Agreed CBMs to be implemented: India rejects proposals involving Kashmiris
By Jawed Naqvi
NEW DELHI, Oct 30: India on Thursday welcomed Pakistan’s acceptance of some proposals to boost contacts among their citizens but rejected a suggestion by Islamabad to allow bus travel across the Line of Control for Kashmiris provided they are given UN documents.
Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna, giving New Delhi’s official response to Foreign Secretary Riaz Khokhar’s news conference on Wednesday, said: “Despite the limited positive responses from Pakistan, it is clear that our prime minister’s initiative has gathered momentum.
Based on the positive responses from Pakistan, Mr Sarna said there would be immediate implementation of the proposals to allow senior citizens to cross at Wagah on foot.
“We would also initiate further steps for working out modalities for links between our Coast Guards and Pakistan’s Maritime Security Agency. We also look forward to bilateral sporting encounters. We will work on the modalities of Pakistan’s proposal for release of apprehended fishermen within a month, although we would have preferred to work out an arrangement for their non-arrest.”
“India would sincerely continue with the process, building on the successes achieved and the support generated, so that lasting peace is established between the two countries,” the spokesman said.
“We welcome the fact that Pakistan has responded positively to at least some of the proposals announced by (India) on October 22,” said Mr Sarna. “We are disappointed that they have attached impractical, extraneous or delaying conditions to the others.”
The spokesman expressed the hope that Pakistan would come to the negotiating table on Dec 1-2 with an open mind and with the intention of finalizing arrangements for the resumption of civil aviation links.
“We would look forward to holding of technical level talks for resumption of Samjhota Express, in the middle of December, as proposed by Pakistan, after the successful conclusion of the talks in early December for resumption of civil aviation,” Mr Sarna said.
He welcomed Pakistan’s offer of medical treatment to 40 Indian children, saying such offers and their implementation would no doubt enhance interaction and contribute, in some measure, to increasing understanding and empathy.
India was disappointed however that “Pakistan has, in effect, not agreed to our proposals for running extra buses on the Delhi- Lahore route, and establishing links between Mumbai and Karachi, Khokhrapar and Munabao, and Srinagar and Muzaffarabad,” Mr Sarna said.
He said the links would have facilitated (a) widening of people-to-people contacts and cooperation. They could have easily been put into effect through technical level discussions.
“Holding up such simple steps, and making them part of the composite dialogue process in effect means delaying them. Since these measures are aimed at expanding interaction, widening areas of cooperation and building up trust, we will continue to hope that Pakistan will agree to their implementation,” he said.
About India’s offer for a bus link between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad, Mr Sarna said it was motivated by humanitarian considerations. “It is unfortunate that Pakistan has instead opted to politicize and disrupt this by attaching conditions that they knew would not be acceptable. In fact, even now people from these regions travel without the requirement of the kind of documents that Pakistan spoke about,” he said.
About Pakistan’s proposal for a bus link between Lahore and Amritsar, India could assess the requirement for this after progress on Delhi-Lahore bus facility, civil aviation and Samjhota Express, the spokesman said.
Rejecting Pakistan’s demand for a full restoration of their embassy staff to 110, Mr Sarna said: “We are ready for a calibrated increase in size of missions, as the requirement grows with the re-establishment of links, and setting up of new ones.
“However, there is no need to wait for this for holding of visa camps, which would ease the situation for the normal traveller who otherwise has to come all the way to Delhi or Islamabad to get visas. We would urge Pakistan to reconsider this.”
Apparently piqued by Pakistan’s offer of scholarships to Kashmiri students, the Indian spokesman questioned the real aim of the offer.
“As far as Pakistan’s offer of 100 scholarships is concerned, we believe that the process of building trust and cooperation between India and Pakistan, and establishing lasting peace, would be facilitated if offers are not targeted on any particular region of India.
“India has never adopted, for instance, a selective approach for Balochistan, Sindh or NWFP, or for any particular community. Our offers have been available to any Pakistani. If Pakistan were to make such non-discriminatory and general offers of cooperation, then it would no doubt contribute to taking the process further,” Mr Sarna said.
Referring to Mr Khokhar’s remarks about the victims of rape and repression in Kashmir, the spokesman said India was “amused at Pakistan’s profession of concern at the plight of disabled and negatively affected people in the state of Jammu & Kashmir.”
He said if Pakistan’s concerns were really sincere, “it should take immediate steps to end infiltration, dismantle the infrastructure of support to terrorism, and offer compensation to those affected by the terrorism it has sponsored.”
Pakistan’s references to “alleged repression on J&K are obviously only a ploy for its failed attempt to camouflage its sponsorship and support for terrorism,” Mr Sarna said.
“I would also like to reiterate that Jammu & Kashmir is not a disputed territory. The only issue that remains to be resolved for a final settlement of J&K, is the question of Pakistan’s illegal occupation of a portion of the state,” he declared, echoing an Indian parliamentary resolution to that effect.
He said India was committed to a dialogue process based on the premise that sustained dialogue required an end to alleged cross-border infiltration and terrorism. “If Pakistan perceives, as it has claimed, that composite dialogue is in mutual interest, it must immediately put an end to its sponsorship of cross-border terrorism.”
