After Asaram Bapu, more allegations have surfaced against Kripalu Maharaj. A person who goes by the name of ‘insider’ for the fear of his life, has sent in the following note:
“I was an insider (I mean a real insider) in Kripalu Maharajji’s organization. I was extremely devoted to him and to his organization and had many spiritual experiences and great spiritual insights. I later found out that spiritual experiences arise out of your own sincerity and efforts and have nothing to do with the so-called guru or teacher. After all, God or Krishna (call him what you will) is still there, and He responds to sincere seekers regardless of how big a fraud the teacher is.

My heart was broken and I was annihilated when slowly but surely, the fraudulent nature of Kripalu Maharajji’s mission became known to me. There were many, many examples of corruption of the mission that came before me, before I took the extremely difficult step of renouncing this teacher and organization. I could write a book on this, but I’ll simply sum-up some key points for those of you that have an open mind on such things. Trust me (actually trust yourself), without willingness to stand-up for the truth, you will never get anywhere spiritually.

1. Kripalu Maharaj definitely has an obsession with sex, although he teaches others that there is no ‘anand’ in this world. There have been many instances of very creditable reports and charges against him. Most of these are from very good and sincere people that are bastions of the community and really sincere to God. However, modesty, embarrassment and the fear of a powerful organization that could hurt makes them hesitate to speak out. The father of the girls from Nagpur that took the case against him all the way to the Indian Supreme Court was a rare and very brave exception. This father could have settled easily for large amounts of money that Kripalu’s organization would have been too willing to pay to end this case. That he and his daughters fought and are still fighting for justice shows that they are not motivated by money or fame. They just want justice!

2. This is how it works today. To sit in Maharajjis presence, to touch his feet, to have coffee with him, to drink charanamrit and even to be hit by his slippers means that there is a charge. They call it ’seva,’ but basically nothing is free. Have a chappal hit you and enjoy the ‘grace’ of ‘chappal seva, ‘ then pay $100 for the privilege!

3. However, there is one special ’seva’ open only to women. A secret ’seva’ called ‘charan seva’ that is free. For this, Maharajji’s preachers take all the unknowing women into the room where Maharajji is lying on his bed. The lights are dimmed and the women surround him and press his body. The most attractive women are positioned around his pillow and within reach of his hands. The lights are then turned-out completely, giving Maharajji the chance to grope the pretty women close to him. If they do not pull back, they are invited to stay behind!!

4. Maharajji’s children and grand-children often travel with him at the cost of ‘devotees’ donations. Their slightest wishes, no matter how materialistic are again fulfilled at ‘devotees’ expense. Huge sums of money are raised through ’sevas’ with little if any accounting of where it goes while no expense is spared for the ‘divine family.’ Any spiritual person can tell that this family is quite materialistic and have no spiritual virtues. Maharajji himself is driven around India in a Mercedes.

5. Brainwashing is accomplished by telling ‘devotees’ to not read or listen to any other teachings and to limit their association with only ‘devotees.’ Maharajji wears special scents to create the impression that his body exudes divine fragrances and the entire field of senses is used to create the aura of divinity. His publicity department is the most professional and his preachers claim that he is the most divine descention ever, greater even than Krishna or Rama!

6. In Trinidad, Maharajji’s organization is called Radha Madhav society. It’s head in Trinidad is called Didiji. She is yet another fraud whose last organization in Oklahoma had to be shut down because of many sexual allegations against her and her relationship with Kripalu Maharaj. Even her web-site was erased so that nothing embarrassing about her would come out.

Does this organization do any good? Well yes, probably the hospitals in India (I think) do some good and if ‘devotees’ use the temples of this organization only to help in their own search for God they are indeed benefited (once again, because of their own sincerity and efforts). But if you get too close, your pockets will get picked and your efforts towards God will be changed to efforts for and only for Maharajji. Also, please keep your women out of his room!

Is this organization uniquely corrupt? Oh no! All Hindu, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Jewish, Parsi etc organizations are corrupt to a large degree. Buddha said that ‘I point out the moon to you and you turn around and worship my finger!’ As soon as the truth is spoken, the followers start corrupting. But in this case, this has gone much too far and too many wonderful, well meaning people who have given everything for God have been badly hurt! Have no fear of speaking out! See how bravely the woman from Guyana has spoken, and earlier how bravely the father and girls from Nagpur have too! Please do not further victimize these victims by saying that they want publicity or want to strike a deal. These are great, brave women whom I salute!

God cannot be separate from the truth, and the truth is that Maharajji is a fallen saint (not an eternal one). There is no joy in saying this, but rather sadness. It is a sacred duty to truth and dharma.”

There are also other numerous stories around him that exist on the net. I think its time when Kripalu talks to these in an open platform and resolve the differences.

India is still perceived to be one of the most corrupt countries by the transparency international in its annual corruption
perceptions.
India has been ranked 84th in the list of 180 countries in terms of public-sector corruption, which is perceived to be highly corrupt.
While releasing the list of naming and shaming the world’s most corrupt countries, the international watchdog has for the first time recommended that tax havens like Switzerland and Liechtenstein should do away with the secrecy in banking laws.

“Corrupt money must not find safe haven. It is time to put an end to secrecy in banking laws,” said the Berlin-based group’s head Huguette Labelle.

The bottom five nations were Somalia, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Sudan and Iraq, while the cleanest countries with ranking close to perfect 10 were New Zealand, Denmark and Singapore.

This year developing countries like Serbia, Burkina Faso, Peru and Ghana fared better than India by claiming 83, 79, 75 and 69 spots respectively.

China scored 3.6 on the scale, thereby indicating slightly better position than India in terms of perception of corrupt countries.

In neighbouring countries, Nepal was at 143rd position much below India, Pakistan scored 2.4 claiming 139th position along with Bangladesh while Sri Lanka scored 3.1 and stood at 97th position.

Nearly half of the countries have scored three or less on the scale of zero (perceived to be most corrupt) to 10 (perceived to be least corrupt) showing that corruption is rampant across the world. The index prepared by the voluntary group used 13 different expert and business surveys.

“Transparency international has found that strong correlation between corruption and poverty continued to exist, jeopardising the global fight against poverty and threatening to derail the UN Millennium Development Goals,” Admiral (retd. R H Tahiliani, Chairman of Transparency International India said in a statement.

Dear Madam/Sir

This is to bring to your kind notice that Delhi Jal Board Employee. Mr. Rakesh Kumar pathak R/o 431 Janta Flat Nand Nagari Delhi-53. Mr. Rakesh Kumar is not attending to the Delhi Jal Board office since last Eight Year. Corrupted Delhi Jal Board Employee help to Rakesh Kumar in maintain the attendance register and Salary from Delhi Jal Board. Instead he spends time in completing personal business Famous of Modern Glass Putty Industry ( Jhilmil industrial area shahdra delhi 53 And Dilshad Garden delhi) .The Document of the Modern Putty Industry Company has been prepared in such way that proves the company is owned by some other Person. But in realty the owner and Financer of Modern Putty Industry is Mr. Rakesh Kumar who is employee in Delhi Jal Board. Document prepared in the Name of His Wife Ms. Anita Pathak (House Wife) and his brother in Law . Who Live in Dilshad garden Delhi for protection of Mr. Rakesh Kumar from any action. If Mr. Rakesh Kumar is not owner of Modern Putty Industry then Why He does not attend the Delhi Jal Board Office why all the commercial vehicle of Modern Putty Industry are parking near his residential area and why all the employee of Modern putty Industry deal and got cash for field work by Mr. Rakesh Kumar from 431 Janta Flat GTB Enclave Nand Nagari Delhi 53 and why the all record of Purchase and delivered material, vendor visiting card, cash memo and other important document of Modern putty industry kept by Mr. Rakesh Kumar. All the tax return of Modern putty Industry has been prepared in the name of Ms Anita w/o Rakesh Kumar and Brother in Law of Rakesh Kumar Including Pan Card Details and salary(for Modern Putty industry employee) are distributed in factory in the name of Mises Anita w/o Rakesh Kumar and his Borther in Law for Protection of Rakesh Kumar. But in realty the owner and Financer is Mr. Rakesh Kumar as a result of which Rakesh kumar has saved lot of Property in the name of his wife, children and own relative like four Car, Three Motor Cycle, three Commercial Mahindhra three wheels Tempo Two Plots (Land) in Karaval Nagar Delhi, And a Big Land in Harsh Vihar Delhi and U.P on the name of his wife three children and his brother in law family member., A Temple in village whose source of Income, Lot of Gold and diamond jewelry, Luxury Furniture and free handsome Salary with 6th pay commission facility,CGHS and other Facility provided from Delhi Jal Board & income through Rent by 2nd floor of flat no 431 Janta Flat GTB Enclave delhi . Now Modern Putty Industry supply glass putty all U.P. Bihar, Haryana ,Delhi and some Part of M.P And Rajasthan. Respected Delhi C.M today generation facing unemployment problem and here is Mr. Rakesh Kumar Pathak enjoy free salary from delhi jal board with all facility provided by delhi Govt. We lodge the complain no CMO/PGC/529958 but complain is still pending in OSDCM (PG)table and other complain no is CMO/PGC/530262 complain format dispatched on 24/7/2009 to Chief Executive Office H,Q. Delhi Jal Board.In fact
the matter has been dismissed after bribing to the Delhi Jal Board authority.
we write to u with great hope & with the request to kindly conduct an enquiry this matter at your end & oblige. We are being threatened with life by Mr. Rakesh Kumar Pathak and his Wife Anita Pathak also.

O.P. Chanchal 427 Janta Flat GTB
Nand Nagari delhi 53

Roshan Lal is a Station House Officer (SHO) of Kalyanpuri Police Station. His monthly salary: Rs 40,000. The alleged worth of the assets he amassed in his career spanning over 30 years: Rs 20 crore.

The facts sound disproportionate?

Well, Lal, allegedly, also owns three hotels in Paharganj in Central Delhi, besides a cinema hall in Farukkabad, Uttar Pradesh, and a number of other properties in Delhi and NCR.

These facts came to light after the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) raided his office on Tuesday. The ACB registered a case of amassing assets disproportionate to his income, misconduct, conspiracy and cheating against Lal.

The ACB officials conducted simultaneous searches at his Karol Bagh residence, his office in Kalyanpuri Police Station, the three hotels and the cinema hall in Farukkabad. The team has also seized a bank account.

According to ACB officials Lal allegedly owns three hotels — India International, Silver Shine and Carlo Castle — in the Paharganj area. They added that Lal allegedly registered all these properties in the names of his father, Rajender Lal, and his brother.

“One hotel was registered under the name of his father while the other two were registered under his brother’s name,” said an ACB official on the condition of anonymity, as he is not authorized to speak to the media.

Allegedly, Lal also owns the cinema hall, Laxmi Talkies, in Farukkabad and that he has assets worth around Rs 20 crore, the official said.

The Deputy Commissioner of Police (ACB) of the Delhi Government I.D. Shukla confirmed that charges related to cheating, conspiracy and amassing disproportionate assets had been framed. Shukla declined to divulge any other information, saying the matter was under investigation.

Roshan Lal, meanwhile, said, “I have nothing to do with these properties. These properties are owned by my father and brother.”

When contacted, a top Delhi Police officer on the condition of anonymity, said action would be taken against the officer after the ACB report arrives. The ACB officials who failed to trace Lal in person were unable to question him.

While there are still Indian swamis and religious spiritual preachers and teachers who are not accused or convicted of crimes, those who have been caught out in nefarious activities are many. As soon as followings grow large, they attract people who are looking for advantages – both supposedly spiritual ones, but also not least financial and social gains. Organization becomes a necessity and, led by a charismatic figurehead whose word is taken as unquestionable divine truth, those who become part of their fiefdoms willingly carry out his (or her) orders, for which they are rewarded. This scenario is one chief way in which a guru cult begins. This is by no means only an Indian phenomenon, of course, as there are also some very well-known major cults in U.S.A., Italy. South Korea… and, of course, many sexually abusing priests in Christian churches and sects, and there have been many revelations concerning the Catholic Church in many countries, which has had to face vast sums in payouts following lawsuits.

Religious gurus are among the big money-earners in India, so it is hardly surprising that these cults are able to buy police and yet higher protection. Despite this, in an increasing number of instances, so-called “spiritual” gurus have been successfully prosecuted by Indian authorities for crimes ranging from sexual abuse to cynical murder. India, being such a religious cauldron seems to have the lions’ share. Indian gurus either convicted or widely accused of crimes, including major fraud, include:-

1) Sathya Sai Baba is most likely the most influential guru in India and abroad – self-proclaimed God Incarnate, Deity of Deities, the Vishnu Avatar of the Age etc. – who has obtained protection from attempts to convict him for murder complicity (http://www.saibaba-x.org.uk/8/MurderReview.htm) and serial sex abuse (http://www.saibaba-x.org.uk/6/saisex1.htm) by his devotees among Indian Prime Ministers, Presidents and Supreme or High Court judges. This is itself an indictment of the Indian State’s ongoing corruption – a kind of protection that typifies a de facto despotism (though possible only while in office) rather than the exercise of democratic and legal principles. Of course, his fraudulent ‘materializations’ and many false statements and predictions are also very documented or reported by disaffected followers.

2) The well-known ‘all singing all dancing’ Indian-based Hare Krishna sect (ISKCON) has had many and major convictions against them in the USA. See here, here

3) Indicted for many felonies, but not convicted, was Rajneesh-Osho (who fled the USA with over 100 indictments against him).

4) Swami Premananda – convicted for murder and multiple rape – double life sentence for murder and multiple rapes. The case went right to the Soupremem Court of India, which confirmed the conviction. See also Deccan Herald April 5 and April 6, 2005. Premananda’s alleged vibuthi materializations were investigated for fraud by Erlendur Haraldasson and Richard Wiseman See larger photo no. (No. 42) here- and read their most critical report (1995) Investigating Macro-PK in India: Swami Premananda. Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, 60(839) 193-202t

5) Swami Rama (Author of ‘Living Among the Himalayan Masters’) who escaped likely conviction for sexual abuses by dying before the case could be concluded.

6) Swami Rameshwaranand Giriji Maharaj – who has a large following in India and abroad – was arrested in September ‘95 as a party to the murder of his lover’s husband. The 26-year old Manoj Girothra, husband of Savita, who was having an affair with the ‘godman’, was murdered on December 3rd, 1994, some two months after his marriage. Two professional hitmen had been hired by the ‘godman’.

7) Gayatri Swami, whose influence in South India was very considerable was thoroughly exposed by Professor Erlendur Haraldsson and Richard Wiseman. He was found to be pretending to materialize objects within fruits, but had a silk thread attached to them! Likewise, his ‘materialization’ inside fruits of right-handed conches (extremely rare in India as ‘Sri Lakshmi conches’) the ‘left-handed type’ are the only indiginous sort), Haraldsson traced his imports of them from California, where they are indigenous!
source: Erlendur Haraldsson & Joop M. Houtkooper (1994). Report of an Indian swami claiming to materialize objects: The value and limitations of field observations. Journal of Scientific Exploration, 8(3), 381-397. (Full text).

8 ) Swami Balyogi Premvarni. (‘Yogant Foundation’) of Rishikesk, where he has an ashram. He also has various branches abroad. He has been exposed as a serial womaniser, especially convincingly in Mary Garden’s book ‘The Serpent Rising’ which she bases on her experiences in India in the 1970s.

9) Gowrishankara Swami; ‘Hindu monk gets 10 years RI for sodomy.’‘The Hindu’ Bangalore, Feb. 3 2004 (PTI): “The Karnataka High Court today sentenced a Hindu monk to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment and awarded a fine of Rs 25 lakhs after holding him guilty of sodomy. In default of payment of fine, the court sentenced the Gowrishankara Swami, the previous junior pontiff of Sri Siddaganga Mutt at Kyatasandra in Tumkur District, to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a further period of one year.”

10) Swami Shyam , a current ‘advaita’ guru, popular with Westerners (particulalry Canadians and Northern Europeans), many of whom have bought expensive residences at Kullu in the Himalayas, where he has his ashram. He is under attack for seducing the wives of his followers.

11) The Palghat (of Kerala) born Bala Sai Baba (the child Sai Baba), who at 35 years of age is a bit overgrown for his name. He claims to be the real Sai avatar, set up an ashram in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh and purposely copies Satya Sai Baba trait for trait in amazing detail. A clearly fraudulent attempt to hi-jack the Sathya Sai Baba ‘phenomenon’. He is the most ‘lookalike’ of a series of imitators of Sathya Sai Baba, a few of whom can be seen here.

12) A further short list of some gurus East and West, including facts about some of the criminals among them is seen here (http://www.kheper.net/topics/gurus/listing.html).

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Please go to the Public Petition for Official Investigations of Sathya Sai Baba and His Worldwide Organization

It’s usually lonely at the top but not for the chief executive — and his predecessors — of the now critically ill Air India-Indian

Airlines combine. As the airline fights for survival, an RTI application filed by activist Subhash Chandra Agrawal has revealed how over the years the definition of family has been expanded generously — and it’s now a big Hindu undivided family — for the purpose of getting free tickets.

While employees make do with two free tickets a year, CMDs get an unlimited number of tickets for their families even in this time of avowed austerity.

The airline, which is now trying to cut costs, says the freebies would soon be plugged. “There’s a proposal to prune this policy drastically. How can children, grandchildren, daughters-in-law and sons-in-law be allowed to fly at the cost of the exchequer when we are asking for money from government to keep the airline afloat?” said a top government official.

What was essentially to be a policy of free journeys for the CMD and his or her spouse, has over the years come to include whoever the chief wants to be considered as his family for the purpose.

Ironically in 1995 — when private airlines had started threatening its monoply — IA decided to free air travel “on an ‘as required’ basis to CMD and their families while they are in service”. This basically meant unlimited free flights. Then, even as it kept losing market share to new players, IA decided two years later to expand the definition of family.

The memorandum of an Indian Airlines meeting in January 1997 says that the definition of family for an employee includes — “spouse, children, parents, brothers, sisters, dependent relatives and dependent in the household.”

Since the last terms led to confusion, the memo sought to replace this definition with “spouse, children, parents, brothers, sisters, son-in-law/daughter-in-law” ostensibly to include the last two categories. AI on the other hand is magnanimous enough to allow CMD’s discretion in including any relative of an employee as eligible for free travel on “compassionate grounds.”

The reply also contains a copy of a letter written by the ministry of civil aviation last January to the Central Vigilance Commission which admits that “the definition of family in case of ‘as required basis’, perhaps, needs to be pruned.” This admission came following reports how an incumbent IA CMD had taken 161 free passages for self and family. Interestingly, in his reply to the government on this issue, the CMD listed how this had been a common practice with previous CMDs as well! He cited three predecessors who had taken between 173 and 15 tickets for their family’s use in their tenures.

How come his can’t cure his own flickering eye? He talks about “curing” the gay people with yoga, as if it is some kind of desease. This jerk has commercialised everything - yoga, God, blessings, and what not. As long as people don’t use their own brain, crooks like him will continue to flourish. I am doing my part by trying to expose all of these thieves.

Recently, Baba Ramdev publicly made comments around sexual life of ‘actresses like Celina Jaitly’ on the front page of a leading newspaper. On her standing up for gay rights, he stated, “These actresses know nothing about Bhartiya sanskriti. They stay away from their parents and have no morals. Unke partner har mahine badalte hain.”

Truly livid, Celina reacts as she bares her heart out in this candid conversation.

Your sex life seems to have come under the spotlight now. Any comments?
[Sighs] Well, this great, great Brahamachari seems to know more about my sex life then I may know myself.

In any case, now I feel I can truly say that he is not a true ‘Yoga’ teacher. After all ‘yoga’ knowledge comes from Adi Shiva, who in Hindu scriptures is active when there is ‘Shakti – The Cosmic Female’.

For a brahamachari, every woman is ‘Maa’ and nowhere in ‘bharatiya sanskriti’ is it written or practiced that you can make sexually motivated comments on any girl; especially by a brahamachaari. He does not know the meaning of true ‘Brahamacharya’.

Well, Baba Ramdev has also claimed that he can cure homosexuals?
I can just laugh when he says that he can cure homosexuals by Pranayam and meditation. With all due respect to Baba Ramdev, he ‘may’ have the so called ‘cure’ for homosexuality but the point is LGBT community ‘does not’ see their homosexuality as a disease.

The point is no one is interested in buying this ‘over the counter’ prescription for curing what is not a disease at all. This is what they are and they are comfortable with their self. They are not interfering in anyone’s life or religion but unfortunately everyone wants to interfere in their lives and tell them how they should eat, sleep and have sex. It is plain and simple ridiculous!

He has created a clout for him though over a period of time…
But because of that, he cannot become ‘Samaaj Ka Thekedaar’, right? Yes, I give him credit for contributing to realization and revival of yoga in today’s time and date. But this is it.

These people prefer to live in a cocooned thought process of their own and do not wish to come out of it. Ok, good for him, it’s his fundamental right to speak his mind. We, the youth, too are using our fundamental rights the way we wish to do, so I guess we are even.

So what is it that you wish to tell Baba Ramdev?
That even if he screams from every rooftop of India, the reality is homosexuality will not cease to exist. It is there since the homo sapiens have existed.

Also, according to zoologists, even today homosexuality is exhibited in over 15000 species of animals, leave alone humans. Once even Hitler thought that Jews were an impure race and ancient scientists thought the earth was flat but then ultimately truth persisted, right?

It is up to people to follow blindly or to respect the truth and slowly come around. Just because some people think LGBT is a threat to the family system, what should we do? Give rise to another genocide based on closed views?

Now Baba Ramdev and several other religious groups have filed a case against the verdict.
All I can say is that the respectable judges of Supreme Court will definitely consider the human rights aspect and the fight against the growing HIV AIDS epidemic in India.

I am confident that ‘jiska koi nahi hota hai uska khuda hota hai’. Society needs to focus on one issue and it is that for any step towards progression, change needs to come from within.

If everyone just takes the responsibility for improving themselves from within by becoming more tolerant, becoming giving, becoming kind and being honest, everyone would be happier and contended. That would lead to a happy and peaceful community.

And your message for the ‘aam junta’?
Take your own responsibility first that’s it. As for these Babas, they are doing whatever their remote upbringing and closed mindset is dictating them to do.

Only togetherness and standing up for what is right can change this mindset. So let’s all stop people from being misled by publicity hungry self proclaimed gurus of the society.

Asif Ali Zardari, self-proclaimed mad and champion corrupt, who became the President of Pakistan taking the advantage of his wife, Benazir Bhutto’s assassination, is gradually exposing his ugly face, which possibly will push the fate of Pakistan’s fragile democracy, once again inside the military’s grip.

Extreme tension is already prevailing in Pakistan, with snatching off the countrywide cable network of popular Geo TV as well as resignation of Information Minister Sherry Rehman. Zardari government has denied the fact of forcing cable operators to snatch off Geo TV from network, saying, “It was a result of dispute between the management of Geo TV and the cable operators.”

Pakistan information minister Sherry Rehman resigned from her post on Saturday. “Sherry Rehman met Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and tendered her resignation. The minister was angry over the crackdown against the media,” a government official said. Some channels, including Geo News, Aaj TV, were taken off the air in several areas on Friday and Saturday.

The telecast of Pakistan’s Geo News television channel was blocked in some parts of the country on Friday, the channel’s website said.

The channel broadcast has been blocked in parts of Karachi, Hyderabad, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Lahore, Quetta, Multan, Rawlakot, Muzaffarabad, Deepalpur and Sargodha cities, it said.

According to the channel, government officials have directed the cable operators to place Geo News channel at the ‘tail end’, making it difficult for the viewers to watch the channel.

Opposition leaders including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz [PML-N] chief Nawaz Sharif, Tehreek-i-Insaf chief Imran Khan and Muttahida Qaumi Movement [MQM] leader Babar Khan Ghauri condemned the blocking of Geo News.

Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid [PML-Q] general secretary Mushahid Hussain said the channel was “being punished for airing the truth”.

The Reporters Without Borders has also condemned the blocking of the channel, according to The News newspaper.

Zardari’s advisor for interior affairs, Rehman Malik has categorically stated that the Government will not allow the long march and sit-in on the Constitution Avenue. “All elite agencies have given information that there is danger of target killings and series of bombings including suicide bombings by the enemies of the country during the long march.”

Official said the government has decided to restrict the Sharif brothers to Raiwind to prevent them from participating in the march and that their security has been beefed up. “The Sharif brothers will not be allowed to go outside Raiwind. They will be unofficially under house arrest,” an official confirmed, adding they would be allowed to go to Islamabad only after the permission of the federal government.

Meanwhile, Mia Nawaz Sharif sharply reacted to government’s plan to stop the long-march saying, “We will go ahead with the long march. No one can stop it. It will be a milestone in Pakistan’s history”.

Earlier Sharif said the march would not stop despite hurdles put by the government on the way.

Under mounting pressure from the United States and amidst escalating political standoff at home, the Pakistan government on Saturday decided to challenge the disqualification of PML [N] chief Nawaz Sharif and his brother Shahbaz from contesting elections in a bid to defuse the crisis but the opposition party rejected the move. On a day of hectic developments, in what looked like a compromise with its estranged ally, the government of President Asif Ali Zardari decided to move the Supreme Court with a review petition challenging the apex court’s decision barring the Sharif brothers from contesting elections and holding public offices. Shahbaz Sharif was unseated as the Chief Minister of Punjab province and Governor’s rule imposed there by the Zardari government.

The government’s package of concessions to Nawaz Sharif came in the wake of a telephone call from U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to Asif Ali Zardari when she told him that Washington wanted to see stability and democracy strengthened in Pakistan.

According to latest report, a day before the Long March to Islamabad, the Sharif brothers have been put under house arrest for three days by the Pakistan government. Former cricketer turned politician and Tehreek-e-Insaaf leader Imran Khan has also been arrested in Rawalpindi. The arrests come after Nawaz Sharif rejected President Zardari’s offer for talks. This latest development has surely placed the fate of Pakistan’s democracy into total uncertainty. It is expected that, military intervention has become imminent in order to save the nation from the carnage of a corrupt man like Asif Ali Zardari.

Until his marriage with Benazir Bhutto on 18 December 1987, Zardari was a unknown figure on the political scene of Pakistan. He became a member of the National Assembly of Pakistan and also served as the Minister of Environment during his wife’s second term as the Prime Minister [1993–1996].

In 1990, Zardari was accused of threatening to kill a businessman with a remote-controlled bomb unless he withdrew money from a bank as pay-off. Zardari earned the nickname, “Mr 10%” following allegations of corruption. Zardari was released from jail in 1993 and became a government minister. From 1997 to 2004, Zardari was kept in jail on corruption charges and accusations of murder. Pakistani investigators accused Zardari and his wife Benazir for embezzling as much as US$1.5 billion from government accounts. He was also accused of allegedly plotting the murder of Murtaza Bhutto, the brother of his wife Benazir Bhutto. He was later cleared.

A New York psychiatrist found in March 2007 that Zardari’s time in jail left him with memory impairments. Zardari claims to have been tortured. When Zardari stood for the Pakistani presidency in 2008, the Pakistani Ambassador to the United States, Husain Haqqani, said that Zardari had no current mental condition requiring psychiatric help or medication.
New York-based psychologist Stephen Reich reportedly said that the PPP leader was unable to remember the birthdays of his wife and children, was continually apprehensive and had even had suicidal thoughts. The other, psychiatrist Philip Saltiel, who examined Asif Ali Zardari in March 2007, apparently said his years in jail had left him suffering from emotional instability and concentration and memory problems that he did not believe would improve for at least a year.

Zardari was accused of money-laundering activities in a US Senate report on private banking and money-laundering.

Zardari was under criminal investigation in Switzerland over receipts of kickbacks from two Swiss-based companies while his wife, the late Benazir Bhutto, served as the country’s prime minister in the 1990s, a Swiss judge and two Swiss lawyers close to the case told Newsweek.

In Britain, the decade-old civil proceedings focus on Zardari. Zardari is accused of using illicit funds to acquire the 365-acre Rockwood estate, a $6.5-million property featuring a Tudor-style mansion and two adjoining farms in the Surrey district. The estate was bought and refurbished in 1995 through trusts in the Isle of Man and Liechtenstein, in addition to firms in the Caribbean linked to Bhutto, Zardari and the alleged kickbacks, according to the lawsuit. According to British court records, Zardari steadfastly denied ownership until January 2006, when he acknowledged he owned the property. The judge did rule that there is a “reasonable prospect” of proving that funds used to refurbish the estate were “the fruits of corruption,” according to the documents.

Pakistan’s political fate is now completely in the hands of a mentally sick President, who has suicidal tendency, according to psychiatrists. And, possibly, the most corrupt and mentally ill Asif Ali Zardari will cause in once again suspension of democratic process in Pakistan thus pressing the fate of the nation towards another millitary rule. Many analysts even feel that, although millitary rule is not appreciated by the international community, in special circumstances, for the sake of independence and sovereignty of any nation, it may even become unavoidable.

The lack of anti-graft laws makes Pakistan one of the most corrupt nations in the world and is coming in the way of foreign investments in the country, global anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International (TI) says.

‘How can one expect from any donor to come forward to assist Pakistan from its current financial crisis, when there exists no law against corruption?’ TI said in its 2009 Global Corruption Report released Wednesday.

 Unveiling the report here, TI Pakistan chief Adeel Gilani said anti-corruption efforts in the country had taken a 180 degree turn since then president Pervez Musharraf issued the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) Oct 5, 2007 granting immunity to politicians, army officers, bureaucrats and others charged with graft.

 Among those who benefited from the NRO, issued 56 days after the ratification of the UN Convention against Corruption, were former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and her widower Asif Ali Zardari, now the president of Pakistan.

 ‘The timing for the release of the TI report would be embarrassing for Zardari, whose government’s credibility is already seriously questioned internationally because of (his) own as well as many of his government’s key players’ past plagued by serious corruption charges,’ The News daily noted Thursday.

 Quoting from a joint World Bank-Planning Commission of Pakistan study on the country’s infrastructure implementation capacity, the TI report says 15 percent of corruption occurs at the procurement stage, costing the exchequer over Rs.150 billion.

 This apart, the World Bank’s Control of Corruption Indicator in 2007 ranked Pakistan a lowly 21.3 out of 100.

 Then, the Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009 ranked Pakistan 101 out of 130 countries and found that respondents pointed to corruption as the second most problematic factor for doing business in the country, after government instability.

‘The instability of the political situation in Pakistan cannot be underestimated as a factor in permitting corruption in the private sector to flourish. Despite Musharraf’s claim to be committed to fighting corruption, little headway has been made, and it is still considered to be pervasive and deeply entrenched,’ The News said.

The most corrupt,  Municipal Corporation of Delhi.

Finally a confirmation of what is already known, but little is done about.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is the most corrupt body in the country, possibly the world. A recent Right to Information query has confirmed widespread graft in the municipal corporation with as many as 4,400 corruption cases pending against about 3,400 employees, who range from peons to junior engineers. Strangely they are still employed and continuing with their money making rackets.

Try and get a housing plan passed. Or get a completion certificate for a building….and you will have to deal with these corrupt government officials. Nothing moves without greasing their palms. Refer to my story of how buildings that openly flout all norms and a great show was made of knocking down portions, stand today all patched up, mocking the citizens of Delhi. The corporation has allowed 3000 unauthorised colonies to spring up, violating Delhi’s master plan. There are thousands of buildings which extend on to government land and this has been done in connivance of the junior engineers of the corporation, who are supposed to keep watch on the building activity in the city.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dominates the civic body having secured 164 seats in the 272-member MCD House in 2007. The Congress, had made a similar sweep in the 2002 polls.
Both the dominant parties are responsible for the state of things in the Capital.

The recent parliamentary elections in which the Congress swept all the seats in the Capital, has jolted the MCD into action. Check out the following item -
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Delhi/Poll-struck-MCD-jolted-into-action/articleshow/4572829.cms

Here is an old news item, but it tells you a lot of the attitude of those men and women responsible for overseeing the functioning of the corporation -
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/after-laptops-mcd-councillors-now-want-men/422418/