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| Vice-President Candidate loves UAE experience | | |
BL KAK
NEW DELHI, JULY 23: Past is a thing of the past. No, not for Mohammed Hamid Ansari, who has been fielded by the ruling UPA-Left combine as candidate for Vice-Presidential poll, slated for next month. Ansari has just let it be known that he remembers his career as an ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as "an excellent responsibility and a pleasant experience".
"It was almost three decades ago and the Indian community was not so big as today", Ansari has stated in a media interview. He was unanimously declared the candidate of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and Left parties on Friday for the August 10 Vice-Presidential election. The name of Ansari, Chairman of the National Minorities Commission, was announced by UPA chairperson, Sonia Gandhi.
But the well known scholar and diplomat was not excited by the new development. "I am just a candidate only; I can accept your congratulations when I win the elections", he said in reply to a question in the course of the interview. India's mainstream newspapers and news agencies have quoted poll managers of the ruling front saying he will have a clear majority with the support of 401 MPs in an electoral college comprising 788 members of both upper and lower Houses of Parliament. The number will go up by 24 if the Bahujan Samaj Party joins in.
Ansari was Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, High Commissioner to Australia and Ambassador to the UAE, Afghanistan, Iran and Saudi Arabia. He was also the Vice-Chancellor of the Aligarh Muslim University from May 2000 to March 2002. Ansari said that trade between the two countries was not so large when he was ambassador to the UAE. "Although the Indian community was not so big, it was vibrant. The community was running a school, clubs and a special school for special needs children. Social life was exciting", said Ansari who was UAE ambassador from 1976-1980.
Mohan Jashanmal, chairman of Indian Business and Professionals group and regional manager of Jashanmal National Company in Abu Dhabi, has been quoted as saying: "Ansari was instrumental to get land for the Indian School from His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan". Added Jashanmal: "Ansari's wife Salma was very active with the activities of Indian Ladies Association and school for special needs children. Both of them managed to get support and blessings from Shaikha Fatima for the smooth functioning of the association and school".
Ansari’s scholarship and fluency in Arabic was a great advantage in strengthening the relationship between India and United Arab Emirates.
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