Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 17: Recalling India’s victory over Pakistan on 16th December 1971, senior Congress leader and former Member Parliament Dr Karan Singh said that it was Indira Gandhi’s strong and decisive leadership that culminated into the Country’s first victory after a thousand years.
Karan Singh, who is the only surviving member of Indira Gandhi’s Cabinet during Bangladesh War, said Indira Gandhi seldom used to show any emotion but on that particular day, she was clearly overjoyed and almost ran into the House, took her seat and. “As soon as she entered, the House immediately became silent. She got up and said Mr Speaker, Dhaka has fallen to the Indian Army and the Mukti Bahini. The House exploded in joy and had to be adjourned,” he recalled.
He said it is often forgotten that during that year, Indira Gandhi did make genuine efforts to encourage a political solution in the conflict between East and West Pakistan. She sent her ministers around the world to meet heads of the states and impress upon them the necessity to persuade the rulers of Pakistan and come to a political settlement with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the former MP said.
Karan Singh said that in a brilliant stroke, Indira also signed the Treaty of Friendship with USSR which played an important role in preventing China or the United States from intervening during the Liberation War. Rightly was she called ‘Durga’ by the great Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
“I did feel Indira let Zulfikar Ali Bhutto off the leash rather generously. Although the purpose of the war was liberation of East Pakistan and not directly linked with Jammu & Kashmir, she could perhaps had used the opportunity to pressurize Bhutto regarding that beautiful state founded by my ancestors,” added Karan Singh.
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