India and South Asia-Growing Economic Stake

India and South Asia Growing Economic Stake Sumanta Banerjee THE promptness with which India rushed to help Sirimavo Bandaranaike crush the Ccylonese insurgents might have disappointed the Leftist admirers of India's 'progressive' foreign policy. As Ashok Rudra rightly points out: "It ought to set a problem for those who genuinely believe Indira to represent... the progressive, anti-monopoly, national bourgeoisie of India." ("Spectre Haunting Indira", May 29, pp 1069-71). But it would not be quite correct to say, as Ashok Rudra does, that "there had not been any military expression of India's imperialistic ambitions up till now", A closer look would reveal that the Indian intervention in Ceylon was in keeping with our traditional attitude towards instability in neighbouring countries and the policy of protecting our economic stakes in these areas.