The eggs missed the king as he ignored the man while being escorted out of the site…reports Asian Lite News
A 23-year-old man on Wednesday was arrested by the police for throwing eggs at King Charles and Queen Consort, Camilla, during a walkabout in York. He was arrested under the charge of disturbing public order.
The accused, a University of York student, was heard shouting, “this country was built on the blood of slaves,” and “not my king”, while throwing the eggs as the king and consort were being welcomed by city leaders.
However, the eggs missed the king as he ignored the man while being escorted out of the site.
The university said it was “appalled” by the images and would be reviewing the incident in line with its misconduct procedures, reported the BBC.
On the other hand, people in the crowd started pronouncing “God save the king”, while others bellowed “shame on you” at the protester.
Meanwhile, the accused remains in police custody.
King Charles III was formally proclaimed the King of Britain in the first televised Accession Council on September 10 at St James’s Palace in London following the demise of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II – Britain’s longest-serving monarch.
It is interesting and noteworthy how the festival of Diwali is marked in different parts of the UK. Unique events range from cultural programs at a variety of venues to staff parties in the corporate sector.
To mark this special occasion, the iconic London eye changed its colour to celebrate the festival of lights recently.
Speaking to Asian Lite correspondent, organiser Ravi Bhanot MBE says “We are grateful that London Eye and the Diwali in London Committee helped organise the event.”. “It is amazing that Diwali, the festival of lights, this year sees the London Eye change colour to rangoli colours and also sees a man of colour as the first Prime Minister of Great Britain, on the same day.”
Lord Rami Ranger, who switched the London Eye colour said, “It is nice to see London enjoy the diversification of culture. It makes the country strong.”
Rashtriya Ekta Divas was marked by Sanskruti Centre for Cultural Excellence recently at the Nehru Centre (ICCR London). An excellent cultural programme depicting the unity and diversity in art forms and cultural representations was presented by 14 performers, hailing from different professional and arts streams.
Author Amish Tripathi, Director at The Nehru Centre and Minister of Culture at HCI gave a thought-provoking opening speech emphasising the need to be united.
A rich dance ballet demonstrating classical and folk-dance forms of different regions of India was presented by Anuja Tirumalasetty, Arya Arun, Vilina Ananya, Harsha Rani, Lakshmi Aveen, Manju Sunil, Mona Jethwa Patel, Dr Prtha Dasmahapatra, Reema Virdee, Sreyashi Deb Roy and Soundarya Gokulnath.
Amish Tripathi rendering opening words
These performers are from various linguistic backgrounds and are also full-time doctors, IT & medical professionals, and business entrepreneurs who passionately continue to practise & present performing arts.
Popular multi-lingual song Mile Sur Mera Tumhaara was beautifully presented by classical singer Irawati Mulmule. Solo Odissi dance recital by Dr Pritha Dasmahapatra, Bharatanatyam recital by Arya Arun and Kathak recital by Priya Kushwaha captivated the audience.
In appreciation of their presentations, the performers were felicitated with shawls by Sanjay Sharma, Deputy Director of The Nehru Centre. The program is conceived and choreographed by Ragasudha Vinjamuri, Founder of Sanskruti Centre.
Ekta Ki Awaaz presentation
Ragasudha Vinjamuri giving Vote of Thanks
Dr Pritha Dasmahapatra presenting Odissi
Arya Arun presenting Bharatanatyam
Sanjay Sharma felicitating the performers
Sanjay Sharma felicitating presenters
Irawati Mulmule presenting Mile Sur Mera Tumhara
Sanjay Sharma felicitating presenters
Sanjay Sharma felicitating presenters
Priya Kushwaha presenting Kathak
British Hindus set to take on BBC over 'Hinduphobic' coverage of Leicester violence
The Hindu residents of Leicester objected to the media not putting forth their plight and turning this into a Hindu-Muslim rivalry when it was clear that clashes had the characteristic of post-game events riots that dot the European landscape every now and then, writes Arshia Malik
When violent clashes erupted in UK’s Leicester on 28 August, nobody had expected it to conflate into a Hindu-Muslim rivalry. After India won the Asia Cup T20 match against Pakistan, a cycle of violence was triggered with clashes breaking out between young men of Pakistan and Indian origin. Adding fuel to the fire some Muslim extremists and radicals joined the commotion with fake news and rumours and threats, using social media to widen the chaos to sour diplomatic relations between India and the UK.
Depending on who was reporting, Muslim heritage journalists presented a biased one-sided view and used their pet scapegoat of Hindutva, RSS, and Indian nationalism to give cover fire to instigators like Maajid Freeman and Mohamed Hijab, UK-based radicals with links to terror organisations. The Hindu residents of Leicester objected to the media not putting forth their plight and turning this into a Hindu-Muslim rivalry when it was clear that clashes had the characteristic of post-game events riots that dot the European landscape every now and then.
Also, a mob staged a violent demonstration outside the Durga Bhawan temple in United Kingdom’s Smethwick in Birmingham on September 20. Leicester Police Department took charge of the incident and released statements of Hindus not being involved in any kind of violence while the mob had been dog-whistled from different counties and cities of England to converge on planned dates and behave rowdily. India and Pakistan have permanent fissures and the Hindu and Muslim populations in India have permanent fault lines due to the Partition; whereas there isn’t any significant Hindu population left in Pakistan. The little percentage that is left is often targeted for their faith and their daughters are kidnapped and married forcibly to Muslim men, often middle-aged.
That Leicester would then be a battle of narratives between the countries of origin was a foregone conclusion. The United Kingdom stepped in, and a UK-based think tank Henry Jackson Society’s (HJS) Centre on Radicalisation and Terrorism carried out this research and published the report from their official Twitter handle. The 39-page report is written by Charlotte Littlewood. It mentions that influencers on social media spread a false narrative that “RSS terrorists” were to blame for the violence to persuade Muslims from across the UK to participate in the demonstrations. In a video showing himself leading a group through Leicester, an influencer named Mohammad Hijab with over 800,000 followers urged Muslims to “protect themselves against Hindu fascism” and wrote, “Muslim patrol in Leicester.”
The report debunked the narratives that RSS and Hindutva groups played part in the violent clashes, putting the wider Hindu community at risk from hate, vandalism, and assault. There was significant civil unrest from September 4-20 between ethnic minority groups in Leicester, including vandalism of property, assaults, stabbings, and attacks on places of worship, said the HJS report.
Littlewood insists the cause of the violence is a community cohesion breakdown pertaining to loud festivals, antisocial behaviour and a conflict between Muslim youth and Hindu youth stemming from territorial attitudes towards one another.
Commenting on how media relied on these Muslim social media influencers for reporting rather than going into the minor details of the incidents, Charlotte Littlewood noted, “The media has at times conflated the issue by regularly relying on influencers included in this report for comment and focusing on an issue of Hindutva extremism and India politics rather than providing nuanced and accurate analysis of the incidents.” Underlining threats in front of the local community, she further said, “There is a real concern that Majid Freeman is regularly being provided a platform to express his views regarding the presence of Hindutva extremism in the UK and posing as a ‘community leader, meeting with the City of Leicester’s mayor and discussing the future of the upcoming independent review.” Most notably, the report pointed out that on the weekend of September 17, marches comprised of Hindu and Muslim adherents occurred in the city, accompanied by chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and ‘Allah u Akbar’.
Fifteen arrested after continuing ‘disorder’ in Leicester (Ld)
In a statement issued earlier, the Labour Convention of Indian Organisations (LCIO) had said it was “deeply saddened” by the incidents of violence, which it fears is now fuelling religious hatred in the communities. The statement further read, “Having spoken to locals, it seems extremist groups are pushing 3 baseless narratives – that diversity in the UK has failed; the disturbances are being orchestrated by forces from India and historic differences mean that we can’t live together peacefully as one community.”
So in this age of social media, disinformation campaigns and digital warfare, the ancient Hindu-Muslim rivalry from the medieval times when Islamic conquests established Muslim rule and the Hindu population was left bereft of the control of their religious places, any event of festivity be it Diwali, Holi can be construed as triggering factors for the minorities in the UK, with extremist individuals like Anjem Choudhary of the Hizbut Tahrir conflating the issue to generate a false narrative of Hindutva forces disrupting local life in the English counties and towns.
After world’s largest vaccination drive, the country is ready for international tourists. India is participating in WTM 2022 to showcase itself as a preferred destination for tourism…reports Asian Lite News
Ministry of Tourism, Government of India is participating at World Travel Market (WTM) 2022 from 7th to 9th November in London which is one of the largest international travel exhibitions. The theme of this year`s exhibition is ‘The Future of Travel Starts Now’. With the reopening of the country to foreign tourists, after a gap of almost 2 years, this year`s participation of India is particularly significant. After world’s largest vaccination drive, the country is ready for international tourists. India is participating in WTM 2022 to showcase itself as a preferred destination for tourism.
Rajasthan Tourism is set to exhibit in World Trade Market 2022, an upcoming international travel & tourism trade show to be held in London from November 7 to 9, 2022. Discover more travel opportunities in Rajasthan if you happen to be in London. Find us at stand no. AS450.#WTMpic.twitter.com/z64ncsqJgT
During 2019, the contribution of travel & tourism to India`s GDP was 5.19% of the total economy. In 2019, the Indian tourism sector accounted for 79.86 million jobs (direct and indirect employment). The consistent efforts of the Central and the State Governments has helped the tourism industry to gradually recover from the Covid-19 pandemic shock to the pre pandemic levels.
A total of 16 stakeholders, including from State Governments, other Central Ministries, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) as the industry partner, DMCs, tour operators, hoteliers, travel agents, online travel agents, facilitators of medical value travel are participating as co-exhibitors in the India Pavilion. The objective is to showcase the diverse tourism products and services including Medical Value travel, luxury trains and the gamut of tourism products to the international business community. This year, the Indian delegation is being led by Shri Arvind Singh, Secretary (Tourism), Government of India includes Shri Rakesh Verma, Additional Secretary and other senior officials from the Ministry, besides representatives from the Indian travel and tourism stakeholders.
The Indian Government is cognizant of the country’s potential in the tourism industry and has taken several steps to make India a global tourism hub. During the visit to WTM 2022, the Indian delegation led by Sh. Arvind Singh, Secretary Tourism, Government of India will showcase the varied tourism offerings of India to the global tourism industry stakeholders such as tour operators, travel agents, media etc.. As India is poised for massive growth in the tourism sector in the future, this visit shall also offer opportunity to the Indian Government delegation to showcase the investment opportunities and potential which India offers to the global investors.
India is also gearing up for the G20 Presidency which is scheduled to start from 01st December, 2022. Under its Presidency, the country is expected to host over 200 meetings across 55 cities in the country. The G-20 Presidency will give India’s tourism sector an unparalleled opportunity to highlight India’s tourism offerings and share India’s tourism success stories on a global stage.
The Ministry of Tourism is aiming to develop the tourism sector especially in the aftermath of COVID Pandemic to new heights and accelerating the transition to achieve sustainable development targets of 2030.
Maharshtra’s minister for Tourism, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Woman and Child Development BJP loyalist Mangal Prabhat Lodha – a reputed builder and politician will join his wife Dr Manju Lodha to launch her book ‘’Ankahin Kahaniyan’’ at the Nehru Centre, London at 6.00 pm on 4th November, reports Asian Lite’s Rahul Laud
Big wigs from trade, industry, government and Indian High Commission offices are expected to attend the launch and rub shoulders with India’s Maharashtra state minister. Director of Nehru Centre, renowned author, writer come diplomat, First Secretary, Culture Amish Tripathi is also expected to attend the glamorous launch.
Manju Lodha, a writer, poet, and philanthropist is the Chairperson of the Lodha Foundation which is involved in social activities. Author of 11 books , Manju is an orator and is never short of words. She takes care of Lodha Dham – a religious complex. She is the Founder of Gyan Gangitri Kavya Manch, which is the only women’s literary organization for the development of literacy skills for housewives in Mumbai. She is running 3 libraries, which include the world’s largest religious library with over six lac religious books and one ‘Mobile’ library. She has written 11 books in all.
The book ’Ankahin Kahaniyan’’ pays homage to India’s greatest revolutionaries and freedom fighters and narrates their emotional yet inspiring stories that laid the forefront of India’s freedom and constitution. “It is about all the heroes of our country, be it soldiers, warriors, kings, and sultans, revolutionaries, freedom fighters, politicians who have led the country through very tough times and steered the country towards betterment and who are unsung ,” says Manju.
“This book is an ode to visionaries that revolutionised India through social, cultural and industrial reforms and an amalgamation of stories that have inspired me in my journey as an author, poet and philanthropist,” Manju added.. From the powerful story of Savitribai Phule that revolutionized the Indian education system, to accounts of General Tatya Tope’s rebellious victories, this book aims to inspire the youth of our nation through tales that are left untold.
Later minister Lodha will be joined in London by his core tourism team from Maharashtra – Saurabh Vyas IAS, secretary tourism; Dr B N Patil IAS Director, Directorate of Tourism and Dr Dhananjay Sawalkar, Dy Director, Directorate of Tourism Tourism who will pitch to attract tourists and trade at the World Travel Market between 7-9 November in London.
This year’s Pilot Careers Live event is being supported by British Airways, EasyJet and Loganair…reports Asian Lite News
The 2022 Pilot Careers Live event will be held in London on November 5.
Pilot Careers Live has been running Europe’s leading flight training events for over two decades.
The event will begin at 9am on Saturday at Sofitel Heathrow Terminal 5 and will offer the chance to find out latest information about a career as a pilot, speak to leading Flight Training Organisations, watch live seminars, interviews and ask questions.
The must-not-miss event is being supported by British Airways, EasyJet and Loganair and will cover wide range subject including Training routes, Ground school, UK vs EASA licences, APS/MCC, Selection process, Job potential and Pilot and cadet welfare.
Event organisers, Pilot Career News, are committed to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and are encouraging delegates from Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities to attend. To show their support, they are offering a 20% discount to readers of Asian Lite.
To get your discount enter the promotional code: ALNLHR20 on the PCL ticket page at www.pilotcareernews.com/live/london-november-2022.
The UK Foreign Secretary also called on countries to work together to fight online terrorism – including global terror recruitment campaigns.
UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly addressed the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee in New Delhi on Saturday and stressed the need to curb the exploitation of emerging technologies and starving terrorists of the vital funds used in terror activities.
Speaking at the United Nations Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee in New Delhi, he called on countries to work together to fight online terrorism – including global terror recruitment campaigns.
“We have made tacking illicit finance a core pillar of our cooperation with international partners like the UAE,” he said on ‘Countering the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes’.
“If we are to keep our people safe, we must comply with human rights and we must continue to work together and with all parts of our communities to discredit the narratives of hate, to counter radicalisation… to foil plots, to starve terrorist of the finances and the emerging technologies that they would use, to do us harm,” he added.
Terming terrorism as a global problem and a global threat, UK Foreign Secretary started off his address by thanking External Affairs Minister Jaishankar for using India’s Security Council presidency to focus on this crucial issue.
"India is an incredibly important international partner. I'm very pleased that it's my first visit as the newly appointed Foreign Secretary."
— Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (@FCDOGovUK) October 28, 2022
On the emerging technologies, Cleverly said, within the space of just two decades, terrorists have gone from circulating crackly voice recordings from the depths of Tora Bora to global online recruitment and incitement campaigns to live-stream attacks.
To counter this threat posed by technologies, UK Foreign Secretary said Britain also working with the G7 and Global Internet Forum to counter terrorism. “We continue to press tech companies amongst whom are also the internet’s biggest players to crack down even harder on the extremist content online,” he added.
Cleverly said his country has taken a host of measures in recent years to combat terrorism such as, setting up the Counter Daesh Communication Cell in London and launching a counter-unmanned aircraft strategy.
“We are funding new counter-drone technologies and working through the Global Counter-Terrorism Forum to ensure that we do more to stop terrorists from misusing drones,” he added.
It comes after he paid his respects on Friday at the Taj Palace Hotel in Mumbai, to those who lost their lives in the city’s 2008 terror attack, including three British nationals.
During the visit, the UK Foreign Secretary announced further collaboration between the UK and India through British International Investment.
The UK Foreign Secretary is due to meet minister Jaishankar today to discuss the latest on the 2030 Roadmap, the landmark commitment to boost cooperation between the UK and India over the next decade. (ANI)
Boris Johnson was forced to step down on July 7 following a series of resignations of cabinet members, who protested against his scandal-plagued leadership
Merely three months after he was ousted from power, former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson landed in Britain on Saturday from a Caribbean holiday to launch a formal bid for the Conservative Party leadership, following Liz Truss’s resignation this week, according to UK media reports.
Johnson was forced to step down on July 7 following a series of resignations of cabinet members, who protested against his scandal-plagued leadership. Johnson now expressed his willingness to enter the PM race, saying he is “up for it.”
Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak in the Johnson cabinet was also quick to mark his bid for the Tory and the British Prime Ministership having secured more than a hundred nominations – which is the minimum requirement to contest for the post.
Sunak late Friday became the first Tory leadership contender to reach the 100-nomination threshold to run for party leader following the resignation of Prime Minister Liz Truss, reported Independent citing campaign sources.
Sunak, who fell to Truss in the last leadership contest, got the backing of at least 100 Conservative Party lawmakers to enter the UK PM race.
This is a key development after Liz Truss’ resignation as UK Prime Minister on Thursday which threw the country into political turmoil and left it scrambling for a stable government, as the opposition reiterated its demand for a general election.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak as they make their way up the staircase of No10 Downing Street to give a press conference on the Coronavirus. Picture by Andrew Parsons / No 10 Downing Street
On Friday, Penny Mordaunt, the Tory leader in the House of Commons too threw her hat in the ring. “I’ve been encouraged by support from colleagues who want a fresh start, a united party and leadership in the national interest,” Mordaunt tweeted.
Tory MPs will vote on Monday, and two candidates will be put forward to the Tory membership unless one pulls out. The result will be announced on Friday, October 28.
It is pertinent to note that Truss became the shortest-serving British PM after she stepped down, stating that she recognises she “cannot deliver the mandate” on which she was elected. Truss said she would step aside for a new leader to be chosen within the next week.
In view of Truss’s resignation, Labour Party leader Keir Starmer issued a scathing statement that ripped into the Conservative Party and called for a general election.
After 12 years of “Tory failure,” he said the British people deserve so much better than this revolving door of chaos. “We need a general election now,” he said.
Truss stepping down was preceded by the sacking of UK Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng and the resignation of Home Secretary Suella Braverman tendered her resignation. Liz only remained in power for 45 days after succeeding Boris Johnson last month. (ANI)
The integration of customer satellites into the rocket has been taking place in the newly inaugurated Space Systems Integration Facility (SSIF) at Spaceport Cornwall…reports Asian Lite News
Thousands of people visited the exhibition, led by the UK Space Agency, as part of the countdown to the first launch by Virgin Orbit from Spaceport Cornwall.
Families took part in a range of exciting, free space-themed activities and hands-on exhibitions, including a Virtual Reality experience offering the opportunity to experience what it’s like to be at Mission Control, the chance to try on a real astronaut suit and handle a real meteorite.
Science Minister Nusrat Ghani, who officially opened the event, said, “We are proud to be playing an important part in the first ever satellite launch from UK soil, and we want to harness this incredible opportunity to inspire more young people to consider careers in science, engineering and space. By establishing the UK as the leading European base to launch small satellites, we can build on our existing strengths in space manufacturing to create new jobs, grow the economy and attract significant investment into our growing space sector.
Following a successful wet dress rehearsal by Virgin Orbit in the US, the real LauncherOne rocket and its carrier aircraft – an adapted Boeing 747 dubbed “Cosmic Girl”– arrived in the UK last week. The integration of customer satellites into the rocket has been taking place in the newly inaugurated Space Systems Integration Facility (SSIF) at Spaceport Cornwall.
The mission, which has been named ‘Start Me Up’ in tribute to the iconic British band, the Rolling Stones, will mark the first orbital launch from the UK, meeting a key ambition of the Government’s National Space Strategy, as well as the first commercial launch from Europe and the first international launch from Virgin Orbit.
Ian Annett, Deputy CEO at the UK Space Agency, said, “Our work to establish launch capabilities in the UK is already bringing new growth through investment and jobs into local communities, and inspiring a new generation of space professionals whether in science, engineering, law and other disciplines. A strong space sector depends on attracting future talent, so it was fantastic to see so many young people inspired by our full-size replica rocket in the centre of London and the activities this weekend. I hope we have ignited a passion for future space careers in many of them and made people aware of how space contributes to global sustainability and our prosperity as a nation.”
