We don't want to join arms race: PM

By Gargi Parsai

NEW DELHI, APRIL 6. The Prime Minister, Mr, Atal Behari Vajpayee, today asserted that India did not want to be part of the arms race. If other countries who had nuclear arms agreed to stop further manufacture and to destroy their arsenal, India would be willing to do the same.

Mr. Vajpayee's appeal for global disarmament came in the context of Lord Mahavira's teaching of ahimsa (non- violence) recalled on the occasion of his 2600th birth anniversary celebrations here.

``India has always stood for global disarmament. We have taken certain steps in self-defence but we do not want to join the arms race,'' he said while inaugurating the year-long celebrations, for which the Government will provide Rs. 100 crores as seed money.

He said Lord Mahavira's mantra of non-violence was never more relevant than now. In the nuclear age, there was no other way to save the world than through non-violence. But Mahavira's ahimsa was not that of a coward, but of a vir (brave), that was why he was called Mahavira and his teachings were of significance today.

``For us religious equity (sarva dharma sambhav) is a way of life. We believe in secularism. But secularism does not mean opposing religion. It means not linking any one religion to the government. Some days ago we celebrated the activities of the Khalsa panth and today we are commemorating the 24th Tirthankar of the Jain community,'' he said adding truth was one but its interpretations could be different. However, the differences should be stretched only upto a point.

Appealing for a pledge to follow Mahavira's teachings, Mr. Vajpayee said in this day of consumerism the focus should not be on profit but on welfare. ``This is what the Government is trying to implement.'' A commemorative stamp was released on the occasion by the Communications Minister, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan.

Seer turned away

The function was marred by the security personnel turning away the head seer of the Digambar Jain community, Muni Vidyanand, who arrived at the jam-packed Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium minutes after the Prime Minister.

There were no organisers to receive the unclothed seer. Instead, witnesses said, he and his group of four were spoken to very rudely by the security personnel manning gate number 1. To make matters worse, the Muni was informed that no arrangements had been made for him to be seated on the dais where other Shwetambar Jain munis were present. The seer, who has renounced all material objects and does not use a vehicle to travel, turned and walked back to his camp in Daryaganj.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Front Page
Next     : Retrial of case against Benazir ordered