Hyderabad: Vice President of India M. Venkaiah Naidu said that India, as a major stakeholder in the promotion of global peace, firmly believes in peaceful settlement of disputes through negotiations on the basis of international laws and the UN Charter.
Addressing the 78th Session of International Institute of Law at Nalsar University here on Sunday, the Vice President said that the concept of the rule of law has been practiced in India from times immemorial.
The Sanskrit word Dharma broadly deals with righteousness, duty and law. It is derived from the root word denoting uphold, sustain, nourish and support, he said.
The two great epics Ramayana and Mahabharatha epitomize how Dharma, embodied through righteousness and justice, forms the basis for triumph of good over evil and for protecting mankind, he said.
“Dharmo Rakshati Rakshitah”, the Sanskrit sloka in Manu Smriti aptly sumps up the basic Indian philosophy— the law will protect and defend those who protect and defend it.
From the vedic periods and through the times of various kingdoms, some kind of a legal system has always been in place in the sub-continent—right from the days of Kautilya (around 2nd century B.C.) whose Arthashastra encapsulates the essential principles of governance and administration of law and justice, while the Britishers introduced rules of administration and justice in 1772 in Bengal,” Venkaiah Naidu said.
The Vice President said that India believes in the philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ meaning the ‘World is one family’ and has always respected international treaties and statutes.
Venkaiah Naidu said India attaches huge importance to the implementation of international statutes and the rule of law and is a firm believer in promotion of peace and justice globally.
“It should be noted that India was among the countries which played a key role in the development of some of the important global conventions and also those formulated by the United Nations like the Law of Sea Convention.
India has also made a significant contribution to the formation of the Asian-African Legal Consultative Organization to promote international law,” he said.
The Vice President said India is a signatory to many important international treaties/ protocols/ agreements. They include Convention on Biological Weapons, Convention on Chemical Weapons, Chicago Convention on International Aviation, Convention on Rights of Child,
International Convention on Doping in Sport, Genocide Convention, The Statute of Hague Conference on Private International Law, Kyoto Protocol, Montreal Protocol, Nuclear Terrorism Convention and International Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Venkaiah Naidu said India, particularly after the September 11, 2011 attacks, put considerable effort in fighting international terrorism. Several Conventions resulted from the efforts exerted under the auspices of the United Nations.
Mention may be made in this connection of the SAARC convention on the suppression of international terrorism as well as the Indian proposal to conclude a comprehensive convention on suppression of international terrorism now under consideration of the UN.
India is keen to see the conclusion of this important convention in the near future without further delay in view of the growing incidents of international terrorism, which are threatening world peace, he said.
“India today is the one of the largest economies and has a young and educated work force. It represents a mature Parliamentary democracy with a highly independent judiciary and fourth estate,” he said.
The Vice President said that India’s foreign policy was based on sovereign equality of States, non-intervention in the internal affairs of other States and peaceful settlement of disputes in accordance with principles articulated in Article 33 of the United Nations.
India attaches high importance to bilateral negotiations in settling its differences and disputes with other nations on the basis of international law, justice and equity. It subscribes to the compulsory jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice and values settlement of disputes by arbitration as appropriate.
It appeared before the ICJ six times, twice as an applicant and as a party to arbitrations on other occasions, he said.
The event was also attended by Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, Acting Chief Justice of High Court Justice Ramesh Ranganathan, Law Minister A. Indrakaran Reddy, Nalsar University Vice-Chancellor Dr. Faizan Mustafa, International Institute of Law president Dr. P.S. Rao and other dignitaries. (INN)