rediff.com: Vajpayee praises Kashmiris for rejecting violence

Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee on Monday night praised the people of Jammu and Kashmir for their 'outright rejection' of terrorist violence, and support to the democratic process.

Addressing the Indian community in the capital of Cyprus, which the prime minister is visiting as part of a three-nation European tour, Vajpayee kept the audience spellbound with his characteristic wit and humour.

"We want friendship with our neighbouring countries. So I went to Lahore by bus [on the peace mission]. But the bus later got punctured," Vajpayee told the receptive gathering, consisting mostly of software programmers and IT experts, who repeatedly cheered him.

"People of Kashmir have made their wishes known in these [assembly] elections that they will be with us at any cost," he said.

He said the satisfactory voter turnout in the face of severe intimidation and threats to both voters and candidates was a decisive triumph of the ballot over the bullet.

Vajpayee said he was told about the problem of partition being faced by Cyprus from Turkey. "I told them that those who orchestrated partition of India, they themselves had to face partition in the form of Bangladesh. Those who sow seeds of discord and division can never achieve their ends."

Vajpayee said partition was 'very painful', but there were some [in an obvious reference to Musharraf] who will even go to war to carry this out.

Asserting that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, he said, "Kashmir chhodne ka tho sawaal hi nahin uthta [There is no question of leaving Kashmir]."

He lamented that for over five decades since 1948 the Kashmir problem has been festering on the contention that India's partition was on the basis of Hindu-Muslim divide and that Kashmir should go to Pakistan. "We can never accept this."

"Will Pakistan be ready to take all of them there? I am not talking of sending them. But only raising a question," he said. "People of Kashmir have made it clear that they will not live under subjugation, they will be independent and take their own decisions and that they are with India."

Describing Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf as a 'dictator of a kind not seen anywhere in the world', Vajpayee said the military ruler has no value for democracy.

Musharraf has usurped all powers and barred top leaders like Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharief from entering Pakistan to participate in the upcoming general elections, he said.

Vajpayee recalled that while he was signing on the Lahore Declaration with Sharief, the Pakistani army general at that time, Musharraf, was plotting Kargil intrusions.

"This is such a big betrayal of trust. You can change friends, but not your neighbours. You have to learn to live with them," he said.

Vajpayee said he invited Musharraf to Agra on the premise that under the 'shades of the historic Taj Mahal, there may be some effect on him and he would understand message of love'.

But Musharraf adamantly stuck to describing the terrorist violence in J&K as 'freedom struggle' and 'war of liberation', he said. "We made it clear that we can never accept this. So the talks failed."

He termed as nothing but 'barbarism' the killing of innocent men, women and children in J&K in terrorist acts.

"Musharraf thought that we will get tired, break apart and surrender Kashmir. This will never happen. People of Kashmir have given a fitting reply," he said.

Vajpayee recalled that last year he had wanted to call Musharraf to know where he would like to go after the summit talks. "But by then, I had received intelligence reports that he had appointed himself Pakistan's President. "When I called him, I addressed him as Mr President. He was taken aback. He said 'not yet, not yet'. I said in that case, you will be in a little while."

Vajpayee said India wants democracy in Pakistan. "We wish them well. But if it is bent on destroying itself, none of us can save it."

The prime minister was flanked by Disinvestment Minister Arun Shourie, his Principal Secretary Brajesh Mishra and Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal at the reception hosted by the Indian High Commissioner, Pavan K Varma.


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