Thre
a
ebruory 9, 1969 THE MICHIGAN DAILY
Page Thr
Four-state elections to test Indian democracy
By JAMES W. MARKMAN
NEW. -DELHI (IP)-Prime Min-
ister Indira Gandhi will take
her ruling but visibly agn
* Indians early this month for a
special four-state election that'
will give some idea of the
soundness of the world's larg-
est democracy.
Between February and August
fou imorant north Indian
M states of West Bengal, Uttar
Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab col-
lapsed in political chaos.
By presidential' decree the
central government in New Del-
hi clamped them under civil
The 'lo omri ng Question is
Swhether the special state assem-
biy elections-the first of their
magnitude in the 21-year-his-
tory of free India-will create
viable governments or merely
return northern India to aim-
less, opportunistic instability.
Though divided, the Congress
appears the only party capable
of bringing some order to. the
c asate -r id d en and faction-
plagued politics of the four
states.
Its opponents, ranging from
Communists to ISindu nation-
alists, coalesced in a spirit of
anti-Congressism after the Feb-
ruar 1967 gneralelectinserand
power in all four of the con-
tested states for some months.
But their internal contradic-
tions and Congress maneuvering
Sfinally undermined them.
Their performances as coali-
tion governments (except in the
case of Punjab> are considered
tohae be unienspirig
efit from popular disillusion-
ment with its opponents even
though its top leaders admit'the
ArborMichIga'n, 420 Maynard st. An
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662-739U4RS
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5:00 P.M.-8:O0 P.M.
party has done little to enhance
its own image.
A powerful Congress central
cabinet minister privately pre-
dicted that his party will win in
Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal,
and lose in Punjab. Bihar he
thought was a tossup.
Some think the Congress will
have to forge a coalition to
rule in the Communist strong-
hold of West Bengal - and
others say the party may not
win outright in Uttar Pradesh.
Mrs. Gandhi's home state.
The most pessimistic observ-
wins, the four statesmwillreven-
tually revert to their customary
chaos, further sapping public
confidence in India's fledgling
parliamentary system.
T he Congress' 22-man ma-
jority in the national Parlia-
ment is firm - and will not be
affected by the state assembly
Mr os. Gandhi, t h e Congress'
biggest crowd-drawer, hds been
on the stump for her p ar ty
throughout this month, winging
up and down the Gangetic plain
that unites notthern India.ny
the Congress can provide sta-
bility and good government.
Presently more than 6,400
1127 state assembl sets.f r
Only 69 constituencies have
straight fights between two can-
didates.-
The Congress is the only par-
ty that has candidates for all
the seats. It traditionally bene-
fits from multicornered con -
spi the vote lavngthe Cn-
gress candidate with a plurality
and the victory.
In West Bengal, Ashu Ghosh,
an excommunicated Congress-
man and leader of one of sev
from three different constitu-
bir, had his jaw fractured b& a
frecracker hurled at a rally. He
iscapagnng with tape-re-
Out of these and countless
other confusing vignettes, the
largely illiterate voters - one-
third of the Indian electorate --
will try to make political sense.
HARYA
PAJA$THAN
REDC -/iA- - 6
~i/.- HUTA
b) 'The Assocza/edIrs and CoIlege Press Service
TAX PROVISIONS FAVORING conglomerated merg-
ers might be removed by Congress, Rep. Wilbur Mills (D-
Ark.) hinted yesterday.
,
MIMRCI1
PRADESF
Mills, chairman of the House Ways and Means Com-
mittee, questioned the soundness of mergers of unrelated
businesses. He warned companies planning conglomerate
mergers "to go slow if they are depending upon any tax pro-
visions for success."
T h e Federal. Communications Commission announced
yesterday it will study the acquisition of television and radio
stations by conglomerates.
.. . .~ *. *.*. .~ . *. . *.
S.,
GOA
w.r~ ~LA
~TRPURA MANIPUR. ~*
EAST B--
W spengal.E..Ciongres
Punjab......Non-Congress
Bih ar.............Undecidpd
THE RUPTURED UNDERWATER OILWELL off the
California coast finally was plugged yesterday.
Oil' from the Union Oil Co. well, which had been pouring
21,000 gallons a day into the Pacific near Santa Barbara far
12 days, formed a slick covering up to 800 square miles and
coated more than 30 miles of beaches.
The Federal Water Pollution Control Administration or-
dered an immediate cleanup of the area. However, conserva-
tionists and fishermen expressed concern over the harm done
to sea birds and marine life. Several hundred oil-covered birds
have already been found dead.
Pending a review of procedures to prevent any future
leaks, the federal government has ordered a halt to all oil
drilling in the Santa Barbara Channel.
Is
~-
FAL L CONCERT
Committee Chairmen
P UBL IC ITY
T REASU RE R
T ICK ETS
SECR ETA RY
- ,
____Special Election leFebru0.y
L113n Congress Governmenrs
Non-Congress Governments -
Communist Government
Regular Election in February
SIGN UP
Third Floor, League
th ru Feb. 21
NiXon admini11stration predicts
upcoming11 income1 tax reform1s
0
"VISCOUNT HAS MADE A BEAUTIFUL, DISCREET, PERCEPTIVE
FILM OF THIS EPOCHAL WORK OF THE 20TH-CENTURY
WOR D. . FILM ACTING AT ITS PUREST .
THIS IS THE EXRESSION, THROUGH THEIR ART, BY
SOME FINE FILM ARTISTS OF THEIR SYMPATHY AND
LOVE FOR CAMUS' GREAT BOOK."
Stanley Kauffman, The New Republic
"MASTROIANNI'S PERFORMANCE IS IMPECCABLE.-
ANNA KARINA IS MOVING AS HIS MISTRESS.
IT IS AN IMPRESSIVE FILM AND A RARITY."
-Hollis Alpert, The Saturday Reviewv
"ONE OF THE BEST"-Esquire
WASHINGTON (/T - Signi-
ficant changes in the federal
income tax are likely to be en-
Sacted this year, a Treasury
spokesman said yesterday, be-
c ause the chorus of public com-
ignored.
"I think the American people
are saying something and the
message is getting through," he
sai -d.
The comment was made at a
news conference called for dis-
Itribution of , a six-paragraph
NA NSOMA
"AN EXCELLENT FILM"-Life
STARTS TOMORROW-7 :00, 9:00
3DAYS ONLY-ENDS WEDNESDAY
II
A FESTIVAL WEEK
FEB. 10-16 MONDAY-SUNDAY
MR. DEEDS GOES TOTOWN
dir. Frank Capra, 1939
Gory Cooper
TH E WOMEN
dgr. George Cukor, 1939
Norma Shearer, Rosalind Russell, yoan Crawford, and
Paulette Goddard
IAM A FUGITIVE FROM A CHAIN GANG
dr. Mervyn Leroy, 1932
LITTL E CA ESA R
dar G Rono in the role that made him famous
MORNING GLORY
dir. Lowell Sherman, 1936
Katherine Hepburn and Aldophe Meniou
Hepburn won her first Oscar for this role
NINOTCHKA
dir. Ernst Lubitsch, 1939
Starring the dazzling, immortal Garbo
IT HAPPENED ONE NIGHT
dir. Frank Capra, 1934
Cloudette Colbert and Clark Gable
Academy Awards for Best Filmn, Best Actor, Best Actress,
and Best Direction
in the Architecture Aud. at 7:00 & 9:05
statement on tax reform from
Secretary of the Treasury David
M. Kennedy,.
The secretary pledged t h a i
"tax reform and equitable tax
administration will have a high
priority" under President Ni-
xon's leadership.
Kennedy's spokesman, w h i 1 e
noting "unrest in the popula-
tion"' about tax inequities, said
the secretary and other top
Treasury officials have been in~t
of fice too briefiy to present a
detailed, point-by-point reform
plan.
"We're not ready to go into
any specifics," he said. But the
administration hopes to h a v e
some proposals ready before the
end of House Ways and Means
wil open Feb. 18,e he said. at
partment staff report prepared
in the waning months of the
preceding administration. While
President Lyndon B. Johnson
obeyed a statutory requirement
to turn the staff proposals over
to Congress. he refrained from1
endorsiiig them. '
Among the changes proposed
in the study were reducing tax-
es for many low-income fami-
lies by liberalizing the minimum
standard deduction; cracking
down on farm losses claimed by
nonfarmers; and requiring al
high-income taxpayers to pay
at least a token tax even if they
have amassed sufficient deduc-
ions to excludeatheir entire In-
Kennedy's statement did not
touch on any of the proposals
As it prepares its own Ideas for
change, he said, the new ad-
ministration is emphasizing
three areas.
"First," Kennedy said, "we
have the question of equity-
are all Americans in similar cir-
mately the same amountpo in
come taxes?"
.Stress is being placed also on
. studies keyed to the FPresident's
interest "in the use of tax cre-
dts to hep sole the problem
A= tidarea of emphasis
Kennedy said, Is how to. ap-
proach the broader problem of
re-examining the entire na-
tional tax system, including not
just federal taxes but state and
local as well.
Kennedy's spokesman said this
re-examination will be a ma-
jor undertaking and it is un-
likely that legislation related
to such a study can be pre-
pared in time for consideration
at the upcoming hearings.
* 0 .
RESUMPTION OF U.S.-EGYP.TIAN diplomat'ic rela-
tions is favored by the Nixon admninistration, ofglclal
sources said yesterday.
However, Washington officials feel the Egyptians should
make the first move toward resuming relations.
The United Arab Republic broke diplomatic ties ,with
Washington during the June 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The at-
mospher.e between the two nations remained strained.
throughout the remainder, of the Johnson administration.
But a recent exchange of friendly letters between Presi-'
dents Nixon and Gamel Abde.1 Nasser indicates that a return
to better official relations is possible.
* * 0
ALLEGED ISRAELI AND AMERICAN SPIES are on
trial in Iraq.
According to Egyptian and Syrian press reports, four
leading Iraqi merchants were among an unknown number of
defendants charged with spying for Israel and the U.S. Cen-
tral Intelligence Agency. No Jews were among the accused.
lThe defendants reportedly set up a spy ring under sup-
ervision of an Israeli military attache in neighboring Iran.
At the United Nations, Jordan requested an Urgent meet-
-ing of the Security Council, attacking a new Israeli law which
-would' require all companies, societies and professional peo-
tples in Old Jerusalem to have Israeli-issued licenses.
..Jordan's ambassador to the U.N. charged the legislation
was "designed to destroy the character of the city and Incor-
porate the Arab life into Israeli life."
e - POSSIBLE CUTS IN THE SPACE PROGRAM were re-
quested by President Nixon yesterday.
In addition, Niixon asked for the creation of a committee
"to advise on the scope and direction of the post-Apollo space
program."
-During his Presidential campaign, Nixon said he would
support cuts in space program' expenditures because of what
he termed the "great financial crisis" confronting the na-
tion. Nevertheless, he said he is in favor of a "space program
,Nixtseonahi Koe'Biscayne retreat, also announced that
he has asked Postmaster General Winston Blount to suggest
ways "to counter the use of the mails for the purpose of send-
ing obscene materials to juveniles."
NARCOTICS RAIDS by police in the New York City
area yesterday and Friday resulted in the arrest of 183
persons.
One raid in Queens netted 108 youngsters, 68 of them
between the ages of 10 and 15. In a raid in the Bronx, police
arrested eight persons at what they said was "the major fac-
Story" for drugs for New York University's uptown campus.
-Persons under 15 were released in t~ie custody of their
parents.
PRESIDENT MOHAMMED AYUB KHAN won re-elec-
tion yesterday as the chief of his ruling Muslim League
party. He had been unopposed.
A target of widespread demonstrations for three months,
Ayub Khan said: "No individual or group of individuals can
take precedence over the country."
His critics, composed mostly of students and discontient-
ed workers, demand extensive political and educational re-
forms.
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Tuesday, February 11
NOON LUNCHEON 25c
PROF. RICHARD MANN, Psychology:
"TENURE AND ACADEMIC REFORM AT THE U OF M"
Program Information 686416
"NOTHING LIKE IT IN TOWN..
ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS I"
..o.3 woo, Repoter
WAR'
SE.WAYNE MORSE
MORE
Robert Rimmer, author of "The Harrod Experiment"
aided by three members of the University MediCal
U