ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has proposed to the Indian Government postponement of the talks on restoration of communication links and travel facilities because the atmosphere has become unfavourable for a successful outcome, a Foreign Office spokesman told newsmen here today [June 1]. He said the Indian nuclear explosion of May 18 has been a disrupting force for the process of normalising India-Pakistan relations and has vitiated the atmosphere for negotiations. The talks were due to begin on June 10 at Islamabad. … He said the decision … had been taken despite the Indian Prime Minister’s letter to Prime Minister Bhutto on the subject.

[Meanwhile, as reported by news agencies,] the Government of Sind has … prohibited for a period of one month all printers, publishers and editors in the province from printing or publishing any document, newspaper, periodical or anything relating to religious or sectarian matters. … The order … said that it has come to the notice of the Sind Government that some newspapers were publishing news items and comments relating to religious controversies and sectarian disputes. The action has been necessitated to maintain public order in the province.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2024