The Hindu : Labour reforms plan attacked

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Feb 24, 2002

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Labour reforms plan attacked
By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, FEB. 23. The Janata Party president, Subramanian Swamy, today said the new labour reforms package of the Vajpayee Government would have ``disastrous'' consequences on the country's economy.

When the Indian economy was facing a demand recession, lay-offs would only worsen the slow-down in industrial growth and the unemployment situation, Dr. Swamy told the media here. Condemning the brutal murder of the American journalist, Daniel Pearl, by Pakistan-based extremists, he said the Vajpayee Government bore a ``part'' of the moral responsibility, as the killers were the terrorists released in exchange for the passengers of the Indian Airlines flight hijacked from Kathmandu in December 1999. ``Had Mr. Vajpayee stood firm then, the world would have been saved much bloodshed.''

On the unconditional ceasefire pact signed by the Lankan Government and the LTTE, Dr. Swamy said the Tamil Tigers' chief, Prabakaran, had betrayed the Tamils of Sri Lanka by surrendering to the Sinhala-dominated Government. The Sri Lankan Government should hand over Prabakaran to India to prosecute him in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, he said.

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