KUWAIT: KERALA YOUTH SAVED FROM GALLOWS IN KUWAIT

after months of suspense, Simil, a youth from Kerala, India, who was sentenced to death in Kuwait for inadvertently killing a fellow Indian worker, was pardoned. The 26 year old, who accidentally stabbed Suresh, his co-worker from Andhra Pradesh, on November 21, 2007, during a scuffle after a cricket match, will now serve a seven year jail term. Suresh's wife agreed to pardon Simil after she was paid over Rs.1 million as compensation. The money was raised by Kerala's Leader of Opposition Oomen Chandy, who had appealed for help to Malayalees in the region. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajashekhar Reddy contributed Rs.500,000 as the state government's contribution to save Simil, who hails from a poor family.