NEW DELHI MARCH 10—The Vajpayee Government today failed to bridge the differences in perception with some of its allies and the Opposition over India’s stand on the impending war on Iraq.
The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, elaborated on the ‘middle-path’ approach and said the Government preferred a peaceful resolution of the conflict through the United Nations and was against any military conflict. Steps were being taken to ensure oil supplies and the safety of Indians in the region.
The External Affairs Minister, Yashwant Sinha, later told correspondents that while the Government did not visualise the need for largescale evacuation from the region, the 50 or so people residing in Iraq had been advised to leave.
The all-party meeting convened by the Government left the Opposition
disappointed with New Delhi’s ‘refusal’ to take a
categorical position against the war
. The Opposition now
intends to raise the issue in Parliament in a big way.
Mr. Vajpayee told the leaders of various political parties that a ‘middle-path’ approach was preferred since New Delhi had good and cordial relations with both Washington and Baghdad.
In Mr. Sinha’s assessment, there was a broad consensus at the
end of the meeting though there might be variation in language. The
Opposition, however, had a different viewpoint.Turning down the demand
for passing a resolution by both Houses of Parliament, Mr. Sinha said
that developments in the region were changing rapidly and any formal
resolution could become out of date the next day. The developments
are very rapid and they are moving so fast that anything said today
may become stale tomorrow,
he said adding that the Government was
not against any resolution.
The Government was keeping a close watch and if at any point of time it felt there was a requirement for such a resolution, it could be considered.
Plans had been drawn to meet any contingency, including the safety and security of Indians in the area and oil supplies. Oil reserves had been built up and that there was no cause for concern.
Responding to the Opposition suggestion that New Delhi should turn down any request by Washington to use Indian facilities in the event of a war, the Prime Minister said the issue of use of facilities would arise only if there was such a request, which had not been made so far. Mr. Sinha said the Government was committed to the resolution adopted at the recent Kuala Lumpur Non-Aligned Movement summit.
Significantly, the Opposition demand for a joint resolution had the
backing of the BJP’s allies such as the TDP and the DMK. We
are very disappointed that the Government is adamant about not naming
the U.S.,
said a visibly upset Somnath Chatterjee of the CPI (M)
after the meeting. The issue is likely to figure prominently in
Parliament.
During her intervention, the Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, urged
the Government to take a stand that reflected at the Government
level, the strong sentiment across the country against a war in
Iraq
. Ms. Gandhi was also critical of the U.S. for creating a
grave crisis
and its stated aim of effecting a regime change in
Iraq. Nobody has the right to effect a regime change and no power,
no matter how strong, should resort to the use of force without the
U.N. sanction
she said. Ms. Gandhi also demanded a comprehensive
statement from the Government on its plans to deal with the situation.
The Samajwadi Party chief, Mulayam Singh Yadav, opposed war at all
costs. Iraq had been given a clean chit by the U.N. inspectors,
he said. Yerran Naidu (TDP) too said war should be averted at all
costs.
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