The Hindu : National : Mulford exceeded brief: Buddhadeb

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Thursday, Feb 16, 2006

National

National

Mulford exceeded brief: Buddhadeb

Special Correspondent

U.S. envoy had objected to Chief Minister's "offensive remarks" against Bush

Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee

NEW DELHI: Taking strong objection to U.S. Ambassador David Mulford writing a letter to him as also its tone and tenor, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattarcharjee has urged Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to take up the matter at an appropriate level.

Reacting to the U.S. envoy's communication to him last month following his remarks at a rally, Mr. Bhattarcharjee said it was obvious that by doing so, the U.S. Ambassador "not only exceeded his brief but also overstepped the limits of diplomatic propriety."

In his recent letter to Dr. Singh, the Chief Minister drew attention to the text of the Ambassador's letter stating that the U.S. representative had asked him to "correct my record." The words and expressions used in the letter were "totally unacceptable," he said.

Expressing his views, the Chief Minister complained that the thrust of the message from the U.S. Ambassador was "both unfortunate and objectionable" and requested the Prime Minister to take up the matter at the appropriate level.

In his letter to Mr. Bhattarcharjee, the American Envoy said he was surprised and disturbed to see him describe President George Bush as a "leader of a gang of killers."

"As President's personal representative to India, I consider such remarks, if true, highly offensive. Such remarks also undercut your efforts to attract American investment to West Bengal. Businesses conduct a risk assessment when identifying potential investment opportunities. An important factor in this assessment is the political context.

"Inflammatory language from senior government officials will cause investors to look for more favourable locations to establish businesses," the envoy's letter said.

Mr. Mulford told Mr. Bhattacharjee that his remarks had already had "serious repercussions'' on the U.S. Government's perception of West Bengal. He said senior U.S. officials had cancelled visits as a result and that while India was now receiving a significant number of Congressional visitors, none of those high-level figures was travelling to Calcutta.

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