NEW DELHI: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi may have felt encouraged by his recent meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, but New Delhi made it clear on Sunday that there could be no progress in bilateral talks if ceasefire violations on the Line of Control (LoC) are not stopped by Pakistan.

Pakistan’s narrative on Indian allegations is usually quite the opposite and there is no reason to believe on this occasion that Islamabad accepts Indian accusations of any recent violations of the Vajpayee-era ceasefire. India discourages the idea of neutral observers to watch who if any one is in violation of the globally supported bilateral agreement to do nothing provocative on the LoC.

“For the situation to normalise I think it is extremely important that these kind of violations which are taking place at the LoC must stop. That in itself is a confidence building measure before any country can proceed further,” Defence Minister Arun Jaitley told reporters on the second day of his maiden visit to Jammu and Kashmir.

Press Trust of India quoted him as replying in the negative when asked if dialogue with Pakistan would go ahead if the ceasefire violations along LoC and infiltration in Jammu and Kashmir continued.

“Obviously not,” Mr Jaitley, who is on a two-day visit for reviewing security measures, said, adding that ceasefire violations must stop for further progress.

India has maintained that it has been its endeavour to establish peaceful and friendly relations with all neighbours, including Pakistan, PTI said.

It has reminded Pakistan that maintenance of peace and tranquility on the border is a “precondition” for having a normal relationship between the two countries.

PTI said the Sharif-Modi meeting on May 27 was seen as a positive development in Indo-Pak ties, which for last one year have witnessed aloofness due to the alleged incidents along the LoC, including widely announced beheading of an Indian soldier by Pakistan troops. The third round of comprehensive Indo-Pak dialogue process was stalled in January after the beheading incident.

Mr Jaitley said he has discussed the security situation in separate meetings with Governor N.N. Vohra and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Published in Dawn, June 16th, 2014