quit to join the Reliance industries, Sandeep Tandon became close to the Reliance group. In fact, his two sons are office-bearers in Reliance.
Incidentally, his wife Anu Tandon also has stashed Rs125 crore in her HSBC branch.
She is also a member of Rahul Gandhi's core group.
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 13:43 IST
According to a CD provided by the French government earlier in the year, there are 700-odd account holders of hawala or black money accounts in HSBC Bank on December 2006. While Mukesh and Anil Ambani both had Rs100 crore stashed in the HSBC bank back in December 2006.
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 13:41 IST
Also, many have come forward to suggest the names of scamsters. "Today's expose relates to the return of all the black money from Swiss banks. According to the statement of a former CBI official, there is 25,000 lakh crores in black money stashed away in Swiss banks," said Kejriwal.
Friday, Nov 9, 2012 13:38 IST
After our last expose, the BJP had said that we hold a weekly bazaar of scams. "I would like to state at the start that there are so many scams that we need to hold a daily bazaar," said India Against Corruption activist Arvind Kejriwal at a press conference in the national capital on Friday.

Kejriwal targets Swiss bank account holders in next expose

Continuing their agenda of demolishing "holy cows" in politics and corporate world, India Against Corruption(IAC) activist Arvind Kejriwal is addressing another press conference. This time his expose is on the black money in Swiss banks.

Kejriwal gave details of Swiss bank account holders. The IAC activist said the government had details of 700 Swiss bank account holders in the HSBC Bank in Geneva.

"We got a CD - HSBC's Geneva branch has 700 accounts of Indian nationals. That list is available with the government with the amounts in the accounts in December 2006," Kejriwal said. He claimed the government was involved in the cover-up.

Mukesh and Anil Ambani, Naresh Goyal along with other leading industrialists in the Daburand Birla group were some of the account holders, he said.

Anu Tandon and Sandeep Tandon - former IRS, ED official - who raided Reliance has 125 crores were other names Kejriwal discloses.

"In July 2011, Indian Government received a list of roughly 700 people having bank accounts in HSBC, Geneva. The list contains bank balances of these people in 2006," Kejriwal said.

Kejriwal said they could not access all the names but the following names appeared in that list:

Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambai - Rs 100 crores
Anil Dhirubhai Ambani - Rs 100 crores
Motech Software Private Ltd (Reliance Group company) - Rs 2,100 crores
Reliance Industries Ltd - Rs 500 crores
Sandeep Tandon - Rs 125 crores
Anu Tandon - Rs 125 crores
Kokila Dhirubhai Ambani - She has an account but there was no balance on that date
Naresh Kumar Goyal - Rs 80 crores
Burmans (3 family members) - Rs 25 crores
Yashovardhan Birla - no balance

Arvind Kejriwal said the CBI had said there was Rs 25 lakh crore black money in Swiss banks. These 700 names account for only Rs 6000 crore, he said.

Kejriwal also accused HSBC Bank of helping route illgotten money.

The expose-press conference — that has now become an almost weekly affair — has already served judgment on two political figures, Robert Vadra and Nitin Gadkari, and a corporate czar, Mukesh Ambani.

IAC headed by activists Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan has created a profile for the till now unnamed political party on the perception that leading ruling parties Congress and BJP are corrupt and hand-in-glove with big business.

While speculation was rife on Thursday night on the probable targets, IAC members were tight-lipped learning from the Gadkari fiasco that gave the main Opposition a few days' time to prepare their case against the allegations of corruption raised against them.

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Whose Turn Is it NOW?

The suspense ends at 1:30 pm - Today



Mr. Vinod Rai at World Economic Forum - 2012


Here are some of the links to articles in media, which has extensively covered
Mr. Vinod Rai's attack on government functioning.

Times of India


Government's brazenness in decision making appalling: CAG Vinod Rai

The Hindu


CBI, CVC not independent, says CAG

Firstpost


CAG Vinod Rai wants CBI, CVC given full autonomy

Outlook India 


'The Brazenness With Which Decisions Were Being Taken Is Absolutely Appalling'

Business Today 


Corporate entities need to bring in transparency: CAG Vinod Rai

World Economic Forum 


Corruption Reaching Turning Point in India

The Warrior within the Government

Kudos to Mr. Vinod Rai Comptroller & Auditor General of India, for his frank opinion made public on World Economic Forum 2012 meeting here in India.

Mr. Vinod Rai said, "India should provide for more autonomous functioning of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).

It may be noted that Mr. Vinod Rai enjoys complete autonomy for a fixed six year term. He was appointed as Comptroller & Auditor General of India on 7th January 2008.















Mr. Vinod Rai was born on 23rd May 1948, has a Masters Degree in Economics from Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi, and Masters Degree in Public Administration from Harvard University, USA. He is a 1972 batch Kerala Cadre Officer of Indian Administrative Services (IAS).

He is a keen player of Tennis.

As Comptroller and Auditor General of India, Vinod Rai has come out with audit reports which have nailed government departments like, the one on the 2G spectrum scam, which led to the telecom minister losing his job and the most recent one being the audit report on Coalgate.

India needs more people like Mr. Vinod Rai, who can take up the government authorities and catch them of their acts which cause a great loss to public exchequer. 

Our salutations to the great Warrior. 

Click here to know what Vinod Rai said in World Economic Forum - 2012   

BJP puts Nation to Shame!!

There are no words to shape up this article, the anger, the frustration and the agony of not being able to do anything as a commoner has left many of us deeply bruised and shaken up the faith in these political parties and the very system – The Democracy.

How far these people are going to stoop their levels has become a BIG question now.

Yesterday after lot of high level drama within BJP party cadres came out a statement clearing Nitin Gadkari of all charges that has been leveled related to his company Purti Group.

The clean chit was given by none other than a Chartered Accountant S. Gurumurthy an RSS man and a close aide of Gadkari. It’s a dangerous precedent before the whole Nation, where allegations of corruption are probed internally and later given a clean chit. If anyone has to go by this then we can all witness a plethora of cases of corruption being probed internally and the definite outcome of the verdict. Who has the audacity to go against the party, and who so ever does either resigned on moral grounds (Mahesh Jethmalani) or grounded by the party itself.

It’s the very party “the BJP” who has always termed CBI as Congress own investigative agency, now what about them? Are they not doing the same? Gone are the days when a politician use to resign amid controversy on moral grounds, but today the morality has taken a backseat, the morality exists, but for others not for them.

If BJP had so much trust in their internal enquiry then why did former president of BJP Bangaru Laxman, got a raw deal from the party then in 2001? The BJP has no answers to it.

It’s time for all of us to see how these political parties behave on a case to case basis. At least there was one solace to see some members of the BJP opposing Gadkari’s continuation as president of the party. Before wrapping up, the damage is already done, however hard they may try to justify their so called internal clean chit, but the message is already written on the wall. Internal squabbling within the party shall cost them their prospects in the coming elections.

So where do the people of this country go from here now? On one hand there is a party which is deep rooted down in scams and corruption. Just dig deep down into your faded memories and look for scams like CWG 2010, 2G Spectrum, Coalgate, DLF – Vadra nexus, Salman Khurshid’s Handicap Scam and on the other side there is an impotent opposition mired amidst their party President’s role in his company Purti Group, other political parties are just showpieces best suited for their own living rooms. Isn't it?

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

Who is afraid of RTI ? (Hindi Version)

This is an extract published in Rajasthan Patrika.

http://epaper.patrika.com/66461/Rajasthan-Patrika-Jaipur/04-11-2012#page/20/1



Arvind Kejriwal: Can he make an impact in politics? (Comment)

No individual has dominated the Indian political space more than Arvind Kejriwal in recent weeks. The reason is that he has done the unthinkable: levelled corruption charges against the family of Sonia Gandhi, the most powerful woman in India, and Nitin Gadkari, the Bharatiya Janata Party president. Next in line was Reliance Industries Ltd of Mukesh Ambani, the richest Indian. The allegations may or may not stand legal scrutiny but there is no mistaking their rattling effect.



















A Magsaysay award winner and a former Indian Revenue Service officer, Kejriwal shot into prominence last year when he joined social activist Anna Hazare. Their agitation attracted unexpected and massive public support, forcing the UPA government to bring out a Lokpal (ombudsman) bill to tackle corruption at the political and bureaucratic level with an added sense of urgency. That bill, rejected by India Against Corruption (IAC), is now with a Parliamentary Standing Committee but is no longer a pressing issue now.

The anti-corruption movement began to lose its momentum. Kejriwal realized there was no shying away from the political process. As Hazare was reluctant to enter electoral politics, Kejriwal decided to set out on his own with some IAC members and has finalized plans to launch a new political party. Launching a party may not be difficult but making it count can be challenging, more so when it seeks to be driven by a single-point agenda of rooting out corruption.

The truth is that issues like fight against corruption can appeal to urban middle class and occasionally succeed in mobilizing flash mobs but are unlikely to serve as foundation for a political party. For instance, Communists in India are for the most part untainted by corruption but they never go to town about it. Their support base has more to do with ideology than perceived probity.

In a space crowded by seven national parties, 30-odd state level parties and a multitude of unrecognized parties, it is no mean a task for a new party to carve out its own constituency. Further, election strategies in India are based on the composition of the electorate in terms of religion and caste and promises of sops and caste-based job reservations. Fighting elections is an increasingly expensive proposition.

If Kejriwal's new party wishes to stick to its high morals and is content just to make a formal entry into the political arena, such a foray is not going to make any difference for several years to come, if ever. However, given his unmistakable ambition, Kejriwal is more likely to come to terms gradually with the realities of electoral politics and forge pre-election alliances with select parties without being unduly concerned with their source of funding or type of candidates they field. Since he has chosen to jolt both the Congress and BJP, it is evident he will try to position his party in the Third Front space.

It is in this context Kejriwal's ideology and views on important matters merit attention. His opposition to market mechanism and profit motivation, unqualified faith in the wisdom and integrity of village committees to decide how to spend development funds and outrageous statements attributed to him like "If you want to change the system, you have to break laws", and such other pointers are cause for concern. It is possible his views are still at a formative stage and amenable to change through constructive interaction. Since the basic intent of the crusader is laudable, every effort should be made to draw him out through persistent engagement so that his views on issues like inclusive growth and empowerment are not divorced from reality and he commits to respect democratic institutions and the rule of law.

Saturday, November 3, 2012

Why Political Parties want immunity from RTI?

Yesterday while watching one of the news channels, NDTV. A debate on their programme Left Right & Centre, kept me thinking all night where do these political parties lead our Nation to?

The programme had a debate on whether political parties should be covered under the RTI or not? I was really taken aback from the response that political parties gave in regards to the above. The reason they gave were very flimsy and unthinkable even from the layman's point of view. What’s wrong if they are covered under RTI Act? The people of this nation have a right to know, what these political parties do at the back hand. We vote for them isn't it?

The kind of political funds they receive, the kind of thinking that goes into choosing a candidate on grounds, which affect nation’s image, and don’t you think we all have a right to know? It’s a serious question which needs to able answers.

To my knowledge not all parties ever list the donations they have received on the public domain, why is it so?

During the whole debate, only one person who caught on my mind was Mr. Anil Bairwal of ADR India who is the National Coordinator. He had repeatedly approached various political parties to provide information to RTI applicants. In their defense all political parties collectively claimed that they are not public entities defined under the transparency law and hence are not required to set up infrastructure for processing the applications under it or replying to such queries.

Following the refusal, Anil Bairwal filed the complaint against political parties before the Central Information Commission. In yesterday's meeting with the political parties, the bench of CIC has reserved their verdict on political funding.

My request to all of you is to aware yourself through this article and the following links for your reference and introspect, why these political parties do not want to come under the RTI Act.


Please visit the following to know more 


To watch NDTV Debate visit – 

http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/left-right-centre/are-parties-trying-to-avoid-public-scrutiny/253320?hp&video-featured


To know what CIC thinks visit - 


Friday, November 2, 2012

Political Parties oppose RTI

Major political parties yesterday opposed the move to come under the ambit of of the Right to Information Act saying that facilities and subsidised buildings given for their offices do not constitute funding from the government.

A Full Bench of the CIC comprising Chief Information Commissioner Satyananda Mishra and information commissioners Annapurna Dixit and M L Sharma was convened to decide on whether political parties come under the RTI Act or not.

According to the RTI Act, a non-governmental body is declared a public authority if it is substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds provided by the appropriate government. Such public authorities are answerable to public queries raised under the transparency law.

During the hearing, all major national parties like BJP, BSP, CPI-M and NCP except Congress were present while CPI had already represented their case during the last hearing.

Speaking for NCP, its counsel Amit Anand Tiwari said that according to the RTI Act, public interest is not a criteria to declare a body public authority.

He also said if the details of the donors and such details are put in public domain, other parties may threaten them and thus bring down the entire electoral process.

BSP represented by lawyer Shail Dwivedi claimed that there was not "direct or indirect funding" by the government and the facilities like free air time, buildings at cheap rents and other facilities do not constitute funding.

Similar arguments were put forth by CPI-M Politburo member Ramachandran Pillai who said 40 per cent of its funds come from its cadre which is slightly over 10 lakh across the country as membership of annual Rs two annually while rest come from 'levy' and donations and it was practically impossible to give such details.

Swaraj Yatra - Jaipur Region

IAC Jaipur is organizing SWARAJ YATRA to cover all tehsils in Jaipur district.

The team would move as per schedule. The provisional schedule is as

follows. If you are interested to join kindly on a particular day kindly contact 

Mulk Raj on 9782009900


An Idiot Indian



Why Do we Vote ? Is it for Time Pass ? or Is it in our Habit ? or Do we Vote because its another holiday declared sometimes by the respective governments (State or Centre).

Or we vote every Five years to remind us that we are returning a favour of being an Indian. Or we vote because we get free liquor, Quilt, Saree, Mobile or even the money, or we as a community vote to get favours later.

And if at all, we vote expecting a change, or for the development of our country, then there is no greater Idiot than us, We the people of India, who has been voting for last 65 yrs.

In the last 10 to 15 years or may be more, in a hope for better government, how your Life has changed ? or how the corruption has been tackled ? How many promises were fulfilled as per party manifestos ?

Have you ever tried to count on those? have you even, or ever thought about this? I wonder what's your answer?

Year after Year, the politicians have whipped us with their misdeeds, and most of us just watch the flogging like a mute spectator. If we didn't wake up by these coming elections, then we all have no right to crib about the happenings in the country, its much better that we remain indoors sitting nicely on our couch potato and wonder how we can be corrupt too.

Remember it’s not mandatory or a custom to vote for a particular party, it’s not even a family tradition to vote for a particular party but casting a vote is entirely our own personal matter on which our future is dependent.

If it’s not party then it’s Religion, if it’s not religion then its Caste, till how long we so called educated brilliant minds can endorse such nonsense? By standing on the streets / locality / parks or your home, commenting and abusing the system or the government is easy but before doing that hurl one or two comments or abuse at yourself too, because we are directly responsible for the mess that we see around in the present political system. We ourselves are corrupt. No .. No .. don't shy away, we are corrupt or otherwise they (the politicians) would not be corrupt too.

These politicians have understood one thing very easily and that is … We the people of India are very tolerant, they are divided on the religion and cast lines and above all they are very thick skinned and their memories are very short and faded. The politician knows our pulse like any good doctor, and they prescribe us a right treatment, and we deserve that treatment that they are meeting us out to.

We are to be blamed for this agony that we are personally going through and put the Nation to it also. So, when next time you go out for voting, keep the above in mind and vote for the issues that you really feel for and not which are the favorite of front benchers. Press the voting button only if you see the following:

1) Provide Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation

2) Provide for basic Health amenities

3) Provide for quality Education for the children of the country

4) Provide basic social security to the family members, the people of the
    Country 

5) Lets us Live with Pride and Honor in the country

6) Truly make us feel Proud to be an Indian

7) Provide all round development of Infrastructural facilities

8) Provide Employment opportunities to the lowest level

9) Provide for better agricultural revolution like white revolution (Amul)

Once this is kept in mind, then nothing can affect us on the lines of whether its Religion / Caste or a Party.

This “An Idiot Indian” will be talking and writing about issues related to common man regularly on different forums, which he feels from the bottom of his heart. 

If you like this Idiot’s rumblings then keep reading or you have the RIGHT to discard me like any of your votes of the past, not on the streets but in a dustbin.

Like any of You

“An Idiot Indian”