Sonia plays down Left's concerns, says no cause for alarm

NEW YORK: UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi has sought to play down Left's concerns on the Indo-US nuclear deal saying they were not a cause for "alarm".

"Some time a great deal is made in public domain of the opinions expressed by our friends who support our coalition but this should not alarm you," the Congress president said here without directly referring to the deal but apparently alluding to it.

Addressing a gathering of over 2,000 Indian-Americans last evening, Gandhi said, "we believe that it is important to listen to all points of view because we believe that this only strengthens the democratic process and the process to arrive at a consensus."

Calling for a concerted fight against terrorism, Gandhi stressed on the need to ensure that no community feels targeted.

Paying tributes to the way the people of New York have rebuilt their lives after terrorist attacks of Sept 11, 2001, she said India has been confronting this scourge for a very long time.

Mahatma Gandhi fell to the bullets of a fanatic and two its leaders Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were also victims to terrorism.

"What is remarkable is the resilience of people and how these attacks have not succeeded in damaging the bonds of social harmony in our society," Sonia said.

The Congress chief pointed out that terrorism in the name religion is negation of all that every religion stands for "peace, compassion and understanding".

That, Gandhi emphasized, brings out the need to fight the scourge but "at the same time it is necessary to ensure that no community feels under seize or sees itself as a target of automatic suspicion.

"The philosophy of the Congress party is to respect of all religion but at the same time to fight fundamentalism and communalism of every shade," she told the public meeting organized by the Indian National Overseas Congress.

A coalition government, Gandhi said, is a new experience for the Congress but "we have adapted well."

While drawing up the Common Minimum Programme, she stressed, Congress has not compromised on its basic values and principles.

The programme is largely derived from Congress' own manifesto, she said. Paying tribute to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for his initiatives, she said country's economic growth is one of the highest in the world and emphasized that the government is taking a number of steps to ensure that the prosperity percolates to the poorest.

The new prosperity, she said, is opening up new opportunities. But there are many regions that are lagging behind and in keeping with the promises made by the Congress, special effort is being made to improve the quality of life of the most disadvantageous.

In this context, she referred to agriculture which, she said, needs to be revitalized and therefore, the government has made huge allocation to support it.

Gandhi, who is here to address the UN General Assembly on the occasion of the world body declaring October 2 has the International Day of Non-Violence in a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, said far reaching rural employment guarantee programme has been launched which would cover all but a few urban districts.

And "we have new legislation for social security for workers in unorganized sector," she said.

The importance of the programme, Gandhi said, is clear from the fact that 90 of the work force is in this sector.

Welcoming the huge remittances being sent by the Indian abroad which she said are a major source of strength of the economy, Gandhi warned them that they should be more careful while funding Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs.)

While appreciating Indian Americans' philanthropic spirit in funding NGOs working in fields like education and rural development, she said not all of them are noble in their intentions and transparent in their activities.

They need to be careful to ensure that they do not fund those who damage the country's secular structure, she added.