KARACHI: The President, General Agha Moham­mad Yahya Khan ... urged bona fide Pakistan citizens, who had left their homes due to disturbed conditions in East Pakistan, to return to their homes. In a statement here ... the President said that law and order has been restored in the Eas­tern Wing and life is fast returning to normal.

The President’s statement said: “I would urge them not to be misled by false propaganda mounted by anti-State elements and to return to carry out their normal functions.

“There is no question of withholding permission to the return of law-abiding citizens of Pakistan to their respective homes,” the President said. … “It is most regrettable,” [he said] “that instead of treating the question of genuine refugees on humanitarian basis a callous campaign has been launched by India to exploit this issue for political purposes.”

[Meanwhile, as reported by agencies in United Nations,] Secretary-General U Thant yesterday [May 20] welcomed the agreement between the US and the Soviet Union on the future of the Strategic Arms Limitation (SALT) talks. “This may well constitute a breakthrough in the complex and prolonged negotiations ahead,” he said.

Published in Dawn, May 22nd, 2021