In its election manifesto, the BJP has come up with an ominous promise ‘to revise and update’ India’s nuclear doctrine to meet the challenges of the day (“ >Dancing with the nuclear djinn ,” April 12). What the party has hinted at is that it is in favour of diluting the “no- first-use” nuclear doctrine. This comes as an oblique warning to neighbouring countries, especially Pakistan, that New Delhi can harden its stance on unresolved disputes. However, it would be a monumental folly if the BJP deludes itself into believing that its threat to review nuclear doctrine will intimidate any neighbours into caving in to its demands.
G. David Milton,
Kanyakumari
