Other steps must follow, say parties

By Neena Vyas

NEW DELHI, FEB. 21. The Government decision to extend ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir today was made easier with party leaders across the political divide virtually giving their prior approval. But not before warning that continuous extension cannot be an end in itself, and that the Government must take other political, economic and diplomatic initiatives simultaneously to effectively convert the ceasefire into a meaningful peace initiative.

The parties' green signal for yet another extension was given, but not without criticising the Government handling of the situation. The Government must ensure security of the common man, who has paid the price with increased number of civilian deaths during the three-month ceasefire, it should initiate a dialogue with the people and those who represent them and not only with militants, and it must think about an internal dialogue on greater autonomy for the State.

Thirty leaders representing 21 parties discussed for over two-and-a-half hours the issue of the ceasefire extension at a meeting called by the Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee. The Prime Minister said he had listened ``carefully'' to the party leaders and would consider their view when taking a decision later at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security Affairs in the evening.

After a 35-minute presentation by intelligence agencies on the ground realities in the State, the Home Minister, Mr. L. K. Advani, gave the Government's perception - the ceasefire was welcomed by the people of the State and praised by the international community even as Pakistan had been isolated. However, militants had struck several times and civilian deaths had increased during the ceasefire period, he admitted.

A cryptic remark by the Leader of the Opposition, Ms. Sonia Gandhi, at the end, summed it up. ``The meeting was a government briefing on the positive effects of the ceasefire. They asked for an endorsement, we gave it.'' The CPI(M)'s Mr. Somnath Chatterji expressed dissatisfaction thus: ``Ceasefire for what? There has been no dialogue, no initiative to normalise the situation. The question of more autonomy for Kashmir needs to be looked at, and talk of trifurcation of the state coming from certain quarters should be stopped.''

Perhaps the strongest indictment came from the RJD leader, Mr. Raghuvansh Prasad Singh: ``Had the Government thought of consulting the Opposition at this late stage because there were serious differences on the issue of extension of ceasefire within the Cabinet? Would the Government talk to the Sangh Parivar which has been making dangerous demands for the trifurcation of the state?'' Mr. P. A. Pandian of the AIADMK listed the attacks at the Red Fort, the Police Control Room in Srinagar, the attempt on Dr. Farooq Abdullah's life and the threat held out to the PMO. There had been no positive response from Pakistan's military ruler, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, he added.

The allies and supporting parties led by Mr. K. Yerran Naidu of the Telugu Desam Party, were softer on the Government, saying the results had been ``satisfactory'', and that there was a need for another extension to consolidate the gains made. The BJP leader, Mr. V. K. Malhotra, wanted the Government to ensure the security of ``pro-India elements in Kashmir, including a sizeable number in the majority Muslim community'' as they were ``obvious targets'' of militant attacks. The Government should effectively counter Pakistan's propaganda, he said adding there could not be any ceasefire against foreign militants terrorising the State.

The National Conference leader, Mr. Abdul Shaheen, said his party was the first to talk about the need to discuss greater autonomy, and that today, civilians in the State were being targeted by ``both sides,'' an unambiguous reference to the firing on civilian demonstrators by security forces. In any dialogue ``patriotic and nationalist forces'' such as the NC must be included.

The CPI(ML), which was not invited to the meeting, later said, ``if custodial deaths continue and killers in uniform are not brought to book'', the ceasefire would remain an eyewash.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Front Page
Previous : U.S. may lift sanctions soon
Next     : Napster makes a billion-dollar offer