*J&K victory tribute to Mukherjee: Shah
BENGALURU, Apr 3: Stressing that terror and talks cannot go together, BJP today said India’s engagement with Pakistan would be based on strategic interests and enunciated Modi Government’s foreign policy pillars or “Panchamrit” of dignity, dialogue, security and shared prosperity and culture.
In the first-ever separate resolution on foreign policy brought in its National Executive here, BJP attacked the previous Congress-led Government, saying “a cursory glance at the ‘lost decade’ of the UPA, reveals retreat and a loss of direction in engaging with neighbours, ham-handed diplomacy vis-à-vis Pakistan and a blind-spot in our foreign policy to the Indian Ocean island States.”
It lauded the Narendra Modi Government’s initiatives taken on foreign policy, including the Prime Minister and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s continuous engagements with world leaders in the last 10 months.
On Pakistan, the resolution said, “We have laid out a clear policy for building peaceful and friendly relations with Pakistan, predicated on an end to terrorism.”
“There can be no compromise with terrorism. There can’t be any duplicity towards a problem that has become a regional crisis and is fast becoming an international nightmare.”
“All outstanding issues with Pakistan can be resolved through bilateral dialogue in an atmosphere free from terror and violence,” it said.
It said the national ambition is “Bharat’s rise as a strong and respected world power” for which the Government has adopted “Panchamrit”.
It spelt out ‘Panchamrit’ or 5 ‘S’ of the country’s foreign policy as ‘Samman’ – dignity and honour; ‘Samvad’ – greater engagement and dialogue; ‘Samriddhi’ – shared prosperity; ‘Suraksha’ – regional and global security; and ‘Sanskriti evam Sabhyata’ – cultural and civilisational linkages, the party said.
The BJP said Modi has pursued “a bold, proactive and innovative foreign policy that is aligned with our Government’s primary goal of accelerating national economic development; and to fulfill Bharat’s global responsibilities as the world’s most populous youth nation and largest democracy.”
The entire resolution described the country as ‘Bharat’ instead of India .
The resolution criticised the previous UPA Government’s approach in dealing with the international community, saying during the last decade it tended to weigh the nation down when New Delhi punched substantively below its weight in pushing through its foreign policy objectives, while often appearing side-lined in the international arena.
The UPA dispensation seemed grossly incapable of moulding Bharat’s foreign policy, national security and economic development imperatives into a composite and coherent policy framework, it alleged.
“Our Government has, in a short span of ten months, transformed foreign policy into a major instrument to realise our national ambition of Bharat’s rise as a strong and respected world power,” the resolution said.
Party spokesperson M J Akbar, who also spoke on the resolution, told reporters that Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu proposed it, while Swaraj summed up the foreign policy initiatives of the Government that have helped the country emerge as a global power.
On Pakistan, Akbar said that “terror and talks cannot go together.”
The resolution said India has responded firmly and appropriately to provocations on the border and Line of Control and threats of infiltration and terrorism and the Prime Minister’s message to his counterpart on the occasion of Pakistan Day has been unambiguous that “all outstanding issues with Pakistan can be resolved through bilateral dialogue in an atmosphere free from terror and violence”.
The resolution further said, “Visit of our Foreign Secretary to Pakistan as part of the SAARC Yatra is a clear message to our neighbour that Bharat will engage with it only on such terms that reflect its national security and strategic interests.”
Modi Government has indicated that it will be revisiting institutions and policies.
‘Panchsheel’, enunciated by Jawaharlal Nehru, has been the defining doctrine of Indian foreign policy for decades. The five principles are mutual respect for each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, equality and mutual benefit and peaceful co-existence.
Asserting that the victory for the BJP in Jammu and Kashmir as the feather in the cap of the party which is much more that the victories stored in the States like Maharashtra, Haryana and Jharkand, BJP President Amit Shah today said that it viewed this victory as a humble tribute to the martyrdom of Jana Sangh’s founding president Shyama Prasad Mukherjee.
Making a special reference to the victory of its candidates in J&K in the recently concluded Assembly elections, Mr Shah said the BJP had derived ‘special pride’ in the J&K victory and joining the coalition in that State for the first time after Independence.
While the opponents were seeking to mislead the people on this development but one must realise that this is the dawn of a new era for all inclusive development in the State. Mr Shah assured the people through the executive that the coalition will strengthen nationalist forces, the unity and integrity of the country. ”For the BJP, the sense of security and integrity of the country was more valuable than the Government or positions of power,” he added.
Touching upon the Delhi Assembly results where Aam Admi Party led by Aravind Kejriwal has secured a resounding victory in the hustings, Mr Shah noted that it was a Government which had rode to power promising Jan Lokpal to the people. However on assuming office in the national capital, the first thing they had done was to ease out AAP Lokpal along with several founder members.
Asked about the party’s rout in the Assembly results, BJP spokesman and Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said ”victory and loss for the party was part of democratic process. The party would not be feel arrogant by victories nor will be depressed by defeats,” he said answering questions from reporters.
Modi Government is here to stay for 10-20 years, Shah asserted claiming that the new dispensation has ended the “reign of scams” and policy paralysis while changing the political culture in the country.
“Modi ‘sarkar’ (Government) has arrived and will be in power for next 10-20 years. It will change the face of India,” he said while addressing the party’s National Executive.
Shah lauded the 10 months of Narendra Modi Government, saying it has brought a perceptive change in the system of governance by bringing in transparency and has ended the policy paralysis. He said the Ministers were now empowered unlike in the past when even the Prime Minister was not.
He said the BJP Government had ended the “reign of scams seen during the 10-year UPA rule…. There is not a whiff of scam now,” he said.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi has brought in a new political culture and changed the atmosphere. The policy paralysis is over,” he said.
Citing the record revenue earned by the public exchequer in coal and spectrum auctions, he said the Modi dispensation’s good governance was reflected in the complete transparency witnessed in the auctions which he described as a big attack on corruption.
He also termed as a “great success” of Indian diplomacy the United Nation’s declaration of June 21 as International Yoga Day, saying it was because of the pro-active steps taken by Prime Minister.
Meanwhile, fending off attacks from a combative opposition on the controversial land acquisition bill, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today accused them of “spreading lies” and seeking to draw “political mileage” as he vowed to safeguard the farmers interests.
In his speech at a public meeting here where the two-day BJP National Executive meeting is underway, Modi said he empathised with farmers and understood their woes, declaring the Government was committed to empowering them.
“Those spreading lies do not know how to protect the interests of farmers,” said Modi who made no direct reference to the land bill which has emerged as a rallying point for the Opposition to target his Government, branding it as “anti-farmer.”
“How did farmers lose their land? Where did it go?… To get a job of a peon for their children or to make them a driver, they used to be compelled to sell their land to pay bribes.. The (previous) Governments compelled them to (sell land),” Modi said on a day when the Government re-promulgated the land acquisition ordinance a day before it is to lapse.
Noting that the country’s livestock was diminishing, he said, “I am surprised at that those people who are undertaking big campaigns for political mileage that if losing land for a farmer is painful, equally worrying is the depletion of livestock as it will have adverse impact on villages).”
On farmers’ empowerment, he said “I have not come from the heavens. I have lived among villagers and poor people and have reached here…I know that India will not make progress till villages develop and till farmers make progress.”
Modi also said “throwing crumbs” at farmers would not help them and stressed on reforms in agriculture sector, referring to farming technology, infrastructure, good roads, irrigation, electricity and own house.
“We recognise the power of our farmers and we are making efforts to empower them and ensure proper remuneration for their produce,” he said.
The Prime Minister also coined a new slogan “give it up” to exhort the better off sections of society to forego their cooking gas subsidy which would be utilised in providing subsidised LPG connections to the poor.
Urging the well-off people to give up their LPG subsidy, he said “gas cylinders surrendered by them would be transferred to the poor who use wood for cooking. If one crore people give up their LPG subsidy, one crore poor people will benefit as they will be given new LPG cylinders instead.
“Give it up” campaign should be taken up on the lines of “Swacch Bharat” and “Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao” initiatives. “I appeal to all MPs, MLAs, ministers, IAS and IPS officers, professors and professionals to forego their LPG subsidy and derive happiness by doing so.”
In his address, Modi also assured the people that his Government would fulfil all the promises made on bringing back the black money stashed abroad and cited measures taken so far including a bill with stringent provisions against those concealing their money held overseas.
The rally was attended by the entire top brass of BJP, including party President Amit Shah, veteran L K Advani and Home Minister Rajnath Singh, besides other Cabinet Ministers and Chief Ministers of party-ruled States. (PTI)
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