Advani's statement misplaced and unfortunate: Tuki

Itanagar, Oct 12 (UNI) Arunachal Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) President Nabam Tuki has termed Leader of the Opposition L K Advani's allegations against the Congress as ''misplaced and unfortunate''.

''Mr Advani's accusations against the ruling Congress of not wanting to make a clear cut statement on declaring Arunachal Pradesh an integral part of India by adopting a resolution on the lines of the one in the case of Jammu and Kashmir are misplaced and unfortunate,'' Mr Tuki said.

While addressing the BJP's Sankalp Yatra rally held yesterday at Pasighat in East Siang district, the senior BJP leader accused the ruling Congress of not wanting to make a clear cut statement on adopting a resolution on the lines of Jammu and Kashmir.

Expressing his anguish over the statement, Mr Tuki said External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukharjee had gone on record, including in Parliament, saying Arunachal Pradesh, particularly Tawang, is an integral part of Inida, especially after Chinese envoy Sun Yuxi, in a TV interview, had claimed the state as Chinese territory just before the visit of Chinese President Hu Jintao to India in 2006.

Moreover, the visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to China had added a new chapter to Indo-China relations, including the process of finding an amicable solution to the decades-old border row, the APCC president said.

''When the Special Working Groups (SWGs) of both the countries are engaged in serious boundary talks and working out acceptable modalities, why issue political statements just for the sake of it,'' Mr Tuki questioned and added that the 12th round of talks of the SWGs was held at Beijing recently.

The present pace of accelerated development process in the state began with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's announcement of the biggest ever package for the development of this sensitive landlocked border state in January, he said.

Pointing towards the frequent visits of central ministers, including Defence, DoNER and Panchayati Raj and Minister of State for Commerce, to the state, Mr Tuki said numerous Central sponsored projects granted by the ministers, including by the Union Surface Communication and Shipping Ministry, was a clear indication of the importance attached to this state by the UPA government.

During the NDA regime, Mr Advani, who was the Deputy Prime Minister, visited the state once and made many promises, including Rs 230 crore financial package, 500-bed hospital, which were not fulfilled, Mr Tuki alleged.

''Without making any promises, the UPA government has fulfilled all the demands of the state government, including central varsity status to Rajiv Gandhi University, 500-bed hospital-cum-Medical College and special financial package for the people of the state, which proves the honesty and truthfulness of the Congress-led UPA government,'' the APCC president added.

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