'India will witness positive changes after LS polls' : Advani

Chennai, Nov 13, 2008: BJP leader L K Advani tonight said here that India would witness "positive changes" in various fields after the next parliamentary elections."Just as the winds of change swept across the United States, I have no doubt that India too will witness changes after next parliamentary polls," he said, while releasing the Tamil translation of his autobiography 'En Desam, En Vazhkai'.

"Besides being an African-American, the US President-elect Obama was born to a Muslim father. This was, until recently, unthinkable in the US," Advani said.

Advani said, "in contrast to this, India has seen its first Muslim President Dr Zakir Hussain, as early as in 1967, when the memories of partition were still alive." "Since then India elected three Muslim Presidents, the last one being Dr A P J Abdul Kalam," he said.

He said "inclusive society" was a much talked about concept these days. "But India was always been inclusive. Our national culture has never discriminated between Indians on the basis of their caste, religion, language or the colour of their skin.

"Similarly, India has always rejected the idea of a theocratic state," Advani said.

(Agencies)