br8○ বাংরাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ দ্বাদশ খন্ড Mover of the resolution has to reply to the debate. It would not be possible to contain all this in 20 minutes which is the time that we have still left for this resolution. So, I would like to take the sense of the House in regard to this matter. We have taken a decision to extend up to 5.25. Let us see what happens. THE MINISTER OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS, AND SHIPPING AND TRANSPORT (SHRI RAJ BAHADUR): We may ask the Mover how much time he will require to reply as also the Minister. The remaining time can be given to the discussion. THE MINISTER OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (SHRI SWARAN SINGH): I will take about 15 minutes. SHRI S. M. BANERIEE: We agree to 5.25. He is going to take only 15 minutes, He is going to say nothing about it. Let him at least make some statement on the recent statement of Yahya Khan. He is keeping mum on that. SHRI SAMARGUHA: I will require 25 minutes. MR. DEPUTY SPEAKER: The Minister and the Mover together will take 40 minutes. We have to adjust the debate in the light of this. SHRI DINESH CHANDRA GOSWAMY (Gauhati): The issue of Bangladesh is in the mind of every citizen in the country. Even in this House we found expression of various moods-moods of hope, anger, despair, frustration, indignation and what not. There has also been a feeling in this House-if I have been able to sense it correctly-that as the world powers have not come forward in the anticipated manner it is time that we take some drastic action unilaterally ourselves. I feel that such an approach will really frustrate very purpose for which we are fighting. Since 1953 there has been confrontation between the democratic forces and the totalitarian forces in Bangladesh. These forces were evenly balanced. It is with the aid and assistance of the western powers that the totalitarian forces always crushed the democratic forces. It is because of this fact that in 1954 the political parties of East Pakistan adopted a resolution to do away with the alignment with the West so far as the foreign policy was concerned advocate a policy of non-alignment. The western Powers have realized that if the freedom fighters of Bangladesh are allowed to have their way, western dominance in that part of the country will come to an end. Therefore, in their own self-interest they are pursuing a policy which is not to our liking. It is because of this that even the British Government is saying that it is an internal affair of Bangladesh. Because of this reaction of the western Powers it will be a completely wrong approach to say that we should leave our efforts to have negotiations with the western Powers. Because of the various moods and feelings some wrong approaches have also taken place. The first such approach on the issue of Bangladesh' some of us feel-is that a solution of the problem in its economic aspect will be a solution of the political problem of Bangladesh. Secondly, there has also been a feeling current in this country that in
