The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday said that it was “disappointed'' with U.S. President Barack Obama's statement upon his arrival in Mumbai, saying it made no mention of Pakistan, the origin of 26/11 terror attack in the country's commercial capital that killed about 165 people.
“It was the first address by the U.S. President at a place [Taj Hotel] which had seen the biggest terror attack on India and had shaken the world. There is evidence with the U.S. that this terror attack had originated from Pakistan, and its spy agency and terrorist organisations were involved in it. But there was no mention of Pakistan in the statement,'' party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy told reporters here.
He said the BJP felt that Mr. Obama had missed an opportunity to strike a chord with the one billion-plus people of India.
“President Obama has talked about the need to punish the perpetrators of 26/11 attack, determination to fight terrorism and solidarity with India, but despite knowing fully well about Pakistan's involvement in it, has not acknowledged it. This comes as complete disappointment,'' Mr. Rudy said.
He said that Mr. Obama's words were not backed by action. “We expected him to be more vociferous and strong against terror,'' he added.
The core group of the BJP would meet on Sunday at the senior party leader L.K. Advani's residence to decide on the issues which the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj would touch upon in her meeting with the U.S. President on Monday.
Contradictions
Mr. Rudy said there were some basic contradictions in the statements made by Mr. Obama in his pre-departure statement and the statement of Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao. While Ms. Rao had said that the visit was aimed at improving the overall relationship between the two countries, Mr. Obama in fact was carrying a “business wish-list'' with him.
“India's foreign policy vis-a-vis the U.S. has been swaying back and forth during the regime of the UPA,'' he said.
“Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and the Indian diplomats will have to answer a lot to the people of India as it seems that New Delhi is providing a political bail-out package to President Obama following a poor show by the Democrats in the recent elections in the U.S,'' he said.
