Archive for July, 2010

INDIAN ATTACKED IN MELBOURNE

July 29th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News   Comments Off on INDIAN ATTACKED IN MELBOURNE

Melbourne:  An Indian student, who was hospitalised with multiple jaw fractures after being brutally beaten up by a group of six youths here, will not be able to eat for up to five weeks and also cannot talk properly, according to one of his friends.

Bharat Thapar, 24, who was assaulted on Monday night in South Oakleigh, is recuperating in a hospital with plates in his jaws and “bruises all over his body”.
     
Quoting Thapar’s friend Sumeet Khanna, ‘The Age’ reported today that the victim was unable to talk properly after a brutal confrontation with six youths that left him with four fractures in his lower jaw.

Khanna had earlier said that two of his friends, including Thapar, had been driving through the Oakleigh area when they saw another Indian man being abused by a group of youths. (more…)

MURALI THE GREAT

July 24th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News, Sports   Comments Off on MURALI THE GREAT

 Muttaiah Muralitharan bid adieu to Test Cricket after taking 800 wickets in Test Cricket on Thursday at the Galle Cricket Ground.

 Murlitharan was the greatest spinner in the world of cricket. The smile, the eyes like headlights, the expectancy from every ball to do something different, he  had the hallmarks of a genius.Muttaiah Muralitharan

He announced his retirement after the test match in Galle, probably he had expected to reach the coveted 800 marks in test history, which he did. If I go into his statistics they cannot be incorporated in a blog, I would have to write a book.

He had been the wrecker-in-chief for SriLanka, the spear head of the attack in all forms of the game and called Mr. Dependable. Cricketing enthusiasts feel that  had he continued playing for some more time, he would have reached the 1000 wicket landmark. (more…)

‘TENDULKAR OPUS’

July 23rd, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News, Sports   Comments Off on ‘TENDULKAR OPUS’

‘Tendulkar opus’, the autobiography of Sachin Tendulkar, is in the pipe-line and due for publication next year. This will not only be one of the most expensive autobiographies in history but also, will include the blood and DNA sample of the master blaster. This is amazing, unheard of and gives his fans mixed feelings.

It will contain a page signed in his blood! This has led to criticism from some quarters.Tendulkar Opus

Is this an advertisement gimmick? No. Sachin does not need anything or anyone to advertise for him. Then why did he agree to such an obnoxious request of the publisher?

It is well known that the “Tendulkar Opus” has been in progress; but a few copies would be signed in his blood and would be highly priced was a closely guarded secret. (more…)

INDIAN BEATEN UP IN Oz

July 21st, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News   Comments Off on INDIAN BEATEN UP IN Oz

MELBOURNE.  A young Indian student, Bharat Thapar, 24, has suffered “serious” facial injuries after being brutally attacked by a group of  people in Melbourne – the latest in a series of attacks on Indians in Australia.

Thapar was attacked by a group of six men Monday night after he tried to save another Indian from being thrashed in a Melbourne suburb, his friend Sumeet said.

The incident took place near Carinish Road, in Oakleigh South, said Sumeet.

On Monday night, Thapar was trying to save another Indian, a taxi driver named Ratan,  from being beaten up by six people on the streets of Melbourne. When he tried to intervene, the attackers turned on him.  The policemen who arrived at the scene summoned an ambulance, but let the six assaulters leave the location. (more…)

VANS OF INDIAN RESTAURANT BURNT

July 20th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News   Comments Off on VANS OF INDIAN RESTAURANT BURNT

Sydney:  Two food vans belonging to an Indian restaurant were on Monday destroyed in a blaze, just few days after a nearby community restaurant was set on fire on the Cleveland street in Sydney. Police say that this is not a racial attack and could possibly be due to rivalry between two restaurants.

The food vans were destroyed in the fire which police and fire fighters believe to have been deliberately started. They found the vans belonging to Maya Da Dhaba on Cleveland Street burning at 2.30 am local time.

The fire fighters were able to extinguish the fire quickly but both vans were gutted.

The Police suspect that a “curry war” among several Indian restaurants is heating up in Sydney with two food vans firebombed early this morning.

Police said they are investigating whether the arson attack is an act of retaliation, following reports of Copper Tiffin Restaurant being torched less than a fortnight ago on Cleveland Street, the Daily Telegraph reports.

The Copper Tiffin and the Maya Da Dhaba restaurants are side by side, and local residents say there is a lot of competition between the two outlets..

“We are looking at both incidents and the possibility they are linked,” a police spokesman said.

Police are still searching for two men seen running from near the building, moments before flames began leaping from the Copper Tiffin Restaurant.

Police said last night it appeared an accelerant may have been used to ignite the blaze in the food vans.

Ajay Raj, the owner of Maya Da Dhaba told media he’s shocked at the incident, “We have been here in Surry Hills for the past 11 years and nothing like this has happened. I would like to believe that this does not have any racial undertones. The police has acquired CCTV footage. There was a CCTV camera right above one of the vans that was burnt.  I have myself seen a few seconds of that footage where you can see a guy vaguely (his face cannot be seen properly) throwing something on the van and setting it alight. The detectives are investigating and I am hopeful they will be able to identify the culprits soon”.

The police was now looking at links between this incident and a blaze at another Indian restaurant The Copper Tiffin on July 5. The Copper Tiffin is close to the Maya Da Dhaba. On that occasion two people were seen running from the restaurant as fire engulfed the building.

If the Police are suspecting inter-restaurant competition as a cause of rivalry between the two incidents, then this will lead them nowhere. The Copper Tiffin Restaurant and the Maya da dhaba were running close to each other on Cleveland Street for the last more than ten years. Competition is the basic aspect in any business and is an essential ingredient for success.

Is it possible that there could be a racial angle between the two incidents, since there have been a series of attacks on the Indians residing there?  Only time will tell.

Ravi Matah.

SAINA NEHWAL – WORLD NO. 2

July 18th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in Sports   Comments Off on SAINA NEHWAL – WORLD NO. 2

Saina Nehwal has been ranked World No 2 badminton player by the World Badminton Federation as a result of a hat-trick of victories on the world circuit. She is now just one step away from the pinnacle of glory for which she is prepared and hopeful to achieve that target. 

Saina made history on June 21, 2009, becoming the first Indian to win a Super Series tournament, by clinching the Indonesia Open with a victory over higher-ranked Chinese Wang Lin in Jakarta.Saina Nehwal

During 2010, Saina has won all the three major events, the Indian Open Grand Prix, the Singapore Open Series and the Indonesia Open Series.

World number three Saina, seeded top in the tournament as defending champion, defeated Sayaka Sato of Japan to clinch the Indonesian Open, which is her third title in as many weeks. (more…)

CARS TORCHED IN AUSTRALIA

July 15th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News   Comments Off on CARS TORCHED IN AUSTRALIA

Adelaide.   All is not well with the Indian community living in Australia. The news of burning down of a Copper Tiffin Restaurant owned by an Indian named Yash Desai,  in Sydney on Cleveland Street is still fresh in everyone’s mind. And now three cars belonging to Indian students were torched by a gang of teens in fire bomb attacks, which have been described by the Indian community as ‘racial’.

Acccording to ‘Adelaide Now’, the students lived in Greenacres suburb and said the early morning fire-bombs attacks have left them shattered and are scared of their lives now.

Yasif Multani, a 28 year old Indian student, claimed that a group of about fifteen neighborhood teenagers were responsible for the attacks on the Indian community. (more…)

WC- 2010-A Case Study in Management

July 14th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in Sports   Comments Off on WC- 2010-A Case Study in Management

Football is opium for the masses and the greatest spectacle of World Cup sport ended Sunday with Spain emerging victorious at Johannesburg Stadium. Netherlands were third time unlucky and Spain was lucky in their 13th attempt in the final. The figure of 13 is unlucky for some, but lucky for Spain. 

South Africa is a proud country now because the country as well as it’s people have shown the world what they are all about. This

World Cup Trophy

World Cup Trophy

 land has managed to prove their critics wrong, by showing them that this magnificent Rain-Bow nation is much more then the usual and have far out-shone world’s expectations on the management of an event of this magnitude. 

There have been no terror threats. Adequate police protection was in place. The Stadiums are superb, the crowd appreciative, the crazy vuvuzelas noisy, enthusiastic people, perfect arrangements, all added to the beauty of the tournament. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that it was South Africa who won the World Cup 2010.  (more…)

PUNDIT ‘OCTOPUS PAUL’

July 10th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News, Sports   Comments Off on PUNDIT ‘OCTOPUS PAUL’

Pundit Octopus Paul, who has predicted the outcome of six World Cup matches with absolute accuracy, has a competitor now. Paul has predicted Spain to win the World Cup 2010 and Mani, the parrot, has picked up Holland as the winner. The great battle will be held in Johannesburg on Sunday. 

It was a telecast live on TV News Channels that two glass tanks bearing the Spanish flag and the Dutch flag were lowered in the tank and Octopus Paul took his tummy-full meal from the Spanish glass box, thereby indicating the winner of the Sunday encounter. 

Octopus Paul

This octopus, which has already attained a celebrity status, completely ignored the Dutch tank at the German Aquarium in Oberhausen and indicated his Sunday winner as  Spain, by quickly polishing off the food from their tank. 

Paul has been predicting results involving Germany throughout the tournament and had predicted Germany’s loss to Spain in the semi finals as well, much to the dismay of the German fans. Some of his fans had said that they would have him for dinner as he had predicted Spain instead of Germany as the winner on Sunday in the World’s most prestigious encounter.  (more…)

RESTAURANT BURNT IN AUSTRALIA

July 6th, 2010 by Ravi Matah | Posted in News   Comments Off on RESTAURANT BURNT IN AUSTRALIA

INDIAN TARGETTED IN AUSTRALIA

Melbourne: An explosion triggered by a suspected arson attack ripped apart an Indian restaurant in Sydney, prompting police to investigate the possible links of the incident to a bomb threat.

The restaurant was engulfed by fire, which police suspect was ‘deliberately lit’. Police are investigating if the explosion is related to a bomb threat made to the Copper Tiffin Restaurant on Cleveland Street some time back, the Sydney Morning Herald reported.

An unnamed nearby restaurant owner said he had heard a “loud explosion, like bomb” just after 11:30 pm. The explosion threw out debris and caused glass and signs to cover the road.

The Indian restaurant in Sydney was last night engulfed by fire, which police suspect was ‘deliberately lit’ and four people escaped unhurt in the incident.

“Then I see people climbing out of a window, about four, very lucky,” he said. Two people were seen running away from the site just after 11.30 pm as fire engulfed the building, witnesses told police. Shortly thereafter, an explosion was heard and a witness said the front of the shop was missing.

Police and firies reportedly said the blaze was ‘deliberately lit’ and that they were hunting for two men who were seen running away from the scene. The explosion damaged property but four people at a residential property above the restaurant escaped, with only one needing hospital treatment for smoke inhalation.

A spokesman for NSW Fire Brigades said around 20 firies managed to bring the blaze under control just after midnight and it was prevented from spreading to neighbouring properties. The exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, the report said.

The witness said police had been at the same site “about two weeks ago” and cleared out several restaurants along the Cleveland St strip, possibly related to a bomb threat.

Yash Desai, owner of the ‘Copper Tiffin’ Restaurant told the media that, “I have not been allowed to enter the premises as the Police are investigating the cause of the blast. I don’t know what to say, I am at a loss of words, a rift has been created”. He further added that “My request is not to term this as a racial attack as we are not aware”.

Residents of Cleveland Street staying opposite the restaurant said that they heard of a loud explosion, hearing which they came out and saw the restaurant burning.

All is not safe for Indians residing in Australia. The Australian Police claim that assault cases against Indians have come down, but recently an Indian student was attacked by four teenage boys who tried to snatch away his money as he was walking towards his home after finishing his day at the part-time job.

Hervir Singh, a hospitality student was attacked at night in Ringwood Area. He told ABC “Suddenly four or five boys attacked me. They tried to snatch money from me, I ran away from there and told the Police.

The incident came as the Victorian Police commander Trevor Carter said that, though the crime data is yet to be finalised, the incidents against Indian students has gone down.

A fortnight ago, 61 year old Indian was found dead with stab injuries in Australia, the  police said.

The  man who had been living in Doncaster for some time was  found  dead next to a Park land in the Koonung Creek reserve, near Estelle Street, Bulleen, about 10.50 am Sunday, head of homicide, Bernie Edwards, was quoted as saying. The Police are investigating.

And to add fuel to the fire, the justice is also eluding the victims. None of the Australians who thrashed an Indian student leaving him partially blind has got custodial sentences, with the last of the teenagers getting a suspended jail term on Wednesday last.

The teenagers who viciously attacked the Indian in March 2008 outside a Melbourne suburban train station have not even been locked up, the Herald Sun reported.

One of the teenagers, Majang Ngor, was given a suspended jail term and community work over the attack.

The rest of the gang members, aged less than 18 at the time of the incident, were recently sentenced in the Children’s Court and given nine-month supervision.

Ravi Matah.