NEW DELHI: “We are not waiting for anybody. We are just going ahead to do whatever we wish in the matter,” declared the Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, speaking at a Press conference this evening [June 17] following the breakdown of the negotiations with Hyderabad. The draft agreement reached between the representatives of the Governments of India and Hyderabad, which was not accepted by the Nizam was released for publication at the conference.

Pandit Nehru said that the Government of India would pursue an “open door policy” in as much as the proposals which they had forwarded to the Nizam has not been withdrawn and it was open to the Nizam to accept them at any time he chooses. But at the same time the Prime Minister emphasised that the Government of India “would not wait for anybody”. He added that during the interval the Government of India would tighten up the blockade and would take such defensive steps as were warranted. … The Prime Minister revealed that he had received a telegram from the Nizam’s Government … expressing their desire to continue that talks.

Published in Dawn, June 18th, 2023