The Hindu : Doors open to all who reject militancy: PM

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Aug 28, 2003

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Doors open to all who reject militancy: PM

By Vinay Kumar

SRINAGAR AUG. 27 . The Prime Minister, Atal Behari Vajpayee, today said that the Centre's doors were open to all those who rejected militancy and extreme positions and "wish to play a constructive role in taking Jammu and Kashmir forward on the high road of peace and rapid development".

Inaugurating a two-day Inter-State Council meeting here, Mr. Vajpayee assured the people and the Jammu and Kashmir Government of "maximum help in consolidating the recent gains.'' He vowed to further intensify "our sincere efforts to advance the dialogue process".

Lauding the people of the State for showing their faith in democracy in the face of grave threats, Mr. Vajpayee said the Assembly elections last October would go down "as one of the finest victories for the ballot, in its battle against the bullet, in world history".

"Above everything else, it (Assembly election) was a mandate for peace. It was a mandate against cross-border terrorism, which the people of this State have suffered for over a decade and paid a heavy price," he told the Chief Ministers and Central Ministers here. It is for the first time that the Inter-State Council is meeting outside Delhi. The symbolism of holding the meet in Srinagar was not lost as the Congress-PDP Government of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed rolled out the red carpet for the high-power meet amid albeit an elaborate security blanket all over the city.

`Heartening changes'

Welcoming the recent change in situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the Prime Minister said: "How heartening it is to know that the `shikaras' are once again sailing with tourists on the famous Dal Lake in front of this convention centre. How reassuring it is to know that the hope of normality is returning to the Kashmir Valley."

It is Mr. Vajpayee's second visit to the Valley in less than four months. He had addressed a massive public rally here on April 18 where he extended the hand of friendship to Pakistan.

In his inaugural address, the Prime Minister did not make any specific reference either to the Hurriyat Conference or to any other separatist organisation but reiterated his Government's stated position of holding dialogue with those who abjure violence. The meeting of the Council took place even as militant organisations and the Hurriyat gave a call for general strike in the city.

Referring to the Inter-State Council's agenda, Mr. Vajpayee urged the Chief Ministers to help ensure that after 13 long years the discussion on the Sarkaria Commission's recommendations on Centre-State relations came to a final and consensual conclusion at the Srinagar meeting. Elaborating, he said the dynamics of social, economic and political forces in India had changed significantly since the Sarkaria Commission submitted its report. "Centre-State relations have improved and a sense of partnership has emerged."

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