Singh says India ready to discuss all issues, but Pakistan must curb, punish terorrists

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said India was ready to discuss all issues with Pakistan but it must demonstrate its sincerity and good faith by curbing those engaging in terrorism and punishing those responsible for acts of terror against this country.

"If they are non-state actors, it is the solemn duty of the government of Pakistan to bring them to book, to destroy their camps and to eliminate their infrastructure," Dr Singh said at a public rally in Anantnag before  inaugurating the Anantnag-Qazigund railway line in Jammu and Kashmir and flagging off the first train on the section.

"The perpetrators of the acts of terror must pay the heaviest penalty for their barbaric crimes against humanity," he declared.

Dr Singh said it was a misplaced idea that one could reach a compromise with the ideology of the terrorists or that they could be used for one's own purpose.

"Eventually they turn against you and bring only death and destruction. The real face of the terrorists is clear for the people of Pakistan to see with their own eyes," he said.

The Prime Minister hoped the Government would take the ongoing actions against the terrorist groups in that country to their logical conclusion. He said they should destroy these groups wherever they were operating and for whatever misguided purpose.

India has been putting pressure on Pakistan for the past many months to bring to justice those responsible for the November 26, 2008 terror attacks on Mumbai, which claimed about 180 lives. India blames elements based in Pakistan for the attacks.

"I call upon the people and Government of Pakistan to show their sincerity and good faith. As I have said many times before, we will not be found wanting in our response," he said.

Dr Singh recalled that he had, upon taking over as Prime Minister for the first time in 2004, said that he was ready to discuss all issues with Pakistan. He said he had done that not because of weakness but from a position of strength.

According to him, India had had the most fruitful and productive discussions ever with the Government of Pakistan during the period 2004-07 when militancy and violence began to decline in Jammu and Kashmir.

He said intensive discussions were held on all issues, including on a permanent resolution of the issue of Jammu and Kashmir.

"For the first time in 60 years, people were able to travel by road across the LoC. Divided families were re-united at the border. Trade between the two sides of Kashmir began. In fact, our overall trade with Pakistan increased three times during 2004-07. The number of visas that we issued to Pakistanis doubled during the same period. An additional rail link was re-established," he said.

The Prime Minister said these were not small achievements given the history of India's troubled relationship with Pakistan.

"Inside the valley, as militancy declined, trade, business and tourism began to pick up. We were moving in the right direction. For the first time there was a feeling among the people that a durable and final peace was around the corner," he said.

Dr Singh said that, however, all the progress that was achieved had been repeatedly thwarted by acts of terrorism.

"The terrorists want permanent enmity to prevail between the two countries. The terrorists have misused the name of a peaceful and benevolent religion. Their philosophy of hate has no place here. It is totally contrary to our centuries-old tradition of tolerance and harmony among faiths," he remarked.

He said he strongly believed that the majority of people in Pakistan wanted good neighbourly and cooperative relations between India and Pakistan. They wanted permanent peace, which India also wanted, he said.

He said the cross-LoC initiatives had been well received on both sides of the border but he was aware that they were not as people-friendly as they could be. He said the trade facilities at the border were inadequate, there were no banking channels, customs facilities needed to be strengthened, there were no trade fairs, the lists of tradable commodities needed to be increased, and clearances for travel took time. He also pointed out that prisoners of India and Pakistan were languishing in each other’s jails even after completing their sentences.

"The fact is that these are humanitarian issues whose resolution requires the cooperation of Pakistan. We are ready to discuss these and other issues with the Government of Pakistan. I hope that as a result things will be made easier for our traders, divided families, prisoners and travelers. For a productive dialogue it is essential that terrorism must be brought under control," he added.

NNN