SCHEDULED CASTES’................MANIFESTO— 397
we do not weaken Parliamentary Democracy and help Dictatorship to grow. It would be like throwing the baby out of the bath but in emptying it of dirty water.
- India’s first duty should be to herself. Instead of fighting to make Communist China a permanent member of the U. N. O. India should fight for getting herself recognised as the permanent member of the U. N. O. Instead of doing this, India is spending herself in fighting the battle of Mao as against Chaingkai Shek. This quixotic policy of saving the world is going to bring about the ruination of India and the sooner this suicidal foreign policy is reversed the better for India. Before championing the cause of Asiatic countries, India must strive every nerve, must seek every aid to make herself strong. Then only will her voice be effective. This will be the line of Foreign Policy that the Scheduled Castes Federation will pursue.
III. Question of Resources :
Programme is not a mere matter of words or ideas. If it is to be put into action, it is necessary to find the necessary finance. Nobody will take a Party’s programme seriously unless and until the Party is able to show how it is going to foot the bill.
Although the amount required for the programme set out by the Federation is by no means small, the financial problem is not unmanagable. The Scheduled Castes Federation suggests the following ways of raising finances for the development of the country : (i) Reduction of Expenditure over the Army.
(ii) Re-levy of the Salt tax.
(iii) Abolition of prohibition and the saving of Excise Revenue,
(iv) Nationalisation of Insurance.
- The total revenues of the Government of India are about Rs.
350 crores out of this the Army is eating up more than 50 per cent of the Revenues or nearly Rs. 180 crores per annum. This is a colossal expenditure on defence in a country where people are dying of starvation. On the basis of the settlement of the Kashmir issue in the way suggested in the Manifesto and the change in the