The overwhelming public sentiment in India was that no meaningful dialogue can be held with Pakistan until it abandons the use of terrorism as an instrument of its foreign policy. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Our frequent initiatives to normalise relations with Pakistan are not a sign of our weakness; rather, they are an indication of our commitment to peace. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
The Bio-diversity Convention has not yielded any tangible benefits to the world’s poor. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
During the 1942 Quit India Movement, I was a student at Gwalior High School. I was arrested by the British for participating in the movement. My parents then sent me off to my village where, again, I jumped into the movement. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
It is true that of all the states in India, Nagaland has a unique history. We are sensitive to this historical fact. But this uniqueness has in no way diminished the spirit of patriotism among the Naga people. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
India helped Bangladesh to achieve independence. The Bangladeshis should remain happy inside the territory of their own country. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
I am often accused of colluding with the British during the freedom struggle. I want to ask, how? – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
The regional parties have emerged as a strong force, and they, too, deserve a place in national politics. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
India was secular even when Muslims hadn’t come here and Christians hadn’t set foot on this soil. It is not as if India became secular after they came. They came with their own modes of worship, and they, too, were given a place of honor and respect. They had the freedom to worship God as per their wish and inclination. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
I believe India and Israel should focus on building bilateral relations on the basis of shared perspectives and commonalities between our two democracies. This has to be a forward-looking exercise rather than harking back to perceptions of the past. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
We should always care for the minorities and be attentive towards their welfare. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
People who ask us when we will hold talks with Pakistan are perhaps not aware that over the last 55 years, every initiative for a dialogue with Pakistan has invariably come from India. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Free and fair elections have again demonstrated that Jammu and Kashmir is part of India, and the people want to remain with it. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
We are unnecessarily wasting our precious resources in wars… if we must wage war, we have to do it on unemployment, disease, poverty, and backwardness. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
It requires an effort of logical acrobatics to believe that carnage of innocents is an instrument for freedom and elections are a symbol of deception and repression! – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Our nuclear weapons are meant purely as a deterrent against nuclear adventure by an adversary. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
I have a vision of India: an India free of hunger and fear, an India free of illiteracy and want. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
It is a matter of concern that science departments in India’s vast university system have suffered greatly due to lack of investments, both material and in terms of faculty. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
India has a consistent and well-known position on terrorism. We oppose all acts of terrorism, wherever they occur. We have repeatedly said that no cause can justify violence and destruction, particularly aimed at civilians. – Atal Bihari Vajpayee
