Pak. announces 'partial withdrawal' of troops on LoC

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, DEC. 20. Within hours of India extending the ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan announced `partial withdrawal' of its troops on the Line of Control (LoC) and urged India to reciprocate.

A brief military press statement characterised the decision as `another bold initiative' as a follow-up to the policy of exercising maximum restraint along the Line of Actual Contact and Line of Control.

``The move back has already commenced and the troops have started moving to cantonments. However, necessary safeguards have been taken against any possible Indian misadventure across the LoC and to ensure protection of the local population.

``This action manifests Pakistan's earnest and genuine desire to de-escalate the situation in order to facilitate the process of meaningful dialogue on the issue. It is hoped that India would also reciprocate in a similar manner and de-induct part of its seven lakh-strong force deployed in Indian Occupied Kashmir''.

When asked for the number of troops withdrawn from the LoC, a spokesman of the military told The Hindu that ``the number is classified information. We cannot tell you the numbers''.

Earlier the announcement by the Prime Minister, Mr. A.B. Vajpayee, evoked lukewarm to hostile response from the Pakistan Government and Pakistan-based militant organisations. While the Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman preferred to wait to look at the fine print of the Indian announcement, the militant organisations have denounced it as a meaningless exercise unless followed by concrete steps towards resolution of the Kashmir dispute.

The Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman, Mr. Riaz Mohammad Khan, said it was too early for Islamabad to react to the announcement and the decision needed to be carefully considered.

``We have to see this statement because usually the Indian statements have all kinds of conditionalities'', he said while refraining from making any comment. A day after the first ceasefire announcement by Mr. Vajpayee on November 19, Pakistan's reaction was that it was no more than a tactical short-term offer to impose a military solution to the Kashmir conflict.

However, over a week later Pakistan chose to respond positively by its declaration to observe ``maximum restraint'' on the LoC and invited the executive of the All-Parties Hurriyat Conference (APHC) to Islamabad for discussions.

Indications are that sooner than later Pakistan would welcome the extension of the ceasefire and reciprocate the gesture. Unlike India, which originally intended to cease operations during the Ramazan period, Pakistan had not put any timeframe for `maximum restraint' on the border.

In contrast to the cautious approach of the Foreign Office the Hizb-ul Mujahideen deemed the extension as a futile exercise unless India was prepared to follow it up with concrete steps towards resolution of the Kashmir problem.

The Lashkar-e-Taiba saw little meaning in the extension and said that it was only meant to give relief to the `weary and tired' personnel of the armed forces. The Lashkar spokesman, Mr. Yahya Mujaheed, said his organisation would continue its operations in Kashmir. The Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front Chairman, Mr. Amanullah Khan, said his organisation was prepared to welcome the extension `conditionally' and would expect India to initiate some `practical steps' leading to resolution of the Kashmir dispute.

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