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It is now history. India never considered herself a nation and a country inferior to any other, least of all even USA. She always dealt with other countries from a standpoint of equality and strength. She could never be bullied or cowed down under threats.
United States of America (USA) though the oldest democracy in the world, has yet stood mostly by dictatorial regimes fighting against democracies in the world with only few exceptions. During the past 60 years, whenever there was a conflict between India and Pakistan, the successive democratic administrations in US have stood solidly behind the Pak military regimes (with short-time democratic interregnums) against the largest democracy in the world in India - be it the Kashmir issue, Pakistan's aggression against India and the like.
When the Pak military regime in 1965 waged a war of aggression against India, the country retaliated with full force. India gave Pakistan a bloody nose. Instead of siding with India, USA put pressure on the then Indian leadership to stop her victory march. To realize its objective, it even threatened to stop PL 480 wheat supplies which were vitally needed for the country as it was not self-sufficient in food production. But India under the brave leadership of the then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri refused to buckle under US threat and pressure. With his head high with the Indian pride, Mr. Shastri declared that India will do without American supplies and to counter it he gave the slogan of Jai Kisan, Jai Jawan. He gave the call for all Indians to observe fast on every Monday. There was such a tremendous and spontaneous response that every Indian home religiously observed it and no staple food was served even in restaurants and hotels, even five-star ones. on the Monday evenings.
When an intransigent military dictatorship forced a war on India in 1971, USA did not intervene to make Pakistan see reason and respect the democratic sentiments of the people of the then East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). On the contrary, when Pakistan appeared on a losing wicket, it was USA which tried to blackmail India by sending the Seventh Fleet to the Indian Ocean to overawe the advancing Indian forces.
Last update : 23-03-2010 00:33
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