India To Continue Non-Alignment

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29193, 2 May 1960, Page 11

India To Continue Non-Alignment

(Rec. 8 p.m.) NEW DELHI, April 29. India would stick to her policy of non-alignment and would continue to be friendly with China; but at the same time she would prepare herself to meet an emergency, the Prime Minister, Mr Nehru, said today during one of the angriest debates ever in the Indian Parliament over his recent talks with the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr Chou En-lai.

Twice in the House of the People the debate erupted into an uproar. Communists walked out amid jeers and shouts of “go home to China" after seeking—in vain—the Speaker’s protection against a Praja Socialist member who referred to “Communist fifth columnists,” Reuters reported. At one stage Communist and anti-Communist members sitting side by side on the Opposition benches rose to their feet and shouted: “Get out," “Shut up,” “Sit down” at each other. They almost came to blows.

A second uproar followed a few minutes later when Mr Nehru described some Opposition members as “amazingly incompetent to understand the situation” because they suggested India should try to eject the Chinese and s’- ould abandon the policy of nonai gnment. Opposition Socialists and Independents rose and shouted at the Prime Minister for 10 minutes, accusing him of inviting an inter* ruption because he had “nothing to say” in the limited time available for the debate. Mr Nehru will leave tomorrow for the Commonwealth Prime Ministers’ conference in London. Mr Nehru confirmed reports that another new road had been built by the Chinese on Indian territory in Ladakh during the last year. He said he had mentioned this to Mr Chou and had been “a little surprised” to find the Chinese leader did not know much about it. , Mr Nehru said that for India to give up its policy of non-align-ment would show a ser } se of weakness, and there could be nothing more dangerous than to spread this feeling of ’non-reli-ance on self.” . .. Earlier, Mr Nehru opened the debate by replying to a charge of unfriendliness by Mr

Chou at Calcutta. Mr Chou said on his way home from Nepal that Mr Nehru had been unfriendly by stating in Parliament on April 26 that China had committed aggression, although he had never said so during the week-long Chinese-Indian talks. He said that much had been said on both sides which was not very friendly to either country in the last year.

“But on the whole, considering the deep feelings aroused, we as a Government have tried to say things in a friendly way, though the content might necessarily be such as would not be liked by the other side. . . .

“V hen we claim that certain areas are wrongfully occupied by the Chinese and when we ask them to retire, it is something that is not likely to be liked by the ether party,” Mr Nehru said.

Mr Chou said that the Chinese still believed the boundary question would be “settled in a friendly way and on a reasonable basis without any conflict.” In the two areas disputed, the Chinese claimed they had always exercised jurisdiction.

But the Indian Government "does not agree with this and we say this dispute should be left for officers on both sides to examine." Mr Nehru said.

English Amateur Golf.—Douglas Sewell, the 1958 winner and a British Walker Cup player, beat Martin Christmas, a 20-year-o!d Sussex player, at the forty-first hole to win the English amateur golf championship at Hunstanton. Norfolk, today.—London, April 30. Moss Wins At Aintree. — Stirling Moss, driving a privately entered German Porsche, today scored an easy win in the Aintree "200" formula II motor race, which counts towards the manufacturers’ world championship.—London,