Wednesday, February 15 2006 12:55 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: In an apparent message to the Left parties who have been attacking the Government over various policies, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today (Feb 15,2006) talked about the need for 'out of box' thinking and asserted that issues would have to be judged on 'merits rather than in a mechanical or deterministic manner'.

Singh, whose Government has been particularly criticized by the Left recently over its policy on Iran, said that "While we must be guided by the experiences of the past, we need not be constrained by it."

The world had changed a great deal in the last 15 years and the international community was ready to accept India as a power, he said here while releasing the first copy of Indian Foreign Affairs Journal published by the Association of Indian Diplomats.

He told veteran diplomats that they should encourage policies that were 'out of box' and find new and alternate approaches to chart a pathway to the future.

Talking about the concept of non-alignment, regarding which the Left has accused the government of diluting its commitment, Singh said it was "Always an expression of our enlightened national interest and I dare say, will remain so. The underlying philosophy was that issues would be judged on merits rather than in a mechanical or deterministic manner."