India-US Strategic News and Discussion

TKiran · Post by **TKiran** » 03 Apr 2014 08:03

LokeshC wrote:TOIlet's Chidanand Rajghatta spins it the toilet way:

Long arm of US law nails Andhra MP KVP Ramachandra Rao in bribery case

Washing the unwashed going on with full steam. It might be a warning to our top layer that their balls will be firmly squeezed by unkil when the time comes.

There will be a number of AP politicians and beaurocrats who would be witch hunted who took money but could not deliver. Nancy Powell was in Guntur as a first trip outside New Delhi after her cancelled trip to Nepal during the height of DK affair. I saw that Telugu article, along with photograph in telugu daily. I am travelling right now, i will post the link later after i search for it. It was in
Late Jan or in Feb. I dont remember exactly. She also visited Hyderabad.
If the DK affair was the reason she would have been quietly retired by SD. The reason why she has been fired is dueto misappropriation of funds. She had to be fired immediately, but somebody in SD intervened and
ked for an honorable exit for her, that person relented upon NP to submit resignation from. Also note Marie Harf saying NP's exit has nothing to do with DK's affair. If it has anything to do with MEA or GOI, they would have afo
Jaishanker to leave US, either directly or indirectly.

issues particular to them

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 03 Apr 2014 08:45

Amazingly, Bjorn Biglund seems to have done just that, man from Mongolistan.

saip · Post by **saip** » 03 Apr 2014 09:21

Who is in Guntur that NaPo decided to visit?

Neela · Post by **Neela** » 03 Apr 2014 10:55

ramana wrote:Something odd is going on here.

US indicts Ukranian Oligarch for bribing Andhra Pradesh govt officials

Included are KVPR Rao who is a YSR acolyte.

Is US now taking care of GOI responsibility? Has MMS surrendered completely?

The charges said US laws applied because the conspiracy involved using US financial institutions, travel to and from the United States, and use of US-based communications -- computers, telephones, and the Internet. - See more at: http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-new ... VAcJR.dpuf

Eh?
Who is aggrieved party here? Has this caused losses to the US govt?
The act of bribing was for resources or services that belonged to the GoI.
Going by same argument, I can also argue for the BeeDees and say that since most Amreekis wear XXXL wunderwear produced in Sialkot & Dhaka , BeeDee jusridiction applies for every case in the US.
Amreeki going full retard.

Firtash, 48, a close associate of ousted pro-Russia president Viktor Yanukovych, was arrested on US request on March 12 in Vienna and held for extradition -

Austria needs a whack really.

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 03 Apr 2014 10:57

Philip wrote:we saw the first "rat" to leave the sinking ship,none other than the US ambassador herself. She read the writing on the wall!

Isn't the captain supposed to go down with the ship? What was that story about the little boy who waits for his dad's return on the burning deck? Casa Bianca?

pankajs · Post by **pankajs** » 03 Apr 2014 11:09

Wasn't it in Austria where the official plane of a Latin American presidents plane grounded and searched for Snowden going against all international norms?

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 03 Apr 2014 17:20

Oh! The well-known Scandinavian foreign affairs expert is pretty well-informed, and hits the bulls-***:

Rather than the apparent cause-effect sequence suggested by the article, consider this: just before Dec. 2013, relations were going along reasonably well, a majority of Indians thought well of the US (and still do). But this is a simple issue. Under Nancy Powell's watch a couple of diplomats at the US Embassy effectively thought up a little human-trafficking scheme whereby they would charge an Indian diplomat in the US with slavery, while using that charge to enable the "anti-slavery" visa option for husband and chileren of the so-called "slave" working for that diplomat. Why the two diplomats did it, is anyone's guess - but the potential causes are many; ranging from the misplaced "do-gooder" instincts - that basically means "we'll do whatever it takes to make you third worlders do things the American way" - to a sense of Christian solidarity against the "upper caste Hindu" as the family who got their escape to the US were Christian. The problem is that the diplomat was not upper caste, and it appears that the American diplomats were the simple-minded victims of a scam by their Indian servant family; the Indian couple are now in divorce court.

Meanwhile, the American Embassy School in New Delhi was openly encouraging employees wives to avoid taxes by mislabelling their tax forms while taking up the jobs as teachers (doesn't this break US law?), openly derogatory comments about India and Indians were posted on diplomats facebook accounts, etc.All this happened under Powell's watch - and came into public attention as from last December, in a steady and almost daily trickle. But as State Department spokeswoman Harf said, any suggestion that Powell's previously unannounced retirement had anything to do with all that is "totally false".

To me that seems like a callous dismissal of and even contempt for the average American's intelligence.

shiv · Post by **shiv** » 03 Apr 2014 18:11

Meanwhile..

American Embassy school in trouble as teachers leave

The American Embassy School (AES) in New Delhi has landed in trouble, as many of its teachers had to leave after the Indian government declined to renew their visas in the wake of alleged violations of local laws by the institution and some of its employees.

Paul Chmelik, the director of the American Embassy School, recently admitted in a note that the premier institution was going through challenging times.

“Via messages from the principals, many of you are now aware that the departure of faculty members due to visa renewal issues has begun. Such departures may continue during the days ahead until a resolution to the issues are orchestrated by high-level diplomatic discussions that are taking place between the Government of India and the US Government,” Chmelik wrote in his community note on March 28 last.

Chmelik did not specify how many teachers had left after the Indian government declined to renew their visas. Sources, however, said that nearly 20 teachers had to leave over the past few weeks.

The AES, located on the Chandragupta Marg, adjacent to the US Embassy has about 1,500 students from nursery to 12th grade. About 35 per cent of them are Americans, while the rest are nationals of over 50 other countries. Most of the students are children of employees of the US and other countries’ embassies, local units of international organisations, global non-governmental organisations and executives of multinational companies.

The Ministry of External Affairs put the school under scanner after India and US engaged in a bitter diplomatic row in the wake of the arrest of Indian Foreign Service officer Devyani Khobragade in New York on December 12.

Chmelik noted that the school’s Board of Governors and the administrative team had been “working very hard the past three months” to ensure that the AES continued to “function in a stellar fashion”. The “past three months” in the AES director’s note apparently refers to the period that commenced after the Ministry of External Affairs asked for the visa status and salary details of all foreign employees of the AES.

“Now, you and your students are beginning to be impacted by the events that began back in December. Please know the principals will keep you posted should the potential absence of a teacher or counselor impact your student’s life at school,” he wrote in “Director’s Community Note” posted on the website of the AES.

member_28108 · Post by **member_28108** » 03 Apr 2014 19:43

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/396 ... chers.html

If you want to fight Babu's be prepared to die the death of a thousand meetings. You can't beat them in a war of attrition.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 03 Apr 2014 19:44

Real trouble starts when they are asked to pay back taxes. That has not happened. The abopve article is simple case of Indian media declarign victory when the battle has not begun.
Seein NaPo paco up Indian media is now on a frenzy with articles like this.

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 03 Apr 2014 20:15

Nancy,"throw-in-the-towel",did not "retire",she "retreated" in traditional Yanqui style after losing her battle with the "Injuns" over the DK affair. Her retreat coincides with the US mil forces and their British poodles,beating the retreat in Af-Pak and Iraq. The inability of the US to even fire a damp squib at Syria,under Joker-ry,has stunned its allies worldwide as the brutal truth has finally hit them,that the "Emperor" of the world has no bullets in his gun!

chetak · Post by **chetak** » 03 Apr 2014 20:20

ramana wrote:Real trouble starts when they are asked to pay back taxes. That has not happened. The abopve article is simple case of Indian media declarign victory when the battle has not begun.
Seein NaPo paco up Indian media is now on a frenzy with articles like this.

NaPo seems to have a rather undistinguished and mediocre CV for a complex country like India. She seems to have cut her teeth on low profile, back of the beyond countries with low numbers of staff but all requiring heavy EJ presence to bring civilization to the natives.

Clearly out of her depth, this seems to be her first large country and large embassy staff management gig.

No wonder she crashed and burned.

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 03 Apr 2014 21:02

Weren't there some articles about homosexuality being illegal in India about the time of the DK Incident was at its peak? Any links to that? I haven't seen any...

Cosmo_R · Post by **Cosmo_R** » 03 Apr 2014 21:27

@UB
Oh! The well-known Scandinavian foreign affairs expert is pretty well-informed, and hits the bulls-***:

Was the Scandi born that way or did he grow ?

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 03 Apr 2014 22:08

Real trouble starts when they are asked to pay back taxes.

We don't know that they haven't been asked. I suspect that the "negotiation" is about the amount, and who should pay. The tax-cheats will say that they were "only following orders", and claim Pain and Suffering for being exposed in the media. The IRS will laugh. GOI will simply send a Demand Notice.

Since this has been going on for decades, there may some serious negotiation about how far back to go. Technically the rule is that in fraud cases there is no statute of limitations, they can go back as far as they want.

But if anyone has tried dealing with the Indian tax babucracy... their "TRACES" Online TDS A26 site has not been working for months, so people cannot find out how much money has been paid in as taxes. Absolutely no response on when it will start working, they seem to be aspiring to the standards of the ObamaCare site.

Gets interesting in countries like Mangolia where the tax deadline is, say, April 15... Refunds are delayed for many months... I suspect that they have not yet heard about the AES at all. Chalta hai. This is why ppl like AES and NaPO and the Mays get away with all this pakistan. The **** buggers have absolutely no respect for people who try to honestly obey the law, only for goras who treat them like they are less protein-fed than Paco.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 04 Apr 2014 02:29

So this is what USAID really does....foment political unrest.

The US started a social network in Cuba to foster dissent

chanakyaa · Post by **chanakyaa** » 04 Apr 2014 04:32

UlanBatori wrote:
Real trouble starts when they are asked to pay back taxes.
We don't know that they haven't been asked. I suspect that the "negotiation" is about the amount, and who should pay. The tax-cheats will say that they were "only following orders", and claim Pain and Suffering for being exposed in the media. The IRS will laugh. GOI will simply send a Demand Notice.

Since this has been going on for decades, there may some serious negotiation about how far back to go. Technically the rule is that in fraud cases there is no statute of limitations, they can go back as far as they want.

....

It is fair to assume that negotiations may be going on in the background and people may have been asked to pay the taxes. What I find difficult to believe is that given how long the tax cheating has been going on, the likely recovery amounts in Rupees is going to be very very high (this includes missing personal taxes, corporate taxes if for profit etc.). Could be high enough at the level of hundreds and thousands of crores of Chara Ghotala or 2G/3G scams. Simply, big enough to make newspaper headlines for weeks. That has not happened. Are babus trying to avoid embarrassment?

India's sports team can't participate and win big in Olympics, in part, because of poor facilities and infrastructure. Hundreds and thousands of sports facilities in India are underinvested from lack of funds. How many sports facilities, for example, would benefit from these tax recoveries?

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 04 Apr 2014 04:45

would benefit from these tax recoveries?

Before we get into huge numbers, it is useful to remember that 12 Rupees would buy a dollar back in the late 1980s. And dollar pay numbers were not that huge either: an Embassy type might have made, say, $18K back in the early 1980s, maybe $30K if senior. Most of that would have been tax-free in India. A teacher at AES might have made, likewise, $15K. Given a total tax rate of maybe 5% to 10%, that's < $1500, of which India might claim < $700, which at the prevailing exchange rates was around 8400 rupees.

So if they agree to pay back, even with a nominal rate of interest and penalties, the exchange rate is hugely in the American's favor. Today it takes, what, 60, 70, ManMohanRupees to buy one ObamaDollar?

Cosmo_R · Post by **Cosmo_R** » 04 Apr 2014 05:15

The IRS assesses a 75% penalty on 'Tax fraud' and to that add a 20% per year interest charge and you can see the true implications of compounding.

What we wantz is super cavitation searches of those guilty of visa fraud.

chanakyaa · Post by **chanakyaa** » 04 Apr 2014 05:31

UB, agree on individual taxes. My reference to the big number was with respect to 1500 student facility run as a commercial enterprise. I read about the 1973 agreement that it also offered major concessions as a non-profit institution.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 04 Apr 2014 06:47

Perhaps someone has decided that getting the school closed down is more important than frying a few tax-cheating fish. Probably the school is used for quite a lot of underhanded dealings and BapZi propaganda and handing out favors to assorted desis.

But quite surprising. I would have associated such a sentiment with a much more spineful GOI than the present one.

The foot-dragging on visa renewals is an interesting way to force closure - but also to shield the cheats from tax prosecution. "Inaction is Action, All Is Maya". Very chankian.

Vayutuvan · Post by **Vayutuvan** » 04 Apr 2014 06:50

Ms Nisha D Biswal was at USAID. The new head is an IA.

vic · Post by **vic** » 04 Apr 2014 08:04

I though apart from Delhi, AES is also present in Madras and Bombay?

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 05 Apr 2014 01:32

NYPD Cop might get to meet Durgadas Panwar intimately

Nandu · Post by **Nandu** » 05 Apr 2014 01:56

Just a routine arrest. The spin by some in the US that it is some kind of retaliation is irresponsible.

Raja Bose · Post by **Raja Bose** » 05 Apr 2014 02:04

^^^It basically feeds into the massa worldview that a single Khan citizen has more weight or importance than any non-massa country in the world. So even some nobody NYPD cop clearly has been arrested 'in retaliation for Khobragade's strip search' rather than for carrying ammo in his pockets.

svinayak · Post by **svinayak** » 05 Apr 2014 02:50

http://www.cnet.com/news/will-nadella-a ... ech-visas/

We Americans need to admit that India is a far more advanced race and everytime I wonder why - only one thing comes to my mind - Endless Doctors and Countless Engineers and Architects in IT and Software, even Elect Politicians in America.

Indians have built America far more than any other Nationality in our history - There's no doubt about that..

And NO - They're not taking our jobs its just that they're better than the rest of the world hence we hire them for our Companys profits, benefits and their talents - the entire country is a proof of that and nobody can't deny that.

yes, I'm White American and I do give credit to where its due.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 05 Apr 2014 02:59

So this fellow is a NYPD cop and doesn't know that bullets are not allowed in airline baggage, when he is sophisticated enough to travel to India to meet his Eyerainian bibi. SALE! SEVERAL BRIDGES OVER THE HUDSON RIVER! BUY NOW! BUY LOW!

It was during the transit security check that the bullets were found in his luggage, said sources. The cop could not allegedly give a satisfactory answer. "An FIR (number 82) under Section 25 of Arms Act has been registered. He has been granted bail," said a source.
...
He could end up doing plenty more time: NYPD has told him if he gets convicted of a felony, he'll lose his job.

U mean, in INDIAN court? They accept that, then why are they shielding ppl "wanted" in India, e.g., the DUI, Mr. Honest Witness?

So these oiseueles' position is that if NYPD had NOT tortured the Indian diplomat, Americans should be allowed to go through Indian international airports with bullets, grenades, AK-47s bazookas etc in their baggage?

My bet is that this guy would have crowed after he got back that Indian security is so lax he waltzed through the airports with explosives in his baggage. Exactly how was he going to go through NYC airport security on return (they check bags for explosive and drugs entering..)? Smells of a setup of the type orchestrated by Paco's handlers.

My congrats to the Pandu-e-Dilli who showed that s(he) reads the newspapers. Maybe BRF too?

member_22733 · Post by **member_22733** » 05 Apr 2014 03:40

UlanBatori wrote:
So these oiseueles' position is that if NYPD had NOT tortured the Indian diplomat, Americans should be allowed to go through Indian international airports with bullets, grenades, AK-47s bazookas etc in their baggage?

This is why that article needs to go into the Indian Media Dorks and co. thread. Indian media needs a heavy heavy dose of critical thinking. That article should not have been written at all in the first place. It was a routine arrest, no need to make it into a drama that its not. If you ARE making it into a drama, then at least think whether the garbage you are going to peddle is logically consistent. This request is not about asking the media folks to have the ever illusive self-respect. This is just asking them to think critically.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 05 Apr 2014 03:52

You must declare your ammunition to the airline. Failure to do so violates U.S. Federal Law. Violators may be subject to a maximum penalty of 5 years' imprisonment and a $250,000 fine (49 U.S.C. 5124).

member_22733 · Post by **member_22733** » 05 Apr 2014 03:57

Gerard wrote:
You must declare your ammunition to the airline. Failure to do so violates U.S. Federal Law. Violators may be subject to a maximum penalty of 5 years' imprisonment and a $250,000 fine (49 U.S.C. 5124).

The bigger question is, how did he get on the plane from NYC to India with ammunition in the jacket?
Did he acquire the bullets in India? If so when, where, how? Also: Is he a gora dude?

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 05 Apr 2014 03:59

Checked baggage

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 05 Apr 2014 04:17

LokeshC It was in his jacket pockets. Hope checked baggage.

Nandu · Post by **Nandu** » 05 Apr 2014 04:26

LokeshC, this link has a picture of him. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... andal.html

member_22733 · Post by **member_22733** » 05 Apr 2014 04:32

Hispanic guy!
It might be a simple mistake then. The Western Media Dorks are doing great disservice to both the NYPD guy and the GoI by dragging in the DK case into it. Our media is simply playing along like foolish cattle.

The good news for the NYPD guy is that the TSA/FBI would have cavity searched him as a best case scenario if he was caught in NYC with the bullets. The worst case is he would have been shot

member_28502 · Post by **member_28502** » 05 Apr 2014 05:02

Nandu wrote:LokeshC, this link has a picture of him. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... andal.html

He was selected because he looks like he is from Goa or Maharashtra and so he could do his Culinary experiments and activities with Iranain wife

chanakyaa · Post by **chanakyaa** » 05 Apr 2014 05:15

....
"inadvertently" traveling there with three bullets in his checked luggage.

The news story puzzled me. A NYPD officer KNOWS VERY WELL the protocol of carrying a firearm or bullets on a airline. Carrying 3 bullets in a jacket pocket can not be "inadvertent".

SaiK · Post by **SaiK** » 05 Apr 2014 05:19

it can happen... i mean the dorkness!

member_28352 · Post by **member_28352** » 05 Apr 2014 06:18

If Bharat Rakshaks and other Indians post 10 posts on some inconsequential NYPD constable caught under Arms Act then obviously massans will think that 1 white man is equal to 100 SDREs. This isn't the first or last time that massans have been caught travelling with bullets. Here's one more for your consumption.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/states/ ... 006283.ece
I say lets move on to bigger things. NYPD constables can write blogs later on about their intimate experiences with SI Durga Panwar and the general criminal population in Tihar. That would be more interesting to read.
BTW no Indian cop is so stupid to equate a US constable with an Indian diplomat. This is ofcourse spin from the western media. I believe the Mangolians and Swedish peace experts, who are very good players of spin should step out to bet. Pakistanis will also their Indian brothers in this.

UlanBatori · Post by **UlanBatori** » 05 Apr 2014 06:50

This request is not about asking the media folks to have the ever illusive self-respect. This is just asking them to think critically.

But the request is logically inconsistent. If they could think, critically or otherwise, would they be media dorks?

Mangolian and Swedish peace experts

People of the great Magnitude of Ambassador Bjorn Biglund and Senior Fellow Teri Behenki do not step out lightly..