I issued the same warning at a national meet convened by me of eminent public men, including former prime ministers, Gandhian leaders and academics. In my public interviews and writings, I have reiterated the view that division of the state on religious lines would threaten not only the interests of the state but would also threaten the secular fabric of India. If your correspondent did not know where I stood on the issues and had little knowledge of my role in the politics of the state, he should not have so grossly distorted my political image without meeting or speaking to me. The erroneous description of Mr Puri's views was incorporated from a related news agency story. I apologise for the distress this has caused him.
Explosives are perfectly safe if stored and handled as per the rule book.
No short-cuts are permissible here. But given these explosions, there seems to be something wrong somewhere as far as India's ordnance depots are concerned. It is felt that there should be an independent safety audit of all ordnance depots as well as of other places where explosives are manufactured and stored in the country. Perhaps the army could inspect all bomb dumps belonging to the air force, the air force could inspect the naval depots, and so on. Similar arrangements could also be worked out for ordnance factories, defence PSUs, laboratories and other facilities.