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FREE ONLINE TRAINING ON PRECEPTS AND TRADE-2-A Penniless Man Becomes a Billionaire in Twenty Years-List of Korean billionaires and multi-millionaires-Twenty22-India on the move-Business Musings From Woodstock for Capitalists-Topshop billionaire’s £20m ‘garden party’-PowerProof Multi-Billionaires Thai Buddha WEALTH Amulet
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FREE ONLINE TRAINING ON PRECEPTS AND TRADE-2

A Penniless Man Becomes a Billionaire
in Twenty Years


by Rev. Shokai Kanai

A
little boy of a billionaire ran away from his father and became
homeless for many years. Meanwhile his father had trading business with
foreign countries and made innumerable treasures and wished to inherit
all his treasures to his son.

The
homeless son wandered about all directions to beg food and tried to get
odd jobs for many decade years.  One day he happened to stand at a gate
of the rich man’s estate.

The
rich man recognized him at first sight as his son and immediately
dispatched a man standing beside him to quickly bring back the poor man
standing at the gate.  The messenger pulled him by force.  The poor son
thought, “I am caught though I am not guilty. I shall be killed,” and
fainted and fell to the ground.

Seeing
the frightened son who was too base and mean to meet a noble man, the
father said to the messenger, “I don’t want him any more.  Pour cold
water on his face and let him go!” 

The
rich man dispatched another messenger in secret to bring him back for a
work to clear dirt with double day’s pay in advance.

 Many
months passed.  The father took off his garment and jewels, and wear
worn-out defiled with dirt and dust to approach his son and said,
“Man!  Stay here and work hard.  I will pay you more.

Many years passed.  The rich man gave him a name and more higher pay to take care the storehouses.

Thus,
twenty years have passed.  The father told his son to call in the king,
ministers and householders.  When they all gathered, he said to them,
“This is my son, my real son. All my treasures are his.”

This
story of a penniless man becomes a billionaire is revealed in Chapter
4, Understanding by Faith of the Lotus Sutra. It says, “We have
obtained unsurpassed treasures although we did not seek them.”

The Buddha and deities are always trying to save us from misery; however, we do not understand their intentions.

 You
may think that the poor son inherits his father’s treasurers because he
is the real son of the rich man.  The Buddha says, “All living beings
are my children” in Chapter 3.  We all are able to inherit the Buddha’s
treasurers (Buddhahood) when we trust in the sacred title of the sutra,
“Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.”  Thus, we will realize reality of all things
without notice and have peaceful mind.

List of Korean billionaires and multi-millionaires

Problems in determining wealth in Korea

Sociological research in Korea into the great families of wealth and
privilege has not been forthcoming, so much more work has been done
abroad by American and European publications such as Forbes, The Asian Wall Street Journal, and The Economist magazine as well as merchant banking units from Merrill Lynch
and other holders of massive private fortunes. Internally, Korean
newspapers have exercised great caution, and declined to compile lists
of the rich, how they became rich, or mapped great holdings of wealth;
this changes as foreign banks publish such material abroad, and
articles then find their way back into Korea through the internet and
foreign banking and financial publications.

Corporate wealth and rich lists

Most Korean corporations, even public ones, do not as a habit list
salaries of chief executives, presidents, or stock benefits to members
of their boards. Individuals rarely disclose salaries, or bonuses, and
there is no real attempt to open corporate books to the public, or to
shareholders to indicate substantial shareholders so determining the
hierarchy of the rich is difficult.

It may be assumed that a yardstick to compile salaries of
corporation heads is to go down the middle between American and
Japanese salaries for comparable industries, based on gross volumes of
sales, number of employees, and job title.

This benchmark would suggest at least 1000 employees of major
companies making more than $1 million a year of salary; and perhaps 500
earning more than $2 million based on Korea’s commercial success.

Political wealth and rich lists

Elected and appointed politicians rarely if ever file disclosure of
assets, investments, or family links to corporations. It is generally
assumed in Korea that any senior politician is a millionaire, and long
term politicians as a family are multi-millionaires. At times of
contention, public disclosures validate this.

Foundations wealth and ranking by assets held

The use of foundations to sequester assets again has not be studied
at length, and foundations are not required to disclose all assets,
investments, or profits; and in many cases hold, or are believed to
hold, or handle trillions of won of investments that are controlled by
very few people with great power and limited scrutiny or public
oversight. Disclosures are usually triggered by political scandals with
little public accountability in place or sociological analysis of
influence.

Non-profit and church or religious group holdings

While the wealth of Sun Myung Moon
is often mentioned, and is said to be in the multiple billions,
non-profit church groups and religious corporations are known to have
extensive landholdings both in Korea and extremely large investments in
securities and land abroad.

Occasional disclosures in the media indicate the huge amounts of
wealth owned, and transferred abroad by churches, religious holding
companies, lesser cults, and other missionary groups.

These have their origins going back to the great Buddhist monastic
orders which had incredible economic power, controlled essential
resource exports (rice and ginseng), and which had huge plantations
with extensive numbers of slaves as early as the Korean three kingdoms
time and as late as the declining years of the Joseon dynasty; with gains coming back under the Japanese occupation through fundraising for Korean independence movements.

Spectacular showcases of Korean Christian wealth have been displayed
in huge cathedrals and church-building, and at times a lifestyle of
conspicuous consumption and profligate spending by church leaders, or
church cult leaders, when financial irregularities or scandals have
been made public.

Estimates on financial holdings of the richest churches often exceed billions in assets and investments.

Gross income of chaebols and the top 50 Korean companies

The relations between chaebols
and the Korean power elite are now studied more closely as the elite
itself showcases wealth and power more publicly than before as Korea
places itself in the community of successful countries.

Internationally known Korean billionaires (Forbes)

Known Korean billionaires according to Forbes analysis units include:

Legend
Icon Description
Has not changed from the list for 2007.
Has increased from the list for 2007.
Has decreased from the list for 2007.
No.  ↓ Name  ↓ Net worth (USD)  ↓ Age  ↓ Citizenship  ↓ Residence  ↓ Source(s) of wealth  ↓ Ref.
&0000000000000001.0000001 Kim, VladimirVladimir Kim $5.5 billion   Kazakhstan  United Kingdom Kazakhmys [citation needed]
&0000000000000002.0000002 Lee Kun Hee $2.9 billion   South Korea  South Korea Samsung [citation needed]
&0000000000000003.0000003 Chung Mong Koo $2.2 billion  70  South Korea  South Korea Hyundai [citation needed]
&0000000000000004.0000004 Shin Dong Bin $1.8 billion   Japan  Japan Lotte [citation needed]
&0000000000000005.0000005 Lee Myung Hee $1.8 billion   South Korea  South Korea Shinsegae [citation needed]
&0000000000000006.0000006 Lee Jay Yong $1.7 billion   South Korea  South Korea Samsung [citation needed]
&0000000000000007.0000007 Shin Dong Joo $1.7 billion   Japan  Japan Lotte [citation needed]
&0000000000000008.0000008 Nicholas Park $1.7 billion   United States  South Korea Attorney [citation needed]
&0000000000000009.0000009 Yong Keu Cha $1.3 billion  Kazakhmys [citation needed]
&0000000000000010.00000010 Chung Mong Joon $1.3 billion   South Korea  South Korea Hyundai Heavy [citation needed]
&0000000000000011.00000011 Suh Kyung Bae $1.1 billion  Amorepacific [citation needed]
&0000000000000012.00000012 Han Chang Woo $1.1 billion   Japan  Japan Maruhan [citation needed]

Internationally known wealthy Korean individuals (Forbes)

No.  ↓ Name  ↓ Net worth (USD)  ↓ Age  ↓ Citizenship  ↓ Residence  ↓ Source(s) of wealth  ↓ Ref.
&0000000000000013.00000013 Chung Yong Jin $975 million   South Korea  South Korea Shinsegae [citation needed]
&0000000000000014.00000014 Shin Chang Jae $950 million   South Korea  South Korea Kyobo Life [citation needed]

Chang Pyung Soon $945 Million Kyowon Group

Choi Jin Min $930 Million Kiturami

Chey Tae Won $810 Million SK Group

Kim Seung Yoon $800 Million Hanwha

Yoon Seok Keum $790 Million Woongjin

Kang Young Jeong $720 Million Daekyo

Lee Jay Hyun $715 Million Cheil Jadang

Hong Ra Hee $700 Million Samsung

Koo Bon Mo $670 Million LG Group

Chung Mong Jin $665 Million KCC

Shin Kyuk Ho $660 Million Lotte

Park Moon Deuk $650 Million Hite Brewery

Chung Mong Gyu $645 Million Hyundai

Kim Nam Goo $640 Million Korea Investment

Koo Bon Neung $620 Million Heesung Group

Kim Jung Joo $590 Million Nexon

Chung Eui Sun $560 Million Hyundai

Lee Joon Yong $540 Million Daelim

Koo Bon Joon $500 Million LG

Kim Jeong Hoon $500 Million Yurie

Koo Bon Sik $495 Million LG

Moon Kyu Young $480 Million Aju

Lee Ho Jin $475 Million Taekwon

Chung Yoo Kyung $470 Million Shinsegae

Lee Boo Jin $410 Million Shilla

Lee Seo Hyeon $410 Million Cheil

Cho Yang Rai $405 Million Hankook Tire

This benchmark would suggest at least 1000 employees of major companies
making more than $1 million a year of salary; and perhaps 500 earning
more than $2 million based on Korea’s commercial success.

Rich List according to Chaebul.com

Chaebul.com is a local source that evaluates the fortunes of Korean
businesspersons. According to its analysis of listed stock value as
January 2008, the top 20 known Korean share-rich individuals are the
following.

Chung Mong Joon $3.8 Billion Hyundai Heavy

Chung Mong Koo $3.2 Billion Hyundai

Lee Myung Hee $2.2 Billion Shinsegae

Shin Dong Bin $2.0 Billion Lotte

Shin Dong Joo $1.9 Billion Lotte

Lee Kun Hee $1.8 Billion Samsung

Huh Chang Soo $1.4 Billion GS

Koo Bon Moo $1.4 Billion LG

Nicholas Park $1.3 Billion Lee

Suh Kyung Bae $1.2 Billion Amorepacific

Chung Yong Jin $1.1 Billion Shinsegae

Chung Mong Gyu $1.1 Billion Hyundai Development

Chung Mong Jin $1.1 Billion KCC

Koo Bon Joon $1.0 Billion LG

Kim Seung Youn $1.0 Billion Hanwha

Yoon Seok Keum $0.9 Billion Woongjin

Chung Eui Sun $0.9 Billion Hyundai

Kim Nam Koo $0.8 Billion Korea Investment

Lee Soo Young $0.8 Billion DC Chemical

Kim Jun Ki $0.8 Billion Dongbu

Kim Nam Ho $0.8 Billion Dongbu

Kim Young Sang $0.6 Billion Daewoo

Evaluating wealth and power

The Sunday Times Rich List, published annually by the Sunday Times
cites a complicated means by which it both establishes and guesses at
real and hidden wealth by the nation’s richest families. Researchers in
Korean media have used this as a means of establishing wealth.

http://20twentytwo.blogspot.com/2009/03/billionaires-list-changes.html


14.3.09

The Billionaire’s List changes


The
toll on the markets has not only shrunk the wealth of the world’s
billionaires, compiled every year by Forbes, but also changed the
pecking order. Bill Gates is once again the world’s richest, and Mukesh
Ambani has replaced Lakshmi Mittal as the richest Indian.
The
world is left with fewer billionaires as the economic downturn shaved
millions off the fortunes of the world’s richest. India’s wealthiest
fared no better, as 24 made it to the Forbes’ list of
billionaires
this year and another 29 who were on the list last year found
themselves reduced to multi-millionaires, thanks not just to the steep
fall in share prices but also to the rupee’s depreciation by nearly a
fifth, which depresses the dollar value of rupee wealth.
Leading
the pack among India’s richest and ranked seventh in the world is
Reliance Industries (RIL) chief Mukesh Ambani. His net worth is down to
$19.5 billion after the RIL stock
plunged about 40% in the last one year. Close
behind is ArcelorMittal CEO Lakshmi Mittal, who is ranked eighth with a
net worth of $19.3 billion. His fortune dwindled as shares of the
world’s largest steel firm hit four-year lows amid slackening global
demand.
The next
Indian on the list is Anil Ambani. Ranked 34, the Reliance ADAG
chairman, who was the biggest gainer last year, lost $32 billion, or
76% of his fortune, in the last one year as shares of his group firms —
Reliance Communications, Reliance Power and Reliance Capital —
declined.
Bharti group CEO Sunil Mittal is the fourth richest
Indian, ranked 59 globally, with a net worth of $7.7 billion. Wipro
chief Azim Premji makes it to the list with a total wealth of $5.7
billion, as do brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia of Essar ($5.6 billion).
Other
Indians on the list include DLF’s KP Singh ($5 billion), Kumar Birla
($4.2 billion), Adi Godrej ($3.3 billion), Dilip Shanghvi ($3 billion)
and Savitri Jindal ($2.7 billion). Brothers Malvinder and Shivinder
Singh also feature in the list, with a net worth of $2.6 billion.
Among notable drop-offs in the list are Unitech founder Ramesh Chandra, who lost an estimated
$9 billion due to a slump in realty stocks, and Suzlon’s Tulsi Tanti,
who is poorer by $2.6 billion. Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal saw
his net worth lowered by $1.1 billion, while investment banker Nimesh
Kampani and Indiabulls promoter Sameer Gehlaut lost $1 billion each.
Liquor baron Vijay Mallya is another ex-billionaire.

Microsoft founder Bill Gates pipped billionaire investor Warren Buffet to emerge
as the wealthiest man in the world with an estimated fortune of $40
billion. Having lost $25 billion in 12 months, Mr Buffet comes second
($37 billion). Mexican telecom czar Carlos Slim Helu ($35 billion) is
ranked third on the list, followed by Oracle CEO Lawrence Ellison
($22.5 billion) and furniture firm Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad ($22
billion).
According
to Forbes, there are now 793 billionaires globally, down from 1,125 a
year ago. India not only saw its share of the wealthiest plummet, it
also gave up its position as home to most billionaires in Asia to
China, which has 28.

1 comments:


Jagatheesan
said…

May you be ever happy, well and secure
May you live long
May all sentient and non-sentient beings in this universe be ever happy
May all be calm, quiet, alert, attentive and have equanimity mind
With a clear understanding that nothing is permanent

In
order to build a strong Jambudvipa, that is, a Great Prabuddha Bharath,
it is very important to inspire and train young entrepreneurs
(aboriginal inhabitants of Jambudvipa, that is, the Great Prabuddha
Bharath).

To spread Dhamma, it is time to inspire and train
young entrepreneurs to do business based on the principles of Buddhism,
so that they can earn more money to do more Dana to build Monasteries
and to improve all the Buddhist monuments spread throughout this great
Prabuddha Bharath.

Therefore, we request you to be a part of
this venture and give us your valuable suggestions and help to build a
society of young entrepreneurs who could stand on their own legs to
fulfill this wholesome desire of spreading Dhamma.

With lots of metta

Jagatheesan Chandrasekharan
#668 5th A main Road, 8th Cross, HAL 3rd Stage,
Bangalore-560075
Karnataka State
INDIA

Telephone No. 91-080-25203792
Mob: 9449260443
www.buddhismandbussiness.webs.com
Email: chandrasekharan.tipitaka.jagat@gmail.com

http://wisdomquarterly.blogspot.com/2009/05/billionaire-buffett.html

http://finance.yahoo.com/insurance/article/107029/Business-Musings-From-Woodstock-for-Capitalists

Business Musings From Woodstock for Capitalists



by Scott Patterson and Alistair Barr
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
provided by

Buffett and Munger Play the Main Stage: Views on Newspapers, Triple-A Ratings, Complex Math and More

Here
are some highlights of Warren Buffett’s and Charles Munger’s remarks at
the Berkshire Hathaway Inc. shareholder meeting this past weekend.

Mr. Buffett on Newspapers

Mr.
Buffett has long held himself out as a newspaper man. As a child, one
of his first jobs was delivering newspapers. An Omaha newspaper
Berkshire owned, Sun Newspapers, won a Pulitzer Prize in 1973 based in
part on a tip Mr. Buffett provided. One of Berkshire’s biggest
investments in the 1970s was the Buffalo News, which it still owns.

But his view on the future of the newspaper industry is dismal. “For
most newspapers in the United States, we would not buy them at any
price,” he said. “They have the possibility of going to just unending
losses.”

As long as newspapers were essential to readers, they
were essential to advertisers, he said. But news is now available in
many other venues, he said.

Berkshire has a substantial
investment in Washington Post Co. He said the company has a solid cable
business, a good reason to hold on to it, but its newspaper business is
in trouble.

Mr. Munger called newspapers’ woes “a national
tragedy….These monopoly daily newspapers have been an important sinew
to our civilization, they kept government more honest than they would
otherwise be.”

A Washington Post Co. representative couldn’t be reached for comment.

Mr. Buffett on Insurance

In
response to a question about the worst possible development for
Berkshire Hathaway’s vast insurance operations, Mr. Buffett responded:
nationalization.

If inflation jumped and insurance policies became
extremely expensive, pressure could rise on the government to
nationalize the insurance industry, he said. “When people get outraged,
politicians respond,” Mr. Buffett said. It’s highly unlikely that such
a development would happen, he added. But he did note the example of
Social Security, which is a form of a nationalized annuity.

Mr. Buffett on Housing

“In
the last few months you’ve seen a real pickup in activity although at
much lower prices,” Mr. Buffett said, citing data from Berkshire’s
real-estate brokerage business, HomeServices of America Inc., which is
one of the largest in the U.S.

In California, medium and
lower-price homes — under $750,000 — have been selling more, though
there hasn’t been a bounce back in sale prices, Mr. Buffett said. “We
see something close to stability at these much-reduced prices in the
medium to lower part of the market.”

Mr. Buffett on Moody’s

Mr.
Buffett was asked about Moody’s Investors Service, which gave a
triple-A rating to billions of dollars of mortgage securities that
subsequently lost value. Berkshire has a 20.4% stake in the company.

“Basically,
four or five years ago, virtually everybody in the country had this
model in their heads, formal or otherwise, that house prices could not
fall significantly,” Mr. Buffett said. He later added that “it was
stupidity and the fact that everyone else was doing it.”

He said
that if Moody’s had started to take a negative view on residential real
estate, the ratings provider would have been hauled before Congress to
testify about why it was hurting the U.S. economy with its bearish
ratings. “They made a huge mistake, and the American people made a huge
mistake,” he said.

A Moody’s representative couldn’t be reached for comment.

Mr. Buffett on Treasurys

Berkshire
Hathaway had only one slide at this year’s annual meeting. It displayed
a Dec. 19 trade ticket showing a Berkshire sale of $5 million of
Treasury bills. They were coming due on April 29 this year, roughly
four months after Berkshire sold them. Berkshire sold the bills for
$5,000,090.70. If that buyer had instead put their money in a mattress,
by April 29 they would have been $90.70 better off, he said. Negative
yields on Treasury bills show how tumultuous last year was, Mr. Buffett
added. “We may never see that again in our lifetimes,” he noted.

Messrs. Buffett and Munger on Math and Theories

Messrs. Buffett and Munger made clear their complete disdain for the use of higher-order mathematics in finance.

“There
is so much that’s false and nutty in modern investing practice and
modern investment banking, that if you just reduced the nonsense,
that’s a goal you should reasonably hope for,” Mr. Buffett said.
Regarding complex calculations used to value purchases, he said: “If
you need to use a computer or a calculator to make the calculation, you
shouldn’t buy it.”

Said Mr. Munger: “Some of the worst business
decisions I’ve ever seen are those with future projections and
discounts back. It seems like the higher mathematics with more false
precision should help you, but it doesn’t. They teach that in business
schools because, well, they’ve got to do something.”

Mr. Buffett
said: “If you stand up in front of a business class and say a bird in
the hand is worth two in the bush, you won’t get tenure….Higher
mathematics my be dangerous and lead you down pathways that are better
left untrod.”

Mr. Munger on the Future

“As I move close to the edge of death, I find myself getting more cheerful about the economic future,” Mr. Munger said.

Mr. Munger sees “a final breakthrough that solves the main technical problem of man,” he continued.

By
harnessing the power of the sun, electrical power will become more
available around the world. That will help humans turn sea water into
fresh water and eliminate environmental problems, Mr. Munger explained.
“If you have enough energy you can solve a lot of other problems.”

Write to Scott Patterson at scott.patterson@wsj.com and Alistair Barr at alistair.barr@marketwatch.com

Copyrighted, Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All rights reserved.

Topshop billionaire’s £20m ‘garden party’

by NATALIE CLARKE

Last updated at 11:42 17 March 2007

Topless dancers, a 35ft granite Buddha, 30 bottles of
vintage bubbly for each guest, and cabaret courtesy of George
Michael on a private island ringed by armed guards. Just another
common or garden birthday bash for Topshop’s Philip Green

Scroll down for more…

sir philip green

Billionaire Sir Philip Green, the stunning party venue and guest
J-lo

The two great deities sat facing one another, each a colossus,
gazing serenely down at the mortals in their midst. At one end was
a solid granite statue of the Buddha, 35ft-tall, smiling benignly
over the party guests as they drank vintage Pol Roger champagne and
helped themselves to lobster thermidor.

At the other end was Sir Philip Green, resplendent in a crisp
white linen Thai tunic trimmed with silver brocade. If the Buddha
was serene and mysterious, Sir Philip was rather more
ebullient.

The billionaire tycoon was in fine fettle hosting his most
jaw-droppingly showy party yet - a five-day extravaganza on a
tropical island which he has taken over in the Maldives for himself
and 100 friends to celebrate his 55th birthday. It is impossible to
say just how much it has cost, but £20 million cannot be an
outlandish estimate.

Some 500 cases of vintage champagne - that’s 3,000 bottles, 30
per guest - caviar, lobster; dancers flown in from around the
world; fireworks shooting upwards to form the shape of palm trees
before melting into the night sky; supercharged searchlights which
seemed to touch the stars.

The star turn is George Michael, who is believed to have
received £750,000 to go on stage. And, if the rumours are to
be believed, the American singer and actress, Jennifer Lopez.

The birthday boy surpassed himself this time, and it wasn’t even
a major milestone.

But while the guests guzzled champagne and danced the night away
in paradise without a care in the world, the Maldivian islanders
were not quite so taken with the spectacle.

The construction of the Buddha, in particular, has troubled the
locals, who are devout Muslims.

“The islanders are obviously used to tourists, and Christianity
as well, but they are not used to such overt signs of Buddhism and
this has unsettled them,” said one local source.

“The blocks of granite were shipped over from somewhere and the
locals had to construct the Buddha with their own hands, which they
were not at all happy about, but they didn’t want to complain.”

It does make you wonder: if you want to have a Thai-themed
evening with Thai attire, pad Thai noodles and a giant Buddha on
display, why not have the party in Thailand? But that would
probably be cheaper than this lavish playground of the rich, and
you certainly can’t accuse Sir Philip of hanging on to his
pennies.

As well as the controversy over the Buddha, there has also been
consternation among the locals at the more decadent displays over
the past few days, in particular a troupe of topless dancers.

For while going topless isn’t banned in the Maldives, it is
frowned upon by the Muslim community and all tourist literature
asks holidaymakers to refrain from removing their tops.

A source said: “The staff were told before the party that they
might see things that might shock them but they must not take
offence.

“The women who drive the buggies around the island were told
that if they came across any of these topless women, they must
avert their eyes to protect their modesty, turn the buggy around
and go in the opposite direction.”

There are dark mutterings among the deeply suspicious Maldivians
all over Baa Atoll (there are 19 atolls stretching across 800km)
that Sir Philip’s birthday party has brought a curse to the region
north of the capital, Male, where the Soneva Fushi Resort stands on
the island of Kunfunadhoo.

But Sir Philip, who owns the Arcadia fashion group comprising
Topshop, Bhs and Miss Selfridge among others, and employs 38,000
staff, is oblivious to such talk. Having received a £1.2
billion dividend in 2005 - adding to the £4.85billion fortune
he was estimated to have before the windfall - he wanted to make
sure this party was even more monumental than his 50th.

On that occasion he flew out 200 friends to an exclusive resort
in Cyprus for a £5 million toga party. Green was dressed as
the Roman Emperor Nero in an embroidered toga and gold laurel
leaves. Rod Stewart - £1 million for a 45-minute set - and
Tom Jones provided the entertainment.

As a surprise, his wife Tina, 57, hired Michael Aspel who
appeared with his red This Is Your Life book to look back at the
entrepreneur’s life. Her present to him was a solid gold Monopoly
board, made by Asprey’s to represent all his real High Street
assets.

There was even a follow up-party in Monaco to watch the video of
the Cyprus beano.

There have been other flash dos, such as the barmitzvah he threw
for his son Brandon on his 13th birthday in 2005, which reportedly
cost £4million, and was held in one of the swankiest hotels
in the Cote d’Azur. The family had their own synagogue built in the
grounds.

Sir Philip and his wife Tina, who were married in 1990,
definitely enjoy the finer things in life. They own an £8
million villa in Monaco overlooking their £7 million yacht
(being resident in Monaco cuts down the tax bill considerably, of
course).

They have a private jet and ‘his and hers’ Bentleys. His office
is a beige and black penthouse in the West End where he works from
6am to 10pm weekdays. His weekends are spent in Monaco often
playing tennis with Prince Albert.

And besides, there was another cause (or excuse) for celebration
this week - the knighthood he received last year. If you’ve earned
all this money by old-fashioned graft - and Sir Philip is a
workaholic - why not spend it?

So it was that Green, who was raised in Croydon and North London
by his electrical retailer father, Simon, and mother, Alma - who
owned and ran a launderette chain - decided to take over Soneva
Fushi.

Villas cost up to £2,000 per night, and Green has hired
the entire resort for five days. The resort motto is: ‘No news or
shoes - you’re here to chill out.’

But over the past week, things have been frenetic on the island.
More than 500 people were brought in to deal with the construction
of Buddhas, pagodas and three stages. Hundreds more have been
working on the catering, flowers flown especially into the
Maldives, security and fireworks.

Sir Philip wanted the location to be a surprise for his guests
and told them simply to pack their beachwear and go to Stansted
Airport on Tuesday evening.

There has been much speculation as to who was on the guest list.
Kate Moss, Simon Cowell and Jemima Khan were mentioned, but did not
show up.

Elizabeth Hurley and her husband, Arun Nayar, are believed to be
honeymooning in the Maldives after their own marathon wedding
celebrations, but there was no sign of them, either.

The actress Jenny Seagrove and her theatre producer partner,
Bill Kenwright, are among the guests along with former model Jilly
Johnson. The Scottish millionaire Sir Tom Hunter is here; Formula
One boss Eddie Jordan is also believed to be on the list of
attendees.

But if A-list celebrities were invited, they appear not to have
been tempted by the freebie to beat all freebies.

For when the three private jets carrying the guests arrived at
Male airport on Wednesday morning, there were hardly any famous
faces to be seen. The ‘VIPs’ - most of them pushing Louis Vuitton
luggage - were then taken by seaplane to the resort.

That night, Sir Philip treated his guests to a pre-party bash
with a performance by a group of Indonesian dancers flown in
especially, as well as traditional Maldivian dancing by performers
from another island.

On Thursday, as Sir Philip’s guests sunbathed on the terraces of
their luxurious villas, the final preparations began. Checks were
made on the three concert stages - yes, three - on the northern and
southern tips of the island, and in the middle of the resort.

At a right angle to the side of the main stage stood the largest
Buddha, on either side of which were two pagodas. Two smaller
Buddhas were erected nearby.

Vases filled with exotic flowers flown in from some far-flung
destination were placed all over the island. Meanwhile, teams of
chefs were busy in the kitchen. There was one team for the seafood
buffet, another for the Thai buffet.

A separate team put the final touches to Sir Philip’s 8ft by 4ft
dark and white chocolate and cream birthday cake, thought to have
been inscribed simply: ‘Philip Green 55′.

More guests arrived by seaplane including a group of men in
white linen suits. A fevered rumour began circulating that Britney
Spears was on the island, but this was not confirmed.

According to one source, J-Lo was seen wandering around the
resort surrounded by her burly entourage. It’s thought she was
planning to give a performance last night.

Moored a little way out were two 100ft sailing yachts and a
150ft motor yacht. You could smell the money.

It is one of those strange paradoxes that a man determined to
stage one of the most ostentatious spectacles on the planet should
be seemingly obsessed that the details remain a secret.

Thirty security cameras were installed around the island on
Thursday; three security boats patrolled the island.

Aboard one of them was a high profile police chief, a sort of
Sir Ian Blair in shades and funky T-shirt.

The staff on the island were also tightly controlled. The stage
crew and security staff all wore T-shirts with a 55 logo, and staff
were told they must not reveal a thing, and to switch their mobiles
off so no contact could be made with the outside world.

The main party of the week began at 8pm on Thursday, when
spotlights - powered by generators shipped in for the occasion -
were turned on, stretching up and out for miles across the Indian
Ocean.

All the guests - men included - wore the same white linen Thai
tunics, embossed with the 55 logo. The number 55 was also
emblazoned across the stage.

You would have to have been really dim - or the worse of all
that champagne - to forget which birthday Sir Philip was
celebrating.

There were more dancers - including the topless ones who had
affronted the modesty of the locals - more Pol Roger bubbly,
caviar, lobster any which way you could choose. Also on the bill
was heartthrob singer Ricky Martin.

George Michael came on last of all, singing old favourites such
as Careless Whisper and, finally, Freedom, which seemed to go down
very well with the mostly 30 and 40-something guests.

Sir Philip is said to have issued strict instructions that
George wanted to leave the island as soon as he came off stage, but
then these days he is a bit of a recluse.

After George’s performance, Stevie Wonder’s Happy Birthday To
You came blaring through the speakers and Sir Philip’s enormous
birthday cake was wheeled to the front of the stage.

Shy and retiring are not words in this man’s vocabulary. Once he
had cut the cake, the fireworks began, launched from two barges
anchored a couple of hundred yards from the shore, and greeted with
gasps of admiration.

Then it was time for the disco and, loosened up by all the free
booze, most of the guests took to the dance floor and partied until
well after 4am.

The following day the revellers stayed in bed till late,
emerging around lunchtime to get ready for Sir Philip’s bikini
party in the afternoon.

Again, the bikini dress code is felt to be in bad taste by the
locals - due to their Muslim beliefs. Happily for them, Sir Philip
and his pals are due to fly back to Britain tomorrow.

What they and everyone else would now like to know is: what on
earth is he going to do with his giant granite Buddha? Not even his
office is big enough to accommodate this.


For
a change Billionaire Sir Philip Green, I suggest to host a party
following all the 5 precepts that his 35ft granite Buddha taught to
this world and also follow his eightfold path which will further enrich
him both morally and physically and increase his happiness multifold.
And also share such an experience with all sentient and non-sentient
beings. I wish to join such a party.

Suggestion by Jagatheesan Chandrasekharan
#668 5th A Main Road
8th Cross HAL 3rd Stage
Bangalore-560075
Karnataka State
India
Mob:9449260443
http://sarvajan.ambedkar.org
Email;; preceptsandtrade@gmail.com
Lantau Island BuddhaThe home of Hong Kong DisneylandVisit online to discover the magic.www.hongkongdisneyland.com

http://cgi.ebay.com.sg/PowerProof-Multi-Billionaires-Thai-Buddha-WEALTH-Amulet_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQitemZ380115111342


PowerProof Multi-Billionaires Thai Buddha WEALTH Amulet

Blessed by 17 top monks focusing on WEALTH&LUCK ONLY!!!

For me, knowing the amulet is real is not enough

How much Power it has, is my most concern

 

After testing, I found this amulet has Ultimately Extremely High Supernatural Power (6.93 STARS)

(Since
I keep on improving the accuracy of my power measurement, the above
power rating figure might be adjusted sometime to give most accuracy)

 

 

“Sethi Nawagote” (Multi-Billionaires) Amulet

Blessed by 17 Top Powerful Magic Guru Monks in this era

(Temple code number 1609 punched underneath with Thai numeric characters)

 

Ultimately strong power focusing only on Wealth & Luck Increasing

Lead good luck to you, Bring success to your career & business

** Guaranteed Real, Supernatural Power Proven **

 

 

(Micron gold necklace is optional with $15 extra cost)

If
you want to include the necklace: 1. After you click Bid or Buy-It-Now
on this item please inform me by mail to include necklace 2. Make
payment AFTER you get my invoice

 

 

This “Sethi Nawagote” amulet is truly real acquired directly from Wat Hnar Phra Main
in Ayudthaya province blessed by 17 topmost powerful magic guru monks
in this era and most importantly, its power focuses directly on Wealth
& Luck Increasing.
 
Not all real amulets have same magnitude of power.  Some amulets may be real but may have only little power which may not yield any result to the wearer.  This amulet was tested and found supernatural power at “Ultimately Extremely High” level.  You may read more about my test method in the bottom paragraph.  Also, you can read more details about this amulet in below paragraph shown in red color.  Besides
being superb powerful, this amulet has very beautiful and outstanding
appearance, encased in good-quality micron gold case.  The micron-gold
necklace is optional with $15 extra cost.  If you want to include the
necklace, please let me know and don’t make payment until receiving my
invoice since I will add $15 cost of necklace in the invoice before
sending to you.  Please also note that there is a temple unique number code punched underneath the amulet which fake amulet cannot copy the same. (please see in the red circle in the picture).

 

I
have spent more than 4 years time to find an effective method to sense
and measure the magnitude of Supernatural Power which exists only in
real amulets.
  I am 50-year-old, native Thai Buddhist, master-degree engineer, living in Bangkok and seriously collecting Thai amulets as my most favorite hobby.  Although,
I have much experience on how to identify real & fake amulets by
physical inspection but I found that some fake amulets are impossible
to identify since they are built by very professional makers and look
99.99% the same as the real one.  Hence, before I
buy most amulets, beside physical inspection, I need to use the method
resulted from my 4 years research to sense and measure the inside
Supernatural Power to ensure that they are genuine and were already
blessed by powerful magic monks who transferred the Supernatural Power
into the amulets.  This is important to me since I do not want to buy or wear any fake amulets which do not have any power and that is not different from wearing toys. 

 

The
name “Sethi Nawagote” means “Multi-Billionaire” which indicates that
this amulet was blessed with specific objective to increase Wealth
& Luck of the wearer.
  The amulet has 9 faces which represent 9 ancient top richest millionaire in the Buddhism history.  The names of those millionaires are as follows:

1.      Thanunchai Mahasethi  2. Yatsa Mahasethi  3. Sumna Mahasethi  4. Chalilatsa Mahasethi  5. Anathabinthiga Mahasethi  6. Mainthaga Mahasethi  7. Sumangkalatsa Mahasethi  8. Chotiga Mahasethi  9. Maha Ubasiga Wisaka

 

The
17 monks blessed the amulet and invited the power from those ancient
millionaires to increase the Wealth & Luck of the wearer.
  The blessing ceremony was done this year at Wat Hnar Phra Main.  All the monks are very well-known in Thailand since all of them are the topmost powerful monks in this era.  Their names are as follows:

1.      LP Tim (Wat Phrakao)  2. LP Chalerm (Wat Phrayard)  3. LP Pol (Wat Indraram)  4. LP Pien (Wat Griengrathin)  5. LP Euan (Wat Wangdangtai)  6. LP Jamlong (Wat Jaedeedang)  7. LP Piem (Wat Pomgaew)  8. LP Wael (Wat Panunchieng)  9. LP Ruay (Wat Tago)  10. LP Poon (Wat Banpaen)  11. LP Na (Wat Nongbua)  12. LP Sao (Wat Dornyanang)  13. LP Grieng-grai (Wat Prachasan)  14. LP Amnuay (Wat Saenasaram)  15. LP Pard (Wat Rai)  16. LP Chamnarn (Wat Bangguthithong)  17. LP Sawat (Wat Salapoon)

 

After
testing, I found this amulet has “Ultimately Extremely High”
supernatural power with exceptional supreme high power rating (6.93
stars).
  Moreover, it is has very outstanding
beautiful design which certainly making you more attractive with
stunning look of this amulet.  With this kind of
necklace that comes with the amulet, you will feel very comfortable
after wearing it since it is very light and soft.  In
summary, if you feel that your career or your business is not running
good as it should be or you want to make it more success and want to
increase your wealth & luck, this amulet is the superb choice for
you.  

 

 

PLEASE NOTE:  Please do not compare the item price with fake amulet which has no any value.  In Thailand, real amulet is not cheap and some types may cost more than $1000/piece.  The delivery time is normally about 7-14 days in most countries but it may take up to 45 days in some countries.   

 

IMPORTANT NOTE:  Truly speaking, I will never sell fake amulet as I am strict Buddhist who seriously believe in the Law of Karma.  Doing so equals to stealing and telling a lie and that will bring unhappiness to my life.  The
real item looks much more impressive than what you see in the picture
and I am sure that you will be more than happy when you get the item.  However,
please let me know if you have any disappointment and if you experience
with surprising good things happened to your life after wearing the
item, please also kindly share to me.  Also,
please take good care of the amulet, avoiding putting the item lower
than desktop level since there is holy image on the item.

 

 

RETURN POLICY: I
guarantee you not only for your SATISFACTION, but also I guarantee the
AUTHENTICITY of this amulet (2 kinds of guarantee not only one).
  I
am sure that this amulet is 100% real acquired by myself directly from
temples or trustworthy sources.  However, if you don’t want to keep the
item, please contact me and if nothing that I can do for you then you
can ship back the item to me on your own cost within 7 days after
receipt.  I will refund to you within 7 days after I get the item back
in original condition and the amount refunded to you would be FULL
AMOUNT (no any deduction even for shipping cost shipped to you or my listed fee, but not include your tax and your shipping back cost). 
THIS IS PROBABLY THE BEST DEAL THAT YOU CAN GET ON EBAY AND I CAN
AFFORD THIS BECAUSE OF MY CONFIDENCE IN MY ITEMS AND BELIEVE THAT YOU
WILL BE HAPPY WHEN YOU GET IT.  BUT IF YOU HAVE ANY UNSATISFACTION,
PLEASE CONTACT ME BEFORE LEAVING YOUR FEEDBACK.  I’M PLEASED TO ANSWER
ALL YOUR QUESTIONS AND TAKE FULL RESPONSIBILITY ON THE ITEM.

 

 

PLEASE NOTE: If you cannot find amulets that you are looking for, please contact me.  Following
are some of items that I can source for you: Thai / Thailand Buddha
amulets, talisman , medal, Luang Poo , Luang Por ,Luang Phor,  LP
Kalong , Ajan , Arjan, Ajahn Ord, LP Thaweesak, LP Hong, LP Sakorn, LP
Tim, LP Pae, LP Derm, LP Poon, LP Koon, LP Piem, LP Pern, LP Parn, LP
Sothorn, LP Tae, Ajahn Chum, Arjan Nong, LP Lingdam, LP Thuad , LP
Tuad, Somdej Toh, Kruba Kristsana, Jatukam , Jatukarm Ramathep, takrud,
takrood, takkrut, hoon pa yon, ring, palad khik, khun paen, hanuman,
singha, eye of naga, rare antique phra, phra pidta, phra kring, phra
pickanetr, gold pendant, necklace, charm, magic knife, amulets for home
decoration or car decoration, amulets for lady, for kid, for student,
amulets which have supernatural extraordinary power in protection,
wealth, enhance public relation, leadership, luck, lucky, fortune.

 

 

 

 Please read my shared information about “Thai Fake-Amulet Market” in below link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160320154773&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

 

Please read my shared information about “Thai Relics Stone Amulet” in below link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160316729081&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

 

Please read my shared information about “Real Naga Eye Thai Amulet” in below link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=380105176110&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

 

Please read my shared information about “Nam Phi Knives Thai Amulet” in below link:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160316727699&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

 

 Please see many powerful amulets in my store in below link:

http://stores.ebay.com/thaipoweramulet_W0QQsspagenameZMEQ3aFQ3aSTQQtZkm

 

 

 

Test method for measuring Supernatural Power

 

Actually,
I would like to explain the method in full details, unfortunately, the
method is too complicated and need some time to practice.
  However, just to give you some idea, the method uses pendulum dowsing as the main tool.  You can get a lot of information about dowsing in many websites but none is the same as my research.  By
putting the amulet that you want to test at some specific angle near a
reference amulet that works as a benchmark and use a pendulum dowsing
at the center between both amulets, you can compare and know whether
the power of tested amulet is higher or less than the reference amulet.  Furthermore,
if you put many units of reference amulets which are identical
together, you can then measure the power of the tested amulet just like
the way you use the old balance-swing two-arm weight measuring tool.  In the past, I used a kind of amulets which I had many identical pieces to work as a standard unit.  One piece means Power Rate is equal to 1.  By
this way, after testing with real amulets of different kinds for more
than 500 pieces, I found that the power magnitude ranging from less
than 1 to more than 170 which I classified into five groups as follows:-

 

          Power Rating                   Classification of amulets

·                  >=200        : Ultimately Extremely high power (>=5 STARS)

·             160 to 199 : Extremely high power (4 to 5 STARS)

·                 140 to 159  : Very high power

·                 120 to 139  : High power

·                 100 to 119  : Medium power

·                 <100          : Low power or may be fake amulet

From
my past 4 years experiments, I found that amulets with Power Rate
higher than 120 is difficult to find and higher than 140 is rare and,
needless to say, above 160 is extremely rare.
  For
the criteria of all my amulets listed on eBay or in my store, I require
that the amulets must have power rate equal to or above “High Power”
level.

Here, I would like to share some findings found from my research on the Supernatural Power in amulets during past 4 years:

-         Supernatural
Power in a real amulet can propagate like wave through any kind of
substances, ie. amulet case, necklace, to the bearer but cannot be
permanently absorbed by the bearer.
  So, a real
amulet can benefit you most only when you touch or hold or wear the
item and if you in-turn touch your friends, they will get the power too.

-         Supernatural
Power can propagate through air like wave but will rapidly be exhausted
within a few meters depending on the magnitude of the amulet power. So,
if you don’t touch a real amulet, you will still be protected providing
that you are near and the item has enough high power to reach you.
  That’s why, many Thais like to put amulets in front of their car console.

-         If you bear many pieces of real amulets, you will be benefited by the sum of the power from all real amulets that you touch.  That’s why, many Thai people like to wear a necklace with many amulets.  Don’t be surprised, if I tell you that I am now wearing a necklace with 7 amulets and there are 6 amulets in my key chain.

-         To
be effectively benefited by your real amulet, you should imagine that
the Supernatural Power of the amulet is pouring into your body at the
same time that you are going to wear it.
  Thai people call this process as Ar-Rath-Thar-Na-Phra.  This
is to open up your mind and if you do not believe in the power then
your mind will be shut and you will not benefit anything from the
amulet.

-         Wearing amulets is not the best way to protect and lead your life to happiness.  Amulets work like Para medicines.  If
you have a headache, you may take some pills and can be recovered soon
but the real root cause of headache may still wait to annoy you again.  In
the same way, real amulets can protect you from harms or difficulties
but avoiding doing bad things according to the Five Precepts of Lord
Buddha is the best way to lead your life to happiness.

 

 All my amulets here are very well selected

“Not only real, but must be powerful and beautiful”

 

 

 

The test result indicates that this amulet set has Ultimately Extremely High Power (6.93 STARS)

(Since
I keep on improving the accuracy of my power measurement, the above
power rating figure might be adjusted sometime to give most accuracy)



Select a picture



“The Third Front is going to do well; if you take into account the BSP
(Bahujan Samaj Party) also, we will match the Congress or the BJP
easily.”

Congress, BJP are haunted by past misdeed

By Amulya Ganguli, IANS,

Rahul Gandhi’s excessive enthusiasm for winning new friends for the Congress has landed his party in some trouble.

Several constituents of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) led by
the Congress have not been amused by this search for partners since it
suggests that the party no longer has much faith in the alliance.

True, the UPA is not in the pink of health. Its prominent members
like Lalu Prasad, Ram Vilas Paswan and Mulayam Singh Yadav have set up
a mini-front in the Hindi belt. They are fighting both the Congress and
their main adversaries, the Janata Dal-United (JD-U) in Bihar and the
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in Uttar Pradesh.

Speculation is also rife about Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Sharad Pawar’s prime ministerial ambitions.

None of this can be comforting for the Congress since these
developments deepen its doubts about the UPA’s cohesion as well as its
ability to cross the half-way mark of 272 MPs.

Since the UPA will need outside support if it falls short, there is
nothing surprising about Rahul Gandhi’s expectations. But what was odd
was his casting of a very wide net. Not only did his praise of Bihar
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar signify overt courtship, he also expressed
the hope about the Left returning to the Congress camp.

What was even more curious was his laudatory reference to Telugu
Desam leader Chandrababu Naidu and oblique hints about a tie-up with
AIADMK leader Jayalalitha.

Not surprisingly, this long list upset a number of the Congress’s
present allies. They included Lalu Prasad and Paswan, who evidently
could not accept the overtures to their arch-adversary in Bihar, Nitish
Kumar.

In West Bengal Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee was unhappy
about a possible patch-up between the Congress and the Communists, who
are her main opponents in the state.

In this atmosphere of disquiet and resentment among the UPA’s
members, Sonia Gandhi’s cancellation of her proposed joint meetings
with the DMK in Tamil Nadu, ostensibly because of Chief Minister
M.Karunanidhi’s illness, was linked to the possibility of the Congress
ditching the DMK in favour of the AIADMK.

It has to be noted that except for Naidu and Jayalalitha, the
chances of the Congress coming closer to Nitish Kumar and the Left have
been mentioned earlier. Among others, Manmohan Singh, Pranab Mukherjee,
Sharad Pawar and Lalu Prasad have all said that a post-poll scene may
no longer see a continuation of the estrangement between the Congress
and the Left.

Similarly, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit was the first who
said that the Congress and Nitish Kumar may come closer together. She
has also expressed similar hopes about Orissa Chief Minister Naveen
Patnaik.

Arguably, some of these remarks can be seen as the kind of mind
games which the parties play to unnerve each other. The references to
Nitish Kumar are particularly relevant because he has undoubtedly been
carving out a separate space for himself in the National Democratic
Alliance (NDA), led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

First, his focus on development after the 15 wasted years of Lalu
Prasad’s rule as chief minister has established his reputation as a
doer in Bihar. Second, his rising personal popularity has put his
partner, the BJP, very much in the shade in the state. Third, Nitish
Kumar has successfully eased out the former JD-U chief and convener of
the NDA, George Fernandes, from the party. Fernandes was known as a
close supporter of the BJP.

All these developments mark out Nitish Kumar as a person whose
present links with the BJP are tenuous. He has also said that although
he is in the NDA at present, he cannot say anything about the future.
He has also refused to share the stage with Narendra Modi and ruled out
supporting him as a prime minister, as some in the BJP want.

It is easy to understand, therefore, why both the Congress and the
Third Front have been eager to enlist the Bihar chief minister in their
ranks. It is the same with Patnaik, who recently severed his ties with
the BJP, as did Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal.

The BJP, on its part, is banking on a good showing in the states
where it is in power on its own, such as Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh,
Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Karnataka. Where the
NDA is concerned, it should do well in Bihar though perhaps not in
Punjab.

But what has been hampering its campaign is that, unlike the past,
it does not have an emotive issue to propagate. It tried the “weak”
prime minister line against Manmohan Singh for a while, but quickly
dropped it when Manmohan Singh hit back by underlining L.K. Advani’s
vulnerabilities.

The BJP then took up the issue of recovering the black money stashed
away in foreign banks by politicians and businessmen, hinting at the
Congress’s complicity in this matter. But it obviously does not have
the kind of impact which the party’s temple and terror planks earlier
had.

However, the Congress has shot itself in the foot by the curious
decision to withdraw the name of the controversial Italian businessman,
Ottavio Quottrocchi, from Interpol’s wanted list. Although the decision
was the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI), there was no doubt in
anyone’s mind that the government had influenced this supposedly
autonomous body.

The Quottrocchi episode could not but revive memories of the Bofors
scandal with which the Rajiv Gandhi government was associated. If the
Babri Masjid demolition and the Gujarat riots haunt the BJP, it is the
Bofors scandal which continues to hang like an albatross round the
Congress’s neck.

What is more, the worst affected by it is the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty.
Its reputation for probity is hampered both by the scandal and the
suspected manipulation of the CBI to provide reprieve to suspects like
Quottrocchi, who is believed to be one of the recipients of the
kickbacks from the purchase of the Bofors guns in the mid-1980s that
was then distributed among key Indians.

Both the two main contenders - the Congress and the BJP - are
hobbled, therefore, by their past and present misdeeds that they may
have to pay a price for as they both strive to form a government
post-May 16.

(09.05.2009-Amulya Ganguli is a political analyst. He can be reached at aganguli@mail.com)

Nine multimillionaire candidates in Himachal

Shimla, May 9, Erstwhile royal and five-time former chief minister
Virbhadra Singh of the Congress leads the pack of nine rich Lok Sabha
candidates in Himachal Pradesh who have assets worth Rs.1 crore (Rs.10
million) or more.

There has been an average increase of 557 percent in the individual
assets of eight candidates since they contested the 2004 elections,
claims the NGO National Election Watch.

The NGO studied the affidavits of all the 31 candidates in the four
parliamentary constituencies - Shimla, Kangra, Mandi and Hamirpur - in
the state that go to polls May 13.

“Nine candidates have assets worth Rs.1 crore (Rs.10 million) and
above, while five have liabilities of more than Rs.20 lakh (Rs.2
million),” Anil Bairwal, national coordinator of the NGO, told IANS.

“Congress leader and five-time former chief minister Virbhadra Singh
leads the pack of the rich. His assets are over Rs.20.5 crore (Rs.205
million),” he said.

Virbhadra Singh belongs to the former royal family of Bushehr state.

According to Bairwal, the average asset value of a Congress
candidate is Rs.60 million, while that of the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) is Rs.20 million and of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) is
Rs.79,000.

“There has been an average increase of 557 percent in the individual
assets of eight candidates since they contested the last parliamentary
elections in 2004,” Bairwal said, adding that Virbhadra Singh’s assets
show an increase of 58 percent.

The analysis further revealed that five candidates, including
Virbhadra Singh and Anurag Thakur (the BJP candidate for Hamirpur),
have liabilities of more than Rs.2 million.

Regarding educational qualifications, 17 candidates are graduates or
have higher degrees. The state has just 3.3 percent candidates with a
criminal record against the nationwide average of 15.47 percent.

The fair sex may constitute 49 percent of the electorate in the
state, but the Rashtrawadi Sena is the only party which has fielded a
woman candidate - from Kangra. No woman figures in the candidates list
of the two prominent parties - the BJP and the Congress, notes the NGO.


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