Home minister L.K. Advani was in Chennai to address the 165th Annual GeneralMeeting of the Madras Chamber of Commerce. Following are some of his statementson various subjects during his visit to the city as reported by agencies:
On Hurriyat andElections
"There is no no question of holding elections in Kashmir under international surveillance.....The way polls hadbeen conducted has been admired the world over."
On Pakistan
Describing the invitation to Musharraf a major initiative, he said it was a "motion forward and somethingpositive is certain to emerge out of the discussions though itmay not be end of the tunnel".
Calling it an integral part of thecentre's strategic perspective to establish durable peace forthe entire south east asian region, he added: "We sincerely hope that Pakistan reciprocates thisperspective"
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Referreing to the proxy war the country was facing from its neighbour over a decade,Advani said it is "worse than an actual war" The government is following a "bold policy" aimed atensuring peace in our borders and a strong internal securityenvironment, he said, adding that this was an imperative needfor the country's economic progress.
Tamil Nadu Governor
Asked about the demands of DMK and BJP for the recall ofTamil Nadu governorfor swearing in Jayalalitha as the state chief minister, he said there was nosuch proposal before the government. The prime minister had already expressedhis views on the matter, he said.
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"The constitution conferred certain powers on the governors. There is noquestion of government of India approving or disapproving governor's action. Ifthere is anything, it will be decided by the court," Advani said.
Ban on Tamil Ultra Groups
Asked about the centre's stand on Tamil Nadu government's demand for a ban onTamil ultra groups TNLA and TNRT, he said the matter had been discussed withchief minister Jayalalitha during her recent visit to Delhi and it was beingexamined, he said.
Next Taiwan
Commenting on the impressive strides being made by the state of TamilNadu in many areas of commerce and industry, hesaid "seeing Tamil Nadu's prowess in IT and other high-techareas, I think you could perhaps even replicate Taiwan as asupplier to the world".
Calling for greater harmonisation among the economies of Tamil Nadu, Kerala andSri Lanka, he said that the combinationof these three economies would provide the right mix of capital, labour and raw meterial which could supply not only the rest of India and South-East Asia, but also parts of otherworld like Africa and East Asia thanks to this region sittingastride important trade routes.
Swadeshi Outlook
During his address to the MCC he asserted that the economic reforms beingpursued by the centre with "great vigour" were guided by a "swadeshioutlook" and were not at all "a plunge into globalisation".
"We recognise that protection and promotion of India's nationalinterests ought to be the supreme objective informing all our policies andschemes."
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Recalling that the country had always been against the uncritical emulationof foreign models -- be it Soviet model of the past or the American model of thepresent -- he said government was promoting a rather "caliberatedglobalisation" taking into account the developmental status of the complexsocial fabric of the country, the interests of the small industries andagriculture.
He said India should chart out its own independent path receiving positiveinputs from anywhere and everywhere, but principally guided by its own nationalgenius and sound consideration of its own needs and resources.
The government was fully aware that WTO regime also has its negative aspects,Advani said adding "our model of economic development must principally aimat the creation of productive employment, removal of inequalities, activepromotion of social justice for dalits, tribals and other under-privilegedpeople and preservation of environment".
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Casio Digital Diary
Readers would recall that his swedeshicredentials were once questioned when he had been photographed using a casio digital diary some time ago.The concept of swadeshi is being misconceived in such narrow waysby many, Advani claimed, recounting the episode.
"Swadesbhi is not a closed concept" he said, adding thateven the economic reforms being persued by the centre wereguided by a swadeshi outlook.
Consensus Building
Advani said that the country had gained immenseexperience of the economic reforms carried out by differentgovernments at the centre and various state governments,adding that this combined experience had both positive andnegative lessons.
Stating that the NDA government at the centre continuedto follow a consensus approach, he appealed to the business community, the trade unions, political parties, socialorganisations and intelligentia to contribute to this processof consensus building, especially to accelerate and expand thescope of economic reforms.
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He said that the goverment was committed to alteringlabour laws of the country to pave way for a conduciveatmosphere for economic development and ensuring a better workculture adding that the government would strive for aconsensus on this issue also.
Constitution Review
He said the centre's decision to review the constitution did not mean changing the basic structure of the constitution. The review was intended only to make "necessary" changesin the light of the country's experiences, Advani said.
"The government wanted to make wholesome amendments andnot piecemeal ones", he said, adding that "this is what we havein mind".
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Democracy and China
He said the country could achieve economic progress onlythrough democracy which he said was the most "vibrant" one inthe entire world despite the country's heterogenous characterand massive illiteracy.
Referring to the economic development in China, he saidthere was a basic difference between China and India. China'seconomy had opened but its polity still remained closed. Themodel was not suitable to the country, he said adding one dayor the other, China should open up its polity also. This waswhat happened in some communist countries, including Russia,he said.
Sri Lanka
The home minister said the centre also wanted an earlyend to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka based on a justsolution, satisfying the interests of all, as part of thecountry's commitment to ensure durable peace in the region.
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Internal Security
On internal security, Advani said the centre wasready to fully support the state governments in their effortsto strengthen law and order.
Advani said the centre had been working actively with thestates and also trying to strengthen co-operation among statesto effectively deal with challenges of terrorism, extremismand subversive elements.
Veerappan
All help had been assured totamil nadu chief minsiter jayalaitha for nabbing forestbrigand veerappan either by the tamil nadu government alone orjointly with the karnataka government, he said. "The veerappan issue is not something that affects tamilnadu and karnataka alone but the entire country" he said.
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Border Management System & CODS
Advani said the recommendations of the six task forcesappointed to review the country's border management systemwould be implemented soon.
Later answering a question from theaudience he said the union cabinet was yet to take a decisionon appointing the chief of defence staff as recommended by thegroup of ministers on security. "The prime minister will discuss the issue in the cabinet and with opposition leaders to arrive at a consensuson the matternvitation to musharraf a step forward for ensuring peace
Sindhu Darshan: Oozing 'warmth and friendship'
Earlier in the week, when he was in J&K for the Sindhu Darshan function,he had recalled his visit to Leh the previous year:
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"Last year, both Vajpayee ji and I were here.When he dipped his hand in the Sindhu here, I told him that if Musharraf wasdoing the same thing in Pakistan at that very time, he would feel Vajpayeeji'swarmth and friendship flowing towards him."
He told the ambassadors of Norway and South Korea, who were present at thefunction, that he hoped the Sindhu river, which begins in Tibet and flows toBatalik and from there into Pakistan, would become an instrument of unity notjust within the country, "but also between countries like, say, India andPakistan."
