Monday, Jun 17, 2002
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Talking to mediapersons during his visit to Gujarat, he said that only on Saturday he had heard reports of the official Pakistan radio having claimed that the Kaluchak incident was "the creation'' of the Indian Government. While the Pakistan Government had earlier criticised the killing of innocent women and children in Kaluchak as an act of terrorism, the Pakistan radio now expected the world to believe that "we have killed our own people,'' he said. India, Mr. Advani said, would have to tell the world that despite the announcements and assurances by the Pakistan President, General Pervez Musharraf, about taking steps to stop cross-border terrorism, the country would have to remain "careful and cautious'' till Pakistan completely stopped cross-border terrorism. "We cannot afford to relax our guard,'' he said and ruled out withdrawal of the Army from the border with Pakistan till India was convinced about the implementation of the assurances given by President Musharraf. He said India had so far not agreed with the Western world's claim of Pakistan having taken steps to stop violence in India. "We have only said we need time to assess the reality on the ground and we are assessing the situation,'' he added. Ruling out any dialogue with Pakistan till all the terrorist-training camps in that country and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir were dismantled, Mr. Advani, however, noted with satisfaction the perceptible change that had come in Pakistan's attitude towards terrorism in the last few weeks. Pakistan, which at the Agra summit had claimed that killing of innocent people was natural in a freedom struggle, had been forced to admit at the Almaty convention that any killing of innocent people was an act of terrorism. He said the Government's information was that at least 70 terrorist training camps were still in operation in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and there could be no talks with the neighbouring country till these camps were dismantled and terrorism completely stopped. While the western world had all along privately admitted that Pakistan was encouraging terrorism but did not take such a stance publicly, in the last few weeks countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia had openly told Pakistan that it must stop terrorism. It was a major success of the diplomatic initiatives taken by the Atal Behari Vajpayee Government in the last four years, Mr. Advani said. He said India always appreciated the irony in Washington taking Pakistan as its main partner in its international coalition against terrorism. "We understand their compulsions, geographical and otherwise for which Pakistan had to be its main partner. Besides, who will know the Taliban better than its own creator, the ISI of Pakistan,'' he added. To a question, Mr. Advani said he was aware the Lashkar-e-Taiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad were among the two most active terrorist groups operating in India and were trying to spread their tentacles in Nepal. India had recently cautioned Nepal in this respect. "We are also aware that the terrorist groups were making use of the internet to spread falsehood.'' He said India and Pakistan held different views on Kashmir but the latest survey by a London-based organisation about the opinion of the Kashmiri people was very revealing. Despite the survey report that the large majority of the Kashmiris favoured staying with India, the Indian Government was opposed to a plebiscite not because it feared adverse public opinion but because Pakistan had not fulfilled the conditions of the U.N. resolution of vacating occupied Kashmir. "And with the change in the situation in the last 50 years, the U. N. resolution has now become irrelevant,'' he said. Describing A.P.J. Abdul Kalam as the NDA candidate for the Presidentship, Mr. Advani said he was happy that the Congress and the Samajwadi Party had also supported him. If the Left parties give up the "symbolic contest,'' Dr. Kalam could be elected unanimously.
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