Lone's call to Pak., militants

By B. Muralidhar Reddy

ISLAMABAD, DEC. 1. Senior All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) leader, Mr. Abdul Ghani Lone, has urged Pakistan and militant organisations engaged in Kashmir to respond suitably to the Kashmir peace initiative.

Speaking at various functions in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistan occupied Kashmir, Mr. Lone was at pains to emphasise that a negative response to the New Delhi initiative could prove costly and counter-productive to Kashmiris.

``It is a peace initiative from the Indian Prime Minister, Mr. Atal Behari Vajpayee and we must come out with counter offensive measures so that the world does not dub us as terrorists who do not respect peace. It is a war of wits and we must answer it diplomatically,'' he has been quoted as saying.

Mr. Lone spelt out his thinking as to how India could make the offer more meaningful.

``This is a good gesture but Mr. Vajpayee must improve it. He needs to say that Kashmir is a disputed territory and the problem should be resolved through tripartite talks,'' he told a gathering in Muzaffarabad.

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Section  : International
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