(Image source from: delhipostnews.com)

Indians ought to be "grateful to the English" for bringing the country back to "sanity, civility, stability and to its past glory", says Indian-origin England-based author Lord Bill Lall, contesting Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's views on the British empire.

It is gloomy that people of immense status like Tharoor and others "speak and write against England" without "really probing into the heart of England and the English people", the 85-year-old author said during the recent launch of his new book "England My Love".

The entrepreneur and chartered accountant by training, who has been living in England for more than 60 years, holds the title of Lord of the Manor (Woodlands).

He has written on the subject of his life and how he made it big in his adopted country in his new book.

Singing hosannas to the British, Lall admitted his book is "pro-English". He said it was the English that laid the foundations of "modern India" by establishing strong modern institutions.

"What keeps India united today is... its professional army, its civil service, central revenue collection system, police force, education system, and other modern institutions," he told the gathering.

In his view, Tharoor, Jawaharlal Nehru or Manmohan Singh would not have been well-known had they not studied and lived in England.

Tharoor, in the recent past, has been vocal about his position on the damages caused to India by the British Empire.

In a speech at Oxford University in 2015, Tharoor spoke in detail regarding the reparations owed to India. His books "An Era of Darkness" and "Inglorious Empire" examined the effects of the same in great detail.

"I would ask him (Tharoor) and others who speak or right against England to study closely what England did for us, analyze deeply... and codify all that what England did for us, which, in my opinion, would build up to the size of Ramayana," said Lall.

We owe so much to England and there is still a lot more we can and should learn about the country, said the NRI during the launch of the book on Tuesday.

"Nehru and Gandhi would not have been world famous figures, had they not lived and studied in England," he said.

Manmohan Singh would not have transformed India from bankruptcy to an economic achievement had he not studied and lived in England, claimed Lall, who has as well written "Rich Man Happy Man" and "How to Grow Rich and Enjoy Life".

Published by Sterling and priced at Rs 300, "England My Love" tells Lall's story of an immigrant making it huge in an overseas land. It moreover claims to give invaluable insights into the country, English people and their culture - be it the weather, their passion for the sport, food, drinks or how they spend their holidays.

-Sowmya Sangam