archive: "Pakistan isolated in world community"
"Pakistan isolated in world community"
M.A. Naqvi
Organiser
June 27, 1999
Title: "Pakistan isolated in world community"
Author: M.A. Naqvi
Publication: Organiser
Date: June 27, 1999
True to its character Pakistan has once again betrayed India. India
will in time give a befitting reply to Pakistan. It will make Pakistan
pay for every single drop of our jawans' blood. For the first time in
history all the countries of the world are seeing Pakistan in the
wrong. Certain friends of Pakistan like the US and some Gulf countries
also are not in agreement with it. It is a singular achievement of the
BJP-led Government that Pakistan has been isolated in the
international community, said Shri Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Minister of
State for Information and Broadcasting while talking to Organiser
staffer Deepak Kumar Rath. Excerpts.
Q: As a BJP leader, what are your plans for the uplift of the
minorities particularly the Muslims?
A: If we examine the problems of minorities and the majority
separately we cannot escape the finding that during the last 50 years
the basic issues of the minorities got sidelined. They have been
deliberately kept away from the mainstream of development by the
so-called secular parties. It is unfortunate that political parties
that ruled the country for the last 50 years have never given priority
to education. They always saw to it that the Muslims locked themselves
in narrow issues.
Q: Do you mean to say that nothing has been done to solve the basic
issues of the minorities?
A: Yes. They have been arist exploited by the self-styled secularist
parties, till the last elections, treating them as a captive
vote-bank. They always encouraged the Muslims to vote en bloc as if
they were a flock of dumb sheep.
Q: So what are you doing?
A: First, we want the Muslims to realize that they are not
second-class citizens in India. Other political parties created an
inferiority complex among the Muslims dinning into their ears that
they were second-class citizens. Our Government has created an
awareness among the minorities for the basic issues.
Q: What are the basic issues?
A: Education is the top priority for minorities. For the uplift of
minorities particularly the Muslims we have started several
socio-economic programmes. We honestly want the Muslims to attain
equality in society, whether in education or in employment. Now the
attitude of Indian Muslims towards the BJP had undergone a sea-change
and a self-confident new Muslim has arisen on the political horizon,
who refuses to be driven blindfold by the obscurantist and selfish
leadership. He will now choose and chart is own course.
Q: It is usually propagated that the minorities are unsafe under
BJP-led Governments. Comment.
A: It is totally baseless. Acutally the minorities are finding
themselves safest under BJP/led regimes. When the planned conspiracy
of vested interests for Hindu-Muslim riots failed, imaginary and
fictitious issues were sought to be created in the name of
Christianity. The murder of the Australian missionary and his sons in
Orissa was a plain criminal activity. All had condemned it as a
heinous act. There was in this case no valid reason to blame any of
the Hindutva outfits. Minorities have eventually realised that the BJP
is an honest party and the other political parties had been
deliberately confining them to ghettos so that they could be easily
manipulated.
Q: What is your view of the media's role in recent alleged 'attack' on
the minorities?
A: Some electronic media and also same print media created a situation
by putting out unsubstantiated reports regarding both Gujrat and
Orissa. It naturally created confusion among the countrymen.
Q: Do you think that the events which took place Gujarat and Orissa
were contrary to what was really being reported by a section of the
media?
A: In a way these were biased reports, bordering on anti-national
activity, lowered the prestige of the country. More than affecting the
image of any political party or Government, such reports tarnish the
image of India. People's faith in the media has been betrayed.
Therefore, I hope the media excercises more cautions responsibility.
Q: Do you suspect any conspiracy behind such one-sided reports
appearing in the press?
A: We are no doubt victims of conspiracy for some time now. Earlier we
used to hear of multinational corporations conspiring to take over our
business and industry. Now there are foreign elements in politics too.
Look at the Indian National Congress (laughs). There is certainly some
conspiracy to infiltrate into our political system, create instability
and weaken the country. It is like East India company repeating.
Q: How do you plan to correct the anomalies?
A: The corrective process is a matter of consensus. And censorship has
never been an ideal solution. Media should realise its
responsibilities towards the society and decide its priority, here it
is national interest.
Q: Do you agree that some foreign powers were behind the toppling of
the BJP-led Government?
A: Of course. I have no doubt in that. Their game plan was to topple
the Vajpayee Government and create instability in the country. Sonia
Gandhi's role in the topple game and the subsequent need for another
general elections are enough signals that some foreign power are
behind this.
Q: Do you mean to say that some foreign powers are propping up Sonia
Gandhi?
A: Yes. I am saying that. See, soon after the Vajpayee Government came
to power, there were reports of spate of attacks on Christians. A
campaign was launched that the BJP-led Government is anti-minority.
This was a deliberate attempt to create communal tensions and divide
the society. One by one all the reported atrocities on Christians
turned out to be false. These reports were masterminded to tarnish the
image of the BJP and project Sonia Gandhi as the alternative.
Q: How do you rate the performance of your ministry?
A: We have tried our best to protect the image of our culture. We have
driven out the mafias from the film industry. We have made sincere
efforts to make known the cultural heritage of the country.
Q: What steps has your ministry taken to improve the quality of
Doordarshan telecast?
A: The area where there was territorial reception, we put high power
transmitters. In border areas we put new transmitters. We have
instructed the satellite channels to relay at least three or four
channels of Doordarshan.
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