INDIA: India's Prime Minister Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee yesterday ruled out talks with nuclear rival Pakistan until it ended terrorist attacks and created the atmosphere for "meaningful" dialogue.
"Whatever happened in Kashmir shows that there is no normalcy in the state," Mr Vajpayee said in war-torn Kashmir's winter capital Jammu, referring to Thursday's attack by Muslim insurgents on a hotel in the state's summer capital Srinagar, in which four people died. Security officials claim the gunmen involved in the night-long firefight with security forces were backed by Pakistan, which controls a third of Muslim-dominated Kashmir and claims the rest from India. Mr Vajpayee, along with senior cabinet colleagues, was in Srinagar for a state chief ministers' conclave when the attack occurred.
"We would like to have meaningful talks with Islamabad, but if terrorist activities continue, that will not be possible," he added, four days after twin car bombings killed 52 people in the western port city of Bombay. India has also blamed this attack on Pakistan-backed separatist groups fighting the 14-year Kashmiri insurgency for independence.
Pakistan described India's response to the Bombay blasts as "knee-jerk" and "not conducive" to a friendly bilateral relationship.
Indian and Pakistani troops, meanwhile, exchanged fire overnight across the line of control that divides Kashmir. Police in Indian-administered Kashmir said two children died in the shelling.
The neighbours came close to war last year following the suicide attack on India's parliament by Kashmiri separatists, an attack Delhi claims was "launched " by Islamabad. Pakistan has consistently denied the allegations and claims it provides only "moral and diplomatic" support to Kashmir.
Following Mr Vajpayee's peace overtures in April, India and Pakistan resumed diplomatic relations and restored bus services between the two countries. But talks in Islamabad earlier this week to resume air links and over-flights have failed to reach agreement.
Foreign diplomats said the Prime Minister's comments yesterday were a setback to a possible meeting between officials from the two sides on the sidelines of a regional summit scheduled in Islamabad early next year. Analysts said Mr Vajpayee's remarks were also aimed at the majority Hindu voters in crucial elections in five states later this year, by illustrating that his Hindu nationalist-led federal coalition was taking a firm line with Pakistan.
"Vajpayee's remarks indicate that he has an eye on the upcoming polls in which his BJP party is not expected to fare too well, according to polls," former independent MP Mr Kuldip Nayar said.
India's Foreign Minister Yashwant Sinha said talks with Pakistan would be "meaningless" unless it ended fomenting violence.
