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Arrest of Dubai firm director in AgustaWestland scam shocks city’s Indian business community

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AgustaWestland

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The arrest of the director of a Dubai-based auditing firm in a multimillion money laundering case in India has shocked the fraternity of Indian professionals in the emirate, especially those in the auditing and accounting sector.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) of India on Monday arrested Shivani Saxena, director of two Dubai-based firms, in connection with a money laundering case relating to the ₹36 billion (Dh2.05 billion) AgustaWestland VVIP chopper scam, Indian media reports said.

According to media reports, Saxena, the director of UHY Saxena and Matrix Holdings, was arrested from Chennai under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and produced in a special court which remanded her in custody for four days.

“Shivani Saxena, wife of Rajeev Shamsher Bahadur Saxena, resident of Palm Jumeirah, Dubai, has been arrested in the AgustaWestland helicopter scam. She is an active director of M/s UHY Saxena, Dubai & M/s Matrix Holdings, through which Proceeds of Crime have been routed and further layered and integrated in buying the immovable properties/shares etc,” the ED said in a press statement carried by the Indian media.

In January 2014, India scrapped the contract with AgustaWestland for supply of AW-101 choppers following allegations of kickbacks and involvement of middlemen. The ED claimed that the Dubai companies were allegedly involved in movement of bribe money paid to government officials through middleman Christian Michel.

The ED had registered a case under the PMLA in 2014 and had named 21 persons including former Indian Air Force chief SP Tyagi, his relatives and European middlemen among others. Last year, reports said the ED had sought details from the UAE about companies it found had dealings with Christian Michel, the main middleman.

While Gulf News could not get through anyone at Matrix Holdings, an employee of UHY Saxena, a well-known auditing firm here, refused to comment, saying she was not authorised to speak about it.

Advocate Bindu Chettur, president, Indian Business and Professional Council (IBPC) Dubai, said the business and professional community has been shocked to hear the news.

“Considering the seriousness of the offence, since it is a high-profile case in India that even threatens the economy of our nation, people, who are educated and professionals, getting involved in such crimes is highly unfortunate and it is a shame for the business and professional community here.

“It is a very early stage to comment about the case since it is under investigation. But I am concerned that even the implication like this can mar the economic growth of our country,” she said.

A prominent auditing professional said the news has shocked the community. “Indeed, it is a black mark on the audit profession. Who will watch the watchdog that is the auditor?”

“I feel, as an Indian, the respect, and as a chartered accountant, the trust is at stake. Anyway, it will be interesting to know the final outcome of this case,” said one chartered accountant. (Gulf News)[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Happy Birthday Mark Zuckerberg: Social media users wish Facebook co-founder on his 40th birthday

Born on May 14, 1984, Zuckerberg has grown from a Harvard dropout into a billionaire philanthropist, owning many tech ventures over the years. He started Facebook in 2004 and took it public in 2012.

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Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of Facebook (Meta), is celebrating his 40th birthday on May 14. Zuckerberg, one of the most influential figures in the tech industry, has had a major impact on how people connect and communicate with each other all over the world.

At 40, Zuckierberg continues to lead Facebook and its parent company, Meta, towards new technological frontiers. Born on May 14, 1984, Zuckerberg has grown from a Harvard dropout into a billionaire philanthropist, owning many tech ventures over the years. He started Facebook in 2004 and took it public in 2012.

In 2021 the social media platform changed its name to Meta to shift the company’s focus to the metaverse. Under his leadership, Facebook has grown into a global platform with over 2.8 billion active users. Apart from this, he has also expanded his influence through the Chan Zuckerberg initiative, which is run by Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan and focuses on philanthropy in health, education, and scientific research with an investment of 99% of the couple’s wealth over their lifetime.

There has been a rise in the net worth of Mark Zuckerberg over the last few years. According to Forbes, his net worth stands at $177 billion, which makes him the 4th richest man in the world. Since Facebook (now Meta) acquired WhatsApp in 2014 for $19 billion, Mark Zuckerberg’s net worth has grown significantly.

In 2014 his net worth was approximately $26.1billion, which now stands at around $177 billion, which reflects a substantial increase in the net worth due to Meta’s expanding business and strategic acquisitions over the year.

Before Zuckerberg turned 40, he gifted himself a brand-new superyacht, Launchpad in March 2024. According to reports, Zuckerberg purchased $59 million worth of waterfront property on Lake Tahoe in California in 2019. He spends his money on luxury vehicles and owns a Acura TSX, a Honda Fit, and a black Volkswagon Golf GTI.

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Google restores delisted Indian apps after government intervention

Google on Saturday restored all Indian apps it had removed.

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Google has started to restore all the delisted Indian mobile apps on Play Store agian, which they had removed due to a disagreement over service fees. After a discussion between company representatives and IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, the decision was made, according to sources.

The step was taken in response to Vaishnaw’s strong statement in which he said that it is not allowed for apps to be removed from the Google Play Store. The minister had said, India is very clear, our policy is very clear…our startups will get the protection that they need.

Vaishnaw  continued saying that he has already given Google a call. They will be speaking with the app developers who were delisted this week. This is not acceptable. The minister said this kind of delisting cannot be permitted.

Ten Indian companies’ apps were banned by Google on Friday, causing outrage in one of its fastest-growing markets. With 94% of phones running on its Android platform, Google holds a large portion of the Indian market. Popular names like Naukri and Bharatmatrimony were on the list.

The main point of contention is Google’s in-app purchase fees, which range from 11% to 26%. Indian startups have long opposed the US tech giant’s actions, believing them to be unfair.

The founder of Bharat Matrimony, Christian Matrimony, Muslim Matrimony, and Jodii, Matrimony.com, expressed shock at the matchmaking apps’ removal from the Google Play Store.

Shaadi. Com CEO Anupam Mittal described it as a dark day for India’s internet, highlighting the possible broad effects on matchmaking services. He also called Google an evil.

While, Kuku FM Co-founder Vinod Kumar Meena in a statement had said that Google was behaving like a monopoly.

Meanwhile, Google temporarily withdrew the famous Indian payments app Paytm from the Play Store in 2020, claiming a few policy infractions. Due to this decision, the founder of the company as well as the larger startup community came together to build their own app stores and file lawsuits against Google.

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Anant Ambani says he is 100% lucky to get Radhika Merchant in his life

Anant Ambani said he was grateful to get Radhika as his life partner. He said he is 100% lucky to get Radhika Merchant in his life. He said every day he is falling more and more in love with her. He added although he had known Radhika for the last 7 years, it felt he had met her only yesterday. He thanked Radhika for everything.

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Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s grand three-day wedding celebrations began with a glamorous cocktail night on Friday in Jamnagar. During the celebrations, Anant Ambani also gave a speech wherein he thanked his late grandfather Dhirubhai Ambani and grandmother Kokilaben Ambani for inspiring him. Anant Ambani said he was grateful to get Radhika as his life partner. He said he is 100% lucky to get Radhika Merchant in his life. He said every day he is falling more and more in love with her.

He expressed his gratitude to his mother for pulling together the lavish three-day wedding celebrations in Jamnagar. Anant thanked his mother for all she had done. He said all the arrangements had been done by his mother and nobody else. He added his mother had gone all out and she had worked 18-19 hours a day and he was extremely grateful to her.

He also thanked all the guests who were present there at the pre-wedding celebrations. He said everyone had made it to Jamnagar to make him and Radhika feel special. He said both of them were honored and humbled to have all of them present there. Anant said he was sorry if they had caused an inconvenience to anyone. He asked for forgiveness. He hoped everyone is going to enjoy the coming three days. He also thanked his mother, father, sister, brother, his sister-law and his brother in-law for making this event memorable.

Anant said everyone has been sleeping for less than 3 hours a day for the last 2-3 months and he was very happy to share this joy with everyone. The youngest Ambani talked about his personal struggles and how his parents had always supported him. He further added his life had not been entirely a bed of roses. He said he had also experienced the pain of thorns. He said he had faced many health crises.

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