This is the next round. It’s going to be exciting. My general impression is that to discredit someone with a strong reputation you attack his colleagues. And those colleagues in this kind of struggle are likely to be politicians. Unfortunately, if you have been in politics any length of time, you have usually left some questionable decisions not wholly dealt with. What’s more, India seems to have some very creative ways for a politician to make money. In the United States, corruption is more institutionalized, so to see who owns a politician we just go online and look at the campaign contributions or we look to see what Political Action Committees their wives or relatives use to suck up money from the gullible.
My admiration for the Indian press is growing rapidly. I found the reporting informative and challenging. I got the impression that being a press favorite was not as common there as it is here.
The struggle goes on, from my distant perch in the center of the North American continent, I watch.
Who is Anna Hazare and what is his importance to the United States?
About 2 years ago, the United States cut a deal with the Indian government to share nuclear technology. The legislature ratified the treaty. It was a very controversial deal. The Indian government had been a rogue power in regard to nuclear energy having used what was supposed to be peaceful nuclear technology to build a series of atom bombs.
The deal allowed India to access fuel and nuclear technology from the rest of the world making India the only nuclear power a non-signatory to the non-proliferation treaty.
Wikileaks revealed that the American State Department had directly observed enormous sums of cash to be used to bribe enough of the representatives to get the deal through.
Anger in India over this corruption is intense.
Hazare has been fasting to force the government to put in place anti-corruption legislation.
The struggles continues but Hazare appears to have won this round.
James Pilant
4 days on fast Anna Hazare after initially refusing to relent announced that he would end his fast on saturday at 10am. This follows the Manmohan Singh lead UPA Government coming around to his demand of a joint committee of Government and Non-Governmental activists and a co-chair to go with in drafting the next version of the Lokpal Bill. Much has already been said on the perils of an Ombudsman independent of the Constitutional separation of powe … Read More
Some of these students have had to wear ankle bracelets that electronically broadcast their location. I have a report that there were 18 students required to wear these and two of these have now been detained. Their appeal is unlikely to be heard until September. If you count the remainder of February, that is seven months wearing an ankle bracelet. What’s more it is long time to be in legal limbo, unable to attend another university or work.
The Indian students duped by a fake university in the US face an uncertain future as their appeal is not likely to be heard in a court there before September.
The 1,555 students, mostly from Andhra Pradesh, feel they are being subjected to inhuman treatment by the US authorities for no fault of theirs. They want the Indian government to immediately come to their rescue and help them transfer to other US universities.
The families of the students are worried as the US authorities have tied radio monitors to their ankles and may deport them for violation of visa rules.
The dreams of the students to pursue higher education in the US came crashing last week after the Tri-Valley University in California was raided for helping foreigners to illegally obtain student visas.
This is a program from an Indian law firm in the United States explaining the situation.
The government of India has expressed concern. This is from the DAILYBHASKAR.in.
Voicing concern over the welfare of Indian students affected by the closure of a California-based university, India on Friday asserted that students had valid visas and conveyed to the US that they should be given chance to clarify their position.
The students hold valid visas, a senior official said here on Friday, adding that India is hopeful they will be given adequate opportunity to clarify their position.
“Our immediate concern is the welfare of students. We are in touch with US federal agencies,” a senior official said. India’s consul general in San Fransisco also is in touch with students, the official said.
I am concerned too. I have a link to an online petition. I want you to understand clearly. This is not a petition that says there should be no investigation or that further inquiries should not be made. The petition asks for fairness. How many of you can disagree with that?
America is a very strange place for foreign students, not quite like the television view. Justice should not be denied but some kindness and a full consideration of their rights is not too much to ask for.
If you want to sign an online petition to ask the State Department to treat these students fairly, you can go here.
To my readers outside the United States, you do not need to be an American citizen to sign this petition!
So, come in and help.
James Pilant
P.S. I’m getting some indications that the investigation is focusing on a relatively small number of students. There is no direct announcement of this, but I am an attorney. The “feel” of the case is wrong. If they considered all of the students guilty, they could have moved all of them to a detention camp, since that number of students would have suggested an international conspiracy. In the United States, you file against everybody possible and then you narrow it down. I “think” (remember this is just my feel for what is going on) that the authorities are trying to sort through the cases and the fact that there are so many agencies involved is slowing the process.
Pilant's Business Ethics Blog 
You must be logged in to post a comment.