In attack shadow, spotlight on Uri road

New Delhi asked for a postponement of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service talks that were supposed to have been held in Islamabad on April...

New Delhi asked for a postponement of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service talks that were supposed to have been held in Islamabad on April 8-9 but the issue has now become politically sensitive given yesterday’s grenade attack on the PDP rally called to welcome the bus service.

With Prime Minister A B Vajpayee’s proposed trip to the Valley on April 11, the PDP has raised the pitch. In fact, the postponement of the talks after ‘‘mutual consultations’’ between India and Pakistan was announced just the day before, too late for the PDP to call off its rally in Uri, the last bus stop before the Line of Control begins.

State Finance minister Muzaffar Beig and Tourism Minister Ghulam Mir were injured in the attack that killed 11 people and in which PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti had a narrow escape. Over a hundred were injured.

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At the rally yesterday, an emotional Mehbooba had said that those behind the attack were against the opening of the road since they wanted to derail the peace process.

Even the Hurriyat, which is now pushing for a poll boycott, wants the road opened and the bus service resumed—the first time since 1956.But sources here said that India’s request to postpone the discussions came as a relief to the Pakistani side, which has for some time now evaded the issue of what documentation passengers would carry. While Islamabad favours UN documents, Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan has said ‘‘all modalities’’ would be considered.

	Friend Tarigami to take on Mehbooba in Anantnag

			SRINAGAR: After Baramulla, the J-K ruling coalition partners are now going to clash in the Anantnag parliamentary seat, with senior CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yosuf Tarigami deciding to take on People’s Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti. He said he was not surprised with the state government’s performance.

Sources here said Pakistan High Commissioner to India Aziz Khan told breakaway Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani about a fortnight ago that Pakistan ‘‘was not in favour of such a bus service’’ and would postpone it as long as possible. Incidentally, it was New Delhi which first proposed the start of such a bus service. Analysts speculated that the request for postponement came because the MEA insisted on ‘‘passports and visas’’ for passengers.

Since that would have caused a breakdown in the talks—Pakistan would not have accepted any suggestion that converts the LoC into an international boundary— New Delhi could have preempted criticism by buying time. This was the third time the talks were postponed.