NEWDELHI: Uncertainty looms large over the three day SAARC summit scheduled to begin in Colombo on November 7.

With Bhutan expressing inability to attend the meet on account of pressing domestic problems, the summit dates may be postponed. The Bhutan king conveyed to the SAARC secretariat in Kathmandu that he would not be able to attend at present.

According to SAARC conventions, the summit is normally postponed if any of the seven members is not represented; all the summits held so far have been tended by all the member nations. The scheduled Colombo summit had earlier been postponed twice as come member of the other had expressed inability to attend the meet on dates fixed earlier.

All resolutions at the SAARC summit have to be ratified by all seven members. They are India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Bhutan, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

Colombo is keen that the sum it is held as scheduled and has requested India to ensure that the summit is not postponed any further. Senior officers of the foreign offices of both India and Sri Lanka are in constant touch with the SAARC secretary general, Kant Kishore Bhargava, who is head quartered in Kathmandu, At temp is are being made at diplo matric level to persuade Bhutan to review its decision and send its Legation even for few hours for “symbolic presence”,

The Sri Lankan President, Ranasinghe Premadasa, who has recently come out of the stiff op position to his leadership, is very keen on holding the summit as scheduled and had personally spoken to Narasimha Rao, o at tend the summit after reports that the Indian intelligence and security agencies had advised him against attending the Colombo summit.

Rao, it is learnt had vetoed all objections of the IB and security agencies in this regard after Premadasa had made a personal request to him.

Indian intelligence agencies had advised the Prime Minister against attending in the light of LTTE activities, especially in the wake of the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi. They were of the view that in view of the LTTE activities and the ability of its cadres to invent innovative methods to strike, it was not advisable for Rao to visit Colombo at present. They also cited the earlier un successful attempt on the life of Rajiv when a member of a guard of honor had hit him with a rifle butt. Rao was advised even by his party colleagues against visiting Colombo who were of the view that he should spend more time in campaigning for the party candidates for by collections scheduled in the middle of this month, However, Narasimha Rao had made it clear that he would be attending the summit. The entire arrangements for his daylong visit to Colombo were reviewed at the highest level and all possible pre cautions to ensure maximum security for him were drawn up. Indian Air Force helicopters have already reached Colombo o ferry the Prime Minister form Colombo international airport to hotel where he would be staying in Colombo.

Article extracted from this publication >> November 8, 1991