Ganesha, the controversial Hindu idol in downtown Coeur d’Alene, received an unscheduled makeover during the Christmas weekend. As you may recall, some Lake City residents were upset when the Ganesha statue by Spokane artist Rick Davis made an appearance on Sixth Street and Sherman Avenue as part of a yearlong public art display in downtown Coeur d’Alene. A handful protested the unveiling early last summer. Ditto for Lake City Lighthouse and Hayden Friends churches. Ditto for the Kootenai County Constitution Party. Besides the religious aspect of the statue, protesters imagined hidden symbols on Ganesha that others couldn’t see, like phallic ones and swastikas. The hubbub eventually died away – until a week ago when a large red ribbon and what appears to be a doll depicting the Christ child were added secretly to the display. No harm. But no one will mistake elephantine Ganesha plus Baby Jesus for a Bethlehem manger scene.

The case against against boozed-up motor boat operator Richard Acquilone has languished in Manhattan Criminal Court since the July 2010 collision near the Statue of Liberty that killed her 30-year-old son six weeks before his wedding day.

While setting up her new life in New Delhi and struggling to become a journalist in a country that is low on the list of desired coverage areas, she learns a lot about the culture of India through friends and others she meets along the way.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (MM), India’s biggest sport-utility vehicle manufacturer, is interested in buying at least parts of bankrupt Swedish carmaker Saab Automobile, two people familiar with the situation said.

Buy your new TV in September or January. That’s when the new models come out and the prices go way down on discontinued models. Another time to get a deal: Black Friday, if you’re willing to brave the crowds.

Fresenius Medical Care AG, the world’s biggest provider of kidney dialysis, said sales of blood-filtering products in India have grown more than 30 percent annually since 2006. Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd. and Fortis Healthcare India Ltd., the country’s biggest private-hospital operators, are opening dialysis centers nationwide as the number of Indians with diabetes is predicted to reach 101 million by 2030.

As sole proprietor of his subscription email newsletter, the East Bay News Service, Handa prided himself on holding elected officials accountable and strictly obeying the anti-secrecy mandates in government law. He called himself a journalist but crossed the line of traditional journalism ethics by publicly commenting on everything from potholes to port operations.

During a trip to India a few years ago and after observing the New Delhi traffic, I devised a great idea for Tata, the Indian car maker: manufacture the cars so that once the car is started the horn turns on and stays on until the car is turned off.  I was sure the drivers in New Delhi would appreciate such a feature, seeing that they drive with the horn on most of the time anyway.

Kind of like the way that politicians of Indian descent are making their presence known in the American political scene, except maybe not as noisy.  While there are others, two prominent Indian-American politicians stand out: Louisiana Governor Piyush “Bobby” Jindal and South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley.