Delhi, Aug 3
Mr Swaran Singh, the Indian Minister for External Affairs, has reiterated the Government’s decision to counter any attempts by the international community to post United Nations observers on the Indian side of the border of East Bengal.

He told Parliament that the Government had already rejected the proposal in an aide memoire to U Thant, the United Nations Secretary General, and although the plan had virtually been thwarted. India would consider any attempts to revive the idea “an unfriendly act”.

“If any move is made in die United Nations we will have to tackle it vigilantly. We have tackled it in this case too, and the proposal is practically out” Mr Singh added that the Soviet Union and a number of other unspecified countries understood India s point of view.

Referring to the United Nations plan to place observers on the East Bengal side of the border, Mr Singh suggested that the posting of a few observers in East Bengal was unlikely to create the confidence required to induce the seven million refugees to return to their home.

“The mere posting of observers will only create a facade of action as a cover for the continuation of the present policies of the military rulers of Pakistan and further aggravate the suffering of the people of Bangla Desh.”

The aide memoire to U Thant, which was released last night, expresses India's total opposition to the plan to induct United Nations observers on to both sides of the Indo-Pakistan border. It also expresses resentment at allegations that India is preventing the refugees from returning to East Pakistan.

Our Diplomatic Staff write: Mr Salman Ali, the Pakistani High Commissioner in London, has lodged a complaint with Britain about the Bangla Desh rally in Trafalgar Square on Sunday.

He called on Mr Anthony Royle. Under-Secretary of State. Foreign and Commonwealth Office, to protest at what he described as the incidence of violence against Pakistanis at the rally.

Mr Royle is understood in have pointed out that the British Government has no jurisdiction over political rallies provided that they do not infringe Home Office regulations.

A High Commission spokesman said that Mr Mohiuddin Ahmed, the Pakistani diplomat who announced at the rally that he had left his post to work for the Bangla Desh movement, had had his diplomatic passport cancelled. The Pakistan Government would expect Mr Ahmed, aged 27, a second secretary at the commission, to return to Pakistan, as he was a member of the foreign service.