Dr Rajkumar Singh
REVIEW of relations with both Nepal and Sri Lanka and restoration of traditional friendly relations with them was felt to be the need of the hour. In the National Front manifesto it was stated that they will “weave a new pattern of co-operative relationship with the neighbours”. Committing the Front to “the safety and security of the Tamils in Sri Lanka, “the manifesto clearly announced that the Innocent People Killing Force (IPKF) will be withdrawn from Sri Lanka and with Nepal, it stated that negotiations will be started on all issues of contention to find an amicable solution” and also help “strengthen the economy of Nepal and honour her self-respect. Obviously, the National Front’s Government consciously played India’s diplomacy in such a way that such an image of India may be dispelled. To this end, therefore, the new policy makers were following a low diplomatic stance vis-à-vis the neighbours. To quote VP Singh: Our approach to the neighbouring countries will be one of friendliness, no any arm-twisting or any bullying tactics. I want to make this clear. Strength lies in mutual understanding. Relinquishing of big brother’s image: It was probably with this in mind that the new government took steps to shed off India’s “big brother” image by publicly announcing that India’s defence expenditure will be cut; and second that India will enter into dialogue with all the neighbouring countries to find a way out of some of their outstanding issues with them. Final withdrawal of the Indian Peace-keeping Force took place peacefully a few days before 31 March 1990 and in the same year in June, during the visit of Nepalese Prime Minister K P Bhattarai National Front Government signed an understanding that brought an end to almost a year long stalemate. Government of India’s agreement to open all the traditional points of transit for trade purpose and a few more to allow foreign tourists to visit Nepal had indeed been widely acclaimed in Nepal.
Considering South Asia as the critical core of the foreign policy, initiatives have also been taken in regard to the other neighbouring countries, like Bangladesh and Pakistan. With Dacca, the most outstanding of all the disputes was the sharing of Ganga waters and it found a welcome development in the resolution of her pending disputes with New Delhi. Even with Pakistan–the most complicated and yet the most important of all of India’s South Asian neighbours, the National Front Government’s record had been creditable. Despite the developments in Kashmir Valley, V P Singh’s Government considered it appropriate to keep the dialogue open. He laid special emphasis to the need to revitalising and strengthening of ties with the neighbours in South Asia and declared that his Government will spare no effort to resolve outstanding bilateral issues with neighbouring countries, consistent with national interest, usher in an era of stability, confidence and co-operation endeavour in our region. Policy of united front: The 1996 experiment was no different. The United Front was a post-poll alliance of largely regional formations and it banked on Congress support from outside. Under H.D. Deve Gowda’s dispensation Inder Kumar Gujral became the new Minister for External Affairs. Coming of the new team marked a new beginning in India’s relations with South Asian countries. Major positive developments took place in India’s foreign relations that showed a different direction. India during the regime launched an initiative of peace through the “Gujral Doctrine”. The atmosphere in South Asia was more hopeful, and promised to herald a new era of durable peace in a region, frequently marked by hostility and misperceptions the traditional fear of “India’s big bullying tactics” had declined in some ways in the present atmosphere.
The “Gujral Doctrine” was a much-needed initiative. The new trend after the cold war that witnessed conflict resolution and conflict management some people in Indian Foreign Policy Establishment believed that if peace could reign in Cambodia and between the formerly dead enemies such as Egypt and Israel and Jordan, and Israel and PLO, why not in South Asia. The second most important rationale behind the doctrine was the disintegration of the former Soviet Union that had a far-reaching effect on world politics in general and India’s area of “special relationship outside the South Asian powers in particular. In the changed world perhaps the most significant achievement of the Gujral Doctrine was a conscious decision by our Foreign Office to make the nation’s foreign office less Pakistan-centric. The Policy has enhanced India’s image abroad and has also been successful, to a considerable extent, to check the outside interference in the regional problems in South Asia. It promised to bring about changes in the security environment of the region and is in conformity with the ongoing world-wide changes. Adoption of positive approach: India’s relations with other neighbours had also promised a marked reduction of tension with the increasingly intrusive diplomacy being pursued by Gujral. With the signing of the historic treaty with Bangladesh on the sharing of the Ganga waters, a long standing irritant had been replaced with a cordial relationship. Other areas of disagreements have also been accommodated or agreed to solve between New Delhi and Dhaka. With Nepal, the conclusion of the Mahakali water treaty was another landmark. Similarly with Colombo, New Delhi had been extending maximum co-operation to restore peace and stability in its northern and Eastern Provinces. Even Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General, had welcomed the initiatives taken by Prime Minister I K Gujral in pursuing the policy of good-neighbourliness.
— The writer is Professor and Head, P G Department of Political Science, Bihar, India.
