PM invites diaspora to join active politics in India

New Delhi: Reaching out to the Indian diaspora, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh invited them to "actively" participate in the country's economic development and join politics while hoping that they would get voting rights by the time of next general elections in 2014.
He noted that the country was expecting 7 per cent growth this year despite the "unprecedented" financial crisis and was hopeful about return to sustained 9-10 per cent growth in a couple of years.
"We seek the active involvement of the overseas Indian communities in accelerating the pace of our economic and social development. In this context, it is important that we make efforts to connect the second generation of overseas Indians with their ancestral heritage and involve them actively in India’s march forward," he said inaugurating the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations in New Delhi.
Singh said he recognises the "legitimate desire" of Indians living abroad to exercise their franchise and to have a say in who governs India.
"We are working on this issue and I sincerely hope that they will get a chance to vote by the time of the next regular general elections," Singh told the gathering of 1,500 overseas Indians from 40 countries.
"In fact, I would go a step further and ask why more overseas Indians should not return home to join politics and public life as they are increasingly doing in business and academia," he said.

Source:http://www.financialexpress.com