Congressman criticises USA for alienating India
NEW DELHI, Aug. 7.—Congressman Conelius Gallagher has criticised the Administration for alienating the people of the world’s largest democracy, India, “for the sake of Pakistan which cannot survive in its present form”, report agencies.
India with 600 million people was equally important in Asia as China. “If India is antagonised to the point of being driven into the arms of Soviet Russia, any success in the policy of rapproachement with China would have been offset by an unavoidable and unnecesary failure, because of a misplaced attachment for what is really no more than a medium sized middle eastern country, West Pakistan.”
Mr. Gallagher made these remarks in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. According to a summary of his speech available here. Mr. Gallagher urged the US Government to warn General Yahya Khan against any action which might precipitate a war with India.
Any such war would lead to a confrontation between the Soviet Union, China and the US and divert attention from the fundamental issue of repression in Pakistan, he said.
He also asked the Government to exert pressure on the military government to immediately release Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and to enter into negotiations with him with a view to setting up a civilian provincial government in East Pakistan headed by him.
President Yahya Khan had threatened to put Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on military trial in camera on grounds of treason, with death penalty if the charges were proved.
He warned that “the day that, trial begins, the put remote hope for a peaceful political settlement will have vanished for good,” he said.
Rejecting the allegation by Pakistan that infiltrators from India had entered into East Bengal. Mr. Gallagher said it might be that same refugees who had fled to India initially to escape the Pakistani Army’s campaign of terror and genocide had returned to participate in the fight. “During my inspection of some of the refugee camps in West Bengal. I met East Bengali young men who had suffered at the hands of the Army. They were itiching to return to their homeland to seek revenge for the injury caused to them,” he added.
The Congressman pointed out that India had restrained from recognising Bangladesh and handled the refugee problem with “remarkable fortitude and worthy of praise” without enough help from the world. “The burden India carries is the world’s burden and not its own”.
He said twice President Yahya Khan had threatened to declare war against India on “hypothetical grounds”. India wanted the Pakistani refugees to go back “but they have not said that they want any part of East Pakistan”.
He called upon the US Government to dissociate itself from the atrocities of Pakistani Army in East Bengal. President Yahya Khan should be pressurised to end the military action and to order the Army back to its barracks, he said.
Mr. Mark Talley of the BBC Eastern Service, yesterday noted that the Pakistan Government’s white paper was one sided and that it failed to mention the terror let loose by the Pakistani Army in Bangladesh.
In his commentary he referred to the Pakistani Government’s claim that it was aware as early as in 1967 that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was hatching a conspiacy with India for the “disintegration of Pakistan” Yahya Khan held talks with the “Traitor” and referred to him as future Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Reference: Hindustan Standard 08.08.1971