Natwar criticises foreign policy

CHANDIGARH, AUG. 18. The former Union Minister, Mr. Natwar Singh, today said the country's foreign policy had become ``directionless'' due to lack of cohesiveness among the constituents of BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

``The Government has failed to bring an effective foreign policy as it has been overburdened to keep the pack together,'' Mr. Singh, who is also the chairman of the foreign affairs cell of the Congress, told reporters here.

It had been difficult to have an effective foreign policy due to disruption at the domestic front, he said adding the failure of country's foreign policy was due to the lack of national sanction behind the programmes of the foreign office. Prior to the nuclear tests in 1998, there was a broad national consensus in the country, he said.

Bringing to the fore differences in the NDA, Mr. Singh said even the Home Minister, Mr. L.K. Advani, had criticised the External Affairs Minister, Mr. Jaswant Singh, for his role during the hijack of Indian Airlines plane to Kandahar.

Mr. Singh pulled up the Centre for its alleged mismanagement during the Agra summit saying that the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee, failed to plan the agenda in advance and did not consult the Opposition parties. The Pakistan President, Gen. Pervez Musharraf's stand on the Kashmir issue was an ``injustice'' with the people of his country, he said.

``The Congress doesn't want any more partition of Jammu and Kashmir,'' he said adding only bilateral talks between the two countries could solve the issue. Indo-Pak relations are ``accident-prone'' and Mr. Vajpayee had to clarify his stand on inviting Gen. Musharraf for the summit despite his earlier statements which said India would hold dialogue with Pakistan only if Islamabad stopped cross-border terrorism, Mr. Singh said.

Earlier, delivering a talk on `Peace: Agra summit and after,' organised by the All-India Peace and Solidarity Organisation, Mr. Singh said Gen. Musharraf was invited for the summit at the behest of the U.S. and the jehadis.

``Violence has increased in Jammu and Kashmir after the visit of the General,'' he said.

- PTI

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