AV 13th September 2025

UK emerges as top destination for Indian students P16

------------------------

CP Radhakrishnan elected as India's next Vice President P25

-----------------------India win Asia Cup hockey title after 8 years P32

WHERE ARE THE ‘HINDU VOICES’?

Labour’s recent cabinet reshuffle highlights historic diversity gains but sparks criticism over limited Hindu and Indian representation in the government, raising questions on Labour’s identity, community inclusion, and Starmer’s broader vision

Angela Rayner stepped down last week as Deputy Prime Minister, Labour Party Deputy Leader and Housing Secretary, triggering one of the most consequential overhauls of Sir Keir Starmer’s cabinet since Labour entered government last year The reshuffle has reshaped the balance of power at the top of No 10 and brought sweeping changes that ethnic minority communities have hailed as helping to create one of the most diverse parliaments Britain has ever seen Continued on 12

Starmer to make first official visit to India in October

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is scheduled to visit India for the first time in early October, with technology and trade high on his agenda

During the visit, he will join Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2025 in Mumbai, according to officials

ABPL Group extends heartfelt wishes to PM Narendra Modi on his 75th Birthday

Your visionary leadership and dedication to India’s progress inspire millions worldwide We wish you good health, happiness, and continued strength in your journey of service and leadership

"Diwali without fireworks isn't the same"

Leicester’s Diwali has long stood as a beacon of light, unity, and pride This year’s scaled-back celebrations cast a shadow over that legacy. For many, the silence of the fireworks will echo something deeper, a festival diminished, and a community left yearning for the brilliance it once brought to the city

Subhasini Naicker Leicester’s Diwali, once celebrated as the largest outside India, will see a curtailed version this year The Labourled city council has cancelled the fireworks display, stage performances, and the popular Diwali Village, citing safety concerns

Anusha Singh

Prime Minister Keir Starmer with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Chequers in July 2025

Prime Minister Keir Starmer

Mahmood hints at visa cuts for non-compliant countries

T he U K could suspend visas for countries that refuse to a g re e to m i g ra nt ret u rn d eals, the new ho me secretar y said S h a b a n a M a h m o o d

m a d e t h e r e m a r k s w h i l e

hosting Donald Trump’s former homeland security chief

a n d m i n i s t e r s f r o m Australia, New Zealand, and Canada at a Five Eyes intelligence meeting in London

T h e t a l k s c a m e a m i d ongoing pressure to reduce

C h a n n e l c r o s s i n g s , w i t h 1,097 arrivals last week –one of the highest on record Mahmood, speaking for the f irst time since her appointment, said her “top priority” is securing the UK’s borders She added that the government is exploring coordinat-

e d a c t i o n w i t h F i v e Ey e s countries to ensure nations

t a ke b a c k t h e i r c

n s , including the possibility of cutting visas for countries

that refuse to comply

The home secretar y did not name which countries could face visa suspensions

Sir Keir Starmer supports a “t r a n s a c

approach, while the prime minister has suggested visas could depend on coopera-

returns A Five Eyes agreement offers “another tool” to tackle illegal crossings

Small boat arrivals, up

Madeleine Sumption noted

Nepal have low return rates and high visa demand, with responses to threats var ying

access Shadow home secretar y Chris Philp urged the government to act tough,

non-compliant countries

New Zealand ministers at the Five Eyes summit to discuss border security, people

abuse, and opioid traff icking Appointed home secretar y in a reshuffle, she aims to use the alliance to “ protect our borders ” Defence

Secretar y John Healey said the government may expand militar y and other sites to house asylum seekers outside hotels

Glasgow nurse jailed after £200k drug bust

A c hi l dr en ’ s n ur s e, K ir a n

Farooq, 34, has been jailed for four years after admitti ng to s upply ing c oc ain e and ecstasy

She was arrested on 30

D e c e m b e r 2 0 2 3 i n a

G l a s g o w c a r p a r k , a n d police later seized drugs and £200,000 in cash from a flat she had access to

D u r i n g s e n t e n c i n g ,

L o r d Mu l h o l l a n d s a i d

Farooq had shamed herself, her family, and her profession The court heard that

t h e n u r s e , fo r m e r l y a t G l a s g o w ’ s R o y a l Ho

for Children, was spotted by police entering and exiting cars, raising suspicions of a drug deal She was followed t o a s e c u r e c a r p a r k a t Lancef ield Quay, where she dropped the keys to a flat

O f f i c e r s s e i z e d n e a r l y

£12,000 from her car and, looking through the letterbox, spotted an open bag containing what appeared to be drugs

M r Mo h a m m e d s a i d p o l i c

and MDMA (ecstasy) along

with cash and drug-dealing

e q u i p m e n t T h e c o c a i n e was up to 77% pure, and thousands of ecstasy pills, including cr ystal form, were found Off icers also seized

s u b s t a n c e s u s e d t o b u l k d r u g s , s c a l e s , p a r t o f a k i t c h e n b

n

accused of supplying other drugs, including ketamine, cannabis, and bromazolam,

b u t p r o s e c u t o r s a c c e p t e d her not guilty pleas to those charges

World traveller’s bike stolen, community steps in

A n Indian motorcy-

c l is t h ad h i s bi ke

s to l en in th e U K

1 5, 00 0 m iles i nto a round-the-w orld trip but said th e suppo rt

h e rec e iv ed h a s “ch ang ed m y p ersp ectiv e ”

Yo g e s h A l e k a r i , 33, said his KTM 390 Adventure, carr ying £15,000

w o r t h o f b e l o n g i n g s , w a s

s t o l e n w h i l e p a r ke d a t Wo l l a t o n Pa r k i n Nottingham, after he had a l r e a d y t r a v e l l e d t h r o u g h

more than 17 countries

Mr Alekari said he had received offers of clothing a n d r e p l a c e m e n t b i ke s , praising support from people in the UK, India, and the

Imam charged over child marriages

Northamp tonsh ire po lice h av e charg ed an imam for allowing children to marry in a mo sque

Nikah ceremonies for two 16-year-olds at No

November 2023, in breach of forced marriage legislation The 52-year-old has been charged

Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act, as amended by the Marriage and Civil Partnership Act, which sets the minimum marriage age at 18 and makes it illegal to arrange marriages for anyone under that age, regardless of coercion

national who has been ser ving as an imam, has been found guilty

UK delegation evaluates Tihar prison ahead of extraditions

A s India seeks the extradition of fug itiv es like V i j ay M al lya , Ni ra v M o d i , and S an j ay Bh a nd a ri , a tea m f ro m B ri tai n ’ s C ro w n P ro s ec u ti o n S e r v i ce (C P S ) v i si te d D el h i’s

Tihar Jail in July to assess conditio ns

The four-member team, including two C P S e x p e r t s a n d t w o B r i t i s h H i g h Commission off icials, inspected the highsecurity ward, evaluated facilities and security, and interacted with some prisoners

Off icials said the UK assessment team w a s g e n e r a l l y s a t i s f i e d w i t h T i h a r Ja i l , describing conditions as “good” and “close to international standards ” Indian authorities a s s u r e d t h a t s e p a r a t e f a c i l i t i e s c o u l d b e arranged for high-prof ile extraditees and that their safety would be protected The visit follows a UK court ruling allowing arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari’s appeal against extradition, citing a “real risk” of extortion and violence in the prison

I N B R I E F COURT DEBATES ASYLUM SEEKER RIGHTS

A legal debate has erupted in the Court of Appeal over whether the human rights of asylum seekers housed in hotels outweigh the safety concerns of local families The case stems from an injunction obtained by Epping Forest district council, which seeks to prevent asylum seekers from staying at the Bell Hotel following protests prompted by allegations against one asylum seeker The Home Office is appealing the injunction, with Home Secretary Yvette Cooper expressing fears that it could set a precedent leading to similar actions Edward Brown KC, representing the Home Office, argued that the public interest in accommodating vulnerable individuals is not equal to upholding planning controls He told the court that hotels are considered critical national infrastructure for this purpose and wrongdoing by an individual is not sufficient for closure The council however highlighted potential risks to local children and argued that the asylum seekers human rights do not override planning laws

RISING BORROWING POSE CHALLENGE FOR CHANCELLOR

wider biker community

“I really appreciate it The messages f r o m B r i t i s h b i ke r s a n d c i t i z e n s , a n d support from India, h a v e t r u l y c h a n g e d my perspective,” he said Mr Alekari’s journey had taken him through I r a n , Ne p a l , C h i n a , K a z a k

and across Europe, including Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and France

En route to Oxford, he parked at Wollaton Park on 28 August After breakfast, he discovered his motorcyc l e a n d

y, flanked by two mopeds

Since the theft, he has been flooded with support, i

gear and even motorcycles

T h e p r o d u c

o n c o m p a n y behind ‘Long Way Home’, fronted by Ewan McGregor

a

offered him

KTM used in f ilming Mr Alekari said he

police could recover his bike before accepting the offer

Road collision in claims two students’ lives

A tr ag i c ro a d c o ll is i o n in E s se x, Un i ted K ing dom, has claimed the lives of two young students from Telangana and left f iv e others seriou sly injured

The incident took place September 1, 2025, at the Rayleigh Spur roundabout on the A130 dual carriageway, when two cars carr ying a group of nine students collided while returning from Ganesh Visarjan celebrations

A m o n g t h o s e w h o p e r i s h e d w e r e

Chaitanya Tarre, aged 23, from Nadargul, who died at the scene, and Rishiteja Rapolu, aged 21, from Boduppal, who succumbed to his injuries shortly after being admitted to hospital Five other students were admitted to the Royal London Hospital Among them, Sai Goutham Ravulla is reported to be on a ventilator, while Nuthan Thatikayala has been left partially paralysed The remaining students Yuva Teja Reddy Gurram, Vamshi Golla, and Venkata Sumanth Pentyala are undergoing treatment

Essex Police have arrested the two drivers, aged 23 and 24, on suspicion of causing death and serious injur y by dangerous driving Both were later released on bail pending further investigation, and the force has appealed to the public for any CCT V or dashcam footage related to the collision The National Indian Students and Alumni Union (NISAU) UK expressed deep sorrow over the accident, o f fe r i n g c o n d o l e n c e s t o t h e f a m i l i e s a n d pledging support alongside community and consular authorities during this diff icult time

Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces a significant economic challenge ahead of the autumn budget as government borrowing costs have surged to their highest levels in nearly three decades Analysts are warning that households and businesses should prepare for a large taxraising budget of up to £30 billion to address the situation The yield on the 30year UK government bond rose to 5 63 per cent, nearing a 27-year high The elevated borrowing costs will likely force the Chancellor to increase taxes to comply with her fiscal rules having already raised them by £40 billion last October Higher borrowing costs typically lead to weaker economic activity and increased government spending on debt interest which in turn reduces the Chancellor s fiscal headroom and makes tax increases more probable The Treasury is reportedly considering new tax measures, including a potential new property tax regime or the abolition of a capital gains tax exemption on primary residences

WORKLESSNESS IN BRITAIN HITS RECORD HIGH

Official data shows around 1 7 million adults in Britain are unemployed, equivalent to just under five per cent of the working-age population According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) more than 6 5 million people are now receiving out- of-work benefits the highest level on record That total larger than the combined populations of Birmingham Leeds Glasgow Manchester Sheffield Bradford Edinburgh Liverpool and Bristol has risen by half a million since Labour took office just over a year ago The share of the working-age population claiming sickness-related benefits, including those in employment receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP), has surged from 7 7 per cent in 2019 to 11 4 per cent at the start of 2025 The financial cost is escalating just as sharply Welfare spending on healthrelated benefits has jumped from £69 5 billion in 2020/21 at the height of the pandemic to £92 8 billion last year with forecasts predicting it will hit £108 6 billion by 2030

Shabana Mahmood

Yogesh Alekari

A fresh start or a test ahead?

The first 14 months of Sir Keir Starmer’s tenure as UK’s Prime Minister has proven to be nothing short of a challenge

As Labour faces rising pressure from Nigel Farage’s Reform party, last week, as Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner was forced to resign, PM Starmer reshuffled his Cabinet to focus on delivery on immigration and the economy, showing clear intent and effort

Over the last 14 months, as many as 11 members of Starmer’s team have been compelled to step down due to controversies Most recently, allegations against Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner and her subsequent resignation pushed Starmer into a “reset mode ”

When Tony Blair stepped down, the Labour Party had lost significant public support, but PM Starmer managed to revive it a f t e

Conservatives, combined with Starmer’s strong performance as the Leader of the Opposition, persuaded British voters to hand him the reins of power

He successfully moved Labour away from its left-wing image and repositioned it as a centre-right-leaning party Even after coming into power, his government proposed policies aligned with this centre-right approach, but it has since then struggled to implement them effectively Despite the reshuffle, the challenges ahead remain significant and to succeed, the government will need to take quick and firm decisions as well as actions

By appointing Treasury Minister Darren Jones as the Prime Minister’s Chief Secretary, Starmer has signalled that he will no longer rely solely on Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ advice on economic matters Similarly, assigning the Home Secretary role to Shabana Mahmood, renowned for her strong determination, highlights the critical moments ahead

Through David Lammy’s appointment as the Deputy Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has aimed to regain the support of nearly

66 Labour MPs from the ethnic minority communities Lammy’s work as Foreign Secretary has been well-regarded, and he is expected to play a key role in helping the government

However, Starmer has faced criticism for not including more MPs from the Indian community, as he reshuffled his new Cabinet There are around 43 Labour MPs of South Asian heritage Out of which 26 are of Indian origin But other than Lisa Nandy, who is half Indian, no one has held the key position of a State Secretary

The very capable Seema Malhotra MP has moved to the Foreign Commonwealth Office as the Parliamentary Under Secretary from Home Office, whereas Kanishka Narayan MP has joined the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology as a Parliamentary Under Secretary Satvir Kaur who is on a maternity break now, will join as the Parliamentary Secretary in the Cabinet Office

Gareth Thomas MP, representing Harrow West for 28 years, an area where 30% of the population are Asians, has now left the government

Barry Gardiner, has been an MP for 28 years as well but from Brent North He was in Shadow Cabinet for the Department for Business and Trade during the Tory government, but he has not been considered for any special portfolio by Starmer government Brent has one of Britain’s largest ethnic minority populations (32 8% Asians and 19 5% Indians), as recorded by the 2021 census

Virendra Sharma who was an MP for 17 years, representing Southall, a constituency where 55% of the population are from Punjab in India and Pakistan A popular Indian figure, yet he did not stand in the 2024 elections While his talents and experience as a seasoned politician and man of integrity still remain unused by the party, one should consider deploying him in a different role, perhaps in a different House too

Trump, the West and India

Is the world looking at the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to help bring an end to the ongoing Ukraine war? Or is the US President Donald Trump and his western allies, who have so far failed to resolve the conflict, trying to shift the blame on Modi and India instead?

Since the US presidential election campaign began in late 2024, Trump has repeatedly claimed that he would end the Russia-Ukraine war on “day one ” of his presidency Yet, eight months into his tenure, the conflict has only escalated It’s not that Trump hasn’t made efforts to stop the war He has tried every possible approach - from diplomacy and persuasion to pressure tactics, negotiations and even back-channel talks to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin to step back However, Putin remains resolute, showing no indication of backing down

The world knows well about Donald Trump’s long-standing ambition to win the Nobel Peace Prize He has often claimed credit for resolving disputes between Iran and Israel,

However, when it came to brokering a ceasefire between India and Pakistan, his efforts fell flat Pakistan went as far as praising Trump and even nominating him for the Nobel Peace Prize, but India dismissed his claims entirely, a move that left the US President visibly frustrated

Now, with Vladimir Putin refusing to back down and the Ukraine war showing no signs of ending, Trump has shifted his

strategy and started pointing fingers at India Accusing New Delhi of “funding” Russia’s war machine by purchasing crude oil from Moscow, he has slapped a steep 50% tariff on Indian imports

Furthermore, Trump’s advisers and cabinet members are working hard to shape a global narrative that India’s crude oil trade with Russia is a major reason the war continues In doing so, Trump appears to be positioning India, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as convenient scapegoats for his own failure to bring the conflict to an end

On one hand, Putin shows no willingness to back down, China’s President Xi Jinping has openly challenged the US At the same time, Modi’s firm stance has put Trump in an awkward position The European Union is also trying to shift blame on India though Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has sent mixed signals He asked Modi to mediate peace while also supporting Trump’s tariffs on Indian crude oil imports from Russia President Trump is due to visit the UK next week for a 3day State visit The Sky News reported that closer collaboration between UK and US' nuclear power industries is expected to be one of the main focal points of the trade-related discussions Many US tech and finance giants will join Trump as well as artificial intelligence and the broader technology industry

However, Trump's visit will come amid tensions over his tariff regime, with continuing uncertainty about its impact on British manufacturing sectors, including steel

Modi’s citizen-focused governance boosts growth

Nearing his 75th birthday (17 September), Prime Minister Narendra Modi has again proved that he aims to make his citizens’ life easier, better and richer The government has introduced one of India’s most significant tax reforms through the rationalisation of GST By streamlining slabs into a dual-rate structure of 5% and 18% (with 40% for sin goods), the NextGeneration GST not only simplifies compliance but also makes the system more affordable, efficient, and growth-oriented

Designed with people at the centre, the reforms bring direct relief across sectors Farmers gain from reduced GST on machinery, tractors now taxed at just 5% and road tractors at 18%, making mechanisation more accessible Healthcare costs are lowered, with medicines and medical devices taxed at only 5% and ambulances down from 28% to 18% Families benefit too, as essentials like milk, bread, and roti are tax-free, while items such as ghee, butter, coffee, soaps, bicycles, and kitchenware now attract only 5% Even personal services like salons, barbers, yoga, and fitness centres have been rationalised from 18% to 5%, easing household budgets

The middle class, the backbone of India’s economy, also stands to gain GST on small cars, motorcycles, three-wheelers, and larger passenger and goods vehicles has been cut from 28% to 18%, while appliances like TVs, air conditioners, and dishwashers now fall into the same bracket These changes reduce costs on big purchases, ease financial pressure, and encourage consumption, feeding back into economic growth

Importantly, GST 2 0 is more than a rate rationalisation exercise; it is a structural reform Compliance has been streamlined with a single monthly return, pre-filled forms, Aadhaar-based authentication, and automatic input tax credit

matching Small businesses benefit from higher registration thresholds, quarterly filing, and an expanded composition scheme Transparency and trust are reinforced with real-time invoice tracking, AI-driven analytics, and tighter integration of GSTN with customs and direct taxes

Institutional safeguards have also been introduced A national GST Appellate Tribunal, a uniform advance ruling system, and time-bound grievance redressal mechanisms will speed up dispute resolution and enhance fairness Together, these measures improve ease of doing business, curb evasion, broaden the tax base, and strengthen revenues, while ensuring a fairer distribution of the tax burden Cheaper goods and services are set to spur consumer-led growth, potentially driving GDP expansion in line with projections of 7–8% annually

The timing of GST 2 0 makes it especially significant With President Trump’s tariffs straining global trade and consumer prices, the reform provides a crucial cushion by cutting inefficiencies, stabilising supply chains, and easing costs for businesses and households Its success, however, will hinge on effective implementation, strong inter-state coordination, and strict anti-evasion measures

Together, these efforts can help India weather global headwinds while advancing towards self-reliance and positioning itself as a model of resilience and innovation among emerging economies At the same time, GST 2 0 marks a clear departure from the Congress era of indecision and piecemeal reforms

The Modi government has moved decisively to simplify, rationalise, and humanise taxation, making this reform not only an economic milestone but also a political statement of responsive, citizen-focused governance

Thought for the week

“It always seems impossible until it’s done.”Nelson Mandela

In re cent wee ks, Ind ian-Ame rican s m ay have fe lt dé jà vu exce pt it’s n ot Uga nda in the 1970s It’s 2025 a nd Dona ld Trump ha s effe ct ively d ecla red *“N eve r Ag ain” but t his time he’ s ta rge ting India , t he outsourcing colossus, with punitive t ar iffs, v isa cra ckdown s, a nd eve n the omin ous sug gestion of ta xing r emote IT wor k

The Tariff Shock

Trump administration doubled U S tariffs on Indian goods to a staggering 50%, among the highest levied on any partner Initially pitched as a “reciprocal” tariff, a second punitive layer was added as punishment for India’s continued imports of Russian oil The result? Manufacturing hubs like Tirupur are already feeling the heat factory closures, job losses, and sectors from gems to shrimp reeling Industry watchers warn of a possible 1% GDP contraction and up to £45 billion in export losses in the worst case

Outsourcing: Now a Taxable Offense?

Peter Navarro, Trump’s trade hawk, is fanning a new narrative: an “outsourcing tax” on remote work He’s echoing calls to “tariff foreign remote workers” as though code and algorithms were contraband Navarro can be led by the nose He will consider targeting American nuclear missiles to Delhi co-ordinates – he is completely capable of saying so if someone whispers it in his ear H-1B and Immigration Bulldozer

Couple that with new pressure to tighten the H-1B visa regime, and you ’ ve got tech professionals and their parents, spouses, and aspirations in freefall Thousands of student visas have also been revoked, even as Chinese students continue to enroll by the hundreds of thousands Despite concerns the Chinese are using students as spies Tech Giants in the Crosshairs

Big-tech, particularly Google and Microsoft, have been told to cease hiring in India, pivot to American hires, or face the music Trump even threatened Apple with a 25% tariff on iPhones not made on U S soil

Strategic Fallout

This isn’t just economics, or even politics, now with mention of ‘brahmins’ it’s become ethnic, racist The 2025 U S –India diplomatic crisis is in full swing U S policymakers, long invested in India as a Quad ally, now risk driving New Delhi toward Russia and China – actually they’re driving it to the UK and EU India will be ensuring the EU and UK see it is an opportunity and grow a spine and do not cave in to Navarro dictating British foreign policy

What Comes Next?

If history teaches anything, it’s that “what’s next” under this administration is hard to predict but plausible Let ’ s call it Spe culat ive Scen ario No 237:

1 R emitt an ce Tax es: Trump may tax funds IndianAmericans send home, supposedly to deter “foreign dependence ”

2 P ersona l Sa nctions: The next step could morph into travel or financial sanctions on individuals especially engineers, students, or entrepreneurs of Indian origin

3 Ethn ic Pr ofiling by O ther Name s: Under “national security,” sweeping measures may target Indian ethnicity broadly travel bans, heightened scrutiny at airports, social media monitoring

4 Str ate gic De coupling: This could extend to defense and technology outsourcing ban becomes technology decoupling, dismantling the U S –India innovation ecosystem

In short, the Indian-American community could have itself a “moment” a collision between identity, geopolitics, and American domestic politics with little warning, and with devastating collateral damage Will those of Indian ethnicity be ‘kicked out’ – it’s already begun For all of us who worked on ever closer ties we have two options First, give up Second, go on holiday for a while What we won’t do is grovel

This isn’t fear-mongering it’s reading the writing on the wall U S –India ties, long built on shared values and mutual ambition, are being undermined by ideological one-liners But who benefitted when Ugandan Indian’s left? Britain

Alpesh Patel

MIDLANDS/NORTH

Bhim’s gate: A lasting tribute to a beloved father and friend

T he entrance to a cherish ed

a ll o tm en t in B rau

T o w n h as be en re

m ed

Bhim ’ s Gate in ho nour of Bhim Kohli, who tragically lost his life following a park attack in S eptem ber 20 24

B h i m K o h l i , a g e d 8 0 , was walking his dog Rocky in Franklin Park when he

w

p

olonged assault by a teenage boy, while a girl filmed the ordeal Both, now 15 and 13, w e r e c o n v

year At the memorial unveil-

i n g , h i s d a u g h

S

n described him as “ one in a

m

brought to those around him

embarrassed by the attention, the family felt it only right to celebrate his memory A

renaming, the community has planted flowering cherry trees within the park, sym-

and well-wishers also raised funds for the tribute, further demonstrating the affection

Kohli inspired White footprints, painted on the path from the Kohli family home to the allotments, serve as a

ensures that the allotments, where Kohli made so many joyful memories, will forever carry his name, an enduring testament to a life of kindness and quiet strength

Misconduct hearing for ex-Leicestershire police officer

A former pol ic e off icer with L e ic e s te r s h ir e Pol ic e , PC

She ena M an ek, is f ac ing a g r os s m i s c o nd uc t he a r in g f ol l o win g a c c us a t io n s t h a t s he i l l e g al l y a c c

n d downl oaded sens itive inform ation

The hearing is scheduled to take place at the force's headquarters in Enderby, as the police force seeks to hold her accountable for a significant breach of professional standards

The allegations date back to January of this year, when Manek is said to have down-

l o a d e d c o n f i d e n t i a l p o l i c e files from her work laptop onto an unauthorised USB stick These files contained personal and sensitive information, and police officials have stated that her actions had no policing purpose and were without lawful authority This alleged conduct constitutes a serious breach of the standards of professional behaviour, specifically conc e r n i n g c o n

orders and instructions, and c

case highlights the strict pro-

tocols that police officers are expected to follow to protect sensitive data and maintain public trust

While Manek has since left the force, the gross misconduct hearing will proceed to determine the validity of the allegations and to ensure accountability The outcome of this disciplinary process remains to be seen, but the

reminder of the serious con-

enforcement

Walsall man jailed for posing as a boy to abuse young girls

A 4 8 - yea r- o ld m an f ro m Walsall has been jailed after p osing as a 15-year-old boy

o n S napchat to g room and sexu ally abu se three yo ung g irls

Ruhel Miah admitted 15 o f f e n c e s , i n c l u d i n g t w o counts of sexually assaulting a child under 13 The Crown Prosecution Service said he c o n t a c t e d t h e v i c t i m s through the platform, built emotional connections, and then turned the conversations sexual

A t W o l v e r h a m p t o n

C r o w n C o u r t o n F r i d a y , Miah was jailed for 10 years

T h e C P S s a i d h e m e t o r tracked down the girls, lured t h e m i n t

activity, which he recorded The videos were later recov-

ered from his phone Robbie Weber from the CPS said Miah used social media to target and groom his victims, subjecting them to abuse both online and in

courage of the victims in

enabled prosecutors to build

under 13, sexual activity with a child, inciting a child to

and sexual communication with a child

Driver fined after running red light while drunk

A d riv er caugh t

DNA breakthrough secures justice 19

years after Leicestershire rape

A m a n h as be en c o nv i c te d o f rap e in Leicestershire, nearly two decad es after the attack, thanks to a DNA m atch mad e du ring an unrelated arrest

In 2006, a 19-year-old woman was subjected to a traumatic assault after being picked up by a taxi driver in Loughborough Despite extensive police investigations at the time, which included reviewing CCTV and gathering forensic evidence, no suspect was identified, and the case was closed in 2009

The breakthrough came in April 2022, w

s arrested in Greater Manchester for a separate matter A mouth swab, taken as a standard police procedure, provided a precise DNA match to the samples recovered from the 2006 crime scene Despite this overwhelming evidence, Rahman continued to deny the offence, claiming the sexual activity was consensual

C r o w n

Court, Rahman was found guilty of rape

Detective Constable Kristina Page-Brown, who has been the officer in the case since the DNA match was made, highlighted the victim's immense bravery, noting she had waited 19 years to get some sort of resolution and justice She added that the victim had trusted Rahman to take her home, but he abused that trust and took advantage of a vulnerable woman in the worst way imaginable

Six-year running streak still going strong

M r id u l M ano j Mandampully, 23, h as run at least 3 k m ( 1 9 m i les ) every day since 20

No v em b er 2 0 1 9 and says he h as no plans to end th e streak, h o pi ng i ns te ad to “inspire minds ”

O r i g i n a l l y f r o m I n d i a a n d raised in Dubai, he has kept running through injuries and extreme weather, t h o u g h h e

changes could one day break his routine

Mridul said his running journey began w h

Loughborough University, when he chose exercise over nights out Having initially planned to play cricket after arriving in the UK in September 2019, he soon lost interest in the sport A lifelong habit of staying active left him feeling “restless without regular physical activity,” leading him to take up daily running

Now based in Goole, East Yorkshire, and a 2023 graduate, Mridul was inspired by a US runner ’ s year-long streak and began running daily across Loughborough’s campus, determined not to “waste” his university years indoors He admits his dedication may look like an obsession but says he simply wants to keep the streak alive

Running has become therapeutic for him, sometimes bringing him to tears on latenight runs “A healthy cry is good every now and then,” he said, adding that the hardest part is often just putting on his shoes

I N B R I E F BIRMINGHAM COUNCIL FACES RODENT CRISIS

Birmingham City Council has temporarily suspended most of its pest control services due to an ongoing bin strike sparking public health fears across the city The strike which began in January has led to a major increase in overflowing refuse, creating a breeding ground for pests, particularly rodents In a move to mitigate the most serious threat, the council has made an exception for rat infestations, offering a free treatment service However, residents with issues related to other pests, such as mice, cockroaches, bedbugs or fleas, have been advised to purchase their own treatments This decision comes after a recent council proposal to introduce a charge for rat control was widely criticised and labelled a rat tax by opposition councillors The council has defended its position, stating that the free service was costing a significant amount of money annually

LEICESTER TRANSFORMS CITY OFFICES INTO STUDENT HOMES

Leicester’s skyline is set for a collegiate twist as empty office buildings are earmarked for conversion into vibrant student accommodation City council officers have recommended that St John’s House, a formerly bustling office block located in the heart of Leicester, be transformed into housing for more than 140 university students This ambitious plan aims to breathe new life into unused city spaces tackling two issues at once: the shortage of student flats and the proliferation of vacant commercial properties The project s approval would offer students modern living right in the city centre, minutes from campus and local amenities Advocates say the redevelopment supports regeneration efforts and promises economic benefits for Leicester s neighbourhoods, as students bring energy and spending to local businesses Some local residents, however, have raised questions over potential noise and congestion

LEICESTERSHIRE ROADS CLEARED OF GRAFFITI IN CLEANUP DRIVE

after noticing he was unsteady on his feet

At the station, he gave

D e s p i t e s e t b a c k s , i n c l u d i n g C o v i d i n 2022, a sprained ankle, and extreme weather in both Dubai and the UK, he has never broken the streak With his visa expiring later this year, Mridul plans to return to Dubai and start a running club to inspire others “As long as these legs keep moving, the streak will be alive,” he said

Leicestershire has taken decisive action to restore its streets after offensive graffiti was discovered on multiple roundabouts and roads throughout the county Over recent days, county council workers have painstakingly removed paint deemed vulgar and inappropriate, ensuring the appearance of local neighbourhoods returns to a standard befitting the area The graffiti sparked concern among residents and prompted immediate intervention led by the Reform UK-controlled council Officials say the clean-up not only helps preserve the dignity of Leicestershire’s public spaces but also underlines the importance of respectful expression within the community The council has encouraged residents to display flags if they wish to celebrate but strongly urged against defacing roads or infrastructure Locals welcomed the move noting how swift action has helped maintain the county s reputation for order and civic pride The council remains vigilant, promising continued monitoring and rapid response in the event of future incidents

Bhim Kohli

Ruhel Miah

Mridul Manoj Mandampully

Hackney GP

leads fight to boost childhood vaccinations

Dr Tehseen Khan, a GP at Spring Hill Practice in East Hackney, holds one of th e m

in

country, boosting childho od vaccination rates in an area

w

natio nw id e Nearly one in fiv e children starting prim ary school this year are not fully protected against serious illnesses, according to th e U K H eal th S

y Ag ency

E

L

vaccinations hit the 95% targ

t h M M

falling to its lowest since 2009-10, leaving only 83 7% of five-year-olds fully protected In Hackney, where Dr Tehseen Khan also serves as NHS England’s regional

doses by age five in 2023–24

Khan, also clinical director of Hackney’s Primary Care

N

stems from the “three Cs”:

address, complacency can be tackled through reminders

improved by delivering vaccines directly in communities In Hackney, Dr Khan’s

bouncy castles to build trust

approach is nonjudgmental: no statistics, just stories of illness and recovery “People don’t respond to data; they want to hear what matters to them,” he said Far from discouraging, he finds the work rewarding “A couple of weeks ago, I spoke with a mother of six, none vaccinated After we talked about

smile

Prince Harry backs Children in Need with £1.1mn

resilience, and inspiration

Conference Chairman Kris Gopalakrishnan

under ratification in the UK Parliament, aiming to double bilateral trade to $120 billion (£89bn) by 2030 H

Bengaluru, India’s technology hub Officials noted that the two leaders will review

Strategic Partnership, covering trade, defence, security, education, and innovation,

Party’s annual conference in Liverpool His visit comes

added

Starmer’s visit will focus

Modi’s UK trip to finalise

Vegan vet struck off for removing chip

A vegan vet has been stru ck

Kashiv, a vegan for 37 y e a r s , a d m i t t e d s e c r e t l y removing a dog’s microchip

most diverse parliaments in Britain’s history (For more information, see page 1) Technology cooperation between India and the UK

collaboration in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, biotechnology,

telecoms

During their July

accepted Modi’s invitation to visit India Both leaders emphasised the strength of bilateral ties and expressed confidence that technology

would continue to

the coming years

from stolen dog

Bella’s owner, identified as AH, was recovering from

UK and attending

events In Nottingham, he visit-

changemakers create

young people who need

“The challenges remain serious and aren

getting

impact of youth violence, especially knife crime He also praised Nottingham’s

o o d poverty, racism, and educational inequality

et labrador by removing its microchip

D r A m i r K a s h

i d e d the group after they took five-year-old Bella from her owner and moved her 200

E x t i n c t i o n R e b e l l i o n , h a s p r e v i o u s l y b l o c k a d e d M c D o n a l d ’ s d e p o t s a n d vandalised dairy lorries to push for a plant-based food system

a f t e r b e i n g t o l d i t w a s abused though the pet h a d a c t u a l l y b e e n s t o l e n

Police traced the labrador, taken from Halifax, to his H e r t f o r d s h i r e p r a c t i c e Kashiv pleaded guilty to the offence at Stevenage magist r a t e s ’ c o u r t l a s t y e a r , receiving a community sentence The Royal College of V e t e r i n a r y S u r g e o n s h a s now struck him off for “disgraceful conduct ”

neighbour, Ashley, take the dog for a walk She later claimed Bella ran off after b

work, but the labrador had been stolen AH, who had cared for Bella since she was eight weeks old, told police his life has “not been the same ” since, admitting he has struggled to sleep and fears he may never see her again

Dr Tehseen Khan

GMB presenter reveals threats amid surge in anti-Muslim hate crimes

Good M orning Britain p resenter Ad il Ray has sp oken

o u t a bo u t th e d i s tu r bi ng threats he has faced amid a surge in anti-Muslim hate crimes acro ss the U K Ray, 51, who is Muslim, revealed that growing hostility towards asylum seekers and migrants has spilled over into personal attacks

a

G M B o n F

d

( 5 September), he said he has

remigration” and threats to his safety

o

“I’ve had people DM me

remigration,” he explained “I’ve had threats telling me t

a t c h m y s e l f o n t h e streets ”

R a y s t r e s s e d t h a t t h e hostility is not limited to public figures, noting that p o l i t i c i a n s a n d o r d i n

r y Muslims have also been tar-

s Muslim politicians have had v

them,” he said, adding that he has been directly contacted by members of the public worried about their safety H e s h a r e d t h e e x p e r

told him she was racially

and is now too frightened to

who work here, and several

Muslim, don’t want to go to the mosque anymore, ” he

said, describing the situation as “horrendous

mosques as evidence of the

Islamic Centre was defaced

reported a Union Jack left outside its gates and an air rifle fired through its window

“What strikes me is that no one seems to be talking about it,” he said “These are

Yet there doesn’t seem to be any politician standing up to

Muslims in this country that the nation is behind them It’s been going on for weeks now, and that’s deeply concerning ”

He concluded, “We are seeing a rise in anti-Muslim hate crime ”

Heathrow’s terminal 4 reopens after possible hazardous materials incident

H ea th ro w A ir p o rt h a s reo pened Terminal 4 after it w as evacu ated o n Monday evening d ue to wh at authorities d escribed as a “possible

h a za rd o u s m a ter ia ls i nc i -

d ent ” T h e ai rp o r t co nfirmed the terminal is now safe and ap olo gised for the d isrup tion

I n a p o s t o n X , Heathrow said it was “doing

e v e r y t h i n g w e c a n ” t o e n s u r e f l i g h

scheduled The London Fire

d

and specialist crews had carried out a full assessment of the terminal, which handles b o t h E u r o p e a n a n d l o n ghaul flights

The London Ambulance

S e r v i c e s a i d p a r a m e d i c s treated 21 patients, with one p

l

The exact nature of the incident has not been disclosed

T h e M e t r o p o l i t a n P o l i c e added that specialist officers conducted a search of the area but found no trace of

passengers waiting outside

board indicated flights were continuing to operate

This follows a disrupt i o n i n M a

nearly a day after a fire at a nearby electrical substation cut power, affecting flights w o r l d w i d e a n d s t r a n

thousands of passengers

Primary school head teacher faces sexual assault trial

M aninder Jalaf, head teach er o f Pipp ins Prim ary Scho ol, appeared at East Berksh ire M ag i s tra tes C o u rt o n

A u g u st 1 9 af ter b ei ng ch arged with two cou nts of sexu al assault against a man

T h e 4 8 - y e a r - o l d , f r o m

M e a d f i e l d R o a d , S l o u g h , pleaded not guilty to both

c h a r g e s S l o u g h B o r o u g h

Council confirmed that Jalaf has not been in school since January 2025

A s p o k e s p e r s o n s a i d ,

“The school has been operating under new leadership since the start of the year Mr Jalaf recently appeared in court on a matter not related to the safeguarding of children We cannot comment further on an active c o u r t c a s e P a r e n t s a n d guardians will be informed of the situation ” Jalaf was granted conditional bail and is scheduled to appear next at Reading Crown Court on September

22 His bail conditions proh i b i t h i m f r o m a t t e n d i n g the school except for prearranged appointments

Despite this, he is still listed on the school’s website as headteacher and designated safeguarding lead, with a message from him displayed on the homepage

T h e a l l e g e d a s s a u l t s r e p o r t e d l y t o o k p l a c e i n

Slough on January 1, 2024, and between September 1 and November 1, 2023

Met police officer resigns after misconduct

A Metropoli ta n Police of fi-

c e r r e s i gn e d b e f or e he

c o ul d b e d i s mi s s e d f o r

g r o p i n g a w o ma n a t

He aven ni ghtclub PC Sijanta Thapa, 31, w a s c a u g h t o

woman onto his

police misconduct report

He was charged with sexual assault, but the criminal case was dropped before

reaching trial A

, however, found that Thapa did grab the woman and subsequently lied about the i n c i d e n t , w h i c h o c c u r r e d on January 16 last year The

North London trio jailed for £51k courier fraud

A North L ond on gang im personated police officers to coerce v ulnerable people and pensioners into handing over cash in a scam that netted £51, 000

and Ismail Sarwar, 27,

April and July in a coldcalling operation across Essex, Hertfordshire, and Kent The trio pretended to be detectives investigating fraudulent bank activity, convincing victims they could recover financial losses by assisting with an undercover operation targeting corrupt bank officials

Instead, the scheme exploited victims, who were pressured to withdraw large sums or purchase foreign currency and expensive jewellery for a “courier” – actually a member of the criminal network Once the money or goods were handed over, contact was cut off Investigators also found attempts to steal an additional £30,000

The Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) arrested the group in July, seizing burner phones, cash, and luxury vehicles All three men, who had previous convictions for similar offences, pleaded guilty to fraud by false representation and were sentenced at St

A l b a n s C r o w n C o u r t o n A u g u s t 2 8 H i s H o n o u r J

actions as “cruel and despicable” with complete disregard for their victims

Detective Inspector Mhairi Shurmer of E R S O U ’ s R

warned the public about courier fraud, urging families to talk to vulnerable loved ones She emphasised that police or bank officials would never ask anyone to withdraw cash, buy for-

Investigators are now working to recover the proceeds of the crimes

Badenoch warns UK could face IMF bailout

Kemi Bad enoch said she is “really worried” th e U K c o ul d fa ce a 1 9 7 6- s ty le I M F b ai lo u t Sp eaking to BBC New snigh t, the C onservativ e leader warned th e country m ight h av e to go “ cap in hand” to the IMF unless the g overnm e nt d eli v ers a c le ar p lan fo r ec o no m i c growth

Thapa claimed there was “implied consent,” suggesting the woman had been

The panel concluded this was false “ T h e C C

manner that suggests cons

, adding Thapa fabricated a false account to justify his actions T h e p a n e l s t a t e d h e would have been dismissed h a d h e n

resigned

Badenoch offered to work with Prime Minister Keir Starmer “in the national interest” to cut welfare spending, saying cuts and growth are needed to escape a “doom loop” of rising taxes and unstable public finances Speaking in Parliament, Chancellor Rachel Reeves accused her of “talking down our economy ” and added, “The only thing in Britain that needs a bailout is the Tory party ” The 1976 sterling crisis forced the Labour government under Jim Callaghan to seek a $3 9bn (£2 9bn) IMF loan The 1976 IMF bailout was a landmark event that damaged the Callaghan government’s economic credibility Asked why she fears a repeat, Badenoch said, “A lot of the indicators are pointing in that direction,” citing respected economists Some, mainly on the right, have drawn parallels with the 1976 sterling crisis, though others dismiss it as hyperbole Andrew Sentance, a former Bank of England MPC member, noted “eerie parallels” with Denis Healey’s position but wrote last month that the UK “ may not end up calling in the IMF ”

I N B R I E F

RUSSIA THREATENS TO SEIZE BRITISH PROPERTY

A senior Russian official has threatened to seize more Ukrainian territory and target British property after the UK confirmed it had spent over £1 billion of frozen Russian assets to supply weapons to Ukraine The Ministry of Defence said the funds helped purchase hundreds of thousands of artillery rounds air defence missiles spare parts and support contracts to maintain Ukrainian equipment British Defence Minister John Healey confirmed the military support was funded by the frozen assets Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev warned on Telegram that, since the money cannot be recovered in court, Moscow s only option is to take Ukrainian land and other property located there He also suggested Russia could retaliate against the “illegal seizure” of frozen funds by targeting British assets, including property in Russia

FORMER TORY MINISTER NADINE DORRIES JOINS REFORM UK

Former Conservative minister Nadine Dorries has defected to Reform UK, describing the Tory Party as “dead” and urging members to “think the unthinkable and look to the future ” in comments to the Daily Mail Dorries ex-MP for Mid-Bedfordshire served as Culture Secretary and as a Health Minister under Boris Johnson to whom she was a close ally She joins a growing list of Tory defectors to Reform UK including former Welsh Secretary David Jones and ex-Tory Chairman Sir Jake Berry Dorries defection comes ahead of Reform UK s annual conference in Birmingham Party member Zia Yusuf told BBC Breakfast that Dorries would be an “asset adding, “She has laid into the Tory record and we agree with her ” When asked about a potential cabinet role, Yusuf said any appointment would be up to party leader Nigel Farage

CHANNEL CROSSINGS PASS 30,000

More than 1,000 migrants crossed the Channel on Saturday marking Shabana Mahmood’s first full day as home secretary and pushing total arrivals this year past 30,000 The Home Office reported 1 097 arrivals after nine days without crossings, the second-highest daily total this year, following 1,195 on May 31 Overall crossings of 30,100 are 37% higher than at the same point in 2023 and 8% above 2022, the previous record year Mahmood described the figures as “utterly unacceptable” and pledged to consider all options including the first deportations to France under the new one-in one-out agreement expected later this month Concerns remain that potential instability in the French government and delays to a new maritime law allowing French police to intercept boats could slow returns

LONDON TUBE STRIKES CAUSE MAJOR DISRUPTION

Industrial relations on the London Underground have totally collapsed ” a union leader has warned as strike action by thousands of Tube workers brought most services to a halt The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union s Eddie Dempsey said negotiations with Transport for London (TfL) broke down after the union uncovered alleged plans to close Elizabeth line ticket offices, which TfL denies Further disputes are expected over pay, conditions, and cleaner roles On Tuesday, all Tube lines except the Northern ran a reduced timetable while the Docklands Light Railway was also closed due to a separate RMT strike TfL offered a 3 4% pay rise, describing the union’s 32-hour week demand as “unaffordable ” Claire Mann, TfL COO, expressed disappointment over the strike, while Mayor Sadiq Khan and Downing Street urged both sides back to negotiations

Adil Ray

Ismail Sarwar (left) and Ahsan Naseer (right)

Hamza Ali

Property investors are becoming more corporate and the specialist market is primed for that

AtM a rk et F i na nc ia l

So lutions, we are not tax adv iso rs We are a specialist lend er, and w e will not guid e o ur borrow ers on how they could invest to cu t their tax bills But w ith ev erything we ’ re seeing in the market, it’s clear that p ro p er ty i n v es to rs a nd land lords are taking it up on themselv es to lower their co sts It’s clear to see in the c u r r e n t e c o n o m y t h a t i n v e s t o r s a r e a d a p t i n g

Generally, where taxes or other costs are raised, people will do what they can to avoid them In our market

s p e c

d look at how they’re structured in the face of mounting challenges

One in five landlords

o w n p r o p e r t y t h r o u g h a limited company according to Pegasus Insight Its analysis also found that 7% of landlords have their entire p o r t f o l i o s h e l d w i t h i n a limited company, and the

a v e r a g e p r o p o r t i o n o f a limited company landlord’s portfolio held in this way has more than doubled to 74% in Q2 2025

W h i l e a c o m p l i c a t e d i s s u e , w h i c h s h o u l d b e explored with expert guidance, investing in property as a limited company rather t h a n a n i n d i v i d u a l c a n

r e s u l t i n l o w e r t a x b i l l s And looking ahead, there is

p l e n t y t o i n d i c a t e t h a t p r o p e r t y i n v e s t o r s w i l l want, or need to cut their bills as much as possible

The Autumn Budget is a p p r o a c h i n g a n d w h i l e n o t h i n g h a s b e e n c o n -

firmed so far, we ’ re getting a clear idea of how the government plans to balance t h e b o o k s S o f a r , w e ’ v e heard of potential plans to expand national insurance to include rental income, replacing stamp duty with a new property tax on homes sold for over £500,000, and expand capital gains tax to effect homes worth £1 5m or more

We will have to wait and see just how many of t h e s e p r o p o s a l s c o m e t o f r u i

that landlords and property investors will want to get

incorporate to try and limit the damage

What’s unclear though is if the wider market is ready for this There may be a wave of limited comp

Talpade crafting the Ganesh idol and Samir Apte the larger idol This year ’ s highlight was the Kailash Parvat–themed

Celebrating India’s Iron Man

final months of 2025, yet there may be relatively few

can actually accommodate this Buy-to-let mortgages for limited companies may come with strict lending criteria on the high street, with many banks unlikely to offer them at all

As a result, the specialist lending industry is set to be very busy post Autumn

complicated real estate set ups, and unique corporate structures than their mainstream counterparts

A

, we ’ re happy to hear from limited company borrowe

loans and BTL mortgages

What’s more, we can also work with LLPs, share purchase agreements, trusts, and more

O u r c o l l e c t i v e t a x affairs will become clearer over the next few months

As property investors adapt to their new realities, we will be there to offer them a way forward

work worthwhile,” said volunteer Jailesh Deshpande

l

Khandke emphasised the fes-

“Ganeshotsav at MML is not just for Maharashtrians but for the wider Indian diaspora, with one Pooja and Arti dedicated to members from other states

bhajans, bhaav geet, dramas, hasya kavita, and a lecture by t

Foundation promoting NHS organ donation

The Visarjan finale was d

Bappa taken to the Thames connects us to our roots in Maharashtra even while in London,” said devotee Anil K

o f “Pudchya Varshi Lavkar Ya” echoed, Maharashtra Mandal London reaffirmed its commitment to preserving this rich legacy of faith, culture, and community

As pa rt of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’ s 150th bi rth an niversary ce leb rations, a grand Sardarkatha will b e held at the Na vn at Centre, Ha yes, London, on 20–21 September 2 025 O rgan ised by Sardardham, Ahmedab ad, a nd the N ati on al Coun cil of G uj arati Organi sations ( NCG O-U K) , the event ce leb rates In dia’s Iron Ma n with the s upport of the UK’ s In dian di aspora Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the Iron Man of India, was a towering leader and visionary statesman A key figure in India’s freedom struggle, he later served as the country’s first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister, uniting over 500 princely states into the Indian Union and laying the foundation for a stable, democratic nation

His life embodied integrity, resilience, and leadership, inspiring generations with his commitment to national unity, pragmatic governance, and service to the people, a reminder that courage and vision can forge a strong, collective

identity

The idea to host the Sardarkatha in London emerged during a UK visit in May 2025 by Ganpat Dhameliya, Manish Kapadia, and Himanshu Lakkad They met Councillor Anjana Patel, Mayor of Harrow, along with NCGO office bearers, and after discussions and shared enthusiasm, it was decided to hold the event in London as part of global celebrations honouring Sardar Patel’s legacy

The Sardarkatha will be narrated by Shailesh Sagpariya (Ex Class-1 Officer, India), whose compelling storytelling

will bring Sardar Patel’s life and values to the fore, leaving audiences deeply moved by his contributions to India’s unity and progress

Distinguished dignitaries from India will attend, making the event a landmark for the UK Indian diaspora The Sardarkatha honours Sardar Patel’s legacy, celebrating his vision of unity and the enduring bond between India and its global community, while inviting all to reflect on the values that continue to shape modern India For more information, see page 11

Paresh Raja, CEO Market Financial Solutions

Lord Ganesh idol adorned in Kailash Parvat theme

Indian diaspora present at the Visarjan

Mahavir Foundation celebrates young tapsvis’ dedication

D u ri n g P a ry us h a n, se v e ral

y o u ng s te rs f ro m M a h av ir

F o und ati o n u nd ertoo k th e sp iritu al d iscipline of Up vas, w ith many completing eight d ays or m ore

T h e i r d e d i c a t i o n a n d

d e t e r m i n a t i o n w e r e c e l e -

brated at an Anumodna program held at the Clay Oven small hall, where the young tapsvis shared their inspirations and experiences

A rya Shah (16 years old)

Preston Katha raises £200k for tribal girls education

Kokila Patel

M oksh Shah (13) chose to do Athai tap (eight day fasting ritual) to prove to himself

t h a t h e c o u l d c o n t r o l h i s desire for food Observing his family, friends, and UK Jain Sangh members successfully complete fasts motivated him to follow their example

S wara Gandhi (14) undertook Athai to test her selfcontrol and willpower She credited the support of her f r i e n d s , w h o a c c

d her throughout the journey,

completed 16 days of Upvas, i n s p i r e d b y h i s f a m i l y i n India who reminded him of his Jain roots He said that living in England, it is easy to lose touch with one ’ s origins, but undertaking such a spiritual journey reconnects him with his heritage and sacred places like Palitana and the home of where our religion comes from

explained that ‘Upa’ means near, and ‘ vasa ’ means to stay

divine ” Inspired by his family, friends, and community, he was determined to com-

plete not just one, but eight f

for the strength and blessings that guided him Dhylan Shah (15) had pre-

viously attempted fasting but

This year, encouraged by his friends and determined to test his willpower, he suc-

Pachakhan (A voluntary vow t

(shravaks and shravikas) to restrict consumption, limit a c t i v i t i e s , o r f o l l o w d

plines that foster spiritual g

Bhagwan and Guruji, and the support of loved ones

FPA honours Mayor Anjana Patel with special dinner

P atidar House in Wembley

h osted a sp ecial d inner by

t h e F ed e rat io n o f P a ti d ar

A ssociations (FPA ) to honour

C llr Anjana Patel, th e new ly appo inted M ayor of Harrow

T he event broug ht together

F P A co m m it tee m em ber s,

t ru s tee s, a nd g u e st s i n a

p roud and celebrato ry g athering

F P A P r e s i d e n t J a g d i s h

Patel welcomed guests with an update on Patidar House’s

a c t i

P r e s i d e n

D i n e s h P a t e l opened the evening by celebrating Cllr Anjana Patel’s

a p p o i n t m e n t a s M a y o

o f Harrow Guests praised her humility and long-standing

d e d i c a t i o n t o c o m m u n i t y service, calling her journey an inspiration to all A s L e a d M

Anjana Patel launched the g

youth, and ethnic minorities to enter local politics

warm applause as guests celebrated both Mayor Anjana Patel’s appointment and the community spirit she repres

Associations, trustees, and guests for their support, sayi

shared by the entire community She expressed gratitude for the generous donations to her chosen charit i e s , T h e S a m a r i t a n s a n d VIA, whose work changes lives daily A vote of thanks was delivered by Secretary Ashwin Patel, with special a p p r e c i a t i o n t o T r e a s u r e r Vinod Patel for approving the funding that made the celebration possible Cllr Anjana

Government of Maharashtra, GIBC sign MoU to boost global business ties

T he Gov ernment

o f M a h ara sh t ra a nd th e G lo b al

I n d i a B u si n es s C o rri d o r ( G I BC )

h a v e s ig ned a strategic MoU to

b o o s t fo r ei g n i n v es tm e nt a nd g lo bal trad e partnerships w ith investors from the UK, E U, and USA

Signed in the presence of C h i e f M i n i s t e r D e v e n d r a F a d n a v i s , t h e a g r e

aims to engage international m

manufacturing, technology,

care, and education

Chief Minister Devendra

F a d n a v i s w e l c o m e d t h e MoU, saying, “Maharashtra remains one of India’s top i n v e s t m e n t d e s t i n a t i o n s Partnerships like this with GIBC foster innovation, jobs, and global collaboration ”

Officials signing the MoU

Kaustubh Dhavse, Chief

(

s & Strategy) to the CM, added, “ W i t

Trade Agreement in place,

cross-border business collaboration and investment in Maharashtra easier, and the MoU with GIBC strengthens that bridge ” The signing was supported by senior officials, including Chief Secretary Rajesh K

and Principal Secretary Smt Ashwini Bhide

Trustees and saw generous pledges for the Mayor’s cho-

Samaritans and VIA

The evening ended with

Upcoming events

1) Action for Harmony will host the Second National Harmony Conference on Saturday, 13th September 2025, at Hertswood Academy, Borehamwood (10am–4pm) Following the success of “In Conversation with the British Hindus” at the Houses of Parliament, which brought together over 50 community leaders and 30 P

strengthen unity and purpose within the British Hindu community The event will unite Hindu leaders, foster dialogue with policymakers, showcase British Hindus’ contributions, and address key issues of identity, representation, and inclusion

2) The Bhavan presents Manhar Seth in his popular pomedy show, “Main Shayar Toh Nahi”, on Sunday, 14th September 2025 at 7:00pm Tickets are available for £30, £35, and £45 (booking fee applies) The performance blends witty poetry, comedy, and crowd interaction, featuring the same set that entertained audiences during his 2024 London show

3) Punashcha School of Rabindra Sangeet presents a benefit concert for The Bhavan, “Indian Seasons – Through

‘Chandalika’, on Saturday, 20th September at 6:00pm Tickets are £15, £20, and £25 The two-part concert opens with a musical and dance journey through India’s seasons and festivals, featuring Tagore’s songs The second half presents ‘Chandalika’, Tagore’s dancedrama exploring caste, identity, and spiritual awakening through a young girl’s quest for self-worth and liberation

The Gujarat Hindu Society in Preston ho sted a weeklong Bhagwat Katha by P ujya Bh aishri Ramesh bh ai Oza in the temple hall, which concl u d ed g ra c efu l ly o n 2 9t h

Aug ust

In this small Lancashire town, home to about 600

G

devotees displayed remarka

and love for their culture

T

Pujya Bhaishri’s mission to build a girls’ hostel in the S

h Gujarat’s Dang district, providing education and accommodation for tribal daughters

in Britain

In 1978, CB Patel attended the consecration of the idols of Maa Jagdamba and the Shiv Parivar, and he was a l s o p r e s e n t i n 1 9 8 0 – 8 1 when Prince Charles visited the temple He attended the 15th anniversary (Patotsav) in 1985 as well With regular c

The katha, held in a hall with space for 1,000 devotees, was dedicated to this noble cause, with devotees

c o n t r i b u t i n g g e n e r o u s l y

t h r o u g h o u t t h e w e e k

P r e s i d e n t D a s h r a t h N a y e e and Vice President Ishwer Tailor confirmed that, after expenses, over £200,000 was raised for Pujya Bhaishri’s

S a p u t a r a p r o j e c t M a r k i n g the Gujarat Hindu Society’s Golden Jubilee, a special souvenir also reflected on its l o n g - s t a n d i n g a s s o c i a t i o n with Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar since the temple’s construction in 1975

In 1975, when the first idols of Shri Radha-Krishna

w e r e c o n s e c r a t e d , K u s u m

S h a h a n d h e r a s s o c i a t e s attended the ceremony, and a small souvenir was published by Gujarat Samachar

A f t e r C B P a t e l , P u b l i s h e r / E d i t o r o f A s i a n Voice and Gujarat Samachar, acquired the paper, he visite d t h e P r e s t o n t e m p l e i n 1976, giving it special coverage with the words, “Come a n d v i s i t V r i n d a v a n d h a m near Blackpool ” The article made the temple widely popular, and by 1977–78, 15–20 coaches of devotees visited w e e k l y H a v i n g l e f t h i s hometown Bhadran in India, CB Patel went on to embrace Preston as his second home

Samachar, the temple’s popu l a r i t y g r e w r a p i d l y , s o o n attracting up to 20 coaches of devotees daily, all warmly

1990 and 1992, the Gujarat

opened, helping many young people find employment In 1995, plans for a new centre

submitted

project proposal, with a consultant preparing a business plan, while Gujarat Samachar played a key role throughout In 1997, the project was approved, and the Bhoomi Pujan was performed with

Sachchidanand, and Swami

tion contract was awarded to John Turners in 1998, with work beginning in April that year By 1999, the project was

Dashrathbhai Nayi The new Gujarat Hindu Society centre in Preston was formally inaugurated on 1st January 2000, with CB Patel present on this historic occasion

Congratulations to Nitya on his outstanding GCSE results!

His hard work, dedication, and perseverance have truly paid off Wishing him continued success as she embarks on the next exciting chapter of her journey

Arya Shah

Moksh Shah

Swara Gandhi

Mithil shah

Dhylan Shah

Pujya Bhaishri Rameshbhai Oza

Suresh Durlabhbhai Patel and Shakuben Sureshbhai Patel, along with their family, participated in the Pothi Yatra as the main hosts of the Bhagwat Katha

Kareena Kapoor Khan unveils

Malabar Gold flagships in UK

Mala bar Gold & Di amonds, the w orld’s 5th larg est jew elle ry re taile r w ith ov er 40 0 showrooms in 13 countries, has ex panded in the UK wi th tw o ne w f lagship stores i n Birmingham a nd Southa ll Bolly wood actress and br and ambassador Kare ena Ka poor Kha n i naug urated the show rooms, mark ing

for their trust and support ”

Abdul Salam K P, Vice Chairman of Malabar Group, said: “Our uncompromising approach towards transparent and responsible sourcing underlines every showroom we open across the international markets From sourcing

Manchester and London, as well as expansions into Ireland and France ”

The new showrooms are designed as luxury destinations, offering over 30,000 designs in 18K and 22K gold, diamonds, and precious gems across 25+ exclusive collections Customers can access customised jewellery services and

a key milestone in the brand ’ s internati onal grow th

The launch was attended by M P Ahammad, Chairman of Malabar Group; Abdul Salam K P, Vice Chairman; Shamlal Ahamed, MD of International Operations; Mohammed Ziad, Branch Head; along with other directors, senior management team members, community leaders, valued customers, and well-wishers

Commenting on the launch, M P Ahammad, Chairman of Malabar Group, said: “The UK is a key part of our global growth, and we are thrilled to mark this milestone with our flagship showrooms in Birmingham and Southall With four UK outlets and more planned, these openings strengthen our presence and reinforce our mission to be a preferred global jewellery retailer I thank our customers, shareholders, and team

conflict-free, certified diamonds and responsibly mined gold to ensuring ethical labour practices, Malabar Gold & Diamonds continues to set standards in the global jewellery sector The UK marks the beginning of our consistent growth strategy across Europe, with further launches planned in key cities across the continent ”

Shamlal Ahamed, MD – International Operations, Malabar Gold & Diamonds, said: “The UK, with its vibrant South Asian community and global influence in arts, fashion, and business, is key to our growth The new Birmingham and Southall showrooms bring us closer to our customers, offering easier access to our jewellery and trusted services The success of the launch, with Kareena Kapoor Khan and large crowds, reflects the brand’s strong reputation in the UK Looking ahead, we plan additional showrooms in

First Shree Banke Bihari temple in UK

Th e first Shree Banke Bihari temple outsid e India is set to be built in the UK The launch o f Sh ree Kunj Bih ari T em ple of Vrindavan (U K) took place on 23 rd Aug ust 2025 in Harrow, marking the start of w ork to create a g rand hom e for Sh ree Kunj Bihari in the U K

several dignitaries, including the W

Councillor Anjana Patel, and Dr

Shalini Bhargava, founder of the initiative, described the project as

Dharma in the UK, expected to promote

LEGO Ram Mandir built by 9-year-old

Navmi, was completed in September 2025 by 9-year-old Anay Kotecha from Solihull, UK, after five months of dedicated work

The service will

10:00 AM and conclude by 11:00 AM, with Ravi Sharma conducting the ceremony The club will also be hosting multiple events on the same day, including an allday cricket match by the UK Indian Ladies Cricket Team and a children’s hockey day, with the first team playing at 2:00 PM Stewards will be available to guide attendees with parking arrangements Lord Swraj Paul

Thousands of people have already recovered their compensation and £millions more could be due. It’s possible that you too could be

exclusive bridal designs

At 5,700+ sq ft, the Birmingham showroom is Malabar Gold & Diamonds’ largest UK outlet With the new openings, Malabar Gold & Diamonds now has four showrooms in the UK, located in Birmingham, Leicester, Southall, and Green Street, London

Since 1993, Malabar Group has dedicated 5% of net profits to ESG initiatives, focusing on health, hunger, housing, education, women ’ s empowerment, and the environment Its Hunger Free World programme serves 70,000+ meals daily across 170 locations, including three schools in Zambia In India, 716 micro learning centres educate 32,000+ underprivileged children, while 115,000 scholarships support female students The group also runs “Grandma Home” for destitute women, ensuring its global success benefits local communities

Kareena Kapoor Khan at the launch of Malabar Gold & Diamonds flagship store in Birmingham with company directors and team members

Grand launch of Southall showroom with Kareena Kapoor Khan and Malabar executives

Anay Kotecha

international tourism and allow visitors to experience the "Leelas" of Shree Kunj Bihari

Dignitaries attending the event

9/11 through Canadian eyes

Canada played a significant role during the 9/11 attacks It launched Operation Yellow Ribbon, diverting over 200 American flights to Canadian airports, providing shelter, food, and comfort to thousands of stranded passengers Later, Canada contributed troops, naval, and air forces to the military campaign against terrorism in Afghanistan under Operation Apollo Domestically, the government

i

Terrorism Act to protect national security

Immediately following the attacks, Canada suspended all civilian air traffic, rerouting approximately 226 flights originally bound for the U S to various Canadian airports In small towns like Gander, Newfoundland, local residents and emergency services provided food, water, and shelter for roughly 7,000 stranded passengers Demonstrating remarkable compassion, many residents even opened their homes to strangers, showcasing the generosity and hospitality that became emblematic of Canada’s response

The story of Gander inspired the musical Come From Away, consistently ranked among the best musicals for its heartwarming portrayal of kindness and resilience during the 9/11 attacks The show has earned numerous awards, including a Tony for Best Direction and multiple Olivier Awards for Best New Musical Its success is attributed to the talented Canadian creators, innovative staging with cast members playing multiple roles, and universal themes of community and empathy

We were fortunate to watch Come From Away live at the Royal Alexandra Theatre in Toronto, gifted by our daughters, their spouses, and grandchildren for our 50th wedding anniversary, a memory we will cherish forever

Finally, I have a vivid personal memory of the World Trade Centre In 1972, while on a student/training visa in the U S , I lived in Hoboken, New Jersey, commuting daily by subway to New York and walking past the WTC construction site to 44 Wall Street to work Seeing the towers rise was remarkable, and 24 years ago, I watched in disbelief on Canadian TV as they were destroyed by terrorists, a moment forever etched in my memory

Sure sh a nd Bh avn a Pat el

Grandparents akin to angels

Grandparents’ Day which was observed on September 8, celebrates the bond between grandparents and grandchildren

Grandparents not only love us more than our parents but also teach us some of life’s most important lessons They play an integral role in shaping our lives, guiding us when we are lost, standing by us in adversity, consoling us in emotional moments, helping us in need, and protecting us in trouble We must always cherish their love and warmth, as no one can replace them Through their prayers and good wishes, we succeed in life and progress toward our goals

Grandparents are like angels in disguise They silently watch over us and pray for us They provide a safe space we can always count on They help in the learning and growth of their children and grandchildren, while also fostering good habits and moral values They are like vitamins for a child’s development They shaped our parents into who they are, and in turn, our parents love and care for us just as they were cared for by their parents

My grandparents have shown me what it means to live a life of fun, kindness, and generosity Grandparents are the eldest and most respected members of the family They often take responsibility for the entire household It is a blessing to have them with us Their wisdom helps guide us through life’s challenges Grandparents are truly essential to a complete and loving family Jub el D'Cruz

Mental health overdiagnosis in young people ‘costs £16bn

a year’

Overdiag no sis of mental health conditions among children and young peo ple is overw helming welfare and education systems, costing more than £1 6 billion annually, accord ing to a report by the Policy Exch ange think tank

The report argues that families are often incentivised to seek diagnoses to secure support, placing pressure on special educational needs (Send), mental health, and welfare services It recommends scrapping the current Send system and removing the statutory status of education, health and care plans (EHCPs), which have grown by 140 per cent in the past decade to more than 570,000, putting councils under severe financial strain

Sir Jeremy Hunt, the former health secretary, backed the report, warning of “ an alarming escalation” in diagnoses of mental ill-health and neurodevelopmental conditions He said: “Our laudable desire to ensure young people are wellsupported is at times manifesting in excessive impulses to medicalise and diagnose the routine, in a manner that can undercut grit and resilience ” Between 2021 and 2024, the number of children accessing NHS mental health services rose by 48 per cent, while one in five now have Send The report also warned that relaxed diagnostic criteria risked confusing normal teenage behaviour with serious illness

Lammy tells MPs Israel’s Gaza assault is not genocide

Britai n do es not co nsi der Israel’ s actions in Gaza to

Lammy has told MPs, markin

government mes saging

P

U K maintained that determining genocide was a matter for the courts, not governments In a letter to Sarah

Foreign Office assessment c

intent required under the G e n o c i d e C

destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group

C

tioned how the UK’s policy of supplying parts for F-35

international duty to pre-

Israel last September over potential violations of intern

exempted components for U S - p r o d u c e d F

3 5 j e t s a s part of NATO defence com-

mitments

Lammy stressed that the UK is not an international court and cannot arbitrate b

Starmer is navigating diplomacy, planning to recognise the state of Palestine this month unless Israel meets strict conditions The UK government will host both P a l e s

President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli President Isaac Herzog S e p a r a t e l y ,

Colman and Mark Ruffalo, signed a pledge refusing to work with Israeli film institutions they say are implic

Two GP surgeries close every week

Two GP surgeries are clo sing every week, leaving family doctors to care for h und red s m o re p a ti en ts a nd forcing many to travel further for m ed ical

20 18, according to the Ro yal College of GPs (RCGP)

Medical leaders are call-

requires more fundamental reforms, including “ supersurgeries” offering a wider range of treatments Health Secretary Wes Streeting has emphasised that better local care is central to his vision for fixing the NHS

A ten-year reform plan, published over the summer, p

neighbourhood health centres to bring services out of

family doctor” and reduce

appointments

N e w R C G P

l y s i s shows that one in seven GP practices has closed since 2018 There are now 6,229 active practices in England, down 14% from seven years

while GP numbers have fallen by more than 600 This means each GP now cares

patients, up from 2,034 in

Birth day surpris e ba sh f or Dixie P at el

a m i l a

H a w t h o r n e , R C G P c h a i r , said closures disrupt continuous care and force patients to travel further, potentially d i s c o u r a g i n g t h e m f r o m seeking treatment Caroline Abrahams of Age UK highlighted the impact on older people with multiple health conditions

Hawthorne stressed that doctors do not want surgeries to close, but years of u n m a n a g e a b l e w o r k l o a d s , chronic underfunding, and p o o r w o r k f o r c e p l a n n i n g have contributed to the cris i s S t r e e t i n g ’ s p r o p o s e d “ m i x e d e c o n o m y ” m o d e l , which would see GPs working with other health prof e s s i o n a l s a c r o s s l a r g e r areas, has been criticised by T o r y p o l i c y c h i e f N e i l O’Brien for lacking clarity and focus on primary care

A Department of Health

s p o k e s p e r s o n s a i d G P s remain central to the teny e a r h e a l t h p l a n , n o t i n g efforts to recruit over 2,000 extra GPs in the past year

Mr Rok, popularly known as “Indian Elvis,” hosted a spectacular birthday surprise for his partner Dixie Patel at the popular restaurant Bombay Central in Harrow on 31st August Dixie described the celebration as completely “mind-blowing ” Guests enjoyed delicious food, drinks, and live music that kept the atmosphere lively throughout the night It was truly a memorable evening

NHS warns against using chatbots for mental health advice

The NHS has cautioned yo u ng p e o p le a g ai ns t relying on C hatGP T and o th er A I c h at bo t s fo r m en tal h eal th s u p p o rt, w arn i ng th e y ca n g i v e “harmful and d angero us ” ad vice Millions are using artificial intelligence for co u n se ll in g and l i fe coachi ng , often seeking coping strategies for anxiety and depression

N H S E n g l a n d ’ s n a t i o n a l m e n t a l h e a l t h director, Claire Murdoch, s a i d A I t h e r a p y p o s e s serious risks because it c a n n o t i n t e r v e n e i n crises or read vital cues

s u c h a s b o d y l a n g u a g e “ W h i l e u s e f u l f o r h o l i d a y plans or film suggestions, p l a t f o r m s l i k e C h a t G P T should never replace professional mental health advice or therapy,” she said

O n e c o n c e r n i s t h a t c h a t b o t s a r e d e s i g n e d t o keep users engaged, often validating harmful thoughts r a t h e r t h a n c h a l l e n g i n g them Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, acknowledged that people use the technology in “ s e l f - d e s t r u c t i v e w a y s , ” stressing AI should not reinforce delusions in vulnerable users

A YouGov survey found that 31% of 18 to 24-yearo l d

scussing mental health concerns with AI, but experts warn that replacing human

loneliness and isolation The NHS uses regulated digital tools, such as Beating

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should

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The views, thoughts and opinions expressed by our readers, letter writers and columnists are solely their own They do not reflect the views or policies of our publication. While we encourage open dialogue and diversity of opinion, Asian Voice / Gujarat Samachar is not responsible for the views expressed.

Rok and Dixie Patel

David Lammy

Prof Kamila Hawthorne

K A P I L’S K H I C H A D I

The End of Starmer?

The ‘hon ourable’ Angela Rayner, the selfappoi nted queen of the Labour left was for ce d i nt o a di sh onour ab le d i sc ha rge when evidence surfaced s howing that s he had evaded paying tax in a real estate deal

When it became evident that tax had been avoided, she quickly turned the story to blame her ‘tax advisers’ who she c laim ed had given her the said advic e No sooner had this story s tarted doing the rounds the inevitab le happened, the said tax advisers came out with their own position s tatement In effect they made it clear that at no point did they ever give any suc h tax advic e They even stated that everythin g they did was based totally on the i nformati on provided by their client – namely Rayner

That was the end of Queen Rayner I am sure even her ‘loyal’ supporter, the Prime Minister, must have said enough is enough The media narrative was totally out of control She had no choice but to resign not just as the deputy PM, but also as the deputy leader of the Labour Party

Her exit with full dishonour was now complete

This pushed the Prime Minister to conduct a wholesale cabinet reshuffle

Frankly he had no choice because literally every front bencher was failing to deliver

The only problem he faced was that he does not have that instinct of reading people, of reading the public or knowing who to select based on their competence His hands are tied since many of those he would wish to have around him are not exactly competent Their only ability is to conduct protest politics, running a government is way beyond their capacity

Looking at the changes he has made, one is left wondering if he has not merely jumped out of the frying pan straight into the fire

Th e f ol l ow i n g a re s om e o f t he n ew appoi ntees:

Da vid La mmy : Was Foreign Secretary, now Justice Secretary and Deputy PM

Steve R eed: Was Environment Secretary, now Housing, Communities and Local Government Secretary

Shabana Mahmood:Was Justice Secretary, now Home Secretary

Yvette Cooper: Was Home Secretary, now Foreign Secretary

Sir Alan Campb ell: Was Chief Whip, now Leader of the Commons

Interestingly, Rachel Reeves stays in her post Is this the prime minister showing confidence in his chancellor? Or maybe he needs someone to take the blame when the economy tanks, as it will Another interesting appointment is of course Shabana Mahmood as our Home Secretary I say interesting because how ironic that the person who goes on protest marches is now the HS who must enforce the law against miscreants on such march-

es Ironic also because she signed an EDM in 2013 that demanded that crimes under the made-up definition of Islamophobia be recorded as such by the police (do note that so far there is NO agreed definition of Islamophobia – yet she was signing an EDM demanding it!) She is of Pakistani

declared her position to align with that of Pakistan in respect of Kashmir Indeed,

Kashmir’ This is a clear declaration of her anti-India credentials In 2019 she even

against the abrogation of Article 370, calling it 'a betrayal of the people of Kashmir'

Yet another interesting appointment is that of Steve Reed who is now the

Government Secretary It’s interesting because in July of 2021, he wrote a letter to leaders of Labour Councils urging that

Islamophobia In his new role he is now in charge of the consultation process currently taking place on Islamophobia The way the definition is currently formulated would almost certainly put Sikhs behind

Islamic invaders tortured and killed the Gurus and their families It would put

behind bars for stating the truth that Islam was spread by the sword

You will not be too surprised to learn that many Labour MPs have already given their full support towards this corrupt definition of Islamophobia Is it any wonder that Labour had for so long orchestrated a campaign to stop any inquiry into t h e P a k i s t

This week Jess Phillips gave the game away when she said, “I would be lying if I said that over the years, I have not met girls who talked to me about how police were part of the perpetration, not just the cover-up ” To put this in some context, she is the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls The woman in charge of protecting vulnerable women turned a blind eye to white girls being raped and abused by men of Pakistani heritage and it seems, some cops

In conclusion, we now have yet another reset by Starmer in his attempt to save face with the electorate All he has done is re-group his team with new titles, but the basic underlying rot remains In the week when Nigel Farage conquered the national narrative at the Reform Party conference, is it any wonder that they are flying so high in the polls

The end of Starmer is nigh And with that, that of Labour as a government What comes next, well folks that will be interesting

Brent’s only Muslim primary school secures new home

Brent C ouncil has approved p lans to secure th e future of Islam ia Primary School ( IPS)

b y r elo c at in g i t to t h e

G w en net h Ri c ku s s i te o n B re ntf i el d R o ad b y S eptem ber 20 27

IPS, Brent’s only Muslim

v o l u n t a

y

a i d e d p

m

r y school, must leave its current Salusbury Road site by August 2027 after receiving

a n e v i c t i o n n o t i c e

Consultations with parents, staff, and residents showed strong support for the move, c

location will provide modern facilities, more outdoor space, and better support for children with special educational needs

T h e G w e n n e t h R i c k u s site will become available in 2027 following the phased closure of Leopold Primary S c h o o l ’ s p r o v i s i o n t h e r e , due to falling pupil num-

b e r s B r e n t C o u n c i l h a s agreed to relocate Islamia Primary School (IPS) to the

The Duchess of Kent dies at 92

B u ck in g h am P a la ce h as announced with “ deep sorrow ” th at th e Duc hess of Kent has d ied at 92

“passed away peacefully last night at Kensington Palace, s

, with flags lowered to halfmast

The Prince and Princess of Wales called her a “muchmissed” family member who “worked tirelessly to help o

Katharine, the oldest royal,

tribute to the Duchess of

Kent’s lifelong charity work, love of music, and empathy

Harry

s i

securing the future of the

school

C

C

Children, Young People and Schools, said:

“This move safeguards IPS, makes the best use of school buildings that would otherwise stand empty, and ensures children finally have the safe, high-quality environment they deserve ”

drinks for under-16s

adverse health outcomes, including rapid heart rates, disrupted sleep, headaches, s

n d s like Red Bull, Monster, and Rockstar frequently criticised for their effects on y

Health officials argue that r e s t r i c t i n g a c c e s s c o u l d prevent obesity in up to 40,000 children and gene r a t e s i g n i f i c a n t p u b l i c health savings While major supermark e t s h a v e v o l u n t a r i l y

refused to sell such drinks t o m

2 0 1 8 , smaller retailers continue to do so, prompting calls f

e g u l a

o n across all outlets The government has initiated a 12w e e k c o n s u l t a t i o n o p e n until 26 November 2025 to gather input from educators, health experts, retailers, and the general public before finalising the policy

Kapil Dudakia

David Lam my has been elevated to

WHERE ARE THE ‘HINDU VOICES’?

delivering Labour’s flagship pledge of 1 5 million new homes by 2029, while Liz Kendall shifts from Work a n d P

Further details of the deputy leadership election are expected soon, a contest likely to expose divisions in Labour’s ranks and potentially become a lightning rod for discontent over Starmer’s leadership Tow ards greater British Asian representation?

T

drawn significant attention for its diversity milestones Mahmood’s e

t h e H o m e O f f i c e cements her status as one of the h i g h e s t - r a n k i n g e t h n i c m i n o r i t y politicians in British history

Alongside her, S atvir Kaur MP

j o i n s t h e C a b i n e t O f f i c e a s Parliamentary Secretary, Kanishka

N ara ya n M P e n t e r s t h e

D e p a r t m e n t f o r S c i e n c e , Innovation and Technology, and Dr Zu bir A hmed M P joins Health and Social Care Seema Malho tra

m o v e s t o h e r n e w r o l e a s a Parliamentary Undersecretary at the Foreign, Commonwealth and

D e v e l o p m e n t O f f i c e , w h i l e L is a Nand y, Culture Secretary and the first person of Indian descent to serve in a Labour cabinet, remains a key figure

While a more diverse cabinet will help the Prime Minister regain the support of nearly 66 Labour

M P s f r o m t h e e t h n i c m i n o r i t y communities, there is criticism for not including more MPs from the

Indian community, as he reshuffled his new Cabinet There are around 43 Labour MPs of South Asian heritage Out of which 26 are of Indian origin But other than Nandy, who is half Indian, no one has held the key position of a State Secretary How is it fair that out of 26 chose representatives from the community, only one has a senior position and hardly three have a place in the cabinet?

Also, given that we consider representation both in terms of ethnicity and faith, while around 25 Muslim MPs were elected in 2 0 2 4 , o n l y 1 2 S i k h M P s a n d 9 Hindu MPs were elected at the same time This disproportionate representation begs the question: why has a section of community that played such a significant role in Britain’s post-war story, and has been politically active for decades, failed to secure greater visibility in the Labour government and, more importantly, in positions of power?

against on the basis of race, religion, caste, gender, or ethnicity The goal is to build a fair and equal country for everyone, and this is a step in that direction “ H

representation of Hindus within the Labour Party We are committed to increasing Hindu participat

councillors, MPs, or on key party bodies Labour is an open and welcoming party for all communities, including ours ”

Lo rd Krish Raval OBE, leading

mented, “After sealing the historic Free Trade Agreement with India, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has ensured that British Indian talent

achievements and is confident they will serve the country with distinc-

ing class, Labour today appears caught between its historic values and the pragmatism demanded by governing in a globalised, complex Britain

Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership has been defined less by bold ideological vision and more by careful positioning His government has p r i d e d

, steadiness, and avoidance of the

under Jeremy Corbyn Yet in this cautious approach, many voters

Labour has blurred into technocracy rather than inspiration

The signing of the much-heralded Free Trade Agreement with India was meant to be a flagship achievement of Starmer’s first year in office, signalling a reset in UKIndia relations But even here, the perception lingers that the deal is f a r m o r e b e n

a l t o B r i t a

tion: what does Labour’s economic and foreign policy vision mean for them, beyond trade figures?

The reshuffle, however, may yet prove to be a turning point By elevating figures such as Shabana

M

Secretary, and David Lammy, the U

Minister, Starmer has projected an image of a government that looks

Representation, though not a substitute for policy, does matter, it

signals who gets to be part of the story of Britain

The challenge for Starmer is t

towards articulating what Labour really stands for in 2025: not just competence, but vision Second, to r e p a i r

Apart from that, MPs who have been ardent representatives of the community like Gareth Thomas, B a r r y G a r d i n e r a n d

quence

M P

Virendra Sharma are missing from the government and it isn’t clear why these seasoned politicians are not being considered for different representative roles, even if not the cabinet

Dr N eer aj P a ti l, h e a d i n g Labour for Hindus commented on this reshuffle and steps being taken by the outfit to ensure stronger

r e p r e s e n t a t i o n a n d e n g a g e m e n t with the Hindu community and the wider Indian diaspora within the party He said, “We must take a moment to celebrate the fact that a M u s

i m w o m

e e n appointed Home Secretary, just as we previously had Priti Patel, a Hindu woman, in the same role

F

leader; these examples show real progress for diversity and racial equality in Britain

“As Hindus for Labour, we welcome this development It is a pos-

Britain is moving towards greater inclusivity In the long run, what we want to see is a Great Britain w

“It is vital that the very best people, irrespective of background, are called to serve Labour Indians will continue to champion excellence across the board including, of

h Indian communities so that members can play their rightful role as leaders in the public square

“In that spirit, we warmly con-

Shabana Mahmood on their

Secretary ”

Providing a perspective from t

C ouncil UK said, “While there is currently no major Hindu representation in the higher level in the

Malhotra serving as a minister in the Foreign Office Our wider challenge is also that there are still relatively few Hindu MPs in parliament and it would be encouraging to see representation at the cabinet level in the future ” L abour’s identity questio n

For years now, critics and even s u p p o r

have voiced a common refrain: no

stands for anymore Once firmly rooted in the politics of the work-

n ’ s exporters and service industries than to India, which remains sceptical of the wider gains For many in the Indian diaspora, it does not answer a more fundamental ques-

a t i o n s h i p s with communities, like the Indian diaspora, who feel both pride in Labour’s history and frustration at their present marginalisation

Why did Angela Rayner resign?

Ra yne r ’ s res i g n ati o n fo l lo w ed th e c on c lu s io n o f an inquiry by th e prime m i ni s ter ’ s eth ic s ad v is e r, w h i c h fo u n d s h e h ad breached the ministerial co de by failing to p a y su f fi c i ent stamp d uty on her

Ho v e p ro p e rty In her resig nation letter, she adm itted sh e had “not met th e highest stand ards” expected o f a m i ni ster, a d di ng th at the strain on h er fam ily had become “unbearable ” While stressing i t was never her intention to underpay tax, she said she took “full responsibility for th is erro r ” and regretted no t seeking sp ecialis t ad vice

Commons, is widely expected to throw her hat into the ring in the coming days O t h

include foreign affairs committee chair Emily Thornberry, who has said she is weighing a run Former transport secretary Louise Haigh and Tooting MP Rosena AllinKhan have both ruled themselves out

Under the rules, candidates must secure nominations from at least 80 Labour MPs by Thursday evening to make it onto the ballot They must also gain the backing of either 5% of local parties or three affiliated groups, including at least two trade unions Those who qualify will face a vote of the

result due to be announced on 25 October Rayner, who has represented Ashton-under-Lyne for a decade, rose rapidly after entering parliament in 2015, becoming one of Labour’s most powerful figures and a favourite among the backb

mounted after reports in the Daily Telegraph and Daily Mail raised

dealings, leading to the

Her departure is a personal and political blow for Starmer, who had begun the week attempting to reset his government after a turbulent first year in office In a h a n d w r i t t e n l e t t e r , h e p r a i s e d Rayner as a “trusted colleague and true friend” and said she would remain a “major figure” in the L a b o u r P a r t y C o n s e r v a t i v e s , however, seized on the scandal T o r y l e a d e r K e m i B a d e n o c h accused Starmer of weakness for n o t r e m o v i n g R a y n e r s o o n e r , declaring: “Angela Rayner is finally gone But it’s only because of Keir Starmer’s weakness that she wasn’t sacked three days ago ” Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has formally launched h e r b i d t o b e c o m e L a b o u r ’ s deputy leader, emerging as the most senior figure to enter the race so far S h e j o i n s C l a p h a m a

Starmer’s government

David Lammy

Shabana Mahmood

Lisa Nandy

Kanishka Narayan

Seema Malhotra

Sonia Kumar

Lord Krish Raval OBE

Satvir Kaur

Angela Rayner

Support The Parkinson’s UK Nurse Appeal

Pa rki nson ’ s i s a progr essiv e neurologi ca l co ndi tion tha t af fects people of any age and background, and th ere i s no cure Someone i s di agnose d w ith

Pa rki nson ’ s i n the UK ev ery 20 minutes and by 205 0, the numbe r of pe ople li ving w ith the cond ition w orldw ide w ill d ouble to 25 milli on

There is still a lot to discover about why people develop Parkinson’s and if ethnicity plays a role in its prevalence

Several studies have shown that people with Type 2 diabetes have an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s People from South Asian backgrounds are known to be at increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, so this may affect the prevalence of Parkinson’s within the South Asian community

Living with Parkinson's, and supporting loved ones with the condition, is tough And as Parkinson's progresses, the need for specialist healthcare grows With the right support, people can live well and manage their symptoms But with current pressures on the health service, one in five people with Parkinson's in the UK are missing out on the care they need It is crucial that the correct advice, care and treatment options are available, and to everyone Parkinson's nurses help people living with the condition come to terms with their diagnosis by providing expert advice and specialist support They help people to manage their medication, so they get the best results and fewer side effects They can make referrals to other professionals, such as speech and language therapists and physiotherapists They also train other health and social care professionals on how to best care for people with the condition and ensure they always receive

Anoushka Shankar hits back at body-shaming trolls

their medication on time in hospital

Sha faq Hussa in-A li w as d iagnose d a ged 40

“When I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s there was a period of grieving,”

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"When I first met my Parkinson's nurse, she seemed to know what I was going to say before I was going to say it She advised me on a lot of things that could help me It's so important that everyone has a Parkinson's nurse "

Parkinson’s UK has a free confidential helpline 0808 800 0303, where you can find out more about specialist support, including Parkinson’s nurses

u Almost two thirds of the Parkinson's nurses working today across the UK were initially funded by Parkinson’s UK, thanks to donations

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Who is Shabana Mahmood?

S habana Mahmoo d has m ad e history as the first M uslim wom an of P akistani o rigin to lead the Home Office, the p owerful d ep artm ent ov erseeing im mig ration, policing , and national security

Born in Birmingham on 17 September 1980 to parents from Mirpur in Azad Kashmir, Mahmood spent her early years between the UK and Saudi Arabia, where her father worked as a civil engineer on a desalination project Returning to Birmingham in the mid-1980s, she grew up in a working-class family Her mother managed a corner shop while her father became active in local politics, eventually chairing the local Labour Party From a young age, Mahmood helped with election campaigns, though her first ambition was to practise law

Educated at Small

Heath School and King Edward VI Camp Hill School for Girls, Mahmood went on to read law at Lincoln College, Oxford, where she served as president of the Junior Common Room Among her contemporaries was Rishi Sunak, later prime minister, who she once recalled supported her JCR election bid After graduating with a 2:1 in 2002, she completed the Bar Vocational Course at

the Inns of Court School of Law, supported by a scholarship from Gray’s Inn

Called to the Bar in 2003, Mahmood built a career in professional indemnity law, working at leading chambers and firms until 2007 But politics soon called In 2010, she was elected as Labour MP for Birmingham Ladywood, becoming one of the first Muslim women to enter Parliament Over the years, she held several influential roles in the shadow cabinet, developing a reputation as a sharp legal mind and effective communicator

In July 2024, Mahmood’s steady rise culminated in her appointment as Home Secretary, a milestone celebrated as both a personal achievement and a historic moment for representation in British politics

,

as delivered a p owerful rebuttal to bo dy-sham ing trolls wh o d erided her appearance on Instag ram

The Grammy-nominated musician took to social

licited, sexist remarks on her photos and stories, emphasising that her body is not anyone else’s to comment on

In a poignant Instagram post, she reflected on the duality of the body, “in one sense, just a body (everyone has one!)” yet “in another sense a miracle ” Shankar

trials her body has endured motherhood, surviving child sexual abuse and perilous e

m e n , undergoing four major surgeries, living with polycystic

enduring migraines, addiction, undiagnosed neurodi-

vergence, and an autoimmune disorder Through it all, she honoured her body as “ a complete, badass warrior ” Shankar shared several troll comments that criticised her attire, for instance, “ I n

s sacred music But the attire worn is not matching” and

photos urged her to “think about your father’s image ” She responded with dignified defiance: “I haven’t got to this point only to accept a n y b

h e t i c c o mments (male) strangers feel the need to bring into my orbit My choices, all of them are mine to make ”

New NHS device helps pregnant women with diabetes

Thousands of pregnant w o m e n i n E n g l a n d w i t h type 1 diabetes will receive a pregnancy-specific “artificial pancreas ” from the NHS to protect their health and their babies’

The hybrid closed-loop system helps women with t y p e 1 d i a b e t e s m a n a g e blood glucose during pregn a n c y , w h e n h o r m o n a l c h a n g e s m a k e c o

women with type 1 diabetes

year, and poor control rais-

es risks of miscarriage, stillb i r t h , b i r t h i n j u r i e s , a n d neonatal care The system combines an insulin pump, g l u c o s e s e n s o r , a n d 2 4 / 7 app to deliver precise doses and allows lower glucose t a r g e t s f o r b e t t e r o u tcomes Over 600 women h a v e a l r e a d y r e c e i v e d i t through the NHS initiative P a r t h a K a r , T y p e 1

Diabetes Technology Lead at NHS England, said the r o l l o u t d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e N H S ’ s c o m m i t m e n t t o using innovative technolo-

gy to improve patient care

Following the 2019 NHS

global first, outcomes for w

paving the way for this

cialist hybrid closed-loop system

“This simple yet ingen

pregnant women and those planning a pregnancy manage their condition, reduce complications, and simplify care, ” he added

Shafaq Hussain-Ali

Anoushka Shankar

Shabana Mahmood

Swathi Anil

ABen g al i f ea tu re f i lm ,

“The U nexp ected ” is set for its world p remiere after being officially selected for th e in-competition catego -

ry at th e 1 6t h C h i c ag o

So uth Asian Film F estival (C SAFF)

This dynamic achievement marks a significant moment for the independent production company, co-founded by two Kolkata-

b o r n N H S c o n s u l t a n t s ,

D e b a s i s h B a n e r j e e a n d

Chandrayee Sengupta The film's selection at the prestigious festival places a new voice in UK-based Bengali

c i n e m

g

Banerjee explains the film’s layers and its selection to CSAFF

Could you describe the core theme you aimed to convey through this story, and how it feels to have your first feature, selected for such a prestigious festival?

‘The Unexpected’ is a

B e n g a l i f e a t u r e f i l m I t comprises of two stories, Mirror in the Water and T h e P o i s o n o u s , t h a t a r e

s t r u c t u r a l l y s i m i l a r B o t h stories deal with the complexities of human nature

‘ M i r r o r i n t h e W a t e r ’ explores love, loss, nostalgia

a n d a m b i t i o n w h i l e ‘ T h e Poisonous’ deals with crime

a n d i t s r e t r i b u t i o n However, both the stories

h a v e u n e x p e c t e d e n d i n g s

t h a t m a k e t h e i r e x p l o -

r a t i o n s m o r e

t e l l i n g T h r o u g h t h e t w o stories in the film, I have attempted to bring a fresh

p e r s p e c t i v e t o t w o m o s t

From London to Chicago: The Unexpected journey of a debut Bengali film

common themes in literat u r e a n d c i n e m a I a m delighted and honoured to have my debut feature film selected in the in-competition category of the prestigious Chicago South Asian F i l m F e s t i v a l t o b e h e l d from September 14 to 21, 2025

What does this official selection and world premiere mean for you, both as a debut director and for the future of “The Unexpected”? Can you also explain why the Chicago Film Festival? Or are you planning on getting screened at many other film festivals?

The ‘The Unexpected’ is our independent debut feature film made on a limited b u d g e t , a n d w i t h a v e r y small team but with a lot of passion and hard work So, the selection of this film in the in-competition categor y o f t h e C h i c a g o S o u t h A s i a n F i l m F e s t i v a l i s extremely encouraging and is a validation of all our efforts As a director to have m y d e b u t f e a t u r e f i l m selected in the in-competition category of this festival is nothing short of a dream come true We hope that t h i s o f f i c i a l s e l e c t i o n o f

‘TheUnexpected’ will kindle interest in the cinema lovers and will provide a fillip to its viewership

What were the specific challenges of making an independent feature film in London, and how did your company’s location and unique identity influence the filmmaking process?

Chandrayee and I had c o - f o u n d e d E a s t e r n Thespians, in 2012 and prod u c e d s e v e r a l s u c c e s s f u l p l a y s I t w a s d u r i n g covidthat we conceived the idea of venturing into films

Initially, we had thought of shooting the film on mobile phones, the actors shooting in their homes and sending us the videoclips

The main challenge of making this film, was fundi n g B e c a u s e o f f i n a n c e r s unwillingness, we decided to self- fund the project The budget was small, so planning had to be thorough The entire 90 minu

o d u ction was completed in six weeks

The other challenge was f i n d i n g t h e r i g h t c a s t i n United Kingdom, who are fluent in Bengali with acting skills But finally, we got the right team of cast and

Royal Courts cover controversial Banksy piece

A Banksy p ainting d epicting a jud ge hitting a protester w ith a gavel appeared on the Royal C ourts of Ju stice walls befo re being quickly cov ered by guard s Banksy confirmed it on Instagram, while local work-

e r s s a i d s e c u

tioned in front of the artwork, reportedly referencing pro-Palestine protests

Matteo, who passed by the Royal Courts of Justice at 8:30am on Monday, said guards were blocking people

f r o m p h o t o g

n g t h e Banksy artwork, with additional staff arriving to cover it up “I think it’s disgusting that they would

crew who did a great job with utmost sincerity and d e d i c a t i o n F i l m i n g i n London and in Eastbourne, a l l o w e d u s t o a c h i e v e a u n i q u e f u s i o n o f S o u t h Asian and Western aesthetics through the two stories and their settings that lends a u n i q u e f l a v o u r t o t h i s Bengali film

What specific element or narrative choice in the film led you to choose this title, and how do you hope audiences will interpret its meaning after watching? I have consciously chos e n t h e ‘ M i r r o r i n t h e Water’ and ‘The Poisonous’, the two stories that comprise the film, to have unexpected endings, other than m a k i n g t h e s t o r i e s m o r e intriguing and entertaining, they have helped explore thecontents of the stories in a m o r e i n c i s i v e m a n n e r F r o m t h i s p e r s p e c t i v e , a s the title of the film, ‘The Unexpected’ seemed but a natural choice I hope after watching the film the audie n c e w i l l a p p r e c i a t e t h e import of its title and will e n j o y t h e p l e a s u r e o f mulling over more than one i n t e r p r e t a t i v e t h r e a d t o evaluate the contents of the film

Whatdo you believe is the significance of telling a Bengali story from a diaspora perspective, and how does this cross-cultural journey of your film, from London to Chicago reflect its message?

I consider this as a journey from India to Chicago through London Most of the characters in the film belong to the Indian diaspora who have settled in UK The film tells their stories that will be shared with the audience in Chicago –f r o m r o o t s t o r o u t e s Though this is a film in Bengali, I have attempted to explore the minds of the c h a r a c t e r s w h o s e s t o r i

s t

a n s c e n d g e o g r a p h i c a l , regional and ethnic boundaries I have not made a film just for the Bengali viewers; I am also trying to reach out to the multicultural audie n c e s w h o a r e c u r i o u s about diaspora stories

Grave of Britain’s first Indian restaurateur restored

T h e g rav es to ne o f S a ke Dee n M ah o m ed , th e p i oneering Anglo-Indian credited with introducing curry and sham poo to the U K, has be en re s to re d M ah o m ed , also th e first Ind ian to publish a book in English , liv ed in B ri g h to n f o r 4 0 y ear

His grave at St Nicholas’ Churchyard had fallen into d

Society said The Regency Society has

footstone, and cleared the s

’ s diverse heritage Born in Patna in 1759, Mahomed opened Britain’s first Indian restaurant, the Hindoostane Coffee House, in 1810 Committee member

Frances Lindsay-Hills called him “ one of the most interesting and enterprising peo-

Brighton,” adding that preserving his grave is a fitting tribute

RSBH said Sake Deen

which

called

Loughborough Carillon Tower reopens after revamp

A 102-year-old landm ark in L

Park has reo pened after a £11 0,0 00 revamp The site, w h i ch

One displays, information boards, and exhibits of letters, medals, and uniforms Built in 1923, the Grade II listed 150ft Carillon Tower h

u r s L

u g h b o r o u

’ s fallen, bearing 800 names from both world wars and h o u s i n g 4 7 b e l l s O p e n Wednesday to Saturday, it also hosts Carillon recitals on Thursdays and Sundays Mel Gould, chairman of the Loughborough Carillon Tower and War Memorial Museum volunteer group, said reopening the museum was “ a proud moment ” He praised the hard work that went into creating the new stories, displays, and information for visitors, adding that the funding was crucial in modernising how artefacts and history are presented C

Debasish Banerjee

Credit House of Commons

Sake Deen Mahomed

"Diwali without fireworks isn't the same"

What remains are street lanterns, 6,000 LED lights, a Ferris wheel, and a one-night road closure T

Advisory Group warned that last

Belgrave Road w

shaped lanterns and the Wheel of Light, which now serve as the festival’s main attractions

Many community leaders and residents who cherish Leicester’s D

year ’ s cancellation, saying it will impact both community spirit and local businesses

A proposal to reinstate fireworks and cultural activities at this year ’ s Leicester Diwali was rejected over

s

Business Association warned the event risked being “hollowed out” and submitted alternative plans, b u t t h e c i t y ’

Group ruled them out

I

S h

s Diwali celebrations on the Golden Mile are world-renowned and a true symbol of community, culture, and economic vibrancy in our city Together with Neil O’Brien MP, I have written to the Chief Constable of Leicestershire Police to raise important safety concerns I am also pressing DCMS Secretary of State, Lisa Nandy MP, to ensure this much-loved event goes ahead as it should The BBA has my full backing in its efforts to protect Diwali celebrations, and I will continue doing everything I can to support them and our community in safeguarding this cherished tradition ” Belgrave Business Association spokesperson Nisha Pop at said she has worked with Hindu, Jain, and Sikh groups to protect the future

o f D i w a l i o n t h e G o l d e n M i l e “Diwali is more than a festival – it symbolises light, belonging, and community,” she said Leicester’s celebrations, nurtured for many years, are internationally recognised, but cutbacks risk hollowing out this proud tradition, harming both local businesses and community spirit Despite raising funds and offering scaled-back plans to address safety concerns, she said

c u l t u r a l a c t i v i t i e s h a v e b e e n removed “The Council must work in genuine partnership to protect

Diwali as one of Britain’s most i m p o r t a n t m u l t i c u l t u r a l t r a d itions ” For decades, Leicester’s Diwali has been a symbol of British-Asian pride, attracting tens of thousands and showcasing the city’s multicultural spirit The festival, first lit up in the 1980s, grew into the largest celebration outside India with fireworks, food stalls, and cultural performances

Scaled-back Diw ali leav es Leicester in d ismay

L e i c e s t e r

been a festival of light, unity, and joy, but many feel nostalgic and saddened by this year ’ s cutbacks Community leaders and business o w n e r s t o l d A s i a n V o i c e t h e changes risk weakening the festival’s spirit and hurting Belgrave

R o a d b u s i n e s s e s t h a t r e l y o n Diwali for their biggest footfall and revenue

Vim alj i Oded ra, President of the National Council of Gujarati

O r g a n i s a t i o n s U K ( N C G O U K ) , s a i d , “ T h e L e i c e s t e r D i w a l i Celebration along Belgrave Road is a vibrant acknowledgement of the Hindu festival, fostering diversity and unity within the community It holds special meaning for many, e s p e c i a l l y G u j a r a t i s , e m b o d y i n g j o y , r e f l e c t i o n , a n d c o m m u n i t y spirit The council’s decision to cut back celebrations is disheartening for our community and the local businesses that thrive during this festive period ” H e a d d e d , “ T h e c

c h o i c

d

s m

t h e Hindu community, which has contributed so much to Leicester’s cultural fabric I urge councillors to u

limited resources, working with local businesses for sponsorship could help ensure the continuation of these beloved Diwali festivities ” Vi n o d K o t ec h a, f o

m e r

Director of the Confederation of Indian Organisations (UK), said, “Leicester Diwali means a lot to me and the Hindu community as the biggest celebration outside India The cutbacks will hurt local busin e s s a n d c o m m u n i t

Belgrave Road With more than 40,000 visitors each year, Diwali has both cultural and economic i

Council seems to lack recognition of this Instead of scaling down, the council should reconsider and provide adequate security to ensure the celebration continues smoothly ”

sure along Belgrave and Melton R o a d i

“Diwali here is more than just a festival, it’s a celebration of light,

Hindus it represents faith, tradition, and family, but for the wider city it has become a symbol of Leicester’s diversity and togetherness ” On the cutbacks, she added, “The lights and festivities bring

thousands of visitors to Belgrave Road each year, vital for restaurants, sweet shops, and small businesses Without them, footfall will drop and the joy and unity Diwali brings will feel diminished Diwali isn’t just religious, it’s a cultural and economic event that showcases Leicester globally Local authorities must work with businesses and cultural groups to find sustainable solutions Investing in Diwali is investing in Leicester’s identity, economy, and community cohesion ” V i no d P o p at o f t h e H i n d u Community Organisations Group said, “Leicester City Council has announced that this year ’ s Diwali c e l e b r a t i o n s w i l l b e d r a s t i c a

o Diwali Village at Cossington Park, no stage entertainment, and no fireworks display, only a road clo-

Hindu, Jain, and Sikh communities, this decision is deeply disappointing Fireworks have always been central to Diwali, symbolising the victory of light over darkness, good over evil To remove them is to remove the heart of the festival ” He added, “Some have suggested boycotting the event, but in truth, there is nothing left to boycott With no entertainment and no fireworks, what remains is little m

M uku nd S amani shared a more mixed view He said, “For many Hindu families like mine, Diwali on Belgrave Road has always been about coming together as a family, even for those who’ve moved away Let’s see what happens this year I do agree with the council that the current set-up is unsafe, last year it was frightening, as 30,000 people tried to leave Cossington Park at once, and walking just 500 yards took over forty minutes ”

f f i c d i v e r s i o n

Asking people not to attend would only hurt local businesses, restaur a n t s , s h o p s , a n d t r a d e r s w h o

d e p e n d o n t h e f e s t i v e s e a s o n

Leicester has proudly celebrated the ‘biggest Diwali outside India’ for decades, it is part of the city’s identity and multicultural pride Without fireworks, a stage, or a village, the festival risks becoming a shadow of itself ” Ram an Ba rbe r M BE DL , a member of Leicester’s Hindu comm u n i t y , s p o k e a b o u t t h e c i t y ’ s long-standing Diwali celebrations “Leicester has celebrated Diwali for o v e r 5

Thousands attend the switch-on c e r e m o n y , w h i c h i n c l u d e s

L a k s h m i P u j a , l i g h t s , f i r e w o r k s , and stage performances by local

together not just Hindus, but people from all communities, fostering friendship and harmony ” He explained that the Leicester Hindu Festival Council has traditionally worked with the city council to manage logistics, funding, a n d s p o n s o r s h i p s “ P r e v i o u s l y , roads were closed for two days for the festival, but this year the council decided there will be no fireworks or stage shows, only a oneday celebration This will affect attendance and local businesses, and the community is disappointed, as Diwali without fireworks isn’t the same ” B a r b e r a d d e d t h a t w h i l e Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, and other communities support the festival, this year ’ s scaled-back plans have left them “ very upset ” Retired Leicester businessman

“At the same time, I feel the council is using false excuses and our elected Asian councillors aren’t doing enough to serve the community From what I’ve seen, most local businesses remain confident t h e s e c h a n g e s w o n ’ t h u r t t h e m financially, though some smaller outlets may struggle Overall, the community spirit is still strong,” he added Founder & CEO, VARU Beauty, Jig na Varu said, “Leicester’s Diwali celebrations are more than a festi-

val, they are a symbol of light triumphing over darkness, a spiritual reminder of hope, renewal, and unity For decades, Belgrave Road has been at the heart of this celebration, drawing families and visit

U K

d beyond The recent cutbacks risk dimming not only the lights, but also the spirit of togetherness and the vital boost to local businesses that depend on this season For many shopkeepers and families, Diwali is their busiest and most meaningful time of year To scale it back is in stark contrast to the festival’s very essence of spreading joy and optimism Personally, I’d like to see local authorities work collaboratively with communities and businesses to ensure Diwali continues to shine as a beacon of pride for the city ”

B h art i R am e sh c h a nd r a A c h ar ya, a c o m m u n i t y m e m

who has been living in Leicester for 50 years said, “Leicester’s Diwali is not just a Hindu festival, it is a defining part of the city’s identity, drawing visitors from across the UK and giving a vital boost to Belgrave Road businesses The cutbacks feel like a disregard for both the cultural and economic importance of Diwali, leaving many in the community frustrated and let d o w n S m a l l b u s i n e s s e s , w h o depend heavily on the festive season, now face uncertainty at a time when they should be thriving If Leicester is to retain its reputation as the “Diwali capital of Europe,” l

s e this celebration on the same level as other flagship events, working w

leaders to safeguard and grow it for the future ” *Asian V oice approached L eicester C ity Council for the comm ent

Gitanjali C hav d a of Narayan

Nisha Popat

Gitanjali Chavda

Jigna Varu

Shivani Raja

Mukund Samani

Raman Barber MBE DL

Vimalji Odedra

Vinod Kotecha

Vinod Popat

UK emerges as top destination for Indian students

I ndia remains the UK’ s top s ource of international s tudents, wi th over 15,000 s tudy visas i ssued in Q2 , a 44% ri se from las t year, ac cording to ApplyBoard

Indian students now receive nearly twice as many visas as the next largest group and have a 96% grant rate, making them the most reliable cohort as the UK prepares tighter immigration rules under its 2025 White Paper

The ApplyBoard report shows rising international student mobility to the UK, with nearly 63,000 visa applications in Q2 2025, a 16% increase from last year, and over 56,000 approvals, up 24% Refusal rates rose to 9%, triple last year, reflecting tighter scrutiny For Indian students, this growth marks a recovery after 2024 ’ s dip, driven by career-focused programmes, post-study work options, and the UK’s global university

reputation

Student demand rose across South Asia in Q2 2025, with Nepal seeing the biggest jump, nearly four times more main applicant study visas than Q2 2024

Cancer fight inspires dad to back charity walk

A n inspiring dad-of-two battling a rare cancer is u rg ing p eo ple to back Cancer Research UK’s Shine Nigh t Walk

Rue Metha first began feeling unwell in 2022 with nausea and was treated for acid reflux Despite multiple tests, including endoscopies, ultrasounds, and biopsies, results remained inconclusive In 2023, he developed lumps in his neck, shingles, and a severe leg infection Further scans and biopsies finally revealed cancerous cells, and at 49 he was diagnosed with an aggressive, rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma

A PET scan revealed Rue had a tennis ball-sized tumour in his neck He began six cycles of chemotherapy at The Christie, including brentuximab vedotin, a drug developed with Cancer Research UK’s support In 2024, he underwent high-dose

chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, but the cancer returned Now 51, Rue is receiving immunotherapy and less intensive chemo while awaiting a donor stem cell transplant Despite advice to take a year off, Rue continues working in his family’s business, joined Race for Life with his loved ones, and remains hopeful Married to Sangeeta, with children Jay, 21, and Esha, 19, he said: “Advances in research mean I’m still

here to enjoy more precious time with my family ”

Jane Bullock, Cancer Research UK’s Greater Manchester spokesperson, said: “Our scientists have doubled UK cancer survival in 50 years, but with 1 in 2 people set to face a diagnosis, we must go further Events like Shine Night Walk are vital to creating longer, better lives free from cancer – October 10 is Manchester’s moment to shine ”

Child mental health linked to school absence

R esear ch supporte d by the Office for N ation al Sta tistics fin ds th at school abse nce s s ig n if ic a n t l y in cr e a se t h e r isk of men ta l hea lt h problems in childre n

“The more a child misses school, the higher the likelihood of experiencing mental ill health,” say researchers f r o m L o u g h b o r o u g h University and the ONS

The study of over 1 million school-age children in England found a “two-way” link between absence and mental health: long absences raise the risk of later hospital

t

with existing mental health

ondary school absence rates in England have remained high since the Covid pandemic

Louise Vesely-Shore of t h

people’s mental health, but support such as EHCPs, free

provision can reduce missed days “Schools clearly play a vital role in helping students with mental health conditions,” she added, while noting more research is needed

The study found hospi-

tal visits for mental health rose sharply among persist

d

e n Fewer than 2% of regularly attending students required hospital care, compared with nearly 4% of those absent over 20% of the time, and m

absent 30% of the time Dr Guy Northover, chair of the R o y a l C

o f Psychiatrists’ child and ado-

research highlights school as a

stressed the need to understand why absent children are more likely to reach a crisis

Air pollution linked to heart failure in UK

M i lli o n s of Br i t o n s fa c e highe r risks of hea rt failure a nd st rok e d ue to a ir pollut ion A st udy shows people in the most pollute d ar ea s a re 27% mor e like ly to dev elop hear t fa ilure a nd 7% more likely to suffe r a str ok e

The findings were pres e n t e d a t t h e E u r o p e a n

Society of Cardiology conference in Madrid

L e a d a u t h o r G h i t a

H o u s n i o f Q u e e n M a r y

University said cleaner air protects hearts, and reducing exposure to air pollution is key to preventing heart failure and stroke The study tracked 299,323 people from 2 0 1 0 t o 2 0 2 0 , u s i n g U K

Biobank data to link local PM2 5 levels, tiny particles from vehicles, industry, and heating to rates of heart

f a i l u r e a n d s t r o k e o v e r a decade

People in the most polluted 10% of areas for PM2 5 h a d a 2 7 % h i g h e r r i s k o f heart failure and a 7% higher risk of stroke Each additiona l m i c r o g r a m o f P M 2 5 raised heart failure risk by 7% and stroke risk by 3%

T h e s t u d y a l s o f o u n d a s l i g h t , n o n - s i g n i f i c a n t i n c r e a s e i n h e a r t a t t a c k s PM2 5 triggers inflammation i n b l o o d v e s s e l s , m

k i n g them stiffer and prone to fatty buildup

I n f l a m e d b l o o d v e s s e l s from PM2 5 can raise blood p r e s s u r e , s t r a i n t h e h e a r t , and lead to heart failure over time The study found that in the most polluted areas, one extra person per 100 had a stroke and two per 100 developed heart failure, even after accounting for factors l i k e a g e , s e x , e t h n i c

Researchers did not identify specific UK locations linked to higher risks

London plans pedicab fare and noise limits

L on d o n pl a n s t o r e g

TfL’s proposals include criminal and medical checks for drivers, annual vehicle inspections, ID for drivers, and licence plates for pedic a b s , a i m i n g t o r e m o v e unsafe vehicles after strong public support

racist, saying it’s natural to expect to see locals working, as he would in the US The viral video, with millions of views, sparked mixed reac-

diversity, while others questioned job opportunities for native Britons

Responses to the viral video were mixed One user p

grounds According to the

workforce is foreign-born, with Indians representing

significant share thanks

Fares will be regulated and charged by the minute after reports of short rides costing hundreds of pounds, though lower rates may conc e

n s o m e o p e

o r s T f L also proposes banning loud external music Pedicabs are still praised as zero-emission, flexible, and a safe option for London’s night-time economy Mayor Sadiq Khan and TfL aim to introduce a full p e d i c a b r e g u l a t o r y f r a m ework by early 2026, ensuring vehicles are safe, well-maint a i n e d , a n d p r o f e s s i o n a l l y operated Khan said regulation is needed to curb unsafe behaviour, overcharging, and

green way to see the city London gained formal powers to regulate pedicabs in 2024 after the government pledged to tackle what former PM Rishi Sunak called the “ scourge of pedicabs ” Will Norman, London’s walking and cycling commissioner, said action is needed

Rue Mehta (second right) with his family

Afghans navigate new lives amid legal and social uncertainty

Subhasini Naicker

F or Afghans wh o fled to the UK seeking safety and a better life, ch allenges remain Many face langu age barri ers, h ousi ng struggles, and difficulties finding work th at matches th eir skills, alongside so cial i solation and mental health p ressu res

Yet, community support and cultural networks help them adapt Resilience, focus on education and employment, and preserving heritage enable many to gradually integrate and thrive

A prominent example is Dr Waheed Arian, an Afghan-born doctor who arrived in the UK as a child refugee, learned English, completed his A-Levels, and graduated from Cambridge University to become an NHS emergency physician

Even amid uncertainty and systemic challenges, Afghan families like Amir’s are gradually establishing stability and hope in the UK Amir (name changed) shared with Asian Voice: “The biggest challenge for my family was the language barrier Back in Afghanistan, my English was basic, and in the UK, everything, forms, doctors, council letters, felt overwhelming Community volunteers and English classes helped us gain confidence, and now my children often assist me Finding work was another hurdle, as my qualifications weren’t recognised and employers wanted UK experience I started with small jobs while attending training, gradually building connections and stable work Emotionally, leaving family behind and adjusting to a new culture was hard, but friendships with both Afghans and locals, sharing food and stories, gave comfort Resilience and community support have been key, and though life is still challenging, we are slowly building a new sense of home here ”

Amir added that one of the most hopeful experiences has been seeing his children thrive in school “At first, they struggled with the language and felt out of place, but supportive teachers helped them excel Seeing them make friends and speak English confidently gives me courage For myself, joining a local community centre opened new doors, I met people from different backgrounds, improved my English, and found training opportunities These moments show that despite the struggles, we can build a brighter future here ”

Relocation scheme sparks h igh cou rt actio n

The UK government faces a legal challenge after abruptly closing the Afghanistan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP) on 1 July, which had offered asylum to Afghans who supported British forces The closure follows a 2022 data breach exposing over 18,000 applicants The Londonbased Afghanistan and Central Asia Association (ACAA) has begun legal proceedings, seeking a judicial review in the High Court, and will be represented by barrister George Molyneaux

Speaking to Asian Voice, Darius Nasimi, Founder and President of Afghanistan Government in Exile and Head of Funding and Partnerships at the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association said, “The closure of the ARAP scheme has left many of us feeling deeply worried and anxious For Afghans who worked with UK forces and

are still in Afghanistan, it feels like the safety net has been pulled away They face real threats from the Taliban simply for having supported the UK, and without a route to relocate, their lives and families are at serious risk The closure sends a message that their service and sacrifices may not be recognised, which is both frightening and demoralising It reinforces the urgency of legal action to protect those who are still vulnerable ” Darius criticised the UK Government’s decision to end the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Policy (ARAP), saying it sends a “ very worrying message ” to Afghans who supported British efforts during the conflict “Ending the scheme now risks making them feel that their loyalty, courage, and the dangers they faced to help British forces are neither valued nor protected Many may feel abandoned, vulnerable, and uncertain about their safety It could also discourage future cooperation with international missions, knowing their support may go unrecognised This decision undermines trust and leaves a sense of injustice for those who risked their lives to assist the UK,” he said Darius emphasised that beyond relocation, the UK Government could do more to help Afghans build stable lives “Access to English and vocational training is vital for employment, while support with housing, mental health, and children’s education would ease settlement Community integration programs, cultural exchanges, mentorship, and networking, can reduce isolation and build confidence Clear guidance on rights, benefits, and citizenship pathways would reassure Afghans that the UK values their contributions and wants them to thrive,” he added

JLR receives daily support amid cyber attack

Jagu ar Land Rover is receiving “d aily” g overnment suppo rt after last week’s cyber attack h alted op erations

The UK carmaker shut down production last Tuesday, keeping staff at home, and workers are not expected back Asked when all 34,000 UK employees could return, business minister Sir Chris Bryant said he could not provide a timeline

“This is a very live situation that has been ongoing for a week,” said

Sir Chris Bryant He could not confirm who was behind the attack, despite claims by hacking group Scattered Spider, blamed for earlier UK retail attacks costing M&S around £300m Four people arrested over the April attacks have been bailed Bryant also could not say if the JLR incident was linked to the M&S attack Sir Chris Bryant said no secure decisions had been made yet Jaguar Land Rover invited local MPs to a Q&A on Friday Labour MP

Labour’s deputy leadership battle begins

Labour’ s co ntest for deputy leader is underway, with six confirmed candidates v ying to fill th e role left vacant by A ng ela Rayner’s resig nation E ar ly t all i es su g g es t Ed ucation S ecretary Brid get Ph illipson and form er cabine t m in i st er L uc y P o w el l have the stro ng est support among MP s B

Hill, has backing from the party’s left and the Socialist Campaign Group She has criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s government as a “pale imitation of Reform” and accused i

Treasury orthodoxy Phillipson, the only cabi

S

seen as a Starmer loyalist

p p o

across the party for policies including ending tax relief

meals

Emily Thornberry, chair o

r s Committee, has not held a cabinet role under Starmer She has said she would “not j u s t n o d a l

government and listed

L

Derek Twigg, representing the Halewood plant, warned thousands of employees and supply chain jobs are affected and the attack could impact the wider economy JLR employs 39,000 globally and is working “around the clock” to restart operations safely, apologising for the disruption while keeping retail partners open Bryant stressed the threat from criminals and state actors, noting 40% of UK companies faced cyberattacks last year

sacked by Starmer, emphasises her Manchester roots, saying they have shaped her understanding of “people’s everyday hopes and fears ” She managed Ed Miliband’s

Liverpool Wavertree since 2019, brings experience as

and

English regions She left the Socialist Campaign Group before the last general election Alison McGovern, hous-

Birkenhead, argues the UK faces a “huge threat from the

forces of right-wing

hope and pride in our diverse country

have until

Harrow restaurant loses licence over illegal workers

A ccording to a news report f

its

after rep eatedly em ploying illegal w orkers Harrow Council said the evidence showed a “systemic approach” to breaking the law and a “lack of trust” in the business Immigration officers found illegal workers on three separate visits dating back to 2023, leading t h e L i c e n s i n g P a n e l t o revoke the licence at a meeting on August 20

T h e p a n e l f o u n d t h e r e s t a u r a n t o w n e r h a d repeatedly “disregarded the l a w ” b y e m p l o y i n g i l l e g a l workers and lacked trust in them to comply While suspension was considered, the panel concluded it had “ no c o n f i d e n c e ” i n t h e o w n e r and revoked the licence The H o m e O f f i c e h a d u r g e d Harrow Council to review Mumbai Local’s licence over a “continual pattern” of ille-

gal hiring

I m m i g r a t i o n o f f i c e r s found six illegal workers at the restaurant on November 16, 2023, and two more during a follow-up visit on July 4, 2024 A compliance check o n J u l y 1 7 , 2 0 2 5 , f o u n d a n o t h e r m a n p r e v i o u s l y arrested and a woman who l e f t b e f o r e o f f i c e r s c o u l d speak with her The company was fined £120,000 in August 2024 for employing illegal workers, reduced to £60,000 on appeal, with a further appeal ongoing

T h e l i c e n c e h o l d e r

2023 breach but claimed the July 2024 worker was a former IT-sponsored employee in need, describing him as “like a son ” They proposed a one-month licence suspension, saying it would already “be crippling” to the business, but the panel noted p r i o r i s s u e s a t a n o t h e r p r e m i s e s w i t h a £ 3 0 , 0

0 fine Ultimately, the panel d e c i

insufficient and revoked the licence, citing no confidence i n t h e h o l d e r ’ s a b i l i t y t o comply with the law

Ban sought on barristers’ relations with junior staff

S ex u al re lat io n s be tw ee n b arr is te rs a nd p u p il s o r wo rk experience candid ates should be banned to prev ent pred atory abuse, a review by L a bo u r p e er H arr ie t Harman h as conclud ed

The report on bullying and harassment, calling for “ d e c i s i v e a n d r a d i c a l change,” follows the disbarment of Navjot “Jo” Sidhu KC for sexual misconduct, which Harman said exposed “systemic issues” at the bar

S i d h u ’ s c a s e , u n d e r a p p e a l , h i g h l i g h t e d l o n gstanding concerns at the bar H a r m a n , w h o c h a i r e d t h e r e v i e w o f b a r r i s t e r s ’ a n d judges’ behaviour, said perpetrators often faced no consequences and called for a

rule making sexual relations between tenants and pupils or junior clerks serious misc o n d u c t , w i t h s t r i c t s a n ctions She cited accounts of harassment: one pupil was told to sleep with a clerk in her first week, another faced unwanted advances from a senior barrister, and a third s t o p p e d a t t e n d i n g s o c i a l events due to degrading sexual harassment H a r m a n

and sexual

conduct are widespread at the bar and on the bench, with fear of reporting giving perpetrators impunity Most victims remain silent to pro-

Darius Nasimi

Credit: Google Maps

Harriet Harman

Bridget Phillipson

Dear Financial Voice Reader, Alpesh Patel

Com e U p

Pension Panic and the Three Questions That A lways

Every week, people worried about their pensions ask me the same questions They’re variations on the same anxieties: “Is the market too high?” “Why are my returns so low with my IFa?” “Can I really do this without losing sleep?” This week was no different

1. Is the American market overvalued?

It’s the most common dinner-table worry The short answer: it doesn’t matter if you own resilient companies Good investing is like building a house You don’t panic every time the Met Office forecasts rain; you trust the roof you built to withstand it Likewise, resilient businesses are designed to navigate recessions, interest-rate swings, even political chaos You’re not betting on next quarter’s GDP You’re backing managers who know how to make money in good weather and bad

Yes, Wall Street looks expensive on a price-to-earnings basis compared to history But that’s always been the case just before it goes higher Valuations are not timing tools; they’re like complaining your house is “too expensive” ten years ago and missing out on a decade of rising property values Valuations alone do not move share prices, if they did you would have the perfect most simple investing algorithm Momentum, growth also matter We pay more for stocks which are expected to grow more So ‘overvalued’ is for simpleton journalists And if it were that easy Wall St analysts would have predicted the crash of 2008 So build a brick house not one of straw and hope to take it down each time you see a cloud

2. Can I do better on my returns? I’m only getting 4%.

Of course Four per cent is basically the financial equivalent of a parking fine: small, irritating, and certainly not enough to secure your future Over the past century, global equities have outperformed cash and bonds in all but a handful of years Yes, there will be bad years – 2008, 2020 – but history shows the equity premium exists for a reason Those who stay invested, rather than hiding in cash, almost always win

The trick isn’t to chase every headline stock but to systematically build a diversified portfolio of resilient businesses That’s where people fall down: they confuse “doing better” with “getting rich quick ” Good returns require patience The best compounding comes from letting time do the heavy lifting, not from trading your pension like a slot machine

3 But what if I panic? Or get bored?

This is where I come in I’m not just a portfolio builder; I’m a mentor Money is emotional Left alone, many investors sell low, buy high, or switch strategies at the worst possible moment If you think of investing as watching paint dry, you’ll be tempted to poke the paint That’s when the damage happens

A mentor’s job is to remind you that wealth is built s l o w l y

Warren Buffett A pension is not meant to be exciting It’s meant to make sure you can afford to be bored in comfort later in life

So yes, markets are volatile Yes, 4% is poor And yes, without guidance most people sabotage themselves But that’s why the answer isn’t a stock tip It’s a mindset: build your financial house properly, trust in resilient companies, and have someone at your side to stop you doing something stupid when the weather turns

FCA reviews 30 million car finance deals

B ritain’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is ex amining 30 mill ion historic ca r fin ance agre ements to de termine whet he r consumer s a re owed compen sat ion for unfair l oa n te rms, the r egulat or confirmed on Tuesday

FCA CEO Nikhil Rathi, speaking to the Treasury Select Committee ahead of a consultation on a proposed redress scheme, highlighted evidence of unfair relationships between lenders and consumers He noted that commissions were often undisclosed and many motorists did not receive the fairest interest rates when arranging motor loans

“Not all of those agreements will be eligible for compensation,” Rathi added, specifying that the review covers loans issued between 2007 and just after 2020

The FCA’s proposed redress scheme could cost the industry £9 billion to £18 billion ($12 2–24 4 billion), significantly lower than Britain’s payment protection insurance mis-selling scandal, which cost over £40 billion between 2011 and 2019

Major lenders, including Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays, Santander UK, Close Brothers, and Bank of Ireland, have collectively set aside nearly £2 billion to cover potential claims

The regulator plans to launch a six-week consultation on the scope of the scheme in early October, with the aim of delivering compensation to eligible motorists by 2026 The review follows a recent Supreme Court ruling allowing compensation in one of three linked cases, confirming that some customer-lender relationships were indeed unfair

British quantum computing entrepreneur doubles stake

British qu antum com puting entrepreneur Ilyas K han has

fundraising round that valued the comp any at $1

billion Khan, 63, is the founder of Quantinuum,

UK-US

Thursday it had raised $600

investor interest in cuttingedge quantum technology

owned his hometown football club Accrington Stanley, serves as chief product officer and has not sold any shares since founding the company over a decade ago He holds approximately 20%

New investors in the latest funding round include chipmaker Nvidia and US venture capital firm QED

discovery to artificial intelligence by performing cal-

reach of conventional computers Unlike classical computers, which use bits represented as 0s or 1s, quantum c

qubits capable of superposition, enabling simultaneous

tive and requires highly controlled environments to pre-

vent disruption

Quantinuum produces a full suite of quantum technologies, from hardware to

clients such as JP Morgan

and molecular simulation

CEO Rajeeb Hazra said

“strengthen the entire quan-

ecosystem,” while the UK’s science minister,

UK-India finance group urges investor-centric approach

India s ho uld p lace inves tors at the h eart of its strategy to secure glo bal funding fo r its am bitious infras tru cture targe

gro up has reco mmended

jointly by the City of London Corporation and India’s NITI Aayog, released its one-year report outlining recommend

between international inter-

ments in India’s infrastructure sector

I

projected to be the fastest-

a j o r e c o n o m y g l o b a l l y I t s i n f r a s t r u c t u r e n e e d s d r i v e n b y r a p i d u r b a n i s a t i o n a n d a r i s i n g middle class require an estimated $4 5 trillion in investment by 2030, a target beyond domestic funding alone

Within its first year, UKIIFB consulted on major projects including national highways and regional rapid trans i t n e t w o r k s , f o r m i n g t h e basis of its report Key recommendations include:

• Ado p t an I n ve s t o rC e n tr ic A p p r o a c h – A l i g n projects with investor priorities of risk, value, and returns, w h i l e a d d r e s s i n g o u t d a t e d perceptions of India’s infras-

tructure

• Al ig n w it h G l o b al Sta nda rds – M a k e p r o j e c t s a p p e a l i n g t o i n t e r n a t i o n a l i n v e s t o r s t h r o u g h g l o b a l l y recognised frameworks

• Enhance Transp arenc y an d Ri s k M an a ge m en t –

P r o v i d e p r e d i c t a b l e , w e l lmanaged processes to build investor confidence

• F o s t e r a Ro bu s t Eco system – Develop strateg i c p a r t n e r s h i p s w i t h l o c a l industries to support comp e t i t i v e i n f r a s t r u c t u r e growth

C h r i s H a y w a r d , P o l i c y

C h a i r m a n o f t h e C i t y o f L o n d o n C o r

“International investors need

clarity, confidence, and consistency – and India’s growth ambitions deserve a financing

CEO of NITI Aayog, added,

India’s high-growth, sustainable ventures with the UK’s expertise in project finance,

towards smart cities, renewable energy, and connectivity ” The report underscores the transformative potential o f

aiming to unlock global capital and secure India’s infras-

c future

GVE London supercar dealer enters administration amid uncertainty

ente red adm in

tra tio n as th e luxury car retailer edges clo ser to co llapse Th e firm had p revious ly filed a Notice o f I n te nt io n to A p p o i n t Admi nistrators (NOI) with th e H i gh C o u rt , a nd h as no w p r o c ee de d wi th th e ap poi ntment

According to court documents, Farheen Qureshi of P a r k e r G e t t y L i m i t e d h a s been tasked with overseeing the administration, which was officially confirmed on Monday, September 1 The

c o m p a n y ’ s r e g i s t e r e d address has now shifted to the administrators’ office in Stanmore

However, the company cautioned

Takeaway apps have historically provided employ-

regarding

potential sale and strategic growth partnership ” Following the administration filing, sales director

G

Based in Uxbridge, GVE London specialises in super a n d h y p e r c a r s , f r e q u e n t l y selling vehicles on a sale-orr e t u r n ( S O R ) b a s i s Company executives indicated that GVE London was i n “ a d

c u m e n t e d m i g r a n t s , drawn by limited right-tow o r k c h e c k s I n s o m e cases, delivery riders have s o l d o r r e n t e d t h e i r accounts on social media

t o “ s u b s t i t u t e s ” w o r k i n g illegally

GVE The past day has been overwhelming, but the support I’ve received has been incredible ” With the appointment of licensed insolvency prac-

now officially insolvent and under the

marking

significant development in the UK supercar market

social media after receiving threats, clarifying his role Gehdu wrote that, despite his visibility, he has never been an owner, shareholder, or involved in the compa-

O v e r t h e p a s t y e a r , Uber, Deliveroo, and Just E a t h a v e s t r e n g t h e n e d their verification processes, i n t r o d u c i n g e n h a n c e d facial recognition and document checks Thousands of workers who failed these checks have been removed from the platforms U b e r ’ s U K r e v e n u e s rose from £5 3bn in 2023 to £6 5bn in 2024, but profits fell from £29 4m to £21 6m, l a r g e l y d u e t o r i s i n g administrative and compliance costs in its food delivery division In February, t h e c

resulting in 280 arrests for suspected illegal working, with the asylum status of 53 individuals still under review The crackdown signals broader government efforts

accounts since April 2024 f o l l o w

y employment and curb illegal working Analysts warn that takeaway prices may rise as companies adjust to

and higher compliance costs, highlighting the potential economic ripple effects for consumers

Ilyas Khan

Farheen Qureshi

c

automobiles Its functions include controlling crucial

refrigerators,

steering control units The chip was packaged at the CG S

Gujarat, a joint venture with

Thailand’s Stars Micro The facility, which represents

million, is India’s first end-

and Test (OSAT) facility It is

key project under the

billion India Semiconductor Mission

small league of nations with

factories, with a combined capacity to produce millions of units daily The successful p

p highlights the nation's rapid progress in building a self-

semiconductor industry

India, Israel sign bilateral investment treaty

India and Israel o n Monday s i g n ed a Bi

ter al Investm ent Treaty ( BIT) in New Delhi to bo ost financial and economic ties between t h e tw o c o u nt ri es T h e treaty was signed between I n d i a's

Nirm ala Sitharam an and h er Israeli counterp art, Bezalel

S motrich

The treaty will facilitate

Israel and India protection b a s e d o n i n t e r n a t i o n a l

I

m both countries," said Israel's M i n

added that Israel is the first Organisation for Economic C o - o p e r a t i o n a n d

D e v e l o p m e n t ( O E C D ) member state with which

I n d i a h a s s i g n e d t h i s strategic agreement

W h i l e d e t a i l s o f t h e

t r e a t y h a v e n o t b e e n revealed yet, it is expected

t o o f f e r i n v e s t o r s f r o m

n o r m s , p r o m i s e n o nd i s c r i m i n a t o r y m i n i m u m t r e a t m e n t , a n d independent arbitration It follows Israel’s earlier BITs w

Japan

This signing comes at a time when Smotrich is on a three-day visit to India The purpose of the visit is to s

n

d financial relations between I

bilateral discussions and lay

nations, a source said

overseas direct investment (ODI) in Israel amounted to $443 million, while Israel’s f

April 2000 and March 2025

US trading firm Jane Street sues SEBI over manipulation allegations

Th e f irm is alleging that it has been deni ed acces s to c ruc ial documents ne eded

t o d ef e n d i t s e l f a g ai n s t

a c c us a t i o n s of m a r k e t m anipulation

The legal action stems from a July 3 interim order by SEBI that accused Jane

S t r e e t o f a t w o - s t e p strategy to manipulate the N i f t y B a n k i n d e x

According to the regulator, the firm first inflated the i n d e x b y b u y i n g constituent stocks in both cash and futures markets It

t h e n p r o f i t e d f r o m a s u b s e q u e n t d e c l i n e b y unwinding those positions

w h

Jane Street, however, has r e j e c t e d t h e

c l a i m s , arguing its trades were part o f a s t a n

e g a l practice known as "index arbitrage," which improves market liquidity

Despite the temporary trading ban being lifted on J u l y 1 8

deposited £484 3mn into an e s c

are still ongoing and could l a s t f o

m o r e months Jane Street missed

respond to SEBI's order and i

undeniably relevant for its defense The dispute has become a closely watched c

against a major markets regulator and potentially

how other international quantitative firms operate in India

A pple is set to significantly expand its retail footp rint in India with the opening o f two new official stores in Beng alu ru and P une T h e announcem ent was m ad e by A pple C EO T im Co ok, who ex p re ss ed h i s ex ci

abou t bringing th e best

en

A pple to customers acro

, Apple Hebbal in Bengaluru and Apple Koregaon Park in Pune, will be the third and fourth official Apple Stores

T h e Bengaluru store, situated in the Phoenix Mall of Asia, will be a landmark opening

Pune store is scheduled to open in early September

growing focus on the Indian market, which has emerged

New GST rates poised to boost Indian economy

India's recent GST reforms, set to take effect this m onth, are anticipated to provid e a m e ani n g fu l bo o s t to t h e c o u ntr y ' s ec o no m y T h e new tax rates are expected to s ti m u l ate co n su m e r demand, ease inflation, and imp rov e the ease of doing b u si ne s s f o r co m p a ni es across variou s sectors This s trateg i c m ov e co u ld al so help mitigate the negativ e effects of US trade tariffs

M a j o r c o r p o r a t i o n s stand to gain significantly, a l t h o u g h t h e i m p a c t w i l l v a r y R e l i a n c e I n d u s t r i e s Limited (RIL) is expected to see a positive effect on its

large retail business due to a reduction in GST on many c o n s u m e r p r o d u c t s H o w e v e r , i t s o i l a n d g a s e x p l o r a t i o n d i v i s i o n w i l l f a c e h i g h e r o p e r a t i o n a l costs, as the GST rate on t h e s e s e r v i c e s h a s b e e n increased to 18% from 12% Similarly, the Tata Group is s e t f o r g a i n s , p a r t i c u l a r l y through its automotive arm,

T a t a M o t o r s , w h i c h w i l l b e n e f i t f r o m l o w e r G S T

r a t e s o n c a r s a n d t r u c k s O t h e r T a t a e n t i t i e s l i k e

Trent and Tata Consumer

P r o d u c t s w i l l a l s o s e e a positive impact

A c c o r d i n g t o m a r k e t

analysts, while the reforms are likely to spur demand, companies may pass on the tax benefits to consumers, which could put pressure on profit margins The Q1 FY26 e a r n i n g s s e

companies, with sectors like p h

others like IT and steel saw

performance in the coming quarters

NRI deposits surge, fueling Gujarat's banking sector

N R I d e p

a t e -L e v e l Bank er s' C ommitte e (S LBC) da ta , th ese d eposits climbed t o £ 1 0 8 bn , a si g n i fi c a n t jump fr om £9 30bn a ye ar e arlier

This substantial increase i s a t t r i b u t e d t o s e v e r a l factors A stronger US dollar against the Indian rupee has m a d e r e m i t t a n c e s m o r e v a l u

money home Additionally, a r i s e i n t h e n u m b e r o f f i n

G u j a r a t i d i a s p o r a , particularly in regions like North America and Europe, has led to larger individual r e m i t t a n c e s T h e s u r g e i n these deposits is a vote of c o n f i d e n c e i n I n d i a s banking system and provides a vital source of liquidity for Gujarat's

India to continue imports of Russian oil, asserts Sitharaman

Fi nance M inis te r N irmala Sitharaman has declared that I ndia w ill continue to

stated that I ndi a's oil procurem ent decis ions are ba sed on economi c and commerc ial c on siderations , regardless of external pressure

statement comes amid rising

which has imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods in response to these oil imports

impact of the US tariffs, but said they would be offset to a certain extent by I

simplified and reduced indirect tax rates She also announced that the government is preparing measures to handhold exporters and sectors most affected by the punitive tariffs India, t

consumer, relies on imports for nearly 88% of its requirements For the past three years, discounted Russian

prioritizing its energy security and

economic interests The issue of US tariffs will be a key topic at an upcoming virtual meeting of Brics leaders, called by Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will attend on behalf of India The summit, which is also expected to

Nepal PM Oli resigns, army to take charge of security

M inis ter KP Sharma O li res igned f rom the p ost af ter anti- corruption p rotests tu rned vio lent for t h e s ec o nd c o n s ec u

Announcing h is decision, Oli said h e res igned “to fac ilitate s olu tio n to the p ro blem, and h elp reso lve it p ol itically ” The N epali Army and c hiefs o f oth er security agencies

iss ued a rare jo int appeal u rging res traint and calling for dialogue as th e o nl y path to resto re o rder

M e a n w h i l

M

leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and his wife Arju Rana Deuba, who is current Foreign Minister of the country were assaulted at their

Tribhuvan International Airport

i

citing unprecedented, serious

cerns Earlier on Tuesday, the PM called an all-party meeting, after

Nepali Congress party’s central office in Lalitpur The protesters also set fire to the residences of PM Oli in Balkot, President Ram

fresh wave of agitation comes a day after the Nepal government revoked its ban on social media

platforms in the country, after protests, led by Gen-Z, opposing the ban and government’s corruption, resulted in the deaths of at least 22 people and injuries to over 400 injured New Delhi issued a statement advising Indian nationals residing in Nepal to “exercise caution and adhere to the steps and guidelines issued by the Nepali authorities ” With unrest spilling fears across

Afghan Sikhs send aid to earthquake victims; death toll crosses 2,200

K A B U L : T h e S i kh c o m m u ni ty in A fghanistan, working in coordination with the A fghan Sikh diaspora and the Indian World Forum, h as d isp atched relief assistance to v ictim s of the d ev astating earthquake that struck eastern A fg hanistan last w eek

The aid was sent from Gurdwara Guru Nanak Darbar in Jalalabad The initiative underscores the community’s efforts to support fellow Afghans despite their own dwindling numbers and ongoing security challenges Community leaders said the aid drive was a joint effort of Afghan Sikhs, their diaspora, and Indian organisations to ensure timely assistance reached those most affected by the disaster

The move comes as Afghanistan contin-

ues to grapple with the aftermath of the powerful earthquake, which has left more than 2,200 dead and thousands injured “We

o

Afghanistan who are facing multiple crises, multiple shocks, and the resilience of the

Indrika Ratwatte, the UN’s resident coordinator for Afghanistan He urged the international community to step forward

Trump's massive oil reserves claim in Pakistan sparks widespread skepticism

W A S H I N G T O N , D C : U S P resi dent D onald T rum p h as stirred a controversy with h is c lai m th at Pakistan p oss es ses " massive oil reserves" that he p lans to help exploit throug h a new trade deal The announcem ent , w h i c h ali g n s w i th h i s anti-India camp aign, aims for a jo int oil extraction partnership betw een the United States and Pakistan T rum p sugg ested that these reserves could eventually lead to Pakistan supplying oil to India

However, these claims have been met with widespread skepticism from Pakistani officials and geologists alike According to reports, an official from a state-owned oil and gas company called Trump's assertions completely out of reality Another official noted that there is no mysterious, undiscovered oilfield that is going to put out 1 billion barrels Pakistan currently imports approxi-

mately 80% of its oil, with its daily production being just a f r

optimism seems to be based on a 2015 US Energy Information Administration estimate that

Basin could hold over 9 billion barrels of onshore shale oil

based on preliminary seismic data and has not been verified by further exploration Experts at the consultancy Rystad Energy have noted that there has been little progress in oil and gas exploration in Pakistan since this initial report

The announcement also brings to mind previous overblown claims of oil discoveries in Pakistan In 2019, former Prime Minister Imran Khan announced a major discovery which later turned out to be just water, highlighting a history of unfulfilled promises in the nation's energy sector

rayed for the well bei ng of the fami ly

sons

the border, Indian security forces placed the 1,751-km India-Nepal f r o

Indian carriers IndiGo and Air India announced suspension of

Kathmandu

The Nepal army announced

security operations now The mil-

itself, would be fully mobilised if violence continues At the same time, it appealed for public cooperation, urging citizens to refrain from destructive acts and help restore order

The protest by Gen-Z began after the Oli cabinet decided to

where details of alleged political corruption were highlighted regularly

Japan PM resigns after suffering defeat in poll

announced his resig natio n following g ro wi ng c alls fro m w i th in h is p arty to take responsibility for a historic d efeat in July’s p arliam entary election Ish iba, wh o to ok office in Oct, said h e was stepping do wn as prime minister and as the head of his conserv ative L iberal Demo cratic Party

Ishiba, a 68-year-old centrist, had resisted demands from opponents within his own party to resign He argued that he wanted to avoid a political vacuum at a time when Japan faces key domestic and international challenges, including US tariffs, rising prices and growing tensions in the Asia-Pacific

Ishiba explained at a news conference that he had intended for some time to take responsibility for his party’s summer election loss, but was first determined to make progress in tariff negotiations with the US “Who would negotiate with a govt whose leader says he is stepping down?” Ishiba said

He said the moment had arrived with an order by US President Trump to lower tariffs on Japanese cars and other products from 25% to 15% “Having reached a milestone in the tariff negotiations, I decided now is the time to make way for a successor, ” Ishiba said

The resignation came one day before Ishiba’s party was to decide whether to hold an early leadership election, which would have amounted to a virtual no-confidence motion against him if approved

ing

dream

in brief POLICE STOP SECURITY SERVICES FOR KAMALA HARRIS

The Los Angeles Police Department ended its protection services for former Vice President Kamala Harris after facing criticism from an elite unit of officers and the police union The department said that it had assigned officers to assist the California Highway Patrol in providing security for Harris The agencies stepped in to fill the security gap that was left after President Trump terminated Harris’ Secret Service security detail The decision to dispatch the Los Angeles police was met with swift criticism from officers of Metropolitan Division, the people familiar with the matter said

BAY AREA’S GANESH FESTIVAL

The chants of “Ganpati Bappa Morya” reverberated across Bishop Ranch City Center as an estimated 20,000 people converged for the Bay Area's largest Ganesh Festival The day-long celebration was an impressive showcase of Indian culture beginning with traditional rituals and aartis The energy escalated with a grand procession featuring over 100 dhol-tasha drummers and devotional dancers whose performance captivated the vast crowd This vibrant display of faith continued until the evening farewell, as percussionists led thousands in song and prayer for the visarjan ceremony

INDIA’S ‘TARIFF KING’ LABEL DEBUNKED

Mohan Kumar, who served as India s ambassador to France, challenged the “tariff king” label for India arguing in a Newsweek opinion article that the claim is misleading and based on flawed data He said that that critics selectively use statistics and ignore the economic realities of a developing nation Kumar explained that tariffs in countries like India serve two crucial purposes: protecting fragile domestic industries and generating essential government revenue He highlighted that while India’s simple average tariff rate may appear high at 16 per cent this figure is a poor indicator of its actual trade policy

BOLLYWOOD MAGIC AT LA'S UNION STATION

Los Angeles Union Station's Ticket Concourse was transformed into a vibrant celebration of South Asian culture In an event dubbed Metro Art Presents: Bollywood Express at Union Station, the venue pulsed with a unique energy that captivated commuters and festival-goers alike The festival’s magic was palpable from the moment Dholnation s powerful drums thundered through the hall People stopped in their tracks, drawn in by the infectious rhythm This rhythmic energy was perfectly complemented by the dynamic performance of the Blue13 Dance Company

food security On this bar-

niques are being used to bring greenery

This project is providing employment to thousands of people Youth from nearby villages are receiving training in modern agriculture By

Shigeru Ishiba

Donald Trump

in brief PAK DELEGATION HOLDS TALKS WITH XI

A Pakistani delegation comprising army chief Asim Munir, PM Shehbaz Sharif and deputy PM and foreign minister Ishaq Dar held wideranging talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping The Pak delegation was in China to participate in SCO Summit in Tianjin and later at the Chinese army parade in Beijing During the meeting Xi said as global changes unseen in a century are unfolding at a quicker pace and a strong China-Pak relation is conducive to safeguarding regional peace and development

CRUCIAL ROLE FOR ARMY IN BANGLADESH POLL

Bangladesh Election Commission has proposed empowering the armed forces to act as “law enforcement agencies” during elections one of the several changes it has suggested in the final draft of Representation of the People Order (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 The draft ordinance which comes ahead of the Feb national election also proposes to bar fugitives from contesting polls and reintroducing the No Vote option in single-candidate constituencies to prevent uncontested elections

ANUTIN CHARNVIRAKUL NAMED THAILAND PM

Anutin Charnvirakul, a veteran politician best known for successfully lobbying to decriminalize cannabis in Thailand, became the country s prime minister after receiving a royal endorsement two days after he was chosen by Parliament following a court order that removed his predecessor Anutin, 58, succeeds Paetongtarn Shinawatra of the Pheu Thai Party, dismissed last week after being found guilty of ethics violations He served in Paetongtarn’s cabinet as a deputy PM, but resigned his positions and withdrew his party from her coalition govt after news of the leaked phone call caused public uproar

1,000 FEARED KILLED IN DARFUR LANDSLIDE

A massive landslide has tragically wiped out an entire village in Sudan’s western Darfur region with a rebel group controlling the area stating that an estimated 1,000 people have perished The disaster, described as one of the deadliest natural calamities in the country's recent history, occurred in a Tarasin village, located within the Marrah mountains The Sudan Liberation Movement-Army reported that the village was completely levelled to the ground after days of torrential rainfall In a statement the group said that initial reports indicated the death of all residents with the exception of a single survivor

TYPHOON LEAVES 24 INJURED IN JAPAN

Tropical Storm Peipah has left 24 people wounded and 40 houses damaged in four municipalities in the central Japanese prefecture of Shizuoka, local media reported The year s 15th typhoon made landfall twice in western Japan and then moved eastward along Japan s Pacific coast before turning into an extra-tropical depression The most harm to humans occurred in Makinohara including three people who were severely wounded and 20 others sustaining light injuries

An agricultural greenhouse was blown away by strong winds in Yaizu City, leaving a farmer in his 40s with a severe facial fracture the report said

475 HYUNDAI WORKERS ARRESTED

Hundreds of workers at a Hyundai Motor car battery facility under construction in Georgia were detained in a major raid by US authorities, stopping work on a plant that is one of the Korean automaker s major investments in the US About 475 workers were arrested according to immigration officials making it the largest singlesite enforcement operation in the department of homeland security s history The arrests could exacerbate tensions between

HinduPACT demands dismissal of Navarro for remarks against Brahmins

expense of the Indian people, a statement it labelled a "recycled

HinduPACT, stated emphatical-

attempt to

demned Navarro for circulating a mocked-up image of India’s Prime Minister meditating in saffron robes, a colour considered sacred in Hinduism Deepti M

HinduPACT, called the act an undermining of both diplomacy and religious respect, emphasising, “Saffron is sacred Prayer is not propaganda

high-profile ridicule has serious real-world consequences for the

United States Deepa Karthik, General Secretary, highlighted that Navarro's comments give rise to bullying and unfair profiling, stating, “When someone uses caste to shame India, it l

group stressed that tolerating this behaviour in US policy circles sends a dangerous message and urged the President to take action to protect religious dignity and preserve the vital rela-

two largest democracies

Anti-immigration rhetoric targets Indian professionals in the US

WASHINGTO N, DC: A growing chorus of pr omin en t con se rvative a nd MAG A-aligne d figure s ar e int ensifying their at tacks on skilled immigra tion, par ticular ly ta rge ting In dian pr ofe ssion als on H-1B visas The rhet oric, which t i e s f

on s o v

he U S economy a nd job ma rke t to the pre se nce of fore ign worke rs, ha s be come a fla shpoin t in political discour se

recently fuelled by Charlie Kirk, founder of Turning Point USA In a post on X, Kirk argued that the United States does not need

more visas for Indian workers, claiming that no form of legal i m m i g r a t i o n h a s s o d i s p l a c e d

American workers as those from India His comments resonated with some Americans who feel the squeeze of inflation and job

insecurity, while also drawing a strong pushback from supporters of immigration

responded directly to Kirk, pointing out that there are no visas for people from India, but rather specific visa categories He championed the substantial contributions of Indian professionals, highlighting their role in founding startups, leading Fortune 500 companies, and creating millions of j o b s O t h e r c o m m e n t a t o r s

Indian origin named to highest-ranking civil service position in NASA

WA S H I NG T ON , D C : A m i t

Kshatriya, a 20-year veteran of the U S space agency, has been ap p o i nt ed a s NA S A ’ s n ew as s o ci at e ad m i

positio n, A cting A dministrator

Sean P Duffy announced K

l y served as deputy in charge of the Moon to Mars Program

w i t h i n N A S A ’ s E x p l o r a t i o n

Systems Development Mission Directorate at headquarters in Washington In that role, he oversaw planning and implementation for crewed missions to the Moon under the Artemis campaign, designed to pave the way for humanity’s first mission to Mars

Amit Kshatriya

Born in Wisconsin and educated at the

C a l i f o r n i a I n s t i t u t e o f Technology and the University of Texas at Austin, Kshatriya is among a select group of about 1 0 0 i n d i v i d u a l s i n h i s t o r y t o serve as a mission control flight director His operational and s t r a t e g i c b a c k g r o u n d

A officials said, brings unmatched expertise to the agency ’ s top ranks K

integrating commercial partnerships into NASA’s long-term strategy Duffy emphas

industry as a vital driver of American economic growth, with Kshatriya expected to guide stronger collaboration between NASA and private space companies

Nita Ambani's cultural festival postponed amid US-India tensions

NEW Y ORK: The ‘Grand Indi an Festival,’ a maj or cultural showc a s e p la n n ed f or N e w Y or k 's Lincoln Center, has been abruptly pos tp on ed , j us t d ay s b e fo re i ts scheduled opening Organis ed by the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC), the event may have become an unexpected casua lt y o f t he s t ra i n ed r el a ti o ns between Was hington and New D elhi Organisers announced the delay, citing only unforeseen circumstances, without offering further details However, media analysts have noted that large-scale international events -which rely on cross-border sponsorships, collaborations, and governmental clearances - are often the first to feel the repercussions of diplomatic friction

In a statement, NMACC representatives expressed deep regret over the postponement but were quick to reassure the public Nita Ambani, the centre’s Founder and

Chairperson, emphasised that the festival would proceed at a later date, stating, "This is not a cancell a t i o n , o n l y a p a u s e , a n d w e remain fully committed to bringi n g t h e N M A C C e x p e r i e n c e t o New York Organisers have confirmed that all ticket buyers will receive full refunds and will have the opportunity to purchase new tickets once fresh dates are announced The postponement comes amid reports of fraying ties between the two nations, with the article pointing to the Mukesh Ambani-headed Reliance group ’ s role as a major refiner of Russian oil India's status as a key buyer of this oil is a point of contention with the current US administration, which has previously imposed substantial tariffs on the country This political backdrop suggests a complex and challenging environment for bilateral events of this scale

echoed this sentiment, insisting that skilled immigrants are an investment, filling critical skill gaps in technology and engineering However, Kirk’s post also drew support from commentators who believe foreign

claiming that Indian profession-

American-born employees The exchange highlights the deeply polarised nature of the immigra-

anxiety and political rhetoric

Apologise, Australia PM asks senator for making anti-India comments

A nthony Albanese said that a right-wing o pposition law maker should apologise fo

igrating to

Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, a senator in the centre-right Liberal Party, made the comments about one of Australia's largest minority groups following nationwide anti-

Indians for cost-of-living pressures in the country

Price used a radio interview last week to suggest that large numbers of Indians had been allowed to migrate to Australia to vote

There is a concern with the Indian community - and only because there's been large numbers And we can see that reflected in the way that the community votes for Labor at the same time," Price said H

among the Australian-Indian community, leading to calls for an apology, including from within her own party

"People in the Indian community are hurting," Albanese said in an interview with state broadcast ABC The comments are not true that the senator made and, of course, she should apologise for the hurt that has been caused, and her own colleagues are saying that "

Peter Navarro

Nita Mukesh Ambani

Anthony Albanese

Deadly monsoon season claims over 500 lives in North India

T h e re le ntl es s m o ns o o n

r ai ns h av e c la im ed m o re

t h an 50 0 li v e s ac ro s s

Him achal Prad esh, Jam mu

& K as h m i r, P u n j ab, a nd

H ar ya na

T h e on g o i ng severe weather has resu lted

i n a d e v as ta ti ng

c om bi natio n of land slides, flash floo ds, and collapsing buildings, leaving a trail of d estruction in its wake

I n H i m a c h a l P r a d e s h , the death toll has tragically

r i s e n t o 3 4 1 R e c

l a n d s l i d e s

n M a n d i a n d Shimla have accounted for a number of these fatalities, including a family of four who were buried when their house collapsed The state has been particularly hardhit, with over 1,155 roads and t h o u s a n d s o f p o w e r a n d water lines disrupted Punjab is grappling with its worst floods in nearly four decades The state has d e c l a r e d i t s e l f a d i s a s t e r zone, with an official death toll of 37 Over 1,200 villages have been impacted, with a

staggering 375,000 acres of

The Bhakra dam is nearing

reported 132 deaths and 33 people missing since August 14 The Jhelum River has c

k , sparking memories of the

linking Jammu and Srinagar

thousands of vehicles

brought the total to eight,

including three young girls who died in a roof collapse

affected infrastructure, with 87 border outposts and 110 kilometres of border fencing damaged along the Pakistan

downpour, which has made this the wettest two-week period in North India in at least 14 years, is a result of a

western disturbances have

and intense rainfall

India and Germany push for early EU free trade agreement

In a bid to navig ate global

t rad e t en si o ns , In d i a' s External Affairs M inister S Jaishankar has appealed to

G er m an y to fa st

k neg otiations for an Ind iaEu ropean U nion Free T rade

A greement (F TA) During a m eet in g w i th h is v i s i

d eal w ould help

the g lo bal econom y, particularly as Ind ia seeks to circum vent

i t s cu r ren t tra d e co n fl ic t w ith the U S

The talks also touched

o n t h e U k r a i n e c o n f l i c t , with Wadephul urging India

t o u s e i t s i n f l u e n c e t o

p e r s u a d e R u s s i a t o j o i n p e a c e e f f o r t s H e a l s o

e x p r e s s e d t h e E U ' s o p p o s i t i o n t o R u s s i a n o i l reaching its shores through r o u n d a b o u t m e t h o d s

A c k n o w l e d g i n g G e r m a n y ' s s t a t u s a s E u r o p e ' s l a r g e s t e c o n o m y , J a i s h a n k a r highlighted the importance

o f p r e d i c t a b i l i t y i n g l o b a l politics He noted that the o n g o i n g g l o b a l s h i f t s a r e directly influencing India's f o r e i g n p o l i c y a n d i t s approach to other countries

W a d e p h u l , f o r h i s part, supported a yeare n d d e a d l i n e f o r t h e F T A , w h

d

a l o f i t s k i n d worldwide He echoed t h e s e n t i m e n t t h a t w h e

n g their own "If others set

i n g these impediments and h u r d l e s ( b e t w e e n u s ) , " W a d e p h u l s t a t e d , b a c k i n g the early ratification of the agreement The two nations a l s o d i s c u s s e d e x p a n d i n g

c o o p e r a t i o n i n t r a d e , defence, and security, with G e r m a n y s h o w i n g a k e e n interest in forging a stronger

a l l i a n c e a m i d s t c u r r e n t geopolitical uncertainties

6 killed in Pavagadh ropeway accident

Pavagadh hill in Gujarat has resulted in the deaths of six p eo pl e a f

s w un g

o

tow er bef ore plum met in g to the ground

P a n c h m a h a l

s u p e r i n t e n d e n t o f p o l i c e , Haresh Dudhat, stated that all six people aboard were k i l l e d i n t h e i n c i d e n t A

f o r m a l i n v e s t i g a t i o n h a s been launched by the police and district administration

t o d e t e r m i n e t h e e x a c t cause of the cable failure

T h e v i c t i m s h a v e b e e n identified as workers and t e m p l e s t a f f , i n c l u d i n g

individuals from Rajasthan and Jammu and Kashmir

The passenger ropeway,

Officials have clarified that the accident involved only

Cricket star Shikhar Dhawan caught in betting app probe

F o rm er I nd i a n c ri ck ete r Sh ikhar Dhaw an has been q u es ti o ned b y t h e E nf o rc em e nt Di re ct o rat e ( E D ) i n N ew D el h i i n connection with his alleged en d o rs em ent o f 1 xB et, a controversial online betting p l atf o rm D h aw an 's appearance for questioning f o llo w s a si m i la r i nt err o g ati o n o f f el lo w cricketer Su res h Raina o n A ugust 1 3, both linked to the same illeg al app

A c c o r d i n g t o s o u r c e s , t h e t w o c r i c k e t e r s a r e s u s p e c t e d o f r e c e i v i n g p a y m e n t s f o r p r o m o t i n g the online platform, despite knowing that online betting is illegal in India The ED’s investigation is focused on t h e a p p s p r o m o t e r s a n d t h e i r a s s o c i a t e s , w h o a r e

b e l i e v e d t o b e o p e r a t i n g these illegal betting apps

A u t h o r i t i e s a r e s e e k i n g details about their contacts and operational networks within India The ED has also requested information f r o m t h e c r i c k e t e r s r e g a r d i n g t h e m o d e s o f p a y m e n t a n d t h e b a n k accounts used to transfer m o n e y f o r t h e s e endorsements This probe c o m e s a m i d a s i g n i f i c a n t crackdown on illegal online

b e t t i n g i n t h e c o u n t r y

India s Chief o f Defence Staff, General Anil Chauh an, has outlined the country's most p r es s i n g

al s e c u

India is a major market for s

The ongoing investigation highlights the government's determination to tackle the widespread issue of illegal online gambling, which has

framework's success in fostering a culture of d

second-place position, with IIT-Bombay and IIT-Delhi holding steady at third and fourth respectively IIT-Madras also cemented its leadership in the engineering, innovation,

categories

The

private university to break into the top three, ranking just behind IISc-Bengaluru and JNU, New Delhi Jamia Millia Islamia slipped to

University institutions continued to excel, with Hindu College leading the list and a total of 31 DU colleges making it into the top 100 Miranda House and Hansraj College also held strong positions

c h al le n ge s, h igh lighting th e ongoing bo undary dispute wi t h Ch i n a a nd P a k is t an ' s s tr at eg y o f bleeding India by a th ou sand cu ts as the top two threats Sp eaking at a seminar in Gorakhpu r, he stated that th ese two issues are the p rimary drivers of India's defence p reparedness efforts

G e n e r a l C h a u h a n a l s o i d e n t i f i e d a t h i r d s i g n i f i c a n t c h a l l e n

l instability He noted that political, social, and economic turbulence in neighbouring c o u n

external interference, further complicating India's security landscape

The fourth challenge, according to the CDS, is the evolving nature of warfare He emphasised that future conflicts will be multi-domain, extending into space and c y b e r s p a c e , a n d w i l l r e q u i r e g

cohesion among India's armed forces He s

methods, including the use of robotics and unmanned combat B e y o

highlighted two additional challenges: the nuclear capabilities of Pakistan and China,

and the rapid pace of advancements in military technology He also referenced the recent Operation Sindoor, stating that it was not only a retaliatory action against the Pahalgam terror attack but also a clear message to draw a red line on cross-border terrorism He commended NSA Ajit Doval for his significant role in the planning and e

Chauhan concluded by stating that each of these complex threats requires

Johann Wadephul and S Jaishankar

Shikhar Dhawan

General Anil Chauhan

Modi and Trump signal thaw in strained US-India ties

In a si gn of d e-esc alating

ten si o n s, U S P re si d e nt

Do nald Tru mp and Ind ian

P ri m e M i n is te r Na ren d ra

Mod i hav e p ublicly signalled

a d esire to m end their relatio ns h ip , d es p ite a rec ent

tra d e i m p a s se T ru m p as se rte d th a t th e t w o nations sh are a special relationship, and there is nothin g t o w o rr y a bo u t, an assessm ent fully reciprocated by Mod i, who described the p artnership as very positiv e and forward -loo king

T h e c o m m e n t s c

m e after Trump's initial social media post that he had lost India and Russia to China However, he quickly walked back the statement during a media chat, expressing his disappointment over India's

c o n t i n u e d p u r c h a s e o f Russian oil but maintaining

t h a t h e w o u l d a l w a y s b e friends with Modi He clarified that his imposition of a

linked to this issue

The back-and-forth fol-

based on what suits

best

undoubtedly continue buying Russian oil

While some of Trump's

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal took a more concilia-

trade dispute as

temporary

However, the lack of direct

leaders and the possibility of Modi forgoing a visit to the UN General Assembly later

while the public rhetoric has softened, a full reset of ties may still be some way off

PM Modi asks NDA MPs to promote made-in-India products

P ri m e M i n i s te r N a re n dr a M odi exhorted NDA MPs to m a k e Sw a de s hi a m as s movement and asked them t o o rg an i s e “ Sw a de s hi M ela” to promote indi ge-

n o us pr od uc t s , s t re s s i n g that self-reliance is the way to power India’s rise when i t s in c r ea s i n g s tr e ng th is b ound to fac e s ome challenges

Addressing the MPs a day before the vice-presid e n t i a l e l e c t i o n , M o d i f o c u s s e d o n t h e n e e d t o

p r o m o t e m a d e - i n - I n d i a products and take to the masses the message of the wide impact of the GST rate cuts by holding meetings with people and traders in their constituencies, espe-

c i a l l y d u r i n g t h e f e s t i v a l

s e a s o n b e t w e e n N a v r a t r i and Diwali, sources said

U n i o n m i n i s t e r K i r e n

Rijiju later said Modi was not referring to any particular country while emphasisi n g t h e n e e d f o r s e l freliance

“ T h e P M s a i d s o m e c h a l l e n g e s w i l l c o m e u p when India is emerging as a strong nation and it needs to be ‘aatmanirbhar’ (selfreliant) to continue on the path to becoming a devel-

o p e d n a t i o n , ” s t a t e d t h e

Union minister

A m i d a s t r a i n i n t i e s w i t h t h e U S f o l l o w i n g

President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a high 50% tariff on India, Modi h a s t u r n e d u p h i s “ s w a d e s h i ” p i t c h , e v e n though he has been emphasising it for a long time

He asked the MPs to hold fairs to promote made-

in-India products in their constituencies, urging them to take a leadership role for t h e s a m e T h e p e o p l e s h o u l d f e e l a s p r o u d o f o w n i n g m a d

products as they did once about possessing Japanese items, he added Modi said GST rate cuts

(wave) among people, but MPs need to build on it by h

(meetings with traders)

The PM, a source said,

g a v e t h e e x a m p l e o f t h e need to pump air in a vehicle’s tyres even if the wind is blowing in the right direction In the same way, one has to work on the ground t o t a k e m e s s a g e f o r w a r d despite a favourable atmosphere

Srinagar's Hazratbal shrine plaque

pra yers , i nvolved the defa ci ng of a plaque beari ng the n ation al emb lem of In dia T h e p o l i c e h a v e n o t confirmed the exact number of detentions, but the incident has drawn sharp criticism from the National Conference (NC) NC MP Aga Ruhullah Mehdi called the detentions "operational

r e t r i b u t i o n , " w h i l e p a r t y president Farooq Abdullah labelled the installation of t h e e m b l e m a m i s t a k e , arguing that it was inappropriate for a religious site

T h e p l a q u e w a s installed by the J&K Waqf Board to mark the shrine's r e c o n s t r u c t i o n T h e b o a

BJP politician, Darakhshan

act, blaming the NC for the d e f

booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA) T

India, Singapore chart new roadmap for strategic partnership

In a significant move to d

India and Singapore have unveil ed a ne w roadmap for t heir compre hen sive strat egic pa rtne rship The a

in g Singaporean counterpa rt,

sectors, including economic

a n d d r i v e n b y a c o m m o n v i s i o n f o r p e a c e , p r o g r e s s a n d p r o s p e r i t y H e a l s o e x p r e s s e d g r a t i t u d e f o r Singapore's steadfast support on issues like cross-border

t e r r o r i s m , r e f e r e n c i n g t h e recent Pahalgam attack

L o o k i n g a h e a d , M

o n a t i o n s e x t e n d s f a r b e y o n d

t r a d i t i o n a l d i p l o m a c y , c h a r a c t e r i s i n g i t a s a

p a r t n e r s h i p w i t h p u r p o s e ,

r o o t e d i n s h a r e d v a l u e s , guided by mutual interests,

Major dip in Indians travelling to US in over two decades

T h e n u m b e r of I n d i a n t r av e l l er s t o th e U n i te d States has fallen for the first tim e s inc e 2 001, excluding t he C ov i d - 1 9 p a n d e m i c y e ar s , m ar k i ng a n o ta b le reversal of a long-s tanding trend Ac cording to the U S

C o m m e r c e D ep a r tm e n t' s

N a t i o n a l T ra v e l a n d

T ou r i s m O f f i c e ( N TT O ) , 210,000 Indian s visi ted the US i n J un e 202 5, an 8% drop

c o m p a re d t o th e s a m e m o n t h l a s t y e a r

P r ov i s i o n a l d a ta f or J ul y

s u g ge s t s t he d e c l i n e i s conti nui ng, with a further 5 5% decreas e This slowdown is not limited to India, as it is part

of a wider global trend of d e c l i n i n g i n t e r n a t i o n a l t r a v e l t o t h e U S N T T O

d a t a r e v e a l s t h a t o v e r a l l international arrivals also fell in recent months, with drops in June (6 2%), May ( 7 % ) , M a r c h ( 8 % ) , a n d

goes against this very belief"

sacred spaces must reflect only the purity of Tawheed The political and religious sensitivities surrounding the i n c i d

m p t e d authorities to tighten security around the shrine to pre-

though no fresh incidents have been reported

heightened tensions The LG-led administration had already faced criticism for failing to reschedule

I n a si g n if i ca nt p o li cy shift, a new o fficial report fro m th e C anad ian go ver nm e nt, t it le d ‘ A s s es s m en t o f M o ney Laundering and Terrorist F i na nc in g Ri s ks , ’ h as re v ea le d th at p roK h ali st an te rro r o u tfi ts ar e r ec ei v i ng f in an ci al su pp ort w ithi n Canad a T h e re po rt nam es g ro u ps l ik e Ba bb ar K h a ls a International (BK I) and the I nt ern ati o na l S ik h Y o u th F ed era ti o n ( I S YF ) , an d ex p li c i tly ac kn o w le d g es their use of vio lent means to es ta bl i sh a n i nd ep en d en t state within P unjab, Ind ia

and friends The current drop is most

though experts warn that if visa

F e b r u a r y ( 1 9 % ) O n l y J a n u a r y a n d A p r i l s a w modest increases Despite this decline, India remains the fourth largest source of international visitors to the US, and the second largest o v e r s e a s m a r k e t , b e h i n d o n l y t h e U K , g i v e n t h a t Canada and Mexico share land borders with America T o g e t h e r , t h e s e f i v e c o u n t r i e s a c c o u n t e d f o r n e a r l y 6 0 % o f a l l

Pro-Khalistan groups getting Canadian govt support, says report

This acknowledgement stands in stark contrast to t h e p r e v i o u s a d m i n i s t r at i o n ' s c h a r a c t e r i s a t i o n o f such activities as "democrati c f r e e d o m s " T h e r e p o r t notes that while the funding for these groups has dimini s h e d , t h e y c o n t i n u e t o o p e r a t e t h r o u g h " s m a l l e r p o c k e t s o f i n d i v i d u a l s " T h e s e g r o u p s h a v e b e e n k n o w n t o u s e n e t w o r k s , including non-profit organisations, to solicit donations from diaspora communities T h e C a n a d i a n r e p o r t lists BKI and ISYF alongside o t h e r d e s i g n a t e d t e r r o r i s t o r g a n i s a t i o n s , s u c

the category of "politically motivated violent extremism" that has successfully generated funds within the country The funding metho

Narendra Modi and Donald Trump

Lawrence Wong and Narendra Modi

Stalin defends his European visit to attract foreign investments

C H E NN A I: T am i l N ad u

Ch ief Minister MK Stalin announced that the state h as s i g ne d i nv es tm e nt

M e m o ran d u m s o f

U n d er st and in g ( M o U s)

w o rt h £ 1 5 5b n, w i th th e po tential to create 1 7, 61 3

j o bs d u r in g h i s E u ro p e to ur

Speaking about the investments, Stalin said 10 new companies have shown interest in Tamil Nadu, while 17 existing companies have agreed to expand operations within the state instead of moving to other regions

Responding to criticism of his overseas tours, Stalin said the trips were aimed at attracting investors to Tamil Nadu

“Some are questioning why such trips are necessary But when I spoke

a b o u t T a m i l N a d u d u r i n g t h e investors’ meet in Germany, several participants said it encouraged them to come here,” he stated

T h e C h i e f M i n i s

India,” drawing parallels

highlighted Tamil Nadu’s

13 injured in violence at K’taka Ganesh idol procession

M A N D Y A : Thirteen people were wounded and 22 taken into custody after communal clashes broke out during a Ganesh idol immersion procession in Maddur town of Karnataka’s Mandya district Sunday night, sparking a heavy security clampdown and political sparring

Authorities deployed over 1,000 police personnel Monday to prevent flare-ups after stones were allegedly hurled at a procession around 9pm the previous night Police dispersed the crowd quickly, and idols were later immersed in a lake outside the town without further violence

Shops downed shutters voluntarily on Monday, w

NORTH-EAST

Anti-dam activist stopped from flying to Dublin

Arunachal Pradesh-based anti-dam activist and lawyer Bhanu Tatak was stopped from boarding a flight to Dublin from Delhi after immigration authorities acted on a look out circular (LOC) linking her to two pending police cases in her native state, one for alleged criminal trespass and the other for d

secretariat Bhanu, legal adviser of Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum, was to travel to Ireland for a three-month academic course a

Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami’s allegations that the tours were linked to his family’s business interests “I

Tuesday Another round of idol immersions is slated for Wednesday, prompting police to step up cover

Mandya SP Mallikarjun Baladandi said key accused were arrested based on CCTV and cell phone footage They face non-bailable charges

Police used lathis Monday to disperse activists who

portrait of social reformer

their land,” Stalin said During the Europe trip, Stalin unveiled

University, calling it the

greatest

relevance of Periyar’s philosophy of self-respect, rationalism, and social justice

permission “Is this a state in India or has it become a mini-Pakistan? Govt is responsible for the law-andorder breakdown,” alleged BJP’s R Ashoka

BJP MP Pratap Simha demanded suspension of police who allegedly lathi-charged women JD(S) youth w

action against those carrying lethal weapons during the clashes

Modi announces £160mn assistance for flood-hit Punjab GU

A S P U R: Prime M inister N are nd r a M o d i o n T u es d a y co nd ucted an aerial su rv ey of t h e fl o o

P unjab, and also annou nced a financial assistance of £160m n for Punjab in add ition to th

s kitty Punjab is currently facing o ne of its worst flood disasters in decad es

P M M o d i l a n d e d i n Gurdaspur - one of the worst affected district in the statea f t e r c o n d u c t i n g t h e a e

survey The Prime Minister also

m

p l e a s well as NDRF and SDRF teams

P M M o d i a l s o c h a i r e d a n official meeting in Gurdaspur to review the situation

The second installment of SDRF and PM Kisan Samman

N i d h i w i l l b e r e l e a s e d i n a d v a n c e , a s p e r a n o

financial assistance, PM Modi also announced ₹200,000 exgratia for the next of kin of the deceased and ₹50,000 for the i n j u r e d F o r t h e g o v e r n m e n t schools that have been ravaged b y t h e f l o o d s , t h e P M announced monetary aid under the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan Prior to his visit to Punjab,

P M M o d i v i s i t e d H i m a c h a l Pradesh and took stock of the flood and landslides situation in the state “The Government of India s t a n d s s h o u l d e r t o s h o u l d e r with those affected in this tragic hour,” PM Modi also posted on X, following his visit Punjab is reeling under one

of its worst flood disasters in d e c a d e s , r e s u l t i n g f r o m t h e swelling of Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi r i v e r s - a l o n g w i t h s e a s o n a l rivulets fed by the heavy rainfall i n t h e i r c a t c h m e n t a r e a s i n Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir

N o t j u s t t h e s w e l l i n g o f rivers, heavy rains in recent days in Punjab have also aggravated t h e f l o o d i n g s i t u a t i o n T h e floods have already claimed 51 lives and destroyed crops spread over 184,000 hectares The state government estimates losses at o v e r £ 1 3 b n , u n d e r l i n i n g t h e scale of devastation To date, a total of 2,064 villages have been impacted because of the floods Over 387,000 people have been affected across 15 districts and more than 23,000 persons have been safely evacuated from the f l o o d - h i t a r e a s , a c c o r d i n g t o reports

Kolkata student alleges gang rape by 2 friends at birthday party

Arunachal Pradesh police clarified that the LOC against her was specifically for the twin cases registered at Itanagar police station and had nothing to do with her opposition to the Siang dam project The first case dates back to 2021, when Bhanu allegedly barged into Itanagar’s BB Plaza mall for a protest The next year, police accused her of “

targeting the “Wall of Harmony” mural at the secretariat Assam artist Nilim Mahanta and local activist Ebo Mili were named as co-

saying they had found evidence of Bhanu transferring funds for the act of vandalism

MEITEI, KUKI GROUPS REJECT CENTRE’S MANIPUR ‘DEALS’

KO LK ATA : Chaos b roke out in the West Beng al

A ss e mb l y a s b ot h t h e

r u l in g p a r t y a n d opp ositi on ca ll in g e ach other “thieves”, after B JP

l e g i sl a t o r s d is r up t e d

C hi e f M in i st e r M a ma t a B a n e r je e ’ s spe ech a gainst the “humil iation of the Ben gali lan gua ge ” As she was about to begin, BJP chief

w h i p S h a n k a r G h o s h s o u g h t a n e x p l a n a t i o n f r o m S p e a k e r B i m a n B a n e r j e e o n w h y t h e L e a d e r o f Opposition had been suspended for the entire session When the Speaker

r e f u s e d , B J P M L A s b e g a n s h o u t i n g slogans, disrupting the CM’s address

A n n o y e d , B a n e r j e e t o l d T M C legislators, “They are disrupting my speech when the BJP speaks, you p e o p l e s h o u l d d i s r u p t t h e m ” B o t h sides then hurled slogans at each other, causing nearly 15 minutes of uproar

The Speaker suspended Ghosh and A g n i m i t r a P a u l a n d i n s t r u c t e d marshals to remove them During the

scuffle, Ghosh’s health

d e t e r i o r a t e d a n d h e was taken to hospital L a t e r , B J P M L A s Bankim Ghosh, Ashok D i n d a a n d M i h i r G o s w

m

e a l s o suspended Bankim Ghosh, too, was shifted to hospital In her speech, Mamata launched a sharp attack on the BJP, saying, “They (BJP) are again bringing CAA and NRC before the Assembly election in Bengal They are basically anti-Bengali They humiliate Bengalis ” A

n o f deliberately disrupting her, Banerjee said, “I’m shocked They deliberately did that so that people cannot hear my words, this is their programme to stop my voice They were not present in the morning They came shortly before I arrived When the name was called, t h e y d i d n o t s p e a k W h e n t h e y completed their speech, they started chaos I would say, my voice cannot be stopped ”

KO LK A T A : A 20-year-old college stud ent has alleged sh e w as drugg ed , g ang-raped, assaulted and h eld captiv e overnight by two friend s during a birthday p arty in so uth Ko lkata’ s Tollygunge area

Police have filed an FIR against the two accused, identified as Chandan Malik and Debangsu Biswas They are on the run Malik has a criminal record of frequent skirmishes and assaults, officers said Police said Malik had known the woman for several months Associated with a large Durga Puja committee in Haridevpur, he allegedly lured her with promises of involving her in puja activities, which led to repeated interactions

“This gave the suspects the opportunity to exploit her trust,” a senior officer said

According to the FIR, Malik picked up the woman on his bike and took her to Biswas’s rented home in Regent Colony near Malancha cinema CCTV footage shows them entering the home around 10 45pm The party was to celebrate Biswas’s birthday

The student who works part-time at a store told police her drink was spiked Once she began feeling dizzy, the two men pounced on her, she alleged “She managed to escape around 10 30am the next day She told her ordeal to her parents and later approached police with a written complaint,” a senior officer said

A case was registered under multiple sections of BNS dealing with gang rape, abduction, stalking, voluntarily causing hurt, and wrongful confinement Police said the woman underwent a medical examination

Manipur’s fragile peace process buckled under renewed strain as groups representing the warring Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities rejected what the Centre termed “key deals” in the journey to normalcy - one to get KukiZo Council (KZC) to lift a national highway blockade and another for extending the contentious Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with two tribal militant outfits Village Volunteers Coordinating Committee, an influential grassroots Kuki-Zo group declared the reopening of NH2 (Imphal-Dimapur highway) null and void , adding to the confusion over KZC claiming the route had always been open to traffic The volunteers committee said Meitei people were unwelcome in Kuki-Zo territory, making any announcement regarding “free movement” on NH2 inconsequential The waters were further muddied by Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity which speaks for the Meiteis of Imphal Valley, criticising the tripartite SoO extension as a “deceptive and anti-people move” that allegedly legitimises Chin-Kuki armed narco-terrorist groups The two groups with whom the Centre and the state administration have extended the agreement are Kuki National Organisation and United People’s Front COCOMI said the decision to extend the SoO amounted to undermining democratic mandates citing a March 2023 state cabinet resolution and a unanimous Feb 2024 assembly vote to abrogate the pact

PROTESTS OVER DISTRICT NAME CHANGE, 15 INJURED

Clashes between protesters and security forces marked a 12-hour strike over state govt s decision to rename southern Assam s Karimganj district to Sribhumi, leaving at least 15 people, including five policemen, injured and nearly 150 in custody Shops, schools, offices, and transport shut across Sribhumi town and adjoining areas in the district bordering Bangladesh Protesters defied restrictions and held demonstrations outside the district magistrate’s office, demanding immediate withdrawal of the name change, which took effect last Nov “This shutdown is the people s cry of anguish ” a strike supporter said, alleging govt had refused to engage or reconsider despite sustained protests since Feb Violence flared near Sribhumi’s head post office, where bandh supporters clashed with anti-strike groups injuring four protesters Sporadic confrontations across the district left more than a dozen hurt police sources said

Mamata Banerjee

PM Modi undertakes an aerial survey of Flood affected areas in Punjab

CP Radhakrishnan elected as India's next Vice President

from Tamil Nadu to occup

Constitutional position

Radhakrishnan as the winner in the vice presidential election and said that the result would be communic a t e d t o

Vellalar community, as

August 17

H

contested against for-

C

judge Sudershan Reddy, w h

m southern India

The voting for the vice presidential election began at 10 am and continued till 5 pm with

Sabha and the Lok Sabha in the electoral college

A total of 315 opposition MPs had turned up to vote

prising members of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha had a strength of 781 Radhakrishnan, a twoterm member of the Lok S

has long been associated with the BJP During the tenure of prime minister

A

h e came close to becoming a Union minister, but had to lose out to fellow Tamilan Pon Radhakrishnan in 1998 after some confusion over his name by the then floor managers of the BJP

S t a r t

PM Modi to skip Brics summit as India navigates trade tensions

of Brics leaders, w hich is being hosted by Brazilian Presid ent L

Instead, India w ill be repres ent ed by E xte rna l A

nitive tariffs and prom

Modi's decision to skip the event, despite India preparing to assume the Brics presidency next year, is seen as a strategic move to balance its relationship with the US This comes on the heels of his participation in the SCO summit, which was viewed as a reassertion of India's strategic autonomy

UN

Commission T h e r u l i n g N D

d

R e t u r n i n g O f f i c e r P C M o d y d

The electoral college com-

S S , h e rose through the ranks in the organisation and later in the BJP, gaining acceptability in the party and the state

travel ban delays Afghan foreign minister’s India visit

The plan ne d visit of Afghan fore ign min ist er A mir Khan M ut ta qi t o India has r eporte dly r un in to trouble , wit h t he U N S

from the UNSC to facilitate his travel to India

including a meeting between

The ongoing trade dispute has intensified with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stating that India must either support the dollar and the US or face a 50% tariff This rhetoric has caused friction, particularly as India has consistently rejected the idea of de-dollarisation within Brics

n media reports have claimed t h e w

d ,

s o u r c e s i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e dates for the visit have not yet been finalised As an UNdesignated individual under a t r a v e l b a n , M u t t a q i

This would have been a landmark visit, marking the first time a Taliban leader travelled to India, reflecting a gradual improvement in ties New Delhi's relationship with the Kabul regime has been cautiously developing, largely on the back of India's provision of significant humanitarian aid The proposed visit follows severa l h i g h - l e v e l c o n t a c t s b e t w e e n t h e t

Misri and Muttaqi in Dubai in January, and a phone call

Minister S Jaishankar and Muttaqi in May

The recent communication between Jaishankar and Muttaqi, where Jaishankar o

for the victims of

recent

However, Muttaqi's previous attempt to visit Pakistan was also cancelled after the U N S C d e n i e d h i s t r a v e l waiver The latest reports s u g g e s t t h a t a s i m i l a r bureaucratic hurdle is now impeding his potential trip to India The delay highl i g h t s t h e c o m p l e x d i p l omatic challenges India faces i n b a l a n c i n g i t s s t r a t e g i c interests with international s a n c t i o n s a g a i n s t t h e Taliban leadership

Pak nationals must renounce citizenship for Indian status: Kerala HC

In a significant ruling, th e K erala High Court has overt u rn e d a p r ev i o u s o r de r, stati ng th at indivi duals born i n Pakistan canno t be granted Indian citi zenshi p unles s they fi rst o fficially reno unce their Pakistani natio nality

The division bench of J u s t i c e s S u s h r u t A

n appeal by the Union govern-

Meanwhile, there is also suspense surrounding who will lead India's delegation at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York later this month While a slot was reserved for the Prime Minister, sources indicate that his travel is currently not scheduled, unless there is a breakthrough in trade talks with the US that would warrant a high-stakes bilateral meeting with President Trump The current tensions make such a meeting unlikely The decision reflects India's cautious approach to managing its complex relationships with global powers

Canada rejects 80% Indian student visas in 2025

In a r ecent phone call , Prime Minister Naren dra Modi an d Fre nch Pre sident Emmanuel Macron discussed the ongoing effort s to b ring an end to t he confl ict in Ukraine This mar ks their se cond conve rsat ion on the matt er in just a few wee ks, highlighting t he de epening strat egic dial ogue

b e t we e n N e w D e l hi a n d Par is During the call, Macron

b

meeting in Paris This coali-

and security guarantees to Ukraine, including the possi-

The court's decision was b a s e d o n a f u n d a m e n t a l principle of the Citizenship Act, 1955, which does not recognise dual citizenship

The ruling clarified that an individual can only be considered a citizen of India if they are exclusively recognised by the Indian state, w i t h o u t a n y c o m p e t i n g claims from another country

The case involves two

from Pakistan is an essential and non-negotiable requirement

sisters from Thalassery in K e r a l a ' s K a n n u r d i s t r i c t T

Maroof, a native of Kannur, had moved to Pakistan in 1977 before working in the UAE He returned to India

w i t h g o v e r n m e n t p e r m

sion in 2008, bringing his daughters who were born in

applied for Indian citizen-

N

Objection Certificate (NoC)

formal renunciation certificate A single-judge bench

Union government to grant them citizenship However, the High Court’s latest ruling has reversed this decision, reinforcing the strict

stance on citizenship and highlights the rigorous process that foreign nationals must undergo to be naturalised

bility of deploying "reassur-

g from the US

In a post on X, Modi stated that he and Macron had a very good conversation, and they reviewed and positively a s s e s s e d

reiterated India's consistent support for a peaceful and

early resolution to the conflict, and the restoration of p e a c e a n

l i t y i

e region Macron also took to X, expressing that both India and France share the same goal of achieving a "just and lasting peace" in Ukraine He a f f i

nations would continue to

work together on this path, l

n g friendship and strategic partnership T h e l e a d e

a l s o reviewed progress across various sectors, including economic cooperation, defence, s c i e n c e , a n d t e c h n o l o g y They reaffirmed their comm i t m e n t t o s t r e

c Partnership, guided by the " H o r i z o n 2 0 4 7 R o a d m a p , " the "Indo-Pacific Roadmap," and the "Defence Industrial R o

y , Modi thanked Macron for accepting the invitation to a t t e n d t h e A I I m p a c t Summit, which India is set to host in February 2026

Canada has rejec ted 80% of Indian student vi sa applic ations i n 2 02 5, th e h i gh e s t l ev e l i n a de c a de , a c c or d i n g t o

Immi gration, Refugees and Ci ti zenship Canada (IRCC) Indian students have been the most affected as per the data Applicants from Asia and Afric a also saw more rejections

The change can be seen in the admission figures Canada only took in around 188,000 new Indian students in the year 2024 based on the data presented by the Canadian government Canada’s preference has fallen from 18% in 2022 to 9% in 2024

"For decades, the US and Canada have been global magnets for international students, and that continues What we ’ re seeing is not rejection, but fine-tuning - ensuring opportunities remain sustainable for both international and domestic talent," says Paneet Singh, AVP – University Partnerships, upGrad Study Abroad

The reality that cannot be denied is that whereas the US has restricted foreign students and tightened visa regulations, another North American country, rather than welcoming the excess, is shutting its door more quickly

Domestic housing shortages, infrastructure pressures, and local political demands have forced Ottawa into action Students will now have to provide stronger financial documentation, detailed study plans, and language test results

The minimum financial requirement doubled to more than CA$20,000 Rules of work are also stricter Language requirements for graduates of colleges are tighter, and a few

approvals The government will give 437,000 study permits in

nearly

year Out of these, 73,000 will be for postgrads, 243,000 for undergrads and others, and approximately 120,000 for renewals and school students

CP Radhakrishnan

S Jaishankar

Narendra Modi and Emmanuel Macron

India and the “Tariff King” myth

N ew D el h i i s t rea d i ng

c ar ef u ll y af te r P re si d e nt

Donald Trump ap peared to s o f ten

o

strained relations marked by Wash ing ton’s imp osition of 50 % tariffs on Ind ian good

there was “nothing to worry

a

describing the relationship

Narendra Modi

hours later on X, thanking T r u m p a n d s a y i n g h e “ d e e p l y ” a p p r e c i a t e d t h e sentiment, though notably, he stopped short of calling Trump a friend, signalling a m o r e c a u t i o u s a p p r o a c h than in the past

F u r t h e r m o r e , i n a s t r a t e g i c m o v e , P r i m e Minister Modi will skip the B R I C S s u m m i t i n B r a z i l , w i t h E x t e r n a l A f f a i r s

M i n i s t e r S J a i s h a n k a r representing India instead (More on page 25) The two leaders share a h i s t o r y o f w a r m p e r s o n a l ties Modi was among the first world leaders to meet Trump after his return to the White House earlier this

y e a r T h e i r W a s h i n g t o n m e e t i n g i n F e b r u a r y w a s marked by bear hugs and promises to seal a trade deal before year ’ s end

Y e t T r u m p h a s l o n g c r i t i c i s e d I n d i a ’ s t r a d e

b a r r i e r s , r e p e a t e d l y

b r a n d i n g t h e c o u n t r y a “tariff king ” But the reality

i s m o r e c o m p l e x : w h i l e

I n d i a d o e s i m p o s e h i g h

d u t i e s i n s e c t o r s l i k e

a g r i c u l t u r e a n d

a u t o m o b i l e s , i t s o v e r a l l

t a r i f f l e v e l s a r e n o t e x c e p t i o n a l c o m p a r e d t o

many other economies The label of “tariff king,” analysts argue, is more myth than fact

Mohan Kumar, Former

I n d i a n A m b a s s a d o r a n d

Director General of Jadeja

M o t w a n i I n s t i t u t e f o r

A m e r i c a n S t u d i e s , w r i t i n g for Newsweek explains that the “tariff king” label largely s t e m s f r o m t h e f i g u r e o f India’s simple average tariff,

calculated at around 16% Y e t t h i s f i g u r e i s misleading, because it treats

e v e r y t a r i f f l i n e e q u a l l y , regardless of its economic weight A more meaningful m e a s u r

t h e i r s i g n i f i c a n c e t o t h e e c o n o m y B y t h i s calculation, India’s effective tariff rate is closer to 4 6%, placing it far closer to global norms than the sensational headlines suggest I n d i a d i d o n c e h a v e among the world’s highest t a r i f f s , p a r t i c u

automobiles Critics point to steep tariffs on cars or farm products as evidence of protectionism

But the rationale is not unique: protecting millions o f s m a l l f a r m e r s

competition, and fostering

Countries from the EU to Japan and South Korea do

Today, entire sectors, like i n f o r m

o n t e c h n o l o g y hardware, semiconductors, and energy, face minimal or z e r o t a r i f f s , c

n t r a d i c t i n g t h e i d e a o f a b l a n k e t protectionist regime

W h e r e I n d i a d o e s impose higher duties, these are often concentrated in a g r i c u l t u r e a n d

peers Vietnam, China, and

impose higher tariffs than

electronics In many cases, India’s duties are even lower

export-oriented

narrative obscures the more

global trade strategy While it does use tariffs selectively, p

jobs in sensitive sectors, its overall tariff regime is no more restrictive than many of its peers, and in some cases far less so India is not

economic security The real question is not

beyond rhetoric and engage with India as the dynamic, pragmatic trading power it has become

Supreme Court asks EC to accept Aadhaar as voter ID proof

Accepting a major demand of the opposition, t h e Su pr e me C our t or de r e d t he El ec ti on C om mis sio n t o a cc ep t A a d ha a r ca r d s, in a ddit ion to the 11 documen ts specified un der t he Spe cial Int ensiv e Revision (SIR), as a proof of ident it y of a person to enab le him to fil e a p p l i ca t i on fo r i n cl u si on i n t he B ih a r e lectoral r ol l

After hearing senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who complained that EC was acting contrary to a series of directions by SC to accept Aadhaar as proof of identity, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Joymalya Bagchi ordered, “Aadhaar cards shall be accepted as p r o o f o f i d e n t i t y o f a p e r s o n f o r f i l i n g applications for inclusion/exclusion of names from the voter list It shall be treated as the 12th document (under SIR) ”

The direction for inclusion of Aadhaar as a document in addition to the 11 already allowed by the EC came after the poll panel’s strong resistance to the petitioners’ repeated

identification document Justices Kant and Bagchi said Aadhaar card is not alien to the Representation of People Act as one of its provisions provides for Aadhaar as identity proof

When EC told the bench that the clamour for making Aadhaar as an identity document is probably to include illegal migrants in the voter list, the judges took note of the EC’s concern and said, “The authorities concerned will verify the genuineness of Aadhaar cards like any other document submitted by a

name in the voters list EC, which was also being represented senior advocate Maninder Singh, told the bench that opposition parties have not been able to point out any serious lapse with regard to 65,00,000 exclusions on the triple counts

enrolment

Indian woman's cultural shock in Japan

Anusha, an Indian woman currently living in Japan, recently shared a surprising cultural lesson that s drawing attention online In an Instagram post titled Today I learnt something surprising in Japan, she detailed an everyday experience that offered deep insight into Japanese social etiquette, particularly around the use of perfume According to Anusha, a colleague casually mentioned that her perfume felt "a bit strong", even though she believed it was quite mild This opened up a new cultural perspective: in Japan, strong personal fragrances are often considered inconsiderate in public spaces like offices or trains The term for this is sumehara, short for smell harassment, referring to situations where overpowering scents disturb others "Back home, perfume is about self-expression," Anusha wrote "But in Japan, it's more about respecting shared spaces " She concluded her post with a tip for travellers or expats moving to Japan: opt for light and subtle fragrances to avoid unintentionally offending those around you "It's a small detail, but it makes everyday life here so much smoother," she added The post resonated widely, especially among people navigating cross-cultural environments, highlighting how seemingly minor habits can reflect deeper societal values

Employee quits job after leave request rejected

An Indian employee claimed in a Reddit post that they had to quit their job after their company refused to grant leave for their brother's wedding, which was in the United States The Reddit user noted that they applied for 15 working days of leave three weeks in advance, but the company asked them to choose between attending the wedding and resigning In the post, the employee clearly mentioned that they don't have heavy financial obligations, and survival wasn't an issue However, they asked the Reddit community whether or not the decision was right The employee claimed that they tried to compromise by reducing the number of leaves, but the company remained firm in its decision The user claimed that after four years of dedication to the company, including overwork and accepting a lower salary during difficult times, they decided to leave without having another job lined up The user also alleged that the company tried to enforce the notice period and threatened her with warnings about "burning bridges "

Farmer gives up home to keep school running

A farmhand who moved out of his two-bedroom home so that 50 students who had nowhere to go after their school collapsed in the recent rains has become an unlikely hero in Piplodi, a village of mainly tribal inhabitants in the hills of Rajasthan The roof of the primary school in Piplodi, Jhalawar district, had given way almost as soon as the clouds did, slabs of concrete collapsing onto the children beneath, killing seven of them and injuring 21 In that moment, the only school in Piplodi ceased to exist Heartbroken, Mor Singh, a 60-year-old farm labourer who never attended school himself, offered the only asset he had ever built - his small pucca house - to the education department so that classes could continue “Children shouldn’t lose their future,” was all Singh had to say Newborn dies in hospital after rat bite

A newborn died at Indore’s largest govt hospital, Maharaja Yashwantrao Hospital, after it was allegedly bitten by rats in its NICU This is the second such incident in two days, prompting state govt to institute an inquiry Hospital superintendent Dr Ashok Yadav, however, claimed one of them died from congenital anomalies, while cause of death could not be ascertained in the other case as kin refused autopsy “A rat had bitten the baby’s fingers Tuesday and he died Wednesday Thus, rat bite cannot be the cause of death ” However, the nursing superintendent has been removed and two staff suspended Bihar jail turns into a wedding venue

Two jail inmates got married at Bihar’s Madhubani divisional jail The the groom is a man accused of sexually exploiting his widowed sister-in-law, the bride the widow All arrangements for the unusual wedding were made by the jail administration and prison staff served as witnesses as the accused wed his widowed sister-inlaw in prison Jail staff said this happened after the accused filed a bail application in the Patna high court, which was granted on condition that a lower court verify the marriage before accepting the bail bond Following this directive, the accused submitted an application to the court of judge Syed Mohammad Fazlul Bari seeking permission to marry Jail superintendent Om Prakash Shanti Bhushan said the wedding was organised within the jail premises, in compliance with the court order, after making the necessary arrangements for the ceremony

India's venomous snakes become more dangerous

Every year in India, between 46,000-60,000 people die from snake bites– the highest snakebite fatality rate of any country in the world Now, a study suggests new regions may be exposed to these venomous reptiles as climate change alters their habitats Researchers warn that a change in the snakes' ranges could create new public health challenges, especially in rural areas with limited healthcare access Led by Imon Abedin of DibruSaikhowa Conservation Society, the study focused on India's 'big four' snakes – species responsible for most serious bites – and examined how their ranges could shift over the next 50 years The findings suggest the four venomous snakes – common krait (Bungarus caeruleus), Russell's viper (Daboia russelii), Indian cobra (Naja naja) and Echis carinatus –could expand into India's northern and northeastern states, putting more communities in danger “Climate change is altering snake species geographic ranges, resulting in expansions, contractions, or shifting ranges, ” say the authors “Such changes may increase human-snake interactions across rural and urban areas "

Grandmother, 55, gives birth to 17th child

A 55-year-old grandmother in Udaipur district's Jhadol gave birth to her 17th child recently, causing the health department to flag high fertility rates among residents of tribal villages in southern Rajasthan as the primary challenge in population control Rekha Kalbeliya, whose eldest son is 35, presides as the matriarch of a household that has grown to 24 members after the newest addition The family doesn't have a home where everyone can fit in and their combined earnings aren t enough to get by, officials said The size of the Kalbeliya household would have been even larger but for Rekha losing five of her children at infancy The health department said that besides socio-economic challenges, multiple pregnancies among tribal women of the region were exacerbating maternal and neonatal health risks Dr Madhu Riteshwar, a senior health official, said Rekha becoming a mother for the 17th time at her age was a wake-up call for the authorities

PM Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump

S Jaishankar

Loneliness costs Brits their health and pounds

Stay hydrated to help beat stress

Five simple ways to keep your brain in peak condition

Anewly published study from the University of Exeter reveals a sobering truth: loneliness not only diminishes quality of life, but also burdens the National Health Service (NHS) with significant additional costs

The research, led by Dr Nia Morrish, analysed survey data spanning 23,071 UK adults between 2021 and 2023, uncovering that roughly 40% of Britons report feeling lonely at least occasionally, with 8% often experiencing loneliness Those who regularly feel lonely rack up nearly £900 more annually in NHS expenditure, primarily through increased GP, outpatient, and inpatient visits

The link between loneliness and illness comes as no surprise, though the scale affects both mental health and physical functioning Lonely individuals experience higher rates of mental distress and worse overall wellbeing, pressing more heavily on public health resources Cost differences rise most markedly among older adults, yet the most striking disparity is seen among the youngest cohort, 16 to 24year-olds who accrue greater NHS costs from loneliness than the next two age groups, forming what researchers call a U-shaped curve across the lifespan Lead author Morrish emphasises that, while loneliness's health impacts in older age are well-known, its consequences for younger adults should not be overlooked These findings suggest a strong case for investing in targeted support for lonely young people, who contrary to stereotypes may suffer both emotionally and physically, with real financial implications for health services

The predominance of white Britons in the study points to the need for further research into loneliness amongst ethnic minorities and diverse groups Co-author Professor Antonieta Medina-Lara urges policymakers to finally recognise loneliness as a major public health challenge and NHS priority, advocating new strategies to foster social connection, lift wellbeing, and ease mounting healthcare costs

Hidden in plain sight: The autistic adults overlooked by UK healthcare

A new study has revealed a startling truth about autism in the UK, roughly 90% of adults over the age of 40 remain undiagnosed This landmark review, highlights a significant generational gap in diagnosis and support, leaving a large portion of the autistic population without a formal diagnosis

For older generations, autism was rarely a consideration Clinicians and the public viewed it as an uncommon childhood condition with very narrow criteria

Consequently, many autistic people born before the 1980s were either missed entirely or misdiagnosed with other conditions like anxiety or personality disorders The impact of this underdiagnosis is profound Researchers found that older autistic adults consistently face higher rates of physical and mental health issues, including heart disease and depression, along with significant challenges in employment and relationships Alarmingly, they are also six times more likely to experience suicidal ideation

This critical shortfall in diagnosis not only affects individual well-being but also skews our understanding of how autistic people age, leaving gaping holes in policy and healthcare services Experts are now calling for urgent action to improve adult diagnostic services and ensure that support is tailored to the needs of older people It’s high time we stopped overlooking this hidden generation

While physical fitness is often the focus of wellbeing, the brain, too, requires regular exercise to stay sharp and resilient.

the brain’s ability to form new neural pathways means that memory and concen-

strengthened with the right kind of training Here are

ways to give your brain a vital workout

Meditation and breath

awareness

The practice of meditation, even for just ten minutes daily, is a potent tool for strengthening focus By gently redirecting attention to your breathing whenever

way few other activities can This simple act has been shown to enhance the hippocampus, the part of the brain linked to memory

Learning a new skill

Challenging your brain with something unfamiliar f

learn a new language, an instrument, or a foreign cuisine, the process is an excel-

Languages, in particular, are

your brain to juggle vocabulary and grammar simultaneously

Puzzles and games

Puzzles are a classic way

memory games all demand

acting as

form of cross-

faculties The key is to vary the activities to challenge different parts of the brain

Movement that engages the mind

E x

health by increasing blood flow, but combining movement with memory is even better Activities like dance, yoga, or martial arts ask the brain to multitask, which helps produce BDNF, a protein that fosters new brain cell growth

Reading, writing, and storytelling In an age of digital distraction, immersing yourself in a book is a rebellious

Reading fiction and nonfic-

Writing, whether in a journal or an essay, forces your brain to organise thoughts, while storytelling is a fantastic way to train memory and recall

Are you deficient? The subtle signs of low vitamin D

Vitamin D deficiency can be subtle, manifesting as a series of seemingly unrelated symptoms that affect everything from your energy levels to your mood.

primary source, this crucial nutrient is vital for strong bones and a robust immune

deficiency can lead to longterm health complications,

signs is the first step toward better health

One of the earliest and most common indicators is

tiredness This is because vitamin D is essential for

o p r o d u c e a n d m a i n t a i n e n e r g y A weakened immune system is another key symptom, as low levels of the vitamin c a n m a k e y o u m o r e susceptible to illnesses like colds and flu

T h e i m p a c t o f l o w

v i t a m i n D o n b o n e a n d

m u s c l e h e a l t h i s a l s o

s i g n i f i c a n t C h r o n i c b a c k

p a i n , a l o n g w i t h g e n e r a l

m u s c l e w e a k n e s s a n d

c r a m p s , c a n b e a d i r e c t

r e s u l t o f t h e d e f i c i e n c y

This is due to the vitamin’s

c r i t i c a l r o l e i n c a l c i u m

a b s o r p t i o n , w h i c h , i f compromised, can lead to

b r i t t l e b o n e s a n d a n increased risk of fractures or even osteoporosis over time B e y o n d p h y s i c a l symptoms, a deficiency can a l s o a f f e c t m e n t a l w e l lbeing It's been linked to an increased risk of depression a n d m o o d c h a n g e s , a s v i t a m i n D h e l p s r e g u l a t e serotonin production in the

brain Other signs to look out for include hair loss, slow wound healing, weight gain, and even skin issues like eczema Correcting the d e f i c i e n c y t h r o u g h d

significantly improve your overall health

Painkillers may fuel the rise of superbugs

University of South Australia casts a spotlight on the overlooked role common painkillers, like ibuprofen and paracetamol, play in accelerating antibiotic resistance The study, published in the journal ‘npj antimicrobials and resistance,’ investigated how nonantibiotic medicines interact with ciprofloxacin, a widely used antibiotic for treating skin, gut, and urinary tract infections. W

exposed to ciprofloxacin in combination with painkillers, scientists found significantly

to antibiotics

reported that such exposure made bacteria resistant not only to ciprofloxacin, but also

bacterial defences, enabling microbes to eject antibiotics a n d d i m i n i s h t h e i r effectiveness

T h e f i n d i n g s u r g e caution, especially for those taking multiple prescriptions, s u c h a s o l d e r a d u

residential care or patients w

Alongside painkillers, other

diabetes and atorvastatin for cholesterol, were tested, all c

bacterial defences While the s t u d y

halting painkiller use, it calls for greater awareness about drug interactions and more research into their impact on

Future investigations plan to

potential to undermine vital antibiotics

Walk your way to better health

Just 20-30 minutes of brisk walking a day can work wonders for your health. Regular walking helps lower the risk of heart disease, supports weight management, boosts mood, and improves sleep quality It’s a simple habit that requires no equipment and can easily fit into your daily routine for long-term wellbeing

Twice the time: Myeloma patients see dramatic boost in survival

A re ce nt st u d y c o nd u ct ed b y t h e

University o f York has deliv ered g ood news fo r Britons facing a diagnosis of multiple myeloma, a rare and incurable blood cancer Data analysed from 3 ,720 p ati en ts i n E ng lan d , d i ag n o se d betw een 200 5 and 2019, rev ealed that the av erag e survival time has alm ost d o u bl ed o v er th e p a s t 2 0 ye ars , increasing from 2 4 years to 4 5 years Multiple myeloma, which occurs when bone marrow produces abnormal plasma cells, brings symptoms such as bone pain, fatigue, headaches, muscle

Researchers credit advances in kinder, m o r e

remarkable improvement in survival, which is mirrored not just in clinical t r

practices

T h e l e a p f o

pronounced among patients aged 80 and above

Despite progress, experts caution that multiple myeloma survival rates remain troublingly low and further i

emphasises every advance means more time with loved ones and reinforces the value of prioritising research within the NHS With approximately 6,200 cases

Abhay Deol opens up on why he won’t have children

Abhay Deol recently spoke with Dr Jai Madaan during his signature analysis, where marriage and children came up True to his unconventional views, he admitted that parenthood isn’t in his plans “I don’t want to have children If I were to settle down, I’d adopt rather than have my own I just look at the world and wonder why I should bring a child into it,” he said

When asked if he was happy on this planet, Abhay Deol responded simply, “I am ” He explained that his d e c i s i o n

overpopulation and the responsibility

o f p a r e n t h o o d “ E v e n i f I w a n t e d children, I wonder why I should bring a real-life child into this world,” he said R e f l e c t i n g o n t h e e m o t i o n a l demands of parenting, he admitted, “I don’t know if I could do justice How would I manage emotions? I might be more controlling or possessive than I realise Maybe I wouldn’t handle it well ”

A b h a y D e o l s a i d h i s protectiveness stems from his own upbringing, and he fears passing on that intensity “Growing up, we were v e r y p r o t e c t e d I m i g h t l o s e m y easygoing nature and become overly protective or possessive with a child,”

h e e x p l a i n e d , c o n c l u d i n g t h a t handling such emotions would be a tough challenge

A L I A B H A T T on her next film: “I want something Raha can watch, maybe a comedy”

Aftera decade of portraying emotionally layered, intense roles, Alia Bhatt is embracing a new creative direction, one inspired by her daughter, Raha In a recent conversation with Grazia, the ‘Raazi’ and ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’ star said she now wants to build a cinematic world her daughter can one day enjoy and laugh along with Alia admitted she hasn’t yet made a film her daughter Raha can watch, a wish that’s been quietly growing in her Motherhood, she said, has given her a fresh perspective and drawn her toward comedy, a genre she’s never explored While she hasn’t confirmed any projects, Alia hinted that “exciting stuff” is in the works and that if she follows her instincts, comedy may well be her next step Alia Bhatt’s upcoming slate highlights both range and ambition Next, she stars in ‘Alpha’, a high-octane thriller set in YRF’s Spy Universe, playing a commanding officer in an elite all-women combat unit alongside Sharvari Wagh She will also reunite with Ranbir Kapoor and Sanjay Le romantic drama co-starring Vicky Kaushal

Pratik Gandhi takes

his

stories global with festival screenings in Canada and US

Pratik Gandhi is set to make a mark internationally this month with three of his acclaimed projects screening at major film festivals in Canada and the US. Excited to share his work abroad, he said, “It’s an incredible honour to see my stories travel across continents. Though rooted in our history, their themes connect universally ”

Pratik Gandhi’s international tour begins September 6 at TIFF with the world premiere of Hansal Mehta’s ‘Gandhi’, where he plays Mahatma Gandhi opposite his wife Bhamini Oza Gandhi as Kasturba

Speaking about his other film ‘Ghamasaan’, a tense rural thriller, Pratik said he is eager to see how these stories rooted in India’s past connect with audiences in Canada and the US After TIFF, Pratik Gandhi heads to the India Film Festival of Alberta on September 14 for the screening of ‘Phule’, where he plays reformer Jyotirao Phule His tour concludes at the Chicago South Asian Film Festival on September 20 with ‘Ghamasaan’, a political drama that further showcases his range and depth as an actor

Patralekhaa

on Rajkummar Rao during pregnancy: “He calls daily to check on me” Rajkummar Rao and Patralekhaa, together for 15 years since meeting on the sets of ‘CityLights’ in 2010, married in November 2021 and announced their pregnancy in July 2025 On Soha Ali Khan’s podcast ‘All About Her’, Patralekhaa spoke about her pregnancy journey and first-time motherhood The episode airs on September 5

When asked if Rajkummar has b e e n m o r e w a t

pregnancy, Patralekhaa shared that while he doesn’t dictate what she should eat or do, his concern is clear, e s p

shooting “He calls every day to check if I’ve eaten, if I’m okay, and how I’m

about her lifelong love for fitness, adding that she worked out daily until

keeps her balanced and happy

pregnancy, Rajkummar said they are

thrilled” and excited for

on their 15-

Manoj Bajpayee hails Ram Gopal Varma as a courageous filmmaker

Manoj Bajpayee opened up about his longtime friendship and creative bond with director Ram Gopal Verma on The Right Angle with Sonal Kalra. From reminiscing about their iconic late ’90s films to reuniting for Police Station Mein Bhoot, Manoj offered a glimpse into the mind of one of Bollywood’s most visionary filmmakers

A f t e r 2 7 y e a r s , M a n o j r e u n i t e d with RGV for the film’s first schedule, c a l l i n g t h e e x p e r i e n c e “ m i n dblowing ” He praised the director’s f e a r l e s s c r e a t i v i t y a n d n o t e d t h a t , despite the years, Varma’s ability to p u s h b o u n d

a u d a c i o u s , i m a g i n a t i v e f i l m m a k i n g remains unchanged, leaving the cast inspired

Reflecting on past collaborations like Satya, Shool, and Kaun, Manoj

s a i d R G V h a s g r o w n e v e n m o r e inclusive over the years He described the director’s enthusiasm on set as c h i l d l i k e , f u l l o f c u r i o s i t y a n d excitement, which drives remarkable results Despite his success, Varma

r e m a i n s h u m b l e a n d c o u r a g e o u s , openly sharing past challenges and lessons a rare quality in a filmmaker

M a n o j B a j p a y e e ’ s n e x t f i l m , Inspector Zende, has released today on an OTT platform Inspired by the life of famed police officer Madhukar B Zende, who captured the notorious ‘bikini killer’ Charles Sobhraj, the film is set in 1970s–80s Mumbai, when investigations relied on intuition and s t r e e t - s m a r t t a c t i c s r a t h e r t h a n t e c h n o l o g y M a n o j b r i n g s h i s signature quirky and humorous touch to this high-profile manhunt

A l o n g s i d

K a d a m , H a r i s h D u d h a d e , B h a r a t

Savale, Nitin Bhajan, and Onkar Raut

The film is written and directed by Chinmay Mandlekar and produced by

J a y S h e

(Adipurush)

Boney Kapoor lauds Ranbir’s dedication on set

Ranbir Kapoor, admired both inside and outside the industry, has built an impressive filmography over the years. Producer Boney Kapoor, who worked with him on Tu Jhooti Main Makkaar (2023), recently praised Ranbir’s professionalism and patience on set. In a preview of Game Changers of India, Boney told Komal Nahta that Ranbir never complains whether it’s long hours, retakes, or tough conditions “We shot for 16 hours at a stretch in Delhi’s summer, later switching to night shoots from 9 pm to 6 am Not once did he crib or protest,” he recalled

Boney Kapoor recalled how R Kapoor once gave over 50 retakes a shot without losing his composure, even advising him to stay patient “We shot 52 takes for one scene When I got irritated after 15 takes, Ranbir reminded me, ‘Till the director is satisfied, you have to give it your all,’” he said Ranbir’s dedication has also been praised by Ramayana co-star Indira Krishnan, who noted how he transformed physically and emotionally for the role of Lord Rama “Even his eyes spoke a different language He worked ou for hours daily and stayed fully committed,” she told Bollywood B Having also worked with him in A , added, “His intensity is unmatched He’s like atta, you can mould him any way, and he’ll rise to it ”

Ashish Vidyarthi recalls desperate phase: “Did B-grade films for money”

Ashish Vidyarthi, who won a National Award early in his career, recently reflected on working in what he called “B-grade” films, much like Mithun Chakraborty

In a chat with Siddharth Kannan, he admitted he took up such projects out of financial desperation “I had extremely old parents and wanted to give them a good life I couldn’t wait for great roles, so I did many films just

“painful time,” Ashish added that he knew audiences expected better from him but continued those films to keep his household running

Vidyarthi said he took up films out of necessity “I was living in a rented house and had to care for my parents I couldn’t afford to say no, so I turned

struggling for months, a call from veteran filmmaker T Rama Rao finally gave him

break

action films in Ooty, earning the “Bgrade” tag from the media Defending him, son Namashi told Who’s On Air?, “He built his own industry in Ooty,

TV Listing

MON 15 SEP - FRI 19 SEP 2025

09:00 Deshi Beats

17:30 Rasoi Show

18:30 Rangai Jaane Rangma

19:00 Shyam Dhoon Lagi Re

19:30 Radha Krishna

20:00 Kanku

20:30 Moti Baa Ni Nani Vahu

21:00 United States Of Gujarat

21:30 KAHI DE NE PREM CHHE ! –PREM NU PRATIK

22:30 Radha Krishna

MON 15 SEP - FRI 19 SEP 2025

17:00 Shani-Karmfal Daata

17:30 Sau Dahda Sasuna

18:00 Silsila Badalte Rishton Ka S-1

18:30 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:30 RAMACHARI

20:00 Anmol Bandhan

20:30 Madhubala

21:00 Comedy Nights with Kapil

22:30 BIGG BOSS 19

SATURDAY 20 SEP 2025

17:00 Shani-Karmfal Daata

SATURDAY 20 SEP 2025

09:00 Deshi Beats

17:30 Rasoi Show

18:30 Rangai Jaane Rangma

19:00 Shyam Dhoon Lagi Re

19:30 Radha Krishna

20:00 Kanku

20:30 Moti Baa Ni Nani Vahu

21:00 United States Of Gujarat

21:30 KAHI DE NE PREM CHHE ! –PREM NU PRATIK

22:30 Radha Krishna

SUNDAY 21 SEP 2025

09:00 Deshi Beats

11:00 Kanku

11:30 Sheni Vijanand

14:30 Kanku

17:30 Shyam Dhoon Lagi Re

19:30 Radha Krishna

22:00 Moti Baa Ni Nani Vahu

17:30 Sau Dahda Sasuna

18:00 Silsila Badalte Rishton Ka S-1

18:30 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:30 RAMACHARI

20:00 Dance Deewane Superhits

20:30 Madhubala

21:00 Comedy Nights with Kapil

22:30 BIGG BOSS 19

SUNDAY 21 SEP 2025

17:00 Shani-Karmfal Daata

17:30 Sau Dahda Sasuna

18:00 Silsila Badalte Rishton Ka S-1

18:30 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:30 RAMACHARI

20:00 Dance Deewane Superhits

20:30 Madhubala

21:00 Comedy Nights with Kapil

22:30 BIGG BOSS 19

Lokesh Kanagaraj on Coolie backlash: “I can’t write to expectations”

Lokesh Kanagaraj’s ensemble film Coolie, headlined by Rajinikanth, released on 14 August to mixed reviews While fans celebrated its mass appeal, others were disappointed it lacked deeper layers

Speaking at an SSVM Institutions conclave in Coimbatore, Lokesh said he was grateful for the audience’s “excitement” that brought him this far but addressed the criticism: “In Coolie, I never mentioned time travel or the LCU These ideas were speculated long before the trailer, even 18 months ahead of release How can I control that? I can’t ”

Lokesh said he would never write films to match people’s “high expectations,” adding, “I write what I can, if it connects, I’m happy; if not, I’ll keep trying ” He admitted he is currently “struggling” with the universe he created and is focused on the LCU rather than building new ones

Coolie, starring Rajinikanth alongside Nagarjuna, Soubin Shahir, Shruti Haasan, Sathyaraj, Rachita Ram, Upendra, and Aamir Khan, released alongside War 2 but held strong, crossing 500 crore worldwide The film follows Deva, a former coolie union leader, on a quest for answers after his friend’s sudden death

Anushka

Shetty is gearing up for the release of her upcoming film Ghaati, which follows a community’s rebellion against the drug mafia and marks her return to an action-packed role

a

In a candid chat with her close friend and colleague Rana Daggubati, she spoke

i o n i m a g e ,

h e l o n g g a p s between her projects, and the recurring theme of violence in her films Rana pointed out that she has become the go-to choice for women-led action dramas, to which Anushka replied, “I don’t know why that is Even I keep wondering about it ” When Rana Daggubati asked Anushka Shetty about the heavy dose of violence in her films, she quipped, “With Arundhati, B

telling Krish like a hitman, can I be the hitwoman?” Rana laughed, replying, “For stories like these, who else would they cast other than you?”

Anushka also addressed the long breaks between her projects “I definitely need to do more films From next year, you’ll see more of me I want to pick good scripts and w

everyone has been asking for,” she said

Jagarlamudi, she added, “Only he can create such unique characters Saroja was crafted with so much innocence and remains one of my best roles With Ghaati too, the characters Sheela and others stand out in the way they’re written and portrayed ”

‘Ghaati’, also featuring Vikram Prabhu, Chaitanya Rao Madadi, Jagapathi Babu,

Dulquer on Lokah success: “Never experienced this before”

Lokah

Chapter 1: Chandra has surprised the industry with its inventive storytelling and wholesome entertainment Opening modestly at the box office, the film has picked up strong momentum on the back of glowing reviews and word-ofmouth

As of Wednesday evening, Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra has grossed 46 14 crore domestically and crossed 101 crore worldwide At a success meet in Hyderabad, producer Dulquer Salmaan admitted he was still processing the film’s extraordinary reception Calling Lokah “ a very expensive indie film,” he said its nationwide and global embrace was “unprecedented ” He added, “I’ve done 40-plus movies but never experienced such a reaction Thank you to the wonderful audiences, especially the Telugu audience, for accepting Lokah as your own ”

While the film, starring Kalyani Priyadarshan, continues to win acclaim across regions, it has also faced controversy A dialogue allegedly hurt the sentiments of the Kannada-speaking community, sparking backlash on social media In response, Dulquer’s Wayfarer Films issued a public apology and assured that the dialogue would be removed or altered to prevent furth r ff n

Rukh Khan’s

across East Africa Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs praised Rajamouli as a visionary filmmaker whose twodecade career is marked by powerful storytelling, groundbreaking visuals, and cultural depth Nearly 95% of the film’s African sequences will be shot in Kenya with a 120-member crew Kenya’s Foreign Affairs Minister revealed that ‘SSMB 29 ’ will be released in over 120 countries, showcasing locations like the Masai Mara, Naivasha, Samburu, and Amboseli Calling it Asia’s largest film production, he said the project highlights Kenya’s beauty and global presence, with nearly a billion viewers expected The crew has now returned to India to continue filming For comparison, Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Pathaan’ (2024) released in 100+ countries, opened with 104 80 crore worldwide on day one, and eventually grossed 1,050 crore globally

Deepika Padukone made history as the first Indian jury member for the Louis husband Ranveer Singh was quick to show his support.

Sharing pictures from the event, Deepika wrote, “Congratulations to all t the world to witness your magic!” Ranveer commented playfully, “Hot Mam

At the event, the 39-year-old wore a chic Louis Vuitton ensemble featurin vibrant yellow and brown abstract prints and a collared deep neckline, pa

w

accessorized with bold golden studs, sleek heels, and a classic black handbag, completing her Parisian look with a bun, nude eyeshadow, winged eyeliner, and dark nude-brown lipstick

Deepika recently arrived in Paris as a juror for the Louis Vuitton Prize 2025 With her long-term association with the brand, she now joins industry icons like Stella McCartney and Pharrell Williams

On the work front, Deepika Padukone will next star in

tentatively titled AA22 x A6, produced by Sun Pictures The production house announced, “The Queen marches to

#TheFacesOfAA22xA6

She will also feature in Shah Rukh Khan’s King, directed by Siddharth Anand, alongside Suhana Khan, Abhay Verma, Abhishek Bachchan, and others Deepika’s last Hindi release was Anand’s Fighter opposite Hrithik Roshan

‘Bridgerton’ star

Jonathan Bailey to pause acting for charity work

Jonathan Bailey, star of ‘Jurassic World Rebirth’ and ‘Bridgerton’, is taking a break from acting The 37-year-old Emmy-nominated actor, who will next appear in Wicked: For Good, said he plans to pause after the film’s press tour to focus on his nonprofit, The Shameless Fund, which supports LGBTQ+ communities worldwide He shared the news in a new interview with British GQ published on September 3

Bailey said, “I've been working solidly for about three years, which has been amazing But with everything happening in the world, I'm going to stop acting for a bit next year and focus on The Shameless Fund ” In July, he co-starred with Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali in Jurassic World Rebirth, which grossed over USD 800 million worldwide He added that in the coming months, he’ll concentrate on staffing and ensuring the nonprofit has the right team to expand his passion project

Bailey noted that the Shameless Fund sunglasses he designed with UK eyewear brand Cubitts had been on the market for a while Speaking about cycling, he said, “There's a lot of room for expression in it It's colorful, and I love color That’s why pink is so important for t h e S h a m e l e s s

flattering I wore it a lot during the Wicked press tour ” He also roped in friends to showcase the sunglasses On August 25, co-star Cynthia Erivo posted a selfie wearing them on the Shameless Fund’s Instagram, and Scarlett Johansson shared a playful pic with Bailey, who pretended to bite her neck

Ranveer cheers Deepika as first Indian Louis Vuitton jury member

Karan Aujla calls Tonight Show milestone ‘bigger than me’

Karan Aujla is set to become the second Punjabi singersongwriter to appear on ‘The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon’, marking a cultural milestone. “This moment is bigger than me it’s about taking Punjabi pop culture to the world From my village roots to The Tonight Show stage, it proves our music is global and dreams do come true,” he said Reflecting on his journey, the Tauba Tauba singer admits the

truly grateful Over

dream

decade in

learning experience, with great

artistes,” he says

moments, on

conversation I feel it and start writing; it begins with a feeling I can’t ignore,” he explains Proud of Punjabi music’s global rise, he adds, “P-Pop Culture is just the beginning The goal is to make

impact: “I want people to feel heard and represented Even if my lyrics are in Punjabi, I hope they connect universally And I hope

Nandita Das joins Busan Film Festival competition jury

Nandita

Actor-filmmaker

Das has joined the sevenmember competition jury at the 30th Busan International Film Festival, chaired by Korean filmmaker Na Hong-jin BIFF also announced a new competition section and the ‘Busan Award,’ with winners to be revealed at the closing ceremony

Jury head Na Hong-jin, regarded as a master of South Korean cinema, is known for ‘The Chaser’, ‘The Yellow Sea’ and ‘The Wailing’, and is now working on ‘Hope’ starring Hwang Jung-min, Zo In-sung, Hoyeon, Alicia Vikander, and Michael Fassbender Joining him is Nandita Das, acclaimed for ‘Earth’, ‘Fire’ and ‘Bawandar’, and as director of ‘Firaaq’, ‘Manto’ and ‘Zwigato’ The jury also features Hong Kong veteran Tony Leung Ka-fai, and Iranian New Wave filmmaker Marziyeh Meshkini, known for ‘The Day I Became a Woman’ and ‘Stray Dogs’ Korean-American filmmaker Kogonada, known for ‘Columbus’, ‘After Yang’ and ‘Pachinko’, will release his next film ‘A Big Bold Beautiful Journey’ with Margot Robbie and Colin Farrell in September Indonesian producer Yulia Evina Bhara, who has championed Southeast Asian cinema with films like ‘Solo, Solitude’ and ‘Stone Turtle’, also joins the jury Korean star Han Hyo-joo, acclaimed for ‘Dong Yi’, ‘Cold Eyes’ and ‘Moving’, rounds out the panel Festival director Jung Hanseok said the newly expanded seven-member jury was chosen for its bold perspectives and international influence, with Na Hong-jin leading as president The Busan Award will be presented in five categories: Best Film, Best Director, Special Jury Prize, Best Actor, and Artistic Contribution

India win Asia Cup hockey title after 8 years

sia

is India’s first continental title in e ig h t years and se cu res th ei r qualification for the 20 26 World C u p i n B el g i u m an d Netherland

scored for India, with Dilpreet

scored Korea’s only goal in the final quarter India’s Jugraj Singh also had a penalty stroke saved

draw Under the leadership of

Harmanpreet Singh, they won

Cup triumph, adding to previous wins in 2003, 2007, and 2017 South Korea remains the most

tournament’s history with five titles

With their spot secured for t h e 2

m August 14-30, India will aim to improve on their previous best f i n i s h e s

performances at the World Cup since their 1975 title win have been two fifth-place finishes in 1982 and 1994

Malaysia beat China 4-1 to finish third in the final standings while Japan earned a 6-1 win over Bangladesh to finish in the fifth spot

Shreyas Iyer to lead India A against Australia A in multi-day matches

S hreyas Iyer, wh o w as left out of India's Asia Cup squad , w ill be lead ing Ind ia A in th e upcoming two mu lti-day match es ag ainst

A u st ral i a A , th e B C C I a nn o u nc ed Rec en tl y, t h e selectio n comm ittee h eaded by A jit A garkar came under a lot of fire for keeping S hreyas ou t of the A sia Cup squad d esp ite his p henom enal form in the IP L In th e p remi er T2 0 to u rnam ent, S hreyas scored mo re than 600 runs at a strike rate of 175 as h e led Punjab K ing s to their first IP L final in 11 years

Shreyas has also been out of the Indian Test team since 2024

Australia A will augur well for

home series against the West

Indies and South Africa

games, then he might well be named in the Test squad, as Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair failed

against England

The series between India A and Australia A will begin on S

unofficial Test will be played

Lucknow Both teams will also face each other in three ODIs However, the squad for these

games is yet to be announced

KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj will be added to the India A s

m a t c h against Australia A The duo will replace two players in the squad

However, further details have been kept under wraps by the BCCI India A squad: Shreyas Iyer ( C ) , A b h i

u E a s w

, N Jagadeesan (WK), Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel (VC & WK), Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Ayush B a d o n i , N i t i s h K u m a r R e d d y , Tanush Kotian, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Manav Suthar, Yash Thakur

Cafa Cup: India finish third on debut

I nd i an f oo tba ll tea m fi nis h ed

t h i rd o n d e bu t a t th e C A F A

N ati o n s C u p , d es p i te be in g amo ng th e lo wer ranked among the eig ht teams

A w i n a g a i n s t h o s t s Tajikistan in the opener and a triumph on penalties - recorded as a draw for official records -

a g a i n s t O m a n t o e n d t h e campaign with a bronze is just w h a t K h a l i d J a m i l p r o b a b l y wanted in his debut assignment as national team coach

I n t h e t i e b r e a k e r , H a r i b

A l S a a d i a n d A h m e d A l - K a a b i

sent their first two efforts wide f o r O m a n , w h i

Anwar Ali’s attempt was then saved and Udanta shot wide B o o

Singh Sandhu saved the decisive penalty from Jameel Al-Yahmadi to give his team a famous 3-2 (11) win

The teams were locked 1-1 at the end of regulation time with Udanta Singh (80th) scoring late

A

Y

h m

d i ’ s second-half strike at the Hisor Central Stadium in Tajikistan on Monday Oman captain Ali Al-Busaidi was sent off in the sixth minute of extra-time and India had a relatively easier time on the field with a numerical advantage for the remaining 23 minutes The deadlock remained

P l a y i n g h i s f i r s t i n t e r n a t i o

n 2025, captain Sandhu was the hero, not just in the tiebreaker but all through the 120 minutes

Asia Cup cricket: India to begin its campaign on Sept 10

Th e b attl e fo r A sia n cri ck et suprema cy in te nsifie d as the A s i a Cup 20 25 b e g a n o n T ue s d a y I n t he

m atch, Afghan ista n be at Hong Kong b y 94 runs, thank s to A f g ha n b a tt e r Az m

a h Oma rzai who scored 50 runs in 20 b alls The y scored 1 50 runs i n 20 ove rs The ma tch w as pla yed at the Shei kh Za ye d Stad ium, Ab u Dha bi A total of e ight team s are compe ti ng a gain st e ach other for the Asia n crown, divide d into two g ro up s T he Gro up A co mp ri se s of Om a n, United Ara b Emirates, Pa kistan and In dia

On the other hand, Group B comprises of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and Sri Lanka After the initial group stage, where each team will face each other once, the top two teams from each group will further progress to Super 4 stage, where they will again take on each other once

In the end, the team finishing in the top two of the Super 4 stages will make it to the final, which is set to be played on Sunday, September 28 at Dubai International Cricket

in brief

ASIA CUP HOCKEY: INDIA SLAM SINGAPORE

Navneet Kaur and Mumtaz Khan dazzled with a hat-trick each as India stormed into the Super 4s with a commanding 12-0 victory over Singapore in the women s Asia Cup hockey tournament at Hangzhou China on Monday While Navneet (14 20, 28) and Mumtaz (2, 32, 39) dominated the proceedings, a brace from Neha (11, 38) along with a goal each from Lalremsiami (13) Udita (29), Sharmila (45) and Rutuja Pisal (53) ensured another dominant victory for India The world No 10 India, who had earlier thrashed Thailand 11-0 in their tournament opener, got off to a strong start when they broke the deadlock within the first two minutes Mumtaz surged forward and unleashed a thunderous reverse stick shot from the top of the circle to open the scoring The early pressure kept Singapore on the back foot and although they managed to fend off India's first penalty corner in the eighth minute, Neha doubled the advantage, pouncing on a rebound in the 11th minute to slot it home with a deft touch India finished their campaign at 12-0 India will play the second-placed side from Pool A in their opening Super 4s on Wednesday

GUJARAT SHUTTLERS WIN MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TITLES

He was commanding in goal and kept the defenders alert Only beaten by a strong Al-Yahmadi deflection, it was poetic that the goalkeeper brilliantly saved his fifth and final penalty O

4 places higher than India, who o

they are still in contention for a place at next year ’ s FIFA World Cup and drew against World Cuppers Uzbekistan earlier in the group stage

Former Baroda all-rounder in Oman’s cricket team

Stadium, Dubai

India will aim to defend their title as the defending champions, having won the p r e v i

tournament in 2023 The Men in Blue are the most successful

eight titles to their name On the other hand, Sri Lanka are the second most successful team, having won the trophy six times, while Pakistan have two titles to their name

India will begin its campaign on 10th Sept

They will meet UAE on Sept 10 at Dubai While the previous winners will be the front-runners to be crowned champions again, the remaining

unpredictable nature of T20 cricket

Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma,

Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson, Harshit Rana, Rinku Singh

Former B aroda al l-rounder Jite n Raman andi has earne d a pl ace in Oman ’ s nat iona l sq uad for the Asia Cup At 30, Raman andi ca rries fo r w

t h e t r a d it i o n o f m

n y G uj a r a t i cr i ck e t e r s a n d e n t r e pr e n e u r s w ho h a v e pion eere d and shaped Oman’s cr icket in g rise The Gulf n ation ha s be come a second home for crick eting tal ent fr om Guja rat, with a t l east thre e play ers alr eady don nin g Oman’s col our s on the in terna tion al stage

“If Oman is positioning itself as a worldclass international cricketing venue, it is the p e o p l e f r

G u j a r a t w h

v e h a d a transformative role in popularizing the sport A few other cricketers from Gujarat played f o r O m

n

h e p a s

n

i t ’ s a p r o u d moment for me to continue the tradition,” said Jiten, who is from a small village in Navsari and played for the Baroda U-19 team

T o d a y , t h e t o p f o u r t e a m s i n t h e

sultanate’s domestic league are sponsored by Gujarati-owned business houses Moreover, Oman’s 80 domestic teams currently have 140 players from various cities of Gujarat, and four of its seven national captains have been from the state The current national squad has four Gujaratis

After clinching the team gold at the West Zone Inter-State Badminton Championships 2025 in Goa Gujarat shuttlers won the men s and women s singles titles in the same edition for the first time Adheep Gupta from Kutch won the men’s singles title, defeating Arjan Rehani 21-18 21-18 Anand’s Aishani Tiwari overcame state mate Kavya Marvaniya 21-19, 7-3 (retd ) to bag the women’s singles crown Kavya had earlier won the U-19 girls title, with a commanding 21-14, 21-13 win over Anushka Shahpurkar Gujarat ended the campaign with four golds, one silver and six bronze medals

WUSHU WOMEN SETTLES FOR SILVER AT WORLDS

It was not a fairytale ending After entering their maiden finals, the gutsy trio of Kareena Kaushik, Aparna Dahiya, and Shivani Prajapati settled for silver medals in their respective women s sanda divisions at the World Wushu Championships in Brazil Sagar Dahiya clinched a bronze medal in the men’s 56kg sanda division following his semifinal defeat to Carlos Baylon Jr of the Philippines adding to India’s medal tally “Though we narrowly missed the gold excelling at the highest level of world competition stands as a proud moment for Indian wushu This achievement is a testament to the hard work discipline, and dedication of our athletes coaches, and support staff, Wushu Association of India (WAI) president Bhupender Singh Bajwa said

ABHILASH ENDS 14-YEAR WAIT TO WIN FIRST-EVER MEN’S

TITLE

Ahmedabad paddler Abhilash Raval ended a 14year-old title drought as he downed top seed Jaynil Mehta in a 4-2 slugfest to capture the men’s title at the 6th Gujarat State Ranking Table Tennis Tournament 2025, in Surat Abhilash stepped on the top rung of the podium for the first-time ever in his TT career of 14 years In the all-Surat women s final it was top seed Frenaz Chipia who emerged on top after beating second seed Filzahfatema Kadri 4-1 to win this season s third title The U-19 boys’ and girls’ top seeds-Janmejay Patel of Aravalli and Pratha Pawar of Ahmedabad bagged the titles in the age categories Ahmedabad’s Malav Panchal top seed eased past second seed Taksh Kothari of Surat 3-1 to win the U-17 boys title while the girls title went to second seed Jiya Trivedi of Ahmedabad who upset local

Shreyas Iyer