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Indian Diaspora expresses solidarity at the HCI

More than 200 community members have gathered outside the HCI waving Indian flags and chanting Vande Mataram and Bharat Mata ki Jai, and celebrating their belongingness and pride…reports Ragasudha Vinjamuri

“You try to take down one, and there will be hundreds and thousand raising” was the strong message non-verbally communicated by the Indian Diaspora members at a mega show of strength and unity in front of the High Commission of India on 21 March.

Scores of Indian origin people have congregated in Aldwych, London to show massive support to the flag-cause demonstrating the community spirit, patriotic fervour and love for the nation they originate from. It demonstrated “Jhanda ooncha rahe hamara” in real sense. This outpour follows the attempt to bring down and vandalise the Indian tricolour on the HCI building on Sunday, 19th March which was foiled immediately by the security officers present on the premises at the time.

The attempt caused global outrage, has hurt and angered the huge diaspora living outside India, while  the Indian government called British Diplomats for an emergency meeting express dismay over the lack of police presence and pointed out the absence of security- as per Vienna Convention.

More than 200 community members have gathered outside the HCI waving Indian flags and chanting Vande Mataram and Bharat Mata ki Jai, and celebrating their belongingness and pride. Before dispersing, they rendered the national anthem.

ALSO READ-Indian High Commission in UK vandalised

READ MORE-‘Attack on Indian High Commission unacceptable’

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-Top News London News

BBC presenters refuse to work in show of solidarity with anchor

Critics of Lineker’s suspension say the BBC bowed to government pressure, leading to a furious debate about the impartiality of the national broadcaster…reports Asian Lite News

BBC faced a mounting crisis as a row over football presenter Gary Lineker’s criticism of government migration policy led to a presenter mutiny, drew a comment from the prime minister and left the broadcaster’s boss defending his position.

The BBC was forced to axe much of its sports coverage on Saturday as presenters refused to work in a show of solidarity with Lineker, after the BBC sought to defend its impartiality by taking him off the air due to his comments on social media.

Lineker, a former England soccer captain, the BBC’s highest-paid presenter and the anchor of the football highlights programme “Match of the Day”, was suspended from his role following his criticism of Britain’s migration policy.

Critics of Lineker’s suspension say the BBC bowed to government pressure, leading to a furious debate about the impartiality of the national broadcaster.

BBC Director General Tim Davie told the BBC on Saturday he had no intention of resigning over the matter. “We in the BBC, and myself, are absolutely driven by a passion for impartiality, not left, right or pandering to a particular party,” he said.

Davie said he wanted Lineker back on the air and hoped to find a balance which enabled some presenters to express opinions while at the same time maintaining the BBC’s neutrality.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak issued a statement on Saturday defending the migration policy, which bars the entry of asylum seekers arriving in small boats across the English Channel, saying he hoped Lineker and the BBC could resolve their differences in a timely manner.

“It is rightly a matter for them, not the government,” Sunak said.

The Lineker row severely disrupted the BBC’s sports programming on Saturday as multiple presenters walked out, prompting it to issue an apology.

Saturday’s edition of “Match of the Day”, presented by Lineker for more than 20 years, aired at the usual time despite his absence, but was slashed to just 20 minutes and aired as a show of highlights without commentary.

The BBC is committed to being politically impartial, but has faced criticism from the Conservative and Labour parties about how neutral it actually is, particularly in the era of social media when high-profile presenters can easily make their personal positions known.

The opposition Labour Party and media commentators accuse the BBC of silencing Lineker, after Sunak’s spokeswoman called Lineker’s comments “unacceptable” and interior minister Suella Braverman said they were “offensive”.

“The BBC is not acting impartially by caving in to Tory MPs who are complaining about Gary Lineker,” Labour leader Keir Starmer told reporters at a conference in Wales on Saturday.

Lineker declined to comment to media as he left his London home on Saturday and did not reply to questions from reporters on arrival at the King Power Stadium in Leicester where he went to watch one of his former clubs play.

The furore followed Sunak’s announcement of the new law earlier in the week. Lineker, 62, took to Twitter to describe the legislation as a “cruel policy directed at the most vulnerable people in language that is not dissimilar to that used by Germany in the 30s.”

Seeking to resolve the dispute, the BBC said there needed to be an agreed position on Lineker’s use of social media before he can return to presenting. But critics of Lineker’s suspension say he is entitled to his personal opinions because he is not a news presenter.

Greg Dyke, who was director-general of the BBC between 2000 and 2004, told BBC radio earlier on Saturday that the BBC had made a mistake.

“The perception out there is going to be that Gary Lineker, a much-loved television presenter, was taken off air after government pressure on a particular issue,” Dyke said.

That could turn viewers away from the 100-year-old BBC, which is funded by a 159 pound ($192) annual “licence fee” tax on all television-watching households.

ALSO READ-BBC, Tories Wither As Team Lineker Flexes Muscles

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-Top News EU News

EU states agree on ‘solidarity vaccine’

After the discussions, EU ambassadors on Thursday agreed to change a system that usually distributes vaccines …reports Asian Lite News

Five European Union (EU) member states will share nearly three million additional “solidarity vaccine” doses following an agreement with the majority of other members.

After days of negotiations, EU ambassadors on Thursday agreed to change a system that usually distributes vaccines between the bloc’s 27 countries based on population size, reports Xinhua news agency.

The tweak was aimed at helping the member states that need more vaccines in their fight against the coronavirus.

A health worker looks at a vial of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine at a vaccination centre

The discussion came after EU leaders adopted a statement at their summit last week tasking the Committee of Permanent Representatives “to address the issue of the speed of delivery of vaccines when allocating the 10 million BioNTech-Pfizer accelerated doses in the second quarter of 2021 in a spirit of solidarity”.

Also read:EU to infuse $5.9bn in health

Following the talks, it was agreed that 2.85 million so-called “solidarity vaccine” doses will be shared between Bulgaria, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia.

Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovenia will receive their full pro-rata share after they refused to be part of the solidarity mechanism, while the other 19 member states will be sharing the remaining 6.66 million doses on a pro-rata basis.

Earlier in March, leaders from five states, Bulgaria, Austria, the Czech Republic, Latvia and Slovenia, called for an EU debate on the distribution of Covid-19 vaccines.

In a letter to European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the five leaders underscored the significance of European solidarity, which guarantees that all EU members, big and small, will have equal access to limited resources such as the Covid-19 vaccines.

Also read:WHO lashes out at Europe’s slow vax rollout