Selected Works of Jawaharlal Nehru: Second Series (Volume 35)

Nehru had set the best traditions of engagement with the people and their leaders through dialogue and discussions… ranging from stability in Kashmir…to Second Five Year Plan…to the preservation of wildlife…to eschew casteism and communalism…(On) the issue of banning of the book…he could not make sense of violence breaking out, people making inflammatory speeches, and newspapers publishing articles to heighten religious passions…he pleaded for peace, tolerance and reconciliation. …this volume sheds much fresh light on the critical happenings in the Suez Canal and Hungary …Such was his stature and moral authority… that people from Hungary sought his active intervention… his vivid description of Saudi society reveals Nehru’s empathy for and understanding of a non-European society…The exchanges on the China-Myanmar dispute and the India-China boundary question enrich our knowledge of certain complex issues that are debated incessantly… Nehru claimed…that India had “raised that flag of peace of harmony in the world,” and that “without our efforts the world would have tilted even further towards war.”… (he) articulated forcefully the sentiments of the post-colonial nation states… Leaders consulted him on the finer details of the talks…regarded him as a tall leader, creative and reflective, knowing full well his contribution to the anti-colonial struggle and his commitment to democracy and secularism… This volume chronicles the history of a turbulent period for India as well as the world…he commented on them with passion and commitment. Although critics disagreed with his ideas and strategies, they recognized his extraordinary talents, including his analytical skills. Even though his stand on the invasion of Hungary received severe, and, at times, unwarranted criticism, his critics endorsed his broad commitment to peace and non-alignment and opposition to military pacts and alliances.