Requested the Government to make a statement on the protest logded by the Government of Sri Lanka regarding certain remarks allegedly made by an M.P. in Geneva
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, please speak now.
श्री मणि शंकर अय्यर : हरि शंकर जी, मणि शंकर जी को बोलने की इजाजत दीजिए। मैं खत्म कर लूं, उसके बाद आप अपना आन्दोलन जारी रखना। कृपया मुझे एक मिनट का समय दीजिए।… (व्यवधान)
उपाध्यक्ष महोदय: क्या आप इंटरप्ट करते जाएंगे? क्या किसी को बोलने नहीं देंगे?
(व्यवधान)
————————————————————————————————————————————————-
*Not Recorded.
**Expunged as ordered by the chair.
उपाध्यक्ष महोदय कुछ भी रिकॉर्ड में नहीं जाएगा।
( व्यवधान) *
उपाध्यक्ष महोदय: +ÉÉ{É <iÉxÉä ¤ÉÖVÉÖMÉÇ cé* +ÉÉ{ÉBÉEä ÉÊJÉãÉÉ{ÉE BÉEÉä<Ç BÉEɮǴÉÉ<Ç BÉE®xÉÉÒ {ɽäMÉÉÒ*
SHRI MANI SHANKAR AIYAR : Sir, as soon as Shri Hari Shankar Mohale stops, Mani Shankar Aiyar will begin.
श्री हरिभाऊ शंकर महाले: ={ÉÉvªÉFÉ àÉcÉänªÉ, ªÉc iÉÉä +ÉxªÉÉªÉ cè*
={ÉÉvªÉFÉ àÉcÉänªÉ& BÉDªÉÉ ªÉc +ÉxªÉÉªÉ xÉcÉÓ cè ÉÊBÉE àÉèxÉä =xcå ¤ÉÉäãÉxÉä BÉEÉ SÉÉÆºÉ ÉÊnªÉÉ +ÉÉè® +ÉÉ{É =xcå ¤ÉÉäãÉxÉä xÉcÉÓ nä ®cä cé?
SHRI MANI SHANKAR AIYAR : Mr. Deputy-Speaker, Sir, I would request through the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs that a statement be made in the House by the hon. Prime Minister relating to the protest that has been lodged with the Government of India by the Government of Sri Lanka regarding certain remarks that are alleged to have been made in Geneva by an hon. Member of this House.
Sir, we had the opportunity of seeing news reports which have reported the alleged remarks. We have also had the opportunity of seeing the remarks made by the hon. Member concerned in rebuttal. What we have not seen is the basis upon which a responsible foreign power like the Government of Sri Lanka has uniquely – because it has never done this before – lodged a protest with us relating to the remark which has allegedly been made by a Member of this House. What we would like to know is the basis on which the Sri Lankan Foreign Minister has concluded that there is sufficient reality to those reports to take the unusual step of lodging a protest with us. We also need to know whether the Government of India
__________________________________________________________________
*Not Recorded.
has made any attempt to secure an authentic or an authenticated version of what were the remarks made by this hon. Member in Geneva. I say this because this is not merely a matter of foreign policy, that is why I have not sought the statement from the Minister of External Affairs, it is not merely a matter of foreign policy, it relates to the very life of the Head of State of a friendly country and what is more since the statement was made or alleged to have been made by a leader of a political party that is a member of the governing National Democratic Alliance, it becomes incumbent on us to know whether this hon. Member’s statements have been subscribed to by the Government, or have been rejected by the Government. If rejected, what steps they propose to take against the hon. Member concerned and his party, which is a member of the National Democratic Alliance? And above all, if the reported remarks are true, there is a major question of the integrity of India at stake for the name of the ruling alliance is the National Democratic Alliance and we need to know which is the nation that they represent. We had assumed that the National Democratic Alliance relates to the Indian nation but according to the alleged remarks made by this hon. Member concerned, there is a reference to a single Tamil nation, a single Tamil country.
Now, as far as I know, there are Tamils who begin at the borders of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh and extend deep into Sri Lanka, right down to the Indian Ocean and also across the Ocean, there are Tamils who live in Fiji; there are Tamils in Mauritius, and there are Tamils in West Indies. There are Tamils even now in United Kingdom, Norway, in Europe, and in the United States of America. If it is true that the leader of a political party, who is a member of the “National Democratic Alliance” is referring to a Tamil nation as distinct from an Indian nation then we would certainly wish to know from no one less than the Prime Minister as to whether the National Democratic Alliance represents the Indian nation or the socalled Tamil nation.
Sir, these remarks are of such import that I think I would plead with the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs that he brings these matters to the attention of the Prime Minister and that we get a clarification from the Prime Minister as to how the Government of India has reacted to the protest lodged by the Government of Sri Lanka and how the Government of India views remarks about the Indian nation and the Tamil nation, if in fact, such remarks were made by the hon. Member concerned.
MR. DEPUTY-SPEAKER: The House stands adjourned to meet again at 3 p.m.
13.59 hours
The Lok Sabha then adjourned for Lunch till
Fifteen of the Clock.
————–
15.03 hours
The Lok Sabha re-assembled after Lunch at three minutes
past Fifteen of the Clock.
(Mr. Speaker in the Chair)
MR. SPEAKER: The House will now take up Matters under Rule 377.
SHRI HANNAN MOLLAH (ULUBERIA): Mr. Speaker, Sir, there is tension in Jamia Millia Islamia regarding the examination.… (Interruptions)
SHRI SAMIK LAHIRI (DIAMOND HARBOUR): Mr. Speaker, Sir, the situation is very tense in Jamia Millia Islamia. The police force is there and the examination is not taking place. The students have boycotted the examination. So, I urge upon the Home Minister to look into the matter. … (Interruptions)
MR. SPEAKER: This will not go on record.
(Interruptions) *
__________________________________________________________________
*Not Recorded.