AN enamelled turban ornament from India fetched £350,000 in an auction held by Sotheby’s auction house in London on Wednesday (1).
The 19th-century gem-set turban ornament, or a sarpech, belonged to the Sikh Khalsa (or the army of the Sikh Empire) commander Hari Singh Nalwa.
Two 17th century Mughal miniature paintings from India were also auctioned by Sotheby’s auction house.
SANJAY BHANDARI, a consultant in the defence sector wanted in India on alleged tax evasion and money-laundering charges, began an appeal in the High Court in London against his extradition order.
The 62-year-old businessman had won permission to appeal against a November 2022 Westminster Magistrates’ Court ruling clearing his extradition earlier this year.
On Tuesday (10), his lawyers began making their arguments in the case, which is listed for a three-day hearing this week with the judgment expected in the new year.
Lord Justice Timothy Holroyde and Justice Karen Steyn began hearing representations from barristers James Stansfeld and Edward Fitzgerald at the Royal Courts of Justice on three main grounds of appeal – whether the bar for criminality had been met in the English jurisdiction, whether a prima facie case had been made and whether the accused faces a risk of violence in an Indian prison.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), appearing on behalf of the Indian authorities, will respond to the arguments during the course of the hearing – represented by barristers Ben Keith and Alex du Sautoy.
On Tuesday, they made representations to the judges to allow a video link to be generated for the following days, to allow the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to follow the proceedings from India.
“There is a real risk of violence or extortion from prisoners and prison officers,” claimed Fitzgerald, during his arguments with reference to Delhi’s Tihar Jail where Bhandari is to be lodged if he is extradited.
Then UK secretary of state Suella Braverman had ordered the extradition last year. However, Bhandari, who offered consultancy services to defence manufacturers bidding for Indian government contracts through his firm Offset India Solutions, sought permission to appeal against the verdict of District Judge Michael Snow in the High Court.
Represented by Janes Solicitors, the appeal was sought on eight grounds, three of which were granted in a court order by Justice Robert Jay last October and four others being approved at a hearing in March by Justice Pushpinder Saini.
The basis for the appeal was that the District Judge had “erred in his conclusions” that the offences were extradition offences and a prima facie case had been established against Bhandari.
The CPS had argued there was “no merit in any of the renewed grounds of appeal and permission ought to be refused”.
The case concerns two extradition requests from the Indian authorities, the first concerning an allegation of money-laundering, contrary to Section 3 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002 in India.
The second request concerns an allegation of wilfully attempting to evade a tax, penalty or interest chargeable or imposable under the Black Money Act 2015 contrary to Section 51 of that act in India.
Bhandari, who was resident in India for tax purposes at the time in 2015, is accused of concealing overseas assets, using backdated documents, benefiting from the assets not declared to the Indian tax authorities and then falsely informing the authorities that he did not possess any overseas assets.
He denies the allegations against him and has been fighting his extradition since the first request was certified by the UK Home Office in June 2020.
The CPS, on behalf of the Indian authorities, has argued that Bhandari's conduct amounts to "fraud by false representation" in the English jurisdiction which is now the subject of a High Court challenge.
(PTI)
RUPERT MURDOCH’s attempt to secure control of his media empire for his eldest son, Lachlan, has reportedly failed, according to a US news report on Monday.
The Murdoch family, which oversees influential outlets like Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, and various British and Australian media organisations, has often been compared to the fictional dynasty in the TV series Succession. Like the show, real-life disputes within the Murdoch family have centred on control of the business after Rupert Murdoch’s death.
Murdoch, 93, has long planned for his children to jointly inherit the empire. While his eldest daughter, Prudence, has stayed largely out of the business, Lachlan, James, and Elisabeth have all been contenders for the leadership at different times.
In recent years, Murdoch reportedly became concerned that Fox News, a key part of his empire, could shift towards more centrist views under James and Elisabeth. This prompted him to propose a plan giving Lachlan, who currently heads Fox News and News Corp, greater control over the family trust.
The proposed changes would have stripped the other siblings of voting power while allowing them to continue benefiting financially. Murdoch argued this move would protect the financial interests of all his children and keep the empire aligned with his views.
Courtroom decision
The matter was contested in a Nevada courtroom, where Murdoch and his four children gave evidence in September. According to The New York Times, probate commissioner Edmund J Gorman Jr ruled that Murdoch and Lachlan acted in “bad faith” in their attempt to rewrite the trust, calling the plan a “carefully crafted charade.”
The ruling described the effort as an attempt to ensure Lachlan’s succession was “immutable” after Murdoch’s passing. The court concluded that the changes would not stand, stating:
“The court, after considering the facts of this case in the light of the law, sees the cards for what they are and concludes this raw deal will not, over the signature of this probate commissioner, prevail.”
The ruling is not yet final and must be reviewed by a district judge, who could either ratify or reject it. Any decision may face further legal challenges.
Family trust background
The trust’s structure stems from an agreement between Murdoch and his second wife, the mother of Lachlan, Elisabeth, and James. It was designed to ensure these three children would not be disadvantaged by children from his later marriage to Wendi Deng.
The Murdoch media empire has shaped industries like tabloid newspapers, cable TV, and satellite broadcasting, while also drawing criticism for allegedly fostering populist movements such as Brexit in the UK and the rise of Donald Trump in the US.
(With inputs from AFP)
THE UK and US have imposed financial sanctions on Kamlesh Pattni, a British-Kenyan businessman with a controversial financial history. The punitive measures target Pattni and four of his close family members, including his wife and brother-in-law, reported the BBC.
The sanctions, announced by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, will result in the immediate freezing of assets, representing a significant intervention in what officials describe as a complex network of illicit gold trading spanning multiple African nations.
Pattni, a controversial figure with a long history of financial irregularities, stands accused of central involvement in the infamous Goldenberg scandal—a massive corruption episode in Kenya during the 1990s that is estimated to have caused approximately £470 million in national economic damage.
Despite previous legal proceedings in 2006 that ultimately collapsed, Pattni has continued to be a subject of intense scrutiny.
The British government's statement strongly condemned the illegal gold trade, characterising it as a fundamental threat to legitimate economic practices.
Officials described these activities as actively fuelling corruption, systematically undermining legal frameworks, and perpetuating severe human rights violations, including the exploitation of child labour.
The sanctions announcement also highlighted how similar illegal trading mechanisms have been exploited by other international actors. The statement referenced Russia's use of illicit gold trading as a method to launder money, evade international sanctions, and potentially support military operations in Ukraine—a practice Western nations have been actively working to curtail since banning Russian gold imports in 2022.
According to US Treasury documentation, Pattni's alleged misconduct extends beyond Kenya, with claims that he leveraged personal relationships with former Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe to systematically exploit natural resources.
The Treasury accused Pattni of operating a fraudulent scheme that deprived Zimbabwe's citizens of legitimate economic benefits while simultaneously enriching corrupt government officials and criminal networks.
Pattni, who has since reinvented himself as a self-proclaimed pastor, was prominently featured in an Al-Jazeera investigation into what was termed the "gold mafia" in Zimbabwe.
Despite being directly implicated in these investigations, he has consistently denied any involvement in money laundering or gold smuggling activities.
The US Treasury said Pattni's network spanned several countries, including entities in the United Arab Emirates, Singapore and Kyrgyzstan.
The action marked International Anti-Corruption Day, the Treasury said.
Alongside the latest sanctions, the British government appointed a new 'Anti-Corruption Champion' to help coordinate efforts between parliament, the private sector and civil society to clamp down on all forms of corruption.
The role was given to Margaret Hodge, a former lawmaker in the Labour party who has spent much of her 30-year political career campaigning against domestic and international corruption. She is now a member of the House of Lords.
Britain will publish a new anti-corruption strategy in 2025.
(with inputs from Reuters)
INDIA has appointed Sanjay Malhotra, a senior finance ministry bureaucrat, as the new governor of its central bank, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The announcement was made on Monday, a day before the term of outgoing governor Shaktikanta Das was set to expire.
A notification from the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet confirmed that Malhotra will lead the central bank for three years starting Wednesday.
He is currently the secretary of the revenue department and holds an engineering degree along with a master's in public policy from Princeton University.
Malhotra takes charge at a time when calls to cut interest rates are growing due to slowing economic growth. India’s GDP grew at 5.4 per cent in the September quarter, its slowest pace in nearly two years and below the RBI’s projection of 7 per cent.
The RBI’s monetary policy committee has maintained interest rates at 6.50 per cent since February 2023, citing inflation risks despite slowing growth. Local media had speculated about Das’s future after the lower-than-expected GDP data for the September quarter. Das had been at the helm since 2018.
“Several quarters of the government have voiced the need for lower interest rates considering inflation excluding food prices,” said Teresa John, an analyst with Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities. She noted that Malhotra is likely familiar with the government's stance and may align with their views.
John also said her firm anticipates a rate cut by February, as growth is increasingly expected to fall short of the RBI’s forecast.
(With inputs from agencies)
AIR INDIA has placed an order for 100 more Airbus aircraft to expand its fleet and enhance connectivity, the Tata Group-owned carrier announced on Monday.
The new order includes 10 widebody A350 planes and 90 narrowbody A320 family aircraft. The purchase is in addition to the 470 aircraft Air India ordered last year from Airbus and Boeing, the airline said in a statement.
Air India described the 2023 orders as the largest announced simultaneously by a commercial airline. While the combined value of the 470 jets was estimated at over £54.69 billion at list prices, the airline has not disclosed the cost of the latest deal.
The carrier stated that this latest purchase brings the total number of Airbus aircraft ordered in 2023 to 350, comprising 40 A350 and 310 A320 family planes.
Since its acquisition of Air India in 2022, the Tata Group has focused on reviving the loss-making airline by modernising its fleet and introducing new planes.
Tata Sons chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran said the additional aircraft would help position Air India for further growth. "These additional 100 Airbus aircraft will help to position Air India on the path to greater growth and contribute to our mission of building Air India into a world-class airline that connects India to every corner of the world," he said.
Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury welcomed the move. "Having personally witnessed the formidable growth of the Indian aviation sector... I am glad to see Air India renew its trust in Airbus with this additional order," he said.
