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J&K ceasefire extended till May-end

Tara Shankar Sahay in New Delhi

The unilateral cease-fire in Jammu and Kashmir has been extended till the end of May.

"Let this opportunity not be missed by all those who desire peace. We will not let this process be derailed or diluted," Prime Minister A B Vajpayee told the Lok Sabha on Thursday.

He also made it clear that the peace process was only for those who wish to benefit from it.

"We will not let this process get derailed, diluted or misused for organisations or elements who have vowed to disturb the peace process, or intend to continue with violence and the killing of innocents in J&K. My message is unequivocal and clear: If you afflict injury on any Indian citizen in the state of J&K or elsewhere, or commit any act of violence or terrorism, the security forces have clear instructions to act decisively and to defeat such intentions," said Vajpayee.

"Law and order must be maintained. Those who think that our security forces are less determined today to put an end to terrorism are only deluding themselves," he added.

The prime minister said that it was his hope that Pakistan would act even now and abjure violence. "Give up your hostile propaganda against India and stop promoting cross-border terrorism," he said.

Vajpayee hoped that Islamabad would take the path of peace through bilateral talks and enshrined in the Simla Agreement and Lahore Declaration, creating a conducive atmosphere so that a comprehensive dialogue process can be resumed, resulting in a lasting solution to the problems.

The Cabinet Committee on Security meeting Wednesday had decided to go ahead with the unilateral cease-fire which was announced in December 2000, from the Islamic month of Ramzan.

The all-party meeting had given a nod on Wednesday to go ahead with the cease-fire.

Full text of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's
statement in Parliament

ALSO SEE
J&K ceasefire to be extended: UNI
All-party meet favours extension of J&K ceasefire

COMPLETE COVERAGE
The Ceasefire in J&K

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