India's opposition parties on Friday launched an unprecedented bid to impeach the country's top judge, accusing him of failing to protect the independence of the judiciary from executive interference, among other charges.
A petition, backed by legislators from seven parties, raised five charges against Chief Justice Dipak Misra, including an accusation he arbitrarily used his power to allot sensitive cases and questioning his conduct in the acquisition of land.
Mr Misra came under a cloud in January when the four next highest-ranking judges in the Supreme Court criticised his distribution of cases and raised concerns about judicial appointments.
The judges said then that the issues involving the Supreme Court's administration were serious enough to prompt them take the unprecedented step of going public with their criticism.
Mr Misra was appointed in August and is due to retire in October, when he reaches the mandatory retirement age of 65.
His office told reporters he would not be making any comment on the issue.
The petition to impeach him for "acts of misbehaviour" and misuse of authority was signed by 64 serving members of the upper house of parliament.
They belonged to the main opposition Congress Party, the Communist Party of India and Samajwadi Party - a powerful regional party in the key northern state of Uttar Pradesh - and four other parties.
Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, a former senior minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government who also chairs the upper house, must now decide whether the petition merits debate.
"We were hoping that the anguish of the judges as reflected in their statements to the press would be addressed," senior Congress party leader Kapil Sibal, a senior lawyer himself, told reporters.
But since the chief justice has failed to set his house in order even after three months, "as representatives of the people, we are entitled to hold the chief justice accountable", Mr Sibal said.
"Democracy can thrive only when our judiciary stands firm, independent of the executive," he added.
A Supreme Court judge can be removed for misbehaviour or incapacity only by an order of the president after winning a majority in both houses of parliament and after obtaining at least two-thirds of votes from the house members in the same session.
Mr Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies have a comfortable majority in the lower house, but not in the upper house.
On Thursday, Mr Misra headed a three-judge bench of the Supreme Court that dismissed petitions calling for an investigation into the death of a lower court judge in 2014 when he was presiding over a case against a top political aide to Mr Modi.
Amit Shah, president of the BJP, had been accused of ordering extrajudicial killings in 2005 while serving as home minister in the western state of Gujarat.
Mr Shah was discharged by the judge who took over the case after the death of Judge B Loya, having decided there was no case against the BJP president.
On Friday, the High Court in Gujarat overturned the conviction of a former BJP state minister for her involvement in the worst riots in independent India's history, citing lack of consistency in witness testimonies.
Maya Kodnani was the highest-profile figure to be convicted for the violence in Gujarat 16 years ago. A trial court had found Kodnani and 31 others guilty of murder in 2012 and sentenced her to 27 years in prison. She was released on bail in 2014 for health reasons.
During the riots, activists say up to 2,500 people, most of them Muslims, were killed in retaliation for the burning of a train carrying Hindu pilgrims in which 59 people were killed.
Mr Modi had been chief minister of Gujarat at the time, but a special investigation has absolved him of any wrongdoing.
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Jewel of the Expo 2020
252 projectors installed on Al Wasl dome
13.6km of steel used in the structure that makes it equal in length to 16 Burj Khalifas
550 tonnes of moulded steel were raised last year to cap the dome
724,000 cubic metres is the space it encloses
Stands taller than the leaning tower of Pisa
Steel trellis dome is one of the largest single structures on site
The size of 16 tennis courts and weighs as much as 500 elephants
Al Wasl means connection in Arabic
World’s largest 360-degree projection surface
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Specs
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Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
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Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh132,000 (Countryman)
MATCH INFO
Newcastle United 1 (Carroll 82')
Leicester City 2 (Maddison 55', Tielemans 72')
Man of the match James Maddison (Leicester)
One-off T20 International: UAE v Australia
When: Monday, October 22, 2pm start
Where: Abu Dhabi Cricket, Oval 1
Tickets: Admission is free
Australia squad: Aaron Finch (captain), Mitch Marsh, Alex Carey, Ashton Agar, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Chris Lynn, Nathan Lyon, Glenn Maxwell, Ben McDermott, Darcy Short, Billy Stanlake, Mitchell Starc, Andrew Tye, Adam Zampa, Peter Siddle
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COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: SimpliFi
Started: August 2021
Founder: Ali Sattar
Based: UAE
Industry: Finance, technology
Investors: 4DX, Rally Cap, Raed, Global Founders, Sukna and individuals
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
About Okadoc
Date started: Okadoc, 2018
Founder/CEO: Fodhil Benturquia
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Healthcare
Size: (employees/revenue) 40 staff; undisclosed revenues recording “double-digit” monthly growth
Funding stage: Series B fundraising round to conclude in February
Investors: Undisclosed
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
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THE LOWDOWN
Photograph
Rating: 4/5
Produced by: Poetic License Motion Pictures; RSVP Movies
Director: Ritesh Batra
Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sanya Malhotra, Farrukh Jaffar, Deepak Chauhan, Vijay Raaz
The Library: A Catalogue of Wonders
Stuart Kells, Counterpoint Press
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The cost of Covid testing around the world
Egypt
Dh514 for citizens; Dh865 for tourists
Information can be found through VFS Global.
Jordan
Dh212
Centres include the Speciality Hospital, which now offers drive-through testing.
Cambodia
Dh478
Travel tests are managed by the Ministry of Health and National Institute of Public Health.
Zanzibar
AED 295
Zanzibar Public Health Emergency Operations Centre, located within the Lumumba Secondary School compound.
Abu Dhabi
Dh85
Abu Dhabi’s Seha has test centres throughout the UAE.
UK
From Dh400
Heathrow Airport now offers drive through and clinic-based testing, starting from Dh400 and up to Dh500 for the PCR test.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
