From 50 Years Ago: Sharing the Rann

Sharing the Rann

It is difficult to see the logic behind the demands raised in Parliament for rejection of the award of the Kutch Tribunal. The Indo-Pakistan agreement of 1965 is quite categorical that neither country would question the award. That agreement was approved by Parliament. India is bound by its own prior commitment and there is hardly any point in shirking this reality. Overzealous nationalists can express their anguish in as strong terms as they like but the Prime Minister’s first statement in Parliament saying that she would wait for the text of the judgment before expressing an opinion was sheer dramatics. In all fairness to herself, she should have stated categorically that India does not propose to run away from a commitment, howsoever painful the award may be.