BJP demands immediate end of war by Colombo

Yet another glaring foreign policy failure of the UPA Government is unfolding before our eyes in Sri Lanka. Lakhs of hapless Tamilians in Sri Lanka have had to flee from their homes in their ancestral land in the country’s northern areas, as the Sri Lankan government has intensified a fierce battle in the region, disregarding calls for a ceasefire from the international community.

It is sad to see that the UPA Government has failed to prevail upon the Sri Lankan government to end this grave humanitarian crisis.
The leadership of the Congress party and UPA government has reduced India’s role to that of a passive spectator, even as shocking statements about the LTTE are being made by partners in the UPA Government. It has failed to make a clear distinction between the LTTE, which is a terrorist organization, and the fate of Sri Lankan Tamils. It has virtually turned a blind eye when, in the name of fighting the LTTE, the Sri Lankan Government has continued to ignore and suppress the legitimate concerns and democratic aspirations of Sri Lankan Tamils.
The BJP reiterates its stand that the ethnic issue in Sri Lanka can be resolved only on the basis of two equally important principles: safeguarding the unity of Sri Lanka and recognition of the inalienable democratic rights of Sri Lankan Tamils to live a life of dignity and equality.
The BJP demands an immediate ceasefire in Sri Lanka and resumption of peaceful methods of finding an enduring solution to the ethnic issue.

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JAI HO RAHMAN AND HIS TEAM INDIA

Bollywood celebrated as Rahman bagged the Oscars for best original score in 'Slumdog Millionaire' and its theme song 'Jai Ho'.
Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap is all praises for the singer-composer. He said: 'This is a happy moment for all of us. We all should celebrate because he (Rahman) has made us proud. Finally we did it!
Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, who has worked with Rahman for his films 'Rang De Basanti' and 'Delhi-6', says the singer-composer truly deserved the award.
'I am proud and so happy that it's A.R. He brought north and south India together when he started composing music and now he has successfully bridged the gap between the east and the west. It's incredible! There are more people in the west who know him now than they know about his work,' Mehra told .
Rahman, the first Indian musician to win the annual Academy Award, was listed for three of the film's ten Oscar nominations - one for his original score and two others for songs composed by him, 'O Saya' and 'Jai Ho'.

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General Elections between April 8 and May 15: EC

The next General Elections in India will take place in April-May this year, SY Quraishi, Election Commissioner of India said here.

"We, in the Election Commission, have not yet discussed the final dates, but it will be held between April 8 and May 15," Quraishi said after delivering a lecture on 'J&K Elections 2008', at the India House last evening. The Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Shiv Shanker Mukherjee, was present on the occasion.
Narrating the problems faced by the Election Commission in holding the seven-phase elections for the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, Quraishi said the 61.5 percent turnout despite adverse weather conditions justified their decision to go ahead with the poll, which was fair and transparent.
"The Indian Election Commission has the highest credibility," he asserted.
General Election in India is the largest electoral exercise in the world involving 671 million voters. Noting that India is the only country in the world to introduce the Electronic Voting Machines at such a large scale, he said the system has ensured that the "secrecy of vote is not compromised."
Answering a question, he said the State Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir were not linked to the Kashmir problem. "It (the dispute) should be resolved through negotiations," he said.
Quraishi said "our experience is that while the party in power is almost invariably unhappy with us, the opposition parties love us. But once the opposition party becomes the ruling party the roles get reversed."
He said both the ruling and the opposition parties realise, especially when they are no longer in power, how much they stand to benefit from EC's interventions.

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