Taking a dig at the much-hyped brouhaha over his buffaloes, Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan on Wednesday said that his cattle had become more famous than Queen Victoria and that everyone including him must have a fortune like his buffaloes.

Apparently peeved over the extent of hoopla over his stolen buffaloes in media, Azam Khan said that whenever he switched on the TV, he got to see his buffaloes and people carrying their dung over their heads.

He continued his sarcasm saying that he would pray to Allah that everyone should have a fortune like his buffaloes.

Azam Khan’s seven buffaloes were stolen from his farmhouse on Friday night.

The furore over the matter came to light when a high-level search team was roped in to hunt the missing cattle.

It was a first of its kind search operation, with UP cops and sniffer dogs on their toes to search the missing buffaloes.

A massive search operation was launched by senior police officials, who also scoured through slaughter houses and neighbouring areas.

The missing cattle were finally traced after a day of strenuous hunt.

Three police officials also had to bear the brunt of the buffalo theft as they were later transferred over dereliction of duty.

In a veiled attack on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for his defence of khap panchayats, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday described them as retrograde organisations which cannot be part of India’s culture.

“What is a khap panchayat? A khap panchayat is a retrograde organisation. It is not part of India’s culture and I am appalled to see somebody say it’s part of India’s culture. How can it be part of India’s culture?” he said while addressing students of Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) here.

His comments come against the backdrop of Kejriwal, who had in a recent interview, said he does not see the need for banning khap panchayats or unelected all-male village councils because they serve a “cultural purpose.”

Attacking Kejriwal’s Aam Admi Party (AAP) for defending khap panchayats, Chidambaram said, “(it’s) rubbish. Must have the courage to stand up and say these retrograde practices are not part of India’s culture…These are simply (organisations of) self serving individuals who propagate this poisonous culture”.

“How can you tell a boy or a girl what you should wear and what you should not wear, who you should marry, who you should not marry.

“Each one knows what the rules of normal behaviour are and each one will adopt those rules of normal behaviour. I can’t go and argue a case in a court wearing a swim suit. I know if I have to go to a court, I have to dress like a lawyer. But I can’t go to a swimming pool wearing my lawyer’s robe…

“I think people know what they are expected to do…Who is this khap panchayat to tell do this or do that,” the Finance Minister said.

He further said likewise, there are many forces in the country which spread ‘poison’ sow seeds of distrust and differences and call this part of India’s culture.

An 18-year-old girl bit off the tongue of a man, who forcibly tried to kiss her, police said.

In her complaint to police, the girl alleged that the man, identified as Kamlesh (30), had been stalking her for the last ten days and he forcibly tried to kiss her in public near Income Tax colony in Kotra Sultanabad area of the city, they said. The girl, in a fit of rage, then bit off his tongue.

Later, the accused, who hails from Morena district in Madhya Pradesh, and the girl reached the Kamla Nagar police station where the man claimed that he knew the girl for the last four years and that she owed him money.

Following the incident, Kamlesh was arrested and booked under section 354 (assault or use of force to outrage a woman’s modesty) of the IPC, police said.

More than a year after one of India’s top airlines, Kingfisher, stopped flying, its flamboyant owner Vijay Mallya is battling against losing control of his $2.2-billion or Rs. 13,640 crore ($1=Rs. 62) corporate empire.

Mr. Mallya, once the self-proclaimed “King of Good Times”, made his fortune in the liquor business and controls a conglomerate spanning beer, airlines, fertilisers and engineering.

But in several firms in his United Breweries Group, 58-year-old Mr. Mallya’s ownership has substantially shrunk, while in others, large portions of his holdings are pledged with banks — and in some cases are starting to be sold off.

“The legacy of the empire, which he inherited from his dad, is at risk,” said a Mumbai-based analyst from a group that has lent to Mr. Mallya’s companies, asking not to be named.

Mr. Mallya, owner of a Formula One team and host of lavish yacht parties with Bollywood stars and politicians as guests, was India’s 29th richest man in 2007, worth an estimated $1.5 billion or Rs. 9,300 crore, according to Forbes.

But pressure on Mr. Mallya has mounted over the past two years since Kingfisher Airlines’ fortunes went into a downward spiral, hit by high fuel prices, fierce competition and heavy interest costs.

The company, which has never made a profit since it began flying in 2005, owes vast sums to banks, airports, fuel suppliers and staff, while owners of Kingfisher’s grounded planes have taken them back.

Bitter legal battle

Last year, banks which say they lent more than $1.5 billion or Rs. 9,300 crore to Kingfisher started demanding immediate repayment after Mr. Mallya failed to come up with a convincing airline revival plan.

Mr. Mallya is now in a bitter legal battle with lenders to prevent them from selling properties and assets given as security against loans, which the banks say include his beloved personal villa in Goa.

As part of a money-raising strategy, Mr. Mallya in 2012 abandoned control of his United Spirits to British drinks group Diageo — although a court has since annulled the decision in response to a petition from Kingfisher creditors chasing their dues.

Meanwhile, Dutch brewer Heineken last year upped its holding in United Breweries, which makes Kingfisher beer, to near 39 per cent, overtaking Mr. Mallya’s stake.

Woman, who has accused head priest of Badrinath temple Keshavan Namboothiri of molesting her at a Delhi hotel, is a native of Uttarakhand and owns a hotel in Badrinath.

It is believed that she got married only last year. After getting married, she went to Kedarnath-Badrinath shrine where she doled gifts to the staff and priests.

The paper also reported that she used to meet Keshavan Namboothiri at the temple very often for seeking his blessings.

Keshavan Namboothiri was arrested on charges of molestation and wrongful confinement of a pregnant woman on Tuesday. The woman alleged that the priest called her up on Monday and told her he was unwell and wanted to meet her. On reaching the hotel room, she found cigarette stubs and could smell alcohol.
The 36-year-old priest pulled her towards him and touched her inappropriately. She claimed she pushed him and ran out of the room but he ran behind to stop her. Her statement was recorded and an FIR registered under sections 342 (wrongful confinement) and 354 (assault to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of IPC. Namboodiri’s cousin who was present with him at the hotel has also been arrested for abetting the offence.

“As soon as I learnt about the incident, I was shocked. I can’t speak. I have known him personally. It could be a conspiracy against him,” another priest, Bhuvan Chandra Unniyal told Dehradun amarujala.
The Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee has suspended Namboothiri following the reports of his arrest. “He can be reinstated in case he can prove himself innocent before the police,” Chairman of the committee, Ganesh Godiyal, said in Dehradun.

Meanwhile, locals have expressed their shock over the incident and alleged conspiracy. They said an independent probe should be initiated against Keshavan Namboothiri so that the truth emerges.