বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (দ্বাদশ খণ্ড)/২৩
| শিরোনাম | সূত্র | তারিখ |
|---|---|---|
| বাংলাদেশের প্রশ্নে যে কোন শীর্ষ সম্মেলনের আগে অবশ্যই হত্যাকাণ্ড এবং নির্যাতন বন্ধ করতে হবে বলে শ্রীনগরে সাংবাদিক সম্মেলনে প্রধানমন্ত্রীর ঘোষণা | দৈনিক ‘স্টেটসম্যান’ | ২১ জুন, ১৯৭১ |
INDIA’S STERMS FOR SUMMIT ON E. BENGAL:
BUTCHERY MUST STOP FRIST, SAYS P.M.
SRINAGAR. June 20—Mrs. Indira Gandhi today said that before any summit conference on East Bengal was convened, the “butchery there must be stopped immediately”, say UNI and PTI.
This is the first pre-requisite if India is to attend such a summit called by another country, she told a 30-minute news conference before emplaning for New Delhi at the conclusion of her tow-day visit to the Kashmir valley.
Referring to the huge refugee influx due to the terror created by the West Pakistani armed forces in Bangladesh, Mrs. Gandhi said the refugees could not live permanently in India.
Following the Bangladesh happenings, she said the Government had told the international community that “the situation there was fraught with danger”.
About the recognition of Bangladesh she said: “Not yet”. When pointed out that public opinion was in favor of such an action on the part of India she pointed out “It is for the Government to decide what is good for the country”.
India, said Mrs. Gandhi, would continue to watch the situation as it developed in Bangladesh. Just now she had no specific solution to the problem. She went on: “I only know that we are not going to allow them (refugees) to stay on here—neither shall we allow them to be butchered there.
Asked what India planned to do if Pakistan failed to respond to Indian pleas, she replied: “We will see what the situation is” and west on to add in a lighter vein “as much as I love the Press. I do not think I shall tell them first”.
A reporter asked whether there was a possibility of a Pakistani attack on India in the immediate future in view of preparations being made by that country in Pak-occupied Kashmir and recent border incidents.
Mrs. Gandhi: “I doubt”.
Mrs. Gandhi was also asked to comment on the Sarvodaya leader, Mr. Jayaprakash Narayan’s reported statement that the Indian Government was unduly inhibited by the “scarce of China” in her action on the Bangladesh Issue.
The Prime Minister: “We are not scared of anyone—certainly not of China”.
Plebiscite Front
About the possibility of the Government reconsidering the question of a ban on the Plebiscite Front in view of the recent judgment of the one-man tribunal clearing the party of communal bias, Mrs. Gandhi said the question did not arise because the points about the front raised by the Government had been upheld and the ban confirmed.
A reporter asked why a similar ban had not been imposed on other parties in the state which had also been preaching secession notably the pro-Pakistani Awamy Action Committee, headed by Mirwaiz Maulana Farooq.
She said she did not quit know about that but it appeared in such cases it was not so much the question of someone saying something but what really mattered was what they were doing.
The Prime Minister was pained to note the “false propaganda” being done in Kashmir on Bangladesh by a section of the local Press. She was particularly critical of an article appearing in a local journal purporting to draw comparison between the situation in Bangladesh and Kashmir and bracketing Gen. Yahya Khan with the Chief Minister Mr. G.M. Sadiq.
She said: “It is so preposterous for anyone to compare things in this manner—there must be either something very wrong with that person or it is deliberate mischief-or both”.
Describing her visit to Gurez and Tanghdar as most useful, she said Kashmir had progressed much. But the pace of progress had yet to be accelerated to gain full advantage of planned economy. Many schemes were underway which would generate employment opportunities for educated youth, she said.
Mrs. Gandhi said Kashmir could not be compared with Pakistan as it had achieved economic progress while the people in Pakistan were fed on false propaganda and denied liberties.
Asked whether the Government had been able to control the “Naxalite menace” in the country, Mrs. Gandhi answered: “Not entirely. The problem still exists”.
On the progress of her Government’s plans to fulfill the promise of “gharbi hatao” to the electorate, Mrs. Gandhi said several steps had been taken in that direction and many were still in hand. The process beginning with such measure as bank nationalization was continuing.