INDIA AS A REPUBLIC

Chronicle (Levin), 5 November 1948, Page 5

INDIA AS A REPUBLIC

(N.Z.P.A.

— Reuterj

Draft Constitution To Be Approved Shortly

Copyright)

Received Friday, 9.55 a.m. LONDON, Nov. 4. The Indian Constituent Assembly will shortly approve a draft Constitution making India an "Independent Sovereign Republic," said the Prime Minister, Pandit Nehru, addressing a Press conference in Cairo today. The Associated Press correspondent, in reporting the conference, says Pandit Nehru added that the Constitution would not affect India's relations with the United Kingdom and other countries of the Commonwealth. Pandit Nehru said: "We ape passing through a stage where the vhole of Asia is going to play an important part in world affairs. In the past our meeting grounds have been the European capitals, not our home capitals. Conditions have changed and various countries which, in the past, have played secondary roles in world affairs are now playing primary roles." New Delhi had become an important diplomatic centre in the world and India had an important part to play in world affairs.

"A severe political crisis exists, but there are other conditions prevailing to prevent war. Some aspects of the United Nations work are open to criticism, but the fault may not be in the organisation itself but in the member nations. The mere fact that the United Nations exists is a good thing, diminishing the chances of war and allowing a great deal of confiict to be transformed into verbal quarrels." Pandit Nehru said that India was deeply interested in the Indonesian question. He added that if there was further Dutch aggression in Indonesia, it would have great repercussions, not only here but also in ,all Asia.