New Delhi, May 29: The CBI has registered a case against AirAsia group CEO Tony Fernandes, a Malaysian billionaire, for allegedly trying to circumvent rules to get international flying license for AirAsia India, the probe agency said on Tuesday.

Searches were being held in multiple locations in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru in connection with the case, according to CBI spokesperson R.K. Gaur. 

"A case has been registered against Fernandes and some other unidentified persons linked to the firm (AirAsia India)," Gaur said.

Gaur said Fernandes had lobbied and was trying to violate rule 5/20 that requires an airline to have a minimum of five years of flying and 20 aircraft to apply for international licenses. 

AirAsia India - a subsidiary of Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia Berhad - started domestic operations in June 2014.

 

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Wellington: New Zealand’s youngest Member of Parliament Hana-Rawhiti Kareariki Maipi-Clarke has once again grabbed the headlines after a video of her staging the traditional Maori dance and ripping up a copy of a contentious bill during a House session went viral on social media.

A viral footage of the vote on the Treaty Principles Bill shows the 22-year-old Te Pati Maori MP interrupting the session by tearing apart a copy of the controversial bill before performing a haka. She is then joined by the people in the public gallery, prompting Speaker Gerry Brownlee to briefly suspend the House.

The ACT New Zealand party, a junior partner in the centre-right coalition government unveiled the Treaty Principles Bill last week. It proposes changes to some principles of the Treaty of Waitangi. The bill has sparked strong opposition from many Maori groups.

The Treaty of Waitangi, signed in 1840 between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori chiefs, established the framework for governance between the two parties. It remains a foundational document in New Zealand, with its clauses continuing to influence legislation and policy to this day.

The bill is being seen as undermining the rights of the country’s indigenous people by many Maori and their supporters. Notably, Maoris make up around 20% of New Zealand’s 5.3 million population.

As the proposed bill passed its first reading, hundreds of demonstrators embarked on a nine-day march, or hikoi, from New Zealand's north to the national capital of Wellington to voice their opposition.