Latest news with #Britisher
Scroll.in
23-07-2025
- Business
- Scroll.in
Banking, airlines, railways, coal, jute, newspapers: Ramkrishna Dalmia's business-building spree
Ramkrishna Dalmiya was one of India's leading industrialists, with diverse business interests spanning sugar, cement, chemicals, glass, dairy, aviation, biscuits and more. He continued to play a role in the freedom movement, providing financial support to political leaders and the Congress party. He had acquired a taste for dabbling in politics and enjoyed the company of many political leaders including Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Patel and Nehru. His deep friendship with Jinnah also continued. Ramkrishna had realised that together with his brother and son-in-law, they formed a formidable team. The two younger men left all financial decisions and acquisitions to Ramkrishna, recognizing his financial acumen. On their part, Jaidayal and Shanti Prasad concentrated on managing the operations of their various enterprises, demonstrating their ability to run and oversee diverse businesses. The business group, known as the Dalmia-Jain Group, had grown steadily in prominence and was counted among the biggest and best in the country. In 1943, Ramkrishna established Bharat Bank. Ramkrishna decided almost overnight that he wanted to acquire the bank. The authorised capital of the bank was Rs 50 lakh, but in no time, Ramkrishna raised it to Rs 20 crore. He appointed new directors, including well-known individuals such as state chief ministers. Appointing political leaders as directors in his companies was a strategic way for Ramkrishna to oblige them. While he sometimes provided financial support directly, he found that offering directorships or partnerships in managing agencies was a more refined approach. The directors of Bharat Bank appreciated the prestige of their positions as well as the money they earned. The bank soon expanded to 292 branches across the country. At the time, there was no centralised banking system, so each branch operated independently, catering to local markets and industries. Each branch had its own board, and Ramkrishna continued to appoint prominent individuals to these positions. During the late 1930s and early 1940s, many British companies had seen the writing on the wall, realising that India would soon gain its independence. Britisher owners therefore sought to sell their companies to local businessmen and industrialists and return to Britain. Ramkrishna saw a huge opportunity in this environment to acquire diverse companies. Being a risk-taker, he was willing to accept losses in some ventures. Jaidayal and Shanti Prasad supported him. The managing agency system allowed Ramkrishna to invest a small amount and acquire less than 10 per cent stakes in the companies he identified. Leveraging his network in the market and his growing reputation as an industrialist, he was able to get the shares of the acquired companies sold in the stock market. The Dalmia-Jain Group went on an acquisition spree, securing a majority stake in three jute mills. Jute was a thriving industry in India at the time, and Andrew Yule managed three mills: Albion Jute Mills Ltd, Lothian Jute Mills Ltd and New Central Jute Mills Ltd. Ramkrishna bought a controlling stake in all three mills just before Independence. Some years later, the Group bought two more mills, this time in Bombay – Madhowji Dharamsi Manufacturing Co. Ltd and Sir Shapurji Broacha Mill Ltd. By the end of the Second World War, the Dalmia-Jain Group forayed into the automotive sector. They purchased 50,000 American vehicles, including jeeps, weapon carriers and command cars. These war-used vehicles were repaired and reconditioned at the workshops of Allen Berry & Co. Ltd, a company Ramkrishna had acquired earlier. Along with establishing his presence in the automotive sector, Ramkrishna expanded his aviation interests. Indian National Airways, which had been acquired during the pre-war years and had been part of Govan Brothers Ltd, continued to fly its planes. A new company, Dalmia-Jain Airways Ltd., was formed, which flew cargo planes. Ramkrishna's vision was to use these airlines to link up with other aviation companies and connect upcountry destinations with existing trunk routes. Ramkrishna already had a presence in the railways sector, having previously acquired a small rail company for transporting raw materials to Dalmianagar. With his businesses now spread across the country, Ramkrishna expanded the railway company as well. The business empire was growing, with the Dalmia-Jain Group continuing to acquire companies. Much of the momentum was due to Ramkrishna's trademark fast decision-making. 'How is it that you are able to take decisions so quickly, Pitaji?' asked Shanti Prasad one day, amazed by the speed at which his father-in-law processed information and analysed the viability of a business. 'I really don't know, son. Maybe it is god-given, or perhaps it is something I developed during my years in the speculation business, where every minute – no, every second – is important. I think I unconsciously honed this skill during those days. But, I also think it is instinctive,' Ramkrishna replied after a moment's reflection. Shanti Prasad nodded in understanding. He had seen his father-in-law in action and realised that this ability was not something that could be learnt over time. 'You know that every minute, nay, every second is important when speculating. So, I think I have unconsciously developed this skill,' Ramkrishna continued. He spoke slowly as if reflecting and getting the answer from within. 'That makes sense, Pitaji,' he agreed. 'My advice to you, son, is to make quick decisions. Decide as quickly as you can. And don't worry about making wrong decisions. Not all your decisions will be correct – maybe eight out of ten will be right – but the gains from those eight decisions will usually outweigh the losses from the two wrong ones,' advised Ramkrishna. In the absence of a son of his own, he regarded Shanti Prasad as one. 'I will remember this, Pitaji,' promised Shanti Prasad solemnly. By the mid-1940s, the Dalmia-Jain Group, under Ramkrishna's leadership, had acquired a wide range of businesses. They owned several collieries, including Kharkhari Coal Co. at Junnardeo in the Central Province, Maheshpur Collieries Ltd in Jharia and Bharat Collieries Ltd, which had mines in Jharia, Barabani and Raniganj. Besides these, the Group had several other companies, including Patiala Biscuit Manufacturers Ltd, located in the state of Patiala. It produced biscuits and a range of other food products. Ramkrishna also acquired Lesco Chemical Works Ltd, which manufactured pharmaceutical products in Kanpur. The Group had a presence in the chemicals sector through Dhrangadhra Chemical Works in Kathiawar, Gujarat, which produced soda ash and sodium bicarbonate. It also owned Rampur Distillery & Chemical Works Ltd, which utilised molasses from the sugar mills to manufacture spirits and liquors. There was more. Rampur Maize Products produced glucose, starch and similar food products, while Shevaroy Bauxite Products Ltd, based in Yercaud, dealt in bauxite, emery and grinding paste. With its presence in various industrial sectors and locations across the country, the Dalmia-Jain Group was the third-largest business conglomerate in India. Only the Tatas and the Birlas were bigger. Yet, despite managing such a wide variety of businesses and factories, Ramkrishna had set his sights on one more sector – he aspired to enter the media industry. Ramkrishna held strong views on various aspects of politics and on cow protection. He had observed the influence newspapers wielded over public opinion, especially during his fight with ACC. He had already been funding the National Herald newspaper since its launch in 1938. The newspaper was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru, who served as its editor and chairman of its board. At the newspaper's inception, National Herald was in need of funds. Mohanlal Saxena, a close associate of Nehru, approached Ramkrishna to sell shares of the newspaper. Ramkrishna had agreed and asked how much money was required. Saxena explained that even if he bought shares worth Rs 5,000 and gave them only 25 per cent of the money (Rs 1,250), it would be enough to meet the newspaper's immediate needs. After listening to Saxena, Ramkrishna decided to buy shares worth Rs 25,000 and assured him that he would pay the full amount within ten days. Ramkrishna also nominated Shanti Prasad as a director on the National Herald's board. Even after many years, the Jain family continued to hold 25,000 preferential shares of the newspaper. Through this, Ramkrishna became a significant shareholder of the National Herald. He had seen the critical role the newspaper played in shaping public opinion, especially in the fight for freedom. Inspired by this, Ramkrishna decided that he, too, wanted to own a newspaper. He firmly believed that he could better serve his country by having a platform to reach millions of Indians. A newspaper, to his mind, was the best way to achieve this.
Indian Express
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Indian Express
The artist behind Sachin Tendulkar's portrait at Lord's: ‘I got on very well with him… never seen him play'
When celebrated painter Stuart Pearson Wright first met Sachin Tendulkar in 2007 at his home in Mumbai, he had neither seen him play nor was he aware of his stardom. A rare Britisher with no interest in cricket, Stuart blames his aloofness towards sports to his PE teacher at school who ignored kids who were not good at football. Commissioned by the MCC to draw a portrait of the Indian batting legend, which now hangs at the Lord's museum and will later be relocated permanently to the pavilion, Stuart says his ignorance about Sachin wasn't a deterrent as he wasn't sketching his biography. His work was an effort to 'capture the sense of the individual' and his art was a response to the 'person's humanity'. 'A lot of portrait painters say they are trying to capture the soul of the subject, and I feel that's a bit of a cliche,' Stuart tells The Indian Express after the unveiling at Lord's last week. It was a rare outing to a sports arena for the artist who once requested a filmstar he met on the street to pose for him and has painted the portraits of best-selling author J K Rowling, King Charles, Prince Philip and the late Queen Elizabeth's Corgis, a composition that was not for the public eye. The Sachin portrait drew long queues during the Lord's Test between India and England. It's from the time Sachin was in his early 30s, still six years away from retirement. 'People call him a god… it's extraordinary… but for me, he was just another guy I was drawing. When I met him in 2007 to take his picture for the portrait, I got on very well with him. I found him very quiet and humble. I've never seen him play but someone told me that off the pitch he is quiet but when you see him bat he becomes like a tiger,' says Stuart. The face has those steely eyes and that fierce focus that was visible when he took on a Glenn McGrath or a Wasim Akram. Stuart captures what he always looks for — the sense of individuality. In Sachin's case, it's that feline alertness when batting, the tiger inside a soft-spoken man. 'My portraits aren't always as photographic as this one, but Lord's specified in the contract that they wanted this particular painting to be a very photographic style of likeness. If you look at my other paintings, you'll see I often elongate or distort facial features of it,' he says. Meeting his subject after 2007 at the unveiling, Stuart says Sachin has changed. 'He's got a good skincare routine. He's eating the right things. He is disciplined in his life as he is in his cricket. So, I think it really shows in his face,' says the artist, who took 5-6 weeks to complete his work, an oil painting on an aluminum surface. 'He was happy with my work, it was first approved by him,' he says. The 'work' started with the artist drawing a sketch with a charcoal stick. 'I started with the head first. And then did the shirt… A lot of people have commented on the ear. The ear seems to be a very popular ear. I enjoyed painting his chest hair. A cathartic process, just painting little hairs onto the aluminum panel,' says Stuart about the Sachin portrait. Now approaching 50 and settled in the countryside, the artist's big break came in 2001 when, as a 25-year-old, he won the prestigious BP Portrait Award for work that is now part of the National Portrait Gallery in London. 'That was a big prize… I got 25,000 pounds and was able to buy a house, where I lived and worked,' he says. The award led Stuart to getting a lot of commissions and that would be the period of his career where the artist slogged. 'I remember a period of working for six months without a single day off. I was quite obsessed,' recalls the artist who grew up in a working class family. It is those early days that gave the painter the drive to do well. 'I knew that I had to work very, very hard to earn a living, have a family, and have a nice house. That drove me to look for opportunities, like stopping John Hurt in the street,' he says. A young Stuart approached British actor John Hurt — Oscar nominee for 'Midnight Express' and 'The Elephant Man' and known for playing wand-maker Garrick Ollivander in the Harry Potter films — for a portrait after bumping into him on the street. 'He agreed, and I sold the painting to the National Portrait Gallery,' says the painter. Stuart recalls a question he was asked at Lord's. 'This guy asked me, 'What was your inspiration for the picture?' I said, well, I need to feed my family, it is a job. I think there's this myth that artists wake up in the middle of the night and they have these inspirations and they run down and start painting,' he guffaws. Stuart also has some interesting non-Sachin memories of Mumbai in 2007. He had to paint three other Indian legends — the late Bishan Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev and Dilip Vengsarkar — for the MCC with the cricketers posing for him at an art school in Mumbai. 'Mr Bedi was very funny, full of life. He just had a great personality. I remember telling him 'I am not interested in cricket'. You know what he said: 'Why the bloody hell did they send you to paint me',' recalls Stuart. Kapil, he says, reminded him of his mother, an antiques dealer. 'He was looking for a deal. He would say, I would paint something of him, he would put his signatures on it, we would sell it and share profit. I enjoyed our conversation. It never led anywhere, but it was fun,' he says. Vengsarkar 'was a difficult character,' he says, recalling an incident at the art school which had strictly instructed that the press be kept away as it was exam time. One day, a photographer walked in and started clicking pictures. 'I said, 'Who the hell are you?' He replied that he was Dilip's friend. I asked Dilip and he said, 'Yes, he's my friend'. I checked again if he was a journalist, he said 'No, no',' Stuart says. The next day, the pictures were on the front page of a newspaper and the media poured into the college. Stuart says it was like some 'Ariana Grande gig… (and) the head of the art school was very upset'. So what happened next? 'Someone once told me that you should never be on the wrong side of your proctologist or your portrait painter. So it's not a coincidence that Dilip, in the painting, has been bowled out, his wicket's down and there's dark and stormy clouds behind him like it's going to rain. His game's ruined. This is the artist's revenge.'
India.com
17-07-2025
- India.com
Looking For Peace And Mystery? These 8 Historical Spots In Almora Feel Like Time Travel!
Almora, a beautiful town located in Uttarakhand's Kumaon hills in India is not only a delight to nature lovers but also a treasure trove of historical marvels. It is steeped in rich heritage and cultural significance, which has manifested into numerous historical sites that reveal its splendid history. The town of Almora is full of stories about ancient temples and colonial-era buildings. Come with me on an exploration expedition into the past to find out where the best historical locations are situated in Almora. Sun Temple: The Katarmal Sun Temple was built in the 9th century, an example of architectural capabilities and dedication towards sun god by Almora residents. This ancient shrine nestled among peaceful pine trees has been adorned with intricate carvings providing visitors with astonishing sights of the Himalayas. From this temple one can experience the majesty behind it as well as observe its celestial alignment said to have astronomical implications. Golu Devta Temple: Chitai Golu Devta Temple is one such place for prayers dedicated to Golu Devta, who was known for his righteousness and quick reactions; it attracts many devotees from all over Almora. This temple, which was built as far back as the twelfth century, practises the tradition of presenting written applications to God Devta's divine influence on their lives can be seen through thousands of bells present around temple campus. End Corner: Bright End Corner does not fall under list of usual historic spots yet it carries some weight due to colonial associationism named after a Britisher Brighton ,who had his house here,Bright End Corner provides stunning views across snow-capped peaks at sunrise or tranquil gardens provide a great opportunity for visitors to reflect on the colonial era that had once been part of this scenic landscape. Devi Temple: Kasar Devi Temple stands atop a hill, hoary with myth and spirituality. It is thought to be the abode of Kasar Devi, an important local deity, and as such it has been attracting spiritual seekers and artists for centuries. This then became a site of popular interest during the 1920s when Swami Vivekananda and DH Lawrence were among those who visited it, re-enforcing its mystique and cultural importance. Ballabh Pant Museum: Govind Ballabh Pant Museum would be very interesting for historians interested in learning about Uttarakhand's culture and heritage. The name of the museum comes from famous freedom fighter and statesman, Govind Ballabh Pant that contains a diverse collection including archaeological relics, manuscripts as well as traditional handicrafts. One can track the development of Almora's culture through time within the region's history. Park: Deer Park used to be a hunting ground owned by Chand rulers before turning into a peaceful sanctuary surrounded by oak & pine forests known for its deer population, one can also find here an ancient Shiva temple believed to have originated back in eleventh century. Visitors can roam around green surroundings, enjoy meals near streams or simply get lost in nature's quietness.' Martola is a charming village located just a few kilometres from Almora that has old-world appeal and rustic attraction. It is colonised with colonial style bungalows and beautiful orchards which give one an idea of how the town was like during the colonial times in Almora. People can have refreshing walks in the countryside, have chats with warm-hearted residents, and enjoy peace of mind. Kalimath is known for its ancient Kali temple and mystical atmosphere which is hidden among dense forests. This sanctuary is believed to have been established by Chand rulers and holds great spiritual significance for worshipers. With gigantic deodar trees surrounding it on all sides as well as providing majestic views of Himalayas, Kalimath becomes an idyllic place for those wishing to find solace or spiritual rejuvenation. Final Thoughts The town of Almora serves as a testament to India's rich cultural background and historical heritage. Every part of this small town has a story to tell; it could be ancient temples or other relics from colonisation periods which describe past eras viewed in holy enthusiasm. You may be someone attracted to history, nature or religion but Almora has something unique that will stay with you forever after taking part in any such time has come to take your bags and go on an exciting journey through ages so as not to miss the timeless charm of India's Almora City.
India Today
23-06-2025
- Entertainment
- India Today
What makes Chittara murals a hidden gem
The Madhubani paintings of Bihar's Maithili-speaking Mithila region were unknown to the larger world until a Britisher gave it a platform in the late 1970s by doing a book on it. Then the culturatti of Delhi and the sarkari patronage systems and the badshahs of Bollywood took over, and every drawing room, airline interior or powder-rooms in big hotels boasted of it. This was some 40 years happened next, in the 1980s—Warli wall art, a lesser-known tribal art confined to a part of Maharashtra until the same design jet set of Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Baroda and Delhi put it on a pedestal. Now, one hopes it will be the turn of Karnataka's Chittara, a higher-grade version in both form and design; ritually and socially indigenous art at its Western Ghats are rich in wildlife, waterfalls, hills and forests, in which dwell the most sophisticated artists and graphic designers. Using brushes made of the simplest of straw or natural fibre (pundi naaru) and colours extracted from seeds, fruits and other parts of plants, ordinary farm hands, for whom art is life is art, make patterns so geometrically intricate that perhaps even AI can't replicate them. Without modern technology, even a proper brush, they paint the most complex of designs and motifs that city slickers dub as art, but for them it's a way of life in an agrarian is habitual to call them variously: Jogi, Hasalaru or Deevaru, Budubudake, Maley or plain shikari. Among them, the Deevaru and their art Chittara is waiting to go national. Chittara is an embodiment of the Deevaru community's intrinsic socio-cultural framework. As the only indigenous mural folk art of Karnataka, Chittara deserves to be recognised as Karnataka's pride and India's heritage, say Geetha Bhat and Smitha Tumuluru in their 200-plus-page lavish tome titled Deevara The beauty of folk art lies in the ability of artists to interpret and reinterpret it. This is also key to its preservation and evolution, aver the is the catalyst, with her Centre for Revival of Indigenous Arts (CFRIA) in her hometown Bengaluru. She was mad and possessed about Chittara long before the word entered the lexicon of Unesco or the jargon of the Delhi sarkari culturatti. Her interface with the art form started 25 years ago and she has done yeoman service ever since in helping reach it as far as Japan and France, besides parts of India that still don't know where the Western ghats are!Geetha has done something practical for a dying art form of a region of Karnataka, and of India. She is doing for Chittara what Vallathol did for Kerala's theatre arts in the 1940s, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay did for the crafts in the 1950s, Pupul Jayakar did for weavers in the 1970s, Mohan Khokar did for dance in the 1980s, ITC and India Today did for music in the 1990s, and Sachchidanand Joshi of the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), created by Kapila Vatsyayan, did for multi-disciplinary institutionalised right hand in this madness is Smitha, whose photography is a form of art. Here is a documenter with depth and substance. Namrata Cavale has given the overall design and branding tinge. Together the trio—call them the teen devian—has documented this lesser-known art form, the people and their culture in Deevara Chittara, published by Prism, whose Pranesh Sirivara is another low-key, high-quality lived and worked in all the Indian metros over the past 40 years, and some internationally too, I have found no other metro in India with such highly accomplished people as Bangalore, with the least attitude or arrogance. They don't need to show off or pretend, as they are secure in themselves. These are solid do-gooders like Geetha and Smitha whose role models were Vimala Rangachar, an educationist and art conservationist who passed away on February 25, or Chiranjiv Singh, the former Ambassador of India to Unesco in authors had got the most Jnanpith awards among all languages until 2005, when Hindi surpassed it. Need more be said of the literary or cultural quotient of this state? Among all Indian cities, Bengaluru has the most bookshops. It has been the science capital of India much before the IT and biotech boom, but it is also home to a rich cultural palette. All forms of classical, folk and modern dance exist here, not just one or two, as in the other metros. Theatre, both regional and national, films and architecture, the latest and maximum museums and libraries, cultural spaces and aquariums and theme parks. No wonder the traffic is a mess! The administration has not kept pace with the tremendous growth in the past decade alone. Still, it is a metro in a hill station!advertisementChittara is a symbol of the Malenadu region's rich culture and when a builder of the city—Aslam Zackria Sait, chairman of Rocklines—supports indigenous art, then it shows the high social and cultural index of the city. Add Redington Foundation and the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC).The government of Karnataka should make Deevara Chittara available to every library in the country and in every embassy abroad in order to take cultural pride in a process unique to it. That the state's top folklorist, Padma Bhushan and Jnanpith awardee Chandrashekhar Kambara, was at hand to do the honours of unveiling the book on a cool Saturday morning (in May which other metro can boast of 3o degrees at noon?) in one of the oldest cultural halls of Bengaluru—the Indian Institute of World Cultures—showed the strength and pull of this team supported by many more artivists, artists and artocrats. Textile-lover Pavithra Muddaya opened the exhibition, which was first-rate in detailing, mounting and display. One has rarely seen a better exhibition aesthetically done with academic content in Bengaluru in the past the main artist, Shirvala Gowramma, had taken the first flight of in her life to reach the function showed the organisers' large heartedness and respect for an indigenous artist. A state award and a national award ought to follow for Geetha, if the government is at all serious about tribal cultures. Joining her were Gademane Padmavathy, Hecche Vishwanatha G. and Radha Sullur. All those senseless seminars and symposiums in Delhi and Mumbai are of no use if they don't help the real artists on ground.A dynamic three-term Prime Minister Narendra Modi has everything going for the country—all his government now needs is a cultural policy to help those who truly brand India. Not Bollywood or cricket but real, indigenous artists. That's when we would have truly arrived on the world writer is India's ace cultural historian, critic, arts policy expert and editor, attenDanceSubscribe to India Today Magazine- End
Indian Express
14-06-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
‘It's our responsibility to apologize to India for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre': UK MP Bob Blackman
Bob Blackman, a five-time Conservative MP from Harrow East, London says it is the responsibility of the UK government to apologize to India for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Punjab's Amritsar on April 13, 1919. In an interview with The Indian Express via web conferencing, Blackman also accepts the presence Khalistani separatists in UK, but adds that are a small minority. Excerpts: Time and again, you have demanded from successive governments in your country that the UK must apologize to India for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. As a Britisher, why do you feel that the apology must come? What came as an eye-opener for me was a visit to the (Jallianwala) Bagh in Amritsar. Of course, we can talk about the massacre, about terrible events that took place, from afar but I have to confess, I was ignorant about several things before I actually visited the Bagh. And when you see the site of the massacre, where those innocent people had gathered on the auspicious day of Baisakhi, just to be with family and friends– you realize how tragic it was. They were not a threat to anyone. And then, the troops marched in, literally shooting at them till they ran out of ammunition. For us, as Britishers, to pretend that it never happened, is not right. So why do you think that despite your repeated demand, the apology hasn't come even after more than a century. I led a debate on the centenary of the massacre in our Parliament in 2019, urging the then government to issue an apology to India. The then PM, Theresa May, 'regretted' the massacre and called it a 'shameful scar' in British-India history but stopped short of issuing a formal apology which I think was extremely regrettable. Had we apologized then, it would have been far better. I reiterated that demand earlier this year as well on the massacre's 106th anniversary. Whatever wrong things were done in the name of the British Empire around the world, they should be apologized for. We can't be responsible for actions taken by our forebears, but what we can do is to say, look, it was wrong, and we are sorry. So what convinces you to consistently ask your own country for an apology to India even as it hasn't happened yet? Is it some guilt as a Britisher? No, I don't carry any guilt as I wasn't the one to order that firing. But I do not feel any hesitation in saying that what was done was wrong, absolutely wrong, it should not have been done and we should apologize. It is equally regrettable to see the length of time that it has taken to drag out an apology, given the huge number of people who lost their lives. At the Bagh, when you see that well, where so many people jumped inside to escape firing, you realize it was a terrible way to die. So for me, it's not a feeling of guilt, this is our responsibility. It was one of those incidents that if you don't apologize, it will continue to be a running sore. We can't bring those people back but can say that what happened to them was utterly wrong. Coming to the recent developments between India and Pakistan, you met the Indian Parliamentarians' delegation post Operation Sindoor. Your views on the meeting. We absolutely condemn the heartrending terrorist attack that took place in Pahalgam. We were given to understand that India's recent military action against terror bases in Pakistan was not just about Pahalgam, but several terrorist attacks that have taken place in the past. The sad reality however is, that no one's quite sure of who's incharge in Pakistan, whether it's their so-called elected government or their generals and military who seem to be literally calling the shots. It was made clear to us by the visiting delegation that India is, and will react proportionally to the attacks from the Pakistani side, if any. So what do you think Pakistan can do to stop fostering terrorism on its soil? First, Pakistan should remove the terror bases that exist along the line of control, whether for training terrorists or facilitating the entry of terrorists into sovereign India. It is pretty clear that Pakistan is, at the very least, not just tolerating the terrorist camps, but probably almost certainly encouraging them, because anything that destabilizes India seems to be good news for Pakistan, which I think is regrettable. Equally, there are reports of Pakistan linked terrorists tunneling into the Kashmir Valley. Pakistan has even attacked in the Punjab and the Indian forces had to thwart attacks on the Golden Temple, for example, which is a direct threat to religious places of worship, which is outrageous. The second thing that Pakistan can do is to withdraw their military forces from Jammu and Kashmir, end the illegal occupation and allow it to be part of India, as was always intended back in 1947. The US President, Donald Trump, has been regularly trying to portray that he was the one who got this ceasefire done, whereas India has denied that and they said that it was Pakistan, which had requested the ceasefire. Your comments. As we know, the Americans have been strong supporters of Pakistan for quite a long time. Indeed, during the Bangladesh war of independence 1971, the Americans were on the Pakistani side. I think India takes a very strong stance on these things and quite rightly so. India has suffered at hands of terrorism and was going to make sure that the terrorists understood that they will not be allowed to gain ground, they will not be allowed to terrify the people of Kashmir and there would be grave consequences of any such act in future. I know that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has built a good relationship with the Americans, quite rightly too, that's good news for India. It's good news for world trade. And indeed, we want India to be part of the democracies of the world that encourage justice and peace. But I think we should be very clear that the initiative for a ceasefire came from Pakistan, not from India. Because basically India was saying, if you attack us, we're going to attack you back, but we are not going to be the aggressors. The separatist Khalistani elements have been flourishing on UK soil. India has raised this several times. Your take. Yes. And I've called them out. We've had these pro-Khalistan demonstrations outside the Indian High Commission in London. And indeed, when Prime Minister Modi or other key visitors from India have been on official visits to the UK, there have been such demonstrations. But this is a very small minority. I think we should be very clear that in the UK, the vast majority of British Sikhs do not agree with a so-called independent Khalistan. The vast majority of Sikhs are loyal to Britain now and indeed maintain their loyalty to India and don't want to see this misguided campaign. I've called on the police to take firm action outside the Indian High Commission when Khalistanis have demonstrated. I've called them out for what they are, thugs and potentially terrorists. And we need to ensure that the police and the security services take every action necessary to ensure they can't cause problems. There's nothing wrong with people demonstrating peacefully on what they have to say as long as they're not causing criminal damage or intimidating people.
