“Peace can return to the subcontinent only if the Pakistani Army withdraws from the borders or India in the east as well as west” Mrs. Gandhi said.
Mrs. Gandhi said when Pakistan moved its Army to the India borders there was not a whisper by any of these notions or the U.N. But, from the time India had brought forward her farces to protect her territories, there was a hue and cry that peace was in danger. “I do not understand these things”. In her hour-long speech, Mrs. Gandhi asked whether the U.N. will be prepare to give an undertaking that Pakistan would not attack India, “In the event of any such attack, would the U.N. ensure tat any territories, occupied by Pakistan are vacated?”
Thrice Attacked
Before they talk of withdrawal of troops from the eastern or western border they should keep in mind that India was attacked thrice earlier by Pakistan but neither the U.N. nor the other powers condemned Pakistan once for that. IIow do they expect us to believe them now?
She said India did not move the Army to the western borders for ten days after Pakistani Army had occupied forward positions “We went to the U.N. observers and protested to them that Pakistan should not be allowed to bring her forces in the forward areas. After inquiries the U.N. observers told us that the Pakistani s were carrying on military exercises and would withdraw after ten days. Are the ten days not yet over? With all these happenings I do not understand how we can have any faith in them.
Mrs. Gandhi said that the idea of posting U.N. observers in East Bengal was to check the activities of the Mukti Bahini. But they were forgetting that all the checks and controls in Vietnam failed to stop the guerrilla activities. “I do think how observers can function when it is made pain by the Bangladesh Government that it cannot guarantee their safety” Mrs. Gandhi added.
She said “there is a charge that India is allowing Mukti Bahini to operate from her soil. How can we check it? Our border with East Bengal is so long that even if India deployed her entire army. It would not be able to stop them”.
The prime Minister said the U.N. or any nation was not prepared to look at the question in its entirety.
Mrs. Gandhi described as totally baseless the accusations that India was interfering in the internal affairs of a neighbor. We are simply telling the world what the Pakistani Army is doing inside Bangladesh. Killing thousands and thousands of human beings might not be of any concern to the world but India is worried and that is the reason which has prompted India in allowing the refugees to come to our soil.
“All these countries which are today shouting about India interfering in the internal affairs of Pakistan had interfered in the affairs of other countries whenever it suited them and here when we have not done any such thing. We are being accused of it. Well, it should not worry us much. Even a country like China, interfered in other nations affairs”.
{{
