King Charles III's scandal-hit brother Andrew to lose Prince title, move out of Royal Lodge
London (PTI): Andrew, the younger brother of Britain’s King Charles III, is to lose his title of Prince and move out of the Royal Lodge on the Windsor Castle estate, Buckingham Palace has said in a statement.
The announcement on Thursday comes days after Andrew voluntarily relinquished the title of Duke of York and all other royal honours after a “discussion” with the monarch, amid “continued accusations” around his association with American sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
However, the controversy refused to die down as British MPs took the unusual step of debating the matter of Andrew’s token rent for royal lodgings.
“His Majesty has today initiated a formal process to remove the Style, Titles and Honours of Prince Andrew,” reads the Buckingham Palace statement.
“Prince Andrew will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. His lease on Royal Lodge has, to date, provided him with legal protection to continue in residence. Formal notice has now been served to surrender the lease and he will move to alternative private accommodation,” it states.
The palace notes that the “censures” are deemed necessary, notwithstanding the fact that Andrew continues to deny the allegations against him.
“Their Majesties wish to make clear that their thoughts and utmost sympathies have been, and will remain with, the victims and survivors of any and all forms of abuse,” the statement concludes.
The scandal-hit 65-year-old had already stopped using the “His Royal Highness (HRH)” title, having stepped back as a working royal earlier.
Earlier this month, he announced that all his other titles will also become inactive, even as he continued to "vigorously" deny all accusations against him.
As a son of the late Queen Elizabeth II, he was expected to retain the title of “Prince” in accordance with Letters Patent issued in 1917 by King George V, which were updated by his mother in 2012.
“In discussion with the King, and my immediate and wider family, we have concluded the continued accusations about me distract from the work of His Majesty [Charles] and the royal family,” Prince Andrew said in a statement issued by Buckingham Palace on October 18.
“I have decided, as I always have, to put my duty to my family and country first. I stand by my decision five years ago to stand back from public life.
“With His Majesty’s agreement, we feel I must now go a step further. I will therefore no longer use my title or the honours which have been conferred upon me. As I have said previously, I vigorously deny the accusations against me,” he said at the time.
Andrew’s ex-wife and close friend, Sarah Ferguson, will also no longer use her title of the Duchess of York but the titles of their daughters, Princess Beatrice and Eugiene, remain unaffected.
The decision comes amid renewed pressure on Andrew over reports of his relationship with the convicted paedophile financier Epstein and also links with an alleged Chinese spy.
A memoir titled ‘Nobody’s Girl’ by Virginia Giuffre, who had sued the senior royal back in August 2021 over an alleged sexual assault and died in April, threw up further allegations when it was released posthumously recently.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Oracle lays off around 12,000 employees in India, another round likely within a month
New Delhi (PTI): US-based IT firm Oracle is believed to have laid off approximately 12,000 staff in India, with another round of layoffs expected within a month, impacted employees said on Tuesday.
Globally, the company has fired around 30,000 employees.
"In India, around 12,000 employees have been laid off. The company is planning another mass layoff within a month," said two people impacted by the retrenchment, including one from the company's human resource department.
The company has approximately 30,000 employees in India, including those affected by the layoffs.
Oracle declined to comment on the development.
Oracle, in an email sent to staff, said the employees were informed about certain organisational changes and "because of these changes, a decision has been taken to streamline the operations, and as a result, unfortunately, the position you currently hold will become redundant".
The company has offered 15 days' salary to each employee who has completed a year of service in India, in addition to one month of unpaid wages till termination date, leave encashment, gratuity based on eligibility and pay for a one-month notice period.
Oracle has also offered a two-month salary as a top-up.
However, the severance package is available for those who voluntarily and amicably resign from the company.
An ex-employee of Oracle, Merugu Sridhar, said that he was laid off in September for protesting against the 16-hour work shift that the company has in India.
"I contacted my friends and those who are in human resources. They shared that most of the Indians working in the US with the company have been impacted because the local laws there are very strict when it comes to the retrenchment of their citizens," Sridhar said.
